#...I sort of don't want to know why she needs/wants a bucket of water

[serxinns]

Ok sorry if I'm taking up some time but something related to a picture I saw has literally been on my mind and I need some sorta short fanfic about it ���

So basically, Yandere Fantasy AU Bakusquad where they are all dragons (Except Bakugou being a Barbarian) and a traveler reader who is incredibly hurt so is under the care of them all.

I mainly want this because I recently broke my wrist (which is now healed up) and idk 😭🙏

The Lost Traveler

Yandere! fantasy Bakusquad x gn! reader

A/n: I kinda went off on this onw hehe but I hope it was worth the wait! I hope you enjoy!

Tw!⚠️: injuries, reader getting hurt, weapons, drowning, possessive and obsessive behavior, stripping off clothes (in a non sexual way ofc) nudity (if you count reader being in their undergarments, yandere behavior, and more don't read if you can't handle it

"After them!" You heard a man yell out to his group as they chased you, but you didn't look back you didn't want to look back your main priority was safety you looked around the woods to see if there was any hiding spot but to no avail, the men kept shooting their arrows towards you as you barely dodged them. You held on to your bag tightly you didn't know how you had come to this conclusion you just went into town trying to grab some things and these men tried to rob your mother's spellbook so you kicked one of them in the groin he released you from his grasp and you continued to run

"I got this" one of the men grabbed their bow and arrow, your eyes widened in horror as he aimed for your leg and you were getting ready to dodge untill a sharp pain hit you in your upper leg you screamed in agony and dropped to the floor clutching your foot the bandits all surrounded you chucking you grabbed the book tightly not wanting those monsters getting it

"Now, now, brat, why don't you be smart and give us the book, and we'll let you go"gt.he man had a devious grin on his facfaceu spat at him, "fuck you, you'll have to kill me 1st!" The bandits snicker and laughed "Very well then.." one of the men got a weapon and held itches towards your neck your eyes widen trying to squirm off from his grasp but he pinned you against the tree hard with a final attempt you kicked him in the groin with ur shoe his grasp became loose as he howled in pain now clutching his area kneeling, "you little shit..." the crew all held their swords at you you the began crawling backward with the book praying they'll be someone to protect you

You then began to slip on something; you quickly looked behind you to see a waterfall right behind you, you gasped, wanting to crawl back, but the bandits were in front. You were at a dead end "Nowhere, the run, little shit, just give us the book!" He sneered, you had to act fast for you and the book, you look at the waterfall again hesitant you began crawling closer and closer waterfall until you felt the cliff and the loud crashing water beneath you, one of the bandits snicker th t up to what you were about to do "don't do anything stupid ya hear just give us the damn book!" He shouted you looked at him with one last glare and let your whole body go holding the book tight while you fall

You closed your eyes ready for the impact and pain, you landed in the roaring water you desperately tried gasping for air using your good arm to swim back up for air but it'd currents were too strong you tried grabbing some sort of branch or rock but kept crashing into them hard your body began to feel tired and ur eyes droopy from all the pain and energy "is this how I die.." you thought as you slowly close your eyes surrendering to the wrath of the water as they took you

...

"Aha! Gotcha!" The dragon yelled as she caught a fish with her claws she examined the fish making sure it was big enough for her friends and place it in the bucket her stomach growled in hunger she looked down and then looked at the fish, "..one fish wouldn't hurt" mina looked both ways and all around when the coast was clear she grabbed a small fish and was about toneat until a voice called her "Pink scales you better not be eating our dinner like shitty scales!" The Man said angrily, "Ughh bakugo, it was just gonna be one!" Mina whined as she reluctantly dropped the fish

"One less of our dinner!" He scolded, taking the bucket and carrying it with him. "Plus, it looked like you already had some!" He looked at her with a hard glare as she smiled sheepishly the barbarian was about to yell at her until he spotted something floating in the water he shoved the dragon away to view it closer he realized that it was a human being floating around in the river katsuki quickly went in the river not caring about hid clothes getting dragging the human out of the water "it's that a human?! Are they breathing?" She shrieked looking worriedly and concerned

Katsuki then felt the human skin it was cold..katsuki then led his head toward its chest the heart was still beating but it was barely breathing.."Mina take the human to our cottage.." he ordered Mina nodded and quickly placed you on her back and transformed into her dragon form katsuki then hopped on her back and signaled her to fly, she then carefully launched into the air making sure nobody falls then soared through the sky

As they were soaring, Katsuki took the time to examine you; it seemed like you were not from here but maybe from another region judging by your clothes, and he didn't mention it, but there was a book in the human's hands. He observed it closely. It seemed like it was from a powerful being..but he didn't know where it was from, until then he may have to keep it for a while just in case for safety

Mina roared making Katsuki snap out of his thoughts when he looked up he realized that they were home he grabbed you and jumped off Mina while steam came out of her turning her back into her human form they carried the human to the house and placing them on the couch "Mina take off through clothes and check for bruises" Mina nodded she carefully took off your closes leaving you with only your undergarments on she blushed a but reminded herself to focus, the poor human was covered in red and purple bruises and had a broken wrist Mina gaze soften feeling pity for then poor human

"The human has a bunch of bruises and a broken wrist" Bakugo scoffed "that probably gonna take half of my healing power so I'm only gonna heal them on certain areas and patch up the others letting them heal themselves" bakugo then let Mina carry the unconscious human to give them a warm bath, bathing off the dirt and gunk in their hair and gently handling them with the best of her abilities the most she saw the bruises the more angrier she seems how dare someone could do this to a precious little thing when she was done she quickly wrapped them up in a towel and carry them in the bedroom where there were already a set of warm clothes for them to wear..

....

You were panicking all you could see was black you couldn't move your body it was like you were wrapped in something, it was suffocating, you tried to scream but you couldn't hear your own voice nor you couldn't hear anything just emptyness and eerie silence, you wanted to get out of here you wanted to see if you have that spellbook you wanted to survive, are you even alive anymore?! You were breathing rapidly wondering what did you do you be in this hell

Then a soft humming rang in your ear it sounded...familiar like something your mother would do to comfort you when you were feeling ill or had a very bad day, the humming made you calm..peaceful even, your panicking began to die down as well as your breathing you squirm around trying to break free from whoever or whatever is trapping you but to no avail, then saw some light in your vision it became bigger and lighter...

You slowly opened your eyes, all you could see was a blurry red figure hovering over you humming the same tune you heard back there you blinked a couple of times to get your vision more clear, and there standing above you was a boy with red scales forming on his shoulders and large pointy like horns with red eyes staring the back at you, with a yelped you tried squirming away but her strong hands were keeping you still "Please don't struggle your weak at the moment" he said petting your hair softly trying to calm you down

"Where am i.." the red hair chuckled as if that was a silly question to ask "your home can't you tell?" He answered softly as he continued to hum confused you were about to ask what did he mean by that untill another voice could be heard "did the human wake up yet" there revealed a another dragon with blonde hair and a black lighting strike on he turned his attention towards you and his eyes brighten "they're so small!" He has as he poked your cheeks curiously wanting to feel what a human skin felt like "they're also soft as well!" He giggled happily the red haired dragon quickly swat his friends hand away as the dragon whined

"They're still healing Kaminari be gentle!" Kiri scolded him The yellow dragon softly glared at him jealous from the red dragon hogging you "would you stop fighting infront them? the poor thing is barely gaining conscious" there appeared a dragon with black hair scolding at the 2 dragons "now come on the foods almost ready" he said as he gaze at you with a soft smile the headed back to the kitchen ok now you were confused who were these people? Why are they're saying this is your new home? Are you going crazy or what

Your thoughts were then interrupted again with Kirishima picking you up and carrying you to the kitchen and plop you down to your chair you awkwardly thanked him as he happily sat down at his spot, that's when smell of the food hit your nostrils it smelled so good you even drooled a bit which you quickly wiped off with your arm embrassed hoping nobody noticed that "heh someone's hungry" the dragon away you assumed to be Sero said smirking at you as your face lit up in embrassament you looked away

"Well I haven't eaten in a few days of course I'm gonna be hungry" you protested as the black dragon chuckled "whatever you say sweets" he shrugged laying against the chair patiently waiting for the meal "dinners ready!" A loud booming voice was heard a blonde male with orange eye "Guess the little shit is awake" he grumbled "Katsuki language! Don't call the human that!" Kirishima scolded katsuki scoffed

"Don't fucking tell me what to do shitty hair you ain't the boss of me!" He said yelled the two started bickering back and forth while Kirishima wrapped his Strong arm around you protectively you tried pushing it off but it seems like he was too busy to noticed or he didn't care "boys stop arguing when our human is awake!" "Yea I bet they're starving right about now!" A purple dark then came in along with a bubbly pink dragon skipping in the kitchen the 2 boys shut themselves up and they then fix yourself and themselves a meal

it was cooked fish with a side of veggies the aroma was addictive making you go wild, fish wasn't always your favorite meal but those last few days of living off of eating berries and small animals this was a actual proper meal for you you devoured the food in seconds not noticing how the others were cooing and just adoring how cute you were, after the meal you were about to head yourself out grabbing your spellbook and thanking the kind people for the care untill a hand grabbed you by the shoulder

"And where the fuck are you going?" Bakugo said with a stern tone "Uh I'm going out I need to get back home" "in this condition? Your still hurt pumpkin no way we're gonna let you go out exposing yourself to the dangers" you didn't noticed jirou infront of the door now everyone else gathered around you looking weirdly at you...

"Why don't you stay for a few nights atleast untill your injuries healed!" Kirishima suggested you thought about it for a moment the trip back home would take rather long considering that you barely even know your way back they then carried you off to their bed all cuddling next to you

You were their human now you were a gift for them and them only those monsters are gonna pay for what they done to their little darling~

[alisonwritesimagines]

Please Don't Be In Love With Someone Else ~LA!Shanks x Reader x LA!Mihawk Imagine~

Summary: You keep waiting for Shanks. But someone new comes along and suddenly, you're not so lonely.

Author’s Note: You read the title correctly. I'm evilly laughing right now as you read this in pain. Also, this is technically a rewrite of the angst ending cause the one I wrote and in my drafts is more fluff than angst.

Angst Ending to I Was Enchanted to Meet You

Reader’s Pronouns: She/Her

Warnings: angst, fluff, but angst to all you Shanks lovers

Side Note: This is a secondary blog. If you comment a question down below, I will not answer since this is not the main blog. Please send the question to my inbox if you want a response back!

Do not repost this anywhere!

It had been years since you last saw Shanks. And it's been a year since you last saw Luffy. Ever since he was old enough to sail off in the world to find the One Piece to become King of the Pirates, you had been by yourself since. Of course you did a lot for your small village to keep you occupied but you still missed your boys.

You were tending to your garden as it was time for you to harvest before it became spoiled and over grown. That was until you heard someone say something behind you.

“You don’t seem like someone who can harm a fly."

You turned around to see the warlord Dracule Mihawk standing before you. You stood up straight to seemed less intimidated.

“I can hurt a fly. Don’t think I’m good at harming anyone else,” you tell him as you crossed your arms.

“I see.”

“I know who you are so what do you want?” You asked.

“I was sent to kill you but in all honesty, I don’t think I can kill you. You’re too beautiful to be killed,” he tells you.

“Who sent you to kill me?” You asked, now worried. You’ve stayed in the island since you were born. Not only that, you stayed even when Luffy left.

“Not to worry now. I don't have any intentions to kill you," he tells you.

"Then what are you still doing here?"

"I'm curious to see why someone would send me to go after you."

"Feel free to stay. Just to tell you, it's going to be quite boring," you tell him.

Mihawk stayed around the next day to watch over you. He didn't understand why Vice Admiral Garp would want a warlord like him to kill a sweet little thing like yourself. You did nothing of the sort that would be considered dangerous or even pirate bounty level dangerous.

"Ow!" You yelled as you accidently burnt yourself with the pan.

"What happened? What's wrong?" Mihawk asked you as he rushed inside your home.

"Just burned myself," you tell him.

Mihawk quickly grabbed your bucket of water before gently putting your finger in the cool liquid.

"Thanks," you tell him.

"Of course."

"I made extras if you'd like. I got used to cooking for two," you tell him.

"Was it for you and your past lover?" Mihawk asked you.

"Not really surprisingly. I used to take care of a little boy who used to live with me who had a bottomless stomach. He wanted to become a pirate so he set sail a year ago," you tell him.

"I see."

"So, dinner?"

"Why not."

—

Mihawk stayed for a couple more weeks before he needed to back out to sea. You stood on the deck as you watched Mihawk get ready to leave.

"So I guess this is farewell?" You asked him.

"For now. I will be back in a month at most," he tells you.

"To finish me off and claim your berry?" You asked.

"No. To come see you again," Mihawk said before sailing off. You shook your head at him before walking back to your home.

You assumed Mihawk was lying or joking when he said he was coming back to see you. But to your surprise, you opened your door to see him standing before you.

"Brought you some new seeds for you to grow in your garden," Mihawk tells you.

"I'm guessing you're staying for dinner?" You asked with a small smile.

"If you'd have me," Mihawk said. You nodded before letting him inside your house.

-

As much as you didn't want to admit, you fell for Mihawk. Even though part of you hoped for Shanks to come back, you appreciated the fact that no matter how long Mihawk was gone for or even if he was wounded badly, he came back to you. Even though Shanks would come back to you, he hasn't for years.

"Will you be mine?" Mihawk asked you one night. After a midnight stroll, you both headed back to your home. Mihawk stopped you from walking inside by holding your hand.

"What?" You asked in shock.

"Be mine. I've fallen for you Y/n. And I swear to you, I would never let anything happen to you," Mihawk tells you.

"Alright. I'll be yours," you tell him. Mihawk gave you a small smile before pulling you towards him.

"May I kiss you?" Mihawk asked you.

"Yes."

Mihawk cupped your cheek with his hand before leaning in to kiss you.

-

Shanks rushed over to your home after being away for so many years. He was excited to tell you his adventures and was looking forward to seeing you once again. He knocked on your door, his heart pounding in excitement.

Instead of seeing you, he saw someone else open the door. His smile faltered as he stared at the stranger in front of him.

"May I help you?" The stranger asked him.

"My apologies. I was hoping to find Y/n L/n? The woman who lived here?" Shanks asked.

"Oh. I'm sorry. She's been gone for quite sometime. She left the village I want to say two years ago? Her and her husband moved to another island."

"Her husband?"

"Yes. I'm surprised she married a warlord but he had been kind to the village whenever he was here," the stranger pointed out.

"Do you happened to know her husband's name?"

"I believe it was Dracule Mihawk."

—

Shanks made it to Mihawk's castle where he knew you would be at. After demanding to see you, Mihawk came out to talk to him.

"You should know my wife is resting," Mihawk tells him.

"You took her from me," Shanks angrily tell him.

"I didn't take her from anyone. When I met her, she was alone," Mihawk informs him.

"She never told you about me?" Shanks asked.

"No she has. I just never told her that I knew you."

"Please. Let me see her!" Shanks asked.

"Let me see if she's well enough to move," Mihawk said.

"Is she sick?" Shanks asked.

"Not entirely."

Shanks waited anxiously for you to come down. His eyes widen when he saw Mihawk helping you down. Your stomach was large but he knew that it was because you were pregnant. And what's worse was that it wasn't Shanks's child you were carrying. It was Mihawk's child.

"Shanks?" You asked in shock.

"Hi, Y/n."

-

You sat in the garden with Shanks alone so you two could talk. Shanks stared at you, admiring your beauty once more. While you thought you were alone, Shanks knew that Mihawk was watching nearby.

“Are you happy my love?” Shanks asked you as he held your hand.

“I am. Hawk Eye makes me happy,” you tell him with a small smile.

“I’m happy that you’re happy.”

“I did wait for you Shanks. I really did. But I feared that if I waited any longer, I’d be too old for you,” you tell him with a frown.

“You could never be too old for me. You could have white hair and many wrinkles and I’d still think you’re the most beautiful woman in the world,” Shanks tells you. You smiled at him before tearing up.

“I loved you Shanks. And I’m sorry I didn’t wait for you longer."

“Don’t apologize my love. I’m sorry I didn’t come back to you sooner,” Shanks said. You nodded before taking off your makeshift necklace that held the ring Shanks gave to you. You handed it over to Shanks before kissing his cheek.

“I hope life treats you well and I hope you find a woman who will love you endlessly as much as I did,” you tell him.

“And if Hawk Eyes dares to lay a hand on you, come find me. I’ll protect you.”

“I know you will."

"So this is goodbye then huh?" Shanks asked you.

"If you find Luffy, tell him I miss him and love him dearly. And that, he's more than welcome to visit me or find me whenever he wants," you tell him. After all, Luffy was yours and Shanks's unofficial son and you two were his unofficial parents.

"Goodbye, Shanks,” you tell him before giving him a kiss on the cheek once more.

“Goodbye, my love.”

—

You sat on the couch in your lounge room waiting for your son to arrive with his new fiancée. Twenty five years had gone by and you had lived your life. Dracule sat next to you as you both waited for your son to come home. Now that your husband has retired from being a pirate, he had spent his time with you while your children explored the world.

“I wonder what she’ll be like,” you tell your husband.

“I trust his judgement. After all, I chose well didn’t I?” Dracule joked.

“You most certainly did,” you smiled.

“Mom! Dad! I’m home!” You heard your son say.

“Over here!” You called from where you were.

You smiled at your son the moment he walked in but your eyes widen from the sight of the woman next to him. Not only did she have the exact same hair as Shanks, but she also had the same eyes as him. It was no doubt that she was Shanks's daughter.

“Mother. Father. This is my fiancée, May,” your son said proudly. You smiled at the woman before getting up from your chair to greet her.

“It’s nice to meet you, May,” you tell her.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Mrs. Mihawk.”

“Please call me Y/n,” you tell her as you shook her hand. You noticed her necklace with a ring on it. It looked exactly like the one Shanks gave to you from years before.

“I like your necklace,” you say.

“Oh thank you. My father gave it to me. Said it was his prize possession,” she tells you. You felt your heart break a little from what she said.

“Will we be able to meet your parents soon?” You asked.

“Unfortunately no. My mother passed away from childbirth and my father passed away not too long ago,” she tells you. You frown from hearing that.

“I’m so sorry.”

“It’s alright. I’m really glad to have met your son,” May tells you. You smiled at her before giving her a hug.

“Well, I know my son will treat you well. And if he doesn’t, you tell me,” you tell her. May smiled at you before looking at your son.

At the end of the night, you stood outside on your balcony as you stared up at the stars.

Maybe this was the universe telling you that in another life, you and Shanks end up together. But you did wish he didn’t have to be gone so soon. You wished that he would’ve came back to you sooner and maybe you two could've had the future you two wanted together.

[oliversrarebooks]

The Rare Bookseller Part 98: Fitzwilliam's Comfort

Previous > Masterlist > Next

tw: mind control, amnesia, aftermath of torture

December 1905

Fitzwilliam thought he was used to being constantly terrified, but he'd somehow found a new sort of fear he didn't know he had.

Once the ball had ended and all of the vampires had been filed out of the manor, Fitzwilliam had been handed over to Mr. Alexander with little fanfare. Mr. Alexander had wasted no time bundling him into a carriage and now --

Now there was an impossibly soft and gentle hand on his face, as he looked into stormy eyes.

"Fitz," Mr. Alexander said.

Fitzwilliam couldn't make sense of it, how familiar Mr. Alexander was being. The soft touches didn't make sense. He'd humiliated his master in front of a crowd. He should be punished for that. He didn't earn any kindness and didn't deserve it and he knew he was bound to pay for it later.

So he couldn't fully enjoy the caress, no matter how much his body quietly yearned for it, nor could he flinch away from his new master. He hadn't been trained for this and didn't know what he was supposed to do, and that meant that whatever he did do would be wrong.

But why -- why was it, despite it all, that Mr. Alexander said he was perfect?

Mr. Alexander seemed more concerned than upset. "Fitz, don't you remember me?"

It was like a bucket of ice water. He'd forgotten something. He was always forgetting important things, and the worst part was how little control he had over it. There had been so many things to remember when he was being trained, so many that it was almost impossible to keep them all in his head at once, and every mistake meant another lash, or worse.

There was a distant voice in his head, one that he thought had been in his head longer than any vampire, telling him that if he actually cared, he wouldn't forget.

But he knew deep inside that he cared about Mr. Alexander, and yet, he had forgotten something critical.

"I remember you, sir," he said, trying to calm his nerves so as not to annoy his new master, "but if I've forgotten something necessary, please give me appropriate punishments." He bowed his head and held his hands out to show his submission.

"I've never punished you, and I'm certainly not going to now," said Mr. Alexander. "What has he done to you?"

Fitzwilliam wasn't sure what to make of that. "He trained me so that I would be more acceptable to you, sir."

"To me?"

"That's why I was sent to the Maestro, sir, wasn't it? So that I could be trained to be good for you."

"No," said Mr. Alexander, who seemed horrified. "No, no -- I didn't do that. I would never do that, I would never send you to him."

Fitzwilliam dared to glance up, furrowing his eyebrows before arranging his face back into a neutral expression. Mr. Alexander wasn't making any sense. If he hadn't been given to the Maestro for training, then how did he end up there?

Mr. Alexander was touching his cheek again, tipping his head up gently to look him in the eye. "He's made you forget, hasn't he? He's burrowed into your head like a worm. Damn it!" He sounded so angry, as if it were Fitzwilliam's fault for being under the Maestro's control. If Mr. Alexander didn't want that, didn't want any of the training he'd done, then what had all of the pain and the sleepless nights been for?

"I'll have to cash in that favor that Lily promised me. I'll get her to dig him out of your head as much as she can, I promise."

"Yes, sir," said Fitzwilliam, not sure what his new master meant.

"Do you remember Lily?"

Fitzwilliam was relieved to know the answer to this. "Yes, sir, she danced with me at the gala."

Apparently, that was still not the right answer. "I never dreamed he would erase so much," he muttered, mostly to himself. "But before we can start fixing that, I'll have to attend to all of your more immediate needs -- physical injuries, food and water, and sleep. You look so tired, Fitz. I can tell you've been without proper food and sleep."

The word sleep echoed through him, making him intensely aware of his exhaustion. When Mr. Alexander said it, it made Fitzwilliam feel as though he could drop off to sleep right then and there, filling his mind with visions of beds and pillows and being allowed to rest, at least for a moment. His eyelids felt heavy, his body aching for it. If his new master allowed him to sleep even a little more than his old master did, he'd almost be willing to endure any punishment for that privilege.

Fitzwilliam did nothing to resist Mr. Alexander as he pulled him closer. "There's so much you don't remember now," Mr. Alexander murmured in his ear while stroking his hair, and it felt so heavenly that Fitzwilliam could hardly bring himself to think that he didn't earn this and that there would be consequences. "I'm not going to hurt you," he said, as if reading Fitzwilliam's mind. Maybe he could. "I promise that you'll be safe with me, at least for a time, as long as I can keep you safe."

Some buried part of him wanted to trust his new master so, so badly. "Thank you, sir." The world blurred around him as he allowed his heavy eyes to droop. Perhaps he truly wouldn't be punished if he were to just rest them for a moment…

"Fitz, we're here," said Mr. Alexander, shaking him gently awake.

Fitzwilliam sat up with a start, half expecting a blow, as when he fell asleep at the piano. He should have known he would fall asleep, but Mr. Alexander didn't seem angry at all, smiling at him with a look that he couldn't bear to interpret as fondness.

The brick manor loomed before them in the gloom of the night, strangely familiar. Emotions swirled within Fitzwilliam, fear and uncertainty but also happiness and a sense of comfort. Mr. Alexander produced a key from his pocket and gently guided Fitzwilliam inside.

The first thing he noticed was the smell of old books. It was everywhere, and Fitzwilliam relaxed further. He had been here before, of course, as Mr. Alexander had been his original master, but his memories were vague and twinged with unease. It was strange, then, that the smell of his place was so relaxing.

Mr. Alexander lit some gas lamps, revealing an entranceway clogged with bookshelves and other assorted clutter. It better resembled the home of an absent-minded academic than a vampire. A dusty intellectual, he thought, wondering where the idea had come from.

"Follow me into the kitchen, won't you?" said Mr. Alexander, beckoning him through a door.

The kitchen was a more cheerful place than the Maestro's kitchen had been, with more up-to-date fixtures, but the primary thing of concern to Fitzwilliam was the smell. Chicken broth, he thought, and his stomach betrayed him by grumbling loudly. In all of the time he'd been trained, he'd never quite gotten used to the meager amounts of food afforded him and the rest of the thralls, the stomachaches and headaches that haunted him at all times as his useless body pleaded for more food. It was enough to keep him alive, but never enough to come close to satisfying him. He tried to swallow down his need, hoping it wasn't too obvious.

Mr. Alexander moved a large pot to the stove and lit it. "I knew you'd be hungry, but I wanted to get you something that would be easy on your stomach, so I had the housekeeper make a batch of chicken soup. I've also procured some reasonably fresh bread, and there's butter, jam, and cheese to go with it -- I hope it's all to your liking."

Fitzwilliam blinked uncertainly. This had to be a dream. "Yes, sir."

"I'm just going to warm up the soup. Would you prefer to eat, or have me take a look at your injuries?"

Fitzwilliam wasn't meant to have opinions or make decisions, but nonetheless, he blurted it out without thinking: "I prefer to eat, sir."

He flinched away, expecting punishment, but instead Mr. Alexander was smiling. "Food it is, then." A loaf of bread was produced from nowhere and Mr. Alexander began to cut thick slices. The vampire was making him food, as if he were the master instead of the servant. He would have panicked if it didn't feel so comfortable.

Within the next few moments, an enormous bowl of piping hot soup was placed in front of Fitzwilliam, pieces of chicken and carrot and potato bobbing merrily in the broth. "There's a lot of soup, so you can have as much as you like," said Mr. Alexander, placing down a plate piled high with slices of buttered bread. "I have other foods as well -- fruits, cheeses, sausages, sweets -- everything that I could think of that you've professed a liking for."

Fitzwilliam was lost in a fantasy now, the kind that was forbidden to him, a fantasy where every sort of food he could imagine was laid out before him and he could eat his fill with no punishment. It took every scrap of his willpower to not devour everything in front of him. This was all too good to be true. It had to be a test. He had to be careful.

Yet his body refused to obey his mind. As soon as he began to spoon the soup into his mouth, swirling the rich, salty broth around his tongue, he couldn't keep up his composure. He began shoveling the soup into his mouth as fast as he could, barely even realizing what he was doing.

"Careful," said Mr. Alexander, "don't burn your mouth."

Fitzwilliam didn't care. He knew he was going to suffer for this and he didn't care. This glorious moment would have to be worth the suffering, the bite of the whip, the burns, the chains. He grabbed at the bread, using it to sop up the broth. It was the best meal he had ever eaten, at least of those he could clearly recall.

"Would you like some more?"

Fitzwilliam looked up, startled. He had forgotten his place. "No, sir," he said in a strained voice. He wanted more so badly, but he'd already gotten himself in enough trouble, hadn't he? His stomach felt practically satiated compared to normal.

But Mr. Alexander frowned as though he'd done something wrong. "You can have as much as you want. This soup is all for you, and I want you to eat."

"Yes, sir," said Fitzwilliam, caving immediately. There was another glorious bowl of soup before him, another sweet, fresh slice of bread. Fitzwilliam was able to savor this one a little longer, wanting to stretch out this moment to last.

"When you're finished eating, I'm going to need to examine you. Do you remember any of the physical punishments he's inflicted?"

Fitzwilliam nodded, swallowing his mouthful of bread. "He whipped me, sir, mostly on my back and legs. He carved words into my flesh, and burned me as well, and often kept me chained up." He said it all as dispassionately as he could, so as not to seem ungrateful for the rough treatment. That was the one thing that set his terrifying old master off more than anything -- any trace of complaint, any hint that the brutal training wasn't a cherished gift.

There was a hand on his cheek, and his face was turned to meet Mr. Alexander's gaze. "I'm so sorry, Fitz," he said. "I know I can never make it up to you, but I'm going to do whatever I can to help."

He was losing himself in the vampire's eyes, so tempted to let his guard down. Mr. Alexander seemed so sincere. But how could he be, when…?

"What are you thinking? Whatever it is, you can say it," Mr. Alexander coaxed.

He'd let it show on his face. He'd only been with his new master for a few hours, and he was already slipping so hard in his training. And now he had no choice, lest he be punished for lying. "I was only wondering, sir," he said, trying to carefully measure his words. "In the carriage, you said that I wasn't sent to my master -- my former master for training. But then, why was I sent there? I'm very grateful that I was, sir, so that I would receive instruction to --"

"He took you from me," said Mr. Alexander, interrupting him. Fitzwilliam had been carefully studying his new master for any hint of anger, but it hadn't manifested until this moment. "My sire, the Maestro, he took you from me and tortured you to punish me. It was never about training or instruction, and I would never have wanted you to endure that, not ever. That's the truth, Fitz, no matter what ideas he mesmerized into you."

Fitzwilliam was stunned. That would neatly explain why Mr. Alexander was so different from what he was led to believe, why his memories of Mr. Alexander had been so thoroughly scrubbed, why the training had been so horrific. And if all of that were true, then perhaps he actually could trust Mr. Alexander, the way he wanted to.

But if all of that were true, and all of his training was not something Mr. Alexander wanted or approved of, then that left one very important question: what did Mr. Alexander want with him? How did he want Fitzwilliam to act? Perhaps he was being kind today, seeing Fitzwilliam in a downtrodden state, but that surely wouldn't last. Sooner or later he'd have expectations, and if Fitzwilliam couldn't figure them out in time…

"If you're finished eating, could I take your shirt off to examine you?" Mr. Alexander asked, interrupting his spiral. He went to the counter and picked up a first aid kit that Fitzwilliam hadn't noticed before. "I want to attend to any injury I can."

"You don't need to do that, sir."

"I'm choosing to do this. You're important to me, more than you know," said Mr. Alexander firmly, pulling Fitzwilliam's dress over his head, and Fitzwilliam meekly allowed it, sitting up straight as Mr. Alexander unlaced his corset and removed his chemise. Mr. Alexander circled him, gentle fingers brushing over every scar and bruise as if to catalog them. Fitzwilliam couldn't help but shudder as those fingers fluttered down and across his back.

"Do you remember this?" asked Mr. Alexander, tracing something. "The night my sire made me carve a word into your back?"

"No, sir," said Fitzwilliam. He had several words carved into his back, but as far as he knew, they had all been placed there by his old master.

"I'm not sure if my choice of word helped. Still, I don't regret it, given the circumstances." The touch on Fitzwilliam's back was soothing as Mr. Alexander rubbed at his sore muscles. "You've done so well, Fitz, to endure everything you did."

It was too much, too much pleasure after he'd been deprived for so long. Tears were welling in his eyes. He had cried a lot at the beginning of his training, until the impulse had been burned out of him through punishment and shame. Now, he felt as though he were losing all of the control he'd worked so hard to build, a quiet sob escaping him.

"Am I doing something wrong?" asked Mr. Alexander. "I don't want to hurt you. If this hurts you too much…"

"No, sir, you're not doing anything wrong," Fitzwilliam reassured him quickly, not wanting him to stop. He was ruining this. The Maestro was correct -- he couldn't be trusted with his emotions, couldn't be trusted to not botch everything without a firm hand of guidance, and soon enough his seemingly kinder master would realize this and --

The anxious thoughts were driven from his mind by a beautiful clear note. Mr. Alexander was singing softly into his ear, a song without words, and it was filling him with a pleasant fog, making his muscles relax and sag.

It was absolutely heavenly, and as soon as the sensation began to come over him, Fitzwilliam was fighting it tooth and nail. He couldn't have this. He couldn't allow himself to lose control, to relax even one second, or he'd surely say and do the wrong thing. This must be a test, to see how well he could serve the vampire even when under the influence of strong enthrallment.

Even as he was struggling, though, the train of thought was washed out. He sagged into Mr. Alexander's arms. Mr. Alexander was far too strong for him -- of course he was. He was a vampire, and Fitzwilliam was nothing more than a mere thrall, only valuable for his blood and how well he could serve.

"I want you to be honest with me," said Mr. Alexander. "Why do you flinch away when I touch you? Why do you fight my enthrallment?"

Fitzwilliam had no chance of holding back. "Because I don't know what you want, sir. I don't know what I'm meant to do," he admitted, flinching instinctively. His old master didn't have any patience for Fitzwilliam when he wasn't sure what was needed of him, going straight to punishment.

"I want to help you. I want you to be happy. That's the truth."

It couldn't be true. He didn't deserve that happiness. But he couldn't doubt or defy his new master. "Why…" He slammed his mouth shut, not wanting to ask an impertinent question.

"Go on, you can ask me anything."

"Why did you say I was perfect, sir?" asked Fitz. "Why do you want me to be happy?"

"You don't remember," said Mr. Alexander. "That's not an admonishment, just a statement of fact. I'll have to help you remember."

"What am I meant to remember, sir?"

"That I've always wanted you to be happy," said Mr. Alexander, stroking a finger down his cheek. "That I would give you the moon and the stars as long as you stay here with me. That you're my most precious of treasures."

"I… I am, sir?" Fitzwilliam couldn't help but lean forward into the touch, wanting more, more touch, more attention. His whole being ached, and he realized that he was more starved for affection than he had been for food, affection that he was sure he would never get unless he was perfect. "Is this a test, sir?"

"A test? What kind of a test would it be?"

"My old master, he told me that I didn't deserve any kindness or consideration, and couldn't handle it even if it were given to me, sir," Fitzwilliam explained. "Is this a test to see if I correctly reject your kindness, showing that I know my place?"

"Oh, god, no," said Mr. Alexander.

"Then is it a punishment, sir?"

"You think this is a punishment?"

"To provide me with something I need so that you can take it away, sir."

"No, this isn't a test, nor is it punishment," said Mr. Alexander firmly. "And I have no intention of taking my kindness away. You're home, and I want to take care of you. And if I have to quiet your mind to make you relax and experience some peace and pleasure, then that's what I'll do."

"Sir?"

His master had started singing again, more insistently, and the song was laden with ease and tranquility. Fitzwilliam's thoughts began to fade once more, and he didn't fight it, couldn't fight it, as his mind slowed, filled with honeyed warmth. He couldn't stop the blissful relief that was turning his mind to fog.

He watched through lidded eyes as Mr. Alexander produced a tube of cream. "This might be a little cold, but it will help soothe these cuts and burns." He began to rub it across Fitzwilliam's back, easing the ever-present pain, and Fitzwilliam melted into a senseless puddle, letting out a soft sigh. "Does that feel nice, then?"

"Yes, sir."

"I'm glad of it. You're doing so well. Just keep relaxing and let me take care of you." Soft bandages were wrapped around Fitzwilliam's torso, and then Mr. Alexander moved on to examining his arms, the cuts and blisters on his fingers from long hours of practice. By the time Mr. Alexander had tended to those small hurts, Fitzwilliam was so out of it with both relief and mesmerism that he hardly even noticed the command to remove his petticoats. He'd imagined this so much, gentle hands taking care of his wounds, even though his old master strictly forbid this kind of indulgent thought.

"Does that feel any better?"

"Mmm," said Fitzwilliam in a daze, forgetting himself. "I mean, yes, sir."

"You don't need to call me sir, but that's something we can work on later," said Mr. Alexander. "For now, I can tell how exhausted you are. You need sleep."

"Sleep…" Fitzwilliam repeated. Once more, just the mention of the word made him feel as if he could drop off right then and there. "Will you allow me to sleep, sir?"

"Of course I will. In fact, I insist on it. You can sleep as long as you like."

"As long as I like…" he murmured as Mr. Alexander picked him up effortlessly, cuddling him close. As Fitzwilliam blinked slowly, he was being carried out of the kitchen, then up the stairs, and then into a bedroom. It was too dark for Fitzwilliam to see much of anything, but his master carried him across the room and laid him down in an impossibly soft bed. Warm blankets were pulled up over him as he sank into the mattress.

He was warm and comfortable, his wounds covered with soothing lotion and bandages, his stomach full. This had to be a dream, the kind of dream he would be punished for. He didn't want to wake from this dream. A choked sob escaped him.

"Shh, it's all right." His master was getting into bed next to him, wrapping his arms protectively around Fitzwilliam. "I'm here, and you're safe."

His song became a lullaby, and Fitzwilliam's thoughts blended into sleep, unable to resist the call.

He was in Lex -- Mr. Alexander's arms.

He was home.

Previous > Masterlist > Next

Thanks for reading! Next week, Oliver suffers under the Maestro's thumb.

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[blog-name-idk]

The Plot Twist | 05

Written by @blog-name-idk and @eserethriddle

Summary: Once upon a time you would have jumped at the chance to live the idol girlfriend life. The cameras, the action, the whirlwind romance. But what was once a dream has now become your worst nightmare, and you fully intend to fight the universe as it repeatedly conspires to set you up with your seven perfectly good soulmates from Bangtan Sonyeondan.

In which we punt Y/N into all the fanfiction tropes and you do your feral best to subvert the love story.

Because nani the fuck, you are The Plot Twist.

Pairing: OT7 X Fem!Reader

Genre: Soulmate!AU, crack, humor, idol!AU, light angst, slow burn, romantic comedy, just a fun silly old time

Rating: 18+

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Chapter 5: "It's fine! South Korea has universal healthcare coverage!"

Of three things you are absolutely certain. First, soulmates exist. Second, the universe – and you don't know how potent its power may be – runs on some sort of karmic imbalance. And third, you are unconditionally, and irrevocably, fucked.

It is raining.

In a rare, extremely odd fit of forethought, you actually have an umbrella in your bag. Normally, you would scoff at weather predictions and dare the clouds to do their worst. But today, you found yourself grabbing your umbrella before leaving for your commute, and the skies that have darkened into an ominous, storm-like gray after your work shift do not phase you at all.

Today, your undoing lies in a different kind of disaster preparedness.

Hard water pelts down almost as if it is herding you, and you hurry from the assault of the rippling sky to the awning of a closed coffee shop to grab your umbrella. Expletives spew from your lips as you dig through your messy bag. You're so focused that you barely register someone also taking refuge from the sudden storm – a man wearing a mask and a bucket hat, but is shivering through a wet, black long sleeved t-shirt that's sticking to what looks like a very toned body.

Not that that's the type of thing you typically notice or anything.

"Found you!" you screech excitedly as you pull out your umbrella and brandish it at the sky. The man beside you flinches, like you're about to attack him, and you give him a disdainful look.

"S-sorry," he mutters, the brim of his hat still hiding his eyes. "I thought you meant something else."

Something else? Is he on the run from the mob, or fleeing the national military? The incredibility of either prospect nearly makes you snicker, but whatever, you need to get home before the storm gets –

BOOM!

– worse.

The thunderclap makes both of you jump, and you wince at the realization that the rain is coming down even harder. Unforgiving sheets of water pour down, and you can barely see even a few feet past the awning. Maybe you can get an Uber instead…

You pull out your phone to see no bars. No data, no phone signal, nothing. The guy next to you is shivering even more violently now, and you internally sigh. You can't just ignore him, not when helplessness is wafting off him in tenebrous waves.

"Do you have a ride coming?" you ask reluctantly, wishing you had been raised to be more selfish. Your mother does whatever the hell she wants, why hasn't she taught you the same? Though, to be fair, she probably would have been able to get the rain to stop by glaring. Perhaps someday, in your final form, you'll be just as powerful.

The man wilts and shakes his head, and you’re alarmed when you hear a sniffle. Shit, you are not equipped to handle a crying man. You're not even equipped to handle your own emotions.

"I – I left rehearsal because I had a fight with my hyung," the guy begins to share, morosely wiping his face with a wet hand that only leaves more moisture behind. His voice quivers, and despite your misgivings, the piteous sight of him tugs at your heartstrings. "And now I'm lost. I only have my phone, and it’s useless right now."

You start to feel a little sympathy for someone who's clearly been having a bad day. You're about to offer to share your umbrella to the nearest train station when he finally looks straight at you, meeting your eyes for the first time.

The patch of skin behind your ear suddenly tingles and–

Oh.

Oh.

The rain falls, lightning cracks, and your stomach drops in time with the crash of thunder that follows. Yet you can barely hear it over the sudden pounding of your heartbeat.

"Do you… Could you… If it's not too much trouble, could I walk with you to the train station?" Jeon Jungkook pleads, large doe-eyes gazing brilliantly at you from half of an unmistakable face.

This… is why you felt like bringing an umbrella today? Because of the universe and its cosmic–fucking–intervention?

The man across you fidgets, growing self-conscious as he waits for your answer. For a few long seconds, all you can do is stare numbly at him.

Are you going to have to assume every man you run into these days is one of your soulmates? How is this even possible?

You reach your decision in less than a minute.

Dejectedly, you hold out your umbrella wordlessly to Jungkook, and his face lights up. His smile does something unspeakable to your heart that you refuse to acknowledge. His expression scrunches – cutely, to your dismay – in confusion when you just hand him the umbrella. You shove a few crumpled bills from your back pocket into his free hand, careful not to touch his skin, and he looks completely baffled.

"For the train fare," you manage to choke out, already backing away into the unforgiving rain. It's coming down so hard the pelting drops almost hurt, but this is infinitely preferable to whatever the fuck the alternative is.

"What…? No! You don't have to – I just wanted to share – "

"It's fine!" you call over your shoulder, already twenty meters away and sopping wet in the opposite way to what the universe was probably trying to contrive. "Just get home safe! I'm sure your hyung is worried!"

With that you're off, leaving a very confused and equally charmed idol behind. Jungkook stares after the strange, kind girl, wondering why it feels like you're running away.

Pondering, he scratches the tattoo behind his ear.

He’s just about to run after you, but then his phone buzzes in his pocket, and he opens it in surprise to see a wall of text messages.

How odd. The signal bars are full now.

At the influx of messages from his hyungs, his argument with Jimin at the rehearsal studio floods back into his mind, and Jungkook sniffles again and dials the familiar number.

"What do you want?" answers a grumbling Jimin, filling Jungkook's chest with guilt.

"Hyung, I'm so sorry!" Jungkook cries, blubbering in earnest now, the familiar voice opening the floodgates until his tears almost match the tempest around him.

"Don't call me!" his hyung scolds, clearly still angry. And yet, he picked up the call when he could have just ignored him. Jungkook hears Jimin sigh, the sound static and long. "Fine. Where are you?"

"I don't know," Jungkook whimpers as another crack of lightning cleaves the air. Thunder follows soon after, and he hopes that you're okay, wherever you've gone.

“What do you mean you ‘don’t know’?!” Jimin demands, suddenly all love, all worry. "Tell me where you are and I'll come get you."

Ah… warmth. This is what his team has taught him: brotherhood, love, and family. To be angry, to piss each other off, but in the end be willing to drop everything to help one another.

Something the stranger had done despite having no need to.

"I don't know where I am," Jungkook replies, already feeling a little better. "But I'll take a taxi home. S-someone gave me some money."

"Come safely. I'll wait outside for you."

Before Jungkook can protest, Jimin hangs up. The maknae can't help but smile despite how stressful the day has been. Between his team members and the kindness of the girl from earlier, his chest feels warm and fuzzy, driving away the cold and the gloom of the gray skies and icy rain.

He just wishes he had gotten your name.

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Fuck.

You wake with a head full of cotton and a nose more clogged than a toilet at an American WacDonald's. Feeling like death, you drag yourself out of bed to the bathroom, force yourself into a scalding hot shower that – for a blessed moment – clears your sinuses. You get ready for work, and by the time you're ready, you at least look put together, though inside you're already wishing you could crawl back under your covers.

Any other time, you might have taken a day off to not inflict your coworkers with your germs, but today is that stupid executive meeting and you can't afford to miss it.

You pop some cold medicine into your mouth, mask up, and get to work early, because despite your utter lack of care when it comes to your personal life, you are a demon in the office.

"[Y/n]!" calls Mijoo, one of your favorite administrative assistants. It's for that reason and that reason alone that you pull your head away from your screen to give her a smile she probably can't see through the cloth of your mask.

"Hey," you greet, clearing your throat and relieved you haven't hit the "uncontrollable cough" stage of your cold yet. "What's going on?"

"Soonyoung is freaking out about something again," she replies quietly, casting her eyes over to the corner office where your Senior Vice-President resides.

You're not sure if he ever actually leaves the building.

You sigh. This is a big project, one that is being presented to the company execs, and you really need everything to go perfectly. It's a good thing you got here early.

"When I finish here, I'll go talk to him," you say reluctantly, making Mijoo shoot you a smile of relief.

After you've confirmed that everything should as expected, you push off your desk, letting your chair roll backwards. Then you slip your feet back into your heels, stand, and give a lazy stretch of your limbs before heading to put out the fire, rolling your shoulders as you do so.

Through the glass surrounding the door, you can see your VP frowning at his computer screen, gray brows knit in some sort of frustration. You knock twice, and he looks up, still frowning. It vanishes as soon as he realizes it's you, and with a grin he beckons you inside.

"[Y/n]! Thank goodness," he said in a relieved voice, already angling his monitor so that you can see. "I can't get VLOOKUP to work!"

You bite the inside of your cheek to keep from saying something you shouldn't, instead ambling over to help the dinosaur who is (hopefully) planning on retiring soon. Why is someone so high up even messing with spreadsheets, anyway? You barely have time to do any hands-on work at this point, and all you manage is your own team.

"It's tricky," you agree fondly, humoring him not because you have to, but because he kind of reminds you of your grandpa. "Here, let me help."

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Your next meeting also has an unusually high number of execs, and you frown as you recall the vague wording of the invite. You settle in a chair next to your work friend slash rival Jaesung, who looks just as confused as you feel.

"Any idea what this 'very important meeting' is about?" you whisper in his direction, and he shakes his head.

"No clue, but there are rumors that there's something big coming up," he whispers back. The two of you are unable to speculate any further, however, as your CEO appears. What the hell?

By the time the meeting ends, you are torn between laughing and crying hysterically. The execs have announced the planned launch of a top secret flagship product, one that the company is expecting massive returns on due to a collaboration with – because this is your life now – motherfucking BTS.

And then VP Soonyoung stands, looks at you and Jaesung proudly, and says that as two of his best people, you will be spearheading the marketing and sales efforts. He adds, with an elderly jovial laugh, “Both of you will even get the chance to meet them, so go get your autograph plaques ready!”

As if you needed to be disincentivized!

"You’re so lucky!" wails Mijoo as you sit in your cube, where you have been staring woodenly at your computer screen for over five minutes now. She thinks you're in joyful shock, and maybe, it definitely is shock. The electric chair kind.

It's bad enough that you had to spend an entire wonderful excruciating evening with Hoba – Hoseok – and he is now aware of your existence, even if he hasn't realized you're soulmates. But now this?

You mull over filing for your immediate resignation, which only adds to your headache. Eventually, you conclude that your time and compensation package from Samsong are just too good, too unbeatable, and… you’ve grown as a professional here. People respect you, value you for you, and you absolutely love working with your personally curated team.

The problem is the universe keeps testing your limits. Executive meetings? Easy. Flagship product development? Doable with the right people. But passionate, self-consuming cosmic schemes involving the world’s biggest boy band in the guise of soulmateship?

You’d rather get hit by a car.

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

The universe hates me.

That is your last thought as you hear the squeal of tires on pavement and the frantic honks of a car horn before you're suddenly staring up at the sky, pain flaring throughout your entire body.

A man gets out of the black Hyundai Palisade with tinted windows, and you suddenly wish that you had been truly run over with no hope of recovery. Of course it's Kim fucking Namjoon of BTS, and he's looking at you in a mixture of panic and concern that makes your heart flutter despite your best efforts.

"Oh my god, are you okay?" he asks, to which part of your brain thinks, What a fucking idiot of course I'm not. The other half stupidly admires the broad set of his shoulders, the strange mixture of grace and clumsiness as he stumbles over to your battered body.

Wait.

You return to your senses, and begin to push yourself back up to your feet.

"Yep, totally fine!" you insist through gritted teeth, ignoring the way one of your legs is twisted awkwardly, and the flare of agony that permeates your body when you're able to bring yourself upright. "It was my fault anyway!"

It wasn't, but you're not going to stick around to let this play out.

You begin to limp away as fast as your contorted ankle allows, ignoring the flabbergasted expression on Namjoon's handsome face.

"I – can I at least pay for your medical bills?" he asks as he takes a tentative step after you. You hobble faster despite the burning pain in your legs.

"It's fine!" you call behind you, getting a regrettable glimpse of his beautiful, worried eyes. "South Korea has universal healthcare coverage!"

Unfortunately, you can only wobble so fast until the physically fit, able-bodied man catches up to you. By this point, your vision is fuzzing with strange dotted lights and your body doesn't feel quite real anymore. Namjoon's hand touches your shoulder, and you turn around to tell him off. Instead, you feel your legs buckle and strong arms catch you before everything goes black.

 ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

"You keep appearing in unexpected places, and often." Jimin swallows, his heart beginning to race. "Your skin is always covered up. You don't eat or drink anything when I'm around."

He takes a deep breath, knowing you're just a step behind him.

"How old are you?"

You hesitate – just barely – before you reply.

"Twenty-five."

"... How long have you been twenty-five?"

"A few months."

A few months. A few months since he's moved into your apartment complex. A few months since the strange not-quite-ennui and melancholy has begun plaguing him. A few months since you have turned of age to manifest your soulmate connection.

"I know what you are."

He feels your body tense behind him, and a thrill runs down his spine. When you speak, he can feel your breath on his neck.

"Say it."

“Soulma–”

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Kim Namjoon looks anxiously at the nurse checking your vitals as you lay prone on the hospital bed, wishing he could do more to help.

"I think – I think she might have hit her head," he offers, for the tenth time, thinking about the way you had tried to run away on what the nurse is reasonably certain is a badly sprained ankle. The nurse gives him a tight smile, because one does not simply roll their eyes at the leader of Bangtan Sonyeondan, no matter how many times he's said the same thing.

"We'll check for it," the nurse promises, soothing the tall man. For the time being.

Namjoon chews on his lip as he gazes at you, wondering what your story is, what kind of past would drive you to such strange lengths.

For some reason, he itches to hold your hand, but that would be completely inappropriate from a total stranger. Especially when it could cause dating rumors if anyone gets a glimpse or a picture. His manager is already going to kill him for chasing down an injured girl in broad daylight.

His eyes keep getting drawn back to your face, peaceful in sleep and – dare he say it – quite pretty. Very pretty. Beautiful, even. And you had felt so soft and nice in his arms, warm and –

"Sir, please stay seated while I finish here," comes the nurse's tired voice, and Namjoon realizes he's gotten up and has an arm outstretched to stroke your cheek.

"Uh, sorry," he stutters, face burning as he sits back down. What the hell is wrong with him? Why does he feel drawn to this very strange, very lovely girl?

A soft groan tears Namjoon out of his spiraling thoughts, and his gaze shoots to your form as your eyelids flutter open.

"Wha – " you ask blearily, waking up from the weirdest parody dream of the world’s best vampire movie ever. Shifting in your bed, pain contorts your face and you let out a hiss. "Ow!"

Namjoon rushes over, and your mouth drops open when you realize who he is. Before you can react, he's holding your hand in his, and he staggers as something in the universe fundamentally shifts. By your gasp, you're experiencing a similar sensation, and you yank your hand out of his grip before he can get his bearings.

"Your leg seems severely strained," the nurse explains, blissfully unaware of the way the world is tumbling around the both of you. "We'll need to do x-rays to make sure it’s not broken."

"I'll… get a wheelchair…" Namjoon says, in a daze, desperate to be of help even as his mind races to understand what is going on. He stumbles outside of the room, desperately hoping that a moment alone will help him get his thoughts in order and help him find the right questions to ask.

Apparently these are questions he won't receive answers to any time soon, because by the time he's back, the room is empty. The nurse follows after him, and looks around in confusion.

"Where'd she go?" the nurse asks, and Namjoon wishes he knew the answer. Who are you? Why are you so hellbent on getting away from him?

And why does holding your hand feel like home?

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

That was too close. Too fucking close.

You pull yourself onto the bus by the railing, ignoring the driver's confused, concerned expression as he takes in your hospital gown and the way you're wincing in pain. You swipe your card, only vaguely aware that everyone behind you can see your rump through the poorly tied flaps of the gown.

It's fine. Your dignity is unimportant compared to the bulletproof boy scout you just dodged.

You drag yourself to a handicapped seat – if there's ever a time you can confidently sit in one, it's now – and fall into it, finding an angle for your leg that gives some sort of relief.

Despite the pain, it's the warm feeling in your hand you can't stop thinking about.

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Kim Namjoon is at a loss.

Despite searching the entire hospital, the mysterious girl was nowhere to be found, vanishing from the premises as if she were never there. Still, out of personal guilt and liability, Namjoon lingered, offering to settle the missing girl’s hospital expenses, but the charge nurse expertly dismissed his generosity once it became apparent that he did not know you at all. He couldn’t even give them your name, or any proof of relation, and the rest of the staff quickly became tight-lipped around him.

Even Kim Namjoon, the illustrious 148 IQ leader of BTS, can’t argue against health privacy laws.

Since leaving his phone number with the charge nurse – his final, desperate effort – Namjoon has been staring at his phone, waiting for any news about you… news that simply never comes.

That same evening, he walks into the band’s shared dormitory with aplomb.

Single-minded, he heads straight for the living room and picks up the remote control off of the coffee table.

The flatscreen TV goes dark, and Kim Taehyung complains, “Hyung, no! What gives!”

Jungkook cries in offense, shooting up from the sofa, “My vampire baseball scene!”

Namjoon deigns them both with a long-suffering look. “We need to talk, so call the team.”

His assertive voice, usually reserved for critical matters and scolding, makes Taehyung and Jungkook abandon their emotional support movie in favor of gathering the rest of the group.

One by one, the boys pile into the living room from separate parts of the apartment at Namjoon’s behest. Most of them are sporting rumpled clothes and bedheads, save for Jimin, who looked ready to leave for his own place.

Namjoon announces, “There’s something I want to discuss. A… possibility.” He clears his throat. “A girl.”

"That's what you interrupted our movie for?" Taehyung asks, indignant. "A crush?"

Hoseok lets out an immediate sigh of relief. “Is that it?” And then he pauses, scratching at his nape, “Well, me too, I guess.”

Jimin’s eyes brighten. “No way, hyungs! Me too!”

When Jin, Jungkook, and Taehyung concede that they've also had a run-in with a very memorable girl recently, a new suspicion blooms in the back of Namjoon's mind.

Could they be talking about the same girl?

Though unlikely, he decides to ask, “Did any of you manage to get her name?”

Jin nods, seriously. “G0d$l@yeR_69.”

Namjoon shoots him another long-suffering look.

Hoseok stays silent, if only because his memories of you are one of the few non-idol centered things he still holds onto. Besides, his girl can’t possibly be their girl, too. The odds of that happening would be astronomical.

It's not so wrong to want to keep one aspect of his life to himself… right?

“Sorry, I… I didn’t get her name,” Jimin lies, for the same reason Hoseok keeps quiet. Besides, even if Jin is interested in you, Jimin's your neighbor! He should get first dibs! He's not going to give up your name so his handsome, charismatic hyung can find you and woo you before Jimin even has a chance to try.

"What's this important meeting about?" asks Min Yoongi, walking into the room with a mug of coffee in hand.

"A girl," Jungkook replies, somewhat dreamily, remembering the guardian angel that saved him that rainy day. Yoongi rolls his eyes and immediately turns around to leave despite Namjoon's protests. He has more important things to do than sit around gossiping, especially since he has a meeting with Samsong tomorrow about their new collaboration.

There's a hubbub behind him, a thump, and a curse from the ungainly leader as Namjoon's prized George Nakashima coffee table claims yet another victim. Yoongi's toe throbs, and he sighs.

"There's a first-aid kit in my room." He calls over his shoulder as he goes. "Knock yourselves out."

Far away, in a clinic near your apartment where your ankle is being put into a brace, you sneeze.

┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Masterlist | Next

[lambilegs]

thinking of lee secretly yearning for queer community, having a bone-aching longing to meet people like her, people who grew up in their small rural towns wondering why they wanted nothing to do with boys, why boys didn't give them those embarrassing flutters that all the other girls spoke of. her hearing vague, distanced stories of people who've curated groups of people who they can unabashedly express their preferences in front of, and the entire concept feeling so foreign to her that it's like a bucket of ice water washing over her when she hears it. I can just imagine how timid, how curious, she feels in those moments. socializing has never come naturally to her, and she's always been content in her own company.

but, then, why does it make her chest so heavy when she hears of people going to lesbian bars, and leaving with newfound friends, or budding lovers? why does it make her feel pathetic and empty to realize that since she was a young girl, she's held all this desire, throbbing and begging to have light casted onto it, deep inside of her, stuffing it down until it's snuffed out like a flame. at first, it was because she was haunted by the dark veil constantly draped over her head, forcing her to squint through the lens of evil and pure, good and bad, a ticket to heaven or hell. it was initially just to save herself from sin. but, even once she departed from her faith, all these feelings, all these secret longings for someone who she might lean her head upon on those weary days, still remained dormant. maybe the enormity of her want is too frightening, and after forcing it dormant for too long, she's intimidated by just how much it may take over. maybe her isolation through life has made her so resigned to a life of solitude that it feels like a betrayal to pursue the alternative.

but, no matter what, it's there. the desire to meet people who, if they don't understand her silence and bluntness, can at least understand how she's never felt so comfortable until she put on her first button-up for work. or how she so often grazes her fingers along her hair, which only lays out on her shoulders when she needs to dry it after showering, and wonders how it'd feel to chop it all off. how it took her so long to realize that the things she saw in other women, like spirit, energy and sugar sweetness, weren't things she wanted for herself, but things she wanted to bear an intimate witness to while close by. enthralled by their dancing, laughter and casual fixing of hair, she didn't want to be them, but simply wanted to hold them in her gaze.

still, even in her late twenties, these thoughts and feelings linger in her. she's always felt most comfortable alone -- it's safe, and there is no judgement there, nor expectation for her to conduct herself in a certain manner. yet, this gnawing sense of want is starting to creep into her more and more, like some sort of parasite. it whispers, what if things were different? what if you had people to talk to? people who'd know what you've hidden for so long? what if you could have a taste of that freedom? what if you could have a grain of that familiarity and complete comfort? a place where you didn't need to hide, where people understood?

it ends all the same. with her deciding that there are more important things for her to focus on, like her mother and her job. she tells herself it would be a lost cause, anyways -- she's nowhere near ready to go out by herself, nor surround herself with new people. she wouldn't know what to do with herself. even the idea of shattering her routine with such an outing is enough to make her stomach turn. it doesn't matter that the idea of other lesbians, lesbians who she could call friends, and maybe one a lover, feels so foreign and absent from the realm of her existence that it makes her bite back tears.

it probably wouldn't work out, anyways. maybe it's simply too late for some people, or maybe some people's lives just aren't suited for that kind of thing. despite how wrong it feels to think that, it's what she tells herself in order to file these notions away, continuing to work while ignoring the pit in her stomach.

[mulders-too-large-shirt]

s1 episode 24 "erlenmeyer flask" thoughts

aka SEASON FINALE! wow, one full season with these nerds... time flies <3

this episode was super fast-paced and full of twists and turns, straight from the beginning. we open on a very jerky chase scene that was hard to watch and which set the mood as a guy was shot and then jumps into some water and no one can find him

!! the title sequence changed !! it said "trust no one" rather than "the truth is out there"!! surely this means something, but what? i'm spooked!

mulder is sleeping on his couch again. can we please start a fund to get his ass a mattress. it's getting serious.

looks like he fell asleep working on a case when a phone call from deep throat wakes him up, telling him to change the channel where he sees the news of the opening car chase and records it on his VCR (how vintage!)

he shows the footage to scully who is basically like why do we trust this deep throat fellow- a valid question, as mulder trusts almost everybody like a little baby duckling- but scully referring to him as "deep throat" means they've discussed the subject before, which is interesting

we then visit a scientist who is working on monkeys. scully, for some reason, wants to say hello to the monkeys- perhaps we can chalk this up to her innate goodness

the scientist is like "leave those monkeys alone" and she says "i'm sorry, i thought they were friendly" scully, you should know that monkeys are NEVER friendly! they tried to bite her but thank god they missed because these are, after all, no ordinary monkeys, but Alien Monkeys

after the monkey business scully is pissed because they have no leads and she says we need to wrap this up! we've learned nothing! ohh i wrote this next part down word for word because it gagged me:

mulder is so trusting of deep throat and scully says he's stringing mulder along for some unknown purpose...

to which he says: "you think he does it because he gets off on it?"

and scully replies "no, i think he does it because YOU do"

oh i gasped and yelled at my screen! she got him! valid question though, why is this guy leaving them little clues beyond his earlier in the season confession of alien murder guilt? it IS suspicious.

mulder and deep throat confront each other and play more sick and twisted mind games which is fine; deep throat insinuates that mulder doesn't care as much as he used to which is rude but it spurs him on his quest for answers

next the monkey scientist kicks the bucket which obviously means his monkey science was deeply important

the guy who was doing the running during the car chase confessed to being underwater for 3 days after he was shot which obviously has implications but we aren't given a whole lot of time to explore them

back at the monkey lab, now a crime scene, mulder hands scully a flask of mysterious liquid and says "what do you think this is". she says "i don't know" then runs on a quest to go find out because he asks her to. god, dana scully has really had to endure SO much with this man, and now a mystery liquid from the monkey lab? again i ask where her compensation is

mulder breaks into the dead scientist's house, which revealed another basic and universal truth akin to gravity: if no one lets mulder in a house, he Will find a way to break in. he cozies up to the dead guy's desk and starts flipping through his stuff, and the runaway underwater alien guy calls and he picks up the phone like this is a typical day for him. alien guy is emitting some sort of gas that hurts everyone which is unfortunate.

scully fell asleep on the couch of the microbiology department which was soooo <3 but then the lab scientist comes in with the plot twist...

monkey liquid reveal: it has some sort of secret bacteria... with a new base pair! which means it HAS to be some sort of extraterrestrial life!

mulder tracks down a storage unit that is filled with bodies in tanks, and he looks like a kid in a demented candy store while some crazy orchestral stuff goes on in the background. then he is chased by some people but leaps over a fence with astonishing agility.

scully realizes that the monkey liquid is actually Very Important and they meet up to explore the tanks and she says she's sorry for doubting him. "i should know by now to trust your instincts" she says, to which he replies "why, nobody else does" and they both smile and it is not emotional at all, shut up!

"you know, i've always held science as sacred. i've always put my trust in the accepted facts. and what i saw last night... for the first time in my life, i don't know what to believe" <- banger scully line

(i don't believe that this is the first time she's questioned it, though. she's been on edge the whole time, this is just the most she has been. she was thrown off by the psychic who quoted her dad, and by the alien bites in the very first episode. regardless, character development!)

((also, love that she talks about holding science as sacred while wearing a cross necklace in every scene. she's got that "raised catholic" aura about her))

gasp! just as i knew it would be, the room of tanks is now entirely empty, all cleared out except for... deep throat? he reveals that this is the place where the first alien-human hybrids were developed out of terminally ill patients, who got better, but developed superhuman strength and the ability to breathe underwater. a valid tradeoff, in many ways, and exactly what has happened to our friend who was shot and hid underwater and now gives off noxious gas. so now they have to find him before the Others do.

mulder runs back to the dead guy's house, which he seems far too comfortable entering, and finds the alien hybrid man. alien man tries to choke him out, but mulder still says "i'll protect you"

(man, i love that line. we Will be psychoanalyzing that at a later date)

but alien man is shot by an intruder, and his noxious gasses burn mulder while he's tied up. poor scully has been blowing up his cellphone, to which he mumbles "i'm a popular guy"

(always with the damn one liners while he's beaten within an inch of his life; you are popular to one individual, mister mulder, but granted she's a very special one)

deep throat says scully can get into a high containment facility and trade the alien tissue for mulder which okay. sure. why not? she guesses the mystery password and gets into the building and. well. this was my reaction:

"she's opening a mystery container and i lowkey expect a frozen head but NO IT'S AN ALIEN THINGY AUGHHHH IT'S LIKE A BABY"

gross!

only 6 minutes left in the episode at this point and i was stressed! scully's got a box full of alien, is meeting deep throat on a bridge, and refuses to hand the alien box over because. again. who tf is this guy? he gets all mad and says that she NEEDS to hand the box over because these guys that they're dealing with took some of the alien tissue and injected it in children.

and this maybe was supposed to get her to hurry up but she was just like. nah why the hell would we give them the alien back? so we can get more alien children?

to save mulder, of course! because they are the only two who can shine light on what is really going on!

(don't talk to her in such a condescending manner, deep throat, i will bite you. she has perfectly valid reservations about handing ur mysterious ass a box full of alien. but she finally does)

and then as he hands the box over to the mystery people HE IS IMMEDIATELY SHOT! i gasped so hard here i actually hurt my mouth which is still recovering from surgery and so all of us had a bad time around this point. they do toss mulder from the back of a car, though, and deep throat's dying words are to "trust no one"

(so is it really mulder that we have back? if we can trust no one, does that mean someone has hacked into mulder? and scully doesn't know that? that's what i'm guessing here. sort of a winter soldier-ish situation)

13 days later, mulder calls scully in the middle of the night and says the fbi is shutting down the x files and they're being reassigned, but he won't give up, he can't give up. he says someone named "skinner" made this decision. i am unfamiliar with this individual but have a feeling we will become acquainted.

the season ends with the alien being placed in a mysterious room. to this i wrote the following:

"alien baby in formaldehyde in an archive i would kill to get my hands on it let me see it let me see it let me see it NOW"

(i bet they also have JFK's brain in that archive!)

so what a whirlwind of an episode! we certainly can't trust anyone moving forward, but does that apply to the trust between mulder and scully themselves? what will they do now that the x files have been shut down? somehow i have a feeling they will come back, a sort of hunch to do with the 10 more seasons of this show.

will they meet up for coffee during their new assignments? who is skinner? so much awaits us on the other side of this season, but i still need to process all i've seen so far!

[duhragonball]

Neon Genesis Evangelion 01

Not a hoax, not a dream, not an imaginary story, and it's not an April Fool's prank! The Neon Genesis Evangelion liveblog begins here!

Man, it feels surreal to actually be doing this. This is one of those bucket-list anime series that I thought I should watch just to understand all the pop culture references. Jojo's Bizarre Adventure was one, Revolutionary Girl Utena was another, but those were a lot easier to track down. Hell, RGU was free on YouTube when I watched it. But Eva was a little tougher to get ahold of. There weren't a lot home video releases, and streaming services weren't carrying it. I think that's changed in the last few years, but I'd heard the Netflix version had some changes to the subtitles, and besides, I was busy with other things.

So a few years back I just said "fuck it" and paid too much money for the old ADV DVDs. I think it's out on Blu-Ray now, but I can't take screenshots from Blu-Rays so this is the play. But that's all prologue. We're finally here, and I'm finally watching this thing, so it's time to see what this thing's all about.

Ah, so it's a historical drama, is it?

I could gush about the theme song, which I've enjoyed for years, even without watching this show, but nah, let's just move on to the show itself. You know the words, and if you don't, go look up "Cruel Angel's Thesis" and prepare to rock out.

There's a little backstory in this episode, but the important stuff is pretty self-evident. There's some giant monster thing that emerged from the water, and a big UN military force is desperate to destroy it before it attacks. Conventional weapons are completely ineffective, and a big chunk of Episode 01 is spent on watching this thing shrug off missiles and shells as it strolls towards... someplace. I'm assuming it's a city or a base.

It's fast, strong, and agile, as seen here when it catches a missile in one hand. The missile explodes in its face and has no effect.

While this is going on, a woman named Misato Katsugari is trying to pick up a kid named Shinji Ikari. The monster attack hits right before she finds him, and he almost gets killed when she pulls up in her car. On their way to the base, she sees that the U.N. is deploying a nuclear weapon? It looks like a nuke, but I missed that line, so maybe it was something else. Anyway, it doesn't work either, but it does blow over Misato's car.

When the dust settles, they push the car back on its wheels and continue. Misato calls for some sort of train to pick them up and take them the rest of the way, and it's like some kind of car-carrier train, I guess. Not important.

Since the nuke didn't work, the UN hands things off to the NERV agency, headed by Shinji's father, Gendo Ikari. Okay, so in brief, they call the monsters "angels", and if I remember right, they said there was an attack fifteen years ago, so this is an ongoing thing. NERV was established to combat these angels, but I guess the UN wanted to see if they could hack it on their own first.

Misato works for NERV, and she introduces Shinji to Ritsuko Akagi. They discuss Shinji as being the "Third Child", so it's becoming clear that Shinji didn't just come here to visit his dad.

I kind of glossed over all this technobabble, but I already know where this is going. There's big robots that can fight the angels, and they must need Shinji to pilot one of them, and he must be uniquely capable of doing so or they wouldn't have bothered sending for him.

The ladies give Shinji a NERV manual to read, but when they show him the robot, they tell him it's not in the manual. So why is there a manual at all? I mean, there's not much else to this operation besides the robots, right? Maybe that's why the manual looks so short.

I guess they were going to slowly introduce Shinji to the job, but the angel is attacking the base, so they kind of cut to the chase. NERV needs Shinji to pilot this specific robot, Evangelion Unit 01, to fight the angel. Shinji is obviously untrained, but his dad insists that he only has to sit in the pilot seat. Shinji still hates this idea, and his dad stone cold doesn't care. Shinji clearly doesn't trust his dad, and his dad stone cold doesn't care about that either.

Misato is the only one here who's even a little sympathetic to Shinji's predicament here, but even she pressures him to get in the robot, because they're all going to die if the angel gets any closer. She says something about how Shinji needs to "confront" his dad and himself, which Shinji seems to understand, like he's known for a while now that this day was coming. He still can't bring himself to go through with it though. So Gendo goes with Plan B.

Plan B is Rei Ayanami, a girl about Shinji's age who piloted another NERV robot, Unit 00. I guess she fought an angel recently, which is why she's so badly hurt in this episode. They have to wheel her in on a gurney. The NERV staff are somewhat incredulous about this, but as Gendo puts it "She's not dead", and if Shinji won't fight, this is all they have left. Despite her condition, Rei agrees to do it, although it's pretty clear to everyone that she's in no condition for this, if she ever was.

While Shinji is still processing the implications of sending Rei in his place, the base is rocked by the angel outside, and it's enough to knock over Rei's gurney and send some stuff crashing onto Shinji... until Unit 01 raises its hand to mimic his own instictive motions. Improbably, Shinji is so in tune with the robot that he can control it from the outside, without even being conscious of it. So this sheds some light on why Gendo wanted him to pilot the thing so badly.

So between this and the pathetic state Rei's in, Shinji agrees to pilot the robot and defend the base. There's a lengthy scene of him getting put inside the robot and sending the robot outside, but I'm not going to do into that.

Gendo's second-in-command asks him if he's sure about this, and he points out that if they don't defeat the angels, then they have no future. As cold and indifferent as he seems, he does have a point. If Rei and Shinji are the only ones who can pilot the robots, what choice do they have? But I'm pretty sure the rest of this series will show that it's not that simple...

And that's the episode. I'm a little surprised they're saving the actual fight for episode 2, but at this point it seems like a foregone conclusion. If Shinji can't win, they all die, and I have a feeling the kaiju battles are kind of secondary to the rest anyway.

The way I understood it, this show started out like a fairly typical Sentai/Kaiju/Whatever-You-Call-It TV series. Kids in colorful suits, they hop in giant robots, which are the only thing that can stop the giant monsters, it's been done a million times. But as the series progresses, it turns into this introspective psychodrama or something. Also, it plays up how messed up it is to send teenagers into a war zone like this, but I think we just saw that happen already, so it looks like the social commentary hit the ground running.

I don't really have much more to say here since we're just getting started. There's not much point in trying to figure out Gendo, even though that's clearly the guy we're supposed to be wondering about. Better to wait for more information and go from there. So I'll see you next time.

[sweetflanfiction]

Second Chances - Part 8

Universe: Read Dead Redemption 2

Pairing: Arthur x reader

Disclaimers and Warnings: If you want me to tag you on the chapters let me know! Also leave a comment with your thoughts :D Not finished, not proofread. English isn't my 1st language. All I know about 1899 is from google, so inacuracies will be plenty. The reader is on the older side, and identifies as a female. Gif by the talented @sweeetestcurse. There's a little funny tidbit at the end of the chapter :D

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6 - Part 7

• ··········· • ············ •

His eyes looked up and he felt his muscles tense. That single word had such an impact on him that he didn't even know he was holding his breath until Albert spoke again.

"Cattle convoy." The older man said, but Arthur didn't blink. "Some affluent cattle farmer needs his cattle delivered by train to his ranch north of here. Everston agreed to a substantial fee for it. He wants us to help him."

Arthur slowly breathed, hoping it would remain unnoticed by the two other people in the room. Hell, even he wasn't aware he was holding his breath.

"Who's goin'?" You asked, moving the bucket of water you had been using for the dishes.

"Well, Everston obviously, his eldest, myself, Brant…"

"Can I come?" You asked abruptly and Albert laughed.

"You know the answer is no."

"Fine. No hurt in asking." Your eyes landed on the silent Arthur and she squished her eyes, one side of her mouth curled up. "Take him then."

"Hum…could actually be a good idea. What do you say Mr. Callahan?"

Arthur had only been on the other side of the cattle transport. The side that steals it and re-sells it, with the probability of killing the participants. To be honest, knowing the ins and outs of the outlaws may be of use to them. He nodded silently. 

"You alright there?" You asked. Your eyebrows furrowed deep in her face, concern written in them.

"Huh…" He cleared his throat. "Yes, yes! Sorry, I've had some past experiences with that sort of…job."

"Bad ones?" The rough farmer asked.

"Both, I guess."

"It'll be fine Mr. Callahan. We do this often, it's income. It's the first time we work with this feller, but we have some that we tipically work. We just go to town, get them off the train, ride them to their owners and come back."

"No outlaws?" Curiosity had the better of him but, to his surprise, Albert chuckled.

"That's what's worrying you? That you'll get shot?"

"More like if I have to shoot someone…"

The older man's face turned serious for a moment and Arthur thought he'd been found. 

"The law around these parts generally accepts one or two dead outlaws. Especially if they have bounties on 'em. We try not to let it get to that extent, but if it's between them and us, we try to make it all about us."

The small kitchen was silent for a while, the gravity of the topic not escaping anyone. The other two people might have been more reserved in their opinions about killing anyone, but Arthur had done it more times than he could count. And he did it well. Too well sometimes.

"You know how to use a rifle don't you?" Albert asked. His eyebrows raised and a grin on his lips. He knew the answer to that.

"If he doesn't, he could just tackle the bandits to the ground. The man is taller than a lighthouse, probably tougher than a tree trunk." You joked and Arthur felt his cheeks turn red.

"Well, say what's on your mind why don't you?" The older rancher chastised, getting up from his seat on the table and walking out, both Arthur and his daughter following him.

"What? Am I lying?" She turned to Arthur and placed two hands on his upper arm, wrapping them around his muscles, making him stop dead in his tracks. "Look at this!"

"Stop manhandling the help, dear. You're making the man uncomfortable."

You looked up at Arthur. In a nonchalant manner, his eyes slowly moved from your hands to your face. He wasn't uncomfortable, quite the opposite. It felt like a comfortable joke between friends. He tried to stop himself from tensing his muscles under his shirt to see if you would react. However, your face showed you had realized you may have stepped on a line, your smile fading and your hands moving from his arm.

"I'm sorry Mr. Callahan."

It took him a moment to reply, clearing his throat and nodding his head at her and smiling casually.

"No need to be sorry Miss Graham."

She mimicked his smile and patted him on the shoulder, following her father to a room he hadn't been in before. It was just at the bottom of the stairs but he almost never saw it open.

"Come on Mr. Callahan. Let's meet the rest of the land." The older gentleman half shouted from inside what seemed to be his office.

Arthur walked into a sunny room furnished with a couch, a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf filled with books and knick knacks, a desk and a chair. Much like the rest of the house the room was small and cramped, but wasn't uncomfortable. It was cozy and lived in.

You sat on the couch and grabbed a guitar that had been leaning against the wall. You started to strum it as Mr. Graham grabbed a framed map from the wall and placed it on top of his desk.

"Now, this is Captain's Corner." He pointed to the map.

A loose diamond shape was drawn on yellowed paper and divided into five parts: four around the shape and one smaller. The faded names were neatly written on the paper. Some he could make out, others not so much.

The upper part of the diamond seemed to have a small river or trail of water around it. Beyond that some trees were drawn and another dotted line appeared. On the lower part there were some trails with arrows pointing to various locations.

"Now here." He pointed to the top left part of the diamond. " That's us. We have horses, four sheep, and two cows..."

"And the chickens. Don't forget the chickens." You reminded him and Albert nodded.

"And some chickens. We sell sheep's wool, and horses. We've got some crops that we use for whatever we can. Right now we have wheat growing, but that may change. As long as it's hardy it probably grows." 

"We're gonna try potatoes after and maybe have some beehives." You added from behind Arthur still plucking random notes from the guitar.

"Below us is Brant's. Eleanor and Williamson. They have corn crops and Eleanor has a herb greenhouse. They live alone, no kids unfortunately. Mighty fine people. If you ever feel under the weather, go to him. He'll fix you up in no time... You're living proof of that."

He moved his hand to the lower right part of the diamond.

"The Everstons. Bernard and Josie, and about 200 kids…"

"It's just 5." You interrupted again.

"And their 5 kids. Lovely family, loud and warm. You'll meet them soon. He's the cattle owner of the bunch, has more cows than brains sometimes, but he's an excellent man and I trust him to make wise judgements. And here, next to us, we have Mr. Thomson. Tobacco leaves and foul humor, that's what he got." Albert's tone shifted to a less friendly tone as he talked about his neighbor. "He drinks and takes care of the crops. If at all possible don't cross the lines to his propriety. He's as rancorous and he is a good shot."

"Amen. My leg still twitches every time I get near that fence." He could hear the venom in your voice, which was an unfamiliar sound to him.

"And in the middle we have Miss Beatrice Renoir. Widow, her husband came from France, died and she stayed here. She's trying to plant sugar cane and it's succeeded up to now, but we still have to wait and see."

"How about this?" Arthur pointed to the woods above, which have a dashed line running through them.

"Native folk have settled there." Albert said, watching Arthur closely.

"They trouble?" He asked.

"No. Quite the opposite. We all try to help each other."

"Alright then." Arthur stood straight and looked at the older man. “Can I ask a question? Without meaning any offense?”

“Of course.” The rancher straightened up.

“Why is it called Captain’s Corner? It’s clearly not a corner and…” 

“Most of us were War veterans." He laughed. “And some drunk in town decided that we were all captains and that we had taken this corner of the land so…Captain’s Corner…”

Arthur nodded. He felt nervous about this. It was the first honest to God job he had since he could remember.

"You understand everything?" Albert asked, placing the map on the wall again.

Arthur nodded, taking a deep breath.

"When do we leave?"

• ··········· • ············ •

Map of the ranch:

• ··········· • ············ •

@photo1030 :: @sylum :: @marislittlereadingcorner :: @rratman :: @clevergirl74 :: @aureolinb

[itsawhumpsideblog]

The Safehouse, pt. 4

CW: for institutionalized slavery, mentions of abuse, treatment of people as things, description of injuries

Advice from the Box Boy Liberation Movement:

If rescuees are not able to shower or bathe by themselves, you may need to assist them. If this is necessary, employ the buddy system to ensure appropriate treatment of the rescuee, and to ensure that any physical assistance (ie. with standing, balancing) can be given in a safe manner. Provide each rescuee with their own set of toiletries and be prepared to demonstrate how to use each item. Buy toiletries that are distinct for each rescuee, so that they have something that is their own. Try to avoid too much color-coordination, in order not to give the impression that the rescuee him- or herself is being sorted by color.

"You're welcome to sit on the couch, if you want," Tim told the boys, but he was not surprised to find that they knelt on the carpet instead. He didn't push it, but went back for more pillows. The carpet was soft, but pillows under their knees would be better.

"What would you think of getting clean?" Angie asked. "I know today has been a big day for both of you and we'll try to keep it low-key, but if I was you, I know I'd be ready for a shower."

"Yes, Mistress," Francis murmured and the other boy nodded. They were in identical poses, sitting on their legs with heads bowed, except that Francis had his hands laid neatly on his thighs and the other boy held his arms in front of him awkwardly.

"Why don't you start?" Angie suggested to him. "Tim and I will get you set up in the bathroom and you can take as long as you need."

This sounded to Francis like a puzzle he had to solve, guessing how long they thought he ought to take in the shower, but it was not for him to contradict or ask questions. He forced himself up on tired legs, knees that wanted to buckle, and followed his Master and Mistress upstairs.

They took him to a large, tiled bathroom with two sinks. Next to each sink was a cup, a toothbrush, some toothpaste and a plastic bucket with soap and a sponge and some other small items.

"Would you like the right side, or the left side?" Tim asked, and realized almost immediately that Francis hadn't understood. He tried again. "These things are for you. One set are yours and the others are for... your friend." Tim cringed slightly, knowing how awkward and probably patronizing he sounded. They would have to hurry up with a name. "You can pick whichever sink you want, they have the same things, they just don't all look the same."

Francis watched Tim very carefully as he approached the sinks. He looked back and forth from one to the other, trying to differentiate between the things there, but any differences were negligible- to him. Did they mean more to Master and Mistress? Moving tentatively, he reached out and touched the counter in front of the left-hand sink. Would they approve of his choice?

They seemed to. Mistress was smiling at him again. "I like teal, too," she said, as if that had been a factor in his decision. Francis breathed out a shaky breath and nodded in uncertain agreement.

"Why don't you sit down and we'll run the water until it's a more comfortable temperature?" Angie suggested, thinking of the odd way he was walking. He might not appreciate standing much longer, and if there was anything useful they had learned during the weeks of getting the house ready, it was that the water took an age to warm up.

Francis was still watching her as he took the few steps to sit on the closed toilet. Angie looked more closely back at him as he lowered himself down, very carefully. Now she could see his hands shaking and there was a sheen of sweat on his face. She wondered whether it was simple anxiety, or if there was something else going on.

"May I touch your face?" she asked him. Over her shoulder, she could hear Tim fiddling with the spigot and adjusting the shower curtain. Francis nodded, not that she had expected him to object.

Angie pressed her palm to Francis' forehead and he leaned wearily against her hand for a moment, as if he had forgotten himself in exhaustion. She kept her hand still until he shifted his weight back and then she touched the backs of her hands to his cheeks.

Francis looked up at her, trying to decide how to interpret the slight frown. "Francis, sweetheart, I think you have a little fever. Do you feel well?"

He did not, but he only said, "This pet is in working condition, Mistress."

"Angie." She hoped that if she reminded him, it would sink in. "Well, let's get you cleaned off and you can get some rest. You're a little wobbly, I noticed, so Tim and I will stay and help you clean up- you know, make sure you don't fall and hurt yourself. Can you start getting undressed, or do you need help?"

Francis had been dreading this moment. He managed to say, "No, thank you" and lifted one of his feet, laying his ankle on the opposite knee.

At first, Angie thought the stains on the underside of his sock were dirt; they had that rusty brown look, as if he had been walking outdoors without shoes on. But then she saw that Francis closed his eyes and held his breath as he began to peel the sock off. He did it in one, swift motion, like ripping off a bandaid, and before she could stop him, he put his heel to the floor and did the same with the other sock. He made a terrible, quiet sound, just once. Then he paused to catch his breath, which was a little heavy and ragged, and gripped his knees with his shaky hands.

"Oh," was all Angie could say at first. She stared down at his feet, propped on his heels, running with blood. "Tim?"

"Hmm?" Tim turned around and his mouth dropped open at the sight. "Oh, my god," he said. "Oh, geez, Francis, are you- I mean, I was gonna say 'are you okay' but you're not- what-" He shook his head. "Never mind. We'll help you wash and then see about getting those cleaned up."

"Can you finish getting undressed? We'll help you with the sweatpants if you need it," Angie said, but she was unclear who blushed more furiously at the idea, her or Francis. Tim grinned.

"I'll help him," he told Angie. To Francis, he added, "I'm a nurse. I'm good at taking care of people."

Francis wondered whether these skills transferred to pets. They must have, because Master helped him strip off his t-shirt and then his pants, being very careful of his bleeding feet. More careful than his old Master would have been.

His new Master barely even reacted to the scars on his body, carefully placed by a previous Master so that they wouldn't be visible when he was dressed. His previous Master had been very fastidious like that; he even made Francis wear socks and house shoes so that his feet didn't bleed on the carpet. The downside, which had not mattered to his old Master, had been that it was harder to convince wounds to heal when your clothing stuck to them and had to be pulled free every time you changed into something presentable.

Francis shook his head slightly at the thought and tried to focus on the present. His Master was saying something and Mistress was watching them expectantly.

"So we'll pick you up- I promise we'll be gentle- and set you down in the bath. Angie will be as careful as she can with your feet and we'll wash them last. For now, you just try to relax, okay?"

Master wanted him to nod, so Francis did. As Master had explained, they picked him up- Master lifted him like it was nothing and Mistress was so, so careful with his painful legs- and set him down very gently in the water. Francis winced at first, waiting for the excessive heat or freezing cold to hit him, but when it was only pleasantly warm, he looked up, surprised, to find the two of them busy with soap and sponges, not seeming to wait for anything in particular from him.

The bath felt amazing on his aching joints, Francis had to admit. He was exhausted all of a sudden, but they seemed to take it for granted that they would do most of the work and never once did they push or scratch or bruise or even insult him. They just wiped lightly but steadily at his arms, his knees, his face, even his scarred back, as if they didn't find his old wounds too disgusting to touch. When Mistress put the shampoo in his hair, she took extra time to massage his feverish head and Francis allowed himself to close his eyes. He was so tired, he could have fallen asleep right there.

Tim hated to disturb him- Francis looked peaceful for the first time since his arrival- but it had to be done when the bath was over and they had given Francis some time to relax in the water. Tim cleared his throat, a little uncomfortably, and said, "We've got to clean those cuts, Francis. I'm sorry- I'm afraid it's going to hurt but I'll do my best to be gentle, okay?"

"Yes, Master," Francis agreed. Tim had not really expected him to say anything else. He set his jaw and gripped the side of the tub and breathed in and out, very carefully and evenly. Tim watched his face while he worked, dabbing at the cuts, long marks from something thin that had flayed the boy's delicate soles. They were filthy and old enough that they should have healed long since and they were everywhere. Standing must have been agony and they- he and Angie- they hadn't known. Tim wondered what else they didn't know.

Francis let out a deep sigh as Tim finished and put down the cloth and Angie was saying, "You did a good job, Francis. A really good job." Francis nodded but he looked dizzy and weak.

"Let's get you dressed," Tim said. "We got you some pajamas- they look comfortable. And don't worry, we won't make you walk again."

What would they do with him, then? Francis wondered. Leave him here? The question was answered a moment later. Mistress pulled the plug in the bathtub and when the water had receded, Master leaned over and picked him up to set him on the closed toilet again. Mistress was there with a towel, larger and softer than any Francis could remember using before. He marveled at it's softness as he dried himself off.

When Angie had taken the towel from him to fold and hang up, Tim helped him into a pair of boxers, a cotton t-shirt, and floppy lounge pants that wouldn't hurt his swollen feet.

"Ready to go back downstairs?" he asked. Francis nodded and began to shift forward, as if to stand. "Whoa!" Tim said, "Hang on! You really shouldn't walk with your feet like that. We'll help you." And before Francis could offer again to get up under his own power, Tim bent down, lifting with his knees as he had learned to do for his patients before, and picked Francis up. "Put your arm around my neck," he said, and Francis did as ordered.

Francis looked around the house as Master carried him downstairs, but there was not much to see and in a moment they were back in the family room, where the other pet knelt on his pillow on the carpet.

To Francis' horror, Master placed him on the sofa. He must have looked as panicked as it made him feel, because Mistress held out a hand. "It's all right," she told him, but he did not believe it. "You're allowed to be on the furniture. You'll be more comfortable here and we're going to take... this guy... upstairs and let him get a bath, too. Then we'll all be back and Tim can work his magic with the first aid kit and make your feet feel better, okay?"

Because it was what she wanted him to do, Francis nodded and watched from the couch as they helped the other pet up and held him on either side as he walked unsteadily to the stairs.

But as soon as they were out of the room, Francis sat up, lifted himself gingerly on his feet, and lay down on the carpet along the front of the couch.

Next time: A bath and a new name for the other rescuee.

Master Post

[akwolfgrl]

LFT PART 37

Sanji made his last round inside his galley, Mr. Noodles sat perched on a bar stool watching him. The roses that Zoro got him were still sitting in the jar where he left them. He needed to figure out what he wanted to do with them. Sanji slid some butter into his apron pocket to soften.

Sanji finished unloading everything he had bought at the market this morning. There were still a few cartes of things waiting for him to deconstruct. Sanji had scored a crate of fresh unwashed eggs. He would water glass them later tonight. He left out the stuff he needed to make a batch of kimchi and a new marinade for Luffy's jerky. The meat was in the freezer to firm up for easier slicing. He also left out the prime rib he got on sale for dinner tonight. He had the perfect seasoning for them.

Sanji cut the core of napa cabbages out, placing them into the bucket he was using for a compost pile, they used to have one on the Baratie they would give it to a local farmer who they worked with to get fresh produce. There were things that even he could not salvage and use, but the compost was a good compromise since it fertilized and grew more food. He split the leafy vegetable apart with his hands. It was hard to get used to such a quiet kitchen. He was used to the hustle and bustle of the Baratie. The chefs arguing, the waiters yelling out food orders. Everything about the kitchen was loud and controlled chaos. Well, Sanji did sort of miss having someone he could talk to.

“OK so I know you're a cat, and you don't understand what I'm saying, but I don't care. Right now, I'm making kimchi. It's spicy, sour, and so good. A chef who used to work at the Baratie before settling ashore and marrying a sweet woman showed me how to make it,” Sanji began to chop the pieces of cabbage up. “I'm doing the shortcut method. Usually, you don't chop it up, but I like it better this way,” Sanji put all the cabbage into the large bowl. “Then we just wash and salt the cabbage until it wilts and the water from the inside of the cabbage is drawn out by the salt,” Sanji would leave it overnight with something heavy on top.

Mr. Noodles had at some point hopped from his stool to wind his way around Sanji's legs purring. He was ecstatic to have something small and cute to care for. Clementine may have been Zeff’s cat but she did like him and barely tolerated the other chefs. It had been his job to brush her long silky golden fur. She had been a very pretty kitty, with one gold eye and one blue. Mr. Noodles was of course very handsome with his soft slick black fur.

“Zeff my old man, although I'd never call him that to his face, had a ship cat, her name was Clementine,” Sanji took out the bowl he used previously for the marinade. Mixing soy sauce, worcestershire, orange juice, and zest , he whisked in honey, brown sugar, grated ginger, and chopped garlic. He threw some habaneros into his mortar and grinded them down into a nice paste before adding them as well. “I remember the look on Zeff’s face after we got off the Rock. Clementine had gotten off their pirate ship shortly before they attacked the Orbit. It's said that cats can sense doom. Anyway, we stayed on an island while we recovered, and one day, she walked right up to Zeff as if she had only been out for a stroll. She died shortly before Luffy came crashing in. Zeff had been practically testy lately, so that didn't help him at all,” Sanji covered the marinade and placed it into the fridge.

“I think after I'm done with my prep, I'll head back out for some personal shopping and check out the fish market. Maybe I'll be nice to our sentient plant life and pick up a sword cleaning kit. He doesn't have much money and would be more focused on buying swords. Why he needs three? I'm not sure, but that's his thing, I suppose,” Sanji took a paper towel to dry the prime ribs, or else it would reject the butter. He stabbed holes into the top of the meat. While he did know how to trim meat, it had come pre-trimmed and on sale to good of a deal to pass up. “I haven't seen him use it at all while we've been on this ship and there's no way that his sword hasn't been well kept in the past,” He took the softened butter out of his pocket and upwarped it, placing it into a small bowl. “Maybe I'll grab some ink for Nami-swan! I can't get Marimo and not my sweet Nami,” Sanji tossed in chopped rosemary and thyme, salt, pepper, Dijon mustard, and a bit of worcestershire then he mixed it. “I should pick another notebook while I'm out, I might as well grab something for Luffy and Usopp while I'm at it. Just so I don't have to hear them whining.”

Sanji stabbed holes into the fatty part of the meat and used butter to lube up the sliced garlic and rosemary, slipping them into the holes. He coated the prime ribs in the rest of the butter before placing them in the fridge. After a quick clean-up, Sanji was ready to head out. With a goodbye scratch to Mr. Noodles Sanji left the Going Merry

[braveclementine]

The Beach

Warnings: 18+readersonly, slight master kink, oral, threesome, m x m smut, sub!Steve Rogers, pet names

Copyright: I do not own any Marvel characters or locations. However, I do own my OCs, which consist of Penny Fury, Elizabeth Nelson, Elijah Chan, Katya Venice, Violetta Moscow, Lan Le, Josh, Trang Tien, Ahni Jallow, Mai Ito, and Ghaida Kashual as well as other OCs that will come up throughout the story.

The colours are pretty much perfect, although I would've liked just a little bit more blue. And the kind've reddish colour should be more purply but altogether, the green is the exact shade I thought it would be. Wish the jaw line was more curved though since it's Iron Woman, but it was more of an Iron Man design. 

🍄🐚 𝕊𝕋ᵒŕ𝐲 🍙🤾‍♀️

Tony took everyone to the beach about one and a half months after Chamber was born. He had a private island with a huge mansion built on it with plenty to do there. And so, they went. And that's where they were now.

Penny was on her stomach, laying down next to Violetta who was also sunbathing, looking at her phone. She was wearing a maroon coloured two- piece bathing suit and looked lovely in it. Penny was wearing sky blue.

Elijah was sitting up, far away from the waves, asleep with his arms behind his head.

Elizabeth was walking along the edge of the beach with Clint and Rhodey. She wasn't wearing a bathing suit, but a white dress instead, looking like a Disney princess or something.

Wanda, Natasha, and most of the other male Avengers were out in the ocean, laughing and playing with each other except Stephen. The Sorcerer was sitting up on the sand, under an umbrella with Katya in his arms.

Katya always had to be in either Stephen or Loki's arms nearly twenty-four seven because of the child in her stomach as he grew bigger. They were calculating what the soonest possible time could be to getting him out safely for both the child and the mother. But Katya continued to insist that she could do it.

Katya was wearing a white shirt over her two piece black bathing suit. Trang and Ghaida were sitting near them, Trang wearing a vibrant red colour. Meanwhile, Ghaida wore some sort of traditional outfit so that her skin didn't show.

Laughter spread out across the beach as Elizabeth sprinted away from Clint and Tony splashed Natasha in the face with ocean water.

"You want to join them?" Violetta asked sleepily.

"Nah." Penny mumbled, looking over at her Italian love. "I'd rather lay here with you. It's calmer. Quieter too."

Vi laughed, "Ah I see. Because my throat hurts to much to talk."

"Oh?" Penny giggled, "Why does your throat hurt hmm?"

Vi blushed, "No reason. At all. Has nothing to do with Bruce or last nights flight from Florida to here."

"Plane sex." Penny muttered. "I should put that on my bucket list."

Violetta laughed louder at that. "I'll help you out with that task."

"I'll take you up on that." Penny said, turning over and closing her eyes against the sun.

"So can you tan?" Violetta teased.

"Nope. I always burn." Penny sighed, pointing at the pink umbrella that was only a few feet away. "I'll need to get under that very soon unless I want to be in pain the rest of the vacation."

"This is nice." Violetta hummed after a moment. "This vacation. I don't remember the last time I did something like this."

"Really?" Penny asked softly.

Violetta rolled over on her side, propping herself up on her elbow, "I don't know. Katya sometimes took me on family vacations when I was younger. They were rich enough to afford it and it wasn't like I had family to go with or stay with instead. And once we grew up they weren't really like this. And honestly, any vacations we tried going on usually ended up in some sort of fight."

"Oh." Penny said, unsure what else to say.

"Yep." Vi sighed, closing her eyes again. "It doesn't matter that much though. We have this now, so why bitch about not having it before? Besides, I prefer it like this. Vacation is supposed to be with people you love and I'm glad we're all. . . " Vi cut off and quickly fixed her words, "I'm glad we're together."

Penny got up, moving the umbrella in further so that she would be in the shade now, before laying back down next to Violetta. She watched a shadow walk closer and heard Rhodey ask, "Can I join you ladies?"

"Of course." Penny smiled up at him, heart flipping in her chest. It was so ridiculous, this crush on him. It made no sense whatsoever.

"You're warm." Rhodey commented, a hand placed gently on her hip. "Did you put sunscreen on?"

"Shhh." Violetta said playfully and said in a fake whisper, "Don't let Elizabeth overhear you talking about poison lotion going into your skin."

Rhodey rolled his eyes, but Penny was storing these nuggets away for later. Remembering how Ghaida had avoided Steve's question had put her on high alert towards anything pharmaceutically made. Not to mention. . . it wasn't like Big Pharma was exactly trusted by the African American population. Not after the Tuskegee experiment.

"Oh knock it off." Rhodey muttered, closing his eyes as well as he laid behind Penny. "There's nothing wrong with sunscreen."

Penny smiled. "Oh but you never know. . . have you ever read the ingredients in a bottle of sunscreen?"

Violetta groaned, "No! Not you too! Penny don't go over to the dark side!"

Penny giggled at that and Rhodey chuckled.

Violetta slowly fell asleep and Penny got up so she could angle the umbrella and its' shade over Vi as well. Then, as she laid back down, she faced Rhodey.

"Hey sweet mama." Rhodey said, smiling slightly at her. "You know if you get to hot, we can go back inside?"

Penny smiled and nodded a little. "Yeah, I know. It's just. . . such a beautiful day isn't it?"

Rhodey smiled, wrapping an arm around her waist, pulling her into his chest. She wondered why her heart was beating so fast. She just smiled into his shoulder then, closing her eyes.

"Hey, do you want to try something different?" Rhodey asked awkwardly. She opened her eyes to see he looked a little hesitant.

"What kind of different?" Penny asked, heart definitely speeding up in her chest now, doing unpleasant flips.

He thought about it and then asked, "Well like Stephen, Tony, and Loki are trying to move. . . I guess like further with Trang? Like planning dates and taking their relationship further than just, you know, sex. I was just wondering if that was something that you might be interested in doing with me?"

Penny's whole face burned and she ducked her head in happiness, "I would love that James."

She could feel Rhodey's body relax besides hers and even heard his sigh of relief. She smiled gently at him, "Worried?"

"Well," Rhodey said, tucking her hair behind her ear, "I know around the tower and stuff it's mostly sex or cuddling or affection. . . but nothing. . . well I suppose what I consider as 'serious'. And I've kind've missed that. And I mean, I wasn't sure how much you like me, but um, I like you. . . like a lot. So I figured I might as well take the risk."

Penny leaned up to gently kiss him on the lips, drawing back and saying, "Well, it'll be my first date, so high expectations." She winked.

"First?" He asked in shocked. "You never had a date before you met us? None of those idiots ever took you on a date?" He pointed behind her at where most of her soulmates were dancing in water, a boombox was on at the moment.

"Well, before I met my soulmates, my dad wasn't really the kind of father to really let me go out with anyone. Any experience I had before you guys was usually just. . . sex. Because if he was gone, I was at a safe house with, well, usually er- Rumlow." She winced.

Rhodey nodded as as Penny hesitated, thinking about how much she hated herself for being with Rumlow, he cupped her face, "Hey. It's not like you knew. You thought he was just like any other guy."

"I know." Penny whispered. "But, um, yeah and well we're not really supposed to be leaving the tower. Steve said he wanted to take me on a date, but he also wanted to take me on a real one, outside. So I mean, you know. . . it's not that they don't want to. It's just. . ."

"Life isn't working out right now." Rhodey smiled.

"Exactly." Penny said and smiled at him. "I would love to go on a date with you. And just because it's my first date doesn't mean you have to go all out James. I'll love anything you plan, even if you just want to go on a walk in the park. The location, the activities, it doesn't matter. As long as I'm with you."

Rhodey was silent as he pulled her closer to him and the two of them laid there, before Penny fell asleep in his arms.

🪨🛸 Ƥ𝓸𝕧 ᑕнᗩ𝐍Ğ𝔢 🍚🌾

Tony listened and watched as Trang, Ghaida, and Elizabeth sat on the living room floor of the beach house. Elizabeth was arranging all of her shells in colour order, and was listening to Trang as she talked.

"Mollusks produce calcium carbonate, laying down layers over the years. And this forms seashells." Trang explained. "The difference in color comes from the water it lives in, and what the animal eats. Since we're in the Caribbean, the seashell colours are much brighter than you might find in say Connecticut or Maine."

"I like this one." Elizabeth said, holding up a brown and turquoise coloured seashell.

"What kind is it?" Trang asked Ghaida.

"Tulip shell." Elizabeth answered instead. "I think I want to find more of this colour tomorrow."

All of the girls had changed out of their bathing suits and into summer dresses. Both Ghaida and Trang were wearing bright yellow and Tony thought they both looked amazing in the bright colour. Ghaida had also cut her long black hair so that it was more curly and shoulder length.

Elizabeth was wearing a white dress, with a lei around her neck. She had also pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her chin on them, her arms wrapped around them. She looked tired as well.

Penny came in at that moment, looking drop dead gorgeous in a peach coloured dress. She smiled when she saw Tony, coming over to sit down next to him and he put an arm around her shoulder.

"So what's going on?" Penny asked.

"We're looking at all of the shells Elizabeth found." Trang said, relaxing back on the floor. She'd taken her glasses off and Tony admired how she looked without them. "She's found some really pretty ones."

"Don't you look pretty." Violetta's voice said, winking at Penny as she walked in with Katya and Stephen. Stephen sat down on Tony's other side, letting Katya rest in his arms. Tony was a bit surprised to find that Katya looked like some ethereal sort of goddess in her beautiful white dress.

Violetta wasn't wearing a dress, having settled for a white crop top and black shorts, sitting down next to Penny.

"Where is everyone else?" Trang asked as they helped put Elizabeth's shells in her bucket.

"They're grabbing fishing rods to catch dinner." Katya said, shifting slightly uncomfortably in Stephen's arms.

Elizabeth looked up at that, "They're going to eat the fishies?" She asked in a small voice.

Trang looked at her for a second, then turned to Katya. "Uh, where are they?"

"Heading up the southend of the island." Violetta answered, rolling her eyes. "And you don't have to stop them form eating fish just because of her. We always used to eat fish. And Elizabeth, you'll literally eat Lobster tails if we give you enough butter so."

Elizabeth nodded, accepting that whatever Violetta said was true, lowering her head back to her knees.

Tony looked sideways at Penny. "You want to do something fun?"

"Oh so hanging out with us isn't fun Stark?" Trang teased.

"Not at all Tien." Tony shot back. "After all, intellectual crowd is so b-b-boring." He pretended to yawn. Trang and Penny both laughed.

Elizabeth picked up her bucket of seashells and made her way out of the room.

"Is she okay?" Penny asked.

"The heat is probably just getting to her." Violetta said. "The sun will suck her powers out since ice is part of it. If she gets to dehydrated she can get sick."

Tony could feel Stephen next to him as he turned to look at Violetta, "And does she know this about herself?"

"Oh. Right." Violetta sighed. "Forgot about that bit."

"I'll go to her." Penny said, standing up.

💐🚁 ⓟσⓥ ¢𝐡ⒶŇ𝔤ᗴ ❕🧻

Elijah roared with laughter as he watched Pietro slip on one of the rocks and tumble off the cliff ending to splash into the water below all of them. Wanda chuckled, standing there in a nice orange sundress, using her powers to lift him back onto the rocks.

"I thought you were sure footed." Clint said, clapping him on the shoulder. "Shouldn't you have seen that coming?"

"Ha ha." Pietro said, getting to his feet, shaking himself like he was a dog. "Funny. You're all comedians."

Then Clint was suddenly flying into the water as Pietro pushed him in. As Clint's head broke over the water waves, Pietro called down, "What? Didn't see that coming?"

Clint gave Pietro the finger.

Natasha chuckled, having gotten it all on video.

"You'll send that to me later, right?" Elijah asked the Russian spy with a grin.

Nat raised her eyebrows at him. "Maybe. . . if you подари мне мою летящую птицу." [Submit to me my flying bird]

"Oh?" Elijah asked teasingly. "Is this blackmail I'm hearing my Huálì de húlí?" [Gorgeous fox]

"Flattery gets you nowhere in this life." Natasha continued the banter.

"On the contrary," Elijah said, sliding up to her, to wrap an arm around her waist and she smirked at him. He ghosted her lips with his, "It gets me everything." and he plucked the phone from her hand, twirling around and airdropping the video to his own phone.

Natasha tackled him into the sand, "You are more of a fox than me you little trickster."

Elijah chuckled, rolling over to pin her down lightly, slipping her phone back into the pocket of her sundress. "Just teasing." He kissed her on the lips and then sat up.

"We have fish." Clint celebrated, holding up a huge Mahi Mahi in his hands. Bruce held a second one.

"Well, clearly, we're set." Sam laughed, waving his hand at the size of them.

"Eh, maybe six more just for these three." Wanda poked Thor and Steve in the arms.

"Yes!" Thor exclaimed, already fishing for more, "I could eat a whole one and still have room for more!"

"Yes, yes, you glutton." Loki grumbled, lounging in the shade, looking like the heat was affecting him.

Heat was affecting him. . .

"Shit." Elijah cursed aloud, grabbing his phone, getting back to his feet.

"What?" Half of them asked.

"Penny?" Elijah asked in confusion as the girl answered his wifes' phone, "Where's Elizabeth?"

"Oh." Penny's voice sounded worried, "I don't know. She seems a little sick Elijah. She says she has a really bad headache. I don't know. Violetta said it was the heat-"

"Okay. Thanks." Elijah sighed, closing his eyes, hating himself. He should have remembered this. He was such a fucking idiot. And he couldn't do anything about it because he was literally made of heat.

"What's wrong?" Steve asked, the others looking at him.

Elijah gestured to Loki, "Seeing you being affected by the heat. I remembered how Elizabeth gets affected by the heat. And I forgot to tell her about the heat and-" He gritted his teeth, pressing the heels of his palms against his eyes, "Fuck I'm an idiot!"

"Elijah." Wanda put a hand on his arm. "Is she okay?"

"I forgot. This is my fault." He replied dully. "Since her body is made up of ice, the heat will drain it. And it'll make her sick. And I can't do anything about it because I'll just make it worse." He looked at Bucky and Loki apologetically. "I'm sorry. If one of you two-"

"I'll do it." Bucky and Loki said at the same time, Bucky putting down the fishing rod. Bucky put a hand on Elijah's shoulder. "We're family. We'll help her. And don't' blame yourself. We all forget things every once in a while and fun. . . well it always takes the serious thoughts away."

"Just, make sure to bring her food too." Elijah said quickly, trying to remember everything now. "Ice cream or milkshakes, watermelon, something cold and has liquid in it-"

"Calm down." Loki said. "We've got it."

And he watched the two of them hurry back to the house. Elijah turned and walked away from the group. Wanda quickly caught up with him. "Elijah, why are you blaming yourself?" She grabbed his elbow and he looked down at the red-headed girl. "It's not your fault, you know?"

He sighed, "Because it is. Because she doesn't remember, doesn't know. So it's on me to remind her, to tell her. But I forgot and now she's sick and in pain and its my fault."

Wanda sighed, "It's not and you know that. Elijah, how are you supposed to remember every single thing in the world? Even for your soulmate? God, sometimes even I forget she lost her memory, because she acts so normally with us. We all do. And we're having fun, Elijah. Bucky is right. You're living in the moment so don't. . . don't ruin your fun, okay? Come back, be with us."

"But what if it's worse this time?" Elijah worried.

"And what if it's nothing at all?" Wanda countered. "What if it's just a headache? Besides, like you said, you can't do anything now. Bucky and Loki will take her food and they'll keep her cold again. You know you can trust them with her. They'll take good care of her."

Wanda held out her hand and Elijah smiled. He slipped his hand into hers. "You're right. Let's go. I'll teach you this handy trick we learned in Hong Kong to fish."

"I'd love that." Wanda said.

🤌🤾‍♂️ ţн丨𝐑Ｄ ς𝕙𝓪ℕg𝓲ⓝ𝑔 Ƥσⓥ 🌷🍘

Elizabeth's head was splitting open. Her head was pounding so badly, it felt like it was taking up not only the front of her head, but it was aching in the back. It felt like it was behind both eyes and in her nose and behind her right ear. She clutched her hands to her head, her eyes closed, trying to get it to go away.

Penny explained that Violetta had said it was the heat. Which, Elizabeth supposed, made sense. But it wasn't like it helped her get her headache away. And her stomach was aching, turning, weird feeling.

There was a knock at the door and she wanted to whimper at the loudness of it. Penny didn't answer verbally, opening the door.

She felt the bed dip and very gently, someone's cold hands pulled her into them. She saw it was James and she closed her eyes again.

"Doll?" James barely asked in a whisper. "How are you feeling? What hurts?"

She didn't want to speak, because she felt even talking increased the pain. "Head. Stomach."

Loki sat down on the either side of her, holding a tub of ice-cream. "Pet. Sit up for me and eat this."

She didn't move, closing her eyes again. Sleepily, she grabbed James' metal hand, putting it against her forehead and sighed in pleasure.

"It's your favorite flavor." Loki sang. "I mixed cookies n' cream with cookie dough."

Very slowly, still holding James' hand to her forehead, she sat up. She looked at James, then let go of his hand. He kept his hand there for her and she took the bowl. She pouted at Loki, "Bribery."

"Well, you need to eat." Loki said, placing his hands on her stomach and leg. She'd striped down to nothing to hopefully cool herself off and now she relished the coldness of their hands. She took the ice cream and was glad that was cold too. And she loved the way the ice-cream went down her throat.

"Just so you know," James said softly. "Elijah wanted to be here, but he doesn't want to make it worse for you. When you're feeling better, even if that's later tomorrow, give him a call. He's worried."

Elizabeth nodded. "Can. . . just text. . . I'm okay?"

"Of course doll." James said, reaching over to grab her phone. "Password?"

"108158." She mumbled, before shoving more ice-cream into her mouth. "Good. Thanks, Loki."

"You're welcome princess." Loki whispered softly.

After a moment, she set the ice-cream aside, and then snuggled into Loki's body, grabbing James' hand to put it back on her forehead.

She fell asleep easily and Bucky sighed, "She actually is hot."

"I've always thought that." Loki said slyly and Bucky shook his head in amusement.

It was quiet and peaceful for about twenty minutes or so, when Elizabeth whimpered suddenly.

"Well she wasn't sleeping long." Loki muttered as she stirred.

Elizabeth struggled out of their arms, rushing to the bathroom.

"Doll." Bucky yelped, hurrying behind her and gathering her hair up as she started to throw up into the toilet.

They waited patiently as she continued to throw up everything in her stomach, before retching several times as her stomach was empty, her entire body shuddering in his arms. Finally, she just collapsed in Bucky's arms.

"Don't feel good." She muttered.

"Yeah, I can see that doll." Bucky whispered softly, gently picking her up in his arms. He hesitated, knowing that she couldn't have medicine because it didn't react well with her body. He set her back down on the bed and looked at Loki, "Do we have crackers?"

"I'll go look." Loki slipped off the bed and said, "Get her water," Before walking out the door.

"Drink this doll." He said, propping her up and giving her the water. She drank a little, continuing to try and put the glass down, but he wouldn't let her until she drained the entire thing. "Good girl."

She only hummed, her eyes closed and she turned into him a little.

Loki came back with some crackers, which she ate, before falling asleep again. He put a pan down by the bedside table. "Let's just keep an eye on her fluids for now. The sugar in the ice-cream probably didn't help her stomach. I don't really know what Midgardians do for sickness other than soup, which being hot, won't help her."

Bucky nodded. "She probably just got some sort of small flu. Plus, it's the first time she's ever been somewhere extremely hot. She's just getting used to it."

"Exactly." Loki said softly, laying down. Bucky smiled as Loki snuggled into both of them and he wrapped his flesh arm around Loki, keeping his metal arm on Elizabeth's forehead and watched both of them drift off to sleep.

❓🪷 𝕡๏𝓥 Ｃ𝓗𝓪𝓃ǤẸ 🍥❔

"That was amazing." Clint moaned, pushing back on his chair as everyone finished off the fish that Elijah and Trang had cooked together.

"Indeed!" Thor said, kicked back with a beer.

"We saved some for Bucky and Loki right?" Penny asked in concern.

"Of course." Steve nodded.

"Nah." Violetta said, smirking. "You snooze you lose and that was amazing fish."

Steve rolled his eyes and pointed to the pan that still contained plenty of fish for Bucky and Loki.

The only other people missing from the dinner table besides Loki, Bucky, and Elizabeth were Stephen and Katya.

"Do we have dessert?" Clint asked excitedly.

Natasha and Trang laughed at him while Ghaida nodded, getting up from her seat. "I made something a little different tonight, um, from my home country. It's called Rasgulla. It's basically a ball of Indian cottage cheese and cooked in sugar syrup. I also made Thekua, which is a kind of cookie. And of course, for the cowardly people, I made chocolate chip cookies."

"Yep, well I'm a coward then." Rhodey chuckled, picking up one of the chocolate chip cookies without any shame.

Ghaida giggled, "More for me then."

Penny took one of the Thekua cookies and also a chocolate chip one. She liked the taste of the Thekua cookie. It seemed like it might have coconut in it and some sort of small seed for flavor. Chocolate chip of course, would also remain her favorite however.

"You're going to have to make me more of these." Bruce told Ghaida as he ate the Rasgulla. He blushed then and said, "O-or just teach me how to make my own, of course."

Tony snickered, clapping Bruce on the back, "Let her make them for you. Then you won't burn the kitchen down."

Ghaida laughed, "Of course Bruce, I would love to teach you how to make them. Besides, they're simple so it's not that hard to make them every day if you wanted. Besides, what else would I do?"

"I- um thanks." Bruce blushed again.

"Okay, um, can I talk to you guys about something serious?" Clint asked, suddenly sounding worried.

"Sure." Tony frowned.

Clint bit his bottom lip and then said, "I'm worried about Katya. I mean, the kid inside of her doesn't really know animals, right? And right now, it's been birds and chipmunks and squirrels. That's scary enough but what if. . . I mean is it possible for the kid to transform into an elephant or something? I mean-" Clint looked at Steve apologetically. "I would never want her to have an abortion under normal circumstances but we're talking about Katya's life here. . ."

Steve hesitated and then nodded, "I understand. And it's. . . with Sharon she was my kid. And yes, of course I would view Katya's kid as my own as well, but it is just a little different." Steve glanced at Ghaida, "Is there danger?"

"No." Ghaida shook her head, not looking worried. "The baby inside of her has a unique connection. He can actually feel the space around him and know that one, he is in something living and to become to big would hurt whatever he is in, and two, can tell that he is in someone he already loves. At the same time, he can't stop changing, it's part of him. But he can limit it. Katya will be in no danger at any time of her pregnancy. The only thing is this slight pain she is having from him transforming so much, but being with Stephen and Loki so much has definitely helped her immensely."

Clint relaxed in the chair, covering his face with his hands, "Thank God. I've been so worried. I didn't want to ask because I didn't want to know the answer. I was so scared."

Natasha wrapped her arms around him.

"Hey man, it's okay." Sam said softly.

Clint let out a shuddering breath and sat back up a little. "Sorry."

"You're all good man." Rhodey said.

Clint laughed then in relief as well and nodded, "Good food Ghaida."

She laughed then and the entire atmosphere relaxed.

"Bleh." Elijah suddenly wrinkled his nose, looking disgusted by something.

"You better not be making that face because of my food Elijah." Ghaida warned him, picking up a wooden spoon.

Elijah shook his head, glancing up at the ceiling. "No, she just um, threw up." Elijah shrugged, though he looked worried.

Loki came down only a few seconds later. "We have crackers, right?"

"Yeah." Pietro handed him a box of crackers he went and got from the pantry. "Is Princessa okay?"

"It's just a killer headache and some stomach pains." Loki said. "Nothing major." He made a faux sad face, "She prefers Bucky over me though. That damn metal hand."

Tony and Steve both laughed at that.

"You'll win her over darling." Tony winked.

"Get your own metal hand." Sam chortled.

"Hmm." Loki said thoughtfully. "Perhaps. Ooh, Thekua, don't mind if I do." He scooped up the rest of the cookies and ran with them.

"Oi!" Clint shouted after him but he was gone.

Tony chuckled again. "Well, what do you guys say we head off to the movie theater?"

"You have a movie theater here?" Violetta laughed. "Why am I not surprised."

Tony feigned being hurt, "What's wrong with a movie theater?"

"Oh you know." Vi continued to smirk, "Just a gorgeous island to explore and you put a movie theater in the house."

"Rainy days." Tony argued.

Violetta paused and then said, "Well, fair point."

"What do you guys want to watch?" Rhodey asked, standing up from the table while Steve and Bruce started to stack the plates together and Wanda filled up the sink with soapy water.

"Blazing saddles!" Sam shouted immediately. "I want to watch Blazing saddles."

Tony stared at him, "Umm. . . you do?"

Penny looked at Tony, "What's wrong with Blazing saddles?"

"What is Blazing saddles?" Steve asked, looking confused.

Tony pointed his finger between Sam and Penny, apparently unable to say anything. Rhodey crossed his arms, starting to grin, "Yeah Tony. What's wrong with Blazing saddles?"

"I- um- Blazing saddles it is!" Tony yelped, getting out of his chair, his arm around Trang's waist.

Penny giggled, grabbing Sam and Rhodey's arms. "You guys like Blazing saddles?"

"Favorite movie." Sam said and then shouted upwards so Tony would hear him, "Some people need to stop being so sensitive. Especially when they ain't black!"

Penny giggled and Rhodey chuckled at that. Tony flipped Sam the bird, but didn't turn around.

Penny curled up with Bruce and Wanda as she watched the movie. She loved as almost every minute into the movie, Steve continued to show a horrified expression on his face. Sam was consistently teasing Steve as well, whispering stuff in his ear that made Steve blush deeper.

"Best movie!" Sam crowed after it was over.

"How is that movie legal?" Violetta muttered.

"You know I only hear white people complaining." Rhodey chuckled, "The black people in the room love it."

"You're weird." Tony shook his head, kissing Rhodey on the cheek. "But that's okay."

"I just love it because you all get awkward." Sam snickered.

"You know I think Elizabeth actually likes the movie too, now that I think about it." Trang said, getting up and stretching.

"That's why she's my favorite." Sam and Rhodey said together before laughing and high-fiving each other.

"And my best friend." Penny giggled.

Natasha and Violetta both pouted at Penny while Wanda giggled as well.

"So it's decided, I'm going to bed with those two." Sam chuckled, pointing at Penny and Rhodey.

"Mmm." Steve said, before picking Sam up at the knees, putting him over his shoulder, carrying him off, "Penny you can follow!" Steve called over his shoulder.

Penny giggled, kissing Wanda and Bruce, then Nat, Vi, and Rhodey, blowing kisses to the others, running to catch up.

"Steve." Sam whined, playfully beating his fists lightly on Steve's back. "This is abuse!"

Steve chuckled, tossing open the door that led to his bedroom, plopping Sam down on the bed. He beckoned to Penny, who quickly joined them on the bed.

"Strip." Steve ordered.

"Yes. . . Master." Sam teased, slowly lifting his shirt over his head while Steve flushed terribly, freezing a little.

"I- wait-" Steve stuttered. "I didn't-"

"Aww." Penny pouted. "Sammy you broke him."

Sam pressed kisses to Steve's neck. "Stevie, come back to me."

"Sorry." Steve blushed, "I. . . isn't. . . you can't call me master Sam."

Sam pouted. Penny gently cupped Steve's face. "Sorry Steve. We were just playing around. We didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

Steve kissed her palm and said, "It's okay cookie. I thought. . . I thought we can't make jokes like that."

"You can't make jokes like that with sensitive people." Sam corrected, cupping Steve's other cheek. "But Stevie, we don't care. We make jokes about ourselves. You want to play around, we're game. You don't, we won't make you uncomfortable. We'll just keep that attitude with Rhodey. Promise."

Steve nodded. "Okay. Thanks."

Penny kissed his forehead. "You still in a fuckable mood?"

Steve's eyes darkened, "Oh Cookie. . . "

"Let us take care of you." Sam whispered in his ear and Penny went ahead, caressing Steves' thick thighs so that she could pull his boxers down, getting his erection in hand so she could start to tease his tip.

"But-"

"Let us take care of you tonight." Sam whispered softly, pushing Steve all the way back onto the bed. He started to kiss down Steve's chest, scraping his teeth against his skin while Penny deepthroated his cock.

Steve moaned, panting as the two of them worked him up. Penny dipped her hand down, rubbing her own clit as she worked him so that she would be ready to plop herself down on him as he got ready to blow.

Sam pulled Steve's nipples between his teeth and Steve was panting now, almost writhing underneath them.

"Oh- ngh- Pen- going-" Steve stuttered out. Penny pulled off of him with her mouth and felt a little bad as he whimpered in loss. She quickly straddled him, sinking down on his cock easily and loved his ecstatic moan.

Penny leaned over as she rocked on Steve's cock, taking Sams' into her mouth. Sam breathed in deeply, his breath stuttering in his throat.

"Oh fuck." Steve whimpered, "Fuck Penny, please, I'm so close."

"Cum Sugar." Sam murmured, nibbling at Steve's earlobe, gently bucking his hips so that his dick touched the back of Penny's throat. She quickly took more of him down her throat, mewling in pleasure as Steve's hands held her down completely on him, him spurting up into her. His eyes looked so dazed, but his fingers still came down to tease her clit until she came with him, Sam spilling into her mouth.

Penny went to the bathroom this time, grabbing the washcloth for the first time to clean Steve up.

"My job cookie." Steve murmured, pushing himself up to rest his back against the headboard, gently taking the washcloth from her.

"Not tonight." Sam took the washcloth from Steve, gently cleaning the three of them up before tossing the cloth back into the bathroom. "We love you Steve."

"Yep." Penny agreed as the two of them snuggled next to him on either side of him.

Steve smiled a little, wrapping his arms around each of them, closing his eyes, "What did I do to deserve you guys?"

Sam chuckled. "We're the lucky ones."

"I agree." Penny said softly, stroking Steve's cheek. "I love you dreamboat."

"I love you too cookie." Steve said, blinking back tears and the three of them fell asleep. 

[sophieinwonderland]

people are so dramatic about you getting angry at an anon and finally being a little bit harsh to them back.

"i hope you aren't accepted for being an asshole to endogenics and are pushed out of spaces if you continue to be cruel and anti-endogenic, because that is a natural consequence of your shitty behavior"

"OH MY GOD SHE SAID SOMETHING WORSE THAN A DEATH THREAT!!" "actually its cruel to isolate people even if they are an active threat to several communities and also isolating people is bad because it triggers me and could fuck up my life" "i cant believe sophie's MEAN!! and is just as bad as the ableist anon she was responding to!!"

like fuck anti endos atp. if i dont want to be friends with a bigot why should i feel bad? no communities should feel forced to accept bigots even if they are also traumatized themselves. learn and grow or accept the consequences

Seriously! Another one I've been seeing is comparisons to solitary confinement!

And I'm just thinking... like... people know the problem with solitary confinement isn't just the solitary part... but the confinement... right?

It's the complete lack of any sort of stimulation.

Like, someone spending 12 hours alone in an empty room with nothing to do isn't the same as someone spending 12 hours in an apartment with video games, a PC with Netflix, a filled book shelf, a pet cat, etc.

It cannot be understated how terrible and traumatizing solitary confinement is.

But that feels like what people have been doing with these comparisons. No, being ostracized for having terrible beliefs isn't healthy either. But there's no comparison between these two things and it bizarrely minimizes solitary confinement to bring it up.

I swear, if I had told that anon that they deserved to have a bucket of water dumped on them, these people would be rushing to accuse me of wanting anti-endos to be waterboarded. 🙄

Anyway, yeah, if you're a bigot, people don't have a responsibility to interact with you just because it might make you sad if they stop. You don't owe someone with toxic or harmful views your friendship or attention.

These people need to grow up and stop downplaying literal torture for cheap syscourse points.

Also, it's not like anti-endos would actually permanently be prevented from having friends. They'd just need to be quiet about their anti-endo views.

[brainyxbat]

Chapter 4: Erumalu, the City of Green, and the Kung Fu Dugongs!

(episode 96)

On the ship after Ace was invited on, Vivi sat downstairs, deep in thought, when Sanji came in. "Tea's ready. Come on up to the kitchen."

"Thank you, Sanji-san!"

In the kitchen, Usopp and Luffy began goofing off, with a laughing Venus as the audience across the table. "Heya! I'm Captain Rice Ball Usopp!" The sniper had stuck his finger through his onigiri rice ball, to look like his nose. He moved his hand to a snowman made of rice. "Oh! And who are you?!"

"I'm a riceman!" Luffy beamed. The "riceman" had a pair of forks for arms, a sausage for a nose, and meatballs for eyes.

As Venus laughed, Sanji whacked the two with frying pans. "Quit playing with our food!" He scolded, Venus grimacing in surprise, as Ace couldn't help but smirk. "If you got free time, go wash dishes, or something! Geez!" He grumbled. "I need to finish our packed meals before we cross the river!" He rolled up his sleeves, and began his work.

"Need a hand?" Ace asked, to his surprise.

"No, no," Sanji replied, "You are a guest on board. Just sit back, and relax."

Ace's smirk turned into a warm smile. "All right."

Sanji glanced to his left, and to his frustration, Luffy and Usopp were washing the dishes in the mop bucket from swabbing the deck. "Don't wash the dishes in that mop bucket!"

When he felt a gaze on him, Ace turned to his left; Venus was looking straight at him, elbow on the table, her cheek on her knuckles, and a lovestruck grin on her face, as she ate. "H-hi. Venus, right?"

"Mm hmm," She nodded.

Usopp watched her, as he and Luffy were forced to the sink. Through his scrubbing, he tried to push away his feelings of jealousy; why couldn't he be the one she's fawning over? Ace seemed nice, and he was definitely a cool guy, but he didn't know her like Usopp did.

Outside, a serene Chopper was laying on the stairs. "What a nice breeze!" The "breeze" came from Zoro swinging a giant barbell just a foot away.

Holding her teacup, Vivi walked up the stairs, as Nami was by the prow. "Nami-san, I'd like to land the ship here for a moment."

"Eh? What for?"

"I have an important task for Karoo."

"Karoo?"

After docking, the crew, sans Zoro and Ace, stood on the ground, as Vivi gave Karoo a letter. "Karoo, I want you to go to Alubarna Palace on your own, and deliver this letter to my father. I've written down everything Igaram and I learned about Crocodile, and Baroque Works' schemes. And that I've returned to Alabasta alive with supportive friends." Karoo began to feel nervous. "Can you do it? You'll have to cross the desert on your own." He saluted with a confident quack, before she put the letter in his coat. "Listen. You have to drink your water with care in the desert."

"Karoo! Good luck!" Luffy beamed.

"Now let my father know this kingdom can be saved!" With another quack, Karoo sped off, briefly stopping for a sip, before continuing. "Drink your water with care!" Vivi watched, as he disappeared over the dunes. "Karoo... thank you."

"I knew Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords, was in this country," Ace remarked, "But a pirate trying to steal a kingdom? Sounds like a bad joke." He turned, and leaned back against the railing. "A pirate dropping anchor in one spot, and settling down? Don't tell me he's trying to usurp the throne."

"Alright!" Luffy pumped his fists up, as Sanji and the girls climbed back on the Merry.

"Hold on!" Usopp shouted from the rope ladder. "I'm not on board yet!"

"Me neither!" Venus added from the ground.

"There could be another side to this takeover thing," Ace continued, as Usopp helped Venus up.

"Another side?" Zoro asked.

"Some sort of deeper goal."

"We're finally here!" Luffy announced.

"We're finally going into the desert!" Chopper added. "I bet it'll be hot."

"It gets over 50 c in the daytime!" Nami informed, as she walked down the stairs, now in a more covering, white cowl-neck robe.

"Eh?! It does?!" Chopper slid down the rail.

"What happened, Nami-san?!" Sanji exclaimed in shock upon seeing her. "Where did your dancer outfit go?!"

To his despair, Vivi was in a dark blue robe with white pipelinings on the hood, and down the front, while Venus was in a black robe with a cowl hood bearing a silver Wiccan symbol on the collar, and a spike-hemmed cape with dark purple lining. "Aah! Not you too, Vivi-chan! Why are you dressed like that?!"

"In the desert, any exposed skin will wind up terribly sunburned!" Vivi explained.

Sanji perked up when he saw the shortest girl; she didn't look any different from before. "Venus-chan! I-"

"Here's yours, Venus-san," Vivi handed her a black robe, and she pulled it on.

"Thanks! It looks great!" The bottom front of the hood was kept together with a silver Wiccan symbol on the front, while the back had a spiky-hemmed cape with a dark purple lining. Over her shoulders was a capelet-like layer of black.

"No, Venus-chan!" The chef cried out. "Change back!"

She turned to him with a bemused look, as she pulled the hood over her head. "Sorry to burst your perverted bubble, but I'd rather not get sunburned, thank you very much."

A depressed Sanji laid on the floor. "This is terrible... my dancer girls..." He started rolling in circles.

"Put this on, Luffy-san," Vivi handed him some new clothes.

"Okay! Thank you!"

"Let's get ready to disembark," Zoro took charge.

"Yeah," Usopp agreed.

"Okay! Let's land!" Luffy announced.

An annoyed Venus yanked Sanji up by his own clothes. "On your feet."

Zoro was about to haul up the anchor, when he saw something float up. "What's that?" On the shore, as everyone watched, a group of strange creatures resembling seals with turtle shells jumped up and looked ready to fight. "Turtles?"

"Aren't those seals?" Luffy asked.

"Kung Fu Dugongs!" Vivi exclaimed.

"They're kinda cute," Venus smiled a little.

""If you wanna come on shore, you'll have to beat me first!"" Chopper translated the leader's threat. ""Or else go back to the other shore, cowards!" Is what he says."

A confident Usopp stood on the railing. "I can't sit by quietly, when someone calls me a coward! Let's do it!" He leaped towards the Dugongs.

"Wait! Usopp-san!" Vivi called after him, and within seconds, he was defeated. "Kung Fu Dugongs are strong!"

"Usopp-kun!" Venus' eye widened in horror. She was wrong; they weren't cute at all!

"Stay back, Venus-san!" Vivi kept her from jumping in.

Luffy managed to easily defeat another. "One is winning over there!" Nami pointed out.

"Winning is bad too!" Vivi exclaimed.

Luffy watched as his opponent stood up, then to his confusion, bowed before him. "Huh?"

"It's a Kung Fu Dugong rule that if someone loses, they become the winner's pupil!" Vivi explained.

"That's very martial arts-ish," Zoro remarked.

The rest of the Dugongs gathered around Luffy. "The number of pupils just went up!" Vivi gawked.

"Alright, everyone! After me! Stance!" On Luffy's command, they all held out their right flippers. "No! Like this!" They copied his pose accurately. "Yeah! Now go like this!" They continued to follow his movements, as Venus began sneaking over. "That's it! Like this! Like this! Like this! Like this!"

"Usopp-kun?" She hauled him back to the ship while the Dugongs were distracted.

"Alright! Let's set out for Yuba!" Luffy announced.

"Hold on, now!" Zoro noticed them all lined up behind him in groups. "Are you bringing them with us?!"

"You can't, Luffy!" Nami scolded.

"The Dugongs can't cross the desert," Vivi said more gently.

Their hearts swelled when two of them hugged Luffy's legs, like they were begging him not to leave. 'So cute...' They turned away to talk privately. "I don't know why, but I feel like we're doing something very sad."

"Me too," Vivi agreed, "What should we do?"

"I know!" Chopper chimed in, and began sniffing everyone's bags. "Let's see here..."

"What're you doing?" Sanji asked.

"Here!" Chopper held out a chicken leg to the Dugongs. "You can have this! So stay here, okay?" He screamed in terror when they crowded right to him, and he began getting carried away. "Help!"

"Chopper!" Usopp exclaimed in concern.

Before long, after an attempted theft on Luffy's part, the crew made their leave, with the Dugongs waving in farewell. "See ya!" He waved back, while walking backwards.

"Hey now, Luffy!" Nami glared. "Do you understand the current situation?!"

"They said they were coming with me, so why couldn't we let them?"

"We couldn't go to any city with that big of a group! You're so dumb! Honestly! We would've been in big trouble, had Chopper not persuaded them!"

"Yeah!" Chopper agreed. "They kept saying, "We'll accompany you!" They really would've come, if we hadn't given them food!"

"Sheesh!" Sanji griped. "Thanks to you, our food supply's gotten a lot smaller!"

"He knows how to cause trouble," Ace remarked.

"That's for sure!" Suddenly, Vivi stopped at the top of a dune, with Zoro, Usopp, and Venus catching up. Before them was a city that seemed to have been overtaken by a sandstorm. "What's this, Vivi-chan?" Sanji asked.

"Is this the town of Yuba?" Luffy added.

"No..." Vivi replied, "This is Erumalu. It used to be known as the City of Green."

Luffy looked on curiously. "City of Green?"

Vivi turned to the group with a serious face. "The sight of this town explains everything. What the Baroque Works organization has done to this country. What the people of Alabasta are going through."

"Wow!" Luffy exclaimed in awe at their surroundings, as they trekked on. There was merely dried-out trees, and buildings peeking out of the sand. "There's nothing here at all!"

"Yes," Vivi agreed, "It's a ghost town now, but up until just recently, it was a thriving city full of greenery!"

Zoro lightly kicked a tree trunk, and small pieces broke off. "This place was?"

"Rain was always scarce, but even so, the city was able to manage by saving every last drop of rainwater it could. But for three years now, not a single drop of rain has fallen in any part of this country."

"For three years?!" Sanji asked in shock.

"That long?!" Chopper added.

"But even without rain, what about the river we just crossed?" Zoro pointed out.

"Yeah!" Usopp agreed. "Couldn't they just pipe water in from that big river?"

"The answer to that is up ahead," Vivi replied, and they kept walking, "Never in the thousands of years of Alabasta's history has the rain stopped completely. But there was one place where the rain fell more than usual: Alubarna, the capital. The city with the king's palace. The people called it the King's Miracle; until what happened that day, at least."

"Dance Powder?!" Nami guessed in surprise.

"You've heard of it?" Luffy asked her.

"Yes. It's also known as Rain-Summoning Powder."

"Rain-summoning?" Chopper asked.

"I'd only heard stories about it, but a researcher in a country where it doesn't rain created it. By creating a misty smoke from it, and letting it rise into the sky, you can artificially cause it to rain. That's what Dance Powder is."

"That does sound like a miracle," Venus remarked.

Luffy suddenly pounded his fist in his palm. "Oh! I get it! You mean that mystery powder! I ate some a while back! It tastes really bad!"

"It isn't food," Nami sneered, as she passed by him.

"It's for making rain," Zoro followed her.

"What?!" Luffy exclaimed in frustration. "You think I'm lying, don't you?! Hey, you!"

"Hold on!" Usopp chimed in over the captain's fussing. "Venus-chan had a point earlier. Wouldn't something like that be perfect for this country?"

"As the name suggests, the country that developed Dance Powder was almost happy enough to dance at first. But there was a big catch: the neighboring country had a drought. Understand? Dance Powder quickly and artificially matures clouds that would normally grow into rain clouds further downwind, and causes them to rain. So-"

"Oh, I get it!" Usopp cut in. "It steals rain that would've normally gone to a neighboring country!"

"Eventually, war broke out between the two countries, and many lives were lost as a result," Nami continued, "Ever since, the World Government has put a worldwide ban on the production, and possession of Dance Powder."

"Powder that can bring both happiness and dread when used," Usopp remarked.

"When all that Dance Powder was brought into the port town, Alabasta was in the middle of a strange weather phenomenon where rain fell nowhere but in the town where the king lived."

"Hold on, Vivi!" Luffy angrily interrupted. "That means your dad is the bad guy here!"

"You idiot!" Sanji bonked him with a heel to the head, and kept at it. "He was framed! Vivi-chan's father would never do any such thing! Never... never..."

"Of course, my father had nothing to do with it, but at around the same time, a massive amount of Dance Powder was found inside the palace."

"They even had people working inside the palace?" Zoro asked.

"What's this road, Vivi-chan?" Sanji noticed a visible path before them.

"This was a canal that used to bring water in from the Sandora River." The crew were surprised at that. "Someone destroyed this canal too. With its canal gone, the City of Green could no longer secure water. As if praying, the people continued to wait, but rain never came." Chopper dropped a pebble down a well, but there was a thump rather than a splash. "Ever since the Dance Powder incident, distrust in the king grows daily."

"And it's all how Crocodile planned, huh?" Zoro guessed.

"And then the fighting finally began. To escape the fighting, the exhausted people abandoned the city, and left for other oases in search of water." Vivi suddenly stopped walking. "And then... the City of Green withered away."

After some silence, as a stronger breeze blew by, everyone was on alert at a strange sound. "Huh? Is that someone's voice?!" Nami exclaimed.

"Is it the rebel army?!" Chopper asked.

"Don't tell me Baroque Works has been following us!" Usopp glared.

Everyone waited, ready to fight, but no one came out. "No, it's just wind," Ace said.

"It has to be someone's voice!" Luffy insisted.

"It's coming from all directions!" Usopp looked every which way cautiously. "What do we do, big brother?!"

"There's no danger. It's just wind blowing across the town, and echoing off old buildings."

"What if it's a ghost?" Venus asked around, with too much interest.

"Don't say that!" Nami scolded.

Vivi listened carefully, as her hood blew off her head. "It's as if... it's as if the city of Erumalu is crying."

Suddenly, a small tornado formed, and was heading right for them. "Here it comes!" Before they could move, the tornado blew right through them.

"Hold on, Venus-chan!" Usopp held her close protectively, as she pulled her hood down with one hand, and kept Chopper safe with the other. They braced through the whole thing, as Luffy noticed something unusual: darker trails of sand. The small storm then ended as soon it it began, so they were able to relax. "Whoa, what was with that wind?" Usopp wondered aloud.

"It's like it came out of nowhere," Venus added, as Chopper jumped out of her arms.

Luffy turned, and saw a man laying on the ground. "Someone collapsed!" Nami pointed out, as he made an urgent beeline.

"There are still people in this city?!" Vivi exclaimed. Everyone followed the captain, but they soon stopped; it was a long-withered skeleton in a cloak. She dropped to her knees, and softly touched the skull. "What did my father... what did the citizens of this country ever do? These people have worked so hard to live, being natives of a desert island who are forced to fight with nature. Yet he destroyed their lives!" She started to cry, now doubting her father. "What gives him the right to do that?! What?!" Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji approached an abandoned temple. "All the while, as one of the Seven Warlords, he pretends to be a hero of the people! No one realizes he's deceiving the entire country! I..." She was oblivious to a now angry Luffy drawing his fist back. "Can't let him get away with this!" He suddenly punched a hole through the wall, sending the temple crumbling.

The rest turned to see it falling to the ground. "Geez, you're such kids," Zoro griped. As Ace helped Vivi bury the poor soul, topping the makeshift grave with a branch, the trio came marching back.

"Vivi! Let's get moving!" Luffy ordered, and cracked his shoulder. "I'm itching to do this now!" Venus and the boys followed him, as he started walking again.

"Let's go to Yuba!" Vivi turned to Zoro and Nami.

"That's where the rebel army is, right?" The former asked.

The princess stood straight in determination. "Yes. I'm going to persuade their leader to stop the rebellion."

Zoro raised an eyebrow. "Persuade?"

"All of Alabasta's calamities are Crocodile's doing! I'm going to tell him the truth, and have him stop the pointless shedding of blood!"

"Got it." With that, Zoro went to catch up with the rest.

Vivi looked back at the grave, then followed the crew deeper into the desert.

[rakka-kasahara]

2024-10-14

Dream:

I remember my dreams best on the weekends since I usually go back to sleep for about 30 minutes after my alarm goes off, and I dream during that period.  I had a dream in the middle of the night, so some details got a little lost, including a bit of the ordering.

I believe it started on a mountain or something, and I was listening to a Chroniko ASMR video or something, but then I am in my Grandma's house and a professor from college is there.  We're waiting for someone, but we are unsure if they are who they say they are, so my professor tells me to get the shotgun and stand in the hall with it just in case.  The guy comes into the house, and he also has a shotgun, but puts it down.  I guess he is who we are expecting, so I felt kind of bad for just standing there with a shotgun.  We go deeper into the house, but it is now more of a modern apartment with white tile floor and a large marble kitchen in a skyscraper.  Someone tries to show off this neat water fixture thing, so we go up some stairs outside of the apartment.  There is a big bucket on the roof collecting rain and just dumping it out onto the roof.  We go back below to see that it has created a circular waterfall that is surrounding the couches in the living room.  However, it is poorly designed, and one of the couches in the center is getting soaked.  So is the person sitting on it, who is one of my cousins.  I guess we are all at my Grandma's house because she has passed, and we need to go through the will.  So, most of the family is off in another room, and I am in the kitchen with some others.  My other grandma is even there going over the will, for some reason.  I think we have some pizza or something.  Eventually, we learn that she left some sort of treasure or something and that is what people are arguing about.  My cousin decides he wants the treasure, so he pulls out a gun to hold us hostage.  I guess I also have a gun for some reason, but I don't want to shoot him, so I instead grab his gun and just wallop him until he is unconscious.  The next few parts of the dream are unclear.  I remember I had my Grandma's iMac (which I do in real life), and I am returning it to my school library.  However, I remember I was doing or listening to ASMR with it and needed to sign out of my account.  Somehow after that, I am in Walmart in the back section with the dairy.  I go and look at the yogurts, but there are a ton of pills in Zip-Lock baggies on the ground, and a guy next to me says that people have been dumping their prescription medicines in Walmart.  There was a little bit more in Walmart, but that is about all I remember.

Analysis:

Two dreams involving Walmart in a row, and ASMR being a part of a couple of dreams as well. I do own my Grandma's iMac and upgraded it a week ago, so that part makes sense. My highschool library and public library both had a single iMac, so bring it to the library makes some sense as well. Not too sure why there were so many guns. I only watched Japanese, Chinese, and Korean ASMR for years, but have been getting into more English ASMR this year, mostly role plays. However, I am kind of getting sick of English VTubers, so I will probably start going back to foreign ASMR. Don't like the dime a dozen lewd VTubers or the begging for money a lot of streamers do. I mean, some of the Japanese stuff I watched was definitely on the questionable side, but it is different when I can't understand it, you know? If these chicks made their stuff for more of female audience, maybe I would like it. Chroniko is good though. Absolutely obsessed with her. I am so afraid of her doing or saying something to ruin my image of her in my head. I feel like a creepy idol stalker sometimes. That is one of the reason's I probably need to change what I listen to. Never felt like that with any other artists, even ones that I have listened to for a long time like Nene Amano.

[iviarellereads]

The Eye of the World, Earlier - Ravens

(THIS PROJECT IS SPOILER FREE! No spoilers past the chapter you click on. Curious what I'm doing here? Read this post! For the link index and a primer on The Wheel of Time, read this one! Like what you see? Send me a Ko-Fi.)

(Ravens icon) In which I rearrange the timeline to suit my whims.

(First written for From The Two Rivers, the first half of a YA reprint of The Eye of the World, and now seemingly available in front of the ebook edition (so you might be able to read it in the "preview now" on Amazon or your ebook retailer of choice, if you don't have it in your copy) as well as a few print editions, this was placed before the Dragonmount prologue. I feel that's too jarring for a first introduction, because it's 8-9 years ago, then 3000 years ago, then back to the present day. It doesn't work well in the other direction either, because it undercuts the tension (and the narrative connection) between the prologue and chapter 1. But, I really love this chapter, actually. It's a great insight into not just Egwene, but other characters we've been interacting with. So, I'm placing it after chapter 4, when we've met most of the relevant characters, or heard about them enough to recognize, and there's a bit of a lull in the story.)

We meet Egwene, who's with some of the other children in the Winespring Water river.

She was not here to play. At nine, she was carrying water for the first time, but she was going to be the best water-carrier ever.(1)

She wonders why she has to keep her hair long and wear it in a kerchief, when long hair is a sign of womanhood and she's years off from it yet.

Why did you have to keep doing something just because it had always been done that way?(2)

Downstream, the men are washing the sheep that will be sheared later. She's gathering water in her buckets when a raven lands nearby, watching some men washing sheep in the river nearby. Only, why would a raven watch the men when the sheep are the better targets? There are rumours that ravens and crows are the Dark One's eyes, but what would the Dark One need to see in the Two Rivers? That's silly talk.

An older boy, Kenley Ahan, tells her to get back to work. She gives him a level look she's seen older girls use, but it's not very effective. He gets back to his, pretending he's responsible about it, but she knows that won't last long. Still, she gets back to the water-carrying, because she really does want to be the best.

Farmers came from all around Emond’s Field for this, and village folk came out to help relatives. Everyone in the village had kith or kin of some sort on the farms. Shearing would be going on all across the Two Rivers, down at Deven Ride and up to Watch Hill. Not at Taren Ferry, of course. Many of the women wore shawls draped loosely over their arms and flowers in their hair, for the formality, and so did some of the older girls, though their hair was not in the long braid the women had. A few even wore dresses with embroidery around the neck, as if this really were a feastday. In contrast, most of the men and boys went coatless, and some even had their shirts unlaced. Egwene did not understand why they were allowed to do that. The women’s work was no cooler than the men’s.(3)

Egwene describes the jobs everyone does at shearing, from moving the sheep in and out of the pens, the shearing itself, sorting and baling, and preparing and serving food for everyone. Shearing is one of just five times a year when the whole community comes together, so the crowd is huge.

Taking care not to run into any of her sisters, who often treat her as a baby, she tells herself she's not looking for anyone else. Of course, it's a bit protest too much. She sees Kenley try to steal a honeycake, and get punished for it, and feels satisfied that he won't be giving orders again soon.

On her way back to the river to refill her bucket, Egwene sees Perrin with his family talking to the local smith, who says he's a fine lad, he'll do a great job. Egwene watches Perrin playing with his youngest sister, and his other sister sneaks up on Egwene and asks why she's watching Perrin when everyone knows she's going to marry Rand someday. Egwene notices more ravens, insults the girl,(4) and gets back to the business of water carrying.

Egwene then nearly runs into one of her sisters, telling off a Coplin for trying to interfere with the wool sorting she's doing. This makes Egwene think of how all her sisters treat her like a child. One of them even takes books Egwene wants to read, calling them "too complex" for her. Egwene particularly loves reading The Travels of Jain Farstrider, dreaming about seeing all the places he did.

She notes Nynaeve, the Wisdom's apprentice, bandaging a cut someone acquired from wool shears. Nynaeve was orphaned a few years ago, and taken apprentice much earlier than is usual for a Wisdom, instead of being sent to live with other relatives. She finishes the bandage, but the Wisdom undoes it, and looks disappointed for some reason Egg can't fathom.(5) Nyn tugs at her braid, a nervous habit of hers, although she could be trying to draw attention to the fact that she's been considered a woman grown for almost a year, even if she's still an apprentice.

Nearby Egg sees yet more ravens, watching the men and the boys. Just as she's about to ask the Wisdom what it might mean, Nyn sneaks up on her and asks if Egg has work to be doing. Somehow since last fall, she's known where Egg is without looking, and Egg wishes she'd stop.

Egg curtsies, and as she leaves, finds herself face to face with another of her sisters, Elisa. She's folding fleece, badly, and Egg thinks it's because she's older than Nynaeve by a year, but the Women's Circle still hasn't let her braid her hair. Egg points out another girl, Calle Coplin, who's even older with her hair unbraided, and Elisa gets deeply embarrassed and tells her to leave the adults to their work.

Well, with that, Egg stalks away, refills her bucket, and goes in search of Perrin and Mat, Rand's friends, for no reason at all, nope, she just has a question she needs to ask them, that's why she sneaks up on their hiding place. And she finds them, all three plus some other boys about their age. Egg hides around the corner from them and thinks about marriage customs and adulthood, and how she really wants to journey before she settles down, even if Rand is a kind boy.

The lads start talking about how to get into some mischief, and then someone comes and summons them all on behalf of the mayor. Egwene follows casually, and it turns out he promised to tell them a story. Only, they ask for a story about a false Dragon, and he doesn't know any, so he asks Tam, Rand's father, if he does. Tam offers to tell a story about the real Dragon, from the Age of Legends, three thousand years ago. Cenn Buie says some stories shouldn't be told, shouldn't even be known, but Bran insists it's only a story, what harm can it do?

To paraphrase, three thousand years ago in the Age of Legends(6) there were great cities full of huge buildings, and vehicles powered by magic that could carry people faster than horses can run. They didn't even remember war, and had no sickness they couldn't cure. And then the Dark One touched the world, and war came that covered the whole world in shadow. So came trollocs and myrddraal, and human darkfriends and even some Aes Sedai who went over to the dark and became the Forsaken.

Egwene puzzles at this, because some of the Forsaken were men, and they couldn't have been Aes Sedai, could they?(7)

The story goes on that Lews Therin Telamon, the Dragon himself, gathered an army of 100 men who marched on the Dark One's stronghold, and enough of them fought through to seal the hole in the Dark One's prison. And again Egwene puzzles, because didn't the stories say that the Dragon had broken the world? How could he have saved it and broken it?(8)

The story wraps up there, and Perrin asks what a dragon is.(9) Tam admits he doesn't know, and he's not sure even the Aes Sedai know what a dragon is. Still, it's nothing to do with today, so the boys are told to get back to work. Egwene is startled to realize there are more ravens in the trees than she's ever seen before. Worse, one of them is staring straight at her. She stares at it until it flies off with the others, and then she gets back to being the best water-carrier ever.

Egwene had to carry water again the next year, which was a great disappointment to her, but once again she tried to be the best. If you were going to do a thing, you might as well do the best you could. It must have worked, because the year after that she was allowed to help with the food, a year early! She set herself a new goal, then: to be allowed to braid her hair younger than anybody ever. She did not really think the Women’s Circle would allow it, but a goal that was easy was no goal at all. She stopped wanting to hear stories from the grownups, though she would have liked to hear a gleeman, but she still liked to read of distant lands with strange ways, and dreamed of seeing them. The boys stopped wanting stories, too. She did not think they even read very much. They all grew older, thinking their world would never change, and many of those stories faded to fond memories while others were forgotten, or half so. And if they learned that some of those stories really had been more than stories, well . . . The War of the Shadow? The Breaking of the World? Lews Therin Telamon? How could it matter now? And what had really happened back then, anyway?

=====

(1) Egwene is going to be The Best at anything she tries to do, or else the universe will have to pay. (2) And, our Egg is not a traditionalist. (3) Because your author wanted to make a particular point about your hometown being very conservative-traditional-having deep roots in the location. We've seen that with how many times things have been repeated and how many times people have said that's just the way it's always been. You, Egwene, may have been born here, but I think you can already see that you don't really belong. (4) In case you don't follow the logic here, my best guess, as someone who was once a 9 year old girl, is that Egg's embarrassed as all get out. She does have a crush on Rand, and they have practically been promised since infancy, even though there are many suitable kids of the right ages. But, she also thinks in this chapter about wanting to see the places Jain Farstrider did. She might not be fully aware of it consciously, but while part of her loves her home and her role in it, part of her also wants to journey beyond, and not be held back by decisions made before she was able to get involved. You can want something and still resent being pressured into choosing it, and resent any of that being noticed by someone else who's ready to embarrass you as soon as say hello. (5) Now, how odd. Do you think Nynaeve's that bad a medic? Egg doesn't think in that direction when she watches it. (6) Well, it's nice to finally have a timeline to work from, so I don't have to pretend I don't know when the Dragonmount prologue took place anymore. Oh, there's debate about the EXACT duration and whether the Third Age began before or after the Breaking, or even if it began with the great war, but we don't need to address that here. Plenty of places to talk about it once you've finished the series and can go find the full spoiler communities. (7) If the BOH in the prologue was to be believed, it was men who could channel who did most of the breaking, since they went mad and unleashed their power without control, while the "sisters" were still safe. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to suggest that Aes Sedai used to mean all channelers, and still means all not insane channelers. So perhaps Aes Sedai did break the world, but that got interpreted through three thousand years of semantic drift where the meaning of the term changed dramatically. A lot can change in how we interpret the words and prophecies of an era over the course of thousands of years. (8) How, indeed? This is probably the main reason why this fits before Dragonmount in publication order, technically speaking. Because this story leads into learning a little bit of the detail and the nuance. Not a lot, because book one of fifteen, but enough to tantalize the senses. We know that he led the Hundred Companions against the Dark One, because one of the Dark One's servants reminded him so. (Do you think that means the BOH was a Forsaken?) And we know that the men who could channel lost their minds and their control and broke the world, the way LTT broke his wife and his home and made that mountain. (9) Passing along information without context can be dangerous for just this reason. You never know what will be lost or made up in the game of telephone.

[mad-rieux]

just some personal venting

I don't know why I'm telling this here, but it drives me crazy sometimes still. My ex prior to us becoming a couple had essentially told me to fuck off when I first told her my feelings to her. Problem was that she was seeing someone, and I took her complaints about him going off to strip bars to party with his boys as this sort of opening to tell he how I felt. She essentially told me off and told me I should stop talking to her. This basically broke me for a couple years.

After those couple years I was in the middle of a road trip with my dad to no where Arkansas, chasing some fantasy of his to move the family to some hippy town in Eureka Springs. Whatever, I went along to humor him. I was still kind of hurting about having lost her, but I filled my life with distractions to push aside those feelings. Then out of the blue she texts me, "How are you doing?" "What are you up to?"

At this point I was in a shitty hotel with my step father. Mind you the only room we could get was the "Lovers suite" and I was this younger looking Latino boy, and here he was this older white man. To make matters more ridiculous the only bathroom we had was one of those heart shaped tubs.

Anyhow, I'd wake up early in the morning to sit outside and just text her. She talked me like nothing had happened, and seemingly forgot what she told me about leaving her alone etc. I kept telling myself, "I'll just be her friend" "She just needs someone to talk to" "She's not really interested in me." I liked talking to her, and wanted to be a good friend if nothing else.

Then I got home from that psychotic trip, and we kept talking. I remember she asked me to get on cam with her since she hadn't seen my face in so long, and I did. If I could describe how much seeing her hit me like a cold bucket of water, I realized those feelings were never gone. Then I just remember asking her what she was doing, as she was slowly taking off her clothes, and I kept saying her name and saying, "We can't do this" over and over until it was too much and I saw all of her. The rest is just history at this point, we dated for awhile, and it was around Christmas time that I last had seen her in person. It's been a little over two years now, but every holiday I'm still bothered by her sudden cutting me off. I never really told this story to anyone and it eats at me and thought maybe writing it out would help. I would be lying if I wasn't just waiting for that moment for her to suddenly text like she did before, like we were friends again.