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8bitscarlet · 3 years

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Wrong Place, Wrong Time

Summary: You finished the job and you just wanted your money. The last thing you wanted was a run in with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes

Pairing: Wanda x Reader

Genre/Warnings: Angst (canon violence)

Word Count: 4.5k

A/N: Hi everyone! This is the first part of the enemies to lovers I’ve been toying with. I figured I’m out of town so I’ll queue this up. I’m also thinking about taking requests for things if people are interested? If you are, I could write for Wanda, Natasha or Yelena. Happy reading!

*please do not repost or translate my material or claim as yours. reblogs,comments and likes are always appreciated! *

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Twiddling your thumbs as you sit in a squeaking office chair, you lean your head against the backing. You sigh, staring at the books lining the mahogany bookcases and the slightly dusty knick knacks. Clicking your tongue at the shoddy cleaning job, you try and peer at the papers that litter the desk. There's nothing there that catches your eye, mostly boring reports from other bases sent to the illustrious headquarters. This headquarter you're currently in, sits quietly in a city office building passing off as some big paper supplier. The embossed skull with six tentacles that appears in just the right light on the reports tells a different story.

It's been nearly a half hour since you were let in by a new secretary. At least 'new' since you were last here a month ago. You never paid too much attention to them, the less you spoke to them, the less you had to think about when they were replaced.

Plucking another candy from the crystal bowl on the desk, you pop the sweet grape candy into your mouth. Muttering to yourself that you should charge per diem on top of your cost if they’re going to keep making you wait. Maybe these meetings would be shorter.

As you smooth the wrinkled plastic against your crisp black pants, there's some yelling happening down the halls. Peeking over your shoulder, alarms begin to blare throughout the building. With a groan, you stand and crack open the locked drawer of the desk as you watch the shadow of the secretary through the opaque glass run away. Whatever is going on out there is none of your business, you're just here to get paid.

Ignoring the gunshots and explosions, you finally find a blank envelope. Peeking inside, you see the wire transfer receipt for your offshore account. Grinning, you tuck it securely in your jacket, buttoning it closed as you head towards the office door.

Glancing through the small space you push open, the hallway is empty of people but littered with papers. Carefully walking down, you try and find the back stairwell. It might be a bit obvious to go down the elevators in the middle of a raid. Peering out the window, you can see the parking lot is littered with groaning and writhing guards. Whoever is here made quick work of security.

The first stairwell only takes you a few floors down, forcing you to exit back into the building to find the last of the stairs. There's unconscious guards scattered amongst the floor of the large and bland break room. Numerous tables and chairs are spaced around for office workers to eat lunch and there's a doorway that leads towards more offices and to the building's main staircase. Peeking around the corner, you see glowing red fill the break room and investigate its source.

Two levitating soldiers slam into each and fall to the floor. A woman in a red suit glances at them, brushing away the hair that's fallen from her ponytail. Quietly, she taps her foot as she speaks into her radio. An accent fills your ears as you quietly tiptoe towards her. Eastern European? Ukrainian? Sneaking closer, she stops tapping her foot but continues to speak. You grin, Sokovian.

Wrapping your arms around her, she lets out a yelp as you grip her tightly against your chest, bracing yourself with one foot back. Before you can introduce yourself, red magic pulsates through her body straight into yours. What feels like a wrecking ball slamming into your body, sends you sailing across the tables. You groan as you slam against the wall, feeling the heat dissipate from your chest. The woman stands in front of you, balls of red energy forming from the palms of her hands.

"So," You grimace as you climb to your knees, "You are a witch."

Her scowl turns into a snarl, "I'm not a witch!"

Lunging to the side as she throws her obviously magic at you, you make your way closer to her. Tossing chairs and tables to stop her from slamming into you again. Grunting as you sling a chair at her, you dodge forward and avoid a frantic attack. Swinging your punches towards her, you're surprised at how well she handles such close attacks. Ducking below her swing, you knock a punch into her side.

She stumbles back from you, but you stay close. Gliding beneath another frantic swing, your fingers grip her slender wrist and twist. She lets out a wounded cry as you lock her arms together, shoving her down at an uncomfortable angle, her wrist nearing its breaking point.

You lean down close to her ear, "Come on, you hated these people. Why the hell are you working for them?"

Grunting, you can feel her stance change, "Well, we don't like bullies."

Without a word, your fingers are torn off her wrists as you find your feet in the air again. This time, you slam through the wall, your shoulder smacking against a metal support beam. The hit sends you spiraling through the hall and crashing straight into a display case. Clenching your hands as you feel the glass cut through your thin dress shirt, you watch blood soak through the fabric as you collapse.

Coughing out the insulation dust from your throat, you knock your back against the wobbling case. The witch stands in front of the hole you made, hands glowing to glide herself towards you.

You slide an object from your back and hold it out, aiming down your pistol sights at her. Her feet freeze and you watch her glowing red eyes fade into frozen green irises. You chuckle and shake some of the glass from your hands, wincing slightly at the stinging.

"These clothes were expensive," You groan, flicking the safety off.

Pounding feet come from your side and you hear reverberation bounce through the air as your hand is violently whipped to the side with a flash of red and white. You grimace, climbing quickly to your feet and hold out your hands, noticing your right hand already bruising. With a chuckle, you watch the man dressed in a proud blue suit, red and white stripes that cover his torso and the oh so patriotic star on his chest, skid to a stop. Taking a quick glance to your right, the witch is gone.

Grinning at the Captain, you're glad she's gone. You may have a variant of what's running through his blood right now, but he isn't an easy target.

"You're not here for me Rogers, so let's just pretend I wasn't here." You say, making your way towards the stairs.

Rogers follows you down the stairs from a safe distance. He was never the one to play fast and reckless. You could always count on that.

"What is it they say? Probable cause? You're in a Hydra base, Y/N." Captain America says, eyeing you walking into the large board room that covers this floor.

It's been cleared, the large desk practically shoved to the side as workers attempted to find any and all incriminating paperwork that was hidden. You groan, snatching an apple from the fruit bowl and stop your retreat.

You've always tried to avoid run-ins with the Avengers. Any fight with them you knew you'd lose. They'd gotten close to you before, nearly catching you a few times when their missions fell in line with yours. You'd managed to slip their grasps each time, always a few steps ahead. Complacency kills though. You never thought they'd find these headquarters.

Who would investigate a paper supplier?

"Don't fight. Just come with us. We'll ask a few questions and-."

You chuckle, "And what? I get shipped off to some secret government prison and have the luxury of being tested on? Just go back to those stairs, walk down them, and leave."

Rogers sighs, resting a hand on his waist, "I can't do that."

"Then I'm not apologizing." You say as you sling the apple towards his head.

It bounces off his shield as you slam your foot forward into his chest. He stumbles backwards, swinging the vibranium shield towards you. Dodging it is your only option but you're practically dodging into his hits. Hopping above his swinging kick, you knock an elbow into his side. With a yell, that vibranium shield knocks straight into your face. You collapse back, ringing in your ears as you desperately crawl backwards.

Your vision is clouded with tears as you watch Steve advance towards you, holding his side. Crawling to your feet, you step into his swing. The shield stops against your arms as you press against it. Gritting your teeth, you can see the sweat pouring down his face as he clenches his jaw in the struggle. He pushes hard against you, your feet practically sliding against the thin carpeted floor. Letting a yell escape, you grip the edges of the shield as tight as your fingers can muster.

Dropping to your knee, you jerk your shoulders to the side as you thrust all of your weight over. The shield twists sharply and Rogers follows after it. He flips himself over in a handless cartwheel, landing perfectly on the balls of his feet. Leaping into the air, you ram both feet into his unshielded chest. Falling to the ground with a grunt, the window breaks and you watch him fly out into the open air. You crawl forward, peering down as you see him huddle into his shield. The fall is quick, only about ten stories up.

You saw the fall he made at the Triskelion the other year. This did nothing but make him have to climb ten stories to get back up to you. A simple annoyance.

And now, your annoyance comes in the form of a flying bird slamming a kick into your chin that pokes out through the broken window. You slam against the next window frame, heat increasing throughout your back. Rolling to your feet, you press against the stinging pain as the Falcon lands on his feet.

"Did you just kick Captain America out of a window?" He yells at you, gesturing to the howling wind that now freely flows in.

He jumps up and thrusts towards you. Rolling forward, you avoid his heels this time, "I don't have time for this!"

Kicking up a fallen chair, you swing it around you. It connects into the tech on his back and you can see a panel fall that protects the wiring. Flinging around to catch you in a spinning kick, you dive forward. Shoving him back into the projection board, you snatch the pot of coffee and chuck it towards him.

The wiring sparks and you can see the flashing lights on his wrist. Wilson tries desperately to swipe away the diagnostics as you grab one of his wings that jutted out in the system overload. With a yell, you throw him across the room. You watch him slam quickly against his wrist, his thruster activating and knocking him head first into the threshold.

He hits the ground hard and you limp forward, checking to see if his chest is still rising properly. Ensuring that the Avengers aren't coming after you with a vendetta for revenge, you suck in a burning breath and sprint out of the room.

Your body is aching, you can feel the sweat pouring down your back. Tearing off your ripped jacket, making sure to stuff your wire receipt in your pants, you hop over the stairs railing and land two stories down. Whipping around the railing to get across the floor to the fire escape, your feet scrap against the floor as you fall straight onto your face.

Your muscles are tensed from your head to toes, a cramp exploding through your calf from the tension. Gritting your teeth, you force your arm to move through the electrical current that swarms your nerves. Tearing at your neck, a small round device collapses into sparks next to your eyes. You groan, feeling the residual shock twitch through your legs and body.

A boot pushes you onto your back as you glance up at the redhead who stands above you. They give a small wave with a smirk, their wavy red hair falling as they look down at you,

“It’s been some time, Y/N.”

"Those things hurt." You groan, breathing out slowly as you begin to move your fingers, "Did you know that?"

She nods, "I've had an experience. Now, are you going to play nice or do I need to knock your head into something else again?"

You hold out your hands and watch as she takes her foot away from you. You remembered the last time you went toe to toe with the Black Widow. She slammed your head straight through a soda machine. The only reason you got away was because some idiot started shooting off RPGs in an enclosed area. This time, there were no idiots.

Gripping her ankle as you whip your arm back, she slams onto the floor with a grunt. You're practically sprinting before you even climb to your feet as you try to get to the fire escape. You hear her yell an order but quickly slide to the right towards filing cabinets as a bullet clinks against the metal. Clambering behind them, you hear her stepping towards you. You can't make that run to the window, she'll empty that gun into you. She's not letting you go this time.

Piling up fallen papers, you whip them to the side and hear the safety click on. You're thankful she doesn't want you dead.

Springing from the side of the cabinet, you slam a punch into her stomach. She wraps your other arm against her body as she slams into your side, pressure exploding through the cut from the glass. All of this fighting is taking a nasty toll. You try to catch your breath, ripping your arm from your hold.

Rolling forward, you kick a table into her knee, a flicker of pain on her face. Romanoff pulls her gun, but you twist her arm just right and watch as it clatters to you. You both look at each other, her in surprise and you in complete panic - she’s going to beat your ass now.

Still holding onto her arm, she grips your arm tightly and wraps her legs around your neck. You flip to your back, the corner of a table slamming into your spine. Falling to the ground with a groan, you suck in a wheezing breath as you climb to your knees. Wrapping her arm around your neck, she squeezes tightly as you try and shimmy your chin down.

Launching off of your knee unexpectedly, Romanoff stumbles back until her grip loosens as she falls on top of a filing cabinet. Turning on your foot quickly, you muster all of your force into your coming punch. As you swing, all of your momentum flies from you as you freeze in place.

You glance over with only your eyes able to move, "What the-?"

Suddenly, the glow of red increases around your body and something comes whipping out from it. It slams against your neck and flings you down to the floor. Through the pressure, you inhale a wheezing breathe as you start to cough from the force on your throat. Trying to rip at the magical binds, you see the witch walk into the room. Her red glowing eyes showing that she's in control.

"Kinky." You grimace and she squeezes a little harder, trying to shut you up.

She looks to the Black Widow as she picks herself up, "You alright, Nat?"

She holds her side, trying to slow her breathing as she picks up her pistol.

"This isn't fair. You didn't have her the last time," You call out to Natasha as the witch scowls at you, still checking to see if Natasha is alright.

She whispers to the witch and you feel the pressure release just slightly. Sucking in a deep breath, there's an invisible force pushing against your back. You follow the silent commands and climb up to your knees, feeling your hands slowly slide behind your back. As Natasha cuffs you, the magic is released.

You roll your neck as Natasha presses you forward so your eyes look to the gray carpet. Craning your head to the side, you look at the magical woman who crosses her arms as she frowns at you, some bruising on her face.

"I know her name," You jerk your head to the former assassin talking on the radio, "But I didn't catch yours."

"I didn't throw it to you," Wanda snaps, telling Natasha she's going up to check on Sam.

Pursing your lips into a thin line as you raise your brows, you nod your head at the sharp wit that witch has. That wasn't in the file you had read. Manipulation of people's perceptions and emotions. Manipulating objects through telekinesis. As far as the file, it seems like she does a lot of manipulation and you wonder just how far that sinks into her personality.

"You're not going to find any friends here, Y/N."

You scoff and drop your head, "Less loose ends right, Nat?"

Cold metal presses underneath your chin as you grit your teeth. "You don’t get to call me that anymore," Nat tells you dangerously into your ear. “Not after what you did.”

You swallow dryly, adjusting your eyes to look at her, “She had it under control. I wasn’t going to let anything happen to her.”

Her face contorts into anger and sadness, “You wouldn’t have let her walk in there if you cared about her.”

“She’s basically my sister, too.”

“Don’t,” She hisses at you, pressing the gun deeper into your neck, you can feel it start to shake just slightly.

Before she can decide whether or not she wants to deal with you anymore, you see a blue suit come around the corner. He quickens his steps when he sees the casual dispute.

"Romanoff!"

Rogers guides her away from you, whispering quietly with her and checking to make sure she's okay. All the while, her haunted and enraged eyes pierce yours. With a sigh, Rogers kneels next to you and gives you a disappointed grin.

"What's up, golden boy?" You smile cruelly, "Am I in trouble?"

"We'll figure that out back at the compound." He walks out of the room as Natasha pulls you to your feet, not bothering to make sure you're ready to walk.

Stumbling forward from a shove, you catch eyes with the witch helping Wilson down the stairs. You raise your brows and strain your neck back,

"Nice to meet you... Maximoff."

Romanoff shoves you towards the stairs and advises you to shut up. As you descend the stairs, you quietly chuckle to yourself from the shock you achieved to appear on her face.

_________________

"What were you doing there?"

You groan and shake the cuffs against the table in agitation, "I told you. I went to get my pay. If I knew you guys were stopping by to say 'hi', I wouldn't have been there."

You watch Romanoff pace the same eight feet she's been pacing this whole time. They stuffed you in this small eight by ten room after spending a few hours in the cell down in their basement. Romanoff and the famous Tony Stark have been bouncing questions off of you for the past hour. Same questions, different format.

"What did you do for them?" She asks you, glancing over to watch your face.

You chuckle, "You guys really don't read those reports." Taking a sip of water, you lay your hands flat on the table, "Hydra wanted me to go to Madripoor. Pick up some illicit gear from some dealer. Something Sokolov. Jane? Therese?"

You note the agitated look on Natasha's face as Tony rolls his eyes. If they're feeling annoyed then you're finally on the same page.

Leaning back into your seat you clear your throat, "I don't remember. But you can cross check it with all my shit you stole."

"We did." Natasha tells you.

Chuckling, you raise your brows, "Then why am I still here?"

Sitting on the table, she flips through a file, "Because I know you. You cover all your tracks. Alibis for your alibis."

"Look, I know there's some old friends betrayed drama going on but we're all bored. I want to leave, so do you. So," Stark claps his hands, "Do you know where the other bases are?"

Shrugging, you gives your hands a little metallic shimmy, "Depends. These cuffs are starting to chafe."

The two Avengers look at each other, silently arguing with their eyes. You groan and limply hang your head,

"If I make a funny face at Stark here, I'll be dead before I hit the ground. I'm not going to to try anything."

Natasha gives a nearly imperceptible nod and Stark loosens the metal handcuffs. You sigh, rubbing the reddened and irritated skin, "Thank you. Now, let's get started."

A few hours of writing on white boards and cross checking the locations around the possible bases with Tony's AI JARVIS went by. Most of what you could recollect seemed to be filling the gaps of the research the team was trying to do. Thanks to little ol' mercenary you, you just helped the Avengers. Unfortunately for you, you didn't get to take your wire receipt with you as you walked out the front door with appreciative thank you's.

Instead, you got shunted back into your little lonely cell in the basement. As you sit on the uncomfortable cot, you're thankful that there's some central air in this place. You spent the night unbothered and slept your exhaustion away. They were nice enough to clean up your wounds and even give you some comfortable clothing to lounge in your prison. Some nice hotel soaps to wash your face and your own private toilet. It was certainly better than any other prison you'd ended up in.

And now, as you hear the door from the stairs open, your own maid. Maximoff silently guides down the stairs, holding steady a tray of steaming food. You eye her carefully as she approaches the cell, cocking a brow. Stepping away from the door into the corner, you hold out your hands as she unlocks the door.

It had been a few days of this, her placing the tray down and quickly exiting. At first, it was a small little robot made by Stark. Now, they started to send the little witch down. Remembering how much manipulation was in her profile, you carefully eye her as she glances around your area.

She never stayed much longer than to drop off your food and double check she locked the door. As you stir the beef stew, Maximoff twists the rings on her fingers in quiet anticipation.

Chewing on a bite of warmed bread, you swallow loudly, "Wherever you guys get this prisoner food, I hope you're tipping."

She nods, "Thank you."

You cock a brow as you sip on the hearty broth, tasting the freshness of it. With a chuckle you nod, "Did you cook this in your cauldron?"

With a piercing glare, she lets out an agitated sigh. You grin down at your food as you hear the scraping of a stool as she settles down into it. Silently, the two of you sit as she gets lost in file on her lap and you scarf down your meal.

The Avengers certainly weren't trying to break your will by giving you home cooked meals. You're almost positive that if you said you were cold at night, they'd send down more blankets. But that wasn't comforting. They were softening you up for something. And you knew it had something to do with this Wanda.

"So," she starts, glancing inside the cell as you slowly butter the bread, "You were a Hydra experiment."

You gently place the knife down and glance at her, "What do you want? My life story? Some reasoning behind why I still work for them even though I was an experiment? Sure, they pay really good."

Her brows clench as she watches you bite the bread with abrupt anger. The thought of your past boils your blood with a passing thought. You'd spent a long time pushing it aside. The only time it was helpful was in improving yourself. Holding onto the fact that you were practically tortured didn't lead to much improvement.

Swallowing dryly, you stare down at the empty bowl in front of you as she speaks,

"I just thought... Hydra used me too."

You chuckle callously, "Don't try and make this a conversation about some shared life experiences."

"What do you-?"

You toss your bread into the bowl and shove your chair from the table, throwing your napkin down, "We have nothing in common."

You glare at her and take a step towards the wall that protects her, "You had a choice."

Her eyes avert from yours as you fill those last words with venom. You knew what she was, a volunteer. Volunteering for those damn experiments that nearly ripped you apart. They didn't have it easy, you know that, you know Hydra. But she chose that for herself.

You were taken straight off the street. You wouldn't be where you are now if that hand't happened, you might've just died on that street- scavenging for food and spare change. But that didn't change the horrors you were put through. The injections, the experiments and trials. The only one you could relate to was Romanoff, and the two of you had. The KGB paid handsomely back in the day and you shared time with the famed assassin.

This witch in front of you shared nothing.

Slumping back onto your cot, you see that she hasn't left. Sighing, you bounce your foot atop your knee and watch her. Wanda quietly flips through a file, picking up her head she mulls over some thoughts. You smile, a quiet chuckle escaping your grin. She turns her head, lowering the blue pen she was chewing on and closes the file on her lap,

"Something funny?"

You shrug, "They send you down here 'cause you're the most innocent looking. Next time you'll come down with a pie, huh? Try and get me to relax so I tell the truth?"

She stares at you, breathing slowly and consciously as she watches your movements carefully.

"Well princess," You stand and walk back to the corner, eyeing the empty plate, "I already did. They're wasting your time. And mine."

Watching her stand, you suck in a deep breath as your eyes glaze over her. Seeing her now in a more relaxed state, her wavy red hair frames her face gently. Her body is hidden beneath relaxed clothes but you remember the curves of her body against her suit. The power she wielded as she tried to kill you. Any other situation and you'd be asking to go somewhere quiet with her.

As she takes the tray, you see her brows raise as a brush of red fills her cheeks.

"Your jeering is exactly why you're not leaving anytime soon."

You smile, "As long as you're feeding me. Do prisoners get tours of this place?"

Wanda closes the cell door with a scoff, "Uh huh, so you can transmit everything through some freaky Hydra eye camera?"

“Oh shit, is my antennae showing?” You ask, patting the back of your head.

A small smile appears on her face as she looks away from you and you seize the moment, "See? I'm not so bad."

Eyeing you suspiciously, she gives you a curt nod, "And I know you're not here because you were lonely. "

"Look," You pat the clear cell door, "I just want to get out of everyone's hair. That's the best for everyone. I'm not making a living sitting here."

Her perfect auburn brows clench tightly and her disgust for you reappears, "So, you can go work for the highest bidder and go do their wishes? You're just Hydra without the badge."

"You take me on a tour and I'll leave here a changed mercenary, Maximoff."

She rolls her eyes and walks backwards, "You like Marmite toast and blood sausage?"

You frown, "I'm guessing that's breakfast?"

Wanda stops, her fingers tapping the tray as she grins, thinking of more disgusting things to feed you. Resting your hands on your waist, you raise your brows at the prolonged eye contact.

She nods, "I think I have a can of vienna sausages that are calling your name."

You grin, watching her walk away. Just quiet manipulation. She still has a few things to learn from Romanoff, you can see the layer of her there. The way she hides her accent, the placement of questions, never letting you know who has the upper hand.

And right now, you're not sure.

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Ch. 2

#wanda #wanda maximoff #wanda marvel #wanda x reader #wanda maximoff x reader #scarlet witch #scarlet witch x reader #wanda fanfic #wanda maximoff fanfic #wanda angst #wanda enemies to lover #enemies to lovers #wanda x you enemies to lover #wanda imagine #wanda maximoff angst #wanda x you #wanda mcu #wanda x y/n

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twistedmusings · 3 years

Note

hhhhiii i see requests are open... can i have azul and riddle with a taller+flirty s/o? fem s/o is much preferred but g/n is also OK!! thank youu i love your writing 😭💞

A/N: I am a very short girl. I am shorter than Riddle. So this...was hard to write. But gosh if I did not love every second of it q wq. Honestly, I feel like these two would benefit from having an S/O who is a lot more open about her love. Dammit now I want a tall girlfriend.

All the way from the fluff section in our library, let me get that book for you!

Warnings: None!

--Everyone make way for the short king.

--First, he doesn’t know how he fell in love with her. Her flirtiness was known in Heartslabyul and there was not a time that Riddle hadn’t caught one of the students trying to slide a love letter her way. Which was already highly inappropriate; they were having tea for the Queen’s sake!

--So he scolded her for it, which only made her reply in your usual way. Which made him scold her again and she replied with another flirty comment about how adorable it was that he cared so much about who she flirted with.

“Am I that distracting?”

“Yes!”

“So...should I just flirt with you instead?”

“P--Pardon?”

--The dorm room celebrates as Riddle announces his relationship a week later, according to the rules, and smiles when his girlfriend bends down to place a kiss on his cheek.

--And that is when he starts to get confused about how he feels about the situation as a whole.

--Generally, he liked when people talked to him as if it was normal conversation and no comment was made about his height. Trey spoke to him normally, Cater knew better than to make any sort of comment and Deuce and Ace wouldn’t make a comment to save their lives.

And she also didn’t make a comment either! It’s just that the more time she spent together with him the more he started to take in the height difference between them.

--If he was trying to reach for a book in the library he would feel a hand on his back and his beloved coming up behind him and getting the book down for him. He would try and protest saying that she didn’t need to help he could have gotten a stool--!

--But he almost bites his tongue when she leans in and places a kiss on his forehead, telling him that she just wanted an excuse to kiss him in public. Riddle wants to retort back and says something about PDA not being appropriate but he is met by a pair of lips silencing him.

“We really shouldn’t--! And in public--!”

“You didn’t like it?”

“...I didn’t say that.”

--Riddle might have a lot to say about PDA when it comes to others, but he is clearly getting spoiled on the sidelines by his girlfriend. And he lives for it. He meets her after classes and offers his arm to her so they can walk together, getting a kiss on the cheek for it. He invites her to several Unbirthday parties and has her sit by his side, which earns him a kiss on the hand. She has trouble studying? Cue tutor Riddle coming in to the rescue, which earns him a bunch of kisses that he would rather keep private as to where they were placed.

--The unspoken rule is that, as long as he is doing something to help her or she is doing something to help him, modest kisses (aka: hand, cheek or forehead) can be given out whenever the other party desires it.

--Also forehead kisses are his favourite, prove me wrong.

--As I am writing this I am also picturing them ballroom dancing, like an event in NRC just has dancing involved and Riddle holds out his hand to her and invites her to the dancefloor...only to realize that he kinda reaches up to her neck and he can’t do the usual thing where she would lean into his chest as they slow danced.

--But she kinda beats him to the punch when he tries to pull away, feeling he looks ridiculous. She just presses him close to her and lets him wrap her arms around her waist, smiling as she hugs him close and leans her head against the top of his. People could talk all they wanted but did they have a girlfriend? Riddle thought that probably not.

“Surely this must not be comfortable.”

“Riddle I’m fine. Besides, I think everyone is a tad jealous right now.”

“How so?”

“Well...you are rather close to my chest. Not that I’m complaining, I love it actually~”

--Riddle hates to say it...but that is a perk that he did not expect and it certainly wasn’t unwelcome.

--Like I said, make way for our short king.

--He loves it.

--Azul sees no downside about not only having a flirty s/o, but having a tall s/o was also what made this relationship so wonderful to him. Why? Two words.

--Power. Move.

--He didn’t necessarily ask for it but as he is making a deal one day she just walks in and greets him normally, Azul taking the time to lean back and kiss her hand as he usually did but stopping when the girl walks in front of the couch and makes her way into Azul’s lap sitting in such a way that she is now facing the client with her legs crossed while her lips were placed gently on Azul’s temple.

“Just keep working, I won’t bother you~”

--Azul normally loves your affection but seeing the student sit up straighter and get visibly more nervous as she played with his hair brought Azul a sort of euphoria he didn’t expect.

--Yes he knew not to get revenge on others for bullying him and whatnot, but the feeling of superiority that came with having an S/O who was so open about her affection with him was a power trip in its own way.

--She sits in with him with every deal he makes now, Azul talking normally as his hands rest on her legs while playing with his hair and pressing kisses to his cheek whenever she feels like it.

--Azul at first is a bit embarrassed at the height difference and the almost effortless flirtiness that seemed to come to her so naturally, but he does notice the looks he gets when he walks by which just...makes him hold his head up higher as he walks.

--One thing he is surprised to like is...the cuddling.

--As part octopus, Azul’s tentacles will latch to whatever he likes. His girlfriend had only had the pleasure to see him in his octopus form once and was more than happy when he mentioned that fact to her, but he didn’t expect his human legs to carry out the same sort of treatment. This meant that every time they cuddled together, Azul was always the little spoon wrapping himself around her.

--A fact she never fails to mention when he does it almost without thinking.

“You really want to keep me here, huh?”

“Not necessarily. If you need to leave, I am not stopping you.”

“That’s not what your legs are saying. You have me in a really tight hold, Azul~”

--Oh my god the tentacle comments. Azul thinks that he can take the height difference between them pretty well but she just takes him by surprise when she comes up behind him and gives him a hug, Azul returning it with a side hug as he is doing his work, but stopping when she leans in close and whispers about how she wishes he would hold just a tad bit tighter.

“Your octopus form is a lot more honest...you really held onto me tight last time.”

--What is worse is that the tweels are there for every second of it, their teasing of Azul increasing to a maximum whenever she is around. He sends Jade and Floyd to run and errand with her and just as they are leaving she turns around to wave goodbye.

“Anything else you want from Sam’s place, baby?”

“Yeah Azul! Anything else, baby?”

“Now Floyd, no reason to pester him further. We’ll be going now...baby~”

--All three run out laughing as Azul throws a pen at the door, catching her blowing a kiss his way.

--He is still embarrassed, but he makes a motion to catch it and wave goodbye, smiling as he thinks just how lucky he is to get someone like her.

--And it’s not like he was short, but he certainly looked a lot more intimidating walking with a rather tall drink of water hanging from his arm~ listen I know that is a stupid line even I apologize

#twisted wonderland #twst #twst headcanons #riddle rosehearts #azul ashengrotto #riddle x reader #azul x reader #//honestly I love these two q wq

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anerdinallherglory · 3 years

Text

Approaching Sun (31)

Author’s Note: Surprise readers! I wanted to celebrate the start of Spring Break (a very much needed break) by posting an update sooner than I expected. Also, it’s double the length, too. It’s practically two chapters in one!

Thank you always to my loyal readers. If I do not get back to you, please know that I see every review, every comment, and every mention. I am grateful for all of you!

Also, I have had a few readers tell me of songs they associate with A.S. and I just think that is so cool, because I too, connect music to books and fanfics that I read. I’d like to make a list of all my readers’ songs that they think fit A.S. and share them on my next update as the “soundtrack” for this story. Please let me know yours in the comments or through message.

Pairing: SasuSaku

Previous Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30

Chapter 31: Not Enough

Sakura spun the sword, adjusting it on her left forearm as she pivoted on her heel to bring it around her in another protective arc. The blackness that hovered before her again instantly shielded her enemies from view which could be considered both advantageous and disadvantageous for her.

For the first, Mako and Hisa immediately rushed forward, using the ninjutsu as a cloak. They crisscrossed her, one taking a swipe at her from the front right and the other coming from the left. When Hisa’s blade came from the right, Sakura’s first instinct was to dodge and strike her foe in the side with her fists as she passed. But with her chakra currently restricted, Sakura ducked, pushed up on the handle of her assault weapon with her forearm, and brought her own blade naturally to Hisa’s right flank as she redirected the attack. Sakura hissed in disappointment because the cut was interrupted when she retreated and the result was shallow, not slicing deep enough to incapacitate her. When Hisa took a step back, clutching her flank, Mako suddenly appeared like a breaching shark from the deep only inches before Sakura’s face. He kicked her, quite hard, and Sakura fell into the sand, her weapon tossed aside from the blow. She scrambled for it as Mako grabbed hold of her ankle. She kicked free of his hold, but he was upon he, knees straddling her, and Sakura had no choice but to turn and face him.

He cuffed her hands above her head, saying quietly, “Don’t make this difficult! You will lose your life if you continue to resist. They’ll kill you. Stop struggling!”

Sakura cursed herself for drinking that damn tea, because if she had chakra, she would headbutt his face so far back into his skull that the impact would instantly kill him. Hisa’s face suddenly appeared above Mako’s rights shoulder.

“Killing her is the only option. We don’t have time to hold her hostage,” she chastised Mako with venom in her voice. “We have to get back to base quickly with the news of her death.”

“We could use her. She’s too important to kill immediately.” Came Mako’s response as he sat down hard against her bucking legs.

“We don’t have time for this! The drug effects won’t last on her all the way back to Tanigakure!”

Perfect, Sakura thought. The confirmation she had been looking for. They were in fact the same party of ninja who had attacked her and Sasuke on their journey to Suna. Sakura still wasn’t entirely sure just how many belonged to their group.

“Reach in my pocket for the second dose. We will knock her back out if we have to!” came Mako’s reply, but it was too late. Sakura had been calling, calling, calling her chakra to her wrists this entire time and used that small amount of sudden strength to overpower Mako’s hold, swinging her arms quickly back down to her sides which caused Mako’s own arms to follow. His head hit the ground to the left of her neck and Sakura immediately rolled him, bestriding him the same way he had just held her.

Hisa didn’t hesitate a second as her weapon came swiping horizontally across Sakura’s back. Sakura predicted this and used Mako’s struggling momentum to once again roll him back on top of her. The blade bit into the flesh of his back and he screamed. In the same moment, Sakura used the last of her strength to wedge her knees between herself and Mako’s chest, shoving him out and back toward a surprised Hisa. They both fell tangled back into the shadowy mist, hitting sand somewhere out of sight.

Within seconds, Sakura scrambled toward the lost weapon and the sword she had dropped was within Sakura’s reach. But when she fisted the pommel, a foot stepped down on the blade. The black mist cleared to reveal the eyeless depths of the shadow demon above her.

“Enough of this,” he hissed. Shadows leaked from his eyes, down his face, and crawled down his chest, legs, and over the length of the weapon, icing Sakura’s fingers when they touched the handle. Sakura immediately recoiled in pain as her fingers turned a sickening black. She screamed, backing away from his advancing figure, hand tucked protectively in the crook between her arm and side.

Rage more than fear boiled beneath Sakura’s skin. What sick ninjutsu was this? It reminded her of a combination between Zabuza’s Hidden Mist technique and Shikamaru’s Shadow Control. But the damage was entirely unexpectedt, as if the shadows inside his body were made of a poisonous substance that bleached out the life of whatever it touched. This phantom before her controlled darkness directly, thickening what already existed in the air around them, and then leaking black chakra directly from his body which destroyed whatever came in contact with it. Like the shadows of death itself, Sakura was certain it had stollen all life from her immovable hand.

Sakura cursed and bolted to the left, seeking out the jagged rocks that she had created earlier. She had to test a theory. Sakura slowed as she clutched her hand, listening, keeping an eye on her feet at all times in fear of creeping black, knowing the phantom would pursue.

When his steps came closer, Sakura turned and faced him. A chakra-manipulated path cleared the darkness between them, allowing the two ninja to see each other in the surrounding haze. This confirmed one thing for Sakura: no one, including the ninja user himself, could see through the darkness he created. That was good to know.

Just one more thing then. She waited and the shade sneered as he approached. When he came withing a few feet away, shadows reached for her like grasping fingers. Just as she had seen Temari do all those years ago during the Chunin exams, Sakura backed away until the shadows stopped and retreated back into the skull of the demon who had projected them. She drew a line in the sand, confirming the distance of ten feet between them.

Ha. She thought to herself. Just like Shikamaru’s justsu then. Similarly, it had a limited reach, although it was much shorter than Shikamaru’s range and didn’t seem to be able to use the shadows in the air around it to lengthen or widen. It explained the purpose of the shadows in the air though; the phantom ninja needed to be in close range where individuals couldn’t see the approaching black tentacles of death.

Sakura scoffed. Apparently, this ninja couldn’t measure up to Shikamaru’s intelligence either, considering the fact that she had just figured out how his ninjutsu worked.

There was only one problem, though. Sakura was a close-combat shinobi as well, and her number one battle technique was her chakra enhanced strength. She needed a plan that would allow her to take a different approach.

She ran and her attacker pursued her, thickening the air before her but leaving the trail behind her completely clear.

Suddenly, Mako’s words from earlier came back to her, which gave Sakura an idea. It was the only thing Sakura could think of. She doubled back to where Mako and Hisa had been disposed. She followed the blood in the sand to the precipice of a jagged chunk of earth. When she came upon Mako, Sakura noted that Hisa was already gone, having abandoned him immediately. Hisa was probably blindly searching for Sakura among the shadow-cloaked mountains of ground and sand.

Sakura didn’t have much time. She placed her hand over Mako’s mouth so he wouldn’t scream and give away their location; not that it would do much good. If the phantom had room for a brain somewhere next to that pit of darkness in his skull, he would follow the blood as she had, or trace her tracks in the sand.

Mako, laying on his bloody back in the sand, shot his eyes open when Sakura’s hand pressed down hard on his mouth with her black hand. It was barely more than a useless appendage at this point, but with the help of her good hand, Sakura shoved her fingers in his mouth to silence him. He tried biting them, tearing into her blackened flesh. But Sakura couldn’t feel them at all, the deadening so complete that Sakura was afraid she would never regain use of it again.

With her free hand, Sakura searched Mako’s person. Her hand fisted triumphantly in his back pocket around something long and cylindrical. She pulled it free, praying frantically that it was what she theorized it to be. Bless you for being thorough and for telling me you had it, she thought to Mako as she surveyed the capped yellow injection tube. Whether it was Ashuwa or a second dose of whatever he had put in her tea, Sakura didn’t know. But whatever it was, Mako had revealed its purpose to Hisa which was to incapacitate her again once the current drug in her system stopped working.

Mako squirmed beneath her and Sakura contemplated killing him right then and there. But she just didn’t have time. Lucky bastard. She sprinted from him, the phantom stepping over the boulder in the same moment she darted from the concealed spot.

Did he see what she grabbed? Sakura wasn’t confident but couldn’t stop to try to interpret the eye-less facial expression the ninja wore. Remaining hopeful, she kept running.

Spotting a smaller set of tracks in the sand leaving the location, Sakura followed them, tracing them all the way to their source. When Sakura came upon Hisa, she almost collided with her directly, the blackened air only revealing her in the last second. Hisa didn’t even have a chance to react before Sakura uncapped the needle and dispensed a third of the dose into her neck, enough for her weight. The woman dropped to the ground and Sakura thanked Mako again for designing the perfect drug. Sakura didn’t estimate that she would remain unconscious for long, though, not having the full dose.

Sakura moved quickly. There was only a matter of minutes before the phantom caught up to her once again. Sakura quickly removed the cloak from Hisa’s shoulders and wrapped Hisa’s face covering around her own. She picked up Hisa’s small rapier from the ground.

She turned and walked toward the approaching footsteps, using the black at her back to her advantage this time, thankful for once that it would conceal Hisa’s body completely.

When she came into his view, the ninja balked, taken aback at her familiar presence. “Hisa?” came the hissing whisper. Sakura kept her head down long enough. Long enough to come parallel with him and turn the blade to relieve him of his head.

He ducked as Sakura knew he would. Dropping the shortsword, she came back toward his face with the hidden syringe in the same hand. Like with Hisa, she caught him in the neck with the needle neck, and his black sockets widened as she fully pressed in the plunger.

Deathly black shot out of his eye sockets, gripping her remaining hand with blackness as it traveled up her arm. She cried out in both pain and fury as the medicine injected into the demon’s skin. He screamed and she pulled away as he dropped to his knees.

His consciousness remained momentarily, and Sakura turned, arms limp and useless from damage like Orochimaru’s had been. Turning, Sakura found the sword she had dropped. Bending down, she gripped it between her teeth, the taste of metal and sand coating her tongue. It tasted so, so sweet in that second.

Like another mist demon she remembered, Zabuza Momochi, Sakura wielded the blade between her teeth and pivoted to face this monster who was solely responsible for torturing Isao, spreading hatred and pain, and most of all, underestimating her.

Sakura would never be weak enough that anyone without substance, anyone who couldn’t consider themselves subpar to a legendary Sanin, could dispose of her easily. She didn’t need abilities. She didn’t even need chakra to make it out triumphant in these futile attempts on her life.

“You will regret your choices,” the phantom hissed disorientated. “The next generation won’t be able to handle what is coming.”

Sakura began to advance toward him, ready to mimic Zabuza’s killing blows with a fang-wielded blade. When she reached him, she glared down at him, bloodlust in her veins.

“War is a good thing. Anger is a tool to be used. Vengeance is necessary to strengthen.”

Sakura gripped onto her own blood-bent mind, talking to herself as she looked at this man…beast…whatever he was. And as she had done with Satou, Sakura now too, thought of Sasuke. A person so wrapped in darkness that the darkness presented itself in his very nature.

“You, like everyone else, deserve mercy,” Sakura announced after she dropped the sword from her mouth. Sakura had once blamed herself for being too weak to kill Sasuke, but in this moment, Sakura had an enlightening clarification. When someone so vile deserves death and you can find it in yourself to drop your too-ready hand of justice and offer them a second chance—that is real strength. It’s what Naruto would have done. It’s what Sakura chose to do now.

The man slumped forward, eyes level with the blade that stuck up from the sand. “You will see one day that I am right,” he hissed in finality.

“You have us confused with one another,” she announced to the fading darkness that began to disintegrate into light, the final sign signaling his unconsciousness. Sakura could just make out the sunrise in the east and it was beautiful, pale, and rosy. Sakura pretended it was her victory banner. She also believed it was a sign of hope.

………………………………….

The second chakra pill worked another miracle. Sasuke felt replenished as he practically flew across the sand path in Isao’s memory. He had only run this fast a few times in his life and most recently, it was because of this same scenario. Kido, too, had kidnapped Sakura, and when Sasuke had found out, he had run.

Sasuke cursed himself now for his stupidity. His pride. His mission. He had left in anger and confusion after their kiss, left her alone in Suna despite his promise to never let this sort of thing happen again. Each step he took into the sand was echoed in his mind with an apology. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. He lost count of how many times he said it.

Chakra coursed through his limbs and Sasuke mentally prepared himself for war. Bones enveloped his body, ribs caging around him as he activated an incomplete Susanoo. Purple chakra radiated from him, a threatening beacon to the kidnappers he knew would be nearby.

Sasuke instantly recognized the projections of broken ground that penetrated up from the sand like a golden crown. Unlike in Isao’s shadowy memories, the morning light illuminated each pillar, revealing the sheer length and size of every new peak that Sakura had brought forth with her inhuman strength. Sasuke didn’t even think of concealing his presence; he didn’t need to. He charged into the center of the fray, looking about him everywhere.

He looked behind a few of the crags, eyes finally landing on an individual. Bloody, but not unconscious, Mako lay with his face projected to the sky. His eyes shot open when Sasuke placed a heavy foot on his chest. He wanted to light him up with his Amaterasu and let the flames devour him alive until the ninja was nothing more than the sand beneath him.

Mako groaned and Sasuke unsheathed his katana, stabbing into this ninja’s shoulder. Although he didn’t need to pin him to the ground, it felt good to watch Mako clutch at the blade near his collar bone. The medic ninja was still alive despite his blood loss, but Sasuke relished in the thought that he wouldn’t be for long. Gaara might be mad at him for this later, but Sasuke didn’t care.

“Where is she?” The Uchiha hissed as he sent electricity down the length of his blade into Mako’s chest muscles. He began to spasm.

“Stop!” Mako screamed in pain.

“It will stop when you answer!” he yelled back, losing control of his own emotions. He twisted the metal for emphasis.

“Sasuke, stop!” came a familiar voice and Sasuke’s dropped the blade in shock as Sakura threw her shoulder into him.

“I don’t have enough chakra to spare to heal any more wounds,” she reprimanded him as if she were talking to a patient.

Sasuke blinked in chastisement at the pink-haired woman standing whole before him. He instantly pulled her into his Susanoo, crushing her to his side as he extended the ribcage of the Susanoo to include her. He looked around warily as if he couldn’t quite believe there was no current threat to Sakura’s person. He finally spoke, both relief and annoyance edging his words. “You’re okay?! Where are the others?!”

“I’m fine!” she announced, face suddenly red in embarrassment at their close proximity. Sasuke didn’t notice it at first as he held her back at arm’s length to check her current state. His stomach dropped when he saw her dangling arms, blackened, charred, and bruised. One of them currently had a small halo of green around it and its color paled in comparison to the other.

“Who did this to you?” he rumbled lowly, flashing a red and purple glare back down at Mako, who whimpered pathetically from his wounds. Sakura pulled from his hand and moved in front of the Uchiha, cutting off his direction of blame.

“Not him,” she excused, and her defense thoroughly pissed Sasuke off. Whatever Mako’s role was in this, Sasuke was certain that he was to blame for all of it.

Sasuke did his best to swallow his murdering thirst, eyes landing back on her like a lifeline to his sanity. “Tell me what happened,” he ordered. It was the only words that he could force past his teeth.

“I will explain everything to you, but I need your help first.” She made to step away from him, but Sasuke prevented it. Careful not to aggravate her injuries by touching her arm, Sasuke grabbed her shirt on reflex instead, pulling her back into the safety of the Susanoo.

“It’s okay. We are safe.” she breathed, smiling at him for the first time since he had left her, which brought Sasuke back some soothing clarity of mind. “They are all incapacitated.”

Sasuke’s eyebrow shot up into his bangs. “All of them?”

“It’s insulting that you are surprised,” she nudged him with her shoulder, turning her shoulders to face Mako. She bent to medically assess his new stab wound.

“I wasn’t expecting,” he admitted, but then fell into silence at her targeted look. “I mean, I thought that you were drugged!”

“I am,” she announced, narrowing her eyes further. “But I don’t know how you know that.”

Sasuke cursed at his slip. He couldn’t tell her just yet about how he practically forced Isao to spill all the information earlier. Instead, he said half-truthfully, “I ran into the kid.”

“Isao?” Sakura’s face lit up. “He’s okay? He made it back?” She slumped into the sand at Mako’s side. She practically deflated as her concern for the boy evaporated. “Bless that child.”

Sasuke had to agree. If it weren’t for him, Sasuke wouldn’t have been able to find his teammate this quickly. Even though Sakura hadn’t really needed his help after all. How strange that felt for Sasuke, to not be needed in the ways that he had once been. It was an unexpected jolt to his mindset toward Sakura. She had proved her strength repeatedly to him and he continued to see her as someone to protect.

Before he could even offer an apology, Sakura motioned toward Mako’s body. “My arms are a little preoccupied at the moment. Do you mind flipping him?”

Sasuke’s thoughts instantly darkened at the mention of both her arms and Mako. “What for?”

“I need to look at his back. See how deep the wound is.”

“He doesn’t deserve your help,” he replied instantly, wishing for the ninja to suffer in the same ways he had made his friend.

“I remember a time when you didn’t either,” Sakura replied with a smiling voice, “but I helped you back then, too. Now flip him.”

Sasuke scoffed at her statement, stooped, and flipped the ninja on his stomach. Mako let out a pained groan and Sakura “tsked” at his blatant carelessness. He kneeled beside her, ready to be her hands despite how much he hated the thought of her trying to help him.

“It’s not as deep as I thought. Hold his flesh together,” she ordered and Sasuke did so as she summoned a small stream of chakra to the gray fingertips of her semi-healed hand. The small amount did not last long, but it was enough. Just enough to stop the bleeding.

“Why are you helping me?” Mako asked faintly into the sand, and Sasuke immediately responded for her.

“You don’t need to know, so just shut your mouth so I don’t have to hear your voice.”

Sakura nudged him for his harsh words. “You sure have a lot to say today.” And Sasuke blinked at her again in surprise. She was right; he was talking a lot…for him. He responded with another scoff.

Sakura answered Mako’s question despite Sasuke’s threat. “You believe in war. I believe in peace. We are stronger united than when we are divided. This is how I create peace.”

Sasuke wasn’t following entirely, but he knew that Sakura was referencing words that had been exchanged between them, and Sasuke recognized them as the poison from a mindset consumed in darkness.

Standing again, Sakura said, “The hard part is going to be getting them all back to Sunagakure.”

“What do you mean?” Sasuke asked.

“They’re drugged. Not all of them are dead. They’ll wake soon,” she clarified for him.

Sasuke didn’t even think before saying, “I can remedy that.”

She ignored him, continuing, “We might have to make a couple trips. How many can you carry?”

Sasuke didn’t even respond to that ridiculous notion. Instead, he activated his Rinnegan once more, feeding it with the chakra from the chakra pill. A spiral appeared before them, revealing the central red-dune dimension. Sakura didn’t even have time to protest before Sasuke was throwing Mako’s limp body inside the hole.

“What are you doing?” Sakura asked, confused and stunned by his actions.

“They can remain in this dimension until we make it back to Suna. They can’t flee inside. They have nowhere to go.”

Sakura nodded in understanding. “Good idea!” she praised him, obviously relieved she wasn’t going to have to try to carry anyone with her arms practically useless.

“I’ll take you to the others.”

A female kunoichi Sakura called Hisa was the second to be transported to Kaguya’s center dimension. Then a different sort of being Sasuke considered warily. He didn’t look to be human. Sakura explained that he had been the most dangerous of them all. Sakura believed him to be the ringleader, though she wasn’t sure how many group members he truly led. It was still a confusing web of connections.

Sakura left out the fact that this ninja must be the one to have damaged her arms, but no good would come from Sasuke demanding that she confirm that for him. The Uchiha made a mental note of it as he tossed the unconscious ninja inside, already contemplating on ways to make him talk.

“Is that all?” he asked.

“One more,” she replied, and she led Sasuke toward a small adobe house that he hadn’t noticed before. It was alone in the desert, one wall completely destroyed, revealing the building’s stark clay interior.

Just before they reached the ruins, Sakura stopped when they approached the body of a large man. Sasuke was surprised to find this man not just unconscious; he was dead.

“He hurt Isao,” she defended automatically, ashamed that death had been necessary.

But Sasuke didn’t need an explanation from her. If she wouldn’t have, Saskue was pretty sure that he would have killed him. “Let the sand have him,” he declared, but Sakura shook her head.

“He belongs with them. They must be able to bury and grieve to find peace. We don’t want to give them cause for any further resentment.”

Sasuke wanted to say “you can’t be serious,” but he didn’t feel like arguing, because no matter what Sasuke could come up with to say next, Sakura would still be right in the end. She had a bigger vision in mind that Sasuke couldn’t quite connect sometimes. He just knew that he would always trust her to do the right thing, even if it wasn’t sensible, or in most cases, not what Sasuke would have done.

“Fine,” he declared, opening the portal once more. His breathing became labored as he pushed the effects of the chakra pill. Like with the others, Sasuke dragged the man’s body into the portal.

Sasuke also stepped through, leaving the gateway open between realms. He directed his attention to Mako, ice already coating his next words.

“If I were you, I wouldn’t wander too far from this spot. The dimension is endless and not of our world. You will only lose yourself and die in this place.”

Mako swallowed deeply in fear as he watched Sasuke’s form from his stomach.

“On second thought,” Sasuke sneered under his breath. “Feel free.” The portal closed behind the Uchiha as he exited. He would deal with all of them later, he thought. He needed to get Sakura back to Sunagakure first.

………………………………

Sakura couldn’t help but whimper when her left arm wasn’t responding as quickly to her healing chakra. Her right hand—the very same one she had shoved into Mako’s mouth to keep him from screaming—had almost fully recovered as the medicine suppressing her chakra began to wear off and her healing abilities returned to her. Her left hand, however, was at first very numb, which Sakura knew was a very bad sign. But the longer she worked at healing, the more the pain began to intensify. It was almost unbearable, but Sakura was ultimately relieved at the burning sensation that indicated life. Sakura considered the differences between the two hands and all she could conclude was that distance must have had something to do with it since her right hand had a grabbed the blackened sword at his feet and her left had been near his face when she plunged the needle in his neck.

Sasuke supported her as they walked back to the Sand Village, though he suddenly seemed to her like he was the one that needed supporting. He stumbled in the sand and Sakura removed her good arm from his shoulders.

“I’m good. But are you okay?” she asked, noticing his strenuous breathing for the first time.

“Yes,” he fibbed, and Sakura knew it was a lie the minute he clutched his head to support it.

Redirecting her chakra back to her healed hand, Sakura immediately sought out Sasuke’s brow with her fingertips. He moaned with relief as green chakra lighted over it, but he instantly pushed her hand away. “Heal yourself.”

“What happened?” she responded, ignoring his demand. She found his forehead again. “There’s nothing I can do if you don’t tell me what’s going on.”

“I took two chakra pills. I’ll be fine though. I just need rest.” He removed her hand again.

Sakura inhaled sharply at the confession. “Why did you do that?”

“I had already depleted my chakra reserves when I found out you weren’t in the village. I panicked.”

“Overdosing on chakra pills is one thing,” she scolded, “but using them recklessly to overexert your Rinnegan is another. No matter how much chakra you have, you have limits with the Rinnegan.”

“It was my only choice,” he defended sharply, obviously masking his embarrassment with annoyance.

Sakura placed her glowing palm over his eyes, now certain of the source of his discomfort. Sasuke made to move her hand away once more, but she fussed like a mother when he tried. “Let me have my way, or we’ll be here longer.”

Sasuke released a small laugh that sounded like another scoff. Only Team 7 could tell the difference between Sasuke’s derisiveness and his sense of humor. Sakura couldn’t believe he had the energy to laugh. But then something changed in the air around them and Sasuke grew very serious as he inhaled—the type of inhale someone made before having something important to say.

Sasuke finally managed to grab her fingers and he tugged them away after Sakura was satisfied with his treatment. But he didn’t let go. Instead, he held them for a moment that suggested tenderness. It was different from how their hands had brushed so many times before, like how they rested them against each other as they watched Suna’s desert sunset. This time, it was more like how Sasuke had held her hand between them in the medicine preparation room.

Finally working up the courage, Sasuke looked down at her feet and said, “I’m sorry.”

Sakura stared at the firm hold his fingers had on hers in wonder. And the truly amazing part was that he stillwasn’t letting go. “For what?” she whispered, not knowing what else to say for fear of him moving away.

“For leaving you behind in Suna. For leaving in anger. For not being there and letting this happen.”

Sakura didn’t let him continue. “Sasuke,” she began, catching his guilty eyes with her own. “You don’t have to worry about me anymore. I hope I have proved that to you, today. Please don’t burden yourself with worry for me. I can carry my own burdens and some. You already have the weight of the world on your shoulders.”

Sasuke searched her eyes with his. Sakura knew this was a rare occasion. Not many people would see the Uchiha open, unguarded, with care etched in every feature of his expression.

“I’ve been thinking,” he said suddenly, still holding her fingers tightly, and Sakura felt the whole world suddenly still around them. Even the desert wind seemed to stop. Was this the Sasuke she had always known was inside, no matter how roughly he displayed himself to the world?

“I’m sorry for what happened,” Sakura interrupted, afraid for another impending denial of her feelings. She knew what was coming and she didn’t want this small moment to end. “I won’t do that again.”

He paused and Sakura wondered if he was unsettled by the open acknowledgement of her stollen kiss.

He sighed and Sakura’s stomach dropped. She felt him hesitate, saw it in his face. But he resolved himself, declaring, “I came to a conclusion while I was away, and I have to say this while I have the nerve.”

Sakura nodded, ready for disappointment. She was more afraid of what he would say next than she had ever felt going toe-to-toe with her enemies just moments ago.

“Can it be enough for us to care for one another?” he asked, desperation cloaked with mock annoyance on his breath. “Can it just be enough for us to be friends as long as we are in each other’s lives sometimes? Can it be enough for us to be united in the same goal?”

Sakura’s heart sank and unhappiness hit her like the wave she was expecting. Tears threatened to brim her eyelids, but Sakura swallowed them down. Would he ever not be this thickheaded and stubborn? Would he ever let them be what they could be? Whether or not Sakura was simply high on victory or if she was genuinely losing her meekness in Sasuke’s presence, Sakura wasn’t sure.

She removed her hand from his. “Is it enough for you?” she finally asked, taking a step away from him. But he caught her fingers again, pulling her back gently to face him.

“Is that a no?” he asked emotionlessly, but Sakura saw the struggle in his eyes.

“When the answer becomes ‘yes’ for you, I will accept it as mine as well.” She pulled away, firmly this time. He couldn’t respond. Sakura knew why: he wanted to put this on her; he was always putting it back on her, afraid “because of her,” hesitant “because of her.” These were his excuses, but Sakura wouldn’t give him an out this time. It was his turn to choose.

They both knew that it was far too late for Sasuke to pretend he didn’t love her in the same way that Sakura loved him. But Sakura had learned that people love in many ways and not all people wanted to express that love romantically. Kissing Sasuke had been a mistake. She hated to call it that, but it was the truth of it. She didn’t want to steal from him what he wasn’t ready to give—what he wasn’t at peace with. It was his turn; he now knew where she stood.

………………………………..

When they finally made it back to the Hidden Sand Village, Kankuro was there to intercept them just as Sasuke had expected he would. The puppet-wielding ninja was beside himself with worry at seeing Sakura’s injuries, insisting that Sakura promptly return to the hospital. Sakura had insisted she tend to her own wounds back in their lodgings so she could rest. She immediately requested to see Isao, but Kankuro insisted she get some rest first.

It wasn’t until Sasuke insisted that he have an audience with him and Gaara, that he left Sakura to her own desires. As they parted, Sasuke tried to say something or grab her eyes with his, but she didn’t look at him. Not even once. And Sasuke ran his hand exhaustedly through his hair. He couldn’t think about them right now. A conference with the Kazekage would be the perfect distraction.

Gaara, miraculously, had returned before he and Sakura had, and Sasuke wondered just how fast news could travel. Sasuke privately joked with himself that the desert shared its secrets with the Kazekage. The wind and sand must speak to him if he found out things so quickly. It was a hypothesis that could explain a lot at least.

Sasuke shook his head as he followed Kankuro into the Kazekage’s office. He must be getting delirious from the effects of the chakra pills.

“Sasuke,” came Gaara’s raspy acknowledgement when the Uchiha stepped into the room. Gaara was surprisingly alone, which relieved Sasuke. He thought he would have to face Gaara with the “support” of his council. It would be easier to speak of recent events if only Gaara and Kankuro were present.

Sasuke nodded respectfully despite his feelings of resentment toward the two men at the moment for having let Sakura be kidnapped under their watch. As a ninja that was a part of this unpredictable shinobi world, Sasuke knew his anger was unjustified, but he wanted to be mad at anyone and everyone right now. 99% of his own anger was directed at himself, because Sasuke knew that he was more responsible for what happened than the Kazekage and his brother were. The Kazekage had been trying to be proactive and prevent something like this from happening. It just didn’t turn out that way.

The Kazekage seemed to share Sasuke concern for discreetness, because he cloaked the room in sand as he had done the first day of Sasuke arrival. It filled every crevice, thickening to soundproof the room.

Sasuke opened the portal into Kaguya’s central dimension without further delay. He walked into the vortex, not surprised the group remained exactly where he had left them. The only difference was that they were conscious, a fact that slightly irked the Uchiha.

One by one, he grabbed each ninja, tossing them forward into the Kazekage’s domain. Hisa clutched at her dead counterpart, holding onto the deceased brute. Sasuke found grim satisfaction in Mako’s subdued, yielding persona. Being present before the Kazekage was far more terrifying than being stuck in a desolate dimension.

But the individual that held both Sasuke and the Kazekage’s attention was the wraith-like individual that bled darkness from a small spot on his neck. It was his only injury.

Gaara carefully considered him, crossing his arms and surveying him emotionlessly as he did most enemies that he regarded.

Darkness suddenly began to ooze from the man’s eye sockets and Sasuke’s temper suddenly flared. He looked to Gaara, and the ninja nodded his permission.

“Only demons don’t seem to know when they’re in the presence of other demons. Shall I show you hell?”

Sasuke’s eye suddenly began to bleed as he formed the tiger seal for fire release. “Amaterasu!”

The black flames clung to the phantom, incinerating what Sasuke realized was dark masses of sinewing, vaporized flesh. The phantom hissed. Then screamed, then began to plead for mercy. Hisa began to cry and Mako turned his face away from their leader.

Gaara came up beside Sasuke to speak to the wraith as he writhed. Sasuke released the Amaterasu and the flames receded.

The Kazekage crouched, an arm on his knee. “From one demon to another, I urge you to leave your shadows behind in hell and step out into the light. Only demons desire war. And war breeds more demons.”

Sasuke clutched his eye in silent suffering, and Gaara dismissed him. “I’ll handle the rest. I’ll let you know what we find out.”

Sasuke nodded, not waiting for any further excuses to depart. He had delivered them into the Kazekage’s care. But what those ninja didn’t know was that Sakura’s mercy held Sasuke more confined than it did the Kazekage, a demon just as he had said, whose territory had been breached.

……………………

Sakura was finishing binding her tender left hand in medical bandaging, using up the last of her burn solvent that she had created at Suna’s hospital, when Sasuke walked in.

He opened the door, caught her eyes with his, and tried to hide the bloody track down his face from her with his hand. She was on her feet instantly, pulling him to the bed that he had staked his claim on.

She felt his forehead and it was hot, too hot. He had done it this time. She sighed, summoning the small reserve of chakra behind the diamond mark on her forehead.

She expected Sasuke to scold her for using what little she had left on him, but he didn’t seem to notice in his extreme exhaustion. “Thank you,” he whispered, and Sakura retreated to fetch water for him.

He gulped it greedily and Sakura helped him shrug out of his outer layer of clothing. Sand fell from his hair and clothes in the same way hers had earlier. “I’m better now,” he whispered, the first words spoken between them since their disagreement in the desert.

Sakura nodded, making to move away, but he grabbed her hand for the third time that day.

“Don’t be angry,” he begged, his exhaustion making him suddenly careless to conceal his true intentions with fake displeasure and irritation.

“Why do you think I am angry?” she asked emotionlessly.

“I just want what’s best for you. I don’t want to hurt you,” he whispered in defeat. This side of Sasuke startled Sakura. He was becoming more undefended, open with emotions in a way she had never seen him before. Was it because he didn’t have anything to hide anymore? Was he past his denials and his pretending?

“I know,” she squeezed his hand back. “But your concerns are groundless.”

“Tell me how,” he pleaded.

She sat beside him on his bed, and he tilted his ear to her, never removing his hand from hers. She took a breath and told him the truth. Told him everything he needed to know. “I do not love you sacrificially, Sasuke. I do not choose you knowing that my life or happiness could be forfeit by doing so. I choose you because I can keep up with you. Because something like your absence wouldn’t be enough to determine my permanent happiness. I will choose to go on, content with only the thought that I know you are out there somewhere loving me if that is all that I have in the moment.”

She took a breath and continued before he could respond. “I am strong enough to handle whatever comes my way as a result of loving you. And I have absolutely no doubts in my feelings, my happiness, and what I am willing to compromise to be with the person I love most.”

Sakura reached tenderly to turn his face to hers and their eyes met. She touched his forehead in the same way he had done to her many times before. “That person is you,” she reassured him, offering him a sincere smile as she removed her hand from his forehead.

Then Sasuke leaned forward. Very close to her, and Sakura bit her lip to keep from reaching for his with her own. “Is all of that true?” he requested again, suddenly breathless. And Sakura knew later that it was just to be sure before what came next.

“Yes,” she breathed. And she didn’t have to reach for him, because he was suddenly reaching for her. His hand found her chin and Sakura waited for his choice. She waited for him to move. And he did.

“Then my answer is no; it’s not enough for me either.” When his lips carefully parted her own, Sakura knew without a doubt that he had decided to find some way possible for them, a path where he could choose her, too.

#approaching sun #sasusaku #sasusakufanfiction #ssfanfiction #sakura hiden #sasuke shinden #naruto fanfiction #sasuke and sakura #Sakura Haruno #sakura uchiha #Sasuke Uchiha

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hitoshisbabygirl · 3 years

Text

WHEWWWW CHILEEE 🥵😳👀

After a certain conversation I saw from the lovely @mythiccheroacademia about a bass voice induced/hood(ish) Tamaki I HAD to write this idea. I feel like he’s still be shy but let the right one say down outta pocket shiii...the black force energy is ACTIVATED and he’s not backing down from a fight 😌

So I write this up , I hope it’s okay sskksndkdn it’s really my first official black!reader with a character 🥺 (also me admitting how much I love Cece and her works with this here 👉🏾👈🏾)

Paring(s) : Tamaki Amajiki x Black!reader

Word count: roughly 2.4K

Warnings ; LANGUAGE LANGUAGE LANGUAGE. Just some explicit language of tama telling off hoes ✨ jealous and hot under the collar tamaki of sorts 😌 yes tamaki is older, they’d both graduated and currently in a pro hero company

Don’t play with me// T. Amajiki

It was just a day out with your loving boyfriend Tamaki. The two of you had been dating for a while. Now in the summer of no classes and no extra hero work to do , the two of you decided to do way more together; dates, game nights, other festivities you name it the shy boy went along with it. To the surprise of you both, your two cousins and big brother decided to have a surprise trip to Japan to see you, and to meet the man who stole your heart. They were rough around the edges, tattoos as far as the eyes could see, but to you, they were who you grew up with, the fun and adrenaline filled things y’all did made up your childhood and life until you transferred to U.A wanting to strengthen your own quirk and be a hero , plus you always wanted to visit japan, you being prepared already, almost outstanding in your Japanese, and loving the culture you could experience first hand there.

And that’s where you met a very shy but handsome Tamaki Amajiki. Surprising most around him the two of you hit it off, understanding eachother and quietly talking to yourselves about whatever topic that came up. It was evident to his friends, especially his best friend Mirio that he had fallen for the exchange student from across seas, who stole his heart and made him more confident. Getting that confidence boost made him ask you out, and now you two were a happy couple of 2 years, going on to a lifetime.

Which brings us to the current time, it too you at least a half hour for him to come from your shared room to meet his other family to be. After the first tedious round of talking , the boys were getting along, Tamaki trying (and failing) to fit in with your more aggressive brother. Sighing you called out to them “Aye, I’m gonna get some food, want anything?” With calls of ‘nah’ and full meals you sighed, taking down who wanted what and leaving . They planned to be here a week or two, and that alone wasn’t bad. They just could be...hot under the collar and with them having explosive quirks, you didn’t want a fight breaking out from someone looking at their “little sister” wrong.

The weeks went by too fast, the five of you having a lot of fun together, exploring and just catching up on what you missed back home. Giving you a hug each of them told you how much they loved you and would be back while you were still on break. Giving your brother a suspicious look he laughed “ Don’t worry , mama’s coming up too, she misses her baby” he said as you laughed “ I was just curious on how you got the money to keep coming back and forth here to see me” “I got that promotion at the construction company, more money, and way better hours” he laughed as you gave him a bigger hug “and you’re just now telling me as you leave, you ass” giving you one last look he smiled, throwing a hand up at your usually timid boyfriend “I’ll see you later G ight? Don’t forget what we talked about and what we taught you yeah?” He said as Tamaki did the same back , giving a surprising “I got it” back to him as they walked down the driveway to their cab. “What did he tell you?” You questioned as he gave you a uncharacteristic smirk, kissing your forehead “don’t worry about it sweetheart”

As the next few vists happened throughout the year you realize tamaki was becoming more and more like your brother, less timid and more dominant over conversations, but your soft and loving tamaki never left, if anything it got stronger. He took you out to the mall to shop, wanted to do more outside dates and loved picking out cute outfits with you. He enjoyed the ink adorning your skin even more than he did when he first saw it, asking for you to help him pick out something for him eventually. “Okay who are you and what did you do with tamaki?” You questioned one day when he came home, giving you your usual kiss as he came in the door. Except it was nothing like you had before, he put his hand under your chin and tilted you until you were in your tippy toes to keep the kiss as deep as he started, his other hand dangerously low on your back as he gave your ass a squeeze, chuckling as you gasped, pulling away with a smug look “Hey doll what’s up? How’s your day been?” He asked as he slid past you, Ignoring the shocked look on your face “Tamaki how are you feeling? Are you alight you’ve never been this..forward” tilting his head he came over to where you were , standing in your shared kitchen with your bottom lip in your mouth. Grinning he pulled it from your teeth, giving you another peck “You shouldn’t be teasing your bottom lip, that’s for me to do” he whispered as you gasped, burying you face into his wide chest. “Nothings wrong with me sweetheart, I just..realized how valuable you are to me. You’ve always been but...I know to what level of a queen I have as my girlfriend yknow?” The iconic shy Tamaki made an appearance , making you look up to him. He was shy but he was confident behind what he was saying. “It’s not a bad thing..I like it” you admitted as you traced his cheek “Good, Heyo don’t think I’ll be changing again”

This year for a piece of your summer break you and Tamil decided to go visit back to the states, the two of you loving and hating the heat wave that hit you coming off of the plane. Once again you were with your brother and only one of your cousins this time, visiting your mom and having family cookouts. Planning to stay a month you two had some time to spend together and with your family. Your nieces and nephews loved Tamaki, the fact he could make his limbs into what he ate made them love to try and have him pick them up with his tentacles the most. Your mom loved him and everyone had accepted him as your husband to be.

On one of the hottest days y’all experienced there, you decided to wear one of the cutest outfits you had bought, a two piece ; a crop top and a mini skirt. Both pieces black with blue butterflies over them. As you sat in the living room waiting for your boyfriend you heard footsteps from upstairs, being greeted with a sight you wish to burn on your eyelids. A tank top , the infamous, grey Nike joggers and black forces. A whole meal stood in front of you. Holding in a gasp and a subconscious lip but you cleared your throat, giving him a reassuring smile “well look at you, you really are turning into my brother” you joked as he gave you a shy smile “ I wanted to wear something I’m not used to..I hate things clinging to me..unless it’s you of course “ he teased back as you wrapped your arms around his torso, standing on your tiptoes as you gave his cheek a kiss “you look good..really good..I might have to fight the girls around the block if they look at you wrong.” You warned as he smirked, wrapping a large arm around your shoulder “don’t worry they have nothing on you baby..”

Heading out to get some lunch you fanned yourself with your hand, the heat really getting to you as you stood in line. Tamaki when you get drinks, promising to meet you back at the circle so you two could heard to the nearby shopping plaza, wanting to get some more things before going to get some games to play later with your family members who planned to come and hangout before one of their games came on that night. You and Tamaki were planning to just be upstairs and watching your own movie by then.

Hearing someone clear their throat you valves over to see a shorter, chocolate man staring at you, a wide grin on his face as he licked his lips “whatsup baby how are you today?” Knowing how this was gonna turn out you gave him a polite smile and a quick “I’m fine” before going to look around to see if you saw that familiar tuff of indigo walking around “Soo..what's a fine ass girl like you doing in this heat alone? You’re [. ]’s sister right?” He continued as you shook your head yes, not giving him a thought as you stared at your phone “You aint gotta be shy , your brother knows me. I’ve always saw you and that ass wander around when you used to be here, now you moved away to some other country what was it again? China ? That Asian land aint meant for a sista like you, they don’t even got enough to please you with unlike me” sighing you started to correct him “I live in Japan for one, two I have a boyfriend and three don’t you still have something unresolved with that one girl? Ion need nothing from no one that isn’t my boyfriend thanks” You snapped back as he laughed, comfortably putting an arm on your shoulders “Oh who ol’ girl Ki? Nah I ain’t messing with her and what , you got you a little Japanese man , what is he and his short ass gon do yo me huh? Don’t think that you having one of those short Kung Fu doing ass gon do anything to a real man now baby, you’ve been eating too much rice huh?”

Before you could open your mouth you felt an arm wrap around your waist and move in front of you. Now staring at the strong back of your boyfriend you went to stop him before your mouth dropped open “And who said ya ass could keep talking to her huh?” Without a stutter in sight Tamaki snapped back to the slightly shorter and smaller male “ And who the hell are you?” “The same man you wanna talk about being a short ass Asian” with a look of interest you watched your boyfriend stand up for you “Ooohhh I get it , you think you can just step up to anyone and they not be scared of you huh? Mann you aint in Japan anymore boy , you ain’t gon do shit” the guy barked back, making Tamkai raise an eyebrow and laugh, looking him up and down before squatting down some to match the arguing guys height “At least I can reach my girlfriend, even she can look down at you” which a few ‘oohs’ and ‘damns’ coming from the bystanders the boy gave him a snarl as he tried to come for Tamaki again “she wants some real dick not some little pepper in her walls” and with that Tamaki gave him a even harder laugh, walking until they were too close for your comfort, before you could stop him he gave his last and seemingly damaging blow “But I wonder who’s dick she’s bouncing on and screaming for more from hm? Oh trust me I know how to dick her down and then some”

With his words he reached over and pulled you to his hip by your ass, making the boy give up with a huff , walking away as the others around him boo’d and made fun of him, praising Tamaki as he gave his own satisfied smirk, dapping up some of the guys who came up to him.

Pulling you from the line he left his hand at your hips as your jaw still was open “Where in the hell did you learn that?? Damnit [. ] he must’ve taught you” you huffed as he looked you over , licking his lips as he kissed your cheek. “Mhn..your brother said defend what you love so..I simply did that. He had no business thinking he could step to my girl and hit on her from thinking he was good enough to talk to a queen, my queen at that. Shit ain’t sweet but I respect myself and you too much to fight some low life” he finished as you bit your lip, liking this side of him “Well shit...aren’t you the man Tamaki?” He laughed as he kissed you, biting where you were tugging on your bottom lip to make you let out a squeal. Pulling away he gave a lopsided smile “I’ma keep true to what I said too, when we get home I’m making sure you know I meant what I just said back there, no one tries to take what’s mine, especially with mediocre ass attempts with dick” he growled as you stuttered giving him a wide eyed look. Maybe tamaki was less of the baby you’ve come to see him as. Once you got home, Tamaki made sure you knew how much he loved you, making true on the words he threw to that guys he got into it earlier

#my hero academia #bnha #boku no hero academia #bnha x reader #my hero academia x black!reader #mha x black!reader #amajiki tamaki #tamaki amakiji x black reader #tamaki amakiji x reader #I love this so much #this is just mhmmmm 🥵😌🤤#yes sir please #get aggressive with em #then meeee 🤸🏽‍♀️

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ask-the-riders · 3 years

Text

Forging A Bond

Welp,, I wrote this a little while ago, but thanks to my ADD, I kept getting distracted and forgetting to do anything with it ^^"

In summary, Retribution had caught the attention of a stranger, who in turn had decided to follow him for a bit. He tries to ignore them, but inevitably, they wind up making their presence known and introducing themselves, completely catching him by surprise

Retribution let out a soft breath, keeping his gaze forward as he walked. He'd been able to sense the feelings of a second person for a while now. Although he found it odd, he detected no malicious intent, so he attempted to ignore them. Dried, dead leaves crunched under his boots as he kept walking, fighting the urge to glance back over his shoulder. Reaching his destination, he lowered himself onto one knee, delicately placing a small bouquet of flowers in front of a headstone. The rider remained silent, part of his cloak fluttering in the breeze as he reached out to gingerly trace his fingers over the name on the stone. Remembering the human who was buried there, he frowned, furrowing his brow bones and murmuring, "If only I could've been there for you in your final moments..."

He could sense the approaching soul behind him, already aware that it belonged to the person who'd followed him here. Not even remotely surprised as they called out to him, "Well, it looks like someone beat me here." At the unfamiliar voice, he arched a brow bone, "I'm afraid so. What business do you have here?" They hummed, drawing nearer, "I'm merely paying my respects to the fallen children here. And you?" Retribution stood, straightening his clothes, "I'm also paying my respects... I lost a dear friend quite a while ago, so I'm visiting her grave, specifically." The stranger gave off a pulse of sympathy and made a sound in understanding, "Ah. I'm sorry for your loss... I can't imagine the way you must feel."

Ret watched curiously as a figure passed by him, moving to the next row of graves. Despite the long coat they wore and the hood hiding their face, he immediately noticed the simple, yet elegant gown they were wearing, along with bones as white as fresh snow. With their back to him, he watched them curiously, silent for a moment before speaking again, "So... Any particular reason why you followed me here?" The stranger momentarily tensed up, "...I should've known that you would've caught on. You are a version of Nightmare, so it's in your nature to be incredibly observant." Retribution stiffened at hearing his old name, his brow bones furrowing, "Ok, who are you, and why were you following me?" The figure let out a deep sigh, pushing their hood back off of their head to reveal a simple crown that sat atop their skull. Turning to face Retribution, they proceeded to unbutton their coat, pulling part of it aside to reveal a family crest stitched into the fabric over their chest.

The rider's sockets widened as he recognized it, and blatantly ignoring his scowl, the figure before him gave a small curtsey, her violet and grey eye lights meeting his cyan ones, "I apologize for the delayed introduction. I am Nyx, daughter of Nightmare, and the current queen of the kingdom of Regoria." Retribution stared at her for a moment in silence as he tried to process the situation; His original counterpart was a father, huh?... Would that mean that, in a way, he was a father, too? As if Nyx could tell what he was thinking, she hummed, "Yes, it's true. The 'walking tar pit,' as some call him, has children. There's myself, and I have a brother, as well."

He blinked in surprise; It wasn't just the one kid, it was two now? Who in their right mind would willingly sleep with his counterpart?? Twice, at that.

Ret cleared his throat, "That's... Interesting. I'll admit, I wasn't expecting to learn anything like this today. That still doesn't explain why you were following me though, your Highness." Nyx rolled her eye lights and couldn't help but smile slightly, "At ease, Retribution. I wasn't following you with the intention of causing you any problems or harm. I was curious about you and wondered what you were doing here, that's all." The rider made a face, still at a loss, "I'd like to ask how you know my name, but I feel like I should be more concerned about why you were curious about me." The princess laughed softly, "I can't blame you for being wary of me, but I'm serious. I don't mean you any harm, and I'm here of my own accord. My curiosity stems from the things I've read about you in my father's journal."

He narrowed his eyes a bit in suspicion, "Oh, really? What kinds of things has he written about me?" Nyx shrugged her shoulders, remaining completely at ease, "It's nothing incriminating, don't worry. He seems to be logging the differences between the two of you and jotting down notes about your interactions, for the most part. I can see some of the obvious differences between you already, but I'm intrigued. I'd like to observe with my own eyes." The rider arched a brow bone, "Tell me what differences you think you see." The princess made her way over to a bench and sat down, tilting her head as she looked at him, "Well, there's the obvious lack of tentacles and goop. Your eyes are cyan by default while his are violet, and you appear ever so slightly shorter than him."

He made a sound in acknowledgment, beginning to approach her. As he stopped in front of the bench and clasped his hands behind his back, she smiled again, amusement bleeding into her tone, "While you appear quite different from him physically, you're also very similar, at the same time." Retribution scoffed, "You must be joking. I'm nothing like him, and that's a fact." Nyx leaned back on her hands, "I'm not. The way you hold yourself and that stance you're in are quite familiar. I've seen them countless times from my father. I'm getting the impression that you're stubborn and full of denial, as well." Ret was briefly taken aback, glancing away from her. Reading him with ease, she straightened, lightly patting the seat beside her, "Come, sit with me. My schedule for today is clear and I'm available to talk as long as you want, if you'd be open to it. I know that by default, you probably don't give others your trust very easily, and I understand. I would like to learn more about you, and in turn, I believe I can provide you with answers for whatever questions are floating around in that head of yours."

Retribution hesitated a few seconds before letting out a deep sigh, moving to sit beside her. Nyx's brow bones furrowed as she looked at him, slowly lifting a hand and beginning to reach for his face. She stopped just short of actually touching him, clearing her throat, "May I?" The rider stared at her hand, considering the options; He could either allow it, with the worst case scenario being an attack, or he could tell her no, and the worst case scenario would again, be an attack.

He weighed the pros and cons, and with a sigh, he gave a small nod, "Go ahead." The princess offered him a tiny smile, delicately tracing her fingertips over the faint hints of cracks that framed one of his sockets. She leaned a bit closer, her eyes squinting as she took in the way the cracks had healed. They were smooth and so light that she probably wouldn't have even seen them if he wasn't so close to her. Tilting her head, her brow bones furrowed as she murmured, "You were hurt, quite some time ago... I can see the cracks, and they look like they've healed pretty well." He glanced away from her, beginning to sense the concern and sympathy she felt, "They have, and I'm glad they healed this way, honestly. It's better than them healing wrong and leaving me looking like some freakshow."

Nyx withdrew her hands after a few more seconds had passed, watching him curiously; If he was anything like her father when it came to the way he dealt with his emotions, she'd be able to read him like a book. Right now, he was trying to maintain his proud, stubborn front, but in the way he avoided her gaze, his discomfort was as clear as day. Whether it was anxiety, him being secretive, or a lack of self esteem, she wasn't sure, but at the very least, she could tell that it had nothing to do with him being deceitful. She offered him a slight smile, breaking the formality in an effort to provide some reassurance, "Nah, I don't think you'd look like a freakshow. You might look pretty badass with some cracks and scars, actually."

He arched a brow bone, glancing at her and clearing his throat, his tone holding a very faint hint of amusement, "I appreciate the thought. Though, I'm surprised your father lets you talk that way." Nyx couldn't help but smile slightly again, lightly nudging him with her shoulder, "Are you talking about the cursing, or the fact that I gave a compliment?" The rider hummed, "Both." She laughed softly, the sound catching Ret off guard. He watched her, blinking as he noticed the softness of her features; She definitely looked like a princess, and she spoke like one too, for the most part. As his eye lights caught sight of the bandages wrapped around her hands and the barely visible scratches and scuff marks that decorated her arms, he began to wonder if she also behaved as such.

He was pulled from his thoughts as she let out a sigh in contentment, "Compliments, I could see your reasoning for. After all, he doesn't seem like the type that'd give any form of praise, does he? The cursing, however... He's not a fan of it, but he doesn't complain unless it becomes excessive. I wonder, do you have any children that you allow to curse?" Retribution's mind briefly wandered, settling on a memory of Pestilence and Abrael playing with dirt, and he shook his head, "I have no children of my own. The closest I've got would be my nephew and my idiot friends." The princess blinked, appearing momentarily surprised, "Oh, I see. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I assumed that you must have at least one child by now." He tilted his head, "Nope. Just because your father and I share a similar origin story and are, in a sense, the same person, I'm afraid we live two completely different lives. He's got you and your brother, a league of bad guys that he's assembled, and he's still pretty focused on killing Dream, last time I checked. Meanwhile, I work in a team with other monsters, though not as their leader. I have no children, and instead of a brother, I have a sister."

Nyx's eyes widened the smallest bit in surprise and she mirrored him, tilting her head as well, "You're not the leader of your team, you have no children, and your Dream is a girl?" Well aware of her surprise and increasing interest, he made a sound in confirmation, "That's correct. The only thing with my Dream is that she doesn't go by that name anymore. Rather than that, her name is Conquest." The princess seemed to perk up, "Oh! I think I know her, actually!" Retribution's brow bones furrowed and a look of confusion crossed his face, "How so?" She straightened her back, her posturing becoming proud, "She knows me as Lady Night, and is a follower of mine. I give her odd jobs every so often, but her primary task is to protect the children who have no one else they can count on, who makes them feel safe and loved. Between the work she does for Death and the work she does for me, she's being paid quite the pretty penny."

The rider stared at her in disbelief, and at his expression, she did her best not to giggle. He was silent for a few seconds before speaking again, "...You're being serious right now?" She nodded, "Of course I am." Retribution let out a long, low whistle, "Well color me shocked. You're still so young, but you already rule a kingdom and have your own little following that, based on what Conquest's told me, seems like it's bordering on you being viewed as some ethereal, otherworldly being. I bet your father's proud of you for achieving so much." Nyx shrugged her shoulders, smiling slightly, "I believe he is, yes... He's just not very good at expressing it, some days. He doesn't quite understand the concept of protecting others without any form of personal gain. To him, I'd be better off at the castle, helping him plot my uncle's murder."

Ret took a moment to debate what he should say next, his brow bones knit. Deciding to wing it and hope for the best, he hummed, "Ah, I see... He and I are technically the same person, even though we're very different. I'm not sure if it would mean anything to you, but if he's having a hard time expressing how proud he is of you, then I'll do it for him." The princess's eyes widened slightly, and she remained quiet as he pressed on, "The multiverse works in the strangest of ways, so I'm honestly not sure if you'd count as my child or not. Regardless of that, I have no shame in admitting that I'm proud of you for all that you've done, and I think you're doing what's right. Your choices might not always make sense to him, but at the very least, they make sense to me."

The princess stared at him in surprise, taking a moment to collect herself as her cheekbones flushed violet and she glanced away, "...I officially met you for the first time, not even a full hour ago, and you're already giving me some version of the 'if you were my child' speech?" Retribution's cheekbones also became flushed and he shifted awkwardly, also glancing away from her, "If that's how you'd like to look at it, I guess. Forgive me for being so straightforward, Nyx. I'm not normally like this, and I genuinely have no idea what my problem is right now." She let out a soft sigh, "It's alright. I'm not normally like this either. I think I might have a theory though, as to what the reason for this sudden, out of character attitude change is."

He tilted his head, "What do you think it could be?" The princess lifted a hand, resting it over her sternum, "Maybe it's a bit of a leap, but it's possible that it has something to do with our souls. If yours is similar enough to my father's, then it could be attempting to forge a connection of some sort with mine." The rider made a face, considering it for a moment - she was right, it was a pretty big thing to assume - but at the same time, it also made sense, in a way. Fighting the urge to hide in his cloak, he spoke again, his voice a bit softer than it'd previously been, "I suppose that makes sense... Have you seen your father's soul before, Nyx?" She gave a slow nod, glancing up to sheepishly meet his gaze, "Yes, I have... It's been a while, but when I was a child, I used to have these awful nightmares. He'd calm me down by holding me in his arms and materializing his soul, while his tentacles kind of acted like a shield."

Retribution listened quietly and offered no complaint as she continued speaking, a small smile on her face as she recalled the instances when her father had used his soul to comfort her, "I remember it being warm, and how he sounded when he either told me a story or began to hum this one song, in an effort to calm me down... His soul's corrupted by excess negativity, and it has been for a while, but there were these thin slivers of it that weren't concealed by the goop, and the prettiest purple light would shine through. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to cast a glow across my room, and it made me feel safe, somehow." Although he was having a hard time picturing his counterpart ever being that soft with anyone, he chose not to voice his thoughts; The look on Nyx's face was peaceful and happy, and he decided that he preferred it over one that was upset and insulted.

His cheekbones dusted a slightly brighter shade of cyan and he looked away from her, allowing his soul to materialize and float just outside his chest, "Was it anything like this?" Her eye lights locked on his soul and her violet blush became a tiny bit brighter as well. Taking in the apple shaped soul before her that was only partially coated by corruption, she couldn't help but stare, marveling at it's soft purple luminescence as she breathed out, "Yes... It's nearly identical. The only difference is that yours isn't as corrupted, and therefore it shines a little brighter." He made a sound in understanding, pushing his soul back into his chest, "I see... I won't ask to see your soul because I know how personal that can be, but I'm curious. Is yours at all similar to mine and his?"

She shrugged her shoulders, refusing to look at him as her own soul began to materialize. Ret watched as it took on a similar shape, but arched a brow bone in confusion as it became a vibrant orange, small yellow speckles dotted across its surface. Before he had the chance to ask about the color, she spoke, "...It's weird, I know. I'm a monster, but I have human soul traits. You can thank my mother for that one." The rider blinked in confusion, tilting his head, "Your mother's a human? What about that brother you mentioned?" Nyx made a face, "She was, yes... For whatever reason though, she was murdered when my brother, Kazimir, and I were still babies. Kazimir himself is also a monster, but he has a human soul trait, as well. Mine was originally just bravery, but it developed the justice trait after a while because of my line of work, and Kazimir has the integrity trait. It's possible that he could've developed a secondary one like me, but I haven't asked about it."

He watched Nyx push her soul back into her chest and sighed, offering her a small, reassuring smile, "Well that's pretty neat. I didn't think it was weird either, by the way. It wasn't what I was expecting, but there's nothing wrong with the way it is. If you ask me, I think it suits you." Nyx nearly gaped at him and he rolled his eye lights in amusement; Never in a million years did he think that this was what he'd be doing today. He didn't know that his counterpart had children, and he would've never guessed that he'd get to meet either of them, much less have such an oddly pleasant conversation. He didn't think he'd ever allow anyone other than Famine and Conquest to see his soul, and while he did realize the risks that came with doing such a thing, he didn't feel that Nyx was a threat.

Nyx, despite being his miscreant counterpart's daughter, felt familiar, somehow. It was like he'd met her somewhere before, and even stranger yet, it felt like it would be safe to trust her. There was an odd warmth in his chest that he had mixed feelings about, and he was struggling to fully grasp what it meant. On one hand, it reminded him of the warmth he felt when he was with his partner, but on the other, it also reminded him of the warmth he felt when he spent time with his nephew, as well. He'd literally met Nyx maybe an hour or so ago, but his soul seemed to be making an attempt to form a bond with hers already, and he bit back a scoff at how ridiculous this entire situation was becoming.

It was strange and downright unnatural, but he didn't feel the need to complain very much. Nyx looked completely content, and as long as she wasn't attacking him, then he supposed that was what mattered most.

#writing #four horsemen of the apocalypse #riders of the apocalypse #undertale #undertale au #retribution.exe #nyx.exe #lady night

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rockthistowninsideout · 3 years

Text

DigiWeek 2021

Day 7 - Home (Free Day)

The Story

“Uh-oh as much as you want! Now the time is over for Digimon and all those supporting them!”, the blonde girl shouted and finally rounded the ledge. She wore a red-and-blue checked school uniform and a devilish grin on her face.

“Why would you want to end the Digimon?”, Kamemon cried out.

“Because they are destructive and cannot be trusted!”

“Then why do you have a Digimon partner?”, Ryudamon asked.

The girl, who still hadn’t introduced herself, laughed menacingly. _“_There’s no such thing as Digimon partner. Humans can never live in peace with them. Grizzlymon is merely a tool because it was stupid enough to think the same as you. Wanted to become my partner – Instead I made it my slave. It’s what Digimon deserve to be so mindlessly wrecking.”

“You tested your black spikes on it, didn’t you?” I asked as I caught a glimpse of a sharp tip protruding from its fur.

She eyed me with a gaze that swung between annoyance and approval. “Oh yes! It was really eager to be my guinea pig and I have to admit it’s doing an excellent job as my assassin. But then again Digimon are nothing but war machines.”

“That’s not true!”, Kamemon cried out. It seemed to feel deeply offended by the girl’s sermon.

And I understood that. Kamemon and Ryudamon had been nothing but kind and helpful, and Frezamon had only attacked us because the black spike had corrupted it. Something truly dire had probably happened in her life. To buy time, I asked “What’s your name?”

Her eyebrows shot up in genuine surprise. She positioned herself straddle-legged before us, hands on her hips, and declared “I am Tamina and you will soon praise me as the Extinguisher of Digimon!”

Taki leaned into me “She’s got a serious screw loose. White people and their megalomaniac ideas.”

While I wholeheartedly agreed, I couldn’t shake the feeling that some serious trauma bubbled close beneath the surface. Before I could elaborate on that note, she cried “Grizzlymon, attack!”

Her Digimon, or better say, her brainwashed minion, unleashed a Heavy Attack. We could duck down and escape to the right, but the attack was so strong that it shattered the stony ledge we’d been hiding under. The shards were blown in all directions and we only stayed safe because Ryudamon threw itself before us and blocked the shrapnel with its armour.

I looked to Kamemon. “Are you ready?” It nodded. I gripped my DigiVice tightly and as Kamemon started to glow, it vibrated in my hand. When the evolution was done, it identified the new Digimon in our ranks as Gwappamon. Gwappamon was roughly a head or two shorter than what I remembered DexDorugamon to be. Instead of Kamemon’s helmet it had brown dreadlock-like hair that was crowned by a CD. Around its neck a pair of headphones was slung and its belly was stitched and patched up. It parried Grizzlymon’s attack with a Gwappa Punch.

“See, you’re also only using the Digimon as fighters”, Tamina yelled in triumph.

“Well, we don’t want to get ourselves killed by you poor Digimon!”, Taki shouted. “I can only pity it, both of you, actually.”

“Why do you pity me? Pity yourself for being led to believe that Digimon are good!”

We jumped apart when Grizzlymon launched its next attack. I ran towards the rocks where the ice sheet was wedged when an idea struck me. We were four and they were only a pair. We should have an advantage here.

Tamina was concentrated on directing Grizzlymon against Gwappamon who was sparring exceptionally. So I had the chance to communicate with Taki and Ryudamon, at least non-verbally. Taki agreed with my plan: I wanted to lure Grizzlymon away by letting myself be reflected in the ice mirror. That was suppposed to irritate Grizzlymon enough to let its focus slip. Hopefully that gave Ryudamon enough time to jump on Grizzlymon’s back. Then Gwappamon could join forces with Ryudamon and we could pin down Tamina.

I bent down and started forming snow balls. When I had a small battery of them at my feet, I threw them at Grizzlymon with force. After the third, it turned around annoyed. To be on the safe side, I threw a couple more, one hit it straight between the eyes. With a roar, it charged at me. Well, what it supposed was me, but it actually was my reflection it ran towards. Before Tamina could order it to stop it had hit the ice with a sickening crash, the impact was enough to let the ice splitter into a million pieces.

Immediately, Ryudamon was on its back, clawing into its think fur. Grizzlymon roared in agony but before it could shake Ryudamon off, Gwappamon had thrown it into the snow. Tamina was shouting, she tore at her hair, until we were at her sides and gripped her arms tightly. “Let. Me. Go!” she yelled repeatedly, though her voice grew smaller and smaller until she was mere wax in our hands. Uncontrolled sobs were shaking her body. Taki and I looked at each other, we both simply felt sympathy now. We led Tamina towards the yurt where she collapsed in front of the entrance.

I wanted to enter but the darkness that had risen from the chimney had now filled the entire hut so I quickly drew the curtain back and told Taki and Tamina that we had to evacuate right now. Tamina was unable to walk, it seemed that only her rage and misguided mission had been holding her up, so I scooped her up bridal-style and hurried down the mountain as fast as I could.

In passing Taki shouted towards the Digimon to destroy the yurt – Grizzlymon had now been freed from the spike and was looking around confused. Gwappamon sent the CD on its head spinning which tore open a slit in the fabric of the yurt and Ryudamon set the hut ablaze with its Tera Burst. The yurt exploded and the shockwave pushed me several metres down the slope.

We took shelter behind a particularly sturdy looking ledge. I sat Tamina down who was sobbing. “Shh” I said. “You are okay now.”

“Yeah, it’s alright”, Taki seconded. After a brief pause she said “And whenever you’re ready, you can tell us why you hate Digimon so much.”

Tamina was quiet for a few moments, only furiously wiping away the tears from her eyes. I gave her a handkerchief from my school bag. She took it with a grateful expression but she wasn’t smiling yet. Finally she whispered “My mom.” She hiccuped before she could continue “My mom died when Parrotmon and Greymon fought in Hikarigaoka. She was the only victim when she got hit by fallen debris that’s been, well, I don’t know if it came from a bridge, or an apartment building, of it it was a car. It also doesn’t really matter. I wasn’t afraid to see these two creatures fight when I watched them but when I learned that they were responsible for Mommy’s death, I swore revenge. And over the years, my anger only grew whenever I saw Digimon running rampant in the city and all across the globe. They caused malfunctions and destroyed everything. But as far as I know my mom was the only fatality in all those year. I always felt that the government wasn’t doing enough so I itched for a chance to right it myself.”

She paused to inhale deeply. “And some time ago, I don’t if it’s been hours, or days, or weeks – time works different in the Digital World – I walked home from school when someone called me down a stairwell between two streets. The voice came from behind a gate between two houses, and when I stepped through it, I was in the Digital World, right in front of the yurt, with Bearmon waiting beside it. The voice told me that it understood my sorrow and wanted to help me with my revenge.”

A few minutes ago, the girl had wanted to dominate the world but now I could feel nothing but sorry for her. Out of an instinct, I hugged her tightly, and Taki on the other side did the same. Our Digimon came back from their battle, they had evolved to their previous levels.

When Tamina spotted her former slave she called “Oh Bearmon, I’m so sorry!”, and teared up again.

Bearmon came towards her to hug her, saying “It’s alright now.”

Kamemon walked over to me and said “We told Bearmon what happened. It was very understanding.”

“Thank you for tel-”. Before I could finish the sentence, there was a blast that shook the earth. We flinched, then I peaked over the ledge to discover a huge crater where the hut used to be.

“That wasn’t us!” Kamemon declared.

From the crater rose smoke that transformed into tentacles halfway through. “Ah shucks!”, I muttered.

“Did you really think it was over? What you defeated was merely a puppet, a disposable I would have gotten rid of anytime if the time had come. And the time has come!”

“That’s it! That’s the voice that called me here. Oh my God!” Tamina wailed, shaking vigorously.

“Stop it!”, I said firmly. “We need your help now. If we want to win against – well, whatever that is, we need to stand united.”

Tamina looked frightened at me. “I don’t think I can.”

I lifted her head gently at the chin to look directly into her eyes. “Listen to me. I’m really sorry what happened to your mom. But the Digimon are not to blame for her death. And neither your vendetta nor your indecision will bring her back. What we need to focus on right now is to save the Digital World, and probably our human world too. I don’t know who’s behind the voice but I’m pretty sure they don’t want to spare us. What Ryudamon over there told me was that the Dark Forces had always aimed for the human world too. It’s the rest of your family who’s in danger now. This is your chance to save them!”

She stared at me like a hare. Her shaking stopped, she swallowed hard before she nodded. “Okay.”

“Wonderful.” I briefly hugged her, then pulled her up on her feet.

We gathered together, back to back, gazing up to the sky. It darkened by the second, the clouds spun faster and faster until some sort of vent had formed. “Prepare for doom!”, the voice thundered.

Taki grabbed my hand on the left side, Kamemon on the right. “Ready?”, she asked.

I nodded. “Let’s do this

Gwappamon

Also:

HAPPY ODAIBA DAY!!

Thank you so much for organizing the event @earlgreymon and @tangledupblue! It was wonderful to see us Digimon fans reunited again and to share our love for an anime that’s been with us for more than 20 years.

#digiweek2021 #digimon #digimon adventure #my oc #my stories

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thiswasinevitableid · 3 years

Note

sea monster indruck nsfw? maybe including one of them masturbating while fantasizing about the other one and confessing all their dirty thoughts as they're actually having sex? scary protective monster is also always hot if you're down for that

Here you go! I wasn’t able to fit in everything, but this one was fun!

This is all the hangman's fault.

Indrid could be pleasantly dead right now, not trapped in a gibbet on a clifftop, if the man had bothered to check his ropes ahead of time. But no, instead he failed to see the rats had been gnawing on them and the blasted noose snapped clean off the instant it took Indrids weight. To the villagers, this was a sign that Indrid was indeed a witch (and the son of a demon, a rare charge that drags his poor, deceased mother into this mess). To Indrid, it meant a new set of bruises and the worst possible death.

They locked him in the gibbet, the Atlantic crashing in angry, grey waves far below them. The man on his right is dead, eyeballs already plucked out by an enterprising bird, and the man on his left is getting there. If his visions are accurate, Indrid has a good five days of suffering the elements, the wild-life, and his own hunger and thirst before he joins them.

A lifetime of visions breeds resignation in the face of fate, so he closes his eyes, follows the futures of luckier men as a temporary escape. The screams of his neighbor rouse him with a start. Their source is wholly unexpected.

Looming at the edge of the cliff is an immense monster. From his vantage point, Indrid spies the creatures’ lower body still submerged in the sea, making it well over a hundred feet tall. It’s skin is green, it’s fingers webbed, and it’s crowned by a frill of wave-shaped spikes. The face is humanoid, with green eyes and hair of black water and a squid-beak where a mouth should be. Strange tentacles appear and disappear along its torso, as if they have not made up their mind as to whether they wish to exist.

The monster sighs, “Fuckin hate it when they leave their dead like this. Unsightly, and I ain’t sure it’s good for the seagulls to be eatin humans.”

“The dead and, ah, almost dead do not enjoy it much either.”

Upon hearing Indrids voice, the creature peers into his cage, “Huh, guess you ain’t dead. Either of you.” He turns his eyes on the other condemned man, who starts screaming again, “why’d they stick you here?”

“Witchcraft, specifically foresight and dabbling in ‘black magic.’ Well, that and a failed hanging” He tilts his head to show the visitor the rope mark.

“Damn, that looks like it hurts. Wonder if I can..” the tip of an immense claw extends towards him. There’s a crackle of power that makes his ears pop, and the monster pulls his hand back, “nope, fuck, was hopin it’d be a small enough thing to do.”

“I beg your pardon?”

The monster sighs, “Long story short, my kind ain’t able to interact in an, uh, altruistic fashion with humans unless they’re acolytes. Can’t even open that damn cage without gettin zapped. Never mind that some of us don’t even wanna be old gods or whatever the fuck, still ain’t allowed to help. Maybe if I get a real big stick..”

“How does one become an acolyte?” Indrid presses his face to the front of the cage.

“Uh, you gotta swear loyalty and servitude to me, specifically, and the ‘old gods’ in general, live in a place I set up for you, and do stuff when I need you to.”

“Very well, are there specific words of the oath or…”

“Whoah, hold up now” the creature raises his hands, “this shit is real bindin’, rather you not rush into it.”

“Given the alternative is death, a rush is rather necessary.”

“All I’m sayin is you might wanna think for more than two seconds before you agree! And there might be other ways for me to get you out.”

“Do..do you not want an acolyte?” Being rejected by a sea monster feels like a fitting end to his life.

“Not really. It ain’t personal or anythin; I’m just now leanin into the whole god thing and I still ain’t all that comfortable with parts if it. Last thing I want is an acolyte who saw me as ‘not as bad as death.”

“And the last thing I want is to die of exposure, so we are at an impasse.”

The monster clicks his beak once, “Okay, here’s what I’ll do. You take until sunset to think over whether you wanna be stuck servin’ this” he gestures to himself, “for a long-ass time, and we’ll go from there.”

“Very well.” Indrid resigns himself to several more hours of misery as the creature sinks from view. He glances at the other prisoner, “what do you think? He seems very considerate for a sea monster and I for one would like to keep living.”

The man stares, babbles incoherently for a moment before shouting, “You, you conversed with a devil! You are a witch, just as they say!”

“He spoke to both of us.” Indrid blinks, puzzled.

“I closed my ears to his lies, you offered yourself to his wickedness! Speak no more to me from your black tongue.”

“Hmmph” Indrid does his best to ignore the ongoing beration. He’s not sure the creature is a god, but then again the creature seems uncertain on the matter himself. Serving a maybe-god seems no worse than serving the king, a life among the depths no less tolerable than his small home in a town torn to pieces by accusations of witchcraft.

After a time, the storm clouds fulfill their purpose, a downpour battering him from all angles. Then a shadow falls over his shut eyes, and no more rain touches him.

“Seemed awful rude to leave you stuck in the rain while you thought things over.” The god explains, one massive hand shielding the human.

“Many thanks. Ah, I do have one concern about being your acolyte. Would...would I have to hurt anyone?”

“Don’t think so. I ain’t fond of hurtin folks, and if someone did need to be hurt, seems real strange to make the tiny human do it.”

Indrid puts on his most hopeful, charming smile, “I am very cold, very hungry, and my whole being feels as though it’s been stomped on by a team of horses. Perhaps I could give my answer early?”

A chuckle, like bubbles in deep water, “Hard to say no to that face. Okay, you got a deal. I checked with Joe while I was gone, to make sure I knew the right thing to do if you said yes. I’m gonna say the oath, and you’re gonna repeat it.”

Indrid nods, makes his way laboriously through the incantation in a gurgling language he does not know. The god patiently guides him along, cracks open the cage when the last word is spoken.

“Do I get to know your name? If it was one of those words, it will take me some time to master it.”

The monsters’ cheeks rise, suggesting a smile, “You can call me Duck. It’s a nickname. C’mon” he holds out his hand, “let’s get you outta the rain.”

“One moment.” Indrid moves to the other gibbet, undoing the lock, “you can get free if you wish. If anyone asks how, tell them it was the witch.” With that, he settles in Duck’s cupped palms, the skin smooth and cool to the touch.

“Down we go.” Duck sinks.

“Wait, how will I bre-” water fills his mouth, but only for a moment. A clear bubble forms around him, let’s him gulp in air as Duck dives further into the sea. More jarring than the spell is the sight of the monster unfurling behind him. He assumed Duck had legs, but instead his lower body is that of a sea-serpent, green with bronze rings and undulating in the dark waves.

“Like what you see?”

“Yes” he wonders what touching that tail is like.

“Yeah, this is a real beautiful part of the sea. If you want, some time I can take you further out; some spectacular lookin creatures out there. Here we go, home sweet home.” They surface at the base of a much shorter cliff, Indrid woozy from the change in depth. Three cottages--one red, one gold, and one blue-- stare back at them from a grassy hill.

“Let’s see if I can do this” Duck sets Indrid on the ground, closes his eyes, and hums. The world shudders and splits, and then a fourth, emerald green cottage sits alongside the others.

“Ha! Pretty damn good for a first effort.” His frill flickers with silver light.

“It’s wonderful.”

“All yours. You get yourself settled, I'm gonna go find out from the others what else needs doin’ now that I got an acolyte.” He lowers himself so the two of them are roughly face to face, “see you soon, Indrid.”

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

The cottage holds more possessions than Indrid’s ever had in his life, including a large feather bed that he stretches his aching body across before falling asleep and dreaming of seaweed twining up his legs.

Voices from the window rouse him some hours later. At the side of the red cottage sit three other humans, two of whom are at work in a vegetable garden. Indrid ventures down to introduce himself.

“Hi!” One, a woman with golden hair, waves to him, “you must be Indrid. I’m Dani, this is Barclay” she points to the bearded man harvesting potatoes, then to a tattooed man polishing a pile of gold and silver jewelry, “and that’s Boyd.”

“Pleased to make your acquaintance. You are all acolytes as well?” His stomach rumbles and Barclay pauses his digging to slide him a basket containing bread and cheese.

“Help yourself, those are leftover from lunch. And yeah, we are. Or were, in Dani’s case.”

Even with foresight, Indrid is surprised when the woman says jokingly, “Got promoted to ‘wife’ a few months.”

“Congratulations.” It seems the appropriate thing to say, given her smile, “ah, what exactly do you all do for your gods? Duck is rather unclear on the details.”

“Some of it is spellwork. Beings like Duck have some innate power, but they can get more of it from an acolyte doing rituals or making offerings. Joseph, that’s my monster, Duck, and a few others aren’t sold on the idea that they’re meant to destroy humans, so they spend a lot of time keeping other monsters from doing just that. Our spellwork gives them an edge. Other than that, it really depends on who you’re working for; I spent a lot of my first month helping Joseph understand that hauling himself up onto a random dock to ask questions is not the best way to learn about humans. Boyd spends a lot of time maintaining Ned’s treasure.”

“Only because he bloody tricked me into workin for him. Just bidin my time until the deal runs out. You hear that Chicane!” Boyd yells towards the water, “don’t care how much you steal, I’ll get my share and run one of these days.”

To Indrid’s ear, the sea laughs in reply. Boyd grumbles and returns to his work.

“He’s just annoyed because he and Ned thought they could outwit each other; Boyd was on a prison ship bound for Jamaica and Ned offered him an out. Apparently they spent hours haggling over the terms.” Dani leans closer, whispers, “Boyds left twice, comes back every time saying he’s bored without someone to challenge him.”

They talk a while longer, Dani promising to bring Indrid some hens and a goat from town, Boyd giving him some firewood, and Barclay explaining the network of sea caves in the surrounding hills. When there’s a knock at the door, he opens it expecting another human and jumps when this is not the case.

“Evenin’” Duck smiles as he slithers into the house, “brought you a few more things.”

“You got smaller.”

“Can change my size some, though this is about as small as I can get.” He’s still two heads taller than Indrid, who notes that the ceilings are just high enough to accommodate him, as if the god built the cottage with visits in mind.

Duck sets a bucket of fresh oysters in the kitchen along with a large slab of butter, some milk, and some sugar, “Had one of my human friends bring me these. And, uh, I made you this” he holds up a cloak in the same colors as his tail. It fits Indrid snugly, shutting out the chilly air and making him feel rather grand indeed.

“C’mere” Duck pats a kitchen chair, “lemme take care of your neck.”

Indrid sits, shudders when webbing and claws rub sticky balm into his skin. The gods hands easily encircle his neck, a realization that stirs heat deep in his stomach. Duck talks as he works, a meandering story about a shipwreck, and Indrid finds he enjoys his manner of speech. The initial discomfort of the touches subside, the balm washing the pain in his neck away like a wave erasing a message in the sand. Cool hands wrapped around his throat turn as comforting as the fire crackling in the stove.

“That looks like it healed. Good” Duck’s beak fondly nips his ear, “gotta make sure my servant is in good condition.”

“Mmmm” Indrid bumps his chest with his head, hoping for more; tomorrow he’ll ask the others if it’s commonplace for an acolyte to lounge in the coils of their gods lap like a housecat.

The beak touches his ear once more, biting it lightly with little kissing sounds.

“Huh'' two tentacles catch Indrid as he tips sideways, his body deciding that the earlier nap was not enough rest, “didn’t think you’d find that soothin. Did it by accident, it’s how my kind show affection.”

“S’very nice” Indrid mumbles, dimly aware of being carried.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Y’know, in case I need to reward you for somethin.” Duck lays him in bed, pulls a thick blanket over him, and bids him goodnight. Indrid is sound asleep before the door closes.

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

“Ngahka miskato--ah! Give that back” Indrid wrenches his spectacles free from hold of a far too inquisitive octopus. The creature squirts him with water, then disappears back into its pool.

Each of the gods has a sea cave in which their acolytes perform their rituals. Since the processes involves ancient, dark magic, all manner of strange sea life makes its way to the caves. Some, like the octopus or the seals that bob in the distance or flop on the rocks to nap, are known to him. Others might be classified as indescribable horrors from the deep, though Indrid thinks they look like crustaceans with a few too many limbs or the offspring of an eel and devil fish.

His oath to Duck allows him to read the spells, and his pronunciation is improving. Duck’s requests center on defense; letting himself take greater damage from an enemy, be better able to protect his friends, that sort of thing. Indrid even found a ritual that gives the god new cloaking abilities, which he’s used to make the cottages disappear on the hillside and thus keep curious townsfolk away. He also found one that allows Duck to remain out of water for well over a day.

The Duck who visits him in the cave and the one who stops by his home may be radically different sizes, but his disposition is constant. He talks about the kelp forests and the animals, about his annoyance with his supposed destiny as “destroyer of all man.” He conjures fine clothes from seaweed, furniture from driftwood, and brings Indrid newly made grins embedded with fresh pearls.

“Aren’t I supposed to be the one serving you?” Indrid will tease.

“Way I see it, we serve each other. Don’t care what that fuckin oath said.”

Indrid is feeding his hens one evening when his luck catches up with him; his human friends are all standing at the edge of Dani’s house, peering anxiously around it’s corner and down the hill. Joining them, he sees a crowd marching with torches and an assortment of lethal farm equipment.

“What the fuck are they doing? You were just in town today and everything was fine” Barclay glances at Dani, who shrugs, worried.

“My visions tell me that as they get closer we will hear them yelling about witches and that I will recognize many of them. I suspect my fellow gibbet-occupant told them about Duck.” He sighs, “I’ll try to lead them on a chase, get them away from all of you.”

Indrid runs into the evening before the others, or his own common sense, can stop him. Keeping to the cliffside, he lets them glimpse his hair and his red glasses, both used at the trial as proof of his wicked nature. His plan is to take a secret tunnel down into the caves, but his visions alert him a moment too late to the fact there are two, not one, groups of villagers. He’s outflanked on the cliff, holds up his hands to show he means no harm.

“I understand my continued existence alarms and confuses you, but that is no reason to go running about with weapons. Would you kindly leave me alone?”

“No, witch, we will not.” The head of the party shouts over the wind.

“I have a name, you know.” He grumbles, looking behind him and wondering if his status as an acolyte grants him immunity from death by falling in the water.

“You have already confessed to your black work, and we have on good authority you have made a pact with the devil. There is nowhere to run, and if you come quietly I promise we will hang you properly this time.”

“And if I do not?”

“We shall see to it that your body is scattered about this cliffside before the night is out.” The mob moves forward and Indrid stumbles back, the earth giving out beneath his feet.

He lands with a yelp in a smooth, large hand. As Duck rises more fully from the waves, the crowd freezes, struck dumb with fear.

“Y’all ain’t gonna touch him, y’hear? Indrid’s under my protection and in case it ain’t obvious, I could smoosh the whole damn bunch of you without breakin a sweat. So, what you’re gonna do is turn around and go back to your village, and I’ll forget this ever happened. If you come after him again, I’m gonna start taking out ships in your harbor. We clear?”

The panicked flight of the mod downhill suggests he’s made his point.

Duck carries Indrid home, joining him in the cottage once he can fit through the door. The monster follows him upstairs, pulling him into his arms.

“Thought I was gonna lose you.”

“That makes two of us.”

Duck nuzzles the top of his head, “You mind if I stay here tonight? Little worried some of them might get it into their heads to come back and hurt you.”

No futures show this, but Indrid nods all the same. Duck curls up near the bed, not leaving until the morning sun shines through the window. He does the same the next night, and the night after that, and soon it’s been two weeks of the god talking softly with Indrid as the human falls asleep.

When Indrid shyly asks if Duck will join him, his monster lays as comfortably as he can on the right side of the bed. Indrid is now used to waking up with a tail looped around his leg or a tentacle clinging to his arm.

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

Indrid is just drifting off when the covers slide aside and weight slithers up the bed. He opens his eyes; Duck is on his side, facing him, annoyed.

“What troubles you, my dark excellency?” Indrid nudges Ducks’ lower belly with his toes. He’s taken to calling Duck increasingly absurd things, and the monster calls him “faithful servant” or “esteemed attendant” in reply.

Tonight, Duck just sighs, “Y’know how I was supposed to do somethin important tonight, bein’ that it’s the second full moon in the month? Turns out that somethin was, ‘spread my seed among the beds of men’ so our kind will gradually overrun the surface.” He clicks his beak with a snort, “don’t that sound fun?”

“No.”

“Smart little thing, ain’t you?” Duck teases, cups Indrid’s chin, “Yeah, I said no. Problem is, apparently a second full moon makes my whole body wanna fuck, which is why that prophecy was supposed to happen tonight.”

Indrid looks down, sees something rippling under the skin at the upper part of Duck’s tail.

“I’m gonna try sleepin it off.”

His visions give him courage; Duck turns him down in most futures, but none of them end in death or bodily harm, which at his point in his life is all he asks.

“Or you could, ah, allow me to help you.”

Green eyes blink, slow and calculating, “‘Drid, that ain’t part of your job.”

“No…” Indrid scoots across the sheets, tentatively runs his fingers up Duck’s side, “but that is not why I’m offering.”

“No?” The rest of his tail joins them on the bed, curving so it traps Indrid against him, “Then why are you offerin, sweet human of mine?”

“Because I, ah, I want, that is I would very much like to know you in that way, and I thought it was allowed based on the others, I apologize if it’s not, I did not mean to-” He freezes as Duck cups his face, nipping his ear and throat with a kissing noise.

“‘Drid?”

“Y-yes, my lord of the depths?” He’s breathless, drowning in Duck’s gaze.

“Stop apologizin and take off your clothes.”

Indrid flails until nothing is between him and his monster.

“Thats better” Duck’s voice deepens, washing over him like rough waves, “now, come serve your god.” He pats what Indrid thinks of as his waist, the point where his human qualities disappear entirely.

“As you wish” Indrid tries for a coquettish smile as he straddles him, but it gives way to surprise as the slit in Ducks skin parts.

“I was not expecting tentacles. Which, given the rest of you, was naive.”

“Not usin that future vision of yours to see what’s comin’?” The webbing of Duck’s fingers is like velvet as it caresses Indrid’s chest.

“It is difficult to focus on such things when you are here. You command my attention. You always have.”

Duck flicks his tongue across Indrid’s lower lip, “Now that kind of devotion I could get used to.”

“It is yours whenever you want it.”

A tentacle emerges from his side, petting Indrid’s face, “My Indrid. You been so good for me, so faithful and true. Letting me babble about seaweed and when my claws through that pretty hair. And you just keep gettin better.”

“Please” Indrid rests his head against Duck’s chest, hugging him as best as his size will allow, “please teach me how to serve you this way too.”

“I can do that. You don’t gotta lift a finger.” Several of the tendrils that comprise his cock twine together to form a single appendage. The tentacle on his face gains a twin and the pair slide down to his ass, parting it.

Indrid’s thighs are uncooperative, struggle to get and keep him in the right position to sink down. He curses, reaches down to adjust only for a thicker tentacles to bind both wrists and yank them up above his head.

“Uh uh, I said no finger-liftin and I meant it.”

Indrid moans, his cock filling as he discovers there’s no way to free himself. He expects Duck to guide him into place with his hands. The end of his tail encircles Indrid’s hips while his claws trace arcane shapes on his skin.

“I, I did not know it was quite so dextrousOH, oh god.” The tip of that strange cock pushes in, pulsing little by little to stretch him open without pain.

“Right here.” Duck nibbles his hair with that same kissing sound, “I got you. Take such good care of my faithful human.”

“Oh god” Indrid can’t come up with anything else to express the sensation of Duck sinking deeper into his body, of how safe he feels stretched out and stretched open in the monsters hold. He tips his head back with a cry as Duck bottoms out and his cock moves fluid and disjointed all at once. It’s pulsing, thrusting him full on each inward push, yet it’s individual tendrils curve and curl within him independent of the whole.

“More, oh god, please, please never ever ever stop.”

A fond chuckle, “That good huh? Maybe that prophecy was wrong. Maybe what I’m supposed to do is fuck you full and then drop you in town so you can spread the word of how good my dick is. Be my consort and prophet all in one. Get everyone clamorin for the chance for me to fuck them.”

“No” Indrid squirms, petulant, “you’re my master. Not theirs.”

A louder laugh this time, “You gonna take the amount of fuckin I was supposed to do to a whole town yourself?” A tendril curls around Indrid’s aching cock.

“Yes” He wails, rolls his hips “you may have me as often as you please, I want you too, I’ll, I’ll be your faithful servant always.”

“You’re already somethin better; you’re my ‘Drid.” Duck twists the tendril and Indrid’s lost, his orgasm knocking breath from his chest and tears from his eyes as white spatters the green of Duck’s abdomen.

“That’s it darlin, lookit you bein so good, cummin for your master. Think it’s time for you to make good on your promise to take whatever I give you.” The tail lifts Indrid up and down as Duck cums, the monster not so much as pausing before thrusting his hips harder, “fuuuck that’s good, my perfect servant, my ‘Drid, takin me so well.”

Indrid sobs as another burst of cum enters him and a strange feeling fills his chest; he’s buzzing with blindingly bright power. It’s coming from Duck, he knows this, and in the haze of his submissive state he understands the depth of his divinity.

“Duck” he whimpers as more tentacles twist around his limbs, the god losing himself in his pursuit of pleasure, filling Indrid until his belly twinges and his eyes fight to remain open. When the god groans out the humans name a final time, Indrid is so enveloped by him he wonders if they’ll ever fully disentangle.

The monster carries him to the washroom, Indrid still squirming on his cock, and gently pulls him free to set him in the tub. A flick of his hand fills it with warm seawater.

“You okay?”

“I doubt I will be able to walk tomorrow.” Indrid smiles to show he relishes this fact.

“Guess I’ll be spendin tomorrow waitin on you.” Duck joins him in the tub, coiling protectively around him as he washes his chest and thighs.

“I thought I was the servant here?” Indrid cuddles closer, kissing Duck on the tip of his beak.

“Nah. Far as I’m concerned, we take care of each other.”

#indrid cold/duck newton #Indruck #monster march #reader requests #monster boyfriend #the author says "fuck HP Lovecraft

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rosepetalwings · 3 years

Text

Oh I'm More Than Glad To Talk About Deeprune

ok so lets run through the au in sections

DEEPRUNE

Story:

The cast are now all mythological mermaid/siren creatures.

The Light World is the epipelagic zone (and upper half of mesopelagic zone) of the ocean and live in ignorance of the strange creatures that look as they do in the twilight below...

Dark World is mid-mesopelagic and below, full of frightening sea creatures those so blessed to live in sea reef coral homes could never hope to fathom... and should never hope to meet.

One day, one of the 4 kings of the ocean basins drew help from a powerful, unknown force and imprisoned his peers at the bottom of the deep sea trenches... And to this day, he rules his little area, biding his time for the day the Dark can take over the Light.

That is, of course, unless a very human looking siren, a sea crocodile tough girl, a bioluminscent jellyfish(?) fluffy boy, and a villainous... cloaked hybrid thing can fulfill a very familiar prophecy...

Locations:

Light Zone

Hometown - A bright and cheerful coral reef with a good amount of merfolk in the community.

School ‐ Building constructed out of stone and hidden amongst normal marine foliage and coral. Normal congregations of school akin to what the land-dwellers (or terrans, as the merfolk might call them) do for their own children.

Hospital ‐ Made in the same way as the school and serves the same function as its land counterpart. The hospital does have different instruments to serve its marine patients, however.

QC's diner - Hidden under a rock shelf and is more of an open seating arrangement. Fan coral serves as a sort of decorative barrier to keep the seating plan from being too open.

ICEE's p"e"zzeria - Incredibly conspicuous and placed between the brightest coral on the reef for the attention-grabbing colors. High visibility means free advertising, no?

The Graveyard - In a clearing among the kelp forest, there lies a set of engraved stones covered in algae. It's especially quiet there. Peaceful when you focus on the sunlight filtering in through the kelp stalks.

The bunker - Placed just before the continental shelf begins to fall off into complete and utter darkness. The merfolk in town warn their children to never near that area.

Dark Zone

????? - A craggy mess of rocks on the outskirts of the continental shelf. The light begins to grow strange here for whatever reason...

Castle Town - A shipwreck amongst the craggy rocks in the dark where a strangely kind shadowy figure lives.

Field - A seemingly endless stretch of ocean in which a Lightner's vision alone cannot be used to find one's way in the dark, lest they be horribly lost until the end of time. Or lest they stray further down, where it grows darker, yet darker...

The Scarlet Forest - Not really a forest, per se. More a jestful remark over the collection of sea creatures that have evolved to have a red tone to their skin as camouflage in the watery depths. The creatures are so very frightening and strange with their sharp-toothed open maws and flashy photophores. Strange to think how normal this all is down in the depths...

Great Board - The inlets and caves that checker the continental slope and house very many deep sea merfolk. Very many large tunnels dug out to house many of the population and keep them interconnected as a society. Alas, this stationary grouping also makes them vulnerable to the power of kingly apex predators.

The Castle - Hidden within the depths of the Mariana Trench. None of the Board have seen the castle in such grave depths and lived to tell the tale. None but a strange barreleye and his hyper young ward...

Characters:

Lightners

Kris - A mostly human-shaped siren, save for fishy bits, including but not limited to, gills and an iridescent shine to their hair. Always sneaking off to play tricks on unsuspecting beach goers. Kind of a quiet kid but their mischievous grin says it all for them.

Susie - A rude, rough-and-tumble kind of sea crocodile gill girl that does not appreciate nautical wordplay. She will appreciate your lunch money, though.

Noelle - The most nervous kelpie you'll ever meet. Easily provoked but she's very sweet and intelligent and perhaps she's a shade dorky, but it's through that dorkiness she'll find a way to make you smile.

Asriel - Sweet and effortlessly loveable and smart and talented capricorn brother to Kris who's just gone off to do independent study in a different sea basin! He's coming back to town next week; Kris seems a little downcast as of late, though...

Alphys - Marine iguana teacher at the reef's local school. Please don't ask her for her reviews on neat human media she's managed to salvage, we'll be here all week.

Undyne - The undying undine on everyone's minds! ...Because she's likely tried to tackle you for minor offenses like littering or jay-swimming in the humdrum life of this little reef town. She's somewhat of a vigilante, working by her own judicial metrics and warning the reef of any terran sightings or other such troubles. Not much to report on though, these days...

Toriel & Asgore - The capricorn divorcees. Haven't you heard; the news has spread all over the place! What a shame too, they looked just like the perfect reef family...

Sans and Papyrus - The strange brothers that just moved into the reef... Coelacanth merfolk with mottled, skeletal appearances. The shorter brother "runs" the reef market. ...If you can get a fin in the door, anyway. The taller one hasn't made much of a public appearance in town yet; hard to comment on him.

Darkners

Ralsei - The prince of the prophesy, as well as the bringer of Light to the Dark, as symbolized through his charmed hat and cloak, to make him appear as though he is but a jellyfish that sways with the currents. Seems to be as soft in personality as a jellyfish's bell though.

Lancer - A hooded, mischievous figure that's always up to no good. It's kind of hard to tell what he is, with his short, stubby tentacles and furry, webbed paws, but he's kind of too adorable and personable to care much about it. Popular vote's on dumbo octopus though.

Rouxls - A vigilant barreleye with his haunting eyes always to the sky in search of tributes to pay his king or danger from which to protect the child of a royal bloodline he's been entrusted to care for. He's ditzy and kind of an asshole, but deep down, he's got a good SOUL... that glows through his transparent chest.

Seam - Ah? Looking for wares? Seam's will definitely have something to cure what ails you. The old anglerfish sits behind the shop counter, items lit only by the faint light of small jellies and the wisened shopkeep's lantern-like forehead protrusion. Go for the low prices and stay for the enchanting tales.

Jevil - A laugh sounds in the dark before you could ever approach his cell. He's nothing but needle teeth smiles when he explains to you the nature of the game. Numbers game. Must be a couple of sharks to have gotten down there in the first place. And this freed jester wouldn't have it any other way - sharks to goblin shark.

King - He is, by all accounts, imperceivable. He is larger than life and covered in shifting, writhing appendages that do not keep the shape you once thought them to be, no matter how hard you attempt to keep your focus on any point of his form. He is Leviathan, and the fact that you are before him means that you are incredibly fucked.

Knight - [REDACTED]

PREVIOUS DRAWINGS

Rouxls and a mysterious man

Unmasked Lancer

okay... i think that's about it! don't be afraid to ask for more clarification on anything, i know i gave general overview/musing blurb of... kind of everything i could think to describe! hope this is fine!

or ask me to infodump on another of my AUs! ;3c

#deltarune #utdr #safeutdr #deltarune au #deeprune #long post #spooky writes #body horror mention

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jarienn972 · 4 years

Text

La Sirena

Captain Swan Supernatural Summer 2020

Posting day is here at last! I have been looking forward to sharing this new @cssns tale with everyone. The past 2 events have allowed me to experiment and stretch my creativity out of my comfort zone, inspiring me to create the world for this story.

This is the story of a disillusioned and lonely siren who chooses to defy her nature and rescue the sole survivor of a shipwreck, providing him shelter while he recovers. The two come from very different worlds but they find a kinship through`their similar failed expectations. My interpretation of the Greek mythology here has not been taken literally. In this story, sirens are shape-shifting sea creatures. Also, please note that the version of Killian written here is the young Lieutenant Jones so he does not have a hook. I know that there are some readers out there who prefer him to have the hook in CS fics so I wanted to make that clear if it is an issue for anyone.

I have to thanks @kmomof4 for being an amazing beta and I also want to thank @courtorderedcake for the absolutely stunning watercolor artwork she created for this story! (Edited to add artwork)

If all goes as planned, I’m hoping to update weekly. I’ll also be posting updates on AO3 and FF.net.

And here he go!

The Siren

For as far back as she could remember, this craggy spit of sand at the southernmost end of a narrow isthmus had been hers and hers alone. She had a nearly unobstructed view of the rock strewn bay as it blended into the deep blue sea at the horizon. Each dawn, she watched the sun rise to the east, basking in its glow until it sank beneath the waves at sunset, rarely encountering others of her kind - which was fine with her.

She'd separated herself from them decades ago, no longer content with doing Poseidon's bidding. She'd tired of using her song as a weapon, enchanting unsuspecting sailors until they leapt to their watery deaths as their ships were crushed against the boulders, their spoils lost to the depths. She'd long been told that it was merely what she'd been created to do, her beautiful voice simply a tool to serve the god of the sea. Her duty to Poseidon to rid the seas of the scourge of humanity.

Some time ago, she'd grown weary of her meager existence, gradually distancing herself from the pack. Her solitude had been her own choice, the years of loneliness easing the conscience that she wasn't supposed to have. These turquoise waters surrounding her cove provided all she needed - all except the one thing her heart desired most.

This day had begun like so many before it, low grayish clouds hugging the glassy surface of the bay. With scarcely a breeze, she knew these clouds would linger until the early morning sun rose high enough into the sky for its rays to dissipate them.

The water calm and clear, she'd decided to take a sunrise swim, wading into the gentle surf until she was deep enough for her land legs to transform into her muscular tail. The metamorphosis began at her waist, shimmering scales replacing her ivory skin as she dove beneath the surface with a flick of her fins. She was grateful for the unique physiology of her species which allowed her to breathe as freely in the depths of the sea as she could on land as it had allowed her the freedom to explore the hidden caves and reefs below the land she called home. She'd become familiar with every detail. Every pebble. Every blade of kelp. Every colorful fish that lived here amongst the coral. These were her friends, her confidants. Today, however, she sensed something out of place.

As she skimmed above the reef, her gaze was drawn upward to the streams of light that filtered through the ocean's surface, discovering a sight that didn't belong - a dark void blocking the light. The anomaly seemed too large to be any sea life from this bay and the shape unlike any ocean creature she'd seen - oddly rectangular but with two shorter and narrower protrusions sticking out from one side. It was also remaining strangely close to the surface… Whatever might this mysterious thing be?

Curious, she gave her tail fin a powerful kick to propel herself upward, poking her head above the waves a safe distance from the floating object. It may have been eons since she'd last used her voice to scuttle a ship into its grave but she could still recognize the long wooden planks as having belonged to such a vessel. Such wreckage was commonplace along these shores but what drew her attention was the human engaged in a desperate struggle to retain his grip on those still-buoyant planks.

She'd witnessed many a man plunge willingly into the depths under the hypnotic spell of the siren song but never had she seen one this close - and never had she seen one fighting to stay alive! She was transfixed by the human's struggle. Such an unusual sight - the flailing and raw instinct to save itself. She found it fascinating to watch - at least until the human's eyes met hers.

In that fraction of a second, she saw the fear in his stare transform into a glimpse of hope and now she was the one who was terrified. No human had ever seen her before, her nature screaming at her to drown this human and put him out of his misery. The problem was, her intuition was telling her to do the opposite.

It was becoming obvious that the man's strength was failing. There was no telling how long he'd been in the water but as his eyes fell closed and his grip went slack, she sprang into motion. She twisted and twirled her body towards the mysterious human, her fins and tail separating into six lithe tentacles, one of which encircled his midsection, raising his torso above the surf as she maneuvered them both to the shore.

She lowered him gently onto the white sand then drew her tentacle back into the sea as she regained her humanlike legs. Splashing her way out of the shallows, she made her way up the beach and dropped to her knees beside him although she had absolutely no idea what to do next. Tentatively, she extended a hand to touch the strange creature, oddly fearful that it might surge to life and bite her fingers off. When her fingertips at last made contact with the human's arm, they brushed against the tattered remnants of the cloth garments the man wore. He made no movement at her touch, boosting her confidence to proceed.

The majority of her kind were female and although there were a few exceptions, she'd rarely had the opportunity to be in close proximity of a male. This one lacked the long flowing locks of the males of her species, sporting dark hair cropped close to his scalp. She traced her fingers along his hairline and down across the exposed side of his face, bristling at the prickly whiskers that lined his jaw. Save for Poseidon himself, facial hair was unheard of, as was body hair. This human possessed a broad patch of wiry, dark hair across the exposed sections of his torso and a similar, though lighter coating covered other sections of visible skin on the man's arms and legs.

There was little doubt that he was the strangest creature she'd ever laid eyes upon.

But there was so much more that she could also see. The man was obviously injured. A trickle of crimson spilled over his forehead from what appeared to be a deep laceration along his hairline and she noticed dark purplish splotches dotting his pallid skin, the most prominent extending from his brow to the hollow of his cheek. The bruises showed only traces of yellowing, indicating that they were recent. His wrists were ringed with angry abrasions and she held no doubts that invisible wounds lay unseen. Whatever had this man suffered?

She hopped backwards as the human lurched awake, curling onto his side while choking and spewing seawater and bile. She'd not intended to flinch, but his unexpected movement startled her. She remained perched just beyond his reach as his fit settled and he dropped listlessly back to the sand, all the while staring at her with his haunting, intense blue eyes. He uttered but a single word before fading back into unconsciousness.

"Angel."

The Sailor

He'd been a bloody, damned fool to allow himself to be captured. The mission plans had been perfect. Liam had drawn them up himself and yet they'd still failed. Most of his landing expedition had been lost in the battle and the rest who'd survived had been captured along with him. All because His Majesty, King George, had insisted that they scout and survey a previously uncharted island that he'd now coined Neverland. The island may have been uncharted but it had been far from undiscovered as his team had found it teeming with bloodthirsty pirates - pirates who had been using the land's numerous craggy coves to stash their treasures.

On their second day after landing the skiff on the deceptively calm shore, they'd run afoul of a band of rapscallions, ill-prepared for the skirmish that followed. That had been his fault. He should have done more reconnaissance. He should never have blindly trusted the vague map and initial scouting report provided, even if they had come with his brother's blessing. As their lieutenant, it was his mission. His to lead and his alone to fail, not that any of it mattered right now…

He believed it to have been a week since he'd been taken prisoner, but in truth, he'd lost track of time. He'd spent most of his captivity bound, beaten and locked away in a foul smelling hole adjacent to the ship's cargo hold. He'd not laid eyes on his remaining crew in days, wondering whether they were in a similar predicament, were they even still alive. His captors had kept him isolated, perhaps because he was an officer in His Majesty's Royal Navy. He might fetch a ransom, should the king show favor upon him. If not, he feared he'd be executed without a second thought.

As each day passed, he was slowly losing hope that he might be rescued. Surely Liam would have learned by now that the expedition team had not returned to the rendezvous point. Would they have dispatched a search team? Did anyone even know he'd been taken prisoner? His dreams of one day captaining a ship himself taunted him as he wallowed here in this dank prison.

But as he did each day, he clenched his jaw and swallowed back the pain as he struggled to wriggle free of the ropes binding his wrists behind his back. His skin might be raw and the hemp bindings soaked with his blood, but he was Killian Jones and he'd be damned if he didn't at least attempt an escape.

The crew of this vessel had clearly been ordered to keep him alive, as evidenced by the swill they brought him as sustenance. The mangy pirates would show up periodically with a bowl of slop, untying his hands only long enough to gag it down. They cackled as he drank it, the contents never identifiable but he didn't dare think about that. He focused solely on the sustaining water it contained, avoiding thoughts of contracting dysentery or whatever other foul disease might be present.

On this day, he'd barely a minute to swallow their putrid offerings before the bowl was snatched away and his arms were yanked behind his back once again. He'd expected them to bind his wrists tighter as they typically did yet for some reason, the ropes didn't feel quite as restrictive. He wasn't sure what may have transpired, whether his captors may have been distracted, but he was certain that he'd not heard them secure the hatch either.

If he could find a way to get free… Find a sword and perchance - a way off of this miserable vessel… There were so many ifs but he had little to lose. At least were he to die fighting, he'd die with honor.

He'd not expected the sudden lurch that came next, his aching body slammed into the chamber wall as the ship's forward motion abruptly ceased. A boom reminiscent of a loud thunder crack echoed through the hull followed by the gushing of water into the void.

They'd struck something.

Was this what had distracted the pirates? Had they run aground on a sandbar or veered into the shallows in error? Oddly, he heard no voices resounding on the decks above. No orders shouted. No fearful pleas for aid. All his ears could hear was the creaking of failing wood and the pounding of his own heart.

It was life or death now for certain. This ship was sinking; he could feel the list to port and there was absolutely no way he was going to be dragged down to Davy Jones' locker on this heap. He felt along the cell walls for anything he might use to free his hands - a protruding nail or even a splintering board would help. As luck would have it, he chanced upon a bent nail which provided just enough leverage to hold the rope taut while he wriggled and contorted his hands until he could pull them free.

He shook his arms out of the bindings, grimacing as his muscles protested but he couldn't spare a moment to dwell on aching bones. While it hadn't reached the cargo hold yet, it was only a matter of time before it filled with seawater so his first priority was to get to the upper deck. He leaned his hip into the hatch, whispering a silent prayer that he'd been correct and it hadn't been fully secured.

The hatch fortuitously swung open as another violent tremor shook the ship, knocking him off of his bare feet. He was certain that the hull was fully breached as he crawled on hands and knees through the tight confines of the cargo hold in search of the spiraling steps that would lead up to the crew deck. He'd remembered to count his paces when they'd led him blindfolded to the tiny chamber so even in the darkness of the hold, he knew they must be around here somewhere.

Killian scrambled to his feet as his hand found the staircase and he scurried upward to the seemingly vacant crew deck. It was strange not to encounter another soul as he ascended through the open hatch. It was eerily quiet but nevertheless, he pressed on toward the midship staircase that would open onto the main deck. At least this deck had lanterns to illuminate his way as he dodged empty hammocks and hurried past the unoccupied bunks to get topside.

The late afternoon sun assaulted his vision as he emerged onto the abandoned deck. There wasn't a single man visible as his eyes swept his surroundings. He spied no one manning the riggings, no one in the crow's nest and most disturbing - no one at the helm. So these cowardly pirates had all abandoned ship, including their captain? So much for the captain going down with his ship…

He crossed the deck and vaulted up the steps to the bow, trying to get his bearings and determine the ship's position. He was only vaguely familiar with this expanse of the sea but there seemed to be a landmass on the horizon off of the starboard side. It was likely where the pirates had set off for although he saw no dinghies in the water. Something didn't seem to add up here.

From the bow, he was able to get a glance of the rocky outcrop they'd struck. It extended well above the surface and in broad daylight, should have been quite visible to the navigator. Experienced sailors would have known to steer away. Everything about this situation was confounding his brain but he had to concern himself with escaping this ship.

The ship shuddered beneath him as it began to slide free of the rocks. He slipped, bare feet unable to find purchase on the slick teak planks as he fell, driven into the side rail as the vessel leaned more to port. He clung to the still-sturdy posts separating him from the sea as his mind went into overdrive. Even if the pirates had left a skiff behind, he doubted he could launch it himself. And then there would be the problem of encountering these deviants again should he reach land but it seemed preferable at this moment to take his chances with the pirates rather than ride this sinking ship into the depths.

He needed to locate something that would float, not daring to attempt swimming that far in his weakened state. Maybe there was an empty barrel? A hatch he could pry loose? And he'd need a way to debark… Where would they keep their rope ladder?

He forced himself back upright using the railing for support. On Liam's ship, the rope ladder was dispatched from the aft deck and as this ship was of similar design to the Royal Navy schooners, he knew he was on the wrong end of the ship - and his good fortune had run out.

Too much water had now entered the ship's hull and she was beginning to break apart. The weight of the water tore the ship free of the boulder that had ripped through the hull and as it slipped deeper into the waves, a crack split the deck apart. Killian grasped wildly to the closest rigging lines he could find as the stern broke loose. The time for plans was gone.

He swung out of control in the tangle of ropes and pulleys, teetering precariously above the deep blue ocean. Damnit, Jones - what the hell have you gotten yourself into? He'd trained for dangers like this - for how to survive a sinking ship… He'd just never figured he'd be without a crew…

And out of nowhere, his chances of survival took a turn for the worst. A steel pulley swinging in tandem with him smacked into his forehead and he lost his grip on the rope. Stunned from the blow, he couldn't coordinate his limbs to reach for anything that would stop his fall, splashing awkwardly into the sea.

That sudden impact jolted him back to consciousness as sheer instinct took over. He was a strong swimmer under normal circumstances, but this certainly was not and to make matters more complicated, the sun would soon set. He could tread water in the dark all night…

There! his weary brain called out to him. There's a board… It will serve as a raft. Get yourself to it! His gaze caught sight of the planks floating a short distance from him. Hampered by the sting of salt water in his wounds, angry muscles that had been abused for too long and a steady stream of blood pouring from the fresh cut above his brow, the swim was arduous. He was near ready to faint by the time he reached the panel of three boards still somehow holding together. He used every remaining bit of his strength to drag himself atop it and collapsed.

Killian was thankful for calm seas as he drifted through the night although less thankful that the current had carried him away from the land he'd hoped to reach. By the time the first golden rays of morning sun crested over the eastern horizon, he found himself enveloped amidst a thin layer of marine clouds. He could no longer see any traces of the ill-fated pirate ship nor any visible land masses.

He'd fought valiantly to remain alert throughout the evening, fearful of losing his perch on the narrow planks but fatigue and injury were taking their toll. He struggled to raise his head as he succumbed to the blissful call of unconsciousness. As a man of the sea, he'd always expected that his death would come at the mercy of the sea. Perhaps he hadn't thought it would come so soon…

I'm sorry, Liam… I've failed you yet again… was the last thought he remembered as he gave in to the blackness.

He wouldn't recall slipping from the planks or the momentary struggle to pull himself back atop of his makeshift raft. The next time his eyes opened, he was certain he'd crossed over into the afterlife. An expanse of azure sky loomed above him and he felt the security of land beneath his back. He wouldn't have expected the aches and pains of his life tragically cut short would have accompanied him into the next life, but he'd never died before…

Of course, this could be but a dream. Exhaustion still weighed heavily upon him so this could all be a mere hallucination of a dying man - more so when he saw her. Killian couldn't make out the details of her face but there she was, cutting a figure akin to a goddess with tresses like the sun tumbling over her porcelain shoulders and bared bosoms. Such beauty could only be…

The words formed in his head: Are you an… Only one would cross his lips - "Angel?"

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