#and third of all no I will not pass on to my superior because guess what. I'm the superior. so fuck off

[maraguanabana]

no way on EARTH I just read that bullshit.

totally unrelated to F1 but I had to complain.

there's this woman from the United States that has to be the most I don't even know what person ever. like fine girl, love and like your country, but your reaching.

'if they want to start making everything electric, why don't we start with the border wall' may I beg your finest pardon, lady. may. I.

the actual fuck is wrong with people.

she's also transphobic, homophobic. (she's anti everything that's not purely "american" and fits her ideology) she commented on a ig post that all you need to avoid skin cancer is 'stop wearing sunglasses, eat healthy, drink water, wear a hat instead of sunscreen' excuse me??? I will not engage on the sunscreen part, just fyi. yes, having a healthy life decreases the chances of getting any sort of cancer. key word decreases. you cannot avoid fucking cancer, ma'am. and sure! drinking water obviously stops your body from developing a melanoma. yup.

istg some people make my brain hurt. let's be honest, some instagram users are so fucking stupid it makes me want to cry.

#f1 #instagram #again this is not related to f1 but I need people to hear me #this is the same kind of people who think F1 would be better without the halo #marall complains #go fucking deal with a white woman who 'does not wants to engage with a latina who is a non-speaker' #karens like this are the reason I want to not have a job anymore #work in the service industry they said. will be fun they said. #first of all fuck you #no I do not understand what you mean and who the fuck cares if I'm european I'm a latina too you dumb idiot #second of all we're only speaking english because that's the only language you can understand #and third of all no I will not pass on to my superior because guess what. I'm the superior. so fuck off

[transfem-goddess-temple]

Damn, I love working out. More specifically, I love returning to the temple after I workout. The way all my little slutty worshippers gather around and beg to be the one who’s aloud to huff me and lick my body clean of sweat, it’s just so cute.

Eventually I’ll point one out and take them to my holy bedchamber. I’ll strip before their eyes, loving how they whimper and drips while looking at my sweaty, musky body.

When I’m done teasing them I’ll snap my fingers and they’ll come running over. I’ll grab their head and stuff their nose in my stuffy crotch, my cock getting hard and my pussy starting to warm. They always start with sniffing and moaning, intoxicated by my goddess stench. But they have a job to do, so I eventually pull them away and have them lick my sweat covered body clean.

I have to say, I wonder what my sweat tastes like. It must be really good, since my darlings are always drooling and lapping at my skin, between all my folds and under my tits. Even in my armpits they huff and sniff and lap up all my girl-smell.

As a finale, I let them return to my crotch. They get so happy going back down there. They always take deep breaths like it’s their first time getting fresh air their entire lives. I can’t blame them, the scent of their goddess is an honor to even smell in passing, and I’m allowing them to burry their face in the sweatiest, muskiest part of my body.

The kiss and suck my balls, trail their tongue across my hardening shaft, and lap up my pussy juice as it mixes with the collected perspiration. I love this part, not just because I feel their soft, slutty mouth all over my groin, but also because they can’t help themselves from whining, moaning, and fingering themselves. They’ve been driven completely crazy by my body and oder, pushing their ass out so their goddess has a nice view while getting clean.

It just gets to a point where I can’t help myself. I pick them up and throw them onto my satin lined bed. Before they can even beg for me to fuck then I’m inside their tight whore pussy. For however long it takes for me to get myself off, they scream and moan and thank me for gracing them with my superior goddess cock. I know they’ve cummed their brains out by their third orgasm or so, that’s when they stop making sense and just repeat the word please over and over again while I toss their body into whatever position I want.

Finally, I let them know I’m going to cum. Their eyes light up and they smile so wide. They beg me to mark their cervix with my cum, beg to be bred by their goddess. Of course, who am I to deny them that pleasure. I empty my load into their tight cunt. I tell them how good of a slut they are for me while my cum fills their womb.

Unfortunately, all the extra exercise has made me sweaty again, and my good little helper is too brain-broken to do anything but finger their cunt while cum drips out. Oh well, I guess I’ll have to get another slut to help clean me up.

So, who’s next~

#feel free to join my temple and worship me~ #goddess #send asks #asks open #br33d1ng #breeding bitch #k1nk blog #submisive and breedable #scent kink #musk kink #trans supremacy #transfem supremacy #t girl #tgirlsheaven #goddess kink #worship goddess #worship kink #mind break #musk slvt #scent slvt #sweat kink

[genshinluvr]

Outdated Traditions

Pairings: Zhongli x fem!reader

Summary: The life of a socialite was fun and exciting, but it wasn't the type of lifestyle you would see yourself in as you grew older. You ended up quitting the socialite life and have decided to work as an assistant for the funeral consultant of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. Your wealthy parents end up breaking certain news to you, only to put you in a position that you cannot get out of.

Note: This is the longest fic I have typed out that isn't part of the Isekai'd!Reader series 💀 this story has been on my mind since March 2022, and it has finally been typed out and published! 😭 the amount of all-nighters I have pulled for this fic and the amount of plans I had for this story, in particular, is insane. For those who are new and those who are returning readers, I post on AO3 as well, so if you have an AO3 and see a work similar to this, it's me (Aaliah_exo on AO3). I don't post anywhere else but on Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and on AO3 (Aaliah_exo).

Warnings: Sexual harassment, nonconsensual touching, misogyny, assault, I guess this counts as hurt/comfort, Zhongli is really bad with feelings, jealousy, Childe

Word Count: 18.7k

You’re a socialite from Liyue, and you come from a very well-off family. Your family was the wealthiest family in Liyue but is the second (perhaps third) most affluent family of all Teyvat and the most influential family of all Liyue. As a socialite, your job was to travel from region to region for a business trip—a fashion business trip. You meet up with the most prominent fashion designers and luxury brands across Teyvat, go to fashion shows, do interviews, and go to parties. Lots and lots of parties. It was fun at the beginning of it all, but now, you don’t see yourself being a socialite forever. You ended up quitting your career as a socialite to work for a funeral parlor that is tucked in the corner of Liyue. 

You have decided to be an assistant for the consultant of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, Mister Zhongli. Mister Zhongli has oh so graciously offered you to work as his assistant at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor when you were in need of a new job, so you took up on his offer and passed his interview. The funeral director, Director Hu Tao, was ecstatic to have you working for the parlor as well, and that is how you befriended the director of the funeral parlor. You haven’t been working for Mister Zhongli for a long time; maybe less than a year is an excellent way to put it. However, you are approaching your one-year anniversary of working for Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, and you’re looking forward to spending many more years at the parlor, working as the assistant for Mister Zhongli.

“The flowers I want to be arranged for my daughter’s funeral will be silk flowers, glaze lilies, and Cecilia flowers.” The man says, giving you and your superior a sad smile. You nod your head while jotting down the flowers that the mourning father had listed. “They were her favorite flowers, but she can no longer admire them because she’s gone.” The man’s lips quivered; he quickly cleared his throat and looked away from you and your boss.

You looked up from your notes and at the grieving man in front of you, “Is there anything else we can do for you, Mister Wu?” You asked softly; the man sniffled and shook his head.

“I just want my daughter back; that’s all I want.” Mister Wu whimpers and a stray tear rolls down his cheeks.

You let out an audible gasp at Mister Wu’s response, unsure of how to respond to his comment. You feel your throat tighten, your heart dropping in your chest as you tighten your grip around your notepad and pen. You felt your boss place his hand on your shoulder, gently squeezing your shoulders to reassure you. 

“I believe that we can end this for today, Mister Wu. My assistant and I will make sure that the funeral is planned out just the way you wanted it to.” Zhongli says, giving the man a small smile. 

Mister Wu sniffles and nods his head before giving the two of you a weak smile before walking towards the entrance of the funeral parlor. Mister Wu grabs onto the door handle of the parlor but is quickly stopped by the director of the funeral parlor.

“I believe this will come in handy in the future, Mister Wu! Sorry for your loss!” Director Hu says, giving the man a bright smile. The man looks down at the slip of paper that Hu Tao has handed to him. His eyes widen slightly before looking up at the young director, both speechless and appalled. Mister Wu makes a face at Hu Tao before walking out of the parlor with the paper crushed in his tight grip.

“Wow, what a downer!” Director Hu says, her face pinching up as she walks back to the counter of the parlor with an exaggerated sigh.

“Director Hu, what did you give him exactly?” You ask nervously.

Hu Tao grins widely and hands the paper over to you. You placed your notepad and pen on the counter before reaching over to grab the paper that Hu Tao held out to you. You and Zhongli looked down at the paper in your hands, only to realize that it wasn’t a flyer but a coupon. A coupon for Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.

“Director Hu! You shouldn’t be handing out coupons to mourning customers like they’re candy!” You scolded the young director.

“I’m just promoting the business, [Y/N]! And you don’t have to call me Director Hu, just call me Hu Tao! After all, we are friends!” Hu Tao says, smiling at you brightly.

“Promoting business to a man who’s mourning over the loss of his daughter….” You trailed off, rubbing your temples with your right hand.

“[Y/N]’s right, Director Hu,” Zhongli speaks up, grabbing your and Hu Tao’s attention. 

The tall Liyuen man gives Hu Tao a disapproving look with his arms crossed over his chest. Seeing your boss this way woke something inside of you; you feel your face heat up before looking down at your notepad to distract yourself. For the last couple of months of working at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, you couldn’t help but notice that your feelings towards the consultant of the funeral parlor were changing into something less professional. As something Director Hu Tao would say, you have a fat crush on the funeral consultant. You internally scoffed to yourself; it was unprofessional and inappropriate to have a crush on someone that hired you to work for them.

“Aw! Come on, old man! I have an inkling feeling that Mister Wu will be using the coupon again in the future!” Director Hu says nonchalantly. You and Zhongli stared at Hu Tao in horror at what she might’ve been implying. “Hey! Funerals are expensive! I believe that a coupon can make the payment less expensive for him if he were to be our customer again in the future! Plus, we do need more customers, so maybe he can give that to a relative of his!” Hu Tao says.

“I don’t know how else to respond.” You let out a defeated sigh.

Zhongli turns to you, “Why don’t you go order some silk flowers, glaze lilies, and Cecilia flowers at the floral shop in Mondstadt and Liyue for the flower arrangements? I have everything else under control.” 

You blinked up at your boss, trying to come up with a way to respond to your boss’ sudden comment. “O-Of course, Mister Zhongli! But are you sure there’s nothing else I can help you with aside from placing an order at the floral shops? I can help you out with the other arrangements for the funeral as well if you’d like for me to assist you.” You said.

Zhongli gives you a smile and shakes his head, “As of now, I won’t be needing your assistance. If a problem were to arise, I would inform you of it.” You felt your cheeks grow warm when he smiles at you. You cleared your throat and slowly nodded your head.

“Alright, then I shall place the order immediately! Although depending on the florist, it can take some time to arrange the flowers and have them be delivered to the parlor.” You said, reaching over to grab your notepad and pen, but Zhongli beat you to it. Both your hands meet in the middle while trying to reach for the notepad. You and Zhongli stared at one another for a moment, hands overlapping above the notepad.

“I was reaching for the notepad to give it to you,” Zhongli stated the obvious, clearing his throat.

“And I was reaching to grab it.” You muttered, staring at your boss. You didn’t know how obvious it was, but you knew that your face was red. You slowly looked over at Hu Tao, who was wiggling her eyebrows at you with a cheeky smile on her face. You mentally cursed to yourself for reacting in such a way in front of your boss while internally swearing at Hu Tao for giving you that look because you could feel your face feeling much hotter. You cleared your throat before grabbing your pen and notepad from Zhongli’s hands while giving him an awkward smile.

“I should get going now! I don’t want to arrive too late to the floral shop, or else they’ll close before I even arrive.” You said, gracefully bowing to your boss and the director before walking to the funeral parlor’s door, grabbing the handle, tugging at it, and stepping out of the parlor. You closed the funeral parlor doors, pressed your back against it, and let out a slow exhale while slowly sliding down from it.

“Are you alright, Miss [Y/N]?” You jumped at the voice and turned your head, only to see Ferrylady standing there awkwardly while examining you closely.

“A-Ah, yes! I’m alright, Ferrylady! Today was quite an emotional rollercoaster for me, that’s all!” You said, getting away from the door while fixing your composure.

“Isn’t it emotional for you every day, Miss [Y/N]?” Ferrylady chuckles, causing you to sputter in response.

“Listen, you did not need to call me out like that!” You whined softly; Ferrylady snorts and pats the top of your head fondly.

Ferrylady hums softly while stroking the top of your head, “Well, you do have a soft heart, Miss [Y/N].”

“It’s a curse.” You sighed in defeat. “Anyway, I must be on my way now. I have to order some flowers at the floral shop for Mister Wu’s daughter.” You said, waving Ferrylady goodbye before setting off to the nearest floral shop in Liyue.

When the funeral parlor door closed, Zhongli didn’t take his eyes off the door until he was sure that you had walked away. But seeing that you were still at the entrance, Zhongli assumed that you were talking to someone at the door of the funeral parlor. After a few minutes, he saw you walk away while Ferrylady entered the parlor to start her duties as the undertaker. 

“Hm, that was odd,” Zhongli murmurs, looking over at Hu Tao, who immediately straightens up and clears her throat.

“So! Mister Zhongli, what are your thoughts on your cute assistant?” Hu Tao asks, leaning on the counter while giving Zhongli a devious smile.

“[Y/N] is an excellent assistant with a very soft and gentle heart. Each time she talks to the customers, I worry that she will end up crying with the grieving families.” Zhongli replies, and a faint smile appears on his face before chuckling to himself.

Hu Tao’s eyebrows shot to her hairline after hearing Zhongli’s response. Zhongli had such a soft look on his face that it was foreign to Hu Tao. Hu Tao has never seen Zhongli wear such an expression on his face, except only when he talks about fond memories of old friends. Hu Tao mentally cheers to herself; a giddy smile appears on her face. Oh, she cannot wait to tell you this!

“I agree! Although, I was quite surprised to see that you would hire an assistant like her.” Hu Tao says causally, glancing over at the funeral consultant from the corner of her eyes. Zhongli walked over to the stack of papers and began sorting through them. Zhongli hums to himself before looking at Hu Tao, his eyebrows furrowing.

Zhongli placed the paper down and crossed his arms over his chest, “And what do you mean by that, Director Hu? Are you implying that you believe that [Y/N] is incapable of working at the funeral parlor because of her status?” He cocks an eyebrow at the funeral director.

Hu Tao hesitates for a second, her mouth ajar while trying to find an explanation. “Yes and no.” was Hu Tao’s response. Zhongli tilts his head to the side, continuing to look at Hu Tao with an inquisitive look.

“What are you implying then, Miss Hu?” Zhongli sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. Zhongli does not have time for Hu Tao’s foolishness. He has a funeral to plan and arrange; there’s no time for a casual chat, especially if the topic of the conversation is his assistant.

“I was shocked to see one of the richest and most notable figures of Liyue sending in her job application to be the funeral consultant’s assistant!” Hu Tao says, shrugging her shoulders. “You would think that a socialite from a very well-off family would enjoy a lavish life and career, but only to see her standing at the front of the funeral parlor, hoping to get her application sent in for the job position.” Hu Tao lets out a thoughtful hum while tapping on her cheeks.

“I don’t have time for chit-chats, Director Hu. I have a funeral to plan and put together.” Zhongli states, shaking his head before grabbing the stack of paper and disappearing into his office. Hu Tao lets out a long and dramatic sigh before collapsing in her seat and slumping down in the leather chair. So much for trying to get Zhongli to confess his feelings about you; maybe it’ll work next time. Zhongli just needs a little push.

“What a party pooper! I don’t get what [Y/N] sees in that old man.” Hu Tao mumbles, pouting to herself before getting off the chair to continue her duties as the funeral director. Bother Zhongli until he admits that he has feelings for you too.

You exited the floral shop in Liyue, checking off the list of flowers that Mister Wu wanted to be arranged for his daughter’s funeral. Silk flowers and glaze lilies are hard to organize, especially when the two tend to clash and the size of the flowers is drastically different. Not only that, but glaze lilies are much harder to get because of the legend that is told about the said lily. So, you had to pay a little extra out of your pockets for the flower arrangements to happen and be delivered before the viewing of the body. While you could use Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s money to pay for the entire thing, you would much rather pay for it yourself than have it put under the funeral parlor’s tabs.

“Miss [Y/N]!” A male runs up to you, stopping in front of where you stood while panting, clearly out of breath and out of shape: Yi, the loyal attendant of your family who has been serving your family for about five years.

“Yes, Yi? What can I do for you?” You ask, staring at the male curiously. He adjusts himself and fixes his glasses on the bridge of his nose.

“Your mother and father request for you to come home immediately,” Yi says.

You blinked at Yi before saying, “Well, I can’t go home now, Yi! I’m still working, and if I were to skip out on my duties as the assistant to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s consultant, I could get into trouble! Or worse, fired!” You crossed your arms in front of you while frowning at your family’s attendant. The man doesn’t reply; all he did was stare at you in shock after hearing your response. Were you really that serious about your job at the funeral parlor? You’re wealthy and a socialite! You didn’t need to worry about money or about a stable career when all of the generational wealth is being passed down to you and only you. So why were you taking this so seriously? Surely, there has to be a good reason as to why you wanted to continue working at the funeral parlor and why you take your job position so seriously.

“Archons, [Y/N]!” Yi stares at you, flabbergasted, “You’re still working for that funeral parlor?! Do you know how much your parents disapprove of you working for a funeral parlor?!” Yi ran his hands through his hair; you could tell that the man was very nervous, and you didn’t really blame him. When you first informed your parents about your new job at the funeral parlor, your mother and father were horrified. Your mother nearly fainted when you said you were giving up the socialite life and wanted a stable career like any working-class people of Teyvat. The cherry on top was when you told them you were applying to be an assistant at a funeral parlor. A funeral parlor!

You let out a long sigh before pinching the bridge of your nose, “Yes, I know they disapprove of me working at the funeral parlor, but I like working at the funeral parlor! Mister Zhongli, Director Hu, and Ferrylady are very nice and welcoming!” You slowly fixed your posture before motioning Yi to follow you. “I need to inform Mister Zhongli about my sudden leave before he gets worried about me possibly not returning to the parlor.” You stated.

Yi follows after you towards Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, shoulders tensed and constantly checking his surroundings. Many people will say that Yi was acting strange and paranoid. Still, it was somewhat of a valid reaction because you come from a very wealthy family, and to see someone of high status approaching the funeral parlor so suddenly can spark up numerous speculations. You grabbed onto the door handle of the parlor and stepped into the building, with Yi following closely behind before sticking by the entrance.

“Mister Zhongli?” You called out, walking around the parlor while looking for the handsome funeral consultant who is also your boss. You hear footsteps approaching where you were and turn your head to see your boss walking into the room where you and Yi are at. Zhongli looks at you curiously before a faint smile appears on his face as he approaches you.

“I see that you’re back from the floral shop,” Zhongli states, stopping in front of you. “Were you able to order the silk flowers, Cecilias, and glaze lilies for Mister Wu’s daughter’s funeral?” He looks at you curiously. 

You nod your head happily, “Yes! I was able to place the orders for the flower arrangements for the funeral of Mister Wu’s daughter. Because the Cecilias are from Mondstadt, and the glaze lilies are hard to get, the shipping and delivery fees were a bit expensive.” You said, handing him the receipt. 

“Oh? Did you not put it under Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s tabs.” Zhongli raised an eyebrow at you.

You shook your head, “No, sir, I did not! I actually paid for it myself.” You said.

“Ah! Finally! A worker that doesn’t buy things under Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s name!” Hu Tao spoke up, popping up from behind the counter with her eyes sparkling. When Hu Tao’s eyes landed on your family’s attendant, her eyes lit up even more. “Oh! A customer?!” She gasps happily before grabbing a coupon and trotting over to the man cheerfully.

You turned to the young funeral director before speaking up, “Ah, Director Hu, he’s actually with me.” 

Director Hu Tao pauses in her steps before looking at Yi, then back over at you. Her mouth agape as she pointed at you and Yi, “Are you two in a relationship!?” Hu Tao gasps. Your and Yi’s eyes grew wide at Hu Tao’s question.

“What?! No! He’s my family’s attendant!” You panicked, feeling your face becoming hot. While you were trying to explain to Hu Tao that Yi was your family’s loyal attendant, you completely missed out on Zhongli’s reaction. When Zhongli hear Hu Tao’s question, Zhongli felt his heart plummet into the pit of his stomach. But when you and Yi quickly denied it, Zhongli let out a silent sigh of relief. Even though you didn’t see the look of relief on Zhongli’s face or hear the sigh of relief, Hu Tao saw it all, and it confirmed her suspicion. You exhaled and rubbed your temples before turning back to your boss with an apologetic smile.

“I apologize, Mister Zhongli, but Yi has informed me that my mother and father need me to come home immediately for something that I have not been informed of yet.” You cross your arms over your chest with an apologetic smile. 

“Well, since it’s your family that is requesting your presence, I don’t have the power to be holding you back from doing so. It would be inappropriate of me to forbid you from doing so.” Zhongli explains.

“I promise I’ll help you with everything for Mister Wu’s daughter’s funeral arrangements tomorrow, Mister Zhongli.” You said, subconsciously grabbing his hands and lightly squeezing them while giving him a small smile. 

Yi and Director Hu’s eyebrows shot to their hairlines at the sight of you grabbing Zhongli’s (your boss) hands and giving them a reassuring squeeze. Zhongli smiles back down at you and squeezes your hand back in response. You reluctantly let go of Zhongli’s hands before turning towards the door of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. You gestured for Yi to follow you out of the parlor; he nodded his head and walked out of the funeral parlor with you following behind. 

After you had closed the door to the funeral parlor, you walked off with Yi walking beside you. Many questions begin to surface in your mind as the two of you walk towards the direction where your house is located. What did they want from you exactly? If they’re going to try to convince you to quit your job at the funeral parlor, then they’re going to be disappointed with the answer in the end.

“Yi.” You spoke up, continuing to face forward as the both of you gradually got closer and closer to where your family’s estate sat.

“Yes, Miss [Y/N]?” Yi looks at you curiously.

“Do you really not know what my parents are calling me in for?” You crossed your arms behind your back while walking up the cobblestone steps up to the entrance of the estate.

“I do, but I believe that it’s best for your parents to tell you instead of me.” Yi simply replies, walking ahead of you now. You gnawed on your bottom lip and stopped in your tracks. This must be really bad then. You took a deep breath before resuming walking behind your family’s most loyal attendant.

The servants at your estate immediately bowed when you approached the doors. They grabbed onto the gold handles of the estate before opening the large door. Red, gold, and whites decorate the interior of the mansion; in the middle of the entryway was a water fountain with a diamond, cor lapis, and noctilucous jade chandelier dangling at the center of the vaulted ceiling. The estate is quite large for a family of three. You looked around the empty house and sighed softly, taking your heels off at the entrance before putting on your house slippers.

You turn to look at Yi, arms over your chest while tapping your pointer finger on your bicep. “Alright, where’s my mother and father? They can’t expect me to come home to have a chat with them before disappearing elsewhere.”

Yi clears his throat, “Your mother and father are waiting for you in the common room.” You nod your head before walking ahead of Yi to search for your parents. The mansion has always been quiet because you were the only child in your family. It’s always lonely with just you and your parents; you hardly see them, and the only people that were to keep you occupied are the servants on the estate who are willing to keep you company. Other than that, you were alone most of the time, or you were at some lessons your parents paid for you to do so you wouldn’t be alone or not have any hobbies. Upon approaching the family room in the estate, you saw your parents conversing with one another. Your mother looked anxious, as per usual, while your father looked calm and rational. 

“Mother, father.” You said, approaching the white leather couch where they were sitting. Your mom and dad look up from their conversation to see you still in your work attire. Even though you work at a funeral parlor as an assistant, you still dress like the socialite that you are— well, former socialite, to be exact.

You stopped in front of them, “I was informed by Yi that you two wanted to talk to me about something.” You look over at the attendant before turning over to your parents, “He didn’t tell me what you two wanted to speak to me about, but I’m curious what it’s about.” 

“Darling, you’re approaching twenty-five.” Your father states; you cocked an eyebrow at his comment.

“Yes, but that’s a year away from now. I am turning twenty-four this year, actually.” You said slowly before sitting down beside your mother.

“And you don’t have a boyfriend or a child yet.” He mused; you blinked at your father, then glanced over at your mother. You can almost see the anxiousness that was radiating off her as she was fiddling with her hands in her lap. “In the Liyuen culture, it is customary to get married and have children before the age of twenty-five.” 

You stroked your chin while mumbling, “Well, that’s news to me….” You didn’t really prioritize marriage and family life as much as your parents. 

They got married relatively young and had you at a young age as well, but weren’t in your life as much as you grew up. They were busy with their jobs, or they were traveling to another region in Teyvat for a vacation while you were home alone with the servants. Perhaps the reason why your parents weren’t in your life as much was that they had you at a very young age and didn’t have much time together as a couple, so they took advantage of having many servants and glided off to other regions around Teyvat for a luxurious vacation.

“[Y/N], we expect for you to be married and have children before you turn twenty-five. If you don’t find anyone by the time you’re twenty-four, we will arrange a marriage for you.” Your mother speaks up. You stared at your mother in shock. Arranged marriage?

“An arranged marriage? Please tell me this is a joke of some sort.” You laughed in disbelief, your hands beginning to shake.

Your father scoffs and brushes off your comment, “Oh, arranged marriages are normal in wealthy families!” Your mother nods her head. “Besides, darling, it’s only an option if you’re not able to find anyone yourself before you approach twenty-five.” He adds.

“But I’m still twenty-three! I’m not close to being twenty-five yet! I still have time!” Your nails dig into the palm of your hands, feeling blood rush to your head when you suddenly stand up quickly.

“Now, now, darling, you’re turning twenty-four soon. Time is ticking for us humans, and you need to start having children before you’re unable to after you’re thirty.” Your father says, taking a sip from his teacup. “Besides, we are letting you find someone of your own choice to marry. If you’re unable to find someone yourself, then we’ll find someone for you.” He shrugs his shoulders.

You feel the world around you falling apart as you quickly bowed to your parents before excusing yourself to go to your bedroom. You closed the door quietly and sat on the small cushioned bench at your vanity, feeling your heart racing against your chest. Does that mean you’ll suddenly have to confess to Zhongli about your feelings for him? The real question is, though, would Zhongli, your boss, reciprocate your feelings?

You didn’t get much sleep that night; you lay in your bed, contemplating how you were going to confess your feelings to your boss. Oh, archons, now that you think about it, it was very inappropriate to harbor any kind of feelings towards your superior. Throughout the entire night, all you could do was roll around in your bed; your mind was plagued with so many unanswered questions. Before you knew it, the sun was beginning to rise, and it was time for you to get ready for the day at the funeral parlor.

The servants helped you pick out the clothes you were going to wear for the day while you sat on the cushioned bench of your bedroom. You felt exhausted and nervous; the servants knew that you were out of it today by the dark circles under your eyes. So, one of the head maids of the estate ordered the other maids to get you your coffee before you leave for work.

“Miss [Y/N]?” You looked up to see the head maid of the estate look down at you worriedly. “Are you alright?” You slowly nod your head with a shaky sigh.

“I’m alright, Yue. I have a lot on my mind right now; this thought, in particular, has kept me up all night, and I couldn’t sleep at all.” You said. Yue gives you a sympathetic smile before giving you a reassuring shoulder squeeze.

“Well, whatever this thought is, I’m sure you’ll be fine.” Yue comments, the corner of her eyes crinkling. You give her a weak smile in response and reach up to grab her hand on your shoulders, giving her hand a light squeeze.

“Thank you, Yue.” You whisper, swallowing the forming lump in your throat. 

Today is the day when you will be telling Zhongli how you felt about him, and you’re really scared to see what his reaction to you suddenly confessing your feelings to him. You and Zhongli get along quite well, and there was never a dull moment between the two of you. You’re feeling a little bit optimistic about how Zhongli would react to your confession. Mayhaps he will return your feelings as well, and you won’t need to be forced into an arranged marriage!

Today’s the day when you confess your feelings to Zhongli, and you have this tiny spark of hope that everything will be okay. After getting dressed for the day and putting on light makeup, Yue and Fei styled your hair into a high ponytail while Jia handed you your warm cup of coffee. You thanked the three women before heading downstairs to put on your shoes. You grabbed the notepad and pen off the top of the mini table at the front door while slipping your shoes on your feet. You took a deep breath before stepping out of your house.

Each step you take to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, you feel your heart racing against your chest while the blood is pounding in your ears. It was almost deafening, and you could feel your hands becoming sweaty each time you got closer and closer to the building of your occupation. You grabbed the door handles and pulled the door open before stepping into the parlor. You glanced around the parlor, only to see Director Hu scribbling down something on the paper in front of her. So far, you haven’t seen Zhongli in the funeral parlor at all. Usually, you would hear him muttering to himself as he was filling out paperwork for the parlor, but it was silent.

Hu Tao looked up from her paper; Hu Tao perks up in her seat; her eyes lit up when she saw you, “Oh! [Y/N]! Good to see you today!” Hu Tao chirps as she hops off her seat and approaches you with a little perk in her step. You couldn’t put your finger on it, but you have a hunch that she was excited to tell you something. At least, that is what you’re assuming. Your boss’s boss can be a little bit unpredictable, but she is quite a spunky girl who loves doing her job as the funeral director!

“It’s good to see you too, Director Hu!” You smile at the young girl in front of you. Hu Tao pouts at you, crossing her arms over her chest dramatically before letting out a sassy huff of breath.

“You don’t have to call me Director Hu, [Y/N]! We are friends! Let’s drop the formalities!” Hu Tao whines, stomping her feet on the ground childishly. 

You snorted and rolled your eyes, “Alright, Hu Tao.” You said, patting the young girl’s head with a faint smile on your face. “Have you seen Mister Zhongli today, by the way?” You ask, gazing around the funeral parlor to look for the handsome funeral consultant.

“Hmmm, nope! I have not seen him today at all. I believe he will be arriving at the parlor soon!” Hu Tao replies.

“Oh, okay, I was just wondering.” You said, giving her a nervous smile. Hu Tao blinks at you and squints her eyes, looking at you closely. You stared back at Hu Tao; she leaned close to your face while her eyes scanned every part of your face, making you feel self-conscious.

“You look like you haven’t gotten any sleep last night!” Hu Tao backs up before leaning against the counter. “What’s been keeping you up?” She asks, tilting her head to the side while waiting for you to respond.

“I’m confessing my feelings to Zhongli today,” You breathed. Hu Tao looks at you with wide eyes, her jaw-dropping. “What? Should I not do it? I-I know that Zhongli is my boss and all, but I do have feelings for him.” You said, fumbling with the notepad in your hand.

“It’s also scandalous if you ask me! Ay ai ai, [Y/N]! As a high-class member of society, shouldn’t you understand that?” Hu Tao teases you, causing you to become flustered. “But worry not, Miss [Y/N]! I’m sure that the dusty old man likes you back too!” Hu Tao grins, poking you lightly.

Your eyes glimmered with hope, “You really think so?” 

Hu Tao smiles widely and nods her head excitedly. “Of course! I’ve seen the way he’s looked at you, and your little interaction is quite flirtatious!” She gives you a cheeky grin. 

You looked away from Hu Tao, feeling your face becoming hot each time she teased you about your and Zhongli’s interaction. Does Zhongli look at you a certain way? Surely, Hu Tao’s eyes could’ve been deceiving her, but Hu Tao seems really sure about it too! It looks like you’ll be saved from the arranged marriage after all. The door to the funeral parlor clicks, grabbing your and Hu Tao’s attention. Zhongli steps into the funeral parlor, and his eyes land on both you and Hu Tao, but his eyes remain on you.

“There you are, old man! [Y/N] here was looking for you!” Hu Tao says, pointing to you. You gave Hu Tao a look before looking back at Zhongli, who was now standing before you. You feel your breath getting caught in your throat at how close Zhongli was standing in front of you. 

Hu Tao looks at her wrist, pretending to check the time. “Oh! It looks like my service is elsewhere! I’ll leave you two alone!” Hu Tao says, patting your shoulders before running off somewhere in the parlor.

“Is there something you need, [Y/N]?” Zhongli asks, gazing down at you curiously. You feel your face becoming hot the more time goes by. This is it, now is the time for you to confess your feelings to Zhongli. Man, you didn’t expect this day to come by so fast.

“Zhongli, I’ve been working as your assistant for almost a year now, correct?” You said, looking up at the handsome man nervously. Zhongli hums in response, nodding his head at your statement.

“Yes, that is correct,” Zhongli says, gazing down at you curiously. You began to fumble with your notepad and pen anxiously. This was harder than you thought. Even though Hu Tao has told you that Zhongli most definitely feels the same way about you, you couldn’t help but feel uneasy and almost nauseous from the nerves you were feeling.

“Over the courses of working with you as your assistant, I ended up developing feelings for you, Mister Zhongli.” You said slowly, looking away nervously.

Zhongli raised an eyebrow, “You’ve developed feelings for me? Care to clarify what you mean by that, Miss [Y/N]?” He asks, looking at you skeptically. The look on Zhongli’s face did not reassure you at all; it made you even more nervous and more fearful of the worst outcome. Fuck it; you’re just going to come right out and say it! There’s no use in stalling it much longer.

“I like you, Zhongli. I really like you.” You breathed.

Zhongli frowns and looks away from you; his eyebrows narrow while he crosses his arms in front of him. You feel your heart drop at Zhongli’s reaction to your confession. You tighten your grip on the notepad in your hand. The longer Zhongli stays quiet, the more you feel your heart sink into the pit of your stomach.

Zhongli speaks up, “Miss [Y/N], you do realize that I’m your boss, correct?” You felt your throat tighten up, a lump beginning to form in your throat, your eyes becoming misty.

“Ah, yes, I do realize that, Mister Zhongli.” You whisper, your gaze falling to the wooden floor. Tears began to collect in your eyes as realization started to settle in. 

“Then you acknowledge that your feelings for me are very inappropriate and unprofessional. I’m sorry, Miss [Y/N], but I do not feel the same way.” Zhongli says. You nod your head, releasing a defeated sigh. It looks like your fate has been sealed; you’ll have to inform your parents about your situation regrettably. “Let’s keep this relationship between us professional.” Zhongli states.

“Yes, Mister Zhongli.” You said softly, bowing to Zhongli before walking to another room in the parlor. 

The more you walk, the more you feel your heart break into little pieces. Hu Tao claimed that Zhongli had feelings for you as well; if he did, then why did he reject you in such a way?

The entire day at the funeral parlor, the atmosphere between you and Zhongli was tense and cold. You could barely bring yourself to smile or act as if nothing had happened. 

Luckily, there weren’t any new customers, much to Hu Tao’s dismay. You didn’t have to be in Zhongli’s presence the entire day, and you resumed your duties from the previous day for Mister Wu’s late daughter. That aside, Hu Tao noticed that you were much gloomier, and there was a deep frown on your face, whereas Zhongli looked like nothing had happened between the two of you. When Zhongli went on his lunch break to the Liuli Pavilion with Childe, Hu Tao quickly pulled you to the side to question you.

“How did it go between you and Zhongli?” Hu Tao asks; her eyes grew wide at the sight of your trembling lips and tearful gaze. You ducked your head down and let out a few sniffles, tears finally cascading down your flushed cheeks.

“He doesn’t feel the same way as me, Hu Tao.” You croaked.

“What?! He rejected you!?” Hu Tao gasps in disbelief.

You nod your head, “He said that my feelings toward him are very unprofessional and very inappropriate.” You pulled out a handkerchief and began dabbing your tears away, hoping that your makeup wasn’t smeared from the tears. 

“But I could’ve sworn that he likes you!” Hu Tao exclaims; she grabs you by the shoulders and gently shakes you. “[Y/N], I swear! Zhongli does have feelings for you! I don’t know what’s going on in that head of his, but he does harbor feelings for you!” Hu Tao panics, pulling you into a tight hug. The hug did nothing but make the floodgates open. 

You buried your face into Hu Tao’s shoulders and sobbed. It was official, you have been rejected by the man you’ve fallen for, and now you have nothing left to do but to let fate handle its course. You are getting married off to some stranger you don’t even know, and you can’t do anything else about it. Who knew that outdated traditions like this still existed in high-class families? It seems too cruel to be true. Oh, how you wish you could wake up from this nightmare.

“I’ll get Zhongli to confess the truth, [Y/N]! I promise!” Hu Tao says, you pulled away from the hug and shook your head, wiping your tears away with the gold handkerchief in your shaking hands.

“Don’t force Zhongli to confess the feelings that don’t exist, Hu Tao. My fate has been sealed already.” You said.

Hu Tao looks at you quizzically, “What do you mean by that exactly?” She whispers. You shrugged your shoulders and shook your head. Hu Tao doesn’t know what you’re implying, but she sure hopes that you were exaggerating because you were heartbroken.

“It’s something I can’t tell you right now, Hu Tao.” You murmured sadly, feeling your heart in your chest ache. This is it; this is your fate now, and you can’t do anything else about it. No matter how much you’ve tried to change its course, it’s entirely out of your own control. “When the day comes, I will let you know.” You added; Hu Tao nodded her head reluctantly. 

The entire day at the funeral parlor felt so excruciatingly slow. You just wanted the day to end so you could go home and inform your parents— actually, you didn’t want to inform them about it at all. Perhaps you can avoid getting forced into an arranged marriage if you never let them know about Zhongli not returning the same feelings as you. When the end of the day arrived, you clocked out of your job as Zhongli’s assistant and gave both Zhongli and Hu Tao a fake smile.

“I am heading home now, and I will see you two tomorrow morning!” You said, bowing to them before walking towards the entrance of the parlor.

“Bye, [Y/N]! Please get plenty of rest, and we’ll see you tomorrow!” Hu Tao waved you goodbye with a sympathetic smile on her face. After you had left and closed the parlor’s door behind you, Hu Tao turned to Zhongli with her hands on her hips, a deep frown appearing on her face. “Mister Zhongli, we need to talk about what happened between you and [Y/N]!” Zhongli raised an eyebrow at Hu Tao before sighing softly.

“What happened between me and Miss [Y/N] is none of your concern,” Zhongli states firmly; Hu Tao blinked at Zhongli in shock. 

Before Hu Tao could open her mouth to interject, Zhongli turned around and walked out of the parlor, not even bidding his boss goodbye. Hu Tao sighs dramatically after the door closes behind him; she collapses in her seat and slumps down in the chair, mentally cursing at Zhongli for being so him. If only Hu Tao could read Zhongli’s mind to know what was going on inside his head right when you were confessing your feelings to him. Who knew that this was going to be the outcome of the whole situation when Hu Tao could clearly see that Zhongli has feelings for you as well! Heck, even Ferrylady can see the almost sexual tension between you and the funeral consultant. Hu Tao couldn’t get the image of your face out of her head; you looked so heartbroken and almost terrified. Hu Tao gnawed on her bottom lip and crossed her legs while trying to put the pieces together, only to come up with nothing. Whatever you’re hiding, Hu Tao really hopes that you’ll let her know about it soon.

You stepped into the estate and took your heels off, sighing in relief when the pain and pressure on your feet stopped once your shoes were off. You slipped on your house slippers and looked around the mansion, hoping your parents weren’t home at all and had completely forgotten about the conversation the day before. Right when you put your right foot on the first step of the stairs, your mother emerges from the top of the stairs, making eye contact with you.

“Ah, there you are! Your father is waiting for you in his office.” She says, leaning against the railing of the staircase, waiting for you to walk up.

You huffed, “How did you know that I was home?” You walk up two flights of stairs, mentally cursing yourself for going home earlier than usual. You weren’t surprised that your mother and father would be waiting for you after having such conversations with you the day prior. 

Your mother crosses her arms over her stomach, “The servants had alerted us of your arrival. Besides, your father did instruct them to notify him of your arrival earlier today.” Of course, it was your father all along. Should you be surprised at this point?

You hum to yourself, walking towards the direction of where your father was currently waiting for your presence. Your mother follows after you, keeping a reasonable distance. You can feel the tension beginning to rise as the both of you get closer to your father’s office. You knocked on the wooden door and waited for him to give you the signal to enter. You hear a faint “enter” before grabbing ahold of the doorknob and twisting it before opening the door. You and your mother step into the office, only to see your father getting up from his seat. Your mother closes the door behind the two of you, and you approach the loveseat that sat in the middle of your father’s office.

“I heard that you wanted to see me, father.” You stated, sitting down on the loveseat when your father motioned for you to have a seat while Your mother and father stood in front of you.

“Have you been able to find someone that you wanted to marry? After all, we did allow you to find someone on your own before we’ve decided to choose for you.” He says.

“I did.” You breathed, nodding your head hesitantly.

Your father cocks an eyebrow at your unusual response. “I’m sensing a but after your response.” He trails off.

“But he had rejected me and told me that my feelings toward him were inappropriate and unprofessional.” You said, your shoulders slumping.

“Inappropriate and unprofessional, you say?” Your father mutters, his eyebrows knitted with confusion while stroking his chin. Your mother gasps out loud and looks down at you in horror. Ah, it seems like she has figured out who you had confessed your feelings to. Your father looks over at your mother in confusion as well before she points an accusing finger at you.

“You confessed to your boss!?” She exclaims in horror; your father’s eyes widen before turning to look at you with disbelief.

“The man that you wanted to marry is a lowly funeral consultant with no riches, nor did he come from a wealthy family?!” Your father exclaims. You winced at the volume of his voice, unsure of how to respond to his question. Like, of course, you confessed to your boss. Why did your father make a big deal over Zhongli being a funeral consultant and not coming from a well-off family? Did it really matter to him? He’s not the one that was being forced to be married before they turned twenty-five. It was you that was being forced into marriage, not him.

“Yes, I like my boss, and I confessed to him.” You rolled your eyes. “But you don’t have to worry about me getting married to a ‘lowly funeral consultant’ anymore.” You sighed, letting the fact sink in.

Your father nods his head, “Good because we already picked out the candidates for you to get married to.” You stood up abruptly, looking at them in disbelief.

“You what!?” You exclaimed; your mother placed her hands on your shoulders to calm you down, but you brushed her hands off you. “You already picked someone out for me!?” You ask, staring at your mother and father.

“Yes, and starting tomorrow, you will be going out with each of them to get to know them better. After that, you will choose who you want to get married to. See, you still have options.” Your father says nonchalantly. 

You feel your hands tremble with anger, frustration, and disbelief. You let out a scoff before saying, “Unfucking believable.”

“[Y/N]! Watch your language! That’s very unladylike!” Your mother hisses at you while shooting you a death glare while your father shakes his head in displeasure.

You didn’t say another word before turning around and storming out of your father’s office. It was official, you’re being forced into marriage with some men that your parents have “picked out” for you. You slammed your bedroom door shut with your back pressed against the door before you slid down to the ground. Tears build up in your eyes before spilling down your cheeks; you bury your face into your knees while your body shakes with sobs.

The very next day, you got dressed for this little meeting of yours with the first person that your parents have picked out for you to be married to. You wore a red and gold qipao; your hair was pulled up in a neat bun, your lips painted with red lipstick, while you wore light makeup for this said meet-up. You slipped on your diamond-encrusted high heels before stepping out of the estate. But first, before you could go to Third-Round Knockout (the man’s place of choice to meet up), you had to quickly stop by the funeral parlor to request a few days off of work for this meeting of yours. You stepped into the funeral parlor, and the first person you saw was your boss, and there was Hu Tao sitting at the counter, looking bored out of her mind. Her head perked up when she heard the door open, and her eyes widened.

“Wow, [Y/N]! You look hot! What’s the occasion, hot stuff?” Hu Tao teases you; you give her a small smile.

“Good morning to you too, Director Hu.” You bowed gracefully to the funeral director, making her pout at the formalities between you two. “I was actually here to request a few days off work because I do have family matters going on behind the scene.” You said, turning to Zhongli, who had been eyeing you the entire time.

“Family matters, you say?” He asks, gazing down at you curiously. 

You nod your head, “It’s a sudden socialite meeting that my parents had set up without my knowledge, and I was hoping if it’s okay with you that I take a few days off for this sudden meeting.” You said, looking away from the funeral consultant.

“I thought you quit the socialite life!” Hu Tao interjects, tilting her head to the side to take a peek at you from behind Zhongli. You sighed in defeat and nodded your head, pinching the bridge of your nose while letting out a slow exhale. Even though you want to speak up about the actual situation, you fear that both Zhongli and Hu Tao, mainly Hu Tao, would try to interfere and cause conflict between your family and the other upper-class families. It wouldn’t hurt to lie a bit; after all, you go out for breakfast and lunch with these mystery men does count as a meeting. 

You adjust your qipao and jewelry before responding, “I did quit that life, but my parents decided to bring me back into that occupation without my knowledge, and here I am, requesting a few days off before heading to the said meeting.” 

“Since the situation was sudden and planned without your knowledge, then you may have a few days off,” Zhongli says, nodding his head.

“Thank you, Mister Zhongli! Again, I do apologize for the sudden vacation time.” You give Zhongli a weak smile. 

Zhongli’s eyes briefly land on your lips before making eye contact with you. He gives you a small smile, “It’s alright, Miss [Y/N]. It was out of your control and sudden. You don’t need to apologize for anything.” You gave Zhongli a strained smile before bowing to him and bidding both him and Hu Tao goodbye. You closed the funeral parlor’s door behind you and took a deep breath before walking towards Third-Round Knockout to meet up with the first man that your parents have chosen for you.

You ignored the looks people were giving you as you walked by them. You didn’t know if they were looking at you because of how extravagant you dressed or if it was because you were part of the higher class. The closer you got to Third-Round Knockout, the more nervous you became. You saw an older gentleman standing in front of the tavern; he was looking around, searching for someone. The two of you made eye contact, and his eyes lit up, and he gestured for you to walk over. You hesitated for a moment before walking in his direction.

The older gentleman bows; you do the same in return. “Good morning, Miss [Y/N]. My name’s Zhang Jun. Your parents talk so much about you!” The man held his hand for you to shake. You smile at the man politely before shaking his hand back.

“It’s nice to meet you, Zhang Jun. Are you dropping your son off for our meeting?” You ask; the older man in front of you chuckles softly while shaking his head.

“Actually, you’re meeting me. I don’t have a son or children at all.” Zhang Jun says; you quickly covered up your surprise by nodding your head politely. “Anyway, care to start our date?” You gave Zhang Jun a fake smile when he called the meeting between the two of you a “date.”

“I believe we should start our meeting, Mister Zhang.” You said, walking towards the first available table at Third-Round Knockout.

Zhang Jun chuckles while walking after you. “Please, [Y/N], just call me Jun. After all, I am your potential husband.” Jun says; you let out a fake laugh before picking a seat that was closest to the stairs, hoping that Jun would sit across from you to keep the distance, but you were wrong. You wanted to sit across from Zhang Jun, but the man decided to sit down beside you instead. You cleared your throat before calling the waiter over to start ordering something to eat. Maybe the food will help distract you from the uncomfortable proximity between you and this older man.

You just want to eat some delicious food, listen to the storyteller, and get this meeting over with. Clearly, Zhang Jun is a bit of a tryhard. Yes, it sounds mean, and you shouldn’t have viewed Zhang Jun that way because you hardly know the man, but the way he tried really hard to impress you was making you bored and unimpressed. Zhang Jun talked about his family’s financial business, and quite frankly, you didn’t listen to a single word he said to you. Your only response to him was a lot of “hm’s,” “oh’s,” and “I see’s.” Does that make you somewhat of a stuck-up snob for acting in such a way? Yes, but did Zhang Jun notice it? He did not realize it at all because he was so caught up with trying to impress you that Zhang Jun didn’t even see that you weren’t interested in anything he was saying. Why did your parents choose Zhang Jun again? He looks like he could be in his late thirties to early forties, way older than you and Zhongli. 

While you were occupying yourself with food and Zhang Jun was rambling on, you didn’t realize how much time had passed. You were sitting straight, eating your food elegantly (your parents got you an instructor on dining etiquette), attempting to grasp onto the information Zhang Jun was telling you while also listening to the storyteller. You didn’t realize how comfortable Zhang Jun had gotten with you until you felt him place his right hand on your left thigh, almost causing you to drop your chopsticks and dumplings.

“Mister Zhang! I believe that putting your hands on a woman’s leg is not part of dining etiquette, nor is it appropriate to do it out in public.” You cleared your throat.

“Oh, dear [Y/N], I am your future husband. Is it not normal for a man to be showing his wife affection?” Zhang Jun asks, raising an eyebrow at you. You gave him a fake smile and crossed your legs over the other to stop him from touching you any further, but your attempt was futile. Zhang Jun ends up putting his hand on the upper part of your thigh, close to where your thigh and groin meet. 

It was finally lunch break for Zhongli, and Childe had requested for Zhongli to have lunch with him since Childe was also on his lunch break. Zhongli and Childe were walking through Liyue Harbor, having a casual conversation about the Fatui and what Wangsheng Funeral Parlor could do to strengthen their close allyship. 

“What place do you have in mind for lunch, Childe?” Zhongli asks, his eyes scanning his surroundings while the ginger-haired male beside him hums thoughtfully while tapping on his chin, deep in his thoughts.

“I was linking Liuli Pavilion, but I’m craving for some delicious cuisines at Third-Round Knockout,” Childe says, shrugging his shoulders.

The closer the two got to Third-Round Knockout, the more the two could smell the freshly cooked cuisines and hear the faint chatter of bystanders. Zhongli suddenly stops in his tracks, making Childe stop in his tracks as well. Childe looks at Zhongli in confusion, only to see that Zhongli is looking at something. Childe slowly turned his head to get a glimpse of what Zhongli was looking at; then, his eyes landed on where you and Zhang Jun were sitting. You looked visibly uncomfortable while trying to eat the food that was placed in front of you. Zhang Jun, on the other hand, looked painfully aroused. 

“Oh, is that your cute assistant? Is she on a date?” Childe asks, looking over at Zhongli, who had his eyes zeroed in on Zhang Jun’s hands. The placement was too close for comfort, and it was inching towards a very intimate part of your body.

“Miss [Y/N] has informed me that her parents had set up a sudden meeting for her and other business partners,” Zhongli states, looking at Childe from his peripheral vision. “She is not on a date but a business dinner,” Zhongli added. Childe cocks his eyebrows at Zhongli’s comment before making a face when he sees Zhang Jun squeezing the plush of your thighs. Childe points at Zhang Jun’s hands, turning to look at Zhongli.

“Mister Zhongli, I believe that business partners don’t grope each other like that. Well, especially if one person comes from a very wealthy background while the other is way below that.” Childe states. Childe could see Zhongli clenching his jaws. Childe knew that you’re Zhongli’s assistant and nothing else, but seeing how Zhongli subtly reacts to another man placing his hand on your legs was interesting. While Zhongli vehemently denies that he has feelings for you, his subtle reactions say another thing.

Childe takes a closer look at the man that sat beside you; his eyes widen slightly. “I don’t know if I’m correct, but this man, in particular, looks like he’s one of the Fatui’s higher-ups,” Childe says. Zhongli looks at Childe in shock, then back over at where you and the man sat. “He’s not part of the Harbingers per se, but he looks a little bit familiar.” Childe taps his chin.

“What you’re saying is that [Y/N] is unknowingly having a business meeting with one of the members of the Fatui,” Zhongli states, crossing his arms in front of him.

Childe scoffs, “Business meeting? It’s a marriage setup!” If Zhongli were to be drinking tea at the moment, he would’ve choked at the mention of marriage. “Her family has connections with the Fatui, Mister Zhongli. Though, it seems like [Y/N] is unaware of her family being involved with the Fatui.” Childe strokes his chin while analyzing the man sitting beside you.

“A marriage set up? [Y/N] has informed me that it was a business meeting!” Zhongli mutters, his eyes narrowing, staring holes into the strange man’s head.

“Maybe she didn’t know that it was a marriage set up, or she’s keeping it a secret.” Childe shrugs his shoulders. “As I was saying, both her family and the Fatui are hoping this marriage goes through. After all, her family is well-off, and this man is just as wealthy but not as rich as Pantalone. Pantalone has tried courting Miss [Y/N] in the past, but she turned down his advances.”

Zhongli frowns while letting out a soft exhale, “Why would [Y/N]’s parents try to get their daughter to be involved with the Fatui?” 

Childe scrunches his face, “I don’t know; I don’t have enough information about this situation. All I can do is assume that if the marriage is successful, the Fatui will have an easier way of doing things without the Qixing suspecting that it was Fatui business.”

Before Zhongli could open his mouth to retort, both Zhongli and Childe hear you let out a shaky sigh. The two quickly looked over, only to see you stare down at your plate and then look at the man beside you. You cleared your throat to hide your discomfort, “Mister Zhang! I believe that putting your hands on a woman’s leg is not part of dining etiquette, nor is it appropriate to do it out in public.”

“Mister Zhang? Oh! Well, never mind then! He’s not part of the Fatui. He’s just some creep that is desperate for a crumb of pussy.” Childe says, rolling his eyes. Zhongli disregarded Childe’s comment, glaring at the unsuspecting man.

The older man sitting beside you queried, “Oh, dear [Y/N], I am your future husband. Is it not normal for a man to be showing his wife affection?” 

The two men watched you cross your leg over the other, hoping that it’ll stop the man from touching you any further, but it was useless. Zhang Jun’s hands ended up placing his hand on your leg again, only much closer to your crotch. Zhongli immediately saw red, and without thinking, Zhongli started marching up to where you and the older man sat, completely forgetting about Childe. While you are his assistant and nothing more, Zhongli does not like how the man was making you uncomfortable. It was clear that you did not like what he was doing, yet the man disregarded your protests and polite rejections.

“Wait, Mister Zhongli!” Childe says, following after the fuming funeral consultant, too was too angry to focus on what he was doing.

“Mister Zhang, please kindly take your hands off of me or else—” You were cut off by the sound of someone clearing their throat.

“Is there a problem here?” A voice interrupts you and Zhang Jun. Your head shot up, and you turned your head, only to see Zhongli and his ginger friend standing behind you two. You felt a wave of relief wash over you before standing up. You stepped away from the table and Zhang Jun before bowing to both Zhongli and the ginger male— whose name you didn’t get.

“Hello, Mister Zhongli and Mister Zhongli’s friend! What a pleasant surprise to see you two here!” You said, giving the two a fake smile.

“My name’s Tartaglia, but you can call me Childe, Miss [Y/N].” The ginger-haired male says, giving you a closed-eye smile. 

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Childe! My boss has spoken very highly about you, but he has never mentioned your name to me!” You said, earning a lighthearted chuckle from Childe. 

“Oh, Mister Zhongli! You flatter me!” Childe says, lightly patting the funeral consultant on his shoulders. Zhongli kept his eyes on Zhang Jun while not saying a word before looking over at you, who seemed very tense and on edge. 

“Miss [Y/N], care to tell me who this man is?” Zhongli asks, refusing to take his amber eyes off of the man that was still sitting at the table.

“Who?” You blurt out, earning a snort from Childe. “Oh! Right.”  You laughed nervously, scratching the back of your neck awkwardly.

Zhang Jun stood up from his seat before standing by your side with his left arm around your waist. It took immense power in you not to cringe away from the man’s grasp. You saw how Zhongli and Childe’s gaze fell onto the placement of Zhang Jun’s hand. You took a deep breath and cleared your throat, gesturing for the older man to introduce himself before brushing his hand off your waist. Zhang Jun cleared his throat before letting his hands fall to his side before he introduced himself to Childe and Zhongli.

“My name’s Zhang Jun, the fifteenth richest man in Liyue and the thirtieth richest man in all of Teyvat,” You made a face at Zhang Jun’s introduction before stepping to the side to leave some space between you and Zhang Jun. He was standing too close for your comfort, and you’re so glad that Zhongli and Childe made a sudden appearance. 

“Wow, and the lady standing beside you is the second wealthiest woman in Liyue and the fifth wealthiest woman in all of Teyvat,” Childe commented, the corner of his lips quirking lip in a mocking smirk.

Zhang Jun opens his mouth to interject, but you interrupt him. “I believe that the meeting should conclude here for today. I still have unfinished business at my place of occupation, and I promised my boss that I would be assisting him with matters at the parlor.” You said, looking at Zhang Jun from the corner of your eyes with your arms crossed over your stomach.

“B-But what about the date?!” Zhang Jun exclaims; you let out an irritated sigh, pinching the bridge of your nose. Not only did this man have trouble with keeping his disgusting paws off your legs and waist, but now he wanted to call it a date in front of the man that you have feelings for? How infuriating. You’re going to have a chat with your parents when the day ends because what made them choose this man in particular to be your future husband? 

“Our meeting is not a date, Mister Zhang. Nor was it ever a date in the first place.” You stated, shooting a sharp glare in the older man’s direction. “Mister Zhongli, Childe, let’s leave.” You said, turning around without a single glance in their direction before walking down the steps of Third-Round Knockout. Zhongli and Childe traded looks with one another before following after you, leaving Zhang Jun standing there, flabbergasted.

“That was undeniably hot.” Childe breathes, grunting in pain when Zhongli elbows him in the gut. “What? The authority she showed was very sexy! Man, I would love for her to dominate me.” Childe grumbles, glaring over at the dark-haired male.

“Childe.” Zhongli hissed at Childe. Childe pouts dramatically while following you with Zhongli by his side. You stopped in front of the funeral parlor and turned to the two men that had been not-so silently following you.

“I apologize that you two had to see me like that. Mister Zhang lacks manners when it comes to dining etiquette or etiquette in general.” You said, leaning against the red pillar outside of the funeral parlor. 

Zhongli wanted to speak up and ask you about the marriage setup, but he hesitated for a moment. Zhongli poked the inside of his cheeks with his tongue and decided not to bring up that topic; he wanted you to tell him about it, not ask you about the strange “businesses” with unknown people who were much older than you. Then again, he is also way older than the man that you were meeting up with at Third-Round Knockout.

“So, a financial businessman, huh,” Childe says, scanning you from head to toe. You hum softly and nod your head at Childe’s comment. Even though it hasn’t been long, you already felt drained from today’s interaction with Zhang Jun. The only thing you can do is pray to Rex Lapis that you’d never run into Zhang Jun again, at least until after you’re married to whoever it’ll be. You could use a nap or two to get your mind off the situation.

“There are a lot more businessmen I have to meet up with this week, and quite frankly, I’m not looking forward to any of it.” You said, reaching up to let your hair fall loose from the tight bun. Your hair falls and cascades down your back; you wince when you feel your scalp throb. “Three more men to deal with for this so-called business meeting my parents set up for me.” You grumbled.

“Is there a way for you to get out of this business?” Zhongli asks; you snorted in response, fixing your hair before putting your hair into a ponytail. There was a way, but it’s entirely out of the option now. You had your chance to get out of the arranged marriage situation, but it had completely backfired and blew up in your face.

“I did have a way out of the business meeting, but the option is all gone. Plus, even if I did have some kind of plan, my parents had already set up these meetings without my knowledge before coming clean to me about it when I got home from work.” You said. You rolled your eyes and leaned your head against the red pillar. “My only choice is to go home and rest up before the next meetings; I know I’m going to need a lot of rest before having to deal with more insufferable men that are twice my age.” You chuckled bitterly before letting out a defeated sigh, your shoulders slacking. 

Why must you be dragged into this situation? You’d be happier if you didn’t have riches. All of the mora your family has inherited from generations has brought you nothing but pain and suffering. Even before you had quit the socialite life, a load of mora has got you nothing but pain and discomfort. The friends that you’ve made with your previous career and lifestyle were nothing but toxic and two-faced. You couldn’t trust the people that came into your life, and you didn’t trust the people your parents introduced into your life.  No amount of mora could bring you the happiness that you desired; all of that mora made you suffer. All those years of being a socialite were torturous and exhausting. Throughout those many years of being a socialite, all it consisted of was you trying to convince yourself that you were happy and content.

“Would you like for me to walk you home?” Childe offers, holding his hand out for you to take. You gave Childe a tired smile and shook your head.

“How kind of you to offer to walk me to my home, Childe, but I’ll have to decline. I can sense my parents' rage from miles away, and I don’t want anyone to witness my parents’ ugly side.” You said. “I must go now. I think Zhang Jun had paid my parents a visit to complain to them about how the meeting was cut short.” You roll your eyes before you step away from the red pillar and bow to both Zhongli and Childe before walking away.

Zhongli and Childe watch you walk further and further away from the funeral parlor. The two didn’t say a single word to one another. The tension in the air was almost unbearable. You weren’t happy with your situation, and you wanted to get out of it, but you were stuck. Zhongli and Childe knew that you’re stuck in a situation that you can’t get out of. No matter how hard you try to get out of it, you are trapped. 

“And Miss [Y/N] is merely an assistant of yours, Mister Zhongli?” Chide cocks an eyebrow at Zhongli, who does nothing but stare at him blankly.

Zhongli nods his head slowly before answering, “Yes, Miss [Y/N] is merely my assistant at the funeral parlor. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Childe lets out a humorless laugh, shaking his head while muttering something to himself. Childe knew that Zhongli was a stubborn man, but he didn’t realize that Zhongli was that stubborn! It was almost painful for Childe to have to deal with; Childe could see the moment that Zhongli was about to snap. The look of jealousy was evident on the funeral consultant’s face when Zhang Jun was all over you. While Zhongli hasn’t lost his composure, Childe wonders what would be the last straw for the former archon to snap.

Over the next two days, it was nothing but torture for both you and Zhongli. You met up with the other two candidates that your parents have picked out for you to be betrothed to, and surprise, surprise, you did not like them at all. They were nothing but creepy towards you and had made you feel uncomfortable throughout the entire meeting. The second man you met up with was named Xi; he was a polite man, but with each passing moment, he gradually became creepy and was way more touchy than Zhang Jun. You don’t know what is up with your parents and them having the need to set you up with creepy men who are twice your age. Xi almost kissed you without your consent, and what happened after he tried to kiss you? Zhongli stepped in out of nowhere and threatened the man with Director Hu by his side the entire time.

You were pinned against the wall by Xi, his hands gripping both of your wrists together. His face was a couple of inches away from yours; you could feel his hot breath fanning against where your jaws and neck meet while you had your eyes closed, eyebrows narrowed, and head turned to the side. You try to shake him off, but Xi has tightened his grip around your wrists, causing you to let out small pained whimpers. 

“Just one kiss to end the date, then I’ll leave you be, Miss [Y/N].” Xi whispers against your jaws. You whimpered and shook your head. Archons! Men like Xi and Zhang Jun make you hate men even more! Especially the ones that are older than you, chosen by your parents, and are intentionally creepy!

“Please, just leave me alone! I don’t kiss after meeting someone for the first time!” You gritted your teeth together. Xi rolled his eyes and released your wrist with one hand before reaching up to grab your face with his free hand, forcing you to look at him, his hand gripping the bottom of your face tightly.

“You will do as I say because I am a man, and you must abide by my demands.” Xi growls. A hand suddenly appears on Xi’s shoulders, gripping his shoulder with a firm grasp before yanking Xi away from you. You pressed yourself against the wall, trembling in fear and shame. As much as you would like to defend yourself, you would get into deep trouble if you, a woman, were to put your hands on a man. No matter how much money you have, and no matter how wealthy your family is, a woman like yourself is still seen as lesser. No matter the status and how much mora you have under your name.

“Old men like you are disgusting.” Hu Tao says, making a face at Xi as she rushes to your side. You sink to the ground and wrap your arms around yourself, still trembling from what had happened. Hu Tao knelt down in front of you and began comforting you, shielding you away from what was about to happen. Zhongli drags Xi off to the side; Zhongli has such a firm grasp around the man’s wrist that Xi fears that his wrist might snap.

“Unhand me, you uncivilized fool! Do you know who I am!?” Xi growls, thrashing around in Zhongli’s grasp, his face turning red with anger.

“You are nothing but a vile monster for forcing a woman to kiss you against her will.” Zhongli glares at the man in front of him before shoving him against the cement walls of the harbor. Xi felt the wind get knocked right out of him, causing him to gasp and double over while trying to catch his breath. 

“Oh, I’m a monster for wanting a kiss?!” Xi spats, glaring daggers at the tall man in front of him. Zhongli chuckled and shook his head, grabbing Xi by the collar of his shirt and slamming him against the wall again.

“Yes, and you’re vile for forcing yourself upon a woman who isn’t interested in you!” Zhongli growls, his amber eyes glowing. Xi stares at Zhongli with wide eyes before frantically flailing around in Zhongli’s firm grasp.

“What the fuck are you, you freak!? Unhand me immediately unless you want the Millelith to apprehend you for physically assaulting a high-class citizen of Liyue!” Xi screams. Zhongli rolled his eyes and was about to forcibly shut Xi up if it weren’t for you and Hu Tao, who stopped him from causing any more scene.

“It’s not worth it, Mister Zhongli. I don’t want you to get in trouble because of someone like Xi.” You said, gripping his arms gently. Zhongli sighs in defeat before releasing Xi, causing the man to fall on his butt and scamper off. 

“Wow, old man! I’ve never seen you act this way before!” Hu Tao comments, resting both of her hands on her hips with an impressed look on her face. “Quite impressive!” Hu Tao nods her head in approval.

“Come, let’s get you cleaned up at the parlor,” Zhongli says gently, turning towards you and holding his hand out for you to take. You grabbed Zhongli’s hands and let him guide you to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, with Hu Tao skipping ahead of you and Zhongli while rambling on about getting potential new clients she’ll be seeing soon. You didn’t know what she was implying exactly, but you have a hunch on who these potential clients could be.

When the men that you had met up with for the business meetings (Zhang Jun and Xi) complained to your parents about strange men/a strange man appearing out of nowhere and ruining the session, your parents would always take their side, even if they were in the wrong. You wanted to be upset over the fact that your parents are siding with the men who were nothing but creeps towards you, but you technically weren’t surprised at all. You knew they would side with those men, much to your dismay. The third man didn’t really show up to the supposed business meeting, which made your parents very upset because he made a promise that he didn’t keep.

“A man that cannot commit? How pathetic.” Your mother scoffs.

“I will have a talk with Huang Chen about this. That bastard gave us a date for this meeting and yet cannot follow through with his own plan.” Your father groused, his hands balling up into tight fists. 

You shrugged your shoulders and walked back to your bedroom, feeling the urge to just go to sleep. You closed the door behind you and collapsed onto your bed, your eyelids threatening to shut the minute your head touched your pillow. Whoever Huang Chen is, you’re glad that he did not show up at all because it saved you from dealing with more creepy men and Zhongli potentially beating the crap out of those who got close to you or made you feel uncomfortable. 

“I got the job done, Mister Zhongli!” Childe says, strutting into the funeral parlor with a smug smile on his face. “I knew that poisoning people was easy, but Huang Chen made it way too easy for me to poison him.” He held up the empty glass vial with a devious smile on his face.

Zhongli nods his head in acknowledgment, “Good.” Zhongli steps out from behind the counter of the parlor and fixes his suit.

“Mister Zhongli! You hired someone to poison someone?” Hu Tao asks, leaning against the door with her arms crossed over her chest.

“Listen, Director Hu; he didn’t hire me! Mister Zhongli asked me to do a small favor for both him and [Y/N], and I delivered.” Childe says, pocketing the glass vial with a smug smirk on his face.

Hu Tao snorted and lightly smacked her head, “Ah! Of course, Mister Zhongli wouldn’t hire someone to poison them! He’s too cheap for that! Silly me.” Hu Tao giggles, ignoring the glare that was shot in her direction from the funeral consultant. “Speaking of [Y/N], the way you’ve been acting when [Y/N] goes on these ‘business dinners’ is very interesting.” Hu Tao says, pushing herself away from the door frame before walking to her seat behind the counter.

“Care to explain what you meant by that?” Zhongli inquires, arching an eyebrow at the young funeral director in front of him.

“Last time I checked, you rejected [Y/N]’s confession and said that her feelings toward you are unprofessional and inappropriate. But you would take every chance you have to interfere with these meetings that [Y/N] is forced to go to.” Hu Tao replies, tapping her chin with her pointer finger. “Tell me, Mister Zhongli, are you sure that you don’t have any feelings for [Y/N]? Because your actions speak louder than your words.” Hu Tao gives Zhongli a knowing smile. 

Zhongli rolls his eyes, “Miss Hu, am I not allowed to care about those around me?” Zhongli asks.

“If she’s just your assistant, then why do you care so much about who she goes out on a date with?” Childe asks, giving Zhongli a cheeky smile. “Oh, come on, Mister Zhongli! There’s no use in denying your feelings for Miss [Y/N] anymore.” Childe says, patting the older man on the shoulders.

Zhongli lets out a frustrated sigh while shaking his head. Before Zhongli could say anything, you burst through the funeral parlor, wearing an elegant cheongsam that stops at half of your calves. It was black and gold, your hair curled and pushed back from your face, and you wore black high heels to match your cheongsam. Childe whistles and eyes you from head to toe, licking his lips with a slight smirk on his face.

“You’re looking gorgeous today, Miss [Y/N]. Are you ready for our date?” Childe asks jokingly. Despite Childe saying that as a joke, Zhongli’s head snaps in his direction with a glare. Hu Tao shakes her head and buries her face into her hands, sighing in defeat. It was like Childe was asking to get his ass kicked by Zhongli.

“Date?” Zhongli hissed at Childe under his breath. Childe stifled his laughter behind his fist.

You rolled your eyes and snorted, “He’s just joking, Mister Zhongli.” You reassured the dark-haired man beside Childe. “Today’s the last business meeting I’ll be attending. After that, I will return to work as usual and hope for the best.” You said, adjusting your teardrop cor lapis earrings.

“We haven’t been getting much done around the funeral parlor without you, [Y/N].” Hu Tao says, hopping over the counter before walking over to you. “This parlor is boring and almost as dead as our customers with just me, Ferrylady, and this old man over here.” Hu Tao says, nudging the older man as she walks past him. 

“Hu Tao! Don’t speak of the dead like that!” You scolded the young girl before letting your hands fall to your side. “But I do feel the same way; I wanted to come into the parlor every day but had to stop myself because, well, I have these business meetings to go to.” You shrugged your shoulders.

“While you look beautiful as always, you look really drained today,” Childe says, giving you a sympathetic look.

“Oh, good to know that no amount of makeup can cover up how tired I am of this entire situation.” You snorted, shaking your head. “I was getting an earful from my parents last night about a gentleman from the funeral parlor interfering with the business meetings. Of course, I came to that gentleman’s defense, but I still got into trouble regardless.” You chuckled bitterly. You looked over at the clock on the wall before sighing dramatically.

“Is it time for you to go to the business meeting?” Hu Tao asks; you nod your head slowly.

You were tempted to rub your exhausted eyes, but you refrained yourself from doing so, or else it would smudge the makeup. You slowly walked to the funeral parlor’s door, tempted not to leave at all, but your parents would have your head on the silver platter if you were to bail out of this meeting. 

For some odd reason, your parents wanted you to go to the Pearl Galley to meet the last man that they had picked out for you. The Pearl Galley, where many scholars and elites would attend. However, you find this ship odd because it wasn’t just a luxurious ship; it’s a brothel, a casino, and a strip club, but on a boat—what a lovely way to meet the final man your parents have chosen.

“I am not looking forward to going to this interesting boat.” You rolled your eyes. “I’ll see you three whenever I’m back.” You said, waving at the three before walking out of the door. You didn’t know why the final meeting had to be at a brothel, casino, and strip club on a boat; you couldn’t have but feel wary. If Xi and Zhang Jun were so creepy and a bit aggressive when it came to you, you did not want to know what this mystery person would be like towards you.

Once you were able to get on board the Pearl Galley, you leaned against the railing of the boat. While people were gambling, mingling, drinking, and being entertained, you stirred the wine in your glass cup. You stared at the crimson liquid before taking a whiff of it, your face pinching up in disgust. The wine smells cheap; if this ship was so luxurious, then why did they provide such inexpensive wines at a place like this?

“Miss [Y/N]! Darling, it’s great to finally meet you!” An older gentleman says, approaching you with a broad smile on his face. You smile at the man politely as he scans you from head to toe before saying, “Your parents talk about you nonstop!” The man says. A lightbulb in your mind goes off when he mentions your parents.

“Are you…” You trailed off.

“My name is Yu Zheng. It’s nice to meet you, [Y/N]. After hearing all of their praises when it came to their smart and beautiful daughter, I just knew that I would want to meet you!” Yu Zheng smiles at you, bowing at you. You gave Yu Zheng a polite smile and bowed at him in return. Yu Zheng was tall and had black hair with a few gray streaks in his hair. 

“It’s nice to meet you too, Mister Zheng! Although my parents have not spoken to me about you personally, I bet they have spoken very highly about you as well, sir!” You said, smiling at the man in front of you.

“Shall we walk around the Pearl Galley to be familiar with the scenery?” Yu Zheng asks, holding his arm out for you to take. 

You nod your head, “We shall!” You said, linking your arms around his before letting him guide you around the Pearl Galley.

The night started off well; the conversation between you and Yu Zheng was mainly about your parents, childhood, who he is, and what he does for a career. What dawned on you was that Yu Zheng looked a little bit similar to Zhang Jun; only Yu Zheng was rich and had a sharp tongue, whereas Zhang Jun was desperate to impress you. You and Yu Zheng were conversing while walking next to one another, chuckling amongst one another, before you accidentally walked into someone.

“Oh! I’m so sorry….” You trailed off and looked at the person that you had bumped into, only to lock gazes with Zhongli.

“Oh! Mister Zhongli, what a lovely surprise to see you here!” Yu Zheng exclaims, smiling at Zhongli politely.

Zhongli returns the smile and nods his head, “Hello, Yu Zheng. I did not expect to run into you on this ship.” Zhongli says casually.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what are you doing here? Not like I didn’t want to see you or anything; I was just surprised to see you here on the Pearl Galley.” Yu Zheng says, subtly placing his hand on your waist.

“Allow me to interject, but Mister Zhongli is a frequent visitor of the Pearl Galley.” Luo Feng says, appearing beside Zhongli with a smile on his face. You frowned at Luo Feng’s comment after hearing that your boss is a frequent customer and visitor of the Pearl Galley. Does that mean he goes here to gamble or for sexual pleasures? You swallowed the forming lump in your throat as you looked away from the three men, gently swirling the wine in the glass wine up you were held tightly onto. 

“A frequent visitor, you say?” You mused, poking the inside of your cheek with your tone. 

Luo Feng nods his head happily at your question. You let out a sharp exhale through your nostrils before taking a swig of the wine in your hands. Your face pinches up with disgust from the taste of cheap wine. Zhongli looks at you with amusement when he sees the way you react when you hear that he was a frequent visitor of the Pearl Galley. Were you perhaps jealous? Yu Zheng noticed the way you and Zhongli acted around each other and couldn’t help but feel jealous and possessive of you. After all, you’re going to be his bride by the end of the week, so why is another man ogling his soon-to-be bride? Yu Zheng tightens his grip around your hips, giving Zhongli and Luo Feng a tight smile.

“Yes! He is a frequent visitor! Mister Zhongli dines and enjoys the opera on the Pearl Galley while talking about the history of Liyue and Rex Lapis to other refined gentlemen, such as myself.” Luo Feng added, patting Zhongli’s shoulders.

“How interesting.” You hummed, looking down at the cheap wine in your glass cup. “I didn’t know that my boss likes to spend his free time on a boat that has many interesting activities.” You said, shooting a look at Zhongli from the corner of your eyes.

“Miss [Y/N]—” Zhongli was interrupted by Yu Zheng. 

“[Y/N], my beautiful wife, why don’t you grab me another glass cup of wine!” Yu Zheng says, his hands trailing down to your ass and lightly squeezing it. You almost choked on your wine at the sudden groping. Zhongli glares at Yu Zheng’s inappropriate behavior. You swallowed the wine in your mouth before looking at the cup in his hands that was not empty.

“Another glass of wine? I don’t think that you should be having another cup while on a business meeting.” You said. “And I am not your wife, Mister Yu Zheng. I’m merely a business partner, that is all.” You sighed. Luo Feng and Zhongli can see Yu Zheng’s face becoming flustered while he sputters in response. 

“Miss [Y/N] is correct. It is not recommended to be drinking heavily while on a business meeting, Mister Yu.” Zhongli says, giving the older man a look of disapproval. “It is distasteful and unprofessional,” Zhongli concludes, crossing his arms over his chest while shaking his head side to side.

“I don’t care. Just get me another drink!” Yu Zheng spats at Zhongli. You, Luo Feng, and Zhongli blinked at the angry man in front of you three.

You nodded your head slowly, “Alright, I will get you your drink.” You said. 

Right when you were about to walk off, Yu Zheng grabbed you by your biceps and pulled you back. You looked at Yu Zheng inquisitively before he pointed at his cheek, signaling for you to kiss his cheeks before you left to grab him another cup of wine. 

You blinked at Yu Zheng owlishly before slowly leaning in to press a kiss on his cheeks. Even though you didn’t want to do it, you didn’t wish Yu Zheng to cause any further commotion. Before your lips could meet his cheeks, Yu Zheng turns his head all of a sudden, both your lips meeting in the middle. You jumped back and pressed your fingers against your lips, eyes widening in shock and embarrassment. 

“That was distasteful, Mister Yu Zheng.” You stated, walking away from Yu Zheng, Zhongli, and Luo Feng. You felt your face heat up with shame and discomfort while walking over to the waiter that was hanging out drinks to patrons. You gave the waiter a fake smile and said a small “thank you” before accepting the glass from the waiter. You were about to turn around to walk back to where Yu Zheng stood, but someone stopped you in your tracks. You turned towards the person, only to see Yelan standing there with a slight smirk on her face.

“[Y/N], you have no idea how happy I am to see you again!” Yelan says as she begins to approach you with her arms over her chest, her bracelet glowing under the moonlight. “Long time no see, sugarplum!” Yelan pinches your cheeks.

“It’s good to see you too, Yelan! It’s been way too long since we’ve seen each other.” You said, giving the woman a small smile. 

“How are you doing, sugarplum? I saw how that Fatui diplomat treated you.” Yelan says, placing both of her hands on your shoulders as she shields you away from Yu Zheng, Zhongli, and Luo Feng’s eyes. Your eyes widened at Yelan’s comment; you peeked from her shoulder to find the Fatui diplomat but couldn’t find anyone in particular.

“Who’s a Fatui diplomat?!” You ask frantically; Yelan gives you a sympathetic look before giving both your shoulders a comforting squeeze.

“The man that was groping you in front of Zhongli and Luo Feng, the one that had forcibly kissed you, sugarplum.” Yelan answers. You stared at Yelan, slacked jaw, your hands beginning to shake. Your parents had arranged for you to be married to a Fatui diplomat!?

“Are you sure he’s a Fatui diplomat?! He’s Liyuen like us!” You whispered loudly, hands feeling weak before the glass cup falls and shatters on the ground. “My parents set me up with a Fatui diplomat. This can’t be!” You whispered, heart racing against your chest.

“What’s going on?” Zhongli asks. You were deep in your thought that you didn’t realize that Zhongli had run up to where you and Yelan stood when he heard the sound of glass shattering on the wooden floor of the ship.

“[Y/N] found out that she’s accompanying a Fatui diplomat at the Pearl Galley,” Yelan says, brushing strands of hair away from your face. “She’s not handling the news well at all.” Yelan sighs.

“My parents are forcing me to marry a Fatui diplomat.” You whisper to yourself. You squeezed your eyes shut before releasing a shaky sigh. “I need a moment for myself.” You said, giving Zhongli and Yelan a strained smile before pushing passed the two of them. You ended up at the area of the ship to collect your thoughts. Your heart was still racing against your chest after Yelan had revealed that Yu Zheng was a Fatui diplomat. A shadow casts over you; you looked up, only to see Yu Zheng standing there with his hands tucked in his pockets, visibly pissed that you had disappeared all of a sudden without his drink.

“Why are you here? You were supposed to be accompanying me!” Yu Zheng demanded, glaring down at you.

“I needed some alone time, Yu Zheng. Is that so bad?” You ask softly, swallowing the anxiety that was building up inside of you from the proximity between you two.

“I thought you ran off with that funeral consultant and decided to abandon ship.” Yu Zheng commented, standing much closer to you. You were backed up against the wall, hands trembling against your chest. “I heard that you’re a Fatui diplomat, Yu Zheng. Is that true?” You ask, looking away from the tall man in front of you.

“This isn’t how I wanted you to find out, sweetheart.” Yu Zheng sighs softly, reaching forward to caress your face in his hands. You recoiled away from his touch, looking up at the diplomat timidly. A flash of anger and confusion appeared on his face when you flinched away from his touch. How else were you supposed to react when you find out that the person that your parents had set you up with is part of the Fatui? Your parents practically sold you, their only child and only daughter, to the Fatui. But what was the reason, aside because of an outdated tradition.

“Just answer my question, Yu Zheng.” You whispered.

Yu Zheng sighs in defeat and nods his head, “Yes, it’s true. I am a Fatui diplomat, and your parents know that I’m a Fatui diplomat.” He stated. 

“I’m sorry to disappoint you and my parents, but I refuse to marry a Fatui diplomat.” You said, turning your head to the side to avoid eye contact with the man in front of you. Yu Zheng fumes with anger and grabs you by your wrist before tightening his hold. You let out a loud pained yelp, trying to pull your wrist out of his iron grasp, but only for him to tighten his grip around your wrist even more.

“I don’t care what you want, and your parents don’t care about what you want! You will marry me, whether you like it or not!” Yu Zheng spats as he leans his face close to yours, you try to look somewhere else, but he grabs you by the jaws and forces you to look at him. “Do. You. Under. Stand.” Yu Zheng snarls.

“Yes! Yes, I understand!” You sobbed; Yu Zheng’s grasp around your wrist was becoming very painful. “Please, let me go! You’re hurting me!” You hiccuped. Yu Zheng smirks with satisfaction before letting go of your jaws and your wrist. You hugged your wrist close to your chest, rubbing the area with your fingers.

“The wedding will be in two days; you can invite that insufferable funeral consultant and your other friends.” Yu Zheng huffs, walking away from you. 

You clutched your injured wrist against your chest, tears cascading down your flushed cheeks. This is it, this is your fate, and you can’t do anything about it. Even if your parents gave you candidates to be your husband, even if you were to choose anyone else, your parents would change that decision for you instead. You ended up not seeing Zhongli or Yelan for the rest of the night; you were forced to stay by Yu Zheng’s side until it was time for you to head home. Yu Zheng decided to escort you to your estate, and your parents were ecstatic when they learned that you had chosen Yu Zheng out of the other candidates they had picked out for you.

“The maids will make the wedding invitation, and you can hand them out to your close friends and coworkers, sweetheart!” Your mother chimes, bringing you into a very tight hug. 

You grunted in pain before gently pushing her off you. You gave her a fake smile before walking off to your bedroom. That night, you didn’t bother to change out of your clothes or take your makeup off. You were too numb and tired to do anything. This was it; you’ll be married to some Fatui diplomat all because of your parents, and your friends and coworkers will be witnessing the entire thing. As usual, you didn’t get a wink of sleep at all. 

You dressed in your everyday work attire and were about to leave the mansion when the maids stopped you from leaving the estate. You looked at them in confusion before the head maid of the estate hands you the wedding invitation. Your heart drops into the pits of your stomach when you see your name and Yu Zheng’s name on the intricate wedding invitation. You sucked in a breath before walking out of the estate with the wedding invitations in your hands. How are you going to invite your friends and coworkers to your wedding when you didn’t even want to get married yourself?

You stepped into the funeral parlor with the wedding invitations in your hands. You were sure that you got your handprints on it because you were sweating while holding onto the invites. It feels impossible for you to hand out these invitations to your coworkers and friends. The wedding was so sudden, and they knew you didn’t have a significant other, so why were you getting married almost right away? You walked up to Zhongli and Hu Tao with the envelope in your trembling hands. 

“Mister Zhongli, Director Hu.” You said. Both Zhongli and Hu Tao turn to you; one is looking at you curiously while the other has an exasperated expression on their face.

“[Y/N]! We’re friends; you don’t have to call me Director Hu!” Hu Tao whines. You gave her a weak smile, only for it to disappear afterward. This was nerve-wracking, and you didn’t like it at all.

“Here are my wedding invitations; I want you two to go to it. It’s tomorrow.” You said, handing Zhongli and Hu Tao the ivory white wedding invitation. Hu Tao looks at you with wide eyes, then down at the envelope in her hands. She tore the envelope open and began scanning her eyes through the piece of paper in her hands.

“You’re getting married!?” Hu Tao screeches, looking over at Zhongli with worry. Zhongli stares at the unopened wedding invitation in his hands, his eyebrows narrowed. Zhongli looks visibly upset, but you don’t know why. Other than the fact that it was with a Fatui diplomat.

“A wedding so soon?” Zhongli mutters, refusing to open the envelope in his hands.

You sighed in defeat and nodded your head. “I didn’t want to get married, but my parents told me it’s traditions and I have no choice. I have to get married before I’m twenty-five and have children.” You said. Zhongli had never felt so powerless before; even after giving up his gnosis, Zhongli didn’t think the day would come. “I did have an option to choose the person I wanted to get married to, but that option shot me down real quick.” You let out a weak laugh, not seeing the look Hu Tao gave Zhongli after elbowing his side.

“But this tradition is outdated!” Hu Tao exclaims, tossing the wedding invitation on the counter before turning to you with her bottom lip quivering.

“It’s very outdated, but in the upper-class families, it’s normal.” You said. “I can’t get out of it, no matter how hard I tried. Yu Zheng threatened me, and the wedding is tomorrow because he wants me to go to Snezhnaya with him immediately after the wedding.” You let out a shaky exhale.

“One cannot force others into a contract they do not want to sign,” Zhongli mutters, gripping the wedding invitation in his fist so that it crumbles under pressure. “A contract, especially a wedding contract, must be a mutual understanding and agreement,” Zhongli says.

“The contract hasn’t been signed yet, but it will be after the wedding.” You said. You rubbed the back of your neck. “Other than that, I hope you two can attend the wedding. You can let Childe tag along as well, and when you do, please give him the invitation.” You hand the extra wedding invitation to Zhongli, who takes the wedding invitation from your hands reluctantly. 

The entire day at the funeral was excruciatingly slow, which you were glad that it was because the next day was the wedding that you’re being forced into. While you were out running some errands for the funeral parlor, Zhongli sat at his desk, staring at the wedding invitation in front of him. Zhongli needs to stop the wedding; he has to. There must be a way for you to get out of the marriage with the diplomat.

“So, what’s the plan, old man? Are you finally coming to your senses that you’re in love with [Y/N] this entire time?” Hu Tao asks, leaning against Zhongli’s office door frame. Zhongli doesn’t say a single word, his eyes glued on the invitation in front of him. Zhongli needs to stop the wedding before it's too late.

You opened your eyes and realized that you were in your wedding dress with the veil over your head. You didn’t know why Yu Zheng didn’t want the wedding to be a traditional Liyuen wedding. You’ve always imagined your wedding to be customary, beautiful, and big enough for the people in your life. But this wedding was the complete opposite of what you have in mind, and you’re upset about it. What was the point of forcing you into a marriage, and you end up not getting a say on how the wedding should be?

You just wanted to get it over with and never have to see another wedding dress again. Even though you’ve handed out wedding invitations to your friends and coworkers, you weren’t so sure if they would show up to the wedding after knowing that you were being forced into it. You stood up from your seat and walked over to the wooden doors, and knocked on the door. 

Yue peeks her head into the room before asking, “Are you ready?” You bobbed your head in response, too nervous to be able to respond properly. Yue opens the door widely for you before escorting you to the main wedding venue, with the other maids following behind. 

You hear music playing behind closed doors; the wedding venue’s entrance was pulled open by the servants. Your eyes widened at the number of people that showed up to the last-minute wedding. You assumed that the majority of the guests were associated with the Fatui and other wealthy people of Liyue. Lady Ningguang wasn’t able to make it, and you were sort of relieved because you didn’t want to see your close friend witnessing your soon-to-be downfall. You began to walk down the aisle with a bouquet of glaze lilies and violetgrass in your hands. Yu Zheng smiles at you at the altar, wearing a black and purple tuxedo, and his hair is slicked back. You slowly came to a stop in the middle of the aisle, staring off into space. The guests began to murmur amongst themselves, wondering why the bride suddenly stopped in the middle of the aisle. Your parents looked both worried and furious when you made eye contact with them.

“I’m….”  You spoke up, swallowing your saliva. “I-I can’t do this, I’m sorry.” You shook your head, letting the bouquet fall to the ground before you ran out of the building. You grabbed the skirt of your wedding gown, hiked it up, and continued to run out of the building. You didn’t even check to see if Zhongli, Hu Tao, and Childe had made it to the wedding. You just wanted to get away from the arranged marriage.

You turned towards the corner of the building, only to crash into someone. You yelped and stumbled back from the force, but the person was quick to catch you before you could land on your ass. You looked up at the person that saved you from falling, only to lock gazes with amber eyes. Zhongli helps you up and steadies you; you grip onto Zhongli’s arms tightly, looking behind you to make sure no one has followed after you.

“Are you okay?” Zhongli asks, caressing your face in his hands while fixing your hair. 

“I don’t want to get married to Yu Zheng, Zhongli!” You cried. “Please, please don’t make me go back in there, please.” You pleaded, tears running down your face.

“I’m not going to make you go back there against your will, dearest,” Zhongli says softly, wiping your tears away with his gloved hands. Zhongli wraps his arms around your waist before lifting you up into his arms and briskly walks to the funeral parlor with you in his arms. Upon arriving at the funeral parlor, Zhongli sat you down on the stone bench outside of the parlor. Zhongli wipes your tears away before pressing his lips on your forehead. You continued to cling to him as if he was your lifeline. It physically pains Zhongli to see you cry. Zhongli knelt in front of you, continuing to wipe your tears away before caressing your face in his hands.

“I know that this is a bad time, but I wasn’t truthful to you a few days prior.” Zhongli murmurs; you look at him in confusion, tears gradually coming to a stop. “I have feelings for you too, but I denied it because I believed that I was too old for you.” Zhongli sighs, giving you a sad smile.

“You did?” You squeaked, clearing your throat softly.

Zhongli nods his head, “While I did say that having feelings for me, your boss, is inappropriate and unprofessional, it was hypocritical of me to say that when I feel the same way towards you.” He cups your face with both hands, “I love you so much, but it took me so long to finally come to my senses about it.” Zhongli pressed his forehead against yours.

“I love you too, Zhongli.” You whispered, bottom lips trembling. Zhongli presses his lips against yours, your arms wrapping around his neck while his arms snake around your waist, pressing you up against his chest. Zhongli slowly pulls away from the kiss, his thumb lightly brushing over your bottom lip. Something in the corner of your eyes caught your attention; you slowly pulled away from Zhongli and blinked at the green thing in Zhongli’s hand.

“What’s this?” You ask, pointing at it.

“I was going to get you some flowers, but they’re quite expensive in the market, so this was the last resort,” Zhongli says, his cheeks turning pink.

“Zhongli! You got me a bouquet of broccolis instead of flowers? You’re so cute, Zhongli!” You laughed, covering your mouth with your hand. Your body shakes with laughter; you fall forward into Zhongli’s arms.

Zhongli smiles down at you and brushes his thumb over the apples of your cheeks, “There’s that beautiful smile of yours. It’s been a while since I’ve seen it.” Zhongli says. You stopped laughing before blushing under his gaze after hearing his comment. 

“Zhongli, stop! You’re going to make me fall for you even more!” You whined, burying your face into his chest while clutching onto the bouquet of broccolis in your hands.

“Wow, old man! I knew you were cheap, but not that cheap!” Hu Tao says, popping out from the bushes behind you and Zhongli. 

“You know, Mister Zhongli. I could pay for those flowers easily, you know? You didn’t have to give her the broccoli bouquet, you know?” Childe says, leaning up against the wall with his arms over his chest with an amused smile on his face.

“Flowers are nice, yes, but I like these broccolis instead. After all, my boyfriend did get them for me.” You said, looking up at Zhongli with a smile on your face. Zhongli smiles down at you before pressing his lips on your forehead.

Note: And it's finally published! It's about 3-4 hours later than usual. I think this is the only fic I'm willing to type out almost 20k words for because it's Zhongli. It's officially 3 AM, where I'm at, and I am exhausted. I don't know who ended up reading all 18.7k words of Zhongli hurt/comfort fic (ish), but I hope you all liked it either way! I had this idea on my mind since March 2022 and never got around to it. For those who are new or returning readers, please keep in mind that I ONLY post on my Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and my AO3 (Aaliah_exo)! Nowhere else except Tumblr and AO3!

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[brineffxiv]

Descending via the Thirty-Third Facet, we arrive in Merryall Agronomics.

There are no gleaners in the immediate vicinity, yet the workers are just as harried. Time to investigate!

I ask around a bit and perform some menial tasks, and eventually find myself on this little hilltop in front of these pretty glowing flowers. Which I know are Important because of how the camera lingers on them.

A passing botanist sees me admiring them, and stops to inform me that these flowers are like mood rings and their colors reflect the ambient emotion - right now they're a dull grey because of the anxiety and stress the workers are under. Despite knowing why they do the thing they do, no one has been able to get to the bottom of how. We also don't know where they come from.

Interesting. I am sure this will be relevant eventually, but I cannot imagine how.

We spy Erenville from a distance, arriving presumably to give the report he mentioned to his superior. We bet this superior is a forum member, and resolve to eavesdrop.

Krile is worryingly distracted by the flowers.

Y'shtola... turns us into toads. So we can spy better.

I. Was not aware this was a thing that could happen.

Alphi-toad and Ali-toad!

Omg I am losing it.

TOADS.

...Okay. Okay.

We find Erenville meeting with a forum member, and it seems he has a bone to pick with them himself.

A momentous duty they were charged with? And open acknowledgement of the Final Days? Jackpot.

While walking away Erenville notices us, and recognizes us instantly, lol.

Returning to Y'shtola we split up to find Krile, who has turned back due to not feeling well. I find her back at the flowers, where she picks one and casts a spell on it to keep it from wilting before giving it to me.

Uh... "She?" I think I can hazard a guess which She we're talking about.

Hello again, Hydaelyn.

Yes, I had gathered you were unable to save the First yourself. That wasn't my issue. My complaint was about your lack of communication. Surely you could have spoken with your champions as you are with me now. You could have told them what needed doing; you could have asked them for help. Failing that, simply speaking with them would have eased their suffering, instead of ignoring their pleas as you did.

...I forget if I learned about the aetherial sea through the game or if one of my friends let it slip by accident that that's where the dead go. Hmm. I suppose it doesn't really matter.

...Are you telling me that the sea is separate between the reflections?

I mean. I suppose that makes sense. I had just assumed it was all one thing. But... Oh, of course that makes sense. Or else the shards of the sundered souls would have the potential of meeting themselves and getting mixed up. Then, that means that those who die in a shard are forever trapped there, regardless of where they originated.

Thank you, then. That was... surprisingly considerate of you. On behalf of Minfilia, of Thancred, of the rest of my friends. Genuinely. Thank you for bringing her home. The idea of her separated from those she loved and who loved her in return, for eternity, is a horror I didn't know I had to consider.

I can think of several who died, but none who are both natives of the Source and not your enemies. Who else did you bring back...?

...Wait. It's not Emet-Selch, is it? Is that why he's narrating??

Gah. I don't know if that actually makes sense or if I'm just a horribly biased fan and can't not think about him. Why would Hydaelyn do anything to aid her mortal enemy? But, only Emet and Elidibus were natives of the Source, and Elidibus got absorbed by the Crystal Tower...

*sigh*

This is a mystery that will only be solved by progressing the plot. I will just have to live with not knowing for the time being.

You mean I'm not tempered? Is that what you're saying? Or is it that you won't impose your will over mine?

I will try. It's what I always do; try my best.

And then She is gone, and Krile is herself again. Not that I'm not glad Hydaelyn is finally communicating with us... But I am leery of seeing those blue eyes on another of my friends. I can never forget what happened to Minfilia.

On that we can both agree. Why She feels the need to be so cryptic is a mystery to me.

Uh oh. (And here I will cut the post, because this is getting quite long.)

#ffxiv liveblog #rhesh'a tag #krile baldesion #hydaelyn #y'shtola rhul #alphinaud leveilleur #alisaie leveilleur #erenville #TOADS #baseless speculation #thoughts on lore

[demonsfate]

Oh my fucking god.... the fudkdjid ball. Can you believe this shit. I played today and got free items and they all suck, everything is ported from TK7 and looks cheap af. All while getting my ass kicked by a fuckng Azucena who STILL does the busted WR move she has (nerfed my ass).... and for some DAMN reason I got matched with a GOD OF DESTRUCTION JUN. I barely got one round out of them with my Mighty Ruler Jun. It wasn't even ranked. It was quick match, why is there no restriction there??? This game stresses you out sometimes like jfc..

I still remember when Twitter shills were actually trying to defend this lol. This was at the time of the store's release. (So talking about the first four outfits available). Which is funny, because even though I was already vocal about what a shitty move selling ports was, virtually... no one said a damn thing. And really? No one continued to say anything until the cyborg suits and fight pass were announced. THEN people finally said something. Which makes me happy but really, nobody shouldn't have stood for ANY of the ports to begin with. I guess maybe people were holding out for hope that the OTHER items wouldn't be ports and it was just a rocky start, or maybe people didn't catch on at first, but then y'know... everyone lost hope when he all realized, yup, third store update and it's still ports. We're never gonna get anything original, huh?

And like this tweet is wrong. These ports AREN'T good enough. A lot of times, as you said, they're very cheap looking, they don't match the game's quality, their textures are OFTEN blurry or stretched, or just lacking BASIC DETAILS. (Jin's Tekken 4 hoodie looks horrible, Xiaoyu's Tekken 4 dress and King's Tekken 2 outfit looks plastic-y, Hwoarang's outfit has blurrier and stretched textures, etc etc)

Like look at this letterman jacket for example...

Why is it all PLASTIC and SHINY looking???? If you look up real letterman jackets, none of them have this texture!!!

I thought the whole point of Tekken 8 was that it's built from the ground up and is supposed to have superior graphics. These Tekken 7 items just look out of place because of this. Do you really want a bunch of clothes that are randomly shiny in your game? It looks weird and it looks bad.

Once you get Azucena, Victor, or Dragunov in the higher ranks, your chances of survival drop to 10% LOL.

That's actually really funny because many players will suggest Quick Match because it's "less stressful" as you can't lose your rank in it. But like??? Every time I play it, I DO match with somebody who's a far higher rank than I am and I end up getting my ass handed to me in a matter of SECONDS. It's like yes, I know playing against higher skilled people can help you improve. But like, I'd rather play against who's a bit better than me - not somebody who's 100x better and can just DEMOLISH me to the point where I can't even see or understand what's happening! It makes me feel like I'm a small kid playing chess against a 73 year old grandmaster who's been doing it all his life lol.

#✏️ - ᴛʜᴇ ʜᴏsᴛ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏsᴛ // (ooc) #✏️ - ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴅᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ? // (inbox)

[kippykasey]

Hey @darke15

Its finally time for the live reaction of season 2 of Soldier and the Spy.

S2E1

- leave it to Boone to make a dramatic entrance

- of course Duke is being a mother hen over a breakout

Error. Bad connection redacted comments. Please try again.

- Jack has it bad for Duke and its adorable

- Jack and Zac are the first of my children as they are cinnamon rolls and I will fight for them.

Connection reestablished. Please continue.

- wait wait wait Rafael is the one who is going to treat our girl ghost??? Hell yeah!

- just waiting for Belov to meet someone new who knows what he's saying and messes with him

- please pause the tension caused by brainwashed Ghost for some adorable children

- Raf is something else.

- The Hadar and Jack gym moment made me snicker. Poor Jack just wanted to make sure a fight didn't break out.

- Belov and Zac are like Spike and Jerry (I don't know why that correlation popped into my head but it did) unlikely friends

- me going my whole life thinking it was 'Golf' Coast... yep

- nooo not the ptsd ahhh poor Dugan

- catch me giggling over the idea of a wooden child puppet being a drug dealer

S2E2

- okay but Duke would be a badass bar tender. Love it

- this part (Lawrence being drugged) is so wonderfully written (as odd as that sounds)

- 💉💉he got his shot💉💉

- Boone having flashbacks from Rook gives me gross vibes

- we love a protective Duke

- all dresses with pockets are superior

(I am technically supposed to be working but I'm hooked. Ahhhhh)

- “Only Marines take in hood rats.” true for the marines I know

- Jack is too kind

- oh look a meet-cute run in

(Totally had a small panic over bad internet and thinking all the comments from ep2 so far didn't save but we good)

- Belov, bear, vodka is not a food group

- the gossip mill is deep.

- oh, Boone, darlin'. Someone give this gal a hug

- the friendships forming are beautiful to watch

S2E3

- ah Boone and Duke banter, I missed it

- cackling at this tech class

- During all of the fights for Alpha picks I just imagine the nurses getting upset at select few that they constantly see

- oh so that's how T becomes senator. I like it

- Nea helping set up Jack and Duke unknowingly

S2E4

- lil happy dance at the first use of Senator Johnson

- i would like to take this time to thank General Garner for taking vacation

- giggling like a school girl at poor Jack's expense

- now laughing at Duke's expense

- pass code guesses: alphaone or alphatwo

- Jack and Duke obviously crushing but oblivious

- Jack, don't compare relationships

S2E5 (about halfway through and its only been 5 hours, since I'm working and multitasking)

- whoa there no going after kids or we gonna have a problem and you aren't gonna win

- watch them become a team because they get caught sneaking out for drinks

- Hadar going to save the day?

- Montana plates huh? 👀

- mmm the baby blue camero

- I caught that Fury mention

- Thomas Frazier consider yourself fired

- Bardot Calinescu sounds familiar, was it referenced in BS:A?

S2E6

- Boone how scandalous lol

- well there goes one of my code guesses, alphaone is still there and my third would be outbreak (that was Johnsons code name if I remember)

-alpha two is literally going to be formed in a bar to save Johnson.

- “And,” Rafael said, the smile on his face growing, “I know just the guy to get us to Dugan.” mhm his name is Jack Bennett

- didn't see Sherlock coming

- ugh this comparison to wonderland is beautiful

- hell yeah! Go Zac!!

- we going to throw hands and then get back to slapping some sense into Boone for doing stupid shit

S2E7 (just a random time update its like 12:30)

- eeeeeeee! He asked him out! It begins!

- happy dance at alpha 2 forming to save kids

- no no no we going to fight

- DARKE NO. OMG NO. THAT CLIFFHANGER. That's so mean. My heart is racing and I. .... *incert scream here*

S2E8

- nia being so strong ♡

- i just feel like a ball of anxiety right now. 20 minutes to save the girls before a big boom boom

- oh sjit oh shit panic

- this is a stressful situation Duke shooting and coming out of the dark is not supposed to be attractive!

- “You and I remember Havana very differently,” 👀

- oh my god. Go alpha two

- not Jack finding out Duke wants to kiss him by a child in a death zone

- wish I had ice cream to get through the heart palpation you caused :P

- Ghost is awake!!

S2E9

- Duke ruining his own love life

- pour the champagne for Senator Johnson!

- Amma ♡

- Winter Soldier just seems like a stalker, promising to find Ghost. (Bad joke)

S2E10 (time update 2:16)

- well a stabbing is one way to start an episode

- home to New Eden

- squealing over Duke and Jack is just a thing now

- the fact that Thomas still has a job... prick

S2E11 (last one)

- honestly New Eden is probably the best place for Ghost right now

- short sweet and Raf better not disrespect the car like that again or we gonna fight

So in total it only took me like 9.4 hours to binge read everything. But yes ♡♡♡♡♡♡

Much love to the Alphas.

#live reaction #the soldier and the spy #season 2

[spaceofentropy]

I've rewatched season 4 of Stranger Things not that long ago and it still drives me up a wall how the Duffers and their writers' room managed to write Eddie as (almost) the perfect prototype of a shitty, toxic DM. I've been roleplaying and occasionally GameMastering for the past 22 years (give or take). I've played with good GMs, mediocre GMs, terrible GMs, stellar GMs. And Eddie Munson, for how he's written in the show, is a shitty GM, holy fuck, folks!

1 He scares his younger players into doing what he wants. The first time I saw season 4, my brain went "Feels like they're setting him up as the new human baddie of the season, feels like they're gonna pull a Billy-with-switched-plates on us..." because Eddie is introduced as seen through Dustin and Mike's eyes, and those are scared eyes. Not scared as in "he's gonna hurt me", but scared as in "he's volatile, unpredictable, and he's gonna make my life literal hell". Like a bully. Like he's not a hero or a good presence for those two kids. And then...

2 Eddie refuses to move that fucking D&D session. Which... WTF, man, what the fuck! You don't want to know the number of times my groups and I had to postpone a session because too many people couldn't be there because life! The way we played with one or two players less, knowing that M. would use his brother's character for combat, that while E. was away his character would conveniently get bonked in the head and pass out for the duration of that session! But it's an important day, I hear you say. It's the end of the campagin, you say. Then... dude! Since you've built to that session for months, it's the culmination of your whole campaign, you want YOUR PLAYERS to be there! It's a big day for the whole group, not just for the DM! What's the fun in having one of the main characters in the story being absent?! Which leads us to the fact...

3 Eddie demands that Dustin and Mike find him a replacement player. On your big fucking day when your campaign ends you DON'T want a random player to sit at the table and risk to have to decide the fate of the whole story (which, coincidentally, is exactly what ends up happening, how fun...)! You want YOUR players to be there for the grand finale! How can a rando appreciate the way you bring all the storylines to their conclusion? How can a rando know why that tiny detail that ties back to the second or third session is important? A rando can't! Bringing in a rando is just bringing in an arm to swing dice, at this point in a campaign. You've built to this session for months, then it won't kill you to wait for a week or two longer to play it! (And this ever-important session happens just before spring break, there are weeks and weeks left before school ends. They can fucking wait for Mike to come back from California and Lucas to not have basketball games! Which, oh, look at that...)

4 Eddie knows he's forcing two of his younger players to ditch their friend's big game, and he doesn't give a single fuck. D&D is clearly the best, superior past time ever, in Eddie's eyes, and fuck anyone who thinks differently. Fuck anyone who dares put anything above D&D. Sadly, Dustin and Mike are not old enough or emotionally strong enough to ditch a bad GM, not when he has painted himself in their eyes as their saviour from being high school loners and pariahs, so fuck their great friend Lucas, I guess?

5 Eddie's an elitist piece of crap to Erica. Saying "Oh, you play D&D? What level is your character?" is not only inherently stupid in D&D terms (you can create a 17th level character from scratch, tailored to the sole purpose of playing with a high level group, it's... it's a ttrpg, not a fucking videogame where you have to grind all the levels! Ghaaaaaaaaa!), but also the equivalent of going "You're wearing a Metallica t-shirt? List 5 of their songs!" on her. The kind of thing where you look at the tool in front of you, flip him the bird, and leave with a "Go get fucked by balrog, dickwad!"

In all of that, the problem is the shitty writing. I know that thematically and symbolically it's so juicy to have Lucas, who's been torn between the jocks and the nerd, stay with the jocks while he his nerd friends LITERALLY replace him with his sister. Oh, it's so tasty to have the Sinclair siblings throw the deciding ball/die in their respective games and win everything for their teams. I can almost hear the Duffers orgasm (sorry for the horrid image!) at the idea of it all, typing it down and then going to their editor asking for the alternating cuts, the parallels, and then, oh, the stark difference between Lucas' face falling because none of his friends is present on his big day and Erica being cheered on by these older guys she just met! And that shot when the basketball team leaves the gym and Lucas sees Erica so seamlessly incorporated in his other group of friends, so angsty, right? Right? You get it, audience, right? He's sad! So sad! *nudge nudge wink wink*

It's such lazy writing. It feels like paint by number and also unfaithful to the characters, and to Erica in particular. She may not love her brother to pieces, may not have been enthusiastic at the idea of watching a boring basketball game, but I can't see her having a single reason to go play one D&D session to close a campagin she knows nothing about with a group of older strangers (who treat her like crap), when up until this point she's been a closeted nerd.

And we all know that the D&D session must be there because we can build up Lucas' dilemma and introduce an audience who knows nothing about D&D to the concept of Vecna. (As one of my friends said when Vecna came up in the show, "Vecna? Again!? Haven't we already killed that squirrelly third-rate spellcaster at least once a decade for the past 40 years?!")

And you know what? It's double shitty writing. Because if it weren't for Joseph Quinn good performance, I probably would have ended hating Eddie all the way to the end of the series and not given much of a fuck about his death! Because, as I said, I actually disliked him for a good chunk of episode one. My first gut reaction to Eddie Munson was "Nope! Stay away! Bad guy! Shoo, shoo!"

You've written this guy as an asshole who can't be arsed to postpone a fucking D&D session; who thinks he's better than everyone else; who walks on the tables where other people are eating (EWWW!); who scares his youngest minions and forces them to do his biddings; who doesn't give a fuck if he's forcing said minions into ditching their friend; who treats a middle schooler like pure crap... And no, I don't think it's a matter of "oh, the guy has so many nuances", just... Fuck that guy! The guy the Duffers wrote is a shitty GM that I wouldn't want to play a single session with. I don't give a single fuck about the fate of the guy who leads the Hellfire Club. He's selfish and crappy to everyone. The guy who interacted with Chrissy, on the other hand? Yeah, I give many fucks about him. Just... keep him away from young, impressionable players that might learn from him how to become toxic GMs in the future! 😬

#eddie munson is a shitty DM and you can't change my mind #also Mike and Dustin are shit friends to Lucas #period #I love the guy but let's keep canon Eddie away from the roleplay table for a few years so he can mature ok? #you're the GM so your job is to have your players have fun #not fear you and your volatile moods #there's no session that can't be postponed! #the duffers are bad writers #have they ever played a single session of D&D with a decent DM? #asking for a worried friend #long post #sorry for the rant #stranger things the mess you are

[repo-net]

Artificiality

In the hide and seek corner of the third floor, a doll was sat cross-legged on the floor, painting expressions onto little black sticks. A couple of them were already wrapped around the unruly and chaotic choice of clothes on his waist, but the one he was working on was a much bigger one with a face that had glasses and a rather devious-looking smile on it.

"And... circle that around, and then a few more details on his glasses... throw a small nose in there... andddd that should be it! Hahaha, I've evolved into making expressions of the stupid participants in this game! I should start making one of Dad's disappointment next. Like a stoic kinda face... what do you think?"

The doll looked up to his side, the one standing and towering over him was another robot with messy gray hair, a mask that was clearly stolen off of a horror film, and a white shirt with blue pants. He had a scythe stuck onto his pocket, and he responded to the frailer and smaller doll with an unintelligible grunt.

"What do you mean it's too low? What, you think he still cares about that bastard? Please. He let me take his stupid apron that he got from the Chidouins, who by the way, the daughter of which was fine with voting for. As if Dad still cares about his deadbeat dead and beat son."

A groan like that of a zombie quietly came back from the muscular freak of nature (except he didn't actually came from nature). Ranger would only hold up a pouty mask in response.

"Yeah right. Besides, have you forgotten who I am? I'm the one, the only, standing at the top gets lonely - Rio Ranger! I'm his masterpiece... the one he put more effort into raising to be the peak of perfection in my 3 years than he ever did into that idiot homemaker in his entire life. Compared to humans... I'm all he needs. I'm all this game needs."

Ranger put a tight grip onto his masks, mumbling a few indecipherable words under his simulated breath, as he laid down on the floor, an ellipsis sign covered over his eyes.

"Don't you think it's idiotic though? Why do humans get all the praise when they accomplish something and all the grief when they pass away, but whenever I do something good, all I get is a nod and a thumbs-up... is this stuff just expected of me?"

Ranger heard another impossible to understand sound come from the larger robot, but paid it no more mind and continued talking.

"I guess it's because I'm programmed like this, but... it's not like my brain isn't independent. I mean, I am the most human of all his creations. I have a directive to follow, but I can stray away from it if I need to. That's why I'm a masterpiece. He put all his effort into me. So why is it that I still feel like there's something missing...? Like something isn't complete in me...? I should be the most human of them all; even more so than an actual one. So why...?"

He sat right up and looked at his gloves, his hood, and eyed himself from head to toe with his clothes. None of it except for the black shorts under the bucket girl's sister's skirt was considered 'his'. To Ranger, he wore them as a sign of his superiority and because it felt good.

To another, missing part of him though, it felt like he was wearing it because he wanted to feel more human.

Yet unfortunately for the doll, he couldn't ever find himself understanding these feelings. And even if he did, he'd never have the heart to admit it to anyone.

Emotions, meaning, and thoughts... these were things that Ranger was all capable of. Yet somehow, he felt like a part of him wasn't good enough still.

"It's weird... I know I'm better than them. I know that they're nothing more than a wardrobe I can pick from, and toys I get to mess with... so why is there this stupid feeling of being worse eating at me whenever I see their happy little expressions...?"

The floor master stood up, walking over to the doll that towered over him, and started poking it in the chest.

"I'm better than them, aren't I? Right?! Say it... Would those humans never succumb to their fear and fall into despair? Would those human be able to sustain themselves without food or water? Would those humans understand what it feels to have to carry these masks with them? Would those humans ever understand that bonds only make you weaker?"

And then, out of frustration and an intent to prove his point, Ranger slapped the hide and seek doll right in the face.

"Would a human be able to tank a shot like this?!"

And as soon as those words escaped him, the much bulkier robot clocked him right in the head with a meaty, metallic fist, which sent Ranger backwards, but not enough for him to fall.

"Bgh... ah... ha... damn, that retaliation function in your program sure hits hard..."

If it was any regular human that took that blow from the doll, they would've been sent flying and would probably end up with a broken skull. But for someone who was as deceptively durable despite his frame as Ranger was, he was able to absorb enough of the impact.

And yet, despite him trying to prove a point to himself, it only felt like a reminder that he really couldn't be anywhere close to what a human really was.

That weakness and sense of mortality that humans had... and because of that realization of their singular, short lifespan that they do everything to keep themselves alive and live it to the fullest... it was something the floor master would never be able to comprehend.

In exhaustion and annoyance, not of this realization but rather of a general confusion on why he feels so disoriented and out of place in the world, Ranger sighed, sitting on a nearby rock in the attraction's area, his palm placed on his cheek in ennui.

"You wouldn't get it though, I guess... I dunno why I'm even talking to you, you're just some doll they set up for this floor for this one minigame... I know damn well you can't understand a word I'm saying."

A louder groan erupted from the muscular robot, in which Ranger would reply by rolling his eyes.

"Alright, alright. Sorry for slapping you. Won't do it again. Probably. Don't count on it, I kind of liked it. The slapping, not the getting hit."

As he picked up his masks from the floor, he heard the sound of footsteps coming in from the outside room.

The participants... they're awake now. And they've started moving. So they must be in the monitor room. Damn it, was it time for introductions already? He was hoping he could surprise them a little more cinematically.

"Ugh, they're here. Alrighty you bastards, let's get this over with. Actually... hang on a second."

Ranger looked over to the newly made mask he made of the late Kazumi Mishima, an idea turning the gears in his head.

"Heh... well, I suppose there's some fun to be had with those monitors of the participants. Whatever it is I'm feeling, it can wait for later. I'll take out my anger on all these poor bastards."

He took out a chip with a star designed onto it's center, spinning it around before plopping it back into his skirt's pocket.

"Time to do things my way."

#your turn to die #yttd #kimi ga shine #rio ranger

[fiionawrites]

Chapter III: Here’s the deal.

Words: 6,3k

A/N: Yes, I know! Chunky-ass-chapter ahead... but trust me it is so important! This chapter lays a lot of ground work for the next few ones, especially regarding Joel and Lana's relationship. We also have a much needed insight into Lana's past (that's why it's pretty much only her POV) and her - secret, but not so secret - plans. The next chapter was also one of my favorites to write of all time and I'm sure you will love it too! (Spoiler alert, we get A LOT of Joel and Lana, especially some lovely banter and a step further into their slow burn, oh fuck yeah!) Anyways, happy reading!

There were two other moments where Lana could remember passing out in her life, a rather rare thing to happen to her. The first time was when she was about twelve years old, and her mom had taken her to do a blood exam. It wasn’t because she was afraid or queasy about needles, per say, more just that they had extracted about six collecting tubes while she laid down, and when she rose to her feet in a rush, trying to impress her mom and the FEDRA staff of the Albany QZ that she was tough and totally fine, Lana had collapsed to the floor.

The second time was somewhere around her 18th birthday, about three years ago. She had gotten together with some of her friends from FEDRA school in Albany, snuck out and drank way too much after repeatedly - and stupidly - saying to themselves “you only live once” all night long, egging on the inevitable disaster. Lana had heard an earful from her superior officer the following day, a lovely thing to endure during a violent hangover.

Although the scenarios were drastically opposite, they did hold one thing in common, the dreadful after feeling. When waking up after passing out, she experienced a wave of headaches, dizziness, confusion and queasiness, anything made her feel sick.

So, as she stirred awake from the third and last time she had passed out, she felt all of those things once again. Lana hated that feeling so much that it pushed away any relief of her actually being alive, because the feeling of waking up, followed by the image of a very grumpy man before her, made her wish she never did return to consciousness. And she thought that maybe he’d make that very clear.

Lana’s eyes fluttered open as the tunnel vision subsided, her thoughts sharpening by the second, recollecting the events that led her here, strapped to a chair, arms, hands, legs, ankles and hips bound to it with tight ropes. A piece of thick tape strapped across her mouth. She couldn’t believe she was quite a threat to these people for them to take such measures. Then came the headache, blinding almost, it spread from the base of her head, down to her neck and pressuring behind her eyes.

Across from her sat a couple, who she knew already were Joel and Tess. They sat on old, chipped, wooden chairs, Tess leaning over herself, forearms braced on her knees, hands clasped together as she watched her. Joel sat back in his chair, legs spread as he lazily held a gun pointed at her, also watching her intently, the bite mark on his hand, bruised knuckles and the bloody nose making it evident it couldn’t have been that long ago. It was then that she took in the apartment she was in, old and batted... cozy, I guess. She glanced at the clock above the sink, 10PM.

Shit...

“Lana... Maeve? Is it?” Tess had spoken, glancing at the inside of Lana’s backpack, reading her name written in old green sharpie across the top. “This yours?”

Well... tape covered her mouth, and she made it a clear point to remind them when she didn’t answer, staring at them with hooded, almost bored-like eyes. Tess shared a quick glance at Joel, and Lana thought she was going to have it removed just before Joel cocked his gun and held it with more purpose towards her.

Lana’s eyes widened for a moment, suddenly becoming very aware that they didn’t need her alive to take back their shit. She was just some interrogation practice; strapped, vulnerable and powerless in a chair. Lana’s eyes met Tess’s once more as she spoke.

“Nod or shake your head. And be honest, I’ll know if your lying”, the older woman watched as Lana gave no reaction before sighing, letting her head fall back, “I’ve been giving him many excuses for the past couple of hours not to kill you just yet, so give me one good reason why he should and I won’t hesitate to oblige, understood?”.

Lana blinked once before nodding slowly, eyes flicking between Joel and Tess. There was not much she could do... except be fucking honest.

“Lana Maeve, that your name?” Tess repeated, more impatiently this time.

She nodded her head once, eyes focused on the woman interrogating her – which surprisingly she feared more than the man with a gun pointed at her - .

“So, this is all your shit in here?”, She asked, rummaging through the bag, finding ammo, a revolver, a relatively small dagger, a doodled-on map, ration cards, a lighter, and other little nick-nacks, “Well… the shit you’ve stolen, yeah?”

Lana’s breath hitched slightly, visibly tensing as she twitched under the restraints. She was undeniably possessive over the few things she owned, hating seeing people rummaging through it. There were few things she could call ‘mine’, and this sight was setting her off. Stolen or not, they were hers.

Lana took a breath, closing her eyes briefly before she dipped her chin down once, confirming Tess’s suspicions, her eyes had flickered to Joel, his knuckled white on the gun.

Tess’s eyes ran over her, like Lana was translucent and she could see directly through her. It felt like Tess was digging at her all her secrets, even one’s she’s tucked in places so far down herself she’s convinced they don’t exist anymore. It was a defense mechanism, closing off the natural acts of her brain to shield those memories away.

The older woman sighed, putting Lana’s bag on the floor as she stood with a light groan, walking closer to Lana. All the strapped girl could do was slightly lean back, back of the chair biting into her spine, following Tess’s movements with her eyes.

“Tess!”, Joel had whisper-shouted, not wanting to disrupt the curfew, “Tess, don’t-”

All she did to shut him up was raise her hand lazily behind her, towards the man’s direction. It made Joel fall silent, gun still trained on Lana, whose focus had fallen back onto the woman’s gaze in front of her.

“Remember that you only have to give me one small reason to let him shoot you. You’re tied down and being held at gun point, I don’t think I have to make it any more obvious the disadvantage you hold right now” Tess’s hand leaned up and grabbed the corner of the thick piece of tape on Lana’s face, the movement making her flinch slightly.

“I’m gonna take this off so we can continue to talk, unless you want to end things right now?” As if on cue, Joel stood from his chair and came to sit beside Lana on the edge of the couch, she followed the movement with her eyes until she could no longer turn to look at him, the tape beginning to peel and stretch off her skin painfully. But she registered him beside her as he pressed the barrel of his gun to her temple. Lana’s heart picked up, things were escalating quickly, and no matter how hard she tried to grasp any sense of control, she knew it wasn’t hers. Tess snapped her back with a simple question, “understood?”

Lana took a deep breath before nodding, screwing her eyes and scrunching her nose as Tess ripped off the piece of tape in a swift motion. Lana gritted her teeth to keep from making a sound, but she couldn’t help the yelp that passed her lips. Joel’s other hand came behind her back and around her face to cup her mouth quickly, muffling her soft cries.

The last thing they needed was FEDRA involved at this late of an hour.

“You’re fine”, Tess mumbled as she turned back, casually grabbing her chair and placing it in front of Lana, sitting down. Tess gave him a quick look, that made him drop his hand from her mouth, slowly. The first thing she did was try and catch her breath, stilling it as her eyes darted between the pair, excuses flying around in her head, she was already forming a script. Tess knew.

“It’s- It’s obvious that the couple of ration cards and ammo mean more to you than they mean to me, so...” Lana drawled, her voice a bit distant and raspy, speaking for the first time in a while, “you two already have my bag, why don’t you just take them back and leave me be?”

When they had both fallen silent for longer than she expected, sharing an unreadable glance, she thought she had said something wrong, and the next thing she’d hear was the slight tick of a trigger being pressed down on, so she hurried with her words.

“I swear I won’t cross you guys again, I-“

Lana stopped when Joel let out a huff of a laugh, almost incredulous before spitting beside her, “What the fuck are ya on about?”

Lana’s eyes darted from one side to another, did- she stole from Joel… just this afternoon… is that not what they’re holding me here for? What the fuck?

“What?”, Lana said under a puff of air, eyes narrowing at them as pure confusion edged her features, “what?”

It took a single second longer before Tess stood suddenly, making the chair skid across the floorboard behind her and fall to the ground. With a click of her tongue, she grabbed onto Joel’s elbow and pulled him up, into the kitchen.

“She stole from you? Directly off of you?”, she whispered between gritted teeth, leaning in besides Joels profile, “And you didn’t tell me?”

“I-“, he stalled, sparing Lana a quick glance that made her cower in her seat a few feet away, even if the fact embarrassed him deeply, “I didn’t fuckin’ notice… jus’ caught up in catchin’ her and brinin' her back here before-“, he exhaled sharply, checking his breast pocket as Tess silently lifted a brow at him.

Unbelievable.

When Joel lowered his hands to the front of his jeans pocket, digging in them to confirm his suspicions, Tess let out a scoff, stepping away from him as she threw up her hands in disbelief, mumbling something under her breath about him ‘only thinking with his dick’. Joel was almost too late to notice.

“I told ya she posed as a damn hooker, I- I didn’t think she was the target, Tess. I got-“

“Distracted by her hands on ya, Joel? Yeah… figured”, Tess said with a sarcastic drawl.

Lana had to bite her lip and avert her gaze to keep from laughing and probably getting shot. But damn if this was the last thing she’d see before dying, it was fucking worth it.

“Oh don’t do that, Tess. That’s not what is was-“

“I don’t give a fuck, Joel. Whatever it was, it cost us a battery, ration cards and ammo.”, Tess’s hands came down to rub over her face, before she made a dismissive gesture with her hand, shutting up his small excuses and walking back into the living room.

Lana had then taken control of her expressions, easy work as the older woman walked into the room with a new set of rage washing over her.

“Listen…”, Tess started with a heavy sigh, dragging her chair closer to Lana, “we know you worked with Robert, whatever that was like, and we know you stole from him. Words from the man himself”.

Joel still stood in the kitchen, hands crossed over his chest and hips leaning against the counter as he let her take control, embarrassment still flushing his cheeks and neck. He watched the interaction go down.

“You took a battery from him, and unfortunately for you, that battery is ours.”

Oh…

Oh god no.

Hopefully Tess wasn’t talking about the battery Lana already sold (slash stole) for an actually working one to place it in a repurposed FEDRA vehicle and drive herself out West.

Hopefully.

“Ok”, Lana breathed out.

Tess stared at her for a moment, “Ok… Where is it?”

Lana’s first instinct was to lie. Tell her that it’s at her place and if they let her go, she’ll go and pick it up. Or say karma got to her and she was robbed of it too just last night. Or go as far as to say Robert made the whole story up to buy himself time for some dumb scheme he came up with, which honestly, was the most plausible one.

Her hands were tied, literally. Lying would only take her so far until they’d certainly get to her again and make their next encounter much shorter. She’s also talked her way out of countless things in her life, if she had any faith in making it out alive tonight, it was through a sly-not-really-the-full-truth-but-almost-there speech.

“Your battery was shit. No offense, but what Robert was gonna sell to you was waste”, first, blame it on someone else, “Whatever you were gonna use it for, doesn’t really matter that I stole it. Who really did the deal, was Robert.”

Lana thought she really had a chance until Joel left the kitchen and began walking towards her quickly, hard, dark gaze penetrating hers.

“So- so, I stole it… yeah, but I- I traded it off for an actually fucking working one, ok? It works. I swear, I know it does ‘cus I put it in a truck to travel out- “, well, that seemed like information enough, noticing Joel came to a halt before her, “to travel”, she concluded.

The restraints were biting into Lana’s wrists, pinching and burning the skin there. The air was quiet, heavy, dense, almost humid like until she glanced out and noticed it was pouring down rain. Before she could dwell to heavy on the fact that she probably left a window open at her place, Joel and Tess’s unnerving silence brought her back to them. They were just there, staring at each other, indulged in a heavy conversation that required nothing more than a few glances, and maybe an eyebrow raise from Joel.

There was a softly muttered “ok” under his breath until he came over to Lana, she thought maybe she said too much and now she held no use to them. She began sputtering “no’s” and “pleases” as he picked her up by the sides of the chair and carried her down a narrow hallway, Tess’s frame becoming smaller over his shoulder. Lana couldn’t quite remember the last time she begged like that, didn’t think she cared for her life that much to do so.

Until she remembered who she was living it for.

She thrashed and wiggled in the chair as Joel kicked open a door, a small bedroom – their bedroom, she supposed – and placed her back on the ground, still strapped to the chair as he kicked the door shut behind him. Joel ran a hand through his hair as his eyes darted a bit around the room, Lana’s pleading filling the air. Frustrated and out of better ideas, he focused back on her, baring his teeth like a feral animals as he snarled at her.

“Shut up”, His eyes darted between hers, his breath fanning against her skin with the smell of blood and whiskey, “just shut the fuck up- I ain’t gonna kill ya. Yet.”

Joel then straightened, and the sight of him looming over her brought her a new kind of fear. He took another quick glance around the room, seeming heavily preoccupied with something else as he began walking out, but not before throwing a hushed, “not a sound”, over his shoulder. The lock clicked and Lana was in a room alone again.

She focused on the footsteps retreating to the living room, then a low shushed conversation that quickly picked up into a whisper-shout. Lana wasted no time looking around the room, careful to note anything Joel might have missed.

Nothing.

And nothing…

Fuck, nothing again.

Shit-

Oh…

Is that-?

Bingo.

Of course Joel Miller had a makeshift half-broken-scissor-secured-with-duck-tape-looking shiv. It sat on his bedside table, about four feet away from her as she looked over her shoulder. It was ridiculous how it glinted in the moonlight, almost teasing her to grab it.

Lana did her part, she told the truth, they had her bag, all she wanted was – what she didn’t think was selfish at all on her part – her life. So as their voices mixed and grew louder over each other, she shuffled her way backwards to the small furniture, consequently moving closer to the door.

“- all that girl has done since she’s gotten here… lied- how could… risk we cannot take right now”, she heard Tess say, her voice fading in and out as she tried to control her volume.

By the time Lana reached for the shiv, her blood was pumping in her ears, fighting over the volume of now Joel’s muffled arguments, “not sayin’ we blindly trust her now… check it out… Tommy out there…fightin’…”

She made quick work of the ropes, a gasp of relief almost choking out of her as she felt them loosen around her skin, feeling the immediate relief – and soon after soreness - in her arms. Lana didn't have to hide anymore, play that tough character, but she did need to keep her voice down. It fueled her to work quicker, a tear of relief dampening her skin as her arms released from the restraints, bending over to work on her middle part.

“- she’s just trouble on our hands now, Joel… fucking dead weight- unnecessary work…”

“ F’she had a truck workin’… somewhere… new to Boston anyway could just…”

“Doesn’t fuckin matter! Think with your fucking head, Joel- and I swear to god, for once…not that head-“

“Oh for god’s sake! I! I-… telling ya… touched me! Me! Not the other way ‘round!”

Lana was practically standing, stifling her cries for later, trying to hold them in as she desperately worked on the last one, staring at the window like it was a dream she’d chased her whole life.

“… be fucking dumb if you don’t think she could be playing us right now.”

That made her freeze. Tears stop. Stomach drop. Hands tremble. The shouting stopped and the room behind the thin walls had fallen silent. Too silent.

Lana quickly pressed her ankle against the rope, snapping the last strings free as she tip-toed her way to the locked window. She shoved the shiv between the crevice, cracking and chipping a bit of the wood as she pulled back, breaking the weak and rusted lock, carefully sliding the windowsill up.

Heavy footsteps slapped against the wooden floors, making the ground shake slightly after every step. The noise became clearer and clearer until the lock clicked and the door swung open, hitting the door knob against the other side of the wall.

“What the fuck!?”

Lana knew by the voice it could only be Joel, but the low, dark, grumble of a sound was so new to her she just had to look over her shoulder to make sure. And there he was, taking the sight of one of her legs propped up and out the window, onto the thin metal steps that led her down the building and onto the open street. Half her body was already soaked from the rain.

Joel Miller was quite simply, fuming. Chest rising and falling, nostrils flalling with the intensity of his breathing. Neck and cheeks flushed a bright red in contrast to his pale white knuckles, fisted at his side. His frame looked even broader compared to the door frame he almost didn’t fit in.

And that was Lana’s cue. She popped her other leg out, sitting on the window frame, hands bracing at her sides as she ducked her head, giving herself a little nudge as her feet met metal below her, a sound of what she could only describe as freedom.

Unfortunately, she learned from a young age that birds that fly too high get their wings clipped. Dogs who run off to far get their leash tightened. And Lana? Well she had two broad, strong hands clasping at the top of her shoulders, blunt finger nails digging into her skin as Joel pulled her harshly against the building, back hitting against bricks as the air was knocked out of her. With a grunt, and what seemed like a ridiculous lack of effort, Joel pulled her up and back through the window, dragging her now wet and sore body inside.

Lana thrashed against his grip, making it harder for him to hold on to an already slippery skin-to-skin contact. He faltered a couple of times, letting her drop and inch or two even when her skin was far from smooth anymore, covered in harsh, deep gashes from his fingernails. Joel could feel her skin and blood begin to build up under his nails, pressuring the skin there. He finally got a grasp on her when he hooked his forearms under her arms, locking his hands in a tight grasp over her chest as he pulled her up and over the window frame, slithering back into the room.

Hitting her back harshly half over Joel’s chest and half over the wooden floors was an echoing sound of reality.

All for nothing.

All for nothing at all.

She’d die tonight, she’d die for the second time in her life but this time, she wouldn’t come back. She wouldn’t do him right. She wouldn’t bring him justice. She wouldn’t keep her promise.

She had died and lost her soul, but she’d survived. She had a chance to make things right for him. And now Joel was going to kill her, what’s left of her soul and drag her body with it. And she’d have died without doing anything significant, without filling her only fucking purpose left for her. All for nothing.

All for nothing.

Lana could only sob as she felt Joel move beneath her, pulling himself out from under her. She faintly noticed Tess in the room, breathing heavy as she helped him pull her inside. The sound of failure was deafening, but as tears slipped down her cheeks and into her ears, it made it that much easier to listen.

All for nothing. All for nothing. All for nothing.

Lana quivered and shook, her chest spasming against the floor, making her whole-body twitch as she continued to cry, shaking her head slightly. Suddenly she noticed Joel step into view, standing over her, breathing heavily, hair and clothes dripping onto her frame.

Joel looked down at her, observing at her bloody, scratched and bruised, and soaking wet body. He’d pity the sight if it weren’t for her behavior, if she didn’t bring this down on herself, now pinned to the ground almost looking like fresh roadkill. He bent down, picking her up, one hand wrapped around her waist, the other clutching around her wrist as he pulled her up and over his shoulder.

Lana didn’t protest apart from the unvoluntary grunt as she was thrown over his shoulder, a quick interruption to her sobs before they continued silently, her cheek brushing against the now soaked fabric of his shirt on his back. She could faintly make out Tess’s frame following behind him between foggy, tearful eyes.

He had placed her - somewhat gently - back onto the familiar wooden chair and left the room to look for new restraints. Tess stayed behind, watching her with her arms crossed, not making much effort at all as Lana’s sobs turned into a silent cry, tears effortlessly trailing down her flushed cheeks. She bore an almost numb look, staring down at her soaked shoes, on the small puddle of water that gathered from a loose string of her hair dripping in the same place, over and over, as she refused to move.

There was nothing to do. All for nothing.

After a full minute had passed Tess felt it was ok to even turn around and shut the window behind her, taking the shiv thrown beside it and pocketing it. And not so surprisingly enough, Lana still hadn’t moved an inch. Joel walked into the room, footsteps and creaky wooden floorboards making his presence known. He took both woman in before giving a short nod towards Tess and kneeling beside Lana, beginning to tie her once more.

He scooped up Lana’s wrists in her lap, securing the ropes around burned and bright red skin. If she showed any discomfort, it was in the slight quiver of her bottom lip, or the tinniest scrunch in her nose.

They didn’t have to. She was gonna die. All for nothing.

The dense silence was finally broken as Tess mumbled something under her breath and gestured vaguely with her hands, keeping her head low towards Joel who had paused midway through tying down her ankles.

“What?”, Joel said lowly, looking at her over his shoulder.

Tess hesitated for a moment, “C’mon Joel, you can’t think she’s much of a threat now…”

Joel stared at her for a moment, taken aback by her sudden urge to give a shit. Then his gaze fell on Lana. She could meet his eyes, didn’t have the energy to lift her head, not when she knew he’d be the one to put a gun between her eyes in the next moment or two.

“Tess… ya can’t be serious?” Joel said, shaking his head slightly as he looked back to the older woman.

“Her hands are tied, that’s enough. Not much fight left in her anyway… let’s uh…”, Tess paused, scratching the back of her head before she walked over to the bedroom door, pulling it open with a creek, “let’s talk… like you said”.

Tess didn’t wait for him, her footsteps becoming lighter as she walked down the hall and into the kitchen. He faintly registered her turning on the faucet and filling a cup of water, then another, and another.

He refused the urge to roll his eyes and scoff. He then looked back at Lana, fingers wrapping around her upper arm as he dropped the rest of the rope, “Ya done?”, he drawled out, voice low and husky.

All for nothing. Nothing at all.

Albany to Boston. Boston towards West. West. Wyoming. Montana.

West for him. For what’s left. For everything.

He’d died for nothing. Nothing at all.

All for nothing.

A deafening mantra followed by a ring in her ears, half broken by Joel’s voice one more, this time harsher, more present, matching the grip on her arm.

“I said, are ya done?”, Joel shook her slightly, tilting his head so she’d be forced to meet his gaze, “Are ya gonna behave? And I fuckin mean it ‘cus-“

Joel was cut off by Lana’s lazy nod, just once. Eyes still trained on his.

For a brief moment, Joel captured a flash of grief, of soul-crushing disappointment, failure. A kind of sight you’d recognize instantly, the image burned into the back of his mind, half lost in a faint memory twenty years ago, in the reflection of his bathroom mirror. One he’d seen in himself.

Lana was done. She had given up, crossed a line that he had only met and crossed once in his life. Only standing here to recognize it once more because he flinched the last time.

It was uncomfortable. There was not a hint of pleading, a look begging for mercy, for forgiveness. She had abandoned her pleas by the windowsill. It was oddly intimate. A moment this girl shouldn’t be sharing with a man like him. With the man she thought would be her last sight.

Joel shifted under it, clearing his throat slightly as she blinked it away, like it was never there. He didn’t say anything, didn’t shake her or question her again for an answer. Instead, he stood slowly, pulling her up with him by her arm as he walked over to the door, pushing it open with the palm of his hand.

He saw Tess in the kitchen, three glasses of water on the counter as he sat her on the couch, hands tied in her lap. The couple shared a look Lana didn’t care to dig for the meaning of. The air had shifted to something somehow heavier, uncomfortable, awkward really.

The glasses were placed on the coffee table in front of Lana as Joel and Tess sat in their chairs in front of her.

“Lana.”

All for fucking nothing.

“Lana”, Tess tipped her head lower, meeting the girls gaze, “how old are you?”

The information didn’t matter unless they thought about giving her a tombstone. Not that that even fit the QZ regulations. Her body would just be burned. Like his.

All for no-

“Lana”.

“I’m twenty-one. I- I’d be twenty-two in three months.”, Lana rasped.

There was a beat of silence, what felt like a sense of grief washing over the whole room. Over the three of them. I would be. Not I will be.

“What were you going to use the battery for? The truck?”

It stung more than her scratched arms. It ached more than her muscles and joints. It burned more than the sweat that seeped into her cuts. But the least she could do was honor her thoughts and plans to do right by him.

Plans she’d never meet. All for-

“I uhm… I was going to drive… up to... out West-”, she was too lost in her thoughts to register Tess’s eyebrows rising, Joel’s eyes slowly meeting his partners’, “I- I hadn’t quite figured it out… maybe Montana… maybe Wyoming… needed to uhm- meet someone”. Lana cleared her throat, feeling the sting in her eyes of fresh new tears brewing.

“Meet someone?”, Joel pressed, speaking up for the first time since the bedroom.

Lana didn’t want to share his story with these people. Neither did she want to share her revenge plans. Didn’t make sense to. So, she lied, just a little bit. Lies can’t catch up to you if you’re dead. Well, they can, but not that it would make a difference to her.

“My brother”, it brought bile up her throat to say it out loud, but she swallowed it, “he’s uhm… we got separated a few months ago… long story short I got a tip he’s out there… basecamp, or sum…”

After a beat of awkward and unreasonable silence, she filled the silence with something that made her lip quiver violently, “He’s the last family I have.”

Simple statement. A lie. Had.

It took maybe another half a second or two before Joel stood so fast his chair skidded behind him, “Let’s make a deal”.

“Joel”, Tess spit over her shoulder, face scrunching in disbelief. This time it was his turn to ignore her, not sparing her a glance as he walked towards Lana, who in turn cowered slightly against the couch.

“I have to go out we-“

Tess suddenly stood from her seat, scrapping wood against wood as she lunged at Joel, chest almost pressing against his as she tried to meet his eyes, unsuccessfully.

“Joel, Jesus- think about it.”

“I am”, he stated simply, as if obvious.

“No, you’re jumping the gun here, c’mon, Joel-“

Joel finally met her gaze, and what convinced her wasn’t his words, but the look he gave her. This wasn’t negotiable, it never was. And that’s what Tess feared, because negotiating was what she could do. There was just no room for her here. “This s’my only chance. I ain’t fightin' on this”.

Tess stared at him, hands on her hips as she slowly began to nod, averting her gaze beside him and gnawing on her bottom lip. Her hands came up at her sides before they dropped in defeat in a silent, ‘Fine. Whatever’.

Joel brushed passed her as he neared Lana, standing in front of her with a stern gaze.

“Where’s the truck?”

Lana understood that this was also not a negotiation. This was him asking her questions she’d have to answer and then him telling her what to do. And her obliging.

This was a blind game of chess on her side, only he could move the pieces, only he could see the board, hell, he could bend the rules in his favor. And she’d only blindly play along. You can’t beat a game you can’t see.

“Sneak out past the QZ gates on point 34… just outside the outskirts of the- the wall patrol officers... under a bright green tarp there’s an early 2000s Ford F-150 red truck”, she gave up.

“What other supplies you got for this?”

Of course Joel was the kind of player not to make his way straight to the Queen. He’d take everything he could get in his way. Every single one of her pawns.  

“Radio… map… ammo, not many firearms, a 9mm pistol, revolver- some canned food, water...” Lana thought for a moment that the easier she gave him information the easier he’d go on her death, “Maybe another thing… or two.”

Joel nodded slightly, half in thought, half present with her as Lana’s eyes met his through her lashes.  A moment passed before he spoke again.

“I’m goin’ out West to meet someone as well. The battery was for a truck to take the same damn route you’re takin’… And since ya stole my battery, I figured it’s fair ya owe me this… So m’thinkin’…” Joel took a long breath before averting his gaze for a moment. Lana thought he gave up on his plan when the silence stretched further than expected, until he spoke again.

“I’m thinkin’ we take that truck and go out West together. I got some supplies to add to that list of yours. I see my b- meet my person and ya meet yours. Then we go our separate ways”.

Lana hadn’t quite processed his proposal when he said it, let alone when he finished talking. Until about half a minute ago she thought she’d die, blood on Joel Miller’s fucking hands and now he proposed a road trip together. Over 35-hour experience of a will-he-won’t-he kill her.

“How do I know you won’t kill me? Or leave me stranded?”

Joel didn’t waste a second. “I’ll kill ya right now. Or ya wait to find out if I’ll maybe kill ya along the way.”

An option did sound better than the other, slightly. If he tried to kill her eventually, she could plan to do the same. Maybe with Tess not around it’ll make it easier, one on one. Although she hated creating the expectation that she might make it West, dying closer to her destination than she’ll ever be. What was in it for Joel to kill her then? If he thinks she’s a threat and an obstacle in the road he should kill her right now, not give her an option to live… but the fact that he didn’t think of her as a threat feared her. She needed that kind of control… Maybe he thought of her as somewhat useful, she did in fact steal off his person, that could find some kind of benefit along the-

“Are ya done thinkin? We have a deal?”

Lana stared at him for a moment before starting her pesky questions, “Why do you want me there?”

“I don’t”

“Then why not kill me now?”

“D’ya want me to kill ya now?”

“No”

"Alrigh'"

Silence.

“What if I steal you a new battery? We both go our separate ways.”

“S’take too long. Gotta leave tomorrow by dusk”.

“What if I say no?”

“For leaving at dusk?”

“No, for going at all with you.”

“Ya stay in Boston. I’ll go.”

Dead end. She either stays in Boston or he just kills her tonight. Not an option.

“How can I trust you?”

“Ya can’t”

“Do you trust me?”

“No”.

Dead end. Silence.

“That’s not how these things work, Joel.”

“It’s how this’ gonna work”.

Another silence. And he almost opened his mouth to ask if she’s done again, but she beat him too it. She’s not.

“So… we drive- best case scenario, 35 hours out West. Enough trouble as there is out there, but now with guns trained at each other’s heads”, Lana drawled, as if pointing out the obvious failure in his plan.

“M’not too worried ‘bout the gun against my head f’you’re the one holdin’ it”, Joel said smugly, shrugging his shoulder as he grew impatient with what was not supposed to be negotiation.

Lana held back the urge to roll her eyes, taking a moment to breathe and think. It was far from the best option, but it seemed like the only one she had right now.

“I’m driving.”

Joel hid what could’ve easily been a barking laugh into a small puff of air and the smallest hint of an amused grin, “No, ya ain’t. That’s out of the question.”

“Wha- No, it’s not ‘out of the question’- It’s my truck!”

“Runnin’ on my battery”, he stated matter-of-factly.

“Your battery wouldn’t make bloaters run straight, let alone a truck!”

“How old are ya again?”

“21”, Lana said as if stating her point, she was obviously old enough to drive.

“Exactly, I’ve been drivin’ since before ya were born. Push it and I’ll put ya in the backseat.”

“Woah- that’s totally-“

“Alright, enough!” Tess had stood from her seat, where her hands were buried in her face, fingernails digging into her scalp as she tried to endure the childlike banter. She walked to their side, almost between them, “This is already a bat-shit crazy fucking plan, let us not lose our minds before we even settle in that truck”.

Tess looked down at Lana, shutting her up. Then up at Joel, who’s look said something they would have to discuss in a later moment. Joel gave a short nod before looking down at Lana again.

“Ya spend the night, take the couch. Tomorrow first thing in the mornin’ we head to your buildin’, pick up your things and as soon as it goes dark, head to point 34, understood?”  

Joel wasn’t asking if she accepted the deal. He knew she’d agreed the first time he’d mentioned it, bargaining more with herself to feed the illusion that she had any other option. That she had control over her choices. Truth is he gave her none, and he made it clear now.

And she’d oblige.

“Ok”.

Read chapter four, here:

#the last of us #the last of us hbo #tlou hbo #joel miller #f!reader #tess servopoulos

[richardsondavis]

Good morning, I've an analysis I'd like to make.

This is only my opinion do yeah.

So Chainsaw Man chapter 11, not really spoilers cause it's just convos. It reveals something about a character, Aki.

As you see, the second bubble in the third panel shows that Aki is a superior and that he stands for social justice, i.e. equality and doing the right thing yadda yadda.

That is the official translation.

Here is the unofficial one.

Man, the letter i man. They're all with those lines on top. As I recall, that ain't great. But since they be amateurs it's a pass from me.

So same position.

Aki is a superior, right but here he says that if you do your job to society you'll get what you deserve. Now that's an entirely different idea from the social justice one from above. You do right by everyone. No, wait that's the very definition of social justice.

But personally whatever translation does not matter for the main idea stays the same.

Aki thinks himself to be Captain America. He can do this all day and he does right by you if you do right by him, notwithstanding his disdain towards demons and such.

It means that he's willing to do what's good for society. And I believe both translations to have equal footing. Although the official one requires a little more thinking because at first glance it may appear like it's infested with something woke but it's just a more flashy way of saying things. Perks of hiring novelists for the adaptation of the translation, I guess.

And that is me.

RichardsonDavis

#manga #translation #chainsaw man #yeah

[theexecutionerstoolkit]

Games to play at work.

I mean it can be a long day. Time is passing and what to do?

Is it about looking good in the office? Well, that’s a fail. Is it planning for lunch? I’m seriously down for that. Is it The Chat?  “Today, I will mostly be practising being socially awkward?” I guess not. At last at the end of the day I get to go home. I've made it through another day. And that is a prize in itself. Achievement unlocked!

But I know that a life spent in petty distraction, watching the clock, and planning my escape, is a life wasted. So no, not that then. 

So, what to do? What to do? All those hours? All those seconds? The clock, clunk, clunk, clunking along?

Do you face this challenge?

Well here are three games you can play while you are at work.

Three should be more than enough. After all, how much fun can you pack into the working day? It’s 8 hours, and that's with a lunch break. Any more and it gets to be too much fun.

They're not hard to play. Allegedly. And I play them all, I mean if it's that sort of day.

Game one. Moral High Ground.

Now this is a great game. Let me try to explain the goal or objective.  To claim and hold the moral high ground in any engagement. Now, I know what you might be thinking but, no not that. It's to be a better person. And if you play this game properly then all too often things turn out right. Better outcomes, others feeling good about themselves and sometimes you might even end up feeling better about yourself. It’s tricky though, since should your ego triumph then you lose by default. That’s one way to play the game, but that is what can only be described as the Kingdom sacrifice. Perhaps not quite the same as throwing God for a stone but it’s the same principle.

To sacrifice doing the right thing for your own ego, to score petty points, to manoeuvre, to take a position of obvious moral superiority and then really rub it in. That's how to lose.

The real win in this game is to ensure the right outcome for the engagement despite the demands of your own ego. Ultimately it’s a further extension of being fair and playing fair. At work though there is the drive to get things done rather than just play a good game. That adds an element of direction that sometimes just being fair doesn't have.  So, it’s harder. Getting things done but done right. This and the third game together can ensure a very entertaining day and one that ensures objectives are achieved. 

There is no doubt that I can and do play this game for much lower stakes, sometimes to purely score points. I lose of course. Getting down in the gutter only gets me as mucky as everyone else working that elevation. So yes, it’s another one of those games best played against yourself rather than in competition with others. Any public claim of victory undermines your position so it's really the secret satisfaction of better outcomes

Game 2, Through the Mirror

Well, this is a harder one. Honestly, this is one of those games I just don’t play well at all. Even though the win, the payoff, is so fantastic.

It’s one of those games that has the power to transform the world around me. It’s a type of magic, a way to make things better. But let’s start way back at the beginning.

Way back before Carl Jung or Anais Nin or Chuck Palahniuk or Steven Covey. Yes, they all said this.

 “We see the world as we are. Not as it is''

The first time I read that quote I was like “Aha! Of course” It was revelatory at the time. Up until then my perspective was more of an “I am me, the world is the world and life happens.”  

So the world as a mirror? Isn't it rather that we focus on those aspects of the world that validate and reflect back our own beliefs and values? Going further and being even more extreme isn’t it that we project our beliefs, values and prejudices onto the world? Beyond that projection is a world both very real and very different to whatever we choose to see it as. And because of that sometimes surprising and shocking things happen. Things that we just don’t expect and cannot anticipate. 

Further to that logic, if that’s how I view the world then others must be doing the same thing? All of us proceeding within our own self constructed illusion interspersed with occasional bouts of realism?

Sure I knew all this but nothing changed. It was just knowledge.

Then a few years ago I read a truly fantastic book, “Surely you're joking Mr. Feynman” By Richard Feynman. the Nobel Prize winning Physicist who worked on the Manhattan project. This book is a recording of conversations he had with his friend and drumming partner, Ralph Leighton. 

One of the stories he told was when he was lecturing in Brazil he realised that he understood his students' broken English better than he understood their fluent Portuguese. So even though he could speak only intermediate Portuguese he began to give his lectures in Portuguese rather than in English. That is the basic premise of this game.

We know that others project  their hopes, dreams, perceptions, prejudices, and fears onto us and that they seek reflection as validation.  I think being able to respond in a way that enhances the positive traits being projected is one of the keys to getting things done. To find and appeal to the value inherent within each person. Each and everyone contains within us our own multiverse of existences and possibilities. We can either merely reflect back what  others are projecting or we can go further and choose to project back what is positive and life affirming.

There are people who are almost entirely negative and people that are also almost entirely positive. It’s popular to say discard the former and seek closer association with the latter. But these are a minority. Most of us are composite. Seeking out and projecting back the positive puts both the responsibility and the power into my control. That’s by being a little more than empathic, by being selective in response, by seeking out and reflecting back what’s good. And it’s affirming in itself.

To understand that is to realise the opportunity to reach through the mirror. To recognise that in the same way we are, others are seeking validation, and to take that opportunity to provide something deliberately positive instead of merely reflective.

Am I any good at this game? It’s challenging. To maintain awareness of others. To reach through my own projection. And all too often my focus is on the target instead of the process..

Although a focus on the prize can be a good thing, that's the end state. This is a means for achieving that.

Which brings us to;

Game 3. Eye on the Prize

Ask yourself what is it that we are supposed to be achieving? Beside the competition of ego? Besides office politics? Beside hacking through the troubles of today? What am I supposed to be getting done? What are we all supposed to be focused on? What's the target we're all working towards?

So here’s that other game I play, Eye On the Prize. And what a great game it is.

It’s basic but satisfying in the way it provides focus and meaning.. 

Knowing what the prize is and frequently revisiting that helps me keep things on track. It quickly highlights where and when things might be going wrong.

I know, often the love we set out for is not the love we arrive at. Things change. We change. What we thought we could see clearly from a distance is not the same thing close up. Keeping the direction and clarity of the payoff constant makes it so much easier to discern what is dross and what is essential.

So the questions, What’s our objective? What are we trying to achieve? These are critical in helping work out whether what I’m doing right now is moving us in the right direction. If I don’t know, if no one knows, then that needs to be called out and found out. It’s either that or Chaos. A paddle here, a paddle there, the canoe goes nowhere.

Sure you can relate this back to the business aim and vision. You know, that statement written large and in plain English on the wall behind reception as you walk into the office? Sometimes it’s difficult to relate everyday activities back to that but the very least I can do is ensure I know why we are doing what we are doing. 

If I consider the eye on the prize as my main game at work it pretty much annihilates all my other petty motivations. Its purpose. In a box. A purpose that is always there even if obscured by confusing messages, my ego and my own special brand of dullness.

So I try to ask myself what are we about right now? How does this all fit together to bring us to the place we want to be?  And if I can keep everyone, mainly myself, focused on that objective, that prize, then I can even stop my mind from wandering off. (Well no, that’s impossible. For me it’s mainly drive-by focus.)

It's also a really useful way of dealing with my tendency to regard every question as a personal challenge. It helps me acknowledge that weakness and avoid it. Otherwise whole meetings can and do descend into attrition. The game is lost.

Sometimes if I get really bored I’ll even try playing these games in real life.

#Executioners toolkit #Getting it Done #Games to Play #Eye on the Prize #Through the Mirror

[sixeyesgojo]

soon-to-be father

Summary: In which Gojo proclaims that he will be a father soon.

Pairing: Gojo Satoru x female reader

Word count: 993

Content warning: spoiler warning (reference to Volume 0 - mentions of Yuta and his OPness), slight suggestive themes but not too bad

A/N: Idk, I was bored at 3am. Didn’t expect this to become this long.... Also, I don’t exactly remember if Yaga already had a kid or if I just made that up in my head (I do know that he is a divorcee though), so let’s just pretend he has a kid in this one lol

Filing written reports about curse incidents to submit to the elders ruling the jujutsu world was a tedious task. Nonetheless, it had to be done by every jujutsu sorcerer working for Jujutsu Tech.

Returning to the office with a newly filled cup of coffee in your hand, you sat down after putting your warm beverage on the desk. Work was waiting for you, so naturally you got back to writing these reports as soon as possible. You were determined to finish all those reports. Not gonna work overtime today, you thought while writing away your findings about recent curse activity. 

Not much time passed after someone burst into the room loudly. You didn’t even need to confirm with your eyes – it could only be that person.

“State your business, Satoru. I got work to do, unlike you”, you shot at him.

“Woah, so rude! I am wounded,” the man exclaimed and clutched his chest as if he was in pain. “I came here to tell you the good news!”

The tall man settled down on the couch in the office.

“Guess who is going to be a father soon?” Satoru’s voice rang across the room.

“Is it principal Yaga again?” you asked without looking up from your papers once. “Nope, nope, nopeeeeee,” being the obnoxious person he could be, Satoru made sure to pop the ‘p’ of the last one particularly loud. “You are absolutely wrong on this one. Though I suppose I can understand where you are coming from,” he added, waving his hand.

“Guess again, guess again,” he demanded excitedly.

Finally, you shifted your gaze from your lame reports onto the white-haired sorcerer.

“It’s definitely not Nanami,” you stated matter-of-factly as you made your way to him to join him on the couch – the idea of working flew out of the window. You knew how your colleague viewed marriage and romantic commitments as jujutsu sorcerer. Who else could it be? There weren’t many male people involved in the jujutsu world with a connection to you or Satoru-

“I swear, Satoru, if you were going to tell me some higher-up will be father, then I will have you know that I am not interested in this information in the slightest.”

You pulled a grimace and made a gagging noise.

“No, no. Literally ew,” he suppressed a gag as well, “I may have a rotten personality – which you love, I just know – but I wouldn’t do that to you. I’m not that much of an ass.”

“Gosh, Satoru, just spill it already. I can practically see your tail wagging, begging me to ask,” you sighed. Now even you were curious.

If Satoru hadn’t worn a blindfold, there would have been a bright glint from his cerulean eyes. A million-dollar-smile spread on his face, pride emanating from his body.

“It’s me! I am going to be a papa!” He clapped enthusiastically.

Your jaw dropped. Wait what?

“Hold up, wait. What did you just say?!” you burst out.

“I said what I said!” he exclaimed. Was it possible for a grin to be even wider?

“Enlighten my confusion? When did that happen? Did I miss something, like something super important you forgot to tell me?” you asked, bewildered.

“Oh, you didn’t miss anything at all, sweetheart,” the man in front of you replied oh-so-casually, “I’m gonna be a dad and you’ll be the mommy.”

Thousands of emotions flit across your face. The way your level of confusion shot up by a million times clearly amused Satoru to no end. You wanted nothing more than to punch him in the gut if this turned out to be some sort of prank. Mommy?!?!

Nevertheless, you tried to play along: “Too bad I don’t remember consenting to be your girlfriend or anything of the sort.”

A delighted laughter filled the space, “Well, you didn’t exactly turn me down either, just now.”

“If that’s how it’s going to be, I will just say I have no recollection of ever sleeping with you, let alone being pregnant,” you retorted triumphantly.

“Touché.”

“Do you remember Yuta?” he suddenly asked.

“Yeah, like I would forget the precious bean I jokingly called my son, who only narrowly escaped the fate of being executed in his teenager years because his own power was too great and deemed dangerous by the old stick-up-the-ass people we call superiors,” you said flatly.

“Yeah, exactly that Yuta. I am very pleased to tell you that I’m adopting a new one! Meaning you have to help me raise him. Well, technically he will be my student...” Satoru started explaining. “...but you don’t sweat the small stuff,” you finished his sentence. He beamed at you, praising you for how well you knew him and all that stuff.

Well, duh. A new student, huh?

“So explain. What’s the deal with this one?” you asked.

“You see, this boy – his name is Yuji, by the way –  is also facing execution because he swallowed a special grade cursed object,” Satoru revealed dramatically.

“Then... if he is facing execution, that means the special grade curse incarnated but you cannot exorcise him on the spot for some reason,” you theorized, putting two and two together, and the man next to you confirmed your theory.

Satoru clarified further, “You hit the nail on the head. The poor boy seems to be the vessel of Ryomen Sukuna. I managed to postpone his execution until he consumes all twenty fingers though. He will be the third first-year student, so you have to help me!”

“The Double-Faced Specter, huh...” you mumbled to yourself, then your gaze was directed at Satoru, “to me, it sounds like you’re being troublesome again, you ass.”

“Oh please, I know you love ‘troublesome’,” he teased you.

“Yeah, I do. Otherwise, I wouldn’t put up with your sorry ass.”

“Ouch. Will you raise our son with me, though?”

“Oh hell, yeah. Count me in.”

Yeah, work could wait.

#gojo x reader #gojo satoru x reader #gojo x y/n #jujutsu kaisen #jujutsu kaisen x reader #jjk x reader #dad!gojo #itadori yuji #okkotsu yuuta #jujutsu kaisen drabbles #gojo being annoying #i wanna adopt yuji as well #papa!gojo

[inhuman-obey-me]

Deadly Envy

Word Count: 1.8k Description: Perhaps directing insults directly to the Avatar of Envy's face is a mistake -- or, Leviathan reminds some demons of their place. Part of the A Demon's Nature series. Finally got back to continuing this, so here's Leviathan! Apologies for the delay, hope this is okay;; Note: Vepar is a demon associated with the sea and is one of the 72 demons that Solomon has a pact with, mentioned in the Ars Goetia. They were often depicted as a merman. Lassal is a minor demon named in the Liber de Angelis and is associated with the moon. Can also be found on AO3 here. content warning: blood, brute force violence, mild gore, use of hallucinogens

The Avatar of Envy was not one to find comfort in being alone with his thoughts, but there were times where he would wander to a certain cove by the oceanside, a place just for him where he found a sense of peace, a sense of belonging. The taste of salt in the air, the gentle spray of ocean mist, the sound of the waves crashing into the surrounding rocks -- yes, this was another home for him, one he dearly missed.

Leviathan closed his eyes, basking in the light of the Devildom moon as he debated going into the water tonight. It would be nice to go for a swim, but he was also itching to get back home and watch the latest episode of the anime he had recently gotten into.

“Well, well, who do we have here?”

Leviathan’s eyes snapped open, his body tense as he recognized the voice of the demon who unceremoniously interrupted him.

“Vepar,” the name left the sea serpent’s lips in a near hiss. “What are you doing here?”

“Why, enjoying the view this fine evening. I assume you’re doing the same? What a surprise, to see you actually outside! I thought you loved the computer screen more these days.” They laughed, a ripple of malice present in what should have been a joyous sound.

Of all demons, why did it have to be Vepar that had found his sanctuary? Every time Leviathan looked at them, or thought about them, envy bubbled in his chest and filled every fiber of his being.

Vepar had been one of the angels who fell alongside the brothers in the Great Celestial War - one of the few survivors outside of his family - and had been a rather high-ranking officer in the army at the time. After becoming a demon, they managed to become a Captain in Hell’s Royal Navy, following Leviathan as his subordinate. Or, that’s how it would have appeared, if it wasn’t for the fact that Vepar had seemingly lost all respect for their superior.

Their relationship was practically non-existent these days, as the Royal Navy hadn’t been active in centuries. They were never terribly close to begin with, but a great chasm seemed to have opened up between them as the years passed and Leviathan watched Vepar be so … successful.

How was it that this demon who ranked beneath him had managed to climb up so much higher in the social sphere? In true normie fashion, they had no issue conversing with strangers and seemed to make friends wherever they went. They were smooth with their words, charming with their smile, and always knew the right thing to say.

Except when it came to Leviathan.

“What’s with that look? I was just speaking the truth, wasn’t I?” Vepar grins, their mockery obvious. They brush a long lock of hair from their face before looking over their shoulder. “Oh, Lassal, look who I found!” They call out behind them, and soon another demon appears from the dark, his wispy white hair reflecting the moonlight. He was one of the lesser demons who seemed to cling to Vepar whenever they were together.

“Ah, Lord Leviathan..!” Lassal starts a bit nervously, unsure how to act in this situation. After all, he often joined in on the endless ribbing of the Avatar of Envy. The Greater Demon was never around to hear it, so what was the harm? “It’s, uh, nice to see you.”

“I was just telling him how strange it was to see him here. After all, I don’t think there’s a video game store anywhere near this area.” Vepar continues, the deriding smile still on his face. “Such a rare sighting of the ever-elusive demon. And all alone, too … but, I suppose it’s true that you don’t have any friends.”

Leviathan glares at the long-haired demon, his hands now curled into fists as they continue their jabs. Has he really become such a joke? Of course, a worthless otaku like me doesn’t deserve any respect, he thinks, They only care about my position when they have to…

“I would offer you to join us, but… hmm, you’d honestly just kill the mood.” Vepar shrugs, turning to Lassal, and attempts to get him to join in. “Isn’t that right? I mean, we all know how pathetic he is!”

The jealous thoughts continue to invade his mind. They only care because of my brothers. I’m obviously the weakest link, huh? Even Solomon liked Vepar enough to make a pact with them … they might be even better friends than we are …

“R-right!” Lassal easily bends to the other demon’s will. “Sorry, Leviathan, but you’re not really fun to have around.”

And then they feel comfortable enough to talk like this to me, to my face?! They have all the qualities I lack, everything is so much easier for them, and I’m just a laughing stock who only deserves mockery, huh? Is that it..?

“Oh, so polite. Come now, weren’t we talking earlier of how sad of a demon he is?”

“Yeah,” All nervousness is gone from Lassal, a rather smug expression taking over his features instead. “It’s hard to believe that he’s one of the demons ruling over us...it’s funny because even he knows how depressing he is, isn’t that right?”

They really think they’re so much better than me?!

“And to think, he’s Grand Admiral -- ”

“SHUT UP!” Leviathan finally speaks, his envy burning hot and turning into rage as he lunges at Vepar, his claws digging into their throat. “You actually think you can just talk to me like that?” His eyes shift, turning more snake-like while ink spreads through his sclera. His horns grow larger, his tail longer, and his teeth look a bit too sharp when he growls at them. “May I remind you that YOU serve under ME?”

A gargled choke manages to leave the caught demon’s mouth, their eyes wide in surprise. Lassal, who let out a squeak of terror when the third-born attacked, was trying to scurry away from the scene -- only to be caught by Leviathan’s tail in a tight grip.

“And where do you think you’re going?” The sea serpent shot a deadly glare at the lower-level demon, hoisting him up into the air to dangle upside-down. Leviathan turns his attention back to the other demon, trying to stop himself from ripping their head off right then and there.

“I might not be the most sociable guy, or the most popular, or the coolest, or … whatever! But if you really think you can just talk shit to my face and get away with it, you’ve got another thing coming.” His forked tongue slips through his lips with a menacing hiss. “It seems you both need a reminder that I’m the Third Demon Lord, your superior, your Greater, your ruler.”

“I-I’m sorry…” Vepar manages to get out, their previous haughty air vanishing as dread sunk in, a heaviness sinking into their bones. “I--”

“Oh, save your fucking apologies, Vepar!” Leviathan spits at their face. “If it wasn’t for your little pact with Solomon, I would kill you this instant.” He momentarily digs his claws further into their skin. “Your little friend, on the other hand…”

Lassal whimpers, trying to shake his head furiously. “P-please Lord Leviathan! I-I only said such things b-because Vepar made me! They -- “ His words are cut off with a choke as the Avatar’s tail tightens around their neck as Leviathan brings him close to his own face.

“Wow, throwing them under the bus? I guess I can’t expect anything more from the likes of you.” Leviathan sneers, the claws of his free hand going to drag down along Lassal’s face, venom leaving their tips and entering his bloodstream. With a flick of his tail he slams Lassal into the ground head-first, the jagged rock they were upon cracking slightly from the force. “If you thought I was going to go cry in my room because of your taunting, you were sadly mistaken.”

Lassal’s skull was fractured, blood dripping from the head wound caused by impact. If he was trying to say anything more, it came out in incoherent words and sounds, which soon turned into struggling screams. The venom that now coursed through his veins had a hallucinogenic quality that made the victim feel as if they were drowning, and it seemed to be working rather well. Leviathan thrashed him about again, making sure to smash his skull against the rock over and over and over and over and --

“Leviathan, stop! He’s dead!” Vepar screams, managing to get some more words out as the grip on their throat had slightly loosened while the Avatar was preoccupied with the other demon. Leviathan makes sure to deliver one more whack for good measure before dropping Lassal to the ground, his head smashed to bits and nothing more than a messy pile of bone, blood, and flesh.

“So he is.” His voice is cold, distant. His orange-purple eyes are glowing as he turns his attention back to the still living demon. “Now, as for you, Vepar… what was it that you wanted to say earlier? Something about how you couldn’t believe I could still be called the Grand Admiral of Hell’s Navy?”

“I-I didn’t say that, I just … look, I’m sorry, okay? You just a-appeared to have become so weak, you -- “

“...became an easy target?” Leviathan finishes their thought. “Well, let this be a lesson, Vepar. Think you’re better than me all you want, think you have so much more than I do, but at the end of the day…” He drags his claws down Vepar’s chest, sharp points sinking into their flesh and creating several large gashes that spurt dark ichor. They bite their lip in an attempt to hold back their cries of pain, tears streaming down their cheeks. “...I am at the top. I have more power than you do, and I will make sure that your existence will be a miserable one if you dare challenge me again.”

Mumbled words left Vepar’s lips, soon followed by a sharp cry when Leviathan sank his claws into their torso once more.

“What was that?”

“Y-yes Grand Admiral, sir. N-never again, sir!” The words tumbled out without a second thought, the demon trying not to let his body tremble too much from the mix of fear and pain.

“Good.” Leviathan retracts his claws and lets Vepar slump to the ground to their knees, his cold gaze lingering on them for a moment before looking over to the mangled corpse of Lassal. Turning away from the scene, Leviathan begins to walk away, raising a hand in the air.

“Clean that mess up.” He pauses, looking over his shoulder to fix the fellow sea demon a menacing glare. “And that’s an order.”

#obey me #obey me swd #obey me! #obey me leviathan #om! leviathan #obey me fic #demons being demons #series: a demon's nature #writings #the all encompassing [mod] cosmos #have some cool and violent levi which we need more of <3

[fanfic-wonderland]

The Way I Feel Inside {Park Chanyeol} - Part 1

Pairing: Park Chanyeol x Fem!Reader

Genre: Angst, fluff

Synopsis: Y/N has feelings for her friend Chanyeol but she has never told anyone. That's why when one of her closest friends confesses that she also has a thing for the tall boy, Y/N feels like she has no choice but to keep her own feelings hidden.

_____________________________________________________________

I'm pretty sure that I fell in love with Chanyeol since the very first time we met.

In my defense, it was inevitable. He's probably everything someone could ask for in a partner; he's sweet, funny, respectful, talented, has a very likable personality and, overall, he's basically perfect. Not to mention that he's extremely tall and handsome, which was is huge bonus. It's no surprise that so many boys and girls like him. However, Chanyeol doesn't care about that, at all, which was shocking to me when I got to know him properly. I'd always had this image of him, that he was your typical popular high school jock, who happened to be a musician, and who also thought that he was superior to others just because everything in life seemed to be served to him on a silver platter. I thought the attention would get to him eventually and that he'd walk around the halls knowing that he ruled the entire school.

But boy, was I wrong...

Chanyeol is far from any of that and, to this day, I still feel guilty for thinking so negatively of him. Although I'd seen him around before, the very first time I talked to him was in detention. Apparently, the clothes I was wearing that day were considered "inappropriate" and Chanyeol had come in late to class, for the third time that week. I had never been sent to detention before so I was already preparing myself for whatever torture they made you go through in it. There weren't many students there, no one I really talked to, and it seemed to be the same thing for Chanyeol. Maybe that was why once the teacher left the room to go to the restroom we ended up talking so naturally. "He's not going to the restroom," he had muttered quietly.

I knew it was mostly to himself but I was genuinely curious as to why he had said that, so I turned to him. "How do you know?"

He clearly wasn't expecting me to ask that and, once he looked back at me, I began to regret speaking up. But, to my surprise, Chanyeol smiled amusingly. "Whenever half an hour passes, he always excuses himself and says he's going to the restroom but, really, he goes out to smoke at the parking lot. You'll realize once he comes back smelling like he poured the whole perfume bottle on himself in order to cover up the smell of cigarettes."

"So, this isn't new to you?" I mimicked his smile.

"Not at all." He replied, followed by a low chuckle. "Why do you look so surprised?"

I shrugged, turning my attention to the pencil on my desk. I twisted it under my fingers in order to avoid eye contact with him. His eyes were hypnotizing. "I guess I just didn't picture you as the detention type of guy."

"I mean, It's not like I go around asking for it," he explained and I found myself giggling. "But, you know, sometimes I get detention for the stupidest reasons and I've learned to embrace it."

"Yeah, I get you," I pointed down to the lilac crop top I was wearing. "I got sent to my very first detention today for wearing inappropriate clothing."

Chanyeol's eyes widened. "You're kidding, right?"

"I really wish I was."

"Jesus," he shook his head and leaned back against the wall behind him. "Well, if it helps, I think you look great."

I grinned at him once I figured that he was being truthful. He looked a bit awkward after saying it out loud but it was adorable. "Thank you. it actually does help."

It was the beginning of a beautiful conversation. He was so entertaining to hear and I learned so many things about him in that short period of time, but what I liked most about him was how passionate he was about music. He knew so much about it and you could tell that it was something that made him genuinely happy. Chanyeol was also an amazing listener and, as I told him a bit about what I liked to do, he was so attentive and interested, often asking questions and commenting on things that we both had in common. I knew I liked him since that moment but I told myself that it would probably be the only time I had the chance to speak with him that way; he probably wouldn't even look at me outside of that classroom and it wasn't like I was going to get detention every week from then on just so I could talk to him.

However, life is full of surprises. Our first encounter happened a year ago, and right now I can say with confidence that Chanyeol and I are friends. Good friends, in fact.

I don't hang out with him all the time because he's someone who has a lot of friends. Not to mention that at some point last year he had a girlfriend so we didn't meet up too often, but it was fine. I never feel left out; Chanyeol never makes me feel like I'm just someone he talks to whenever there's no one else around. We mostly text about our days, maybe sometimes even talk on the phone, and when we both have time we sometimes go out to get lunch and catch up. It's a nice friendship... so nice that I ended up head over heels for him, but I'll be damned if I let him know that.

Once I put all of my books inside my locker, I close it and press my back against the hard material. At that same moment, the person I'm coincidentally thinking about comes into view. Chanyeol is saying something to his best friend, Baekhyun, as the two of them walk through the long hall and, when they laugh afterward, his eyes fall on my figure. I almost turn away in embarrassment -no way he missed me staring at him like a freak- but, as soon as he grins and waves at me, all panic melts away. I return the gestures before I lose him again in the wave of students. My heart takes its time going back to its normal rhythm, because he only needs to smile at me and I already feel like I'm going into cardiac arrest.

"I want him."

The familiar silvery voice of Maggie takes me back to reality. When I turn to face her I take in her appearance: she's dressed in all denim today, with her dark long hair straightened up in a high ponytail, and her makeup looking simple yet effective. She is staring in the same direction as I was a few seconds ago but I can't really tell who she's talking about. "Who?"

She turns to me finally, with the playful smile that I know so well by now. "Park Chanyeol."

My stomach drops at the mention of the name. Maggie doesn't know about my feelings towards him but I like to think that, if she did, then she would not try anything with him. But I say nothing about that, although I feel like I should. "Is that so?"

"Yes." her face seems to brighten up. "He's single now, right? So now is my chance."

I bite my lip and look straight ahead. I'm afraid that my facial expressions will give me away. I keep quiet because, deep down, I don't want to encourage her for my own reasons. It's selfish, I know. "You're close to him. Do you think you could talk to him for me?" she says with a pleading tone while grabbing my arm and shaking me lightly.

No. Just say no. Tell her you've been liking him for a year now. "Sure." I roll my eyes and chuckle.

She squeals excitedly and hugs me. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! I really do owe you one."

The words are way too familiar but, usually, I don't mind doing her a favor. This time, though, everything she says is hitting me like a truck. "Yeah, whatever," I say after she lets go of me. "Anyway, I should go now, my class starts in five minutes."

It's her turn to roll her eyes. "Why do you always have to be so punctual?"

"Same reason you should be, too," I answer her, and she laughs. "See you later."

When I walk away, my chest hurts. I did the right thing, right?

#fanfic #fanfiction #kpop fanfiction #kpop boys #kpop #kpopidol #kpop imagines #kpop scenarios #kpop fluff #kpop fanfic #kpop angst #kpop smut #exo #exo smut #exo imagines #exo fanfic #exo scenarios #exo chanyeol #park chanyeol #chanyeol #chanyeol fanfic #chanyeol fluff #chanyeol angst #chanyeol scenario #chanyeol smut #park chanyeol x reader #park chanyeol smut #park chanyeol scenarios #park chanyeol fluff #park chanyeol angst

[anne-i-write]

moriarty the patriot headcannons pt. 1

| requested by anon: Can you write about all male characters in moriarty has a same look of their  children and hpw many children they want? |

william x reader; louis x reader; albert x reader; sebastian x reader; fred x reader

word count: 2397

pt. 2: 221b boys

a/n: I DONT KNOW WHY I DIDNT WRITE THIS EARLIER IM SO SORRY THIS REQUEST HAS LITERALLY BEEN IN MY INBOX FOR SO LONG I AM SO SORRY I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS

william: 487 words

with his whole plan to clean the world of the filthy nobles, william never really stopped to think about having children

well, until he met you

you both were in town one day and he saw you fondly watching a child speak with her mother

“i think two children would be nice”

“i didn’t even ask”

“i know, but the look you gave that mother was telling enough”

n e ways he is a simp and he did eventually give you what you wanted

fast forward a few years, you have two children: a boy and a girl

and they look exactly like their father

like,, it lowkey pains you how much they physically take after their father

you wanted to be like “oh they have your personality, but they look just like me!”

no

granted, your son took after you in an emotional sense but your daughter was a daddy’s girl through and through

like she looks like him, she acts like him, speaks like him, she even EATS like him

ok but the men w your children

fred is a freaking sweetheart ok

like he’ll watch over the kids when no one has the time and they love him too so they’ll help out in the garden which you are SO thankful for

tbh they only like uncle albert bc he brings them lil trinkets from when he gets back from london LMAO

louis doesn’t show it, but he absolutely adores your children and makes extra snacks for them at tea time

you caught onto this at one point bc for some REASON your kids would not stop bouncing off of the walls before bed and they told you uncle louis gave them chocolate

and sebastian loves messing w your kids bc,,, sebastian

but he accidentally made your son cry ONCE and he was at the mercy of every adult in the moriarty estate including the boy’s younger sister

needless to say, he watched his actions and words around your children after that

now, william

i’m just gonna say this straight out: most of the men never really thought about having kids (save john and albert)

but when you finally had kids, william had a different outlook on life

like fr,, this man works overtime now trying to get rid of the filth that is called nobles

he doesn’t want his kids to be raised in a world where just because you have more money than another means you get to look down on them

you still instill in them those good morals ofc

he also tries to be very present in their lives since he and his brother were raised as orphans

when he was younger, he didn’t mind it all much

but now that he had this small family and a brighter future, he did everything in his power to make sure they’re happy and grow up in a cleaner and kinder world

louis: 320 words

it took you a week to get him to at LEAST humor you

“if you could, how many kids do you want?”

“none”

like, this guy is so dedicated to his brother and his cause it is a WONDER you somehow wormed your way into his heart

but you did and honestly, the brothers are actually very happy that you’re with them

william especially

louis rarely emotes but when you came into their lives, you got louis pissed at one point and everyone was like,,,, wtf?? he has emotions???

anyways, his answer is one kid LMAO

and when you get that one kid, he looks just like louis

yall already KNOW that he’s ready to die for that child as soon as louis holds him in his arms

the only kid sebastian wouldnt even try to mess with

he can deal with william’s albert’s or fred’s kids but louis lowkey intimidates him so he’s as nice as he can be

that being said, louis teaches his kid how to properly handle stuff around the house

you want to cry bc ur son is just so??? the little kid just loves helping out no matter how small the task and he’s just so cute it hurts

even sebastian’s kinda like,, “aight he’s the only kid i will tolerate”

louis grew up with only his brothers so he also wants to give his son a shot at a normal family

is actually aware at how he thinks he’s indispensable for william’s cause and he doesn’t want his son to end up like him

he also teaches his son some badass fighting moves

oh and louis smiles a lot more too

cried bc his son saw the scar he got on his cheek, rubbed some dirt on his lil face and said “i have daddy’s cool scar now”

all in all his son is the best thing to happen to all of you

albert: 505 words

same as louis in the fact that it takes him a week to answer

“you know you haven’t even answered my question”

“i’m sorry, what did you say?”

“how many kids do you want?”

genuinely takes time to ponder that question

he hadn’t thought of that since his family adopted william and louis

but with you?

“i think two darling girls who take after their mother is enough for me”

pls he’d be so sweet 🥺🥺🥺

you two end up having a girl and a boy, who look just like their father

and tbh, you’re not even mad

you love them so much so when albert comes back north, the three of you are ecstatic

the happiness was short lived for albert tho

he found his son spending time with william and there’s nothing bad right????

“where’s your sister?”

“she’s with mr. moran”

his heart DROPPED

out of all the people in the manor

HIM

he sees the two running around the garden

it all happened as soon as albert’s daughter went up to sebastian and said “you’re very pretty! you’re my knight now!”

he decided to “adopt” the little girl and now he’s lowkey whipped

you found albert staring at sebastian playing with his daughter and updated him about everything going on

“but him??”

“he’s just a big softie for her let it go”

isn’t really surprised when he finds out they can fight a little

actually glad that they can hold their own, God forbid anything happens to them

otherwise mi6 has to deal w family matters lmao

“albert, she only tripped”

“you shouldve seen the fear in her eyes as she fell”

“IT WAS A STRAY COBBLESTONE”

would raise hell if anyone even THOUGHT ill of his kids

william and louis are the doting uncles

william more so than louis bc your kids have never seen louis smile

now they’re on a mission to make uncle louis smile

louis was on child duty one day and they managed to slip away

omyGOD he was stressed but also,, extremely worried

so when he found them he had the most genuine smile on his face

your daughter was like (・∀・)

she loves uncle louis

ofc your son adores his dad like,,, who else wouldn't feel awesome at the age of 10 if you found out your dad was a high ranking general

feels superior to sebastian bc of his dad

lmao this 4’5 kid thinks he can rule sebastian for some odd reason

the house is always dirty bc him and sebastian always prank each other

your daughter is trying to catch a butterfly but she can’t so fred helps

instantly loves fred

“is that what heartbreak is”

“i guess that’s what happens when you try to get close to my kids colonel”

albert is kind of afraid of turning into his dad but he has you and everyone else to remind him that: no you are not your father, you are so much better than him

loves your family with his entire being

sebastian: 844 words

“i see you looking at those kids and the answer is none”

lmao you’ll get so pouty around him bc you want kids dammit

that and he spoils you to no end so that's why you’re pouty lol

“fine we’ll only do one kid and bc one kid is all i can tolerate”

bruh

this man gives you three in four years LMFAO

two boys a year apart and a girl in the fourth year

you wanted to smack sebastian

when the two boys grew up, it was obvious they were already taking after their father in the physical sense

it was terrifying

they genuinely look like mini sebastians and you know everyone in the manor is afraid that you two birthed satan

and the satan was your eldest one

he’s just a feral sebastian moran in a tiny body

your second son, god bless him, looked just like his father but with fred’s temperament

and see, you were fine with your sons looking like their father

it was FINE right

you prayed to God that your third child would have at least some physical resemblance to you

your daughter was birthed, she grew up

and you cried

“HOW DO THEY ALL LOOK LIKE YOU”

“i’ve got some strong genetics, baby”

you sulk for a lil bit

but you accept it anyway because you love your goddamn kids

thankfully, your second and youngest child are both soft spoken and it's only your husband and his tiny clone bringing hell to earth

smacking sebastian bc all of your children suddenly started swearing up a storm at each other

“WHYD YOU HIT ME”

“YOURE THE ONLY ONE WHO SWEARS AROUND THE KIDS”

finally sitting down and trying to convince them to stop swearing

“father does it!”

“your father’s stupid”

speaking of your daughter

she’s his little princess and no he will not take criticism

spoils her more than he spoils you

did she glance at a toy at a passing store?

he buys more toys than he should from said store

you have to physically hide some of his money bc there is only so much you can buy

and her older brothers are so caring you want to sob

if a person accidentally shoved her over bc she was tiny and they couldn’t see her

oh boy

get ready to restrain them like chihuahuas

“little sister will be protected at all costs”

since his second son is so different from him, sebastian actively makes time to talk about what the little boy is doing and what he’s getting from it

doesn’t want to be pushy and suffocating like his dad was so when his younger kid does want to be left alone to his devices, sebastian does so

but honestly loves that your second son is so literate

lddhsajdsfk what yall dont know is that they’re all in cahoots

kinda funny to see them all together bc they all take after their father so much it's like having three tiny sebastians go around town

anyways,,,, yall know the promised neverland right

you got ray, norman, and emma

granted one of them wasn’t as smart as ray but he definitely knew what stealth was

regular sibling rivalry was still a thing but if they could smell the pudding from the kitchen, they know they have to work together

sebastian caught his eldest smuggling biscuits into a small bag

he had half a mind to scold him

but then he ended up giving tips TO ALL HIS CHILDREN on how not to get caught next time—

bc of this they beg him to tell them some stories from afghanistan bc “there’s no way a man as old as dad knows this many stealth tactics”

louis is so fed up lmao

albert is in london most of the time so he just thanks the lord that he doesn’t have to deal w the propaganda that sebastian feeds his children about how “mr. albert is a bad man”

william is fine w it as long as they don’t trash the library

your younger ones love the library so they would cry at the thought of one of the books losing any of the pages

your second and your daughter are definitely the moriartys’ favorites

they don’t show it, but you just KNOW

your eldest could care less about that though

as long as you and his father still love him

and of course you both do

and fred is definitely your youngers favorite

they like to hang out in the garden

ok they still fight all the time though

just because your second child is soft spoken doesn't mean he’s afraid to throw hands

their sister likes to join in for the hell of it

but if someone wrongs any of the children

just because the younger ones are the moriartys’ favorite, doesn’t mean that they’re not gonna hunt someone down if they even think about trying to hurt the eldest too

yeah,,, good luck to them and their families

they got the entire moriarty estate coming after them

fred: 241 words

cmon yall are like,, young

but you did ask him bc you were curious if he thought about it

he wants one

and when yall do have the kid, you guys actually do have one kid and its a girl

since you both are young, you can immediately see a resemblance between her and her father

everyone who meets her would die for her

ABSOLUTE CUTIE

especially when she walks around the garden w her hand in her dad’s and he’s showing her all the plants and telling her how to take care of them

needless to say she grows up loving plants

any type of plant

the boys love giving her flowers or anything from bc she has the biggest smile every single time

no matter if it’s just a single rose or a rock

this was found out one time when sebastian gave her a rock bc everyone else had given her like,, two roses each

was afraid she was gonna cry

“thank you so much mr. moran! i will treasure this until i get old!”

she was like 4 at the time

and had the widest smile you’ve ever seen on her

guys u don’t understand she smiles a lot but this was like,, genuine happiness

but everyone was just,, i will destroy the world and myself if anything happens to her

fr it’s just sunshines and rainbows every single time she’s around

everyone just loves her ok

moriarty the patriot general taglist: @zoehanji

#moriarty the patriot #moriarty the patriot x reader #yuukoku no moriarty #yuukoku no moriarty x reader #william james moriarty #william moriarty #william james moriarty x reader #william moriarty x reader #louis james moriarty #louis moriarty #louis james moriarty x reader #louis moriarty x reader #albert james moriarty #albert moriarty #albert james moriarty x reader #albert moriarty x reader #sebastian moran #sebastian moran x reader #fred porlock

[fangruninsimp]

Two Truths, One Lie

Pairing: Rin/Nezha | Fluff | Christmas | 1347 words | Missing Scene | Read on AO3

Summary: Rin and Nezha play Two Truths, One Lie on guard duty. Things that were left unsaid come to light.

---

They stood guard by the wall, Rin perched cross-legged on the narrow ramparts, absent-mindedly polishing her sword, Nezha on the ground below, wearing tracks into the dirt with his relentless pacing.

He was bored.

After his third annoyed sigh, she tucked her cloth back into her belt and called down to him.

"What's the matter, Dragon Prince? Not used to being on Watch?"

"I've had better things to do with my time," he called back.

She settled back and fixed her gaze back onto the empty field in front of her, praying that he'd shut up, but before she could blink, Nezha was sitting next to her on the same wall despite being twice her size; after vaulting over the stone structure with the effortless grace of a shadow puppet. After all this time out of Sinegard, Rin still felt a twinge of envy shoot through her - no matter how hard she trained, she'd never achieve his ribbon-dancer finesse.

"Let's play a game," he said.

Rin raised her eyebrows. "What game?"

He shrugged. "Twenty questions? I Spy? Two truths, one lie?"

Rin looked at him with a puzzled look on her face. "What?"

"By the Tortoise," he said, rolling his eyes. "Do they not play Two Truths One Lie in Tikany?"

"We didn't exactly have hours and hours to while away," said Rin, a little defensively. "We had better things to do with our time."

His mouth quirked upwards at her repartee, and she was suddenly struck by how attractive he was when he wasn't scowling. He was always pretty, with his cream skin and his ebony hair, but…

She shook the thoughts out of her head, keeping Altan's words in her mind. He is Jun's soldier. You can't trust him. He is the son of the Dragon Warlord. He is a spy.

"Okay, it's a Hesperian game, and it's fairly simple," he said, crossing his legs to mirror her position - and in that moment he looked no more like a spy than Ramsa looked like the Mugenese general. He was a boy - and he had that look in his eye he got when he was explaining battle strategy, that for some reason, Rin found oddly endearing. "One person says three things about themselves, two true things, one false, and-"

"-and the other person has to guess which one was false?" she finished.

"Yes." He said, shifting in his seat, dangerously close to Rin. "I'll go first, so you know what to do."

He cocked his head to the side for a moment, and she fought the urge to jump down from the wall and run for the hills. She couldn't predict what she'd do around him, and she hated not being in control. He swallowed, and proceeded to rattle off his list. "I know 27 forms of martial arts. I hate congee. And my favourite animal is the dragon."

She shot him a sidelong glance. "I definitely believe the martial arts thing, because you warlord families are fucking insane," she said. "Your father is the Dragon Warlord, so it makes sense that you like dragons. I'm guessing your lie is hating congee. No one hates congee."

"I do," said Nezha, and Rin shook her head disbelievingly.

"What on earth do you eat when you're sick then?" She asked.

"I don't get sick," he replied haughtily. He still had that annoyingly superior air about him, but there was no malice in his words.

"Liar."

"Maybe," he shrugged. "I lied about the dragon anyway. I don't like dragons."

"No?"

"Well, after growing up seeing dragons on every damn painting, sculpture and tapestry in the house, just once, I just want to see a framed picture of a pig on the wall."

A snort of laughter escaped Rin, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flicker of something pass through the almond eyes trained on her. Derision? Judgement?

"Your turn," he nodded.

"Okay," she said, biting her lip, casting her mind back, sifting through the things about her that made her her. Who was she? How many names, how many titles had she acquired already, in so short a span of time?

Drug runner. Shop-tender. Student. Scholar. Outcast. Soldier. Shaman.

Nezha was there with Fang Runin the outcast scholar in Sinegard - so she'd have to think of things about herself that had to do with plain old Rin in Tikany.

"Okay." She repeated, clearing her throat. "Here we go. I used to run opium in my old neighbourhood. I have a little sister. And I started preparing for the Keju when I was 14."

"Easy," said Nezha dismissively. "Your lie is about the Keju. No one tests into any academy with only two years of study, let alone Sinegard."

Rin smiled to herself and let his supposed victory simmer for a few seconds before she shut him down. "You lose."

Nezha's jaw went slack and his eyes widened in a rare display of surprise. "You didn't."

"I did," countered Rin mildly. "The lie was about my sister. I don't have one. I-" her voice caught in her throat at the thought of Kesegi. She hadn't spoken to him since she left Tikany. It felt like centuries ago. She swallowed. "I have a step-brother though. Had. He- he probably doesn't remember me."

"I doubt that," said Nezha; a strange intensity sweeping over his features. "It would be difficult to forget you."

She ducked her head, confused. Was he mocking her, even now?

"And I know, because-" he pressed on. "Because I haven't been able to get you out of my head since the day I met you."

"When I punched your face?" She asked, feigning nonchalance, choosing not to acknowledge the first part of his sentence.

"I suppose so," he assented, and had the grace to look embarrassed.

Rin exhaled, then crossed her arms tightly around herself and shivered - she had never felt further away from the flames she was supposed to control. Her power came from her anger. What was she supposed to do if all Nezha wanted was to melt it away?

He took off his jacket and wordlessly draped it around her shoulders. It was warm. Funny, she'd always thought he'd be cold, like a marble statue. He looked especially marblesque under the pale moon that hung over Khurdalain - a carving with porcelain skin, the darkest eyes-

"You're staring," he observed.

Her cheeks grew warm with embarrassment, but she levelled her chin at him.

"I suppose so," she quipped back. The words had barely left her mouth when she felt a hand fist into the front of her tunic and tug. Her hand flew reflexively to her sheathed sword, but slackened in surprise when she felt warm lips capture her own, sending sparks skittering through her skin.

Oh.

Oh.

His mouth was hard and unyielding against hers, and she couldn't help but push back against him, rough in a way that would surely leave bruises on his skin. She found that she didn't care in the slightest and apparently, neither did he.

She didn't have time to form thoughts any more coherent than that before he pulled away, breathing hard; his face more open and vulnerable than she had ever seen it. He seemed to realize that he'd let his shield drop but despite all his training, despite all the years he'd been trained to be a soldier above all else; he couldn't put it back up.

Or maybe he didn't want to.

"I've got to go," he whispered, voice hoarse, and it was only when he let go of her shirt that Rin realized he was still holding it. He jumped off the wall, landed on the ground with a thud and hurried back to camp, looking more than a little rattled. As if he was the one who had been kissed for the first time in his life.

As if he was the one who had been kissed by someone whom he considered his worst enemy for what felt like centuries.

As if he was the one who had been kissed by said worst enemy - and wanted more.

Fuck.

#tpw #the poppy war #fanfic #fluff #fang runin #yin nezha #rinezha #mine #apparently some people don't like reading fic on ao3? #it's such a great site #but anyway #here's my fic on tumblr as promised #I'll upload the rest whenever I have time