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cryptidghostgirl · 3 months

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Ritornello (Alastor x Cursed!Gn!Reader)

Pairing: Alastor x Reader

Warnings: I don't think there are any but please correct me if I am wrong.

Word Count: 3,565

Previous Part: Rhapsody

Next Part: Rapture

Master Lists:

Master Lists

Hazbin Hotel Master List

A/N Okay I know that canonically Charlie is like 200 but we're gonna make her 25.

After everything with Alastor, Y/n tried to continued their life as it had been before he'd stepped into. It was challenging, they faltered and misstepped. They had been good at being on their own once but now that they had a taste of the alternative, it was difficult to fall back into their old ways. Eventually, they managed to fall into a new pattern of being.

They were a bit more careful now, they didn't dash out unannounced from behind corners or secret hiding places. Seeing Alastor was the last thing they wanted to do. Now, they had someone to avoid.

For seventeen years, they continued on like this. They struggled through their battles on their own, against the overlords and against their own personal situation. They searched high and low for a cure but the only things they ever seemed able to come up with were false promises and temporary fixes. Every day, the curse the overlords had placed on them to limit their powers was growing stronger. Every time they used their magic, played their music, it became more and more corrupted and so, they learned to fight with their hands. This was until they got the call from Lucifer, of course.

The pair were old friends of a sort. Y/n had met him by chance within their first few days in Hell when he'd pulled them out of a tight spot. They didn't spend time together ever or really see one another at all but, Y/n had a vague sort of trust for the man, a strong sense of a debt needing to be repaid. Y/n didn't like owing people things, not even back when they were alive. They didn't like depending on people in that way. When he asked them if they could keep an eye on his daughter, they couldn't refuse.

Charlie was a lot. At twelve years old, she was bright and over the top and constantly bursting out into song. At first, Y/n had been rather uncertain about the whole arrangement, even when she'd gone through her emo phase at fifteen.

Y/n tried to steer clear of them for the most part. Picking her up from school, dropping her off. Babysitting when her parents needed a night to themselves, the normal stuff. When the issues started between Lilith and Lucifer, Charlie was suddenly thrust into Y/n's life a lot more. She had no idea the real reason, both her parents wanting to keep the trouble from her due to their own care and protective natures, and Y/n tried their best to keep it that way. It didn't help that by sixteen, Charlie had practically moved in with the demon but they managed.

Charlie had always pushed for a connection, something more than Y/n making her dinner and getting her where she needed to go. Y/n resisted at all costs. They'd been hurt before by trust, by care. The idea of going through it all again was terrifying. That all changed the day Charlie found out about the curse.

Y/n hadn't meant for her to find out. One of their situation's many many downsides was that while the curse ate away at their magic, it also ate away at their physical form. If they weren't careful, if they didn't temper their emotions and make sure they were eating enough raw meat, the beast would take over.

The beast was a horrific thing in their eyes, blood hungry and devastating. It was sub-human, sub-demon even, writhing and scornful. A mass of twisting shells of prey, a mass of claws and sharp teeth.

Of course, Y/n couldn't keep it from Charlie forever and on one fateful evening, Y/n had transformed. They'd been overworked, stressed about the fact that the Vees were gaining more territory and power, that soon they would be practically untouchable. They had forgotten to take care of themselves in the rush of it all, prioritizing Charlie and their plans.

When they had come back to their senses, come back to themself, it had been to the sight of Charlie. With a damp rag held to their forehead by the demoness and a whole lot of bones from victims of their situation on the floor around them, they had opened their eyes. Y/n had expected Charlie to flinch, to run in fear, to tell Lucifer who knew nothing about the curse. Instead, she had smiled brightly and told Y/n she was glad they were okay. From that day forward, they were absolutely inseparable, completely attached at the hip.

With Charlie's help and cheerful influence, Y/n was beginning to learn how to exist. They loved the girl like she was their own and Charlie knew if she ever had an issue of any sort, she could go to Y/n about it. Even when Y/n had relayed the story of how they'd been cursed and why, there had been no issues, no qualms, nothing. Charlie promised her watcher that she would help them break the curse, no matter what it took.

It was watching Charlie come into herself as a young adult, watching her meet and fall in love with Vaggie that made the real difference. The princess of Hell was unapologetically herself and Vaggie took everything she had to offer with open arms. Slowly but surely, the search for a cure took a back seat as did Y/n's goal of taking down the overlords of Hell. Their life was different, but they were happy. They found themself wishing for the past, the one they had shared with Alastor, less and less, channeling their energy into the world around them. They didn't even notice when the reports started to come in that the Radio Demon of the overlords had seemingly vanished.

Things hadn't been without their challenges. Charlie's relationship with her dad was strained to say the least and when her mom had disappeared? She'd been absolutely inconsolable but with one another's help, they figured things out, made it through.

When Charlie pitched the idea of the Happy Hotel, Y/n had been doubtful. They knew a lot about Hell, the way it functioned, the way the demons within were. It came from decades running around back streets and surviving in the underworld of the underworld. It was Charlie's hope that did it, her earnest gaze. Y/n had caved and after months of hard work, the Hotel had finally opened.

Things were going well, too well even. Then there had been the interview with Katie Killjoy, the other shoe dropping. Y/n had watched it from the sidelines with Vaggie. As soon as Charlie had come down off the set, they had enveloped her in their arms and held them close. With Vaggie's help, they managed to get Charlie back to the hotel.

Once she had calmed down a little bit, Charlie stood from where she had been seated in the sitting room beside Y/n, Vaggie, and the hotel's one resident: Angel Dust. She mentioned something about calling her mom before disappearing into the lobby.

Y/n and Vaggie exchanged a look. They both knew the situation Charlie was in with regards to her mother and how she tended to get after one of her failed attempts to contact the woman. Neither thought this was the time or the place to step in however, and remained seated, chatting idly with Angel as they waited for Charlie's return.

When she finally did, it was with a nervous attitude and a strained expression.

"Hey Vaggie?"

"What?" Vaggie asked as she and Y/n twisted to look at Charlie who stood in the door way behind the couch.

"Can you come help me please?"

Vaggie got to her feet and exited the sitting room with her girlfriend. Y/n turned to Angel to continue their conversation but had barley gotten a word to the spider demon out when Vaggie stepped back in the room.

"Y/n?"

"Yeah?" Y/n replied calmly.

"Charlie actually needs our help with this one, I think."

"Alright then." Y/n got to their feet, shooting a glance back at Angel, "A true hotelier's work is never done." they lightly joked and Angel rolled his eyes.

"What's this about?" Y/n asked Vaggie as they followed her down the hall towards the hotel's main entrance.

"Just..." Vaggie sighed, "you'll see."

Noting the girl's odd behavior and stressed demeanor, Y/n steeled themselves. Not much put Vaggie on edge. She was strong, toughened, as far as Y/n knew, by a brutal upbringing in the streets of Hell. While each use of their powers made the curse grow stronger, they would not hesitate to protect Charlie or her dreams should the need arise. Besides, they'd become quite good at other means of self preservation over the years.

As they rounded the corner into the lobby space, Y/n was greeted by a flash of red as someone pushed past Charlie into the space from the street and a familiar voice.

"Excuse my sudden visit, but I saw your fiasco on the picture show and I just couldn't resist. What a performance! Why I haven't been that entertained since the stock market crash of 1929. So many orphans."

Y/n let out a low growl, summoning their lute into their hands and Vaggie pointed her spear at the Radio Demon. It was pure instinct. If they knew anyone, they knew Alastor and redemption was not the Radio Demon's cup of tea. As Charlie shut the door, he turned to face them. Y/n walked a few steps forward, planting their feet a little ways away from Alastor and poising their fingers to play.

"Get out of here." They said through gritted teeth.

Alastor's eyes widened with recognition for the smallest moment. As quick as he had lost it, he regained his composure.

"My what a protective force this Hazbin Hotel has." Alastor mused.

"It's called the Happy Hotel actually?" Charlie hesitantly corrected and he laughed.

"Not anymore its not. I did you the favor of fixing your sign."

A little threat couldn't hurt, a little reminder of who he was dealing with. Alastor had no idea Y/n was any less capable than when he'd first met them. One little note couldn't hurt, wouldn't show any of the damage done. Y/n plucked a single string on their instrument and the room around them began to glow. Everyone's hair lifted around their faces, the loose edges of their clothes beginning to flutter.

"Get out of here now. I wont ask you again."

"Now, is that anyway to treat an old friend?" Alastor replied, smirking.

Everything suddenly clicked into place. There was something different about him. Y/n couldn't put their finger on exactly what it was, but they could tell he hadn't been lying. He'd been at the Hotel for at least five minutes by now, maybe more with all Charlie and Vaggie's running back and forth since his arrival. If he had had any truly negative intentions, they would have revealed themselves, especially to Y/n. Alastor was a good liar, but no one was that good, good enough to trick someone who had watched them become the person they are.

"Old friend?" Vaggie repeated, turning to Y/n in confusion.

Their grimace faltered, before falling completely. They released their instrument, letting it hang loosely in their hand by their side.

"Alastor! You're embarrassing me in front of my kid."

"Your kid?" Alastor asked after a moment.

This time the shocked expression that crept its way onto his face stayed there.

"You know him?" Charlie asked at the same moment as Alastor spoke.

Y/n let their instrument dissolve into the air and gestured to Charlie.

"My kid. And yes, Charlie. I know Alastor."

Alastor turned, looking Charlie up and down.

"You got with Lucifer?" Alastor asked in confusion as he looked back at Y/n.

They laughed lightly at the notion, unable to stop themselves. They shook their head.

"No. Oh my gosh, I would never. Seriously just... great guy and all but no thank you. I just take care of his kid for him. Well, used to. We sorta got attached."

Charlie walked up to Y/n as they spoke, pulling them into a side hug.

"Y/n practically raised me. They were kinda the only one who was always there for me."

Y/n looked down at Charlie with a fond smile. They ruffled her hair and Charlie quickly batted their hand away.

It was clear to Alastor that Y/n had changed. They were no longer the trouble making demon he had known, that he had loved. Still, there was that same spark in their eyes, that fervent desire, that want. From just the small interaction playing out before him, he could tell that Y/n had learned how to trust and protect rather than just fight. They had learned to live hand in hand with that creeping need woven so tightly around their bones, rather than despite it.

It made him happy to see, it made him happy for her. At the same time, it caused his heart to ache terribly. They had finally been able to let someone in, and it hadn't been him.

In the years since their separation, Alastor had never stopped thinking about Y/n. Their memory was tender to the touch, shot sparks of joy or anguish down him depending on the day. It was like an old wound that had never quite healed right. Seeing them now was unexpected. The wound reopened. He sheltered himself.

Y/n saw the way Vaggie still had her spear pointed at Alastor, aimed straight at his neck. Gently, they placed a hand on it, pushing it down. Vaggie looked at them, her eyebrows raised.

"If he wanted to hurt anyone here, he would have done so already."

Vaggie stared at Y/n for a moment. Seeing how serious the demon that had become a mentor to her was in this moment, she lowered her blade. Y/n's hand fell back to their side.

"Now," Y/n turned to look at Alastor once again, "why are you here?"

----

It was late. Vaggie had told Y/n that Charlie wanted to speak to them about something in their office and so, Y/n found themselves outside the familiar door. They knocked once on the dark red wood.

"Yeah?"

They opened the door and Charlie smiled.

"What'd you wanna talk to me about, Sunshine?" Y/n asked as they entered the room, taking a seat in the chair across the desk from their young charge.

"Just about Alastor."

They should have known. Not only was the hotel at a potential risk thanks to the decision to allow him to work with them but Charlie had always had a sharp sense of curiosity. Y/n sighed.

"Fire away, kiddo."

"Well, how do you two know one another? Can we trust him? Do you think he means what he says he does? I thought you hated overlords? I.. I..."

Y/n smiled softly, the change in their face easing Charlie's nervous temper.

"We will handle these one at a time, no prying. Deal?"

"Y/n, you realize how suspicious that makes you sound, right?"

"Fine. A little prying. Deal?"

"Deal."

Y/n leaned back in their chair, letting out a sigh of nostalgia. Their hands rested on their stomach as they kicked their feet up onto Charlie's desk.

"I... I met Alastor practically right after he arrived. We both thought the overlord system was dumb and so, we decided to team up."

There was a moment of silence, broken by Charlie. The young demoness had always loved Y/n's stories, begged to hear them. They had never once heard this one before.

"Is that all?"

Y/n shook their head.

"We dated."

"You dated!" Charlie exclaimed in shock, nearly jumping out of her seat, "You dated the Radio Demon. Were you in love?"

Of course she'd go on and ask that next. Not 'how'd that happen?' not 'when was this?' No, Charlie had to go for the hardest question first, like she always did.

"Yes." Y/n hesitantly replied, "I did."

"I... oh my god. This is actually crazy. You dated? You actually dated. Like for real, in love, dated."

"Alright." Y/n clapped their hands, taking their feet off the desk and righting themselves in their chair, "Next question."

"Bu-"

"I said some prying."

"Fine." Charlie sighed, crossing her arms, "But I am gonna get that story out of you eventually."

"I'm sure you will, sunshine." Y/n chuckled lightly, "Now. Can we trust him? I... I'm not sure."

All the excitement vanished from Charlie as she looked seriously over at Y/n.

"Why didn't you say something sooner?"

"Because, he's up to something but not with us. Or, if it is with us, it's not to hurt us. I... something happened to him, something is different. I am not sure what I just... he's not here to hurt us... I think..."

"You think?" Charlie repeated indignantly, "Can you be a little more sure of that maybe? Why only think?"

"It's been a long time since I've seen him, Charls. Maybe being an overlord is what changed him. I have no way of knowing but my gut tells me he's okay, at least for now."

"You knew him before he became an overlord?"

"You really think I would team up with one of those bitches? Come on. You know I hate them."

"I-"

"Next question." Y/n quickly interrupted, not wanting to think on the past anymore than was necessary, "I think he does mean what he says, as was implied in whether or not I trusted him but the same caveats that applied there apply here too. And I do hate overlords, I just..."

"You just love him." Charlie teased.

Y/n's cheeks grew hot. They looked away.

"I do not. I loved him. There is a difference."

"Uh-huh. Sure. Why did you guys break up?"

Y/n turned back to Charlie. They couldn't say no to those eyes.

"Well, he became an overlord. Also I maybe... never told him. About the curse. He could tell something was up and..." Y/n took a breath, "couldn't take it after a while I guess."

"So you guys still loved each other when you broke up."

"What are you scheming over there."

"Nothing! Nothing!" Charlie quickly replied as she not so discreetly scribbled something on a piece of paper, "How long were you together?"

Y/n placed their hands on the arms of the chair, pulling themselves to their feet.

"Alright, trouble maker, I think thats enough lore outta me tonight."

"But Y/n!"

"I'm gonna go to bed. Vaggie already headed upstairs for the night I think. Sweet dreams, princess."

"Good night Y/n." Charlie dejectedly replied as she realized she really wasn't going to be getting anything else out of her mentor that night.

"Good night."

Y/n was about half way through the Hotel back to their room when they felt a hand on their shoulder. Reacting purely out of instinct, they ducked out from under the person's grip, spinning around with their fists raised. Alastor smiled down at Y/n and they sighed.

"What is it?" they asked, straightening up.

He had expected Y/n to be angry, to have that familiar sharp edge behind their voice. Instead, they looked up at him. As if everything was normal, as if it hadn't been thirty years since they'd last seen one another, as if they had just been together yesterday, their eyes met his.

"I... it's good to see you."

"It's good to see you too." they replied after a moment's thought, "What are you doing up this late?"

"You know me, sleep is not my preferred way to pass time."

"I meant what are you doing in the hall, but sure. Yeah, I know you."

"That darling Charlie asked to see me."

Y/n scoffed, shaking their head with a tired smile.

"Of course she'd... yeah."

They stood in the hall facing one another. Just a few feet apart. The silence was thick.

"You seem happy."

"I am." Y/n nodded, "Charlie is a great kid. I was pissed when Lucifer first asked me to look after her, I'll admit it but, she has grown on me."

"I didn't know you were acquainted with the big man. I thought you despised all authority figures."

Y/n looked critically at Alastor, over his whole being. He felt they were looking into his very soul, the heart of all his intentions and desires. He felt absolutely naked in the worst way under their gaze.

"No, just overlords. Especially ones who make deals for the souls of others. It's a stupid and outdated system. Even the best of them like Rosie abuse their power to get what they want."

It was a well sharpened arrow, the remark. Perfectly aimed. Alastor had, after all, introduced the small group inhabiting the hotel to Husk and Nifty just that afternoon. Y/n turned their back to Alastor.

"She has big dreams and the passion to see them through. I believe in her. Don't... don't fuck this up for her, Alastor."

----

Next Part -> Rapture

@moonmark98 @luzzbuzz @snowlotr @randomuser-89 @fakeguysarehot @xdolls-crownx

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alexlovesfanfics · 3 months

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I’m probably going to be crucified for saying this but. I have problems with Percabeth. Don't get me wrong I definitely don't hate it and I do enjoy certain Percabeth fics but the largely canon and canon portrayals of it are. Well. Not good.

First of all, there’s the issue that pops up whenever a smart female character is in a relationship with a ‘dumb’ male character. They get dumbed down into being an idiot. This is especially true about Percabeth.

Percy is smart.

Let me repeat that. PERCY IS SMART.

Is he book smart? No. But we all should know that book smart is far from the only smart. But it’s the kind of smart that Annabeth is. She knows trivia. She knows mythology.

Percy? He’s smart in the he picks things up quickly sort of way. Exhibit A: He figured out that the casino was time warping and he not only broke out of it, but was responsible for Annabeth and subsequently Grover breaking out of it. There was absolutely no way Annabeth would have broken out on her own. Exhibit B: That boat scene in SoM where he figured out how to use the wind spirit things to speed them up. Exhibit C, he was one of the first ppl to realise Silena was a traitor. There are probably many more examples but these are just the ones I can think of from the top of my head.

(Also I think he was the one who tricked Crusty and freed the other 2 in TLT)

My second problem is the judo flip scene. Everyone always says it's romantic but fellas. Is it romantic to physically adult your partner after you see them for the first time in months? Onto their back where they have their mortal weakened that could easily kill them? (BC Annabeth couldn't have known the Achilles Curse was gone). We all know that if the roles were reversed, Percy would have been dragged to hell and back for it.

My third major problem is that Annabeth insults him. In the first book, I can give it a pass. Maybe even in the second book. But tell me why in HoH or BOO (I can't remember) Reyna complimented Percy on escaping Tartarus and Annabeth but in like ‘He had help’. Yes. He did. I understand that Percy couldn't have escaped without Annabeth. But let him have the compliment! Maybe even idk. Appreciate him? BC that's what normal couples do? Ik if it was me and my QPR spouses in that situation I would have jumped at the chance to complement and gush abt them. And Reyna responded with ‘True. He couldn't find his way out of a paper bag without you.’ ???

Reyna sweetie, this is your co-praetor!!! Percy made it to camp Jupiter without Annabeth! He can survive on his own just fine! He was also the war commander during TLO despite being barely 16!

Back to the situation at hand, the very least she could have done was stay quiet. And before you say ‘Oh it was a joke’ Percy was clearly unhappy and protested the claim. BC he’s not dumb despite almost everyone in his life acting like it.

The last thing I want to discuss rn is how Annabeth accidentally fed into his suicidal tendancies. Yeah I’m bringing up the Kym incident. Percy literally told Jason he could have controlled the poison and saved himself but didn't BC he thought it was the Fates punishing him for Akhlys. But that wasn't really her fault, though I'm still going to bring it up.

I want to end on a positive note so 2 Percabeth moments that actually make me smile. In TLT during the gateway arch bit, Percy finds the idea of Annabeth being an architect funny and she snaps a comment abt his dad. Percy asks if Athena and Posiden ever collaborated on anything and Annabeth tentatively offers the chariot. It was sweet and actually showed the two’s relationship warming up to something less hostile. Later during the Zebra chapter Annabeth tells Percy that she would fight by him BC he’s her friend, no matter what side Athena chooses. Some great moments.

(Also I like that Annabeth didn't hold it against Percy for forgetting their 1 month anniversary. She actually understands that he has a lot on his mind and that he just fought a war)

(Also I could bring up BotL but I won't BC I have other stuff to do and also I haven't read it recently enough like TLT which I skimmed today during a seminar BC I didn't have my sketchbook but my best friend had brought the copy I lent her and wasn't using it)

#percy jackson and the heroes of olympus #percy jackson #percy jackon and the olympians #annabeth chase #anti percabeth #not gonna properly tag the ship bc I like living thanks #anti annabeth chase #should I tag reyna?#smart percy jackson #im so glad that's a tag #shut up alex

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mint-yooxgi · 1 year

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To Tempt Fate - Yandere!Trickster Deities!Ateez X Reader

Yandere AU & Trickster AU

Genre: Mature, Horror, Angst

Pairing: Ateez X Reader (Focus on ??? to start hehehe)

Words: 2,246

Warnings: Implied drugging and kidnapping. This is a Yandere story, it will contain themes such as stalking, violence, obsession, possessive natures, and just general overall creepiness and swearing. You have been warned.

A/n: Surprise!!! Here’s to the start of yet another series that I hope you’ll all enjoy!! This one is going to be a bit darker than the other ones in terms of content, but it draws a bit of inspiration from The Hunger Games, and survival horror game in general. I’m really excited for this series since I have quite a bt planned for it, but I'm not sure how updates for it will look. It might just be a short side project I work on every now and then between chapter of Morning Mist and book two of HC, but I shall see! Also, if you have any predictions or theories I'd love to hear them!! Can you guess who is who yet based on the eyes? 👀 Anyways, as always, feedback is greatly appreciated!! I hope you enjoy!!~

Also, gentle reminder that I do not do tag lists.

Mini Masterlist

There’s a ringing in your ears that won’t disappear. A blaring hum that echoes almost periodically beside your head as your brow furrows. Your eyes remained closed, the familiar throb of a headache pounding against you skull. Slowly, you begin to move.

Blinking, your gaze shifts into focus, and you notice that you’re inside an unfamiliar room. The four walls are small, boxing you in on every side as you see random objects scattered around. There’s a small dresser off to the side, and as you push yourself up into a sitting position, you realize that you’ve been laying on a bed of sorts. Directly across from you sits a floor length mirror, your reflection staring back at you with nothing but confusion on your face.

The ringing starts again, and it is then that you realize that it’s your phone.

Odd, considering you always keep it on silent. Cautiously, you reach over and grab the small object from the bed.

The number that appears onscreen is one you do not recognize, and given the sluggish state of both your mind and body, a creeping sense of dread begins to wash over you.

You’ve most likely been drugged, and even worse, kidnapped.

Though, you find it odd that your phone remains, untouched, in your hands.

The call cuts out, the familiar picture of your home screen being displayed before your very eyes. You should probably call someone for help.

Unlocking your phone, you’re quick to open your contacts, clicking on the name of your closest friend. You hear the dial tone sound out before a harsh screeching can be heard on the other end.

Your phone goes black.

A furrow creases your brow as you turn your phone back on, seeing nothing out of the ordinary once more. Though, this time, you notice how the top corner now says ‘no service’ despite having full bars only moments ago.

That’s strange, considering you had just been receiving an incoming call not even two minutes ago.

The sound of your phone ringing once more startles you into nearly dropping it onto the ground. That same, unfamiliar number appears on your screen, practically staring up at you ominously as your heart begins to race inside of your chest.

Your eyes dart to the top corner of your screen.

No service.

Swallowing thickly, you answer the call.

“Hello?” Your voice comes out strained, only now realizing the dryness of your throat as you attempt to speak.

“Hello, Darling,” a male voice drawls out on the other end, practically purring the words out as unknown affection drips from his tongue.

“Who the hell are you, and what do you want?” You frown, sitting stiffly on the edge of the bed. Your one arm is crossed over your chest as you press your phone to your ear, staring straight ahead at your reflection in the mirror.

“My name is not of importance right now, but you are.” A giggle that sends a chill right down your spine is heard through the line. “As for what I want… well… you’ll find out soon enough. For now, I’d like to play a game.”

“I’m not playing any of your sick, twisted games.” You spit, whole body tense as anger begins to course through your veins. “Let me go, and we can pretend like none of this has ever happened.”

“Now, why would I want to do that when the prize is already within my grasp?” He replies smoothly, clearly amused by your sudden harsh tone.

You’ve heard rumours. Mere myths and legends told to you by the townsfolk of people going missing every ten years or so. Eight are usually kidnapped, forced to take part in these insanity games, yet only one ever survives. The one that does is always forever changed, prattling on about eight figures with extraordinary powers. Powers the likes of which you have never seen.

These eight figures force their victims to partake in a ritual sacrifice, disguising it beneath the premise of a game. Nothing they say can be trusted, and as soon as you are in their clutches, you can no longer trust your own mind.

At least, that’s what you’ve been told. Nothing more than a scary bedtime story for parents to tell their children in order to make them behave. A fantasy conjured up to spread fear into a town which had badly been in need of some self-control.

“Don’t let the tricksters get you! They’re always out for blood.”

You shake your head. “You sound so confident in yourself.”

The man hums. “Why wouldn’t I be? I always get what I want.”

“Not this time.” You hiss, promptly hanging up on him.

The phone in your hand gets harshly slammed down on the mattress before you’re fully crossing your arms over your chest. You can hear the familiar ringing echoing throughout the room a moment later, but you ignore it. Only when your head begins to feel fuzzy, the sound literally beginning to bounce around inside your skull, do you snatch the phone back off of the bed beside you.

“What?” You spit, a harsh tug of your brows downwards as you direct your fury filled gaze at your reflection across from you.

“The next time you hang up on me, I won’t be so forgiving.” The man’s voice is somewhat firmer this time around. Darker, in a sense, as you can tell he means every word that he says.

“You sure are putting a lot of thought into this game of yours.” You quip, gaze darting everywhere around the room for a way out.

The door looks like a good place to start.

“Only the best of the best can survive, Darling,” he replies, and there’s a sick tone of what you can only guess to be pride lingering in his voice that has you shuddering instantly. “It’s why we’re putting our faith in you this time around.”

“The hell is that supposed to mean?” You attempt to turn the knob of the door, only for it to be locked.

“We’ve decided to make an exception this time.” He responds, amusement clear in his voice as he hears you jostle the handle of the locked door a few more times to no avail. “You are the only true contender for the game this year. At least, the one we’re all betting on.”

“Yeah, you said that already,” you reply, gruffly.

Taking a step back, you eye the door cautiously. It appears to be nothing more than a simple wooden slab, but you cannot tell how thick it is. You’ll look around the room first for something to pick the lock with before attempting to break it down.

“That’s not going to work.” His voice singsongs, another spine chilling giggle echoing through your phone.

“You don’t know me, so why the fuck are you doing this?” You start rummaging through the dresser, seeing nothing but clothes that are conveniently your size placed inside. You scowl in disgust.

“Oh, but I do, My Darling,” the way he drawls out your name almost lovingly has a shiver caressing your spine once more. “We all do. Just as you know us.”

Your entire body stiffens, keeping your voice low as you reply, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Do you not think we research our chosen candidates before submitting them to our games? Is that not something you also like to do?” The amusement is clear in his tone, though it sounds more condescending than anything.

“Again, I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Your own voice is gruff as you manage to find a few pins hidden around the room.

“Don’t act so coy with me, Darling.” You can just hear the grin he wears through the phone. “I know you’ve taken a keen interest in us. Almost as much as we have taken an interest in you.”

You remain silent, working to unlatch the lock on the door with those few pins you found. They might even come in useful later.

“Survive our games, and we will tell you all that pretty little mind of yours wants to know about us.” The male tells you.

You manage to hear the faint click of the lock sliding out of place, and your heart skips a beat in relief. “And if I don’t?”

“Then we will finally claim what has long since been desired before the time is up.” He replies, and you can hear the eagerness that leaks into his tone. The excitement alone that bleeds through causes you to grimace, a wary look in your eyes.

Then, your brow furrows in confusion, the question easily forming on your lips. “And just what could you all have possibly desired for so long?”

You stand back to your feet as you hear him chuckle. “You.”

A chill travels through your entire body as you go still, hand frozen in the air just before the doorknob. Your heart feels as if it has leapt into your throat, breath hitching as you stare straight ahead.

Fear. That’s what you’re feeling right now. Cold, dreadful fear.

“Complete our game, Darling, and we’ll give you everything you could ever want.” His voice lowers, as if he’s standing right behind you and softly caressing your ear with his whispered promises. You tense. “Anything you could ever need or desire, we will always provide for you. You just have to prove you’re worthy of us first.”

“Are you sure it’s me that needs to prove their worth to you?” You scoff, finally coming back to your senses enough to turn the handle of the door and fling it open. “I don’t need your pity.”

“If you think we pity you, you are sadly mistaken.”

“And if you think I’m going to willingly go along with this stupid game of yours, you are sadly mistaken.” You snap, stepping through the threshold and into what appears to be a large garden maze of some sort.

A boisterous laugh reaches your ears through the line. A laugh which has your brows furrowing in confusion.

“Oh, My Darling,” he sighs wistfully. “You already have.”

The sound of the line going dead reaches your ears, and you realize that whoever you’ve been talking to has ended the call. There’s an inkling in the back of your mind as to who it could have been, but you cannot be too sure until you meet him in person. Only their eyes reveal their true selves. Eyes which can never hide their intent, or so you’ve been told.

Each of the eight have a specific colour to their irises that designates their true self. From what you’ve uncovered about them, the colour reveals their age. Though, from what you understand, you’re surprised the eldest isn’t their so called leader.

Yellow. Ice blue. Red. Deep Purple. Light green. A burning orange which appears almost amber in the light. Pure white, to the deepest of blacks. All are signs of the eight tricksters which live for the thrill of the hunt. Signs you must keep alert for at any cost, for if you spot them, that means that you haven’t necessarily found them, but they have found you.

Taking a deep breath to steady your nerves, you step outside. You purse your lips, scanning the area for anything useful or familiar to you, taking in your surroundings all the while.

A stone bench sits off to the left, hidden away almost inside one of the maze’s walls. Staring forward reveals an entrance to said maze, the darkness of its interior spreading out before you. From what you can see, the path splits off to either side, giving you two options to take every time you enter. To your right rests a pure white lattice archway, red roses creeping up the sides delicately.

Turning around reveals the room you had woken up in to be a small shack of some sorts, wood lining its exterior. It appears no bigger on the outside than within, nothing more than a supposed cozy place to rest your head.

Looking up reveals the night sky, stars twinkling brightly above. The only light offered is from the moon, but oddly enough, there seems to be a natural glow surrounding the area. It’s almost as if you’ve suddenly gained the ability to see better in the dark, but you know from what little lore you’ve read about these supposed games that it’s simply a trick of the mind. It’s probably not even nighttime.

Letting out a sigh, you trudge forward. Looks like you should at least begin to explore the maze for now. You’ll need to find some food, and potentially some weapons to start. Who knows what’s lurking in the shadows just beyond your line of sight. Perhaps even a flashlight, or lantern might help.

Besides, you know more about this little game of theirs than you want to admit, and if you run into another competitor, you do not want to be the first one downed. Hopefully, though, you run into people simply wanting to escape like you do, rather than the other alternative these eight tricksters are always so keen on encouraging. You’d rather create allies, rather than enemies to start.

Stepping forward with nothing but the clothes on your back, and a cellphone that has been practically rendered useless in your back pocket, you begin.

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joelsgirl · 1 year

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Love Thy Neighbor Pt. 1

Muse: Joel Miller Word Count: 2k Content Warnings: Age Gap, Size Difference, grief, parental loss, fluff, No Use of Y/N A/N: Set pre-outbreak, maybe a year or two before. Ambiguous timeline. A Gift For: @dreamsofmandalore - A little SJ for you. Thank you for being you. Happy Birthday, darling. + Want to see more? I’d love to see some requests, here!

The night should have been warm, beautiful, almost balmy. It was only the start of fall, things shouldn't have shifted so fast, yet no matter what you do, you can't seem to stop the chill, like it was deep in your bones, freezing you from the inside. Glancing around, you wonder if others can feel it too.

Everyone else seems to be fine, having a great time. The block party was being run by your best friend's mom. She and Lisa lived in the house down the end of your street. Her yard backed onto rolling hills, marking the edge of suburbia. This wasn't your scene, you weren't ever into parties, more of a homebody, really.

Even at college, you preferred late nights, the scent of dusty old books and the dim light of the libraries lamps. It's been six months since you graduated college, and it should have been the time of your life - out exploring the world, getting that high paying job you'd worked so hard for, living to the fullest, or whatever that means...

Losing your dad wasn't something on the cards. He was your best friend, the only family you had left... but fate was a cruel mistress. Moving back home after graduation was easy, sorting out the house and putting him to rest... was another thing entirely. Lisa had become your lifeline through it all... and though a season had passed, it wasn't any easier.

The din of the party was getting to you, the noise all too overwhelming. You were here for Lisa, wanting to enjoy the night as much as she was... but couldn't handle yet another concerned neighbor asking you how you were coping. Strolling down the back of her yard, your fingers trailing over the solid wooden posts of her fence until they reach the latch to the back gate. A quick check over your shoulder to make sure no one has noticed you before you slip out.

There's a small, narrow path that opens into a clearing. It takes you a minute to scan the canopy line before you find the treehouse your dad built for you and Lisa when you were kids. It's all so overgrown now but the steps to the ladder are still nailed into the large trunk. Testing the lowest one out with the toe of your ballet slippers, you climb up into the large space. He was a builder, a freelance contractor and this place had been your safe haven for so many years.

You hadn't visited in a while, but the interior was spotless. The walls painted a now faded burgundy, the window seat and sofa inside still clean and fresh. Lisa had mentioned coming by recently to tidy it up but she'd added some more knickknacks. This space had always felt like home, like a private solace, protecting you from the cruelty of the world below.

There was a desk against the far wall, a cupboard with books and a small coffee table in the center. Your dad had managed to hoist them up and set them inside. Climbing onto the soft cushion of the window seat, your back against the wall as you survey the clearing. Everything looks so small from this height, so insignificant.

The dark silhouette of another appears just below, so quiet you hadn't heard him coming... but you knew who it was, would recognize him anywhere. Your heart skipping a beat at the sight of him, idly wondering how he knew where to find you. "Hey..." His voice was low, sensual even from down there... at least to you. You bite back the grin wanting to take over as you nod to him, "Hey, yourself."

Joel had moved in to the house next door right around the time you graduated college. He had the stoic, single dad routine down pat; he was also kind, charming and seriously good looking. Everyone wanted a piece of him, but all he cared about was Sarah. His beautiful daughter, ten years old and sharp as a tack. She kept them both on their toes, that was for sure. Joel was a builder, just like her dad. Long hours and hard labour to provide the kind of like he thought she deserved. His brother Tommy would drop in on occasion, the genes ran in the family there... But Joel, he was something else.

"Mind if I come up?" You sit a little straighter, wishing there was a mirror nearby to check your reflection or something... "Sure!" He'd never been here before, but he knew about it. You told him when you were reminiscing about your dad shortly after... everything happened. Pulling yourself up from the window seat, you move to lift the latch, tugging open the trap door and helping him to pull himself up into the treehouse. "How'd you know I was here?" You ask, curiosity getting the better of you.

"Was watching you." There was something in his eyes. So dark, chocolate had nothing on them. So deep as he drank in the sight of you. That concern dancing behind his gaze melted you, the warmth in his tone something new, something you'd started picking up on more and more of late. "Saw you slip out the back... No one else noticed." He was standing so close, you could see the gold flecks and caramel highlights in those eyes from the fading glow of the sun's rays. "Oh?" You were normally such a conversationalist, but there was something so intense about him, you were suddenly lost for words.

"Yeah, you looked like you could use a friend. Didn't want you alone out here." He paused for a moment, his words sinking in before he broke that connection, shifting his focus to the treehouse. There was a ghost of a smile tugging at his lips as his hands slipped into his pockets, his leather jacket tightening around the thick muscle of his biceps. The black cotton shirt beneath it draped perfectly off the broad expanse of his chest, his black jeans almost faded. He walked around the room, eyeing off everything in the room before settling against the edge of the desk. "I see why you like it here so much."

There was something so surreal about having him here. He almost didn't belong. He towered over you, even like this. His body exuding nothing but strength and power as he filled the small space. Barely large enough for two little girls once upon a time, let alone him... The truth was, you'd been noticing the change in him because it mirrored the one in you. Thoughts of him always lingering in the back of your mind, afraid to look at them too closely.

"What are you really doing here?" Surprised he'd left the party, even though he hadn't brought Sarah with him this time. "I meant what I said; didn't want you alone out here." His voice was low, sweet like honey. It was one of your favorite things about him, the sound filling the space, tickling your skin as you bite back a smile. Your heart doing that thing it always does whenever he was involved; fritzing out as it fought to maintain some kind of regular rhythm.

You edge a little closer, half a step, then another. As if testing the waters. He knew it, too, a slight jerk of his head telling you to keep going until you were just within reach of him. A hand reaches out lazily, fingers hooking in the waistline of your mini skirt. Tugging you the rest of the way, until you were standing between his outstretch legs. Even though he's perched on the edge of the desk, he's still so much taller than you. His body so big, you wonder how it would feel to get lost in it. To have him wrap those arms around you and hold you until all your worries melt away. The rest of the world, too.

His hands slide down your sides, settling on your waist as he holds you tightly. Your cheeks feel warm, a soft flush coloring them as tingles rush down your spine. "Been thinking about this for a while..." God, that voice. He could bring a civilization down to it's knees with that thing. At least, he could, you. "Thinking about what, exactly?" You can barely get your words out, the sound a soft murmur as your breath catches... The way he's looking at you right now, the world really was melting around you. Nothing else mattered but him. Right there. If only you could freeze that moment...

His eyes flicker to your lips, to the way you're biting the lower one. The usually stoic façade gone, replaced by a hunger you'd never noticed before. One hand leaves your waist to cup your face. Thumb locking on your jaw as strong fingers grip the back of your neck, holding you in place as he dips his head, his lips finding yours in a hard kiss. Your palms find his chest, pressing against them as you deepen the kiss.

Your mind flashing to all those late nights at home, crying as you try to pick up the pieces of your life, only to look up and find Joel right there with you. Holding you, helping you, a support like no other. He'd always been right by your side, had been the one for you long before you were willing to admit it to yourself...

All the unspoken emotion pouring out between you as the hand still resting on your waist tightens its grip, pulling you harder against him, as if letting you go would mean losing you and he couldn't possibly bare the thought of it. It felt like an eternity and a single moment all at once when he finally broke away. Pressing a kiss to your forehead before looking in your eyes once again, his thumb brushing your lower lip as a smile tugged at his own. "This, right here... you... I can't get you out of my head."

You open your mouth to say something when his phone goes off, the buzz in his pocket pulling him away. The apologetic look on his face as he tugs it out entirely unnecessary, he hated the damn thing, kept it for two reasons. Sarah and Tommy. "It's okay," you say as soon as he puts it away, knowing real life was calling him away...

"It's Sarah, there's a crisis at home, something about a missing textbook and needing to finish her homework. Honestly couldn't tell you where she gets those brains from." The sheepish smile was back on those perfect lips and you can't help but ball his shirt in a small fist as you tug him back down for another kiss. A short one, but enough to tell him you're not going anywhere. You walk down together, away from the party, a shortcut to the main road leading you both back to your driveway. He lives next door, but your house is first and he takes a moment to step away... those perfect eyes lingering on you.

"Can I call you, later tonight?" The smile on your face the only answer he needs as he nods, watching until you're safely up the driveway and inside your house before making his way to his girl. You pause, your back leaning against the door as your fingers lift to press idly against your lips, thinking about the way he kissed you, about him... Fishing your phone out of your pocket and clutching it to your chest as you make your way upstairs, counting down the minutes until you could hear that voice again...

TAG LIST: @dreamsofmandalore @devilmademewriteit @devilmademepostit @not-a-unique-snowflake-blog @pedro-pedrito-pascalito >>> If you'd like to be tagged in this series or any other fics, please let me know!

#pedro pascal #joel miller #the last of us #joel miller x reader #joel miller x you #joel miller fic #tlou #tlou fic #my writing #my writing x joel miller #love thy neighbor

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cookiesupplier · 4 months

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Every Rose Has Its Thorns - Part Seventeen

pairing: Ricky Olson x ofc x Chris 'Motionless' Cerulli

warnings/tropes: slow burn, soulmates, strangers to enemies to lovers, betrayal, angst, fluff, smut, language, panic attack, stalking, online bullying.

summary: In a world where soulmates inexplicably receive a tattoo that will match that of their soulmate the moment they turn eighteen years old, being famous and covered in very visible tattoos can make finding your true soulmate a questionable fate. For everyone involved.

author’s note: Unbeta'd, readers beware as always lol.

tags: @tearfallpixie @cncohshit @jordynyingling0219 @faceless-mirror @nyxthedestroyerofworlds @wild-child-7747 @witchyweeb34 @black-damask1999 @jilliemiw86 @ilovesamkiszka @lyschko666 @lacktoesandtoddlerants @bngurngheart @collapsedglasshouses @laurpartyprogram

Rick knew he shouldn’t have done it, he knew he shouldn’t have, but he watched Grace’s live with Vinny. No, they didn’t unblock her, that would be ridiculous, but he had a throwaway Instagram account, and it was perfect for times like this. It was random enough, that as long as they didn’t say anything in the chat, and didn’t jump out or anything he doubted Grace would even pay attention to the name, he doubted Grace even knew about it. It was quite literally a scramble of letters and numbers.

Listening to Grace as she sobbed, and cried about her version of events, answering questions about everything that had happened between them, if he hadn’t been there, if he hadn’t been the one to go through it, he would have believed everywhere she had said. If Vin hadn’t been sitting next to him, grabbing at his hands and stopping him, the things he was tempted to type in the chat. Oh, how thankful he was, that they’d thought to turn off voice recognition before the live had started, or he might have been screwed.

Even so, the live itself exposed Grace to Ricky even more than anything else had. It exposed even more of her obsession, not just with him, but with the whole band itself. For her claims of what Talia had done to her, to him, was almost precisely the same story, a play-by-play in fact, of what that stalker had done to Chris and his fiance so many years before he’d even met Gracy… Except for the fact that Ricky had never proposed to Grace.

There had been a question in the live about if Rick had asked her during the tour and that was why she was with them this year, so you know the fans knew the story was similar, not that she acknowledged it in any way, assuming obliviousness. No, Grace had just gotten bashful and said that he hadn’t, however, she had her suspicions that he had planned to before she had turned up. Then she had had the gall to lament that now they would never know if he would have or not, and boy, had that caused an uproar. Grace had certainly missed her calling, working in boring retail, when she could have been an actress, she could have made a killing. She certainly had him fooled for years.

It wasn’t until near the end of the Instagram live that she really let the worst of what she had to say drop. That Talia, this mysterious woman, that she was claiming to be Ricky’s stalker and FAKE SOULMATE, that had been the cause of him breaking it off with her, conveniently leaving out that she had been faking being his soulmate herself mind you, was conveniently Vinny’s soulmate’s best friend, and that they were in cahoots.

She ended the live with that. Vinny and Ricky’s pages both EXPLODED.

Not just Ricky’s Instagram, but also his YouTube and Twitter. Vinny’s discord was smashed and his mods had to shut that shit down, so many people had to be muted and a new rule was implemented that if anyone spoke out against Ava they would be instantly put indefinitely put in timeout until they could sort out what was happening. The keyboard abuse was rife and it was beyond a joke. Everything was mayhem.

Ricky was fucking pissed, now they had to sort out what to do, Grace knew where to hit them, she hadn’t just dropped a bomb, she hadn’t just attacked him, but Vinny too. He was pacing back and forth down the hall on his phone, contemplating what the hell he should do, while Vinny was sitting at his computer desk arguing with someone on his computer, when he heard a car make its way up the drive.

He was contemplating whether he should make a post, a video on YouTube, something, setting the record straight, something that Grace wouldn’t be able to explain away. Right now, the fact that everything she said had been done over a live was to her advantage, not that it wasn’t saved somewhere, these days some people screen-recorded everything. He’d already seen it flooding the band's message boards, and the mods trying to shut down the hate over it, that was coming from it.

Hearing laughter echo inside the house from the front hall, Ricky looked up, it was Talia and Ava getting back from the trip into town.

“Shit.. Vin, Vin.”

Moving back to his room where he was still talking with his mods about the idiots on his discord,

“Talia and Ava just got back.”

What they were going to tell them? He didn’t know, but it wasn’t like they could exactly hide this from them. Be as bad as trying to stick their heads in the sand after all, pretending none of this was happening, and it was, it was all fucking happening whether they liked it or not. Vin had told him that he’d talked to Ava about going public with their relationship, and if Ava knew, then so did Talia, hiding this would be impossible, it was going to be everywhere.

Rick took in a breath as he saw Ava and Talia walk around the corner, it was the first time he’d seen Talia since the bathroom, and his neck tingled just at the sight of her, that smile, if it weren’t for the pit of dread feeling like nothing but doom wanting to eat him alive right now…

“I should go.”

“No!”

Ricky glanced over towards Vin as he came out of the office.

“We need to deal with this, Rick.”

“Deal with what?”

Ava was all smiles until Vinny looked over at her, it was then she got a good look at the expression on his face, and she saw just how stressed he was. It wasn’t Ava that spoke next, it was Talia, and she wasn’t looking at Vinny as she said it.

“What’s going on, what’s wrong?”

Rick looked over to her, his eyes narrow, what? What was her deal? She shouldn’t be looking at him with concern like that. The words flew out of his mouth before he could stop them, she confused him too damn much, and it just, everything with Grace, it was pushing him, and badly.

“What the fuck do you care?”

“Rick!’

Looking over to Vinny,

“You know it involves her too, Grace named her, and considering she connected her to Ava, it won't be long until the fans find her.. You need to tell your side, man. You need to tell them what Grace did. That SHE was the fake soulmate, not Talia.”

“Wait, what?”

Ava exclaim,

“I thought you guys were doing your live, what has Grace got to do about this?”

Just like that, suddenly everyone seemed to be talking at once, looking between the three of them she couldn’t quite keep up. Talia was so lost as she looked at the three of them, so lost. From the sounds of it, there had been something planned that she hadn’t known about, something involving Vin and Ricky, which made her nervous, especially if Ava knew about it, but she didn’t. It also left a pit in her stomach because it made her wonder what else she was being left out of already in her friend's life, she knew she wasn’t as dialled in as she wanted her to be with this soulmate thing, but she’d still support her. She was here, wasn’t she? Why was she here, giving up her time, her work, her life, if it was just to be shuffled off to the side?

As she swallowed, she took in her breath, pushing that feeling aside, she was fine, it was okay, whatever was going on was so much more important than her, obviously. That was when her phone started to go off wildly with notifications for comments on some of her recent photos on her Instagram page, well, that was weird. Opening the first one, just one, and it was some chick cussing her out, with some carefully chosen language might she add, for being a homewrecker. What?

“Guy, GUYS, someone needs to slow down and start from the beginning as to what the hell has happened.. Because I’m being abused and called a homewrecker over here, and I’d really like to know why?”

Holding up her phone. She could guess why, and as much as she’d like to be proven wrong the looks on their faces told her she probably wasn’t. Talia would be willing to beg the universe that she was wrong, but the moment Vinny mentioned Grace before, Talia had gotten the worst feeling.

“Well, Vinny and I wanted to announce that we’re together, so he did an Instagram live, and he did it with Rick.”

Talia glanced at the man that she had been purposely trying not to, and failing not to think of since the party, and her tattoo tingled, the feeling dancing over her skin just from her glancing at him, twisting her fingers around her phone as it vibrated with even more notifications coming through. Shit.

“Okay, why would he need to do it with Rick?”

Her words were calm, and slow, as if she didn’t know the answer, but she wanted confirmation, she wanted to hear them say it since they’d decided to leave her out of something that had so blatantly involved her before now.

“I haven’t announced that I’m not with Grace yet, because it’s just, it’s been difficult.”

Alright, Talia nodded, shrugging slightly, that she understood, and she didn’t really blame him for it. Good news spread like wildfire, bad news hit like a lead pipe, and no one ever wanted to talk about it. Well, it would seem, an exception could be made if someone were famous and someone did a live claiming to expose their dirty secrets and lied through their teeth.

“Okay, so, wait, you told people you broke up with her in the live? You told them about me?”

“No! No no, soulmates weren’t mentioned with the breakup, the idea was that I’d talk about my breakup, and Vinny would go right into his news distracting everyone. It mostly worked, not quite, but mostly. Some people still commented on my page, but it was something, it was out there at least.”

He shrugged. That was not the problem, Talia looked between them warily,

“Okay, so, what went wrong?

“About an hour later, Grace did a live, and she spoke her version of events. How much do you know about the band's past with soulmates? How much do you know about Chris’ history with soulmates?”

Looking at Rick then as he asked, for once he didn’t sound like he was just going to spit hate at her, he was actually talking to her like a civil person this time, but that wasn’t what she was thinking about, she was thinking about some of what she knew of what Chris had gone through.

“I only know some of what Chris went through, I’m not one of those fans that go through your personal lives guys. He was stalked by a fake soulmate, he had a girlfriend, then he didn’t have a girlfriend, that's all I know. I’ve always tried to be hands-off.”

Looking at Ricky, she’d never wanted to be one of those creepy fans who became obsessed with them, not even when she figured out he was her soulmate. Anything she could have learned, she would have rather learned from them as people. There were times she read articles and still felt she violated their privacy with how they portrayed them.

He stared at her for a moment, well, shit. She definitely had more boundaries than most, a lot of fans loved reading everything they could get their hands on, and he wouldn’t judge them for it. The interviews they did for a reason.. It was the stalkers, and the people that wouldn’t leave them alone badgering them, that were a problem.

“Well, it gets a lot worse, but that is the basic layout, and Grace made it seem a lot like that, that you stalked me, pretended to be my soulmate, and I left her because I couldn’t handle it.”

Ricky, just as he spoke the words, felt a flare of heat through the skin of his tattoo, his eyes going a little wide because at the same moment that he felt it, the realisation hit him, Talia, despite looking away from him in obvious anger and frustration at what she was hearing, her hand had lifted to her neck, immediately to her tattoo. She was pressing her fingers to her soulmate tattoo, and when she did, that pain in his neck, shit, it reacted. The pain in his neck, it seemed to soothe.

Talia was just trying to breathe. She was just so angry, not at Rick, but at the whole situation. Okay, maybe a little at Rick, at Vinny, at Ava. They could have told her this was happening, they could have let her prepare herself at least a little emotionally for this starting. Sure, she didn’t think there was probably much she could have done aside from mentally prepare, maybe she could have locked her account, something.. But she would never know now. God, did she even want to check her profile for more comments? Damn.. how could they have not told her?! Right now it felt like she’d been hung out to dry and it made her, her, it actually made her angry, angry at not just Grace, but all of them too. Glancing away from all of them, she reached up to her neck, her tattoo surging painfully again.. Rubbing along the mark as covertly as she could.. Trying to make it look like she was just working out the stress kinks in her neck as she closed her eyes with a sigh. She didn’t need any of the others to know that this debacle, wasn’t the only insanity she was dealing with, but the one in her own head as well.

“Rick, you know I’m right, you have to say something, release a statement, a video, something.”

Vinny was speaking up, completely missing what Ricky was seeing, and Talia didn’t see him blinking a little at her either as she rubbed her neck at the sting of pain,

“Rick!”

His attention snapped back to Vinny,

“What?”

“We can’t let her get away with this, they’re already coming after Talia online.”

The problem was, it wasn’t Grace coming after her, it was their fans, if Grace came after her they could do something about it. Ricky could technically do something about it, legally, like get a restraining order. Then, like he said to Chris, he could claim Talia as his soulmate, and provide evidence of her stalking, and it would extend to her. However, the problem was, it wasn’t Grace, she had weaponized their fanbase, and they were attacking Talia for her.

“And me.”

Ricky looked over towards Ava who had her phone in her hand now, scrolling away. Vinny looking on in horror,

“What?!”

Talia’s voice had a tinge of outrage in her one-word outburst as she stepped towards Ava to see her phone, to look at the comments she was getting to. Rick barely held back the flinch at the much sharper sting through the tattoo this time, was she just angry, was the tattoo reacting to her strong emotions, or was it reacting because her emotions were aimed at him? Because if it was her emotions, why wasn’t it always reacting? Of course, now, now she had reason to be pissed at him, Grace was doing this to her, to Ava, because of him. He could do, he had to do, something.

“Fine. Fine, I’ll make a video statement. I’ll,”

He took in a deep breath, steeling himself for what he was going to do.

“I’ll tell my story about what she did to me.”

How she made a fool of him, and how she ruined how it felt for him to find his real soulmate. Glancing to Talia… well shit. Time to stop lying. He knew, and he hated it. He couldn’t be with her, because everything he felt now was just, it hurt. Furthermore, he looked at her, thinking about who she was, thinking about how perfect she probably would have been for him, and it was too fucking painful.

He didn’t just hate that she was his soulmate. He hated everything.

Shit, why did Chris have to be right?

dividers by @saradika-graphics

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aeroblossom · 4 months

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more on albedo and rhinedottir

what is transmutation, if not rebirth?

okay. i think i figured out the motive behind rhinedottir's creations, among other things.

bear with me and my poor explanation, i'm also really bad at linking sources lmao. do correct me if i've gotten any details wrong. much of this was possible thanks to conversations with a friend of mine!

rhinedottir's reason for creating durin, elynas, albedo and everything else was to find the meaning of life itself.

i'm gonna try and make it as simple as possible to get, i hope.

so, back in search in the algae sea, during the third orthant - cater gives us a riddle, to which the answer is 'love'. some discussion upon alchemy and the orthants with my friend later, we decided to match the stages of alchemy (in rene's given order) to the order of orthants we travelled. that makes citrinitas corresponding to love. the third orthant is also the one of the soul. love and soul.

so here's an idea i've had for a long time. one motive for rhinedottir's actions may be that she was trying to recreate someone dear to her through albedo. someone she loved - be it a family member, lover, anything. with my friend, i discussed how rene quotes aleister crowley's poem regarding the womb of pan, which is essentially a void where all souls originate and/or return to in the time of rebirth. durin and elynas both speak about how they existed in some empty darkness before rhinedottir called them forth - but not albedo.

albedo's earliest memories, he says, are of traveling with rhinedottir. so.

'primordial human project'. rene's search led him to primordial humans. he tried to become one and failed. it involved dissolving himself to be reborn.

'primordial human project' - consider, albedo is not an original creation, but a reborn being.

the rebirth of someone dear to rhinedottir whom she tried to make a primordial human.

why? because albedo is her last ditch effort at saving the world - just like rene. like how citrinitas corresponds to the age of glory for empires and their subsequent collapse with the coming of the stage of rubedo, rhinedottir - khaenriah as a whole - knew its end was destined, and they must have known this. she asks albedo to reach the far side of philosophy and create a better future for them all.

think about it. societal collapse is imminent, your country is crumbling, the end of the world is near and everything feels so utterly doomed. and you know it. you know you're doomed. she must have known of the world formula, must have known rubedo must follow citrinitas.

in the hexenzirkel trailer, she sounds just somewhat reluctant when it comes to being called a mother. you know what this reminds me of, who she reminds me of? ruan mei. ruan mei, upon learning of the infinitely transient nature of life, sinks into emptiness. she can't show love to the creations she's made with her own hands. she knows so well how short, and thus meaningless their lives are. she fears forming attachment - she dissects the scientific meaning of attachment in her character trailer instead of seeing it as something people just do.

rhinedottir must thus have attempted to flip the last two stages of alchemy to prevent their fate, yeah?

if everything is truly meant to end, if it's all destined to fall from rise, what is really the point?

most hoyoverse games are about fighting this sort of nihilistic thinking. the character of otto apocalypse makes it abundantly clear. otto's character takes great inspiration from friedrich nietzsche, whom many people misunderstand for a nihilist. however, nietzsche's philosophies were actually staunchly against nihilism.

rene tried to save the world because he wanted to believe it has meaning. it troubled him that the rise and the fall are void of purpose, he wanted to save it because he believed there was a point in its existence.

rhinedottir is no different. there is no force greater than love. and guess what?

in wagner's play 'the ring' - the dwarf alberich steals the rhinegold from the rhinemaidens. the rhinemaidens tell him there's nothing greater than love in the world. and what does alberich do?

he denounces - wouldn't you know - love.

like rene, rhinedottir became the scapegoat for the cataclysm for her deeds.

i've expressed previously that the primordial human rhinedottir was trying to create through albedo may possibly be the third descender. one who descends.

so, then,

that may be what dainsleif means when he says "we will defy this world with a power from beyond", no?

[side theory :: i once came across the idea of the twins being meteors. the rifthounds induce corrosion on you, making you bleed. gold corrodes. and gold on the earth is also theorized to be extraterrestrial, ie, it came from meteor impact. so then, what if the twins are the source of azosite, or any other such materials derived from gold, that khaenriah now prizes?]

so, tldr : rhinedottir, amidst a world rapidly approaching its doom having learned of the world formula, seeks to prove it wrong, to prevent it, undo it - she tries to fight back against collapse by finding meaning itself. there is nothing more transient than life itself, and thus she sought to prove that there is meaning in something as short lived as that. i'm shaky on albedo being a life reborn, but i do believe it's not impossible. he could have been somewhat dear to her that she tried to make attain the status of primordial human - descender, even - so as to undo the laws of fate.

(some screenshots of the discussion, NOT in chronological order)

#rhinedottir #albedo #genshin lore #genshin theory #rene de petrichor #ruan mei #fontaine lore #this took me a while but i cant say im happy with it #i pray to god my point came across #greatest of thanks to my friend who helped in making this #🏷

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precambrian-sea-pancake · 3 months

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Giving context to things in Shadows of Rose that really needed context because I didn’t like them and they barely got context.

1) The Winter’s separating: it’s very much established they would not willingly separate. Mia loves Rose. There’s no way she’d willingly give up another family member after being widowed. Plus, Chris OF ALL PEOPLE should not want to separate the family. Literally the whole theme was about family. Hot take but there’s 3 of them.

2) Chris saying he would protect Rose and then asking her to join the squad: I refuse to believe Chris would go against his dying friend’s wishes. Putting someone in a fight isn’t protection

3) Rose barely knowing anything about Ethan: I mean…come on. That’s your dead husband and your dead friend who basically made you the godfather. There’s got to be a reason, right?

So…enjoy me fixing all of that by saying things Capcom loves to leave out

———

Mia raised Rose in the beginning when she was a kid, with the help of Chis. They were close. She was very paranoid about her safety and did everything she could to help Rose live a normal life considering they were under even stricter protection than before. Because of this and the fact that Rose would be too young to understand at the time, Mia and Chris were very selective about what was said. They told her things like “your father loved you” “he died protecting you” “he would’ve loved to be here”

The two of them wanted her so do to school because she needed socialization. Unfortunately she had a very hard time. Chris and Mia did their best to be supportive but it was a very tough situation for all of them.

Eventually when she got a little older the higher ups realized how much at risk the Winters were (and also for selfish reasons because Rose powerful. I mean…let us not forget Sherry ;-;), decided it would be best to separate the two to “protect” them. Be it by boarding school, training, etc. It’s kinda unclear but it happened.

Mia hated this. She couldn’t lose Rose but ultimately didn’t have any power over the situation. Chris hated it just as much also tried to prevent this but he too couldn’t change it.

Chis contact with Rose given his job and was the bridge between the two but as time went on things got more complicated and messy.

Eventually Chris got to a point where he wanted Rose by his side more often and to be the one in control instead of the higher ups. So he wanted Rose to join his squad so she could defend herself and not belong to some shitty government thing. At least this way it was easier…at least in Chris’s mind. To him it was protection. Was it the best idea? No, but to him it was.

After the DLC, they learn Ethan is still present in some sort of way. It motivates Chris to try fighting once more for the family to be together again.

Rose remembers everything she saw in the Megamycete’s recreation of her old house and how both of her parents loved her…and sees the mother on the bus reading a book to her kid.

Now both motivated to try again they’re successfully able to get visitation between Rose and Mia.

It starts off slow but eventually it happens more and more. It’s hard because it’s been so long, but they work to reconnect. Since Rose is older and has context, Mia (although very hesitant and needing some encouragement. Plus taking a few meetings for it to even happen) explains their family history to Rose piece by piece until the story is complete.

As for Rose joining the squad?

She joined because she knew her dad fought to help her family. She, like her father, is a kind person. She wants to help protect people and make sure they don’t suffer the same fate as her family. One more good soul to combat a corrupt world. She’s at an awkward age at a very emotional time. Her decisions might not be final but it’s giving it a try. She might stay or she might not. She might like it or she might hate it. Only time and experiences will decide that.

While things aren’t perfect, the Winters are at least together. Just like what Chris tried to do, and just like what Ethan wanted.

———

It’s not perfect, but I tried my best with what was available and worked within the confines of the story. I loved the DLC, but it does have flaws that annoy me. So I fixed it UwU.

#resident evil #shadows of rose #haters dni #they were done dirty but it’s manageable for me #Capcom didn’t elaborate so I did it for them #I’m giving them what they deserve #rosemary winters #mia winters #chris redfield

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paladin-of-nerd-fandom65 · 20 days

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Neato answers buddy! :D

1: What's one video game the duo would like to go into? (It must be a story game not like Minecraft or any multiplayer)

2: Let's say the starburst duo got sucked into resident evil 2 remake & had to go through the events ( Leon A, just them, & no powers) will they be able to beat it & escape?

3: What's the worst panic attack the duo ever gotten?

4: How would Jon, Chris, Kon & the super-twins cuddle together?

5: Between the super-sons, the super-twins, starburst duo, & timkon, who wins in a game of basketball? Rules: only hover a few inches above ground (if able to) first to 10 scores wins, & the group with the least amount of points get face covered up in make-up.

Aww thanks @pin-crusher2000 . these are always fun to answer XD

1) Hmmm…..Well I have been having in my mind for the longest time a sort of crossover between DC and of all things CoD Zombies so…..Maybe one night Chris and Jake find themselves awakening inside a denounce and hellish version of the infamous Alcatraz Island, crawling all over with not just the undead but also hellhounds all led by an equally demonic Warden and the Duo have their powers severely dampened. They don’t have to rely on firearms to protect themselves but the waves of undead charging at them are endless and there’s seemingly no escape. Thats when they get help from a certain voice of a girl who guides them on their little haunting adventure, explaining that ancient evil which brought these undead to life had sucked the Duo into this world to break a sort of cycle their reality was within to ensure their own dominance or reality.

The girl’s name is Samantha. She would tell Chris and Jake how all this really began

Basically The Starburst Duo in a combination of Mob of the Dead and Origins basically lol.

2) Oh definitely so. Their parents taught them very well on survival techniques for those types of scenarios where both the Dead and the Monstrous Rise and they’re left powerless. As such, them fighting alongside the lovable rookie cop that is Leon Kennedy in the world ravaged by the T Virus can seem right up their alley no matter how freaky the effects of said Virus can be like, and not just those Nemesis T Zombies

3) Chris: The one he got once a more complete picture of his memories as Lor Zod and all the harsh treatment he got from his birth father and after sending the General and his army back into the Phantom Zone, being surrounded by all those reporters and his super hearing picking up on all the sounds of suffering all over Metropolis, unable to reach his family and eventually the pressure getting so bad, he straight flew away from the sight as fast as he could and far away from everything as fast as he could. It was once he was far away enough at the other side of the globe that he managed to calm himself to an extent. It really took another whole week wandering the earth in secret and about another week and a half staying with the Graysons until Chris finally was able to approach the Kents once again.

Jake: Probably in the immediate months after he was discharged from Bludhaven General Hospital for his recovery from his fateful and haunting duel against Victor Zsasz, it’s easy to envision Jake getting increased anxiety with capers and cases involving kids like himself in grave danger or far worse. He might get the job done if it involves rescuing said kids but his mind has gone into full overdrive with panic and fear as those memories of finding those slain orphans and how cruel Zsasz was are surfacing. It usually takes his allies, friends and loved ones present to help calm him. Also of course, plenty of nightmares and bad dreams about that particular case are a lot frequent for him, especially on those first few months afterwards.

4) it’s a five person longways pile on either the living room couch or a king sized bed. Conner would be at the core with Chris to his immediate right side and Osul to his left. From there, Jon would be snoring happily next to Osul while Otho in turn is cuddled up next to Chris. Conner’s loud snoring is blissful ambiance for the younger siblings.

5) I would say it’s major tie between the Super Twins and the Starburst Duo, not simply for their power levels and ability to learn as they play. It’s moreso how well in tune those two teams really are with Chris and Jake complimenting each other’s strengths and weaknesses with both stern direction and experience. Thr Twins on the other hand have superb understanding of what the other of doing and how to follow suit given their years working side by side back on Warworld

#chris kent #jake grayson #starburst duo #osul ra #otho ra #jonathan samuel kent #connor kent #resident evil #leon kennedy #call of duty #call of duty zombies

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tacky-optic · 7 months

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I've been cooking, folks. Grilling. Simmering. Boiling. Various other synonyms. About *JigZeni* of all things. My fixation ship just HAD to be a rarepair, didn't it?? I tried to condense pretty much all of my thoughts into one post and I might have gotten a *bit* carried away, oops. It's probably not THAT long, but still. I regret nothing.

- I imagine (in a general sense, headcanons aside, characters as base as can be) that if Lupin were to never make a move and continue with the coy "will we won't we" shit with Jigen and Zenigata, that they would get fed up to a point where they might attempt to seek solace with each other on a somewhat frequent basis.

It'd probably happen on accident at first; a chance meetup at a bar, the gang gets split up, Zeni has Jig cuffed in the back of a squad car just-another-day-of-the-week style, and one gets to talking while the other decides to humor for once. And I doubt either would be against chatting again after, and lord knows these two like their seedy bar trips, so why not let fate decide when?

- This can be to varying degrees of intimacy!! I love how all of the ships let you do that in some capacity, but JigZeni feels like one of the more flexible ones.

Whether it be as simple as complaining over drinks for a few hours or taking things a step further and heading back to some motel to "get it out of their systems" in "other" ways, ahem ahem.

Either way, they find that they enjoy the other's company and, to their abject horror, whatever weird friendship thing they've developed ends up turning into something genuine and (even worse) autonomous from Lupin.

Because what are they without him? What would they become?? They sure as hell don't know!! But hey, at least there's one other human being on this planet who GETS it.

- And I say that with relative confidence because I see Jigen and Zenigata being on the more (since a better word escapes me) *monogamous* side?? Like they put a lot of weight into a few singular relationships.

They have acquaintances, yes, but how many can they truly call a friend? How many can they trust, *beyond question*, to have their backs, to keep their secrets, to protect their lives, even?? Because trust is a big thing for these two!! Losing someone close hits them way harder than most, to a point where it's actively harmful and discourages them from pursuing anything concrete (also doesn't help that their luck with partners is absolute *shite* and things rarely ever end on a decent/ non-tragic note).

Jigen got SO lucky with Lupin. They ooze trust for each other, and the same goes for Goemon, too. And for a guy like Jigen, having not one but TWO whole-ass people he can depend on is absolutely WILD to him. They're all he needs, really. Zenigata still hasn't found something that concrete yet (on HIS side of the law, at least), and given the nature of the series and his role within it, there's an incredibly low likelihood he ever will.

But at least Jigen knows that pain. He's been there! He can relate! He can console! And Zenigata KNOWS it's legit because he's read, like, *so* many files about this guy. He's Lupin's not-that-much-better half ffs. Zenigata knows Jigen's Been Through It and the fact that Jigen even TRIES to relate despite his rough-ass persona really gets through to him in a way that no one else can.

- All of that baggage would bleed into why they're hesitant to blatantly pursue Lupin. Even though they know that Lupin CAN and WILL reciprocate (enthusiastically, even), Jigen and Zenigata, deep down, also know that he'd never be able to give "all of himself" to them like they are willing to for him.

Jigen is dissatisfied (probably even jealous) of Lupin and Fujiko's goings-on even though he knows it's a *consensual* sort of give-and-take, and you CANNOT tell me that Zenigata isn't the slightest bit jealous of Lupin's tight-knit camaraderie with his crew. "I could treat you so much better", "I wish I could have that attention all to myself" sorta vibes. Don't even get me STARTED on how the excluded party would feel about JigLup/ LuZeni, yeesh.

- Lupin loves them profoundly, no doubts there, but Lupin also loves *everyone*. Which basically turns into if they can't have all of *him*, then at least they can have all of *each other*, y'know??

Even if their friendship (or something more) lasting is impossible, at least they can pretend for a little while.

At least SOMEONE gets it, and that someone also happens to look pretty damn handsome in a fedora, too.

Plus Zenigata is Jigen's type. End of discussion.

now that you're down here in the trenches with me we can hold hands and enjoy overanalyzing hat trick together <3 <3

I DO wanna hear other people's thoughts, though! I can't help but think I'm missing SOMETHING despite writing them for so long (and there's only a handful of people out there who know I have been *writing them*, hooh boy). Hopefully I'll be able to get some of that stuff out there one of these days, but MAN am I a slow writer. Fingers crossed.

#ofc all of this would be instantly resolved if they agreed to the occasional fivesome like. once a month lmao. polygang is the easy answer #i rarely (if ever) do text/headcanon posts so lets see how this goes #anyway i am STARVED for these two interacting please give me food #lupin iii #koichi zenigata #daisuke jigen #jigzeni #*gazes longingly at tag* i'll feed you more content someday....

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theyanderespecialist · 9 months

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Corruption and Obsession 1 (Mini-Series) Corrupted Shinnok X Male Reader

[Hello, My Sexy Muffins! I am here with a mini-series for a friend of mine! He asked for this specifically, and I hope you all enjoy it!]

(Disclaimer: The Reader in this is not gay as the reader/listener is not attracted to men as the reader/Listener is very much only interested in Elrich gods and such. Normal, human men nope. This is a specific Reader and Listener, and he is not gay. If you want to see yourself as gay as the reader or listener, you are free to do that. But the lore for him is not gay.

Disclaimer 2: Corrupted Shinnok is not yandere in canon, and this is just for fun and not to be taken seriously at all. Simping for fictional characters and fictional characters is fine. Just do not be illegal or gross about it! Yanderes are not ideal partners to have in real life. Also, remember to separate fiction from reality and headcanon from canon!)

-Part 1 The Chance Meeting-

(No One's POV)

(Name) is a good Man with a lot of struggles in his life, so much that he rarely smiles. He did what he was supposed to and did the right thing. He does not know his fate will change when (Name) crosses paths with an Elder God. This is how he came to face his fate. A Fate that may or may not be worse than death.

(Name) walks out of the gym as if he just had a good workout. It felt great to do his workout. Finally, as he starts to head home, he is caught in a mass run. People are screaming and fleeing from the Chaos down the streets. (Name) unlike the others, he ran towards the chaos. That is when he sees him, some Elder God! During a battle with someone else. (Name) stared in shock and awe at the God-like creature.

That is when The God Like Creature's eyes land on him. (Name) stares a bit in fear at that creature before him, unaware of what to do. His mind tells him it will be wise to run. Though he is not afraid of this creature or God. He watches as the sort of God went back to battle, and he watches the battle unfold a bit in awe of the power and strength.

Soon the police and military arrive, and (Name) is dragged away. Being told to not be stupid and to run! He did not want to go against the police. So he leaves. Heading home, he cannot get his mind off the man or God or creature. It was shocking, to say the least. He makes it home, and his family is worried about him. Asking if he was okay.

He tells them he is fine and that he did not get caught up in what happened. The news was on what happened.

"After the strange battle today in London, the mysterious God-like deity is gone." The News reporter says. "Hundreds dead. After police and military arrived, the entity seemed to retreat. We do not know if he will return or if he is done. We do not know what he is. The World Leaders are scrabbling with this new information. The People of the World are demanding answers from a supposed God. More here as this story develops."

(Name) watch with his family. The God was not really a man, but a deity. And (Name) remembers seeing him and seeing how strong he was. For A brief moment, he had wanted to pin, The God down and have him as his and his alone. Though he knew that was a foolish thought. He shakes his head and goes for a walk. His mother told him it was not safe.

"I will be okay, Mum. Just need some air." He reassures her. "I will just be out around the block."

He walks out of his home and starts to walk. No One is out, too afraid because of what happened. That is when (Name) sees him as the same God-like creature. The God Like creature stares down at (Name).

"There you are, little one. You did not run, and you did not hide." He says. "Curious how a pathetic human can gain my desire." The God speaks. "I am Shinnok, Elder God of Death. I will claim Destruction and death across all the realms."

(Name) knows he should be scared, but he is not. He wants to grab this God by his horns and tongue fuck his mouth.

"Then why are you here talking to me?" (Name) asks him. "When you could so easily be destroying this realm."

"That is what angers me, human!" He snarls. "Ever since I laid eyes on you, I have had the need to see you again! What is so special about a weak human like yourself!"

(Name) looks at him and shrugs, frown on his face. "I do not know, but I will make you a deal…"

"And what is that!" Shinnok demands.

"If I can fuck you, and satisfy you in a carnal way, then you will stop harming my world." (Name) says, and he knows that he could be admitted any second now, but he is at least going to shoot his shout.

The Elder God Laughs, outright laughs. "HAHAHAHAHA, I have never met a human so bold to ask for such a thing, but… you are quite a handsome human. Alright, Human, if you can satisfy me in a carnal way, I will spare your world. But that means you will belong to me. Forever. Am I clear?"

(Name) stops, if he can fuck this Elder God into submission, he would save his world. But then he will belong to an elder God. He thinks hard about this. This was not something that he was prepared for. But the innocent people he will save. He is sure this is the right thing to do.

"I agree to your terms." (Name) says, and Shinnok laughs.

"Foolish human, I am certain no human can satisfy me, and it will bring me great joy to destroy your world with you as the last human to watch your failure." He smirks.

(Name) just looks at him, and he knows the risk he is taking. But now, the fate of the world rests on him pounding an Elder God's ass into submission. He will pound this Elder God's Ass into submission. He will bend him over and plow him into submission. To save his world and his family.

"I will see you tonight, Shinnok, and there I will make you mine." (Name) says, looking at the Tall Edler God.

The deal was set, and now, (Name) was the last hope for the world, and will he be able to save the world? Or will he not be able to? Will his ass be on the line, and why does an elder God make a deal like this with a human. The Elder God seemed enraptured by the human male and wanted to see if he is good enough in bed. The Elder God is a bit obsessed with this human.

[YASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS The first part is done, I hope that you all enjoyed this, and yes, there will be around 4 more parts! They will be spread out! This will take a year, to two if my mental health and real-life stuff get in the way. I hope you all enjoyed this, and stay sexy, all of my sexy muffins!]

@ghostrider280

Here is the story where it will be all in one place for easy access!

#yandere #yandere corrupted shinnok #yandere mortal kombat #yandere mini series #yandere story #story #mini series #mortal kombat #mortal kombat corrupted shinnok #corrupted shinnok #corrupted shinnok x male reader #male reader #male reader fanfic #monster fucking #monster fucker #monster fucker not gay

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delicatenightfury · 2 years

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Let Me Go

2022 Month of Writing: Day 9

Pairing: Gally x reader {Part 1 of ?}

Prompt:

Word Count: 1,390

Warning: implied character death

Author's Note: please don't steal my work. you can choose to respond to the prompt as well, but don't steal my work

There is a chance of this turning into a series of some sort after the month of writing is done, so we'll see how I'm feeling about things 😅

“You really think I’m going to let Thomas back into the Maze after what he’s done?” Gally asked Teresa. He turned to look at his fellow Gladers. “Look around you! Look at our Glade. This is the only way. And when the Grievers get what they came here for, everything goes back to the way it was.”

y/n exchanged glances with Newt and Minho. The events of the last few days were horrible, of course. No one was doubting that. But things were changing now. y/n knew their lives weren’t going to be the same, whether or not Thomas and Teresa were sacrificed.

“Are you listening to this?” Teresa asked. “Why are you all just standing there? He’s crazy.”

“Will you shut up?”

“If you stay here, the Grievers are going to come back. They’re going to come back, and they’re going to keep coming back until you are all dead.”

“Shut up!” Gally shouted. “Tie him up.” He started to walk away, but noticed that the Glader he had spoken to wasn’t moving. “Did you hear me? I said tie him up!”

The two Gladers finally moved and began to lift Thomas off the ground. y/n watched as Thomas suddenly attacked the two boys and took their weapons. Newt, Minho, and Frypan jumped into action as well, taking their weapons and joining Thomas. Frypan freed Teresa from the pole as Chuck also joined them from the side. The small group stood at the Maze entrance, facing the rest of the Gladers.

“You’re full of surprises, aren’t you?” Gally said.

“You don’t have to come with us,” Thomas said, “but we are leaving. Anyone else who wants to come, now’s your last chance.”

“Don’t listen to him, he’s just trying to scare you.”

“No, I’m not trying to scare you. You’re already scared. All right? I’m scared. But I’d rather risk my life out there then spend the rest of it in here. We don’t belong here. Okay, this place isn’t our home. We were put here. We were trapped here. At least out there, we have a choice. We can make it out of here. I know that.”

Silence fell around them. Thomas and his friends stared down Gally, but also silently pleaded with the others. y/n caught Newt and Minho staring at her.

She knew they were right. She had been here for too long and never seen any progress. And while things were bad now, there was hope. She didn’t want to die in the Glade. So having the ability to be in charge of her own fate? She knew her decision.

Slowly, people started joining them. Winston, Jeff, multiple others. y/n stepped forward as well, smiling slightly at her friends.

Suddenly, Gally grabbed her by the arm. She whirled around to look at him, shocked.

“What are you doing?” he asked, his voice low.

“Taking control of my life.”

“You go out there, you’ll die.”

“And what would you care about whether I live or not, Gally?” she asked. She glared at him. “You’ve basically hated me since I got here, saying I’m some kind of freak for being sent to a Glade full of boys. You chose every possible moment to blame me for things going wrong, called me horrible names, and treated me like absolute crap. Now you want me to stay here with you? I don’t think so. Now let go of my arm.”

“I won’t let you go out there and kill yourself.”

“That’s not your decision to make. Now let. Go.”

She ripped her arm from his grip and went to join the others. She continued to glare at Gally, even when Newt quietly checked on her to make sure she was all right. Her small rivalry with Gally was no secret in the Glade.

“Gally, it’s over,” Thomas said. “Come with us.”

Gally was quiet for a long moment. He glanced over the group.

“Good luck against the Grievers.”

y/n sighed. As much as she disliked Gally, she didn’t want him or any of the others to die. But they had limited options and limited time.

Newt tapped her shoulder and gently pulled her into the Maze. She followed Thomas and the others. She had never been in the Maze before, but knew well enough the horrors that came from within the walls.

Everything was a blur soon after.

When they got closer to the supposed exit, Grievers started attacking. They dragged away Gladers, picking them off left and right. It was only by a miracle that she wasn’t dragged off too. They were able to get the door unlocked and hurried through, leaving the Grievers behind them.

They found themselves in a dimly lit hallway, with only one clear door. On the other side, they found machines destroyed and people lying on the ground. A video message played where a woman named Ava Paige explained the Maze Trials, the Scorch, and the Flare. Behind her, people were shooting one another before she shot herself.

“Is it over?” Chuck asked.

“She said we were important,” Newt replied. “So what are we supposed to do now?”

“I don’t know,” Thomas said. “Let’s get out of here.”

“No.”

y/n turned quickly, shocked to see Gally standing on the other side of the room.

“Gally?”

“Don’t,” Teresa said, stopping Thomas from going forward. “He’s been stung.”

It was true. Gally didn’t look good. He was covered in sweat and Griever blood. He dropped a Griever stinger, a gun in his other hand. y/n exchanged a look with Minho, who also saw it.

“We can’t leave,” Gally said.

“We did,” Thomas replied. “Gally, we’re out. We’re free.”

“Free?” He sounded like he was crying. He turned to look around him. y/n noticed the darkened veins on his neck. “You think we’re free out there? No. No, there’s no escape from this place.”

He lifted the gun, immediately setting everyone on edge. Thomas raised his arms.

“Gally, listen to me. You’re not thinking straight. You’re not. And we can help you. Just put down the gun.”

Come on, Gally, y/n thought. Listen to him. Don’t do anything stupid.

“I belong to the Maze.”

“Just put down the gun.”

“We all do.”

Everything happened so fast.

Gally fired a shot.

Minho threw his spear.

People were shouting.

y/n’s feet moved without thought.

She looked on with wide eyes at the spear in Gally’s chest. The spear Minho had thrown. He gasped for breath before collapsing to his knees and then to his side. Everyone watched on in shock as their fellow Glader went still.

At almost the same moment, y/n felt a burning in her side. She winced and lifted her hand to the sensation. When she pulled it away, she saw blood.

“y/n?” Newt said. At the same time, she faintly heard Chuck say Thomas’s name.

The two fell at nearly the same time. Minho was fast enough to catch her before she roughly hit the ground. She gasped in pain.

Everything was blurring around her. She could only barely make out the voices above her. She knew she was shot. She knew Chuck had also been hit. She was losing a lot of blood and was fighting for consciousness at this point. She could hear her friends begging her to hold on.

She barely managed to lift her hand. She felt someone grab it, which made her sob a little bit. She didn’t realize she had been crying.

“Hang on, y/n,” she heard them say. There was desperation in their voice. She could hear people crying, but couldn’t tell who. “Just hang on! We’ll get you out.”

She shook her head. Her vision was fading too fast. She wasn’t able to respond.

Through the growing fog, she could hear shouts. They couldn’t tell where they were coming from, if they were close or far.

The hand that was holding tightly to hers was ripped away, making her gasp softly. Her hand fell to the ground. The shouts became more distorted until they slowly disappeared.

y/n whimpered in pain.

This is it, she thought. I’m going to die alone.

She couldn’t fight it any more. She let go of whatever strength she was pulling from and surrendered to the darkness.

#month of writing #writing prompt #gally #gally x reader #maze runner #tmr #tmr gally #the maze runner #glade #grievers #angst

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lucy90712 · 1 year

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ik this is like the fourth request but gavi x reader where they are all hanging out together and gavi and the reader arent dating yet. they both enf up cudling somehow and the team takes like a shot tom of pics and they later find a polariod of that moment. later they go star gazing/on a walk at night with the rest and gavi ends up giving his hoodie/jacket to reader and they team +wags are just like aww while giving them a whole photoshoot

wc: 2.0k

Being friends with the some of the Barcelona squad is interesting to say the least but its so much fun and I would never give up my friendships with the team for anything. That being said we don't get to all spend time together very often as someone always has something to do but tonight by some miracle we are all free and have planned to hang out. I have had a very long and tiring week so I was considering not going but when I got a few texts about how excited everyone was I knew I couldn't not go. The one text that really solidified my fate was from Pablo as he is definitely the player I am closest to but we haven't seen each other in a little while and I knew he'd been really upset if I didn't turn up so I'm going for him.

My relationship with Pablo is somewhat complicated. We have been really close since Pedri introduced us to each other always hanging out any chance we get but recently we have entered into a weird phase. For ages we always told people we were strictly friends even when our friends shipped us together but now Pablo has started to sort of flirt with me and has been a bit more touchy. I love it as I have had feelings for Pablo for a while but have just been too scared to say anything but I still don't dare mention anything just in case he doesn't actually have feelings for me. If there is one thing I've learnt about Pablo it is that he likes physical contact but recently I just feel like he has changed he used to rest his arm on my shoulder but now he will put it around my waist instead. He has also started greeting me with a kiss on the cheek which is a normal thing here but for us it’s a new thing. These things have me questioning what exactly our relationship is but I'm too scared to say something incase I lose him.

Despite my dilemma with Pablo we are still really good friends so I agreed to pick him up on my way to Pedri's place where we would all be hanging out tonight. Like always he came running out and to my car and jumped in the passenger seat with a big smile on his face. Right away he launched into a conversation about what we have been doing since we last saw each other like we hadn't FaceTimed a few days ago having this exact conversation. Either way I was just happy to see him again as it has been far too long and I'll never get bored of hearing him talk about football as he's just so passionate about it. It didn't take us long to get to Pedri's and when we did I managed to find somewhere to park so that we could go in. In the few seconds I took to grab my car keys and my bag Pablo had run around the car to open my door for me which of course I thanked him for before we walked to Pedri's house.

All of us sat catching up even though the guys see each other pretty much everyday I don't get to see them that often so we talked about what they have all been doing. We ate some food before the boys started playing fifa while I just sat and watched as I'm useless no matter how much they try and teach me. I don't mind just watching them I much prefer it actually as they are all far too competitive for my liking. Me not playing also meant I got to rest a bit to keep my energy levels up for the rest of the evening. I was sat next to Pablo with my head resting against the sofa for a while before he noticed and put an arm around me to move me closer and the making me rest my head on his chest. Any other day I'd be a bit more hesitant especially around all of our friends but tonight I'm so tried that I don't really care as much. Once I was settled he went right back to playing with his arm around me.

Pablo was so comfy that I could have fallen asleep if it wasn't for the constant shouting from everyone when they were losing. I was also trying to subtly stare at Pablo as he played as I have always loved the way he looks when he's concentrating but he caught me a few times and just stared right back until we both ended up laughing as we can't be serious for too long. After they decided to stop playing Pablo went back to looking down at me and playing with some of my hair and probably messing it up but I didn't care. We were so in our own world that we didn't notice the guys taking pictures of us until both of our phones went off and we both looked to see pictures of us cuddling. I wanted to be mad but I just couldn't as I actually really liked the pictures and will probably save them when I am on my own later so no one knows.

Despite liking the pictures it was still embarrassing for our friends to see us like that when we always say we are just friends so I hid my face further into Pablo's chest to avoid looking at anyone. Hiding my face also meant that Pablo didn't see that my cheeks were definitely bright red not just from embarrassment but also because I thought the pictures were cute. The guys kept making fun of us but Pablo tried to defend the both of us until they eventually stopped their teasing and instead suggested we go out for a walk. We all agreed to go but of course it took a good 20 minutes before anyone actually made any attempt to leave and when we did it ended up with a few of us waiting for the others by the door for another 10 minutes.

"Y/n you know Pablo really does love you he just won't make a move as he's scared to ruin your friendship" Pedri said while we were waiting to leave

"He's so smitten with you seriously you are all he ever talks about" Ferran added

"Yeah right we are just friends and probably always will be" I said

"We're being serious we know you like him too but he never going to make a move if you don't encourage him a little bit" Pedri said

"I do like him but I don't want to ruin our friendship if things don't work out" I admitted

"Believe us things will be just fine" Pedri said

"What are you guys talking about?" Pablo asked as he walked over

"Oh nothing important" I said quickly

Luckily he dropped it easily and we headed out on our walk. It was a lot colder outside than I thought it would be but I knew I just had to deal with it and warm up when we got back. I haven't really experienced much of Barcelona at night as usually I only ever see it coming back from a game or somewhere else as I don't like to go out at night just to be safe. The city is really pretty at night though with so many lights illuminating the streets which are much quieter once the sun sets. Everyone else was talking but I was just enjoying the view while trying to keep as warm as possible. Eventually my concentration on the view failed as my hands began to shiver and my arms became covered in goosebumps and even my nose started to get cold. Pablo must have noticed me getting cold as he took his jacket off which he had on over his hoodie and tried to hand it to me. To begin with I refused but then he just started putting in on for me so I gave in and let him put the jacket on for me. It was a good decision in the end as not only did the jacket warm me up significantly but it also smelled like Pablo which was a great added bonus.

We walked around for a bit longer before coming across a completely empty park which is when Pablo grabbed my hand and pulled me toward a patch of grass. He sat down and so I sat down next to him to see what exactly we were doing seeing as he just dragged me over with no explanation. It all became clear when Pablo started point at the sky which was filled with bright stars. I have learnt a little bit about star constellations so I showed him the ones I recognised and told him the few things I know about space. It was so much fun as I have never shared this knowledge with anyone so it was nice to get to tell someone else about it as space is something I find really fascinating.

Without realising as I was talking I got closer to Pablo to the point that I was leaning against him with my face just inches from his. When I realised how close we were I felt my cheeks heating up which I was hoping wouldn't be too noticeable but from that close Pablo will definitely be able to see the blush on my cheeks. Things got awkward quite quickly to the point that I couldn't take it anymore so I had to move away a bit and look in the other direction. That didn't last very long before Pablo was moving closer to me again and out a hand on my face to get me to look at him. We looked into each other's eyes for a few moments before Pablo leant down and pressed his lips to mine for the first time. The kiss was everything I imagined it to be Pablo's lips were soft against mine and the kiss was full of passion and emotion. Eventually we both pulled away and went back to looking at each other but this time we both had big smiles on our faces.

"What are we?" I eventually asked

"We can be whatever you want but you should know that I have never felt this strongly for anyone else in my life but if you want to just stay friends I can get over it I just don't want to lose you" he admitted

"I don't want to just be friends" I said

"Then y/n will you be my girlfriend?" He asked

"Of course I will" I replied

He gave me another kiss and this time we heard cheering from the rest of the guys who were clearly spying on us. The moment was quickly ruined when they all came and sat with us and started teasing Pablo and making fun of him for taking so long to make a move. While most of the group were teasing Pablo I was talking to Frenkie who was showing me pictures they had all taken of us which were really cute. Frenkie sent me the pictures and I of course made one of them my phone lock screen then I stole Pablo’s phone and did the same even if he changes it later so people don’t see. Once the boys were done with their teasing we finally headed back to Pedri’s place where we hung out for a bit longer before I wanted to go back home and actually get some sleep.

Of course Pablo came with me but I didn’t drop him off at his place we both went back to my apartment as now that he’s mine I don’t want to ever leave him. Luckily Pablo is just as clingy as I am because he was happy to stay the night despite both of us having things to do in the morning. As I was tired we both got straight into bed and I fell asleep pretty much straight away with Pablo cuddling me and playing with my hair.

#gavi imagine #gavi oneshots #gavi imagines #pablo gavi imagines #pablo gavi imagine

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naffeclipse · 1 year

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Ok, ok, so about that what if the boys did just decide to make y/n leave their hunt! (Uh, fair warning, these are quite angsty thoughts and definitely a bad end scenario)

God, it's just all the factors to take into account right? Because for once "I'd never forgive" is a very serious statement. It holds no weight if you said it to a stranger. Like if Lambert had attempted to attack the boys and y/n told it to him, it wouldn't matter all that much to him.

But thinking about it, saying it as a warning to someone close to you, like family or a best friend you have spent years with, it's downright chilling. It's not something you say lightly, because in itself it's something that cuts so deep. It's used to make it clear that whatever decision is about to be taken, if the listener goes through with it, they would know something was clearly stated as unacceptable, the person issuing the warning knows they know, and they still did it anyways. To the one saying it, they chose to clearly betray that trust and that strong bond that has taken so much time and effort to grow into what it is.

More so when it's something like this. Sure, the boys are physically capable of carrying them away, but doing so against their will in what would no doubt qualify as a sort of brief kidnapping would indeed change it all. That strength used before to help and impress and tease suddenly is not comforting at all because it has been used against them. And if they would be willing to do something like this, no matter that their intentions are good, how could the hunter ever trust them to not just declare themselves as the ones that know better, ultimately dismissing their autonomy as an adult human being.

(sorry the preamble got long jkfdghs)

SO like, depending on how they would go about it, everything would absolutely go awful. Say they try it and the hunter trying to resist wakes Lambert up. Lambert was already suspicious of the boys, and now this happens? I can see him saying screw it this thing is possessed and attacking their partner for the mission. That could go... very badly. Maybe a reveal or the boys doing something as the vessel that would even further change the hunter's opinion of them.

But let's say they sneak out without waking Lambert (who then is left vulnerable to lizard demon attacks while he sleeps), and the whole trip back y/n is struggling and trying to reason with them, because surely, they are very scared and worried about them dying (worsening the "they don't trust me" issue) but they still can see reason right? But then that doesn't happen. They really are just taking them away to the airstream. They are not listening. Not budging. Y/n starts to get not just furious, but also worried about Lambert's fate and that of any other person in that park. Maybe they would try to appeal to them that way, confessing that the demon killed children, a last desperate attempt to get through them. (Don't know if that would trigger the rulebreaker instinct though, so lets say they don't use that argument for the next part XD)

So like, then what right? Boys return to the airstream with a seething (and perhaps deadly quiet) hunter, proving themselves serious about not letting them fight that demon and having committed a betrayal that y/n is not willing to forgive. Not this. The one-sided trust was one thing, but now they feel like they can't trust them either. If they thought they had been receiving the cold shoulder this would be on a whole other level. Maybe y/n would insist on going back immediately, but the boys could threaten on bringing them back if they tried. So they are essentially at an impasse.

I'll be honest, I have no idea how that would progress from there, but what if enough time passed in which it's almost certain that Lambert is dead and they can't fight the demon anymore, and maybe they are just waiting to get in trouble with FEI because of this? I kept imagining the aftermath and wondering just what y/n would do.

Maybe they at one point realize it's futile to go back now and quietly (the kind of quiet that is louder than any yelling could hope to be) they announce it's time to go. They can no longer stay there doing nothing and now there's a new problem to deal with. It might hurt like tearing a part of themselves off, but this is what has to happen now (at least I don't see how this scenario can have any kind of good resolution oof)

So the boys are relieved that their heart will live still. But they know what they have done. They can see it in their eyes every time y/n looks at them. Hurt, furious, accusing. Only the bare minimun words exchanged as the hunter drives them out. No attempts to take care of the hunter even acknowledged. They lost all meaning now.

But y/n is still kind. Even when they know this is not something that can ever happen again. That they can't allow to happen again. Lives are in the line after all, but all those months together can't be erased and even after something like this, it would be impossible to stop caring about them. So I thought maybe y/n would still try to do something to make sure they are ok. Look up a good mechanic. Someone that surely the boys would actually trust to provide what they won't tell y/n about. Maybe talk with the person in question to make sure they will be allowed to be around and take care of kids. A local daycare in a nearby town perhaps.

All this without saying a word to the boys about it. They will not allow them close. They will not let them look at what they are doing. They can't risk them suddenly deciding to stop that too. It has to be done. The boys definitely can tell something is coming. They were warned.

So I imagine they arrive at the place and for the first time in a while y/n talks to them at length. They get out of the vehicle and tell them to follow. And there at the front of the building, they explain to them what is happening. Maybe pour their heart out about how much it meant to them to have them along. Sharing what they love, what they know, and having someone to listen and know them like this. And how much it hurt for them to have betrayed all of it like that. And that they no longer have the trust that made y/n open up to them to such an extent. That they cannot have it again.

So this is where they go their separate ways.

Y/n explains (failing not to tear up) that they will be taken care of, of course. They don't need to be afraid, and they hope this will be enough for them, where y/n could not be (not said bitterly for once, but devastatingly sincere).

I honestly don't know how the boys would react, but what occured to me was them trying to at least correct them. Try to tell them that wasn't true, but thinking they're trying to change their mind, y/n quickly interrupts them.

They ask if Sun and Moon remember when they asked the hunter if they wanted them to leave. The answer then was no. And then through tears, and swallowing every wish that the next sentence wasn't true...

Y/n says the answer this time is yes. They must leave. They are no longer welcome in their home.

Any future hunts will be done alone.

And I have a feeling the first one would be at a certain national park.

(And that's it! Sorry for the angst and the bad ending hfdkljghsgkjñh If you think you can somehow spin it to have a good end do tell me because I made myself sad writing this XD)

Chaotik, my heart is in two torn pieces on the floor, ahhhh!!! You gave me exactly what I asked for ;-;

You have it exactly right. The unspoken, piercing breach of trust cannot be restored again. Y/N does the best thing considering the circumstances in their own kindhearted way. They leave with a tearful goodbye because they warned the boys and they didn't listen, and no matter how lonely and desperate Y/N is for their presence, they cannot allow what the boys did to ever happen again.

I think that's the saddest, most bleak ending, and I say that in marvel of its natural consequences and how secrets can shove loved ones apart.

#i am not normal about this #the angst is impeccable because it's what would naturally flow from it #some things cannot be mended even if it is forgiven #yeah good thing the boys shape up and listen to Y/N and decide no more secrets huh?#chaotikanvas #cryptid sightings

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writingforatwistedworld · 2 years

Text

Otome au-Character introduction: Trey Clover

I do not take any responsibility for you reading this no matter which age group you are from!

WARNINGS: Yandere themes, manipulation, obsession, possessiveness, class system, family problems

Position:

Advisor of the “Queen”

Backstory:

Trey is one of the few people who stood in contact with Riddle after he became the “Queen”. This proved to be a good decision on his part. Riddle bestowed the position of the advisor, making him with that one of the highest figures in the Queendom. To many he is the last wall of protection against Riddles wrath and his tyrannic rule which leads to most people seeing him as a kindhearted person, protecting all and taking care of everyone. This view is often strengthened whenever he bakes, saying that he is glad that some might like his tarts.

However, even he has a darker side to himself. Every single action of his is calculated and meant to show him in a good light. He doesn't do that to hurt his friend, no, for that he loves Riddle way too much. But who knows what he truly wants to achieve?

How did he become Self-aware?

Trey found out about all of this because of Riddle. How convenient that Riddles mother drilled the rules of the first one in his head whilst not following them herself. How convenient that no authorities intervened when there were obvious signs of Riddles childhood being everything but a happy one. How convenient that it seemed that his friend was prepared for something. But not only Riddle was in such a spot. Trey himself noticed that he and a few others were also seemingly trained for something. A position. A role they had to fill. Trey often had to look after his siblings, his mother and father not really in the picture even though the two of them obviously loved their children to bits. Like that he learned very fast how to deal with various situations, being a help to everyone.

Trey knew that some sort of fate had to be fulfilled but why? Things were going great! The Queendom had no problems and most parts of the world were in the same situation. After hearing Riddle muttering something about a game and “I have a role to fulfill!” he finally knew what was going on. This was a game. A game! After that he stopped to be the responsible older brother to everyone.

One day a stranger appeared. That was when everything changed in Treys life. This was the player. The one standing above all. And how kind they were! The young advisor thought that you wouldn't care for them, seeing them as nothing more than entertainment. He was proven wrong. Whenever something bad happened you were looking for the fastest way to fix things. You... you were such a loveable person! That was when he noticed that he wanted to be more than to be just the advisor. He wanted to be the one who drew your attention to themselves. He wanted you to pick him!

To be born to foster love and to steal it away, what a wonderful feeling!

More to be added...

#yandere twisted wonderland #yandere twst #yandere twisted wonderland x reader #yandere twst x reader #twisted wonderland otome au #tw: yandere #tw: manipulation #tw: obsession #tw: possessiveness #tw: family problems

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skyler10fic · 7 months

Text

Fall Back Into You

Summary:

Carol Danvers and Daisy Johnson were high school sweethearts, but when leaving for university pulled them apart, they broke up and went their separate ways. Now they are adults who just got jobs after graduation...

For @yearoftheotpevent's high school sweethearts (also sort of hurt/comfort!)

Read on Ao3 | Fic Playlist

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Chapter 1: Haunted by the Ghost of You

Carol was 23 tonight. She’d put on a good show being happy with her friends at the bar, but now alone on her fire escape, one foot dangling off as she watched the lights of the city below, the birthday just ached. She swirled the beer in the bottle before bringing it to her lips, then leaned back against the brick wall and sighed.

Pathetic. That’s the word for being a 23-year-old still pining for her high school sweetheart. Undergrad had been chaotic enough to distract her, but now that was over and real life had begun. Her lifelong dream of being a pilot ended in withdrawing from the ROTC Air Force officer path and focusing all of her attention on aerospace R&D. Her friend group had shrunk to a few who stayed in the LA area after graduation. Now she was hoping that an entry-level university job and grad school would keep her from feeling… well, anything.

Someone tonight said her parents would have been proud of her. But Carol huffed out a bitter laugh at the thought now that she was alone. She’d wanted to respond, “We’ll never know, will we?”

Her dad had been upset at rumors that his 14-year-old daughter had been seen holding hands with another girl in ways that solidified what everyone had suspected. Mom had convinced him to go with her to the Officer’s Club banquet on base. While they were out, there was a storm. He’d had too much to drink. He’d been so angry. And he never saw the speeding truck that hydroplaned right through the red light at a flooded intersection.

How could she take comfort in assurances that her parents would be proud when the last words they spoke to each other were shouted through tears and pleas for the other to change?

The next four years at a new high school in California, living with Aunt Wendy, had helped heal not only Carol’s complicated grief over her parents’ death but the complicated life they had had as a family. And the brightest light breaking through those clouds was a transfer student in their sophomore year: Daisy Johnson. Carol had been understandably terrified to be too close to Daisy, especially with such an obvious crush on her. Still, in time, surrounded by Aunt Wendy and the school GSA and Daisy’s persistence in flirting without pushing Carol’s boundaries too far, Carol had let herself fall head over heels. Daisy and Carol were always together. Eventually, the summer after graduation closed this chapter of their lives. One fateful August night, they drove out to the desert and lay in the bed of Carol’s pickup stargazing and savoring each second together, knowing that in the morning, Daisy would be headed to MIT and Carol would move into her dorm at Caltech.

A long-distance relationship seemed impossible, especially with no guarantee of living on the same side of the country anytime soon. They said a tearful goodbye that night—and again in January after they hooked up during winter break, and again as Daisy called to let Carol know her parents were moving to the East Coast that summer and Daisy wouldn’t be in California again for the foreseeable future. They had to stop pretending. It was really over. Closure.

But for Carol, Daisy haunted her even still, all these years later. She tried to date, but it always felt like cheating somehow. A thousand times, Carol thought about reaching out, but Daisy’s sobs over the phone that last time they spoke always stopped her. Let her go, Carol told herself. Let her move on. Daisy had a right to live her own life without the burden of some girl she dated in high school still bothering her. Who knows, by now she could be married and happy with someone else.

Carol tried to count her blessings as she watched the traffic move along the highways below. She wasn’t alone in this life. She had a beloved brother 10 years older who had practically raised her along with their aunt. A group including a best friend who had her back no matter what and a goddaughter whose smile lit up the world. A new boss and faculty advisor who believed in her at a new university for a fresh start.

And a new, quiet one-bedroom apartment full of boxes to unpack in this city of possibilities. They said anything could happen here. She looked up to the sky, though she knew the stars were rare due to light pollution, and most of the pinpricks of light turned out to be airplanes. A jet shot across the sky and she pretended it was a shooting star.

She made a birthday wish for something good, a pleasant surprise, to make this year more than just another cycle of pain and numbing. She figured that was specific enough for any trickster god and vague enough to appease her therapist’s encouragement to stay open to joy and hope.

The horn honks of taxis, chatter on the street, and the tunes of a midnight busker serenaded her as she finished her beer and headed inside to get some rest. Careful not to trip over any half-unpacked boxes, she tossed the empty beer bottle in the recycling on her way to the bathroom to get ready for bed. She washed her face quickly, ashamed of the tear-streaked makeup, and then felt silly for feeling ashamed since she was alone and no one had seen it anyway. Or maybe she was ashamed that the heartache hadn’t just been grief for her parents or fear about her new life, but missing someone she should have gotten over a long time ago.

—------------------

The wicker couches of the bar’s outdoor patio provided a perfect place for gossip and bonding between a small circle of UCLA coworkers.

“Alright, that’s enough about Fitz and me and the wedding. How about you, Daisy? Any new love interests this summer?” Jemma asked Daisy. This girls’ night was getting more confessional the longer they talked into the night and the more cocktails they drank. A waiter came by with their bellinis, and Daisy took the opportunity to think about how much to share with these new friends.

“I’ve only been here a few months,” Daisy pointed out, but the girls called her out for deflecting the question. “I don’t know, I dated around in college, some girls, some guys, but nothing really stuck and I guess I just want to settle in here before trying again.”

“You never know,” Elena remarked with a small shake of her head. “I met Mack before I’d even moved back from Miami. My sister-in-law introduced me to people here to try to get me back in LA, and now…” She held up her hand with a ring to make any girl jealous.

Daisy shrugged. “I guess it could happen. It’s just been a really long time since anything has gone past a third or fourth date. Love just doesn’t work out for me.”

“C’mon,” Piper prodded. “Give us something. Surely you’ve been in love before, right?”

“Well…” Daisy squirmed. The alcohol washed away her filters and hesitancy. “There was once. A long time ago. It’s stupid.”

This led to a cacophony of “No, tell us!” “Oh you can’t tease us and then not…” “Daisy…”

She was in too deep and couldn’t stop now. She sighed and rubbed her forehead. “I can’t believe I’m telling you all this. Okay, so there was this girl in high school.”

“Aw, teenage sweethearts?” Jemma cooed.

“Yeah, yeah,” Daisy admitted sheepishly, “the whole prom photos, holding hands under our desks, making out in the parking lot, Valentine’s flowers and candy kind of deal. Suuuuper cheesy. We were there for each other through everything, and I thought we’d be together forever. But we both got into our dream schools. Caltech didn’t accept me, and MIT didn’t accept her, and the decision was made for us. So we broke up.”

“And you haven’t seen her since?” Piper filled in. She was on the edge of her seat, fully invested.

“I mean, okay,” Daisy laughed and rolled her eyes at herself a bit, “we did sort of spend the following Christmas and New Years together, but then after that, my parents moved to be closer to me and to my mom’s parents in Boston, and we needed to get on with our lives. She’s way out of my league anyway. She was going to be an Air Force pilot, maybe even become an astronaut, and I work in IT. She was literally reaching for the stars, and I spend all day writing code and eating Doritos.”

Jemma sent Daisy an expression that said she was being too hard on herself. “You’re a cybersecurity specialist for The University of California system, that’s not exactly failure by any measure.”

Daisy took a sip of her drink and smiled to herself. “You didn’t know her. She was perfect. Not just Barbie blonde—sure, she was beautiful—but so fierce and smart and brave. I could never have been enough for her anyway. She’s probably prepping to go to Mars or something right now.” Daisy laughed, but behind it, the women could see past it to the ache. They fell quiet.

Elena broke the ice, “And here you are with us. Damn, that’s sad.” They all laughed.

Jemma raised her glass. “I propose that Sunday brunch is devoted to making a dating app profile for Daisy, who’s with me?”

“Here here!” Piper clinked her glass with Jemma’s.

“Hey!” Daisy protested.

“Girl, you need to get back out there,” Elena agreed and clinked her glass.

Daisy didn’t think anything would come of it, so she accepted it solely as an opportunity to grow closer with these new friends. She had known Jemma before moving here through Fitz, who had also gone to MIT, but Elena, Piper, and the rest of their crew were still getting to know and accept her as part of the family. Might as well go along with this game, and at worst, she’d get to know more people in LA. At best, maybe she’d be proven wrong that true love only came once in a lifetime and if you missed it or it came too early, nothing else could compare.

--------------------------------------------------

Chapter 2: One Single Thread of Gold Tied Me to You

Daisy scrolled through social media apps on her lunch break, stabbing a salad with a plastic fork with the other hand. Early September in LA was still summer hot, so she sat indoors in the faculty club cafe under too-bright lights and surrounded by faculty bragging about their research or star students. She’d been one of those students once. Now she was successfully launched into the professional world, scrolling through photos of engagement announcements and tragic news events and lists of self-care tips that always ended in a discount code for their products.

She sighed and opened her newest app, the dating profile her friends had set up a few weeks ago. Daisy looked around to make sure no one could see what she was swiping through and then checked the options the app presented her with this week.

She dropped her fork and paled as she swiped to reveal a familiar face. Grown up now, but still a blonde bombshell, with a smile that didn’t quiet extend to her eyes. Others probably wouldn’t notice, but Daisy still remembered every expression that provided a window into Carol’s innermost thoughts. The profile details were sparse, but Daisy read over them like they were water in the desert. Carol wasn’t a pilot after all. And she was still here in LA. Close by, living within a mile, the app said.

Daisy remembered to breathe and swiped through the photos once more. Paddleboarding, hiking, a very sexy picture of her doing archery in a sports bra and tiny shorts… Daisy was tempted to screenshot that one, but it felt a little creepy.

“Hey!” Fitz greeted her and launched into an enthusiastic update on how his latest project was doing as he sat down. Daisy jumped and dropped her phone, but not before hitting the huge heart to “like” Carol’s profile.

“Shit shit shit,” Daisy cursed as she saw what she’d done. She unliked it, but it was too late. She knew Carol would get the notification all the same. Maybe Carol didn’t have notifications on and never checked this app. It didn’t seem like she was all that active or interested in it given how little was on her profile.

Fitz, of course, required an explanation, and before she was done, Jemma had joined them, and Daisy had to start the humiliating story all over again.

Fitz and Jemma exchanged a silent expression that said loud and clear that they were plotting something, but for Daisy’s sake, the couple moved on to discussing how their first-year students were faring in the labs they taught.

—---

When her morning shift was done, Carol checked her phone as she walked to the faculty club cafe for lunch, and the first notification made her stop in her tracks, right outside the door.

“It can’t be,” she mumbled to herself. It wasn’t just a Daisy who had liked her profile, but her Daisy. The photo showed a more mature 23-year-old verson of her ex, but it was undoubtedly her. Single, then. No kids. And the app said she lived not far from the university. Here. Not 3,000 miles away. Two. Two miles. That fact repeated over and over in Carol’s mind.

The profile was marked as brand new, only created in the last month. And Daisy had found her. Maybe the like meant she didn’t know whether to say hi, if Carol would want to reconnect. Or maybe she just wanted to acknowledge that they were both in the same area, on the same app, and this was her way of avoiding starting a conversation. Or maybe she did want to talk, even just to catch up as old long-lost friends, and wanted to make sure Carol could handle it. Could she handle it?

If it gave her the chance to see Daisy again, even if just for a few hours over a drink? She could handle anything.

Which was a very lucky conclusion, because the door she had stopped in front of to stare in shock at her phone opened outward. Quickly.

“Ow!” Carol held her cheek and backed away from the door, squinting her eyes shut in pain. “Damn.”

“Sorry! Sorry!” a familiar voice rushed out before changing tone completely. “Ohhhh my God.”

Carol put her hand down and opened her eyes. They stared at each other, speechless for an eternity.

“Hi,” Carol said finally. This was not at all the reunion she’d dreamt of for over four years.

“Hey.” Daisy returned and smiled breathlessly. “Oh! We should get you ice. That’s gonna bruise. Sorry, again.”

“It’s not your fault, I should have…” Carol saw her opportunity and took it, no matter how purple her cheek was about to become, as they walked to the ice dispenser. “Well, okay, it is kinda your fault.”

As they reached their destination, Daisy sent Carol a puzzled look as Carol held up her phone. Carol unlocked it and showed that it was open to Daisy’s dating app profile.

“You liked me,” Carol explained. “And that’s why I was standing there.”

“So you stopped in front of the door to see what a dork I still am, and then there I was, hitting you in the face.” Daisy laughed and held a wad of napkins filled with ice up to Carol’s face.

Carol’s hand replaced Daisy’s on the makeshift ice pack, but their bodies stayed close.

“How are you here?” Carol asked in awe, hardly able to believe her eyes.

“I work here.” Daisy shrugged. “My friends started grad school here this summer, and they helped me find a job in cybersecurity. I was ready to come back anyway. I’ve missed a lot about this city.”

The conversation easily could have gone into small talk jokes about Boston winters or comparing traffic or all the flaws of Southern California. But Carol was stuck on the fact that she was now coworkers with her high school sweetheart.

“Yeah? Like what?” Carol let the leading question slip out before she caught herself. Of course Daisy didn’t mean her. She couldn’t have even known Carol was still in the area, much less at the same university in the same city.

Daisy smiled and shook her head. “Maybe some of the people.”

Jemma and Fitz saw them and rushed over.

“Wait, is this…?” Jemma asked as soon as Carol lowered the dripping, melting ice napkins.

“I’ll get a proper ice pack,” Fitz volunteered. “But don’t share any juicy details until I get back.”

Carol looked to Daisy for an explanation, so Daisy made the introduction.

“Jemma, this is Carol. Carol, this is my friend Jemma who was with me right after I liked your profile and I told her about us. And that was Fitz, Jemma’s fiance. He also knows the whole story.”

“Ah.” Carol understood Fitz’s comment now.

Jemma shook Carol’s hand. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Really?” Carol couldn’t hide how this pleased her and decided to turn it into teasing Daisy. “You told your friends about me?”

“No, not a lot. It came up in conversation, like twice,” Daisy explained. “One of which was a few minutes ago about your profile on this dating app that Jemma made me join.”

Carol turned back to Jemma. “I’m glad you did.”

Fitz returned with the ice pack, but as soon as he handed it over to Carol, Jemma ushered him away. “We’re going to let you two talk now.”

Despite Fitz’s protests, Jemma led him toward the exit with a hand on his back. “I’ll fill you in, just come with me.”

When the other couple was gone, Daisy turned back to Carol. “I hate to say this, but I really need to get back to work. How much time do you have? Do you want to grab something and walk me back?”

“Yes!” Carol answered a bit too quickly. Daisy waited as she grabbed a chicken sandwich and fruit cup to-go and paid. They left the building and began walking toward Daisy’s office. “I still can’t believe you’re here.”

“I can’t believe you’re not stationed on the moon or something!” Daisy playfully hit Carol’s arm. “I would have thought you’d be spending more time in the air than on the ground these days. It never would have occurred to me to look for you down here.”

Carol shrugged. “Didn’t work out.”

“It was your dream for so long…”

“Yeah! Not great at blindly obeying orders, it turns out.” Carol deadpanned, and they broke into a snort-laugh.

“Okay, yeah, that makes sense,” Daisy giggled, remembering their teenage shenanigans.

“Plus Dr. Fury talked me into R&D. I’m over there.” Carol pointed to a building down the street. “Come by sometime and I’ll show you around. At least, the parts I know about. I’ve only been on the job this summer.”

“I started in August. For a month, we’ve been this close and never knew it.”

“Now we do.”

“Painfully aware?” Daisy made the joke about Carol’s bruise so she didn’t have to. They stopped in front of Daisy’s building. “This is me.”

“Hey, do you have plans for dinner tonight?” Carol stuck her free hand in her pocket, and she scuffed her shoe on the ground, suddenly feeling 16 again.

“For you? I’m always free,” Daisy promised. “But yeah, I also don’t have any plans anyway. Wanna show me your favorite spot?”

“I know just the place. 6’clock. I’ll text you the address.” Carol smiled. Muscle memory told her to peck a kiss goodbye, but Carol didn’t want to rush things and didn’t even know if Daisy was open to even potentially having those feelings again, so she used all of her willpower to draw back and walk away.

“You still have my number?” Daisy asked, just to be sure.

“Same as always?”

“Yeah. Same as always.” Daisy’s heart fluttered. After all this time, Carol kept it. That was a very good sign. Then maybe she’d pick up that it wasn’t just Daisy’s number that hadn’t been lost to time.

—---------------

Carol’s fire escape was crowded that night with two reunited lovers, two bowls of pasta, and four years' worth of stories and emotions and life. They talked long after the bowls had been replaced by glasses of wine and the sunset over the Pacific far on the horizon had been replaced by the nearer lights of the city, giving hope in the dark.

Maybe not everything dies in the fall. Maybe some things that go dormant in summer regrow years later, in the first chilly breeze of autumn nights.

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