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igotanidea · 1 year

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Empty promises: Nikolai Lantsov x reader

A/N: first of all, sorry to everyone wainting for "Traitor", but I felt the need to write something sad and heart wrenching so here;s that. For now. Angst coming right next. Oh, and you have been warned, this is sad. And got spoilers for ep.4/5.

***

„Alina? Are you decent?” Y/n peeked through the door the very second the queen’s seamstress left the room.

“Y/n! Please, come in. It’s so good to see your face.” Alina struggled in the dress “I wish I could greet you properly but I can’t, quite, move in this.”

“Oh, yes, I’ve heard some rumors about certain Saint and the outfit trouble.” Y/N laughed wholeheartedly ”I don’t think it’s really your style, no matter what the queen mother may have to say about that. I may have an idea to save you from that torture though. If, you let me, that is.”

“Please. Anything.” Alina shook her head

“All right then. You know, a tailor would probably be better with the fitting, but as an Inferni I can surely give you something to boost your confidence” Y/N started turning around, picking another outfit for sol koroleva.

“Y/N.” Alina said and the timbre of her voice made the other Grisha stop in her track and look up “How… How are holding up? With me and Nikolai….?”

“I’m fine” Y/N assured quickly. Too quickly to make it believable. “I just ….” She sighed deeply, gathering all the strength she had to finish that sentence “I just wish he told me sooner, you know. Not just leave me like that. Given all we have… had….” she corrected and covered a little tremble by coughing “But he just left me as surprised as any other Grisha in the room when he announced your engagement and it feels like betrayal, Alina. “ she went silent for a minute “but yes, apart from that I am perfectly fine. Now, let’s focus on the suit.”

“Y/N” Alina grabbed her hand gently “I am sorry for what you are going through right now.”

“Well, we all have our burdens to carry, right? I suppose this is mine.”

“I know it does not make anything better, but I know about heartbreak and making tough choices. Nikolai loves you in a way he would never feel about me. And I feel that for Mal. This is all just a political alliance, nothing more.” Alina assured.

“You know, sancta, when Nikolai left to be Sturmhond I spend two years searching for him, east to west and south to north. And when I did and we got together this was the best time of my life. And I shouldn’t have enjoyed the sea so much, but with him, I did. And even then I always had this little tingling inside my head. A sneaky voice that was telling me, that we would not last. Turns out I was right. And truly, no one is to blame for that.” The Inferni smiled sadly “This should do the work” she raised the garments she prepared for Alina “I should better go before the seamstress came back. Just for now pretend you’ll wear the dress , all right? Can’t show all the cards at once.” And with such words, she left the chamber, unnoticed by anyone.

The next person to come to Alina was not even remotely as welcomed as Y/N. Vasily came for a little chat coated with veiled threat and perhaps a bit of a warning, but Alina was too strong to let him beguile her.

And then, when time came Nikolai appeared at the door for a little pep talk.

“Well, you look lovely” he smiled eyeing Alina already up and ready in her second army regimentals.

“Y/N came and helped me put this little thing together. So much better than….” Her gaze focused on the dress nearby and the girl rolled her eyes.

“She’s been avoiding me.” The prince said sadly “not that I blame her, but how can she not miss my company even a little? Am I so easily forgettable. She really acts like I’ve grown a pair of horns or started breathing fire…..” he tried to keep his cool and joke around but Alina knew him well enough to see through it.

“She’s an Inferni. A little fire could never discourage her. But she’s hurt. Twice as much since you kept her in the dark about this whole arrangement.”

“I wanted to save her pain. And possibly myself.”

“’You failed at that.” Alina pouted

“Anyway, I got something to complete the look.” He took a step closer and reached inside his pocket retrieving a green gem “the Lantsov emerald….”

“Nikolai, we don’t have to do this, if it’s too hard. “

“Let’s just keep the pretenses up, shall we? Just remember, shall you decide to punch me, you will probably take my eyes out with this on, and I would not like that.”

***

“Have you seen Mal?” Alina started spinning around, searching for the one face she so desperately needed to see “It’s not like him to be late.”

“Perhaps your little tracker is not such a fan of festivities as you.” Vasily approached the pair from behind, with some drink in his hand and Alina immediately excused herself, leaving two brothers alone.

“You know, my little brother” Vasily started “I always knew you would not end up with that little Inferni. Why settle for a commoner when there’s a living saint in the palace.” He laughed and took a sip on his drink. “now you will get fire from someone else! I’m sure the Sankta had a lot of it, judging by her actions. And Y/N. Waste of time. She was always a challenge, even when she was a kid.”

“Don’t you dare talking about her like this.” Nikolai hissed, but still kept straight face in a prince-like manner

“Why do you even care at this point, brother? From what I know, she’s been avoiding you, am I right? But look” he pointed out in the crowd, where Y/N was talking to Nadia and Tamar, laughing for the first time in a while “she’s right there. Don’t you wanna talk to her. If has any dignity, which I doubt, she would not cause a scene in public.”

Even though Nikolai knew his brother was only goading him, his brain shut off when legs carried him towards the other side of the ballroom, straight to her.

“Y/N.” he spoke and all three girls turned around, each one of them showing different expression. Tamar was curious of what was going to happen, Nadia a bit stressed out about her friend, and Y/N…. Y/N was just in pain and nothing could have hid it.

“Moi tsarevich” she bowed, avoiding his eyes

“Please, stop it. Can we… can we talk for a minute? Please.”

“We are not going to interrupt you….”Nadia started, but Tamar was on the other side of the barricade in the matter.

“I will. I’m not leaving her with you in this state, Nikolai. You know, you are both my friends, but she’s the victim not the other way round. “

“Tamar” Y/N put a hand on her shoulder “it’s all right. It will be just a minute to clarify this little misunderstanding . I’ll be with you before you notice I was gone.”

“I still don’t like it…” Tamar muttered, but let Nadia drag her away to have a little chat with Adrik and watch Alina. When they both left Y/N took a deep breath and before Nikolai was able to say a thing she took the lead of the conversation.

“Nikolai. I don’t really think it’s appropriate to leave your fiancé alone. Especially with Vasiliy acting like a predator tonight.”

“Vasiliy is drunk.”

“He’s been drunk since the age of 18. Remember that time when we played a prank on him and had to run through the palace in the middle of the night?” she smiled

“And when we ended up squeezed in the cupboard to avoid his wrath? Yes, I remember that.” Now they were both laughing outloud “I also remember what happened later on….”

“Nik. Stop it” she warned, her cheeks getting a bit flushed. Of course he had to refer to the moment they shared their first kiss “this is not the time or the place.”

“My feelings for you did not change.”

‘And do you think mine did? But you are engaged now. And I get it, Nik, I really do. You did what you though was right, as always and I can’t blame me for that. We are all pawns in this crazy political game and the point is to minimalize the damage. If that means you getting with Alina then I cannot interfere. I still be there for you both. Even if it is in the sideline.

“Y/N…. I….”

“It’s all right” she raised her hands almost embracing him, but stopped herself in the last minute. “You should probably go join your family, your mother has been eyeing us for a while now and she knows we have past. Can’t risk anyone getting suspicious, right? Moi tsarevich” she bowed and went back to join Tamar, Adrik and Nadia, who pulled her into a hug.

From then on, everything started happening extremely fast. Vasiliy came onto the podium to gave some mockery speech about his brother, the man of the hour, but in the middle of it, Darkling’s shadow monster decided to drop by and well, cause a little havoc, killing the speaker and some other gathered people. It was chaos. Alina, Tamar, Adrik, Nadia and Y/N were trapped on the one side of the room, while the Lantsov (or rather whatever was left of this family) where stuck on the other.

“They have no heart, no pulse, no nothing!” Tamar exclaimed trying to use her heartrender powers

“Every creature has a weakness” Adrik spit, observing the monsters carefully from behind the table they used as some sort of shield, Y/N following in his steps.

“Those are shadows” the girl said “Look, Adrik, you were right, they have to be in their full form to touch and hurt someone!”

Before another shadow could attack Nikolai and his mother, Adrik came from one side throwing a gust of wind his way, Nadia doing the same on the other. Y/N used this as an opportunity to grab a spark from the nearby candle and throw a fireball straight into the middle of it. For a second, when the monster was tearing apart her gaze met with Nikolai’s who was just frozen like a deer in the spotlight.

“GO!” she yelled at him “Take whoever you can and GO!”

“Everyone into the tunnels!” Nikolai ordered, but before he himself rushed off, he just threw one last glance at his one true love and moved his mouth silently.

“Come back to me.”

***

“You three go find Alina, I’ll go check if there’s anyone lost in the corridors to get them to safety” Y/N commanded her friends ready to run the other way

“Have you lost your mind!?” Tamar spit at her “You are not going anywhere alone.”

“I’ll be fine Tamar.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard that from you hundreds times before.”

“And I am still alive. A little bruised and scared but alive. Not planning on dying today, I swear. Alina needs you three and there’s no time, so I’ll just see you downstairs. GO!”

***

She was running one of the palace corridors, stating with the greatest relief that all the Grisha that were not killed were off the palace and probably on the way to the tunnel. She almost reached the entrance, but mere meters before, another shadow monster blocked her way.

“Oh, Saint!” she hissed annoyed and focused her energy to gather just a little bit of flame since sadly, there wasn’t any external source of it anywhere near. It was always harder to get fire from nothing, but it used to work for her. Most of the times.

Not this one.

The fire that came out of her hands were so weak it barely reached the shadows let alone cause them any harm.

“Oh, shit…” she mumbled when darkness enveloped her whole and tried once again, this time fueled by fury and worry about her friends. Maybe Tamar was right and she shouldn’t have left them. Nonetheless that was not the time to dwell on the past mistakes, since it was extremely hard to breath inside that fog the monster were created from. It was like all of a sudden she found herself in the fold again, broken and scared. “Hell no! I am not dying today” she put her hands up causing a flare and dissipated the shadows finally getting herself free.

If only it wasn’t for that cut with sharp, thorn-like edges on her leg, which she did not notice or feel.

***

“Is everyone safe?” Nikolai came from one entrance to the tunnels, meeting with Alina and Tamar coming from the opposite.

“Adrik got hurt in the arm, Nadia is with him.” Alina explained “the healers are taking care of the injured. What about the ones you came with?”

“Saved as many as possible” Nikolai turned around “where is …..?”

“That idiotic girl left us and came for the rescue. I told her she should not….” Tamar’s voice broke a little

“Where is she, Tamar?!”

“We… We don’t know…..”

“I’m here!” all the emotions he felt upon hearing her voice where just too much to handle and not caring about anyone or anything or whether he was acting like an engaged prince he took off running towards her, wrapping arms around her and pulling her close to his chest.

“You’re safe, love. You’re safe.” He whispered again and again caressing her back, tangling fingers In her soft, messy hair and just getting lost in her.

“Nik…” she gasped taking a sharp inhale “I… I don’t really feel so good….” She stumbled a bit and this made him worry.

“I know, darling, but you were so brave up there. You saved my life with that little trick of yours. And you always said you couldn’t do fireballs. Guess me being in danger enhanced your…..”

“Nik, I really do not feel good” she mumbled and all her strength suddenly left her when her legs gave up and she collapsed into his arms, the embrace being the only thing shielding her from falling straight to the ground.

“Y/n? Come on, tell me, what is it, where does it hurt?” he started panicking just in the slightest.

“My leg….”

“May I?” he hesitated before lifting the material of her pants.

“Saints! Stop being a gentleman now! ” Tamar hissed and started tearing the pant-leg “I wish you were this polite at all those night on the ship instead of giving the crew sleepless nights “Oh….”

“How… how bad is it?” Y/N asked, raising her head from where It laid on Nikolai’s chest and he quickly turned her head away.

“It’s gonna be fine” he assured, grabbing her righter and kissing her temple “I’ll get you to a healer, all right?”

“Mhmmm……” she mumbled, slowly losing consciousness.

“I’m gonna lift you now, ok?” one of his hands sneaked around her back, the other went below her legs when he moved her from the ground “you’re gonna be ok, just don’t close your eyes, love.”

Out of instinct Alina wanted to join them on their walk to healers, but Tamar stopped her.

“Don’t” she shook her head, eyes a bit glassy.

“No.” Alina just stated. “Please tell me it’s not….” bus since Tamar was a heartrender there was really no point in arguing.

***

“Nik…. You smell so good.” Y/N hid face in his chest, locking arms around his neck

“I am all sweaty from the fight and running, honey. As much as I love what you are saying I do not smell good.”

“You smell like the ocean.” She smiled lightly “Like the sunny day on volkvolny”

“We’re going to have a thousand more of such days so you could dwell on the smell.”

“I…. I don’t really think so, Niki.” She hissed in pain when he reached one of the makeshift flop and called upon the healer

“Always a joker, aren’t you?”

“I wish” she started coughing, a little blood appearing on the hand she tried to cover her mouth with. “Tell me the truth, Nik. How bad is it. Cause it hurts like hell.”

“I don’t want to look. I;m not a healer, I don’t have any experience…..”

“You…” she gasped “are a trained soldier. You know about wounds. Tell me.”

“It’s not good” he closed his eyes almost like those words caused him unimaginable pain and grabbed her hands. “but the healers…..”

“The healers have too much work on their hands. And judging by your voice….” She coughed a bit more

“Sh, don’t say anything more. Let me just… Grigori!” he called upon one of the corporalki “she needs help.”

“Immediately, moi tsar” Grisha answered and it was probably the first time Nikolai realized that he was the king now.

“Moi tsar” Y/N smiled faintly “it suits you so well, lapushka. Auch! It hurts….”

“I’m sorry Y/N, this wound is unusually deep and it seems like there’s some kind of venom in your veins, going straight to the heart and…..” Grigori started slurring

“There’s nothing you can do, right?” she asked simply

“I’m so deeply sorry, Y/N, moi tsar.”

“Not your fault.”

“Leave us.” Nikolai hissed through gritted teeth and Grigori practically run away trying to avoid king’s fury “Y/N….” he leaned toward her, cupping her pale cheek and caressing it gently “I don’t want you to go….”

“Selfish. As usual. You don’t want me to go, mhm. Do you think I…. auch, want to die like this?”

“I need you with me….” He kissed the top of her head

“Selfish. Again. You got the sun summoner now."

"You are my sun."

"Stop flirting with me on .... on my .... death.... deathbed" she squirmed trying to lift herself up but it was too painful “Help… me….” She panted and Nikolai grabbed her waist with one hand and supported her back with another “I don’t have much time left… I feel it almost in my heart….”

“I don’t want to go on without you.” he whispered

“I know.” tears started showing in her eyes and he wiped them away breathing heavily “I’m scared Nik” she admitted trembling “I feel so cold. Can you just hold me? I don’t….” she gulped “I don’t want to go alone….”

“I’m here with you. No matter where you go, afterlife, I will find you, I swear.”

“Not if…ekhem! Oh, saints, it hurts so much” she cried and his heart broke at that sobbing coming from her. The sounds he would never recover from. Reminded that he failed to protect the only person he ever truly loved. And to think she was dying in his arms, while he was about to marry another woman. This was like a punch in the guts “not if I hunt you first.”

“I love you” he just had to say it. Maybe it was selfish again, but he needed to know that were the last words he said to her “I love you and I will always love you.” he kissed her knuckles, looking straight into her eyes. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Nik. And I’m sure you will….” Her voice was becoming so small, so quiet, almost audible in all commotion “… have a long, happy and fulfilled life. You’ll be great king. And a father…. I….” she closed her eyes “I’ll see you later, Nik…..” and just like that there was silence.

And this was the exact moment Tamar clenched her fist and faced the wall, her back to other Grishas so no one would see single tear falling from her eye.

She said she’ll be fine……. Empty promises always hurt the receiving end of those.

***

“Nikolai? We need someone to get everyone together and ….” Zoya was blissfully unaware of the tragedy that just fell upon the king and was her usual self when she entered the part of tunnels were healers were stationed “what… what happened?” she stuttered at the view in front of her eyes.

Nikolai was not a king at the moment. He was just a broken man who just lost the love of his life. Not crying, just sitting next to her still figure, holding and caressing her cold hand, unable to stop. Almost like he was in a trance. For what he cared the world could stop spinning and it would not make any difference for him. But for her…. He was going to do anything to avenge her death. But he would do that in a second, for now, he just wanted and needed to stay with her a bit more, even if that meant just watching her face, surprisingly peaceful and running a hand through her hair.

If only he could indulge in that greedy need.

“Goodbye, my love….” He whispered planting one final kiss on her forehead and tugging at his hair stood up to protect and guide his people, his subjects.

#shadow and bone imagine #shadow and bone fanfic #shadow and bone fanfiction #shadow and bone x you #shadow and bone netflix #shadow and bone x reader #nikolai lantsov #nikolai lantsov x reader #nikolai lantsov x you #nikolai lanstov fiction #nikolai lantsov angst #shadow and bone angst #heartbreak

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azrielslightintheshadows · 6 months

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Hi there! I would like to make a request for cassian with a f!reader, where reader is a very shy and insecure person from the start, and maybe whilst her and cassian are strolling down, many girls that cassian used to date come up to him and reader becomes insecure of how much experience cassian has compared to her. and there is angst but lots of flufff❤️❤️

Live without you

Cassian x Reader

Warnings; angst, swearing, mentions of sex

Masterlist

Saturday has become your favourite day of the week and the reason behind that is a certain warlord with shoulder- length hair, golden skin and the most mesmerising hazel eyes, not to mention the body sculptured by all the gods new and forgotten. The lord of bastards -Cassian. Every Saturday he would put his duties on hold and take you on dates. You love Cass with all your heart, but sometimes going out with him could be a little overwhelming, not that you didn’t enjoy his company, but your personalities were the exact opposites. Cassian is loud, self-confident and entirely outgoing. You on the other hand are shy, self-conscious and entirely introverted.

After changing your outfit for the hundredth time you settled for a black skirt that reached mid-thigh, a red tight fit top and black boots, today was a nice and uncommon day for you, one of these days that you believed you looked good, thus the revealing outfit. You let your hair down, and with a last look in the mirror you headed to the balcony to meet Cassian praying to the Cauldron that the flight wouldn’t mess your hair -or Cassian…. seriously most times he acted like a toddler.

You found him there, his back on you as he watched the city bellow. You cleared your throat and he turned, his eyes moving slowly over your body and a grin appearing on his face. “You look amazing doll” he said and quickly covered the space between the two of you, pulling you in his arms and shooting to the sky making you yelp. “Cass, my hair you are ruining it, slow down” you shouted, and he chuckled but slowed down anyway. You face was red and you quickly hid it in his chest, he noticed the movement and smirked, thankfully he didn’t say anything -probably afraid that you would pass out from the embarrassment.

The moment your feet touched the ground you patted your hair hoping to make them look less crazy.

“Everything’s fine, you look beautiful” Cassian rolled his eyes and placed his hand on your waist guiding you in the big crowd. Couples, families and groups of friends filled the street, everyone enjoying the day and what the city had to offer. You bowed your head trying to avoid eye contact with anyone, and let Cassian guide you through the crowd. You reached your favorite bookstore and walked in, a beautiful female that you had never seen again was behind the counter, her eyes flashed with joy the moment she saw Cassian. “Cass, oh my god, it’s been a while” she squealed and almost ran to your mate, engulfing him in a big hug. You stared at your feet not sure about what to do.

“Hey Ivy” Cassian said and patted her back with one of his hands. You didn’t dare look at them, the female was stunning, she was everything you wished to be.

They continued chatting and you blocked the sound as you scanned the shelves for a new book. You couldn’t focus, the words written on the back of each book seemed like foreign symbols. With a sigh you walked back to the exit, Cassian looked at you and nodded his head in question.

“I’m not in the mood to buy a new book” you muttered and walked out of the store.

Cassian said goodbye to Ivy and followed you. “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice soft and caring.

“Yes, just hungry” you smiled. He seemed to believe you as he placed his hand on your waist once again and started walking. Your patience was running out as five more females passed you and smiled at Cassian in greeting.

You saw the restaurant and sighed in relief. You really wanted this day to be over. Usually, you would go on dates in the nature, just the two of you and a picnic basket so you had never experienced this.

You entered the restaurant hurriedly and found a table in one of the corners, you took a seat and grabbed the menu, not one glance spent on Cassian, you couldn’t look at him. He noticed but said nothing, not wanting to pressure you until you had eaten.

The waitress came with a polite smile on her face that turned to a grin when she spotted your mate. “Cassian! It’s so nice to see you again” she gasped.

You’ve got to be kidding me. You thought and squeezed your lips shut to suppress a groan that threatened to leave you.

“Hello Aurelia, yeah I haven’t seen you in ages, you work here now?” Cassian asked offering her a bright smile. The menu in your hands was starting to wrinkle as you clenched it. Tears were forming in your eyes, and you shut them in order to calm yourself.

“Yes I started working here last week” she glanced at you, the smile never leaving her lips. “Hello… what can I get you?” her voice polite.

Of course she wouldn’t have an attitude towards you, she was stunning she would never feel threatened by you. You thought and forced a smile “I would like to have the green salad”. You craved the steak but seeing the females Cassian had been involved with, you decided that you needed to lose some weight.

Cassian frowned “But you love the steak”.

“I’m not in the mood” you whispered and stared at the table.

“Okay” he cleared his throat “I will have the steak” he said and you knew that he only ordered it in case you changed your mind.

Silence filled the table when the waitress -Aurelia left. Cassian was staring at you, and you pretended to play with your napkin. “Is everything okay?” he asked.

“Yeah, just tired” “Yes, just hungry – yes, just tired, come on what’s wrong?” he exclaimed earning a few glances from the people around you. His wings were tense and his face hard.

“I would like to go home now” you whispered blinking away the tears. “Fine” he rolled his eyes, he stood up and walked to the cashier “Cancel our order, if you can’t just put it in the house’s credit” he said and left the restaurant. You followed him quickly, he didn’t wait for you, he just walked in a fast pace until you reached the end of the street, the big clearing enough for him to stretch his wings. He waited for you and without a word he picked you up and flew to the house. When you landed you quickly removed yourself from his arms and ran to your shared bedroom. You needed to get those clothes off asap, not feeling pretty in them anymore.

After changing into one of Cassian’s tops and a pair of leggings you sat on the bed and let the tears flow. Your mate was probably on the roof taking his frustration on the training dummy. You cried and cried. Cassian used to date those stunning females and probably stopped when you appeared. But why? Was he dating you just because you are his mate? What if you were just a burden. That must be it. You thought. He is with me because I am his mate. If he could choose his own mate, he would never choose me. You got up and took the bag you kept beneath the bed, the one you used when you moved in. You were glad that you kept your apartment in the city, with a sigh you started to gather your things, shoving two of Cassian’s tops in there too. You were shaking and crying, moving frantically around the room to gather all your stuff. You were so out of control that you didn’t notice you were shoving all your feelings through the bond. The door of your bedroom banged to the wall behind as Cassian burst in, his expression panicked and his eyes widening when he noticed the bag on the bed. He was sweaty, his wings stretched behind him and all his muscles tense. He looked so powerful and scary and if you weren’t so devastated you would probably drool from the sight.

“What the hell are you doing” his voice boomed throughout the room.

“Leaving” your voice was shaky and barely above a whisper.

“Like hell you are” he pushed his hand through his hair. “Talk to me, what happened today?” he said softly. “Maybe we can fix it… I will try to fix it just please talk to me….”.

“Cass….” Your tears began flowing again.

“Don’t do this, just tell me what I did so I can fix it” his voice broke.

“I’m sorry” you whispered and grabbed the bag, you squeezed between him and the door and ran to the balcony praying that Rhysand heard you in his mind shouting. Your prayers were answered as you saw him waiting there, his hands in his pockets and a worried look.

“Please get me out of here” you cried and in an instant he had you in his arms winnowing to your apartment.

“What happened?” he asked as soon as you were in your living room.

“It’s over, me and Cass… we’re over” you replied between your sobs.

“Why?” he almost screamed.

“I saw some of the females he used to date today, they all are so beautiful and confident… It’s not fair for him to be with me…” you couldn’t talk anymore; your sobs were taking over you.

Rhysand hugged you “You are amazing please don’t you ever think like that again, Cassian is completely in love with you, he won’t shut up about you, if he could stay with you all day he would. Have you seen the way he looks at you? Because I have and I’ve never seen his eyes so shiny, not even when he sees Nyx and he adores him.”

“I just want him to be happy, he needs a beautiful and experienced female. I have never been with another male, only him. I didn’t know anything about relationships and sex, he taught me everything I know now. Maybe he needs someone who already knows these things….” You needed to lay down, so you didn’t let Rhys say anything “Thank you for the ride, I need to be alone now” He nodded and disappeared.

You spent the night crying and trying to convince yourself that this is the right thing.

The morning came and the loud noise of someone banging on your door made you flinch. “Y/n I swear to the Cauldron if you don’t open the door, I will break it down” Cassian’s voice echoed through your house. You knew he would. So you got up and walked to the door, the moment you turned the handle the door flew open and a broken Cassian came into view. His eyes were red, dark circles beneath them and his hair a tangled mess. You took a few steps back to let him in. He walked to your living room and stood in the middle.

“Rhysand told me everything” he said, his voice soft now.

“Of course he did” you scoffed. He ignored your annoyed expression and started talking again.

“Are you out of your mind? You are the sweetest creature I’ve ever met, you make me want to be a better male. Ever since I met you I feel like the happiest male in Prythian hell even in the entire world. How do you expect me to live without your beautiful face, your soft smile, your affection. How do you expect me to sleep without your small body on top of me and the steady beating of your heart? Can’t you see that I will be lost without you?” tears left his eyes. “I rather be dead than spend another night without you in my arms.”

You felt a lump forming in your throat, he looked so broken, so vulnerable right now. “Cass…” you whispered and walked into his arms, he engulfed you with his hands and wings, afraid that you might leave him again. “I’m so sorry, I let my insecurities take over. I just wanted the best for you” you cried out.

“You are the best for me” he whispered, his arms tightening around you. “I love you” you said, and a sigh of relief left his lips. “I love you” he replied.

He picked the bag you had left on the couch and guided you outside, he flew you home and the two of you spent the rest of the day in bed, making love and whispering sweet promises.

How could you ever think that you could live without him?

Hope you enjoy it.

Posting Chapter 1 of princess later today.

#acotar #acotar series #cassian acotar #cassian #cassian x reader #cassian x you #cassian x y/n #cassian angst #cassian fanfic #rhysand #rhys acotar #velaris #night court

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lenixsocial · 1 month

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Watcher (and why nothing matters anymore):

So, in case you've been locked away under a proverbial bridge for a few days, Internet personalities Steven Lim, Ryan Bergara, and Shane Madej (known as Watcher) have elected to begin their own streaming service and ditch YouTube.

On the surface, that mightn't even seem like news at all.

After all, this sort of thing seems to happen all the time: The Try Guys left Buzzfeed to create their own company, Rhett and Link took the dive and diversified into paywalled entertainment a few years back with Mythical Society. Both of which however still rely on YouTube itself to generate views on the main channels, which funnel viewers into a FOMO type situation where "you can't miss" a special airing on the app (Mythical Society) or Patreon (Try Guys).

Watcher, in its infinite wisdom (stupidity, carelessness, unparalleled greed - take your pick) has decided that YouTube is pointless, and has moved ALL their content behind a paywall, claiming that the service was amping up to provide "TV quality programming", leaving only old content and the first episodes of the new shows up on their YouTube page as a subtle tease as to what you could get for $6/month.

It's now quite apparent from reading the comments section of their (now infamous) YouTube video, their official subreddit, and the tag on X that the fans were...not thrilled. The fingers began to be pointed within minutes. Name calling soon after. Then this blossomed into dissertations on why this was a horrible idea.

Then we found out that there was no app. Just a website. So you're paying for website access. Not a full blown streaming service to rival Netflix. Oh, and they don't even have their own servers, the videos are hosted by Vimeo. The deeper the comments section dug, the nastier the attacks got. Steven soon became the whipping boy. His past, his interviews, scanned and mercurially dug up for juicy tidbits (although all anyone gleaned from these was he's rich, was born rich, drives a Tesla in LA, likes fancy food, and has friends whom he values who are racist and possibly sexist and will not sever ties with them).

Then came the cries of incongruity. Shane Madej repeatedly said to "Eat the Rich", and here he was schilling for a platform that cost $6 a month. The cries began to pirate all of the new Watcher content because maybe he was under duress and was secretly telling them to do so. Fact is, I don't know if he was or what, but I'm certain he's under contract and wants his job.

Then came the videos from other internet users analyzing the video, and comparing this to the Try Guys situation with Ned a few months back. Both are disasters, each in unique ways with different players, and such like but here's the vast difference: none of this will even matter in a month.

Let me explain: We are in the total free fall stage of Watcher's Internet Streamer Service. What they do in the next 24-48 hours is crucial. If they revert back to their YouTube channel and apologize, they'll be fine. People will probably poke fun at them, but they'll be forgiven, eventually. But if they don't and they keep on, ignoring the fans, dousing the haters, and make it a month, I doubt we will see any resistance outside of a terse article or two.

Why? The collective memory span in this day and age is extremely short, many have likely already made judgment in their head and have passed said judgment. Therefore, they'll avoid the channel, and the streamer and will be blissfully unaware of any changes. Those who have joined up and paid will remain members, and those who have elected to remain subscribed will likely remain so and will watch the free content until they can afford the $6/month.

The thing is like it or hate it, if they decide to do nothing and ignore the public at large, they most likely will be fine. Maybe they will not have the hugest subscriber base, but people will forget about this. Something else major that is more salacious will spring up in the months ahead. Will there be lingering anger? Sure, but like I said before, these people have already passed judgment so they're already gone.

In an era of "nothing fucking matters" when your choices are sometimes entirely out of your direct control and are (at best) two sides of the same coin, it should be of absolutely no surprise to anyone that there is a fairly good possibility even after all that has transpired that nothing bad will happen. Lest we forget that old adage: "there is no such thing as bad PR".

Personally, I feel $6 is a tad much for a non-app based web streamer with little to no content. It was disingenuous to announce its launch internationally where even more people can't afford it, and some can't even view it. Steven wasn't upfront with who was in charge and now it really does seem like he's using the subscriptions to fund his international gallivanting. It's clear nobody wanted TV-show quality Ghost Files to take place in another country, nor did they want an old show revived with votes when you pay the first month's dues. They say it's a case of Watcher "not reading the room".

#watcher #watcherfiasco #opinion

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penfz · 6 months

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A Face to the Name

Sukuna x FemReader (Modern AU)

Summary: After a long a** break of settling in, getting Aika settled in, finding a babysitter, and overall just avoiding going into work physically… Y/N now has to physically go into work Lol

A/N: I’m currently making a Master List of this series. There, I will attempt to put it in an actual timeline. No promises though.

This story part does take place after The Beginning though.

Warning: mild swearing, mention of choking (in a non physical sense)

Sukuna x FemReader Master List

Welp. Y/N hated this. You were perfectly fine working from home. You enjoyed not having to actually pick an appropriate outfit for work. Cause if you could go to work in your track-pants, you most certainly would. You also enjoyed just casually sitting in on meetings through video call, making yourself a sandwich as you did. Now you guarantee during those meetings, you would be expected to at least say something, and you most definitely would not be allowed to make a sandwich during it.

With one more sigh, you left the house and drove to work. But not before grabbing your lunch bag, which Yuuji and Aika had left a sweet note about enjoying your first day at work. Such darlings.

On the other side of the street, Sukuna was already grumbling in annoyance. The sections manager was finally making an appearance at work, and he wasn’t sure what to make of them. Mostly cause they actually never said sh*t during the meeting. They muted their microphone and blocked their camera during meetings, stating that it gets extremely loud and distracting in her house.

Now Sukuna knew for sure it was a female because she often sent emails to him regarding certain deadlines and projects. And she always signed it off with her name and position. Now Sukuna should have probably done the same back, since it’s appropriate to sign off your name and position when writing emails within a company. But yeah… he never did that Lol So she always called him “Mr.Sukuna” since his email had his first name in it. That low key made him laugh, only cause he knew it probably annoyed her. She was a stickler for “proper” and “appropriate” when it came to work, Sukuna couldn’t help himself in wanting to annoy her just a little.

The house was already empty, with Yuuji leaving early to drop off Aika to school. The same Aika who had insisted on her and Yuuji leaving a sweet note in his lunch… addressed to “Suki”. Brats.

“I hate this.” You mumbled under your breath. And you weren’t lying. Physically being at work was weird. You were a section manager for a large project firm. You had moved cities with Aika after being promoted to a higher position, but it required you to move to a different city. No complaint on your part though, you were moving back to the city you called home, where family was. Being away from them was hard enough.

You were getting a tour of the office, being introduced to coworkers, putting faces to the names that you’ve read through your computer screen from time. In fact, you were looking for a certain person, a Mr. Sukuna. The guy, you assumed it’s a male anyways, just did little things to irk your soul. Why couldn’t he just send the documents to you if he was already done? Why wait till the deadline to do so? Why couldn’t he just answer you in a timely manner? Especially when the indicator says that the guy read your message. And why couldn’t he just sign off his name properly in emails?! So you wouldn’t have to use his first name, which you got from his work email address!

“Oh, this is Mr. Itadori.” Your colleague introduced. And instantly, your head shot up. Someone with the same last name as your child’s babysitter? Possibly a coincidence in last names.

It most certainly was not a coincidence. The man before you looked exactly like Yuuji, his pink fluffy hair a dead give away to that. But the tattoos, the large body structure, the intimidating look he gave you, this was probably Yuuji’s older brother. And he was right, he is scary looking. But scary good… cause for some reason you couldn’t take your eyes off him. Took everything in you not to laugh as youu remembered Yuuji’s words.

As if Sukuna thoughts differed from your own. He took one look at you, and he already had one word to describe you. Cute. Your body language gave off a timid vibe. Understandable, he is a pretty big guy. But this was his new manager? On screen you gave a very demanding and confident presence, but that’s probably because you were behind a screen. That was what he liked. As much as he could describe you as cute, you weren’t necessarily his type. He liked confident and bold women, not to much the shy type. There was something about a woman who could take the lead with no hesitation, that made Sukuna melt.

“Hi, Mr. Itadori. Nice to meet you, I’m Y/N L/N.” You introduced with a deep bow. Sukuna could only smirk, definitely a timid one.

“Nice to meet you. Look forward to working with you.” Sukuna replied, he definitely was going to enjoy teasing you in the future.

Now this time, Sukuna was baffled. Trying to keep the impressed smile off his face. He was definitely wrong in his original thoughts of you just being “cute”, and he was definitely wrong on you not being his type. Cause you most definitely were.

There was a meeting today, with your boss wanting to formally introduce you to everyone, as well as a meeting about the current projects and its timelines. There was some overlaps in the projects, resulting in slight disorganization among workers, all of them trying to figure out which part should be done first. Which resulted in missed deadlines, all of which you felt could have been avoided.

When you were called upon to address the matter with your own thoughts, Sukuna couldn’t wait to see how your timid self would respond. But in your own head, you could only sigh as you feared you’ll be looked at as a tyrant in the workplace. Oh well.

“I disagree.” You spoke up when it was your turn to speak. All eyes were on you now, with your answer defying all previous agreements. “This will certainly lead to sloppy results. The deadline is soon approaching, let’s fix the timeline of things. Have the bigger details handled by senior staff, and smaller ones handled by the interns. They’ll have to learn eventually anyways how things work in an actual work setting.”

“Giving those kind of tasks to the interns is what could result in sloppy results.” Someone else argued.

“No. Those interns worked hard to be exactly where they are now.” You explained. “Give them the chance to prove themselves and to succeed. They’re in this position cause this where they went to be, so give them that chance.”

“That’s still risky.” Another fought.

“What’s risky is this that you actually think that your current plan is working, when it's clearly not.”

Welp, you just dropped a truth bomb there, and Sukuna couldn’t help but smirk. He almost barked out a laugh. Almost.

“I agree with Y/N.” Sukuna declared. “This debate is honestly a waste of time. We either continue with what we're doing, or we follow the princess' lead and listen to her."

"Sukuna." The boss had lightly reprimanded him with using such an inappropriate to describe you. He always feared Sukuna would catch an HR complaint with the way he spoke. But it's not like you complained.

Nope, you definitely didn't complain. Instead you slightly blushed at the sound of the nickname coming from such a deep voice such as Sukuna's. You had to remind yourself that you were at work and to relax.

Once the meeting had ended, in your favour actually, you had either been applauded for your decision to change things. Or you were looked down upon for it, especially cause you were technically new to the your current position. But you had not let any of the whispers around you, stop you. And Sukuna noticed that. Just like a predator eyeing it's prey, Sukuna was now eyeing you.

Extra:

"Hi Suku- nii, how was work?" Yuji asked, seeing his brother already in the kitchen cooking dinner.

"It was fine brat. Where are you coming from anyways?" Sukuna asked, no pleasantries what so ever. But that never bothered Yuji.

"Oh, Aika's house. I was helping her with her homework before her mom came home." Yuji explained. "Aika said she wants to come here for dinner tomorrow. Is that ok?"

"Yeah it's fine." Sukuna answered back, not really paying much attention to things as he did the task at hand. No, his thoughts were still on you. The way you dominated your colleagues, the way you spoke to those higher then you with no remorse in your comments. That kind of personality had Sukuna in a choke hold, and his thoughts were strictly on you.

"Suku-nii."

"What?"

"Did... something good happen today?"

"What the fcuk?" Sukuna questioned as he turned to face his younger brother. "What are you on brat?"

"Cause you're burning dinner." Yuji answered innocently. He didn't want to admit that his brother got absent minded whenever his thoughts were on a girl, or he had a good date.

"FCUKKK!"

#jjk #jujutsu kaisen #sukuna x reader #sukuna x y/n #sukuna fluff #soft sukuna #modern sukuna #sukuna au #jjk au #jujutsu kaisen au #sukuna x y/n au #sukuna x femreader

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chuluoyi · 2 months

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tw vent — a personal life problem. i just have to leave it here bc i’ve been crying for two days. it’s long… so feel free to scroll past it :’)

i’m… about to break up with my bf of 2 years

he’s a really kind person. and i don’t exaggerate it. he always makes sure to show me that he loves me through little actions like forehead kisses whenever we meet up, getting me a customized keychain with my name on it, getting me meaningful gifts and flowers on important dates unprompted… and every simple and little gift he gave me i have stored inside a box and there are so many i’m bawling whenever i look at them bc i’m so touched that a man who loves me really exists :’) he’s my prayers coming true. i used to pray for a boy who will accept me as i am and he comes at the perfect time near the end of my college year when i thought everything in this world was jaded

not only that he also spoils me, goes along with anything i say… he is serious regarding our relationship, introduces me to his parents and siblings. i thought i no longer have any worries about the future. and i can say i’m 90% content with my life now— a great job, a nice boyfriend, financially independent… my life is too good sometimes it feels scary

but there’s no such thing as a perfect life and i’ve dreaded it quite some time… because i know that both of us have been avoiding a certain issue just so we don’t burst our happy bubble… and now that issue has come to bite us

we’ve been in a LDR for two years and i’m honestly okay with it, but whenever questions about the future comes up—like “where should we live in the future?” i always clamp up bc for certain i want to live in my hometown, where my job, parents and social life are. but the thing is… he has his own thing in his city, where his parents reside and he’s the first son so he’ll inherit the family business there

i eventually voiced my worries about this to him, and do you know what his first reaction was? i was so sure he’d immediately get worked up and convince me to leave my job

but no. it never happened

he was so shaken. and yet… he never denied me. he said he’d talk to his parents about it… he said he’d be fine with this arrangement even if he has to be the one going back and forth. he said anything that would make me happy… he’d do it

and i believe him. until the end, i believe him. because he really means it even until the end

i’ve predicted it already. no way are his parents going to agree with this. i know bc just put yourself in their position—your bright first son has everything in order, set to inherit the family business, but he’s going to live a hard life of LDR only for some girl… that’s simply unacceptable

now you might wonder why i’m so dead set with living in my hometown. in chinese culture, when a girl marries, she usually lets go of everything and goes with the husband. but i really, really love my job here. i love the work i’ve been doing, community and friends i’ve made here, the salary and whatnot. not everyone gets a chance to work in my company bc it’s considered prestigious. working here gives me a purpose— i feel enabled here and i can be a part of something greater. i’ve won awards and i’m considered for a promotion too in just 2 years in this company, so it’s really hard for me to let go of it when i know i can be more than just a housewife. and so, whenever i imagine that i have to leave this company one day… i’m crushed

and not only that, my parents only have me. i’m an only child, and my father’s health condition isn’t the best either. i can only shudder whenever i think of them being alone if left them here

sometimes i think i’m too selfish for wanting this. for wanting to keep my job. for wanting to be with my parents. for keeping my social life. my bf is the one sacrificing energy and money twice a month to meet me in my city, and even then i still want to ask for more

but… i really can’t lie to myself and say it’s fine when it’s not. and what makes me cry even harder is the fact that when he finally tells me what his parents’ opinions are… he cries too and said all of these:

“i want us to be together. i feel so, so lucky to have met you. there are some days in which i thought that if you weren’t there… then it’d be much harder.”

“i’m always so happy seeing you all happy and energetic, doing things you love. i don’t want to take that from you.”

“if i make you go with me, i’m afraid that one day… you’ll regret leaving. i’m afraid you’ll be unhappy and tell me ‘if i’ve known this earlier… i wouldn’t have left at all.’”

it’s the depth in which he thought of all of these. i cried on the spot in front of him because… what have i done? what should i do? i love him, i really do but in the end, i can’t let go of everything for him either

and the cherry on top? he doesn’t even want to instigate the break up. he said everything is in my hands now. he wants nothing more than keeping our relationship, but he doesn’t have the heart to make me unhappy. even until the end, he says whatever my decision is… he’ll accept it even if it hurts

i’ve been crying since yesterday. it’s so hard to let him go when memories of the past two years pop up one by one. he’ll pick me up, hug me on hard days, tell me that i’ll do just well, adore me and make me feel confident in myself… he’s been a really great emotional support for me and i’m so, so grateful to have met him too

now we’re still in a limbo. i’m too shaken so i obviously am not able to tell him what my answer is. we agreed to think of this further and talk about our decision in 2 weeks, when he’ll come to meet me again

i don’t know what my answer is even until now. i know the best course is probably breaking up bc we can’t agree on this particular point… but it’s not easy, not when we still love each other this much

. . .

for any of you who have taken the time to read this until the end… thank you :’) this blog is the safest corner i have and i really don’t want to bring any sort of negativity here… but this time i’m just too sad with everything and i think i need a space to confide in💔

#tw vent #so sorry i’ll answer asks later!! :’))#thank you all for dropping by🫶🏻✨#—chu’s ramblings 🗯️

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frostycatblr-fandom-files · 1 year

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Sorry, Wrong Comms! : Hunter x Medic!Reader [Chapter 1]

Much more recently written fanfic I started to distract myself from the "mild" trauma of Season 2 finale based on ideas that wouldn't work for "Rough Stuff". This fic is absolutely RIFE with my personal headcanons. Clones deserved so much better, and I will be a giant mess when I get to Pong Krell in TWC as I have since started rewatching it.

Warnings & Information: Intended audience is 13+, 18 if you squint. Hurt+comfort material primarily; there is still a fair amount of angst, fluff, and all the good stuff. Reader has she/her pronouns. We really like italics in this house. Peep this for funsies for why I decide to use Mando'a. By no means comprehensive, in no particular order there will be: Mild injury description + care, blood, vague medical terminology (read as: pretending to understand medical stuff), use of restraints, needles (autoinjectors), near-death(s), nausea and non-descriptive mentions of vomit, Star Wars swearing, drugs (both medical and recreational references), minor adult themes + implications, avoidant behaviors, trickery and light mean teasing in the forms of siblings and crushes.

Series-inaccurate allusions to Crosshair never leaving Bad Batch post Order 66 execution [because while this is an AU fic, I am also very much an Avoidant Mess™], Batchers never meet Cid, fair chance of misremembering any referenced events from TCW series. Series accurate allusions and references to canon violence (AKA: literal war crimes, weapon injuries, etcetera).

Word-count: 4,637

She couldn't remember the last time she had a really, really bad day outside of her medical clinic. There was a tip-off that an abandoned medical center on a neighboring mining planet within the system had supplies too tantalizing to ignore. Valuable paraphernalia that was being phased out by this emerging Empire, ripe for the taking. Did the mining company really have to build this settlement on the steepest face of the mountain? No, they probably didn't realize how unstable, unsafe and ultimately unsuitable this location was while they riddled the inside of the mountain with tunnels as they harvested precious ore and minerals. This was a boomtown and it had completed two of the three strikes typical of such: strike it rich, strike it fast, strike it down. The people living and working here had to abandon it in a hurry before they demoed the place. This mining company hadn't done their proper research and now the shells of their temporary structures were all that remained.

But a scrappy little scavenger had found the medical center was still fairly flush with supplies and let the first medic who was willing to help them with their injuries know about the score. 'It'll be dangerous. If you're going, tell a friend so they know to come looking for you if you don't get back after a certain time. But these items are pre-Empire, they aren't making them like that anymore, so you'll want these. Trust me. I think you'll find them worth the risk of a rock slide or two.'

It. Was. Not. Not really, anyways.

She was just glad to be home now. Put the day behind her. No more rock slides. No more rusted shells of buildings that made for excellent deathtraps. No more falling halfway down the mountain she climbed up in the descent to her ship in the foothills and losing almost every last med supply she came with after slipping on a patch of loose, fine-grain sand just after navigating the maze of the medical center. She had to hobble down the rest of the mountain with nothing to clean out the open wounds and prayed to everything and anything that she didn't contract something that had leached into the rock as the by-products of mining and refinery. She had to stumble into her ship and send a message to her back-up at home that she was 'hurt pretty kriffing bad' but alive and would be back planet-side after dinner; don't wait up for me, I'm too damn tired to swing by after all. Tell the others I'm sorry.

Her instructors in med school would be having a conniption if they saw the way she had tended her wounds so lazily and would never let her hear the end of it for the juvenile, sloppy attempt to bandage the laceration on her dominant arm, but she was too tired to care. (But if she ever saw that scavenger again, she'd kill them for failing to mention several things. The collapsing roof in the west stock room, for starters.) She'd deal with it all properly in the morning. She just wanted to sleep after sucking down two tubes of nutrient paste and a mixed handful of painkillers and antibiotics to ward away pain and infection.

She picked up her datapad one last time and hissed a deliberate dictation into the mic after tugging the knot to the wrapping one last time for good measure. "I'll deal with that bantha fodder in the morning… Home safe. Going to bed. Goodnight."

She'd accidentally sent it to the wider group beyond the singular contact when five messages popped up in short succession.

Glad you're home safe. Sleep well, kid.

likewise

GOODNIGHT!:)

Yes, goodnight.

We'll see you in the morning, burc'ya.

Hopefully she'd feel well-rested with the sunrise. Crawling into her bed, she dropped heavily on her side and clutched a well worn Tooka doll in her favorite colors named after her very first childhood pet to her chest as she drew the covers up over her shoulders. Maker, she was so tired. It wouldn't take long before sleep came for her, feeling the first beckoning pulls on her eyelids after just a few moments.

Her comms gave a harsh screech, jolting her awake in her bed. Just when she had drifted off… This better be important. An actual karking emergency. Someone who had her personal frequency had better be dying if they were contacting her. "What."

There was a lot of shuffling and keypad beeping on the other end of the comms channel, but no one spoke right away. Just when she was about to either call out a hello? or simply disconnect her comlink, she heard someone speak up. Clone Sergeant Hunter. "Tech is this really necessary to keep the-"

"If we want an accurate oral temperature, yes."

There was a groan over the channel, then the sharp rustle as the comms got bumped or adjusted in Hunter's hand. "Well the longer I have it in my mouth the closer I feel to gaggin-"

She shot upright in her bunk, slightly grossed out and confused all at once. "What the kriff are you-!?"

The two Clones on the other end of the comlink gave their own startled shouts, realizing they had a disembodied voice suddenly joining their company. "[____]! How-?"

She was quick to cut Tech off, pulling the comlink closer to her face to amplify her furious tone of voice. "Did one of you seriously call me - in the middle of a medical check - when I'm trying to sleep!"

"Sorry, [____]." Hunter mumbled shamefully. "Must have switched on my comlink by mistake… Didn't mean to disturb you when I know you've had a hard day." What an understatement, Hunter. The impulsive venom in her mouth was hard to hold back, encouraged by her frustrations and discomforts bubbling over. "Hard day made harder thanks to you." She regretted it in a heartbeat. Thank the Maker the enhanced Clone wasn't in the room with her; he'd probably have been able to hear the way it skipped a beat if he was able to sense the beginnings of seismic activity, smell the way she felt her body begin to shiver in a forming, cold stress-sweat as the shame of her anger washed over her.

"You're right: let me make it up to you."

She was told to come over to the Batch's housing. Crosshair opened the blastdoor for her before she even had a chance to knock to avoid waking anyone sleeping if she used the buzzer. "He'll be in the main area."

"What, no "Hello, taking care of yourself like I told you to?" tonight, Cross? Even as a joke, after the day I've been having, to lighten the mood?"

There was a half-hearted scoff (or maybe that was a soft laugh) from the Clone at this."That's more Wrecker's thing," Cross drawled in a casual voice around a toothpick, sidestepping to let her squeeze inside, "and I'm not really interested in pretending I can't see that you are not taking care of yourself."

"No, of course not Mr. Sharp-eyed, Snarky Sniper. 'Cause I fall down the mountains of abandoned mining settlements for kriffing fun."

If Cross was phased by the uncharacteristic anger of the medic tonight, he didn't really show it. Just a little twitching pull of his upper lip on one side and half-lidded eyes that betrayed a bit of amusement and disappointment. "Mmp. C'mon, kid. I'll see if I can't find a half-decent ration bar somewhere around here for you."

"Not hungry, Cr-"

"Don't care." He interrupted in a brusque tone, not giving her the opportunity for excuses. Crosshair was the kinda guy who didn't like excuses, either in giving or getting, and could be quick to shut that kriff down. It was refreshing sometimes, but tonight it was just another mild annoyance of [____]'s day.

Whatever. She was going to go find Hunter where Cross said he'd be rather than waiting around in the entryway forever. "Skipping meals again, are we burc'ya?" As a medic, she often missed out on a meal or two while she was aiding the galaxy's sick and injured, and the unintentional habit carried over when she wasn't at the clinic. Something that made her friends fret over her like this. "For once I had all three meals. Only thing I swear went right today…" There was a pause as the medic heard a comment from the small kitchen on the left from the common room and she added with a gentle sigh, "aside from not breaking any bones during that nasty fall, too I guess."

Hunter looked relieved and genuinely proud of her, sincerely surprised she wasn't tired and hungry like many nights in the past. Crosshair just turned on his heel back into the kitchen unit without breaking his stride, after a little shuffling around in the cabinets [____] could hear the sink running. "Well that's… good! Proud of you, kid."

"...Than-"

Cross set the glass of water he'd filled for her in lieu of the ration bar down on a low table in the common room in the middle of the light conversation she was having with Hunter. "Here. I'll leave you two to it. Goodnight."

"U-um, thanks, Cross. Goodnight…" Cross nodded nonchalantly at her, next turning to his brother, who was quick to avoid his eyes before Crosshair just turned and left the two of them. Leave you two to it, what did he mean by that that had Hunter looking so nervous with a wave of color creeping up his neck from under the collar of a fresh nightshirt? "What's going on, Hunter? Do I need to be worried about something? Something show up on the health check? Do you need some nysillin tea or- s-something?"

Hunter shook his head, a tender, reassuring (and touched) smile slowly building. You could take the doctor out of the clinic, but you couldn't stop her from thinking about her job. "Nothing's wrong, k'uur... Just thought I was feeling a little under the weather, but I'm perfectly fine. It's nothing more than just making it up to you after waking you. Plus, for once, you won't have to patch your own wounds. Why not have someone take care of you the same way you take care of others?" It was the same thing he'd said to her at the end of their first of many interactions in this seedy little travel-hub. The time she'd undoubtedly saved Crosshair's life after he'd picked up a nasty little parasite while slogging through the swamps of some distant planet. Kashyyyk? It was probably Kashyyyk.

[____] was in a sour arrangement then with some smugglers with hair-trigger tempers to come and go as they pleased with her small clinic, and these Clones had been kind to remove the problem clientele "with discretion" as a way of paying her back. She'd saved their "stubborn vod". They saved her and now trusted her to treat their injuries no matter the cause, turning up at odd hours for the oddest of injury or malady. Complete faith in her in a hostile galaxy who now wanted… whatever it is they wanted with these Clones. She didn't ask. She didn't want to know.

She'd heard the stories from those who fled the war encroaching nearly every part of the galaxy. She'd heard of the war crimes, seen the horror and gore and bloodshed step into at least two of the medical centers she once worked in… known of an Order 66 and what became of much, if not all, of the Jedi… She didn't want to know. They often didn't want to tell, beyond giving vague recollections when they were making arrangements for short-term prescriptions for sleeping supplements with the medic when the nightmares were overwhelming.

Much like scouting the abandoned medical facility in an old mining boomtown for various 'sillin supplies, life seldom goes the way you wish.

"C'mere, ad'ika. Let's get you patched up." He patted the space beside him on the couch in invitation, pulling a medkit closer with the other hand all while looking at her with the same softness he often reserved for his sister. When [____] first met him, she could have sworn Omega was his daughter. "Unless you're not okay with that." Hunter added, addressing her hesitation he could hear in the rhythm of her pulse, her heart.

"I'm fine with it… just really tired and brain's kinda closing shop for the night. Sorry." Taking the seat indicated, [____] sunk back into the furniture, sighing. She didn't want to bring up why she was hesitating on him. He carried enough guilt as a participant in the old GAR… Hunter broke the seal on the new packet of medical tools, prepping everything he thought he'd need. "Don't be, ad'ika. Now, have you taken something for the pain already?"

"Rhetorical question for a medic, don't you think?" The tired, teasing question was met with a single chuckle. He knew she would have, he was just making small talk. "Anything else? Ask me if I'm taking any other kind of stim packs, or maybe I should lie about eating all my recommended fruits and vegetables?" It was a laugh from Hunter this time, deep and hearty and genuine from his chest.

"Are you?" Picking up a pre-moistened cleaning wipe from the little packet within the medkit, Hunter removed the sloppy wrappings around her dominant arm that [____] had applied before trying to call it a day and properly deal with everything in the morning. Dried smears of red lay underneath the gauze, something that made Hunter's gut drop slightly. Either she had done an uncharacteristically poor job cleaning her injuries, or these were more intensive than believed and they were slow-bleeders that hadn't scabbed over completely.

"Tck…Can't say I'm any better than most of my patients, if I'm honest." Hunter hummed slightly, gingerly blotting along the length of the mild laceration. It had to have been an unpleasant injury after losing all her emergency supplies and nothing to ease it right away until she stumbled back to her ship. It looked fairly deep to him, but couldn't be certain. "Mmh! That stings."

"'It's supposed to, little guy. Means it's working.' I swear Cross could have killed you with a look if the parasite wasn't actively killing him over being called a little guy like he was a kid."

"Ha-ha. Very funny, Tech." [____] half-heartedly mocked Hunter's sharp recollection of their first encounter, trying to stifle a coming yawn. That time felt so long ago now; longer than it actually was. "I was only trying to keep him calm and comfortable. I see a lot of children at my clinic so it's a habit I've de-developed… excuse me, sorry about that. People… don't exactly love doctors."

Hunter paused mid-blot, giving her a firm look to show her he was serious. Something in Hunter didn't like the way she'd said it, it didn't sit right with him. "Nonsense, cyar'ika. People love doctors; they just don't love going to them. Big difference. Trust me." Trust me like I trust you he wanted to say. He wouldn't. He believed it was mutually understood, no need for explicitly stating so (partly an old habit in thanks to how he communicated with many a vod during the war). "People…" Hunter tried further explaining, leaving out the "like us" he again believed didn't need to be said "...might be embarrassed, or fearful, or worried about going to the medic, but they understand they need to go because the medics will be able to make them better. They don't hate the doctor; they hate the doctor's office…" Hunter paused, digesting his own words with a questioning expression as he set aside the pre-moistened wipe, now soiled. "Now of course I think I just sound like I'm condescendingly explaining your own job to you."

"Heh. Don't worry about it. Too tired to care," the weary medic offered with a reassuring smile, leaning into the backrest of the couch with a slowing blink-rate. "I'm just more concerned about staying awake, while I'm the patient for once, for you."

For you. Something about it was unintentionally sweet to Hunter and made something within him flutter for a moment. That was happening a lot lately, every time he thought of her. He kept chalking it up to his enhancements and memories of the Kaminoans testing him and the others that remained of the experimental unit, the sharp sterility of antiseptic that lingered in her clinic and her clothing and her hair that sometimes turned his stomach, or simply a disconnected unfamiliarity with those who were not Clones… though, while perhaps he never felt truly connected with them and the way some called them the 'Sad Batch' (or called Omega a lab scabber) when they thought they could get away with it, they had still been his brothers in arms in the war.

A war they were still running from. One they nearly lost Crosshair to after 'things went screwy on Kaller' as Wrecker put it once. What an understatement… if Hunter hadn't been so insistent with the Shock Troopers down in the brig that the Batch stayed together to the point that they tased Hunter to shut him up instead of extracting Cross, then Crosshair likely would have been siphoned off to some corner of Tipoca City and had the activation of his inhibitor chip nudged along into unpleasant possibilities Hunter had nightmares about in addition to so many things he'd seen… done, during the Clone Wars. It'd been difficult, and he'd hated part of himself for it, but as they made their initial escape from Kamino, he threatened to stun Crosshair if he didn't kriffing shut up about following orders they didn't even understand for five minutes! so hard he wouldn't wake up until they reached the next star system.

There had been so much bickering. They still bickered even after Captain Rex got in touch with them, somehow, after they left Saleucami visiting the Lawquane family (which had been tricky and Tech worked the loophole that Crosshair could not report Cut for desertion because it had been the GAR when he went AWOL and now it no longer existed, it was the Empire now, right? half to death before Crosshair reluctantly let it be), and they got their chips removed in the rusted out shell of a Venator on Bracca and had been lured into a trap set by Tarkin back on Kamino. Because if Tarkin could not have this SpecOps force, nobody in the galaxy could; he'd aimed to wipe them out and they'd narrowly avoided being swallowed in the eternal seas of the closest thing they had to a homeworld.

It took a long time for the bickering to stop. They were at their throats for a while still until… Crosshair had gotten really, really sick.

That's what led to this friendship with a medic who had been willing to help them nearly a year ago. Though lately, it was feeling… different.

"Hey…" [____] broke the building silence while Hunter had been searching for a bacta patch, and Hunter initially worried he'd done something to tip her off to the personal burdens, the memories, he shouldered. "...weird question for ya, if that's okay."

"How weird?" Hunter tried, careful not to let the hesitancy and budding anxieties show in his voice. There's the karking things. He'd probably need a couple of them to make sure he had it covered so it would heal up nicely, quickly.

"Oh, not very. I just wanna pick your brain a bit."

Ah. Just curiosity. He affixed the first patch over the first half of the laceration, careful not to prod the bruised flesh with unnecessary pressure. "Alright, pick away."

"What is… your favorite memory? When you're having a bad day… what's the thing you think about that always cheers you up?"

"Heh… your day was really that bad that you're looking for advice from a soldier, doc?" Hunter teased, applying a second patch over the laceration. He wasn't sure what he could truthfully answer with while he was carefully measuring out a length of sterile gauze to hold the patches in place on her dominant arm, there being too many little, fleeting happy moments rather than significant memories to spin some story from. But he'd try. "I guess for me… it's less what I think of and more of what I do after a bad mission. Clean my gear. Tidy up my rack. Buff out my helmet-"

The medic smirked, a solitary, quiet laugh interrupting Hunter's train of thought.

Oh, Maker… he'd forgotten the suggestive context behind the phrase she often heard in the infancy of her profession in the midst of the Clone Wars. He'd heard she'd get the stray Clone on occasion at the large health center she was employed at once on a different planet but didn't know how much truth there was to it. "K'uur: that was not a euphemism."

That was met with a nervous giggle that made his stomach flutter. "S-sorry; old habits, and a non-professional setting where I can actually laugh." [____] offered meekly, face flushing with color while he wound the wrapping around her forearm. "C-continue, Hunter, please. 'Buff out your helmet' and...?" The unspoken what else on her tongue was permission enough to show she was serious about him continuing.

"And… check in with the others, I suppose. Make sure that everyone is okay. Spend time with them. Strengthen personal bonds."

A lot like what the two of them were doing now, he supposed. The unintentional check in. Taking care of her injuries while they sat side by side in the common room as the rest of the Batch were sleeping. Except maybe for Tech who often tinkered away on his datapad or the desk he'd squeezed into the room he shared with Wrecker (who wasn't bothered by a roommate with a propensity to dink around with some little gadget or piece of equipment when he was sleeping or resting) at these hours. Or Crosshair, who was often awake and asleep around the same times Hunter was, since they'd have muffled "conversations" through the walls when neither could sleep on occasion. But all was relatively still and quiet in each of his brother's rooms, and the steady rumble of the noise machine in Omega's room meant his sister was asleep.

Drumming rain and swirling waves. The perpetual ambiance of Kamino. He hoped the little machine replicating the soundscape engrained in her memories wouldn't cause her to dream of the Venator class ships bombing the cloning facilities tonight…

While Hunter had been lost in his senses, his worries, the medic had been busy mulling over his words. There was a ghost of a smile taking the place of the pained frown she previously bore. "That all sounds… really nice."

The last injury tended to, Hunter set everything aside and gave [____]'s shoulder a tender double-pat, feeling the tense muscles under his hand as he held his hand there after the friendly gesture. "There you go, ad'ika. All patched up."

"Thanks, appreciate the help Hunter. Could I… trouble you a little further by crashing here for the night? I don't think I'm in a fit state to get back home around now. Far, far too tired." It was definitely not a safe time for a woman to be walking by herself without a blaster, nevermind a tired, injured woman who'd been an invaluable friend to Clone Force 99. He'd never have sent her home to begin with, giving how deeply her chin dipped into her chest with fatigue. "No trouble at all; you're welcome to take my bed, if you want." Hunter offered, giving her shoulder a friendly squeeze. He'd sleep out here in the common room so none of his brothers would get any funny ideas if both he and the medic emerged from the smallest of all the bedrooms in the housing together.

Why the Sith's hells did he just think that?

[____] winced in mild complaint, laugh laced with pain. "Ow, that's quite a grip there, soldier!"

"Sorry," he apologized, "didn't realize how hard it'd be. You carry a lot of stress and tension in your shoulders, ad'ika… I can feel how stiff your muscles are. I… have some experience with providing some relief for that, thanks to all the practice I've had with Wrecker and Tech. Tech's posture is a mess-" He rolled the palm of his hand against her shoulder experimentally, gauging the pliability of the tensest muscle, and she leaned into it eagerly with a whimpering 'oh, Maker…!' surprising even herself. Hunter decided he'd stubbornly pretend not to imagine how not-so-innocent the sound was, to keep talking about his brothers and ignore the heat in his lower belly, another flutter of his heart. "Tech spends hours hunched over his datapad, or some little gadget, or spends hours in those rigid crash seats in the Marauder with his muscles wound so tight he's practically locked in place. Wrecker takes such a beating each mission it's just… uh,"

"A w-way of taking care of him afterwards?" She helped him where he faultured.

"Yeah. That's one part of it. Here, turn so I can get both shoulders." He had her melting under his touch quickly, the practically unhurried worship in this massage he was working into the medic's shoulders, neck, and the dominant arm. The muscles were so stiff and taut under her skin, under his ungloved hands. They were afraid to speak and break the reverence of this moment, the silent work of friend helping friend between each little involuntary sound of great relief or wince of brief pain as each tight, brow-bunching knot slowly surrendered. Her breathing pattern slowed as every minute elapsed between them beyond the gentle moans of relief as Hunter methodically kneaded the muscle free of tension with dexterous fingers. He wouldn't need to dig in so deeply like taking care of Wrecker's messes of well-defined muscle, for which he was grateful, to make any kind of progress, or go so tenderly to start with like he has to for Tech (on occasion) that the goggled Clone sometimes became a little impatient because he wasn't feeling any external relief. He could dip his fingers just a little deeper and just a little shallower, like those perpetual waves of Kamino replicated on Omega's sound machine, as he worked one muscle at a time for the unlikely friend who sat with him on the couch.

It felt roughly the same to strengthening the bonds of the squad to Hunter, but again there was that fluttering in his heart that suggested this was so very different when he realized that when he moved back to [____]'s neck one last time, at her asking, and planted one of his palms on the opposite side of her face to keep her steadied as he dug little circles around the tight muscles under the base of her skull with his thumb that she took one last deep breath and was soon asleep in half a heart's beat between them.

Hunter froze as he was, face hot in panic with the reality that he was now entirely supporting, for the moment, a female friend who was upright and asleep in his hands. Not knowing what to do just as the medic became more limp, he effectively locked himself in place when, on reflex, he caught her upper body against his before lowering it into his lap. A move he'd done a hundred times when one of the squad was this close to fainting out in the field.

Oh, you're kidding me… why the kriff did I do that?

[MASTERLIST] [NEXT]

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hungriesttable · 4 months

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if the Sinners got a dog

(below the cut because I actually have a decent amount of thoughts on this)

Outis: one of the only (and possibly THE only) sinners committed to disciplining the dog. She’s a bit perturbed that the dog won’t reliably sit/stay on command because it tends to jump at random intervals instead (Don Quixote’s influence).

Has some belief that if she speaks in a voice that’s authoritative enough, the dog will understand what she’s saying. Is displeased when that doesn’t happen. “Why are you trying to sit on me? No.” “It’s because the dog likes you” “If she likes me she will sit politely on the ground as she is supposed to”

Rodya: She was the one who named the dog, and probably rescued it off of the street, insisting that they should keep the dog at least for a little while. Feeds the dog a bit of whatever the Sinners are having. “That’s not good for dogs!” “A little won’t do her any harm~”

Sinclair: He wasn’t sure what to make of the dog at first (it’s probably not vaccinated, and he only became sure it didn’t have rabies after a couple of days), but he’s pretty fond of it. Whenever he’s in need of company, the dog appears without him needing to say anything. It’s warm, soft, and close, and he definitely thinks of it as a family member. That being said he personally has a steep learning curve of “how to take care of a dog” (if he had one in his previous years then there was probably a butler to take care of it)

Heathcliff: I recently read Wuthering Heights. This gives me reason to suspect that Heathcliff would not be a big fan of the dog, at least at first. He’s fine with it from a distance, but protests to having to touch it (and to having it touch him). I’d imagine that it gets on his good side eventually, though, and he’d probably be one of those people who wants the dog to love him the most out of everyone.

Ryōshū: They weren’t really sure how she would react to the dog at first. She’s currently trying to teach it how to sic. Given the opportunity, she’ll examine the dog’s body. Her efforts of questionable motivation led to the discovery that the dog is missing a tooth.

Gregor: After 5.5, I think it’s safe to say that he’s the “dad with the dog he didn’t want”. He notices that the dog is repulsed by the smell of cigarettes and doesn’t smoke as actively when he’s around it.

Don Quixote: She wants the dog to be her sidekick. She’s taught the dog how to hug (ie how to jump and put its paws on her chest/shoulder), and is hoping to teach the dog how to do some advanced stunts. “Move forth, my companion, and fetch mine lance!” (Dog does nothing)

Yi Sang: The dog is his buddy. He’s a bit concerned about the idea that the dog could be involved in Limbus Company’s business, but has no problem with the idea of teaching the dog some more simple stuff (eg how to track scents and find lost people/things).

Faust: If there’s a City equivalent to a Wikipedia page on dogs, she probably read it. Several times. She wouldn’t say it, but the dog’s capriciousness often confounds her. In lieu of a microchip, she made a tracking collar for the dog.

Meursault: He and the dog share a certain special bond due to his willingness to walk, clean up after, and generally take care of the dog when others don’t feel like it. He’s not necessarily a fan of the whole “spontaneous tackling” thing, but he’s big enough to avoid being pushed over and has few other complaints about the dog. With the lack of interest in training the dog on the bus, he doesn’t see the use of disclosing what he knows about training dogs.

Ishmael: She likes the dog. Walking the dog often brings her mixed feelings, since it reminds her of the other experiences she’s had with being on the end of a guiding rope. She’s figured out that she can derail Heathcliff’s train of thought by invoking the dog, either physically or in name, and she’s greatly enjoying this ability.

Vergilius: He was dubious about the whole “dog on the bus” thing. Since Charon seems to enjoy the dog’s presence, however, he sees no point in objecting to it. He doesn’t dislike dogs, but the fact that anything bad happening to the dog could have catastrophic consequences means he’s always a little on edge around it. If the Sinners weren’t planning on doing their best to take care of it before, they certainly are after receiving some Red Gaze-brand reminders to be responsible pet owners.

Dante: Rewinding dog scratches is a small burden, but please, can SOMEONE cut the dog’s nails? They like the dog, but their clock head doesn’t seem to win them any canine popularity points. They’re both disappointed and relieved that the dog doesn’t count as a thirteenth Sinner.

#limbus company #lcb outis #lcb rodya #lcb ryoshu #lcb sinclair #lcb heathcliff #lcb gregor #lcb don quixote #lcb yi sang #lcb faust #lcb meursault #lcb ishmael #limbus company vergilius #limbus dante #I wasn’t sure I had something to say about all of the Sinners. But I did #please forgive me if I’m missing a Vergilius related dog incident. I never finished Leviathan 😔#as a dog enjoyer I can safely say that you should NOT teach your dog ‘uppies’#may have unintended consequences #but unintended consequences are very Don Quixote

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weaveandwood · 1 month

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Weave and Woods Chapter Seven: Copper for Your Thoughts

Gale/Named Tav | Slow Burn | Read on AO3 | Entire Work

Summary:

Auroria and her party go to trade at the Myconid Colony and get roped into a rescue mission that goes horribly wrong. A small illusion leads to an important conversation between the wizard and ranger (finally).

TW: injury/burnsA/N: Inspired by my gameplay. I did not do well in Act 1, and pretty much played on vibes only, making a lot of mistakes and missteps but at least I got some delicious angsty ideas

He should not be leading her on like this, no matter how much he wanted her. She deserved more than he could offer - someone who could be with her fully, not a disgraced and godsforsaken, volatile, shell of a man. Even entertaining the idea of falling for her in his condition was beyond the pale. Bitterness seeped into the back of his throat as he thought about what he had to look forward to - never ending hunger, pain, and an explosion at the end of it all. Cutting all personal ties to be away from everything when his time comes, for there was no one he was willing to sacrifice at the end of his folly. He ran a hand down his face and threw the book onto the other side of his bedroll, suddenly tired of contemplating the future. Even if they cured themselves of the parasites in their brains, there was no plan, no cure mentioned in all his research for the other parasite within his heart. In another life, perhaps, they would be able to act on their feelings - have a proper life together in Waterdeep, grow old together, and remain in each other’s company. Until then, he would revert to the proper gentleman, nothing but cordial as is befitting both her status as party leader and an archmage of his status. Or previous status, as it were. He nodded to himself, steeling his mind now that it was made up. Yes, that was the correct course of action. His mind drifted back to the tadpole, reaching for his book again before he heard all the hells breaking loose outside.

Gale was avoiding her.

Five nights. Five nights since their sparring match, and not a word.

Auroria stabbed at the sausage on her plate, the cook having long since disappeared back into the solitude of his tent without so much as an acknowledgement of her or anyone else’s presence. Just a pile of sausages on the table for their morning meal.

The longer she thought about it, the angrier she got. Did she not deserve at the very least a conversation? He was the one instigating everything that day. He flirted with her at the puzzle, he was the one who initiated holding hands, he was the one who -

“Copper for your thoughts, soldier?”

Auroria looked up and was met with one of her favorite faces. Karlach and her had become fast friends, mainly due to their similar outlooks on most things (positive) and their desire to help people along the journey they made (instead of pickpocketing them or scowling at them). She sighed, stabbing the sausage again.

“I’m fine.”

“Would hate to be the person you’re pretending that sausage is, darling,” crooned Astarion, an eyebrow raised as he looked from Auroria to Gale’s tent, always so perceptive.

“I wouldn’t know what you’re talking about,” Auroria said, trying to put on a disinterested air as she took a bite of the meat.

“Yeah, right! We all have noticed that the camp has gotten particularly chilly between you and a certain potentially explosive wizard. And that’s coming from me , who is so hot I can’t even touch anyone!” Karlach joked, trying to lighten the mood a little, getting a soft chuckle out of Wyll, who sat by her side.

Shadowheart and Lae’zel, putting a pause in their deep conversation, also nodded in agreement from across the warm embers of the previous night’s fire.

“Chk! I told you at the party that you would regret wasting your time with that wizard,” Lae’zel said, earning a nudge from Shadowheart’s elbow.

Okay, so Gale was avoiding her, and everyone in camp knew it.

Desperate to get the situation back under her control, knowing she couldn’t stop the gossip that was sure to happen as soon as she left the campfire area, Auroria hatched a plan.

“I just didn’t sleep well, that’s all. Anyway! I want to go into the colony today to trade some of the things we’ve been carrying around that have proven pretty useless to us so far. I’ve already got the goods separated out, so it should be an easy trip. Karlach, Wyll, Astarion - do you want to join me?”

“Absolutely! Get me out of this camp!” “I’d be delighted to accompany you.” “Ugh, if I must.”

Choosing this group in particular was strategic - Astarion had a keen eye for everything happening at camp, and a keen personality for irritating the hells out of Gale. The situation was already volatile enough, and she enjoyed his complaints about being on the road. As for Karlach and Wyll, the two had started to grow closer as their own journeys intertwined, and Auroria simply wanted to help cultivate a deeper friendship between the two and what better way to do that than a couple of hours spent walking in good company?

“Okay, great. Get ready and let’s meet back here in half an hour,” Auroria said, already in a better mood as she went to her tent to get the four packs she mentioned. Since they were only going to do some trading, Auroria decided to forgo the scale mail armor she had been favoring and instead chose the old thin leather vest and leggings she had been wearing when she was kidnapped - cleaned and mended and no worse for wear.

A flash of gold caught her eye. Oh, right, it’s been since before we got to the Underdark, she thought, eyeing a locket she had found on a corpse the other day. She could sense a small amount of magic within it, so she had put it aside to give to Gale. Even if she was annoyed, frustrated, and maybe a little heartbroken that he was avoiding her, she still promised him that she would help him with his orb situation. That had not changed, and she would not go back on her word. In truth, she knew the orb was exactly why he was pulling away, no matter how much she didn’t want him to - she just wanted him to at least talk to her about it. She scribbled a quick note, attached it to the chain, then hung the locket on his telescope as she walked past, counting on her light footsteps to go unnoticed by the tent’s inhabitant.

“Alright everyone, grab a pack and let’s go,” she smiled, glad to be away from the tension for a few hours.

Auroria loved the Myconid Colony. The inhabitants were so unique and she felt a kindred bond with them - they had such a respect for their environment that when Astarion looked at a rogue’s morsel a little too long, he almost started a fight before Auroria intervened, diffusing the situation. Their first stop was a dwarven trader named Derryth Bonecloak. While she didn’t want to trade for a lot of their goods, she took a few items off their hands in exchange for some useful potions and a camp supply pack. Auroria attempted to make conversation with her while they did their exchange.

“So your husband is missing? Do you need help finding him? Can you describe him?” She asked.

“Oh, not this again,” she heard Astarion mutter under his breath. She ignored him.

“He’s bald, blue tunic, dumb as a stick, name is Baelen. Help yourself if you want to find him, but don’t expect a reward from me if you do - he’s useless, getting himself lost after being sent on a routine errand looking for a noblestalk,” Derryth replied, her voice scornful.

“Well, we will keep an eye out and will let you know if we come across him,” Auroria replied with a soft smile before turning to her companions. “Come on, let’s go look for him.”

“Actively looking for this man who seems more like a louse doesn’t feel like ‘we’ll keep an eye out’ does it?” Astarion leaned in, speaking softly, immune to Karlach’s glares.

“If you were lost in a strange place, wouldn’t you want someone more capable to help you find your way, Fangs?” Karlach asked.

“Karlach is right, so that’s why we’re going to look for him, we’re heading out.” Auroria nodded to the group, turning on her heel, asking the nearest myconid where someone may potentially go looking for a noblestalk, explaining the situation with the Bonecloaks. Interestingly enough, they appeared to have an arrangement with the myconids that allowed them to forage freely. The creature pointed to the north, indicating some sort of field there that may prove fruitful in their search.

Auroria’s stomach dropped when they came to the area.

“Bibberbangs,” she said with a sneer. She had never experienced them firsthand, but remembered from her training in the High Forest Scouts that bibberbangs were dangerous - not only poisonous, but also explosive if you came too close and lingered too long. Of course, she spotted Baelen Bonecloak, cowering in a small clearing smack dab in the very middle of the grotto. How did he even get there? She wondered.

“You know, we can just say we didn’t spot him, no one would ever know,” Astarion said, crossing his arms. “Either way, I’m not going in there.”

Auroria looked at each of her party members, then back to Baelen. “Well that’s obviously not going to happen. You all stay here, I’ll go in and get him. It’s better if only one of us goes in there, these mushrooms are very volatile, and I’m trained for navigating places like this.” She turned and faced the grove of bibberbangs, her heartbeat increasing slightly. “Sure wish we had a scroll of misty step though,” she nervously laughed as she dropped her pack, the first time any of her party had seen a lack of confidence in her abilities show through her capable ranger persona.

Some agonizing minutes later, she found herself surrounded by bright green mushrooms. She didn’t want to breathe too heavily for fear of setting them off, but also couldn’t remain still for too long for the same reason. She crept forward, inch by inch.

“Please! My backpack! I left it over there!” The older dwarf had finally noticed her, yelling out with a feeble voice and a shaking hand, though whether it was from age or fear, she couldn’t tell. She nodded and looked to the right, in a particularly tangled area of bibberbangs and saw a small, faded blue backpack. She saw a thin, small path that could possibly, maybe lead to it, and then connected that to a more defined clear path that led to the dwarf. She exhaled. Ok, slow and careful, Ora. Gods, having someone to cast mage hand would be fantastic. Her mind drifted to Gale and how this would be so much easier if he were here, how they could discuss the bibberbangs afterward from both a practical and academic viewpoint. How he always seemed to help her clear her mind, how it felt when her hand was in his -

“Ora! Careful!” She heard Wyll yell, coming back to the material plane, just in time to see her hand brush up against a bibberbang.

******

“Shadowheart! Lae’zel! A little help? ”

A faint yell disturbed the silence that had settled over the camp. Gale sat in his tent, mildly intrigued but also at an exceptionally interesting part of the meticulous notes he had procured from Blurg the evening before in the Ebonlake Grotto.

“Shadowheart! ” A little louder. Was that Wyll?

“Why would they need Shadowheart and Lae’zel’s help after a simple trading trip into the Myconid Colony?” he muttered to himself, sipping out of his wine glass as he flipped the page, half listening for commotion outside, but not yet ready to face her after the last time he was near her ended so painfully - both literally and figuratively. That was five evenings ago. He was avoiding her, and he would bet everyone else likely had picked up on it. Not that he would know, he’d also avoided most of the others as well. Luckily, there was always some chore to be done, some loot to sort, some pressing notes that must be written down in one of the books he was pouring over that would disguise his cowardice as well-focused diligence toward the success of the camp.

He sighed, rubbing his chest. The orb was still insatiable, each artefact unable to fully quell the gnawing hunger inside. He held up the newest addition to the many offerings Auroria had brought to his tent over the past weeks, almost since their journey began. Today there was a magical locket, similar to the first one she had given him so many weeks ago, hanging from his telescope with a small note. He kept a small box in his tent for the magical items procured by his ever attentive leader, filled near half-full with pendants, lockets, and rings imbued with the Weave to satisfy his orb’s constant cravings. It reminded him so much of Tara tirelessly searching for anything that would bring him even a modicum of relief. He counted himself lucky to have two friends in his life that would always be on the lookout for him, even if he was a doomed man.

Found this on a Duergar and I thought you could use it. Happy dining! - Ora P.S. I am now the proud caster of Ensnaring Strike. Can’t wait to show you.

A little further down the note, in smaller writing was another postscript, written as if it was not supposed to be noticed.

I miss our talks. I miss you.

He had read and reread the note at least twenty times since this morning, after Auroria set off with Wyll, Karlach, and Astarion to go do their trading at the Myconid Colony. The colony was one of the bright spots in the Underdark - not just for the vibrant colors and strange inhabitants, but perhaps most interestingly of all, the colony was home to a Mind Flayer completely free of the Elder Brain’s thrall. The entire party had gone into the colony to explore the previous day and once Gale had met Blurg and Omeluum, he was deep in conversation for almost an hour. Blurg had given him the book he was now currently reading when he had expressed an interest in researching whether his own arcane energy could help them reject their tadpoles prior to transformation, if it came to that. With his academic blinders on, Gale returned to his tent and had scarcely left since, his pursuits a convenient excuse for seclusion.

He glanced at the note again, his internal feelings as split as the message - pride and elation at her spell casting success, pain and frustration at the distance he had put between them. He was a man torn in half. He did not want to avoid her - quite the opposite in fact, but every time he found himself near her, all he could think about was kissing her, and his orb protested. Painfully. Conversely, she figured out the spell on her own, after all the failures and after his own less than elegant retreat the other evening, and he wanted to celebrate that with her. With a kiss, he thought, waiting for the orb to make him offer penance for that thought. The last night they were together, he felt… good. Happy, even. Almost carefree - the evening fading into the night as if no time had passed at all. It had been so long since he had felt the stirrings of happiness in his veins, since before the breakdown of his relations with Mystra. The satisfaction of teaching her, helping her work through her frustrations, the fun they had while sparring fulfilled him so much he felt he might combust on his own without the orb’s influence. His mind turned to the searching look on her face when they were inches apart, the feel of her body pressing against this, the way his name sounded coming from her lips, his hand grasped tightly to hers -

A faint glow, a wince. His ever present curse. His eyes drifted to the note again.

I miss our talks. I miss you.

He nodded to himself, steeling his mind now that it was made up. Yes, that was the correct course of action. His mind drifted back to the tadpole, reaching for his book again before he heard all the hells breaking loose outside.

“No, Ora! What happened?” Yelled Shadowheart as the four adventurers must have crested the hill. Gale perked up at Auroria’s name, listening intently now.

“Please, help her! Bibberbang explosion! We had one healing potion in our packs but it wasn’t enough. She passed out on the way back,” Wyll yelled, his voice shaky.

His body went cold. He knew all about bibberbangs from his studies - they should be treated carefully or destroyed at range at all costs.

Gale jumped to his feet, ignoring his body’s protestations, and ran out of his tent. He was greeted with the image of Karlach holding 4 packs, and Wyll and Astarion carrying Auroria, who was knocked out, her clothes singed, with angry burns down one side of her body. They laid her down on one of the spare bedrolls by the campfire while Shadowheart ran to the chest to pick out a particularly strong healing potion to use in conjunction with her spellwork.

“What happened? I thought you were just going to do some trading at the vendors in the colony? You all aren’t even wearing proper armor!” Gale yelled as he marched toward Wyll. His heart dropped into his stomach, his mind was unprepared to see Auroria like this.

“Hey! Cool it, Magic Man. The plan was to trade and come back, but you know how Ora is,” said Karlach. She stepped in front of him, trying to both deflect Gale’s anger and protect Wyll at the same time.

“And how is Auroria, exactly? Aside from being burned and unconscious?” He said, his tone turning icy.

Astarion stepped in, his arms crossed. “Oh, like you’re an expert? You’ve been ignoring her for the past…what has it been, five days now?” He glared at Gale. “We were supposed to visit the merchants and see how we could unburden our packs of this useless stuff we’ve been hauling around, but one of them gave dear Ora a sob story about her poor missing husband and you know our fearless leader never says no to helping someone she’s known for exactly one minute.” He lowered his gaze at Karlach, “And that one egged her on to help. Honestly, I’m surrounded by do-gooders and I need a drink. I’m clearly the only voice of reason around here.” He rubbed his temples, stalking off to his tent for a large cup of a strong scavenged vintage as Shadowheart set out the potions and kneeled at Auroria’s side.

Gale moved to the head of the bedroll, his own instincts guiding him to sit down and carefully place Auroria’s head in his lap. Shadowheart looked at him. She knew something was going on between them - they all did. It wasn’t hard to notice the stolen smiles, the secret hand holding between the two, but also could sense something had changed the past five days given Gale’s suddenly aloof demeanor towards Auroria. Hopefully this will be the catalyst to move them past whatever is going on between them. She hated seeing Auroria out of sorts.

“Hold her still. This won’t take too long, but it’s easier if she’s not moving. She’s really not in as bad of shape as she could have been, she got lucky,” she said. Gale nodded in agreement.

“What happened, Wyll?” He asked again, gentler, feeling his eyes getting misty. He didn’t like seeing Auroria - no, Ora, his Ora - in pain, unconscious, injured.

“She was distracted,” he leveled at Gale, his good eye bright and shining with unspilled tears. Wyll held Auroria’s unburned hand, his thumb tenderly rubbing over the back of it across her knuckles. Everyone loved her, that much was obvious. “And you know exactly why.”

Gale looked down at Ora’s face, a nasty red burn creeping up from her neck along the path of her scar. He watched as the burns receded with Shadowheart’s healing words. There would be no permanent physical damage from this event, though it wouldn’t matter to him if there was - she was and would always be the most beautiful person he had ever seen, both inside and out. How many times had she risked her life for a complete stranger? Their party was proof alone of her good heart. Looking at her, he realized his feelings were stronger than he had originally thought, but he couldn’t deny them, and would no longer try to deny them. She was everything good about this continent. He tucked the errant stand of hair she always seemed to miss on the right side of her twist behind her ear, his eyes growing watery at the thought of having wasted five days in childish seclusion when any of them could be taken away at any time. Yes, he knew the reason why she was distracted indeed, and he was determined to never be the reason again.

So much for his planned course of action.

******

Auroria blinked, gasping softly as she opened her eyes, clutching her throbbing head. She looked up at the sky, surrounded by bright green trees, felt the ground covered in soft grass, and heard the faint sound of birdsong in her ears. The last thing she remembered was Wyll yelling and a bright flash of light while in the Underdark, so how did she get into a forest? And why was it early morning sunlight? Surely I wasn’t out for that long , she thought. Her brow furrowed as she looked around, sitting up slowly, groaning through sore muscles. Clive, Karlach’s prized stuffed bear, was placed next to her, so she was in camp. But how-?

“Oh! You’re awake,” a voice said softly, a reverent whisper from the other side of the tent.

Gale.

“Did you do this?” she asked, looking around in awe, her tent transformed into the woods she so dearly loved, an illusion replacing the highest point with the canopy.

“Do you like it?” he asked. “Ora I’m -”

“Why are you here? You’ve ignored me all this time, and now you’re here in my tent while I assume I was unconscious?”

“Yes, well, about that…Ora -”

“And you think a pretty illusion can make up for the fact you haven’t looked at or spoken to me in FIVE -”

She felt a hand on hers, silencing her immediately. She looked down at it, then at Gale, who was kneeling beside her bedroll, a soft smile on his face.

“Ora, please. Let me finish a sentence. I’ve been an ass. A colossal ass. I’m sorry. I don’t know how to navigate everything with the orb and whatever is happening between us. I know withdrawing, cloistering myself in my own tent was not the best course of action, but it…it’s what I do, Ora. I isolated myself in my tower for a year when I was cursed with this orb, when Mystra abandoned me. Retreating into myself is what I know how to do.” He handed her a cup of water, which she took, smelling something minty. “I crushed some peppermint in it. I thought it would feel refreshing and cool. I haven’t done extensive studying on herbs, and I know that’s your area of expertise, but last time you had a headache you had mentioned it having a soothing effect”

“Thank you, that’s very kind.” She took a drink and set the cup down beside her. “Listen, I understand why you pulled back, but I hated it. I hated how I felt like I did something wrong, when I didn’t. Every time you feel a little uncomfortable now, if we ever have a disagreement, will you hide yourself away and ignore everyone? How can I not be on edge that something I do will make this situation repeat itself? Will I always spend my time guessing around you? I know you have…limitations because of the orb, but it doesn’t change the fact that you were instigating everything and punishing me for it,” she said. “Punishing everyone.”

“No, you’re right, you’re absolutely right. I was taking out my own shortcomings, my own confusion on you.” He looked down at the floor, the visage of a shamed man. “I can only hope to use this as a learning experience and move forward in a way that is more befitting a wizard of my status, and a man of my age,” he nodded and looked up at her. “I am sorry, again, Ora. I understand if you’d like to keep your distance from me, though I certainly hope you won’t. When I saw you laying unmoving on the bedroll by the campfire earlier, I was so angry with myself. Angry I may have missed my chance, angry about all the time I wasted. Any one of us could be gone at any time. I know that better than most. I will not waste my remaining time again.” His voice trembling, he cleared his throat. “I should leave you to recover.” He started to stand up.

Auroria grabbed onto the sleeve of his camp shirt. “No. Stay with me.”

“I was hoping you would say that,” he smiled, sitting back down, his eyes sparkling with unshed tears. He took her hand in his, relishing the feeling of her fingers intertwined with his own. He chuckled, “You know, it feels like the greatest prank in all the heavens that the orb allows me to hold your hand freely, but the minute I think of anything else…”

He looked at her lips, still moist from the water. As if on cue, the orb flashed faintly, sending another warning of pain through his veins.

“That is what happens. Holding your hand feels so natural. There’s never been any excitement involved -” he held up a finger as Auroria raised an eyebrow. “Wait, not that holding your hand isn’t exciting! It is! I just…it feels like I am always meant to hold it. I always am just drawn to the action, instinctually. I can just do it without thinking. Other… pursuits , ones that cause my heart to race and my brain to work in overdrive, seem to trigger the orb. I am working on understanding it, but can you be patient with both the situation and the wizard, Ora?” He asked, the normally confident man suddenly unsure.

Auroria smiled, squeezing his hand with hers, “I can be patient with the situation, the wizard, and the man.”

“You would likely have a more fulfilling time with someone else, like Wyll or Astar-” He felt a finger on his lips, his turn to be silenced.

“Do not dare finish that sentence, Gale of Waterdeep. You are the one I want to spend my time with. The only one I want to let in, to give my feelings. Please know that.” She stifled a yawn. “Now, explain to me what forest this is, I love it, and want to visit it…after everything.” She smiled as she laid back down with her hand still laced in his. Her headache was starting to subside but sleep was quickly creeping up on her

“No forest in particular, I just thought of you while creating it.”

“Hmm, my own personal woods. Well it’s beautiful,” she smiled, closing her eyes.

“It really is,” he responded, looking only at the ranger who was already fast asleep.

#my writing #weave and woods #gale x tav #bg3 fanfiction #gale fanfic #gale x auroria #gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #auroria galanodel #my screenshots #baldur’s gate 3 #bg3 #weave and woods fic

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qierxing · 2 years

Text

Indirection

Yan!Octavinelle Trio x Reader

Word Count: 3.5k

And like the waves of the ocean, you float and sway, unknowing of your next destination.

CW/TW: Water play? Drowning play? Idk how to describe it

—

Despite what you may have thought of Octavinelle, Mostro Lounge is pretty cool. The underwater aquarium-like cafe has great interior decoration and ambience, there’s soft jazzy music floating through the walls perfect for relaxing, and the drinks and food served are pretty tasty. If you wanted to complain, there were the rather expensive prices, the weird fine-print rules that the cafe had, but otherwise it was trumped by the fact that it is a good cafe that is well run.

You just wish you could enjoy it right now without a certain owner.

“I’m glad you came. We were getting quite lonely, you see.” Azul’s million thaumark smile is blinding to the eyes but you’re well aware of how much of a charade it is. He sent you a subtle message earlier that if you didn’t show yourself at the lounge, he would make you.

“Tragic.” Came your dry reply as you idly stir your sea salt mango cocktail. The salt sparkles under the ultramarine light of the water while the drink turns sunset with the sweet syrup. You eye the tall glass and wonder if you could chug it.

You wish Grim came with you.

“Now, now, why the sour response? I think you’ll want to listen to what I have to say.” He pushes his glasses up, making it glint under the lights.

Azul was only dangerous if you gave him a reason to be dangerous. Your darkest secret, a deep desire, a hidden fear: only if you gave him a whiff of the blood in the water, would he begin to hunt. But right now, he was merely a…motivated businessman. An upperclassman who was looking out for you.

Your eyebrow quirks. Azul’s eyes glimmer and you swear his pupils stretch in a manner that sends shivers down your spine.

“Let’s make a deal.”

“No.” You retort instantly. After the overblot fiasco, you promised yourself you would never again make a deal with the cunning housewarden, no matter what. Besides, what could he even offer that you would want? “Didn’t you promise to the headmaster not to use your signature spell?”

He tuts, waving a finger. “Let me finish.” You narrow your eyes but don’t interrupt.

“You’re searching for a way home, correct?” Your hand stops stirring your drink immediately. How…?

“What do you mean?”

“No need to play dumb,” Azul laces his fingers together and smirks, “you’re not exactly a person that fits in Twisted Wonderland. And your…circumstances are very special in NRC.”

You don’t reply, eyes sharpened to pinpoint pricks.

“I’m proposing a deal that would get you to the home you desire.” His smirk remains unchanging. “Well? Are you interested?”

“And the catch…?” What would he ask of you this time? Undying loyalty to him? A year of working non-stop at Mostro? A priceless magical artifact? No deals this good were made without a steep price, as Leona has oh so graciously warned you before.

He holds out a finger in explanation. “You are to spend at least an hour in Mostro with me and the Leech twins each day, up until the day you head home.”

So he wants you to work. “As a server or someone in the kitchen?”

He pauses in surprise, then begins laughing. Taken aback, you wonder what you said was funny.

“My dear prefect, you would not need to work. You would just…be keeping us company. Unless you would like to work?” He chuckles, and you shake your head slowly.

Keep them company? What would he get out of that?

“Well? Do we have a deal?” He leans in with his gloved hand outstretched. His silvery blue eyes reflect the lamps above and you pause. Was this really a good idea?

"What about the payment?"

"For this one time…I'll consider this a generous favor. On the house."

When would a chance like this come around? You’ve seen how Crowley avoids answering your questions about whether he’s found a way back to your world. Books from the library have turned up nothing. Asking others has led you to look like a complete raving lunatic. You don’t want to entertain the thought that you may be stranded here, never to see your family and friends ever again.

“It’s a deal.” When you shake his hand, you feel him grip yours tightly, as if to cement the agreement into your skin.

The feeling of a guillotine above your head rises as you sign the glimmering golden contract Azul produces.

You thought the brisk morning jog would rid you of the anxiety left yesterday, but it didn’t; even after it left you huffing and puffing out clouds of white air around you in the chilly morning. Dead leaves crunch under you as you try to walk off the adrenaline running through your veins. The sky remains gloomy and gray, an incoming sign of a rainy day.

“You made a deal with Azul?!” Jack growls with his ears flat on his head. “Did you learn nothing from last time?!”

“Shut it, Jack,” You sigh, wiping sweat off your brow. “I don’t need a lecture right now. Ashengrotto said he’d find me a way home. If he can do it, then that’s all I care about.”

The silence lingers and you thought that was it. You shift from foot to foot while breathing out a long sigh.

“Are you going to tell the others?” You freeze.

You should. Grim deserves to know, along with Ace and Deuce, who have been there with you since the beginning. Despite their shenanigans and hot-headedness, they are your friends.

But you don’t know if you have the courage to tell them that you’re leaving. Especially not to Grim, your first companion in this world, and the one who has been there with you through thick and thin.

Jack takes one look at your conflicted face and scoffs. “Seriously?”

“I’ll tell them eventually.”

He shakes his head, squatting to rest his legs. “Is being in Twisted Wonderland that bad?”

You remain silent, trembling from the effort it takes to hold back your emotions.

“No kind of deal is worth it to-”

“Shut up.” He turns his head to you, fists clenched and eyes leaking tears.

(You do sometimes wonder if you are insane. You often wake up in the middle of night to rattling windows and creaking metal and think you're in a nightmare.

You wonder if you would ever wake up in your own home again.)

You rub your face furiously, falling and covering your face within your arms and knees.

“I’m scared, Jack.” You hiccup. “What if I can’t go back?”

The silence in the cold air lays heavy and still. Jack looks away, a deep frown etched in his face.

“Your eyes are red, shrimpy,” Floyd’s face is up in yours as soon as you step into the Mostro Lounge. “D’ya want me to beat up somebody?”

“What? No!” You rub at your eyes, self conscious now that Floyd pointed it out.

“There you are. Azul reserved you a table.” Jade appears at his brother’s side, extending a polite hand. You regard it for a skeptical moment before deciding to take it. The two escort you to a more private area where one of the booths is occupied by none other than your contract holder.

“If it isn’t our dear prefect.” Azul’s smile reveals none of his intentions. “Come, sit.”

You stiffly slide into the seat pulled out for you. "Thanks."

A silence stretches out for a couple of seconds. You drum your fingers on the table. Another unbearable second passes.

"So…what do you want me to do?" You break first, already bored out of your mind. Even working at the lounge as a server was better than…well, making awkward eye contact with Azul.

He coughs, his pale face becoming an interesting shade of pink. "I just want to talk. How have you been?"

You're left speechless. Are you dreaming? Azul has always been ruthlessly efficient in his actions–the past 'generous' deals he's made has shown he cares not for his fellow students if it means he could come out of it with a reward to elevate him higher than before. Many swindled students in the past have called him heartless and conniving in their many insults. And although he has promised to turn over a new leaf, it was hard to shake his old habits. Sometimes you wonder if he ever grew tired of viewing the world in gains and losses.

And yet, here he is, asking after you.

"Are you trying to see if I'm doing poorly in class?"

"Goodness, I most certainly am not! But if you put it that way–"

"I don't want your help." His face immediately darkens, stormy and foreboding. You swallow. Manners and fear be damned, you wouldn't take his help. Even if it left you on his bad side. "I don't need it."

"But you'll go to that mutt's side to grovel for assistance?" Mutt? Is he talking about-

"Jack? What does he have to do with this?" Subconsciously, your fingers rub at your raw eyes and Azul's eyes narrow at the gesture.

"So, even if he made you cry, you still insist on defending him." You flinch. All earlier bashfulness and shyness is completely gone, and before you is the calculating magician you've come to know. You would like to be relieved since it's more familiar to see, but even then, it was hard to predict what thoughts could be going through that head of his.

You bite your tongue. If he was going to sit there and insult one of the few friends you could trust in this forsaken place, then you have no intention of staying any longer.

But as you go to stand up, you're just as quickly shoved back down and restrained by two familiar sets of hands.

When Floyd cackles, you realize who has tattled on you. You can only glare at him as the twin eels force you to stay still in your chair.

"Nope, nope! It hasn't been an hour yet, little shrimpy!" He sing-songs in that infuriating voice of his.

"You have another half an hour left, prefect." Jade chimes in cheerfully.

You scowl, trying to worm your way out of the tight grip but to no avail. You should've remembered that Azul always had them take care of his more unruly clients. Now, more than ever, you are starting to regret that deal you've made.

"What are you playing at, Ashengrotto?" You snarl at the smug man in front of you.

He laughs, and the Leech twins join in, their laughter growing into a cacophony that grates on your ears. He finally calms down enough to smirk at you while chuckling.

"Darling, we are just helping you get what you want."

When you get back home, you'll never go to a beach or aquarium ever again.

It gives some consolation as you're flanked by your newest cuffs: the Leech twins. Ever since you signed that damned contract, they've squirmed into your schedule and made themselves home, against your will. No doubt on their friend’s orders.

You don't know what Azul is thinking. Assigning the Leech twins to make your already miserable school life hell, making sure you were 'spending time' in the lounge, what was this supposed to amount to? All this time spent on you is time lost for mulling over how he could come out with new schemes.

“Why don’t you take a swim with them for a change? The lounge is closed, so the two of them are dying for a swim.” He had smirked at you with a wave of his hand, and before you could protest, Floyd was happily dragging you into the changing room.

"Surely you know how to swim." Jade's smile feels much more sinister than usual as he casually reaches for your ankle. You swiftly step back before he could succeed. "You've done it before. It wouldn’t do for you to forget now."

"That was different." Uneasily you scooch back on the narrow cliff dividing the shore and the deep water of Mostro's aquarium. It’s unnerving how you can’t see the bottom of the pool.

Jade's fins twitch as he grins, flashing jagged teeth as he wiggles his finger webs. "Are you scared, dear?"

Again, with the endearment. With the staring grew into the name calling, and now it's grown to dragging you into hellish situations. You suppose that's something the three of them had in common.

Water blinds your senses and you're left spluttering as gleeful laughter echoes in the tank. Another head surfaces next to Jade, eyes flickering with mischievousness. You scrunch your face as you wipe the salt water off.

“Very funny, Floyd.” You mumble, your eyes closed to avoid getting exposed to harsh salt.

Unfortunately, that left you wide open for an attack.

With a yell, you’re dragged within the depths and plunged into icy cold waters. You move your arms frantically, but everything seems to be dragging you down, down within the tank. Your chest feels heavy and you try to swim back up for air, but before you can, a mouth is slammed onto yours, forcing it open and giving you air. Your eyes slam open to see heterochromatic eyes staring into yours with an intensity that makes you shake. After several blinks, you realize it’s Jade who you’re lip locked with.

You can’t even push him away, since he was your only air source. Something tangles in your feet and in your peripheral, you see Floyd wrapping around your legs, winding, squeezing. Your eyes frantically move, looking for any way to escape but instead they catch onto silver blue.

Azul is standing on the other side of the glass, watching. Observing.

The eye contact is broken when you hear Floyd whining to his brother and to your fright, he removes his lips from you. Your eyes shut again when another pair of lips take over. Except unlike his brother, Floyd doesn’t just leave it at locking lips. His teeth draws blood from your tongue as he nibbles, voracious for the taste of food. You fear that he may end up eating you all up from the inside.

His tail squeezes around your legs once more and you black out.

When you finally come to, you’re in Azul’s bed and dried off, somehow. The twins are nowhere to be seen, and the housewarden frets and fusses over you, giving you towels and heated blankets. You want to think the past hour was a bad nightmare. A weird hallucination. Anything but reality.

But clotted blood drips down your split lips and swollen tongue, and you don’t miss how Azul’s eyes hungrily traces the path it makes down your chin.

You begin to wonder if Jack was right after all.

Early morning classes were the worst. Early alchemy labs? Absolute hell.

Ace had been assigned your partner, but it was clear he had long lost attention. You watch incredulously as he almost takes a face-first dive into the cauldron. Unfortunately, that left you to take care of the sleeping potion that Crewel assigned you both. You elbow Grim awake before he could join Ace in sleeping. With a long sigh, you stir slowly as instructed, wishing the lab could be over already.

The door slams open, making everyone turn their heads to see Crowley. Crewel starts to scold the headmaster for causing an unnecessary disturbance, but instead of starting to go around poking his nose into what each student was doing, like he normally does, he walks straight up to you.

"Prefect, I need you in my office. Now." And without another word, turned his back.

"Ooh, someone's in trouble," Ace snickers, now fully awake after the commotion. "What'd ya do this time huh?

“Hey, shaddup! Whatcha mean, this time?!” Grim yowls, but before he can start a fight you pick him up to follow after the headmaster.

The floating faces of the Seven greet you as you follow the headmage in. Despite the many times you’ve been summoned here, you never could get used to how intimidating the portraits were. And as they stare down in judgment, you wait in dread on Crowley's verdict.

"I found the way to send you back to your world." Disbelief courses through you as you process the statement.

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Hope begins to rise as you smile joyfully. Finally! You’ll be able to return home after all! The next words the headmaster speaks has lulled into a dull blur as you realize that Grim is silent. When you turn to look at him, he looks destroyed. Staring, as if time has stopped functioning. Crouching down to his level, you reach out and pet his head.

“Hey, you’ll be fine, Grim. You’re gonna be a great sorcerer even without me.”

“Of course I will! But…” He looks down. “I…”

You know what he wants to say. I don’t want you to go. His pride won’t let him say it. But you know.

So instead, you hug him as tightly as you can and pray that it will be enough.

When you step into Mostro Lounge, it is silent.

It’s rare for the cafe to be still. Quiet, yes, with some students murmuring around here and there. But silent?

You should’ve known that silence meant trouble.

“Has (First) suspected anything?” Your hand freezes on the door to Azul’s office.

“No. They have not seemed to have caught on to our plan.” With a chill, you recognize Jade’s level voice responding, answering to his housewarden.

“Good. How are preparations on the home?”

“Had to scare the guy a little bit…but the place should be ours for good, kyhehe.” Floyd’s devious snickers send another icy chill down your spine.

You begin to step back from the door.

“Excellent. Soon enough we can have them move in with us, just as planned.”

Bile rises through you. Before you know it, you’re rushing to the bathroom, heaving in the toilets. Your throat stings and your tongue is left with acrid bitterness.

Azul was a businessman. He only has power if you give him it.

With this in mind, you head back to the office again.

Thankfully, it is only Azul inside. Azul, you can deal with. You do not know what you would do if Jade and Floyd were there too.

You do not give indication that you have heard any of the previous conversation. Instead, when you first stride in, you resolve to cut ties as cleanly as you can.

“I would like to dissolve my contract.”

It certainly was not what Azul was expecting when you showed yourself. “Wh-what–”

You don’t allow him to try to negotiate. To do so would be acknowledging he has power over you. He doesn’t. Not anymore than he used to. “The headmage said he’s found the way for me to go back to my world.”

You see his own world collapse in on itself within his eyes a second time.

"No, no you can't, you can't! You made a deal with me! You can't go off on your own–" He's choking, grabbing onto your sleeves, your collar, anywhere he can reach to keep you anchored in one spot.

"Azul, what the hell has gotten–" You stammer as you nearly fall under the force of his grip, "–into you?!” If you didn't know any better, it was like he was the one drowning instead of you, desperate to latch on to any floating surface.

“Don’t go, please don’t go…” Azul is weeping, sobbing at your waist with a bowed head. Defeated and broken. But unlike before, you can’t bring yourself to forgive him. Even when he cries your name oh so prettily, you cannot find the heart to comfort him.

“You lied to me, Azul.” Your voice is low and even. You want to hurl the words at him, make it hurt as much as possible.. “You said you would find a way home for me.”

“It’s because I love you!” The words are spat in delirious infatuation. His teary face looks up at you, and he brings you in closer as you struggle. “I love you, can’t you see?! Everything I do, I do for you!”

So you would have me give up my own life for you? You want to laugh in his face. What nonsense. Such sentiments belonged in romance novels and movies, not in real life. You’re finally free of his arms after one final shove that sends him to the ground.

“You don’t know what love is.” The leftover bile surfaces in your mouth. “And I sure as hell don’t love you.”

“Hmm, not even us?” Your heart stops at the carefree voice behind you.

“My, my, what a mess we have here.” A click of tongue by your left side. Your gaze at anything but the sobbing man in front of you.

“This won’t do. It seems we’ll have to clean this up right away.”

Your last moments are filled with a fear unlike any other times before. It’s not fear of the three, no. For all of their feared reputations, it paled in comparison to one horrifying thought.

It’s the fear of realizing that you may never be able to go home after all.

#yandere twisted wonderland #yandere twst #yandere octavinelle #my work #finished chapter 3 you know what that means #bullying time

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bunmellos · 1 year

Note

One of my friends really likes loona, tho I don’t really follow them. And the articles I just searched up after reading your posts don’t really give the full story. Do you mind summing up what happened to someone outside the community? Totally fine if you don’t btw! But I wish there was a source that doesn’t sound like they’re forced to sell a certain pov

sure, here’s a brief summary. i’ll probably get a couple things wrong because i’m doing this mostly from memory, but here we go:

- loona debuted one member each month from 2016-2018, and debuted as a group with hi high in 2018. notably, the last member to debut only trained for 1 day before being thrust into the spotlight

- after that, comebacks were slow coming, especially considering they were a popular new group with a lot of potential.

- at some point, staff reveals that they haven’t been paid since debut. this includes the girls. bbc (the management company) also claims severe financial debt, and orbits (the fans) come together and mass buy merch to pull them out of debt. it was honestly pretty amazing

- a couple of members begin to stand out from the rest of the group. this includes heejin, the first member to debut, who begins getting ad appearances and a lot of center time. the other is chuu, the tenth member to debut, who is known for her bubbly and cheerful personality. she starts doing a lot of work outside the group- guest starring in reality shows, MC-ing, etc. we learn that, despite pulling bbc out of debt, they still haven’t paid the staff or idols.

:readmore:

- chuu begins to inexplicably miss a lot of group schedules. rumors say she might be planning to move to another company.

- in 2022, the kpop industry starts touring again. loona (minus chuu, of course, as she’s busy with other events) does a world tour with a very harsh schedule. members begin breaking down one by one until eventually only 7 or 8 are able to perform.

- chuu sues bbc to get out of her contract and wins, somewhat. she can now freely do solo activities but bbc still profits from her efforts. there’s silence for a few months. then, suddenly, on november 25th, bbc announces chuu’s removal from the group. they cite her abuse of the staff as their reason and make a lot of really weird statements. one of these is that “the rest of loona do not do this for personal gain”, which is very very odd considering chuu just wanted to be paid for her efforts. lol

- immediately, people start coming to chuu’s defense. one of these is hyunjin, her own group member, who expresses her frustration over chat despite risking getting in trouble for it. sunmi, a senior idol, posts a selfie of the two together in support. in addition, all kinds of staff for the different shows chuu has worked on share their stories of how kind and considerate she is. basically, the rest of the industry comes together to call bbc on their bullshit

- at this point, people have been speculating for a long time. one theory is that bbc is a money laundering scheme that’s kept loona as nugu (new group, despite being 4-6 years old depending on the member) as possible to avoid drawing attention. because like… if nobody’s being paid and they’re committing tax fraud then where is all that money going…? it’s kind of weird because bbc is the bottom of a chain of command that eventually leads to ilgwang group, which mainly sells weapons to the government and has gotten in trouble for corruption before (take that how you will)

- the rest of the group members are expected to continue with their activities like nothing happened, and are forced to do one on one video calls with fans. most of them are visibly upset. especially hyunjin, who’s always been one to express her real feelings. also we find out that the bbc ceo is suspected of evading over $37 million usd in taxes

- bbc releases another statement telling fans to stop speculating and let the members do their jobs

- almost immediately afterward, news comes out that 9 of the members (excluding vivi and hyunjin, probably because vivi is in korea on a work visa and hyunjin is busy doing some stuff for fifa) have filed injunction against bbc to terminate their contracts. chuu has now joined by4m studio

- and that’s about it, assuming nothing else has happened since i was asleep. tldr: loona was a group with a lot of potential but their company fucked it up and kicked out a member over bullshit claims, leading the rest of the group to quit too

#tumblr deleted this halfway through writing my answer #and didn’t even save it as a draft #so i’m probably missing some stuff #loona

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lemonduckisnowawake · 7 months

Text

Living Before the Edge

Okay wow. I did not expect to actually do the @inklings-challenge but I somehow did! This was so fun, as well, so many thanks to the organizers who created this! I was on Team Lewis and decided to take the more sci-fi-ish prompt (though I fear it's more fantastical regardless). I shouldn't have to give and content warnings but please let me know if you think I do!

“Are you lost—”

“meluAAAAAAAAAN!”

A sigh.

“Are you—”

“Meluan, where are you, you little brat?”

The voice is close.

“Are you lost in the—”

The door burst open, interrupting Meluan’s third attempt to record her advertisement. She swiveled on her chair to see a very irate Wynan standing at the entrance, one hand on the door to keep it open.

Meluan considered jumping out of the window into the deep expanse of space, but she was pretty certain that Meryan had installed safety locks to avoid that happening…again. Eh, she’d get past them like always, but Meryan’s inventions were getting a lot harder to reverse engineer these—

A smack on the head and the door creaking shut reminded her that she currently had company.

“Ach, what do you want? What do you want?!” Meluan complained, shaking her head and rolling back, her chair crashing against the desk and jostling all the equipment on top of it.

Wynan was still glaring, her deep violet-black eyes boring into Meluan’s displeased form.

“You’re such an idiot,” Wynan stated, as if it was a fact rather than an opinion, her gaze settling back into something more neutral and relieved. “Meryan and I have been calling and texting your phone for the last half-hour. Relani even went outside to look for you, thinking you’d thrown yourself out again.”

Meluan grumbled, rubbing her head where Wynan had smacked it and using her other hand to dig through her pockets to fish out the phone she’d put on mute. “I was fine. I left you guys a note in the kitchen…”

Her words trailed off as she fished out both a phone and a sticky note attached to the back that said, ‘Will be in the silent room. Get me in an hour if I don’t establish contact within then.’

She stared at the yellow piece of paper with black ink stains.

“Oh…whoops.” Her eyes flickered to Wynan, who rolled her eyes. “Hey!” Meluan protested the action. “I was fine! I was planning on leaving a note, see?” She waved her phone with the note still on it at her sister.

“Key word being planning, actual fact being that you worried the three of us sick by disappearing during the morning,” Wynan sighed, settling down on the other chair and taking out her own phone. “Anyway, what were you doing?” she asked conversationally, texting the Meryan and Relani that Meluan had been safely located.

“I was just recording an advertisement for our station,” Meluan explained, pocketing her phone and the note once again and gesturing to the recording equipment on the table. She tapped the mic, sending an echo bouncing within the silent room. “But why were you guys looking for me? I’m not usually up in what we’ve established as the morning.”

Wynan raised an eyebrow at the first statement but didn’t comment, instead choosing to answer, “We have a new guest.”

Oh.

Meluan hopped out of her chair, remembering to switch off the mic. “Right, sorry…” she winced, fetching her jacket. “Lead the way.”

And lead the way Wynan did, going through the hallway of their space station, dramatically nicknamed the Abode Before the Void, then the A-Void, thanks to Meluan. It was a rather small station—not really a station at all, actually.

A-Void was a three-story house, to put it simply. It had a few extra features, such as a rocket engine and some additional parts that made it more…rocketish/stationish. But when one lost in the deep abyss of space would find it, their first comment would likely be and astonished, “Well, what’s a house doing floating at the edge of space?” When going inside A-Void, the same person would probably continue to be astonished on how it looked like a completely ordinary home with completely ordinary rooms, save for two, inhabited by completely ordinary-looking women.

When Wynan and Meluan found their way to the living room, they indeed found one such astonished person sitting on the sofa, blanket around them and steaming mug of one of Meryan’s concoctions on the coffee table in front.

“Welcome to the place you should A-Void!” Meluan exclaimed by way of greeting, sliding down the banister and bouncing up to land lightly on the coffee table.

While the figure in front of her did jump at her sudden entrance, the drink amazingly did not.

“Off the table, Meluan,” a new voice spoke up.

Both the figure wrapped in the blanket and Melun looked up to see a smiling woman with round glasses coming from the door. She carried a tray full of biscuits and cakes, which she promptly set on the table once Meluan had jumped off it.

“Sorry, Meryan,” Meluan muttered, not sounding sorry at all as she grinned impishly at their guest.

The figure swallowed, their eyes flitting from Meluan and Meryan.

“So sorry to keep you waiting,” Wynan spoke up, settling behind the sofa. When the figure flinched at her voice, jolting to look at her, Wynan added more carefully, “…would you care to give us a name?”

The figure swallowed, opening their mouth before closing it, hanging their head.

Meluan and Wynan exchanged a glance.

“Ah, can’t speak?” Meluan guessed, staring at the person, trying to get a better read when they nodded, confirming Meluan’s guess.

At first glance, the figure seemed to be a rather short and scrawny man, with dark brown hair closely cropped and sharp almond-shaped eyes. Their skin was about a shade darker than Relani’s but lighter than Wynan’s, and though their hunched posture was not very impressive, the knives they had strapped in multiple places and the muscles carefully hidden under their concerningly sheer sleeves—almost covered by the blanket—were not missed. Also not to be missed, Meluan noted, were their prominent tapered ears decorated with rather intricate earrings.

“Uh, don’t hate me for this but are you a man?” Meluan decided on blathering, sensing their discomfort at her staring.

Their guest blinked and rather guiltily nodded before grimacing at Meluan’s nonjudgmental gaze and quickly shook their head.

“…woman?”

A pause before they nodded, not really meeting Meluan’s eyes.

“Do you want to write down your story? Would you rather sign? Meryan here knows all the languages in the multi—er, world,” Meluan continued easily, taking a seat on the coffee table and smiling at their guest.

Their guest hesitated before slowly taking out her arms. “…who…are you? All of you.”

Fortunately, the sign language was one all three present knew. Given that, Meryan and Wynan stayed silent, letting Meluan do all the talking.

“Us? Uh…well, that’s difficult. You could say we’re sisters—we have another one but she’s currently outside,” Meluan answered, leaning back and looking up to the ceiling. Thinking about it some more, she returned her gaze to their guest. “I mean, our living situation is odd but we’re not anyone you should know, you know? But what about you? Do you have a name?”

The guest hesitated before signing the symbols for “solar eclipse.”

Wynan and Meluan both glanced at Meryan, unable to parse the language from the signs. For her part, Meryan took a seat on the rocking chair, frowning.

“Your name is…Sinnelia?” she tried and received an eager nod. Meryan smiled. “That’s a lovely name.”

The beam Sinnelia gave back to Meryan transformed her hesitant and somewhat pinched features into something softer, rather…adorable, too, despite her height. Actually…

“One moment, Sinnelia. You don’t have to answer this if it makes you uncomfortable,” Meluan broke in, tilting her head in suspicious curiosity. “But you’re…not a man or woman, are you? You’re a child, a girl.”

Sinnelia froze, whipping her head at Meluan, her brown eyes widening in fear.

“Woah, no need to look so afraid of us,” Meluan soothed, tapping the table. “We’re at the edge of the universe. And there’s no reason for us to send you back to wherever you came from. You’re a guest here, and you can run away from here at any time, too…though, uh, please at least steal some provisions from us first. And preferably a space suit.”

While Meluan’s words managed to take the edge of Sinnelia’s skittishness, she still looked tense. And also confused.

Wynan sighed. “Ignore her, Sinnelia. She doesn’t know what she’s saying half the time.”

“Well, it’s true,” Meluan protested, making a face at Wynan before her expression morphed back into something friendlier for the wide-eyed Sinnelia. “Don’t listen to her either, dear. Wynan’s just cranky because I caused some trouble.”

“If I was cranky every time you caused trouble, I’d be perpetually in a bad mood.”

“Are you not?”

A loud sigh from the stairway leading to the living room interrupted their argument. “Children, don’t fight,” Relani’s quiet soprano voice chided them.

Sinnelia jumped at the new voice, turning to see the other women’s dark-haired “oldest” sister in a space suit. When Relani caught Sinnelia’s gaze, she gave her a kind smile. “Welcome to our humble home.”

“And that’s Relani, our oldest sister,” Meluan explained to Sinnelia, handing her the still-steaming drink before the child could huddle back into the blanket.

Sinnelia took it, gratefully sipping the warm liquid and blinking at the pleasant taste. That was Meryan’s specific kind of magic for you.

“And our guest is called Sinnelia,” Meluan introduced. “Happy to see you back, Relani! How was space?”

The flat look Relani gave Meluan was response enough, and Meluan took that as permission to focus on their guest again. “Sooo…Sinnelia. Again, you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to. But what brings you to the edge of the universe?”

Sinnelia stopped drinking, the mug still in her mouth before she set it down and looked down at her lap, her hands tightly clasped together there.

“You don’t want to tell us? That’s fine,” Meluan waved off, nodding with a look that one would call smug if it wasn’t so full of mischief.

When Sinnelia looked up at her, she laughed. “I’m serious.” Meluan gestured at the other women and herself. “Again, we have no reason to probe about your life story, though you’re welcome to probe us about us! We love talking.”

“You love talking,” Wynan corrected while Meryan and Relani laughed. But her expression softened somewhat when Sinnelia stared at her. “But she’s not wrong. You must be feeling overwhelmed, after all, lost in space and now suddenly having four people be loud around you. We’re always happy to answer any more questions you have.”

Slowly unfurling her fingers from their tight grip, Sinnelia looked up, blinking at Wynan and Relani behind her before her eyes traced the line between Meryan and Meluan, settling at the last woman.

Lifting her fingers, she carefully asked, “What…is this place? I thought…there was nothing at the edge of the universe.”

Meluan laughed, throwing her arms out and almost hitting Meryan. “This place? This is the Abode Before the Void—”

“That’s the best name we have so far,” Wynan supplied.

“—it’s a…resting stop, if you want,” Meluan continued as if uninterrupted, tapping her fingers against the wood again. “It can also be a place to resupply, a place to talk, a place for…anything, really. Because you’re right that there’s nothing at the edge of universe, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t something before it.” Her sparkling dark eyes softened as she met Sinnelia’s brown ones. “And, you know…it can also be a home.”

Sinnelia blinked. “Is it…your home?”

All four residents of said home nodded as Meluan chirped, “Yep! It used to just be Meryan’s home here, then Wynan’s, then Relani’s, and finally mine. We weren’t always sisters but…the relationship kind of built from there.”

Meryan’s eyebrows went up at the comment. “Uh huh…don’t listen to her, Sinnelia. It was actually Meluan here first.”

Meluan glanced sideways at her sister. “Well, perhaps, but I said it was your home first. It was never my home until all three of you were here.”

At those words, Meryan and Relani’s eyes almost instantly teared up, and even Wynan looked away.

“Meluan…” Relani sniffed, skirting around the sofa to crush said woman in a hug.

“Argh, get off, Relaniiiii! What did I do this time?!” Meluan protested, startled at the sudden display of emotion from the other ladies. “Sorry, sorry, Sinnelia!” she sputtered, looking over Relani’s shoulder at the girl. “They’re all so sensitive, honestly, and I always make them cry—ouch! Too tight, Relani…”

“Sorry,” Relani unrepentantly apologized, letting the shorter woman go, turning to smile at Sinnelia. “Do you want a hug as well?”

Sinnelia startled and shook her head, blushing at the offer. “I see that you’re all very close…” she quickly commented. There was something almost longing in her gaze, a story untold before she shook it off, adding, “But I still don’t understand this place.”

Still behind her, Wynan crossed her arms over the sofa’s backrest, humming in thought. “Well, I’m not sure how to explain this,” she pondered. “It’s like Meluan said. It’s an abode at the edge of the universe…and anyone who finds this place can do whatever they want. Stay, leave, rest, even attempt to destroy it.”

There was a knowing smile exchanged between all four women at the last words that seemed to bewilder the poor child.

“Preferably don’t destroy it. I’m rather fond of this place, not that it can be easily destroyed,” Meryan added, grinning mischievously as she took a biscuit from the plate. She broke half of it and offered it to Sinnelia, who took it after some hesitation.

“Just know,” Meryan continued between bites of the bready pastry, “we’re very serious in telling you that you’re welcome to stay here as long as you need. Or want.”

Setting her treat back on the plate, Sinnelia stared at Meryan, her hand gestures small and tense as she asked, “I’m not…intruding?”

“Of course not. This house is always open to anyone who needs a home for the time being,” the bespectacled woman assured. Her eyes falling on Meluan, who was stacking the cookies while Relani was carefully rescuing them from breaking, she added, “And to anyone who ever needs to come back.”

“You couldn’t intrude on us if you tried,” Relani agreed. “Besides, didn’t Wynan and Meryan bring you here?”

They had, in fact, and while neither Relani nor Meluan had been present, they could guess that they had saved the poor child from the emptiness of space. The somewhat healthier state they saw Sinnelia in right now was probably due to Meryan’s particular touch on the drinks. After Wynan used her own touch to give the girl a restful sleep, and Relani whipped up some of her special food, she’d likely be in tiptop health.

But the child didn’t know any of that.

She merely nodded at Relani’s observation, her shoulders relaxing from the tension they’d been locked in. And looking back at Wynan, Sinnelia signed clearly to her, “Thank you for helping me when I was going to die…I suppose…I didn’t really want to die, given how grateful I am to be alive.”

“And thank goodness that you’re alive,” Meryan quietly muttered, rocking back and forth quietly. “I hope you don’t ever feel so burned and trapped that you believe you must flee to the cold edge of the universe to find healing.”

“Mhmm,” Wynan agreed, smiling when Sinnelia’s head jerked back forwards to gape at Meryan. “I’m just glad we found you when we did.”

Tears began to form in Sinnelia’s eyes.

Clearly, they had touched a sensitive area.

“Oh, woah! Ladies, keep the sappiness down a bit!” Meluan stammered, back on her feet. “There, there, Sinnelia, don’t cry. Or, no…just let it out. You’re all right to cry here.”

And she did…crying silent tears, head lowered and one arm covering her face. Wynan rubbed the girl’s back soothingly while Relani went to the kitchen to fetch some of her more savory treats and warm up more of Meryan’s drinks.

When Sinnelia had collected herself, however, she looked up at them all, eyes rimmed with red and looking more and more like the child Meluan had earlier noted she was. “I’m sorry,” she managed shakily. “I just…am scared that this is a dream.”

“No, no…dreaming is for sleeping—oof,” Meluan sputtered when Wynan threw a pillow at her face.

“There’s no real way to tell if this is a dream, true, except for our assurances that this is very real,” Wynan offered the girl. “But there’s nothing to be scared of here.”

That only set off more tears, though they seemed tears of relief.

“Unless you want to be scared! But again, if you want to run, at least steal some of our stuff before heading back out—ach, Meryan!” Meluan gagged when the other woman unexpectedly grabbed her in a chokehold.

Meryan chuckled. “Enough, Meluan, you’re confusing the poor girl, and she seems confused enough already.”

Tentatively, Sinnelia wiped her eyes as she offered the two of them a smile. “I’m…all right. And…if it’s all right, can I stay? Just for a little bit. I know I’m asking a lot when you don’t know me but I…want to stay.”

“Of course,” Relani laughed, offering the girl one of the more savory cold pastries. “I wish we could explain better what this place is, but for now, if you know that you’re allowed to stay here at this Abode Before the Void and rest, that’s enough.”

And after another drink from the mug, Sinnelia took the pastry, watery eyes shining.

…………

“Are you lost at the edge of the universe? Have you reached the final frontier and realized you want to go beyond? Well, my friends traversing this cold emptiness, my fellow lost ones who have wondered if going beyond to the void and emptiness is better than wandering this eternal frost…before you decide to take that step across the edge of your universe, won’t you consider sharing a meal with four rather bored personages? Our company may be wanting but our home and food should hopefully be enough to make up for it. And you won’t even have to look for us either. We’re more than happy to find you if you so wish. And anyway…”

A merry little laugh interrupts the cheerfully dramatic monologue.

“Our home is always right there before the edge of the universe. Feel free to come in.”

#inklingschallenge #team lewis #genre: space travel #theme: shelter #i suppose food and drink and a touch of visiting the sick as well?#story: complete #for the words!#lemon duck quacks #i hope i got the story posting format right for tumblr....#anyway christian themes in spaaaace! woohoo!#lemon duck tales

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sleepy-apparition · 11 months

Text

New Feelings Unbound (Shenhe x Reader)

WARNINGS:None

A/N: Hi there! This is my first time writing and publishing something, so it won’t be great. Also, the title says ‘x reader’, but the relationship is platonic(for now). Word Count: 1.793

Shenhe has always found it hard to connect with other people. Even when she was still a little girl not yet burdened with the curse of calamity, interacting with other people didn’t come easy. You can imagine then, the trouble she’d have after near decades of living in the mountains with only Adeptai and the odd illuminated beast to serve as company.

Learning how to fit into normal, human society is a rather difficult task. Her distant and indifferent nature, combined with her impressive strength, leads people to avoid her. Whether it is out of respect or fear varies from person to person. This certain type of loneliness that comes with being the odd one out, brings…. a small amount of ache to Shenhe’s heart. After all, she’s only human. Not that most people would think that.

If Shenhe is kind, people take that as confirmation that she’s an Adeptus and hail her. If Shenhe puts them in their place, then she gets condemned and called a witch. That’s how all her interactions with humans have gone. All, until she met a traveler roaming the mountains of Minlin.

She had first assumed you were lost, just another person who foolishly overestimated their sense of direction. No matter, she’s dealt with plenty like this before, what’s another? As the moon takes its place in the sky, Shenhe approaches.

“Pardon.” Her voice caused you to jump from where you were kneeled on the ground, spinning to face her immediately. It appears her tone was too harsh; she’ll have to adjust it.

“You are lost, correct? Here, I will guide you to- “

“I’m not lost.”

There was an awkward pause after you cut her off. It only lasted a moment, but it felt dragged out by the rather eye contact you’re making towards her. This was not an expected outcome. She wondered if she should question what you’re doing here or if she should just leave, but you beat her to it.

“I’m sorry! For interrupting, I mean. I am not lost; I came out this far in search of materials for my work.”

“Oh.” Another awkward pause. This is getting tiring. “So, you do not need my assistance?”

You looked to your feet and say, “Well, no…actually, could you help me find a place safe from hilichurls and the like? I’m gonna be in the mountains for a while, and I need a safe space to set up camp.”

Your request made her raise a brow. Were you not aware that the Adeptai made these mountains their homes? She asked you just that, and you reasoned that since you had no intention to disturb them, that it was fine to be up here.

“Are you an adeptus...? Ah, I never got your name.”

You state yours, then look at her expectantly. All this attention was…strange. You seemed rather interested in her. Having someone be this enthusiastic to get know her formed a weird feeling in her chest. Weird, but not unpleasant.

She realizes she’d been spacing out and quickly brings herself down to reality. “My name is Shenhe, And I am merely an Adeptus’s disciple. Now, follow me. I will lead you to a safe place to settle”

‘This feeling doesn’t matter’, she thought to herself. Like most who’ve come face to face with her, you’ll grow to hate her, and then you’ll leave. That’s just how it goes.

But you don’t grow to hate her. In fact, your interest in her person only seems to grow as you spend more time together. And oh, do you prefer your time to be spent together.

At first, it was casual. Casual, but practical. Things like, ‘Why don’t you stay longer for me to make you food? It’s the least I could do for you.’, or ‘Would you mind showing me my way around the mountain? I’m not quite used to them yet.’, were common phrases on your lips. You were straightforward about your needs and wants, she quite enjoyed that about you.

Actually, there was a lot she found enjoyable when she was around you. Ability to make herbs tasteful aside, Shenhe finds that being around you is an easy de-stressor. Your work, and living style, she presumes, is rather simple. Not always easy, but simple. “I’m out here on commission,” you explain on one slow afternoon, skipping a rock across the lake the two of you stopped to rest at, “Some novelist wanted me to stay here for a period, and document what the great mountains Liyue were really like. For a new book I guess.”

“What’s there to document about a mountain? It’s essentially a giant rock.” Shenhe states off to the side, adjusting her braid that came loose during a treasure hoarder raid. This novelist sounds both dull-minded and indolent to Shenhe. To both not be able to think of the environment a mountain would have and being unwilling to experience it yourself, doesn’t make for a very inspired person in her eyes.

You just shrug and respond, “Yeah, I suppose. I didn’t accept the first time because I thought it was a scam. But then one of the Guild's trade routes got blocked right as a couple restaurants sent out commissions asking for someone to bring them food supplies.” You pause and move from sitting on a rock to the ground closer to Shenhe.

“Since both commissions required me to be at same place, I decided to take up the novelist on his offer. What’s a little journaling to fill some spare time? If it doesn’t end up being a scam, then great! Double pay! If it does…I’ll find a way to my money out of him, somehow.”

Silence fills the air after your last comment, so you assume Shenhe has nothing else to say. You both just sit there for a minute and gaze at the scenery in front of you. Then you see Shenhe turn to you out of the corner of your eye. You turn to her as well, curious about what she’s doing, and are met the most serious expression you have ever seen someone make in your life.

She puts one hand over her chest and begins talking, “Materialistic things such as money and mora have no meaning to me. However, common folk require it live healthy, stable lives.” The hand over her chest clenches into a fist. “With that in mind, anyone who dares trick you into wasting your time will surely regret doing so when they’re met with the sharp end of my polearm.”

Her tangent ends, and her former rigid posture goes slack as she waits for a response. You on the other hand, are staring slack jawed at her. Did Shenhe really just propose murder? In completely seriousness? It finally registers in your head that yes, she did, and you respond at quickly as you can at that point.

“Um, please do not kill anyone just for scamming me! Or at all, preferably.”

“Hmm? But is not most effective to remove the root of the problem completely?”

“I mean-Yes, but murder is against the law!” You yell out. Shenhe looks at you questioningly, “The law?” she says. Oh boy.

It was a hot day in Liyue, like many others, but today was a bit different. Shenhe wanted you to come up Mt. Aozang with her, to either teach you to fight or to watch her fight. Her phrasing made it unclear.

You were initially excited when she invited you to her to come with her. She was taking you to what was essentially her home! But now, two hours into a three-hour long hike, you justifiably began to have second thoughts. And it’s already getting a bit harder to breathe, so you even want to imagine what it’s like at the summit.

Shenhe isn’t breaking a sweat, expected from someone whose lived most of their life up here. Sighing, you speak up, “Why did you want me to come along again? I didn’t catch your explanation.”

Shenhe looks at you questioningly, “The law?” she says. Oh boy.

She doesn’t even slow down when she responds, “You mentioned being paranoid due to your lack of self-defense; I’m bringing you up here to teach you what I’ve learned from my master.”

An easy solution, she thinks. Something she can help with. Gathering aside, most of your work involves a of trade routes and specifics about people she doesn’t know, so she’s glad to finally be able to repay your kindness with by teaching you a skill that will most definitely be useful.

Behind her, you groan. “You know, I’m sure there are friends who brawl with each other for fun, but I don’t think I could take a single hit from and still be able to stand.”

She halts faster than you can realize, and you bump into her. “Is everything alright?” You ask. You sound worried. She turns around to face you fully.

“Sorry. Yes, everything’s fine.” Despite her reassurance, she stands there in deep thought. It’s kind of strange to see her like this.

“…Did you forget something and just now remembered that you forgot? Or…was it something I said?” She shakes her head, but other than that doesn’t respond.

She bites her lip unceremoniously then speaks again, “You consider us to be friends...?”

You falter, “Are we not?” You’re a more than a bit crushed, and about to apologize for assuming

when Shenhe speaks up again.

“No-I mean yes, I also consider you to be very dear to me, and I hold you in high regard. It’s just…” ‘Just that I have no knowledge on how to be a good member of society, let alone a good enough friend for you’ Is what comes to mind, but Shenhe doesn’t say it. Not like that, at least.

“I have no prior companions from the mortal realm, nor do I have any knowledge in the realm of friendship.” Shenhe sucks in a shaky breath, “Despite this, I quite like the title of ‘friend’. And I am more than willing to learn about it. For you.”

You’re left stunned. What can you say? You were never expecting such a heartfelt confession from her. A moment passes without you saying anything, and Shenhe starts to regret saying anything. Before she can turn around and write it off, though, you grab her hand. Intertwining your fingers together, you bring pair of your locked hands into view and smile.

“Thank you, truly. And know that all the work you do is appreciated.” You bring your hands back down to your sides.

Those words leave Shenhe feeling…lighter. As if the heavy ropes that restricted her emotions had loosened. Instead of the usual numbness she felt, she was…happy.

The two of you walked up the rest of the mountain hand in hand.

#shenhe #shenhe x reader #x reader #genshin impact #there was a lot more to this #but I had a deadline #so this all I got right #I might make a part two #genshin x reader

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