#‘i actually care about my comrades (unlike you) so i’m going to go murder innocent women and children. and now i’ve kidnapped your coworker

[rosalinesurvived]

Fukufuku_Wordvomit

[wandering-travesty]

Call Me By Your Name

    You weren’t sleezy. That was just a word idiots used to try and pull you down to their level. Yes, your hair was slicked back. Yes, your eyeshadow was dark as the night. Yes, your suit jacket barely covered your chest. Yes, your nails were painted black and sharp as daggers. But, no, you weren’t sleezy. You were dressed for your job. What was your job? Well, that was a bit more complicated….

 “I need you to get close to him.” Erwin said coolly, stubble covered chin resting on his strong hands.

 “I’m sorry?” You asked, genuinely hoping you had too much wax lodged in your ear canals.

 “You heard him.” You met the glare of the midget standing behind your boss.

 “Okay, smartass, I did. But you can’t be serious, boss! He’s beyond dangerous. Shouldn’t someone like,” you gestured in Levi’s direction, “one of the Ackermans take care of this? I’m not discounting myself or anything, but fucking with a Yeager is basically a suicide mission.” You were actually shocked Erwin asked you to do something so important. More so, dangerous. You weren’t exaggerating when you said it was a death sentence. You’d lost enough comrades to know that.

 “Listen, he’s the key to taking down the Marlian Syndicate.” You knew that, but still, this seemed out of left field. “The Ackermans are strong, yes, but they lack a certain…”

 “They’re not ready to whore themselves out. Just say that, Smith.” You understood now. The Ackermans were cold blooded killers ready to strike at any moment. However, they were awkward and completely inept at things like lust and heated and frankly revolting rendezvous. That was how he wanted you to get information for him.

 Erwin wanted you to fuck the leader of the Marlian Syndicate.

 “I wouldn’t use that wording exactly, but your assumption is correct.” Levi couldn’t seem to meet your gaze, but Erwin continued to stare straight into your soul. He was the leader of La Peste Eldienne (The Eldian Plague) for a reason. Strong, debonair, charming, and slightly insane. He could down a beer in one swig, sip a martini all night long, or abstain from alcohol completely. Whatever he needed to do, he did. He murdered, sent the idiotic young and the hopeless old to their deaths just the same, and could absolutely wine and dine a stranger until their clothes practically flew off their body if it was for the cause. You needed to be like that. Especially at a time like this.

 “I’ll do it. And I’ll do it well.” You assured your boss and his partner. Yeah, this would be easy. You could go low as the scum you were about to completely fuck over. You had been climbing up the ranks as of late, so this would be easy as pie.

Before going on your little date: you made a mental note of the main players you would have to deal with. The list you had went something like this:

Porco Galliard: Complete idiot. All brawn, no brain. Basically a bouncer with a fancier jacket and a higher salary. No worries about him doing anything funny.

Pieck Finger: The sweet little thing they kept around for good reason. Part of you wished you had to deal with her instead. She was witty and had a surprising amount of control over the shipments of cocaine and ammunition that went on about the city. Her pretty face and calm demeanor hid her true genius. She was one of the more concerning figures at tonight’s gig, but also one of the one’s more willing to hear you out before killing you.

Colt Grice: Basically a smarter but weaker version of Galliard. He was really only part of the Syndicate to learn from the best and become a great mafioso one day. You had high hopes for him, despite yourself.

Bertholdt Hoover: A freakishly tall mix of the last three members of the gang. So sweaty and shaky he wasn’t allowed to handle guns under any circumstance. That told you all you needed to know about his threat level.

Annie Leonhardt: Tiny, quiet ball of rage and skill. Could murder you in an instant, but would only do so if ordered. Not a concern unless someone else found you out, or you didn’t like being glared at all night.

Reiner Braun: His personality changed with the passing minutes. Could be calm and almost kind, or could snap your neck like a twig in his giant ass hand. He was a wildcard, and a dangerous one. Though he was obsessed with following orders and being the perfect little soldier boy, so you didn’t need to worry about him if no one told him to start shooting.

Yelena: Even more freakishly tall than Hoover. Also freakishly obsessed with the gang leader and his “master plan”, whatever the hell that was. Maybe you would find out tonight. Anyways, she would only do anything if you threatened the boss in any way. If you did your job right, that wouldn’t be an issue.

Eren Yeager: Easily the most brash and idiotic member of the gang. His problem was that he was trigger happy. In this business, trigger happy meant dozens of dead innocents piled up on the club floor in an instant. You had to be careful around him. Unlike most of the others, he would kill you without thinking.

And the top dog. The man of the hour. The man you had to seduce:

Zeke Yeager: Think Erwin but with more wit and charm. Not to mention more of a sadistic mindset. His favorite game was cat and mouse, seeing how long it took before he had a good excuse to have someone drawn and quartered. His expertise was slow torture that the victim didn’t even really know was happening before the barrel of the gun was already pointed to their temple. And you had to fuck him so stupid he leaked confidential information.

 The only other issue with Zeke was his habit of sleeping around. Yes, he was a tramp by most standards. A harlot with exotic tastes. You had heard stories of him seducing women and men alike, and god only knew what they did once he succeeded. What that meant for you was he would be hard to impress.

 So, you were here to beat him at his own game. And if you were found out, his younger brother would most likely shoot you on the spot. That was, if one of the others did it first. Or even worse, Zeke decided to be a tried and true asshole and torture you to death. The options were endless, and you hated them all.

 So there you sat, ass perched on a bar stool, sipping on a gin rickey and waiting for your opportunity. The room smelled strongly of tobacco, rum, and cinnamon. At least you would die surrounded by what you loved, you thought, laughing grimly to yourself. Men and women danced to slow songs you faintly recognized. The air buzzed with haughty laughter and upper class small talk. You barely had any idea how to interact with high society shitheads as high and mighty as the ones Yeager surrounded himself with. You weren’t often sent out to jobs like this. You were like Levi, born in the slums and never taught how to properly behave. You knew what you had to, much like your knowledge of the goings on of La Peste Eldienne. You knew your gang traded drugs, ammunition, and whatever else was a hot commodity at the time, but nothing other than that. You were actually quite glad to know nothing, since that made you a pretty unimportant person to rival gangs. Not as many death threats and kidnapping attempts came your way, unlike the ones Erwin, Hange, and Levi got every day. You were quickly pulled out of your thoughts on the gang hierarchy.

 “Excuse me, miss. The boss wants to chat with ya’ real quick.” A man with greasy hair and green, catlike eyes softly gripped your shoulder. Considering what you knew of Galliard, you figured that grip wouldn’t be soft for much longer if you didn’t do as he suggested.

 “Oh, alright. Did he happen to mention why?” You were genuinely curious. Porco didn’t offer you any solid answer, but there was a reasonable explanation.

 Zeke wanted to get his rocks off. Parties could be interesting, with the right people, of course. The right people hadn’t happened to show up that night. You, on the other hand, seemed interesting. To be frank, you were gorgeous. Even from a distance, he could tell there was something behind your eyes that spelled trouble. He loved people like you. Vicious, cunning, witty, all hidden behind an uninterested and bored demeanor. Those were the people he wanted around him. The best examples were Pieck, and surprisingly, Levi. They seemed to be completely different people than the ones hiding behind their eyes, and Zeke loved to see how long it took to break them down. Well, he was a bit kinder to Pieck, but you and Ackerman got the rough treatment.

 “Zeke, what the hell’re you doin’?” Eren pulled him out of his rather disgusting thoughts of…things better left unsaid.

 “I’m going to talk to a woman, Eren. What does it seem like I’m doing?” Zeke had a sharp tongue and quick wit, which he didn’t spare even his brother from.

 “I get that, but why that one? She seems…shady t’me. I wouldn’t let ‘er get too close, y’know?”

 “Eren, please be rational.” Zeke held a palm out in front of Eren, as if to physically stop his train of thought. “You and Yelena will shoot at the first sign of danger, so inviting this lovely woman to join us for a harmless chat isn’t a danger in the slightest.” Zeke reassured his brother, neglecting to tell him his true intentions. He was sure that would just make him more upset and skittish, which was dangerous for everyone there.

 “’Kay, boss. Got the dame ya’ asked for.” Porco trudged to the brothers’ secluded table with you in tow. He had kept one hand on your shoulder and the other right above your ass. The two main reasons being: one, he didn’t want someone so seemingly important to escape his grip, and two, you had a nice ass.

 “Ah, thank you Galliard…you can let her go now.” He gave Porco a knowing smirk. He let you go immediately and walked away, cheeks slightly reddened. Zeke didn’t want someone else touching his new toy.

 “I’m sorry if this comes off as rude, but did you need something from me? That man made me leave my gin at the bar and I would like to finish it at some point.” Oh, Zeke was going to love you. You weren’t flighty or scared in the slightest. He knew you had seen some serious shit. Not to mention how you cared more about your alcohol than a dangerous mafia boss and his younger brother ordering you over to their table. You were attractive and relatable. What a catch.

 “My apologies, Galliard tends to be a bit, how do you say, brutish. Feel free to order something new and sit down with us.” He gave you a smile that told you it wasn’t a suggestion. This guy was already just as bad as everyone had told you. He hailed a waiter over to the table. You knew that wasn’t some kind gesture, rather a show of how much power he had over everyone there. His long, thick fingers and suave smile also showed you how easily swayed you could be by dashing looks and raw power.

 He held himself like a king but talked like a philosopher. At the same time, he was down to earth yet still slightly condescending. You never knew where you stood with him, and he liked it that way. His flaxen hair was parted down the middle, and unlike most of the men there along with yourself with their hair hardened with pomade, it was fluffy and moved as he gestured wildly when he spoke. He tended to talk with his hands, once again drawing attention to just how attractive they were. His face was indescribably beautiful. His eyes were like stormy oceans cascading with passion and intrigue. His lips looked soft and plush with a wonderful roseate hue. His beard was well groomed and framed his sharp jaw perfectly. His gold rimmed glasses had a habit of hiding his eyes when thrown into direct light, which often happened with how he talked with his whole body. The way he constantly made direct eye contact with you had you lost in a daze of desire and fear. Was this all some sick ploy to get you to slip up and get everyone you loved killed along with yourself? Or was he seriously that interested in you?

 Eren was quiet most of the time, unless Zeke spoke to him. He didn’t like you. You were too similar to Zeke for his tastes.

 “Say, Eren, could you pass me a smoke?”

 “Oh, so you do have vices. See, you never ordered a drink for yourself, so I assumed you were a man above pleasures of the flesh.” You flashed a toothy grin at him, signaling that it was just playful banter. You two were both rather good at that.

 “My dear, the more you get to know me, the better you will understand just how enthralled with earthly pleasures I am.” He winked, and it sent you to the moon with want. How could a man be so gorgeous, charming, dangerous, and sadistic all at the same time? And why did you have to deal with it? You needed him out of his right mind, but it seemed like that could never happen. Whether it came from alcohol, drugs, or sex. You planned to use a mixture of all three. As you continued your playful jabs and taunts at each other, you found your opportunity to seal the deal. One sniff of the white stuff and he was putty in your hands.

 “Now you know, Mr. Yeager, gin isn’t my only vice.” You kept your usual sly tone.

 “Oh really? That is quite the interesting thing to say.” He matched your energy perfectly. This was too good.

 “Have you ever happened to try, well, what do they call it these days? Well, I tend to call it blow. Snow, stardust, snort, sugar, crack, whichever you prefer, I suppose.” Oh, how brave of you to mention your own trade to your top competitor.

 “Why, yes, I have indeed partook in snorting blow. Is there any reason as to why you’re asking me that right now, darling?” You wished he would stop with the pet names. Or rather, you wished you would stop loving them so much. It felt dirty to enjoy your enemy’s company to this extent.

 “Well, I was wondering if you might like to sneak off and try some of my personal mix.” You leaned in close, covering the side of you mouth with your hand. Eren wasn’t a bad kid or anything, but he’d mess with your plan, and you couldn’t have that. Especially not with his slippery ass trigger finger.

 “Your own personal mix, eh? Don’t tell me you’re involved in the trade, now.” He leaned in just shy of touching your lips. “That wouldn’t be very good for either of us, sweetheart.” That’s it, you were fucking this man if it was part of your plan or not. The entire thing could go south, and you’d still want this man’s dick in your mouth. You didn’t really care anymore. He was too hot to handle, and you were this close to cracking under the pressure. Zeke was right, you were fun to play with.

 “Not at all, I just happen to know the right people.” You grinned at him, knowing you technically weren’t lying. It was your own little inside joke, or so you thought.

 The next thing you knew you were in Zeke’s penthouse, smashed up against the wall with a hand around your neck. By all accounts, this is what you wanted, but it was also quite the opposite.

 “Dearest, I find it insulting that you think I would fall for that pitiful act.” He had you figured out from the moment you walked in. Zeke Yeager never forgot a pretty face. He’d wanted to have you naked in his bed for months, and here you were, all helpless and needy. You were adorable, thinking you could get whatever you wanted from him.

 “Smith was a fool to send anyone, let alone a little minx like you.” You hated how good being insulted by this bitch felt. How did he make it so that your panties got wetter every time he called you a different synonym for whore? It was so awful and so amazing.

 “I’m the slut, yet you’re the one actively trying to fuck me? Do I have that right?” You quipped the best you could from under the pressure of his strong hand.

 “Alright then, we’re both sluts. But the difference between us is that I admit it, yet you pretend to be this perfect little princess in order to fuck powerful men like me.” His grip on your neck tightened as if to add injury to insult.

 “Don’t insult me,” you had to catch your breath between each word, “I fuck men ten times more powerful than you.” But, god was it worth it. You figured he might slap you or otherwise reprimand you, but no, the bastard just smiled wide. What a fucking asshole.

 “Maybe to you.” He widened his cheshire grin. “Maybe you think Erwin’s more powerful. That he has a bigger cock and sucking it will get you further in life.” He pushed you further into the wall. “Or maybe letting Ackerman smack your ass will earn you some cash. Or having Zacharius sniff around your cunt instead of your neck will rise you up the ranks, hmm?” You just grimaced at him, knowing none of it was true. “Or maybe,” he let out a chuckle, “letting Zoe do whatever the hell they’re into will get you more coke and gin.” He was mocking you, ruthlessly, with no signs of stopping, and without letting you get a word in. You were starting to see black spots in your line of vision.

 “Well, fucking with me will get you much more, angel.” He finally let your neck go, letting you fall to the ground, left to look up at the devil in front of you.

 “You fucking suck.” You glared at him, not necessarily trying to hide how much you were enjoying this. As it happened, you weren’t some innocent angel. No, you weren’t a sadistic maniac like Zeke, but you knew what you wanted, and it wasn’t necessarily vanilla. As if reading your earlier thoughts, he bent down to your place on the floor.

 He slapped you, and it wasn’t gentle.

 “You’re a sloppy whore on your best days, now get up and strip.” Well if worst came to worst, you could say that you got him where you wanted him…just not exactly how you wanted him, or with a guarantee you would get what you wanted out of him. Honestly, you felt kind of flattered by his attention and apparent need to fuck you.

 “God, do I have to do everything for you, sweetheart?” Apparently you had been standing around catching your breath too long for his liking. He had made quick work of his own jacket, shirt, and dress pants, leaving him in a black pair of boxers. You hated admitting how magnificent he looked. He was muscular, but not in the same way someone like Reiner or Erwin was. Every single limb on him was lengthy and wiry, thus the bruise marks forming on your neck. While on the subject of length, from what you could see, it applied to his cock as much as it did his other appendages. If it looked that good through the black fabric, you couldn’t even dream of what it would look like out in the open, slapping against his defined v-line and abs.

 You hadn’t even noticed him getting closer to you, completely forgetting about his earlier demand turned complaint.

 “Not only are you a harlot, you’re a useless one, as well.” He came close enough for you to smell the hints of smoke, pine, and black tea that wafted off of him. He started playing with the collar of your shirt. “But damn if you aren’t a pretty one…” He said that more to himself than you, clearly not being comfortable complimenting you. He saw you as a toy, a pawn in his game of chess he was playing with the rest of the world.

 You decided that would be your last deep thought as he began to undress you. Nimbly moving his fingers down each button of your dress shirt, until it came completely undone and bore your chest to him. You were by no means flat, which seemed to entertain the man in front of you.

 “I knew you’d be the perfect slut for me.” He groped your breasts through your bra, hands greedy with the clear goal of making you yearn for him. “Perfect tits, soft skin, pretty face, nice ass, strong will. Yeah, you’ll be fun to break.” He gave you one of his signature smirks, making you want to crush his windpipe and deepthroat his dick at the same time.

 You shrugged your top off your shoulders and let him snake his arms around your chest to undo your bra and expose your tits to the cool air of the room. He didn’t waste time kissing your filthy mouth, and instead skipped straight to your sensitive neck. He slowly dragged his soft lips down your throat, kissing his way over to both sides and under your jaw. He licked and sucked at any area that made you gasp or let out some embarrassing little noise you tried to desperately to hide. He hated how you hid, he needed you to need him, to want him at a level beyond human comprehension. He wanted to destroy you, do break you down to your most animalistic and pitiful form. You were strong, that was for damn sure, but he wanted to fix that.

 He took all this into account as he began nipping at the tops of your breasts. He moved from one to the other with no clear pattern. He dragged his tongue down to your right nipple, only touching the tip of his tongue to it, making you shiver in anticipation and let out a small whine. Yes, that was the progress he wanted to see from you. He swirled his tongue around it, slowly making his way to the center, harshly sucking it into his mouth. He pulled his sinful mouth away from you, leaving a trail of saliva connecting him to you. He quickly made his way to your other nipple, doing the same and driving you just as wild.

 “You know, it wouldn’t hurt you to make more noise, darling.” He teased, sounding genuinely annoyed with you.

 “Well, maybe if you did a better job, I would be louder.” You had discovered your talent of keeping up with his smart mouth, and you used it to your advantage. You wanted to rile him up; to get a rise out of him. As previously stated, you didn’t want a vanilla little love making session, you wanted to fuck.

 “Alright then, if you’re so keen on keeping quiet,” he put his rough hands on your bare shoulders, pushing you back onto the ground, this time on your knees, “how about I stuff that mouth?” You hated how good he was at turning you on.

 He pulled his dick out right in front of your face, letting it lay on his toned abs, just as you had envisioned it. It was easily 10 inches long, 5 inches thick, with a slight upturn that could drive you insane if it hit the right spots, which it would. It was flushed pink and dripping pre-cum; it was pretty.

 “Well, are you just going to gawk at it or are you going to make yourself useful, slut?” The sweet pet names were out the window, swiftly replaced with the most debasing insults he could think of. To avoid any more of his smart ass remarks, you took his thick cock in your hands. You slowly stroked it, taking in exactly how big it was. You moved your plush lips closer, giving it a few small kitten licks to test the waters. You kissed the head and gave longer licks up the side, earning a grunt or two from the man above you. As you began to swirl your tongue around his tip, his strong hand came down and pushed on the back of your head. It wasn’t gentle, forcing you to take him down your throat. Considering his size, it was no shock that you choked on it at first, but he kept his hand on your hair, forcing you to stay on him.

 “That’s it, sweetheart, keep that dirty mouth on fat cock.” Tears starting pooling in your eyes as you struggled to breath around his length. “Aww, are you actually crying?” He cooed, taking sick pleasure in mocking you. “How pathetic of you, darling.” His words send shockwaves of shame and pleasure down to your core. You abhorred how badly you needed him inside of you. As he let out a low moan, he pulled you off his cock, tugging your hair just enough to make you even wetter.

 “Alright, angel. I’m not a big fan of blowjobs, so we’ll leave it at that.” You coughed a little as he bent down to your heaving form.

 “Really? That’s a shock.” That was your genuine reaction. You were far too fucked out to be a smart ass at this point.

 “Yeah, you’re not the first to make that observation.” Much to your surprise, he picked you up bridal style, barely breaking a sweat in the process of getting you to his bedroom. Though the lights were on, you couldn’t take in many details, your cock drunk state making it difficult to process anything other than the warm, bare skin of the monster you tried so hard to vanquish.

 “Now, lets get these cute little panties off, hmm?” You had forgotten him taking off your pants in the heat of the moment. His menacing figure loomed overtop of you, slowly sinking down to your thighs. He placed licks and kisses all over them, leaving a few bite marks along with them. You moaned louder than before, feeling too blissed out to care about your pride. You felt large, tepid fingers hooking themselves between your legs and into your panties. He pulled them to the side, wanting to really take you in. Despite his lust for power and dominance, he much preferred giving head to receiving it, especially when it came to women and their soft, tender pussies. You were no exception to this rule.

 “Goddamn you’re fucking wet.” You looked up at you, making you lean your head back to avoid his gaze. “You must like me more than you care to admit, sweetie.” Just after saying this, he ran one long finger up your dripping slit, coating his fingertip in your slick. He looked at it shimmering in the low light of the room, grinning before taking it into his mouth and tasting what your cunt had to offer.

 “You taste like heaven. Surprising, considering what a nasty girl you are.” Unlike you, he could keep that smartass act up for hours on end, no matter how lost in your sex he was. He landed a chaste kiss to your throbbing heat before flattening his tongue to lick a fat stripe up the middle. He began to devour you, making the lewdest noises you had ever heard in the process. You felt amazing, and disgusting, and just about every other emotion you had ever felt in your life. He was a god at eating your pussy, feeling no remorse in having his lips and beard dripping with your juices. To hell with the burn marks he left on your thighs and the burning sense of guilt you had for moaning so loud and creaming all over the face of your greatest enemy. Shame and guilt were for foolish children with no place in the world, Zeke wanted to enjoy every last second of destroying you.

 As he continued to lick and suck at your most sensitive spots, you began to feel your stomach tighten, signaling your closeness. Zeke noticed as well, taking note of your erupting moans and groans and tugs at his silky hair. He moaned on your clit, the vibrations sending you over the edge. You came all over his face, arching your back of the soft sheets and making you scream his name. He kept his lips attached to your clit as you came down from your high, keeping you ensnared in his trap of bliss.

 “God, you moan like a fucking whore, you know that?” The way he insulted you felt disgustingly good, especially coming from such a obnoxiously handsome man.

 “And you eat pussy like a god.” The veil of hatred came off in one foul swoop. You couldn’t hold back how you truly felt about Zeke Yeager. You were in love with the way he treated you, and spoke to you, and ate you, and soon enough, fucked you. He was so damn good, and you just hated to love and loved to hate him.

 “Oh, do I now?” He let out a low chuckle, taking pride in how helpless and stupid he had made you. “Does that make me your god, pet?” It wasn’t a real question. He knew the answer, and he loved that answer: yes.

 “Now, how about I partake in some earthly pleasures and fuck your brains out, sweetheart?” He questioned, moving his arms up to rest on both sides of your head. His face was right above yours, lips hovering over your breathless, panting ones.

 “Yes, please.” Your eyebrows scrunched together as you grew impatient and needy as all hell. Zeke had a sinister idea. God was a nice term, but he could think of a better one.

 “How about you beg daddy for it?” He was such a disgusting pervert, and he relished in it. You mustered all the strength you could in order to speak.

 “Please fuck my pussy, daddy.” That was all he needed to push himself inside your tight heat. Your walls clenched as he thrusted balls deep inside of you, not caring if you needed to adjust or not. Luckily, you didn’t, despite his size.

 “Fuck yes, angel. You’re so goddamn tight.” He thrusted into you with reckless abandon, using you more than making love to you, which is exactly what you both wanted. Your walls clenched and throbbed as he brought you to orgasm once again.

 “Cumming all over my cock, sweetheart? Such a dirty whore.” He teased, continuing his motions, hitting your g-spot over and over again without much issue. His dick was perfect, reaching every inch of you that made you scream out in pleasure and overstimulated bliss. All of this for a few bags of cocaine and bullets. You weren’t even thinking of that as he pounded into you, getting rougher and sloppier than before. He was getting close to his own high just as you were about to reach your third. No one had ever made you feel like this. You never wanted to let him go. Fuck everyone you cared about, this was too damn good to throw away.

 “Where do you want my cum, slut?” He asked seconds before climaxing.

 “Wherever you want it, daddy.” That was exactly what he wanted to hear. You had been molded into the perfect toy for him, even if it was just for the moment. He had debased and perverted you, like putty in his hands. You thought you could just waltz in there and take what you wanted from him. But no, instead you were writhing around on his bed with his fat cock filling up your pussy while you screamed for your daddy. You were filthy, slutty perfection. He quickly pulled out of you and shot his cum on your stomach and chest. Noticing you were still squirming around, he pushed his thumb to your clit and rubbed circles as two of his fingers entered you and hit your sweet spot.

 “Come on, slutty girl, cum for daddy.” This time felt different than the others. You were completely out of your mind with pleasure and lust, and he was hitting just the right spots. You came around his fingers, squirting your juices and ruining his sheets. As if he could sense it, he had moved his face down just in time for it to reach his mouth, coating yet another layer of your cum on his beard. He licked his lips, savoring you taste and the blissed out, fuck drunk look on your face. He wished he could keep you like this forever. No, he would make sure to keep you like this forever. You were going to be his for the rest of time, no matter what it took. Even if he had to play the long game and pretend you had a choice in the matter.

 “Well, sweetheart, I’m afraid you have to go home empty handed. I’m sure those tarts will just pat you on the head and congratulate you for trying your best. That’s why they’ll never surpass me, and that’s why you will come crawling back to me.” You couldn’t respond, too disappointed and drained to say a word.

 “I have a shower that I recommend you use.” He looked down at you, your eyes hazy and barely focused on him. You were completely exposed to him. You looked beautiful. “In an act of civility, I’ll let you sleep here tonight. On a different bed, of course, considering the damage you’ve done.” You laughed at that, and he followed suite.

 “You know Zeke, for a monster, you’re not too bad.” You looked at him, admiration clear in your eyes.

 “You’re not too unbearable either.”

[k-writesthings]

Understanding - Levihan

This was requested by @lonelypalmtree​ based on a dream, which I think is actually awesome! I’m sorry it took so long... I may have gone a bit overboard with the word count, at least for my one-shot standards.

Word Count: 3102

Warnings: Cussing, “A Choice With No Regrets” OVA Spoilers!

   -848-

   “Squad Isaac! Take up the defense position, we have one coming in on the right!” A masculine voice called over the thundering of hoof beats. Hange resisted the urge to take a swipe at him with her last blade. 

   This man, Commander Erwin Smith,  was leading his soldiers out of yet another bloodbath. Every time they went outside the Walls they lost people, and every single fucking time, it was someone Hange cared about. First a friend she had trained with in the Cadet Corps, then a soldier she had feelings for, and now her entire squad… She was the only one from her unit to report back. No one else survived.

   And there wasn’t a single thing she could have done about it. 

   Hange was just a measly soldier- Titan fodder, really. She had no authority, no power to scream “Retreat!” when she saw the massive hoard of Titans crest a hill. The only reason she was still alive was because she scaled a tree as soon as she killed the Titan who ate her squadmates. There was nothing else to do besides sit there and listen to the screams of innocent people as they were slaughtered. And she had to tell their story.

   A sharp pain ran up Hange’s arm as she realized her hand had cramped from gripping the reins of her horse too hard. She sighed and flexed her palm open and closed to dispel the throb. As the ground shook from a massive thud (probably from the Titan Squad Isaac took down) behind her, she gritted her teeth and tried her hardest to burn holes in the back of Erwin’s head with her eyes. The Titans had ruined her life. This regiment had ruined her life. Why did she even become a scout again? She vaguely recalled a willingness to die for the “cause”, but now that feeling was almost all gone, dried up with the blood of the Titans she fell. Now, all she wanted was to know why. Why did the Titans eat people? Why did they exist? Why couldn’t they get rid of them? So many questions, so much hurt and anger. 

  And she needed answers, but not just from the Titans. 

  “Stop here!” Erwin’s voice suddenly rang out again, steering his horse towards a group of trees. “Tie off the horses and get into the trees. We are still waiting for word from the Cart Convoy, so until then we stay here and we stay quiet. If any Titans see us, cut them down immediately and as silently as possible.” He dismounted once we reached the trees and handed his horse to another soldier to tie off. “Squad Levi, Hange, on me.” Hange was momentarily taken aback by this sudden command, but nonetheless followed him up into the tree with her ODM Gear.  

   She landed roughly, nearly missing the branch entirely. But, she caught her balance and stood in front of her Commander. The one that all but condemned her comrades to death. He gazed at her with a solemn expression, eyebrows knit in thought, or maybe sadness. Hange stared back, careful not to show too much emotion. A sudden draft of air told her that Levi and his squad had arrived. The newly promoted captain approached Erwin as well, pausing in front of the commander only a bit further back than Hange. She glanced behind her and saw his squad of fresh-faced recruits. This was probably only their second expedition, but they all stood and watched Erwin, mimicking an expression that they had no doubt learned from Levi. Hange felt a stab of pain as she thought of her squadmates in some Titan’s stomach, while Levi’s squad was all alive and well. It made her blood boil and her eyes sting with tears at the same time.   

   “I’m going to put this plainly.” Erwin began, seeing we were all present. “It’s unlikely that we will make it back to Walls with all the soldiers we have here. Our numbers are simply too many for the Titan activity present in the area. We’ve drawn too much attention as is. And…” Hange couldn’t tell if he had trailed off for dramatic effect or because of the gravity of their situation. “The Cart Convoy isn’t coming back. I saw them send up red and purple signal flares just before the Left Wing Spotters were taken out. I didn’t have time to help them-,” Hange cut him off with a bark of mirthless laughter.

  “So, who could you help, Erwin? Anybody?” she exclaimed, advancing on his much taller form. He watched her with an odd look of guilt, instead of trying to diffuse the situation like she thought he would. “I watched the ENTIRE Left Wing get taken out, I listened as they were eaten in front of me. I lost my comrades, the last people who were good to me!” She felt tears sting her eyes, obscuring her already shitty eyesight. “Where were you, Erwin? Where WERE you?!” She screamed her last question, locking the last blade into her sword hilt. With anger bubbling from every fissure of her soul, she swung up and over his head, determined to kill this murderer. 

   The next few moments happened in slow motion. Inches before she took off Erwin’s head, another blade collided with her own. She whipped around to see Levi’s angered face and harsh features staring back at her. He took a step forward and moved to kick her feet out from under her. His ankle crashed into hers, knocking her off balance and sending her tumbling off the branch. She freefell for what felt like a lifetime- but must have only been a second- before she reacted and shot her hooks into the underside of the branch. Hange swung down unharmed, and raced to retrieve her horse. 

   She had to leave. Now.

   ‘These goddamn Titans. This goddamn world! If only I knew more about them… I could’ve tried harder to save them. My friends…’ Hange’s thoughts flew through her head, only reinforcing her idea. Her plan. These Titans, these… creatures were dangerous, yes, but what could humanity gain from the knowledge they held? Would research be the difference between humanity’s freedom and humanity’s defeat? She didn’t know for sure, but she knew more than Erwin did. And she was determined to learn more.

         Hange had always had an affinity for science and math; it was a hobby she prided herself in. And Titans interested her to no end. She wanted to know everything that was going on in the big, dumb head of theirs. Once she joined the Survey Corps, she realized she may have an opening to capture some for her studies. Though, she’d never thought like this before, her heart thrummed and her mind whirled. ‘I’m going to bring a Titan back to the Walls. I’m going to show Erwin what it’s like to actually help people.’

★

   The wind whipped through Levi’s hair aggressively, as if telling him to turn back. Telling him that Shitty-Glasses was a lost cause. He agreed, and would’ve listened to the angered wind, but he was given direct orders from Erwin to bring her back. Alive. And that meant following the erratic scientist on horseback as she headed back towards where the Left Wing fell. He could just barely make out the outline of a horse as he chased after her. She had only had a minute head-start, and yet she was nearly a mile away from him. 

      And headed towards where the Left Wing Spotters were massacred.

   He cursed quickly under his breath before kicking his horse to go faster. The horse whinnied in protest, but slowly picked up speed. Hange’s silhouette began to grow as he gained on her. His gaze narrowed as she tossed a glance over her shoulder, realizing she was being followed. Her hand flew to her belt, and Levi immediately knew what she was grabbing for. He was ready for the quick pop and plume of red smoke fired straight at him, which he dodged easily on horseback. He wasn’t hit with the signal flare, but it did manage to obscure his surroundings. Levi pulled to a stop and listened to the whistling wind. The soft sound of rustling bushes came from off to his left.

   They had ridden past this area- there was forest here. 

   He gripped the reins and pulled sharply once again, steering off towards the forest. And as the red smoke cleared, horse tracks in the soft dirt told him he was headed in the right direction. But he had to be careful. Forests were a Titan hot-spot. They could hide here, ready to catch any soldier, even him, off-guard. And he had the advantage of being called “Humanity’s Strongest”. Hange may be smart, but she was not in her right mind. Levi had to get to her before a Titan did.

   Quickly deciding it was better if he was on ODM Gear, he tied his horse to a tree and took to the treetops. From there, he could see everything around him, including one small Titan watching him too closely. He killed it without breaking a sweat and continued his search.

   Levi flew through the trees for about fifteen minutes before he began to get annoyed and feel a familiar sinking feeling in his gut. ‘She’s probably dead by now. Damn Four-Eyes, running off and getting herself killed… making me carry her body back.’ Assuming there was a body to take back. Levi sighed and refocused. He knew better than to let his brain wander like this. Last time he did, he almost killed his entire squad. All because he was in his head. But not this time, he wouldn’t-

    “That’s right! C’mon! Follow me, you big lug!” 

   Hange.

 ★

   “C’mon, I didn’t ride all the way in here to leave empty-handed, now did I?” Hange walked backwards slowly, staring up at the massive humanoid face above her. She had just found this beauty. He was behind a tree, standing at ten meters, with big blue eyes and pursed lips. He also had shoulder length blonde hair that really complimented his eyes. In short, Hange was giddy just thinking about what she’d learn from dissecting him. “Now, darling? I just want you to follow me out of the forest. I have a home not far from here. And while I can’t promise you any food, you’ll never be short on companionship! Step out from behind the tree, don’t be shy!” She continued coaxing the Titan forward until she had reached her horse. The beast took a few steps forward, hand reaching out towards Hange as she untied her horse. 

   Hange smiled up at him. “Now, now. Let’s not get too handsy just yet!” She had just reached for her blades when a sudden splash of steaming blood crashed down on her. Before she could even register what was happening, the Titan collapsed to the ground- dead. 

   Levi stood before her breathing just a bit heavier than normal. His icy grey eyes met hers. “Hange…” He advanced on her quickly, raising his blade and backing her up into a tree. “What the fuck were you thinking?!”

    Hange didn’t quite hear him. Her gaze was trained on the smoking body disintegrating next to them. She felt angry tears sting her eyes. Her face grew red hot. How dare he?! 

   “Four-Eyes? Are you listening? I asked-,” She cut him off with a quick knee to his groin. He doubled over, clearly surprised she was fighting back. 

   “You killed him! You killed him, Levi!” She screamed, running at him with her blades drawn, blindly slashing as he bobbed and weaved around her manic movements. “He could’ve helped us! And you KILLED HIM!” 

   Levi was suddenly at her side, holding both her wrists away from him as he spoke to her. “Hange, stop this now. You could be put in jail for insubordination. On two counts.”

   She tore her hands free from his grip and elbowed him in the throat. He choked and gasped for a second before she was on him again, kicking him in the stomach and knocking him flat on his back. “You’re a murderer, Levi.” She kneeled down, her nose inches from his. “A murder-”

   And her world went black. 

★

    Hange woke up suddenly. Her eyes flew open and she sat up. Well, attempted to sit up. The sudden stabbing pain behind her eyes made her cry out, and when she tried to grasp her head in her hands, she found them both shackled to the side of (what seemed to be) a bed. As the pain subsided, her memories came flooding back. Her squad, Erwin, that Titan, and…

   “You awake, Shitty-Glasses?” 

   Levi.

   The emotionless man sat at a desk next to her bed. They were not in a jail cell… it looked like a normal bedroom. She just happened to be shackled to the bed in this normal bedroom. And apparently Levi was there, too. 

   He watched her for a moment, as if waiting for her to speak. Hange opened her mouth, but all that came out was a dry squeak. Levi sighed heavily and got up to release one of her hands. 

   Then, he handed her a cup of water. 

   Though she had to sit up to drink it without spilling, Hange still downed it gratefully. She savoured the feeling of her parched throat being satisfied by the cool drink. She handed the cup back to Levi, who set it on the desk as he sat back down. 

   “What happened?” She asked.

   “Well,” Levi looked at her with a look best described as ‘done with Hange Zoë’s bullshit’. “You went crazy and tried to bring a Titan back to the Walls like a dumbass. Then you tried to kill me. Then I knocked you out and brought you back here.”

   “Where is “here”? Headquarters?” 

   “No. You see, Premiere Zackly didn’t take kindly to you making an attempt on both Erwin’s and my life, so he wanted to hang you for treason. Erwin is currently at the Capitol trying to repeal your sentence, along with my squad.” Levi explained all of this without batting an eye, but Hange could tell he was pissed.

   “Erwin’s trying to repeal it? Why? I tried to kill him…” Hange tried to wrap her head around this new information, but it began to give her a headache. She brought a hand up to her temple, about to touch it before Levi batted it away.

   “Don’t. I had to hit you with a rock to knock your crazy ass out. You have a gash there.” She could’ve sworn she saw his gaze soften a bit before he continued. “But I couldn’t tell you why he did what he did. I voted for you to be thrown in jail for a couple years, but even that wasn’t enough for the bastard with a heart of gold. He’s trying to get you out without even so much as a strike on your record.” He paused for a second. “Which isn’t fair. I still have two on mine from when I joined the Corps.”

   Hange smiled slightly, recognizing Levi’s dry humor. “I’m thankful, but I just don’t understand…”

   “Do you feel like shit?” He asked her, his hand ghosting over his left side.

   “Yes… I do.” She pressed her hand to the bridge of her nose to stop her vision from swimming. “I was just… so angry…”

    Levi’s eyes left her form and he stared at the reports he was working on before she woke up. He looked like he was struggling with something. “I was, too. When I tried to kill Erwin.”

    Hange’s hand flew down and her eyes widened hearing this. “You.. you what?”

    “I tried to kill that Titan-sized bastard, too. Right after…” He trailed off, looking lost in thought and way more sullen than Hange had ever seen him before. He didn’t need to say their names, Hange knew what he was talking about. 

   “I-,” Her words caught in her throat just thinking about Farlan and Isabel. “I didn’t know.”

   “How could you? Only one there to see it was Mike, and he doesn’t say a word when he’s told not to. I just wanted you to know that I understood what you were feeling.”

   “I’m sorry. For them, for trying to kill you, for trying to bring a Titan back, for making you stay here and watch me…”

   Levi seemed to ignore the Titan comment, instead leaning back in his chair and groaning lowly. “I’m not going to say it’s fine and all is forgiven. You bruised the hell out of my ribs, Shitty-Glasses.”

   “You want me to take a look? I do have some medical experience, you know.” Hange reached forward and beckoned him closer. Levi grimaced, but moved towards her anyway. “But, I’d like use of my other hand as well, if you’d please.” This earned an audible grumble and Levi cursing as he leaned over her body and unshackled her left hand as well. “Thank you. Now raise your shirt.” 

   Levi untucked his pressed white shirt and lifted it a bit. Hange’s hands slowly poked and prodded at a small array of mottled purple bruises under his left pectoral muscle. She mostly muttered to herself, issuing an apology whenever she touched a particularly sore spot and made Levi hiss in pain. She also tried to keep her head down, face out of sight. She was fairly certain she was blushing as she conducted her examination. She had never been one to shy at the mention of anything medical, but this seemed much more… intimate somehow. Hange kept “examining” him until she was sure her blush had dissipated.

   “Good news, Levi. It’s just a couple small bruises on three ribs. Just make sure to breathe deeply for about a minute at least ten times a day. You need to stretch your lungs so you don’t develop a lung disease.” Hange told him, leaning back in bed and touching her hair softly. She almost gasped in surprise. It was… clean.

   Levi seemed to notice her surprise as he tugged his shirt down and re-tucked it. “I bathed you. You smelled like horse shit.”

   Hange felt her face heat up again as she turned away from him in embarrassment. “You… bathed me?” 

   “Yes. I had to be in this room with you, I didn’t want you smelling the whole place up.” He sounded perfectly unbothered. The scratch of a quill told her that he had started filling out reports again.

   “I-,” Hange sighed. “You’re such an asshole.”

   “Right back at you, Four-Eyes.”

(Alright, so not super romantic, but that’s okay! I wanted Hange to be more naive and impulsive here, as she’s only about 21, while Levi is about 26-27. And don’t ask me what’s going on with the stars, I couldn’t tell you.)

[mimeparadox]

My Big Damn Irina Derevko Post

(Note: Spoilers for Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and The Americans ahead. And for Alias, obviously.)

I’ve never understood why Irina Derevko is so beloved.

No, scratch that. I do understand why she’s beloved. What I don’t understand is the belief that the character on-screen actually had anything but the most superficial likeness to the character than exists in the better-than-the-actual-show fandom headcanons.  Like, season 2 is overwhelmingly considered the best season of the series, and Irina is often credited as one of the main reasons, and…I can’t see it? [*1] 

Similarly, I don’t understand the hate for Irina’s final story. Yes, the missiles and mass murder specifically were stupid, and the final fight with Sydney is seriously lacking in “oomph”, but these are execution problems, and most of the complaints appear to be about the concept—as in, fans believe Irina wouldn’t put her ambitions above Sydney, especially after season 4. To which I say…really? 

Sure, I can buy that Irina loves Sydney, and Jack, and Nadia, in her own, destructive way; what I can’t believe is she cares for them more than she does her agenda, whatever that is at any given moment .  Like, I don’t believe anything she does in season 2 actually works, if the idea is that she’s somehow doing it for a greater good. Maybe if she were operating from a position of weakness, but that’s not the case—she remains the strongest piece in the game throughout the season. [*2] Why, exactly, is all this convolution and emotional manipulation of the people she allegedly loves needed, if her goal is a sympathetic one?  Furthermore, the series glosses over, if not outright ignores, the various details which indicate that Irina was not on the level—first and foremost: why go to the C.I.A., i.e. the United States, in the first place, unless she wants something only they can provide?  She’s not American!  Her work as the Man was global!

(Speaking of agendas, I know that it’s taken as gospel by at least part of the fandom that everything Irina did in season two was in order to be able to find Nadia again. Fair enough: even if it’s not quite canon—I don’t think they ever explicitly say this was actually the case—there’s enough actual in-show evidence (a rare thing, in some respects) to make it plausible [*3]. That, said, I’m not sure “trying to find my daughter” justifies much of anything she does—not enough to make her more sympathetic than, say, Sloane.)

I also don’t think Irina’s presence does a whole lot for the series’ larger narrative, as evidenced by the fact that, for all her importance, she doesn’t actually change a whole lot. It feels like she should, but between the SD-6 take-down being way emptier than it should have been, and the fact that neither Sydney nor Jack end the season any different than they started it, she ends up feeling largely inconsequential. [*4] It is also equally hard, if not impossible, to say how the events of the season have changed Irina, given how opaque everything about her is designed to be.  Later, Irina ends up being largely incidental to Nadia’s discovery, and Nadia’s story is arguably better with Irina as the unsolvable dead mystery, in part because it helps differentiate her from the possibly evil possibly repentant figure that already exists in SpySkipper’s life.

And that’s one of my other issues with Irina as a character: while there is in theory a lot to distinguish her from the rest of the cast—her upbringing alone!—the way the show uses her de-emphasizes those differences and emphasizes the similarities to such a degree that she often ends up feeling redundant.  The “whose side is she on” beat, in particular, had arguably already become overused when it came time to play it with her, and by the time SD-6 was done and she explicitly joined Sloane, there were too many similarities between the two to make the dynamic between them compelling, particularly since the show made it verboten for either of them to speak about their motivations.  Furthermore, if one believes that Irina did it all for her family, then what is there to distinguish her from Jack, who’s already ready to torture as many people as necessary for that very thing?  

To be clear, there were ways Irina could have realized her potential to be Alias’ version of Metal Gear Solid’s The Man The Boss or The Americans’ Elizabeth Jennings—or rather, a version of those characters that actually works as well as they do.  That’s certainly what her fans seem to want. Unfortunately, those ways rely on Alias being…not like itself.

I am not the first person to note the similarities between Irina (a.k.a. Laura Bristow) and Elizabeth Jennings (a.k.a. Nadezhda): they’re hard not to notice, given that they’re both KGB spies and assassins embedded in the United States and operating under cover during the Cold War, and forced to select between loyalty to their country and the family they’d made (although it’s worth noting that Elizabeth’s husband, unlike Jack, is in on the scheme and also a KGB spy/assassin) [*5]. The Boss, meanwhile, parallels season 2 Irina: at the beginning of Snake Eater, where she appears, she betrays the C.I.A. without explanation and defects to Russia, and she spends most of the story running rings around everyone, including her protégé Snake (the game’s protagonist, who’s been assigned to kill her and stop her sponsor, a Russian colonel named Volgin) until her actual motives are revealed. She also exists in a universe which combines semi-realistic espionage with frequent batshittery, including psychics, hornets as a weapon of choice, impossibly old snipers with the power of photosynthesis, and a ridiculous amount of reversals and double-crosses.

That said, despite the similarities, there is one chief difference between either work and Alias, which is crucial to making their stories work: neither is naive about the world they’re presenting, both understand, in a way Alias does, that one can’t be a spy and keep one’s hands clean. Being a spy, for the Boss, meant betraying her old friends and everyone she ever loved, allowing herself to become an international pariah, and ultimately dying, because that’s what the mission required.  Elizabeth Jennings killed innocent people, ruined friends’ lives, blackmailed countless people, manipulated her daughter into following her footsteps, and ran herself ragged for years, all because she believed in the cause.  It’s not a great life, being a spy. 

MSG 3 images obtained from Metal Gear Solid 3: The Movie, a re-edit of the game’s cutscenes by KefkaProduction. It can be seen here.

(Sydney, meanwhile, often just has to lie a lot.) [*6]

The thing about this sort of work is that it breaks down one’s ability to claim the moral high ground. Once you’re doing terrible things on the regular, it’s easy to see enemy spies are just other people who are also doing terrible things for their mission—potential comrades who just happen to be on the other side. Snake, The Boss’ protégé in Snake Eater, develops a relationship with Ocelot, a Sark-like soldier working for the Russians.  Elizabeth and Philip Jennings develop a friendship with Stan Beeman, an F.B.I. counter-intelligence agent living right next door, which turns out to be every bit as genuine as it is an effort to cultivate a source. 

Alias, however, spends much of the series unable and unwilling to strip Sydney of her moral high ground, once she obtains it by working for the C.I.A.  What should have been the beginning of her moral journey—after all, how different is SD-6 from the C.I.A., if the people working for the former can’t tell they aren’t working for the latter, and their missions largely work out the same way?—is instead treated as the end. As terrible as U.S. intelligence proves to be, it never actually makes Sydney question her loyalties, or even her feelings about it all. This, in turn, utterly undermines Irina’s potential as a storytelling element.  What good is a temptress if there’s no potential for the person being tempted to change? 

(Similarly, if we’re not allowed to know what Irina Derevko wants—a key element of character-building, as many people will tell you—how are we meant to know how she herself is being changed?)  

Given what we got, it’s no surprise that Irina’s season 4 return is so uninspired, consisting largely of fan service moments, and very little in terms of character progression, or sense that the Sydney’s relationship has moved forward in any way that feels natural—what else was there to do? [*6] It’s inoffensive to the point of being really annoying. 

While Irina’s season 5 appearances are in a way a step backwards, Irina was always more interesting the closer she got to villainy. Her appearance in “Maternal Instinct” is a hoot, and allows her and Sydney to play roles only they could play.  Their final battle, while not really satisfying—in part because it’s the fourth ladyfight in as many finales, and none had come even close to matching the original—feels necessary for Sydney’s story, which had finally begun progressing again after seasons of stalling: there is catharsis to “I am through being disappointed in you” that feels utterly necessary. Could it have been better?  Sure, but then, so could 80% of everything having to do with Irina. 

Footnote footnote revolution!

[*1] I remain convinced that season 2 is actually the worst season, is the one that irrevocably ruined Alias, and that Irina actually had a fair amount to do with that. But that’s a different TED Talk, and I’m willing to fight about it, if anyone wants.

[*2] Well, it depends: the status of Irina’s organization following her “defection” is…unclear. If we accept the idea that the organization is in shambles, as the season suggests, then there’s really no reason why, exactly, the C.I.A. actually needs her cooperation, given that they…uh… didn’t need it in order to actually grievously ruin it in the first place.  And yet, here we are.  

[*3] To a degree, anyway. The Nadia story gets us as far as explaining why Irina would need The Telling, but doesn’t tell us why she’d need The Circumference, even if we ignore its eventual canon purpose.  

[*4] No, their season 3 belief that Irina can be worked with doesn’t count, as it is spun out of whole cloth, and can’t be directly tied into anything that occurred the previous season.  

[*5] The Americans also features an enviable wig game, which should feel very comforting to Alias fans.

[*6] I’m being mostly glib here, but also accurate: while they were a million reasons why Sydney could justifiably consider her double agent status to be  hellish, having to lie to everyone was consistently treated as the absolute worst part of it all.  Fair enough, in a series ultimately about identity, except Alias never really made the attempt to explore that element, either. The closest it got was Julia Thorne, and that was aborted before it could really get anywhere interesting. 

[*7] Although to be fair, that’s partly because, again, the series isn’t really concerned with having Sydney evolve as a person since season 1.

[thedreaminus]

Rebels

ff.net | A03

Summary: When the Union gets problems in its own ranks. A Noblesse AU about the Trio.

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4

Tao was not stupid, he was considered a strategic and logistical genius of the DA-5 and within the Union. Nevertheless, he had not given much thought at first when their new partner could not be found the next day. Tao did not want to imagine how the man felt in the current situation, especially considering his uncontrolled mutation. M-21 had long been a single-fighter and unlike Tao who had always relied on Takeo, he had no person to trust since his last comrade died.

Sometimes when M-21 talked about his deceased comrades, Tao felt something like envy rise within him. Although he wouldn't say he was jealous of a bait, but could he too care about a comrade enough to willingly sacrifice himself for his protection? He had never even thought about it before. Somehow, it had always obvious to take care of himself only. Even his contact with Takeo had never been very tight ...

Tao shook his head and the confused thoughts in it. At the moment there was a more urgent problem to solve than his own life philosophy. M-21 was missing, for almost two days. Tao could have disguised if it was just a few hours, but two days were much too many. Now Krantz had noticed it which was bad … to put it mildly.

The good thing was that Krantz had only found out at noon today, and he saw M-21 as Tao's property and as such his problem alone. But his absence was sure to delay their assigned work, so it was important to locate the gray-haired man as quickly as possible. Takeo had climbed up to the observation point to keep an eye out. Tao, on the other hand, tried to track the chip of M-21 for the 7th time.

It might have been useful before that the chip was old and malfunctioned, but now its inability to capture M-21’s coordinates was an issue.

"Come on," the Hacker murmured, watching the laptop count. Maybe he should make a new chip? Or at least something that works and only he could locate it, not the Union? Before he could follow the thought, the laptop beeped and Tao nearly jumped in excitement. He had received a signal!

"Takeo I got him" he contacted the Sniper over a secure connection. At the same time, he scanned the chip for his GPS signal.

"Where is he?" Takeo said slightly distorted from the small channel "Tao?"

"He's ... here," Tao responded slowly and with more irritation in his voice than he wanted. "The signal came from the base" Confused, he stared at the displayed coordination.

Takeo paused for a moment, then said something which made Tao's blood freeze in his veins "I have not seen Shark and Hammer for quite some time"

The chair fell clattering to the ground as Tao jumped up, this time really. "I'll give you the coordinates" he said narrowly into the transmitter and left the room as fast as he could.

"Tao don't be silly, wait until I'm there!" Takeo reminded him and Tao could hear a door slam.

"No time," replied the Hacker as he switched off the transmitter and jumped down the stairs. Shark's interference would easily explain M-21’s disappearance. Shark hated M-21, just out of the fact that he was a bait, and it went against his conviction to see Krantz or Tao make such a big effort on someone like him, and he was deeply sadistic. If he really was the reason for M-21's disappearance, then it might be too late already.

Tao reached the basement and ripped open the door. The first thing he saw was a lot of blood and a curled figure lying near the wall. Then he saw Shark and Hammer. The second one was sitting in a chair stuffing some food as per usual, and Shark was standing next to him. Both seemed surprised by Tao's sudden appearance.

"Oh, you're looking for your toy?"

Tao did not respond to Shark's hateful tone. He forced his face to a well practiced, blank expression.

"Is he alive?"

"Don't know?" Shark shrugged, "When I last checked, he was still"

"Tell me one good reason why should I not call Krantz right now," growled Tao "so that he can tear your ass."

Shark giggled. It was that disgusting sound that Tao knew well from whenever Shark was highly amused "Krantz will not do anything" He leered "it's your toy, is it not?"

"Actually" came a cool voice "You are wrong Shark" It was Takeo who had spoken. Tao held a relieved sigh when he saw the Sniper. Shark had seemed willing to risk a trial of strength, and Hammer too looked seriously offended that someone was interrupting his fun.

Takeo raised his stinging look at Shark. The two men stared at each other. "Sure, M-21 is Tao's toy, but incase you have forgotten, Tao needed him to finish our assignment on time." His scathing look wandered over Hammer and then at M-21 "Like that, the bait can not be used in the near future, which in turn means that the order will be delayed. Think about the rest yourself."

Shark's smile froze. Hammer came to his help, "The bait had sneaked off the base this morning without permission. A small beating is not so wrong, is it?"

"A small beating," Tao now replied icily, "Look.at.it. Its useless for now!" So the two did not know the M-21 had left the base much earlier than this morning?

The ardent grin of Hammer's face had disappeared by this time, and Shark looked as if he were going to explode. "Take your toy then!" he walked over to M-21 and kicked him.

"Enough Shark, stop!"

"I just want to wake it up," Shark mocked and raised a fist "Wake-e-e-e-e-e-e--e-e" Tao's electric shock had hit him before, he could hit his target, and Shark jumped four feet up before landing back on his feet "What the hell?!" He screeched furiously at Tao, tearing the black cables from his arm.

Tao was not sure himself. But he knew that he was incredibly angry at the moment and wasn’t willing to bother wasting thoughts about Shark actually being stronger than himself or the potential consequences of this rift.

"I am done with you, and your interferences in my work." Tao took a threatening step towards Shark "I need the bait for the mission because you two idiots can do nothing else than eat whole day and knock silly jokes. If you were atleast able to take over his work I would not have cared, but even for that you" he waged a finger directly at Shark "are too stupid." Shark's mouth was hanging open now "Move your ugly ass off already Shark before I do something I might regret." A heavy hand on his shoulder stopped his tirade before things could escalate anymore.

"I think Tao has been clear," said the Sniper calmly, pulling Tao back. "You should go to Krantz and explain him the reason of delay before we lose more time."

Hammer rose and stomped to the door. His face was as furious as Shark. Tao and Takeo cleared the way for them, and the hacker walked up to the curved figure, even though he would have preferred to run. M-21 had not stirred since his arrival and Tao hoped that the man was just unconscious

"You know" he heard Shark speak behind him "The bait was only half as interesting as all the innocent people I could only kill because of you, Takeo"

"What are you talking about?" Takeo's voice sounded incomprehensible.

Tao felt an icy knot in his stomach. Not that, not now.

"You've already understood." Shark laughed shrilly but not for long. Takeo's fist landed directly on his face and sent him flying to the opposite wall. Tao braked his comrade with one of his cables before he could go even further on Shark.

Shark wiped his face, and giggled madly. "You did not really believe the Union would allow a civilian to recognize us again, right? You're so incredibly naive and so gentle when I think about your sister ..." Shark did not manage to finish the sentence. Tao gave him a second shock, stronger than the first. Shark screamed, this time from pain. This was going in a very bad direction.

"I said enough," Tao spat. "I have no time for that. Move your ass out of here!” He could feel Takeo fighting his cables wildly and pulled them tighter. Shark had murder written on his face and seemed ready to launch on them any second. Tao wondered if there was going to be death match between them right there ... Then, fortunately, Hammer decided to follow Tao’s lead and literally dragged Shark out of the room. Tao could hear Shark growling curses all the way as they climbed stairs.

Only when there was complete silence, did he loosen the grip of his cables on Takeo. The Sniper snapped and turned.

"Why did you stop me?" He hissed at Tao, his fists trembled with rage.

"You know why" Tao replied, hating that his voice trembled. Because they were not allowed to leak up. Because they had to help M-21. The other man shook his head and took a few steps back. Then, faster than Tao could see, he had disappeared slamming the door behind him. Tao was alone with M-21.

"Shit," Tao whispered and rubbed his hand over his forehead. "Shit, shit ..." he repeated again and again, trying to calm his fluttering nerves. That was just too much at once, and he needed Takeo right now by his side. He had known about Takeo's small rescue missions, and had even talked about civilians with him every now and then. But that Shark killed them all ... was only logical in hindsight, from the Union point of view. Tao scolded himself, he should have thought about it before.

He had also just ruined all those years of rapport with Shark and Hammar by humiliating them in front of Takeo, and for a bait at that. He had needed the upcoming days to be peaceful for the Elder given mission, but with the tension within DA-5 now, things were looking bleak …

Tao shook his head. Now was not the time for self-reproaches. M-21 needed help. He knelt down beside the battered figure without caring about the blood that soaked his clothes. Carefully he touched the gray-haired man at the shoulder.

"M-21?"

No reaction. Tao shook him carefully. M-21 body twitched faintly and he gasped. Tao felt a touch of relief. "M-21 what ... ARGH"

Tao could not speak any further. M-21 had pushed him to the ground. His hand was clenched around Tao's neck, choking him. The man gave a strange sound, and Tao realized with fright the M-21's iris was almost white and the pupils were incredibly thin.

"M-21!" Tao gasped and clutched his wrist. Had he transformed his hands? M-21 handle was surprisingly strong, but not too strong for Tao if he want to break it. He did not know what M-21 was doing, but the man did not seem to recognize him.

"M-21" Tao tried to persuade the other "come back to your senses!" Should he attack him? The decision was taken away as Tao felt a cool air dive, and before he could understand, M-21 eyes had rolled back and he tilted to his side. Before Tao and behind M-21 stood Takeo. He had knocked out M-21.

"I'm sorry" muttered the Sniper.

"Me too" The Hacker straightened up and rubbed his neck. With a queasy feeling, he watched as M-21 claws pulled back until nothing could be seen.

~.~.~

They had brought M-21 into the room with the server equipment and put him on Takeo's camp bed. His injuries were manifold and all of them bore Shark's mark, with some exceptions that were probably from Hammer. The arms and legs did not seem broken, but M-21 had a few big bruises that worried Tao as they seemed to be a sign of internal bleeding. Neither of them had enough medical knowledge to adequately provide for such an injury.

They could badly cut open M-21. Their only choice was to clean the external wounds, wrap up his chest for the broken ribs and put a breathing mask on him to supply more oxygen and hope that his regeneration abilities were strong enough.

They did not speak a word, and the silence was hard between them. In the end, Takeo grabbed a couple of straps and they both tied M-21 more or less to the bed. Tao felt bad about it, but if M-21 would want it, he could tear the straps with some effort. It was just a precaution to see if he was fully conscious.

Then Tao got coffee for the two of them, an absolutely horrible mixture, but their only alternative to water. They sat down so that they had M-21 in view and drank the coffee.

"It's not your fault," Tao began cautiously after a while. However, his own voice did not sound very convincing. In his mind, he was plagued with guilt at the thought of the uninvolved people he had already killed.

Takeo ran his hand tiredly over his face. "Are you sure? My actions gave Shark a reason to kill them. I brought these people to death by my thoughtlessness"

"You tried to save them" Tao played unhappily with his cup "The Union does not spare any witnesses. Maybe not right then and maybe not even through the DA-5, but Union would certainly have killed them one way or the other. You just tried to give them a chance to survive."

The Sniper looked at him hesitantly, then averted his gaze"...Do you think Shark found them all?"

Something in Tao heart moved hearing his desperate query. Was this the care for comrades that M-21 always talked about? He shrugged helplessly "If you want, I'll search the database later if we have more access, but I would not insist that there are survivors"

"Yeah, not with Shark. Ugh, somehow accustomed to waking up like this" a third, weak and rough sounding voice spoke. Tao and Takeo started and looked at M-21 simultaneously. The man had woken up and Tao sagged with relief. Though M-21 eyes were barely open, Tao could see that his pupils were back to normal and the iris had regained the familiar stormy gray.

"What's going on?" M-21 frowned, as he tugged at his shackles without breaking them. Takeo came forward to unleash him as Tao observed his state. The second the bindings were removed, M-21 shot up straight on his bed, and Tao was sure that he would regret it immediately. He crashed on M-21 side to support him as the man twisted in pain. Instead of being thankful, M-21 growled at him

"Stay away!"

Ok, that was enough. Enough stress for one day. Tao did not even try to soothe M-21. He ignored the snarling and sat with his back against the bed headboard, folded his arms behind his head and sighed deeply. M-21's growl lowered and the man looked uncertainly over his shoulder. Next, Takeo made himself comfortable on the bed and stretched out his legs casually. They had simply strangled M-21 protests.

M-21 pulled the breathing mask from his face and stared at his hands. Tao and Takeo let him take his time.

"Is Shark still alive?"

"Yes" Takeo answered.

M-21 grunted and gave a series of very interesting abuse words dealing with Shark's appearance, intelligence and possible origins. Then the man turned his head to look at Tao and narrowed his eyes.

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"I attacked you"

"You can remember?"

M-21's face reflected uncertainty. "I'm not sure ... then I did attack you?"

Tao nodded "I'm fine. Mot missing any body parts, see?" he added quickly.

M-21 acknowledged this with a bitter laugh "Not yet" He let himself sink back again, hissing with pain.

Tao turned around so that he could support himself with his arms on the metal frame of the bed. There was no point in saying that everything would go well. That would be a lie and they knew it. Takeo brought M-21 a water bottle and helped him take a few sips. Tao played around the oxygen supply, he wanted to contribute small amounts of a light sleep gas, which worked well with modified humans.

"Where were you?" Tao asked the question, which had caused them all the trouble.

"At the ruins where those Noblesse brats had been" the man replied softly, "I have spoken to one of them and given them information. If everything goes well, the Union will soon get the kickoff we need."

"Woah," Tao inadvertently slipped out, though his first reaction was something more in the direction: Are you tired of life?

"Listen M-21"

Takeo screwed the bottle "Regardless of what you did. The next time you move your ass out of the base without telling us so we can support you, I'll kick you myself that you’ll not be able sit for the next three weeks."

"Why do I have the stupid feeling that my own preach just falls back on me?" The gray-haired man sneered, but did not sound quite as sharp as usual. Tao and Takeo watched his eyes flicker again and his whole body relax, and without resistance M-21 let Tao take over the breathing mask. Tao screwed back the gas supply. Hopefully it would suffice to keep M-21 asleep.

"Do you think he understood?" Takeo asked him skeptically.

"I think so" Tao stood up and covered M-21 "But we can remind him again when he wakes up"

The fact that they were talking about M-21's health rather than fretting over the risk involved in the serious and apparently careless treason he had committed, told them how deep they all were in this, and how okay with it they were. Either union was getting screwed by them soon, or they were. Either way, Tao didn't seem to mind much.

~.~.~

Later in the night, they were welding a few processors together - Tao thought all the available processors were useless - when the alarm turned on in one of the already standing systems. Tao left everything lying around and switched on his laptop to see what was going on. What he saw made him take an alarmed deep breath, then obsessively pick on his laptop.

Takeo found Tao with his nose in the screen, giggling to himself.

"…Tao?"

"Yes?" Tao leaned back with a wild swing.

"Everything ok?"

"The headquarters of the 12th Elders just blew up."

"What!?" Takeo blinked and turned his head to look at the sleeping M-21

"You don’t think he …"

"I have to mirror the data on the server of course, can't have it lost can we?" Tao could not resist a wide grin "I guess we are on the offensive now"

I remember being promised that it would not take long … well I have lied    LOL    No really I sorry (a little bit). Blame the write blockade! Yet I've managed^^ This chapter marking the start of the secret operation of the trios and it forcus on Tao’s shift of heart. I won’t promise when I will manage to update the story, but I will continue.

PS: And a big THANK YOU to my helper!