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silmawensgarden · 1 year ago

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Only an ocean away

Maglor x reader

Prompt: Sending you a request for Maglor x reader where reader finally brings him home from his millenia of wanderings on the shore? (Home could be to Rivendell or Valinor or where you think would fir best!)

Requested by: anonymous

A/n: I really liked this idea of coaxing Maglor back home to Valinor through Rivendell. I decided on a chance encounter for reader & Maglor. I really hope you enjoy it and thanks so much for your request!

Word count : 1,8k

Warnings: none really

Today was a strange day, there was something in the air that felt heavy and familiar at the same time. Nevertheless you continued on your way back towards Rivendell. You had gone out for a few days to collect herbs in the nearby forest. The evil of Sauron had been subdued a small while ago. A small while for elves that is. The forest had once been filled with horrid creatures, nowadays surprisingly some incredibly rare herbs grew there. Despite some dangers from the remaining wild animals, the trek through was worth it. Your heart felt heavy at some point on your way back so you decided to change direction for a little while. Making your way towards the sea shore you finally felt yourself relax a little. It's been a while since you came here. The salty air reminded you of your home far away. Your home was in Valinor, not far from the shore. In your youth you used to come to the sea shore to play with your friends. The salty air made your heart yearn for those days with your friends.

You sat down by some rocks on the shore. The sand on this beach wasn't nearly as pearly white and gem like as in valinor, but it has it's own beauty. You've come to see Rivendell and it's surrounding environment as your second home. Out of nowhere a strange creaky sound came from behind you. Your breath hitched and you carefully turned around, ready to fight off whatever might be preying on you. However when you looked behind you, you saw nothing. You looked around with a confused look on your face. Then the sound came again. This time you saw something scuttle away into a cave. The last bit you managed to see was something that looked like torn clothes. Your curiosity got the better of you and you slowly moved towards where you had seen the muddy red cloth.

As you stepped forward behind the rock you sat on you saw a crude little cave hewn into the rock formation further back. It looked like something moved in there. It could be a child... you thought. In that case it might've been lost for some time judging by the poor condition of the piece of cloth you saw. You walked closer to the cave to inspect whether you were right. Just before you managed to get to the entrance an incredibly hoarse and creaky voice shrieked at you from inside. You could still manage to understand that it was likely a male, but nothing else. Taking up all your courage you stepped into the cave entrance and were met with a rusty dagger in front of your face. Behind the dagger sat what appeared to be a malnourished and traumatised elf. The elf had no strength left in him as even trying to keep the dagger pointed at you cost him so much energy that his arm was shaking uncontrollably. He had dark eyebags under his incredibly blue eyes and his features were sunken. You caught a few scars on his arms while you took in his appearance.

You wanted to get him out of the cave and maybe even manage to get him some help in Rivendell. Poor man has been through it it seems. You decided to sit down and see if he understood any language you knew.

You tried Sindarin first, he seemed to respond to it but did not speak it. Instead he spoke back to you in a mix of what you could only guess was first age Quenya. At this point you regrettably had to thank your tutors from when you were young for forcing you to sit through Quenyan literature classes. Seeing no other option besides attempting to speak to him in Quenya you gave it your best shot.

"Hello?...Not fear me, I am friend, not bad. Who are you?" You managed to wrangle out some poorly formulated sentences. The grammar would have sent your old tutor in to a shock induced coma if he had heard it. It appeared to be the same for this elf. The expression on his sunken face couldn’t be mistaken for anything other than displeasure. So much for trying to be nice...

However despite his initial displeasure he decided to attempt to speak to you. You were having an awful amount of trouble understanding him. Not just because he was barely audible but also because you had slept through most of your literature classes. He spoke with a specific dialect that you couldn't place. Seeing how much trouble you were having he gave you a small smile and started speaking to you like you were a small child. Word for word, to see if you understood.

Now you felt like it was you who had been hiding in that crude little excuse of a cave.

After a little while of throwing words around with each other he had calmed down enough to understand that you weren’t going to hurt him. Slowly he came out of his cave and stood in front of you. It was immediately clear to you that this elf was much taller than you. By quite a considerable amount. It was a mystery to you how he managed to fit into that tiny space.

The two of you made your way back to Rivendell together. Walking slowly and taking many breaks as it appeared that your new companion could not walk very far for very long periods of time. He was so malnourished that his legs gave out frequently during the journey back. During the journey you got to know each other better. The language barrier was still a big problem but you found creative ways to communicate with each other regardless.

After a full two and a half days of walking you finally arrived in Rivendell. You now also knew the name of your companion. Maglor. Maglor Fëanorion. It was surprising to say the least. But you dwelled little on the matter. By the looks of it, Maglor had already been through sufficient punishment. No need to lay any more on him. The healers rushed to take him to the infirmary so he could rest and gain some of his strength back. You promised him that you would visit in a few days once he is a little more stable.

A few days have passed and both you and Elrond have visited Maglor a few times. There’s been a rumor floating around Rivendell that Elrond could be related to the elf that was brought to the healers at the start of the week. You wanted to ask Maglor about it but weren’t sure if he’d tell you anything.

Things started to quiet down again as the weeks went by. Weeks turned into a few months and something started to grow between you and Maglor. At first it appeared to be a deep friendship but now it feels like it may one day be more. Only time will tell whether something could be between you.

Maglor was starting to make a speedy recovery now that a few months have passed. He no longer looked malnourished and could walk for a considerable amount of time again. His hair had grown fuller too. It pained you to remember how matted and gross it had looked when you first saw him.

However as time passes and seasons change so do our wishes. Your soul wanted to go home. So it became clear to you and a handful of others that you would be boarding the next available ship at the grey havens. You had talked this over with Elrond and a few of your other friends, one of which was Maglor.

He felt sad about your upcoming departure be he refused to let it show.

And so the day of your departure finally arrived.

It was early in the morning, the sun has just barely come out of hiding. You stood still on the docks, taking in middle earth for what would likely be the last time. You wanted to go home, but a tiny part of you was having trouble letting go. Maglor had promised to meet you before you left. The majority of elves had boarded the ship already, you were the only one stalling the departure. Finally you saw a figure in the distance that appeared to be Maglor. He ran towards you, pushing through the crowd of people to get to you as best as he could.

“I am sorry for making you wait y/n! I tried to come here as fast as I could. I overestimated my ability to run….I am unable to run as much as I once could.” He said, smiling sheepishly.

You smiled back and stepped a little closer to him. “It is fine, do not worry. We still have time before the boat leaves.”

Despite Maglor smiling warmly at you he was being torn apart internally. One part of him wished desperately to come with you, but a voice in his head told him he wasn’t worthy of returning to valinor and that he should forever remain in isolation. “I am not certain that I can go with you Y/n….I…I must remain here in Arda.”

You were saddened by his words but decided not to push him. After all it wouldn’t be the last boat to leave for valinor. “Maglor, no matter what or where if you decide to leave to valinor one day, know that I’ll only ever be an ocean away.” You smiled the best smile you could muster. It was in this moment that you came to the realization that you loved him. Yet you now would never get the chance to say it. It was now truly time for the ship to sail out towards valinor. There was no way that you could stall it any further. You said your goodbyes and boarded the ship. A coldness came over your heart and a tear slipped from your eye.

Maglor watched as the ship sailed out, boring holes into your back with his gaze. And then right at the least expected moment something took hold of his senses and he threw himself into the sea. The coldness of the sea forced him to swim forward as he called out to you. The elves on the boat saw him struggling to swim and threw out a fishing net to catch him up onto the boat.

He was drenched to the bone and shivering, but his smile was warmer than the sun on a summer afternoon.

He didn’t care anymore about people’s judgements and what the valar would say of his return. All he ever needed was you, and now that he had you…nothing else mattered.

#feanorians #maglor x reader #maglor imagine #maglor #silmarillion oneshots #oneshot #silmarillion imagines #tolkien #silmarillion #sons of feanor #makalaure #kanafinwe #silmarillion fic

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cavinginhisfvce · 2 years ago

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''MAMA'S BROWN BABY BEAR"

pairing: eventual harringrove. part 1

TW: Implied child abuse. Racism. Slurs implied but not used.

When Mama was around, Billy was allowed to embrace his identity. He was allowed to acknowledge his differences, and was able to find pride in his darker toned skin. He was his Mama's Brown Baby Bear.

She would scoop him into her arms, whispering into his ear as she tickled his sides, "repeat after me, Little Bear; I am strong. I am loved. I am an amazing young black man who will thrive."

Billy always struggled to repeat after his mother, he was only four, so he more often than not botched the words, but she beamed brightly and kissed his nose every time.

By age ten, the affirmations didn't stop, but they became less and less helpful. His father would make it a point to remind Billy he wasn't light enough, wasn't white enough to be his son.

It wasn't the worst his dad could dish out, Billy knew as much, but it still hurt. The punches hurt more than the words did technically, but the words left behind deeper scars.

What did hurt him was when his mother left him at twelve. It hurt when she stopped accepting his calls from the number she'd given him with the promise to always answer.

It hurt when his father would call him out of his name, would call him the same slur he called black people he'd see simply existing outside.

The word never sat right with Billy, not when it was directed at himself, or his mother, nor when it was aimed at a random person who happened to look like him.

When Susan came around, bringing her brat of a daughter with her, the boy was less than thrilled. After they moved in, things became more strained between Billy and his father.

Susan was nice enough, she smiled at Billy when he came home from classes with Max, she always gave him the corner piece when she'd make brownies. He doesn't remember telling her it was his favorite, but she seemed to know.

She wasn't his mother, she could never be, but she wasn't the worst. She wasn't as terrible as the other women his father dated before they'd met. She even sometimes patched Billy up when Neil lost his shit, going as far as to kiss the crown of his head before leaving him to stew in his feelings and aches.

Max was annoying, to put it lightly, she never stopped asking where his real mother was, why he was never with her. She bragged about how often she saw her father, while Billy couldn't even get his mother to answer the phone. Not that she knew that for a fact.

Neil now had his perfect white family. To him, Billy was just the darkness that invaded their light, casting them in a world of shame and general ugliness.

With his mom gone, Billy scrapped the daily words of encouragement, he largely stopped identifying with anything that could've tied him to the woman who swore to never leave his side. He wished he could rid himself of the skin that would give away his inability to ever truly fit in, but even with lightening creams and avoiding the sun, despite the beach once being his safe haven, he remained darker than his family members. He remained darker than society would ever grow to accept.

The boy was darker than his father, and by default, Susan and Max, but he was lighter than his mother, much lighter. If he didn't tan, he was light enough to pass as majority white.

Not enough for people to necessarily forget he was black, but enough that kids his age easily ignored that knowledge.

California was a mixed pot of races, so it wasn't a big deal that Billy looked different from the rest of his family. Everyone knew him, and his dad, so there was hardly ever an issue on that front. When you saw Billy Hargrove, you knew who his father was.

Hawkins was different. Everyone gawked at him, gossiping about the new black boy in town. They didn't realize his father was Neil, they didn't understand how Max was his sister or how Susan was his mom.

She wasn't his mom, but to the small town who knew nothing of their newest occupants, she was.

By month two, Billy had taken his place at the top of the social pyramid. Girls and guys alike were enthralled by the new kid.

He remembers in his first two weeks when a scrawny looking kid came up to him and asked him if he'd been adopted by a white family, and if that's why he was so dark compared to the little red-head they've seen him with.

What Billy doesn't remember is punching the boy in the face, doesn't remember shoving him to the ground with a snarl and some empty thing of a threat.

After that spread, nobody bothered to ask Billy any personal questions about his family and whether he belonged with them.

When Steve met Billy, the older boy instantly took to him, and vice versa. They became inseparable, always being seen together or with the other lingering nearby.

Steve's parents loved Billy, they remembered everything Steve told them about the younger boy and then some. They knew he was allergic to apples and pears, but would eat them anyway if he saw them, because he lacked self control or preservation, so they stopped buying the fruits altogether. They knew he startled easily from loud voices and stomping. They knew Billy apparently had a mean streak, a side to him that they've never been privy to. They've seen the aftermath of it all, the busted lips, black eyes, fractured ribs and admittedly much worse.

What they didn't see, what nobody saw, not even Steve, was the set of hands and work boots that brought one those wounds, some of which turned into scars. No one heard the repeated use of slurs aimed at the boy whose true smile could light the entire town alone.

One day, Billy had blond dreads, the same ones he rolled into Hawkins sporting, the next he had a buzz cut and bruised ribs to match. He tried to sell Steve a story about some asshole outside of town, but when the brunet asked Billy to explain the haircut, the boy had fallen silent.

Brown skin quickly shaded red, and before Steve knew what was happening, Billy was dissolving into a pool of tears, his breathing unsteady as he fought a round of hiccups. The taller of the two was unsure how to approach his best friend who sat in his living room crying, especially when he could hear the sound of his mother's car pulling into the driveway.

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1001gallery · 5 months ago

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pandora. chap. 3 - ヒーロー

chap. 2 | masterlist | chap. 4

a/n - chapters in Japanese mean that their titles are more important/give too much away, you can find each translation at the end

Obaa's daily routine began when she got the will to get out of bed, knowing well her body would not fall asleep anytime soon, she would hobble down the hall to the living room where the sliding oak doors would be opened to allow the cool dawn air to flow through the home as the old woman settled on the couch. Waiting and listening for the world to wake around her.

It wouldn't be too long before the tell-tale signs of you waking up were heard. The creaking of the boards, followed closely by the shuffling of feet, was your grandmother's signal to make her way to the kitchen to begin making breakfast. Only this time, as she placed a pan on the stove, the shuffling that would make its way to the couch hastened. Obaa watched as your disheveled appearance came around the corner,

"Can I help?"

She never had seen your eyes look so awake until that morning. "You do not touch the pan or stove." A light sparkled in your eyes as you turned and dragged a chair over to the counter. She wonders if this would be the beginning of a new routine.

A small change and a helping hand seemed to spark something in you. Not only did you begin helping with cooking but also around the house, the grass needed watering? You were there, "I know how to, Obaa-san."

The days' worth of dishes not cleaned? "I got it, Obaa-san!"

There was a shortage of ingredients? "I know a shortcut to the store, Obaa-san."

You spent your days outside exploring more than the time you spent inside. It wasn't a bad thing, your grandmother thought, only that you seemed to always come home as if you just finished a 9-to-5 job. Face smushed against the coffee table. Obaa could hardly get more than a sentence from you yet on the better days when you would come home with twigs in your hair, dirt covering your clothes, and scraped up skin. You would inhale like your final breath and retell the stories of your day -

You know the beach park, um- it starts with a T and everyone litters there- but someone threw out what they shouldn't have and lost their wallet. I said it was in the bushes, they didn't follow me. I found it! But they were already down the street! So I ran! I ran to them, and I didn't feel tired!

Or, pray she has enough patience, you would stand outside and wait for a towel soaked to the bone -

A dog! It was cute and shivering in a ditch. She thought I was a bad guy and ran, but I'm fast! I had to find her home, which she helped me with but it was confusing sometimes. That's why I'm home late, sorry.

Each time, Obaa made sure to give you an earful as she threw you in the bathtub, "Goodness, child. You can't go wondering aimlessly around getting yourself into trouble." And each time you would look down, hands gliding through the water as a small smile graced your lips. "I know, Obaa-san."

The day would end and start once more with you carrying the chair to the counter, ready to take on another adventure. Obaa would stand by the door watching as your young legs carried you down the lawn and into the maze of neighborhood streets. Wishing for your safe return.

That's why, when she heard the stomping of your feet and slamming of the door, she knew there was something wrong. You entered the living room through the kitchen, not sparing a glance at the woman on the couch, and yanked open the sliding door. The thump of you sitting enough to get your grandmother to move from her relaxed position.

Your back was small as you huddled into yourself. Sitting in the middle of the veranda was something she thought she would never see again. The space felt empty and out of place.

An ounce of fear tightened her throat, her hand gripping the door frame. As the light of the setting sun dimmed and a breeze rippled through the blades of grass. Your back hunching and shoulders jumped as you began to cough.

In a blink, the grass settled, and the warm evening light burst into the calm of night. If she were a simple person, the thought of imagining the light dimming would have passed her mind, but she was a woman of the Ln bloodline. Nothing in this life was more beautiful and haunting than what the eyes of the Ln family saw.

"Heroes are actors, aren't they." The woman only continued to look at your back, your coughing had died down but you continued to hide in yourself, arms hugging your knees to the best of your ability, "I'm sorry, Obaa-san." You were crying.

"I'm so sorry." You weren't talking to her anymore, voice cracking, sobbing, "I won't hurt anyone again, I promise! I'm so sorry!" The strength she had disappeared, her knees hitting the ground as she held herself up from her grip on the door frame. Her cheeks wet from her own tears, the view of you still clear. You holding on to the talisman, forehead pressed against the marbles, body shaking from the hiccups and wailing.

It's okay. Your grandmother thought, it's okay. This is what you needed. Ever since the day she opened the door and saw you stood on the front steps, eyes hollow, lips cracked and dried, you never once shed a tear. To caught up in her own grief, the quirk she had polished and perfected grew inside her until she could no longer hold back and yelled at you to leave the home. Never again did your grandmother want you to witness such a thing again. She didn't promise herself that when she ran away from home, she didn't promise herself that when she first felt life inside of her growing.

What she promised was a life where the disgusted and distrustful eyes didn't hurt anymore. A life found dancing in the rain. A life where you fall asleep warm and wake up dry.

Her arms found their way around your child's body and held on with the strength of love and protection. Cry, child. Cry. Let it out and grow to be a better person than me. Let it out and grow to be happy.

Guilt was something a child first learns, it was the feeling when you're laughing at what you had done but saw your parent's eyes crumble as they tell you to be careful next time. In the end, the child learns a lesson.

Guilt for you was the reason you breathed. Your first breath in life was a howl of grief. Someone who had been there said you hadn't cried like a baby, you cried because you knew you hurt someone. Only when a voice spoke in your ear and cradled you, did the sorrowful cries stop. You don't remember who told you or who spoke into your ear. All you know is that the grief has been the reason that your heart kept beating since.

Yet when you felt your grandmother's arms around you, when you felt the love and protection, something clicked. And a fog you never noticed started to fade and replacing it was a feeling you could only describe as when you first looked out at the ocean - in awe - both afraid and wondering how it would feel to touch it, if the waves would hurt and carry you away.

But you couldn't touch it, not yet. Not when the pins and needles grew with the feeling, hands pinching and cutting your back. Voices starting to form in wordless whispering, only a breeze in your ear than gone. The feeling that had led you to the body - No.

No, Yn. Focus.

Marbles click together, hurtling right and left as your body continues up the trail of the hill. Focus, you told yourself. No more, like you promised to Obaa. You weren't going to let your mind walk for you anymore. Focus on the twigs under your hands as you climb your way to the top, to the birds that fly between tree branches and chirp away.

Ever since you started your new routine of cooking with Obaa, you had also spent most of your time outside. Walking around the streets of the neighborhoods, finding out that though they feel and look like mazes, most of them connect to Tatooin Station - the most famous ward in Musutafu - weaving through the alleys and backstreets that were home to unknown bakeries and stalls.

Through the alleys and sidewalks is how you found yourself climbing the hill beside your house one day. Conversations of a hero school that sat on a hill always seemed to be a popular talk among the crowds and children in their uniforms. You told yourself that whatever was atop your hill would be better than a school for pretenders.

You thought right, as your body takes the final steps and reaches the peak, the trees along the edges of the clearing leave sight for the forests and houses along the coast before the ocean takes a hold and reaches as far as the eye could see. It was at this point that your young mind realized how small you truly are. That the city was too big to take into view with just this hill, that not even the famous school could be seen. It was perfect in your eyes as they looked down to the parts of neighborhoods you could see, wondering if Izuku is down there somewhere, hoping he was happy. That he was okay because you knew his bully was.

Walking and exploring the city wasn't just for your grandmother to have time alone, it was also to maybe get a glimpse of the green-haired boy but no matter the time or days you spent, one day turned to a week, which turned into a month until July began and you caught the blonde spiked hair as he hiked the trail you had grown fond of. You had promptly hid behind a tree as he made his way to the top, hoping that another pair of footsteps would follow, but nothing sounded behind him.

The only sounds were of the birds and trees, his own footfalls blending into the beautiful sounds of nature. His face wasn't scrunched up, his lips weren't scolding. His eyes weren't afraid or mean. They just were. You couldn't find the word for it, he was just there. No yelling. No tiny explosions in his hands. Just a boy hiking a trail.

The memory was still confusing and made your head spin. He was a bully, wasn't he? But how could someone that calls another use look so.. relaxed, like not a thing could disturb them? Does Izuku look like that? Can he be without a care in the world just as his bully?

You sent a prayer on the wind that wherever he may be that Izuku could be happy. That he's surrounded by the people who love him and protect him. That if it can be in this large world, you would be able to meet again.

The day you had feared finally came. Listening as the two older women talked, their hands busy with packaging the fruit to take home. Obaa held the bag as Mrs. Hachimachi stuffed the produce in the bag, not caring if it overflowed.

"Came up to me, says someones hurt. Always been a quiet one, knew something must be wrong," Obaa points to the bananas, Mrs. Hachimachi's hands don't waver. "The darling brought me over and I sees a man passed out, went to check on him. Shook him a little, you know."

"Don't touch him! Never heard her yell like that before, never been yelled at before." The last bag of fruit is placed into the wagon as the two women straighten from bending over, Mrs. Hachimachi places her hands on her hips as she smiles, "That man had lost consciousness on his feet. Nothing stopped him from falling flat on his face, broke his jaw. Sprained muscles all throughout here," She stretches her neck sideways, her hand sweeping up and down the side of her throat to her shoulder.

"No one saw him. No one would've. I'll tell you what a hero had been there, you know. Not one sign of that man after the ambulance arrived, I tell ya." Your eyes are downcast, hands keeping the handle of the wagon straight, "Yn's a decent one. Only 6-years-old and she can already sniff out danger. A hero for sure, that one."

Something snags in your mind but is gone before you realize, the hand caressing your head all but takes your attention. Obaa was proud.

The wheels of the wagon crunch along the pebbles of the sidewalk as you enter a Hyaku-en shop, stopping by to get more stationery for yourself and your grandmother. You walk throughout the store, placing paper and pencils in the wagon that you see yourself would use when you pass an aisle. Green in the corner of your eye.

You stop and see Izuku's mother staring at something on one of the shelves before placing it in her basket. You walk over to her, bowing as she notices you approach. She seemed more upset than when you had met.

Glancing in the basket, your heart grows cold seeing the candle shaped as a 6. "Hello. Yn was it?" You nod and move around her as she is about to call you but leaves you be as Obaa comes down the aisle and exchanges greetings with Mrs. Midoriya.

As for you, you search the shelves looking for the perfect gift for Izuku. Maybe a toy? Or a card? What does Izuku like?

Just then, something catches your eye. The red spine and green body with accents of blue. It was perfect.

Slipping it into the wagon, none of the two notice as they continue to talk. Mrs. Midoriya's eyes fly towards you before looking into her basket. She wants to say something.

"Have a good evening, Mrs. Ln, Yn." She bows and leaves heading to the cashier, you and Obaa lining up at the other. Just as the notebook is scanned, you grab it and head to the green haired woman starting to walk to the exit.

Jogging to be level as you call out for her to wait, presenting the book to her - two handed - has she turns around, eyes taking time to disgust the scene before her.

"For Izuku." The green eyes begin to water, Obaa is beside you once more.

"Izuku is a good child. Yn is new in town and has been wanting to know your son better."

"Would-" She hiccups and covers her mouth, apologizing. "Would you like to wish Izuku a happy birthday?" A glance to your grandmother was all the answer you needed as you turn back to Mrs. Midoriya and give her a resolute nod, she laughs.

"Around 6:30, maybe. izuku would be happy with the wishes." She grips Obaa's hands, bringing them to her chest, "Thank you."

You couldn't finish your dinner, too busy looking at the clock every second, watching as the time grew closer. Springing to your feet as you pack fruit for dessert and making sure that the notebook is still as perfect as you saw it.

Obaa made sure to keep a mentally strong leash on you. Reminding your racing mind that you would get lost in your excitement, you would run back to her side every time.

When you get to the apartment, it isn't like before, no storm, no darkness. Only the warm air of summer as you enter the cooled down building.

Arriving at the apartment door, your fingers start to fidget around the basket of fruit. What if he didn't want you here? What if he had his friends over and you were just too desperate to have a friend?

But Obaa is already knocking on the door to back out, as seconds later a click fills the hallway and Izuku is standing at the doorway. The hair is as green and fluffy as it was before.

You both stare at each other, and all you can do is thrust the basket towards the green-eyed boy in hopes he knows what you mean.

He does, of course he does as tears begin running down his cheeks, arms trying to wipe and catch them before they fall. Another step of footsteps is heard moving towards the door, and his mother is behind her son, soothing his hair as she opens the door wider, allowing you and your grandmother to enter.

"お邪魔します" Ojama shimasu - Sorry for intruding on you. Thank you for inviting us in. Whatever translation, it holds the gratitude of the speaker to the invitation of entering another's home, another's safe space.

You just hope you can convey it better than just some words. So you're there when he blows out the candles, wishing him a blessed future when his eyes begin to dim. You're there for the first slice of cake as he presents it to you only for you two to fight on who gets it first, Obaa tisking and telling you to take it with gratitude. You do with a shy smile, locking with Izuku's eyes as he smiles back.

You're there when Izuku starts to cry as he holds the notebook in his hands, seeing the significance it was to him but never truly understanding the depth.

You're there when Mrs. Midoriya asks if you'd like to have a playdate with Izuku. He stands beside his mother, a blush on his cheeks as he tugs on his shirt, beaming when you nod your head. A wave of heat dizzying your brain as the two Midoriya's wish you a safe trip home, knowing full well you get to see Izuku again.

That you had a friend.

ヒーロー - hero

chap. 2 | masterlist | chap. 4

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xiaochiyo · 2 years ago

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jin buyeon being the one true villain in the alchemy of souls universe is quite predictable (and honestly? pretty justified). picture this:

you are supposed to be dead. actually, you were never supposed to be born at all, yet you are pretty much alive and doing just fine thanks to jang gang, your mother, her terrible obsession over a heiress for the jin clan and the power of the ice stone. now, you are a half mass of energy, half human child who lives to fulfill your mom's desire of a perfect daughter and the role of future leader of jiyowon. pretty cool!

since most of your vital energy comes from The Ice Stone™ itself, you also inevitably become the most powerful sorcerer that has ever lived in the country of Daeho. except nobody in said land knows that. because no one has ever... you know... seen you. they have heard of you and your immeasurable faculty, of course, but most can't even prove you exist de facto, in flesh, bones and all. why? because you don't go outside, your crazy mother doesn't let you. to her, you are a treasure! a blessing more than a daughter. you are blind and weak! how could you survive in this cruel world? you are not allowed to have a life, because she fears someone might steal you, kidnap you, kill you or (even worse!) discover the truth about you. so she keeps you in jinyowon, safe, where she can keep an eye on you and control what you can or cannot do with your powers. you have no friends nor life outside jinyowon.

fine, you live with your clinically insane mama, but you're used to it. you have a little sister and a good father. right? right? but oh no, you also have a megalomaniac uncle, jin mu. your father suddendly sides with him and they both go on a mysterious crusade to find the once lost Ice Stone, the same magical stone that gave life to you. the quest is hard and they can't find it anywhere, so they need help. yours, for that matter! who better to find a lost magical stone than the girl that carries the same energy of said stone? you are coerced to go and, eventually, you find it in a river (no surprises, you're just THAT powerful). but your uncle gets way too excited and shoves you down the water in a brief ecstasy at the sight of the ice stone. you drown. your father tries to save you, but it's too late and jin mu doesn't help at all. you're screwed.

happy news! you're saved! a lovely old lady spots you lying unconscious on a beach, takes you home and feeds you. but when she asks you your name, you don't remember it. in fact, you don't remember anything due to the shock and the trauma. you are now powerless. you don't know who you are. you're just a blind girl without a name, a family and a home. you have to start your life from the beginning, and the neighbours at your new place are not nice with blind young ladies. is someone out there looking for you? does anybody, besides that old lady, care about you?

the point is: jin buyeon has a ton of reasons to be a villain, if she even is one. all she ever had was a thoroughly planned life that was given to her by other people and which she had no control over; and out of nowhere, everything she knew was taken from her.

when she met naksu, she saw an opportunity: revenge. buyeon knew what naksu wanted, she wasn't dumb. so she gave her it: a new body and a new, untouched identity. and naksu did have a lot to offer to buyeon too. she had great, although not anywhere comparable to buyeon's, magical power and a good dose of hatred for the people who wronged her in the past (who happened to be the same or related to those who wronged buyeon in the first place). naksu was the perfect pawn, blinded by her own past and too naive to realize why she ended up on a body she didn't choose, and buyeon (then mudeok-i, the poor blind girl) loved that.

i believe, at some point, buyeon did care about naksu. they have, like it or not, a lot in common — dark past, parents that lie non-stop, enemies — plus the swapped body and soul situation. but since buyeon is special and, therefore, her body is special, naksu became useless when buyeon's flesh absorbed most of the energy it needed. the eldest daughter of the jin clan doesn't need a pawn anymore. in fact, keeping naksu (who doesn't remember her past, her original body nor her real name) in a body that isn't hers will only delay buyeon's revenge plans more and more. so, in buyeon's pov, there is no reason to keep naksu/cho yeong alive.

i might be imagining things, but buyeon is a great choice of a possible villain! she is cruel and a well constructed character overall, much as i would love it if the writers gave her more screen time. her relationship with naksu, jinyowon and jang uk is what makes her such a delightful to see manipulating little bitch.

so go girl! gaslight, gatekeep and girlboss the hell out of everyone in daeho!

#jin buyeon #jin choyeon #naksu #cho yeong #jin mu #jang uk #alchemy of souls #alchemy of souls theory #jin hokyung

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phychohex · 3 months ago

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I Met a Vampire Down in Santa Carla (chapter two)

Sitting down watching as Josh and Will search for a prop they lost in the water. Right now we are larping something we only did once a month cause they take so long. So far we have come to the beach and introduced my character. I play a high elf named Ismeth. Kayla sits next to us as we are currently out of game. "god can't believe those idiots actually put it in the water" she groans. She played teilfling rouge. She is currently in full get-up. I only had the ears on and a normal outfit that fit into my stepdad's stupid regulations. "should we help"

"you can" I huff she looks at me and laughs.

"no way are you still scared" Scared was a huge understatement. I had an insane phobia of the water but for all the right reasons. My dad had died in the ocean, I was there. Even though I went through years of intense therapy at a young age I never got over it. "how can a siren be scared of the ocean" she jokes and I shake my head. "I'm just fucking with you. I don't blame you, but you never really told me though what happened." She wasn't wrong even though we were the closest any two people could be I never could retell the story of that day. It always hurts too much. It doesn't help I was only five and what I do remember was through the eyes of a young child. I used to say a monster killed my dad and as far as I know that was true. The ocean is a monster.

A shriek of joy turns our attention back to Will. "found it" he exclaims and puts the game back on. We go over and look at a ceramic box with carving on it. Lilly holds it and flips through her book being a very powerful sossocer.

"I cast magic detection" hovering her hand over the box as Josh plays the role as Game master.

"Thy treasures may only be shown to one of true heart and courage. For if thou fail a deadly curse shall be cast down" We look at each other not sure what to do. Look at our barbarian who was played by Alex. He steps back shaking his head.

"you've fought a whole village of orcs come on" Kayla groans "That's pretty courageous"

"Who said I was scared to fight them"

"What are you talking about that has nothing to do with it" she snaps they always did this back and forth but that is only because their characters had been partners under odd circumstances. In reality, they got along very well.

"That defies the definition of courage" Lilly points out "Courage is shown when doing something even though it scares you"

"How is fighting a horde of orcs not terrifying tho" I ask

"I'm half" he shrugs. "besides it doesn't say a past act we have to do one now to prove to the box, so one of us should touch it that would be courageous"

"then do it" Kayla scuffs

"can't" he smiles "A tiny box doesn't scare the Mighty Throx" he boasts. "why not you?" she rolls her eyes.

"Have you not met me I'm anything but pure-hearted" Now lost with what to do. I go over to the water my heart racing.

"I will do it" I start not much of my character was known but this could be a good way to give a background. "my village was once attacked by a beast known as the Farquill. Many parished and my home was never the same yet somewhere out there the beast lay waiting to finish the job" I take a deep breath "I fear that if I ever step foot in the cold waters it will know" I let the water hit my feet before a loud crash. I turn to see Will smash the ceramic box on the ground.

"Juese dude" Josh snaps "trying to take someone out" I quickly step away "I also didn't want her to do that, you didn't have to do that Rory" he gave an apologetic look "But it worked." I go over and grab the scroll. it is a map. "that's it for today anyways um I guess we clean this up" I look at the time.

"shit" I start gathering my stuff.

"what" Lilly looks over "You okay"

"yeah, I'm going to be late I got to go" We all share our goodbyes and I drive to the tattoo shop. I enter with a ding of the bell going to the front desk waiting for Oscar. Instead, I'm greeted by a tall guy with short hair covered in tattoos sporting a goatee.

"How may I help you" he leans in smiling.

"I'm looking for Oscar" he turns and calls him.

Entering with that golly grin plastered on his face "Rory there you are Will told me you were on the way come on I'll show you where you can set up." I head back and the guy turns looking very displeased. I go back to; the shop being very high-end if I may say so. Each artist had a room to themselves. The room had all the stuff I needed. The chair for the client, a rolling stool, the drawers for all the supplies. "so you set up with all your stuff decorate as you like the shared supplies are down at the end of the hall." He smiles. The room was that of a small bedroom about 10x10. I go out to my car minding my own business noticing Oscar talking with the guy from before. I start loading my stuff in and making the room my own.

The tattoo gun I have is bright pink along with the gloves I use. I put a fluffy pink stool cover on making the place feel more like my own. I hang up some of my work all with a Pink wooden frame. The bride of Frankinsitne and Frankenstine both had rounded frames; putting them side by side facing each other. The other framed photo was a fairy with phycodelic cloud puff sitting on a mushroom smoking a hooka. Having to go get the shared shit from the storage room I leave making my way down the hall. I notice the man who greeted me glaring. Oscar comes out of his office offering to help.

"by the way this is Tyler he will be working night shift with you. It will be just you too at night." I hold out my hand and give him a handshake. "let me go get a box for you" Oscar walks off leaving me alone with tyler who didn't seem to thrilled to have me here. I could care less I wasn't here to be buddy buddy with people anyway. While it would be nice to be friends he didn't seem the type of person I'd be friends with. I'm here to do my thing and get paid that's all.

"can't believe I have a chick working with me" he huffs "When he said I was finally getting permanent help at night I didn't think he set me up with a newbie" Before more could be said under his breath Oscar came back showing me the supplies room.

"Is he always like that" I question. Oscar seemed all too clear knowing what I meant.

"just ignore him. All bark no bite, he has had some trouble with coworkers in general but he is damn good that's why I keep him. If you have any problem just let me know" reassuring me that I'd be okay and gathering what I needed before heading back to my area. It was quiet for the most part until some big dude with lots of tattoos covering his arms came in.

"oi, Rory right?" Tyler calls me over "I'll make a bet with you," intreged I walk over. "I want to see what you got. Round here respect is earned so whoever design he chooses wins bragging rights and gets to buy dinner on break deal" Feeling ballsy and a sense to prove myself I shake on it before going over. "how may I help you Tony" Apparently this was a recurring client knowing I might've made a bad decision.

"Sup, I'm looking to get a spider with an eye for the body. Just wanted to fill in some of the gaps" taking what he wanted and rushing off to start drawing what he wanted having a couple of ideas. I drew a normal spider and modified it by making the body like he wanted but it turned out kinda cartoony. Trying again to make it more photorealistic with the pupil being the hourglass-like a black widow. After about thirty minutes I go to see if Tyler was done and he was still working on the idea. He was good, so good it made me a bit nervous. He had the tarantula with the pattern being an eye it was realistic as well and in color. If it was my tattoo I'd probably choose him it would blend in and not be so obvious either. We go over Tony was impressed. "damn that's sick" he chuckles "I like this one" he fucking pointed to mine "Can it be in color" he asks "Thinking the eye can be red" I nod surprised he actually choose mine. The way I went about the design was a bit cartoony while Tyler's was more like something you'd see. Proud of myself we discuss everything.

I take him back and start setting up my station and doing the placement. After positioning it about twice I was ready. "would you like music or we can talk" I offer.

"music's fine" he smiles "What you got"

"not much sadly It's my first day in this shop so I haven't got the room completely decked out I can turn on a station if you'd like" I offer playing with the station till it is what he prefured. I get started my mind hyperfocused on what I was doing. I was finally in my zone. My mind was at ease nothing could stop my flow. I loved when clients wanted music, while I don't mind talking I'd much rather just vibe. I move on to the coloring after what felt like only thirty minutes even though I doubt it was. I felt thirsty leaning up and stopping the clock.

"is everything ok" The concern in his voice was a bit startling.

"yeah I just need something to drink real quick" I smile.

"you pay by hour no?"

"I do that's why I stopped the clock, I charge for the work I do not for taking breaks. Can I get you anything while I'm up?"

"Could I get some water too if you don't mind" I nod and go to get our drinks I glance at the time it has been almost two hours. fifty bucks. I was nowhere near done maybe another two to go. I come back refreshed and let him sit and relax some before resterilizing and going back to work this time no music.

"so where did you work before this"

"I worked in a shop called Vixxin it was in New Mexico"

"you from there"

"no I just moved back" I smile. "so when did you start your collage" I joke

"When I was bout your age I think. I was fucking around with some friends and got a stick and poke after a few of those I got addicted." we start talking about the addiction tattoo and how some had meanings. He was a war vet and had a big eagle on his bicep. Having served in Vietnam he moved to Santa Carla afterwards. The war changed him having seen such horrible things made him want to help those. Like the victims he saw in the war the civilians who just happened to be in the way of fire. He is currently a firefighter and has a kid on the way.

Wrapping things up and heading to the front his total wasn't bad. I did great; being really proud of my work. "I hope you enjoy and congratulations on the kiddo" I smile

"thanks and you know this was one of the best services I've gotten can I tip." Not sure if it was allowed I called for Oscar who still happened to be here.

"how can I help" He smiles

"Can we accept a tip ?"

"Yeah," I'm handed twenty-five which was a pleasant surprise. Having a happy customer made my night that much better. "well shit look at that keep up the good work." Oscar pats my back "I'm going to get going here in a bit"

"do you want me to just put it in a jar in the front?" I ask not sure of the rules on tips.

"Nah that's yours I believe if you earn it it's yours. My wife used to be a waitress and came home always mad about how she had to split her hard-earned money with people who sat around. So that's yours be proud." I go back to my room cleaning up again when I hear the ding. I go to see a woman waiting.

"How may I help you" I smile. The rest of the night was easy I had one other quick tattoo customer and did a few pricings. I started my reservations and appointments for clients. When break rolled around Tyler ordered a pizza and ignored me for the rest of the night pissy that I won the bet which was the icing on top. While sweeping up the floors and going around to start closing up shop Tyler comes out.

"you did good," He mutters still butt hurt.

"thank you" I smile "I got it from here if you want to go" I offer trying to be on a more friendly term with him.

"No it's fine you go I got it" he starts towards the back.

"Are you sure" I look at him and he nods I finish what I am doing before grabbing my things and heading out. The boardwalk was slowly closing the only places still open being a twenty-four hour convenience store as well as a few bars that didn't close till five. I get in my car and drive over to the store to get a snack and a drink. As I am checking out I hear the loud engines of bikes outside. I glance over to meet the blue eyes of the man from a few nights ago. Being almost entranced by them.

"is that all" the teenager working the counter asks with a bratty attitude. I look over nodding handing her the money before making my way out. They just sat there getting gas and all loudly talking. Having noticed me staring he leans forward against the handles nodding his head up eyebrows doing the same smirking. I quickly look away before getting in my car and heading home. I unlock the front door and enter not expecting Steve to be waiting nearly scaring the wits out of me.

"oh my god," I jump dropping my bag. I groan and pick my stuff up ready for the earful of whatever bullshit was about to spew out of his mouth.

"where were you" he questions "It's almost four in the morning"

"I was at work" I move past him "I told you I got it why are you surprised" Setting my things down on the counter I try to ignore him.

"you said you get off at three" he snaps

"I needed gas" opening the fridge to put my things away which was quickly slammed shut in my face.

"you will look at me when I am talking to you" He yells. "how do you expect to get shit done if you are out all night"

"what do you mean" I snap back.

"We agreed you'd help did we not"

"yes, I have a job though so I can pay you rent if you want and I will buy my food didn't Mom tell you"

"she did but that isn't any of her business this is my house Rory" he yells "So this is what will happen you will give me half of every paycheck." he smiles thinking he did something.

"Okay," I shrug.

Not getting the reaction he wanted he grits his teeth hissing under his breath"Well how much do you make then"

"a month" I get out a paper to go some quick math. "bout 4,500" I look over his eyes wide.

"bullshit" he snaps throwing whatever was close causing me to jump. "what do you really make" I shake my head handing him the paper. "there is no fucking way you make that much"

"on a good month yeah I would" I nod backing up not sure what he wanted me to say. "I do okay for myself, I don't get why you are so mad"

"Because I won't tolerate lying" he yells. My mom walked in just as confused as I was. "so how much" his face slowly turning red with rage. "an hour how much"

"twenty-five minus like 20%"

"Bullshit" He yells realizing his ego was hurt. He didn't want to believe I made so much. Even though it felt good to know I bruised his elated ego it was fucking terrifying.

"Fifteen" I blurt out saying the lowest but most believable number I could think of.

"there see why didn't you just say that hmm." smiling satisfied "No need to lie to me Rory, now I should expect about thirteen hundred right?" he asks and I nod not being able to move. It was like every muscle in my body was so tense that if you pointed a gun at me I wouldn't be able to move. The terror that filled me was too intense. He fixes himself to hide the rage fit he just had. "now I need to get going I love you both" He goes over to my mom kissing her head. "I'll be home later" before leaving. My eyes were wide as I looked over at my mom who was just as frozen as I was. What the fuck was that. I've never seen him act like that the whole time I've known him. Sure he was a horrible person but the shift of emotion was baffling. If he got mad it would take a long time for him to cool down we would hear about it all day but just smile say I love you then walk off. That was horrifying it's like a psychopath was just yelling at me. I go over to the broken object that he threw to clean. Mom springing in action as well. While cleaning up trying to help her with housework both of us kept quiet.

"what time did you get home" she asks while I help her with the dishes.

"like four" I mutter. She nods and glances over.

"don't you have work tonight" I nod "Honey go get some rest it's almost noon" I look at her. "don't worry I won't tell. As long as you are working he doesn't have to know that I do the housework by myself you are doing your part."

"I wasn't lying," I tell her my voice meek.

"I know, I'm proud of you. Doing what you love and doing so well. Jokes on him in the end though." she chuckles I look over her smile real not like when I first saw her when I got here. That's how she made it. Every time he got things wrong or showed his ass in front of people it filled her with the same sick joy of finally someone sees him for the bastard he is and how he isn't as tough as he seems, so fragile. Even though that fear plagued the back of her mind the fear that made it to where she would feel this joy in private. I knew this feeling too well the only hope for her was if she did what I did. She didn't have the resources though. No family to run back to. I won't leave no matter if it is worse than it was. I will stay and never leave her alone like I did again, if I do leave it will be with her going with me I vow that.

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saffronapplemanga · 2 years ago

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Untitled Blue - アンタイトル・ブルー

DRAMA, MYSTERY

Untitled Blue by Natsume Yukiko

(2 volumes, ongoing)

JP only - English summary in this post

Links to my other manga posts here

I've started out this year strong by completely ignoring my 2023 Manga Reading Goals post, which is very on-brand for me tbh, with Momo's Medical History, Yume no Shizuku Kin no Torikago, A California Story, and probably other stuff I'm forgetting. I have my reasons so leave me be. I decided to actually consult my list this time and was debating between Untitled Blue and Tenjou Renka. Knew practically nothing about either but went with Untitled Blue after skimming the samples for each. All I DID know beforehand was it had something about art and suicide, that's it. (***Trigger warning for suicide*** because it is indeed in there.)

This one’s for you Colleen *finger guns*

Once again, since this isn't available in English, I'll summarize it like I always do for Japanese-only manga. Spoilers for volumes 1-2 will be labeled and my thoughts will be after that. Twitter reading thread here. Twitter link to this post here.

***SPOILERS FOR VOLUME ONE***

Anyone else get labeled a “gifted/honor student” growing up? Ugh…

Ogihara Akari was called an art prodigy as a child but fizzled out when she got older. On her way home one day, she swings by the ocean to scavenge driftwood for the art prep school she works at. To her surprise, while she's there a young man emerges from the ocean in front of her eyes. Akari offers to call for help but the boy tells her not to. If she does, he'll die right here, right now. Unable to walk away, Akari brings him home where he proceeds to pass out on her couch. She tries to find an ID but instead finds an expensive watch engraved with the name of a big financial conglomerate.

It’s fine! On my second day in Japan way back when, I got in a stranger guy’s car in Ishinomaki who was fixing graves without a second thought because I got lost looking for the ferry. Sweet guy! I’m alive and didn’t get kidnapped! Don’t tell my mom... Don't do what I do guys, be safe. I speak Japanese and knew what I was doing.

The boy wakes up and wanders into a storage room in the house that's full of art supplies. When Akari realized where he went, she finds him painting and having read about her youth. While watching him paint, she sees childlike joy in him and he produces a beautiful piece of the beach where she found him. She asks him if he does Japanese painting but he says it was his first time using that kind of paint. FYI 日本画 nihonga or Japanese painting uses a specific type of paint. More info here. I met a nihonga artist who was getting ready for an exhibition at the art prep school I used to go to in Tokyo and I realized, "Wow, there's a lot about nihonga I don't know." I've seen nihonga materials at art supplies stores like Sekaido Shinjuku and PIGMENT TOKYO in Shinagawa, and I don't even know where to start tbh.

I mean, look at all this. At least there's cool stuff to look at on the long hike to the immigration office - PIGMENT TOKYO (Shinagawa)

The boy suggests that they sell his work under Akari's name because for reasons, he can't put his name out there. She insists that it won't be so simple but he goes, "You're a former prodigy. Let's just list it for like ¥800,000 or whatever."

¥800,000??? Sir??????? At first, I thought he said ¥80,000 which is like, yeah okay. But honestly? Ask for your worth artists!

Akari is envious that he was able to capture the feeling of the beach when she had drawn the same scenery over and over, but failed. Her work wasn't valued, but his painting of the beach actually sold for ¥800,000. Not only that, it was bought by Iwakura, a well-known artist in the nihonga scene. Akari thinks that the boy should come forward as the artist of the piece. Instead, he asks her how much time ¥800,000 would buy him to stay at her place and says, "Let me borrow your name and I'll give you fame and fortune." I am... screaming.

This is making me feral, both in a friendship way and a potential romance way. Porque no los dos?

While he's telling Akari that he thinks she never wanted to give up on art, her little brothers come home. She tells the kids that this stranger is... going to be living with them... Middle schooler Toma is a sweetheart who invites him to dinner, while high schooler Nagisa is also a great kid but more skeptical, pokes and prods, and is against it. We find out the boy's name is Omi and learn that Akari's parents died 8 years ago. Omi convinces Nagisa to let him stay because he'll make them ¥10,000,000. Nagisa agrees because he wants to make sure they can send Toma to college.

Later, Omi and Akari are talking and she asks him if he's somehow related to the financial conglomerate. She also expresses hesitation in letting him crash with them. This seems to hit a sore spot for Omi who feels like a burden and clearly has baggage.

Oof…

They discuss their arrangement and Omi talks about carving themselves into the world and having something to leave behind. One thing leads to another, and Akari ends up getting featured on Iwakura's TV show and a spot in an art gallery. She has a few close calls where she was at risk of getting exposed for not being the artist behind the piece. Akari's sudden success has also led to others feeling animosity toward her. However, Akari starts to show signs of coming into her own, and acknowledging her "sins." It looks like she's going to try and really get back into painting herself. Volume one ends with a “long-time fan” of Akari's coming to the gallery and confronting her, claiming that he knows she's lying.

***SPOILERS FOR VOLUME TWO***

The “fan” seems to know something is up, possibly that Omi is staying with Akari. It seems like he might be some gangster or perhaps works for the big financial group? We’re not told who he is yet.

Akari starts putting her all into art and taking it seriously. Back at the Ogihara household, Toma is showing an interest in art as well. Nagisa however, snaps at his siblings. I think it's from a place of worry for their future as well as discomfort with all the changes since Omi showed up. His outburst reminded me of parents who want their kids to pick “safe” paths that are more likely to lead to a secure future, hence why he’s so worried about sending Toma to college. They’ve all had to grow up quickly after losing their parents.

Nagisa runs off and everyone goes looking for him. During their search, Akari's mind starts spinning, feeling guilty for ever letting art come before her brothers and dropping the ball at home. Since their parents passed, she's had to step up as the eldest. She thought that as long as she could protect her family, she'd be fine, even if that meant giving up on her dreams.

While my life is not beat-for-beat like Akari’s, there are A LOT of similarities and… oh man… this hurts…

Stuck trying to balance sacrificing for the people she loves, part of Akari can't give up on her passions for her own sake. After she finds Nagisa, she tells him to watch her paint. He goes on to say that he's worried she'll get hurt again, so she tells him, "I hope you'll be there to help me so I can come out of it okay." Which, omg, yes. Allowing yourself to ask for help and not shouldering everything alone is good! All these kids are just so precious, honestly.

Meanwhile, Omi gets a letter from the Amasawa financial group which sends him into a mental spiral. We don't get to see what's in the letter exactly, but he starts to think things like, "I'm running out of time." We later find out the letter is threatening to drag the Ogihara family into things if Omi doesn't contact them.

Hello darkness my old friend~

Akari goes to check on him and takes him outside for a change of pace, where they discuss some plans to participate in an art fair. Omi seemingly out of nowhere tells Akari they should have a contest and, "If you win, I'll give you your name back." Of course, Akari is confused as to what he means and turns him down.

In the second half of chapter 7, Toma is skipping school for the first time ever. The "fan" guy, whose name is Hijiri, had run into Toma before and takes him on a ride on the back of his motorcycle. Basically, this grown-ass man is trying to build camaraderie with a literal child so he can use him to get at Omi. He manipulates Toma's insecurities and I hate it. Toma, sweetie, get away from him!!!

I’m gonna throw hands, I swear if he touches a hair on Toma's head (ง’̀-‘́)ง

It turns out Hijiri is Omi's cousin, specifically the son of Omi's younger paternal uncle. Because of this, Omi was set to be the heir of the Amasawa family, leaving Hijiri to live in his shadow. To make matters worse, Hijiri's dad was a hobby artist and started giving Omi more attention when he showed greater artistic talent than his son. To make matters even worse, Omi has everything Hijiri wants, but he doesn't want it himself. Omi tells him that if he wants to be the heir, he can have the position, then immediately threw himself off a balcony and into a lake. Good lord... Hijiri is furious that his cousin doesn't appreciate everything he's been "blessed" with, and he's going to drag him back home to get money and stop the Amasawa group from looking down on him. Get help bro, sheesh.

I'll be brief about the second half of this volume:

We get loads of emotional beats that made me absolutely lose it. So much so, I actually shot up out of my seat and pulled a muscle LOL. The ending of volume 2 just... crushed me. I'm so upset and I need to know what happens next right this instant. I won't say much more as I think it would be best to read those parts for yourself when it's available. I know I keep saying this for a lot of my reads recently, but please license this.

***END OF SPOILERS FOR VOLUMES 1-2***

As I mentioned in my Blue Period post, I'm an art kid. It's a big passion of mine. Having a well-written, realistically portrayed struggling artist/creative is always a plus in my book. I just wanna feel seen guys... This series delivers with a side of the kind of plot that we come to shoujosei for — chef's kiss.

The Ogihara family (including honorary member Omi) are lovable, interesting characters. I adore great sibling dynamics in stories, and this has great sibling dynamics! Akari and Omi are so different, but the same — two sides of the same coin? And Akari realizes this herself. Our main duo understand each other in some respects but don't at all in others. I liked how Akari understandably asks Omi personal questions the first day they met but doesn't pry when he clearly doesn't want to share. She leaves him be for the most part, not pestering him, but not to the point of letting him wallow around too much. But when she does push, it's from a place of caring and concern, and she does it in a way that makes that clear.

"How about a change of pace?"

"... Don't wanna... sounds like a pain."

"Oh, don't be like that! We're not going anywhere far." (Then she dragged him outside lol)

I'm sure some people are thinking, "You idiot, why are you bringing home some stranger and letting him live there? You don't even know who he is." And yeah, I feel that. But when Akari met Omi the way she did, she realized he was in a bad place, he was hurting, and desperately needed a hand to reach out to him. So, she took his hand. How could she leave him there? At the same time, I think Akari needed to meet him as much as he needed to meet her. I love that for them.

And Omi never crosses any lines with her. He doesn't have ulterior motives toward her in that way. There is potential romance, but there's no anime bullshit if you know what I mean. Omi is respectful, aware of the fact he's crashing at this stranger's house, and tries to contribute in his own way, albeit awkwardly. This guy was brought into this family and it warms my heart.

Initially, I was thinking that Akari would simply continue to be the face of the art while Omi produced it. I'm delighted to see that they're actually working together to be two halves of a whole! I think Akari was afraid to put her all into art while Omi might be putting too much of himself into his art. He's escaped a suffocating environment and could be going too hard pursuing the only thing he truly wants to do with his newfound freedom.

The art in Untitled Blue is lovely and does an amazing job of conveying how characters feel and nailing the mood in a scene. I enjoy the pacing as well.

Love it when you can feel a page!

This page feels like a visual representation of a panic attack but after the overwhelming thoughts, instead of the mental clarity she reaches here, your brain goes blank for a whole day. Glad you got the mental clarity route Akari.

These pages are sick, actual chills.

Speaking of art, there are some cool things that come up in the story. There's commentary on what makes art compelling, as well as scenes about art that's more realistic/photorealistic versus more stylized art.

"If you're getting this close to the real thing, why not just take a picture?"

"Is he serious? That's better than my drawing? It looks like something that took 5 seconds to draw." Isn't this basically what people say about Picasso's stuff? There was a line in Blue Period about this too.

I'm not saying photorealistic art is bad or less than. There are various opinions regarding this topic. A lot artists learn a foundation of what things are supposed to look like (still life, figure drawing, etc.) to learn the "rules" so they can break them. Some argue that "art normies" find realistic works more appealing than those with a more decerning eye. And this does come up in the manga.

There's also lots of talk about the value of art in various senses, and where they discuss the monetary value of art that I found interesting.

Yes, art is more than just the money, but artists are professionals that deserve to get paid well for their craft.

Loving the exploration of various ideas!

I'm not sure if this series is going to have romance or not, and whether it'll be more of a sub-genre or a big part of the manga. There are some incredibly tender scenes that could be taken as romantic, but could also be vulnerability and platonic love as well imo. MAL says it's drama/mystery/romance, but Renta! just has it listed under mystery/suspense, no romance, so idk. I'm cool with things being platonic or romantic as long as it's done well. Although, I kind of want more platonic relationships.

I'm reading this on Renta! and romance series like うるわしの宵の月/In the Clear Moonlit Dusk are tagged with 恋愛/romance. Untitled Blue doesn't have the tag though.

I was looking around to see if there was a release date for volume 3, but it turns out that there hasn't been a volume released since September 2021.

Volume 1 was released June 2021, and volume 2 was released September 2021.

But the mangaka tweeted this in November 2022:

"Untitled Blue volumes 1-2 are available 🎶 Volume 3 will release in the near future, so now's a great time to catch up 🎶”

Haven't seen any release dates, but it looks like we can look forward to volume 3 soon! I enjoyed Untitled Blue WAY more than I was expecting to and I can't wait to read more!!! After the end of volume 2, I need to know what happens... It actually made me tear up. I mean, aren't the best reading experiences the ones that make you bounce off the walls and scream at the page?

-----------------------------

If there's any Japanese-only manga you want me to check out, let me know! No promises, I'll only read what I'm interested in, but I'll take suggestions into consideration. Preferably, shorter manga or newer manga with a few volumes out since I like to take breaks from longer series I'm reading :)

#untitled blue #アンタイトル・ブルー #manga recs #manga recommendation #manga discussion #漫画 #おすす��#shoujosei #josei #josei manga

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aphroditescraft · 6 months ago

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The Start

Growing up I always felt different from other people, I felt alien to say the least. I was mocked for being too feminine and mocked when I tried to be more masculine. I never really felt like I belonged with anyone, and this left me with an incurable emptiness. I truly felt like I couldn't ever find where I should belong. I tried my hardest to keep my head up but as I got older, I found shelter in myself and my hobbies it was very lonely for a long time. My father was a pastor and to be a young child confused about their place in life I was only ever told to pray on it and try to connect with God. I watched people cry during church service, like they truly were experiencing love for the first time, and I just could never feel that.

I thought that God...or rather the love and unity that was promised to Christians would never find me that I'd never find the belonging I so desperately sought after. When I was 19 the sadness bubbled up to a point that I couldn't hide it anymore. I tried my hardest to be the person I was always asked to be, time marched on and no quick fix was working...I felt the only way to remedy this was to abandon religion and live for myself. I stowed away in my little corner and began working on myself...I went to therapy I got on medication...I did everything right, but I still felt lost. I soon realized that the core of my problem was not that I never belonged with certain people it was that I never felt that I belonged to myself. I began my transition and I felt like pieces of myself were finally falling back together. The broken mosaic that life chipped away was becoming a filled in picture.

Life got better but not where I felt like it should be, I realized that I had no... spiritual connection to the world around me. I knew I didn't want to return to Christianity, so I delved into the world of theology. I learned about all different beliefs and practices.

Years went by and I never found something that gave me that feeling of love and unity. I had been on autopilot for a while studying and practicing different beliefs, I never found what I was looking for. I started calling to the universe asking if a deity was calling to me, please give me a sign. I meditated and opened myself up to the world beyond what I could see.

It started in April, the first week I started having vivid dreams about the beach. I would sitting on a cliff with my legs dangling over the edge, I'd look to the side and see the waves crashing against the shore line. Then I would wake up...I could have sworn I was at the beach! I've had waking nightmares and dreams that felt real but I have never experienced a dream like that. It was like my entire being was there and I could still feel the sun on my legs when I was awake.

Then I started seeing more rabbits than normal, I live in a small town in the Midwest and rabbits aren't uncommon. I would wake up and as I was leaving for work there would be one or two rabbits in my yard, I would come home there were the rabbits. Anytime I took my dog out or left the house there's at least one rabbit. I started smelling sweet things when I wasn't cooking, or cleaning, I would be in my car and I would smell fresh flowers! I decided to consult my sister about this. She herself is a pagan, and she has a very close relationship with her deity. I asked her to perform a tarot reading on me to determine who was reaching out to me. Up until this point I had been more interested in the Infernal side of paganism, demonology, Luciferian, overall the left hand path. But I still didn't get that sense of love like I saw other people getting. She asked the tarot every single one of my questions but I was only asking the wrong ones...I was certain a demon was reaching out to me since I had been so engrossed in learning about them. To no luck were any of my questions answered...then I asked if I was being contacted through my dreams. Immediately the tarot said yes. My sister asked me what kind of dreams I was having...she arched her eyebrow and began shuffling the deck. Within two seconds one singular card flew to the ground below, "The Lovers" card.

She chuckled and said she knows who it is...Aphrodite. I immediately felt like crying, I felt a wave of warmth crash over me. I felt like I was home...I finally knew what that feeling was that I was jealous over for so many years. I found her and she has blessed me with love and unity.

O Radiant Aphrodite I sing your praises with love.

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mygainyear2024 · 6 months ago

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Day 31 Carvoeira - the little Santorini of Portugal (but first, side tracked by a pay it forward Mumma moment...)

Rosie and I planned a trip to Carvoeira today to include a long walk. We decided to head off around lunch time, when the weather got a bit warmer, Uber/Bolt there, see the sites, eat lunch and then take that long walk. I was hopeful we'd get as far as Ferragudo (about one hour 40) as I've had on my list the Dom Rodrigo gelato recommended by the tile painting teacher. I walked to Rosie's apartment, running late as I was down a rabbit hole finding a day trip to Tavira, close to the Spanish border (where I wanted to drive to after Rio Formosa Natural Park, but that seemed a little too far for me).

While I'm waiting for Rosie, and looking up ride share prices, I was mildly distracted by some yelling. I thought it was a mother yelling at a child. She moved on, then I saw another woman looking lost. She was being oggled by old dudes walking past, I think it was her skimpy bikini and crocheted see through dress. She then disappeared and the first woman walks past Rosie and I looking lost too and on the phone sounding frustrated (trying to find her accommodation), she bursts into tears. Well, a mother/social worker and a great grandmother/life coach couldn't help themselves. We are right in there. "Are you ok?" "No, I've got my period and I'm lost and (more tears)" So long story short, the two friends just arrived from the UK into Faro, caught a taxi from Faro airport (about an hour) for this huge music festival (DnB Allstars) that is on this weekend and they were dropped off at an address and couldn't get in. They continued to ring the owner of the apartment and he kept telling them it wasn't the right place. They both had oversized suitcases for the week, and cheap ones, which were scraping on the ground and toppling over from the uneven distribution of the goods inside. Exactly what I have done in the past, several times over! At one point I did say to the second young woman, with very good intentions, maybe you could ask Mum and Dad to buy you a better suitcase for Christmas!

It took us over one hour to find Condominio Oásis Mar lote 2, bloco B, 1B! And in the end it was a 5 minute walk from Rosie's apartment, we went to the wrong building according to my own google search, then to lote 1 and all those blocos and then walked up the hill and around. We finally found the place. The one they had originally been taken to. They'd gotten through the front gates with the code, found bloco B, but instead of 1B, they were on Ground B!!

We gave them a lot of hugs, strongly suggested they settle in and go get some drinks and make up. I used a Ben Crowe quote on each of them, something like "what's the kindest interpretation you can have of your friend right now"!

After all that, we ended up back at Rosie's apartment for a loo stop, in the Bolt and on our way. What Rosie didn't realise until she got back to her apartment after 7pm was that she'd locked herself out! She was so exhausted, sat in the hallway and waited over 30 minutes for someone to let her in. I did offer to go sit with her or have her come back to my apartment with the lure of rosé. I think she'll be glad to see me depart on Sunday. She keeps saying don't you ever stop LOL!

Carvoeira seemed like a great spot. Lots of restaurants, shops, white washed buildings, sheltered beach - except it was bloody cold today.

We were so hungry by the time we got there, we headed to one of the two spots I'd sourced, Earth Shop & Café. I really liked the food, but the service was super slow. This late in the day all we could manage was to browse some shops, do the short boardwalk, take respite at a cool bar for more drinks and Bolt back.

With about an hour to go before sunset, I decided to head off to the beach to see what was happening crowd wise and concert wise. No concert space has been set up yet and the beach was pretty deserted. Stay tuned.

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radioactivepeasant · 2 years ago

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Snippets Thursday

An entire chapter of the Faulty Info au where Sig rescues Jak from Errol, sees that he still uses a kind of Spargan sign language, and mistakes him for a recently kidnapped Spargan...which began as mental storyboards and two drawings and now is six somewhat disjointed chapters and I'm not sure what happened. Inspiration strikes at the most random times.

Warning for Angst

When the landing ramp came down, Damas was prepared -- or so he told himself.

He knew in his heart that if this lost Spargan really did look like Mar, look like his baby, he was going to have a hard time controlling his emotions. But he had to see for himself. A morbid curiosity he just couldn't stifle insisted that it had to know.

"What the-?!"

Ah yes. He had also neglected to inform Sig that he would be the one waiting at the oasis.

Damas shrugged and decided not to explain himself in the slightest. He was king, after all. He could keep his secrets.

On the ramp, Sig tipped his head back and sighed. "Alright," he muttered, "Let's get this over with."

Then he turned to face the cargo hold.

"Come on, rookie. Watch your step."

Damas wasn't prepared after all.

The boy who crept warily out of the air train was small. Scrawny, even. He looked ill-used and underfed. And he looked astonishingly like Mar.

It was true that he was the wrong age -- by a good ten years at least -- but his eyes-!

Pain and fear had darkened them, and bruises shadowed them, but they were the exact same blue as Mar's eyes. And though the ends of his hair were light enough to look blonde, much of it was an unbearably familiar shade of green.

Pain swept through his heart like a blade, prodding and poking at the fresh wounds within. It felt cruel, seeing such a stark reminder that his son was gone, that he'd failed to protect him. Just as someone had clearly failed to protect this one.

Damas told himself it meant nothing. He told himself that they, like thousands of others in the world, may have had a common ancestor some hundred years back or such. That the resemblance was mere coincidence. He told himself that he would keep his distance until Mar was found, to keep some semblance of sanity. He told himself all of these things and more, until the father in him rose up from his heart to strangle those thoughts into silence.

Look at him! he snarled to himself, He is a child, wounded and thrown away by the very city that discarded you! Had their places been exchanged, you know that you would hope someone would treat Mar with compassion. You will not ignore this boy for the sake of self-pity.

Damas tightened his grip on his staff and his emotions and stepped forward.

"You are Jak, yes?" He spoke slowly, so as not to startle him. "Sig has told me that you use a kind of sign language only found among our people."

The boy blinked in surprise and made a questioning expression. "He said there were others like me?" He pointed back at Sig. "He said I must have come from your city where people can read hands -- before I lived with the Explorer."

Damas set aside the question of an explorer taking a Spargan child to ponder later.

"That is the most likely explanation," he confirmed. "It is fortunate that Sig found you; very few people taken by raiders make their way home again."

Jak looked around quickly, as if he worried that he wouldn't have time to take everything in.

"But I don't remember this place," he stated plainly. Damas thought he looked a little disappointed.

"I don't remember raiders, either."

"Hm. If you were taken very young, your early memories might well be hazy." Damas leaned on his staff and gestured with one hand. "Start with the place you were taken to before the Baron captured you. Retrace your steps. What is the first thing you recall?"

The boy shook his head, then paused with a confused expression. He tugged at one of his ears, thinking, then timidly answered.

"A big light. I remember a big light, and then a beach. Then the Explorer said my name was Jak and I could live with him in Sandover and be his nephew now."

Damas glanced at Sig, mouthing Sandover?

Sig shrugged helplessly.

"Do you know how old you were when this explorer took you there?" Damas pressed.

If he could establish a timeline, they would have a better chance of working out whether Sig’s tagalong had any living family still in Spargus.

"Maybe five...?" Jak's hands dropped, and a troubled look replaced his confusion, as if he'd never truly contemplated it before. "But the Explorer didn't take me there. He just brought me home from the beach. I don't know where I was before that."

"Definitely not from the Black Raid then," Sig remarked. "Where is Sandover, anyway? I've never heard of it."

Jak shrugged, but seemed distracted. "It's the beach. Over the mountain from Rock Village. But..." Another recollection passed over him and he bit his lip. "...but when the Precursor door opened...the gem monsters came out."

Gem monsters? That sounded familiar.

"Metalheads." Damas said knowingly, "The big ones with heavy armor? Or the small flying ones?"

The boy shivered in the cool evening breeze and wrapped his arms around himself. He nodded and shut his eyes. "Both."

Well. Wherever this "Sandover" had been, doubtless it was long since destroyed now.

Sig blew out a breath and knelt in the sand in front of Jak.

"Jak," he said, as gently as he could, "I don't think this Sandover place is there anymore. When...when metalheads swarm a place, they don't leave anything behind. I hate to say it, but you and whoever else went through that transport ring are probably the only ones who made it."

Jak didn't seem to understand at first. But slowly, a dawning horror filled his eyes.

"They’re...all dead?" he asked. His hands began to shake.

"Most likely."

There was no good in sugarcoating the truth for the poor kid, but the sight of the despair crushing his expression would haunt Sig.

"No no no-" Jak shook his head rapidly.

He knew that the Sages would have been able to defend their own villages. But Sandover's sage had been teleported with Jak as the monsters arrived. And Jak wasn't so optimistic as to pretend Samos wouldn't have sent him to do the brunt of the fighting to save the villagers -- none of whom were proficient in combat.

He'd lost his friends, he'd been tortured, he couldn't lose the only home he had, he couldn't!

His Uncle? The fisherman? Bird Lady? All dead? Dead like Gol and Maia? Dead like all those Lurkers Samos sent him to fight? Dead like the "Subject 001" Errol had made Jak fight? But where would he go? Was he truly alone?

Please please please no, I can't go back to that place-! I can't, I can't- Uncle, come back! Please come back!

"I'm sorry, kid. Really, I am. But we're gonna look after you now, I promise," Sig tried to reassure him.

Jak barely heard him, by the looks of things. His face crumpled, and he fell into a crouch beside the water. He stared at nothing, eyes glassy and uncomprehending. His hands came up to grip fistfuls of his hair, but other than that he remained frozen.

He looked so very young, huddled like that on the ground.

"Kid-" Sig croaked, "Aw heck, kid. I know; I...I've been there too. I'm sorry."

He reached a tentative hand towards the boy, but faltered. He'd just made it worse.

Damas clicked his tongue. In spite of his own grief, the fear and sorrow that ripped through him with every breath he took, he found he could still move. When he could focus on his people, focus on their troubles, it took him out of his head enough to function. Right now, this lost-and-found son of the desert bore a grief as potent as his own. He could put aside his own emotions for the sake of duty. He could drown out the agony in his soul by seeing to the needs of Spargus, beginning with the boy in front of him.

Damas touched the boy's shoulder and cleared his throat. "Come. Night is cold in the desert, and you are not dressed for the weather. We will return to my city, and decide what to do with you there."

Jak made no move to obey. His fingers tightened in his curls and his breathing quickened. Gone. Everything was gone. For one brief moment he'd let himself hope that Sig would be able to take him home. That he would be able to pretend none of this had ever happened.

Should've known better than to hope. He had nothing now. He had no one. Not even Daxter.

Sig reached out to gently grip his elbows. "Come on, Jak," he said, and lifted him to his feet. Jak locked his knees to keep from falling, but he was mostly still limp.

"Hey now, cherry," Sig murmured to him, "Remember what I said on the way here: Damas is king. Don't give him any trouble, and he won't give you any trouble. He's trying to help you, okay? So you have to listen to him."

"There are more metalheads in these dunes," Damas added bluntly, "And you are unarmed."

At the mention of more metalheads, Jak finally tore himself out of his stupor and started to shuffle after Damas. He paused, and looked plaintively back at Sig.

Sig shook his head. "Sorry, kid. I need to go back to Haven. I'll keep an eye out for your orange friend, and radio if I see him."

"You promise?"

"Yeah." Sig's cheek twitched in a half smile, but it didn't quite reach his eye. "I promise."

With that, Jak nodded, took a quivering breath, and followed the king to the buggy. He fumbled with the safety restraints for a few seconds before clicking them into place over his chest. It was nothing like The Chair, but he still found that he disliked any kind of restraining belt or cuff. Was it even that necessary if there weren't other vehicles to run into?

The answer, he quickly discovered, was a resounding yes.

Sig's friend, or king, or both, drove way faster than Sig did. Granted, there weren’t other drivers to be cautious of so far. And there was a lot of open space. The speed was a comfort to Jak in a strange way. He wasn't confined to one place, forced to be still, when he was on a fast-moving vehicle. He didn't have to be a hero or a test subject or anything to anyone when he raced. All your focus had to be on the vehicle and the terrain, or else you could end up crashing. It was...meditative, in a sense.

Damas accelerated over a particularly large dune and for three seconds they were airborne. Jak's stomach flip-flopped, and his pulse roared in his ears. It was dulled, compared to the excitement he used to feel, before he had learned how cruel the world really was. But some of the crushing weight on his heart lessened, just a little, as the buggy landed, rolled, and tipped back onto its wheels.

"Alright there?" Damas asked, glancing to one side.

The boy stared back at him with huge eyes. Solemnly, he nodded once, then signed,

"Do it again."

In spite of himself, Damas snorted. "In general, I try not to roll the Dune Hopper. It's not good to get that much sand in the mechanisms. But there are a lot of bumps on the way to the river. Don't worry, we'll be airborne plenty more times."

Satisfied with this answer, Jak nodded again. He settled back into his seat and gripped the restraints almost eagerly. The rapidly cooling temperature hardly fazed him as they sped over the sands. The bite of the wind against his face, the hulking silhouettes of rocky pillars, the sounds of desert birds calling to each other rose up in Jak’s chest, filling in some of the empty places the prison had left.

There was still beauty in the world. He could hardly believe it after what he had survived, but there were still places as open and as free as-

As home.

Jak felt himself shatter just a little more. He tipped his head back and looked up at the sky. Strange. The stars looked...different, somehow. The Lombax Major constellation was as bright and clear as Jak remembered it, but it was further to the south. Not by much, but enough to be noticeable to a boy who'd always watched the stars each night before sleeping.

Even the stars weren't the same anymore.

"You'll be going directly to the medics when we arrive." Damas broke the silence in a no-nonsense tone. "It is unlikely that you've been given all your immunizations. And Sig believes we'll need to give you something to counteract dark eco poisoning."

Immunizations. Jak didn’t recognize that word. What was he supposed to be immune to? And how would they make him immune? He squirmed in his seat as a particularly jarring landing made the harness dig into the dark eco scars across his torso. A small, pained sound escaped him despite his efforts to suppress it.

Even with the roar of the engine, Damas heard the sound. One ear twitched, and he spared a sharp glance to the side.

"There are two more large hills like that," he said apologetically, "Next time, I will warn you before the jump."

Jak saw the tower first.

It loomed above the rocky spires and dunes like a monolith, scattering light a surprising distance with a fiery beacon. For reasons Jak couldn't readily explain, the word "lighthouse" came to mind. Without thinking, his hands formed the shape of the word as he peered at the towering structure. Damas had glanced over to check on him as they had approached, and smiled faintly at the observation.

"Yes, good," he said, trying to sound encouraging, "that is our lighthouse. It's also our water filtration system -- and where I live -- but when you are outside of the city, its most important function is to guide Spargans home."

"You live there?" Jak pointed to the tower.

Well, he supposed keeping the beacon lit was an important job. Being king was like being mayor, but of hundreds more people, right? Of course maintaining the water and beacon would be Damas’s job. That just made sense.

Seemed strange to live up so high, though. Too far from the water. But at the same time, the idea of looking out of a window and being able to see everything did have a certain appeal.

"That is where all rulers of Spargus reside. At present it is my home. Someday it will be someone else's."

Damas spoke casually, and matter-of-factly. As if the idea of someone else eventually taking his place was such an established fact of life that it hardly bore remarking upon.

The Mayor of Sandover would have been appalled by the attitude.

But considering that the Mayor never really did anything besides collecting taxes, Jak thought that maybe he wasn't a reliable example.

The remainder of the drive went smoothly, and the buggy pulled through a massive set of iron gates. A second set of gates opened just beyond them -- a security measure against foes and weather both -- and Damas drove the vehicle into a circular hub of garages. There were more buggies in the little hangars: some small and lean like predators, others bulky and covered in spikes. Jak's gaze flitted from car to car as if trying to memorize each one. His fingers itched to try the controls, and test their top speeds.

But...without Daxter, where was the fun in racing? And after six months without seeing the sun, or being able to move freely at all, could he even still race?

"Come."

Damas shut down the engine and stepped out of the vehicle.

Jak swallowed hard, and with clumsy fingers he unhooked the seatbelts. He still wasn't used to walking long distances -- Sig had said it would take some time to rebuild his stamina after so much forced inactivity -- and he could only hope they wouldn't be going far. At every unfamiliar noise he stopped, looking around wildly. If he couldn't see it, couldn't identify it, then it was a threat.

The sand still retained some of the heat of the day, pleasantly warm under his bare toes. He could guess that it wouldn't feel nearly as nice once the sun rose. Maybe he could find something to trade for shoes...

"Oi, lordship. Thought you were pickin' up one of ours from the big smoke."

Jak turned to see a massive man exiting one of the hangars. Moonlight glared off of a very bald head, hooding the man's eyes in shadow. He was as broad as he was tall, and Jak suspected he was probably a formidable fighter. The man stopped in front of Damas and tugged one end of his long mustache.

"Who's the runt?" he asked.

Damas drew his staff from the back of the buggy and stepped past the man.

"We'll find out shortly. He may be one of ours."

A small, desperate part of Jak hoped that these fearsome men would decide that he was "one of theirs". Even if it was only so that he didn't have to go back to that horrible, horrible city. Even if it was just so that he could pretend for a moment that he had somewhere to belong.

He flinched when a hand fell on his shoulder.

"Easy," Damas said softly, but he withdrew his hand.

"Follow me. The medics need to assess your condition."

Jak followed, but he folded his arms over his torso and gripped his arms tightly enough to leave finger marks in the skin. Medics were doctors. And doctors had needles. And scalpels. And examination tables. Jak tightened his grip to keep his hands from shaking.

This wasn't going to go well.

#jak and daxter #jak and daxter au #jak and daxter sig #jnd damas #jnd au #snippet thursday #free day thursday #angst #tw angst #references to past trauma a la Dark Warrior Program #king damas #dadmas #within eight weeks he'll have adopted Jak without knowing his true identity #faulty info au #haven't thrown straight up angst at y'all in a while so welcome back to the Angst Train #fic prompts #writing prompts

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tone-stark · 2 years ago

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A Hard Problem

NSFW Alphabet Prompt: B for Blue Balls

Summary: Ike gets a call for help.

Warnings: Phone sex (not really, kinda mild), masturbation (nothing explicit, a bit implicit actually), curses (this shouldn't even be a warning), very light smut to sumarize.

Pairing: Ike Evans x Wife Reader

Word Count: 2.4k

A/N: Right, so, this was supposed to be part of @hswrites birthday sleepover but it ended yesterday, so I'm late... To be clear here, I am not satisfied with this AT ALL! I suck at dialogue (and titles), but in my defense, my idea was to write a small ᵗᶦⁿʸ little drabble for every letter of her NSFW alphabet, but I can't write small things, words just flow freely, so... yep, I did two letters... anyway, I'm totally accepting constructive criticism from anyone. I haven't written in years, so I think I probably need it. English is not my first language. For all the reasons above... bare with me please!

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Pen in one hand, a glass of whiskey occasionally in the other, cigarette between his lips, brows knit. The smell of fresh new money from the lots to his left and the sun shining hot on the side of his face trying to break his concentration on the pile of documents and countless papers in front of him, scattered, but arranged in a way only he would understand. It wasn't easy being the owner of the most glamorous spot in Miami Beach.

After years of ambitious struggles to climb to the top, he had a reputation to uphold and that took a lot of hard work. From a young age, Ike knew that an astute and calculated demeanor was essential and he had no problem in carrying it. But now Ben Diamond was back in town... and that changed some things.

Ike's aware that his relationship with the violent mob boss was precarious, one wrong move and everything fell apart. With Diamond being his main investor he didn't have much trading room and he had a lot to lose, but after six years of dealing with the devil, Ike was savvy enough to know that Ben needed him and that gave him an advantage. The perks of being irreplaceable.

Even so, he was tired of the monthly payments, the threats disguised as incentives, having his family's safety on the front lines and the possibility of having the dream he worked so hard for usurped out of his hands. Those were the worries he couldn't talk about, the lies and the danger in the shadows.

Besides all that, he had a hotel to manage and that in itself came with a lot of concerns. From organizing big events to resolving work strikes, though lighter and easier to handle, these duties were no less arduous. An outsider might think Ike was a work-driven man with no time for family and the pleasures that come with success, let them think that, better this way, safer.

Family's important to Ike and he has raised his children to value that too. He's relieved to have two grown-up children with lives on track. He's proud of them. His youngest daughter is still a child, just spoil her a little to make her satisfied, not that this is a healthy habit, but Ike can't help himself. Having her living near his penthouse makes it easier to keep an eye on her and since he lost his second wife to business adversities, he has focused all of his attention on his daughter.

Until recently...

To be honest, Ike wasn't looking for anyone. Vera's death shook him deeply. He made the decision to not get involved with anyone intimately to avoid further catastrophes that accompanied him, whether he liked it or not. One night stands was enough for him, just to let off some steam. But when that pretty little thing walked into his hotel lobby that night, he knew he had to have her.

She was gorgeous, sexy and elegant, completely oblivious to the attention she was drawing. The wine red velvet dress was the first thing that caught his eye, it showed off her shoulders and neck and hugged her curves perfectly. He thought that the dress would be even prettier tossed on the floor by his bed. He was pretty sure none of the women competing in the beauty pageant that night came close to her.

As she got closer to him and more immersed in the mass of people, he watched her intently as her eyes surveyed the crowd. A glass of champagne in her gloved hand, now aware of the immoral stares of the men around her and the disgust and envy of the women in their arms but paying no mind to it. Her attention was directed to the beauty of the hotel's architecture and all the effort that went into making that night perfect. At that moment, he was proud of himself.

And when she came to meet him, the hotel owner, the host of the night, their eyes met as Ike kissed the back of her hand and they clicked, just like that. She saw the ambition in his eyes and he saw the determination in hers, she complemented him just as he did her. It wasn't until the night was over and they were spent and panting in bed while Ike cleaned up his mess on her belly with his wine red pocket square that they noticed they were in matched outfits. Cliche, right? He took that as a divine sign.

And from then on, they were inseparable.

He took care of her in every way possible and she gave him balance in all areas of his life. She wasn't just a arm candy on his side at events. No one knew, but they ran the business together. He trusted her entrepreneurial vision and encouraged her to voice her ideas and advices. And he was the man she never thought she needed, he took all the trauma and abuse of ex lovers and introduced her to the world of love as it was meant to be, worshipping her mind, heart and body.

Letting her run wild and free but making it clear that she was his, as he was hers.

Ike jumped slightly from his chair when his phone rang, realizing he was lost in thought. Sighing deeply, he took a drag on his cigarette and put down the pen before answering, "Ike speaking, how can I help?"

"Putting that mouth to better use, for starters..."

He stopped all movement when he heard her voice. Relaxing his shoulders, Ike sighed and leaned back in his chair, biting his lip.

"Good mornin' babygirl. So glad to hear your voice"

"Hum... I'm not so sure..."

"And why's that, huh?"

"It's been a while since I woke up to a cold side of the bed"

Shit. "I'm sorry honey, I really am... I just have a lot of work to do"

"You always do. My point still stands"

This made him smile.

"Yeah, yeah, you're right, I'm really sorry, okay? It won't happen again, I promise"

They both knew what had caused his early start in the day. Ben Diamond was starting to penetrate his mind and take over his thoughts. But his girl was there to bring him back. He couldn't neglect her. He wouldn't.

"I'll make it up to you later, how's that sweetheart?"

"You could make it up to me now..."

Damn. He could feel the want in her voice. His dick too, seeing how it twitched in his pants.

He groaned hoarsely in frustration from his side of the line.

"I can't babygirl, I'm in the middle of something here. Besides, gotta a meeting in fifteen"

"Fifteen is plenty of time for a quick fuck..."

She's kinda breathless... No way, she wouldn't...

"Baby... are you touching yourself?"

"Damn right I am... you ain't here, Ike..."

Fuck. So fucking needy...

Ike leaned further into the armchair, closing his eyes and imagining his girl with her legs spread between his sheets, one hand between her legs, the other gripping her hair, softly moaning his name... The image made him smile dreamily.

"You know that I love to hear you moaning my name, darlin', but you gotta stop it... right now..."

He tried to say it in a commanding voice but the discomfort between his legs made him sound desperate. She had him in the palm of her hand.

"It doesn't look like you want me to stop..."

He squeezed his cock through his pants to try to ease the slight pain.

"Fuck babygirl... you really gotta stop"

"Yeah? But I fucking do! Now, be a good girl and do as I say. I told you that I'll make it up to you later, and I keep my promises, you know that"

She's fucking smiling, the little devil...

But he didn't want her to stop.

"But I want it now, Ike..."

You were practically whimpering now, and Ike could hear the wet noises in the background. He was half hard now.

She can be such a spoiled brat sometimes... and she's drippin', for fuck's sake..., he thought as he pressed his crotch harder, in vain.

"Did you call just to tease me woman? The sun just barely came out!"

"That's exactly why I called. The sun just barely came out and instead of you being here burying your dick inside of me, you're waiting for some friends to chat. You just set your priorities straight, sir"

Ike took the phone away from his ear for a moment, looking at ceiling while taking a deep breath.

This girl will be the death of me

He practically growled.

Untying his tie and taking a sip of whiskey almost forgotten on the table in front of him, Ike took a deep drag on his cigarette trying to find support in the smell of tobacco before answering.

You are a bad fucking girl, you know that?"

"C'mon Ike..."

A breathless whisper of his name was all it took to make him completely hard and twitching.

Ike took another deep breath trying to maintain control as he listened to the rivers of obscenities coming out of her mouth as she got near to her orgasm. And the sweet noises of pleasure was making his cock strainingly painful in his pants by now and he couldn't take it much longer, she could get him going easily.

"What, baby..."

He was getting lost in it.

His deep husky voice was too much for you.

"I need you..."

Shit, she's so close...

"Yeah, I know, I can hear it... but you really gott-"

He just knew she was biting her lip to keep from letting out a needy moan. That was enough to make him thrust his hips up involuntarily with a grunt, hitting the table lightly and causing some brown liquor to fall onto the papers on the table.

"Hum... wanna come in your cock, Ike..."

"Goddamnit!"

"You okay there, handsome?"

The playful tone didn't go unnoticed in Ike's ears. He's strained manhood causing a bit of a anger to come out.

"Okay, babygirl, listen to me carefully. I'll be there in a minute", he was already on his feet, putting out his cigarette.

"I'm gonna fill you up so full of my cum you gonna drip for hours. Don't you dare lay another finger in that pussy of yours. You wait for me. It's a fucking order!", he said in between gritted teeth and with a breathless lust filled tone in his voice.

"Sorry to interrupt, Mr. Evans. Your eight o'clock just arrived"

He quickly downed what was left of his whiskey and was about to slam the phone down when he heard a soft knock on his office door causing his head to snap quickly to the source of the noise. His secretary's face peeking out from behind the door with a sweet smile.

Fuck no

He was frozen for a moment. His expression was tense, his grip on the phone so hard his knuckles were white. His secretary was completely unaware of his current state, dick hard as steel and he wasn't hiding. It took him some suspicious seconds to answer.

After a nod and the click of the door closing, Ike sighed deeply and slumped into the chair again, defeated. A painful hiss comes out of his mouth and he tensed.

"They're a bit earlier, huh... Thank you... for letting me know...", he was unsure of what to do. Checking the time on his watch, he looked between the phone in his hand and the papers on his desk and back to the woman at the door, clearing his throat and finding his posture again, Ike raised his voice in a firmer tone.

"Just give me a minute, I'll call them shortly"

"Fuck!"

He presses down on his cock once again and tries to get it snug in his pants as he brings the phone to his ear once more, "Guess you heard that huh, I'm so sorry, sweetheart... it seems that today's apologies day for me"

"Hum... yeah... I know, it's okay"

"You seem strangely acceptable to the situation, darling..."

He narrowed his eyes, suspicious.

"D-Did you come, babygirl? When I strictly told you to wait for me", he asked smiling and biting his lip, already knowing the answer.

"I did... and I'm not sorry. You still owe me"

That drew an honest laugh from him.

"I know, I'll keep my word to you, like always"

He took the pack of cigarettes out of his jacket and took one with his lips, lighting it.

"Now..." he exhaled the smoke before continuing.

"Get that pretty ass out of bed and go do something useful because when I get back I'll spank you so hard you won't be able to move properly for quite some time, you understood me?"

He knew she was rolling her eyes.

"That's totally unfair... but yes sir, understood"

"Uhum... That's my girl"

You would never stop getting goosebumps hearing that phrase come out of his mouth.

"I gotta go, doll, but I'll see you later, as soon as can. I love you. And again... I'm really sorry for leaving you alone this morning, I won't let him get in my head that way anymore. First time, to never again, okay?"

You smiled on your end of the line. He could change his tone from lewd and sinful to sweet and affectionate in seconds. You loved that about him.

Ben Diamond was a big thorn in Ike's shoes and it's been that way for a long time but he no longer had to carry the weight of his world on his shoulders alone. Sometimes he forgot, and you had to remind him.

"Okay, my love. Just remember that I'm with you in this, we're together and we help each other. I'm not upset because you left me alone in bed, I'm upset about what it meant. Don't push me away from you. You're not gonna lose me"

Somehow he believed her. He wouldn't lose her.

"Okay, baby, you're right, per usual"

He smiled brightly, dimples showing shamelessly. She was always able to ground him when needed.

"Now, bye bye, I love you too, make sure to save him for me"

"Right! I sure will. Bye"

He hung up with a laugh that rumbled in his chest satisfyingly. He'd almost forgotten about the not-so-small problem between his legs.

"Stacy, let them in please"

It would be a long day.

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Gif credit goes to @jdmorganz saving our days as usual!

#ike evans #@ daddy ike #ike evans x reader #hswrites #happy birthday angel #jdm #jeffrey dean morgan #magic city #my work #my fic

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flameo-firelord-hotman · 4 years ago

Text

Part 2

Pairing: Zuko x Fem!Reader

Genre: angst

Warnings: none

Words: 2.0k

Summary: to everyone she knew, [y/n] was a peasant, destined to be a servant just like her parents. To Zuko, however, she was his best friend. After losing his agni kai and being exiled, [y/n] was devastated. She thought she would never see him again. Three years later, she almost wished he never came back.

A/N: have a treat for getting through another week of 2021 :)

Part 1 <- Part 2 -> Part 3

Series | Masterlist

A couple weeks had passed since [y/n] saw Zuko. When her parents asked how their reunion went, she said it went well. What she didn’t say was that all her excitement plunged down the drain the moment Mai and Azula showed up.

Her mom quickly found out about Zuko and Mai’s relationship. It wasn’t surprising. All the girls in the city dreamed of dating Zuko. Such a rumor would spread like wildfire. When it was brought up, [y/n] pretended to be happy for them. She didn’t want her parents to know that she was heartbroken. She didn’t need them to know her secret.

As the days went on, [y/n] pushed her feelings away and did her best to move on. Once again, work kept her mind distracted. And soon things went back to normal...until a messenger hawk landed on the window sill.

“[Y/n]!” Her mom called from the kitchen, “you have a message from Zuko!”

[Y/n]’s heart began to race. Despite her sorrow, she still got excited to hear from him. It was a nostalgic, like when she was a child waiting for that invitation to have a playdate. She left her bedroom to retrieve the note from her mother.

Dear [y/n], I’m sorry I couldn’t take you up on your offer to spend the day together. I’ve had a lot going on now that I’m back. Today, my father told my sister and me to take a vacation. We’re going to Ember Island, and Mai and Ty Lee are coming too. You should join us! Please let me know if you can come. Your friend, Zuko

[Y/n] had mixed feelings about Zuko’s invitation. She could count on one hand how many times she went on a vacation. The thought of taking a break and getting away from the city seemed nice. Zuko would be there too. Although he didn’t like her back, they were still best friends. It could be fun. However, his sister and his girlfriend would be there as well. That could ruin the trip.

[Y/n] shook her head. She was overthinking it. Zuko dating Mai wasn't the end of the world, and he wanted her to be there, so she should go. It would make him happy, and she truly valued his happiness. Surely [y/n] was capable of repressing her crush and not letting Azula get to her. She would be fine.

That was probably an overstatement.

The trip was...okay. Zuko was glad that [y/n] accepted the invite. However, his sister wasn’t too thrilled (though that was to be expected). Also, as expected, Mai was practically attached to Zuko. [Y/n] watched them from afar at the beach. She had to admit that she was at least a little jealous...maybe a lot.

“Here, this is for you,” Zuko said to Mai, handing her a seashell. Mai glanced at it and gave Zuko a snooty look.

“Why would I want that?”

“I saw it, and I thought it was pretty. Don’t girls like stuff like this?”

Yes, of course, [y/n] thought. She would’ve been over the moon if Zuko gave her a seashell.

Mai scoffed. “Maybe stupid girls.”

[Y/n] frowned. Was she a stupid girl? She sure felt stupid for coming here.

“Hey, beach bums! We’re playing next!” Azula shouted to Zuko and Mai, pointing to the people playing kuai ball. “Ty Lee, get over here!”

[Y/n] and the others gathered around Azula.

“Uh-uh,” Azula put her hand out to stop [y/n]. “You’re not playing. Teams of four only, and, besides, you’ll hold us back.”

“Hey!” Zuko barked at his sister.

“It’s fine, Zuko," [y/n] said, putting her hands up to diffuse the situation. "I don’t know how to play, so she’s probably right...” She shrugged her shoulders.

“See? I’m right. Let’s go.” Azula said pompously. She turned on her heel and headed toward the kuai ball court. Everyone else followed.

Watching Zuko and the girls play from the sidelines was normal for [y/n]. As a child, Azula usually let everyone but [y/n] play games with her, then Zuko would get mad, and [y/n] would just deal with it. She didn't dare cause trouble with the princess. But she deeply appreciated Zuko for standing up for her.

As the team of four destroyed their opponents (almost literally), [y/n]'s mind wandered. If I was nobility, I bet I would be playing too...but would Zuko have chosen me instead? Or would he be with Mai anyway?

After spending most of the day at the beach, the group went to a house party. Initially, the party hosts, Chan and Ruon-Jian, invited only Mai and Ty Lee. But, Azula, cunning and determined as always, managed to persuade the hosts to include everyone…even [y/n] to her surprise.

[Y/n] had never been to a house party before. The place was loud and packed with strangers. It was overwhelming to say the least. If it weren't for Mai, [y/n] would've stuck to Zuko's side. But, alas, she watched the love birds sit together, his arm around her shoulder. They were probably having a good time just like everyone else in the room. No one was standing awkwardly alone like [y/n].

Although she could’ve tried to mingle and make friends, she was far too anxious. So [y/n] sought refuge at the snack table. Nibbling on food kept her looking busy, while she prayed to the spirits for the night to go by quickly.

And perhaps the spirits heard her cries for help. Out of the corner of her eye, [y/n] noticed Zuko heading in her direction. Such a simple thing instantly brought her joy.

“Hey!” [Y/n] grinned.

“Hey.” Zuko replied sternly. He barely looked at her. Strange.

“So, um, how are you enjoying the party?”

He sighed dramatically, as he picked out some food. “Oh, it’s great,” he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

Something was wrong. Before [y/n] could open her mouth, Zuko turned and walked away. Then, someone bumped into him and all the food fell to the floor.

“Hey, watch it! That food was for my cranky girlfriend!” Zuko snapped. [Y/n] kneeled down to clean up the food (it must have been her housemaid instincts). When she stood up, she saw Zuko run over to Ruon-Jian, who was talking to Mai, and push him. The poor boy almost crashed into [y/n].

“Hey! What are you doing?” Asked a very stunned Ruon-Jian.

“Stop talking to my girlfriend!” Zuko demanded, pointing an accusatory finger to the host. His other hand was tightly balled into a fist. [Y/n] could practically see the smoke coming out of his hands.

“Relax, it’s just a party—”

Zuko forcefully shoved Ruon-Jian back into a tall vase, which shattered to pieces. Suddenly the room fell silent. People all around them stopped talking to stare.

Mai began yelling at Zuko, and Zuko yelled back. They fought and bickered until Mai finally said it, “it’s over, Zuko. We’re done.”

[Y/n] gawked at the commotion. It all happened so quickly and it seemed so out of the blue. As kids, there were times when Zuko had lost his temper, but this was different. She had never seen Zuko rage to the point of becoming physical before.

“Who broke my nana’s vase?!” Chan cried, running into the scene. Ruon-Jian simply pointed to Zuko. Chan turned to him and aggressively gestured to the door. “That’s it! You’re out of here!”

“I was just leaving,” Zuko growled. He stormed out the front door and slammed it.

I better talk to him, [y/n] thought. She quietly slipped through the crowd of partygoers and left the house. Zuko was angrily walking along the path away from the place, hands still in fists and shoulders tensely raised.

“Zuko!” She called to him. He ignored her.

“Zuko, wait!” [Y/n] jogged to catch up to him. Still, Zuko kept walking. “What happened?” She panted.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

"But--"

"You heard what I said!" He was still fuming and needed to cool down first.

“Okay, okay…" [Y/n] paused before quietly asking, "can I walk with you?”

Zuko hesitated for a moment before sighing heavily. “Yeah, sure.”

Together they walked down the path to the beach. Neither of them said a word. They just silently strolled along the shore side by side. Waves lapped at their feet, providing a nice, calming ambiance. Several minutes passed, then Zuko turned and started up another path. It led up a hill to a large beach house. The house appeared to be abandoned as the garden outside was severely overgrown.

“What is this? Where are we?” [Y/n] wondered.

“My family’s beach house,” Zuko responded in a much more collected tone.

The two walked up the front steps. Zuko tried to open the door, but it was locked. He stepped back and forcefully kicked it open. [Y/n] reluctantly followed him inside.

“We haven’t been here in a long time,” Zuko explained, “we used to come every summer...when we were actually happy.”

A long time indeed. It was obvious that the house had been vacant for many years. Floorboards creaked with every step, a layer of dust coated every surface, and cobwebs hung every corner. A peculiar, stale smell made [y/n]’s nose crinkle.

Zuko extended his hand out and generated a flame. With the dim light, he walked up the large set of stairs in the foyer. [Y/n] followed.

On second floor was a large painting: a family portrait from a different time. Firelord Ozai and his (former) wife, Lady Ursa sat next to each other in chairs. Beneath them sat two children: Zuko and Azula. They looked to be very young, around the age when [y/n] had met them. Everyone was smiling.

Zuko gazed nostalgically. So much had changed in his life since this portrait was painted. It was no wonder his family no longer came here. If one were to pinpoint when it all went downhill, it would be Ursa’s disappearance.

[Y/n] placed a hand on his shoulder. “You miss her, don’t you?”

“Every day,” Zuko mumbled.

“I'm so sorry, Zuko…” she whispered.

“Yeah…” Zuko paused before speaking again. “I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier. And I'm sorry you saw me get so angry at Mai and those other guys.”

[Y/n] nodded, accepting his apology.

“When I was exiled, all I felt was bitter anger and frustration. I thought restoring my honor and coming home would be the only way I could be happy again. Well, I’m home now and I have my honor back, so I should be happy, right? But I’m not, and I don’t know why. Now, I’m just confused.”

“I’m sorry, Zuko” [y/n] said. “I don’t know what I can do to help you.”

“It's okay. I don’t even know how to help myself.”

[Y/n] thought for moment. She had to say something to make him feel better.

“It's not very helpful, but I can tell you this. Everything will be okay. Maybe not now or tomorrow, or even the day after...but if you give yourself time, you’ll figure it out, and then, everything will be okay.”

Zuko turned to [y/n]. He stared at her for just a moment before hugging her. [Y/n] wrapped her arms around him, returning the embrace.

“Thank you, [y/n]. Even after all these years, you’re still here for me."

“Of course...I care about you.” She did, in more ways than Zuko would know.

Zuko pulled away, but kept his hands on her shoulders. He was so close to [y/n], she could almost feel his warm breath tickle her nose. It made her cheeks flush. [Y/n] watched his amber eyes wander all over her face. Everything felt so still and quiet all of a sudden. Even [y/n]’s mind went blank. His lips parted slightly, and she could’ve sworn she saw Zuko lean in a little...

“There you are. I thought I’d find you here—”

Zuko immediately let go of [y/n] and whipped his head around. Behind him at the top of the stairs stood Azula. She cocked her head and crossed her arms.

“Did I interrupt something?” She asked articulately.

“No.” Zuko answered quickly.

“Alright then…come down to the beach. This place is depressing.”

While the three of them returned to the shore, [y/n]’s mind rambled relentlessly.

What was that? Did he just...? No, no, I must be crazy. It didn’t happen. It was nothing. It was dark, my mind must've been playing tricks on me. I was just imagining things. Yeah...imagining it all. He wouldn’t...kiss me…would he?

Taglist (open!): @aangsupremacy @kaylove12

#didn’t mean to wait this long to post but work was exhausting this week #zuko x reader #zuko imagine #zuko x y/n #zuko #atla #zuko fanfic #avatar #atla zuko #avatar the last airbender #prince zuko #atla x reader #atla fanfic #atla x y/n #my fic #ffh writes

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thatsgay-writes · 4 years ago

Text

Kya x Reader

Summary: You help Kya fight Zaheer but get injured.

Warning: Light cursing?

You had been friends with Kya since you were kids, considering the fact that you were Zuko's youngest child. You hadn't gained feelings for Kya til you were about 20 but by then she had been pursuing someone else. So you kept your feelings on the back burner and you thought she was way out of your league. You also never said anything because you didn't want her to have to wait around for you, with you being gone for long periods of time, considering you weren't the first born, you became a general in the Fire Nation army. Of course, Izumi knew all about your not so little crush and would tease you about it whenever you came home to visit.

But now, you had retired at the age of 52, gave your title over to your nephew and worked as a Lin's right hand man in the Republic City police force. After harmonic convergence and the finding of new air benders, you took some time off to spend time with Pema, the kids, and Kya, who were on Avatar Island with some new air benders. You had been going for a late night walk when you heard the sound of fighting. You ran to see Kya fighting an air bender. "What's going on!?" "It's Zaheer!" Kya yells in response, causing you to immediately join in on the fight. You start throwing fire to try and overwhelm Zaheer. You relax when the White Lotus guards get there, even though they barely make a difference. (Honestly though the White Lotus are trash now, they get beaten way too easily.) Zaheer knew to escape he had to get you and Kya out the way. Over the past few days, Zaheer has noticed the glances the two of you give each other when the other isn't looking. Yes, a criminal like him figured it out before you and Kya did.

After being thrown against the outside wall of the house for the third time, you were a little out of it and dazed. Using this to Zaheer's advantage he air bended you over the cliff causing Kya to pause. "If you don't let me leave I will drop them." Kya could see that you were still out of it and dropped the water she had been bending. "Please just put them down and you can leave." Zaheer smirked at her statement, "Okay." Is all he said before he put you down, while still having you over the cliff. "Y/N!" Kya yelled as she ran towards the cliff, completely ignoring Zaheer who had taken off as soon as he dropped you. As soon as Kya got to the edge of the cliff she watched you hit the ground. "NO!" Is what you heard right after hitting the ground. You had been out of it while falling but as soon as you hit the ground, you felt all your air leave your body. Your eyes became wide as you struggled to get your breath back, while ignoring the pain in you back and head at the same time. When you finally did get your breath back, you barely noticed that you were being dragged through the sand. You get placed in the water with your face floating just above the water, the salt water making the wound on your head hurt 100 times more.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry this was the closest water around." Kya just keeps repeating as you cry, her own tears making her vision blurry. By the time Kya had done everything she could, the White Lotus and Pema were down on the beach. The White Lotus had a stretcher and a boat ready to take you to the hospital in Republic City. By the time your half way across the sea to Republic City, you feel everything become sluggish. You were honestly surprised you had been awake still, but now could feel yourself about to pass out. "K..." The feeling of exhaustion washing over you faster and faster. "Kya..." Kya heard you call her name and rushed over to you as fast as she could. "Yeah Y/n? Do you need anything?" You just give her a dopey smile and respond with, "mm tire..." That makes Kya's eyes widen in fear. "Hey, your not allowed to go to sleep yet okay. I need you to stay awake for me, can you do that?" You go to nod your head but cringe in pain at the movement. Kya sighs, "Just hold on a little longer y/n."

You ended up passing out in the middle of being examined. The doctor's face had been somber when he went to the lobby to give the news that you were in a coma and they had no idea when you would wake up. Hearing this caused Kya to immediately start sobbing and think about the what ifs. Pema pulled Kya into her to try and give her any sense of comfort she could but Kya just felt sad and numb.

Month 1 was probably the hardest for Kya. It was hard to not see your face around the air temple or hear you make a joke every 10 minutes. Kya wasn't really big on meditating or praying to spirits but a week after you had been in a coma, she made it a daily ritual.

Month 2 had Kya reading the letters you had sent her during your deployments all those years ago, when you were still a 20 year old ready to prove yourself to the world. Kya never told you that she had saved your letters, a little embarrassed by the fact. But what she didn't know is that you had saved hers too and read them whenever things got hard.

Month 3 Kya came to a realization while visiting you one day. She loved you. She couldn't tell when she figured it out or if she had known for longer and just didn't let herself accept it til recently but she knew now that she loved you. Maybe it was the fact that you were so close and yet so far. Sure you had gone months without talking before but this was different.

By month 6, everyone was trying to get her to move on. Everyone knew that the chance of you waking up now were 0, only Kya believed that you would wake up. She did relent though and went on 1 date with Lin, it had been a blind date and she wouldn't have gone if she knew it was Lin (because y'all are best friends and work together). Instead of treating it like a date, they both spent a night sharing stories about you, Kya's from when you were young and what you would tell her in your letter, while Lin would tell you about how you would catch criminal and how you managed to bust a ring of illegal animal trading on accident.

After saying bye to Lin, Kya had decided to pay you a visit before going back to Avatar Island. She walked right into the hospital and to your room, everyone on staff knew her by that point as she was the only one that came to visit anymore. Everyone else stopped coming after month 3. Kya did her usual routine of sitting down in a chair next to your bed and telling you about her week. When that was done she stared at you for a little before crying. "Please y/n. Everyone else has given up but I haven't. I need you to wake up so I can tell you how I feel, so we can grow older together. Just please give me a sign that your still in their somewhere."

The squeeze she felt was so small, she thought she had made it up to make herself feel better. But when it came back again, stronger, she sat up straighter and held your hand tighter. "Come on y/n one more time." She needed to know her mind wasn't playing tricks on her. She found out it wasn't when your eyes suddenly open and you sit up gasping for air, before taking the tube out of your throat. "Oh my spirits." Kya mumbled as she rushed out the door, noting that it was still night time she sprinted to the nurses desk. "Oh my spirits! Y/n is awake!" The nurses eye widen in shock before calling a doctor straight to your room.

Kya had wanted to tell you how she felt as soon as you had woken up but waited. She knew the next month or two was going to be hard on you. You had always been so strong but now that you had lost most of your muscle mass, you were like a twig. Kya knew you were gonna be super focused to get back to where you were before your coma and was their every step of the way. When you were confined to a wheel chair, Kya was there. When you went to the South Pole to have Katara help you learn how to walk again, Kya was there. When you went to the Fire Nation to surprise your family and strengthen your fire bending again, Kya was there.

Now that all that was over Kya could finally tell you how she feels. But now she had no idea how to do it. So instead of panicking, she wrote a letter just like you two use to do before you retired. She was honestly super nervous, especially since you still had two more days left in your trip and it would be awkward if you didn't feel the same way. So she knocked on your door, dropped the letter, and ran. You were confused when you opened the door before seeing a piece of paper on the floor. It was a letter and from the handwriting, you could tell it was Kya who had sent it. Not wasting anytime, you opened it and read its contents. You were shocked to say the least.

Banging on the door thirty minute after dropping off the letter was not what Kya expected. It could be one of two things going on; one, something is wrong with the ship or two, you had come to respond about her letter. Her heart started beating harder at the second option and started praying it was the first. When she opened the door your first was mid-air and ready to knock again, the letter was slightly crumpled from you gripping it so tightly, and you looked like you were on a mission. At first Kya took this as anger and was ready to apologize, "I'm--" She couldn't even get out two words before you barged into the room, shut the door behind you, pushed her against the wall and kissed her like you had been wanting to do for the last twenty something years. Kya was in shock and before she could kiss back, you pulled back to get some air.

"I love you too."

#kya x reader #female x reader #female character #x reader #lok #legend of korra

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tabloidtoc · 3 years ago

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People, May 10

Cover: Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade

Page 3: Chatter -- Mindy Kaling on technology woes, Amy Adams on wanting to go into acting because of Grease, Gal Gadot on telling her daughters Maya and Alma about her pregnancy, DJ Khaled on using Rihanna's skin-care line, Christie Brinkley on showing off her body on Instagram at age 67, Whoopi Goldberg on writing a superhero movie about an older Black lady

Page 4: 5 Things We're Talking About -- Michael Keaton returns as Batman, Jane Fonda recalls her first and best kiss, Maya Rudolph would give Bridesmaids another go, the stars of ER scrub in one more time, popcorn and donuts team up

Page 7: Contents

Page 8: StarTracks -- one day before Prince William and Princess Kate's youngest child Prince Louis turned 3, Kensington Palace released a new portrait of the little royal to mark the occasion; Kate snapped the photo of Louis, who wore a school uniform and backpack as he rode his bike outside their home in London ahead of his first day of preschool

Page 9: JoJo Siwa and mom Jessalynn went for a roller-coaster ride at Disney's Hollywood studios in Florida, Madonna in a three-piece Gucci suit for dinner at West Hollywood staple Craig's

Page 10: Stars on Set -- Rachel Brosnahan was pretty in pink while filming season 4 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel with costar Alex Borstein in NYC, John Cena flashed a peace sign when he took a coffee break while filming The Suicide Squad spinoff series Peacemaker in Vancouver, Tika Sumpter and James Marsden shot an action-packed scene for Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in Vancouver

Page 11: Katie Holmes was spotted on a Connecticut set preparing to film the drama The Watergate Girl in which she'll play Watergate prosecutor Jill Wine-Banks, Awkwafina and Bowen Yang filmed the upcoming season of Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens in NYC, Melissa Benoist suited up for Supergirl in Vancouver

Page 12: Brooke Shields who is recovering after breaking her femur in a gym accident walked arm in arm after a lunch with husband Chris Henchy, Britney Spears and boyfriend Sam Asghari posed for a photo before attending a friend's wedding

Page 15: Stars in the Sun -- Maren Morris flaunted her new tan while enjoying a tropical getaway, Simone Biles and boyfriend Jonathan Owens cuddled up during a trip to Florida, Lindsey Vonn caught some waves and some rays while paddleboarding in Tulum, Derek Hough cooled off in the ocean during a beach day in L.A., Brie Larson enjoyed a dip while on vacation in Hawaii

Page 17: Scoop -- Life After Their Split -- how Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez are moving on

Page 18: Inside Caitlyn Jenner's run for governor

Page 20: Heart Monitor -- Tarek El Moussa and Heather Rae Young ready to wed, Pete Davidson and Phoebe Dynevor going public, Zac Efron and Vanessa Valladares split, Billie Eilish and Matthew Tyler Vorce new couple?

Page 23: Jana Kramer and Mike Caussin's messy divorce

* Susannah Constantine -- my royal friendship with Princess Margaret

Page 24: Open House -- French Montana

* Baby Boom -- the latest on Hollywood's growing families -- Marie Kondo and Takumi Kawahara welcomed a son, Nick and Lauren Carter welcomed their third child

Page 27: Ed Helms talks life after The Office

Page 29: Passages, Why I Care -- Lisa Kudrow is working with doctors at UCLA to end the stigma surrounding mental health issues

Page 31: Stories to Make You Smile -- most cats can't stand the water but 8-month-old Marlin can't get enough and his Instagram is @carolinejarvis, a first grader's airplane kits give wings to kids' travel dreams

Page 35: People Picks -- Tom Clancy's Without Remorse

Page 36: Limbo, One to Watch -- Shadow and Bone's Jessie Mei Li

Page 37: Pose, Pet Stars

Page 38: The Handmaid's Tale, Thomas Rhett -- Country Again: Side A, Q&A with Olivia Holt

Page 39: The Mosquito Coast, Inspiring America: The 2021 Inspiration List

Page 41: Books

Page 42: Oscars 2021 -- The Return of Glamour -- the show was unconventional, just 170 guests were allowed in L.A.'s Union Station, and COVID restrictions were strictly enforced, but stars did their part to bring back some movie magic

Page 43: Andra Day

Page 44: Fabulous Fashion -- crop tops, ball gowns and bows ruled the red carpet -- Angela Bassett, Zendaya, Carey Mulligan, Maria Bakalova

Page 45: Margot Robbie, Reese Witherspoon, Viola Davis, Amanda Seyfried

Page 46: Behind the Scenes -- Regina King -- the actress closed out awards season in a custom Louis Vuitton creation

Page 48: Shine Bright -- there's no such thing as too much bling -- Laura Pausini, Vanessa Kirby, Zendaya

Page 49: Maria Bakalova, Daniel Kaluuya, Glenn Close, Tiara Thomas

Page 50: Very Well Suited -- these sharp dressers put their own twists on the tuxedo -- Lakeith Stanfield, Colman Domingo, Paul Raci, Tyler Perry, Sacha Baron Cohen, Alan Kim

Page 53: Getting Ready with Andra Day

Page 55: Getting Ready with Angela Bassett

Page 56: Romance on the Red Carpet -- these couples only had eyes for each other -- Sacha Baron Cohen and Isla Fisher, Halle Berry and Van Hunt, Chloe Zhao and Joshua James Richards, Riz Ahmed and Fatima Farheen Mirza

Page 57: Steven Yeun and Joana Pak, Leslie Odom Jr. and Nicolette Robinson, Paul Raci and Liz Hanley Raci, Aaron Sorkin and Paulina Porizkova

Page 58: Best in Show -- there were A-list stars, groundbreaking moments and social distancing as Hollywood gathered safely to honor the best movies of the year -- Reese Witherspoon

Page 61: Alan Kim, Angela Bassett, Rita Moreno

Page 62: Major Moments -- these artists broke barriers during the most historic ceremony ever -- Emerald Fennell, Chloe Zhao, Daniel Kaluuya

Page 63: H.E.R., Anthony Hopkins, Yuh-Jung Youn with Brad Pitt, Mia Neal

Page 65: Yuh-Jung Youn and Daniel Kaluuya and Frances McDormand, Elton John and Dua Lipa, Andra Day and Winnie Harlow

Page 66: Cover Story -- Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union -- Dream Team -- the actress and NBA champ open up about protecting their family, fighting for what's right and why they're stronger than ever

Page 72: George Floyd's Killer Found Guilty -- We Can Breathe Again -- friends and family of the Minneapolis man killed by police rejoice after a jury's verdict and vow with supporters to keep fighting systemic racism

Page 76: Bethenny Frankel -- what I know now -- the irrepressible former Real Housewives star and businesswoman is newly engaged and back as a boss with a new show

Page 80: A Son Lost to Suicide, A Father's Mission -- we loved him every day, but it wasn't enough -- after the shocking death of his 12-year-old son, Brad Hunstable has a message for parents: talk to your kids about suicide

Page 84: Andrew McCarthy -- I was never suited for fame -- the beloved actor, and author of a new memoir, looks back on his enduring films, surviving his '80s stardom and how his affiliation with the so-called Brat Pack was a mixed blessing

Page 88: Prince William and Duchess Kate Middleton's 10-year anniversary -- remembering the big day -- those who made the wedding a fairy tale share their memories

Page 92: Country Singer Thomas Rhett -- fame, family and finding my way -- the star opens up about overcoming struggled with his wife Lauren in their 8-year-marriage and learning to put their family first

Page 98: Murdered Soldier Vanessa Guillen's Fiance -- every day I pray for justice -- a year after losing the love of his life, Juan Cruz is determined to make sure the Army specialist's legacy is never forgotten and that her tragic death inspires lasting change

Page 102: George W. Bush -- painting with a purpose -- the former president avoided making waves, until his party's nativist prompted him to use his art to celebrate immigrants

Page 106: Pop Star Julia Michaels -- how I learned to love myself -- the singer talks falling in love, managing anxiety and writing hits for Britney Spears and Selena Gomez

Page 116: One Last Thing -- Josh Duhamel

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lizartgurl · 3 years ago

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"The Little Atlantean" (Aqualad xOC)

(part one) (part two) (part three) (part four) (part five) (part six) (part seven) (part eight) (part nine) (part ten) (part eleven) PART TWELVE

Vulko soared above the sea, happy as a clam. He hummed along with the band as it played the Royal Anthem. He would like nothing better than to join the celebrations, but he had to check on Kaldur first, to make sure the kid wasn't too nervous. He perched on the open porthole at the bow of the ship, where the royal suites were located. He heard singing, that was good, the kid had gotten his voice back.

Vulko peered into the room. The man standing in front of the mirror, dressed in a royal suit, wasn't Kaldur. And the image in the mirror didn't look anything like Kaldur either.

Large black tentacles spread out beneath the dark purple cloak, and his face was covered by a mask with glowing red eyes. As the pale version of Kaldur turned around, examining himself in the mirror, Vulko could see that his eyes were glowing red as well.

"Poor little mer-prince," he sighed mockingly, lovingly caressing the shell on his cloak.

"It seems you were right. Without your voice, how could you possibly convince a human to fall in love with you?"

Two toothy grins appeared in the mirror, each taking the form of a dark-haired mermaid and a blonde merman in blood red robes.

"The poor unfortunate soul!" Chian cackled.

"Be ready," Ocean Master warned. "At sunset, Kaldur'ahm will return to his true form, and his mother will no doubt swim to his rescue."

"Yessss, masster," Chian and Ronal both hissed, bowing lowly.

Understanding struck Vulko like a glass window. He had to find Kaldur.

Kaldur sat in the tidepool with La'gaan and Tula, staring at the royal yacht as it drifted off to sea.

"You still have another hour!" Tula tried to calculate how long it would take the sun to disappear beneath the waves. "You could still try and tell her how you feel."

Kaldur shook his head. Emma wouldn't want to hear how he felt. She had David now. A man who was perfectly human, as she was. He thought Talia's conversation with him indicated that Emma loved him, but he was obviously wrong. His mother had been right. He was naive.

"Kaldur!" Garth scuttled down the beach as quickly as he could, out of breath by the time he reached the rock that Kaldur was sitting on.

"Kaldur!" Garth pinched his leg. "Enough moping, young man! We have to get that girl to kiss you!"

Kaldur rubbed the spot Garth had pinched, batting Garth into the water.

"Did you just-?" Garth spluttered angrily, and splashed at the water. "I have not spent three days in this dry air, being thrown about and chased by a lunatic with a knife, just to give up now!

"Have you lost your hearing as well as your voice, child!?" He asked when Kaldur made no indication he'd heard Garth's demands.

"KALDUR!" And there was Vulko again. Garth had just enough of the seagull's help.

Vulko crashed into the beach, spraying sand all over the four of them. Without waiting to catch his breath, he began to splutter something indistinct, spraying words and sand at them.

"I was- I was flying- and I saw- and I see- and it, its not him!" He cried, grabbing La'gaan and forcing the fish to look him in the eye.

"Do you see what I'm saying!" He did the same thing to Garth.

"Vulko, what are you talking about?" Tula asked, gently prying Garth from Vulko's feathers.

"The whole thing's a hoax!" Vulko shouted, his screech echoing across the beach, "The Princess is marrying the Sea Witch in disguise!"

The lump in Kaldur's throat dropped to the pit of his stomach. Without waiting for a plan, he ran at the waves and dove into the breakers. When he resurfaced behind them, he was having trouble staying afloat. He still didn't know how to swim without his tail, but he had to get to Emma, he had to save her from Ocean Master.

"La'gaan!" Garth had discovered a large log and the remains of the rope from Kaldur's first human robe. Tula secured one end of the rope to the log, and tied the other end to La'gaan.

"You swim as fast as your little fins can go!" Garth jabbed his nose. La'gaan nodded, pulling the log to Kaldur to give him some support as he swam.

"What about you?" Tula asked.

Garth steeled himself, "You and I are going to get the Queen Regent."

Tim, as loudly and obnoxiously as possible, recited his latest encyclopedia finds to David, while Mara, Stephanie, and Cassandra joined hands, dancing in a circle around him and keeping him from getting to Emma. Jason was just waiting for the perfect opportunity to sic the twins on him. Typically, Talia would have stepped in by now, but she was perfectly content to let David suffer, even if her children hadn't filled her in on the plan.

"So what's the point of keeping him away from Emma?" Duke asked.

Annabella nervously looked to her sister, who sat placid and pale on the other end of the ship while Talia attempted to get more than abrupt, one-word answers out of her. She glanced out over the sea, to where the sun was setting. She prayed that since Kaldur was a mermaid, he'd be able to swim out to their ship and help Emma break out of this spell.

"We need to try and turn the ship around, to give Kaldur a chance of reaching the ship," she said.

"Leave it to me," Jason handed Damian and Athanasia to Bella, grabbed Duke, and slipped into the confused crowd.

"What odd children…" the Kryptonian delegation murmured, squinting through his spectacles.

"I'd say that they haven't been the same since their father died," Countess De Gatti said mournfully.

Annabella ignored them. If the world wanted to watch, let them. She would not let this monster get away with marrying her sister if she could help it.

Slowly, she could feel the ship begin to turn back towards the coast. Good. Unfortunately, David noticed it too, and began to get nervous.

"Hey David!" She said loudly, "Could you help me with the twins?" She handed Athanasia, the rowdiest, to David, "After all, you're practically family now!" A few members of their captive audience "Aww'd" as David struggled to figure out how to hold the child.

"How many kids are you and Emma gonna have?" Mara asked innocently.

"None," he growled out.

"But you have to have kids!" Stephanie insisted. Cassandra signed her agreement, and Stephanie translated, "You must continue the line of succession! That's the only way people will accept Emma as a ruler!"

"The only ruler you'll ever have is me."

"Huh?" Annabella and her sisters froze, thinking that they must have mis-heard.

David shoved Athanasia into Tim's hands, and marched across the deck to Emma. "My queen, I must insist that we go forward with the ceremony."

Emma immediately rose and took his hand. Talia took a little more time to respond.

"Very well."

She glanced across the ship to her children. Annabella whispered something to Cassandra, who signed to Talia, slowly dragging her hand up her arm.

Talia nodded, and slowly clapped her hands. Respectfully, the crowd parted to either side of the purple carpet rolled down the center of the deck. Slowly, Talia proceeded down the carpet, forcing David and Emma to walk behind her, slowly.

Annabella looked back out at the sun. They were only prolonging the inevitable if they couldn't get Kaldur. Then, she spotted him, clinging to a piece of driftwood that was slowly but surely making its way across the pink ocean to them.

She grinned, and pointed it out to her sisters.

"Fishy!" Athanasia squealed.

David looked over at them suspiciously.

"Aww, she wants you to hold her!" Tim said to distract him, pushing his way through the crowd to shove Athanasia back into David's arms.

Typically, Bella would do anything to keep her siblings out of harm's way, but Athanasia was tougher than she looked. That baby wasn't scared of anything.

Still, she held her breath as David struggled once more to hold the child. He knew from the evil eye Talia was giving him that if anything happened to her baby, he would soon be sushi. Emma remained oblivious to her fiance's struggles as she made her way down the aisle after Talia.

Kaldur- and one of his fish friends- made it to the side of the boat, and Kaldur started to climb up the rigging. Jason and Duke gave him a boost through the window, up to where Cassandra, Stephanie, and Mara could grab him and hoist him up on deck.

"Hey David! Check this out!" Richard came up the stairs from the underdeck, carrying a tray full of appetizers in each hand and one on his head. He tossed all three trays in the air and all the guests gasped and screamed, running to avoid getting their clothes stained. Richard rolled forward as Talia reached the altar. He sprung up into a handstand, balancing on one hand. He caught one tray on his free hand, the other on his extended foot, but the tray of deviled eggs splattered all over David.

The deck went silent. Emma said nothing.

Athanasia, still squirming in David's arms, spotted Kaldur, frozen in fear with the rest of them, and squealed.

"Fishy!" She snatched the glowing conch shell from David's cloak, holding it out to Kaldur.

Annabella snatched it from her baby sister and smashed it on the deck.

It exploded in a flash of golden light. Emma collapsed with a splitting headache. Richard pulled her to her feet again.

"What…" Emma vaguely recognized that her coronation dress had been altered into a wedding gown. "What happened? Where's Kaldur?" She asked, gripping the lapel of Richard's jacket.

Talia smiled, "He is right here, Emma."

"Fishy!" Athanasia confirmed. She wriggled out of David's grasp, running to Kaldur with her arms outstretched to be held.

"Kaldur," Emma smiled, and her headache magically vanished.

Kaldur wiped away the water from his face, and the royal siblings collectively pushed him towards their big sister.

A voice came from the shell fragments, no more than a whisper at first, as a gentle glow gathered, it floated towards Kaldur, until he was singing again.

The royal siblings stared at him, jaws agape.

"It's you," even as Emma said it, she knew that somehow, she had always known it was true. Kaldur had been the one who rescued her, the one who sang to her, it was his voice she fell in love with. It was him that she was in love with.

"Emma," Kaldur's voice cracked as he said her name.

"Emma!" 'David' snarled in a voice much deeper than it had been before, "Get away from him!" Jason came up and placed the dull side of chef Louis' butcher's knife against his throat.

Emma ignored the threat as Kaldur took her hands in his.

"Emma, I wanted to tell you…"

"Yes?" Emma pulled him closer.

Kaldur was enraptured by her bright blue eyes, sparkling in the sunset. He leaned in closer, and then he gasped in pain and fell onto the deck.

"Kaldur!" Talia and the royal children surrounded him in an instant, wondering what could possibly cause their friend this much pain.

Annabella noticed it first. His legs had returned to a mermaid's tail.

David cackled, "You're too late!" He pointed to the horizon, "the sun has set!"

Kaldur helplessly looked over his shoulder, to find that the last rays of sun were gone. The ocean had turned purple, and would soon become an unforgiving black.

"Kaldur, what-"

"Emma," Kaldur gripped her hand tightly, "I am so sorry."

With a great tearing noise, Ocean Master revealed his true form, knocking Jason and Duke to the other end of the ship with his large tentacles.

Kaldur's grip on Emma's hand tightened. Without his mask, Ocean Master was truly Orm, his mother's brother and trusted advisor.

"Surprised, little prince?" Orm grinned, standing on the tips of his tentacles, his cloak rippling in the wind, "Don't worry, your mother never suspected anything either."

He loomed over Kaldur and his friends, "That will be her undoing."

Emma stood bravely between Kaldur and the Sea Witch. "I won't let you take him."

"Why my dear fiancee," Orm feigned offense, "Who said that I would be the one to take him?"

With a shriek of glee, Chian and Ronal shot up out of the water. Without wasting a second, they each grabbed one of Kaldur's arms and jumped back into the ocean, dragging La'gaan down with them.

"No!" Emma screamed, running to the ship's railing. She would have thrown herself into the water after them had Annabella not pulled her out of the path of the Sea Witch as he dove out of sight.

"Emma," Annabella recognized the look in her eye, "You can't. Please don't."

Emma looked around the ship, at all the frightened guests and her shocked siblings. Damian was crying again, and Talia was trying to comfort him. Thunder rumbled in the distance.

Emma took off her tiara and stared at it for a moment.

"Bella, I need you to get everyone back to shore," she pressed her tiara into Annabella's hands even as Bella's round, golden eyes begged her not to.

"If I don't come back, you will be the next Queen of Gotham."

Emma threw off her gown and grabbed the harpoon secured to the railing. Wearing nothing but her shift, she dove into the churning waters.

She had lost Kaldur once. She was not going to lose him again.

#lizart writes #tlm au #kaldur'ahm #aqualad #kaldur x oc #aqualad x oc #my ocs #nightingale

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