#(I threw in a little bit more exposition than usual to make sure things Make Sense

[thelastspeecher]

Stanuary '23 - Week 2: Connection

Last Stanuary, I hadn't created the particular AU this prompt takes place in yet. But it's quickly become one of my favorites, so naturally I had to use it! What is it? Why, it's my Accidental Abduction AU, where Stan gets accidentally abducted by aliens shortly after getting kicked out and just sorta decides to stay on the alien planet.

For this prompt, I wasn't just inspired by the main "Connection" one, but also by the sub-prompts of "Father Figure" and "Twins".

———————————————————————————————————–

              Stan slammed down his hand.

              “Read ‘em and weep,” he crowed proudly.  The father of the alien family Stan was staying with, whom Stan had nicknamed Merle, looked at the cards Stan had laid on the table.

              “What is this one, again?” he asked.

              “A full house.”

              “Full house…” Merle mumbled to himself as he checked the notes Stan had given him.  After discovering that he had a deck of cards in the Stanleymobile, Stan insisted on teaching the alien family how to play card games with him.  The alien children were busy with school, so right now he was teaching the alien parents.  It was slow going; card games apparently weren’t a thing in their culture.  Luckily, the alien parents worked from home, so they had time to sink into learning poker.

              But after getting the game ruined multiple times because Merle or his wife had to ask Stan what their hand was, Stan wrote up some notes for them to follow during the game.  Merle had been exceedingly proud of it, commenting that Stan was learning how to write in their language much quicker than most.

              “Hmm.  Yes, I concede,” Merle said, setting his cards down.  Stan grinned.  “I cannot help but wonder how much of these games you have been making up as we go.  You win every single time!”  Though Stan was picking up the alien language in its written form, he was struggling to understand it when spoken, so he had to use his translator.  The translator worked well, but made the aliens sound formal to the point of robotic.

              “Nah, that’s how it was back on Earth, too,” Stan said breezily.  Merle chuckled.  His wife, whom Stan had given the Earth nickname Sally, walked into the living room.  She kissed Merle on the cheek and ruffled Stan’s hair.

              “How is your Earth game coming along?” she asked.

              “Stan beat me again,” Merle replied.  Sally laughed.  “We should see if your mother wants to play with him.”

              “Oh!  That is an excellent idea,” Sally said.  She frowned.  “I do not know why I did not think of it myself.”  Sally gently tapped Stan’s back.  “Up, Stan.  It is time to make midday meal.”

              “I’m getting up, I’m getting up,” Stan grumbled.  He got up from his chair, as did Merle.  Merle smiled at him.  When Stan was first abducted, he’d been terrified by the aliens’ needle-like and very large teeth.  Now, however, the sight was normal.  “What are we making today, Merle?”

              “An exotic delicacy with ingredients that are difficult to find and very expensive,” Merle replied.  Stan winced.

              “Uh, do you really want me to help cook, then?” he asked.  “I’m pretty new to this.”  Something that had surprised Stan about the alien culture was that males typically prepared meals.  The culture as a whole didn’t seem to have very firm gender roles, which made this lingering one particularly odd to Stan.  But as a male, Stan was expected to pitch in with cooking.

              “You will want to participate,” Merle said firmly.  Stan followed him to the kitchen.  “The recipe is on the top shelf,” Merle said, rummaging through cabinets for cookware.

              “Great,” Stan muttered.  He grabbed his stepstool.  Even the shortest of the aliens, like the ones he’d named Lute and Angie, were at least a foot taller than Stan.  He’d been given a stepstool after accidentally injuring himself early on trying to get something out of his reach.  Stan set the stepstool down and climbed onto it.  The recipes were stored in what looked like very thick floppy disks.  On the top shelf, there was only one recipe.  Stan grabbed the disk and climbed back down.  Merle emerged from the cabinets with a skillet and large baking dish.  “So, what are we making?” Stan asked again.  Merle smiled.

              “Why do you not tell me?” he said cheekily.  Stan looked down at the recipe disk.  He placed it on the counter and pressed a button on the side.  Promptly, a hologram flickered to life above the disk.  Stan squinted at the writing.

              “I think I recognize the word parthok.”  Parthok were the fluffy sheep-like creatures that the alien family had been tending to when they were in Earth’s solar system and accidentally abducted Stan.  It had been explained to Stan that parthok migrated but would get lost on their way home if they didn’t have help.

              “Yes, parthok is part of the recipe.”

              “And…”  Stan squinted further.  “Does that say ‘covered stew’?”

              “Correct!”  Merle frowned at Stan.  “Why have you made your eyes smaller?”

              “Sometimes this hologram stuff is tough to read.”

              “Hmm.  Perhaps we should take you to the physician,” Merle said.  “Poor eyesight is, as I understand it, common in humans.”

              “Pfft, like there’s anyone on this planet who can be a human doctor,” Stan scoffed.  Merle smiled.  “…Is there?”

              “Darling!” Merle called.  Sally poked her head in the kitchen.  “Please call the physician your mother recommended.  Stan should get his eyes examined.”

              “Honestly, he should have a full examination,” Sally said.  “We should have called the physician the moment we arrived, rather than blindly trusting Stan to tell us if he was injured or ill.”

              “I’ve told you the truth!” Stan protested.  “…Mostly.”  Merle chortled and thumped Stan on the back.

              “Of course you have kept some from us!  You act like the juvenile you are, Stan.”

              “The physician will also be able to give us some more guidance in human care,” Sally said.  “My mother has been very helpful, but after so long, she has forgotten much.”  Sally’s gaze landed on the recipe on the counter.  Her eyes widened.  “Are you making my mother’s parthok covered stew recipe?” she asked.

              “Yes.  I felt that it might drag Stan out of his somber mood somewhat.  He has been so glum lately, with the children at the educational facility and the weather so poor.”

              “He’s also right here,” Stan muttered, crossing his arms.  “What makes this parthok covered stew so good, anyways?”  Sally and Merle exchanged a look.

              “Well, the first thing would be that it has a different name,” Sally said.  Stan frowned, confused.  “My mother translated it as best she could, but the original name is…”  Sally furrowed her brow in concentration.  “Shepherd’s pie.”  Stan’s eyes widened.

              “That’s- that’s an Earth recipe,” he said.  Sally nodded.  “Why does your mom have an Earth recipe?”

              “Because Earth is her home planet,” Sally said softly.  Stan’s jaw dropped.  “I am…half-human.”

              “No way,” Stan breathed.  “That one guy said that people on this planet haven’t accidentally abducted humans before me, though!”

              “My mother was a purposeful abduction.  She was collected from Earth to be sold.  Much like those scoundrels who attempted to take you at the market.”

              “Holy shit,” Stan whispered.

              “By the time my mother was rescued, she opted to stay on this planet.  She had been entrenched in our culture so long that she felt she would do poorly on Earth.  Not to mention, she greatly appreciated that the female inhabitants of this planet had more freedoms than the females of Earth.”

              “Yeah, that checks out,” Stan muttered, thinking about the arguments his father had with his mother.  He cleared his throat.  “Now it makes sense why you keep talking about your mom when something human comes up.”  He could still remember the aliens panicking when he caught an illness normally mild in their species.  When his symptoms took a turn for the worse, Angie and Lute mentioned that their mother was calling their grandmother practically every hour for advice.

              Back then, I thought it was just ‘cause grandmas know what to do when someone gets sick.  But Sally’s mom must’ve gotten that illness and had it hit her hard, too.

              “Yes, well…”  Sally shook a finger at Stan playfully.  “Do not try to distract me from setting up an appointment with the physician any longer.  I know how juveniles will do all they can to avoid seeing the physician.”  She disappeared back into the living room.  Stan looked at Merle.

              “There’s really a doctor on this planet that knows how to take care of humans?” he asked.  Merle nodded.

              “There are very few humans on this planet, but on some planets, they are far more common.  The physician we will take you to has had training on other planets.  He even has experience tending to hybrids.”

              “Huh.  I guess that’s kinda cool?” Stan said after a moment.

              “Before our children were born, Sally and I got into contact with this physician,” Merle said.  He opened the cooler-like box that perishable goods were stored in.  As Merle handed Stan various ingredients, Stan set them on the counter.  “After all, our children would be hybrids, and we wanted to be prepared for any problems caused by that.”  Merle closed the cooler’s lid.  Stan set down the last ingredient he’d been handed, a package of parthok meat.

              “Your kids are hybrids?”

              “Yes.  They are a quarter-human.”

              “Oh.  Right.”

              “Luckily, the children had no problems caused by their hybrid nature.”  Merle grabbed a knife from a drawer and rapped the counter twice.  The counter hardened to become like a cutting board.  “Please rinse the vegetables.”

              “Yep.”  Stan brought the vegetables over to the sink and began to wash them off.

              “In fact, strangers do not typically notice the children are hybrids,” Merle continued.  “With the exception of Angie and Lute, of course.  Their human heritage shows in their stature.”  Merle chuckled softly.  “I feel confident saying that the only individuals on this planet shorter than them are more human than they are.”

              “Sally’s pretty tall.”

              “She gets that from her father,” Merle replied.  Stan brought the vegetables back to Merle.  Merle had set aside a knife for him to use as well.  Stan grabbed a rom, his favorite vegetable on the alien planet.  It looked like a bright red potato but tasted like caramelized onions.  He began to peel it.

              “Kinda stinks Angie and Lute didn’t get any of that height.”

              “I think my genetics are to blame in that regard,” Merle said.  He was an eighth child, and the shortest of them all.  Stan met Merle’s very tall family at a holiday gathering a few weeks ago, where he had been the center of attention.  Every one of Merle’s relatives had been fascinated by the human in their midst.  “I was just glad that all the children had twins.”

              “Why?” Stan asked.  He set aside the rom peel and pressed the counter.  A hole opened up underneath the rom peel, allowing it to fall into the trash.  Stan started dicing the rom.

              “You have not been told, have you?” Merle said.  Stan looked at him.

              “Told what?”

              “My species never has one offspring at a time.  It is always at least two.  Sometimes it is more than two, but never less.”  Merle sighed.  He brushed aside the scraps from his own vegetable.  “Poor Sally.  Because her mother was human, she was not guaranteed a twin.  And she did not get one.  Her other siblings did.  But not her.”

              “…Oh.”

              “We were so worried our children would suffer the same fate.  Sally was distraught at the idea.  To grow up the only one on the entire planet without a twin?  It was…traumatizing to her.  Much of our culture is based around the fact we are with someone from the moment we are born.  She was shut out of so many things.  But thankfully, our children never had to experience such a horror.”  Merle looked at Stan.  “Though now it seems those fears about taking care of someone without a twin have come to pass.”

              “I mean…” Stan mumbled.  He looked down at the partially chopped rom.  “I’ve got a twin.  On Earth.”

              “Really?!” Merle gasped.  Stan nodded.  “You seem fine separated from them, but that makes no sense.”

              “It’s- it’s complicated.  I don’t wanna get into it.”

              “Twins have a sacred bond.”

              “Yeah, well, my twin sorta screwed up that bond,” Stan snapped.  “After what he did, I might as well not have a twin.  Hell, as far as I’m concerned, I don’t.”  A silence fell.  Just as it was stretching long enough to feel awkward, Merle spoke.

              “This family is truly the best place for you.”

              “‘Cause you guys know about humans,” Stan muttered.  He finished dicing the rom.

              “Yes, but it is more than that,” Merle said slowly.  Stan looked at him.  “We are not the most, how should I phrase it?  Average family.  Angie and Lute are short.  My son you have yet to meet, he is the first of our species to ever live on Earth full-time.  My other children similarly defy what is typical.  Even my wife does so, as she has no twin.”  Merle smiled at Stan.  “And neither do you.”  Merle handed Stan another vegetable to chop.  Stan placed it on the counter.  He blinked in surprise when he got a closer look at it.

              “Where’d you find carrots?” he asked.

              “I told you that this recipe has strange ingredients.”

              “Carrots aren’t strange.”

              “On Earth, no.”  Merle tweaked Stan’s nose.  “But remember, Stanley, you are not on Earth anymore.”

[bvidzsoo]

No one like you

 Author: bvidzsoo

 Warnings: light swearing, overload of fluff for the light hearted

 Pairing: Kim Mingyu x female reader

 Word count: 15, 074 

 Summary:  On a very important day you get a call from your sister asking you to babysit her daughter. She knows how important the project is for you and wouldn’t have bothered to ask you if it really wasn’t urgent. And you know that, so you reassure her that you’ll babysit Jieun. However, you get a little surprise when Kim Mingyu, your brother-in-law’s best friend, shows up unannounced, did I mention he’s also your ex? 

 A/N: Holy moly what a ride this one shot was writing! I had no idea I had the capacity to write something as fluffy as this bUT! THIS IS KIM MINGYU! and I love Kim Mingyu too much, so this is me channeling my inner love haha. Hope you enjoy it and I would love to read your feedback!

       The studio has been buzzing with people the whole week. The new exposition was going well and I was proud that my works gained so much attention in so little time. I have been painting ever since middle school, a small and innocent passion became the job that allows me to put bread on my table every day. I never imagined that one day I would become a well-known painter, it just seemed surreal. But it happened, in my sophomore year, I painted a little piece for a contest and I won, gaining a lot of attention. Ever since then things changed, but they really only changed after I finished high school. I didn’t go to college, like many of my peers, I downed myself into the world of art and went around Europe, researching and learning as much as I could about the painters. Somewhere along the way, in Switzerland to be exact; I was actually taking a break; is where I met my manager. Hansol Vernon Chwe. He had a fine eye for art, very sophisticated taste and unique views. Through him, I met Xu Minghao, my second-in-hand. Minghao was mesmerizing, his mere presence could capture your whole attention. Everything about him was delicate, his taste was even finer than mine and he was ruthless. He knew what he wanted, always, and wasn’t afraid to demand it. Only wanting the best, always striving to be the best. I’m a perfectionist, I rarely let loose and I’m obsessed with order. Minghao and I clicked instantly, it was love at first sight, in a very platonic way. Ever since Vernon introduced me to him, we’ve been working together. Minghao is a painter as well, his style rigid and very colorful, meanwhile mine is warm and homey. We run the studio together, he’s a few years older. It was his idea to work together, to build the studio together, to give it life together. It was his project of a life time, his very own dream, and when he shared it with me, asked me to join him, I knew I couldn’t refuse him. It was great exposure to the both of us and it wasn’t a big surprise of how well it worked.

I was busy talking to a client when my phone started ringing, cutting my words off. Vernon threw me a displeased look, they were clients from France and they wanted a contract with me, some of my paintings would be exposed in their art gallery if I went through with the deal today, but when my phone rang for the second time, I knew I had to excuse myself. I wouldn’t have to, if it wasn’t my sister calling. She had a different ringtone, on purpose, and she knew I was busy today, so, she wouldn’t have called unless it was something very important.

“I’m so sorry for bothering you!” Were her first words as I picked up, eliciting a chuckle from me.

“Yeah, I’m talking to some very important people, right now, Joohyun. What’s wrong?”

“Wonwoo and I got stuck.” Her sigh was loud and I listened closely, eyebrows furrowing.

“Where?”

“On the highway, we are still three hours away, traffic is insane, again…”

“Okay, what can I do?” I asked, already knowing it involved Jieun, my 4-year-old niece.

“Jieun’s nanny has to leave in an hour, something came up for her…can you go over? Look after her until Wonwoo and I get back?” I bit my lower lip, thinking hard. Can I leave the studio in an hour? The event goes on the whole day and I am supposed to stay. But if Jieun needs me, our parents live on the other side of the country they won’t be able to come in such a short time, I had no choice but to make it work.

“Yeah, sure, don’t worry. I’ll go babysit her.” I reassured Joohyun and she sighed out relieved.

“Thank you, Y/N, you are a life saver!” Came Wonwoo’s deep voice through the speakers, no doubt my sister was using the car’s Bluetooth to speak on the phone.

“Sure thing, Won, see you later. Drive safely, brother-in-law!” After my sister and her husband bid me their goodbye’s I hung up the phone and went to find Minghao and Vernon. Vernon just finished talking to the French clients and as I neared him, he shook his head.

“What could have been more important than this deal?”

“My sister.” I deadpanned and Vernon sighed as he nodded his head.

“Well, I made the deal. So, if you want to back out, we can’t anymore. The paintings we talked about will be shipped off to Lyon next week.”

“That’s alright with me. For how long is the contract?” I let my eyes run over the people inside the studio, eyes falling on Minghao. He was standing next to one of his painting’s, a glass of red wine in his hand as he spoke to three blonde females. They were giving him suggestive smiles but Minghao paid little to no attention to them as gazed at his painting proudly.

“Contract is for two years, Y/N.” Vernon answered me and I nodded with my lips pursed, waving Minghao over once we made eye contact. He excused himself and jogged over, a bright smile on his lips.

“Everything good?” He asked with his honey voice and Vernon nodded.

“So, uhm…” I cleared my throat and looked at them apologetically, “I have to leave in an hour.”

“Oh?” Minghao asked surprised, looking at Vernon to see if he knew about this already, but he didn’t.

“Joohyun called and asked me to babysit Jieun, her babysitter has to leave in an hour.” I explained to the guys and Vernon’s eyebrows furrowed.

“Is there no one else that could go?”

“No, I’m sorry, I really want to stay, but I just—can’t.” I sighed and Vernon nodded in understanding.

Minghao’s eyes lit up in sudden realization as he pointed his glass of wine at me, “Mingyu.”

“Uh…what about Mingyu?” I asked confused, looking at Minghao with furrowed eyebrows.

“Call him and tell him to babysit Jieun instead of you.” He proposed his idea and I took a second to think.

“I’m sure Joohyun and Wonwoo thought of Mingyu first.” Minghao went to cut me off but I raised one finger at him, “Joohyun knows it’s important what we are doing today, she really wouldn’t have called if Mingyu was available, okay?”

“Sure.” Minghao muttered with a sigh and Vernon patted my shoulder reassuringly.

“Don’t worry, we’ll take care of everything. Minghao will entertain the guests, no doubt.” A teasing grin came onto Vernon’s lips as he took the glass of wine from Minghao.

“Why can’t you do it, huh?” Minghao snapped back, glaring at Vernon when he took a sip from his glass.

“And this is why I didn’t want to leave…” I muttered with a shake of my head, making Vernon chuckle as Minghao shot me a glare.

“We are very competent of running things on our own, Y/N, thank you very much.” I gave Minghao a look before he returned it, challenging me. Sometimes our personalities would clash together, one more stubborn than the other.

“Chill, guys,” Vernon raised a hand in the air to get our attention, our mediator in tense moments, “Y/N, you should greet Mr. Yoon’s grandmother before you leave, she’s been looking for you.”

“Of course!” My face lit up at the mention of Grandma Yoon, the old lady having been a very loyal customer of mine. I met her through the contest back in high school and ever since we’ve kept in touch. She used to think Yoon Jeonghan, her charming nephew, and I would become a thing. She was really convinced she could make us date, but Jeonghan and I were too different. And to be fairly honest, I’m not someone very interested in relationships. I’m fine on my own, I don’t mind not having a partner. It was long since someone held me in their arms and kissed my forehead softly, but my art required a lot of attention and time that I wasn’t willing to sacrifice for someone else. I’ve been on a few dates since high school, but they never worked out. I blamed them on my atrociously high expectations but those weren’t the reasons for my failed love life. It was a person that I never truly got over, he ruined me in the best way possible, and now I just can’t find anyone that could live up to his level. No one. And it was frustrating until I realized I didn’t actual need someone to feel completed and happy. Excusing myself from Minghao and Vernon, I went around the studio with a smile on my face, searching for Grandma Yoon and Jeonghan.

       The car ride to my sister’s house took a lot longer than usual, traffic at noon was horrible in the city. I was at least fifteen minutes late by the time I pulled in their driveway, quickly getting out of the car, big bag full of supplies almost falling from my hand. I locked my car and rushed to the front door, ringing the bell. It took three seconds and the door was thrown open, a relieved look on the nanny’s face.

“I’m sorry, traffic was really bad today.” I shot an apologetic smile to the nanny and she opened the door wider, to let me step inside.

“I understand, thank you so much for coming!” She bowed her head as she pulled on her coat, stepping outside the door, “It’s really urgent.”

“Hurry, then…” I motioned for her to leave with my head and she bowed a bit before rushing away, leaving me shaking my head. I closed the door and threw my heels off, music coming from the living room. I smiled to myself when a girly voice echoed to the hallway, singing along to the lyrics. I left my green, thin, coat hanging on the hanger and gripping my heavy bag with both hands, I headed towards the living room. My sister’s house was big and beautiful. Her and Wonwoo have a simple yet sophisticated taste. Their house looked a thousand times better than my apartment. As clean as I am, my apartment could be a mess from time to time. Especially my art room, where I paint, that one was always a mess. But for me that mess was order, I always knew where everything was and found whatever I was looking for within seconds. As I walked down the hallway to the living room, I gazed at the pictures in white frames that were hung up on the white walls. The pictures were of Wonwoo, Joohyun and Jieun, mostly. There were a few family portraits from both parties, Wonwoo and Joohyun, and there were even some of me and Mingyu. Actually, the one who took almost every picture was Mingyu. He has had a passion for photography since high school and continued to do it as a side job, even currently. He was borderline an artsy, borderline a jock kind of guy throughout high school, maybe that’s why he attracted all kinds of girls. Myself included.

“What a nice voice you have, Jieun!” I exclaimed as I let my bag fall to the floor once I made it into the living room’s doorway.

Jieun’s head turned away and a big gummy smile, nose scrunched up, spread on her soft face, “Auntie Y/N! You came!”

“Of course, I came, auntie wouldn’t miss any chance of spending time with her favorite girl in this whole world!” Jieun started giggling loudly as I spoke in a funny way, jumping my way towards her.

“I’m really your favorite girl?” She asked with another giggle as I reached her and scooped her up in my arms. Her weight wasn’t something I couldn’t handle; she was only four after all.

“Well…it might be Joohyun, but—”

“Auntie, bad auntie!” Jieun whined with a pout and I grinned at her, kissing her cheek.

“Bad auntie, I know.” I muttered and she pressed a soft kiss to my cheek, so I placed her down, “What were you doing with your nanny?”

“We studied a little bit of numbers, then I wanted to watch cartoons and she promised to make some French fries for me but—she’s gone now.” Jieun’s lips formed a pout and she oddly resembled a little bunny, cheeks puffing up. I laughed and crouched down in front of her.

“So, here’s my plan…” I motioned for her to lean as if I was sharing a secret with her, “Auntie brought some of her painting stuff over…so, after we paint a bit, I will make French fries for you. Cool?”

“Cool!” Jieun exclaimed loudly, clapping her hands together. I winked at her and went to grab my bag from the doorway, dragging it to the coffee table. I glanced at her as I opened the bag, her big eyes shone with excitement; she loved drawing and painting; and her nose scrunched up in the most adorable way as she smiled. She was an oddly mix of both Joohyun and Wonwoo. Sometimes, the two would start bickering about who she looked more like…in those time, of course Mingyu and I would have to interfere, and of course Mingyu would be on Wonwoo’s side meanwhile I was on Joohyun’s, just to balance out everything. But when Jieun smiled, she was the exact replica of Wonwoo, nose scrunching in the same way and eyes disappearing almost. When she was serious or pouting, she looked like Joohyun with her big eyes and delicate lips. Her beautiful dark hair reached her shoulders and she’d always brush her bangs out of her eyes, especially when she was frustrated with something. And oh my God, she was one of the most stubborn kids I’ve ever met. She knew how to manipulate people, even at the age of four, and most of the time got what she wanted. She inherited Joohyun and Wonwoo’s calm natures, never being a hyper child, nor too loud. She could be a little angel but she had her moments when she was hard to deal with.

“So…” I looked at Jieun as she kept smiling at me, “Do you have anything in mind that you’d like to paint?”

She sat on her knees close to the coffee table as she stared down at the smaller white canvas I placed on the table for her. All kinds of brushes and colors lay on the table, Jieun’s eyes running over them eagerly.

“Nothing special, maybe some trees…a blue sky…green grass…something nice.” She mused, more to herself, and I chuckled quietly as I shook my head. One day, my little Jieun, would turn into a big painter herself, making her auntie proud.

“Sounds excellent,” I raised my thumb up at her and she giggled, “Should we start?”

“Yes!” She exclaimed and quickly claimed her brush, asking me to pour some blue paint onto her palette. I did as I was asked and watched as her tongue darted out and eyebrows furrowed as she mentally imagined where she’d place the sky.

“Auntie, will you not paint?” She gave me a quick glance before swiping her brush against the canvas.

“Not today, I’m taking a break.” I answered her as I leaned against the sofa, watching her paint, “Auntie has worked really hard the past three months, I need some rest.”

“Don’t you paint though because it makes you relax?” Her eyebrows rose as she tried to lighten the blue color she placed on her canvas.

“That’s true, but I’m wearing white pants…” I trailed off with a lame excuse, making Jieun throw me an amused glance. I giggled when she shook her head, it made me feel like I was the kid and she was the adult. Jieun, sometimes, would act really mature for her age, saying meaningful things without realizing the weight of her words. Mingyu always blamed it on Wonwoo and Joohyun, who would never fail to remind their daughter certain things that would form her into a decent human being later on in life.

“I’m so excited!” Jieun giggled as she pointed at the yellow paint, and I took and pushed some of it onto her palette.

“Do you like painting so much?” I chuckled and Jieun nodded, “That makes auntie really happy!”

“Yes but no!” She exclaimed and I raised my eyebrows at her as she attempted to paint a big sun onto the blue sky she just painted, “Uncle is coming over too!”

My eyebrows furrowed as I looked surprised at the little girl sitting next to me, Mingyu is coming over?

“Did you speak to mommy and daddy, Jieun?”

“Yes, they said uncle Mingyu couldn’t make it in time so they will ask you to come instead.” She hummed and grinned at me before turning back to her canvas.

“Ah, so Mingyu isn’t really coming over…” I let out a sigh, pleased to hear he wouldn’t show up today. I haven’t seen him in over a month, and meanwhile it was a long time, it was actually refreshing. I didn’t have much time to spend time with my family as I was busy with the studio and the project Minghao and I have been working on. Mingyu was considered family, even though he wasn’t related to anyone. It’s just the way it is, Wonwoo and him grew up together, it was only natural Wonwoo considered him his brother. So that made him, indirectly, Joohyun’s brother-in-law and my…well, brother-in-law? I wasn’t really sure, it didn’t matter, I didn’t consider Mingyu really family either way. It was just weird, to look at him and think ‘oh yeah, he’s like my bro’, because we have dated in high school before, for two years. Two years of bliss and pure happiness, two years I wish I could time travel back to.

“But uncle is still coming over though…” Jieun muttered to herself and my eyebrows furrowed, but I ignored her comment. She just misunderstood what her mom and dad told her. Mingyu couldn’t make it today, so they called me instead. Just like I suspected, I knew Joohyun wouldn’t have bothered me if she had other options.

Painting the canvas went well and in-an-hour Jieun was finished, happy and proud of her work. She asked me to critically asses her painting and so I did, entertaining my little niece furthermore, her giggles filling the living room. She was so loud that I didn’t even hear the front door opening, a mistake on my part as I forgot to lock it, and the deep voice made me jump upon I heard it.

“And what do we have here…” My eyes were wide as my heart beat quickly, a loud squeal leaving Jieun’s lips before he was up on her feet, dashing towards the giant standing in the doorway. Mingyu was grinning down widely at Jieun as he scooped her up in his strong, and well-built, arms, his sharp canines showing off when his smile widened more. His black hair was disheveled, probably because he continuously runs his hand through it, and the sides stuck to his face, still wet. He was wearing black shorts that reached his knees and a sleeveless blue loose tank top, a silver chain dangling from his neck. I quickly caught myself ogling him and huffed as I rose to my feet, arms crossing in front of my chest. Truly, who knew not seeing him for a month would make him look more attractive? Mingyu, no doubt, had an incredible glow up since high school. If he would’ve looked like this during high school too, I’m sure all the girls would’ve lined up in front of his classroom to bring him all sorts of things. But even as handsome as he was now, I found him plain. Maybe because I’ve known him for a long time now, and don’t get me wrong, plain not in a bad way…he was just, plain, transparent.

“Look how excited you are to see uncle!” Mingyu teased Jieun as he poked her stomach, eliciting a loud shriek. I couldn’t help it but smile, having a big weakness for Mingyu and Jieun together. And alone, just…when it came to Mingyu, after all those years, he was still my one and only weakness. It amazed me how I never got over him one hundred percent, I just couldn’t. But I didn’t want to either, not when his flaws seemed perfect too.

“Because I love uncle!” Jieun grinned at Mingyu, nose scrunching up making Mingyu giggle.

“Of course, you love me! I’m the best uncle ever!” Jieun cheered with Mingyu as he started dancing around with her still in his arms, Jieun poking Mingyu’s cheek.

“Finally, uncle and auntie are together!” Jieun cried out as Mingyu started tickling her sides, making her laughter echo loudly in the house. It seemed like realization dawned on him upon he heard Jieun’s words, he seemed to realize that there was another person there with them, standing a few feet away, smiling at them. Mingyu stopped moving and Jieun giggled quietly, trying to catch her breath from being tickled, throwing her arms around Mingyu’s neck to give him a tight hug. Mingyu’s gaze locked with mine and I kept my smile on as he returned it.

“Look who finally showed up!” He teased and put Jieun down, acting as if his muscles were sore from holding her and he earned a light slap from Jieun.

“Well, hello,” I said with a chuckle as Mingyu walked further inside the living room, headed my direction, “Long time no see, old friend.”

“A month, to be exact.” Mingyu said, suddenly serious, as he stopped in front of me, “Are you ignoring us now?”

“As if you don’t know…” I rolled my eyes and undid my arms that were in front of my chest, to turn and walk away, but Mingyu was fast and he was already pulling me in a hug. His body was bigger than mine and whenever he hugged me, I felt like I was melting into him, disappearing from the world. This time wasn’t different, in fact, it felt like his body swallowed mine all up as he gripped me tightly. One month was really that long of a time, huh. I returned the hug, suddenly realizing his tank top was damp and he didn’t smell exactly the most pleasant, at least his usual cologne was less strong, “I was busy with the studio and—are you sweating?”

“Right now?” Mingyu started laughing and his chest rocked against mine, my eyes widened, realization hitting me. He just finished work!

“Ew, Kim Mingyu, get off!” I shrieked and tried to wrestle myself out of his bear hug, but he squeezed harder and started laughing louder and louder, “You’re sweaty, no, stop!”

“Too late, dummy!” He said while laughing and twirled me around, very amused that I couldn’t get away from him.

“Don’t make me kneel you where the sun doesn’t shine!” I threatened with a deadly voice and in two second, he let go of me, “You’re disgusting!”

“That’s not something nice to say to someone, auntie…” We heard Jieun in the background say very lightheartedly.

“That’s right, Jieunie…” Mingyu said with a pout, leaning his face closer to mine. I quickly pushed it back and it made Mingyu snort before he glanced at the canvas on the coffee table.

“Oh! Did you paint this Jieun?” He asked, eyes wide and mouth open.

“Do you like it?” Jieun asked happily, bouncing on her toes.

“Love it! It’s so beautiful!”

“Thank you!” Jieun giggled and I patted her head as she came to stand by my side, grinning at Mingyu, “Next time I could paint you!”

“Oh, uncle would love that!” Mingyu winked at Jieun playfully as he looked back at me, “Missed you, Y/N.”

My heartbeat quickened and I snorted, very unladylike, as I rolled my eyes, “Yeah, sure…Can’t say I missed you very much, I guess—Yeah, kinda? A bit, yeah, I missed you too, idiot.”

“Wow,” Mingyu breathed out, an amused smile on his lips, “That sounded like you got a brain malfunction, glad to see I still make you flustered, Bae.”

“Don’t call me Bae.” I snapped at him, eyes narrowing as Mingyu went to the doorway, picking up his discarded backpack.

“Isn’t that your family name, Bae?” A sneaky smirk crossed his lips, he knew what he was doing. Of course, that is my family name but he is using it knowing it has double meaning.

“Go take a shower Kim, you stink.” I pinched the bridge of my nose with two fingers, making Jieun laugh loudly as she pointed at Mingyu.

“Auntie is making fun of you!”

“Didn’t Wonwoo hyung teach you to not point fingers or make fun of someone, Jieun?” Mingyu’s voice turned stern, but his expression remained light. Jieun, however, knew Mingyu was being serious and scolding her.

“Sorry,” She muttered with a pout and hid her face in my pants as she turned her body into me.

“Go shower, before I cut off the warm water, you dick—” I sucked in a deep breath at the almost slip, it was already bad that I let dick slip, as Mingyu started hollering with laughter.

“Good luck explaining that to Wonwoo and Joohyun later, bae.” He called as he walked down the hallway and towards the bathroom, laughter following him. I cursed in my head as I looked down at Jieun, a big smile on her lips.

“Dick?” She asked with a giggle and my eyes widened in mortification.

“Jieun, no! Never ever say that to anyone, okay?!” I snapped, eyes narrowing at her as I leaned down to be eye level with her, “Auntie will cry if you do, I swear, Jieun.”

“Auntie will be sad if I say…dick?” She giggled again and I glared at her, trying to make her understand she couldn’t say that. How do you make a kid stop from saying a bad word? Help?!

“Auntie will bawl, Jieun, not cry, bawl!” I emphasized the word, knowing how much Jieun hated seeing people cry.

“Okay, I won’t say it at all,” She raised her pinky finger and hooked it with mine, “Pinky promise.”

“Pinky promise.” I echoed after her, biting my lower lip nervously. This will come back and bite me in the ass later, I know it, and that’s when I’ll really be bawling. Especially if Joohyun will be shouting my head off with Wonwoo throwing daggers at me, dear God, what have I done?

       Jieun was beyond excited when I told her that I would have to cook lunch for us now, and she even volunteered to watch some Barbie movie while I do that. She knew I didn’t like other people in the kitchen with me while I was cooking, I always worked better alone. Mingyu was in the shower still, his phone blasting some upbeat song that we could hear clear and loud from the living room, hallway, and even a little bit from the kitchen. I shook my head as I turned on the Barbie movie for Jieun, Rapunzel, and walked to the kitchen while throwing daggers towards the closed and locked bathroom door. Mingyu always had weird habits but ever since we finished high school, he started developing some even weirder and annoying ones, like blasting music while showering. Maybe if it was Mozart or some jazz music it wouldn’t have bothered me, but the kind of music he listened to were men and women screaming and throwing out nasty words while saying them fast, that’s not music in my opinion. But I learned not to question him about many things, his rants would leave me with a headache afterwards, he always spoke too quickly which messed with my brain. He definitely wasn’t a very patient person and it showed in many ways.

I opened the fridge and took out everything I needed for lunch. I promised to make French fries for Jieun so that was the first thing I started working on. I washed the potatoes before peeling them and washing them again, then I placed them in a bowl and started cutting them up into long, thin, sticks. Without realizing, I found myself humming a ballad I heard a while ago while preparing the studio. It was a beautiful song about a man who regretted letting go of its lover, realizing too late what an amazing person this was. I could relate, almost, but it wasn’t me who broke up with Mingyu. He wanted us to break up, so I didn’t have much choice but to move on. Something I actually failed doing, only partially though.

I prepared the oil for the fries, placing it in a pan and putting it on the cooker, waiting for it to boil. I washed some vegetables and started cutting them, preparing a salad with some yoghurt and lemon dressing. I placed the first round of fries into the pan and hissed when some hot oil collided with the skin of my wrist, I always hated cooking with oil, that shit hurt when it burned you. As I moved around the kitchen, trying to find the salt that seemed to always be in a different cupboard, I became aware of the silence coming from the bathroom. Mingyu must have finished washing up, I strained my ears and was able to hear the Barbie movie still playing in the living room. I went back to the fridge and took out the meat that Joohyun placed there last night to defrost and took it to the chopping board. I took out the sharpest knife from the drawer bellow and started slicing up the meat into, somewhat, even pieces. I always found the cleaning and slicing of meat disgusting, nowadays, I didn’t even cook it anymore for myself. But Mingyu and Jieun really liked meat, and it seems like Joohyun had in mind to prepare it today, so I sacrificed myself to cooking it, not that it’s a big deal.

“Mhm, smells good in here,” The male voice made me flinch, I always get scared from the smallest things, “What are we cooking today?”

I heard shuffling from behind as Mingyu walked further inside the kitchen, his big feet thudding loudly against the marble floor.

“I’m cooking today.” I said as I proceeded to cut off the excess fat from the meat.

“You really don’t expect me to sit back and watch you cook?” Mingyu sounded amused and I knew I couldn’t really argue with him. He loved cooking and he was really good at it too.

“I mean, I wouldn’t mind…” I trailed off as I crouched down to open the cupboard and take out a bowl, “You know I don’t like people bothering me when I do something.”

“Yeah, and if it wasn’t for me, your first round of French fries would’ve turned into ashes.” I rolled my eyes as Mingyu took his position at the cooker, taking out the French fries and dumping them into a deep bowl.

“I was about to check it…” I muttered as I proceeded to season the meat, licking the mixture from my palm. It tasted fine but I needed to mix it better so I proceeded to do that.

“From what I can see, you do need an extra pair of hands here…” Mingyu muttered with a chuckle and I felt him passing behind me to wash his hands in the sink, “Not that I wouldn’t mind sitting and watching you move around—those pants really do their justice to your ass—”

“Kim Mingyu.” I snapped and rolled my eyes, refusing to look at him and let him see the redness of my cheeks. I swear to God, he says things like that on purpose just to make me flustered. And they always work.

“What? I’m just giving you a compliment here!” He said defensively and passed again behind my back, coming a lot closer and I clenched my jaw.

“Slap my ass and I will cut off your fingers.” I warned, knowing him well enough, and Mingyu started giggling as he quickly ran past me, coming to a stop in front of the cooker. He placed the second round of potatoes into the boiling oil, no complaints coming, unlike from me. His technique was always better. I licked my finger again and hummed contently, about to wash my hands when Mingyu spoke up.

“Let me taste it!” He whined and I rolled my eyes, heading for the sink.

“When it’s done.” I muttered as I turned on the water, hand almost underneath it, when a large hand gripped my wrist and raised it up.

“Mingyu—” I choked on air when he proceeded to such off the mixture from my middle finger, knocking all air out of my lungs. He hummed with his eyes closed, lips in a pout as he released my finger from his mouth. My heart went crazy and my jaw hung open, I shifted from one leg to the other, saliva pooling in my mouth. What the fuck?!

And then my eyes proceeded to travel lower and now I was definitely turned on, “What the fuck?!”

His eyebrows rose and he looked confused as he followed my eyes, which were currently on his well defined six pack. Jesus Christ, woman, as if you haven’t seen men with six packs before! Yeah, but those men weren’t Kim Mingyu…The hand he was still holding twitched and I snatched out of his hold, mustering up my most frightening glare as my eyes connected with his. It took a lot of power to punch his biceps instead of his, very firm looking and broad, chest.

“Go put on a shirt, Jesus, Jieun doesn’t need to see you shirtless.” I scolded him and quickly turned around and washed off the mixture, before he decided to lick my whole hand clean.

“I don’t see Jieun around though…” I could hear the smirk in Mingyu’s voice and I scoffed as I rolled my eyes aggressively.

“Here or not, go put on a shirt, dickhead, no one is curious of your body. This isn’t the gym, Mingyu.” I muttered aggressively, avoiding to look at him as I reached for the towel to dry my hands, knowing well if I looked at him my eyes would be drawn to his chest instead of his face. I tensed and groaned in annoyance when Mingyu’s front was suddenly pressed up against my back, his warm enveloping mine. I hate how easily he could tease me and how easy it is to make me react; how easy it was for him to play around. I knew he only teased me because he lived for my reactions, but deep down I always hoped it was because there were still some lingering feelings for me. Maybe not, he broke up with me, after all.

“You left the water running, Y/N,” He muttered, voice low as he was so close, his breath tickled my exposed shoulder and I tried not to cover away, “Joohyun and Wonwoo won’t be too happy when their bill comes.”

“Yeah, well, how about you learn what personal space is?!” I snapped as I placed the towel down forcefully, wanting to turn around but knowing I couldn’t resist looking at his toned body, I stayed put instead.

“And miss all the reactions you give me?” He giggled as he placed his chin on my shoulder, making me sigh out loud, “That would be a total waste of my time.”

“And a lot of saving of my energy—your potatoes will turn into ash soon, so how about you move?” I raised my elbow and let it collide with his abdomen, not too harshly though. Mingyu giggled again and suddenly a new voice rang through the kitchen.

“Uncle, you’ve finished showering!” I panicked as I didn’t want Jieun to see us like this, she would tell her mom everything and I didn’t want Joohyun and Wonwoo smirking at us the next time we’ll have dinner together, “Why didn’t you tell me you’re cooking?”

Jieun was pouting and I hissed when Mingyu did nothing to move, looking at Jieun with a smug smile, “I want to help too!”

“Sure, sweetie, uncle was about to make some sandwiches, do you want to help?” Mingyu cooed at Jieun and I elbowed him again, harder this time, to make him step back. He groaned in pain and finally put distance between our bodies, when suddenly I felt teeth sinking into my shoulder.

“What the fuck?!” I couldn’t help but cry out and turn around sharply to slap a smirking Mingyu. I started back at him wide eyed as he started cackling, unphased by my slap to his side this time.

“Uncle will go and put on a shirt if he wants to live.” I said with a forced smile as I gave Mingyu a look, eyebrows raising at him, “Or do I have to make you wear one? Like a little kid?”

“Oh, bae, I can do that fine on my own.” He laughed as he walked to the table, where his grey shirt, with a deep V, was thrown down on.

“What is fuck?” Jieun asked, eyebrows furrowed, and my eyes widened as Mingyu started hollering with laughter again.

“Yeah, auntie, what is fuck?” Mingyu smirked once he was able to speak, hid laughter having died down, “I’m really curious too.”

I glared at both Mingyu and Jieun, placing my arms on my hips as I took a deep breath, “A very ugly word that only adults can use, alright?”

“Well, that’s unfortunate for you, Jieun.” Mingyu said with a shrug as he went to take the bread.

Jieun stuck her tongue out at Mingyu and I smirked as I walked towards the oven to take out the roasting tray, “I said adults, Mingyu.”

Jieun started giggling loudly and Mingyu threw me a glare as he paused slicing up the bread for the sandwiches he planned on making.

“Hand me some ham, cheese, tomatoes and lettuce, Jieunie.” Mingyu asked the little girl, watching me still as I stuck my tongue out at him before I started placing the meat into the roasting tray. Jieun pulled a chair to the fridge, climbed on it and started taking out the items Mingyu asked for.

“Thank you.” He thanked her when she waltzed back to him, grinning at Mingyu as she sat at the table, chin in her palms. I grinned at Jieun, she looked really cute. I quickly remembered the French fries and placed another round into the boiling oil, making me hiss when it went on my skin, again.

“You okay, auntie?” Jieun muttered as she threw me a glance, her eyes going back to Mingyu, who was assembling the sandwiches now.

“Yes, yes, don’t worry.” I smiled towards the girl before turning up the heat in the oven and placing the meat inside. I turned around and leaned against the counter and watched Mingyu work. His back was a bit hunched as he is very tall, his muscles flexing from time to time as he used his hands to make the sandwiches and he kept making faces at Jieun. He beaconed her over and let her place the round tomatoes into each sandwich, poking her nose and praising her once she was done. I sighed and checked on the potatoes again, stirring them a bit around.

“I have an awesome idea,” Mingyu spoke up, canines showing from how big his smile was, “Let’s have a picnic!”

“A picnic!” Jieun exclaimed, jumping up from her seat, “Auntie! We are having a picnic!”

I chuckled and nodded my head, looking at Mingyu with an impressed smile, “Seems like we are having a picnic!”

“I’m having a picnic with my favorite auntie and uncle!” Jieun shouted as she ran out into the hallway, “I will go and change! I want to wear something pretty!”

Mingyu and I laughed quietly as Jieun ran up the stairs, her feet thudding loudly upstairs as she went to her room to get changed. My eyes fell back on Mingyu, he was already looking at me, and he smiled warmly. I returned it and before I turned around, he sent a wink. I winked back and shook my head as I went to open the cupboards, looking for a tablecloth.

“I’ll prepare what we need for the picnic.” I informed Mingyu and he hummed.

“I’ll finish the rest of the potatoes, how long until the meat is done?”

“Forty-five more minutes.” I said after I glanced at my wristwatch, going around the kitchen to get the plates, utensils’ and what we else we needed.

       When forty-five minutes were up, the three of us went outside in the little garden behind the house. It was a good day, the sun high up in the sky with a few clouds here and there, and it was warm enough that you could wear a tank top and a cardigan over it. Spring was always a season I enjoyed the most. The pleasure of seeing everything bloom to life once again brought great joy for me. Taking walks in parks while the trees and grass turn once again green is a certain satisfaction you understand only if you experience it.

Meanwhile Mingyu prepared a few more dishes with Jieun’s help, I placed a blanket onto the grass and started carrying outside plates, utensils, glasses, apple juice and the food that was prepared, one by one. Jieun bounced around me the whole time, talking loudly and quickly as she told Mingyu to hurry up and bring the meat out so that we could start eating.

“Jieun,” I spoke up, looking up from my kneeling position on the blanket, “Go put on your denim jacket, sweetie, you might catch a cold in a simple t-shirt.”

“Do I have to?” She whined, lips jutting out and eyebrows furrowing.

“Yes, you do.” I gave her a look that she knew she couldn’t argue with, so she rose to her feet and ran back inside almost crashing into Mingyu when he appeared in the doorway.

“Woah, chipmunk!” He exclaimed, clutching the plate close to his chest, “We almost lost the meat!”

I giggled and shook my head at Mingyu, his eyebrows were furrowed as he turned around to shout back inside the house, making sure Jieun heard him. I sat down on the blanket, sighing out as I massaged my sore knees, I kneeled for too long.

“Stop being dramatic and bring that here.” I said when Mingyu turned back around, shaking his head in displeasure, exiting the house, “You hang out too much with Jeonghan.”

“I don’t,” He scoffed as he handed me the plate before taking a seat on the blanket, “I haven’t seen him in three weeks.”

“Oh no, did he finally ditch you?” I teased with a grin and Mingyu rolled his eyes.

“You wish, he’s my most loyal client!” Mingyu exclaimed, a proud smirk on his lips.

“Is he becoming as buff as you are?” I found myself asking absentmindedly, hating that I was confessing to having checked him out many times. It’s not my fault, his body is eye catching. The whole existence of Kim Mingyu is eye catching. You’d be a fool to be in a room and not notice him, his sole presence is powerful and like a magnet.

“Oh, so I’m buff?” I rolled my eyes as Jieun came running out the house.

“Yeah, whatever,” I muttered, smiling when Jieun plopped down next to me, “Ready to have lunch?”

“This is the best day of my life!” Jieun screeched and I chuckled, poking her cute cheek. Mingyu giggled quietly, grabbing a plate and starting to put various foods on it. Jieun watched him eagerly and so did I, failing to notice the fond smile on my lips.

“This one is for the princess,” He deepened his voice and did a little bow as he handed Jieun the plate, “From your loyal servant, Kim Mingyu.”

“No!” Jieun giggled, taking the plate excitedly, “You are uncle Mingyu! Not my servant!”

“Let me spoil you for a second, Jieun…” Mingyu said with a sigh, grabbing another plate. I handed Jieun her fork, she still struggled with her chopsticks, and placed a napkin on her lap.

“Don’t stain your pretty skirt, okay?” I asked and brushed her bangs out of her eyes.

“Don’t pressure her, Y/N,” Mingyu shot me a look, “Don’t worry about that, Jieunie, just eat freely!”

“You really do spoil her too much…” I chuckled, leaning forward to grab a plate but Mingyu slapped my hand away, “No wonder Joohyun complains about you.”

“She does?!” Mingyu made an offended sound and I watched as the, now, plate full of food was handed at me.

“Thank you.” I muttered with a smile, suddenly feeling shy at the look he was giving me. I looked away and turned my head quickly, reaching for my chopsticks. Mingyu remained quiet and I could feel him still looking at me but Jieun spoke up.

“The French fries are so good!” She exclaimed, making a ‘mm’ sound as she stuffed her mouth with more, “You cook better than mommy and daddy!”

“We do?” I asked with a laugh, glancing at Mingyu, who was smiling smugly.

“Of course, we do!” He gave me a look, “You’re sitting next to Korea’s biggest chef!”

“You wish.” I snorted meanwhile Jieun started giggling, shooting finger guns at Mingyu who winked back at her. It was heartwarming to see Mingyu and Jieun interact, their personalities were weirdly quite similar. Except, Mingyu was acting like a child sometimes as an adult and Jieun was still a child, she had an excuse. I liked spending my time with the two, I felt refreshed and full of positive energy afterwards. Even Mingyu’s teasing could feel pleasant after a long and tiring day at the studio.

“How’s the studio going?” My ears perked up when Mingyu spoke up, eyes on me.

“Oh, pretty well,” I said after swallowing, “The exposition is going well, I wish I was there…”

“Yeah, sorry,” Mingyu scratched his chin, shooting me an apologetic smile, “I thought I wouldn’t be able to come look after Jieun today, that’s why I told Joohyun to ask you. I had three more clients that were supposed to come in but Jeonghan is apparently sick, the other pulled a muscle two days ago and can barely walk and well the third one—I forgot.”

“You always forget things, uncle…” Jieun said with a giggle, dipping her French fry into ketchup. I leaned over the bowls placed in front of me on the blanket and grabbed the one with the salad.

“You have to eat vegetables to stay healthy, Jieun, not just junk food.” I said as I pushed a bit of the salad on Jieun’s plate, making her scrunch up her nose in disgust.

“You’re like dad, ew.” She muttered, shooting me a cute glare. I giggled and put the bowl down, turning towards Mingyu.

“I get it, don’t worry…” I reassured him with a smile, eating more of the meat from my plate, “I just worked so hard for this exposition and—you know Vernon and Minghao! They always find something to disagree on and to be honest, I hope they can keep it together at least until the event is over…”

Mingyu’s eyebrows furrowed as he nodded in understanding and he placed his right hand on my thigh, giving it a small squeeze, “Don’t worry, Vernon and Minghao know how much this means to you. And, besides, they would be jeopardizing themselves too if they fuck up, so…maybe that’ll make you sleep better at night—”

I started laughing, loudly, as I squeezed my eyes shut the food still in my mouth. Mingyu paused talking and his eyebrows were raised as he exchanged glances with a confused looking Jieun. It made me laugh more and I had to place my plate down and swallow carefully, my body rocking with laughter.

“Uh—I’m sure what I said wasn’t that funny—” And then Jieun started laughing too and I couldn’t help it but laugh harder. Jieun was clapping her hands excessively as she kept pointing her finger at Mingyu’s face, unable to say much.

“Un—uncle—you—” I tried to take deep breaths and calm down. Mingyu’s confused face turned into an angry expression, plate sitting on his thigh, as he crossed his arms in front of broad chest.

“What.” He snapped, eyes falling on me now that I stopped laughing.

“You—” I took a deep breath, calming my racing heart and clutching my stomach, “Have salad stuck between your front teeth, I’m sorry—”

I started giggling again and Mingyu’s eyes widened as he started chuckling, sticking his finger in his mouth to take care of the stray salad stuck between his teeth.

“Ew, uncle!” Jieun screeched, closing her eyes, “Cover your mouth when you do that!”

“Yeah, did your parents never teach you that’s disgusting?” I threw him a disgusted look and Mingyu grinned once he cleaned his teeth.

“You dared to laugh, at me,” He pointed at himself, straightening his back, “The great, Kim Mingyu?”

“Please…” I rolled my eyes with a scoff and gave Jieun a look, a look she returned with an amused grin.

“You shall face the punishment now!” I scoffed again and Mingyu leaned over the food and started poking Jieun’s sides, making her laugh again. She swatted at his fingers, throwing him a glare when he stopped.

“That’s not funny…” She muttered to herself as she resumed eating and I chuckled about to eat as well, when I felt a jab in my side.

“You don’t want to do this, Kim Mingyu,” I warned him, pointing a chopstick at him, “We both know you are more ticklish…”

“A punishment is a punishment, bae.” I rolled my eyes at the nickname but of course, Mingyu quickly started tickling my side and I started jabbing him with my chopstick wherever I could.

“Fight, fight, fight!” Jieun started chanting playfully and I huffed as I caught Mingyu’s wrist and stopped him.

“Seriously, don’t.” He pouted and pulled his arm back, throwing me a glance.

“You’re no fun.”

“Do you want me to tickle you?” I raised my eyebrows, wriggling my fingers when Mingyu glared.

“No.”

“That’s what I thought.”

Halfway through the meal, Jieun said she had enough and got up and ran to the little swing they had for her in the garden. Mingyu and I remained on the blanket, splitting what Jieun left on her plate and eating that too. Once we were finished, I poured him some apple juice, then for myself, and we drank it quietly while watching Jieun run around. I chuckled when she started playing with a small butterfly flying by, handing my cup to Mingyu when he asked for it. He gathered our plates, the bowls of food and put them on the far end of the blanket, away from us so that it wouldn’t bother us. Mingyu was leaning back on his forearms as his eyes followed Jieun around, a fond smile on his lips. I sighed and glanced at him, my eyes falling on the black camera resting by his thigh.

“How’s that business going?” I spoke, getting Mingyu’s attention. He followed my vision of line and nodded his head lightly.

“Pretty well,” He said, picking up the camera in his hands, “I’m collaborating with a high school currently, so I’m taking graduation pictures of their seniors.”

My lips formed an ‘O’ shape and I gave him a smirk, “You must be pretty famous around that high school.”

Mingyu chuckled and nodded his head, “Can’t say I’m not, Y/N.”

“Right, can’t remember a time you weren’t famous…” I trailed off, the two of us sharing a knowing look. Mingyu nodded solemnly and then raised his camera, turning it on.

“Two weeks ago, I had a wedding, that one was a big hit, made a lot of money!” He said with a grin, looking into his camera as he pointed it up towards the sky. I looked up and saw the sky was covered with more clouds now, but the sun was still shining brightly.

“I wanted to ask you to come to our studio for today, but Vernon and Minghao apparently booked a really famous photographer so, you know…I didn’t want to say no to them…”

“Yeah, that’s fine!” Mingyu shrugged and started grinning as he took pictures of Jieun, “Your events are way too prestigious, I might have turned down your offer either way.”

“No, you wouldn’t have, Mingyu.” I chuckled, raising my eyebrows and making him glance at me.

“You sound so sure…why not?”

“Because it’s me asking.” Mingyu’s finger paused mid-air and he gulped before nodding his head wordlessly. It’s moments like this one that give me hope, hope that he still feels something for me. Even if it’s been five years. It was enough time for us to get over the other, but having to spend so much time together again made me realize that I wasn’t even far from being over him. Maybe it’s the memories we share, the time spent together, the pleasant moments, the hardships or the person I shaped into while being with him, but it was really hard to look at him and not feel something more than just platonic feelings. It came as a shock after we finished high school to find out that Joohyun and Wonwoo have been dating for two years in secret. No one ever saw it coming, they never left any hints for us to pick up on, it just seemed like they got along due to Mingyu and I dating and always being together. Turns out, they were dating too at the same time with us, except their relationship worked out. And I couldn’t have been happier, they were perfect for each other and they blessed us with little Jieun, the sweetest kid. When Jieun turned two, Joohyun and Wonwoo decided to get married and tie the knot for a lifetime. I was a little jealous when we got the news of their marriage, I always thought I’d be the one to get married first as Joohyun was closed off and wasn’t ever interested in dating or having a family. I guess it was just a matter of time and person.

My eyes widened when the camera made a sound, this time directed at me. Mingyu was grinning as he kept snapping picture after picture and I raised my middle finger at him while sticking my tongue out.

“Hey!” He gave me a glare before turning the camera back to Jieun, snapping a picture of her as she was playing with the flowers, making a crown for herself, “Look at this!”

Mingyu’s canines showed again as his grin spread bigger, he scooted closer, “Joohyun will love this shot!”

It was a close up of Jieun, she was crouched down with yellow flowers in her hands, her dark hair falling around her shoulders and lips in a soft pout. I smiled and looked at Mingyu, “Why don’t you drop the gym and turn into a professional photographer? You are so talented.”

“Y/N,” He gave me a grin and a scoff, as if I already knew the answer, “You know photography is just a hobby for me—”

“Doesn’t it pay better than that smelly gym you work at?” I interrupted him with my eyebrows raised. He chuckled and shook his head as he turned around to take more pictures of the nature.

“Smelly or not, I really like working there…” He muttered and Jieun shrieked, alerting us.

“Jieun?” I asked loudly, eyebrows raised when she turned around, she was holding something brown between her fingers.

“It’s a caterpillar!” She exclaimed excitedly, waving the small animal between her fingers.

“Say hi and put it back into the earth, okay?” I called back and Mingyu snorted as he looked up from his camera.

“This one goes for Wonwoo…” He grinned to himself, looking at me, “His daughter ain’t a pussy like your sister—”

“Mingyu!” I threw him a glare and punched his arm, “Irene hates every little insect, you know that. It’s not her fault—”

“It technically is though.” He gave me a pouty look and I snorted and shook my head. I extended my arms over my head and stretched, hearing the camera go off again, before laying down on the blanket. I groaned loudly as the tension eased from my lower back and I relaxed into the earth, closing my eyes to breathe in deeply the warm air. It was tranquil, the moment felt nice, Jieun’s laughter and chatter faded nicely into the background. I let my muscles relax and enjoy the moment of calmness, that is until weight was dumped on me. I yelped loudly, eyes opening and muscles tensing as I went to sit up but Mingyu’s hand pushed me back down.

“Don’t get up!” He exclaimed, eyebrows furrowed, “Why’d you move?!”

I threw him a glare as I watched him whine more, pushing his ass against my pelvis and sitting on me.

“Mingyu, I don’t know if anyone has made you aware of this, but you are heavy!” I exclaimed again, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

“I won’t get off until you give me the same expression you did a few seconds ago—”

“How can I do that when a man is literally crushing me?” I raised my eyebrows and Mingyu scoffed, pushing up onto his knees but still straddling me.

“Happy?”

“Not until you completely get off.” I gave him a sweet smile and Mingyu threw me a glare as Jieun’s loud laughter came from behind him.

“Why are you sitting on auntie?” She asked giggling.

“Good question, Jieun, I think he wants to crush auntie—”

“I was just trying to take a picture of auntie, Jieun, but she’s stubborn and wants to upset me.” Mingyu said pouting, giving Jieun a sad look.

“Well, hurry up auntie then, I want to go inside—I’m tired.” Just as she finished speaking, she yawned and pouted.

“Five more minutes and we go take a nap, okay?” I smiled at Jieun and she nodded before running back to the swing. I looked back up at Mingyu and gulped as I stared into his eyes, the butterflies in my stomach kicking off.

“Make it quick, okay?” I sighed out and closed my eyes, willing my body to relax and let go. Forget that Mingyu is straddling me and dangling his camera in my face like all those times when we were still dating. The camera went off and so did my heart, it started beating faster and faster as all the memories swam in my mind tauntingly.

The basketball court was full of students as everyone was in recess. I was sitting with my friends on a bench underneath a tree to hide from the blazing sun as we all ate our lunch and gazed out onto the field, where the basketball team was shooting around. All guys were tall, the team consisted of mostly juniors and seniors, but Yuto, a guy my age, made it into the team due to his height.

“Ah!” Yuna exclaimed next to me, eyes following a boy, “Look at Wonwoo! He’s so handsome!”

“He’s a good player…” I muttered as I finished up my lunch.

“He could be the worst and I’d still love him!” Yuna mused and the rest of our friends agreed with her. I rolled my eyes when someone from behind us scoffed.

“So, you only watch the basketball team because the players are handsome?” The voice was sharp and I rolled my eyes, turning to face my sister.

“You’re still moody?” I asked her and she shook her head, coming to stand in front of me and blocking my view of the field.

“No, I passed my chemistry test, I’m feeling better.” She gave me a wide grin and extended her arm. She was holding a small cartoon of chocolate milk and my eyes lit up.

“Unnie!” I gave her a big grin and stood up to give her a brief hug, “Thank you!”

“Yeah, mom told me you forgot to pack one.”

“You’re the best.” Joohyun chuckled and pinched my cheek aggressively.

“You only say that when I give you something or do something for you—”

“Joohyun—” My friends shrieked and both Joohyun and I jumped as a ball hit my sister’s back. She hissed and turned sharply, the ball bouncing on the ground.

“Joohyun—” My friends started but Wonwoo running over shut them up quickly.

“Are you okay?” His deep voice was laced with worry and Joohyun glared the boy down. She was a lot shorter but her gaze could always make her seem powerful and scary. She leaned down wordlessly and picked the basketball up.

“Be careful next time, Wonwoo.” Her voice was soft, a contrast to the look on her face.

“Sorry, Joohyun.” Wonwoo bowed his head a bit, hands extending to take the ball from my sister. She glanced down at the ball before handing it over, their hands brushing against each other and small smiles appearing on their faces. The snap of a camera distracted me from throwing a suspicious look at the two in front of me. A tall guy, taller than Wonwoo, was holding up a camera to his left eye as he grinned.

“Yah! Kim Mingyu!” I exclaimed, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

“Yah! Bae Y/N!” He imitated my voice, pushing his lips out into an exaggerated pout.

“I don’t look like that!” I snapped at him with a glare as Mingyu walked closer.

“Yes, you do.” He taunted, the camera hanging at his side. Wonwoo and Joohyun chuckled behind me and I glanced back to see them lost in their own conversation.

“Stop pouting, you’re too cute.” Mingyu cooed and I punched his bicep as he started leaning down.

“Why do you keep taking pictures of me—” My words got muffled when Mingyu pressed a small kiss against my lips, a smile appearing on my lips.

“What were you complaining about?” He whispered as he pulled back just a little bit, making my smile widen.

“Nothing.” I muttered and as I went to press another kiss against his lips, his camera went off again. My eyes snapped open to find Mingyu giggling as he was looking down at the picture he took, cheeks rosy.

“Yah! Kim Mingyu!” I exclaimed and raised my arm to punch his arm again but he suddenly jumped back. He stuck his tongue out and I glared at him.

“You two are so immature.” I heard Wonwoo saying from behind me.

“He won’t stop taking pictures of me!” I snapped, watching as Mingyu was slowly raising his camera up again, “Don’t you dare—”

Snap. Oh, that’s it, he asked for it. I took off running towards him but Mingyu just giggled loudly and took off too, running ahead of me.

“You can’t catch me!” He shouted as he turned his head before running faster.

“Screw your long legs!” I shouted after him as I chased him around the basketball field, underneath the blazing sun.

“I love you!” He shouted while trying to take more pictures of me, almost falling when he tripped on a rock.

“You’re an idiot!” I screamed after him, laughing when he almost fell, “I love you!”

“I know you do!” He winked cockily and slowed his running, making me think I’d finally catch up. But when he was in arms reach, he sped up again while cackling evilly. I let out a frustrated cry and continued chasing him, unphased by the looks the students were giving us.

The click of the camera brought me back to the present and I opened my eyes to find Mingyu with his eyebrows raised and a small smile on his lips. His personality didn’t change much since high school but his looks did. It’s not like that mattered much, I didn’t like him for his looks, it was his personality that drew me in at first. His looks were just a plus.

“I want to go in!” Jieun came running to us, whining loudly.

“We are going.” I smiled at her as she looked down at me with a pout and I looked up at Mingyu with raised eyebrows. He blinked and looked at me for a second before he realized he was straddling me, so he got off and helped me off the blanket as well.

“Can you please clean up? I have a Yoga class in half an hour.” I said after looking at my wrist watch.

“And Jieun?” Mingyu asked as he started gathering the things we gathered on the blanket.

“I’ll put her to sleep, don’t worry about her.” I gave Jieun a smile and crouched down, opening my arms, “Do you want auntie to carry you to your room?”

“Yes!” Jieun exclaimed, her droopy eyes widening as she climbed into my arms quickly. I patted her back and walked inside the house, towards her room upstairs.

        Jieun took longer than I expected to fall asleep, leaving me ten minutes to get ready for my Yoga class. I closed her door carefully after drawing her curtains closed and raced into the master bedroom, opening Joohyun’s closet. We go to Yoga class twice a week together so I have my clothes here, in case, I don’t have time to go home from the studio. We were supposed to go together today but since I had to be at the studio, we decided to postpone it. Thankfully, our Yoga instructor does online classes in the afternoon for those who couldn’t attend it in the morning. I quickly got dressed in my olive khaki green leggings and matching sports bra, rushing downstairs quietly, to Joohyun’s study room, where we kept our mattresses. She had enough space in her office, so I decided to lay out the Yoga mat underneath the window and quickly turned on her laptop, logging onto the platform of my instructor. In the big rush, I forgot to close the door and I could hear Mingyu coming and going from the garden, bringing everything inside like I asked him to do. I pulled my hair in a low ponytail and took a comfortable seat on the mat as the instructor started the class.

“Good afternoon!” She greeted with a big smile on her lips, her voice raspy but honey-like, “Good to see some familiar faces around; Y/N…”

I smiled and turned on the microphone, “Nice to see you! Joohyun and I couldn’t make it in the morning, we were both busy.”

“Is she not joining us today?” The instructor asked as more cameras got turned on, there was a total of ten people in today’s class.

“No, she’s not at home, at the moment.” I answered her and as the backdoor was closed, loud singing rang through the hallway. Mingyu’s deep voice bounced around the quiet house and my eyes widened as I quickly shut off my microphone, embarrassed when I saw some ladies smiling through their cameras. I glanced out in the hallway as Mingyu passed by the office, unaware that I was inside, as he bobbed his head to his own rhythm while he continued singing. Did he forget I put Jieun to sleep? He’s going to wake her up. But before I could quickly go and shut him up and close the door to the office, our instructor alerted us that we were starting the session.

“I prepared a relaxing Yoga sequence for today, a thirteen-minute-long practice,” She said with a smile as we took a comfortable seat in Lotus pose, “It’s the middle of the week, but we might be feeling burned out a little bit. I know that I do!”

I chuckled as I straightened my back, aligning head over heart, and heart over pelvis, “You can turn on your microphones as we are about to take deep breaths together, let us hear each other.”

I quickly reached over and turned on the microphone, as did the other ladies, whom I were familiar with from other classes, “Good, now let’s take five deep breaths in, tuck your chins, straighten your backs and close your eyes, empty your mind.”

I did as I was told, willing my muscles to relax as everyone took deep five breaths, emptying our lungs out loudly. It was a relaxing motion and it always helped me focus on the task I was about to do, my mind was a buzzing place 24/7. But my tranquil moment ended when Mingyu’s voice rose a few octaves and he started sputtering words after words. I opened one eye to see if the others could hear him as well, but upon seeing no reaction, I quickly closed my eye and took one more deep breath to relax again.

“Let us stretch our side bodies now.” With eyes open, I followed the instructor, breathing deeply still, “This is a great moment to take a step back from your busy lives and reflect on yourselves. Get lost in the silence and the guidance of my voice, trust your bodies and meet me in a tabletop position.”

I smiled and slowly moved into the position, cracking my lower back in the process, “Let’s do three rounds of cat and cow now, everyone following their own rhythm. We are not here to rush today.”

Closing my eyes, I arched my back into a cow position, letting out a quiet sigh when a few vertebras popped, then starting from the tailbone, I curled up into a cat position. I did that two more times while breathing deep, hearing the other ladies do the same calmed my nerves a little bit. I got lost in my own world, finally, blocking out sounds from the outside that didn’t serve me in this moment.

“On your next breath in, bring your big toes together and widen your knees as big as your mat, then meet me in extended child’s pose, with active fingers.” The instructor spoke up, and we followed, “Let’s wake up the muscles in our upper backs while opening our heart space, okay?”

The skin of my lower back and upper back were getting a good stretch as I gently rocked from side to side at the hips, loosening up the tight joints, breathing deeply.

“Make your next inhale the longest breath you’ve taken all day long and, on your exhale, let go of everything that doesn’t serve you by using lion’s breath,” I filled my lungs with air to the brim and paused at the top for three second before sticking my tongue out, eyes looking at my third eye and letting all the air out, similar sighs coming through the laptop.

“Carefully moving, let’s meet in downward dog, but only proceed from a tabletop position.” I raised back into a tabletop position and carefully, knees bent and arms placed at a wide distance on the map, I raised into a downward dog position, heels coming down on the earth.

“Let’s pedal it out,” The instructor said, “Your heels don’t have to come down to the earth straight away, pedal them out first, feel your muscles stretch and when you did all that, grow heavy in your heels and come to a still position for three deep cleansing breaths.”

I moved my legs as if I was walking, in one place, pedaling them out and sighing out when my hamstrings got the stretch they so desperately needed. I ground my heels down and stilled my movements, taking deep breaths. As I took in my last set of deep breath, the floor creaked in the doorway and I opened my eyes, seeing Mingyu upside down from this position, standing in the doorway. His jaw was hung open but when we made eye-contact, a wide smirk spread on his lips.

“Damn,” He muttered as he leaned against the doorframe, “If you only had this ass back in high school too—”

I gasped as my cheeks flushed, the sudden laughter coming from the laptop making Mingyu jump. His eyes widened as he looked towards the screen, and as I lowered from the downward dog, I caught the faint tint of red on his cheeks. The ladies were still giggling, the instructor’s eyebrows raised curiously.

“Uh—I’m really sorry—he didn’t know my microphone was on—”

“Good evening, ladies,” Mingyu smiled charmingly, they could see him well through the camera, “Sorry for interrupting, I’ll quickly head out.”

“Now, now,” The instructor said with a chuckle as Mingyu slowly left, throwing me a smirk that made me glare at him, “We needed that laughter, didn’t we, ladies?”

There was a chorus of agreements and my cheeks flushed again as I chuckled in embarrassment, “Sorry, he’s—”

“A charming young man, indeed,” The instructor interrupted me with a small smile, “let’s try to focus once again though and repeat our downward dog before we proceed with our practice.”

And we did proceed with our relaxing practice, but the problem was I couldn’t relax with Mingyu continuously walking in and out of Irene’s study room and always whispering things at me. At first, he was asking for some books Wonwoo recommended him to read, then he took a seat on Irene’s couch and started reading out loud but in a whisper, meanwhile I kept throwing glares at him. Does he know he’s supposed to leave me alone? By the time the class took an end I wasn’t anywhere relaxed, instead I was angry and irritated. The practice was supposed to make me feel light and relaxed but due to Mingyu bothering me, it didn’t work out. When we were talking leisurely after we finished the practice, Mingyu dangled his head into the camera. The ladies started laughing again and he had a heartful conversation with my Yoga instructor, to which he even got an invitation to her class after he complained about his muscles being stiff after a long day at the gym. When we were saying our goodbye’s, a lady had the audacity to call Mingyu and I, a cute and playful couple, which I wanted to deny but before I could, Mingyu was nodding and thanking her making my heart pump quickly. Once the call was over, Mingyu sat back on the couch and I proceeded to roll up Irene’s mat and placed it back to its place, throwing a glare at a grinning Mingyu. My eyes fell on the book he tormented me with and I took it in my hand and whacked him over the head.

“Hey!” He exclaimed and started rubbing his head, “What are you doing?!”

“What are you doing?!” I snapped, crossing my arms in front of my chest, “I took the Yoga class to relax a little bit but thanks to you I just became more irritated!”

“You did?” He raised his eyebrows and I went to whack him again but he caught my arm and quickly jumped up, “Okay, okay, I get it! Sorry, I won’t do it next time!”

“Of course, you won’t. There’s no next time.” I rolled my eyes and let Mingyu take the book from me and place it back onto the shelf.

“What are you saying?” He asked with a chuckle, becoming amused when I sighed and looked at him expectantly, “I got an invitation to your instructor’s next class and I’m definitely not going to miss it—”

“Hell, no.” I snapped and turned around to leave the office, but not before opening the window to let fresh air in, “So that you torment me there too? No, thank you.”

“Come on! I won’t!” Mingyu whined as he followed after me, closing the door behind me, “I’ll take it seriously!”

“You won’t, I know you too well, Kim Mingyu.” I said with a snort as I started walking up the stairs, Mingyu still following close behind.

“Please?” He looked at me with puppy eyes when I glanced back, “I’ll let you drive me around, okay?”

“As if I want to do that.” I scoffed as I walked to the master bedroom to get my clothes before I head to shower.

“I know you do,” A smirk crossed Mingyu’s lips as he blocked my way, “I heard from Wonwoo you bought a new Mercedes, I just know you’re dying to show it off to me.”

“Am not.” I said with a scoff, biting my lip afterwards. Oh, and how right he is, I can’t wait to pick him up from work and drive him here, in my new light turquoise Mansory S-Class Cabriolet, the next time we are having dinner with Joohyun, Wonwoo, and Jieun.

“You do,” Mingyu cooed and I rolled my eyes as I side stepped him, heading out the bedroom and down the hall to the bathroom.

“Now, stay quiet and don’t wake Jieun, I want to shower.”

“Go, go,” Mingyu ushered me inside the bathroom, gripping the handle, “Relax now, since you couldn’t while doing Yoga.”

“Dickhead—” He cut me off by closing the door in my face and I could hear his giggles as he walked away, his footsteps still loud. I groaned and quickly put my hair in a bun, turning on the warm water in the shower stall. The bathroom upstairs was bigger and it was divided in two in such way that if someone was showering another person could still come in because you wouldn’t see them, as the shower stall was just behind the other wall.

       And there’s a reason why I usually avoid showering upstairs. It’s so big that the person won’t even hear the running water and often times would walk in, it happened with both Joohyun and Wonwoo while I showered, when they newly bought the house. Like I said, they still couldn’t see you, but the thought alone was enough to drive me away from showering upstairs and just using the downstairs shower. And that same thing happened while I was massaging an exfoliating soap onto my skin. The door opened and I heard feet thudding inside loudly.

“Jieun?” I called out, straining my ears to hear the person inside, “Did you have a nightmare and wake up? Mingyu is downstairs sweety, I’m showering, you can go to him—”

“Yeah,” My eyes widened at the male voice and I quickly turned around in the shower stall, making sure he didn’t already approach me, “Mingyu is upstairs, actually.”

“What the hell are you doing inside, Mingyu?!” I exclaimed, frozen as I listened closely, “I’m showering!”

“Uh, yeah, I know, you told me and I hear the water running—”

“What the fuck are you doing inside then?!” I exclaimed again, eyebrows furrowing when Mingyu cursed loudly.

“Fuck, I stubbed my toe!” He hissed and I scoffed as I quickly rinsed off the soap, “And I know, but I was bored downstairs alone…”

“So, you just come and intrude on a woman while she’s showering? Because that’s fine?” I snapped; eyebrows raised even if he couldn’t see me. I heard the toilet making sounds and realized Mingyu closed the lid and sat on top of it.

“Hey, don’t make me sound like a creep!”

“You are being a creep right now, though.” I pointed out as I took my regular, tropical scented, body lotion and spread it on my body.

“Okay, I’m sorry, I can’t even see anything, you know that, I just—” He let out a long sigh and my eyebrows raised as I paused.

“You just, what?” I asked curiously as I let the warm water wash off the body lotion.

“I was wondering, like, I’ve been thinking about this for a long time, actually, you know…” There was a pause as Mingyu cleared his throat before he continued, “Just…after we broke up, you know…did you date anyone else? Like, had a boyfriend, girlfriend, or something…”

My eyebrows furrowed at the odd question, not expecting it from Mingyu, we never talked about relationships or partners. We always stayed away from the topic that involved our personal lives for multiple reasons, so it was a surprise that he finally asked about it, especially when I was showering.

“I mean…” I let out a breath, standing underneath the warm water, “It’s been five years since we…broke up, so…yeah. I had…three…boyfriends.”

“Oh,” Mingyu sounded surprised and I grimaced waiting for him to continue speaking, “Yeah, I had a lot of flings during college, then a serious girlfriend that lasted for a year only, so…”

He chuckled, but I could hear he didn’t take it lightly, it bothered him that it didn’t work out. Something was bothering him still; I could hear it in his voice.

“Well, you know, I don’t know if Joohyun and Wonwoo talked about me and if they did and Wonwoo told you, but…” I took a deep breath and turned off the water, reaching for the long towel, “You pretty much broke my heart, no joke.”

Mingyu remained quiet as I placed the towel around my body and secured it tightly at my breasts, “I don’t blame you now, with this mentality, and I don’t hate you either anymore.”

We both chuckled at the same time and Mingyu sighed as we both stayed put where we were standing, “Honestly, I was a big dick back then. Breaking up with you because I wanted to get the whole college experience—I was a fucking idiot, to be honest.”

“You still are…” I muttered and Mingyu chuckled before he sighed again, “Actually…you know, how I was supposed to come with a plus one to my sister and Wonwoo’s wedding?”

“Yeah, and then you showed up with—”

“Minghao,” We said at the same time.

“Yeah, Minghao, and everyone was fucking confused from your family.” Mingyu continued talking, “Even Wonwoo…I still don’t get what the fuss was about.”

“I was supposed to come with my fiancé—”

“Fiancé?!” Mingyu choked out and I giggled, “You had a fiancé at the age of twenty-one, what the fuck?! And you didn’t tell me?!”

“We met when I was nineteen, actually, but back then I was kinda playing around with two guys, you know…still not over you, dickhead, but then him and I got closer and we got engaged three months before the wedding.” I explained, enjoying when Mingyu gasped.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know?” I asked with a chuckle, leaning my head against the wet tiles of the shower stall, “We realized we were too different? I don’t know, honestly, but I’m glad we broke up. I don’t think we were a good match.”

“Yeah, I’m glad too.” I scoffed and I heard shuffling, meaning Mingyu stood up, “Why did even Vernon show up at the wedding? He wasn’t even invited—”

“Two drunk calls from Minghao and I were enough to bring him around—”

“And then I had to drive the three of you home, yeah, I remember.” Mingyu didn’t sound amused and I started laughing.

“Well, if you were dumb enough to come by car and not with a cab like everyone else…”

“Yeah, whatever,” Mingyu scoffed and he cleared his throat again and hesitated to speak, “So, uhm, I was thinking…let’s go on a date?”

I blinked once and then twice and paused. Kim Mingyu was asking me on a date? Or was I hallucinating?

“I really should have waited after you finished showering, not seeing your face is frustrating.” He groaned to himself and I chuckled.

“To your information, I’m gaping right now,” Mingyu chuckled and I pursed my lips, “You want to go on a date with me?”

“Yeah, I think we are both mature enough to start things over, if we wanted to,” He sighed and I licked my lips, pushing off from the wall, “At least, I want to if you’re not against it.”

“Did spending your day with me make you nostalgic, Kim Mingyu?” I asked with a chuckle and he just hummed. I didn’t know how to feel. Did I still have feelings for him? Yes. Did he hurt me already once? Yes. But as he said, we are adults now, we view things differently now. I’m still unsure however.

“I can’t give you an answer right now,” I decided to be honest with him, he deserved it, “Give me time to think.”

He hummed quietly and I knew he wasn’t expecting that answer and he was disappointed, but he quickly spoke up, “I’ll go wake Jieun so that we can prepare dinner together.”

And he was out of the bathroom, leaving me alone with my conflicting thoughts. Did I want to go on a date with him? Yes. Was I afraid we wouldn’t work out anymore and I’d lose him forever? Yes.

        After Jieun woke up, the three of us went downstairs and prepared dinner together, spending a good hour in the kitchen. But it still wasn’t dinner time so we snuggled up on the couch in the living room and watched a family movie together, Mingyu bringing us a big blanket to keep us warm. Jieun was snuggled up into his side, putting Mingyu into the middle, and I threw him a curious glance when he kept shifting around, until his arm was around my shoulders and his body was leaning onto mine.

“It’s comfier.” He whispered, keeping his eyes on the TV and I shook my head before looking back towards the TV and feeling my cheeks heat up. It felt nice being snuggled up next to him, his warmth enveloping mine and creating a feeling of calmness and safety. If there was a feeling I missed after Mingyu left me, it was the safety I felt whenever I was with him. His bigger body and the way he carried himself and even interacted when he was with me made it obvious to me that he’d do anything to keep me safe and that I shouldn’t worry. So, in the middle of the movie I cleared my throat and glanced up at him to see him already looking down at me.

“Let’s go on that date.” I whispered quietly at him and instantly Mingyu was grinning from ear to ear, squeezing my shoulder tightly for a few seconds before he sighed out happily. I chuckled and placed a palm against his beating hart, cheeks flushing when I felt his quick pulse. A feeling of fulfilment filled my senses and I couldn’t help the smile spreading onto my own lips.

       After the movie was over, the moon was high up in the sky, and we headed to the kitchen to have dinner. Jieun excitedly told us stories about her encounters with other kids in kindergarten and how she kept tricking her nanny into giving her candy without her mom and dad knowing. Dinner was filled with giggles and Mingyu throwing me glances every few minutes, eyes warm and happy. Jieun even pointed it out at some point, asking us if we were hiding a secret or surprise from her. When we reassured her that no, we weren’t, she pouted and settled on finishing her dinner quietly while Mingyu and I conversed about what we did the one month we didn’t meet up, laughing at the memories we shared in high school when one brought it up randomly. After dinner, Jieun had a warm bubble bath and I braided her hair in two, helping her into her pajamas before Mingyu and I tucked her in bed. We were both sitting on each side of her bed, her bedside lap turned on and we chatted for a little while, until she fell asleep.

“You know,” Jieun muttered sleepily, her eyes already closed, “Uncle and auntie act just like dad and mommy. Will you have babies too? I’ll have someone to play with forever…”

Mingyu and I shared a look as I chuckled and leaned over Jieun, cradling her cheek, “Auntie and uncle aren’t like that, Jieun. There’s men and women who are just friends, who love each other but never make babies, because it’s not that kind of love, you know?”

“Don’t worry, Jieunie,” Mingyu leaned closer too, a devilish smirk crossing his lips, “Uncle will convince auntie to make babies so that you’ll have someone to play with, okay?”

Jieun’s eyes opened and she grinned widely as I threw Mingyu a glare, “Pinky promise?”

“Pinky promise!”

“Hey!” I exclaimed quietly as the two pinky promised in front of me with grins on their lips as if I wasn’t even there, “It’s not that easy to make babies—”

“We’ll figure it out.” Mingyu cut me off with a wink and I scoffed, leaning down and kissing Jieun’s cheek.

“Sweet dreams, angel.”

“Sweet dreams, chipmunk.” Jieun grinned as Mingyu pressed a quick kiss against her forehead and then we got up, turned off her bedside lamp and turned on her fairy lights. Quietly closing her door, we descended down the stairs and I could feel Mingyu smirking next to me, his hand continuously brushing against mine.

“Stop giving Jieun false hope, dickhead.” I snapped finally, making Mingyu giggled. He was expecting my reaction, as we walked back to the living room.

“I was being serious, Bae.” I groaned as Mingyu turned on the TV, putting on some random movie as we sat down on the couch, pulling the blanket over us again. We remained silent during the movie, enjoying the presence of the other, and my heart started racing when Mingyu interlaced his fingers with mine underneath the blanket and placed our hands on his thigh. I didn’t realize I wanted this until it happened, and I couldn’t be gladder. Because in this world, there was no one like Kim Mingyu, and he was mine.

My one and only true love.

[theyreonlynoodlesmike]

Melting Wax, Crawling Vines: Part 4 (Vincent Sinclair x Fem!Reader)

<- Previous Chapter Next Chapter ->

Warnings: mild cursing, paranoia/anxiety

Word Count: 3062

We love exposition in this house

Vincent had only seen you for a few moments. You'd been carried in by his brother, Bo. He'd placed you on the couch, and, naturally, Vincent had peaked out from upstairs to investigate. He thought that perhaps you were someone to add to their collection, or a new toy for Bo to mess with. Bo, usually, kept the pretty ones like yourself to himself. His twin was good at charm, good at smooth talking almost anyone. And he was good at not caring about whether or not they wanted to be kept. When he saw the way he'd laid your head carefully back on the pillow, a million thoughts were going through his head. 

Bo usually took any outsiders to the basement underneath the auto shop. But here you were, being gingerly placed on their living room couch. He reached for one of the knives at his hip just before Bo was heading straight for him. He relaxed his hand, letting it sink back into the hilt. Bo had explained quickly and quietly. 

They were going to keep you for him . Vincent had stared at him with one blue eye, gratitude and surprise filling it. Never before, not even technically with the wax figures, had they had someone who was for him. The wax town was their mothers dream. 

He'd stared at you, peeking around the corner to take in your unconscious form. You had piqued his interest completely, even if he knew your sleeping form would soon contort into horror and screaming. That the peace would leave your features the second you realized they didn't intend on letting you leave Ambrose. 

Bo had to snap in his face to make sure he was listening, make sure that he understood that you were going to be his teacher. Not one of his wax figures. He'd nodded. He wasn't stupid, but his brother seemed to forget that sometimes. Bo hadn't had time to explain much more, as you'd started to stir.

"Go on, get. Stay out of sight." Bo told him, and Vincent had reluctantly retreated out of sight and back down to the depths of his work shop. As he returned to the wax figure in the center of his room, his head was now filled with distracting noise as he tried to force himself to focus. He wanted to know more about you. You were the only new face that he would see and not become wax. The mysterious figure laying on their couch. 

Eventually, he found himself listening in the middle of the hallway, leaning against the wall as he heard your voice filter through the house. He listened to your story, finding that it didn't sound too different than something their victims would describe. But that one thing you'd said struck him, and he knew it probably struck his brothers just the same. I should've killed that sonovabitch , you'd said. The Sinclair brothers had long ago made their peace with what happened inside of this town. Perhaps, eventually, you would be able to make peace with it too with an attitude like that. It could take awhile, but the brothers would have time. However, when you agreed to stay, a strange feeling of relief had crept into his chest and he'd finally been able to force himself back down to his workshop.

***

It didn't take long for the three of you to part ways. You'd called your apartment complex, letting the woman that worked the front desk know that someone was going to pick up your storage unit for you. When she'd asked why, you'd told her that you just didn't feel comfortable parting with it for an entire night. When she tried to insist that it'd be safe, you cut her off and told her to expect him. You didn't mean to be rude, but you hardly had the patience to argue with her knowing that your ex could be there any minute. Lester had offered to take the longer drive, as he'd said he knew where the town was anyways. So, it was up to you to show Bo where you'd left your car.

You leaned with your head against the window of the tow-truck, secretly relieved that Lester hadn't suggested you come to get the unit with him. You wouldn't be able to stomach the anxiety that trip would've induced, and it was nice to ride in a car that smelled like motor oil and grease instead of roadkill. Bo smoked, one hand resting out the window and the other on the wheel as the Louisiana heat competed with the a/c inside the tow truck. You looked over, watching as Bo brought the cigarette to his lips. He looked over at you, catching your stare and smiling to himself. You looked away, shyness and embarrassment filling you from having been caught.

"So," Bo started. He paused for a moment. "This might be a little too much to ask, and I don't mean to offend." You turned your head back to him, arching a brow to show that you were listening. "Which one of you was older?" He asked, and you stared at him in confusion for a moment before you realized what he was asking. It wasn't what you were expecting, you'd give him that. Given his flirting nature, you'd expected a much different question. Instead, you ran a hand through your hair and softly said,

"She was." You smiled to yourself for a moment, turning to look out the windshield before you added, "By ten minutes. She always used to joke about having to wait for me for everything." And Bo smiled at that as well. You watched him take another drag of the cigarette, changing his grip on the wheel, before he said,

"I'm the oldest," And you found yourself looking at him over in surprise. You didn't know he had any siblings. Well, you figured you could blame that on the fact that you'd only met him that day. "Born less than a minute before my brother, Vincent." And your eyebrows shot up. The news that he had siblings and that he was a twin surprised you.

"I didn't see him back at the house." You commented, trailing off. You wondered when you'd get to meet him, and hoped he wouldn't mind your intrusion. You were going to be staying with them, after all.

"Oh, he's just shy. Stays mostly to himself." He said, and you nodded. But the news didn't stop you from biting at your lip. You didn't want to cause any waves between the brothers, especially because you were sure that Bo hadn't asked Vincent before he offered to let you stay. You bit at your thumb, and Bo looked over to arch a brow at you. You pulled it from you mouth, realizing that he must've noticed the anxious habit. His brow lift was questioning, and you could guess what he wanted to know.

"Vincent," You paused. "Vincent won't mind me staying with you, will he?" You asked, and you watched the way he broke out into a grin. He laughed to himself, taking a drag of his cigarette. 

"Is that what you're worried about? No, no. Vincent won't mind a bit. Having someone as pretty as you around the house? He won't mind at all." He said, and you had to turn away to hide the smile creeping up your face. You shook your head lightly, choosing to ignore his flirting remarks. You looked out, pointing down the road. You didn't even need to say anything, as Bo was already remarking, "I see it." And stopping in the road before making a three point turn. You were relieved from the sight of your car, and to see that it hadn't been stripped or broken into.

You'd gotten out with the intent to help Bo, but, just like Lester, you thought you were slowing him down if anything. Eventually, you just ended up sitting on the hood of your car and eating a bag of chips that you'd packed for the ride. You offered him some, and he took off his cap to wipe his brow before he took the bag. He'd hooked your car up, and now all he needed to do was lift it to tow it back to Ambrose. He chewed for a moment, before he said,

"So, Lester told me you teach sign language, right?" And you were quick to nod. That you did. You wondered where this was going, but Bo didn't keep you in suspense. He was just like Lester in the way that he wasn't one for long silences. "Well, my brother, he," He rubbed his face, as if he might not know how to put this. Or maybe he was debating how much he should tell you. "He's got a facial deformity. Wears a mask to cover it up. Bit of a freak. Might scare a little lady like yourself." He said with a laugh, looking as though he expected you to laugh with him. You didn't. You didn't like the use of that word, but you didn't say anything and waited for him to get to the point. "Anyways, he can't speak too good because of it. Since you said you wouldn't be able to pay for your car, do you think you could teach him?" He adjusted his stance, and the look he gave you already told you that he expected you to accept. Truthfully, you couldn't find a single reason as to why you'd refuse.

"Of course. I've- I've taught adults, and I'll try to teach him as much as I can before I leave. And, well, you'll probably need to take lessons too so you can understand him." And Bo nodded along with that, even if he looked away and seemed reluctant with the idea. He didn't seem like the type to particularly enjoy school, but he agreed nonetheless.

"Sure, sure. Well, we can start tomorrow if that's alright with you." And you gave him a nod. It seemed like the best idea to you too. "Alright, well, if you don't need anything else then let's go." He said, rapping his knuckles against the hood of the car and passing the bag of chips back to you. You threw it back into your car, before you were shutting the door. As the pair of you each walked to your respective sides, he asked, "You hungry?" And after you replied,

"I could eat." It didn't take long for the pair of you to decide to get something for dinner. It'd been about a fifteen minute drive, and, even if it wasn't the town you were moving into, you were still nervous about the potential idea of your ex finding you. So, you stuck to Bo like glue, practically hiding behind him every time you saw someone who looked a little too much like your ex. You'd gotten a couple of pizzas. By a couple, you meant that you'd gotten three large pies. At first, you didn't even know how the two of you were supposed to finish them until you went back to Bo's house and watched him devour over half a pizza by himself. You'd eaten two slices, and you almost thought that Bo would've finished yours as well if you hadn't been there. The pair of you had been watching TV, eating, drinking, and waiting for Lester to return. It took less than an hour for his truck to pull up, your storage unit attached to it. Lester walked inside the place like he lived there, and Bo simply said,

"There's pizza in the kitchen." Before Lester was heading that direction. He came back with two slices on a plate, and suddenly the three pies made a little bit more sense. He sat in-between you and Bo and asked,

"What're we watchin'?" Right before he stuffed his face full of a slice. After a full episode of whatever Bo put on and several slices of pizza later, you figured there had to be some sort of relation between the two of them. Their mannerisms were too similar, and they were just too comfortable with eachother not to be related. You figured they were cousins, maybe even brothers. The thought of brothers brought the mysterious Vincent back into your mind, and you wondered where the third of their little family may be. Soon, Lester was wiping his face and asking, "So, do you need help unpacking?" And you realized that you hadn't talked about your sleeping arrangements yet.

"Oh, do you have a guest bedroom?" You asked, but Bo shook his head as he pried a beer bottle from his lips.

"Nah, you'll take Vincent's room." And you were flustered by the bluntness of the statement. You quickly shook your hand out in front of you, saying,

"Oh, I couldn't." Earning a glance from the brunette. With the way he looked at you, you guessed he wasn't used to being argued with. Quickly, you explained. "I mean, won't Vincent mind?" Being in his house, taking his room. You knew you would. Bo chuckled, seeming amused by your statement.

"He won't. He barely uses it." And you bit your lip. You looked between the two of them, before giving Lester a shrug.

"Sure then." You said, and Lester took your plate to take to the kitchen after giving you a smile. You'd only needed one of your suitcases, really, but you searched for a box to carry to make yourself feel a little less bad about Lester carrying the suitcase. You heard the door open, and Bo announced that he was gonna head down to town to finish up some things. You'd watched him leave for a moment, before you went back into the unit and found the box you were looking for. 

You didn't know how long you were going to be in Ambrose, and you didn't imagine there'd be much space in Vincent's room. But, as Bo had eluded, it was practically empty. There was a dresser, a pre-made bed, a bedside table, a mirror on the wall, a rug on the floor, and that was about it. Lester had carried your suitcase for you, and you set your backpack on the bed. You looked over at him, telling him, 

"The bed is fine." And you watched as he lifted it up onto the bed. You opened the box, revealing the contents inside. It was mostly books and folders, but there were two picture frames inside. One was a family photo when you were young, one with both of your parents. The other was a more recent one of you and your sister. You didn't look at either of them long, and went to set them on the bedside table. Lester looked over your shoulder, glancing at the pictures. 

"That your sister?" He asked, and you gave him a nod as you went to unzip the suitcase. Luckily, you'd stored your unmentionables in the pocket on the top, so you didn't have to worry about Lester seeing anything you didn't want him to.

"Yeah. We were identical." You told him, and pulled out some of your shirts. You went to the dresser, pulling out a drawer. You weren't surprised when you saw it was empty, and you tucked your clothes inside. You knew Lester was just looking for a topic of conversation, but you didn't feel like lingering on your sister. So, instead, you asked, "Anything fun to do around here? The house of wax any good?" And you watched as he chuckled and nodded,

"Yeah, Vincent's a hell of an artist. It was our mothers originally though," And your ears perked at his words. So, they were related. He was biting at his nails, and you hummed. 

"I'll have to check it out- If that's alright with Vincent." You quickly added the last part. At this rate, you weren't sure Vincent was going to end up liking you. You didn't want to intrude any further. You turned your head for a second, hearing a creak of a floorboard. Lester, however, was quick to steal back your attention.

"Nah, Vincent won't mind." And your attention was stolen from the sound. You looked back at him, not quite sure if you wanted to take his word. You took out some of the books, placing them on top of the dresser. If not to just give yourself something to do. "That house of wax though, that was our mothers pride and joy. She had big ideas for this town." And you hummed. You bet that she did, but you guessed the same thing happened to Ambrose as every other small town. The interstate. You arranged your books on the dresser, a question burning in the back of your mind.

"Any idea when I'll meet him?" You asked, looking over your shoulder at the man. He grinned, chuckling to himself as his eyes flashed to the wall. Just for a moment, almost too quick for you to notice.

"Soon, you'll meet him soon." He'd said, and you found his words strangely cryptic. But, you resigned yourself to the fact that your first meeting probably wouldn't be until your first class. And, while you could've sworn you heard footsteps, you blamed that on your mind playing tricks on you. 

Seeing that you seemed to have everything handled, Lester excused himself. You'd invited him to the lessons before he left, and he'd accepted before he said goodnight. You'd smiled to yourself, hearing the door click as Lester shut the door behind him. You finished packing away your things, before you decided to shrug off your clothes and change into your pajamas. Even if your bedtime was far away, you thought you'd be more comfortable. You pulled your suitcase off the bed, kicking it under it before you climbed on top. It felt a little weird to be sitting on top of someone else's blanket and sheets, but you'd forgotten your set in your car. You pulled some of the folders out of the box, taking out the ones that were filled with the lesson plans for your adult class. All you really had to do was shorten the class size. You let your evening pass by as you began prepping for the next night.

[miguel-manbemel]

Roman’s Brightest Idea

It’s been ages since I wrote a story. But today I had an idea for a story full of angst, and then while I was writing it, I couldn’t help filling it with platonic logince, so here you have this short story and I hope you enjoy it.

INDEX POST

Roman was writing in his room, with his finest golden fountain pen. It had all started, as usual, from a little spark, but Roman saw from the beginning that this spark had potential and he decided to develop it into an idea for a story, and finally he stamped his seal on the last page, then put all the papers in a red velvet folder.

“I did it! This time I did it! This is the best work I’ve ever made in my life! This is my brightest creation!”

Roman started bopping and giggling, like he always did when he finished a work he was proud of, which tended to be the majority of works he finished. It was like, for a minute or so, he returned to his five year old self, who reacted the same way when he finished his first ever fairy tale.

“I can’t wait to show it to Thomas! He’s gonna love it!”

And so, Roman grabbed the red folder and sank out to the outer world, looking for Thomas. He found him in the bathroom, having a shower. It was noon and he had just woken up.

“Hi, Thomas!” Roman yelled

“Jeez!” Thomas screamed, startled “Oh, goodness gracious, Roman, don’t do that, you scared the heck out of me!”

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help myself, I’m overexcited!”

“Oh, is that so?” Thomas said while he turned the shower off, then grabbed a towel and got out.

“Yes, because, you see, I’ve got great news, I’ve got a new idea for a story that you…”

“Yes, that’s great and all, but could you talk to me about that later? It’s getting late and I’m still naked, and I still haven’t got my breakfast, then I gotta go to the office fast, I’ve got a meeting today.”

“But this story…” Roman said, his smile had left his face.

“Later, Roman, I promise. I’ve got a long day ahead of me, please try to cooperate with me, okay?”

With that, Thomas put his bathrobe on and headed to the bedroom to get dressed. Roman was left behind in the bathroom.

“Okay, Thomas, if you’re busy I won’t bother you now… I’ll try later.”

Roman sank down and returned to his room. He looked at the red velvet folder.

“Perhaps it’s not that good?” Roman pondered. “Maybe I need to give it some more time before I bother Thomas? He seemed pretty busy… But no, Roman, you gotta trust yourself a little bit. It was a real masterpiece and when Thomas sees it, he’ll agree too!”

Roman waited a few hours.

“I’m tired of waiting. Perhaps Thomas has finished his meeting already. Yep, I think it’s the time to show him my work. Let’s go.”

Roman sank down and he raised up… standing in the middle of the table right on Thomas’ meeting. Nobody seemed to see him except Thomas, who showed a face of horror.

“Whoops…” Roman said. “I guess it wasn’t over yet…”

“Are you okay, Thomas?” one of his team members said “You look concerned.”

“I… I have a little pain on my tummy, that’s all. I didn’t want to say anything to let him finish his exposition, but truth is I could use a little recess to use the bathroom, if it’s okay with you.”

“No, it’s totally fine, I think we all need a break, this meeting has gotten longer than expected.”

“Then it will be 15 minutes. See ya later guys.”

All the meeting members went out of the room.

“I’m sorry, Thomas, I thought…”

“Don’t ever do that again, Roman!” Thomas said with a voice of anger

“But I’ve been waiting all day and I wanted to show you this idea. I warrant you that it’s the best work you could…”

“It’s not the time for that, Roman! You can’t just pop up whenever you want without permission!”

“But this is…”

“Nothing warrants you the right to do that, Roman! If you continue like this, I’m gonna start to think that you’re not so different from Remus after all!”

“Wha…?” Roman face went ajar, his eyes immediately filled with tears.

“Now, go away, and don’t bother me for the rest of the day until I tell you you can come, is that clear? I wanna hear it from you.”

“It’s… it’s clear, Thomas…” a little sob interrupted the sentence but he managed to pronounce it with all the dignity he had left in him. “I won’t bother you anymore.”

“Good, now go. I have to go to the bathroom so that the others don’t suspect. Look what you’ve made me do, now the meeting’s gonna last forever. Go now!”

Roman sank down, then returned to his room. Now the tears were falling down his cheeks. He looked at the red velvet folder. He opened it in an explosion of anger, grabbed the pages and tore them to pieces while he yelled like a wounded beast, then he threw the pieces of paper to the floor and started crying on the table, sobbing so loudly that he caught Logan’s attention from his own room. Logan was repelled by feelings of that kind but still, he couldn’t help but worry about his friend and decided to check on him.

“Roman? What’s wrong, are you okay?”

“What… what do you want?” Roman said mid sobbing “Don’t you see it’s not the moment to bother me, Teach? Leave me alone!”

“I would, Roman, but logic tells me that if I did, that only would be bad for you. I may not be an expert of feelings, and I don’t know a lot of things in that field, but I know that you are my friend. You know you can count on me for anything you want, and I’d be glad to help you if I can.”

Roman looked at Logan, his eyes all red and his makeup all ruined. His face showed then a grimace of hurt as he opened his arms, inviting him to hold him in a hug. Logan hesitated for a second as he didn’t like that sort of affection, but Roman’s devastated face made him realize Roman needed it, so he just went next to Roman and held him tight. Logan could feel Roman’s tears soaking his shirt and the humid warmth of Roman’s breath after each sob muffled on his chest right on his necktie. It was an unpleasant sensation for him, more for the emotional charge that it had that communicated to him how broken Roman was, something he didn’t like to see at all, something that would have hurt him if, he thought, he had feelings like the others. He didn’t know why he had the need to do so, but Logan started petting Roman’s hair while Roman went on crying a river on him.

After a few minutes like this, Roman’s crying slowly started weakening and he finally calmed down. Still, he stood hugged to Roman for a few minutes more in silence, Logan still petting his hair. It was finally Logan who broke the silence.

“Are you okay now, Roman?”

Roman just nodded in silence, still reluctant to let go off Logan.

“Take all the time you need, then tell me what happened.”

Roman still stood hugged to Logan for five minutes. Then he finally let go.

“Thank you, Logan… oh, I’m so sorry, your shirt and necktie are soaking wet.”

“That’s not important, but it tells me that you have lost a lot of hydration, so here…” Logan invoked a bottle of water and gave it to Roman “drink some water, you need it and it will make you feel better.”

Roman started drinking. He really was thirsty as he finished the whole 24 ounces of water in no time.

“Want some more?”

“No, it’s fine. Thank you, Logan.”

“Now tell me calmly and slowly everything that happened, Roman.”

Roman proceeded to tell him how the day was for him. Logan listened to the whole story without interrupting him, focusing all his attention on Roman.

“...and then you arrived” said Roman, finishing the story.

“I see…” Logan said pensively “I can understand Thomas’ reaction to some extent, but I’m sure he didn’t mean to be so nasty to you, Roman. I’d say that you startled him so bad he acted out of instinct, in fear. It was just bad luck and bad timing, that’s all.

“I’m not so sure… Thomas hates me, especially after my appearance in the meeting.”

“I strongly disagree, I don’t think Thomas hates you, Roman. I’m sure under other circumstances, he would have loved to see your story. Thomas has always loved those worlds of fiction you invented for him. Even if I never fully understood them, I knew they made him happy and that was enough for me to approve your labor. You just caught him busy and stressed out, that’s all. And we all say things when we’re angry we regret later.”

“Have you ever been angry in your life, Logan? I thought…”

“Who hasn’t been angry at some point in his life, Roman? No matter if it’s for something that happened to us or something that happened to others or in the world, everyone experiences anger from time to time, it’s as natural as breathing. But anger always calms down and allows us to judge things more calmly. I’m sure Thomas will have that time to ponder what happened and he’ll come to you.”

“Do you think so?” Roman said, then he noticed the floor all full of pieces of papers “Oh, look at what I’ve done… my story idea is all ruined. Now Thomas will never see it…”

“Can’t you rewrite it all again?”

“No, I don’t think so. Once I put an idea into paper, it’s like waking up from a dream, I forget most of it. I could try to rebuild it from the pieces, but it would never be the same.”

“I can help you pick up the papers and maybe from the little pieces…”

“I don’t know, it would take forever and Thomas cannot stay that long without a story idea.”

Thomas rises up in Roman’s room.

“There you are, Roman!” Thomas said.

“Thomas? What… what are you doing here?”

“I’m so sorry, Roman. I couldn’t stop thinking about how I treated you all day during and after the meeting. I hope you can forgive me.”

“It’s okay, Thomas. It was my fault for appearing so suddenly. I thought you had finished the meeting but I was wrong. I apologize too.”

“Well, now I’m totally free for you and I can see that bright creation of yours, if you still want me to.”

“If I still want you to? Nothing would have made me happier, Thomas. Unfortunately, it’s too late…”

“Why, where is it?”

“You’re standing over it.”

Thomas looked at his feet, saw all the pieces of paper and understood.

“Oh, Roman, I’m so sorry… But maybe we can fix it.”

“We could try, but it would take forever and it would never look the same as it was when I first created it. I don’t know if it’s worth the time to try.”

“Yes, it probably would never look the same… but it could look even better than before. Let’s pick up the pieces and get everything we can from them. You are Creativity, you’re not gonna get scared by a little hard work, do you?”

“Of course I won’t. I’ll do my best to reconstruct the idea if you want me to, Thomas.”

“And we’ll recruit the help from everyone, that way we’ll finish it faster, and maybe everyone could give their contributions. It can be a fun task for the rest of the day, okay?”

“Okay, Thomas. I’ll do my best.”

Thomas gave Roman a short but very tight hug that pleased Roman, then called the others. It took a few hours, but everyone together managed to pick up all the pieces, reorder everything they could and, filling the gaps with everyone’s ideas, they managed to create a story that would eventually become one of Thomas’ most viewed and acclaimed videos ever, something Roman would always be proud of, especially because he had the chance to create it with the help of all his friends and that made that his most cherished creation of all.

[mrs-daddyissues]

considerably

~ C H A P T E R  I ~

~ Masterlist ~

Pairing: Alfred Pennyworth x OFC

Series Summary: Sarabi Nichols is Bruce Wayne’s life long friend that aids in creating weaponry and making outfits. When she was younger she had a thing for Bruce but now her taste has aged. Considerably. Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce’s guardian and butler is more her style now. Despite this knew found liking, Sarabi feels trapped. She can’t talk to Bruce about it and clearly can’t mention it to Alfred. The only person she has is her best friend, Claudia. Sarabi has to fight the things she feels for the older man because he could never feel the same way back, right? 

{Normal} Playlist

{Slowed+Reverb} Playlist

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of kissing

Word Count: 1475

Author’s Note: 

I apologise that this part is kinda boring. This bit is mostly expositional, so you guys know what’s going on. I promise the rest of the chapters will not be like this.

The trees passed by in quick succession. Each tree made up of bright green leaves covering the sky from the road like a blanket. 

Though she had been up this way many times before, the serenity and peace she felt at the sight of the trees was surreal. 

Sarabi Nichols had spent the past 12 months discovering the beauty of Europe. She went to Italy, France, England, Spain and Switzerland. She flew 1st class, stayed in boujee hotels and got all the best treatment because of her life long friend Bruce Wayne. 

Bruce insisted on paying for everything no matter how big it was. With his billionaire status, it seemed like nothing. He knew Sarabi was stressed and needed time off, so he gave it to her in the only way he knew how. With luxury and in expense. 

Despite loving the stunning aesthetics of Europe, she missed Gotham. She missed Bruce, she missed Claudia, she missed Alfred and she missed her home, 

Sarabi had lived with Bruce for as long as she could remember. When Sarabi was only 6 her parents were killed by the infamous Clown Prince of Crime, Joker and left her as an orphan. She hated foster homes so she broke out and lived on the streets of Gotham. 

Bruce came into contact with her when she attempted to steal from his house at the age of 13. He took pity on her and adopted her. Even though he is about 15 years older than her, she saw him as a friend rather than a father.

Sarabi had to admit to herself that she used to have a little crush on Bruce. She knew it wasn’t just because of his money or good looks, it was because he saved her life. If he hadn’t taken her in then it’s possible she’d be dead on the streets or worse rotting alive. 

The crush never turned into anything. They kissed once when she was about 20 and Sarabi loved it. She had never kissed anyone and to her, it was the best thing she’d ever experienced. She didn’t feel any fireworks like her bestie Claudia said there would be but she felt warm. Claudia advised her that no fireworks or sparks meant no connection. Though the comment hurt, it slowly registered with Sarabi. 

She loved Bruce but not like that.

Claudia Flynn was her only friend other than Bruce and Alfred. Claudia was the most optimistic, joyful person Sarabi had ever met. There was never a dull moment with her. Claudia was supportive of everything Sarabi did but also told her when something wasn’t a good idea, like with Bruce. Claudia was outspoken, confident but also encouraging. 

Her other friend was Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce’s butler and weapons maker. Sarabi spent most of her working time with Alfred in the Bat Cave making weapons and such. Alfred was catty and opinionated but sure as hell funny when he made fun of Bruce. He usually muttered things under his breath and the British man helped get the jobs done quicker. He was also a gentleman always holding the door open for her and making her tea. She and Alfred got along perfectly. They talked pleasantly while they worked and made jokes about anything and everything, especially when those jokes were about Bruce.

All of these thoughts filled her head and before she knew it, Sarabi was at Wayne Manor’s gates. As soon as her driver made it to the front door Bruce came running out with Claudia at his heels. 

“Sarab! I’ve missed you so much!” Claudia pushed Bruce out of the way and threw her arms around Sarabi. 

“I missed you too but you didn’t have to push Bruce like that,” Sarabi wrapped her arms around Claudia’s neck as she attempted to grab her luggage bag. 

“He can handle it,” Claudia retorted with a smirk and Bruce feigned hurt.

“No Claudia that hurt,” Bruce pouted his bottom lip and Sarabi chuckled.

“Suck it up you little bitch,” Claudia let go of Sarabi and grabbed her backpack.

“Wow, that hurts my feelings,” Bruce stalked his way to Sarabi, still holding a shit-eating grin. He wrapped his burly arms around Sarabi and squeezed her tight.

“I miss you, Sarabi,” Bruce let go and picked up the rest of her bags.

“Thank you, Bruce. My own superhero,” Sarabi and Bruce laughed at the inside joke as Claudia looked on perplexed. 

The three walked Sarabi’s stuff up to the front door that was being held open by none other than Alfred Pennyworth. 

“Miss Nichols, welcome back,” Alfred greeted in his suave, British accent. Sarabi looked up and felt her stomach flutter. It was a strange feeling, one she had never felt before but it was good. She had never denied that his voice had always echoed through her head. It was just so perfect. It was charismatic but mysterious. A new thought popped into her head about Alfred but she pushed it out immediately, hoping her cheeks didn’t flush.

“Alfred how many times do I have to tell you, just call be Sarabi like everyone else,” Sarabi composed herself and watched the older man’s lips curl into a smile.

“Well, I am not like everyone else, Miss Nichols,” Alfred closed the door behind the trio and led the way to the kitchen.

“That is for sure,” Bruce commented and everybody laughed.

The rest of the night was spent by the fireplace catching up. Alfred constantly brought in wine and food whenever one of them wanted it. Claudia drank any alcohol offered while Sarabi was cautious. 

“Claudia, slow down,” Sarabi grabbed the shot out of her hand and placed it on the floor.

“You’re not my mother,” Claudia snatched it back and downed it quickly.

“You’re such a fucking child,” Sarabi rolled her eyes and sipped her beer.

“You two done arguing?” Bruce called from the kitchen as he grabbed another bottle of Jack.

“Possibly,” Claudia and Sarabi fell against each other in a fit of giggles. Claudia snorted on accident and they cackled louder. 

“Master Wayne? Do you want me to set up the guest room for Miss Flynn?” Alfred also kept a close eye on the group to make sure they didn’t set the place on fire.

“Yes Alfred, thanks,” Bruce walked back into the kitchen with the bottle of jack and Alfred rolled his eyes.

“Better get the Advil ready for tomorrow morning too,” Alfred whispered to himself as he walked off to ready the guest bedroom.

“Got some more to go around but not for you, Claudia. You’ve had enough,” Bruce poured himself and Sarabi a drink, watching as Claudia angrily sipped her wine.

“I would like some please,” Claudia quickly grabbed the bottle and drank straight from it. 

“Claudia! For fuck’s sake! You’re gonna be vomiting all night!” Sarabi pulled the bottle from Claudia’s mouth as Claudia tried to grab it back.

“No, that’s enough,” Bruce pulled Claudia back to a sitting position and watched her eyes flutter closed.

“I’m gonna have a small nap,” Claudia closed her eyes and Sarabi and Bruce withheld their laughter as she flopped on the ground like a fish out of water.

“Alfred!” Bruce shouted as quietly as possibly. Sarabi marvelled as Alfred practically appeared out of nowhere. 

“Yes, Master Wayne?” Alfred was clearly annoyed by their antics and just wanted to sleep.

“Can you help me carry Claudia up to the guest room?” Bruce grasped onto Claudia’s hands and beckoned for Alfred to move closer.

“Aren’t you the superhero?” The British man mumbled loud enough for them to hear.

“Yes and weren’t you an SAS soldier?” Bruce rebutted as he grabbed her hands and Alfred grabbed her legs.

“Yes like 30 years ago,” Alfred and Bruce hoisted her up and Sarabi snickered at Claudia’ swaying form.

Bruce was back pretty quickly with an annoyed Alfred.

“Anything else, Master Wayne?” Alfred breathed a sigh of relief when Bruce answered no.

“Goodnight Master Wayne, goodnight Miss Nichols and welcome back,” Alfred bowed lightly and walked off.

“Goodnight Alfred,” Sarabi waved as he strutted off.

“How has Gotham been, Bruce?” Sarabi asked in the light of the fire.

“As bad as ever. There seems to be way too many criminals these days,” Sarabi frowned as she noticed Bruce’s tired eyes.

“Well if all else fails, you have Claudia to be your trusty sidekick,” Sarabi raised her eyebrows in a goofy manner and was thankful that Bruce laughed.

“I guess she could scare the men away,” Bruce shook his head as he laughed.

“She scares everyone away,” Sarabi rested her head on Bruce’s large shoulder and felt herself fall asleep.

“Night, Brucey,” Sarabi quipped as her eyes closed.

“Night, Sarbi,” Bruce placed his arm on her shoulder delicately and the two of them fell asleep, curled up in each other’s arms.

<<INTRODUCTION<<  ~ ~ ~  >>CHAPTER 2>>

[republiccommando1138]

Separatory Funnel

Here’s my 2020 Portal Secret Santa for @artistyutaki, she offered a few prompts but one that I thought was interesting was Chell and GLaDOS/PotatOS hiding from Wheatley in the later chapters of Portal 2. I thought I might as well tie it into some of Chell’s thoughts about the ordeal, while also showing what Wheatley’s up to. I also noticed she was interested in the idea of computer gore, with plates and cables all over the place, so I tried to incorporate a bit of that in as well. I also threw in a tiny nod to Mel and Blue Sky since she mentioned she’s a Blue Sky fan. So this ended up being longer than I thought, and it’s my first time writing a proper fanfic of sorts, but I really hope you like this! I had a great time making it!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This was not the best place to be in right now. 

Not that it ever was down here, but where Chell was at this exact moment was especially not great. She didn’t complain though, it could always get worse. Actually, it usually did get worse, especially right about when she would wonder if it ever could. Perhaps it was best not to ask that question right about now. Sure, she had just fallen from a deactivated funnel and landed in a dark office whose only door was blocked by overturned desks, monitors, and furniture, which happened to be heavy enough that it’d be a pain in the back to move but for whatever reason the Portal Gun didn’t want to pick up. On the bright side, at least she didn’t fall all the way back down to the 1950s again.

Realistically though, knowing Aperture, it was bound to get worse no matter what she did. If even superstition was anywhere near reliable at this point, it would have been an improvement compared to everything else in this insane complex that somehow had only gotten stranger and more… alien-like, almost, after its founder had died of moon rock poisoning. At least the idea of a set of metal underground spheres laced with asbestos and full of half finished test chambers, the brainchild of a man proudly named Cave, was somewhat navegable. There was an understanding that if one were to see some place and travel far enough in that direction, they would eventually get to that place. If that place moved downwards in freefall, it would be because of the design of the facility, not some sarcastic supercomputer trying to keep her testing while calling her fat.

This bundle of desks, chairs and monitors was somehow all tangled up, with the wires going all over the place. It looked like she would have to either pull the whole thing at once or remove each one separately.

The recordings she heard from Cave Johnson painted a general picture, though they didn’t get awfully specific. But seeing as ground up moon rocks were all the rage down here back in those days, and hearing Cave coughing while ranting about lemons for some reason, it wasn’t difficult for her to figure out exactly how they managed to finally bring down the founder of Aperture. The real surprise? That somehow every other employee at Aperture hadn’t inhaled the stuff and keeled over. It had to have been a possibility, as there was no way that anyone smart enough to work a portal gun would have taken it upon themselves to design any part of this place without being crazy enough to consider the idea. 

This table was a lot heavier than it looked. Hopefully she could fold it over. It wasn’t exactly easy to see the parts that let the table fold on itself when it was this dark.

Could she have been one of those scientists? Chell couldn’t remember anything about herself before waking up under Her testing course, however long ago that was, or whether she was actually adopted, like every personality construct in this place seemed to think was a big deal. Any attempt at figuring out how she got down here would have to be based on guesswork. She was a test subject, which made her a likely employee at some point, though if Her insults were anything to go by, she was only a part time employee. Not committed to this job, just doing it on the side to make ends meet.

She finally managed to fold the damn table, and began to drag it out of the way.

At least that meant she wasn’t some Olympian from the 60s who got tricked into going here. Or a homeless person that got plucked off the streets of some town in Upper Michigan all for the promises of $60 at the end. She wasn’t sure how much that would be in today’s money, but wasn’t about to get optimistic. The real downside to it all was that she never would be able to figure it out. She didn’t even know how long it had been other than that it was long enough to concern Wheatley about brain damage, and even if there were information available about her and why she was here to begin with, she didn’t want to go out of her way to find it. Her main goal was getting out of here as quickly as possible, so there was no time for expositional detours. 

At most, she could stumble upon her backstory without looking for it. Figuring out what happened to Caroline was enough for one day, or however long it had been since she had last gotten some sleep. Besides, it would probably be a huge letdown anyway. Maybe she really was adopted after her birth parents considered her completely unlikeable even as a baby. Maybe her last name was something boring, like Smith. Or Jones. Maybe her name wasn’t even Chell at all. But hey, at least it wasn’t Cave. Hopefully.

Of course, she could just ask the supercomputer turned potato battery where she came from. Yes, that would be a great idea, confiding in who up until recently was her own worst enemy about a detail that She had constantly made fun of. She definitely wouldn’t take advantage of that fact and tell her all about how little Miss Chell SmithJonesWhatever couldn’t hold a single job until she came here because everyone hated her. They seemed to be on good terms now, but she wasn’t going to risk jinxing herself. Besides, she had a rule. No talking in Aperture. Nothing that any AI said was ever worth a response. 

So the lights didn’t work in this room anymore. Phenomenal.

Regardless, even though it still didn’t explain whether she was one of the employees, part time, or otherwise, who might have almost inhaled ground up rocks that cost anywhere from a TV to a house - she wasn’t about to do the math to figure anything more precise than that - it was at least clear that she had made it into Aperture under vaguely legitimate pretenses, and that they considered her smart enough to get her hands on a machine that, in the right hands, could’ve solved the world’s climate crisis by generating free energy. It was damning with faint praise.

Which just so happened to summarize the remarks from her semi edible companion. Not directed at her, for once, rather the situation at hand. Neither one of them were the most frequent of talkers, but She was more willing to comment on the situation. Funny enough, once they happened to agree with each other, Chell could reasonably rely on her as somewhat of a spokesperson. 

“After seeing what he's done to my facility, after we take over again, is it alright if I kill him?” 

Chell looked over at the glowing yellow circle, the only part of Her she could actually make out in the darkness of the room, and could only shrug her shoulders. Do whatever you want, she would have said. Frankly, as much as the two had been getting along, Chell wasn’t about to act like this was some new found friendship between the two. As far as she was concerned, the facility deserved to explode in a mushroom cloud with a giant blast radius. The bigger the better. If she was lucky, it would kill Her, Wheatley, and every other personality construct. Just as long as she wasn’t there for it. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Since he was connected to the mainframe, Wheatley had been trying to figure out how to work this new body. Now that his only test subject was missing, admittedly due to a mistake on his part, he could explore further. There had to at least be some way to hack the solution euphoria program. But until then, the next order of business was to redesign his lair to his own liking. Not too bad a job She did, but it didn’t quite have the Wheatley style to it. Needed a bit more work. Namely, getting rid of that stalemate button. No way that could remain. 

“Right, so, asking the announcer... voice... guy... didn’t seem to do anything.” He said out loud, “Guess he didn’t quite understand what I was getting at. Hmm, wait a minute, maybe if I go and change this setting, then- Это программное обеспечение повреждено. Удалите его и обратитесь к администратору. Aaaand, nope, still there. Hasn’t even budged a little bit. Guess that didn’t work.”

He then remembered the complexities of hacking the neurotoxin emitters and thought he might start there. “Oh, um hello, Mister button, there.” He said in an accent beyond the rage of any human’s hearing, “I’m a representative of the mechanical parts… association, and we are inviting you to a… convention! Yes, a convention, with all sorts of members, cubes, turrets, even other buttons! And we’d like to invite you! Full expenses paid, shuttle bus straight there to the convention. And there’s going to be a whole panel on buttons! Who knows, they might even have you as a guest speaker! All you have to do is head straight down to the lowest part of the facility! That’s where the bus is! Just head on down there and you’re good to go!”

The button didn’t budge. 

“Not one for conventions I guess? Perhaps you’re more of an introverted sort of button. Doesn’t mind being pressed but also fine with staying where he is.”

Wheatley, being the genius he knew he was, figured he ought to look in the old tapes to see what Her old room looked like. Ever since She had been killed, the facility had been in some disarray, of that much Wheatley was well aware. The relaxation center had taken a hit, for sure, and it seemed the rest of the facility was none the better. Wheatley wondered how long it had been, and though he probably could have figured it out, this new interface wasn’t exactly what he would have considered user friendly. 

Come to think of it, he could figure out a few things at once by going through the recordings. For one, he could figure out what Her old room looked like and what She had done about this pesky little button. Or more interestingly, how her whole room got destroyed just from being shut down, that was always a mystery there. 

All he could find were tapes, and they didn’t seem too promising. Just video feeds of the room, none of which showed if the button was there at all or what she had done with it. Maybe skipping around a bit would work, perhaps it would show something. Nothing so far…

Wait a minute now, here were the tapes of when She was killed. Yes, this was definitely the same test subject all right. Silent as always, she was. Maybe her brain damage was pre-existing.

Well this was concerning. Neither neurotoxin nor the built in rocket turret defense station was enough to even faze her. All that nameless lunatic needed were a couple of seemingly easy portals and in less than the required six minutes She was dead. 

If that silent test subject was still alive, she could find any flaw in his lair design and it’d be bye bye Wheatley. 

First immediate order of business, no portal surfaces anywhere in the lair. That shouldn’t be too hard, just meant he would have to move some panels around. There, piece of cake, only a few panels detached and falling off. That was probably normal.

“Right, no portal surfaces anywhere. Check that off the list. Ding! Next we can- OW! Great, another panel just went and fell right out of the ceiling. Hit me right in the… to be honest I’m not sure what this part of me even is. Doesn’t really look like it does anything useful. Tell you what, how about I take this part off, don’t really need it do we? Won’t be hurting anymore, I imagine. Here we go, unscrewing… and done!”

The offending plate came off of his right side, pulling down several attached cables right out of their sockets, leaving them to dangle around and coil around the floor like snakes. Snakes that occasionally gave out electrical sparks. That probably existed somewhere in nature. Electric snakes. Maybe unicrons ate them. Wheatley made a mental note to look that up, right after learning how to play cards. 

“OK, wow that was actually pretty painful. Guess they don’t simulate any anaesthetic in this thing. Aaand now the lights are flickering on and off. Those are the lights, right? The flashlight doesn’t seem to be helping, so maybe I killed that too. That’s probably normal. Happens sometimes. That’ll probably fix itself.”

In the meantime, he at least had time to see what else was in Her old archives. Maybe there was a guide to fixing whatever was going on. Nope, nothing there. He did find an old security protocol system. Aperture Employee Guardian and Intrusion System, it was called. Interesting, that could help make sure she never got anywhere near his lair. Wait, no, that system was shut down locally. Before She went back online even. Odd, not clear who did that. What else was there… Oh, hang on a minute. The Cooperative Testing Initiative. That sounded useful. Wheatley kept reading. 

Yes, these two little bots seemed to be the fix for everything. As soon as he could he had one of each type assembled and sent straight up to his lair. 

“Hello! Right, so I understand you guys are built for testing, and what have you. So, I have selected you two to be my next testers. I need a few favors from you two though. See those cables down there? The ones that are kind of sparking there a bit? Those? Yeah, ever since I unhooked those, the lights have been flickering on and off.”

Blue looked at Orange, somewhat confused.

“You guys don’t see it? Wait, it just happened again real quick right there.”

Orange shook its head.

“So that might just be my optic sputtering out then. Yeah, that’s not great. Either way, I need you guys to try and get those back into me so I can see again. Now you might be wondering why I can’t just use those grabbers of mine and do it myself? Turns out, if I ever try to fix myself without someone else to help out, I’ll die. So you guys will have to do it for me.”

They both suddenly appeared nervous, and Blue slowly approached the bundle of wires. They sent out a spark and they both flinched. Upon reaching the wire, Blue picked up the first one, which went back in without a hitch. The second one was still going through the exterior plate that Wheatley had just unscrewed off. Pulling it as hard as possible didn’t work. Orange, annoyed, went up and pushed Blue out of the way, then slowly pulled out the cable and stuck it back in. By now the flickering was still happening, but only in randomly appearing colors.

“Great! OK now just one more to go! Home stretch!”

Orange was ready to pick up the last cable, but Blue, unrelenting, snatched it out of Orange’s grasp, and emphatically plugged it in. And then the flickering stopped.

“You did it! Bingo! Oh, man alive, that’s much better. Aaand now it seems you guys are knocking each other’s heads out of their… socket, things, whatever they’re called. Not really getting anything productive out of that, besides I kinda need you guys for something else.”

Neither Blue nor Orange were hearing it though. Once they had decided to play the classic game of Knock the Other Bot’s Head Off, there was little that could stop the competition. For personality constructs designed to get along, they did this a lot.

“Ahem, knock knock, anybody there?!”

It was getting heated. Now Blue was running around with Orange’s head, Orange’s body trying to chase after it but only managing to flail around miserably due to lack of eyes.

“ENOUGH!”

Wheatley hadn’t had an outburst like that in a while. It was a little easier when his only test subject and her potato weren’t driving him up the wall smashing his monitors and not giving him the relief when he wanted it. But the lack of test solution euphoria was starting to make its presence known once more, and it made him impatient as ever. Both bots stopped to look over, then Orange snatched its head and put it back on, glancing angrily at Blue.

“You know, there are bots in orphanages that don't even have heads to steal. Maybe think about how lucky you two are and stop fiddling around like that, yeah?”

They both looked at each other, shrugged the mechanical equivalent of their shoulders and gave each other a quick hug. Wheatley didn’t understand how they could forgive each other so quickly, but he wasn't about to object.

“Right, so, what I need you guys to do is see if we can find any neurotoxin reserves. Ever since I hacked the main factory, genius, I know; we haven’t had any neurotoxin to dispense. So I’m building you a testing course that should lead to where the neurotoxin facility was to see if you can find any clues. Alright, Go team!”

Several panels cleared out of the way to reveal two elevators facing each other, one blue and one orange. The bots looked at each other before taking off and heading to the disassembly machines. In less than a minute they had reached the first test, a simple introductory course with a laser and a redirection cube. And no test of Wheatley’s would be complete without his signature, the word TEST written in lights on the wall. 

These two were smart enough to have figured out how to solve it rather quickly, and Wheatley immediately felt the rush of solution euphoria. Whether it was the amount of time since he had last felt it or because he was testing new subjects, this felt much better than the last few tests he had gotten his other subject to try. Now he could focus on the text task, seeing if there was a trap he could build, just in case those two weren’t dead. Getting rid of the button would have to wait. Maybe if they found some turrets or explosives to keep anyone from reaching it, that could work as a solution. For a little while at least.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Having cleared out all the tables, chairs, and any other debris lying around in what was once an office, Chell could finally get through to the other side and out the door. And the potato on her gun had done a great job at keeping her company. 

“Oh good, now we can get going again. Maybe we can find a way out of here.”

Chell picked up the portal gun and made her way out of the office. To her disappointment, the walkway just led down to the entryway to another test.

“Great, it looks like we’ll need to keep testing a little while longer. And I’m not sure we have that much more time left. Look on the bright side though. Maybe we’ll get to see more of that moron’s inventions. Maybe he’s gotten so desperate he’ll have tried to fuse a turret with a redirection cube and give it laser eyes.”

Chell couldn’t help but smile a bit at that. She resented that Wheatley had become like this, and somewhat missed him in a way, but it was nice to occasionally poke fun at his less than amazing intelligence.

“If a defective turret and a pile of trash had a baby, he would make an excellent pet for that baby.”

Chell’s smile grew slightly bigger and she chuckled silently. It was kind of nice to hear Her jokes while not also being the recipient. The classic insults thrown her way, that she was fat, adopted, unlikeable; those didn’t work on her at all. But they were at least well crafted, almost stand-up quality, though she never would have admitted that. Despite being a murderous former supercomputer with zero conscience up until this point, she did have a bit of a knack for humor. Chell would at least miss that when she left this place.

This was the end of the walkway, and Chell jumped down; her testing break was over. It was going to get tough before she finally did make it out of here.

[philomaela]

I recently read “The Viking Hostage” by Tracey Warr and it proved to be a breath of fresh air in my adventures of Viking Age historical fiction... mainly because this book was set in France and Wales rather than the usual stomping grounds of England or Iceland.

The story mainly concerns 3 women, Adalmode (daughter of the viscount of Limoges), Aina (heiress of Segur) and Sigrid (a pagan slave who serves Aina’s family). The story tracks their intertwined adventures, as they navigate the political struggles and harsh norms of the society they live in.

I’m not entirely sure whether to recommend this novel or not. I would say that I liked most of it, some of it I definitely found refreshing and unique compared to the other books I’ve read in this list so far. However I’m not sure if that means that everyone will enjoy it... perhaps I should say that it’s worth checking out?

Okay, onto the review which I will try to keep spoiler free:

So, I really enjoyed getting a historical fiction novel that explored medieval France, it was interesting reading about the power struggles of Aquitaine and Wales to a lesser extent and I actually enjoyed how much exposition there was about who was gaining power in what region, even when it sometimes felt somewhat unneeded for the plot at hand. It was just refreshing to hear about a bunch of dudes named Guillaume and Louis rather than a bunch of Athelstans lol. I also liked how the Welsh characters were humanized and given personalities, because I feel like in my reading... whenever I read stories that take place in England, the Welsh and the Scottish people... they’re almost treated like stock vikings are in other media? Like, these books are working so hard to make sure people know that these Vikings are well-rounded characters who don’t conform to the “stereotypical viking” and then they go and decide to be like... well here are these stock Welsh and Scottish villains (not even really villains since the focus is on them as a group rather than any individual) who have no personality and no voice in a lot of cases. So to have a book discuss Welsh politics and have our characters interact with Welsh characters in a relatively meaningful way was nice imo.

As far as the characters go, I really enjoyed Sigrid and Aina and their relationship. Sigrid is a completely original character so the author uses her to explore some really interesting details. Sigrid was made a slave at a point in time when Christians were discouraged from buying other Christians as slaves, so when she bought by Aina’s family, the family initially thinks that they can just convert her and free her that way, but Sigrid doesn’t want to give up her faith.

I also really liked the interplay of Sigrid and Aina’s personalities because Aina is portrayed as... I don’t want to say a selfish character, because I don’t think her desires are necessarily selfish, but she never thinks about the potential ramifications of her actions. This extends to actions that have negative ramifications for the people she loves and I think what’s interesting about it is that the story allows her to be uncompromising, but you never doubt how much she and Sigrid love each other and always want to be together and take care of each other.

Guy, Adalmode’s brother and Aina’s betrothed, is also an interesting character. He’s portrayed as very politically competent and intelligent, but he’s very nearsighted to the point where he struggles with every day tasks and especially things like swordfighting, which is expected of him as a future viscount. He goes through a lot of effort to try and hide his nearsightedness and compensate for it and prove that he’s  “worthy” in other ways.

Now, about the stuff that I didn’t like as much... notice how I haven’t talked about Adalmode yet? Yeah, I didn’t find her part of the story to be particularly satisfying. Her story is primarily about her romance with Audebert, the son of the count of La Marche, who she meets when he is first taken prisoner by her father. I was a little put off by the fact that they meet when Adalmode is twelve and Audebert is seventeen, and that it’s meant to spark this decade long love affair, but that didn’t even end up being my main issue with it. Like, I’ve read plenty of books where I’ve found the romance off-putting but I was still invested in the characters themselves, the problem was that the book didn’t seem entirely invested in Adalmode’s journey? I understand that she has a very internal journey, compared to Sigrid and Aina, but I think you still could have done more with her? As the story went on, she kind if disappears from the narrative, her chapters get smaller and it feels like we’re just watching her repeat over and over her how she feels about Audebert. It’s compounded by the fact that, we get a ton of PoV from Audebert and Guillaume, the future duke of Aquitaine, who takes up this sort of villainous rival role in the story, as a rival suitor for Adalmode’s hand. Guillaume and his mother, Emma of Blois, are portrayed as like so villainous and such caricatures that I was really tired of it because well... why are we hearing so much from them when we get so little from Adalmode? It felt very unbalanced and that threw me off a lot.

Also, just as a general critique, the story covers a lot of time and sometimes things get a bit blurry when we see whole years jump in the course of a single paragraph. 

I.... said I was hesitant to recommend this book and the funny thing is, my hesitation doesn’t actually come from the parts I disliked but from the parts I liked! I kept using the adjective “refreshing” when describing the parts I liked about this book and I think that kind of reveals a core issue, it’s refreshing because of all the books I’ve read previously, and I’m not entirely sure how it stands on its own? Thinking it over, I believe it’s a solid read, and you should check it out if you’re interested, it’s just... well keep in mind, you may not find it quite as exciting and enjoyable as I did lol.

[themasterisathirsttrap]

Preview/ For Putting Out Fire (With Gasoline) -

Missy x reader x eventual Silver!Simm x reader

Preview/General establishing plot for one of the upcoming stories --- Putting Out Fire (With Gasoline) --

((Title from the David Bowie Song- Cat People (Putting Out Fire) ))

Also unbeta-ed, and barely proofread, just wanted to crank something out, so there’s that.

From the first wry and sweetly uttered words proclaiming false innocence dropping from her lips when you stumbled upon her hidden prison, she without a doubt become one of the most interesting people you had ever met.

With the exception of the Doctor, that was. But even then, you couldn’t quite explain the silent, powerful magnetism that drew you to her in a way that had you returning to visit her regularly enough that it had become something of a routine.

Even more surprisingly, she seemed to tolerate your presence in a manner that had you both wary and secretly giddy.

Nice certainly wasn’t the right word for how she treated you, but she certainly played nice by comparison when you saw the ways she spoke with others and contrasted it to the cautiously curious conversations the two of you had.

Missy was an enigma.

A funny, terrifying, and beautiful enigma wrapped into the form of Mary Poppin’s evil alternate ego.

But damn was she fun.

And she might have noticed the ways your lips quirked upward into a smile at her jokes and passive jabs at the Doctor, or the way your gazes met when your eyes glimmered with curiosity at the rare story she’d share of her past.

“My whole life doesn’t revolve around you, Doctor.”

You remember her chiming in annoyance at the Doctor.

And the more you listened, the more convinced you were that what she said was true.

Not that you’d trust her not to lie.

No, you figured that even if the stories were all lies, she was at the very least the kind of storyteller that had you mindlessly grinning at her theatrical retellings, resting your head on you hands as you leaned towards her in your seat.

You couldn’t be sure that she liked you, given her open and frequently voiced distaste for humanity.

But at the very least, she didn’t seem want to kill you.

Regardless, she seemed to enjoy having an audience, and company not constantly berating her.

It came as a surprise when she even humored you about stories related to her past, you listened with genuine curiosity, watching as she’d place her hands on her hips and pace about her glass stage as if delivering a dramatic monologue to her audience of one.

The first time she opted to share, you approached it in a more back-and-forth, conversational manner, but the icy glare she shot you had your question dying in your throat. Moments like that reminded you of exactly who she was and what she was capable of.

You were quick to not repeat the mistake in front of the same woman who spoke of human deaths like swatting flies. She seemed pleased about that, and often shifted to this monologue-esque style of interaction when telling a story. Not that you minded, she had you engaged at  every lilt of her Scottish intonations and occasional break for dramatic pause.

Somewhere along the line, her voice became oddly soothing to you. Despite the frequent awful things she said and flippantly colorful descriptions of even seemingly ordinary things.

You your embarrassment, you even caught yourself watching with a tilted head and soft dopey smile on your face. Her amused short laugh and the feeling of her gaze suddenly on you had your face flushing red with embarrassment under her scrutinization.

“Enjoying yourself, are you? Or did your little human brain scurry off to a daydream in the middle of my story?” Missy teased, her hands on her hips with a click of her tongue.

You were quick to shake your head, the thought of even being anywhere but present in her company sounding ridiculous in your head. You weren’t sure if you had felt that way around anyone before.

To your silent dismay, but pushing those thoughts to the back of your head.

“Just listening,” you shot back dismissively, “You’re a good storyteller.”

You admitted honestly, shrugging to downplay the sentiment, but your eyes flashing to hers with a somewhat guilty smile.

Her eyes scanned over you for a moment in that way that made you feel both terrifyingly exposed and oddly thrilled.

“Hm. Well, don’t get too dreamy-eyed on me, pet.” She said, her body language easing as she seemed to accept your explanation. You kept your expression unchanged at her added endearment.

“Makes me feel like you’re not listening,” she added with an exaggeratedly sad expression, miming an invisible tear trailing down her cheek. Then she half-swung around, her skirts fanning with a flourish before taking a seat at the piano bench.

“Usually when people are properly listening to me, there’s a bit more fearthan dopey grins,” her tone was sickly sweet as she paused to idly examine her nails, “Perhaps I’ve been too soft. I’ll have to let you in on some more grizzly details of my….intergalactic exploits.” She added in a thoughtful voice and a dramatic sigh.

You fought the urge to roll your eyes at the act, but shook your head instead, looking to her with a challenging look, but otherwise not moving from your position.

“Or maybe it’s just not you. I don’t mind a little scary.”

Her act dropped and she looked to you suddenly with a sharp but quietly curious look. You took the bait and continued.

“I mean—it probably takes a probably takes a pretty strange human to come down here nearly daily and converse with someone who could easily kill them if the mood struck, wouldn’t it? Cl

“Well, you’re certainly either daft or insane. Haven’t quite decided which.”

“All I’m saying—is that maybe it’s not that you aren’t terrifying, but more that you stumbled upon someone just dumb or crazy enough to enjoy your sociopathic ramblings.”

You felt bold saying it, briefly fearing that you overstepped and let your tongue-and-cheek side out a little strong.

But, to your surprise, she suddenly threw her head back into a fit of laughter. The sound was infectious and you couldn’t help but let your own lips quirk back upward. She took her time regaining her composure, wiping away what might have been an actual stray tear of laugher.

“Oh. Well, At least you seem to have a some semblance of self-awareness lacking in most of your species.”

“Coming from you, I’ll take that as a complement,” you replied with an edge of wry amusement showing through.

“Don’t flatter yourself too much, pet. Just an observation.”

There it was again. You said nothing, but looked down and avoided her gaze as you felt her analyzing you.

You glanced at your phone and swore quietly at the time. You had spent far too long there.

Again.

You climbed to your feet, stretching the muscles the you hadn’t realized you had been tensing, and gathering your belongings.

“It’s late—I should get going,” you said, trying to dispel whatever effect she was having on you in your sudden urge to stay.

She turned away from you and hummed with a guarded indifference that you had come to recognize, but you hadn’t quite learned how to decipher.

The silence fell between the two of you until the sound of a shrill note on the piano jarred you enough to look up from your gathering of papers and notebooks. She didn’t look your way, but you caught the silhouette of her smile at your surprised jump. She comfortably fell into a melody that sounded vaguely familiar, but you didn’t know enough about classical music to bother a guess.

You thought she might continue to play without as much as a goodbye, as she often did in her attempt to make it clear that she didn’t enjoy your little visits as much as you did.

But maybe you were flattering yourself.

You needed to be a realist. Especially with her.

And especially with how uneasy your own muddled nonexistentfeelings where towards her.

You yawned, shaking the thoughts away as you realized just how tired and fatigued your muscles were from the long day of classes, staying up too late with Bill and the Doctor, and slipping away to sneak in some time with herbehind their backs.

To your surprise ,as you turned to leave, she chimed out.

“Now, don’t be be roped into some silly adventure do-gooder adventure with the Doctor tomorrow.”

You looked back at her in surprise.

“You’re particularly boring when you’re tired. I can’t have you too tired to listen attentively next time,” the shift in her voice took you off guard. Back to her guarded, colder tone, but with a playful edge.

“I don’t like other people playing with my toys.”

She shot you a wink and you quickly turned away to leave while giving a short nod. Your face flushed at the gesture.

No.

You weren’t developing feelings for her.

You couldn’t.

That would be ridiculous, and incredibly stupid.

But the memory of the uneasy fluttering in your stomach when she smiled at you tugged at your subconscious, and had to admit you had never really enjoyed hearing the sound of your own name as much as you did falling from her lips.

Oh Shit.

You had feelings for her.

- - -

Mostly exposition/ setup for the main story, but wanted to at least share some of it. 

Also starting a tag Master List for tagging the main story, I know I have a few names already, but let me know if you want to be on it!

[dreamcatcherfication]

The Queens of London Part 3 - My Loneliness is Killing Me

Hello hello hello! Chapter three has arrived, and boy does this one have some developments in it. (I say that like action happens. It doesn’t really). This chapter is mainly exposition and worldbuilding for you all, but there is some good drama throughout and some action in there. Sorry for any spelling/grammatical errors, my dog ate my chromebook.

Writing Masterpost

NOTE: I know historically that Katherine Brandon is Maria de Salinas’s daughter, but for the sake of this story we’re going to pretend that they aren’t related. Otherwise, it would cause a lot of plot holes with Maria’s involvement with the queens that’s just way too hard to work out for how the story is being written. 

If anyone wants to send in prompts or requests, my inbox is always open, I love hearing from you all! Here are some prompts and asks if you ever feel like dropping by:

Prompts | More Prompts | The Trifecta of Prompts | Random Asks

Trigger Warnings: Vague mentions of sexual abuse

Part 1 | Part 2

The Queens and their ladies sat around the table listening to what Jane and Joan had gathered on Kat. “She was very uncomfortable,” Jane noted.

“Especially when I called her Brandon,” Joan threw in. “This girl’s hiding something, the only problem is we don’t know what.”

Cathy twirled a pen in her fingers. “Well this certainly complicates things.”

“Why don’t we just confront her on it?” Anne asked.

Maggie nodded along with her. “She can’t lie to all of us.”

“No,” Aragon sighed, “that wouldn’t work. She’d get defensive. If nine suspicious women surrounded you and demanded the truth, would you confess?” Anne let her eyes fall as her suggestion was rejected.

“Why are we talking about Kat as if she’s already a criminal?” Anna asked from her chair. She was leaning on the arm and had her leg up at an angle, a stance she put on to suggest that she had little stake in the conversation. Really, the others knew Anna had a big heart and was willing to intervene on behalf of any of them.

“She’s right,” Jane agreed. “I can keep an eye on her, like you all suggested, but other than that, we leave it be. Kat looks properly like a kid, we shouldn’t treat her like a hardened criminal.”

Cathy sat up and reminded the group, “She does supposedly deal with the Black Market, though.”

“Yes, we can’t forget about that,” Maria affirmed.

Rubbing her forehead, Bessie stood up. “I usually just let you do your thing, but this is dragging on. Let me just do a quick synopsis and then we can go home, kay?” When there was no objection from any of the others, Bessie continued, “Okay. Katherine Brandon, well known for her popular record label and dealings with the Black Market, has never been seen in public. Apparently, that’s because she looks like a seventeen year old. Although we don’t officially know her age, something’s clearly wrong with this whole situation. What I believe we’re all thinking right now is that Katherine Brandon is an alias.”

“Exactly,” Joan pointed at Bessie. “She flinches every time we say her name. Normally I would suggest that means she isn’t Katherine Brandon, but there’s no way anyone else could have gotten ahold of that note. Besides, what random person opens an envelope not addressed to them?”

Agreeing with Joan, Bessie finished the basic rundown. “We can’t directly confront her on this suspicion, but we can have Jane keep an eye on her. There will be no stalking,” she said this directly in Anne’s direction. “And things will continue as planned. Sound good?”

There was unanimous agreement among the group as they disbanded the meeting. As everyone got up, Anne pulled Cathy to the side. “Hey, is it just me or is there something familiar about Kat?”

The journalist frowned. “Not that I could tell. Why ask me?”

Anne shrugged and hid an embarrassed face. “You know the most, I figured if anyone would have any idea, it would be you.”

Giving Anne a kind smile, Cathy clicked her pen. “Well I’ll keep an eye out and tell you if I suddenly recognize her.”

“Thanks Cathy.” Those were the last words the queens exchanged before leaving for the night, set to return at the same time tomorrow.

Making it home, Kat immediately went to her old laptop and worked on getting it running. She had the thing from when she still lived with her father, but after being kicked out she was unable to get anything better. When the screen was properly lit, she typed in Jane Seymour Joan and waited for any information to pop up. First off, she got a bunch of photos of Jane at promotional events with Joan at her side. The two of them looked close, maybe even siblings. 

There was an article attached to one of the pictures, so Kat clicked on it and started reading. “Joan Meutas is the co-owner of the Seymour fortune with her close friend Jane Seymour. Okay, so not related,” Kat talked to herself as she read. “The two are rarely seen without the other and they deal with Seymour related activities equally. When asked about allowing Joan to control half of her fortune, Jane said ‘Controlling all that money by myself is for too much power. I trust Joan to handle it far better than I could all alone. We work together and that’s what works best for us.’” Kat couldn’t help but feel her respect for this woman grow.

Moving on, Kat did her best to find the other ladies she had never met. She remembered Jane mentioning the names Maria, Bessie, and Maggie, so she started searching. After no results were yielded from Anne Boleyn Maria and Catherine Parr Maria, Kat struck gold with Aragon News Maria. There wasn’t as much personal stuff on her as there was on Joan, but there was quite a bit of work related information. Maria de Salinas is the close friend of CEO Catherine of Aragon and works beside her as the CFO of Aragon News. It is unclear when the two of them met, but when Catherine inherited her business, Maria was immediately appointed the CFO beside her.

The process continued with Bessie and Maggie. Margaret “Maggie” Lee is the main supplier of alcohol to Boleyn owned bars. While she does not own any alcohol companies, Margaret is known for providing some of the best mixes from different suppliers. Boleyn talks about her in many interviews as, “the best of both worlds. She makes a killer cocktail and she’s the best friend I’ve got…”

The article for Bessie was particularly long, so Kat skimmed it. Elizabeth “Bessie” Blount is the spokesperson for Cleves Fashion. She organizes the company’s events and speaks at press conferences in the place of legendary designer, Anna of Cleves. The two have been close friends for years, Elizabeth even collaborating with the designer on some occasions. There was a period of time where Elizabeth left the company to work for Aragon News, but she quickly quit under mysterious circumstances.

As much information as the articles had provided, Kat couldn’t help but have more questions than she started with. There was so much behind these nine incredible women, and she was hiding herself in their group, pretending to be someone she wasn’t. 

Katherine Brandon is the owner of Darkrider Records and is known for writing many Number 1 hits in recent years. She appeared out of nowhere, taking the world by storm with her work and collaborations with rising artists. But perhaps the most interesting thing about Brandon is the lack of pictures of her. In fact, there is not a single confirmed photograph of Katherine Brandon, leading to some wild conspiracies surrounding her. Many claim that they’ve dealt with people under the alias Katherine Brandon in the Black Market, garnering Brandon an infamous reputation in the business world. Another one of the most famous conspiracies surrounding Katherine Brandon is that she is not a singular person, but rather a group of influential people pretending to be the figurehead of the company.

That was certainly quite the character Kat would have to play. Her only grace of good luck was the lack of information on Katherine Brandon. “Why am I doing this,” Kat mumbled under her breath.

The answer came clear as day, even though Kat didn’t want to accept it. Accepting her answer would mean continuing this dangerous lie. But her resolve was breaking down quickly, and Kat couldn’t help but think of her reasons. Backing out would mean her life would go back to the way it was. Playing music to passersby and barely making enough money to afford her dingy apartment. She didn’t even have much of an education, something she desperately wanted. These women had offered money in their note, but that wasn’t what really interested Kat. Of all things, it was because Kat was lonely. She had no one and nothing and slowly but surely it was killing her. This was probably her only chance at doing something worthwhile in her life. She could disappear off the map and never matter at all, or she could help take down a murderous, corrupt politician. 

When phrasing it like that, Kat knew she never stood a chance of backing out.

Unfortunately, joining a secret plot to overthrow a wealthy politician did not really have any benefits. Waking up at the crack of dawn to get set up on the street was not something Kat particularly liked doing, but it was necessary if she wanted to make enough money from free music. At first she couldn’t make much money, but quickly Kat learned the trick was the length of time she spent playing, not the quality of the music.

Most of the time people dropped money out of pity, not because they enjoyed the music she played. Kat hated living off of pity money, but no one ever wanted to hire her for a job, leaving her with no choice. The day always started out slow with only a few dollars here and there, but business picked up later on in the day. Kat liked to refer to her music as if it was a real job, using terms like business and customers to make herself feel better about the whole situation.

As the pale morning started to fade and the sun began shining through the clouds, Kat huddled in on herself, obsessively checking her watch that was propped against her guitar case. 7:50. Kat anxiously chewed her lip and strummed the guitar, trying to keep her mind fixed on the music. In the next few minutes, Jane would walk by and for once Kat did not want to be noticed.

“Kat? What’re you doing here?” asked a voice, causing the girl to jump in her seat. Dread and nervousness settled in her stomach, but Kat put on her best facade. The minimal information on Katherine Brandon allowed her to build her character as she wished (Kat was glad she had taken those theatre classes when living with her father), so she tried her act on Jane.

Appearing calculated and confident, Kat glanced down at her instrument and then back at Jane. “Oh this?” Kat commented offhandedly, “I play out in public in order to attract anyone interested in music. You’d be surprised how many talents come by and start singing with the music. How do you think I recruit so many new stars to my label?”

Jane hid her surprise at Kat’s sudden change in demeanor well. The girl was acting completely different than the worried teen the night before, which immediately sent up red flags in Jane’s mind. “How long do you stay out here?”

“Eh, only a couple hours in the morning, I usually go to the company to put in some actual work. Can’t be slacking off.”

Taking note of the vagueness in the word “work”, Jane bobbed her head up and down. Kat was acting exactly how the queens had predicted Katherine Brandon would, something that shouldn’t have been strange. But Kat made a lasting first impression, and to have her do an entire 180 in a single night meant something was up. “I can’t stay for long, Kat, but I’ll be seeing you later tonight.”

Returning to her music, Kat gave a small wave, “Yes Jane, I’ll be there.” With that, Jane walked off and Kat sighed heavily, releasing the tension in her body. While her Katherine Brandon character wasn’t perfected, that portrayal was certainly more believable than the nervous girl Kat had been the night before. Being Katherine Brandon was far better than Kat being herself, and if that’s what it took for Kat to take her first steps into this new world, she would take it in a single leap.

The night came again quickly, Kat’s nerves skyrocketing as the first sign of darkness started creeping into the sky. This time, Kat was more prepared, so she pulled out her cleanest pair of pants and the nicest dress shirt she owned, regardless of the warmth. If she was to impress these women, she needed to dress elegantly while also appearing nonchalant.

Arriving at the closed theatre, Kat moved to open the door like the first night. Before she could grab the handle, someone’s hand wrapped around her mouth and another around her waist, wrestling her away from the door and into the alley beside the theatre. Screeching into the hand, Kat started thrashing in panic, pushing at her captor.

The person made a grunting noise and Kat squirmed, but they kept a tight grip on her waist. Suddenly, Kat was thrown back into the memories of hands on her waist, holding her and touching her. A sob came out of Kat’s mouth as she started to shake, only for her assailant to let her go.

“Kat?” came the soft voice of Anne Boleyn. The bar owner had quieted herself so she couldn’t be heard by anyone other than Kat. “I’m sorry, did I scare you too much?”

Spinning around and lifting her head, Kat realized the person who had attacked her was only Anne, her face heating up with shame as she saw how badly she’d spooked Kat. “Why would you do that?” Kat whispered hoarsely, trying to regain her composure.

Putting her hands in her coat pocket, Anne shrugged. “I was trying to test you, see how well you reacted to being attacked.”

“Yeah, well I’ve never been attacked like that before, so clearly I didn’t do well.” Kat sighed and clenched her fists so Anne could not see the trembling. “Just don’t do it again.”

Anne held her hands up defensively. “Sorry, sorry. You head inside, I’ll be in in a minute.” Kat nodded and moved around Anne and out of the alley. She shot one last glance at Anne before moving inside the theatre to join the other women.

When Anne was sure Kat was gone, she reached in her pocket and pulled out a wallet. Opening it up, Anne began muttering to herself. “Alright Brandon, let’s see what secrets you’re hiding in here.”

[annakie]

An Annotated Mass Effect Playthrough, Part Two

Aliens!  Exposition!  Guns!  Explosions!  Kickass Ladies!  Betrayal!  So much death!

Um, this got long. Sorry not sorry.

List of Posts: 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

The first thing Mass Effect does after coming out of the introduction is assure us that yes, we have aliens 

and we have hot guys (and hot aliens, if you’re into that sort of thing.)

They should have made an advertisement pointing out these things just for me so I would have paid release price for this game.  Ah well, I’ve bought it on 360, Steam and Origin now.  They have my money.

We’re going to make it most of the way through Eden Prime in this post.

One thing Mass Effect does a lot of in the beginning here is exposition.  There’s a lot to learn about the state of the galaxy in 2148, and there are people there to make sure you learn about it.  Jeff and Kaidan only do a little bit of exposition, you learn about Nihilus, a tiny bit about Spectres, and that Captain Anderson is badass.  I wish this scene actually lasted longer -- this is the only time we see Kaidan away from his Orange Corner (or that other orange wall) on the ship for awhile.  I guess there’s the conference room, but still.  If they ever do a remaster, please Bioware, let the companions move around the ship like in ME3 and give our boy better lighting.

I love the flow of the Normandy SR1.  It feels the easiest to get around in since it’s so much smaller... except when you have to get on the elevator.  I also love the dark theme.  The ME2 SR2 always feels so... blinding.  The only thing I miss from the SR2 really is my decked out Captain’s quarters.  I mean does anyone even ever go into the ME1 quarters except to get the one codex entry until it’s sexytime?

I do like ME1′s use of ambient conversations, you get to learn a little about Pressley and Jenkins before talking to them.  Those conversations, though, are just such exposition dumps.  I think they do it fairly well, but there’s so much to remember.  Both Jenkins (with Chakwas) and Pressley really harp on what and who Spectres are, pretty sure even before you talk to Nihilus you have an inkling you’re gonna eventually be one.  

I honestly wish we had more actual interaction with Pressley than what we get here, he has very little to say after this point.  Another hope for a remaster.

This kid Jenkins, he’s got a good career ahead of him if we can tame his hot-headedness.  That’ll be his role in the game, I’m sure, the kid you mentor and grow into a reflection of you.  Good to know he’s from the planet we’re heading to, I’m sure he’ll be a valuable source of information there.

Having played a lot of World of Warcraft, and I mean a LOT, from the alpha, then release, for the next two or three years, the fact that his name was Jenkins was actually a bit of a hint for me even then.  But more in the “Wouldn’t it be funny if...?” and then he did.  Nice. 

I’m really glad Chakwas gets fleshed out a little more in just the one more conversation after this one and in future games.  Because there’s not much to say about her here.

Whew!  Exposition over, right?  We’ve learned about Spectres, the First Contact War, about Eden Prime, that we’re in the Alliance, that there’s Turians and a council that governs things and... we’re good, right?

Wait, didn’t Anderson say he was already with Nihilus in the conference room?  Where’d he go?  What a bro, to step out and let Nihilus make a big turn-around moment of introduction to us.  Okay, more loredump.  Cool.  Really getting the concept of Spectres now, for sure, especially from this guy, who is one!

Finally, Anderson.  Just in time to tell us about Spectres, and Eden Prime, and now it’s time to learn about the Protheans.  Whaaaaat?  You want ME to maybe be a Spectre?  I’m shocked! 

Oh sorry, Annakie just flew through time from ME3 to stare into the camera incredulously.

I’m sure that this will be a decision that will be deeply impactful through the entirety of the rest of the series.

But here we learn about Protheans, and they lost me a bit on that one when we first played the game.  Who the fuck cares about what happened 20,000 years ago?  THIS IS THE FUTURE!!!  We’re in SPACE!

Well, we wouldn’t get away from the Protheans so easily.

Oh what the FUCK is that thing?  You’ve hooked me right back in.  Tell Alenko and Jenkins to suit up?  LET’S GO.

You guys... ALOV is so good, and so pretty.  And these screenshots look shittier on tumblr!!  Look how clear these movies are now.  And these are just 720p!   They’re working to upscale them to 4k!  Again I say, all hail the modders.

Still, that giant red spot doesn’t look so good for the people living there...  

I’m sure it’s fine.

We’re all suited up, but sadly the super cool alien isn’t coming with us?  Didn’t he say he was here to follow and observe us?  Well, he knows what he’s doing.

Anyone else already willing to die for Anderson fifteen minutes into this game?

The sky is supposed to be that color red, right? Right Jenkins?

As cool as this level design is, also something that could use improving.  There’s like... no housing here?  Just a bunch of tall towers on the ground all really realy far apart from each other?  You’re on a new planet and everyone lives inside a giant tower?  I mean, good for preventing Urban Spawl I guess.  I’d love to see a more populated Eden Prime.  Even in ME3 we just saw a small dig site and more towers in the distance.  

Anyway, better level up.  Jenkins is young and needs some training if he’s gonna survive this mission!

Here we go, show us what you’ve got!

Shit.

My first time through, I truly thought I’d fucked up and probably reloaded this fight two or three times before accepting he was just... supposed to die.  And then I remembered his name was Jenkins, knew it was intentional, and laughed.  

Honestly, it’s a great fakeout with making us feel like Jenkins is important, and then having him lose the battle right away.  ME1 is pretty brutal that way. It’s a good way to signal that this game is probably going to rip your heart out, so get used to it.  

Shepard and Kaidan have a moment, and I like this because it’s really the first time I think you can really start showing who your Shepard is, with how you react to Jenkins’ death.  Either way, I like it that she tells Kaidan that we need to focus.  I also love that, though we don’t get to see a moment for Jenkins from here on out in ME1, that they finally gave his memory a moment in ME3.

I love Flycam.

What. An. Entrance. For. Ashley. Williams.  

Bioware, give us Ashley and Kaidan living in a Mass Effect Remaster, please.  I will pay $100 for this DLC.  (I know, I KNOW.)  I have only played through with Ashley living all the way through once.  I’m sorry Ash, I love you.  I just... LOVE Kaidan.

But hey that’s HOURS away.   For now, she’s with us, and she’s amazing.

Sorry, I just caught several great images from Ashley’s intro and thought you needed to see them.  It’s gonna be a miracle if tumblr lets this thing post.

This is fine.

Uh, I’m not the only one who still sometimes dies on Eden Prime because I can never remember how the controls work until like, the end of the planet, right?  “CRAP,  WHICH BUTTON IS MEDIGEL?”  “WHY ISN’T THE SQUAD RESPONDING TO GOING WHERE I TELL THEM WITH Q and E?”  “Shit shit shit gotta reload OH FUCK JUST THREW A GRENADE SIX INCHES AWAY.  WHY IS THAT MAPPED TO R?”

Grotesque and yet...  great visuals.  This is when you realize these Geth aren’t playing around.  This is Bad Bad.

Iiiiif you also used to always punch out Miguel and then like awhile later realized how shitty that was and now know that the “Geinuis is the other side of the coin of Madness” speech here is also really shitty... raise your hand.  Especially since Miguel is, you know, right.   Anyway, do better on a remaster, Bioware?

The one good thing here was the “Thank the Maker” at the very beginning of the encounter.  I want Shepard to visit Thedas.  Give us this DLC, Bioware!!

Oh Nihilus, you were too pretty, and trusting, for this world.  

Bioware, again, in the remaster... please go with your original plan and not make Saren all Gethed out this early.  I wish that could be modded away.  It’s so distracting to have him be OBVIOUSLY HALF MACHINE and everyone being like “Saren?  Working with the Geth?  PREPOSTEROUS!!”

Got some AMAZING screenshots of Sovereign taking off thanks to Flycam.

Also, this is just such an OH SHIT moment.  Look at that thing! It’s terrifying!  Also it’s easy to miss if you’re looking the wrong way, this maybe shoulda been in a cutscene. But even so, when you see it, it fills you with SUCH DREAD.  They do such a great job of amping up the tension and drama and mystery bit by bit on Eden Prime.  Giving you bits of the greater story and also feeding you pieces that will eventually come together, but not for awhile.  

I followed Soverign as long as I could before he disappeared.  Got this far away from land.  The actual spaces in the game are huge, but we’ll get to more of that later.

Congrats!   You all survived!  For uh... about two and a half more years?

Can’t believe we can’t loot the Spectre’s body.  

Also... the luckiest dock worker in the world.  I can never yell at him for sleeping on the job.  It’d be hilarious if he showed up alive on Horizon in ME2, and like Haven in ME3.

This is the guy that usually kills me.

OK, this is ridiculously long already.  We’ll finish up Eden Prime and get to the Citadel next time.

[livsoulsecrets]

Nicotino College AU - Chapter 21: Mom

Masterpost

Previous Chapter

Summary: Niccòlo attends the music school and is friends with Filippo, who started helping at the photography course after getting famous for his lgbtq+ activism as a photographer and youtuber. Marti is studying journalism in the same university and is convinced by Filippo to attend the photography course mister Boccia and Filippo himself are offering. Marti turns out to be terrible at it and needs Nico’s help to make a perfect final project to get approved.

June 19th

📱-> Marti

📱-> Marti’s Tweet

📱-> Marti’s Instagram post

📱-> Nico’s Instagram post

20:39

Marti would be lying if he said he wasn’t a bit nervous about this dinner. He was being honest when he told his mom he was happy for her, but it was still a completely new situation that he didn’t know how to handle. His mother had never had anyone after the divorce, so even though he really liked Lorenzo, Marti was still afraid his mom would get hurt again.

He stopped in front of the door of his mom’s apartment and knocked on it. His mom quickly opened it, pulling him into a hug.

— Hey, mom, I don’t think I can breathe. — Anna laughed against Marti’s neck and pulled away a bit.

— Always the dramatic. — She joked back, caressing his check before taking him to the couch. — Lorenzo will be here at anytime. — The woman put a strand of hair behind her ear and her voice trembled a bit, but Marti acted as if he didn’t notice.

— That is great, mom. Like I told you, I already like him. — Anna took Marti’s hand in hers and smiled.

— I know I told you this before as well, but thank you again. You know you are the most important person in my life, right? — Anna repeated the same words she said to Marti on the day he came out to her, making the boy smile at the memories.

— I know it, mom, of course I do. You deserve to be happy with somebody that treats you the way you deserve to be treated. — Marti knew his mom was afraid of being any less of the amazing mother she had always been simply for doing something for herself, but he refused to let her believe in it for even a second. — And you know you are a great mother, right? You have always been.

— Always? I don’t know if I believe in that, Martino. — The way her voice shook broke Marti’s heart.

— You should, especially since my opinion is the only one that really counts here, am I right? — Anna laughed a bit, shaking her head at him.

— Well, I can’t fight this logic of yours. — She gave in, some tears escaping her eyes.

— Good. I won’t let you think you are being selfish for doing what you want and living for yourself. I want you to be happy, mom.

— I know. And I am, I promise you that. It means the world to me you see things this way. — Anna kisses him in the cheek and Marti smiles at her, holding her hand tight. — But that is enough about me, tell me about you. What have you been doing lately? How is college? — Anna asks, wiping the tears away, sitting up to pay better attention to Marti.

— Well, it has been crazy, but I actually like my course despite all the sleep hours it makes me lose. And, well, I have been taking those photography classes, the ones Filo was helping with. — Anna was listening attentively, like she always did, and Martino couldn’t help but wonder how he got so lucky to have her in his life.

— Oh, I remember it, he was really excited about it.

— Tell me about it, he convinced me to attend it. If I’m going to be honest, it was a real disaster. Mister Boccia is a great guy, but I’m pretty sure he considered murdering me after all the times I failed his lessons. — Anna let out a laugh, giving him a side look that should be of disapproval. — Anyway, I’m working on my final project now. It has to be perfect to get me an amazing grade that will make me pass this subject. The good thing about all of this is that now I know better than to listen to Filippo about, well, anything. — Marti joked and Anna playfully pushed his shoulder, shaking her head in disfavor. She had always liked Filippo a lot, being almost protective of him most of the time.

Marti couldn’t blame her, since Filo made a colossal effort to cause a good impression on her. At first, Martino thought he was just doing it to be annoying and throw at Marti’s face the fact Anna adored him. It took Marti a while to realize how Filo’s relationship to his own mother was distant to make sense of his friend’s actions.

Filippo’s mom loved him, of course, but she was never really around. She called sometimes and cared about him, yet Marti couldn’t say she was present. The little he knew about her came from the few times Filo shared about his childhood, about her missing school meetings, his photography expositions, even some of his birthdays. Filo’s mom was too cold at times, so being around Anna, who was so caring, that always put such an effort at being there for Marti, seemed to help Filippo heal from some of his bad experiences when it came to parents.

— Speaking of Filo, you are not gonna believe who he is dating! — Marti grinned, excited to share the news with his mom in first hand.

— Oh, I know it already. I was just as surprised as you, trust me. But I do think Elia and Filo are a good match, I’m always telling those two they need to take things more seriously, after all.

— What? How do you know it? — Marti asked, narrowing his eyes in confusion.

— Filo told me over the phone some days ago, he sounded very happy. — Of course he did, Marti thought, shaking his head with laughter.

— Damn it, I really thought I would beat him with the news. — Marti threw himself at the couch, dramatically.

— And what about you? — Anna questioned, suggestively raising an eyebrow at him.

— I can assure you I’m not dating Filo nor Elia, if that is what you meant. — Marti answered, hoping that would distract his mom, but Anna was irreducible.

— You know it isn’t.

— Yeah, I do. — Marti looked away from his mom, staring at the turned off TV as if it was the most interesting thing in the living room. — Well, it is a bit of complicated. I don’t really know what it is right now.

— Okay, is it good though? — Anna asked, making Marti’s head snap back in her direction to find his mom’s chin resting in her hand, like she usually does when she is trying to get a particular difficult answer from Marti.

— It is really, really good. — Marti smiled involuntary at the mere thought of Nico, which didn’t go unnoticed by Anna.

— Well, that is all I need to know, then. — She said, reaching out with her hand to fix a bit of the hair that was falling in his eyes. — Actually, I kind of need to know his name, maybe… Even see a picture if that is not asking too much. — Marti laughed at his mom’s excitement, wide eyed. — Oh, don’t look at me like this. You usually run from my questions about your love life, you can’t blame me from trying to get more details when I finally have the opportunity!

— I would never, mom. — Marti held his hands up in surrender before turning to his mom, a bit more serious. — His name is Nico. Well, it is Niccòlo, actually, but everybody calls him Nico. — He let the part of Marti calling him Ni out because it was a bit too personal, which was also totally out of brand for Martino. — He studies music at the same university I go to, is friends with Filippo and is helping me with my final project.

— Ow, an artist? — Anna smiled at him, impressed.

— Yeah, I was surprised too. — Marti wasn’t completely joking and his mother could tell.

— Well, I really like his name. It is beautiful. Just like him, I assume? — Anna wondered, tilting her head a bit and Marti took it as a cue to take his phone out, giving up on trying to argue his way out of this. He opened his photo gallery and stumbled over the last photo he had taken with Nico.

They were at a Burger King close to the park Nico had taken him this afternoon. Despite the creepy appearance that made Marti feel like he was in a horror movie, the place turned out to be really pleasing. Nico had told him that was his thanks for what Marti had done in the day before, staying by his side the whole day when he was feeling down.

Nico hadn’t told him what caused his mood change, but Marti was okay with it. He could tell there was something Niccòlo wanted him to know, but the boy clearly wasn’t ready to share yet, so he wouldn’t push. All that mattered is that Nico was doing better today. That is what he told Nico, making sure he understood there was no need of saying thanks for what Marti had done.

Nico still stood by his point, so Marti just rolled his eyes and pulled him up from the bench, kissing him softly. He offered they went out to get some food in the Burger King he saw some blocks before.

They had taken the picture right after they finished eating, Nico being the one who pulled him his phone from his hands, insisting he had to register the day he convinced Martino to wear the “ridiculous crowns”. Marti never regretted saying anything as much as he regretted those two words, especially because he knew Nico would never let go of it.

Still, it wasn’t Marti’s fault that his brain melted every time Nico looked at him with such a playful smile, like he did when they got the crowns from an employee. Nico seemed to know that, so it didn’t take much more convincing for Martino to agree to the selfie. As a revenge, he once again did the hand thing Nico claimed to hate, but secretly found adorable, like Marti very well knew.

— Wow, he really is beautiful. — Anna complimented, a smile emerging in her face. — And you both look really happy.

— Thank you, mom. I think we are.

— You think?

— Yeah, well, Nico wasn’t doing very well yesterday, but he seemed to be a lot better today. I guess I just hate not being able to help when somebody I care about is not okay. There was not much I could do besides just being there. But the things is… That we are really good together. And, I don’t know, I think we’re off to a good start anyway.

— Oh, I’m glad he is better and that you two are being good for each other. — Anna was very serious when she turned to face Marti, her voice firm. — And, you know what, Marti? In my experience, sometimes, just being there is everything you need to do. It is more than enough to make things a bit more bearable. Especially if we are talking about somebody as kind as you. — Anna’s words made Marti speechless, he didn’t know what to say after that, so he just kissed his mom’s hand in a silent gesture of gratitude.

The doorbell rang at that very moment, announcing Lorenzo had arrived. Anna quickly got up, fixing her dress.

— We will talk more about Nico latter, don’t even try to run, okay? And about this final project of yours. — Anna said, leaving no room for discussion with her cheerful smile, heading to the door right after.

Marti was okay with it. His mom deserved all the answers she wanted, after all.

Next Chapter

[chaniters]

Villain’s exposition

Kruk suggested I should write about Cyrus’ time at the farm, so here it is. Some warnings: It’s LONG, and a lot of monologuing.

IT’s got four of the major trigger warnings. 

-TONS of SPOILERS under the cut !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-suicide -heavy self-depreciation -drugs -rape

Ortega is there to blunt the sword a bit but he ends up getting cut by it as well. -----------------------------------------------

Villain’s exposition

"What difference does it make now?"

"I want to know whatever happened to you!"

"And I already told you I don't want to talk about it!"

"So that's It? I find you're a villain? THat you're a Regene? That you've been beating us senseless and you’re not going to share a single reason as to why?"

"EXACTLY!" you say walking to the door. But he's too fast, standing in between.

"NO. No, you don't! You've lied to me ALL the time. Since the moment we met you. I thought I loved you, and then you died, and I've been dealing with it alone ever since. You owe me one big fucking explanation!"

"I don't owe you anything!" you say trying to push him. But he won't budge. "MOVE!"

"Fine! I'll move!  But this is the last time I take any of your shit, you hear me? We're DONE. DONE!" He yells at your face moving to the side.

You walk through the door...

"By the way, it's your own fucking house you dumb asshole"

... fuck. He got you again.

You do the 180 turn, glaring at him.

You've never felt like this... there is a rage you didn't know existed in you. Taking over the reins.

"You know what? You win. I'm going to let you know what I've been up to these past years Ricardo." you say turning.

He's got his arms crossed, matching your glare. You walk up to his face once more, slamming the door shut behind you once more.

"You want to hear my side of the story? GREAT!" you say up close "But you better brace yourself because you're NOT GOING TO LIKE IT!" And that's an understatement.

You walk back to the living room. The lamp's still on the floor where you threw it, just like the overturned chair you were sitting on. You let him fix the mess and take the sofa. He’s still glaring at you, but you just look away. Staring contest is over. 

You can see him taking a seat next to you in the corner of your eye. Good. This will take a while.

"Whenever you're ready," he says, arms still crossed.

"You want the truth" you sigh. "Well, I'm going to give you the truth. Enough for you to fucking choke in it."

"Be my fucking guest?" he says sarcastically "If you even can say anything resembling the truth"

"Let's go. Where do we start?"

"Maybe at the beginning?"

"Great. So let's go back to 2001 when I was born..."

"You're much older than 20 Cyrus... Maybe you just physically can't stop lying?"

"Shut it. I was born out of a liquid nutrient tube in 2001 at a place called The Farm in the Nevada Desert. I was made to look 14 years old from the get-go"

"Wha...?"

"I was MADE you idiot. what part do you not understand? They didn't need a baby to perform their covert operation missions. They wanted field-ready agents"

"You mean you're..."

"Yeah... I look older but I'm just 18 years old. Surprise bitch! I'm legal this year if you still want to fuck me. Want to know which day's my birthday while at it? We could have cake and all that jazz"

"I..."

"I suggest you record this because I'm not going to do this ever, EVER FUCKING again." you glare at him. You already feel the migraine. “It hurts to even speak about this. Also, they one rule they taught me was to keep my mouth shut, so speaking about this is just...” you can’t even begin to describe how it feels right now. 

He says nothing for a few seconds... then presses a few buttons on a hidden panel on his mods. Of course. Living recorder.

"Go on"

"So it's back to 2001. I was sleeping comfortably in my tube marinating around my own bodily fluids. You know, usual perverted experiment stuff. And then BAM!. They activated me. Or more like electroshocked me, whatever the case I came into the world with a bang. But I wasn't really myself at first. I had the intellect of a potato because my mind had never been used before, not while sleeping and being grown to the ideal age. So they jumpstarted my implant... and boy, that's when all the fun started"

"Implant?"

"Yes. They put implants on our brains to impart basic knowledge. How to stand upright. How to use a toilet. The basics of speech. How to eat with your mouth shut. How to eat period. You know. Baby stuff. Because that's what we were, babies in the bodies of adults. They awoke a whole batch of us, and they immediately started imprinting memories and knowledge in our little lab-rat brains."  

"So you never had a ..."

"Childhood? Nope. Sorry, that's not for me. And of course, no parents either, It was more like a chicken factory. And not all of us came out alright. Several were discarded that night. Not that I noticed, I had more important stuff to do trying not to have my head explode with all the new information. They processed us. Got us a bath. Dressed us. Gave us our first meal, a sort of milky liquid. Actually, maybe It was baby formula for all I know.. And then they got us to a group bedroom and made us all lay down, tied us to the bed to make sure we wouldn't fall off. Then they turned off the implants not to fry our brains, and left us to our own devices." "Most of us screamed or cried all night long, because, you know, we were essentially human DNA based and our instincts told us we wanted our mommies with us. But that wasn't going to happen. Not to us."

He just stares at you, unsure if you're lying or not. Of course, he would, your truth is far more outlandish than any lie you could make about it. Perhaps you should spare the details... but no. You're mad. Let him have it all, he asked for this.

You go on, detailing how several of you simply died off over the next few days, and the doctors were just discarding the bodies as if it was the usual. Because it was, there was nothing natural about being born this way and it was an extremely traumatic experience the human body was not designed for. Because some medical machine failed. Because of some doctor's neglect of fuckup. Because you were all loaded with Hero-Drugs from birth and didn't stand the dosage long-term... Or maybe no one knew why in some cases. And you were among the "Lucky" ones and survived.  

"Then after the acclimation and basic imprinting period, we were assigned handlers and sent to classes. Speech, speech and more speech. They wanted us to talk. We were extremely fast at it, you know. Because we had baby brains back then. We learned 9 languages. Some of us even got to 12 languages or more. You know I talk Spanish. Chen doesn't know I speak Cantonese. And then school. And high school. And a few degrees. The Best education there in the farm. I'd recommend it if it also included basic rights..."

"Then there were physical classes too. Martial arts, personal defense. Combat. Guns. Driving cars. Driving bikes. Driving Helicopters. Driving whatever actually... you name it. Oh, and managing our powers too of course! And medical exams, all the time. Tests and more tests... They wanted to know everything about our abilities"

"How long did all this take?"

"Some years" you smile. "Some of us died in accidents... our handlers tried to keep us alive though. There was a big bonus for them in it."

"How was... your handler?"

"Oh, she was actually decent. Some were not so lucky," you say bitterly. He swallows, but you don't elaborate.

"Eventually they figured out my powers... They decided I was a low-key psychic, and trained me for information gathering and surveillance. And that's what made me who I am. They chose to make me a Cuckoo, so instead of dying my skin blue, they left it as is, and just tattoed my code bar on human-looking skin. So that's what it all comes to. Some stupid scientist decided I was good enough to have the get the fancy paint job. If it hadn't been like that, we'd never have even met" You smile. "Or maybe you'd have thought of me as one of those blue-skinned things that give you the creeps."

"I never..."

"Oh yes, you did. Numerous times. I threw a ton of oddballs at you to find out what you thought about regenes, and each time you made it very clear how disgusting you found my whole bio-engineered fuck-up species." he goes silent for a moment pondering on your words "Relax. Most people claim we should just be exterminated as an affront to god, so I'm pretty used to it..."

"So where was I? Oh yes. TRaining. They made an agent out of me. It was a whole big montage with a song, like in those movies. And I was happy to be their agent! I mean, they gave me drugs to make me feel good when I succeeded in my missions, and they made me drugs to make me feel sad when I failed my missions, and they gave me drugs when they wanted me to sit tight and shut up in between missions, so whatever I did, I was in high cloud nine the whole time! No don't you feel sorry for me" you smile weakly.

He shifts uncomfortably. Of course, he can't handle knowing this. But this is what he wanted, so this is what he's going to get.

"So one of the handlers didn't follow protocol much, you know? He had a harem of young female regenes that absolutely adore him, and he treated them like his personal dolls... so he..."

"What?!"

You shrug "Our bodies didn't belong to us. We were state property and he just took advantage." you smile bitterly. "So many of them took advantage... doll fuckers they called them. It was a running joke... We were almost all used one way or another by then. And we all had teenage bodies... To tell you the truth, I think they just kept us on drugs to prevent our hormones from tearing us all apart"

"Where you...?"

"Nope! I guess I wasn't funny enough, or smart enough, or good looking enough compared to my brothers and sisters... you know I actually used to wonder why they didn't like me? Made me feel so ugly..."

"That's just sick Cyrus!"

"Of course it is, but no one cared about 412's inner unresolved sexual trauma. Oh, that was my name. 412." You keep the cheerful attitude as you go through your life. You try not to ponder how long can you keep it up.

"So this handler used to talk to his doll fans about life outside the farm to impress them. And you know, when I wasn't too drugged, I actually listened. And I thought it was the best thing i had heard about in my life. Which was quite a short time actually..."

"And thus, I became an agent and took part in several missions. Most of them were just finding out stuff or making sure there we no problems for the main agents, you know. Support stuff mostly. Until they started to order more complex stuff"

"Like what?"

"Oh, you know... Steal files.. infiltrate buildings...  Also, they made me interrogate prisoners.. assassinate the odd terrorist..."

"You killed people??" he asks taken aback

"Well, I hadn't been taught to say no, you know? Didn't get the best role models."

"Hmr..."

"So I was a fine agent and all... until one of our missions went hella bad... Me and three of my friends from the orange-pinstripe-club..." you say tracing one of the lines on your tattoos "...we got captured by Russian intelligence. They killed our handler -you know, I actually miss her now that I think of it- then they tied us up and began cutting us open after using some sort of scanner. They were talking about removing our trackers...and that was VERY, VERY interesting to all of us."

You lift up your shirt to show you a small scar on your side.

"So they didn't know I was a telepath. I wasn't very strong back then, but I could do stuff if you gave me enough time and they were very close to us... When they least expected it, I made them undo our knots and my two friends took their lights out. We fled, on the back of a truck carrying bananas."

"Yikes"

"What did you expect a more elegant escape? It's me we're talking about. So we were cut loose, no trackers or so the Russians said... and well... suddenly none of us was in any no rush to go back... we could explore a bit of this real world we had heard so much about, you know? Those KGB guys did us one big favor."

"What happened to the other two?"

"Each of us took a new name... wished ourselves good luck... and split. Much better chances going our separate ways."

"You never saw them again?"

You smile at him. "We expected to be caught within days. This was just us acting up, throwing a tantrum. You don't understand the degree of control they exerted over us..."

"So how did it go?"

"Terrible. Within a day and a half, I was having withdrawal from the whole drug cocktail. Ended up on the streets, alone and it was winter. It was very, very rough and I had never been alone before, everything I tried came up wrong and I couldn't ask anyone for help. I was considering handing myself over when I met this old lady who needed someone to take care of her... and I did. She let me stay at her appartment.. and I started getting better eventually. Until she passed" you say, clearing a tear from your eye. "That's the first human I really cared for"

He nods slowly, waiting for you to go on.

"So a few months later, I was still living in her apartment alone, until Mr. Molotov moved on to the lower floor, and set up shop. Every night he worked out to make his weapons and suits, it was like a factory, I couldn't hear my own thoughts or sleep... So I had to find a solution"

"Waaait... is that why you came after me? He was too noisy?"

"You wouldn't believe how bad it was. No one complained because the building was full of squatters like me, and well... he was a supervillain. And I wasn't good enough to go toe-to-toe with him myself."

"You could have moved"

"Yeah. But they were MY apartment. That woman wanted me to have it. Why should I move? I think that's the first selfish thing I did"

"You know the rest... I got you to get rid of him, but the building burned down after the fight... found a new place to stay... and then the Eldritch mess happened and I became friends with Anathema..."

"But why did you become a hero?"

"Anathema. And you." you turn away "You were my first real friends... And I liked you... wanted to be like you. Made me there could be more to life than just surviving. That I could have my own interests.  And I kept thinking ... Maybe If i do well enough, then they'll let me be a human as well!"

"But you are!!"

"No, I'm not. I never had a childhood. No parents. I never went to school or was in a sport's team. Never had a boyfriend or girlfriend. Didn't even know how to have my own opinions for the longest time.  I'm just this thing they made to be a slave that's rebelled against them."

"You are still human!" he says holding a hand to your arm. You just pull away.

"I don't need your pity" you burst out. He retracts his arm startled by your reaction. You sigh "Shit... and we didn't even get to the juicy parts..."

"We can stop" he makes a peace offering.

"No. No, we can't, because you won't stop asking until I tell you everything, and I told you, I'm never going to do this ever again. So we're doing this" You say with teary eyes.

"Let me get you a soda," he says standing up.

"'kay," you say laying over the couch sideways. You close your eyes. Everything's spinning. But it's ok. It's under control... for now at least... Just have to keep your shit together and you'll get through this.

.............half a can of soda later.........................

"Hey... I'm sorry" you start

"No, I should be sorry," he says pacing around the room.

"For what? I've been dodging these questions for ages..."

"Yes, but I have no Idea It was so..."

"Horrible? Perverted?" you chuckle. "It gets so much fucking worse"

"You don't have to continue if you don't want to, really"

"I kind of have to now..."

"I just didn't know..."

"Ricardo... you and Anathema are among the only people that treated me like a real person... like I mattered at all. Every tiny moment of normality with you guys was something I had never experienced before. So I owe you a whole lot, You fucking know that, right?"  

He turns, giving you an odd look. OF course, he didn't know that.

"Crap..."

"I never knew that the... regular stuff meant that much to you. I just thought you were... easily impressed"

"Well I was" you smile

He nods and takes his seat once more.

"Ok, here we go again" you start.

"You know what happened next... the Psycopathor mess... that kiss.. -you both smile at it-, The Phoenix massacre... a few other stuff... then Elyise... the Nanosurge..."

"And Heartbreak" he adds when you fail to do so.

"Yeah. Heartbreak"

This is not kool. You don't even know where to begin. He holds your hand... slowly. You don't pull back this time.

"You're cold," he says taking both your hands in his.

"So that bitch... he was from the farm too. But different. He just wanted to Kill everyone. Everywhere. Including himself. I think he got off killing himself while possessing other people's bodies if that makes sense? Addicted to suicide so to speak. I'd say he was a living weapon even."

"Shit"

"You saw what he did to the city... to everyone. To Anathema" You swallow hard. "I was right there... I should have done something... should have..."

"There's nothing you could have done"

"You don't know that... I just thought Steel's Mind Dampener would protect us? I couldn't use my powers all that much, so I didn't think anyone else could. But Heartbreak... went right through it..."

"None of us knew. They sent us in the dark"

"They did. The farm fucked up big time. Releasing that thing..." you sigh. "I managed to get up to it... I walked to it and shot it. Several times... and It still wouldn't die"

"Is that when..."

"It made taste the gun. It wasn't even angry. Just wanted me to taste it... Took his time. UNtil you stopped me."

"I couldn't stop you"

"No. No, you could not" you pull back your hands and cover your face. It's too much. The fucking memories.

"Want to stop?"

"I told you, we're doing this..."

"Then scooch," he says.

"What?"

"You heard me," he says. You stand up, and he lays down on the couch, then pulls you down over him too, wrapping arms around you.

"Seriously?" you smile "This can't be comfortable"

"Whatever. Now you can go on," he says tightening his grip for a moment.

"Idiot" You feel stupid like this, but at the same time, It's somehow making you feel safer. You decide to trust him, he's the one who knows the tricks of bodily contact after all.

"I can be your idiot if you need me"

"And now you're corny too" you clear some more tears again.

Silence. He waits for you to continue...

"He... It... It broke something in my mind. Made me stop caring about life. Found all of my fears and magnified them by a thousand. I never had such high self-esteem, you know that, but... he made me see myself as this repulsive thing... Like I had no right to be alive. Just a waste of oxygen, bringing problems to everyone... And offered me a release, If i just did what he said and jumped the window. I tried to resist. Tried to hold on to the good memories but... besides you, I realized I didn't have that many... That I was just a mess." Your voice breaks for a few seconds "He must have done the same to Anathema"

"You're a human just like me. And whatever he did to you, it's not true, you know this" he says giving you a soft kiss on the neck.

Your voice turns shakey as you share the darker parts of your story...

"They took me in that ambulance... I don't remember everything. Took me back, and fixed me... and then.. then started figuring out what to do with me."

"How did they do that?"

"They interrogated me... dampened the cell. Used different methods. I asked them to set me free. I told them ..." it takes a few tries to actually say it "...I told them the rangers were going to rescue me. I told them you were going to come for me. I kept saying that... so many times… I was sure my best friend Charge would come in, beat the bad guys and we’d be off, like always… I was so fucking naive!"

You can feel his reaction. Now it's his turn to cry.

"I didn't know Cyrus... If I had known... "

"OF course you didn't… But I still kept waiting for you. And you never came. Also, as I kept insisting with that, It turned out to be a huge mistake. They panicked"

"What... why?"

"Because they knew just how close Sidestep and Charge were. They thought you had to know I was a regene. That I would have told you at some point. They were thinking you would reveal what they had done to the world."

"But I didn't"

"No. And I told them that. I didn't know what would they have done if they thought you were a security risk to them... I told them I had never told you... and they didn't believe me. So they started the... enhanced... interrogation and re-education"

"Torture?"

"Yeah. THat's the word. And also they wanted to do full medical exams and testing... very painful medical tests... They thought my powers had improved a bit. They kept wanting bone marrow. I'm not sure why. They took samples so many times... "

"Shit... shit... How long?" he asks at last.

"I have no idea. Months at least. They did waterboarding, electroshock... truth serums... chemicals... sleep deprivation, food deprivation, cold... and then they brought in the psychologists. Those can torture you pretty badly as well, you know?"  

He just holds on to you, listening to your words. You wish you could stop, but you're not finished. You have to get this out because if you don't, you'll never do it.

"They sent a new handler to oversee my... procedure. Funny thing he was a Sidestep fan back when I was in costume... So he was in charge of talking to me whenever I wasn't being dragged into some testing chamber. To be the "Good Cop"

and ... he... " you rub your eyes. This is too hard.

"What did he do, Cyrus?" you can feel he probably can already tell.

"He... used me. He fucked me. I was his plaything... He boasted about owning me with the others. I tried to get him to stop at first... but then he would beat me, and call the guards on me... and then it'd be even worse... so I just... let him. I just stopped caring."

Ricardo's gone completely motionless behind you, except for the heavy breathing on his chest. Now he's angry as well.

"I'm going to kill him... I'm going to kill him, Cyrus. I'm going to find him and kill him... " he repeats a few times. You just stay still. You used to dream about killing him, even before you left the farm.

"In the end, I didn't care. Because they reminded me I wasn't human. I was back to being a tool in their box. That's what they called this... "Induced depersonalization". Reduce us back to being what we were meant to be once more. They had a lot of experience with escapees like me. I couldn't understand why was this happening to me. Why was everything so unfair.  I just knew it was my own fault because that's what they kept telling me..."

He holds you as if his arms could heal. You can feel him trembling behind you. His tears on your neck. You knew this would break him. Why are you even telling him this? These secrets only bring pain...

"One day he came in... and told me to stop asking for the Rangers to rescue me. He told me you knew all along. That it was just a delusion of mine. That you handed me over to the Directive after Heartbreak when you saw my Tattoos. He told me we weren't friends. That you had moved on. I didn't want to believe it... but they drugged me. And then they showed me a video of you living your ordinary life. Getting awards and medals for more heroics through the city without me. You know, being happy. While I was back there"

"Did... Did you believe it?" he asks unsteadily

"Yeah. I bought theyr story. My mind was a fucking mess, they could have fed me any story they wanted by then. I hated you. I hated you so much... and I hated myself mostly, for being so stupid. That very night, I tried to kill myself. Tried to force him to choke me, even trough the dampener. I didn't even realize I was doing it... until I felt I was inside his body."

"You.."

"They stopped him. They just thought he had done it by himself. You know, he had been torturing me for months. They thought he was losing sight of his goals. They replaced him soon enough. A new handler came in, and It went on, and on... But I had learned something. I learned I could still use my powers"

"And then?"

"They started trusting me with small things again. I had undergone their "Process" so I was a loyal tool once more. They had me mess up the minds of other regenes for them. Inside the farm mind you, they weren't going to let me out again...

"Until I escaped. It's a bit blurry about how I did it... I possessed several people. I was drugged half the time too. I just remember I had someone drive me off the desert, inside a supply box... the rest is ... gone" you say finally.

"I remember I squatted a room. I was just using my powers freely then. Got drunk. Did several drugs for months. I was always hiding in filthy hotel rooms or sleeping in alleys... I just... sort of gravitated towards Los Diablos I guess"

"I saw you" you continue. "I almost talk to you... but I was... very confused. I still think you knew what had happened to me and did nothing. I thought you abandoned me there. I walked up to my Tomb, and Anathema's... And I came up with a fucked up plan to cause a new mess I guess?"

"If only I had known..."

"Yeah... well at least... at least now you know."

He sighs softly.

"Well that's.. the whole story... except for one more thing I guess"

"Tell me"

"I just... You know... Sometimes I still feel like he was right? Heartbreak? When he told me that I don't deserve to live"

"Cyrus you're a good person. You have a lot to live for."

"Do I?" you ask him a bit unsure “Because sometimes I don’t know Ricardo. I mean do you even see a future for me? One in which I don’t end dissected on a laboratory?”

"You saved the city countless times. You're a hero. I'm going to be here for you, as long as it takes. And you do deserve to live like everyone else, ok? And we’ll make a future for you. I’ll make sure of it." he says behind you.

You close your eyes. Your eyes feel watery and you just are just weak and tired. He keeps speaking, saying something meant to be comforting. He holds you tighter as he notices you're shaking all over. You can feel the warmth of his breath over your ear tough the words lose all meaning.

You're overcome once more, with that familiar sensation of pointlessness. Feeling like you're dangling over a dark bottomless pit. He's holding you now, but does it make a difference?

Does it really?

"I'm here for you Cyrus. Always" he says as if he heard the question in your mind. 

.......................................

He stays the night. He takes you for a walk through the beach the next day and makes sure you make an appointment with your psychiatrist before leaving to work.

Life goes on, not caring you can't shake the feeling that you were hit by a bus. There's a big relief, but also anxiety. You're not sure what's going to happen now that he knows.

And eventually nothing bad happens but you can’t shake the feeling that it will. You just know it will. Still, he just grows much closer than he ever was to you.

Having someone who actually knows you accept you as you are is a whole new thing. It’s scary, and it's not going to be easy getting used to it.

The numb sensation stays with you for a few more weeks.   ____________________________ My fanfics: https://chaniters.tumblr.com/post/181692759294/my-fanfiction-for-fallen-hero DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters and the setting of the Fallen Hero: Rebirth and upcoming Fallen Hero: Retribution games written by Malin Riden. I do not claim ownership of any characters from the Fallen Hero wold. These stories are a work of my imagination, and I do not ascribe them to the official story canon. These works are intended for entertainment outside the official storyline owned by the author. I am not profiting financially from the creation of these stories, and thank the author for her wonderful game/s, without which these works would not exist.

[magic-and-moonlit-wings]

Chapter 16: Exposure and Exposition

Becoming The Mask

Content warning for this chapter: although no one actually dies and there are no direct spoilers, a few things that happen will feel referential to sad moments in Season 3. This wasn't on purpose but might have been subconsciously influenced because I have seen all of the third season.

Nomura was in grave danger. She had been doing an inventory of the recovered pieces of Killahead Bridge, and discovered that one of the stones recorded as being in the Janus Order's possession was missing.

It was a small stone, not structurally essential, buried deep within the bridge to fill a gap between two larger, irregular stones. If the magic sealing the portal to the Darklands didn't require them to acquire and assemble every single stone, it could be replaced with mortar, or left out.

She did not envy Gladys, the Changeling responsible for first acquiring this crate and bringing it to the United States. Bular might execute Gladys out of hand if he decided she had falsified her report that all the Killahead pieces in Madagascar had been recovered.

As the one who realized it was missing, Nomura's neck would also be on the line for finding it when – if – Bular found out. He did not believe in sparing the messenger.

Previous inventory, from three months ago, attested that this piece had arrived in Arcadia Oaks and made it safely to the museum. Who would have had access to the stones after that? Nomura herself, and Bular, of course, and the goblins currently nesting in the museum, and Stricklander …

… And Lake.

The museum could not have functional security cameras while Bular lived there. Officially, the digital security system was temporarily down for maintenance and upgrades, with the cameras left in place as dummies to fool the casual would-be thief or vandalizer. Thus, Nomura could not review past recordings to double-check her theory.

But now that she considered the matter, she distinctly remembered the young Changeling who currently called himself Jim Lake, following her and Stricklander to Killahead Bridge, when Stricklander checked up on the reconstruction under the cover of a school field trip. Lake had been sitting on a crate and holding two or three of the bridge's smaller stones while they talked about bringing in a new Changeling, and there were soft clacks of stone on stone as he returned them to their crate, and neither she nor Stricklander double-checked that crate's contents after Lake went to rejoin his classmates.

Oh, they were devious.

Lake was relatively new to the surface; a 'young' Changeling. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't play an active role in the Janus Order until his human form had 'grown up' and could distance himself from his Familiar's family and disappear without calling attention. Stricklander was the head of the Janus Order, and his role as a teacher made him Lake's primary contact. The boy would be eager to prove himself useful.

Stricklander was probably holding the stone in reserve, to reveal that he'd 'found' a harder-to-trace piece of Killahead the next time Bular got angry, and poor little Lake was the scapegoat who'd actually taken the stone and would take the fall if Bular caught on that one had been stolen before Stricklander could play his hand.

Nomura huffed in annoyance at Stricklander's power-play. Oh, sure, he talked about how his ultimate goal was the good of all Changelings, but that didn't stop him from using them like … well, like every Changeling used everyone, but that didn't make him less obnoxious.

This should be simple enough to handle. She knew where Lake lived. She'd intimidate him into either giving her the stone back or revealing where Stricklander was hiding it. Bular didn't have to be involved. Lake didn't have to know that Bular wasn't yet involved. Stricklander had probably told Lake that this was a test of Killahead's security or something.

It was too bad Nomura wouldn't be able to trust anything Lake cooked for a while after this.

He insisted he would never 'insult' his own cooking by poisoning it, and no one could conclusively trace it back to him, and none of them had died from it, but Changelings who insulted Jim tended to find themselves mildly to severely ill, if they ate in the base's cafeteria on one of his nights.

Jim sorted through photos of book pages on his computer. He wanted to arrange what he'd found on troll nutrition and food into a single document with some kind of legible flow.

He still needed some excuse for how he'd gotten his information before he could bring the new cookbook to the base's kitchen. Maybe if he bought an old-fashioned-looking sketchbook and copied it out by hand … Stricklander was the only Changeling who knew what Jim's handwriting looked like. A 'recovered' book would be easier to explain than a bunch of printouts; Jim could speculate that some troll must have dropped it while on the surface looking for ingredients.

He'd have to batter it up a bit to make the book look used – spill some ingredients on relevant recipe pages for authentic-looking 'used in a kitchen' stains, tear some pages at the edges, fold in a few corners to imply favourite foods – and he should come up with some excuse for why he was suddenly so much more fluent in reading trollish – maybe claim that Stricklander taught him after he found the recipe book, because that wasn't of enough strategic use to keep locked away in a vault or office, and might as well go to the kitchen – but it could work.

Jim had not technically lied to Blinky when he said he wanted to know about troll food and nutritional needs for Draal's benefit. He'd just left out that it wasn't only for Draal's benefit.

He'd noticed his metabolism changing since he'd started visiting Trollmarket. More accurately, Jim had noticed his metabolism not changing when it should. He was training hard, and going through growth spurts in both his forms, and thank Stricklander and the Pale Lady that aloe vera worked and Jim's horns weren't itching anymore, and by all logic he should be ravenous all the time, but his hunger wasn't any more intense or frequent than it had been before. Likewise, he didn't seem to be sleeping longer than usual or showing any signs of sleep deprivation.

His best guess for why that was, was that he was also getting regular Heartstone exposure now.

That first Heartstone piece he'd stolen weeks ago was safely ensconced in the Janus Order's base. Once he could start making real troll food during his nights on kitchen duty, the Changelings stationed in Arcadia Oaks could finally enjoy a full range of nutrition in both their forms.

He'd offer to cook something for Bular as well, to demonstrate the side benefits of Jim's undercover assignment, if he weren't positive the Gumm-Gumm would take offense to any offering of food that wasn't human meat.

Someone was knocking. Jim saved and closed his work and went downstairs.

"Ms Nomura?"

"I know what you and Stricklander are up to." She pushed her way into the house. Oh no. Please don't let Toby be looking out his window. "Where's the stone?"

Jim mentally stumbled. "Stone? What stone?" Her opening suggested she knew about him being the Trollhunter – Was this about the Heartstone piece? He'd implied retrieving it was Stricklander's doing. Did she somehow know he had more now? Had she seen Bular with the second piece Jim retrieved and want one of her own?

Nomura pinned him to the door he had just closed.

"The stone from the bridge that you took from the museum."

Well. There went his half-baked plan to cover up the theft by claiming he'd taken it from Trollmarket when he brought it back. Unless Nomura hadn't told anyone else yet.

"Why would I take a bridge piece from the museum? That's where we're building it. We want them there. I'm not stupid."

"Oh, that's debatable." Her eyes glowed at him. "You'd do it if Stricklander asked you to."

"Why would he ask that?" Jim lit his eyes back at her. "Are you questioning his loyalty?"

She spun them both around and threw him to the floor. He cried out involuntarily on impact.

No armour, no armour, if she doesn't know I can't let her know –

"RAH!"

Draal charged up the stairs to the rescue.

The troll's eyes widened when he saw Nomura. Draal picked Jim up by where his scruff would be in his other form, setting him on his feet and setting him aside, as though for safekeeping.

"Stay back, fleshbag – she's a Changeling!"

Draal drew something – a dagger? – from his belt, and thrust it at Nomura's heart. Jim leapt between them, his armour flaring to life.

"Draal, don't!"

The attack grazed Jim's face. His armour sent out a burst of light that pushed Draal and Nomura to opposite ends of the hall and knocked Jim down to sit on his tail.

Oh no.

Draal had been lunging at Nomura with a gaggletack. Jim's face was the only part of him that the armour didn't cover.

"You're the Trollhunter?!" Nomura shrieked.

"You're a Changeling?!" Draal roared.

"Stricklander knows," Jim told Nomura quickly. He stood again, still between them, keeping an eye on each possible attacker. "It's an infiltration mission." He drew one of his knives. Not an amulet-conjured knife, but a very specific one of his own.

Draal attacked Jim. Jim dodged and slashed Draal's arm. The troll cried out as the limb began stiffening. The wound turned grey with flickers of purple light.

Every Changeling carried a Creeper's Sun blade. Jim was one of the few living members of the Janus Order with experience brewing the antidote.

"I don't want to fight you, Draal."

"You are a disgrace," Draal snarled at him. "You are not worthy of that Amulet … Impure." He spat on the floor.

Jim growled. Nomura transformed and reached for her swords. Jim still wasn't sure which of them she was more likely to attack.

A car pulled into the driveway. They all froze. Jim unfroze first.

"My mom's back!" He switched forms but didn't drop the armour just yet. "Nomura, switch. Draal, basement." The troll looked about to argue. Jim steamrollered him. "We can fight to the death later, but you insist on doing this now, it'll be your fault a human found out about trolls." He shoved Draal to the stairs.

"This isn't over," Draal growled, but let himself be shoved.

Jim hesitated, then nicked Draal's leg with the poisoned knife to slow him down. Even if Draal went for the tunnel, if he was injured, Jim could catch up to him before he reached Trollmarket.

"I know you won't believe me right now, but I really don't want to have to kill you."

He shut the basement door in Draal's face, let the armour fade, and hid the amulet in its usual pocket along with the knife.

"Jim? I'm just in for a minute, I forgot my phone – Zelda?"

"Hello, Barbara," said Nomura, now perched innocently on the couch. "How have you been?"

"You know each other?" Jim thought he knew, or at least knew of, all his mother's friends. Unless they'd met at the hospital. It was nearly impossible to track all the patients there.

"We're in the same krav maga class – I'm doing fine – Zelda, what brings you here? Especially at this hour?"

"I was out for an evening walk and thought I heard someone following me," Nomura covered, putting on a wary and concerned expression and hunching into a more anxious posture as she related the excuse, then relaxing again. "It might have been nothing, but I know my ex lives around here, so I knocked on the first door with a porch light on and your son let me in. I was about to call a cab."

"No need for that," said Barbara. "Just let me grab my phone and I'll give you a lift home on my way to work. I'm already late, I can spare a few minutes. Jim, make sure all the doors and windows are locked once we're gone – or would you rather come with me? I know where you could set up a cot."

Normally he'd take her up on that offer, but he had to deal with the Draal situation. "I'll be fine here. If I change my mind, I'll go over to Toby's."

"Okay. Love you." She kissed his forehead and went to get her phone.

"Love you, too." Once Barbara was out of earshot, Jim turned to Nomura and said softly, "If she's hurt and I live, I'll kill you. If Draal kills me, he'll kill you no matter what happens to Mom. Wish me luck."

Nomura huffed. "Your sentimentality is adorable. Don't die. I still want answers."

"You can drop me off at the museum. My car is there."

"Wow, you walked a long way. Do you go for evening strolls a lot?"

Barbara didn't know Zelda very well – the other woman kept to herself before and after class and didn't chitchat with her training partners – but that felt like a safe topic. More neutral than asking about the ex who might have been following her.

"It varies," said Zelda. "My job hours aren't as regular as you might think. A lot happens in the museum after it's closed to the public."

"Hey, if anyone understands irregular work hours, it's me."

They drove in silence for a little while. Barbara tried dropping another conversational hook.

"I don't go to the museum as often as I'd like, but you've got a really eclectic collection there."

Zelda smiled. "I prefer to think of it as 'well-rounded'. We don't quite have room for everything to get the display space it deserves, so instead we give the public little tastes of each and hopefully inspire guests to go learn more on their own."

"Do you have a favourite exhibit there?"

"Definitely 'Ceramics Through The Ages'. That one actually started life as a pet project of mine. I have a private collection, not housed at the museum – the public doesn't appreciate pottery like they should," she said with a sigh. "We've been sourcing pieces for an architectural reconstruction lately, which has been taking up a lot of my time, but I've managed to find some pottery to add to my personal collection during the hunt."

"Everything I know about pottery comes from a camp I went to when I was twelve," said Barbara. "My projects always broke in the kiln."

"Everything I know about modern medicine comes from a first aid course I took years ago," Zelda returned lightly.

They reached the museum. Barbara parked beside the only other car in the lot, presuming it was Zelda's. Zelda got out.

"Thanks for the ride, Barbara."

"See you in class."

As she drove away, Barbara noticed in the rear view mirror that Zelda went into the museum rather than to her car. Maybe she'd forgotten something.

Jim kept a bottle of half-brewed Creeper's Sun antidote hidden under his bed, labelled 'Science Project – please do not throw away' in case Barbara found it.

Once most of the ingredients were boiled in oil, they could be kept for months, waiting for the final catalyst. Heartstone was ideal, but any magically potent stone would do. A troll or Changeling in a pinch could even use a piece of their own stone flesh. The first time Jim brewed the antidote, he'd chipped off the tip of one of his elbow spurs.

He brought the bottle downstairs when he went to talk to Draal. Draal had not made a break for Trollmarket through the tunnel. He was huddled behind the furnace, pressing the chunk of Heartstone to his injured arm and breathing shakily.

"What did you do to me?" he growled.

"It's called Creeper's Sun. As it spreads through your system, it will gradually turn you to solid stone. The speed depends on how vital the spot I hit was. Interestingly, this toxin is fully reversible, so long everything you want to save stays attached. Changelings have even been revived from complete petrification."

Draal snarled at Jim. Jim sat down a short distance away and showed him the bottle.

"I brought the antidote. It needs one more ingredient, and then you just apply it to the affected areas. I got your leg, too. I had to slow you down so we could talk."

"I'm not interested in anything you have to say."

"Are you going to listen anyway? You're hurt, Draal. Your options are limited right now."

Draal was clearly weighing those options carefully. He could attack Jim, and maybe even overpower him, but he didn't know what the 'final ingredient' was or even if Jim was telling the truth about the antidote. He could make a break for the tunnel, and if he rolled instead of ran he might outpace Jim for a while, but his injuries would slow him down and Jim could catch up. Draal's best option would be to hear Jim out, get the antidote, and then turn on the Changeling, though that might just get the troll poisoned again.

Draal glared at the bottle. "Talk."

"I can't let you tell Trollmarket that I'm a Changeling. I don't want to kill you, but that doesn't mean I won't. You see how my options are also limited."

Kill Draal, or risk Draal killing him, or risk Draal exposing him, which would basically be the same as killing him but probably take longer.

"… Why didn't you let me die in the Forge?"

"What?"

"When I fell off the ledge. Everyone thinks you're human. I thought you were human. No one would have been suspicious if you hadn't been strong enough to pull me back up. If you're a Changeling, why did you save my life?"

In all honesty it had been an impulse decision, but Jim had had time to think it over and justify his actions if anyone found out and questioned him.

"Saving you would improve my reputation around Trollmarket and put you in my debt. If I failed, either I'd still look good for trying to save you, or it would look suspicious that you, the guy who basically said when we met that you'd be a better choice of Trollhunter than I am, had died while alone with me and my trainers."

That was another reason Jim hoped he wouldn't have to kill Draal tonight. He could claim Bular had found him and Draal had heroically sacrificed himself driving Bular off, or something along those lines, but it would still look bad if Draal died while Jim was the only witness.

"You'd mostly let go of your open resentment for me being Trollhunter by that point, and you value honour and like to think of yourself as heroic. If we'd both started slipping, and AAARRRGGHH didn't rush over in time to save us, you were more likely to yourself fall than pull me down with you."

And Draal would be a useful member of Gunmar's army, but that was the secondary excuse for Jim to give to his fellow Changelings, not something Draal would accept even if he believed Jim meant it.

Of course, if Bular were the one to ask, Jim had done it in case Bular wanted to personally kill the Son of Kanjigar.

"The strength boost really was the armour, though."

"And why did you let me move into your home? You had to know you were risking being caught."

"It would've been suspicious of me to refuse protection for my mother."

"The human woman you left alone with Nomura?"

"Nomura's too practical to draw attention with disappearances."

Especially so close to the completion of Killahead. Bular was on edge, which meant every Changeling in Arcadia was even edgier. Anything that might compromise the mission would be … harshly dealt with, and anyone in proximity could be collateral damage. That was likely why she'd come to threaten Jim herself rather than setting Bular on him.

"How much did you hear, before you came upstairs?"

It hadn't been enough for Draal to recognize Nomura before he saw her, but it might have been enough to expose the bridge reconstruction.

"I heard the knock and the door open, but I wasn't paying attention until you screamed."

"It was really more of a yelp," Jim muttered.

"Who is Stricklander?"

If Draal hadn't been paying attention, how did –? Blast it, Jim has said that right in front of Draal, hadn't he?

"Another Changeling. But he's not using that name in his human cover right now, so that won't help you track him."

Unless Draal repeated the name in front of literally any of his actual human acquaintances, who would notice the resemblance right away. It was more secure if a cover name changed entirely every time, but easier to remember to answer to your name – and bluff if you answered unthinkingly to a previous, now 'wrong' name – if it remained basically similar. That was why so many Changelings named themselves with some variant of their Familiar's name.

Jim sighed heavily and pushed his hand through his hair.

"So. Are we going to fight to the death or are you going to keep my secret?"

He knew he was asking a lot of Draal. Draal's first loyalty was to Trollmarket. If anyone found out he knew about a Changeling and had kept them secret, well, it was a good thing he had already moved into Jim's basement, because he could probably be banished for that.

Or executed. Draal could see himself in a no-win situation, unless he recognized the 'win' of nobody finding out Jim's secret and Jim then being able to vouch for Draal's trustworthiness once Gunmar ruled.

Not that a Changeling calling someone 'trustworthy' means much, or that Draal would willingly side with Gunmar … No, Jim, stop that, think positive …

"I have a condition," Draal decided. Which was a fair thing to demand. Jim would owe him for this. "I won't tell anyone, if you tell Blinky, and he agrees to keep your secret."

Jim swore in admiration. "Well played." He rolled Draal the bottle. "Dip the Heartstone in and then pour it on your cuts."

Previous Chapter (Jim gets another chunk of Heartstone, officially ‘for Draal’, but breaks off some pieces and gives one to Toby)

Table of Contents 

Next Chapter (The consequences of this chapter) 

Remember this line from Chapter 12? 

Claire took [the gaggletack] and passed it to Darci, who passed it to Mary, who looked around and shrugged and passed it to the nearest troll, who happened to be Draal. Draal didn't have as many pockets or such large pockets at Blinky did, but there was some kind of pouch on his belt, and he tucked the gaggletack away. 

That's how and why Draal happens to have one with him. He never bothered to empty his pocket. 

The driving scene with Barbara and Nomura felt gratuitous when I first started writing it, but there were at least three very good reasons to include it. 

If I didn't, people would be left wondering if Barbara got out of that car trip alive. 

It occurred to me while writing it that I was not actually sure if this fic already passed the Bechdel Test, and if I, the author, could not think offhand of a scene wherein two or more women talk to each other about something other than a man, I probably had not written such a scene yet. 

The delay built up suspense and tension for Jim's talk with Draal. 

As an honourary point, the driving scene padded the word count in case I decided to cut off Jim and Draal mid-talk so I could post the chapter on schedule and keep working on the talk between them for the next two weeks. (From the opening to the end of the driving scene is just over 2450 words, and I usually shoot for 2500.) The conversation between Jim and Draal did NOT want to get written! I think I finished it at one in the morning the day it was due to be posted.

Moving on, I found the first part of the 'antidote' scene in Season Two, (where the characters brew the antidote, and it's in a cauldron in front of AAARRRGGHH, and nothing happens, and they conclude they were double-crossed,) really dissatisfying. I get that everyone's upset, and that grief and sleep deprivation can have a detrimental effect on judgement and rational thought, but I thought they were smarter than that. Um, maybe try applying the antidote to the affected areas first, instead of just having it in proximity to the poisoned person, before despairing that it doesn't work?

[angst-fairygodmother]

I dunno if you'll do them because its been a while since you reblogged it but I'd love a Director's Cut for Sing Once Again With Me. Or since there's a lot, something about Y/N and Yennefer or for Notes which is my favorite chapter.

I’m happy to do a Director’s Cut, especially since I can and will talk about Sing Once Again With Me for ages.

A few general notes on the story and then I will address the specifics of Yenefer and the Reader, and “Notes”:

1) It started as what I thought was a dumb late-night musing. I was watching POTO shortly after watching The Witcher the first time, and absently thought, as one does, that it would make a good AU I was not yet confident in my writing, in general but especially for The Witcher, so I actually sent the idea to someone else, as a “what if” type thing. But I kept thinking about it, and then her response was encouragement to write it. So I did.

2) I have a complete skeleton/outline of the story, chapter-by-chapter and “casting notes” for the characters in the different roles from POTO. I mention this because it’s pretty unique as my usual writing style is “vague concept…go!” Despite this, I don’t always know where the chapter is going until we get there.

3) I had not originally planned for it to be set post-canon (after the Mountain Breakup) but when I was writing, it started to make sense as a good alternative to the childhood friends dynamic, to allow our lovers to reunite without straying too far from where they were grounded in their canon personalities and relationships.

Yennefer and the Reader:

If anything threw me for a loop in the development of this story, it was the Reader and Yennefer’s relationship, and really just their presence in the story. I view an outline as a living document, so I’ve been able to adapt for it, but when I started they were supposed to be much more minor than they have ended up.

Up until I wrote “Think of Me” I was still going back and forth on whether I was going to use Yennefer or Triss for Madame Giry. I settled on Yen because I picked interactions over personality. Yennefer had met both Geralt and Jaskier, and there was an existing dynamic I could play off or counter, where Triss, while the more canonically nurturing, had never met Jaskier and we had very little interaction with Geralt (or anyone really) to show their feelings toward each other. I’m still not 100% sure I made the right choice.

The only reason the reader and the mage ended up a married couple is because during the planning stages, someone sent me a suggestion that the reader be hella gay so that the platonic relationship between her and Jaskier was also mlm/wlw solidarity. And while I don’t usually go out of my way to have particular representation, it did get me thinking that it made more sense for the reader to be the spouse of the person that I cast as Madame Giry instead of a daughter (since the Reader was cast as Meg). But even then, they were only supposed to be in the background, a few scenes here and there, particularly for exposition and to show that Geralt and the Phantom were not Jaskier’s only interactions/focus.

Now, I think the story has become as much about the friendships between Jaskier and the reader and Yennefer and Geralt, and about Yennefer and the reader’s romance, as it has about the twisted love triangle, and I think that’s one of the things that makes it special.

A little bit fix-it-fic, a little bit found family. An opportunity for Yennefer to see what it’s like to really matter to someone without Destiny, and me to write her as both soft and not. I don’t really know what to say about the relationship other than I just really love it.

Stranger Than You Dreamt It/Notes:

I’m glad to hear that it’s your favorite chapter! 

This is one of my favorite songs in the show. But it was not an easy chapter to write. Mainly because most of the featured characters in it (Andre, Firman, Carlotta) are even less characters in the story than they are in the movie. They are cardboard cutouts, plot devices. And suddenly, for the story to work, they matter. Also I had never used the word “opera,” let alone referred to the Phantom as the Opera Ghost. Or had him make demands prior to this point. Also the notes are just better in song, and to me they feel a bit clunky. 

So really, it was a problem because I made it one.

The first part (Stranger) is very similar to the musical version, just with more internal thought. But also it’s the first full description I give of Valdo. And I think that was the first thing I wrote of the whole story.

Then “Notes” which took a long time of me scrambling to, as I said, tunnel a way out of the corner I’d written myself into. I actually skipped it, wrote the ending part, and went back.

The end part, aka the confrontation between Geralt and the Reader, came to me in the shower, and I wrote it out. Then I moved it into a separate document because I was going to cut it. 

“It’s too irreverent, it doesn’t fit,” I told myself. “It would ruin the whole feel of the story.” 

But I needed the exposition that was in it. And I wanted to flesh out the reader’s personality. And I really, really like “Just remember, you’re carp.” So it went back into the chapter. I’m really happy with that decision because it’s one of my favorite things. Although I do still worry that it deviates too far in tone from the rest. And I still feel weird swearing in The Phantom of the Opera, even if it is common for The Witcher.

I hope this was a satisfactory commentary for you, Nonny, and if not, feel free to ask again with more specifics you’d like to hear about. :D

[stripestheboar]

Day 3 - Bratty/Catty (Undertale)

Well, I like this one. It went better than I thought it did. Originally, this was supposed to have dialogue, but with the more exposition I put in, the more I decided that it was better if no one really spoke. 

This is more of an aftermath of Undetale, focusing on the girls.

Pairing: Bratty/Catty

Word Count: 2,067

Bratty and Catty usually weren’t ones to admit defeat, and this wasn’t an exception. Despite any hardships, they were always able to surpass them through their determination and their support of each other. Being a part of Hotland and parked right outside the Core just by Mettaton’s resort, the girls were some of the first to see the rays of sunlight from aboveground. The two had been waiting their entire lives together for this moment, and they were more than prepared, mostly because the two didn’t exactly have any furniture or decorations that needed to be moved out. It took a while for all the commotion and hubbub to settle down between the humans and monster, but once everything seemed in the clear, the Hotland pair purchased a small apartment together with the G they had saved up from their Underground shop. And now, despite the fact that it had only been a short while since their emergence, one thing was already clear to the two: living aboveground is one of the hardest things ever.

Things had been fairly promising at first. The humans had been surprisingly welcoming at first, and the world above was such a wonder to see. Breathing in fresh air, taking in the warm sunlight, and having just having the never-ending space of the entire world to roam were all greater than they had ever dreamed. Just interacting with some of the humans made them rethink their whole “eradicate humanity” stance.  

However, things weren’t so cheery after a good month in.

After the first thirty days, they came to the realization that rent was still a thing, even up aboveground. Still, it didn’t bother them too much. They decided they needed to get a good source of income, and it was Bratty that came up with the brilliant idea to continue to run their little shop they once had in the Underground. It seemed like a pretty good idea at first, since everyone in the Underground had loved their very used wares. The humans had loads of good stuff they just threw away for no good reason; these things were even better than what they’d find scrounging in the dump. Of course, they got a few weird looks as they were dumpster diving, but they were sure they understood. So, with their wares ready, they set up a little stand in between Muffet’s new shop and the MTT-Brand Burger Emporium.  

As it turns out, humans weren’t exactly interested in objects they themselves threw out, calling it all things like “trash” or “garbage”. They were pretty steamed about it, but it did kind of make sense when they thought about it. Monsters were equally as unimpressed, to their great surprise, and after a good month of trying, they suffered from pretty much no sales at all, not to mention they smelled of garbage almost every day of their work. With the threat of being kicked out of their own apartment looming overhead, the two were kind of forced to get jobs. It was rough at first, but they soon got the hang of it and were able to earn a bit of money. Catty was a bit on the moaning and groaning side, but with Bratty there to support her, she knew she could bear through a simple nine to five.

And then came some of the rude humans.

As Catty learned the hard way, not all humans were nice and welcoming. Being the chattier of the two, it was more often that coworkers or just regular people nearby came up to her just to tell her to shut her trap. While it was just bizarre to her at first, after the next few times, it actually began to hurt a bit. And because she and Bratty worked separate jobs, it was weird for her bestest friend to not immediately come to her aid and rescue. There were also the name calling that had her a bit discouraged. Annoying, tubby, bratty, fat, bitchy, ratty, dumb ass, retard, plum; almost every negative word in the dictionary had been thrown at her, and it was a fairly new experience for the smaller cat monster. She was a bit of a cryer, but she tried not to let it it go that far. Bratty also received the same sort of attention, but Catty seemed to get the worst of it. Another month in, however, and it actually started to get to her.

Catty began to feel somewhat self-conscious of her looks. Without Bratty telling her how pretty she was 24/7, the negative comments had her squirming under staying gazes. She stopped liking what she saw in the mirror every day. She ate a bit less. She didn’t talk as much around others. She stopped complaining. It took about a fifth of a second for Bratty to realize something was wrong, and immediately asked to know what was wrong. Of course, being friends since forever, Catty had no problem voicing her concerns to her BFF. Bratty was quick to shut that situation down, storming into her friend’s workplace to tell off not just the workers, but the entire establishment, saying things such as they didn’t know something valuable if it was slapped across their faces. Sure, it got Catty fired faster than the speed of light itself, but she didn’t care; she was mega glad she had a friend as good as Bratty. Her friend even quit her own job to match. She promised her BFF that they were going to work together from now on, just like they always have. If people didn’t like one or the other, they could either take it or leave it, because they weren’t separating again.

It was soon a month later and the issue of a job was once again back on the table, and Catty was unsure of how to solve it. Bratty didn’t fret, though, and formed a laundry list of jobs they could pick up. They began going down the line, from working at a clothing boutique to servicing at one of Mettaton’s many catering businesses. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, they couldn’t seem to land a job. They were either too unprofessional or the company refused to accept both at the same time.

Another month rolled around and they were struggling to pay rent. At this time, Alphys and Undyne were finally getting married, and because Alphys was almost like a sister to them, of course they went, even if they didn’t have anything impressive to wear. They still had to support their friends after all. Despite this, Catty happened to notice how much slower Bratty seemed to be at the reception. She made sure to grab her friend’s hand during this time, just to let her know she was there.

The next thirty days just seemed to fly by in an instant. Bills mounted and they had already received a notice and a deadline from their landlord. Some of the monsters had decided to hold a large picnic to celebrate their few months of freedom, and that young human, Frisk had personally invited the girls. They went because, hey, free food, and because of course they wanted to go to a picnic hosted by their friends. While this happened, Bratty was obviously a bit sleep deprived, despite her efforts to keep it hidden from everyone else. Three quarters into the banquet and she had already fallen asleep on Catty. The cat didn’t mind, though, and held her hand the entire way though as she held her weight to support her best friend for life.  

Another month passed, and as expected, they were forced out of their own home. While they were able to scrounge up a bit of money for some food, they still needed a place to live. Frisk ended up inviting them to bunk with their family until they got back on their feet. The two were eager to accept. And yet, despite their new home, it didn’t stop Bratty from breaking into tears that night. Apologies and the recounting of all their stresses spewed from her as sobs wracked her thin frame. Catty didn’t mind this, and encouraged that she let it all out to her, even crying with her in order to lighten the weight of the pain. Not much sleep was had that night, but the two had a lot to talk about. Catty promised her BFF that no matter the hardships, she was always going to be there for her, and nothing would ever deter her from that. Bratty couldn’t help but tear up once again, promising the same to her. They shared their first kiss that night.

A month had passed once again, and the two were closer than ever. Toriel and Frisk didn’t mind hosting them for so long, understanding their struggles and wanting to help in any way they could. Going about it another way, they decided to take tips from others. Toriel suggested to keep their morals in place and to not deter off the good path, and they would find success. Frisk told them to keep trying, no matter how difficult the task. Burgerpants just said to not stick with a dead-end job for the rest of their lives because they would so regret it. Sans advised that they invest in the fried snow business. Sans was ignored. Muffet, who now owned her own café, told them to focus on what they were good at, which was probably buying and selling material items. Grillby told them that they should start their own business, as then they could start fresh and by their own rules and standards.

Taking the advice of their friends, some of which was old and some new, they laid out their plan.

Three months passed this time and the girls were ready to move out. They finally found jobs working with friends and doing a bit of manual labor. It was tough work, but they definitely collected a pretty large sum of G. However, the biggest help was from Frisk, who donated more G than they had ever seen in one place before. They asked them where it all came from, but Frisk only shrugged, mentioning something about residue and Tems. So the girls went about renting an apartment once again and purchasing a small shop, fit snuggly in a nice plaza. They got to work on fixing the place up their way, and by the time it was done, the walls was a mix of colorful designs and fairly impressive paint work. From here, they went back to square one, going back to getting people’s used wares. Of course, they stopped digging in the garbage, but instead Bratty came up with the brilliant idea to start up a donation pool for people to just dump the things they no longer wanted and sell them to those who might actually want them. After all, with all the thing they found in the dump back in the Underground, it was obvious that humans tended to waste quite a lot of things. As the saying goes: one man’s trash is one monster’s treasure.

Two months had come and gone once again, and while thing had started out slow for them, they were soon earning a modest amount of money from their rather simple idea. They found themselves being able to pay off their bills and rent once again, with the threat of a deadline no longer worrying them anymore. Catty had felt her confidence swell after a time and was able to backtalk or force out any human or monster looking for trouble, and Bratty was finally starting to get a good night’s rest for the first time in months.  

Things seemed to be going well for them, and they had their friends to thank, as well as each other. They had stayed together for an entire year above ground, and yet not a single time did their faith in each other waver. They now spent their days together hand in hand, and their nights snuggled up against one another, always letting the other know they were there to support them or love them. They were BFFs. They were lovers. They could never be torn apart, no matter what the problem. They were looking forward to spending another year together, knowing their friendship and love wouldn’t change a single bit the whole way through.

[thebibliomancer]

Tides of the Dark Crystal liveblog pt 4

Tides of the Dark Crystal by J.M. Lee because where on Thra did the world just go?

Last time on book: Team Naia went to visit Tavra’s galpal Onica to get some Far-Dreaming answers to questions after Kylan shotgunned exposition petals all over Ha’rar. They learned that despite all the flower petals, a lot of Gelfling believe they’re lying traitors and the All-Maudra is more concerned with patching things up with the Skeksis than what the petals had to say. Then Naia and Amri went to rescue Rian from Mr. Chamberlain’s Wild Ride and Amri threw super nautical sriracha up SkekSil’s nose when he roided out on Mira goo. The three Gelfling and a spider ran away but felt weird and had the world vanish on them. This early on before the plot kicks in, things sure feel like random events because I have no idea.

Chapter 4

Aughra invites the main characters to a group chat

Clarification is not far from coming.

Amri finds himself in the Caves of Grot, somehow, while a voice chants “Deatea. Deratea. Kidakida. Arugaru.” But suddenly it gets REALLY bright.

Light glared around him, and he covered his eyes against it. But when he closed his eyes, he saw another dream, this one deeper inside his mind. As if when he’d closed his eyes, he’d actually opened them.

And he saw it.

Spinning before him, larger than life, a spire of faceted stone shining a brilliant white. It rang with a defeaning song, a cry that might pierce any darkness. A voice that turned the world, that beat with the pulse of the planet. It was the Heart of Thra. The Crystal of Truth: blazing from the depths of the world where it had always been, dwarfing Amri as he gazed upon it.

IIIIIIIITS

THE AUGHRA IMPORTANT CHARACTERS GROUP CHAT MOMENT!

As always, interesting to see what plot points are shared between show and books.

Interestingly enough, unlike the show, its kept vague who received invitations to this group chat. He can hear voices but only recognizes some of them over the ringing of the Crystal. And the Crystal is too bright for him to see any faces.

The Crystal of Truth is the best anonymizer. Ironically.

Aughra tells all the Gelfing to hush up and listen to her because “Skeksis might find out. About this dream-space, this source of magic and prophecy.”

And dreamfasting is supposed to be Skeksis proof, dangit. Although I guess if the Crystal is doing it, the Skeksis have a lot of experience with the Crystal.

Aughra singles out Rian and Naia as the ones whose truths will light the way, since Rian saw what the Skeksis had done to darken the Crystal and Naia saw the Crystal itself.

So its time for more dreamfasting recapping! I seriously admire what a great tool for exposition the dreamfast is as a concept.

The movie writers sure were onto something when they jammed it in so Jen and Kira could instantly get up to speed.

After Naia tells of the darkening reaching all the way to the swamp, other Gelfling chime in to tell of their own experiences seeing the darkening at sea or in the Caves of Grot.

Rian shares his own memory of Mira being forced to look at the Crystal and being reduced to essence by a Skeksis machine.

He bemoans that showing the vial to the All-Maudra was their only hope but All-Maudra Mayrin says she’s totally in the conference.

“I have seen the petals that came on the wind from the south,” the All-Maudra continued. “I’ve heard rumors, rippling through the Vapra of Ha’rar. Of Mira’s disappearance. Of Rian and Gurjin, the traitors.” Her emotions were hidden on her stolid face when she added, “But now I understand the truth.”

Oh, and apparently when she talks the Crystal shows her face on its face so everyone can see that she’s talking. That’s really convenienent but makes it more like this is a dream-skyping, showing whoever is talking.

Except I think it only happens here. Favoritism.

Aughra chimes in that now they all know the truth and Kylan, clearly still holding a grudge about her appearance in Song of the Dark Crystal asks why Aughra didn’t do this earlier.

And she either answers or ignores him because what she says can go either way.

“Aughra made this place, this dream-place. To ask Thra the same thing! Thra answered,” Aughra muttered.

And Aughra has homework for the class. Or Thra does. Six of one.

“Now, Thra has answered,” she continued. “And here is what it has said: seven fires of resistance must be lit. Seven fires by seven clans, before the Skeksis destroy the Crystal with their greed. Seven wondrous melodies must unite as one, in a single song... By you, Naia. By the menders who hear the cries of the Dark Crystal. This is Thra’s answer.”

Naia instantly agrees. Which is very protagonist of her. And its very good of Thra to recognize how protagonist she is.

Kylan asks All-Maudra Mayrin whether she believes everything that they were eventually going to get around showing her.

“Yes,” she said. “I see now it cannot be denied. Go forth, knowing the first fire already blazes... Ha’rar and the Vapra will stand against the Skeksis.”

Amri suddenly feels overjoyed and wonders whether they misjudged the All-Maudra.

Rian, who as inciting incident maybe feels like he should be protagonist and is also a bit more vindictive than show Rian, asks what role Thra wants for him, adding that he’d really like to make the Skeksis pay for what they’ve done.

Aughra tells him that there’s a special subplot that only he can handle, a sacred object that must be retrieved and that he’ll know it when he awakens.

And then she wakes them all up because when Aughra is done answering questions she’s done.

Naia, Amri, and Rian find themselves collapsed in the snow without that much time having passed.

Rian immediately excuses himself to go off on his subplot.

Geez. Something always comes up to keep him out of the main cast.

“And even if I don’t understand, I suppose I still have to try. That’s the way this always goes, it seems.”

SEE? EVEN RIAN NOTICES!

Naia belatedly remembers to tell Rian that Gurjin isn’t dead and that she sent him to the Sog to remember because the Skeksis aren’t going to tramp through the swamp if they can help it.

The realization changed the Stonewood for the better. Amri was surprised Rian was able to smile after all that had happened to him. But he did at Naia’s news, if only a little. He reached out and clasped Naia’s hand.

“Thank you, Naia,” he said again. “I’m indebted to you --”

Daaaw. Frens. Or maybe one day eventual friends. Friends based on friends.

Anyway, they hear the Chamberlain screaming in the distance and decide it’s best to amscray but he finds them.

So Amri, Naia, and Tavra run off to Onica’s boat while Rian heads off his own way.

So I usually end the post where the chapter ends but I wanted to go into the super Gelfling menders conference attendance.

Granted, Amri doesn’t recognize a lot of people’s voices and only Mayrin got to have her face show up in the Crystal. There’s more people there then we learn about.

We know for sure that Amri, Kylan, Naia are there. Aughra is there. All-Maudra Mayrin is there. Amri hears a voice that he thinks might be Onica.

Amri never hears Tavra. Explicitly never hears her. Wonders whether she’s absent because of her spider body or whether she’s just not speaking up. After the conference is over, she confirms she was part of it and doesn’t explain why she didn’t pipe up.

If Brea or Seladon are there, they also don’t speak up. And Gurjin doesn’t make a peep or isn’t present at all.

Very different from the show which clearly delineated the Main Characters. Although the addition of Onica make me hope that some of the menders are coming from the clans that were left out of the conference in the show.

But its back to the boat which means more Onica right now! By which I mean in the next post!