#I listened to folklore while writing this I hope someone noticed the references | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hyuniebaby · 4 years

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Summer Love

Pairings: Chanyeol x Y/N

Song reference/inspiration: August by Taylor Swift

Genre: Smut, Fluff, Angst

A/N: So I've been listening to Taylor Swift a lot these days and I literally just found out about The Teenage Love Triangle thing in her Folklore album. It gave me inspiration to write this. 😄 It's been a while since I wrote for EXO so here's my first EXO fanfic for 2021! I hope I did Taylor Swift's song justice. Please let me know your thoughts~

You could hear the loud music playing at the club from a block away. You really didn’t plan on going out at all, too tired from your shift at the yogurt shop that you worked part time at. But your friends were insistent.

“God, I need a break,” you messaged your friends, ranting about how work was tiring. If there was one thing you learned about your work, it was that people come flooding in at the shop for frozen yogurt every summer. You couldn’t blame them for it, of course. The heat was unbearable, people would buy anything cold to beat the heat.

“Then let’s go to the club tonight!” Krystal messaged back.

You groaned. You should’ve expected she was going to say that. But the “break” you meant was more of “needing more time to rest” than a “I need a fucking drink.”

You were about to explain to her that you weren’t in the mood to drink but the rest of your friends had already agreed with her. You closed the group chat and massaged your head.

You knew your friends like the back of your hand so you expected them to give you reasons why you should go clubbing with them. Hell, they would probably even make a powerpoint presentation to convince you. And you have to ready yourself for that level of extra, hence, the head massage.

But your friends knew you the same way you knew them so when you didn’t reply after two minutes, they came to the conclusion that you didn’t want to go. You were, after all, the person who always replied instantly — whenever, wherever. Even at work, that’s why they have your schedule so they can avoid messaging you during your shifts.

By the third minute of silence, yes, you counted , a series of messages flooded your phone. As expected, their messages were reasons why you should go to the club with them. One, it was summer so there’s no school work to catch up on. Two, you don’t have work the next day so there’s no need to worry about getting a hangover. Three, alcohol, that’s enough explanation.

You snorted at that.

They listed plenty more reasons but the one that convinced you was that you haven’t seen them in a while since summer break started. So without reading more of their reasons, you replied with a simple, “Ugh, fine.”

When you entered the club, you immediately scanned the area to look for your group of friends. But instead of finding them, your breath hitched as your eyes locked with someone else. He was tall and gorgeous. And hot. Yeah, definitely hot. You shamelessly ogle at his form. From his silver locks to the chain necklaces he was adorned with to the thin white sleeveless shirt he was wearing that was tucked in his denim pants. It was like he wasn’t even trying with his style yet he looked tempting.

And if there’s one known fact about you, it was that you lacked self control.

If you knew you’d find a guy like him that night, you would’ve worn the short black dress you owned or your favorite red satin dress, instead of the gold mini dress you were wearing.

There was nothing really wrong about the dress you’re wearing. It fits you like a glove and it shows a generous amount of skin, but it screams sophistication and elegance. Something that was the opposite of you, but you liked to play pretend sometimes.

But still, red and black were the sexiest colors. Both sexually alluring — arousing, even. And those were what you needed him to see, to feel.

By the time you had shifted your eyes to look back up his handsome face, you saw that his eyes were still traveling over your body.

Okay, maybe gold was fine.

Before anything else could happen, however, Krystal, Lia, and Rose had tackled you in a hug. You wanted to roll your eyes at them. Talk about perfect timing. They started chattering off about how they missed you, oblivious to your encounter with the man.

Before they could whisk you off to the table they claimed, you stole another glance at the hot stranger. His eyes were still on you and you couldn’t stop the small smirk that crept into your face.

Your friends shared stories about what happened to them since summer break started, meanwhile you ranted about your work and how hectic it had been. As the conversation continued, alcohol came and went. Overall, it was fun hanging out with your over-the-top friends.

Every now and then you look at the hot stranger. You were tempted to just get up and go directly to him and just kiss him but not now when he was finally graced with the presence of his friend. Not now when your friends were still there with you.

Not yet.

When your friends got borderline drunk, they stood up and went to the dance floor. You knew then that they weren’t going to come back.

They were always like that when they got a hold of the liquid courage. By the time they’d dance off, they would find a man to spend the night with and not bother to say goodbye. And then the next thing you’ll know, they’ll be updating you on the group chat about how their night went. That’s what always happens every time you all go out clubbing so you were quite used to it.

You waved them off as they made their way to the dance floor. You downed another drink and found yourself looking over at the location of the hot stranger once again.

You watched as his friend got up and left him when he saw your friends heading to the dance floor. He’s probably interested in one of them. Or all of them. You didn’t know. You didn’t care.

Despite the distance, you could almost hear the sigh of relief your hot stranger released. Yes, you claimed him already. When he lost sight of his friend on the crowded dance floor, he immediately snapped his head to your direction. You smirked as he did so.

You made your way towards him. You could tell he was entranced with your body. The lust was written all over his face.

“Hey, stranger,” you greeted as you sat beside him. Your dress had hitched up and you didn’t bother adjusting it. Why would you when he was eyeing your legs like that? Like he’s one breath away to opening them up.

Once he’s gotten his fill on the sight of your legs, his eyes once again traveled the entirety of your body before settling his eyes on your face.

If only it wasn’t indecent to take him then and there, ugh.

“Chanyeol,” he introduced himself as he placed a kiss on your hand.

You hummed and told him your name, “So Chanyeol, I noticed you looked a little bit bored a while ago,” then you leaned in and whispered to his ear, “don’t you want to do something fun?”

He tilted his head so that his lips touched your neck when he talked and then placed his hand on your thigh, “My place is just around the corner,” was his answer.

He gave your leg a little squeeze before offering his hand to help you stand up.

The next thing you knew, he was fervently kissing you after he shut the door to his room. He tasted like cigarettes but also something sweet that you just can’t name. But the taste doesn’t really matter to you, what matters was how he was using his lips. And, god, was he good at using his lips.

His hands wandered around your body while yours trailed over his toned chest and abs. He grabbed your butt and slammed you to the door, bringing his erection closer to your pussy.

You instinctively rubbed against him, moaning at the much needed friction. He brought his lips to your neck and nibbled your sensitive skin.

Then he slipped his hand under your skirt, feeling your damp panties.

“Please Chanyeol,” you moaned.

“Please what?”

“Please touch me.”

“Are you sure?”

You huffed but said, “Never have I ever been so sure.”

He moved your panties to the side and slid a finger in you. “You’re so wet, babe,” he said as he pumped his finger in and out of you.

“Chanyeol, hng, more.”

He didn’t need to be told twice. He added another finger while you cursed at how good it felt. He was leaving kisses all over your neck, you were pretty sure you’d be painted with reds and purples by the end of the night.

You were in a daze but you weren’t just going to let him do all the work. Your hands quickly went on to undo his belt and his pants. You freed his hard shaft from the offensive garment and gave it a few strokes. Then you spit on your palm and finally gave the attention his cock deserved.

“Fuck, that feels so good,” he mewled.

You went back to kissing him after his statement. It was like there was an unspoken agreement between the two of you — both of you wanted to get on the bed — so he carried you there, never once pulling away from the kiss.

As your bum touches his mattress, he immediately strips himself of his clothes while you shimmied out of your dress.

You were able to remove only your dress when he locked his lips with you once again. He laid you down on the bed, his left hand groping your breast.

When he pulled back, he took his time in scanning your body. You bit your lip to prevent a whine from the sudden lack of contact.

“You’re so sexy, babe. I want to fuck you so badly.”

“Then do it, Chanyeol.” You looked up at him.

The sight was something to behold. Chanyeol on top of you, naked — his skin glistening with sweat, and the light makes him look perfect. His muscles were flexing as he breathed. The sight increased your arousal by tenfold.

You rubbed your cunt to his shaft to grab his attention since he was back to ogling your body. The action snapped him out of his trance and he quickly unhooked your bra and removed your panties, throwing them somewhere in the room. He took your right nipple in his mouth and sucked while he squeezed your left boob. On reflex, you arched your back as he gave attention to your breasts. He shifted between your two mounds. You moaned in delight from the sensation.

Once he was satisfied with his work, he abruptly inserted two fingers to your core. You cried at the sudden intrusion. He expertly fingered you. You closed your eyes and relished on the way he was making you feel.

You felt him shift but he didn’t stop the onslaught to your cunt so you paid no attention to this. You released a whimper when all of a sudden he slipped his fingers out of you. You peeked at him, ready to scold him because he pulled out just when you were about to cum. But what greeted you was the view of Chanyeol putting on a condom.

“Sorry babe, I couldn’t wait anymore. I need to be inside you,” he said, not a hint of regret in his tone.

You gulped as you saw his big, veiny cock. “I’m going to fuck you so hard,” he promised.

Then he shoved his dick to your pussy. “You’re so fucking tight.”

You grit your teeth, he was big and you felt so full. He waited a while for you to adjust to his size when he bottomed out.

“Fuck me, Chanyeol,” you begged.

The moment the words slipped out of your mouth, he obliged and pounded into you. His thrusts were so powerful that you couldn’t help but moan and gasp. He shifted a little, the position let him adjust his pace to a much faster one.

Lewd, sinful noises came out of your mouth as he fucked you hard, fulfilling his promise. “Who’s making you feel this good?” He asked cockily.

“Y-you are,” you stuttered.

“Say my name.”

“Cha-Chanyeol. Fuck. You make m-me feel so g-good Chanyeol.”

He was driving you to your climax so fast from his ministrations. You were clenching on his cock the closer you got to your release. His hand found its way to your clit and he rubbed it.

You spasmed as you reached your high. Chanyeol was quick to follow after a few harsh thrusts. After he came, he stood up to throw the used condom and grabbed a wet towel to clean you up. He was so gentle at doing it and you found yourself closing your eyes at how relaxing it was. The tiredness from work and the sex caught up with you. You didn’t even intend to sleep yet, but when you closed your eyes, nothing stopped you from falling asleep.

Chanyeol was nice enough not to kick you out after the sexual encounter. You thank the gods above that you woke up before Chanyeol did, because you knew it would be too awkward if he woke up before you. This was supposed to be a one night stand after all.

You slowly got out of bed, careful not to wake Chanyeol from his slumber. You quickly put on your clothes, well, as fast as your aching body could anyway. You tiptoed out of his room and left.

There wasn’t any need to write a note for him or whatever. Sure, the sex was good, amazing even, but you know nothing about him aside from his name and address. He could be a completely different person when he’s sober, you’ll never really know.

But fate had other plans for the two of you.

It was a week after that event that you saw Chanyeol again. You were driving home, taking in the view of the city. He was walking slowly, seemingly lost in thought, under the streetlights two blocks away from the yogurt shop you worked at.

You debated on whether or not to call him. He looked quite distant and lonely. If you weren’t paying attention to your surroundings, you wouldn’t have thought that it was Chanyeol.

This Chanyeol looked the opposite of the Chanyeol you met at the club. There wasn’t any trace of cockiness. Even the smile you saw that he easily gave away to his friend was gone.

As if your body has a mind of its own, you found yourself pulling up and rolling down the window, “Chanyeol!”

He whipped his head to look at you, shocked. It kind of seemed like he saw a ghost. You chuckled.

“Get in, let’s drive!”

Normally, you wouldn’t be doing this. Chanyeol was a stranger after all, but oddly, he did feel familiar.

He looked reluctant but eventually he gave in. The car ride was quiet. You didn’t mind though, you like the silence so you didn’t attempt to break it.

Initially, you didn’t have any destination in mind, you were just driving aimlessly. You thought you were making random turns but then you realized you were going to the quieter parts of the city and into the location you’d always go to when you were feeling blue. It was fitting, Chanyeol did look like a darker shade of blue after all and no, you weren’t talking about his physical appearance.

You stopped your car by the cliff overlooking the city. There, everything looked small and less overwhelming. When you were there, it always made you feel like your problems were trivial things and it calmed you down.

You stepped out of the car, sat on the hood and watched as the sun set. The sun was giving the busy city a golden glow.

After a few minutes, Chanyeol got out of the car as well and sat beside you, taking in the view of the city. For the first time since you picked him up, a genuine smile had made its way into his face.

“Thank you,” he mumbled, never taking his sight away from the beautiful view.

You looked over at him, his features looked like he was relaxed. His blue faded and changed into a warm yellow. He looked better like that.

“Yeah, no problem.”

The both of you stayed there until the sky had turned black and it was the city lights’ turn to shine.

“Come on, Chanyeol, let’s head back.”

“Right.”

You were a block away from Chanyeol’s flat when he spoke up again. “Sorry I took up your time.”

“It’s fine. I didn’t have anything to do anyway,” you said nonchalantly.

By the time you reached his place, you turned to him, “So—”

You didn’t even get to finish whatever you were about to say when he cupped your face and kissed you. You were surprised but you kissed back anyway. And just like the first time you met him, you ended up tangled in his sheets, begging him to fuck you.

The third time you met him it was probably the hottest day of summer. You were in the mall to cool down. You’d rather be there than use the air conditioner in your room and take extra shifts to pay for the electricity.

You were wandering inside the mall, just looking through different shops and avoiding any crowded area in general.

“What are you doing?”

You got startled at the sudden sound.

“Chanyeol? What the fuck, I almost dropped this mug because of you!” You exclaimed.

He chuckled, “Sorry. It’s just that I noticed you looked a little bored.”

Oh, so he was using your lines now. You raised your brow and crossed your arms, waiting for what he’s going to say next. But the action only emphasized your breasts and of course Chanyeol just had to look.

“Don’t you want to do something fun?”

You smirked, “Only if it doesn’t involve sweating.”

“I can work with that.”

And work with that he did. You ended up being bent over under the shower as he fucked you relentlessly.

The only difference with this encounter from the rest was the piece of paper you found in the pocket of your shorts. Scribbled there was his number and a simple “Thank you.”

You didn’t even hesitate to message him as soon as you found it. He replied in an instant and surprisingly, he was pretty decent to talk with. You don’t talk about the nights of passion, but you do talk about yourselves.

For the first time since you met him, he was shedding his layers, and this time, these layers weren’t his clothes.

The next time you met up, it was intentional. One day he called, “Meet me behind the mall.” He didn’t have to ask twice, you’d go regardless.

By the time he arrived, he was riding a motorcycle. He shook his head as he removed his helmet. Then he ruffled his silver hair.

God, he was attractive.

“Hop in, babe,” he said as he hands you another helmet.

You grinned. It was your first time to ride a motorcycle and you couldn’t stop your excitement from showing.

He drove to an abandoned parking lot and for a moment you were confused. “What are we doing here?”

“Don’t you want to do something fun?” He smirked.

Your eyes widened. You definitely didn’t want to do that here.

He only laughed at your reaction. “I’m kidding! I mean, technically, I’m not.”

Your brows had furrowed. “Huh?”

“I’ll teach you how to ride this baby,” he said as he patted his motorcycle, “It’ll be fun.”

You squealed. “Really?”

He rolled his eyes but he had a faint smile, “Yeah.”

Chanyeol was a great teacher, but you liked to tease him so you purposely acted like you couldn’t understand him. You could tell his patience was wearing thin after two hours of him teaching you to no fruition.

“Okay, okay, let me try. Like, alone now,” you said.

He frowned, obviously unimpressed with your statement. Of course, he’d react that way, it was his baby, you just might crash it.

“I promise I’ll do my best,” you pleaded.

“Fine,” he reluctantly said.

“Thank you!”

You grinned at him as you got ready while he only pouted. But the pout had been replaced with a look of surprise when you finally rode and drove his bike.

And by the end of the day, his motorcycle wasn’t the only thing you got to ride.

The next few times you met up, you always ended up beneath him. But there were also days when he’d take you out — to a diner that was barely visited by people, to an arcade somewhere downtown, to the cliff overlooking the city.

Dates with Chanyeol were fun and weren’t overwhelming at all. He never brought you to places with too many crowds. It was intimate, the moments were shared between only the two of you.

It got to a point where you basically spent everyday with him. You would even cancel plans with your friends, just waiting for his call. Before you knew it, you were falling for him.

What sealed your feelings was the time he brought you to their beach house where you both spent the day swimming and chasing each other around.

“I want you,” he said as the night came.

Wanting was enough for you.

By the time you were both panting after the sexual activity, he turned his back to you and looked out the window, his facial expression as calm as the sea. You thought you had him then. You thought he was yours and you were his.

That is until you saw him at a record shop. You were there first, scanning through sections, looking for the 5 Seconds of Summer CD you wanted to purchase for so long. You paid no attention to your surroundings, too busy with your task.

And then you heard Chanyeol’s name being mentioned by a guy. Curiously, you hid behind a shelf and peeked. Chanyeol was there and you unconsciously smiled at the sight of him.

“Chanyeol, dude, be honest, are you seeing Y/N?”

Chanyeol looked confused. “Who’s Y/N?”

Your heart dropped at his answer.

“Don’t act so clueless.”

“I don’t know any Y/N.” He looked genuinely at a loss.

“Inez told me she saw you and Y/N at the arcade a couple of weeks ago. Did you even break up with your girlfriend?”

Your vision was already blurry when he said he didn’t know you but you tensed up at his friend’s question.

Chanyeol has a girlfriend?

You didn’t bother staying there to listen in to their conversation anymore. Your tears had already started falling so you quickly rushed out of the shop, keeping your head down low.

There were a lot of thoughts running through your mind.

“Chanyeol didn’t know my name… Is that why he only called me babe or kitten?”

“Chanyeol has a girlfriend and he cheated on her with me.”

“Was his girlfriend the reason why he only brought you out to secluded areas? Meeting only behind the mall? Driving to the quieter parts of the city to hang out?”

You were so frustrated at him and at yourself. You let him charm you. You let him worm his way into your heart. You let him make you fall in love.

So much for summer love.

#chanyeol x reader #chanyeol x you #chanyeol smut #chanyeol angst #chanyeol fluff #chanyeol fanfic #chanyeol fanfiction #exo smut #exo angst #exo fluff #exo fanfic #exo fanfiction #park chanyeol #exo chanyeol

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speechlessxx · 4 years

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invisible string (Steve Rogers x Reader)

Summary: there was always been a single thread of gold tying you to Steve Rogers.

This was also a request from an anon! But I planned to write an imagine ever since folklore came out haha...

Based on Taylor Swift - invisible string (highly recommend you to listen bc this is my favorite song off of folklore!)

Warnings: a lot of Taylor Swift references, language!, wordy (oops)

Word Count: ~3k

Love was quite a challenge – a never-ending struggle. You found it was more rejection than acceptance – more heartbreak and angst than romance and fluff. The romantic comedies you loved gave you so much hope and high expectations, leading you to believe you’d meet the love of your life whilst reading in the park or at an art museum where you’d be admiring paintings while he admired you.

It was all wrong.

Love wasn’t straight and narrow – black and white or even red. It was complex – full of twists and turns. You didn’t know this, but you were meant to get tangled up in the strings of love… Instead, you sought to straighten it out – to unravel the ball of yarn that love felt like.

You never stopped believing in true love despite the heartaches and the horrible men you’ve encountered. You often joked that you met the wrong ones at – what felt like – the right times.

But that’s the wondrous thing about timing – about fate, even…

Because the right one was always there … you weren’t ready for him just yet.

New to the city, your friends often set you up on numerous blind dates. They were their boyfriends’ friends, or coworkers, or their own friends. Most of the time, you had nothing in common with these men, but they’d tell you, “you gotta kiss a couple frogs to find your prince.” When you’d bring up your fantasizes of finding true love yourself, they’d snark and tell you, “true love’s a thing of the past.” You didn’t like to believe that, but maybe they were right…

Perhaps with the modern age of dating – Tinder and online sugar daddies and what not – that was true. Many blind dates ended with a confession – that they just wanted to hookup. You often found yourself a victim of mind games – pathetically drinking alone in the late nights wondering if he’d call (and when he did, it was always at his convenience and would chastise you if you weren’t available or in the mood).

However, one man seemingly put all your past relationships to shame. He was everything you ever wanted – tall, dark, handsome. Although it wasn’t a criterion for you, he had a great job and a promising career – one he was immensely proud of and often boasted about. That was one con about James – that and the aloofness, narcissism, and all too flirty personality though you always found yourself overlooking all of that.

Many of your friends didn’t quite approve. They found him a bit too arrogant and often called him out for taking advantage of your too kind and naïve heart. But you often found yourself brushing them off. You thought that perhaps they didn’t quite approve because they didn’t choose him for you.

Unlike the other men, you met him spontaneously at a Broadway show. You were gifted tickets for your birthday, and he happened to be sitting right next to your seat. He introduced himself to you, giddy with excitement – apparently, this was his favorite show. You thought his shameless excitement for Broadway was endearing and you hit it off instantly. It felt like destiny and months later, you were falling in love with James (ignoring all the red flags).

-=+=-

You smiled as you entered the bar. James, whom – as he says – has exquisite taste, picked out a bar in Brooklyn. It was quite unusual, really. He was an Upper East Side trust fund baby – although he claims that his career is self-made – and wasn’t too fond of the outer boroughs. But you welcomed the change in scenery. You found the five-star restaurants too flashy with food portions that were much too small for the huge price tags.

You quickly found him in the crowded bar and rushed over to give him a hug. He didn’t welcome you with an equally tight embrace. In fact, you didn’t feel his arms go around you at all.

“You okay?” You asked him as you settled into the seat next to him.

“Look, we gotta talk,” his voice was hushed. James scratched his head with his eyes glancing around. He looked tense – uncomfortable. His hands were shoved into his coat’s pockets, clutching onto his wallet as if he were afraid someone would just snatch it from him.

“Okay…” You nodded. You felt your heart begin to race. His tone, his composure – hell, he himself – radiated an all too familiar feeling. You felt the breakup speech coming before he even said the words.

“I think we gotta breakup,” he muttered. He refused to look at you. His eyes staring at your feet. You straightened up in your seat, rolling your shoulders back and picking at your dress’s skirt nervously.

“Is… is there something I did?” You asked, your voice breaking at the end. Although you felt the breakup happening, it still caught you off guard. Three months into dating, you were already falling so hard for him. Everything felt perfect up until now.

“No,” James shook his head. His eyes finally met yours, but it was your turn to look away. “I just think we’re not meant for each other.”

“Okay,” you nodded. A tear rolled down your cheek, but you quickly wiped it away with the back of your hand.

“Yeah… Um… I gotta go – “

“Is there someone else?” You don’t know why you asked. You weren’t sure if you even wanted the answer. James coughed, awkwardly. You caught him nod in the corner of your eye. You exhaled a shaky breath before feeling your heart harden. “Fine. Have a good life.” He said your name and leaned over to hug you, but you shrugged him off. “Go fuck, yourself,” you spat. The words surprised you. You were never so vulgar, but you had enough.

Without another word, James retreated from the bar – disappearing out the door and out of your life. As soon as the door shut, the dam broke, and quickly came the tears.

Unbeknownst to you, there was an especially trained ear listening in to the short yet very heartbreaking conversation. Steve wasn’t much of an eavesdropping, but he couldn’t help if his enhanced hearing – thanks to the serum – picked up on distress. And you were chock full of it.

Steve stared on as you tried to compose yourself to no avail. You were shaking with anger, with sorrow, with heartbreak. His own heart broke for you.

What an asshole, Steve thought to himself.

Steve noticed James the moment the rich prick walked into the bar. He hated how the man snapped his fingers at the waitress and the bartender and how he talked down to those who were just doing their job. He remembered the man get on the phone, talking to – what sounded like – a woman, telling her that he was “handling it”. Steve didn’t need to have Bruce’s intelligence to know that James was a two-timing pig and he thought about the poor woman whom he was “handling”.

Then, you walked into the bar. A teal colored sundress. The color bringing him back to simpler times when he was sixteen and Bucky had hooked him up with a job at a yogurt place. He noticed how you gleamed in the dark room. He thought you were like daylight and cursed James even more – he didn’t deserve his own personal sun.

“Hey,” Steve called to the waitress. The young woman smiled at him, recognizing him as the regular who drank so much yet never stumbled out drunk. “Do me a favor and get that young lady a glass of your finest. On me.” He pointed over to you – the pretty girl in the teal sundress with tears rolling down her cheeks.

The waitress nodded. “Anything in particular you want me to tell her?”

Steve shook his head. “Just tell her that a man like that asshole ain’t worth her time nor her tears.”

“Gotcha,” the waitress winked before walking off.

Steve, knowing how a simple glass of alcohol can make or break a young woman’s evening, stayed to ensure that the drink was brought to you safely. His eyes were trained on the glass – from the moment the drink was poured up until the moment it was brought over to you.

“I … I didn’t order this,” you told the waitress.

“Yeah,” she smiled and nodded over to Steve though you didn’t follow her eyes, “that man did. Told me to tell you that that asshole you were with ain’t worth your time nor your tears and I agree.”

You gave her a little chuckle and a gracious nod as she walked away. You turned your head, craning over the many patrons of the bar to catch a glimpse of the man… but all you got was the back of his head as he walked out of the bar.

Tall. Blonde. Broad.

Those were the only thing you knew about this mystery man.

-=+=-

Months after James and several failed attempts to rebound, you decided to give up on your quest for love. Opting to love yourself, instead. Your friends supported the notion.

“I’m tired of trying to find love. Let love find me,” you rose a glass up on the night before your trip and your friends cheered in support.

The trip was two weeks well spent. A reprieve from the suffocating city of millions. Your friends found your sudden glowing, tanned skin, and bright smile suspicious. Chalking this “glow up” to you finding a new man and didn’t quite believe when you attributed it to self-love rather than romantic love.

But nevertheless, they were simply excited to have you back in the city. They wanted to celebrate your return – and you knew the perfect bar to do so.

“You’re staring,” Sam muttered over to Steve as Steve tore his eyes away from the familiar woman.

“’m not,” Steve chuckled. “You gonna ice that eye?” He pointed over to the dark bruise beneath Sam’s right eye. The pair had just returned from a successful mission and Sam, who clearly took a couple hits, wanted to go out and be “normal” – Steve knew the perfect place.

The waitress laughed as she brought over a Ziplock bag filled with ice wrapped with a paper towel. “Thought he might need this.” She joked. Sam thanked her as he took the bag and pressed it onto his eye. “Your girl’s here,” she teased Steve.

“Not my girl,” Steve laughed, glancing over his shoulder at you again.

She hummed teasingly. “Heard she just came back from a trip.”

“Wait, what do you mean his girl?” Sam asked.

The waitress shrugged. “She was here a few months ago and got broken up with. Stevie boy, here, bought her a drink but left right after. She came back a lot, saying she’d always see her asshole ex in the city and how he’d never come to Brooklyn, so she kinda made this place her safe place.” She laughed. “Funny thing is… She comes, Stevie’s not here. Stevie comes, she’s gone.”

“And tonight, they’re both here? Hm…” Sam narrowed his good eye at Steve. “I think that’s fate, pal.” Steve shook his head. “Oh, c’mon… I’ll even introduce ya.”

“Sam. No.”

The man caught your eye – not because he was handsome (you didn’t even see his face) but because the back of his head was just familiar. It looked similar to the mystery man that bought you a drink all those months ago. Tall. Blonde. Broad. You couldn’t help but stare.

“Why are you staring at that guy’s head?” One of your friends nudged you, shaking you from your thoughts. “You know him?”

“Uh… No.” You shook your head, laughing a little. “He just looks familiar, ‘s all.”

“Okay…” She nodded before taking a swig of her drink. “I think you should go talk to him.”

You scoffed. “Why?”

“Because he seems to have your attention.” She giggled.

“Right…” you laughed, awkwardly. “Well… I’m hitting the ladies.”

You got up from your seat. As you were making your way across the bar, your phone began to buzz. Thinking it was strange, considering everyone you spoke to daily was in that bar, you pulled your phone out to investigate. You rolled your eyes when you saw James’s name on the caller ID. You scoffed and sent him straight to voicemail.

Distracted with your phone, you didn’t notice the wall of a man pushing himself out of his seat to stand. You ran straight into him, dropping your phone in the process.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” Steve apologized.

“It’s my fault, really,” you laughed. You awkwardly combed through your hair with your fingers when you noticed it was the man you were staring at earlier.

“I doubt it. I’m pretty clumsy sometimes,” he chuckled. (Sam scoffed… like you’re not Captain America throwing that shield around with expert precision? Right…)

“You’d be surprised at my skill. If there’s an Olympics for clumsiness, I’d be the Michael Phelps.” You joked. You pushed down your shyness and offered him your hand, introducing yourself to the incredibly handsome man (thank you slight buzz).

Steve couldn’t find his words, suddenly becoming shy. It felt as if he were a skinny, stupid, sixteen-year-old again. “uh…”

“Steve Rogers.” The man Steve was sitting next to cut in. You frowned curiously at him seeing as he was holding a makeshift icepack to his face. “His name’s Steve Rogers.”

“Wait… like…” You found the name familiar as if you read it in a textbook or a museum. “Like Captain America?” You brought your voice down low, not wanting to draw attention to the man.

He smiled bashfully as he shook your hand. “Yeah…”

“It’s nice to meet you.” You smiled. You weren’t sure if you were supposed to salute, but your slowly sobering mind decided against it.

Just as he expected… to be smiled at by you was like being graced by daylight.

“You mean finally,” the waitress, the one who seemed to always work whenever you were there, butt in. “He’s the man who bought you the drink, by the way.” She told you just before walking off with a tray of drinks.

“Oh… that was you?”

Steve’s ears heated up and he felt himself flush, looking away. “Yeah… I just thought it might cheer you up a little… that guy was an ass.”

“Agreed.” You chuckled. “Thank you, Steve… and it’s nice to finally meet you, I guess.”

“Right back at you.” He nodded. He watched you turn and retreat to your table with your friends. He tried not to listen in on your conversation, distracting himself with Sam as your friends buzzed in excitement, badgering you with questions.

“Hey…” the waitress said, bending down and grabbing a phone off the hardwood floor. “You drop this, Stevie?” Steve checked his pockets and sure enough, his phone was there. “Sammy?” Sam did the same and shook his head. The waitress cocked her head to the side as she pressed the power button. The phone lit up and a mischievous smirk formed on her face as she turned the screen to show a photo of you and your friends. “I wonder who this belongs to?”

“Should probably give it back to her,” Steve suggested.

“Yeah, you should.” Sam encouraged, bumping Steve’s shoulder with his. “While you’re at it, get her number, you idiot! Girl was giving you ‘em eyes.”

“What eyes?” Steve frowned, obviously confused. Sam groaned, snatching the phone, and thrusting it into Steve’s hands.

“Go!” He said, pushing Steve away in your direction.

“Oh, my god, dreamy man is coming over!” Your friends muttered in excitement as you heard the faint footsteps near.

You heard Steve say your name and you turned around with a smile. “Hello again, Steve.”

“Hi…” he scratched his head awkwardly. “You lose your phone?”

“Oh shit…” you muttered, suddenly noticing your empty pockets. “Thank you so much!” You said as he handed it to you.

“Yeah, it’s no problem.” Steve nodded before turning.

“Wait!” You called out. He stopped and turned to give you another shy smile. “How about I buy you a drink as a thank you?” He didn’t have the heart to tell you that alcohol had no affect on him, but he also didn’t like the idea of a lady spending her own money on him.

“No, it’s alright.” Steve shook his head. “Mom raised me to never let a woman spend money on me.”

You laughed. “No, please… call it a payback.”

“I don’t know …” He chuckled. He saw how your smile faltered, just a bit. You took his reluctance as rejection and he noticed you slowly retreat into yourself. “Not that I’m not interested in you,” he cringed at his words. “That sounds horrible, but umm… How about I buy you a drink, instead? Helps with my moral code.” He cringed at his joke. “Is it too forward if I say I just wanna get to know you?”

“Not at all.” You shook your head; your smile returning.

“You look like Captain America,” your friend, boldly stated.

Steve nodded. “I get that a lot.” He glanced over to you and winked.

“We’ll leave you guys to it, then…” One of your other friends coughed. “Let’s go, girls?” She made a telephone gesture with her hands and mouthed the words call me before pulling your friends away, leaving you and Steve alone.

Leaving you to entangle yourself in the invisible string that tied you and Steve Rogers together.

#steve rogers imagine #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers #chris evans x reader #chris evans imagine #chris evans #captain america #captain america x reader #captain america imagine #mcu imagine #marvel imagine

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bi-bard · 4 years

Text

you were too polite to leave me-Elliot Alderson (Mr. Robot)

Title: you were too polite to leave me

Pairing: Elliot Alderson X Reader

Song Drawn: coney island (ft. The National)

Word Count: 1,156 words

Warning(s): Mentions of violence, hacking, references to the plot of Mr. Robot

Summary: (Context: first part in season 1, second part in season 4) Unconditional love. That’s what (y/n) had promised. However, (Y/n) didn’t expect for part of that to almost kill them. Now, (Y/n) wants to step back but- for once- Elliot doesn’t want to push away what might be the healthiest part of his life.

Author’s Note: Here’s the second part of my evermore & folklore writing challenge! You can learn more by clicking here!

Definitely gave this a happier ending than the song would’ve been

Buy me a coffee? https://ko-fi.com/khoward0

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I sighed as I looked out at the water. I was sitting on a bench, waiting for Elliot to find wherever I was sitting. Elliot and I were supposed to spend the night together and I had agreed to meet near where some of his friends meet up.

We had been together for a while now. We worked together at Allsafe for a few years before we actually ended up together. There were some nights where I would have to work late and I would just meet him here instead of just running into his apartment.

“Hey,” I jumped when I heard Elliot from behind me. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” I shook my head, scooting over so he could sit next to me on the bench. “How was your day?”

“Fine,” he nodded. I didn’t even bother to make a mental note of how different his body language was. I involuntarily shivered and crossed my arms. “Are you cold?”

“I’m fine, we should be heading out anyway,” I shrugged.

“Here,” Elliot started unzipping his hoodie.

“What,” I asked. He looked confused at my shocked look. He never gave up his hoodie. “You don’t need to give up your jacket.”

“It’s just a jacket,” he shrugged. I raised an eyebrow at him. “I promise.”

I should’ve noticed his complete shift in behavior then. It would’ve saved me a lot of time.

--Time Skip--

The differences did eventually become clearer. He went through random moments where he was more aggressive instead of nervous or stressed. He was more cunning than just smart. Originally, I picked up on it but I didn’t want to push him. He could tell me in his own time.

And then he ended up in jail. I went to visit him and he panicked, apologizing and telling someone to let me go. I was led out of the jail by a guard, left to helplessly watch him get dragged out of the room. I knew then that I needed to start asking more questions... which he refused to answer.

Elliot was physically there but he wasn’t there mentally.

I didn’t want to leave him. He needed help and leaving him alone like this seemed like a bad decision. I stayed with him, hoping that he was going to explain everything to me.

It all came to a head when I found him sneaking around with Tyrell Wellick and found out that they were working for the Dark Army. I found out that I was no longer safe. I wanted to help him but I had to draw a line somewhere. My line was my life being put on the line by an organization leading the 1% of the 1%.

I gripped my kitchen knife tightly when someone knocked on my door. I walked over to the door, hand shaking slightly. I looked through the peephole and let out a sigh. Elliot. I carefully opened the door, only enough to face him, no enough to let him in.

“Hi,” he said, hands tucked in his pockets.

“Hey,” I replied. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to see you,” he explained. “Can we go somewhere?”

“Why the hell would I do that,” I hissed. “I don’t know if you noticed, I’m not really in the safest situation right now.”

“I promise, if they were keeping an eye on you, then your apartment is tapped right now,” he added quietly. “Please.”

I looked down and bit my lip. I nodded quickly before holding up a finger, telling him to wait a second. I placed the knife back on the counter and grabbed some shoes, my jacket, my key ring, and my wallet. I couldn’t give less of a shit about my phone at this point.

“Where are we going,” I asked as I locked my door.

“The safe place I can think of,” he shrugged.

I followed close behind him as we walked. It didn’t even take half of the trip to figure out where we were going.

“Oh, I get it,” I nodded. Elliot glanced at me before looking back at the ground again. I had to keep myself from grabbing his hand.

I stayed silent for the rest of the trip. We walked to the bench and sat down, looking at the water. I looked around, finally catching sight of the sign on one of the buildings.

“I feel so stupid,” I said. Elliot looked over to where I was. The sign read fsociety. “It was right in front of me.”

“You didn’t have a reason to be looking,” he replied. I nodded and shrugged. “I came back here.”

“Hmm,” I hummed.

“When you left,” he explained. “I came back and sat here. I stared at the water and tried to feel what you did. You stayed with me for so long. You had no reason to stay... and every reason to leave.”

“Is this what you wanted to tell me?”

“This bench wasn’t right without you here,” he added. “It felt like an anomaly. I... I miss you.”

“Elliot,” I sighed. “I... I miss you too... I just can’t get back into this without some information.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Everything,” I said. “I need to know what you hid from me. I need to know exactly what’s going on before I jump back in. And I hate pushing you but I... I need to be safe.”

Elliot nodded. I listened to the rest of his story. Meeting Mr. Robot, the initial hack, finding out who and what Mr. Robot was, the incident with Tyrell, the follow-up, why he ended up getting arrested, everything.

“So, that time you screamed about me being attacked... Mr. Robot was the one attacking me,” I asked. Elliot nodded. “And those changes in behavior are about Mr. Robot.”

“He is in control at that point,” he explained. I nodded. “I know it’s dangerous. And I know it’s scary. I just... I want you. I’ve never trusted someone so much. What’s good about what fsociety has done if I lose you. I... I love you.”

I sat in silence for a moment. Carefully, I reached over and grabbed his hand. He stared at our hands.

“I love you too,” I said. He looked at me. I felt tears well up in my eyes. “I just want this to be over. So bad.”

“It will be... soon,” he promised.

Elliot leaned over and kissed my cheek softly. I chuckled at him.

“What?”

“You just kissed my cheek,” I replied. “Kiss me properly, Elliot.”

He grinned at me before leaning over and kissing me gently. I reached up and cupped the side of his face. I pulled away a little bit, leaning my forehead on his.

“One more thing and then we’re done,” he promised quietly. “I swear.”

“Okay,” I mumbled. “One more.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too,” I rubbed his cheeks with my thumbs. “So, so much.”

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

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#elliot alderson imagine #elliot alderson fanfiction #rami malek imagine #rami malek fanfiction #imagine #fanfiction #mr robot fanfiction #mr robot imagine

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cryptidofthekeys · 3 years

Text

Siren!Marvin x Sailor!Jackie - My Jolly Sailor Bold

Yes, there is a reference to that song both in title and in the story, here’s a lil somethin for MerMay also I really just thought of what if, Marvin but s i r e n and my head went wRITE THAT DOWN WRITE THAT DOWN- anyway I hope y’all enjoy? Its killin me not editin the dialogue text like I usually do BUT i just dont have time so r.i.p

Jackie was gathering his equipment up and then placing it in the boat, as he finished that up, his friends had come up to him, one of them shaking their heads “Jackie… I’m worried about this… You’re going to one of the most dangerous spots out there!” Another friend spoke up “Yeah… There’s talk of a siren that owns those parts!” Jackie tilted his head “A siren? One of those old folklore tales?” He grinned “Hah! I don’t believe in such fairy tales!” Another friend shook their head “J-Jackie… Sirens are serious business! They aren’t just folklore or fairy tales, sirens are REAL and they are evil, horrible creatures! Haven’t you heard?” The other friend interrupted “About the mysterious disappearances of many sailors out there?! People have even been nicknaming that place The Siren’s Sea!” Jackie rolled his eyes “Look, guys, I appreciate you trying to look out for me but I promise, I’ll be fine! If anything tries to come after me, well… I’ve got some pretty powerful equipment, I can take care of myself!” And then Jackie was climbing aboard his boat, double checking to make sure everything was all there and ready to set sails!

His friends pleaded and begged, one stepped forward and gave Jackie a hug “Jackie… We can’t stop you from doing this but please… I fear as though you’ll ne’er return again if you head to The Siren’s Sea…” Jackie sighed and hugged his friend back, pulling the rest of them into a group hug “Guys, I promise… I’ll be fine, I WILL return to you, I swear… I’m the best sailor around and I know I can handle myself out there! I’ve made a vow to explore every part of the sea I can, and this place is no exception! I’ll be back soon!” His friends sighed and waved Jackie off as he set sail across the seas, heading out to this infamous place in question, he didn’t really believe in such things as that, he was just going out there because he was curious about the area, he had never really been out that far but truth be told he had heard it had a beautiful cave hidden around the place, and he was determined to find that cave!

Eventually after what felt like ages of sailing, he finally made it to the place nicknamed ‘The Siren’s Sea’ He looked so relieved to have finally made it, sure, it did take a good bit to get to most places out on the seas but this felt like an eternity! The air around this infamous place where sailors had gone missing was thick, almost deathly thick… It did give Jackie a chill running up his spine but nonetheless, he looked off into the distance and noticed a cave, perhaps that was the one! Although, it was strange… That wasn’t very hidden… Either way he’d go check it out, he began sailing over to the cave in the distance and midway he suddenly got a feeling, a bad feeling, that someone was watching him… He looked around as he sailed, however he saw no one in particular, he also saw no sharks around either so he took a deep breath and chuckled “Them stories my friends told me must be messin’ with me… Yeah, that’s it…” He then continued onward and once he made it to the cave he looked around it, it wasn’t the one he thought it was but it was still pretty nonetheless! It seemed to go deeper than he thought it did as well, he squinted as he looked ahead, his boat could definitely fit through the cave so long as he was careful enough!

He eased his boat into the cavern and pressed forward, this was a big cave, bigger than most! Maybe this was the right cave! It looked almost endless as he sailed through it, this cavern was very beautiful even if Jackie didn’t find the hidden area, this would do him fine, as he continued sailing he decided to sing a tune to keep himself from getting bored, it was anything in particular really, just a little tune he had made up in his head, however unbeknownst to Jackie… A creature was swimming along the cavern, it’s head perking up as it heard the tune echo throughout it’s cavern “What a… Gorgeous melody…” It muttered to itself, and while the creature usually knew who sang each song, whose voice was whose, this voice in particular however, it was unfamiliar with… The creature was curious, it needed to find out who was singing this wonderful tune! It swam ahead, trying to locate the source of the noise, of course the creature was careful to keep its distance or stay hidden, because not all creatures, not even of its own kind would be friendly toward strangers… And or of course, it didn’t want to risk scaring the other off! Once the creature had managed to find the sound, it let out a soft gasp, this was no creature…! This was a… A damn sailor! Trespassing in it’s cavern no less!

However… The creature would not deny, the human had such a beautiful voice… To be a sailor no less… No matter, the creature did not take kindly to trespassers, especially not sailors… It slowly sank underneath the water, deep enough to where the sailor wouldn’t see it right off the bat and proceeded to follow the ship, meanwhile… Jackie continued sailing along, looking around as the cavern seemed to get more and more sparkly, he finally sailed into a big open area of the cavern, sparkles from one end to the other and there were even a few spots out of the water to stand on, some crystals strewn about on the ground, once he got in the middle of the area he stopped his boat and looked out, he was curious as he jumped off and into the water, swimming to one of the spots he could actually stand on in the cave, he pulled himself up onto the rocks and grabbed one of the crystals he found “Wow… Such a beautiful place…” The creature stayed under the water, listening intently to the sailor, well… At least the sailor could appreciate the beauty of his territory, he wouldn’t reveal himself just yet however… Meanwhile Jackie was picking up some crystals and bringing them back to his boat, he was going to take a few with him just because they were so pretty… And then he continued onward, man the cave was HUGE! Eventually, he came across an even larger opening with three tunnels ahead of him…

He had no idea which one to go through so he parked his boat in the middle and then sat down and sighed, beginning to hum another melody much to the creature’s delight below him… After a few moments it decided to join the sailor in singing a tune, this made the sailor’s eyes widen as he got up and slowly approached the side of his boat to look down into the water, he saw something… It was coming up! Annnnd… Whatever it was had splashed water in his face upon coming up to the surface, great, he had to take a moment to wipe the water away and once his vision cleared, his eyes widened at what he saw… There, resting on the side of his boat, was another man… His green hair tied up in a man bun, his eyes as blue as ironically enough, the Ocean… That’s really the only thing he could see underneath his cat mask (y’all know what that looks like, sometimes a writer can get lazy and or tired with descriptions and that’s okay)

He looked like a normal man actually, a grin was splayed across his face, revealing needle sharp fangs which Jackie had to admit unnerved him a bit “Ah, hello there darling~! You are the one who sings, yes?” ...And he could talk like a normal human apparently too and that’s when Jackie saw the other’s tail swaying behind him, it was a mixture of various greens and blues and honestly… It looked so beautiful, and then it hit him… “A...Are you a Siren…?” He asked rather bluntly, to which the creature tutted at “Well how rude of you… Ignoring my question like that, however unlike y o u… I WILL answer a question… Why yes, yes I am dear~” Jackie also saw his hands, they were webbed and the other had claws “Woah… So my friends WEREN’T lying?!” He looked… Surprised but not scared, more so in awe than anything “Of course not! Why would they lie or make up such a thing? We aren’t just folklore, fairy tales, no no, none of that! We are quite real… Now, would you be so kind as to answer my question from earlier?” Jackie nodded “Oh yeah, sorry… I was the one who was singing, yeah! My name’s Jackie!” The Siren smiled at this “Ah, Jackie… What a lovely name~! My name is Marvin, it’s nice to meet you… Which is not something I say often about sailors you know…”

Jackie blinked in surprise before realizing “Oh uh yeah… Other sailors probably try to capture creatures like yourself, yeah?” Marvin only rolled his eyes, an irritated expression now on his face “Oh it’s S O much more than just mere capturing… Your kind has tortured mine for so long now… I suppose us sirens can fetch a high price but is that really any excuse for all the damage that has been dealt?” Jackie shook his head “Not at all… I uh… I really hope you don’t think I’m here to do that, I promise…! I was just passing through here, if you really need me to though I can just turn back” While he really didn’t want to turn back, if Marvin wanted him to he would do so, he wasn’t going to break any rules or trespass where he wasn’t wanted! And then he realized, his eyes widened as he looked back to the crystals “Oh shit… Uh, if these are yours by the way, I’ll also give 'em back, I don’t want any trouble here” Marvin clicked his tongue and smirked, resting his head in his hand, he wouldn’t deny, despite this man being a sailor he was MUCH more polite than all the others that had ever came through here… Nonetheless, a sailor is still a sailor... “Mm… You can keep those, they aren’t of any importance to me…” He paused for a moment.

Then Marvin got an idea “Actually, I would love it if you did one teensy little thing for me, darling…” Jackie tilted his head “Oh? What’d that be?” The Siren paused to clear his throat before staring straight into Jackie’s eyes, and Jackie swore that very stare had just pierced his soul “Well… I would l o v e it if you’d sing a little melody with me... After you sing with me, you can be on your way, I p r o m i s e…” Marvin was lying right through his teeth, the only place this sailor would be going was down below, but he wouldn’t deny, the thought of bringing Jackie down below and drowning him was triggering something within him, something he had never experienced before… No matter, this was still a sailor, sure enough if he ever tried to trust him, he’d be captured, tortured, or killed! He couldn’t risk this… He had to focus! Jackie could swear the other’s eyes were glowing now but he didn’t really know… His mind was starting to feel fuzzy, something was wrong here… “Upon one summer’s morning…” Marvin began, looking at Jackie expectantly who instantly followed up “I carefully did stray…” (dont worry im not going to type all the lyrics i s w e a r) Marvin seemed pleased with such a quick response.

“Down by the Walls of Wapping… Where I met a sailor gay…” Well… Jackie wouldn’t deny that last part at least “Conversing with a young lass…” Jackie continued, not wanting to keep Marvin waiting, absentmindedly getting closer to the edge of the boat and toward The Siren himself who seemed pleased with this so far “Who seemed to be in pain... Saying, Jackie, when you go, I fear you’ll ne’er return again…” And then simultaneously both Jackie and Marvin began to sing, Jackie coming closer when Marvin motioned for him “My heart is pierced by Cupid… I disdain all glittering gold… There is nothing can console me but My Jolly Sailor Bold…” As Jackie got closer Marvin began slowly dipping back down into the water, and Jackie knew something was wrong, despite not being able to stop singing along with Marvin and not being able to take his eyes off the other, deep down he knew this wasn’t right! This was what his friends were trying to warn him about wasn’t it! He desperately tried to pull himself out of whatever trance The Siren had put him under but it seemed to be no use as his body slowly began following Marvin under the water, he was beginning to panic internally now at this as he tried to hold his breath.

Now it was only Marvin continuing along the song as he gently placed a hand on Jackie’s cheek, he could sense the panic in the other and that seemed to strike a nerve in him, why was he feeling so odd?! This wasn’t anything new, he used his powers to gain control over the sailors, he dragged them down below to drown and then eat them! It wasn’t anything he hasn’t done before so why this particular sailor was he feeling… Sympathy for? He tried to continue downward but the farther he went the more Jackie began to panic, some of the panic had become external and Marvin saw the bubbles, shit… This just… Ugh! He quickly grabbed Jackie and headed back to the top, he carefully tossed Jackie back into the boat and then gave up his control, the other coughed and spluttered a little bit, grasping at his chest as he heaved in some breaths, his body was now beginning to tremble and he swore he felt tears prick at his eyes, meanwhile Marvin only sighed “I just can’t do it, not to you…” Jackie looked confused but he didn’t even dare look at the other as he spoke “I-I yo...you… What the f u c k…? Wha-What were you trying to do…?!” Marvin glanced toward the sailor, it pained him to see the other in such a panic, and because of him no less, he spoke not a word as he quickly dove back below, maybe at least now he wouldn’t have to worry about the sailor coming back.

Jackie gasped “Wa-Wait!” He called out and quickly made his way back to the side of the boat and looked below, he couldn’t see the siren anymore and he only sighed “What was that all about…!?” He muttered to himself, still feeling shaken he decided to turn back and call it a day, no way he was going to continue forward after that! He quickly managed to turn his boat back around and head out of the cave, not aware of the siren in the distance watching him leave… Marvin sighed “...Why couldn’t I do something so simple…? It’s in my n a t u r e…! I’ve done this for so long now…” He mumbled to himself, watching as the boat finally disappeared, he cursed himself mentally for letting the sailor go, he should have just continued, there was no way he had… ...No, he wasn’t even going to dare think that, he retreated back to the deeper parts of the cave so he could do some thinking… Meanwhile Jackie despite still being shaken up, he was still curious, he wanted answers ...And he knew what he’d have to do if he wanted to get them, but damn he wasn’t ready nor prepared for that ...Not yet anyways.

A few weeks had passed, Marvin was just swimming around in his cave, the waters were awfully quiet around the place and that sailor hadn’t come back yet, maybe Marvin really had frightened him off, it was for the best, no way things would end well if they got too close… It was a shame really, because that was the first sailor who had ever been nice to Marvin and showed him kindness… ...He had been thinking about what happened almost every day now and the more he thought about it the more he regretted it, the more he regretted scaring Jackie like that ...He still wouldn’t admit he was growing fond of the sailor, no way but he at least hoped that maybe… Just maybe he’d get his chance to apologize… He jumped upon hearing a boat in the distance, he glanced over and squinted, there was no way… No way that was him, he was just secretly hoping, after a few moments The Siren’s eyes widened as the boat got close enough for him to see, that… That WAS Jackie’s boat! Shit! He quickly dove down and began swimming to the furthest part of his cave, sure, he wanted to apologize but that sailor was probably angry with him, he could have brought weapons with him! Maybe that’s why Jackie was back, to seek revenge for what happened which wouldn’t surprise Marvin really.

And then sure enough, there was Jackie… He was coming upon that same cave, the one where he almost… Jackie shook that thought away, all he wanted was some answers… He did bring a harpoon just in case but he really didn’t want to use that, he didn’t want to hurt Marvin or any other creatures really, it was just for a last resort… As he pulled into the cave he took a deep breath and stopped the boat when he deemed it was far enough in, he then put on some of his equipment, sure, he had brought this last time… He could have followed Marvin then but he was just too scared at that moment, too shaky, but now… He finally felt he was ready to confront The Siren, if he’d even answer his questions, for all he knew Marvin could just easily attack him, and like it or not… Despite their previous encounter, Jackie did still have some interest in Marvin, he was still curious, once he got everything set up he finally took a dive below and began swimming further into the cave, he wondered if Marvin would even still be here, for all he knew that Siren could have moved locations by now, he didn’t necessarily know if they stayed in one place all the time like a home of sorts but he supposed if he got the chance maybe he’d find out today.

This cave was much prettier than he originally thought the deeper he went, he noticed that even if he wanted, there was no way his boat would fit through this spot, it was far too small, he also noticed there were MANY more crystals and shiny objects this far ahead, he didn’t dare touch anything though, he didn’t care about the treasure at this rate, that was the last thing on his mind, right now his only focus was trying to find Marvin! And eventually after a long while he managed to come to what was presumably the end of the cave, he stifled a gasp as he saw Marvin, laying down on one of the flat rocks and looking… Sad? He was messing around with some rocks, gently tossing them to the side… Jackie slowly swam forward, trying not to make much of a sound but Marvin only sighed “Why did you come back?” Jackie seemed startled at that question, even more so when Marvin turned around… The Siren’s eyes instantly shot over to the harpoon in Jackie’s hand and then his gaze shifted back to Jackie’s “Ah… Revenge, is that what you seek? Because, I won’t deny… Heh… I probably do deserve it BUT I still will NOT go down without a fight…” Marvin slowly rose from his spot and fully turned toward Jackie.

Jackie shook his head “I… I don’t want to fight… I didn’t come here for revenge, can we please just… Talk…?” To Marvin’s surprise Jackie slowly released the harpoon and he watched it float up to the surface “...I… You… You do understand how easy it would be for me to devour you right now, yes? And you just… Let that weapon go… The ONLY thing you had to defend yourself with? ...Darling, I admire your bravery but that was oh so stupid…” Jackie flinched as Marvin began swimming toward him “Like I said, I don’t want to fight you…! I just… I just want answers…” That made Marvin stop and raise a brow “...Go on…” Jackie paused for a moment to adjust some of his equipment before continuing “I just wanted to know… What were you planning to do with me?” Marvin sighed “...Like all sailors really, I had just planned on drowning you and then eating you… There, I’ve answered your question, you may leave my home now” Marvin turned away, heading back to lay on his rock but then froze instantly upon Jackie’s next question “...Why…?” The Siren turned back around, a confused expression on his face “...What do you mean ‘why’...?” Jackie instantly followed up and swam a bit closer “...Why didn’t you?” The Siren’s eyes widened a bit at that “...I… I just wasn’t feeling hungry, that was all, what is it to you anyways?”

Jackie shrugged “I just wanted to know, after all, I heard you say you just couldn’t do it, not to me… That doesn’t sound like you just weren’t hungry to me… You acted like I was, I don’t wanna say special, but I’m just another sailor, so why was it so hard for you to just… Kill me?” Marvin looked a little… Well, Jackie didn’t know how to describe his expression, he flinched a little as Marvin suddenly swam up to him “Good because trust me, you shouldn’t flatter yourself… You are not special to me, you are just another sailor like all the rest, I could end you right now if I so desired!” Marvin bellowed, he knew damn well however that what he just said was a complete lie, but he was determined not to let Jackie find that out, he went stiff upon hearing Jackie’s next words… “Wh...Wh-Wha...What did you just say…?” He wanted to be sure he heard that correctly, there was… No way, he surely misheard that! And then Jackie looked him dead in the eyes and spread his arms “...Then do it” Externally, Jackie was as calm as could be, he tried to keep himself calm internally because right now he was poking the bear or in this case The Siren… Marvin looked taken aback, he was shocked at what just came out of the other’s mouth.

“...Do you… Have some form of death wish? Is THAT the true reason that you came back…? Or are you just dumb…? Taunting a Siren like this, you have no IDEA what we are truly capable of do you?” Jackie shook his head “Not at all, honestly, I had no idea beings like you even existed originally, the things I’ve heard about your kind, people depict you as cold blooded killing machines essentially, but if I’m being honest… You don’t seem all that bad, you seem nice actually” Marvin blinked in surprise before he shook his head and got closer to Jackie “...Well I’m n o t… You’ve signed your own death warrant by coming back here, s a i l o r…” He hissed through his teeth, and Jackie wouldn’t deny seeing those razor sharp canines were not… Pleasant but he had to keep his confidence, but mentally he couldn’t help but curse himself for being THIS risky with a literal Siren!

Marvin raised a clawed hand, letting out a hiss as he glared at Jackie, who didn’t even break his gaze with the other, the more Marvin stared at the other the shakier his hand got, eventually he sighed and lowered it “...Just get out of here already, I have asked so many times yet you STILL persist and stay, don’t you realize that you have overstayed your welcome…?”

Jackie practically beamed and internally he was sighing in absolute relief, he grinned “I knew it…! So I was right!” Marvin wouldn’t and honestly really couldn’t deny that, that did get him to smile a bit, the sailor was… Awfully cute when he was happy or excited ...Ah hell… Marvin really was falling for a sailor wasn’t he…? Of all things, a Siren falling for a sailor… “You are such a strange individual, you know that Jackie? You come back to the very place you could have died, you confront the exact same Siren who could have caused said demise, and then you even go as far as to offer yourself to me like some sort of… Sacrifice… I must admit, that is very flattering…~” Marvin grinned “...I would hope however, that you know not to do that to just… ANY Siren of course…” Jackie nodded “Don’t worry, you’re the only one I uh, I guess I trust to do that? I didn’t believe you’d hurt me anyways” Marvin chuckled “How charming… I have to admit, you are one of the nicest sailors I have ever had the pleasure of meeting” Jackie’s face turned a slight shade of red at that “O-Oh… Really?” Marvin nodded “Yes actually~ I mean, most sailors would have come back for revenge, which I suppose would be fair... Yet you came back here just for answers and then did, well, t h a t… Honestly, it’s a nice change of pace to see a sailor as different as yourself”

Jackie nodded “Oh uh, yeah it… I don’t think I could hurt you, even if I wanted to ...W-Which I don’t, don’t g-get me wro-” Marvin held up a hand “Darling, relax, I understand what you meant” Jackie seemed relieved about that “Uh, y-yeah… So like, I… That’s really the only reason I came down here, was for answers… I can leave now if you want me to?” Marvin paused for a few moments before shrugged “Eh… It isn’t like I’ve got anything better to do today so, you may stay for a little while… Although are you s u r e it was ONLY you wanting answers… Or perhaps… Were you still curious about me?” Jackie’s face flushed a little red and that made Marvin chuckle “Aww darling~ Admit it, you ALSO wanted to see lil ol’ me as well didn’t you~?” Jackie shook his head “I… N-No… It wasn’t anything like that…! I just…” And then he trailed off, shit… How could he make a comeback here…? Meanwhile Marvin only had that shit eating grin on his face “Well? I’m waiting~” Jackie just shook his head and crossed his arms “...Just.. Sh-Shut up…” He pouted a little and that made Marvin laugh, that was a genuine laugh and that definitely caught Jackie’s attention as Marvin stared at him “Oh darling… You are quite adorable… That little pout on your face… Although, I can’t say I blame you, I mean… Who wouldn’t want to see such a magnificent creature as myself~?”

Jackie only rolled his eyes “...A narcissistic creature at that…” Marvin merely chuckled “Narcissism or just purely confident in myself~?” Jackie gave him a look but refrained from saying anything else, he watched as Marvin then swam around and looked him over “You know… I am curious, what is all that equipment you have on you? I am… Not familiar with a lot of things that humans have” Jackie smiled “Well uh, the thing on my back is my oxygen tank, it’s why I can be down here for so long actually!” He then cleared his throat before continuing on.

“Next the mask here protects my eyes so I can well, ya know, actually see down here… And the suit helps me keep warm because honestly, this cave isn’t too heated eheh… And the flippers, it helps me swim a bit faster honestly” Marvin nodded “I see… How interesting… Well, I suppose it’s fair… Given how humans differ from creatures like me…” Jackie nodded “Yeah, you’ve got gills to breathe under the water forever, you’ve even got claws and teeth to defend yourself with just like that! You’ve also got a beautiful tail and…” And then the sailor trailed off as he realized what he said “I mean… uh-” Marvin seemed to perk up at this “Oh? You think my tail is beautiful~?” Jackie sighed “Yeah I mean… The u-uh… The scales are… Very beautiful honestly…” Marvin hummed at that, he wouldn’t deny, that made a blush appear on HIS face which was impressive, no one had ever been able to make him blush before “Mm… Thank you dear… Of course someone such as yourself can appreciate true beauty when he sees it~” ...Okay, Jackie didn’t know how to really respond to that so he simply nodded and then something beeped, he pulled out a strange device and his eyes widened to which Marvin raised a brow at “Something the matter Jackie…?”

The sailor looked over at the other and shook his head “Sh...Shit… This oxygen tank won’t, uh, last MUCH longer… I gotta get back to the surface…!” Marvin frowned “Ah… Such a shame but… Do what you must, after all, I don’t want you to drown… No no, you’re FAR too lovely for such a cruel fate as that…~” Now it was Jackie’s turn to blush “A-Ah… Uh… Th-Thank you…? I’ll come back and visit if you really want me too! I have plenty of oxygen tanks back at home…!” Marvin hummed for a second before nodding “Yes, I would like that very much…~” And then Jackie was waving Marvin off as he began swimming away, once the sailor was out of sight Marvin only sighed and smiled “...I cannot deny it… I am falling for him… Heh… How quaint…” And then Marvin looked down at his tail, he noticed a greenish blue scale was coming off and that gave him a brilliant idea… He gently took hold and pulled it off (don’t worry, it doesn’t hurt him, sometimes a scale or two will fall from him) He then swam down toward the bottom and gathered up some other materials and various crystals, he knew what he would make for that sailor… He quickly got to work and began crafting the item, meanwhile…

Jackie was swimming back up to the top, he wasn’t… TOO terribly worried, he felt like he had plenty of time to get back to the surface and he wouldn’t deny, he couldn’t get that siren off his mind… Now usually a siren can play many tricks on a human but he didn’t feel as though this was trickery, in fact, the things Marvin had said about him seemed so… Genuine… ...Maybe Jackie was just hoping for that though, he had definitely felt things about the siren, he just shook his head, he shouldn’t get his hopes up though, there’s no way Marvin ACTUALLY likes him back, why would a siren, especially one like Marvin love a simple sailor like him? ...And then suddenly, Jackie heard some gentle humming that startled him, he quickly spun around and saw three sirens coming out of the shadows “Ooh… Lookie here~! We’ve got another f i l t h y sailor who’s dived down here and decided to steal all the treasures for himself~!” Jackie’s eyes widened and he put his hands up in defense “N-Now hold on… I didn’t come for tre-” The siren only swam over and hissed right in Jackie’s face and before the sailor could even t r y to get away the other two sirens came over and held him by his arms, he tried desperately to struggle against them but to no avail, they were strong, far stronger than he was.

What he presumed to be their leader grinned maliciously and chuckled “Hmm… You know if you weren’t a sailor I’d actually consider you cute~ But no matter… You should be running out of oxygen soon~” The siren gave a look to the others and they tore his oxygen tank clear off, casting it to the side which made him panic internally, shit… He wasn’t prepared for that at all! He continued to struggle, trying desperately to fight at them and kick at them even if they were stronger than he was, he STILL wasn’t going down without a fight until… The leader came closer, gently cupping his face and locking eyes with him, they began singing a soft melody and slowly but surely Jackie stopped resisting, his eyes growing slightly cloudy as he listened and swayed his head from side to side “There we go… Good boy~ Just relax now and listen to our wonderful melody~” The other two sirens giggled and joined in with their leader, making sure Jackie’s struggling and fighting ceased, he could feel his body going slightly limp but he wasn’t passing out, he just… He was beginning not to feel the need to fight back anymore, deep down however was that terror that was slowly building, despite his mind feeling fuzzy, he still knew if he didn’t get back up to the surface soon he’d run out of oxygen.

He tried his hardest to gain back control of himself, to try and continue fighting but their song was just… So powerful, who knew a song could hold such power? Granted… There had to be something more to a siren’s power than just an ability to sing, either way… After another few moments had passed, he could definitely tell needed to come up for air and f a s t! He still couldn’t struggle as the leader opened their mouth, revealing rows of razor sharp teeth that were ready and eager to devour him, his eyes widened slightly as he heard them all hiss, this was it, this was going to be his demise wasn’t it…? He couldn’t even close his eyes to avoid looking at the maw that was staring him straight in the face… Before the sirens could all begin to feast, suddenly they were all blown away by what Jackie had thought was a strong current originally… However he quickly snapped out of his trance as they had stopped singing and he looked to the much larger siren in front of him now, it was Marvin! And he heard Marvin snarling at the other sirens “I will only give you all o n e warning and one warning only… Stay. The. FUCK… Away. From. Jackie… He’s m i n e and mine alone… I should kill the three of you right now for your pathetic insolence anyway!” He hollered and the three other sirens cowered, huddling together “Ohhh!” The leader got another glance at Jackie only to look back at Marvin after he put a hand out.

“This sailor is YOUR prey?! O… Oh, we are so terribly sorry oh great one…! We had no idea that he was your pr-” Marvin hissed “He is NOT prey… Let me make this very clear, the three of you are to warn ANY other sirens out there that this sailor is NOT to be harmed, if I find one singular h a i r harmed on him, I will not HESITATE to end anyone who d a r e s to touch something that belongs to me…” Marvin heard some bubbles from behind him and he quickly held up a hand, suddenly, a bubble was forming around Jackie’s entire body and he gasped in some fresh air. This was strange but nonetheless he wasn’t complaining in the slightest, he could breathe and he felt safe and secure in this, he heard the leader of the sirens apologize profusely “This will NEVER happen again sire…! We cannot express how terribly sorry for this!” The other sirens nodded and Marvin only hissed, baring his fangs “Enough with your apologies… I have heard enough, get out of here and don’t e v e r come near him again…”

And that was enough to send the others swimming away for their lives and Marvin then sighed, calming himself down and turning back to Jackie who was still breathing heavily, mostly trying to calm himself down from everything that just happened “...Come now darling… Let’s get you back to the surface…” And just like that, Marvin was swimming upward, the bubble slowly and carefully following behind him and Jackie could tell he was on edge, the siren kept looking around and behind himself to make sure the ones that had swam away wasn’t trying to attack him from behind, he seemed relaxed again whenever he saw the only thing behind him was Jackie and eventually he made it up to the surface, the bubble popping just as soon as Jackie got onto his boat, the sailor could feel his body absolutely trembling… Marvin leaned against the side of his boat “Are you okay, Jackie? Did those disgusting wretches hurt you at all?” Jackie shook his head much to Marvin’s relief “I… If yo… If…” He was a bit too panicked to try and get out what he was saying… Marvin noticed this and beckoned him over which Jackie slowly followed, carefully… The siren took ahold of Jackie’s hand “Shh… It’s okay now… Just breathe my darling… They cannot and will not hurt you ever again… I promise, I will let no harm come to you…”

Jackie took some deep breaths and focused on Marvin’s face, looking into the siren’s eyes was so calming and relaxing… He trusted Marvin after all so far “Just breathe in and out with me dear…” After a while of doing the breathing exercises, Jackie seemed to calm down finally “O...Okay… I… I’m good now… Thank you, so much Marvin… I-If you hadn’t shown up wh-when you did th… Then I…” Marvin lifted a finger and shushed him “There’s no need to worry any more about them… They wouldn’t dare defy the likes of me… They along with any other sirens out there will never bother you again” Jackie nodded and then he realized he and Marvin were still holding hands, he didn’t pull away however, his face only turned slightly red but he was… Grateful and honestly glad to see Marvin right now “I was originally coming to give you something but then I sensed you were in trouble, I should have swam back with you in the first place, I knew there were other sirens that populated this area… I’m so sorry Jackie…” The sailor blinked and gently took his other hand and placed it on Marvin’s cheek “H-Hey… C’mon Marv… Don’t beat yourself up over that…! I mean… How could you have known that those three would even be here, sure, ya might have sensed me in danger but that doesn’t mean you can predict what or when danger is coming… I promise… I’m fine… Besides, you did STILL come and save me!”

Jackie grinned and pulled Marvin into a sudden hug, being very mindful not to pull the siren fully out of the water “I’m very thankful you got there when ya did…!” That made Marvin sigh and carefully he placed his arms over Jackie as well “...I know but still… I should have not been that careless, next time, I will be here waiting to escort you around, and I will accompany you through this area…” Jackie smiled “...I appreciate that… I really do…” And then they both pulled away and out of the hug and then Marvin noticed, he chuckled slightly “...Isn’t this a familiar sight?” Jackie raised a brow “What do you mean?” Marvin gestured to the positions they were now in “Just like when we first met out here, when I first… ...Well um… A-Anyways, speaking of, I want to apologize… For… That…” Jackie blinked in surprise but merely shrugged “It’s okay Marv… It’s crazy though, it feels like years since that day, then again a lot HAS happened…”

Marvin nodded “Yes, I suppose things have been… Hectic as of recently, I can assure you, things should calm down now ...I would hope anyways, for our sakes” Jackie nodded “Yeah for sure…” Jackie looked out toward the entrance of the cave and saw the sun setting in the distance “Wow… That’s… Really pretty…” Marvin looked to where Jackie was and smiled, for a while, they sat in silence as they watched the sun go down before the sailor then realized “Hey wait… You said you had something to give me, didn’t you?” Marvin’s eyes widened “Oh! I almost forgot!” Marvin snapped his fingers and suddenly Jackie felt something around his neck, he looked down and gasped at what he saw, he took it off to get a better look at the item… It was a necklace, the pendants were all various crystals of different sizes and colors and in the middle of them was a bluish green scale and if Jackie’s eyes could they would sparkle right now “...Yo...You made this for me…?” He looked over to Marvin who smiled and nodded “...Yes, Jackie… I have something I wish to tell you… I hope this is not too sudden… But, from the very first day we met, granted, I DID unfortunately try to eat you… I felt something deep down that I have never felt for anyone else ever, not my own kind and certainly not a sailor…”

Marvin cleared his throat and Jackie could tell he was nervous which seemed extremely out of character for someone as confident as Marvin “As much as I tried, as much as I so desperately wanted to deny it… You were and are still very special to me… I, ahah… You probably are going to think this is ridiculous given the kind of being I am but Jackie… The truth of the matter is…” And that’s when Marvin hesitated, he could feel his heart beating more rapidly, he was never the type to really be nervous but this time… It was different, much different, deep down he was terrified of being rejected but at the same time he wouldn’t necessarily blame Jackie for rejecting him given what he tried to do upon the first meeting but… Marvin also knew, it was now or never “...Jackie… I… I… lo… l-lo… I love you….” He finally stuttered out and waited for what he thought would be rejection and heartbreak, to his surprise though Jackie smiled so brightly and after quickly placing the necklace back around his neck he leaned in and gave Marvin a kiss on the lips, this took the siren off guard and his eyes went wide, slowly but surely however, his eyes had fluttered shut and he kissed back, the kiss lasted for as long as they could manage before Jackie had to pull back to take a breather “...I love you too Marvin…” And then that made the siren’s heart flutter, his tail gently swaying behind him, and then he gave Jackie a genuine smile.

This was pleasant… He would make sure no harm ever came to this sailor, even if he had to tear down entire ships or the ocean itself to make sure of that, he would never let anyone try to take him away either, this sailor was his and his alone! He didn’t quite register Jackie’s question until the sailor snapped his fingers and that made Marvin snap out of his thoughts “Hm? What is it dear?” Jackie looked curious “So… Those sirens back there, why did they call you sire?” And that made Marvin sigh, only giving a slight smile “Oh my love… That’s such a long story, and one for another time… For now, how about we enjoy some peace and quiet under the full moon tonight, hm?” Jackie sighed, he was curious but he wouldn’t push on it, he only smiled and gave a thumbs up “Okay Marv, okay… ...Love you…” Marvin hummed as he gently intertwined his hand with Jackie’s “...And I love you as well, my jolly little sailor~”

(If y’all really want, i’ll talk bout the sire ordeal just shoot me an ask if your curious about all that anyhoo- im actually proud of this one)

#jse community #jacksepticeye #jacksepticeye egos #jse egos #jackieboy man #marvin the magnificent #mermay #siren!Marvin #sailor!Jackie #marvelsepticeye #ego shipping #fluff #i dont think i fully explained how big the sirens are either #all I'll say is most sirens alone are DEFINITELY bigger than humans #not by TOO much but still- and Marv is even bigger than most of the sirens #hence why excluding the whole sire ordeal nobody much dares to challenge him

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cursebreaker-lilith · 4 years

Photo

I only posted her original profile in September, but I’ve changed some stuff and wanted to do a new drawing. Lili was pretty new to me then, and I’ve found her voice a lot more since so it only felt right to have a do over on her profile.

This is all up to the beginning of year 6.

EDIT: Some formatting changes made 5-12-21

BASICS

Name: Lilith Silvia Vesta Brooks

Nicknames: Lili, Pipsqueak, Pip

Name Meaning: Lilith references a figure from Jewish folklore, Silvia comes from her grandmother’s name and references a figure from Roman mythology, Vesta was also chosen by her grandmother and references the Roman goddess of the hearth.

Gender: Cis Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Age: 16 (Variable depending on what year I’m writing about)

Birthday: October 19th, 1972

Zodiac: Libra

Blood Status: Half-blood

Ethnicity/Nationality: White Brit

Sexuality: Self identifies primarily with queer but is okay with being called bisexual. Is also probably on both the asexual and aromantic spectrum, but the words for them hadn’t been coined in her time period.

Appearance

Body:

Height: 165cm / 5′5

Build: Average to stocky, hourglass shape

Eyes: A bright yellow-green, noticeably a bit big and round.

Hair: Pale blonde hair that is very thin and fine. She likes doing it up in different ways, from ponytails, to pigtails, to braids. Right before starting her 6th year, she cut her hair short and permed it on an impulse encouraged by her Muggle friends.

Skin: Pale skin that burns easily but quickly fades into a tan

Misc: Small and usually unnoticeable scars scattered across her hands and face from ice in the Ice Vault that will fade wholly with time (most already have by 6th year). Pierced ears--one in each lobe as a teenager but adds more as an adult.

Material Items:

Clothing: As a young child, she tried to keep up with mainstream Muggle fashion. She preferred lots of bright colors, stripes, gaudy jewelry, and scrunchies. Dear lord she loves scrunchies. As she got older however, she began to phase out of the bright colors and mainstream fashion into something which would soon be called grunge. Not completely grunge however as she still loves her statement earrings and scrunchies. Usually wears baggy/non form fitting clothing.

Accessories: Almost always wearing some sort of dangly and obnoxious statement earrings. Always has at least three scrunchies on her person.

In her school bag: Her wand, at least five scrunchies, school books and papers, books Rowan wants her to read, an old crochet penguin for good luck (her first attempt at crochet animals), crochet hooks and yarn, journal and papers related to Cursed Vault plans, at least three cool looking rocks she found on the ground.

Reference:

Face Claim: N/A

Voice Claim: N/A

Personality

Traits:

+ loyal, friendly, extroverted, responsible, mature, kind, adaptable, quick learner, resourceful, hopeful, courageous

+/— determined, good liar, intense, clever, intelligent, independent

— obsessive, untrusting, secretive, forceful, quick temper, angry, abrasive, single minded, rule breaker, rude, spiteful

Description:

Lili has a lot of pent up anger and a quick temper. She’s angry at her family, at authority, at the world. She’s not good at processing this anger and thus tends to lash out at people very often and often very cruelly and violently. She knows this and tries to keep in check but isn’t very good at doing so even as she ages. Because of her anger, she also tends to keep grudges for quite a while, even for stupid or petty reasons and is slow to admit she’s wrong.

In a better world, she would be known for her friendliness. Lili can be very friendly and relaxed. She talks first and makes a judgement second, trying to be as open minded as possible. She’s very casual yet polite and likes people being the same back to her.

Lili is determined in a way that tends towards the negative. Her laser focus on things tend to quickly become obsessions if someone she trusts doesn’t intervene quickly enough.

After her mother stopped being a parent towards her at a young age, Lili learned to take care of herself quickly. She’s become clever and resourceful in her steps to becoming independent. It’s left her mature and responsible for her age, but also untrusting and secretive, convinced she can do it on her own (or with Rowan only).

Lili is very loyal to those that earn her loyalty. For those she cares about, she would do anything. If you do something to lose that loyalty, expect harsh treatment after if Lili even deigns to speak to you. She’s not afraid of cutting people out of her life if they betray or anger her.

Other:

Likes: crafts (crochet, knitting, sewing), Rowan and Barnaby, scrunchies, dangly earrings, being busy, collecting things, fashion

Dislikes: Merula and Ismelda, Rakepick, Snape, most other Slytherins, people who get in her way, Dumbledore, Doctor Who after the 5th Doctor, not getting enough sleep, flying class

MBTI: ESTP

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Hogwarts

Hogwarts House: Slytherin

OWL Classes:

Astronomy: 6/10 (E)

Charms: 9/10 (O)

DADA: 9/10 (O)

Flying: 2/10 (A)

Herbology: 3/10 (A)

History of Magic: 2/10 (A)

Potions: 4/10 (A)

Transfiguration: 7/10 (E)

OWL Electives:

Ancient Runes: 9/10 (O)

Arithmancy: 6/10 (O)

Care of Magical Creatures: 6/10 (O)

NEWT Classes:

Ancient Runes: 9/10 (O)

Arithmancy: 6/10 (E)

Charms: 9/10 (O)

DADA: 9/10 (O)

Transfiguration: 7/10 (E)

Extracurriculars:

Clubs: Dueling Club (3rd-4th year), Fencing Club (2nd-5th year), Transfiguration Club (occasionally from 2nd year on)

Quidditch: N/A

Prefect or Head Boy/Girl: N/A

Best Classes:

Charms It’s the one class she’s very naturally talented at. She never needs to study much, but she barely has to try with Charms. Someday she’ll beat Ben and be the best in their year at the class.

Defense Against the Dark Arts She’s not good at this because of any professor, she’s good at this because of her excursions into the Cursed Vaults giving her practical knowledge.

Worst Classes:

Flying Listen, if people were meant to fly, then they’d have wings, or a spell letting people properly fly would be created by now. Lili will be staying on the ground, thank you very much.

Herbology She’s lived in the city her whole life and being around so many plants is strange. She doesn’t hate the class, but she does use it to catch up with her friends rather than study.

Potions She doesn’t have the patience for potions, and that’s even when she doesn’t have Snape refusing to acknowledge her existence.

Favorite Professors:

Flitwick She thinks Flitwick is great. There’s not much more to say. He’s responsible but not smothering, and still thinks well of her brother. If she ever had to pick an adult to trust, it would be Flitwick.

Kettleburn She had taken Care of Magical Creatures because Rowan had wanted a third elective and Lili didn’t want to take Muggle Studies or Divination. However, she ended up loving the class and thinks Kettleburn is hilarious. She honestly wished she could take the class NEWT level, but her schedule was already full.

Least Favorite Professors:

Snape She has a very complicated relationship with Snape. He hates her because of her brother (who he did not get along with), because she reminds him of James Potter, and because her nickname, Lili, reminds him of his lost love Lily Evans every time he hears it. Lili, of course, does not know any of this and thinks he just hates her for no reason. Jacob thought he was a Death Eater (he got that from whispers older kids who Jacob knew were definitely Death Eaters), so Lili uses that as justification to not like him.

Rakepick She never trusted her and barely liked her, even before she became a professor. Her opinion didn’t go improve any time in fifth year.

Magic

1st Wand: Blackthorn, unicorn hair, 11 3/4 in, shiny and slightly flexible

“Blackthorn, which is a very unusual wand wood, has the reputation, in my view well-merited, of being best suited to a warrior. This does not necessarily mean that its owner practises the Dark Arts (although it is undeniable that those who do so will enjoy the blackthorn wand’s prodigious power); one finds blackthorn wands among the Aurors as well as among the denizens of Azkaban.”

2nd Wand: Aspen, phoenix feather, 12 in, fairly rigid

“In my experience, aspen wand owners are generally strong-minded and determined, more likely than most to be attracted by quests and new orders; this is a wand for revolutionaries.”

Special Abilities: Natural Legilimens, Occlumency

Boggart

Form: Jacob telling her she’s useless and unwanted and that everything she’s doing is for nothing.

Riddikulus: Has not found anything yet that works

Amortentia

What they smell: the Owlery, Standard Ingredient, and something else, something she can’t figure out

What they smell like to others: Lavender, hot chocolate, campfire smoke

Patronus

Form: A goshawk. Independent and intelligent hunters who focus intently on stalking their prey.

Memory: A childhood memory of going to a fair. Jacob looked after her the entire night, and it’s one of the last times she remembers seeing both of her parents laugh.

What they see in the Mirror of Erised: Herself with her family–Jacob is there and looks like how she remembers him, and her mother and father are holding hands and smiling. As she ages, her mother and father are phased out of the image and replaced by her friends, her new family.

FAMILY

Father: David Brooks

Muggle

b. 1943

Works at an accounting firm.

In theory, he was alright with magic and the wizarding world. In practice, it unnerved him more than he could say. When his children started doing accidental magic, and when Jacob came home from Hogwarts talking about nothing but spells and magic, that was it for David. He filed for divorce in 1980 and hasn’t spoken to his ex-wife or children since. He has since married to a fellow Muggle, treating her children as his own and speaking rarely of his biological children. He doesn’t even know Jacob disappeared.

Mother: Carina Flora Brooks (nee Braddock)

Pureblood

b. 1944

Ravenclaw

Works for a wizarding travel magazine as a photographer, travels around the world frequently

She was perhaps not meant to be a mother, and would have been happier following in her brother’s shoes of travelling the world with no responsibilities. However, her mother was insisting she marry and Carina, in a fit of rebellion, decided to marry a nice Muggle she knew instead of the purebloods her mother had picked out.

Carina was never very good with either of her children, and in particular could never get along with Jacob, resorting to abuse (emotional and physical) to try to get him to behave how she wanted. Despite this, she totally shut down when Jacob disappeared, feeling like a failure. This led to her severely neglecting her daughter to wallow in her own misery day and night. It also led to an irrational hatred of Hogwarts. She refuses to read any letters sent by them and has made several subtle attempts to make Lili miss the Hogwarts Express.

Brother: Jacob Seraphinus Ulysses Brooks

Half-blood

b. March 8th, 1967

Slytherin

Currently missing.

Never able to make friends easily or keep his mouth shut, Jacob always had a hard time fitting in, so he turned to books. He preferred fiction over nonfiction, but one history book’s mention of Cursed Vaults on Hogwarts’ grounds led to a search that would dominate his, and his sister’s, life.

He was an outcast in his house and Hogwarts, besides for a few acquaintances, and instead focused on reaching his goals. He was reckless and brave (the Sorting Hat considered putting him in Gryffindor), but obsessive, secretive, and increasingly dependent on the idea of “the end justifies the means.”

Grandfather: Ambrose Braddock

Pureblood

b. 1903

Ravenclaw

Deceased

Known for being Britain’s first natural Legilimens in a century. The Braddock family is known for being a line of natural Legilimens, but none in the family had had the ability in five generations before Ambrose was born. This ended up leading to an offer of marriage from the Malfoy family who wanted the connection to this rare ability. Later realized his grandson was also a natural Legilimens, but died before he could teach Jacob more than the basics on how to control it and never realized his granddaughter also had the ability.

Died of sickness in 1975 at age 72

Grandmother: Silvia Braddock (nee Malfoy)

Pureblood

b. 1911

Slytherin

Never worked, has always been a housewife

Your typical upper class, conservative grandmother. She may not believe that strongly in pureblood mania anymore, but she still believes in things like “children should be seen, not heard,” and corporal punishment. Was in an arranged marriage to Ambrose and never really grew to love him feeling she was marrying beneath her Malfoy heritage. Fairly reclusive nowadays, only entertaining old friends for brunch and going to the occasional pureblood party.

Uncle: Victor Felinus Braddock

Pureblood wizard

b. 1940

Gryffindor

Has a different job every few months, deosn’t really needs to have one and his work ethic shows that

Considered a fun uncle by his nephew, and an annoyance by his niece. Has a lot of stories, and a slight drinking problem. While his mother was annoyed at him for having a dalliance with a Muggle-born, she was even more furious that he refused to marry Suzie. Victor didn’t want to be tied down, and left her to raise their two daughters only appearing in their lives every few years.

Cousins: Donna and Caroline Jones

Half-bloods

b. 1960 and 1975

Both Gryffindor

Welsh

Their mother Susan Jones was a Muggle-born Sorted into Gryffindor in the same year as Victor Braddock. The two have had an on again, off again relationship since their Hogwarts years that has resulted in two daughters.

Donna was sorted into Gryffindor in 1971 (meaning she would have been roommates with Lily Evans which is a coincidence I swear) and it’s easy to see why. She’s confident, brash, and blunt. She has many problems with her father and refuses to interact with that side of the family. Works in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement for the Ministry.

Caroline is the opposite of her much older sister and was surprised to find herself in Gryffindor (Sorted there in Lili’s 3rd year). She’s timid and quiet, but with a backbone hidden underneath. She wilts at any negative tones, but is always ready to extend a hand to anyone who has hurt her, even multiple times.

Step family: Sabina Brooks, Ioan and Luca Ciobanu

Muggles

b. 1949, 1975, and 1980

Immigrants from Romania to England

After divorcing Carina, David began dating Sabina shortly after and later married her, acting as a father to her two young children. The four of them live together in London.

Pets:

Alfred An easily frightened black cat that once belonged to Jacob

Doctor Hoot A large barred owl that frequently forgets it’s an owl and not a lapdog

FRIENDS

Best Friends:

Rowan Khanna Her best friend!! She originally befriended Rowan because Rowan reminded her of her muggle friend, but it soon blossomed into a different, much closer relationship. Whenever Rowan is gone, Lili doesn’t really know what to do (”I’m going to cut all the sleeves off my robes.” “Why??” “Rowan left an hour ago and she’s like 85% of my impulse control.”) and Lili would never have made it through any of the Cursed Vaults without her. She probably also would have gotten expelled for brawling and dueling in like second year without Rowan. I’m not joking about that impulse control thing.

Barnaby Lee Lili didn’t like Barnaby at first. Even before he worked for Merula, she thought he was nothing more than a stupid jock and made fun of how Snape would pick on him in Potions. Then she actually talked to him and did a complete 180. “I’ve only known Barnaby for an hour, but if anything happened to him, I would kill everyone in this room and them myself.” She liked how sweet and genuine he was despite his awful upbringing. He’s always there to support her, and she’s really grown to love him for that. He once thought he had a crush on her, but it wasn’t really romantic (”The feeling was friendship but he had never experienced it before.”).

Good Friends:

Bill Weasley He’s like the big brother Jacob should’ve been. She was not thrilled to have a complete stranger helping with the Vaults, but in hindsight she’s so very glad she listened to Rowan. Lili isn’t sure she could have gotten half of what she’s done done without Bill’s help and steadfastness.

Charlie Weasley Their friendship kind of crept up on Lili. Charlie was closer friends with Ben and Barnaby, so while Lili had a passing familiarity with him before the Forest Vault, she wouldn’t have called them friends. She was surprised when she turned out to really enjoy his company when he started helping with the Cursed Vaults.

Chiara Lobosca Chiara was someone Lili tangentially knew due to people confusing them for each other (the hair color; once Chiara hits a growth spurt and Lili doesn’t people stop). Then Lili is forced to partner with Chiara in Herbology in 3rd year, and besides seeing her Herbology grade go up the slightest bit, she finds a friend in Chiara, appreciating the girl’s seemingly infinite kindness.

Friends:

Nymphadora Tonks They get along in classes, but Lili doesn’t trust Tonks with anything serious.

Liz Tuttle The two have many overlapping friends but don’t really hang out with each other.

Badeea Ali She really respects Badeea, but they just don’t have many reasons to be around each other.

Jae Kim Lili thinks he’s hilarious and very smart, but doesn’t trust him as far as she could throw him.

It’s Complicated:

Ben Copper Probably the most complicated relationship here. She befriended him out of pity and continued their friendship because of his skill at Charms. He’s had a crush on her since they were 11 when she stood up for him which no one had ever done before. Then the Red Robed Wizard Reveal tm happened and Lili dropped him and ignored him, though he tried to make it up to her. 6th year only drives a deeper wedge between them as Lili can’t stand his recent behaviour. Ben finally confessing about his love for Lili in 6th year didn’t help mend anything either.

Tulip Karasu After finding out that Tulip had purposefully not told her about Jacob’s room, Lili instantly decided she was an undesirable but necessary ally. Lili does not like Tulip for most of their time at Hogwarts as she’s really pissed that someone would keep her brother’s things from her. Lili will talk to her about the Cursed Vaults, but they do not hang out and Lili does not consider her a friend. This really, really hurts Tulip’s feelings but Lili doesn’t really care. The relationship does get a bit better in 6th year, but it’s never going to be a close one. In a better world without the Vaults, they’d probably get along smashingly as while Lili isn’t a prankster, she has no problem egging them on.

Love Interests:

Penny Haywood Her first, longest, and most confusing crush. She was wary of Penny at first. Popular girls were rarely that 100% nice, but Penny truly was. She also had a nice smile and pretty hair and soft hands…. It took Lili quite a while (like four years and Bill telling her) to figure out it was a crush and then….she did absolutely nothing. She panicked and stopped talking to Penny for a while before sheepishly apologizing when Penny confronted her. They went to the Celestial Ball together, but “as friends.” That did not stop them from having a Moment that Lili interpreted completely wrongly and she assumed Penny didn’t like her romantically. Penny in fact did, and since Lili never reacted to their Moment in the proper way, Penny assumed that Lili wasn’t interested. The two continued having crushes on each other for the rest of their time at Hogwarts and remained close friends after they both graduated.

Talbott Winger Her second, less confusing, crush. Similar to Barnaby, Lili didn’t think much of Talbott at first. He was that one kid who was talented at Transfiguration and she once saw him chatting casually to an owl in the Owlery. He was weird and she ignored him. Then she was paired with him on a class assignment in 3rd year and a friendship bloomed despite Talbott’s protests. It was a casual thing at first, but then Lili helped Talbott find his mom’s necklace, and their talk under the stars about family and the past and future deepened their friendship. Having already figured out she had a crush on Penny by this time, she managed to get the signs that she now also had a crush on Talbott, which made her panic, again. However, since Talbott is even worse with emotions than her, she didn’t do anything drastic like she did with Penny. They went on one date in 6th year but that was going too fast for Talbott and they decided to stay friends until Talbott felt more comfortable being around people. Lili took this….mostly gracefully.

Diego Caplan The two met in the Dueling Club in 4th year. Diego was impressed with Lili’s skill and tried to befriend her and also maybe flirt with her a bit. Lili, who tends to gravitate towards people who are unashamedly themselves, found his over the top flirting hilarious and was instantly endeared to Diego. She really enjoyed being around him, finding his lightheartedness helped her forget some of her troubles with the Cursed Vaults, especially in 5th year. He asked her out on a date, her first one, and she agreed. She enjoyed the date, but 5th year was the peak of her obsession with the Cursed Vaults so she broke it off. They later dated again during 6th year, after Lili’s one date with Talbott.

Dormmates:

Rowan Khanna see above

Desdemona Selwyn An OC. Their entire relationship can be explained with that one text post that’s like “Bitch.” “Blocked.” “Wait unblock me I need to tell you something.” “Unblocked.” “Bitch.”

Vidalia Barrows An OC. Lili has said like two sentences to Vidalia and she plans to keep it that way. Vidalia just eats and sleeps and does whatever Desdemona says to do.

Doesn’t Interact:

Murphy McNully/Skye Parkin/Orion Amari/Erika Rath She’s not involved in Quidditch.

Andre Egwu I just can’t think of a way to work him into the plot lol They would get along somewhat well otherwise.

Enemies:

Merula Snyde Hated each other’s guts for a while. Then Lili gave up her Frog Choir spot and Merula gained a small crush (even if Lili was a total ass about giving it up). While they’ll never be friends, by the time of 5th and 6th year they’ve become reluctant allies similar to Lili and Tulip above. Lili will probably never totally befriend her, but she’s learned to be civil and that’s progress.

Ismelda Murk Lili doesn’t really like Ismelda but she considers her all bark and no bite. Ismelda hates Lili because she thinks Lili and Barnaby are gonna end up dating and is jealous.

Desdemona Selwyn An OC. See above.

Most of Slytherin House Lili has never been shy about being half Muggle and being proud of it, and in a house that still worships Voldemort, that sets her apart. The few that don’t find her being pro-Muggle distasteful don’t want to be exiles in their own dorms and avoid talking to her.

Story

Childhood:

Lili’s childhood was never that great. Her parents fought frequently over her and Jacob’s use of accidental magic, and this eventually caused them to divorce when Lili was 9. Her mother in particular was emotionally and physically abusive but Jacob spared her from the worst of it.

Jacob was always the best part of her childhood. She loved her parents, but Jacob was the person she always looked forward to seeing. When he went to Hogwarts, she was upset for weeks, and when he went missing, she was devastated (especially as he went missing the night of her birthday).

Her mother didn’t take it well. Carina was not particularly close with Jacob, but this obviously big failure of her as a parent hit her hard. She became very emotionally withdrawn from Lili and threw herself into her photography work, leaving the country, and Lili, for weeks at a time.

Lili had to become very independent very quickly after that. That, plus the fact that she didn’t have any non-Muggle friends meant she trusted very few people and lied often. Getting her Hogwarts letter was a relief and a promise of freedom

Hogwarts:

: )

see here: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1467043

Adulthood:

Lili is very distraught after graduation and leaves everyone she knows behind to travel Europe and find herself. She spends several years doing this, helping people and doing odd jobs.

Eventually, she finds that she has a talent for languages, picking up a few easily in her travels, and starts to consider possibly doing something related to language whenever she goes back to Britain.

Miscellaneous

She fuckin loves scrunchies.

Has lived in a Muggle neighbourhood her whole life.

Likes muggle TV. Grew up watching Doctor Who. Not impressed with the 6th Doctor, and glad she was away at Hogwarts during his run. Favorite Doctor is the 4th and she knit herself her own version of his scarf.

Likes collecting things! She loves cool rocks on the sidewalk, tacky tourist souvenirs, and things you find for $1 in a thrift store.

She can knit, crochet and sew. She likes making little crochet animals and giving them to friends (or just keeping them and having a plushy empire around her bed).

Loves having her photo taken and has a whole collection of photos, but hates taking photos. It reminds her of her mother.

One of her Muggle friends got her into fencing. She thought it would be useful to hone her athletic skills with, so she continued doing it when she went back to Hogwarts in the fall.

The type of person who needs to be doing something 24/7. When she doesn’t have anything to focus on, she tends to be all over the place and rather annoying.

Quieter and more complacent as a kid. it was after her family broke apart that the need to be so driven started to become a part of her personality.

Love Like You from Steven Universe is a song for her and Jacob (from Jacob’s POV)

Chameleon by Michela is a song that fits her

Tropes:

Big Brother Worship

Determinator

Family Eye Resemblance

Good is Not Nice

Hair Trigger Temper

Jerk with a Heart of Gold

Parental Neglect

#hphm #harry potter hogwarts mystery #hogwarts mystery #hphm mc #jacob's sibling #jacobs sibling #lili brooks #art be mine #this is super long lol #pls enjoy #texttexttext post

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self-indulgence-with-tea · 6 years

Text

#SSVDay19 Prompt 3 - Soulmate AU (feat. Elizabeth Comstock)

{For @jocelynships prompt list, I decided to go with an F/O that’s a little more in my age group. The AU? Soulmates can write, draw, or do anything to their skin and it’ll appear on the other. Enjoy!}

In the quiet of morning, Elizabeth Comstock couldn’t help but feel, of all things, lonely. Of course, she’s felt this way before. It hadn’t taken long for her to realize all her pleading with Songbird only granted her warning stares in return. Of course, that didn’t mean she wouldn’t long for a life outside her tower. The books were a nice escape, but there were only so many books in her library and only so long she could spend reading.

Elizabeth sighed, staring out her window at the cityscape below her, watching the morning bustle along the streets. So many people she had never met and would never know her. The young girl stood, smoothing out her dress and descending the stairs to the main library. Just as there was only so long she could read, there was also only so long she could sit, staring out windows, before it grew tiring.

Perusing the shelves, she found a book of poetry she hadn’t yet read. It looked to be good for a bit of light idling before studies for the day. Perhaps a poem or two would help her take her mind off things.

She flipped to a random page and started to read.

The house was still – the room was still

‘Twas eventide in June

A caged canary to the sun

Then setting – trilled a tune

A free bird on that lilac bush

Outside the lattice heard

He listened long – there came a hush

He dropped an answering word –

The prisoner to the free replied

Elizabeth smiled, raising an eyebrow. What was the reply, she thought. Taking a pen, she noted the poem’s name and author on her arm, having no free paper on which to write. Just a little note, barely noticeable. At the very least, she hoped Madame Lutece wouldn’t notice it when she came in for tutoring. She shut the book and tucked it away, leaving to the dressing room to prepare for studies.

~~~

An hour later found Elizabeth nodding off while Madame Lutece went on about geometry and pythagorean theorem. Her tutor was like this often, barely noticing when her ward wasn’t paying attention as she continued the lecture.

She looked down at the note scrawled on her arm and was shocked to find another bit of writing underneath. Even more shocking; the note wasn’t in her handwriting.

Looking up to ensure Madame Lutece still wasn’t aware she wasn’t listening, Elizabeth pulled back her sleeve and read the note. It was a question she, herself, had asked.

*How did the prisoner reply?*

Elizabeth glanced up before taking her pen and writing her own answer.

~Who are you?~

Throughout the lesson, she kept glancing down to her arm, trying to see if the mysterious writer would return. Eventually, she got a response.

*Nobody. You?*

She had to stifle a giggle before writing again.

~Apparently, a cyclops, Mr. Odysseus.~

Elizabeth could barely sit still, anticipating the next reply. This time, it came far faster.

*You must be well read. None of my friends know Homer.*

~I was led to believe Homer was very common?~

*Not among my peers, it would seem.*

“Miss Comstock.” The accented voice cut through her reverie like sheers through paper. “I would find it surprising, if you found the area of a circle so enjoyable.”

“My apologies, Madame Lutece. I was just writing…”

Elizabeth’s tutor raised an eyebrow, her eyes seeming to catch sight of her arm and the ink scrawled across it. A moment’s hesitation made Elizabeth curious.

“Madame Lutece?”

Rosalind seemed to shake herself of the moment. “We must be on with our lesson plan. You may resume the conversation at a later time.”

Elizabeth nodded, but hummed in confusion. Conversation? Did she know? Or was she simply referring to their conversation? And just who was this person? How were they writing on her skin like that? So many questions and every attempt to answer them just brought up more.

~~~

Emily Tomlinson looked over her arm with trepidation. The penmanship was very definitely unfamiliar and very neat, formal, even. Was it a ghost writing to her? Was she haunted?

She suddenly felt a presence over her shoulder and jumped back when it spoke.

“Woah, Emi, you got your soulmate already?”

She blinked, her friend looking very enthusiastic.

“Soulmate?”

“Yup! Your soulmate! Or, at least, that’s the legend. That the person on the other side of the writing is the person you’re destined to be with. Your perfect match.”

Emily looked down at the writing again, biting her lip. Soulmates… “It’s a pretty tale, but I don’t much buy into folklore. Most people never meet the person on the other side, right?”

Her friend nodded. “Yup. It’s pretty sad, to know and talk with someone your whole life and never meet them.”

Emily just shrugged and carried on. But now the thought couldn’t escape her head. What if this person was her soulmate? And what if they never met? Could she really maintain contact with someone so far?

She looked down at the writing just in time to see a new line appear.

~My name is Elizabeth. What is yours?~

She bit her lip and wrote back.

*Emily. It is very nice to meet you, Elizabeth.*

She smiled and covered the letterings again. Elizabeth, huh? Even if she wasn’t her soulmate, Emily had a feeling this would become a beautiful friendship.

~~~

A few years had passed since their initial correspondence and the two girls had become fast friends. They told each other everything, from happenings at home to facts they learned to literature they shared. Currently, though, Emily’s friend was taking up her arm with doodling while she read.

Lately, she’d found interest in the Bronte sisters, particularly the works of Anne Bronte. At least she had some taste in men.

“So, has your soulmate written you lately?”

Emily didn’t look up. “Firstly, we’re not soulmates. Simply friends. Secondly, yes, in fact. Though, I had warned her you would be watching for some time.”

Her friend groaned. “Not fair! I had wanted to meet her!”

Emily laughed. “Perhaps you will, one day.”

A silence settled into the air, tense and palpable. “Have you told her?”

“No. Not yet. But I will.”

“When?”

“Soon.”

Her friend hummed, then stood from her seat. “I best be going. So long, Emi!”

Emily smiled and waved her off. “So long.”

“And don’t forget to write!”

“I won’t!”

Emily looked down at her arm, seemingly random lines connecting her freckles. She giggled and turned it over to write.

*She’s away.*

The reply didn’t take long at all.

~What constellation is that? I can’t find it on my star maps.~

*The freckle constellation. She was connecting the dots.*

~I see! So, you have freckles?~

*I do! My whole family has them. Do you have freckles?*

~No, sadly, but my tutors do. It always made me wonder how I would look.~

Emily sighed, her friend’s words echoing in her head. She had to tell Elizabeth about it. Why was she having such trouble doing so? It wasn’t as if they would cease contact. Elizabeth wouldn’t even know unless Emily told her.

*I have news.*

~Is it good news?~

*Neutral, at most. My father is moving us to a new city.*

~Oh, that sounds wonderful! Perhaps you would be closer?~

*Perhaps. But this city is very difficult to move from. I’m afraid the possibility of our meeting would dwindle.*

And there it was. The kicker. Emily braced herself to face Elizabeth’s reaction.

~That’s quite alright. To where will you be moving?~

That was… relatively painless. Honestly, the fear had been warping Emily’s perception a tad, but the calm reaction was still a shock.

*To Columbia.*

~~~

Columbia. Emily was moving to Columbia. That fact alone was startling, in and of itself. Elizabeth wrote quickly.

~When will you be moving?~

Her leg bounced, waiting with baited breath for the answer.

*Within a fortnight.*

Two weeks. She was moving even closer in two weeks!? Should she tell her? But if they don’t meet, she’ll start asking questions and there was no way Elizabeth could tell her how she couldn’t go anywhere or that her guardian was large and made of leather and Heaven knows she couldn’t tell her about tears! None of the girls in her books lived like that, so it couldn’t be normal at all. Oh, this was a disaster… What could she possibly say?

*Are you okay, Elizabeth? You’ve gone silent.*

~Yes, I’m just fine. I simply have news of my own I wish to share.~

Please let this be the right choice. Of course, she wouldn’t tell her everything. Just of a strict parent? Songbird could be overprotective and governing at times, Elizabeth could make it believable.

*Go ahead, Lizbet. I’m all ears.*

~I live in Columbia currently.~

The reply came instantly.

*Spectacular! We can finally meet!*

~Not exactly, Emily.~

*Whyever not?*

~It’s my guardian. He’s very strict. He doesn’t let me leave my home. Perhaps, someday…~

*I understand entirely. But at least we know we’re closer and that’s well enough for me.*

Elizabeth felt she could almost cry from both frustration and happiness. Just one step closer. A step closer to a real, true friendship with another person. Songbird and her tutors were well enough, but she still felt lonely at times. But Emily… she seemed to drive it all away. She didn’t feel lonely, writing to her. It just felt like having a real connection with someone for once.

~Thank you. You’re a true friend.~

*I can only hope that, one day, we’ll finally get the chance.*

~I agree. Yet still, I do hope you enjoy Columbia! Tell me all about it once you move, will you?~

*Of course! I wouldn’t dream of anything else!*

Elizabeth smiled and moved her sleeve to cover her arm again. One step closer.

~~~

The years passed by and both young girls grew up. Elizabeth whiled the days away, reading and listening to the phonograph and dreaming of Paris. Em experimented, made friends, dated, questioned the nature of humanity, and came to some very interesting conclusions about themselves. Neither met and both were fine with waiting, with spending their lives as they were, with very little change.

One day, without warning, Elizabeth’s tutors stopped showing up. That was just how things were.

One day, Emily tried on trousers and chopped off their hair and got rid of the “ily”, never going back. That was just how things were.

One day, Elizabeth and Em both tried and failed to write “I love you.” That was just how things were.

One day, Elizabeth drew a flower on her hand and Em filled it in with colored ink. That was just how things were.

One day, Em’s mom left and they struggled to make ends meet in Finkton for a year and a half before finally making it back to live on the mainland. That was just how things were.

One day, Em saw a man eating garbage, much to the disgust of a couple of oddly familiar gingers nearby, and laughed about it with Elizabeth. That was just how things were.

One day, Elizabeth stopped writing. That was not how things were.

One day, Em stopped writing. That was not how things were.

One day, Elizabeth said she was being taken somewhere and disappeared. That was not how things were.

One day, Em witnessed the razing of Finkton and disappeared. That was not how things were.

One day, neither felt like they were allowed to die, despite feeling the pain of the other dying. That was not how things were.

One day, Elizabeth wrote that she felt she was being watched. Thus began a new day.

~~~

An electric storm circled Emporia like an omen, bombs and gunfire ringing in the distance. Em looked upon the carnage surrounding the floating island. Red banners waved in the distance, a symbol of a righteous rebellion turned bloodthirsty. Something had happened. Something awful. Something that would drive the usually patient and willing Vox Populi to become vicious.

Was it just? Was it righteous? Was it necessary? Em wasn’t sure, but they were scared. If something had happened, it likely wouldn’t be long before the Vox gave into mob mentality. Had the innocent blood anything to say about it, they already had. But it wasn’t Em Tomlinson’s war, they knew that much. They understood where they lied on the rank of humanity. They were poor and a confirmed bachelor, but that didn’t change that their white skin got them a free pass out of Finkton and all the privilege another man of a darker tone or different accent couldn’t afford. This was not their war to fight, however much they wanted to help.

Em checked their arm, looking at the conversation written in long dried ink along the length.

~The Vox Populi are razing Finkton.~

*I can hear the gunfire. Are you okay?*

~I’ve done something awful.~

*It’ll be okay. We can fix this.*

~You don’t understand. I have to go.~

*Go? Go where? I know you’re scared, but can’t we make it together?*

~I’m sorry.~

*Wait. I have to tell you something. Before you go.*

~I’m so, so sorry.~

*I love you.*

Since then, it’s been blank. The ink would get smudged or chipped every now and again, but what ink didn’t? Em couldn’t stop reading it, over and over, questions churning in their mind. What had Elizabeth done? Why was she sorry? Where was she going? Was she okay?

They shoved their sleeve back over the writing, forcing themselves not to read it any longer. It would only cause doubts. Instead, they looked to the freight craft. It was taking Emporia refugees. With some stolen clothes, Em was trying to pose as one of Columbia’s elite.

“Sir, we have to depart!”

“Please, just one more minute. I’m certain she’s coming.”

“We don’t have much time!”

Other, similar pleas rang out around them, begging for more time or for the craft to go on without those who couldn’t or wouldn’t climb aboard.

Em turned back to face the stairs. Just one more minute.

“Please, Elizabeth. I know you’re out there. Come find me…”

The pilot spoke with booming voice, “Last call to board! Leave all possessions behind!”

Em stiffened and turned, preparing to climb aboard, when they heard a voice.

“Booker, we should help them.”

“We don’t have time to spread pity. Let’s move on.”

“Booker, please.”

They turned to spy two people. The first noticeable was a grizzled man, about middle aged, with the overall aura of an alcoholic who hadn’t had a proper drink in days. He was relatively stylish, but not in any conventional way. Probably a confirmed bachelor. The second, however, caught Em’s eye. Following him was a beautiful young woman with raven hair and brilliantly blue eyes, made only brighter by the deep navy dress she wore. She looked kind, if not tired and aged far beyond her years. In that aspect, the man and the woman resembled each other quite a bit.

Em screwed their courage to the sticking place and approached. Maybe one of them had seen Elizabeth. “Excuse me!”

Both looked to them, the man with a tired groan and the woman with a sympathetic expression. She must have seen the blood on their stolen clothes.

“Please, can you help me? It won’t take but a moment, I promise.”

The woman seemed to give the man a pointed look and he sighed, backing off. “What is it you need help with?”

“I’m looking for someone,” Em explained. “A young woman with dark hair past her shoulders, blue eyes, fair complexion. You probably haven’t seen her, but she means everything to me and I just want to make sure she’s alright.”

The woman nodded in understanding. “Do you know her name at all?”

They sighed, shaking their head. “Just her first, but it’s a very common name. Elizabeth? Does that ring any bells?”

As soon as Em said the name, the woman’s face fell. “That’s… my name.”

“As I said, common name. Now, have you- ...What are you doing?”

The woman was rolling up her left sleeve quickly, as fast as she could without completely tearing it. When she turned it over, though, Em immediately recognized the penmanship scrawled on her arm. With far less care, they ripped their own sleeve up to show a matching set of ink marks.

“Elizabeth…?” Em breathed out, tears pricking at the corners of their eyes.

Elizabeth slowly smiled, looking so tired. “I love you, too.”

They immediately tackled her into a hug, both parties laughing and crying simultaneously.

“You’re alive! You’re okay! Oh, Lizbet, I was so worried!”

“You were worried!? I was traversing Hell itself and I couldn’t stop thinking about you!”

The man from before cleared his throat behind Elizabeth. “Are ya done now? Can we get a move on? We got a schedule to keep.”

“Oh, right. Really quick, Booker? This is Em Tomlinson. They’re the one from the writing I showed you. Em, this is Booker DeWitt. He’s the one that helped me escape my tower.”

Em looked between them. “Oh, your dad?”

“Wha--”

“Nevermind. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. DeWitt.” They stuck out their hand in greeting and Booker shook it firmly.

“Charmed and it’s just Booker. Now, if we’re done here…”

“What are you both doing? If you’re headed to Emporia, it’s already been ransacked by the Vox.”

Booker groaned at the delay while Elizabeth answered. “We know. We’re going to put a stop to it, one way or another.”

“Only if that’s what it takes to get the Hell out of dodge, to Paris or New York or literally anywhere but here,” Booker clarified.

Em nodded. “Then I want to help.”

Elizabeth inhaled sharply. “But you were just about to--”

“That was before I knew you were definitely alive and doing what I didn’t have the courage to do alone. But if you’re wanting to end all of this, I’m willing to help.”

Elizabeth took their hands. “I won’t put you in harm’s way,” she said firmly.

Em looked to Booker. “Do you have a gun?”

“If you can fire one, I’m sure we can pick up something on our way through Emporia. If you plan on doing any fighting, you’ll need vigors.”

“Like you said, plenty in Emporia. I refuse to lose you again, Lizbet. I promise, we’ll make it through together.” Em lifted a hand to cup Elizabeth’s cheek and she leaned into the touch.

“Then that’s also a promise you’ll be safe?”

“Of course.”

Elizabeth nodded and pulled back, a stoney determination setting into her very being. “Then let’s find Comstock.”

#ssvday19 #elizabeth comstock #f/o #self ship #self insert

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