#A battle I'm proud to forfeit

[fallen-goldfishcracker]

Greatest battle of the century: My mental sanity vs The Amazing Devil lyrics (i am losing)

[radiant-reid]

idk if it’s been done but a blurb where reader bets spencer that she can make him cum before he finishes the crossword

oh damn i love this idea

The idea creeps into your head after Spencer times Alex doing the morning crossword and humbly brags that he did it quicker that morning.

She turns to you and complains about your husband lightheartedly. "He never loses."

So, set on helping her, the next Monday, when you find Spencer sitting in the living room preparing himself to battle the words, you set your plan into action. Walking over and gently touching his thigh, he looks up at you with a smile.

"Wanna time me?" He offers out the stopwatch. He's got his glasses on, not yet switched to contacts.

You shake your head, fingers trailing up his thigh to where he's already stirring in your pants. "I kind of wanted to do something else."

His eyebrows raise in surprise, but he's not about to decline your offer to make it a very good morning. "Uh, yeah, okay, sure."

You take the crossword and stopwatch from him. "No, you're going to be on the clock, and I'm going to make you cum before you finish."

He scoffs, unbuttoning and unzipping his pants to get his cock out while you get on your knees. "Good luck."

You don't start the timer right away, not letting him see the puzzle until he's fully hard. Teasing him is always an easy way to get him to cum quicker. "Go." You say, tongue brushing over the tip as you hand over the paper and start the timer.

He takes it with shakier hands than usual, quickly reading through the clues before he starts writing. He's off to a good start while you teasingly only suck the tip of his cock, but taking him down your throat completely has him tensing and a little groan slipping past his lips.

Hollowing out your cheeks with your tongue flat and bobbing your head up and down has him struggling to think. He knows he's much slower than usual and knows the words, but he can't seem to think of them. His pattern recognition strategy also isn't working. The little moans he's trying to conceal motivate you.

Unfortunately, he can't just block you out by closing his eyes, so he takes a deep breath in and concentrates.

He gets a couple more words in and gets closer to his usual average time once he gets accustomed to your strategy, so you switch it up, letting him hit the back of your throat and making you gag each time.

"Fuck." He moans, almost ready to forfeit, but he's a little more determined than that. However, you are too. It's very hard, he finds, to not let his glasses fog up while he breathes hard.

You're unrelenting, not giving him a moment to focus on the words in your diligent efforts to make him cum. It's game over, not even seven minutes in, when you simultaneously, cup his balls, make eye contact with him, and swipe your tongue over the very sensitive tip.

He spills into your mouth with a louder moan, throwing his head back, and completely forgetting about the crossword.

You pull off him, swallowing before smugly grinning at him. "Hurry up, Spence. You don't want your average time for the week to start so high."

Dazed, he picks up the paper again, filling in the last few words now that you've relieved the pressure, allowing blood to flow to his brain rather than it all being forced to his cock.

"Done." He declares, and you look at the stopwatch.

"Damn, seven minutes and thirty-two seconds." You announce, proud of yourself.

There's no doubt Alex will win this morning. It's the longest time you've seen him get in months.

You stand up, leaning over to kiss him. "I hate you." He mumbles against your lips with a blissful smile.

"Too bad." You reply. "You're stuck with me. Now put your pants on so we can go. I've got to brush my teeth again."

Alex is prepared for her turn to do the crossword when you get into the BAU. Spencer reads out the clues, and you time her while grinning at him.

"Four minutes and fifty-one seconds." You announce, loud enough you get the attention of everyone on the team but Hotch as they walk past. "I think we have a winner."

Alex looks surprised. "How long did it take you?" She asks.

Spencer glares at you, and you know he's about to lie to her, so you jump in. "Seven, thirty-two."

"No way." She shakes her head in disbelief. "That was an easy one."

"I got stuck on seven down," Spencer claims when he really just got stuck on you going down on him.

Morgan takes the crossword from her, reading out the clue. "Sexually attractive, six letters." He repeats, making everyone laugh while Spencer blushes.

You laugh too, hitting him on the shoulder as you sit next to him on top of his desk. "Idiot." You whisper affectionately. He could have at least picked a different clue, not one with nubile as an answer.

"Y/n didn't fit." He says uncharacteristically boldly, causing an even louder uproar of surprised gasps and comments.

[amitieos]

let's get ready to rumble! || battle of the eagle and lion round 3, battle 23

Elincia heads to the field of battle once more, a spring in her step. The number of competitors had thinned out considerably and she considered herself blessed to have made it this far. For the third time that day she fought alongside Caspar, his cheer infectious and enthusiasm boundless.

"I couldn't ask for a better partner. Shall we try and make it three for three?" Elincia asks him as they approach their opponents. It will be a hard fought battle, of that much she is sure before they begin. Yet the pair had made a fantastic team so far. "No matter what happens, I'm proud to have fought by your side today."

She stands across from Princess Céline of Firene and a knight named Lloyd who appeared somewhat familiar. Humming, she tries to put her finger on how so whilst she assesses the battlefield before her, searching for an advantageous opening move. Elincia makes her decision, grabbing the bow strapped to her back when it hits her. "Lloyd Reed? As in Linus' brother? He's a lovely fellow, isn't he? It's a pleasure to finally meet you!" Perhaps some may titter and say this was hardly the place for pleasantries but Elincia did not care. They were not enemies in war but rivals in a friendly competition, hardly a reason not to be polite and amicable to their opponents. Her smile is broad as she turns to Céline, inclining her head to the young royal. "You must be Lady Céline, it's lovely to make your acquaintance too."

"Shall I get us started then? May we all have a fair fight, in the spirit of good fun!" She draws her arrow back, allowing it to fly towards Lloyd. The knight, armed with only a sword, will have to make a choice of his own - to forfeit his turn or move into Caspar's line of attack. Either way, this should secure them an advantage, albeit briefly. If her arrow lands, that is.

Elincia 5/5 HP attacks Lloyd 5/5 HP with Steel Bow Roll d20: 15! Hit -2 damage Lloyd has 3/5 HP remaining

A sigh of relief escapes her lips when the point of her arrow finds it's target. She'd been far too inconsistent for her own liking today, relying far too much on Caspar. After all - they were supposed to be a team and she was determined to pull her weight.

@fangedjustice

[subastian-swallows]

Dark Whispers, Light Vows

CHAPTER THREE: MEMORIES

★ Chapter two

Chapter four ★

Pairing: Dark!Sebastian x AurorMC x AurorOminis - Love Triangle Fic

Words: 7.5k

Warnings: Angst, as always lmao, pain, drunk kissing, memories, letter from Sebastian — before Azkaban RIP

Summary: “In a race against time, (Auror’s) Alice and Ominis must work together to recapture their former friend Sebastian, an escapee from Azkaban. But when Sebastian begins to use a mysterious new form of magic to haunt Alice’s dreams, she’s torn between bringing him to justice or helping him escape, risking everything in the process. Love, friendship, and the battle between light and dark intertwine as Alice must decide which path she will take.”  

A/N: I'm so sorry this took me forever lmao, I'm getting sick and life is wild. I hope you enjoy!

“Memories warm you up from the inside. But they also tear you apart.” — Haruki Murakami

Alice always hated using apparition as a means of getting around, simply because no matter how often they used it—the sudden dizzy spill it provided her, somehow only got worse each time. But Ominis always preferred it over flying, the idea of being suspended in the air, provided little intrigue to him and Alice always teased him for it. She had learned of his fear in the middle of their sixth-year, when Quidditch tryouts had started up again in the springtime. He didn’t want to be there, that much was certain—with the soft snickers of those around him, mocking him for his overconfidence, and yet, because of Alice, he endured it willingly. 

Ominis wasn’t there to try out though, not intentionally anyway. He had just planned to tag along and support Alice from the sidelines, desperate for her to have something to do, simply to keep her mind preoccupied. And yet, it was so hard to deny just how much power she actually had over him, realising that perhaps he just allowed for it to happen—simply because he loved her. But Alice wasn’t cruel, or at least she tried not to be and so when she eventually pushed him away from the Quidditch pitch, Ominis’ hand lingered on her arm—a silent thank you, one that Alice understood completely. 

He welcomed the comfort of the Gryffindor stands, despite the clear confusion from those around him and perhaps, he just didn’t want to sit alone. So when Natsai had offered to relay what was happening, clearly amused by Alice’s sudden burst of furiosity, Ominis happily accepted and sat in silence as he focused on every little detail. Truthfully, he felt a little strange sitting next to Natsai, but not for the sake of not enjoying her company—in fact, Ominis liked her perspective on things. It was more so, due to the lingering thoughts of Sebastian. It was always his responsibility to describe things in vivid and rather over exaggerated detail, taking enjoyment out of either flustering Ominis or making him even more confused. But now, he relied on Alice, which in turn, wasn’t bad—except for when she stopped talking and so he branched out, creating new friendships and that’s where Natsai came in. 

Eventually, Alice returned as the newest beater for Gryffindor alongside Garreth and although she should have been proud of herself, Ominis once again—was the only one who understood why she felt miserable about it. The memory of Sebastian lingered much too long that day, ending with Alice almost attempting to forfeit her position altogether. For it was the position that Sebastian had dreamed of playing, always teasing the idea of trying out to be one of the beaters for the Slytherin team—and yet, he never got the chance. Alice knew that she didn’t need to feel guilty, but that was always easier said than done and in the end the only reason she stayed on the team—was because Ominis asked her to. 

In the end, she was pretty good at it too. Alice seemed to have found comfort in taking out her anger and pain, through smashing bludgers at the opposing teams. It had just become yet another thing for her to use as a coping mechanism and over time, Alice grew bold and risked more—that even Ominis questioned if it was helping anymore. Except perhaps it eventually did, even just a little and soon enough, Alice started to talk more, laugh more—and the game became more about the thrill it gave her, rather than the painful memories that lingered with it. Ominis became her number one supporter too, always wrapped in Gryffindor colours and although it made for constant gossip and idle taunting—his focus was always on her. 

By the end of their sixth-year, Alice was a well respected Quidditch player. She had found the ability to mask her pain, hide it away, so that it only hurt when she was in the dark and eventually—it stayed there. But the darkness never did like to stay silent, no instead, it simply just waited for the right time to strike and when it did, no one was safe. 

•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•:•☾☼☽•:•.•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•

Perched atop a hill, Hogwarts lay almost waiting—a daunting piece of her history that Alice was unsure whether she was relieved to see again. It had stayed much the same in the years since they had graduated, leaving nothing more to admire, then the fact that it still felt like home. But sometimes, homes are broken and when they are filled with too much pain, no matter how many good memories you might have there—it is still broken. Finally letting go of Ominis’ hand, as if she had been holding onto something too hot, Alice swiftly stepped forward and hummed sadly—as if to announce her complex feelings of returning to a place she had tried to forget. 

“Why am I not surprised that this place hasn’t changed a bit,” Alice said, rubbing her thumb harshly against her other palm, as she slowly spun around and attempted to find comfort in something— anything. She hadn’t quite thought about the feelings she would have being back and now that she was here, Alice quickly felt her chest grow tight. “They haven’t even changed the gardens.” 

“Are you truly upset about the school's flower arrangements, or are you just not happy to be back.” 

Alice smiled but didn’t turn to face him, her eyes now fixated on the floating watering cans. “Can’t it be both?”

“I suppose, it does feel strange, doesn’t it?” Ominis asked, moving to her side, only to grab her hand and halt the rubbing she had continued to do since they arrived. Alice looked down a little confused until she saw just how red her palm had gotten and she swallowed shyly, looking up at him—while Ominis let go of her hand. “Doesn’t it feel like we’ve stepped back in time? It’s almost a little nerve-racking, as if stepping back into a memory.” 

“More like a nightmare.” 

Ominis smiled softly, attempting to lighten the mood and yet Alice barely reacted, her gaze returning to the castle. Truthfully she was right, although they ended seventh-year on a happier note, it seemed that for the both of them—their time at Hogwarts had been tainted. “It wasn’t all bad, do you remember the last trip we made to the Black Lake?”

“You mean the time where Garreth almost got dragged into the water by that Selkie?” Alice said, unable to hide the fact that reminiscing about the moment they pulled a screaming Garreth from the water’s edge, made her smile. Ominis could clearly sense the new shift in her voice and so he looked at her, chuckling under his breath as he made his way towards the castle—keeping his pace slow, to allow Alice to join him. “Do you recall what happened after? How he thought, he had been chosen—”

“Chosen for something special? Oh, believe me I do. I had to spend the next three hours listening to him talk about it—and not in a way, I wish to repeat.” 

Alice’s nose scrunched up as she laughed and although it was a pretty pitiful one at that, Ominis enjoyed the sound. It meant that she could still find some comfort, amongst all of the wounds they had to reopen and when she looked up to see his smile had grown a little in size, Alice nudged him softly. “Have you kept in contact with him? If not…perhaps we should look to the Black Lake?” 

“I have been in contact with him actually, but now that you mention it—his letters do always smell a little salty,” Ominis said, leaning towards her, as if to mock her teasing and so Alice nudged him again—this time a little harder and her reaction, made him chuckle a little louder. “He’s actually taken over Pippin’s Potions. Calls himself a Potion’s Master—”

“I thought that was the title given to the Professor who taught Potions? I wonder how Sharp took that.”

Ominis shrugged, clearly amused by the thoughts of a particular red-head, who had managed to make their last two years at Hogwarts—perhaps, more fun than they had expected and Alice couldn’t help but find it sweet that they had stayed in touch. Ominis had been better in that department, keeping track of friendships, whereas Alice—simply focused on her work. She didn’t mean to pull away from everyone, but it was just easier that way and eventually, time became hazy—almost unimportant and she eventually grew used to it. Alice turned to Ominis now, attempting to continue their conversation, as if she was afraid to walk the castle grounds in silence and yet—when the sudden scurrying of a group of sixth-years caught her attention, Alice grew much too curious and dragged Ominis to follow them. 

“What’s gotten into you?” Ominis asked, despite willingly allowing her to drag him after the group of students and although she had most certainly heard his question, Alice ignored it completely. Truthfully she didn’t have a reason, except perhaps, to delay the inevitable and so she gently gripped his hand tighter and followed the group into the bell tower courtyard. “Alice, do not forget we have a job to do.” 

“Oh, do not be boring Ominis, besides—what if a student is in trouble? They're scurrying around like a bunch of headless Gnomes…oh perhaps, it’s a duel?” 

Ominis laughed, thoroughly at a loss for words and yet he didn’t try to stop her or even berate her, no instead, he simply focused on just how small her hand was in his as they ran to keep up with the students. But it wasn’t until Alice came to an abrupt stop and he had to physically stop himself from knocking into her, that Ominis felt her hand slip from his. The noise he made was almost automatic, a show that he was disappointed that they had already separated and when Alice turned slightly, stealing a quick glance at him—Ominis seemed to ignore it and stepped ahead of her, his focus now on searching for the students. 

“Their footsteps have stopped, have we caught up with them?” Ominis said, his usual confident demeanour waving slightly, just enough that she could tell he had grown flustered and so Alice smiled awkwardly and moved to his side again. “I can’t seem to focus—”

“My, don’t tell me—I’m going to have to do all the work? Aren’t you usually good at following trails?” 

Ominis swallowed hard, attempting to keep his head from even twitching in her direction and so Alice hummed, crossing her arms against her chest. She was right, he was an exceptional tracker. But he had been caught off guard, the feeling of her touch—which felt almost electrifying, as if she had touched him differently somehow, now lingered on his skin. And for a split second, his mind was completely blank. “Tease all you like, Alice, but I’ll have you know—I always track down my target. And as of right now, it’s a bunch of students about to duel each other, so I suppose we should step in.” 

“And why would we do that?” Alice asked, looking up at him with a faint smile spreading across her face, trying to gauge his reaction, but he seemed to have already found his confidence again and she pouted, turning back to the crowd—which had now morphed into a circle. “It’s harmless fun—”

“Until it’s not. Do remember we’re not roguish students anymore, Alice.”

Alice shot him a look and rolled her eyes. He was right, of course, but that didn’t make it any less annoying. It seemed that over time, Ominis never really strayed far from the confinements of his responsibilities anymore and Alice always felt bothered by it. “Well, you can stop them. But, I will not. Do remember we were once just like them, Ominis and as I recall—you enjoyed it, just as much.”

Twisting on her heels, making it clear that she wasn’t about to step in to stop the duel, Ominis tensed his fingers around the handle of his wand—before he too, turned and followed Alice towards the castle. He wanted to refute her words, or even just continue to argue with her, for no other reason but to still his beating heart and yet no words left his mouth. It was as if just being back here, brought back every little memory they had shared together, the touches she allowed him and yet, he knew it was simply just that—a memory and one that wasn’t always his. Ominis had found himself recalling their past arguments on duelling, which had mainly been due to her blatant disregard for her safety—and yet, Alice never did listen to him. 

She had found more comfort in the thrill it provided her, the scars it left on her skin and despite the nights of twisting in agony as Ominis mended her wounds—Alice continued to ignore how destructive she had become. It was as if she wanted the pain to be physical, rather than emotional, perhaps just to feel like she could control how much it hurt and yet, it never worked. Alice was like a ticking time bomb, merely edging the fine line of instability. But despite all this, the burden she had now become, Ominis refused to allow her to go through with it alone—and no matter what happened, if she simply just used him until she was better, it had already been long decided that he had accepted his fate. 

Ominis lingered back, perhaps just to figure out how to calm his heart, as if the beating of it could be heard—but Alice must have felt the sudden shift and when she stopped to wait for him, he quickly forced a smile. It had been a long time since it had felt this tense between them and Ominis simply wished to blame it on the situation they had found themselves in—but truthfully, for a long time now, he had found his comfort in blaming their past and Sebastian for everything, rather than deal with the idea that Alice might never truly be his. When they eventually reached the large oak doors, the wood scraping lightly against the stone floor, it was Alice’s stifled groans Ominis heard first—before a familiar voice echoed off the walls and even he couldn’t hide his animosity towards the owner. 

•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•:•☾☼☽•:•.•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•

“Gaunt, my, if you aren’t a sight for sore eyes,” Phineas said, his focus entirely on Ominis as if he refused to acknowledge Alice and although she had every urge to call him out for it, Ominis simply grabbed her arm and forced her quiet. Unlike her, when it came to dealing with those of the same snobbish attitude—Ominis knew that upsetting the Headmaster, would have only caused them drama and so she looked away to grumble as Phineas reached forward to pat Ominis against the arm. “All grown up, famous Auror—it’s quite the feat.” 

“Professor Black, I do hope you don’t mind us dropping in like this. Ministry business, you understand.” 

Phineas finally glanced Alice’s way, but she had chosen to keep her focus on practically anything else. She hated the man, purely for his outlook on the world around them, but in the depths of her heart—she truly hated him, for Professor Fig. It had been a long time since she had thought of him, the pain attached to the memories they shared, far too great and so Alice simply shoved them deep—something she had gotten exceedingly good at. “Care to tell me what brings you here? Last I heard, you were searching for Sallow?” 

“Clues, Professor—perhaps, simply to look around for anything we’ve missed,” Ominis said, straightening slightly when Alice pulled herself free from him, before she moved to lean against the staircase—Phineas barely even flicked his gaze in her direction as she did so, but it didn’t stop the disgust that quickly spread across his face. “Truthfully, I must express that it is vital that we’re not interrupted—”

“Gaunt—it’s quite bold of you to come into my school and demand things from me? Why should I even agree to this?”  

Ominis smiled, but it was the type of smile that bordered the line between charm and malice, one that looked almost too threatening—as if he was now a predator readying to capture his prey. And it was obvious that Phineas had felt the slight shift in the air, but when Ominis hummed softly and pulled out his pocket watch, it was only then that he grew nervous. “Professor, if you are directly coming in between an Auror and their duty—I have no other choice but to send word back to the Minister. And, you wouldn’t want that now, would you?” 

“Are you threatening me, Gaunt?” Phineas said, though it was more so a squeak and Alice couldn’t help but lean on the railing, edging herself closer, clearly amused by the situation unfolding. But it seemed that her eyes now had focused solely on Ominis’ hands as his fingers nimbly fiddled with his cufflinks and she swallowed hard, shaking away her thoughts. “I will not tolerate, such disrespect—”

“No threats here Professor, I was merely stating a fact. Besides, if I wished to threaten you, I would have gone for something more incriminating. But we’re not here for that are we, Alice—at least not today.” 

Alice grew flustered now, quickly realising that it was quite an enchanting sight to see Ominis confidently put others in their place and when Phineas ended up agreeing to his request, she simply taunted him as he passed her. Ominis reached the end of the staircase, shortly after the Headmaster had disappeared and Alice quickly grabbed his shoulders—a silent show of how he had impressed her and Ominis smiled, rolling his eyes. “So, how long have you been keeping tabs on the Headmaster?”

“For a while now, his name popped up on a mission I completed a couple of months ago. Did a little digging and well—let’s just say, the Headmaster’s got quite a bit of dirty laundry.” 

“You don’t say? Although it doesn’t surprise me,” Alice said, moving out of Ominis’ way and she hummed nervously at the idea of him knowing far too much, a skill he had acquired over time—and became quite proficient at. It made Ominis very dangerous, which in turn, made him vastly more attractive. “I’m curious, have you done any digging on me?” 

Ominis smile grew as they headed towards the DADA tower. He wasn’t exactly sure how much he should spill to Alice, not wishing to make things weird—considering that he had only done it when she had left after graduation. And although it was purely to keep an eye on her, simply to make sure she wouldn’t do anything foolish, perhaps it was just his way of providing her the support—she didn’t believe she needed. “I can neither confirm or deny that question—”

“So in other news, you did? Why—was there a time when you thought I was up to no good?” 

“Perhaps, I just simply wished to know where you were at all times, Alice?” Ominis said, holding open the door for her and making his teasing clear, but Alice grew flustered regardless and when she trudged past him—Ominis just enjoyed listening to her grumble under her breath, before he nudged her up the stairs. “Truthfully, I was just afraid you might have gotten yourself mixed up in something dangerous. It did always follow you—danger, that is.”

Alice stifled a laugh and stomped up the stairs, just loud enough that Ominis could think it had hurt her feelings and yet, he was much too smart for that and so he simply nudged her to move faster. It appeared that the DADA tower still harboured the most students and when she realised most of the attention was drawn to Ominis—she smiled and turned to him. “While I shall ignore the fact that you kept tabs on me, I must warn you that we’re being watched.” 

“Shall we hold hands? Make them jealous?” 

“Merlin’s beard, Ominis…they are children? Why on earth would we do that?” Alice said, clearly focused on the fact that having the students watching them, would make it harder for them to slip into the Undercroft. Whereas Ominis just wished to use it as an excuse to hold her hand and so Alice rolled her eyes as she tapped her fingers against her arm, now leaning against the rhinoceros skeleton. “Besides, I was referring to us not being alone…which means our secret passage—might not stay secret for very long.”

Ominis moved towards her and instinctively reached out to place a hand against her shoulder, before he gave it a light squeeze. He was a little amused by the way Alice had subtly called the Undercroft their secret and although he wished to correct her, perhaps she wasn’t exactly wrong. It had once been a place that they shared in private, somewhere to escape to—when everywhere else felt too constricting and yet, after Sebastian was sent away, neither of them had actually set foot back inside. The Undercroft had simply become yet another forgotten memory, something they had both collectively decided to erase from their past and now it felt almost wrong to disturb it. 

“Should I cause some sort of distraction?” Ominis asked, suddenly retreating his hand away from her shoulder at the faint noises of students stumbling down the stairs and Alice laughed softly and glanced around. It wasn’t a bad idea, but then it set in and she realised that meant she would have to enter the Undercroft alone—and so she quickly reached for his coat. “Only to keep them busy, I won’t leave you.” 

“I just don’t want to go in alone, Ominis. Perhaps, we just do what we’ve come here to do and then just charm the door shut forever? Hex it, if we must?”  

Ominis hummed curiously and reached his hand forward, as if he wanted her to take it. Alice seemed to take this as his way of agreeing to her request and she gladly reached out and took it, squeezing it softly—to show it meant a lot to her. And although, just like before, where her touch left a tingling sensation on his skin, Ominis focused past that—now more on just wanting to be there for her. “Then, let’s get this over with. I think we’ve lingered, long enough, don’t you?” 

•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•:•☾☼☽•:•.•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•

Alice didn’t know what she was expecting. Perhaps, she had envisioned that the Undercroft would have felt eerie, or even sombre—but instead, it felt overwhelmingly like home. And not in the way Hogwarts felt, as if you had just returned to a place filled with a mixture of emotions, glued together by those you encountered here—but almost like the feeling you got when you stepped into your childhood bedroom. It was as if Alice had stepped into a dream, nothing had changed and yet, everything was wrong. The place had never been a place of comfort or warmth, discarded secretly in the depths of the school, hidden from those not deemed worthy of it—but it was theirs. 

The Undercroft didn’t need to be filled with light or the fresh breeze of spring, no it needed to be a place of security—an escape from the world, its people, its burdens. And it was for a time. In their fifth-year, it had been just that and the memories they had all shared together there—would forever be etched into its walls. But eventually, even good memories can be distorted, forced to change and when you find yourself barely able to remember them—perhaps, it was time to let them go. Naturally finding her arm snake desperately around Ominis’, as if she didn’t want to risk being left alone, Alice welcomed how quickly he understood her reaction and he never hesitated in those moments to support her. 

“It just feels wrong…being here,” Alice said, finally speaking up and she shuddered at how quickly her voice echoed off the walls and returned to where they stood, her gaze fixated on the discarded Triptych and her jaw tensed, when she looked away. The pain from this place had now slowly begun to slither up her spine and she hated it, so she turned her focus to counting the taps—she was now leaving against Ominis’ arm. “It’s almost as if we don’t belong here anymore.” 

“It does have that ‘tainted’ feeling now, doesn’t it? I suppose it just feels more intense, due to the reasons why we’re here.” 

Alice hummed in response and stumbled when Ominis stepped further into the room. Truthfully, she had no desire to be back here, let alone discover what Sebastian had left them and for the first time—Alice wondered if she was going to be brave enough to continue down this path. “Do you have any idea on what he might have left for us?” 

“Knowing Sebastian, it could be anything,” Ominis said, his wand twisting slowly within his grasp and so Alice returned her focus to the room, to the shadows and she attempted to picture what Sebastian would have wanted them to find. It had to be something he had deemed meaningful, at least to him—but Alice felt herself almost too distracted and so she hummed curiously. “But I do wonder how he managed—” 

“Thinking logically about it, there’s only one thing it could be.” 

Ominis felt Alice shift against him, her arm tensing and un-tensing in a matter of moments, before she finally let him go. It was more than obvious that she didn’t actually want to, quickly stepping back to reach for his hand again, but this time—Alice hummed nervously, before she dragged him into the middle of the room. “Logically speaking…it could be more than one thing. It could be a book, photos…a letter. Do you think it could be a letter?”  

“I mean it makes the most sense, right?” Alice said, pulling out her wand as she turned to him. She had no idea what to expect, her thoughts piling in on her, as if she had opened a gate—which had simply held everything locked away and Alice was suddenly afraid of what they might discover, despite almost feeling desperate to find it. “Though, I can’t imagine an escaped prisoner would go unnoticed, walking about the castle—would he even be foolish enough to risk that?”

“Alice…perhaps, he left it before he was removed from the school grounds—” 

But before he could even finish his sentence, Alice gasped and the noise alone made Ominis go silent. It was the sort of gasp someone had when they had forgotten to take a breath and all of the air felt stuck in their throat, and Alice stumbled backwards—almost tripping over her own feet. She hadn’t thought much about the cruelty of Sebastian, knowing already too much of what he had done—simply to escape Azkaban, but perhaps this was the cruellest thing. Alice couldn’t comprehend what was the need to rehash old wounds and yet, Sebastian had been ready to do it regardless—and her stomach twisted at the thought, the feeling swiftly reaching to attach itself to her heart. 

Alice hesitated at first, with her wand raised high and yet, she couldn’t hide the shakiness in her hold. It felt like she had been slapped across the face now, perhaps always knowing of the place, Sebastian would choose to hide something as important as a letter—but despite the sudden revelation, her wand moved freely on its own and she swiftly casted Revelio. Eventually after several attempts at the charm and ignoring Ominis’ questions of what she might have been looking for, Alice locked eyes with a mirror and a new memory consumed her vision. She didn't need to look very hard, or angle herself in any particularly strange way, as it seemed that the old version of Sebastian—one she hoped, was still in there somewhere, hadn’t tried very hard to hide it and yet, it still seemed to have been forgotten.   

The letter was torn when Alice found it, tucked harshly between the wall and the mirror, that Sebastian once sat her in front of as he braided her hair. He was never really good at it, missing strands and always giving up before he reached the end, but he tried and that meant more than he ever knew. She didn’t know what to expect, perhaps feeling rather afraid now of what he had envisioned she would have wanted to find, but Alice was most certainly not prepared for parchment stained with tears. Her hands grew shakier at this point before she had even read it. Sebastian’s hand writing had been scribbled across the paper, messy, as if he was in a rush and it was only then, that she could no longer hide her tears, that now re-stained the parchment. 

Slowly unfolding it completely, the letter had been a note from the day he was taken away and it was addressed to her. 

My Kindred Spirit, I’m scared, Alice. Can you believe it? Me? Scared. And yet, here I am, actually scared of what lies in store for me, scared of losing you forever. Please tell me I haven’t? Perhaps, that is cruel of me, desperately grasping at whatever love still consumes your heart for me. But, I never wanted to hurt you, that much is certain. I never wanted to hurt anybody.  I thought I was doing the right thing. Everything just got a little messy. I can’t breathe properly anymore, as if it has been stolen from me and I find myself frustrated by the dust that surrounds me. Unless it has nothing to do with the dust and more so, for the anger and sadness, that is consumed by this place. I hate it now.  I was tempted to run. To where? Anywhere really, but that would have made things worse. Alice, truthfully, I must thank you. Not for this, but for showing me a love I never deserved and for giving me something to find strength in, when eventually everything fell to pieces. It wasn’t fair to you and yet, you tried so hard to save me. How can I say goodbye to you? I don’t want to, I don’t want to forget you, forget everything. I read that’s what happens, your memories are the first to go…I don’t want to lose my memories of you.  Please believe me when I said that I never intended to hurt you, to hurt anyone. I was just trying my best…and perhaps foolishly, I thought I was stronger. But now, the thought of being away from you, without your laughter, your touch, is unbearable and I’m scared. I’m really scared.  I hope that one day, you can find it in you to forgive me. I hope that time heals your vision of me and you only remember the boy, who loved you, who still loves you. I don’t deserve it, but I would like nothing more, than the one thing I have no right to ask for and I just need you to understand, that all I wish I could do, was turn back time.  I can hear them now, questioning Ominis, so I must go. But just know, even if they strip me of everything, I will fight with every last fibre of my being, to keep my memories of you. For if I can’t have you, our memories will take your place and bring me comfort, no matter what happens. I’m sorry, Alice and I love you. I am forever yours.  With all the love in my heart, Sebastian  

Alice’s breath had been stolen from her, ripped out even. She had barely managed to read the letter aloud, before she almost crumbled to the ground—Ominis catching her with ease, as he supported her to the floor. It had been so long, since she cried as hard as she did, the feeling of the air in her lungs disappearing along with her sight. Everything grew blurry, before the imagery of the Undercroft, morphed into something unrecognisable and slowly her tears grew hot—as if they were slicing away at her skin. She felt every emotion then, pain, anger, sadness, it was like his words elicited every little part of her to go into overdrive and Alice was no longer sure how to feel. 

Ominis couldn’t do much, but hold her. It wasn’t his place to say anything, perhaps feeling rather confused by it all and so he simply did the only thing he could do in a moment such as this—he tightened his hold on her and let her scream it out. To him, it had now truly felt like they had stepped back into a memory, but to him this was as if they had returned to their sixth-year and he had returned to supporting Alice through her breakdowns. But to her, it felt as if she had fallen into multiple memories, each one clawing at her to remember—to suffer through and Alice just wished it to stop, she wanted everything to stop. 

Eventually, the pain settled beneath her skin, scratching its way deep and towards her heart and so Alice barely even reacted when Ominis lifted her face—as if his touch wasn’t actually real. He must have been concerned, his mouth moving rapidly, while his fingers spread effortlessly against her cheeks and into her hair—and yet, Alice could no longer hear anything. She had turned off everything and when she slowly moved to stand, pushing away Ominis’ hands and refusing to acknowledge the fact he was trying to speak to her—Alice slowly stumbled towards the Undercroft's exit, before Ominis grabbed her arm. 

“Alice, speak to me?” Ominis asked, his voice almost too professional and when he realised that she had cringed at his tone, he swallowed softly and stepped towards her. Ominis could see that the letter had been too much and yet, it seemed that it needed to happen—as if it was a cruel way for Sebastian to get closure and without Alice’s help, they would have never found it in the first place. “Where are you going?” 

“Let. Go. Of. Me.” 

Ominis’ hand tensed, at how emotionless Alice sounded, despite the tears still clouding her vision. He was more than aware of the pain she would have been feeling, but she couldn’t just give up now—he needed her just as much as she needed him and perhaps, now Ominis realised that he might have pushed her too far. “Alice, I don’t think it’s wise for me to leave you alone right now.” 

“And so, what, Ominis? Are you going to stop me?” Alice asked, turning around at this point, so that Ominis’ hand twisted roughly against her arm and so he swiftly loosened it, not wanting to hurt her. Truthfully she wasn’t mad at him, nor was she really mad at anyone, but it was the easiest emotion to fall onto and so she did. “I just need some space, alright? Can’t you give me that?” 

“I just don’t think—it’s wise.”

Alice scoffed and pulled herself free, before she gripped her wand so tightly that her knuckles grew white. She understood why he didn’t want to leave her alone, perhaps worried that she would run off to find Sebastian alone—to join him and so Alice slowly placed her wand away, returning her focus to the exit once again. “Do not fret, Ominis. I don’t plan to do anything foolish —apart from drinking myself into the morning, so just leave me be.” 

“One would say that is foolish, Alice and not the way to deal with your emotions,” Ominis said, stepping towards her and for a second Alice had forgotten that Ominis was much larger than she was in height and as he looked down at her—all she could do was exhale and push him away. But he didn’t budge, purposely keeping himself in her space, so that she remembered she wasn’t alone. “Let me take you home, I can even stay if you need it.”

“I want to go for a drink, Ominis. Besides, Garreth is in Hogsmeade, correct? Let’s pay him a visit too—I’m sure he’d drink with me.”

And as if she wanted to have the last say, or perhaps she just desperately wanted to leave this place, Alice turned around and headed for the door—this time followed by Ominis, who simply hummed in displeasure as he made sure not to lose sight of her. 

•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•:•☾☼☽•:•.•:•.•:•:•:•:•:•:•

The Three Broomsticks was bustling even before the duo arrived, but it wasn’t until Alice acknowledged Sirona—who still owned and worked the place itself, that Alice refused to pay attention to the warnings of Ominis and ordered several glasses of firewhiskey. It didn’t take long for Alice to get drunk. She had purposely gone out of her way, to have more than her fair share of alcohol, before she drunkenly requested more—even going as far as shouting the other patrons a mug, for well wishes. But, eventually it got to a point that Ominis had to step in, holding back for the most part—simply to keep her from doing anything stupid, but now, he couldn’t stop himself and he quickly scooped up a sulky Alice, chucking her over his shoulder. 

“P-put me down, O-Ominis,” Alice said, slurring her words and yet, Ominis simply ignored her, continuing to take her upstairs into the only vacant room in the inn. He wasn’t exactly upset with her, knowing full well of the situation they were in—but, Ominis couldn’t help but feel almost frustrated by her disregard for her safety and he exhaled softly as he pushed open the door. “O-Oh no, Ominis—one bed-d? Do you mind sharing it with me-e?” 

“You can take the bed, I’ll find another place to sleep.” 

Ominis’ eyebrows furrowed, when Alice had spun in his arms to look at the room, but it wasn’t until she turned back to face him and wrapped her arms around his neck, that he swallowed hard and tried to look away—the lingering touch of her hot breath against his skin, almost driving him crazy now. “I don’t want to sleep alone, O-Ominis. Can’t you stay?”

“You know that’s not a good…idea, Alice,” Ominis said, though a part of him desperately wished to accept and do nothing more than hold her against him, but she was drunk and he was a gentleman—he had to be a gentleman. Slowly making his way towards the bed and awkwardly plopping Alice against it, Ominis was about to step back, when she reached out and gripped his coat. “I promise I won’t be far away, but I must not stay here…you know that.” 

“A-And what if I pretend I don’t? What if we j-just give into it Ominis? I know you want to.”

Ominis felt his whole body tense, but it seemed that whatever she had planned had completely taken him by surprise and when she slowly supported herself up—using the grip she had on his coat, Ominis could barely register her movements, until her hand was against the back of his neck. “Alice…? What do you think you’re do—”

But before he could finish his sentence, Alice kissed him. It was a soft kiss at first, with the hand on his neck, locking him into place—and yet, eventually Ominis’ arms subconsciously snaked around her body and he deepened it. He had dreamed of this moment for a long time now, for the moment that she would realise that he was right here—waiting for her. But no sooner did he deepen the kiss, despite feeling almost desperate for her lips against his, Ominis didn’t want it like this. He didn’t want Alice to be so intoxicated, filled with the pain that came with an ex lover—that he automatically became the rebound and yet, it seemed that title fit him best. 

Trying to push her away, the taste of firewhiskey now lingering against his skin, Alice whined softly and gave up, her fists still twisted harshly into his coat. She didn’t regret kissing Ominis and was sure she wasn’t going to regret it tomorrow, but even Alice knew she had overstepped the boundaries of their partnership and yet, she didn’t care. Gently pulling at Ominis to move closer, or perhaps to simply sit down beside her, Ominis only agreed because he knew—she would be too stubborn to give up and so he did and she hummed happily leaning into him. 

“I d-don’t regret it, you know—that kiss,” Alice said, her words a lot more slurred than before and it was clear that sleep was slowly pulling away at her and when she yawned softly—Ominis chuckled and patted her knee, the reaction alone, making Alice look up at him almost too warmly. “P-perhaps, I always wanted t-to do it. But I was afraid to.”

“You’re drunk, Alice. Stop talking, before you say something you regret.” 

Alice hummed softly and pulled away from him. She couldn’t quite figure Ominis out, knowing that deep down, he still had feelings for her and yet, here he was not wanting a single bar of her and so she pouted and reached for his face—pulling him to look at her as he smiled. “I-I may be a little drunk. But, t-that doesn’t mean I don’t see the way you act around me. You want to kiss me again, don’t you?”

“Right now, this conversation is void, Alice, simply because you’re drunk,” Ominis said, standing up slowly, just enough so that she didn’t fall over completely from the lack of him and before she could whine or complain about it—Ominis chuckled softly and knelt down to support Alice with taking off her boots. “I want you to kiss me, because you want to kiss me. Not because you’re drunk and upset over something you can’t control.” 

“B-But I do want to kiss you, O-Ominis.” 

Ominis hummed this time and his smile grew. He didn’t exactly know what she was thinking, apart from the idea that she desperately wanted to kiss him—but Ominis, didn’t want it to be like this and so he knew he had to be the one to stop it. Except, that is so much easier said than done. “I think it’s time for you to sleep, otherwise—you’re going to have a very sore head tomorrow.” 

“You’re being too m-modest, Ominis…and here I was, hoping you’d get too excited and continue to k-kiss me,” Alice slurred her words, grumbling softly as Ominis supported her into the bed and although it seemed like he was going to lean down and kiss her—Alice couldn’t help but to feel a little disappointed when he didn’t. “B-But, I suppose it’s just another one of your ploys, into pretending you don’t love me. I u-understand.”

“You don’t understand anything, Alice. But, it is not the time for it—or place, for that matter. So, go to sleep.” 

Ominis' smile grew softer when Alice grumbled, attempting to push away his hands, which had now moved the blanket up to cover her. But it wasn’t until she felt herself suddenly grow incredibly tired, perhaps due to draining every little part of her today, that Alice gently laced her fingers with his—before slowly pulling his hand to her lips. “I-I can promise you o-one thing, Ominis. I wanted t-to kiss you. Not because I’m d-drunk or sad, but because I wanted to.”

“Alice,” Ominis said, his voice practically a whisper now and yet, despite desperately wanting to continue his thoughts, or perhaps just simply lean down and kiss her over and over again—Ominis quickly noticed the change in her heartbeat and the soft noises, she had begun to make and he exhaled softly, a little defeated. Truthfully, it was for the best, but why did he feel so disappointed by it? “...sweet dreams.”

Slowly standing up and making sure not to disturb Alice, Ominis made his way downstairs. He was now more confused than he had ever been before, realising that it was the first time Alice had ever initiated something between them and he suddenly frowned—when he recalled Sebastian’s letter. He wasn’t stupid and he knew Alice had reacted the way she did because she was hurting, but why did it still feel so complicated—as if there was something there, that meant he had a shot. Ominis chuckled softly under his breath, almost desperately wishing for the thoughts in his head to stop and so he sat down at the bar and ordered another drink. 

He was more than aware of the love Alice still had for Sebastian, but perhaps, she was slowly opening herself up to the idea of also having room in her heart for another—and he so desperately wished to be the one who filled it. But would Alice allow herself the chance at happiness, despite the guilt she felt, it was hard to say—but Ominis was ready to be the one to push her in that direction, even if he wasn’t the one that eventually captured her heart. 

[hopefulstarfire]

I have many thoughts about the sibling dynamics between Iris, Seto, River, Mokuba and Flora for my oc fic so here have at thee with some headcanons.

When Flora was born, Mokuba took the role of big brother incredibly seriously. After all, Seto really did raise his brother and now Mokuba gets to be in the position of being the one to guide and be the protector for somebody else. He dotes on her quite a bit and can be seen piggybacking her around, taking any time they play together seriously and he's always right by her side because he wants to follow the example Seto set for him.

Also he absolutely wore a suit when Meredith gave birth to her because he had to look his best for the baby.

Seto sees very early on River's technologically gifted mind and how incredibly creative they are. He doesn't pass up at the chance to get River working with him so they can have some experience into the field if they choose to pursue gaming. He is always careful to review any suggestions and changes they make, as well as the progress they make on the video games they're trying to program as their own projects. He's incredibly proud of his younger sibling and the work they put in.

Seto was also probably the first person River came out as nonbinary to. While they did know and feel like it would be safe to to their parents and siblings, they had still been nervous and especially with Nesbitt on the board still at the time. They knew their brother wouldn't make a big production out of it, but he did tell them he was proud they felt comfortable enough with him to do so and was quick to adapt. He also was the one that would ruin the deadbeats day if he said anything about River's gender identity.

Seto spoils Flora. Like anything she wants, he will buy her, within reason. For the most part. And it has to be within reason now because both Meredith and Roland had to put their foot down with him on it. He does, however, do his part to teach her responsibility as well.

He has also just left her in charge of meetings when he just wants to piss off the Big 5. Or in dealing with investors not worth his time.

Mokuba and River are best friends and partners in crime in all aspects. Like. You cannot leave these two unsupervised. I'm pretty sure they will just take over the city. They work incredibly well together in most anything; when it comes to do work on projects, acting as co-commissioners in Battle City or just trying to get their older siblings to chill out.

They rarely fight as well. I can count on one hand how many fights they've had. Though Mokuba does enjoy getting to tease any of his siblings about their crushes and River is no exception and River has threatened to give him a swirlie if he doesn't shut up and shut up right now.

Iris and Seto both believe they have to be the sole protector of the family, and the one to shield the others when shit gets bad. This includes them believing they have to shield the other and they get frustrated over this because no I'm supposed to look after you you dumbest. As with such a dynamic as this, they both also get onto each other a lot about when they do something reckless, i.e. Seto in Duelist Kingdom and Battle City, and Iris forfeiting the Duel against Alister. But it's 100% out of love and wanting to be there for each other as siblings.

They're also the first ones there to support each other and look after the other. When Seto loses to Yugi the first time and has his crisis and shuts down, Iris is organizing everyone to take care of her brother and to take care of the company so he can process, as she knows better than anyone why losing messes with his head so badly. After Iris gets Orion back after Paradius falls, Seto is the first person she calls and he makes sure she gets set up in her own apartment, that she and his nephew are taken care of and tries to keep her held together because she's crumbling.

They are the eldest kids trying to parent everyone really.

But also? They're still kids themselves by all intents and purposes, with Seto as a teenager and Iris only being about 20. And they can act like it. Like how Seto is like "this'll be funny" by getting a blimp for the Battle City semifinals when his sister hates heights and she's just staring at Roland like "ground your child, please."

When River was a kid, Iris was super doting and gentle with them. They were like those really dumb things in media where it's like the siblings are super loving and nice to each other.

River's a teenager now though and they are rude as hell to each other affectionately. They will flip each other off for no reason and throw shade like nobody's business.

However, you mess with River and Iris will come for your kneecaps. She does not tolerate anyone trying to tear them down.

She and Mokuba are also pretty close and she's definitely just as protective. Mokuba always tries to find a way to get her to relax and smile for a change though because he sees how hard she's working to keep everything afloat.

He is also absolutely the one that teased her constantly about Alister and was like I KNEW IT when they get together.

However, on that note as well, Mokuba is smart and understands his sister's emotional state probably better than most people. When they're fighting Alister, he's upset on her behalf but he also is the one that understands Alister's plight and sympathizes and knows Iris would too and would still want to try and save him from himself; meaning he figured out pretty easily Alister didn’t win that Duel, and Iris forfeited because she couldn't do it.

He knows she's hurting and the best way he knows how to help is just by being there with her.

Iris and Flora are really close and she does dote on her little sister quite a bit. She does her best to help teach her all sorts of life lessons and is always patient with her as she's learning new things.

Flora is super proud of all of her older siblings and thinks they're the coolest people in the world, and would do anything for them and to make them all proud of her.

[derelictlovefool]

Summary: Dean Sinclaire used to consider Jacob Seed his best friend, the only person in the world he could rely on. Now, he was the only person he couldn't run from fast enough. In their years apart the little boy who had promised to take him to the stars had become a living nightmare hellbent on making him the same, would he succumb to his trials or was there a chance he could bring his old friend back to the surface?

Wordcount: 4k

read on ao3!

Night rolled in quickly and Dean and Grace made use of an old abandoned camp off a small trail, it was out of the way enough they figured it would be safe—planning to take turns keeping an eye out while the other slept. The camp had a duffel bag with some soup cans and after Grace had made a fire in an impressively short time they both had cracked one open and began chowing down on the soup.

"If we're gonna be working together you might wanna get a handle on your gun phobia." Grace remarked before shoving the spoon into her mouth. Dean blinked, leaning back and furrowing his brows as her words registered. That came out of nowhere.

"I don't have a gun phobia?" He said, confusion clear in his tone as he rested his own can of soup on his knee. Grace shot him a look, wiping her mouth before gesturing at him with her spoon.

"I didn't see you shoot a gun once, you hit a lot of people in the face with 'em but they're more effective when you shoot with 'em." Grace set a firm stare on him, nodding to his gun and Dean couldn't help but drop his head in embarrassment. His gaze fixed on the small campfire they'd set up. He knew that he just…

"I just—I didn't sign up to kill anyone." He muttered, sticking his spoon into the can with a small frown. He stirred it mindlessly as he heard Grace sigh.

"You ain't the only one, but when it's you or them you ain't got a lot of choices." She shook her head, resting her forearms on her knees as she also turned her gaze to the small flickering fire.

"Yeah I know, I…" Dean trailed off, thinking back to that first night. The peggie he shot. The peggie at Fall's End. The people he wrote off under their title instead of having to think about their names and ages and families. He already felt their ghosts hanging off his ankles, anymore and he didn't know if he'd be able to walk. He swallowed the lump in his throat, he felt pathetic. There was so much going on, people suffering, and he was worried about his feelings. What a joke.

"I'll tell you something, deputy. You're not a weak man for not wanting to kill. You're a good one from what I've seen. But these people don't care about that, they're blinded by their faith in Joseph Seed and you're the big bad enemy standing in their way." Grace spoke again, leaning back. Dean met her gaze and tried to soak in her words, maybe if he heard it enough it'd finally sink in and stay there. He highly doubted it would but there was a chance. Maybe there was a chance he'd stop seeing an oddly serene little kid when he heard that name too.

"I got a body count i'm not too proud of myself, goin' up even more now. But I have it for the right reasons, i'm protecting people. If we don't fight this battle innocent people will die. I don't know about you but I'm willing to forfeit a few good nights of rest if it means saving those lives." Grace bowed her head for a moment, the fire and her hat casting a dramatic shadow over her eyes for a moment. She looked up at him again after a pause with a heat to her gaze, mirrored by the fire catching in them.

Dean felt some of her conviction rub off on him, a swell in his chest motivated by her words making him sit up a little straighter. She made a good point, Blair did too. He really needed to start taking notes from these people. The first step was listening, he guessed. He nodded, to her and to himself. He thought back on what he'd told himself at Fall's End, he had to be ruthless. Be ruthless to be good in a way. Fighting fire with fire. If Grace could do it and still get some sleep surely he could too.

He dug his heels into the dirt, stirring the soup again as he let his thoughts arrange themselves. He was tired, right down to his bones and he knew he would be for the foreseeable future. He heaved a sighed and rubbed at his eyes with his knuckle.

"I never got any firearms training." He admitted and Grace took a moment to process what he'd said before she burst out into a small fit of laughter. Dean's lips quivered as he fought his own laughter—It was funny, if not also a comment on subpar regulations. He hadn't complained because he didn't wanna use it anyway. Grace smiled then, a broad one that made Dean feel a bit lighter after that heavy topic.

"Tomorrow you'll show me what you can do and I'll see if I can give you some pointers." Grace offered and Dean felt himself genuinely perk up. Not a reaction he thought he'd ever have over someone offering to teach him to shoot.

"Thank you Grace,"

She offered a non-committal nod and Dean ducked his head down. They finished their soup and Dean volunteered to take first watch, promptly shut down by Grace with little argument being allowed. So he curled up on top of an old sleeping bag, arms wrapped around himself. He stared at the dirt and grass for a while, his mind wandering with no alcohol to conk him out into blissful slumber. He thought about his siblings, about his coworkers, his new acquaintances and his old friend. He couldn't help it, no matter what his mind wanted to run through a reel of his brief childhood in Atlanta and the boy he spent most of his time with. Even as he tried to scrub it away and remind himself of who that boy was now.

Some habits were hard to break, feelings hard to throw away and forget.

He squeezed his eyes shut, counting in his head in attempt to focus. The fatigue through his body made the method more effective than it ever had been and with one last inhale and numbers trailing off in his mind he succumbed to sleep.

The air was tense—more than normal. Jacob shifted through his blueprints, tuning out the way John's heel made an irritating clacking noise every time his bouncing leg fell. Faith sat opposite of his little brother, lazing in her chair and reading through a file he'd tossed her way earlier, reports on the judge tests they'd been doing and the bliss effects. He wanted it amped up, she said she'd have to look into it. He could do it himself if it really came down to it but he deigned to wait. Follow the invisible rules laid out around them like a web. There was an order to their chaos and he'd follow it until it got in his way.

John toyed with his watch, glancing down at it and to the doorway Joseph still hadn't graced, an obvious furrow to his pinched brows.

"Starin' at the door won't make him show up faster, John." He mused and John let out a small, near unnoticeable scoff.

"Thank you Jacob, i'm well aware." He huffed, leaning back in his chair and placing his fidgeting hands in his lap. He never was good at waiting, never had been. Especially not when he was in the middle of getting his hooks back into Fall's End, or reclaiming their stolen land as he put it. But when Joseph called they all answered no matter what. Faith seemed to be the least bothered by the situation, naturally she had no connection to the brunette who'd left the three brothers shaken in some way. Jacob still remembered Joseph's words after the crash, the look in his eyes as he held onto him with a grip tight enough to pull him from the seventh circle of hell. Joseph hadn't told him everything, he could always tell when he was holding some puzzle pieces for himself.

Some visions he shared and some he didn't and for the most part Jacob was okay with that. He didn't need to know, it wasn't his job to know. But this one time, he had an urge to ask. He wanted to understand what Joseph had seen, what mechanism was Dean in his holy construction? Maybe knowing the answer would help him get his head on straight and help reaffirm his own place in it; his assured understanding unequivocally changed since the moment they were in the same room. And damn if that wasn't infuriating.

John's radio buzzed on his belt and he ripped it out with ferocity, holding it up as one of his chosen's voice rippled through the static.

"The deputy was spotted near the Lamb Of God Church with Grace Armstrong. They should still be in the area, do we move in?"

So he was tracking him—he thought so. John held grudges like nobody's business.

"Yes, yes. But don't engage, just follow him. I want to know what he thinks he's up to." John hissed, dismissing the chosen quickly and slapping the radio down on the table. Irritation rolled off of him in waves and Jacob just shook his head, closing his blueprints for now and tossing them onto the table. Faith followed suit, discarding the files he'd given her on the table and standing. She glided across the floor to a tray with a jug of water, pouring herself a glass and humming to herself. She did a small playful spin as she made her way back, swaying gently as she eyed the door.

She was bored, it wasn't hard to tell. They all had other things to be focusing on in the very beginning of the reaping. Chess pieces they'd set falling into their checks and mates just as planned. With the one unplanned rook sweeping John's out from under him and causing a mess. Before Jacob could follow that thought the door they'd all been eyeing finally swung open. Joseph stepped through and the air stilled, John and Jacob standing as he walked up to the table. He greeted Faith first, holding her upper arm and resting his forehead to hers and gently uttering her name.

He stepped to Jacob, mimicking the hold he had on him after the plane crash but with far less force. And then he did the same to John before making his way to the head of the table. They all sat and waited, Joseph looked around the paperwork on the table, his elbows on the wood and fingers interlocked—resting in front of his mouth.

"I know we've all been quite surprised by the deputy, I knew there would be someone coming to open the seal—I never saw their face. But now knowing what we know I believe it was fate, Dean was destined to find us again and be a part of this reckoning. This is his trial, once he's passed it he will be with us and our family will be stronger. We need to show him the path," He rests his hand over Faith's, reaching for John's as well, "we need to guide him with understanding and love. He knows nothing of what is coming—but he will." Joseph's tone is as sombre as ever, his gaze intense as he takes his time to look at each of his siblings.

John and Faith offer a chorus of, "Yes Joseph," while Jacob simply nods in affirmation. Understanding and love was the last thing Jacob was going to offer his former friend, it wouldn't achieve the outcome Joseph actually wanted and deep down he knew it. Not even to mention he'd lost the ability for things so soft a long time ago, beaten out of him by belts and cables and bullets. Dean was in for tough love, the kind they were both well acquainted with. Joseph leant back and folded his hands over each other, the beads of his rosary scraping across the wood.

"Do we know where he is currently?" Joseph asks gently, his eyes automatically drifting to John as if he already knew the answer.

"He was last spotted by the Lamb of God church, I have people watching him." John puffed out his chest like a peacock showing off its feathers, a pleased smile on his face as he waited eagerly for Joseph's approval. which he of course received in a smile and pat on the shoulder.

"We'll have to begin with his cleansing,"

"I have a room prepared for him." John answered instantly, as if on script and Joseph nodded in approval.

"Jacob, Faith will lead him to you once he is ready, that will be his path. You will be his judge and his final trial, only you will be able to walk him through the gates." Joseph turned his gaze on him and Jacob held steady under it. He tried not to pick apart the choice of words and nodded, glancing at Faith who offered a serene smile. Seemed like she had the easiest job here, or the hardest. From what Jacob remembered Dean was not so easily swayed, even if he followed people around the playground like a puppy eager to please. He had his hard limits and was harder to budge than a concrete slab in a cemetery.

"The collapse is nearing faster now, how are other preparations coming along?" Joseph eased back into his chair and Jacob felt strangely relieved at the change of topic. The more Dean came up the more it felt like he was picking at an old wound, a reaction he wasn't really expecting from himself.

John straightened up in his chair and adjusted his vest, kicking one leg over the other as he addressed their brother.

"My gate is fully prepared and we've collected a hundred souls so far, twenty of whom have gone through their cleansing, Deputy Hudson has just begun her own. I'm working on retaking Falls End and recollecting Mary May Fairgrave and Jerome Jeffries." John cleared his throat at the end, obviously hating to admit he'd lost them in the first place.

"Let me know when you do." Joseph replied, tone stern but gentle, just like how he'd talk to him when he was younger and had forgotten to clean up his corner of their shared room.

"My gate is nearly ready, a few supplies are still coming in. The Marshal has taken quite well to the Bliss, he'll be walking his path shortly. All my priestesses are busy collecting souls across the Henbane, I'll have a number by next week." Faith hummed, voice slow like a sloth and flittery like a hummingbird all at once. Joseph nodded, a small hum coming from him that didn't help discern whether it was approval or not. Faith shifted ever so slightly at it, a near unnoticeable sign of discomfort—or perhaps annoyance—as her smile became forced.

"Judge trials are nearly wrapping up, just waitin' to get the go ahead on ampin' up the bliss concentrate. Our militia is comin' along well and peaches—Pratt, has just started his conditioning." Jacob is short and sweet with his report, he'd have a proper one ready later. He'd been preoccupied at the moment, something he refused to rightly acknowledge.

"Will he be ready by the time Dean comes to you?" Joseph asks and Jacob doesn't need to think on it much before nodding.

"He's weak. He'll break quick." He affirms and Joseph bows his head in a deep nod.

"You're doing so well, my family. If we stay on this path we'll all be walking through the gates together soon." Joseph offered one of those smiles that didn't quite fit him anymore, broad and creasing his eyes but offset just slightly and crooked.

"There's still some things we must discuss…" Joseph continued, clasping his hands together and the three siblings settled in to listen. Once it was Joseph's turn to speak they were destined to be there for a while.

Dean adjusted the gun in his hand, still blinking the sleep away from his eyes as he stared down the barrel at the row of bottles Grace had lined up. She stood off to the side scrutinising his form with her gaze, arms crossed as she made her way around him.

"Hold steady. Feet apart, back straight. There you go. Fire when ready." Her words were firm and steady, with a nice hint of reassurance that made her sound like she'd trained a thousand men to shoot.

He took a deep breath and fired. And he missed.

Well—that was embarrassing.

"Open both your eyes, deputy." Grace said, words dry, but smirk heard loud and clear in the drawl.

"...Right," He coughed. He decided to take the defence of having just barely woken up, that was absolutely it.

He fired again, the bottle on the left shattering and falling to the ground in a hundred pieces. That was better, it felt kind of good too. When his target wasn't a person it wasn't so hard. He took a few more shots, managing to get all the bottles Grace had lined up for him. He didn't rush but he tried not to be embarrassingly slow and it seemed to pay off for him. Once all the bottles were nothing but piles of broken glass in the grass he lowered the gun.

"Not bad for an old dog?" He grinned cheekily, Grace rolling her eyes.

"Old dog?" She snorted.

"I'm probably older than you, you know." He mused.

Grace let out a short disbelieving scoff, smacking his arm as she walked past and that was the end of that discussion. He didn't bother elaborating that he wasn't joking, it didn't really matter and he didn't help his case with how he still managed to act like a nervous schoolboy half the time. It's probably what helped him fit in so well in the sheriff's department though if he really thought about it. His boyish attitude and obedient nature didn't really scream old man, he could only imagine how he'd seem next to Jacob. Life had really taken them in two totally different directions and Dean couldn't see any of his old friend left while in comparison he was still waiting to feel like a proper adult.

"Let's try out some moving targets, s'all good and well if you can shoot a stationary one but peggies don't sit still and wait for you to shoot 'em."

Dean nodded, holstered his gun and followed after her out of the clearing and back into the dense trees. He hoped she wasn't suggesting shooting animals, he didn't want to shoot humans but he really didn't want to shoot defenceless animals.

Luckily for Dean Grace wasn't thinking anything of the sort. She'd led him back to the burnt down house, where he found out it had been her home. The fact had left him speechless but she'd moved on quickly, treading around the rubble and to a shed; singed but not destroyed. Dean dragged his eyes over the charred wood of the home, feeling a second hand loss and anger at the sight of it. This was so fucked. He'd had no home a few times in the past but under much different circumstances, in most of them at least he had somewhere to crawl back too. Grace pulled out something that looked like a heftier automatic ball thrower from the shed and walked over to him.

"My old man made this when I was younger, so I could practise shootin'. We'll see if it still works." She offered a smile as Dean took it from her after she held it out to him. It was about as heavy as a small generator. Grace ducked into the shed again and came out with a small bag, setting off again and Dean once again followed after her. They went out into the large clearing again and set up near the edge of it. Just in case they needed to make a quick exit. Grace struggled to get the thing to work but after a sharp kick it made some whirring noises, the sputtering afterwards didn't sound too good but it was running.

Grace directed Dean to a spot much like a drama teacher guiding their pupil, it made him giggle and she told him to take it seriously despite her own amused smile present for half a second. He followed her instructions and copied his earlier motions of aiming his gun. Both eyes open, stance wide, back straight.

"Now these are gonna go out fast, hopefully, there'll be a second where they're gettin' ready to fall but you gotta be quick." Grace instructed, loading in something that looked like a frisbee into the machine. That was now smoking, for the record.

"Ready when you are." Dean said with a confident nod, after the bottle he figured it couldn't be that hard.

A loud thunk was followed by the quick woosh of air, similar to the sound that came from spinning a rope in a circle really fast. Luckily this didn't have a chance of smacking him in the leg, that always hurt. But it was also hard to keep track of amongst the clouds and Dean fumbled instantly, taking a shot and missing. He tried to catch it on its way down to the ground but that also failed. He heard a snort and scowled at Grace who had covered her mouth. She shook her head and he noticed the small shake of her shoulders.

"Okay, yeah, very funny, i'll get the next one. Probably." He grumbled, pouting as he readied himself again for another go. Grace didn't say anything, maybe to spare his feelings, as she loaded the thing back up. Another loud bang and Dean was ready this time, but still only managed to clip the edge of it. He cursed gently under his breath but followed it down and managed to get it a foot off of the ground.

"I kinda wish I'd made them give me training now, man." Dean grumbled, shaking his head in frustration and Grace chuckled.

"Really lowerin' their standards nowadays,"

"It wasn't all exactly up to regulation, no." Dean couldn't help laughing a bit at the ridiculousness of it all. It felt good to laugh, he appreciated how easy it felt to laugh in the moment. He was thankful Grace agreed to tag along with him, he needed this.

She chucked in another mark and Dean scraped the side of it but there was definitely a hole in it. The next two he hit right on the edge, the third he got a lucky hit close to the middle. Grace made hums and other noises, sizing up his shots and judging his skill—Or, lack thereof. He didn't mention he might have had glasses for a few years until he got sick of having to renew the prescription and the tan coloured Frisbee blended in a bit too much with the sky when they were at their highest point. He figured it wasn't that big of a deal, he could blame it on his inexperience anyway.

"Your aim's inconsistent, you gotta keep your eye straight down the barrel. Try to predict where the mark is gonna be, don't focus on where it's coming from." Grace walked over to quickly fix Dean's form, pushing his spine straighter and nudging his arms up higher, he felt like a kid getting his first shooting lessons. Minus the kid part, he was. Grace walked back over to the machine which was starting to sputter more consistently, the grey smoke tainting black as it fought to cooperate.

The next row of shots were a bit better but weren't gonna win him any awards, he managed to only miss two out of seven which was better. For him. Grace chucked the last one in and Dean breathed out, trying to really make this one count.

Bang!

The bullet skirted under the bottom of the mark and its directory changed, aiming directly for Dean who made a less than dignified noise as he dropped to his knees to avoid it. That had Grace huffing with laughter, shaking her head as Dean caught himself with one hand before he face planted into the dirt.

"Jesus." He muttered through disconnected giggles, pushing off his hand and letting himself fall onto his ass, pulling out the gun's clip to check how many bullets were left as he shook his head. He really made it count in some type of way. The machine breathed its last whirring, sputtering cry before giving out with an odd pop. Grace sighed and pushed herself up from the ground, tossing her rifle over her shoulder and walking slowly back over to Dean.

"How bad was it?"

"I've seen a twelve year old shoot better than that but, it'll do. At least you can hit a moving target." Grace smiled, holding out her hand to him. Dean sighed and took it, allowing her to pull him to his feet.

"Thanks for that… uh, guess we should get going. Plenty of people who could use my excellent marksmanship about now I'm sure." Dean offered a lopsided smile and Grace rolled her eyes.

"Maybe not your marksmanship but they sure do need you deputy." She replied smoothly, patting his shoulder before starting the trek along the clearing; most likely towards a road. Dean paused for a moment, taking stock of her words as he watched her back. He shook it off, taking stride after her. People needed the deputy, the symbol, the strong and resilient persona he put on anytime he wore his uniform. Just now they needed him a little more brutal. What's one more thing to tack onto the long list? After that short and sweet shooting lesson he was feeling a bit more prepared, he wasn't gonna go around shooting everything that moved but he knew he could if he needed too.

And considering the past few days there was no doubt he would.

[shochansstuff]

Hate is such a strong word, no?

Summary: Childe feeling intense attraction to you and thinking it's just some sort of hate thing. You hate him because he's Fatui he hates you 'cause you won't look past his "Fatui-ness", Mans is so tired of this misunderstanding insults.

Gender: Female reader

Warnings: Mention of Blood, Violence, slight flirting, Mostly Childe's POV.

Autor's notes: WELL nothing romantic here. just y/n begin badass #girlboss

Your dinamic with him wasn't exactly something you're proud of. Sharp glares wanting to burn through each other, vulgar expletives being thrown out of anger and of course, the pintless battles you'd both recklessly drive into.

Blades pointing at each other throat as you internally warn him, telling him that this time. This time for sure, you'll drive the tip of your spear straight into his gut if he doesn't stop it with these stupid antics.

"As Expected" Chucking he moves the shaft end away, distancing himself from it. "You really are good with polearms"

" Thanks for stating the obvious. Now get the hell away from me, Fatui."

"Ouch. Another insult given by Madame [your name] ! Very harsh words from a Favonius Knight, don't you think?"

Swiftly dodging your attempt to aim for his arm, he circles around you creeping behind like a serpent lusting for blood, and in this case, he probably is.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I completely forgot!"

The naïve tone of his voice only made your blood boil, veins popping visibly along your worst line, as you have him another look warning. ' don't you dare...' silently scowling you gripped the weapon. Knuckles withe and sore.

"Former Favonian Knight." He 'corrects' himself, a sing-song tone lacing the poison of his words.

You've really had it with these Fatui-scums and their stupid mind games. Before the boy with that sort of strange Mexican straw hat, i think it's called sombrero, and now, this ginger.

Ending him right there, right now would've been easy if it wasn't for that oath you promised.

'No blood shall be shed again, no life shall be taken' Those were your rules back then

Despite not being one of the knights anymore, you still haven't stepped down from vow you guaranteed in the past.

Even if he was a Fatui, You mustn't.

"Leave me, Fatui." You lowered your spear, side glancing him as you watched his expression fade into a daze, quite bewildered by your forfeit.

"I don't want to waste any more time with the likes of you. So do yourself a favor and stop wasting your time with the likes of me, as well." With a breathless huff you made your way towards the uphill across from where you arem Still stunned he fails to follow after you.

But why should he? You were just someone he kills time by forcing you to spar. His methods of annoying you working like a spell as you comply to his desire for battle. If he wanted to spar, he could just find a random monster strong enough to keep him entertained for a while.

Calling after you would be a stupid thing to do, though his title as a Fatui Harbinger is associated with the word, so you could say he'd just make a fool out of himself in that situation.

Choosing to ignore your 'cowardly' admit of defeat he spent a second of his time by throwing rocks into a nearby lake. A habit he had never gotten rid of whenever he's frustrated.

Pebble after pebble left immense amount of splatter from it's fall as the eleventh Harbinger fumbles onto the stones left in his palm. A frustrated groan leaves his lips as he hurls the rest of it in the water.

"What am I sulking for...?" Plopping down in a boulder he sighs, exhausted with all the thoughts running through his head. And as much as he hates to admit it, those thoughts were about you.

How can he not? Meeting you was what started this, and learning more about you bit by bit was quite and amusing encounter.

The more you saw him, the more you hated him, you hated his voice's tone, his obsession with growing stronger and that stupid grin of his. But what you hated the most about him was that he's one of them.

He knew that, he assumes that being one of the Fatui higher ups was one of the quality's you hated the most. ( it is unknown to him whether you even liked any of his so-called charms)

It was quite understandable though, he hated those cynical bastards as well. The though of conquering them, defeating those heathens last would bring a joyous victory to him.

The sweet smell of blood being the only thing that filters the battlefield as he slaughter each and every one of them. He wouldn't call it an ambition, but if you were to have the same goal as him...

He wouldn't mind going ok a spree with you.

He wouldn't mind executing a bunch of lowly scums with you.

Sadly, you think of him as one. So he doubts you'd be on board with something like that.

"She's definitely-" Hosting himself up, he took a second to stretch " -The most vexatious person i've ever encountered. Not even Signora or that midget would be able to hold a candle to her when it comes to being this irksome."

His feet trudged in a patterned pace as he starts to head back to Liyue Harbor. Finding it silly to be wasting his time thinking about unimportant matters like this.

All he needed to get here was the Geo Archon's gnosis. He shouldn't even be involved with you.

You hated him and he hated you.

So... Why?

[fatoomie2801]

his queen | kyoya tategami

💫 preview 💫

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"A new special move?!" Gingka exclaimed, surprised but also extremely happy for the girl. "Already? That was so quick!" Kiara smiled at the boy's comment, which gained attention from everyone around them.

"What? Really?!" Kenta asked, shocked.

"That's great, Kiara!" Madoka congratulated.

"Kyoya is such a good trainer!" Benkei commented, almost crying from how proud he was of both Kyoya and Kiara.

"What did you name it?" Hyoma questioned, a wide grin plastered on his face.

"Imperial Barrage," Kiara answered.

"Imperial Barrage," Gingka repeated. "It's awesome! You gotta show me sometime!"

"Not yet, Gingka," Kiara responded.

"Huh? Why not?" he sulked, tilting his head to the side.

"I used all the energy I had on that one move and Kyoya was able to defeat me with a single hit after I used it," the girl informed.

"That's my Kyoya!" Benkei shrieked.

"He told me that if I could just learn to control it, it would be really useful," Kiara spoke.

"Looks like you're going to be spending a lot of your time with Kyoya then," Benkei sulked. "I wish I were you."

Kiara and Kyoya continued to train together for a couple of weeks after that, Kiara getting stronger each day and working on perfecting her new special move. She had noticed, the more time she spent with him, that even though he came off as cold and rude, deep down he wasn't all that bad. He was the reason she was able to break the box on the first day. He brought her food and helped her create a new special move. He agreed to train her, even though it was just to battle a new opponent. In actuality, he could've refused to train her and just found this so-called strong blader on his own, but he didn't. This guy really isn't as mean as they say, Kiara thought.

"Kiara," Benkei spoke, walking into the room and disturbing Kiara from her thoughts whilst she sat on the bed and cleaned her bey. "How did training with Kyoya go today?"

"It went great, Benkei," she responded as he took a seat beside her. "He's really not as mean as they say he is, you know."

"Of course I know," the boy responded. "I spend pretty much all my time with him and he's just the coolest guy ever!"

"He's not the kindest person on earth, but he does care about things," Kiara commented, her gaze focused on her bey as she wiped it with a cloth.

"What do you mean?" Benkei asked.

"Well, he didn't have to train me but he did. He's really good at it as well. This one time, he brought me food when I didn't even ask for it, and he helped me create my first ever special move, and he taught me a launch position that works just for me, and-"

"Kiara," Benkei spoke, cutting the girl off. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"Do you like Kyoya?"

Kiara's eyes shot up and met with Benkei's. "What?!"

"I think you like him."

"N-No, I don't," Kiara retaliated, flustered. "What made you think that?"

"You're blushing."

"What? Am not!"

"Yes, you are. Plus, just the way you talk about Kyoya would make anyone think you like him."

"What's that supposed to mean? You talk about him the same way I do!"

"But you have that sparkle in your eyes!"

"So do you! Maybe I just admire him like you do!"

"What's all this noise?!" Gingka slammed the door open, half a burger in his mouth. "Again?! Disturbing my precious time with my precious burger?!"

"Kiara likes Kyoya!" Benkei announced.

"Benkei!" Kiara glared daggers into his soul.

"Kiara..." Gingka stared wide-eyed at the girl. "You WHAT?!"

"I do not!" she retorted.

"Yes you do! I see it in your eyes!" Benkei argued.

"You make no sense, Benkei!" Kiara yelled back.

"KIARA LIKES KYOYA?!" Gingka exclaimed, still taking in the information.

"I DO NOT! ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME GINGKA?!" Kiara screeched.

"ALL OF YOU! SHUT UP!" Madoka screamed at the trio. They all stared at the angry girl standing in the doorway, steam coming from her ears as she fumed. "I'm trying to work on fixing beys. It would be NICE if you could all be QUIET!"

"Sorry, Madoka," Gingka apologised, smiling sheepishly.

"This is all your fault, Benkei," Kiara blamed the boy on her right, glaring at him with a deathly stare.

"Say what?!" he turned to face her, anger present in his eyes.

"What did I JUST say?!" Madoka warned. After ensuring that the trio were quiet, she left to return to fixing beyblades. The room was dead silent, each of the three teenagers shooting death stares at each other, Gingka's half burger still in his hand, unfinished.

Kiara laid back on her bed and stared at the ceiling. Her face, she had noticed, was burning hot, so she reached up to open the window before returning to her position. She wondered if what Benkei had said was true, if she was really developing feelings for the boy who trained her. There was a possibility that Benkei was telling the truth, although Kiara thought she felt the same way about Kyoya that he did. To her, speaking highly of Kyoya was just an admiration of his strength and determination, nothing more. She was glad to have been training with someone so powerful, someone who battled as ferociously as he did. She respected his courage to forfeit from the battle with Yu and Gingka in the final match of the Survival Battle and wished she had the strength to do what he did that day; she had been told by the others that Kyoya's one and only goal was to defeat Gingka, so she could imagine how difficult it must have been to voluntarily walk away from that. I just admire him is all, the girl told herself. I don't know what Benkei's talking about.

~ ~ ~

"Relax your shoulders as well. You're too tense."

~ ~ ~

Kiara's face burned up once again as she recalled Kyoya's soft touch on her shoulders when they first trained in the warehouse. Although he made her do difficult tasks when they trained, he was always gentle with her when adjusting her stance. What am I thinking? she wondered, blushing.

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the rest of chapter 5 is available on wattpad:

[whimsicalmishaps]

The Sword and Beast

The opportunity imbued within a person is fierce. It can be ravenous and be plunged into the wielders warfare as a howling beast. The opportunity and devotion within a person is akin to a sword. Forged in the molten fire of ambition and patience. Everybody has the forge within themselves. To make such a weapon to ward off any and all opposition. To fight their own war. I've had my weapon forged. I've wielded it before. I'm proud for harboring such a weapon that was originally forged from my pain and ambitions, formed into a beast. But for now, it feels like this beast dwells in slumber. It hibernates to awake to reformed stride to strive towards its wielders goals. I have yet to wake the beast from its slumber. I have yet to retake the sword by its hilt. I'm at the edge of the sword. Neither on one side or the other. It feels like I'm somewhere between the cause of my ambition and my ambition itself. It feels... static. Almost like the slumber in which the beast dwells. I've thrown down the sword in the eager effort to not fight again, yet left myself defenseless to the shadows and monsters that want to overtake my domain. I've been driven farther and farther back due to the lack of responsibility to sharpen the blade and tame the beast yet again following its slumber. Failure is meant to be the catalyst to success. It is meant to drive the sword deeper and swifter. It is meant to make the beast grow insatiable until it has devoured its prey. Without those at hand, failure has only been the catalyst for my own demise. My enemies and prey have been thriving without me taking arms. Ever since my heart grew vengeance against outer forces plaguing what is imbued within me. It has overtaken my forge, faith, and had me forfeit my mental domain. Each time I am yet again pushed back, I make the empty promise to again take up arms. But how much longer can I hide from the shadows and monsters? There isn't much hiding spots left. In this empty, hollow cave that I now reside in my domain, the shadows of monsters patter the walls by the light which I managed to ignite despite the harmful respite from the sword and beast. I must take the hilt to sharpen the blade. I must awake the beast to harbor and tame. Not for just a minute. Not for just an hour. Not for just a day, nor week, nor year. I must always destroy and devour the opposition that invades my mind. It's a lifetime battle for not just me, but just about anyone you may happen to see.

[f1]

"Ain't no stopping us now!" warns Russell

As Mercedes appears to have tamed the porpoise, George Russell warns that the fight is on as the German team's season is finally underway. Unlike Miami, in Barcelona Mercedes didn't take one step forward only to take two backwards. From the start of the weekend it was clear that the world champions are (almost) on top of the porpoising issue that has plagued it since pre-season testing and but for a first lap clash with Kevin Magnussen, Lewis Hamilton might have been at the sharp end of the field with his teammate for the entire race. As it happened, Hamilton finished fifth, while teammate Russell joined the Red Bull pair on the podium, as Mercedes delivered its most convincing performance of the season. And on the subject of convincing performances, in fending off the Bulls and putting Max Verstappen firmly in his place, in case anyone hadn't noticed, Russell served notice of his arrival at the sport's top table. "I gave everything I could to hold Max off, but he did an amazing job," said the youngster at race end. "Well done to Max, he did a great job. "When I had the Red Bulls in my mirrors, all I was doing was my maximum to keep them behind," he continued. "When I was battling Max, I was managing tyres, the engine was overheating, I was trying to go as fast as possible to keep him behind... you're juggling so many things, but it was an enjoyable good couple of laps. A cooling issue in the final stages of the race meant that Russell and his teammate both had to back-off, in Hamilton's case meaning forfeiting fourth place to Carlos Sainz. "It was very difficult in the last few laps, it was a survival race," Russell admitted. “Last five-six laps was literally 'bring it home'. We were right on the limit throughout the race but the team did a great job not to go over the limit and have to retire the car. "I'm just pleased to be able to bring it home in P3. It's a lot of points on the board for us." While he had already scored a podium finish in Australia, Russell believes that - despite Charles Leclerc's DNF - Barcelona means more because now the Mercedes is becoming a genuine force to be reckoned with. "I'd love to say that but today was very tough," he said. "We've probably halved the gap to the front-runners compared to the rest of the season but we know there's more performance to find. "We've finally solved our issue and we can now focus on bringing more performance," he added. "We're six races behind but there's no reason why we can't claw this back. We're making progress and as a team we've turned the page, it feels like this is probably the start of our season now. "I'm just so proud to be standing here, because the guys have worked so hard, so this one is for the guys back at Brackley and Brixworth." Check out our Sunday gallery from Barcelona, here. via Pitpass - the latest hottest F1 news http://www.pitpass.com/