#Let him go camping or some shi

[b3achysurfur]

oh!

[acourtofmenandthirst]

Love You In The Dark

Azriel x Reader, based on Love You In The Dark by Adele :/

Warnings: angst, swearing

Word Count: 2.4K

“Don’t look at me like that.” Your voice was no louder than a whisper, but he didn’t miss how your words came out trembling, or how your dry throat constricted as you spoke. 

He shook his head. You had always known he was a male of few words but you didn’t know that he, in that moment, didn’t trust himself to speak. He knew his words would come out broken, shattered on a muffled scream. He had to blink away the tears just to watch you stuff clothes into your bag. 

You were ashamed, truly, that it had come to this. That the only solution you could find was to pack your bag and go. No matter how many nights you lay awake, convincing yourself that you were the crazy one, making up stories and rumors, you’d come to the same conclusion. 

Leave before he does. 

But what you couldn’t do was go without a goodbye. You knew it would be easier to hastily grab your most valued items and disappear into the high mountains of the Night Court without any words exchanged between the two of you. 

But you couldn’t. 

And he couldn’t stop watching.

Azriel grabbed for you - he reached out those scarred hands, the ones you loved so much - encircled your wrists and tugged you closer to him. But you stood firm, squeezing your eyes shut and shook his hands off of you. And that hurt him, you knew it, shrinking away from his touch like it burned you. He knew the feeling all too well. 

You didn’t mean to, after all. You were being cruel to be kind. 

It was hard to navigate the small cottage that had become your shared home. His clothing had taken over your wardrobe - you’d fumbled through piles of neatly folded sweaters and shirts that had belonged to him, that smelled so strongly of night and rain, in search of your own items to stuff in your bag. 

In the past few years you and Azriel had been dating, he’d moved into your little cottage. It turned into his reprieve, after spending most of his adult life moving around, he’d never had a place to call home. The winged male spent his time flitting between the House of Wind and the townhouse, the Riverside estate and the cold Illyrian war camps. Once he’d spent a few nights with you, it quickly turned into your shared home. 

He still spent time away from you, when his High Lord had ordered him as chaperone for their brother and the moody Fae female, but those nights were some of the longest you’d felt. It was no longer just your bed, it was too roomy and far too cold without him. The kitchen no longer smelled of tea first thing in the morning, and everything felt too spacious when there wasn’t a pair of leathery wings taking up all the space. 

The male trailed you everywhere you went. He followed you step-for-step as you turned all around the bedroom in search of your clothes, so often strewn about the tiny area; his broad shoulders filled the doorframe as you swiftly grabbed your soap and salves from the bathroom. You knew he could do more to stop you - he was so much stronger than this. He could grab you in those big arms, hold on to you and never let you go. He could cocoon you in those dark wings and wrap the both of you in warmth - safety - like he used to do in the beginning.

But he didn’t.

And that’s why you continued. 

He still wouldn’t leave you alone after what you told him. Once you said you were leaving, he hadn’t left your side. He tried to talk you out of it, to promise things would change, that it would get better - he hadn’t known you’d been thinking about this for the past few months. How you were left with no other choice. 

It would hurt the male now - the normally stoich, proud Illyrian whose poker face never faltered. You told him late at night, when you were hoping the darkness would conceal the way his lips parted in surprise, the way his brows furrowed in confusion. But those hazel eyes glinted in the moonlight, and you could have sworn you’d never seen them so shiny. You spent the next few seconds - that moved like centuries - convincing yourself that those weren’t tears brimming in his eyes. His arms moved to constrict around you, to reach for you in the bed that you felt go cold many moons ago. You were too quick, already reaching for your bag and shoveling things inside. 

You’d bitten your tongue long enough about it, the two new females that had entered your boyfriend’s life. Not only his, of course, but his family’s - and everyone seemed dead set on playing matchmaker. Not in front of you, for that matter, but you heard them talk behind your back about how perfect these other females were for him. 

Gwyn, an angel seemingly sent from the Mother above, who so often trained with him, would be the perfect match - body, mind, and soul.

There was an unspoken bond between them already, one that nobody else on the land was privy to knowing besides them. It was something forgotten long ago, but something you saw renewed in those golden blue eyes each time Gwyn looked at Azriel. She gazed at him with admiration, both his fighting style and his calming presence.

If they weren’t discussing training lessons for the day, it was the jokes poking fun at his brother - how he absolutely drooled watching anything Nesta did - or about the newest book she was reading. Azriel, who had seemingly read every book in existence, nodded along, even adding his own commentary on the novel. 

He had built up quite the collection between the books he brought into your shared home, a mix between his old worn favorites and the stacks you had lining the walls and tables. But you soon noticed the fantasy and romance books he held on his lap before bed, the pages were worn and well loved, even the paper smelled different. What was sharing books between friends? There was nothing to it - but you couldn’t help but feel the tinge of jealousy turn your chest red. 

Then there was Elain, the third Archeron sister, the perfect opposite to Azriel. 

You often heard the High Lady whisper to her mate and newfound family: “Three brothers and three sisters - how perfect is that.” Something Azriel just shook his head about - but never outright refusing. You just listened quietly as if you’d never heard anything at all. You pretended not to see the way he gazed at her - the Seer - or the way his fingers brushed hers when she handed over a plate or pastry. 

It was those fingers you knew he didn’t like people to see. The hands that you’d spent years trying to get him to touch you with, to not care what they looked like or how rough they felt. They grazed along her pale skin, so smooth and flawless, in the same soft manner he’d touch you - your thighs, your stomach. And as his eyes held her round ones, you wondered if he imagined the way her body felt, the supple curve of her breast or her straight spine. Azriel had an appreciation for the arts, why would he not be with the most beautiful of the sisters?

She always baked for him. She baked for everyone, really, but always insisted he - it was always him - try her treats. Azriel never complained when it came to food, but he never was one for gushing over how sweet the rolls were or how delicious the jam was. But her insistence with feeding him - such an intimate act in Pyrthian, to any Fae, really - didn’t sit right with you.

You hadn’t felt further from him. It seemed that everything was changing. You were, too. Even though you spent nearly every night together, you felt defeated, unable to compare to the new excitement he must have felt with these two females, both fawning over him. His family only encouraged it, too. Even when you spent those nights together, wrapped tightly in his arms, you felt the space between you grow. 

Azriel had given you the world - you never thought that you’d have to spend another day of your life without him. But you couldn’t shake that feeling from you. The feeling that he thought about those other females, that he’d wonder what it would be like to be with them, to spend time with them. Those rare times when you’d join them for parties or intimate dinners, you saw their eyes linger on him, on you. And those hazel eyes next to you often fell to one of the two. 

You’d never dared to ask him about them.

You knew leaving wasn’t fair. You didn’t bring any of it up until the day you decided to go. He’d only brushed it off, expressing that he wasn’t actually interested in either of them, but rather in the conversation. There were nights he’d stay late at the River House, where you knew all of them resided together as a family. They’d stay up late drinking and laughing, sharing intimate stories and overly friendly touches. 

Once he returned home, he offered you a kiss and then crawled into bed next to you, not pulling you into him or laying half-sprawled over your chest like he normally would. You swore you smelled roses on him that night. 

You knew he’d never touched either of them. He wouldn’t disgrace you like that. But his family so often brought it up. Possibly being mates with someone they already had known and loved - let it be the Archeron sister or the favored Valkyrie - they all had much more in common anyway, and it would be far preferable than him spending eternity with an outsider such as yourself.  

But that wouldn’t stop him from wondering. 

You couldn’t carry on like everything was fine.

So you packed your bags, offering Azriel his fair chance at finding who he might think is his mate. Either one of them would be lovely to him - you knew both the females would offer him the world on a silver platter. 

The hardest part would be choosing which one. 

“Please don’t go, (Y/N),” he whispered, tilting his head down closer to you. He’d followed you from the bathing room back to your bed, and one of his hands fell to your hip. 

“Stop asking me to stay,” you replied, ignoring his touch and continuing with your packing - you were almost done. 

He swallowed the lump in his throat - you saw it. His eyes flitted between the two of yours, dragging down to your lips. “And stop looking at me like that,” you added, breathlessly. So you had to break the trance, blinking away any tears that threatened to pool in your eyes.

Azriel almost laughed. The breath came out jagged, loose from his lips, but he could barely stifle the exasperation. “There will never be a day when I don’t look at you like this, (Y/N).” His voice was low but unwavering. 

“It’s not you, Azriel,” you huff, resisting the urge to throw everything in your arms to the ground. “It’s not the way you look at me or how you don’t - it’s how you look at them.” His brows knitted in confusion. “The way you treat them is the same way you treat me and - ” you huffed a sigh. “I can’t do it anymore.”

He did lose it - he grabbed your arms - palms hot, burning with emotion. “They aren’t you, (Y/N).”

You stared up at him, anger washing over your sadness. “But you treat them like they are!” Everything fell from your hands as you shook out of his grasp. Taken aback, Azriel straightened and watched you closely. “Do you know how long it took for us to get here? For you to even talk to me? Touch me?” You stifled the urge to pull at your hair. “I feel so defeated - watching you joke and laugh with them. You and I are so far apart now - you’re a whole new person!”

He shook his head, black hair shifting slightly with the motion. “I’m not - we should talk about this. You can’t bottle everything up and then just leave.”

“I’m not just leaving, though, Azriel.” His heart thudded at how you said his name - how you spat it like it burned our tongue. “I’ve been in the dark for so long - you never bring me around your family - because you know they don’t like me.” You cut him off before he could interject. “They keep trying to set you up with Elain or Gwyn! I know what they say behind my back, Azriel, you aren’t the only one who knows the secrets of that River House.”

Azriel’s chest heaved with each stabbing breath he forced into his lungs. His hands flexed at his sides as he held himself back - he wanted to grab you, throw you onto the bed, cage you under his body so you had no choice but to hear him out. He wanted to kiss you, to hold you, to tell you that you were so fucking wrong and he would always choose you over them - over his family. 

But he couldn’t.

And he didn’t.

So you took a step back and grabbed the leather bag from the bed. Whatever you already had was good enough - you could rebuy whatever else you needed. Besides, it would probably be better to leave anything that would remind you of the male you were leaving behind. Mother above - if that were the case, you’d truly be leaving with nothing at all. 

“I meant what I said, Azriel, every word.” He was surprised at your sudden shift in tone, as your voice fell to a whisper. His shadows hissed in his ears, expecting more yelling - hell they were about to start screaming at him, too. “I love you - I don’t regret a gods damned thing.”

“I love you, (Y/N),” his voice cracked. Those hazel eyes were glazed over with silver, finally realizing you’d had this prepared. It was premeditated, you’d fallen out of love with him long ago.

“But I want to live, Azriel. Not in anyone’s shadow, and not while every one of your family members tries to arrange marriage for you.”

Azriel had never lied to you. He wouldn’t start now. There was nothing he could do to stop their silly gossip, to stop wishing for their friends to flirt with him - not without breaking the family he’d worked so hard to build. “What am I supposed to do without you?”

“You’ll survive.”

[starsxblazing]

Could i request and azriel fic where he had a crush on reader for years but didn’t act on it because he wss fixated on this whole three brothers and three sisters thing. But he realised that he and elain don’t have anything in common so they stay friends and he tells her about reader. When he sees her again she had a child with another illyrian but they aren’t together. Her son is maybe 2-3 years old, he starts to spend more time with her as friends but he knows that he still loves her. The bond snaps for him but he doesn’t say anything yet. He basically moved her into his home because he wants them to be together every minute. (Some dadaz and son time would be cute. ) They all sit at dinner with the inner circle and readers son calls him dad, cassian and rhys are both happy for their brother and thats when the bond also snaps for reader. Just fluff and daddy az ? Where he shows him how to fly and tell the babe how he is going to be a big brother.

That may be long, so if you don’t want to write something that long, then thats also fine 🫶🏼

a/n: I can't say enough just how much I love seeing the batboys being fathers

Azriel x Reader

Yours Truly

Azriel hated going to the war camps and always avoided it whenever he could. Despite his feelings, Rhysand had ordered him to go with Cassian to check in with them since the war was drawing closer. He glanced around as they made their way into the heart of the camp, noting the variety of women and children scattered about. There were far more here than at any of the other camps and whereas all Illyrians treated their women horribly, it wasn’t as bad here. 

He sat back in the meeting and let Cassian do the talking, being merely backup if it was needed. It was all that he could do to keep his attention on the conversation but his need to leave had him restless. No sooner than his brother could turn to leave the tent, Azriel beat him to it. They all knew how he felt so Cassian continued on behind him in silence as they gauged the training.

They hadn’t made it halfway to the training rings before a body collided with his. He took a step back before kneeling down and extending a hand to help. When you looked up at him, he noted the beauty in you that was much different than any other Illyrian female. You smiled sheepishly at him but placed your hand into his. His eyes scanned over you briefly and hoped that you didn’t notice it but when he met your gaze again, you were grinning. It took him off guard because everyone in the camps usually shied away from him but here you were, unafraid of his intimidating stare.

“Thank you,” you said breathlessly.

“You’re welcome,” he mumbled as his eyes locked on your hand that you hadn’t pulled away.

“I’m Y/N.” You gave him a smile that he could have sworn was apologetic. “Sorry about-”

“Y/N!!” 

You spun on your heels to see the male calling your name. He watched your body go tense and could taste the fear coming off of you in waves. There were similarities between you and the male and judging by the scowl, you weren’t treated well at home. The male grabbed your wrist with an iron grip that caused you to wince and he instantly bristled in anger. This was one of the main reasons that he hated being around other Illyrians.

“I was just going to-”

“I hope you had the good decency to apologize for your carelessness,” the male growled as he pulled on you.

He wasn’t sure why it was you in particular that he suddenly felt so protective of but chalked it up to the fact that he usually didn’t see the mistreatment right in front of him. Without thinking, he wrapped his hand around the male’s wrist with a force that had him immediately letting go. A growl escaped him and the man that he assumed was your father stumbled backwards.

“You can leave,” he snapped and the male had enough of his own sense to scurry away.

“Thank you,” you whispered, your voice soft as you rubbed your wrist.

“Pleased to be of service,” he replied drily, earning another smile from you.

“I really didn’t mean to run into you.”

Glancing behind him, Cassian had disappeared and he wasn’t sure if he had seen the interaction. It didn’t matter either way but he suddenly didn’t have the urge to leave. There was something about you that had him debating whether he should leave or not, knowing that you would suffer repercussions once you returned home. You shifted your body when he glanced at your wings. 

“Do you want to fly?” he asked suddenly, surprised with himself for such an outburst.

“I- Uh- Can’t,” you mumbled, the words almost incoherent. 

“With me,” he corrected.

Azriel watched you carefully and felt hope blossom within him when you turned to look behind you. There was a hopefulness in your eyes but the reluctance was written in your body. A silent sigh of relief passed his lips when you nodded slightly. He chuckled when he grabbed you quickly and shot into the air and a quiet scream left you. 

Once he leveled out in the air, your eyes immediately scanned the landscape with awe and wonder on your face. It eased some part of his heart that he hadn’t realized had tightened as he watched. There was no questioning the peace that you were now feeling for a partial experience of what you could never have yourself.

You had difficulty tearing your eyes away from the beautiful scenery as you flew in the spymaster’s arms. It was no secret who he and the general were and you had felt embarrassed that you had run into him. Surprisingly, there was no fear of him that most people had but you did feel safe for a change in his arms. Not to mention the fact that you had been even more surprised when he had scared your father off. Nobody had ever bothered to protect you and your opinion of the Night Court leaders were heightened just for that alone. 

Your father was in one of his moods and nothing that you did was right in his opinion no matter if he had been drinking or not. He had screamed at you for fifteen minutes but as soon as he raised his hand, you sprinted through the door. It all led you to being able to fly even if it wasn’t your own doing before Azriel landed on top of one of the mountains.

“This is beautiful.” 

Your breath puffed in front of you before being swept off by the wind as you stared in awe. When you looked back at him, he was watching you intently and you suddenly felt self conscious. You gave him a small smile that he returned but his gaze never left you, even as he moved closer. Warmth rolled off of him from the few inches that he left between you both and you found so much comfort in it. You couldn’t remember the last time that you felt this way and your heart begged you not to let him leave.

Thankfully, he didn’t seem to be in a hurry to get anywhere else and you ended up sitting up under a snow covered tree while he asked you questions about your life. You had been so lost in conversation that you didn’t notice at first when his hand wrapped gently around yours. The small act caused your heart to race and you had no interest in pulling it away.

Time passed you by too quickly for your liking despite the fact that enough had gone by for the sun to now be descending in the sky. By the time that he was gathering you in his arms, you were praying to the Mother that he would come back to see you again.

Azriel brushed Cassian off when he returned home and his brother began to interrogate him. He didn’t want to talk about how he was feeling, especially not when he had to figure it out himself. A quiet nagging in his heart wouldn’t let him leave without knowing more about you and he hated having to leave you alone.

He returned to the camp at any opportunity that he had and lost more sleep than he could keep up with just to see you. If what he felt for Mor was love, then what he felt for you was indescribable. It surpassed reason but he couldn’t stay away, not even when he began questioning Elain’s mating bond. The entire situation didn’t make any sense to him, especially when he felt sour when he thought about it.

“Oh, gods!”

His heart skipped a beat at the sound of your voice. He had just gotten back from rescuing Elain from Hybern’s army and the last person that he expected to see was you as he was being forced into one of the healing tents for his injuries. You watched him with caution, tears lining your eyes while you took in every injury that he had. It caused his heart to clench as his love for you spread through him. 

“What are you doing here?” The question came out as if he was out of breath, as if he hadn’t had time to come down from the adrenaline rush. “We’re in the middle of a-”

“War? Yea, I noticed,” you replied, staring pointedly at him. “I’m here helping out. I’m nothing spectacular but I can still help with some parts of the healing process.”

Your words hit him like a stone to the chest. He wanted so badly for you to see yourself differently but he was momentarily stunned into silence as you approached him. You knelt before him and began the process of washing the blood off of him. Every touch was surprisingly gentle even though he could barely think through the close proximity. It didn’t make much sense to him since the both of you were always close together whenever he visited but it was somehow different this time.

“You are.” His throat felt tight and the burning in his eyes started when he remembered that you were treated horribly by his own people. “More than you know.”

Your eyes flicked to his and there were still unshed tears in your eyes. He watched your throat bob before you ducked your head down to continue cleaning and wrapping his injuries. There was nothing that he wouldn’t give to know what you were thinking but he didn’t have time to question you before Rhysand walked in.

“Y/N?” The High Lord raised a brow at her as she looked sheepishly at him. “I thought you were going to bed.”

“Well, I was but I heard Thesan saying that someone was injured and a healer was coming so I thought that I’d help out.” All of the words escaped you all in one breath as you shifted in what he assumed was worry. “I didn’t think it would hurt to help one more person.”

“You’ve been working hard all day,” his brother replied gently, his eyes darting between the two of you. “Although I have to admit that my shadowsinger is in good hands.”

“I’m doing all that I can,” you laughed quietly, the sound causing his heart to clench. “I promise I’m done for the night once I’m done here.”

The High Lord nodded, his face still tender but when you looked away, there was mischief in his eyes. Azriel blocked it out and his attention refocused fully on you. His injuries weren’t as bad as he thought and definitely weren’t anywhere near as bad as his wings were. She took note of said wings before meeting his gaze. 

“I wish I could do something to help,” you muttered. “I wish I had some form of special healing magic and-”

“You’re special just as you are.”

Your eyes went wide in surprise and despite his pain, he stood and pulled you up with him. He pulled you into him, enjoying your warmth against him that suddenly had him feeling ten times better. There was an underlying feeling that he couldn’t describe pulling at his heart and he was content to stay like this for the rest of his life. 

It wasn’t until Elain suddenly returned to his mind that he pulled away. In no way would it be fair to you to string you along whenever he was sure that the Cauldron had been wrong. He took a step back and the sudden pain in your gaze had him taking a deep breath.

“You really should get some rest,” he mumbled as he took a few more steps back to place distance between the both of you. “Thank you for your help.”

A simple nod was all that he got before you ran from the tent, taking a piece of his heart along with you.

You couldn’t wrap your head around what the shift in Azriel was about. His heart had picked up its pace just before he pulled away from you. It was unusual for him to do so unless it was time for you to part ways but something about it was different this time. The feeling felt more like a goodbye and it was one thing in particular that you had a hard time swallowing.

“Hey, Y/N!”

You turned to see who was calling for you and it was the exceptionally good looking Illyrian that had flirted with you earlier while you tended to his minor wounds. A thought passed your mind that you would enjoy the attention from him in hopes that it would drive your thoughts away from the shadowsinger. 

“You look like you’re healing well,” you laughed, suddenly feeling shy as his full attention stayed on you as he moved closer.

“I think I have one that needs to be rewrapped if you don’t mind taking a look at it.”

You knew what the underlying meaning was and you also knew that it was wrong. Despite that, you followed him to the tent with the intention to forget and chase away the weight that came with war.

The male was already gone from his tent the next morning and you were surprised that you had slept in a bit longer than you meant to. By the time you were up and dressed, you could hear the war beginning. You simply stood with the other healers and waited and watched with both dread and hope.

There was so much work to be done when it was over that you didn’t have time to look for the male that you had so desperately fallen in love with. It did hurt your heart a bit when you were told that both your father and brother had died in the war but you weren’t particularly sorry for it. There was even a tinge of pain when the male that you had fallen into bed with was announced deceased as well.

You made a half hearted attempt to look for Azriel but had given up when it seemed like he had disappeared. If nothing else told you that it was truly an act of farewell, the fact that he was staying hidden from you did. With a sigh, you followed one of your close friends back to your camp.

It was strange returning home to an empty house but there was a sense of relief knowing that you would no longer be critiqued about every little thing that you did. A passing thought of being forced unwillingly into a marriage crossed your mind. That thought officially left your mind a month later when your best friend, Iris, found you on the outskirts of the camp by the bushes as you lost your stomach for the third time that day. 

“You’re..” The sound of Iris sniffing came from behind you as the female rubbed your back soothingly. “You’re pregnant.”

“What!?”

You spun so quickly that it had your head spinning and you vomited yet again. High Fae had an incredibly hard time having children but it appeared that the lesser ones didn’t. Azriel came to your mind again, the thought of him hurting you just as much as before. There wasn’t a day that went by that you didn’t think about him and it didn’t tear your heart into. 

You were foolish to think that someone as important and special as he was to actually want you just as much as you wanted him. Even if he had, you highly doubted that he would now that you were carrying a deceased male’s child. That thought also hurt because your child would grow up without a father and be shunned because he was a bastard child.

Iris was there for you throughout the entire pregnancy no matter what was said about either of you. She was a great friend and you couldn’t be any more thankful for her. She was due to be wed a week before you gave birth and for that, you were thankful as well. 

The labor was long and hard but thankfully successful either way and as you held your newborn son in your hands, you felt a love like no other in the world. 

Azriel had questioned Elain’s mating bond for four years and even after that, he fell in love with her. Or at least he thought that he had. He had been sure that he was the one meant for her since his brothers had been mated to the female’s sisters. Most of the time, he sat in the garden with her while she chatted away in happiness. There had been a change in her over the last couple of months as she began to spend time with her mate. 

He didn’t have much in common with her and no matter how much time had passed, he still couldn’t get you off of his mind. He felt horrible for disappearing on you without a word but at the time, he felt that it was the best course of action. You deserved to be loved and appreciated but what you deserved more was an explanation. He had never been good with expressing his emotions but he should have tried harder with you.

“- And Lucien says that the scenery in Spring Court is beautiful.”

His thoughts of you had tuned out Elain’s one sided conversation but the fact that she was talking about her mate and not him made him feel at ease. He hoped that he wouldn’t be breaking her heart as he had undoubtedly done yours. Then again, there was also the possibility that you may have very well been married off since your father and brother had passed in the war. You deserved happiness but he desperately wanted to be the one to give that to you.

“Where have your thoughts gone to?” Elain asked, watching him with a curious gaze. 

“I met someone a few years back,” he admitted quietly while gauging her reaction.

“A she?”

“Yes.”

Elain fell silent but it wasn’t filled with tension as he had dreaded that it would be. Instead, she appeared thoughtful before her gaze fell upon him again, eyes full of questions. He didn’t know how much information that he would give her but he felt the sudden need to talk about you to someone. Anyone. 

“Who is she?” she finally asked, setting down her gardening tool to give him her full attention.

“Y/N.” Your name falling past his lips had him ready to shoot into the skies and fly to you as fast as he could. “I met her in one of the camps before the war.”

“And you love her.” It wasn’t a question but a frown fell on her face. “Why haven’t you said anything to anyone?”

“She deserves better.” A half lie but a shiver ran up his spine as he forced himself to be vulnerable. “She has probably found it after all of these years.”

“You’re a great male,” Elain reassured, giving him a small smile. “My opinion may not matter much but I think that you should at least go talk to her.”

He took a few moments to ponder his choices and what he could possibly say to you to make things better. Elain watched him with that same reassuring smile so he took to the skies before he could think any more about it. His heart pounded hard in his chest during the entire flight, his nerves on edge for whatever could happen.

There were many wary glances thrown in his direction when he landed but he paid them no mind as he let his intuition guide him to you. His first stop was your home and unfortunately, you didn’t answer the door. As he turned back to head back towards the heart of the camp, he was truly beginning to wonder if you had married. The thought hurt but he deserved it if that was the case. 

No sooner than he reached the first market stall, the faintest hint of your scent filled his senses. His eyes scanned the small crowd and quickly found you with a small child by your side, a hand gripped tightly around yours. As if you could sense him, your wide eyes met his and it was in that moment that you overtook all of his senses.

The Illyrians around him faded into nothing as that golden thread that now bound the two of you together shined brightly on his end. You gave him a small, shy smile but didn’t make a move to step closer. He let his gaze drift to the child as you picked him up and he noted everything about him quickly. 

The boy had every feature of an Illyrian so to him, it meant that you had moved on. He didn’t deserve the explanation that he wanted but found himself hopeful whenever you walked towards him. Instead of directly addressing him, you simply nodded your head to your home. He followed closely behind while glaring at anyone who dared look at you too long or with disdain.

“We haven’t seen you or Cassian in a while,” you started as the three of you entered the home and sat the boy down. “Come to check on training?”

“I came to see you,” he admitted, shifting on his feet in his nervous state. “I didn’t- I didn’t handle it right.”

“Go play, sweetheart,” you muttered to the boy who did as told before you turned back to him. “I get it. I’m not-”

“You are everything,” he growled softly once he was close enough to cup your face. “I was foolish to let you go.”

“Az-”

“No.” His voice was thick again from his throat tightening, his nerves at an all time high as the bond sang inside of him. “I love you and I always have. But you deserve so much better.”

“I could say the same about you,” you whispered as tears lined your eyes again. “Nobody wants a female with a bastard son much less an Illyrian female with one.”

“He’s beautiful,” he murmured. “Any male would be foolish for letting you go. Just as I was.”

“You deserve better and-”

Azriel cut her off by crashing his lips to hers and his heart warmed at how you melted into him. He had come with the intention to win you back at all costs only to find out that you were his mate. It truly was a feeling like no other, an experience that could never be described without doing it justice. Little feet could be heard so you pulled back quickly and place a few feet of distance between the two of you.

“Mama.” The boy peered curiously around the corner, eyes moving between the both of you. “Who’s that?”

“Aeden, this is Azriel.” You smiled tenderly at the boy before looking at him. “Az, this is Aeden.”

“Hey!” Aeden exclaimed happily but turned back to his mother. “Eat and fly!”

“We can eat,” you laughed softly, stretching your hand out towards him. “We can look again for someone to help you fly.”

His heart was now a puddle on the floor. You had a son that more than likely didn’t know a thing about flying at his young age. Aeden’s Illyrian instincts were already screaming at him to learn how to fly and there was seemingly no one to teach him. His brain began nagging him but he wasn’t sure how to voice what he wanted to say.

“There’s no one that will help him fly?” he asked quietly when you joined him on the couch while the boy ate.

“No,” you answered with an equally quiet tone. “Nobody quite wants to be around us due to the circumstances. Not even my best friend’s husband.”

“Come to Velaris.” The words escaped him before he had time to realize what he was thinking. “You would both be loved and me, Cass, and Rhys can teach him how to fly. He’d love Nyx.”

You assessed him for a moment and placed a quick kiss against his lips before your son could see. Relief flooded through him when you nodded your head, leaving him feeling better than he had ever before in his life.

You stood in the foyer of the place that Azriel called home, contemplating everything that had led you here. It wasn’t that you weren’t grateful and appreciated his offer but it was because of how out of place that you felt. A townhouse was somewhere that you would have never guessed that you would ever call home. You had barely had time to agree before the shadowsinger was reassuring you tenderly all while offering to help you pack up what was needed.

He had promised that there would be better belongings waiting for you and he hadn’t lied. You were surprised to learn that the High Lord and Lady themselves had gone out of their way to buy both you and your son some things that you needed. Something within you nagged you about the generous charity that it felt like but as you watched your son get settled, all of that went away without a trace.

“Where am I supposed to sleep?” you asked later that night, for some reason dreading the answer.

“You have a room there.” He pointed to a guest room beside Aeden’s. “Or..”

“Or what?” You raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you suggesting that I can sleep with you?”

“If- If you-” Azriel tripping over his words with a new wave of nervousness was somewhat amusing. “If you want.”

You gave him a small smile, touching his shoulder in reassurance before checking in on your son. Anticipation shot through you as you relaxed in the bath, contemplating your two options. There hadn’t been a moment of peace since you had given birth and hoped that the new environment would keep the three year old in his own bed that night. Once you were clean, you took a deep breath before knocking on the door and stepping past the threshold of his bedroom.

“I was wondering if your offer still stands,” you muttered quietly as heat rose in your cheeks.

“Please.”

There was something in his underlying plea that had your feet moving but you stopped at the edge of the bed. He watched you with patience and ended up pulling you down into the bed next to him. A laugh slipped past you as he pulled you so close into him that there wasn’t an inch separating the both of you. 

“I don’t bite,” he murmured, burying his face into your hair.

“And if I wanted you to?” you countered with a coy smirk.

“That could be arranged.”

A devilish grin spread across his face before he had you on your back and it earned him a quiet laugh. You weren’t sure how long he made love to you and worshiped you in a way that no one ever had before. There were too many ‘I love yous’ passed between the both of you for you to keep up with but it had you feeling complete for the first time in your life.

You had no way to know what time it was or how long that you had slept but when you awoke, Aeden was in the bed and curled up next to Azriel. The sight had your heart fluttering in your chest so you simply laid back down and snuggled up to the pair.

A month felt as if it passed by in a blur. Azriel had waited a week before introducing you and your son to the family, seemingly impatient to teach Aeden how to fly. There were so many mornings that your son sat in your love’s lap while they read and you cooked breakfast. It was a sight that you knew that you would never get tired of seeing. 

It wasn’t until you watched Azriel and Cassian making progress with Aeden after three months did you realize what true happiness was. Cassian was silly and had jokes when it came to helping the boy all while Azriel fretted like a mother hen. Feyre had mentioned once that it looked as if the male saw your son as his own and it was all that you see when you looked at him.

“He’s making really good progress.” 

You glanced beside you to the High Lady as you both prepared the food for the night. A frown fell on your face as you watched Aeden fall out of the air again only to be caught by Azriel. Your son truly had made progress but your heart pounded in your chest each time you watched him make a mistake and start falling quickly towards the ground.

“I’m used to seeing different versions of the males’ training so this is definitely new for me,” you sighed. “I know Az won’t let him get hurt but still.”

“I felt the same with Nyx.”

A smile was shared between the both of you as Elain joined to help finish up the meal. Anticipation and nervousness filled you as it came time for the entire Inner Circle to come together. You had met all of them already, of course, but it felt like a new test with having them all together.

“Ready to eat!” Aedan exclaimed as he ran through the door, covered in dirt with a small scratch on his face.

“Did you let my son fall?” you asked as you looked between Azriel and Cassian.

“I turned my back for one second-”

“He’s fine,” Cassian drawled, laughing hard when his brother elbowed him in the ribs for interrupting him. “Even Feyre took a few tumbles and she’s just fine.”

“That’s different,” you huffed, glancing at your friend in hopes that she would defend you but the female simply smiled.

You shook your head in defeat and ushered your son to his seat between you and Azriel. Aedan adored the shadowsinger and looked up to him in a way that he had never experienced before. At least that was what he had told you during a late night conversation. Conversation flowed easily thanks to the family that made you feel welcomed and loved just as the spymaster had promised. 

“Daddy!” Aeden exclaimed. “Want more!”

Your heart skipped a beat as your eyes went wide when you realized that your son had just called your boyfriend his father. It was unprovoked and something that hadn’t been talked about by any of them. You glanced at Azriel and as your eyes met his, your body went tense and loose all at once at the overwhelming new feeling.

“I was going to tell you,” he whispered gently with caution on his face as the bond sang between you.

All that you could do was grin cheesily at him. At that point and time, it didn’t matter that you hadn’t been informed. All that mattered was that you had found the one that you were made for and on top of that, loved your son unconditionally as well. Rounds of congratulations sounded around the both of you but you couldn’t think straight as your eyes refused to move from the hazel ones two seats across from you.

You had never thought that your life would be this good and you would go through all of the hell and heartbreak again if it meant being where you were now.

Tag list:

@amara-moonlight @allygrace74 @sidthedollface2 @historygeekqueen @hnyclover @kalulakunundrum @historygeekqueen @bubybubsters @thisblogisaboutabook @mybestfriendmademe @caroline-books @justvibbinghere @wisdomofthebrain

[obsessedwrhys]

ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ HER FURY

ᯓ★ Reader has EXTREME emotional detachment/anger issues, enemies to lovers trope (?), John loves to rile up reader, angst (mention of r-word but it doesnt happen dw), slight gore?, lots of funny shi tho, intense smooching but nothing crazy 🤯, reader is fem!!! (Literally writing this instead of doing my assignment, didnt proof read I rushed)

ᯓ★

Pairing you and John up for any mission was a recipe for disaster. Yet Dutch doesn't seem to catch the memo about the chemistry between you both. You HATED John and he? He enjoys that you hate him. As a matter of fact, he gets the thrill out of pissing you off. Because everybody and I mean EVERYBODY at camp knows you have a bad temper. It's just some of them happen to value their life instead of testing your limits.

Nonetheless Dutch had asked of you and John to confront a company man in Saint Denis. The details were that he had a contract that you needed to steal from him. You didn't know much but all you knew was that he played the chief into giving up all his property to the him and with the crew needing help from the chief, this was the only way to do it.

You're never a complainer when it comes to being assigned a mission but since you're being paired up with John and not to mention being told to do it this early in the morning.

You were pissed.

"Can't believe I'm doing this in the morning... Out of everyone Dutch should know I'm not a morning person" You cursed before riding off with John matching your pace on his horse.

Hearing your muttered curses, he can't help but smirk.

"Ain't that the truth. I don’t think anyone in this gang is a mornin’ person" He said.

"Oh shut up" You simply replied.

John doesn't say anything but chuckle at your annoyance. Eventually you two made it to the city, you both dismounted your horses and tied them to a nearby hitching pole. Even in the early morning, the city of Saint Denis was already bustling with activity, horse-drawn wagons passed by, and people hustled and bustled about their business.

John and you made your way through the city, eyeing the people around you and listening for any clues about the man Dutch sent you to hunt down. As you made your way down the sidewalk, you couldn't help but glare at every businessman your eyes laid upon. The way they speak and act just manages to tick you off. This however caught John's attention.

"Ain't you just a ray of sunshine" He sarcastically said and it made you look at him with your brows narrowed.

"What?"

"What? You're scarin' the city folks, that's what"

You scoff.

"All these rich folks just make me all pissed off. Actin' all high and mighty like their lives are worth more than the poor. It's all about class 'til you're talking to someone beneath you"

John chuckled, his eyes following your gaze as you glared at the next businessman walking past you.

"I don’t blame ya. Most of these fools wouldn’t last a day out there tryin’ to survive. They ain’t got any idea what it’s really like" He said and you somehow found yourself nodding to his words.

Suddenly your eyes stopped at a figure hurrying outside a tailor shop. His appearance fitting the very description Dutch had provided you. You nudged John with your elbow and you jerked your head towards the target. John followed your gaze, his eyes landing on the man you pointed at. He studied him for a moment, taking in his features and behaviour.

"I think that's him" You said.

"Seems like it" he answered in a serious tone.

"He’s in a pretty big hurry to get somewhere, ain't he?" He pointed out the obvious.

"Well let's make sure he doesn't get there" Before you even finished talking you were already going after the man.

The two of you started following the man while making sure to keep some distance as to not raise any suspicion. Eventually, the man's route lead the two of you to a quieter part of the city, away from most of the people. John shot a glance your way, a silent question in his eyes of what to do next.

You don't say anything but the mischief on your face somehow answered that question in his head.

"Hey!!" You called out to the guy who's body tenses at your voice. Despite you trying to plaster on a smile, it just made you come off scary.

"What do you want? Money?" he asked gruffly, his hand reaching for something inside his pocket discreetly.

"Money? Is that what you think what my kind is always after?" You approached him slowly and John simply watched from a feet away, his arms crossed with a glimpse of amusement on his face.

He had to admit, this is always the best part of being paired up with you.

"I heard from a birdy that you've done something terrible... you wouldn't happen to be familiar with the chief now would you?" You placed a hand on his shoulder and from how the man's eyes widened slightly at your question and the hint of nervousness displayed on his face.

You knew this was the right guy.

"And who might you be? A-And why should I tell you anything about my business with the chief?" He asked, his tone guarded and wary with suspicion.

When your hands came down to smooth out the wrinkled fabric of his suit, he yelps at the sudden tuck of his tie. You laugh it off.

"I'm simply a nobody but I know damn well you tricked the chief into giving up half his property to your company. Now I don't care what you need it for but there's nothing more that I hate than a lying scum" You flash him a smile before grabbing him forcefully by the jaw. Your action causing him to panic.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about! Let me go!!" He stammered, his mask now slipping away to reveal his true self.

"Give me the contract sir and you won't be leaving here with a broken nose" You casually spoke and John stepped a feet closer to the scene.

"Just do what she says sir" John added and the man looks between the two of you before finally nodding quickly.

"O-Okay!! It's in my pocket!!" He said and you gave him a warning look before releasing your grip on him.

He took a few deep breaths to steady himself before taking out a crumpled piece of paper. You raise your eyebrow as you took it from him, then unfolding it to read the words written on it properly. Once you were sure it was the real thing, you turn to face John who has a small smirk on his face from observing the confrontation.

"Well, well... that was quite the performance darlin" He said, taking the contract from you the second you handed it to him.

"I ain't your darlin" You said as you walked past him and back onto the city streets. He chuckles softly while following you from behind.

"Oh, that's right. You ain’t my darlin’, you're just someone extremely stubborn and bossy who I gotta follow around all day" He said, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"Glad we've got that cleared out"

Suddenly the sound of a whistle pierced through the air. John's expression darkened at the sight of the lawmen headed at the direction of the two of you.

"Great, now the law is after us. Figures" He remarked at the turns of events but you were already halfway getting onto your horse.

"Are you plannin' on staying?!" You shouted and he didn't need to be told twice as he quickly got on his horse.

The two of you quickly rode off and you checked over your shoulder to see several lawmen hot on your trail. Their guns firing as they tried to stop you from escaping. John, too, was firing his pistol as he rode, his aim steady and focused. You let out an annoyed groan before taking out your rifle and began shooting at the reinforcements coming from the left.

"Now I'm thinking if I should have killed the guy!" You shouted before shooting one square in the face.

John chuckled grimly as he watched you take out another lawman, his focus still on the ones from behind.

"Maybe you should've done us all a favor and put him out of his misery. Would've saved us a whole lot of trouble" He said and with half of them taken out and some on their way. You quickly looked around for an escape route.

"There!! The trees!!" You pointed.

John followed your lead, steering his horse into the trees as you both hid together. The two of you waited silently, the only sound the rapid beating of your hearts as the lawmen rode past, their horses' hooves thundering against the ground. Once they were out of sight, John let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"Well, that was a close call" he muttered, his voice a little out of breath.

"I suppose I should be thanking you for getting us into this mess in the first place, then?" He manages to say even after barely making it out. You shoot him a death glare.

"Now I'm wishing Dutch had picked Javier to come with me" You said before galloping the way back to camp.

John raises his brows out of shock at your sudden confession. Quickly and almost desperately, he catches up to you and rode alongside you.

"Oh, come on, I ain't that bad" he countered, his tone feigning offense.

"You're worse" You said and like always, you rode off in a haste, leaving him completely behind. He sighs as he watches you go.

-

Once you made it back to camp, John arrived right after you. He got off his horse and he watches as you hand Dutch the contract before heading to your tent. When he tries to say something to you, you gave him a middle finger with your back facing him. Clearly noticing you're not in a good mood, he shrugs and walked away.

John had an amused look on his face as he stood beside Arthur, the two of them watching you practically storming inside your tent.

"She's quite the firecracker, ain't she?" John said and it had Arthur chuckle, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Oh, that she does" he agreed with a smirk on his face.

"Although I gotta say, it's rather entertaining to see her riled up" He added.

Just then they see Uncle headed towards your tent. Clearly looking to ask you for something.

"This can go wrong in so many ways" Arthur observed.

The second Uncle made contact with your tent, that was it.

"GET OUT!!! GET THE FUCK OUT!!" You shouted and threw a candle that merely missed him by the head.

John and Arthur couldn't help but burst out laughing as they watched Uncle trip and fall on his way from your tent. Everybody knows that you hate getting your alone time interrupted, especially when you're tired or had just came back from a rough mission so anyone who tried to talk to you was practically asking for it.

"That poor bastard" John said, wiping a tear from his eye while Arthur's laughter was subsiding slowly.

"I gotta give him credit for trying though. He's either really brave or really stupid to approach when she's in a mood like that" Arthur chuckled.

Soon Javier joined the conversation, confusion and curiosity shown on his face.

"Well speak of the devil. Just in time to witness (Y/N) in all her glory" John said and Javier raised his brows in surprise.

"Ah, is she in a mood again? I thought I heard her yelling from all the way over there" Javier said and mirrored the other two who were standing and facing your tent.

"You heard right and apparently Uncle was unfortunate enough to be the first one to try and talk to her" John said with a slight smirk on his face.

"Poor bastard probably got an earful" Javier shaked his head with a chuckle.

"But I wonder why she's always so angry, there has to be a reason to her anger" Javier spoke and it sparked something inside John's mind.

He always figured it was something apart of your character so he never thought to view things like that.

"Who knows? Dutch found her in the woods alone, starved to bone and yet she still had the energy to fight. She was only 9 and she never told us why she was out there all alone" Arthur answered.

"Poor girl"

"Yeah"

As the two kept on talking. John was standing there with his arms crossed as he's completely lost in his mind. The one question he never thought he should pay more attention to.

Why were you angry?

-

The evening came fast. Everybody was busy doing their own thing and John was simply relaxing by the chair until he heard sounds of giggles. The voice was awfully familiar so he got up to follow the source of the sound. To his surprise he found you playing with Jack by the grass a bit further from camp. You were teaching him how to make a flower crown and John couldn't help but notice the one on top of Jack's head.

"Well, I'll be damned" John muttered.

"She's a natural isn't she?" He jumps slightly at Hosea who pretty much came out of nowhere.

"Looks like she's got a soft spot for the kid" He added as the two watch you laugh when Jack began stressing over the steps.

"More like a natural pain in my ass" John said and Hosea snorts. The sound catching your attention almost immediately, the second your neck snapped towards their direction. The two knew what was coming.

"THE HELL ARE YOU TWO LOOKIN' AT?!" You cursed while amusingly at the same time were covering Jack's ears.

The sight was enough to have John grin.

"I didn't know you were a real softie for the kid!" He said while Hosea decided to leave for the sake of his safety.

"I bet you even read bedtime stories to the boy"

"She does!!" Jack said and you couldn't contain the betrayal on your face when you turned to look at him. Seeing your face, John laughs.

"Can I get a piggyback ride auntie (Y/N)?" Jack asked so innocently that you couldn't stay mad at him. You simply nodded and he giggled with excitement as he settled onto your back.

"Say the thing!!" Jack said and you awkwardly looked at John from the corner of your eyes to see him looking all curious.

Ah... this is so embarrassing...

"All abroad the (Y/N) express..." You said with less energy than you usually do but regardless Jack was having the time of his life.

This just made John burst out into laughter. If he thought he hadn't seen it all, he does now.

"Damn kids got a good grip on you" He said, following you as you carried Jack around the camp. Your expression stoic while Jack was acting as though he was flying.

"Good I wouldn't want him to fall" Hearing you say that, John couldn't help but let a genuine smile slip.

"Of course you wouldn't" He said, his tone more softer and now less teasing.

The second it was night time, it was your turn to patrol the grounds. You walked around, rifle in hand as you were on high alert and watching for any potential dangers. It was peaceful you had to admit, just you and the sounds of the trees rustling through the wind.

You continued on your patrol until your ears perked up at the sound of footsteps approaching. You turned around almost in a blink of an eye, rifle drawn at the figure nearing towards you... only to see it was none other than John.

Of course it's John.

Why wouldn't it be John?

"Can't you just leave me alone?" You asked while he had both his hands raised up.

"Wow now, I just wanted to keep you company"

"God you're like a poodle. Wouldn't leave me alone" You said as you lowered your rifle and continued on the path of your patrol. He snickers at your words.

"A poodle? That's a new one"

You simply ignored him hoping that he'll go away but instead he followed you. After a few moments of silence, he spoke up, his tone a little softer than usual.

"So, what made you suddenly decide to take Jack on your back and act all motherly-like?" He asked and you were hoping he would drop that topic by now.

"What do you mean? I'm always like that" You response made John raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise in his expression.

"You? Always motherly?" he chuckled, his skepticism evident.

"That's not the impression you usually give off, darlin"

"Oh please I can be nice. It's just some people don't deserve that from me"

"And who exactly doesn't deserve your so-called kindness?" he inquired, knowing very well that the list was probably long.

"People who just keeps on pissing me off" You look over at him for a quick second that if he wasn't looking at you from the start, he would have missed it.

"You mean, like me?"

"Oh you just happen to be at the top of my list" John chuckled, clearly enjoying your blunt honesty.

"I'm honored. It's good to know that I'm holding the top spot on your list of people you hate most" He said with a sarcastic voice.

After what felt like minutes of walking around, you let out a yawn as you decided to rest by a log. John stood by where you're sitting, his arms crossed as he tilts his head at you.

"Exhausted?" He asks.

"Of your shit? Yeah, just about"

He rolls his eyes at your reply before making himself sit down beside you. You stare off into the distance, at the brightly litted camp. He stared at the emotionless look on your face. Almost like all joy was sucked out of you. Sensing this might the best time and the only time he'll get, he decided to ask something.

"I heard that Dutch found you alone in the woods when you were 9. How'd that come to be?" He asks and you were still for a second before your eyes turned to look at him. With the way you were staring at him so coldly, he was wondering if he had pissed you off.

"... how would you understand?" You asked and he paused for a moment, his expression hardening slightly.

He understood your hint that you didn't think he would understand how you felt, which rubbed him the wrong way. He let out a scoff, his irritation growing.

"I ain't some damn fool, darlin'. Don't assume I can't empathize with you just cause I ain't the most sensitive person in this gang" He said and you stared at him a little longer before letting out a defeated sigh.

"I grew up in a poor family. Everyday it was a struggle to even put food on our plate. So one day my deadbeat father thought it would better off selling me and my sisters to some rich perverts. I fought like hell to run away. In a way I thought it would be better having my body torn apart by the wolves than to have a man touch me inappropriately" You said and every word that came out of you made John's mouth go dry.

It's no stranger that majority of everyone in the gang had their troubling past but to hear it from the very person who barely ever expressed themselves. It was different.

"I hated my dad. Fuck. I hated my mom more for not doing anything. The more I grew up, the more I grew to hate everybody. This ain't even the life I wanna live so what's the point of loving it" You cursed, your hands now clenching into a fist.

"So you hate everyone because of what your parents did to ya? Don't get me wrong, they sure can rot in hell for what they did but for you to keep everyone at arm's length? Don't you think it's a bit lonely? Living like that?" He said and you looked at him.

"You're the one telling me this?"

"I'm just sayin', pushing everyone away ain't gonna fill that loneliness inside you, darlin'." He said.

You stared at him, contemplating a bit while John held your gaze, his dark eyes studying your face intently. He could see the conflict in your expression, the internal struggle you were having with yourself. He shifted slightly, leaning closer towards you. His voice was low and earnest as he spoke.

"You can't keep running from your feelings, darlin'. Sooner or later, they'll catch up to you" He said.

"And what if they hurt me again?" You said and guilty enough your eyes trailed down to his lips which made John's breath hitch as he felt his pulse quicken for a brief moment before he quickly composed himself.

"What if they don't, darlin'? What if you're just letting your fears control you? Letting you miss out on something great? On moments that could possibly make you feel alive again?" He said, forcing his voice to remain even and steady.

Alive...

You looked at him and he swore he has never seen you this vulnerable before. So when you leaned in towards him, John's heart skipped a beat. Your lips inches apart that for a brief moment he thought you were going to do something unexpected... but then you pulled back, quickly standing up and breaking the closeness between you two. John felt a pang of disappointment in his chest, though he quickly masked it with a neutral expression.

"Where you going?" he asked, his voice slightly hoarse.

"To sleep" You said, rifle held by your side as you went. He doesn't say anything as he remained seated on the log. He let out a sigh and turned his gaze towards the ground, his thoughts a tangled mess in his head.

-

For the next few days, John had noticed the subtle changes in your behavior. He realized that you were deliberately avoiding him. You would steer clear of him whenever he was around, finding tasks or conversations to distract yourself elsewhere.

He couldn't help but feel confused and slightly hurt by your distant attitude. He hadn't done anything to warrant such coldness from you, and the only interaction you'd had was that brief exchange in the woods. So he figured it was because of that night that your behaviour have changed towards him.

John's irritation began to grow as your subtle avoidance continued. He couldn't understand why you were suddenly treating him like he didn't exist. He was used to your usual hostility, sure, but this was a different kind of cold shoulder. So there's no other solution but to confront you.

One evening, after the camp had quieted down for the night, John approached you while you were sitting alone, sharpening your knife. The second you became aware of his presence, you quickly got up and tried to leave however this time he stood in your way blocking your path.

"Now hold on a moment, we need to talk" He said firmly.

"There's nothing to talk about" You said and John grew annoyed at your dismissive response.

"Oh, there's plenty to talk about... You've been avoiding me like the plague for days now. Can you at least tell me what the hell I did to deserve this silent treatment?" He said and you couldn't help swallow anxiously.

"Maybe have you thought that it isn't about you?" You said and once again tried to walk past him but as predicted, he stood in your way. His body almost towering over yours.

"Don't give me that horseshit, I ain't blind. You've been avoiding me like the plague. And every time I try to talk to you, you practically bolt in the other direction" He said, clearly growing more infuriated.

"I'm a busy girl!"

"A busy girl, huh?" he repeated sarcastically, his tone laced with thinly veiled anger.

"I ain't buying it. You've always found time to be a pain in my ass, and now suddenly you're too damn busy to even look at me?"

""What the hell do you want from me John?! You just looking for someone to put your anger out on?!" You raised your voice and John wasn't afraid to match your tone.

"Maybe I am! Maybe I'm sick of your goddamn attitude, your constant need to push everyone away. You ain't fooling anyone with your coldness. You're scared!"

"I'm scared?!"

"Yeah, you're scared. You're scared of letting anyone in, scared of letting your guard down. You act tough and distant 'cause you think it'll keep you safe. But it's all just a—"

Before he could continue on talking, you suddenly grabbed him by the collar to kiss him on the lips. The action clearly caught John off guard, his surprise evident on his face. But his body responded to you despite his confusion, his own anger fueling his reaction.

He returned the kiss passionately, his arms wrapping around your waist and pulling you against him in a tight embrace. The kiss was fierce and consuming, both of you releasing all the pent up frustration and tension between you two.

John's hands ran over your body, his touch greedy and possessive. He pressed himself hard against you, his body molding to yours as if he couldn't get close enough.

He broke the kiss for a brief moment, his breathing ragged and his eyes dark with desire. He captured your lips again, his tongue seeking entry into your mouth as his hands roamed under your shirt, exploring the bare skin of your waist.

That was until the sound of someone talking from nearby that made the both of you snap out of the moment. John's attention snapped away from you for a brief moment, his eyes darting towards the source of the noise.

He then took a step back, creating a small space between you now. Both of you were breathing heavily, trying to catch your breaths after the intense moment you had just shared. Surprisingly you were the first to speak up.

"I... I didn't mean to avoid you... I was just scared of these feelings I felt around you... I thought ignoring it— ignoring you was the better idea" You said. After all, you weren't ever good at understanding your emotions.

John watched you, taking in the mixture of emotions that played across your face. He knew exactly what you were feeling because he knew what that feeling was. He took a step closer to you again, his expression now more serious.

"Sometimes we can't control how we feel, darlin'. And trust me, ain't nothing wrong with what we just did" He said, gently caressing the side of your face.

"... I'm fucking scared John... in this life I'm used to losing people, if I let myself feel things then I don't think I'll be able to survive the thought of losing you" You said, the fear in your confession made John frown a bit but there was this sweetness in his gaze when he cupped your face to look at him.

"I ain't going anywhere, darlin'. You ain't gonna lose me, I promise you that"

"You can't be sure" You said, your hands rested on top of his.

"You're right, I can't guarantee anything in this life... but I can promise you I'll do everything in my power to stay by your side. I ain't leaving you, no matter what. You got my word on that" He said, his eyes never leaving yours. You stared at him for a while before resting your head on his chest.

"God I hate you" You sighed but your lips formed a small smile. Seeing that, John couldn't help but chuckled, a warm, genuine smile spreading across his face as he wrapped his arms around you.

"You don't hate me. You can't stand me, though, I know that. But you definitely don't hate me. Otherwise, you wouldn't be leaning on me like this" He teased.

"Stop pushing your luck"

"Oh, come on, darlin'. You know you love me really" he said continuing his tease with a smirk on his face.

"Ugh..." You groaned and it had John chuckled again, enjoying the playful banter between the two of you. He tightened his arms around you while holding you close to him, his face nuzzling into your hair and his voice lowering to a husky, teasing tone.

"You don't have to admit it right now... but I know you do..."

[arcielee]

the salver & the sword

paring: Suguru Geto x reader summary: Prince Satoru Gojo sends his trusted general, and friend, across the kingdom to retrieve the girl who saved him when he was a boy. You loathe the idea of having your life uprooted on the whim of some faraway prince, and General Suguru Geto is determined to see through his prince's command, by whatever means. word count: 4.4k+ warnings: AFAB reader, more missed moments, just sprinkling some seasonings and placing you back into this crockpot that is slow burn author's note: Sorry this chapter was delayed. I have been rewatching jjk and Nanami crept into my brain. I always knew he was going to show up but I was unsure as to how. Also, Runa belongs to @itbmojojoejo (thank you for letting me borrow her) from their amazing story Crimes Of Passion (another fandom, but I don't care). I just fell in love with this OC and thought, "Yes. This is perfect. This is exactly what Nanami needs." Also, oji is uncle in Japanese. Enjoy! 💜

Chapter IV ~ No Hesitation

At first your sorrow held over like a heavy fog, a slow dissipation as you settled into a routine with the days that followed. 

The general was a man who seemed to wake before the sun, tending to Mimiko while you remained curled in the furs, hazy blinks into the sunlight spilling through the trees. You helped pack up the camp, saddling everything onto the horse, and Suguru would take the lead while you walked along the other side, just as before. He kept Mimiko at a steady pace, allowing you time to unfurl from your silence, from your lingering grief that grew lighter with your steps. 

He asked you simple questions which allowed you to tell memories of your father, and you found it soothing to share your history, the story of how Atsumeru was passed down. It was an endeavor began by your grandmother, who was a renowned healer across the sea. She taught your father everything he knew and when he came of age, she gifted it to him, telling him to go and make his own name. 

It was a dam broken, and you continued on to share about your mother, something that was both familiar but foreign on your tongue, a pain more muted after all the time that passed but never forgotten as her very fierceness was embedded into your blood. She had fled the Ryomen Kingdom after Sukuna’s violent claimant of the throne, and was just a wounded refugee that your father came across. 

He cared for her and as she healed, she could not help but fall in love with him. 

“After she died, I knew I wanted to follow after my grandmother and my father.” Your cheeks were warm from your overshare, and you peered over at Suguru. 

He was watching you, a pain flickering over his features before he dared ask. “What happened to her?” 

His thoughtfulness touched you, though that pain was not as raw as it once was, just another event in that lifetime ago, back at Hoshi. It was something else that fell into place, creating this pathway that seemingly carved its way back again.

“She was cut by a shi no ha during the battle of Hoshi. It was not deep, of course, so she and my father focused on helping those more grievously injured.” 

Your eyes stayed forward, hiding the shine of unshed tears, habitual now with your current heartache, but you noticed the tension that rippled over him. “The death blade.” It was a statement confirming what you shared. 

Hemlock grew rampant in the north and was poisonous when ingested. The Ryomen soldiers would ground it and line the insides of the scabbards and sheaths with it, a tactic that allowed a fatality with shallow swipes of their steel. This method allowed a slower, painful reaction, with stomach cramps and a rapid pulse, a slight fever that could be ignored until it would scorched through, boiling the marrow of your bones. 

And then, it was too late. 

It was new to the battlefield, nothing to be prepared for. Your father did not realize what was happening until he noticed how her eyes dilated, black swallowing the color, and her jaw locked, saliva frothing at the corners of her lips. It was a chain reaction all around, plaguing those who thought they survived the battle, and his supplies were sorely limited.

Nothing could be done to save them all. 

“I now try to always be prepared,” you admitted. 

Suguru was quiet for a moment. “The charcoal?” 

You nodded, a warmth with the thought that he recalled the pouch that you tucked away along with the other herbs purchased. “You can mix it with water and it helps prevent it from being absorbed from the stomach and into the body,” you confirmed. “And besides, I need to take whatever I can find these days.” 

He was watching you, his stoicism held on like a guard with glints of unsaid emotions that came and went with the flutter of your pulse, a silence that now curled into your abdomen. You allowed him the time, as you realized he took a conscientious effort to gather his thoughts. 

“I believe you will make your own name,” he said, “just as your father had.” 

The sincerity in his tone prickled your skin and you looked ahead again, your face burning. “That is what I hope. I know I can start again–I have my father’s book, I have the few mementos of my mother, and I still have that pouch of silver.” 

Suguru only hummed his acknowledgement, but you caught the smile touching his lips. 

The days were spent in this way, a conversation revived that allowed you a raw honesty you never shared before, but it was something you wished to give him. Suguru still felt like an enigma, unreadable, and at the same time, he returned that candor with any question you dared to ask him. 

For Suguru, you found it to be an even exchange, with his ceaseless patience shown to you in every situation. There was no hesitation because of your sex, but he would share tasks, like capturing smaller wildlife of the forest: he showed you how to strip away the fur and cut the meat into strips, placing them over the fire to dry out. He was not one to bloat you with praise, just his low murmur when you mastered whatever was shown.

You preened from that attention.

He gifted you his hunting knife which felt comically big for your hand, but he showed you how to keep a firm hold and cut some rope to knot around your waist, a place for its sheath. His hands were careful and the warmth of his palms bled through your dress, fluttering into the pit of your stomach. 

“So you can protect yourself,” he told you, “if I am not there.” 

That struck you deep, rattling you with the thought, if I am not there, and it spilled past your lips before you could stop it. “Then I will pray to the gods that you always are.” 

The unsaid flared in his eyes, a conflicting desperation to press onward or remain rooted in the moment, and you were the one to pull away from him, your disappointment carving into your belly. He needed a distraction, it seemed, and you allowed it. 

Autumn allowed berries to blossom, and you showed Suguru the difference between the edible ones and the poisonous ones. You held on your skirt to carry, picking until your fingers stained and washing them in the river that followed along. It was a treat to share until you both ate your fill. 

Still he remained guarded, still deliberate with his every action towards you, and it left you craving for something unknown in return. You found yourself mindful of the setting sun with the stretch of shadows, eager to help set up the campsite. Your patience petered away until the blackened blue sky extended overhead and the stars glittered bright above, and only then would he reach for you, pulling you into his chest, wrapping his arms around to hold you close.

It lulled the disappointment, the craving that wound tight within you, scattering away into the solace he unknowingly created at night. His steady breathing and his warmth were comforting in a way you wished you could dig your fingers into and never let go. 

But the sun would rise again and pull him away. You would wake, alone, to repeat the day. 

It was not anything you experienced before. Other suitors would come by and speak with your father about your “need” for a husband, a good man, but he would chuckle and tell them same thing, “It is her decision. Only she will know.” Time again it proved that whatever you were looking for did not exist within them, and you wondered if it could ever be found.

And now you were walking across the Tengen Kingdom with the purple-eyed demon. It felt that you still did not know him, truly, though his actions showed you one man versus his legend known throughout. Your curiosity knitted onto your features, stealing bolder glances across Mimiko.

The amber hues of the coming dusk washed over Suguru, illuminating him–his eyes showed golden in the light and the black silk spill of his hair gleamed, the sun reflecting Nanako and her gemstone that glittered in her hilt over his shoulder. 

Worthy, returned the thought, followed by the intrusive: He is so very handsome. 

“What about you, Suguru?” 

Autumn decorated the road with leaves of burnt orange and red, the crisp air returning as the sun curved to tuck away. You had been bared to him and felt desperate to understand the man beneath the myth, but hid your eagerness with your almost teasing tone, beneath your sly smile. 

“What about me?” He asked, his eyebrow arching, daring you. 

You swallowed. “I wish you to tell me more of who you are.” 

“But I do not have much to tell.”

His smile spoke otherwise, and you continued. “You are the most fearsome swordsman of the Queensguard, and you have nothing to tell?” Your palm pressed to Mimiko to guide your steps without looking, to tilt your head towards him with a mocking pitch. “The very same man who wields a legendary blade that chose him?” 

You relished in the rose tones that flushed his face, the soft smile that touched his lips. “I do not believe that you do not have much to tell. Nothing to share outside of your lore?” You hesitated. “No lady of the court that awaits your return?” 

That thought had been twisting in your stomach, but you were determined to remain coy, flippant as you waited for him to pick out his words. When he looked to you, the shadow cast cut away the gold glow, his purple eyes pinning you. “My life is my duty to the queen and to the prince. No one stays very long, and I cannot blame them.” 

It was sombering, and it left you burning with questions you could not stomach to ask– a feeling that replaced the dull ache with something that seemed unattainable. For Suguru, a general’s devotion was his life, just as being a salver was your own, and to ask him for anything else… 

You broke away from his gaze, biting into your bottom lip, caging your thoughts behind your teeth. 

“Besides,” –you dared to look back to see him smirking, and it flared through you– “who would wait around when I am sent on a fool’s errand?” 

Suguru was never what you were expecting, and your laughter spilled in a way that felt absurd, pulling a string of merriment that pearled tears in the corners of your eyes. He was pleased with your reaction. 

“General Suguru Geto.”

You froze, the voice cutting through. Suguru looked ahead to see a man walking up from a pathway with a fishing net over one shoulder and carrying a basket brimming with mackerel. “I had thought the gods bless us,” the stranger seemed dour, unsettling, “but I see it was only to prepare for you coming across my path unexpectedly.”  

A smile stretched across Suguru’s jawline, crinkling the corners of his eyes, and you exhaled, unaware you had been holding your breath. “We both know you do not believe in destiny in that way, Kento Nanami.” 

“Perhaps.” He was sunkissed, his golden hair slicked back and the gleam of his perspiration pulling his cotton shirt to his form, to his broad shoulders. The severity etched onto his sunken features softened as he came closer, his hazel eyes flitting from you and settling onto Suguru. 

“Either way, here you stand now,” he gestured, a smile curving on his lips, dimpling into his cheek. “Come, follow me home to see Runa and the kids. We can eat and you can tell me about whatever Satoru has you doing now.” 

+ + + +

Kento Nanami had grown up in Hoshi, serving alongside Suguru and Prince Gojo during the war. He found his notoriety when he led a small militant group, cutting westward to ambush and kill the infamous major general, Mahito, which resulted in crippling the Ryomen force. The tandem continued, allowing Suguru to press north, Nanako in hand, beating them back across the border and ending the war. 

You were already aware of these tales from the ballads and songs about the purple-eyed demon and the valiant fight that echoed throughout the Tengen Kingdom, their efforts forever immortalized. 

What you did not know was the kinship that was forged during this. You also learned that Suguru Geto, and sometimes the prince, would come and visit in the springtime, and how Kento’s children referred to him as oji.

You followed along in a daze, the road ahead splitting and a stone path weaving away into an enclave of trees. A wooden fence bordered around, providing ample room for livestock where some goats and a cow grazed. Suguru unhitched Mimiko so she could join, and you helped him carry what you had back towards the cabin aglow, smoke curling up from the chimney. 

A woman came to the doorway, tall and lean with a copper spill of curls and blue eyes that pierced through you. “Suguru,” she called his name with a warmth, a fondness that touched her lovely features. “We were not expecting you so soon.” 

“This is my wife, Runa.” Kento moved towards the steps of the wooden porch that stretched around, setting down the basket before wrapping his arm around her waist, pulling her close for a kiss. You felt your blood simmer and looked away, spotting two more sets of eyes peering from around her skirts, a little girl and a little boy. 

“Off with you!” Runa pushed Kento back, still smiling. “You smell like fish!” 

“Oji!” The little girl burst forward, unabashed, her eyes golden, with a wildfire of strawberry curls and freckles strewn across her nose and cheeks. 

Suguru crouched on command to scoop her up and she giggled as he tossed her upwards. “Hana, I want you to meet my friend,” he said, settling her onto his hip before turning towards you. 

Her eyes widened with your name, a toothy grin on display when she asked if you belonged to her oji. You wished for the earth to swallow you, but Runa was quick to react, sweeping Hana back into her arms and chiding her– “You little minx, you cannot ask that.” 

“But you said that he needed a lady friend!”

The warm tones clashed with Runa’s hair, panic glinting in her eyes as she ushered the little girl back inside, along with the basket of fish. You could not look at Suguru, but focused on the other pair of eyes–blue like his mother’s. He stepped forward on unsteady legs, his hands reaching to grab your skirts with a shy smile as he looked up at you. 

Kento reached to ruffle his golden hair. “And this is my youngest, Nobu.”

“Hello.” You kneeled to be at his eye level and his skin stained pink, his smile dimpling his face. “Do you want to come inside with me?” 

He nodded and you took his hand, allowing the men their reunion. You followed after Runa and Hana to the kitchen that was wide and spacious. A table was placed in the center where the basket spilled, and the stove burned bright with a warmth that filled the room. 

For you, it felt like a long-lost home. The children played on the floor while you followed Runa’s command, taking the spare knife to remove the heads and split the fish in half while she tended to the broth and rice. Hana offered her services to spot and pluck the pin-bones and Nobu watched with a wide-eyed wonder. 

Runa was effortless, a sharp wit that had you tittering, a boldness that allowed her prying to understand the guests her husband brought home. “What brings you both out here?” 

Your embarrassment prickled over and you cleared your throat. “Uh, the prince commanded for me to be fetched by…” you faltered on his name, “the general, so that I can become his wife.” 

Runa stopped to look at you, aghast, her empathy bringing her brows together and her lips downturned. “Poor Utahime. I see that Satoru remains as rash as always,” she tsked. “And pulling you into it, you poor thing.” 

You giggled again. “I feel bad for Suguru, if anything, as he has been given the duty to return with me.” 

“I see we have nothing better to do with a decorated general,” she began to stir the broth again, shaking her head. “So what will you do?”

It was only fair for her to ask. Runa did not know you. “I have to go and let the prince know that I will not marry him.” 

It was her turn to laugh, a warm raucous that filled the air along with the gustful smells of supper. “I like you already.” 

The men came inside as dinner was served, the children eating their fill while you listened to more of the stories shared about Suguru and Satoru and Kento, with mentions of that blustering knight, Yu Haibara. You ached from your laughter, savoring this unconditional friendship shown at the table, flowing with ease and filling your chest with a warmth that touched your cheeks. 

It was getting late and Nobu had fallen asleep, curled in his mother’s arms though Hana fought to stay awake, her head dozing against Kento. You watched their affection, the tenderness in this family that called to you–the vast difference from the loured expression Kento greeted you with earlier. Now he held his daughter with one arm while he reached with his other to pull on Runa’s curls, and the gesture forced a blush in response. 

You had to know. “How did you two meet?” 

It was curiosity, or perhaps a sort of envy coiling in your chest, watching their love so bold in front of your eyes. Throughout the night, Kento always looked to his wife, to his children, with a softness to his features, a glow reserved for them. Runa would catch his wandering eye and her radiance returned, brightening the blue of her eyes. 

It was something almost tangible. 

She laughed at your question, pulling your attention. “You may somewhat relate, but imagine waking up and finding a damn soldier bleeding in your garden.” 

“She actually thought I was dead,” Kento corrected, his eyebrow arched at her, a good nature scowl scrawled across his sharp features. “I woke up to her going through my belongings–”

Runa held your gaze. “It was war and things were dire,” she defended with a wicked grin. 

“Nonetheless,” he shifted to pull Hana up, resting her head on his shoulder, “I found her holding my sword–assessing it for its worth, in retrospect,” –a manic giggle spilled from Runa’s lips– “and noticed some of the surviving men of Mahito coming up behind her.”

You saw that Runa’s eyes shone as she listened, as if she was hearing it for the first time. You looked to Suguru and saw his smirk on display for whatever was coming next. “I was going to warn her,” Kento continued, “but she quickly turned to them, portraying this damsel-in-distress act, begging them to remove me, luring them closer and then…”

Kento paused, a slight smile on his lips with the memory. “Well, I had not seen such skill with a blade since Suguru–” 

“My father taught me and my brother very well.” Runa boasted. 

“She cut through them all, hacking them into pieces to dispose of them.” Kento was proud. “I watched her, covered in their blood, and I told her she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.” 

Runa smirked. “I thought he had lost too much blood.”

“She pulled me inside and took care of me until I healed, and I would have stayed if Suguru and Satoru had not found me.” 

“She begged us to take you away,” Suguru scoffed, adding to the retelling. “She told us that he had gone mad.” 

You looked back to Runa and she shrugged. “Kento proposed,” she explained, rolling her eyes, but she was luminous with rose hues. “He told me that he wished for me to become his wife. I told him no, that he needed to go and end this blasted war, and only after, if he still felt compelled, he could come back and perhaps I would reconsider.” 

Your heart fluttered with the prospect, the possibility of leaving a life of sworn duty, seeing how it now thrived in this very residence. You licked your lips. “And, I am assuming, you did just that?” 

Kento returned a war hero and the queen had offered him whatever his heart desired; she granted him a dishonorable discharge. “I had to go back to her,” he explained.

“He never stopped talking about her,” Suguru teased. “It was endless about this red haired beauty who wielded a sword so fine, piercing his heart…”

Amongst the tittering, Kento looked to you, his asperity returning with his words. “It was not love at first sight, but something that came from the moment that I truly saw her. She called to my heart and it recognized her.” His smile was soft again. “I would do it again.” 

His words rolled over, pulling at your heart, and your eyes flitted back to Suguru. He looked away, crimson on his cheeks. 

It was the sleepy whimper from Hana that broke the moment and Kento pushed to stand. Runa shifted, but Suguru was quicker, moving to pull Nobu into his arms, following after his friend to put the kids to bed. 

She watched her husband walking away, her head tilting to admire. “We do have a spare room for you and Suguru,” she told you without looking. “It’s for when my brother comes through, but the bed should be cozy enough for the two of you–” 

You nearly squeaked your surprise. “But, we are not–” you stammered, unwilling to say it out loud. 

“Really? I was so sure,” Runa turned to face you, surprised. “But–I apologize, I only assumed with how you would look at him, and the way Suguru blushed with what–”

The thought never finished as Kento and Suguru returned. Instead, baths were to be drawn for their guests and for the day to come to an end. You followed after Runa, lost in your thoughts and the steam that rose from the tub, almost startled when she pressed something in your arms: a clean dress to change and a chemise, along with a belt. 

“For your blade,” she smiled. “I noticed you had it knotted around your waist.” 

You flushed. “That was Suguru’s doing. He wanted me to be able to defend myself, if I needed to.” 

Runa watched you for a moment, the scrutinous blue blaze of her eyes. “Then allow this belt to help with that.” She turned to leave, pausing in the doorway, peering over her shoulder back at you. “Suguru is… not shy, but he holds onto his honor like armor.” 

“What do you mean?” You were quiet with your question, your eyebrows knitting together. 

Runa sighed. “He would never try anything, especially if you are intended for Satoru.” 

She left you alone with a scurry of thoughts and emotions that twisted throughout, a wave of gooseflesh in its wake. Intended, the word repeated, almost poisonous, and you felt as if you were burning. 

You peeled away your old dress and slipped beneath the water with the bar of soap you made, the honeysuckle and tree oil soothing. You soaked, your mind pulling back to Suguru with an absent-minded tracing of your fingers along the top of your thighs, moving up to press into your knee before falling away again. 

It always returned to him, a muscle memory formed since he first came and found you in your garden. 

Your agitation had burned bright despite the legend that stood in front of you, irksome with his subtle arrogance he carried with his posture, his gait, his certainty with every word spoken as bold as the blade strapped to his backside. There was a power to his gaze, the glitter of amethyst that pulled you with some unspoken emotion that danced, while his lips held onto his infuriating, perpetual smirk. 

But your perspective of him had changed, though you could not pinpoint the moment with so many woven together in the short amount of time shared: the market, the fire, the nights curled up against his chest under the endless stretch of starlight. 

You always thought him handsome, you could admit, but that seemed a girlish crush at first. This was something that matured without you realizing; it was the way his gaze always seemed to find you, rooting you, and how he would tease you when you balanced on the precipice of your temper, and how it would ground you again.  

That night at the market–you asked him to stay because something told you that he could be trusted, that he was safe. He showed you glimpses of his true character outside the lore and legend with how he touched you that night of the fire, his gentle wipe away of your tears mixed with ash, his empathy somber on his face. 

He did not let you go that night, you realized and that memory flushed through you, curling into your lower abdomen. You shifted, water spilling over the edges, and you slipped beneath, washing away the suds before you finally pulled yourself out. You dried with the sheets left behind and changed into the cotton chemise, brushing the rose oil into your hair and plaiting it back, moving back through the quiet home and towards the spare room. 

Moonlight spilled through the windows, and tapers were lit for an amber glow. You saw Suguru at the other end, dressed in a clean shirt and slacks from Kento, baggy on his lithe form. He paused. “I was going to just sleep in the loft,” he offered, looking at you. 

And your heart recognized him. “You should stay.” Your voice was quiet, careful with your shy admittance. “I sleep better with you at my side.” 

At first, he seemed stricken with your words, and his jaw ticked as he processed them. Suguru then nodded and reached to take your hand, leading you towards the spare room.

The bed was as cozy as promised with the scent of fresh hay and clean linen, mixing pleasantly against his skin, warming your cheeks as you curled back on his chest. 

taglist: @sugurubabe @elliesndg @paprikaquinn @yeehawbrothers @witchbybirth

arcie's navi | jjk masterlist the salver & the sword masterlist

[retlasute]

Can you please write some headcanons featuring Johnny and Gyro sleeping next to Reader? I've got this gut feeling that Gyro might be snoring LOUDLY (rip Reader). And as for Johnny, I imagine him talking and twitching in his sleep sometimes, potentially even unintentionally waking up the Reader. Now, the question is, would the Reader be chill about it or nah? 🤔 I'll leave that up to your creative choice. Can't wait to see what fabulousness you come up with!

Headcanons/Drabbles? - Sleeping and cuddling

I LOVED YOUR REQUEST AND I LOVED WRITING THIS At first I was only going to do a list of headcanons, but I felt these two deserved a little more attention, so i hope you like it! ❤️❤️

◍ Gyro Zeppeli

This man is biologically incapable of sleeping alone.

If there is no one he can hug and cuddle, he will do this with a teddy bear.

Ever since you had started riding with him and Johnny, you had noticed indications of how cozy he got on cold nights when he could sleep closer to someone (and that someone was always you).

At first, it didn't bother you, after all, who would complain about a handsome man like him wanting to be close to you?

Yes, it was understandable that you felt good about it. But factors like noise and smell were not considered by your sleepy mind.

In a race like this, keeping constantly clean and smelling fresh was an impossible task, but what do Italians have against a river bath? For that matter, what do Italians have against any kind of bathing?

Gyro always shied away from bathing in the lakes with the lame excuse of "watching the camp" while you and Johnny cleaned up.

You always made jokes about it, but you never felt personally bothered by Gyro's aversion to bathing of any kind

But now you felt personally bothered by many things, not least your hearing and sense of smell being violently attacked as if you were in the middle of a coliseum

Now, struggling in the grip of your own sarcasm and regret, you shielded your ears with a thin pillow, creating a barrier against Gyro's snoring while your face stuck in the grass turned away from the smell of sweat.

''How the hell can you sleep with this noisy monster?'' You whispered to Johnny, lying on the ground, protecting your ears like a soldier in a trench protects himself from a grenade.

''The more you fight it, the more it will bother you.'' Johnny replied and held his laughter like a monk. ''It's like meditating. Good night, (Y/N)… Or good luck.''

And so the bastard lay down, covering himself with his blue comforter and turning his back to you, and that annoyed you more than Gyro's snoring. You sighed loudly, pulling the pillow away from your ears and lying next to the Italian.

"Meditation, huh?"

You really tried for a few minutes. But Gyro's snoring always brought you out of your sterile meditations. As the moon went away, all reason disappeared, immediately succumbing to the urge to smother him with the pillow.

So you raised yourself a little to look at him. His eyes closed like a cat's, his lashes that extraordinary color you had seen so many times before: a dark blond at the tips, fading to a light blond at the roots.

Then, gently, you held his arm and shook him lightly, to wake him up, but to no avail. Then you tried to push him to lie on his side - maybe then he would stop snoring - Then those cat eyes slowly opened and the snoring stopped. You cursed silently as you watched him wake up. Gyro shimmered with a hellish light. The muscles of his face were well outlined, while those of his arm moved elegantly under your hand that, for some reason, didn't want to let go.

''Ah…'' He grunted and stammered a few times as if a goat was head-butting him in the shin. ''What…? Ah? What? Questo…''

"Please, Gyro, sleep on your side." You said, tired. ''You're snoring like an ogre.''

''It can't be… can it?'' He said, finding it funny, despite his sleep.

''You're as hard to wake as a dead man… but you make as much noise as a living man.''

He gave a tired laugh, and the initial chill dissipated quickly as he drew nearer with surprisingly comfortable warmth. His body relaxed completely around you, and now that he was no longer snoring, his eyes closed almost automatically. Sensing this, Gyro moved closer. A hard, solid warmth stirred briefly against you.

''I'm way more than dead. I'm exhausted, but some stupid part of my body doesn't know that yet.''

The fog of exhaustion seemed to act like a magnifying glass, exaggerating details and sensations. Now that the silence was ringing in your ears, you leaned your face back on him, feeling the smooth, rigid curve of his collarbone, prominent beneath the skin. At the crease of his neck, the skin was warm and sensitive, and the veins were thin and blue like a baby's.

His hand rose slowly, floating like the leaves, and rested lightly on your head.

''The next time you snore, I'll smother you with my pillow.''

''Nyo-ho… it would be better if you smothered me with other things of yours.''

He let out his breath like a sigh and you felt his loss of consciousness like the slow dying of a fire. You fell asleep on top of him, barely managing to pull the heavy folds of the cloak over you before darkness overtook you. His warm, smooth hand on you. And so, you finally slept.

✰ Johnny Joestar

This boy is already shy and sweet, but you amplify those traits in him

When it was just him and Gyro, Johnny didn't bother sharing sheets.

But since you joined them, things have changed. Johnny was a sweet gentleman who knew you deserved much more decorum and respect than Gyro did.

The first cold night the three of you spent together, you must admit he took it bravely, offering you one of his sheets when he saw you chattering your teeth in a freezing wind.

You thanked him and politely declined, but he insisted, and you couldn't deny that you were freezing to death.

By now Johnny was more used to your presence and hardly bothered by it, but you, on the other hand, noticed some strange things.

He always slept after you. Often, you felt him watching you in the dark. Not in a strange, threatening way, but simply tender and protective, and this usually helped you fall asleep faster.

Johnny couldn't deny that deep down he had that primitive urge to snuggle into your arms every time night fell. But to his dismay, you never made the first move, nor did you give any indication that you would let Johnny do so.

One day he noticed that even on cold nights you used to wake up sweating under the covers. He didn't know why, and neither did you. But this small proof of imperfection gave him the courage to one day allow himself to take the first step.

But as the number of enemy stand users increased along the race courses, Johnny could no longer afford to sleep last, so he went to sleep in a flash, without bothering to tie up the horses or help Gyro light a fire.

This time, you pulled up at night, tied the horses, and let them feed on the tall grass of a small field. You put out the fire and lay down next to Johnny, as Gyro was busy doing who knows what. So the last thing you heard was the peaceful neighing of the horses.

As on other nights, you slept heavily amidst the shallow warmth of the blankets and woke in the middle of the dawn retched, thirsty, and covered in mosquitoes and ticks. You were very annoyed to realize that the ticks and mosquitoes seemed to like only your flesh, but you had learned, on your trip east, to check Gyro and Johnny whenever you woke up in the early hours.

''Ew…'' You spoke, examining a particularly large specimen, the size of a grape, lodged in Gyro's arm. You were afraid to pull it out, it was so big it would probably burst. ''Maybe it'll fall off by itself…''

That's when you felt a stirring behind you and discovered what had caused you to wake up. You turned over, sensing that something was wrong.

The night was cold and the sheet was completely messed up, as it usually was. You rolled over and crawled silently to Johnny, who was struggling and had a desperate expression on his face. At first, you thought he was swatting mosquitoes, but you saw that he still had his eyes closed and was grunting as if something or someone was on top of him.

''Johnny? Johnny, are you alright?'' You whispered close to him, but something in the way he whimpered made you abandon politeness and grab his shoulders.

He was breathing hard like he'd been running, and despite the cold, his body was drenched in sweat. You shook his shoulder and found it stiff and cold as a metal statue. He twitched at the touch of your hand and stood up in a jump, his blue eyes wide.

"I didn't mean to frighten you.'' You apologized. ''You’re okay?''

You wondered for a moment if he wasn't having a nightmare, and whatever was happening terrified him. Now his expression didn't change; he looked straight into your eyes.

''Johnny!'' You whispered a little louder, shaking him again. ''Johnny, what happened?''

Then he blinked and calmed down, though his face retained the desperate expression of a hunted animal.

''I'm fine.'' He said. ''It was… it was a bad dream.'' He spoke as if to convince himself of the fact.

''Tell me about it. It will go away if you tell me.''

He held you gently by the arms, as much to check that you were real as to support himself. It was a full moon night and you could see that every muscle in his body was tense, rigid and immovable as stone, but pulsing with furious energy, ready to explode into action.

''No.'' He said, stunned. ''I'm fine. I'm sorry about that.''

''Don't apologize for that. I was just worried.''

As you said this, the blue eyes slowly relaxed and landed on your face and you smiled at him. This soft smile made him blush.

''Let's go to sleep, Johnny.'' You continued. "Tomorrow will bring its worries.''

He sighed, but his arms relaxed around your body when you released his shoulders.

''Where are your blankets?'' He asked as he watched you lie down next to him. ''You can't sleep in the grass.''

''I'm fine.'' You said. ''These blankets always make me sweat.''

''But…'' He swallowed dryly, as if thinking twice about what he was going to say, then simply pulled his own blanket over you. "The mosquitoes won't let you sleep.''

There was no answer, except for a smile that he could not see. So, gradually, you felt your heavy body snuggle into his. You saw the night stars as you laid your head close to his chest, just as you could hear his heart beating.

It was ridiculous, too, that something so simple made his heart race when you breathed near him, and sweat drip down the back of his neck whenever he saw you. That's what Johnny thought. But at that moment, he doesn't want it to end. As if your touch was the only guarantee that his heart would keep beating. And maybe he was right.

[thebreakerofchains]

Lights Down Low

A/N: So, I was listening to this song, and I was hit with the thought of Nesta and well...Less than decent thoughts. So, I mused to myself "why not?" and wrote this self indulgent one-shot. Keeping in mind that while I am a pro at reading smut, I am all but a novice writer of it, at best.

Nesta Archeron x Fem!IllyrianReader

Warnings: SPICY!! DNI if you are a minor.

Cassian had woken you up that morning frantically spewing about how he wouldn’t be able to go to training – you were barely awake let alone properly hearing what he threw at you full speed at those ungodly morning hours – all you got was that it had something to do with the Illyrian camp and Devlon and that he really would appreciate if you could cover for him seeing that leaving the females with Azriel being the only instructor was as dangerous as lighting a match near gasoline. And, if you knew something about Nesta, Gwyn and Emerie it’s that do they burn and blow easily. 

So, you decided you were in a generous mood today while you dressed up in your fighting leathers and headed towards the training area at the House of Wind. He also owes you one, naturally, and you had almost the perfect idea as to what favor you’d call in for that, you think to yourself with a wicked grin. 

“Good morning, ladies.” You say with a smile to your face at their already sweaty state, considering they have been here for forty minutes at most.  

Azriel gives you a once over from where he is standing and an inquisitive look, “I didn’t know you were joining us today.” 

“Nice to see you too, Az.” You feign an expression of hurt, “Glad to know you have missed me.” You had been on a diplomatic trip with Morrigan to Vallahan for a few weeks and had only recently got back as of two nights ago, and the only people you got the chance to see were Rhysand and Feyre for the report, and Cassian this morning as he groveled at the end of your bed for you to cover him for training. 

“I am glad you two are having a great time chatting away, definitely don’t mind us.” Nesta said from where she stood in a stretching position that looked about as painful as it probably was. “Should I ask the House to bring you some biscuits and tea so you can get properly acquainted?” 

You bite the insides of your cheeks in an attempt to control your grin from growing any wider. How you missed those snide comments. Not that Mor wasn’t stimulating company during that rather boring trip, but no one could entertain you so effortlessly like Nesta Archeron. 

Rhysand says you are a different brand of masochist for enjoying the blue-gray-eyed woman as much as you do. Well, you and Cassian, who also never shied from a mostly healthy banter with her – without dramatic repercussions, at least. 

“If you gave the same attention that you do us to your stretching you would see more effective results, Archeron.” I wink at her and she eyes me with a look I do not know how to describe other than ‘I will make you eat those words’; I shiver inwardly. 

I am distracted, or rather saved, by Emerie to my side as she groans out, “This is insanity.” She moves out of position with a deep intake of breath, and I see my opening. 

“Here, let me help.” I move to her sitting on the ground, silently asking for permission as I move my hands to her arms. She nods slowly in recognition and I start adjusting her sitting stance spreading her limbs wider apart and then holding her upper members up from behind her. My chest is pressed on her back, and I move my head to the side of her ear before asking, “How does it feel?” 

“Fine.” She breathes out low and quick. 

I hum, slightly puzzled with her reaction wondering if I am somehow making her uncomfortable. I look above her shoulder and see Gwyneth’s teal eyes gazing at us, cheeks red adorning a mischievous smirk. I clear my throat and get up from my position behind Emerie, “Now, you only have to keep it up exactly like that, and you will see that as nagging as it is, it won’t be quite an unbearable pain as before.” 

I circle around the field correcting the priestesses here and there, mostly giving them verbal instructions on how to improve their stances and the whole time I could feel a much familiar fire burning on my back. I was being watched. 

The training ended on a positive note, and much to Azriel’s dismay, the priestesses all left with a thankful and hopeful murmur that I should lead the sessions more often to which I just smile shyly at. As soon as they left, I start tiding up until I hear the swish of a small blade, looking back to see who my companion is, I meet the face of Nesta and her intense eyes as she plays with a dagger. 

“Can I help you with something?” I ask, mentally cursing myself from being that affected at the sight of her in training leathers. 

“So, this is how I find out you are back home?” She runs the blade on the wooden table where the other weapons laid, slowly approaching me, closing me in a lot like a predator hunting its prey. 

“I didn’t-” I start and she pauses me raising the blade to my lips, the sharp end meeting my skin with a blazing cold touch much like Nesta’s own. 

“I don’t care.” She eyes me in a silent dare to try and explain myself again. 

I for one, get so completely lost in her eyes and the smell of her that all I do is take one of my hands up to her face where a strand of her golden-brown hair slipped from her updo and remove it from where it laid on her sweaty forehead. Nesta sharply intakes air and I lose mine altogether, as if she sucked in my very breath to her lungs, her full breasts touching my own, her nose brushing on mine. 

“Did you miss me?” She husks. 

I nod gradually. 

“Hm.” She hums out, “Is that why you were feeling up Emerie at practice earlier?” 

My eyes widen at the implication, “I would never!” 

She merely grins wickedly to me, her leg moving between my own and I feel her leather covered core press down on my thigh. I let out a gasp, and she strokes my hair gently, “I wonder if you didn’t look for me because you were too busy with Morrigan. You did spend two full months with her at Vallahan – so eager to help, volunteering yourself like that – and we both know you don’t last long being on your own, don’t we, baby?” 

She blows soft air to my face, as if it would help me cool down. “That is absurd, Nes. Morrigan doesn’t see me that way, or any other female, that we know of.” I muse out. “Well, maybe Emerie if we are being honest, but I know better than to raise the question to her.” 

She presses herself further into me in a way I didn’t even know that was possible, I see stars and my hands find her hips in a possessive grip, “Nesta...” I mean to sound warning but it comes out a tad too desperate to be anything else other than pleading.  

“Yes?” She drawls out sensually, hips moving away and right before I answer she pulls them back down deliciously deliberate and steady. A growl leaves my lips and I switch our positions, her back now touching the stone-cold rock walls. “I thought you could help me out with my stretching exercises, unless that special attention is reserved for Illyrian females only.” She draws out and I swear I hear a hint of jealousy to her tone. 

“I can always make an exception for you.” I decide to tease her back, “If I am not too busy. You high fae do bend different.” 

“Oh?” She lifts one of her perfect eyebrows at me. “Care to elaborate, professor?” 

“For example, you are much more sensitive here,” I say as I slid a hand down her ass touching her inner thigh from the back, “than most Illyrian females I taught before.” I drag my hands upwards again, purposefully grabbing her ass and she lets out a small squeal. “Or maybe, that is just you.” 

She moans out, “You are right, just me.” Enunciating the last two words roughly with intent as she pulls me for a mind-numbing kiss. My grip to her back tightens and my other hand finds its way to the mess of tangled hair that was once her braid, deepening the kiss, she gasps in surprise and I take my opportunity to slowly enter my tongue in her mouth giving her lower lip a teasing lick before sucking on her own. At this point, we are both frantically panting, all I can see, sense and smell is Nesta as her nails scratch my back until I can feel blood coming out. I draw back from the kiss and she glares at me in her dizzy state, I give her a mirthful look and she seems to understand exactly where my thoughts went to just as I rip her top apart and am met with her creamy perky breasts waiting to receive my undivided attention. 

Wasting no time, I take my mouth to her left breast as my hand that was in her head seconds ago playfully twists and teases the other one, her hips still moving, relentlessly searching for any kind of relief and contact they can find. 

“I reckon you missed me as well, Nes.” I breathe out between my ministrations as I move to the right side and suck hard on her hardened nipple. She moans out my name, “Ah, Y/N!” 

“I want to hear you say it, Nes.” 

She looks down to me, and it’s like something snaps between us. I have fucked Nesta thoroughly and often for a while now, in many occasions – and positions – but never have I felt such a feeling like the one engulfing me right now. It’s like the time we spent apart left the thing desperate, as desperate as I was when I thought of her, especially in the night when my hands drifted between my legs and I would come time and time again at the memory of her. 

I move my head to her neck and with a bite I order, “Say. It!” 

She screams in pleasure and I pull back to look at her dazed eyes while she says, “I missed you.”  

I waste no time as I take her into my arms, and fly to my room, the House apparently ever attuned to Nesta had the whole ambient ready for us. From the corner of my eyes, I could see red candles were lit all over the place. The curtains were now closed and there was a dizzying smell, but that was no one else’s credit but Nesta’s as her deep arousal hit my nostrils. 

Her hands that laid with a tight grip on my back move up to plant a feather-like touch to my wings and I shiver out a moan, “Illyrians and their wings.” She breathes out teasingly. 

With a snarl I rip her leather pants off her finding her glistening exposed sex so fucking ready for me. I ghost touch it and she arches her back trying to draw my hand closer to her center, “How long do you plan on making me wait?” She lets out petulantly. “Weren’t two months of touching myself at the thought of you enough punishment?” 

I raise my eyebrows at her, smiling wolfishly like a starved madwoman, which I am sure is the exact definition of what I am right now. I lower myself, kissing her inner thigh leisurely, and she grips my head her nails scratching on my scalp. “Y/N, please, I need you.” 

“That was fast, maybe I should go away more often, it seems you finally gained some manners while I was gone.” I say before planting a teasing kiss to her clit. 

“Baby!” She screams. 

I decide to put both of us out of our misery and draw my tongue from bottom to top before closing in my mouth on the bundle of sensitive nerves, I hungrily move up and down, circling and sucking in different points and directions before moving one finger close to her entrance. 

I look up to what is one of my favorite sights in the world, her golden-brown locks sprawled on my pillow, body glistening with sweat, her forehead creased in pleasure as she bites on her lower lip punishing the plump part before locking her gaze with mine and saying, “I need to feel you inside of me, love.” 

I suck at her clit before speaking, “Only ever me?” 

“Yes, yes, only ever you. I don’t want anybody else. Just you!” 

I groan on her pussy, a low guttural sound that has never come out of me before as I insert one finger inside her soaking wet pussy. “You are mine, Nesta Archeron.” 

“Yes, I am yours, all yours.” 

I put another finger inside her, mouth working mercilessly on her sensitive bundles as she screams chants of pleasure, and I can feel she is getting close and I am not far myself, she takes one of her hands to my wings and strokes a particularly soft spot and I moan loudly on her pussy. 

“Cum with me, baby.” She lets out breathy, mind close to succumbing. I move my fingers faster, harder and she continues stroking the spot on my wings, my climax borderline here until I feel the knot on my lower belly tighten impossibly and in a blinding flash of life I come just as her juices flow out of her and I divert my mouth lapping as much of it as I can. Licking her clean, fingers now moving slower and softer to help her ride out her high. 

I let go of her, a string of saliva between me and her intimate area, she pushes my head upwards and I meet her with a searing kiss. Her legs engulf my torso pushing me closer before she bites down on my lips strong enough to draw blood, and as the metallic tinge of it fills my tastebuds Nesta says lowly: 

“If you ever leave me for that long again, I will hunt you down, and I will kill you with my bare hands.” Her blue-gray eyes locked on mine, daring me to protest in any way. 

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” I give her a slow kiss. 

She gives me a smile that bore nothing good, and I knew I would be in for one long, long night. 

[bagerfluff]

How About A Movie Night?

Percy Jackson x Non-Binary Half-Blood Reader

Prompt - Sickness

“Percy, are you sure this is a good idea?”

You asked for what felt like the tenth time. You see, Percy had decided to take you on a date. A nice gesture, really, but he took you to a lake nearby Camp Half-Blood. But it was the middle of winter so the lake was frozen over so it was a big ice rink.

Percy had brought skates and wanted to skate on the ice with you. You thought it was a good idea. You and Percy did this a couple years ago and you both loved it. But now you are rethinking it.

You placed your foot on the ice and it did not feel strong enough to hold your or Percy’s weight. You had asked Percy if this was safe multiple times but every time he said it was, but you weren’t sure.

“It’s fine Y/n”, Percy said.

You looked over from the ice to Percy. He was sitting on a nearby log putting on his skates. Percy had on some jeans, a winter coat, and a blue beanie. Percy looked adorable. You walked over to Percy and sat down next to him, not touching the skates that Percy had brought for you.

“The ice isn’t safe. If you really want to ice skate then we can go somewhere else”, you tried to reason with Percy. “But we're already here”, Percy said back. Looking from his skates to you. You looked at the ice. What if Percy fell in? Percy would be fine, he could breathe underwater, but he might get hypothermia.

You pulled on your fingerless gloves as you watch Percy stand up and slowly walk to the ice. You stood up and followed behind you but you stopped when the dirt turned to ice. Percy walked out onto the ice and slowly started to skate around.

You watched and you blushed as Percy skated around. He looked like an angel as he skated around. Percy was so graceful when he skated. He was careful and paid attention, like a figure skater. You wondered how Percy learned to do this.

You were good at skating but not as good as Percy. Your human parent used to take you figure skating when it got cold enough. You wondered if Sally did that for Percy. You smiled as you placed your hands in your pockets.

You were still scared but the worry was melting away when you watched Percy. Percy stopped skating, he stood about five feet onto the ice. Percy had a smile on his face and his face was red from the cold. Percy flashed you his famous smile and waved at you. “See N/n! The ice is fine!” Percy yelled at you.

You shook your head. You were about to say something when you heard cracking. You and Percy looked down at the ice to see cracks in it.

Right below Percy.

“Oh shi-”, Percy didn’t have time to finish his sentence since he fell through the ice. “Percy!” You yelled, fear flowing through you. You placed a foot on the ice but it cracked more. You were barely able to pull your foot away before the ice cracked.

You looked out onto the ice to see Percy laying on the ice. “Percy! Crawl!” You yelled at him. Percy already looked blue and he was shivering. Percy looked up and slowly started crawling to you. You kept yelling at Percy to keep him awake.

Once Percy was close enough you pulled Percy off the ice. You crouched down next to Percy and pulled him into your lap. He was freezing. You could see that his lips were a light shade of blue and that he was shivering.

It wasn’t that cold.

The ice had formed a few days ago when it was cold enough. But now it has warmed up a bit. You lifted Percy up and removed his jacket. Staying in a wet jacket is bad, it’s better to take it off.

You then removed Percy’s shirt, normally you would fawn over Percy’s chest but you had to focus. You placed the wet clothes somewhere else then you removed your jacket.

You placed one Percy as well as your gloves, you really wished that you hadn’t brought fingerless ones. You removed Percy’s beanie, his now wet hair was stuck to his head. You let Percy go and ran over to your bag. You had brought some ambrosia but you weren’t sure if it was going to work.

Well it was better than nothing.

You ran back over to Percy and picked him up, you placed him in your lap. You shivered when Percy made contact with your legs and chest but you ignored it. You supported Percy’s head with one hand and held the bottle of ambrosia to his lips.

Percy opened his mouth and you let him drink a little before lowering the bottle. “You feeling better?” You asked. Percy looked better but you should probably get him to camp. Even though you and Percy decided not to be year round campers you were sure that Chiron would let Percy into the infirmary.

Percy nodded before quietly saying, “Guess you were right”. You smiled down at Percy before holding him tighter to your chest. Percy smiled, “You know the only reason I really wanted to do this with you is because we haven’t spent a lot of time together”, you nodded.

You and Percy have both been busy with life, mortal and half-blood. You had missed Percy and it seemed like Percy missed you too. “Then how about when you get better he can have a movie night?” You asked.

Percy smiled up at you before leaning into your chest and closing his eyes. “Hey hey. No. You can’t fall asleep”, you tapped Percy’s cold cheek. Percy looked at you and pouted.

He looked adorable.

“But I’m tired”, Percy whined out. Percy sounded like a child. You let yourself laugh a little. But if Percy was getting tired that wasn’t good. You stood up and placed Percy on the ground.

You walked over to your bag, you criticized Percy for not bringing a bag when you guys got here, but now you were happy that he didn’t. You zipped up and picked up your bag, tossing both straps over your shoulders.

You walked back to Percy and crouched down. You put your hands under Percy and picked him up, princess style. When you looked at Percy he had his eyes closed and you could feel that his breathing was slow.

You cursed under your breath and started moving to Camp Half-Blood, as fast as you could.

When Percy woke up the first thing he noticed was how warm he felt and the weight on his legs. Percy opened his eyes and noticed that he was in the infirmary. Percy sat up and looked around.

There was one kid, Percy didn’t know their name, that was sorting through something. Percy looked down at his lap to see you laying on him, asleep. Percy smiled but then he remembered that happened. Percy made a note to listen to you next time, if you ever let him ice skate again.

Percy brought his arm out of the blanket to see that he was wearing a long sleeve shirt. Percy also realized that he had two blankets. One was silver, the other light blue and thick.

Percy brought his hand to your hair and slowly started running his hand through it. You slowly opened your eyes and brought a hand up to rub them.

You looked over at Percy and you smiled when you noticed he was awake. “Percy!” You yelled, startling the Apollo kid, and you tackled Percy into a hug.

Percy hugged you back.

“Hey Y/n”, Percy said and you pulled away. You kissed Percy before muttering, “You better not scare me like that again Seaweed Brain”. Percy smiled before nodding, “does this mean we get a movie night?” Percy asked and you laughed.

“Yes love”, you kissed Percy again, “just as soon as you get better”. 

[allthelittlecreepycrawlies]

Tonight in "Things I Will Probably Never Write!" it's a yokai AU based on the new official merch art (that finally gave us Nies).

----------

Huaisang grows up very much not wanting to be an ox yokai. Everybody knows he's never gonna be as strong and intimidating as his father and brother, so they have no qualms making fun of the "slow, stupid cow" to his face.

His brother's not much help because Mingjue is solidly in the "ignore it or beat the mockery out of them" camp, and gets mad about Huaisang disrespecting their family if he ever voices his hopes that he's mortal like his mother (supposedly was).

When his horns and tail start growing in, fully cementing him as an ox, Huaisang is inconsolable (and in a lot of pain, tbh). Mingjue is caught between mad that he's taking it so hard and worried because his health has never been great and the transformation might genuinely be fucking him up. He spends most of the transformation period in the worried stage, but when it ends and Huaisang's still alive, he slides over into the mad stage because Huaisang is still distraught and attempts to hide his new demonic appendages.

So they're already constantly at each other's throats over their heritage when Meng Yao enters the picture.

---

Meng Shi was a mirror who ascended into a yokai, and Meng Yao winds up taking after her rather than his father.

He's very precocious, too, developing his first soul mirror, a tiny compact, at a very young age, and Meng Shi is both impressed (her clever boy!) and relieved (a compact is very easy to hide and protect).

As he gets older, he refines his mirror into more elaborate shapes, but he hits a bottleneck when he's fourteen, because he's already reached the point where he'll have to start binding other souls if he's going to improve.

Meng Shi worries, because while she had tethered some of her long-term clients to her own mirror, the general atmosphere of the brothel meant she couldn't have many or tether them too tightly, and most of them were mortal besides.

If her son is going to survive the weakness that is slowly killing her, he needs to get out in the world and start finding other yokai to snare.

So, knowing that it will be the last time she'll see him because her power will run out and her "human" form will fade before the time limit's up, she directs him to spend five years finding yokai souls to tether.

He suspects what she's up to and doesn't want to leave her, but he is a dutiful boy, so he goes.

Naturally, his first instinct is to look into his father's clan, though, on his mother's orders, he's careful to hide what kind of yokai he is.

It goes badly. Very badly.

He winds up being picked up (literally) from the stairs by the visiting Nies after Huaisang saw him fall (and almost shatter!). As they help him to a local healer, he secretly checks his mirror, both to make sure it's still holding up and to see if it will let him glean any more useful information about his rescuers.

He is very surprised when Huaisang's reflection doesn't show an ox, like his brother.

It shows a bird.

---

After he's been handed over to a healer, he winds up eavesdropping on what sounds like a very old argument between the brothers, because just before the stairs incident, Mingjue had caught Huaisang trying to hide his horns and tail again.

And Meng Yao, being very well-read and very good at putting pieces together, realizes he's stumbled on an exceptionally rare opportunity.

Yokai whose types became misaligned across incarnations, like… say… a bird soul being born to an ox body, are a particularly potent power source for mirror yokai, both because the clash between soul and body constantly leaks power, and because their dysphoria and misery make them easy to snare.

More than that, Meng Yao could even take the risk to seal Huaisang away within the mirror itself, rather than having to rely on the tenuous tethers his mother used, because if even half of what Mingjue snaps at his younger brother is true, Huaisang going missing won't be an actual problem.

It would be a win for everyone, really. Inside the mirror's little pocket dimension, Huaisang can live as the species he should have been, Mingjue will no longer have to deal with such an inadequate heir, and Meng Yao will have a permanent companion and an almost endless power supply to further his growth.

He just has to arrange the right moment to make his move.

[afreakingdork]

As Luck Would Have It

RotTMNT Donatello x GN!Reader One-Shot

Warnings/Tags: Aged-up Turtles, Death of Past Life, Soulmates, Reincarnation, Violence, Happy Ending

Synopsis:  A glimpse into another lifetime leads to a wish being made that spans the ages. When Donnie happens to activate said parameters, he is sent on a quest to find someone that he's been waiting his whole existence for.

Also avaliable on Ao3

Hopefully not too long coming, but here she is: the fic requested by my one-shot giveaway winner @anxious-cyanide !!!! 🎉🎉🎉

Also huge shout-out to the illustrious and incomparable @unknownfanartist for supplying a cover image to go along with the fic! I seriously can't thank her or anyone else who participated in the giveaway enough for all the kindness and generosity you all have shown me! My life is filled with so much love I can't stand it, but I'm sure you aren't here to listen to me go all mushy; please enjoy!

“Which means loser Shion has to get water.” From atop a fallen log, a man balanced his odachi on two fingers.

“That hardly seems fair.” Shion scoffed, folding his arms.

Below the first, another man wrinkled his brow as he attempted to fall back into his zazen. “We all agreed to the bet.”

“There were extenuating circumstances!” Shion snapped and turned his head away bitterly.

“Shi’s right!” The third man chimed in from where he was reclined on his back. “It’s not like it’s his fault he lost his weapon!” One of his hands raised up and with an expert flick, a kendama ball landed on its spike.

“That is the definition of his fault.” The first man responded flatly. In one fluid movement, he rose from a sitting position and threw the odachi into the air before catching it by the hilt. “You look like a baby  playing with those kid's toys.”

“And you look like a show-off.” The second man huffed as he squeezed his fingertips together more tightly.

“Yes, let's continue to pass judgement on one another since we all accounted for that kama actually being a kusarigama!” Shion’s voice dripped with venom.

The first man stuttered. He reached unconsciously up and rubbed at the bare, bandaged shoulder that was exposed. He twisted, his blue patterned hakama pooling at his elbows.

“Ok, ok!” The third man groaned before bending backwards and snapping into a kip-up. The motion caused the ball to spin wildly on its string. With only minor adjustments it landed on its spike as he his feet. “Aoi is just grumpy he got injured and can’t play with this sweet baby himself.” The man made a show of flicking the ball off the spike and then onto the two cups in three rapid clacks. “Hisato, weren’t we gonna train some more with those sweet weapons we got in Ryukyu? Why are you meditating?” Not waiting for an answer and taking several leaping strides, he hopped over to Shion. “Will you get the water just ‘cause I asked nicely instead?”

The wreckage of the statements caused a palpable shift. Aoi pulled half his hakama up and puffed out his cheeks in annoyance. Hisato dropped out of his stance and lolled his head. Shion’s shoulders tightened as he scrutinized the question.  

“I swear the toys are all part of the act, Toju.” Shion relented, leaning back. “Somehow the youngest and most formidable.”

Toju chuckled breezily, but there was an unmistakable air of malcontent.

“You wanna spar, let’s spar.” Hisato rose up, his aura flaring as he readied for a fight.

“Bring it!” Toju twirled around Shion’s back and brought his fists up around him.

“I am not a human shield!!” Shion shrieked as Hisato ran full tilt towards him with a prepared punch. Trapped, Shion winced until no impact came.

“Gotcha, bro.” Histao lightly tapped Shion’s nose.

Shion tried to bite his brother’s finger, but he pulled back too fast.

“Aoi, want to watch?” Toju giggled, placing his hands on Shion’s shoulders and rocking him side to side to prevent further nipping.

“We should make camp.” Aoi grumbled, his mood ever souring.

“Upset you can’t spar too?” Hisato craned his neck to see Aoi. “Aw, don’t be like that. You’ll be back up to it in a few days!”

“Let him stew. My question is why aren’t we staying in town? We have the money.” Shion dropped down low out of his youngest brother’s grip and rounded Hisato.

“We’d have to travel after dark, remember?” Hisato murmured, instantly on edge.

“This again?” Shion sighed. “We aren’t deep enough in the mountains to see bears yet.”

“I-I wasn’t worried!”

“We’re fine here. We can stay in a town tomorrow.” There was a finality to Aoi’s voice as he dropped down from the log.

Shion sneered.

“We’ll get pretty thirsty…” Toju mused, holding out his kendama to Hisato.

“That’s two.” Shion rolled his eyes to where Hisato took the toy and tested the string. “What about you?”

“It would be a big help. I’ll set everything else up while you’re gone.” Hisato beamed Shion a reassuring grin before attempting to flick the ball onto the spike. It missed completely and whacked him in the sternum.

“Fine! Use the crafty one to do menial labor! See how disorganized everything gets when Hisa’s big clumsy mits toss everything about without a single care!” Shion threw his hands up and took a few slow steps into the tree line. He listened for one of his brothers to stop him after his poignant fact drop, but he was irritated to find they just resumed their weapons talk. Grumbling to himself, Shion stormed towards the river they had passed earlier.

His path carved straight through forest they’d been strolling through. Little branches picked at the dark purple of his hakama and he tugged at the fabric harshly to free it. With spring nearly at full bloom, the foliage vibrated in a way that meant his struggle was nearly useless. It brought his knees up in retaliation as he took stomping steps to cross the green underfoot. The buzzing vocals of bugs and birds slowly fell to the backdrop static of the rushing water. Clomping on the ever moistening soil, Shion broke free from the thicket and moved his eye along the rolling bank that lead to the water’s edge.

With twilight ever approaching, the sun threw off colorful shades of sky off the river’s flowing surface. Twisting tall lengths of needle thin greenery at the shore reached high to garner as much sunlight in competition with their brethren. This towering wall scaled its way down the water in both directions. Scowl ever deepening, Shion continue to storm forward as he arbitrarily chose to head right along the river’s edge. The clinical regions of his mind reminded him that if he had instead wound the path back that he and his brothers had taken earlier than there was a clear designated bank where the water could be accessed. Shoving the thought away, he watched his steps as rocks and undergrowth dappled the rarely trodden trail. The soothing running of water begged to soothe his agitation, but Shion steeled his brow instead. As the river curved, so did he and just down the way he spied several lengths of cattails crushed to the mossy ground.

If they had curved inward toward the river he would not have been given pause. Instead, they were pressed flat heading in the direction of the trees. Dropping his stance, Shion reflexively palmed at the air to his side before his scowl shifted to a bitter sneer. He’d lost his weapon in a skirmish earlier that day. If that were simply the case than it would be one thing. With their reputation and ever constant stream of offers, the brothers had more than enough funds to replace their weaponry when necessary. Instead, he already had an alternative in the form of the bō he’d picked up in Ryukyu. He’d become rapidly attached to the expertly crafted thing which made it all the more frustrating that he had simply neglected to grab it. It was the type of fatal mistake that a sought after samurai would never make.

Resisting the urge to grumble, he continued to creep towards the foreign outlet. As mad as he was at himself, there was no way he’d trudge back to camp empty handed. His pride and brother’s chiding simply wouldn’t allow it. The river filled the sound void where his footsteps no longer echoed. Drawing close, he followed the line from where the trampled grasses lead to broken branches. Whatever had done said damage appeared to have burst from the water itself and plowed directly into the forest. It made no sense. Finally reaching the downed blades, Shion dropped all the way down to hand and knee. There was a chance that said position were vulnerable, but he had confidence in his hand to hand combat capabilities. Head barely peeking out from the brush, Shion froze as he saw the green expanse of a back.

Or rather, the jumbled network of scutes of a green turtle shell.

Head marginally shifting in surprise, he craned his neck further and watched the human sized carapace rocked gently as its huddled shape fiddled with something out of sight. A memory of a warrior who had made his armor out of turtles came to mind. Wondering if he may have stumbled upon such a being, Shion crawled forward until he could plant his feet on the ground once again. Stowing a flattened rock against the heel of his palm, he rose up incrementally. As he did so, a shock of wet matted hair appeared just beyond the shell’s top edge. Refusing to give credence to the errant thought that this was the creature that had burst from the water, he steeled himself.

“You.” Shion’s voice sliced through the ever present run of water. “Identify yourself.”

The shell jolted and froze so still that for a moment Shion wasn’t sure if he had ever seen it move.

He usually wasn’t one to doubt his own brilliance.

“I said identify yourself.” Shion repeated, authority taking reign of his vocal cords.

The body dipped slightly and Shion’s muscles flexed as he considered that the person could simply dive out of his grasp. Instead, he watched as the shell hunched forward slowly and turned.

His breath hitched as being turned to face him.

The dark green of the carapace gave way to a skin in lighter shades of moss that ran acros the visible body's expanse. Fear laden golden eyes matched the hue of the plastron that encircled the humanoid’s torso. Gangly limbs seemed to sprout from it and between webbed phalanges was the half eaten body of a very small fish.

“A yokai.” His lips moved without his permission. He had, of course, heard tale of such creatures, but only his brothers ever entertained mysticism. Reason and rationale ruled Shion’s mind which made being faced with exactly such a creature grind his gears to a halt.

“H-human!” The being stuttered before rising up to match the voice.

Shion took a tentative step back.

The creature shined with a moment of unbridled pride before resuming a cocky air. “You l-look quite plump! Give me your rations and I will spare you.”

Shion dropped his lids and gave a bored stare. In the time he’d adjusted his stance, he’d cataloged a hundred little ticks and notes about his opposite. From the way they still clung to the little fish carcass to their weak stance, it read as an obvious conclusion. “If you’re so powerful than why are you starving?”

The yokai's arrogant air falted and they stumbled back water's edge. A webbed foot dipped into the water causing the creature to shudder.

Staring down at the appendage with light curiosity, Shion brought his bored stare back up to those large eyes. “You’re aquatic, right?”

“Y-yeah?” The yokai stammered.

Making a little noise of interest, Shion shoved down any debate and stepped forward. In exchange, the creature stepped back until their heels were almost touching the water. Watching for a sign of attack and only seeing anxiety in response, Shion reached out to snatch one of the yokai’s elbows.

“H-hey! What are you doing, mortal f-fool!?” The creature all but squawked out of its pointed beak.

The beings protests were far too easy to circumvent. Lip quirked in study, Shion found the creature's arms reduced to near sinew. Grabbing a green wrist with his other hand, he used it to bring up hand up for similar examination. He found dulled claws with distinct ridging that often attributed to poor nutrition. He had seen it many times before, but preferred not to look on too long at such people. “I have a game I’d like to play.”

“What?” Finally finding enough energy to pull free, the yokai took a step to the side. “I am not here to amuse you!”

“Exactly, if you’ll indulge me I think I know why you’re here.” Shion watched the creature move carefully. Almost every tale about yokai spoke of their power and yet before him stood a thing that looked as if it would blow away in a light breeze. It bred a thousand questions. Though the stories were told far and wide there was no concrete evidence about these beings. The precipice of discovering stretching out ahead of him was so tantalizing his mouth could almost water.

“You know nothing!” The creature continued to shuffle away incrementally.

Shion squared his shoulders in an imposing manner. “I have an ongoing bet with my brother about analyzing an opponent.”

The move worked and the yokai seemed to realize that chances of escape were low. Shion watched as the creature came to terms with this and then searched his person rapidly. He failed to conceal the rock in hand before the being caught sight of it. “If you’re going to kill me, just do it already. I’m not going to entertain you until then!”

“What a waste that would be.” Shion gave a frustrated sigh.

“Waste?” The creature shook its head in confusion.

“Look.” Shion dropped his stance in a show of amity. “There’s a lot of fearmongering between yokai and humans and I don’t know what your transgressions are, but I’m not interested in senseless violence.”

Those huge golden eyes surveyed with him wary curiosity.

“Allow me to guess your situation and answer some of my questions and I’ll give you my rations. A more even trade then whatever empty threats you were throwing around before.”

The yokai gave a distinct snort of indignity before their eye turned away. Shion watched as the being blatantly debated his offer. A hungry gaze won out before it returned their attention to him. “It better not be rotten or anything.”

“It’s rice and dried fish.” Shion clarified with a dry tone.

“Koi!?” The yokai surged forward and Shion reflexively brought up a hand to block. Instead the creature grabbed his appendage and their eyes nearly sparkled at this range.

“No. What? Why would we eat koi!?” Shion twisted his head up in disgust.

“Because you’re rich?” The yokai asked with a confused expression that said that should have been obvious.

“Nobles don’t eat koi, they keep them as pets.” Finally remembering he was being held, Shion wrenched his arm free.

“Pets!?” The yokai reeled with surprise. “You’re joking!? Those fat things!?”

“I’m not!” He couldn’t figure out when he had lost control of the conversation. “I am the one who is supposed to be questioning you!”

“I haven’t agreed to the deal yet. I want to make sure it’s worth my time.”

Shion made a indignant face. This creature’s pride was off the charts. The demonic facsimile of Aoi appeared in his mind and joked about how only his own was larger. Scowling to dissipate the thought, Shion narrowed his gaze. “I told you what you’ll get. It isn’t spoiled. It was meant to be my meal tonight. Now do you agree or not? I’ll leave otherwise.”

At the mention of losing food the yokai went rigid.

Shion folded his arms as a show of how serious he was.

“O-ok! Fine! That’s fine! I accept! Ask your questions!” The being scrambled.

It took quite a bit of effort to keep the satisfied smile off of his face. “Excellent.”

“You said it was some game?” The yokai mumbled, resentment dripping from their words.

Though the creature had conceded, Shion took in the tone carefully. He had to filter it through a mental apparition of Toju, but once it came out the other side he seemingly realized the issue with the statement. “Ah, I see, allow me to rephrase.”

The being tilted their head.

“I don’t see you as a notch to be garnered in some contest. Rather it would be for my own self satisfaction to see if my guess was correct.”

The yokai’s head continued to further loll, unconvinced.

Refusing to give in to the nervous prickles in the back of his neck, Shion straightened. “Fine, how many humans have you conversed with?”

“Ones that lived?” A little wicked smile grew on their lips.

Shion’s lids came down in an unimpressed fashion.

The yokai held strong for several moments before rolling their eyes. “Not many if I can help it. Usually kids or a particularly desperate villager giving an offering.”

Shion perked up at that note and logged it away into his ever evolving list. “And I, who have traveled across this great land, have never once actually come in contact with a being such as yourself.”

“Ok?” The creature took a bored bite of their fish.

“Cultural exchange!” Shion clarified, his hands coming up in excitement.

“Huh?” The yokai squinted.

“That is what I am after. I’m far more interested in a factual record on yokai.”

“Y-you’re going to tell others?” The being twisted into themselves and Shion was once again reminded that they could flee into the water at any moment.

“Wait!” Shion lunged and caught the creature’s wrist. “I’m no fool! If I were to try to share what I learn here with no evidence than I would be no better than the mindless geezers that pedal their yokai folktales as if they were truths.”

Not realizing the implication of his words, the being surged in his grasp. “Let go!”

Noting the sudden spike in fear, a mental version of Hisato shook his head. “Oh. Oh.” Shion made a slow show of bringing up his free hand before carefully releasing his grasp.

The sudden change caused the yokai to slow, but their feet were still positioned in a way that prepared for escape.

“I have no intention of capturing or hurting you.”

“How can I believe that?!” Taking a small wary step back, the yokai’s hands squeezed into fists. “That you won’t go get that supposed dinner and bring your brother back with weapons!? You’ve said exactly what you want! Just like all those humans! All you do is take for your own gain!!”   

In spite of himself, Shino’s lips parted momentarily before he pressed them into a thin line.

“Well!?”

“I have no way to convince you.”

The yokai jolted at his quiet tone. The river continued to drone on through the long held pause before the being moved to break it. “You aren’t going to defend yourself…? Make up a lie even?”

“No.” Shion took his own step back, his hands still held up in accord. “It would make no difference. All I can give you is my word.”

“What’s the point of your ‘cultural exchange’ if you can’t tell anyone?”

Breaking eye contact, Shion searched the crushed greenery for a long moment. “It’s hard to say. Usually, proving others wrong is what I live for.”

The yokai made a sharp snorting noise.

“Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing I find sweeter than tearing someone’s moronic false ideas to shreds, but…”

Again, the water filled the void.

“I don’t know!” Shion growled, voice suddenly spiking. When he brought his gaze back to the yokai, he found them watching him curiously. “You’re unprecedented! A truly unique specimen and for the time being all I am interested in is gathering information about you.”

It was the being’s turn to look away. Through the waning light, there was a rosy quality to the green skin of their cheeks. “Fine, but I want to change the deal.”

“Again?” Shion sighed. “What now?”

“While I’m still not sure about the concept, doesn’t exchange go both ways?”

“Yes, it does. I’d also be happy to explain the concept and length if you-”

“We will each ask a question.” The yokai cut him off with a fold of their arms.

Shion sneered, but when the creature didn’t relent he gave an even headier sigh. “Fine, I suppose I was the one to use the terminology.”

“Great, go ahead then.”

“I wanted to begin with a ventured guess about your status.”

“That’s not really a question.” The yokai shook their head.

“Not yet.” Shion smirked and brought his chin up high. “From studying this scene you’ve left-” He made a show to pointing along the crush reeds up to the broken limbs in the treeline. “-In addition to your sorry state and resistance to initially fleeing…”

The yokai’s beak parted as if they were going to protest, but nothing came out.

“Along with the scant information you’ve mentioned, I believe I can make a credible hypothesis on your standing.” Without waiting, Shion lowered his gaze which sparkled with excitement. “I postulate that you were ousted from your home which I presume was a body of water you presided over as a local kami down south. You’ve traveled the waters up north, but the chilly overnight temperatures make it so you cannot stay in the water. The trip alone probably drained any resources you took with you, leaving you near destitute and unquestionably starving. As for my question, I’m asking if I was correct?”

Eyes somehow growing even larger, the creature gawked. Their beak opened and closed a few more times before they settled for falling out of their crossed armed stance to sulk. “Is it that obvious?”

To keep a lid on his surge of satisfaction at being right, Shion settled for shuffling his shoulders side to side. “I’m not interested in speaking for most people.”

The yokai huffed.

“I’ll count that as your question, moving on!”

“H-hey! That’s not fair!”

“Be more careful with your wording in the future!” Shion tutted with an air of amusement. “Could you tell me about your domain in length?”

The being shook their head hopelessly before making a show of taking a seat. Shion followed suit onto his knees and listened in rapt attention as the yokai described their lake in Funai. Nodding furiously at the information, he then supplied the creature with more information about his occupation. Breaching the culture in this regard seemed difficult as yokai hierarchy was left as broken as the warring states. Once he thoroughly translated the concept of samurai, Shion moved on to ask about their journey. Moonlight glistened off the water and made for just enough light as the creature went through a laundry list of hardships. Having lived a life of not quite luxury, but without exceeding want, Shion tried not to let pity cloud his account. The yokai seemed to catch on to this and was just asking about his human status when a snapping twig seemed to reverberate through the whole forest. Shion immediately took to his feet and his hand again went reflexively to his hip. This time he couldn’t keep the curse off his lips at his lack of weapon. Beside him, the yokai curled up, pressing into the cattails and blending in well with the shaded greens.

“I’d recognize that big forehead anywhere!”

For a split second, Shion relaxed at the sound of his brother’s voice before fear brought his muscles tense once again. Setting his jaw, Shion cast his eyes down to the creature and found them staring back at him with horrified expression. Shion mouthed for them to stay put and stepped in close, using his body as barrier as Aoi’s form approached. “You only see the signifier of my genius every single day.”

“Mhm, sure, sure.” Shion watched as Aoi came in, his brother’s eye taking in all the same detail that he had. “Forget something?”

For a moment, Shion scrambled mentally.

Aoi caught on immediately and brought rope with several carved bottles hanging off of it.

“The water.” Shion balked.

“Find something?” Aoi craned his neck curiously, following the environmental story telling.

Shion waffled and prayed for one of the few times in his life that his terrible lies would for once persuade someone. “I came across this strange display and got caught up in studying… what kind of creature had done this.”

Aoi swept his gaze up from the reeds to his brother’s face.

Shion thanked the moon for being behind him as it hopefully hid any sweat forming on his brow.

“You fell in didn’t you.”

“What?!” Shion shrieked.

“You didn’t want to come back all wet!” Aoi burst out laughing and the move caused the strung gourds to clatter along with his barks.

“I certainly did not!!” Shion hissed. It took some stretching, but he was just able to shove his brother without moving from his spot.

Aoi languidly walked off the move before circling back. “I can’t wait to tell Hisa and Juju!”

“You’ll tell them nothing!” Shion tried to make a swipe for the bottles, but Aoi outmaneuvered him.

“Nothing better than when you’re off you’re game.” Aoi continued to chuckle. “We’ll get the water together and then we can get you all toasty by the fire.”

“I-It’s fine! I’ll finish my assignment while you get back!” Shion internally screamed when the chirpy quality to his voice suddenly brought his brother’s curious brow up.

Before he could dodge, Aoi shot forward and fisted a bunch of Shion’s sleeve.

“W-wait-!”

“Bone dry.” Aoi frowned and leaned in close to his brother. “What have you been doing all this time?”

“Studying the scene!” Shion’s pupils rapidly scanned the close proximity before breaking away. “Yeah, that’s what I said earlier.”

“Are you telling me or yourself?” Aoi’s voice dropped its usual levity.

“You.” Shion set his features along with his will.

As Aoi’s gaze narrowed and Shion wasn’t going to be circumvented a third time. Both brothers moved in tandem. Aoi twisted to look behind Shion but before he could do so Shion intercepted by trying to catch his sibling in a headlock. The two then grappled with lightning fast reflexes before the engagement shifted Shion’s stance. Kicking out his brother’s feet, Aoi wrapped an arm around Shion’s waist to keep him from falling while also getting a look at what was behind him. “AH-ha…!”

Shion squirmed from where he was caught around the waist. “If you would let me-!”

“Seriously?!” Aoi huffed and let go.

Shion fell to the ground harshly, but snapped onto to his hands and knees. A dozen excuses formed on his tongue only to dissipate when he found nothing amongst the reeds he was once blocking. “What…?”

“You’re such a nerd.” Aoi griped, swinging the string of bottles into Shion’s face. “Fine, fill them up by yourself if that’s what you want!” Shion weakly reached up to take the rope. As soon as it left his hands, Aoi, turned and started walking away. “I can’t believe you actually got so distracted just looking at some smushed grass! Hurry up already or I’m gonna let Hisa eat your portion.”

“Alright!” Shion gripped with learned snark. Hobbling, but keeping to the ground, he twisted around searching for the yokai. Not finding them, Shion listened until his brother’s steps had retreated. “Are you…?” He bit down on the question as he wondered if his brother was somehow still listening. Caught between thoughts, Shion crawled forward until he was at the water’s edge. He then dragged up the string of bottles with a frown and started to fill them. As his finger’s dipped into the cool water, the tension of the surface bubbled several feet away. Freezing, he retracted the gourd in time as the shape rose up.

Instead of bursting out, the yokai’s head breeched the water in near silence. “That your brother?”

“Yes.” Shion clipped. He could feel how wide his eyes were, but was helpless to stop it.  

“I see why you play that game with him.”

Shion made a noise of affirmation and lowered the bottle to keep continue filing it. “How’d you get away?”

“Wasn’t it my turn?” The yokai gave a bobbing giggle.

Shion let out a single dry chuckle of his own and moved to fill the next gourd. “I don’t believe I have enough time to accurately answer your question.”

“Then I’ll say ‘it’s kinda my thing.’” The yokai’s hand broke the surface next and expertly squirted a spurt of water at Shion that landed just shy of his person.

“Aquatic.” Shion responded knowingly, shaking his head.

“So I’ll never get my answer?”

“As if you were the only one with more to ask.” Shion hummed, moving to fill the penultimate bottle. “I won’t penalize you for it. I’ll be sure to bring your food as soon as everyone’s asleep.”

“Can we continue then?” The yokai floated forward, but gave breadth for Shion’s work.

“I wouldn’t risk it…” Shion mused, bringing up the gourd prematurely with a loud popping bubble. “You. I wouldn’t risk you.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the yokai dip slightly below the surface for a moment.

Slipping the gourd back into the river, Shion racked his brain. Trying to subdue the part of his mind that spiraled anxiously about missing his chance, he tried to sort out reasonable solutions. He’d barely scratched the surface of this cultural exchange and wasn’t about to let it slip through his fingers. Corking the third bottle and moving to fill the last, Shion felt every droplet that cycled in as if it were counting down time. The movement of which, thankfully, sparked an idea. “Was this your destination?”

“I don’t have a specific place in mind, though, like you said, the north is too cold.”

“It will continue to warm with spring here. Would you consider making an exception?” Keeping his eyes on task, Shion silently pleaded.

“Why do you ask?”

The bottle filled and he brought it up along with his gaze. “Keep following along the river; it’s the same route my brothers and I are taking to collect our payment. I’ll keep supplying you with food and we can continue to meet.”

The yokai bobbed up enough that Shion could see the owlish surprise in their golden orbs.

“Aren’t you cold?” Corking the bottle, Shion’s brow came down around the question. He wasn’t sure where it had come from.

“A little.”

Picking up the rope, Shion retreated backwards and watched in awe as the yokai’s head floated toward the bank. The being then seemed to walk straight out of the water which was undisturbed by the loss of its tenant. With the moon pouring light around the sparkling droplets on the yokai’s skin, Shion breathed deeply from where he hadn’t realized he’d stopped.

“I guess if you actually drop the food off tonight, then I can trust you’ll continue to hold up your end of the deal…”

There was a tentative surge of joy in Shion’s chest. He stamped it down. “I swear it.”

The yokai blinked widely and then through their beak gave a little smile. “I look forward to a steady meal.”

“Is that all?” Shion feigned a huff, the strange feeling still lingering in his chest.

“Of course, why else would I bother with such a stuffy human?” The yokai approached him.

He stiffened and they brought their hands up in amity as he had done to them earlier.

“Quick learner.” Shion grumbled more to himself.

The yokai either didn’t hear him or chose to ignore the comment. “You’ll have to come to me at the river.” The being held out a webbed hand.

“Unless you want my brothers to see you…” Confused but curious, Shion looked between glowing eyes and the appendage several times before carefully offering his limb.

The yokai took it and turned it over so his palm was facing up. They then brought their other hand up with a single dull claw and dropped it to his skin. “To call me, just dip your finger into the water two times, then pause, then three times.” The being demonstrated barely scratching at his palm in the process. “I’ll know it’s you and the coast is clear.”

Shion nodded dumbly and watched as the yokai released him.

“You alright?”

“Yes.” He came back to himself and shook off the lingering buzzing in his hand by clenching it into a fist. “Yes.” He repeated more firmly. “From now on it will always be after my family is asleep.”

“Alright.” The yokai nodded with a bob.

It was the first time he’d seen an amicable air from them. Something about it made his chest surge with what Shion identified as pride. “I need to get back.” He pulled up the rope with the bottles.

The being hummed in agreement.

Shion took a stiff step back. “I’ll be back.”

“You said that.” The yokai gave that beaky smile again.

Several more bow legged steps were made.

“Bye.” The being gave a genial wave.

Shion dipped around it and finally made the turn towards where he had come. He made it approximately half a foot before something occurred to him. “I didn’t get your name!”

“Doremi.” The yokai nodded. “And what shall I call you, human?”

Resisting the urge to stare, Shion tried to swallow the ever pertinent odd feeling. “Shion.”

“Hurry up then, Shion-human. The sooner you return the sooner I can eat.”

“Sleep doesn’t work like that.” He called back before forcing himself to trudge forward. He cursed his idiotic parting and heard a small crop of laughter from the yokai he left by the riverside.

Back at camp, the evening banter with his brothers seemed to both fly by whilst drag on at a snail’s pace. The dying embers lingered longer than the even snores of his family. Though they didn’t know of the Doremi’s existence, part of Shion’s mind wondered how they could sleep knowing such a unique creature lay a short walk away. The moon had made it’s less noticeable trek across the sky by the time Shion was able to sneak away once again. This time he made sure footing through the underbrush and revealed his rations from the sleeve of his hakama. He left them at the water’s edge where the reeds were trampled and dipped his finger in the water as instructed. Against his better judgment, he refused to linger and hurried back to camp. With his brothers still collapsed on their rolls, Shion settled in and spent a sleepless night reviewing what he had learned again and again.

When morning’s light came, Toju found his rinsed container at the edge of camp. Shion babbled a line of excuses, but it was Aoi who laid down the agreed upon defense of late night snacking. It was a minor indignity, but nothing Shion couldn’t handle. After packing up, it was another day of traveling amongst his closest companions. There was both a learned air of family to their connection, but an unmistakable fondness that Shion wouldn’t trade for the world. Though they quarreled, he would pick no other occupation or persons to share his life with. Meeting with Doremi the first night was what he akinned to the rare spice in the pot. When it came to food, Toju did his best with dishes on the road and for the most part Shion couldn’t care less about the finished product. As long as a meal was palatable and gave enough nutrients, eating had always been more a necessity than a pleasure.

Doremi shifted his view on that as well. Watching the yokai partake in meals was an experience. They relished flavors they had never tasted before and regaled him in what humans usually offered. If the dish was good, then Doremi’s eyes would light up with enough sheen that it pushed Shion to make his first requests to the chef. It ended up being a win-win as Toju was over the moon that his brother had finally shown interest. It eased any guilt about Shion's ever mounting lies while the trope and yokai moved further north and into the mountains.

The nights spent in towns were the easiest to slip away from his brethren, but the hardest to easily gain access to the river. For whatever hurdles lay for Shion, they were always double that for Doremi. The yokai not only had to dodge humanity's vigilant eye, but they also had to navigate between multiple water ways while also keeping pace with a party they couldn’t see. The resilience wasn’t lost on Shion and neither were the changes in Doremi. Having a consistent and more balanced diet meant the yokai was rapidly on the mend. Though it wasn’t an overnight change, Shion’s studious eye noted every minute advance. From the enhanced green luster to fuller limbs, even Doremi’s claws seemed to sharpen themselves with good nutrition. Less to protect himself and more for his own comfort, he showed Doremi his new blade and bō. Shion was delighted to find no fear in place and instead curiosity at human construction. To say the cultural exchange was going well was by far an understatement.

When the brothers reached their destination to pick up payment, they were tipped off to their next job down south. The constant treks across the country had become commonplace and the group rarely complained about the backtracking. A night of celebration with overflowing wallets gave way to Shion’s first missed meeting. Carrying the veritable basket of apology confections and rations, Shion was surprised when he was met with blatant concern instead of anger. It twisted up that feeling that never seemed to leave him with Doremi was near. The scolding was light as he passed chewy delights to the yokai. Gushing about the flavor, Shion found the way the moonlight played off Doremi’s now glossy locks to be an image he wished he could immortalize in paint. It was one amongst a growing list.

Shion found he didn’t need and excuse to breach the topic of their next destination and his chest swelled when Doremi instead asked where they were going. His mind was quick to remind him that the noun could also include his brothers, but a hopeful part of his mind told him that Doremi instead considered themselves an unofficial member of the group. The sticky humidity of summer reared its head and the yokai was thriving in the weather. It wasn’t just the warmth of the sun that tingled in Shion’s cheeks at the thought of an extension to their partnership. Within a few days, the brothers and yokai departed.

As time stretched on, a rhythm was established. Shion knew with each meeting that he should be more wary that his brother’s would discover what he was doing, but in inverse occurred. Though he kept the same care in escape, he allowed his worries to wane. As they spent all their time together, it was inevitable that the group would need time apart. It wasn’t unusual to wake up and find someone had wandered off. Toju could often be found smearing berries on trees and Hisato’s faraway destructive punches could sometimes be heard on the wind if it blew in just the right way. It was Aoi that Shion feared the most. His twin’s perception and familial priorities were leagues ahead of the others. If Aoi did know, he thankfully had decided that it wasn’t worth his time to interrupt. Even if it was just his imagination, Shion was thankful.

In a similar vein, there was naturally a shift in the so-called cultural exchange that made the title less accurate. The countless hours spent discussing customs waned as the topics were stretched to their limits. From there informality grew and they moved on to discussing their personal lives. Though he’d gotten a taste for it, Shion never tired of Doremi’s attentive nature. They talked a haughty game, but had taken their responsibility as caretaker of their lake very seriously. The humans they had exposed themselves to were all done so in a means to help. From saving a drowning child to comforting a woman who lost her husband, Doremi even had been known to give back their own offerings if it meant a hungry mouth could be fed. Shion had long made adjustments so his own nutrition wasn’t at risk, but Doremi staunchly still tried to share every meal with him.

He’d indulged the yokai’s emphasis on food at first with an eye roll and eventually as a heady reminder. Though he never considered himself rich and there had always been times when a decent meal was scarce on the road. True hunger, however, wasn’t something Shion thought of. It revealed to him the deficits in society he tried to turn a blind eye to. It had taken some time, but guilt cropped up; not over their different statuses, though that was a given, but instead that she held a certain level of burden having to also explain them to him. It was a grounding he hadn’t realized he’d been missing. All that being said, he couldn’t help but still laugh at Doremi’s obsession with koi. Beyond eating it, if he happened to pass through a town that had some, endless questions were abound. He’d made sure to get a wooden carving, much to the confusion of his brothers. Overnight a necklace was woven out of reeds with the trinket dangling right at the upper edge of the yokai’s plastron. It brought Shion a satisfaction he couldn’t at first place. He began to jokingly refer to Doremi as such. He wasn’t sure if the yokai knew how selfish that thought was or the double meaning it entailed, but just their shiny locks were excuse enough to remind him of the ornate fish's fins. The nickname heralded a tidal shift that moved far beyond conversation alone.

The pair took to strolling through whatever path was afforded them near the rivers. Thousands of steps were matched as dreams were shared amongst them and the fireflies of summer. In time, an arm was offered and hips grazed with nearly every thought bubbling off tongues. It was on one particular night, when the cicadas screamed their loudest, that they found a forgotten boat docked on still waters of a connecting lake. Doremi pushed the boat out and Shion took helm on steering. When the yokai had turned, overjoyed at the ride and happiness sparkling in honeyed orbs, Shion finally pinned the feeling that had been ever growing. It left him awestruck and he nearly capsized at the identification. Doremi fretted and sent him to bed worrying about his health. The next morning his distracted state left his brothers in a similar fuss.

How could he tell them he wasn’t sick, but in love?

It was the culmination of a thousand tiny things he could both list in an instant and never in a lifetime. It crushed him within an inch of his life. It felt like he was the luckist man alive. He wanted to deny the feeling. He labeled it selfish. He despised how his heart had betrayed him. They were completely different species. He had no way to take his earnings and settle down. Their lives, Doremi’s life, would always be in danger. It already was, but adding his existence to the mix made it more so. Humans had only fear for yokai, as yokai feared them in turn. Years of bloodshed, confusion, and hate weren’t something that would change overnight no matter how many facts Shion would plaster even the whiff of a naysayer with. It had taken him months to see and he had an open mind. He had little hope for the stupidity of the masses. It left him hopelessly happy and disheartened. It didn’t matter if Doremi felt the same. He couldn’t put that on her.

Lost in these ever swirling thoughts, a billow of black smoke shot up into the otherwise unmarred blue sky.

“That’s a big fire…” Toju murmured to Shion’s left.

“We just passed the charred remains of a village, what? Two days ago?” Hisato added over his shoulder.

“Sounds like we’re going on a detour, eh guys?” Aoi shifted his stance toward the plume.

“From the wreckage and timing, I’d say we’re in for a group of at least seven bandits.” Shion tapped his arm absentmindedly as he did the mental math.

“Don’t’cya just hate when we can’t split them up evenly!?” Aoi huffed. In a few bounding leaps, he shot in front of Hisato.

“Do you wish there were more or less?” Shion sneered.

Aoi spun around and made a show of whipping both his odachi out to his sides. “It’s a 50/50 for one guess!” He then winked and turned into a run. The brothers pulled out their own blades and quickly fell into formation. As the village grew on the horizon, a villager stumbled towards them on the path.

In several bounds, Toju broke away to intercept. As soon as he got close, the youngest brother halted so quickly that the dust from the path kicked up around him.

The brothers readied themselves.

As the dust cleared, they watched in stunned silence as the man turned, covered in blood. The left side of his face hung off and he routinely choked on the steady stream of his life fluids draining from the wound.

“Aoi!?” Toju squeaked, reaching for the man. “Sir?”

“There’s nothing we can do for him… I don’t know how the poor bastard's on his feet…” Aoi’s voice dropped low, circling.

“T-they…” The man choked, his form teetering more and more.

“How many?” Shion pressed, pulling away from Hisato.

“The men…” Strangled by something in his windpipe, the brothers each took their own step back as the man dropped to his knees and then the ground, silent.

“No more jokes.” Hisato decreed. “These people need help.”

The others nodded and shot straight to the village. Within seconds the screams poured from the flaming shacks. Bodies littered the ground and mud was formed from the amount of viscera spilled. Hoofbeats soared above the chaos and an armored man on hoseback appeared. Aoi leaped forward and bounded off Hisato’s shoulders to made a clean cut through the man’s neck.

Shion rounded the fallen figure and snatched the banner from the fleeing steed. “It’s a clan army…”

“What do they want with this small place?!” Hisato shot to the right and stabbed through a man coming around the corner.

Toju who had dropped down to check one of the bodies, rose up with an orange cloth fisted in his hands.

It was a marker they only implemented in battle.

Aoi stared at the younger sibling for a moment before setting his brow. “Let’s go!”

The brothers tied colored wraps up around their forehads and dove into the smoke. A cacophony of blades, shouts, arrows, and thudding hooves rose from every direction. Between the distinct flashes of his brother’s colors, Shion fell into the numbing rhythm of falling any other being that crossed his path. As his count soared above the double digits, the brothers broke free of the smoldering shacks and out onto a field bordering the village. There, nearly a hundred men sat idly with various stages of weaponry and horseback.  

“What the hell are you doing!?” Aoi roared, flicking blood from his odachi.

“Ah.” A man on an ornately decorated horse strode free from the line. Shion identified him as the general. “Well this is a surprise.”

“Not what I would call it.” Aoi all but hissed.

“Blue.” The general chuckled.

Aoi bared his teeth.

“Purple.”

Shion spun away from a downed foe and held his blade to his side.

“Red.”

Hisato knocked two men back and glared down the line.

“Orange.”

Toju slit a man’s throat and let him down with a teetering thud.

“I’ve heard of your little samurai family group. Your father was quite revered and he seems to have trained you well.”

“You haven’t answered my question.” Aoi seethed, taking a single step forward.

The general’s horse threw its head at the move and the man pulled at the reigns to stop it. “Oh this? We asked the villagers kindly to share their harvest as we head out to our little… rendezvous. They were gracious enough with food, but were lacking in the entertainment department…”

Shion squeezed his blade and could hear the thundering steps as Hisato approached.

“Under stimulated men get too zealous in battle so I’m letting the ones that are pent up release their energy.”

Aoi glanced back as a shack collapsed under a raging fire.

“Who hired you? I’ll double the pay to have you all scurry off.”

Aoi’s return rotation to the general oozed malice. “You could say we’re between jobs at the moment.”

“Then why are you bothering my men?” The general scoffed, looking bored of the conversation. “Here.” He reached into a pouch hanging from his horse’s saddle and pulled out a bag. He then tossed it straight across the field. It landed out Aoi’s feet and rolled over, spilling coin into the blood stained dirt. “Take this and leave.”

“Aoi…” Hisato’s voice was thick.

Aoi bent forward and took a hold of the mouth of the bag.

“Shion…” Toju murmured, exchanging glances.

Aoi smiled. “I see…”

Shion nodded.

“Well? It’s more than enough considering I lost how many men?” Leaving the question rhetorical, the general pulled at his reigns to rejoin the ranks.

“The price of man…” Aoi said.

“Let’s regroup. Did we get everything?” The general addressed his men.

Hisato sighed.

“I think you owe us one more thing!” Aoi shouted, an unhinged buoyancy to his stance.

“Huh?” Before the general could fully turn, an odachi stabbed right through his neck. It seemed as if even the flames went silent as the man gurgled around his own blood before falling off his horse into a heap.

“Now we’re square.” Aoi hummed, twirling his remaining Odachi in hand.

“SELFISH INGRATES!” The man next to the general screamed and gave the signal. The full army surged to life and stormed right at the brothers as they fell in line with one another. If the earlier chaos in the village was a cacophony, then this was completely deafening. The sounds engulfed Shion’s ears until they were ringing and everything dropped to a cottoned muffle. Every single movement had to be precise. They were outnumbered in a way they had never been before. Twisting and pushing his body beyond its limits, he struck again and again. A blade behind him clipped his shoulder and he kicked off one man and slammed into a horse. The neighing broke through the fuzz and the horse kicked a series of screaming men. Twisting his sword out, another blade hooked his hand along with the hilt. The ensuing pull sprayed blood and took his weapon away.

Dropping down to avoid the next strike, Shion pulled the bō from his back. Its lethality was less, but his range grew to make up for it. With a swift spin, he carved himself out a radius where he could take a single breath before men and hooves were upon him again. From the ground, someone he thought was dead stabbing into the plump part of his calf. Hissing, he jut the staff back and heard the sickening squelch of it entering the man’s head. If he had time he would have gagged.

“Hisato!!!” Toju’s voice screeched through the battle.

Shion spun around with the sound and let his weapon lead the way. Grunts echoed where the bō moved and he tried to carve that radial path once again. No matter how hard he spun, he couldn’t achive the arch without both his legs firmly planted. The torn muscle refused to cooperate so Shion shuck the weapon back to stabilize a forward shot instead. A blade swung back just as he took off and it was a flash of blue that kept him from being inadvertently decapitated.

“Pay attention!!” Aoi seethed, his own face painted red which dripped down making Shion’s color around his collar.

“Hisato!” Shion protested as they instinctually went back to back.

“We’re no good to him if we’re dead!” Aoi growled before shooting forward again.

Shion twisted in learned synchronization and, in time with Aoi, finally carved a path. The two dove deeper into the skirmish, each swinging in tandem with the other. It might have been exhilarating had a sword not plunged right through Aoi’s right arm. Shion watched in seeming slow motion as the strike shot through his brother. The grimace on his sibling’s face twisted along with the blade as it then cleaved most of the flesh off in a single swipe. Screaming at the top of his lungs, Shion lunged at the attacker. Aoi choked on something beside him as Shion put all his force into a forward jut of his bō. His shoulders screamed in protest as the wood punctured the man’s wind pipe.

Spinning around to catch his brother, Shion found Aoi nowhere in sight. Twisting his staff around, he prepared his lungs for another shout when his heart seemingly skipped a beat. His blood pressure plummeted as his head lolled down. Right through the left side of his chest, a shiny red blade stuck out several inches. Blinking slowly, he felt a sting in his left arm. Unable to lift his bō any longer, Shion rolled his head in that direction to find another blade cleaving his arm in a similar way it had Aoi’s. It was a weird cosmic symmetricality that they had always shared. When he moved to jerk away from the strike, his arm came mostly free from him. The weight distribution suddenly shifted, Shion watched as the ground rapidly soared towards his vision. In another bit of cruel irony, it was upon falling on the ground that the sword in his chest was finally dislodged.

Shion had no idea how long he lay on the ground, but it was long enough that the battle came to an end.

At least, that’s what the silence indicated.

Through a slow blink, he opened his eyes from where he hadn’t known he closed them. Around him, there wasn’t a single sign that a skirmish had taken place. On two wobbly stems, Shion propped himself up and stared across the field. It lay with the summer’s growth of a crop he suddenly couldn’t identify. He was usually so good with plants too. With some difficultly, Shion looked back to where the village should be. In its place there was nothing but continuous rolling fields. He watched as the thin green blades flicked with wind that didn’t seem to be reaching his person. Curious, a numb hand reached up to touch his face. He wasn’t sure contact was even made because none could be felt.

Opening his mouth, Shion tried to force out a call for his brothers but no air escaped him. He pushed and pushed, but it was as if there were no lungs in his body to move the sound. Terror gripped him and he spun around in a crazed semicircle. Miles and miles of empty land surrounded him on all sides. Unable to decide, Shion took off in the direction his pivot landed on. He tore through the grasses, but with every step that should have trampled them, they seemed unwieldy underfoot. It caused him to slow once more. Unsure, he racked his brain for the immense knowledge he had collected throughout his lifetime. No explanation of this supernatural occurrence came to mind, but the mysticism of it tore a single image from him: Doremi.

Renewed, he again tried to scream. No sound came out and his face screwed up as he put all his force into it. Though he didn’t seem to have any oxygen, the move made him light headed and brought him to the ground once again. In a horrible slideshow he watched a simultaneous projection of all the times he had spent with the yokai amidst all the times he hoped would come. When the reel ended, he was struck by how little there was. There hadn’t been enough time. He needed more time. Abandoning his voice, he clawed at the earth, but found he couldn’t make a dent. He felt tears that didn’t exist prick at his retinas and he did the only thing left, the one thing he’d all but abandoned; he prayed.

He’d dismissed the ideas of some overseeing being around the age of nine. Between his training and what he watched his father go through, Shion swore there was no way some magical entity could allow such indignities on his creations. Shion himself was often cited as cruel, but the machinations of this world far exceeding anything he could stomach.

Still be pleaded. He begged the force and made no apologies for the time he spent not believing. He instead argued for his due.

For his brothers.

For Doremi.

For Doremi.

For what seemed like an eternity, he kneeled. His mantra repeating in his brain at such a severe rate he might never have another thought other than that again.

No night came.

The sun continued to shine on a cloudless sky.

The grass continued to gentle jostle with a summer’s breeze.

His brothers.

Doremi.

He never even got to show her a real koi fish.

“You should have passed on by now.”

Shion jerked, the mantra still ringing in his ears.

“Why do you linger?”

Shooting to his feet, Shion spun around and was once again met with only rolling fields.

“A stubborn one.”

The plea continued to repeat as an earworm, but Shion was able to manage a single alternate thought. A question.

“Who am I?”

Shion blinked before opening and closing his mouth. There was still no sound.

“I can hear you just fine. No need to waste your time.”

Then why haven’t you answered my prayers?!

“Prayers?” The voice sounded genuinely confused.

Imaging a drum being played with exahsutive ferocity, Shion mentally turned up the mantra.

“Oh, that! You’ve been going on about that for so long that I’d gotten used to it!”

HOW DARE YOU-!

“Enough.”

…

“I meant more that you have already been granted one of those things.”

What do you mean?

“Your brothers. You are intrinsically tied to them. In fact, they are waiting for you now, but you need to move on.”

Shion spun around, searching the grasses once more.

“Not here, little one. You need to move to the next plane.”

Doremi!

“Doremi?” The voice again seemed genuinely surprised.

Doremi! Doremi! Green skin! Shell! Golden eyes! Hair like-

“Silence, allow me to see.”

Shion furrowed his brow. If this was some type of god, why didn’t they just already know? Why was he trapped in his inane conversation?

“It is not for you to comprehend.”

Spoken like someone who also has no idea.

“Aren’t you something.”

Far be it for a puny human to ask questions.

“I would call it amusing, but we don’t have to agree.”

Don’t we?

“We don’t. Tell me, what is it that you want with the kappa?”

Kappa?

“You didn’t even know what kind of yokai Doremi was? I see why you requested more time.”

Then you already know what I want!

“I didn’t say that. Your thoughts were too simplistic. You simply wished for your brothers and the yokai, but how? You already have one of those things. Why should I give you more?”

More?!

Shion turned, his chest aching painfully.

I barely got any time.

In quick repeat, he played the reel of his time with Doremi over.

Again, it ended in what seemed like the blink of an eye.

You can see, right?! You saw!?

“I saw.”

Then you know!

A long stretch of silence played out. Shion continued the mantra in a failed attempt to soothe himself.

“Do you want to know how many lifetimes it’s been since you found your soulmate?”

Soulmate?

“73.”

What do you mean soulmate!?

“It’s astounding in a way. It’s not like the system is rigged for you to not meet them. There’s free will to contend with, but the chance occurs in every lifetime.”

Answer me!

“Maybe it’s because you get coddled by your brothers in every existence…”

Don’t… Don’t you dare-!!!

“That’s not mine to undo. Do not fret.”

Not yours?! What does that mean!?

“It is a pity though.”

Hey!

“How about a compromise?”

…

“I can’t give you another gift. As I’ve said, you’re already tied to three beings, but I can grant you something else.”

Why?

“I find 73 lifetimes without true love to be a bit despairing. I guess I’m a romantic in that sense.”

Great. My life is in the hands of an being that doesn’t use reason.

“If I were then we wouldn’t even be having this conversation.”

…

“The opportunity will occur in your next lifetime. If you make contact with your soulmate then I will allow you to glimpse a moment; a little gift so you may not let them slip through your clutches again.”

And what if I don’t? I’ve apparently failed 73 other times…

“Then you will be born again. My gift will be of one time use, but it will continue on until the meeting occurs.”

This is stupid.

A sharp ring of laughter echoed from the skies above.

It was so loud Shion’s knees buckled.

”You truly are something! I haven’t had a laugh in eons!”

Scoff.

“As much resentment as you hold, I can tell you're ready to move on.”

Something about the way it was said sent an icy cold shot of fear through Shion’s veins. He looked down to find his body rapidly becoming translucent.

Wait! I haven’t-!

“There will never be enough time. Just remember this moment-”

Shion winced as the image of Doremi eating a confectionery was forced into his mind.

“-and live your life to its fullest.”

Watching his hand, Shion found he could barely see his outline.

One! One final question!!!

“Hurry.”

Does that mean Doremi was-?!

“Good luck finding them in your next life.”

The breeze continued to roll through the unchanging empty landscape.

-

Cleaved by the earth in a continental divide.

Over and over in a gambit long tried.

A butterflies wings.

The sweep of tree's shade.

Castle doors open to mist.

Whilst the sun bathed you in a gentle kiss. 

The eternal dance of you and I.

Unable to seek.

Unwilling to hide.

-

“I just wanted a gazpacho burrito!” Leo whined as he rolled out of the way of a tenderizing mallet.

“What is wrong with you!?” Mikey turned up his nose in disgust.

“Honestly!” Rupert Swaggart huffed as he lifted his mallet again. “Food trucks are an affront to the culinary world!”

“No!” Mikey wrapped a chain around a light pole and swung around to kick Meat Sweats in the side of the head. The force launched the pig mutant across the park. “I am not agreeing with you on that! Food trucks have been instrumental in fusion shifts!”

“Perfect, I’d had enough of the banter.” Donnie clapped as his bō telescoped in hand. “I’d rather we get to lunch as soon as possible.”

“See! Donnie wants a burrito too!” Leo jumped excitedly to point.

“Eugh, no!” Donnie scrunched up his face in disgust.

“Et tu!?” Leo hissed.

“Ok, ok!” Raph scrubbed his face. “Isn’t that why we’re here?! ‘Cause no one could decide on one type of food!”

The others all paused to give it some thought.

“Huh, I guess so.” Leo shrugged. “Hey, how is there still a line!?”

“There can’t possibly be. There’s a mutant attack and-” Donnie looked as Leo gestured with an angry grimace. “Oh, wow, there actually is.”

Raph approached the slew of New Yorkers who were huddled down in fear but still queued at the various food trucks. “Uh, you guys ok?”

“I-I waited t-two hours.” A shaky voice rose up from the line. “I-I’m n-not going a-anywhere!”

“For the, and let me emphasize this, gazpacho burrito!?” Pinching the air to accentuate his point, Mikey dropped down onto Raph’s shoulder to loom over the person.

“Y-yeah?” The civilian choked.

“No taste.” Mikey sighed, crawling down from his perch. “So did Rupert just bail or…?”

“Maybe ya knocked him out?” Raph hummed in thought.

“That is a distinct possibility.” Donnie noted, tapping his staff to the ground.

Leo watched his brothers for a moment and then looked down the line from the trucks. “Uh… guys?”

“Huh? I can’t hear someone who no taste buds!” Mikey mimed a hand up to his ear and rolled his gaze skyward.

“Har har.” Leo retorted dryly. “Where do these trucks get their power?”

“Either from the truck itself or usually a generator.” Donnie walked over to one said square and gestured to it. “The output on this model is poor though. A few tweaks and…”

“No.” Raph stomped over and swatted Donnie’s flexing fingertips. “You gotta stop upgrading stuff without people’s consent!”

Leo started to walk down the queue. “But not like tapping into the city?”

Donnie rubbed his hand indignantly. “I believe that would invoke some kind of violation.”

“You’re basically stealing power.” Mikey nodded, slyly watching Leo out of the corner of his eye.

Leo reached down and picked up a thick orange cord. “Uh huh…”

“What is that?” Donnie slipped around Raph’s form and towards Leo.

Mikey seemed to catch sight of it too, but turned the other way. “It looks like there’s one going to every food truck…”

“One going to…?” Donnie spun around.

“Alas there’s bound to be causalities in the cutthroat world of cuisine!” Rupert’s voice rose up from above and the brothers turned to see the pig mutant perched on a nearby building with the end of the orange cord in hand.

“Donnie! Raph! Civilians! Mikey, on me!” Leo sliced open a portal as Mikey’s chains soared out towards Rupert.

Meat Sweats grinned manically and plugged in the cord.

“On it!” Raph shouted, turning back to the crowd. “Lunch times over! Y’all gotta-!”

A deep rumbling seemed to bubble up from somewhere other than the ground.

“Raph…” Donnie warned, wildly looking for the source.

“EVERYONE MOVE NOW!” Raph roared, his formed rapidly expanding with his ninpo. The line finally relented in an attempt to escape when the tires of the row of food trucks started to sway.

Donnie balked as the rumbling noise soared in pitch. He brought his staff up just as the metal roof of each truck burst open. Boiling oil shot straight into the sky and immediately hit an arch point where it curved to rain back down. Scrambling, Donnie activated his own ninpo and a giant purple umbrella formed out of the top of his staff. He bolted towards the civilians that had yet to escape and covered them as the oil rain down with a steaming sizzle.

“Hot, hot hot!!” Raph hissed as droplets dripped down through his projection.

Donnie planted his feet and increased the size of the umbrella. “Unless you want to be the ones deep fried, I suggest you move, people!” 

Raph’s form winced as he ducked under the umbrella and urged the masses along. “Alright, no shoving…”

The crowd shuffled around Donnie, bumping him as he tried to keep the umbrella steady. "Honestly-!” He was cut off when someone shouldered him with enough force that one hand came free from his bō. Hissing, the throng of people rushed across his arm and Donnie had difficulty reigning the limb back in while still holding the oversized object steady. With a sharp tug he retracted the appendage and his vision whited out.

“Well?” Shion watched carefully as Doremi went in to take a bite.

“Don’t rush me!” The yokai giggled with a shake of their head.

“As slow as a lazy koi.” Shion smiled fondly as Doremi’s beak cut right through the chewy mochi.

From where the yokai’s eyes had fallen in satisfaction, they popped open as they went on to gush about the flavor. Time stopped as moonlight played off Doremi’s glossy locks.

A sizzling sound hissed in his ears and the image seemed to burn away as if it were on an old film reel.

“Donnie!?” Raph’s voice reached his ears.

Donnie croaked and felt small bits of oil sting his legs. Blinking free, he found that he was on the ground with his big brother hunkered over him in an attempt to protect him from most of the boiling substance.

“What happened?!” Donnie shouted, hand wildly searching for his staff.

“I don’t know!? You kinda just passed out!” Raph’s face contorted in pain.

Finally grazing titanium, Donnie reestablished the umbrella. “Are you ok? Was anyone else hurt?”

“Heh.” Raph’s shoulders dropped, unable to cover his wounds. “Don’t worry about ole Raph. I got everyone out. I’m more worried about you and why the others haven’t unplugged the dang… whatever it is yet!”

“I…I’m fine.” Donnie twisted around to look at the rooftop where Rupert had been. “They’re gone.”

“Fights moved so we should too!” Raph straightened and shook himself off. Donnie reigned the size of the umbrella in and together the two brothers left the splash zone. Once free, purple pixels flittered down and shifted to form a safety barrier in a radius around the gushing oil. Raph gave Donnie an assuring nod before the two moved to scale the building. Unplugging the cord and watch the oil slowly taper off, the pair were about to dart off when a portal appeared beside him.

“We gotta unplug the-! Oh, it’s done!” Leo stepped through with Mikey following close behind.

“Where’s Meat Sweats?” Raph wondered, rubbing a blister on his bicep.

“We knocked him down into Hidden City jail. Maybe ruining a prison kitchen we’ll keep him busy for a bit.” Leo shook his head.

“Oh, to be a prisoner…” Mikey sang wistfully.

“No.” Leo said simply before bonking his younger brother with the hilt of his odachi.

“I swear, Michael, you are one step away from a life of crime at any moment.” Donnie mused with a wry smile.

“I think you’re mixing us up dear bro-there!” Mikey hummed and stuck his tongue out.

“You ok, big guy?” Leo took several slinking steps forward and around Raph.

“Just a little burn…” Raph responded with a rolling shoulder.

“I thought D had you covered?” Leo looked back at Donnie who was staring at the oil pooling on the concrete.

“That… Well…” Raph tried and failed.

“Something happened?” Mikey filled in.

“I passed out.” Donnie said flatly and felt all eyes land on him. “I had a vision, I think.”

“That’s…” Leo started and stopped to think. “What? Like a new power?”

“Casey’s never mentioned one like that before!” Mikey jumped excitedly at Donnie and snatched his arm to study it.

“No.” Donnie tugged his limb free and eyed Leo. “Not like that. I’m not sure. I feel fine now. I need to do some research…”

“But…!” Leo teased, leaning into Donnie face before moving downward to poke the plastron covering his stomach. “Lunch, right? Coulda just been a hunger induced fainting spell.”

“Ah!” Donnie telescoped his tech-bō to a handheld size. “I’m all for ruling out easy maladies. Yes, let us gather sustenance!”

“So, I was thinking Spanish?” Leo chided, looking beyond Donnie to Mikey.

“You heathen! You are not making that monstrosity at the table!” Mikey prickled.

“Let’s just hit a food hall…” Raph sighed, shaking his head.

-

Leaning back, Donnie looked down the blurry pen balanced on his snout. This act was far more Leo’s speed, but he had reached a point where channeling his other brothers’ energies was the next best thing. Beyond him, many tabs sat up on his enormous monitor. They culminated in countless hours of online research that had been proceeded by at least a dozen medical and mystic analyses. The tests yielded a slew of normal data while the internet had thin estimations at best. Giving a sigh, he wrinkled his nose and allowed the pen to fall. In a flash, he caught the writing utensil and lurched forward in the process. He brought the pen down to an errant piece of paper and made a scribble before discarding the object all together.

A frustrating query with no apparent result was the bane of his existence.

Swiveling around, he walked out of his chair within the rotation and prepared to hit the library again. Though he’d already spent an unknown amount of time there, none of the literature on visions seemed of much help. There were at least a dozen scenarios that seemingly applied, but something about all of them felt inherently wrong. The inexplicable emotions attached to the seemingly nonsensical sight had been another annoying factor. It had brought him on a detour to Draxum’s apartment the last time he was out and there he found little more than tepid curiosity from the yokai.

Fiddling with other abandoned projects, Donnie grimaced as he caught sight at a digital readout that noted the date. It had been almost five useless wheel spinning days since the food truck debacle. It hadn’t been a constant, he had the years of experience to know that nonstop research rarely amounted to much, but good night’s sleeps and meals hadn’t brought their usual fresh clarity. Flicking a lose wire, Donnie pulled a half constructed surveillance bot out from under scattered blueprints. He had unconscious timetables for things of this nature. They had a neat little file folder that sat in the back of his mind, labeled for future reference. Whatever he had seen in the park was simply something he didn’t have the current tools to crack. He didn’t consider it a loss, but instead a project to be explored at a later date. His ever expanding intellect acted as a means. He’d eventually create some new technology that would inevitably solve his dilemma.

Satisfied, Donnie reached across the table to grab a screwdriver. The instrument was almost underhand when a wash of green swaying grass appeared where a workbench had been. Recoiling on instinct, he took a few steps back and found himself in his lab just as he had been. Blinking rapidly in an attempt to check his eyesight, Donnie hunkered down. He became very keenly aware of the hum of the overhead lights and the multiple running processors. Not ready to brush the hallucination off, he turned and reached across the short expanses to his computer’s keyboard. A few swapped windows found he had only been awake nine hours with an average amount of sleep achieved prior to that. There was no cause to question his sanity, but still he frowned.

“Hello?”

There was always a chance it was a joke or even some villain’s ploy, but all of his trained senses said he was certainly alone. Giving a long moment for anyone to reveal themselves, Donnie gave himself a little shake to get his blood flowing before deciding to return to his bot once again. Turning back to the workbench, he stiffened as his lifted foot came down on a lush field. This time when he drew back, the greenery didn’t disappear. Spinning rapidly, he found the landscape stretched on endlessly in all directions. His blood pressure bottoming out, Donnie tossed his head up and squinted directly at the gently beaming sun overhead. It warmed his skin and he brought an arm up to chase the sensation. Everything about this felt real, but so did Hypno’s more ridiculous spells.

“You forgot the brainwashing part!” Donnie gripped, slowly rotating to find any sign of a culprit. Reaching onto his person, he cursed as he found that while his wraps were still in place, both his battleshell and tech-bō were left charging on ports that seemingly no longer existed. Feeling very exposed, he readied his stance and waited as only a shallow breeze caressed his cheek.

It took what felt like several long minutes before he dropped his shoulders with irritation. “So, just nothing? Seriously?”

Only the rustling of grasses responded.

Bored, Donnie took several strides forward before looking back to find any plants he crushed underfoot seemed unaffected. The scientist in him reared its head as he purposely stomped. Each step would press down on the greenery, but as soon as he lifted off, they sprang back up in time. It was like a video game with little finesse. Crouching down, he made an attempt to pull the plants from the ground. A faint ring of laughter echoed from the skies above. Donnie jolted to his feet from where he had just wrapped his hands around a fistful of grass. Scanning wildly, he spied the figure of a black haired man in the far distance toward where he had just come. Staring, he reminded himself that he had definitely looked there previously and found nothing. A tingling sensation tickled the back of his neck. Craning an arm to rub at the spot, Donnie slowly started to approach the man.

“Hey!” Calling out, the man didn’t react and instead was staring at the sky above. At a distance where he couldn’t make out any facial features, he watched as the man swayed as if he were locked in some intense conversation. Shouting again, Donnie felt the tickling spread down his arms. It sent a fear response through his spine so he picked up the pace. Eyes locked on the figure, he narrowed his gaze as he didn’t seem to be getting any closer. With each passing stride, his limbs felt both heavier and lighter. He dropped his center of gravity to make a jump, but found that pushing off barely sent him more than a foot off the ground.

Knowing he had far more power than that, Donnie scowled as when he was about to search his person for the cause, he noticed the man slowly lose his opacity. Flexing his fingers, he felt a longing pull to gaze at his hand. Refusing to look away, he could sense his brain sending signals to his legs to keep running, but it didn’t feel like the action was being carried out. The man still loomed on the horizon, now looking down at his limbs as Donnie had just felt the call to. It felt like déjà vu and so much more.

Pushing so hard, Donnie could feel the veins in his neck grow taunt, he felt a whiplash sensation as all the ground he never covered suddenly rushed around him. Eyes unable to focus at the intense speed, he soared until his limp form was brought right up to the man; only the faintest traces of him could be seen. Only able to see the man's back, Donnie watched as his own hand came into view as he reached out to the now phantom. The figure disappeared just as a green hand had made contact with it and overhead buzz of lab lighting rushed into his ears.

“You aren’t going to give up are you? You finally almost had your chance.”

Gasping, Donnie jolted upright and found he was laying on the floor. Resisting the urge to scream, he scrambled to his feet. “Analysis! Scan the lab for intruders and playback the last 15 minutes!” Donnie rounded on his monitor and watched himself walk up to his workbench. After a few moments, he ran through pulling out the surveillance bot and recoiling at nothing. Grimacing until his lip pulled away from his teeth, he felt a cold chill as he watched tangible proof that there hadn’t been anything there. Dread reared its head as he watched as past him decided to table the issue and return to work. The footage changed from his memory as he watched himself collapse to the floor of the lab instead. Leaning in close to study the image for signs of seizure, he instead found his past self’s expression twist as he presumably ran through the dream-like state.

As the footage caught up to the present, Donnie swapped screens for the scan. There was no one else present. Brow coming down, he restarted the recording and watched as inevitably his past self mouthed the questions to the lab. The silence of the footage caught him and he quickly turned the volume up on his computer where he had at some point muted it. Starting the footage over once more, he stared numbly as he listened to himself question the empty air. He heard the thump of a crumpled body smacking onto concrete and then, just as his past self awoke, he heard a garbled statement. His head nearly bobbed as he rolled the footage back just a few seconds to hear the sound again. It was useless crunchy audio so he brought up a program to isolate it. Passing it through filter after adjustment, he could just barely make out a question about giving up and a chance.

Chewing on his lower lip, Donnie collapsed in his chair and set the still barely understandable audio on loop. It’s distorted sound had an odd rhythm to it that brought his lids down. Donnie let it echo as he recalled the only close up image he had gotten of the man in the field. Trying to recall as much detail he could about the person, a flash of a beak biting down into mochi appeared.

“Koi.” The syllable hit Donnie’s ears and took several moments before he was able to acknowledge it was his own. As registration occurred, he shot forward. His fingers flew across his keyboard and the measured  hammering filled the air.

-

“Help me explain to the others that I need to find a single person in a city of almost 9 million people!”

From where Mikey was balanced on one toe atop a precarious several foot tall stack of knickknacks, the younger brother opened a single eye. “What?”

“Look-” Donnie shuffled in from the doorway of Mikey’s room, trailing continuous stationary with hundreds of lines of little black print on it. “I don’t know how to explain this. I guess it’s a mystic thing, so you would understand best! I need to find someone and I need to explain to the others because I need help.”

Shifting his weight, Mikey hopped off the stack and landed beside his brother only to have the pile crash to the ground as soon as he came up. “Dang…”

“I’ll help you rebuild it.” Donnie offered the sentiment along with a sheet of paper.

Mikey took it and read over the list of names. “Is this what you’ve been working on?”

“No. Yes. It’s not important.”

“Donnie…” Mikey warned, letting the page loosen in his hands.

“None of this mystic stuff ever makes sense!” Donnie reeled, trying to pull up the rest of the pages up and finally realizing he had been leaving a breadcrumb trail of them behind.

“I would say mysterious ways, but I don’t think that’s gonna be much help now.” Mikey rounded his older brother and started to collect the paper. “Maybe take a breath and try telling me what happened?”

Donnie groaned loudly before relenting. By the time Mikey had stacked all the paper back up neatly, Donnie had just mentioned the ominous carp phrase that had come off his lips. “-so I pulled surveillance from the area the day of Meat Sweats' attack and this is the culmination of identified persons who were waiting in line at the food trucks.”

“This many!?” Mikey ran a thumb through the pages.

“I was able to narrow it down to about 1000 people hence why I need-”

“The help.” Mikey winced.

“Interrupting, but correct.” Donnie sighed.

“Who do you think the mystery person is?”

“I have no idea, but they chose the wrong person to reach out to. Everyone should know apathy is my specialty.” Tilting his head to one side, Donnie put on his carefully curated aloof visage.

“Maybe it’s because they knew you’d have the tech to find them?” Mikey stared down at the first page with a furrowed brow.

“That’s as good a guess as any at this point.” Donnie shrugged and reached out.

Mikey catching wind of what was happening and handed over the top half of the stack. “Are they in danger? Cause this is uh… gonna take awhile?”

Shaking his head, Donnie looked down from the pages in hand to where they were still connected to the ones in Mikey’s.

Coming up to view the younger, Donnie watched as something occurred to Mikey and he set his portion on the floor. He then cascaded around his room in a sorting flurry with craft supplies flying around his wake. When he returned he had a slew of highlighters and plopped down cross-legged in front of his stack and started marking. “Let’s color coordinate by the boroughs!”

Donnie sat down as well and took an offered green highlighter from Mikey.

“That’ll be Manhattan.”

Nodding, the two flipped through the pages with only the soft scrap of pen to paper sounding in the room. After making substantial progress, Mikey blinked up to spy on his brother.

“Feeling a little calmer?”

“I knew what you were doing.” Donnie smirked and didn't look away from his work.

“You’re gonna have to pull the ‘trust me on this’ card.”

“Ugh, can’t you play into your skills? Say something like you found someone’s personal effect and you are in dire need of returning it!”

“Donnie.”

Donnie chewed the inside of his cheek and flipped over to a new line of names.

“You said there was a recording?”

Perking up only slightly, Donnie brought his cuff up and played the audio.

Mikey closed his eyes and leaned in close with a turned ear to the sound. Donnie replayed it several times before the younger brother’s eyes flew open. “Fate.”

“What?” Donnie soured, turning the sound bite off.

“’You finally almost had your chance!’”

Eyes blinking wide, Donnie slammed a finger to play the clip one more time. “You understood it?!”

“Only that last part.” Mikey hummed before taking a deep breath. “Oh man, why didn’t I think of it sooner?! You have fate stink all over you!”

“I most assuredly do not!” Donnie hissed, retrieving his highlight as a mock sword.

“A fated chance!”Mikey crooned, his excitement taking him to his feet. “You missed them before, but when?” Switching gears from romanticized cheer to curiosity, the younger brought an uncapped red highlighter dangerously close to his chin in thought.

“Only 20 years to sift through.” Donnie made a show of rolling his eyes and marking another name.

“Only…” Mikey mouthed before tapping the pen nib to his cheek. “Or more...”

“More, sure.” Not dismissing with a barb, but instead out of distraction, Donnie reached out and grabbed a discarded purple highlighter to continue working.

“A vision… A otherworldly voice… a destined meeting….” Taking counting steps, Mikey’s footfalls echoed loudly. “Uh duh!!!”

The sound brought Donnie’s head up and he watched his younger brother scrub his hands over his face.

“It’s gotta be your soulmate!!!”

Donnie dropped his jaw in disgust at both the sentence and the red lines that now smeared across Mikey’s face.

“Don’t give me that look! You were just trying to get me to act out some kinda romcom trope to trick our brothers!” Mikey turned and pointed the highlighter right at his brother.

Affronted, Donnie looked away nervously.

“Ha! Got you! Which movie was it?” Mikey chirped, dropping down to his knees in his original spot.  

Before Donnie could open his mouth, a different voice floated in.

“We watching a movie?” Leo leaned languidly in the door frame before busting out laughing. “You look like if I went through a wash cycle and you know I’m dry clean only!!”

“Who? Donnie?” Mikey pondered, rapidly looking between the pair.

Donnie rolled his eyes. “We are not watching a movie, Mikey is helping me with some important work-”

“We’re narrowing down the list for Donnie’s soulmate!” Mikey nearly sang.

Leo who had almost recovered from his first bout of laughter broke down again.

“Mikey!” Donnie seethed, squeezing his two highlighters with bareful force.

The sounds of the blue brother wheezing seemed to summon Raph, who looked over each part of the scene curiously.

“What? You wanted my help and honesty is the best policy!” Mikey folded his arms, streaking red across his left bicep in the process.

“The cap!” Donnie screeched, grabbing said red hunk of plastic and throwing it right into Mikey’s forehead. “And you-!” Spinning around, Donnie launched the blue highlighter at Leo’s hacking form.

“Guys, we ain’t 10 anymore. Don’t throw art supplies…” Raph sighed, sidestepping Leo who only laughed harder at the implement thrown at him. “What’s going on?”

“Do-” Leo gapsed for air.

“Wait, did I get marker on me?” Finally capping the pen, Mikey examined his right arm carefully.

“Don-” Leo crawled forward.

“The other one.” Raph offered before looking around.

Donnie took a deep breath. “Glossing over the fact that I specifically asked you to help me ‘convince them’ and not just ‘tell them outright,’ you think you could have, I don’t know, called a meeting or something!?”

“We always have each other’s backs!” Mikey protested, still examining the wrong arm. 

“Scoff doesn’t even begin to label my response to that!” Donnie reeled with annoyance.

Locating a box of tissues, Raph walked it over to Mikey. “Right arm and your whole face.”

“Oh!!!” Mikey crooned as if it were an epiphany. He then snatched a tissue and buried his nose into it.

“Donnie!” Leo finally managed both a word and to reach said brother.

“What?” Donnie responded flatly, hands ready to push him away at any moment.

“Did...” Leo sucked down another gulp of oxygen before laying himself out as if he were the picture of poise. “…you print out your online dating matches off some nerd website? Connect with local eggheads in your area?”

Raph moved first, but he wasn’t close enough as Donnie wrapped his hands around Leo’s throat. The three scuffled and Mikey stood up in an unhurried fashion. The youngest then took the orange highlighter and flicked the cap off with one hand. He smeared war paint on each of his cheeks and then tossed the marker aside. Planting his feet, he then flexed at his knees a few times and then breathed deeply.

“HOLD IT!!!”

The other three froze mid-fight with Donnie on Raph’s back clawing at Leo who was being held out by his arm pits at Raph’s front.

They watched as Mikey momentarily scrambled away, only to return wearing an orange helmet. “Sit!”

With a honed exchange of vicious glances, the other three brothers took to a line on the floor.

“As the resident mystic master, this is my domain. Now Donnie has been mystically chosen to find someone. I will not admit to jumping the gun because I do think it’s his soulmate, but I guess we don’t know that for sure.” Mikey shot Donnie a quick wink and then resumed his authoritative demonstration. “We are gonna help our dear brother out and-” He threw out a finger to the forgotten stack of pages. “-Narrow down this list because that’s what fate wants!”

Silence held for a moment before Raph looked to Donnie and then Leo flanking him on either side. Donnie pouted and sulked into himself while Leo looked on with growing confusion. Bringing his gaze back to Mikey, Raph raised his hand.

“Yes!” Mikey swooped his digit to point at the eldest.

“What the heck are we talking about?”

“Well, you see-” Donnie started, scotching forward at the chance to drop an explanation.

“Wait, I wanna tell it this time!” Mikey hopped forward a few eager steps.

“Wouldn’t it make more sense if I-” Donnie made out before Mikey came in close enough to press that same outstretched finger to his brother’s lips.

“It all started the day of the food truck meet up…!” Mikey threw out his other hand as if painting a picture.

-

“So…” Leo drew out the syllable in a manner that mimicked the last three days.

Perched in various trees, the brothers overlooked a gentleman sitting on a park bench. After an agonizing afternoon of back and forths over the purpose of the visions, Donnie was at his wit’s end. When he thought they finally understood at least that much, he’d let it slip how long he’d been studying the query which then triggered the annoyed protests of a week leaving them out of the loop. Disorganization followed before a plan was set. In a bit of cosmic cruelty, their first outing ended in them not able to locate a single person on their first list. The city that never sleeps earned its reputation as the four learned the hard way that an address does not always mean someone is home. The others had also annoyingly stopped him from activating a tracking network on all potential suspects. Invasion of privacy extended only to what was available in a phone book even though his argument that he’d already hacked surveillance cameras was more than sturdy enough. Still, he needed the help so he agreed. He just might go ahead and stumble upon more data if this night were to end in another failure.

“That’s him…” Mikey hummed checking his phone. “Number 23!”

Nerves oddly waning, Donnie gazed at the man through his goggles. A slew of tagging data appeared along with a telltale checkmark. “Correct.”

“That’s obvious, hermano. Didn’t you hear me before?” Leo huffed.

“We can always hear you, Leo.” Raph gave his brother a cheeky smile.

Leo played up his offense at the statement before smiling out of it. “I meant more what do we do now? Should he like glow or something when he comes in contact with D?”

Hearing the approximation of his name, Donnie flicked his head so his goggles snapped into their upright position. He frowned slightly and stared down at the man who seemed fatigued. The distance between them felt like miles of desert. “I’m not sure.”

“It’s ok to be worried…” Mikey dropped both his voice and body to Donnie’s branch. “It’s the first one.”

“Just think of him as some guy!” Leo added, kicking his legs. “The mystic connection thing will happen or not.”

“If it’s like our powers, it’s something we need to activate though.” Raph brought a corner of his mouth up in thought.

“Good point.” Leo closed his eyes in mock thought.

“Might as well talk to him in the meantime.” Mikey urged.

“We’re still mutant turtles. Am I going to just expose myself to 1000 people?” Donnie looked at Mikey’s out stretched hand with ever chasmed worry.  He wasn’t sure if he said that because it was a good point or because his brain was scrambling at the prospects of this grossly uncharted territory.

“Ehhh…” Leo hissed through clenched teeth.

“Well…” Raph started and stopped. “They already saw us.”

“Yeah?” Mikey rolled on the branch causing Donnie to clutch on for dear life.

“These are all people from the food truck thing, right? They saw us save them.” Raph pointed downward to Mikey.

“Yeah!” Mikey tittered, shaking the branch more.

Leaves sprinkled down and Donnie wished he wasn’t already on thin mental ice. “That doesn’t mean they’ll be friendly. The amount of people who have watched us save their actual lives and still mix up which mutant side we were on has been astonishing.”

Leo stood up on his branch and walked toward the base. The other brothers stopped to watch his movements. “Well… you know how this goes…”

Donnie felt his stomach bottom out. Fight or flight kicked in and he slammed a hand to the tree in a desperate attempt to get to his feet. He watched as Mikey, already well balanced, shot away and a flash of a blade cut the limb free from its wooden attachment. Donnie stifled a yelp as he careened down and just barely managed to land on his feet before the downed branch bumped him. His momentum toppled and he landed in a bush with a resounding thud. Groaning off the fall, Donnie popped up to yell at his brother only to hear a timid voice instead.

“Uh… Y-you ok?”

Staring at the man who looked back at him with a similar owlish expression, Donnie glanced in the trees to find all his brothers now missing. Bringing his gaze back to the stranger, Donnie gave a fake grin and forced an awkward foot forward out of the shrubbery. “Yes, I’m fine. I apologize for…” He cursed himself as he’d already mostly walked into the Leo-level joke. “…dropping in on you like this.”

The man’s wide eyes dropped slightly.

“You see I was just-”

“I’ve seen you!” The man animated, the surprise taking him out of his seat.

“Yes-”

“You saved me from getting burned!” The man shot forward and Donnie barely resisted the urge to step back. Before the mutant could register what was happening, his hand was taken and being shook at a furious level. “Thank you so much!”

“You’re… welcome…?” Donnie staggered, the whole exchange leaving him empty. He watched as the man’s hand retracted from his own and there was a ghostly cold left in its wake. There was no scientific basis for it, but every one of his senses was telling him that this wasn’t the right person. All the ever-present dread evaporated as his usual sureness flooded in.

“Is there anything I can do for you? Did something happen? Do you need me to ID the guy!? He was a pig!” The man seemed to get progressively more excited.

“Not at all.” Donnie raised a hand to stop him and the gesture seemed to work. “I am simply… conducting a survey. How would you rate my heroic experience? ‘Very satisfied, very, very satisfied, extremely satisfied?’”

The man thought on this very hard before looking up. “Just very. It was fine, but the aftermath sucked because I never got any food.”

Donnie grimaced. “And how is that my fault?”

The man rebuffed the indignity with one of his own. “I don’t know. You’re the hero! Sure, you saved me, but you could stick around for clean up more!”           

“That’s-” Donnie sneered. “We’re vigilantes! It’s illegal!”

“Nobody asked you to act outside the law.” The man shrugged, stepping back.

“You would literally be a battered if it weren’t for me!” Donnie seethed.

“I think I could have managed.” The man shrugged.

“Alright, alright!” Leo dropped down on the other side of the man. “We got his… response or whatever, time to go!”

The man gaped at Leo openly and then pointed. “You…”

“Yes, go on! More thank yous are in order?” Leo flicked his mask tails and waited for his praise.

“You’re the one that ran away with that other useless orange one!” The man gawked.

“Ran-!?” Leo seized up.

“Useless!?” Mikey’s voice echoed somewhere in the distance.

“Enough!” Raph dropped down behind Leo long enough to wrap an arm around him before shooting forward to snatch Donnie. “Thank you for your time, sir. Have an… ok day and maybe be less rude next time!” He parted the man with a final wave before soaring off back into the trees.

“Can you believe the nerve!?” Leo stewed as trunks flew around them.

“Let’s just-” Raph started as Mikey came into view and he dropped down beside him, depositing the other brothers. “He’s a jerk; people can be jerks!”

“Ungrateful!” Leo barked, storming in a small circle.

“Ingrate.” Donnie corrected, shaking his head free of the situation.

“Tell me he’s not your person?!” Leo looked to Donnie with pleading eyes before sweeping them to the left and talking out the side of his mouth. “Though he does match your personality.”

Donnie seized up for a moment before forcing the irritation out in one quick tensing of muscles. “No, he’s not my person.” Even with the exercise in restraint, the phrase still came out from beneath clenched teeth.

“Was there like a sign?” Mikey wondered, stepping forward to examine Donnie.

Donnie evaluated the youngest evenly for a moment before watching over the reel of the interaction again. He looked down at his hand and almost thought he saw an apparition of a translucent one over it. Turning the green appendage over, he seemed to remember his brother’s presence and looked up. “I think… I need to touch them?”

“That helps. So we got something to go off of!” Raph nodded, staring down at Donnie’s hand.

“You could probably get away with a little New York bump here and there instead of having to chat each person up.” Mikey bobbed with excitement.

“It’ll be a little touch and go for awhile, but at least we’ll be able to knock out the list!” Leo leaned forward with a bright smile.

The other brothers stood caught for a second before Donnie dispelled it. “Alright then, gentlemen! Shall we continue?” Tapping his cuff, he brought up a digital display of the list and the others crouched in close to see.

-

He had fulfilled his touch quota for a lifetime.

Donnie assumed he looked the definition of haggard, but couldn’t find the strength to glimpse himself in a mirror, front facing camera, or any of the like.

The past month had been an agonizing exercise in trials and tribulations. If he ever had so much of an inkling to take the most inane sample audience and test them against one of the most unknown variables of all time again, he now knew for a fact that he would take dip in a vat of slugs instead. Dragging a hand over his worn face, Donnie tried to force himself upright. The table he collapsed against wasn’t inviting in the slightest, but his plastron didn’t seem to care. Sighing, he relented and keeled over until his face pressed against the surface as well. There was a faint trace of stickiness that made his skin crawl, but even then he couldn’t bring himself to adjust. Instead he laid his arm cuff in front of his eyes and pressed the display on with his nose. It slowly ran a calculated cycle through the hundreds of red checkmarks that signified each and every failure. It was the digital count of exactly 1037 New Yorkers that were not this fabled person.

Groaning until the screen went to sleep, Donnie gave a slow blink. He could see the cycling of the different categories of people he had been forced to interact with. There was a good portion that fell under the header that Leo had frustratingly been able to make stick as the ‘touch and gos.’ They were the cleanest bunch data-wise by far in that he’d been able to tap them in passing and move on. Donnie had almost refined his technique to the point that he considered himself the candidate for a great life in pickpocketing were that something he’d want to cultivate. It had also helped, for once, that his brothers had made it into a game. They silently bet on whether or not a target would take notice as they were tapped in passing on the street. It was a nice little bolster to Donnie’s ego, not that he’d admit it.

From there, were the slew of typical New York talk-backs. They’d feel the touch and gripe loudly about it in a stereotypical confrontational manner. Donnie’s reactions depended on his mood. Either way he’d end up exercising a gross misuse of his skills whether it was to disappear without a trace or let off a little steam in a quick show of strength. His brother’s opinions on those interactions broke apart in a lazy divide.

After that came those who had to be creatively handled. They were a subset of persons that rarely allowed themselves open interaction on the street. It had been a fun utilization of Donnie’s costumed wardrobe that he rarely got to pedal out. In a play of sorts, he’d assumed the role of everything from bodega clerk to a businessman. There had been another split amongst the peanut gallery, but this time it was more for Donnie’s performance and less about the morality of his actions. The acting portion had been more of a distraction to the task at hand, but as time had worn on, it was almost necessary.

Though his brother’s would deny it until their last breath, Donnie saw that they were exhausted with the mystery. They vehemently stayed by his side out of a obligation he understood; if it was any of them that were cursed to find some person who was mystically calling out, he’d want to be right there whenever the exchange finally occurred. They had been through too much together to not worry about what could be any of a million outcomes.  Still, filtering through a thousand people while also still maintaining their protectors of New York status stole away almost all their free time. When they’d checked the final person off in the wee hours of this same morning and found it to be another failure, the drop in morale had been palpable. Donnie loved them unquestionably, but watching the mixture of reactions from Raph’s weary pity to Mikey’s near tears was something he wished he could have shooed them off from. It was Leo’s look especially that still haunted Donnie; that let down of what should have been something of a Holmesian fallacy, but there was just a shred in Leo’s eyes that doubted the whole thing. If Donnie were in his brother’s place, he knew he’d feel the same. This intangible haunting occurring was something he’d love to write off too. Unfortunately, in addition to the ghostly reminder, there was this  inexplicable ache in his chest that he had yet to solve.

In the end, Leo had called for a temporary parting to give Donnie his space. It had stung in its own way even if he had been about to ask for it. They all had heavy bags darkening their eyes and the weight of the supposedly loss was excruciating. All the time sunk with no apparent cost in sight. In another slow blink, he saw flickers of how he assumed they were. Mikey was presumably conked out after making breakfast for the others. Raph was either mediatating or in bed himself and Donnie just knew Leo was doing his own research. It had been something he’d caught an inkling of about halfway through the list. Leo seemed to know a little more about the target then the manifest noted. Donnie could almost laugh at the double standard. Leo was surely breaking some kind of law to get his information. Frowning, it was another similarity between the two had the shoe been on the other foot.

Bringing his lids up, the futility of the whole thing hung around Donnie’s neck like a noose. He wondered if he tried to file the problem away again if that mysterious entity would fling him back to that strange field. He’d idly tried to place it one sleepless morning, but they were indistinct grasses native to so many Asian regions that it left him with an exhaustive search area. It didn’t quite feel ethereal either and he didn’t want to begin to count the options if mystic realms were involved. Donnie debated the lesser of two evils between ignoring the headings of a mystic entity or asking Leo for help when between blinks a to-go coffee cup appeared between his face and his arm. The generic cup’s pale appearance was just jarring enough that it brought his head up.

“Sorry, um…!”

Giving the cup one last linger glance, he dragged his eye line up to the source of the voice.

You jolted as eye contact was established. “…How do I say this?”

He arched a brow.

“You looked like you needed a pick me up!” Your body bobbed as you brought your fists up in weak assurance.

You weren’t wrong. Donnie looked back down to the drink. He had almost forgotten he had wandered into a coffee shop in his defeated stupor earlier. It was surprising no one had thrown him out sooner. He had basically been darkening this corner spot for what felt like hours without purchasing anything.

“It’s just drip, but if you don’t like that I can get you something else.”

What an attentive stranger. Swinging his gaze back up, he evaluated you closely. You didn’t seem to work here, so you weren’t taking pity on him in that sense. Instead you looked a sort of put together version of someone who rolled out of bed. It was early, there were any number of possibilities for your attendance. “What roast?”

That probably wasn’t the kindest thing to say to someone who just bought you a drink.

“House…?” You straightened your back and tried to hide the way you looked out of the corner of your eye to catch a glimpse of the menu board.

Donnie chuckled. “That should be fine. Thank you.”

Turning and confirming to himself that the interaction was saved, Donnie palmed the coffee. Through the sleeve, the warmth tickled at his palm. He almost smiled as he brought it to his lips and took a sip. It was just a touch burnt, but it went down smooth enough that his shoulders relaxed. Staring out the window at those passing by, he noted that his emotional bar had ticked a little bit closer to neutral. That was as much as he could ask for with the looming preparations for a whole new set of search criteria. Who was he if he gave up against insurmountable odds? That was just every other day for him. Eyes drifting shut, he thought on how much a few sips of caffeine had affected him and how food would surely compound the effect.  

“Of course, you’re busy… or tired…”

You were still here; that was odd. Against his lids protest, Donnie opened his eyes again. Though blurry, he instantly made out a hand reaching towards his cup. His nerves tried to seize up, but it was too late. He really was off his game.

“I just wanted to thank you. Have a good day.”

He watched as your hand finally made it through the motions and gave the back of his the slightest brush with your fingertips.

Donnie wasn’t even sure he blinked when he felt the oddly familiar rush.

“Something this good should be savored!” Doremi threw up their chin, moonlight gleaming ethereal as their hair flittered around the motion.

“So it was good?” Shion looked down at his threaded hands to keep from staring any longer. He smiled to himself as the image had indeed burned itself into his mind.

“Of course, I mean, you got it for me!”

Coming out of the vision, Donnie spun out of his stool so fast his knees harshly slammed into the underside of the table. The sound was loud enough that several people looked on curiously as he watched you push open the café door. “Wait!!!”

You slowed, one foot still lifted.

Against stinging limbs, Donnie freed himself from his seat and staggered over. “It’s you!”

“Yeah?” You wondered, your brows traveling as far north as possible.

“You! I found you! Well you found me, but-” The feeling was overwhelming; he felt a thousand fireworks go off in his chest and it translated down his appendages. The radiating excitement converted into kinetic energy and before he could register what he was doing he scooped you up. You squealed at the motion and he sort of registered something falling to the floor as he spun you around.

“Stop! What!?” He could feel your protesting and finally the action caught up with his mind.

“Oh.” He set you down and surveyed the damage. It was your coffee that had been knocked to the ground and it’s leaking contents soaked through the pastry bag lying in its wake. Coming up with a sheepish bob of his shoulders, he noted the confused fear scrunched up in your features and body language.

That was certainly the right reaction to what just happened.

“I know how this looks…” He began.

“You-” You choked on the sound as an employee headed towards you.

Donnie watched you catch sight of them and then the unmistakable glance you then made to the door.

You weren’t on the list.

You were about to leave.

“Please.” He resisted the urge to step further into your space and trigger any more discomfort. “I know that was erratic and uncalled for, but there’s…” He trailed off realizing that he had no way of trying to explain to what was presumably a regular New Yorker something he barely understood himself. He shook the thought off and pleaded with his gaze. “I can’t explain it, but if you wouldn’t mind sparing some of your time. I’ll buy you another coffee and whatever else it is that I accidentally ruined… Just… If you could?”

Still curled in a defensive position you scanned his gaze for a long moment then took in his body language.

The employee appeared with a miniature mop cart. “Hey, you two alright?”  

Donnie swallowed hard in an attempt to keep himself from taking control of the situation. He’d already crossed a line and, though it pained him to no end, he needed you to decide.

Your brows came together as you debated and you knealt down to pick up the cup. “Sorry about this.”

Donnie could feel his chest tightening as the employee clearly took note that their question was dodged.

“It’s alright. We have spills all the time.” The employee ducked down near you and though they dropped their voice, his ears still picked up what was said next. “Are you ok? I can stall him if you need to leave.”

The part of indignity it served him was harshly undercut but how much he deserved that. Stepping back to give the two more breadth, Donnie glanced at his forgotten coffee.

“I’m… alright actually. Thanks for your help.”

That vibrating excitement returned, but this time Donnie shoved it all the way down to his feet. He kept his chin stiffly set in its turn so as not to alert you that he was listening in. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw you rise up and give him a look that said you knew regardless.

“If you need anything else, I’ll be at the counter when I finish up here. How about  a replacement?”  The employee discarded the trash and moved to prepare the mop with a placed sign.

“That’s alright. He’s got it.” You tipped your head, pointedly staring at Donnie.

“Yes.” He hoped the excitement in his voice was kept to a decent level. “Order whatever you want.”

You moved back to the counter and he followed behind making sure to maintain a safety bubble of distance. You ordered and with a sly look added on a breakfast sandwich that could not have fit in the bag he saw. He could appreciate that you took advantage of the situation.

“You should get something to eat too.” You noted, giving him a flicking once over.

“Can we saw low blood sugar is to blame?” He bobbed his head at you before turning to the cashier. “I’ll have one of the same.”

“Not a chance.” You hummed and watched as he paid. You both traveled back to where he had been sitting at the window and slipped onto the stools facing one another.

Palming his lukewarm coffee, Donnie chose to drink the liquid with only a minor sneer.

“So… Did you mistake me for someone else or…?” You craned an elbow to the table and rested your cheek against your hand in lazy wait.

He forced the kickback burn of his drink down and chased it with a gulp of oxygen. “Something like that?”  He followed it up with a wincing smile.

You seemed less than enthused.

“I want to explain, trust me, but it is…” He looked between the cup and you before setting it down. “You can trust me when I say it’s a complicated ordeal.”

You softened up a bit. “I guess that comes with the mutant hero territory?”

“Very much so.” He nodded approvingly.

You gave your own nod and the silence laid over the moment like a blanket.

With part of his mind still trying to find a suitable explanation for the mystic events, Donnie set a little processing power to some of the other unknowns from this chance meeting. “You said you wanted to thank me?”

“Oh… Yeah…” You tightened up in your stool and your arm fell from your face. “I was… uh…”

“At the food truck event?” He offered, using a sip from the cup as a means to hide his curiosity.

You snapped to attention. “Do you remember me from there?”

“Sadly, no.”

“But you-?”

“Order up!”

You both moved to get it, but you raised your hand. “Let me.”

Donnie nodded and watched as you slipped off your stool. You grappled slightly with the multitude of bags and to-go cup, but managed the handful and brought it back over. As if laying out a bounty, he smiled as you lined everything up and then slid his wrapped sandwich over like it was a payment for some misdeed.

“There were a lot of people there that day.” Donnie remarked as he picked at a sticker sealing the wrapping.

“It was crazy.” You huffed, taking a swig from your cup. “All that oil!”

“Which truck were you trying to order from?” Finally freeing his sandwich, he surveyed it before taking a handful. How you had fallen through the cracks of his pristine list making reared its head as an assaulting high priority.

“None of them!” You chuckled, mimicking his move with your food.

He froze, mouth still open from the bite he was about to take. “Then how?”

“How…?” You lead, watching him out of the corner of your eye as you kept your attention on your sandwich.

His lips made a thin line. “How were you there? Where were you?”

“Where was the event held?”

Your sudden airy attitude irked him. “In a plaza by the park.”

You nodded and took your first bite.

He watched you chew and then lolled his head back as he realized. “You were in the park.”

“Bingo.” You pointed at him with one finger that popped up from the bread.

“Where Meat Sweats was tossed into.” Donnie grumbled, vexation growing. “The park! Why didn’t I add that to my calculations!? It’s so obvious!”

He could feel amusement pouring off of you as you continued your meal.

Remembering his own, Donnie took a bitter bite of his sandwich. He paused as the flavors hit his tongue and with each subsequent chew his anger slowly dissipated. His earlier food assessment had been correct at least. He needed a little win.

“Calculations, ‘I found you,’ ‘sadly, no.’” You listed off before taking a sip of coffee.

Donnie stiffened as he realized where you were going.

“Think of a way to explain it yet?” You turned to him finally. “Why you were looking for me?”

He absolutely did not.

“You won’t believe me.” He left the last half of his sandwich and turned to you in show of opening up. “I still don’t quite understand.”

“You know…” You trailed off and gave a lingering glance to the window. “I have the day off. I think I have time for a crazy story.” You turned back to him with a bright smile.

For a moment, Donnie swore he saw gigantic golden eyes. It immediately disappeared, but spurned him to sink down in his stool. “If you insist…”

He went on to explain the past month leaving out very little detail as the story went on because the treading emotions crested as he recounted them. He had heard tale of how easy it could be to share a secret with a strange and while that rung true to a point, part of him intrinsically felt like he knew you. He also couldn’t shake the unmistakable flicker of joy in watching you. It stemmed from some deep recess of his psyche in a way that almost felt foreign. An never-ending line of people came and went with their orders. At some point you broke out a muffin and nibbled on it. Cups were drained and new ones were ordered by the time he caught up to the present.

Setting down your second cup, you had a haggard look on your eye. “That…”

“Yeah.” Donnie commiserated, sipping a fresh coffee.

“It’s a lot…” You swallowed hard.

“Yeah.” Setting his cup down, his eye chased it.

He wouldn’t blame you if you left now. At least he had gotten his chance.

In his periphery he watched you shake your head before bringing an arm up. It raked through your hair and stayed atop your head as you weighed the hefty connotations. The stretch pulled at your t-shirt and he caught a glimpse of a bit of color.

That little flicker exploded into a full blown flame.

“What’s that?” He pointed, glad he’d had freed his hands up.

“What’s what?” You murmured beside your arm. You followed his eye line and strained to see from your awkward angle. “Oh!” Finally bringing the limb down, you turned it towards him and rolled up your sleeve. “It’s my tattoo!”

His tongue went dry.

Skirting along your shoulder, a orange and white koi fish swam freely from somewhere behind your back and down your arm. Little droplets of water punctuated it’s lazy trek and shimmering scales reflecting in fine needlework.

A single chuckle escaped his lips.

“For as long as I can remember, I’ve always liked koi. I don’t know what it is, you know?”

Another single chortle.

“Woah! You ok?”

A few more dribbled bits of laughter came off his lips before the wetness chased them. Bringing a hand up, he touched the tears and could feel they weren’t his. As that recessed emotions gained form, he could feel someone else. They were both him and not at the same time. Their joy was so overwhelming. The crashing sensation brought forth more laughter to him. He wrapped his hands around his plastron to keep himself together. It wasn’t that he thought he was splitting, but it felt like there was too much inside for one body to contain. Outright sobbing and uncontrollably cackling, Donnie felt his consciousness pulled deep inside. In a dark space, his body seemed to free float and he watched that translucent man from the field appeared with a smile and tears on his own face. It was the first time Donnie had seen him so clearly, but at the same time he felt as though he'd always known. He gave Donnie a single nod before reality crashed back around him.

Donnie looked up through bleary eyes to find you had one hand on his shoulder and the other at his cheek.

He leaned your palm and tapered off the giggles until they formed a bright smile.

Mikey was right.

He’d have to tell him that later.

He’d have to tell them all about their fates later.

“I’m fine.”

“Yeah…?” You seemed pale and confused.

In this reality that made sense.

You couldn’t know.

At least, that wasn’t part of the deal.

Right?

“Can I ask you something that’s going to sound ridiculous?”

“I… guess?” Your voice peaked with frazzled worry.

“Have you ever wanted to eat koi?”

Your first reaction was to shake your head into a rollback of confusion.

Then there was a spark.

A blink and he would have missed it moment where something seemed to click; a hue of gold appeared to spin in your iris before disappeared. A single tear ran down your cheek and he watched as an odd calm seemed to wash over you. The hand on his shoulder left him before you brought it to touch the droplet in a similar manner as he had just done. Looking at it curiously, there was none of the similarly overwhelming follow-up that he had endured, but he didn’t want that for you.

“N-no.” You choked out, your voice thick. “I don’t think I have…”

He nodded and reached up to gently remove your hand from his cheek. He held it in his palm and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“What just happened?” You sounded breathless.

“Something a long time coming.”

It was slow, but through your conjoined hands, he felt you shake. He looked up in time to watch stifled laughter bubble up in you. He watched fondly as you shook what was certainly the exhausting length of emotions off before looking at him with lingering snickers. “What luck!”

If you liked this, there will be a whole list of behind the scenes notes posted on the membership tier of my ko-fi!

[accio-victuuri]

yuguyao sweets part 6 🫶🏼 🍬🍭 and other things..

( a very cute / good boi shuo shuo invites you in. )

this is his most recent one released by tencent video. i just love these because we are free to study it and the seeing how he explains things — no one can confirm that it has nothing to do with some of his life experiences.

what cpfs are mostly pointing out is this part, where he talks about when zhu yan stabs shi ying. and oh, apparently zz improvised the line : “if i die, will you be sad?”

He comforted her, he said don't be sad. I will not blame you. If there’s a kind of comfort, I think,, this is not the state of people who are truly in love for a long time. The state of people who are truly in love should be, I want you to feel sad for me. So when I am dying, I can hear your heartfelt words. I'll be happy if you’re sad because I feel like I've never been a perfect person in the setting of Shi Ying. I don't want him to be the perfect one. The director, writer, screenwriter and producer we all participated in heated discussion. That is, “what would happen if lovers really fell in love with each other?” I believe it will not be like this. Everyone is very twisted. The relationship must not be very smooth.

So let’s just analyze this…

1. People who are truly in love for a long time? Sir. What do you know about that? Maybe it has something to do with your husband. You can say that he got this understanding from somewhere and not necessarily from personal experience, but i feel like, when it comes to love and this kind of explanation, it has to be from XZ himself. When you talk about “love” in this kind of drama setting, it usually does not reflect what happens in real life. I’m glad he fought for that and has that kind of experience so he can give some input.

2. The part where he says, “I want you to feel sad for me.” — brings turtles back to the Japan Trip. When they were both “sad” because they were apart and both were not sure what will happen to them. We know they both gravitate towards “bittersweet love songs” and probably towards stories with that tone, but hearing XZ openly saying that love isn’t just sunshine and rainbows but also sadness is comforting. What matters is you stay together and are with each other in the happy & sad moments. When you think about how long they have been together and all the storms they had to go through — it makes sense that XZ will mention this. I wanna say WYB is attuned with XZ’s emotions, even if you don’t SZD, in the interviews back in 2019, it was so obvious that WYB can sense when XZ was already uncomfortable and will do his best to divert the attention.

3. The way he explains falling in love as twisted & not very smooth which i think means the “reality” of a relationship. Turtles were then quick to point out the “jealousy” examples we’ve seen before.

While I don’t think every evidence we’ve seen was jealousy ( tho happy camp gg was scary ), it makes sense in this context. The two of them didn’t have a very smooth relationship journey and even now, there are challenges but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth it. add the fact that it’s to be expected because of who they are. No matter what relationship timeline you believe in, theirs is not exactly the conventional story, so it’s telling that XZ describes falling in love this way.

I also read this comment and it’s so true!!!! XZ will not settle for anything less when it comes to love and maybe some people will find it too demanding.

If there is one person who can meet that standard and has a one track mind when it comes to the things he loves, someone who will pursue it no matter what — it’s wang yibo. 💚

I also love the part where he says one his favorite shoot was when the temple was being fixed and they had to be “outside”. they shot it in the studio and the light was very warm, like the sunshine. Oh. Okay. 👀

you mean like WYB’s song…. they really gravitate towards the same things, and to think this interview was way before the song was released.

AND OH this behind the scenes clip reminds us of this xz and wyb interaction. Their brains really connect like no other and they have the same humor! 😂😂😂

This one is not YGY related, but apparently the new trailer for One and Only was posted 10:05 then was deleted and reposted again. I’m sure there must be a reason, but turtles can’t help but clown and think they didn’t want to give candy with the 10:05 😂😂 or they did, but took it back. LOL.

There are figures sold for Chen Shuo & Shi Ying from the same company! I guess this fulfills people’s AU pairing of Shiying x Modern Yibo. of SDC 5 Yibo will work too 🥹���🥹

-END.

[redxixi]

Ok hear me out. The reader is a new teacher at UA and tries getting on all the teachers good side but aizawa is so good at keeping his emotions hidden she doesn’t know if he likes her. After the training camp incident they move into dorms and she lives with aizawa but they have seperate rooms to sleep in but everything else is shared. And during this time Aizawa “hating” her more as he always lectures her and gets mad at her so she’s convinced he practically hates her. She ends up hating him too cause he starts making her do more work. He ends up training her and she hates him even more since he wasn’t going easy and just gave her bruises or something. Then one day she was in the lounge room for their shared dorm area and she was doing something and aizawa helps her do it and BAM. she develops a crush and…. (Add ur own ending and twists because I know I’ll love it 💕💗) (also sorry this is long)

AHHAHDWJ ANON weird way or proposing but i accept. litterly AMZING. I did make this pure fluff tho so i hope you like this<3

`♧ : aizawa x reader

`♤ warnings : fluff, some unholy thoughts, some broken shi

~ summary : aizawa never hated you and he showed that when you got physically hurt.

as a new teacher in the best hero school you had to make sure to work extra hard and be friendly to everyone. aizawa made that difficult, whenever you would aproach him he would act cold towards you and lately he has been lecturing me for the dumbest mistakes, whats worse is that you live with him in the dorms. he had a problem with everything and it was suffocating. you couldn't stand him anymore, so how did it lead to this.

you were out with the class on the training grounds, training them to learn how to control their quirks better. aizawa obviously had to also be there because he "couldn't trust that you would do this task effectifely". seriously, i mean ofcourse you were new but why'd he have to be such an asshole.

aizawa on the other hands couldn't stop daydreaming about you bouncing up and down on his cock, making you scream his name, telling you love him. honestly he had a crush on you the day he saw you, he was just bad at expressing his feelings and that to you now hating him. couped up in his own thoughts he failed to see the incoming ice bolder todoroki made, but luckyly for him he had fast reflexes and jumped out the way. you were not as lucky.

"AAAH FUCK"

you yelled and he immediatly turned his head to you. you did manage to jump out of the way but you did it late causing you to make a horrible landing resulting to you spraining your ankle hard. immedialty aizawa and the other kids rush to your side.

"Y/N SENSEI are you okaay. im so so sorry for my mistake"

shoto was apoligizing frantically and bowin his head.

"n..no no i should have moved FUCK but its fine. i'll just go to the infirmary and they can fix me right up"

you said smiling trying not to cry. you feel aizawa looking at you so you looked back to him. he wrapped his hands around your waist and under your legs, caushing him to carry you bridal style.

"you kids go back training session is off today. i'll take Y/N sensei to the infirmary"

everyone was devistated but they did as they were told.

"what are you doing. you can put me down i can do this shit by myself"

you said in a snarky tone.

"shut it. im supposed to be supervising you so your my responsibility got it"

several days later you were still on bed rest. you were lounging in the living room of your dorm room and lets say things are different. after that day aizawa has been taking care of you, he makes you breakfast, lunch, dinner, he even reminds you to drink your meds. it was kind of him. he even gets your flowers everyday, he thinks you dont notice when he brings in fresh flowers and puts them in a vase. it made you smile seeing him like this.

he helps you with everything, he was sweet. you open your eyes to see the scorching sunlight. when you turned your head he was there, sleeping, sitting on the couch with you. you had your book in your head and you couldn't believe you fell asleep on his head. you were beat red. luckily he was still asleep but god he looked perfect sleeping, his hair was loose so there were a few strands on his head.

"this is nice"

you say soflty. you didn't want this moment to end. yes he had been an asshole to you but he's helped you alot, and now you didn't want him to wake you. you put your book away and gently snuggled back into him. you could hear his heart, breath and little snore. soon you yourself fell into deep slumber

this is nice.

A/N: TO THE ANON WHO ASKED THIS. thank you. i also dont know how to end this jdkajkqwenjk.

[eastwindmlk]

This has been stuck in my head ever since reading the little Jily/PJO mircofic by @alittlebitofeverything23 So, now I have to join in. With 600 words we also humbly offer this to @jilymicrofics though it might not quite fit a prompt.

Capture the flag was the highlight of camp activities and to James Potter, it was his whole life. He lived for the strategy and fights. It was thrilling! And as a son of Athena, he saw it as a way to honour his godly parent. Nothing quite came close to the pride he could feel swelling in his chest when they won. His offerings smelled extra fragrant on those nights.

He was one of the lucky ones. He had loving mortal parents who had always called him their miracle child. Their gift from the gods. They wrote to him and sent him care packages from home. Who had been sad to let him stay there when he got too old, too skilled. When dangerous things would come to interrupt their time together.

Then there was his brother for all intents and purposes. Sirius. From the moment they met, they were inseparable. Always by each other's side. Be it in battle or kitchen duty. They were half the noise coming from the Athena cabin and all the trouble.

Their third man came from the Apollo Cabin, shaggy-haired and warm like the sun itself. Always down for a laugh and best of all; remarkable foresight. Absolutely invaluable when planning anything. Where the other team went in blind, James trusted blindly in his friend's precognition.

Their quartet was rounded up by Peter, son of Demeter. Provider of snacks and deceptively sneaky despite his heavy footfalls. Always keen to listen to the whispers of the forest to give them an edge.

With the four of them, they never lost. Holding an incredible record of seven wins in a row. Until she showed up.

Lily arrived around the same time as them. But unlike the four boys remained unclaimed for a long time. Long enough that people started to speculate.

Some said she had to be a daughter of Apollo, picking up healing as easily as the senior campers. But Apollo never shied away from claiming his children. Especially not those as capable as her.

After hearing her scream and carry on at none other than James for pushing her into the lake, people decided Ares must be her father. The god of war did nothing, even when she broke James's precious winning streak.

Plenty of campers mentioned Aphrodite and Lily would laugh at them, flick her fizzy braids over her shoulder and walk away. A brave few even subtly asked Mr. D. why he had not claimed his daughter yet. But they would be laughed off the porch.

Whispers starting to go around the camp. Lily was a forbidden child, a daughter of Zeus himself. That is why she remained unclaimed. She was doomed to be Hermes's guest forever.

It was rare for a half-blood to be claimed by anything other than the Big 12. That no one seemed to figure it out, to see it coming.

Lily was claimed by Hecate. A child of magic itself. Fearsome on the battlefield and off.

To James, this meant one thing, and one thing alone. He needed her on his team. Partly because he believed that with real magic they would be utterly unstoppable. Which was accepted with a hum of agreeing voices during their strategy meeting.

Partly because he was convinced he could get the redhead to kiss him if she would only see how skilled he actually was. This he only brought up with his friends, who laughed at him.

Little did they know that, eventually, it was James who'd get the last laugh. Flag raised high in victory, he had captured it. Another victory under his belt.

Though no capture tastes as sweet as Lily who had captured his lips.

[odtherat]

Hey hi more

����,🔮

Heeeyhiii heheheh let's get into it coz I got hcs with this!

🌎 in clothing/doing something that represents their culture.

So. I hc that Bobby is French n Mexican-American. His mother being French and father Mexican-American(grandfather was full Mexican, jst to add bit more to his background :3)

So like. I'm tired n might get yelled at for this but idc so we pullin out the stereotypes. Let's be honest, tho. Bobby would put on that fake lil mustache n silly hat(he likes dressin up silly(*looking at the scene w the afro wig* silly)). You can also see the stripped shirt. A dumb reference to mimes since they're "known" as French stuff or whatever. Again. We pulled out the stereotypes 👍

I hate how he looks. Get the stache off him! GET IT OOOFFF!!! GET THAT SHIRT OFF HIM HE DONT LOOK GOOD IN STRIPPESS

I would have searched up, like, traditional outfits for both n woulda prob tried mixing them somehow, but again I'm tired. Should had this posted at least 2ish hours ago but kept getting distracted w shi

Anyway! The second one

🔮 using magic.

I hc that Max definitely had a small obsession with up close magic throughout middle school, probably begged to go to magic camp or smthin but ended up just learning from books that Goofy got him coz he most likely didnt have the funds for camp at the time(he felt horrible abt it coz Max got super sad before getting the books to learn from). I feel like he'd still randomly do tricks when he's bored, too. Maybe he'd do some during a party to impress some of the drunks or smthin. Idk

His favorite trick to do is a card trick called "3 card monte" mostly coz it's an easy way to earn a tiny bit of pocket cash. If you don't know it, you basically bet a sum of cash n have to find which of the three cards its under. If you want a full explanation, Google.

No, like, seriously, hes probably earned at least over 200 from gullible adults n classmates in his hometown throughout middle/high school from this trick.

Would do this w that one, but since I'm only doing just 1 ss with each rn, I made him do a silly lil hat trick.

Also, small change w the gloves. He now has the spikes/studs(whatever it's called) instead. Coz ✨emo boi✨

[allzelemonz]

Loyal O’Driscoll: Kieran Duffy X Male Reader

Pronouns: he/him, Reader referred to as ‘mister’ Physical Sex: None Mentioned Rating: T/Violence, Language Warnings: O’Driscolls are their own warning, reader is an O’Driscoll, pre-cannon setting, bullying, very fluffy Kieran Duffy Summary: O’Driscolls are never kind, which is why Kieran is surprised that you’re helping him after a few of them played a prank. Part 1, Part 2

The number of times the words sir or boss come out of your mouth makes it hard to deny your loyalty to the grand outlaw Colm O’Driscoll. You have run with him for almost a year, longer than most last. Colm gives you jobs that take loyalty, he trusts you. It’s been a long time since you’ve been at the bottom of the ladder, so seeing what Kieran goes through is hard. He’s the new guy, shy and eager to please. Everyone takes advantage of that. Which is why you’re helping him clean up some eggs a few goons smashed into his hair.

“You don’t gotta help me, Mister.” He says as he watches you wipe the slimy yolks from his hat. “I can clean it up.”

“You shouldn’t have to.”

“They was playin’ a joke, it’s alright.”

“I see if I can get Colm to send them on that suicide job. Or I’ll shoot them myself” You glance up and the still egg covered stable boy. “They’re assholes, they deserve it.”

Kieran sighs. “You really don’t have ta.”

“I do.” You say, getting the last bit of egg out.

“Why? I ain’t nobody important.”

“To Colm.” You sigh. “But I like you, Kieran. I want you to stick around.”

“Ya like me?” Kieran asks, sitting on a stool on the other side of the water trough.

You take a rag and start scrubbing the egg out as best you can. “Sure. You’re nice, good at your job, loyal as far as I can tell.”

“Oh.” He says, a little dejected.

“You’re gonna do things one day, Kieran. You can’t be in the stables forever.”

“I like it here.” Kieran says. “It’s not so bad.”

You chuckle, looking up at him. “Nothing compared to robbing a train.”

You set his hat down on your stool as you stand up and move over to Kieran. You run the wet rag over his hair. He shies away a little at first, but then he lets you run the rag over his messy head and pick out the pieces of shell as his face takes on a steady shade of pink. You work through his hair until there’s no egg left you can see, then you wipe the bit of yolk that trickled down his neck. He leans into your touch, trying to feel your fingers brush against his skin again but you walk away.

He watches, cheeks still pink, as you grab his hat and lightly place it on his head. For a moment he sits there, frozen. His eyes follow you as you sit back down and adjust your gun belt to make yourself more comfortable. He’s seen you come and go from the stables a hundred times, yelling at a handful of your fellow O’Driscolls or taking an order from Colm. He’s heard people call you Colm’s dog. While you’re not the only one who comes when he calls and does whatever he says, you’re the one that seems nice when he walks away. You tell off the ones that deserve it, you visit your horse if you haven’t left camp in a while. You’re hardly what Kieran would think of when an O’Driscoll comes to mind.

“Thank you, Mister.” He mumbles.

You smile. “You don’t have to thank me, Kieran.”

“I-I do.” He says, meeting your eyes when you look up to him. “Anything you want, Mister. Anything.”

“Be careful, don’t piss off Colm.” You say. “Just don’t get yourself killed so I can keep coming to see you.”

“What?”

“It’s the highlight of my day, Mister Duffy.” You smile at him.

“You come here ta see me?” He asks, a confused look taking over his face.

“I can only give my horse so many carrots.” You chuckle. “I’m surprised you didn’t notice.”

You stand and go back over to him and take his hat off his head so you can press a light kiss to his cheek. He looks up at you, bewilderment on his face.

“I ain’t nothing special, Mister.”

You press the next kiss to his forehead. “Of course you are.”

[soulmatebracket]

Soulmate Bracket: Round 1 [Side A — Part V]

Provided reasoning under cut:

Wei Wuxian & Lan Wangji

They are canonically called soulmates!! In the live action this is platonic due to censorship and in the book it is romantic but the term actually used is zhiji (知己) of which soulmate is the closest english translation but is more literally like. the mirror to your soul. your own self in another person. i am not good with translations only wei wuxian dies but lan wangji mourns him for thirteen years (despite wwx being hated and despised by the world) because he can never love another. when wwx is brought back he recognises him instantly despite being in someone else’s body. they literally would find each other in any time or place

Oh boy. Ok. They're not explicitly called "soulmates" in the show/book but Netflix does use that categorization in its description of "The Untamed". Nor are either of them technically reincarnated BUT Wei Wuxian does get resurrected in another man's body through some shady necromancy, which is pretty darn close. They've got a fascinating relationship journey (basically enemies/rivals to lovers) Mr. Follow-All-Rules-To-The-Letter Lan Wangji meets Mr. Break-All-The-Rules-In-The-Name-Of-Fun-And-Showing-Off Wei Wuxian at teenage exorcist summer camp, they go through some sh*t, Wei Wuxian dies, Lan Wangji spends over a decade trying to find any sign of his lost soulmate while raising his adopted kid, then the shady necromancy happens and Lan Wangji IMMEDIATELY clocks that this guy simultaneously solving exorcist issues using slightly questionable means and causing shenanigans is Wei Wuxian. He might be in a different body pretending to be another crazy man, but HE KNOWS it's his guy because he acts the same and he knows the secret love song Wangji wrote for Wuxian that he shared one time in a cave during one of their near-death bonding experiences. Then history starts kind of repeating itself, only this time they stick together and make sure EVERYONE knows that they've got each others' backs, and they are absolutely legendary. Also Wei Wuxian is INCREDIBLY dense and it takes him just about until the end of the story to realize they're both gay and in love. They're complex and fascinating and tied to each other by the red string of fate so tightly that they are incomplete without each other. That's destiny, baby. They're soulmates, always and forever. (Possibly literally as the proper practice of exorcism (called "cultivation" in this world) can lead to immortality, and you know Mr. Follow-All-Rules-To-The-Letter Lan Wangji has the potential, and he will drag his guy along with him so they are never separated again.)

Okay so I feel like it could be argued if they count but the Netflix description of the show calls them soulmates and WWX *did* get reincarnated and then almost immediately run into LWJ who had been mourning him for 16 years. LWJ composed a little musical theme for them that ties them together and WWX playing it on a super out of tune flute is what let LWJ fully recognize him. Their magic which comes from their souls is very compatible and neither of them have ever been normal about each other in their life even though WWX spent a long time being extremely dumb and repressed about his very gay feelings (they are romantic soulmates, just takes them a bit to get there). Big "you and me against the world" vibes once WWX becomes the number 1 wanted guy in the entire universe due to dabbling in dark magic even though WWX was like "lan zhan if someone has to kill me i want it to be you" (LWJ did *not* want it to be him and did his very best to keep WWX alive even though it meant betraying his clan and the world as a whole). They got fake married as teens back when LWJ didn't even like WWX. There are multiple moments where they parallel other soulmates/soulmate-coded characters (song lan and xiao xingchen, baoshen sanren and lan an). They're the only two characters who get to be happy at the immediate end of the story and that's because both of them being alive and together and getting to wander around fighting monsters and playing music and being grossly in love is all that they both need.

Utena Tenjou & Anthy Himemiya

[SPOILERS] at the end of the series, it is revealed that they weren’t living in the real world this entire time. Utena was sent somewhere else. Anthy goes to find her in the movie, and Utena has lost all of her memories of Anthy in that world. At the end of the movie, they end up escaping to the real world

Utena falls in love with Anthy on first sight and makes sure she becomes her prince without even remembering who she is. They're stuck in a timeloop and eventually find themselves together near the end escaping from the horrors theyre trapped in. (Spoilers kinda) Anthy is hinted to have came back to life after being burned st the stake for being seen as a witch so the reincarnation exists,,,(they're in love your honor vote for my silly sapphics)

Every version of RGU is the narrative repeating itself. Devouring itself again. The serpent eating its own tail. Utena fights for Anthy again and again. Anthy betrays Utena, or lies to Utena, or cannot save the both of them quick enough. Anthy escapes, or they both escape, or they both get trapped again, and the story repeats, and Utena is winning the hand of the rose bride, and Utena cannot escape the narrative. Each time the story is told again Utena cannot quite remember how she got here, but it gets more familiar each time. RGU is a time loop that the characters can hardly escape. In every version, Anthy and Utena find each other. Betray each other. Find each other, again.