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#especially with how sick ive been lately
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ALSO i have a feeling i might have to change storage units sometime in the future.......i dont think the place im using has a bathroom :(
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dyketennant · 3 months
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idk i think i should start masking again 🤠 (i mean the autism i already wear a face mask)
#vent#personal#dont mind me using the tags as a diary for a bit. i have a real diary but my carpal tunnel is not agreeing with writing with a pen rn#blah blah blah val's interests are annoying and weird. and it's all they really know how to talk about#because they are so busy constantly with two jobs + full-time uni + side gigs + life in general#that they cannot function without their Little Things and because of that all their interpersonal relationships suffer#yknow how it is#ive always been one of those people who talks a lot in class#especially since getting to college because now i really care and am excited about what we're discussing#(plus talking about it/engaging helps keep me awake and stimulated otherwise i'll go to the seventh circle of hell)#but i feel like especially recently but just in general. i just always say dumb shit. and maybe it's worse now bc my paranoia is spiking#bc of that class with my ex i have twice a week and i know they're probably judging what i say and making fun of me to their new friends#while i have to spend an hour and fifteen minutes trying not to look at the other side of the room and turning up music when they speak#i used to be better at socially masking bc high school was hell but then covid happened and it all went down the drain#and then my life got Worse and now it's like. sorry im annoying and bad at talking i know i am. i am also trying to not be like that#idk i think im just so spread thin that everything i ever do im doing poorly bc i just Cant. and im in pain constantly#and always running late or rushing or stressed or busy. like i haven't been not-stressed since. i dont even know. maybe when i was sick?#and even then i was stressed because Oh Fuck I Have Covid. yknow#wow my therapist is going to have an interesting day tomorrow it seems
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draconic-desire · 2 months
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A Dance With the Dragon IV — Escape
Yandere Neuvillette x Reader
[Part I] [Part II] [Part III] Part IV — You are here]
After four hundred years, the chance for escape finally presents itself—what will you choose?
Warnings: Yandere behavior, brief mentions of NSFW thoughts and past events, feral dragon Neuvillette
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Your opportunity for escape came on a gray and dismal day.
The past week had been particularly grueling for the Chief Justice—or so he had panted into your ear while he pinned you to the bed, skin slick with sweat and his cock buried to the hilt inside you.
You’d initially took it as a thinly veiled excuse for the dragon to lash out, for him to lay claim to you once again, but you soon noticed his focus actually wavering. Just enough for it to slip his mind to tell your Melusine guards (or guides, as Neuvillette would insist) not to bring you to his office for your regular afternoon tea with him. Furina had insisted on his last-minute presence at the meeting between her and certain Snezhnayan diplomats, and his unwavering sense of responsibility to Fontaine prevented him from rejecting the order.
That was how you found yourself sitting alone in his office.
You were quite confused. Neuvillette never skipped tea with you. In fact, as the busiest man in Fontaine, he insisted on it. It was a new development, one he thought might bring the two of you closer and outside of a purely domestic setting.
You’d be grateful for the change of scenery if you didn’t end up bent over his desk half the time.
In the beginning you had fought him on it, but as time in his captivity stretched on you soon realized this was one of the only chances allotted to you beyond your shared abode, especially now that the Opera was off limits. You even got to chat with the Melusines who acted as your sweet, naive guards. They reminded you of Carole and your previous life, a bittersweet memory that you held onto like a fleeting dream.
Now, you couldn’t help but start to fidget in your seat. When one minute became two, and two became five, and five became ten, you couldn’t help the anxious tapping of your nails against his desk. Where was he? Had something happened to him? You knew the Chief Justice would never commit a crime, but the notion of him imprisoned forever in the Fortress or Meropide was one that brought you comfort during your unrequited relationship.
Particularly on nights he would remind you of whose sentence you were under, whose wife and mate you were.
Pushing both hands against the desk, you rose to your feet and stormed towards the door. You wouldn’t sit idly to stew in your own thoughts. You raised a fist, preparing to knock harshly to alert any Melusine or the Iudex himself whose inhuman perspectives misinterpreted this as some sort of sick joke—
Except the slightest force sent the door ajar, presenting you with an empty hallway.
It was unlocked.
You couldn’t help the quickening of your heart rate. It invaded your senses, your hearing, your feeling, until it drowned out all of your thoughts but one.
You could leave.
The absence of any other individual was unheard of. Logically, it didn’t make sense; there should have been a guard if Neuvillette expected to be late, or others working in the main office if they hadn’t been dismissed for break as usual (though you knew it was only to spare them of any ungentlemanly sounds that might be coming from his office after you entered).
It was then you realized: Neuvillette had made a mistake.
You didn’t spare a single glance back as you strode out the doors of the Palais Mermonia and onto the streets of Fontaine.
Navigating your way out of the Court was easier than expected. Although there was no mistaking who you were when Neuvillette dragged you out in public—whom else’s waist would he retain an iron grip on throughout an entire opera if not his loving partner—without him by your side, you appeared like any other resident.
Obtaining Mora for the ferry ride to Sumeru was also a breeze. You had no moral objections to pocketing a few coins from unsuspecting citizens along the docks. Why would you, when you had been serving a lifetime sentence of imprisonment anyway?
The ship wasn’t anything fancy and was mostly filled with traveling salesmen and local fishermen, but after centuries of being doted on and monitored constantly, you savored the feeling of being normal, of feigning the role of a traveling merchant. You truly never thought that pretending to be an average worker would feel so freeing.
Suddenly, the skin of your arm began to crawl, feeling like a thousand pinpricks were digging their claws under your skin. You hissed at the sharp pain, gasping at the brief flash of your draconic tattoo, and then…nothing. You could almost always feel it, but it seems that upon crossing a certain distance the leviathan decided to lie dormant. You thanked Barbados for your luck; in your certainty of escaping, you hadn’t even thought of the physical tie between you and Neuvillette.
As the boat pulled out of the dock, relief washed over you like the serenity after a storm. After months of the Iudex, the supposed upholder of Justice, violating every rule against you, you were finally free.
As you watched Fontaine’s massive cliffs fade into the waves, you briefly mourned your choice to leave your Hydro Vision behind; however, you reasoned that the risk in going back for it and wasting precious time was too great. Not to mention the fact that you were sure you’d never get away with slipping it out of Neuvillette’s grasp, and you certainly didn’t want to squander this chance by running back into his arms. Although you knew the rumors of what happened to bearers who lost their Visions, you were willing to take your chances if it meant securing your freedom.
A sudden splash against your cheek jerked you from your thoughts. Upon looking up, you found the previously azure sky to have darkened. Rain began steadily falling, soon fully soaking your frilly dress (another insistence of Neuvillette’s, that you always wear dresses for teatime…never again!). Thunder rolled across the waters, bringing a taste of pain, anger, and betrayal with it.
Ah, so he’s realized your absence. Good—let him rage. Let him experience the heartbreak of losing what you hold most dear.
Maybe that will serve as his atonement for his sins against you.
You noticed then that, like your draconic captor, you too were crying. Though not of sadness—no, yours were tears of joy.
~*~
Although you had originally planned to journey back to your homeland in the City of Wind—not that you had anyone left there to return to, it was more for your own comfort—you found Sumeru to be to your liking. It was Fontaine’s foil—hot, dry, intellectually driven yet full of untamed wilderness. Full of real, thriving flora and fauna that cold, inorganic meka could never match.
The presence of the Akademiya and Port Ormos even offered you a line to continue your photography and research. Due to the dark room Neuvillette had installed in the library, your skills with a camera hadn’t grown too rusty over the centuries. Now, you finally were able to photograph your true passions again—nature, the water, the animals around you. Their harmony and beauty together, their freedom.
It may seem as if you hadn’t gotten far, but with how vast the Nation of Wisdom was, you felt safe to start anew. For the first time in four hundred years, you felt at home.
Three months had passed since your escape, with no indication that the Iudex was on your trail. After enrolling in the Akademiya (which had required you to change your name, since posing as a four hundred year old would probably not go over well), you even found a group of fellow students that you worked and resided with in the city. You were still careful, of course—you never traveled alone, avoided looking flashy in public, and even altered your look by cutting your hair to suit the arid climate.
That is, until you weren’t.
Your advisor appointed you to join an exclusive research project on the wildlife transition along the Sumeru/Fontaine border. Having experience with Fontaine’s biology, you were the clear candidate. Your initial trepidation almost won out, but you finally conceded at the encouragement of your peers. You’d even be traveling with your advisor and two of your roommates, so you chalked your nerves up to not having set foot in the direction of Fontaine in months. After all, you’d been meaning to explore the desert and its ecology—you just needed to take the plunge and face your fears.
Water was a rarity in the desert, after all.
Which is why, as your party was ascending the final dunes of the Desert of Hadramaveth, you believed the tall, blue-adorned figure approaching was a mirage. A result of dehydration after days of travel in these harsh conditions, a trick of the mind—
“Of all the places you could have escaped to, was it necessary to choose such a dry and barren place as this?” The last part was mumbled under his breath, his tone taking on a low growl, “I cannot help but feel that you bringing me here is some form of an assassination attempt…”
At the sound of his voice, just as deep and commanding as you remembered, your entire being came to a standstill. You despised how you had been conditioned for that tone to send a pangs of trepidation to your core.
Yet despite the Chief Justice’s presence right before you, a part of your brain refused to process it. He was the Hydro dragon, for Archon’s sake. What in all of Teyvat could drag him to the farthest place from the sea?
You, apparently.
At your silence, Neuvillette’s lips tightened. His expression was near unreadable, but you recognized the tumultuous mix of anger and longing storming under that stoic facade.
The other members of your group appeared confused and uneasy. Apparently Neuvillette’s reputation preceded him, even outside of Fontaine, for the common mumbling you picked up on was speculations of his role here.
“Is that the Chief Justice of Fontaine?” a professor whispered to your advisor nervously. “What is he doing here? Surely none of us have offended the court…” Her eyes flickered to you briefly. Due to the nature of the research, it was common knowledge among the group that you were the one with connections to Fontaine.
Said Justice took a step towards you, spurring you to take a larger step back. You knew running wasn’t an option, but you reasoned that he couldn’t just take you clawing and spitting for all your colleagues to witness. No, he would have to convince them of your guilt before he could act.
Well, two could play at that game; you lived with Neuvillette long enough to learn some of his ticks and tells, especially when it came to you. This would be a game of negotiation, a chess match of wits. Neuvillette’s intellect was near unmatched, but if you played your cards right, you could win.
The tide that is Fontaine’s Iudex may one day sweep you under his control, but it is not this day.
“Madame (L/n), by the authority of the Court of Fontaine and the Nation of Justice, I hereby place you under my custody for immediate detainment.”
Or not.
A few of the researchers around you gasped, tittering about your supposed false identity. The professor from earlier backed away from you with a sneer. Looking around, you noted that even your friends were eyeing you warily like some stranger.
All logic left you at the dragon’s announcement. The terror gripping your heart was replaced by blinding, bubbling rage. You would not concede to the man who took everything from you and would take it all again, washing away the life you had built again like a house of sand.
You practically hissed in response. Now this was familiar. “Under what charges?”
Lifting his cane, Neuvillette summoned a levitating tome from which he read, “Multiple accounts of theft, use of a fraudulent identity, desertion in court to be tried for said charges, and emotional damages to the residents of Fontaine affected by your careless and selfish actions.”
You scoffed, your lip curling in a snarl. “And I suppose that last ‘charge’ applies specifically to you?”
The draconic man merely narrowed his piercing purple eyes. Unlike your own, Neuvillette’s demeanor did not falter. He wanted you to lash out, to validate the accusations against you in front of the Sumerian researchers. His objective was solely to retrieve you—quelling your anger would come later.
The day you left Fontaine, Neuvillette had felt a piece of his soul shatter.
He could feel the very moment you crossed the border, when the draconic bond between mates and lovers was severed. It was a guillotine to his head, a rope around his neck, a bullet to his temple. Pain, raw and agonizing, enveloped his very being. The dragon beneath his skin raged, begging Neuvillette to fly to you and sink his claws so deep you could never leave again. The all-consuming panic over your loss, over your safety now that you were outside of his sight, had threatened to rise up and smother him, to drown him and sweep the fractured pieces away until he was nothing.
It had rained for weeks straight, so much so that the citizens of Fontaine brought back the old adage—Hydro Dragon, Hydro Dragon, don’t cry.
As much as he wanted, needed to find you, the Chief Justice could not simply abandon his post and his people. Going against his very nature, he quelled the dragon and settled on deploying Gardemeks to Sumeru and Liyue to search for you. It had been easy enough to program them with your photo and statement of your status as a fugitive. Surely you couldn’t have gotten any farther than the regions bordering Fontaine, and if so, the mekas would signal your location to him in no time.
So, after weeks on end of the Garde failing to locate you, Neuvillette’s anxiety swelled from a shower to a tempest, a storm of violent wind and flurrying emotion. He found himself in the library he had built you, clawed fingers clutching his face with labored breaths. Black danced across his vision.
Was he not enough for you? Had he not given you anything and everything you could desire? Had he not kept his mate safe?
Why did you abandon me, (Y/n)?
When he had come to, the room was in tatters, the carpet shredded with claw marks and the walls smoldering with blue energy.
Neuvillette decided then that he could not wait any longer.
Tracking you only fueled the dragon. It could sense you, the pull of your tattoo awakening with each step Neuvillette took to close the gap. It was one mate beckoning another, like the pull of the moon on the tide. Your light guided him straight into your path.
And when Neuvillette finally saw your figure, illuminated by the hottest desert sun, he had nearly fallen to his knees and wept in relief. You were so beautiful, yet the look of terror on your face ripped his soul apart all over again. Even now, even here, you wanted to reject him. Could you not see how far he would travel for you, how long his reach would extend just to keep you safe?
In that moment, the dragon roared, and Neuvillette listened.
After seemingly endless hours, days, and months to think about the reasons you left him, he realized that he must have been too lenient with you. He practically was the law in Fontaine, yet he had dismissed your transgressions time and time again, thinking your outbursts were simply a temporary response to your new life with him. Yes, the transition had been sudden and the charges against you quite ridiculous, but he truly believed you would fall for him as he did you.
He would tolerate your backlash no more. No longer would he spoil you with gifts, hoping, praying to every member of the Seven just for you to smile at him. Never again would he sigh in defeat when you spurned his touch, leaving him to fuck his hand to the mere idea of you initiating physical intimacy.
No, just like any other criminal in Fontaine, you would have to be imprisoned until you learned your place—in your case, by his side. And he would be lying if he said the idea of punishing you for your offenses, for leaving him, didn’t cause his cock to twitch in anticipation.
The dragon demanded to be satisfied, and it would have its fill.
“We have numerous reports of you stealing Mora from unsuspecting individuals, as well as the testimony from the ship’s captain that you claimed to be a merchant immigrating to Sumeru. Then, of course, comes the addition consequences for violating the authority of the court by leaving Fontaine. The latter makes you a fugitive.”
“That’s insane! I only had to commit those so-called ‘crimes’ because you—”
“Ah, so you plead guilty.”
You blanched. No, not this again. He was riling you up, making you fumble with your argument like a child, just like your initial confrontation with him in the Opera Epiclese. But that was how he viewed you, wasn’t it? His centuries of experience would always trump your own.
“You know that’s not what I meant—
The sound of your advisor clearing his throat momentarily saved you. “Sir, with all due respect, we do not know whomever this Miss (L/n) you are referring to. This young lady here is Miss (Fake name), and she is one of my finest students. I highly doubt she is the one to have committed these acts.”
Neuvillete’s eyes flashed dangerously towards the researcher. He loomed over your advisor, casting them in shadow. “Shall I arrest you as well for conspiring with a criminal?”
You never thought silence could be so deafening.
The Iudex released a huff. “I didn’t think so.” With a flick of his hand, your wrists became bound together with bands of pure hydro. Your protestations did nothing to deter him as he motioned forward, causing you to be forcibly dragged forwards by an invisible force. You were no stranger to this procedure; Neuvillette had used his powers on you more than once in bed. Now that he had his hydro around you, he held all the authority.
Without the ability to control your movements, you tumbled into Neuvillette’s broad chest. To the others it appeared as if he were securing your bindings, but you shivered as he buried his nose in your hair. Softly, in a voice only meant for you, he sighed, “Oh, how I dreamed of this moment, my darling (Y/n). A valiant effort, to be sure, though your pursuit was always in vain. There is nowhere in all of Teyvat I won’t find you.” His hand ran down the length of your arm, where you knew your draconic tattoo was once more glowing under your tunic. “You are marked as mine, my wife. My mate.”
You jerked your head away despite his scent invading your being. “I will never stop running from you, husband,” you growled, voice dripping with sarcasm. “Dissolving into the Primordial Sea is preferable to lifetime with you.”
To your surprise, a low chuckle escaped the Chief Justice’s lips. “I think you’ll soon find that I can be quite persuasive.” He stood to his full height, face reverting to his usually stoicism. “I shall be taking my leave with the prisoner, then. If any of you wish to object to this ruling, you may submit a false claim report to the Court, and I will attend to it personally.”
Glancing around at your peers, those you believed to be your friends and colleagues, you knew that none of them would fight for you. News of your detainment would be spread through the Akademiya, forever tarnishing your reputation. It was over, and Neuvillette had emerged victorious once again.
The Iudex motioned you forward with a tip of his cane and an ominous spark in his eyes. “Come, my beloved. Let us return home.”
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justauthoring · 17 days
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Heeey, I saw you are writing for fairy tail😍😍 I am obsessed. Can I please request a Natsu x Reader fiction. I don't have anything specific in mind. Maybe they are on a quest and reader is cold and Natsu helps them warm up. I don't know, just pure fluff!!! Thank you!!!!!!
just a lil drabble while im sick :) natsu was my first ever anime crush and ive been feeling so nostalgic about him <3
late night cuddle.
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you tried not to make it obvious, but it was getting harder by the second.
just why the hell was it so cold?
it had been like that for the entirety of the mission but bearable in the midst of everything. natsu and gray's bickering, coupled with light chattering with lucy and erza had been enough to keep your mind off of it on the trip here, and then once you were in the thick of it, it was pretty easy to ignore too. fighting, after all, built up quite the sweat.
but now? with no sun and just the dark, lonely sky, and a sleeping bag that was as thin as the shirt you were wearing it? it was so much more harder to ignore now.
a glance over your shoulder to your teammates tells you they're pretty much all asleep themselves, except for natsu who'd elected to keep first watch. happy had first volunteered to join him, but twenty minutes in you'd heard natsu chuckle affectionately and send him off to bed too.
so, that left just him and then the rest of your teammates peacefully asleep.
your eyes flicker to lucy next to you; you could ask her if she wanted to share a blanket and sleep close for warmth. you knew the girl never really wore the most appropriate clothing so she wouldn't mind and it wasn't like it was your first time ever having to share a sleeping bag before.
but.... but she looked so peaceful. her eyes shut and her lips parted just slightly as her chest rose and fell with soft breathes and you remember how she'd gotten hit partically hard earlier in the fight. the large bandaged bruise on her cheek a swift reminder and you didn't want to wake her up especially when rest was probably the best thing for her.
not to mention, wendy was off with gajeel and levy for a mission so she didn't have wendy's soothing healing magic to ease any of the pain.
yeah. no. you definitely were not disturbing her.
you glance to your other teammates. you loved gray, but he definitely wouldn't warm you up—if anything, he'd probably just make you more cold. erza wasn't an option either. you'd made that mistake once before and your head still hurt from being slammed against her armour (which she wore to bed, of course) and then kept against it for the entirety of the night.
happy was nice to cuddle with but he wouldn't keep you all that warm.
finally, your eyes flicker back to natsu. his back is turned to you and he's sitting crossed-legged by the edge of the camp, completely in his own world. he'd be warm, the warmest out of everyone, given him being a fire dragon slayer. but... the thought of... of asking him to warm you up brought an instant flush to your cheeks, embarrassment coursing through your entire veins and that idea gets reected instantly in fear of your feeligns.
so, relectantly, you're turning back around, letting your head fall against your thin pillow again.
you shut your eyes, forcing them shut and pull your knees to your chest, holding your blanket tight against you, praying that even just a bit of warmth will allow you to fall asleep.
a cold burst of wind has you shivering a second later and your teeth practically chitter against one another and you give up on sleep all together then.
with your blanket still wrapped around your shoulders, you make your way to where natsu's sat, sitting an appropriate distance from him.
"y/n?"
natsu's voice is soft, an odd tone you've never really heard on him before as his head tilts to face you, confusion written across his face.
"what're you doing up?"
"couldn't sleep," is all you offer in explanation, pulling your blanket closer around you. sending him a soft smile, you gesture behind you. "you can head to bed if you want. i can keep watch."
for a split second, he looks like he's gonna agree, the exhaustion clear on his face as he moves to thank you. then, wind brushes through the camp once again that has your hair swishing and your shoulders pulling in, a hiss leaving your lips as you try to fight through the bitting wind. natsu halts to a stop.
"why couldn't you sleep?"
you barely realize natsu's asked you a question until suddenly his face is right in front of you, concerned.
"o-oh!" you let out, startled, leaning back and using your hand to catch yourself. regrettably though, just the mere presence of natsu so close already makes you feel warmer. "it's no biggie!" you laugh off lightly, despite how good he feels so close. "i was just a little cold so i thought—"
whatever you're about to say gets promptly cut off the second you're being pulled flush against a firm chest. it all happens in a second. it's like you blink and suddenly you're being lifted off the ground and into a lap where a pair of arms wrap snuggly around your waist and you're completely surrounded by warmth.
"n-natsu!"
"here," natsu whispers, gruffly and it nearly sends you into a heart attack. "i'll keep you warm."
you blink, turning back to see him grinning brightly down at you. that same toothy grin natsu always has and the same one that always sends flutters through your stomach and has your heart racing madly against your chest.
you can barely stand it in general and even less when it's directed solely at you.
"oh," you manage to force out. "you—you don't have to, natsu!" you wingle in his grasp, trying to scoot off of his lap, but natsu's grip stays tight around you. "i meant what i said. you should get some rest and—"
"y/n?"
"...yeah?"
natsu's grin fades but only to turn into something softer. a warm, gentle grin falls on his face as he shakes his head. "you're practically shaking. you even feel cold, and that's a lot coming from me." you frown, just then realizing how cold you really had been. "it's fine. i offered to keep watch in the first place and besides? who better than me to keep you warm, right?"
there's a possessive edge to his tone that you don't quite catch.
the way he says it so nonchalantly has you absolutely reeling. so much that all you can manage in response is a weak hum and a nod as you turn back ahead of yourself, slowly and cautiously letting your back fall against natsu's chest.
"comfortable?"
you can feel his chest rumble as he speaks.
"y-yeah," you nod, letting yourself sink into his touch more, unable to deny how warm he is. a good warm. a really good warm. you can already feel the exhaustion you'd been feeling all day catching up to you as your eyelids grow heavy.
"thank you, natsu."
you say it just as your eyes fall shut, unaware of the warm smile natsu glances at you down with as you fall asleep in his arms and in his lap.
"no problem, y/n/n."
-
"damn, natsu, i didn't think you had it in you."
"shut it, droopy eyes."
"hey—!"
"they're in loveeeee~!"
"seriously, though, natsu. i... i certainly wasn't expecting to wake up to this."
"yeah, natsu. if you forced her, i—"
"what! no! what kind of guy do you take me for! i didn't force her to do—"
you let out a moan at the flutter of noises overwhelming your senses. all you can really register is how warm you are and how comfortable you are. the thought that you could stay here forever crosses your mind and you move to just go back to sleep, and then—
then. you remember everything.
being cold. unable to sleep. going to natsu. and then... then him pulling you into his lap and—
you snap awake, bolting out of natsu's arms who pulls back in surprise at your sudden movement. it takes you a second, blinking the sleep out of your eyes, before your gaze shifts from natsu who's smiling at you, with a faint pink to his cheeks, to the rest of your teammates stood in front of you.
gray looks smug, sending you a smirk as you turn bright red. erza looks utterly confused, her eyes snapping between you and natsu. happy is barely able to contain his laughter. and lucy's looking at you like you've grown a second head.
it occurs to you that you should say something.
turning to them, you raise your hand; "it isn't what you think."
"it's exactly what you think."
"natsu!"
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yawneneteyam · 1 year
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gorgeous (7) — look at your face.
— GORGEOUS, an avatar smau ( by yawneneteyam ) masterlist
*dark mode = y/n light mode = neteyam*
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— gorgeous, look at your face !
y/n didn't really want to meet up with neteyam today, still revelling in her heartbreak from the night before. she had never been able to handle rejection well, especially not from the man she had been slightly obsessing over for the past month almost. she felt like the thrill had expired, that life had come to give her a rude wake up call and neteyam friend zoning her was the alarm.
she knew that it would be unfair to not study with neteyam just because of her silly crush, so she picked herself up, brushed herself off and headed to the library to meet neteyam.
he could tell that something was off with y/n. she wasn't smiling as much as usual, her cheeks were blushing like they usually did when they spoke. she seemed less invested in their conversations today, as if today was a chore for her- maybe it was.
"are you feeling okay?" he couldn't help his curiosity. y/n only looked up briefly to meet his eyes before looking back down at her notebook.
"yeah," she nodded with pursed lips, "just tired," a lie.
"do you feel sick still?" he was concerned, neteyam knew that she was in a bad state last night- he wondered if she was feeling worse throughout the day. he knew hangovers could come with vengeance.
"uh, yeah a little bit," y/n shrugged it off.
that was how they sat for the next hour. neteyam trying his best to speak to y/n, her responding with short sentences. neteyam was lots of things, beautiful, kind and completely oblivious. so he chalked her bad mood up to drinking too much the night before and a sore stomach or pounding headache.
"neteyam!" y/n couldn't help but turn around upon hearing such a loud voice in a quiet space. a'korai walked over to the pair at the table.
"hey," neteyam kept his voice down still, considerate of their environment, "what's up?"
"just came over to see you," she smiled. y/n had never seen this girl before, but they way she ignored her presence already had her first impressions ruined. neteyam noticed her ignorance towards y/n, so he tried to do what he did best- make peace.
"a'korai, this is y/n" neteyam smiled. a'korai finally shot a glance in y/n's direction.
"hi," she smiled briefly.. and that was it, she was back talking to neteyam. y/n listened to their conversation with a sigh, tapping her pencil on the table impatiently, waiting for this random girl to get the hint. it was already bad having to see neteyam after being friend zoned by him, but to watch some pretty girl throw herself all over him was a punch to the face.
"it's getting late," y/n interrupted getting up from her seat, "I better go get dinner from the hall before they pack it away," she shoved her things away into her backpack. neteyam looked up at y/n with an apologetic gaze, knowing they didn't get as much done as they would've liked. "see you later, neteyam" she walked away.
neteyam sighed with his eyes closed, y/n had already walked away before he could even say goodbye to her. left with a'korai talking to him when he wished it was another.
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— gorgeous, look at your face ! okay we're back!! trying to do daily-ish updates, so every day or every other day a update will be posted for you guys!! idk if anyone actually reads my lil notes at the end, but thats okay! ive also put out a poll about blurring y/n's face and currently blurring is winning, so thats what I've done for this chapter! go vote if you want a say!
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joekeeryswife · 6 months
Note
Hi girl!!
I had an idea for a while now and I thought you might want to hear
It’s kind of a two paragraph thing
Reader and Joel are married and she is Sarah’s mother and also pregnant and she planned to tell Joel the day after the outbreak but doesn’t get to it. The day of the outbreak she was working late and never got home. Joel is sure he lost his entire family but reader (and the baby) made it through.
Twenty years later in Jackson a woman in her early fifties and a twenty year old young man/ woman (your call). After confirming they are not infected and have no bad intentions they meet Tommy , that leads to a beautiful and emotional family reunion.
Thank you🫶🏼🫶🏼
Apocalypse - J.M
hey honeys! first Joel imagine.. changed it slightly to instead of y/n being Sarah’s bio mum to her step mum but been with her practically her whole life🫶 i kinda made this like y/n’s friends where trying to protect her from hearing what was going on and ive also kinda not specified how y/n got lost until the end. i love a good angsty imagine!!! I ACTUALLY HATE THIS SORRY! I PROMISE MY NEXT JOEL IMAGINE WILL BE BETTER! enjoy reading xx (Joel is 36 and reader is 27 at the beginning)
(join my taglist🫶)
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September 26th 2003
“i promise i’ll be home early today. i’m only on a half day so try not to be late as well yeah? i have something to tell you” it was 6:30 in the morning and Joel didn’t have to get up for another two hours. you felt him nod and with you both sharing ‘i love you’s’ and a quick kiss on his cheek you were gone.
being a midwife was hard, especially when it pulled you away from your family. today was Joel’s 36th birthday and every year you would usually all spend the day together but this year, you and Joel had been pulled into work. you were meant to both be off but someone had called in sick and you had been persuaded into going in.
you had been excited for this day, you had found out last month that you were pregnant, 12 weeks when you found out, and you wanted to wait for his birthday to tell him. you had planned to tell him at dinner with Sarah. you had been in Sarah’s life since she was 5, she was 12 now and ever since she had met you she begged you and Joel for a brother or sister.
honestly you were excited, you had been with Joel for seven years and now was finally the right time for you and him to become parents. you had discussed it a few times in the past and one thing led to another and you both decided to start trying and as luck would have it, third time lucky you got pregnant. you had your first scan at work and decided to keep the gender a secret for now but being a midwife meant you could possibility find out the gender just by looking at the ultrasound picture so you hadn’t looked too closely.
-♡-
when you finally clocked in at work you already felt tired. being pregnant, nauseous with a headache did not help you whatsoever but money was money and you needed to start saving for your baby. “hey mama, how are you?” your co-worker and best friend Julia said as you entered the staff room. you sighed at set your bag and coat down on the table before sitting down.
your shift hadn’t even started yet and you were already ready to go home “hey, i’m alright. you been on the floor yet?” you tucked your hair behind your ear and rubbed a hand over your face. “no not yet but i’m sure when we go on we will be dealing with most of it” what she said was true, most of the staff here didn’t listen to instructions so it was up to you, Julia and a few other staff members to clean up their mess.
there were a few other co workers in the staff room with you, most of them eating their breakfast but it was practically silent except the two of you talking. “let’s go, i just want to get this day over with” and with a nod you both stood up to go to the delivery floor.
“you finally telling him tonight?” Julia asked you as she looked through a patient file “yeah, him and Sarah. she’s been begging for years so it’ll be nice to tell them at the same time. i was going to pick her up from school and tell her before but you know, duty calls” you joked. the two of you laughed and started making your way to a patients bedroom.
-♡-
you had been at work for eight hours before you finally got a break and sat down. it had been hectic and all you wanted to do was go home but your head of department had let you know that you would be staying at work way past the time you were meant to go home. three more people had called in sick and he thought because you were here you were supposed to stay.
you got your phone out of your scrubs pocket and dialled Joel’s number. it took a few rings before he finally answered. “hey sweetheart” he said in his thick Texan accent. “hey honey, happy birthday” you replied as you smiled, all you wanted to do right now was go home and cuddle with Joel. “thank you baby, how’s work?” you scoffed.
“that’s what i wanted to talk to you about. David is making me work till late, says there’s too many people calling in sick so i have to stay on” you heard him sigh
“you booked this day off months ago and they make you come in and they can’t let you leave at the time you’re meant to? that’s bullshit baby” you could sense that he was rolling his eyes.
“i know, i’m sorry. i begged him to let me come home but he wouldn’t budge.” you felt awful, letting him down on his birthday because of your stupid job.
“i’m gonna try my best to get home before 9 i promise, i want to spend at least an hour of your birthday with you” you said, trying to lighten the mood.
“don’t stress yourself too much baby okay? we always have tomorrow to celebrate. you said about telling me something this morning, is everything alright?” you opened your mouth to answer but Julia came into the staff room looking for you, a panicked expression on her face.
“y/n i’m so sorry but i need your help” you sighed, feeling deflated. you couldn’t even have a full break. your whole body was aching and you wanted a moment to just sit down and talk to your husband.
“i’m guessing you’ve got to go” Joel said making you laugh and roll you eyes. “i’m sorry, yeah i do. i’m okay though Joel, i’ll talk to you when i’m home okay? i love you” before he could answer you quickly hung up and followed Julia.
-♡-
“that was a weird conversation” Tommy said as he peered over at Joel who looked confused. “she sounds stressed. ain’t had a fucking day off in three weeks. barely see her now” he knew you loved your job but he also knew how much it stressed you out.
“maybe there’s a reason she’s been working so much?” Joel scoffed “she’s been tryna get a day off for ages and her boss is a fucking asshole, don’t give two shits about anyone except for himself”
“she’s gonna try get home a bit earlier but i doubt it, gonna do something together tomorrow if they allow her the time off” Joel wanted to have one day where you could all spend the day together, or even just a day that you and Joel could be together without worrying about anyone else.
“hey, old man, turn up that radio for a second” Joel chuckled and rolled his eyes, Tommy wasn’t even listening to a word he said but nevertheless he turned up the radio.
‘there has been suspicious activity in Indonesia, people are acting strange which has spread through many different countries. the government is advising that people stay indoors-’
“what a load of bullshit that is, turn it back down” Tommy scoffed and got back to work and Joel turned down the radio, what had that been all about?
“why don’t you finish early today? i know you told Sarah you’d be back late but you should go home”
“i gotta get this job finished, i told her latest ill be back is 9 now shut up so we can maybe get this finished quicker” with that, the two of them got on with the job.
-♡-
it was now 12:30am and there was no way you were leaving work yet. everything was just going wrong, so many people coming into the hospital to give birth (which was a given) but the amount of times the alarm had went off in the main hospital ward was ridiculous.
every 20 minutes like clockwork the alarm meant off meaning something violent was happening or a lot of people were not responding.
“i just want to go home” you said to Amy, the front desk worker as you stood in front of her, your head falling on the desk carefully. “go home, seriously” you looked up at her and saw her with an expression you’d never seen on her face before, pure panic and seriousness.
“are you kidding? David would fire me if i went home, besides there’s too many people off sick and i need to-" she shook her head and cut you off “y/n. go home. there’s been some weird shit on the radio, people going crazy, you’re pregnant and you need to be safe so go home”
your body filled with anxiety, you’d never seen her like this ever. you nodded “yeah uh, okay, i’ll go home now. you stay safe Amy yeah?” with that you quickly rushed to find Julia to let her know you were going.
you didn’t know why but the way Amy spoke sent a shiver down your spine. was Joel and Sarah okay? was your parents okay? were your family okay? you felt nervous and worried.
you quickly ran to the staff room and grabbed your stuff before searching for Julia. “Emma, have you seen Julia?” Emma was another midwife who worked with you. “yeah she’s at front desk, why have you got your stuff, did David say you could go home?” you ignored her and ran back to the front desk.
“y/n go home, what are you still doing here?” Julia asked as she saw you jogging towards her “i came to find you to tell you i’m leaving. Amy said there’s something going on but i didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye to you”
you didn’t know why the two of them were being a little secretive. Julia felt her eyes water slightly and she hugged you “i’ll see you soon okay? get home safely and look after that baby” you hugged her back. “i will, i promise” with that she let go of you and with that you left the hospital.
as you were driving home all you could hear on the radio was ‘an outbreak has happened, get home and lock your doors’
you felt sick, what type of outbreak? you quickly got your phone and called Joel, you were scared, terrified even and you needed to know he was okay.
“Joel, i’m 20 minutes from home, what the fuck is happening? they look like they’re blocking the highway off, i’m just pulling into town now” you could hear Tommy in the background telling Joel what to say “baby listen carefully okay? don’t go home, go to straight to town, don’t talk to anyone, don’t stop the car for anyone just try get there” his voice was filled with panic “Joel what-”
he cut you off “i’m going to get Sarah and we will meet you there as quickly as we can, i will find you there i promise. i love you okay? if i don’t get-”
you looked at your phone which had abruptly cut the call. “Joel?” you dialled his number again but the call went straight to answer phone.
you hoped whatever was happening that Joel, Sarah and Tommy would make it out safe and you prayed that you found them before whatever this virus was destroyed everything.
-♡-
“get in the truck, right now” Joel shouted as he got out of the truck with a wrench in his hand. Joel pushed Sarah to the truck but stopped when he saw Mrs Adler.
Joel froze in fear as he saw the usually quiet old lady who sits in her chair run toward them, screeches coming from her. in the time he had lived in that house he had never heard a single sound from that lady yet here she was running.
“what are we doing Joel?” Tommy lifted the gun up, fear laced his voice. Mrs Adler was coming closer and closer by the second and without thinking Joel hit her over the head with the wrench.
she fell to the ground and stopped moving. what the fuck had he just done? he dropped the wrench and quickly turned to look at Sarah who looked terrified.
he put his hands on her cheeks carefully “you killed her” Sarah said, her voice breaking slightly. “baby i’m so sorry” he pulled her in for a hug, his hand cradling the back of her head.
“Joel, we gotta go” Joel pulled away from Sarah “it’s not just the Adlers okay? but we are gonna be brave and we are gonna get out of this” the three of them got into the truck and drove off.
“they’re saying it’s some kind of virus, a parasite” Tommy said as he drove quickly down the road toward the town. “are we sick?” Sarah asked, her eyes filled with tears as fear overtook her body.
“no, course not” Joel quickly said, trying his best to reassure her. “how do you know we are not sick?” Joel turned to look at Sarah then back at Tommy.
“they said it’s mostly people in the city. that’s why they’ve got most of the highway blocked off” Tommy glanced over at Joel then focused back on the road.
“what about mum? she works in the city? is she sick? where is she?” she asked, her eyes darting between the two men.
“mum is fine, i spoke to her before i got you. she’s not sick, she’s in town and we are going there right now okay? she’s fine” to be honest Joel didn’t know if you were okay. it had been thirty minutes since he last spoke to you and he had no idea where you were. he just hoped you were somewhere safe until he could find you.
-♡-
November 12th 2023
20 years. it had been 20 years since Joel had last saw you and he was sure you were dead. he had promised you he would find you, keep you safe and he failed to do that. he felt like he had failed you and failed Sarah and he wanted nothing more then to be with you.
when they got to town is was destroyed, fires everywhere, cars flipped over, people dead in the road and there was absolutely no way he would have been able to find you.
he would have nightmares every night. the nightmare of Sarah dying in his arms the same way over and over again but with you, he had no idea how you died. he had dreamed every way imaginable that you died and it was awful. he felt disgusted with himself every single day for not being with you.
he would think about how different life would be if the outbreak didn’t happen. the two of you would have had two kids, both girls, moved into a bigger house more in the countryside and lived together forever, but then he’d realise what had happened and images of that night came crashing back.
Joel had decided to move to Jackson after the whole ordeal with Ellie realising that that was what was best for her. Jackson was safe, secure, nothing could happen to her and he felt somewhat free from the world outside those walls.
they had been in Jackson for six months at this point and life had finally started to feel somewhat normal again. he was grateful Maria gave him a chance to turn his life around after feeling his stopped because of what happened to you and Sarah. he wanted to be better for Ellie now, she was his main priority.
it was a Sunday and usually the whole of Jackson would have a day off (except from patrols) and Joel and Ellie had decided to take a walk through Jackson. it was snowing but it was nice to walk through the streets and see families be happy together.
Tommy had been helping the builders by the front gates when they opened meaning the patrollers had come back from their shift. he looked up briefly and saw two new people on the backs of Maria’s and Michael’s horses.
he didn’t know why but he felt the need to go over there and greet them, coming into somewhere like this could be scary for some who hadn’t been in this sort of environment for a while so he wanted them to feel welcomed.
the patrollers stopped and everyone got off their horses. Tommy had a warm smile on his face as he saw the younger woman out of the two lace her arm around the older woman’s.
as he got a closer look he couldn’t believe what he saw. a woman who he thought he’d never see in his life again was standing right in front of him. his heart swelled with joy and he didn’t know why but he felt his eyes fill with tears.
“Tommy?” before he could even talk the woman spoke making his assumption correct, it was you. you looked a little older, you had a few scars littered around your face and your hair which used to be quite long was now shoulder length but suited you so much.
“y/n, it is you oh my god” he rushed toward you and wrapped his arms around you. you couldn’t believe it, Tommy was here.
your brother in law who you thought had died was here, did that mean Sarah and Joel were here too?
“i thought you had died, i didn’t think id ever see you again-” Tommy was cut off quickly when he heard his brothers voice behind him.
“Tommy who the hell are you hugging?” Joel and Ellie had walked toward the gate when they realised there were a few new people. you pulled away from Tommy and your eyes immediately made eye contact with the ones you used to love staring into.
Joel’s heart felt like time had stopped. there was no way he was staring at the woman he loved right now, there was no way, it had been 20 years and he thought you were dead. “Joel” he heard you whisper.
you quickly made your way toward him and wrapped your arms around his shoulders. “y/n” he pulled you in closer and kissed your forehead. “my god i thought you were dead” his voice cracked as he spoke, both of you had tears in your eyes.
“i promise i tried to find you but there were people everywhere-” you pulled away slightly, shook your head and kissed him passionately. he hadn’t felt anything like this since the outbreak, happiness. you were here, you weren’t dead, he hadn’t failed you. 
“you would have never of found me. don’t beat yourself up over it Joel” his eyes scanned your face, you still looked as beautiful as ever. you noticed the young girl stood next to him confused, where was Sarah?
“where’s Sarah Joel? is she here? i bet she’s gotten so much taller” his face softened “she died on the day of the outbreak” you felt your heart drop, you sweet Sarah was gone.
“oh Joel, i’m so sorry” your hands went to his cheeks, stroking it softly. “it’s okay, i think i’ve finally come to terms with it” he turned to look at Ellie who was just watching the two of you.
“Ellie this is y/n, my wife that i told you about” you turned your head to look at her too. “i realised with all the kissing and hugging the two of you did” her voice was filled with sarcasm which actually made you giggle quietly.
“it’s nice to meet you Ellie” she just gave you a small smile and a nod. “i, uh Joel” you pulled away and turned around to see Margot stood awkwardly behind you. “this is Margot” he looked at the young girl, she looked about 20 years old.
dark hair, dark eyes but her face looked almost identical to yours. Margot walked closer to the two of you “she’s your daughter” he frowned “what?” he unwrapped his arms from around you “i know it’s a lot to take in-”
he quickly made his way to Margot and hugged her close “hi dad” he heard her say, voice filled with anxiety. he was just as anxious as her “hi baby girl”
you watched the two of them with teary eyes, you never thought that this was where you would be 20 years into the pandemic. in a safe haven with your daughter and your husband finally happy once again.
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communistkenobi · 3 months
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im an undergrad student who was thinking about specializing in studying fascist movements in North America for my masters and ive really enjoyed reading your book commentary - you connect things that I'm not always aware of in ways that are really comprehensive and appreciate
Do you know of any researchers who are moving things on the topic right now (most of the books ive read are around 20+ years old, unfortunately)?
(sorry if any of this is unclear/grammatically incorrect/weirdly worded - I'm super sick rn)
thank you! I'm really glad to hear that :)
For contemporary writing, I'm currently working through some of Alberto Toscano's work - he has a really interesting article from 2021 on fascism from a Black radical/Marxist perspective where he summarizes various historical analyses of fascism from Black (particularly US) thinkers and activists. One thing I especially appreciate is that he complicates Aime Cesaire's formulation of fascism (i.e., "european colonialism come home") as incomplete when applied to settler colonial contexts, especially the United States - one of Cesaire's articulations of fascism is that (to paraphrase) "one fine day, the prisons begin to fill up, the Gestapo gets busy" and so on, and Toscano, working through Angela Davis and George Jackson, responds with (again I'm paraphrasing) "the prisons are already full! The Gestapo is already here!" etc. Toscano also has a new book that just came out in 2023 called Late Fascism, which explicitly addresses the current moment. I only have a physical copy of that so I can't share a pdf unfortunately, and I still need to get around to reading it lol.
These are also a couple random articles I found insightful:
Carnut (2022). Marxist Critical Systematic Review on Neo-Fascism and International Capital: Diffuse Networks, Capitalist Decadence and Culture War - does what it says on the tin
Daggett (2018). Petro-masculinity: Fossil Fuels and Authoritarian Desire - talks about car culture as a site of modern reactionary political movements, links climate denialism with (proto-)fascist movements
Parmigiani (2021). Magic and politics: Conspirituality and COVID-19 - this one does not mention fascism explicitly, but imo the intersection between new age spirituality, anti-vaccine sentiment, and qanon/q-adjacent conspiracies are pretty important to understanding contemporary fascist social movements, so I'd still recommend reading this
Finally, this isn't an article but I found this recorded lecture about the history of Qanon pretty interesting. I don't think the author gives particularly insightful answers on how to solve the problem of far right conspiracies in the Q&A portion but I found it to be a helpful summary
Otherwise I've been focusing a lot on decolonial scholarship more so than fascist scholarship - this is again guided by Cesaire's argument that Europe/The West broadly is inherently fascist. These works aren't contemporary, but you can look at this post for some of the readings I linked on decolonial scholarship if you want to go that route. Those are serving me more for theoretical frameworks to guide contemporary analysis, not analysis of contemporary events directly
also idk if I need to put this disclaimer, but just in case this leaves my blog: this isn't a full throated defense of/apology for everything in these articles, I'm not claiming they're sufficient to understanding the present moment, these are just some of the things I've been reading recently and have found helpful in some way or another. a lot of contemporary work I have read (much of which isn't linked here because I don't think its very good/do not have it on hand) focuses on populism and authoritarianism as central analytical terminology, which i think does a lot of work to exceptionalize and mystify fascism as a historical and political process/project originating from European colonialism & Western imperialism, but these terms are endemic to the field so you have to contend with them no matter what
good luck with your studies!
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okkalo · 11 months
Note
Can I request some headcanons? Heartwarming moments + bllk boys (nagi, sae, chigiri, and yukimiya) if that’s okay? Thank you!
hi anon :) i got kinda confused with heartwarming moments (i overthink everything.) so i hope i did this right isjjd anyways i hope u enjoy and thank u for the request 🫶
characters: nagi, sae, chigiri, yukimiya (THANK U FOR REQUESTING HIM BTW IVE BEEN DRY ON HIM LATELY)
warnings: chigiri’s reader has a big family, yukimiya has a suggested fem reader, nagi and yukimiya are both aged up
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nagi
- lol once in a lifetime experience fr
- nagi loves you so so much but dating nagi is basically a routine
- a routine that involves a lot of cuddles
- so you don’t really have a chance to experience more
- especially since nagi isn’t someone who expresses how head-over-heels he is for you
- so it’s fair to say you were surprised when reo sent you a video of drunk nagi boasting about how good of a spouse you were with the vocabulary of a 1st grader
- it surprised you even more once he suddenly got upset in the middle of his sentence and started pouting, saying he missed you all of a sudden
- you could only giggle at nagi’s vulnerable yet cute state, reading the text from reo that stated they were on their way to drop nagi off
- once you heard the doorbell ring you quickly answer, opening the door to see your pouty nagi slumped over reo’s back
- once nagi looked up to see you, however, he hurriedly and messily got off of his friend’s back to stumble towards you
- expecting a hug? yeah, no he doesn’t do that. at least not yet
- instead he stops directly in front of you just to mumble a “hi.” to add to it, the way he spoke sounded as if you had taken his breath
- you smiled at his actions, hands going up to cup his cheeks as you greeted him back
- he had INSTANTLY melted into your arm, half his weight now a part of yours
- reo probably asked if you needed help getting him inside too once he heard you huff at the weight change
- i can imagine reo asking that while trying to pull nagi off of you and nagi whining once again
- so even if you needed the extra help, there was no way nagi would let it happen
- you were sure to thank reo for bringing the giant baby back to you before you struggled to even get to the couch
- you try to tell nagi to loosen his grip on you some? he’ll whine. good luck.
- but you did have to admit it was nice to be on nagi’s mind, even if it was a bit overbearing
sae
- another somewhat rare one
- you had been feeling under the weather recently
- stress had been getting to you recently, your immune system weakening
- and it certainly didn’t help that your allergies were worse than ever
- short story shorter, you got sick
- and sae hadn’t known until he had finally gotten a break from football and decided to visit you
- he actually makes you feel worse at first
- he walks in, face scrunched in disgust at your form before he asks “what happened to you?”
- thanks sae.
- he immediately felt bad once he found out you were sick
- how did he show it? 😯 with this face.
- no other way
- he does, however, go to try to comfort you
- he’s moving hair out of your face and getting a cold rag for your sweaty forehead
- he tries to coax you to sleep first, laying beside you as his hand rubs at your stomach lightly
- you eventually do fall asleep only to wake up with a mild headache and unbelievably sore throat, and sadly with no sae in sight
- so, ignoring the tiredness of your body you got up to trudge into the kitchen to get a glass of water with some pills to follow
- what you didn’t expect to see was sae struggling to use a can opener on a can of soup
- it didn’t take long for him to notice your presence, eyes catching on your exhausted form as his brows furrowed
- “what the hell are you doing here?”
- if you weren’t in a miserable state you would’ve burst out laughing because the sight was so hard to believe
- sae, who struggled with anything not football related, trying to crack open a can of soup for you in this dumb apron you had sitting around the house as a joke
- once he figured out you needed some sort of medicine he immediately sighed, mostly to himself for not thinking of that, before demanding you go back to the room
- he followed you back after a few minutes with a bowl of soup, glass of water, and something to ease the pain you were in
- don’t bring up how the soup was cold at the bottom.
- he also ended up getting sick from staying to close to you during that time
- what a guy
chigiri
- he had been meeting your family for the first time.
- and much to your surprise, he hadn’t seemed nervous whatsoever
- even if it included more than your parents, going as far as including your aunts and grandparents
- ig he just knows no one can really hate him
- anyways they all loved him, what did you expect?
- he did so good, even agreeing to help around the kitchen while you got dragged away from him by your younger cousins
- yeah, he was that good to where he was confident in being involved in some girl talk with your mom, grandma, and one of your aunts
- okay enough of my dumb narrating
- you both had started getting bombarded with questions about the relationship
- and good god if you had heard what he had said you would count just that as a heartwarming moment
- he spoke about you with so so much love, so much so that the girls listening had started getting jealous
- meanwhile you were getting questioned by your cousins and your other aunt
- and the questions were nothing special nor different than the ones you had gotten from your friends
- but for some reason they made you realize how in love you were with him
- maybe that and the small peeks you guys would take a each other from the two different rooms
- and the occasional moments where both of your eyes met, both holding so much love in them as you both pause in your sentence just to admire the other
- and the way your family constantly asked when the marriage was
- and your mother pulling you aside to confirm you had definitely found the one
- you had knew you wanted to marry him by the end of that night
yukimiya
- let’s be real. every moment in your relationship is a heartwarming moment
- so i’m going to go a little extra for this one and write for dad yukki
- HE HAS TWO LITTLE GIRLS AND LOVES THEM WITH HIS HEART.
- and mother’s day was coming up
- so he obviously had to do something with them
- so he decided to make a card with them
- but he had to do it secretly so you put up with constant giggles and whispers from your daughters
- yukimiya was so good at hiding it though so you never suspected a thing, even with the small hints from the two girls
- you only found out because you had gotten home earlier then intended
- you heard the shared squeals of your daughters from the kitchen, so you followed to sound
- only to see the girls surrounding a picture you couldn’t quite see and yukimiya smiling proudly at their reactions
- you decided to stay quiet to continue listening in on the conversation
- turns out they were gasping at the years you and yukimiya had been together while staring at an old picture of the two fo you
- the picture happened to have you in a dress with yukimiya in a suit
- the two girls started whispering about how underdressed yukki was LOL
- “wow daddy, a prince would wear more than that y’know..”
- he could only awkwardly chuckle while having no choice but to agree
- you let out a small chuckle at his awkward agreement, revealing your position
- your daughters immediately tried to hide the big card, letting out a squeal while yukimiya just looked at you with a soft smile
- he told the girls to go up and hide the card in one of their rooms (he immediately regretted it once he heard them start fighting over who would be housing the card)
- meanwhile he goes over to encase you in his arms, giving a soft peck to your lips
- “you really did outshine me in that picture, princess.”
- ONT HE FLORR GOODBYE
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unedited thanks for reading!
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forever-rogue · 1 year
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oh my god nurse steve is the best thing ive heard. I feel like he’d be the sweetest especially to the kids who come in sick or injured. Okay but what if one day he has a bad day (loses a patient he was close to maybe) and he just crawls into your arm and cries bc he spends all his time taking care of other ppl that he needs someone to take care of him.
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AN | I love Nurse Steve and I love that you all love Nurse Steve too🥺🥺 This one gets pretty emotional, so be prepared. This can be read as a companion piece to the below but also as a stand alone!
Warnings | Mild Language, Death Mention
Pairing | Nurse!Steve x Fem!Reader
Word Count | 2.2k
Masterlist | Nurse Steve, Steve, Main
─── ・ 。゚☆: *.☽ .* :☆゚. ───
He’d been working long hours. He always worked long hours, but these had been even longer. It wasn’t uncommon for the two of you to only see each in passing on the days he was working his long shifts. Often it was only for a hello or goodbye, and a quick kiss. You could see that it was getting heavy and slowly draining him. You tell he had the weight of the world on his shoulders.
But Steve - Steve with his pure heart of gold - never took anything out on you. He could have been experiencing the absolute worst day, ready to explode, but he’d never do so much as snap at you or raise his voice. You wished there was something you could do for him. All you could do was try your best to support him. You tried to do it through things like making sure his lunch, or dinner, or breakfast was always prepared, that he always had fresh coffee, that his scrubs were clean. It still never felt enough, but you were trying. For him you would always try.
You weren’t sure how much longer he could continue on at this pace before it all became too much. 
Unfortunately it all came to a head one late evening. 
─── ・ 。゚☆: *.☽ .* :☆゚. ───
It was late into the evening but you were still in bed, reading through a battered copy of Pride and Prejudice that you must’ve read a hundred times by now. You were vaguely aware of the front door opening, thinking nothing of it for a moment until you realized what you’d heard. Panic welled up as you jumped out of bed and tip-toed out into the hall to see what was going on. To your surprise, there was Steve, leaning against the door, a weary expression on his handsome face. 
“Stevie?” you asked softly, wasting no time in going over to him to see what was wrong. He looked up at you, dark circles on his red-rimmed eyes with a devastated expression on his face. He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t have to. You pulled him into your arms and held onto him tightly, wrapping him up in your arms and love. He clung onto you as tightly as possible, burrowing his face into your neck as he took a shaky breath in, “oh baby.”
You didn’t move, instead just holding him, rubbing his back in soothing patterns, softly whispering a few words of praise to him. At some point, he hadn’t been able to keep his emotions suppressed any longer, and he let it all out. He took a shuddering breath before the tears welled up and ran down his face. You felt them soak into your sweater - one that had belonged to him at some point - but none of it mattered. Your only concern was him; everything else was replaceable, but he was not. 
“My love,” you tenderly brushed your hand through his hair, lightly scratching at his scalp, “I’ve got you, Steve. Let it all out.”
One of the things you’d learned early in your relationship with your nurse, was that you shouldn’t tell people that it was okay or you’re okay. Because sometimes things weren’t okay, sometimes people weren’t okay. And that was okay - it was okay not to be okay. And right now, you knew your husband was very not okay.
After a little bit, the tears lessened and his breathing evened out. You pulled back for just a moment, touching his ruddy cheek tenderly before brushing away the half-dried tears. He preened into your touch, and sniffled slightly as you looked at him with adoration, “‘m sorry.”
“No sorries,” you insisted softly, “there’s absolutely nothing to be sorry for, love. Please don’t ever apologize for how you’re feeling.”
“I…” he inhaled and exhaled slowly before nodding, “I love you. So fucking much.”
“I love you,” you took his face gently in your hands before pressing soft kisses all over his cheeks, “so very much, Steve.”
“I-I don’t know what I’d do if something ever-”
“Shh,” you gently put a finger to his lips, “let’s not focus on that either.” 
“Can you…I don’t….know.”
“You always take care of me so well, my love. You’ve helped through so many colds, a broken ankle, a dislocated elbow, and so many more things. Plus, you show me so much love every single day,” you reminded him and you saw the faintest bit of a smile tug up the corner of his mouth, “let me take of you, baby.”
“Please,” he nodded as every last little bit of his guard went down and he almost fell into your arms. You did your best to hold him, before slowly shuffling towards the bathroom. You flicked on the light and settled him on top of the toilet, before silently moving to run a bath, filling it with the bubbles that he loved but would never admit to. 
After making sure it was the perfect temperature, you turned to your husband and gently tugged at the hem of his top, taking it off once he silently obliged. Holding out your hand, you helped him to his feet before removing the rest of his clothing before he stepped into the bathtub. He settled down into the warm, softly scented water, closing his eyes as he rested against the cool tile. 
“I don’t know if a bath fixes or solves anything, but it always comforts me,” you mused as you sat on the floor next to the tub, leaning against the edge.
“Mammalian Diving Reflex,” he whispered as a small smile settled on his face, “it’s a biological response. Water comforts us from an evolutionary standpoint - from before we evolved to live on land.”
“Interesting,” you thought about what he said and nodded, “makes sense, even if I don’t understand all the nuances. Teaching me something new all the time, my love.”
“It’s helping,” he reached for your hand, which you eagerly offered him, threading your fingers together as he rested them at the edge of the tub, “you’re helping.”
“I’m always here for you,” you promised, “always, forever, whenever.”
“I know,” he nodded, blinking back a fresh wave of tears as he looked at the ceiling, “w-will you come in? With me?”
“Yes,” you agreed, “of course.”
You rose to your feet and slowly stripped off your pajamas, tossing them into the pile with his clothes. You took his proffered hand and slowly got into the water, sitting into between his long legs. You looked at him, looking at him softly and relaxed, “thank you.”
“There’s nothing to thank me for,” you took his hand and pressed a small kiss to his knuckles, “I love you, Steve, and I want to take care of you, just like you take care of me.”
“I’m so lucky you came into my life,” his hands settled on your waist as he pulled towards him, perching you on top of his thighs. He was craving closeness, wanting to feel your skin on his, the tender intimacy of being together.
“I came into your life because I’m a clumsy fool,” you grinned, “and you happened to be on duty. It was a happy twist of fate…even if it did take what felt like five hundred years for my ankle to get better.”
“We’d have met some other way,” he insisted firmly, affection lacing his tone, “I’m sure of it.”
“Yeah,” you nodded sweetly, “I like to think so too. You’re my soulmate, Steve Harrington. Now, will you let me take care of you? Wash your hair and body?”
“Yes,” his big brown eyes were so soft and tender as he shyly nodded, “I’d really like that.”
─── ・ 。゚☆: *.☽ .* :☆゚. ───
You took your time to take care of Steve. You washed his hair, taking your time to make it more like a relaxing massage than anything else. You followed up with conditioner to keep his pretty head of hair nice and smooth. You scrubbed every inch of his skin with reverence, trying to strip away every last bad thought and moment of the day to create a renewed sense of stillness. 
When you were thoroughly satisfied with how clean he was, his cheeks fresh and pink, and eyes growing more tired, you dried him off and put him into a pair of clean pajama pants and sweater. You followed suit with your own pajamas and crawled into bed, motioning for him to join you. 
You normally took the place of the small spoon, but tonight you pulled him into your arms, cuddling him into your soft, pliant warm body. You kept your breathing steady and even as he rested his head on your chest, hoping it would lull him to rest. You were running a hand through his slightly damp locks, humming softly to soothe him.
Luckily, it felt like he was managing to relax. It was silent for some time, only the faint chirping singing of the nighttime insects and creatures floating into the room, a faint golden glow coming from the bedside table. You were wide awake and you’d remain wide awake all night if you had to in order to make sure he was taken care of and able to rest. 
He broke the silence after some time, tightening his grip on, grounding himself in your essence, “I was sent home tonight.”
You swallowed thickly, mind already reeling with possibilities; he’d never been asked to leave work before. You didn’t push him, didn’t want to make him uncomfortable, but in the end he always told you what was going on, “I…I lost a patient today.”
“Oh,” you choked up almost immediately. You couldn’t even begin to fathom how that felt, how he felt. All you knew was that it would never, ever, be anything short of devastating.
“It was a child,” he confessed almost like it was some sort of sin that he needed to atone for you, “a girl, only seven.”
“Steve,” he’d sat up by now and was looking at you with glistening eyes and trembling lips, “oh, my love.”
“She was so young,” he sniffled, “so small. And I…I couldn’t…there was nothing we could do. But I tried so hard, I-I did everything I could and it still wasn’t enough.”
“Steve…” you touched his face, unsure of what to say. You weren’t sure if there was anything you could say to make it better, “I am so sorry that you had to go through that. I’m sorry to her family…I can’t even begin to imagine how you or they feel.”
“I didn’t do enough,” the tears rolled down his cheeks and all you could think to do was to wrap your arms around him and pull him tightly into your body, “it’s not fair. Why her?”
“Steve,” you couldn’t help but cry along with him, wishing you could take some of the emotion and burden off his shoulders and onto yours, “oh Steve. I know you, and I know you did everything you could.”
“But it wasn’t-”
��It wasn’t your fault, Steve,” you pressed a kiss to the side of his head, “I know that me saying that doesn’t help, and doesn’t make it better but it’s true. You do everything with your whole heart, and I know you’d never give up.”
“Her parents…the looks on their faces…I don’t think I’ve ever seen that much pain,” he clutched onto you like you were his lifeline, the only thing keeping him in check, “I’ve never…never had to…fuck.”
“Shhh,” you swallowed the lump in your throat, “let it all out. Just let it go, you’re safe here.”
“Normally it’s…easier to compartmentalize and show push the feelings down, but today I couldn’t. It was just too much,” he rested his forehead on your shoulder, “I’ve never felt worse. I-I never want to feel like that again. It just…it hurts so bad. I just….I don’t even know.”
“I wish I could make it all better,” you whispered, “but I can’t. I don’t know if anyone can. I guess it’s going to take time. But, Steve, I am here for you. Always and however you need me, yeah?”
“I know,” he let out a shuddering breath and hugged onto him even tighter, “I love you so much. You really are my angel.”
“Steve,” you rocked him gently, doing your best to calm him down, “I love you more than life itself. There’s no quantifiable way to put it into words…endlessly. You’re going to get through this, and I’ll be right there by your side.”
“Okay,” he pulled back and nodded, his voice raspy and low, “will you…will you just hold me tonight?”
“Of course I will,” you promised, leaning in to press a gentle kiss to his lips which he accepted with a soft sort of hunger, “always, my love. Always.”
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road-kill-eater · 4 months
Note
i love seeing your mushroom adventures! as someone also up in the PNW, do you have any tips or resources to start mushroom hunting?
facebook groups are your best friend for becoming confident in your ID skills. having access to hundreds of people who have been hunting for years to the point where they can easily glance at a mushroom and tell whether or not its an edible species is priceless. whenever i find a new edible for the first time i always make a post to confirm it as such, though that doesnt really happen anymore since ive found nearly every commonly hunted mushroom on this side of the cascades.
all that the rain promises and more is a good book to have, the info is concise and tailored for this specific region. when in doubt eat a little bit of a mushroom then see how you feel the next day, certain species are prone to giving upset stomachs to certain people, make sure you cook everything thoroughly. most of this applies to any wild foraging so if youre familiar with that then fungi are nothing special, there are very few species that will outright kill you, most will just make you sick. stay away from gilled mushrooms to start unless youre very thorough in your identification.
if youre new to foraging in general then you have to learn plant identification. trees and shrubs are often indicator species, doug fir and salal is the go to for chants, but dont let chants be your primary target. get up above 3,000 feet and youll find porcini and hedgehogs and hericium abietis in the true fir and pines. yellowfoot chants are an often overlooked species that make up for their small size with how common and numerous they are. pay attention to your altitude, and go on trails with less traffic, especially since mushroom hunting is becoming sort of 'trendy'. hike out farther than those noobs and youll find plenty. even if you dont find mushrooms theres always something else. if it looks like a blueberry and tastes like a blueberry its probably a blueberry, or a huckleberry. fireweed can be gathered for tea. if you are up in the alpine lakes and its not too late in the season pick some glacier/avalanche lily leaves. bald faced hornets are worse than bears. 2 weeks after the first good fall rain is usually sufficient. i dont bother with morels they may as well be faeries to me. throw russulas at trees so they explode. sell any reishi you find to crystal girls
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have fun! be safe!
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lanas-delight · 5 months
Text
from across the room.
♫ rec: about you by the 1975
✰ an enhypen scenario || gen!reader x jake
✰ description — a disastrous break up, raging arguments, fading love, and what could’ve been.
✰ warnings — language, arguments, mention and accusations of cheating, and a LOT of angst.
✰ note — u guys dont know me yet but i have been told im a mastermind when it comes to writing angst 😍 (ive js made my friends cry with what ive written before lolz) anyways enjoy! 🤭😅
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Relationships never lasted with you. It was never your fault exactly, it was either them not being ready for it or just plainly doing you dirty, but you always moved on. It never phased you much, any of it, though that was because all of those people before weren’t him.
His name was Jake. You met him exactly two years and 23 days ago. Your two year anniversary was 18 days ago. You loved him, and he loved you. Everything was good. You were already living together, which happened about seven months ago, but there hasn’t been any issues. Everything was good—until it wasn’t.
“You’re kidding.”
“I wish I was,” Jake huffs, falling back onto the shared bed of yours. “Trust me, I hate it just as much as you do, maybe more,” he was referring to the business trip he was being forced to go on for a few days. He leaves tomorrow, and he hated that he would have to leave you again. This wasn’t the first business trip he’s ever been on, especially lately. He had gone on seven the last two months alone. You kept count.
"When will you be back?"
"Saturday?" He sounded unsure. "I'll call you once we get there, though," and he sat on the bed, putting on his shoes and tying the laces before continuing to pack his suitcase. You didn't say a word, only sat beside his suitcase and in hopes to reassure you, he leaned over and pressed a kiss to your cheek. You, however, just sighed and looked over at his direction, your eyes avoiding his, earning a puppy-like look from him. "What?"
"You sure have gone on a lot of trips lately," you remark, though quietly. He stares at you as you continue, "I'm worried, Jake."
"About?"
A sudden twist in your stomach, you felt sick. "Nevermind, I'll sound stupid," but he sits with you, worried and concerned terribly.
"No, what is it?"
You sighed again.
"Talk to me, Y/N."
"Are you having an affair?"
Jake laughed. He laughed. "What?" He scoffed, "Why would I ever cheat on you? Are you insane?" Such a kind thing to say to your partner, but he took it back instantly. "I'm sorry. That wasn't nice. It's really just a business trip, Y/N," he tells you, "I only love you."
"But how can I trust you?" You stood up, apart from him as he watched you with furrowed brows. "You've gone on so many, so often, you—You barely call when you're gone. How am I supposed to be sure you're not in bed with someone else?"
"Y/N," he shook his head, "If you don't have trust, we—"
"We have nothing, right?" And you turned, "Nothing new," You then walked off but he followed you into the kitchen, his packing coming to a sudden halt as he tried to make things right with you before he would leave. You grabbed some of the dishes and started to hand-wash them, while he stood near you and tried to reason with you.
"You're being ridiculous," he tells you, a bit rudely, "Why won't you listen to me?" But you ignore him. "Y/N, please. I don't want to leave with us like this. I love you—"
"Then prove it," You turned to him suddenly, "Prove that you love me, because you don't. You sleep in our bed for a couple nights then you're off on another trip. You kiss me but there's no love. There's nothing. There's . . ." You sighed, "There's nothing between us anymore. Because of you."
Jake took a step back. "Y/N, what are you saying?"
You pulled your phone out of your pocket and looked through your photos, showing him a screenshot you had taken off of Jake's phone. Messages with a girl who you didn't recognize, but when you messaged the girl, she swore they were just friends, that she had a boyfriend. But even that won't stop a girl sometimes. You didn't know how to feel, you weren't even sure if the messages had the intent of an affair. It was innocent chatting, you thought, but the fact he couldn't bring himself to look you in the eyes then made you realize the truth. It wasn't innocent. It wasn't a surprise either.
"I don't know why you talk to her, tell her everything while you tell me nothing, but if she's what you want, then she can have you." You threw a pot down in the sink, creating a loud noise to echo through the kitchen and the rest of the apartment as you stormed out, grabbed your coat and slid on your uggs. "I'm going to F/N's," you say, seeing him appear in the hallway behind you. "Goodnight, Jake." The door slammed behind you and you left, leaving the love you had once for him behind.
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He called twice, left a voicemail, and sent over 30 messages, explaining everything. He didn't have feelings for that other girl, though he didn't give you any reason to think otherwise so you left that night. You didn't want anything to do with him. Genuinely, you didn't. You didn't know if he had actually cheated, though he claimed he didn't and that he would never do that to you, but he opened up to that girl about things you never even knew an ounce about.
She did have a boyfriend, but it wasn't until a week later that she texted you, telling you that she did like your boyfriend, which caused her own boyfriend to dump her. It wasn't surprising to you at all.
You had been staying at your friend's house for the last week, so when you finally called him back, you only asked him if he had any feelings for that girl. He didn't say anything. He hesitated, but he said no. However, that wasn't enough for you. You hung up on him and texted him that you were through. You asked him to have his stuff out of your apartment by next Friday, which he agreed to.
But on that Friday, when he was taking the last of his stuff, he stopped and looked at you coldly, unsure what to say but spoke anyways. His voice deep and hurt, just like his heart, just like yours.
"You didn't fight for us," he told you, "You didn't even care to listen to what I had to say. You leave every time it gets hard, you blame me for everything I do, but what am I supposed to do when you won't even hear me out, Y/N?"
"I don't know," You stared back at him with crossed arms, "Maybe don't cheat on me?" You scoffed, but he couldn't believe you.
"Why do you have to brush me aside like that?" Jake questioned, "You never listened to me. Have you even considered the possibility that I didn't open up to you because you didn't give me the chance to?"
You unfolded your arms, but you took his words the wrong way. "Are you implying I made you cheat on me?"
But that enraged him. "I didn't cheat on you, Y/N!" He raises his voice, throwing his hands in the air defensively, "I talked to who I thought was my friend, about personal stuff because I couldn't bring myself to talk to you about it, so instead of just trusting me to tell you on my own, you go through my phone and accuse me of cheating on you."
"You hesitated," you threw it back in his face, "When I asked you if you liked her, you hesitated before saying no. You had to think about whether or not you liked another girl while you were with me. Do you not realize how pathetic that made me feel?"
"Do you not realize how pathetic you've made me feel?" Jake remarks, tears in his eyes, mirroring yours, "I'm the bad guy in every part of this story, Y/N, because you won't even give me the chance to explain myself. You keep dismissing me and ignoring me, but why won't you listen to me? I love you with all I have, Y/N."
But you wiped your tears, sniffling. "I never want to see you again."
His eyes grew wide, but he didn't fight against it. He grabbed the last of his stuff and left without another word spoken between you both.
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There was a party. You didn't know anyone but your best friend, but as she had gone off with her boyfriend, you were now alone, sitting on the couch, drinking liquor out of some plastic cup. You wore a red dress, made of satin, with heels that weren't too high that your ankles wanted to break but not too flat that made you appear too different from everyone else. You didn't want to be different, easy to single out. You wanted to fit in, just like everyone else. But you weren't like everyone else. That was clear the moment he saw you.
The room was crowded. You could barely see over dozens of people piled into one room. Music blaring, dim lights as one of your favorite songs started to play. People were dancing, people were drinking, having a good time like there was no tomorrow. And there he was, standing by the wall. You could see him through the small spaces between people. His eyes were glued to his phone screen for a fleeting moment, one that felt a little too long until he suddenly met eyes with you and in response, you smiled at him from across the room, while your heart jumped out of your chest and you had never felt more noticed in your life.
He approached you soon enough, breaking the awkwardness with a little joke before he sat beside you and started an easy-going conversation with you about what you did for work, what he did for work, etc. The night ended with a lightly-sober kiss between you both, where he said something so beautiful to you that you swore it was engraved into you. He said, "You are so pretty when you smile, but when it was just at me, like I was the only person in that crowded room, I knew it was you that I'm going to fall for." Five days later, after a couple of sober dates, he was your boyfriend. And for two years, you promised yourself that he was the one. Until he wasn't.
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You had a dream once, that you married Jake and had a family with him. You had a couple of dogs, ones he and the kids all named like Scout, Georgie, and Layla the 2nd. You had your dream job, as did he, and you were just so happy with him and the kids. He had built you your dream house, with a concrete pool and a beautiful backyard that the kids would run all over in with the dogs. He had always promised you that he would anything for you—build you a house, give you the family you wanted, be the husband you needed. You loved him with your entire being, and he felt the same way about you.
But it had been five years since the break up. You haven't heard from him in at least four years, and the last thing you were told, he was engaged to some new girl and was moving back to Australia after the wedding.
You had met someone else, too. You had only been dating for a few months now, nothing too serious just yet, but you were just getting used to being in a relationship again. You were taking it slow, not wanting to rush anything.
You didn't have feelings for Jake anymore. You haven't loved him in years. But there's a part of that wishes that fate would lead you back into each other's lives, single and open for a second chance. But that was never going to happen. You were never going to be the one he stares at from across the room, where you smile at him and start the love that should have lasted forever, but it never stood a chance. You had moved on, and so has he. The memories of what love gave you both lingers in your eyes, your mind, and for the rest of your life, you'll know that it just wasn't meant to be. From across the room, you'll stay, and regret ever smiling at him for he became the love of your life, just as quickly as you left him. It was over. But you were okay.
You had to be.
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A/N - sorry guys i felt like hurting feelings today mb
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sunoksunny · 11 months
Text
It’s All Ending Now | N.RK
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Pairing: nishimura riki x kumiho!reader (fem)
Genre: written for @svngcore​‘s ‘so ends the myth’ collab; fluff, angst, fantasy, based on a myth (kumiho)
Warnings: minor character death, blood, wounds, violence, weapons, kissing, hints at misogyny, heeseung being slightly insane, near death experiences, large timeskips
Word Count: 10k (10,883)
Synopsis: As a kumiho, it was only natural that you would kill. However, you put limits and standards on who you took the hearts off. You only messed with boys who showed blatant disrespect for the world around them and gave them what they deserved. All of them turned out to be the same in the end, they always did. But when you lock eyes with a boy through your window, you get a sense that something is different. Will this be the exception you have silently wished for? Or will both your hearts end up crushed, hopeless against the winds of fate?
Author’s Note: guys i really procrastinated this one BUT i’m actually quite happy with how it turned out. it is by far the longest fic ive written, my previous longest one was only 3k,,, so um yea i kinda had a field day. but thank you soul for hosting this collab, i had so much fun writing this even if i struggled a bit to meet the deadline due to me procrastinating (i literally had the idea for this since the beginning of the collab and only started actually writing it like a week ago HA...) i hope you all enjoy !!
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“What’s a pretty girl like you doing out here in the woods?”
You turned your head towards the voice, meeting the eyes of a brunette boy hovering over you. You quickly scrambled up, dropping your hands away from the berries you had been picking. Of course, you hadn’t actually planned on picking them, but you needed something as an excuse to lead him away.
You stifled your giggle as you watched the boy stare at you in what could only be described as awe. You feigned surprise at having been seen and looked around in worry, leaning closer to call to him.
“Please don’t tell anyone, I just wanted to pick some berries as a gift for my mother. She really loves them, but she’s too sick to get them herself, so I thought I could pick some for her.” 
You took a second to admire the boy’s features. His face was gently round with small and soft features, almost delicate. His eyes were framed by long, feathery eyelashes, yet they still held a certain glint of mischief. His lips formed a natural pout, and you watched as they turned into an easy smile. 
“Don’t worry, I wouldn’t tell. I’m not really supposed to be here either, my mom says it’s too dangerous. But I want to hunt, so I snuck out.” The boy claimed proudly, his eyes crinkling a little at the corners as his smirk grew wider.
Of course, he would want to hunt. No matter how pretty a boy is, they all still want to ruin everything natural and innocent.
You gasped in mock surprise and let a small smile grace your lips. You looked over your shoulder once more before taking a step closer to him.
“What’s your name?”
“Beomgyu.” 
You smiled again and watched as he returned it effortlessly.
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“Has anyone seen Beomgyu lately? We were supposed to go fishing yesterday but he never showed up.” Jake asked, poking at his lunch with his fork before looking up at the others. 
Niki and his friends were sitting where they always did, under the big oak tree near the forest, a little ways away from their village. It was their place to retreat from everyone else, a place for only them. They saw it as a much-needed break, especially since they were growing older and girls had begun to fling themselves at them more and more as their parents pushed them to find a girl and get married. Sure, the boys had never been opposed to the attention they got from the girls in the village, but Niki guessed the thought of having to settle down and marry one of them someday soon became a little too much sometimes. Luckily, Niki was the youngest of their group and his parents had not yet brought up that topic to him, so he was still free to mess around as the rest of them had done before.
“You haven’t heard, Jake?” Jungwon gasped.
Jake tilted his head, confused. 
“Heard what?”
“Beomgyu’s dead. He was killed.” Jay said. He paused for a moment before speaking again, “I heard some of the townspeople saying it was a kumiho.”
Jake’s face morphed into something similar to horror, whether at the fact his friend was dead or the prospect that a kumiho killed him, Niki wasn’t sure. In all honesty, he didn’t know how the news had managed to escape Jake. The whole town had been talking about the murder and the possibility of a kumiho for the past few days. Niki had even heard his mother talking about it, and she wasn’t even positive creatures like that existed. But after all, this was the third boy killed in the span of a month. All the boys had gone into the woods the night they disappeared, then turned up a couple of days later with their hearts missing. Many people didn’t think it was just a coincidence. 
An unsettling silence washed over the group. Heeseung frowned before his eyes lit up, an idea popping into his head.
“Hey, why don’t we go into the woods tonight as a group?”
Sunoo looked at him in shock, his mouth falling open, “Are you crazy? What if the kumiho’s real? Do you want to get killed?”
“Of course not,” Heeseung scoffed, “But if it is real, it can’t kill seven of us, right? We can just fight it off or something. And if it isn’t real, then we can put an end to all those rumors going around about it.”
Sunghoon was the first to agree, an affirming word leaving his mouth. Heeseung smiled before asking the others. One by one, they all agreed, albeit a few a bit more hesitantly. When Heeseung looked at Niki, he out a small chuckle at the younger boy’s quick agreement. All of them knew that Niki was rather dependent on them, having grown up practically attached to the rest of them at the hip. 
Finally, Heeseung turned back to Sunoo, a sly grin plastered on his lips. The two stared at each other for a few moments before Sunoo sighed, reluctantly agreeing. Heeseung let out a small cheer before clapping his hands together.
“Alright, let’s meet back here tonight at eight.”
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Niki trudged towards the tree with Sunoo at his side, the rest of their friends already waiting, their figures illuminated by the lantern one of them was holding. Sunoo breathed out a sigh, and Niki tilted his head to glance at him. The boy still didn’t seem very enthusiastic about this whole ordeal. Niki couldn’t help but feel a little rustled by his friend’s uneasiness, and silently nudged Sunoo’s hand with his own. When Sunoo looked at him, Niki gave him a soft smile.
“Are you scared?” Niki questioned.
“No,” the older sighed, “I just think it’s a bit silly to be doing this.”
“Silly?” 
Sunoo stopped for a moment and met Niki’s gaze. “Don’t you? Even if there isn’t a kumiho, it’s late and we won’t be able to see well. The forest is full of wild animals and poisonous plants that we aren’t familiar with. If someone does get hurt, it’s gonna be hard to find our way out of the forest quickly and without other incidents.”
Niki stilled. In truth, he hadn’t really put much thought behind his decision. If everyone else had said yes, then he would too. Niki didn’t consider himself a follower, in fact, he was rather the opposite. But he trusted his friends and would follow them in whatever they chose. Sunoo watched Niki as he thought, before taking another breath and starting to walk towards their friends again.
“It doesn’t matter, I’m sure we’ll be fine. Besides, I'll be there to keep everyone out of trouble.” Sunoo said as he turned back to him with a light smile on his lips. Niki nodded, following the boy.
Jake was the first to notice them, calling out with a bright grin. Jay quickly quieted him, reminding him that it was in fact late at night and people might get suspicious if they heard yelling. Sunghoon joined in, although his remarks toward Jake were a little more snarky. The two were still arguing by the time Niki and Sunoo reached them, Heeseung slinging an arm around their shoulders with a broad grin on his face. 
“Now that everyone’s here, should we get going?” He asked. The group nodded as one, as they set off into the forest with only the small oil lamp to light their way. 
It was relatively silent for the first few minutes, each of them carefully not to be too loud in order not to awaken their drowsy town, as well as to not accidentally scare each other in the process. The seven boys moved relatively slowly, the one measly light between them halting them from progressing quickly. A silence drifted over them as they ventured further in, every now and then someone would snap a twig and their soft footsteps would freeze. Niki wondered if they were really scared of something being out here. After all, no one would be able to hear a single twig cracking all the way from town.
Eventually, they stumbled into a small clearing. Well, about as clear as it had been so far. There were still trees littered around and shrubbery to shove aside, but it wasn't nearly as dense as the woods they had traveled through prior. The boys drifted from their single-file line and glanced around as best they could in the dark. Suddenly, a hand was pointing toward something near the edge of the clearing.
“Hey, is that a house?” A voice Niki recognized as Jungwon called out from beside him. Following the boy’s hand and peering past it, Niki saw a small building. It seems rugged and hollow, but nonetheless, it did look like a cabin.
“Do you think the kumiho lives there?” Jake asked, his voice a little breathy.
“I mean, who else lives in the woods” Heeseung replied, stepping over a tree root to cross towards the structure. Sunoo reached out to grab his wrist, an almost pleading look in his eye.
“What if someone lives there? You can’t just break in!” 
“If a person lived in there, they would take better care of it,” Heeseung scoffed, turning away and resuming his way over, “come on, guys!”
Niki watched Jay give Sunoo an apologetic look, patting him once on the back before following Heeseung. The others trailed behind the two oldest until it was Niki and Sunoo alone again. Niki fixed him with a questioning look, but Sunoo simply sighed, gesturing to the youngest before setting off to catch up with the rest.
When Niki arrived at the front of the house, Heeseung and Jake were already attempting to get in. Heeseung had a shoulder against the door, trying to forcefully knock it down. Jake was kicking at the bottom of the wood, although both boys’ attempts seemed to prove futile. Sunghoon spoke up, pointing to the handle on the door.
“Doesn’t work. It’s stuck or something,” Heeseung gritted out, pulling back before slamming his body against the door. It seemed to rattle the frail house, and the sound of something crashing came from inside the cabin. The wooden door trembled against his weight but held firm nonetheless. Jake looked at the boy with widened eyes, and slowly backed out of his way. Heeseung rammed into the door over and over, grunts leaving his mouth with each collision. The rest of the boys simply watched him, the forest silent save for the thuds and creaking of the house. Niki glanced over at Sunoo, seeing the boy’s face scrunch up in a wince every time Heeseung’s body collided with the wood.
Eventually, Heeseung sunk down in front of the jammed door, his steadfast resolve cracking. His head leaned back to rest against the wood, a sigh slipping past his lips. Niki stared at him before his eyes drifted to look at the house. The wood was splintering in some places, and the wood pillars at the corners of the house looked close to falling apart. The windows were hidden by shutters, although one was hanging off by the hinges, allowing Niki to see the glass behind it. It was surprisingly clear, and he didn’t see any cracks at all. The seemingly pristine condition of the window was in direct contrast with the withering state of the rest of the cabin. The building was obviously abandoned, and yet the window’s glass seemed to be kept clean and cared for. Niki leaned forward a tiny bit to look closer at the window, attempting to make out the inside of the house, only to see a figure blocking his view.
Wait, what?
Niki froze, blinking a few times. Perhaps he was simply imagining things. Yet still, a pair of eyes met his through the window. Inside the cabin, a girl stood in front of the window, peering at Niki with a curious glint in her eyes. Niki’s gaze flickered toward Heeseung in a panic, but when he looked back at the window, the girl and her inquisitive eyes were gone. Niki felt an unsettling dread build in his gut, the desperate urge to leave filling his body. A small voice in the back of his mind wanted to push further, to know more, but his innate instincts won. The realization hit him all at once: that it was almost midnight, they were in the middle of the forest, outside a strange cabin, with a peculiar girl watching them from the window, and Heeseung was sitting right beside the door. 
“It’s probably abandoned, it looks pretty rundown. I don’t think there is any use in trying to get inside,” Niki rushed out, “we should probably start heading back anyways.”
Heeseung slowly pushed himself to his feet, a grin spreading across his face.
“What is it, getting cold feet?” He mocked, his tone light.
“I agree with Niki, let’s go home,” Jungwon yawned, “I’m getting tired.”
The seven of them begin to make their way back towards the village, leaving the cabin behind. Niki swears he hears Sunoo breathe a sigh of relief but chooses not to comment on it, still a little stunned by the perplexing girl through the glass. Niki glances at the empty window once more, only the darkness meeting him now.
“Hey, Niki! Hurry up, man!” Jake calls out. Niki shakes his head, turning and trailing after his friends. It was silent as they followed the path they took to the cabin, a lingering feeling of unease followed him until they exited the forest. The boys bid each other goodnight, small smiles exchanged, some pulled a little too tight around the edges. 
Although Niki still felt apprehensive as he snuck back into bed that night, a peculiar wonder began to eat at him. Why was that girl living in the woods? Where is her family? Why didn’t she do anything? Question after question flittered through his mind, not a single one was he able to answer. But Niki wanted to know. He felt a desire to learn about whoever it was he saw that night, and it unsettled him almost as much as actually seeing her did. Adrenaline was still running through his veins, and with that alone keeping him awake, he formed a plan.
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The next night, Niki snuck out through his bedroom window again, carefully shutting it behind him when his feet hit the dirt. It was a little bit more difficult tonight, however, because not only was Niki carrying his own oil lamp, but draped around his wrist was a basket, a white cloth carefully wrapped around the contents inside. 
That morning, Niki had taken a bit more for breakfast than he usually did, claiming he would eat it for lunch as well. On top of his usual bread and jam, he also grabbed another serving of both, and a bit of cheese to go with it. Then, under the pretense of having forgotten something in his room, he quickly stashed the loaf of milk bread, the jar of strawberry jam, and the cheese block in the basket, tying a knot at the top of the cloth to keep ants away, and shoved it under his bed. He didn’t get to eat much that day, but honestly, Niki didn’t think he would be able to stomach it anyways. Worry was eating at him for most of the day, the thought of being completely alone in the forest, unable to call for anyone if something went awry. But Niki shook it off, his eagerness keeping him going.
Gripping the lantern tighter, Niki began his journey to their tree and the forest beyond. He followed the path the seven of them took the night before, retracing their steps a little slower than before, keeping a careful watch on his surroundings. He arrived at the cabin without any adversities, swiveling his head once more before walking to the front steps. Niki carefully set the basket in front of the door, the wood seeming sturdy even after all Heeseung did to it the previous night. 
Niki’s eyes flickered to the windows, the single shutter still hanging loosely. He refused to look too closely this time, quickly slipping away from the house without lingering too long. He felt much more vulnerable without the assurance of the other boys beside him. Niki ran all the way back through the forest, leaves whipping against his skin and the gentle breeze turning fierce as he pushed out of the forest. He didn’t stop running until he reached the safety of their looming oak tree, feeling its embrace as his feet hit its roots. Niki paused for a moment, his breath coming out in quick pants. After catching his breath, Niki turned to look over his shoulder, a small grin forming on his face. 
Now all he had to do was wait.
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“Niki! Are you listening?” Jake waved his hand in front of Niki’s face, successfully pulling him from his daze. The seven boys were currently sitting around Sunghoon’s room listening to Jake tell them about his most recent catch from the lake and how his mother was complaining he spent too much time fishing. Jake shook his head at Niki before continuing his rant.
“And she kept going on about how I needed to start focusing more on finding someone to marry and settling down,” he rolled his eyes, lifting a hand to rest his chin on, “like I need to find someone, we all know that any of the girls in town would be kill to end up marrying one of us.”
Although there were some scoffs from the older boys at Jake’s confidence, it wasn’t as if he was wrong. They were popular in their village, and especially popular among the girls. Before Heeseung and Jay finally decided on one girl, they typically had a new one hanging off their arm every week. The rest of them always had girls giving them gifts and whatnot, vying for their attention. More often than not, girls would give them gifts in the form of food, such as pies or freshly baked bread.
Like the bread Niki gave to the girl in the forest.
He quickly shot up from his spot on the floor, muttering an apology about not feeling well and going home early. Niki ignored the weird looks the other boys gave him, walking out the door and away from their prying eyes. All he could think about was that girl. He had visited her cabin again last night, only to find the food was gone. And not only was that gone, but so was the entire basket, meaning that a human had to have taken it. An animal would have no need for a basket, and it was unlikely that it would even attempt to take it. The fact that it was gone confirmed his suspicion that someone lived in that cabin. He hadn’t been seeing things when he saw the figure in the window. But what should he do now? Was he supposed to tell his friends?
Lost in his thoughts, Niki didn’t pay attention to what he was doing or where he was going. He was only pulled back into reality when he felt a sharp sting on the side of his arm. He looked down to see blood beginning to trickle from a cut on his bicep. He winced, feeling the cloth of his shirt brushing against the wound. He glanced around him for the cause of the injury when he spotted someone crouching down near him. He paused, surprised to find someone else out here. He took a few steps closer, trying to get a better glimpse of the mysterious person. 
The person seemed to be a girl, and she was crouched down beside a thin red fox, feeding it something out of the palm of her hand. Niki was a little shocked, everyone knew it was dangerous to go in the woods in general but to get that close to the unpredictable wildlife? It was essentially begging to get attacked. Niki craned his neck, peering at the girl’s hand, where a small piece of cheese sat being offered to the fox. With a start, Niki realized that could be the cheese he gave to the girl in the cabin, and this might just be that girl.
“Hey, you!” Niki yelled, wincing at his own volume. The fox jerked its head up before darting off deeper into the woods, leaving the girl and her bit of cheese behind. She turned to where Niki stood, a scowl on her face. Even with her expression distorting her features, Niki could tell she was beautiful. Niki didn’t get to admire the girl for long before she was stomping over to him, calling out as she did so.
“You scared the fox away! He has to eat too, you know,” she snapped at him, waving her hands around for emphasis, “Do you always just go around yelling in the woods, huh?”
Niki rubbed the back of his neck, a little sheepish at being scolded by a girl he didn’t even know. He mumbled an apology, speaking up once her temper had quelled.
“But you know, it’s dangerous in the forest. You really shouldn’t be out here.”
She wouldn’t quite meet his gaze, but he saw her roll her eyes anyways, “Oh yeah? Then what are you doing out here?”
Niki was taken aback by this, not expecting her to rebut him. He fumbled over his words, claiming that he was just looking for something, a certain kind of berry. When questioned why, Niki made up some random nonsense about how if you see those berries, it brings you good luck. Niki didn’t know anything about berries, nor did he care for superstitious myths like that, but he couldn’t tell her that he was trying to find a random girl he saw in the window of an abandoned cabin that he didn’t even know what she looked like besides a brief glimpse.
“Is that so?” the girl questioned, clearly unconvinced by his ramblings. She finally lifted her head enough to meet Niki’s gaze, and he sucked in a breath out of shock. 
Niki recognized those eyes, he doesn’t think he would ever be able to forget them. Her eyes were the most memorable thing about her, shining through the glass. They held the same curious tinge as they had the night he first saw her, and Niki’s chest suddenly felt lighter and eerily dense at the same time. He wasn’t even able to reply to the girl, stuck staring at her eyes as they flickered down to his arm, widening at some point below his shoulder.
“What happened?” She yelped, reaching out to examine his arm. Niki hissed when her fingers made contact with his wound, the pain flaring up even though the barrier of his sleeve prevented direct contact. The girl’s eyebrows furrowed, and she looked up at him, inquiring for permission to look at his injury. He nodded dumbly, almost hypnotized by her gaze, and suppressed a shiver at the feeling of her cold fingers brushing against his arm. 
Niki peered down at his arm, surprised to find a patch of blood soaked through his sleeve. He watched as the girl gently lifted the fabric up and away from the rest of his arm, bunching it up at his shoulder. The wound itself seemed to have gotten worse, red flaring up around the injury, blood continuing to leak from the cut. It didn’t look infected, but it was clear that it would likely be soon if it wasn’t properly attended to. The girl seemed to realize this too and turned her gaze back toward him.
“Let me clean that for you, I have some bandages at my cabin,” She told him, moving her hand away from his arm to let it fall at her side. She held a sort of determination in her gaze, and although he knew he shouldn’t follow a stranger deeper into the forest, something in his gut spurred him to trust her. Niki bobbed his head, trailing after the girl as she sharply turned on her heel and walked confidently into the trees. 
As Niki tailed behind her, he noticed she moved through the forest with a sort of learned elegance, as if she could find her way around even if she was blindfolded. She knew which trees had hidden roots, knew which shrubs and plants were poisonous, knew when there was an animal nearby, and warned Niki of all of this before he had even considered it a possibility. To be this well-versed in the forest, Niki thought she must have lived here for a long time. The thought both intrigued and saddened him. He wondered what must have happened to her to force her into living in such conditions for as long as she likely had. 
If she was a kumiho, it would make sense that she’s lived in the woods her whole life.
Niki stilled at the notion, that looming dread creeping back. The girl must have noticed his pause, looking back to give him an inquiring stare.
“What is it?”
Niki opened his mouth but no words came out. He shook his head, forcing a small smile across his lips.
“Nothing.”
She didn’t seem convinced, but he caught her gaze flicker to his arm and she nodded, quickly turning back. The rest of the walk to her cabin was silent, Niki’s thoughts swirling around his head like smoke, slowly suffocating him with their fumes.
If Niki hadn’t recognized the girl before, he definitely would have when they reached her house. It was the exact same cabin Niki and his friends had found nights prior, and it was still in the same poor condition as it had been. The girl seemed to only now realize this, and Niki saw a flush creep up her neck. She didn’t mention it, however, her strides assured as she pushed open the door with ease. Niki almost wanted to laugh, imagining Heeseung’s face if he saw this after he had so much trouble with the dreaded door.
She sat him down at a small table beside the kitchen, telling him to wait there while she went to go get supplies. Niki took the opportunity to observe the girl’s home. Contrary to the outside of the cabin, the inside was well-kept and nicely decorated. The walls held a multitude of framed flowers, each one labeled beneath in skillful ink. There were potted plants in most corners of the home, ranging from petite ones sitting on the counter to vast plants reaching to the ceiling. The walls were solid, it seemed as if there was a separate wall for the inside and outside of the house. The furniture was sparse and simple, but the abundance of plants easily made up for the empty space. Niki found the cabin rather cozy, almost warm, a stark contrast from the cold and menacing exterior.
The girl returned with gauze and two small bottles of liquid. Niki assumed one was water, but wasn't quite sure what the other was. She sat down beside him and got to work silently. She peeled off a section of gauze, dousing it in water before lifting Niki’s sleeve again, carefully pressing the damp cloth against his cut. She was gentle enough for it to not hurt much as she wiped away the blood surrounding it. Once the girl deemed it sufficient, she tore off more gauze and soaked it in the other liquid. Niki was curious, but he refrained from asking, opting to let her work instead. She turned back to him but hesitated a little before pressing the soaked gauze against his wound.
“This might sting a little.” She added, settling the cloth on the gash. Niki hissed, retracting his arm from his grip. Sure, she had given him a warning, but it still hurt, and it stung more than just a little. She also moved her hand away, peering up at him with concern. 
“I’m sorry, did it hurt?” The girl worried. Niki shook his head, even though he could still feel it burning a bit. 
“No, just caught me off guard,” He grunted. She nodded, pressing the cloth lighter this time, brushing it over the wound. Niki gritted his teeth, the burning lessening the more he got used to it. He spoke up again, partly to distract himself.
“What is this stuff anyways?”
“It’s diluted vinegar. It helps with disinfecting wounds, but you shouldn’t leave it on for too long. It could end up harming more than helping.” She answered, her voice smooth. It wasn’t long before she withdrew the cloth, and Niki let out a small sigh. He saw the corners of the girl’s mouth twitch up, but she spoke before he could say anything.
“Don’t worry, I never liked it much either.” She took the dry gauze and began to wrap it around his arm. Her touch was delicate like he was something fragile. He almost disliked it, but at the same time, it felt nice to have someone take care of him for once. As Niki watched her, he wondered if she recognized him too. She had to, right? Surely you wouldn’t forget a boy who had tried to break into your house in the middle of the night. But then again, perhaps she had mistaken the incident for a dream. For some reason, Niki wanted her to know that it wasn't. 
“I know you.” He announced, his voice much calmer than he felt. In reality, his heart was pounding, his eyes a little too wide as he watched for her reaction. The only affirmation he got that she had heard him at all was her pulling his gauze a tiny bit too tight, pausing for only an instant before resuming her work.
“What do you mean?”
“I saw you a few nights ago when I was with my friends,” Niki began, his pulse creeping up his throat, “through the window.”
She finished wrapping his wound, tying it off at the side in a simple knot. He almost wanted to admire her work, the wrapping far better than he could have ever done, but he kept his eyes trained on the girl. She leaned back, looking him in the eye.
“I remember now, your friend kept banging against the door. I was woken up and took a look outside, thinking it was one of the wild animals I feed wanting food.”
Niki restrained a wince. After that disaster of a first impression, it was a miracle she even let him near her house. He felt the need to explain himself, but he quickly lost his composure, beginning to ramble and stumble over his words.
“We weren’t trying to break in! Well, we kinda were, but we didn’t think anyone lived here! I mean, from the outside, it looked pretty abandoned. Not to say you don’t take enough care of it, it just seemed a bit unkempt! That’s why we tried to get in! Wouldn’t you do the same thing? I mean, come on, it’s not every day you find a house in the middle of the woods, we just wanted to take a look inside!”
The girl suddenly laughed, her joyful expression catching Niki off guard. Her laugh was sweet, the sound easing the tension Niki had slowly built in his shoulders. She smiled at him, a soft easy-going one, and the sun caught in her eyes from the window, giving them a dazzling shine.
“Hey, don’t worry about it. You were just curious. Like you said, I would have done the same thing.” She teased, giving him a playful wink. Niki flushed, muttering a shy apology. He looked back up at her, feeling his own lips tug up at her contagious smile.
“What’s your name?” He asked. The girl seemed to stop for a moment, her gaze meeting his. There was something there that he couldn’t quite place, but it made him feel warm and safe and nervous all at the same time. She seemed conflicted for a second, before letting her mouth rest into a serene smile.
“Y/n. It’s y/n.”
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You weren’t exactly sure what to make of Niki. He didn’t seem to have the same intentions as the boys who you met before, didn’t have the same hungry gaze. Instead, he seemed curious, a desire to learn more about you as a person, not just for your appearance. It caught you off guard, especially since despite this curiosity, he still remained cautious of your presence. While the other boys were always smug, and overly confident in their abilities, Niki retained some humility. It honestly astonished you, knowing the crowd he hung around. You didn’t know most of their names, but you had heard about one in particular, the oldest of their group. 
When you first arrived in this town a few months ago, you saw a boy who would always wander around the forest, often killing rabbits and other small rodents. It pissed you off. You snuck around town sometimes after that, trying to see what he did besides killing wildlife. You watched him for a few weeks, watched as he went through girl after girl, watched as he corrupted their minds and ruined their reputations. It brought him a sick satisfaction, and you wanted more than anything to give him a taste of his own medicine. 
You purposely walked along the path he liked to hunt on, waiting for him. He responded about how you expected, all charming smiles and coy winks. You lured him in, purring your words and sweetening your tone. You acted like every one of the girls he had ruined, except this time it would be him.
You had known you had when his hands got a little too touchy and his glances lingered on you a little too long. His sweet words did nothing to mask the fervent hunger. He looked at you like he did the animals he killed. It sickened you, and you knew it was time. You teased him with a honeyed grin and watched his eyes widen in disbelief when you sunk claws into his heart. 
You don’t remember his name, but you knew he had a brother. You saw him at the funeral, a deep frown decorating his face and fresh tears streaking his face. You suppose you shouldn’t have expected anything different from the boy, seeing as he was your most recent kill’s brother. He played girls the same way his brother did, although not to the same extent. He only seemed to do it after his brother was gone, perhaps in his memory in some sick sense. But he settled down, found a girl, and committed fully, treating her as gold. Perhaps that is why you left him alone. Perhaps letting him live when his brother was gone was more punishment than simply killing him.
When Niki came along, he took the time to tell you all about his friends. You learned the oldest of their group was called Heeseung, and was finally able to put a name to his face. When Niki mentioned Heeseung’s brother, you struggled to keep your face neutral, desperate to not let recognition show in your eyes. You swore you did a horribly poor job, but if Niki noticed, he said nothing.
Ever since the day you had cleaned his wound for him in your cabin, he visited you as often as he could. Some days he couldn’t find you, and you simply took the chance to watch him from afar. You wanted to see if he was as gentle with the wildlife as he was with you. You had seen boys that treated you with care but blatantly disrespected the nature beneath their feet. A voice in the back of your head was hoping he would mess up, hoping that your previous view could be restored. But he always stepped with care, never intruding on any wild animal’s personal space. You ruled out the possibility of him simply being scared, as he often excitedly chattered to you about how pretty the foxes and deer were, and how he wished he could touch them. He brought more cheese with him, and you taught him how to feed the foxes. Niki seemed entranced by them, carefully reaching his hand out, palm open, with a bit of cheese. His mouth opened in a small gasp the first time a fox took the cheese, and when it scampered off, he turned to you with a bright smile and wide eyes. You had burned the image into your mind and secretly traced it into your heart.
You were quickly coming to realize it was difficult to lie to Niki. Not because he could read you easily, in fact, he was rather dense when it came to understanding your inner thoughts, but due to some odd moral dilemma. He had shattered your previous perception. His gaze wasn’t a tiger’s or a lion’s, it wasn’t a hungry beast waiting for the chance to strike. It was like a gentle breeze, light touches and dancing around, softly encouraging you onward. 
You simply couldn’t bring yourself to lie to Niki. Even on the first day, you couldn’t lie to him. Whenever a boy had asked for your name, you either made one up or simply refused to tell them, playing it off with a sly smirk and a wink. But somehow, Niki was able to make you let your guard down. Your name was rolling off your tongue before you could even think of the consequences. His tender smile as he told you his name made any thoughts or regrets evaporate.
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You still remember how soft his voice sounded when he asked about your parents one night. The two of you were laying on your backs in the clearing, gazing up at the stars. He pointed out all the constellations he knew, chirping about how his mom had taught them to him when he was younger. His voice had gotten faint once he asked, and he shifted himself up on his elbows to better look at your face. 
“You don’t have to answer.” He added in a quiet voice, harmless and unassuming like a rabbit. 
“No, it’s alright,” You said. You thought for a moment about what to tell him and settled on the closest thing to the truth you could get, “I never knew them. They probably died soon after I was born.” You watched the stars, keeping your eyes away from Niki. Part of you knew that if you held his gaze for too long you might spill everything to him. And while you desperately wanted to trust him, you weren’t sure you could. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Niki slowly nod, processing what you told him. 
“Do you,” He started cautiously, “ever wish you didn’t have to be alone?”
You stared straight ahead, silently stunned. You pulled yourself out of it, thinking over his question. You didn’t have a time when you weren’t alone, so it wasn’t like you really had something to compare it to. But you weren’t alone, you knew that.
“Sometimes, sure. But I have the forest. I have the deer, and the rabbits, and the foxes to keep me company. We look out for each other, we keep each other safe.” A small smile graced your lips, an honest one, not for show or anything else. You basked in the silence for a moment, listening to the wind as it brushed over the two of you.
“And you have me.” Niki declared. You looked at him, your expression confused, and Niki cleared his throat before repeating himself.
“You have me, too. We can look out for each other. Even if we feel alone, we will be here for each other, okay?” He had a determination in his eyes that you wanted to coo at, but you felt breathless. You simply stared at him for a few seconds, silence drifting between you, but Niki’s expression stayed resolute. A tranquil feeling danced over your body, and you let yourself relax into the grass.
“Okay. We have each other.” He smiled, content, and laid back down beside you, the dewy grass tickling your bodies. 
You knew then that you couldn’t deceive him any longer.
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When Niki visited you the next day, you had a sinking feeling. It was as if you were swimming towards safety but the closer to shore you swam the further away it got. You could feel your mind slowly getting tired, limbs numb as you pressed on. You prayed that Niki wouldn’t notice. You had promised yourself that you would tell him, but you wanted to decide that on your own, not because you were urged into it.
Of course, you should have known it wouldn’t happen the way you wanted. Niki had a way of making you open up. You found yourself carving spaces for him deep inside of you, time and time again, and now was no different. His eyes were considerate as they watched you, and his voice was small when he spoke.
“Are you alright? You seem on edge,” Niki coaxed, “Did something happen?”
You had never been able to lie to Niki. Even now, when faced with a question where you should have responded with a well-practiced lie, your breath caught in your throat. It was simple, you should never tell anyone about what you were, not unless you planned on them being dead within the next 5 minutes. And yet here you were, ready to spill out your heart to the boy with a gaze as gentle as the wind. In his eyes, you saw the shore you desperately needed to reach.
“I need to tell you something.”
He nodded, letting you take his hand and lead him back inside your cabin. You sat him down at the small table, taking the seat beside him. You remembered the very first time the two of you sat here, and you felt an urge to reach out for his arm, to look for the wound even though the scar had long faded. You felt Niki squeeze your still intertwined hands, and you took a breath before you spoke.
“I’m a kumiho.” You gulped, the feeling of dread building up again. It threatened to drown you, an overwhelming force pushing over your head. You braced yourself for him to attack you, ripping his hand away with a disgusted expression, using whatever was closest to him to strike you with. Or perhaps it would be worse, his gaze would turn fearful, his mouth dropping in a silent scream, and he would bolt away from you, taking the shore, taking your safety with him. 
“I know,” Niki said finally. You stared at him, astonished. 
“You.. know?” 
He nodded, a simple thing, but to you, it felt like you had finally reached safety. Your aching body collapsed against the sand, feeling the grains stick against your soaked skin.
“I’ve had a feeling since I first saw you,” He let a light chuckle slip through, the sound feeling foreign in the current situation. Niki hesitated for a second, before grasping your other hand as well, eyes piercing through you.
“Can I ask you something?”
You nodded dumbly, far too shocked to be able to think clearly.
“Why didn’t you kill me?” 
His eyes held a million questions, but he had settled on this one. You didn’t know how to explain it to yourself, let alone him You felt lost and yet seen, you were about to sink but he was keeping you afloat. When you were seconds from burning out, he lit you aflame.
“You were just… different.”
“Why? What did they do?” His tone wasn’t critical or condemning, it was simply curious. His gaze was humane, bordering on sympathetic, and you almost wanted to cry.
“They didn’t care about anyone else but themselves. They would kill wildlife and laugh about it. They destroyed and corrupted girls and got satisfaction from it. It made me sick, Niki.”
His gaze softened as you spoke, and he let go of one of your hands to reach out, brushing against your face delicately. It was only then you realized there were tears running down your face. You began to cry harder at the recognition, feeling Niki’s hands wipe away your tears as they fell, consoling you. You murmured about how you wished they would do such things, and he quieted your blubbering with soothing hands. 
You blinked away the rest of the tears, peering at him in a mixture of shame and awe. He stared back with what could only be described as adoration, a tender smile painting his lips. Niki waited until your tears had stopped falling, reduced to small sniffles before he spoke.
“Is it true that if a kumiho doesn’t kill anyone for a thousand days, then they will become human?” He asked, a glimmer of something you couldn’t place in his eyes.
“Yes, it is.” You responded slowly, doubtful of where exactly he was going with this.
“How long has it been since you last,” Niki paused for a moment before steeling himself, “since you last killed someone?”
Your voice caught in your throat, the words like a vice grip around you. Niki clasped your hands tightly, whispers of “It’s okay” and “They weren’t innocent” in his soft voice reaching your ears.
“His name was Beomgyu,” You hiccupped, “It was a week before I saw you for the first time.” The only thing keeping you steady was Niki’s secure hold.
“So it’s been a couple months?”
You nodded gently, not quite looking him in the eye. You felt ashamed, a feeling you had never had about what you did to those boys before you met Niki.
“Do you think you can do it?” He asked faintly. You looked at him then, a question written in your gaze.
“Can you not hurt anyone for the rest of the thousand days?” He coaxed, “Then you would be human, you wouldn’t have to worry anymore.” 
You almost broke out into tears again from his words. Never had you thought you would open up to someone this much, your heart in your hands, practically begging him to take it. You felt selfish, selfish for wanting to have him, selfish for tainting him with your previous actions. A part of you told you to refuse, that you had already gone too far. This was your only chance to attempt to fix things, to save him from yourself.
“I’ll wait for you, y/n, I promise. I’ll wait for as long as it takes.”
You closed your eyes then, desperately willing the tears pooling up to disappear. A single one fell down your cheek anyway, and a pitiful gasp escaped you. 
“You don’t have to, Niki.”
“I want to.” He assured, taking your face in his hands. The two of you stared at each other for what felt like ages, before he spoke again, never taking his eyes off yours.
“Can I kiss you?”
You nodded as best you could with his hands around your face, and waited for the press of his lips against yours. When it finally came, only then did you allow your eyes to close, breaking the gaze between you. 
It wasn’t anything like you had experienced before. It wasn’t rough, it wasn’t hungry, it wasn’t the beast you had come to anticipate. His kiss was just as gentle as he was, a soft, sweet breeze picking you up. It made you feel as light as the sky and brought you back down to Earth at the same time. It made you feel human.
Niki pulled back after a few seconds, resting his forehead against yours, a serene smile playing on his lips. You felt your own lips tugging upwards to match his, a silent wish to be able to live like him. It hit you then that you could.
“I’m scared, Niki.” you whispered in the space between you, “What if it hurts? What if I can’t do it?”
What if it doesn’t work?
“I believe in you. I’ll be by your side the whole way, I promise you.” He soothed. 
The two of you stayed like that for a while, just holding each other. You decided to trust in him. You had already given him the most intricate parts of who you were, you wanted him to have everything.
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Tonight was the end of the thousandth day, and you were finally going to be human. In all honestly, you were terrified. And you were upset too. Niki hadn’t visited you for an entire week now. You knew Niki had grown up some, and gained more responsibilities, but that didn’t make it hurt any less. You should have known he would have less time for you as the two of you grew older, it had almost been 3 years since you first met each other, and his town and family were calling on him to settle down. But you refused to acknowledge that until it hit you in the face.
Despite these new duties, Niki hadn’t changed as a person. He was still sweet, still gentle when he held you and gentle with your home. He still had the same beaming smile whenever a fox ate from his hand or curled up at his feet. Niki was still your tranquil breeze, the wind brushing through your hair and guiding you along.
You had learned more about him over the past few years, and under the cover of night, even gotten to visit his village a few times. His bubbly tone as he showed you around overshadowed the consequences if you were caught. 
Thinking about all the experiences you had with him only made you more irritated that he wasn’t here with you now. He had promised you, and Niki was never one to break his promises. You had seen that time and time again, which made his absence all the more distressing. But perhaps he had simply forgotten, after all, it is difficult to keep track of every single day. You secretly prayed that he had just forgotten and that nothing else had happened.
That night, when you finally became human, it wasn’t anything grand or spectacular like you had often joked. It wasn’t the deadly pain you had expected either. Instead, when midnight arrived, you simply blacked out. The next thing you remember was waking up in the morning, sore all over your body, especially on the sides of your head, hands, feet, and lower back. You felt a rush of hopefulness wash over you when you realized those were the areas your kumiho nature was most likely to show through, whether that be fox ears, claws, or the easily recognizable nine tales. In a daze, you attempted to change fully into a kumiho, ecstatic to find that you couldn’t, no matter how hard you tried. With wide eyes and a blissful smile, you began jumping around your small cabin out of pure joy.
Your first instinct was to find Niki, only to remember you hadn’t seen him in over a week. With a newfound confidence in your humanity, you began walking down to his town, intent on finding him. You still feel a little hesitant walking around in broad daylight, but to your surprise, there isn’t anyone around. Assuming they must be working inside or resting, you head to Niki’s home. You creep around the back, to where his bedroom window is. However, when you get there, you were puzzled to find wood boarded up over where his window should be.
You curiously examine it, finding a small sliver near the bottom where the planks didn’t quite reach. You peer through, seeing Niki pacing around his room. You call out to him, watching as his head snaps toward where you are in a panic. He checks over his shoulder at the door before rushing over, crouching down until he is faced with the small gap.
“Y/n? You need to run, now.” Niki insisted, his voice strained, “I don’t know how, but the town found out about us, about how you’re a kumiho.”
“But I’m not a kumiho anymore! It worked, Niki, I’m human now.”
He paused for a moment, breathing out what you could only call a sigh of relief.
“That’s amazing, really.” He answered, his tone breathy, “But right now, you have to get out of here. They don’t care if you’re human now.”
“I can’t just leave you here.” You responded. You couldn’t, not after everything he had done for you. 
“Y/n, if you don’t leave now, they are going to kill you.” 
You wouldn’t leave him now. Niki had shown you what it meant to live, to be alive. You would never leave him in a thousand years.
“I’ll be back to get you out of here. We are leaving together.” You rushed out against his pleas. You heard shouts, and snuck over to the side of his house, peeking out. There you saw what seemed to be the majority of the town, standing around with torches and a variety of weapons, ranging from swords to spears to axes. You suppressed a shudder, catching sight of Heeseung and what you assumed to be the rest of Niki’s friends. While they all looked varying degrees of upset, Heeseung looked downright furious. You briefly wondered if this was how he looked when he first learned of his brother’s death.
Before you could think about that any further, you quickly retreated back behind Niki’s house. After taking a deep breath, you began sprinting back toward your cabin. You felt the wind whipping against your face, and the leaves thrashing by your skin, but you paid it no mind. You reached your home quicker than you ever had before, throwing open the door and hurriedly flying around, tossing whatever you deemed necessary in a bag. You doubted you would be able to come back here again, so you put extra food and water than you would normally bring, multiple changes of clothes for the both of you, blankets, other basic survival equipment, and the music box Niki had gifted you last year. You slung the bag over your shoulder, checking its weight before rushing back out the door. You flew through the forest, desperate to get back to Niki before anything else could happen.
You slow your pace as you reach the outskirts of town, carefully creeping around until you reach Niki’s bedroom window again. You call out to him again, watching through the gap until you see him appear. You gently tell him to stand back and he nods, moving away. You tested the durability of the wood, pressing on it with your hand. It had more leeway than you expected, and you pull back your arm, preparing to smash against it with your bicep. Just before you were about to slam against the wood, you hear a shout near you.
“The kumiho is here! It’s trying to get to Niki!”
You turned toward the voice, spotting a woman you didn’t recognize holding a torch, pointing her free hand at you as she cried out. You took off in a flurry, your instincts sharp from living in the forest for so long. You heard Niki yell something behind you, but you were already too far to be able to clearly make out what he said. You run as fast as you are able to, taking difficult twists and turns through the forest in a frantic attempt to lose your pursuers. Soon you are only able to hear one set of footsteps behind you, and in an effort to look behind you to see who it is, you trip, falling to the ground.
Your pursuer caught up to you before you are able to get up, flipping you on your back and pining you there. You felt the cold metal of a blade pressed up against your neck, stinging as it lightly breaks the skin. You met the eyes of the person and felt a tremble run through you as you met Heeseung’s gaze. His eyes are cold, and his mouth is curled into a mocking smirk.
“I thought kumihos were supposed to be agile, hm?” He starts, feigning innocence, “I was hoping for a bit more of a chase, too bad.” He traced his sword up towards your chin, lips quirking down into a taunting frown. 
“I’m.. not a… kumiho anymore.” You gritted out, unable to talk properly due to Heeseung’s blade under your chin. He scoffed, peering down at you with hatred. He opened his mouth to speak again but was cut off by the sound of someone shouting behind him.
“Heeseung!”
You watched as the boy’s eyes widened, a deep scowl crossing his face. You recognized that voice, you knew it better than you knew your own.
“Stay out of this, Niki,” Heeseung ordered, voice bordering on a growl.
“Heeseung, please, just listen to me. She’s human now! It’s been almost three years since she hurt anyone, please don’t do this.” Niki begged. You couldn’t see him, but from the sound of his voice, it seemed like he was crying. The thought tugged at your heart despite the precarious situation you currently were in.
“I don’t care how long it’s been, this… thing will never be human. Not after it killed my brother.” Heeseung instinctively pressed the sword further against your neck, a wild look in his eyes.
“He.. wasn’t a good.. person.. your brother… hurt.. people..” You rasped out, wincing at Heeseung’s glare. 
“I don’t give a damn what you think about him. He was my brother.” 
“You don’t… know what he was.. capable of…” You croaked, feeling blood begin to trickle down the side of your neck from the small cut Heeseung’s blade made. The boy snarled at you, his dark expression causing you to shiver.
“Maybe I don’t,” Heeseung seethed, a sinister grin creeping up his face, “but I do know what I am capable of.” He drew the sword high above his head, ready to strike it down into your heart. You closed your eyes, waiting for the searing pain to arrive. 
Instead, you heard a shout, feeling the weight on top of you lighten. Your eyes snapped open, darting around until they landed on the two boys. Niki jumped at Heeseung as soon as he saw the boy lift his sword, tackling him to the ground. Heeseung’s sword had sunk into his own skin when he fell over, the deep gash on his left arm making him cry out in pain. He ripped the blade out, tossing it to the side, a deep grimace painting his features. Niki halted for a moment, shocked at his own actions. His pause gave Heeseung enough time to reach into his own pocket, pull out a small silver knife, and slash it against Niki’s shoulder. It wasn’t nearly as deep as Heeseung’s wound, but Niki yelped out in pain nonetheless. 
You scrambled to your feet, grabbing the sword Heeseung had thrown aside and pulling Niki up and behind you, pointing the sword at Heeseung. He stared at you, clutching his arm in agony. A small voice told you to just kill him, to make sure he wouldn’t follow you, to make sure he wouldn’t tell the others where you had gone. The thought of hurting him made you feel sickened, even after what he had just done to you. You gave Heeseung one last glance before you grabbed Niki’s hand and ran.
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The two of you kept running until you reached a section deep inside the woods. After checking the surrounding area to make sure no one had followed you, you pulled out the gauze and diluted vinegar you had brought with you. There was a small lake here, and you dipped a piece of gauze into the water, not wanting to use up water that the two of you could drink. Niki had removed his shirt, allowing you easy access to the wound. You thoroughly cleaned his wound, before repeating the process with the diluted vinegar. Niki still flinched, even after almost three years. It made a fond smile decorate your face, even as the two of you sat in the woods after nearly being killed by one of Niki’s closest friends. 
You wrap his injury in silence, the two of you listening to the water and the wind, quiet and mild, blissfully unaware of the danger outside of its own bubble. Once you finish, you help Niki put his shirt back on without further injuring himself or disturbing the gauze. You sit back a little, guilt swelling inside of you.
“I’m sorry.” You apologized. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Niki turn to you, confused.
“Why are you sorry?”
“You can’t go back to your home now, and you even got hurt because of me.” You set your head in your hands, the day’s events finally catching up with you. Niki slowly pried your hands away, taking them in his.
“Y/n, you are my home. I never want to live without you,” He lightly smiled, and it made your stomach fill up with warmth as he continued, “I don’t care if we have to survive on our own in the woods or worry about where our next meal is gonna come from as long as I can be with you. I would risk my life over and over again if it meant keeping you safe.”
You blinked at him before pulling him towards you, pressing your lips against his in a soft kiss. He responded immediately, letting out a pleased hum at your actions. You pulled back, pressing your forehead against yours, mirroring what he did after your first kiss. He realized this after a second, a contented laugh leaving his lips. You felt his warm breath against your mouth and leaned in to press another peck against his lips.
“I love you, Niki.” You confessed.
“I’ve always loved you.” He cooed, an honest smile brightening his expression, “All our hardships are over now, I promise you.”
And even though that wasn’t something either of you could control, you believed him.
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As Sunoo wandered aimlessly around the forest with his lantern, he had never felt more ashamed in his life. He never meant for it to happen this way, truly. When he saw Niki hanging out with this girl in the woods, he originally assumed it was a girl from the next town over. But when he saw the nine tails sprouting from her backside, he froze. Sunoo hadn’t known what to do. He ran back to town without a word, and couldn’t sleep that night. He was terrified for Niki, worried that the boy might end up dead any day. He had to tell someone.
So the next morning, he knocked on Heeseung’s door and told him everything. Sunoo didn’t see Heeseung’s eyes darken, and he didn’t see how Heeseung’s jaw clenched. The next thing he knew, Heeseung was calling all the other townspeople for a search party, telling them they were going to kill the kumiho. Sunoo had no choice but to join in.
Lost in his thoughts, he almost didn’t see them. But after looking again, sure enough, there sat Niki and the girl he had seen before, sitting together on the other side of the lake. She looked a little different, less fox-like, and more human now, but it was the same girl. Sunoo wasn’t really sure what to do. He knew what most of his friends would do, they would find backup and then attack them. He knew what Heeseung would do, he would go in alone, killing the girl at any cost. But he wasn’t his friends, and he wasn’t Heeseung. So instead Sunoo stayed still, and he simply watched them. He watched as the girl pulled what looked like bread out of her bread and offered it to Niki. He watched as they ate together, and he watched as they laughed. If he strained his ears, he could almost hear the sound.
After a few minutes, a fox pranced up beside him and sat down near his feet. Sunoo was a bit startled, but when the fox looked up at him and met his gaze, all Sunoo could do was sigh. He looked back across the lake at Niki and the girl, and he knew that he couldn’t fix what he’d done, but maybe he could give them a second chance. Sunoo peered back down at the fox, and in a soft voice, he spoke.
“Take care of them for me, okay?” Sunoo knew the fox couldn’t have understood him, but for some reason, he felt assured that the fox would stay there to watch over his friend. Sunoo glanced back at the two one more time, and with his heavy heart a little bit lighter, he turned on his heel and headed back to the village.
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Permanent Taglist: @starrpt2 @sunnytheos @kalabasaa @ghostiiess @redm4ri @xiaoderrrr @en-chantedtomeetyou 
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rintarousgirl · 9 months
Text
i wanna be yours -- 8. 505
✦ - Y/N is a small business owner, offering her services not only as a designer but an at-home makeup artist and cosmetic producer as well. She's perfectly content with her small life when she's approached by the manager of the INARIZAKI band, asking for her to fill the position of backstage artist on short notice. Needing the money, and wanting the experience, Y/N agrees. Little does she know of the fatal attraction she will share with the band's lead, Suna Rintarou.
a/n: so, this is late ik, but i was writing a fic on ao3 so LMAO priorities ig. i have literally no other excuse than that and i am so sorry. it's also my best friend's birthday week, so ive been running ragged trying to plan her birthday. i hope this doesn't seem too rushed and short, i just really wanted to give y'all smth.
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When you see Rintarou again, he kisses you.
You reciprocate, of course, but when his hand drifts down your side, you push him back lightly. He steps away immediately, hands by his side in surrender.
"What's wrong?" he asks softly, but he doesn't touch you. You take in a deep breath, hands tightening on your purse strap.
"We moved too fast. Like, way too fast the other night. We...we need to have a conversation. Not over the phone," you explain calmly, eyes glued to his neck. The bruising had mostly faded, but there's still an obvious discoloration staining his pale skin.
Rintarou licks his lips and rubs the back of his neck. "Uh, yeah, let's go upstairs."
You follow him silently through his house, and the two of you come to the same sunken-in living room you'd been sitting in last week. You sit facing each other, your knees tucked beneath you. You reach out and grab his hands, thumbs running over each vein on his forearm in an attempt to soothe him.
"Going into this, I thought I was going to take it slow," you admit softly, looking up to him. His full attention is on you, and you feel your confidence shrink under the gaze of his hazel eyes. "I didn't, clearly, and you were right when you said you didn't want to mess this--us up. I don't want too either. So, we really have to take it slow, despite it all."
Rintarou nods. "There are...a lot of things that could go wrong if we don't." You hum, leaning into the plush fabric of the couch.
"I agree. And I don't want to force you into things, especially if they make you so uncomfortable but...communication is key and how am I supposed to learn what I'm not supposed to do if you never tell me what happened between you and Kiyoko?"
He clearly wasn't expecting it, seeing as his hands twitch in your hold and his eyes go wide. He almost pulls back, but then his fingers curl into his palms and he closes his eyes. "You're right."
"I'm all ears," you whisper, and Rintarou's voice drips with hurt as he begins to share the story not only you had been curious of, but thousands of fans had been too.
"Kiyoko Shimizu was the makeup artist before you. Brilliant at her job, and such a caring person. Kind of like you. I fucked up with her. I wouldn't say there were...romantic feelings between us, but I did care for her a lot more than I reasonably should've for just another friends with benefits situation."
You let the lead settle in your throat, and doubts begin to flood your mind. Were you just a Kiyoko replacement in more senses than one? Were you supposed to be another heartless fuck to Rintarou? You bite down on your tongue to keep down your questions and let him continue.
"It went on for a while, I think it was almost a year. Yeah, about. We weren't exclusive or anything, so I wasn't upset that she met other people. Actually, I encouraged her to date others, because I knew she deserved better than a quickie in a dressing room."
Your brain kind of lagged. Had Kiyoko sought out other men, while actively having sex with Rintarou? Did she stop fucking him if she decided to go on a second date? There were so many minor questions that made your head spin. A sick part of you also tried to imagine them, sharing secret smiles and touches under the table. You quickly shake away that thought.
"Two months ago, Kiyoko was offered a job in the States with a performance company. Very famous. She'd do good there on a team of artists, and she wouldn't be over-working herself. She's probably putting makeup on famous artists as we speak, actually."
You knew Kiyoko was good, you'd be stupid not to. You weren't directly involved with all the drama surrounding makeup artists before joining the band, but you had heard her name. She was known for her signature smokey eye, and talent to apply "messy" makeup that didn't run during performances. Very good for bands with...a more sexual appeal.
"She didn't want to take the opportunity, or at least, she told us she didn't, but we all knew she did. She just didn't want to feel like she was 'betraying' us or something. Eventually, Kita just emailed the company back for her and sent her off, I guess. He was always looking out for her best interests, like he does for you."
It almost made you smile. You knew Kiyoko was nice, she was friends with Yachi after all, but it still had you thinking. She wasn't going to take the opportunity of a lifetime, because she didn't want to leave some silly boys? ... Would you end up like that too? Would you jeopardize your future?
Rintarou hand drags down his face, and your own hands settle uncomfortably in your lap.
"I didn't like her...not like I like you. I like you a lot more, Y/N," you blushed, and you could tell what he meant, under those awkward heavy words was a sweet 'i love you'. "But I still cared for her, deeply. I wanted the best for her, but it still hurt. For a while, she was my best friend, and I know it wasn't her choice to leave, necessarily, but she left, and she never looked back."
Your head rose, confusion clear on your face. With furrowed brows, you ask, "She...never called or anything?"
Rintarou shrugs. "She did the first few times, to let us know she was settled in but then she never called again. She's come back and visited her other friends, I know that, but she hasn't said a word to any of us. I...I can't help but think it's because of me, in some way."
His eyes are a bit wet, and you know he's trying to hide a lot of how he feels. You cup his face, rubbing beneath his eye and catching a tear on the pad of your thumb.
"It's okay to cry. You have the right to be upset. I don't know...why she stopped talking to you, but I'm sure she has her reasons. However questionable they may be. But I'm here now, and I don't want to be a replacement. I'm Y/N, not Kiyoko."
He groans, burying his face in your palm. He lets out a wet shaky breath against your hand, hands gripping your wrist. "I-I know you're different. I don't want you thinking you aren't," he lifts his head, hazel eyes finding yours and searching for something, "I don't want to lose you. Ever."
"You won't," you say, "we just gotta play our cards right."
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<- previous | next -> | masterlist
★ - kenma isn't a "tsundere" or anything, in my head, he's just not good with words and regrets what he says as soon as he texts it
★ - rintarou and you end up watching a movie together, so that's when you begin texting your friends
★ - kiyoko lore !! i am genuinely so sorry. you all prolly like hate me for this chapter being so lame for having such a big "reveal" or smth idk, but i have just been Burnt Out but this was the deal-breaker chapter and i promise you there will be more with her over the finale
✦ - Y/N is a small business owner, offering her services not only as a designer but an at-home makeup artist and cosmetic producer as well. She's perfectly content with her small life when she's approached by the manager of the INARIZAKI band, asking for her to fill the position of backstage artist on short notice. Needing the money, and wanting the experience, Y/N agrees. Little does she know of the fatal attraction she will share with the band's lead, Suna Rintarou.
taglist:
@mannaornot \ @gojoscumslut \ @sunarots \ @alienvarmint \ @tojirin \ @tkooooop \ @cheriesdear \ @shotenvinsoot \ @wolffmaiden \ @riiceandsoup \ @thebrownemo \ @vivian-555 \ @effmigentlywithachainsaw \ @rukia-uchiha-98 \ @weird0o0 \ @seiamor \ @rory-cakes \ @blue-violin \ @reveusecherie \ @hellokittylover9 \ @yourlocal-bunny \ @keniza \ @cerberuspuppy1 \ @baramii \ @kirbyscreeper \ @rioiio \ @noideawhothatis \ @ris-krispie \ @noideawhothatis \ @venusinx \ @arminseas \
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kaleeatinghoe · 3 months
Text
GREGSTOPHE HEADCANONS!!!
(+individual)⚠️ocd and very small blood mention (just to be safe)
recently ive been obsessed with them i need to make headcanons it’s a requirement
first of all, gregory was never secretive about his feelings,,. he would call chrisophe “darling” and “my dear” but christophe somehow didn’t realize that this was romantic (??) and thought that was just how he spoke.
everybody assumed they already had something going on, until gregory started loudly monologuing about his love and how he had “longed to profess” his love.,, christophe was absolutely taken aback, but nobody else gave a fuck
gregory is definitely a theater kid in a way. he joined the drama club at school, and was absolutely disgusted at how bad everyone’s acting and how they didn’t put their entire heart and soul into a school play.
he also convinced christophe to join tech crew. (maybe i make a comic??:0)
sometimes christophe disappears for days at a time and hes just like somewhere around like in a random field or walking down the road,, and he doesn’t sleep much. hes just out all night doing random stuff
gregory speaks french and he’ll monologue in french occasionally and very theatrically and christophe is just there sick of this shit
they both just crawl into each others houses through the window(especially christophe) while the other is sleeping. gregory keeps his window open and christophe has crawled in and woken him up at some ungodly hour because there was something unescessary that he insisted had to be done and couldn’t wait until daylight.
he also somehow just knows extremely specific details about people and businesses that he pulls out of nowhere whenever they are plotting against them
oh and he definitely knows all about tweek bros,, and has planned to expose them
gregory once kissed ze mole in a very theatrical way. he would do some kind of speech and make it look straight out of a shakespeare play,, and time it right before he leaves abruptly. and christophe is like shocked and also cringing because gregory is such a fucking theater kid and while what he did was rlly sweet.., it’s like dude
gregory is a bit germaphobic and takes hygiene extremely seriously. he washes his hands before and after he eats, and showers atleast once a day. he may have ocd which causes him to wash his hands like 57 times a day giving him super dry hands (js like me with my ocd fr) so he constantly puts lotion on his hands
christophe is kinda the opposite. he has normal hygiene like he doesn’t fail to wash his hands after taking a shit but he will also forget to shower for weeks. he just kinda forgets so he has gregory remind him every so often “have you showered this week?” also he is really dirty all the time and tracks dirt and mud a lot. gregory makes him take his shoes off before coming inside
overall christophe doesn’t take very good care of himself., mostly because he forgets, partly because he doesn’t gaf. gregory on the other hand, gets severe anxiety if he forgets one step of his routine, or forgets to eat, or loses track of time and goes to sleep too late,, he is very concerned for his wellbeing and physical / mental health,, a bit to much to the point where it affects his mental health a little bit
ALSO CHRISTOPHE HAS FUCKING BUSTED UP HANDS from like digging and stuff,, his nails are just caked with dirt even after he washes his hands. bro cannot wear white clothes without them getting stained
gregory also has busted up hands sometimes because when his ocd gets really bad and he washes his hands like crazy,, and he forgets to put lotion on his hands crack and bleed. (js like me omg)
okay,, i wanna do more but i can do a sequel. if u want me to do any particular character(s) or ship(s) my ask box is always open!! ;D
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redrydersrequiem · 1 year
Text
Reunited chapter 1
Ok ive been reading ALOT of avatar fanfiction lately and i like many other am obsessed with miles Quartich. So heres a fic for him. Again this is just for my own sanity i think of stuff and i have to write them down or they’ll never leave my head. Love all yall who actually read this again everyone be kind none of this is prof’d. Also just warning for language and I am constantly adding stuff to these because I am always re-reading them and finding issues so again just hang in there with me I like to use gifs/videos and pics to make the story more theatrical in my mind
Updated this 5/2/23
Next chapter
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Ok video log 230 My name is y/n y/l/n I was a Corporal for the RDA. I went to Pandora for one reason.
I needed the money
My only living relative, my aunt, was sick. Terminally sick and the regular military benefits were not working. That’s when the RDA swooped in and found me. A young former soldier with experience who needed financial backing, yeah, I see now I was an easy target for them. Anyway getting to Pandora I was placed on the one and only Colonel Miles Quaritchs team. Luckily or maybe not now that I look back I was strictly security for hell's gate. While the others did more field work I was dealing with perimeter checks,Hot headed soldiers fighting, Fixing up my team whenever they didn’t want to deal with the science quacks, and a shit ton of unnecessary paperwork. You know Basic duties, until I was assigned to start helping the scientists out more.
They wanted to start going back out into the forest more often and after watching the beauty of it from the window all the time, I was all for joining them. Even though I was a soldier it didn’t mean I was one of the inhumane jug heads like some. I had passions and loved nature and music, culture, literally devouring anything I could. Grace actually kind of liked me which is why I started spending a lot of time with them despite my unit's protests.
Now don’t get me wrong I loved my unit. After getting past some of their personal walls, all of them were amazing. Loyal to one another. Funny, goofy and everything in between. They were my family, the Lovable brothers and sisters I had never had albeit VERY rough around the edges. It's actually funny now how close i am to everyone and how protective they are over me cause when I first showed up they all almost laughed me out the door. All thinking i was just a young gun that wouldn’t amount to anything just their cute little doctor but after they saw me take down a drunk guy twice my size from another team with vicious savagery,during a night off for all of us, in heels might i add, they all started looking at me in a new light.
(Think something like this clip)
Once comfortable everyone really showed me their true colors.Lyle, as annoying as he was, was also very funny. Just straight up class clown behind closed doors. They are the kind of brother that just comes up to you randomly to mess with you for like a second and then runs away.( his intrusive thoughts when a lot) but he was always my go to to hang out with just cause he would make you forget about the stress of the job.
Zdinarsk was the annoying older sister, beautiful but playful, a piece of candy in every pocket she had, but always willing to share. She also likes to playfully pick on me all the time, but if someone else says something. God help them.
Mansks was more the silent but deadly brother. Always watching out for me, especially when I am out in the field. His eyes trained everywhere you just can’t see it from behind all those sunglasses he owns. He would back up z whenever they heard someone say shit about me, those people never came within my vicinity again. But he also had a softer side, like being an incredible cook. We all call him the grill master, and live for the days he decides he wants to cook. We eat well those days. Ja, brown and prager were like the three stooges together. Sometimes I honestly wondered if they all shared a brain cell. Lopez was cool. He would teach me a bunch of Spanish, mostly curse words but still would teach me. And anytime some music would come on he would be the one to dance with me.
Sorry I'm rambling. All in all I was very close to everyone in our squad of thirteen rowdy marines but it was my home. Now while the others were family Miles was much more.
As soon as I met the colonel I was enamored. It was hard to even describe why or how it happened. At first you think of him as just some hard ass old geezer who would never look twice at you and then you catch him helping his fellow members in tasks. Checking up on them like a dad almost. Learning how I liked my coffee so he can bring it to me in early meetings. While everyone simply thought of him as some hard ass to the book soldier, I thought of him as a trusted leader that has and will continue to bend over backwards to help the people he's loyal to.
Simply put I I fell in love
Despite his rough figure and reputation. I fell in love with him. With the warm smile he only showed when we were alone. With how he knew I loved the plants and things of pandora and would occasionally bring me non threatening flowers when he found them while in the field. How he actually would listen to me ramble to everyone about the stuff I had learned from grace without complaining or zoning out of the confirmation like the others.Stuff like that all garnered points in my heart towards my colonel It wasn’t until almost two years later when I confessed to Miles and to my absolute surprise he reciprocated. Even though he thought he was way too old for me I didn’t care. I had been surrounded by death my whole life so I quickly learned to seize any moment I could never know if that person would be there the next day. It wasn't until a year later that he proposed. That was the same year that Jake Sully arrived.
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Jake Sully was granted access I would have killed for. To be an avatar.
Jake was cool, another fellow marine who even though he tried not to show it, was fascinated with the world of Pandora and everything he was learning. A strong and independent person that despite his personal and physical trauma was such a goof. Miles liked him, I could tell. He respected jake for not letting his physical issues take him out. He liked people who persevered through issues. So it was no surprise that Jake was working with grace and i but he was still under the command of Miles.
When Grace decided to take her norm, Max, Jake and others out to the old shack to work instead of hell's gate I was given the option to go with them. Unfortunately I couldn't stay all the time. I wanted to be with my family and closer to better medical help for the life that was now growing inside me.Grace understood that but I for sure could feel the divide that was happening between the two groups of people I found myself Entangled in especially as Jake got to know more and more about the omaticaya clan.
You see, I saw something on both sides. The RDA was all about money and with the way the economy and everything was back on earth money was a necessary evil. While I don't agree with what they were doing, I understood why. With grace, norm, and Jake I saw the beauty of pandora. How much different she was from our own planet that is now no more than dust and metal it feels but here in the plush forests of color it was amazing. I could understand why the natives were so protective over it, myself slowly joining them. A little while into Jake's expedition I even got to meet Neytiri.
She had shown up to the little shack at Jake's persistence to meet me,and norm and to reconnect with grace since she had known her from before. Jake was trying to show her that not all humans were bad, which I can’t say he fully succeeded on but she respected all of us. I mean she was definitely standoffish at first with me, but once she saw my pregnant belly I could see something in her shift. She asked me about human babies and if they were very different from Navi ones. And she asked me about our family’s and about nature and we even bonded over teasing Jake which I found great, much to his detriment. Neytiri was great honestly. She was beautiful and strong and when it all came down to it we found we had more in common than not. I truly started considering her a friend and her doing the same with me.
Unfortunately when I got later in my pregnancy I could no longer fly out to the old shack anymore Miles being a worry wart. Actually all of the team were worriers but I just took it in stride. I knew how much they all loved me and I was happy to stay put to give them peace of mind. The only thing I wish I could do was get them to all stop taking Parker’s orders. It was like we weren’t even soldiers anymore, more like Parker and the RDAs hunting dogs. Even though I tried every day to tell them that the RDA was wrong. I know they were all loyal to a fault but I thought that loyalty was to each other over the RDA. Some would listen to me and agree with some of the things i said but some would just shake their heads at me and tell me we have to do the best we can for our own before trying to change the subject. Hard headed soldiers every last one of them but none more so than miles. No matter how much i speak and i know he listens hes loyal to the rda almost to a fault.
But I didn’t have a lot of more time to try and convince him that the shit Parker was whispering in his ear was all bullshit. It was late evening right before the eclipse that my water broke. God was that fun. 13 hours of labor and my son is finally welcomed into the world. He was so small. Beautiful light blond hair on his head, and his fathers eyes. It was unfair how I carried him for 9 months and he came out looking just like his dad. Everyone was so excited about him though our little Miles Lyle l/n quartich
*(couldn't find if spider had a middle name so just went with they made Lyle his god dad and named him that)
I had just taken the baby to the nurses unit to get his one month evaluation. It’s nice to get out again after being on bed rest for the last month. Everyone’s been very hush hush about any missions and stuff that have happened recently and it's not until I saw Miles and the others in a lab with Parker, that my interest was peaked, since they all would rather die than come over to this section. Walking through the doors everyone went a little quiet. Like teeenagers trying not to be caught in a lie. That was red flag number two.
I see miles talking into a camera and ask what he’s doing. He sates my curiosity by telling me Parker is making the team catch up on their logs so that the RDA has a good view of what's been happening. I know he is lying to me and he’s lucky I'm tired from staying up with our son or I would call him on his bullshit but that will be a conversation for later. He pushed me off to go get some sleep while baby miles was at his check up and that daddy would pick him up and they would join us later and i agreed. Placing a kiss on his lips i make my way out of the lab and towards our shared courtiers
Unbeknownst to him I learned what they were really doing video logs for. After leaving the lab I heard other soldiers talking about how sick it was seeing that big tree go up in flames. And I froze in my spot. No, I couldn't have heard that right. After pulling rank on them they told me what happened and to say I was pissed was an understatement, then being told that the others were now going to attack the omaticaya clan. I was seething. I immediately called Jake and the others knowing grace would tell me what's been happening without sugar coating anything,but found that they were no longer there. That's not good at all. I quickly made my way to the research sector and try to find max or really anyone. Bursting in the labs side room i see max running around like a chicken without a head
“Max where are they whats going on”
“y/n. You shouldn’t be here”
“Max what’s happening the others aren't answering and i just learned Parker wants to declare all out war basically”
“I'm sorry y/n. You’ve missed a lot since you’ve been out with the baby.”
“Well quickly fill me the fuck in.”
Max quiets me and takes me over to a side office shutting the door securely behind us. That’s when he tells me what happened. Tells me how the RDA had attacked Hometree and were now trying to take over the Forest. How Jake and the others tried to help the Navi and were caught and labeled traitors. How he and Trudy helped them escape. Each piece of info was like a knife to my heart. Everything pierced through me, when I asked about what had happened to them All he could tell me is that Jake was trying to get all the clans together to stop the RDA and that the board had somehow been set with jake neytiri and the natives on one side and my love and family on the other being pawns for the rda.
There’s no way. There was no way the people who would come see me and my baby and gush every time they saw him would lie to me. There’s no way the man I loved would lie to me and tell me everything was fine. No I, it couldn't be. I couldn't be stopped as I ran from the room. Once back in my own quarters I empty my stomach in the toilet almost shaking from rage and disappointment when I hear miles come in.
“Mamas your boys are home” Miles comes into the bedroom seeing me sitting on the bed looking pissed.
“What’s wrong darlin.”
“Don’t call me that right now miles.”
“Darlin?”
“DONT.! I got to know miles where do you and the others get off lying to my face.”
“Whatcha talking about”
“I know miles I know about the attack on hometree. I know about Jake and the others I KNOW.” I say screaming. Little miles now crying as I storm over and take him from his father, lulling him back to sleep and putting him in his little room while his predecessor tries to figure out what to say to me.
“Darlin now.”
“No miles this is wrong. I thought we understood each other I thought we agreed that we”
“Well you thought wrong. Darlin. We are not here to make friends with the natives, we are here for the rock in the ground.”
“Fuck that rock miles fuck the RDA the Navi are people they have emotions they have families just like us what makes us so much better to them to do this. They did nothing to us beside try and protect their home the same we would if the roles are reversed”
“Darlin, I think you forget who you're talking to.”
“No, I know exactly who I'm talking to. I'm talking to the man I thought was the love of my life but with every word is slowly proving to me he’s just as bad as everyone originally said.
Miles just grits his teeth as I get in his face. Just because I had a baby did not mean I wasn’t still a soldier. And he was about to relearn that real quick.
“y/n this is the mission i knew i should have pulled you from hanging out with those scientists sooner i knew you were getting too mushy for that natives.”
“Mushy miles what the fuck.”
“ENOUGH! He yells silencing my rant. “At the end of the day i am Colonel Quartich, at the end of the day i'm doing my duty to the human race, and i will not compromise that for anyone.”
“I'm not anyone, I'm your fiancé, the mother of your child. Im”
“You're still a soldier. A soldier under the RDA. Now I think it's time you take a little bit to remember whose side you’re actually on. Our or the savages outside.”
“The only savage I see right now is all of you.” I say as I throw my ring at him before snatching up baby miles things and locking ourselves in the spare bedroom.
I don't see that Miles breathes heavily, clutching his head as he tries not to punch a hole in the wall. I don't see how he reaches down and picks up my ring and pockets it or how he leaves and locks me and the baby in our quarters with strict orders to make sure we are taken good care of. Making sure i stay there while the next mission is about to commence, cause he knows deep down he'll lose me if i go out there.
But like miles said i am a soldier and even though i just had a baby i was not about to let my lover fuck everything up.
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It took me most of the next day to get out of the room. But once i finally wired the room door to open I was met with no one there thank god most being called to the front lines. I run to the lab to find Max and others still there trying to figure out what to do. I run over and grab max
“y/n what are you doing”
“Max i dont have time. I have to stop this.”
“y/n there’s nothing you can do now”
“No stop there is always time ok. I need you to help me though i need y’all to look after my baby”
“What y/n no”
“Max, I swear to eywa right now help me.!”
He just puts his hands up and relents one of the female scientists Abby comes over in all her goth glory and takes little miles from Mac promising she would help look after him. I trusted her, she had a good head on her soldiers and was constantly coming to see the baby. She called him her ray of sunshine in the lab. I kiss Miles' little head breathing him in as he smiles up at me, his beautiful little blue eyes the picture of his father.
“I love you my baby. And I pray we are reunited. But I have to go knock some sense into your papa first. Please take care of him.”
“We will y/n. We promise, go give them hell.”
All I can do is nod as I rush away. Leaving half my heart behind in hells gate as the other is lost in the forest. Take one of the new roving speeders and hustle to try and get to the shack its a god ways way but the pilot having my gun to his head helped speed thing along. That is until an arrow comes flying in disabling the copter hurtling us down. The landing was definitely rough and my pilot was dead but i was close enough I could make it on foot. I start rushing through the forest making my way when out of nowhere Dickson comes into my view
He was a fellow soldier. Was on the same transport as me when we first arrived on Pandora but like his last name implied he was a massive dick.Misogynistic, self absorbed, everything wrong with a guy he had wrapped up in a package.
“Well ill be damned the rumors where true”
“And what rumors would that be.”
“That you turned your back on the colonel and the others from some blue dick.” I just grimace at his stupid face waiting to see what move he would make
“I know quartich said not to harm you but if your turning ass and hanging with the tree fuckers then you deserve to die here and now.”
“Then do it you punk ass bitch.” I say before coming at the soldier with gusto. My life is on the line, my son's life. The life of my friends. I have everything to lose and I won't let some gung ho jackass soldier take it all away from me. I need to get to Jake and the others I got to get somewhere to stop miles. Gun shots ring out as I ditch my gun to rush Dickerson. My knife meeting his chest multiple times effectively ending his existence. So long to bad rubbish
I don’t even look back, It wasn’t until I was finally speeding to the old shack that I felt the burning in my side. Shit. I yell out. I have nothing to stop the large hole in my side but I can’t let that stop me now. I'm almost there. I almost have everything I need in the palm of my hands. I know seeing me will stop miles I know I could get him to stand down.
Finally getting to the old shack I see Miles and Jake are going at it, both not backing down from the situation at hand. All I can do is clutch my side trying to stop the bleeding caused from that bitchs gun. I finally get into the clearing yelling out to the both of them.
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“MILES, JAKE PLEASE STOP”
They both look over toward me seeing me stumble into the clearing. Jake is all done up in his warrior garb war paint on his face. He has a couple of cuts and nicks all over him. Miles wasn’t any better i dont know what happened to his amp suit but it now had no glass protection. Just miles with a exo mask over his face. The face that briefly looked upon me with worry and anxiety before his colonel mask came back up.
“Y/n get out of here it is not save”
“You don't speak to her sully”. Miles turns slightly to me still keeping jake in his peripheral vision
“Darlin what are you doing here you should be hooded up somewhere with the baby
“This needs to stop, Miles, this is wrong. You know that
“Darlin, I don't have the time to argue with you right now. I have to make sure this deserter piece off trash gets what’s coming to him
“Miles please, he just ignores me turning back to jake fully
“Jake i don't know how you and those scientists took here away from me but ill make sure you regret it
“Miles, listen to me please Jake has nothing to do with this. This is me please, I say trying to stumble further in front of jake. Him trying to reach out to me being shot back by the amp suit taking a giant step.
“Miles don't do this, let's just walk away please. We have little miles we have each other, everyone else that is left from our squad we can all stand down and go be real people, we can all be at peace with the Navi and have our own family. We don't need to fight.
“Darlin i know you aren’t telling me to turn my back on humanity
“No im telling you to choose your family and the people that matter over orders fro people who give two fucks if you lived or died today. Im begging you miles
I see his eyes cloud over with indecision. But I also saw Neytiri. I hadn’t noticed her before, preoccupied with my own wound and trying to save my family.
“Darlin you're right I.” “Neytiri NO.”
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But everything is too late. Her arrows pierce through the air just as her battle cry does. All finding their target in my fiancés chest, as he and his suit go crashing into the pandorian forest floor
“NO!!!!!” I scream fumbling over to Miles exo suit.
“NO NO NO no come on miles please please please.”
He is still awake choking on the blood now filling his lungs. His eyes come over to me and he tries to lift his hand to cradle my face
“Miles please no”
“I'm sorry darlin”
“No don't be sorry I'm sorry please don't leave me. I love you so much. Please”
‘Darlin i love you tell miles I love him to”
“No you have to live to tell him yourself please.”
All i can do is clutch his hand against my face praying to whoever i can to save him. But it does nothing as the light leaves his eyes
“y/n”. I hear jake say behind me Gently coming up to me
“y/n”?
“No, leave us alone.”
“y/n come on it's not safe out here”
“It’s too late Jake please.”
Jake doesn’t listen to me and comes up kneeling next to me. Placing his giant blue hand on my shoulder I finally turned into him, letting him envelope me in the hug I oh so needed. Momentarily forgetting I was bleeding out and my love just died in my arms
“y/n I'm so sorry” he says but as he comes up to pull me away and look at me does he notice the blood now staining his hand “Shit y/n are you hit?.” he starts looking over me seeing the gaping wound in my stomach. He gently sits me to lie back on the ground trying to find something around us he can stop the bleeding with.
“Yeah one of those bitchs shot me.”
“It’s ok y/n will get you cleaned up ok Neytiri.” He yells but I just put my hand on his face to bring his attention back to me.
“Jake, I need you to do something for me ok.
“What y/n no you’ll be fine.”
Jake please i'm a soldier i know when a wound is bad. Neytiri please just stop. Neytiri now joins her mate next to me. She looks over me with a sad look in her eyes her ears pinned down almost guiltily but I didn’t blame her
I'm sorry, tiri i'm sorry for everything that has happened to you because of humans but I must ask you. Ask you both a few more favors.
I want you to take care of miles. He's just a baby. He's not his father, he's not me, he's the perfect mix of both. He will be a wonderful human, I know it in my heart. Please don't let him suffer. Please
“We will y/n i swear.” neytiri says next to me, taking my other hand in hers, placing it against her cheek.
I have something else to ask jake. Please give these to miles too.” I hand Jake my dog tags with my ring on them as well as quartichs tags with his.
Please tell him his father wasn’t a monster. He was just lost, and I failed to lead him out. Please
“We will y/n I promise”,
“Tell him I'm sorry I couldn't stay with him but I know he will be better off on Pandora instead of earth.”
They both just nod to me, tears filling their eyes. My body has long since gone cold and I know my time is near.
“My final request for you is to bury us both somewhere nice.
What? Jake asks solumely
“Yeah somewhere beautiful, somewhere in the sun together, maybe then we will be together in the next life.” They both promise me and watch as the rain begins to drop slowly the light finally leaves me and they both just look down in shame and saddens neytiri hugging my small body to her saying prayers to eywa for mine and miles soul. How could she refuse her friend's wishes? She may have not agreed with who her friend's love was but love was sacred. Her and jake would follow the women’s wishes
After the fighting was over Jake, Neytiri and the other avatars and people that had known followed my wishes. Neytiri draped me in a beautiful fabric covered with flowers. Miles was given the same treatment given a warriors garb. Both of us positioned next to each other for the rest of eternity. The omaticaya tell stories of the butcher of the hometree and how he wasn’t evil, just misguided and how it takes those around you to help each other find the right way. The story is really becoming an essential teaching lesson for all children. Miles or spider as he likes to go by now grows alongside the other sully children. Jake and Neytiri really stepped up to be parents to him along with the others who were allowed to stay alongside the Navi after the humans' mass exit. He was definitely wild but very much loved. He knew who his birth parents were and he learned how much they had loved him. Every year he and the others all go out to the grave site to pay their respects.
Everything is perfect for 16 years until one night more stars than usual fill the pandorian night sky.
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spoopydooblr · 6 months
Note
The Ken and Stella pregnancy blurb was so good could you write one where they find out that she’s pregnant?
ive been thinking about this scenario a lot and i cant really decide how i want this to go . . .
i think a year or so after they get married (stella is like 30ish) they start to really do their research and find the best fertility clinic in the city. its been almost 20 years since kendall and rava struggled to get pregnant, but still, he's not feeling optimistic.
stella gets a clean bill of health from the doctor, but ken isn't so lucky. just as he suspected, he was the problem. again.
was it the drugs? he was clean now, but he used so much...could he have ruined his chances forever?
stella assures him that it'll be okay, but she never went through what he had to 20 years ago.
they decide on a couple of treatments. they're both taking shots every day and pills at night and its exhausting. most of the meds go to kendall, but stella has to take some too, just in case.
they begin with intrauterine insemination, which is pretty simple and painless, but stella gets her period two weeks later. its hard on both of them, but especially kendall because he knows it's him, not her.
next they try ivf, which is a lot more complicated and expensive (not that money is an issue). now they both have to do injections and stella goes in for her egg retrieval.
the egg retrieval goes better than expected and they're left with 10. ken's sample has some relatively viable sperm so they pull the trigger and try to make some embryos.
the waiting is by-far the worst part, because deep down kendall knows there's no way those embryos are going to get made with his shitty sperm. he's right, unfortunately, and they're back to square one with zero embryos and ten now-frozen eggs.
kendall suggests a donor, like they did with iverson. stella's heartbroken, but they start to look into other options.
because they have the best doctors, however, they get into a trial for a new drug that increases sperm count and viability. stella is thrilled and insists kendall try it, but it's another injection and he's not super happy about it. nothing has ever worked for him, why now?
it's nice to have a break from more intense treatments, so they agree and kendall marks his torso up with injection pricks again.
three months later, ken and stella are enjoying some time off from surgery and tiny, microscopic cells that control their lives. kendall's in new york for the week, working on some financials for their production company (i imagine them making something rival to waystar and completely taking over the media scene), and stella is holding it down in los angeles, or at least trying to.
it's flu season and she's been to so many fancy parties in the last few weeks, stella is sick as a dog. she's a little worried, but the nausea, vomiting and headaches are typical for the flu, right?
she also chalks her late period up to stress. but it's been at least a few weeks...
the day before kendall is supposed to come home, stella drives herself to the hospital after she can't stop throwing up.
"when did the symptoms start?" the doctor asks.
"a week ago, i think, but ive been feeling kind of off for a while."
"and there's no chance you're pregnant? when was your last period?"
stella's heart skips a beat.
"um, i'm not sure. we're trying, uh, but it's been unsuccessful. my period is really irregular and i've been stressed so--" she trails off. "we've been trying for a couple of years."
"and are you taking medication?"
"i did, but it's not really..." she thinks for a bit. "it's not a uterus issue, it's my husband."
"and what is he taking?"
she tells the doctor about the new medication kendall is taking. "it's only been three months, so we're still hopeful. or at least i am."
"i've heard some great things about that new drug. it's really changing people's lives." the doctor smiles, turning away from stella and writing something down. "i'm going to order some tests, but i think you're fine."
------------------
kendall, obviously, sprints to his jet when stella tells him she's sick. she insists she's fine, but wants him to come home as soon as he can, which stresses him out to no avail.
he bursts through the door four hours later, finding stella reading a magazine on the couch.
"stell!" he says, running towards her.
"hey baby." she hugs him, bringing him down to the couch with her. stella presses her lips to his, but kendall is confused.
"aren't you sick?" he pulls away.
her face breaks into a huge smile. "about that..." stella gets up from the couch and walks to the kitchen.
kendall looks at her quizzically, as she comes back with a piece of paper in her hands.
"i have something to show you." she says, holding the paper close to her.
"okay..." kendall smiles at her, utterly confused.
stella carefully sits next to him on the couch. "here."
kendall recognizes the picture immediately. he used to frame them when rava was pregnant with iverson.
"what is this?" he holds up the ultrasound. it's too good to be true, right? tears prick his eyes.
stella is crying already, and takes his hand. "that's inside of me."
he looks down at the black and white photo again. a fuzzy, bean-looking object sits, next to another, smaller object. he's speechless for the first time in his life.
"what is that?" he whispers, pointing to the smaller object on the page.
stella looks at him, and he really can't read her for once.
"this surprise comes with another surprise." she laughs.
kendall's crying, but he takes another look. "is that..."
"yeah."
"two?" he smiles wide.
"i'm pregnant." she finally says, putting her hands on his cheeks. "baby, we're having twins."
they both burst out into crying giggles, hugging. kendall kisses her all over, stopping at her stomach. it's still pretty flat, but he knows her body so well he swears he can see a tiny bump growing.
THIS WAS SO FUN AND LOVELY TO WRITE I LOVE THEM AND I HOPE U DO TOO
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