#while the people who killed them get off to the blood while they’re dying.

[kausstar]

PRETTY SMILE

ethan landry x f! reader￨vv dark + sfw content￨wc: 3k

all ethan had to do was make friends with them and get them to trust him before he could stab into their chest until he felt they suffered enough. he loved the thought— even daydreamed about it, but why couldn’t he do the same for you?.

dark content. chad x f! reader (platonic) no characteristics of reader besides you being mindy and chad’s sister. black reader in mind just because of that simple reason. talks of killing, death, blood, knifes and every other ghostface thing. parties. swearing.

𝓴aus. I need someone to make a shirt that says I ❤︎ ethan landry and send it to me. i’ll pay however much.

ethan’s eyes scanned across the room—looking for no one in particular. the music played loudly throughout the house as minutes passed that he stood in the doorway with a stupid robot costume on. he didn’t know what was stupider: the fact he was wearing the thing or the jock that he was waiting on to bring in a drink from the kitchen. he couldn’t decide and he choose to not debate too much in his head.

not because he didn’t want to but because he was quickly distracted by seeing one of his soon to be victims in the crowd ahead. he always thought about how they will never know they’re dying soon until the knife is pushing it’s way into their body and they’re screaming for their lives.

as ethan stood, leaning on the doorway, he imagined driving his knife into anika, hearing her scream then slowly pulling the knife out to make her scream more. she’s probably screaming out mindy’s name for help and beg for ethan to stop but he’d thrive off her screams and pain.

ethan would continue to imagine the murder while anika continued to talk to someone in the crowd who he couldn’t spot because of the two people standing in the way. suddenly and somewhat sadly, the people two people move and ethan’s able to see who it is. he could only sigh at the sight of you—not in disappointment, just in frustration.

ethan could imagine the way he would kill everyone, everyone being the rest of your fucked up friend group, but you. he couldn’t think of one scenario without him wanting to wipe the tears from your pretty face and tell you everything’s gonna be alright. “who you looking at, pretty boy?” ethan hears a whisper in his right ear making him look over to find chad. his arm stretched out to give ethan his drink, but eyes still scanned across the general area.

as ethan took the drink in his hand, he hoped chad hadn’t caught on to who he was looking at, but when chad’s eyes light up and he hits ethan on the arm, he thinks he knows. “what?” ethan laughed, looking into chad’s excited eyes. “dude, you like my sister?” he asks and ethan could only awkwardly laugh making chad’s face light up even more.

“you serious? mindy’s gonna kill you,” he laughs. ethan expected that reaction but more of a “we’re gonna kill you” type thing, just cause you’re their sister. he didn’t care for that though, he’d end up killing them anyways then the only family you would have would be him. that was the only daydream he could have about you.

“but you’re secrets safe with me,” chad smiles, patting ethan on the shoulder. “thanks,” ethan mumbled out with a nod and a light smile towards chad. “why don’t you go make friends?” chad grinned, sharing a glance from you, who stood across the room, to ethan. ethan quickly shakes his head. he wasn’t trying to make friends with you—just wanted to figure out why he couldn’t bring himself to kill you. his father had already been yelling at him to get his shit together before the “big day”.

“come on, pretty boy! you got this,” chad smiled, shoving his friend lightly towards you. ethan could only shake his head again, cardboard hat shifting on his head. “bro, she’s way out of my league, alright?” he says, looking at chad with raise eyebrows, hoping he would get off his case. unfortunately, chad nodded. “but i doubt she’ll be able to resist that cute face,” he grinned, scar on his lip turning up.

“really?” ethan grinned, his question being genuine. “yeah, man! you’re a cutie,” chad smiles, giving ethan a quick look over with his eyes after stepping back. ethan could only smile to himself, thinking about you actually liking him. chad wraps an arm around ethan’s shoulder, looking across the room towards you and without much thought on chad’s part, he raises his hand and calls out your name.

“chad,” ethan panics, before your eyes locked with ethan’s. nervously, and for the betterment of his heart because he could’ve sworn his blood pressure went up, his eyes darted across the room. “you’re so loud and embarrassing,” you say, once making it across the room to them. you push your brothers chest making him only laugh and fumble back a little. ethan wasn’t completely sure how long it took you to reach them, because his heart pulsating in his ears was the only thing he could focus on.

soon, your eyes wondered over to ethan who’d seem to be a bit out of it. “ethan?” you call, hoping that he looked your way, and unfortunately, for him, you do. “you good? my dumb brother hasn’t gotten you too drunk, has he?” you lightly smile up at him, and ethan could only take a deep breath in before replying. “no,” he replied, a bit breathless, but you ignore it. before you could reply, mindy comes around the corner and taps on chad’s shoulder.

“creep alert,” she mumbled to him and he quickly nods. “well you too get along,” he smiled to the two of you but winks and gave ethan a pat on the back. confused, you look over to ethan who only gives you a awkward smile. you find yourself smiling back- not only at his cute smile but at his costume.

“nice costume. you’re a really cute robot,” you smile and ethan could feel his face heat up. did you just say he was cute? how was he supposed to kill you now?

xxx

everyone was feeling a bit anxious ever since tara and sam attack at the corner store so all of you decided to have a sleepover at the sister’s apartment. everybody was here, besides ethan, he had study hall so he couldn’t make it. the apparent “core 4” sat at the dinner table while you and anika chilled on the couch, and you won’t admit that you kinda missed the curly headed, cutie.

you smiled lightly to yourself as you scrolled on your phone mindlessly, head too busy thinking about ethan to care about the phone. but feeling the device buzz in your hand and seeing a airdrop of a picture brings you back to reality. the picture being quinn in her room being strangled from the back by ghostface.

letting you know you’re not the only one who got the picture, everyone quick gets up and moves in front of the bedroom door and for a while you only hear struggling until suddenly there’s complete silence. the silence was unsettling and made your stomach turn, and unlucky for all of you, the silence was filled with screams when the door busts open and her body comes flying out.

quinn’s body falls onto anika, her filling the apartment with screams the most as the two of them hit the floor. you can barely move as you looked down at quinn’s bloody body. “guys, come on!” tara yells for her us but you’re feet are stuck to the ground when you spot him in the doorway of quinn’s bedroom.. “oh fuck,” mindy says, eyes locked on ghostface. he’s quick to step forward, heading straight for mindy and cuts her arm making her lie against the couch.

“mindy!” anika yells before grabbing at ghostface’s leg trying to make him fall but she fails and he’s quick to grab her by her throat. she pulls and tugs at his hand trying to breath before he suddenly stabs her in the stomach. “fuck,” you mumble, realizing you have to do something so you kick him in his side making him fall to the floor and let go of anika. as anika’s gasping for air and holding her stomach, she sits up against the couch with mindy. unfortunately, he’s quick to get up from the floor and heads straight for you, head tilted as he backs you up into the bookshelf.

your hearts beating out of your chest as he’s flushed against you, hand wrapped around your throat. he’s not squeezing though, not enough to kill you but enough to have you gasping a bit. he runs his knife against your cheek slowly and you feel blood slowly dripping as you hiss from the sting. something was different. behind him, sam runs out of the kitchen with the knife holder and hits him in the head with it. he falls to the floor, leaving all of you time to get into quinn’s room.

anika and mindy take there spot on the bed as sam keeps the door shut. he bangs and kicks the door until he suddenly stops and sam looks back into the bathroom. “the bathroom door,” she whispers to you and you quickly make your way over into the bathroom, but your stopped by seeing one of quinn’s boyfriends head in the tub.

“oh my fuck!” you yell then you turn your attention to the door to find ghostface standing there. you scream before quickly try to close the door as sam runs to help but he’s stronger so the two of you fail. you and sam quickly move back and close the second door before he could push his whole weight onto it. you lock it and push your back onto the door as same moves an dresser over to the door so you can block it. once it’s in front of the door, sam runs over the window after hearing her boyfriend yell and you stay put, holding the door close.

at first, you don’t understand what’s happening at the window but when you see one end of a latter sticking out of the window, you come to understand. she looks back for you. “you two go first,” sam says, looking at the two sitting on the bed. “you two go first. she’s go after and i’ll go last,” mindy says, sharing a glance between you and sam. sam nods to mindy and makes her way onto the latter.

“somebody has to hold the door!” you yell, his kicks and bangs vibrating your lungs as you speak. “i’ll do it…”mindy says, standing from the bed, holding her arm. “go,” she says, back now against the dresser and you’re not completely sure if you wanna let go until she screams at you at go again. “fuck,” you swear, moving over to the window. now by the window, sam’s already made her way into danny’s apartment and now it’s your turn.

slowly but surely, you make it across, the sound of banging lightly fading behind you as you move across and once you’re finally across you feel you can breath again. just a little, but you’ll be completely able to once you know your sister’s safe. “come on, mindy!” you called for her so she knows anika can go next. from the other side, you watch as mindy’s trying to help anika but she says she can’t do it and mindy’s begging her.

“i can’t! you go, i’ll be right behind you. i promise,” anika says, crying, holding her stomach. the banging and the pushing of the door makes it seem time is shorting so mindy quickly gives her a kiss before turning around, tears running down her cheeks, to cross onto the latter. as she’s crossing, she’s trying her best not to look down. she looks back to make sure anika’s okay and you’re quick to say, “she’s fine! just get across!”

“she’s right behind you!” sam lies, as the pushing of the dresser becomes lighter. he’s almost through, and thankfully, mindy makes it across in time. “come on!” mindy call for anika as anika stands from the bed and walks over to the latter. “i can’t!” she cries out, and he continues to pound and push the door. “yes, you can! come on!” mindy replies, eyes locked on her girlfriend. soon after, anika climbs on the latter and begins crossing quickly.

“you got this!” danny says. eyes locked on us, anika tries her best with wobbly hands to make it across. unfortunately, once she’s half way across, the banging stops and all of you spot ghost standing at the window. all of you gasp as he stabs the windowsill with the knife, leaving it stuck in the wood. “what?” she asks. “you gotta quicker!” mindy yells as ghostface takes ahold of the other end. curiously, she turned around to see why and quickly starts to panic.

she tries to make her way over again but it’s not only her shaky hands in the way but the shaking latter. she screamed and cried as he jerked the latter up and down, and side to side. “i don’t wanna die, baby!” she cried out and his shakes got more violent. mindy began to cry then suddenly she fell onto her stomach. closer than before, sam holds her hand out. “grab my hand!” she says and anika tries, hands slippery from her own blood.

“i got her,” sam says, but the latter tilts and their hands slip. screaming, anika falls. her head hits the dumpster before finally hitting the pavement below. all of you watched in horror as blood pooled around her head. “fuck,” you managed to mumble out in pure disbelief.

xxx

the night had been suffering and you were surprised it hadn’t killed you. you between tara and mindy in the back of the ambulance as the only thing you heard was the sirens of the ambulance and cops. everyone was so quiet, including chad who stood standing beside you. you go to look up at him to make sure he’s okay but he’s already looking ahead at ethan who’s walking towards all of you.

chad immediately starts walking over to him, then grabs him by his book bag straps and pushes him against a nearby news channel van. you’re quick to stand from your seat and make your way over to them. “where the fuck were you!?” chad asks, anger on his face. “what? when?” ethan answers, confused on how he ended up in this position in the first place. “last night!” ethan stuffers out a response.

“i had econ you know this,” ethan says. chad removes ethan from the van a couple centimeters before slamming his back, back onto it. “chad,” you finally speak, making ethan’s eyes move over to you for a spit second. but his shoulders being shoved move into the van behind him making his eyes snap right back to chad’s. “bullshit, man. you disappear and my sisters almost get killed!” chad yells, disregarding your call. “d-dude, i was in the study hall with 100 other people. you can ask any of them,” ethan says, hand’s raised in defense.

“fuck, man,” chad groans, finally letting go of ethan with another good push. ethan’s eyes found your face and he quickly finds the cut. “you alright?” he asks, moving closer so he could see it better. hm, he didn’t mean to cut you that deep. might leave a scar later on. he thought about smiling at that- the thought of marking you excites him but he decides against it and let’s his worry eyes lead his performance.

”yeah, just a little cut,” you say, lightly smiling at his concern for you. oddly, his hands find their way onto your face and he lightly touches the cut. you hiss at the sudden touch. “sorry,” he mumbles out, going to pull his hand away, but you stop him and held his hand in yours. “it was anika and quinn,” you say to him and he could only look behind you to mindy. seeing the sympathy in his eyes you lead him over to the back of the ambulance.

“mindy, i’m so sorry,” he says, but mindy only glares at him. “step the fuck back,” she says, eyes locked on him. he does as she asks without a complaint. “your at the top of my list,” she finishes, blankly. “i had econ!” ethan says, defending himself again. by the way mindy’s glaring eyes rotated around the room, you understood no one believed him- but you did.

“i feel like he’s telling the truth,” you add, making mindy glare up at you. “that’s easy for you to say because of that little cut on your cheek. why didn’t he stab you like the rest of us, huh?” she asks, making your dart yours eyes elsewhere because you truly didn’t have an answer. “huh?” tara asks, not understanding the argument. “yeah. he barely fucking touched her, like he was in love with her or some shit,” mindy says, waving you off and you open your mouth to say something.

“in love? come on, mindy. don’t be stupid,” you say, shaking your head. “maybe, she’s right. if he didn’t stab you. maybe he loves you,” ethan shrugs, looking over at all of you. “ethan, baby. you’re not helping,” you say, before turning your attention to mindy who rolls her eyes at ethan. he wasn’t trying to help though. he was only trying to make you understand.

 2023 kausstar.

#⋆ 𐙚 ₊ ˚ star #ethan landry scream 6 #ethan landry x bimbo!reader #ethan landry x reader #ethan landry #ethan landry imagine #scream vi #x reader

[stardustprompts]

vengeful  -  v.e. schwab  sentence starters change tenses/pronouns as needed !!  some lines have been edited for clarity / length / ease of roleplaying  tw :  death , violence , language , mental health

‘what a fucking cliche.’

‘envy really doesn’t suit you.’

‘don’t you turn that knife on me unless you plan to use it…’

‘you should have let it go.’

‘you can’t just do that to me!’

‘you’ve been gone for hours.’

‘you never said I had to play fair.’

‘that’s a risk I’m willing to take.’

‘you look like a narc.’

‘it feels like dying.’

‘people have an idea of pain. they think they know what it is, how it feels, but that’s just an idea. it’s a very different thing when it becomes concrete.’

‘I did this. I did this to you.’

‘I am alive because of you.’

‘you think I’m playing god? fine, you play, (name). you decide, right now, who should live. us, or them?’

‘it’s a big world. you’re not the only one with talents.’

‘isn’t it silly to lie when we both know the truth?’

‘I think sometimes you make the easiest choice instead of the right one.’

‘make me the villain of that night, (name). wash you hands of any blame.’

‘a promise you can’t keep is just another lie.’

‘I don’t want you to save me. I want to save myself.’

‘I warned you when we met, I wasn’t a good person.’

‘killing me won’t bring her back either.’

‘think hard. we all have to live with our choices.’

‘the next time you point a gun at someone, make sure you’re ready to pull the trigger.’

‘we survived. that's what makes us so powerful.’

‘blood is always family, but family doesn’t always have to be blood.’

‘not all family is blood, right? sometimes we have to find a new one. sometimes we get lucky, and they find us.’

‘this isn’t a stupid game. it’s my life.’

‘are you used to getting what you want?’

‘hasn’t it occurred to you that I can protect myself?’

‘in this world, in my world, people get hurt. they die.’

‘people die in every world. I’m not going anywhere.’

‘you want to be more, (name)? prove it.’

‘they may think they’re kings but we’re the power behind the throne.’

‘i’m not a fucking coat, (name). you don’t get to check me at the door.’

‘where I go, you go. we’re in this together. step for step.’

‘did you always know that you had what it took to end a life?’

‘I thought it would be hard, but in that moment, nothing was easier.’

‘you were never one to dwell on the past. I loved that about you, the way things always just rolled off.’

‘every end is a new beginning.’

‘I underestimated you once. I don’t intend to do so again.’

‘the only difference between us is that you naively insist on preserving what I know should be destroyed.’

‘I played god once and it did not end well.’

‘oh no, it will never work between us.’

‘sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt, you just looked sad.’

‘while I admire how far you’ve come, the fact is, you’re tracking mud into my home.’

‘we can’t shape our past. only our future.’

‘don’t you ever wonder if it’s our fault?’

‘life is more than an equation. a person is more than the sum of their parts.’

‘normal is overrated.’

‘A\a magician doesn’t reveal his secrets.’

‘every power has its limits.’

‘we don’t decide who lives and who dies.’

‘now who’s letting their ideals cloud their judgement?’

‘how quickly we devolve. people become animals the moment they are caged.’

‘if you were superhuman, what would your power be?’

‘ignorance is only bliss if you want to get caught.’

‘i’m still here, still doing what I can, because I want to keep people safe.’

‘never underestimate a woman.’

‘I thought I could save him. I tried. but it didn’t work.’

‘power belongs to those who take it.’

‘sharks come swimming when you make a splash.’

‘that’s quite a talent you have there.’

‘I only hope you’re ready to do the right thing,’

‘you help me, and I’ll help you.’

‘everything’s got a limit. you should find yours.’

‘I don’t feel anything.’

‘oh, sorry, if you thought this was a girl’s-night-out kind of thing where we get drunk and bond, I’ll have to pass.’

‘why settle for one weapon when you can have an arsenal?’

‘the life I had is gone. there’s no getting it back.’

‘the life I had is gone. there’s no getting it back. i’d rather make a new one. a better one.’

‘I thought you were done with hiding.’

‘people can see an awful lot, and believe none of it.’

‘why sit around sulking when you could hurt the people who hurt you?’

‘let’s talk about revenge.’

‘there are limits. I can’t stop nature. can't change it’s course.’

‘whatever’s happened to you, however you’re hurt, you’ve done it to yourself.’

‘oh, I like to think I have a great deal of nerve.’

‘if you had a damn bit of sense you would have run.’

'knowledge may be power, but money buys both.’

‘sometimes subtlety is overrated.’

‘when people stay in the dark, it’s easier to make them disappear.’

‘I don’t want to survive, I want to thrive.’

‘what now? you gonna throw yourself a fucking party?’

‘if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you had something against me.’

‘if I wanted you dead, you would be.’

‘whatever you’ve heard, it’s probably true.’

‘is there anyone who doesn’t want to kill you?’

‘how many excuses will you find to vindicate your own stubbornness?’

‘careful is a calculated risk. and I’m very good at making those.’

‘the truth is, there will always be someone stronger than you.’

‘you do what you can. you fight, and you win, until you don’t.’

‘once upon a time, power was determined by linage—- the age of blood. then it was determined by money—- the age of gold. but I think it’s time for a new age. the age of power itself.’

‘let me guess, I’m either with you or against you?’

‘you always preferred being predator to prey.’

‘we just have to lie low until it’s over, and then—’

‘when this is over, you and I are going to have words.’

‘it appears that we are evenly matched.’

‘it always comes down to this, doesn’t it? to us.’

#rp sentence starters #rp prompts #rp memes #literature prompts #literature sentence starters #vengeful sentence starters #vengeful prompts #v.e. schwab sentence starters #v.e. schwab prompts

[minniepetals]

cry me a river | the watchers

— summary: sometimes to not protect is the best form of protection

— pairing: bts x reader

— genre: angst, mafia!au

— word count: 7.0k

— warnings: torture, arson

— PART 20 / previous post / masterpost

No one is coming to save you. Get up.

A splash of cold water and you’re awake once again. Back to reality. Back to being conscious. Reliving a loop that repeats and repeats until Nari is done having her fun and decides to finally end your life.

Your head is a mess, foggy with a pounding ache that refuses to leave. Beside you stands a man with chains holding his wrists together, sitting on a metal chair, his eyes alive and well, not a scratch on his face while he holds a glare watching you in the state you’re in.

Yoongi never did like watching people getting tortured whether they were his enemies or not.

He’s safe though, unlike you, because the Mins have been smart enough not to lay a finger on his hair, knowing if they were to return Yoongi in a state like you, Bangtan would have his head. 

You admit your exes are quite scary when they’re upset, and anyone that touches any one of them would feel their wrath. You’ve witnessed it before, seen it during times when enemies would feel arrogant enough to put a hand on you. Although Namjoon is known as a calm and collected man who keeps his composure, he’s also quite possessive and overprotective. Anyone who tics him off would rather wish they went through hell and back instead.

So Junmyeon is smart in knowing not to touch Yoongi despite his initial offering in trying to please his daughter.

In the end, you’re the only one dying and getting tortured.

“Ah, I’m bored. Won’t you just kill me already?” You spit out a lump of blood from your mouth, licking at your teeth upon the dirty metal taste, and it only aggravates Nari.

You understand her.

She won’t kill you unless she’s had the pleasure of seeing you in pain and begging her for mercy, but you know better than anyone to go on your knees and beg to a wall. It’ll do you more harm than good.

“Why, why, why?!” Nari complains, her feet stomping as she clenches her hands into fists, throwing another annoying tantrum. “Why won’t you just cry?! Do you enjoy getting tortured so much?!”

“Yeah.” You chuckle in her face. “Who would have thought I was such a masochist? You should keep going, little celery.”

“Stop!!” She covers both her ears with her hands, trembling with anger, before deciding to turn to Sunoo who’s been in the room this entire time, doing the task that you’ve given him well, and pushes him forward. 

He stumbles on his feet, knees hitting the floor, and for a moment Nari flinches before she puts on her brave act once again. “Hey kid, don’t you hate to see your little lady getting hurt?”

She’s switching her play once again, trying to aggravate Sunoo despite the other times she’s failed. What a smart kid, learning to read her and understanding that if he were to give her any reaction, she’d only continue hurting you even more.

“You really don’t care one bit about her?” She grabs him by the collar, dragging him on the floor to throw him right before you, forcing him up on his feet.

Sunoo meets your eyes where you stand, chains still holding you up without allowing your legs to rest one bit, and you see the way they falter for a split moment.

He wants to help, to do anything to ease the pain and have this whole thing shut down but he knows that the only way he can help is to not do anything. So Sunoo stays still even as Nari approaches you from behind, a dagger dragging up your neck and towards your face. More blood pools yet Sunoo doesn’t flinch.

Good boy.

She turns the blade to your nape, painting a scene down to your back which has the chains on you chattering loudly upon your trembling state. Your teeth clench tight, jaw ready to break as your pupils dilate, a breath wheezing out of you as Sunoo is forced to watch, his own eyes wanting to betray his facade.

You see the way his arms shake unsteadily from his side and warn him with your eyes to continue playing the act.

This is a play. You have to act the part or it’ll end.

He bites his inner cheek, hands balled into fists, but in the three seconds he takes to calm himself down, they release and the tension on his shoulders follows along. Sunoo looks away, rolling his eyes.

And Nari takes the blade from your skin.

“Why won’t any of you entertain me?!” She stomps around you, pushing Sunoo away, her eyes a murderous gaze as her grip on the hilt of the dagger clenched so tight to see veins popping. “You want to die so badly? I’ll gladly fulfill your wish, buttercup.”

The blade hovers in the air, Sunoo’s eyes widening, the light reflecting off the silver weapon, and when it comes right down before you, someone pushes her out of the way. Hard. And yet he wasn’t fast enough to push her out in time because Yoongi faces the consequence when he clutches onto his eye, blood dripping from his hand.

You stand there, frozen, as Nari screeches once again for things not going her way, and when her men make a move and Junmyeon walks in hearing her scream, your savior extends his free arm out to the side, displaying a phone with a certain number written in white.

His thumb hovers over the green call button, glaring up at them with a threat, and your brows furrow at how this came to be.

He was just chained up a few moments ago and how did he get his hand on a phone? Is that his or…

You take a look to the left just as Junmyeon follows along to find a dead man on the floor.

No way.

Yoongi’s always been a quiet man but you never expected he was this deadly. He broke out of the chains himself as well, and with both you and Sunoo on his side and the enemies on the other, perhaps he had been waiting for just the right moment to strike all along.

What a man.

You see his head tilted slightly your way and you catch the signal.

Min Yoongi, former heir to the Viper throne, doesn’t need your brain to figure out an escape route. He knows the escape route.

You give him a single nod and he clicks his thumb onto the call button, the phone immediately going into call mode, ringing up who you assume to be Namjoon. He flings it off to the side once it’s no longer useful, believing in the fact that your ex-husband will know what to do, just as the snakes come at him in full force, knowing if he’s getting Namjoon involved now, they’ll have no way out if they don’t kill him now.

While Yoongi busies himself with the enemies, Sunoo is quick to run to your side, his eyes panicking all over.

“Hey kid, think you can grab an axe and break these chains out for me?”

When one of the enemies falls to the floor with his axe sliding right before Sunoo’s feet, you give him a grin.

What great timing. It’s as if Yoongi heard you amidst the chaos he’s gotten himself into.

Little Sunoo picks the axe up with both his hands, and although it’s a bit heavy for him, you trust in him when he swings the blade right onto the pole that’s keeping you hanging. A few hits against them and the chains and you’re immediately folding onto your knees now that you’re no longer forced to stand.

Sunoo’s quick to catch you and help you with the fall when you go down.

“We have to go.” Yoongi returns to your side seconds later.

You look around the room, fascinated at the sight. Yoongi doesn’t like killing as much as the others do and yet he’s filled a whole room with bodies. His father is dead, his sister crouches in a corner, trembling uncontrollably, and you hear a hoard of footsteps and shouts closing in.

You take one look at Yoongi and immediately start fuming.

“Why the hell would you let yourself get hurt in my stead? You do realize that we’re back to being enemies now that Namjoon knows I killed his brother, right?” You punch his chest. “Are you mad?”

He observes you with confusion when you go to tear off a part of his shirt. “...You’re upset.”

“Of course I am. I hate owing anyone favors,” you say when you reach up to wrap the cloth over his bloody eye, tying it tightly behind him.

“You don’t have to owe me anything,” his voice is quiet. “This was…my apology.”

You stare at him as if he has two heads. “What? For what?”

“...You were right. We were still in love with you.” In love. Eleven years ago. When you walked out of their lives. “But we did nothing,” he continues. “We chose Namjoon and…as a result, you were left in a hard place. And I feel like, in some ways, whatever you’ve gone through in all the years after the divorce, perhaps a part of that was our fault.” He pauses. “For letting you leave.”

He has no idea.

But why is he bringing this up? Now? When your lives are about to die if he doesn’t make a move? Still, you say; “You don’t know anything.”

He nods. “I know but—”

“We’ll talk later.” You force the conversation to an end, grabbing the confused and awkward Sunoo so you can pull him into your arms. “For now, carry us,” you command and he blinks, unsure of what you’re trying to get at. “I’ve been tortured for who knows how long, I’m too weak to run. But you,” you beckon your head over at the broken chains, “you’re still strong.”

“My lady, I can run on my—”

“No, you can’t,” you immediately shut Sunoo’s suggestion down, “you’ll slow both of us down.” It’s cold but it’s the truth, and it’s the only way to get him to back off. Once you’ve dealt with him, you turn back to Yoongi, raising a brow his way, so he gets on his feet again but not before grabbing a gun from one of the dead enemies and handing it to you.

After that, Yoongi takes you in his arms where you’re holding Sunoo in yours, and he runs out of the room.

You give Nari a little scare by purposely missing when you shoot a bullet at her feet, smirking at her flinching, and once Yoongi’s out of the room and begins heading down a line of hallways you’ve never seen before, you prepare yourself by putting one arm around his neck, eyes pointed and alerted to guard his back.

Sunoo sits still in his place, not moving an inch, and when you hear footsteps approaching, you ready yourself.

Their bullets come flying past but never hit their targets. It only grazes the skin of both you and Yoongi though that doesn’t stop the two of you from doing your job.

You hold your strength, eyes blinking tightly one moment to keep your eyes from blurring up, and shooting down your enemies the next.

A headshot.

Two.

Three.

Someone stumbles and slows the crowd down on this narrow path.

“Hit that button up ahead, will you?” At Yoongi’s command, you use the long chain still wrapped around your wrist to swing it forward, hitting the red button to open up a door leading down three pathways.

Yoongi takes his pick and you keep your eyes on his back, taking down whoever is within your line of sight.

After a few more loops and turns, you come into a kitchen from a secret door, and once you’ve taken down the servants there with three bullets to each of their heads, Yoongi puts you down on a counter.

“What are you doing?” You ask when he runs to a lower cabinet, looking for something.

“Burning this place down,” he says when he picks up a red gas can and begins to pour the liquid all over the floor and toward the entrance of the secret passageway where the three of you came from.

“I never knew you were one to seek out revenge.” Whatever happened between the Vipers and him you sure weren’t good.

Nothing good comes out of being a child of a mafia leader.

“I’m not, it’s for you.”

“Me?” Your ears pick up more noise. “You’re wrong, the Vipers were never on my list.”

“Maybe not, but they did want you dead just a few minutes ago, didn’t they?”

“Well.”

No use arguing with that.

Once he’s done decorating the place with gasoline and adding a few metal cans into the microwave (deadly arsenic things, you’re sure), and has timed it for two minutes, Yoongi places a gas can in Sunoo’s lap before taking you from the counter, on the run once again.

You hear the microwave starting as you signal to Sunoo to pour the content of the gas can on the trail of Yoongi. He does so without hesitation, careful to not pour too much in one setting, all the while Yoongi leads with his run and you watch the back.

Once the can empties out, he throws it off to the side and you see your exit.

There’s a loud boom to indicate the microwave has gone off and just seconds later, the explosion and fire follow.

Yoongi bounces off on his feet, hurling the three of you onto the ground upon the impact of the fire, and you hear a loud screech ringing in your ears.

“Y/N?”

The two boys scramble to you after the initial shock, eyes staring with concern.

“I…” You hit your ear a few times, scrunching your face up. “I’m alright,” you say after a few seconds. “We have to hide though.”

So Yoongi picks you up once again, this time without Sunoo, and the little one follows closely behind when the man runs off. 

You aren’t sure how long it takes them to find a good alleyway where Yoongi’s sure is safe, but you don’t have the energy to think when he places you down against the dirty ground. You lean against the wall from behind, breathing quickening when you finally have the chance to catch up to the torture your body had to endure.

“Just how long will Namjoon take?” You ask through clenched teeth.

“The manor’s an hour away.”

You let out a curse and Yoongi hurries to rip a piece of cloth off his shirt and wrap it over your torso in the same way you had done for his eye. He ties it more tightly, applying great pressure while you’re bleeding out, right before he wipes his hands of blood on his pants to take out a few greens.

“Run to the nearest drugstore. Find anything useful,” he tells Sunoo with a small wipe over the boy’s cheek, ridding off the blood there.

Sunoo doesn’t hesitate to obey.

“You’ve got a good soldier there.” Once he’s gone, Yoongi turns back to you to pay attention to your needs. “Have you been training the kids? I thought you didn’t want them involved.” He grabs ahold of a hand, inserting a thin piece of needling into the lock of the chain still wrapped around your wrist.

“I don’t,” you reconfirm his thoughts, “though I admit the kid did great not giving into Nari’s ploy despite it tearing him apart.” You take your time breathing in and out before speaking again. “Why have you kept all of it a secret?”

“My involvement with those snakes?” You don’t have to answer him for him to understand just what you mean. “I didn’t lie entirely about my past.”

“No. You’re not one to lie.” The chain releases from one hand and you breathe in a harsh breath of air upon the stinging sensation of your wrist. Yoongi moves onto the other one. “You were indeed someone who ran away, but who would have thought it was the Vipers you ran away from. Who would have thought you were a secret heir.”

He keeps silent for a moment. “You saw it yourself,” he says, “Nari’s adored by Junmyeon.” He doesn’t call him by father, you notice. “Ever since she was born, he spoiled her to no end, all the while his first son was neglected and left to waste.” Your father would have killed to have his firstborn a son. “I did all that I could to get his attention but in the end, it was futile.”

“So you ran away?”

He chuckles at that but shakes his head. “I simply gave up and blended into the shadows like how he wanted me to. Nobody acknowledged my presence and that’s when I left. They never cared to search for me. All their attention was on Nari.”

“Did you resent her?” You ask and he shakes his head once again.

It makes sense. Yoongi isn’t one to hate anyone.

“I played my role as the older brother, I protected her from harm and got her the things she wanted. The scar on my back was from me protecting her on the night the two of us were kidnapped by an enemy.”

“You sure love to jump in front of a blade, don’t you?”

He ignores your comment. “Nari was always greedy for more. She wanted the world.”

“Of course she did, that’s just who she is.” You adjust yourself on the wall, trying your best to not let it touch the blade trails from Nari. Everything hurts and stings and aches. “So why didn’t you tell them?” You ask, looking up at him. “They wouldn’t have cared.”

Every one of the boys went through something after all, so why did Yoongi feel the need to keep his connection to the Vipers a secret?

“Bangtan were enemies with Vipers back then,” he explains, a bitter smile resting on his face. “Namjoon saved me, as I told you. He picked up a discarded trash and raised it. If I had told him then that I was the son of his enemy, you think he would have allowed me to stay? Much less save me?”

“You think he would care now?” 

It’s a question he knows the answer to, and yet something has still stopped him from giving his truth to them. Perhaps it’s his fear of the uncertain, because despite how much he knows the boys care for him, perhaps Namjoon would see it as a betrayal.

Yet he’s given his life unto him, even chose him when he had to choose between him and you.

Namjoon wouldn’t care now. No, he wouldn’t. And yet telling the truth has never been easy.

“What about you?” He turns the questions to you. “What’s your relationship with the Vipers?”

You chuckle at the changing of the subject but let it be for now. It’s not as if he owes you any answer. “Nari hated my pretty face,” you say simply. “Why do you think I’ve been beaten up so bad my face is a mess?”

“You’re still..-” Yoongi stops himself from finishing the sentence and you raise a brow, thinking you know just what he was automatically trying to say, but Sunoo returns just in time.

“I’d say between the time I called and our escape to here, it should be around half an hour or so.” He takes the plastic bag from Sunoo who takes a seat beside you, concern written all over his tiny face so you place a hand on his head, reassuring him. “Knowing them, they’re probably speeding down as we speak so they should be here soon but for now, keep conscious. Kid, talk to her so she won’t pass out.”

He takes something out.

Medicine, supplies, bandages.

“You’ll be alright, my lady.”

Perhaps it’s the fact that you know help will arrive soon so your body is catching up to the long-needed rest that’s coming. You feel each blink you take slowing down even as the treatment Yoongi is beginning on you should sting.

“Keep conscious, Y/N,” he warns with furrowed brows, and you watch the way he rips your sleeves to tend to the knife cuts there. Your heart rate picks up and you’re immediately alerted as you suddenly move to grab ahold of his hand, stopping him from doing anything more. Yoongi persists. “You need to—”

“Don’t let them touch me,” you say quickly. Quietly. “I don’t trust anyone, Yoongi, I’m only letting you do this because I know you’d rather have someone else kill a body than do it yourself, and in those three years I knew you, you’re not the type to caress another so easily, but don’t let anyone touch me. Don’t.”

When you look him dead in the eyes while using the last of your strength to grip his hand so tight it hurts you, Yoongi knows not to take your request lightly.

“O..okay.”

Only after you hear the promise leaving his mouth do you finally let your consciousness slip away.

It’s funny how you still hold onto his words.

.

.

.

Every once in a while, Yoongi will glance at where you’re lying against the wall with Sunoo by your side, while he keeps his eyes steady on the street, keeping an eye out for any familiar vehicles.

His feet jumps up and down consistently, feeling anxious as every second pass by. The longer this takes, the harder it will be on you, and even he himself can feel the fatigue trying to catch up on him.

The good eye he has left shakes, trying to keep clear, despite the ever so often images of flashes of blur, his legs threatening to give in.

Only when he finds a black van that rushes down the street to where the old mansion of the Viper lies, burning still, does he finally feel some sense of relief.

“Sunoo.” He turns to the kid, quick, and when Sunoo runs to his side, Yoongi points at where Namjoon walks out of a vehicle, standing a few yards away from the fire, observing with pointed eyes so as to not draw attention to the crowd that had gathered around.

There are sirens all around and Sunoo will have to run a good amount but someone has to stay with you and he can’t, not with his injured eye. Someone will catch sight of him and he can’t get in trouble with the law enforcement.

“Run to that man. Tell him you know where Yoongi is.” He makes sure the kid looks presentable, fixing his ruffled hair, wiping the dirt from his cheek, and cleaning down his clothes with his hands. There’s some blood on his clothes from where he was held by you but there’s not much he can do about that. “Be careful. Be discreet, don’t let the police see you. If they do, they’re going to question you and we don’t want that. You want your lady to get out of here safe and sound, don’t you?”

Sunoo nods and runs off and Yoongi takes a moment to look back at where you sit, just to make sure you’re still there, before watching the kid run over to where the fire is, now dying down. The Vipers aren’t completely destroyed, but with the death of their leader and heir now dead, nothing can be done to have them raise up to power again.

Not unless the living subordinates turn to him.

But he scoffs at the idea, knowing he’d never put himself in a position where he’ll rule a gang, much less his father’s mafia. They’ve abandoned him so why should he feel responsible to pick them up when they’re down?

He’s no longer associated with them, not since the moment he decided to run away.

All is dead and gone, and he knows you’ll make sure the members who’re still alive won’t continue that way once you’re awake.

They did kidnap you after all, and who can ever forgive that?

“Yoongi!”

His head perks up at the call and before he can register it, Namjoon’s body is slamming against him in a tight hold as if all those moments he’s been away from them have been the most horrifying thing he’s ever gone through.

They’ve never been good at dealing with one of them out of their sight after all, not that Yoongi can blame them. He’s just the same. So he welcomes the hold, feeling more arms coming around his other sides, and when the leader presses his hands onto his face, his eyes are quick to turn from that worried stare to a deadly glint.

“I’ll kill him,” his voice lowers.

“It’s alright, I’ve already done it.”

“What happened to you? How-”

“Before that,” he cuts Jungkook off to turn to the dark alleyway where you still lie, and rush over to your side without concern for his eye. “We have to get Y/N help. Now.”

The first reaction was initial confusion, before their brows furrow in recognition of the face of the woman they once loved years ago, lying against a wall all battered up and beaten, still holding onto life.

Barely.

Yoongi takes you in his arms, careful to not hurt you too much, and Taehyung tries to stop him. “What’re you doing? You’re still hurt, let someone else—”

“No,” he says, voice so formidable that declaration alone is something he isn’t willing to back down for anyone. The six of them stare at him with confusion, shocked at this quiet man who doesn’t usually talk back. And when Yoongi adjusts you even closer to him with such a careful approach, it takes them back even more. “Don’t you remember back in London? When she broke down mad the last time we saw her? She’s afraid of strangers touching her. Men.”

Yoongi’s right.

They’ve seen it with their own eyes how much a touch can affect you, trigger you, but it doesn’t clear them of suspicion on why you’re in this mess in the first place and why Yoongi is the one taking care of you.

“What about you?” Jimin asks. “She ran away from us too.”

“We were kidnapped together and even though she’s still frightened, she’s given me a bit of trust and it’s my job to make sure I can fulfill that trust.” He picks you up and walks over to the vehicle that finally slid up. “I owe her that much, don’t I?”

No one can refute that and so they let him go, before silently following along.

Sunoo who had stood aside, silent as he watched over everything, hesitates when they all climb in behind Yoongi, his eyes shaking, hands trembling by his side, unsure of what to do until Hoseok, who was the last in line, crouches down in front of him.

“What’re you doing, kid? We can’t leave you alone here now can we?” He says, a hand coming over to ruffle his hair. He recognizes the little boy who had been amongst the crowd of kids you saved the night you went after Jummy and Ying. “Frightened, were you? It’s alright now, we’ll get your dear lady to safety.”

“Will she be alright?” His voice breaks a little, knowing now that it’s alright to let a bit of that brave face off his facade. “I…I watched her…and…and I couldn’t do anything.”

What a ruthless world for a child to grow up in.

He was forced to watch the very person who saved him getting hurt and beaten, and catching a brief moment of what you looked like in Yoongi’s arms, Hoseok knows that must not have been easy to watch. Not for a child. Not for him.

He doesn’t know what to say so he takes the kid’s hand and they climb into the van together.

The whole ride, after Namjoon phones Mingyu to let him know you were with them, is silent to the max. There are a lot of questions Yoongi knows they wish to ask. For example, why was he kidnapped? Why was it the Vipers? What sort of relationship did he have with them and why hadn’t they know anything? There were always chances of someone in the group getting harmed by previous abusers but they’ve all been dealt with, Namjoon took care of all of them, yet Yoongi has been the only one who never spoke on anyone who could be out for him.

For all they knew, he didn’t have anyone in particular. For all they knew, he was just a poor little kid who needed the world to treat him better.

So why the Vipers?

And why were you kidnapped as well? They can excuse whatever your story is because it isn’t much of their business to know every little detail about you, but Yoongi? They’ve known him almost their entire life and yet this one detail he failed to share with him was the very reason they couldn’t find him.

And if he was kidnapped, wouldn’t that mean getting more injuries than he’s showing right now?

The bloody eye is bad but compared to the knife trails and gash marks and wounds cutting so deep they still bleed out almost everywhere, Yoongi’s treatment by the Vipers was clearly much better than yours.

They have many questions to ask him but knowing the number one priority is to get you to safety, they keep silent for the moment.

You’re rushed into a small hospital under Bangtan, and while Yoongi needs to prioritize his eye, he makes sure to be there when you’re brought into the surgery room and tells everyone off so they don’t touch you. 

You need help, he knows. He knows it more than anyone really, because for a lot of the torture you went through, he saw it with his very own eyes, and yet the fact that you trusted him enough to fall asleep before his eyes and let him touch you, Yoongi knows not to betray that trust.

He can’t.

He can’t.

So Namjoon allows his people to back off, and the seconds tick by once more while they wait for your crew to arrive.

Yoongi makes sure to follow procedures that’ll help you ease a bit, to slow down your time under the doctors’ instructions, and it’s in this moment do the boys come to see the rare times Yoongi stops allowing himself to blend into the background and do something. He usually keeps himself invisible, quiet, off to the side, keeping his expression at a standstill so no one who doesn’t know him well would be able to tell what’s on his mind.

This Yoongi panics. This Yoongi doesn’t know what expressionless means.

This Yoongi fears.

Only when Mingyu shows up do they finally convince him to get himself treated.

He sits in the room across the emergency room with Hoseok and Seokjin standing off to the side, getting treated by a doctor of their own, while the rest of them stand around outside, waiting for the hours that they know it’ll take to treat you.

Yuna, your blind warrior, sits on the floor of the hospital, her arms hugging her knees with anxiety rocking her body back and forth. She doesn’t say a word but everyone can hear the little sniffles she does ever so often.

She’s like a child waiting on the news of her mother’s accident and everyone knows if it’s bad news, she won’t take it well.

Yeonjun has a book in hand while he sits on a chair beside her, eyes scanning the text though no pages flip no matter how much time has passed.

“I’m sorry,” little Sunoo says when Mingyu crouches down to his level, finally allowing himself to shed the tears he’s been unable to shed in a room full of strangers. “I’m so sorry,” he tells your right hand man, fists knuckle white when he clutches onto his blazer. “I couldn’t protect her.”

Such little shoulders carrying a heavy weight. He worries more about your wellbeing than his own, than the fact that he had to see a whole building catching on fire with people still inside, hear gunshots and people dying, being held at gunpoint, the fact that he could have died and he worries only for you.

Mingyu places a hand on those shoulders, shaking his head. “No one will blame you for that, Sunoo. Not even boss.”

“You don’t understand, I…” He pauses to catch his voice that threatens to bury down the lump in his throat. “Do you remember what you told me when my lady finally completed her rescue plan? When I told you I wanted to be a Reaper?” How can Mingyu forget? “You told me I had to first learn how to manipulate my feelings, that I had to hide them well, and that I needed to learn how to restrain myself during times that’ll force me to act against my will. You told me I had to be a good bystander first and initially, I couldn’t figure out what you meant. Being a good bystander? It..”

More tears fall down those precious eyes, trailing down his cheeks, hanging onto his chin before they inevitably fall to the floor. “I understand now,” his voice breaks. “I know…I know what it means and I…I never want to do it ever again.” His feelings overwhelm him so much he’s unable to stand on his two feet. Sunoo’s knees buckle underneath him and it meets the floor yet he continues to speak. “Lady Y/N was hurting and she…she was chained up and she couldn’t even sit. They forced her to stand the whole time they tortured her. She screamed and…and yet she laughed when that evil lady taunted her and every time I wanted to give up, to yell at the lady to stop, Lady Y/N always warned me not to. It was like she was saying…as if she was saying ‘It’s alright. It’s alright, I can take this. Just play your part, just pretend you don’t care about me, and I’ll be alright.’”

“You must never show them you care. Father will have you dead and I will pay more of the consequences.”

“If you stay silent, it will hurt less.”

“Do not move even a muscle when they hurt me. Do not stand in father’s way or our whole secret will be blown and none of us will survive.”

“This is the only way we can live.”

Yuna’s eyes lost.

Yuna’s eyes are lost.

Yuna.

Yunayunayuna.

Nakyum.

You reminded them constantly of what could happen to them were the truth to be revealed due to a mishap, due to their carelessness. Sunoo had to go through days watching you hurt, the Reapers spent years in silence. Watching.

And no day was easier than the other. There was not a day they wanted to step in, to defend you, to take the whips and blades and all the torture tools from the hands of your perpetrators and shove it up their asses, doing the same they’ve done to you. There was not a day Mingyu wanted to smash his fists onto their faces until they were dead. No, he’d continue even after they were dead.

There was not a day they wanted the revolt to happen so soon.

The day after?

“No,” you’d say. “Be patient. Hold on.”

But they didn’t want to hold on, they didn’t want to see more of you having to go through all those pains and agony and yet they had to. If they wanted to save you, if they wanted you to live, they had to.

They had to stay silent.

They had to watch.

They had to do nothing.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t protect her,” Sunoo says.

“I wish I can protect her,” Yuna screams. “Why can’t I protect her?!”

“You know why.”

“You did well.” Mingyu squeezes his shoulders tight, lips pressed into a thin line. “You not protecting her protected her. You did well.” He places a hand behind his head, pressing him into an embrace and the kid cries and cries, his screams buried against Mingyu’s chest. “You did well,” Mingyu repeats. “They would have hurt her more if you had done something so you did well. You did so, so well.”

No one ever told them that but the Reapers know that they, too, had done well.

Everyone in the room knows just what Mingyu means when he said not protecting meant protecting because they’ve all been through it. Namjoon has the power to never go through such things ever again but he’s seen it time after time when he was younger.

Those days his brother still lived with him — still lived — with their abusive father, both of them unable to do a thing but watch when one would get hurt. Those days when times were rougher, when his brother left for a mission and his close subordinates had to keep still and not go against his father when he was hurt otherwise they’d die. Those days when he was powerless.

“Save me,” you begged Seokjin in a moment of madness.

So broken but so full of life before it all disappeared within a split second, turning dull and lifeless like a corpse inside a living body.

You’ve never uttered that in your entire life, have you? He’s sure you haven’t, not with the way you are. Even the you then was stubborn to call for help because she was too insecure, too hesitant and always overthought everything, walls built so high even the people she loved were unable to break through.

You were too broken to ask for help and they’ve been too dumb to realize it until now.

“Save me.”

Seokjin can never forget that day, he can never forget the way you froze when he held you, trying to reel you back into reality after your initial explosion. The way you shakily reached out for him, bloody hands dirtying his white button-up shirt, and looked up at him as if he was the only one you could trust in that moment.

Perhaps a memory flashed into your mind then, perhaps you remembered the way he used to care for you, the way he used to be the one to ground you when you broke down and were having panic attacks. He held onto you when the two of you still loved and you looked for him to calm down, to settle back into the peace he’d always give you when you saw him. He’d be the fastest to help you escape from those nightmares and return you from where your mind would go.

He’d sing lullabies to help you sleep and you’d rely on him the most when it came to nightmares because Seokjin was an insomniac. He didn’t sleep. So during times when you’d awake from a nightmare or needed someone to pull you out of it, it was Seokjin that was always there.

Perhaps in your moment of weakness, you remembered those times and perhaps that’s why you turned to him. That’s why you asked him to save you.

But he knows that right now, you’d get upset if he were to bring it up and take responsibility for you uttering those words to him. The things you’ve gone through after you left them, after the divorce with Namjoon, are things he can only imagine in his head. Seokjin has gone through his fair share of trauma and one traumatic patient can see it in another who wants to hide it well.

You’ve been through stuff, horrible stuff, with Daejung, Ying, Jummy, Leehyung, and so many more on your list. At first, he thought you taking over the throne of your father was just an act of rebellion, but through the times he’s spent with you, he realizes, as do the rest of the members, that the people on your hit-list, the people you’re going after, are only the people that have done you wrong.

Seokjin should have known that someone who was as kind and gentle as you were all those years ago couldn’t have just changed without reason. No one changes that drastically without reason.

But it’s clear as day to all of them that you’d rather they rot in hell than find out the truth to those reasons. That’s why Namjoon refuses to investigate anything involving you and that’s why they’ve all agreed that it’s best to simply leave it at that.

Namjoon wants to know more than anyone what happened to his brother but if finding out about him means knowing more about you, then he’d rather wait and let you tell him instead. Because through their experience, they know more than anyone that figuring out the truth of something when it’s unwanted will only hurt that person, and as much as Namjoon felt infuriated with you at first, he understands.

They all do.

And you would hate them more than you do now if they were to figure out something you’ve been keeping a secret your entire life. No one should ever force an answer out of anyone, and they know that because of your silence, they do not deserve to know.

So until you can trust them, if it ever comes to that point, they will remain ignorant to the fact on purpose. Because why find out when there is no reason to?

Seokjin can’t be your anchor, he won’t, because you no longer trust him enough to even touch you. You’re scared of the world, the whole world, and the only one who can now calm you down as fast as he had done then, is Mingyu, your second in command.

For now, his role is to only stand to the side and watch. Though he knows watching in itself is something you won’t allow him to do. You won’t let him see your weaknesses anymore, you won’t let him near, and you won’t ask him for help.

And all of that is entirely his fault.

#bts polyamory #bts poly #bts poly au #bts ot7 x reader #bts polyamorous #ot7 x reader #bts x reader #bts mafia au #mafia!bts #bts mafia #bts mafia!au #bts poly!au #poly!bts x reader #poly!bts #bts poly relationship #bts arranged marriage au #namjoon x reader #seokjin x reader #yoongi x reader #hoseok x reader #jimin x reader #taehyung x reader #jungkook x reader

[moltengoldveins]

hm yes emduo and bedrock bros and the eggs in Space. Phil is one of the last surviving members of a fragile but technically immortal species of elytrians that is now only whispered about in fairy tales. He’s a private investigator and enforcer (space pirate and muscle) for his beloved wife’s galaxy-wide uhhh….. Independent illegal group of people dedicated to protecting order and monitoring corruption? Gang of space pirates who steal from rich people? League of assassins but with morals? Unclear what the Syndicate Is Exactly but it sure do Be. He’s the pilot for the SBI Boreas, a light cruiser with a frankly Absurd munitions outfit. (Tubbo’s his mechanic) 

Techno is a member of the only recognized sentient deathworlder species, an odd mix of orc, elf, and pig features, and is by all accounts a living legend, or a living nightmare. He’s solidly twice the size of most other species, capable of surviving injuries what most would deem a death sentence, and a highly trained warrior to boot. Now, by all human accounts the texts of his people are pretty self-explanatory, (the Art of War is 89% Common Sense by volume) but in a galaxy of peaceful races on peaceful planets, it’s complex and brutal enough to be nigh-incomprehensible. He’s on a Lot of watchlists, but he’s also the like… platonic third partner in Phil and Madam Kristin, The Lady Of Death TM’s marriage??? So not a lot can be Done about him. 

Tommy is a younger avian teen (distant relation to the elytrians, definitely Not Immortal) who Techno found breaking into the Boreas and decided to keep (Phil took one look and his Dad Instincts kicked in) and his life is going swimmingly until he gets Yoinked for leverage against his dads and mum. The organization who gets him runs a blood sport colosseum, and while in transit his cage was stuck next to this weird hairless thing?? Chained with like Heavy Duty restraints. Tommy doesn’t have a ton of time to bond with this Strange Thing before the hostage negotiations happen, but they do manage to exchange names and Tommy decides with his classic impulsive passion that This Thing And He Are Brothers For Life Now. then the negotiations immediately go south, there’s a bit of a standoff, and Techno ends up trading himself for Tommy, which is what the organization wanted in the first place. They run a Reeeeally expensive exotic show for super Rich Jerks in an undisclosed location and Techno is their latest attraction. They’re also painfully cocky, and will be dying with extreme prejudice the moment Mumza gets her claws in them. 

So Techno gets Got and shoved in a high-security cell once they reach the colosseum, along with, surprise! This strange hairless creature with four limbs. It’s Chayanne, who is A Very Human Teenager who Did Not Want To Be Abducted By Aliens, Thank You. They’re both deathworlders, which Techno Does Not Realize until they get assigned to the same team a few weeks into the battles and watches Chay rip a bug man’s limbs off (Chay is Not having a good day. His dad (Missa) taught him self defense and was a martial artist, a butcher, and a rather morbid man, so some Relevant Knowledge and some general chillness around death is to be expected, but Not a chillness around KILLING PEOPLE FOR SPORT) Techno thinks this must be a fully grown adult whatever-it-is all the way until Chay breaks down crying and sounds Just Like a shoat (baby pig) and Techno feels the Dad Instinct rising again. 

Meanwhile, Halfway Across The Galaxy: the government has been developing space flight, but are really only at the borders of our solar system when they catch some aliens in the act of Yoinking another kid, this time from an orphanage (Tallula) they don’t manage to save her, but Holy Crap ALIENS???? Missa, who saw a bit of his son’s abduction but not enough to know exactly what happened, sees the news broadcast, puts two and two together and gets plot advancement. He starts pulling strings, asking about old connections in the space force (Cosmonaut Fit Emsi, godfather to Chayanne and Missa’s college best friend, may or may not be involved in the Turning Of Blind Eyes) and manages to get access to a hanger bay with a captured alien ship in it a few months after the incident in what might be the coolest heist sequence ever not-actually-written. (It’s very cool in my head, think Oceans 11 but the majority of the qsmp cast, trust me I swear.) He launches himself right into space and proceeds to systematically work his way through spaceport after waystation after colony planet in search of The Aliens Who Steal Human Kids (Specifically My Son) 

Techno is at this point playing the long game. He knows Kristin and Phil aren’t about to leave him hanging, and that they have enough firepower to burn this place to the ground, but he’s not sure when that’s gonna happen or how he’s gonna get Chay out. Meanwhile, Chay has No Idea what this strange Exceedingly Chill Pig Man has going on, but as far as he’s concerned, this is his life now. Forever. And making allies is important. They start trading languages and Techno starts teaching Chay katas (modified for the drastically different joint structure) in their free “big open space enrichment time.” (Side note: what aliens consider almost horrific cruel and unusual punishment is at worst severely unpleasant for humans. They just can’t take psychologically what humans can, so they kinda Have to treat their slaves better than we would. Doesn’t mean it’s good treatment, but it does mean Chay and Techno are both doing significantly better than they could be.)

Finally, Phil and Kristen rock up to the party incognito, dressed to the nines and attending a Big Event To Show Off Our New Deathworlders. They see Techno in the ring and have to Play It Cool, but he seems to be doing ok actually, so that’s good. Eventually the Head Honcho Man gets into a discussion with Phil right by the viewing window, so Phil has to pretend he’s fine when he sees a door open in the arena and A @:&;!ING HUMAN STEP OUT AND SQUARE OFF WITH HIS BEST FRIEND. (Shockingly, being immortal tends to inform you of such things like Secret Deathworlds and their Scary Inhabitants) Kristin is of course Immediately On The Move, but it turns out to be not necessary: Chay just kinda strolls up to Techno and gives him a side hug (bLEASE, you want me to fight my Roommate? Get out) and while Phil is laughing to himself, the Head Honcho gets maaaaad. He pulls it around though, announcing that he “already knew the two monsters had bonded the way only such vicious creatures could, and will be giving them a challenge only they could hope to face!!” And releases, like, four of the heccin Dune sand worms into the arena. Techno and Chay proceed to fight like demons while Phil and his squad take out the party and Kristen and her squad sweep the lower levels of the colosseum in an effort to keep More Worms out of the arena. Slavers die horribly. The end. 

Meanwhile, halfway across the galaxy: Missa returns!! Now with Even More Rage! His ship has broken down and because he ain’t got no Space Green Card, he’s got to get it repaired at a place that’ll take anyone. Enter Tubbo Underscore, Syndicate Member and Tinkerer Extraordinaire. Tubbo takes one look at this guy and goes “yeah that’s not a normal guy there’s something Wrong here” and through a series of pointed questions (and aggressive preening by Benson, a rather horrifying eldritch duck-dog thing the size of a small horse) Missa eventually explains why he’s in space. Tubbo, having just recently repaired Philza H Minecraft’s ship on its way to wipe out a gladiator ring, puts two and two together to make more plot, explains his Theory, and decides to accompany Missa, getting them into the next Syndicate raid on this organization. They, along with an undercover agent by the code name of Boo (It’s a word in Old Enderian that means ‘Eldritch’ or ‘Unknowable.’ Missa has to choke to keep from laughing) storm a freighter and rescue a bunch of valuable slaves and also!! Sunny and Tallulah! They have different first languages, Sunny was treated Significantly Cushier by the slavers than Lulah bc she was younger and viewed a bit more like a pet than a fighter, and they haven’t really spoken to one another before the rescue, so their rough start happens at this point. Cue Missa and Tubbo # Struggling to keep these two feral children from each others throats while they keep searching (‘Chay was literally never this bloodthirsty, the heck???’ -Missa, holding two backpack leashes apart while the girls are trying to strangle each other) 

Meanwhile on the Boreas: CHAY AND TOMMY REUNION POG???? Techno formally adopts Chay according to his culture (think Mandalorian, but to the left) and Chay has enough language to understand, but not enough to inquire about, yknow, whether Going Back To Earth is an option. As far as the Boreas crew know, it isn’t: Earth is a no-fly zone and Chay’s been out here for nearly a year and a half. They have no idea how they’d begin to get him home. 

Then finally, on a Syndicate-owned spaceport in the middle of nowhere, Missa finds the Boreas and sees his kid across a crowded bazaar. They hug, it’s super dramatic, very tearful, (Phil and Kristen are already planning his room on the ship: if they’re gonna coparent, they’re gonna do it Right) and after a bit of waffling, both Chay and Missa decide it’s for the best if they spend some time in space before heading back to earth, what with the whole “definitely stole a star fighter and wanted by the government, the entire world knows about aliens now” bit. There is fluff. There is cultural sharing. There is hair braiding. It’s amazing. 

Then comes my literal favorite space au trope Ever: a few days into the new and improved Boreas gang’s voyage, their ship is boarded by (shock, horror) a group of Human Pirates and the crew is Immediately captured. Turns out: it’s kinda hard to keep the existence of an entire galactic community from Everyone on Earth, and these are guys who, similar to Missa, yoinked a spaceship from their military and went rogue. (I’m putting Quackity here, cause I love charismatic villain Quackity and I think it works) they pirates are very VERY “humans are gonna expand to cover the universe” “might makes right” “come, join us, and together we can rule the galaxy” about it when they realiz Missa and Chay are aboard, and the Boreas crew honestly expects Missa and Chay to join them. They’re human! They speak the same language! They value the same things! Obviously they’re gonna take that way out, we wouldn’t even blame them! (Techno feels pretty betrayed but Phil/Kristen/Tommy just look resigned) Missa and Chay play along, pretend to hate their ‘alien captors,’ and arm themselves “to help them secure the ship.”

What follows is a rather emotionally charged but Very Very Cool sequence in which Missa and Chayanne use the skills they gained in their unfortunate struggles across the galaxy to Clean House, clearing their home the ship room by room until they’ve got a pile of bloodied and unconscious or dead humans and a very very shocked new family. There might be a bit more plot after this as the family settles, perhaps a sequel made of short stories, but this is generally the end.

The epilogue is five years later, when Fit Emsi, head of the new Intergalactic Human Intergalactic Relations Organization and Expansion Section (HIROES) has his monthly checkup call with Missa and Chay, who’re having a blast with Techno and Phil and Tommy traveling the universe. Fit calls them in to consult in cultural stuff during the negotiations with, yknow, the Actual Galactic Government, the one that views the Syndicate as a crime organization, but it’s pretty well known at this point that Mumza is In Charge Of Things on the Downlow, and Fit’s still Chay’s godfather for heavens sake: there’s simply nothing the government can Do about it. Tubbo has adopted Sunny and Chay took one look at Talulah and decided “Thats My Little Sister.” Phil apparently has had a crisis recently related to some kind of ancient evil ex long thought dead, but is on the road to recovery. Everyone lives happily ever after, the end. 

#molten rambles #mcyt #dsmp #qsmp #fanfic #fanfiction prompt #au concept #qsmp chayanne #qsmp philza #qsmp technoblade #technoblade #philza #emduo #emerald duo #bedrock bros #ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED TUMBLR #DO YOU NOT SEE MY VISION #IS IT NOT GLORIOUS

[thedevillovesflowers]

Angels +Plot 🪽🪽🪽

Call of Duty AU

In this AU, there are many beasts but angels are the ultimate prize to capture or hunt.

Angels are not the heavenly beings you read about in bibles but rather they are a type of humanoid with the capability of flight, long lifespans, and the believed healing powers.

Angels are extremely rare creatures to spot. They are known to live solitary lives, however it has been documented they might live with exception of small families/groups.

Angels are omnivores. And can see in the dark. Most prefer to fly at night so they won’t be seen by humans.

Angels can come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Their wingspans vary depending on their height. There are also subspecies of angels.

Angels wing colours/patterns vary on the regions they reside in (think of owls and other birds of prey). For vanity, some angels will paint the tips of their wings to attract a mate.

Feathers are apparent on various parts of their bodies, legs, arms, chest, face etc. Braiding, preening, beads in the hair are comfort acts angels do, and to also show affection for one another.

Facial feathers are small, usually appearing on the forehead, cheeks, nose and chin.

Angels are either described as beautiful creatures, or terrifying ones, depending on who you ask.

Kingdoms would hire mercenaries to hunt down rare beasts to hang up for display, profit, or for pets.

But no one has ever captured an angel. Not yet. But then, a powerful king (Shepard) put together a campaign to capture one, he hired the 141 along with his own general, Graves (and his shadow company) to do the task. What the 141 doesn’t know, is that the king is dying of old age, he believes that capturing and killing an angel and using their blood will grant him long life and youth.

141 has slain/captured many beasts in their careers, so getting an angel was a challenge they were willing to take. I know this seems cruel of them, but in this AU they start off as thinking their helping people out by getting rid of beasts, but they’ll soon learn that what they’re doing is actually harmful.

The reader is an angel, living with their family in the mountains and caves.

One night, the reader set out to retrieve food, until she was shot down by a net the 141 cast, severely damaging her wing. And her family had to flee, leaving the reader behind sadly.

While graves and his men hung back, price, Gaz, soap and ghost went ahead to investigate.

Ghost went first, sword drawn, slowly rounding to the forest’s opening to where you laid. Rope held tightly over your body, one of your wings was cut and broken. You were unconscious, facing away from him. There was feathers strewn about everywhere, and as ghost came closer and walked around to see you clearly, he suddenly halted dead in his tracks, a terrible feeling pinched in his stomach….

You were the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen.

(This is just an idea for now, I might draw this.)

#call of duty #cod modern warfare #cod mw2 #ghost mw2 #art #simon ghost riley #soap mw2 #gaz mw2 #price mw2 #mw2 x reader #mw2 fanfic #simon ghost x reader #ghost call of duty #ghost x reader #ghost mwii #mw2 #cod mw soap #cod mw ghost #call of duty mwii

[bubuslutty]

cod word vomit

title: the bear in the witch's hut.

pairing: witch fem!reader x captain John price

word count: 1k

a/n: I had to write this out or I'll throw up. I'm so in love with this man it's actually so fucking pathetic. he should spit in my mouth and make me his already.

fantasy/medieval au where the British island is at war and most of the neighbouring countries are at war with each other.

Not only human lives are used for the pursuit of power, but also animals, magical creatures, mages, and anything in between, soiling the earth in vain.

This has been going on for years, and hope seems to be lost year by year, more people are dying of disease, curses and hunger, or straight out killed by enemies.

Everything seems almost lost when a woman rises amidst hopeless war generals and kings, demanding she would create her own unit, to find a solution to these massacres.

That was Kate Laswell.

Along the way she collects a bunch of unique people, making it their own mission to do the impossible, stop the war, at all costs, by any means necessary.

John Price was the captain, the leading man of their unit, and the man who trusted Laswell to guide them, and who also trusted him in exchange. The man has been in the army for gods knows how long. The war started a couple of years after he was born, so he pretty much lived his whole life in the middle of the said war.

John couldn’t sit and watch people he knew and loved get killed and families getting ripped apart, so he enlisted as soon as he was of age, leaving to war and leaving his sick father and weeping mum behind.

The man has seen and been through a lot. He has been through so much and yet he hasn’t given up, yet. And to keep him going, he was granted leave once in a while, to visit his dad and mum back on their farm. And then one day, the village nearby gets attacked while John is at home, with his parents, and he gets his sword and goes down to help.

Enemy troops are out there, out for blood. And no matter how many soldiers John slays, they keep coming, and he realises he’s outnumbered, they’re outnumbered, him and the few men and women who can still walk on both feet and carry the weight of metal on wooden handles.

Then like an answered prayer, rhythmic gallops shake the ground. A hot gust of wind hits John on the face, making him hold his breath and lock eyes with her.

A witch on a high dark horse, eyes and hands glowing as the soldiers around them start to burn alive. Of course, she wasn’t the only one, there were more witches that came out of nowhere to defend the village from the enemy troops. But John couldn’t give less of a fuck about any other witch but the one who jumped down her horse, no a trace of fear in her face and teeth bared as she burns her enemies without even touching them.

And John is soooo royally fucked, his eyes are stuck on her face, and everything is happening in slow motion in his head, that is until he notices a soldier running behind her, sword in hand, and he reacts in half a second and sticks his sword in the man’s throat, right over her shoulder. And oh, her eyes are so much prettier up close.

Things happen, and a couple of leaves later, he ends up getting married under a sessile oak tree to the witch he never thought he would love so fast and so deeply. His mum is at his side, his dad is buried down at the cemetery, and a neighbour was kind enough to marry them off and Kyle, or Gaz, was there as a witness. And it is so far, John’s happiest day in his life.

However, war was still happening and John was needed to lead soldiers for country and Queen. So he was more gone than present, but his dear witch understood and never made him feel guilty for being needed elsewhere other than her side or his mother’s. After all, she too has a job to do and it’s to protect their village and the innocent and vulnerable.

This goes on for about a year until the witch had enough and decides to pack up and leave, but without making sure John’s mum was somewhere safe. Nothing improved and things were getting worse and worse, no matter how hard she tried, and no matter how hard the witches tried their best to heal, to rebuild, to protect, it was not nearly enough.

She travels day and night, on her trusty horse, and crosses rivers, forests, and mountains to reach John’s current base. And fate was on her side because when she arrived, they only arrived two days ago back from a mission. John was shocked at first, immediately assuming the worst, maybe the whole village burned down, maybe the farm was attacked and they got his mum, maybe-

His dearest reassures him, telling him everything is fine, as fine as anything could be in war at least. And John kisses her like he doesn’t need to breathe, and then he realises with a shudder that everything is about to change with the arrival of his wife. What’s not going to change is the snickers and annoying teasing of his men, now worse that they get to actually meet the woman who so easily wrapped him around her finger.

Hope and determination swell in his chest now that his love is by his side. And she proves herself to be a great asset already because as soon as she notices the ugly bash on Soap’s forehead, she corners him and fixes him up with a whisper and a caress of her hand.

John feels stronger, more focused and more relaxed, his shoulders tensing less every time he hears her voice or sees her walk by, busying herself around the base. But he also feels more anxious, and the responsibility gets heavier on his shoulders, because not only he has to watch out for his men, but also for the love of his life. He can’t fail her. He’ll do anything in his power to get her the future she wants, a humble home, a piece of land and little feet running around, screams and laughs bouncing off the walls, calling for their momma and daddy.

if u want more do reblog with a comment or tags, or send an ask.

tag list (pls ask to be added or removed): @obiwankenobis-lap @goapgrim @smalldemonlover @silviafantin15 @bobastayhigh  

#bubuslutty writes #cod mw2 #captain john price x reader #captain john price smut #john price x reader #captain john price #john price #captain john price x female reader #john price imagine #john price x female reader #john price x y/n #john price x you #john price fanfic #captain price smut #captain price #captain price x reader #captain price x female reader #captain price x you #captain price x y/n #captain price fanfiction #cod mw2 x reader #the bear in the witch's hut

[sh1-n0bu]

Okay (takes a deep breath) HELLO

I hope you are doing well..So I recently started following you. I'M JUST IN LOOOOVE IN YOUR WRITING

so I had like this angst idea.I'm a sadist.I enjoy putting my fav characters through hell

Angst ask ( I'm still confused about the rules so please forgive me)

Angst (little yandre s/o)

Let's say that we're m/n and we love our s/o very much. We have a vision and we're like the perfect person to exist on teyvat (I literally met a like this person today) looks 100👍 personality (cute, caring and strong ofc) anyway buff them as much u want.So we went on a mission almost died by getting injured.Somehow made it back to s/o's special day.Spend the whole day with them while dying (u know tanjiro who never dies no matter how much injuries he has) like that.But we got ambushed in middle of nowhere .S/o got hit first and became a burden. Can't fight because of the injury (for s/o) and became almost paralyzed and barely killing the enemies.On the other hand we're dying before but everything crashed and we're fighting with death and enemies and had to protect s/o also (S/O was really weak today and we took the hit again for them and finish the whole fight alone) we almost or say SAYONARA BITCH and maybe die on them or our vision is losing it's glow quickly and we are drowning in our own blood

Ur choice

The self hate part (while the're paralyzed) their dark thoughts are talking over them

It's their fault for being so useless

It's their fault we are almost dead or dead

It's their fault

Their fault

Ahhh sorry because this shit is so long

I had more on my brain ehehehe

Anyway if you don't like it please feel free to ignore it

Loooooove you

(⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)⁠❤

😈anon (The emojis are so messed up in this device)

Have a great year ahead

Best of luck

Byeeeeee

✿ 𝙖𝙘𝙘𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 ✿

characters: 6reeze x nb!reader

warnings: blood, fighting, canon typical violence, reader has vision, almost dying, angst, light crack and fluff

notes: WOOOO man 😈 nonnie bby you popped off for this one! also wtf nobu is still alive y’all 😨😨

definitely the type to blame himself the most if the people he loves and cares for would get injured, even if he was in another nation when it happened

you get that feeling of immense guilt when you accidentally step on your pet and they yowl very loudly in pain and you want to apologize and pet them to soothe them but they’re backing away from you?

yeah take that feeling and multiply it ten times, that’s how aether felt when he heard your pained shout when trying to get yourselves away from the ambush

when he saw your body fall down to the dirt with blood slowly seeping into the grass, painting the beautiful field in heartbreaking red, he blanked out

only came to himself when your hand touched his cheek, reminding him that you’re both alive as paimon sobs between you two

he was just so worried that you will leave him behind just like lumine and he couldn’t help the aching feeling of his heart being stabbed as his eyes felt more watery and his throat clenched up

aether already lost a loved one and he’s desperately trying to find her and bring her back, so please be careful and always come back to him and paimon

sobbing into your shoulder as his arms wrapped tightly around your body, the blonde traveler couldn’t tell if the wetness he feels on his cheeks is either from his tears or your blood. and he can’t make out any noises other than the ringing, the terrified thumps of his heart and paimon’s sobs. were you alive? please be alive.

feeling a hand wipe away his tears, aether pulled back from sobbing to your shoulders as he looks at you with wide and puffy eyes. you were alive!

tackling you down into a hug, he ignored your pained grunt as he wailed loudly into your chest. clinging to your shirt, weakly hitting your shoulders as he rambled about being more careful and to never make him nor paimon this worried ever again.

“yeah yeah… but aether we need to patch ourselves up before we bleed out to death”.

“…oh”.

the karmic debt that eats away at his mind, body and heart is always on the brink of taking over and turning him into a mindless, raging beast

and thanks to his karma, the guardian yaksha is always at the tip of his feet. ready to run away, desert himself or if needed to, spread out his golden wings and fly far far away where he would harm no one. only himself

sadly it was another day where his karma was at it’s worst. every single movement, shifting of muscles feeling like they’re being torn apart, every little inhale and exhale of breath feeling like his lungs are being stabbed

that’s when it happened. the ambush, the fatui, the accident - it all happened too fast for the adepti to even realize what was going on until something wet splatters on his cheek

blood. your blood

at that, the guardian yaksha put on his mask, uncaring of the agony in his body as he dashes between the ambushers, swiftly taking them down before returning to your side

feeling a shaky hands trying and failing miserably over and over to wrap a bandage around your torso, you manages to crack an eye open to stare at the blurry figure of your boyfriend. faintly you could hear him cuss under his breath as his weak state tries to stop the bleeding with trembling hands. from fear? anxiety? his own karma? you didn’t know and neither did he.

“shit shit shit shit! just stay awake [name]! we’re almost at the wangshu inn!”

noticing your eyes growing hazy, he places a hand on your shoulder and gently shakes you, causing you to grunt in pain. shit was that the wrong move? did he accidentally caused your injuries to worsen?

the touch of your hand covering his own gloved ones snaps him out of his inner tantrum as he looks at your face.

“idiot… why are you smiling?”

“hahah… calm down, love… it’s not that deep. we can walk to the wangshu inn together…”

as the most famous detective and doushin of inazuma, heizou tends to attract a few ill intention carrying people to himself. and that’s precisely why he always tries to keep your relationship a secret even if he desperately wants to hold your hand in public, take you out on nice dates and see the many beautiful sceneries together

alas, not all relationships can exactly be happy go lucky. more so if the person your in a relationship with is the most successful detective of inazuma

all it happened in a blink of an eye. you and him were just supposed to take a nice walk around the beaches together at late night without too many prying eyes and curious whispers, yet heizou seems to have underestimated just how dirty the kairagi can play

the detective even tried threatening when the gang of treasure hunters and nobushis didn’t budge, instead deciding to attack straight at the two of you. the anemo user was fast but the treasure hoarders were too many for him to handle, causing both of you to end up injured

when seeing your bleeding chest, his breath hitches. hands starting to shake, breathing picking up pace as his mind goes back in a memory lane, way back to when his first and only childhood friend laid dying in his arms with the stupid green pebble clutched in his hand

was this real? was that incident happening all over again? no. no no no no, he can’t - he couldn’t lose you. not you. anyone but you -

feeling your weight slump over his shorter frame, the detective snaps out of his momentary panic attack. as your arm comes up to rest on his shoulder, the wine colored haired young man understands your intention. wrapping his own arm around your middle, heizou guides yourselves back to inazuma city as fast as he could support your larger frame.

“hehe… seems like… people might just find out that we’re dating huh ‘zou?”

“heh… just keep your energy and keep walking [name]”

only when hearing that your wounds weren’t in fatal places did shikanoin managed to breathe out a sigh of relief. shoulders sagging as he feels the heavy weight of anxiety slip off of his body, the doushin enters the room you’re resting in to give you a nice long lecture to never jump in front of him to use yourself as a shield again.

after living in hundreds of years under the perfectly hidden disguise, the anemo archon has seen and heard everything the world had to offer. from the joys of his people during festivals to now, the familiar, disgusting feeling of dread churning in his stomach as he waits for your healing to finish

it was a sudden ambush, he was told by the small group you were traveling with. apparently a few abyss heralds had shown up, causing you to use your pyro vision too much to the point you ended up burning your own self

venti couldn’t sit still. pacing back and forth in front of the door of the cathedral, tapping his feet anxiously, fiddling with the necklace you lovingly placed around his collarbone on your relationship’s first year anniversary - now feeling like he was being choked by the gift he treasured

after what seems like hours, the door opens and he’s let in to meet you

you were staying in one of the emergency rooms at the back of the cathedral. the soft glow of the sunset peeking in through the window shining down on your unconscious body, making him feel a mix of awe at your visage but also dread at the amount of pain your body could possibly be going through

dragging a chair up to sit beside your bed, the bard decides to stay beside your recovering figure until you wake up

grunting and shifting, you could feel the bright afternoon sun beating down on you. it felt unconscious and annoying, why didn’t venti close the curtains? he knows how much you hate the afternoon sun.

wait… venti… curtains…

forcing your eyes to open up, you felt a soft tiny weight laying down on your chest right over your beating heart. bringing a bandaged hand up, you poked at the small figure of the wind spirit.

ah right… the accident with the traveling and the abyss heralds.

at the fifth poke, the tiny wind spirit seems to wake up. yawning, the little guy sits up on your chest before his sleepy hazed mind finally realizes you’re awake.

throughout the rest of the afternoon and way into the night, some of the sisters in the cathedral could hear your voice talking back to an angry sounding chirps. they decided to just act like it never happened and continue on with their work.

“human life is worthless”.

that’s what the puppet always scoffs whenever he comes across a grave or reminded of your mortality by your silly questions of “will you remember me after i’m dead?”

and yet why was he screaming his lungs out as he shakes your unconscious body in his arms?

why was it raining? why was his eyes wet even with the wide brimmed hat covering his face?

… why were you bleeding in the middle of the avidya forest?

after having a meltdown over your paling body, wanderer decides to act quick and take you to someone named tighnari. you’ve introduced the two while you were showing the puppet around sumeru, “he’s great with medicine and is one of the best forest rangers” he could remember your smiling fave as he recalls your words

scooping up your body into his arms, the former harbinger uses his anemo vision to fly towards the small village where the forest ranger is located

bursting in through the front door, wanderer nervously calls out for tighnari as he disregards the many looks of worry, fear and pity around him. he just needed to get you to help fast

it had been a few days since your lover had found you bruised and bleeding on avidya forest’s grounds. there’s not a single moment where he’s gotten up and left your side. not even once, not even when the fennec fox pesters him that he should look out for his own health as well.

just how the fuck was he supposed to look over himself when you could very well be on the thin line between life and death?

it was on the fourth day when the puppet felt your fingers twitch in his gentle grasp. sitting up straight, he sits closer to your unconscious body, hoping, praying to the archons that any sign could be seen or heard.

and this time, the archons seems to have took pity on the poor heartbroken puppet as you shifted and groaned, finally starting to wake up. he breathed out a sigh of relief, a single stray tear falling down his puffy eyes as he wipes it away before cradling your cheeks in his hands tenderly.

“welcome back, darling…”

oh gosh imagine the amount of ptsd flashbacks, panic attacks and self blaming this man gets when he sees you get injured

even worse, when you two are fighting together on the battlefield

when you would get injured his state of mind is immediately reverting back to tomo’s death. the blank vision of his friend, the lightning that incarnated his flesh and bones leaving behind nothing to burry, nothing to remember him by, the sheer absolute helplessness the kaedehara felt

acting on pure instincts alone, the samurai scoops up your bleeding body in his arm and he does the same thing he has done before. run.

only when far away from the ambush place and their chasers could no longer be seen or heard does he allows himself to breathe

placing down your injured body, kazuha brings out a few rolls of bandages as he looks over your wounds

was it in a lethal place? how deep was it? did the ambushers had elemental powers? he didn’t know nor could he remember. his vision is just red as his chest heaves, mind being overridden with nothing but panic

this scenery, this moment, this feeling - it was all too familiar to the poor samurai, he couldn’t even comprehend what was real or what was fake

everything was too much

that was, until he feels your hand tugging on his kimono sleeve

finally taking a few deep breaths to calm his mind and racing heart, kaedehara starts to patch up your wounds, albeit a bit sloppily with his trembling hands

staggering with your taller frame leaning on his shorter one for support, kazuha could make out beidou and the crux members’ surprised and worried shouts as some of them drops the luggage they were moving into the ship, instead running over to the couple to aid their members.

as one of the men take your unconscious body away from him, kazuha finds himself following behind wordlessly to the med room. archons was the blood on his white kimono yours? have you truly lost this much blood?

… would you be okay?

snapping himself out of his sudden dark thought, the wandering samurai feels beidou place a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. she could see the young man wasn’t injured, then that would only mean all of the blood on him is from you.

quietly standing together, the captain and the samurai awaits for the medic to finish patching you up. becoming a comforting pillar to lean on to each other as some time passes until the medic finally comes out with a small smile.

just by looking at the medic, kazuha knew you would pull through. that was how you always were. strong and steady, just like the geo vision you had mastered.

#nobu.writes #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact x reader angst #genshin impact x you #genshin x you #genshin impact x y/n #genshin x y/n #genshin drabbles #genshin x reader #genshin x reader angst #scaramouche x reader #wanderer x reader #wanderer x you #wanderer x y/n #aether x reader #aether x you #aether x y/n #traveler x reader #kazuha x reader #kazuha x reader angst #kazuha x you #kazuha x y/n #heizou x reader #heizou x you #heizou x y/n #venti x reader #xiao x reader #venti x you #xiao x you #😈 anon

[zeroducks-2]

I love your new ask chart you made—How does 30, X, and Sladick sound??

Hi guys ♥♥ thank you so much! I hope you don’t mind that you got lumped together!

30. Tortured together + C. “Let me have this one” + X. “It’s so cold” - Dick Grayson/Slade Wilson

(TW: blood, non-graphic torture, needles, long post)

Dick dangles from his chains like a dead body would, not an ounce of strength in his arms and not the faintest attempt of balancing on the balls of his feet; he just hangs heavily and Slade feels like a part of himself is seeping out of him at the same rate as the kid’s heart pumps blood out of his wounds. 

Slade hadn’t initially been worried about his own capture. Not the first time it happens, likely not the last. He has a lot of enemies with a lot of resources, he’s been held captive by superheroes and supervillains alike and he knows he’ll get out. But then they brought in Nightwing, bloody and battered to the point of being hard to tell it was actually him, but Slade would recognize him even if he was zipped up in a body bag. They hung him by the wrists to that cross-like structure, not unlike the one Slade is strapped to, and a registered voice announced that watching the boy die was going to function as retribution for the blood Slade had spilled. They provided names and surnames of who the blood actually belonged to, but it’s not like it mattered anyway.  

It’s against Slade’s protocol to show that he cares about a hostage, but it doesn’t look like he needs to show anything here; he and Dick have been kept close, so close in fact that Slade has been able to pick up the way the kid’s breathing and heartbeat change, the subtle glances Dick has been sending him from time to time, and even the smallest twitches and jerks his body made as he kept taking beatings and pain. 

It’s been… a while. Slade is not sure how long. They douse both of them with icy cold water every once in a while, but there doesn’t seem to be a pattern. They never unbind their arms and a needle taped to Slade’s arm constantly pumps him full of a foul dark thing which inhibits his metagene, takes away his strength and keeps his head foggy enough he can’t think of a plan… but. But his healing factor hasn’t been inhibited entirely, and his skin has been slowly but consistently pushing the needle out while regenerating. It is out now, still hidden by the tape, and Slade is sobering up and his strength is returning, soon he will manage to break free of those chains. But he doesn’t know when “soon” is exactly going to be, and right now Dick is dying. 

Someone walks in and it’s like they know exactly what is happening because they are uncapping a syringe, dangerously looking at Dick while they’re at it.

«I suppose you would want to say something to him.» The young man announces, regarding Slade with an emotionless expression like whatever was alive and vibrant inside of him just withered off at some point. «You robbed me of saying goodbye to my father and sister. But I’m not like you, and I will grant you the chance to say goodbye.»

Slade remembers that contract. He won’t focus on the details now but it was a nasty business… the sister in question was a chemist selling her produce to the highest bidder, which then distributed it to various drug lords of three major cities of the east coast. The father was… a collateral victim. It doesn’t really matter now, he’s killed very many people for very many reasons anyway.

«So, any last words you want him to hear?» The boy insists, eyeing an unconscious Dick for a brief moment. «He might not actually hear them, but he’s going to be dead soon. You might as well try.»

Oh, they’re just trying to humiliate him, Slade knows. This is not compassion. «I don’t have anything to say to him. I have something to say to you.» He comments in the flattest tone he can manage. «Let me have this one. He’s been tortured enough while I have barely been touched. I won’t die with that injection, you and I both know this… it is going to hurt me though, a lot. Give it to me.»

«You don’t understand, Wilson. I want you to watch him die. You’ll-»

«You’re a chemist too. Just like your sister.» Slade insists, sharpening his eye. «You know this will not kill me if you inject me. It’ll just make the torture longer and more painful, which is exactly what you want.»

The young man seems to consider, or anyway uses some more precious seconds to think about it. «And why would you want to prolong the torture. You know both you and him are not going to get out of this alive.» He turns to Dick again, then back to Slade. «If I were you I’d just allow him to stop suffering now.»

«Because,» Slade licks his lips, they’re chapped but his mouth is as dry as it can be, so the gesture doesn’t yield much. «As long as he breathes I can hope that you will change your mind and let him go. And I’d prefer to hope for one more day.»  

Something shifts in the boy’s expression, and the dull emptiness of his eyes grows anguished for a moment. «This might actually kill you.» He says and tilts the syringe. «It probably will. I am indeed a chemist but my sister was the genius, and this toxin she crafted could flat-line any meta.» He takes one small step towards Slade. «Do you still want it?»

«Yes.» Slade replies, not even startled by how he didn’t really need to think about it for a fraction of a second. 

«Are you sure? He’s most likely going to die anyway. And I’m not letting him go even after you’re dead, Wilson.»

«Just give me the goddamn injection, boy.» Slade hisses between gritted teeth, muscles flexing in the restraints that don’t break, he doesn’t have his strength yet. «Come on.»

There’s a beat of silence, then another. Then the young man nods, very vaguely but he still does, and lifts the syringe more while taking another step towards Slade. The idea of watching him die a very painful death has to be too enticing, exactly as Slade was hoping. And then Dick is raising his head, his only visible eye open wide, something wild in the bloodshot and blue. In the quickest, most fluid moment Slade has ever seen he pulls his lower body up like he had no weight, and locks both legs around their captor’s neck, yanking him back and away from Slade. 

«No!» The mercenary yells as the struggling man chokes, digging nails into Dick’s thigh with one hand, and trying to stab him with the syringe with the other. But before he can manage there’s the telltale dull crack of bones snapping, then his arms grow limp and fall down, and then both him and Dick drop. The latter is still dangling from his bindings while the former hits the ground with a thud, his neck bending unnaturally. 

It takes five more minutes for Slade’s strength to return, enough so he can break free of his own restraints. He’s still way weaker than he should, his muscles are numb from lack of use. He forces them to work anyway.

«Talk to me, Grayson.» He grunts as he holds the kid to the chest after breaking his restraints as well, forcing himself to give a quick check to his wounds and patch up the most severe ones, or Dick isn’t going to survive their escape. There’s a muted mumble in response but Slade hears it anyway, and he thinks Dick just said they should be on a first name basis at this point. He snorts despite himself but it sounds choked like he was about to cry. «We have been for a while now, haven’t we…» He replies, stripping pieces of the dead man’s shirt for makeshift bandages, making sure Dick’s wounds stop bleeding. «You need to stay with me now, kid. Can you do that?»

Dick nods. His face is swollen, cut and bruised, he’s barely recognizable, and Slade prevents himself from holding him too tight because his kid is in so much pain already. He should really stop feeling like crying, though. «Talk to me.» He repeats, carefully pulling a black lock from Dick’s forehead. 

«’s so cold.» The other murmurs through split and chapped lips, and Slade doesn’t manage to stop himself any longer and hugs him to his chest, his body is indeed so cold. He’s lost so much blood. 

«I know, little bird.» He says to the side of Dick’s head, breathing in and out and pulling himself together. «Let’s get the hell out of here.»

Here's the ask game! Feel free to prompt me again or reblog it yourself.

#long post #Sladick #my asks #my fanfiction #dark prompt game #whump #thanks for the prompt guys!

[badass-queer-couples-battle]

Gay wrongs tournament, round 1 of the losers bracket

Propaganda:

For Kid and Killer:

there’s some somewhat recent anime episodes where there’s a lot of “I would do anything for you” “I would put my life on the line for you” and it’s just. There’s no way they’re not dating. Also they’re big scary pirates that pillage and fuck stuff up and we love that for them

They have been together committing crimes and killing people ever since childhood and they’re not about to stop any time soon

They are badass pirates who both have a huge bounty on their head. Killer's epithet is 'Massacre Soldier/Murder Mashine' (depending on the translation), so he probably got quite some blood on his hands. Kid is his captain, and has a reputation of not caring about civilian casualties and destroying more than necessary to defeat his opponent. Also, the whole crew crusified some other crew. But besides being murderous, these two care so fucking much about each other! They've been friends (lovers?) since childhood and would literally do anything for each other, including dying. Kid will destroy anyone who laughs at his partner (how he canonically calls Killer), lets himself be recaptured just after he escaped prison to save his partner, and Killer eats a faulty SMILE fruit that stops him from portraying any other emotion than laughing, makes him unable to swim, and doesn't gain him any powers, just to get a CHANCE to save his captain. When Kid saw him laugh while he obviously didn't want to, it broke his heart in many pieces (and ours with it). It's true love, your honor. True, murderous love.

For Wylan van Eck and Jesper Fahey:

Jesper is a sharpshooter that never misses a hit, Wylan is a demolitions expert, once Wylan sang a national anthem to save Jesper from some guards

So Jesper is a high profile member of this gang called the Dregs, he’s their sharpshooter. He also has a serious gambling problem and actually enjoys his job because it gives him the same adrenaline high. Wylan is brought in on this big impossible heist, officially as the demolitions expert, but really because he’s actually the runaway son of the man who is meant to pay them and so he’s insurance that they get their money. They are both incredibly talented at destruction, undermining governments and killing several people. At one point they end up with a tank. At another Wylan makes a chemical concoction that gives off the appearance of plague scars in a city with serious plague related trauma, setting off all the alarms and sending the whole place into utter anarchy. Jesper shoots a man around a corner. Also this quote exists. Jesper:‘I'm not big on killing unconscious men." Wylan:"We could wake them up." This is even funnier when you consider that Wylan is a skinny freckled ginger who’s basically a glorified chemist and possesses no social skills. I love him so much.

That quote from the book where Jesper was like "I'm not gonna kill unconscious people" about a bunch of knocked out enemies and Wylan was like "Well can't we wake them up then?"

#losers bracket round 1 #one piece #six of crows #grishaverse #shadow and bone #eustass kid #wylan van eck #jesper fahey #one piece killer

[shorthaltsjester]

taliesin and laura remain truly so fantastic at making characters who… don’t necessarily have something extremely and inherently in common but do have experiences that were caused by similar sources and that lead them to have quite different opinions/ideas about things but in ways that are typically very reconcilable? which is a lot of qualifiers but it’s a through line of vex/percy with nobility, jester & cad with loneliness (and also god stuff but in a different post maybe someday i’ll talk about how actually their god stuff is intensely related to their different experiences of loneliness), and now imogen & ashton with being left behind.

like vex was this character who technically had a claim to nobility due to her blood but at the same time was burdened because of that same claim. and percy who was born into and raised by nobility but that nobility ended up making his family the targets of a massacre. and then vex who lets down her walls and Do I Look Like I Come From Money? and percy giving her the title grand mistress of the grey hunt because it has nothing to do with blood, or his love for her, or anything aside from the fact that it’s something she can prove herself worthy of simply by virtue of who she Is, not who someone makes her. and percy and vex’s conversation about forgiveness and it’s necessity for growth as probably two of the characters most inclined to hold grudges.

and caduceus clay who gets left behind with nothing but his Belief while his family goes off into the world. and jester lavorre who gets shut inside with no company except her Belief as her mother protects her from the world. and they both get the burden of loneliness and the understanding of love’s nonmalicious imperfection. and caduceus having a panic attack on a ship and jester telling him that the world is a lot bigger than his cemetery and that means he has to break out of his comfort zone to find his path. and caduceus telling jester that he doesn’t think she gets as much credit as she ought to and she deserves more pastries. and jester thanking caduceus for showing her how cool it is to actually heal people and caduceus asking if she wants to use his shield while he doesn’t need it.

and ashton who was left broken and dying on the ground and was given inescapable pain as their means of survival. and imogen who was left behind by the only person who could provide true understanding of the pain she’d one day come to feel. and ashton who’s a barbarian, who wields their rage casually and unapologetically and who sees the Shittiness of the world but is unrelenting in his version of optimism. and imogen who is weighed down by pessimism she doesn’t Want to have but hasn’t cracked how to undo and who doesn’t admit her anger until it comes up again and again and again and carries it like a burden or like guilt, who we only see really Grasp and feel Confidence about her anger being something good in front of others when she has those conversations with ashton. and like. ashton who looks at imogen and sees a superhero. imogen venturing through ashton’s mind and holding his bleeding and exhausted head and saying i’m sorry. i’m sorry. and imogen who looks at ashton and sees someone special. and fucking “we got him killed.” and “no, we didn’t. don’t you dare. […] we are not what fucking killed that man. […] we are his eventual victory. we are his fucking revenge.” and “i’ll be his revenge.” and “i have no fucking doubt.”

and in general rp wise they both tend to make some of my favourite characters (also typically the ones i find most frustrating) because they both tend to make flaws that are easy to hate and they make those flaws very central to their characters but i think that’s also what makes their character interactions so deeply compelling because so frequently it’s like. yes yes these two characters have like. a helix of things they have in common but also things they deeply disagree on but they’re going to spider-man point at the things that are the same and they’re going to honour their differences while doing so. and it’s just. i always enjoy it so much and i was psyched when i heard about an imogen and ashton side pit stop in last nights episode and i was not let down when i watched the episode today.

#also gotta emphatically say that i Do Not Mean their characters understand each other better than others or completely #i just think those two consistently have characters that have opinions that would perhaps naturally be the most at odds but then #they always craft these dynamics that like. web together pieces of sameness so that their characters end up having deeply #meaningful relationships with one another. #but like. ashton and imogen really do Not get each other in a lot of ways. cad and jester were very opposite in a lot of ways #percy and vex i think probably had the most in common but also like . they had and have vast differences . #idk this probably is worth a longer post that lingers in my brain about how relationships between characters whether romantic or not #are actually Much more compelling and rewarding when characters Don’t just click and have perfect matching experiences #because. to have to Choose to want to understand someone and what they’ve experiences and why they differ from you #if actually a much stronger act of love than searching for your reflection in everyone you meet. #someday i’ll string together that post but. until then. tal and laura my beloveds. storytelling duo truly #cr3 #cr2 #jester lavorre #imogen temult #vex’ahlia #caduceus clay #ashton greymoore #percy de rolo #cr1 #critical role #cr spoilers #no molly and jester input here because i haven’t watched early m9 in a Long time but. i’m sure there’s similar scenes in there. #honestly even like. jesters Earnestness with her still manipulative trickery vs. mollys much more . not necessarily Cruelness but just. idk #there’s something there with the way that when they meet jester is all in for the tarot cards for the experience that they both get out #of her choosing to believe what molly says vs molly going in to get something out of jester? yk. #but they’re still bestie icons. jester still tears a man in half in the hopes of saving molly. molly still died trying to help get her back. #anyway. beloveds #laura bailey #taliesin jaffe

[soapygummybear]

Genshin Men As Body Guard Boyfriends

Fandom: •Genshin Impact•

Chracter(s): >Zhongli, Xiao, Venti, Childe, and Kamisato Ayato (all separate)!<

Genre: Crack Headcannons

⚠️Warnings⚠️: Blood, violence, threats, poisoning.

Prompt: What would the Genshin men do if they saw someone hitting on you while during a gala they’re at to protect you? 

Request?: Nope, but requests are welcome!

Readers Gender: Gender Neutral! (Please know all my headcannons will have a gender neutral reader unless said otherwise. As this way, the headcannons are more inclusive to male, female, non-binary, and other readers! :D)

Notes: This is just pure crack. I haven’t posted in a bit and I don’t have time right now to write a full on oneshot because finals are coming up. So, please take this as a little intermission before I start writing oneshots again!

(NOT PROOFREAD)

Zhongli

-Zhongli let’s you have your space. There’s no need for him to stick to you like glue. You’re a pretty strong person and you have no issue sticking up for yourself. Besides, he’s only there in case you need him.

-He stays by a wall, keeping his golden eyes on you. He makes sure you’re not too far away, but not too close. Just enough space for him to get by your side in less than 30 seconds.

-Everything seems fine. You’re having a great time talking with people who you haven’t seen for a bit.

-That is, until someone comes up to you. They place their hands in your hips, trying to sway your body.

-You separate yourself from them, politely asking they don’t do that.

-“Oh c’mon. Dance with me, I’ll make you sway.” The person says.

-A very uncomfortable look appears on your face. The person wouldn’t leave you alone and wouldn’t give you space.

-This doesn’t go unnoticed by Zhongli. He sees everything that’s happening.

-Carefully opening up his suit, he yawns as he pulls out a stone.

-The stone is a smooth pebble. Small enough to fit in a pocket. 

-He nonchalantly flicks the rock at the person. Purposely making sure enough force was used to shoot the pebble straight at the person to knock them unconscious. 

-It smacks the back of their head, causing them to collapse to the floor, blood spilling onto the ground.  

-Screams erupt everywhere. Including from you.

-You look straight at Zhongli, “SERIOUSLY?! EVERY TIME?!” You stare at him in disbelief.

-He smiles innocently before putting on some sunglasses and grabbing you, leading you out of the building.

-Least to say, you were safe. And that’s all that mattered to him.

(More under the cut!)

Xiao

-Xiao keeps very close to you. There is no way in hell he’s going to let you get hurt.

-Though, he does try to respect your space. He keeps maybe, 5-8 feet away from you.

-What can he say? He just doesn’t want you to get hurt. He can’t lose you like he lost the other Yaksha. It would really feel like he was dying if he lost you. 

-So when someone comes up to you, saying very explicit things and lightly touching your body, Xiao immediately runs towards you.

-He straight up laments this person’s ass while calling them a demon.

-“How dare you touch (Y/N) so inappropriately, demon!”

-“Xiao stop! You’re going to kill them!” You try to grab him.

-Takes about 17 people to get Xiao off the poor beaten up person.

-You sigh as you grab his hand and leave the party. “Xiao what the hell. Why would you beat up someone?”

-“Why not? They were touching you inappropriately. They don’t deserve to not be beaten.” He argues.

-Rolling your eyes, a cheeky smile makes its way to your face, “Whatever, Xiao. Just don’t do it again.”

-“Not promising anything.” He replies.

Venti

-Venti trusts you. He’ll stick around you while you talk to people. Sometimes he’ll leave your side for a drink or two, but he tries his best not to get carried away.

-After all, he needs to remain conscious to protect you in case you need it.

-But one more drink wouldn’t hurt him, would it?

-He politely excuses himself and goes to get a drink. Picking it up, he takes a few sips.

-Before his eyes narrow onto someone.

-He stares as he watches a person come up to you. They try offering you a drink.

-“No thank you, I’m good.” You politely say. This person gave you the creeps. There was no way in all of Teyvet you would EVER take a drink from this person. You’d rather drink from a menstrual cup.

-A slightly angered face appears on Venti as the person wouldn’t leave you alone. He finally has enough and makes his way to you.

-Using the wind, Venti lifts himself up to the person’s ear, “If you don’t hippity hoppity on out of here and away from them, I’m gonna bippity boppity your ass out of Teyvet.”

-The person turns around, horrified to see an innocent looking child(?) saying such a threat.

-Venti smiles happily, “Better get going!” He uses some wind and throws them out the window.

-You look at him, smiling, “Thanks, Venti.”

-“No problem, love! I’ve always got your back.” He winks.

Childe

-Childe gives you space. He trusts you a lot. And he knows you can hold up your end in a fight. Although you were never able to beat him personally, he has seen you beat other things up with no problem.

-Don’t get him wrong, he keeps his eyes on you. But at the same time, he too, enjoys the party.

-But that all changes when someone approaches you.

-They were CLEARLY drunk. And for some reason, you reminded them of their ex-spouse Sam somehow.

-They start yelling at you. Calling you awful names like bitch, slut, cheater, etc etc.

-You can’t deal with being yelled at very much. Your eyes start to water as you panic, not knowing how to handle the situation.

-The cup Childe is holding shatters as his grip had tightened around it.

-An irk mark pops up on his face as he makes his way towards you.

-Once he reaches you, he straight up just punches the person unconscious.

-“Hmm, they were weaker than I thought.” He stares at them.

-His eyes travel to you as you have little tears falling from your face.

-He gives you a smile, “It’s okay, (Y/N), I took care of them! Let’s go, shall we? It’s pretty boring here.”

-He picks you up and leaves the party. After a bit, your tears stop as Childe does his best to calm you down.

-“There we go! There’s my strong partner!”

Kamisato Ayato

-The fact that you even got this man to attend a party is already crazy.

-Although, it didn’t take much to get him here. His main goal was protecting you. That’s all that mattered.

-Ayato let’s you walk around on your own free will. He doesn’t keep near you and he doesn’t even show himself.

-He’s just chillin in the shadows, doing his best to remain unnoticed and low-profiled.

-Don’t underestimate him. He keeps an eagles eye on you.

-As soon as he spots someone suspicious going near you, he strikes.

-Before this person can even get to you, they’re already gone.

-Something must be going on at that party because for some reason, you keep attracting dangerous people.

-Ayato’s eyes narrow as he watches someone walking around you.

-To the untrained eye, this person just looked like they were trying to find their friend.

-But Ayato knows better.

-Finally revealing himself, he walks up to this mysterious person, offering them a drink.

-A beautiful smile sits on his face as he watches the person take a sip from the cup.

-Immediately, the person starts gasping for air.

-Everyone’s attention turns to Ayato and the person.

-“Oh dear, you’re allergic to mint? I hadn’t known.” He acts surprised.

-Ayato turns his head to you, looking as you had a worried and fearful expression on your face.

-“Pardon me, but it seems I need to leave.” He walks away from the gasping person to you.

-He leads you out of the building, a happy smile on his face.

-“What did you do?” You stare at him.

-“Don’t worry about it,” he smiles, “Let’s go home.”

-Ayato secretly knew that person was allergic to mint. But he would never admit it.

#zhongli #adeptus xiao #archon #fyp #kamisato ayato #childe #genshin impact venti #genshin headcanons #genshin x reader #xiao x y/n #zhongli x reader #kamisato ayato x reader #venti x reader #genshin impact #genshin impact adeptus #geo archon #anemo archon #tartaglia #tartaglia x reader #fanfic #crack headcanons #aether #keqing #paimon #headcanon #genshin liyue #genshin fanfic #genshin zhongli #genshin venti #genshin xiao

[magnorious]

Percy Jackson and Why the Best Villains are Right

Spoilers for Percy Jackson and the Olympians books 1-5!

Disney isn’t known for fantastic twist villains, and with the upcoming PJO show on Disney+, it’s high time we show some appreciation for a fantastic twist villain, before Disney (potentially) ruins him.

For those who haven’t read the books in a while, Luke Castellan is a son of Hermes, the god of many things whose cabin at Camp Half-Blood also takes in all the demigods who haven’t been claimed by their godly parent, and who might never be. At first, Luke seems like a great guy, nothing seems off about him until the twist and all these little seeds you didn’t see earlier start to sprout.

Spoilers for the entire first series: Luke is seventeen in TLT. He spends the next four books a full-blown villain raising monster armies and turning other demigods to the side of Kronos, a titan who wants to rise and destroy the gods. Percy and the other good guys don’t understand why Luke and these other demigods would join forces with the dark side. They’re going to have to fight their friends, help murder their parents, and probably help destroy the world.

The easy way out would be just to paint these kids like Rowling did with Slytherin and make them all delinquent bastards. Riordan didn’t do that. As the books go on there’s an undercurrent, sometimes blatantly obvious, of godly neglect. The gods go around sleeping with mortals on a whim to have demigods around to do their bidding, leading often to tragically short lives, violent deaths, and scarred mortal parents. The number of unclaimed kids in the Hermes cabin keeps rising and while Protagonist Percy’s dad Poseidon is pretty decent, he’s not exactly deadbeat father of the year.

If anyone’s godly dad of the year it’s Hades but that’s not important right now. So the books progress and we get all these little nuggets of doubt sprouting against the gods. Kids that get sent on quests and don’t come back, gods who take an eye for an eye literally, who very much only see these kids as tools and a means to an end.

Luke, meanwhile, ends up allowing himself to become the host body for Kronos’ spirit. This desperate seventeen year old looking for guidance where he has none, joins the *bad crowd* for recognition and acceptance and praise, because he’s spent his life bitter and unloved by all-powerful gods who don’t understand or care that they’re still supposed to be parents to their kids.

All five books have been leading up to this climactic Great Prophecy that goes as follows:

“A halfblood of the eldest gods shall reach sixteen against all odds And see the world in endless sleep the hero’s soul, cursed blade shall reap A single choice shall end his days Olympus to preserve or raze.”

Naturally Percy and the audience assume that the prophecy obviously means that Percy’s going to get his soul reaped by a cursed blade to decide the fate of olympus.

But that’s not what happens.

The prophecy is actually talking about two different people. The first half is unmistakably Percy, he’s the only halfblood of the eldest gods eligible. But the second half, the owner of the “hero’s soul” is actually Luke. We just don’t realize that until the page where Luke stabs himself with the knife he gave to Annabeth, cursed because he betrayed his promise to her and destroyed their friendship.

Luke dies a hero, stabbing himself and killing Kronos’ host body before Kronos can attain full power and become unstoppable. He dies a hero because he was never the villain. Yes we’re responsible for our own actions and actions have consequences but Luke did die to right his wrongs.

All he wants, as he’s dying in front of Percy, is for Percy to make sure that every unclaimed and unloved kid in his cabin and beyond is shown the respect they deserve. It’s all he’s wanted the entire series and has just been groomed and manipulated by an equally abusive entity to satisfy their own ends.

So in the end, when Olympus is saved and Percy’s staring down the barrel of a wish for literally anything, immortality and godhood included, he says no. He says Kronos happened because of them. Luke happened because of them. They were neglectful parents, so their unloved kids came to resent them enough to not care if the world got destroyed if it meant justice was served.

Luke, in the end, was right. So the gods agree to do better (whether they actually do kinda gets sidetracked by the plot of books six through ten but that’s not the point here).

Children’s media, and adult media, should really take a page out of the Percy Jackson books on how to write a villain. It would not have been the same beloved story it is today had Luke just become irredeemably pure evil and Kronos been more than a phantom voice for 90% of the story. If the gods were awesome attentive parents and Luke came along whining about not getting even more attention, he’d be seen as a selfish, entitled brat.

But he’s not. This story does what a thousand other YA and children’s books do and that’s make world-saving heroes out of children. But these books are in the minority by recognizing how tragic it is to force twelve, thirteen, fourteen year olds into fighting for their lives and dying for a god who can’t be bothered to remember who they are. It’s based on Greek mythology. It wouldn’t be faithful to the source material without a fat dose of tragedy.

Yeah, it’s cool to be a special demigod with water powers and flight and necromancy, but no one wants to be a Hermes kid for a very tragic reason.

#pjo #luke castellan #tlo #percy jackon and the olympians

[jksprincess10]

Dressed for revenge 13. Healing

A/N: I remember how healing it was to write this chapter at the time. I hope it heals you too­. CW: canon-like violence, “touch them and I’ll kill you” trope, FLUFF, fingering, oral (afab person receiving), talks of trauma of SA, soft!joel, unprotected p in v.

Masterlist for this fic

Notification blog

20th of December, outside of the community of Jackson

Something is building up in the air, a storm.

An attack.

A group heavily armed is close to crossing the iced water keeping Jackson safe. On the other side, in a camp, people are waiting, also armed.

An older man has his gun ready.

His brother too, and he has a clear view of the group coming.

A ghost trying to come back to life has their bow extended.

“We should take them before they can cross. Shoot in the ice so they drown.”  Tommy suggests.

“Yes. But we wait ‘til they get closer.” Joel states coldly. He’s used to this. He’s back in killing machine mode.

Ghost wonders if he did it as coldly when he killed the people from the haven.

“What if they get too close?” Ghost suggests.

“We take ‘em out.”

“NOW.”

A shout.

A gunshot deviated to the water.

A gaping hole.

People falling to their death, their bodies unable to escape the cold water.

But three manage to climb out and head directly to the patrolling crew. Tommy shoots, misses. Joel shoots, succeeds. But the two other men get closer and closer. They can’t really use long-range weapons anymore. Tommy jumps on one of the men, neutralizes him. Joel makes sure to shoot him in the head while Tommy is struggling. The other uses it as an opportunity to punch Ghost in the jaw.

Hand to hand combat was never their strong suit. When Joel hears a grunt from their lover, he turns around and heads directly for the man. His large hands grab him by the shoulders to pull him away from Ghost and he pushes him to the ground, punching him repeatedly in the jaw, until his knuckles are red with the stranger’s blood.

“Don’t you fucking dare touch them.”

While Joel is distracted, the man gets out a knife. By the time Ghost has the time to plant an arrow in his head, some damage has been done.

“Fuck.” Joel grunts as he takes out the knife from the flesh of his arm, staining his thick suede coat with red.

“I stay here. You two go back and send me replacements.” Tommy orders as he dusts the snow off his pants.

“Tommy, I’m f-”

“No. We’re not risking an infection, come on. We had enough of that with me and Els.” Ghost cuts in a stern voice.

“Fine.” Joel grumbles, and they both head back.

20th of December, Joel, Ellie and Ghost’s house

When Joel and Ghost step into their chosen home after sending people to help Tommy, they’re welcomed by the silence. Ellie was out taking care of the community’s animals.

“Sit.” Ghost instructs as they put some logs in the fireplace to get some warmth to dry their clothes.

“I’m not dying…”

“Sit, Joel. Listen to your nurse or I’ll identify as a fucking problem.”

Ghost takes off their extra layers and sets them near the fire. Joel does the same thing with his coat, before sitting on the old couch, the piece of furniture creaking under the man’s weight.

His lover crouches in front of him. “Take off your shirt so I can see better.”

“God, you’re so bossy, darlin’.” Joel teases.

They see how he’s struggling with the buttons of his jean shirt with his hurt arm, so they help. They slap his fingers away and take care of the buttons, revealing warm and familiar skin. They can see the goosebumps forming on his skin as their cold fingers graze his skin. When the shirt is completely off, they get to work, inspecting the wound.

“He might have touched a muscle, so you’ll be sore for a while. Don’t move.” They instruct as they go quickly to the downstairs bathroom to get an emergency med kit. They go back to their initial spot and clean the wound. Ghost really tries to concentrate on the open flesh and not on Joel’s cozy and inviting body.

“I don’t know who these assholes were.” Joel says, trying not to wince under the burning sensation.

“Hmhm, probably some raiders.” Ghost responds, trying not to get distracted.

They feel his adoring gaze on their features as they wrap the muscle with some gaze to absorb the blood. They can feel how hard his biceps are even for a man of his age. They look up and for a moment, their eyes meet.

“What?” Ghost asks.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t fast enough.”

Ghost sighs, and sits on their lover’s thighs, their legs elongated on the rest of the couch.

“Stop apologizing. I’m just glad you’re okay.” Their hand trails down his unhurt arm, sending shivers through his body. Joel sighs and leans down, his lips still cold from the temperature meeting theirs in a soft exchange. Ghost wraps their arms around his neck to bring him impossibly close. Their tongue begs for entry, licking their lover’s pouty lip, and he grants them full access, tongues dancing in a slow waltz.

They stop for a moment, to catch their breath.

“Joel… I’ve been thinking since the… bath incident. I want you. I trust you.” They say almost shamefully, their cheeks glowing with red.

“Are you sure…?” He says, worry tainting his voice.

“Yes. I can’t…keep acting like I’m in a prison when I’m free.”

He kisses them chastely

“Do you still want me?” They ask.

“Of course, I do. C’mon, let’s go somewhere more comfortable darlin’.”

They get up and link hands, climbing up the stairs to their shared room. Joel closes the door behind him and kicks off his boots to lay down on the bed.

“Remember darlin’, you’re the one in control.” Joel says as he looks at them with loving eyes.

“Hmhm.” They agree and take off their boots too.

They straddle Joel’s thighs, hands caressing his chest.

“Do you know how… you like it?”

“Only with a woman.” They say as they shake their head.

Men never gave them pleasure. Only pain. They were only something to be done with.

“Well… If you want… I can finger you and eat your pussy. Wait… can I call… it like that?”

Ghost erupts into laughter. “Yes, you can. I still know what parts I have.”

“Let’s try some things and take it slow.”

Ghost’s hands tug on the hem of their sweater, and Joel puts his palms over them as he watches them taking off their top. Ghost takes the hands of their lover and brings them up to their flat chest, where he softly caresses their scarred skin.

“You’re a fuckin’ warrior, baby.” He says with adoration.

They can’t help but smile. They didn’t think they could be beautiful in anyone’s eyes. But Joel was here, looking at them with adoration. 

Ghost leans down to kiss their partner languidly, one of their hands leaving his to caress his soft curls, still wet from him falling in the snow. Their other hand guides Joel’s to the front of their pants, and he gets the memo, unzipping them. They part ways only so Ghost can kick off their jeans, leaving them in their underwear.

While their lips meet again, Ghost takes care of Joel’s leather belt, undoing it and unzipping his pants. They try to ignore how their hands shake from nervosity. Joel lifts his bottom up so he can slide down his pants easily, leaving him in his black briefs.

Ghost can feel him getting hard under them, like that last time. They take Joel’s hands again and invite him to take off their only clothing left.

“Can you lay down beside me?” He asks against their lips.

They nod and do as requested, feeling so exposed. Joel kneels between their thighs to admire them.

“S’this okay?”

“Yes.”

He admires the clumsy tattoos on their arm, the large scar that goes down their stomach, the protuberance of their hip bones, their inviting mound. Curious fingers caress the curls there, and Ghost blushes.

“S-Sorry I guess I’m not a fan of… shaving…”

Joel lays his lower half down and kiss the soft skin of their thigh. “Don’t apologize. I like you the way you are.”

He lays his head on their thigh, waiting for Ghost’s guidance. They take his hand and put it back on their pubic bone.

“You can touch me.”

With two fingers, he parts their wet lips to access their clitoris. He slides a tentative finger against it, seeing how Ghost responds to touch. Their fingers grab on his graying curls to stay grounded. Joel uses two fingers to slide against their slit, and they whimper softly. Seeing how responsive they were, he keeps caressing them slowly, until their hips buck against his fingers.

“Y’okay?”

“Y-Yes… it’s good. More, please.”

His fingers circle their clitoris in a confident motion, as he leans his head on Ghost’s chest to be closer to their heart. Ghost grabs on to him, fingers digging into the flesh of his arms as they try to accept the pleasing sensation.

“Let go darlin’, you’re doin’ good…”

He goes faster as he hears them moan softly, until he feels them tense up, then relax under their orgasm. He smiles and presses a kiss to their lips.

“There you go, baby…”

“C-Can I have… more?” They ask.

“Hmhm.”

He takes back his initial spot between their thighs, like earlier, he spreads their lips, but this time, he uses his mouth, his lips caging their clitoris as the tip of his tongue caresses it. Their hands grab on his curls to guide him, choosing the pressure. Joel gladly lets them use his mouth, and he can only feel his own arousal growing.

“This feels amazing, Joel.” They whisper between a few moans.

They take the hand resting on their thigh to guide it to their wetness, hoping Joel would understand. He does, using their slick to slowly enter a finger as he keeps pleasing them with licks of his tongue. He feels them tense up a little.

“Relax baby, I won’t hurt you.”

They let out a shaky breath, trying to focus on the pleasure they feel.

“There.” Joel whispers against their wetness. “Have to do this so it doesn’t hurt later. I care about ya.”

They feel like crying, but they don’t want to ruin the moment. No one had taken their time like this with them.

He thrusts his finger in and out slowly, while lapping rhythmically at their clit. Joel looks up, and leaves their mound as he sees their pained expression. He stops everything.

“What’s wrong?”

“They just… they went in dry… I didn’t know… it could not hurt.”

“Oh, baby…Do you want to stop?” His face is on their level now, and they shake their head.

“N-No… Just… thank you.” They put their hands on his rough cheeks and bring him closer, kissing him sweetly. “Keep going.”

He agrees. “Tell me if anything is wrong, okay?”

“I will. Promise.”

He levels with their pussy again, taking their clit between his lips to suck on it softly, as his finger went back in. He stretched them slowly with one finger, then two. They feel a more intense storm in their stomach, and they grab on Joel’s curls as he uses a scissoring motion inside of them.

“D-Don’t stop…” They beg softly.

And he doesn’t stop, until he feels them tense up again, wetting his fingers as they let out a silent moan, their mouth opened beautifully. Joel leaves them empty and wipes his lips, before leaving sweet kisses on Ghost’s face.

“You did so good for me, baby…”

They latch their lips onto his, as they roll over so they’re on top of him. “Want more.” They say between kisses. Their hands travel on his hips, and they take off his briefs. They straighten up to look at him, the strength contrasting with the coziness of his body.

“You’re so handsome.”

Joel’s neck and face become red. He wasn’t used to getting compliments.

“Can I stay here? I have a perfect view.” They say to make him even redder.

“Yes, you can.” He says, almost shyly.

They take Joel’s hard length into their hand. They didn’t know what the criteria were to have a.. pretty dick. They wouldn’t look, usually. But he was on the girthier side. He had no foreskin, and veins were trailing down his shaft. They pump him a few times, before lifting their hips to align him with their hole.

Ghost takes a deep breath, before sinking slowly on his length. There was a slight burning sensation – but it was nothing as bad as what they endured before. They put their hands on Joel’s chest for leverage as he reaches and stretches them completely. When they feel ready, they move their hips up and down at a slow pace. Joel looks up at them, his hands taking place on their hips to guide them up and down. They whimper softly.

“Does it feel good, darlin’?”

“Y-Yes.” With the help of Joel’s hands, they pick up a faster pace. They moan a bit louder when they guide Joel to a more sensitive spot. They feel their body getting weak with pleasure, so he helps, thrusting up to meet the movement of their hips. It’s clumsy, unsynchronized, but it’s good.

Joel’s breathing gets more laborious, so they switch to a position where he doesn’t have to do as much physical effort. Ghost is under him, legs wrapped around his waist, while he swings his hips in a faster motion. He breathes heavily and grunts on top of them. Their walls tighten around him.

“I’-I’m gonna…”

They feel him filling them up with his seed, fucking desperately through his orgasm as they moan under him. He lays on them for a few seconds to catch his breath, before leaving their wetness.

Ghost makes a quick run to the bathroom, before coming back to lay down on the bed with Joel, who’s still trying to catch his breath.

“Didn’t mean to kill you, old man.” They say teasingly, throwing an arm around his soft belly and resting their head on his broad shoulder.

“Yeah well, it has been a while…”

“It’s okay. It was perfect, Joel.” They press a kiss on his sweaty neck. “I… I love you, Joel. I didn’t know such a thing was possible after what I endured, but I love you.”

Before he can even respond, they hear the downstairs door open and Ellie’s voice calling them. They hear her footsteps and when she sees the closed bedroom door, she exclaims.

“Ew, gross.”

Ghost and Joel can’t help their laughter.

“Get dressed, I need to talk to you two.” She says from the other side of the door.

Ghost puts on warm pajamas to be comfortable, and Joel puts a looser shirt to accommodate his arm and his same old jeans. They open the door on an impatient Ellie.

“I made a decision. I don’t want to leave.”

“Okay, so we’re stayin’, kid.”

Ghost doesn’t talk, they simply take Ellie in their arms and hug her tightly. They lay their head on top of Ellie’s, feeling the familiar burn of tears in their eyes. Joel and Ellie were the closest thing to a family since they lost Wyatt.

Joel watches from afar, the unfamiliar feeling of joy changing his hard expression.

He could die for these two.

#dressed for revenge #joel miller #joel miller fanfiction #joel miller smut #joel miller x oc #joel miller x nb oc

[kittyt-hexxed]

Book Two of Hexed - The Fury of Zaun (Vi x POC!Reader) - Ch.17

Next Upload Date: January 22nd

Act 2: Chapter Seventeen - Smoke on the Water

Word Count: 7.5k

Warnings: Explosions, Murder, Beating Up someone for Revenge, Blood, Bruises, Tying someone up, Dying Teenager, Family Reunions

Summary: The first place to suffer Zaun’s wrath is the one place that No Zaunite should be. Vi struggles to come to terms with her upcoming life changes, and gets an interesting surprise. And, the Undercity may be a tough place but not everyone living there is heartless.

Author Note: Only one chapter instead of two because I’m very sick. But, hopefully your holidays are better than mine! I’m sending love to anyone who may not being having a happy one.

The atmosphere for tonight seems fitting for what’s about to happen. Lightning strikes the air while thick, black clouds block the moonlight from showing through. It was also rapidly cooling down with winter approaching, so there was a deep chill out on the water. You knew that Janna was angry from what she heard, and it seems like even she was joining the mission. Huge waves were hitting the island Stillwater was on and you pitied any ships out on the water. They’d be begging for Janna’s mercy.

“That’s the target.” Heather puts a hand on her hip, “That stupid old rock.”

“You ready to have some real fun, Magpie?” You smirk underneath your mask, nudging her, “With no more shimmer refineries and Silco goons to beat up, you must be bored.”

“Definitely.” Heather giggles, “I know everyone else is feeling the same way. Being able to get back into the action is exciting.” She motions to the group waiting for Ekko’s cue. They’re all talking and moving around with jitters. The Firelights and Furies were teaming up to do this takedown properly since your brother was very good with time. He demanded to come with you, and you had planned on dragging him along anyway. But, it was nice to have him with you on his own. Your friends in the Firelights all requested to join, and who were you to tell them no?

“Fishbones can’t wait to make that building go BOOM!” Jinx laughs, skipping over to you, “I definitely feel the same way! What about you, My Lady?” She throws her arms around you.

“I can’t wait to watch it crumble into the sea.” You smile darkly.

“I’m feeling good about this. We’ve got twenty minutes before the next ship is due to pass the building.” Ekko looks up from his watch, “It’s time to start.” The group's energy immediately sparks up, excited muttering filling the air as you all approach the edge of the Sun Gate. This was the first official act to prepare for the war. People who’ve been locked up unjustly will be getting their freedom and the Hold will be no more.

“Would you like to do the honors, Owl?” You ask your brother.

“Lady Janna, please bring in the fog so we may approach undercover.” Ekko requests. A harsh wind kicks up as a thick fog glides in over the water. Your visibility of the place disappears as the fog becomes as thick as The Gray. No Enforcers on patrol will be able to see you coming. You snap your fingers and a little blue light appears in front of everyone. You had already told them about the plan, but you’ll remind them on the way in. That way everyone has it fresh in their minds.

“Five seconds.” Ekko holds his stopwatch, “Four, three, two, one. GO!” You launch yourself off the edge of the Gate, picking up momentum from the fall, before the chemtech kicks in. You rocket forward into the fog, losing visibility except for the lights that everyone is following. You could feel your anger bubbling beneath your skin ready to burst forth, and the loud screeching of the wings felt like it was expressing your feelings for you. The cry of death Jinx so lovingly calls it.

“Remember, there are forty floors. Take control of the alarm room. Then, we’ll move through the building and kill every Enforcer in sight. Once the people are evacuated from your floor, plant the explosives and continue forward. As long as you keep the time in mind, you should be done in time.” You explain the plan once more, getting confirmation calls back.

“It’s night so all of the inmates are sleeping in their cells.” Heather continues, “Kill the ones that need to be killed first, then wake the others. You must give the all-clear for your floors.”

“I’ll be blowing that baby sky-high once I’m given the all-clear! So, you better make sure your butts are out of there by the end of the twenty minutes if you don’t want to end up in pieces!” Jinx laughs. You see the building coming into view so you straighten up, the wings folding in before your feet hit the ground and you duck into a roll. You spring up onto your feet and you’re sprinting to the large doors with Sevika and Jinx in front of you. They smirk at each other, Jinx’s eyes flashing pink as they whip her Chompers out and yank the pins out with their teeth. ‘The two of them have been bonding very well.’ You think in amusement. The chompers go flying and you signal a warning for the impending explosions, but don’t stop running. Multicolored smoke fills the air as the doors are blown off their hinges, not built to withstand the corrosive chemicals Jinx used in these bombs.

Surprised exclamations come from inside and you use the smoke screen to your advantage. An unsuspecting Enforcer gets his throat sliced with your fans as you dash past him. The others would be taking care of the ones on this level so you didn’t bother going out of your way to take any down. If they were on the way to your destination, then you gleefully sliced into them. Your personal target is the Warden, a man Vi and Caitlyn had told you about when they first arrived at the Grotto. You whistle to get Jinx’s attention and she follows you down the hall to the Warden’s sleeping quarters. More Enforcers are sliced or shot to death, except for the one Jinx stuck a Chomper on. The two of you pause outside his door, listening to see if the commotion had woken him up. The sound of snoring is the only thing you hear and you motion to the door with your head. Jinx smirks, taking a few steps back before lifting her leg and kicking the door in.

“What the fuck?!” The Warden shouts in alarm, scrambling out of his bed in a deliriously tired state.

“Surprise!” You hear Jinx cackle as she rushes toward him with a bundle of rope in her hands. You observe the room as the Warden fights to get Jinx away from him. A pile of letters sits on the desk and you take the time to go through them, raising an eyebrow at some of the illegal correspondence. ‘Is this stuff you can use against Piltover?’ Umbra questions curiously. ‘It should be. Only the Warden has access to this room. This would be where he’d hide the things he doesn’t want anyone to see.’ You drop those letters into a rift and something in the corner of your eyes catches your attention. The silver figure at the top had been glinting in the light coming in from the hallway. ‘This is his staff.’ You casually pick it up, rolling it in your hand and noting that the top of it matches some old marks on Vi’s body. A growl leaves your lips and you whirl around to face the Warden.

“Hello, Warden.” You take slow, measured steps toward him, “A lovely night, isn’t it? The perfect night to blow up a building.” Jinx had tied him up quite skillfully, making sure he couldn’t move any part but his head. You were itching to drive your fans into his stomach but you couldn’t. He wasn’t going to die by your hands.

“Who are you?! How’d you get in here?!” He shouts, struggling in his restraints, “Take off those stupid masks!”

“We’re no one special.” You shrug, resting the end of the staff against his chest, “Well, actually… we’re the nightmares that will torture you for the rest of your short life. You see, we’re here on behalf of a friend. You’ve made a very bad decision, Warden. We’d like to have a chat with you.” You tap the staff against his chest, taking a step back and handing it to Jinx. She had begged to be involved in this. You had said no at first, too blinded by your rage to realize that it would only make sense for her to do it. That changed after you calmed down and you decided to give her the first go.

“Don’t cha worry, this’ll only hurt ya a lot, toots!” Jinx chirps darkly, letting go of the death grip she had on her mind, “This is for my sister!” She snarls and brings the metal end of the staff down on him. You lean against the wall and watch as Jinx hits him. The occasional call from the others comes in through the comms and you keep track of the progress. It seems like everyone is doing really well and you’re not needed for any assistance. Five minutes pass before you call Jinx, and she has to force herself to stop. Her hands tremble with the staff clutched so tightly you’re surprised it hasn’t snapped.

“Can I cut in, Crow?” You hold your hand out for the staff and she gives it to you after a pause.

“Be my guest.” Jinx hums, “He’s still conscious.” You stare at him, hearing Vi's words repeat over and over in your head. You were going to make sure it hurt him to even breathe. With an angry yell, you slam it into his ribs. Your mind went hazy as you repeatedly hit him, knowing that he had caused your love so much pain. Umbra had to warn you to stop right as Jinx grabbed your wrist. The Warden was barely conscious at this point, face swollen and bloody, as you angrily took ragged breaths.

“Ten-minute warning!” Ekko’s voice sounds, “You should be starting your final floor now!”

“He deserves what’s coming to him.” Jinx hisses, “Letting him live is not a mercy.” You nod in agreement, too upset to say anything as the two of you grab him and push him into a rift. You knew that she wanted to kill him as much as you did, but that would allow him to get away with what he’s done. And, as angry as you were, neither of you could allow that.

“Every second of it.” You agree, finally finding your voice, “I’m going to start rigging the floor. You’ve got this, Crow?” You put a hand on her shoulder.

“I’d rather do this alone.” She looks at you, cracking her knuckles, “I want to get artistic with it.”

“Have fun.” You chuckle, watching her step into the rift, “See ya in ten for the grand finale!” You call right before it closes. You hum to yourself trying to ease the tumultuous mix of anger and glee that was in you. You carefully place the bombs in place, making sure to stick them in the weak points of the structure. Chrissy had given you a copy of the blueprints for Stillwater Hold a week ago. Thanks to Zara breaking it down and explaining it properly, everyone knows where all of the support beams are for each floor. This place was going to crumble like a piece of wet paper and you were looking forward to it.

Time passed a lot faster than you thought it would and soon the official all-clear came through. You knew they would be moving away from the building so you continued where you were going. Instead of using a rift, you took the elevator down, watching as the counter rolled up to forty. You take a deep breath as the gate opens and you walk down the hallway, taking in the line painted on the floor. You pause in front of the last cell and hold your hand out, the metal of the bars warps and bends, ripping open to give you a view of the inside.

“Solitary?” You pause in the middle of braiding her hair.

“Yeah. The cell is on the bottom floor. Forty. I was in there more than my original cell, so it ended up being my assigned place in solitary. They even carved my inmate number into the bars.” Vi chuckles, leaning her head back to look up at you, “One of the walls has a dent in it because I was always punching it. There are doodles in the concrete after that one time I managed to sneak a pen down there… then, there are the bloodstains…” She sighs.

Your hands tremble as your firelight illuminates the cell, showing everything Vi mentioned to you. You swallow hard, crouching down at a large bloodstain in the cement, and run your fingertips over it. A sharp gasp leaves your lips as a wave of pain and grief washes over you. The sound of Vi’s scream rattles in your ears and you fall over in shock. You grit your teeth and your fists clench so tightly that you think you might break your fingers. You stand up and place the last of your bombs right in the middle of the room.

‘The rage you’re feeling right now would be enough to ignite these bombs.’ Umbra says dryly. You chuckle, feeling anything but amused as you step out of the cell and straight into a rift. She was right. All you can feel right now is rage. You knew what Vi was talking about was horrible, but to see it? To see the cell that she spent the majority of the last six years in? To feel the emotions stuck to the room like a bad odor. ‘I’m going to burn Piltover to the ground.’ You growl. You drop through the sky, seeing the glow of the other wings hanging around a safe distance from Stillwater. Your wings activate, slowly descending until you’re in line with the others and you greet them.

“My surveillance is done.” You say to Jinx who does a little dance.

“Alright, everyone! You have ten seconds!” Jinx shouts, slamming her hand down on a glowing button, “Get ready for the fireworks!” She throws her arms up. Not even a second later, there’s a loud boom and the building gets blown apart. You all shout in joy as more explosions sound and then the fireworks go off in the sky to signify the war starting. Various colors of smoke fill the air and you watch as Stillwater Hold crumbles into the ground.

“Piltover will no longer be able to imprison our people.” Sevika says and even though her voice modifier makes her sound emotionless, you all knew how liberating this felt. Zaun was able to handle its own. Always has been. The fact that Piltover didn’t allow that and shoehorned everyone into Stillwater Prison regardless of a petty crime or not was disgusting. With the Dredge being cleared through, there’d be more than enough space for any new residents.

“I used to wish I could use my winds to knock it down. I couldn’t. Not with Zaunites inside.” Janna’s voice sounds out around you, “Thank you for freeing our people from Piltover’s grasp. I can now breathe a little easier.”

“This is only the beginning.” You say, watching the smoke mix in a beautiful display of anarchy, “We’re going to do what they did to us. Put them in a hole they can’t get out of without our help.”

The current weather is perfectly describing the way Vi is feeling. A harsh wind is blowing, whistling through the breezeway of the Sun Gate, and complimenting the crashing waves. Vi had seated herself on the railing with her back to the support and let her legs dangle over each side as she watched the water. Cassandra had her sit down yesterday and create a schedule that included etiquette lessons, her Enforcer duties, and meetings with the Council. Vi hadn’t said much, not wanting her mouth to get her in trouble. Then she’d be stuck with more etiquette lessons and it would've been more trouble than it was worth. After that, Vi went up to her room and thought through everything that happened with Y/n. There was something that was bothering her, but she couldn’t place her finger on it. She was angry and upset, but it didn’t feel like it was entirely her emotions.

“Hey, Vi!” Kevin comes over, waving enthusiastically, “I didn’t expect to see you out here this late at night! Are you in the doghouse with the Sheriff?” She frowns slightly, not really in the mood to talk but the kid was always nice to her despite her prickly demeanor. He liked to hang around her when he knew she was on duty, and she never questioned why.

“No, I came out here on my own. I find it easier to think during this time, and I didn’t want to go to sleep.” Vi shrugs, “So, here I am.”

“You know, that’s why I prefer the night shift. Nothing really happens at night, and it’s just a time I can enjoy the relatively quiet evening.” He leans against the support across from her, “The other Enforcers like that they can just goof around with each other.”

“Yeah. The past few nights I’ve been out here, I’ve overheard them cracking jokes and playing some stupid game.” Vi glances down the breezeway, seeing vacant spots where the others are supposed to be, “You all seem content.” Kevin lets out a heavy sigh that catches Vi’s attention. The guy was always very cheerful around her. It was unusual to hear him be so upset.

“Sometimes I think being an Enforcer is too easy for what we’re supposed to be doing.” He raps his knuckles against the railing, clearly agitated. ‘I guess I’m not the only one in a contemplative mood.’ Vi observes him as he fidgets. The Enforcers were too relaxed around her since she was supposed to be in Caitlyn’s pocket. She found it interesting, considering the fact that a vast majority of people in Zaun are terrified of her. ‘Piltovens don’t know when they’re in danger, do they?’

“And what’s that?” Vi spits, glaring out at the distant figure of Stillwater Hold in the distance. She wished that building would disappear. Every time she was forced to patrol this gate, it taunted her about all of her failures. The marks on her body from that place could fade, but the painful memories wouldn’t.

“Maintaining the order and safety of the people, enforcing the laws, and preventing, detecting, and investigating criminal activities.” Comes his robotic answer, “But… there’s been nothing since I joined. You’d think there’d be issues in the night but there’s nothing.”

“You want there to be conflict?” Vi narrows her eyes at him.

“No, but it’s so annoying seeing the others act like it’s not even a job. They do whatever they want and don’t even patrol or do their other assignments. I just wish there was something that made them realize it’s not some cushy free time.”

“Careful what you wish for.” Vi snorts, watching as thick fog rolls in and hides Stillwater from her vision, “You never know if that one is the one to come true.” A loud, eerie screeching noise fills the air that makes Vi’s adrenaline spike. She snaps into awareness, looking around her for the source of the sound but she can’t see anything. ‘The fog is too thick. All I can see is the damned light coming from the Hold.’ She scoffs but her body doesn’t relax. There could be a threat out here and without being able to see it makes her extremely uncomfortable.

“What the fuck was that?!” Kevin shouts and Vi shushes him. She listens intently, trying to find out if she can hear something else or if that noise repeats itself. The crashing of the waves and occasional lightning strike is all her ears can pick up. ‘That’s unsettling.’ Vi frowns. ‘I haven’t heard anything like that before. Maybe it’s a bird call?’

“Whatever it was, it’s gone now.” Vi shrugs, “So, you were complaining?”

“I’m not complaining. I’m just frustrated.” Kevin huffs, turning to look at her, “Besides, what made you join the Enforcers? Someone mentioned you’re supposed to be helping with the Jinx problem, but you’re never with the squads that go into Zaun.” Vi bites her tongue to keep herself from snapping at him. ‘He doesn’t know that he’s talking about my sister. Relax, Vi. Don’t let your temper get the better of you.’ She takes a deep breath and looks back out to the fog.

“Sorry, kid. That’s something way above your rank.” Vi snorts at the irony of her words, “But if you must know, I’m here to protect someone. Not for any heroic shit or whatnot.”

“From Jinx?” Kevin presses.

“Keep asking questions and we’ll find out how long it takes before you hit the water.” Vi says dully and Kevin’s jaw drops. They fall into silence for a while and Vi didn’t care that he was there as long as he was quiet. Her mind wanders to the conversation she had with Tobias in the evening. He made it a point to bring her a cup of coffee when he didn’t see her in the library. The first time he did it, he asked that she keep it a secret because he wasn’t supposed to be drinking coffee. It gave him too much energy. It has slowly become something she looked forward to, especially when she found out that his favorite brand was her mother’s favorite. Vi had cried when she realized it, the loss of her mother stinging harder now that she needed a nurturing hand. Yesterday evening, he told her how he had come to appreciate her presence. It made him feel less lonely, and he had earnestly told her that her sister was more than welcome to stay with them. Vi didn’t know how to take it. He had no clue who he was inviting over, but his words were genuine. That was an appalling thing to Vi. Tobias was so kind and Cassandra was… not. She couldn’t wrap her head around it.

An explosion sounds, jolting Vi out of her thoughts and she nearly falls onto the breezeway with how fast she jumps up onto the railing. The fog had been thinned out by whatever exploded and was rapidly fading away as more explosions went off. They were clearly at a distance from how muted it was, but the fact that she can hear it meant it was a big one. It wasn’t long before the fog had given away to show her a view of the bay and Stillwater Hold. Or, where Stillwater used to be. The bright light that used to be there was gone and although it was nighttime, she was supposed to be able to see the building clearly from the Sun Gate. It wasn’t there.

“HOLY SHIT! SOUND THE ALARM!” Kevin screams and Vi can hear him running to the others, “STILLWATER HAS BEEN BLOWN UP! GUYS! GUYS!”

Vi is frozen where she is. Multicolored smoke rises into the night sky in a mixture of yellow, green, pink, and blue. It was so vibrant it was hard to miss, especially as fireworks burst in a silent display. ‘The prison is… gone.’ She thinks in disbelief. The colored smoke could only point to the one person she knew that used it. ‘Powder… What have you… Why would you…?’ Vi’s feet carry her down and away from the railing in her haze. She starts running, sprinting down the breezeway, down the stairs, and towards the launch point that was used for Stillwater. Her gaze kept leading back to the smoke in the sky whenever she could see it. It was like a message from her sister. But why?

Vi stops suddenly when she reaches the launch point. She can clearly see the smoke in the distance, undeniable proof that it’s coming from Stillwater. But, on the end of the dock is a sight she never expected to see. A group of Enforcers is standing there in shock as they gaze up at the Warden of Stillwater, tied up and dangling from some poles. She slowly moves closer, taking note of the familiar oil pastel doodles that depict the man as a monster. Words were written all around, calling out the man as corrupt and an abuser of power. Vi can feel too many emotions flood her body, forcing her to sink her nails into the palm of her hand to ground herself. Seeing the man who abused her like this, who allowed others to beat her until she was unconscious… she was completely and utterly gleeful about it.

She chuckles as she stops at the front of the crowd, her lips twisting into a feral smirk. A flash of white in the corner of her eye has her turning to see a piece of paper falling toward her. She almost wrote it off as trash before she remembered that it’s not common in Piltover. Vi catches it and sees her Hellhound symbol on the front which prompts her to open it. ‘To my slug-eating crab, I hope you like this gift!’ Her heart constricts in her chest and she hurriedly stuffs it into her pocket before anyone notices. ‘I’ll finish reading this when I get somewhere private.’

“Yeah, I’ll leave this one to you guys…” Vi laughs, backing away from her little sister’s masterpiece, “That’s some amazing rigging work though. So, good luck getting him down!” She waves and starts walking back up the dock. None of them even acknowledge her, too appalled by the sight to do more than stare. Vi can hear shouting and the pounding of boots as more Enforcers rush this way. ‘Did she… blow up Stillwater for… me?’ Vi thinks in surprise, glancing at the pocket the note was shoved into. ‘There’s only one way to find out.’

“Vi!” Caitlyn’s voice makes her stop in her tracks. Vi sighs heavily, not wanting Caitlyn to ruin the joyous mood she’s in, before plastering a smile on her face. She whirls around to see Caitlyn marching over to her with a sight frown on her face. The normally put-together woman was hurriedly tying her hair up, most likely woken up by the news. Vi was impressed with how quickly she made it down here, considering she’d have to run all the way from her mansion.

“Cupcake!” Vi says cheerfully, “What can I do for you?” Caitlyn grabs Vi by her bicep and yanks her onto a secluded area of the docks.

“If you wanted to kiss me in private, you could have just asked.” Vi teases her, making Caitlyn quickly let her arm go.

“We need to chat.” Caitlyn says sternly, crossing her hands over her chest. Vi’s hand twitches slightly before an amused smile flicks onto her face. That was another word that had a different meaning in Zaun than in Piltover.

“You don’t have the hands for stabbing.” Vi pats her shoulder in fake sympathy.

“...What?” Caitlyn’s voice goes up in pitch as her face twists in confusion.

“No worries, I won’t get in your way.” Vi puts her hands up in surrender and slowly backs away, “I’ll see you when the boats get here, Cupcake!” She hurriedly walks away as Caitlyn shouts out her name. By this point, she should understand Vi’s tactics to get away from her, but it continued to work every time. ‘Sorry, Cait, but I have a note from my sister to read before we go to see the damage done. Normally I wouldn’t want to go back there, but… Powder did this.’ Vi finds a quiet area and gets comfortable, tugging the note from her pocket. Her Hellhound symbol was something she hadn’t seen in a long time. The sight of the demon dog made something in her ache.

To my slug-eating crab, I hope you like this gift! We weren’t going to do it so soon, but you know how convincing anger can be! Don’t worry, no innocent people were harmed in the explosion. But, are you proud of me?! It’s my biggest BOOM, yet! Hahaha! This is my way of telling you that… no monster is going to get you as long as I’m here. That’s my job! With Love, Your Slug Monster!

Vi flinches when a tear hits the paper. She hurriedly wipes her tears away, but more start falling as she does. The few times she’s seen her sister since being released from Stillwater Hold have been… not so great. To see that Powder still cares about her after everything that has happened is some good news she desperately needed.

The sound of laughter and happy chatter greets you and your team as you approach the Temple. A group of children is playing with a bouncy ball out front while some acolytes watch them and talk. After blowing up Stillwater Hold, your group broke apart and got to work. Half went back to Zaun to talk with the people freed from the Hold and the others waited for the ships to come in. You had returned to Zaun and addressed the people you freed. You were direct about why they had been released but told them that they had a choice. They could remain in Zaun and prepare for war or they could leave for another country. They all chose to stay. Fue had come back in high spirits, rambling about how fun the raids were. It was challenging yet fun to sneak around the Enforcers out on the water. Landon had remained as a lookout - making you feel nostalgic about that role - while everyone else rushed the ships. The haul this time around was much greater than the last and everyone was feeling very proud of it.

“Lady Hexxit! Ekko!” One of the acolytes grins widely when she sees you, “Welcome to the Temple!” The children gasp when they realize who you are and excitedly run over to greet you. You laugh, place your box on the ground, and crouch down to hug the children. They zip around, giving hugs to everyone and asking what you’ve brought them this time. It warmed your heart to hear them cheer when Ekko said it was more food and clothes.

“Good morning.” You greet the acolytes as the children run back to their games, “We’re here to drop off some gifts. Is the Priestess in today?”

“Yes, she’s in the middle of a blessing so please be respectful if you’d like to go in during this time.” Another acolyte responds, “Lady Janna has granted us her presence as well.”

“We will be respectful, as always. Thank you, ladies.” You nod your head and they bow, opening the doors with welcoming smiles. You’re immediately greeted by another acolyte who leads your group through the temple. Although this wasn’t your first time coming through, this was just how they treated their guests. No guest was to feel unwelcomed as long as they weren’t there to cause harm. You’re being led past the blessing chamber when you pause by the door. Laying across an altar table is a teenager no older than sixteen, dozens of black candles surrounding him as the Priestess waves her staff over him. Off to the side is Janna, her staff clenched in her hand as a frown darkens her face.

“He has Lung Blight.” The acolyte says softly, “He’s an orphan we’ve been looking after. Parents died of the same sickness recently. Lady Janna tries to guide the air through his lungs, but they are weak and failing him.”

“Just like Ty.” Heather mutters. You glance behind you to see everyone gazing into the chamber with sad expressions. People were still dying, and although you were making progress on cleaning the air, it felt like it was going too slow.

“He doesn’t have long left, I’m afraid. This blessing is for his safe passage into the afterlife.” The acolyte sighs, shaking his head, “It never gets easy.”

“Could you save him?” Jinx steps forward, nudging you, “You brought me back to life. Maybe you can… heal his lungs?” She questions.

“I-I don’t know. I don’t even know how I brought you back, flower. I don’t know if I can heal him.” You frown and turn back to the sight. You gasp softly when Janna suddenly appears in front of you, grabbing your wrist with a pleading gaze.

“Please, my sweet breeze. Please, try to save him. I cannot watch another one of my people die.” Janna begs you, her eyes shining with unshed tears.

“Lady Janna, I-”

“I shall assist you with my magic. Please. I witnessed you bring Jinx back to life. I believe that you can do this.” Janna says passionately, making your heart clench.

“Okay. I’ll give it a try.” You nod. With those words, Sevika takes your box and Janna leads you into the chamber. The Priestess looks up, giving you a curious look and you give her a soft smile. You can hear the boy’s raspy breathing as you get closer and it makes your heart clench with sadness. The memories of Ty flash into your mind.

“Hello there.” You greet him, his eyes widening when he sees you, “I may be able to help you breathe again, but I will only attempt to do so with your permission.”

“H-How- can you- do- that?” He struggles to speak.

“I have magic.” You whisper, letting a flame flicker to life at your fingertips, “Do you wish to have a chance at life once more? I can’t guarantee you won’t get sick again, but-”

“Yes!” He gasps out, grabbing your hand, “Pl- ease!” You squeeze his hand and nod.

“You don’t mind, Priestess?” You double-check with her.

“Please.” She motions to the teenager, “Do whatever you can.” Janna walks around to the other side of the altar and grabs your other hand. There’s a quiet understanding between the two of you as she places her hand on his chest.

“Close your eyes and do your best to relax.” You instruct him. He stares at you for a moment before closing his eyes and allowing his body to relax. You take a deep breath and allow your eyes to slip shut as well. ‘Dig deep, Y/n. You’ve got this. You can do this. Whatever you did before… do it again.’ You feel your mind sink deeper, focusing on your heartbeat and then the feeling of their hands in yours. A cool energy washes over you from your left hand, like a refreshing breeze on a hot day. It travels through you and feeds your magic, soothing it and allowing you to focus on pushing it into the teenager. Another wave of energy flows into you, making you gasp as it burns your nerves like electricity. You’ve got this. Somewhere deep inside of you recognizes it as the Arcane. As your magic enters his body, an image of it appears in your mind and you can see that his lungs are almost dead. A stream of your magic fills his lungs and you watch in awe as it begins to heal the damage. Your eyes flutter open, the low candlelight stinging your eyes for a moment before you gaze at the boy. His chest was rising steadily with no signs of a struggle and you realize that he is asleep.

“You did it!” The Priestess gasps, her hands flying up to her mouth. Janna grins widely, appearing next to you and sweeping you into a tight hug. You can hear the others cheering in the background as your mind starts to process what you did. ‘I did it… I… did it.’ You feel tears sting your eyes as Janna puts you down. ‘Thank you for your belief in me.’ You think, hoping the Arcane heard you. You glance at your friends, catching sight of your guest nervously fidgeting in the back. ‘Right, one last thing before we start sorting through the supplies.’ You hold your hand out towards the group and beckon the man forward. His eyes widen as the group steps aside for him, revealing him to the other women in the room.

“Dad?” You hear the Priestess whisper in disbelief.

“Marigold...” The old man breathes out, walking into the chamber in awe, “Look at you… you’re- you’ve… grown.”

“Dad!” The Priestess shouts, running forward to embrace her father, “But, how are you here? Y-You were sent to Stillwater for life!” She wipes her tears away, glancing around the area at all of you. A wide grin crosses your face as the others do the same, happy to reunite the loving woman with her only parent. She shared her heartbreaking story about her father working hard to raise her on his own when she had gotten into some trouble. At the time, she wasn’t a fighter but her friends had begged her to join them as a scout in case something went wrong. They were jumped early in the morning by a group of Pilties who had thought it would be fun to rough up some Zaunites. She pleaded with them that she didn’t want to fight, but they didn’t care. Her father had saved their lives, but it ended with him being sent away to Stillwater for the crippling injuries he gave the Piltoven teenagers.

“Your friends surprised us in the middle of the night, telling us that they were freeing us and the dead Enforcers were quite convincing.” He chuckles.

“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have snuck out that night-!”

“-Don’t apologize. I’m your father. I would do it all over again if it meant that you survived to see another day.” He shakes his head, “I’m here now, and I’d love to hear about how you got into such a prestigious position.”

“Of course!” She nods, then turns to you, “Thank you. Thank you for bringing my father home. I-I could never repay you for this.”

“How about helping us distribute more food and clothing?” You smile sweetly, “There’s suddenly more people who will need assistance.”

“Let’s get to work then.” She nods. You all leave the room while some acolytes tend to the teenager. You were still in shock that you managed to do that. Both times you’ve done magic like that you were either guided or in a very distressed state. You had thought those two times might’ve been a stroke of luck or even something you couldn’t do on your own. You even tried to redo something like that when Auvern had broken her wrist, but nothing happened. To know that you can still do it brings you some relief.

After a few hours of work, Ekko grabs you and the two of you change before heading up to Piltover. You had quietly discussed the progress on cleaning up the pollution in the Undercity and learned that they had run into a snag with the systems they were trying to create. With the two of you being so busy with other projects, there was no way you’d be able to assist with it. That’s when Zara suggested approaching Viktor and Sky once more. They hadn’t taken you up on your invitation to live at the Grotto or the Rapids, but you continuously kept in touch. You planned to go and see them in their lab today as Y/n and Ekko Pyre as a way to have free access to them… without scaring them every time.

So, you and your brother went for a stroll through Piltover. There was a bit of an issue getting into the city since Enforcers were guarding the entrance, but you got through without killing anyone. The IDs your uncle had given you proved extremely useful in that circumstance. You and Ekko tried hard not to smile when you heard people talking about the tragic explosion of Stillwater Hold. You hadn’t heard anyone mention Jinx’s name, so you assume that they were still keeping her a secret from the citizens. Their excuse for the explosion at the Councilor’s Building was that an experimental device had gone wrong. You found it ridiculous that the people accepted that, but you had to give credit for the quick thinking. It wasn’t hard to find the location of Jayce and Viktor’s shared lab. Their lab was in the heart of the city, so you picked up some fruit smoothies - then had to fight your brother over getting to drink your OWN - and headed inside.

“Good afternoon!” You’re greeted by Sky whose eyes widen when she looks up from her desk, “Oh! Y/n, Ekko, you’re here!” She gets up from the desk and rushes over to hug you.

“Hey, Sky!” Ekko chuckles, “We’ve brought food and drinks for our hardworking friends.” He lifts the bag which has sandwiches from Molina's, the butcher cafe in Zaun that you knew they loved.

“Thank you.” Sky smiles, accepting the two drinks from you, “Vik’s in his lab, so I can take you there.” She leads you down the hall and into an elevator.

“How are the two of you?” You playfully nudge her, “Any new relationship information we should know?”

“Not yet.” Sky laughs, stepping out of the elevator. The rest of the journey is quiet, as you don’t want to talk about anything too sensitive where it can be heard. Sky knocks on the door to Viktor’s lab and it slides open with a soft woosh. Viktor brightens up when he sees his fiancee and then grins when he sees you and Ekko.

“If it isn’t two of my favorite inventors!” Viktor says happily, accepting the drink from Sky, “Impressive work on Stillwater by the way. I overheard Jayce muttering about how it’s irreparable and I thought he was going to pop a blood vessel.”

“We had some inside help.” Ekko smiles slyly, “Now, we brought some food to eat, so take a break from whatever you’re doing.” He reaches into the bag and tosses a sandwich to him. Viktor catches it, smiling at the sticker on it that said Molina’s when he sees it. The four of you take a seat on the floor away from his work and enjoy a nice lunch. You talk about what happened with Stillwater and the process that you went through. They tell you that no official statement has been reached, but Jayce has been running around all morning. It won’t be long before they’re releasing a detailed statement on what happened.

“So, Viktor. Sky. I wanted to extend another invitation to you two about staying with us in Zaun. We’d love to have you back home, especially because we need someone with your expertise.” You state, tucking your trash back into the paper bag.

“What do you mean you need our expertise?” Viktor furrows his brow.

“We’ve run into a snag with the purification process on a machine being created to assist in cleaning up Zaun. The only person we know who can help is you.” Ekko responds, “We need you.”

“Can I… we… get back to you on that?” Viktor hesitates, sharing a glance with Sky, “We’re trying to get things settled here without causing any issues.”

“Of course. You could just show up at our front door if need be.” You shrug.

“Thank you.” Sky says sincerely, “We really appreciate how welcoming you’ve been.”

“Sky, you’re-” Ekko gets cut off as the door opens. You all look up to see the Man of Progress himself walking into the room. He gives you and your brother a curious look before turning to Viktor.

“The Council needs you to sit in on this meeting about Stillwater.” Jayce says, “And, who are your friends?”

“Jayce, this is Heiress and Heir Pyre. They’re friends of mine that I met a while ago during Progress Day.” Viktor introduces you to him. Jayce’s eyes nearly pop out of his head at that and you can see how fast he’s thinking.

“It’s nice to meet you, Heiress and Heir Pyre.” He reaches out to shake your hands and you begrudgingly do, “Actually, would you like to come to the Council meeting? We could use your expertise and perspective.” You blink in surprise. ‘Did someone talk to him about me? Either way, this is not something I should be passing up.’ You and Ekko share a glance and he nods at you. He signals to you that you should be the one to go while he hangs back to talk with Sky. You nod at him before addressing Jayce.

“If the Council would be okay with that, but my brother has a prior meeting with Sky.” You answer, making Jayce nod.

“Meet me in the lobby in five minutes.” Jayce says before exiting the room.

“Does he talk to you like that all the time?” Ekko questions, appalled.

“Yes.” Viktor and Sky chorus.

“Can I strangle him?” Ekko asks seriously.

“Only after I do it.” Sky huffs, crossing her arms.

“Please don’t strangle him. He, unfortunately, writes my checks.” Viktor sighs, standing up and stretching. You do the same and clean up the mess of the food wrappers on the floor. You weren’t expecting to waltz into a Council meeting but here you were. It looks like your new identity is already getting you into places you’ve never been before.

#vi #vi arcane #vi x reader #the fury of zaun #ekko arcane #jinx arcane #sevika arcane #viktor arcane

[trollbreak]

FOURTH time is the charm lol

[“An ex-goddess, hm? Is that why you’re wasting your time drinking cheap vodka in a locker room, when you know it’s not going to do much? Or are you hoping for the blood loss to carry your weight, here?”

The woman bares her flat teeth at them, and Pyrric tilts their head. It’s hard to find someone intimidating when she lies in pieces before you. Harder still when you know that neither of you can do too much damage to the other in any reasonable amount of time.

“Is it the reason you’re getting yourself killed weekly, because the crowds pay better at the end of the week? Or maybe it’s the reason you’re baring your teeth like they could actually do anything that matters. Please, talk down to me some more while you’re still halved. I’d like to see how much you can try to puff up like this.”

The woman rolls her eyes and grabs her pants by the belt loops to pull her torso closer together, and the flow of blood only slows a little. Pyrric is almost certain those pants are going to be ruined. A shame- that orange would make for a lovely dress color, if Dari would consider dying her own clothes. But she’s made it clear enough that she’s not looking to make friends. Another shame.

“…Are you the yellow who’s fuckin’ the freak? Keeps killing you for the shits and giggles? ‘Cause gee, what a high fuckin’ horse you’re on, bleeding for some rich someone or other… gods. Leave it to the bug people to make the weird ones.”

Pyrric leans down, turning her head to be eye to eye with Dari.

“Is that my reputation now? I’d have hoped it was something kinder… but if that is the case, I’ll not have you ruin Daemia’s for it. She’s divine, in a way you’re never going to know. Not anymore. You did say you used to be a god, yes? Who do you pray to, when you die? At least the things that made me were kind enough to take my scars, to dull my p-“

They have more to say, but Dari spits at them, and they’re sputtering, staggering to catch their balance. Whatever landed in their eye doesn’t burn, per se, but they don’t want to leave it there. They might have to ask Daemia to help them with that, at the end of the night.

They’re already going to need some time with her to feel at home in their own form again… they hate when someone gets under their skin like this. Anger doesn’t suit them.

“Fuck off. You said you wanted to make friends, yeah? A fat fuckin’ success that was- do me a favor and get the fuck out. Bet I can get Junie to get you banned, if you wanna push your fuckin’ luck.”

Pyrric doesn’t know why they had expected anything less abrasive… Dari has a reputation of trying to get on people’s nerves. But at least this wasn’t a wasted trip, they have some information that a few friends will be more than happy to have, in case the empire ever reaches her home.

They stand back up with a deep breath, smoothing out their skirt and adjusting their hair around their shoulders.

“Fine. Have fun stewing in your misery, Dari… and if you want to try to find a way to cope better, I’m sure Junie can get us back in touch.”

Another breath, and they put their smile back on. It’s so much easier to be cute than to be angry… they’d like to lean into it until it feels right again.

“And have a lovely rest of your night!”]

#writing #dari #Pyrric #ummm info that didn’t get included bc I ran out of steam before I really got well started on this one: Dari’s name ‘etched in stone’ #is Daarel Mournglaive (Blade of Sorrows) and she’s damn annoyed she didn’t get a chance to figure out what the FUCK that title was supposed #to mean. she’s like damn we went on this trek to an all knowing rock lady and my destiny just got stolen? the fuck. #she’s from il’jur which means so little to anyone but me :P #she WOULD have been a goddess of violence. the little violences. personal fights and murder and such. but um. she didn’t get to reach her #potential :P #ALSO!! #Pyrric buds with yerren and Wynric. sometimes dying is a good way to learn some stuff :3

[coolcattime]

On one hand, I don’t need to write any more AUs, but on the other hand… Mianite Cursed Pirate Crew AU. The basic concept of this AU is based on a TTRPG called Rapscallions which I haven’t played but I love the concept of.

Basic setup is just that the cast are all members of a pirate crew and each one is cursed in some way.

The Crew: Capsize, Tom, Jordan, Redbeard, and Sonja

Capsize is the captain of the crew, though she’s rarely seen off her ship making her co-captain more known to the general public. Once during a particularly bad attack, she called out to the sea goddess to save everyone’s lives. Her calls worked, Capsize became one with the sea, being able to turn the ocean itself against their enemies. However this connection came with a price, her being forbidden from stepping foot on land. Notably she will always insist that she is forbidden, not unable, to step foot on land. She has never said exactly what’ll happen if she goes against this rule, just that the goddess wants to keep her close and she isn’t going to go against a goddess.

Tom is Capsize’s co-captain, a position which everyone else on the ship is definitely very happy about. He got himself cursed when dealing the final blow to a leviathan, an encounter that technically killed him. In his dying moments he swallowed leviathan blood, which revived him with a couple of consequences. Notably, he looks slightly off with no light in his eyes and an odd green tint to his skin. However, he also gained powers, though he’s still figuring out exactly how to use them, with one of the few he’s sure of is his new found ability to communicate with the giant sea beasts that once caused his death. 

Jordan would very much insist that he isn’t cursed, seeing that his actual abilities aren’t the things giving him trouble. However the others note that being touched by the gods in a way that gives him no special powers, but has inspired multiple groups to try and track him to to fulfil his apparent “terrible destiny” counts as a curse as they’re fighting to stop him from getting kidnapped or captured seemingly every other week. Despite his insistence that he isn’t cursed, he always gets quiet when asked when his apparent destiny is, not wanting to reveal what he is apparently destined for, especially not when he’s finally figured out who “the rival” and “the love interest” described in the terrible tale are supposed to be.

Redbeard, much like Tom, got cursed during a fight, but not one that killed him. During a raid on a cargo ship, a strange creature was unleashed on them, managing to claw and bite him before they took it down. This very quickly proved to have consequences as the body of the creature is identified as a lycanthrope and they realise what Redbeard being bitten by it means. They manage full moons as best as they can, making use of the brig and any magical locks they can get ahold of. They haven’t had any incidents thus far, but Redbeard still fears what will happen if he ever gets loose.

Sonja was the only to get cursed before joining the crew and she is the newest member of said crew. She was a researcher of many different kinds of magic and legends, though she tried to keep her activities on the down low due to attitudes of the town guard towards magically powerful people. However, one night while lost in her studies, she discovered  a creature claiming to be a djinni locked within one of the books she was studying. Not quite understanding what she was dealing with, she made a wish releasing the creature and binding herself to her journal. Now she has powers, the ability to gain knowledge just from writing questions in her journal as well as the odd power to bend luck, but she also cannot roam far from her journal and if anyone but her gets ahold of it, she has no choice but to do as they say.

She found the crew after writing in her question asking for somewhere safe to flee, knowing that if anyone in the town caught wind of what had happened she’d never have freedom again. They took her in without question (they can’t exactly turn down more hands on deck), though her sudden departure was noticed by a friend, who isn’t sure what to make of the news that she apparently was taken by a pirate crew.

#mianite #mianite cursed crew #i have loose ideas for other characters namely tucker being sonja's friend trying to track them down #and rupert the grey being a ghost processing the ship #but i didn't have full ideas for them so i didn't write them #captain capsize #tom syndicate #jordan captainsparklez #skipper redbeard #sonja firefox #oh and yeah this crew is gay as all hell