#i think even if her mind would have stayed intact she would still have stayed in the underdark. she just would have been unhappier about it

[fenharel]

saskia i am on my hands and knees begging for some ysabel info! what’s her backstory? what’s she like during the game? she’s so 🥰💖

[PERSONALITY]

Ysabel is a noble, Lolth Sworn Drow, living in Menzoberrazan and is a School of Divination Wizard

Shes an chaotic neutral ENTP, Gemini, 125 years old and 1.60m tall

Ysabel is creative and intelligent, mischievous and cunning. Some perceive her as quirky, eccentric - funny, confident with a giant ego, but also power hungry and selfish, sometimes cruel. She has always been full of ideas, always thinking of new and better ways to do things. She’s always been curious, more often than not you find her with her nose stuck in a book. Her childhood bedroom was exploding with books about fungi or tomes like “The past and present: a Scholars Guide to Divination”. 

She’s also rather extroverted and a social chameleon, excellent at manipulation and persuasion, something her mother often took advantage of, as she would often use her children like chess pieces in her political affairs.

[BACKSTORY]

The noble house of Do’Rahel is one of the 8 powerful houses in Menzoberranzan

Ysi has two older sisters (Yris, Yvory) and one younger brother (Ysmael, my warlock charlatan & very first D&D oc 😘)

Their mother (Yaelryn Do’Rahel) is a matron mother, a priestess of Lolth and a powerful and influential figure in Menzoberrazan’s affairs

As most intelligent people are prone to, Ysabel was more questioning of things like societal norms or rules and ideas than what was socially acceptable in the Cult of Lolth, something her mother often reminded her of through whipping. But her mother was also more progressive than some would believe - when her daughter showed more interest in the arcane than continuing her training as a cleric she encouraged it. She thought that having one of her daughters in the circle of the Sorcere was something that could be beneficial to her.

After a particularly nasty ambush on Ysabel (your regular weekend in the Underdark really) her mother assigned one of their warriors as her personal guard - a tiefling slave called Lucien (Side note but he’ll be romancing Shadowheart in a future playthrough 🤓)

Lucien was in his early twenties and enslaved for around 5 years at the time, he was passionate and charming, warm and strong. But he was also as cunning as he was kind. Ysabel liked him, and often would spend more time with him than was strictly necessary. He had Ysabel figured out quickly, and noticed that traits in her that might be weaknesses in her mothers eyes, could be his opportunity. That growing close to her could be his ticket to get free.

But things didn't necessarily work out for him at first as he would have thought - both of them fell in love.

He would tell her stories of his previous life, about his ideals and morals, about the world above. How children do not fear for their life where he is from, how parents love their children unconditionally, how he missed feeding the neighbors ducks before he would go to school. Ysi would laugh at him sometimes, call him weak and soft. But sometimes she would indulge in his stories. Catching herself thinking of them in bed before she go meditating. How strange it must be to live so truly carefree.

The influence Lucien had on her was undeniable. Small and meaningless at first maybe but there nonetheless. There were glimpses of true kindness in Ysabel only he got to see. Glimpses of love - real love, not just the craving for flesh or power he was accustomed to from other Drow. He saw that he had shaken her morals and beliefs, slightly perhaps, but shaken. So when she finally wanted to set him free out of her own volition, instead of running when his binding spell was broken he asked for her to come with him.

She helped him to stage his own death and broke his bonds and let him go, but she didn’t go with him. This would be a turning point in her life, something she regretted for the rest of her existence, something she kept thinking about for years on end.

For many years after, she buried herself in her tower. She never dared to think of why she said no, instead she sat in front of her mirror of memories, where she relived the time she had with Lucien. But in doing so, a part of herself, the past party in fact, was lost in it. Her present self was split in half. She was either overly good or overly evil, and she became known for being mad and for research and experiments that were even extreme by Drow standards. 

She was in this state for at least 60 years. She had short periods of time where she managed to stabilize herself through experiments, but it never worked for long. Nevertheless, she made a name for herself, she was an extremely powerful wizard, was considered one of the masters of Sorcere and had a place in their council. (Much to their dismay. Assassination attempts from her colleagues were a daily occurrence tbh.)

[GAME TIMELINE]

House Do’Rahel was infiltrated by Absolute cultists, leading to the almost death of her sisters Yris and Yvory, and the losing a handful of their staff members. Ysabel's mother also heard rumors of similar things happening in House Baenre and other houses all over the city. Sensing a bigger plot, instead of sending warbands like her colleagues, she only send Ysabel and a handful of warriors on a scouting mission. She was to gather as much information as possible. If she would see an opportunity beneficial to them - she should take it, and most importantly she was also to kill or capture any heretic or deserter of Lolth.

The trail they followed led them to the outskirts of Baldur’s Gate. She didn’t know it at the time but she was on her way to Moonrise Towers when she was abducted. When she woke up in the Nautiloid, the tadpole didn’t just strip her of her powers, but also stabilized her mind.

Being fully herself again after so long felt like having someone forcefully pushing a heart back into her. At the beginning of her journey she’s manipulative (she does a lot of the “heroic” options not because she thinks it’s the right thing to do, but because she thinks it’s a smarter way to uncover what is going on and/or because working with the Absolute would go against Lolth), she’s also selfish and a bit cruel, but a lot of things she does suddenly don’t feel the same to her anymore, and an top of that the problem with the tadpole - it forces her into introspection. 

At some point she realizes that her companions remind her of Lucien, and the time she had with him. Her development throughout the game mainly consists of her realizing that she rather wants love and friendship than pure ruthless power. She develops a consciousness, empathy. Something Lucien already built the groundwork of so many years ago. She realizes she was too much of a coward back then, that she couldn't let go of all that power and desert Lolth even though that's what she really wanted. Surrounded by her new friends, she doesn’t want to make the same mistake again. In her mind, she’ll never be truly good, much less a hero. But she doesn’t want to be what she used to be either. Seeing real friendship, love, experiencing it for herself, she realizes the only times she wasn't hollow was with Lucien - and now, with them. 

Her new friends act as mirrors to herself as well. She sees herself in Gale when he gets obsessed over the Crown, she sees herself in Astarion when he’s willing to kill all his former friends for power. And she sees herself in Lae’zel, Wyll & Shadowheart when it comes to the influence a God, Goddess or devil can have on you. They were all on the path she already walked on, and the guilt she is carrying with her over things she can’t change anymore is overwhelming, so she stops them all, helps them see what is truly important. 

About the reason she was in Baldur’s Gate in the first place, she isn’t honest with her companions at first, she has obviously her own agenda like everyone else in that camp. She was forced to explain herself by Wyll when she let True Soul Nere kill the Gnomes. Having a tadpole in her head made everything more personal of course, she starts going against the Absolute not in the name of Lolth or for her mother but for herself and her own beliefs in Act 2.

After the game, her mind is still hers. Going through so much change and admitting her biggest fears repaired herself, like a curse she casted and then lifted on herself. Also, she and Astarion guide the Vampire spawn in the Underdark for a while, and she also researches for ways to make Astarion walk in the sun again (and I like to headcanon that she succeeds :3)

If you want to take a peak, here is Ysabels pinterest 🥺, and since i mentioned Lucien, here is his'.

#shadowglens #answered #thank you for enabling me sophie. i wanted to post an info dumb for so long but im such a lazy mf #im leaving kisses on ur forehead but im also running away in fear. god i already cut this down but it's still so long IM SO SORRY 😭 #you: whats her backstory; me: here is my essay. kdjfslkjflsf #ysabel do'rahel #ocs tag #bg3 spoilers #lucien lovera #& yes u guessed right. jekyll & hyde was my inspiration for her Lul. also redemption arcs are my unguilty pleasure :3 #idk if i was really able to explain it but ysi's biggest flaws are cowardice and stagnation??? #having a damn mindflayer worm in her brain gave her finally the kick in the butt to be honest with herself #i think even if her mind would have stayed intact she would still have stayed in the underdark. she just would have been unhappier about it #or worse. however u wanna call it #oh side note but she was neutral evil before the lucien times. then become somewhat CN (then was split into chaotic good/chaotic evil.) #her current desposition is chaotic neutral. just to clarify since it might sound weird

[writerscall]

i don’t have any specifics but i’d love to see you do a jealous hazel :>

author’s note/s: 873 words. this embarrassingly took me a while to finish but in my defense, i’ve been in a real slump for writing. but this definitely got the momentum back a bit! enjoy hazel not exactly enjoying when someone thinks you’re pretty the same way she thinks you’re pretty.

In spite of the collective fear that the fight club might disband after the game, either by school orders or with all of you growing apart with more and more schoolmates wanting to be friends, it stayed intact. Surprisingly no new recruits, but that was probably why the bond of the club was stronger than ever. You were all there from day one and you all knew everyone still wanted to be there, even if getting punched in the jaw or kicked in the shin still hurt like a bitch.

It meant continuing to have Hazel as an everyday fixture in your life, though, and you weren’t going to complain about that. Or about any of the new friendships you’ve created, of course — especially Stella-Rebecca, whose realization and acceptance that she’s actually a lesbian was a very entertaining sight to see.

“I feel no different, but I also feel like I should be doing something to be more out, you know?” She asks you one day as you’re washing your faces in the locker room after practice. “Like, maybe not go around wearing a t-shirt that says ‘lesbian,’ or ‘i love girls’ or something, but like… should I go shop for a cute flannel later?”

There’s a chorus of no, don’t do that among the burst of laughter, and you hope the look you’re giving her looks more sympathetic than amused. “Lesbians come in all kinds of outfits, Stella-Rebecca. Don’t worry about it.”

“Or, you know, in no outfit at all, I won’t mind,” PJ quips with a shit-eating grin. Josie audibly groans and promptly drags her out of the locker room.

“A top that says ‘i love girls’ would be pretty cute, though. I’d wear one,” you tell her. Hazel comes into view at that same moment, smiling at you knowingly through the reflection in the mirror. Your heart flutters as you smile back. It was no secret that you and Hazel have been participating in a will-they-won’t-they dance for a while now. Everyone — or at least everyone in the fight club — knew about it.

Which was why you found Stella-Rebecca’s next words so surprising.

“Maybe we can go look for one together. I think you’d look real cute in one, too.” She winks at you as she squeezes your shoulder, then says her goodbyes as she sashays away. Huh. You can’t help but smile to yourself in amusement, though it’s immediately wiped off when you notice Hazel staring (rather, glaring) after Stella-Rebecca’s retreating figure.

You turn away from the mirror, saying, “Oh, come on, don’t be like that.”

“You know she’s flirting with you, right?” Hazel grumbles. “While I’m right here. Literally just right here, and then she still goes and does all that. She knows!”

“It’s not… she probably didn’t even mean it like that. Stella-Rebecca’s just very touchy and sweet—”

“I think I’m sweet to my friends too but I don’t go after people who are obviously accounted for.”

Okay, this was serious to her. Not that you had any intention of shrugging it off and letting Stella-Rebecca continue to flirt with you, if she would; you just didn’t think Hazel would take it so personally. She’s known the girl longer than you have and has definitely seen her flirt with other people before to know the difference between her being playful and actually being into it.

Then again, until recently, Stella-Rebecca was only coming on to boys.

You walk towards her, fighting the growing smile on your face as you take her own in your hands. “Your pout is really cute but there’s no need for it. I could go out with Stella-Rebecca after school every day of this week, even spend the whole weekend with her, and I’d still be ‘accounted for.’” Your nose wrinkles a bit at the last part. Hazel could either say the most random things or be strangely articulate.

She sighs, head tilting to the right in your hold. “Am I a horrible person for not liking the idea of you spending so much time with each other? I know you’re friends, we all are, but… I don’t know…”

“No,” you breathe out, rubbing your right thumb across her slightly smushed cheek. “It’s a hypothetical situation, anyway. The most she’ll get of me is one day because we’ve got a bunch of after school dates lined up, remember? We’ve got all those Lego plants to build.”

“The new additions to my botanical collection,” Hazel says, her mood noticeably picking back up. You give her face a gentle squeeze before wrapping your arms around her shoulders instead. Her arms wrap around your waist not a second later. “Yeah, the succulents came in yesterday. I think you’ll really like them.”

You smile at her. “You know I will.”

The feeling of her relaxing in your arms makes you relax too, although she’s still got that look on her face. Well, a different one now; like she was battling between saying something or shoving it down.

“What—”

“You and Stella-Rebecca can get matching ‘i like girls’ shirts, but only if we get matching ‘girlfriends’ ones.”

Oh. Not in a bad way, but still… oh.

There’s a part of you that’s thinking, already? but you’re a little too giddy about her clarifying what she wants — and it being exactly what you want too — to do anything but nod and beam at her. “Whatever you want, Hazel.”

#hazel callahan imagine #hazel callahan x reader #hazel callahan x you #hazel callahan fanfic #requests

[jaegeraether]

Sunsets and footballers (Part 46)

Lucy Bronze x Reader (41) & Alexia Putellas x Character (10)

Masterlist (other parts here)

((**Happy 2024!!**))

“And you just left?”

Ridley shrugged. There were sat at a café Ridley was introducing her to, waiting to order.

“It sounds like a good night…”

“It was.”

“And she forgave you?”

“She said she did.”

“And you shared dessert!” YFN’s eyes were basically hearts. “That’s adorable.”

“She can’t eat too unhealthily during season.”

“Don’t go making excuses now, Riddles, she wanted to share.”

Ridley sighed, the heat of the Spanish sun shining down onto her face. Her sunglasses could only do so much. She’d dressed for the pool they were going to be bathing around at Lucy’s place, black shorts and a loose, see-through white button up shirt with a black bikini underneath. She always took advantage of her days off by spending them in the sun or doing activities. She was much more excited to spend it with her Blue though. She looked over at her little smiling face, her dimples on show. She was also dressed for the pool and wearing quite a similar outfit, though with one of Lucy’s button ups, from the looks of it. She wasn’t quite as tanned as she’d been when they’d last seen each other in Australia, though. The UK would do that to you. She seemed much happier though. Happiness suited her. Lucy suited her.

“What’re you thinking?”

“Spain suits you.”

Her face flashed a happy surprise as her smile widened, and she pretended it didn’t. “You think?”

“Yes.”

“Lucy loves it here…” She said, looking around them at the people who were so much more placid and in less of a rush than the UK. “Reminds me of Australia.”

“Do you think she’ll stay at Barca?”

“She wants to, but her knee…she doesn’t know how much longer she can keep going.”

“You know, anyone in her position would have quit years ago already. Her work ethic is impressive.”

“I know. I find it hard to believe she wanted me of all people…I’m really proud of her.”

“Don’t discount your worth, Blue. She’s very, very lucky to have you. I guarantee you bring her a lot of love and security that she’s never had before.”

Ridley had always been honest, though she knew where it was necessary. She also was incredibly good at understanding people. Even though YFN knew this, it still didn’t stop her partially freezing at Ridley’s words. She understood them to their core, and that’s only after meeting Lucy once.

The waiter came over, then. He was cute, polite, his hair was a wavy light brown mess and he gave them both the most genuine smile as he pushed the glasses up the bridge his nose. He was exactly Ridley’s type. She leant back in her chair to get a better look at him, not worried that she was obvious about it. She could feel YFN’s eyes roll and the man’s naivety slowly being replaced by his testosterone as he realised she liked him. He blushed lightly and gave a little, nervous laugh that made her want him even more.

“Good morning, my name is Christian, what can I get for you today?” He asked, his voice so Spanish that she knew he didn’t speak English. She assumed he was new to the café as Ridley hadn’t seen him before.

“Torrijas and pan con tomate, both to share. A café cortado for me, and an apple juice for my friend, please.” Ridley replied in perfect Spanish, ordering for the two before they’d even looked at the menus. YFN didn’t mind, she was used to it, and Ridley knew exactly what she wanted anyways.

She handed the menus over with a smile she knew would catch him off guard. She could hear a little nervous breath as he took them, able to compose himself enough to nod at both before he left. She watched as he went. She was going to rock his fucking world.

“Ridley…” YFN chastised. She was the only person in the world who’d not be encouraging at something like that. She kept Ridley’s morals intact, which is one of the reasons she loved her so much. Also, hearing her actual name from her lips meant she was in trouble.

“He’s cute.” She murmured, still looking.

“Poor form.”

“I’m not in a relationship.”

“And what about the conversation we were just having?”

“Alexia and I aren’t dating.”

“But you want to be.”

“Wanting and doing are two entirely different concepts. Maybe I just want to fuck her and my brain is pretending it’s in love with her.”

“You know that’s not true. Yes, you obviously want to have sex with her. But you’ve had the opportunity, and you haven’t really… that night doesn’t count. You know she makes you feel differently. I hear the way you talk about her.”

That interested Ridley. She thought she’d done a good job of being nonchalant when speaking about the hazel-eyed footballer.

“I don’t owe her anything.”

“You keep telling yourself that, Riddles.”

Ridley hated when YFN was disappointed with her, which was a rarity. Did she owe her something, she wondered? For the feelings Alexia made her feel? For the feelings Ridley made Alexia feel? For the tension? For the unsaid acknowledgement from them both at dinner the other night that they could be something more?

Argh, emotions, her thoughts muttered. This is why she avoided them because they were always so fucking complicated. She wasn’t bad at them necessarily, she just avidly avoided them, so it was funny that the person closest to her in the world, the one sitting on the other side of the table, was the complete opposite.

“Any plans for tonight?” She asked, changing the subject.

“Lucy is organising a meet up for the Barca team to introduce me,” she said, her disappointment gone and her smile back. So she’d be with Alexia tonight. As if reading her thoughts, “I’m not sure who’s going. Lucy’s handling all of it.”

“Mmn. And this dress you need is for which event?”

“Uh…GQ Awards?”

“In London? How did you manage that?” She was surprised, and a little suspicious.

“My boss knows people.”

“Mmnhmn.” Again, the suspicion, but she didn’t push. “Date?”

“Solo.”

“To help Jordan and Leah, right?”

YFN had mentioned it was to support her ‘friends’ but hadn’t mentioned who. Though, she didn’t seem surprised that Ridley had made a correct assumption.

“Cheeky, but yes.”

“Okay, solo, representing your business, celebrity awards…obviously we need something sexy. It’s the Man of the Year awards so everybody will be dressing more masculine, even the women. Expect suits everywhere. So I’m thinking we go opposite and make you look so sexy that the men will want you on their arms.”

“I don’t want to go too crazy..”

“It’s okay, baby, I know exactly what you need.” Their drinks and food arrived then; the server just as nervous as previously. Ridley shot him another grin that had him tripping over his feet as he left. “And you said Jordan wants an outfit too?”

“Only if we find something nice. She’s been busy with training and doesn’t want to ask Leah.” She slid her phone over the table for Ridley. “This is what Leah is wearing.”

“Fuck me, she’s stunning. We can find something to match that. Jordan has a gorgeous figure. If Leah is in a dress, is Jordan happy with a suit?”

“I think she’d prefer a suit to be honest…”

“Perfect, I already have something in mind.”

“I also have her sizing-” The look Ridley shot her was almost offended. She was good at sizing. “Never mind, now what are these?”

“Apple juice for the drink. These are torrijas which are essentially a sweet cinnamon sugar French toast, but the Spanish way. They tend to get offended at that description, though. I know you like your sweet things. And this is pan con tomate which is a very popular dish in Spain where you have bread, usually ciabatta, which you brush with olive oil and toast before rubbing garlic cloves over the bread and then spreading the tomato on top. If I were to liken it to anything, it would be closest to bruschetta, just with tomato puree and it’s simpler.” She gestured to the tables around them, most of which had the same. “It’s very popular in Catalonia.”

“I feel like falling in love with Spain is inevitable at this point.”

Ridley allowed herself a chuckle. “Well, you’ll always have a home with me.” She let herself pause to see YFN’s smile. “If you’re used to naked people, that is.”

YFN groaned.

“What? You’ve seen me naked.” Ridley teased.

“You know, I think the noise would be the deal-breaker.”

She shrugged. “I soundproof. And then there’s the gags-”

Ridley was stopped by a small torrija launched in her general direction which she caught with ease and bit into as if it were meant for her.

They finished up their brunch and of course Ridley collected the server’s number before they left, much to YFN’s disapproval. Ridley made sure YFN had all of the attention and care she needed when they chose a dress. By the end of it, even she admitted it was stunning. It was a simple, charcoal grey satin dress which curved down around her body, hugging all of the right places. It was a spaghetti strap and low back to accentuate one of her best features, her back, and those dimples at the bottom. The design was so elegant and simplistic that even YFN loved it. They played around with hairstyles, Ridley eventually convincing her that a minimal boho side-braid would be the best with the dress the show off her collarbone on one side. They picked out jewellery, a simple silver necklace and a few rings along with an exquisite silver flower ear cuff. YFN had said she’d never felt so beautiful in her life. Ridley was proud of that. She loved putting confidence into others, especially YFN.

During her fittings and talks to the staff, Ridley had been doing some shopping of her own, amongst which was a suit for Jordan to wear. It was expensive, but money had never been a factor for Ridley as she purchased everything they’d chosen that day, including YFN’s items before she’d even had a chance. Ridley had YFN tell Jordan that she had a full outfit picked out for her as she drove them to lunch by the beach. A dip in the water was tempting, but they were already both hanging out for the pool at home. A lazy day, just with each other’s company.

“Do you mind if we pick up Chiquito on the way to yours?” Ridley had asked.

“He won’t fight with Narla?”

“He doesn’t fight with anyone unless it’s for my attention.”

“Okay, then.”

Chiquito was Ridley’s cat. He was a young, grey Turkish Angora that she’d rescued during her recent contract in Dubai. Due to the weather, he was a lot less furry than others of the same breed and being Ridley’s pet, he was quite used to all things outdoors including swimming. Unusual for a cat. They say pets are like their owners, and in that aspect he was, along with being the cuddliest cat on the planet according to Ridley. YFN had not met him yet, though.

They stopped by Ridley’s house, which she’d only seen in photos. It was massive. To own a house in Spain, you needed to be well off, let alone to own a house of that size. It was typical Spanish architecture, and from the state of it and the Spanish gardens, it was obvious she had people to take care of it. Inside, it was still original with a modern twist. The attention to detail was incredible, she knew Ridley must have had a lot of input into the intricacies of the place. Everything was so neat and tidy and…Ridley. Chiquito greeted them at the door, excited to meet someone new. He let YFN pick him up and cuddle him while Ridley showed her around the house. The outdoor area and pool were stunning. YFN’s jaw dropped. She knew Ridley was rich, but she had no idea how rich. She was scared to look in the garage.

“Why don’t we just swim here?” She laughed as she stared.

Ridley shrugged. “We can. Isn’t Lucy picking you up from your apartment, though?”

Your apartment, she’d said. A Ridley way of saying she approved of their relationship which was more important to her than she realised. “I can just give her this address.”

“Okay, it’s settled. We’ll stay here then.”

Two people rounded the corner then and YFN jumped.

“It’s okay,” Ridley laughed. “It’s just my housekeeper and caretaker. Blue, this is Maria and Mateo.”

She waved while Ridley introduced them to her in Spanish. They were a cute, older couple who looked happy to see someone other than one of Ridley’s casuals. Ridley asked them something in Spanish and they nodded, getting to work.

“They live in the guest house,” she said. “They look after the place 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. I’m practically just their guest who’s home on occasion.”

“They seem lovely. What did you ask them?”

“I just told them to expect more company and asked if we could have some snacks out by the pool.”

Ridley was similar to Lucy, always hungry, because she was always working out. She showed her around the entire place, multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, gym, kitchen, living areas and she even had a music room. Ridley loved her music. She’d always played when they were younger.

“Do you remember any of the guitar I taught you?” She asked.

“Some I think?”

Ridley grinned and picked up an acoustic guitar, handing it to her, before taking her favourite since high school, a cream coloured Sterling Cutlass. Ridley took a few more things including an amp out by the pool with them and set them up. YFN texted Lucy the address before they settled in for a swim and a play. Watching Chiquito get in the water and swim was one of the strangest things she’d ever seen, and it was hilarious to see him all soaked as he got out. They sun-baked for a while in their bikini’s and had a few jam sessions, the music coming back to YFN. Ridley could tell how much she’d missed it and the calm that came with it that she enjoyed. Snacks, guitars, swimming, Chiquito. It was perfect. They’d lost track of time, the sun getting lower in the sky. YFN was sprawled out on her sunbed in her bikini and open button up, eyes closed and listening to Ridley as she jammed to a song. Ridley was proud of her musical intelligence, following flows and creating her own melodies. She was sitting partially cross-legged on her sunbed, also in her bikini and button up, Bose headphones on and head moving to the sounds she was improvising. They had Spotify playing popular songs that she was improvising solos to, eyes closed and in her happy place. Chiquito was by her foot, now fluffy again with the sun drying his fur, curled up with his paw draped over her foot. He was a touchy cat.

She was in the middle of a solo to The Chain by Fleetwood Mac, one of her favourite songs, when a grape hit her head. She was undisturbed and reached for it, popping it into her mouth before another one hit her and she got the hint, her eyes opening to a sight she hadn’t expected.

Lucy was there. With Ona Batlle. And Keira Walsh. And Alexia.

Alexia would have been lying if she said she wasn’t turned on by the sight of Ridley jamming away in her bikini. YFN threw a grape at her, impacting her temple but she didn’t flinch, she stayed in her zone, even popping the grape into her mouth as her fingers expertly navigated her instrument. She opened her eyes at the second grape, though, her eyes immediately finding Alexia with a grin before they roamed over the others she was with. She popped the second grape in her mouth and tilted her head, pulling her headphones down around her neck.

“What in the world of football lesbians do we have here?”

Another grape hit her head. This one was thrown by Lucy, though, from her spot on the bottom of YFN’s sunbed.

“Are you secret royalty?” Lucy asked.

“No, just materialistic, I guess.”

Lucy chuckled at that and Alexia could tell they were already good friends. “I brought a few people, I hope you don’t mind. I drove them all to practise this morning.”

YFN was standing, introducing herself to Keira and Ona. Keira was happy to meet her, hugs and all. Ona was a little quieter than usual, Alexia realised. It had been last minute that they’d diverted and she hadn’t realised YFN would be here, she supposed.

“The more, the merrier.”

“The pool looks tempting. I would ask for a swim, but the sun is setting and we don’t have bikini’s.”

“I wouldn’t be opposed to a little skinny dipping, Bronze,” she replied with a wink.

“Riddlessss…” Came the warning from YFN. “Play nice.”

Ridley put her hands up in a gesture of submission. “Party wrecker.”

YFN rolled her eyes. “Ona, Keira, this is Ridley, Ridley, this is half of the Barca team,” she said with a laugh. It was a happy sound that made Lucy turn around just to look at her. She stepped forward and put a hand on her girlfriend’s shoulder where she sat. “And you already know Lucy and Alexia.”

Ridley gave a wave. “Hola. And this is Chiquito. Welcome to our home.” She gestured around her as she picked up the little grey cat. “Have you come to take my friend away?”

Ridley stood then, most of her body on show. Alexia couldn’t physically help but stare at her. So many scars she hadn’t noticed before. And…tattoos? Ridley wandered over closer to the group, not bothering to close the button up like YFN had. With a body like that, she didn’t blame her.

“Sure have. I hear you helped YFN find a dress for Friday?”

“Not ‘helped’.” YFN said. “She did everything. And accessories. And hair. And Jordan’s outfit also. I can’t wait for you to see it!” She gushed leaning further onto Lucy. Alexia knew she didn’t mean to be so touchy in front of Ona, it was just how they were together. Thinking that, she remembered Ridley’s fingertips on her hand at the restaurant the other night, her lips on her cheek as she said goodbye, her fingertips rubbing her clit into her orgasm and through it-

“La Reina?”

That pulled her from her daze, her eyes immediately locking with Ridley’s.

“Si?”

“Are you okay with it?”

“With what…?”

Ridley’s smile and eyebrow raise made her feel like she knew she was the reason she was so distracted. That stunning face. Alexia was…nervous. It was an unusual feeling.

“I asked Ridley if she wanted to come tonight and she only will if you’re okay with it.” Lucy responded. She was standing now, one arm around YFN’s hip.

Alexia cleared her throat quietly and responded quickly trying to not be so obvious about wanting exactly that. “Si…yes I’m okay with it.”

Alexia tore her gaze off of Ridley, finding anything else. Her eyes fell on YFN who was biting her lip and Alexia wondered what she was thinking before she spoke. “We can meet you at the bar if you want?”

Ah, she must have been thinking about an awkward car ride sitting between Ona and Keira.

“Your clothes…” Lucy reminded her.

“I have plenty of clothes here. Many different sizes. We’ll find something cute for her to wear.” Ridley was confident.

Alexia wondered exactly why she had so many clothes, and her brain immediately thought of women she had over. Was it for them?

“It is…a boy?” Ona asked in broken English, stepping closer to Ridley and looking at Chiquito.

“Si.” She took a small step forward for Ona to pat. Ona was very much an animal lover. Keira stepped forward also when she realised how cuddly he was.

“How old is he?” She asked.

“Just turned one.”

“You adopted him?”

“She rescued him while she was in Dubai,” YFN answered for her.

Ridley rescued him? The thought of her seeing the little cat and wanting to take him home to Spain moved something in her. Her heart softened. He was very much obsessed with his mum, from the way he looked at her. Alexia felt a sadness in her stomach for her Pomeranian, Nala, who she’d recently lost. She pushed that emotion aside and gave way to the next which surprisingly was a deep jealousy, watching both Ona and Keira so close to Ridley, brushing up against her as they patted Chiquito in her arms. Keira stepped back first, being more of a dog than a cat person and even while Ona was still patting him, he looked over at Alexia and extended a paw in a stretch, slowly blinking. She thought she was going crazy, thinking he was gesturing to her when Ridley caught her attention.

“I think he wants to meet you.”

Alexia hesitated, not allowing herself to look up at Ridley just yet, for fear of daydreaming or doing something stupid again. She stepped towards the cat who was leaning into Ona’s hands, though looking at the Barca captain as she came so close she was almost touching Ridley. She stroked her fingertips through his soft, longish grey hair, noticing there wasn’t much of him. He was still a baby. And he was adorable.

“He’s intelligent, no?” She asked in Spanish.

“Si, very much so,” Ridley replied in perfect Spanish.

Ona’s head shot up. “You speak Spanish?”

“Of course, I live and work here.”

“Most people don’t bother to learn.”

She shrugged. “You learnt English, no? It’s rude to move to a country and not try to learn the language.”

“Wow, your Spanish is so good!” She complimented, listening to it roll off of her tongue. Ridley smirked at her and that jealously hit Alexia hard again. Very, very hard. So hard she felt sick and took a step back. She looked over at Lucy who’s eyes widened as she noticed.

“Okay, should we stop patting Ridley’s cat and go?” It was a deliberate sexual innuendo, obvious enough to earn her a slap on the arm by YFN. They grinned at each other.

“I’ll see you there. Text me the address.”

“Actually, we’re going to Javier’s bar…” Alexia said.

“Javier?” Ridley seemed confused and the look in her eye was almost as if she would back out. Alexia wasn’t surprised, she would have a lot of people flirting with her there. She couldn’t imagine she’d get through the night without spending some time up in one of the private rooms with someone.

“Is that okay?” YFN asked, a hand going onto her friend’s arm.

“Si,” she replied, pulled from her thoughts, her eyes finding Alexia’s. “Yes, we’ll see you there.”

Alexia was sitting on a bar stool, her leg bouncing as they waited. All of the Barca girls were there and having a good time. It was the middle of the week, so they weren’t drinking, just having dinner and chatting away. A hand touched her knee gently and she turned to Lucy who was giving her a look. A look that said ‘calm down, everything is okay.’

“They’ll be here soon.”

They’d arrived earlier, and Alexia knew that. Just as she said that, they walked through the door. She knew that because of the regulars greeting Ridley, and Lucy’s head snapping to watch YFN like she sensed she was there. Lucy stood automatically and Alexia couldn’t help but chuckle. They were just as bad as each other. While Ridley was tied up with some of the staff and regulars, Lucy introduced YFN around the table. Alexia forced herself to talk to Mapi and Ingrid across from her, distracting herself. She’d only lost sight of Ridley for a few minutes when the hair on her neck tingled and she smelled her perfume as she came up behind her.

“Is this seat taken?” She asked in Spanish.

Alexia shook her head as Ridley took a seat to her left, but not before introducing herself to Mapi and Ingrid over their table who gave Alexia a look. It was common knowledge around the team by now of Alexia’s ‘crush’. The ‘one who made her so grumpy’ Oshoala had said.

“Alexia!” Came another voice from behind her. She turned in her seat and grinned at Javier who had his arms outstretched as he came in for a hug and a kiss on either cheek. “Ridley was telling me about how your friends are dating…small world, yes?” He laughed.

“Apparently so,” she grumbled.

He laughed again at that. Javier was not stupid. He knew people. Not of people. But…people. What made them tick. It’s what made him so good at his job. “Servers will be around soon, I’m heading off for an early night, I just wanted to say hello first.”

“Sexy date?” Ridley asked.

“Oh baby, you know it. I’m going to blow his socks off.”

They shared a hand clap and a cheeky look between them. Javier said his goodbyes and left, but not before slipping something to Ridley that she caught out of the corner of her eye. Her stomach sank. Was it a room key, so she could fuck someone?

Lucy and YFN returned to their seats on the right side of Alexia, Lucy grabbing the bottom of YFN’s chair and dragging it right up against hers. Cute. Although Ridley wasn’t as close, she was very aware that she was right next to her, no matter where she looked.

“Alexia?” A small voice came from behind her.

She turned in her chair to see a young girl in a Barca jersey holding up a little teddy. Alexia took it out of politeness.

“Hola. Would you like me to sign this?” She asked in Spanish with a smile.

“No, that’s a present for you. Could I get a photo?”

Alexia smiled and nodded. She knelt down next to the girl and held the teddy up, one arm going around her as her mother took a photo of both of them.

“Thank you for my teddy, it’s very cute.”

“Her name is Nala.” Alexia hesitated, not able to find words. “Because you lost Nala.”

The melancholy must have been written on her face because her mother stepped forwards putting her hands on her daughter’s shoulders. “I’m so sorry, Alexia. She heard you lost Nala and wanted to give you something…I hope it’s okay?”

“Y..yes.” She replied, her voice cracking. “Yes of course, sorry, you caught me off guard. Thank you for this.” The last part was directed to the girl who smiled.

She watched them as they walked off and she returned to her barstool, holding the teddy to her with one arm. Nala. Fingertips touched her hand. She looked at Ridley who had lost all cheekiness, her eyes sincere.

“Are you okay?” The question was soft and just between the pair.

Alexia nodded. “Si, thank you.”

“She’s cute,” she murmured, looking at the teddy.

Her fingertips left her then and the skin where they were became cold.

The rest of the night was full of good talks, and a few awkward moments. Ona had been unable to stop her eyes wandering to Lucy, and it was obvious to everyone at the table besides her. YFN made her way around to talk to different people, Ridley mingling also. Ona had been flirting with Ridley and Alexia wondered if it was intentional, or just to distract herself from Lucy. From what she’d seen, Ridley had been polite about it, but that hadn’t stopped the jealousy. They all moved around, not really keeping their seats as they spoke to each other. Alexia kept her little teddy close so it wouldn’t be covered in drinks or food.

“Ridley!”

Ridley turned, so did Alexia who was a few people down from her. He was a handsome guy who’d had a few to drink, and he spoke to Ridley like he knew her.

“Hola.”

“It’s me!” He said in Spanish with a slur.

She tilted her head.

“Max?”

“Oh! Max. Hola.” She seemed uninterested and as if he’d interrupted them, which he had. Still, her reaction caught Alexia off guard because she was usually nice to everyone.

He frowned. “I thought you’d be more excited to see me.”

“I’m with friends, Max. Is everything okay?”

“I just wanted to know if you’re free.”

“Clearly not.”

Another frown. “I’m beginning to think you don’t like me…”

“I’ve told you multiple times in the past that I don’t.”

“Come on baby.” He grabbed her jaw. “I wanna see what that mouth can do.”

Alexia took a step forwards but stopped as YFN grabbed her arm. “She’s got this.” She murmured.

Ridley slapped his hand away. “My mouth can do a lot of things…” She teased.

“Like what baby?”

“Like hurt your feelings. Now fuck off.”

He didn’t take it well and his jaw flexed as Ridley turned her back on him. A woman came over and grabbed his arm, dragging him away before returning and grabbing Ridley, spinning her around.

Ridley groaned. “What in the one mutual friend do you want?”

“That’s my boyfriend.”

“I’m sorry. Do you need a therapist? I have a great one I can recommend.”

A few of the Barca girls chuckled under their breath, enjoying the show.

“Fuck you. He’s a great guy! He was just being nice!”

“You see a lot of potential in a guy who obviously sleeps on a mattress on the floor.”

Alexia coughed to cover a laugh and from the side of Ridley’s mouth smirking, she knew she heard it.

“You’re just a fucking-”

“Uh uh.” Ridley cut off. “Before you try to hurt my feelings, take into account that I don’t have any, and that you probably do. Now go back to your boyfriend and maybe give him some attention so he’ll stop trying to pick up women in the bar like he does every other night.”

“He does not.”

She shrugged. “Just warning you. Have fun.”

“He’s…he just like sex. He’s the reason I’m happy.”

“Good for you. I’m the reason a lot of people drink heavily. Now fuck off before I call security.”

She raised her hand, gesturing to the security guard watching them. The woman looked over and thought about it until she gave up and walked away. Ridley nodded to the security guard who nodded back and kept an eye on them.

Ridley turned back around to the applause of the Barca girls and Alexia would be lying if she said she wasn’t incredibly turned on. Apparently Ona was also as she leant in and shared a chuckle with her about the ordeal. Alexia turned away but couldn’t find a distraction anywhere. Across from her, Mapi and Ingrid were kissing, and to her right, YFN and Lucy were getting closer, talking lowly with their eyes loving each other. She couldn’t be mad, but she was. So mad. Behind the madness she could feel loneliness and sadness. She looked at the time. 9pm. They had training tomorrow.

“I’m going to head off,” she murmured thinking no one would hear. They did.

“Already?” Lucy asked before looking at the time, her eyes widening and turning to YFN. “We need to get you to bed.”

YFN had an early flight.

“We’ll come too,” Mapi nodded.

“I want to stay,” Ona said, but it was directed more at Ridley. Her eyes flicked to Lucy and back though.

Alexia didn’t even want to hear the response, thinking about the room key in her pocket. She stood and said her goodbyes, holding her teddy close as she walked out with Lucy, YFN, Mapi, Ingrid, and a few others.

“Who needs a lift?” Lucy asked.

Alexia, Mapi and Ingrid put their hand up for that. Oshoala offered to take Patri and Keira home while Caroline and Marta were going together.

On the way to the car, they were approached by two young men wanting autographs. Alexia had seen them before, and knew they didn’t care about them, they just used their autographs to make money. The Barca girls brushed them off but they were insistent. One of them was going for Lucy and pushed YFN out of the way. She stumbled and fell to her knees.

Lucy saw red and shoved him away, helping YFN back onto her feet, putting her behind her protectively. “Get the fuck away from her.”

He put his hands up and backed away, Lucy waiting until far enough away to look at YFN’s scraped hands. She put her in the passenger side and closed the door, holding the rear door open for the others. Ingrid jumped in and Mapi was shoving the other insistent guy away before he got to the Norwegian. Alexia was last, and obviously his prime target.

“Alexia!” He held out something for her to sign. She ducked her head kept walking to the car. “What, so you’ll only sign it if I’m a girl? Typical lesbian.”

What he said was disgusting, but it wasn’t something she hadn’t heard before. She kept walking to the car as he backed away, though he seemed to change his mind and before she got to the car, he snatched the teddy from her arms and ran away.

“No!” She yelled after him. Nala. He jumped into the car his friend was in, both laughing as they started the engine. Alexia knew better than to pursue in case she was hurt and just stood there, her arm still outstretched a little from when she’d tried to stop him. She couldn’t help the tears that fell from her eyes. A hand touched her arm and she turned. Ridley. One look at her face and Ridley’s jaw flexed, her expression changing to something Alexia hadn’t seen before. Ridley ran to their car as they started it up and grabbed the door handle. It was locked. They stuck their finger up at her and started to drive off. She ran with them and that’s when she smashed the front window in with her fist. It took a few tries and Alexia gasped when she watched it, knowing how much it must have hurt. The guys yelled and hit the brakes as she leant through the window and grabbed the teddy. She left them there, and wandered back over to Alexia, her anger disappearing as she did so. The car sped off behind her. Alexia looked wide eyed at Ridley as she handed the teddy back to her as if it was nothing.

“Some things can’t be replaced.” She murmured, not meeting her eyes.

Alexia’s lips trembled and she wiped the tears from her eyes, taking it and holding it close to her. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Now, can you drive my car to hospital please? I broke my hand.”

#woso #womens football #woso community #woso fanfics #woso imagine #woso soccer #engwnt #jordan nobbs #lionesses #lucy bronze #woso x reader #lucy bronze imagine #lucy bronze x reader #ona batlle #mapi leon #ingrid engen #alexia putellas #barca femeni #keira walsh #barcelona femeni #barca #fc barcelona #fc barça #fc barca #culers #england lionesses

[bazaarwords]

thank you @why-does-it-matterr​! i think i got a little carried away, but i hope you enjoy!

cw: descriptions of injuries

-

There was a place she used to go to after the Order had days like these. Bad days. Ones that left her numb.

Historically, the place is both tangible and not—a lonely tower at the Cat’s Cradle, and once there, a few long moments of contemplation. But her old home is a long way away, and so Beatrice finds the part of her mind that needs this kind of treatment and sends it elsewhere. As for her body, she deigns to get to work instead of separating herself. The OCS may not be her world anymore, but there are wounded. People she cares for.

In the wreckage of their makeshift hideout, Beatrice wonders if maybe it’s never been the events of the day that seep the feeling from her. Maybe it’s always been this—this thing she must do to herself in order to succeed. Months of wandering have not divested her of the need to perform. The months have, however, been a reminder of all she’s lost.

She sets her feelings aside. There are things to do.

The first order of business: Camila’s shoulder is out of socket, and for all their collective expertise, Beatrice remains the best candidate to set it. Years ago, before the Order had swept her away, she’d spent a long summer volunteering in a hospital. It’s not the medical training she’d received afterwards, but the exposure was, at the very least, an advantage.

“Ready?” She asks, although she knows that Camila is always ready.

Camila, in the kind way she does all things, just smiles as if Beatrice is the one that needs the reassurance. She nods. “Go for it.”

Camila doesn’t flinch. She lets out a long, measured breath and she says, “ow” and she laughs at herself. Beatrice would like to take the time to laugh with her, but her joy is locked up in that faraway place. She squeezes Camila’s other shoulder, helps her into a sling made of a torn shirt, and moves on to the next.

Sister Dora has twisted her wrist. It’s discolored and swollen, but her bones are, thankfully, intact.

“A tarask,” she explains, “I thought it’d… well, I thought it’d kill me but…”

But she came back, Beatrice thinks to herself, searching the wreckage for wood to make a splint. She saved you.

She blinks that away—she has to. Sister Dora must notice her reticence. She doesn’t complete her thought. So Beatrice secures Sister Dora’s arm, and she moves on.

Yasmine has taken a glancing blow to the head, and Mother Superion has opted to stay up with her in the wake of the fight to monitor the damage.

“I’m okay,” Yasmine says when Beatrice comes by, holding up a placating hand. “I mean—I remember my name, so. So that’s good, right?”

Superion offers the smallest of smirks. It’s fond, not hard-won. “Yes, Yasmine,” she says, and rises up on unsteady footing. It’s not the new, halo-resurrected Superion.

“What happened?” Beatrice asks, firmer than she’d meant to. Emotions are nebulous when she settles into this way.

Superion shakes her head. “Nothing that should concern you. A few bruises.” She gives Beatrice a meaningful look—one she’s not present enough to catalogue. “There’s a cot in the back. Rest. We’re fine here.”

It sounds like an order, and even though she’s put the church behind her, she still respects Mother Superion. She can still recognize that she’s done all she can for the group, within reason. So she makes her way to the back room, feeling nothing. She sits on the edge of the cot, feeling nothing. She shrugs off her outer layers, feeling nothing.

Her mind has been in that faraway place, however, and as she returns to herself, everything sinks in.

While information comes in in pieces, on thing is for certain—there’s pain, everywhere. It would make the most sense to take stock of the worst places, the ones that need her immediate attention, but when feeling rushes back into her, the only thing she can think is that she needs to get out of this room and to wherever she’s gone—

There’s a jolt, razor sharp in the already excruciating throb of her abdomen. It’s quite obviously from when she’d been launched across a courtyard. The intensity winds her halfway to standing and her hip smarts as soon as she’s fallen back to the cot. She tells herself several times that she needs to get herself back in that empty place, that world where she feels nothing. Above all things, she needs to be there because she needs to find Ava.

A week prior, there had been a desperate call for help, a train from the small Finnish town she’d wandered into the month before, and Beatrice had found herself right back in the fray. Seeing the faces of her friends again after all their time apart had been bittersweet. When the fight had come to them, she’d remembered the last words Lilith had said to her. A holy war.

Despite her best efforts, she’s in the middle of it.

“Fuck,” she says, because she curses now. Because she knows that her knee is going to give out if she tries to stand. Because she’s effectively trapped herself in this room.

Frustration wells up in her like a lit fuse.

Assess the damage, she thinks, because what the hell else can she do?

The buttons of her shirt are slow work, her hands are weak from gripping her machine gun, her knives, the side of a building as she hoisted herself and Yasmine back to safety.

God is lost to her now, but it is a miracle that none of her injuries have drawn blood. A massive swath of skin along her side is purple and yellow but unbroken—it is the very worst of things. It hurts to draw breath, and hurts even more to bend and pull her pant leg up past her knee, to find the skin there in much the same condition. Upon further inspection, her hip, too, is a wild mess of bruises.

She’s a wreck, and what do they have to show for it? A few inches of ground? A few battered nuns, scrounging up whatever tools they can find?

Ava.

They have Ava. She just… doesn’t know where.

Beatrice had seen it happen as if in a dream.

The blinding light from above, the shockwave that had sent the tarasks flying in all directions, but hadn’t so much as nudged the sisters. When she’d looked, it was Ava’s form in the center of the light—Beatrice would know it anywhere, in any world—flickering in and out. She remembers shouting, desperate, stumbling through the wreckage. The details from there are hard to recollect. It’s when she’d been grabbed and thrown, it’s when the fight had resumed and she’d lost sight of Ava.

But she had seen her. That she’s certain of.

She closes her eyes, wincing as she tilts her head to the ceiling. The breath she tries to take is shallow and does nothing to steady herself.

“Beatrice?”

The pain of movement is forgotten, the voice like a ribbon of gold around her heart.

There’s Ava. There’s Ava.

The breath is gone in a rush, and Beatrice forgets the rest of the pain and she tries desperately to stand, to run, to move. Her leg gives out and Ava’s on her in a second, easing her back down.

“Ava,” she says, voice breaking, throat tight, “Ava.”

Ava kneels in front of her and she takes Ava’s face in her hands and she can’t look away. Suddenly, that place she goes—the one that is empty and lonely is filled with life. Filled with Ava. And she’s here, she’s real and alive and breathtaking in all the ways that Beatrice has loved. Loves. She feels nothing but it, looking at Ava.

“Bea,” Ava says, fingers wrapped around Beatrice’s wrists like they’ve been fused there. “Bea, you—you’re hurt.”

“You’re here,” Beatrice responds—nothing else matters. “Ava, you’re—“ She doesn’t have other words.

It should hurt to speak. It should hurt to lean forward, but then her lips are on Ava’s and nothing hurts, everything aches. Ava makes a small noise that lets loose something in Beatrice’s chest, and she wants to draw Ava closer, but her body betrays her, her whole side lighting up as if on fire. As if to remind her that respite is fleeting. But she doesn’t care, nothing else matters—

Ava notices her wince and pulls away. It hurts to try to pull her back, but still Beatrice tries. “Fuck,” Ava says, voice shaky, “Bea—hold on. You need—“

“I need you to not leave. I’m fine, I promise.”

“I’m not—you’re not fine, your—oh, God, Bea your side—“

Another Beatrice might have taken modesty into consideration. Her shirt is wide open, her trousers undone, and Ava is knelt before her, a hand on her bare knee. She just—she just wants so keenly that the constant, painful reminders of her body’s journey through battle feel like they’re killing her. She wants to pull Ava up and on to her lap, she wants Ava’s mouth on hers again, she wants, she wants, she wants. And maybe it’s her pilgrimage and her seperation from the church that’s allowing her this clear revelation, or maybe it’s just the relief to be in the same room as the girl she loves. Maybe that’s all it’s ever been.

“Let me… shit, I don’t know how good I am at this yet.” Ava focuses down on Beatrice’s splotchy, wounded knee, and the dark room is slowly illuminated by the glow of the Halo.

It feels… itchy, at first. It’s not a scab, but the injury takes on the properties of one—Beatrice tamps down the overwhelming need to scratch or pat at it, but then—as soon as it began—it’s gone. Ava pulls her hand away and the skin is as normal as it’s ever been. An oblong scar where bone is closest to skin from one too many skinned knees, but other than that? Nothing.

“How did you…” Beatrice trails off, swinging her leg back and forth easily.

“I’d… you know, I’d really like to explain it, but, uh. I have no fucking idea.”

Beatrice can’t help it, she laughs, a little hysterical. And then she wants to throw up.

“Don’t—no laughing. Stop it,” Ava says with a worried smile. She sets the tips of her fingers at the massive bruise on Beatrice’s side, and Beatrice can’t tamp down the shiver that rockets through her at the feeling. “Sorry. Sorry, I just need to...” Ava says, her voice thick, “just let me…”

The Halo does its work again, scrubbing her pain from her, raw and red until it’s not anymore. Beatrice takes a breath, and there is no pain.

“Good?” Ava asks.

“Good,” Beatrice responds. She wants that to be the end of it, but when she tries to move in again—“I think there’s another…”

Herein lies the problem. Her hip.

Ava looks down, and they’re in the middle of a war, but Beatrice wonders if she closes her eyes for just a moment, maybe they’ll be back in the Alps. Maybe there, this touch is necessary for another reason. Maybe Ava is looking up at her like this and maybe nothing has ever been wrong.

But they’re in the blown-out remains of a church, and there are demons everywhere, and in her darkest moments she’d worried that this—her and Ava—was lost for good.

Ava hovers over her bruise, and Beatrice nods. Ava is delicate, fingers light over her hipbone. This is not the time to wish for another life, but still she does. And for the first time in months, the wish has legs. It climbs out of that place she goes and it smiles at her, and Ava smiles at her too, proud of her work.

Beatrice draws her in, and the war rages on, but there are no more lonely places.

She has Ava. It’s enough.

#warrior nun #warrior nun fic #warrior nun fanfic #warrior nun fanfiction #ava silva #sister beatrice #avatrice #avatrice fanfiction #avatrice fic #fanfiction #fanfic #fics #sister camila #sister yasmine #mother superion #wn #save warrior nun #my fics #my writing

[riordanness]

my tears ricochet - [p.jackson]

1.3K wordcount

warnings: death, serious angst

requested: no

"Okay, everyone ready?" Percy asked, his sea-green eyes searching the crowd. They locked on me for half a moment, then flitted away.

The campers looked grim, but they all nodded and put on brave faces. This was probably the last battle any of us would ever fight, but we had to try. We were the world's last chance.

Percy grimaced, held up his sword, Riptide, and cried: "For Olympus!"

"For Olympus!" The cheer echoed eerily in the dark tunnel, sounding much louder than us fifty kids should've been able to make.

"Alright," Percy said. "Everyone partner up. No leaving your partner, not for anything. Stick together, stay in sight of other pairs, and keep each other safe."

Everyone immediately started grabbing for their friends, chaos erupting like a bonfire.

Percy moved through the crowd towards me. I managed a smile, but I knew it didn't look genuine.

"Hey," I said, my voice a higher pitch then usual. I shrugged my right shoulder a little. "It's gonna be fine, alright? We've got nothing to worry about."

Percy gazed at the other campers, then back at me. "Yeah... yeah of course."

I reached over and squeezed his hand. "Hey, wanna be my partner?" I smirked a little.

Percy's face melted a little, the smile I loved so much shining through the darkness, just a little. "I guess so."

I scoffed. "You guess so? What, I'm not your best friend anymore?"

He suddenly grabbed me and pulled me into a tight hug, arms around my waist. "You're so much more than my best friend," he whispered fiercely.

My heart fluttered, and I wrapped my arms around his neck and squeezed him tight.

"Okay," I said after a moment. "Let's do this thing. And after, as long as you stay alive, lunch is on me."

I held out my pinky, and he linked his around mine. "Deal," he said, a playful gleam in his eyes.

Percy turned to the remainder of Camp Half-Blood. "Campers! Let's, uh, go fight this dude!"

I smiled. This was my best friend. My crazy sidekick. My laughter. My smile. My reason to live. My everything.

He glanced at me, grabbed my hand, and squeezed it three times. "I love you," he began.

"No matter what," I finished with a slight smile. Sadly, Percy's feelings for me were purely platonic.

He would never admit it to me, but I could tell he still had feelings for his ex-girlfriend, Annabeth Chase. She'd left him about two years ago, when her father had dragged her off to Australia.

There was nothing either she or Percy could do about it. They couldn't use phones to contact each other, and Camp Half-Blood needed Percy, so they'd made the decision to break up.

I missed Annabeth. She'd been such an amazing leader, and even though I hadn't known her super well, she'd been so nice to me. I hoped that wherever she was now, she wouldn't mind me loving her Percy.

Percy and I stood back to back, like we had for years. I knew his fighting style so well, and he knew mine just as well.

I gripped the string of my bow, aiming carefully, and releasing it. The arrow soared right into the demon's glowing red eye. Why do they always have to have red eyes?

I cursed under my breath in Ancient Greek. "Dammit," I muttered, biting my thumbnail. I needed to get closer. I needed to get rid of the boomerang thing.

"Percy!" I yelled.

"What?" He swung Riptide into the demon's ankle, cutting a bloody slit. The demon roared in pain, swatting the air in front of Percy, who stumbled out of the way.

"Keep it distracted!" I cried. "I - I think I have an idea!"

His eyes locked with mine. "Are you sure?" His voice sounded shaky.

I nodded firmly. "Yes. Don't worry. I'll come back. I always do. Pinky promise."

I ran to him, linking my pinky with his, giving him one last tight hug. "Okay, now go!" I ordered, pushing him away from me. I couldn't afford to get emotional.

I skirted around the demon's legs, rushing to the back of it. A ruined building lay in pieces, but still had enough intact for me to climb up a fair way. At least two stories, I thought.

I rushed to the building, and inside. A half broken staircase was against one wall, and I hurried up it. At the top, big stone blocks was arranged in a way that made climbing them possible, so I climbed as quickly as I could manage.

I stood at the top of the roof, my t-shirt fluttering in the wind. I brushed a loose strand of hair behind my ear, and drew my bow. I was level with the demon's other eye now. I just needed to get its attention. "Hey!" I screamed. "Ugly!"

The demon turned, and fixed its fiery eyes on me. My insides felt like a puddle of water, but I gritted my teeth and slowly raised my arm, reaching for an arrow.

Unfortunately, just as my fingertips were brushing the arrow, the demon raised it's boomerang. "Ha-di!" It bellowed.

A glowing red picture flashed in the air, and I knew in my heart that this was it, as searing pain ripped through my body, and I collapsed forward, free-falling two stories down.

Pain. Red. Flashing.

My eyes fluttered open, the harsh sunlight sending shoots of pain to my head. I groaned, but the sound that came out was barely audible.

"Y/N?"

A broken voice. Tears. Pain.

"P-Percy?" I tried to say, my vision blurry. My senses were dull; I couldn't feel anything but the horrible pain.

Everywhere. Pain. A bright light.

"No, Y/N, it's okay," my best friend said, as I lay dying in his arms. I had no idea how I was even alive at this point, I'd fallen all the way to the ground. I'd been hit by that magic spell thing, how was I even breathing?

Breathing. Pain. Ragged.

My short, laboured gasps for air sent sharp shoots of pain rocketing through my lungs and chest. My head pounded, and something warm and wet was trickling down my temple. My vision swam in and out, blurry and indistinguishable.

Pain. Crying. Love.

"No!" Percy's voice was becoming more desperate. "No! You can't take her! You can't!" He was screaming at the sky. "Leave her be! Take me instead! You can't!"

Sobs broke out of him, ripping my heart to shreds. "Don't... don't cry for me Percy," I managed. I tried to touch his cheek, but the effort to move made me gasp in pain. It was too difficult.

"Y/N..." The way he said my name, the way his voice sounded, it was like shattered glass.

"Percy," I breathed. "I love you."

"No matter what," he cried, tears in his voice.

"No matter what..." I repeated. I was losing my grip on reality. Already, my vision was slipping even further into total darkness, I couldn't feel anything but the pain. I was dying. I was.

Death. Love. Pain.

"No. No, you can't leave me, sweetheart," Percy begged. "You have to stay, you have to wake up!" He started getting frantic. "Help! Somebody help me! I need ambrosia, nectar, something..."

His voice broke, as if realisation had finally dawned on him. Nothing could save me now.

This was the end.

Campers gathered around Percy and I, crumpled in a heap on the ground. The war was won, the demons defeated, but victory had come with a price.

A sacrifice. A life. A death.

"Someone help me..." Percy sobbed, holding onto my limp body as he cried. "I love you, Y/N..."

My last glimpse of this life were of his sea-green eyes, filled with tears, as they gazed into my own. Darkness filled my vision, and everything went black.

Death. Dark. Nothing.

#percy jackson #fanfiction #pjo #fanfic #rick riordan #percy jackson x reader #pjo fanfic #percy jackson fanfiction

[zeegaazeegaah]

A gavi x reader where reader is a physiotherapist for the spanish football team and during a game he gets hurt, nothing serious. But she helps him with the injury and he developes a crush so big that the entire team knows, even her. So one day someone else (teammate) asks her out infront of gavi, because he's trying to show that if he doesn't do anything she will eventually move on. The guys helpes him realise that he must confess and he does only for her to say that she knew but didn't think he would actually ask her, thanks.

crush; gavi

word count: 2,034 (I got carried away)

Gavi has been in this room more often than anyone, and he doesn't know how to feel about it. He can't help what he feels either. No athletes prefer getting injured. In fact, it's safe to say they hate it. It hinders them from doing their best or worse; it completely prevents them from playing. Knowing all that, it's still hard to not be injured. As awful as getting injured is, it's also impossible to not get hurt in this profession. To not sprain a muscle or two, to not twist an ankle, to not develop a bruise from being kicked too hard in the calf, but it is what it is.

He has sprained his muscles, twisted his ankle countless times, and ended up in the same room. It's not like he enjoys getting injured. Being the type of athlete he is, it almost drives him to insanity even at the thought of having to rest and missing out on practices. Unfortunately, the worst had still happened to him. There was this one time his ankle was injured so badly he had started to question if he could play any longer.

Much to his distress, he still remembers the feeling vividly. Face drained from colour, his heartbeat raced so fast that it started to hurt him in the chest. An emptiness settled in his stomach as his mind began to race, thinking of all the what-ifs that were only doing worse to him mentally.

To this day, he thinks if he could've ever survived that period of his life without completely sabotaging his mental health if not for her. He remembers that day vividly, all the bad and good. She was new, much much younger than he expected. Only a bit older than him. He saw her replacing the previous physiotherapist before, but he had personally never been checked by her till then. He had no interest either. Until, his situation forced him to interact with her. Not only did she do her job to lessen his physical pain and get him to stand on his feet, but also went extra mile to make sure his mental health stayed intact.

It's as if she could see through him, take one look at him, and tell he was constantly beating himself up for his condition. She would pat his head, rub his back, and play the role of a psychotherapist despite it not being her job to do so. There were times when her jokes would keep him laughing, and smiling throughout the day. She'd make him forget he wasn't miserable. And at some point, he began to feel his pulse, quickening every time she had to sit down beside him. His face would warm up, and worse, he would stutter.

This did not go unnoticed by his club mates, and once he recovered, he was the victim of their relentless teasing. Every time she had to check them for a check-up, the stares, the looks that they all sent simultaneously had him panicking on multiple occasions, fearing she'd pick it up and find out. Find out about the painful crush he has developed on her. Thankfully, she was always way too focused on her job to seem to notice any of it.

And there he is, once again, in the same room where she usually resides for most of her working hours unless she is standing with a clipboard in her hands, listing down the physical condition of the team. He feels stupid for feeling giddy but he can't help it either. He isn't seriously injured or anything this time, he woke up to a numb leg that was bothering him. He could easily fix it by working out but he just didn't feel like it. Plus, it would give him an excuse to be here.

She peeks from behind the curtain before walking up to him. Taking a once-over at him, she pointed to the bruises littered under his left eye and another over it. "You…" she begins, a small smile on her face as she reprimands him gently, "body injury is one thing but face injury? Seriously?"

Without waiting for his response, she moves to the other side of the room to wear gloves before returning to sit beside him on the bed with cottons in her hand and a bottle of something he couldn't quite decipher what it is. She pours the liquid on the cotton before gently taking his chin on her palm, dabbing the wet cotton on the bruises around his eyes to which he winces. Her face is merely two metres away from his. Yet again, he feels his cheeks heating up as he feels her breath on it and takes a gulp.

There's something about the way she has always handled him. Despite being smaller in size, she treated him like a fragile glass. Always gently handling him, whether it be his body or his face. She was never hasty to get her job done. She never looked annoyed at him or even tired. How could he not like her?

"Gavi?" She waves a hand over his eyes to which he comes back to his senses. "You didn't come here for me to disinfect your facial bruises, right? Because I'm gonna be honest, that's not exactly what my job is."

"Oh, yeah. My right leg feels weird for some reason."

To which a frown takes over her face. "And… you couldn't exercise it out?" she raises a brow at him, knowing full well he could've done that.

He coughs awkwardly at that. It's simply the truth. "I could but I don't feel like it." He says, a sheepish smile forming on his face as he looks her in the eye.

"Okay…" Her eyebrows are furrowed when she replies, taking a look at his right leg. She moves his 'numb' leg in multiple directions using her hands before making him do some light exercise on that leg for the blood to circulate properly again.

"You're good to go but before that, I need to advise you about something. You should not…"

Gavi is not listening, he is absently toying with the hem of his shirt as he stares at her talking to him about something possibly important for him to know. He starts daydreaming right then and there; of her back hugging him, of her soft hands holding his face not for medical purposes but to look at him with a loving look in her eyes.

Unbeknownst to both of them, Pedri enters the room to see the embarrassingly obvious longing look on Gavi's face that seemed to go unnoticed by her as she's busy telling him what to avoid and what to do. He fakes a loud cough before clapping his hands to get their attention, "When are you clocking out?"

She jerks her head to look at him, "Me? In an hour, why?"

"Let's get coffee." He says, a smug look on his face that has Gavi's blood pressure increasing.

No, it couldn't be happening. Since when did Pedri take an interest in her?

"You don't drink coffee, Pedri." She replies, a blank look on her face.

"Then, tea. "

"You don't drink that either. Plus, isn't it too late for coffee and tea?"

"It's never too late for coffee and tea."

"I don't know. I don't feel like going anywhere else other than home if I am being frank."

Gavi tries hard to fight the grin from forming to no avail. Pedri takes a glance at him and winks.

"Okay." He shrugs, completely unaffected as if he just didn't get rejected.

×××

They're in the dressing room after practice when Gavi steals a glance at Pedri's direction to which Pedri raises his brows and asks, "What?"

"I am confused. What was that yesterday?" Gavi asks, tilting his head to the side while rubbing the back of his neck.

The older boy laughs, "I had to do something to get you to your senses."

Gavi's mouth forms in an O before he huffs with a pout on his lips, looking hopeless. "If she blatantly rejected you like that, what makes you think she wouldn't do the same to me?"

The older boy gasps like it's the most ridiculous thing he has ever heard. "You can't be serious, Gavi."

"What did I do now-"

"There's no way she doesn't know you have a crush on her. Everybody can tell. They don't even have to confirm."

Gavi gulps at that, the fear of rejection resurfacing somewhere in his head. "But… but…"

"Listen, Pablo. She will move on. She isn't gonna wait for you and even if you could get rejected, doesn't mean you should never confess and live with the guilt of not trying at all. It sucks more when that happens. But I believe she won't reject you. Something tells me she likes you back."

"You think so?" He asks, nervous.

"I believe so."

That's all he needed.

×××

Gavi is pacing outside her room, he is jittery. There is a lump in the back of his throat that is too painful for him to swallow. He hasn't been this nervous even before matches in a while. He eyes the other end of the hallway and wonders if he should just dash out and save himself from this situation. Then again, running away would be far worse when he has spent hours making up his mind last night.

She appears from her room. Her sundress indicates it's a saturday. Eyebrows shooting up at the sight of him waiting for her, she walks to him to hold him by the shoulders, "Gavi? What are you doing here?"

He doesn't wanna spend any time beating around the bush so he manages a, "Can we get c-coffee?" Unfortunately, stumbling upon the last word to which she chuckles. His cheeks redden.

"What's with you, Pedri and coffee? Both of you don't drink it." She asks, visibly amused.

Gavi closes his eyes. He can't do this. He takes a deep breath before opening his eyes to look her in the eye and before he could even decipher what he was doing, his hands reached to hold hers. "I like you and… if you'd like I-I would like to take you on a date."

The response he receives shocks him. She intertwines her hands with his, chuckling, "Well, what's stopping you?"

"Why… are you not surprised?" He frowns.

"Cause… I knew?"

"How?" He frowns harder, "did Pedri tell you?"

She ends up laughing at his reaction. "Gavi, I don't know if anyone told you this but it's painfully obvious when you have a crush. Your cheeks are red, you are shaky, you seem nervous. It's all so cute but so painful to watch that I almost considered freeing you from this burden by confronting you about it."

Her eyes stare deeply into his as if trying to read him more but it also lets him know she doesn't feel any different than he does. Her lips beg to form in a smile that she suppresses with all her might yet it's obvious.

He tugs her into a hug so quickly she lets out a yelp in surprise. "Woah!" she exclaims, wrapping her arms around him before he rests his head on her shoulder. "What are you doing?"

"Hugging you." He mumbles before breathing out, "I've wanted to do this since forever."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Something about you screams comfort and peace to me. Always wanted to feel at peace in your arms." And before he realises what he has said, she separates from the hug. Her hands reach out to hold his face and stare at him with a longing look.

"You're so… you've been putting me on a pedestal. I'm a bit concerned. Did my hug live up to your expectations?"

He only nods, unable to take his eyes off hers. "Wait, since when have you been crushing on me?" He asks, curious all of a sudden as he grins.

"Who said I have a crush on you?"

He frowns.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm only teasing you. Now, will you actually take me out now or will we talk here the entire night?"

×××

A/N: What an insanely good request.

#pablo gavi imagines #football blurb #football blurbs #football imagine #football imagines #gavi blurb #gavi imagine #gavi scenarios #gavi x reader #pablo gavi blurb #pablo gavi imagine

[estrellami-1]

If I Should Stay

Part 1 | . . . | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53

“You wish,” Steve teases, then looks wide-eyed at Robin. “What about all the pictures we have?”

“We’ll take new ones,” she assures him, then grins. “And hey, maybe Starcourt will be built, without the Russian base underneath.”

Steve hums. “Maybe then I could avoid one of the concussions from Billy.”

Robin freezes suddenly. “Steve,” she says, “is it a good idea for the party to meet Max? Because of the first concussion from Billy? That wasn’t Upside Down related, was it?”

Steve grimaces. “He’d been Flayed at that point, yeah. Even if he is a racist asshole, I can’t imagine him coming after us like that again.”

Robin hums. “But if he does-”

“Tell me,” Eddie says suddenly, “does he like Mary Jane? Because I can make sure he never sees her again if he goes after Steve.”

Robin blinks at him, then begins to grin. “Sorry, Stevie, Eddie’s my new favorite.”

Eddie laughs and fist-bumps her. “Likewise, Birdie.”

“Hey!” Steve says, faux-affronted. It’s ruined by the grin he can’t hide.

El pokes gently at Steve’s arm, then the waffle iron when he looks at her. “It’s done.”

“Ah,” he says, opening it. “Thank you, Ellie. Mind getting me a plate?” He grins at her. “Without grabbing it?”

El grins. Without moving, she opens a cabinet, floats a plate out to Steve, then shuts the cabinet again. She wipes underneath her nose, then grins at Steve. “No blood!”

“That’s great!” He celebrates with her, offering her a high-five. “You think you’re ready?”

“I’m still scared,” she tells him. “But yes. I do.”

“Y’know something else?” Steve asks. “Vecna needed four more years to be strong enough to do what he did. You needed two more days. I think you’re much stronger than he is right now.”

“Speaking of the big bad,” Eddie interjects, nibbling on a corner of his waffle, “shouldn’t we go over the plan?”

Steve sighs. “Probably,” he agrees.

“I think we should wait for everyone,” Alli says. “Let’s just have as normal a morning as we can for right now.”

Steve smiles at his sister. “Sure, Al,�� he says, then rolls his eyes when she pulls him into a hug and ruffles his hair.

“Love you, Bubba,” she murmurs into his ear, and he can’t help but to melt into her hug.

“Love you too, Al,” he murmurs back, then grins at her. “How about grilled cheese when we all make it outta this intact?”

“I think that sounds like an excellent idea,” she nods, then steps away. “I’m gonna call Cass. Come and get me when everyone’s here?”

“Will do,” he nods, and she smiles in response as she walks off.

Eddie pulls his feet up onto the counter he’s sitting on, looping his arms around his knees. “So, Cassidy is Alli’s-?”

“Girlfriend,” Steve nods. He takes another waffle out of the iron and scrapes the last of the batter into it. “It makes me wonder how I would’ve ended up, if I had her the entire time, y’know? Cause I know I was an asshole. And I’m trying not to be anymore.”

“You’re succeeding,” both Robin and Eddie say at the same time, then excitedly point at each other.

Steve laughs and shakes his head. “Thanks. But I wonder, if I’d had her the entire time, would I have ever gotten as bad as I did? Would I have ever worked at Scoops or Family Video and met you, Robin? Would any of his have ever happened in the first place?”

He only notices his hand is shaking when Robin gently takes his fork and puts it down, then grabs both his hands in hers. “Squeeze,” she requests, and he does, letting out a harsh breath and resting their foreheads together.

“Sorry,” he mutters.

“Shuddup,” Robin says. He laughs.

After a few seconds, he pulls away to look at her. “Am I being crazy?”

“I think you’re being exactly as sane as taking this mission in the first place makes either of us, Dingus, I don’t think either of us were all there in the first place.”

Steve giggles. “I think you may be right.”

“Maybe you would’ve been different,” Eddie says. He’s taking the last waffle out of the iron. “Maybe you wouldn’t have. Maybe all of this would’ve happened, and maybe it wouldn’t have. Maybes aren’t gonna change anything that’s currently happening. All we can do is our best to get through it.”

El slips between Steve and Robin and wraps her arms around Steve’s waist. “I can do things you can’t,” she says quietly. “But I can’t see the future. I don’t know what could’ve happened. But I know I’m glad that you’re here now.”

Steve sighs contentedly and wraps her in his arms. “Me too.”

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#stranger things #if I should stay #steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #robin buckley #el hopper #platonic stobin #el and Steve are siblings #steve has a long-needed mental breakdown #he deserves it honestly #fix it #fix it fic #time travel #time travel fic #time travel fix it #time travel fix it fic #starambles

[yuripides]

Augh fuck ok so, I was just listening to Want You Gone and I realized something. There’s a very real possibility that GLaDOS isn’t in denial about liking Chell and caring about her and her act of sending Chell away could be out of that very care.

So throughout the song GLaDOS does say stuff like “go make some new disaster, you’re someone else’s problem now” and of course “now I only want you gone” and all this time we’ve been quite logically reading “I used to want you dead but now I only want you gone” as an “I don’t hate you as much anymore and killing you is basically impossible and you cause too much trouble for me to try anymore” but… GLaDOS still pulls back Chell at the end of Portal 2. She doesn’t let Chell die. Sure we can say that that was Caroline because the facility deletes Caroline later, but in the ending song GLaDOS says “now little Caroline lives in me too”, so she’s clearly still in there somewhere and makes up a fundamental part of who GLaDOS is.

Now I mentioned all that to segue into this next part. Do you think if GLaDOS just “hated Chell less” she would have organized an entire choir and orchestra out of turrets for her to listen to as she left the facility? Do you think she would have given her a companion cube, the thing that’s been a symbol for the human emotion of caring throughout the series with even players being attached to it sometimes?

Let that sit on your mind for a second.

Portal 2 has a second story-driven gamemode. The co-op. In the co-op you play as Atlas and P-body, two robots who GLaDOS put in place for testing in the absence of Chell. Now we see that these robots can’t really die, possibly in-canon as they respawn in the co-op as long as one of them is still alive. Unlike humans, these robots can’t come to permanent harm.

At the end of the coop, the two robots find the room where the crow’s made a nest. They manage to get the crow out of the facility, but find the eggs it’s laid. At first GLaDOS is horrified but then decides to take the eggs and raise the chicks herself. Of course she does this in her own way of trying to see them as dangerous “killing machines” but before she switches to that, she even names two of them “Marshmallow” and “Mr. Chubbybeak”. As dangerous as she is GLaDOS has a heart and some kind of caring instinct.

That’s not the only thing those two find at the end of the coop. They also find an entire untouched wing full of humans in cryosleep. GLaDOS wakes them up, puts them to testing.. and “depletes” the entire test subject supply in a few days.

Now, as we know by this point this isn’t exactly her fault. It’s the facility that instills “the itch”, the drive to test and experiment regardless of the consequences, as long as the facility itself is intact. And she knows that very well.

And in the end, I think that’s why she sends Chell away. Not out of hate, but out of care and love. In that brief time of freedom from the facility and the itch she gets, she realizes she does care. “I used to want you dead but now I only want you gone.” GLaDOS wants Chell gone because she knows that despite how much she wants Chell to stay with her, Chell will be happier in the outside world, and if she stays in the facility she will eventually come to harm.

“Want You Gone” is GLaDOS trying to intentionally deny that she cares so she doesn’t get hurt. In her own words,

“Goodbye my only friend…

Oh did you think I meant you?

That would be funny,

If it weren’t so sad.

Well, you have been replaced.

I don’t need anyone now!

When I delete you

Maybe I’ll stop feeling so bad…”

#portal #portal 2 #glados #chell portal

[elizabethwritesmen]

The Devil Wears Lace

chapter 4 : March 3, 2023

pairing: simon “ghost” riley x reader

summary: you go on a date to try and get ghost off your mind, but still, somehow, you end the night with him instead.

warnings: 18+ for eventual smut, reader goes on a date with someone who’s not simon, reader kisses someone who’s not simon, i think that’s all but let me know if i missed anything!

series masterlist

March 3, 2023

Not even a month had passed and I could still see it all in my mind. I hadn’t spent a second not thinking about him, kicking myself and cursing his stupid codename or whatever. I felt so unlike myself, giggly and stupid, begging God for one more chance to see him, swearing I’ll take advantage of it like he doesn’t turn me to mush. I’m confident enough to flirt with him, to toy with him the way I do them all. But I don’t have it in me to actually make a move, or even insinuate that I want him.

And what would happen if I had him? He’d probably get up and leave right after wrecking me, his self intact and mine done for. He’d walk out, and I’d go back to barely ever seeing him. If ever again. Who knows when he’d stop being sent to my town? Why did I want that so badly? Something I couldn’t even have, not really? Something that I knew would ruin me and my life to a point I couldn’t come back from? Something that would turn me into a worse person than I already was?

I craved it, though. I told myself I could handle having him once then never again. I could handle not knowing where he was after, and not having any contact. I could handle the fact that I was falling over the edge and there was no way it would end well.

I decided I needed to take my mind off of it, and what better way than with someone else? This particular guy had been begging me for a date for months, and he was cute. What harm could come from saying yes? I didn’t want to be with him or anything, but maybe a little flirting, a little attention, a little more could clear my mind of that mask.

So there I was, sitting at the table across from… oh, what was his name again? Dave? Don? Danny? Oh! Drake. It was definitely Drake. I think.

He was going on and on about his plans to get out of the military and open his own sporting goods company. Great dreams. I couldn’t see him actually achieving them.

My phone buzzed on the table, and I held a hand up to stop his rambling, “That’s all great, give me just a second, though.” He seemed a little dumbstruck that I’d had the audacity to shut him up, but stayed silent as I walked away to answer Sabrina’s call.

“Dude, where are you?” she spoke from the other line, “I’ve texted you like ten times.”

“I’m on that date, remember?”

“Date? You didn’t tell me about a date,” I could hear the smirk in her voice, “How’s that?”

“Oh, perfect. I was just about to ride off into the sunset on his white horse when you called,” I groaned, and she giggled.

“Well come to the bar, save yourself from that misery.”

“The bar? Why?”

“Just come to the damn bar!”

I jumped slightly at her tone, she could be assertive when she wanted to. “You got something sketchy up your sleeve?” I asked, eyebrows raised though she couldn’t see me.

“Just come! Please!” This time she was pleading, and I sighed.

“Anything is better than being here with Mr. Future Entrepreneurs of America. I’ll be there in a sec.”

I briefly wondered how I was going to get out of the date, then realized, what would he do if I just told him I had somewhere to be and left? Probably nothing, just stare at me dumbly.

I sauntered to the table, pulling 30 dollars out of my bag.

“This should cover my part. I’ve gotta go,” I hummed, beginning to turn on my heel, but he stopped me with a hand on my arm. God, I hated being touched.

I swung around, already annoyed, and he crumbled a bit under my stare but plowed onward, “I thought we were having a good time.”

“Yeah, sure, it was great,” I shrugged, “Just gotta go. I have somewhere to be. You can keep my food when it comes, take it home or something.”

“Do I at least get a goodnight kiss?”

“Do you think you deserve one?” I raised a brow and his expression was comical, in disbelief I would say such a thing.

“Yes,” he nodded frantically, “You’re leaving early, skipping out on a date you agreed to! It’s the least you could do!”

“Fine, if it means no hard feelings,” I shrugged, leaning down and slotting my lips against his before I could talk myself out of it. It was just a kiss. It didn’t matter at all. Kisses never really did.

It was okay, except it wasn’t really okay at all. I pulled away, giving his cheek a tap before walking off to my getaway car.

The drive to the bar was quick, I was already downtown so it only took minutes to pull into the small parking lot. The only spot open was in the alley, naturally, so I went for it. I could hear Ghost’s voice in my head, telling me not to do it, and I hadn’t been! But desperate times, you know what I mean?

I got out of the car, bag in hand, and smoothed out my dress. It was a purple slip with floral black mesh over top of it, and I thought it looked great on me, highlighting the right curves and smoothing over the wrong ones. I was also wearing heels, black stilettos, they were very femme fatale. Fully satisfied with my appearance, right down to my big curls and my deep red lips, I walked inside.

Sabrina noticed me immediately, sprinting for me.

“Fuck, you look hot!” she squealed, and I was too preoccupied with her to see who was sitting at the bar. “Someone is here to see you!”

I turned to where she was gesturing, and there was Ghost, sitting at a turned around barstool facing us, hands folded in his perfect lap.

“What is he doing here so soon?” I gasped, throat going dry and heart pumping extra hard.

“I’m not sure, but he came here asking about you and I told him you weren’t working. He was gonna leave but I said I’d get you here, and, well, he waited,” her voice sounded extra sweet on the last word, as if she almost couldn’t believe he’d done it. As if it was the most precious thing in the world, and maybe it was.

“You couldn’t have warned me he was here?” My anxiety flared up, and I was suddenly feeling self conscious, worried my dress wasn’t covering me enough, worrying I couldn’t walk well enough in my heels. I wanted his approval, I wanted him to like what he saw, and fear that he wouldn’t ripped through me like a current.

“I told you, you look hot, stop stressing. Now go talk to him!”

I nodded, steeling my resolve and walking his way. He was waiting there, expectant, and I stopped right in between his open legs.

“I heard you were asking about me?” I smirked coolly, more confidence than I actually had dripping from me like syrup.

“Words gets around fast here, huh?”

“What’re you doing back so soon? Not that I’m complaining, I’m just used to having to wait until I’m absolutely desperate to see you and then somehow you pop up.”

“You aren’t desperate to see me now?”

“Maybe a little,” I shrugged dismissively, “You were kind of an ass last time, so.”

“I wasn’t an ass, I was trying to help you.”

“By yelling at me?”

“There you go again, lying. I didn’t yell, I was stern with you. I have a feeling you like when a man is stern with you, so why are you whining?” My cheeks went red, burning with embarrassment.

“You’ve got all kinds of things to say tonight, huh?” I gasped, “But really, what are you doing here? You’ve been sent back already?”

“No…” he started, hesitant to continue, “I had a few days of leave and wanted to come here and check on you.”

The words rolled over and over in my head. He had leave, personal time, and he used it to see me. I couldn’t help but get all starry eyed and cursed myself for being such an idiot.

“Checking on me, soldier? If I didn’t know better I’d think you cared.”

He groaned, eyes rolling and they looked so pretty that way. “What happened in the alley was a lot, I wanted to make sure you were okay, especially after being kidnapped there.”

“It would’ve been a lot if you hadn’t been there, but you were.”

“I was.”

It was silent for a moment, just eyes locked on each other, and I cleared my throat, “I’ve been parking in the lot and not the alley, and I haven’t walked alone once. Just like you said.”

His eyes crinkled like he was smiling, “Good girl.”

My mouth fell agape, and I couldn’t help my reaction to that, squirming just a little, breath hitching. He noticed, eyes widening for a second before falling to their normal spot. He placed his hands on my hips, looking me up and down.

“Who’re you wearing this for, love?” he asked, and I blushed hard. Telling him I had a date would ruin the mood for sure, right? Oh well, it didn’t matter. He didn’t own me, I could do what I wanted to do.

“I had a date.”

“Yeah, Sabrina told me. Was it nice?”

“What do you think?” I huffed out a laugh and he just stared, “I’m here, aren’t I?”

“So what was it then? He wasn’t interesting enough for a girl like you?”

“Not nearly,” I pondered for a moment, “And he was a bad kisser.”

I hoped my words would make him jealous but his face was unreadable. “Bad kisser, huh? How?”

“How?” my brows furrowed. Did he really expect me to explain it to him? In detail? That was mortifying but he just stared like he always did and clicked his tongue.

“How.”

“Well…” I tried so hard not to stumble over my words, and he noticed it, I knew he did. “It was… it was too fast, but too slow somehow too. Like he wanted to rush it but even then he couldn’t keep up.”

“Keep going,” he encouraged when I paused, and I sighed, plowing on.

“His mouth was cold. Kisses aren’t supposed to be cold, you know? And it was so wet…”

“Isn’t it supposed to be wet?”

“Not the way his was.”

He grunted, scanning me over again, stopping on my rosy cheeks. “You nervous?”

“N-no,” I stuttered out, feeling scrutinized under his gaze.

“You are.” He sounded… amused? “Guess Miss Heartbreaker finally met her match, yeah?”

“Yeah,” I agreed before I could help myself.

“You gonna sit beside me or you gonna keep standing there? Not that I mind…” His hands squeezed my hips, holding me tight right in front of him.

“I’ll sit,” I nodded once and he let me go, turning away from me, leaving me cold. I inhaled deeply before slipping onto the stool next to him, and Sabrina smirked at me from the other side.

“Here you go, hot stuff,” she handed me what I usually got, a Malinu pineapple, and Ghost snorted.

“I’d think a girl like you would drink the hard stuff.”

I rolled my eyes, “A girl like me drinks whatever the hell she wants. I happen to like it sweet.”

“Yeah?” he mumbled, and the timbre in his voice turned my cheeks red. God, I had to stop letting that happen, I was embarrassing myself. I was not the kind of girl to turn into soup! I needed to remember who I was and… and…

His hand landed on my thigh and my train of thought got lost there. Something about remembering something?!

“You two look cozy,” Sabrina mused, small smile playing about her lips as she winked at us. I just laughed, small and meek, focusing in on the small circles his gloved thumb was rubbing into my skin. Jesus, act cool, I kept reminding myself but to no avail. I was like a girl who’d never been touched or something, desperate and whiny. I wanted him bad and I could tell it was written all over my face by the way Sabrina smirked at me. “You want another one, Ghost?” she gestured to his empty glass. He gave her a small nod and she got to making it.

It was then I realized something. She’d been texting me for about half an hour before I finally responded. Did that mean… did he wait that long, not even knowing if I would show up at all? Not even knowing if I would answer her? My breath hitched once again.

He lifted his mask to his nose so he could take a small sip from his new glass, and I tried so hard not to stare but I couldn’t manage. I wanted any glimpse of the mystery I could get.

“You’re staring.”

“I’m curious.”

“You’re nosy.”

I rolled my eyes, leaning a little closer to him, “You ever gonna show me what you look like under there, Ghosty?”

“No,” his word was flat, with a sense of finality, and I pouted. “Nobody has seen what’s under here, love.”

“Sounds like a lonely existence.”

“Loneliness is part of the job,” he shrugged, taking another sip before putting the mask down. I couldn’t help but notice how much nicer his words sounded when I could see the his lips forming around them.

“Is that why you keep coming back to see me? I make it better?”

“You’re being cocky again.”

“Answer me anyway.”

“Yeah, that’s why,” he grunted, and he was telling the truth. I smirked for a second, feeling like I got part of my power back. “You distract me.”

“So I’m just a distraction, then, huh?”

“No, you’re also a pain.”

I laughed, and we fell into easy conversation. Well, as easy as it can get with him. Sabrina joined in at times, making her little comments about us as always.

“The bar is closing soon,” I sighed as I noticed the clock on the wall.

“Yeah.”

“Guess that means this is it, huh? You’ll go back and I won’t see you again for a while?”

“Guess so.” I tried to mask my disappointment with a smile but he saw right through it. “Unless you want to go somewhere else?”

“Like where?”

“Well… we could go sit on the beach for a while. I’ve done that a few times when I’ve been here.”

I smiled, feeling like I was getting a peek inside the hard exterior. “Let’s do it!”

And we did. We walked the few blocks it took to get there, my heels eventually killing my feet so I took them off. He grabbed them from my hand and carried them for me, leaving no room for debate, and in minutes we were on the sand. He found a bench for us to sit on, brushing the sand off of it for me.

“Thanks,” I hummed as I settled in, and he plopped down as gracefully as a man his size could beside me. He grunted in response, as usual.

“Nice night,” he commented after a moment of silence.

“A little cool,” I shrugged, rubbing my arms swiftly to warm myself up.

“I bet it is, in that dress.”

I rolled my eyes, “What’s wrong with my dress?”

“It’s just clear what your intentions for that date were before you realized he was a loser.”

“What’s it to you?”

“Nothing. I know you’ve been thinking about me. I know that wouldn’t have stopped you.”

My breath caught in my throat. What an absolute asshole.

“Who’s cocky now?” I huffed, “I have not been thinking about you.”

“Liar.”

My eyes shot up, “You’re the one who keeps coming back for more. I live here. I work here. I’m not choosing this, you are.”

“I never said I don’t think about you,” his voice was low. “I just said you think about me, and you’re trying real hard to deny it.”

I rolled my eyes, “Whatever.”

“Gotta keep that man eating reputation up, huh? You hate that I see right through you.”

“I didn’t come here to be criticized.”

“I’m not criticizing you.”

“Then what are you doing?”

“Talking.”

I turned away from him, pulling my knees to my chest, exposing my ass to the world but I didn’t have a care to give. He slipped his jacket off, though, draping it over me, protecting my modesty and warming me up. It was the same one from the very first time I saw him. “Thank you.”

“Do you ever worry that all that teasing you do is gonna piss the wrong person off? Seems like it already has a time or two.”

“I’ve told you before, I can take care of myself.”

“I’m sure you can, darlin’. Just wondering why you do it is all.”

“I don’t wanna be psychoanalyzed.”

“I’m not psychoanalyzing, I’m asking.”

I thought for a moment, “You know? I don’t have an answer for you.” He just stared. “You’ve got your secrets, and I’ve got mine.”

“I suppose that’s fair.”

“When you open up some, though, I’ll be happy to spill my guts about what daddy and mommy did to make me this way.”

He let out a light chuckle, and I loved the sound of it. The way it sounded like a secret because he so seldom let it out.

“One day a long time from now, we’ll make it a date.”

As his words settled in, I realized I couldn’t wait for that day to come.

#simon riley smut #simon ghost riley #simon riley x reader #simon riley x you #simon ghost x reader #simon riley x reader smut #ghost x reader #ghost x reader smut #ghost x you #ghost smut #cod smut

[visionofhope04]

I just got done reading your Neglected!Batsis stories and headcanons, and lemme tell you, love ‘em. But can you do headcanons for her meeting the Justice League and Titans post-reveal and how they all interact. Either a mini-series or headcanons. Thanks for reading, and keep up the good work.

One love, Missnght.

Aww thank you so much!!! I'm glad you love the series! HAPPY HOLIDAYSSSS!!!! Also MERRY CHIRSTMAS!!! It's very early Christmas day where I am right now. TW: Human tr@fficking and mentions of @bus3, swearing

---

You were minding your business, walking down the street, when all of a sudden you get snatched into an alleyway. Before you even processed what happened, you felt a sharp pain in the back of your head and blacked out.

---

You began to regain consciousness but refrained from opening your eyes, struggling to keep your muscles relaxed and breathing even. You wanted to learn anything you could about your surroundings, if you gave them any hint that you were awake, they wouldn't spill any useful information. If there was anything Talia had drilled into you from such a young age, it was the importance of gathering information, or the facts, before acting. It prevented you from making misinformed decisions which could lead to death if you aren't careful.

"She's still out and it's been so long, do you think she's okay?" A high-pitched voice sounded to your left.

"Who knows what they could've done before they brought her in." A lower-pitched voice responded, coming from your right this time.

You blinked your eyes open slowly and pretended you were just waking up. You did a quick check-in with your body and winced once you felt a sharp pain in your skull. The pain got worse and you squeezed your eyes shut.

"You're awake! I thought you were dead for a second." That was the first voice you heard.

"Ugh, yeah but my head is killing me. Do you know where we are?"

"That would be in a small room with no windows and a locked door with several other girls here in various states of distress. Surprisingly still in Jump City. They usually move us quicker." The second voice said.

"I knew wanting to come to Jump City for a possible new place to live was a bad idea." You mumbled. You opened your eyes once the pain dulled. The girl to your left had shoulder-length blonde hair that seemed to be chopped unevenly. She was wearing a skimpy short white dress with spaghetti straps that barely covered her and white flats. Her makeup was smudged and she had a few bruises on her legs and arms. You hoped it wasn't what you thought it was.

The girl to your right was wearing a similar dress to the other girl except it was a deep purple and somehow shorter. She had long black hair which looked so smooth and barely any baby hairs sticking up? You needed to get her hair routine after this. Unlike the other girl, her makeup was intact but didn't seem to match her skin tone well. She did also have bruises, however, indicating it was, in fact, what you thought it was.

"This is a trafficking ring, isn't it."

"Got it in one. How'd you guess?" The second girl -you really needed to get their names- asked.

"Well, it's almost spot on to what movies portray them as. All we're missing are the big scary guys." The door burst open at that exact moment and said big scary guys walked into the room. You couldn't get any luckier. They were all armed with handguns and two stayed back as their boss went to stand in the middle of the room.

"We're going to be moving you out in small groups. Stay with your group and don't try anything."

You got put into a group with the two girls from before and another girl. You were quietly 'escorted' down the hall until the girl you hadn't talked to tried to steal the guy's gun. He shoved her off him and she fell to the floor. He pointed his gun at her head but before he could pull the trigger, you hit his wrist, caught the gun in your other hand then elbowed him. Him being momentarily stunned, you pointed the gun at his head.

"Move and I'll shoot."

"You don't even know how to use a gun! I bet you wouldn't even be able to shoot something point-blank." He exclaimed cockily.

"Wanna test that theory?" You shot him in his right upper bicep.

He screamed and his other hand shot up to clutch at the wound.

"You bitch! You'll pay for that!"

Quicker than you could comprehend, he pulled out a gun from the back of his hip using his good arm and fired at you. Against all of your training, you froze. You heard more than saw the bullet whiz toward you. Bracing yourself, you shut your eyes and forcibly relaxed your muscles. Before the bullet could imbed itself into you, you felt a strong gust of wind and opened your eyes.

"Now, that's no way to treat someone. Clearly, you've never been taught manners. How about I teach you some?" Kid Flash made quick work of the man as you reassessed your surroundings. The girl that tried to steal the man's gun was now off the ground and huddled near the other girls. They immediately rushed to check on me.

"Oh, I'm fine, just a bit frazzled. Don't worry about it."

"'Just a bit frazzled' my ass! You almost got shot!"

"Are you okay ma'am?" Kid Flash asked.

"Yes, I'm fine thank you."

"Okay we've gotta get going, follow me!"

The Titans managed to get all the girls out and arrest all the men. Kid Flash stayed by you as a paramedic checked you over and then came to talk to you once they left.

"Hey." He sat down next to you.

"Hey." You greeted, clutching the shock blanket the paramedic had given you around yourself a little tighter as you looked at the ground.'

"Are you okay?" You picked your gaze up off the ground and stared directly into his eyes.

"Are you seriously asking a former Bat that question?"

"Fair point. But the question still stands."

"Physically, yes, mentally, no."

"After everything that isn't surprising."

"I told you it's not your fault, or your teams, or the Justice League's."

"That doesn't mean we still don't feel bad about it."

You sat there in awkward silence for a minute until Beast Boy came up to you.

"Hey bae how're ya?" You could tell he was trying to flirt.

"You practice that in the mirror often?"

"You know it!"

The rest of the Titans came over and began to apologize for your former family's actions but you cut them off.

"Like I said, you don't have to apologize. None of you were responsible for it. I don't blame you guys. I appreciate you all saving the rest of the girls and I, thank you."

"Just doing our job." Blue Beetle said.

Wally placed a hand on your shoulder. "If you need anything, let us know, okay?"

"Thank you."

---

The Justice League invited you to Oliver Queen's estate for the holidays. You knew it was just to check up on you and see how you were fairing. Ever since the incident with the batfamily, they've been trying to take on parental roles in your life. It was sweet of them but you don't need that anymore.

Some other heroes were there, mostly the younger children of the leaguers. The party went well, with you all sharing funny stories and making the most absurd faces for pictures. Opening gifts was the best part. You got the same pair of socks ten times from ten different people. You weren't even disappointed. You were just kind of concerned about how ten different leaguers knew your size.

You left feeling an unfamiliar fuzzy warm feeling inside your chest and found yourself looking forward to being invited again.

#justice league x reader #titans x reader #batfamily x reader #batfam x neglected!batsis!reader #batfam x batsis #batfam x reader

[nanabansama]

Hi hi! why do you think Tsukasa kisses Nene ? do you think he likes her ? Do you think Nene will start to like Tsukasa after this ?

Hi! You're in luck actually, because I have been thinking very heavily about Tsukasa and Nene's relationship recently and have some #thoughts. (Err, but who hasn't been thinking about them, honestly...?)

Okay, so you're wondering if Tsukasa likes Nene, why he kissed her, and if Nene will start to like him... let's see...

First, do I think he likes her...? Well, I wouldn't say that's completely off the table yet. Look at how happy he gets after kissing her:

Cute, right?! I think saying something like... "he's in LOVE with her"... might be a bit too grandiose, but it's definitely giving off the vibes of a kiddy crush, at least. And like with any kiddy crush, he has a precocious way of showing it.

Consider: him offering her food...

...Leaning in really close to her face while her eyes are closed...

...I mean, it's not totally impossible, right? He even invites her on a PLAY DATE.

Haha, but to be real with you, I am having a bit of trouble believing he has an actual crush on her myself. It's certainly a lower priority to him than getting the Yorishiro destroyed and accomplishing his goals, anyway.

I'm also going to discount any instances of Tsukasa getting annoyed with the reverted child form of Nene as proof that he doesn't like her, because I think it's kind of ridiculous to expect any hypothetical crush he has to stay intact when she starts acting like this:

All this to say, don't let anyone tell you that Tsunene is fake or anything. I personally am undecided on it, leaning more towards Tsukasa not having a crush, but I could just as easily believe he has a small crush on her, too.

So, if Tsukasa doesn't have a crush on Nene, then why would we kiss her? Well...

Honestly, sometimes? I don't think Tsukasa really thinks much before doing things. Not always, of course...! But remember, this is the guy who just randomly decided that he was going to swim to Los Angeles:

I hope this isn't too lackluster of an answer, but I honestly wouldn't be surprised if Tsukasa only did it... just because! Maybe he saw Amane kissing her and wanted to copy him. Maybe he thought it'd be a funny prank, kissing her when he knows she likes Amane and Amane likes her. Remember, Tsukasa has never been above pulling pranks on his brother or his assistant.

Need I remind you that he tried to eat her?

He's just a bit... mysterious. The comparisons people make of him to an animal or toddler are not completely unwarranted. Still, he is a scheming 13-year-old ghost that has proven levels of intellect and cruelty on par with other members of the cast. It's best not to underestimate him too much... I just really can't see any benefit to kissing Nene other than getting a laugh out of it. Or, potentially, a little treasure for himself! ❤️

Finally, you asked if Nene would fall in love with him... this is actually my favorite part of the ask, because I considered how likely this was to happen and surprised myself with where my mind went, lmao.

The first thing we need to remember about Nene is that she is described as, and demonstrably is, a girl in love with love. She LIVES for romance. (Just keep this in mind always. It might even be the most important part of her character, idk.)

Now, not only is Tsukasa an identical clone to the boy she loves--the boy she's planning on asking to be her BOYFRIEND soon, mind you--but she sees the potential!!! She literally had an entire daydream about him showing up to be Hanako's "rival" for her love.

While she's very clearly still loyal to Hanako, take note of the fact that she made both of the twins look taller and more handsome in the daydream. This could be proof she finds him physically attractive. ...That being said, she seems more into the fact that Tsukasa is into her than anything else... but can you really blame her? She's always dreamed of being popular with boys. To have TWO boys be madly in love with her is something straight out of her wildest fantasies.

Okay, but you know what's kinda funny? This whole... "Taller Twins" fantasy... is um... kind of happening right now?!

While the height difference is obviously greater than the one between her and the Fantasy Tsukasa, it's still hilarious that this is even happening. And, while Tsukasa hasn't exactly been the best babysitter for Nene so far...

...she is having a ton of fun with him!!!

Also, I haven't brought this up yet, but during The Misaki Stairs Arc, Nene brings up having had a crush on her Kindergarten teacher. Is it so unrealistic that Nene might end up getting a crush on Tsukasa, too? Especially for a girl who falls in love so easily?

Well, if not, I'm still expecting her to be totally enchanted by Hanako if she happens to meet him when she's still a child, lol. Could you imagine how cool he would look to 5-year-old Nene, coming to save her?! She already thinks he looks cool when they're at their typical height difference!

JUST IMAGINE HOW STARSTRUCK SHE WOULD BE, NOW THAT HE'S SEVERAL FEET TALLER...!! Crazy.

Anyway. To summarize: I think Tsukasa could have a crush on Nene, I think Tsukasa either kissed her just because or because he has a kiddy crush on her, and I think Baby Nene could develop a crush on Tsukasa. Thanks for the ask!

#asks #tsukanene #tsunene #tsukasa yugi #nene yashiro #tbhk #jshk

[alexs-playground]

Joven y hermosa

Valeria Garza x male reader

summary: Valeria questions how you lover her with all of the things she does.

warnings: mentions of drug cartels and terrorism, implied self doubt, not much else.

Fem readers DNI

recommended you listen to Young and Beautiful by Lana Del Rey while you read.

(Wrote this mainly to cause my dear friend and writer pain)

Valeria had been in the drug cartel business for a long time. Living by rules like, Keep friends close and enemies closer. She has been the mastermind on helping up and coming terrorists to keep her business intact, cause as everyone knew as long as terrorism existed her drug cartel would never have a war to worry about. A lot of sacrifices had to be given to get where she was and nothing could make her give that up. Or at least nothing ever made her question it…until she met you.

A romantic relationship, something she never expected to find after whatever fling she had with Alejandro when a part of the Mexican Special Forces. It took a long time for her to even accept that she liked you and even longer to trust you enough to want you close. You never really left her side when she needed you and all she did was buy you something to show gratitude. Valeria after a while would question if you would love her if she continued her business. Every decision made her think of you, you were who she did it for now. Something in her head knew what she did was morally “wrong” but it meant you were safe and she could be with you. 

Valeria always thought that for all the love and care you gave her, she struggled to do the same without feeling as though her efforts were not good enough. Her wall between the world and her emotions was crumbling. Something about doing this made her think you didn’t want her to do this. Would you leave her? Would your love fade? What would happen as you both continued to grow. She knew you would but seeing the war and how she would take advantage of it made her feel sick.

Would you really want to live this life till it takes hold of your own? SHe knew she couldn’t leave but you still could. You had a life in the new age to live and discover. Your electric soul would live in her mind forever as hers ached.

“¿Me seguirás amando cuando no tenga nada más que mi alma dolorida?” She whispered to you one night as you were relaxing. She knew you didn’t know what she said completely but taking what you did know you nodded and intertwined your pinky with hers.

It made her smile a bit. She was never a fan of touch and you were always respectful of that. She didn’t deserve you. She knew that but selfishness took over and she kept you. You were her man, her life, her reason, and her fear. She wished that as she grew older and less conventionally attractive that you would stay.

Valeria wasn’t religious but she would pray that you would stay by her side forever. She got to know more than just a pretty face as did you and you needed each other. Wanted each other and forever would love one another. Everything from the music you say reminds you of her to just the way you love her unconditionally whether she thought she was deserving.

“Will you still love me when I’m not young and beautiful?” was the last thing she had asked you before her loud thoughts dimmed as her head rested on your shoulder. Her guard was down around you, she knew you would keep her safe just as she does you.

Silence breaking once more as you replied with a soft and loving “Yes, I will love forever no matter what”

#fanfiction #x male reader #valeria x reader #valeria mw2 #valeria garza #cod mw2 #mw2 #call of duty #mw2 fanfic

[farity]

Obsession, part 14

"What is happening?"

Helaena watched Aemond grab his guns with one hand while texting with the other.

"Bolton went to her office. She was picking up her stuff."

Aegon walked behind his brother, a sniper rifle strapped to his back. "Looks like I might get to use this baby today."

"I'm getting mom," Helaena said, putting down her yogurt and racing up the stairs.

* * * * *

"I fucking knew it. I knew I should have gone with her. I should have fucking-"

"Stop it!" Aegon snapped. "You can't be with her 24/7, plus she wouldn't put up with it."

Aemond turned to his brother, eye sharp with fury. "You're an expert on my wife now?"

"Fuck off, twat."

"Tell me, what's she doing right now, is she terrified for her life and wondering if she can trust me when I say I can keep her safe?"

Aegon groaned. "You're insufferable. You can't control the world, Aemond!"

Aemond muttered something under his breath that sounded to Aegon like I fucking should, but stayed silent as he drove to his wife's former place of work.

Beside him, Aegon tried his best to appear confident, but he knew that if anything happened to his sister-in-law, Aemond might not recover. He might not survive it with his sanity intact.

Whatever's left of his fucking sanity, fucking control freak.

And Helaena. She would go back to being a timid little shit who spent hours on her spreadsheets and lists and drawing bugs or whatever shit she did instead of starting to blossom as she had lately.

He stopped himself from thinking about how he would react if anything happened to Aemond's wife. As much as he loved Helaena, he didn't understand half the shit that came out of her mouth, but his sister-in-law, he'd had a couple of good conversations with her. She saw through his bullshit and was still nice to him. Probably how Aemond had fallen for her. Because fallen for her, he had. Fucking moron probably didn't even realize it.

It is I who studies history and philosophy, he mimicked Aemond in his mind. Yeah yeah so fucking smart, can't even tell when he's in love. Fucking twat.

If he got his hands on that fucking Bolton bastard, he'd gladly hold him down while Aemond flayed him alive.

* * * * *

"Aemond Targaryen. It's been a while. I'm here with your charming wife."

"I want to speak with her," Aemond said, parked outside the office building.

Ramsay laughed. "Oh no, you don't get to call the shots, boy-o, let me tell you what's going to happen."

"Don't do it, Aemond!"

Aemond's heart nearly stopped when he heard a gun go off after his wife's scream, but then he heard her cry out, "stop shooting her, she's already dead!"

"Next one goes in your gut, pretty girl," Ramsay said. "You are very pretty," he said.

When there was a sound of disgust from his wife, Aemond had to smile. She wasn't cowering. She wasn't pleading for her life. She might be terrified, he admitted, but she hadn't frozen in fear.

"You're going to annul this marriage and marry one of the Baratheon girls."

Aemond laughed out loud, rage going all the way to his fingertips.

"And I'm going to take your wife with me to make sure you do what I say. Because if you don't, she and I are going to have some fun."

He listened helplessly as there was a small struggle, then he heard her screaming again. "Don't you fucking agree, Aemond!"

"I'm coming out with her now. We're going to get in my car and you're not going to try anything or she gets a new hole in her head."

Aemond had parked in direct view of the main doors, but a couple of rows away, by one of the many trees in the parking lot. He had enough cover and the perfect angle, but when he saw the door open he still felt his heart sink.

Bolton had one arm wrapped around her, crouching a little so his head was next to hers, and as Aemond checked his watch, he saw the numbers slowly crawling up.

Good.

He was using her as a human shield, hiding himself against her as much as possible, and he heard Aegon's softly whispered, "fuck".

He crouched down, taking in as many details as he could. Bolton had his gun against her temple. She had a red mark on her cheek, but otherwise seemed unharmed. She wasn't making it easy, dragging her bare feet and throwing her weight around.

That's my girl, he thought to himself. She had to know that Bolton wanted her alive and healthy if he was going to use her as a bargaining chip.

But then Bolton slapped her, and Aemond felt his vision go red with rage.

"Steady," Aegon whispered in his ear.

Fuck steady, Aemond thought, and ran towards his wife.

* * * * *

You saw him then, coming out from behind a tree, and your heart sank. Ramsay Bolton straightened up and began to turn, to aim his gun at Aemond, and you shoved against him with all your might, your feet stinging from the gravel as you pushed. The bullet went high and then you were falling, Bolton's weight bringing you down, your sight blurry as you hit the ground.

There were two more shots, Bolton twitching with each one as you began to crawl away. There was something on your face and when you wiped a hand across your eyes, it came out covered in red.

You felt strong hands lift you off the ground and turn you around, and then you were staring at Aemond, who was turning your head this and that way, squeezing gently down your arms, then sides and hips to ascertain that you were okay.

A car pulled up and you tensed, your fingers digging into Aemond's sweater.

"It's Helaena," he sighed. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you? I know he hit you."

"I'm fine," you managed, before Helaena crashed into you and wrapped you up in a massive hug.

"Hel, what have I said about following me?"

Helaena didn't respond, simply kept her arms around you and you felt tears begin to gather in your eyes.

"You're going to step on him," Aemond warned, and Helaena turned around, looked down at Ramsay Bolton, and kicked him twice. "Clean up," he said, tapping his earpiece. "Let's go home. Where's Aegon?"

"I got the kill shot, baby!"

You turned to see Aegon strutting over, silver hair sparkling in the sunlight.

"I got the kill shot," Aemond corrected.

Three men, including the two that Aemond had sent with you, came around. "We got all of his men, boss," one of them said before Aemond nodded and placed an arm around you to guide you to his car. "We'll clean up. Cops won't be here for another ten."

You stumbled, the pain in your feet sharper now that the danger was over, and when you turned one over to look, there were little cuts and scrapes all over the sole.

"Come on," Aemond said, lifting you in his arms.

"I can walk, Aemond!" you protested.

He ignored you and kept walking to his car. "I know, I've seen you do it."

* * * * *

He'd called ahead to the housekeeper to have the fireplace on and some hot tea. She'd started to shiver on the drive home and gone very silent, and when he tried to remember back to a time when violence and guns had frightened him, he realized he couldn't.

Carrying her into their home, he noticed her hands and feet felt like ice, and took her all the way to their bathroom, took her into the shower himself, let the hot water warm her.

If anything, she started shaking harder, and he ended up sitting on the shower floor with her, letting the heat of the water slowly seep in. He began taking off her clothes and she let him, raising her arms when he took off her sweater. There was blood on most of her clothes, on her skin, and he held her close while he soaped up the washcloth and scrubbed the red spots on her hands and face. He was careful when he went over the two marks Ramsay Bolton had left on her cheeks, felt his face alight with anger when he saw the scratch near her eye, probably from the ring Bolton liked to wear. The ring he had reportedly taken from his father after murdering him.

He slipped off the leggings and underwear, slowly took off her bra, and held her with the water beating down on the back of her neck. She wrapped her arms around his neck, burying her face into his skin.

"I'm sorry," he said, over and over. How many times had he said it. How many more times would he have to say it.

"I was so scared," she finally said.

He brushed her hair off her face, "I know, I'm-"

"When I saw you burst out from behind that tree I thought he was going to shoot you."

He blinked. "You were scared for me?"

She nodded. "Yeah, and then he started to aim and I had to stop him bec-"

He pulled her against him, his mouth crushing hers, the thought that she could have possibly been frightened on his behalf one he had never considered.

There was a gentle cough at the door frame. "The tea is ready, sir."

* * * * *

"Thank you for everything," Aemond said, his gaze still on his wife.

"Is there anything else I can do?"

He looked up at the older lady and shook his head. "No, thank you, we've got it."

"We are all very glad you are safe, ma'am," she added before leaving.

"Thank you," his wife called out. "Aemond, I can barely move."

He brought the cup to her lips. "You don't need to move, you just need to let me take care of you." She sipped at the sweet, floral scented tea, closing her eyes at the delicate taste.

He'd wrapped her up in a fluffy towel, then in his own heavy robe, since hers was lighter and shorter. While she sipped at her tea and protested that she could do things by herself, he tended to her feet. There were a few scratches and a couple of cuts, but nothing worse, and he thanked every single of the Seven for the fact that she was almost unscathed.

"Do you want to go to the main house for dinner? I know everyone wants to see that you're ok, but if you would rather stay here, I will let them know." The fireplace had warmed her up, the bloom coming back to her cheeks.

She held the tea cup in her hands for a moment. "I think I'd rather go see everyone, if that's okay." When he nodded, she pulled him down to her and placed the cup aside. "Thank you for taking care of me."

He couldn't look at her just then, knowing that he was taking care of her only because she'd been in danger because of him, because of House and family bullshit. He nodded again and made to pull away but she held on.

"Aemond."

"Hmm."

She shrugged off the robe and he couldn't help but look. The towel had become loose around her and as she moved, it fell to her waist. "I want you to make me forget."

He didn't move, eye on her breasts.

"Please."

He looked up then, reached up to cup her face, tamping down on the anger that resurfaced when he saw the marks Bolton had left on her. She didn't need his anger right now. He kissed her jaw, her cheek, brushed his lips gently over the bruises and drew her down to the nest of blankets he'd placed her on.

When she sighed, he kissed her neck, the hollow beneath her throat, back up to her shoulder. "You're so beautiful," he whispered against her skin. "So precious to me."

When he closed his lips around one nipple she arched against him, her fingertips going up and down his arms as he settled his weight between her thighs. He let go of her breast, going back up to kiss her lips. "So brave. So very, very brave."

He shoved down the sweatpants he'd put on after their shower, kicked them off and reached down to guide himself. When he started entering her, she sighed, and he kissed her again. "I would burn down the world for you," he murmured, and filled her completely.

He pulled back slowly, drawing a soft moan from her, and pushed back, feeling the feather light fluttering of her around him. She wrapped her legs around him, her mouth reaching up to his, and he let her take him, let her tongue push in and explore, let her hands tighten on his hair as her hips rocked.

She let her head fall back when she came, the heat of her pulling him along as he let her take him into the darkness.

* * * * *

"He killed her so easily," you said, "she was nothing, just something he used to get to me."

"Did she have family?" Aemond asked.

"An ex-husband she was still in love with. We should let him know."

He nodded, holding you closer. "We will let him know." He kissed your temple, nuzzled your cheek. "How are you, really?" he finally asked.

"How did the guard know the cops were still minutes away?"

Aemond took a deep breath, and looked at you.

"Do you own the local police?"

He smirked. "I wouldn't say we own it."

"Aemond."

"We have a lot of influence over major institutions throughout Westeros."

You rolled your eyes at him. "You own the local police."

"I didn't say that."

"Look, I just need to know. If I'd met Ramsay Bolton out and about somewhere I would have had no idea who he was. I can't live like that, not knowing who is after us."

Aemond nodded. "Fine. We should all talk about what's going on, anyway. I'm sure Helaena has made a spreadsheet about it."

"Come on," you said, standing up from the sofa. "Let's go to dinner."

* * * * *

He watched her while she slept. She was curled up on her side, facing him, her breathing steady.

She was alive, and she was whole and healthy.

He kept reminding himself of that, while the guilt of being the source of the danger she'd been in to begin with wouldn't let him sleep. The knowledge that she'd chosen him, again and again, despite knowing what he was, what his family was, overwhelmed him.

When she'd mentioned having self-defense classes he'd instinctively balked at the idea, but she hadn't backed down and he figured he could get her the best instructors, instead of having her go to some random idiot who could get her injured.

She sighed in her sleep and reached out for him. He felt her small hand on his arm, placed his hand on top of hers. He wasn't worthy of her. Wasn't worthy of her love, that was certain. He didn't know why she wanted him, why she loved him, but it sure as hell wasn't working out in her favor. She'd lost everything she owned, she'd been attacked by a psychopath, she'd become a public figure, which she'd never sought before.

When he looked back at her, he realized she was looking at him. "I can hear the self-hatred from here," she said, and then rose on her elbow. "Come here."

He laid down next to her, and she pulled him over so that his head rested on her shoulder.

I should be comforting her, he thought, but as she stroked his hair, he closed his eye and let her soothe him. He felt the first tendrils of sleep drift over him and for once, didn't fight against it.

* * * * *

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[contentloadingandstuff]

Dark Days - Keqing & Ganyu x Male!Reader

CW: Reader death, slight self harm, swearing, lots of grief and misery, modern AU.

Keqing

She woke up at six, exactly ten minutes before you, and jumped into the shower. When she was out, she fixed breakfast while her pretty husband was painfully dragging himself out of bed. You were grumpy, but she reminded you it's Friday with a kind, soft smile, while passing you a bowl of cereal. She said she will treat you tonight, and then jokingly fed you a spoon out of her portion. You took it with a big, goofy smile.

She put on her formal dress, and looked after your office suit as well. You could never properly tuck the shirt in. No, it doesn't matter that nobody will see it, she said. Rules are rules. She also helped you take control of your bad case of morning hair.

When she went to grab the car keys, you swiped them off before she could get them. They were in a cup on the kitchen shelf, and she had to go on tiptoes to get it. She tried getting them back, but your amazing genetics defeated her, so she settled for you to drive this time.

There was a lot of traffic, but waking up an hour earlier had its benefits. Soon enough you arrived at her workplace. She quickly got out of the car, grabbed her purse on the way out, and spared you a quick glance and a quick 'I love you'.

Just as she was about to enter the building, she heard the screech of tires forced against the road, followed by a loud crash. She instantly turned around. 

She saw a red van where your car stood, its hood bent and missing the front. Further up, with a trail of broken metal and plastic behind it was your vehicle. 

Or the remains of it. 

The sheer speed of the van pushed the car straight into a nearby building. The entire hood of the car was forced into the front seats by the impact. 

No chance of survival. 

Without thinking about her own safety, she discarded the purse and sped towards you. She had to do something, she had to try. Maybe by some miracle you-

No. 

A roughly human shaped mass of bloodied meat is what she saw. Only your left arm was intact, crushed off at the elbow by the bent car window. 

She tried to force open the door, to no avail. Even her Vision, the gift from the Gods, was useless. She couldn't rescue anything. Not a single piece.

Pieces. That's what was left of you. Those pieces talked to her this morning. Those pieces ate breakfast with her. Those pieces kissed her in the car before she left. 

Those pieces, this bloody pile of meat, was all that was left of her husband. 

Keqing's rational mind screamed out to her. The car could ignite, the fuel tank could explode, she could die. But it didn't matter. At that moment, she didn't care if she would live or not. 

Life without you was worse than death. In death, at least you could be together again. 

Tears ran out when 'you' were extracted from the wreckage, scooped up into a black bag, and wheeled away. Ningguang led her away before the media would show up, and drove her home without a word. 

She tried her best to stay composed, but the pain soon overwhelmed her. She never liked alcohol before, but soon enough the liquor closet, full of gifts you two received in the past, was emptied. Keqing cried, screamed, threw the bottles and everything else she had in sight. In a drunk haze, she covered or simply destroyed anything that reminded her of you. Your pictures were stashed away, your things were thrown into the trash, she couldn't. She couldn't bear to look at them. 

Why did you do this to her? 

Why did you have to love her so much? Why did you have to be so lovable? So dear and kind? You ignited her heart, but left it a desolate wasteland on your departure. She wished the two of you never met. She wished you'd never fallen in love, that she'd never fallen in love with you. You could be alive, if not for her. 

It's her fault. 

Keqing tried to destroy the Vision, this time in a frenzy. The Gods chose her, but still they tore her heart into pieces. Seemingly mocking her, the object remained intact, despite being crushed, slashed, trampled and thrown. 

At some point Keqing made the mistake of watching the news. Her shocked self, her desperate attempts at opening the car, the mental collapse. Everything was caught on the CCTV, because of course someone leaked the feed. 

Motherfuckers. Sons of bitches. Whores. Fuckers. Scum. Filth. Thrash. The alcohol loosened her lips and she screamed or cried out all those insults. She works so diligently for the society, she keeps everything in order, she rejects pleasure, only for them to not let her even fucking grieve in peace. 

When she was scrolling through the internet, mindless and exhausted from crying, she stumbled upon a certain article. Some trashy news website suggested that she wasn't fit for the job, since she didn't show up at work for the past few days. 

Maybe they were right. Keqing was eyeing the shards of glass more intently by the hour. 

Liyue without you is not a Liyue worth fighting for. 

She saw her own reflection in the jagged piece of a broken vodka bottle. Face red from drunkenness and tears, eyes bloodshot from sleep deprivation, hair messy and outfit dirty with liquor and sweat. 

Is that really what you would want her to look like? Would bleeding out here and now be a good way of honoring your memory? Countless times you’ve told her that if, for any reason, death would do you apart, you would live on for her. She appreciated that greatly. She believed that living for someone is far greater of a sacrifice than death in their name. 

And here she was, intoxicated, broken, considering slitting her wrists. This wasn’t a way to honor you, you who gave her all this love, all those memories to live with. You deserved better. 

She would live. For you. 

For now, however, she needed to talk to someone. Anyone. She wasn’t sure if her far-from-sober mind would stick to the promise she just made. Keqing wasn’t sure of what she was capable of. She needed help. 

Keqing wiped her eyes with her hand, and choked back a sob. She picked up her phone, unlocked it, and scrolled through the pages upon pages of missed calls. She selected one from Ningguang, and put the device to her ear. 

After a few signals, a familiar voice reached her ears. “Keqing! Are you still with us? By the Gods, you got me thinking you did something very foolish! Hello?”

Just hearing her voice was enough to bring tears to her eyes again, this time of relief. She smiled. In this world, beyond the four walls of her dark apartment, there were still others. Other people, friends, who could offer her a hand, who cared. Who saw beyond the cloud of despair she was suffocating in. She sniffed.

“Can y-you pick me u-up… please?”

“I’m on my way. Don’t even think of doing anything you will regret, do you understand?”

Keqing closed her eyes. “Y-yeah… I’ll s-stay. For h-him.”

Ganyu

Liyue was a safe place. That's what Ganyu believed. 

The Milelith was in tip-top condition. They tracked and captured both petty and serious offenders without fail, week to week, month to month, year to year. Drug laws were strict, and the punishments were ruthless. Gun access was very limited. Sentences were just, quickly delivered, and merciless.

Liyue had no tolerance for crime, and the Qixing saw to that. 

Yet even the greatest justice system won't root out crime. You can try and try, but it is always there to some degree. Crime is hard to eliminate fully. Like weeds. 

It was a quiet night. You picked up Ganyu from work, and stopped by a grocery store. She went to buy some produce for tomorrow's breakfast, while you stayed in the car. She quickly returned with a bag filled with salad, radish, tomatoes and cucumbers. And a few bags of dried banana chips for you to enjoy this evening. 

When she walked out of the store, her eyes immediately spotted the man against the car window. He was talking incoherently, and you were responding with surprisingly calm answers. She placed down the bag, prepared a Cryo shard, and attracted his attention. 

A gunshot. The sound of broken glass. 

The man took off running, and Ganyu pursued him without thinking. He had no chance against her Adepti speed and stamina, and soon enough she pinned him down, freezing his hands to the sidewalk. She cried out for help, and soon enough someone approached her. They called the police, and Ganyu asked them to check up on you. When they returned, the police were already at the scene. 

The look they gave her was all she needed to know. 

Ganyu stiffly walked towards the grocery bag, picked it up, and went back home, all the while carefully avoiding looking at the scene. She felt… blank. Empty. Emotionless. Her brain was still processing what just occurred. 

Only when the door to your apartment closed did Ganyu surrender. She slid down to the floor, and wailed. 

Pain. Agony. Suffering. Grief. Sadness. Despair. Torture. Struggle. Sorrow. Misery. None of those words, in any human language, could describe what she was going through. 

Her phone rang non stop, but Ganyu didn’t want to speak to anybody. They couldn’t comfort her like you could. They couldn’t caress her horns, they couldn’t feed her like you did, they couldn’t cuddle her, they couldn’t boop her nose when she commented on her weight they couldn’t-

They weren’t you. 

All she wanted was to have you back. 

She tried. She tried to ride it out. She knew it would pass eventually. Ganyu tried to sleep it off and go back to her routine. She set the alarm clock, did her evening clean up, and cried herself to sleep, in vain. Just the coldness, the silence, the emptiness of your bed was enough to rip her soul to shreds. 

Every room was stuffy with her despair, every wall, ceiling, furniture piece and meter of floor was stained with tears. She was pulling her hair, she was biting her arms and hands, she was scratching at her skin, she was screaming, she wanted it to stop.

Ganyu was desperate. She didn’t want to think, she didn’t want to be able to remember. She raided the fridge, stuffing her face with everything she could find, no matter if vegetarian or not. She downed a handful of sleeping pills, and curled up on the couch. 

She couldn’t sleep in the bed. It smelled like you.

There was frequent knocking on the door that would wake her up. Her phone was still in the car when she left. Voices, many different, familiar. 

The monotone voice of Shenhe, now filled with concern. She offered to help her clean and cook food, or whatever she could to ease her pain. Ganyu screamed to be left alone. 

The grim voice of Ningguang, telling her that this isn’t a solution. That you wouldn’t want this to happen, for her to be left isolated and alone. Ganyu screamed for her to leave her be. 

The methodical voice of Keqing, monologuing about how she can’t fully comprehend her friend’s pain, but that she wants to help. Ganyu screamed that she only needed to be left in peace. 

Cloud Retainer pecked at every window. Her master stood on the balcony, trying to get Ganyu to talk with them, but she only heard the wailing of the Qiling in return. Her heart was bleeding as she could do nothing but watch as her daughter spiraled deeper and deeper into despair.

Beidou. Moon Carver. Madame Ping. Yanfei.  Mountain Shaper. Morax. Lumine. Chongyun. Xiangling. Yun Jin. Even Xiao tried. But she wouldn’t let them in. All she could think about, all she wanted was you. Your smile, your touch, your voice, your scent. Now gone, left to dwell in but her memories and lifeless pictures for all eternity. 

But they were persistent. They came daily. Xiao caused the wind to constantly rattle and wail against her windows. Cloud Retainer left bags of groceries on the balcony. They knocked and knocked and spoke and spoke until Ganyu could take it no longer. She burst out of the door and screamed “GET OUT!” at Shenhe. The woman didn’t budge, however, and instead embraced Ganyu. She whispered words of comfort as Ganyu’s legs gave in, exhausted from her sorrow, and the women sank to the floor, the Adeptus’ body trembling with agony. 

For the following few days, there wasn’t a moment when Ganyu was alone, not even during sleep. Shenhe cooked and cleaned, Zhongli brewed tea and rambled about history, Ningguang helped her clean and get herself in order, Xiao played the flute, Cloud Retainer told stories from her childhood, even managing to get Ganyu flustered instead of depressed for a few brief moments. 

The wounds would slowly heal, and Ganyu would be able to see sunlight again. 

Thanks for reading!

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[abybweisse]

Hey Aby! In anticipation of the 205 chapter, I decided to go back and re-read Mey-Rin's and Bard's for clues of what may happen next to Snake and Finny. I noticed something interesting with both arcs - they both seem to hint at what their ultimate fates will be. While Bard's arc is all about meeting with wife and son while in a coma and he practically promises to return to them, Mey-Rin is an unwitting witness to a sex act, in an uncharacteristically graphic scene for Yana. Do you think that death is ultimately on the cards for Bard and (I guess) a marriage for Mey-Rin? Or is it all contained to their arcs themselves and does not mean anything beyond completing a mission?

⚠️ long post ⚠️

Assignments as foreshadowing?

I think that if Mey-Rin gets married, it would not be foreshadowed by her seeing sex acts through a keyhole.

She joined Qīng Bāng at a very young age and worked as a sniper, but she saw a lot going on around her. Well, as much as she could see without glasses. There were drugs, alcohol, and probably prostitution in and around the opium den, as well as throughout Limehouse district. One of her early assignments as an assassin was to shoot this guy at a hotel or perhaps in his own huge manor, right? He was a rival gang leader, and she shoots him while he's naked with some unnamed woman. He might have even been right in the middle of having sex when she shoots him. She's witnessed a lot in her young life.... Getting married to anyone would be despite the things she has seen and done. Reminds me of how Katniss finally settles down and has kids in The Hunger Games, even though she's been thoroughly traumatized by her experiences. So far, at least, Mey-Rin seems to have kept her mind pretty well intact. I hope she can continue to do so.

I think we can safely say she has somehow managed to remain a virgin up to this point, too. Otherwise, Georg von Siemens' inappropriate actions towards her wouldn't have been enough to make her question whether she was still worthy of marriage. Going by "Rin" and dressing as a boy until she joins the Phantomhive household might have been partly to protect her virtue. Good thing Haku was apparently only interested in her sniper abilities.

In Baldo's case, the interaction with Joanna and his son might be an indication he will have to break whatever promises he's made to them. At least for now. I mean, his claim he can now properly cook fried eggs is an exaggeration "Sebastian" calls out even before Baldo can fully return to the living realm.

I put Seb in quotations because I'm not sure whether Sebastian has infiltrated Baldo's coma or if he's just a nagging figment of his imagination.

Then again, maybe he will soon join them. We still don't have confirmation that he and the others safely made it out of Athena Sanatorium, thanks to a cliffhanger and moving on to the next assignment, with Finny and Snake. Next time we see Baldo et alia, they might be trying to take leave of the place... when Polaris freaking shows up, mad as all hell. Even if Ronald and William stick around and actually enter the fray (since it's another bizarre doll to take down), I don't see it ending too well. Baldo does seem to have this uncanny ability to survive, though, even if everyone else around him doesn't....

Either way, I highly doubt he will ever make it to Shanghai with the others, even if the others do. And if he stays in England and somehow still survives to the end of the series, this is most likely a false promise, as well:

Mostly because he's just that terrible in the kitchen.

I still somewhat hope Mey-Rin and Baldo end up together, despite their age difference. At least she is an adult already. Also, it was a very common practice in Victorian England for older men to marry much younger women, especially if those men were widowers. Much like Katniss again, perhaps Mey-Rin would only pair well with a man who has experienced much of the same trauma. Likewise, Baldo might now have trouble settling down with some completely innocent sort of woman. Katniss and Peeta go through the deadly and maddening games together. Baldo's been altered by war and losing his wife and son. Mey-Rin has been altered by her years as an assassin for a drug dealer and gang. Mey-Rin and Baldo have both been enlisted as servants for our earl, chosen because of their abilities and previous training; now they volunteer as pawns in this deadly game of chess against their young master's brother. Perhaps their bond will be strengthened by all this... if they live to see the end of it.

The main thing the first two assignments have in common, besides their basic instructions, is that Mey-Rin and Baldo each flashback to the events directly leading up to being offered positions as our earl's servants. Mey-Rin's flashback is triggered by Jane offering her the opportunity to switch sides. Her flashback shows us why her loyalty stays with our earl and Sebastian -- with the Phantomhive household.

Baldo's is triggered by Ada admitting her guilt as a survivor during warfare; Baldo feels much the same.

And he also develops loyalty towards our earl, Sebastian, and the other servants. Just like Jane ends up aiding the infiltrators, so does Ada.

As I'm typing this up, I realize "hunger games" describes both Mey-Rin's and Baldo's lives before: Mey-Rin is once fooled into biting a boot and is regularly given moldy bread to eat... while Baldo's battlefield starvation tempts him to cannibalize his fallen comrades. Sebastian barely arrives in the nick of time to stop him from eating the arm of Terry, or whoever that poor dead dude was, if it wasn't Terry. Sebastian shows up with a picnic basket filled with afternoon tea items and possibly more. The first thing our earl does to extend any kindness to Mey-Rin is provide her with the first hot, freshly prepared meal she's had in ages, perhaps as far back as she can remember.

Back to their assignments; they are paired with people who are in our earl's network but are not his servants. But Finny and Snake (and his snakes) are both Phantomhive servants, so do we get a major flashback from Finny, from Snake, from both, or from neither one? So far, Finny is having single-panel flashbacks and even briefly stating things he recalls to Snake and the top students. The orphanage reminds Finny of the research facility in some ways, and that could segue him into a major flashback. Since Doll is there, she could trigger Snake into one. However, before the assignments, they were the two we already knew the most backstory for, and we might never learn all that much more about either one. To deal with both characters, we might just continue to get tiny snippets here and there.

But Mey-Rin has a choice to make -- choose Jane's offer or remain loyal to our earl. She remains loyal, and Jane even helps her and Ran-Mao break up the blood collection operations there before parting ways. Mey-Rin and Ran-Mao just need to get to our earl and make their report.

Baldo still has a choice to make -- stay in England and return to our earl... or go with Lau and the others to China. Like I said before, he might never get to China, even if he tries. I do expect him to ultimately end up staying behind, possibly loaded down with fresh feelings of survivor's guilt. If Ada is still around when we get back to them, she might also decide to stay back and help Baldo take down the Aurora Society.

With Finny and Snake, I don't think Finny's loyalty could ever come into doubt. His choice might come down to whether he has to fight Snake. But I don't think Finny will see much, if any, choice in the matter if it comes to that.

Snake is probably about to hear Doll's full tale about the circus members' fates. Then his choice (and the choices of his individual snakes) is to either help Doll get revenge... or attempt to destroy her and shut down the orphanage. Snake is the last to join our earl's household, so he could end up the first to leave it (I don't think Tanaka has truly left). There's also the possibility that one of his snakes, like Emily, chooses Doll and must be eliminated.

There is foreshadowing in each assignment, but most of that pertains to what ends up happening in each assignment. I don't know what long-term foreshadowing there is in the assignments, other than perhaps some things not directly related to them... like:

The chance of Jane popping up again later because she hinted that she might

The shapes of souls and "aptitudes" hinting about soul transplants

If Layla ends up being Heathfield's daughter

If Layla/Al ends up being some experiment of Undertaker's regarding soul transplants

What I do see is each servant's loyalty being put to the test, and they must make quick, fateful decisions. Whatever choices they make during their assignments, they will ultimately affect the outcome of the story. Each assignment definitely has long-reaching consequences; they are not little bubbles of existence.

I hope I answered your question thoroughly. I stayed up too late working on this -- but not finishing it -- and have been half asleep all day.

#black butler #kuroshitsuji #baldo #bard #baldroy #mey rin #ch175 #ch189 #ch190 #yorkshire #wiltshire #assignments #foreshadowing #snake #snake's snakes #finny #finnian #anon asks #i answer #answered asks #ch205 #the hunger games #katniss everdeen #peeta mellark #katniss and peeta #tw: trauma #tw: sex mention #tw: drug mention #oct 16 2023 #long post

[wild-karrde]

Congrats on 800 🥳 !!!!

For a quote-ficlet request, Commander Cody and Ahsoka Tano (underappreciated duo imo)! “What did Skywalker do now?”

THANK YOU SO MUCH and THANK YOU very much for the ask! I completely agree that they are an underappreciated duo! I hope you dig what I came up with!

Rating: T

Warnings: language, extremely fluffy sibling dynamics

Word Count: 1.6k words

“Ah good. Anakin’s returned.” 

Cody glanced up just in time to see the 501st’s gunship landing in the hangar of their Venator. The doors hissed open, and he felt himself already doing the mental tally in his mind, checking off brothers as they stepped out one by one. Their numbers still appeared to be mostly intact, and Cody felt himself relax slightly, especially when he caught a glimpse of a pair of painted blue Jaig eyes emerging from inside the ship.

“I’m curious how his mission went,” General Kenobi remarked. “Hopefully, he and Ahsoka were able to hold the line on the eastern front. That will make recapturing the capital city much easier.” 

Cody had a sneaking suspicion that things hadn’t gone quite according to plan. They rarely did when his general’s former padawan was left unsupervised. The first glimpse he caught of Skywalker’s new padawan only seemed to confirm that suspicion. He could already see something was off in the way the young Togruta’s shoulders slumped as she strode off of the gunship. Her eyes were glassy, and her teeth were digging firmly into her bottom lip. She was clearly trying to keep her head up and put on a brave front, but something had battered her, and judging by the fact that she had no visible injuries, Cody suspected it was her master. His mouth turned downward in annoyance.

What did Skywalker do now? 

It wasn’t that he thought Skywalker was necessarily cruel for the sake of being cruel; he just hadn’t wanted a padawan, a fact that he had made abundantly clear to that padawan despite her not being at fault in any of this. She was a child, one that had been placed on a transport and sent into a warzone. And Anakin had yet to accept that fact and adapt to it, something Cody couldn’t understand. 

We always took care of the cadets. Always protected them when we could. Always looked forward to mentoring them so that they would be able to stay safe. Why won’t he do the same for her?

Rex had told him what Skywalker had been subjecting his padawan to for training, and quite frankly, it enraged him. While Cody was as stringent about preparing his men and their counterparts for battle as anyone, he vehemently disagreed with Skywalker’s methods for a multitude of reasons. 

Firing on a teenager, even with stun bolts? Unacceptable. 

Rex had confessed how much he hated it after a few rounds at 79s, and while he had to support his general in front of his men and toe the line, watching the young Togruta’s confidence slowly slip away under her reluctant master’s constant berating was beginning to wear on him as well. Cody had teased his brother relentlessly about how quickly he’d become protective of Ahsoka, joking that she might as well share their face and have been born from a tube. 

But in spite of all of his teasing, he understood it. He couldn’t deny he felt a certain level of protectiveness over her as well, as did Kenobi. When he’d found out that his general had initially thought she was assigned as his padawan, Cody had allowed himself to think about how things might have been different, how she’d have been leading with him rather than Rex. He’d liked the thought of having her around, but he also knew Ahsoka had had a positive impact on Rex, and that the two of them working together had maybe tempered some of his brother’s recklessness. 

Kenobi would have been the better choice, of that he was certain. His general was empathetic to a fault at times, normally very cognizant of the feelings of the people around him. However, at the moment, it seemed that his general was completely focused on his former padawan, oblivious to the mood of the young Togruta as he strode by her, absently resting a hand on her shoulder in greeting as he passed. Cody could see the touch brought her little comfort as Kenobi continued past, not even sparing her a second glance as he greeted Skywalker. Anakin was obviously in a foul mood, his brows knitted together in his trademark scowl. Ahsoka turned and looked over her shoulder at master one more time as he exited the gunship, clearly hoping for some sort of reprieve, but Skywalker pointedly ignored her, meeting Kenobi and walking off with him in the opposite direction with Rex in tow. The captain of the 501st removed his helmet as he fell into step behind them, his gaze lingering on Ahsoka as she slumped off before he turned and met Cody’s eyes with a pleading look. The unspoken ask was clear. 

Keep an eye on her. 

Cody gave him a short nod, and Rex responded with a grateful grimace before he disappeared out of the hangar with their commanding officers. 

Ahsoka had made her way over to one of the large windows on the hangar deck and was hugging herself tightly, staring out at the starfield before her. Cody ran his hand through his short-cropped, regulation haircut before sighing to himself and striding over. She didn’t turn to look at him when he stopped next to her, her eyes only briefly flicking over to where he stood before returning to the empty space ahead of them. 

They’d had a few interactions, all of which were brief and simple, but this time, Cody wasn’t quite certain where to start. He didn’t want to drag Skywalker through the mud in front of her. As far as he understood Jedi tradition, she was permanently bound to her master, and they had to figure each other out. Driving an even larger wedge in between them wouldn’t help things, and it would only make Rex and his brothers less safe if their two Jedi leaders were at odds. But she wouldn’t want to be coddled either, that much he’d gathered from her personality. She was a good kid, as stubborn as her master, but above all, determined to prove that she was competent, that she could do this, that she would do this. It just might take more time than she had patience for. 

Cody wet his lips. “Would you like to talk about it?” 

Ahsoka shrugged, but he could see her eyes were still glossy. “Same as always," she muttered. "I disappointed Master Skywalker again. Did something wrong, and apparently, I somehow should have known better.” She sniffed. “I know he didn’t want me, and I’m trying so hard to be a good padawan and a good leader, but I don’t have it all figured out yet, and I feel like I can’t learn it all fast enough. Like I’ll never be good enough.” 

Cody nodded, thinking for a moment before taking a deep breath and wading in. “You know, no matter how many times I come up here, I never get used to the number of stars I can see from this deck. More than I can from any planet’s surface.” 

The padawan was quiet for a moment before dipping her chin in agreement, not questioning his abrupt change of topic. “They’re really pretty.”

“That they are. But you know, it’s always funny to me how they all look the same from here,” he noted. Ahsoka turned to him, raising one eyebrow in curiosity, clearly wondering where he was going with this. Cody pressed forward. “They’re all different when you’re up close. Some are burning hot and blue, while others are cooler and red. Some are massive and others are smaller. A few are part of a binary system with two stars, some have even more than that, relying on one another to keep things in balance, but you can’t see them separately from here. Some are at the beginning of their life, others moments from going supernova or burning out. All so different, but from here, they all look the same.” 

Ahsoka rocked on her heels. “I suppose that’s true.” 

Cody flexed his fingers, glancing over down at her to see if his hastily cobbled-together metaphor was landing. She was clearly mulling it over, but he decided to maybe be a bit more clear rather than letting her meander towards his meaning. There were enough riddles and metaphors in her Jedi training.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he leaned down and nudged her with his shoulder, knocking her slightly off balance. “What I’m trying to say is it’s easy to think we’ve all got our shit together at a distance. Jedi, clones, even other padawans. But everyone is on their own path. Sometimes we are burning brightly, sometimes we're close to burning out, and sometimes we’re relying on the ones around us to hold us up, and all of that is part of life. Doesn’t make you any less or the general any more. Just means you’re doing it differently, and from what I know of General Skywalker, different comes with the territory. You’re doing alright, Commander. You’re finding your way, just like the rest of us, and no one can rush that. Not even The Chosen One.” 

A smirk tugged at the corner of Ahsoka’s lips as she recovered her balance and shrugged. “You mean to tell me you and Master Kenobi don’t always have things figured out?” 

Cody chuckled quietly. “If we did, do you think I’d have a clip on my belt specifically for when I recover his lightsaber?” 

Ahsoka giggled, and Cody warmed. “Don’t tell him I said that though," he whispered.

The young Togruta grinned. “I won’t.” She leaned against the clone commander slightly. “Thanks, Cody.” 

The gesture took him aback slightly, but he reached down and gave her shoulder a squeeze. “Of course, kid.” 

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