#The Eternal Knight made me cry the first time I watched it

[saturnniidae]

I'm rewatching trollhunters and just got to 3x7, and it never fails to make me emotional. Like, the opening flashback of Merlin making the amulet (especially the scene of Morgan's hand sinking into the cauldron. it's amazing, actually),

And all the parallels!

Angor Rot convincing Gunmar to let Draal live because what he said reminded him of his time obeying Strickler, Draal saying "don't make it weird" when he offered Jim a hand up just like when Jim first spared Draal after their fight,

AND MY FAVORITE ONE: the parallel to Kanjagar's death, with his son dying in the same pose as his father as he falls off a ledge, presumably smashing into pieces on the ground. It's just so ajdjsjsnfi

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL

Nov 2022 Wk 2

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying the most.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Between Us (Sun iQIYI) 1 of 12 - It got hot and heavy way faster than expected. With DeanPharm the side couple, I just want more of them like I did with WinTeam in UWMA. But yeah, it’s VERY good, thank fuck. WATCH ALONG HERE. 

Big Dragon (Sat Gaga) 6 of 8 - How can this dumb little pulp be so good? Also P’Nine? I will heal your broken heart. The brother zone is rough, baby. The thing about this damn drama is all of the characters are honestly motivated and act in accordance with their personalities. I think that’s mostly why I can’t stop watching. Loved the scene with Yai and his ma-in-law-to-be. Also, nice stinger! That’s one way to come out. Look this was a REALLY engaging ep. 

My Only 12% (Fri iQIYI) 14fin - I really did not expect this show to end on this note. Ah Earth with the crying. I did expect the final episode to be family drama-llama, but this kind of drama didn’t work for me under the context of a BL. I do love the siblings. (There’s a part of me that wanted Prem’s character to be Team. This could work as Team’s back story.) All in all? I found it disappointing. Conclusion: This is a strong little BL romance (tailor made for SantaEarth) about holding onto first love and childhood, but it’s buried under waffling family drama and formless side characters so that it took a lot of digging to get to - still, RECOMMENDED. 8/10 

Ai Long Nhai (Mon iQIYI) 7 of 10 - Nothing continues to happen and exactly nothing will and yet I keep watching. Probably because the nothing keeps getting shirtless. 

Ghost Host, Ghost House (Weds YouTube) 6 of 8 - Cute bfs are cute but... NO SINGING. Adorbs but sad GL side plot AKA dead lesbians got a nod. 

Remember Me (Sun Gaga) 5 of 12 - JaFirst are just great on screen together, I am very invested in their couple but, yeah, no one else. The stuff with Name was really difficult to watch, but Title is a GREAT little actor. 

Love in the Air (Thurs iQIYI) 13fin - Ultimately? Sky needed a therapist not a stalker lover, but whatever Mame. DUMPSTER FIRE TRASH WATCH COMPLETED HERE. I gave it a very reluctant 7/10, recommended only if you know you like this kind of thing. Look you remember in high school drama class where they make you “envision a basket, and put all of your worry, bad mood, and anxiety into that basket, and leave it outside the door”? Well, in order to enjoy this show, you have to do that, only with your morals. Some people have bigger baskets than others. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

My Tooth Your Love (Taiwan Fri Viki) 6 of 12 - I do like a little jealousy from the dentist. Yet another installment in this week”s “please get that uke to a therapist” only this time (unlike LITA) our seme actually gives it an honest try. I might be completely and totally in love with the dentist. I adore how stern he gets, plus he has a very strong white knight tendencies. Also baby boi wanna-bartend with the big-ass crush is giving me life. 

Eternal Yesterday AKA Eien no Kino (Japan Thurs Gaga) 4 of 8 - Am I the only one who JUST realized the actor playing Koichi is Komiya Rio who played Tanaka in Takara & Amagi? I’m so slow. Look all Japanese BL (even the most fluffy nonsense like Kabe Koji) is a little bit emo and exists in a sideways state. It’s gonna go into uncomfortable and uncanny spaces. It’s what it does. This one, given its psychological horror elements, is even more uncanny, to the point of creepy. I’m not a big fan of creepy, and yet I like this show. Japanese zombie incubus? Yes please. Look, I’m utterly unable to back away from the pun, and so: I see seme stiffie can get a stiffie. Puns aside? This was a killer first-time sex scene for something relatively low heat. I’m reminded of Shin’s tongue. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, no one does thirst like Japan. Korea and Thailand can have a winsome yearn-off, and Taiwan is great a pining, but Japan? Japan brings the Thirst. 

Choco Milk Shake (Korea Strongberry Tues YT) 3-4 of 10 - I love this show so much. It made me tear up and then in the second part I was laughing my ass off, because the cat was trying to teach the dog how to stare properly. So funny. Then Pets being worried about their sick human, is so accurate. Is anything funnier than the idea of a cat in a service industry job? I really don’t want this to be sad. Please don’t be sad. In Strongberry we trust is my mantra!

Kabe Koji (Japan Mon Viki) 6 of 10 - I like it more and more as it goes on, but I still don’t think I actually, ya know, like it. 

It’s Airing But I’m Not Watching It

War of Y (Thai Gaga) 20 eps - it’s just all too much for me.

My Roommate (Thai YT) 32 eps of 2 minutes each + terrible production values? - I’m not bothering.

Fahlanruk (Thai Sun GaGa) 12 eps - I cut my losses at ep 5. DNF

To Sir With Love AKA Khun Chai 28 eps - dito

2 Moons 3 (Thai Mon ??) 10 eps - Possibly a future binge watch. Rumor is it’s banal.

SELF (Thai Thurs YT) - DNF

Love Bill  (Vietnam Sat YT) - Bah Vinh is back but I’m too distracted. Also there’s a lot of fund raising and stuff going on. I’ll wait and binge.

In Case You Missed It

Korean GL She Makes My Heart Flutter finished it’s run on YouTube. RECOMMENDED. Full review (not by me) here. Extremely cute, about a lesbian bar run by an aunt and her niece.  

I have no idea if any of these still work, but the spies reported in on ways to watch the Cherry Magic movie (2022) with Eng Subs: BiliBili | Website I liked it, not as much as the original, solid 8/10 from me. Again no kissing, these actors must be expensive. Still with Thailand bringing the high heat with such consummate casualness these days (licking ass and taking names) there really isn’t much of an excuse anymore for no kisses. Even Korea has buckled. 

Gossip

Kpop boy group OnlyOneOf has collectively signed up to be in idol-based BL, Bump Up Business (based on a webtoon of the same name). They’ve been auditioning for this since Libido IMHO. You can watch me chronicle their BL MV series in this post. It’s from Idol Romance who will do sad and can do good kisses (Wish You, Nobleman Ryu, Once Again, Kissable Lips, Poongduck 304, Tasty Florida, Tinted With You). More info here. 

HIStory 5 is coming! Office BL + time travel. “A cheerful and energetic senior student from 2000 travels to the future (2022), works as a deliveryman, and meets his first customer, an heir with a domineering personality.” Nancy Chen to direct (HIStory 4, Papa & Daddy).

Next Week Looks Like This:

Starting up: 

Nov 18: I Will Knock You (Thai Fri Gaga) A college kid & tutor confronts the leader of a gang who then turns out to be his next student. Bad boy/good boy + sunshine/grumpy, + younger seme pairing, bully romance. Adapted from korean_rabbit's y-novel of the same name, directed by Champ (2gether).

Nov 19: GAP the series (Thai Sat YT) - 12 ep office set GL. WATCH IT! GL and this studio need our support. 

Nov 2022 still to come?

Nov 24: Happy Ending Romance (Korea Thurs Gaga) stars Karam (The Boss), Ha Jong Woo, and Leo (VIXX). Formerly Happy Ending Outside the Fence - thank fuck they changed the damn title.  

Nov 26: 609 Bedtime Story (Thai Sat WeTV) - another OhmFluke vehicle that’s rumored to be a good story. A one night stand leads to a series of mysterious premonitions and a possible parallel universe.

Nov ??: My School President (?? GMMTV YT) tester trailer here - it’s Love Sick + Korea & Japan's influence.

This Week’s Return of the Shirt of Shame 

Work From Heart wasn’t enough? You had to put it on the prettiest boy in the world? (Ghost Host, Ghost House) 

This week’s best moments?

Oops indeed. 

This weeks earworm: MCND #mood

(last week)

Note: I’m off to France and then Australia, as ya do, so posting may be odd and sporadic and strangely timed. Don’t get excited, it’s work, I mostly get to see the insides of hotels. 

[heavenlyeden]

I come bearing a request. Interpret this how you will. I totally stole it from a whumpy Snow White au I wrote when I was twelve.

A spell placed on Whumpee, cursing them to sleep forever, or until true love's kiss wakes them. One catch. The love doesn't have to be reciprocated. So, Whumpee awakes months later to Whumper, an obsessed abuser they had escaped, forcing them into a kiss.

-Abraham ♡♡♡

I had so much fun writing this.

 ‘Only a true love’s kiss can undo the curse put on her by my sister’, the witch of the day declared, ‘there’s nothing I can do’. The black flowers grew inside Astraea’s body and on her dark skin, she grew more tired by the day in her refuge, and no one truly loved the princess enough to undo her curse. She could only hope someone would as she fell into a deep slumber that would last until the curse was lifted.

 The first thing Astraea acknowledged as she woke up was a serpentine, cold tongue deep inside her mouth. Icy hands caressed her face and neck as they kissed her deeply. Her eyes shot open, and she pushed against them, but then she remembered the curse’s conditions.

 This person would be their savior, and they would probably get Astraea’s hand in marriage too. If it wasn’t for the fact Astraea recognized that face all too well. Her blood ran cold at the sight of her grin, and her dark grey inhuman skin.

"Good evening, my princess,” the evil witch said in a sing-song voice.

“N-Nyx…”

“The one and only.” Her chuckle reverberated deep inside Astraea’s bones. “I missed you soooo badly, my star. Did you miss me? Did you dream about me?”

 A million thoughts raced across Astraea’s mind. She wasn’t supposed to find her, not in a place guarded by magic against her eye. What about the knights that should protect her resting place? They were probably… dead. And her parents? What did Nyx do to them? And-

 Nyx’s light taps on her forehead interrupted her thoughts and brought her more terror. She couldn’t move, but she didn’t know if it was out of fear or because of a spell.

“Stop worrying your little head, darling.” She leaned closer to Astraea’s face, straddled on her. “You should be thanking me for saving you. And begging for my forgiveness for leaving me.”

 Astraea couldn’t see her eyes under her fringe, but she knew by the tone of her voice and the way her pitch-black hair moved like a nest of serpents that she was furious. 

“W-Why, you w-”

“I wasn't supposed to find you? Please,” she laughed, “just because my sister helped you, you thought I wouldn’t find a way? Humans are weak. A bit of pain and they talk, if you choose the right target. Not your parents though… Stubborn rats.”

 Tears fell from Astraea’s eyes. The more time she spent in her refuge before the eternal sleep dragged her in, the more guilt she felt other people were being sacrificed to protect her from the witch’s rage. And now, even her parents paid in blood.

“Oh no, don’t cry. I didn’t kill them,” Nyx wiped her tears, careful to not harm her face with her long nails, “I knew you would be unconsolable if I did. I don’t want to cause you pain.”

“But you did!” Astraea cried. “You kept me captive, you hurt me when I didn't do what you wanted, you made me miserable. You even cursed me! Are you going to lie to me again and say you’re tormenting me out of love?”

“Shouldn’t the fact you’re awake now prove that I love you?”

“That proves nothing! You’re the one who cursed me in the first place, you’re the one who can lift it.”

“Honey, even us witches have to obey the conditions of our spells.”

 Astraea wanted it to be a lie, but Nyx’s older sister Aelia said the same thing when she apologized for being unable to save Astraea. This sickness was true love? Astraea couldn’t believe that. 

“Nyx, I beg you once again… Please. Please, let me be. I don’t love you, I will never-”

 Nyx cut her off by wrapping her hair around her throat. She watched with an undecipherable expression Astraea fight against her, to no avail.

“I love you so much, my star, but I loathe how you use this sweet voice of yours to say awful things. If you have nothing nice to say, it’s better to say nothing at all. Do you want me to steal your voice until you learn to behave yet again?” 

 She loosened her grip on her, making Astraea cough and gasp for air. Then, she gave that sadistic serrated grin Astraea feared to the point it appeared in her nightmares.

“Perhaps I should kill every single human in your minuscule kingdom. Burn it to the ground. Then you will have no one to help you hide from me again.”

 Astraea thought it wouldn’t be possible to sink deeper into fear, but Nyx always proved her wrong. She held Nyx’s hand with her shaky ones and hoped she could placate Nyx’s anger enough to protect her kingdom. It was royalty’s responsibility to protect their people, after all.

“Please, Nyx, don’t hurt them,” she wept. “If you’re angry at me, take it out only on me. Please don’t hurt them.”

“Then… Do you promise you will come with me and won’t escape again? Do you promise you will be all mine?”

 Astraea couldn’t stop crying. Nothing and no one would be able to help her escape Nyx. And even though she loathed the idea of being Nyx’s caged canary, it was a princess’ responsibility to sacrifice herself for the wellbeing of her nation. So, she swallowed her cries.

“I promise... As long as you don’t hurt any of my subjects, I promise I will be yours.”

 Nyx held Astraea’s face with both hands and leaned close, with their lips almost touching.

“Kiss me, and I will believe you.”

 Astraea hesitated for a moment, before the weight of thousands upon thousands of lives on her shoulder pushed her to do it. Nyx kissed her until her breath ran out, drawing out her torment. When she pulled away, she had that lovesick smile Astraea hated—yet another of the myriad of things she hated about Nyx. 

“Let’s go back home, my beloved.”

@dismemberment-on-a-tuesday-night

[little-cereal-draws]

Imma be completely honest, I’m literally only here as a Marvel Fan because of MK and WWBN, the writing of everything else is atrocious.

This is my fifth year being an mcu fan so i definitely have not been following it since the beginning but those two definitely are the best of phase 4.

I know this isnt' what u asked for but i'm bored here are my ratings for phase 4:

Moon Knight. I'm not going to write all the reasons i love it bc that would turn into an entire essay lol but this show is phenomenal and has captured my heart and soul

Werewolf by Night. again, just like moon knight, it's creative and cinematic and perfect in every way

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. It's funny, got good action, emotional parts, and i live for shang and katy's relationship. they're so funny and i'm eternally glad they didn't force them into a weird romance

Ms. Marvel. the kids were written like kids and kamala is so dorky and cute. i know a lot of ppl didn't like her for some reason but she also lives in my heart

Hawkeye. This is just bc im one of those comic book nerds and have read every single hawkeye book and have merch and stuff lol I'm a diehard fan and loved pointing out all the little details even if it deviated from the comics

Black Widow. I think people are right that Yelena did steal the show a little bit but i love it anyway. It always makes me cry. every time.

Thor: Love and Thunder. I liked this movie! I saw it in theaters multiple times and enjoyed it. I can see the reasons behind people's critiques and do agree that the first half felt a bit weirdly paced but the second half really saved it for me

WandaVision. I'm just a sucker for Wanda and Vision lol They were my first mcu ship and i'm glad they finally got a spotlight. ppl complain abt the ending but i thought it was pretty good

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. I loved seeing all the different dynamics that came up in this show and the real world problems it addressed. It also made me cry. I loved Sam and Bucky but Karli really stole the show for me and I was on her side the whole time lol

What If...? I actually really liked the reimagining of the characters and the odd pair ups. It was fun to see all the new interactions we would never get in canon. I think the watcher was weird and didn't need to fight ultron but the rest of it was good. Also the animation was beautiful. I was on the edge of my seat trying to get a better look at it the whole time lol

Spider-Man: No Way Home. It was a really good movie but I haven't seen all the og spider man movies so i didn't know who a lot of the villains were. and peter could have thought his little stunt at the end through a bit more but oh well. Still funny though

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. It was really exciting to see America (i'm also a fan of her comics) but really I was rooting for wanda the whole time lol Ofc I knew that america would live bc they need her for the young avengers but it was really fun seeing wanda be in her villain era. they did her dirty at the end tho and basically had her learn the lesson she just learned in wandavision... which was also the lesson she learned in civil war. when will they give my girl a new arc? also i'm in denial, I refuse to believe she's dead :) (and also dr strage was in it too ig)

The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. This was fun, I had a good time. It was really funny and finally confirmed that peter and mantis were siblings but i don't think i'll watch it any time other than christmas (unlike werewolf by night which is a year round event lol)

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. ok this one got a lot of hate but i don't see why? i didn't think it was bad, i just wasn't gripped by the story. i only watched up to episode three so i can't judge the whole thing but it was a bit too slice of life-y for me to be engaged w the story but as far as i can tell, that's jen's thing. The parts that i did see weren't poorly written and it's not the shows fault the animation was so bad (cough marvelwon'tlettheiranimatorsunionize cough)

Eternals. Same problem as she hulk. it wasn't bad, it just wasn't interesting. I only made it through half the movie before i left but i was really confused by who was who. i kept getting them mixed up

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The only reason this is so low is because I haven't seen it yet. I've heard nothing but glowing reviews so i'm sure it'll go up to the top of the list but i can't judge it until i see it

Loki. I hate this show, i hate it so much. I am so fucking mad abt this bc it had so much potential! I've also read the loki comics and i think those set my bar too high. yes, the show acknowledges loki is bi but they make him fall in love with another version of himself instead of doing anything w that. yes, they acknowledge he's genderfluid but we never see it, not even in flashbacks. he's trying to redefine who he is and stuff but i was so distracted by the horrible self-cest romance, that i was actively rooting against, to notice character development. If you want a good story about a bisexual, genderfluid loki redefining themself in the most beautiful way, read the Loki: Agent of Asgard comic run

[spreadssheets]

End of Year Asks

Like I am literally so bored right now I'm gonna fill this out unbidden.

Song of the year? If the World Was Ending (feat. Julia Michaels) - JP Saxe (Listen to me, I spent 5 straight days listening to this song. I listened to it 405 times because I got in my feels about my ex and I was going through a LOT okay. I had just switched jobs and I wasn't happy it's just so much.)

Album of the year? Irritatingly, it was Fine Line by Harry Styles for me. I listened to that bitch on repeat. That or the Soundtrack for Moon Knight.

Favorite musical artist / group you started listening to this year? Troye Sivan stuck his claws into me this year and I cannot escape. That or Joji? WAIT NO. IT'S DEFINITELY Griff.

Movie of the year? It's gotta be one of the Marvel movies probably. Eternals? Maybe? I didn't watch a lot of movies this year, dude. But I did really like Where the Crawdads Sing on Netflix?

TV show of the year? Fuck probably Moon Knight? Or Series 2 of Abbott Elementary. OHHH or Craig of the Creek? Bestie I watch SO much TV, but I think Moon Knight is the only one that came out in 2022? NO. Our Flag Means Death. Fuck I can't pick.

Episode of tv or webisode that defined the year for you? Craig of the Street from Craig of the Creek. Or Craig of the Future.

Favorite actor of the year? Oscar Isaac or Jenna Ortega.

Game of the year? Mass Effect. All years every year, but also Pokemon Arceus.

Best month for you this year? November.

Something that made you cry this year? 90% of the fanfictions I read.

Something you want to do again next year? Swampmas.

Talk about a new friend you made this year Her name is Michelle. She's fine.

How was your birthday this year? Fuckin sucked, mate.

Favorite book you read this year? The Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers

What’s a bad habit you picked up this year? Crying in public

Post a picture from the beginning of the year No.

Post a picture from the end of the year No.

A memorable meal this year? That motherfuckin pot roast. Or the pasta I had at this little bistro near my job.

What’re you excited about for next year? More good things to happen.

What’s something you learned this year? That if something feels like it isn't a good fit, it's probably true.

What’s something new about your place of residence (room, home, or general location) now vs the start of the year? There's more leaves on the ground.

Favorite place you visited this year? San Francisco.

If you could send a message to yourself back on the first day of the year, what would it be? Bernard is in the 4th episode of The Santa Clauses.

Did you keep any New Year’s Resolutions? I don't make them.

Did you create any characters (in games, art, or writing) this year? Describe one My new pokemon person is named Gin and she's a lil punk. I love her.

[ystrike1]

The Villain Demands I Love Him - By Jestkyo (7.5/10)

Do you like desperate yanderes? Do you like watching distressed handsome men bow and beg? If you do you'll like this better than I did. Honestly, reading the first few chapters made me uncomfortable.

Duke Thessar and his new bride, Senia, look like an ideal couple. They're both gorgeous and he's wholly devoted to her, but she's a schoolteacher. She's not a noblewoman. She's not even a maid. She lives in the middle of nowhere, and she doesn't know who Thessar is.

As soon as he reaches her village he drops to his knees and starts crying. He says she has to be his Duchess. He'll do anything to convince her. He's ok with her abusing him. He's willing to let her hit and kick him if she wants to. He wants her to take all of his treasure.

His servants are hers to use. He's a legendary dragon slayer, so that's a scary promise. Baeylle is a genius magician and Red Osten is the best knight in the country. The Duke makes them her lapdogs.

The Duke also says he is her humble eternal servant. He's willing to do her gardening for her and kill her annoying neighbors for her. He says she doesn't have to worry about the responsibilities that come with being a Duchess. She doesn't have to do anything at all. Her lapdogs will do all of her paperwork for her.

Senia is normal, so she doesn't say yes right away.

She thinks the Duke is insane, because he cries all the time. He cries alot. It's uncomfortable to watch. I think the Duke knew her in another life. Senia may be the reincarnation of someone important. I'm not sure, but the Duke owes her his undying loyalty. He wants to marry her in order to give her literally everything he has. He doesn't even need her love. He's ok with her taking a lover, as long as he can be her husband in name.

Thankfully, Senia is a kind person. The Duke's... weirdness scares her but she accepts. Her life changes and she makes the Duke's life better. His little sister, Senrendia, isn't very close to him. Senia reaches out to her, and they bond. The siblings start to spend more time together. They eventually become an adorable family.

The Duke's uncomfortable obsession with her hasn't been fully explained yet.

I'm not sure why he's...like this...

[cynettic]

Hello, can I request a reaction with childe, albedo, xiao and diluc where their SO is pretty clumsy and one day, they (the characters) just snap and say mean things? Please end it with comfort or something nice, my heart isnt strong enough to handle full angst :')

Clumsy S/O x Genshin

Summary - As someone clumsy, the genshin boys often pay special attention to your little accidents and mishaps. One day they snap, comforting ending though ;-;

Pairings - ClumsyReader x Childe / Albedo / Xiao / Diluc

Warnings - A bit of possessive behaviour for Xiao- but otherwise, a tad bit of angst at the beginning of each one.

A/N - After I wrote Albedo’s hc I realized that seeing him angry… would be really hot. Might write up a degradation one after-

Childe

“Stop it! It’s not funny anymore!”

It wasn’t surprising that once again, you’d managed to trip on your own feet and now somehow the vase sitting on the stool next to the couch had fallen… and broke.

But it was the first time you’d heard those words come from him.

“What do you mean… stop?”

Childe had never said anything about your clumsy antics, always picking you up and laughing or teasing the situation off. On the occasion that you got hurt, he’d tend to your wounds and make you promise to be more careful. Of course there was always a next time, and next time, and text time…

Until Childe had enough.

“From falling- tripping over your feet and taking down everything with you! No one tumbles around this much… so either you’re just doing this for fun or- or…”

He began to realize after those words that he’d taken it too far. When glancing at your teary eyes and how your figure started to shake he knew he couldn’t take those words back.

He knew it wasn’t your fault, he knew you tried to be as careful as you could.

But it was so frustrating.

You were still laying on the ground from the fall, and he bent down to help you up. You didn’t look him in the eyes, and an empty feeling buried itself in his stomach when you stood up.

“I’m… sorry.”

It was you who spoke these words, shoulders still shaking. You knew it might’ve been frustrating or annoying for Childe.

The two of you are just standing there, Childe feeling ten times guiltier because you apologized, and you feeling terrible because you’d broken another vase and he’d yelled at you for it.

The two of you feel so bad about it- ;-;

It isn’t till Childe acts out and pulls you into a hug that you realize he felt bad for yelling at you. Sure he may have been frustrated, but it was only cause he was worried about your well being, he didnt want you getting hurt.

“Im sorry Y/n… I didn’t mean to act out like that. I know you're trying your best.”

Albedo

“What happened.”

It was supposed to come out as a question, his eyes trailing over the mess of his lab and the sorry pitiful state it was in.

It didn’t come out sounding like a question.

Seeing Albedo angry of all things was only a myth among the knights of Favonius, a joke to Klee, and a topic never brought up to the citizens of Monstadt.

Albedo? Mad?? Impossible.

Well, you were living proof that it indeed wasnt a myth to see the alchemist angry.

“I fell…” was all you said in response to his glare. “I wasn’t paying attention and I tripped against the table… I’m sorry…”

Of course you were sorry, just waiting for Albedo to get home and maybe scanning the lab and all his experiments while he was away. No bad intentions, but unfortunately your bad habit of tripping over your own feet summoned itself at the worst moments.

Usually, Albedo would catch you with utmost ease. A reflex he’d learned from Klee before she went sprinting out to cause more of a ruckus. If you were to get hurt, he’d usher or carry you back into his house before patching you up. It was always quick and painless, but he made you repeat why you’d fell and how to avoid it.

Albedo wouldn’t be comforting you now.

“You fell?” He simply asked, his tone menacing enough to know that it was something important in that jumble of experiments. “You seem to do that a lot nowadays don’t you?”

You’re at a loss for words, “I’ll help you clean it up… I didn’t mean to-”

Not wanting to mention how the glass shards had cut your hand, you stood up with wobbly knees to start picking up the pieces of glass. You were sure your boyfriend had put a lot of work towards this, and you felt terrible for having ruined it all.

Albedo isn’t a savage tho.

He notices the cut on your palm, and your shaky figure as you begin to clean up the mess you’d made. He knows that cleaning up the lab as soon as possible is important, but you’re still his top priority.

“Come here.”

When you don’t immediately go to him, he walks to you. Taking your wrists and getting a good view of the injury. He tugs you to the doorway to get you fixed up, and realizes that you’re shaking, a little bit too much…

“It… seems I was a bit too harsh earlier.” He fully faces you, expression softening. “I’m sorry, I know you didn’t mean to, none of the items on the table were of any importance if it makes you feel better.”

Please let him wipe any stray tears if you do cry, he didn’t mean to sound so angry, and really doesn’t care too much about what was on that table. Poor man’s just had a tough day at work.

Xiao

“I worry for you, every single minute of every goddamn day- every moment that my eyes aren't on you! Why don’t you make it easier for me and just sit still?!”

Xiao is protective.

That fact is known, its accepted, you might even find it endearing.

But Xiao has lived a much longer life than you, he’s seen the people he loves crumple and drain away. Watched them fade from his life one at a time, so he’s dedicated to making sure you stick around.

He knows that eternity isn’t an option for you, so he makes sure that the time you both have together is s a f e . Which means yes, he will catch you every single time you fall. Especially if it’s off the Wangshu stairs that you somehow always trip on?

The poor boy worries excessively for you, so much that he will try to hurry up the process of clearing out the normal hilichurls or threats that lie around Liyue Port.

But on the very rare occasion that you somehow end up into trouble without him there…

You don’t yell “Xiao” like he told you to, you know he makes such an effort on making you safe, a bit too much… you don’t want to summon him to every trouble you have. You’re independent, one scrape isn’t going to kill you.

“I’m fine,” you simply say when he comes back to find your whole hand encompassed in bandages. “Just tripped.”

Xiao is not impressed.

He worries too much, far too much, and seeing you brush it off when he tries so hard to make sure you’re never in pain- he wishes you’d just sit still, wait for him and not trip on your own feet when doing such mundane things.

“I worry for you, every single minute of every goddamn day- every moment that my eyes aren't on you! Why don’t you make it easier for me and just sit still?!”

You’re obviously taken aback by the statement, “Xiao?” You offer him a comforting hug, trying to loosen his stiff muscles. “It’s impossible from protecting me from everything y’know… I appreciate your worry but I’m fine.”

But that’s a matter that is strained between the two of you, and will continue to be that way until either Xiao somehow lets go of his protective anxious faze, or you just accept it.

Either way, the boy will continue to catch you when you fall. Even if you broke apart from him, left him, you’d still occasionally feel the lightest touch when you trip over your feet and feel yourself steadied.

Diluc

“Are you doing this on purpose?!”

Just like Xiao, Diluc is fairly protective over you, especially if it concerns your health.

He’s often not quick enough to catch you, but instead picks you up in his arms and sits you on the table to make sure you’re not hurt.

You often get bruises, but nothing more serious. He makes sure to kiss them better- something you jokingly stated once, and he’s actually taken it seriously.

“Kissing it will make it feel better? You’re sure?”

Overall, Diluc was very understanding to your clumsy antics. Maybe even find it endearing on a hard day of work, either way, he’d never yell at you for it.

Until he had enough.

It’s exhausting, to hear something clatter and know that you’d probably tripped. Tripped and harmed yourself in one way or another, the options were infinite, and Diluc’s anxiety could heighten at the slightest crashing noise.

“Are you doing this on purpose?!”

Eventually it became too much and he asked you that exact question, hands tangling through his hair as he stared at you wide eyed, furious. There you were on the floor, just a single chair knocked down as you were beginning to shakily stand back up.

“No… of course not. I wouldn’t do these things for fun-“

It’s not like you enjoyed absentmindedly stumbling into objects, it just… happened. Diluc was usually so patient and understanding… so why?

“I know… it’s just...” he rubbed the temples on either side of his face with his thumbs, frown set in a line. “I keep worrying and worrying- every time I hear a noise like that…”

It doesn’t take long for him to sort this out through a conversation, and then settle that you need to be more mindful and careful, something you have to improve on. He will simply watch on the sidelines, catch you when he can, and coax you when you end up hurt.

[boldlyvoid]

can u do a blurb about reader wanting a baby and asking her co-worker Spencer to be the donor because he's smart and nice and she wants a cute baby?

you said blurb and i read 2K word fic apparently lmao

Late nights behind a desk were the worst. Y/N hated reading over case file, after case file, of horrific things as she tried to choose where they went next.

The only plus side was that she wasn’t alone, Spencer was at his desk just beside her. Like he always was. They had an interesting friendship, to say the least.

Ever since Y/N joined the BAU, Spencer and her were glued at the hip. They had all the same interests, liked the same music and movies, and they spat out information the same way, they were like each other’s dorky other half— but it was just a friendship.

They had a tradition to watch at least one movie together after a case, to just chill for a bit together. Always randomly picking one of their apartments to go to, spending the night together until one of them eventually wandered off to bed. Leaving the other on the couch.

They weren’t aware of their feelings for each other for a while. Both of them being so used to being alone, and never having anyone be interested in them before. It was hard to understand if the feelings they had were pure friendship, or if it could ever be more. If the sex would fuck everything up and take away that perfect happy place they found in each other, or would it make the bond stronger?

She noticed the crush before Spencer showed any signs of liking her back. She woke up every morning thinking of him, that's when she came to the conclusion that it was more than just a friendship. She wanted him in her life forever, she wanted to kiss his perfect lips and hug his soft body, wake up beside his messy hair and just love him for the rest of eternity.

She sighed as she picked up another file, not excited to learn about the horrible acts taking place in what people called, “the best country in the world.” She’d disagree any day of the week.

This one was a file about some missing kids apparently being spotted in a van altogether in Georgia, it looked interesting enough to be the next case. She hated reading all the info, seeing every kid's happy face in the file knowing that’s not how they looked now.

“Good god,” she groaned as she flipped through the case.

“What’s wrong?” Spencer asked over the divider.

“Nothing,” she shrugged, “just a bad case.”

She handed it to him over the desk, hearing him flip through all the sheets as he read a million words a minute. “We should show this to Emily first thing,” Spencer agreed, pushing himself over to her desk in his wheely chair.

“I will,” she smiled softly, taking the file back from him and placing it on her desk.

Spencer stood then, making his way into her space and rubbing his hand over her back slightly. “Are you okay?”

She sighed, “actually. no, I was telling Garcia I want to have a baby soon, and then I see things like this and I’m scared to do it alone but I don’t have any other option?” Ranting to him like he was her therapist.

“What do you mean?”

She turned in her chair to look up at him, his soft brown eyes really caring to hear the answer. “Sit,” she insisted.

He pulled the chair over more, sitting close enough that their knees touched. “I’m 36, I’m not having any luck finding a husband or a wife, I want a baby and if I have to do it myself I will, but what if I’m not enough? What if I have a boy and he grows up to be a killer cause he never had a dad?”

“Y/N,” Spencer’s voice was soft as he looked at her with a confused scrunch on his face. “That couldn’t happen, you’re a wonderful person, I love having you on the team and in my life, I know you’d raise good kids, you should do it.”

“Really?” She beamed at him, the words touching her heart and making her swoon a bit.

“I mean, it would be hard,” he added reason to the conversation. “You’d have to take time off, which would be good for bonding. My mother raised me alone and I turned out semi-fine, I don't hold any resentment for her not finding someone for me to call dad or even step-mom for that matter. I think if you give them all the love in the world like I know you’re capable of, your child will love you like you’re their whole world.”

She laughed as she noticed the tears welling in her eyes, waving her hand's in front of her face so she wouldn’t fully sob. “Do you want to be the donor?” She made a joke to change the topic.

Spencer laughed then too, “sure!”

Everything got serious again then, she looked at him a little differently. “Really? Cause honestly, you’re like a Grade A donor profile in the most expensive clinic!” She couldn’t help herself from laughing again at the absurdity.

“I’ve always wanted to be a dad, 40 isn’t too old to have a child, is it?” He seemed to have decided that rather fast.

“Okay,” she nodded with a smile, “okay. That’s cool, sick,” she felt the words get smaller as she thought it over.

“I get it if you were kidding,” Spencer spat out. “I realize now that you might have been making a joke, I hope it’s not weird that I agreed so fast, it’s just that I think you’re a very beautiful and smart woman and the idea of helping you make a child makes me really excited. I think it would be a very good idea if you were being serious, but I get it if you’re not.”

She let him get it all out, always loving when he got like this on a case or in person, nervous or just because he wanted to talk, she loved to listen. And no one ever let him finish his thoughts, always wanting to beat him to the punch.

“Spence, I think you’re really handsome and smart too,” she smiled. “If you’re also serious, I am too.”

“How would we?” He asked as he pulled at the top button of his dress shirt, swallowing like he couldn't breathe all of a sudden.

“If you’re not opposed, I’m sure the good old-fashioned way would work?” She laughed, laying her hand on his knee softly.

It was like sparks flew at that moment as if all the fluorescent lights in the bullpen could have exploded and she wouldn’t have even noticed. Captivated by Spencer's eyes as he gasped at her touch.

“Not opposed in the slightest,” he said softly as he held his own hand over hers.

She couldn’t help herself from smiling. “Well, I think I’m all done here if you want to come to my place for a movie?”

“Sure,” he replied, offering her a hand as they stood up together.

He returned his chair to his desk, both of them grabbing their coats and bags and rejoining at the door.

“I should go say goodnight to Penny,” Y/N said softly. “Wanna come?”

“Yeah,” he followed her through the door and down the hall to the tech room.

“Knock knock,” Y/N said as she walked through the open door. “Oh great and knowledgeable one, I’ve come with my nightly farewell.”

“Oh my knight, I shall miss you,” Penelope played along, sauntering over to her and wrapping her up in a hug. “I leave you with this until your return.”

“Through scorching deserts, and blistering winds, I will make it back to you, always,” she tried not to laugh as she hugged her back. “I also brought forth the jester.”

Spencer was laughing in the doorway as the two of them looked at him, “hi?”

“The pretty boy, to what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Um,” Y/N smiled, “Spencer and I are just going back for our nightly movie.”

Penelope looked at both of them, jaw slightly gaped, “nightly? I thought it was a case by case thing?”

“It’s a good excuse for us to talk,” Spencer smiled at her.

“Mhmm,” she smirked, “well have fun.”

She pulled Y/N back into another hug, hiding her face from Spencer, “I need all the dirty deets in the morning.”

Y/N smacked her arm softly as she pulled back, “goodnight pretty penny.”

“Farewell brave knight, handle with care, Jester,” Penelope pointed her finger at him, giving him a knowing glance.

“Yes, oh Knowledgeable one, always,” he blushed.

He reached out his hand for Y/N, interlocking their fingers as they left her office and headed towards the elevator. A rare moment of bravery on his part, holding hands like this didn’t spread a lot of germs.

“We’re going to have to discuss a lot of logistics like realistically this isn’t going to be just a fuck and oh look its a baby. This is a real live baby that we need to raise and care for,” she reminded him as the elevator doors shut.

“I’d like to be as involved as you’d let me be,” Spencer replied. “I don’t have to be 'dad' to them, I could be uncle Spence that’s fine too.”

“Oh no, you’d be Dad for sure,” she nudged him slightly. “I mean like, weekends and holidays and birthdays, your mom will want to see them surely, my parents will want to see them. Housing,” she looked at him horrified. “I have an apartment with 2 bedrooms, I don’t think I could let them sleep somewhere without me.”

“I have been looking at houses,” Spencer added before the doors opened to the garage, “you’re driving right?”

“Yeah, you were saying?” She replied, digging her keys out of her purse and leading him towards the car.

“Derek Morgan, I’m not sure if you’ve met him yet, he fixes up old homes in DC and Virginia now. He just finished one and I helped him with it. I think I’m going to buy it from him. It has 4 bedrooms, we could all live under the same roof? It would be easier to co-parent.”

She was amazed at how fast he adapted to this as if he’d been having the same thoughts she was having. At a certain point wanting kids becomes a pipe dream filled with desperation and emptiness, he looks like he’s experienced it too.

She opened her door and sat down before replying to him again. Thinking about how wonderful he was going to be during this process, “thank you, Spencer.”

“For what?” He asked as they both closed their doors.

She sighed, relaxing into her seat as she started the car. She turned to him softly, not wanting to cry as she spoke softly. “Being a mom is more of a dream to me than joining the BAU was, this is the best gift you could give me.”

He reached his hand out again, holding it softly. Running his thumb over her knuckles. “Can I tell you a secret?”

“Yeah,” she nodded softly.

He couldn’t make eye contact with her, staring at their hands as he rubbed her skin.

“Um, I’ve been pretty infatuated with you since you joined,” he let it out finally. Like a ton of bricks off his back he relaxed a bit, “after everything with Maeve, Cat and Max… oh god, and JJ... I was so worried that if I got too close to you I’d lose you. I tried to keep the feelings in, that's why I said what I did to Penelope. She knows how I feel about you.”

It was like fireworks were going off in her chest as the butterflies erupted inside of her. She sat up, turning to him more and ripping her hand from his grasp.

It startled him, he looked at her anxiously as if she was going to yell at him. But she placed both hands on his cheeks and pulled him into a kiss.

His arms snaked around her waist, wishing they could get closer if it wasn’t for the damn centre console of her car. Pressing their lips together, hard, as they breathed each other in. Desperation taking control, she wasn’t able to let go of him.

When she finally did pull away, however, the look on his face was priceless. Like expensive art, every line and freckle had a meaning. He was surprised, enamoured, grateful, desperate for more.

She smiled softly, rubbing her thumbs over his cheek. “Good, cause it would be awkward having your baby and not getting to love you every day too.”

taglist: @shemarmooresfedora @spencers-dria @spookyspence @reidsfish @manuosorioh @mochionly @samuel-de-champagne-problems @jswessie187 @k-k0129 @calm-and-doctor

[genshin-impact-writings]

Hello barista! May i have a Medium Moccachino with almond syrup and sugar sprinkles

(Kaeya comforting reader after a bad nightmare)

Hey there, dear! Thank you for your request, I really enjoyed writing for Kaeya again and you chose a great combination of prompts. So, without further ado, here's your drink: a medium moccachino with almond syrup and some sugar sprinkles on top. Please enjoy! <3 (Reblogs and comments are very much appreciated.)

Prompts: hurt/comfort, Character A comforting character B after a nightmare, “I’m afraid you’re going to break my heart.” + “Shh. Don’t cry. Please don’t cry.” (400 followers event: JJ's coffee shop)

I’m with you – Kaeya x gn!reader (hurt/comfort)

Kaeya wasn’t sure what had woken him up in the middle of the night. Maybe it was the sound of the rain pouring down outside or the distant chatter of the Knights patrolling the streets but, in the end, it didn’t matter anyway. It was still dark outside and you were sound asleep next to him, so Kaeya shifted closer to you to drape his arm over your waist and closed his eyes again. If he was lucky, he’d get a few more hours of sleep, and if not… well, in that case he could at least enjoy the time he got to spend with you, maybe waking you up with a few kisses before your alarm went off.

A soft smile flashed over his face. Yeah, he definitely liked that idea.

It was only then when he realized that you didn’t sleep as peacefully as he had initially thought. Incoherent mumbles escaped your slightly parted lips and your brows were furrowed, almost as if you were in pain. The next moment, your hand shot up, your fingers curling around his wrist in a tight grip. “No, please,” he heard you mutter, and the sorrowful tone of your voice was enough to show him that your dreams weren’t pleasant at all. You sounded absolutely heartbroken. “Kaeya,” you continued, so quietly that he almost didn’t catch it. “Don’t leave me, please.”

His heart dropped. You were dreaming about him – leaving you? Just the thought was ridiculous to him; you had no reason to believe this, and yet, here you were, begging him not to go, even though he was right there beside you, holding you in his arms, just like he did every night when he wasn’t on duty or had to work overtime.

“(Y/N),” Kaeya whispered, carefully freeing his arm from your grasp to brush his fingertips over your cheek. “I’m here, dearie,” he reassured you softly, although you probably couldn’t hear him. “I’m not going anywhere.”

He had expected you to calm down under his touch but your sleep was getting even more fitfully, to a point where you started to toss and turn as if you were experiencing the worst nightmare you ever had.

Carefully, Kaeya shook you by your shoulder after switching on the bedside light. At this point, he was convinced that it was better to wake you up and comfort you instead of watching you suffer through a nightmare that made no sense, at least to him. Why would he leave you? You were the love of his life, the one he wanted to spend the rest of his days with, and he would be more than an absolute moron if he’d ever throw that away.

He uttered your name again, his hand still resting on your shoulder. “Please, wake up. Everything’s alright, love, I’m here with you.”

When you finally stirred awake under his touch, Kaeya felt like an eternity had passed but in reality, it couldn’t be more than ten minutes. You were a bit disorientated at first, your eyes heavy with sleep as you looked up at him.

“Kaeya?” you mumbled tiredly, your voice so quiet that he could barely hear it. He brushed a strand of hair out of your face, a soft smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Yes, my dear. It’s me.”

You didn’t return his smile. Instead, you kept staring at him, an expression of utter disbelief on your face. “You’re here.”

Once again, Kaeya wrapped his arms around you and pulled you close to him in one swift movement. Your head was now resting against his chest while he rubbed comforting circles on your back. “Of course I am,” he replied softly and kissed the top of your head. “Where else would I be?”

“I don’t know.” You sighed, slowly melting into his embrace. Kaeya always had this effect on you. He made you feel safe and loved, no matter what had happened, and he was always there for you when you needed him. You had no idea how you would live without him; he was like a guiding light in the darkest night, shining just for you. Sometimes, you even felt like he was too good to be true. And – an even scarier thought – that he was too good for you.

It wasn’t that you constantly worried about these things, no. You knew that you weren’t his first love, and that was fine, but sometimes you couldn’t help but doubt that you were really the right one for him. And while you could keep these thoughts at bay pretty easily throughout the day, your subconsciousness didn’t let you forget them at night. Most of the time, you just slept badly then but occasionally, you suffered from nightmares about Kaeya leaving you – just like today.

Suddenly, there were tears in your eyes, even though you knew that Kaeya was right beside you. Maybe it was the lack of sleep that made you lose control or the fact that your dreams always seemed so awfully real but in this moment, you just couldn’t help it. In a matter of seconds, your emotions had overwhelmed you, and you were quietly sobbing into his chest.

“Oh, my dear (Y/N),” Kaeya whispered, his fingers trailing to the back of your neck to caress the soft skin there. “What’s wrong, hm?”

You didn’t reply; instead, you wrapped your arms around him tightly, as if you wanted to make sure that he’d stay here with you. He cradled you while you cried, whispering soothing words. “Shh. Don’t cry,” he mumbled and pressed another kiss to your head. “Please don’t cry.”

“I’m sorry,” you choked out in between sobs. “It’s – it’s late. We should – sleep.”

The grip of his arms around you tightened. “Don’t apologize,” he replied quietly. “It’s okay to cry.”

You buried your face in the crook of his neck, your tears leaving a warm, wet trail on his skin as he held you close, patiently waiting for you to calm down.

When your tears finally dried up, he gently tilted your head up and brushed his lips against yours in a gentle kiss. “Do you want to talk about it?”

You hesitated. How would he react if you told him that you were insecure about your relationship sometimes? You didn’t want to hurt his feelings but on the other hand, you felt like you owed him an explanation after he had comforted you for what had seemed like an eternity.

“It’s stupid, really,” you replied eventually. Kaeya chuckled quietly but you knew him well enough to realize that he wasn’t trying to make fun of you or your emotions. “Dearie, if it makes you cry like that in the middle of the night it’s most definitely not stupid. Talk to me, please. Maybe I can help.”

You let out a shaky breath. “I’m… I’m afraid you’re going to break my heart.”

There, you said it. And while a part of you already regretted your honesty, you couldn’t deny that you also felt relieved at the same time.

“Kaeya?” you whispered when he remained silent even after a few minutes had passed. “I’m sorry. I told you it’s stupid.”

He cleared his throat but even then, his voice sounded a bit breathy when he finally replied, “You really have nightmares about me leaving you?”

“I know,” you said, your face heating up in embarrassment. “It’s pathetic. Don’t bother your head about it, please.”

“But how could I not? Have I done anything that makes you think that I don’t want to be with you?”

You cringed at his words. Now that he put it like that your concerns seemed even dumber, at least to you. “No,” you said and sighed. “It’s just – I don’t know, I can’t explain it. I guess I’m just afraid that you’ll find someone better than me one day and realize that I’m not what you want or need.”

“There’s no one out there who’s better than you, love. And you are exactly what I want,” Kaeya reassured you, the tone of his voice so earnest that it made a smile flash over your face, “I love you, (Y/N). And nothing is ever going to change that. Okay?”

“Okay,” you whispered, although you were sure that your doubts would never go away completely. But you trusted Kaeya. Even the worst nightmare couldn’t change that. And with that thought in mind, you snuggled up to him, indulging in the warmth of his body and the safety of his embrace as you allowed yourself to drift off to sleep again.

Taglist: @blissmal, @aimicoos, @childe-support, @rim0na, @sunsaturnn

[genshin-obsessed]

The God Who Fell in Love | Venti x Reader

I uh I don’t exactly know what this is but I wrote it. It was like a really short fic I came up with so yeah! I like it enough to post it. Sidenote: I always have a hard time with tags. There’s just never any lol unless I do that whole preference thing with 9 characters. Pronouns used: She/her Length: 748 words

Summary: Venti’s known you for a while but you’ve never met him. He somehow fell in love but the only way he can express it is writing a song which manages to find its way to you.

Venti giggled as he heard two women talking about the mighty Barbatos and how he’d left, never to be seen. He was the only god that “no longer resided in his city”, but that wasn’t true at all. Venti never left, he didn’t make himself known, but he never left.

Venti preferred a free life, much like the freedom Mondstat signified. He didn’t want to be tied down by his former name… but there was one girl that just made him throw all caution to the wind. Her name was (y/f/n).

She had been working with the Knights of Favonius for a while, in search of her brother. She was beautiful, with (h/l) (h/c) hair, glimmering (e/c) eyes, and a small figure.

She was strong, determined, and confident. He loved seeing her, he loved seeing her smile and hearing her giggles. He had given her his powers and deemed her worthy. Unfortunately, she didn’t know him.

Venti sighed as he saw (f/n) walk past him. She didn’t even know he existed but was it really her fault? Everyone knew of Barbatos, the Anemo Archon, but nobody really knew of Venti the Bard. 

This helped Venti and he was able to create a new song and story. About the woman who stole a God’s heart.

***

“Did you hear?!” Paimon exclaimed excitedly as she flew to (f/n).

“The new song? It’s odd, unlike so many bards to sing and tell the same story.” Jean commented as Lisa giggled.

“It is a rather beautiful and romantic story.”

“Oh? What’s it about?” (f/n) inquired as she sat down on a nearby chair.

“It’s about a god who falls in love with a human girl. She- hmm,” Lisa paused before smiling at (f/n), “maybe you should go and take a listen for yourself. It might be better that way.” (f/n) nodded, taking the idea into consideration.

***

(f/n) walked down the streets, staring at the orange sky when Lisa’s words returned to her. Maybe she should go listen. She headed to the square where she saw a bard in green, strumming his lyre and telling the story. She moved around people and found a spot nearby as she listened closely.

“The god watched the girl, smiling down at her every achievement, crying at every loss, and laughing at every joke. He blessed her with his protection, he loved her like no other. It was his first time falling so deeply in love. 

Yet it was not meant to be, for she was human and he was not. His love for her brought him eternal happiness. Whether she would ever see him or realize he existed mattered not. For his love lit the darkened sky. Even as she slipped away, never having met him, he was happier than ever knowing her.”

The audience clapped and so did (f/n) but she frowned at the words. Eventually, the crowd thinned out and she finally stood from her seat and walked towards him.

“The story… do you know anything more about it?” The bard jumped before smiling at her.

“Only heard this version. I’m sure there are different ones out there.” (f/n) nodded and looked down for a moment before speaking up.

“Was he happy? Happy never being with her? How?” His eyes watched her with amusement before he spoke.

“He loved her so much that just seeing her brought him happiness. He didn’t need to have her.” (f/n) looked back at him, with a look of curiosity.

“Do you think he could’ve been happier knowing her? Maybe being with her?” Venti shrugged but deep down he knew the answer.

“I’m not sure. Maybe. That all depends on whether she loved him as well. Tell me, how would your version of this story end?” (f/n) was silent as she thought it over.

“I… I would want the god to reach out to her, I suppose not every story needs a happy ending but it would be nice if this one did. I guess… I think the god deserves it.”

“Why?”

“I’m… not sure.”

“You’re an odd one indeed, outlander.” (f/n) shied away before she held her hand out to him.

“(f/n). It’s nice to meet you.” The bard smiled as he slowly reached out and grabbed her hand. Yeah, it definitely felt perfect. Their hands fit like puzzle pieces and it set his heart ablaze.

“Venti. The pleasure is all mine.”

[chipper-smol]

Feral Vessel Chain 2

reminder that these are being posted by when they finish and not chronologically 

Prompt: Herrah has a heart to heart with Feral about looking after Hornet once she’s called to fulfill her duty as a dreamer.

( @reverieriver​ )

“Feral one.”

Herrah’s voice, calm as it was, immediately had their attention. Ghost wouldn’t say they were afraid of the Beast, not by any stretch of the word--but they also weren’t inclined to go against her lest they get on her bad side. They’ve seen her bad side. It wasn’t something they wished to inflict on even the Radiance.

“Come with me. I need to speak with you in private.”

Respect, that was it. Everything about her presence demanded respect. That wasn’t something they gave freely, but they respected her. They nodded in silent affirmation, and followed as she led them away.

It was only when the both of them were settled in a quiet room away from the bustle of the Palace that Ghost noticed the tiny, red-cloaked form of a familiar spiderling clinging to her mother in her sleep. Their heart did a little jump inside their chest. It was still difficult to imagine this adorable being as the cold and stern sister that tried to kill them twice.

“Ghost.” Once again, Herrah’s voice redirected their attention at once, moreso now with the sound of their name. So she did know it. Father or Mother must have mentioned it in passing. Why did she need to talk to them, though? They watched her with intent curiosity. She said nothing at first, taking the time to contemplate her words before she spoke again. “You know what is going to happen.”

They tried their hardest to tamp down the sudden surge of panic that threatened to rise up. What did she mean by that? There wasn’t any way she could know, right? There might have been suspicions, of course, but they thought they were pretty good at hiding the whole “I’m from the future and know everything that’s going to happen” deal.

“You know of the plan the Wyrm has for us.” Oh. Right. That. That was something they knew anyway. Of course they did, they were technically part of it. But why bring it up now?

They watched as Herrah gingerly plucked her daughter from her cloak to cradle in her arms instead. The hatchling fussed for only a moment, scrubbing her eyes with tiny hands before nestling against her mother and settling into sleep again. There was a look in Herrah’s eyes that Ghost wasn’t sure they’ve ever seen before as she gazed down at Hornet. A certain softness, a mother’s affection... but also, fear. Uncertainty.

“I...” She faltered, and took a deep breath before continuing. “One day, I will enter an eternal slumber. On that day, and all the days after, I will not be able to care for my child. I will not be able to raise her.” She hugged her daughter a little closer. Her voice wavered in a way that made Ghost ache to the very core of their void. “I won’t see her grow up.”

Finally she looked at Ghost again, after collecting herself. “Someone will have to look after her, in my stead. Someone I trust enough to hold my child’s life in their hands.”

She moved in close to them. Something shifted, and their arms reflexively curled around a gentle weight placed in their grasp. Herrah pulled back, and Ghost realized with a start that Hornet now rested against them. The hatchling’s eyes blearily blinked open, looking up at Ghost... and then she nuzzled into them much like she had with her mother, and went back to sleep.

They looked up at Herrah again. There was something like a sad smile in her eyes. “Out of everyone here, I trust you the most. Ironic, isn’t it?”

Their gaze dropped back to the little slumbering spiderling in their arms. She was so small. So light, she barely weighed anything. But the gravity of the situation sat heavy in their mind, as they remembered again that she was one day going to grow into the Hornet they knew. They remembered again how she looked when they returned from the dream realm after breaking Herrah’s seal. They remembered her grief, and their own guilt.

They wanted more than anything to change that; to see her grow up with her mother; to see what kind of bug she would become if she never lost her, and never closed herself off to the world, cold and bitter. If they succeeded, and the Dreamers never had to Dream.

But if they failed, if they didn’t find a way to get the Dream Nail or some other means to fight the Radiance, then what would all this be for? Hornet would still lose her mother, their sibling would still be sealed away, everything would continue to fall apart in slow motion and there wouldn’t be anything they could do about it.

Ghost wanted to protect their family, but as things stood now, they couldn’t even protect them from their fates. Couldn’t even protect the spiderling in their arms, so small and so vulnerable, from the pain they knew she would suffer in the future. Vaguely, they were aware of Herrah beginning to say something when--

“No cry!” a tiny voice squeaked.

They looked down, startled. They hadn’t even realized that Hornet had awoken at some point. Worse yet, they hadn’t realized the moment that tears began spilling down their mask. But she had. “No cry,” she pleaded once more, a tiny hand reaching in their general direction as though trying to offer comfort. They dipped their head towards her, and she pawed at their tears.

It almost made them want to laugh, that their baby sister of all bugs would try to comfort them right now. They carefully shifted her weight to one arm so they could have a hand free to wipe their eyes.

“You... don’t have to, you know,” Herrah offered. “I simply thought that, considering how I trust you and how she adores you--”

Ghost raised their hand with a quick motion to say, stop. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to, that much was certain. But their resolve was set now; they were going to do everything in their power to make sure that they wouldn’t have to. Not that they could tell her as much. So they gave her a nod in answer. If, and only if, they did fail after everything was said and done, then they would take care of Hornet in her mother’s stead.

Herrah nodded in turn, and her relief was nearly tangible. They could only imagine how she must have worried for her daughter’s future. “Thank you, Ghost. Now, if I may have my child back?” She reached for Hornet, only for the spiderling to scuttle straight up Ghost’s head to settle between their horns in an attempt to get away. “Little one...”

“Wanna stay wif Ghos’!”

Herrah laughed softly. Ghost did as well, if only silently. “Well, alright, then. I suppose I can let you watch her for a while. I trust you’ll take good care of her.”

They nodded. No matter what happened, they promised: They would take care of their sister.

( @philliaesaya​, https://twitter.com/ArtistPhillia )

( @ofstormsandfire​ )

If Ghost could speak, they’d have to say they very much underestimated just how high-energy their sister would be. But then, who would they say it to? They certainly wouldn’t admit it to the Pale King, who likely isn’t even aware of their current whereabouts, never mind Hornet’s. Herrah is a possibility. Their mother is also a possibility.

But due to a particular monarch’s insistence on his perfect vessel having no voice to cry suffering, Ghost is as voiceless as the day they were hatched. Never mind that they are, by choice, nearly as far from being that perfect, impossible vessel as anyone can be without actively colluding with the Radiance.

(That wasn’t a choice Ghost had ruled out, upon waking up in their past. They haven’t entirely ruled it out even now. But to do anything concerning the Radiance, Ghost would first need the Dream Nail. To get the Dream Nail, they first need to find the Seer. And, unfortunately, their drawings of moths when shown to others are always mistaken for surprisingly non-insulting caricatures of the king.)

“Ghostie! Be tall!”

Out of nowhere, Hornet leaps all the way from the ground to cling onto Ghost’s mask. She hangs there and giggles. Her giggles only intensify as she starts to slip.

If Ghost could smile, they would. As is, they catch her with a warm, fuzzy feeling inside, and deposit her once again in the space between their horns. Hornet grabs both of them with a tiny cheer, and they start walking again.

They still can’t quite decide what is stranger: Hornet being this small, or Hornet being this friendly. This is a Hornet long before her life and her family fell apart, before any of the things that make her who she becomes go horribly wrong. But they still see the Hornet they know in her own, clumsy attempts at pranking the king, attempts that are slowly but surely getting better and better.

The Pale King blames Ghost, as he does for even the smallest and fully unrelated inconvenience. Ghost strongly suspects Hornet would have turned out like this with or without their influence.

Their wandering takes them to the Resting Grounds, as it often does. Never before has it been with their sister in tow. They pass the space where Xero’s grave will rest, the not-yet-built memorial to the Dreamers. Both are reminders of time running out.

Xero did not turn against the king for no reason. He has not, yet. He will not until their sibling is sealed away, and it is becoming clearer and clearer that the desperate plan the king pinned everything on has failed.

There were Six Great Knights, once.

And the Dreamers… Ghost cannot speak for Lurien, as the Watcher is conspicuously absent from his Spire whenever Ghost comes around. Perhaps he knows, somehow, that Ghost would exact revenge for his knights in prank after prank after prank. Perhaps he doesn’t, but merely suspects what Ghost is up to and hides himself away in preparation. But even he does not deserve to sleep forever, no matter how many times they were reduced to shade and broken shell attempting to reach him.

They have met Monomon and Herrah, however. Monomon automatically earns a place on their List Of Bugs They Like, Actually by sheer virtue of unintentionally assisting them in their sacred quest of vengeance (and on one notable occasion, very intentionally assisting them.) Quirrel had already been there, and nothing short of him attempting to kill them would take him off that list. Their opinion of him had shot up with his involvement in the Unn Incident, however.

Herrah is so much like the Hornet Ghost remembers that it’s painful. They’d overheard her, once, saying that a large part of why she’d agreed to this was so Hornet wouldn’t have to go through the things she had.

There had been no crimes committed against the king that day. They had been too busy crying somewhere no one would find them.

Lost in their thoughts, they almost miss the flash of movement up ahead. Almost. They do not, however, miss the gasp, nor the… was that a purple cloak?

It might have been. It was certainly some dark color. The Seer wore a dark purple cloak, or perhaps those were the wings they never saw her use outside the realm of dreams. That might not be the Seer. That could be any other bug, or even just a figment of their imagination.

But if it is her… why would she be hiding from them?

The answer is so obvious, Ghost could kick themself for not realizing it sooner. Of course the Seer would hide from a vessel, now. For all she knows, they could be their sibling, but even if she has no knowledge of the Pale King’s plans, of course she’d hide from someone close to the king.

They have no voice to explain otherwise. Somehow, Ghost gets the feeling she won’t stick around long enough for them to sign anything, and even if she did, she wouldn’t know their signs! Only they, their sibling (who Ghost stubbornly refuses to refer to even mentally as Hollow, because they are not) and to a limited extent, their mother understand their signs.

They can’t exactly write an explanation, either.

Maybe they can steal the Dream Nail? They would feel kind of bad, but it’s for a good cause and they can always just give it back once they’ve dealt with the Radiance, however they’re dealing with the Radiance. That might be their best option at the moment, actually, but what if the Seer attacks them?

What if she attacks Hornet?

They reach up to their horns, disentangling the tiny presence there that had just begun to purr. Internally, they apologize for setting her down.

“Ghostie? Where you going?”

I’m sorry. I’ll be right back. They pat her on the head and pull out a charm: Nailmaster’s Glory, no longer in Sly’s possession and unlikely to be returned to Sly’s possession anytime soon. Ghost places it in her tiny grasp and closes her grip around it.

“Keep dis safe?”

Ghost nods.

“Like Ghost keep safe?”

Their shoulders sag, but they still nod.

“I’ll be right back,” they sign, even though it will be a very long time before she understands half of what they say around her. Somehow, somehow, Hornet seems to understand.

“Back soon,” Hornet says impatiently. That, Ghost nods to much more forcefully, and then they turn and run.

They do not find the Seer, though not for lack of searching. Unfortunately, they cannot fit into all the tiny spaces they could when smaller. After they’ve looked through what feels like the entirety of the Resting Grounds, they eventually give up and return to where they left Hornet. They can’t help but be relieved when they see her there, sitting on the lip of a tombstone, swinging her lowest set of legs back and forth without a care in the world.

“Ghost!” Hornet cheers once she sees them. “Wanna show something!”

Ghost nods wordlessly, and kneels in front of her. Hornet chrrs in concentration. She reaches back into thin air, but there’s something shiny in her grip. The charm they left with her, perhaps? No, that’s in her other hand, and honestly, Sly never kept it in as good of condition as they did.

Then pink light erupts from her back hand. Familiar pink light, in the unfamiliar form of a needle. For a few, brief moments, Ghost is the closest to truly hollow they’ve ever been from the utter confusion radiating from them.

What the fuck, they think as Hornet swings.

The Dream Nail—Dream Needle now, what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck, passes through them harmlessly. It tickles, actually. Apparently learn what the Dream Nail feels like on the receiving end is something they can cross off their bucket list, although there’s a distinct funny feeling after. If they didn’t know what it was and what it did, they would have assumed the Dream Needle was merely a trick of the light.

But they found the Dream Nail. Hornet has the Dream Nail. Needle. Of course it would take the form of a needle for her. Has she even seen a real needle yet?

Hornet blinks innocently up at them and says, cheerfully, “Fuck!”

Their sibling finds them on the outskirts of the City of Tears, nail strapped to their back in the same way Ghost’s stick is. Free from prying eyes, they cross their arms and tap their foot impatiently, as if expecting an explanation.

Ghost signs, Not sorry.

“Holly!” Hornet crows from her perch atop Ghost’s horns.

Holly… that’s actually a name Ghost can get behind, for their sibling. As usual, Hornet is the best at names, even if she doesn’t know it yet.

“Hello, little sister,” Holly signs back, having apparently deemed Hornet safe enough. Even if she isn’t, who would look at Holly next to ghost and honestly assume that they weren’t hollow either?

The Pale King sure wouldn’t, and right now, that’s all that matters.

Hornet doesn’t understand a word they’re signing. Dream Needle tucked carefully in her dress, she proudly proclaims, “FUCK!”

Holly looks at Ghost. Ghost shrugs helplessly.

“We don’t even have a sign for that. How?”

Ghost shrugs again, because they don’t have a sign for the explanation either.

Holly sighs. They resume their typical, supposedly hollow stance. “Let’s go home.”

The White Palace is not home to Ghost. It never has been, and it never will be. But when Holly extends a hand to them, they take it.

The Pale King’s reaction, once they return, is glorious. And he can’t even really blame Ghost, because no fucking voice to cry suffering, asshole! No voice to teach their little sister to curse, either! Of course, he blames them anyway, but it’s the principle of the matter.

And no matter who he blames, it doesn’t change the fact that Hornet has a new favorite word, and it’s going to be echoing through the palace for weeks. Maybe it’ll drive him crazy. Maybe it’ll distract him from Hornet’s newest toy.

Ghost knows where the Dream Nail is now, but that’s just the beginning. They still haven’t seen anything of the Godseeker. Without the Godseeker, how the—to quote their favorite sister—fuck are they going to find the Radiance?

There’s much to think about. And they’re slowly, oh so slowly yet oh so quickly, running out of time.

At least they have Hornet scandalizing nearly every adult in the White Palace in the meantime.

( @tangelojack​ )

( @idiotjuicyy​ )

( @dovalore​,  https://twitter.com/dovalore )

( @lesiasmadness​ )

Lullaby Lament

Nothing was ever off limits to the princess of Deepnest. The fact that she hasn’t grown to be spoiled rotten was great testament to her graceful and collected nature.

“Only proves that she does take after my dear Wyrm,” thought the White Lady as she gently cradled Hornet. A little while ago the Gendered Child was carried by her collar into the garden by the Pale King, after an adventurous day in the Palace with her half brothers. The King didn’t give his wife many chances to figure out what exactly transpired that finally got all the little ones in trouble, but it definitely involved Grimm’s spawn setting something on fire and sweets. The queen allowed herself to giggle softly now that her sweetheart was out of sight, her branches shaking a bit, causing the child in her hands to move a bit in her sleep, only having drifted off recently. Silence finally filled the White Palace, a rare occurrence nowadays, as Hollow was sent to his fathers office to wait for his disciplining, Grimmchild was tossed into the troupe masters hands like a naughty kitten to his owner, and Ghost ran off somewhere, no doubt to resurface soon and unite with his new found nightmare spawn friend. But for a short while, all was quiet.

Hornet brought a new kind of chaos to the Palace. Something the White Lady should have expected, but couldn’t have predicted the feelings it would invoke. Hornet was an actual kid. Unlike the two vessels who could, as soon as they hatched, climb their way up the ledges most adults would struggle with, the Gendered Child needed to be cradled and fed, supervised at all times. In other words, she was vulnerable. Anything happening in her sight left a mark on her, and seeing those changes filled the queens heart and mind with fascination and worry at the same time.

The first time Herrah brought her little one to a meeting, the baby wouldn’t stay quiet, and despite all the disruption it caused, the White Lady wanted them to stay for as long as possible. For the first time in many years, she heard a child’s laughter. Ever since that day, any time Feral shook his shoulder indicating a mischievous chuckle, the queen's mind goes back to that moment.

Not a sprout of envy ever rooted itself in the White Lady’s heart. It didn’t even cross her mind until Dryya asked if she might be resentful of the Deepnest’s queen for getting to hear her daughter’s voice, while she didn’t even know how it felt to hear “mom” once. Her answer was that Herrah would never feel the same euphoria that came over White Lady when she finally figured out how to speak to her child with their hands,

seeing them sign, “happy! happy! happy!” over and over. The joys of motherhood came in many unpredictable ways, and the journey would never be the same for any two families. But despite the differences, and despite almost never speaking to each other aside from diplomatic affairs, the two queens understood each other in the feelings that plagued them at every waking hour. First, it was a desperate desire to have an offspring of their own. Perhaps that understanding was why, upon hearing the request to have the king’s child, the White Lady agreed even before her husband did. Then, another feeling resonated between the two. Constant, cold dread. Dread of their time with their children running out. It might take years before the time came for Hollow to step into his role of being a sacrifice to the kingdom. But even now, there wasn’t a moment when Herrah’s heart didn’t ache, not for herself being deprived of both life and death, as a Dreamer, but for her daughter being left on her own. At least White Lady will get to nurture the feral vessel even after Hollow is reduced to a living gravestone. But even then, the queen would soon lose her only link to the child. As every new sign they learned together only reminded her of how fast her vision was weakining...

“Root lady!”

The queen’s wandering thoughts scattered like a flock of startled maskflys. She hadn’t noticed Hornet opening her eyes a few moments earlier.

“Have I disturbed your slumber with my light, little princess?” “Nu! I’m not sleepy. I didn’t sleep! Imma go play with Ghost.”

Ghost tried to pull the same bluff sometimes, as if the letters on his paper didn’t trail off the borders, turning into a crooked line ending where his quill lay as he dozed off right there on the table, sometimes right in his mother’s lap.

“Oh? You’re not sleepy at all? Goodness, Ghost must have been running way more than you today” - The queen made an exaggerated confused expression.

“No! I run more! And faster! Ghost can never catch me.”

To much of Hollow’s confusion, Ghost often play-raced with his little sister, and always lost on purpose. Something he suspected was that she didn’t get much slack back home, as it wasn’t customary in Deepnest to go easy on anyone, even if it’s to humor a child. No doubt once she’s old enough to train with a nail, she’ll know just how much building character is prioritised over mercy in those lands.

“That can’t be right,” - The White Lady put a hand to her chin, pretending to be deep in thought. - “They surely are more tired. How can it be that Ghost is already asleep, but Hornet isn’t even sleepy?”

“Ghost sleeps now? Bleh, baby.”

“Maybe little Hornet should sleep a little too. Your mother is talking to the king about important things, but they are taking a longer time because, can you imagine? While they were having a meeting, some kids made a fire in the palace!”

The humm of the garden filled with Hornet’s chiming laughter, as she flailed her tiny feet a little bit in amusement.

“That’s Ghost! Me, too. We made sticky sweets!”- the little spider announced proudly, showing her hands, still covered in bits of burnt marshmallow.

“Really?” “Ye! The flying... The flying bug... Lilpet made fire with his mouth!” “Lilpet?” “Ghost’s Lilpet. They can fly and have pretty eyes.”

After a few seconds, the queen deciphered that Hornet gave Grimmchild that name hearing her mother call it “Ghost’s little pet.”

“Ah, I understand. Do you like them? “Lilpet makes soft sounds. I like them more than sounds at home.”

From Dryya’s tales, the White Lady knew that from every tunnel in Deepnest you could hear the hissing of its wilder residents. Although she’d expect living there would make one numb to such sounds. However, the only noise in the White Palace was the one kids caused. Perhaps the difference is playing with Hornet’s ears. Hornet liked it in the Palace. So many spaces for her to climb and stick her silk to, and brothers to look after her, who would always find a way to catch up, even on the ceiling, getting them to chase her was almost its own game. Besides, she’s never forbidden from doing anything, as Herrah wouldn’t let the king boss her child around, thus White Lady being the only one he cpuld turn to to tame the rambunctious child. At home, she’s probably running wild as well. Herrah had no reason nor will to restrict her child from anything that’s not dangerous. She wanted to spend what little time she had left seeing her little daughter curious, free, and happy. So causing chaos at home wasn’t nearly as fun as raising the roof of the palace, though, as she won’t get the same reaction she gets from the Pale King. And having an accomplice in Ghost makes it double the fun.

The noisy mischief those two cause amused the queen every time, but the moments of quiet the two share are much more precious. Ghost would often try to teach their sister their signs, and being young and clever, she picks them up no problem, although the learning process resembled charades. Hornet is often Ghosts voice, and she cheers as much as the vessel does once they manage to communicate something to servants in the castle or the knights. Watching her child indulge in the process of teaching others the same way she does warmed their mother’s heart.

“...When will mom co-...?” - Hornet yawned mid-word.

“They need some more time, little princess. But I heard sleeping makes time go faster.”

“You made that up!”

“My-my, you are a clever child! People can tell you a lot of lies, but you can ask your mom if what I said was true.”

“I can’t ask her now.” “We’ll just have to wait then, huh. ... Or you could try and see for yourself“ “But I can’t sleep. I’m not tired!”

“Do you want me to sing you a lullaby?” “What is lulby?”

“A special song they sing to princesses when they can’t sleep.” “You made that up again!” “Well, I won’t sing it then.” “No, I wanna hear!”

“Lie down and close your eyes then.”

The queen wrapped her hands around Deepnest’s princess, dimming her glow, and a soft hum soon crept just at the edges of Hornet’s hearing. It grew into a melody, and somehow, a song, although the sounds weren't like words at all, they resembled ringing, resonating with the sound of the garden, and the specks of white glow seemed to dance to their tune. The pale beings song was not in any language, but the meaning of its lines Hornet would carry in her memory long after, and years later she’d put them into words she could actually sing herself.

Twist the spindle Round and round Princess sleeps Don’t make a sound Born of three

And left with none Stop the spindle thread is done.

In the darkness

Far below

Wishing star

Is born to glow

Thread by thread

The star has sawn Silky web

they’ll call their own

Soon came spring To be her guest

Gave her life Then left to rest Summer came Was brief and sad left behind

A cloak of red Autumn took The lone star in Made her strong Fit to be queen Winter shook The web star made Soon two bugs Came for her aid Hide the bugs

In her cocoon Safe from winter

Pale as moon Twist the spindle Round and round Princess sleeps Don’t make a sound Born of three And left with none Stop the spindle thread is done.

To the gentle hum of the song Herrah found her daughter sleeping in White Lady’s hands. No words were exchanged between them as she gently took Hornet and held her close, the little princess will soon be home.

( @huntersapprentice​ )

( @astronomicartz​ ) 

( @brimal-baspid​ )

[giorno-plays-piano]

Treasure hunt Part 3

Pairing: dragon!Steve Rogers x Reader

Warnings: yandere, obsession, kidnapping, Stockholm Syndrome, forced pregnancy.

Words: 1884.

Summary: No knight would dare to save a sacrificial bride of the dragon.

Part 1

Part 2

_____________

"Don't you dare hurt her!" The boy's desperate voice cut through the heavy silence, and Steve saw his long scaled tail with a razor-edged tip just like his own. "Step away, or I will burn you to ashes!"

Steve's son had his face, child's light blue eyes burning with hatred and pure savagery at the sight of his father, the one who had been chasing him before he was even born. The boy had his golden hair, too, shining in the sun. Everything in his look reminded Steve of himself when he was younger, but he could see your features in the boy's face, and the way he moved, talked and thought was yours, undoubtedly.

"You are my flesh and blood." The man whispered, amazed, confused. "Your fire can't hurt me."

His son sent him a triumphant smile, baring his sharp teeth, and reached out to his pocket to grab an odd small bottle. Oh, Steve didn't like it.

"We'll see about that."

Once the boy opened the bottle, Steve felt a repulsive scent filling his nostrils. It was the goddamn pyrite potion. Once consumed, it would give his son the power to burn both Heaven and Hell. Gods, how did he learn about the potion? Where did he find it? What did he give in return?

"Run." Your weak voice made the boy look at you with both fear and sadness, but then Steve saw determination in his face. "I'll hold him! RUN!"

Your grip on his shoulder became harder, but both of you knew no one could detain Steve here longer - except for his son and the pyrite potion in his clawed hands. His little child was only ten by now, yet he had eyes of a grown man, tired, anxious, desperate. He was well prepared to fight for you, the mother that kept him hidden when Steve roamed the earth, searching for you two for more than a decade.

The deep hatred in his child's eyes made the man shook.

"You can burn half of your face with that." The dragon said, pointing to the little bottle carefully with his human finger.

"If it means the world will get rid of you, I'm ready to burn myself, too."

_______________

Steve woke up with you hovering above him and shaking him by the shoulders in distress. His face was wet - apparently, he had been crying in his sleep, horrified by the pure nightmare he saw, the image of his son drinking the pyrite potion in front of him forever captured in his memory. Looking at your face pale with worry, the dragon wept and snuggled against your round belly. It was all a dream. It did not happen. Yet.

He let out a loud cry and kept his eyes shut while you were caressing his soft hair, afraid to  ask for an explanation as he was shaking against your body. You didn't understand what was happening to him, but he felt too weak to talk.

His own son was ready to kill himself if it meant Steve would stop following him and his mother. His dear little child became so hateful and bitter he wanted nothing else than to see his father's death.

What had Steve done? How much did he hurt his boy and you to make the both of you hate him to such extent?

He couldn't bear to think of it.

"It is alright." You cooed lovingly and pressed his blond head to your bulging belly. "It is alright, dear. You're safe. I'm here with you."

Steve felt deeply disgusted at himself, listening to your lovely voice: he was the one whose rile was to keep you safe and sound, and yet he abused you instead, locking you inside his cave, making you do what you were told, forcing you to bear his child. He believed you grew to love him, but was it true? What choice did you have rather than submitting to him?

He had been blind, thinking he could make you love him. Love couldn't be forced. He had to earn it.

"I'm sorry." He uttered, afraid to look at you and keeping his eyes shut. "I'm sorry!"

You froze on the spot, unsure of what you just heard. Did he apologize? Why? For what? What did he had to do to apologize for it? You couldn't remember the last time he said sorry to you, regardless of what he did. He thought he had always been right, always. To think of it, he hadn't been too cruel to you, but you had never pushed him to. As soon as you realized his power was absolute, you gave up, not willing to risk it. Your first attempt to flee failed because of the dragon fruit you'd eaten the day you met Steve, and all other attempts were worthless as you couldn't leave the cave without his permission. What else could you do? No magic treasure of his was able to kill him, his scales and ancient dragon charms protecting him fully.

You had to live with it. Thankfully, Steve had treated you kindly once you stopped rebuffing him, even taking you outside with him when he deemed it useful to keep you healthy and content.

What was he saying sorry for, though? You didn't believe he had finally felt remorse after many months of keeping you with him.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sor..." He kept whispering feverishly until you bended over and kissed the top of his head, concerned with his state. "What have I done? What have I done?"

You didn't know what dark thoughts he harboured, but you were frightened. You had never seen him like that. You wished you knew what he was thinking.

"It's alright, darling. You're going to get better."

"No, no!" He cried softly, kissing your belly over and over again. "It's all my fault. If it's going to happen, it's all my fault."

Ah, he probably saw something terrible in his sleep. That was it, you thought. Of course, what else did you expect from Steve? He wasn't human. You doubted he knew what it was like to be trapped against your will, even if you had feelings for him. He had never obeyed anyone and lived free as a jaybird. Steve was the one and only King who ruled over these lands, what could he know about your fears and pain?

"It wasn't right. What I've done... it wasn't right. I'm sorry, my love, I'm sorry, for I have hurt you."

Your eyes flew open at his words when you stared at his soft golden hair, running your hand over his lovely locks. Gods, what did he see in that nightmare of his? What had forced these words out of his mouth?

"I should have never made you to stay against your will..." Steve's cries had finally ceased and he lifted his head, his face red and puffy, blue eyes glowing in the dark. "I have been blind. I... I give you my word, I will not make you stay here any longer."

"W-what are you saying, Steve?"

Would he let you go? Would he let you return back to people instead of locking you in his dungeon? For the moment you forgot how to breath, watching the dragon with both fear and an odd excitement.

"You said you were travelling before the villagers took you away, didn't you?" He sounded calmer, but his heated gaze showed he was still agitated as his palms gently brushed against your belly. "Do you want to travel again? Do you want to see the world?"

"Yes!" Your answer was immediate, your eyes sparkling with happiness - he hadn't seen you so joyful for a long time.

"Then we will leave tomorrow morning." He whispered and moved up, sitting close to you on your spacious bed high above the ground, furs and blankets all over the bedsheets. "I will take you to the East to show you the most attractable secrets of the Orient. Or would you like to fly up to the South to see the Great Ocean? The Sacred Mountains of the Northen island? Would you want to see the waterfalls of the Acient?"

"Yes! I want to see them all!" Tears of joy filled your eyes, and Steve smiled at you, cupping your face with his hot hands. "Let's do it, my love! Let's leave this place for good!"

Then he leaned forward to you and left a tender kiss on your forehead, brushing away your hair. You looked so cheerful, contented, extremely pleased with him like never before. It was so easy to make you happy, yet he had always thought you were happy enough with him in that cave of his, stuffed with all those things you cared little for. Why was he so stuborn? Why had he forgotten what his own mother had taught him when he was a boy? He had forgotten what the true kindness meant.

"'Tomorrow morning we will leave." The dragon assured you, leaving little kisses on your face here and there, his eyes welling up. "Don't worry, you won't have to ride me as you did when I brought you here, I will make you... a rickshaw! A cart of some kind where you'll be safe and sound."

Amazed at his enthusiasm, you burst out laughing and shook your head, wiping away your tears with the back of your hand. You didn't know what he saw in his dream, but you were ready to keep thanking the gods for eternity for sending the dragon this nightmare. You were free to leave. You could see the world as you had always dreamed, a dragon at your side to protect you and the child growing fast in your belly. You couldn't pretend you wanted to abandon your own child and the man who, aside from keeping you captive, loved you like no one else did. If only Steve was more perceptive of what he was doing, realizing he might be wrong instead of claiming he always knew what was better for your and the child...

But maybe you had a chance to make him understand now. Maybe from now on everything would be different.

"We need to sleep, sweetheart." Steve whispered gently, helping you to lay down on the side - your big belly didn't let you to sleep on your back. "We'll have a lot to do tomorrow."

"Yes." You answered and snuggled closer to him, his breath tickling the top of your head. "Yes, my love. Sweet dreams."

"Sweet dreams."

Watching you close to him, Steve let out a loud breath, finally calming down. Yes, it was right. He needed to take you away from this place. He needed to give you the life you always wanted and make you happy so you would never leave his side. He needed to raise his child with affection and care, watching him grow as a boy loved deeply by his parents, not a little fugitive with a heart full of hatred and desire to kill. The boy didn't deserve a future like this. No one did.

"I will never let it happen." The dragon whispered after making sure you fell asleep. "The stars of heaven shall fall, but I will never make you suffer this fate."

_______________

Tags: @finleyjayne  @alexakeyloveloki ​ @helenaeisenhower @villanellevi @hurricanerin​ @lovelydarkdaydream

[kandi-pendragon]

I was planning on making a YouTube video for this but I’ve got my hands full and I’m too lazy so here we go:

I’ve seen a lot of fellow Merlinites begging for a season 6 of Merlin, probably hoping for it to follow the script that three young women came up with (look them up on YouTube under the name 3RingsLeft. I love them and their songs own my whole heart) in the absence of closure from the Merlin finale. Now personally, I don’t want that to progress further than a script, but that’s only because I’m a sad pathetic excuse for a human who’s only purpose in life is to roll around in her misery and enjoy not getting any closure whatsoever from a show. And I doubt that I’m the only Merlinite out there who feels this way. That open ending is precisely what hooks you at the very end, it’s exactly what makes you so obsessed. The acting, the plot, and the characters keep you watching, but the finale keeps you thinking about it long after you moved onto other shows. And I’m too much of a coward to put that feeling of obsession on the line by rooting for closure, because my obsession is about the only thing I have going for me right now :)

Anyway, back to my point. I have been thinking about this for several months, and I wanted to get it out there. I know it might never happen but like I said. I’m pathetic. I cling to hope until the devil comes along so I can sell my soul to make my dreams come true. What have I been thinking about, you ask? Simple: BBC Knights.  

Here’s a little information I wrote down ahead of time to organize my thoughts on the matter:

What is it?

Exactly what it sounds like. The idea of BBC Knights would be a spin-off of BBC Merlin, featuring the Knights of the Round Table, set in the time jump between season 3 and season 4. During this time, Lancelot is still alive, as is Uther. Arthur is newly appointed regent, and Morgana has quieted down for the time being. We get to explore so many things that we never got to before. Nothing would interfere with the finale of season five, of course. This would only be a filler, to give more content for the fandom, as well as more information, to better understand some of the characters.

Because you can’t have the Knights of the Round Table without also having Arthur and Merlin, the two of them would still be included in the show. However, they would no longer be the main focus. This would excuse some things too, for instance, not having to use Kilgarrah anymore. If the show is not focused on Merlin, we don’t have to find our way around not including Kilgarrah, because his voice actor, John Hurt, is no longer alive. (Rest In Peace, Mr. Hurt)

Focusing on the knights and this time frame would let us see more of Lancelot being a knight of Camelot, too — something he had been working towards his whole life — while BBC Merlin only granted us 2 episodes of that before killing him off. He had an entire year of being what he had strived to become since he was a child, and we never got to see it.

It would also give us the chance to better understand some characters’ backstories, something that the actor Eoin Macken said he wanted to do in the original show, had the last two seasons not been solely focused on the plot, and achieving the finale. Gwaine once mentions that he has a sister: “Well my sister is an evil old toad, so I’d be eternally grateful.” But we never even learn her name, much less what she did to make Gwaine hate her. We know that Lancelot met Percival before the others did, but we know none of the details. We know Elyan traveled around on his own for years, but we don’t know what he did, where he went, or who he met. We know Leon has been a knight for some time, but we don’t know anything about his childhood with Arthur, nor his friendship with Gwen and Elyan. There is so much potential for backstories, not to mention character development.

Of course, this all might be hard to achieve, since it’s been 8 years since Merlin ended, and the cast has aged (though not noticeably. I swear they’re immortal.) There have been hairstyle changes, beards grown, muscle mass gained. However, it’s shouldn’t be too hard to pass off. Maybe Arthur wears a crown or circlet to cover up the fact that he doesn’t have bangs anymore, Maybe Gwaine’s hair grows like a weed, Maybe Lancelot hasn’t shaved in a while, that sort of thing. Plus, it’s the fans. Merlin’s skin could be blue and we would just be grateful to have new content to analyze and cry over.

Things to include??? This is not obligatory, however, just some of my ideas. Obviously BBC Merlin changes some of the legends that they use. The Cup of Life instead of the Holy Grail, Leon instead of Galahad, the Afanc not collaborating with how it’s described in Welsh folklore, not to mention they used characters from Arthurian legend and made them their own, like Gwaine. (Gawain) Obviously if we included more adventures that the legends speak about, we would have to change the version of those legends, to better suit the characters as the show made them. However, the legends are still worth looking into, because I believe they would make for interesting episodes if done right, and they might also provide inspiration.

* Gwaine & The Green Knight * New Characters (Yvain, Drudwas, Sir Kay, Sir Bors etc.) * Yvain & His Lion * Drudwas ap Tryffin and his Adar Llwch Gwin (his griffins) * Agravaine coming to Camelot (and everyone’s first impression of him) * Explanation of Morgause’s Injury (why did it look like half her face had been paralyzed/burned off when all Merlin did was throw her into a wall?? Idk maybe I’m just stupid) * Agravaine Meeting Morgana and Morgause * Sir Kay and the Cath Palug (Palug’s Cat) * More insight to the Knights views on Magic * More detailed and fleshed out backstories for the knights (Gwaine’s sister, How Percival met Lancelot, More depth on why Elyan left Camelot, embarrassing baby Arthur stories from Leon, etc.) * Character development * New Opening Titles (main actors will change, and it wouldn’t make sense to use scenes from the original show. Also it would make more sense to keep Kilgarrah out, since he most likely won’t have a presence in the spin-off. Music could stay the same, but the scenes and names in the opening titles would probably change, as well as the whole “The destiny of a great kingdom rests on the shoulders of a young man. His name… Merlin” would be replaced, since the focus is no longer on the young Warlock.) * Meliodas the Demon King ._. * More POC representation, more POC in the cast. * Maybe queer rep? Casual, passing mentions of a mlm fling in the knighthood (doesn’t have to be someone we know) a character going by they/them pronouns without explanation and without making it a big thing, etc. Small, but noticeable things. It’s 2021 we deserve the bare minimum. * Tavern scenes! We know they spend a lot of time in there, but only get to see a few moments and hear about a couple more. * Maybe a first mission with all the main knights. Them working as a small team for the first time. Bonding around the campfire. This would give an excuse to create some insight into the characters while also sticking to the plot * Arthur struggling with the responsibilities of being regent (brief scenes or mentions, him leaning on his knights for support, them having to go on adventures without him) * More Gwen and Elyan!!! Being siblings!!! Please!!! * Introductions of characters we’ve already met: King Bayard, Elena, Vivian (seriously wtf happened to her?? Is she still in love with Arthur??) * Training scenes!!! When Arthur’s busy!!! Give me Leon teaching Elyan some sword moves and laughing about something from when they were kids! Give me Percy and Gwaine sparing only a few feet away! Give me Merlin helping Lance with his armor and Gwen watching her brother from across the field! Give me insight into each characters fighting style, skills, and weapon of choice! D e t a i l s!!! * More mythical welsh creatures, like the welsh cousin of the Kelpie who’s name I can’t remember but translates to water horse. So much opportunities for cool magical creature encounters! * And more!!!!

Now that we have a director in our cast, (who was rooting for this kind of characterization chance btw) I think maybe, if we’re lucky enough, we might have a chance. Idk, maybe I’m too late, but Eoin already said that he was working on a Pseudo Merlin project (whatever the hell that means) and I just. I love entertaining this idea. Who knows, maybe the spn fandom can help us summon a daemon and we can all collectively sell what little fragments of our soul we have left.

Those who still want a season 6, I get it! And I don’t blame you! And guess what— this would not interfere with that at all. Maybe we can both get what we want :)

But right now I’ve accidentally hyped myself up and made a petition so uh. Feel free to sign? If I get enough people on board I might do something about it and message Eoin, as soon as I know he’s done with his Merlin project and it would all work out 👉👈

If you have anything to add onto this post, go ahead! What would you want out of a spin-off?

[fireemblemtcg]

“The Cipher Frontier!” Issue 58: “Cipher Will Never Die!”

"The Cipher Frontier! With Emma, Shade, Yuzu, Randal, Alice, Val, Niamh & Poe" was a regular column on the Fire Emblem Cipher website which summarized upcoming news concerning Cipher and other Fire Emblem materials. It was presented by the eight mascot characters. The following is a full translation of the 58th and final issue of the column, which was originally published on 31 March 2021.

More Fire Emblem Cipher translations!

Hello, everybody!!!!!!!!

It's been over five years since Cipher launched - and, for that matter, The Cipher Frontier! itself...

And today... we bring you the last one!

Sniff... So this is really it...

Aye, it certainly is a bitter occasion.

With the moment upon us, I find myself overcome with emotion. Yet at the same time, I cannot help but sorely wish that this day had never come at all.

Well, it... It doesn't bother m-m-me... Not... one...

BWAAAAAAAAAAAH! I C-C-CAN'T TAKE THIS!

E-easy, milady! You swore before we began that you would not cry!

I, too, owe very, very much to all of you, so... I am very sad.

Where there is a beginning, so too shall there be an end... It is an inevitability.

Still, one might argue that as long as there are still decks to play with and opponents to challenge... Cipher may be played for eternity. So think not on this as the end, for this is but a milestone of life.

Sniff... So this isn't farewell?

Not in the least! All of our players can still continue to get together to play Cipher. So as sad as you might be now to see the game end, the feeling won't last! And I, for one, would like to close out our final day with a smile.

To that end, I propose that we all share some parting words. You first, Emma!

Alrighty! Well, I've been here since the beginning, but... Back then, I was an absolute noob, wasn't I? I didn't have the faintest idea what a "Tea See Gee" even was!

But then I learned so much from Shade, and I presented news, participated in Tryout and Gathering events, and watched Live Broadcasts - and all of that gave me the chance to grow so much.

And then as the days went by, we got to meet Yuzu and Randal, Alice and Valjean, and Niamh and Poe, and we all always had a riot of a time playing Cipher together... It's all been like something out of a dream!

Lastly, I just want to say thank you...

To all of you who've been reading our column to date, thank you tho thuch!

Ha! Is that a slip of the tongue I hear?

Why, I do believe it was... And of all the words to flub, at that.

H-heh heh heh! I guess I am still just a kid after all... But mark my words, I'll be working even harder to become a mature, full-fledged knight! Okay, let's try this again... Thank you all!

Well, I'm next! I was primarily tasked with hosting this column and presenting news.

But the work introduced me to more and more friends, and to a constant stream of announcements that were news to me myself... To lose it is like I've also lost my reason to exist, but at least I am left with fond memories of it all.

My desire to convey the appeal of Cipher to others hasn't wavered in the slightest, but... this is the last time it will ever happen here. Alas. Still, I will always be rooting for all of you, even if we don't see each other.

There will always be a bond between us - always. Remember that whenever you play Cipher and see our cards. On this, you have my word! This has been Shade, shepherd of wayward lambs, saying farewell!

Alright, then. You're next, Yuzu!

...

Huh? Yuzu! What's gotten into you? Would you just get out here?

Er, forgive me. When everybody's gaze turned upon me, I could not help but immediately seek shelter...

Oh, yeah. You never did like public speaking, did you, Yuzu?

Of course! We had a devil of a time convincing you to come out at all for your very first column.

E-enough! That was many years ago: a d-d-difficulty that I have long since moved past!

Hrr-hrr-hrr... heh-HEM! L-l-let us, er, begin anew.

I am Yuzu. My contribution to this column was to introduce cards that afforded new styles of play... only to let a haze of utter passion promptly consume me and hence spend my every waking hour crafting decks from them and trialling them in matches.

You always were one to cry, "I must test these cards at once!" and throw yourself into obsessive research.

As such, I have acquired an eye for strategy, forged in the fires of Cipher, to incorporate into my prior mastery of the martial arts - and with that, at long last, I have come to an understanding of the very heart of warcraft.

Further, as a consequence I may declare with confidence that, should I ever find my brother, I shall be able to hold my head high for all that I have grown in his absence. For that, you have my most heartfelt gratitude. So end my parting words!

Thank you, Yuzu. Right, it's your turn, Randal!

Huh? Oh, right then!

I've got a motto: always take your games deathly serious, and always make your own fun on the job… And, well, this has been my chance to prove those words true.

I mean yeah, I'm a wanderer at heart; I might've stuck around a bit too long... but that's just because this was all a hell of a lot of fun.

Oh, I agree... It was a HELL of a lot of fun!

GAH! It's... It's you!

Well, well. We have a stranger among us!

Pah! "Stranger," indeed. This hair, this face, this ribbon... None of this ring a bell?

Eh? Do you... do you mean Randal?

Indeed! I am...

...His son, no? It is nice to meet you!

OI!

What are you on about?! I AM Randal, just from the past - younger than the one you know!

It's happening again! The exact same argument!

This really must be the end, if HE'S here...

This is how you treat me? I have to hear that the last column is happening at the eleventh hour and make a mad dash to make it in time?! Bloody hell...

What is this? A being under the thrall of the Boundless Chaos? How intriguing. I must conduct a thorough examination at once...

H-hey! What are you doing, Niamh?! You look deathly serious... Oi, that's enough! Stay back! I... I've got a sword!

Well, er, I'm just about all out of time, but I just want to say it was a hoot being on the Frontier. Hope I see you all again someday. Adios!

He vanished?! Still more intriguing...

Sigh... What a pain in the arse, if I do say so myself. Although... I must admit, we do agree on one thing: I'd also be glad to see you all again.

This might be one farewell, but here's hoping we cross paths once more! And if we do, hey, why not play a match with this old fart? And that's all she wrote from ol' Randal!

Thank you. Next, let's hear from Alice and Valjean!

Heh heh! At last! Shall we, Val?

Yes, milady.

The two of us made our debut circa Series 10, and ever since that day, the Frontier never failed to be a most thrilling time. Would you agree, Val?

Yes, milady.

My objective in making this journey was simple: to experience much in my travels, such that I might someday return home and become a great ruler indeed. But instead, I first became a most superior, most brilliant Cipher player! Utterly invincible! Favored by fortune! And whatnot. Didn't I, Val?

Yes, milady.

I remember... that every time a Cipher release day came, I would be up all night from their eve, crafting decks and playing matches with the others. Oh, it was such fun! Wasn't it, Val?

...Yes, mi... mi... milady! Sniff...

V-Val?! What is the matter with you?

I am most moved. That my most capricious liegelady could at last find in Cipher such an engaging hobby, such good company, and such a source of training - and that she could grow so greatly as a woman.

Val...

We have been truly blessed to have had all of this: all of you, who welcomed us so warmly into the Frontier fold, and all of the Cipher players out in the world. I wish to offer you my gratitude for everything.

To be honest... I have something to say on that matter myself. Thank you, truly, for everything. I will never, ever, ever, EVER forget even a single day that we spent here together!

Nor shall I!

...Having said that, milady, I fear that you are still yet unready for the throne! From today onward, we must redouble your original leadership training efforts! I fully intend to prepare for you an intensive study regimen.

I-I-I beg your pardon?! You will not speak to me so! If I see even a single incorrect mark, you would do well to prepare yourself, for I will work you to the very bone for the rest of your days!

By all means, do it. But be prepared, for I have a lifetime's worth of admonishments at the ready.

Heh... Best of luck to the two of you!

Your turn, Niamh!

I was present from the 37th column onward... To be precise, it was in the "Love and Bonds Special Talk CD" audio drama that came as a set with an artbook, sold at Comiket 93.

My inquiry and research into the miscellaneous phenomena of this world, and the Boundless Chaos in particular, shall continue, but...

...

Well?! Don't tell me that's all you have to say!

...No. To me, my inquiry into Cipher represented the introducton of a new, major challenge into my life. Cipher decks... Gameplay... Which solution is correct, and which is optimal... As yet, I still have found no answers. As such, it is vital that going forward, I collaborate with a broad sample of Cipher players and find an answer...

So what you're saying is, you enjoyed playing Cipher with everyone, and you're gonna keep playing forever!

That, er... Ahem! That's pretty much it.

Cryptic remarks if I ever heard them, but certainly Niamh-ish.

Right, let's keep this going with Poe!

Only a year and a half has passed since I was welcomed to this column, and sadly, in the end our association has been brief. But I was able to have a very fulfilling time with you.

Attending that Winter Comiket thing with all of you, playing the "Recite and Play: Heroes Iroha" card game being sold there... They were very happy days.

And in all of that, I have always been monitoring Niamh...

...

Hee hee... You have been a good girl here, have you not? I do nothing to good girls.

If one of you becomes wicked, at that time I shall... Heh... Heh heh heh heh heh...

So, I pray that we never have an unpleasant reunion, and end my speech. Thank you. This has been Poe!

Heh... Let's keep that warning in mind.

...With that, have all of us spoken?

Tsk tsk... We aren't actually finished just yet! Since this is our last column, allow me to call upon a special guest!

...A guest? Wait, you don't mean...

Ta-daaaaa! Here he is!

Hello, everyone! I am Kawade, the producer of Fire Emblem Cipher.

K-K-KawadeP!

My, what a surprise!

The publication of the final Frontier coincides with, at last, the end-of-March termination of event support for Cipher. So I thought I would share a message for all of our readers and Cipher players.

If you count from when Cipher was first announced, roughly six years have passed. That's a long time, yet it's just flown by... These have been very busy years, but also wonderful ones, absolutely full of memories and events.

In that time we've constantly taken on new challenges - not just the production of Cipher itself, but Twitter content, live broadcasts, and staging events all around Japan.

And through all of that, we've had the chance to meet so many fans of Fire Emblem and Cipher... That was not only the most fun part of all, but a part that made us happy.

Although, we were unfortunately unable to hold any of our planned events for our final year, and for that I am truly sorry to all of you.

Still, we staff stuck with it to the very end, and as a result were able to complete Cipher as a fantastic game that can be played for years and years to come. For that, we are proud of ourselves.

It was thanks to all of you, who kept on supporting us, that we could continue our work to this standard all the way to the final series. I am overcome with gratitude to you all!

Production might have come to an end, but Fire Emblem Cipher will never die! It would make me happy if, every now and then, you might bring your cards out and play with them. Thank you all, truly, for everything!

And that concludes KawadeP's remarks!

Whew!

That, I believe, is everything that we wished to share.

Aye, I've got nothing to add.

So I suppose this is it: the end of the Cipher Frontier's long run.

Er... Shade? Can I say one last thing?

Hm? What is it, Emma?

Thank you for taking the lead in hosting this last one... And thank you so much for all the things you've taught me!

(Emma...)

H-hey! That's enough of that! You're about to make me cry, and that wouldn't be ending this day with a smile, would it?

Heh. I guess not!

So hey, let's give them one last, enthusiastic That Thing before Shade bursts into tears!

Very well, then. That Thing it is! This has been The Cipher Frontier!

With Emma...

Shade...

Yuzu...

Randal...

Alice...

Val...

Niamh...

...and Poe.

Now, then...

Let's do it, everyone!

One...

Two...

CIPHER!!!!!!!!

THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING, EVERYBODY!!!!!!!!

...

...

...

...

FIRE EMBLEM CIPHER The Cipher Frontier! With Emma, Shade, Yuzu, Randal, Alice, Val, Niamh & Poe

Emma Emma continues to train in order to become a full-fledged pegasus knight. Her tireless Cipher training also continues, but she has yet to show much improvement at the game.

Shade Veteran mage that she is, Shade continues to teach the next generation. Many seeking to become almighty Cipher players have come to her, only to struggle bitterly under her tutelage - yet at the same time, to Emma and the others, she remains a nurturing guiding hand.

Yuzu Yuzu embarked on a journey of martial training, all the while following whispers of her brother's whereabouts... although evidently, she does return from her travels from time to time, bearing souvenirs, to partake in Cipher matches with all of her friends.

Randal Randal made a truly once-in-a-lifetime wager, only to go into hiding thereafter. Some rumors attest that he won, and that with that windfall he secured for himself a carefree life of quiet leisure in some southern land - others, that he met with a catastrophic loss, and was hence forced into labor in someplace.

Alice Alice's travels continue, as she seeks all the experience that she needs to become a true leader. Although at first she struggled, she grew to thoroughly enjoy it, and so she will persist in her journey without ever taking a break to return home... Or so she tells herself, at least.

Valjean Valjean continues to travel all across the land with his liegelady. Witnessing Alice grow ever stronger and wiser by the day, he cannot help but feel conflicting feelings of joy and loneliness beneath the privacy of his helm.

Niamh Even as she continues in her pursuit of wisdom, Niamh silently carries out research into Cipher. Her seminal monograph, "A Compendium of Cipher Decks," is over 100 volumes in length, and by all accounts is still in print to this day.

Poe Poe vanished in her hunt for evil, and her whereabouts remain unknown. However, according to the afterword of "A Compendium of Cipher Decks," she and Niamh have since fought to the death on many an occasion.

The End...???

[imagineaworlds]

I Love You (Part Fifty-Five) -- Aaron Hotchner

Written By: @desperately-bisexual

Request: None.

Warnings: Cursing. PTSD. Depression. Mentions of a hostage situation, shooting, murder, suicide, physical trauma.

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x Greenaway!Reader

Word Count: 10,588

Timeline: Season 8 Episodes 13. Right after part fifty-four.

Criminal Minds Discord Server

Before the front door was even closed, Hotch grabbed my waist, and he pulled me into a hug so tight I thought my lungs would collapse. To be fair, after a moment of being caught off guard, I started squeezing him back with every ounce of strength I had, too. It had been such a long, stressful day. We did everything we could have to help Reid, but it wasn’t enough. I had sat across from him in our house just that afternoon, promising him that Maeve would be alright. I told him that she was going to survive for him, and that he would get to hold her in his arms, just as Hotch and I were holding each other that night. But I lied. Maeve… She… Well, she wasn’t as lucky as I was. When I was taken, I practically knew how to get myself out of it because of my training, but Maeve had been waiting around for her knight in shining armor to come rescue her.

Watching Reid break down over Maeve’s body, refusing to even touch her because he didn’t get to hold her while she was still alive… I couldn’t help but think about the contrast between them and us. I remembered when Hotch found me, he broke down out of happiness and relief. He was so glad that I was safe, that I was alive, and that we were going to have a baby. We were lucky because he got to hold me in his arms again, kiss my lips as much as he wanted, to say “I love you” until his throat was sore. We got another chance together, whereas Reid and Maeve didn’t even have their first chance. It all felt unfair.

For some reason, I almost wished that I could trade places with them, just for a bit, so that they could be holding one another like Hotch and I were, so that they could kiss each other for the first time, so that they could look each other in the eyes and say “I love you”. Even though I didn’t want to lose Hotch in a million years, it almost felt like we had stolen some of the time that Reid and Maeve deserved— even though that wasn’t the case, realistically. It just felt like it should have been them standing there, relieved to be with each other. Spencer had been through so much. He deserved to be happy. He didn’t deserve this mess. He should have been able to hold Maeve…

Hotch’s arms constricted around me more and I sort of felt his knees buckle. He nuzzled his face into the crook of my neck, breathing through his nose against my skin. I heard him sniffle lightly as a cold tear drop ran from his cheek and onto my neck.

“I’m here,” I cooed to him, pulling at the ends of his hair. “You’ll never lose me.”

That wasn’t guaranteed, though. For all I knew, I could have been lying to Hotch, too. Maybe someone would take me again, and they’d actually have the balls to end me. Maybe someone would take Hotch and I would be left to raise our family on our own… The thought made me want to throw up. I hadn’t put it in perspective like that. It was easy to think about dying— painful, but still easy. To think about losing Hotch randomly now, with our growing, happy family… My head started to spin, and I started to cry. I couldn’t lose him.

Hotch’s arms moved around me so that he could sweep me off my feet and cradle me close to his chest. I let him lift me off the ground, one of his arms sliding under my knees, his other one holding my back up. I kept my hold on his neck, letting him hug me as hard as he could as he slowly dropped to his knees.

We had all lost so much— Hotch more than anyone. But Reid had been through so many traumatic, unfair events. It all started with Tobias Hankle, and everything since then seemed like an attack on him, too. This… How was he supposed to recover from this? How were we supposed to help him?

That empty question kept me up all night. Hotch and I hardly even made it to the couch, still cuddled in each other’s arms, eternally grateful that we could be together. Nothing needed to be said. Nothing even needed to happen. We just sat in silence, listening to each other’s breathing, feeling the way our hearts beat in our chest, thinking about how things could have ended much differently in Hawai’i. All this time, we took each other for granted. We took our daughter for granted. If I hadn’t acted as quickly as I did when they took me on our honeymoon, and if Hotch hadn’t found me as soon as he did, then it was entirely possible that he wouldn’t have me—or neither of us would have our little ray of sunshine. We weren’t going to forget this. I don’t think anyone on the team was going to forget. Ever.

----

No one heard from Reid for about a week, and after an extremely tough case where everyone was still trying to reach out to him, I decided to head over there with Scarlet. I figured that he would be willing to see me if she was with me. After connecting the way we did during Maeve’s kidnapping, I thought that it was worth a shot. Maybe he would talk to me. If he wouldn’t reach out to his closest friends, like JJ and Garcia, maybe he would at least open up to someone who wasn’t as emotionally involved. It was easy to do that sometimes. Opening up to our loved ones was difficult because we never wanted to be judged or ridiculed by the people we knew best; but opening up to someone who was practically a stranger, like a therapist or someone on the internet, felt freeing. Since Reid and I had never been close, we hardly knew anything about each other. I’d said it before, but that was no one’s fault. It happened naturally. But now that he was suffering, and it was clear that he needed someone to talk to, I decided that I would at least try to be that shoulder he could cry on.

I adjusted Scarlet on my hip as I headed up the steps to Reid’s apartment. JJ had given me the address after I told her my idea, and she agreed that it didn’t hurt to try. When I reached the top of the steps, I stopped after noticing all of the gift baskets gathered in front of his door, all unbothered and unopened. I cocked a brow. That wasn’t right. Why were these all here, and why hadn’t Reid at least taken them inside once he knew no one was just outside, waiting to bother him? Was something wrong? Nothing felt wrong. But maybe that was why he hadn’t been in contact with any of us since Maeve’s death.

I stepped over the baskets to urgently knock on his door. “Reid, are you in there?” I leaned around Scar to get a look at the gift baskets, noticing the huge pink, cursive print that read: To Reid, From Garcia. I smiled lightly. Oh. I knocked again. “Reid, wellness check.” Nothing. “Sound off or I’m coming in.”

“Here,” I heard him respond weakly.

I let out a relieved sigh. “I brought Scarlet. Do you want to at least talk to her, if you won’t talk to anyone else?” I heard shuffling inside, the sound of a heavy piece of furniture being dragged around and books being kicked out of the way. And then the door opened. There was only enough space for Scarlet to fit through, so I caught the hint. “Okay.” I helped Scarlet down to the ground and held her tiny hands as she struggled to slowly waddle into his apartment. The door shut on my face the second Scarlet was inside. I scoffed. “I’ll be sitting out here, I guess.” I turned and slowly crouched onto the ground, groaning as I did so, catching myself before I could topple over after my foot hit one of the gift baskets Garcia left. I inspected it carefully. There was chocolate, containers of cherries and nuts, and stupid miniature figures from Doctor Who. I looked at Reid’s door while asking, “Hey, Reid, do you mind if I snack on some of this stuff?” I waited a moment for an answer, but nothing came, so I decided to just go for it. There was too much there for him to eat on his own, anyhow.

Halfway through a bag of Hershey Kisses, my phone started ringing. I leaned to the side so that I could grab it out of my back pocket while still chewing on the piece I had just popped into my mouth moments prior. Aaron Hotchner. I sighed as I answered the call. With a full mouth, I said, “Hey.”

“Hey.”

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” he answered honestly, “I just wanted to check to see if you got through to Reid.”

I looked over my shoulder at the door to see that there still wasn’t any movement or noise. “Well… He opened the door and let Scarlet inside, but he kept me out.”

“He let Scarlet in?”

“They really connected the day Mae—” I stopped myself. “He’s always been fond of her, baby. You remember when she was born. He had just lost Emily, and hearing that we named our daughter after her… I think something just clicked for him.” I trapped the phone between my ear and my shoulder so that I could unwrap another piece of chocolate. “He’s so good with her, baby. You should have seen him that day.”

“You don’t think it’s weird?”

I shook my head somewhat, still keeping the phone trapped. “Not at all. I think he’s just lonely.”

“But the whole team—”

“I think he needs someone impartial, Aaron.”

He sighed on the other end. “You’re right.”

I smirked. “I know.”

“When do you think you’ll be home?”

“Whenever one of them gets too tired or fussy to keep hanging out with each other.”

“E.T.A?” he teased.

“Not available.”

He laughed. “Fair enough.” I could hear him pouring himself a drink in the background, probably a glass of bourbon since the case we had gotten back from last night was a doozy, and his reward was a few drinks here and there whenever we made it through one like that. “I’m worried about him. I don’t want him to leave the team.”

“I know… I don’t either. But it’s his choice, Aaron. If it were you in his shoes, what would you do?”

“You know what I did.”

“Yeah, but you had me there to pick up the pieces. I mean, now, if you were in his shoes today—”

“Stop,” he demanded quickly. “Please.”

“I’m sorry,” I apologized sincerely. I reached to grab a gummy bear. Garcia had really outdone herself with all of these custom gift baskets that she clearly put together on her own. “It’s just been on my mind.”

“Mine, too.”

The steps just ahead of me started creaking, giving me a heads up that someone was coming. I looked up to see Morgan’s bald head slowly appear. I laughed to myself at the thought, watching as more and more of Morgan began revealing himself to me until he finally reached the top stop, at which point he looked over and spotted me. We both froze. A smile grew on his face, too. We both looked guilty when we realized that we had been caught coming to check on Reid, even though we knew that it was potentially futile.

“Baby, Morgan just got here. I’m going to have to call you back later.”

“Okay,” Hotch said, “call me when you’re on your way home.”

“Of course. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

I hung up on Hotch, leaning to put my phone back into the pocket of my pants. As Morgan sighed and sat down next to me on the floor, I handed him a handful of chocolates. He silently thanked me. We both started snacking on the chocolates, crumbling up the small tin foil wrappers and piling them up between us. I rested my head on Morgan’s shoulder.

“He’ll only see Scarlet,” I whispered.

“Well, the kid’s always liked talking to kids,” Morgan whispered back. “He’s the only one who can get through to the child victims.”

“I know.”

“He would have made a great dad one day…” He threw a wrapper angrily at the wall opposite us.

I scrunched my brows together. “He can still—”

“Not after that.”

“I refuse to believe that.”

Morgan chuckled lightly. “You’ve always been an optimist.”

“And you’ve never been a pessimist. So, what gives?”

“Nothing.”

“And I refuse to believe that,” I teased.

Morgan looked down both sides of the hallway to make sure no one was around or eavesdropping. “You know how I’ve been teaching those Academy lessons on Saturdays?”

“Yeah, you make Prentiss go.”

“Yeah, I do.” He nodded. “Has anyone told you which drill I make my cadets do the most?” I shook my head in response. “Home invasion where an entire family is being held hostage. One adult male, one adult female, one son, one baby. Care to guess why I do that one the most?”

My shoulders fell and my eyes softened. All this time, I had been so caught up in the fact that, as Jack and Scarlet's parents, it was mine and Hotch’s responsibility to take care of them and protect them. I never stopped to ask myself how Morgan and Prentiss possibly felt responsible, too. Morgan was the one who first took the initiative to befriend me when I joined the BAU, and we had been best friends since. We had always been protective of each other, but that came with the territory of being field partners, friends, and now he was the godfather of Scarlet. He probably felt an immense urge to protect us because we were his family. I couldn’t stand the idea of facing another Foyet incident, but Morgan was likely terrified of it happening, too, because he didn’t want to be the one to find us.

“There are nights where I can’t sleep,” he explained, “because I have nightmares about what could happen if something bad happens and I can’t save you. You were the first person I had ever met who understood what I went through as a kid, and you were the only other person I knew that was just as damn stubborn as I was to not admit it. You were the one who held me when I found out that Garcia had been shot. You were the one who made sure that I was okay in New York, even though you were the one we should have been worried about. I was the shoulder you cried on for months after Haley’s death because you didn’t want to worry Hotch or make him more upset than he already was. And then Hotch called to tell me that someone took you in Hawai’i, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe. I worried endlessly every day that you were gone. I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t think about anything other than finding you because I wanted my best friend back. I wanted my partner back. I wanted my sister back. And when we found you, I was so relieved. It felt like I could finally breathe after holding my breath all my life because you were safe, you were in Hotch’s arms, and you were still fucking worried about me even though you shouldn’t have been. And then when Scarlet was born…” He choked on a light sob. “And you asked if I would be her godfather, I made a promise to myself in that moment that I would never, ever let anything happen to you guys ever again. You and Hotch have been through too damn much, and I can’t risk losing my partner again. So that was why I slept on your couch almost every day when Hotch was gone. I didn’t want to get a call in the middle of the night, calling me to a crime scene that looks eerily similar to all the shit we see at work, only to find that it’s you, Jack, and Scarlet. I couldn’t bear the thought, so I stayed as close as I could. Then when Hotch came back, and I knew I couldn’t sleep on your couch forever, I had to start working towards being efficient as hell in a situation like this. I look at family annihilator crime scenes all the time, and— you’re right, all I see is you and your family. But I don’t let it wear me down or distract me. I let it encourage me to do better, to try to stop those guys before they can hurt anyone else. There are times, though, sugar, like what happened with Maeve, and I can’t help but feel pessimistic. We’re supposed to help people like Maeve. We’re supposed to help families like yours. Yet we seem to fail nearly every time—”

“We don’t fail.”

“We’re always too late,” he argued. “That’s failing.”

“You know… Every time I’ve almost lost Hotch, I thought I was going to die. I’d see him in pain, and I’d struggle to even breathe. Those people we help… At least we’re making a difference in their lives so that they don’t have to know what that feels like.”

Morgan shifted uncomfortably while reaching for a candy. “Hotch struggled when you went missing. I’ll never forget that.”

“I know.”

“No, you don’t. You don’t really understand what it was like. Hotch’s reaction to seeing you hurt was worse than how Reid reacted, and he didn’t even lose you entirely. Reid was capable of holding himself back, of biting his tongue and regressing into silence while Maeve was still missing. Hotch, on the other hand, had been lashing out. He was so angry, so upset, so lost without you. The only thing he could focus on was finding you, and even then, he needed someone to keep him on task the whole time. But he found you, and he was so relieved, and he was himself again. He won for once and we could all tell that he was so grateful. But Reid lost. He didn’t get to feel that relief. It’s going to take him a very long time to recover from that. A long, long time.”

The doorknob suddenly creaked, causing Morgan and I to both jump to our feet. We stood at attention, shoulder to shoulder, watching as the door opened ever so slightly. My attention was lowered when I saw Scarlet come waddling out of Reid’s apartment. I reached down and carefully picked her up, groaning as I did so and felt my back strain. Morgan watched me silently, taking notice of my struggle, something that he was likely going to point out to Hotch later before I could even get home. Great.

As I propped Scarlet on my hip, I looked back up at the door that was closing in our faces. I figured that would be it, he wouldn’t want us around any longer, so I turned on my heels like I was going to make my way out of the building, but Spencer’s door stopped just in time before it could close all the way, and I saw one of his eyes peek around the corner. Reid got a good look at me, but all we could see was his left eye and part of his cheek.

“Can we—” Reid paused to clear his throat after he noticed how quiet and high-pitched he sounded. “Can we do this again next week?”

I looked to the side at Morgan to see his reaction since I didn’t know what to say or do. I mean, of course I wanted to oblige, but his question had caught me off guard for multiple reasons. For starters, I didn’t expect Reid to say anything to us that day; and next, was he really going to be like this for another week? Was he going to be like this for months? Maybe he should have been talking to a therapist and not a baby.

Morgan shrugged, letting me know that it was my decision.

My eyes met Reid’s one eye as Scarlet tried climbing around in my arms. She was always so damn fussy, I swear. “I think we'd both like that,” I answered, referencing me and Scar.

Reid nodded to thank me for understanding.

“Hey, kid,” Morgan stepped into his view to catch his attention. “Are you okay?” Reid closed the door within an instant, shocking Morgan. “Well,” he scoffed, “okay, then…”

I shrugged at him, not knowing what to tell him, then we left, heading home together.

----

After that, we kept up with the ritual for a few weeks. Every Sunday, which was when Maeve would usually call Spencer, I took Scarlet over to his place. It was nice. They hung out, and I relaxed. He never asked me to come in, he never even talked to me. He would open the door for her, let her waddle in, then he would let her come back out whenever they got bored. It worked. She was always excited to go, and she was always wiped when we were leaving.

About a month into it, Spencer kept the door open after Scarlet went in. I finally got to see him. His fair was so long, so flat, not at all puffy and lively like it normally was. He had bags under eyes, just like Hotch. His apartment reeked, I could smell it from where I was standing, and it looked like a complete wreck. I pouted at him. He shyly asked if I could help him with something, to which I nodded and carefully stepped into his apartment.

All of Garcia’s gift baskets were empty and stacked on his kitchen counter. He had eaten through everything. Thankfully, he had eaten something, but as for showering or cleaning his apartment, I couldn’t praise him as much. There were books scattered everywhere, pages ripped out of a few here and there, spilled coffee on the table, clothes littered around. I knew he was depressed, but if I would have known that the rest of his life had fallen apart like that, I would have kicked down the door in order to help him and hold him.

Spencer kept his eyes lowered as he whispered, “Can you help me clean up?”

I nodded eagerly. “I’d love to.”

I sent him to his bedroom to go shower while I started with taking all of the trash out to the dumpster behind the building and cleaned up any spills around the place. Coffee, sodas, orange juice. It was like he knocked it over and didn’t have the energy to fix it. I knew that feeling. Then, when he came back from his shower, he and I started working on picking up all of the papers, organizing them, then collecting the books that he had angrily thrown around. He didn’t say anything. I could tell he was ashamed of his state of living, but it really wasn’t his fault, and I wished more than anything that he understood that. I was just glad he asked for help before it got any worse.

As I finished putting back the last book Spencer had thrown on the floor, I turned to see that he was sitting down on the floor and pulling Scarlet onto his lap. She giggled and poked at his face. Reid didn’t mind, though. He let her play with his curls before making a move to playfully bite at her finger. She laughed and snatched her hand away. He smiled back at her and started bouncing her on his knee to keep her laughing.

I tried biting back a smile as I sat across from them on the floor. I made sure to keep my distance because they were sharing a moment, and this was the first time I had seen Reid smile in so long, I didn’t want to take that away from them. He deserved to be happy. After everything that happened, he deserved to forget about the burdens of the world and just focus on playing with Scarlet. He was always so good with kids, too. That was why I offered that he hang out with Scarlet rather than talk to me or Morgan or someone else. With Henry and Jack, Reid always just seemed to… click with them. I looked at how he was playing with Scarlet, and I knew right then and there that he was going to be the best father one day. I wanted to tell him, but I knew that after Maeve, he wouldn’t want to hear anything about that kind of stuff. That was understandable.

He finally looked up at me and asked, “Do you know why Scarlet’s the only person I’ll talk to?”

I leaned back, stretching my arms behind me to keep myself propped up. “I have my suspicions.” But that was all I said because I wanted to wait for his answer.

It didn’t take a profiler to know that Spencer Reid was hurting, and he thought that he needed to suffer alone. He didn’t want to burden others with his troubles, and he certainly didn’t want to sit around while someone would lie to his face while telling him: “It’ll be alright” or “She’s in a better place now” or “You’ll stop hurting eventually” or some other bullshit like that. I knew that if I lost Hotch, I wouldn’t want to hear any of it. It wasn’t going to be alright, Maeve deserved to still be with him and not in some “better place”, and, honestly, he was never going to stop hurting. If she was really a soulmate—like I assumed she was—then he was never going to get over it. And I wasn’t going to sit there and lie to him. But I knew that he was scared of talking to anyone because he didn’t know who understood him like I did versus someone like Morgan who was willing to lie to him just to make themselves feel better.

“There are so many things that I wanted to say to Maeve, but couldn’t. And there are things now that I wish I could you guys, but I… I really don’t want people’s pity. I just wanted someone to talk to who would listen and not judge me. I want to be able to speak freely, to say the things I wanted to say to Maeve, to admit the things I want to say to the team, and… and I’ve found that talking to a baby is the best way to do that. You know, she’s still so young that she’ll sort of listen while she fusses in my arms, which helps distract me from wanting to cry all the time. And she doesn’t really know how to say anything except for ‘mom’ and ‘dad’ and ‘curls’.”

“Curls!” Scarlet cheered while leaping forward to reach for Reid’s hair.

He laughed and let her pull lightly on the strands of his long hair. “Like that.” When she started pulling too hard, he tickled her stomach to get her to let go. In a fit of laughter, Scarlet felt weak, collapsing in his arms while trying to fight him to make him stop. He gave up after a few more seconds. “I talk a lot about Maeve with Scarlet,” he admitted to me. “I talk about how much I miss her, and she listens. I’ve been telling her stories about our phone calls— her favorite one is the one where Maeve told me she loved me for the first time. It’s my favorite one, too. But, most of all, I’ve just been talking through my feelings with her, and it’s helped tremendously. Is that pathetic?”

“No,” I insisted quickly. “I’m glad that you’re at least getting the chance to talk to someone. It’s never good to bottle things up, Spencer, you know that. Talking to someone—even if it is just a baby—is a good first step towards healing. I’m proud of you.”

Scarlet started throwing a tantrum because she was getting tired and wanted to go home, so I let her fall into my arms while cradling her and cooing her to calm down. I wanted to stay with Reid more than anything… but duty called. The baby wanted home, and I had to give in. So, I stood, and Spencer saw me to the door. Though the hallway was just there, and I could tell that he was eager to be alone again, I turned to inspect him one more time, and I pushed his curls out of his face with my fingers. He let his eyes flutter shut.

“I’m proud of you, Spencer. Truly.”

His lip quivered as he tried to hold a sob back. Before I could see him crack, though, he practically shooed me out of his place and shut the door on my face. I sighed and looked at Scarlet. She was already asleep in my arms, sucking on her thumb while snoring. She was so like her dad.

When I got home, I found Jack passed out on the couch with his homework on the floor. Hotch was sitting with him on another cushion, reading the news on his phone. I leaned over the back of the couch and kissed his cheek. He smiled and turned his face to look at me before pressing a kiss directly against my lips. After we parted, he reached to take Scarlet from me. With my arms free, I stretched. He chuckled at me as I walked around the couch so that I could sit with him, stopping so that I could take a chance to kiss Jack and tuck him under a blanket, then I collapsed against Hotch.

“He let me in today,” I said. Hotch couldn’t believe it. “We cleaned up his place. I don’t think he’s okay, but he will be.” I nuzzled my head against his side.

“I didn’t want it to be him,” Hotch whispered.

I cocked a brow at him. “What are you talking about?”

“Out of everyone on the team, I didn’t want it to be him who had to go through what I went through.” He looked at me. “He’s so young… and he’s alone… He has no one to fall back on. He still doesn’t understand the world, and he doesn’t even understand himself. At least with Haley—” He stopped when Jack squirmed on the couch while yawning and rolling over. When we were sure that he was still asleep, Hotch continued. “At least with Haley, I had you, I had Jack… and I understood myself and the world enough to understand what was happening and why it was happening. But Spencer… He doesn’t have any of that. He’s like my family, Y/N, and I didn’t want it to be him… Anyone but him.”

I didn’t know what to say to any of that.

Hotch flung his arm around my shoulders, pulling me into his side, then he kissed my forehead. I nuzzled against him. After spending the afternoon with Reid, I realized even more now just how lucky we were. I didn’t have to worry about missing Hotch. I didn’t have to kill myself over the fact that I wouldn’t get to hold him ever again because he was there, and he was holding me, and I was his, and we were watching our children sleep peacefully. Just to make sure it was all real, though, I grabbed Hotch’s free hand and kissed his knuckles.

“I love you,” he whispered against my hair.

“I love you more.”

He chuckled. “I’m not sure that’s possible.”

“Don’t make me get all cliché on you, Agent Hotchner.”

As we chuckled again, we relaxed and snuggled against each other, but we didn’t fall asleep. We couldn’t. It was too hard to rest while knowing how easy it was to lose everything. It reminded me of how we were after Haley died. We were paralyzed, but at least we had each other to get through it, and we had Jack to encourage us to get better. Spencer had no one. Spencer didn’t have a loved one to lean on, he didn’t know how to open up to people, and he didn’t know how to deal with his emotions. It was going to destroy him.

------

criminal minds family: @peggy1999 @gorgeousdarkangel @alex--awesome--22 @oceaneblu @brithedemonspawn @absolutemarveltrash @bshelley322 @rousethemouse @sunshinepower17 @weexinling @pettttyyyc​ @Braty-angel

[ohmightydevviepuu]

for tonight you’re only here to know / part two

(artwork used with permission from carpedzem) part one | part two 

--

It’s the smell of her and the taste of her, the way her hair feels and her breath feels and her skin feels and--it’s gone.

(He’s used used to it, now, the way he dreams of Swan and not of Milah.)

(This is the lie he tells himself.)

“Is this a dream?” Hook whispers, opens his eyes and sees her face--the emeralds of her eyes--swim into a vision that refuses to focus. Waits for the flush of relief that does not--quite--come.

“I’ll pinch you, if that will help you wake up.” Her gaze is concerned even as her tone is light.

Hook laughs. It hurts. “You came back for me,” he says. He cannot keep the wonder from his voice. He doesn’t even try. He feels for a moment as if there is no filter between his brain and his mouth and this simple fact--that Hook cannot recall the last time someone, anyone came back for him--is important for her to realize.

Because it’s never happened.

Except for her, his Milah. And she died for it.

He wants to say more. Tries to.

But he cannot.

Swan smiles. Hook waits for his heart to flutter.

It does not.

“I couldn’t leave you here in the corridor, looking like the dead guy of the year.”

“Do I?” Hook is confused. “Is that why it hurts when I laugh?”

“Does it?” Her voice turns sharp and he flinches.

“No,” he says. It’s a lie. Emma’s eyes narrow and something tells him not to let her linger on this so he says, “Shouldn’t I be the one assaying a daring rescue?”

She smiles again and Hook exhales a sigh of relief that also, inexplicably, hurts. “Sorry, Hook, the only one who saves me is me.” Emma stands and holds out her hnd to him, waiting for him to pull himself up. “I’m sorry I broke my promise. I didn’t think Graham would be so hard on you.”

“He got his point across,” Hook concedes. He ignores the other thing as he reaches for her hand and squeezes. Her hand, so small in his, feels warm to him.

Warmth, but no fire.

Hook waggles his eyebrows as he levers himself upright. Every gesture, every movement, feels contrived and he shakes his head, wishing he could clear it of the fog that seems to have settled in while he was unconscious. The look Emma gives him is appraising.

Finally she says, “Follow me.”

It is not until he thinks to turn left when she goes to turn right that he realizes his mistake. Even then, he thinks--hopes--she has not noticed.

“We’re going this way,” she says, pulling at his hook. “To the dungeons.”

“I’m not certain I see that ending up well for me,” he says with a laugh he does not feel.

“Maybe it won’t,” Emma says. Her tone is light but her expression is serious. It’s on the tip of his tongue to ask--to push--but some instinct is warning him to stay silent even as he has to bite down hard to keep himself speaking the words. Why? The shadows between the torches seem to lengthen, to follow them--follow her--as they move, as she moves, and they remain shrouded in semi-darkness as the bustle of the ballroom recedes further into the background.

But then she asks: “You’ve been here before,” she says, and it is not a question. “You thought we were going to the vault.”

He had--to both, though he had no reason to suspect the latter, he cannot deny that was his expectation. But all he says is, “Of course I have, darling. I’m Captain Hook, most fearsome pirate in the realm. Did it not occur to you that perhaps I have broken into the Queen’s castle before this night?”

“No,” she says. “I’m sure you have. But that’s not why you’ve been here before, is it?”

There is a commotion at the end of the hallway and this time he grabs her, pulls her into the deepening shadow. “Aye,” he whispers. “I’ve been here before. A long time ago.”

Her hands are braced on his forearms. She presses gently on his left wrist at the spot just above his brace, the spot her fingers traced and her lips brushed as she kissed it, gently, gently, that night in the cold and the rain and the darkness and the warmth they made in the bed they shared.

Hook closes his eyes and inhales, deeply. It’s a reflex, after so many years; he waits for the rush of pain that inevitably--

“It’s to do with this, isn’t it?” Emma pulls her hand away.

It doesn’t come, the pain. There is only the darkness, there is only Emma standing in front of him. The commotion is getting closer. Footsteps. Shouting.

“How do you know Graham?” There is urgency in her words, in her voice. “Do you know my grandmother?”

Hook raises his arm and shoves, raises his hook against the three Black Knights who are approaching at speed, his body between them and the princess. Emma moves to defend herself, to reach for her knife, and he stops her, his arm still in front of her as he slashes his hook at the Knights and she tenses behind him; he can feel her frustration at having to play the helpless maiden.

She screams.

It’s as if something shatters, as if the Knights are just now cognizant of whom they are chasing in this hallway, be she guarded by a pirate or not. In their distraction Emma lashes out, drops to the ground and kicks. It’s clever. It’s brilliant, in fact--takes them completely by surprise--she disables one as Hook moves in to disarm the second and then turns about to catch the third’s sword in his hook and force it to the ground.

It’s over as soon as it begins. Emma grabs his hook and pulls him along with her as they make a mad dash for the next hallway, the next shadows. Their backs are to the wall as they breathe, heavily, the energy from the fight running high and still coursing through their veins and she looks at him and Hook grins, he laughs, he says, “I don’t mean to upset you, Emma, but we seem to make a good team.”

It’s heady, when she laughs; it’s warm and full of promises when she reaches for him, pulling at the lapels of his coat to bring him closer to her.

Their lips brush.

It’s ice when he clears his throat and moves before they are flush, side-stepping her embrace and the hurt in her eyes as they freeze over, go cold. Hook craves nothing so much in that moment as the feel of her mouth on his, feels it inside him like a need, like a compulsion, and yet he cannot.

He does not.

The smile on his face is suddenly fake and forced but he makes it anyway, flashes his teeth at her and gestures, half-bent at the waist with his hook pointing the way. “After you, milady.”

 “You’re going to tell me about the compass,” she says. “The truth.” Her hand hovers over her lips. “Start with the woman.”

“She was taken from me,” Hook says. The words are clipped, short. “A long time ago.”

“That’s why you want the compass, then.” As before, it is not a question. “You want to find her.”

“I would give anything to find her.” He pauses, again, for the pain. “If only it were possible.” It’s--

“Why not?” Emma presses.

“She’s dead.” It’s an echo, a memory of pain. His voice sounds hollow.

Emma’s face whitens, her eyes widen. “I’m sorry,” she says.

“It was a long time ago,” Hook snaps. Her eyebrows go up.

“And you loved her.” Fingers on her lips again. “Love--and revenge. You believe the compass will take you to the person who killed her? Find him?”

“Oh, I know who killed her,” Hook says. “I’ve known for many, many long years. The compass will reveal what I need to defeat him.”

“To kill him.” Emma’s voice does not waver when she says it. “You want to kill him.”

“Aye,” he says.

“And you went to my grandmother for help. When?”

Hook sighs. Shrugs. Repeats, “A long time ago, lass. Before you were born.”

She frowns as she steps closer, as she reaches for his face, stopping him from turning away. “That’s not possible,” she says. “You look--”

Hook looks her dead in the eyes and does not blink. “I, like you, am more than what I appear,” he says carefully. “I spent many years in Neverland.” Gently, he removes her hand and steps back into the shadow. Waits for the questions he knows are coming. Why, how, when. But what she asks is not what he expects.

“Is it true,” Emma says, “is it true that the Lost Boys cry out in the night?”

She surprises him.

And the way that she looks at him is--

“Aye,” he says. How does she always manage to surprise him? “They cry for what they have lost. Parents. Home. I suspect you, princess, would know something of that yourself. Only because of the nature of the island, they are not permitted the luxury of grief, of mourning. Neverland is an eternal present. Time does not pass and one’s hurts never quite heal.” For the briefest of seconds there is a flare of light as he whispers these truths to her. “Loss. Revenge. And love.”

He waits, and says nothing else; Emma hesitates, watching him. Her fingers twitch but she does not move, except to nod. “Graham knew my mother.”

“I know,” Hook says. “I knew him once, too. Before. The Queen extracted a price from him and he paid it on your mother’s behalf. He hasn’t aged a day since then.”

It is the truth, and he can see that it surprises her. She looks, for the first time, small. She exhales a small sound. Oh.

“An eternal present?”

“Something like that,” he agrees. He opens his mouth again, to say more, but--

“And you?”

“Me?”

“You went to her for help,” Emma says. “In your quest for revenge you went to the Evil Queen.”

That’s not--quite--how it went. Hook feels that he should explain but all he can say is, “I did. But what she asked for, I would not--could not--give. At the final test, I failed.”

“What did she want?”

Hook does not bother to hide the anger in his voice when he answers. “She wanted me to kill my father.” Emma starts to speak and he cuts her off, a silencing gesture with his hand that pushes her farther into the hallway. “Do not mistake me, I was happy to. But he had another young son and I realized--”

Now they are both silent. She is contemplative as she turns and begins, once more, to walk.

“Ariel caught you, somehow.” Her voice is pitched so that it does not carry.

He stops. “I know not what you mean.”

“Liar,” she says, half-turning to face him. “That’s what happened, and that is why you are here tonight. Something caused you to cross paths, something that caught you between what you wanted to do and what the right thing to do was. And because of it, she ran afoul of the Evil Queen. So now you are here tonight, where you can achieve both: Help the princess, and retrieve the compass.”

Ariel.

Hook almost turns away, to go back to the shadow, to the party, to the woman he wronged. But his feet do not move and he knows he must go forward. “You know the worst of me now,” he says instead of answering. Like almost everything else, the sentiment feels hollow.

And Emma looks like she does not believe him. “Do I,” she says.

Hook says nothing. He does not know how to answer truthfully and he will not lie to her.

He still wants her to trust him.

“You know what she did to my parents,” Emma says. Like before, she is certain; it is not a question. “My grandmother--you know what she did to them.”

“I know what she planned, aye. But I do not know if she succeeded,” he says. “I can only guess.”

Emma stops before a door, motions for him to block her as she pulls something from her hair and the cuff of her dress to pick the lock. “Well,” she says, speaking over a faint click. “Tonight we are going to find out. You help me, and I will help you.” She holds the door open for him and waits for him to enter before she follows and pulls the door closed once more behind them. Hook hears a noise, a buzzing in his skull, a sound he has only heard in his nightmares, that chased him from sleep on the long Neverland nights to echo with the cries of the Lost.

A hiss. A hiss of laughter.

“Well, well, well.” The voice is low and rough, oddly pitched in an off-key singsong. “If it isn’t Captain Hook.”

  The dungeons are dark, deep black that seems to permeate the very air around them, to seep into Hook’s soul--or maybe it is just the sound of that voice, that laughter, ricocheting around his brain, throughout his body, echoing in his ribcage.

For the first time since he woke up, he feels overcome. Anger, and darkness; beneath it all he feels fear. It is ruthlessly smothered, overtaken by the anger and the darkness that are being fanned by something he is not in control of, bubbling up inside him and bleeding out all around him. He cannot see straight. He can only see the creature in front of him, hanging upside-down on the bars of his cell.

“Welcome, princesssss.” The last syllable is nothing so much as a caress. The creature’s head is cocked and his tongue pokes out as if he wants to taste the word in the air, to feel the pleasure it gives him again. He releases the bar and lands on his feet.

Hook snaps his gaze back toward Emma, for this of all things is not what he expected. Swan--and him. For an instant, he can see it in her eyes--genuine fear. But the mask slips quickly into place as she draws herself upright, unwilling to appear intimidated. He wonders how long the Dark One has been imprisoned in this castle.

Twenty-eight years, at least.

More than that, it is obvious to Hook that this is not their first meeting--obvious, too, that the princess had willing tutors for her magic in spite of the Queen’s efforts to keep it from her.

Hook seethes. “You,” he spits. “You--and him?” He does not bother to conceal his fury--takes pleasure in the way her eyes widen in surprise. “All of this time, you’ve been working with him?” He gestures at the creature, directs his next words at the figure in the cell: “All of this time, you’ve been here?”

“Exactly where I needed to be,” the creature says. “Perhaps not exactly in the way I planned, but I do confess--this is quite better than my wildest imaginings. I’ve missed you, Captain. How was the island of misfit toys?”

“You two know each other?” Emma says. For the first time since Hook approached her in the ballroom she seems genuinely shocked.

“Indeed,” the creature says. “You might say--” he laughs again, and Hook flinches “--you might say that he’s my oldest friend. Didn’t he tell you?” The creature is delighted.

Her mouth falls open. She’s struggling. She’s shaking. “You?” Emma says. “You killed the woman he loves?”

“He stole her from me,” the creature says.

“Is it really theft if a woman begs you to take her away?” It’s Hook who savors the moment now. “Because you were a coward. Because she loved me. That’s what you couldn’t forgive as you ripped out her heart and crushed it in front of me.” He raises his arm and smiles. The rage is dissipating, somehow; Hook feels that he has, literally, the upper hand.

“Ah, ah, ah,” the creature says, pointing at the hook. “You still can’t kill me. And even if you could--” the smile is cold “--vengeance won’t bring her back.”

Hook says nothing. He merely watches the creature pace in its cell.

“Enough.” The torches react to Emma’s energy but Hook feels only its absence. “Enough.” She reaches for him and Hook steps neatly out of her grasp. The Dark One, watching them move--watching them dance--claps his hands with glee.

“You asked me once, princess, if I had a heart,” Hook says. “I don’t. And this is why.”

The Dark One smiles.

“What’s your plan here, crocodile?” Hook says. “What will you do, locked up and bound in this dungeon?” He makes a mocking hand gesture, his arms angled and a sick smile splitting his face as he turns on Emma. “Has all of this been about him? He will do anything–anything–to hold on to his power. Tell me something, darling. Why would you want to ally yourself with a man like that?”

Emma is looking at him, at Hook, and he can feel the weight of her gaze like an anchor on his soul. Her eyes seem to pierce his very body, as if she can see his insides, as if she is weighing them for judgment. Something in his chest constricts and Hook gasps.

“Missy...missy,” the Dark One calls in his sing-song. “You know that I’ve told you the truth.”

“The Dark One sent me after the compass,” Emma says. “He told me I could use it to find my parents. With this.” She fiddles with one of her sleeves and pulls out the vial full of sparkly dirt and Hook curses. “It’s the remnants of a portal. A magical wardrobe the Queen used to send my parents away the day I was born.”

“The Queen created a powerful curse,” the Dark One says in his low hiss. “A prison. Just like this, only worse. Their prison--is time. Time stopped, and they are trapped--somewhere horrible--everything they loved ripped from them while they suffer for all eternity. And the Queen celebrates, victorious at last.” He bobs up and down on his feet, swaying in the darkness with the rhythm of his words. “Nothing can free them from its confines, except for their child. You see, no matter how powerful...all curses can be broken.”

Anger rises up in him once more. He turns to face the crocodile and his body does not want to obey his command. There is nothing in Hook but rage; it drives him forward step by step as he advances on Emma. The anger is overwhelming and it is an outside force propelling him, forcing him. “He won’t help you,” Hook says. “This isn’t about you. You’re nothing to him.”

The Dark One smiles again, wide enough to show the remnants of his pointed teeth. “On the contrary, I have known your name, princess, since before you were born. You are everything to me.”

“Tell that to your son, crocodile,” Hook whispers. He has to force the words out, but he knows they are true, that Emma needs to know the truth. “That’s what this is about, isn’t it? The sparkly dirt--whatever it is--is going to get you back to Bae.”

“Do not speak my son’s name.” The words are a growl.

“Why shouldn’t I? I am the one who took him in when he ran--from you,” Hook says, breathing heavily. “You seem to have a bit of a nasty habit when it comes to your family, if they would rather seek refuge with a pirate than a man like you. So tell me--tell all of us--what magic will you hide behind today?”

The creature is watching him, speculating; watching them, his head angled once more and his tongue tasting the air.

“Killian,” Emma says. There is an eternity in the pause after she speaks.

The Dark One makes a sound--a squeak, or maybe a squeal. He laughs again--hiss--and claps. “I do love it when a plan comes together.”

Hook falters. Meets her gaze as a wave of heat--of fire--roils through him and the torches flare.

There is a faint smile--Hook might be imagining it--a nod of her head before her knife is suddenly in her hand, positioned perfectly to parry the thrust of his hook.

Hook does not know when he moved, when he lunged, when he attacked, but with a twist of her wrist his arm is pinned behind his back and the tip of her blade is against his throat.

“Not so fast,” Emma says.

And then there is only darkness.

 It is in that moment, and not before, that he remembers.

He remembers.

Graham--the darkness--and what came after, as he woke up with his heart in her hand and the way it felt when she squeezed it, squeezing slowly, gently, the life force out of him drip by drip.

Against his will Hook was pulled up to his feet and she smiled, a cold and feral thing lined in blood-red lip paint he will remember to the end of his days. He was taller than the Queen but she towered over him in her heeled boots, the unrelieved black of her formal gown and matching headpiece adding to the perception that she was a statue, an edifice before which one could only bow and tremble.

Hook did neither, for a pirate made no allegiance to Queen or to country, even if she did hold his heart in her hands. He merely stared, keeping his face blank and unaffected until the need to breathe became overwhelming and he gasped and doubled over.

“Hello, Hook.” The Queen’s tone was inviting, if a man could be invited to his own execution. “It’s been a long time. I thought you had carried yourself and your broken heart to another realm to lick your wounds. Imagine my surprise to see you here tonight--with not one, but two women.”

Hook tried to speak but was cut off. “Your fishy friend is on her way back to the sea already. Her example has been set.” The glittering blackness of her eyes left no room for doubt as to whom the next example would be. “So you’re going to tell me how you know the princess.”

“Your granddaughter is a lovely girl,” Hook said. “I found her--quite amiable, if you know what I mean.”

The Queen gave no reaction but to squeeze harder. He felt the air leaving his lungs and she watched him, not in the least interested if he lived or he died, content for it to go either way.

It had always been thus, with the Queen.

“Tell me about her,” she said. Her hand tightened and released, the movement in time with her words. “Tell me how you came to be looking for her on tonight of all nights. Her twenty-eighth birthday.”

The words were forced from him before he could stop himself. “I did not come here looking for her. I did not know she would be here at all.”

Her twenty-eighth birthday. Hook knew--remembered--the significance of that date.

“You didn’t know,” the Queen repeated. “You didn’t know that Princess Emma would be at her own ball?”

“I was under the impression, Majesty, that it wasn’t hers.” Hook managed to raise one cheeky eyebrow and buried the relief he felt as deeply inside himself as he could--for the Queen did not know, what Emma was, what she was capable of. It was suddenly imperative that he not tell the Queen this even as he fought to keep his own mouth from speaking the words. “I accompanied the little mermaid merely to gain passage for my own mission. You know of what I speak. You know what it is I seek.”

“Ah, yes,” she whispered. “How many years has it been, Captain? How many years have you been chasing your crocodile across time and across realms? To think that all of this could have been avoided if you had only--” she clucked her tongue. “How many years have you been seeking your vengeance?”

“Longer than you have,” he spat. “And with more purpose.”

“Snow White is responsible for the death of the thing I loved most in the world,” Regina snarled. “As the Dark One is responsible for the death of your True Love. Perhaps twenty-eight years of fruitless wandering have provided you with additional motivation. Or--” her tone turned mocking “--have you forgotten her? Abandoned her in a stone hallway for a silly little girl who isn’t long for this world.”

One by one she lifted her fingers from the heart, his heart, until it was cradled in her palm, unencumbered.

“You can help me tonight or you can die right here, your revenge incomplete.”

Hook breathed in, and then out again. Just the once before she clamped back down.

Emma.

What was this witch going to do to Emma?

It was the only thought he had before the Queen spoke again.

“You have a simple choice before you, Hook. Love or revenge. Which will it be?”

Love. Love.

Love?

His pulse throbbed in his wrist and he felt as if the tattoo on his forearm was beating where his heart should have been.

  He feels the trickle of blood down his neck before he is even fully awake. There is a sound--Hook is not sure if he is hearing it, or imagining it, imagining the softness and the sweetness of her voice and the way it fills him.

Killian. Come back to me.

Hook opens his eyes and grunts in pain, barely breathing and it feels as if each breath might be his last and the only thought he has--it echoes around his empty insides, dull and painful like an old knife instead of the sharp blade piercing the edge of his skin--is that he cannot die like this.

“Regina.” The princess says only the single word, the name; it is a summons.

“The Queen,” he mumbles. It’s hardly a sound at all but Emma makes a soothing noise and hums in his ear.

“I know,” she whispers.

Hook shudders. A swirl of purple smoke rises from the floor, slowly at first but gaining speed and height and volume before it dissipates to reveal the Queen.

The Evil Queen.

And in her hand--Hook’s heart. He can feel Emma stiffen behind him but her grip does not loosen.

The Queen laughs. “You can let him go. I have no further use for him.” She squeezes his heart for emphasis and as Emma pushes him away Hook turns himself around to catch her hand in his, to feel their fingers, however briefly, intertwine, before the Queen waves her hand and Emma’s knife is replaced with an apple as red as blood.

“What is this?” Emma asks. The words are steady and calm, her voice strong and true, but Hook watches her and knows she already knows the answer to her question.

So does he.

It is the stuff of legends, of Snow White and Prince Charming and True Love and now their daughter stands before the Evil Queen, unarmed, with only a poisoned apple to show for her efforts. For she is more than they said she was--Hook has known it since the moment he first saw her--and tonight, here, right now in this dungeon, is the Queen’s last opportunity for either utter defeat or total triumph over a botched curse that spanned two generations and nearly three decades. Hook wonders if Emma knows, too. If Rumplestiltskin had taken that much effort and trouble with his plans or if he was just using her as he used everything else--a coward and an opportunist to the last.

The Queen laughs again; it is no more pleasant a sound on the second instance than it was in the first. “It’s nothing. A morsel.”

“And yet,” Emma says, “I am certain that eating it will kill me.”

“Killing you doesn’t serve my purposes,” the Queen says. “This--will do worse than that.”

“A sleeping curssssse,” the Dark One hisses. “You always did have your favorites.”

Regina whirls on him, her smile contorting into a snarl. “You demented little imp,” she says. “How long have you been helping her? What have you done? Why are you trying to break my curse?”

“What could I have done, Your Majesty? From my humble abode?”

The Queen sniffs as she opens her mouth to reply--

“I’m not eating this,” Emma says.

Regina raises her eyebrows. “It’s your choice.” She squeezes on Hook’s heart. “But we both know what will happen if you don’t.”

“But who will awaken me? I have never been in love,” she says, and it’s a lie. Hook knows it’s a lie, has known it every morning that he has woken up without her.

“My point, dear,” the Queen says with relish.

And this--this--is what he wants her to remember, this moment when he looks at her and wants to reach for her, for the flame, for the heat, for the magic and the light that she makes in the dark when her eyes glitter and there is no one but the two of them. The emotions--the anger, the rage--all of them have fallen away and Hook realizes they were not his to begin with. He wants to feel the magic, but he cannot. Not without a heart. There is only the barest warmth as she meets his gaze and inhales, deeply.

He has been betrayed--he has betrayed her--but in this, he knows what he must do.

Not revenge.

Love.

He looks at her and says, “It’s all right, Swan. Let me go. You have everything you need.”

He wants her to know that his death is not her fault, but his choice--that every choice he has made in his life has led him, somehow, to this.

“Ha!” The creature cackles and it sends a shiver through Hook, for that is a noise that he has never in his long years of chasing the Dark One heard before and he knows that it cannot presage glad tidings. Hook ignores him, shuts it out--there is nothing, no one, but her and them and this moment.

Lunacy.

Daring.

Magic.

He believes.

“What is this?” the Queen sneers. “A pirate with a hero complex? You didn’t learn your lesson from your previous failures?”

Hook swallows. “Milah is dead. I loved her, and I loved her enough to kill for her. But Emma--I love Emma enough to die for her.” He says all of this without looking away from her, from Emma--from Swan. Only when he finishes does he look at his old foe pacing behind the bars of his cell. Only then does he say, “The maid. Regina has the maid.”

It’s enough.

The Dark One is shrieking, laughter and tears as he bangs on the bars of his cell. “Regina!” He screams the name. “Regina!”

And all hell breaks loose as the Queen’s grip on Hook’s heart drives him to his knees and into the welcome embrace of the blackness.

--

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