#ASTRA WHEN I CATCH YOU ASTRA

[dawnbreakersgaze]

[its-de]

Only the real zayne girlies

Can tell the difference between Doctor zayne, the foreseer, and the dawnbreaker from his voice

[skynapple]

I was supposed to do Jeremiah art last night LOLL

[remuslupinfest]

Remus Lupin Fest 2024 Master List Reveals

Gen Monster - by SebbiGrey

James/Remus Where This Might Lead Us - by puuvillaa

Kingsley/Remus Soothing Comfort - by piximera

Regulus/Remus Hiding in Plain Sight - by MidnightStargazer

Severus/Remus DoorDash - by nocturn Food for Thought - by SafePlaceSnupin The Great Divide - by Elvira_Kamgut Safe - by Malinverno Sleepless in Scotland - by multilingualism

Sirius/Remus Ad Astra - by Swoops all the hot singles in your area are dead - by atropos_aeneas A New Chapter - by brandileigh2003 The beast in us - by Imjustherefortheshipping Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered - by Clare_Mansfield Catch Me When I Fall - by sliebman10 Chiaroscuro - by krabapple For Love or Monet - by deathcabformoony Half Moon Chocolate - by BrujaBanter High Tide Came and Brought You to Me - by Lucigoo89 Let Me Touch You or The Five TImes Sirius Black Kissed Remus Lupin and the One Time Remus Kissed Him Back - by Sniper_Jade The Many Phases of a Full Moon - by RebelWriter99 Sweets and Books - by Writer_INFJ_2w1 tell me that you're here forever, that you'll never leave - by ethereal_xo the world will follow after - by emlovessid used my best colors for your portrait - by littleoldrachel

Tonks/Remus Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board - by roni_mac The War - by Maplehelicopter

[blue--ingenue]

"Evasive Maneuvers" - Part 5

Read the next part

Summary: You've been in love with Sebastian since the moment you knocked him on his arse on your first day. Entering your sixth year, you finally begin working up the courage to confess your feelings when he suddenly becomes the best Beater Hogwarts has seen in decades - and subsequently becomes the school's most eligible bachelor.

Author's Notes: i apologize for the long wait, but this is also the longest chapter yet, so i hope that makes up for it :) oh, boy. seb is Messy and smitten and definitely isn't picking up on Ominis' sarcasm. this fic would be so much shorter if our boy knew how to talk about his feelings, but fortunately unfortunatly this is not the case, so here we are. anyway, eat up, and let me know if you'd like to be added to the taglist!

She couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment Sebastian had become distant. One day he was walking her to her dormitory after dinner, like he always insisted upon doing, and the next morning he was avoiding her like the plague. His absence was so complete that she couldn’t even approach him to ask what was bothering him. He would slip through the door the second each of their shared classes was over and she’d be lucky just to catch a glimpse of him in the halls, if at all. After three days of frustratingly trying to track him down, she resorted to sending him an owl. She felt absolutely ridiculous as she scrawled a hasty ‘Meet me in the Undercroft after dinner. I need to know that you aren’t truly avoiding me.’

They had been practically inseparable for the past few years, and now here she was, sending him post as though they didn’t live beneath the same roof. She held her quill just above the scrap of parchment before adding ‘Please.’ There. He’d never denied her anything before, but she wasn’t about to take her chances. Not when she missed him so. The subtle begging tone in her message was the last weapon she had left in her arsenal. After impatiently blowing on the drying ink, she folded the note and held it out for Astra to clutch. As her owl flew off with the desperate message she silently hoped today would be the last day she endured his absence.

-

Wind snapped the tails of Sebastian’s robe as he pushed his broom to fly faster. He’d pushed his goggles to the top of his head to keep his curls from blocking his vision, which meant that every gust of air sent his eyes watering over and over again. He didn’t care. The sting was a welcome sensation that kept him grounded as torrents of confounding emotions roiled through his mind. Ever since his earth-shattering revelation in Potions, Sebastian had steered clear of her. He was hanging onto a ledge, torn between telling her and swallowing down his affections lest she see him as nothing more than a friend. He could feel the gravity of the former option dragging at his resolve, but the fear of rejection was a far more vicious motivator to keep hanging on. 

He curled his fist tighter around his bat, leather gloves creaking under the strain. This was the last bit of practice he’d get before the anticipated Slytherin vs. Gryffindor match this afternoon and he didn’t intend to squander it. The two bludgers he’d charmed to fly about and aim at him were circling just beneath. He pulled his arm in and back, preparing to deflect as the wind whistled and parted around the first bludger shooting toward him. He waited until it was just barely within arms’ reach - and felt a satisfying crack as his bat made contact. He had half a mind to fling every bludger right into Weasley’s stupid charming face. He knew he harbored feelings for his Gryffindor. Nobody looks at mere friends the way he had gazed at her in Potions. He would know. 

And the way she had frantically ripped his cloak from his body? He knew she had only done it to spare the rest of him from getting burned, but that didn’t stop Sebastian’s jealous mind from twisting the image into an entirely different possibility. Every night since The Incident his dreams had been plagued by thoughts of her ripping into the rest of Weasley’s clothes. Not in the Potions classroom, but somewhere far more intimate. Flashes of him kissing her senseless, of her gasping Weasley’s name, taunted nearly every waking moment. It was torture of the highest degree. Between the terror of losing her, the fledgling hope of letting himself love her, and every anguishing emotion in-between, Sebastian was an utter wreck.

It was like someone had struck him senseless and set him in the center of the Forbidden Forest telling him to find his way out without a wand. And so rather than choose a direction, he chose to stay right where he was. Avoiding the problem also, unfortunately, meant avoiding her. The logical, and by far the most terrifying, course of action would be to just tell her. Maybe she could let him down easy, and after a few weeks of awkwardness things could go back to the way they were before he - what? Before he bared his heart to her? Confessed that he’s loved her the entire time but he was too much of a bloody coward to say anything? No chance. Sebastian Sallow was known for many things, but not one of them was taking the easiest way out. He pulled off his goggles and ran a hand through his sweat-damp hair. Despite the ache in both arms he felt more than prepared for the afternoon. He shifted his weight forward, angling the broom into an easy descent and hovering an inch above the ground. 

“Sallow!” a voice called to him from the entrance to the pitch. Imelda was waving him over, broom in hand and fully dressed in her captain’s uniform. Behind her the rest of the team were filing onto the pitch, setting their brooms down and stretching in the grass. He willed his broom forward and closed the distance between them in a single fluid motion. 

“I admire your dedication, but you should’ve been saving your strength for the match,” she chided him. He pulled his quidditch gloves from his hands as he dismounted and the broom fell the last few inches onto the grass with a soft thump.

“I was just about to head in for breakfast,” he explains. She cocks a brow at him, which is typically the sign that he’s missing something crucial.

“Sallow, it’s just past lunch. The match starts in less than an hour.”

What? That couldn’t be right. He thrust his hand into his pocket to check his watch and - Shit. He’d left it in the changing rooms. Imelda rolled her eyes without malice and pulled out two paper-wrapped packages. The smell of roast beef had him accepting both packages without thinking.

“Lucky for you, someone was keeping tabs on whether you’d eaten or not,” she scoffs as he unwraps the sandwich.

“Thanks, Imelda,” he says, truly meaning it, as he takes a greedy bite out of the roast beef sandwich. It’s his favorite, with a generous slather of mustard holding the thick-cut beef between slices of tomato, lettuce, and still-warm bread.

He scarfs down the first bite, intending to ask how she knew what his go-to meal was when she says, “I’m merely the messenger. She’s been looking for you all day. And with how tense things seem between the two of you, I figure you know exactly who I’m talking about.”

He freezes mid-chew and gulps the rest of the mouthful down. His stomach turns as his hunger dissipates and guilt settles in its place. Imelda clocks his change in demeanor and holds up a hand, silencing him before he can speak. 

“Whatever the two of you have going on, it has to wait until after the match. I can’t afford to have you distracted today. Can I count on you?” 

He pushes an affirmative around the lump forming in his throat and she relaxes, satisfied with his answer. As her form retreats toward the changing tents he rewraps the sandwich and carefully unwraps the second package. A vanilla scone sits nestled in the wax paper. The icing and butter slathered across the top have barely melted, which meant she must’ve waited until the house elves apparated a fresh batch just to grab him one. He shuts his eyes and groans. 

“I’m such an ass,” he tells the heavens.

“Indeed. Though I’m surprised it’s taken you this long to reach that conclusion,” a posh voice admonishes from behind him. He turns to face Ominis, the scone still clutched in his hand. The familiar red light pulses from the tip of his wand and he frowns.

“I’m guessing from the scent of vanilla that Imelda has passed on our mutual friend’s peace offering. Though from what I’ve heard, she isn’t the one who should be extending an olive branch,” he continues.

“I swear I meant to talk to her this morning. I just lost track of time,” he explains. Ominis sighs, a recurring sound that’s beginning to grate on Sebastian’s nerves despite the fact that he deserves every one of them. Ominis is her second-favorite Slytherin (after Sebastian, of course), and he finds it odd that they didn’t arrive at the stadium together. 

“Hold on, she is coming today, isn’t she?” he asks. Surely his recent antics weren’t enough to drive her away from the match? Ominis cocks a brow before confirming.

“She is. She told me that ‘nothing could keep her from cheering on her favorite beater’. Apparently she’s been making her own jersey to wear to the match with his last name on the back and everything.”

His whole body tenses and suddenly he can hear the blood rushing in his ears. Someone has lit a match in his chest, and every heartbeat spreads the thick, choking envy through every inch of him until it’s all he can think about. So he hadn’t imagined their affections yesterday. The gratification of being right is immolated by the raw jealousy drowning him breath by breath. He hears a high, incredulous laugh leave his lips and a hollow ringing in his head. Of course she would be cheering for Weasley. He could see her right now, clear as day, scrawling his name across a crimson jersey before pulling it on and skipping to the pitch. She wanted to cheer for Weasley? Fine. Victory would feel all the sweeter when Slytherin beat Gryffindor into the ground today.

He clenches his fists and balls up the untouched scone with the rest of the wax paper. “Whatever. I don’t know what she sees in that arrogant sod,” he spits.

“Me neither,” Ominis sighs. Sebastian allows himself to relish the miniscule victory. At least one person was on his side today.

-

Imelda had the team warm up by taking a few laps about the pitch for the next half hour. They were now huddled in the locker tent with Imelda standing before a blackboard laden with the maneuvers that were already drilled into their muscle memory. Although the flap was closed for privacy, the buzz of incoming students adding to an already-packed crowd told him they’d have quite the audience. Sebastian rolled his shoulders back and ran a hand through his hair. Good. He thrived under an audience. Imelda finished explaining a last offensive tactic to the other Chasers before turning to address the whole team.

“I’m sure I don’t need to remind you how important this match is. Not only for our House, but for yourselves as well. If you want to represent Slytherin at the inter-school Championships, you need to play flawlessly. Not that I expect any less on any given day, of course,” she declared. Various noises of assent filled the room. She held every gaze with undivided attention. Although he and Imelda frequently bickered, he greatly admired her ability to galvanize a crowd. Seemingly satisfied with their response, she tightened her gloves and walked to grab her broom from where it was propped against a bench.

“Good. Now let’s get out there and show those amateurs how a real team wins a quidditch match.”

A round of cheers filled the tent as the rest of the players grabbed their brooms and made final adjustments to their uniforms and gear. Sebastian heard a deafening roar before Everett Clopton’s amplified voice announced the members of the Gryffindor team. Upon hearing Weasley’s name he adjusted the strap on his left glove, deciding then and there to channel every bit of his anger and frustration into playing the best game of his life. Beside him the other Slytherin Beater, Amelia Nichols, nudged his arm. 

“Rough night, Sallow?” she asked. The scowl that seemed permanently seared onto his face at any mention of Weasley must have tipped her off. 

“Just more than ready to blow off a bit of steam,” he grumbled. She snorted and went back to adjusting her gloves. “You and me both.”

The team lined up in their usual pre-flight formation, awaiting Everett’s announcement. He mounted his broom next to Amelia and gripped the handle, hovering a few inches above the ground. He heard Clopton announce Imelda as the Slytherin captain, and they pushed off. As soon as the tent flaps dropped back into place behind them, he couldn’t help the grin that took over his face. The crowd was huge. It looked like the entire school had turned up for the match. Sebastian let the adrenaline sing through his blood as they made their lap around the stadium. Students cheered as they flew past and he let the wind whip his curls into a frenzy. Sebastian hadn’t had the chance to fly before coming to Hogwarts. Though his parents owned a few brooms, he was too young to ride when they were still alive. And buying a broom had been out of the question when he and Anne moved into Solomon’s humble one-room cottage. 

Whipping through the air hundreds of feet above the ground made him feel invincible. In control. He felt far away from any problems that sank their claws into him the second his feet touched the ground. The raw power and adrenaline from exerting control over something so dangerous was addictive. He knew he looked damn good while doing it, and it certainly helped to have an audience, especially one as large as this. 

“And bringing up the defense are Beaters Amelia Nichols and Sebastian Sallow!” Everett boomed. At that Sebastian blew an exaggerated kiss toward the Slytherin stands. Imelda turned just enough to roll her eyes at him from the front of their formation before stopping in the center of the pitch. The team drifted down as one toward Madam Kogawa and the case he knew held the bludgers and snitch. The quaffle was already in her hand, and as soon as all players were within earshot she began repeating her usual pre-game reminders. But Sebastian wasn’t listening. His eyes were scanning the section of the Gryffindor stands she always sat in. She’d chosen it during his first practice. As soon as Imelda had released them he’d flown up to meet her. She wanted to make sure he could always look to the same spot, something about making it easy for him to find her so that he could focus more on the game. But as his eyes settled on her spot he saw that it had been taken up by a few Gryffindors whose names he hadn’t bothered to learn. 

The sting of disappointment flared into white-hot fury as his gaze landed on Weasley. He looked like he’d slept like a baby the night before. He was laughing at something one of the other Chasers had said, laughing without a care in the world. Prat, he thought. He decided then and there to aim every bludger at Weasley’s stupid grinning face. His stomach lurched as he remembered Ominis’ words. ‘Making her own jersey…with his last name on it.’ 

Of course. She must’ve chosen a new spot, one where her precious Garreth could spot her. He’d probably go wild the second he saw his name written across her. Sebastian didn’t realize he’d been pinning Weasley with a death glare until Amelia prodded him with her bat. 

“You alright?” as asked. He nodded tersely and gripped his bat until his knuckles cracked.

Two could play at this game. A shrill whistle pierced the crowd’s roar and he shot into the air.

-

By the last quarter of the game both teams remained locked in a deadly tie. They’d been neck and neck at 120 points for the last half hour, and if the Gryffindor Keeper didn’t slip up at some point, their only hope of victory lay with Will catching the snitch. Sebastian cruised alongside Imelda and another Chaser, shielding them for any bludgers that may try to knock them off their warpath to the Gryffindor goalposts. He hears the telltale whistle and raises his arm instinctively, smacking the bludger away from his teammates. It hurtles back toward the Gryffindor Beater who’d sent it their way. His eyes narrowed. Weasley.

The menace had the audacity to shrug his shoulders. “No harm no foul, Sallow!” he called as he zipped away.

Sebastian gritted his teeth and scanned the skies for the second bludger. As soon as it was once again struck their way he pulled his arm back, waited until it was a hair’s breadth from striking him, and smacked it toward the Gryffindor goalpost. The opposing Keeper ducked out of the way and the bludger struck the post, where his head had been a mere moment ago. That moment was all Imelda needed to toss the quaffle through the center hoop. It flew through and the resultant ding told him they were now ahead by ten points. If they could maintain their lead for the next five minutes, victory was theirs. 

Once Imelda and the two Chasers flying behind her were clear of the goal posts he gripped his broom handle and pulled up, flying well above the other players to scope out where he was needed. His eye caught on Henry, a fifth-year Chaser, who was doing his damndest to avoid being beheaded by one of the bludgers. Amos, the second Gryffindor Beater, seemed to be targeting the boy despite the fact that the quaffle was on the other side of the pitch. Sebastian shifted all his weight forward and dove for Henry, bat gripped firmly in hand. As he descended he looked to see if Weasley was complicit in the unnecessary attack, but the ginger was across the pitch defending his teammates. He flicked his gaze back to Henry and time seemed to slow. From this angle he’d have no time to duck and the damn ball would hit him square in the chest. Sebastian didn’t have to do the math to know that he wouldn’t walk away without a few broken ribs, at the very least. Without thinking, he threw himself in front of his teammate and prepared to swing. He never got the chance to strike. 

The air was punched violently from his lungs as the bludger hit him square in the diaphragm. In the second after impact he felt like retching as his vision whited out. He couldn’t breathe. Dully, he felt himself slam back into Henry, who gave way easily as he was knocked clean off his broom. He heard the crowd gasp as the Chaser plummeted toward the ground in freefall. Forcing air into his lungs he pushed himself forward until he was shooting downward at a near vertical angle. Mere meters before Henry hit the ground Sebastian caught him with two arms around his midsection and pulled out of the dive. He landed roughly in the grass with Henry safe in his arms, and froze on the pitch, dazed. Between the pulsating pain and his spotty vision he barely noticed the game had ended until Madam Blainey was pulling his teammate from his arms. She hastily thrust a vial of wiggenweld into his arms before attending to the unconscious Chaser. He uncorked the potion and downed it, nearly vomiting at the fresh waves of pain paralyzing him with each swallow. 

His teammates landed behind him and he registered shouts as his hearing came back in full force. Above the roar of the crowd Imelda was thumping him on the back. 

“You’re a bloody madman, Sallow!” she crowed. Around him the rest of the team were congratulating him for his heroics. Although the pain was ebbing, he still felt a bit dazed from the adrenaline rush.

Amelia ran up to Sebastian, pulling him into a hug and shouting, “We won!” He returned the hug gingerly, and erupted into a coughing fit when she squeezed him fiercely. At his gasps she pulled away, apologizing profusely. 

“I’m so sorry! I nearly forgot with all the excitement! Are you alright? Do you want me to fetch another wiggenweld?” She sounded genuinely panicked enough that Sebastian grasped her gently by the shoulders. He shook his head as his coughs subsided, trying to reassure her that he was on the mend.

“I’ll be alright. Honest,” he managed between gasps. She shook her head and pushed back his sweat-slicked hair. The warmth of the gesture was not lost on him, and he froze, watching her face shift from worried to…fond? And was she blushing before? Maybe he was just imagining things, shock and all. He realized his arms were still on her shoulders as she stepped closer to him, nearly flush with his chest. He gulped. 

“That rescue was incredible. Incredible, and stupid, and brave. Are you sure you’re not a Gryffindor?” she asked, smiling coyly up at him. For the first time Sebastian realized he towered over her by at least a head. She was so close he could smell her perfume, floral and heady, with a hint of vanilla. He parted his lips to answer, but fell short as he caught sight of Weasley. He was scanning the crowd of students that had stormed the field as soon as Clopton announced Slytherin’s victory. He was searching for something, or rather, someone. His Gryffindor. The one who irrevocably held his heart and was currently wearing his name across her body. The prat didn’t even have the decency to look disappointed at his own team’s loss. Something wicked licked up his spine. He let his gaze drift back down to Amelia, who was gazing at his lips with hungry eyes. 

He felt himself crossing an invisible threshold into somewhere wicked and vengeful. He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, the action hollow as some part of him registered that the color was all wrong. 

“Fancy a victory kiss?” he asked, his voice low and rasping. Her lips curled into a hungry smile. “I thought you’d never ask.”

At that he threaded a hand through her hair, shut his eyes despite the voice screaming wrong wrong wrong in his head, and kissed her. Deeply. He could hear the rest of the team egging them on as the celebration raged around him, but he didn’t care. For the first time in days the jealousy burning in his chest felt stamped out. He pulled away, gasping, and Amelia giggled. Her pupils were blown wide as she swayed and caught her balance by gripping at his uniform. He was just registering the dumbstruck grin on his face when Amelia’s gaze focussed on something behind him and she giggled again. 

“Whoops,” she whispered, releasing the front of his robe. He felt someone’s gaze on his back and his spine prickled as he spun around.

She was standing a few feet away. His Gryffindor. She was frozen in shock for a moment, just a moment, before her face twisted into a mix of hurt and disbelief that tore his heart in two. She was clad in green, and he had just enough time to notice the green and silver adorning her cheeks before a tear trailed down and smudged the paint. Her name had barely left his lips before she turned and ran. His stomach dropped and the pain of being hit by the bludger paled in comparison to the guilt currently eating him alive. He caught a single glimpse of her back before she was swallowed by the crowd. On her back, in hastily sewn-on letters, was his last name.

.

.

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Taglist: @snickette, @findingtruenorth23, @plooloo, @paganicher, @smilesworldsposts, @snoozebun, @crazyllamasurfer, @pixie-dustss, @margottheviking, @lollife1617, @milk-barrs-blog, @somethingiswrongwithme, @bleh-stupid, @stay-gray, @mrsbrookesallow, @lostgirl-28, @kateisnotheree, @doigettokeepyou, @dreamqueenkala

[icanreadthisbutnotbooks]

Okay so I have a theory on what Kaydens backstory might be.I think I might be over analysing and nitpicking, but you guys can be the judge.

So my theory is that Kayden may come from some sort of military/government family.

Point one: His meeting with Jiwoo.

When he first finds out Jiwoo doesn't know what an Awakener is, his reaction is "oh right there are some kids like you". This could mean Kayden already had knowledge of the awakener world. There are two scenarios where this is plausible; he was born into an awakener family, but the fact that not even one organisation knows what his last name is goes against this. Another scenario is that he could be from a military/government family, it's been stated that the government knows that awakeners exist. Upon getting his powers he could have just been told by his family about the awakener world.

Second point: Kayden seems to know a lot of details about many organisations, along with being very knowledgeable about awakener world politics.

At first this can just be pushed off as Kayden learning details about people he wants to fight. One thing that's off here is the fact that he seems to also know about the children of the organisations. Case and point he already seems to know about Duke and about the talents of other groups. He could have started researching for Jiwoo, but that doesn't seem to be in line with Kayden's way of teaching. He also already knew of Jiyoung's talent even though she managed to hide it from most of the awakened society. Another thing to consider is the fact that he can predict the behaviour of the other top ten, and knows their personality well. He knows that Schneider would most likely kill Duke if he lost, and he was right he was going to kill Duke. From the interaction they have with each other, it's clear that this is the first time Schneider has met Kayden face to face. Yet Kayden already seems to know the nuances of his personality. He was right about Supri wanting to take their side over Andrei's. Even when the Korean awakeners where on the fence on what Astras would do to them, Kayden already knew for a fact that Astra would move with a 100% certainty. He also knew the location of those three top 10 that attacked him. There is no mention of a gathering of those three by anyone in Korea, despite the fact that would be a huge deal since it was either happening near or in Korea. Yet they clearly know of Kayden's entry, which could mean that the other 3 were meeting in secret. Yet Kayden ended up finding them.

Point 3: Somehow a young Kayden didn't pop up on any organisation's radar.

Somehow a child/teenage Kayden didn't get forced to join any organisation. From Sucheons grandfather we can see that teens with potential could be forced into joining organisations. They could also be forced to join criminal organisations. Kayden made his debut fighting people, and he was at a level that he couldn't be forced into joining any group. Kayden from the get go clearly decides he doesn't want to be in an organisation despite it's benefits. If he came from a military/government family it would make sense that they would have; the power to hide him, knowledge of the operations of the awakener world, plus a safe space for him to train while hidden.

Point 4: His mannerisms.

Whenever we see glimpses of Kayden walking he always holds an upright straight posture, this can also be seen in the way he sits;he sits upright with his legs crossed. Another thing to note is that unless Kayden is fighting, his personality is more on the cordial side. When Kayden first meets Jiwoo he's annoyed but he doesn't just abandon Jiwoo, many of the powerful awakners shown wouldn't even entertain the cat catching shenanigans in the first few chapters. He also doesn't really seem to find the act of teasing Iseul for her crush amusing, his reactions show that he thinks such things are just unnecessary or maybe rude. Kayden also in a couple chapters, not only in Ian's gives criticism on manners. Kayden doesn't slouch unless he's trying to aggravate or annoy someone and his personality becomes more volatile when aggravated. Kayden also shows formal manners when meeting Jiwoo's mom, he doesn't necessarily have to introduce himself in such a manner; it is his own choice to present himself in such a manner towards his mom. From Kartiens reaction we know that Kayden didn't really need to present himself in such a way. The other top ten save for Supri and Veremonte wouldn't have even bothered to give a shrivel of politeness, and even in the case of Supri and Veremonte they wouldn't have been as polite. If Kayden is from a military/government family it would make sense that manners would be something that he was forced to learn.

As for why his family would let him do the things he does? I have no clue. Maybe he's a runaway, maybe he's an illegitimate child. Maybe his Family hid him away and didn't let the public know of his existence. Since powers show up when young, maybe his showed up early and his family decided to hide him.Maybe once he was discovered to have powers his family trained him to be a weapon. This theory makes a full on Rabbit hole of other theories.

I think I'm just overanalyzing things. Again this is just a theory I randomly thought of no one needs to take it seriously. Even the evidence is kind of happenstance. This is just an idea I thought was fun. If anyone has any theories of what Kaydens life may have been I would love to hear it.

[jazeswhbhaven]

Nobody asked, but I'll do this before I start working on requests~

Astra's first impressions:

(Doing Avisos, because I did a side story where she yeets there randomly) Stolas: This guy looks like he comes straight from a emo/goth boy magazine but has a stick up his ass. I like him though, taught me how to shoplift without getting caught. Naberius: He's a nerd. But a cute nerd. Don't tell him I said that. Amon: Oh, he's hot. He's really hot. Oh, he's a Beel fanboy. Damn. Well, he's still hot and I'll keep trying. Bael: He's need a break, maybe a handjob. I'm happy to give him one.

Beelzebub: He let me twerk on him, so he's cool with me. I'm getting a piercing from him but he wants to pierce my coochie so uh, might have to rain check. (satan and mammon will not like that) (and Hades because WHY NOT)

Foras: Holy shit where the fuck he come from? I literally didn't see him. Sneaky fucker. Pretty horns though. Barbatos: Oh...he's so friendly. Oh he's a bit too friendly. Great kisser. Glasyalabolas: This tall fucker, if I were any shorter my face would always be staring at his dick. I want his boots.

Leviathan: So it was on sight when I saw him because he tried to kill me. How about suck my ass? He reminds me of my coworkers at the club, just because he's pretty he gets to treat me like shit? (noises in the background because Levi heard her talking shit) OH, YOU WANT SOME? COME CATCH THIS FADE** (runs off camera, more crashing noises) (fade in this context is a threat/meaning to beat someone's ass basically ^^;)

In short, Astra does unhinged stuff in Avisos with the bois. Astra never stays in Hades for long because she keeps getting into fights with Levi (it's almost like it's a kink for them at this point, yes Glas watches)

[mckitterick]

Aurora deep into southern Midwest!

After Friday night's less-than-stellar experience hunting for a good spot to watch the aurora near LFK (short answer: there is none), tonight we decided to drive north a couple hours to get deeper into the aurora zone, and a little east to reach truly dark skies and skirt the clouds creeping across Kansas and Nebraska. Still pretty far south in the grand scheme of things (northern Missouri), but the darkest skies we've seen in a long time.

At first we parked as planned near a nature preserve in what is billed as a town (really just a handful of houses), but the northern view from there looked over a house that sits beside Loud Frog Land:

So when the sky began to dance (see this image), we drove a bit farther along hilly, winding country blacktop until finding a little gravel turn-around.

Just as we set out our folding chaise lounges, the sky really heated up, and for about 20 minutes it was amazing:  

This image and the top one (by @bugs-are-buddies using her Android S22 Ultra) are much better than from mine (Note9); thanks, darlin'.

My tripod-mounted DSLR was a bust, though I managed to snap the below Moon image once I got the telephoto lens working - had to turn the autofocus on and off again to manually focus at all (always the same story with tech), so we missed imaging the burst of aurora action with that machine.

(Left image is me fiddling with the camera by the light of the Moon and the aurora's fading glow.)

We stuck around for a while after the dramatically waving red-pink-green curtains diminished from their peak, hoping the huge Coronal Mass Ejection had more to offer, but things tapered off around Cassiopeia. And it was getting cold. So home we went.

The drive back was dinner of nut bars and pears, and introducing my sweetheart to some 1990s bangers on le Wedding Trip Jag's awesome speaker setup.

Two nights of dramatic aurorae - visible as far south as Kansas! Wow!

I hope you got a chance to catch some of the Sun's beautiful assault against Earth's skies. Ad Astra!

[xiarranyork]

i had a really stupid thought just now about zayne's new myth. emphasis on 'stupid' bc it's not out yet so there's very little info to go off of

the new companion is called "Master of Fate" and i thought, "if the name is literal and the Zayne of this timeline like...commands all fates, does that imply that he himself is Astra?"

but again, a stupid thought bc why would he curse himself to not be able to love MC in peace, right?

if this very uneducated guess is correct(very unlikely), it'd be funny if we have all been going "FUCK ASTRA" or "ASTRA WHEN I CATCH YOU ASTRA" but Astra turned out to be Zayne himself 💀

[dawnbreakersgaze]

WAIT IS DAWNBREAKER WATCHING EVERY DATE WITH ZAYNE? my only zayne 5 star is business trip and now I'm just 😭😭😭😭😭😭

The answer to this is "sort of?"

In the anecdote "still in dark" we know that Dawnbreaker sees the life of Dr. Zayne through his eyes, in his dreams. It's stated that they're disjointed, and not necessarily in chronological order, so we're not exactly sure all of WHAT he's seen, but the implication is uh

Yeah... that poor man has seen mc and Zayne be all sorts of close and personal 😭💔

[topazy]

Inside, outside

Pairing: 10k x reader

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of blood and brains

Chapter: 5.06

After bringing the quad bike to a complete stop when you spot a deserted-looking warehouse, 10k jumps off the back first, and immediately you’re missing the warmth of his arm wrapped around your waist. With the sling of his gun over his shoulder, he offers you his hand to help you climb off. If 10K wasn’t a gentleman before, people would probably be catching onto how protective he was being.

You, 10K, Warren, Murphy, and Addy had gone to find the source of bizkit’s and why they seemed to be low rations of it, while Doc and George headed back to Altura to keep an eye on Dante’s trial.

“Is that the bakery? The place looks abandoned.”

“It doesn’t mean nobody is home,” Warren points out.

The five of you stand on the edge of a small hill that leads down to the pathway into the building. The side of the hill was mainly covered in rubble, preventing any vehicles from driving on it.

Murphy looks lost in thought; a look of distress appears on his face. You lightly hit his arm to gain his attention. “Are you okay?”

“I smell brains.”

“This must be the place, then.”

When the five of you started making your way down the path, you were being extra cautious not to trip while walking on such a rocky surface. 10k stays in front of you and continues to glance back, ready to catch you if you do fall.

Murphy walks by you at a normal pace and scoffs, “You two make me feel sick.”

“Just keep walking, Alvin.”

“My biggest fear is losing you. When you were kidnapped, I realized how much I loved you and that there was nothing I wouldn't do to find you,” Murphy says mockingly. “You're my best friend, Tommy, and there's not a line I wouldn't cross to keep you safe.”

10k glares at him and warningly snaps, “Shut the hell up.”

Addy, who’s standing at the bottom, already looks up in confusion. “What is he talking about?”

“Nothing.”

In a high-pitched fake girly voice, Murphy says, “I knew our fates were intertwined.“

“I swear to god!” You knew Murphy was looking for a reaction, and usually you wouldn’t take the bait too easily, but he had been teasing you since you left for this new task.

“Don’t get wound up; he’s not worth the reaction,” 10k says calmly, but as soon as you reach the bottom where the others are waiting, he presses the long side of his rifle against Murphy’s collarbone, pushing him into the wall. “Lay the fuck off Murphy.”

“Jeez, lighten up, kid.”

10k steps back.

Warren clicks her fingers. “All of you, focus.”

Once you checked, nobody else was in sight. You round the corner, and Addy breaks the lock on the door, giving you all access to the building.

—

The inside of the building stinks of rotten meat, which is explained when you find human skulls and parts of rotten brains scattered across various baking trays.

The group had split up, but you could see both Addy and 10k going to check out the same area. It saddened you that they no longer had a close relationship, and you felt partially responsible for it, but then it was your sister who left. Since they last saw each other, Addy had lost an eye, and 10k had lost his hand, and they could have leaned on each other for support.

“Astra, I’m really sorry, but it looks like she left during the night.”

You shake your head, refusing to believe it. “No, no. Something is wrong; Addy wouldn’t just go without leaving me. She wouldn’t do that.”

When you awoke in the morning to find Addy gone, you assumed she had gone hunting, but when she never returned, a couple of hours later, you, 10k, and Red went looking for her, but you couldn’t find her. You returned to your home to see if she had returned.

Red links her fingers with yours and gives you a sympathetic look. “All her stuff is gone.”

You squeeze your eyes shut to hold back tears. Addy only found you in the first place while looking for someone else. “She’s gone to find Lucy,” you say, clearing your throat. “We should go and let Tommy know; I don’t want him out there looking for someone who doesn’t want to be found.”

You aim your gun in the direction of something being crushed and slowly make your way over to a large mixer, which appears to have turned on itself. You look inside it and almost gag at seeing more skulls.

“You guys seeing this? This place is gross.”

When you don’t get a reply, you spin around to see Warren staring at something with a concerned look on her face. She notices you looking and waves you over. When you do, you see what the problem is.

“Eh Murphy, are you good? You’re practically drooling over a skull?”

“Yeah,” he quickly shrugs your comment off. “This place just gives me the munchies.”

All of a sudden, a man appears and starts firing at the three of you. Quickly, you jump out of the way to avoid being shot and accidentally scrape your stomach on something sharp. You duck behind one of the metal tables and, taking a few deep breaths, look down to see blood appearing on your top.

No, no, no.

Murphy crawls over beside you and says, “What the hell are you doing? We gotta keep moving.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know I just—fuck.”

“Did you get shot?”

“No, I’ve just cut my stomach.” The cut wasn’t deep, and you were sure it hadn’t harmed the baby, but it gave you one hell of a fright. Between deep breaths, you start mumbling to yourself, “Tommy is going to freak.”

Seeing how afraid you are, something clicks in Murphy, and he gives you a look of understanding. He knows. Quietly, he says, “Stay behind me; we are going to make a run for it.”

You nod, and the two of you manage to run behind a different spot without being shot.

—

“I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if you try anything stupid.” You say, aiming at the man who was previously trying to kill your head.

While he chases Murphy and Warren off from either side, the man seemed to not care that much about weapons being so close to his head. “It looks like we’ve got ourselves a zombie standoff. You have me; I got him, and my brothers got all three of you.”

You glance around the room; it was more than likely that 10k or Addy had gotten to his brother first.

“We are looking for bizkits,” Warren says. “We have starving talkers that are starting to turn.”

“We are just trying to survive ourselves, and it’s crooks like you who have shut down the bakery and turned us into a bunch of dirty dogs. So lower your weapons and kindly waltz out of here, or we’re all going to be crawling brains.”

“Look, I don’t know who you think we are, but we aren’t them.”

“That’s what the last bunch said before they started shooting.”

You didn’t doubt the man’s story for a second; the bakery was covered in a red mist of blood. A door creaks open, and Addy and 10k bring out another man, whom you assume is the brother with a gun at his back.

“Listen,” you lower your weapon slightly, “your brother is still human, and I know you want to keep it that way. Just tell us what we want to know, and nobody else will get hurt.”

The man gulps down, “So, you're in need of some help?”

—

While the older man, Gilly, looks at his younger brother, Skull's nose, which was cut by your sister 10K, pulls you aside and grips a hold of the bottom of your top, “What the hell happened? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine; it’s just a cut.”

He holds your gaze. “Are you sure?”

“We’ll be fine.”

You return to your group just in time to hear Gilly explain that it was their mom who invited bizkits to save their brother, who had been bitten, but then the brother bit the mom when they ran out. And since the bombing, someone has been attacking the bakery so they won’t continue making them. Their mom had turned two weeks ago, and she was the only one who had the recipe.

You look up at the window of the office overlooking the rest of the bakery and see multiple talkers that have turned.

—

Murphy stands up a table, holds up a radio, and turns the music up to distract the talkers while Skull sneaks inside to get the recipe. The plan was going well until Skull tripped and fell and was bitten by their zombified brother right after their mom ate the recipe.

“I hate to say it, but the only way to keep them from turning might be to feed them actual brains.”

From the doorway at the far side of the room, multiple heavy footsteps can be heard, along with snarling and hissing. All the noise must have attracted the nearby Z’s from outside. Thankfully, only a small number of them came into the building.

You run up behind one of the Z’s and stab it in the head before shooting another two. You notice Addy and 10k working together to take out Z's, which makes you smile.

Warren cuts the head off one and tosses it to Gilly.

You stand behind 10k and bury your face into his back, not wanting to witness Gilly crushing the skull, then cutting up the brains, and then feeding them to the walkers.

When the talkers return to normal, the mom flirts with a creeped-out Murphy, kissing him on the cheek before continuing to help.

—

Sitting with your legs dangling over the edge of a table, you watch as the brothers bag up the last of the bizkits. Hearing a whistling noise, you look over to Murphy, who was trying and failing to be discreet by waving you and 10k over to him, then looking away.

You and 10k stand on either side of him. “What’s going on?”

“I just wanted to say...” he trails off while tracing patterns in the flour scattered across the table with his finger. Murphy's jaw clenches slightly. “I don’t like either of you, but I do think you will be great parents, even lefty over here.”

With that, he turns and quickly walks away. You share a confused look with 10k. “Did you tell him?”

“No, but I think he figured it out.”

Ultimately, you’d need to tell the others the truth sooner than later. 10k smiles and brushes strands of hair out of your face. “Go for it.”

“Uh, guys, we’ve got something we need to tell you.”

Warren and Addy step a little closer, and you try not to laugh, seeing the worried look on their faces.

“Tommy and I are having a baby.”

[jongseongsnudes]

fifteen.

warning: 💘💘💘💘 0.5k words. masterlist.

“oh my god and then my mum said to me that-” your friend pauses mid sentence and glances to somewhere behind you, totally confusing you. it’s when you turn around that you finally understand why.

nishimura.

your cheeks fall a darker shade at the sudden appearance of the boy standing behind you in the classroom, an instant reminder of yesterday’s shenanigans after school.

after the boy had oddly refused to let go of your hand on the bus ride, niki didn’t say a single word to you. he had held your hand until you were at the end of your driveway, only letting go once you had opened your mouth to say bye. it was a weird encounter and definitely one you had a lot of questions about.

and they say girls are complicated.

“i need to talk to you,” is all he says before storming outside the classroom and you follow him out. of course with everyone else watching you as you do.

“what’s... wrong? are you okay?” you ask him once you spot the boy right outside the room, his eyes focused on anywhere but at you. he’s evidently nervous, something you don’t get to see much from the usually confident football team captain.

“come with me somewhere after school.”

“w- why? where to? just us?”

“the mall!” his voice raises slightly, not in a threatening way but he seems rather frustrated at something. “just me and you. come. please.”

the sincerity in his voice has you believing that perhaps this was something important, that this meant a lot to him.

before you could you even answer him, another tall boy comes into your view, the boy you had left at the arcade yesterday.

he catches your gaze from down the hallway, a smirk on his face as he gradually comes closer, until he stops right beside you.

“you forgot this, miss class president.”

you look down at haruto's hand to see a photo sheet, the ones you took with him yesterday. noticing your lack of reaction, haruto places the photo sheet into your hand and disappears into the classroom.

you definitely don’t miss the way niki is staring at it, his eyes gawking over the different photos and presumably the one questionable pose. the one where haruto is hugging you.

“you know what, nevermind. don’t worry about the mall.”

the noticeable change in his voice has your heart dropping and you knew. it was now or never. if you didn’t do anything, you’ll probably regret it later.

“hey-” your hand reacts faster than your head, grabbing onto his arm to prevent him from walking away. he seems just surprised as you are and though hesitant, you knew exactly what you wanted to say to him. “i’ll come. i’ll come with you.”

you’re unsure of his intentions but the soft smile that grows on his face was enough to put you at ease, your heart fluttering into a million butterflies.

end.

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2023 © jongseongsnudes on TUMBLR. PLEASE DO NOT COPY, TRANSLATE OR REPOST.

[remuslupinfest]

Remus Lupin Fest 2024 Master List Anonymous

Gen Monster

James/Remus Where This Might Lead Us

Kingsley/Remus Soothing Comfort

Regulus/Remus Hiding in Plain Sight

Severus/Remus DoorDash Food for Thought The Great Divide Safe Sleepless in Scotland

Sirius/Remus Ad Astra all the hot singles in your area are dead A New Chapter The beast in us Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered Catch Me When I Fall Chiaroscuro For Love or Monet Half Moon Chocolate High Tide Came and Brought You to Me Let Me Touch You or The Five TImes Sirius Black Kissed Remus Lupin and the One Time Remus Kissed Him Back The Many Phases of a Full Moon Sweets and Books tell me that you're here forever, that you'll never leave the world will follow after used my best colors for your portrait

Tonks/Remus Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board The War

[gallifreyianrosearkytiorsusan]

Creature in a Lake

Next

Author’s note: Zeth’s debut!

Summary: Zeth is doing Black Legion Things when he gets exploded into Ancient Terra, as a mer, landing in a forest is Not Great, but at least he’s not badly wounded enough to be stuck without options. Finding a lake to rest in, a family unit of humans are unaware of his presence down below. Oddly enough he doesn’t feel like hurting them.

Warnings: Black Legion being Black Legion, hints and/or threats of torture, fighting, violence, let me know if I need to tag anything else.

Tagged: @barn-anon, @bleedingichorhearts, @c-u-c-koo-4-40k, @kit-williams, @sleepyfan-blog,

Tagged Again: @sleepyfan-blog and @whorety-k

Zeth had been having a grand time fighting the loyalist dogs for the glory of the Black Legion, under the command of one of the might Captains, he's never met Abbadon the Despoiler, but he's heard his words and speeches, and he's been told if he's strong enough, and does well enough, perhaps one day he'd be mighty enough to hear words directly from the mouth of one who's the closest thing to a Primarch the BLack Legion has. One of the few who remember and fought alongside the dead Deamon Primarch, long may his memory remain, and the loyalist yet curse his name while they still draw breath, Horus.

Zeth has only ever heard stories from his older brothers about Horus, and has tried to picture the dead man who's will cast them into the Eye of Terror, and only gets a fuzzy image of a larger version of Abbadon. Eh, it's not his place to think on such things as he continues to taunt and cackle and kill the loyalist dogs and help his brothers gather the necessary supplies for their Black Crusade. He tilts his head up and to the side- as he notices something coming there way, it's bright, almost glittery and painful to look out, he bellows out a warning call as he and his brothers scatter.

One of those most wretched Saints have shown up and their 'holy' light and 'blessings of the carrion emperor' making them fucking annoying to deal with and annoyingly difficult to kill for base line humans. And they seem to rally the slowly demoralizing Astra Militarum, and bolster the weak bastards with their glowing presence. At least the fight and killing them is going to be more fun, as the strongest of his brothers are heading straight for the largest and most dangerous threat, while the rest of them go after the base line humans and the loyalist dog Space Marines.

With the luck of the Chaos Gods on their side, the tide of battle turns in their favor, as the planet succumbs to their claws. The cowardly loyalist pig-dogs flee on their ships, and that has him grin with a cackle, the population that's left, is now under their control. Such wonderful sacrifices and servants for their use. The underground resistance groups that are trying to get them to leave or kill as many as possible that they need to put down is really starting to annoy Zeth as he snarls and shakes one of the base line humans in the resistance as they glare and wriggle, ineffectively in his claws.

"To the interrogators with you, pathetic mortal," He hisses as he tosses them into a cell, lightly enough not to kill them, but most definitely enough to wound them when they land. The satisfying crunch of their bones and the stifled whimpers is music to his ears as cackles and taunts the human before heading off as he notices the interrogators approaching.

His job had been to capture and soften up some of the resistance members before the main interrogators came, and he was happy to do his job. Chasing down mortals who still fought them and tossing them to his older brothers to torment and use as they please. The explosion catches him off guard as he's sent flying through the air and swears viciously. Waking up in a strange forest he doesn't recognize has him frowning as he looks around his hands clenching and unclenching as he slowly stands up and looks around, he lashes his tail around in frustration, using his 'swim through the air' technique to not be on the ground any more.

He's glad that he's not injured enough that using this ability is difficult or inaccessible due to lack of energy. He continues to 'swim' through the air as he tries to find a source of water, or an ocean, grumbling about the grox-shit he has to deal with. It takes several hours of 'swimming' in the air before he finds a source of water- and it's fresh, that is large enough for him to flop in. It's a lake, and fresh water, but as he sighs in relief at the feeling of the water against his scales, it still feels nice to be in the water.

They were blessed with the ability to withstand the dark of space and shoal together in the Warp, but he's still injured and the fresh water will help him in recover, not as much as being in salt water, but it will do in a pinch. He heaves out another sigh, watching as the bubbles go to the surface and decides to take a nap. Once he's better recovered he'll try to see if he can vox someone to help him, and what the cost of said help could be. He'd been 'swimming' for hours, and while he'd tasted pollutants in the air and water of this planet, it's not nearly so wretched as some of the planets he has been to.

Also, while he seen in the distant, primitive looking technology, he's yet to see any people, either base line humans or Xenos. He stretches as he yawns, the nap he'd taken had last a while as he notices that the sun's position in the sky has changed, he also notice something else. A primitive boat is now near the edge of the water. Curious he heads over towards it, head tilting a little in curiosity and sees some base line humans puttering about the edge of the water and near the boat that they’d set at the edge.

The language that they speak isn't one that he recognizes. Which has him tilting his head from side to side as he tries to pick up what they are saying. From the looks of the base line humans, they look like a family unit. A couple of children, a couple of striplings, a couple of adults, and a couple of elders. Wearing bright colored clothing, the youngsters wearing some bright puffing looking vests as they clamber into the boat and start to head deeper into the water. He swims down lower as he watches them putter about on the surface of the lake above him.

One of the youngsters in the vests jumps into the water and pops up, the vest seemingly helping them float as they giggle and squeal in that language, he can't recognize seemingly egging the other youngster in the vest to come into the water. His hands twitch and his claws extend and release as he thinks about what he could do, what he might do, but these humans don't even know he's here. Besides, he's not in the mood to go after civilian base lines. For now, at least. So, he stays at the bottom of the lake, watching them splash about.

[throneofsapphics]

can i please request one where reader is rowaelins daughter and she goes out and parties with lysaedions daughter, manorians daughter and elorcans daughters? in this elorcans daughter is dating reader , they all know but help them hide,they organize a sleepover at the palace and sneak out when their parents are busy. they party all night long, going from club to club praying to all the gods that their parents don't catch them. they drink and flirt and dance until they grow bored and decide to go to a brothel for some fun. they finally leave and are met with the most scary sight ever, they freeze be they are caught by all of the parents.

all good things come to an end  

Reader (Rowaelin’s daughter) x Elorcan’s daughter 

Summary: you and your friends have a night out. 

Warnings: drinking, drug use, overprotective parents

Word Count: ~1.8k

A/N: a bit different, but still similar. thank you for the request I loved writing this! coming up with names was a struggle, but Elorcan’s daughter is Emelyn, Lysaedion’s is Brielle, and Manorian’s is Astra. 

Their parents went on the hunt. Well, the Fae and Witch were doing most of the searching. Elide and Lysandra watched in amusement. 

Their parents went on the hunt. Well, the immortals were doing most of the searching. Elide and Lysandra watched in amusement. 

They knew their kids were up to something. Even though they’re of age, they couldn’t help worrying about them. Still, the mothers mostly wanted to catch them in the act. Aelin maybe to have something to hold over them - or make fun of them for. She loved a good challenge, and so far they’d done well. In a way, she was proud. The males, on the other hand, were in something of a panic. 

They were clever enough they’d never been caught, yet, each inheriting the best - or worst - of their parents. It was made tricky by Astra, Manon and Dorian’s daughter. She had inherited his magic, and used it to subtly alter their features - enough none of Orynth’s citizens would recognize the trio. Rowan figured it out when y/n came back last time - her normal Ashryver eyes hazel. They were fixed by the morning. 

“Fussy bastards,” Lysandra murmured affectionately, tugging on Aedion to get him to slow down. 

-

You spun Emelyn, your girlfriend, in a circle - the small laugh that left her brought a smile to your lips as you pulled her closer, running a thumb over her cheek. She leaned into you and pressed a light kiss to your lips. 

“Gross,” Astra hissed. 

“Don’t be jealous,” Brielle teased her. Astra had dragged her away from the male she was flirting with, one who’d bought all of them a round of drinks - a hopeful expression on his features. Like he might get very lucky tonight. 

“We’ve been here too long,” the witchling snapped back at her, eyes darting across the room. You’ve all had a feeling you’ve been hunted tonight. Astra insisted on modifying their features with each bar they went to. 

“Why are you so paranoid?” You sighed, separating yourself from her. 

“What’s the worst that can happen if they catch us?” Emelyn piggy backed. 

“Your father,” the other two said in sync. 

You ran a hand through your hair. She did have a point. Lorcan was the most likely to … overreact. Your parents were protective, but if they figured out exactly what you were up to when your friends visited, you couldn’t guarantee their reactions would be pleasant. When you and Emelyn were … “discovered,” Rowan had quickly shoved him out of the room, meanwhile your mother’s started asking when you’d be married. 

You’d stood in the garden, arms wrapped around her as you buried your face in her neck, breathing in her scent. Your thumb ran gentle strokes up and down the back of her neck. They’d approached so silently you had no chance of covering it up, “I didn’t expect this,” the Lady of Perranth’s voice hit your ears. 

“I’ve been hiding our scents.” You hedged. 

“And you give us a new look every hour.” Lysandra and Aedion’s daughter, Brielle, tagged on. You shot her a grateful look, that she was on your side for once. 

Golden eyes narrowed at you. “Let’s go.” She jerked her head towards the door. 

“Bossy.” You muttered under your breath. She was the unofficial leader of your group, even if the three of you gave her slack for it. She would either roll her eyes, or snap iron teeth at you, depending on her mood. 

“We should be afraid of your mother,” you said wryly. Emelyn’s elbow jabbed you in the side, and she shot you a look that said “don’t jinx us,” you returned with a grin you knew would irritate her. “I know where to go,” you announced. Orynth is your city. You led the way, stopping briefly for Astra’s magic to do its job and led them somewhere hopefully your parents wouldn’t recognize. 

The owner, a demi-Fae, smiled at you - undoubtedly recognizing your scent again, even if you showed up wearing various faces. “One of these days, you’ll tell me who you’re hiding from, she chuckled,” and led you inside. 

A small room in the back, a door securely locked and shielded with three layers of magic. 

“I wish I didn’t end up naked every time I shifted,” Brielle muttered - to no one in particular. 

You started re-arranging the small pipe on the table, surrounded by a few bottles of wine. You’d never pressure anyone into smoking, of course, and usually only you and the shifter indulged, the others picking up wine instead. 

“Mixing is a bad idea,” your girlfriend cautioned. 

“I’m an expert.” 

Astra snorted, rolling her eyes at you. “Say that again when I’m dragging you home.” 

“I,” you pointed a finger at her, “can drink any of you under the table.” Nobody disagreed. 

An hour later, you lay against Emelyn’s side, giggling at Brielle’s recent recounting of her latest encounter with visiting Courtier’s in Cavarre, she’d taken up her mother’s role of prowling the halls as a ghost leopard. Maybe taking a few too many liberties with her new position. 

“Do you ever want to leave?” Astra asked everyone, and the room fell quiet. 

“Sometimes,” you admitted. You weren’t first in line to the throne, thankfully. Emelyn ran a hand through your hair, combing out the slightly tangled strands. The two of you spoke extensively about traveling - leaving Terrasen to see other places. 

“Where would you go?” 

“The southern continent,” your answer was automatic. If you could convince the King and Queen to agree to a trip. Well, the bigger issue was convincing the Lady and Lord of Perranth to let you take Emelyn. You glanced at the clock. It was nearly three in the morning. 

“We should head back.” You stood, swaying slightly on your feet. 

“For gods-sake,” Astra muttered - not at the thought of leaving, but at your current state. You knew an alcohol flush was over your cheeks - and likely your eyes slightly red, pupils dilated. There wouldn’t be any hiding that, but hopefully everyone else was asleep when you got back. 

Emelyn grabbed your hand, leading you out the door. You called out some thanks to the owner, slipping her another few silver marks. She winked at you, wishing you a safe walk home. 

-

Tracking you had failed, again. Rowan was caught between being impressed and pissed off. Lorcan and Aedion were stewing, Aelin and the other females seemed more amused, insisting they could take care of themselves. Elide yawned, but they’d insisted on staying awake to see them home. Actually - to catch them at the gates. 

With a flash of white light, he shifted, taking in the air to circle around and search for four females stumbling back to the castle. Finally, he spotted a group - heading towards a smaller side gate, all of them supporting each other. The group paused, one - Astra, using some sort of magic. He was right - about you all changing your appearances. 

-

Astra spotted them first, a string of very creative curses leaving her. “It’s too late to turn back.” She muttered. “Act normal.” She snapped at you, and you tried to straighten yourself. It should be fine. Should be. 

“They all came,” Emelyn whispered softly. “Are you sure we can’t turn around?” 

“It’ll be fine.” Brielle said, fake confidence edging into her as she straightened her shoulders. “We haven’t done anything illegal.” 

“Only mildly.” 

“You’re telling us this now?” Her eyebrows raised, voice rising. 

“Quiet, don’t pretend you didn’t know.” you tried to hush her and turned to the others. “There’s no law saying it’s legal but there’s none forbidding it.” An exaggerated groan left her. “I’ll take the blame.” 

“Yes you will.” Astra snarled and grabbed your arm, keeping you firmly upright. 

“Wouldn’t it be better if Emelyn held me up?” You turned to look at her, the world slowing down as your vision blurred. The female in question was currently propped up against Brielle. You swallowed your fear, and kept heading towards the castle gates, Astra catching you each time you tripped against a small stone or crevice in the path. Maybe you'd smooth this walkway out tomorrow. 

The Queen of Terrasen watched you approach, eyes identical to yours dancing, even if her arms were crossed. Your father looked decidedly less amused. His eyes tracked the entire group, stopping on Emelyn. 

“Your eyes are the wrong color.” He deadpanned, and you snapped your head towards her, swaying slightly. They were. Still dark blue instead of their normal Onyx. Astra hissed under her breath, probably taking it as a personal insult. Emelyn only gave a sweet smile. 

“I’m trying out a new look.” 

Lorcan, apparently, was fed up because he strode towards her, the rest of you shifting out of his way, as he tossed her over his shoulder and stalked back to the castle. You watched her pound against his back, calling him an overstepping bastard and many other things you’d never say to his face. Out of self-preservation. 

“I’ll have words with you tomorrow.” His head snapped over his shoulder, glaring at you. 

Aelin stepped in front of you, returning his nasty look. “You will not.” His eyes rolled, and he kept walking, probably cursing your name the entire time. Elide mouthed sorry, and took off after him - yelling for him to slow the hell down. 

Dorian snorted, eyeing the three of you left. “I’ve done worse.” He admitted. You fought the smile creeping on your lips - you could always count on him, or Fenrys when he was present, to de-escalate. “Impressive with your magic,” he admitted to his daughter. She shot him a smile - one that definitely didn’t come from her mother, in return. “And yours.” He turned to you. 

“I don’t know what you mean.” You tried to say innocently - words all slurring together. 

Your father let out a sharp exhale, and your mother took you off of Astra’s hands, giving thanks to her. “Just because you’re not first in line …” 

“Rowan shut up.” Aelin snapped. “That can wait. She won’t remember it now.” 

“Yes I will,” you insisted. 

“At least two of you are responsible.” Aedion muttered. His wife elbowed him sharply and he winced. 

“Rude,” you frowned at him. 

“Go inside.” Manon snapped. You were surprised she hadn’t spoken yet. 

“You don’t give me orders.” Aelin countered. Aedion, rightfully, had an alarmed glance on his face. 

“I think I’m going to-” you mimed throwing up. Rowan almost looked like he would call your bullshit,  but realized what you were doing. 

After you’d gotten inside, your mother out of earshot, he spoke to you, “you’re lucky I hid your scents. Lorcan won’t be out for blood.” 

Gods, you hadn’t thought of that. “It was only me and …” 

“Don’t tell me.” He interrupted. 

Fair enough. He steered you towards your room, making sure you actually got inside. “I don’t need you fussing.” 

“Would you rather your mother come in here?” 

“No. Nope. No.” You quickly said, heading towards your bathing room. Maybe you’d burn your clothes - hide the evidence for now.

[maxsix]

Ad Astra: The Theory Of Relativity| An Interstellar Ateez story Part I | Part II | Part III (Words 4727, Warnings: none)

"HONGJOONG!"

Wooyoung's full weight comes crashing into him and Hongjoong catches it tightly in relief. He sees a wall clock out of the corner of his eye and is surprised to learn that they've only been here for a hour. He didn't even realise he could miss his brother this fiercely in such a short amount of time.

"Are you okay-"

"THERE'S A ROBOT HERE." Wooyoung hisses loudly, hands flapping with wild energy he couldn't contain.

CAASI blinks his red light at the mention and stands taller in attention.

"Yes, I know that but did-"

"He built him here! And did you know that this is a whole underground building?! They have tons of computers and I swear there's another drone back there but they totally denied it and didn't let me look but I know what I saw-"

Doctor Park is walking quietly next to them, hands in his pockets, icy demeanour intact but even he cracks a small smile at the ramblings.

Hongjoong catches it curiously, filing it away to process later, before going back to check his brother for any signs of injuries, but apart from a head of messy hair (self inflicted) and clothes in disarray (also self inflicted), he's grateful that Wooyoung seems perfectly fine.

Better than fine actually; buzzing with excitement and seemingly lacking any concern that he's in an underground facility surrounded by military technology and strangers whose intentions were still not clear, though not entirely unkind. It's the type of foolishness that is genetically inherited then nurtured for years by a like-minded older brother.

And it's then that Hongjoong suddenly has an awareness of the Swiss army knife in his pocket. It's still there. They took the map, notebook, his wallet and his own brother but left the knife.

It's another thought to file away for later processing.

Wooyoung continues to list off everything he's seen so far: tunnels, robots, computers, drones and electronics that were far more advanced than the farming tech they were used to. The excitement in his voice gradually crescendoes into shrillness and, as always, had a tendency to carry into every corner of a room, or in this case, a corridor leading to a boardroom.

Through the glass doors there's a large wooden table, around which several people in suits were already sitting and seemingly waiting for their arrival.

Hongjoong pulls his brother closer to his side as they make their approach and Wooyoung moves easily with him. Doctor Park walks half a step ahead, keeping polite distance as he moves comfortably, even in the dark parts of the long corridor. He never once takes his eyes off them and Hongjoong can feel it like a prickly heat on his skin that he wants to scratch off.

The boardroom is familiar, Hongjoong has seen variations of it before: government grey carpet on the floor, dark wood with soundproofing pyramids on the walls, no windows but plenty of harsh overhead lighting designed to prevent laziness, encourage innovative thought and sometimes, to provoke discomfort.

A military grade room.

Wooyoung abruptly ends his ramblings as they enter, instinctively grabbing the back of Hongjoong's jacket when he sees the table of suits; it's a nervous habit he's had since he was a kid and one that only seems to resurface when he can't process a sudden unexpected wave of anxiety.

"Hello Hongjoong."

A familiar voice calls out from behind them and when Hongjoong whips his head around, he's met by an older man leaning heavily on a cane.

"Professor Park?!" Hongjoong stumbles back in shock, seeing but not quite believing what was in front of him.

"Well, you look like you've seen a ghost." The old man chuckles.

"You're......alive?" Hongjoong stutters. "But the court hearing and the trial-"

"-a formality that was eventually overturned." The Professor replies with a mischievous grin. "I was the first astrophysicist with a criminal record but only the second to be threatened with one."

Before Hongjoong could ask any more questions, they're ushered into two empty chairs near the middle while the old professor takes his seat at the head of the table. Doctor Park makes his way towards the other end.

A young man with ashy blond hair clears his throat and leans forward. "Could you please explain how you found this facility."

Hongjoong doesn't know who he is but judging by his young age, being the first to lead the questions and the copious notebooks and folders in front of him, Hongjoong guesses he's the face of public relations and the most level headed one in the room.

"It was by accident. We stumbled on it when-"

An older man with grey hair and a sharp navy blue suit leans forward impatiently. "This is an undisclosed government facility. Nobody stumbles in and nobody stumbles out. So we would appreciate a little more specificity."

Hongjoong shifts in his chair with irritation. He's been interrogated before, he been trained how to handle it, but his nerves and patience are wearing dangerously thin.

"Hongjoong," Professor Park says gently, "Please co-operate with these people."

"I was being specific: it was accidental. We didn't go looking for it." Hongjoong starts begrudgingly, "Look, it's kind of hard to explain. I suspect it might have been an anomaly because it sure as hell didn't feel scientific."

The young blond man nods unfazed and has his pen poised, ready to make notes. "What kind of anomaly?"

"I'm not telling you anything else until we get some guarantees."

The blond looks at him in confusion. "Guarantees?"

Hongjoong moves across to block Wooyoung's ears before whispering, "That we're going to be able to leave here tonight and I don't mean with some fine we can't pay or another criminal record we can't fight."

Wooyoung struggles against his hands like the little shit he is and Hongjoong gives up trying to protect his brother from what he knows is going to be highly classified information.

The blond man looks stumped for a split second, clearly unaccustomed with managing security breaches this egregious, but recovers swiftly.

"Our organisation does not have those kinds of powers or any intention to cause harm."

“So why is your organisation hiding underground in a secret location?”

“We are not hiding Hongjoong,” Professor Park says in bemusement. “You know what this is: this is NASA.”

“NASA?!” Wooyoung squeaks. “You exist?!”

“Yes.” Professor Park nods and smiles at the teenager. “We are what’s left of the theoretical astrophysics division."

"We’re underground for your safety, not ours.” Doctor Park adds helpfully, if not ominously.

With the confirmation verbalised so plainly, Hongjoong feels like he's been punched in the chest. He didn’t want it to be true even if he had suspected it all along: from the sight of the drone, to the coordinates on the floor and CAASI's first appearance, of course everything had pointed towards NASA. Still, Hongjoong didn't want to believe it. The denial had kept him hopeful that his life, and his brother's lives, didn't need to change.

If NASA was dead, then his old dreams and his old life could stay buried too.

But now, with a sinking feeling in his gut, Hongjoong knows they've passed the point of no return.

Across the room Doctor Park is watching him; every twitch, every scowl, every reaction. Hongjoong doesn't know what to make of it.

The impatient navy blue suit speaks again. "Now that you know who we are, you need to explain why you have the co-ordinates to a highly secure and undisclosed government facility circled on your map."

Hongjoong's mind is still swirling with the day's revelations and he pauses to think of an explanation that won't send him on a one way trip to the mental hospital.

"It was gravity." Wooyoung pipes up, causing all the adult to turn towards him. "And a magnetic field ghost who writes in binary codes."

The boardroom appears taken aback, seemingly disbelieving that they were having a serious conversation about national security with a fourteen year old boy.

"A gravitational anomaly?" Professor Park murmurs, sitting back as if recalling something else. "Please elaborate Hongjoong."

“There was an un-piloted Indian fighter drone circling around our crop fields. I should’ve known then that it was drawn to the magnetic field that our home must be built on."

Wooyoung gasps quietly next to him, putting it together for the first time.

“I’m not saying it’s something supernatural but there were binary codes written in dust on the floor of our home. I had to decode it in reverse but that’s where the coordinates came from.”

The navy suit is grinning ear to ear now. “Let me get this straight; the magnetic force in your home led to a dusty binary code on your floor? Which you somehow deciphered into coordinates that you mysteriously had the knowledge to reverse and piece together?”

It sounds even more unbelievable out loud. Hongjoong can’t even blame them for thinking he’s crazy.

Another person speaks from down the table. “The chances of that are-“

“About one in a trillion.” Professor Park replies. “And yet. Here he is.”

“Why didn’t the previous home owner decipher the code then? Or a neighbour? Assuming the magnetic field has been around their location this whole time.”

“A coincidence?”

"Just another unexplained anomaly."

“An accident.”

“Pure random luck.”

The debate is silenced by Professor Park again.

“No. This is Murphy’s Law. Only a person with binary knowledge, half a physics degree, aerospace training and the complete disregard for proprietary law and personal safety could’ve found us the way he did.”

“Aerospace training?" Wooyoung murmurs to himself. "Why does he know that Hongjoong? What does that mean?”

Before he can reassure his brother, Hongjoong is interrupted by the Professor addressing the room again.

“The real question we should ask is if They wanted him to find us.”

“Who are They?”

There are uncomfortable looks exchanged between the other members of the boardroom but Doctor Park doesn’t look at anyone but Hongjoong. It was beginning to get unnerving.

“Professor, with all due respect, this is now classified information.” The blond man says. “In the wrong hands, this could be dangerous.”

“Those aren’t the wrong hands.” The Professor states, pointing at Hongjoong. “Did you not conduct the background security check on him yourself, Yeosang?”

“Yes, I did but it’s my job to remind you that he is not on active duty and might not be aware of the new protocols we now operate under.”

“Oh he is aware of more than he realises.” Professor Park says, getting up now to walk towards the exit. “He knows all about NASA's protocols, don't you Hongjoong?”

“Yes.”

Wooyoung gapes at him as the rest of the room falls silent. Nobody offers any further protest.

“Excellent!" Professor Park exclaims, "Then perhaps we might make use of his lucky accidental knowledge to solve our little problem? Come walk with me Hongjoong."

And with that, the main meeting seems to be done. Several board members exit without much protest, even if there were skeptical looks on their faces.

Wooyoung stays seated at the table, staring at the wood grain patterns.

"My brother-"

Professor Park nods to Yeosang and Doctor Park. "Perhaps Wooyoung would like to meet our other robots? He seems to like old CAASI here."

The fourteen year old lifts his head up then, interest piqued at the promise of more robots. He pauses to look at Hongjoong for permission.

"What kind of robots? Will he be safe there?"

The blond man, Yeosang, nods firmly. "Yes you have my word. They will be service robots."

He doesn't know what makes him do it but Hongjoong looks over to Doctor Park with a clear question in his eyes and is surprised when he gets a nod back in response.

"He will be safe. CAASI will stay with him."

Doctor Park walks over to the robot and whispers some inaudible instructions that causes CAASI to blink his red light in acknowledgement.

"Affirmative."

“Nothing will happen to him here, Hongjoong. We’re scientists, not criminals.” Professor Park reassures, “Besides, CAASI’s protection settings cannot be adjusted by anyone else."

“What does that mean?”

“It means he follows my programming." Doctor Park replies, "He will keep your brother safe.”

“Is he autonomous?”

“Only within the confines of my programming.”

“He's got ex Marine programming too." Hongjoong points out, "Aren't you worried he’ll go rogue?”

“No.”

"Isn't that kind of naïve? I've seen plenty of ex-Military programs malfunction after years of service.”

Doctor Park leads CAASI over to Wooyoung, smiling as the teenager tries to shake hands with the robot, only to realise that the robot doesn't actually have hands.

But the smile slides off the young Doctor's face as he regards Hongjoong again, "CAASI won't malfunction."

"How are you so sure of that?"

“Because I built him.” Comes the cool reply.

Wooyoung looks between the two bickering adults, unsure what to make of it. The tension in the room is only broken when Yeosang clears his throat again and motions for them all to move out of the boardroom.

Just before they temporarily part ways, Hongjoong pulls Wooyoung aside and hugs him tightly. "Do not let them do anything weird to you. Do not agree to anything. Don't tell them anything about us. I mean it! You scream for me if something happens okay? Don't trust anyone here. Got it?"

"Got it!" Wooyoung is nodding as he hugs his brother back before following CAASI and Yeosang into another atrium, presumably where the other robots lived.

"Do not worry about him Hongjoong," Professor Park says with a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Both CAASI and Yeosang are one and the same; both programmed to follow the rules."

They are walking down another corridor now, one with two very large steel doors at the end.

“Our planet is suffocating Hongjoong. You know this. The air quality has been steadily deteriorating since 2025. The reduction of nitrogen in our soil is killing off the majority of mass produced food crops. Our agriculture colleagues are doing an outstanding job keeping up with the Earth's changes but they can’t do it forever. Eventually there will be an inevitable end point where it will be impossible to modify the chemicals in the soil or adequately filter the air. We need a radical solution.”

“It’s called the Lazarus Mission. Six of our bravest astronauts sent off world to discover a new planet capable of sustaining life.”

“They have enough supplies to make it stretch a decade if they go into hibernation mode. Their on-board computers have been programmed to send regular binary signals back to Earth regarding the viability of their planet. We plan the rescue missions based on the ongoing signs of life.”

Hongjoong shakes his head at the incredible stakes involved. “What if the planets aren’t viable? They just die there?”

“That’s unfortunately where the bravery comes in.” The older man says solenmly. “Tell me Hongjoong, what do you really think of the mission?”

“The Lazarus Mission? With all due respect Professor, it sounds crazy.” Hongjoong says, “I can’t believe you got the funding for it.”

“We were fortunate to secure some private investors before they died of dust-lung, benefactors who believed that the answer to humanity's survival lay amongst the stars. The government ran out of money for this years ago. We haven't been able to recruit enough new blood into the program. This is our last hope.”

“Why did you call it Lazarus then? It’s a bit depressing isn’t it?”

"I named it." Doctor Park replies coldly. “Lazarus came back from the dead.”

“Yeah but he had to die first.” Hongjoong reminds him. "And wait for some miracle to happen."

“It worked didn't it?" The young Doctor counters. "He then went on to live and prosper, free from his sickness. He spawned generations. Or is that all too depressing for you?”

The old Professor sighs and shakes his head. "Seonghwa, please be civil to our guest."

Turning to Hongjoong, he smiles apologetically. "My son isn't used to being challenged like this. You'll have to forgive his enthusiasm on the matter."

Son?

What.

Seeing the shock in Hongjoong’s face, the Professor laughs. “I am sorry I did not have time to introduce you earlier. Seonghwa here only takes after me in the science department. Fortunately for him he takes after his lovely late mother in all other aspects.”

“Father, I don’t think he needs to know this.”

“Of course he does, Seonghwa! How will you be friends if he knows nothing about you?”

Doctor Park, Seonghwa, lets out a small, barely visible, huff. “My autobiography is earned, not given.”

Hongjoong desperately wants to eye roll back and tell the other man that maybe he has no interest in being friends either. That his own trust is also earned, not given.

They stop as they reach the steel doors at the end of the corridor.

"Hongjoong, we cannot proceed further unless you agree to be involved in the mission. NASA protocols, as you know."

Hongjoong thinks of Yunho then, waiting at home and worried about being the last remaining member of their family. He thinks about his brother's graduation in a few months. His eighteenth birthday. Whether or not he'll ever meet the boy on the motorbike. He thinks about Uncle Kyungmoon and Jonghoon and their small community of farming families.

He thinks about Wooyoung losing another father figure.

Maybe this is too much adventure.

“I understand. This all sounds like a very ambitious mission Professor and I wish you all the luck with it but there's nothing I know that could help you.”

Professor Park laughs heartily, the sound echoing loudly off the walls.

“My boy, I think we both know that’s not true hm?”

Hongjoong shakes his head. "That was a long time ago-"

"Perhaps this may change your mind then."

Hongjoong watches, heart thumping in his chest, as the steel doors slowly buzz open, revealing a vast cavernous hangar and what is unmistakably, irrevocably, undeniably, an unfinished space shuttle with its accompanying solid rocket boosters and twin engines.

The wind is knocked out of him and Hongjoong stumbles back speechless.

The shuttle stood nearly sixty meters tall and each single engine spanned five meters in diameter and eight meters in height; the biggest that anyone has ever been ambitious enough to build.

Hongjoong has so many questions he wants to ask but only one that his brain will allow.

“Who’s going to fly that thing?”

The Professor leads them onto a bridge overlooking the shuttle build and Hongjoong can't stop staring at it with a mixture of both fear and awe.

“We’ve been training a team for it in the simulators but we could always use a good instructor with real world experience. We’ve lost so many of our old space program crew in recent years. It’s fortuitous you found us when you did.”

"You didn't even know I still existed an hour ago." Hongjoong points out. "You were always going to go ahead with this mission anyway, what do you really need me for? I barely did an orbit."

"These astronauts have never even left the simulator." The Professor tells him. "There is not enough money or resources for us to do training missions in orbit. We simply cannot waste fuel for training purposes. This is the only chance we have and we have to get it right the first time."

"No pressure then." Hongjoong laughs at the ridiculous scenario. “So you want me to train your new pilots?”

“So to speak, yes.”

“NASA kicked me out of the program before I finished, remember?”

“I do."

"For being a liability with a death wish."

Doctor Park looks over, his graceful eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Yes, I remember." The old Professor sighs, "I was there. It was for your own good. You know that.”

Hongjoong tries not to dwell on the past and chooses to ignore the remark. "How good are your simulators? You're putting a lot of faith into those thing aren't you?"

“When you don't have the luxury of experience, all that's left is faith and training. We simply have no other choice. The past generation of NASA is dying. What's left of the old aerospace crew are either on the Lazarus mission, on their death beds or in their graves. You survived precisely because you were kicked out of training before graduation. I like to think it is fate that brought you here today."

Hongjoong listens, though begins to wonder if the Professor's brilliance is merging with insanity.

"We need a new generation of pilots for the rescue missions Hongjoong, and what good is it to discover new worlds if we have no pilots to take us there?"

“That's another thing you haven’t answered Professor: how did you discover these new worlds? The nearest galaxy is light years away, without solving relativity and time dilation, it would take a lifetime to reach."

The old man turns to his son with a cheeky grin. “Didn’t I tell you he’s the right one?”

“Hm.” The younger Park replies non-commitally.

“We received signals from Saturn's location that indicates the presence of three new potential worlds and several more exo planets that may be be orbiting a new black hole. We believe They sent the signals to Earth."

Hongjoong laughs. “They? What? You have ghosts too? Giving you secret binary messages?”

“What if it came from the same beings that sent you here?”

“A bit of a crazy coincidence isn't it?”

“There are no coincidences in science.” The Professor replies with a smile. "And yet, here you are."

Hongjoong shakes his head at the impossible scenarios presented to him. “The nearest star system is too far. Everyone would be dead by the time they arrived. You need a space elevator going at the speed of light.”

"That's cute." Doctor Park scoffs. “We prefer the scientific term for that: worm hole. And to answer your question, yes we found one near Saturn.”

“Worm holes aren’t a naturally occurring anomaly, they have to be created.”

“Thank you, I am aware of that.”The Doctor smiles smugly. “We think They must have formed it and provided us with the location of its existence. We have sent probes into it, followed by our Lazarus mission astronauts and received at least 3 binary pings back.”

“What is this They you keep referring to? You think some alien Godlike beings are out there helping us save our race?” Hongjoong asks incredulously. “That sounds insane.”

“Well it worked for Lazarus didn’t it?”

“That’s a just story!” Hongjoong says in exasperation, turning towards the Doctor. “Are you seriously suggesting we base a billion dollar once-in-a -lifetime-mission on a story and a few binary pings?”

“Of course not." Doctor Park replies snarkily. "We also jotted an equation down in chalk and pressed a few buttons on a calculator. But as I recall, out of the three of us, only two are astrophysicists. One did not actually finish the training.”

“Seonghwa…”

“No, your son is right Professor." Hongjoong says with a clenched jaw. “I didn’t finish. I am the least qualified here. But you have to admit this sounds crazy to an outsider. Let’s say your shuttle makes it, let’s say your new pilots survive, let’s say your worm hole works, let’s say you discover new worlds, let's say your Lazarus astronauts are alive, how can you transport 7 billion people across space?"

Hongjoong takes the time to look at his old Professor now. They first met when Hongjoong was still a teenager bursting with arrogance and over confidence but lacking any real discipline. He was wild and uncontrollable but always capable. Many hard years have passed them both now, and the once spritely Professor was harshly weathered by time, over burdened with intelligence and weighed down by responsibility.

"You’ve been trying to solve the mass exodus equation for years now Professor. So unless you’ve solved it already, this whole thing is futile isn't it?"

Doctor Park opens his mouth to offer more evidence and data to the contrary but his father silences him with a gentle hand on his arm.

"Your brother's generation will be the first to starve or last to suffocate. The End is inevitable Hongjoong. Whether you believe in our mission or not, no matter how preposterous it sounds to you, don't they deserve our best efforts to save them? We could spend those billions on Earth of course but it would only delay a certain death. Humans were born here but we don’t all have to die here.”

Hongjoong lets out a defeated sigh.

“All we are asking for is some of your flight training skills from the old program." The old man says, motioning to the shuttle in front of them. "We need the knowledge yes, but more than that, we need the bravery and problem solving skills that you were so good at."

"Thought you all said I was a liability?"

"I'll take a liability over the extinction of humankind." The Professor shrugs.

“I’ll have to think about it." Hongjoong shakes his head. "I still have a family.”

“I know. So help save them.”

*

The drive home is filled with Wooyoung's mile-a-minute-situation report (he had the time of his life it seems) but it’s the Professor's words that keep echoing in Hongjoong’s mind:

Your brother's generation will be the first to starve or last to suffocate.

“Hongjoong?”

“Yeah?”

“How come they knew all those things about you?”

Hongjoong shifts uncomfortably in his seat. It's the question he's been waiting for. He knows his brothers were never really told about his past, they were much too young then and he had lived away from home for most of those years.

“I used to be in the military aerospace program for NASA.”

"Oh my god, so it's true?!" Wooyoung stares at him with big round eyes and if he weren't such a little shit, Hongjoong might have called it cute. “So can you fly rocket ships?”

“Yes.”

“Well how come you never told us that?! Was it when you were away?”

“Yeah, you were just a little kid then. Mum and dad were going to tell you when you were older.”

“Have you been into space?”

“Yes.”

“Oh my god!” Wooyoung screeches again. “Why aren’t you doing that now then?"

“It’s complicated. You know that." Hongjoong sighs. "Things don't always go to plan."

The mood suddenly drops in the truck and Hongjoong had been expecting that too.

"I needed to come home and take care of the farm and everything.”

“And us.” Wooyoung adds quietly, deflating in his seat in his seat as the realisation of his brother's history hits him all at once. “Did you have to give it up because of me and Yunho?”

Hongjoong takes in his brother's dejected face and slows the truck to a stop on the side of the road.

“Hey listen, I left the program for a lot of reasons. I don’t regret having you and Yunho. I've never regretted it. None of this is your fault or his. Don’t ever let someone tell you otherwise okay?”

Wooyoung nods but doesn’t make eye contact. “But you could’ve been an astronaut?”

“I could’ve been a lot of things but my job now is important too, it's the most important. I don’t hate my life Wooyoung, I promise."

Wooyoung just shrugs in response and Hongjoong knows that despite what he just said, his brother is letting the guilt take over.

"Things don't always go to plan, I know you know that. Sometimes something worse happens but sometimes something better comes along. I mean, it's because of you that we found those scientists today and they offered me a job training the new pilots in their program. They might even let you could come visit and see the robots again.”

Wooyoung lifts his head in interest.

“Really?”

“Sure.”

That was a minor lie. He hadn’t committed to anything yet and he definitely wasn’t in any position to be making requests to NASA.

“Can I train too?”

Hongjoong laughs as he turns the engine on and manoeuvres the truck back onto the road.

“Sorry kiddo, you're still too young. NASA don’t except fourteen year old gremlins.”