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inmyheadimobsessed · 1 year

Text

I Can't Love You in the Dark

pairing: riri ✘ fem!udaku!reader

summary: given your siblings' over protective natures, you are forced to keep your relationship with riri a secret, but missing her calls for drastic measures. what happens when they find out? (requested by @melodykisses)

word count: 10.4k

contains: fluff, implied smut, protective!shuri, protective!t'challa, slight himbo!t'challa, shuri in her detective bag, lovesick!reader, lovesick!riri

tags: @verachii @szalipcombo @rxcently @coolestgay @widowmakker @fetchyourlife @blackgcomica @shurisbbymama @bestfriend491 @simp4iwaizumi @mocha-aya @shinsousliya @bratydoll @shuriswifereal @shuriri4life @shuris-whore @letitias-fav @axailslink @chidinma @xoxo-dede @yvxmpire @zayswriting

divider by: @firefly-graphics

note: ngl it took me forever to finish this because i kept crying whenever i had to write scenes with t'challa in them. i hope it turned out okay and i didn't completely botch his character lol. but i think it's cute and fun idk. as always shouts out to oomf for the translations. pls enjoy these words my brain concocted <333

translations: ndiyacela - please, ndikuthanda kakhulu - i love you so much, mtuwam - my person

Rainy days in Wakanda always brought with them nostalgia. Droplets pelted the grass in your garden as you sat perched by your windowsill, admiring the fall. The hammering rain remedied your mind, bittersweet memories playing on an extended loop. A necessary distraction from your existing reality. It was not heavy enough to be deemed a storm, there was no thunder, no lightning, but it had the same lasting effects on your mood.

Rain made you miss her. You missed her smile, her laugh. You longed to feel her lips against yours again, craved the wistful sensation they filled you with that last night she spent in your quarters.

She'd come to say her goodbyes. She was with Shuri moments before, collecting her things and being reunited with her father's car. You thought she'd leave without a word, seeing as your time together was barely enough to be considered anything. Stolen touches in the presence of your siblings, magnetic fingers ghosting over one another. A push and pull that never got the chance to connect, not completely.

You two would lock eyes in your sister’s lab from a distance, using yearning stares to convey what your words could not, what you wouldn't allow them to.

At the time she wanted more than you saw yourself able to offer, so assuming she would leave Wakanda without saying goodbye to you was an idea you made yourself comfortable with. Until she showed up that night while you sat on your balcony, nursing a cup of tea, and letting your mind spin on with thoughts of turmoil and loss.

“Heavy is the head.”

You whipped up at the sound of her voice, not believing it at first. Her warm half-smile brought you back down to Earth and out of your own thoughts. Seeing her, just merely looking at Riri standing in your doorway had your chest tightening and heart sprinting.

“I am afraid you must be thinking of my brother. T’challa is king, his head is heaviest.”

She chuckled slightly, moving closer onto the balcony. “I don't think Ima ever get used to how gorgeous it is here. You hear the stories, but they don't do it justice.”

Brown eyes marveled at the city lights before them, while you marveled at how the gleams illuminated her face. It was difficult to admire the city when someone else stole all of your attention just by being.

“Wakanda will miss your presence.” You sipped your tea, averting her eyes when she finally turned to face you.

“Here I was thinking y’all wanted me out for good. I mean I'm technically the reason all that shit went down anyway.” Her nervous laughter pulled your eyes to hers.

You stood, walking over to her, studying her features. You could see the guilt swirling in her pupils, how it lodged itself deep inside of them, darkening their hue. “None of what happened was your fault. No one blames you. You are a victim just as we all are.”

“I blame me.” It was a whisper, and it rocked your core. A flick of anger ran through you at the thought of her feeling even the slightest bit guilty, anger at those who created it. Everyone who made her think this way about herself was taken care of. It eased your conscience some, knowing she would not be bothered again. Yet you still wished there was something you could do to absolve her of the feeling, anything.

You tilted Riri’s chin with your index finger and she flinched. You’d hardly touched her since she'd been in your country, not in the way you wanted to. So her shock was warranted. The two of you were aware of the brewing emotions when in each other's presence. You liked it, wanted more of it, but you were also aware of your older siblings, and their overprotective natures.

You knew it would only intensify now with your mother gone, and being with Riri, or anyone for that matter, would make them wary.

“I want you to stop that. I do not blame you, and I will not have you leave me believing that I do.”

Riri gulped. This was the closest you'd ever let her be to you. “Leave you?”

“Are you not preparing to leave me? Isn't that why you've come? To say goodbye?”

She shook her head, stepping out from under your touch. “Nah, I'm leaving Wakanda. You made it clear you didn't want this, don't do that.”

She was wrong. So very wrong. You wanted her more than she knew, more than you yourself understood. But you couldn't have her, and she didn't get that. “Do what?”

“That. Don't act like I'm breaking your heart or some shit. You don't wanna be with me and that's cool, but don't make me feel like it's on me. I told you how I felt from jump, don't put this on me. Please.”

“It is not on you. Nothing is on you, I need you to know that, now and forever.”

She backed away slowly, frustration fueling her antics. “Ugh! You know ion like when you do that. You're making it seem like choosing to be with me is some huge task, like you want to but can't. It's either you do or you don't. You're in your own way, this don't got nothing to do with Shuri, or T’challa. It's you. You don't want this, you don't want me.”

“Riri I–”

“Nah. I came to say bye, like you said, and Ima do that. Cause you deserve that at least, and I'm big on treating folks in the way they deserve. So goodbye, have a nice life.” She tried to step through the door, but you grabbed her wrist, igniting that familiar pull. That magnetic buzz you two knew well.

You spun her to face you and her eyes widened. She attempted to tug away, she was quite adamant about it, but your hold was firm. You wouldn't let her walk away from you. Not this time.

“Don't.” She did not mean it. You’d grown to learn her tones, and this one was a plea not for you to stop, but one that begged for continuance. Riri wanted you to take it all the way, and her beautiful gaze told you as much.

When you kissed her the sky roared, shaking your world. It pelted the two of you with endless showers. You cupped her wet face amidst it all, pulling her closer, kissing her deeper. Passion seeped from within her into you, and you absorbed it all like your clothes did the rain. Soaking up all that Riri was had been a long-standing desire of yours for the last two months, and now you were drowning in it; you were drowning in her.

The rain still poured as you pulled away, but neither of you seemed to mind, neither of you seemed to notice. You were too caught up in the heat of each other as you watched the lightning reflect in her striking eyes. “To hell with my siblings. I do know what I want. I want you, Riri Williams.”

She nodded, kissing you again before tugging you into your room and ridding your bodies of your soaked clothing. You touched her everywhere that night, making up for lost time. It was something you both needed, something to solidify everything you felt for each other. No one had ever made you feel the way Riri did, and you needed her to know that.

Rain pounded at your windows, desperate and eager just as your lips were roaming her body, and it only added to the intensity floating inside your bedroom. You’d never felt more whole than in that moment.

“I am going to miss you terribly. Going to miss this.”

She put her bra back on before slipping into one of your tops. She kissed you then, less forceful now, still as heated. “I think you'll be aight for a couple of months.”

“Months?!?!”

Her laugh was loud and it roared from within her like the thunder outside. “Damn, I barely got my clothes back on yet and you already feening? Was it that good ma?”

You tossed a pillow at her and she gasped. “Shuri gave you Kimoyo beads?”

She held her wrist up, showing off the bracelet your sister crafted. “Good. I will be contacting you every day until I am able to see you again.”

“You real cute when you clingy, I like it better than you being detached and trying to ignore me.” You pulled her in again, pecking all over her face and she giggled. “But I really gotta go before Shuri comes looking for me and finds me half naked in your room. I been gone way longer than I said I’d be.”

Your eyebrows shot up as you were reminded of the risk you were taking. “You are right. She tracks me and watches me like a hawk. You should hurry.”

With one last kiss, Riri was out of your bedroom and heading back to America. And all you could think of was the way her mouth felt against every part of you, and how big your feelings for her were.

Every time it rained, your thoughts drifted, returning you to that night. That was your last time seeing her in person, feeling her, and you were suffering. You longed to be in her embrace again. Riri was a drug and your addiction only strengthened and grew incessant the more days you spent without her.

You’d kept your relationship a secret, fearing your siblings would not approve, especially now. At first it was thrilling, having something only you and Riri shared. And it was easy to conceal, being worlds apart.

But months of video chatting and vaguely explicit messages were no longer cutting it. You needed her with you, and it was something you were going to get. A plan hatched in your mind just as you heard soft rapping on your bedroom door.

You rolled your eyes. “Yes, I am awake. I am breathing. You may tell my brother that and you may leave me alone.”

“Who is to say I am not checking on your living status for myself?” Aneka stepped into your room then, grinning as she often did.

You spun to face her, sporting a bored expression. “As you can see, I am alive, and I am well.”

“Alive, yes. But you are not well. You have not been well since Miss Williams returned back to America.” She smirked when she caught your eyebrows shooting up, knowing she had you, but you were determined to prove her wrong. “What? Did you think I was unaware of your relationship?”

You deadpanned. “I have not been well since Shuri and T’challa decided I was a prisoner in my own home.”

“Ah, Princess, come on now. You are not a prisoner, they are only worried about you and want to keep you safe. As do I. We have all learned that we are not as protected as we previously thought ourselves to be.”

“Then why do I feel like I am a prisoner?” You challenged.

Aneka stepped closer to you, holding your gaze in that deathly intimidating way that she did. Despite her seemingly chipper demeanor, this stare she possessed, this daunting glare, it never failed to run your blood cold. The goosebumps on your forearms sparked instantaneously, like a knee-jerk reaction as she stood directly in front of you. Your breath hitched. “I can assure you, the life you live is in no way similar to the life of a prisoner, Princess.”

“Have I mentioned how unsettling it is when you stare at me like that?” Your attempt to keep the air light was acknowledged and she loosened her shoulders.

“You think so? I have been trying to perfect it, Ayo told me it isn't quite there, but I disagree.” She grinned. You respected Aneka a lot, and you respected her ability to shift from soldier to friend with ease.

You rolled your eyes with a huff, flopping onto your bed rather dramatically. “I'm glad you find this so amusing.”

“If you are so miserable without your scientist, why don't you make your case to go see her? I'm sure Shuri and T’challa would not mind you spending time with her, she and the Princess are friends after all.” You tried ignoring the buzz you felt at the words, your scientist. Riri was yours, all yours.

This made you sit up, a plotting grin hanging on your mouth. “Oh don't you worry about that, Aneka dear. I have that all figured out.”

“Now it is you who unsettles me, Princess. I want no part in whatever it is you are scheming. I will report to the King that you are awake.” With that, she picked up her spear and shifted out the door, leaving you alone to your own devices. Not a particularly logical thing to do, seeing as you had it in your mind you would be seeing your girlfriend soon. You and your devices would make sure of that.

•••

The Throne Room awakened memories you tried putting to bed. Months of avoidance, only for you to return now, reliving everything all over again. Gone was that homey feel it previously housed, in its place stood despair. Somehow the rain was aware of that. Crying skies depicted the emotions you felt being back here, your mood threatening to darken like the clouds outside.

It was quiet. No stirring apart from the gentle showers. Your brother was alone, as you hoped he'd be.

Stoic as ever, T’challa stood in front of the reinforced windows, palms tucked inside each other behind his back as he studied the foggy glass. You needed not to see his face to know he was contemplating, deep in his thoughts, swimming in them as he often did.

His whirring mind did nothing to conceal your presence from him. There was no doubt he sensed you coming before you even rounded the corner. “Do my eyes and ears deceive me?”

He watched you now, following your distorted silhouette through the glass as you strode toward him.

“They do not, My King.” His aura as intense as it was inviting, pulling you closer until your feet rested right beside his towering body. You joined him in his leisure, your own eyes falling to the streams of water racing each other down the surface.

"How are you?" His true concern buried deep under the question, and you answered as best you could, aware he was feeling similarly.

You bumped his shoulder with your own, grinning ever so slightly.

When he chuckled, it rumbled out of him from deep within. It was teasing, just as you expected. It was also comforting, cozy, washing over you and lightening your mood. “Have you come to ask me for something Shuri has said no to? If she has denied you, I am afraid there is nothing I can do to help you, Littlest Sister.”

He was bluffing and you knew it. Together, there was no negotiating with Shuri and T’challa. They worked as a unit to plot your untimely demise, as you were so fond of saying. Or rather Shuri worked, whilst T'challa merely followed her lead. The simple thought of your new ‘restrictions’ had your irritation flaring. No late night walks or drives alone, no venturing to the river without supervision, you had to be home at a certain time, no spending the night at your friend's.

Some were reasonable, you could admit that, and you understood their worry completely. But not allowing you to go shopping in the market without Aneka at your side was a tad overbearing. You were not a child, you could protect yourself just as well as they could. But once the two of them made up their minds together, that was final.

Which is precisely why you sought T’challa out alone. Of the two, he was easiest to manipulate. In Shuri's absence, you got what you wanted. She knew your tricks too well, having been the one to teach them to you. It was tougher for T’challa to say no to you and you took advantage of that.

“No. I have not seen Shuri today actually. Aneka was too busy, she could not cradle me in her arms like a baby and escort me to the lab.” You narrowed your eyes and his smile grew.

He tsked, deciding to play along. “That is too bad. I suppose since you have no supervision, I have no choice but to confine you to your room for the rest of the day, hmm?”

“I do not need supervision, Brother, as I've been saying for months.”

“Then what is it that you want? I am sure it’s something.”

Your gasp was dramatic as you clutched your chest, and it made him laugh again. “Do I have to want something to pay my Big Brother a visit?”

“Usually, yes. What else would bring you here, and have you address me as King, instead of what was it again? Oh yes, your jailer.”

You rolled your eyes, stomping your foot in the process. He still hadn't changed his stance, if he didn't see your pout and puppy dog eyes, you would be leaving here without the thing you came for. “Well now that you mention it, there is something I have come to discuss.”

“See, I knew it!”

“But! It is not for me, it's for Shuri.”

He turned to face you then, sporting a curious expression. Perfect, it was game time. “Well, I am sure you've noticed she retreats to her lab more often these days. You didn't hear this from me, but I think she sleeps there. It's worrisome. Not good for her at all.”

You embellished your concern, adding extra emphasis to certain words in attempts to keep his attention.

The two of you nodded in unison. “Yes, I have noticed this. You are correct, it is worrisome.”

“Right? I’d say maybe she should be the one constantly surveilled and not me, seeing as she's clearly losing herself in whatever it is she's working on over there. This new project of hers has truly been causing immense stress. It's not healthy, I think–”

T’challa snapped his fingers, losing patience with your rambling. “Your point, let us focus on that.”

“Oh yes! My point! The reason I am here! Well, I have a proposal that I believe can be good for her. Something, or rather someone, who can assist her, someone who gets her. A person who thinks similarly to the way she does.”

“And who is this person you speak of?”

A large smile spread across your face as you thought of her, her name escaping you coated in sheer adoration. Adoration you wanted to keep inside. But in order to carry out your plan, have it succeed, you would need to share it, reveal it only slightly to get your way. “Riri Williams.”

“Ah, yes. The American scientist. You believe she can help Shuri?”

You paced in front of him, your hands mimicking his behind your back. “Oh, I do, yes. They are both very intelligent, I believe they can help each other.”

“And how do you know this is something that either of them will want?” His eyes followed you, watching you walk back and forth.

“Well, I can assure you, Big Brother, this is something Miss Williams and I have discussed for quite some time. She wants to return to Wakanda and I would love– I mean, I think Shuri could benefit from her being here.” You cleared your throat and tried to ignore the smirk on your brother's face.

Your demeanor displayed the utmost confidence. You rocked perfect posture and spoke with worry-drenched words, but still, there was a storm brewing inside you.

Your heartbeat stuttered with every sentence, sweat dampened your forehead the longer you stood under T'challa's skeptical gaze. He knew there was something deeper going on than your concern for Shuri, but you had to sell it the best you could.

“Is that so?” That smile on his face told you he was not at all convinced by your sentiment. But you did not need to be convincing, you only needed his permission.

You nodded with a hard smile and faux desperation. He could not break you, you wouldn't let him. “Yes.”

“You and Miss Williams speak often?” Something in his tone dipped and so did your stomach.

“We are friends. Can I not have friends?”

T’challa threw his hands up and you exhaled softly, an indication that he would not be pressing you any further.

“I do not believe that this is entirely for Shuri, you’re not that selfless,” You feigned hurt and he laughed, scratching his beard. “But I will allow it. I quite like Riri, let her know she is free to visit whenever she may like.”

“You wound me, Big Brother. But I quite like Riri as well, and so does Shuri, obviously. Which is why I have decided to arrange her visit for this weekend.”

You beamed, and he squinted at you. “Oh, Littlest Sister, this is where you reveal the part of your plan I will not like, right?”

You bobbed your head up and down before speaking. “I was thinking since this is a surprise for Shuri, I could accompany Aneka on the trip? It would be good for Miss Williams to be greeted by a familiar face you know. She doesn’t know Aneka as well as she knows me. It would make her more comfortable.”

You threw your arms around him before he could protest, pulling back to gaze at him with the most gentle, pleading eyes you could muster. “You've already said she can visit, I just want to make sure her journey here is safe. This would make you my favorite big brother in the world!”

“I’m your only brother. And I did not agree to this. This was not the idea you pitched to me. No, Aneka can retrieve her on her own.”

“Please? Please can I go? I've been cooped up in this palace for months, I just want to greet my friend. Say yes, please?”

He shook his head in defiance. “No. And that is final. I will not risk your safety. Out of the question.”

Your arms were around his neck again as you begged, yanking hard and promising to take extra precautions. You felt T’challa relax under you and a devious smirk formed on your lips, dripping triumphantly. You’d won.

“Fine. But Shuri cannot know, do you hear me?”

You zipped your lips and locked them, tossing the imaginary key over your shoulder. Your smile still housed those doe eyes, and he shook his head.

“Go. Before I change my mind.”

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

You skipped off then, humming to yourself on your stroll back to your quarters. Excitement and anticipation bubbled in your chest at the thought of seeing your girlfriend again. Your longing daydreams of holding her and kissing her would soon become a reality and you felt like you were going to burst.

•••

“Where you going? You look pretty.” The holographic image of Riri’s face examined your expression. You were on your way to surprise her, and it was getting harder to conceal your joy the longer you spoke to her.

You smiled with a light blush, getting lost in her eyes. “Oh, I’m just heading to Shuri’s lab with my babysitter.”

Aneka’s groan was loud enough for Riri to hear and she laughed. “Well, I miss you baby. I wish you were coming to see me.”

“I miss you too, my love.” Riri stretched and you bit your lip at the sight of her in only a sports bra.

When she caught your reaction, she smirked. “You miss me? Or you miss something else, ma?”

“I do not appreciate what you are implying here.” Your voice lowered to a whisper as you eyed Aneka cautiously.

Riri laughed again and the mere sound of it soothed you, making it exceedingly hard to be annoyed with her. “I got the texts to back it up too. Remember when you said, ‘I just want to feel your mouth on m-’”

“Okay! We’ve arrived at the lab, I will talk to you later! Love you, bye!” You swiftly ended the call, hanging your head in embarrassment. Riri’s candor would never be a thing you got used to, you’d found. It was something you loved about her, her openness, but it never failed to shock you.

Aneka turned her head slightly as she spoke to you. “If only the King knew what he agreed to when he allowed you to go on this trip. I told you to leave me out of it, now I have to be subjected to these displays.”

“Ugh! How much longer until we are there? Can’t be trapped in here with you for another minute.” You huffed and she returned her attention to flying the aircraft.

“I can turn it around, you know?” Her words rendered you silent, and you remained that way for the rest of the flight. It was easy to discern from the self-satisfied smirk on her face that Aneka was pleased with her ability to shut you up. You were too excited to see Riri to challenge her anyway, even if you were sure her threat was indeed false.

“We are here.”

Stepping off the Talon Fighter, each breath you drew dried your mouth out, nerves beginning to get the best of you. This was not your first time in America, but it was your first time in Boston, and your first time being in Riri’s world.

Your mind trailed back to when you’d learned of Shuri’s kidnapping the last time she was here, along with Riri. Terror grew inside you that day at the thought of never seeing your sister again. You feared for Riri too, though you hadn’t known her then.

Now it was impossible to envision not knowing her. She took up so much space in your life, and did so gracefully over the span of months.

Your anxiety grew the closer you inched to her dorm room, treading through the sea of students littering the hall. You stood in front of her door then, and you knocked, anticipation clawing at your throat. Trembling fingers fidgeted at your sides as you waited. Seconds felt like hours, ticking by slower than molasses moved, and you allowed the intrusive thoughts to trample your mind like a stampede of elephants.

Did your hair look okay? You’d gotten your Bantu Knots redone that morning, just for her. What if she hated them? What if months apart made her realize she was no longer interested in you? Was she even home? Did she meet someone else? Maybe that was why she hadn’t answered the door yet. Perhaps she was no-

The door swung open and a rather sweaty-looking Riri stood before you: eyes wide and lips parted as her chest heaved. Post-workout looked amazing on her.

She hadn’t moved, nor had she uttered a word, her slow blink recognized as shock. You found yourself at a loss for words as well, taking her in fully for the first time in far too long. The two of you got lost in each other's eyes, as you often did. Staring down at her ignited that pull you’d been craving for months. Your eyes flickered to her lips, and she nodded, still unable to speak. You knew what she wanted, you wanted it too, yearned for it, even if you couldn’t find the words to say it.

You leaned in, smashing your lips to hers and fireworks exploded at the connection. Kissing her awoke a hunger inside your sternum. Riri hopped up, wrapping her legs around your waist and you backed the both of you into her room before kicking the door shut. Her back was on the bed shortly after as you hovered above her, lips still locked. Breathing was an afterthought. You only wanted more of her, all of her.

“You lied to me.” She managed in between hard pecks to your throat. Your hands roamed her sides and her exposed stomach as you moaned into her touch. “Said you was going to Shuri’s lab.”

“I know. Surprise.” Your lips met her chest and she shuddered with a giggle. Her whimpers drove you mad and you tugged on her leggings. “Off.”

She obliged without a beat of hesitation, and you slithered down her body, leaving a trail of hot, wet kisses down her abs on your way to your final destination.

You rolled beside her, exhaling loudly and she laughed into your side. “You are radiant, do you know that?”

“You aight too, I guess.” You gasped and pinched her thigh, bringing forth a whine. When you shifted to face her on the mattress, you found her shiny eyes already on you. The sight warmed your insides. Feeling the heat radiating from her sweaty body pulled you in, that neverending attraction working overtime to weave you two together. Being by her side mended parts of you you did not know were fractured, and you felt whole again. Riri made you whole.

Words were still scarce as you lay next to her panting body, the dim light casting shadows over that face that stole your breath away.

“What are you thinking about?” Riri’s gentle voice was like a song, and you got caught up in its melody.

“You. How much I missed you. How much I love you.” You watched the words wash over her and she grinned, making your heart flutter in that way only she could. You’d said your first real ‘I love yous’ two months ago, and now you couldn't stop.

Riri sat up, pulling her knees to her bare chest, head resting on them as she watched you intently. “How are you here right now?”

“As I said, I missed you and I wanted to see you.”

“Right, but how are you here? Thought T’challa and Shuri had that ass on lockdown.”

You rolled your eyes with a faint smile. “I think I have proven that when it comes to you, I am willing to defy everyone and everything in the world.”

“Damn, okay Princess. So how long you staying?”

“I’m not. You are coming with me.”

You watched the confusion flash across her face. “To Wakanda?” You nodded and she scrunched her nose.

“I got class on Monday baby. I can’t just-”

“I will have you back here in time for your classes. Now, get dressed and gather your things. Aneka is waiting.”

Riri did as she was told, grabbing a bag from her messy closet, stuffing clothes into it. “So you flying me to another continent? Just for the weekend? Is that what I’m hearing?”

“Yes.” Your answer was matter-of-fact and simple, and you could tell she was having a hard time believing it.

She slung her bag over her shoulder nonetheless and waited by the door for you to lead the way. “Ion know how I be forgetting I’m dating a literal Princess. Like powerful kingdom and rich as hell type Princess. How do I forget that?”

You laughed, grabbing her fingers and lacing them into yours. The static shock did not cause either of you to jump, instead, you latched on tighter. “It’s because I am quite humble, what can I say.”

“Or I’m just so obsessed and in love with you alone, I block out all the unimportant stuff. Like how rich you are.”

You beamed down at her clinging to your arm. “I think I like that reason better.”

“While we on the subject, just how rich are y’all over there? Gimme like ballpark or something.”

Your chuckle was hearty as the two of you boarded the ship hand in hand and you shook your head.

•••

The trip home seemed to be shorter than the one leaving. Riri was all over you the entire time: sitting in your lap, kissing your face, whispering sweet nothings into your ears, and making you giggle with her corny little science jokes.

“Okay, okay you gon like this one. What do you call it when a biologist takes a photo of themself?”

Your eyes rolled and you sighed. “I don't know.”

“A cell-fie.” She laughed in that over-exaggerated way she reserved only for you and slapped her knee. It was your own fault really, you’d made the mistake of telling her science and humor did not mesh well, so it became her mission to prove you wrong.

“That was awful.” You responded with a fond smile.

She pushed off you and you attempted to pull her back. “Man whatever. That shit was hard, you just wouldn't get it. Shuri would laugh.”

“Speaking of my darling sister. She doesn't exactly know you are coming.”

Riri quirked a brow, and you heard Aneka huff a soft laugh at your confession. “What are you talking about?”

“Well… in order to get my brother to agree with you coming here, I was forced to tell a few white lies. One of which included me telling him I was bringing you here as a surprise for Shuri.” Your grin did nothing to shift her frown.

“And what does that mean for us? This isn't gon be like the first time I was here right? Because that was just, no. I ain't doing that ag–”

You reached for her hands, trying to ease her unrest. “No! Of course not. You would only have to spend some time with her in the lab. And given her current state, it is highly probable that she'll kick you out almost immediately. Then we may spend the weekend together. Trust that I have thought this through, mtuwam.”

“Okay… if you say so.” It was evident she was still a bit uneasy, so you kissed her lips gently, hoping to soothe her.

“Princess, we are home.”

Reentering Wakanda’s borders was an activity you could never grow bored of. Your home was marvelous, and being reminded of that was an amazing feeling.

Letting go of Riri’s hand proved to be a difficult task. You kept grabbing it and pressing kisses to her knuckles, prolonging your stay on the ship. T’challa was waiting to greet you as you landed and you made sure to stand a reasonable distance from Riri, though her body called to you.

“I see you have made it back in one piece. I must admit, I didn't think the odds would be in your favor, Littlest Sister.”

“Comedy does not suit you, Big Brother, I would stick to sulking on the throne if I were you.”

He laughed, then his eyes drifted to Riri perched patiently beside you. “So happy to have you back with us Miss Williams. I'm sure Shuri will be as well.”

“Happy y’all invited me. Wakanda is dope as hell, I love it here.” Her response was genuine and it filled your chest with pride. You met her gaze for a split second longer than intended and you couldn't help but grin. Damn those striking eyes of hers.

You cleared your throat, excusing yourself to help Riri settle in and T’challa nodded. “Give me your bag dear.”

It was a whisper soft enough only for the two of you to hear, and you hoped the gesture wouldn't seem too off. You were simply being hospitable. There was no way you were letting Riri carry her own bag, not when your hands were ready and available.

Your hands brushed at the exchange, longing fingers lingering lovingly. You felt eyes on the two of you as you walked away, but when you turned, there was no one.

“And the best part is my room is right down the hall. So you can sneak out at night to visit me. Or I can visit you, whichever you prefer.” You’d just gotten Riri settled in one of the palace's spare rooms.

She only beamed at you, pulling you in by your waist and you laughed. Her hands on your body just felt right. She was on her tippy toes then, kissing you long and deep, and you molded into her. Her fingers traced the hem of your skirt, climbing higher and higher up your thigh.

She shoved you onto the bed with force and you groaned. “Riri.”

“Just go with it.” She was on your lap soon after, wet mouth roaming your exposed neck as she created bruises that were sure to last.

You moaned, allowing your fingers to find her hips. “We can't.”

“You sure?” Her head was descending lower and you wanted her to keep going, every muscle in your body wanted to guide her, but you couldn’t. Not now, not with the Dora posted outside the room door, and not when you were supposed to be sticking to your plan. You knew T’challa would be checking in soon and you needed to head to Shuri’s lab immediately to avoid further suspicion.

“Ayo is outside, and T’challa could stop by at any time. I do not want to risk anything. Besides, we must go see Shuri now.”

Riri groaned but got up, once again allowing you to lead the way. You laughed at her and she stuck out her tongue. Bast, you had to be the luckiest person on Earth, with the cutest girlfriend on Earth.

“You sure Shuri’s in here? It ain’t usually this dark.” The two of you entered your sister’s lab. It was empty. Her playlist drowned out the sounds of her soft snoring, but they got louder the closer you inched to her.

“Oh, she is certainly in here. Griot, the lights please.”

The AI obeyed, lighting up the space to reveal a sleeping Shuri at one of the workstations. She was still in her clothes from the day prior, same lab coat too. Her curls were wild and frizzy from not being tied down and there was a small amount of drool on the side of her mouth.

“Yo, did she sleep here?” Riri walked closer to where you stood in front of your sister and you nodded. “Do we wake her?”

“In due time, my love, in due time.” You snapped a selfie of you and her sleeping form, mentally bookmarking it for later use. Your girlfriend shook her head next to you and your lips curved. “Now we wake her.”

Your finger met her cheek and you poked, but she did not stir. Then a thought struck you and you did everything to hold in your laughter.

“Shuri! You will never believe this, wake up! Tems has followed you back, look!”

This jolted her awake, and you took note of the candy wrapper stuck to the other side of her face. “She what? The love of my life has noticed me? Where? Show me!”

“Yeah, she did not actually notice you, but could you imagine? Tems is not thinking of you, dear sister. Just needed to wake you is all, seeing as you slept here again after you said you wouldn't.”

Shuri narrowed her eyes, looking you up and down curiously. “I would much rather sleep here than in the same place as my lying and deceitful sister. You cannot joke like that, you know how much I love her.”

“Right…” She pinched your arm and you yelped. "Ouch! What is your problem?!"

“Speaking of lies and deception, I will give you one chance to tell me where you went this morning, I lost signal on your Kimoyo beads for a few hours.”

Your groan was to be expected, and it did not soften her accusing tone. You knew Shuri would be tracking you, which is why you switched them off the moment you were outside the border. “I am not a child, you know. I can come and go as I please.”

“No. You cannot. Now tell me where you went and who you were with.”

Riri poked her head out from behind you after minutes of going unnoticed by your sister. She waved shyly with a smile. “She actually came to get me. Heard you was working on something that had you stressed, and your sister thought I could help.”

She reached up to pluck the wrapper from Shuri’s face and you swallowed your laughter.

“Riri! I've missed you! I honestly did not see you standing behind her. Sometimes I forget how short you are.” She pulled the smaller girl in for a hug and you snarled.

Annoyance bustled within you, the need to protect Riri taking hold of your thoughts and actions. “Hey! She is not that short. You’re one to talk.”

Shuri tilted her head, startled by your outburst, and your attempt to play it cool was rendered useless when you caught Riri’s sly smirk, clearly pleased with your defense. You fought your own smile, ignoring the awkward tension floating above the three of you. You prayed desperately for it to dissolve, fearing Shuri’s comments if it did not. “Okay then, that wasn't weird at all. Where is your sense of humor sister, geez? But anyway, Riri, yes I could use your help. I have not slept in my bed in days.”

“We can tell.” You retorted and she attempted to smack you.

“Uh yeah, how can I help?” It took nothing for them to completely zone out, wholly consumed by their work.

Though your presence was neglected soon after, the sight of the two most important women in your life bonding warmed your entire heart. You did not think it possible to love Riri more, but witnessing the smile she brought to Shuri’s face, seeing the way her eyes lit up, made you aware of how wrong you were. Loving her was limitless. It was so easy for her, lifting the spirits of others, being generous with her mind and time. She filled you with joy and pride, every ounce threatening to seep out of you.

You were staring, and you knew it, but it was not a thing that could be helped. Being so enamored with all that Riri was, you were oblivious to Shuri’s eyes darting between you and the young scientist you ogled across the lab.

Riri’s presence was enveloping like that, it toweled around you, muffling everything that wasn’t her.

“I think I'm going to call it a night. Going to actually sleep in my bed for once. Riri you are welcome to stay here as long as you like, I’m sure my sister would be happy to keep you company.” Something in her tone of voice sounded off, but it was difficult to pinpoint.

Riri nodded, turning back to the blueprints on the interface.

“Be safe, please.” Shuri kissed your head, smiling softly before leaving.

It wasn’t long before Riri took advantage of your aloneness, leaping onto you like a bunny. Her mouth was all over you, and you were a mess underneath her. She gripped your ass and you shrieked. “Riri, not here, we can't.”

“When you gon give me a chance to show you just how much I missed you, ma?” She kissed your stomach, pulling a tired moan from the back of your throat.

She knew just how to get you worked up, touching and kissing all the right spots. “Okay, fine. But it cannot be here.”

The two of you were giggling messes as you tiptoed through the silent palace. Riri pulled you into a secluded hallway, nipping hungrily at your jaw. Her tongue lapped over the bruises decorating your neck, amplifying your need for her. You smirked down into her lust-filled eyes. She would take you right here, and you were prepared to let her.

“I want you.” Her fingers were already under your skirt and you whimpered at the contact. Your heart came alive in your chest, batting against you from the thrill of it all.

A heated kiss muffled your moans as you writhed under her. “Shhh baby. You gon get us caught.”

It was difficult, and Riri was terribly skilled with her fingers. You were both gone off each other, so inebriated that the footsteps approaching the dark corridor went unnoticed. Someone cleared their throat and you jumped. Your stomach flipped, and your heartbeat revved into overdrive. Thrill melted away, dissolving into gut-wrenching dread.

You ripped your wet lips from Riri’s and turned to face the mystery person. The two of you were distraught and out of breath as Ayo inched closer. “Princess? Is that you? What are you doing out this late? The King–”

“I will head to my room now! No need to involve my brother!” The shake in your voice was noticeable, and her eyes widened when she caught sight of kiss-blown Riri tucked nervously behind you.

“Oh! Um, my apologies Princess. I was not aware you were not… alone. But please, head to your quarters. If I have found you, anyone can.” You tried ignoring her admonishment, but she was correct after all. Taking this kind of risk could have ended a lot worse, T’challa could’ve found you, Shuri. You knew better. It was reckless, but when Riri was in your head, thinking straight was a battle, a losing one.

She dipped her head, leaving you and your girlfriend alone. Your laughs were instant after, and you slapped your palms over each other's mouths. “Ooh, you in trouble Princess.”

“Stop it! Come on, let's go.” You tugged her to your quarters, fully intending on finishing what was interrupted moments ago.

•••

Waking up with Riri next to you was a feeling you needed to know forever, you’d decided. In the dark of the night, she'd tucked herself into your side, head on your chest as small snores escaped her. Being deprived of this sight, this warmth, for as long as you were was criminal.

She nestled closer and it just about brought you to tears. A soft kiss to her temple pulled her from slumber and she frowned, stunning brown eyes finding yours instantly. “You woke me.”

“With a kiss.”

“I ain't sleeping beauty.” She glared at you, it was so cute you just had to kiss her again.

Your chuckle was immediate as you stared at her arms, still wrapped around your torso with zero plans of letting go. “You are beautiful when you sleep, so I disagree. You're quite the sleeping beauty.”

“Corny.”

Rapid knocking at your door hindered your response and you panicked. It was far too early for Aneka to be checking on you. You leapt out of bed frantically with your sheet wrapped around your naked body, fearing it was one of your siblings. “Who is it? I am not yet decent.”

“It is just me, Princess. Thought I’d come to check on you a bit earlier, in case you needed help sneaking a certain scientist out of your quarters.”

You sighed loudly. “I don't need–”

“Do not lie, Princess. I am aware of where she spent the night. Your little run-in with my wife last night has made me privy to many things.”

You heard Riri giggle behind you and you huffed. “We are fine, Aneka. Your assistance is not needed.”

“Very well. Oh, and Shuri would like to see Miss Williams in her lab later today. Something about their project. And, be cautious, ndiyacela.”

It was unclear if Aneka’s concern about your relationship remaining a secret was out of love for you, or fear of losing her job. But knowing her, it could very well be both. When she left, you crawled back into bed, pulling Riri atop you, cradling her body ever so delicately in your arms. She tucked her head beneath your chin, meshing well with your skin there.

A puzzle, the pair of you were, you fit just right. Tender fingers massaged circles into her back, causing her to coo into your ear. If given the choice, you'd stay this way forever, making her frame an extension of your own.

“We have got to get up eventually, mtuwam.”

This caused her to groan and snuggle closer into you. “Don't wanna.”

“If we do not get up, someone will come looking for us. Most likely Shuri herself, if she's requested to see you.”

Riri held you tight, still refusing to budge. You had no desire to move either, having made a home under her warmth. But alas, like a wolf, you had to blow it down, leaving her bare skin exposed to the cool of the room.

Her little huff of annoyance was adorable as she shifted back to the side of the bed she slept on, and you got up. “So does this mean you won't join me in the shower? That is too bad. I remember how much you enjoyed the water pressure when you were here last.”

Riri’s head rose from the covers excitedly, tripping over the sheets as she ran into your arms.

After your shower activities, you and Riri found yourselves battling to keep your hands off of each other in the elevator down to Shuri's lab, touching her only enabled your growing addiction.

The lights were dimmer than usual when you stepped off, it was quieter too, no music or buzzing chatter of her team. Weird. There was always movement during the daytime.

“Shuri?” You called into the darkness, but silence greeted you. It all felt off; ominous, and you did not like it.

Riri tugged on your arm. “Ion think she's here babe.”

“Oh, but she is here… babe.” A shadow moved toward you and you squinted, eyes adjusting to Shuri as she stopped in your direct line of sight. T’challa was not far behind, face contorted into what you believed was meant to be a scowl. “See. I told you, Brother, if I sent word for Riri, our darling sister would be in tow as well.”

Shit.

Your eyes passed quickly to Riri, who seemed more confused than anything. You, on the other hand, were on the verge of collapsing. The drumming in your chest blared in your heated ears, blocking out the sound of Shuri’s ranting. T’challa had not yet addressed you, his eyes merely fanned you disappointedly, which somehow made it all worse. Shit. Shit. Shit.

“Answer my next question truthfully or so help me…” Shuri wiped her palms down her face with an exasperated sigh, thickening the atmosphere with the air her body expelled.

“Are you two,” She wagged her finger between Riri and yourself. “You two are… Bast, Brother I cannot even say the words.”

She was being theatrical, honestly. When Shuri got like this it was hard to get her to listen to reason, but reason escaped you, so either way you were screwed. You passed a glance at your girlfriend, whose eyes seemed particularly fond of the shiny floors. Every bone in your body wanted to comfort her, needed to reassure her, but you froze, your feet planting deep roots in the ground, prohibiting your movement.

“Littlest Sister, is it true? What Shuri has told me about you and Miss Williams? Are you two… involved? You wouldn’t lie to me, would you?” T'challa spoke at last as Shuri paced.

Involved? Involved made it sound so formal, so dated, like the two of you were in your forties. You were not involved, you were in love. Admitting that would only escalate things now though, so you bit your tongue and hung your head in shame. You had to hand it to him though, pulling out the doting brother card was almost enough to crack you.

Neither of you spoke, fearing too much the outcome. Riri’s discomfort buzzed off her and onto you as though it was your own. Not easing it was enough to fracture you again, undoing all the rebuilding you’d done in the past twenty-four hours. She stood silently, fidgeting with her fingers, intending on following your lead like usual, but you were all out of moves.

“Take her silence as an answer Brother.” Shuri’s unyielding glare made you flinch. Under any other circumstance, you’d find her behavior amusing, but her ability to intimidate had grown more effective after ingesting the heart-shaped herb.

You cleared your throat, finally gaining the courage to speak and you felt hopeful eyes on you, Riri’s eyes. “Why are you doing this?”

“Answer the question, liar.”

A laugh climbed your throat as Shuri spat her sentence at you, but you swallowed it. “And what is it that you presume I've lied about?”

Your question was only to gauge their knowledge, to see just how much you could twist your already existing string of lies before it snapped completely and forever.

Shuri tapped her chin dramatically. “Hmm, well let us see. Should we start with the original lie you told to get her here? Disguising it as a surprise for me,” T’challa nodded beside her, cosigning the entire ordeal. “But that one is more on you, Brother, for not catching it.”

“Hey now! In my defense, I was truly concerned for you when I agreed to Miss Williams coming here.”

“You were a fool is what you were. You fall for her tricks all the time, it's sad. I’m sorry, but it is.”

T’challa scoffed. “Can we please focus? I am not the one in trouble here.”

“I'm just saying, if only you had run this past me, instead of blindly agreeing, this could have been avoided altogether.” Shuri’s expressive hands spoke with her, just as frantic, just as accusing.

“Well–”

Your anxiety dissipated the longer you watched the two of them bicker, who the ring leader was, was clear as day. You passed a glance at Riri, discreetly squeezing her hand for a few seconds.

“Oh! Did you see that?! Let's get back to you deceivers, eh? Seeing the way you defended her when I called her short did not concern me much, it was odd, but not concerning. Now, the way you ogled her, that, raised my eyebrow.”

She paced some more, condemning you with each stride. “I knew that look, it’s the same look I sport when Tems uploads a new photo. But it was not quite enough, no. It could be explained away.”

Shuri stopped, regarding Riri’s puzzled exterior before turning her focus to you. “And that brings me to my next piece of evidence,” Her fingers lowered the collar on your button-up and you cursed under your breath. “Brother, what do these look like to you?”

He jolted to attention, clearly unaware his input would be warranted. “Um, I believe those are hickeys.”

“Hickeys.” The word rancid on her tongue. “I noticed them when I kissed you goodnight. Now how would my little sister get hickeys on her neck? They weren’t there the day before, but conveniently appeared when Riri arrived.”

“I saw you take her bag as well. Yesterday when you returned, you carried her bag, you may not have thought I saw it, but I did. Shuri, tell them.”

Shuri rolled her eyes at him. “Yes, T’challa saw the stupid bag. The point is we know about you two. We know everything. And there is more.”

“More? What more?” T’challa seemed just as perplexed as you and Riri, eyeing Shuri in anticipation.

She held up her wrist, displaying a rather incriminating video on her beads. T'challa’s gasp was as loud as it was comical. It was of the both of you, in the lab last night. Your mouth on hers, hands in places they shouldn’t have been. Your blush crept up the back of your neck, stretching across the span of your body. You felt it in your stomach, your toes, it even slithered itself into your mouth. Bitter and dry, and scarce of compassion.

“I needed to be sure of my suspicions, so I turned on the cameras before I left. What do you have to say for yourselves? Lying will not save you now, we have seen everything.”

“Everything.” T’challa repeated, waving his finger in your faces.

You locked eyes with your girlfriend again, communicating without words. “Fine. You've caught us.”

“I knew it!”

Shuri’s glower was a bullet of irritation, and she smacked T’challa in the head. “Of course you knew it, genius. I told you this before they arrived.”

“Right. You did, yes.”

Your laugh evaded you before you could stop it and you were met with the same look your brother received. “So you find this funny?”

You shook your head. “Sorry, no. This is all very serious. Serious allegations, serious evidence. Carry on.”

“How long?”

“A few months.”

She squinted. “How many months?”

“Seven.”

They both widened their eyes at your confession, and T’challa slapped his hand over his mouth, bewildered. “You have been lying to us for seven months?!?! So this started before you returned to America?”

Her question darted to Riri, and she waited expectantly for an answer. “Yes.”

Your brother shook his head, mirroring Shuri because of course he did. “You are too young to be involved with anyone.”

“Exactly. I forbid it.” Shuri threw her hands up as if her word was final. You refuted her statement with a quickness, under no circumstances did she get a say in your love life. Before you knew it, you were in a screaming match with your siblings, a rare occurrence, but you would not back down.

“You can't forbid me from loving your sister Shuri.”

The yelling subsided, three royal heads whipping around to face Riri. You had not expected that, you hadn't expected her to say anything. It was your mess, not hers. Your lies.

“Loving her?”

Riri stepped forward, gripping your fingers tightly, and for the first time, the shock startled you. “I love your sister. I'm in love with her. And if I'm speaking out of turn my bad, but forbidding us from being together ain't gon work because I’m not giving her up, not ever,” She observed them cautiously before continuing.

“Now I understand why there might be cause for concern, I get it, after what y’all went through, being protective is justified. But trust that I wanna protect her too? I want her safe, I want her sound, and I want her loved. I love her so much, too much, and ion wanna have to do that in secret. I don't wanna have to hide. Because your sister deserves more than that.”

T’challa was the first to wipe his tears. “Shuri, maybe we are being too harsh. They seem happy, hmm?”

“Was that rehearsed or did it all just come to you right now?” Her unrelenting glare was beginning to falter.

“Can't rehearse how I feel Shuri, I just… feel.”

Shuri's watchful eyes were on you, you felt them, but you only had the strength to focus on one thing, so you chose Riri. Her words rearranged every cell in your body, rendering you entirely and utterly speechless. Coherence was a thing you no longer knew as you stood dumbfounded, watching her, learning her all over again. For a moment you zoned out, forgetting where you were and how you’d gotten there.

“And what have you to say, Sister?”

“I-I love her too. She means everything to me. She is my person. I choose Riri, I will always choose Riri.” Gazing into her eyes felt different this time, more honest, more open; though they sucked you in all the same.

Shuri gagged. “You two are gross, but I suppose I can allow this, seeing as I trust you both,” She turned to Riri then. “But if you ever hurt her, and I mean in any way, I will create a virus so complex and otherworldly to infiltrate and destroy every piece of technology you own, including your suit. Maybe even while you're in it, zipping around in the sky. Then bam!"

She slammed her fist on a table with force, cracking it in half and you both jumped, blinking in disbelief. T'challa's snicker was muffled behind you and you shot him a look.

"Just because we are friends doesn't mean I won't demolish you in the name of my little sister. I will end you, in every way I know how. And trust that I know many.”

Riri gulped, clearly shaken by Shuri’s tone shift. “That's fair, I respect that.”

“Now I may not be as harsh with my words as my little sister, but I do agree with everything that was just stated. Do we have an understanding?” Your brother’s hands were on Riri’s shoulders and she bobbed her head. “Good. You two may go, enjoy the rest of your weekend, I will deal with Shuri. Make sure she calms down.”

You wasted no time, scurrying off and onto the elevator, wanting desperately to escape your siblings.

•••

The evening breeze was brisk, and it cooled your tea as you watched the city lights flicker on. The sweet aroma of her leave-in conditioner greeted you before she did, wafting deep inside your nose and clinging to your senses. You smiled when she emerged on your balcony.

“We suck at being in a secret relationship.” Riri sat in your lap and you gripped her waist.

“Absolutely horrible at it.” Her eyes were the softest you'd ever seen them, leaking with vulnerability and want. “Perhaps our love is not meant to be concealed, mtuwam.”

Her lips curved upward, delighted by your admission. “Say more words like that.”

“I want to love you in the open. I want the world to know you are mine and I am yours, truly and fully.”

“Damn. You real good at that. Almost makes me wanna kiss you.”

Her words made you scoff, as they were intended to, and she laughed. “Almost?”

“Kinda scared to do anything now after your crazy ass siblings just jumped me.”

Your own laugh bellowed out, causing her to dip her head into the crook of your neck. “If I am remembering correctly, they cornered us both.”

“And who got threatened with an ‘otherworldly’ virus? Me or you? You ain't tell me Shuri was kinda…”

“What? Insane? I'm sure I've mentioned this over my many rants about her aforementioned insanity.”

She glared at you, and you smirked. “Seeing it for myself was different. I ain't believe you for real.”

“That's truly something, I'm glad we are in agreement, but can you please kiss me now? Or do you want me to tell them you've been denying me, and you’ve hurt me?”

Riri grabbed your cheeks and scrunched her nose. So, so cute. “Shut up.” Her lips were on yours moments after, and her tongue was in your mouth. The kiss was rough, it was passionate, and it warmed your insides better than your long-forgotten tea ever could on this chilly night.

A clap of thunder gave you déjà vu and you two pulled away. The stars competed with the shine in her eyes, losing terribly. You were bathing in rain soon after as she pulled you in again.

When the showers became too much, you carried her inside, tossing her damp body onto your bed before getting on top of her and connecting your foreheads.

She giggled as she held your wet face in place. “Convenient how it always rains when we on that balcony of yours.”

“Perhaps it is all my doing. To get you out of your clothing of course.”

She leaned up to whisper in your ear. “You don't need rain for that baby.”

“Ndikuthanda kakhulu, Riri Williams.”

And she grinned, wider than ever, basking in the tangible feeling of said love. “Right back at ya.”

#riri williams x black!fem!reader #riri williams x fem!reader #lyricswriting #riri williams x black!reader #myworks #riri x black!reader #ironheart x black!reader #ironheart x reader #riri williams x reader #riri williams fanfic #dominique thorne #black panther #wakanda forever #ironheart #riri williams #riri williams x y/n #riri x reader #riri black panther

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rhysiana · 1 month

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20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by @hmslusitania!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

96, somehow (some of them are ficlets preserved for posterity, so there should probably be more, if I remembered to move some more things from here)

2. What’s your total word count on AO3?

342,331

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Most actively at this exact moment, kpop rpf (ATEEZ and SHINee), but all but one thing in this category is a WIP I haven't posted yet. But I also have a Devil Judge AU I *really* want to write, if my writing brain picks back up properly.

4. Top five fics by kudos

This is hilariously skewed to Teen Wolf just by virtue of the size of the fandom, I don't actually think these are the fics I'm most known for, but:

-The (un)Usual? -Can I...? -Derek from the Club -You Give Me Butterflies -Rebalance

*Bonus content, least amount of kudos (because it is one of two fics for the entire fandom):

-This Would Be Enough

5. Do you respond to comments?

Yes!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Probably "In Love with Ghosts," a character study about Lan Xichen and Song Lan have to deal with being left behind in the world of the living

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I write so much fluff, I'm sure this is very subjective, but I think the one that makes *me* the happiest is the 2-part Petopher series Silver & Gold, because the middle-aged second-chance romance of them finally getting everything they've ever wanted was written to cater exactly to me.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

No, but I do have a hilarious bookmark saying one of my rare M-rated fics should be a G (????)

9. Do you write smut?

Related to the above answer, not really. I collab for smut very happily, but I spent several years in my irl career copy editing for a self-published romance writer who was very prolific but not great at keeping characterization consistent in sex scenes and it kind of burned me out on thinking through such scenarios for my own hobby purposes. That said, I do keep writing things that toe closer and closer to the line, so. Perhaps I am recovering from the trauma.

10. Craziest crossover?

Uh, I'm pretty sure that would be the Kent Parson/Derek Hale thing I wrote here as penance for being a vector of cross-fandom Derek confusion, but I don't think that ever got moved over to AO3. The funniest AU that's almost but not quite a crossover was the Wenzhou AU ("Persistence Pays Off") I wrote that started from the premise of Senpai, Don't You Know?, which is a niche enough reference that I'm probably the only one who understands how hilarious the mismatch is.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't think so?

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic?

Yes! Several times, it's very fun.

14. All time favourite ship?

You want me to choose??? Nurseydex, for the sheer power they had over my brain for so long, and Petopher, for being such tired Actual Adults

15. What’s a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I really want to finish Bull City Blues, but my brain started avoiding working on it hardcore because it was bringing up all my own bad grad school experiences, so I'm stuck here with most of the end written but not the ability to push through the middle, and I deeply apologize for that. I keep hoping I'll come up with a way around it, just so I can post the end, finally.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue (where I mentally always start) and descriptions of specific imagery (because I see scenes like movies in my head)

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Plot. (Longfic who? I don't know her.)

18. Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

It's fine? If I ever wrote a long enough passage in not-English that it wasn't apparent from context, I'd have the translation in footnotes/hovertext, but it hasn't come up yet. Since so many of the fandoms I've written in recently have been non-English, I do sometimes have the dialogue in my head running in two languages simultaneously, but I tend to just write it all in English for ease of reading.

19. First fandom you wrote in?

Like, to be posted on the internet? Check, Please! Ever? I genuinely could not tell you.

20. Fave fics you’ve written?

-Petals & Thorns (Nurseydex pop punk star/florist AU series)

-Silver & Gold (Petopher rock star/lawyer second-chance romance)

-This Would Be Enough (Atom no Ko post-canon, the ace-est thing I've written so far)

-Fragments of a Life Lived in Dreams (Nirvana in Fire dreamsharing AU)

Ngl, I reread all my own fics regularly, but these are probably some of the most reread ones.

Tagging: anyone who wants to play! (but especially @annundriel, @cobrilee, and @gendzl, if you want)

#looking at those rock star AUs I am suddenly less surprised by the swerve into kpop rpf #tag games #rhys's stuff

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pinespittinink · 1 month

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Hi! I'm a novice writer who is looking to improve. I recently saw your post about how writers need to read published books to hone their writing skills, and I was just wondering if you had any recommendations for books/authors that are very strong in their craftsmanship to read and study?

I know I should be reading books similar to the stories I want to write, but I haven't finished a published book in years because of work and school. I'm not even sure I know what I like anymore, and I think that's evident in my writing because I can't commit to a single story idea. At this point, I don't know where to start but I know I want to get back into reading by starting with a book I can learn from.

Sorry if this seems like a silly ask, please don't feel obligated to respond. Have a good day!

Hi there! Welcome, this isn’t a silly question at all. If anything I was musing on it because everyone has different taste, so I wasn’t sure how to answer exactly, but I’ll just list some examples I can think of that I’ve really enjoyed! These all fall under the sff genre for the most part, as that’s my jam. Though I will say, for a craft perspective, Stephen King’s On Writing is really excellent.

Insofar as authors i can think of immediately who really have their craft and voice down pat, ones who come to mind are Katherine Arden, Ava Reid, Madeline Miller, Erin Morgenstern, Tamsyn Muir, and RF Kuang. All of these authors really decidedly know what they’re doing with the craft, at least in my opinion, and the results are extraordinary. I’m currently reading The Warm Hands of Ghosts, Katherine Arden’s most recent adult book since the Winternight Trilogy, and the research she put into the setting of WW1 is so evident throughout it, especially in the voice and colloquialisms. She also did a ton of research for the Winternight books, which is historical fantasy at its finest, while creating an authentic old fairytale feeling

Madeline Miller is another with excellent command of voice, the queen of Greek retellings with Circe and The Song of Achilles, which are really tremendous character studies. Ava Reid I personally adore for the nuance of her characters—Juniper & Thorn and The Wolf & the Woodsman feature tremendously human and flawed protagonists—their language seeps through their settings, their metaphors are divine, and A Study in Drowning, her YA debut, is thoroughly saturated with all its core themes.

Erin Morgenstern, of The Night Circus and The Starless Sea, is known for her prose and atmosphere, a prime Vibes™️ writer. The Starless Sea is a more experimental novel, though both of her books play with disjointed timelines and perspectives, which is fascinating; The Starless Sea concerning itself with storytelling specifically.

Tamsyn Muir, the author of The Locked Tomb series, has such a handle on her characters and plot that it’s actually insane. Talk about a masterclass in writing a large cast with defined personalities. The difference in voice between Gideon, Harrow, and Nona, is unbelievably fascinating, just for how starkly different the headspaces of these characters are compared to each other. The layering and reread value is immense.

RF Kuang is a chameleon writer, who changes her style to match the genre she’s writing (grimdark historical fantasy, dark academia historical fantasy, contemporary satire-turned-thriller). Babel feels like her magnum opus, a modern day classic that I cannot praise highly enough. A slow start, but halfway through shit hits the fan, and it does not stop from there.

Shout outs also to: Simon Jimenez with The Spear Cuts Through Water, epic fantasy that uses first, second, and third person, and is a miracle for it. A masterclass of storytelling. Roshani Chokshi with The Last Tale of the Flower Bride, which might as well be evil toxic sapphic adult Bridge to Terebithia, dripping with decadence. Emily Habeck with Shark Heart, a contemporary spec fic novel that studies grief and caring for loved ones through a lens of terminal illness in the guise of a genetic disorder that turns people into animals; it plays around with script structure sometimes, and made me sob. Cormac McCarthy with The Road; bleak and dismal and post-apocalyptic, and nameless man and boy, nearly poetic. Camilla Andrew @aninkwellofnectar with When the Stars Alight, a romantic fantasy that positively teems with lush intentional language and is also a fascinating look at third person omniscient.

For classics: A Wrinkle in Time, the Lord of the Rings, Wuthering Heights, Frankenstein, Lord of the Flies, The Great Gatsby, Lolita.

I don’t think you can go wrong with any of these books or authors, though at the end of the day, there’s something to be learned from any book you read, whether it’s a good lesson or something to be avoided. I’m also down to try to give other recs, if you’re looking for anything specific!

#ithinkimauggie #asks #I hope this helps some!

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zaceouiswriting · 2 years

Text

The unknown son (First Version)

Character: Derek Hale x male reader

Universe: Teen Wolf

Warnings: Sad, Cheating

Authors note: This was a request by @arekmaximoff. I actually have a second version of this request, which I will post next week. I can't oversaturate the market, now can I? :D If any of you have a request on your own, just send me a massage. Have fun with this one! :)

Hands wet from washing dishes, after another long day with the pack. You never would've thought, to be a motherly figure to an entire pack of teenagers, but here you were. All thanks to the man you married, the love of your life.

It wasn’t always everything good between you two. Especially, when you had a long-term relationship, as you moved away to study at a prestigious university, to become a doctor. But even though, you two haven’t seen each other at points, for a long time, your relationship was always strong. The moment, you finished your studies and came back he asked you to marry him, that was now eight years ago, in a month to be exact.

A couple of the pack members, that did not live with you and Derek in the newly build Hale house, were still sitting around, playing board games, But because the sun, was already setting, it would be much longer.

Just as you thought, that the evening was at an end, the doorbell rang. Panicking, that one of the guys, most likely Stiles, had forgotten something again, you searched for a towel. At the moment, which you had found one, you already could hear someone standing up, to get to the door.

„Nope sit down again, Isaac!“ Even without supernatural powers, you exactly knew what every single one of your pack children did at all times. You could hear him mutter, asking the others, how you could know that he tried to get the door.

With the towel in your hand, drying them off, you looked for a second into the living room. „Because you know you guys. Maybe even better, than you know yourself,“ you told him teasingly. Which flashed a panicked and then embarrassed look over his face, as he understood that you just joked with him.

It felt just natural to you. Always knowing what they do, it gave you a little peace.

As you finally get to the door and opened it, you looked surprised. Because you couldn’t see anyone. For a moment you thought that it was just a prank, until your eyes completely out of coincidence, down. There in front of you, on the porch of the house you lived in with your husband, stood a small child - Around eight, maybe nine years old.

„Can I do something for you? Have you lost your parents?“, you asked him as friendly as you could even crouching down, so he could look you directly into his eyes. At first, the small boy seemed reluctant. But something changed drastically, as you heard your husband's heavy footsteps behind you.

„Derek Hale?“, he asked in a small voice. For a while nothing came back from the man behind you, wondering what had happened, you turned around to look at him. His entire face was pale as if he had seen a ghost.

„Babe, is everything okay?“, you tried to ask him softly, but after you two had locked eyes, and he instantly averted his eyes again, you knew something was up.

„Yes, that is Derek Hale, why are you asking?“

„Mum told me he would care for me from now on. Because he is my dad!“, he excitedly exclaimed at the end, running past you, still crouching, directly to Derek, hugging him. His small arms and small statue only let him hug his middle section, but that seemed to be enough.

Derek even put his hand on the little boy's head. Even though he looked shocked, he was not that surprised about it.

„Are you hungry?“ The question almost was left unanswered, wouldn’t it be for the boy's stomach.

Derek took him with you together into the kitchen. Where the boy told you what he liked and what not, luckily he had a similar taste to your husband, so it wasn’t hard to make something for him.

He told you about his life with his mother, in a small apartment in the same city, you had studied. You needed to restrict every fiber of your being, to not lunge at your husband and rip his dick off his body.

As he told you his age, which you perfectly guessed as eight years old, you had to breathe sharply in and out. Holding your emotions in. You could preserve a perfect smile, only for a second could the sadness be seen in your eyes, before you masterfully blink the upcoming tears away.

You, on the other hand, told the small boy everything about Derek, all the great attributes he had. His strong will, his protectiveness, his big heart, and his strong sense of loyalty. Absolutely sure, that he would be a great dad. What you both wanted to be soon.

This led to you explaining the relationship you have with Derek, to his son, whom you did not know even existed. At first, the boy did not really understand, but after the second try, as he did, he didn't really care about it. In his word: „Everything is better than my mother“. This was heartbreaking to hear because you loved your mother and father, they are great people. To hear a child say something like this about their mother, was almost too much for you.

Almost an hour after the boy had finished his meal, Derek and you together brought him into bed.

As soon as the door closed, your smile faltered. But Derek hadn’t seen it, because you had your back to him. „You were great to him, I wanted to tell you, but there was never-“ Before he could finish his rant, you turned around, a scowl on your face and tears running down your cheeks. Silent crying was always a talent you had, which made it often hard to read you. Now it was on Derek to let his smile fall. He had thought that you were happy, to have a child now, after you wanting one for years.

Without him realizing, what that meant. Because you had no idea, before this day.

You only looked at him in disappointment once, before leaving him in the hallway, and getting into your shared bedroom. In absolute record time, you packed a couple of bags, which you hurriedly carried out, directly past Derek who still stood frozen in the hallway.

But as he saw you carrying bags, he freed himself, running after you the stairs down.

Right before you could leave the house, which you had helped build up and make a home, Derek got to you, holding your arm back.

Before either of you could comprehend what had happened, your hand had colored his cheek red. You did not want to get confronted by him, because you feared that you would cave.

„You have an eight-year-old child Derek? Are you fucking serious? We are together for fifteen years! He was born one month before our wedding! Exactly one month, on the fucking day!“, you screamed at him as loud as you could.

The strong man, as you had known him your entire life, could only stand there and take it all in. „Please, don’t tell me, the woman with the baby at our wedding was-“

Before you could finish, he finally met your eyes again, horror and the realization that you would find everything now, hit him like a truck.

„You- You had sex with my roommate? Did you impregnate my roommate that had a boyfriend at that time?“ Everything began to make so much sense. The way her boyfriend had broken up with her, the pity glances he threw at you, the last couple of times you had seen him, and the cryptic message he tried to give you.

„I’m going to my brothers. Don’t call me, don’t text me, don’t show up at any of their houses.“ Just then you left the house. Not even giving Derek any chance to speak up again.

You married the love of your life. The man you are in a relationship with since both of you were fourteen. Through thick and thin. You helped him through the loss of his entire family, while you only wanted him to be patient with your studies.

Not even that was he able to do, after everything you had done for him, even risking your own future, for covering things up, when he did something dangerous and or illegal, after his family's death.

And now you had to explain to your entire family, why you left this well-liked man, with a child. Most likely not understanding why you were upset. Maybe you would paint it or something like this for them to understand. Your older brother Joey, was the best bet for someone to understand it quickly because he was in a similar situation years ago, where it came out, that his daughter wasn’t his.

Maybe you would even be able to let all these feelings out. At least you hoped so.

[Masterlist]

#Derek Hale x male reader #Derek Hale imagine #Derek Hale #Teen Wolf #Teen Wolf x male reader #Teen Wolf imagine #x male reader #male reader #male reader imagine #x male reader imagine #cheating #sad #request

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hb-writes · 7 months

Text

Holiday Spirit

Summary: When the Winchesters decide to take a few days off hunting around Halloween, Nora gets in the spirit of the holiday and decides to do a little decorating.

Prompt: "If I go outside and find my car covered in stringed lights I'm smacking you."

Characters: Dean Winchester & Nora Winchester

Warnings: just the smacking referenced in the prompt.

Nora stilled her fingers, the piece of candy she held in her hands half-way unwrapped as she studied her brother as he finally stirred. He looked grumpy as hell, as if Dean was already dressed in his Halloween costume—a miserable old curmudgeon.

A curmudgeon who was already complaining even though he had yet to open his eyes.

“What’s all that noise?”

Nora bit her tongue to keep from asking him ‘what noise?’ considering that the last fifteen minutes was the quietest she had been all morning. She’d even managed to stop the microwave before it started beeping after rewarming her coffee.

Decorating had been much louder, but all of her flitting about the motel room and the microwaving hadn’t woken her brother. She had checked each time, wincing and tip-toeing to his bedside after every slightly too loud noise she made.

He had slept like the dead through all of it, something she supposed he deserved seeing as they’d been driving for so long and he had refused to share the burden with his siblings, insisting they both rest. But go figure, Dean would wake up at the sound of junk food—Nora’s brothers both seemed to have a hypersonic radar for that…for vastly different reasons, of course, but they both seemed to always know when Nora had something delicious and terrible for you in her grasp.

Dean sat up suddenly when Nora didn’t answer, but before his glare could land on her face, he caught sight of all of the decorations—the fake cobwebs and glow-in-the-dark skeletons, the miniature ghosts and bats dangling from the ceiling…as if they didn’t get enough of that crap outside of the motel rooms they so frequently called home.

“Where did all this crap come from?” Dean was still taking it all in.

“Dollar store,” Nora answered quietly, suddenly a bit sheepish as she confirmed that it was indeed a bunch of crap she had strung up around their barely 2-star motel room.

“Here, have some breakfast,” she said as she tossed the half-opened candy to him.

Dean finished unwrapping and popped it into his mouth without complaint, just as Nora hoped he would.

“And before you start lecturing, Sammy took me—” Nora reached for a second paper coffee cup, holding it out— “and we got you coffee. You might want to reheat it.”

Dean pulled himself out of the bed, the movements slow, as if he was still sore. As if he still needed another sixteen hours of sleep. Good thing they were planning on hanging out for a few days, assuming another job didn’t present itself, at least.

Nora hoped one wouldn’t. Her brothers were exhausted. She was exhausted. She just wanted to exist for a few days. It would’ve been nice to just exist for a few days somewhere a little nicer, a little more comfortable—at Uncle Bobby’s, maybe—but she wasn’t going to be picky. Relaxing was relaxing even if the motel room was shitty. At least the town had a nice little coffee house.

Dean pulled the coffee from Nora’s hand as he passed her, standing at the counter a few steps behind her, his back to her for a few moments as he fussed with the ancient microwave.

He’d let the microwave beep, zoning out long enough that he didn’t catch it before the time ran out, the incessant alarm so loud in the little motel room that Nora cringed. Dean took a sip of the hot liquid, sighing a bit as the flavor hit his tongue. It was re-warmed via microwave, a method of preparation that probably impacted the quality and taste of the coffee, but Dean could tell it was a decent brew. It wasn’t any of that gas station crap they were used to.

He took another sip before setting the cup on the counter and turning to his sister. Without a word, Dean snatched the candy bag from her lap, his hand digging through to find his favorite.

Nora bit down her complaint as his fingers retrieved the last four chocolates—they were her favorite, too. He set them down on the counter beside his coffee cup before tossing the bag back on the table. A bag full of second-best options that she didn’t particularly like. Still, she didn’t complain. The last hunt had been rough and Nora was trying to keep things light. Fun. Fighting over chocolate bars before he’d even finished a cup of coffee wasn’t fun.

“So…do you like the decorations?” she asked.

Dean’s eyes slid down to her as he opened his third piece of chocolate, an eyebrow raised.

Nora slid her foot from the chair where she had propped it up and pressed it into Dean’s thigh. He shifted his balance to accommodate the shove.

“Aw, c’mon, Dean. You said we were staying a few days, so I figured we might as well get into the holiday spirit.”

“Holiday spirit?” Dean asked, fingering the line of multicolored string lights she’d put up along the kitchen. “I think you’ve got the wrong holiday, bucko.”

Nora rolled her eyes and in rebuttal, she reached for the two pieces of candy Dean had yet to devour. She figured if he was awake enough to make fun, he was awake enough for her to take back some of the candy. Dean’s hand slammed down over hers before she could pull them into her grasp. He raised an eyebrow and she sighed, a show of defeat that had him releasing his grip on her.

Nora set her feet back up on the chair beside her, folding her arms across her chest. It had been hard enough convincing Sam to even buy the candy and she’d barely get any of the good ones now that Dean was hogging them. She should’ve known better and hid a few away for herself.

“Quit your pouting,” Dean said as he tossed one of the remaining candies on the table in front of her.

Dean couldn’t help but smile as Nora’s face lit up a bit and she quickly opened the candy, setting it in her mouth. He teased and he played the grump, but Dean was glad that his sister still got excited about stuff like this—stuff like Halloween decorations and candy and the fact that this rat hole of a motel somehow had extra channels so she could watch all those silly Halloween movies she’d watched as a kid. He was glad that Sam and Nora had been so enthusiastic about sitting down to watch It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown the night before. He was glad that the two of them had the capacity to be nostalgic for childhood even when he didn’t.

Dean strung his finger along the slowly flashing lights affixed to the counter once again. “Since when are Christmas lights Halloween decorations?”

“They’re string lights, Dean. Not Christmas lights. Indoor-outdoor. Multi-holiday use. They’re very versatile. And I like them,” she said as she took a sip of coffee to wash down the chocolate.

Dean snorted. “Yeah, well, if I go outside and find my car covered in stringed lights I'm smacking you."

Nora gasped, choking on the coffee as it went down wrong. She forced herself to laugh at the end of her coughing, as if Dean’s words were funny to her, as if it was nothing more than a joke.

Nora knew the words weren’t an idle threat though. Dean wouldn’t hesitate to hurt anyone who hurt his Baby. Not that she had really hurt his baby… The hand prints smeared across the windows were nothing more than fake blood. And the pumpkin-shaped antenna ball was easy enough to remove…

But Dean was staring at her, waiting for something. Waiting for confirmation.

Nora snorted. “I didn’t put any stupid stringed lights on your car, Dean. I’m not an idiot. How would I even plug them in?”

It wasn’t technically a lie, and Dean seemed content with her answer as he brought the coffee cup to his lips again, but Nora wondered how long it would be before he went to check. Nora had been adamantly against going for a run with Sam, but just now she wished she had agreed to go, if only to avoid being the only one here when Dean saw the car.

“We’ll, now that you’re up, I’m going to take a shower,” Nora said as she stood from the table, trying not to move too quickly, trying to take her time with gathering her things before heading for the bathroom.

As Nora closed the bathroom door, she heard her brother take up her spot at the table, his hand once again fishing in the bag of candy.

Her spot at the table where one could see out the window perfectly, the Impala perfectly visible between the threadbare curtains…

She had just started the water when Dean roared her name.

Actually roared. Nora cringed at the sound, but stepped into the warming water anyway. The flimsy door and fact that she was showering would at least offer her some protection. Dean wouldn’t come in, no matter how angry he was. No matter how much he wanted to throttle her.

Nora could stay there until the water ran cold, until Sam returned.

That, she decided, was the best course of action. To stay here until Sam got back. Until he could remind Dean that even though she could be a pain in the ass, he loved his sister.

That was the hope, at least.

Supernatural (Bye, Bye, Apple Pie) Masterlist

#supernatural #supernatural fanfiction #dean winchester #nora winchester #halloween 2023 prompts

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adoristsposts · 2 years

Note

hello may I request a childhood friends to lovers w mick but he’s kinda jealous of one of your guy friends

author's note; Ok I've been loving Mick recently so you sent this at exactly the right time summary; Mick is startled to arrive home on break and find that you and your friend have grown painstakingly close. word count; 2k characters; Mick Schumacher x Reader warnings; Mentions of alcohol, jealousy

Mick Schumacher was sitting on your couch, silently nursing a beer as he rolled his jaw. You practically fell into the spot next to him, throwing your legs over his and sighing in content as you melted into the comfortable pillows. He just rolled the bottom edge of his beer around against his jean covered leg, staring at it in thought. "Are you alright?" You asked when he offered up no conversation. He kept his strong gaze on the bottle, shrugging. You studied his face; tense and stoic, and sat up properly. "Mick?" "I don't want to have people over." You clicked your tongue at his confession. "Mick, these people are our friends. Who haven't seen you in months. You can't just hole up in my apartment every time you're home." You said, trying to sound comforting instead of scolding. It must have worked, because he cracked a guilty smile and looked up at you through his eyelashes. "Are you sure I can't? We can watch ghost hunting videos and order pizza?" "As tempting as that is, people are already on their way."

Mick was home for two weeks this time. Every time he managed to snag some free time he usually spent it hiding in your apartment, sleeping in the spare bedroom he had practically staked his claim on. He always said you were the only person he wanted to hang out with when he was outside of the paddock. Other than his family, of course. It was no surprise. The two of you had been close since childhood. Technically, in your minds, the two of you had been married since year three. Jokingly both of you always blamed your marriage for being the reason neither of you could uphold a relationship. The two of you had discussed dating each other many a time. Usually in drunk confessions of "Oh, I used to like you!" "I liked you too! How funny."

Mick drew in a heaving breath, setting his bottle down on the coffee table and running a hand through his hair. "Who's coming?" "Uh- Astrid, Nils, Lilly, and Anders." "Anders?" Mick asked, seemingly taken aback by the mans name. Anders was one of your closest friends, and considering you did most of the socialising for you and Mick, the two men seemed friendly enough. "Yeah?" You asked, "Why?" "I don't know." Mick shrugged, like the answer didn't need an explanation. "I just don't like him that much." "Mick, you always do this." You whined. "What?" He exclaimed, laughing. "You always end up disliking people when you haven't seen them in a while." He just rolled his eyes at you, shaking his head. "They'll be here in an hour." He took another deep breath, then nodded and got up. "Okay. I'm gonna go change." He said, referring to the sweatshirt and sweatpants he was wearing. You stood up as well. "I should too."

Forty minutes later Mick was knocking on your bedroom door. "Hey, where's the dip? I was putting stuff out and-" He stopped talking when you opened the door. He looked you up and down, a sweet smile uncurling on his lips. "You look nice." He said. "It's jeans and a shirt, Mick." You laughed at him, brushing past him to head into the kitchen. You set to work finishing what he had started- finding the crackers you knew Lilly liked, grabbing the dip the five of your friends always devoured. Mick stood across from you, leaning against the kitchen island as he watched you. You looked up at him through your lashes. "They're going to be here soon. Are you going to help or watch?" "Watch." He hummed happily. You scrunched your nose up at him in feigned annoyance.

Another ten minutes later of banter with Mick, your doorbell rung. You nodded at him to open it, and he did. With the squeals and giggles that entered your ears when he did it was sufficient to say Lilly and Astrid had arrived. "Oh my god, hun!" Astrid said when she finally let go of Mick. She scurried over to you, wrapping her arms around you and squeezing as she rocked side to side. "It's so good to see you! Nils and Anders are on their way." "They're arrived, actually." A voice said, stepping through the open door. Lilly stopped her barage of courtesy questions towards Mick 'how are you? how's uhm.. haas? how was silverstone! oh that was ages ago? oops.' to allow Nils to give him a quick hug and pat on the back. Anders and Mick exchanged simple nods and you rolled your eyes at them. You gave Lilly a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. "How's the boyfriend?" You asked, to which she just groaned and shook her head. You laughed. She was infamous for having the worst boyfriends. Nils was next, who pulled you into a one armed hug. "I brought booze." He told the group. The announcement earned him quiet cheers. Then was Anders, who scooped you into a big bear hug. "Haven't seen you in ages!" When he finally let you go he placed a kiss to your cheek and left his arm wrapped around you. One look at Mick showed him glancing curiously at the spectacle. You and Anders were close, sure, but he didn't remember the two of you being this close. He shook himself out of the queasy feeling it was giving him and took the bottle of gin out of Nils hands. "Anyone want a G&T?"

Quite a few drinks later you were wrapped up in conversation with Anders as Mick stood against the wall. He was in a sour mood. And he felt guilty for ignoring the rest of his friends as his attention zeroed in on you and only you. His cheeks were red with alcohol and he both wanted to fall into bed and go out clubbing. Your eyes lit up when Anders said something and you laughed. He smiled along with you. Mick wondered what he was saying; there was an unfamiliar curl in his stomach. You had always been his best friend. He had never had a challenger before. It was his Haas merch you wore to bed, his jacket you borrowed when you were cold, his scent that hung in your home. And yet there was so evidently a man in your life he was unfamiliar with. He and Nils had known each other for ages. Hell, Nils had been in love with Astrid for most of it. Nils had never been an opposing force to him. But Anders seemed his sworn enemy of the night. He glanced at the clock. It was only 10pm. You would have kept the group going for a couple more hours, at least. You also most definitely would have put forward the offer that they all sleepover, mostly the girls. You would have spent another couple hours after that wrapped in your covers talking to Lilly and Astrid in hushed voices. He so desperately wanted to kick everyone out.

"You alright, mate?" Lilly popped up next to him. A sweet girl, really. A bit awkward but definitely someone he was happy to spend time with. She was always nervous when she'd see him after a while. But then she'd warm up and get into her newest interest. He was happy Formula 1 had never been one of them. He was ecstatic to hear someone talk in so much detail about something other than cars and stats. "Yeah, fine. You?" He replied. His voice was staggered, whether it was from his new jealousy or the alcohol he wasn't completely sure. Lilly just laughed at him. "You're brooding. You're not fine." "Sorry." Was the only response he could think of. She joined him, leaning against the wall and following his gaze to you and Anders. Her lips pursed, she said, "You know we all know you two are into each other?" "What?" Mick asked, voice harsh but quiet as he finally placed his attention fully on her. "Oh come on, Mick." Lilly was almost shocked at his surprise. "Her flat is covered with your stuff. You're always together. You practically live together. She's been into you since you two were like, twelve." "She has not." She just puffed air through her lips at his denial. "Say what you want. Brood or have fun, your choice." With those words she departed, peeling herself away from the wall and heading over to the couch to sit with Astrid and Nils.

Mick straightened up. She was right. What was he doing? "Hey, what are you guys up to?" He asked, approaching you and Anders. Your smile widened when you saw him. "Mick!" You giggled. Anders seemed less pleased, giving a half grimace as a greeting. "We were talking about going to lunch sometime soon. When are you home again? We can make it a group thing." Oh god, Mick had to hold back a loud laugh as the light drained from Anders' eyes. You were so oblivious. He wrapped a hand around your shoulders and your hand came up to his chest as you gazed up at him, still expecting an answer. "Oh, between Japan and the US." He told you. You stayed wrapped around him pretty much the rest of the night. The second he discarded his bad mood and embraced the fact he was with his friends it was a great night. As expected, you had invited the group to stay for the night. The men had declined, and Lilly had dragged Astrid out with a wink sent Mick's way.

"That wasn't that bad, was it?" You asked, cleaning up as Mick stood there watching you again. You had pretty much sobered up by now. "You going to help me, or watch?" "Watch." He said, smiling at the repetitive situation. You paused what you were doing, looking up at him. "What are you so happy about?" "You." He breathed out. You shook your head, dropping your gaze to hide the fact you couldn't stop your smile. "I think I'm in love with you." "What?" You asked, head snapping up. "You heard me." "Where is this coming from?" You breathed out shakily. "Oh come on, I spend every waking moment with you. I don't think I like anyone nearly as much as I like you. And you can't tell me you don't feel the same, I know you do. Your entire flat is practically ours. I mean, take one look in the spare bedroom! It's closet is filled with my clothes." "You're serious?" You stepped towards him. He made sure to keep your eye contact. "Dead serious." You reached out for him, a hand grabbing his shirt and pulling him down to meet your lips. It felt so good. Perfect, even. He felt hazed with excitement and lust, like a teenager, as his hands went down to your hips to grasp desperately at you. Your fingers wrapped up in his roots and he thought he was losing it. He lifted you onto your island counter, allowing the two of you two continue kissing like high school students. Like it was the first time you two had ever kissed anyone. You broke away for air first, chest rising and falling with deep breaths. You grinned at him and placed your forehead against his. Yet you pulled away when he angled up to kiss you again. "Are you okay?" "Take me to the bedroom, Mick." He had never picked you up and crossed your apartment so fast.

#formula 1 #formula one #formula 1 fluff #formula1 #formula 1 x reader #mick schumacher #mick schumacher fluff #mick schumacher x reader #adoristsposts

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creatively-cosmic · 2 months

Note

What up, Starry—You already know who it is! B)

Sorry about Tumblr being a buggy mess and crashing halfway through! I’ve experienced the frustration of losing writing due to crashes and it always sucks. But thank you for continuing to answer these questions and satiate my curiosity! Learning more about Missing Numbers is like reading a book that just keeps getting better and better and better with every new chapter. Also: don’t worry about the delays or how long responding takes! You come first and foremost. Your health/work/school/whatever it is ya got going on in your personal life, is infinitely more important than me getting an answer to a question. So please, take your time, as much as you need—I will wait.

(Also, young Red being just as much of a little shit as Blue was is surprisingly wholesome and I love that. And after seeing their heights I realized I’m the same height as Blue! That detail is not important in the slightest, I just thought it was funny.)

Anywho, let’s get into the meat and potatoes, shall we?

First things first: Y’all mentioned biology mechanics and the nature of Glitches? 👀 Well, guess what? I love that kinda stuff! My curiosity is piqued—please explain.

Second question though: What is Leaf’s Duty? What does she do and how do her powers(?) work? Are her abilities like how the move Imprison was in Fallen Leaf?

And third: What’s the relationship/dynamic between Leaf and Red? That comic y’all posted has me wondering what Leaf is warning others about.

That’s all for now though! Please take care of yourself. Have a good day/afternoon/night!

Ahh, thank you so much for your patience! its really appreciated,, im glad youve still been enjoying things- your comments (and your FANART OH MY GOD??) have still been giving us LIFE i truly cannot thank you enough!

Red and Blue’s childhood friendship and rivalry has always been something we’ve wanted to come off as just plain silly and enjoyable- I’m glad we’ve been succeeding in that, hehe. And Blue was actually originally going to be shorter (our height, actually), we just added a few inches to be nicer to him lol

Per usual now, we’ll keep the big stuff under the cut! It’s another long one: Consider this Leaf Lore Part Two.

For the Glitch stuff, we’ve been thinking and might make a BIG formal post going over all of Professor Maple’s speculation and studies, to make it a good access point for the worldbuilding of Missing Numbers. I can’t promise it’ll come soon, but! As a starting point, I do have a pre-written thing with information on different classifications of Glitch that should clear up a good bit to start with.

Unless we get any sudden further realizations, every Glitch, Corruption, and Anomaly in Missing Numbers (and arguably in Pokemon as a whole) can fall under these five classifications.

Leaf’s duty is the main aspect of what we failed to touch on in your previous question. So, I’ll finish that part of the story. :)

To answer your questions, we first have to establish how she got her powers. When Leaf died, she did not get to rest peacefully. Most who die in this world don’t. The afterlife for the fallen and forgotten is not pretty. It is not merciful. There is no heaven for the ones who do not matter to God.

The Distortion exists in layers. At it’s lowest, the farthest from contact with the main reality, is a void of unused, scrapped, and null data. A graveyard, or worse yet, a dump where things that can no longer exist in the surface world go to rot. Unused data. Scrapped NPCs. Removed characters, Pokemon, items.

Assets of old games that never carried over.

Leaf's soul was discarded here when she was erased from existence at the end of Abandoned Loneliness. Left to rot with the unborn Ghosts that had haunted them both with the intent to drag someone of significance down with them. Hoping they too might escape. That they might receive mercy through her.

Unfortunately, Leaf was the unloved child. So instead she fell to their ranks, swallowed up by the abyss that was their resting place- thrust as far from reality, from her home, from her friends, from her purpose as feasibly possible. Still conscious. Still aware. Still suffering.

… Leaf was not one to accept things lying down. Leaf was a fighter. She hated injustice, unfairness. She wouldn’t stand for this. She wouldn’t lie down and give up. No matter how suffocating the darkness was. No matter how the bloodied hands tried to drag her further down. No matter how the chaos and corruption tried to break and dismantle her.

No. Matter. What.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way. And if there was one thing that defined Leaf even more than her bleeding heart, it was that her will was unbreakable.

So she climbed. Climbing over the damned- the forgotten- the spiteful- the vengeful- everything trying to hurt her and pull her down. Focused solely on escaping, on going up. Until things began to become more tangible. Until she could see more than black and red. Until there was light, and color. Until data became form- albeit still broken, chaotic. Numbers. Misplaced bricks. Impossible plants. Incomprehensible collision.

Glitch City.

She broke through the floor of the second lowest layer of the Distortion, and though the surface’s light was still so far… She’d found solid footing.

And here, though it may have been quieter… She wasn’t so alone.

The City had the odd few inhabitants. But the first that she met was a strangely familiar boy, a teenager that reminded her of someone she knew, but wrong. With a cocky, lopsided grin, unruly black hair, and bright red eyes.

Someone who wanted out just as badly as she did.

Leaf and Red never knew each other outside of Glitch City. But during their time trapped there together as children, they were friends. Leaf wasn’t the first person Red befriended there…

But she was significant. They were allies with a shared goal, after all, and if one of them could find a way out, they could get out together! They worked in tandem to find hope, grasp at an escape. Everything they could, as a possibility. They were friends, after all. Right?

Right?

… Leaf didn’t wholly trust Red. It wasn’t personal, but there were things that were risky. She could see the instability of corruption plaguing him, and she wanted to ensure her loved ones’ safety more than she wanted to escape. The greater picture was something that she could wrap her head around, even if it was hard to grasp.

Red was not the same. Laser focused on his goal and uncaring of the consequences, it was a factor that, over time, divided them more and more as Leaf realized the severity of Red’s condition, and began to think…

Maybe he was here for a reason. … Still, she tried to turn a blind eye. Let herself hope things weren’t that bad.

The growing obviousness for his resentment towards Fire, though Red tried to hide it, didn’t help- her distrust towards him only grew, further clouded by her personal fears and dedication to protecting her loved ones.

And one day, while discussing a possible window for escape… She let a thought she’d been hiding slip. The final nail in the coffin.

Afraid for her brother’s life, and angry seeing how Red reveled in the idea of hurting him, she left him behind and didn’t look back.

From there, we aren’t sure of the exact details of how she escaped. But we know she had help on the surface- from someone a little too curious about the nature of the Anomalous, who was all too eager to free a willing entity. Professor Ace Maple (specializing in “anomalies”, and original to the Missing Numbers story!) helped free her soul.

Of course, releasing a long-buried corrupted entity wouldn’t go unnoticed by the higher power that had put her there. But… It saw how careful she was. How she was now completely wary of all glitches. How she’d come to understand the dangers they posed to the world and the people in it.

So, the Almighty came to her in a Golden light. Extending an offer to her.

YOU CANNOT BE PERMITTED TO EXIST IN THIS WORLD AS YOU ARE.

THERE IS A REASON YOUR KIND WERE BURIED.

THIS WORLD IS ENDANGERED EVERY TIME CORRUPTION ESCAPES.

I MUST PRESERVE THE ORDER OF THIS REALITY.

BUT YOU, HEROINE, HAVE PROVEN TO BE SPECIAL.

I AM WILLING TO MAKE A COMPROMISE FOR YOU ALONE.

YOU KNOW THINGS I CANNOT PERMIT ANYONE TO KNOW.

YOU’VE SEEN THINGS I CANNOT PERMIT ANYONE TO SEE.

I CAN ALLOW YOU TO KEEP THESE MEMORIES, AND YOUR PRESENCE HERE, ON SIMPLE TERMS.

DO NOT SPEAK OF IT TO ANOTHER SOUL…

AND PUT THIS KNOWLEDGE TO USE.

YOUR SHACKLES WILL BE YOUR WEAPON. KNOWLEDGE. POWER.

PROTECT MY WORLD. CLEANSE THE CORRUPTION. HOLD THEM BELOW.

YOU ALONE WILL SEE EVERYTHING, FOR YOU ALONE SHALL BE THE WARDEN.

BUT DO NOT FORGET WHERE YOU CAME FROM.

DO NOT FORSAKE ME.

… Of course she accepted the bargain. It was all beneficial in her eyes. Her complete freedom, and the ability to protect those she loved most in ways she never could have before. What happened in their childhood would never happen again now.

Thus, Leaf was blessed with her body yet again. Rightfully hers, and aged to grow with her. Though she’d never again be a Vessel, that was okay. She was something far greater now.

The chains could Imprison any code they touched, and they were completely under her control. With these, she could fight and restrain any anomalies necessary. She was also given the one-of-a-kind ability to freely move between the Main world, and the Distortion… To ensure that no activity occurred in either that could allow the escape of something catastrophic.

Of course, things weren’t perfect. The world and the people in it had changed since she’d been gone. It had been years. People would be different.

Blue, for one. It was hard to face him again. Tensions never stopped being high between them. They both remembered, after all.

She mostly just cared about her brother, now. It took her a bit to find him, idle at the top of Mount Silver.

It was heartbreaking to see the emptiness in his eyes. Him barely acknowledging her. The realization that he’d never… He’d never looked for her. Never tried to free her.

Never even mourned.

She still loved him. She always would. He was her family. He was the only one who’d been anything like her.

It was okay that he got everything she had. It was okay that he’d completely replaced her. It was okay that he now had everything she ever wanted. It was okay that he wasn’t the one who looked for, found, freed her, instead of a complete stranger. It was okay that when he spoke it was soulless and objective and only reminding her of her duties. it was okay. it was okay.

It was okay that he didn’t care.

It was okay that he was living the life she should’ve wanted DESERVED that he was destined to.

It was okay that she had to protect him. It was part of her duty, after all.

She wasn’t bitter. She wasn’t mad. She loved him.

… And then there was Red- “Glitchy,” as she now called him, unwilling to give him the name that belonged to her brother. He never did give up on her. He was PISSED, mind you, that somehow she had escaped and left him and the others stuck down there behind- but he still refused to back down.

They were enemies now, though. As he grew more restless- and more powerful, much to Leaf’s horror- his imprisonment became a direct responsibility of hers. And as Professor Maple grew more curious about glitches, unknowingly bringing him closer and closer to true freedom, even though she felt indebted to them, she had to resist their studies. Warn them of everything- especially him.

“I thought you hated injustice. Don’t you think this is unfair?”

Still, she had to face him often. And even in his madness, and even in chains, Red could speak so… Persuasively.

“If you could escape, why shouldn’t I? You have the ability to free me.”

“And I know you’re hiding me from the others. Don’t they deserve to know?”

“You knew as a KID that Blue was looking for me. Doesn’t HE deserve it?”

“I think you know this isn’t the right thing to do.”

“You’re making a mistake.”

“But it’s okay. I’m not mad. I can be patient.”

“I’m sure you’ll come around.”

“After all, you’re just like me and you know it.”

#an important thing in missing numbers is that everyone is a victim. but nobody is innocent. do you understand me #everyone is as much of an antagonist towards each other as they are an ally #its a story about trauma and the effect it has on people and their relationships.#traumatized kids who grew up together. now adults struggling to find a reason why things have to be this way.#and they can only turn to the people who were there when things were darkest. but they also seem the only ones to blame #its all messy and complicated and painful and difficult and tragic tragic TRAGIC #and i think leafs story is the most shining example of these themes in mn tbh. im glad i could talk on the rest of it yayy!#missing numbers #please note and remember that mn is a very personal story and is about our emotions and thoughts before anything else #i get anxious about tumblrinas being tumblrinas so i feel the need to clarify that #me writing scared adults who were scared kids lashing out about it isn't me demonizing trauma and mental illness or whatever #its me venting and writing my own feelings in a dramatized form so i can grasp them in a more tangible way #its a very important thing to me. and it makes me very glad others can resonate with it. we're all in this bullshit together!

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angelicsentinel · 1 year

Text

Heartlight

Title: Heartlight Fandom: Detective Conan/Magic Kaito Author: AngelicSentinel Rating: Teen Relationships: Kudo Shinichi/Kuroba Kaito Characters: Kudo Shinichi, Kuroba Kaito Additional Information: First Kiss, Mutual Pining, Romance, Fluff, Making Out, Light Angst, Alternate Universe - Soulmates Word Count: ~6,000 Summary:

"Why seek me out?" Shinichi asked.

"I brought gifts for everyone on the nice list, and you missed yours."

Shinichi leaned back, rubbing at his cold hands before tucking them under his armpits. The night had grown colder, and he'd left home without an overcoat. "Wouldn't think I'd make the nice list, being a critic and all." He jiggled his foot against the frosted grass.

Notes: This is my second gift for @altumvidetur for the 2022 KaiShin secret santa as hosted by @dcmkkaishinevents. Written for the prompt "first kiss."

So uh, I wrote two because I became blocked on one and wrote another just in case, got stuck on the second, but then managed to finish the first one. Since I had done so much on the second already, I decided to finish it and post both. Hope you enjoy!

As always, mirror on Ao3

The large hall was dark and foreboding, lit only by moonlight and the dim light coming from the heavy double doors that led to the study.

The moon had always reminded Shinichi of the Kaitō KID. It was enticing with its pale allure, outshining the stars, but ever so distant in its manner and form, even at perigee. Likewise, KID was always larger than life, ever so present, flickering and playful, yet there was infinite space between them. Even so, Shinichi couldn’t help but be caught in his orbit.

He watched the moon's pale face through the tall arched windows of the mansion, thinking about him. That mischievous smirk, that irritating attitude of his, the way they made such a good team—

Now they really only came together at heists, and it was just challenging each other.

Shinichi surprised himself by missing the times they worked together, playing off one another’s strengths. He liked the challenges and facing off against him, it was just—

Something was missing. It wasn't enough, not anymore.

"Ah! Shinichi-kun!" Inspector Megure said as he came out of the study, drawing Shinichi's attention away from his thoughts. "I didn't think you'd still be here. Didn't you say you had somewhere else to be tonight?"

Shinichi blinked. "What?" Then he looked down at his watch. "Augh!" He bounced on his feet, looking from the scene of the crime to the front door, torn.

Megure shook his head. "Let us do our jobs. You've helped as much as you possibly can. Go."

Shinichi didn't waste any time, racing out the door and towards the museum.

“Damn it!” Shinichi cursed, glancing at his watch. He was so late!

He darted up the steps and ducked under the cordon, lifted up by a helpful officer, and sprinted into the museum, after which he slowed his steps to a walk.

Shinichi’s footsteps echoed off the marbled floor throughout the tall arches of the hallway, and he raced to the entrance of the gem exhibit where he paused at the open arched door.

The task force’s shouts were loud as they dogpiled the place KID was just standing. Still, they were almost comforting. There was something to be said for habit, and this was one Shinichi was long used to.

KID backflipped off a display case with a wild laugh, and the ghost of a smile curled across Shinichi’s face. He stayed behind the cordon at the Beika Museum of Natural History with the rest of the crowd. Just this once, Shinichi was in no mood to go chasing after the thief. He had declined to go to the heist at first, but KID’s heists invariably cheered his increasingly melancholic moods.

KID was always a delight to watch. Just being in the presence of his sheer exuberance improved Shinichi’s mood immensely. Dressed for the season with a glowing red nose and antlers sticking out of his hat, KID danced around giving the task force particularly dangerous presents. Some of them exploded with goo. Others had glitter bombs. Still others contained thoughtful gifts, and it was this last thing which made KID’s prank so successful. The task force never knew which of the gifts were rigged, and he had prepared one safe present for each task member, so they never knew if they were opening a legitimate present or not.

Even Inspector Nakamori had fallen for it; he was inordinately pleased with his brand new tie KID had given him and was fighting not to show it. He was also covered with shaving cream, which had somehow managed to miss his new tie. KID was skilled in that way.

An intermittent gleam from KID’s chest twinkled in and out every time he looked at Shinichi, but it had to be a trick of the light. It couldn’t be what he thought it was.

Shinichi closed his eyes, letting the noise wash over him, and inhaled deeply. He'd watched KID's performance. It was time to go. He slipped through the crowd and out the door into the humid winter night, leaving the shouts behind him. The damp chilled him to his bones, and he fought off a shiver. Still, the cold was bracing, and it helped him feel better.

Only the slightest sliver of crescent moon shone overhead, and the lights from the city drowned out its futile gleam.

Shinichi meandered through Beika, hands in his pockets and shoulders tucked in against the cold. He could go home, but why? It was also cold, and large, and empty. At least here the sounds of the city surrounded Shinichi, burying him in the white noise. He took a turn for the park.

This late at night, Beika Park was dark, lit only by distant streetlamps. Shinichi avoided the lit areas and sat down on a bench behind a row of trees on the bank of the Serpentine, watching the calm, quiet waves in the dark. A curtain of diamonds shone above in the black.

Two stars fell in synchrony, arcing across the sky, leaving a brilliant fiery trail. Shinichi watched them until they disappeared, and made a wish.

Behind him, leaves rustled in the low wind. They masked quiet footsteps, so Shinichi wasn’t aware he was no longer alone until someone spoke.

“You arrived late, and then you left my heist early. Was something lacking in the presentation?" KID asked quietly. Something bright flashed behind Shinichi.

When Shinichi turned, it was gone. "No. It was a wonderful performance," he said, watching KID’s posture relax before turning back around, staring at the dark waves on the lake. He leaned forward on his arms. "I didn't think you'd notice," he added.

"Of course I did," KID said, walking around the park bench and sitting down next to Shinichi. "A good artist always keeps track of his critics. I also noticed you didn't assist the task force tonight."

"I didn't feel like it," Shinichi said.

"I see."

A measured silence.

"Why seek me out?" Shinichi asked.

"I brought gifts for everyone on the nice list, and you missed yours."

"That's what makes you the nicest," KID said, and wrapped his cape around Shinichi's shoulders; he startled at the touch, though, and KID laughed and said, "Easy, easy. It's just me." In his other hand he held out a deep blue box, covered with silver sparkles and a glittering, silver bow.

Shinichi narrowed his eyes at it. "And it's going to have shaving cream or exploding glitter in it—"

"No," KID said, shifting so their bodies touched, and pulling his cape more tightly around Shinichi as he shivered. His side was almost painfully warm, Shinichi had been out in the cold so long without a coat, and he couldn't help but press himself more closely against him. That in turn made KID wrap an arm around his waist. "It won't, I promise."

"I'll hold you to that," Shinichi said, and opened the box. Inside was another box of midnight blue, the outside made of crushed velvet. It looked like a box in which jewelry came. "This isn't some kind of box-in-a-box trick, is it?"

"No," KID said again, and something in his voice made Shinichi glance up. If Shinichi didn't know better, he'd almost say KID was nervous.

Running a finger over the box, Shinichi opened it. The contents were what he thought. It was jewelry: a silver necklace with a heart-shaped pendant covered in white stones. The center held a heart-cut blue stone. It also had a latch; Shinichi flipped it open to see a preserved four-leaf clover.

"KID, is this some kind of joke?" Shinichi asked with a grin. It was a good one. Much more subtle than the ones he gave at the heist. The locket was beautiful.

KID was not grinning. Instead, he said, "I am giving you my heart, Detective."

It took Shinichi a long moment to process, and then he blushed all the way down, suddenly hot all over. He was now aware that he'd pressed KID the length of his side, seeking out his heat, and the way they were sitting, KID's cape wrapped around Shinichi, was cozy and intimate. His heart rabbited in his chest.

Idiot, he said to himself. It's just KID.

"But we're both men?" he said, at least partially to give himself more time to think, but KID merely tightened his grip on his waist.

"That, I believe, is precisely the point," KID said, reaching up to cup Shinichi's jaw, running his thumb across his lips.

Shinichi parted his lips in surprise, and KID leaned in, tilting his head. He searched his eyes for a moment, and finding what he was looking for, he pressed his lips to his.

Soft, was Shinichi's first thought. His second was warm. Then Shinichi had no more thoughts at all as KID mouthed his bottom lip and kissed him again. He kept kissing him, his mouth firm and insistent, his grip tight around his waist, and Shinichi kissed back, just as insistent, pressing forward, seeking him out.

Somehow Shinichi's hand found its way into KIDs hair and he pinned KID back against the bench.

Was this what he was missing? Is this why he went to KID's heists? Searching for that spark that he and Ran had lost?

They broke away only when they could no longer breathe. Shinichi was practically in his lap. KID had his gloved fingers curled against his own lips, watching Shinichi, stunned, his cheeks scarlet.

Something cold slid against Shinichi’s collar as he leaned back, and he looked down to find KID had put the locket around his neck at some point when they were kissing. Shinichi grasped it in his palm. “Your heart, huh?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“I thought you stole things, not gave them,” Shinichi said, dropping the locket. It fell against his chest, warm from his palm.

“I’m intent on stealing yours,” KID said, tracing nonsense figures against Shinichi's neck before moving down to his chest.

“Idiot,” Shinichi said. “Like you don’t already have it.”

KID paused for a moment before continuing to stroke his chest, drawing circles around the locket. “I admit I wasn’t certain,” he said. “Things between us are…contentious.”

Shinichi laughed. “That’s one way of putting it,” he said, and then kissed the corner of his mouth, letting his lips linger against his skin.

“Ah,” KID said, leaning into it. ”In that case, it is only polite that you have something in which to fill the hollow left behind,” KID murmured against his lips.

Shinichi tilted his face into his, so their faces were pressed together. That was well and good until Shinichi brushed his nose against KID's cheek.

"Cold!" he said, pulling away and rubbing at his cheek. He plucked something out of his pocket and stuck it on Shinichi's nose. He nearly went cross-eyed trying to see what it was.

Ah, the red reindeer nose, blinking happily. KID quickly followed with some earmuffs that had antlers attached to the top; Shinichi hadn’t realized it, distracted as he was, but the cold had been burning his ears.

“Better?” KID asked, tilting his head.

Shinichi blinked. “Yeah,” he said, slightly nasally from the flashing nose. “But I look ridiculous.”

“Better than shaving cream or glitter?” KID asked, eyebrows raised.

“Much.” Shinichi agreed with that much, he supposed. “I guess it’s pretty clever to work with what you have.”

“Hmm, it is freezing out here,” KID said. “I should probably get you home. You’re not properly dressed.” He attempted to extricate himself from Shinichi’s grip, but Shinichi wouldn’t let him go.

“I don’t want tonight to end,” Shinichi said, leaning his head on his shoulder. “Not just yet.”

“You, clingy?” KID shook his head. “I never would have guessed.”

“I’m cold. You’re warm. If you pull away, I’ll be cold again,” Shinichi tightened his grip around him. “It’s logical.”

“I see. Purely logical. Makes sense.” KID was being indulgent, playful. A wave of fondness rushed up and filled Shinichi’s heart. "But we can't stay out here forever, hmm."

KID was silent for a long moment, finger tapping his kiss-bruised lips. By this point, the cold had left Shinichi almost entirely. He was almost hot, surrounded by his warmth. "Can I trust you?" he asked Shinichi, and how was Shinichi supposed to take that?

"I don't think you should," Shinichi said, for lack of anything better to say, and when KID didn't say anything after a long moment, Shinichi added, "It is Christmas, however, and since I don't have a gift prepared, anything said or done on this night I'll take to my grave."

KID licked his lips. "Anything?"

"One night only," Shinichi said, already regretting it. For good measure, he reached into his pocket, turned his phone to airplane mode, then shut it off.

"Very well," KID said. "Then I have a place we can go." He slid his hand into his, and entwining his fingers with Shinichi's, he stood. He wrapped his cape tightly around Shinichi like a cloak, then in a puff of smoke, the rest of his outfit disappeared, turning into something dark, his silk hat now a ball cap pulled low over his eyes. Then he pulled Shinichi into the night.

The night was still, punctuated only by the yowl of a startled cat and quiet, distant traffic. KID's wandering path sent them through the park, down a couple of blocks, through some adjacent alleyways, and finally, up a fire escape of a small, older building. Shinichi didn't think he could remember the way even if he was asked.

KID's lockpicks made quick work of the half-size access panel, and then he pulled him into the room.

Surprisingly, it was a full-size room, if a bit small, and mostly finished, sheetrocked and wired. Only the rafters were left open. Someone had made it a small apartment, and it hadn't been KID.

He had, however, run differing strands of blue and white festive lights throughout the rafters, so they dangled down like stars. In the corner were a couple of futon and a pile of pillows and blankets, looking like a little nest.

Another area was closed off with a wall and half-open door; it was a bath. An actual bath with a full bathtub. In the corner was another closed door and a space heater.

A small television sat on a milk crate and it was surrounded by stacks of books and a few old newspapers, neatly folded. A half-size refrigerator, microwave, and hotplate completed the ensemble.

"I take it this is a bolt hole?" Shinichi asked.

"One of them, yeah," KID said. A threat if Shinichi ever heard one.

"One of the first, and probably the most established, if I had to say so." KID's tense posture told Shinichi he was correct, but threatening him wasn't his intent, so he said, "You don't have to worry. I'm as good as my word. Your secret is safe with me."

"Is that so?" KID murmured, pulling him close.

"Yes," Shinichi said, settling his arms around his lower back.

"Be careful," KID said, tightening his grip. "That might make me inclined to share more than I should."

"I won't make use of anything that happens tonight. Anything," Shinichi stressed.

"Including my face?"

"Anything," Shinichi repeated, heart in his throat.

He swallowed thickly as KID gave a half smile and took off his hat and monocle, tossing them to the side. He took off Shinichi’s nose and earmuffs, then leaned over for a kiss, one that Shinichi was only too happy to receive.

"What about it, detective? Do I pass muster?" KID asked.

Shinichi cupped his face. Still real. "More than," he said.

KID kissed him again, firm but chaste, until Shinichi was breathless again.

Then he turned, pulling off his black clothing and then his suit coat, shrugging off the dark cotton trousers and hanging the coat up in the corner so it wouldn't wrinkle. His belt followed, his shoes tucked neatly under the coat.

"Getting undressed?" Shinichi asked weakly, heart in his throat, excitement thrumming through his body.

"Getting comfortable," KID said. “It’s supposed to be below zero until well into the morning. Since you left home without a coat,” here he shot him a glare, “I figured we’d wait here until in the morning.” He cleared his throat. “Unless you have something pressing.”

The room cut off the wind, and it was small enough just their body heat made it tolerable, though still cold. KID arranged the space heater and turned it on.

“No, nothing pressing,” Shinichi said. “Though I do wonder how we’re going to spend the time.”

“Do you?” KID asked, his voice dropping an octave. “I can think of a few things.”

Shinichi blinked, caught flat-footed. “Um.” His mind had gone completely blank at the suggestive tone to his words, and suddenly it was hard to breathe again.

Idiot, he said to himself once again. It's just KID. KID looking at him with promise in his eyes, with desire.

Yeah, that line didn’t work on Shinichi the first time, either. He wrapped his cape tighter around himself and swallowed again, shifting on his feet.

How had they gotten here? “One night only,” Shinichi said, almost a whisper, staring at the futon, and so he missed the despair that crossed KID’s face. It would have matched Shinichi’s own. “I’d like that,” he said, voice louder, and licked his lips. “Things.”

KID pasted on a smile. It seemed a little false, but Shinichi wasn’t sure what gave him that impression. “We could always play cards instead.”

“Using the ammunition for your card gun, right?” Shinichi said, interested despite himself.

KID's smile widened, much more genuine. "Why, detective! Are you trying to gumshoe my secrets out of me?"

Shinichi's grin matched his. "Look, I've got one night to get everything out of you, and anything I get, I can't use. You might as well give me everything."

KID touched his hips, guiding him towards the futon. "Giving you everything, hmm?" They sat down on the futon, backs against the wall. "Why don't you start the interrogation, then?"

"Why me?" Shinichi asked quietly.

"Why not you, detective?" KID pulled his knees up to his chest. "Don't we work well together? Aren't you interested in how it might work? What we could achieve?"

Shinichi laughed. "You make us sound like business partners."

"Perhaps I should return this interrogation to you. Why did you kiss me back?"

Hmm. That was a question. Why did Shinichi kiss him back? "Loneliness, maybe?" Shinichi said slowly.

"I can work with that," KID said.

"No, I. I let you get close," Shinichi said. "It happened without me realizing it. When you kissed me, it suddenly made sense."

"Ah, habit! How romantic," KID said, stretching out and curling around Shinichi.

"It's not habit! At least, not just habit," Shinichi amended. "You challenge me."

"You were not looking for that challenge tonight," KID said.

Laughter bubbled up from Shinichi's throat despite himself. "Aww, were you hurt that I didn't participate?" He unwrapped KID's cape, sharing it with him.

"Very," KID said seriously, laying his head against his chest. Shinichi had a very good view of his collarbones, framed by his loose tie and the undone top two buttons. He thought he might particularly like to kiss the dip under his neck, just to see what KID would do.

"Lucky for us then that heists are just a medium," Shinichi said, tucking KID in. "We still have lots of ways we can challenge one another."

“Sounds intriguing. What do you have in mind?” KID asked.

Shinichi said nothing, fingers under KID's chin. He tilted his chin up and kissed him. It was nice, Shinichi reflected, to have him so close. All the things he never thought about, that he never let himself think about…they didn’t matter anymore. KID was close, his lips on his. His body heat mesmerized Shinichi. He was so startlingly hot Shinichi could just melt against him, and so he did.

He lost track of time. All Shinichi knew when he pulled away was that KID’s shirt had become unbuttoned. His flushed skin contrasted with the white of his suit, and Shinichi wanted to see him even more disheveled.

"Is this how interrogations are supposed to work, detective?" KID asked as Shinichi pressed him to the futon, straddling his thighs and pinning his arms above his head.

"Hmm. I think I'm learning a lot," Shinichi said, moving his tie to the side and trailing a finger down his lean pectoral. Toned muscle, hidden by a soft layer. Shinichi jerked his shirt open wide and splayed his hands across his chest, running his palms across his nipples.

KID's breath hitched, and his hands settled on Shinichi's hips.

Shinichi tapped the left side of his torso, close to his heart. "Starburst pattern," he said. "Hollow. Gunshot," he concluded, before fingering a small scar. "The gem that saved you cut you," he said, tracing the line.

"Yes. It was the Blue Birthday," he said. KID was trying to control his breathing, but he was having difficulties, just from Shinichi's proximity. A heady feeling surged through Shinichi, making him dizzy.

He had to ground himself. "You're getting shot at," Shinichi said. "Who's shooting you?" Shinichi asked.

"Detective, do we have to talk about this now?" KID asked.

In lieu of an answer, Shinichi kissed the dip in between his collar bones. KID made a strangled noise, so Shinichi kissed the curve of his neck, up the line of it, and finished with one to his jaw. Then he kissed back down, humming as he reached his sternum. Then he licked a line between his pectorals, tracing the ridge until he reached a nipple.

KID hissed. Shinichi swirled around the nub with the tip of his tongue before mouthing it with his lips and then kissing it. KID buried his fist in his hair, arching up into his mouth, so Shinichi did it again.

Shinichi licked a line to the other side before performing the same routine, rewarded by a gasp from KID and more writhing.

Lifting his head, Shinichi said, "No."

"'No' what?" KID asked, and Shinichi laughed.

"So this body is KID's canvas," Shinichi mused. "Adaptable and chameleon. Beautiful."

"Oh, detective. You'll make me blush," KID said.

"That's the plan," Shinichi said, trailing his finger down the line of his stomach to his navel before circling it. It was then he noticed something had risen. "Pervert," he said, blushing.

"Detective, I am only a mortal man and you've been very handsy," KID said.

Yes. Shinichi knew far too well KID was mortal, even if he forgot sometimes, the way that KID seemed larger than life.

Shinichi touched the starburst scar. "I'm going to make it so you never have to go through this again."

KID blinked. "Detective?"

"I mean it. I'll find them, even if you won't tell me." He glared at the bullet hole, and KID took his hand from his scar and held it.

"You have your own problems," KID said.

"I do. And they include you now.” He leaned over his body once again, kissing his collar over and over, trailing kisses back over the left part of his shoulder, kissing back up his neck. He feathered kisses all along KID’s jaw, and then attempted to kiss the corner of his mouth again. Instead, KID turned his head into the kiss, tired of the teasing. Shinichi didn’t have a problem with this either, and kissed him gladly, nipping his bottom lip, soothing it with a questioning tongue.

KID let him in. It wasn’t so long ago that this would have been something unusual, but now it was more natural than breathing. He and KID just fit together, even like this. Watching him at the heist, Shinichi knew something was missing, that he needed something else, something more, but he didn’t know it would be this. Perfection encapsulated in this singular moment, something grand, something special. He could do this the rest of his life and never get tired of it; the slide of their twin tongues, the needy way that KID sought him out, the obsessed way that he responded.

“I’m a problem?” KID asked, breathless, when Shinichi pulled away.

“You’re a big problem,” Shinichi said, shaking his head at him. “What am I supposed to do with you, huh?” he asked, rubbing circles over his heart. “How am I supposed to protect you if you won’t let me?”

“Protect me?” KID asked, tilting his head. “I’m not helpless, you know.”

“I know, I just.” Shinichi bit his lip. “I just don’t want to lose you before I even know you. If I can help—”

KID took his hand in his. “The sentiment as it’s meant is endearing. My dear, dear detective,” KID said, cupping his face and caressing the sweep of Shinichi’s cheek with his thumb. “Alas, but we are two different stars, falling together but with a different trajectory. Our paths were not meant to have the same end.”

“You're the one that gave me your heart, KID," Shinichi said. "Isn't it mine to do with as I please?"

"My heart, not the rest of me," KID said.

"Oh, I see," Shinichi said, although he didn't really see at all. Instead, he rose from his position on top of KID and stood, straightening his suit. He dusted himself off, and then walked towards the little half door.

It took KID a moment to process what Shinichi was doing, but then he was on his feet in a flash, racing across the small room and grabbing his wrist. "Shinichi, don't go!"

Shinichi turned. "Why shouldn't I?"

"Because—" he trailed off. Shinichi rarely saw him at a loss for words. "I want you here," he finished quietly.

"I'm not someone you can just dismiss," Shinichi said, tugging his arm out of his grip. "And if you're not even going to listen to me, it makes me wonder if this can even go anywhere."

"It can, it's just," KID fell to silence again.

Shinichi laughed, but this time it was bitter. He stepped forward, closer to the door, only to have KID wrap his arms around him and press his face to his back. "Stay with me," KID said.

"Tonight?" Shinichi asked.

"Forever."

"KID—"

"You have to understand. I am used to doing things alone," KID said. "It will take me some time to accustom myself to having someone beside me."

"Like that excuses it," Shinichi grumbled, but he had no desire to leave. He only wanted to make KID understand.

"People will inevitably get hurt. I would rather bear that myself." His grip around Shinichi's stomach tightened.

"Idiot. You don't need to protect me. I'm not helpless either. We can work together." He turned around in his embrace and gathered KID into his arms. His warm body heated Shinichi down to his bones.

"Detective," KID said before pausing. He opened his mouth. Then he shut it. Then he opened it again before biting his lip instead.

He leaned in, pressing half his face against half of Shinichi's, close enough to whisper in his ear. "My name is Kaito."

Shinichi's breath left his body. "Sure you can trust me with that much?"

"One night only," KID said with a soft smile. “You’re as good as your word. For one night only, I can trust you with everything.” He swallowed. “I find myself wanting to.” He reached into his pocket and pressed a button and soft music began playing from speakers hidden in various corners of the room. Shinichi couldn’t spot them at first glance.

The soft sound of a cello and piano—the opening notes of Pachelbel's Canon in D. Kaito took Shinichi’s hands into his, sweeping him across the small room. Shinichi let him take the lead. “Are we getting married?” Shinichi asked. “It’s quite a ways from our first kiss we shared tonight.”

“Shinichi, I have one night to work with. Cut me some slack here,” Kaito said, swirling him around.

Shinichi decided he’d be better off if he took the lead before KID got any ideas; to his surprise, Kaito was only too willing to follow. "You're forgiven," Shinichi said primly with a disdainful sniff, and they both laughed so hard they fell against each other, clutching each other for support.

It wasn't exactly funny, but something was just so…Shinichi didn't have the words. Magical, maybe, but it didn't feel right. Special?

Like untouched fresh-fallen snow, the kind that would melt in the morning under the warm winter sun. Beautiful and pristine and so very fragile.

They danced until the song changed, and Kaito turned the music down, then leaned in for another kiss. Shinichi was growing addicted to them. They kissed again, and a twinkling bright light grew between them, expanding until it flashed brightly in a splash of color.

"Oh," Shinichi said, eyes wide.

Kaito's blue shirt was still unbuttoned, and glittering just in front of his chest was a small white star, iridescent and sparkling.

He'd been right. Kaito's heartlight had been in danger of escaping his chest all night.

"When you said you were giving me your heart, I thought you meant it as a metaphor," Shinichi said.

Kaito's face fell, and he clutched at his light, covering it, but it was too bright. It shone through his fingers. He held it close to his chest, trying to force it back in, but it wouldn't return, so he just stood there helpless, heart in his hand.

The air was still. Shinichi heard his own heartbeat loud in his ears. He reached out. “May I,” he asked, his voice as soft as the shadows flickering with the beat of KID’s heart.

The silence was deafening. Shinichi didn’t move. One twitch would shatter this moment forever. They stayed in that moment for an eternity, gazing into each other’s eyes, the space between them lit up by Kaito’s twinkling heart.

“Of course,” Kaito said finally, voice as soft as a whisper. He held out his hand, his face lit by a rainbow of color.

Cognizant of the trust Kaito was showing towards him, Shinichi took it from his hand with a delicate touch, cradling it between his own two. He leaned down, pressing a kiss against the fluttering warmth.

Kaito gasped, face slackening, so Shinichi did it again, pouring all the affection he felt into the kiss.

It wasn’t love. Not quite yet. But it was enough to make Kaito’s heart squirm in his hand and inch towards Shinichi’s own chest.

“Detective,” Kaito breathed as Shinichi brought it closer and let it rest against his heart. He knew he was half in love with KID already. He just hadn’t recognized that love for what it was.

It was so obvious in retrospect.

The little ball of light sank down into his chest; Shinichi inhaled, deep and shuddering, as Kaito’s warmth suffused his entire body. It settled down into his chest, curling next to Shinichi’s own heartlight.

Kaito fell against him, his breathing ragged, clutching at him with desperate hands. “Please,” he begged into Shinichi’s neck. It was everything to let it rest there, to let it resonate. In return, Shinichi’s light curled around Kaito’s like a guardian, protecting him from the shadows outside.

Shinichi didn’t want to part them. But it was unfair for Kaito to give him his soulstar and then for Shinichi to keep him heartless in the dark.

Biting his lip, Shinichi untied his tie and then shrugged off his shirt. Then he helped Kaito do the same until they were standing shirtless before one another.

It took surprisingly little time for Shinichi to coax his heartlight out of his chest. Shinichi’s wasn’t an iridescent rainbow; it was a dimmer star made of cool blues and somewhat small. He held it out to Kaito, who took it like it was precious anyway, and he held it against his chest. It sank inside easier than Shinichi suspected and settled like it had always belonged there.

Love thrummed through Shinichi's chest from Kaito's heartlight. Likewise, his soulstar teased at Shinichi's light as it flowed through Kaito, stoking the brightness, playful and sure.

"You—" Kaito began, uncertain.

"Me," Shinichi said with a smile.

"You know, in the old days they would have considered this as binding as a marriage," Kaito said.

“Then yes,” Shinichi said.

His words struck Kaito speechless. Left bereft of words, he pulled him into another kiss instead.

Kaito's heart raced in Shinichi's chest. Likewise, he could feel his own speeding up in Kaito's. They began to resonate with one another, sparking light flickering from each of their chests, before settling down into their new homes.

Lifting his head, he grabbed Shinichi's hand and pulled him back to the futon, laying down next to him so they were face to face, then covered them both with several thick blankets.

"Your heart's been mine for a long time, hasn't it?" Shinichi asked.

"Yes," Kaito admitted. "Pathetic, huh?"

"Brave," Shinichi said. He reached over and caressed his cheek. "No hiding from me, not tonight."

The festive lights twinkled above them, casting the whole safe room in a haunting blue glow. It was beautiful. He was beautiful. Shinichi wanted to reach out and touch.

Then, he realized he could. He shifted under the blankets and rolled over on top of him.

“Detective…?” Kaito asked. He hissed as Shinichi kissed the juncture of his shoulder, up his collar, followed by the hollow of his throat, then along the curve.

“Mmm, Kaito,” Shinichi murmured against his neck. “I really would prefer it if you would call me Shinichi."

"Shinichi," he breathed.

"You know," Shinichi said conversationally against his neck, "About this one night thing—" he trailed off, kissing the edge of his jaw and just under his ear.

"What?" Kaito asked, shifting underneath him, tensing up.

"I was just thinking about it," Shinichi said, plying him with kisses. "How anything goes tonight."

"Yes, and? What was your conclusion?" Kaito asked, breathless and squirming.

"Oh, just that it follows that I really can't do anything about anything that happens in the future outside the foundation of this night, either," Shinichi said, pressing soft kisses across his face. His jawline, his cheeks…he rested his lips against his forehead, holding him close.

Shinichi didn’t speak it aloud, but perhaps it was better that Kaito didn’t tell him about those men in black at his heists. Shinichi had the free rein to investigate on that own

“Meaning?” Kaito asked, and oh, he was tense.

“I want to be partners,” Shinichi said, running his fingers through his fringe, kissing his forehead, then down the bridge of his nose.

“Working together?” Kaito asked, adorably confused.

“No. Partners,” Shinichi stressed. “Boyfriends. Whatever.”

“Oh, I see.” He grinned. “Boyfriends.”

“Don’t say that. It sounds so juvenile.”

“Whatever, then,” Kaito said, grinning even wider.

Shinichi wanted to kiss that smirk right off his stupid face. "I want to learn everything about you, and argue with you, and do everything with you. I want to challenge you, and struggle with you, and I just," he trailed off.

"...Are you asking me out?" Kaito asked, his smile true and genuine.

To hell with it. "Yes," Shinichi said, and drew him back close.

The night outside was cold and bitter, but underneath the blankets, Shinichi was sweet and warm. He tucked his head against Kaito's chest and just listened to his heart, cradled by Shinichi's heartlight. The locket he'd given him lay against his chest, warm with the heat of their skin.

Tomorrow, things would be different. Tomorrow they would have to figure out so very many complicated messy things to make it work. If they could even make it work, disparate as they were.

But tonight…

Just for tonight…

They cradled each other in their arms and dreamed of forever.

#kaishin #detective conan #dcmk #ksss22 #kuroba kaito #kudo shinichi #soulmate au #fluff #sentinel writes

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discordapples · 1 year

Text

PT. 5 Boyish Thrills

Word count: 1.5k (6 mins read)

Characters: Sebastian Sallow, Livia Novik, Ominis Gaunt, Imelda Reyes, Grimes Ashwood.

Protective Sebastian. 🤩

Summary

Sebastian shows up at the dueling club with Livia Novik at his arm to make a statement. Things get heated when Imelda Reyes and Grimes Ashwood challenges them to a duel.

Read the fifth chapter below.

Sebastian | Hogwarts, Late August 1893.

Sebastian goes through three different shirts—all wrong. One with an unidentifiable stain, another with a fraying seam, the last with a missing button.

He has endeavored to tear his way through Ominis’ drawers when the door creaks open. Sebastian freezes, an ivory-colored dress shirt hanging from his fingers.

“What are you doing rummaging through my drawers?” Ominis asks him.

“You know, for a blind guy, you have eyes on the back of your head.” Sebastian points out. Ominis drops his stack of books on the desk. Sebastian reads from the spines: Navigating the Unseen, Advanced Incantations and Enigmatic Spells, Secrets of the Unspeakables. “You have big plans for the evening, I see.”

Ominis shrugs. “It’s this or listening to Grimes Ashwood’s sexual exploits during his visit to France. He’s making a group of third years blush enough to catch a fever.”

Sebastian raises a brow. “The only girl Ashwood fondled was his mother.”

“Then he got his stories from you,” Ominis retorts. “He’s very profuse in details.”

“I take it you won’t need your white dress shirts then?”

Ominis sits on his bed. “Where are you going that requires a mint white shirt?”

“I’m meeting the new girl for dueling club.”

Surprise etches lines on Ominis’ forehead. “You talked to her?”

“I was curious to know what the fuss was all about.”

“And?”

Sebastian sheds his jumper, the ghost of a smile playing on his lips. “I wasn’t disappointed.”

Ominis has lost interest in his dusty books. They lay, closed and forgotten, on the desk. “What does she look like?”

The silk of Ominis’ shirt glides over Sebastian’s shoulders. “Black hair, long enough to twine a few times around your fist. Green eyes that scan you for a crack she can slide her nail in. Lips I’d part with two fingers. A tongue that lashes like a whip. A way with words that would have you lose your Parseltongue.”

“It seems you studied her more than you have herbology these past seven years.”

“Let’s just say she’s a breath of fresh air. No pun intended.” He finishes to button his (Ominis’) shirt, then snags his cloak from its peg. “And I’m late.”

“You know Imelda will be there tonight, right?”

“Oh, really?” Sebastian says in his feigned ignorance. “I had no idea.”

“You’re a jerk, you know that?”

“She gave me a challenge. ‘I can be petty, too, Sebastian Sallow’. I’m just raising to the task.”

“Or proving her right,” Ominis suggests.

“Regardless,” Sebastian drawls, “I will have Livia Novik at my arm and Reyes will have nothing but her despicable scowl.”

“Enjoy, then.”

Sebastian stops inches from the door, a sudden pang of guilt spearing through his stomach. “Do you want to join?”

Ominis angles his face to him, his milk-white pupils glinting with awareness. “And be the third wheel? I’d rather listen to Grimes recount his bedroom escapades.”

“Suit yourself.”

Leaving Ominis to his stodgy tomes, Sebastian leaves his dorm. Wall torches have a sickly tinge to them and they flutter at his passage while he makes for the common room.

On his way to the door, he meets with Imelda’s incandescent stare and notches the arrow of a smirk, letting it fly without impunity.

The last thing he catches in the tail-end of his eye is her knuckles blanching with anger.

* * *

Livia Novik wears silk and a hint of rouge on her lips. Her evening bodice is frilled with lace and embroidered with satin stitch. The long oil-black strand of braided hair curves around her right breast.

Sebastian has to wrestle with his own brain, not look downwards to the straight line shadows gouge inside her chemise. “Are all Winter College students this well nipped?” He asks her as they scroll past the Fawkes statue.

“What do you think we wear in Ukraine, Sebastian Sallow? Furs?”

“I’m only concerned you’ll singe that luxurious silk shirt in the arena.”

Her heads whips to him. “I never said I’d duel.”

Mirth tugs at his lips. “Not one for getting your hands dirty, uh? It’s okay, Livia Novik, I can work my wand for the both of us.”

Her viridian eyes roam to his chest, shaping a plume of warmth beneath his ribs. “And ruin this pristine dress shirt? Merlin forbid.”

“Oh, this rag?” He sneers. “Don’t worry about it. We, Slytherins, are provided with the richest fabrics.”

A smile plays on her lips. “When you can avoid the mobs of rats that inhabit the dungeons nibbling right through them, it must be a sight to behold.”

As a quartet of Hufflepuff students walks by, he presses a hand in the small of Livia’s back, forcing her to queue in front of him. The touch alone sends tingles trepanning into his backbone. “You’re a delight to speak with,” he derides, inching beside her as soon as the flock has gone past. “Always with the comeback that knifes right into your gut.”

“Going from bully to victim in the span of a heartbeat, you are quite the comedian, Sebastian Sallow.”

He cannot say why, but the back-and-forth thrills him. It’s a tug of war that fills him with the apprehension of the next blow; it knits shivers on his nape and curls into his loins. It takes no more for him to imagine this sharp tongue of hers swirling around his tip as he feeds her his length, and even if he’d fill her mouth to the hilt, he knows her mind would bubble with her next taunts.

But the drone of nearby activity shatters right through his phantasm, and Livia’s eyes spark aglow with a shade Sebastian has not seen on her yet.

Excitement?

If he guided her through Hogwarts’ corridors before, he is now reduced to dog her as she darts towards the sound of hurling spells.

They come to the clock tower entrance where the heat of an encounter blusters over them.

A faceless crowd clumps around Eric Northcott and Constance Dagworth, both busy chucking sorceries at each other.

The room is aflame with blue and green hues.

Interjections pulse through the throng of spectators with each movement of the wand.

Livia cleaves through the mob, and Sebastian follows closely. At last, Livia stops her course when she reaches the first row, and Sebastian presses next to her.

Amidst the funk of sweat and the nitrous scent of spells, he can decipher the notes of blackcurrant and vanilla emanating from her neck.

She is so close, he can sense every swish of silk against her skin, the shape of her wand in the pocket of her skirt.

He leans within earshot as Northcott disarms his Ravenclaw opponent in one swift motion, sending Constance grinding against the floor with a humph. “Are we still just spirit animals and a lick of color to you?”

He takes the curl of Livia's lip as a small victory, even if she keeps her eyes trained on the two contenders. Riling the crowd, Northcott throws his arms in the air. A sonorous roar shivers through the body of students while Dagworth crawls to her wand, unbeknownst to her opponent, before yelling: “Petrificus totalus!”

Northcott’s muscles knot with inertia. His lips are still frozen in a triumphant smile, even though his pupils are dilated with horror.

Slowly—excruciatingly—he cataracts forward with no arm left to break his fall.

His nose gives a sickening crack and blood gushes out, raining on the porous stones below.

The cheering dies out, but the second Dagworth gives an arrogant bow, it picks back up.

Sebastian’s palm furls around Livia’s shoulder. “Welcome to Hogwarts, Livia Novik.”

“How cute.”

Imelda’s voice is glass against Sebastian’s eardrums. He whirls around to see her standing right behind them, in Grimes Ashwood’s shadow.

“Reyes. Ashwood.” Sebastian drawls with contempt. “This is Livia Novik. Livia, this is Imelda Reyes and Grimes Ashwood.”

Imelda crosses her arms before her chest, a brow vaulting. “So, you’re the one everyone’s fawning over?” She doesn’t allow Livia a thought in edge wise. “Social clout is fickle. No point getting used to it.”

“Don’t worry,” Livia retorts. “I won’t commandeer the flotsam you’re desperately holding onto.”

The repartee paints a pink flush over Imelda’s cheeks and it is utterly ruddied by the laugh Sebastian sheds whole-heartedly.

Grimes spares no thoughts to Imelda’s mangled ego. Instead, he steps closer, his blue eyes aglow. He extends his arm as if to beckon Livia to clutch it. “It’s nice of Sallow to have escorted you to me. I’ll take it from here.”

Livia doesn’t move, and Sebastian beams with arrogance. “Are you a little rusty, Ashwood? Ominis heard you in the common room slather your summer conquests about a bunch of third years. Judging by your own accounts, your charms should be in mint condition, so what’s the matter?”

Grimes is white-knuckled, his wand itching to spill its venom, and the words he bites out confirm what Sebastian guessed. “Duel me, Sallow.”

“With pleasure.”

Livia inches closer, and Sebastian can almost taste the electricity coursing through her limbs. “Duel me too. I ache to be given a proper Hogwarts welcome.”

Imelda sheds a derisive scoff. “Then let us serve you one, new girl.”

#hogwarts legacy sebastian #hogwarts legacy ominis #sebastian sallow #ominis gaunt #hogwarts legacy #banter #imelda reyes #hogwarts legacy fic #dark retelling #sebastian sallow x mc #angst

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autie-hobbit · 1 year

Text

Some TUA Fic Recs!

These are some of my absolute favourite “Umbrella Academy” fanfics! All of these fics are finished, except for one. Please note that most of the tags I am including are not all of the tags on the fic, they are mostly the general ones and warning ones. Also, all of the word counts have been rounded. (all fics are on ao3)

“Charming. Isn’t my company entertaining enough for you?” Dramatically, Klaus threw up a hand against his forehead and collapsed onto his bed as if he were wounded.

“Don’t be an ass,” His brother rolled his eyes but there was a fond expression on his face, “You know that some of us aren’t actually nocturnal?”

Klaus stuck his tongue out, “What are you doing up then?”

Instantly, his brother’s defences snapped back up and he scowled, “I t-t-t-tol-tol-told y-y-you th-“

Whatever his excuses were, Klaus couldn’t be bothered to hear them. As lowly as the others thought of him, he was actually pretty intuitive and it was obvious the real reason Diego was out of bed was because something was bothering him. He wasn’t one to just wander around after hours for no reason- that was more Klaus’s gig. Whatever it was had really gotten under his skin. Unfortunately, his brother was too emotionally constipated to say what was on his mind.

| Comments: Very sweet. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/26519572

“Terminate David and Klaus Katz.”

Five ignored the pang of guilt that accompanied the name, because it was only a stranger with his brother’s name. He ignored the ugly feeling in his chest when he saw his mark, and he looked so much like the man he left to rot in the apocalypse.

But he can’t ignore the pain in his brother’s eyes when he talks about a love lost, and a life in another time.

| Comments: Pain. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/40455777

"It's funny," Klaus said. "You start out with something so great. And you think it'll stay great forever, so you'll do anything to hang onto it, you know? But then one day you realize it's turned into something else when you weren't looking. And you don't know whose fault it is, or how to make it right again. All you know is that you're holding the same pieces, but suddenly they don't fit together anymore."

Ben said nothing.

"What happened to us, Ben?"

~~~

Ben, Klaus, and two very different Halloweens eight years apart.

| Comments: Heartbreaking, but good. A character study of Klaus and Ben's relationship. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34527199

Klaus breathed quickly through his nose, panting and panicking. At his side, Ben was muttering assurances of comfort, telling him to calm down. But Klaus couldn't calm down, because the closet was too small and dark and reminded him of the mausoleum and he would be locked in there, alone with ghosts and...

Klaus writhed violently, shouting as loud as he could with the tape in his mouth, looking at Blue and Pink in panic and fear. [...] Klaus shouted once again, choking on his breath and the tears that threatened to suffocate him, a chorus of no, no, no, no in his mind.

In the show, after Klaus reveals the little information he knew to Hazel and Cha-Cha, we have a time jump and in the next scene, he's locked in a small closet in the motel room.

But what happened after he revealed the information? How did he end up in the closet? How did he handle the long hours locked up until Hazel and Cha-Cha came back late at night? How did he handle the guilt of telling about Five? How did he handle flashbacks and panic attacks?

| Comments: More pain. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32148223

“Relics in Amber'' by bacondoughnut | Rated T | 8,400 Words | Main Relationship: Dave Katz/Klaus Hargreeves | Important Tags: Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-Con, Past Rape/Non-Con, Hurt/Comfort, Klaus and Dave in Vietnam, Drug Use, Alcoholism, Angst, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse | Synopsis:

"Klaus," Dave tries tentatively.

He almost asks if Klaus is okay, but the answer's already clear enough, and that question dies on his tongue. He can't immediately think of anything else to say though, and the silence makes Klaus's quiet whimpering all but deafening.

And Dave doesn't know how to handle this.

Or; the one where Klaus has a very bad night, and Dave is there to help.

| Comments: One of the first Klaus/Dave fics I read. Quite sad, but very soft. I’ve read this fic multiple times, it just hits all the spots. (this fic is locked, so you can only read it if you’re logged in)|

https://archiveofourown.org/works/40237791

“Single Red Thread” by riverwrenwrites | Rated T | 38,000 Words | Main Relationship: Dave Katz/Klaus Hargreeves | Important Tags: Vampire AU, Soulmates, Reincarnation, Canon-Typical Violence, Mild Gore, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Hurt/Comfort | Synopsis:

In 1716, Klaus has lost the love of his life in a horrible tragedy and found himself cursed with immortality.

In 2019, Dave and his hunting partner Elliot are investigating a number of disappearances, and when they find themselves face to face with the vampire they think is behind it, Dave can't shake the feeling that he's met this man before...

| Comments: I don’t usually read AUs, and especially not AUs like this, but I like this writer and I was going through all of their TUA stuff. Very cute. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28650759

"We should build a snowman." Diego said, excitedly clapping his cold hands together.

Nothing but fluff ensues when Diego, Klaus, and Ben sneak out to build a snowman.

| Comments: Cute. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28308621

“Because I don’t go memorizing locations of old board games, especially when they’re in a dumpster,” Ben says, and Klaus doesn’t deign that with a response, instead climbing the precariously balanced trash bag pile, one hand reaching for the top edge of the dumpster while the other clutches the thin cardboard box to his chest. He drops himself over the edge, and lets himself fall on his ass onto the cement, hoping there isn’t something he wouldn’t voluntarily sit in waiting for him. There isn’t, he finds, and he climbs to his feet as Ben appears next to him, all collected and unbothered and otherwise immaculate.

“Come come!” Klaus tells him, and starts down the alley, away from the dumpster, staggering a few steps until he regains his footing. “Diego will love this, we’ll have a bunch of fun, and he’ll thank me for the relaxing break from work.”

“He isn’t— he won’t,” Ben calls after him, but Klaus feels him follow him out of the alley and back to the McDonald’s anyways.

Or: 21 year old Klaus and Diego (and Ben) chilling in a car, and then a McDonald's.

| Comments: Also cute. I’m a sucker for these three. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32896588

Diego angsts his way through Allison's wedding to Patrick, unable to curb his growing disconnection from Klaus. (Takes place pre-season 1, 2013-ish.)

| Comments: Sad. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/41289621

“Ten Months” by Majure | Rated M | 150,000 Words | Main Relationship: Dave Katz/Klaus Hargreeves | Important Tags: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Minor Character Death, Klaus and Dave during Vietnam, Period-Typical Homophobia, Drug Use, Alcoholism, Mutual Pining, Bed Sharing, Hurt/Comfort, Non-Explicit Sex, Ghosts | Synopsis:

It makes him sad, sometimes, that in order to find acceptance, Klaus has to travel back fifty years into one of the bloodiest wars of American history. Most of the time, he doesn't care. His family probably doesn't even notice he's missing anyway.

---

Dave is looking at him, eyes soft and heavy lidded. “What did you say to that guy?” he asks, head resting on the wall, body turned towards Klaus.

“Ah,” Klaus laughs, dropping his hand to take a drink. “Just mouthed off. You know how I am.”

“That mouth will get you in trouble some day,” Dave says softly.

Klaus looks up, swallowing. “Some people like my mouth,” he says.

“I do.”

| Comments: This fic is not finished, and has not been updated in 2 years, but it is well worth it, I promise! I read it twice in two months, and it gave me all the emotions. I had to stop at one point because I started crying (I don’t cry while reading fics very often). Very good fic. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/18214736

Allison leaves the wedding after her argument with Viktor with a plan: take a bottle of booze and lock herself in her room where no one can bother her. This plan takes an unexpected turn when she finds Klaus half conscious in the upstairs hallway.

| Comments: A little cathartic to be honest. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/40268313

Klaus needs a distraction from missing Ben. Five needs a distraction from... well, everything. Somehow, that means a day at the zoo.

| Comments: Actually acknowledges Five’s trauma, wow, a miracle. Very sweet, though a little disturbing at points. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/32488858

“Things That We Got Wrong” by evesbeve | Rated T | 22,000 Words | Main Relationship: Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves | Important Tags: Major Character Death, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Pre-Canon, Drug Use, Overdose, No Incest, Hurt/Comfort, Angst | Synopsis:

Ben suposes death isn't the weirdest thing that has happened to him. Becoming best friends with Klaus though? That he never would have guessed.

| Comments: *cries* I love them, your honour! |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/19794943

The tentative peace between the Hargreeves siblings and their father is disrupted when Klaus returns from an unexpected trip to the afterlife with his powers restored. In the ensuing struggle, Klaus could be Five's greatest advantage, which turns him into Reginald's number one target. Hargreeves now remembers both his timelines, after all, and he is keenly aware that the most overlooked aspect of Klaus' abilities could lead to his downfall.

| Comments: Very good. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/41254302

“Who You Gonna Call..?” by riverwrenwrites | Rated T | 130,000 Words | Main Relationship: Diego Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves | Important Tags: Buddy Cop AU, Murder Mystery, Fluff, Angst, Drug Use, Past Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Sibling Bonding, No Incest, Mild Gore | Synopsis:

At the ripe old age of 25, Diego is still struggling with that age-old problem of balancing work and pleasure. Especially when, for him, work is being a desk-bound police detective, and pleasure is running around back alleys as a masked vigilante. Lucky for him, he may have just stumbled on the perfect unsolvable case that will finally have him taking his career seriously. Unlucky for him, the only hope he has of cracking said unsolvable case lies with his drug riddled, party going, fashion innovator of a brother.

| Comments: First long fic I read! Very good, have read multiple times. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/18371999

Honourable Mentions: These are some of the WIPs I’m reading.

“Hey, er…” He’s forgotten the boy’s name. Something with a G. Was it Gavin? Or Garth? “Hey, buddy. I got somewhere to be, but if you wake up now we can go for round two before I have to leave.”

Twenty-two-year-old Klaus Hargreeves awakes following a one-night stand with an enigmatic young artist.

Apart from a stinking hangover, he now has two problems: he possesses almost no memory of the night before and there’s a gruesome surprise in the bed.

Accused of a horrific crime, and with the police watching his every move, he faces a race against time to clear his name.

If he can only stay sober long enough to patch together the memories of that night, he might just stand a chance.

| Comments: Hasn’t updated in a few months, but I have hope. Has you on the edge of your seat and suspicious of everyone. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34364929

“Where You Gonna Run To?” by ToriAnne | Rated T | Currently 43,000 Words | Main Relationship: Just the Brellies with each other | Important Tags: No Paradox AU, Angst, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Recreational Drug Use, Non-Linear Narrative, Domestic Violence, Past Child Abuse, Religious Abuse | Synopsis:

Sparrow AU with no paradox. Ben uncovers a mystery in his father's office and won't rest until he has answers.

This is how the Umbrellas changed and remained the same as they lived separate lives, how they found each other even so, and what happened when they did.

| Comment: Updates every Wednesday. Excited to see where this fic goes. |

https://archiveofourown.org/works/44881930

#this is way longer than I thought it was gonna be #rip #the umbrella academy #tua #tua fanfic #fanfic #fanfiction #ao3 #fic rec #klaus hargreeves #klave #klaus x dave #long post #nat's posting

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frozen-fountain · 1 year

Text

WIP Tag Game

I was tagged for this by the ever-lovely @vcaudley a while back, and I only just now remembered while going through my likes looking for something. Better late than never?

In turn, I'd like to hear about what @bowieandthemickjaggernauts, @ourspecial, @westieistryingherbestie, @runicmagitek and @plummetingplum have planned next, if you're so inclined.

As for me:

I literally just posted the final chapter of a fic titled Dulosis, the tl;dr of which is basically "Elena FFVII learns social Darwinism is bad, actually". But it's about growing up, asking questions, and the conflict between two very different organisations that ask our heroine to submit her individual identity into a collective one - I think it's clear which option the author views as the better one, but I hope we got there organically. I had a lot of fun writing it, and even if it's finished, it's fresh enough to still feel like a WIP of a sort.

But it's also part of a series that's still ongoing, and likely to do so for some time yet. There's a plottier, more intrigue-driven long story it's all building too, but for now, it's essentially a collection of character studies of varying lengths and in different genres that explore what I think the gang might do in a post-Meteor, proto-anarchist world. I was disappointed with a lot of the choices the canon extended universe made in this regard, or at least the way many of them were executed, so I wanted to see what I could do instead.

I'm currently working on the second draft of an as yet untitled FFVI fic. The plot is that Celes and Terra fuck in a greenhouse. But it's still a chartacter study about trauma (how unlike me), and about reclaiming a body that was taken from you and turned into something that could be used against you, and I'm seeing how far I can stretch the adage that sex is a non-verbal conversation the same way a fight sequence is, and how much I can communicate within that. I've just got the awkward aftermath left to rewrite, and then it's time to send it off for beta feedback.

Next up, before I attempt the next big one in my FFVII series, I have a mostly disconnected oneshot entitled Ghost Stories that I want to get done and dusted. In essence, it explores the legacy of one pioneering woman (Lucrecia) of science - or at least the titular tales about her highly classified lifetime - through examining the rise to prominence of another (Scarlet), looking at where they differ from and mirror one another, all with copious use of the colour red. I have a spitbally first draft of this but I hate it and thought of a better way to frame it, so I'm hoping to have more luck this time.

I have a few more that exist as piles of barely connected notes, and plenty of others planned, but those are the stories at an advanced enough stage for me to grant them the "WIP" title.

#froze fics #memes

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jackienautism · 11 months

Note

hi again!! hope you're having a good one. and yeah that is my icon :)

i do play things pretty fast SDKDFLS i've found that if i don't like. race through as fast as possible i'll end up leaving things unfinished for forever. glances at my p5 playthrough and glances away LOL. played practically nonstop, hit okumura's palace, had to leave my pc for a long weekend, and just. never picked the game back up again whoops

YEAHHH eagle among lions is like. my most anticipated fic that i put on the read later list SDJFLKSD i'm saving it for once i finish all the routes to make up for the fact that i won't have any more routes to play hahah. and HMM... i thinkk the fics that i'd most recommend are child of light by riahk, ghosting by greyimperia, homeroom (or, if we're not recruited in 15 minutes, we're legally allowed to leave) by Schistosity, and let the devil in by greyimperia. which are, respectively, a mercedes character study (speaking of mercedes, she has absolutely rocketed up my rankings. i love her), a linhardt character study, byleth recruits everyone possible (barring hilda) on a blue lions run so edelgard, hubert, claude and hilda have homeroom together and develop a friendship, and uh. not super sure how to describe the last one? but i liked it! it's a one-shot about the lords. inspired by we know the devil if you've played that game.

funnily enough none of those are the time travel fics i've read but i can't like. seem to find the best ones i read?? i didn't spend a ton of time looking through my history tho so if i find them later i'll send another ask lol.

yeah i definitely get that :/ haven't experienced that Too much yet with fe3h but i'm sure once i start searching for more specific dynamics barely anything's gonna turn up :(

YEAH. YEAH ON THE INGRID STUFF. idk maybe im overreacting or misremembering stuff but i feel like since we're both saying similar stuff i'm probably not like. seems like the nightmare scenario! idk it also really bothers me that sylvain and ingrid's paired ending is like. mostly about sylvain's political situation and then tacks on at the end "and he couldn't have done it without his wife and they had many kids" (paraphrased) like. okay :| uncomfortable!

and yeah the game sort of plays up the whole. ingrid as the one responsible for sylvain and felix but it's REALLY the fan emphasis on that that i've seen which bothers me. like they reallyyy like to shove her into the mom friend archetype. idk.

yeah berniegard is semi popular!! i definitely have some art of them in my queue sdjfls. i thought their b and c supports were pretty standard and enjoyable, but their a support (which i've now seen lol) was really good. not one of my absolute favorites, but definitely up there! i can see why this pairing is popular.

MAN. YEAH on the marianne supports thing. AND. YEAH about dorothea and marianne..... as soon as i noticed that they both had themselves in their dislikes my mind IMMEDATELY went to their potential dynamic.. i also really like a potential marianne/edelgard dynamic just based off of her dialogue about edelgard in cf??? like i'm gonna be mad forever about their nonexistant support chain. also marianne and mercedes.. those two were always at the cathedral praying you're telling me they couldn't have a conversation about faith? and like. mercedes can Read people and she has a desire to help people.. the supports could've been so good.... similarly i think dorothea and mercedes should've had a support chain. and mercedes and edelgard. maybe i'm just shoving my favorite girls together in different combinations but like. the potential is there who can blame me!! and YEAHH you're absolutely right about marianne and lysithea!! genuinely it feels like the a support is missing for those two :/

and yeah despite having sylvain attack felix i didn't even get their special dialogue :( apparently you can only get that one on CF and not VW? well. there's always next CF run :) and yeah that was where mercedes showed up! the caspar linhardt dialogue is. sad. as is the mercie annette dialogue which i also didn't get? that one, based off the wiki, it seems Can occur at the gronder battle on VW, but maybe because they were fighting i didn't get it?? not sure. but i watched it on youtube and it makes me sooo sad. but truly NOTHING makes me sadder than having dorothea kill ferdie especially considering her monastary dialogue after???? awful. petra and edie have the standard eagle vs edelgard dialogue but i feel like petra's political position makes her landing a hit on edelgard like. extra juicy lol. i would've had dorothea also do it but a) she was too far away and b) i still felt bad for having her kill ferdinand.

YEAH SDJFDLDKJ I WAS. not expecting to s support sylvain LMAO but. well! it's kind of funny i made the decision IMMEDIATELY after waking up from getting my wisdom teeth out??? like i was telling my mom about it in the waiting room they put you in before letting you leave. so i'm gonna say s supporting sylvain was a side effect. i did end up enjoying his s support + paired ending though!

as for silver snow, i thinkk you get to keep your class, barring edelgard and hubert? and YEAH it's that particular bond that i sort of envisioned when i first played cf and got to the branching path (as well as seeing dorothea's character shift post-timeskip) that largely held me back from s supporting her on vw. and YEAH the incentive is for SURE needed. i do notttt want to side against edie :(( and i haven't enjoyed siding with the church!! but i hear you get a lot of insight into byleth on that route and i am interested to see all that for myself.

YEAH ashe and marianne can support and it's very sweet! which makes sense since i mean. it's ashe and marianne. caspar and annette's supports, without going into spoilers, do a good job of showing caspar in a more like... competent/insightful light which i've found tend to be my favorite caspar supports. like yeah he's great for comedy but i like when he's taken seriously. and their dynamic is very sweet as well. and yeah shamir is a former mercenary i think?? yeah a lot of leonie's endings are. not the greatest? without spoiling specifically, either she's with someone i do Not want her to be with, it doesn't seem in-line with where her character would naturally progress, or it's just very bittersweet? but her ending with shamir was super in character and seemed relatively happy so. and YEAH i get that for leonie i wasn't really sold on her until post timeskip really? i think also the fact that i'd seen a lot of hate for her beforehand had me prepared for her to like do something bad or be Super annoying and then when she was like. fine. i was like huh i think im gonna like her more. out of spite.

im honestly a major fan of a lot of the nonromantic paired endings but this one was just.. i really think it was the fact that maya was completely offscreen that bothered me. and the fact that their supports weren't like, majorly about her?

yeah annette's songs are sooo silly i love her sense of whimsy and her dynamic with mercedes is sweet! weirdly enough i like their dynamic outside of their supports more than i like the supports themselves, with just the two of them hanging around the monastery together + their dialogue in azure moon cutscenes and stuff. their supports weren't bad or anything, i just felt like their fight was a little awkwardly pulled off, and i feel like there's probably more substance you can get from a potential support chain for these two considering they're one of a handful of duos who have a close history before the monastery.

and ah i get that and i hope that if you want to play the game more, you get the chance to!

i ended up recruiting ferdinand, bernie, leonie, marianne and raphael. planning to get dorothea as soon as i raise my charm! i'm alsooo raising linhardt to b support and if he asks to join my class i'll let him, but i'm not raising the reason skill to get him lol. i kind of want to recruit him bc i miss him, but i don't want too many recruits, so my compromise is leaving it up to chance.

as for hilda.. yeah her supports with byleth have her mentioning a LOT that she just. doesn't get the concept of dying for someone else. and then if you kill her in cf i think claude says something about how he told her to retreat.... much to think about. i think that may have been my biggest character defining moment for her, but i also loveee all of her supports where people sort of. see through her in a way? so her a support with claude and her b support with sylvain are some of my favorites (and she absolutely reads them right back which. again. i love that). and i'd consider those sort of character defining moments for her as well, if not to the same degree and not quite the same thing.

YEAH LMAO LORENZ... i feel like. i definitely see hints of what could be redeeming qualities in him but like... yeah. eventually i'll go through all of his supports, because it's not like i Like disliking potentially interesting characters but like. the dude does NOT make a good impression.

YEAHHHH THE SUNSET MOMENT WAS SO GOOD.... so was the part of their c support where marianne like. apologized for being a bad conversationalist and ignatz was like. "there's no need to apologize, if we'd been talking we would've missed these flowers!!" like. idk ignatz isn't a standout character to me but he's so sweet.. like that's my friend ignatz!! yeah annette and claude have supports!! featuring more of annette's singing. and claude singing i think! they're fun. YEAH SDJKSD sylvain's supports are pretty interesting across the board. and i def get why he wouldn't be your cup of tea LMAO, like.. based on your blog, he doesn't really line up with the sorts of characters you usually seem to get attached to lol. but yeah his supports usually do a good job of showing a different side of his character than much of his other dialogue, especially in the early game (can't speak for post timeskip am obviously). idk there are maybe three characters i got Really attached to before actually playing their route and he's one of them. the others being marianne, mostly due to her paralogue, and annette honestly just based off of general vibes once i'd recruited her.

YEAH CLAUDE AND MARIANNE'S A SUPPORT.... idk i really love how he goes from pushing her a bit to recognizing her boundaries and instead offering reassurance and understanding without crossing them.... so sweet. and YEAH marianne on the end art makes me soooo happy. yeah leonie and claude's.... b support i want to say?? was the two of them discussing religion and stuff and at the end claude's like "hm some people might call this conversation sacrilegious huh" and leonie's like "yeah probably. good thing i don't care and won't tell anyone though" and i just thought that was fun. MAN YEAH marianne laughing at the end of her and hilda's supports was The highlight of that support chain to me....

thank you i am enjoying the lions route so far!! playing white clouds for the third (kind of the fourth, if you count me watching my brother's playthrough lol) time in like. a month? month and a half? idk how long it's been actually.... ok checked and it's been a few days past a month?wow. anyway. playing it That many times has gotten me moving through it a bit slower, although i did play quite a bit today and i've gotten to chapter seven :) i am enjoying the lions! i could see before that white clouds was lions centric in a lot of ways but. man. it is sooo lion centric. i'm not like, super complaining about it? i mean. sylvain annette and mercedes are all probably in my top 5 characters. i am really liking dedue, ashe is sweet, i have Some complicated feelings surrounding ingrid but she is SO interesting to me (man her relationship with knighthood plus the ways you can view her character thru lenses of gender and sexuality..... what a character). while felix isn't my favorite he's still very well written and interesting. and honestly i'm enjoying dimitri more than i thought i would? idk my initial impression of him was very meh and then due to like. the way a lot of people who hateeee edie like. LOVE him gives me the kneejerk reaction of oh well i'm not gonna like this guy. but i'm enjoying him so far! he's like, middle of the pack of the lions for me, but that's still pretty good all things considered.

and man. side note because if i let myself get into it for real i'll get frustrated but. goddd the takes i've seen about edie just going through her character tag........ awful. i've blocked sooo many people already SDFJSL.

YEAH. i do NOTT enjoy siding with the church. eugh. i'm probably not gonna do another replay soon after i finish this playthrough, my silver snow run, and my second cf run, so either i play cf again first (because i miss edelgard and hubert and i don't like the church) or i play silver snow first so that i don't leave off on like. a silver snow playthrough LMAO. who knows.

anyway! i'm torn this playthrough between s supporting dimitri and mercedes because well. mercedes is self explanatory (i love her), and dimitri has the appeal of being like. central to the story as the lord? the thing is i probably won't replay am for a WHILE after this, if i do at all, so this is like my Shot to s support him? and i like seeing the supports myself rather than watching them on youtube or something. so i'm probably gonna do that, assuming i keep enjoying his character well enough (because like. based off of fanart and uh. the general vibes of my last playthrough, his character shifts post-timeskip). and then i'll probably end up s supporting mercedes on my next cf run :) because other than mercie (and dorothea obviously) i think the only other character i really want to s support is hubert?? and like i love him don't get me wrong but. mercie outranks him. and i will probably replay cf a third time eventually because that's probably gonna be my default route on subsequent replays once i've experienced everything once. still who knows how things will shake out i mean. last time i said i wasn't gonna s support sylvain and then. look what happened. so we'll see.

not too much going on with my playthrough other than that! i mean. it's white clouds a fourth time. not too many things to say about that. mercedes cheerfully supporting church sanctioned executions caught me off guard like. that was funny. i disagree with her on that but i did burst out laughing the delivery was sooo funny for what she was saying. and annette is fun in the lions cutscenes :) and as for supports... I LOVE DEDUE...... his supports with annette are so sweet so far, as are his supports with ashe.. liked the sylvain dedue c support as well! liked annette and dimitri's c support.. OH ingrid and ashe's c support is SOOO good. i got leonie and bernadetta's c support for the first time and it was surprisingly good for a duo i did not expect to have supports. similarly, i got felix and leonie's c support for the first time and liked it. im probably blanking on some of the supports i've gotten but like. idk. these are the ones i remember enjoying!

anyway yeah :) thanks again for talking with me about this game, it's so much fun and i'm loving hearing your thoughts!! i hope you have a good one :)

HIII hope youre having a good one too!!!! as per usual :D and okay ! hope you dont mind that i mentioned it

and AH okay i see, i can def see that! hopefully you still enjoy the thing you're racing through just as much though? im sure you do but! and rip to your p5 playthrough</3 speaking of, the same thing bascially happened to me FKNDKF except i wasnt nearly as far as you. i should get back to it. GOOD LUCK W/ GETTING BACK INTO IT IF YOU EVER DO THOUGH!!!!

YESSS THATS SO VALID..... ITS DEF A HEFTY ONE BUT ITS LIKE???? PLAYING THE GAME AGAIN SO THATS VERY COOL. the descriptions and writing style are simply brilliant and auugh couldnt recommend it enough. it seriously is like going through the game again w/ like. slight variations. it's so neat. and thank you very much for the recommendations ! ill def have to chekc those out at some point. i just recently finally made a ao3 acc (which i assume those are on? hopefully?) so i can finally interact w/ fics more properly :] GLAD THAT MERCIE SKY ROCKETED ON YOUR RANKINGS. I LOVE HER DEARLY.... and the one w/ the homeroom seems very interesting (eyeballs) love to read abt those dynamics

no worries man! i already appreciate you sharing the ones you remember :D its all good if you can't find them / you forget though!

yeah</3 its very unfortunate. bc the potential is there but there's!!!! literallt nothing for them! and its sad. im glad it hasnt happened for you for fe3h yet, and hopefully it never does!!!!! and its not a fun feeling <//3 esp since that means you gotta make your own stuff and dfkndf gthats a lot of WORK

NO FOR REAL. I WONT LIE I FEEL LIK EIM MISREMEMBERING / OVERREACTING AS WELL BUT... AS YOU SAID. SINCE WERE BOTH ON THE SAME PAGE I /DOUBT/ WE'RE DOING ANY OF THOSE THINGS. but seriously.....it DOES seem like a nightmare scenario. to be used for a political situation mainly and then on top of that have kids ? like??? thye both hate being used for their crests and yet they have kids ????????? idk if that makes sense. hopefully what /I/ said makes sense though. i just feel it seems very......blegh. for both of them. bc doesnt that just continue the cycle? of crests and shit? idk man. but you're right. that is uncomfortable!\

NO FOR REAL. THEY LOVE TO SHOVE HER INTO THE MOM FRRIEND ARCHETYPE BC THATS ALL THEY KNOW WHAT TO DO W/ FEMALE CHARACTERS😭😭😭😭 AND IT SUUUUUCKS. esp when theres so much to do w/ ingrid..... but nah shes stops the boys from doing dumb shit! ive noticed that this is a trend :///// i hate fandom! anywho. youre right. the fan perception of their dynamic is just. SIGHS. i GET that ingrid and sylvain's supports play into that but just..... theyre both so much more than that

OOOOH NICE NICE.... looking forward to seeing those pieces (eyeballs) cant wait to see their A support now!!!! i mustve gotten their C and possibly B support before but i honestly cant remember its been so long. thank u for hypingg it up for me

DOROTHEA AND MARIANNE'S DYNAMIC WOULD BE SO..... IT WOULD BE SO CUTE I THINK...... esp since dorothea seems to rly enjoy hyping ppl (esp the girls) up... and thats absolutely something marianne needs and deserves. plus dorothea is pretty emotionally aware and has her own experience w/ depression (esp post timeskip) so i feel they can both bond over that......if that makes sense. i just love the m so much. YESSS I FORGET THE SPECIFIC DIALOGUE BUT I REMEMBER MARIANNE MENTIONING SOMETHING ABT EDIE'S STRENGTH OR SOMETHING IN CF?? YOURE SO RIGHT WE WERE ROBBED OF THAT..... ooohh im actually so interested in that now. AND NO YOURE SO RIGHT ABT MARIANNE AND MERCEDES..... THEY ABSOLUTELY COULDVE COMPLEMENTED EACH OTHER NICELY...... esp mercedes potentially helping marianne w/ her burdens and just Understanding that there was something that was always bothering her.... so good. YOURE JUST PAIRING UP ALL MY FAVES TOO 😭😭 i wouldve loved to see dorothea and mercedes.... i dont understand why but i just feel it wouldve been so fun and interesting. YOURE SO RIGHT THOUGH, THE POTENTIAL BETWEEN ALL THE CHARACTERS ARE ABSOLUTELY THERE !!!!! I CAN DEF SEE IT W/ EDIE AND MERCIE TOO.... AND THERES NOTHING WRONG W/ WANTING TO SEE ALL YOUR FAVE GIRLS TOGETHER DFKGNFDG I FEEL THAT SO HARD. also some MAY have come true in three hopes? since they did add new support chains but (shrugs) im not sur ewhich ones they added and which ones they didnt

and oh yeah? i had no idea that it was only on CF.... but i suppose that makes a little sense? hm. sorry you werent able ot get it your VW run though </3 and okay! thank you! ill def have to get those 2 dialogue exchanges at some point... unsure if ill get it myself since ill prob jsut endd up hurting mysself but LOL ill prob search them up and watch them that way. sorry you didnt get annette or mercie's either though :/ and ooooh maybe? but i feel like the game maybe wouldn't have taken that into account but! who knows. OHHH GOSH I THINK IVE SEEN DOROTHEA'S LINE ABT KILLING FERDIE IN THE MONASTERY BEFORE.... ill have to look at it again but ): AND OHH I DIDN TREALIZE THERE WAS A SPECIAL THING FOR AN EAGLE VS EDIE..... i thought what i got was just a standard thing😭 thank u for telling me! but no youre right, petra political standing makes it That much better. and abt dorothea. YEAH FAIR. she can only take so much<///3

YOU CAME TO THE DECISION AFTER GETTING YOUR WISDOM TEETH OUT????? LMAOO THATS SO FUNNY TO ME..... good for you though 😭😭😭😭 AND NOT S SUPPORTING SYLVAIN BEING A SIDE EFFECT OF THE ANESTHESIA LMAO that made me laugh thank you for that. but im glad it worked out well in the end! and that you enjoyed the S support and dtheir ending ofc

AND OH. THATS VERY GOOD TO HEAR THEN. i was afraid that you wouldnt be able to keep the rest of the eagles.... and tbh if that were the case, itd make things tTHAT much angstier for me which i hate but also love yk. and yeah makes sense! i rly enjot that concept w/ byleth and dorothea on silver snow... i love it a lot actually. it makes sense too. yeah ): i feel that, i dont wanna side against edie either. doing VW and AM are already a lot for me lol and yeah man. FUCK the church for real. i guess thats another incentive to play SS which is nice, bc byleth as a protag is sort of ...... eh for me. mainly bc they seem like such a blank slate ):

TRUEEE .marianne and ashe are both super sweet they r very good, so i can only imagine how well they r together. and oooooh yeah? im glad they have some of those moments for caspar then... and that his and annette's supports shine a light on that side of him! def can not wait to watch them myself. of course comedic / comedy characters are needed and deserved and stuff but like...like you said, its nice when theyre taken seriously. esp if their whole Thing is being the "goofy" / "unserious" one yk. yeah shamir being a former mercenary sounds right but i couldnt remember. and oh yeah? i didnt realize that a lot of leonie endings were Bad. ive only looked at her and ignatz's but i cant remember it much. bu tmmm, i see. i dont rly think abt leonie much / im not that attached to her so its interesting to see what you think! sorry that most of her endings fall into 1 of those 3 categories :/ glad that her ending w/ shamir was one of if not th ebest one for her!!! LMAO i didnt realize ppl hated / disliked her? i thought hjer whole thing w/ jeralt towards byleth was a tad annoying pre timeskip but i twasnt enough for me to straight up HATE her yk.... so thats interesting. i didnt know any of that. PLEASE like her more out of spite. i love doing that w/ female characters. esp if the hate they get is overdramatic or undeserved

no yeah i totally get that. it doesnt make sense to throw her in there when there wasnt any sort of ..... establishment of her and ignatz's relationship? like. im pretty sure she was the girl that got ignatz to pursue art since he drew something for her but. thats sort of it right? so youre right, there was absolutely no point in throwing her in there other than to FURTHER not make his and raph's ending romantic

HER SONGS R RLY SILLY !!!! and i lvoe how that was like a focal point of her and felix's supports. they were quite cute actually dkfngdgf and that was like one of my first felix supports ever so my initial impression was that. oh! ok hes not that much of an asshole! i was wrong lmao. hes an interesting character and all and i understand where hes coming from but just. yeah man idk. but all that aside, his supports w/ annette were fun and cute. but no youre absolutely right abt mercie and annette, their fight didnt seem ? realistic whatsoever. like i get it but ????? was that something shed legitimately get upset and say they weren't friends over? and you're right, there was def a lot more that couldve been done considering they met so long ago. i DID however like how annette was like. in their A support. mentioning stuff like "ohh now dont say anything like how you dont deserve good things!" or something along the lines of that and like...i think it gives us a little more insight into mercie's character and why she does what she does

i dont remember what i said but i def want to play more! its just <////3 i wanna enjoy the experience and things havent been as enjoyable for me lately yknow? so im waiting for a time that i DO and CAN enjoy things again. but who knows when that'll be LMAO hopefully after this vacation ill be able to get back into viddy games as a whole :]

ah okay! so the recruits are rather balanced, aside from the black eagles (as it should be)! good luck raising your charm to get dorothea the beloved!!!! and hopefully linhardt randomly chooses to join your class...i enjoy when the characters come to you in the middle of the week to ask. its cute. its a fair compromise, but ill be over here secretly hoping that he does join your class!

AH okay so it was in hildas supports w/ byleth... its been. a LOOOONG time since i watched most of byleth's supports w/ the golden deer, so im not too shocked that i forgot abt that. ANDOOHHH RIGHT I THINK I REMEMBER CLAUDE SAYING THAT ABT HILDA TOO..... that's so ): it rly shows the bond shes created w/ claude fr. and thats real sweet. oooo i didnt realize that sort of seeingf through the mask thing happens w/ sylvain too. but i suppose it makes sense w/ sylvain...considering how he is and all. theyre both actually quite similar huh? theyre both a lot more perceptive than they let people believe. thats real cool. so thats nice that they have supports w/ each other , i didnt know that!

NO HE ABSOLUTELY DOESNT..... i just truly and honestly couldnt give less of a fuck about him. even if he does have potential to be cool and interesting. i just dgaf!!!!! have fun and good luck going through his supports though! maybe you;ll have a change of heart (you truly dont have to) but. eh. yeah

YESSS BOTH OF THOSE MOMENTS ARE SO SWEET.... and youre absolutely right abt ignatz. i didnt necessarily get attached to him but i LOVE what he is and what he is is certainly one of the sweeter characters. and i love that for him. AND OHH GOOD MORE ANNETTE SONGS YIPPEE DFGKNDFG def can not wait to see her and claude's supports then (eyeballs) esp if it features claude's singing too..... i can only imagine how fun the situations are. they definitely are! like. what made me change my mind a bit was absolutely sylvain's supports w/ dedue and his ones w/ annette as well. LMAOOO read me to filth <3 yeah he def isnt one of the characters i find myself getting attached to, so im not too surprised either. i enjoy him for he what he is, but other than that. yeah 😭 but yeah!!!! his supports def do a good job at showing a more ? impressive and intelligent side of him. you're right abt his pre timeskip dialogue though, cant say much abt his post timeskip stuff either. im sure theyre a biiiit better than pre TS but. who knows! marianne<3 my girl marianne.... he and annette are also very good choices though. annette's girlish whimsy is just super appealing

YESSSS.... you rly see a mature side of both claude and marianne and thats so cool.... and also seeing a bit more ? forceful and angrier side of marianne? so good. MARIANNE ON THE VERDANT WIND'S END ART MY BELOVED!!!!! i was so shocked when i first saw it but ouuugh i love it so much. AND AHH RIGHT OKAY... i totally forgot abt that. i just loove claudes overall distrust and shit in the goddess and church and whatnot. its so nice to see tbh. and i vaguely remember his convo w/ leonie being interesting as well! YESSSS MARIANNE DESERVES TO LAUGH AND BE HAPPY.... i just thought that moment was so sweet...i personally dont see their relationship as romantic but god... the besties

glad youre enjoying azure moon so far !!!! :D i know theres only sooo many divergences in plot and gameplay and dialogue and stuff so ! hopefully its not toooo grueling. i know we've already talked abt how quick you play games but GOSH 3/4 times in basically a month huh? good for you! and mmm makes sense that youd be going through it a little slower than usual, it IS your fourth / fifth time playing through so. take as much time as you neeeed yk? but up to chapter 7 already is super awesome! yeaaah white clouds is SUPER blue lions centric. im glad you dont hate it! bc i wont lie it rly pisses me off......esp seeing how LITTLE they gave edelgard and crimson flower. but thats just me! happy its been working for you :] OOOO wwho are your other top 5 characters? is dorothea among them? but anyway. yeah ingrid is jusr That character you know. i understand why ppl wouldn't like her, but her character is SOOO interesting to me. for the reasons that you mentioned pretty much. i find myself relating. and yeah i feel thaht for dimitri. i still dont rly care for him that much tbh. but i do feel bad for him and recognize that hes a cool and neat character (same w/ felix like you said) but i just...... yeah man idk dfkgndg plus as you said, id say the majority of edie haters SUUUCK his dick so its like.... man i jsut dont care enough yk. happy that hes been working for you though :D

YERAH I FEEL THAT LMAO. none of the characters are safe from shitty af takes (esp the girls) just recently went into the dorothea tag and was BOMBARDED by hate from this one loser. sorru that youve seen so many things just by going through her tag :/ i HAAATE wben ppl tag stuff like that w/ the main tag, ESP if its hate. pisses me off. but yeah. attleast theres filtering and blocking. ive just straight up blocked edie critical or fiuicking whatever already. sooo dumb!

NEITHER DO IIIII.... its always so painful for me kdfgfdg atleast most of the time rhea isnt there for when you're paired w/ the church? i understand shes a complex character or whatever but she rly reminds me of a cahracter from resident evil and she PISSES me off so basically i dont like either of them LMAO if it were me i'd probably do silver snow first, just so you end off on a good note yk? or maybe youll enjoy SS more than you think! who knows. but yeah id probably end off on crimson flower so it leaves a slightly better taste in your mouth

oooo very good choices... a ton of ppl certainly enjoy S supporting dimitri so i assume youre in for a treat! i understand wanting to S support the lord though since youre really only to support w/ them. during their route. and as you said, theyre very central to the story and whatnot. so yeah! and i TOOTALLY understand wanting to see the supports for yourself rather than watch them on youtube. im absolutely the same. so hope you enjoy going through w/ it ! AND YEAH LMAO HIS CHARACTER DOES RLY SHIFT POST TIMESKIP. but thats due to Mental Illness yk. he does have a recovery arc from what ive heard (that seems rushedd, just based on what an old friend told me) but yeah! hopefully you'll still go through w/ it post TS bc i do think its a good idea. mercie and hubie and dorothea <3 very good choices for S supports.... have fun w/ replaying and getting those last few S ranks!!!! youre gonna go w/ dorothea on silver snow and then probably mercie on another crimson flower run right? def sounds like a plan !!! CF as the default run makes so much sense to me LOL i absolutely feel the same. but you're right, who knows how things will pan out, do let me know what happens and if anything changes!!!!

yeah yeah! atleast the commentary from the blue lions is something different to look forward to during white clouds. and KFDGNDFG i thinki vaguely remember mercedes doing somethig like that but i cant remember exxaaaactly what she said. shes just so cheerful and shit i lovve her so much. but yeah. supporting the church's executions is a no no. GRRR I FORGET ABT DEDUE AND ANNETTE'S SUPPORTS.... it has something to do w/ cookingg right? and dedue helping her w/ that? DIDNT SOMETHING EXPLODE ON ANNETTE OR SOMETHING IN THEIR C SUPPORT? yesss his supports w/ ashe are very nice... so were his w/ sylvain. thats honestly what made me shift a bit in terms of opinion on sylvain. INGRID AND ASHE'S SUPPORTS ARE SOOO GOOD.... just 2 autistic ppl communicating abt a special interest.... OOOO leonie and bernie and leonie and felix huh? i had no idea they had supports.... and youre right i def wouldnt have expected either of them tbh! YEAAH no worries abt forgetting some, tjheres just sooo many that it makes sense not all of them will stick out in your mind

OF COURSE MAN !!!! THANK U FOR SHARING YOUR THOUGHTS W/ ME. ITS ALWAYS A TREAT TO READ WHAT YOUVE BEEN DOING AND WHATNOT!! and im glad my thoughts dont piss you off 😭 happy to hear that you enjoy hearing my thoughts as well :] bc i of course love hearing yours!!!!! hope you have a good one too!

#mine #text #asks #anon #i enjoy reading over my thoguhts but im lazy rn so sorry if there are mistakes fdkngg #my thoughts #my FE tag #FE #FE3H #long posts

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lisatelramor · 1 year

Text

Crossing Borders Ch4

Conan was getting frustrated. At first sight, the case seemed fairly straightforward; someone killed the first victim, and whoever did that had likely killed the second victim. Based on Wei Ying’s reaction to the necklace, the victim’s friend who had died before was connected to the motive of the murders, but the exact details there were blurry. The confusing things were both the method of death (because truly, what could have broken her neck like that?) and how this place was handling it. Put them in their rooms—okay, fair enough. Play music? Eccentric, but he didn’t know the customs here for the dead. Maybe playing music to the corpse was some sort of superstition. But the person who’d been guarding the building Conan’s room was in had put papers on the doors and walls. The same papers had been scattered around the room with the second victim, a few even placed on the victim.

It hinted at a lot of superstition, which felt at odds with the large library—even accounting for their supernatural references. Given how people dressed and the location, though, maybe this whole place was some kind of cult? But how did that factor into the murders?

Conan gripped his chin, thoughts running together. Kid seemed to be more in the know. But then, he’d been using the library that apparently needed a waiver signed to access. Then there was the mysterious disappearing—and appearing now that Conan thought about it—instrument earlier. Lan Zhan had clearly been playing it in person, not just using a recording, and it hadn’t been a small instrument. Where had it vanished to? Conan couldn’t think of a clear place it could have been hidden in the room or returned to.

Too many questions, and not enough answers yet.

Conan pulled his attention back together as they approached a paper-studded building. One of them was placed close to his height, so Conan studied it as Lan Zhan spoke quietly to the white-robed person guarding the door. (To keep people in or out?)

The characters were unfamiliar—Conan could read Kanji just fine, but the original Chinese characters were often a lot different or simplified in ways that the Japanese characters hadn’t been. At best guess, it said something about stopping something, but like heck if he could get anything else out of it.

A tap to his head had Conan flinching away from the touch. Kid looked down at him, one eyebrow raised.

“We’re moving on,” Kid said.

Oh. Right. The odd papers—wards? Talismans?—were set aside.

*O*O*

Wei Ying had a headache. Part of that headache went by the name of Edogawa Conan. The rest was the malicious spirit running around playing havoc in the Cloud Recesses.

He would think that, being in the middle of a great sect, one of the last few remaining in China, that it would be incredibly simple to catch a ghost. And yet there they were, minus one body, up another victim, and still no spirit caught…

The connection, he was sure, had to do with the beads. How was a question he didn’t have answers to yet. Like, was it the spirit possessing the bead, and then using it to hide, or to possess a victim? Had it used it to control the corpse of the first victim and kill the second? Or had the first victim become a fierce corpse all on his own, the talismans meant to prevent that somehow mysteriously vanishing from the body?

Ah, mysteries were not Wei Ying’s forte. He was the go-to resentful energy person, not the person you went to for solving murders. Not that he was incapable of such; in all honesty, cultivators ended up solving a lot of odd crimes. It simply was that they were not specifically trained for that, and Wei Ying called bullshit toward the universe for this improbable string of events that had landed him in the middle of a murder mystery in what should have been his nice, safe home.

“If I were an angry spirit smart enough to evade cultivators, where would I be?” Wei Ying muttered to himself. It would be great if he had his evil-seeking compass finished, but that was still in the planning and testing phases. It was about as likely to point to Chenqing as it would be to point to the fierce corpse of the first victim, or wherever the ghost was.

In the field, Wei Ying would call up spirits to help. There were a surprising—or maybe not too surprising given the last few hundred years of history—number of spirits lingering most places that could be used as another set of eyes. In the Cloud Recesses, on the other hand, there was basically nothing to work with. Between the amount of cleansing the mountain regularly got and the taboo on killing animals in the sect walls, Wei Ying had to practically scrape up resentment to use from anything dead. There was the current circumstances, of course, but the ghost of their latest victim wouldn’t be much help here. She’d be too busy trying to pull herself together after a violent end. Her corpse could have helped, but Wei Ying would get in so much trouble if he animated it for anything less than an army trying to murder everyone, so he was going to not do that.

The best he could do was try to call on whatever scraps of resentment he could find lingering, and try to follow them back to their source. Then, maybe he’d find the body or ghost and have a chance to try to force it calm.

It was best to go somewhere… less occupied to do this though. Fewer people to complain about him later, and less chance of scaring anyone if there turned out to be a lot of resentment.

Wei Ying double checked his pockets for talismans. His stock was down after the need to use so many, but his offensive talismans were still plentiful, and there were a few capture ones left as well.

“A probable ghost that died from a large fall, killed one victim with another fall, and the other a broken neck.” Not exactly subtle. Wei Ying was willing to bet that any other deaths—which hopefully there wouldn’t be—would be something along similar lines; things that could kill a person from a high fall. Maybe a bashed in head if the ghost was aiming for variety, or trying to reflect all of its wounds.

If Wei Ying took that into consideration…

His ghost probably went somewhere with a large drop. If it was possessing the first victim’s corpse, it’d probably escaped somewhere secluded. There were a lot of sharp drops on the Cloud Recesses, but the largest that Wei Ying could think of nearby was a waterfall in the back of the complex where the earth rose sharply. A lovely place to go and meditate by with the white noise of the falls, but it was just far away enough from the buildings to be somewhat secluded and was a lot steeper than it looked at first glance. Not something easily climbed, full of little hollows where water washed away minerals along the stream path, not all full at the moment as it wasn’t a rainy season or full of snowmelt.

Plenty of places to hide.

Plenty of places, he thought grimly, that a vengeful spirit could kill someone too. Wei Ying hoped that none of the younger disciples had searched this direction. It was unlikely; they tended to patrol the public areas, not deeper into Lan territory, but this wasn’t a weak spirit. It had to be strong to get past so many barriers and talismans and still have the power to kill.

Wei Ying took a less than direct path to the falls. No one was going to like what he was going to do.

Hell, Lan Zhan wouldn’t like what he was doing even if he let him practice less than approved cultivation methods. Wei Ying tried to draw as little attention as possible to himself when doing this kind of thing.

It took a few notes for the energy laying mostly calm—calm by the force of the barriers and seals placed around the Cloud Recesses—to build. Resentment calmed had to struggle to come back alive. It was wild and wicked and hard to control when left alone, but it tended to stay calmed once effort was made to do so. Wei Ying’s song was just reminding lingering scraps of resentment what they were resentful about in the first place.

The eerie sound of his flute paired strangely with the rush of water. Once, long before the Lan took over these lands, it might have been a place of turmoil. There were bits of resentment buried deep, victims of the falls’ thunder or maybe from some other natural disaster, so long ago that they didn’t hold any imprint of their cause, just restlessness left unresolved.

Resentment responded readily to Wei Ying. Always did. Always would probably, something in him matching it. He knew darkness. He knew anger and hate and fear and cruelty. He knew how to not let them eat him alive too though, which was necessary for working with resentment. Let it, and it would devour as readily as a spark near tinder.

Now, it gathered and built, tendrils reaching, like seeking like. Something at the top of the falls stirred, a hint of recognition in the feeling. Something responding to the call.

Anger and fear. A desperation of time cut short and pain, pain, pain that lingered even after death. Something like hurt. Something like betrayal. Wei Ying dug into those emotions and pulled, music swelling as the resentment tried to lash out.

In the end it broke, though. It always broke to Wei Ying’s will, and the corpse at the top of the falls came down with supernatural speed, still broken and bloodstained from its fall earlier, the eyes blank as ever.

Corpses never got less creepy, but he did stop feeling quite so horrified after a certain point. No matter who he had been in life, now he was just another dead man.

Wei Ying let his music die out. The corpse kept standing, not aggressive for the moment. “Hmm, and how did you even get here?” he murmured. Instinct? Was it directed here? He reached out and caught the corpse’s wrist.

The corpse didn’t resist as Wei Ying pulled it closer, the resentment in it a contained, circular system with Wei Ying cutting off its ability to escape at the moment. The thread, the one with the prayer bead, was no longer around the corpse’s neck.

“Shit.” That was bad, right? It felt bad. If the bead wasn’t here, if the ghost wasn’t possessing the corpse through it, then where did it go? What else could it influence the way it had likely urged this man to his death?

Damn, Wei Ying needed to get the corpse back, get it sealed and purged of resentment, and find out what happened to the bead—not necessarily in that order.

“Let’s get you back to the clinic…”

Naturally, the corpse didn’t respond. The resentment in it churned sluggishly, like an angry, drugged wild animal. Wei Ying pulled his flute back out and began playing a coaxing tune. It was a long way back to walk, and it wasn’t like he was going to be able to rest more tonight. As soon as all of this was over, he was taking a nap. Someone else could deal with problems; Wei Ying was more than meeting his duty here. And now he had a corpse to question about a certain ghost.

*O*O*

The worst part, Kaito thought, about dead people—besides the bodies—was the crying. It was pretty much guaranteed that someone would end up crying when someone wound up dead and it never got any less uncomfortable. Perhaps that was just him though, because Edogawa just looked solemn as the group shed tears over Chen Xinyi’s demise.

“I don’t understand,” Li Zihan said, face blotchy and voice stuffy from tears. “How could she have died? She was just here—she had to have just gone to look at the body. You don’t think someone is just… just picking off guests, do you?”

“We are still looking into the situation,” Lan Zhan said, his face a cold, blank barrier.

Kaito would think he didn’t care at all except he could read faces well enough to tell that it was all a mask to try and hide how uncomfortable he was. Not the best person for sympathetic explanations, but someone had to give them.

“You think they’re targeting us, not random guests,” Wan Haoran said with a frown, “am I right?”

“As two of your group have been victims, there is a possibility that you are being targeted,” Lan Zhan said, “and so we must ask that you stay here under watch for your own safety.”

“What’s being done to find this person?” Wan Haoran asked, looking more upset by the moment. “Is there anything even being done, or are you just keeping everyone locked up on the off chance one of us is the killer?”

“The best way to ensure safety is to keep everyone in their rooms for the moment as the compound is searched,” Lan Zhan said with a frustrated line between his brows like he couldn’t imagine how this would be hard to understand. “Until more is known, this is the best route.”

“Excuse me,” Edogawa cut in with wide—fake—innocent eyes. The English was jarring in the middle of the Mandarin conversation, but a relief because Kaito’s ability to understand was being pushed to its limit. “When did Miss Chen leave?”

Both of the victim’s friends blinked at him.

“So we know more to find out who did it,” Edogawa said. “We really want to help.”

“Who is this child?” Li Zihan asked, scrubbing her tears away. “And the other? Not more people from here.”

“The child is here as a guest, and Kuroba is studying here as a researcher. Both have experience with solving crimes from what I have gathered,” Lan Zhan said in Mandarin, this time with a slight wrinkle to his nose like he wished he could just send them back to their room. But since Wei Ying allowed them to be there, he wasn’t fighting it. It was funny how a man Kaito had seen be terrifyingly stern about rules of his own clan could crumble like a sandcastle at a few words from his boyfriend.

“The child does?”

“He’s very good at it,” Kaito offered. “Very smart.” His Mandarin speaking ability wasn’t good enough to properly express just how terrifyingly good Edogawa was at solving mysteries, and they wouldn’t believe him if he could. No one expected a child to have the amount of experience Edogawa did with murder.

“Can you please speak English,” Edogawa said in Japanese, like a hypocrite.

Kaito rolled his eyes. “Anyway,” he said, in English now, “he’s right that it would help to know the time between when Chen Xinyi left and she was discovered dead. Did either of you notice her leave?”

Li Zihan sniffled and glanced at Wan Haoran. “I did… I thought at first she was going to the bathroom, but when she didn’t come back, I knew she had to be going to see Shen Ming…”

“You should have woken me up,” Wan Haoran said unhappily.

She shook her head. “It was almost two in the morning. You needed your sleep.”

“Hmm,” Edogawa murmured. “That’s almost two hours in between when she left and was found…”

If it was a human being who’d killed her—correction, a living human being—then that would be a pretty large time gap for how many people were in this place. Unfortunately, they weren’t dealing with a normal human murder here. Any of Edogawa’s deductions were going to be skewed by personal bias. It was clear to Kaito that the first victim—or his body at least—killed the second. The how and why weren’t clear at all, but that knowledge still put him at seeing the whole picture better than Edogawa could.

“Ne, Mr. Lan,” Edogawa said, head tilted to the side. “There was someone watching the body, right? How did Chen Xinyi get past them with no one noticing?”

“Chen Xinyi took advantage of distraction when the shifts changed,” Lan Zhan said. “We will be changing the procedure to prevent future issues of a similar nature.”

Taking advantage of a shift change was something Kaito did on the regular. It was amazing how distracted people could be when they thought they could finally rest.

“Do you know when that was?” Edogawa asked.

“I am unaware of the exact time, but the change was scheduled for three AM.” Give or take a few minutes, in Kaito’s experience.

Hmm. Victim gets there at two, waits? Then sees the guards changing and takes the chance to sneak in. Somewhere in there, the victim takes off some crucial talisman from the corpse and gets killed… And the corpse escapes. There had to be multiple talismans removed. Would the victim have done that herself? Or had she been influenced?

“So no one noticed her be killed,” Edogawa said with a frown. “If the guard changed at three, wouldn’t they have looked and seen in there? Or heard her be killed? There had to have been a struggle.”

There had been one, Kaito thought, because the victim had signs of fighting before her neck was broken. It had to have been a short fight though.

“I will look into the exact times and individuals on the shift changes,” Lan Zhan said solemnly. “We will get to the bottom of these deaths and ensure their spirits are at peace,” he said with the kind of conviction that you had to believe in.

Wan Haoran shook his head, not mollified by the promise. “Someone is trying to kill us. There needs to be some kind of justice for that.”

“We will get to the bottom of it,” Lan Zhan repeated, “whatever that result might be.”

Yeah, good luck arresting a ghost. Kaito sighed internally. Edogawa was probably going to overanalyze and go down the wrong track.

*O*O*

There were too many questions, Conan thought, and not enough answers. It was like digging into a puzzle bin and coming up with a handful of pieces, but not knowing if they were even to the same puzzle. From what Conan could tell, this all centered around the first friend’s death. Unfortunately, no one was talking about said friend, or if they did, it was in a language he couldn’t understand. A friendship important enough to wear a memento of them, but closest to the two dead here if he was gathering the threads correctly.

Unfortunately, Conan couldn’t tell how either of the people here would have killed them. Li Zihan could have followed Chen Xinyi without her boyfriend knowing, but he couldn’t explain how Chen Xinyi’s neck had been broken the way it did. Then there was the missing body—why would it be moved? How would it be moved with so many people on high alert? The weight of a dead body wasn’t easy to move and Li Zihan wasn’t a large person.

Unless she and her boyfriend were lying and had snuck out together? And yet their grief didn’t look faked, and it didn’t feel like they were lying. Conan usually had a pretty good gut for telling when he was being lied to, and everything in the exchange felt genuine.

Honestly the only thing he could think of was that somehow there was another party in play, but who or how he didn’t know.

Maybe it was someone here at this place that did it. Certainly one of the robed people that worked here would be able to access the body to move it, or know the paths for a perfect place to push the first victim from. Without seeing the scene of the first murder or the body up close, he didn’t have enough clues to find commonalities and point him in the right direction.

He glanced toward the door. If he could get to the scene of the first crime, or even examine the second scene closer…

A hand landed on his head.

“Don’t even think about it,” Kid murmured out of the corner of his mouth. His expression stayed relaxed, the tone of his words light. Add to that the Japanese which none of the others spoke, no one would guess that Kid was giving a warning.

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t play innocent, Tantei-kun, it doesn’t suit you. You’re obviously thinking about sneaking away on your own again. Trust me when I say it’s better not to wander alone right now.”

“Like that ever mattered to you before,” Conan said, failing to sound as relaxed as the thief. “You’ve let me go after murderers before.”

“That doesn’t mean I agree with you throwing yourself at danger. We still don’t know what we’re dealing with. I do know, though, that something that could mangle a woman’s neck like that could crush you just as easily.” Kid glanced at him, sidelong. “You’re a pain, but I don’t want you killed.”

Conan glanced at Lan Wangji who was speaking soft, serious words in Mandarin to the grieving friends of the victims. Frustration curled in his gut. “Well, I don’t want anyone else killed either. The faster we catch who is doing this, the better. I can’t just sit and do nothing. They don’t even have any detectives or police here besides me.”

“And your Sleeping Mouri Kogoro,” Kid said, though there was an undertone on how useless he found that fact. “Though you don’t have to be a detective by trade to have basic deductive reasoning, you know. The people here aren’t stupid.”

There was a knock on the door and Wei Ying poked his head around with a smile that was more than a bit strained at the edges. “Lan Zhan,” he said before saying something in rapid Mandarin.

Lan Zhan hummed under his breath before nodding to the grieving guests. “One moment,” he said, in English, likely for the rest of their benefit. Lan Zhan glanced to the side, meeting Kid’s eyes. “Please stay here, I will return soon.”

Conan almost shot to his feet in protest, bristling as he reigned himself in. “But we were going to help!”

“Hahaaa,” Wei Ying laughed with a strained sigh. “Ah, this is something only Lan Zhan can help with, so if you don’t mind?”

“We’ll stay here,” Kid said, like a traitor. Conan scowled at him and Kid pretended not to feel the hole burning in the side of his face at the force of it. Jerk. “Don’t worry; none of us will be wandering off into trouble.”

“He clearly found something!” Conan hissed in Japanese.

“And clearly it’s something we’re not allowed to know about!” Kid replied in kind. “Here’s a chance to ask questions without supervision.”

Conan looked at the door sliding shut and then back at the two people wiping tears and clenching hands like they were at the end of their ability to cope. Dammit. “I thought you liked breaking the rules.”

“I still have to finish my research. I can’t go around angering my hosts.”

Conan wanted to point out that it had never stopped him before, but then again, it was a bit of a different scenario being in a different country in a closed community like this place seemed to be. Kid could probably still impersonate someone and do his research that way, but there had to be a reason he was bothering to do all of this in a more legitimate fashion than normal. Still, it was annoying. What good were gray morals when Kid wouldn’t use them toward solving a murder?

He sighed.

“Ne,” he said to the others in the room. They looked at the child with all the wariness he deserved considering how he burst into the conversation earlier. “Could you tell us more about your friends? Maybe something will help things make more sense.”

Li Zihan sniffed and rubbed her red eyes. She looked like she needed a long nap, and maybe a week’s vacation to recover from all of this. Ironic considering the location. “Which one? Shen Ming or Chen Xinyi?”

“Either. Or your other friend that died before you came here.”

“You think that’s related then?” Li Zihan’s brow pinched, but she sighed. “Maybe it really is related… I don’t even know what to think anymore.”

Wan Haoran touched her arm.

She gave him a watery smile. “I was closest to Chen Xinyi. She was dating Shen Ming and introduced me to Wan Haoran, and we hit it off… The others had more history I suppose… Wan Haoran, you knew Shen Ming and Huang Fang from before university, right?”

“I did.” Wan Haoran looked down at where his hand rested on his girlfriend’s arm. “We were in the same club in high school. We made a pact to get into the same university. But Shen Ming and Huang Fang were inseparable…”

Conan hummed, latching onto a thread of thought. “Did that change in university?”

Wan Haoran grimaced. “They were still close. We were all close. But.”

Kid’s fingers tapped a beat along the floor. “Let me guess,” Kid said. “You met new people. And then dynamics changed.”

Wan Haoran’s eyes flicked toward Li Zihan. “Shen Ming met Chen Xinyi. He fell fast, and next thing we knew it was four of us, and then I started dating Li Zihan.”

“Huang Fang felt like a fifth wheel?” Conan guessed.

“That’s…”

Li Zihan frowned. “Huang-ge was always friendly and cheerful. He’d tease us if we were romantic, but he never looked uncomfortable. That’s why it was such a surprise…”

“Huang Feng and Shen Ming were close,” Wan Haoran said with cautious stress on the last word. Li Zihan and Conan both frowned at him but Kid let out a soft sound of comprehension.

“Shen Ming and Huang Fang dated,” Kid said. “Or at least were involved at some point, and Chen Xinyi messed that up.”

“That implies they ever put a label on it. As far as I know, Shen Ming saw it as friends who slept together. Huang Fang…”

“Was this still happening while Shen Ming and Chen Xinyi were dating?” Li Zihan asked, fingers knotting together in distress. “The whole time?”

Wan Haoran looked away, uncomfortable. “I assumed they had some kind of arrangement, but maybe they didn’t. Maybe it was too much for Huang Fang. Maybe…”

Conan frowned and Kid grimaced. Conan could almost understand it. People were attracted to what they were attracted to; you couldn’t always control the heart. But Conan couldn’t imagine ever going behind a lover’s back, or pursuing someone if it hurt the people involved. He might have lies heaped on lies, but cheating was something he’d never understand. Shen Ming should have either never started dating Chen Xinyi, or he should have cleanly ended things with Huang Fang.

“How could he?” Li Zihan asked, tearing up again. “If they’d just talked things out, maybe they wouldn’t all be…”

Wan Haoran shifted, hands clenching in his lap. “I don’t know what happened the night Huang Fang died. The only one who would know is Shen Ming. I just know that everyone wasn’t as happy as they looked from the outside.”

There was reason for why their friend died, and Conan could extrapolate a cause for killing Shen Ming, if he really had been selfishly ignoring how his desires impacted the people around him. But killing Chen Xinyi? Conan would have thought Wan Haoran had the most motive in all of this simply because he was central to the friend group, but neither him nor Li Zihan seemed to have had the opportunity to kill either person.

This whole case was more questions than answers.

“Was there anyone else close to Huang Fang?” Conan asked. “Or anyone else that knew about his relationship with Shen Ming?”

Wan Haoran shrugged, arms curling around himself. “He had family. A mother and an estranged father… We haven’t heard from them since the funeral, and I don’t know if they knew about Shen Ming. Maybe his mother knew something… She would scold him to cut his hair when she called, in between reminding him to eat more.”

“His hair?”

“Oh. Huang Fang had his hair longer.” Wan Haoran gestured about shoulder length. “I think maybe his mom was worried someone would realize he liked men and use it against him. He didn’t have his hair long because of that, but people make assumptions once they know that sort of thing.”

So the mother probably knew, or guessed her son was gay. But she couldn’t be a suspect if she hadn’t been in contact. That left Conan back at square one. Unless someone was lying and he just hadn’t caught them in the act yet. Hmm.

He had a few more questions to ask…

*O*O*

Wei Ying fiddled with his hair, picking at split ends as his boyfriend followed him. He was fine, definitely fine, not stressed at all, hahaaaaa.

“Wei Ying.” Lan Zhan said as they exited the building, all loving concern because he was great that way. “What is wrong?”

“Ah, so.” He stepped into the shadows of the building, away from prying eyes. “So, good news and less-good news. Haha. Ah. Good news is that I found the missing corpse!”

“The bad news?”

“…the cursed bead he had is missing.”

Lan Zhan frowned. “Inconvenient, but not worrisome unless it can affect cultivators.”

“Theoretically. Practically speaking, we don’t have any real idea what is going on with that bead or how it got enough resentment to influence people, possess them, or, I don’t know, become corporeal enough to push a man off a cliff, Lan Zhan. Lan Zhan, I can’t even use my compass prototype because there’s too many active sources of resentment between the corpses and my flute that it wouldn’t register the muted level of it not putting off death threats.”

“Wei Ying. Breathe.”

“I am breathing!” Wei Ying huffed. This was stressful, that was all. “And I questioned the first victim about his friend. Or I tried to at any rate. He got really upset and kept repeating apologies, which didn’t really help anything. I wanted to force an empathy on it, but that seemed like a bad idea to do alone.”

“Good,” Lan Zhan said emphatically, because he was always pushing Wei Ying to be more careful. ‘Don’t use too much resentment’ and ‘experiment with someone nearby’ and ‘no unsupervised empathy.’ Nearly get stuck in memories once, and Wei Ying would never live it down.

“Anyway, the bodies are back in the infirmary. I put on new seals, and they shouldn’t be able to come off unless a cultivator takes them off.” He sighed. “I still don’t know how or why she took those talismans off.”

Lan Zhan put a warm, supporting arm around him and Wei Ying melted into the touch. Just let Lan Zhan take his whole weight because he wanted to stay there forever. Or go back to sleep. Or just go back to sleep in the arms of his boyfriend, that sounded lovely. “Perhaps she removed the one on Shen Ming’s face to better look at him, and it weakened the others enough to be overpowered.”

“Hmm.” Sounded probable. It could even account for how there was a slight struggle, the scratches he found on the corpse’s arms and face. A struggle could have knocked more talismans free too. “Lan Zhan, I think we need the rest of the beads all in one place to catch our resentful spirit. It’s either spread out in pieces, or it can hop between them or something.”

“Mm, we can ask for the beads.”

“You really think they’ll hand them over?” he asked into Lan Zhan’s shoulder.

“We will convince them.”

He made it sound so simple, but the number of times they’d had to argue over the years to get cursed objects away from their owners was honestly far higher than Wei Ying liked to think about. People didn’t like to part from their belongings, especially not if they were sentimental.

“That still leaves us having to find the missing bead.”

“We can have juniors scanning the ground between the infirmary and where you found the body.”

“Ugh.” Wei Ying pushed his face harder into Lan Zhan’s neck. “About that. He was all the way up the far cliffs. That’s way too much for anyone to cover for something as tiny as a prayer bead.”

“Hm.” He could feel the rumble of displeasure in Lan Zhan’s chest and knew he had to be frowning.

“We could just forget about it and wait for it to cause trouble?” Wei Ying joked. “With how fast everything has happened it’ll take, what, half a day?”

“We will have someone look all the same.”

“Yeah. Good plan.” Wei Ying didn’t want to move, but he really should. He levered himself out of Lan Zhan’s comfortable hold and rubbed at the bridge of his nose where a slight headache was starting. “What do we do with the problem kid?”

“Return him?”

“To his guardians? Who’ve completely failed to keep an eye on him.” Wei Ying gave Lan Zhan a flat look. “Also, any luck feeling out the curse on him?”

“I could not determine its cause or anchor,” Lan Zhan said, ignoring the part about the guardians. “Kuroba Kaito could continue to watch the child.”

“Hmm, they do know each other even if they act like siblings that barely tolerate being in the same room. Somehow I doubt even Kuroba-ge will be enough to control the kid.” Still, send them both back to the guardian and then set an extra guard, maybe that could contain the cursed child until the whole vengeful spirit thing was resolved and Wei Ying could shove the tiny murder magnet at Lan Qiren and the Lan curse experts to figure out how to neutralize whatever he was doing to his surroundings. “If we can keep him far away from the ghost, maybe things can be contained…”

Lan Zhan stilled.

Wei Ying realized that they’d left the kid in the room with two people with cursed beads. Alone. With only a non-cultivator to mitigate any damages. “Shit.”

They both turned back toward the door at the same time only for a scream to come from the direction of the animal pens.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Wei Ying asked whatever power that was potentially watching. “Really?”

“Wei Ying.”

“Yeah, you go check on that while I get the problem before—”

Like the universe was intent on making things impossibly frustrating tonight, a small body shot out the door, the grasping hands of the disciple on guard duty and Kuroba missing by a hair’s breadth as the creepy kid hurled himself off into the night.

“Fuck.”

Lan Zhan didn’t even pretend to get offended at the profanity, which showed just how bad this situation was.

Kuroba staggered from the dorm building, clutching his gut. “Shit. He kicks hard,” he said, an explanation and excuse all in one.

“I can see that,” Wei Ying said humorlessly. “Well, Lan Zhan, it’s probably the bead, so might as well grab the other liabilities and get everyone in one place. Can’t get much worse than having all the cursed items at one place at the same time.”

“…I will see if they will part from the beads.”

“Great. Great… I’m just gonna…” Wei Ying gestured toward where the screaming was turning into shouting.

“I’m with you,” Kuroba said instantly, straightening out of his pained hunch.

“Fine, whatever, let’s go.” Wei Ying took off running without looking at who might or might not be following. Everything was a mess and he just wanted this day to be over. Please don’t be another dead body, he asked of any deity that might be listening. He didn’t think he could handle if a corpse of one of the junior disciples cropped up or something. The universe, as always, didn’t give him any hints of what he was going to find.

#dcmk #mdzs #crossover #fanfiction #detective conan #untamed #my writing

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