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sabo-has-my-heart · 1 year

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Letting Them Escape

An ASL + Garp fic I wrote based off of this

@bumblebeeappletree and @whatreality I wrote it, hope you like it. I went a little off script from the original post but wanted to keep it mostly to the core concept.

Warnings: no romantic pairing!

Word Count: 1515

Looking out at the waters, Sabo’s brow furrowed, something pulled at his mind, fighting to escape. He’d come back to the island where Dragon had pulled him out of the waters. He’d been trying to remember who he was lately, though he couldn’t say why. He hadn’t cared about who he’d been for so long, hadn’t cared to remember his past or what his life with his birth family had been like. It wasn’t until recently that he’d started to care, waking up in a cold sweat as voices called out to him in his dreams. His feet seemed to know where to go, taking him high into the forests of Mt. Corvo. Now he was standing at the edge of a familiar cliff, looking out at the sea, memories straining to break free.

“Starting today…… We’re brothers!” a voice cheered in his head. Brothers… Did he… have brothers? Not by blood, not nobles, but loving, caring brothers? “I heard you’re a dirty trouble maker!” “...y! If you can’t keep up we’ll leave you behind!” “Another win for A-” “Gum-Gum Pistol!” “Try not to get eaten this time, Lu-” “Come clean, Sabo!” “Ace! Luffy! Let’s go out to sea someday!” Sabo clutched his head, it hurt, his head was pounding as the memories started to flood back. Ace, Luffy, they were his brothers, his sworn brothers. Falling to his knees, breath coming out in heavy gasps, he tried not to cry out in pain, gritting his teeth, his brain feeling like it was going to burst. He managed to stand, stumbling back into the forest until he reached a large tree. He easily recognized the battered and worn treehouse. It took everything he had left, but he managed to get into the rickety structure, collapsing on the floor before falling unconscious, his mind too taxed to stay conscious. He wasn’t sure how long it was until he awoke, only that the sun was rising and that his head was still pounding, but he remembered, he remembered everything. Ace and Luffy were his brothers and by now, they were both at sea. He had to catch up to them, he had to find them! It might be best to start with Ace, he’d known Ace longer, he should tell him first.

Garp had been following the trail for a while. He was a vice admiral and hero of the marines, meaning he was well informed of many things that happened within the marines. In particular, he received every wanted poster above a certain amount. He’d received Ace’s once the boy had become infamous enough, a fact that he hadn’t been pleased about. Now he was searching for someone else. A boy that worked under his son, Dragon. It couldn't be true, could it? It had to be a coincidence. Still, he’d met the boy, attempted to train him and teach him to be a marine before he died, could he actually be alive? He had to at least try to find him, if it was true, it would be worth it. While he didn’t agree with the Revolutionaries and wished Ace and Luffy weren’t pirates, he still cared about them and had even cared about Sabo too. If he could find the boy and he was alive, he prayed that it really was Sabo.

It took time to catch up with the freckled boy, a lot of time. Ace moved quickly, a result of his method of transportation. He was able to speed across the water faster than any sailboat, that was for sure, meaning that Sabo had to predict where Ace would go based on where Blackbeard was. Thankfully, the Revolutionary Army’s information network was vast and well informed. Still, it wasn’t until Banaro Island that Sabo caught up with him, jumping up onto the rooftop that Ace waited on.

“Finally caught up with you!” Sabo said, giving the black haired boy a large grin.

“Sorry, but do I know you?” Ace asked, looking at the blond in confusion.

“Eh, sort of. It’s been 10 years since we last saw each other, but we’re still brothers, we made a promise after all.” Sabo said with a chuckle, Ace’s eyes narrowing.

“If this is a joke, your humor sucks.” Ace growled, pausing when he heard a familiar voice.

“We’re going to need to put this conversation on hold.” Ace said, turning to face a large, black haired man, both Sabo and Ace growing rather irritated when they spoke of capturing Luffy.

“I’ve been looking for you.” Ace said, drawing the attention of the pirates before them. Sabo let the two talk, glaring at the large man when he talked about presenting Luffy to the government as a gift.

“That’s our little brother you’re talking about.” Sabo interjected, his pipe held in one hand and resting on his shoulder. A few shots fired off, blowing right through Ace, the pirates not paying any attention to the ‘random’ blond haired boy standing next to him. Both boys immediately began fighting, Ace firing off fire ‘bullets’ as Sabo started attacking some of the others with his pipe. The two stood side by side once more as Blackbeard told his minions to back off, knowing that Ace was too strong for them.

“What, am I not interesting enough to be included?” Sabo joked. The three were soon fighting, Sabo backing up Ace as best he could. Still, this Blackbeard guy and his devil fruit were strong, forcing both of them to fight their hardest.

“You’re not a bad fighter.” Ace said as they both breathed hard.

“What do you expect from your brother? Or do you still not believe me?” Sabo asked, dodging one of Blackbeard's attacks.

“What reason do I have to trust you? Dogra saw my brother’s boat get shot down.” Ace replied, Sabo nodding in understanding.

“I should have died that day, I… shit, watch out!” Sabo shouted, tackling Ace to the ground, saving the both of them from another attack, “You know, I really don’t think this is the time for this. Why don’t we save it for after we kick this guy’s ass? I don’t think we can afford to be distracted.” Sabo said, looking back at Blackbeard.

“Agreed, I-” Ace was cut off as both boys were sent flying forwards, too busy focusing on Blackbeard to pay attention to the shouting behind them until they were sprawled out on the ground. Ace pushed himself up, glaring down at the ground.

“Do you mind, old man? I’m busy here!” Ace growled, his head whipping around to face the older man behind them.

“Old ma- Garp?!” Sabo shouted, his eyes widening as he inched away.

“You remember me, don’t you… Sabo?” Garp asked, a serious look on his face, though his eyes shone with familiarity and affection.

“How could I forget your beatings, but we really don’t have time for this. We’re a little busy.” Sabo said, gesturing to Blackbeard. The look in Garp’s eyes as he looked at the man they were fighting turned dark.

“Now what do you think you were doing to my no-good grandsons?” Garp demanded, glaring at Blackbeard. Sabo and Ace inched back, carefully watching the two men. It was quite clear that Garp wanted to beat Blackbeard into the dirt for harming Ace and Sabo, the man being rather protective of the boys even if he himself beat them on a regular basis. Watching Garp fight off Blackbeard, it was pretty obvious who was winning. Even as old as he’d gotten, he was still the man who’d chased Roger for years, a man more than capable of, if nothing else, holding off Blackbeard.

“Come on, Garp’s got this handled and I don’t want to taste that ‘Fist of Love’ a second time.” Sabo urged, pulling Ace’s arm.

“Blackbeard is supposed to be my responsibility, I was his division commander, it’s my job to-”

“Ace, we were getting our asses handed to us. Gramps has got this, right now we need to retreat, at least until we’ve got some back-up. The two of us aren’t enough.” Sabo hesitated before sighing.

“Listen, if Garp doesn’t throw his ass into the lowest level of Impel Down, I promise I know some people, we’ll go after him once we have help.” Sabo said, pulling at his brother again. Ace hesitated for a moment but followed Sabo nonetheless, both boys ‘sneaking’ away even as Garp shouted at them to get back there so he could ‘teach them a lesson’. Garp knew he could have stopped them, knew that if he wanted he was still more than capable of knocking Blackbeard into the next century, but then he’d have to go after Ace and Sabo, best to let everyone think he was ‘too busy’ to chase after his grandsons.

“Don’t go dying now that you’re back together.” Garp whispered under his breath as he focused on fighting Blackbeard. Ace and Sabo were alive and ‘safe’, that’s what mattered. With any luck, they’d stay that way as they sailed off to meet up with Luffy.

#one piece #one piece ace #one piece sabo #One piece Garp #Portgas D. Ace #fire fist ace #op ace #portgas d ace #second division commander ace #hiken no ace #monkey d Garp #Monkey D. Garp #hero of the marines Garp #vice admiral Garp #op sabo #sabo the revolutionary #chief of staff sabo #flame emperor sabo

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fyregrayfong · 3 years

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Under Pressure 11|15

FryeArcana

Chapter 11

Busted

Summary:

You deal with being suspended from your job. A visit to Mako might help you find some resolution along with Bolin's premiere of the finale of his movers.

The metal door slides open as you walk in and see Mako slouched on the metallic cold bed. “long time since I’ve seen you” you mutter as Officer Song closes the door behind you as you take a seat at the chair in the corner. Mako perks up as he looks at you “y/n! I see you’re not cuffed.” He signed in relief. You shook your head, but frown upset with yourself “no, but I did get suspended. I’m off the case. Chief is furious with how I handled things.” You look and leaning over with your hands clasp together. “she thinks you played me…. I’m only going to ask this once Mako, but I have to know…. Did you have a hand in stealing Asami’s property”. Once a Triple Threat, Always a Triple Threat, Gang’s voice rings in your head. You look at him, analyzing him. Mako looked you in the eyes “No, I would never hurt Asami like that. I care about her” you listen to his voice, so sure of himself nothing to tip you off that you lower your head and sigh. “I know you wouldn’t, but I just had to know for sure” you put your hands over your head. “you believe me? with the whole Varrick theory” he’s surprised. He thought with the whole bust at his apartment that he lost your trust and you would turn your back on him too. Mako looks like he has some hope creeping up on him. “I thought for sure after that bust, I would have lost your trust” he looked down. The corner of your lip slightly curls up “I did think that at the time…but on the ride to my apartment and then watching Chief search my things. It became clear that Varrick wanted us handled. I’m surprised though…my place came out clean.” You look out the small opening from the door and check to see if anyone is out there before looking back at Mako as he thinks. “Varrick must’ve assumed that once Chief Beifong learned that you were involved that you wouldn’t gotten suspended or kicked off the force. I was present at every situation, the hiring, the ship, then at the mover set. I was the one doing all the digging.” You slowly nod your head understanding “yeah, I guess so. That makes sense. Lock up the badgermole and it stops it from digging any more holes.” You mutter softly then clear your throat “I don’t know what I can do since I’m off the investigation. I don’t even think I should even be here. Chief might arrest me for some lame excuse like tampering the investigation. I should go before there is any alarm” You stand up and walk over to the door, Mako stops you grabbing your arm “wait, y/n…thanks. Despite everything against me you’re sticking to believe me. I…” he looks down and you smile putting a hand on his shoulder “I trust you Mako. You’re great at your job. I know we had a rocky start when you first started, but during this whole mess I’ve gotten a better understanding of you. I’ll try and find some way to clear your name.” you squeeze his shoulder and knock on the door to be let out. Mako speaks up softly “Where’s Asami…” your face softens, and you think back at how your friend is taking this news “she’s…. trying to grasp the situation. I’m sure she trusts and believes you but….” You sigh and shrug as Song lets you out. “I’ll catch you later, Mako” you wave goodbye.

Walk down the stairs and looking around corners trying not to get caught by Lin. You’re just about to make it down the lobby when Lin walks in from the entrance and her eyes widen when she sees you. “what are you doing here. Do you not understand what being suspended means” she puts her hand on her hip. You groan out “relax, I’m not here to work. I was actually walking out.” You walk past her and she grips your arm to stop you looking over her shoulder up to you “If I find out that you’re still investigating on the case. Consider your career over.” She narrows her eyes keeping her voice down, but you can feel the anger in her tone. You put your hand on hers and peel her hand off your arm, not wanting to jerk your arm away in anger or be rude. You still love this woman even though she doesn’t agree with you. you glare back at her and give her a sly smirk “is that a threat, chief?” you look at her eyes. She snarls at you and huffs “it’s a promise, Lieutenant” She rebuffs. You glance down at her lips then back at her eyes and your face softens, hurt imprinted on your face. You look away and brush past her walking out the station.

A strange envelope in the mail is in your mailbox once you get inside you open it. It’s from Bolin, he’s invited you to the big finale of his mover Nuktuk: Hero of the South. “Well at least something good has come out of this mess, Bolin is a mover star now.” You mutter under your breath as you put the letter down then open the box that came with it, filled with Nuktuk merch and a large poster of the mover “huh…there’s writing on the top..”

Dear y/n,

Nuktuk says, ‘Keep Reaching For The Stars.’

From,

Bolin aka Nuktuk aka Hero of the South

p.s. Pabu says hi and he misses you

You roll your eyes but silently laugh, typical Bolin. You set the poster down and frown sighing. “I guess I could go, show support to Bolin. It’s not like I got anything better to do.”

“man this collar is kind of tight” you tug on the collar of your shirt as you sport out your pant suit as you walk through the crowd to get inside when you catch a glimpse of Lin and you groan “of course she’ll be detailing the security tonight. President Raiko is here after all” you rub your face then make your way over to her direction. “didn’t ping you as a mover fanatic” you speak up and Lin turns around when she hears your voice “what are you doing here?” she snaps and you smirk “I was invited, what about you?” you look back at Lin, her eyes dart to check your outfit out. While your eyes dart to her lips as she fashions a dark shade of red. “I’m here for only security purposes. President Raiko is in attendance so I have the best to keep watch.” You look around and let out a laugh “yeah… sure, the best” Lin’s cheeks redden and balls her fists “what” and you point in the direction of Lu and Gang “I think your “best” would rather be scarfing down varri-cakes than guarding their posts, Chief.” You slide a hand in your pocket and laugh. Lin’s cheeks heat up with embarrassment as she groans and starts stomping away. You grab her arm and pull her back to you catching her in surprise “For security purposes you sure wear that shade of red very well. Is that for anyone in particular?” you talk in a hushed low growl looking down at her as she looks at you. Her eyes glance down to your lips as you slightly bite your lip and she huffs trying to hid her blush, “Of course not” she snaps as she pushes off of you and stomps away. You watch her walk up to the detectives yell their ear off giving them orders to get to their posts. You snicker while you head inside looking for your seat, while Lin glances at your direction with her arms folding and watches you walking away looking down and sighs deeply.

You find your way to the box that Bolin mentioned in his letter and greet Asami, Bolin, and Ginger. “Hey everyone, Ginger nice to see you again” you warmly smile at you. Bolin excitedly walks up to you and hugs you picking you up “y/n! I’m so glad you made it” he smiles, and you pat his shoulder to get him to put you down “yeah, I wouldn’t miss this for the world, buddy. What’s a friend without supporting your projects.” You smile awkwardly then look at Asami “hey Sami, you look great as usual” you softly smile at her before giving her a small hug which she returns. “yeah, all things considered” you all look down as a sad feeling washes over you as you all think about Mako. Bolin clears his throat “come on, let’s not thinking about Mako for tonight. This is Nuktuk time!” he smiles brightly as he poses in a hero stance. You nod and give him a small nod “sure let’s take our seats. I think Varrick is about to start” everyone makes their way towards their seats as you take the open seat by Ginger and listen to Varrick’s speech.

“thank you all for coming to the finale of Nuktuk: Hero of the South. You know, when I first started this project, there were a lot of naysayers out there.

“you can’t make pictures move,” They said.

“you can’t take some knucklehead earthbender and make him a star,” they said.

“you can’t teach a polar bear dog to speak,” they said.

Well, they’re wrong. Thanks to the magic of the movers, our furry friends have found their voices and you’ll be shocked to hear what they have to say.

They speak of the injustice that’s happening in the Southern Water Tribe right now. My hope is that their words and this epic mover will inspire a real-life hero to rise up and help.” Varrick takes a moment to let the words sink into the audience “thank you again. Enjoy the show.”

Varrick surely is a master manipulator. Your eyes roll after he’s done and you look over at Bolin who seems to look sad, he’s usually always chipper. Maybe he’s sad Mako isn’t here to experience this with him? You frown a bit but look back at the screen and try to enjoy the mover. You watch Nuktuk grieving a dying Juji and suddenly you see Bolin get up from his seat and walk out the box you look at Asami who exchanges your glance before whispering “I’ll go talk to him” you nod as you watch Asami get up and walk out the box after him.

“…I will be the ruler of Ice Earth” a dramatized evil Unalaq cackles in the mover and you laugh quietly. They got the evil power hungry chief right. You sense a large bang coming next door then the next second a guy in waterbender clothes is flying out landing in the water below. Your grip the arms of the chair and look over the railing before looking over at the box and notice the commotion. You jump out of your seat, jump up on the bar above and swing over to the other side of the wall into the next box kicking a guy down landing on his back. Then hop off of him accessing the scene and find Bolin “Bolin? What’s going on” he shouts, “they’re kidnapping the president!” as he gets down knocking out two guys by bending columns out the ground before warning the President and his wife to stand back. You help the president and his wife out from the box before three more men come running in your direction. You stand in front of them and tell them to stand aside as you get in your fighting stance dodging their attacks. You send a series of boulders their way before kicking up a slab of earth and send spike it towards their stomachs knocking them out. You grab the President and his wife “hurry, this way. The police should be on their way to get you to safety.” You escort them down the hall then you run into three officers who are about to knock you down before Raiko stops them “she saved us from those men” they nod then recognize you. you guess without your uniform you don’t look familiar to them. One of the officers look at you “we’ll take it from here” and you nod bowing out before running back and check on Bolin.

You run back into the president’s box when you see Bolin about to send a disc at one of the waterbender’s head question who sent him. The guy cowers in fear and points at Varrick’s box and you glare, “Varrick…. gotcha” you mutter as you smirk finally getting your confirmation. I have to get him before he escapes. You run out the box and start sprinting down the hall to Varrick and run into Lin and her force stopping. Lin watching her men arrest Varrick and Zhu Li turns her head to look at you then looks down feeling slightly guilty. You give her a soft nod and turn around walking away from the situation when you find it’s being handled.

“huh I guess he really is Nuktuk” you smile crossing your arms as you stand next to Asami. Both of you watching the cameras of the paparazzi in a frenzy taking photographs of Bolin to which he poses smiling big and bright. “yeah, he’s a real hero” Asami smiles as she watches Bolin then both your eyes widen when Ginger pulls Bolin into a kiss, “I can’t believe my boyfriend is a real-life hero.” She exclaims and you perk your eyebrows up. “When did Bolin get a girlfriend I thought Ginger was for publicity.” You lean over at Asami and whisper to which she shrugs just as shocked and confused as you. Asami walks up to Bolin “Bolin, you saved the president, and you proved Mako was right all along! We have to go tell him what happened” she tells him while he is in the middle of making out with Ginger. “yeah!” Bolin mumbles against Ginger’s lips then goes back to kissing her before Asami clears her throat and steps back “oh you meant right now.” You laugh and step forward “yeah, come on lover boy”

You pat him on the back when you hear a noise coming from the sky and look up to see “Oogi?” you mumble as you watch Oogi land at the entrance and you three run over enough to hear Korra say “…Unalaq wants to destroy the world” you subconsciously stand beside Lin as Bolin starts questioning Korra “Unalaq is gonna destroy the world? He really does have a doomsday device?”

“he’s trying to release a powerful dark spirit during Harmonic Convergence, which is only a few days away. If he succeeds, the world as we know it is over. Sir, we desperately need your help.”

Your eyes wide at Korra’s report and turn to the President, surely now he will change his views and want to fight. This is no longer a civil war, it’s now a world issue. He waits a moment before responding “I’m sorry, Korra, but my answer is still no.” everyone eyes widen at his respond and Tenzin speaks up heated evidently not happy of his comment which surprises you because Tenzin is never this angry unless it was Korra doing something juvenile “There are lives on the line! And my daughter is one of them. Raiko, you must reconsider” he barks out. Wait what, his daughter? Jinora or Ikki? What happened to them? “Sir, I strongly suggest you reconsider, this is no longer a civil matter between two tribes. It is now a world issue..” you but in trying to reason with the president. “Enough!” Raiko shouts then sighs “I’m aware that lives are on the line, and that’s precisely why my troops are staying here. If the world is going to be thrown into chaos, like you claim, I need to protect my citizens. I’m sorry.” He laments as Bolin steps forward with a newfound confidence putting a hand on Raiko’s shoulder “Sir…Nuktuk needs your help. I know you love helping people.” Oh he’s acting as Nuktuk. Raiko eyes him down “Son, I appreciate you saving my life,” He looks over at you “you too, Lieutenant” then looks back at Bolin “I’m a big fan of your work, but my decision is final.” He turns around and leaves the group, everyone wondering what to do know. Bolin looks down “I never should’ve saved that guy” you join him “you and me both” you sigh. Asami turns to Korra “if you guys need help, I’m here for you” Bolin joins in “yeah, me too” you smile and step forward pointing your thumb at your chest “count me in too” Korra smiles appreciatively at the three of you “Thank you. it’s so good to see you guys again” then looks around “wait, where’s Mako” Bolin, Asami and you share glances before you speak up “he’s being held in prison. It’s a long story. We should go wait for him at the station when he gets out.” Everyone nods and Tenzin offers to give everyone a ride to the station.

You’re sitting at one of the benches further from the crowd as you wait for Mako to get released. You wanted to spend some time by yourself having your head down as you go over what transpired tonight. Your eyes open when you hear those metallic steps you know so well approach you and stands in front of you, you look up and crack a smile

“Chief, Looks like a nice evening to release a prisoner”. Lin sighs and uncrosses her arms

“you were right. I should have should’ve trusted Mako and…. I should have trusted--believed you.” you lean back in on the bench and sigh looking at Lin not saying anything for a couple of seconds before a smirk appears on your lips

“I’m willing to look past this and blame Raiko for stressing you out” you say smugly then you soften

“I wouldn’t be putting my job on the line if I didn’t think there was some truth in what Mako was saying” you quiet your voice as you put your hand on your thighs to push yourself up to stand up and face her.

“I know that now, but you shouldn’t have lied to me, y/n” she lowers her voice as she looks at you.

“you’re right, I shouldn’t have lied, but it had to be done or else we wouldn’t have gotten close to figuring out Varrick. You would’ve put a stop to it and would further delay or worse let Varrick get away” you mutter and before she can respond you quickly add

“you can’t tell me I’m not right on that” you smile as you fold your arms.

She sighs deeply “you’re incorrigible” she mutters. “I’m going to send Bolin to release Mako” she gives you the news as she turns around

“what about my job?” you ask as she turn her head over back to you

“I would figure you would have the intuition to know that you’re reinstated” she gives you a smile before dropping it as she turns back around but you quickly grab her arm stopping her before letting go realizing where you are and lower your voice even quieter

“what about us?” Lin stiffens up then whispers back “we’ll talk about that later…” before she finally walks away and gives Bolin the order and you watch him run inside. It takes a couple minutes, but you start to hear footsteps coming from the halls and you stand up walking over and stand besides Lin and the other officers and start to clap when you see Mako. Everyone follows your suit and Lin speaks up

“Nice job, Mako. You’re going to make a great detective.” She smiles at Mako. I guess she does smile in public. Lu and Gang’s jaws drop and look at each other confused

“but, chief, there aren’t any detective openings right now.” Chief looks over and responds nonchalantly

“Actually, we have two openings.” You cross your arms and looking down at the floor to hide your grin. Fucking finally they’re gone. Mako glances over at Asami and smiles while Korra pushes past the crowd and hugs him before giving him a kiss. She’s talking to him like their still together. You and Bolin watch the two with your eyes widen and really confused you eye Asami before glancing back at the couple(?). Mako surprised to see Korra here and Bolin tries to smooth the situation over.

“oh yeah…. Korra’s back”. Mako and Korra talk to which he asks her if they remember the big fight they had. Korra looks down and shakes her head

“no, not really. I got attacked by a dark spirit and I lost my memory for a little while. Maybe it hasn’t all come back yet. Was it a bad fight?” Yes. You guys broke up. You answered in your head but hoped Mako has matured and be man enough to tell Korra those words.

“uh……..” Mako drags out as everyone looks at this show. You and Bumi with your arms crossed, Lin has her hands on her hips and everyone else just waiting for his response.

“….mm… no. No, it—it wasn’t that bad.” he finally retorts. Asami looks mad and crosses her arms and you quietly smack her head down on your palm. Well this is awkward. Tenzin steps up to clear the tension and change the subject. Yes, let’s cut and dodge this whole scene, good job Tenzin put those airbending moves in action.

“Korra, we don’t have much time. We need to figure out how to deal with Unalaq.” Bolin looks at Tenzin

“I think I know just the man to talk to.”

“why wouldn’t I be surprised” you muttered as you see Varrick’s prison chamber.

“Varrick industries built this prison, and I had this cell made special. I had a feeling I’d end up here one day” he smirks, and you run your hands down into your pockets as you watch him order his assistant around.

“Don’t tell me you guys are still mad about everything that happened.” You groan out

“Yup, why wouldn’t we be” you glare at him. “I did some good things too” he sounds hurt “like what?” you talk back to him to which he started naming a good thing he’s done for every person.

“Korra, who warned you about Unalaq? I did”

“Bolin, who got you into the movers? I did”

“Asami, who saved your company? I did”

“You…actually I’m coming at a blank….” He steps up the cell and eyes you Zhu Li speaks up

“That’s y/n, sir. She’s Asami’s close friend and also works under Chief Beifong as a Lieutenant” You look over at Zhu Li and give her a short nod before looking back at Varrick as he smirks at you

“right… y/n, hmm sorry didn’t do anything for you… I guess, I didn’t” he steps away as you roll your eyes as he points at Mako

“Mako, who got you thrown in jail? I did!.... oh yeah, I guess that was a bad thing. 3 out of 5 ain’t bad.” He looks down counting on his fingers.

“it’s not good either…. You did all that stuff to fool and manipulate them into your grand scheme.” You snap at him as Asami steps up “you stole everything from me, and you tried to kidnap the president. Those are pretty bad too.”

“I wasn’t going to hurt him. I just needed to start a war. Well, a bigger war.” As he extends his arms apart to show how big he wanted this war to be.

Bolin jumps “well we’re gonna end it.”

You look from Bolin then turn to Varrick “Where’s all the stuff you stole from Asami?”

Varrick puts his arms on his hips “the Future Industries stuff? It’s on my battleship.”

Korra raises an eyebrow “you have a battleship?”

“Of course I do! I bought the first on they made, named her the Zhu Li”

You frown “that’s nice…. I guess”

Bolin proceeds to ask, “you named your battleship after your assistant?”

“yep. They’re both cold, heartless war machines.”

“um, never mind about it being nice” you mutter out loud

“Look, I am truly sorry for the mess I caused. Let me make it up to you. Take Zhu Li…. My battleship, it’s yours, and everything on it.”

Korra perks up “it’s not the fleet we were looking for, but it’s the next best thing.”

Bolin jumps up excited and happy “Alright! Team Avatar is back in business!” he pulls Korra, Asami and Mako into a group hug as they all laugh. He tries to grab you, but you step aside and smile “come y/n you’re part of the team too!” he looks at you and you shake your head “I wasn��t at that initial meeting” you laugh and Bolin puts a finger on his chin as he thinks “well you’re part of T.A.B” he smiles and your eyebrow raises confused “um…T.A.B.? I’m a tab?” you cross your arms slightly feeling offended as he quickly waves his hands “not tab, T.A.B! Team Avatar B! The team consists of Tenzin, Kya, Bumi, General Iroh, Chief Beifong, and you”. You and Lin exchange a glance then look back at Bolin “um, right…T.A.B” you smile softly. “well let’s get packed up, take a quick nap and embark first thing in the morning” you smile then walk over to Asami making sure she’s okay with everything with Mako and then plan for her to swing by your place and give you a ride. We got a crazy evil north chief to stop.

#lin x reader #lin beifong x reader #fanfic #linbeifong #lin beifong #TLOK2UnderPressure #fyrefics #linxreader #linbeifongxreader #linbeifong x reader

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starchild--27 · 3 years

Text

Winter.

EXO - magical!AU (incl .EXO OT12 members)

S - part 1 / S - part 2 / F - part 3 / W - part 4

word count: ~ 3450 words

special mention: @kafkascupcake Feli~ it’s your birthday today!!! This is my little present for you - the final part of my magical EXO au and I hope you like it. But I hope even more that the next year will be gentle on you, that you’ll have a lot less stress, a lot less worries and a lot more reasons to smile and be happy. I wish you health and love and strength and that there will be time for you to take care of yourself when you need it. Happy Birthday! I’m so happy I met you on here! ❤ *big exo ot12 sized hug*

further tag: @katjanara 🥰

Winter, as every year, was all about Christmas. Everybody promising no to buy each other gifts only to break the promise in the end. Everybody getting lost in finding at least a little something for everybody despite the yearly resolution not to rush through December like that.

The streets you strolled leisurely were packed with people carrying bags and boxes or wearing worried faces, distressed by the nearing holiday. You on the other hand couldn’t be bothered. For the first time in what felt like ages you actually enjoyed the festive atmosphere, watching decorated streets, shops and windows, some Christmas carol always playing from somewhere.

Maybe you’ve been possessed by a Christmas spirit this year, maybe you just had a lot less stress with finding presents that never felt more perfect. With a little smile on your lips you walked past a sign with a bright yellow arrow on it, pointing just towards the place you were heading to, before you carefully made your way down the stairs to enter your trusted record store.

Comfortable warmth brushed against your face as you entered. The wintery temperatures outside definitely had affected the state of your fingers, which you quickly rubbed together, a motion in hope to make the numbness go away quicker. You kept your coat on this time as the coat stand was holding enough wet jackets already. After Chanyeol had given in with a displeased grunt, he and Sehun designed the outdoor sign with the arrow. It was at least a little hint towards the shop and apparently it was noticed by enough people to fill up the coat stand with jackets, scarfs and hats.

“Hey, (y/n)!” an excited Chanyeol greeted you, while Sehun gave you a quick wave from the back of the shop, currently helping some customers with a record player.

“Good to see you here again! Christmas shopping this time?”

You nodded in agreement and checked the mental list of presents.

“I'll head to the soundtrack section first” you informed the shopkeeper.

“Great! I'll bring you some cookies. Kyungsoo tried tons of new recipes this year and we somehow have to get rid of them.”

Then the two of you went your separate ways. Chanyeol to one of the rooms in the back of the shop, you towards the area where walls plastered with movie posters greeted you.

You knew your grandparents would be happy about reminiscing one of the first dates they had together by listening to the soundtrack of the movie they went to when going to the cinema was still something special. And by the broad variety and amount of records Sehun and Chanyeol offered, you had not a single doubt you would find that one specific album you were looking for.

Only a couple of minutes later you held it in your hands, smiling fondly at the memory of your grandmother telling you the story how your grandfather wasn't excited at all to watch the movie and only accompanied her because it made him happy to see her happy. She always said that he would never admit it, but that she just knows that he ended up liking the movie just as much as she did.

A swift movement pulled you back from your memories. It was Sehun who held out a paper bag for you to put your discovery in. You shook your head at yourself as you took the bag from him with a smile and a polite “thank you”. How had you been so lost in your thoughts that you didn't hear him approaching?

“What's the next record you are looking for? Maybe I can help you with finding some of your presents for a quick moment. Right now, nobody else here needs my assistance so I can lend you a hand” he offered.

“If it's no bother, then yes, please. I need something from the classical section now. My parents love Chopin, so maybe we can find a special something there?”

“Believe me or not – I already know one record you will absolutely want to get them!” another voice mixed into your conversation. Chanyeol was back, handing you a bowl with cookies.

“And I think I know exactly which one Chanyeol means. Follow us!” Sehun agreed while sending a knowing smirk towards his colleague, who led the way to the section.

You had to smile, too, at the smoothness the two of them worked together. They knew each other and their shop in a way you only had ever encountered in Flowery Friends and the café before.

After a few seconds of Chanyeol quickly skipping through the records, he finally pulled one out with a triumphant “hah!” from his mouth.

“That's the one! A selection of pieces by Chopin, recorded in a park right next to a little lake. Some park in Warsaw if I remember correctly. Not an old recording, but something with a nice atmosphere. Something special. Put this on, close your eyes and you'll feel just like you're sitting in that park, listening to the soft piano and the sounds of nature.”

“You just quoted your own post-it in that last sentence, right?” Sehun said with an amused tone. Apparently, he found the passionate behaviour of his friend just as endearing as you did.

“Yes. What about it?” Chanyeol replied proudly before turning his attention to you again. “So… what do you think?”

“I think it sounds just like something my parents would love!” you answered honestly.

With a satisfied “Perfect” Chanyeol slid the record into your paper bag. “What's next?”

You bought a total of six records, one for yourself included. While Sehun was off to help other customers again, Chanyeol pulled the price tags off the thin plastic stretching over the cover of the record, keeping it safe from damage, and did the math, not without giving you a little discount because you were a regular and a friend. By now you had understood that protesting against these little acts of generosity was just as pointless as talking to a wall. Slowly you learned to accept them without feeling weird about it.

“So... that should be it” Chanyeol smiled as he handed you your bag. Just when you were about to grab it, he seemed to remember something though.

“No. Wait another second!”

He opened one drawer on his side of the register table and let another six CDs join the records you had just bought.

“My own music” he grinned even wider, which hadn't thought would be possible. “I just finished my first own little album recently. Maybe you're interested. I did everything myself – composing, writing the lyrics, production, mastering... Anyway, the CDs just arrived a few days ago and now I hand it out to people for free as a little audio sample, you know? Please, tell me how you liked it, once you listened to it, will you?”

It warmed your heart to see Chanyeol so excited about his own music and it was kind of contagious as well. You couldn't wait to give his work a listen.

“Sure thing! Thank you” you replied with all the enthusiasm you felt. “Not only for the CDs but also for your help. Please tell Sehun too. I need to go now, prepare some more things. But I wish you guys Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! See you soon!”

“Same for you, (y/n)! Bye!”

With a last little wave, you left the shop through the yellow door and passed two boys with curious looks on their faces on the steep stairs. Surely, that was the sense of adventure Sehun and Chanyeol had strived for when they first opened the shop. You were insanely happy that this seemed to work out for them.

Back on the busy streets you checked your mental list again. A visit to your favourite café was the next thing to do. What could make a present better than some sweet little pastries and different kinds of cookies?

Thanks to a shortcut Jongin and Minseok had shown you a couple weeks ago, you didn’t fell too cold when you arrived there. You already saw Jongdae and Jongin busily carrying plates and cups between the counter and tables through the wide windows. Still they called a cheery “Merry Christmas, (y/n)!” at you when you entered the café before they hurried back to their work. You were greeted with Kyungsoo’s smile as you approached the counter.

“(Y/n)! What can we do for you?”

“I need five small packages of your cookie mix and a hot chocolate to go, please!”

“Okay, it will take a few minutes. Just wait over here” Kyungsoo said with that shimmer in his eyes that indicated he already knew exactly what he would prepare for you. Then he disappeared in the kitchen rooms of the café.

“Your hot chocolate…” you suddenly heard Minseok’s voice as he put the paper cup down in front of you, a delicious smell finding its way to your nose.

You hummed contently.

“Thank you” you added but Minseok didn’t seem to hear that, distracted by the little bell at the entrance door chiming. A gasp left his mouth.

“Jongdae! Jongin! Look who’s here!”

Not only the two waiters turned their head towards the door, you did as well, curious what made Minseok react so excitedly.

Even before you could ask what was going on, Minseok had left his place by the coffee machine, walking towards the three men that had just entered the café to give each of them a tight hug. Jongdae and Jongin did the same.

“Luhan! Tao!” After quickly putting the little packages of cookies down in front of you, Kyungsoo, who had just come back from the kitchen, left the counter as well to hug the three.

With the happiest smiles the group walked up towards the counter.

“(Y/n), get to know Luhan and Tao, old friends of ours. Lu, Tao, this is (Y/n), she’s Baek-“

“-also a friend of ours” Kyungsoo interrupted Jongdae and threw him a dark glance before he could finish what he wanted to say.

You, on the other hand, were quite interested what Jongdae would have slipped if Kyungsoo wouldn’t have been faster than his friend’s mouth. Every time you met someone new of their group of friends, a weird feeling overcame you. As if they would know more about you than you did yourself. After countless times you went to their shops, a couple of meetings at random places and two birthday parties, you could finally agree that you became a friend of the group, but the question of why you rose every now and then again. You hadn’t been brave enough to ask them yet.

But, once again, before you could find out more, you were distracted by Kyungsoo, while Minseok and Jongdae brought Luhan and Tao to a free table and Jongin began to work again.

“Sorry for the interruption. We haven’t seen them in ages! Anyway… here’s your cookies and the bill. I bet you still have some more things to take care off before Christmas, we didn’t want to make you wait longer than necessary.”

“Oh, don’t be sorry. My schedule is pretty loose today. It’s ok” you assured while pulling out your wallet and paying.

Then Kyungsoo handed you another bag for your little presents, gave you a warm smile and moved on to the next customer. Quickly but with care you put all the packages into the bag, noticing that you got six instead of the requested five. Of course. A free one for you. A smile spread over your face again.

You grabbed your cooled down hot chocolate, told Minseok “Merry Christmas” and waved the others goodbye before you left the café again, thinking about how your special new friends were the actual proof that genuinely friendly people still existed.

Your last stop for the day would be Flowery Friends and you slowly made your way to the flower shop, that had started it all. The smell of Kyungsoo’s cookies mixed deliciously with the one from the drink in your hand. You couldn’t resist it, so you stopped in your track, managed to open on of the packages and took a bite from, without a doubt, the best vanilla biscuit you’ve ever tasted.

How did Kyungsoo always manage to find just the right amount of sweetness? It was a miracle to you, a very tasty one. So, you tried one from every kind you could find in the mix on your way to the flower shop.

Sweetness still coating your lips, you pulled at the green wooden door that opened so much easier now after Chanyeol had fixed the old hinges, as Junmyeon had told you. The faint sound of Christmas carols, that got louder once the door had swung open, was already giving the festive mood of the three florists away.

As expected, the shop was a lot emptier than the café or the record store. Not many people got the idea to buy flowers in winter. But you knew that your best friend loved flowers just as much as you did, and you wanted to visit the shop one last time before the new year anyway.

“Merry Christmas, (y/n)!” Yixing welcomed you, calling for Baekhyun and Junmyeon to come greeting you as well. It took them only a few seconds to join you and Yixing, giving comfortable hugs and bright smiles.

“Merry Christmas!” Junmyeon beamed at you, while Baekhyun took the empty cup from your hands and replaced it with another bowl of Kyungsoo’s Christmas pastries. Of course, you grabbed on immediately and started munching. One could really get addicted to Kyungsoo’s food.

The Christmas mood of three was obviously displayed in their shop. They had decorated plants with glitter and Christmas lights, the seasonal special offer was ornaments for Christmas trees and all three were wearing Santa hats, going along just great with the red, white and golden decoration.

“How can we help?” he asked, while taking a cookie from the bowl in your hands.

“I thought about winter jasmine” you answered and saw Yixing nodding in approval.

“I’ll go get it. Just stay here and enjoy the cookies. I will be quick” he said and disappeared between plants and winter blooming flowers.

“It’s Yixing’s favourite flower” Junmyeon told you and took a cookie from you as well. “Especially because they bloom in winter.”

“My friend loves them as well. Yellow is her favourite colour” you shared while munching on another vanilla biscuit you found among the ones Baekhyun had handed you.

Then Yixing appeared again, in his hand a pot with the most yellow winter jasmine you ever saw. The few blossoms shone so bright that you couldn’t help but stare for a few seconds before a simple “wow” left your mouth.

“These are… possibly the most yellow blossoms I’ve ever seen. Wow. Thank you, how-“

“Lots of love and careful treatment!” Yixing smiled, clearly satisfied with having stunned you so much with the flower he picked. You heard Junmyeon and Baekhyun chuckling in the background.

“You should add a little green to that too, I think” Baekhyun thought out loud.

“I’ll get some little succulents. Your friend will love them!” Junmyeon agreed and became the next one to disappear in the shop.

“So, as far as I can see you’ve met all the other’s today too?” Baekhyun pointed out, looking down at the bags in your hand.

“Of course, I’ve never had better presents for my family and friends than this year. Thanks to you guys. Oh, and I’ve also met Luhan, Kris and Tao today. They came to the café when I was there getting Kyungsoo’s cookie mix.”

“Kris, Lu and Tao?” Yixing’s eyes widened in happiness. “I didn’t know they would visit. Did you?” The last question was for Baekhyun who had his typical cheeky grin on his face.

“Well, most of us did. Actually, all of us except for you, Minseok and Jongdae. It’s our Christmas surprise for you” Baekhyun admitted happily.

“That’s… that’s the best surprise ever, thank you!” Yixing almost squealed and seemingly couldn’t stop smiling.

“Our pleasure”

No, you thought silently, it is my pleasure to watch you guys being all happy about your friends visiting.

“Did I hear Lu and Tao’s names?” Ah, Junmyeon was back. And obviously just as excited as the others to hear that their friends came to visit them.

“Indeed. They arrived today” Baekhyun confirmed. “And I suggest we all should meet them at the café like… right now. I’ll go call Chanyeol and Sehun. They need to know too.”

While Baekhyun laughed obnoxiously loud at the telephone, Junmyeon did the finances with you, handed you a third bag in which he had put tons of chocolate for you as well.

“Do you want to join us when we are meeting up with the others? The twelves of us can be a bit much, but I’m sure it will be fun” Yixing asked sweetly but sadly you had to deny.

You still had to arrange the presents and if everything went as planned you would be leaving town this evening to drive to your family for the last few days before Christmas.

One last time you hugged Junmyeon, Yixing and Baekhyun, wished them Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and left with the promise to visit soon in the new year. You knew you would.

On your way home you could still taste vanilla in your mouth.

EPILOGUE

Every present was wrapped, every wish was written out on cards, everything was safely placed in a big bag resting on the backseat of your car. One last time, you checked that you didn’t forget anything important before you started the engine and drove along the empty streets of the quiet town, your favourite song the only sound that softly hit your ear.

It was always a peculiar feeling driving to your parent’s house for Christmas where everyone would come together. You had moved out for your job some years a ago and while you felt very much at home at your own little apartment, coming back to the place where such a big part of your life had happened, felt truly like coming home.

As you waited for a streetlight to turn green, snowflakes lightly covered the windshield of your car. Could there be anything more peaceful? you thought to yourself as you set the car in motion again, along the familiar streets you had been wandering today on the sidewalk.

Your thoughts drifted to Baekhyun, Yixing and Junmyeon. To Kyungsoo, Minseok, Jongdae and Jongin. To Sehun and Chanyeol. They are probably having a wonderful time with Luhan and Tao right now. You were sure, you will hear many stories about them in the future as well. What an extraordinary group of people you have met this year, befriended even. It felt a bit unreal, looking back at it now. As if it was meant to happen like that. As if something magical was involved.

One day, you told yourself, one day I will know.

You passed the café on your way, slowing down your speed a bit to maybe get a glimpse of what was happening in there. Some tugging in your chest made you stop the car completely, as your vision went blurry for a millisecond before you lifted your gaze again to… see right through the walls of the café.

The eleven friends were in on of the cosy rooms above the café, which was probably where a few of the men lived. But… there was something totally unnormal about them. A glow that sent shivers down your spine. You couldn’t move your eyes away from it until Baekhyun turned around and seemed to look directly at you. With a content smile he did a waving gesture with his hand. And then it was over.

You blinked a few times, your head still spinning a bit. You remembered the one time something similar had happened to you, the first time you had stumbled into their flower shop. It was like someone had allowed you to take a glance at something hidden, something secret. Just like right now, you had witnessed something secret.

By now the dizzy feeling had left your head for good. You heard the laughter from the café clearly again as it mixed with the music coming from the car’s speakers.

You started your car again, driving away with a laugh ringing in your ear and a familiar voice saying:

You are asking yourself why, am I right? Because your first laugh is the reason I am here.

And then, you understood.

(If you don’t click here.)

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moviemunchies · 4 years

Photo

I am not a complicated man when it comes to martial arts movies (or movies in general). I see people fight in ridiculously cool ways? I have a good time. Mostly. There are exceptions; I’ve seen an alarming amount of martial arts that don’t have any satisfying action scenes until the last twenty minutes or so, and that’s just unforgivable. I’m here to see these people beat on each other in increasingly improbable ways! What do I care for your petty drama for the first hour and fifteen minutes?

Fortunately you won’t have that problem with 2008’s The Forbidden Kingdom. But if you’re looking for a deep story, uh, well… this isn’t exactly the best of the genre.

Very loosely based on Journey to the West, the only piece of Chinese literature you’ve probably heard of or seen referenced (it inspired Dragonball and a bunch of other things after all), The Forbidden Kingdom tells the story of a modern American kid (Michael Angarano) who is obsessed with kung-fu movies. Through some poorly-explained magical shenanigans, he’s transported to mythical China in order to return the staff of the Monkey King and revive him, in order to stop the reign of the Jade Warlord. On the way he runs into Lu Yan (Jackie Chan), the Drunken Immortal, and a mysterious Silent Monk (Jet Li), who endeavor to teach him how to fight.

So the good: this movie has fight scenes. It has a bunch of them! Throughout the movie! And they’re great! In some ways this movie is a send up to kung fu movies, an homage celebrating how fantastic they can be and the ways that wuxia films can teach us and elevate us to achieve great heights. If this is all you want from this movie, as I did, then you’re going to be satisfied and have a good time.

The highlight is the one scene played up in the trailers and the movie poster: when Jackie Chan and Jet Li fight. It is glorious to behold these two wuxia stars go all out in the most memorable scene of the movie, and one of the greatest scenes in action movie history. If nothing else, it’s worth seeing the whole movie just to get this one scene.

That being said, the story is pretty weak? You may have guessed that from the summary I gave above, but there are times when things happen in the plot that are pretty poorly explained and are just sort of there. Like take this: there’s a scene where Jason, our protagonist, wakes up alone and his staff is taken away by a white rider who appears out of nowhere. Why is he alone? Why did his companions leave him by himself in the woods when it’s well-established that he can’t fight? And also is carrying the artifact that the bad guys are looking for? I’m not asking for a full explanation, but just a shot establishing that his companions were getting firewood or something would have been adequate.

It’s fairly stereotypical of a plot, and one that I don’t think would work well today. There’s a lot of talk about whitewashing in film, and yes, our protagonist is white and is still the Chosen One of this Chinese story. The story goes that the original script was going to feature a Chinese-American protagonist, but Jackie Chan pressured the filmmakers to pick a white protagonist instead, as he thought it would draw in more of a crowd. The people marketing the movie obviously didn’t agree, as all the promotional material focused on Jackie Chan and Jet Li instead.

What’s even more ridiculous is that there is a female character who starts the movie much more competent--Golden Sparrow, played by Liu Yifei, who is given a sympathetic backstory, and an actual way to kill the main villain of the film. And yet as cool as she is, in the grand scheme of things she adds absolutely nothing to the plot; she contributes very little other than to be a backup fighter to our main heroes. Logically she could have been the protagonist, and I think the movie would have made more sense. Yeah, you’d lose the framing device of a modern kid being transported to this mythical world, but did the film really need that?

And it’s not even that Jason is that bad of a lead, but he’s not particularly deep or interesting as a protagonist. He’s just there to be the obvious audience surrogate for fans who love kung fu movies. I don’t want to disparage Angarano’s performance, because it’s just fine. But I don’t think the movie would have gotten away with him being the lead if it came out today, and for good reason. There’s no feasible reason that a white teenager from Boston would be the protagonist of a story where every other character is Chinese.

Like I said, it’s not that fantastic of a story. Aside from the above, there are also a couple of reveals that I doubt will surprise anyone watching the movie for the first time. This is not a movie that you’re watching because the plot is riveting.

But is it worth watching? For me, yes. If you’re a fan of kung fu movies, you’ll definitely get something out of seeing The Forbidden Kingdom, a film that stars two martial arts legends duking it out. But if you’re not so much into kung fu, and you’re hoping for a story that’ll blow you away, you’re probably going to want to skip this one.

-Eduardo A. Hernandez-Cruz

#The Forbidden Kingdom #Jackie Chan #Jet Li #kung fu #Movie Reviews

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