#If you seen how our documents are layed out... oof

[subwaytostardew]

Can we see some Ingo daily dialogue as well? And personally, for me, I enjoy seeing the boys have longer dialogue, makes them feel more real.

I'm glad at least some people don't mind about the long dialogue stuff. (Especially since... Ingo takes up almost two-thirds of the daily dialogue document... with his walls of text.) They also have some questions that lengthen the document.

But of course here is some Ingo daily dialogue (and some marriage). Thylak mostly handles Emmet's stuff while I handle Ingo's - of course I go through both of them and making sure that it stays in character - sometimes Thylak goes through dialogue and puts in more train terms that I may have missed. (Or fix my grammatical errors.....) Or even to add dialogue that draws from his experience of being a sibling. (I'm sadly an only child..... ;-;)

@ = Code for Farmer/Player

◁ Station Stewardess Kade

▲ Ingo's Regular Daily Dialogue ▲

 "While I do have a tendency to become tunnel-visioned, I unfortunately also find myself becoming easily sidetracked as well... I'm always so overwhelmed with the different possible routes to depart on, that I forget to switch back to the destination I was set towards earlier! Thankfully, Emmet is often by my side to keep me in check! I don't know what would happen if I were to be without him... I'd forget about everything!"

"I am actually quite fond of rock climbing! Had I not known of the joys of railway transit, I would have dedicated myself towards scaling perilous heights! It's all so thrilling! If you would ever like to link together as a two-car train, I would love to be able to guide you on the journey upwards to greater heights!"

"@, it’s good to see you today! Perhaps you could assist me by being on the lookout. You see, two young children- Jas and Vincent- have been rather curious about what myself, Emmet, and our Pokémon have been conducting here on the Railroad! I often find them trying to hide between some of the barrels over by the Bathhouse. You see, this poses a safety concern... The Railroad, in the state of disrepair it is in, is not an ideal place for unsupervised children! I doubt that their guardians will take too kindly to us if anything were to happen to them around the said area. Though, I’m glad that they are not afraid of us and are kind enough to come to visit and say hello. They are quite curious, often asking myself and Emmet a heavy load of questions... mostly pertaining to our Pokémon and sometimes trains that run on the tracks! If you see them around, do let myself or Emmet know, so we can ensure that they follow all safety procedures here on the Railroad!"

"Ghuugh… Ah! I did not see you there. Pardon me for sounding so displeased. It is not towards you! But rather… diverted towards the Joja Company Representative, Morris. He has decided to claim our clearing of the railway’s path as his own through an abhorrent letter. Which, has left my cab as well as Haxorus’ feeling… troubled. But- nonetheless, Emmet and I have a considerable task ahead- to reach our destination in repairing the station! Being derailed over a silly letter will not get the work done. Oh dear… where is Emmet? He better not be deciding to face Morris. That would be less than ideal… there are better ways to deal with a disgruntled passenger."

"Last night was Emmet's turn to prepare dinner! Please take this, Emmet wanted you to have it but... he has his apprehensions when it comes to intermingling with others himself. [Ingo gives the farmer Spaghetti] He assumed that the best track to set forth on was to transfer the rations over to me to distribute during my departures from the station. Of course, I tried my best to provide assistance as well- especially since he was conducting an extra large portion this time around! Emmet had the thought that perhaps people would respond more positively to gift giving! I suppose this was his way of assisting me in improving passenger relations. We had spaghetti, one of the first meals he learned how to prepare and that we both agreed on! Contrary to the reasonable assumption that he would dislike such a dish, as it would stain his clothing, it holds special significance to him! I remember when Emmet was first learning to cook... his elation at finally receiving such an enthusiastic response sent him off the rails! Bravo! After his first win, he proceeded to make a new pot of spaghetti for every night that week, rushing full speed ahead towards the height of that destination! As you may have noticed, Emmet finds comfort in repetition... the same applies to dietary intake as it does for winning, winning, and more winning! Personally, I wasn't too bothered by how frequently he conducted us to eat spaghetti- supportive even! I made stops to pick up more groceries to fuel Emmet!- but... Uncle Drayden halted him in his tracks before another Monday could pass. Though he expressed appreciation for our enthusiasm, we had to endure yet another long lecture on how growth and change cannot be achieved with a stagnating routine... Nonetheless, spaghetti is one of the meals we are known to prepare well, so I do hope you enjoy it!"

"I know you must be tired of the constant reminders- but if you must persist- please don't forget to conduct your safety checks before continuing upon your tracks into the mines! I hope that my own persistence doesn't discourage you from being open about your various endeavors- as dangerous as they may be. You worry me sometimes... It brings me solace to at the very least receive warning in the case of disaster. I hope you understand that I am more than willing to be of any assistance you may need, especially if that is to prevent any potential tragedies upon the horizon. My service is not limited to your expeditions in the mines either. Please know that you are more than welcome to request my company for anything! I am always here to ensure you have a safe, fulfilling, and thorough journey on the express train of 'Life', my dear passenger."

▲ Ingo's Marriage Daily Dialogue ▲

"Please remind me to wake up early tomorrow, dearest. I do not want to miss the morning safety checks with Emmet. Back home, we tended to be a bit late due to my cab refusing to start its engine for the day, causing a delay in schedule. I just don’t seem to do well in the mornings...."

"Chandelure’s flames bring a sense of calm within the late hours of the evening.... Some have said they become uneasy with the glow of a Ghost Pokémon. I think it fits just right. A cozy blanket.... A book or two to read- or even a movie to unwind as well! Doesn’t that sound nice, dear? Perhaps we can watch a movie or two before we head to our last scheduled stop for the day! We could watch a train or Pokémon documentary? Or perhaps one of your favorites? I always enjoy learning about what you like!"

"I hope you don’t mind me conducting some battle training. It is important as a Subway Boss that I hone my skills in Pokémon Battles. I mostly do Single Battles, though Emmet has said that I should practice Double Battles to get a better understanding of our team’s potential combinations! I’ll be honest.... I think our team combinations are the best the way they are now! However, Emmet has a better understanding of the competitive battle scene than I do.... I tend to keep up on what new developments have been happening within the railway community! New trains and technology are being built everyday, and I want to ensure that the Battle Subway is in good condition, as well as the trains here at Camellia Station! @, perhaps you would like to learn? I could always lend you Excadrill or Garbador! They seem quite eager to grow closer to you. Pokémon Battles are a great way to forge bonds with your Pokémon, as well as your fellow trainers!"

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AS YOU CAN SEE... INGO TALKS A LOT. LOL. So I'm glad some people don't mind the long... text walls.

But here's some bonus dialogue that both Ingo and Emmet share. This is actually one of my favorite pieces.

-----------

▲Ingo▲

"Aiming for even greater heights, achieving your ideal goal... The pursuit of ideals is a part of the Unova region’s culture. It is one end of a double-sided train, as it is related to the local legendary Pokémon, Zekrom. Drayden told Emmet and I this story when we were younger. I can tell it to you, @, if you are interested. However, I may not tell the tale as well as he has. It has been some time.....

A long time ago in Unova’s past, there was a legendary Dragon that was neither Zekrom nor Reshiram. The name has long been forgotten on these tracks- but everyone can agree that Zekrom and Reshiram came to be from this very dragon. The dragon had two partners. They were twin brothers who were usually proclaimed to be the heroes of Unova. The younger brother believed in his ideals, while the older brother believed in the whole hearted truth... This had caused their friend pain... and confusion. I could not imagine watching two of my best friends fight with no end.

I would not be able to choose a side... and that is what happened to the legendary dragon. It had split its tracks, becoming Zekrom and Reshiram! Zekrom decided to side with the younger twin, while Reshiram sided with the older twin. The fight ravaged the Unova region, hurting people and Pokémon alike. And even themselves... The twins soon realized that they were neither right nor wrong, and ceased the fighting. However- it was too late. The damage had already been done. I will be honest, hearing that story as a child- as well as being a twin- I had nightmares for months because of it. I was terrified of the idea that Emmet and I would end up in a fight and go on separate tracks, never to speak to each other again. I do not know what I would do without my younger twin! That is why I am open-minded when it comes to his feelings and thoughts on what he believes in! O-of course we fight... And we get on each other's nerves... But we always forgive one another at the end of the day! I’m glad that I have a twin brother like him. I would be lost on the tracks without him!"

▽Emmet▽

"The truth is verrrry important in Unova's cultures. It is related to the local legendary Pokémon - Reshiram! Drayden tells the story about Reshiram and Zekrom the best. I am Emmet. I can try to explain! Just for you, @!

A verry verrrry long time ago. There was a legendary dragon. This was not Reshiram or Zekrom. No one knows the name. They lost it. But Reshiram and Zekrom were that dragon!

However, there were twin brothers who shared the dragon. But they had verrry different tracks of opinions. The older twin wanted the 'truth'. The younger twin wanted 'ideals'. They fought. They had a verrry bad argument. They did not know that it caused their partner - the legendary dragon - pain. The dragon derailed. It split itself in half. They became Reshiram and Zekrom. Reshiram took the side of the older twin. Truth. Zekrom took the side of the younger twin. Ideals. The two dragons fought.... and it hurt the Unova region. It hurt the Pokémon. It hurt themselves. The twins realized that they both were neither right nor wrong. So they stopped fighting. They made up. But the damage had already been done to the station......

I am Emmet. The story taught me to be verrrry open minded about my twin brother's thoughts and feelings. I do not want to have a bad fight that would make us never speak to each other ever again. That would be bad and it would be verrrry lonely. I had nightmares as a kid due to that story. But Ingo was there..... he also had nightmares since he too would listen to the story with me.

I hope I explained it well. It is considered verrrry important history in Unova. Thank you for listening, @"

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Since Truth and Ideals is a major story plot in the Pokémon black and white games it makes sense to sprinkle in a bit of that duality... since well it's part of their culture.

Also out of all the npcs... Ingo talks the most. So uhh have fun with dialogue boxes LOL. And infodumps... and shenanigans

As of now, Emmet actually has 32 more lines than Ingo but Ingo's dialogue file is larger than Emmet's by 7 KB! So... Yup. Ingo can ramble. Emmet may speak more than a vanilla NPC, but it's nothing compared to Ingo. ▷ Thylak

[simptasia]

neurodivergence in abc’s lost

i’m gonna be listing off and talking about the canon neurodivergent characters in lost. i won’t be adding characters that i personally headcanon as neurodivergent in some way, what i’m writing here is elaboration upon what has been given to me by the show. please note that none of these people’s conditions or disorders were named in the show, so such diagnoses being named here are me taking that extra step based upon their symptoms

first of all i wanna point out that based on what i’ve seen the show, that the island’s healing powers applies to conditions inflicted upon the mind, not ones inherent to the mind. thats why daniel’s brain damage heals, but people like hurley and locke will always continue to have depression

hugo “hurley” reyes

schizophrenia and depression

our most prominently featured mentally ill character. it might seem bold to label him with schizophrenia when it’s never said that that’s what he has. but during his time on lost, he displays many of the symptoms: paranoia, pathological self loathing, delusions and hallucinations. now, it’s a fictionalized depiction of schizophrenia and that’s probably not even what the writers had in mind but it’s none the less a really, really good and respectful portrayal of it

it would take too long to list off all the times when hurley displays paranoia (heck, it’s easy not to notice how much its a part of his character) and self loathing. delusions? the situations regarding the numbers and his bad luck (canon never ever Proves what hurley believes to be true regarding that stuff)

they did an episode dedicated to hurley having hallucinations. a man named dave who drives him to self destructive behaviour, self hatred and attempted suicide. fun fact: when people with schizophrenia in real life have hallucinations, they tend towards just auditory. hurley gets visual as well as per Rule Of Drama. this is not a bad thing, just a narrative tool

(steering slightly into headcanon for a bit here but i personally ignore the dharma made Hurley Bird they revealed in the epilogue and just take hurley hearing that bird say his name as an auditory hallucination. for two reasons: one, hurley hearing/seeing things that don’t exist is already consistent with his mental state. and two, that bird literally, genuinely did not fucking say hurley)

extra notes

to be clear, in case there's confusion, hurley really does have magical powers. he can talk to dead people. that isn’t a delusion or hallucination. you can understand how confusing and distressing this must be for hurley

he's had a compulsive eating disorder since he was ten due to the pain of his father abandoning him. his struggle with this is well documented

at several points during the show he’s shown to have trouble spelling. he especially confuses his “y(s)” and “ies”. it’s not clear if this is due to poor education or a learning issue. or both, really. it’s safe to assume with him being poor, mexican and mentally ill, that school wasn’t easy for hurley

hurley has unjustifiably lived at mental health institutions on at least two occasions (the first time was against his will, second was volunteer)

john locke

depression

locke suffers from severe self esteem issues, and i know most lost characters do, but i mean to the point of irrational and destructive behaviour. he has an obsession with being deemed special in order to justify his existence. he also suffers jarring mood swings. (he can switch from calm and jovial to angry and defensive at the drop of a hat). when he was wheelchair bound, this threw him into a depression. when he failed to convince anybody to come back to the island, he attempted suicide. he would have gone thru with it too. he will go to extremes to make sure things stay the way he wants them to (killing an innocent woman so they can stay on the island, tying up and drugging boone so he won’t tell anybody about the hatch), and will fall into despair if he fails

also note that the things im saying about locke are not a comment on people with depression. i don’t think all depressed people kill and drug people. those were statements on locke’s character that i believe are a part of his mental state. my point is: he’s emotionally unstable and he tried to kill himself. and i think his extreme need for validation (from people and the universe in general) is especially concerning

to me, this all says to me that locke has clinical depression

locke isn’t as easy as the other people on this list to classify as Canon Neurodivergent but at least to me, i think it’s very obvious. like i feel bad being so vague but like, basically, watch any locke episode

daniel faraday

acquired brain damage, severe memory degradation as well as other neurodivergent behaviours (i’ll go into it)

he’s played by jeremy davies. enough said

okay, jokes aside. at some point in the past daniel and his assistant theresa were involved in some vaguely referred to time based experiments. while she was catatonicized, the accident left daniel severely brain damaged (also daniel spent years doing radioactive experiments without head protection, which would not have helped and indeed that is foreshadowing of this whole debacle)

apparently this left him in a state where he can no longer take care of himself, having been assigned a carer. his most outstanding symptom is that his ability to process short AND long term memory has been impaired

short term: he’s shown to have issues retaining memories from day to day. he wasn’t sure if he had met charles widmore already (he hadn’t). charles lays some exposition on him and when daniel asks why he’s telling him this, charles says, with sureness, that “because by tomorrow you won’t remember this”. counting on that to be an absolute fact seems silly to me but that does seem to the case. again, Rule Of Drama is in play here

long term: he can no longer access memories he formed many years ago, famously the memories he formed with desmond in 1996. all in all, this condition is highly plot convenient. can’t argue with results, really

no, i can keep going, i got more, this is daniel fucking faraday we’re talking about: his ability to remember 3 playing cards has been impaired (note that this is a skill most 4 year olds master), he forgot the secret code the science team were all taught and when he introduces himself to jack there is a long pause, in hindsight implying that daniel forgot his own name

like real life memory conditions, theres varying level to how much he does and doesn’t remember. he’s thankfully not in a 50 first dates situation and doesn’t forget everything day to day. clearly he remembers people if they’re around enough, like during his time on the boat. charlotte, miles, frank, naomi...

upon landing on the island, his memory slowly gets better (considering his condition beforehand, the fact that nobody comments on this is staggering)

when dan is fully healed? i could not say, i could theorize, but such things are nebulous. but still, the times we see dan without his brain damage, he still behaves like a neurodivergent person. just not like he was when he was brain damaged. he stims near constantly, has a tendency to repeat names and words (echolalia) and it’s shown that dan compulsively counts in his head. he counted up to 864 beats, if i remember correctly, which is about 10 minutes of counting in his head. by no stretch of the imagination is that neurotypical behaviour

(im not trying to sound defensive. and i don’t think anybody, anywhere, is arguing that daniel faraday is a neurotypical. unfathomable)

going into headcanon territory again, his ND traits, when not brain damaged, say to me that he’s autistic and/or has OCD and possibly anxiety. thats all theorizing on my part tho. but the fact of the matter is, damage or no, he’s neurodivergent

notes

his apparent need for tactile sensory input is legendary in the lost fandom. in layman’s terms: him pet pet. not just people but objects too. humans, overall, tend to touch things to process input better. many ND people do it more, and it seems daniel is a case of that (i am not making a solid statement on jeremy davies’ neuro state. that’s his business)

he shows an inability to properly process grief

he also shows shocking indifference to his own safety, resulting in reckless behaviour. how much of this is a result of his mental state or his upbringing is up for debate. i think it’s a combo of both

without his brain damage, he appears to have an eidetic memory

danielle rousseau

trauma induced mental illness

pretty self explanatory. the loss of her expedition, husband and daughter, as well as 16 years of loneliness (on THIS island) has resulted in emotional instability for danielle. she’s prone to paranoia, trust issues, irrational behaviour

she’s just not well. she’s right most of the time but she’s not well

libby smith

indeterminate mental state 

libby was institutionalized (the same place hurley was sent to) and placed on medication (which seemed like sedatives to me, based on her expressions). in the show it’s not what clear what put her there, but having just done some research, i’ve discovered that Word Of God says that libby became mentally unstable after the death of her husband dave smith. so this is probably another case of trauma induced mental illness. she must have had a pretty extreme episode to cause her to be sent to a place like that. something to think about

but alas, it’s libby, so not much info. moving on

benjamin linus

anti social behaviour disorder (is my best guess)

oof. depictions of mental illness with characters who are immoral are depictions of mental illness nonetheless. i feel almost silly saying this but: ben is not... okay

ben displays issues (at best) with empathy, compassion and morality. how much he cares about other people is highly debatable but one thing that's certain is that he does genuinely love his daughter. everybody else is ????

but the loving alex thing rules out him being a sociopath or having narcissistic personality disorder. and it is genuine because when he loses it with grief, it’s not a performance, because the only audience is us...

he’s a compulsive liar, lying even when it doesn’t benefit him. lying just because. ben is highly unpredictable, which isn’t inherently a neurodivergent thing, but when a person goes from a calm discussion to strangling somebody, all roads point to Uh Oh (i don’t know the technical terms for Uh Oh). many of his outward emotions are performed (the difference between his fake smiles and few real smiles is noticeable). he’s manipulative, he treats people like objects for his benefit/plans, he’s self absorbed, he has zero issues with murder unless it’s a child. he does have some moral standards. but overall, uh, [just gestures at ben]

also ben is repeatedly offended when other people don’t trust him, which is HILARIOUS, but also shows a cognitive dissonance on his part

hmm i need more here, im gonna break out the big guns

that’s some basic info there and doesn’t that line up with ben?

the article goes on to say that people with this can put on superficial charm. that is, behave friendly and “normal” when they have to. which ben is shown to be able to do

and this

“Serious problems with interpersonal relationships are often seen in those with the disorder. Attachments and emotional bonds are weak, and interpersonal relationships often revolve around the manipulation, exploitation, and abuse of others.”

reminds me of his situation with juliet. and locke. and his “friendships” in general

i snipped the wikipedia article for this because unlike the rest i felt,,, underequipped to talk about this sort of thing

ben being mentally unwell is clear enough in canon and i think this disorder is what lines up best with it. please note that ben is capable of change and growth (like people in real life who have such issues) and like the show i’m not gonna paint him 100% evil or irredeemable. i’m just saying what’s true

notes

ben says at one point that he doesn’t dream anymore. it’s highly probably that this is a lie, but if it isn’t, well that's not good. it’d mean his brain isn’t entering into REM sleep properly, which can lead to emotional problems

ben doesn’t blink as much as most people do, something michael emerson did on purpose. this can apply to some neurodivergent people

it’s shown that he was quite nonverbal as a kid. in the flashbacks in “man behind the curtain” little ben barely speaks

honourable mentions

pretty much all the survivors suffer from PTSD due the trauma of the crash

a great deal of the characters suffer from PTSD from trauma in general due to their awful lifes. like, abusive parents, war, loss of loved ones, etc

and i must note that ben, daniel and locke suffering from parental abuse, ranging from emotional to physical, is something to factor into their cases

claire, similar to danielle, also suffered trauma induced mental illness due to the loss of her baby and feeling like she was abandoned

sayid is depicted as dead inside during season 6 due to The Sickness, so thats like a magical form of depression. and one could argue that he already had regular depression beforehand

boone joked about shannon having bulimia. (whether or not it’s true, boone is an asshole) if it’s true, shannon has an eating disorder, which is considered a form of mental illness. espech one so self image based

self harm

self harm is not an inherent part of mental illness but such concepts are often linked so i felt i should mention some of these, it’ll be quick

hurley’s aforementioned eating disorder

charlie takes heroin as a form of self harm (that isn’t a theory on my part, it’s clear as day that charlie started taking it because his sense of self worth was so low that the drugs felt like the only option)

locke, hurley, (both as mentioned above), jack, desmond, michael and richard have all attempted/nearly commited suicide

so what can we conclude from this? well that's up to you, really. that i love lost a fuck ton? that the actors and writing in lost is amazing? that all the neurodivergent based depth got saved for the boys? yeah

but i wanna conclude with this: a part of what makes lost really special to me is that these people i’ve talked out here? they’ve suffered, and oh boy it was tasty suffering, but all of them, yes even libby, were more than suffering

these people have nuance. one way or another, these people (to varying degrees) were happy at times. silly. funny. angry. opinionated. they loved. they were loved. they lived and breathed as human beings. that means a lot to me

lost is a story of broken people given a second chance. take that as you will

thank you for your time

[kishimoto-did-us-dirty]

Aaa, I'm not sure if the prompt list is still open, but if it is, could I ask “When I’m with you, I’m home.” for Gaara and his s/o? Which of the two says it is up to you, anything would be cute! Thank you in advance

Ofc~ Enjoy!!!

The resolution is a bit of an oof (just to me as an author), but I still do like this piece, although admittedly it’s not my best. It’s still rather okay at some points though lol

Also, to anyone who is requesting from the prompt list, please specify who says the lines. I will automatically default to the actual character speaking them, but it makes my life 1000x easier when writing these scenarios to not try and figure out clever ways in which a character can say all the requested lines. I will do it if not specified and if wanted, but if it is flexible, please tell me.

Apologies for any spelling mistakes!!!

Querencia

“When I’m with you, I’m home”

Those of whom are averse to the fact that individuals may be willingly apparent to change, due to their inherent abilities or lack thereof afforded by society, betray the notion that they will forever be stuck in their own senseless limbo as they simply await for things to happen to them. Why? Because of their inherent abilities or lack thereof afforded to them by society.

This was something of which your significant other, Gaara, had realized long before he had decided to rise up above what it was that he had been afforded by society, and take the highest heirarchical military position available in his counrty: Kazekage.

You see, while we all know you’re aware, dear reader, we must address those who aren’t; Gaara, our now Kazekage, has a complicated past.

Usually I would skip over the specifics, but everybody came from somebody, and every somebody came from somewhere. These people and places may not be relevant to all when telling their stories, but it is relevant for this one. Allow me to explain.

They say that everyone is someone’s everything, and that home is where the heart is - this did not reign true for Gaara. The reason being? He was born as what we all refer to as a Jinchuuriki. To all those who don’t know, a Jinchuuriki is a special term for a special type of host. Jinchuuriki had the job, whether they had interviewed for it or not, to host and keep wild beasts within them. These beasts were known for their tails. These beasts were known for their power. And these beasts were known for their danger. And within Gaara, did one of them lay.

It was a tanuki, and it held grave power within its one tail. People shuddered at the name: Shukaku.

The tanuki had once went wild in the midst of Gaara’s country, Suna, and in its rage, killed hundreds of innocents. Men, women, children, babes, elderly, and mostly, shinobi (the leading militia force).

And so when the beast had been tamed that same night it went rampant, and placed inside the body of an unborn babe, fate had seemingly sealed itself, and placed a lid on the container; the babe, Gaara, was to lead a life of hardship and sorrow. One led by the pains of others as they looked upon his being, and saw another that caused the deaths of those they had loved. Gaara was to lead a life in which he was ostrascized; one of which he was completely, and utterly alone. And he did.

I won’t go into detail, but for a long time, Gaara felt that he was not everyone, and no one viewed him as their anything. And if he had no one to give his heart to, then he had nowhere to go for home. Simply a house.

This is where you came in, dear reader. You had watched from afar at first, as Gaara struggled to cope with his sense of self, never really thinking too much. You had seen, as he rose from a troubled boy to a quietly determined teenager. Until eventually, you stood before him in his office, and viewed him as a man.

It had started slow at first, with you obligingly taking orders from your leader, being a shinobi and privy to his orders. Until little happenings began to take place, from bumping into him around his office’s building, to seeing him around the village and having small talk. Eventually, it went from “Y/n” and “Gaara,” to “Y/n and Gaara.”

You, having seen his struggle to become who he is today, and fight the voices who believed him to be a monster, knew that he had changed from before, when he was unstable and raw. You had watched him, and you knew quite honestly that no man who regarded his cacti collection with such delicacy could ever be the monster others once claimed he was. No man who brought you cacti flowers and trinkets from his travels, and protected you after he had gotten so used to only protecting himself could ever be that monster. Most would agree with you.

Most.

There were still some, even after Gaara had taken up the Kazekage position, who held onto the belief that Gaara was not human, and was to be hated vehemently. They believed him to be the monster within, rather than the human host.

Gaara payed no mind, however.

“y/n, I don’t mind it, I swear.” A small smile placed itself upon his lips, the fullest it would get for your boyfriend.

Sitting on his office desk, you lightly trailed the grains of the old, hardended wood under your fingers, absently swinging your legs as you gazed up at the ceiling, a frown on your face.

You gave a light sigh. “I know, but I do. They don’t even know anything about you.” Turning your head, you gazed down at your boyfriend sitting at his desk, an amused smile playing at his lips as he finalized the contents of his recent documents. “I just wish they saw you the way I do.” 

Gaara set down the documents and turned toward you, his smile growing as he looked into your eyes. “What? You want the whole village to view me romantically?”

Your legs stopped swinging as you felt heat raise to your cheeks, turning your body to face Gaara more so than it had previously been. “Well no, but it’d be better than having some of them hate you. They don’t know how to seperate you from the tanuki – they blind if they can’t see that you’ve changed.” You gave a little huff as your gaze travelled from coral green eyes to large window panes overlooking the village.

Now Gaara was really never quite the happy one, no matter how the recent years of his life had turned out. However, when he was with you, things turned a little lighter, and even I, the detailer of this tale, may have been fooled into forgetting his past. But perhaps there was no fooling to be done; people can forget even the prescence of gravity when they are in love.

Smile never fading, Gaara regarded you with yet another gaze. “I do not care, y/n. I overcame most of those people, and I have achieved enough acceptance in my life to be happy.” He stood up from his chair and circled to desk until he stood in front of you. “I can’t expect everyone to accept me for what and who I am.” By now he had grabbed your waist, and your gaze had long since returned to the coral green eyes in front of you. Heat raised to your cheeks once more. “And above those achievements, I achieved you.” 

Whew, I wasn’t even there and yet I can still practically feel the heat on your face, dear reader.

Gaara continued to speak, his fingers tracing lights circles into your skin. “I view you as the one thing I never had: everything.”

Momentarily closed eyes, and a short but sweet pressing of both of your lips passed, and Gaara looked toward you once again, the heat of his forehead burning against your own as he pressed his to yours.

“I am still Kazekage, am I not? They cannot do anything but simply wait until the hat has been passed onto another.”

Pulling away from you, Gaara’s eyes gave you a look with a teasing light prancing about within them as his hands grasped your waist firmer than before. “All that matters is that I am with you here and now, and that you see me as who I am. It is how you see me that I care about.”

By now, a smile had grown on your face, and the blush encompassing it had faded to a pleasant pink as you stared up at him. Hands now on his biceps, you tugged your boyfriend toward you for another kiss.

“You know my heart will always be with you, right?” You asked. “No matter what others may say.”

Gaara gave a light chuckle, and gave his affirmations of “of course he knew that,” but it didn’t stop you from smiling any wider.

You gave a light chuckle. “There is something that others say that I agree with, though.” Gaara made a small sound of curiosity as he looked down at you, fingers once again tracing vacantly into your skin. “’Home is where the heart is.’ You know, if that’s true,” your face turned pink once more before you continued, Gaara’s own beginning to take on a similar hue. “Then when I’m with you, I’m home.”

And for someone who had, for a long time, never had a home, the moment meant all the more when he replied with “Likewise.”

[faunusrights]

OFFAL HUNT REMASTERED LIVEBLOG // CHAPTER 18

IN THIS EPISODE OF ROBLOX OOF NOISE:

“Yes.” Glynda couldn’t hang up, not without: “I’m—I’m sorry. About what I—”

“It’s alright. I’ll talk to you soon.”

“Okay—” The feed cut. Softly, Glynda said again, “Okay.”

GLYNDA DISCOVERS WHY BEING CINDER FALL SUCKS

do u know how hard it is to wake up and play animal crossing whilst knowing this chapter looms over yr shoulder,

OKAY HERE WE GO

She was fidgety; even Cinder mentioned her pacing, shooting a critical eye her way. Glynda sat, intent on stillness; moments later, Cinder mentioned her bouncing leg.

i LOVE it when a chapter calls me out just right out of the gate hahaha who gave u the right

"Really?" How long had they been doing that? How long ago had Cinder noticed? "Should I stay?"

cinder: maybe i should tell glynda abt that /see glynda pacing a dent into the floor cinder: ooooooor i could. NOT give her an excuse to bully them for something to do,

On her way down the street, Glynda couldn't help but stare at the car, its tinted windows revealing nothing within. As she passed it, she kept glancing over her shoulder, expecting an attack or something. But nothing came of it.

HJGDFSGSDFHKGHJDF GLYNDA,,,,,,,,,,, can u imagine being in the white fang, and sittin in yr fuckin. TINTED WINDOWED like BULLETPROOF CAR and yr sat on yr ass watching out for cinder “dumbass” fall and suddenly glynda goodwitch, The Top Bitch, comes out and starts GLARING YR CAR DOWN,,, like ah. i think she knows we’re here. hrm. hm.

i would just like. drive to mcdonalds and get some nuggies at that point.

She had a clutch of flash-images and a wash of emotions and impressions, the raw materials of memory, stored as-is without refining. She was quite used to that—most of her missions were hazy and rough in her memory, mere sketches of events.

i cant wait for glynda to become a vlogger if only so she can actually have physical proof of whatever the fuck happens whenever she goes out and about. get her a go-pro.

It told her: despite her restlessness, despite the arduous journey here, and despite the way Vale seemed to call for her from somewhere beyond the horizon, she felt quite content to be where she was.

the difference having a gf has huh,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, u got a whole ass home (being cased by the fang) a real nice city to live in (its floating and atlas wants yr number) a bunch of unread msgs (from a [redacted] who [redacted]) and its a nice day!!! its all coming together. but probably not for very long,

(i got very distracted at this point making a line graph for the animal crossing stalk market so here we go, x2 edition,)

That meant the nightlife would soon begin. She had never liked crowds; too many people, too much input at once. It was hard to focus, to be comfortable.

/chefs kiss

autistic glynda did u kno: id die for u,

Since she’d blocked Ozpin’s number, there was no chance of receiving anything directly from him—but there was still a moment of pause each time she checked her Scroll, as if expecting his smiling face to appear somehow.

OH YEAH LMAO SHE DID THAT SHIT HUH,,,,,,,,,, i still cannot BELIEVE that happened. GOD. cant wait for this to bite her entire ass right off her body,

By the time she reached the top landing, Winter had replied: “I wasn’t aware that you had additional support on this mission, Professor. I will need their full name and Hunter’s license number.”

To answer Cinder Fall and she doesn’t have a license, but she does have several warrants for her arrest felt like inviting Winter to question not only her integrity, but her sanity as well.

SDHGJFKSKGHDJFGJHDKF i cant say what makes this funnier because 👈😎👈 but HOHOHOHOOOOO could u imagine the fallout if she did just, say that shit. if we just went and fuckin said it like it was no biggie--

Finally, Glynda let her shoulders relax, exhaling deeply, like she would before rushing a Grimm. She wrote it plainly: “The clearance is for Cinder Fall.”

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

MA’AM WHAT THE F U C K

winter rn:

She’d just have to wriggle her way out of having to talk face-to-face, then return the game to a field she felt slightly more comfortable with: text.

okay this is so funny to me cause i just keep thinking of her sending ‘no reason’ to oz. a MASTER of textual conversion. un fucking PARALLELED in this field, UNRIVALLED,

Glynda tossed a look at the door as well, her mouth pulling into a line; what if Cinder came outside? What if—

Could Winter track her exact position using her Scroll signal? She minimized the projection of Winter’s face and hurried off in a random direction the instant she hit the bottom of the stairs.

i LOVE these two because this is the first time we’ve rly seen glynda like. Actively do smthng to defend cinder in this sort of way? she’s been pretty passivve abt letting cinder take the lead when theyre together but on her own shes thinking of all the contingencies to make sure winter cant find cinder and u know what. thats gay. what will u do for yr not-gf when yr talking to someone who would kick her ass in a hot second,

also im TAKING to grab choice lines here to comment upon but honestly this next section is SO GOOD that im rly struggling to find a line to encapsulate how much i am LOVING this convo. i cant say exactly WHY im loving it because again thats 👈😎👈 BUT KNOW THAT THIS IS VERY GOOD FOOD AND I AM ENJOYING IT. and im also enjoying this line a lot

Winter’s voice was decisive: “Professor, if you hang up on me, I am flying to your location—tonight.”

winter: if y’all dont shut the fuck up back there i am turning this car, city, and continent AROUND,

It was the same thing, over and over: people didn’t understand her and she didn’t understand them. It was an exercise in futility that only gave her grief. In the end, she gave up on trying to explain herself. She resigned to being wrong, to always being wrong, even when she knew she wasn’t.

OOF OKAY WHAT THE HELL IS UP W/ THIS FIC AND CALLOUTS. HUH??? ME BITCH!!! I FEEL THAT!! AND IT SUCKS,

/reads the next bit

oh are we donning our tinfoil hats? we’re donning our tinfoil hats.

It was so easy. Glynda didn’t stumble over her words even once; didn’t waver. She was built for doing harm. Her anger burned hot and clean; it excised all the hurt like a malignant tumor.

Maybe she really had learned something from Cinder—channeling her frustration, her guilt, her pain, all of it into anger like this was something Glynda was new to. But it felt good. She leaned into it, letting it take the reins; the distressing memories vanished like wisps of smoke, vaporized by the heat of her wrath.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS god this is. SO EXCITING. i also love it when ppl rub off one one another its my FAV thing in the WORLD and this anger is. WOO. this anger is. DANDY. its also a very short-term burst of pleasure glynda so enjoy that hollowed-out whoopsie feeling that i sure get when i Blow Up,

“She butchered my friend!” Winter snarled, the camera shaking as she slapped the desk. “She butchered my friend in the streets like he was cattle! And I have done everything in my power to help you! Everything! To keep her from doing the same to you, and you’ve blown me off or lied or—” Winter’s voice snagged. “And now you tell me—you accuse me—”

It was early evening in Umbraroot, but it must already be night in Atlas. The shadows revealed the unclean angles of Winter’s face: the bruises of exhaustion under her eyes, the lines of stress at the corners of her mouth.

im sorry im just copy-pasting wholesale at this point but OH this is GOOD. i cant rly explain. like. the difference-- because you’d think from the og version this is just a bit more flavouring right? its like getting a bit of hot sauce on yr chicken wings and yr like ‘okay it adds smthng but its not like a side meal’ BUT IT IS A SIDE MEAL this is like a whole basket of fuckin. cheese-baked fries. winter DESERVES this screentime she DESERVES to have presence in this fic and OH does she USE IT im LIVINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

Glynda wanted anger. She wanted fire and brimstone. She wanted a fight.

What she got was the glisten of tears on pale lashes. A hand covering Winter’s trembling mouth.

The ashy taste of remorse in her throat.

THERES THAT HOLLOWED-OUT WHOOPSIE FEELING!!!!!!!!!!!!! THERE IT IS RIGHT ON TIME. its like CLOCKWORK,

She didn’t have anything. Nothing against that. The possibility that Winter might truly care what happened to her had been so insignificantly small and easy to trample. She had forgotten about the losses Winter shouldered the moment Cinder had whispered inheritance.

it’s just like clockwork,

also this chapter feels lengthy but maybe its just cause i got distracted with animal crossing so ill have to do a wordcount check at the end

/checks

no its lengthy this is a thicc one,

“I know,” Glynda said. “I know. I know how this sounds. But she’s the only person who makes me feel like—like I make sense.” In her mind, Glynda lay in the darkness of Cinder’s bedroom, watching the glaze of streetlights along her lips as she said you.

you,,,,,,,,, we,,,,,,,,,,,, our,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, its all that gay shit,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

“If I’ve learned anything, it’s that Cinder Fall is a tremendous liar. She could convince you it is raining in Vacuo, given enough time. Two years ago, I was working on the Argus base, where I met her as a client; she told me she was a merchant seeking entrance into Atlas—she had all her documents in order, her entire persona set up, and she sold it perfectly. She was flawless—and all of it was fake. She gave me no reason to doubt her. She was—”

Winter cut herself off, abruptly. Then: “Once I was comfortable and safe, she burned down my office and murdered my friend.”

YES,,, SLOWLY THE LORE PIECES TOGETHER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! winter is once bitten twice shy, but mayhaps we mean,,, once burnt,,,, twice shy,,,,,,,,,, hrmmmm,

Glynda told Winter everything.

OH MAN,,,, we’re really getting this messy fucking trio up in this bitch i am SO excited. i am THRILLED. here! we! go!!!!!!!!!! also i said it before but again im so glad winter gets to Be Here for this. sure this has nothing to do w/ her destiny or w/e but shes here now. shes in the uber. she waiting outside.

The dying potted plant Glynda had spotted last time on the back wall’s shelf had been replaced with a new one; this one’s leaves were beginning to shrivel at the ends.

dsfjhhkljsdf side note: is this like that scene in finding nemo where all the new fish see the niece and go ‘oh no we’re gonna die’ but instead its plants getting taken into winters office? they go ‘im sorry, mate, but once you go into her office, you come out TOTALLY dead,’

okay so this whole convo happened and if i try to pick one section ill end up picking it all AAAAAAAAAAAAAA im dying out here. WINTER BLEASE,,, BELIEVE THAT SOMETIMES CINDER CAN TELL A HALF-LIE. A SORTA-TRUTH. A SEMI-HEMI-DEMI HONESTY,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

How different would that mission have gone? How different would her life have been?

She found herself saying, “He had so many chances to tell me. Instead, he let me think I was reckless. That I was a danger to other people. I stopped working in teams. I didn’t have many people in my life to begin with, but afterwards was worse. He saw to it that he was all I had, and he let me think it was my fault.”

ROBLOXOOFNOISEDISTORTEDWITHDELAY.MP4

OOF!!!!!!! O O F!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! honestly OOF that shit HURTS BITCH!!!!!!! thats BANANAS. WILD. im also loving (hating???) the increase of painful glynda lore and honestly everyone feels like they have So Much More that builds them up and im THRIVING off it. im also suffering for it.

With the video feed closed, Glynda could see she had new notifications. Missed calls. From Cinder.

Glynda’s stomach lurched. She stowed her Scroll before she could think about them.

At the mouth of the alley, she could see the shape of Cinder’s apartment in the distance. She stood there for a long time, staring, uncertain what to do with her hands, unsure what to do with her heart. Her jaw flexed. She remembered the tears on Winter’s lashes. The friend she’d lost.

Glynda took her first step toward the apartment.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA and so the soft domestic shit ends. but nowhere near as explosively as id thought???????? HUH. H U H. must b because we’re gearing up for smthng honk honk honk

ANYWAY!!!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA. this chap was SO good its astonishing (despite the [several] times i got distracted by animal crossing rip me). WINTER!!!!!!!! BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!! i cant believe this disaster trio is coming together. also cant wait for glynda to tell cinder the shit she just pulled. oh no,

(also the wordcount was 5,931. just in case u were curious)

[halloweennut]

Hireath, Part Four

On the steps of the palace

Once upon a time there were two sisters. The eldest one had the gift of seeing the future, the youngest to see the past. They lived with their mother in a small village in the north of Avalor, in a small little cottage that was the center of their world and home. It wasn’t a life like that in the palace, but they were happy, free to run unfettered in their safe little corner of the world. 

Their gifts were the town’s best kept secret. No one spoke of it aloud, but all knew to ask one of them for help with a small little vision in exchange for something - sometimes it was a jar of honey, or a few oranges, maybe even a bolt of fabric for a dress if the vision was big enough. The girls were only more than happy to oblige. It was fun, and they enjoyed helping their neighbors and their mother.  

That is until a malvago heard a whisper about a secret, about two girls who lived on the hill and could see things no one else could. Tormenta was a greedy man, and saw profit for himself in their gifts - not only would it help him, but other malvagos would be interested as well. So one day, as the girls walked from home to the well, bucket shared between them, he transformed into a large eagle snatched them away to the mountains - something the eldest hadn’t seen. No one saw a thing, and no one who saw them in the mountains said a world about the two children who sold visions. 

There was no solace when Tormenta died, and no solace when the malvagos that came became less and less. Only the ever-growing fear of never being free.

That is until, 150 years later, two sorceresses and a disgraced chancellor came into their cave. The chancellor, still with enough good and love in him to care, forwent any grand schemes he had and risked it all to set them free.

-

Elena was snapped from the document she had been reading by the sound of shouting from the courtyard and the stomp of hooves with accompanying whinnies. Confused, she grabbed her scepter and ran downstairs from her bureau towards the sound. Francisco was already at the front door when she made it towards the entryway.

“Do you know what’s going on?” she asked, tightening her grip on her scepter. Her abuelo shook his head.

“It sounds like a horse got out and was spooked,” he replied. “Let’s go see if they need help.”

Her grip relaxed and she nodded. This was a simple crisis she could handle.  The two walked out to see a few guards chase after a familiar black horse, scrambling for the reins or dodging away from its hooves. Elena felt herself and her grandfather freeze on the steps at the sight of Valiente, dirty and panicked, the very opposite of how they both remembered him - the prized thoroughbred that Esteban doted over who never went a day without a thorough brushing. 

“It can’t be-” Francisco murmured. “Valiente!”

Valiente stopped at the call, and turned, running over to the palace steps. He stomped his hooves impatiently, throwing his head back to gesture towards the slumped figure in his saddle. Elena recognized the jacket immediately to her disgust, but much like Valiente, it was the opposite of what she remembered and what she knew should have been in place. The jacket was torn and dirty - Esteban hated being in a situation where either would happen to him, even as children. But it was the fact that the slumped figure wasn’t sitting tall made Elena’s stomach drop - they were either hurt, dead, or it was a trap. She bolted down the steps, despite her abuelo’s calls. Elena raised her scepter up to point at the figure. 

“Esteban, sit up, now! That is an order!” she demanded. The figure made no move. “Esteban, you better be passed out or-”

She used the end of the scepter to nudge what should have been the shoulder, and noticed then that the jacket was only draped over the rider. With a quick movement, she pulled the jacket away to let it flutter to the ground. Her scepter nearly joined it at the sight of two small children in the saddle, both passed out. 

“Mios dios,” Elena said. “Esteban what have you done…”

Francisco joined her a second later, and any question he had died on his tongue. He turned to a few guards instead. “You, fetch the doctor, and you, go tell a maid to get a room ready.”

The guards nodded and ran off into the palace as Francisco carefully pulled the older girl down. Elena quickly moved forward to grab the younger.  The little one blinked slightly, barely awake.

“Esteban…?” was the only thing she said before falling back asleep. Elena tried to withhold a scowl, and stepped over the jacket on her way back into the palace.

-

Mari woke slowly, blinking in the filtered sun.  For a moment, she was scared that she was back in the cave, but the light was too bright and the material she was laying on and covered in was soft and warm. She opened her eyes fully then. Maricruz found herself on a large bed, the largest she had ever been in, in a room that could have fit their mother’s cottage. Rosita was curled up beside her, still fast asleep. That brought some relief to her mind. 

She slowly slid out from the covers, careful not to wake her little sister, and softly padded her way over to the window. Mari peered out, looking over the towers of the palace and the capitol stretched out before her, leading out to the ocean. She and Rosie had never seen the ocean up close before, let alone a city that big, but no matter how exciting the thoughts were, Mari could muster no joy at the thought. Rosie and her were safe, and that only brought a little solace. 

There was a rustle and a yawn from the bed, and Rosie sat up, blearily rubbing at her eyes. “Mari? Where- where are we?”

“Avalor. We’re in the palace, but other that I don’t know much else,” Mari replied walking back over to the bed. “I just woke up. I think we fell asleep on Valiente at some point.”

Rosie nodded. “Is Esteban here yet? I thought I saw him…”

“I don’t think so,” she said before looking around the room. “Wait, where’s his jacket?” 

“Maybe someone took it to be cleaned? I can look,” Rosita replied before quickly blinking and scrambling out of bed. “It’s still in the courtyard. We can’t leave it there.”

“Wait, Rosie! We can’t just run out!” Mari exclaimed, close behind her sister as she ran to the door. “Rosie!”

 Her sister opened the door and ran straight into the legs of Elena. “Oof! Careful there.”

Rosie gasped and scrambled back to Mari, who picked her up to hold her protectively. She stepped back a few paces, eyeing the princess with suspicion. Elena saw the look in her eyes and held up her hands defensively. 

“I was wondering when you two were going to wake up,” she said softly, kneeling down to be closer to eye-level with the two. “You guys must be tired. Valiente looked like he was running for days-”

“He was,” Rosie said softly. “Four days.” 

“That is a long time, isn’t it?” Elena replied. “Are you guys hungry?”

“No. Not until we get Esteban’s jacket back,” Mari shook her head. “It’s not ours to keep. We need to give it back.”

Elena frowned. “How do you know him anyway?”

“He rescued us and brought food for us when we were back in the cave,” Rosie chirped, squirming out of Mari’s arms, but didn’t move from her side. Elena reeled slightly.

“Cave? What did he, Chatana, and Ash do to you?” She asked, the fans of hate warming in her chest. Mari frowned at the question. 

“They didn’t do anything,” Mari replied, flatly. “They came for visions, but Esteban was the only one who never asked for anything. He’s the only person in 200 years to actual care about us outside of what we can do.”

“Two hundred years?” Elena sputtered. “But you’re both children-”

“Magic chains,” Mari said. “To keep us from leaving or aging. Can we get Esteban’s jacket now?”

“Not until I have more answers,” the princess shook her head. “And he is not someone you should look up to, let alone be concerned about-”

“Yes he is!” Rosie exclaimed.  

“Rosita!” Mari said sharply, pulling her back towards her. 

“He’s not someone to be trusted,” Elena replied, trying to keep calm. She didn’t need her magic to flare. 

“That’s what Chatana and Ash learned,” Rosie said, blinking twice. “And now they have him.”

“I’m so confused,” Elena said, dress turning a tinge of purple. “Can you start from the beginning?”

“Only after we get his jacket back,” Mari replied. Rosie tugged on her skirt, blinking twice. “And breakfast.”

“....Deal,” Elena sighed. “I’ll send a maid to fetch it. In the meantime, I’ll show you to the dining room. I hope you’re hungry.”

Soon enough the girls were seated at the table, close as peas in a pod and sharing a dirty and torn jacket over their shoulders as they stared at plate upon plate of food in front of them. Elena softly told them to go ahead, and that she and some others would join them soon. As Rosie and Mari reached for the pastries and fruit, Elena ducked out into the hall to find Francisco and Luisa waiting. Isabel had long since left for school, needing to start out early on a science project.  

“Are they alright?” Francisco asked. 

Elena nodded. “Hungry and not talkative, but alright. There’s a lot to tell us, but they don’t want to talk yet.”

“The poor things,” Luisa said. “Who knows what they’ve been through.”

“That’s what I’m worried about...they said some things that didn’t make sense,” Elena replied. “I’m hoping to get some clarity over breakfast.”

“Let’s head in then, shall we?” Francisco said, offering his arm to Luisa, which she gladly took. The three entered the dining room to find the girls happily tucking away into oranges and sweetbreads. The two looked up at them. “Buenos dias. How did you two sleep?”

“Good,” Mari said plainly before popping another orange segment into her mouth.

“I don’t think we’ve ever even seen a bed that big,” Rosie added. “I think it’s as big as our bedroom back in the cave.”

“Cave, what do you mean cave-” Luisa began to ask, but was cut off with a quick glance from Elena. 

“Perhaps some introductions first?” Elena said. “I’m Elena, and these are my grandparents-”

“Francisco and Luisa, and your little sister is Isabel,” Rosie interrupted. “We know.” 

“Our reputation precedes us then,” Francisco replied, pushing in Luisa’s chair. The girls shrugged. 

“We either saw it or Esteban talked about you,” Mari said. It was simply said, like she was saying the sky was blue. The royal three looked at each other at that. 

“He...spoke about us?” Francisco asked. “And what do you mean, ‘saw’?”

“My sister and I are oracles,” Rosie replied between bites of another roll. “I’m Rosita and she’s Maricruz.”

“Oracles,” Elena repeated. “That explains what you meant by visions.”

“Pretty much,” Mari replied. She blinked twice. “You’re going to ask about what they wanted from us - Chatana, Ash and Esteban. They wanted to know the location of Maruvian mystical items they could use to defeat you and Avalor.”

“You didn’t tell them, did you?” Elena stiffened in her seat. 

“No, never got the chance,” Mari continued. She pushed her plate away, suddenly not hungry anymore. “Esteban rescued us.” 

“No doubt with some sort of motive behind it,” Luisa said behind a sip of tea. Rosie stared at her. 

“Yes, to keep them from hurting you,” Rosie replied. She angrily stuffed the rest of a roll into her mouth. Elena sighed.

“Girls- Rosita, Maricruz,” she began. “I’m not sure what he told you, but he can’t be trusted. He’s not a good person.”

“Then why did he let us go before we could tell them anything?” Mari asked. “You think we didn’t know anything about him? I saw everything before it happened 50 years ago, and Rosie saw everything that’s happened since. We know he did wrong before he even showed up. Not to mention the whole being a part of a malvago gang, and we don’t particularly care for malvagos.”  

“That...is certainly something to think about, mijita,” Francisco said. 

“It still doesn’t erase his crimes for the past two months! No matter how he manipulated these girls-,” Elena began, dress tinging orange.

“We weren’t manipulated. No one can lie to us without us knowing!” Rosie exclaimed, standing up in her chair. “He brought Mari oranges and brought us new blankets! He told us stories about you and how much he loves his family! He got us out of the cave and kept Chatana and Ash from hurting us and from using us to hurt you! Just because you hate him doesn’t mean we have to!”

Maricruz pulled her down, and worked to quiet her down, before turning to Elena herself.

“Esteban said he wasn’t going to let them hurt his family,” Mari added. “He stayed behind so we could get away. Ash and Chatana were going to hurt us after we gave them the visions they wanted. Visions that would have hurt Avalor and you, and ones Esteban didn’t even want to help them get.”

Rosie blinked once, twice. “He lied a lot, but not to us. He especially lied to Ash.”

“About what?” 

“That he was going to let them win.”

-

“And you’re sure their story checks out?” Gabe asked. Elena was leaning over a map of Avalor, looking for any Maruvian sites that were even in the general vicinity of the mountain the girls had been in for 200 years.

“I checked it,” Mateo replied. “There are reports that talk about them going back 150 years, and my grandfather had a stack of papers on Tormenta. Too bad back then there wasn’t much in the way of missing children reports- that would probably back it up, too.”  

Gabe winced. “Thankfully the Royal Guard handles it now. Just...a little too late.”

“At least they’re out now and safe,” Elena replied. “I’ve narrowed it down to two possible sites: Monte Claro or Socanos.”

“Monte Claro is little more than some sculptures, and the temple is too in ruin to inhabit,” Mateo replied. “So it must be Socanos!”

“I’ll get a troop together-” Gabe began. Elena held up a hand.

“No,” she said. “We’ll go on our own. We’ll leave tomorrow morning. Be prepared.”

“Elena, are you sure?” Mateo asked. “Sure we’ve faced them before but-”

“I’m sure,” Elena answered. She rolled up the map. “Go get prepared for tomorrow. I’ll see you at dinner.” 

The co-captains of the guard nodded and left Elena’s office. She slumped down in her chair, resting her head on her hand, and let her dress turn purple from stress and fear. Elena thought back to the day, hearing the girls go over everything that had occured. Rosie couldn’t go through some of it, and had to be taken out to be distracted from it while Mari continued. She didn’t make eye contact with Elena, and her voice sounded so tired - she looked so tired. She didn’t even begin to have any sort of levity to her voice until the events that began just a few weeks ago.

Those were tales of the cousin she knew once. Pomp and circumstance, a little selfish, a show-off, but kind and caring all the same.    

Elena breathed, and let herself let go of her stress. Slowly, her dress shifted back to red, and she stood, leaving her office to walk up to the guest wing of the palace. The last she had seen them, Mari was watching out the window, distant from everyone but Rosie, who had curled up on the bed for a nap. No doubt they were both awake by then.  Soon she stood in front of their door and slowly raised a hand to knock.

Knock knock

“Come in.” 

Elena entered, finding the two girls sitting at the window, watching the late afternoon turn to evening. 

“Hey,” she said, near lamely. The girls looked up at her, and she couldn’t read them, but approached anyway. The two girls still had Esteban’s jacket draped over them. “I wanted to talk to you both about...about earlier.”

She pulled a small stool over from the vanity, sitting across from them. “I’m sorry about doubting you both about...about Esteban. I don’t...I don’t hate him- I want to, but I don’t think I can. But he has hurt me, my family, Avalor, so badly, I find it hard to ever forgive him.”

Elena looked at the two of them. “But that doesn’t mean that it negates how you two feel about him, especially after everything that had happened, and everything that he has done for you two.”

“We know,” Mari said softly. “He still loves you too.”

“I know,” Elena tried not to let her dress go blue. She rubbed at her eyes - she didn’t want to let herself go blue. Rosie slipped from the window seat and jacket, and went to her side, quickly wrapping her arms around her shoulders. 

“It’s okay,” Rosie said. “You can go blue. Sometimes even Mari has trouble doing that too.” 

Mari responded with indignation at that, and Elena couldn’t help but laugh. “I’ll be okay, but thank you though. No hard feelings between any of us?”

“None for now,” Mari replied. “But I make no promises.”

“I’m sure,” Elena hugged Rosie back. “Come on you two, I have a surprise.”

“A surprise? What is it? Mari, don’t look!” Rosie exclaimed. 

“I wouldn’t!” 

“How about I just tell you?” Elena stood, offering out a hand toward Mari while taking Rosie’s. “I spoke to the seamstresses earlier. They should have some things ready by now - I think you two deserve a wardrobe update.”

Mari was at the door in a flash. “No hard feelings ever again! Let’s go!”

Elena laughed and led the two girls towards the seamstresses’ shop. She would tell them tomorrow where she and her friends were going, and let this serve as a distraction from the present until then. She hoped that maybe the palace would distract them from what was miles away, and from the person she wanted to hope was alright. 

-

Esteban couldn’t will himself to move. Not that the paralysis spell was helping in the least, but if he just had the will, he would fight it. He was far too tired, and doubted between that and the injuries he had been dealt he would even be able to. At the very least, he couldn’t feel much but the beat of his own heart in his chest, left alone on a cold temple floor with his thoughts. They traveled back home- what was home, and the thought of his family safe at least brought him some solace. Ash would have come in and gloated otherwise, and Chatana would have told him a strangely distant way.  Esteban didn’t know which was worse, which was better.  At least Chatana wouldn’t smirk about it. Pili maybe, but she wouldn’t. 

He blinked once, twice, and turned his glance towards the sound of footsteps. He could at least move his eyes, unnerving as it was. Chatana entered the room softly, wings just rasping against the floor. Esteban watched as she approached him, elegant and smooth. He couldn’t read her face as she knelt down next to his head. 

“The oracles got to Avalor, safe and sound,” she said. “No doubt they’ve told the princess everything by now.”

Esteban blinked in acknowledgment. 

“No doubt we’ll have a little family reunion soon enough,” Chatana continued, and almost condescendingly smoothed a strand of hair from his face. If he could speak, he would shout that no, there wouldn’t be, Elena wouldn’t be so foolish. “Do you really think Elena wouldn’t come in here, scepter blazing, to defeat those who would do her and her kingdom harm? Surely you aren’t that foolish. But perhaps you are.”

She stood, smoothing her skirts. “You could have been one of the best malvagos the world has seen. A shame.”

Esteban could only watch her leave, even as his vision began to blur - tears from frustration, fear? It didn’t matter. What did matter was forcing himself to move. 

He wouldn’t let them hurt his family. He wouldn’t be responsible for their pain, not again. 

[theboondogglepub]

A Land of Gardens Black. Part 1.

Far and away we travel.

To a place so strange so near. A land so close and location so wrong, it must be shared in the form of a song. A Garden now lost, a shard driven cold, a narrative so new and so old. For mirth and mire, a twisted conspire, curiouser and curiouser we hear the town crier. Until we arrive and until we see, for this is a realm that none knew could be. This is the land of Black Gardens.

    The story unfurls, and behold do we, a throne room of white and a throne shaped as a key. It is empty as yet, immaculate so, til great gates do creak and she arrives with a glow. The Queen of Pure White, divine in her light, trailed by her company of evil delight. Now bask in this tale, the alternate road, as we open to see her agent of Goad.

    “Mr. Amakelle!” The Queen cried, her most faithful subjects carrying the trail of her white silken gown behind her. The Lady’s full ivory mask doing naught to quiet or soften her screeching cry for Mr. Amakelle, if anything only emboldening the sound. The tall throne room echoed with each step of the Queen’s heel clack, her every movement announcing her presence, her importance. The chamber was adorned in draping white silks and gilded tassels, glowing braziers and blinding lights reflecting ornate mosaics high above. A singular man knelt by the tall key-shaped throne seat, and waited.

Each mosaic in the throne room told a tale of the Queen of Pure White. The largest and most proudly crafted of the throne room showed of how she arrived by boat with an entourage once upon a time to the beleaguered land of Gardens. She proclaimed herself the Botanist Queen, and brought order and prosperity. Yet the next mosaic showed her striking balance and accord with a now blackened out, burned and purple cloth draped people. Yet a third showed great prosperity, health and joy for all the peoples of the land of Black Gardens. All of the Queen of Pure White’s mosaics showed health and glory to the land...And yet… as the scene not of mosaic began to unfurl, it was quite apparent she was not happy.

    “My Queen,” Mr. Amakelle, a man dressed of velvet finery (in a shade not quite red, not quite pink) and bird-faced porcelain mask had been by appearances waiting, kneeling by the Queen’s throne. He spoke reverently, even as the Queen approached with her train of servants behind her, her tone far from happy.

    “I am to believe you have done well to negotiate with the far-landers, have you not?” Every word echoed, every enunciation bellowed in command. “I am to believe you act in my service, do you not?!” Her voice boomed with a hostile, severe intent. Behind the queen, her servants watched.

High Scriver Rosalette was immediately and to the right of the Queen, with a gilded parchment scroll trailing far behind her to the gates of the throne room itself copied every utterance of her Divine Lady. She was a Hyum, much like her Queen was, much like the Man of Goad Amakelle was. Her hat, covered with a feather from each breed and gender of and color of bird the entirety of the land of Black Gardens had from coast to coast, was the one thing Rosalette had that outshone all others. Even the Queen herself could not match the hat’s splendor.

Lord Commander Knight Arik, forever covered and hidden in platemail covered in platemail stood immediately and to the left of the Queen, standing over 10 fulms tall with a greatshield that scraped the ground with each step. His armor was severe, unbroken and never seen off his person. Rumors even put to it that it was welded to him. To wield his armor and shield, it was legend that Arik was granted a divine blessing, for none could or has ever dared to break his defenses, save one.

Mafchulu, the Royal Thaumaturge dared oft to break the Lord Commander’s armor and shield. His was a solemn task, and he stood behind Arik in the train following his Lady of Divine Light. Gifted only with the simple (and meager) abilities of a Thaumaturge however, it was Mafchulu’s constant ingenuity that ever brought him notice. Concocting potions and poisons, devious machina, and always carrying a black tome of spreaded sheets of numbers and malicious logic, Mafchulu more than earned his place… even if he was just a Thaumaturge.

Behind Rosalette walked a demure, tiny thing. Saphy, the Bunyn Knight wielded nothing but her fists, but those fists were nigh legendary. She was of the race Bunyn, and wore that badge with pride. Rumors of the Queen’s high court say of how Rosalette once taught the shy Bunyn Knight, but was quickly and soundly amazed at how the Knight advanced. Eventually there was none who could stand toe to toe with Saphy. Other rumors of course, speak of Saphy oft absconding away from the Queen’s castle to meet a paramour of mysterious nature. Were that to be true… well, only time and further narrative delivery would tell.

Finally, and clumsily at that, Jun. A Bunyn of high renown arrived and tripped over his tall trailing robes. “Oof! M’my lady! Your appointment with the Agent of Goad is… oh! Now!” Jun carried a pocket watch in one hand, and a stack of documents a fulm high in the other, with now several scattered over the white marble floor. Mafchulu sighed, and began helping his helpless cohort fix and collect the paperwork. His Queen, the Lady of Divine White, merely smirked and chuckled beneath her mask lightly.

“VERY GOOD, thank you Jun. Now… YOU.” The Lady of White stepped up to her throne and rested her heels, the clack of each footfall as always commanding attention. She addressed the Agent of Goad, a demand in her tone. The court all waited for her declaration, her words of divine wisdom. It was her place, as the center of light itself to be all things to her people, and she was that. “You say you are my agent, my ally. YET. You, Mr. Amakelle have oft recently been found in quite the heresy! Do you deny it?!”

Mr. Amakelle flustered, ever the leaning and mewling toadie, balked and began to sweat excessively. “M-m-my lady! I w-w-would never! N-never in one million years! I-er, that is to say, aaah, uuhm--” The Agent of Goad, dressed in his finery looked about the chamber for aid from the others of the court, and found none. Rosalette especially seemed to balk, and was making great mention in the royal archives of Amakelle’s incredibly poor performance. All knew of his crimes in full, and all were venomous and seething. “Wh-where is… where is the court Jester?” He asked, puzzled. “The Satirical Nightweave?” Amakelle was already patting his face down with a silken cloth.

“THAT unfunny, depressively un-charismatic statue?!” The lady seemed even more severe when addressing her former court jester. “We gave her the ending she deserved! Behold!” Mafchulu chuckled as he stepped to the far end of the court room, and pulled down in one swift stroke a velvet cloth hiding a dull gray statue of a woman, and in her stone hands was a bowl of fruit. “Look upon the so called Jester Amakelle! At least this way she’s useful for something! A fixture standing in a corner, uninteresting, uninviting, and barely capable of doing anything of value! That is a fitting fate, do you not think?!” The Queen guffawed, and the rest of her court, save Amakelle, followed suit. Arik’s own laugh beneath his heavy armor echoed like a pit 1000 malms deep and baritone.

“NOW!” The Queen silenced everyone with but a single word. “For your fate…” A deadly silence followed as the Queen of Pure White, Goddess of Botanists and lady of the Key Throne cupped her chin.

“Oh MERCY my lady! I admit it!” Amakelle fell further on his knees, crying and begging most pathetically. “I am a worm! I am a coward! I sought to betray you! To steal your houses, break your hearts and try on your clothing! I can only petition you for mercy! There is none more indignantly sorrowful than I! Mercy I beg! Mercy!”

“MERCY?!” The Queen spoke in words that near shook the very throne room. “You have sought to steal my people, destroy our Kingdom and have stolen and tried on my ball gowns on several occasions! There is no mercy for ilk such as you. Therefore I can think of only one fitting fate. BRING OUT THE PUDGE!”

Amakelle shrieked. “NOOOOOOOOOOO!” As the Agent of Goad cried and weeped, Jun (again tripping on his robes) pulled a lever next to the Queen’s throne. The floor fell out beneath Amakelle, an obvious trap for an obvious man to lay victim too, and his cry could be heard as he slid down into darkness. “OOF!” The crash of Amakelle’s fall echoed above in the throne room, and everyone smirked, awaiting what they new was to come next. From down under the traproom floor, from the dark and unseen shadows, cries of terror are heard. “S-stay back! I am warning you! S-STAY BACK! I WILL---” As he spoke, a low and threatening ‘Mrrrrrrrooooooooooowwwww’ was heard. “STAY BACK! I WILL FIGHT BACK! N-No! NO! NOOOOOOOOOO--eeeerruruugugghhghghghhhghh---” All fell silent then, save for the Queen’s laughter. Save for the Court’s laughter. Save for the laughter of all.

Now we step back, and observe the great land, our kingdom of Gardens Black. Away from a castle of the Botanist Queen, to a war mixed with soothsayers flack. We observe the middle, a kingdom locked in war where some few nurtured the middle path. A priest, a cleric, a people besieged, mercenaries fending off wrath. We observe the other side, the Catte army that bapped, and a fortress of unbreakable night. We observe it all, and will hear far more soon, when your bard comes tell of how each side brought their might.

For now let us rest, for soon we shall learn of the Catte army and who they are for. After which I’ll regale of the middle side three, then last what started this whole miserable war. The cast is yet to be unveiled, and grand it will be, familiar and yet so wrong. And tell you them all, I solemnly swear, I shall happily do in song.

Welcome I say, as your bard to this tale, this shard from Ten and Three. I hope you enjoy, or at least humbly scowl, as I welcome you finally with mirthful glee. This is our stage, I’m sure you’ll agree, is seemingly quite strange and quite cracked. I’ll spin you a tale, your narrative bard, to this place of Gardens Black.

@healeremeline @blackmagesol @everyoneelseIhaven’ttaggedyetthere’sfartoomanyofyou.

[korporxie]

Prompt #5: Show of Hands

What a fuckin’ mess.

 I exhaled cigarette smoke upwards and closed my eyes, my free hand shoved deep into my pockets to try to fight off the chill of the Hingan winter. I should have been used to coastal winters by then, and I even liked the cold, but this was a different kind of cold. It was lonely, desolate. This small village lacked the bustle of Kugane. It was traditional with a capital T, and I knew I was sticking out like a sore thumb in a leather jacket and pants as women shuffled by in their modest kimonos. It occurred to me that it’d make a good tourist trap, if the Hingans ever got around to letting tourists in. 

 Best not. They’d just burn everything they touched.

 Regardless, here I was in this little village, traditional with its capital T, because this was where the snake of the Sanshin-kai, the king with the broken crown that had let this whole mess with the geisha crash around him, had found a spot to burrow in. That’s where I stood, then, outside of the unassuming tavern than he and his boys had taken over after the destruction of the okiya and subsequent murder and abduction of a group of innocent women. Of course, this had been at the hands of the Kinoshita-gumi, but that wasn’t entirely important to me. I’d already started washing my hands of them when I went to go see the honored leader of Kugane’s ‘finest’ yakuza. An agitated sigh escaped through my lips, and I dropped my cigarette into the dirt, grinding it out with my heel. 

I was in Mori Takahashi’s office before he was, lounging in the chair behind his desk and smoking one of his expensive cigars. A locked window wasn’t much of an issue, of course. Wrap enough cloth around your hand, and the shatter is almost completely muffled. Empty bottles of whiskey were stuffed beneath the desk, and idly I thumbed through the paperwork on top of the desk. So he’d been receiving reports about the geisha girls he’d lost, and the Garleans working with them. A familiar report caught my eye, a sketch of a white-haired Garlean woman attached to it.

 Name: Laelia lux Caelius.

Age: Twenty four.

Profession: Neurochirurgeon tasked with overseeing the experiments conducted on Patient 001. 

 “She’s your only damn hope,” I thought aloud, blowing rings of cigar smoke out through my lips and sighing. I used the pistol I’d been holding to scratch my temple when the door opened, and I adjusted, legs still hanging over the arm of one chair as I aimed the pistol at the man closing the door.

 “You look terrible,” I remarked. “Don’t make a sound, understood? I don’t want to hurt you or anyone else in here. If I wanted to do that, I’d have come in through the front door.” I gestured vaguely to the broken glass on the floor with my free hand.

 Mori Takahashi stared at me. He really did look terrible. He was growing a scruffy beard and his eyes were bloodshot, puffy bags beneath them that nearly drooped down to his chin. Half of his shirt was unbuttoned, and though there was no sign of bruising or injury, it looked like he’d had the hell beaten out of him. There was no life behind his eyes. I thought back to a year and a half before, when he’d been the obsessive, vibrant man that lead his men with confidence that had slowly started to dwindle when he realized a teenage girl did it better than him. And now, there was a teenage girl lounging in his chair, in his safehouse, aiming a pistol at his head. 

 “I’m getting tired of it being fucking kids getting the better of me,” he mumbled, as if he’d read my mind. I smiled and winked at him, readjusting my finger on the trigger and watching him swallow. It was odd, to see the same fascination and fear in his expression that he’d reserved exclusively for Misaki, once upon a time, in a time that seemed frozen. 

 “Long time no see, Takahashi. How’s it been?” I asked

 “You remind me of her... without all of the soft spots,” he added, pointedly. 

 “Mm. Do I? Maybe I’m what Misaki would have been without all the nurturing and special treatment that she got.”

 “I think that’s exactly what you are. Minus the confidence, fabricated or not.”

 “Oof. Low blow, old man.” 

 “You’re just as persistent,” he grumbled out. “Non-stop. Bright, too smart for your own damn good. What do you want, Xiu? What is it this time? I thought we shook you off with this move.”

 “Ah. That’s the problem, you know? You have too much confidence for a man who doesn’t deserve an ounce of it. Misaki, she earned it, through blood, sweat, and tears. Me? I've got plenty. No reason for me not to. I do well at my job. You, on the other hand... You’ve put forth a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. You’ve been given a job, but... you’ve failed miserably. You are outgunned, outmanned... and you’ve lost the reason for your existence. Mis-... I mean, Hana, right? Wasn’t that the name of your lady love? So let’s have a show of hands, Takahashi. Raise your hand if you have useful information.”

 I raised my free hand while he glowered at me, and I smiled again. 

 “I like that look on your face. It suits groveling snakes like you,” I said, keeping my pistol leveled at his forehead and lowering my other hand. “You know you need help if you’re going to fix your mistake.”

 “And why would the daughter of a Garlean lapdog want to do that?” he snapped, and I shook my head.

 “I’m not my dad,” I replied simply. “I cared about those girls, too. I... understand, sure. It looks bad. I... am guilty in this, too. But I want to fix what’s been done. So do you. I know that you do. Those women were all innocent. Show of hands if you think Misaki has a primal actually living in her.”

 Neither of us raised our hands, and I nodded a little, swinging my legs around to plant my feet on the wooden floor. Rising to my feet, I reached into my jacket and withdrew a stack of documents that I’d folded tightly to fit in a small pocket, dropping them onto Mori’s desk. He was watching me, tiredly, warily. I raised both of my hands, making it clear and visible that I was putting the safety on before I tucked my pistol back into the holster on my hip. 

 “This is everything I could find about the Castrum and the lead scientist working on Misaki. The location is there. Transfer it to your man waiting for more-- Etsuji, right? Misaki’s man?” I watched him flinch at that -- Misaki’s man -- and sighed with a shake of my head. 

 Mori practically limped to his desk and sank into his chair, shaky hands reaching for the silver cigar case I’d left open. He puffed slowly after lighting one, water-blue eyes staring down at the stack of documents before slowly lifting up to me. I was at the broken window, assessing the damage I’d done as glass crunched beneath my boots. I recognized that look. I’d seen him lay it on Misaki while I was in Kugane, reverence and longing, trying to understand something that seemed so very far away from him. 

 “You need to clean yourself up, Takahashi,” I said, glancing back over at him. “There’s still time. There is still time. We can fix our mistakes. We can get them out. We just need to contact the right people. The doctor, the scientist, the rebels out in Doma... we need all of them, in varying degrees. And we need faith in Misaki. You know she won’t go down without a fight.” 

 “No,” he agreed quietly. “No, she won’t... But I don’t understand, Xiu. There are no strings attached to this? You don’t... want anything for this?” 

 “...I want to atone.” My answer came at length, and I struggled to get the words out, refusing to meet his eyes. “I want to save her. All of them. They treated me like family while I was feeding information to my father. Misaki... She and I were prisoners of circumstance. She was stuck, and so was I. I...” 

 I never had a sister, and she’s the closest thing that I ever got.

 She was my friend that I told more than I ever intended to.

 She was one of the people that helped me realize that I could be more than a weapon crafted by the oyabun.

 When I looked at her, I saw pieces of me shining back at me. 

 I want to be strong like she is. I want to forgive like she does.

 I didn’t say any of those thoughts. I simply turned back to the husk of a yakuza boss and smiled, knowing it didn’t meet my eyes. He stared back at me, rubbing the head of the snake tattoo that had crept just a bit up his neck. I could see the rest of the art in bits and pieces with his shirt half open, and was acutely aware, then, of my own tattoo on the back of my neck. It was supposed to cover my back, my legs, my arms. It never would, but even still... It was like a brand.

 “Show of hands if you regret fucking up,” I said, quietly. And... for the first time, Mori played along. He didn’t meet my eyes, but he half-lifted his hand as I lifted mine. “Okay. Good. Then let’s fix it.”

 “I don’t know why we haven’t killed each other,” he told me as I started to climb through the broken window. “You and me. It’d make sense, right? But I know your dad. And... you aren’t like him. You’ve got... a good head on your shoulders, Xiu. And a good heart, whether you want to admit it or not. Thank you for doing this. For not giving up.”

 “We aren’t friends,” I informed him. “We’re associates, at best. But, uh... That’s nice. Thanks. You’re getting soft,” I added, narrowing my eyes at him. “Don’t let your boys see it, or this gig is over. I might still kill you if you don’t fix this.”

[wowiejimin]

Safe - Chapter 8

this is probably one of the most longest chapters ive ever published oml but im pretty proUD OF IT EVEN THO ITS PRETTY BORING AT FIRSTTEETEE

if any of you guys are having trouble finding the updates to this fic, here are some options :)

you can either search up “wowiejimin safe fic” and once you do, all the chapters including the chapter list should be there~

“wowiejimin safe fic” is also a hashtag that i include in my tags so if you’re willing to follow it, you’ll be able to see all of the chapters and updates on your TL :D

another way is to put my post  notifications on if you follow me but i also do have the chapterlist in my description on my profile (it’s always updated) so feel free to do so~

i also update every week :)

 ENJOY

Pairing: Gang Member!Jimin x Poor Heart!Genius!Reader

Genre: Angst, Romance, Lots of Action, Humor, Fluff, & Smut (In the Future)

Length: 6.2k

Warnings: Swearing, SOOOO MUCH (SEXUAL? IDK) TENSION OML, flufffflyllylyy stuff

Members Included: All of BTS, other KPop groups in the future

Previous Chapter Chapter List Next Chapter

In his world, being a part of a mafia gang, known as Bangtan Boys, is a bit terrifying. They were truly a filthy rich and powerful group that everyone feared. 22-year old Jimin was described as the stealthiest and most skilled member of Bangtan, playing an important part in their group. Whereas for 20-year-old (Y/N), a genius with a weak heart is suffering inside the cruel world as she is experimented on on the daily basis. Jimin finds himself protecting a gifted girl whose memory can hold numerous things in a blink of an eye. Jimin finds an interest in her, visioning that she may be a valuable asset to their group. Jimin has never paid attention to girls. However, that started to change when he met her.

The following day, (Y/N) took a seat next to Jimin, like always. She looked around the room to meet eye contact with the rest of the boys. 

After explaining about the plan with Jimin and (Y/N), it was time to tell the others about it. 

Namjoon was the only one standing up, looking over at his members before clearing his throat. “As you all know, (Y/N) has obtained the special documents Yoongi hyung needed and it was a success.” Namjoon smiled at (Y/N), “However, those documents contained (Y/N)’s files as Banjo hired a member of the Golden Flies to do the job to terminate her files.”

(Y/N) let out a distressed breathe, not believing that Banjo went this far in order to bring her back to the lab. “Although, Yoongi recovered them, allowing (Y/N) to be safe from them.” He says as the boys let out sighs of relief, “For now.” Namjoon says and Taehyung frowned, “What if we want (Y/N) to be safe forever?” He pouted, “I don’t want (Y/N) to go away!” Taehyung cried.

(Y/N) sadly smiled at him, “I’m sure we all want (Y/N) to stay with us and to be safe too.” Jimin says and Jin nodded, “Indeed we do.” He says, “Right, but how?” Hoseok asked.

Yoongi smirked, “As you know, Banjo is a bad man, as well as Mr Han. The two have been working for years before meeting (Y/N). During those years, they’ve been committing corrupt deals with others and recorded a list of each and every one of them on a disc.” Yoongi says and looked over at his members, “With this disc, we can either threaten and blackmail them,” Yoongi says before looking at (Y/N), “Or we expose it, thus destroying everything that they have.” Yoongi explained and Jin hummed.

“Blackmailing seems a bit uneasy, although it may work, considering of how much data is written on there.” Jin thought as Jungkook crossed his arms, “How about both?” All the members looked at the young member with playful glares as Jungkook grinned, “What? Why not?”

Namjoon sighed and lightly chuckled at Jungkook’s suggestion, “Although we do have the power to do so, I don’t think that would be necessary.” He says before clapping his hands, pointing them towards (Y/N), “Since (Y/N) has known the two longer than we have, she’s one step closer to finding that disc.” He says and smiled. Jimin then cleared his throat, "And because (Y/N) knows the two better than we do and being our tactician, she’ll be planning this mission.“ 

(Y/N) nodded in agreement, "There may be a few bumps on the road. These two are no joke, they’re loaded with men and power as much as we are. However, with precise planning, I’m sure we can find this disc and get the job done easily.” (Y/N) smiled shyly. The members let out smiles and cheers, “I hope this works, (Y/N).” Yoongi says with a smile, the first ever smile (Y/N) had seen coming from Yoongi. Taehyung’s tail wagged, “I really really don’t want (Y/N)-ah to go, I’ll do anything in the world to keep her on our side!" 

The members chuckled as (Y/N) smiled widely, agreeing with Taehyung, "I don’t ever want to go back at that place, and I’m also willing to do everything to stay with all of you.” She says shyly, a hint of blush on her cheeks. The members looked at her with adored expressions before agreeing with her.

Jimin stared at (Y/N) with a faint smile. (Y/N) shared a few laughs with the members before looking back at Jimin, who was already staring at her with loving adoring eyes, same as the others. (Y/N) smiled at him as the other members continued to talk. “I hope this works.” She says, “I wish to stay with all, with you, forever.” She says as Jimin sent her a smile.

“Me too.” He says, brushing a stray hair away from her face, smiling even more at the sight of her flushed cheeks.

“Because wherever you go, whatever you do, I will be there for you whatever it takes or how my heart breaks. I want and will be there for you forever.“

~/~

It’s been three weeks since the whole mission with Dongmin as it was back to training for (Y/N) after she fully healed. Bangtan decided to lay low for awhile especially since the death of Kim Hyunwook. Whereas for Dongmin, he was taken to their HQ was imprisoned, with a necessary amount of care, ordered by (Y/N), as his fate was later decided.

Not only that, after all those weeks of training, Jimin claimed that (Y/N) was ready to pursue real missions along with the others. 

But here they were, after a morning jog with Taehyung around the neighbourhood and gun practice in the hills with Jungkook, (Y/N) stood in the ring with Jimin.

Today, Jimin decided with all the training he has done with (Y/N), he was able to work on her speed and agility. After a few rounds of Jimin moving around a landing a couple of punches on (Y/N), she finally got the hang of it and even got to beat Jimin at his own game. 

Jimin swung his strong leg over, however, (Y/N) quickly ducked and landed another punch on his shoulder, causing Jimin to lose balance. Seeing this as an opportunity, (Y/N) swung her fist at him, knocking him down to the mat. 

Jimin grunted as tumbled to the ground, “Oof.” He winced slightly. 

(Y/N) smiled widely, jumping a bit a few times as she cheered proudly. Jimin smirked up at her, watching her awkwardly dance around over her victory. (Y/N) noticed his stare and stopped, blushing slightly as she smiled shyly. Jimin chuckled, he thought it was cute and to say that he was proud was an understatement. 

“My third win in a row!” She says in triumph as Jimin shrugged, getting up from the mat. “What can I say, I’ve gone soft on you.” He says and got out of the ring, (Y/N) following. 

“I think that’s enough training, (Y/N). You did well today.” He confessed as (Y/N) let out a content sigh as she took a swing from her water bottle. “I think you’re ready for the real stuff.” He says as he also takes a swing of water. 

(Y/N) puts down her bottle and looked at the older boy, “Real stuff?” She asked as he nodded, “Yeah, the real stuff.” He smirked at her as he motioned her to follow him. After packing their things, they made their way up to their room. 

As they walked up the stairs, Hoseok smiled at them as he went walked down the marble steps, “Done training?” He asked as (Y/N) nodded with a mixture of a confused and happy smile, “Yeah, Jimin says I’m ready for the real stuff.” She looked over at him and Hoseok looked at her with his gold irises gleaming. He sent her a slight smirk, “Oh I see,” He says as he continued to walk down the steps, “Well, whatever it is, good luck~” And with that, he went straight to the kitchen. 

Jimin hummed and walked into his room. He then took his shirt off, slightly surprising (Y/N) with the sudden action. “Go ahead and get ready. We’re going to the HQ, I want to show you something.” He says and grabbed a towel from the washroom and a set of clothes, “I’ll be showering in Jungkook’s washroom so you can do your thing in here.” He sent her a smile before walking out.

(Y/N) nodded at him before walking into the washroom, stripping down her clothes before entering the shower. 

It’s been almost a month since (Y/N) has been in the HQ, last time being when she first met Jimin. (Y/N) wondered what Jimin had to show her, but whatever it was, it must be important. Especially if it was located at the HQ itself. 

After showering, she put on clothes that fitted into the smart casual category; a simple white-button down blouse tucked into a black bandage skirt. After brushing and drying her hair, she walked out to find Jimin sitting on their bed, wearing a black button down shirt along with black jeans. 

He smiled up at her as he ran a hand through his damp dark hair. “Alright, let’s go.”

The two made their way to Jimin’s car and out of the Bangtan residence grounds. 

On their way there, (Y/N) turned to Jimin, “So what is this thing you’re gonna show me?” She asked and Jimin hummed, “Now that,” He turned to her, face inches apart as he smiled at her, “Is a surprise.” He says as (Y/N) huffed with a smile, leaning back to her seat. 

After a few minutes, Jimin drove into the underground parking lot, just beneath their building. Jimin then parked in his usual spot, in front of the elevator. Jimin quickly got out, opening the door for (Y/N). She quietly thanked him as they walked into the elevator, Jimin pressing the button that led them to the floor where his office sat. 

Instead of walking towards his office, Jimin led (Y/N) to a set of double doors. (Y/N) looked at him confusingly, “Did you move office rooms?” She asked as Jimin chuckled, shaking his head. 

Placing a hand on her shoulder, he pointed at the plated tag that was set on the doors. 

Kim (Y/N), Bangtan Tactician, it read.

Namjoon decided to have (Y/N) take his last name as she didn’t really remember her real surname, despite the fact that she had a superior memory. Jimin protested, thinking that (Y/N) should take his surname but Namjoon refused, saying something about "Wait till the right moment until she’ll have yours”, leaving Jimin quite confused and upset but nonetheless, he was happy for (Y/N).

(Y/N)’s lips twitched up slightly before smiling widely up at Jimin. “Really?” She asked excitedly. Jimin smiled warmly at her, “Well, go on.” Jimin nodded his head at the door. 

(Y/N) looked at the plated tag before placing her hand on the knob, opening slowly. She took a deep breath as she looked around in her new office. 

A desk placed in the back with a window placed on the right-hand side of the desk and another behind it. A shelf of books and drawers on the left-hand side and a small counter with a coffee maker and microwave. By the windows set two couches and a coffee table, giving off a perfect view of Seoul when relaxing. 

(Y/N) smiled as she walked around and turned to Jimin, “This is all mine?” She asked and Jimin nodded, “Yep, and if you want, we can have renovations in here to set it to your liking.” He says as she shook her head, “N-No, that won’t be necessary, it’s perfect the way it is,” She says and looks at him.

“Thank you.” She says, giving him a light side hug shyly and Jimin shrugged, laughing nervously as he ran a hand through his hair out of habit, placing a hand on her shoulder as a way of hugging back.

“No problem. I just kinda came up with the idea of giving you an office to yourself. Every one of us has one, so might as well give you one too, especially because you’re the one who will be planning our missions.” Jimin says and takes a seat on the couch. (Y/N) follows and turned to him. 

“So this is where I’ll be doing my role, as well as planning this big mission, hm?” Jimin nodded, “Correct.” He says and looked over at her, brushing a stray hair from her face and tucking it behind her ear, seems to be his favourite gesture of affection when it came to (Y/N). (Y/N)’s eyes slightly widen at his sudden gesture. Jimin seemed to be shocked as well and quickly recovered and leaned back on the couch smoothly. 

“A-Anyway…” He stammered, “Valentine’s Day is coming up soon,“ He started, looking at her with a nervous look, "I don’t think we have any other plans for that night so…” He trailed off as (Y/N) felt her breath hitch for a moment, knowing where this was going.

“I was thinking that we can go into the city and eat dinner ourselves,” Jimin says, a shy smile present on his face with pink cheeks. (Y/N) felt her lips twitch up a bit, her entire body heating up. “Just us—?”

Jimin nodded, “Mhm, just us two. I made a reservation for two at the finest restaurant in all of Seoul.” Jimin says quickly with a shy smile.  

“So, you up for it?” He asked with a charming smile. Jimin felt his adrenaline running fast, clearly nervous yet excited about the plan for the loving holiday. 

(Y/N) thought about it as she didn’t have much of a choice. Jimin had already made reservations at the restaurant as she just couldn’t say no to him, he has done so much for her for the past month and she couldn’t be more thankful for him.

Not only that, it didn’t matter to (Y/N) if she had no other choice, she truly wanted to go out with Jimin more than anything. She found Jimin as the most trusting, generous and kind person she has ever met and wanted to continue to show him her gratefulness. 

She nodded eagerly, smiling up at him quite widely and shyly, “I would love to, Jimin,” She says and scoots a bit closer to him, “Of course I’ll come!” She breaks into a grin, showing off her pearly whites and her sweet smile. Jimin felt his stomach twist in knots as his lips twitched upwards at (Y/N)’s adorable expression.

Jimin grinned, smiling widely as he leaned in closer to her face, “Great, Valentine’s Day it is, just us two.” He says and (Y/N) nodded, a warm smile present on her face.

“Just us two.”

~/~

After asking (Y/N) about the whole dinner, Namjoon called Jimin out of the room, telling him that he had work to do. (Y/N), however, took her time to look around her office once more. She truly loved the feeling it gave her, an almost comfy feeling as if she was at home. Home, She thought, thinking about her mother and then to Bangtan. 

She shook her head at the thought before setting down on her office chair, noticing a MacBook displayed in the centre of the desk. She smiled, noticing it looked much like Jimin’s, except it was a new one. She opened it, seeing that Yoongi must’ve set it up for her.

“Wow…” She whispered in amazement, feeling its smooth surface.

“Maybe I should start planning.” She mumbled to herself before doing a little research, finding a file that Yoongi included in her laptop, having her free to use if it helped with planning the big mission. 

After a few minutes that turned into hours, (Y/N) wrote down numerous things such as locations and people that may or may not connect to either Banjo or Mr Han, giving her a better chance into getting her hands on that one disc.

She then came across a photo of a man, a photo taken with Mr Han. The two were smiling, hands clasped together. (Y/N) tilted her head slightly, analyzing the photo. There was a handwritten note on the side, Mr Han, Weis Minjae, 2012, it read. She hummed in curiosity as scrolled through more photos, seeing that this Weis Minjae appeared in more photos the farther she went through the file. He was a rather middle-aged looking man, just like Mr Han. There was also another man shown in the picture, however, there was no name. (Y/N) bit her lip, writing down about his appearance, thinking that it may be useful for later use.

She then came across a photo with Weis Minjae with Mr Han pointing at the man with a gun, almost looking like he was threatening him.

Widening her eyes, her curiosity grew more until her office door opened, revealing Jungkook. The two youngest members send each other smiles, “What’s up Gukkie?” (Y/N) asked and Jungkook walked over to where she sat, sitting down on one of the chairs placed in front of her desk.

“We’re going to some party tonight for some business shit.” Jungkook shrugged as (Y/N) hummed with a nod, “Oh okay, are we all going?” She asked as Jungkook nodded, “Yeah, so Jin hyung sent me here to tell you. Apparently, we have to wear something fancy.” Jungkook grumbled, leaning back in the chair, looking around, “You’re office is nice.” He says quietly as (Y/N) thanked him before turning her laptop towards him, pointing at the Weis Minjae man, “Do you recognize this man? Or this one?” She asked, pointing at the two men as Jungkook leaned forward, examining the photo before shaking his head.

“Nuh uh, why, do you know him?” He asked as (Y/N) sighed, shaking her head, “N-No I don’t… Although, I feel like he can be a part of all this if you know what I mean…” She trailed off, looking at the photo before looking at Jungkook. Jungkook gave her a soft look, “Well, don’t worry noona, we’ll get through this. Maybe Namjoon or Yoongi hyung has an idea about him, who knows? It doesn’t hurt to ask.” Jungkook smiled, causing (Y/N)’s expression to break into a small smile as well, agreeing with him.

“Yeah, you’re right, I should.” She says as Jungkook examined the photo once more, furrowing his brow, “Wait…” He mumbled, “I know that guy.” He says, referring to the unknown man in the photo. 

(Y/N) stood up, “You do?” She questioned as Jungkook nodded, getting up as well, “Y-Yeah… He’s a technician,” He says, “He used to work for GOT7 before they cut ties with him.” Jungkook scratched the back of his neck, “Do you know why they stopped working with him?" 

"He started working for that Han guy.”

Jungkook sighed, “And you never know, may he has some connections with that Weis guy too.” (Y/N) looked down at the photo before sighing, closing the screen. “I suppose that’s true,” She says before bringing her laptop into her arms, “Thank you anyway, Gukkie.”

“No problem.” He says as they both start to walk out of her office, “We should get going. Jin hyung wants us all to get ready early so we can leave early.” Jungkook scoffed before grinning, “But knowing Jin hyung, he likes to go into parties late just so everyone catches a glimpse of him once he enters the doors.” Saying this left (Y/N) in giggles.

~/~

(THIS IS SO BORING I KNOW OH GOGOGOG)

While Jimin took a shower, (Y/N) took her time to put on her makeup. If she was being honest, it was her first time applying makeup on but after watching a few tutorials, she was able to pull through the struggle amazingly. After applying matte lipstick, a pretty rosy oak colour, she took one good look at herself, softly smiling at her appearance. She ran a hand through her hair which was now curled.

She unplugged her phone from its charger, sliding the device in her purse before walking over to the dress that was laid out on her shared bed. It fitted their theme for tonight, just simple black. It was a pretty black midi dress that was designed to be seen as a long sleeve, an asymmetric dress that had ruched sides from the waist down. Simple but pretty, She thought before stripping off the clothes she was wearing and quickly slipped on the dress before Jimin or any of the other members could walk in. 

Just after slipping on the dress, the washroom door opens. Jimin walked out of the steamy room, wrapping a towel around his neck, dabbing his face with it. Once he notices (Y/N), who was sitting on their bed, his lips curve into a small smile, “(Y/N).”

The small girl looked up, flicking her eyes over to Jimin, “Hey, Jimin.” She says, placing her hands on her lap, “How was your shower?” She asked, slightly cringing at herself as to why she would ask that. “Good,” He says, “To be honest, I thought I would be the first to get ready but here you are, looking like God’s gift from heaven.”

(Y/N)’s breath hitched which led up to her lightly coughing, feeling all the oxygen in her body leave, “W-What did you just say?”

Jimin, clearly unfazed by her question, walked over to his dresser, grabbing his favourite cologne in hands, spritzing a bit on high points. (Y/N) watched Jimin, seeing that he wore a dark grey long sleeve under a black blazer along with black slacks. Jimin then quickly walked over to his closet, grabbing black dress shoes before walking over to their bed, taking a seat as he slipped them on. Seeing that he started to put his shoes on, (Y/N) slipped on her four-inch heels.

Once Jimin was done, he got up, “Shall we go?” He asked and (Y/N) nodded, “Y-Yeah, I’m ready.” She says as Jimin helped her out of the bed, (Y/N) slightly wobbling but she managed. She stood up in front of him as Jimin scanned her hair, to her face, and to her body that fits perfectly in her dress, “Damn, (Y/N),” He quietly groaned, his hand on her waist never leaving, “So fucking beautiful.” He says, leaning down and closer to her face. (Y/N) lightly gasped at how fast he leaned in, her lips parted slightly. 

(Y/N) takes a shaky breath, replaying Jimin’s words over and over in her head. Although it’s only been a bit over a month since (Y/N) has known and lived with Bangtan, it only took her about a week since she has realized that she may caught feelings for the man in front of her. Although she was new to this, she couldn’t help but not deny these feelings.

Who was she kidding, she liked him. He was caring, bold, undeniably adorable and so much more to her. The way he challenges her and others through his words and actions to the way he truly showed how much he cared for her, she loved every single bit.

And with Jimin complimenting her like this, she couldn’t help but feel weak in the knees, not wanting to feel or look vulnerable in front of his eyes.

Jimin licked his lips, staring into her eyes and (Y/N) did the same, blushing deeply when their noses meet. “I want to remember you like this.” He whispered as (Y/N) let out a sigh, “Y-You don’t mean that…” She mumbled shyly, looking away with an awkward smile. Jimin clenched his jaw, his brows slightly furrowed as he brought her chin into his fingers, “What makes you think I don’t?”

Before (Y/N) could answer, their bedroom door opened. Jimin let out a sigh, giving (Y/N) a soft smile before gently letting go of her chin, his hand leaving her waist. (Y/N) gave out a shy smile before looking over at who came in, seeing Hoseok and Taehyung.

Hoseok was smirking whereas Taehyung had his mouth slightly gaped before closing his mouth. The two were both wearing something similar to Jimin’s. Taehyung had his silver hair slightly wavy, almost a messy look yet very fresh looking with his ears flickering every now and then under his headband. With Hoseok, his blonde hair middle-parted, revealing his glorious forehead. For a cyborg, he was handsome as hell.

But here they were, staring at (Y/N) and Jimin with shocked yet teasing expressions, “Ready to go?” Hoseok asked as (Y/N) nodded, “Yes, we are.” She says, looking at Jimin, who was only looking at her. Jimin nodded, “Yeah, let’s go.” He says as (Y/N) nodded, walking out the door with Hoseok.

Jimin watched (Y/N)’s figure as she walked out, sighing as he wished the two boys weren’t there to ruin the moment. Taehyung then walked up to him, a smirk already present on his face. “The tension in here is fucking intense. I feel it.” He says and Jimin hummed in annoyance, already knowing what was bound to happen with Taehyung’s constant teasing. 

“Let’s go.” Is all Jimin says as Taehyung giggled, skipping out of the door with Jimin.

“Wow, (Y/N), you look absolutely beautiful.” Namjoon smiled at her as she reached the bottom of the stairs. “Thank you.” She says with a smile as Jin agreed before looking at the rest of his members, “Aren’t I beautiful too, boys?” He asked as none of the answered. Jin scoffed, “What kind of children did I raise…” Jin muttered to himself as he motioned all of them to follow him.

“Our limousine is waiting out there for us,” Yoongi says as they all walk towards the front door. 

(Y/N) had to admit, every one of the members looked incredibly handsome tonight, especially with the dark clothes that they wore that went well with their neatly styled hair.

The eight climbed into the vehicle as (Y/N) plopped down between Yoongi and Jimin. “Who’s party are we attending?” Jimin asked and Jin hummed, “GOT7’s.” He answers and (Y/N) tilted her head, “I’m sure you’ll meet them tonight, (Y/N).” Yoongi says, “They’re really good people.” Namjoon nodded, “Yes, they really are as we will be attending a business meeting as the rest of you are partying.” He chuckled.

“Business about what?” Jungkook asked, “We’re asking them if they’re willing to take part of (Y/N)’s big mission.”

(Y/N) felt her lips curve into a smile, “Really?” She asked and Hoseok nodded, “Yes, they already knew about your situation even before we met you.” Namjoon then looked at (Y/N), “Once I mentioned about the mission, they immediately accepted. They found you a very interesting person and they can’t wait to meet you tonight.”

“I wonder how Jackson and BamBam are going to react when they see (Y/N),” Taehyung says with a giggle. Jimin sighed, “Oh fuck, once Jackson’s eyes land on (Y/N),” Jungkook says and Jimin grumbled, “I mean, who wouldn’t though.” Taehyung says. Before Jimin could playfully glare at Taehyung, (Y/N) gasps quietly in awe, looking out the window.

The mansion’s exterior was absolutely beautiful. (Y/N) thought that there must be amazing views in each room. “Wow…” (Y/N) says in awe, “This home looks like it was built inspired by monuments.” She says, causing for the boys chuckle at her. There were fountains, gardens, and so much more.

The vehicle stopped right where the entrance was. Jimin got out quickly, having his hand out, reaching for (Y/N). She grabbed his hand, thanking him as she carefully got out of the care with Jimin’s help. Jimin gave her a soft look as they both walked up the front stairs. 

There were two guards standing by the entrance as one of them held out their hands, “Invitations?” He asked as Namjoon nodded, handing him eight tickets as the guard looked at every one of them before handing it back to Namjoon, “Go right on ahead.” He says.

Namjoon led them as they all entered the GOT7 residence. Although the party had just started, there were many people already. However, inside was beautiful as it was outside. It amazed her as the foyer was lit brightly with the gigantic diamond chandelier that was centred between the two grand staircases. The room across the foyer was slightly dimmed, lights flashing like some sort of sophisticated club along with an open bar. 

“A dance floor?” Jungkook asked excitedly as Taehyung jumped, “Alcohol! Let’s go Kookie!” And with that, the two young boys left the group, leaving the rest chuckling with their behaviour. “Well, Jin and Yoongi hyung and I will be attending the business meeting now. Go on and fun you guys.” Namjoon says with a smile, mainly looking at (Y/N). “Make some friends, okay, (Y/N)?” Jin says as they walk away.

Hoseok chuckled before placing a hand on Jimin's shoulder, “I’ll be in the billiard room, Minhyuk and Jooheon are meeting me there. Let loose guys~!” And with that, Hoseok left without giving (Y/N) a chance to talk. (Y/N) smiled sheepishly, looking around as she spotted Jimin, who was simply smirking at her. “Wanna have a drink?” He asked as (Y/N) hesitated before nodding, “S-Sure!” Although (Y/N) hasn’t tasted alcohol once in her life, she was excited to taste her first drink, especially by sharing the moment with Jimin

Walking into the dance room, there were many men and women either talking, dancing, drinking, or doing all three. (Y/N) watched with curiosity, watching a group of women take down shots like a piece of cake, it truly amazed her. The two made their way to the bar as Jimin swiftly asked for to drinks from the bartender before turning to (Y/N).

Although the lights in the room we pretty dim, Jimin could see every one of (Y/N)’s features as clearly as he could in the daylight. He noticed the way that some parts of her hair seemed to shine in the soft illumination from the bar light as he observed with interest, a quickening feeling sensation in his chest at the way she smiled so brightly and sweetly that the corners of his own lips automatically curve upward at the sight of her dimples.

“You’re beautiful,” He blurted out. (Y/N) blinked several times as she lightly gasped for air, shocked at his words once again. She cleared her throat, “T-Thank you.” She says the bartender finally materializes their drink. 

Jimin hands her the shot of whiskey as he had a shot of his own. “This is your first time tasting alcohol, right?” He asked as (Y/N) nodded excitedly, “Yeah, it is. Will it taste bad?” She asked and Jimin chuckled, “That’s for you to judge.” He says before clinking his glass with hers, “To your first shot.” He says before connecting the glass shot to his lips, quickly downing the shot within seconds.

(Y/N) watched him, tilting the glass over her lips, drinking it until the last drop. She set the small glass on the counter rather roughly as Jimin watched her every move at her expression. He laughed at (Y/N)’s disgusted expression, “How was it?” He asked, a few laughs coming out every now and then. (Y/N) let out little grumbles before weakly smiling at him, “I-I-It… Was okay… Kinda worse than I thought to be honest.” She sighed as a wave of dizziness washed over her.

Suddenly, the DJ at the front of the room started to spin to another tune, slower this time than the other upbeat songs. He taps on the mic, “Let’s take this slow.” He says as most people started to pair up, dancing slowly to the music, “This is all for the lovebirds. Enjoy everyone~”

(Y/N) watched everyone sway softly to the music, pretty surprised at how fast everyone transitioned to the music. She then turned to Jimin who was looking quite uncertain as he leaned closer, looking as if he wasn’t sure about something.

“Hey.” He mumbled, “Hey…?” She says but sounding more like a question, a bit uncertain with Jimin’s expression. She stepped back but he moves closer.

“(Y/N)… Dance with me,” He says with an unreadable expression on his face.        

She stared at him dumbfoundedly, fiddling with her fingers, “Dance? I-I’ve never danced before so I’m not really good at this sort of thing…” She says, clearly embarrassed. Jimin shook his head, “Well, that’s not stopping me from wanting to dance with you still.” He says, making a bold move as he held her hand softly.

“And besides, I used to dance when I was younger,” He says, looking away embarrassingly before looking back at her, “I can teach you.” He says. (Y/N) was in awe, “Really? You mean it? You really want to dance with me?” She asked and he nodded his head eagerly yet smoothly, “Yeah.” He says softly before dragging her to the dance floor, his hand still holding hers.

The two navigate their way through the dancing people until Jimin found an empty spot.

Jimin slowly closes the remaining distance between them, placing his hands on her hips, (Y/N) lightly twitching at the contact. “Now, you put your arms around my neck.” He instructed, smiling warmly as she does exactly what he says. Once she placed warms around his neck, he inhaled deeply at the contact. However, this only made Jimin move closer, pressing his body against hers as they sway to the slow and steady rhythm. (Y/N) couldn’t tear her eyes away from him as he stared into her eyes.

(Y/N) was mesmerized just from his eyes alone as he beckoned her to stay with him. He leaned down, pressing his forehead against hers, truly an affectionate gesture that (Y/N) wished to capture forever.

(Y/N) held in a breath as Jimin suddenly buries his nose in the crook of her neck, causing for (Y/N) lose her breath once more at the contact. Noticing that she wasn’t doing much, she placed a hand on his cheek, smiling softly as she laid her head on his, her cheek meeting contact with his.

“J-Jimin,” She breathes, almost sounding like a mixture of a moan and a whimper. “(Y/N),” Jimin murmured, inhaling her aroma, peaches and chocolate.

“You have no idea what you do to me,” Jimin says truthfully. (Y/N) didn’t, not knowing that Jimin was lost with her and did not ever want to get out of the beautiful madness. (Y/N) hummed in acknowledgement, “And you have no idea how you make me feel…” She mumbled.

If (Y/N) was being honest, the only thing holding her back was about her whole situation, from Mr Han to Banjo, the lab to the big mission. Although (Y/N) was going to try her best, as well with the other members, she couldn’t help but have that one thought, thinking that this plan wasn’t going to work. And once this mission happens, she wouldn’t know if she would make it out with Bangtan or with Mr Han in the end.

Sensing that (Y/N) was being overwhelmed with emotions, Jimin slides his arm around her waist, pulling her closer as he pressed his forehead against hers once more. “Hey,” He says in a soft tone, “It’ll be okay, we’ll make sure that everything will go alright, and I’ll be damn sure that they do. And believe me when I say this, but I will pay for what he did to you and your mother.” He promised.

“I-I know,” She sighed, “And I will make sure your first is the last thing Banjo sees.” She says and Jimin chuckled at slightly dark humour.

And I’ll make sure that you’ll be standing by my side, no matter what.

=

WELL DAMN. so much tension in this, i rlly dont know it just kinda came out & i rlly felt like i had to be rlly descriptive about their feelings more so ye, here it is, i hoped yall enjoyed it although it was pretty boring omg i was cringing but itll all be worth in the end

and what i mean by worth it in the end, i mean like uuuuuuh there are some um foreshadow (?) or like hints for future chapters ?!?!

okay im done, LOL its 3 in the morning, i was playing superstar bts all day rather than typing this up omg

[canaryatlaw]

okay it’s late I’m tired you know the drill. today was alright I guess, court was somewhat unusual because it was the case we had to withdraw from which I was super unhappy about because I *really* wanted to help her, but thankfully we were able to set her up with new counsel who was on the call this morning and we smoothly transferred him into being the lawyer on the case now since there was procedural issues beyond my control. I did get to speak to the new lawyer before we got called into court since they put us in the same breakout room (which I had requested but I’m pretty sure they were already planning on doing so) so I was able to catch him up on what’s happened in the case so far and what our major concerns have been at this point, so that was good and I said I’d send him over any other documents we have that hadn’t been shared yet. He was a pretty nice guy, we started talking about more general legal aid things (as he was from another legal aid organization, and he was telling me one of the areas is covers are expunges, and how they were trying to gear up for the flood of marijuana based charges that have essentially been tossed by the new law, but so so many people have stupid pot charges on their records that they should absolutely be able to expunge, and it sounded like they were making good progress on that so that was good to hear. Not long before we got called into the courtroom I got a call from OC who was in a tizzy that there was suddenly another lawyer claiming to be on the case, despite me laying out our intentions very clearly last court date, but tbh it seemed like he was having issues getting things at that point either. So I briefly explained and he was a little grumpy he didn’t receive advanced notice (as in a filed motion) for a withdrawal or appearance, neither of which were required to be done in that situation, so I was just like okay whatever let’s just get through this case and hopefully I’ll never have to speak to him again. honestly I was really disappointed in him working on the case. whenever we get a lawyer on the other side of the case I generally google them just to see what their background is, because there aren’t any lawyers who specialize in OPs or really has them as a large portion of their work, so we end up getting divorce lawyers or criminal defense lawyers or whoever else wanted to give this a try. So I googled him and was actually really impressed with his bio, it talked about being a GAL (position from the office I spend a year interning with) on some child centered cases and all around sounded like a decent guy and a fairly competent lawyer, and even in my first call with him he seemed very concerned about things and just wanted to work them all out, only for me to go to my client and find out pretty much everything he said was straight up bs, and it just kept going there. BUT ANYWAY. we said all the necessary words in court to get everything done, and that was it. I had to run back to the clinic line then because I was supervising for the day (great timing, I know) and had to wrangle some volunteers onto a case that needed a translator which always makes everything that much more complicated, and at first it looked like none of our employees who can serve as translators were available, at which point we’d have to call the “language line” which is part of the DV hotline for IL and for situations like this they can provide a translator for really a huge amount of languages, several of which I hadn’t even heard of before, and they’re great but with multiple parties on the line figuring it all out I knew it would be difficult. thankfully one of our translators ended up being available to get it all started. it had a few bumps but looked good at the end, except when they tried to send the paperwork over the volunteer working the case’s laptop apparently crashed and she wasn’t able to send us the forms (we had the affidavit, though that also needed to be restructured because it was that intern’s first case to work on). Okay so whatever, they’ll just have to redo tomorrow, which sucks but it is what it is and technically  is not my problem at this point, but my work buddy is supervisor tomorrow so I’m not gonna just drop everything on him and tell him to take care of it. so we’ll see what tomorrow brings with that. we also had a case slide in between all of that, it was one of our very experienced and competent volunteer attorneys and the case was just 1 incident and no kids in common (if there are kids, the forms are legit twice as long to fill out), so she had it back to me in like an hour, which I’m pretty sure is the quickest turnover time I’ve seen so far so major props to her. After some confusion we got that filed by the deadline, but at 4:50 I got a call from the court saying they were backed up and there were already ten people lined up to do it right now so they pushed it to tomorrow morning, which I can hopefully make sure everything goes as planned. and oof I’m so dead I can’t keep my eyes open, curse my verbosity and attention to details. but after I finished work not much happened, I made ramen for dinner and watched more Psych and that was pretty much it, and I really need to go to bed so I’m going to do that now. Goodnight friends. Hope your week is going well so far.