#Twisted Wonderland x violent reader

[silverryuan]

Jamil Viper with Carl! Yuu from Llamas with Hats, ft. Octavinelle Trio

I can't say that everyone is not dying in this one 💀...

Warnings: Blood & Gore, Violence, Swearing, Cannibalism

• I was torn between choosing the reader to be isekai'd as a llama or isekai them as a llama beastman. I'm just gonna go with beastman cuz I thought it'd be funnier if they could talk. I also made them less murderous. There's also a collab with other characters from Filmcow 😉.

• There's a high chance that Jamil has heard of you through Kalim. The boy said he witnessed a llama beastman causing a fire and a monster running around during the ceremony. Great, he went through the trouble to prepare a welcoming party for the freshmen and now he has to fix Kalim's robe. He just hopes that Kalim won't forget what he said about the new schedule tomorrow.

• Kalim forgot. Again. Of course he would.

• Kalim forgot about the sudden change of class schedules and spent the entire morning wandering to wrong classrooms. Jamil just received his text message after class and texted back the room number. Kalim did not reply or read his message. Luckily, Jamil remembered that he turned on the location in Kalim's phone just in case for these types of situations. He tried tracking him down but Kalim kept moving, so he ran as fast as he could to catch up with him.

• Jamil finally see Kalim not moving in the courtyard. When he caught sight of Kalim, he sees another person next to him... A beastman? He approached you two and called Kalim.

Jamil: "Kalim!"

Kalim: "Jamil! There you are! How'd you find me?"

Jamil: "I turned on the location on your phone, remember? I texted you the room number, why haven't you read it?"

Kalim: "Oh, I thought that I'd find the classroom myself but it looks like I got lost more, hehe!"

Jamil: "Honestly, I thought you were... Who is this?"

Kalim: "This guy's trying to help me out!"

Carl! Yuu: "Nope, I'm just as lost as you are. I didn't even know we even got class."

Jamil: "Who are you?"

Carl! Yuu: "I'm Carl! Yuu. I'm just a regular llama guy with a hat, yup. A totally normal beastman. Nothing comes after that because of how normal I am."

Kalim: "I've got an idea!Why not just come with me and Jamil? We could go to our classrooms together."

Carl! Yuu: "Oh hey, that's a great idea. Why haven't I thought of that."

Jamil: ".... Kalim, come here for a sec."

• Jamil pushed Kalim away from you. They went a distance farther from you and Jamil whispered to him.

Jamil: "Kalim, have you met them before?"

Kalim: "Uhh... no?"

Jamil: "It's the llama beastman you talked about causing arson at the ceremony!"

Kalim: "OH! Now I remember!"

Jamil: "Sshh! They might be as unhinged as Floyd. Thank the Sevens they didn't harm you."

Carl! Yuu: "Why are we whispering?"

Jamil: "Gah!"

• He was right. You were as unhinged as Floyd and were as nosy as Azul. If you have those obnoxious two's personalities then whatever you're hiding must be as fucked up as Jade's. He doesn't want to assume but he does want to be cautious. If you easily caused arson, then that means you're worse than that monster at the ceremony.

• Kalim insisted that you three should join at the cafeteria for lunch and here he is, sitting beside Kalim who lost his appetite after you opened your lunchbox. Jamil smelled an odor coming from your food. It smells like something is... Rotting?

Jamil: "Kalim, your next class is... Sevens, what is that smell?!"

Kalim: "Eugh! C-Carl! Yuu, has your food gone bad? I-I can buy you lunch if-"

Carl! Yuu: "No thank you, but this is what I usually eat. It's my favorite."

• Jamil looked at your lunch and his eyes widened in disgust. What was in your plate was raw meat still wet with blood. The foul odor eventually reached the noses of the nearby tables and the students moved farther away from yours.

Jamil: "CARL! YUU, WHAT IS THIS?!"

Carl! Yuu: "Would you believe that it's melted and solidified jellybeans?"

Jamil: "NO, I WOULD NOT BELIEVE THAT."

Carl! Yuu: "Red milk?"

Kalim: "N-No 😰...?"

Carl! Yuu: "Some of Crowley's tears?"

Jamil: "CARL! YUU!!"

Carl! Yuu: "Fine... It's raw meat. And a bit of blood. And mold."

Jamil: "I CAN SEE THAT!"

Kalim: "I-i-it's rotting! You can't eat that!"

Carl! Yuu: "Yeah, you're right. I should've brought the fresh one. This one is actually one of the leftovers from yesterday. The blood may have gone cold, but it makes the meat taste sweet. Do you want to try some?"

Jamil: "NO!"

Carl! Yuu: "Dang, that was rude. You don't have to shout, you'll disturb the others. Want some, Kalim?"

Kalim: "...😰... N-no thanks..."

Carl! Yuu: "Alright. More for me then."

Jamil: "WHAT MAKES YOU THINK IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO BRING THAT HERE? WHAT KIND OF MEAT EVEN IS THAT?"

Carl! Yuu: "... You don't want to know."

• The smell and racket made the Cafeteria Ghosts kick you out. Jamil made an instant mental note to himself and Kalim to never cross paths with you again. Unfortunately, during a class collaboration, you became lab partners with Jamil. Jamil was irritated but he has to work with you for the grades. Honestly, same.

Jamil: "Ok. This is fine. This won't turn out bad if you just calm down... Hopefully this will turn out well-"

Carl! Yuu: "Hey Jamaica, what happens if I accidentally devoured a mandrake because I mistook it as a live form of food and shoved random potions in the cauldron causing it to rain acid and melt the ceiling while simultaneously making the students fall unconscious due to decreasing brain function, again caused by said acid rain. And I also managed to defy gravity and to attract several flamingos from Heartslabyul, as well as the vultures from Savanaclaw because of the substance emitting from the cauldron, and now they are brutally fighting each other while defying gravity. Hypothetically?"

Jamil: "............................"

Carl! Yuu: "Judging by your lack of response, I guess I haven't done enough and should've add my leftover meat into the cauldron. This question is not hypothetical, by the way."

Jamil: "NO SHIT."

Crewel: "CAAAAARL! YUUUUU!!!"

• HOW? JUST. JUST HOW? HOW ARE YOU SO GOOD AT GETTING ON PEOPLE'S NERVES? YOU'RE BASICALLY WORSE THAN THOSE OCTAVINELLE IDIOTS COMBINED! AND EVEN THEY'RE AFRAID OF YOU! THE HEADMASTER IS A LOT MORE STUPID THAN HE THOUGHT. WHY ARE YOU NOT EXPELLED?!

• It got worse when you wreak havoc at Scarabia. Is that even possible?!

• During winter break, he doesn't let you in the kitchen. When he heard your loud-ass cat talking, he immediately instructed the students to bar the door as to not let you in. The students were confused and were hesitant. Why is Jamil scared all of a sudden? But it was too late, you and Grim are already in the kitchen.

Grim: "Woahh! What's that smell? It smells good!"

Carl! Yuu: "Yeah, you're right. Hi, Janet. Is there any meat around? Preferably raw ones?"

Jamil: "GET. OUT."

• Talk about bad timing as Kalim walks in to check on the food for the winter break parade. Jamil massaged his forehead to lessen the impact of another headache and continued to cook.

Kalim: "Hey Jamil! I'm a little hung- Oh! Hey, Carl! Yuu! How's it going?"

Grim: "Ya forgot about me! Grim, the sorcerer extraordinaire! Carl! Yuu here is my henchman!"

Jamil: "...Ugh..."

Kalim: "Nice to meet you too, Grim! What are you guys doing here?"

Carl! Yuu: "Grim's stomach was making the rumblies and I was craving for something that only meat can satisfy."

Kalim: "U-uh... Wow, you sure like meat, huh?"

Grim: "Fnyagh, I wanted premium tuna but the headmaster won't give any!"

Kalim: "Is that so? Tell you what! How about I invite you to Scarabia and we'll have a party!"

Jamil: "NO!"

Carl! Yuu: "Sounds awesome."

Grim: "Really?!"

Kalim: "Yeah, really! And Carl! Yuu... I'm sorry for the incident from the cafeteria. Your food was bad and we were so loud that you couldn't eat your lunch properly because the ghosts kicked you out... But I guess everyone has different tastes when it comes to food, right?"

Jamil: "THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS!?"

Carl! Yuu: "It's ok."

Kalim: "I'll make it up to you by inviting you to the party! It's gonna be so cool! We'll eat and dance all day!"

• You had fun at the party. Grim ate until his stomach was full, not unlike in Ramshackle where you sometimes try to feed a dead cat to Grim. What was the cat's name? Lucifer? Lucius? You kind of forgot. You've never had this much raw meat on your plate before (although you must eat in a separate room so that everyone won't lose their appetite). Usually you had to hunt something and eat it but this tanned party-goer saved you the trouble.

• The Scarabia residents almost got their hands bitten by you. They are all puzzled on why you only wanted raw meat but they guess that it's a beastman thing... Wait a second, aren't you a llama?

Carl! Yuu: "Hey Kalim."

Kalim: "*yawn* Yep?"

Carl! Yuu: "... Thanks for the party. I honestly don't remember when was the last time I had fun without the blood and all. I haven't seen Grim this happy before. Maybe I should improve on my party-hosting... You know, I had this roommate named Paul and he--"

Kalim: "😴"

Carl! Yuu: "Kalim? Kalim? Kalim? Kal-Oh, you're asleep. Must've partied hard. Goodnight, Kalim."

• Timeskip to the part where you and Grim are captured by the hypnotized Scarabia students and were forced in a cell. Jamil had enough. It didn't take long for him to run out of patience and hypnotized Kalim. Grim tries to escape with a spoon and you decided to help him than wait.

Grim: "Fnyagh... No! The spoon's bent! Carl! Yuu! What are we gonna--"

Carl! Yuu: "...ughh...uhhh...."

Grim: "Hey, don't just stand there!... W-wait! Are you vomiting?!"

Carl! Yuu: "...Blegh!"

Grim: "Eww! Gross!"

Carl! Yuu: "Wow. It's been a long time since I throw up from a full stomach."

Grim: "... I-is that a key?!"

Carl! Yuu: "Yep. I snatched it from that Scarabia student earlier."

Grim: "Why didn't you do that in the first place?! And is that a... a f-f-finger?!!"

Carl! Yuu: "Oops, I must've bitten his finger off too."

• You two finally escaped the cell and snuck into the treasure room. You and Grim grabbed the magic carpet and ran from the pursuing residents. Both of you stumbled in Mostro Lounge, crashing into a table or two. Azul and the Tweels do not want to deal with you right now...

Jade: "Azul."

Azul: "Yes?"

Floyd: "They're back."

Azul: "............. Fuck."

Floyd: "Aren't you gonna do something?"

Azul: "Why are you asking me?! Just throw them outside!"

Floyd: "I don't wanna! They're gonna bite and eat my other ear!"

Azul: "Jade?!"

Jade: "... I also do not want to. Not after what they did to my poor terrariums."

Azul: "Why are you passing this problem onto me?!"

Floyd: "Who else is gonna talk to that freak?!"

Jade: "Certainly not us."

Azul: "...*sigh*. Fine, but you two are going to pay later!"

• Even before his Overblot, Jamil took notice of your relationship with the Octavinelle Trio... Floyd, who was in a bad mood, threatened to squeeze you one time and you bit off his ear. Jade became interested in you by the amount of food (mostly meat) you can consume in a minute. He tried to trick you into taste testing the dishes he made for free, when in fact, he laced some of them with poison.

• Jade was fascinated that your body withstood the poison and decided to experiment more. But you've reached your limit and started bashing people's heads on the tables, ripped off the Octavinelle banner and painted it with the students blood, and then declared a revolution. Azul ordered Floyd to throw you out but you began hitting the eel with the dorm leader's own cane. You then smashed the aquarium, resulting a flood within the dorm. People were seeking higher ground to avoid drowning while you were dancing on a buoyant wrecked door.

• After evacuating the residents, Jade swam to his room to save his precious terrariums but it was too late. You were using a swordfish how the hell did that get there? to drunkenly fence the terrariums. They shattered and Jade has to watch in horror as you ate his mushrooms and shards of glass. It took Leona, Riddle and Azul to physically restrain you.

• That day became one of the darkest times Mostro Lounge has ever faced a crisis. And to think all of this happened in just HALF AN HOUR. Azul blamed you for all of this mess but the headmaster covered for you... Jamil also took notice that every time you commit these atrocities, you'd try to put far-fetched reasons for your actions. Your smile still brings him shivers down his spine. He still can't believe you were the one that helped ended Overblots for the school. He thought that you were most likely the one that caused them.

• The Octavinelle Trio never want to deal with you again. Until today... Azul approached you cautiously, casting a magic shield around him just in case. He wasted no time in calling you out on your trespassing.

Carl! Yuu: "Hey Azul, long time no see. I know that we weren't on good terms after what happened to the dorm, even though it was still your vice dorm leader's fault to poison me, but hear me out--"

Azul: "Carl! Yuu, what made you have the right mind to step in Mostro Lounge? After all that chaos you've unleashed? The amount of employees you've nearly killed?!"

Carl! Yuu: "I do not kill people. That is my least favorite thing to do."

Azul: "Don't give me that excuse! We STRICTLY told you AND the headmaster that you are banned from entering this establishment. Now if you please, just leave--"

Carl! Yuu: "What do you mean Azul? I'm not in the lounge."

Azul: "Yes you are! You're standing by the doorway!"

Carl! Yuu: "No I'm not. I'm standing outside. See this line by the doorway? I'm standing on the other side. Not on the lounge's side."

Azul: "That doesn't count!"

Carl! Yuu: "Yes it does."

Azul: "No, you're still in the establishment!"

Carl! Yuu: "But I didn't step on the other side. Therefore, I did not enter."

Azul: "We literally heard you crashing into the tables!"

Carl! Yuu: "That must've been a phantom."

Azul: "You and Grim flew in here with a magic carpet!"

Carl! Yuu: "False, we were standing here waiting for you. The carpet must have flight skills as horrible as yours."

Magic Carpet: "😠!"

Azul: "Ugh, this is getting us nowhere... What do you want?!"

• You negotiate with Azul to help you with your predicament but he refused, afraid that you are capable of causing financial problems for the lounge... Until you mentioned Jamil. He was curious about Viper and Al-Asim and decided to hear you out.

• After shooing off the chasing Scarabia students, he listened to your negotiation and as it turns out, you have a grudge against Jade for attempting to poison you and no matter how delicious the poison tastes, you still haven't forgiven him. Jade also held a VERY DEEP grudge against you after you destroyed his terrariums and doesn't want to work with you. Azul feared that if your grudge against Jade will create a conflict, it'll pull Mostro Lounge along with it. So he has no choice but to give you temporary alliance, much to the twins' dismay.

• With the Trio's bait & trap and your annoyingly gruesome abilities combined, you successfully made Jamil have a mental breakdown 😃!........ Okay, he's laughing, that's probably too successful 😨....

• And here we go again, another Overblot. Defeating Jamil was a bit more difficult than you expected now that he's hypnotized every Scarabia resident, and now he has an army to corner you. Jamil then whooped your asses to the ends of the dessert.

• Azul was in a mild panic, pulling his hair out and walking in circles, he kept on rambling on how his plan had failed, how he never should have helped you, and how to figure out a way out of this dessert. Kalim was just bawling out the feeling of betrayal and was in denial of Jamil's grudge against him. Jade and Floyd were on the verge of abandoning all forgiveness and proceeded to try and strangle you.

Carl! Yuu: "Huh."

Azul: "HUH? HUUUUH?! THAT'S ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY AFTER THAT?! WE'RE STRANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, MILES FAR AWAY FROM THE DORM, A FUCKING OVERBLOT IS ON A RAMPAGE, AND ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY WAS HUH?!!"

Carl! Yuu: "No, I meant huh, I could have sworn I smelled orphan blood."

Azul: "NOT ANOTHER WORD OF YOUR NONSENSE!!"

Kalim: "WAAAAAAHHHH!!! W-w-why J-Jamil?! sob! Whyyyy?! I trusted youuuu...sob... WAAAAHHHHH 😭!!!"

Grim: "Caaaarl! Yuuu! Do something! I wanna get outta here!"

Floyd: "That's it... I'm gonna kill this motherfucker right here."

Jade: "Not if I kill them first 🙂." ← Look of pure bloodlust.

! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

• A blood curdling roar was heard and a creature made out of raw meat flew down... IS THAT A DRAGON?!

Carl! Yuu: "Aha! I knew I smelled orphan meat! Well, crisis averted!"

Azul: "...W... W.... WHAT IN TWISTED WONDERLAND IS THAT?!!"

Carl! Yuu: "Oh just a meat dragon that I've been working on. What do you think?"

• ... That night, Azul concludes that logic does not apply when you're around. The twins put a pin on when to strangle you after the Overblot. Kalim is even more traumatized after you told him what the dragon is made out of in detail. Grim just sighed to himself since he thought that you weren't planning on using the meat dragon.

• When you got here, the place was reeking and dripping with blot and for some reason, you are tempted to bite into it but Grim stopped you. Azul thought of a distraction while Jamil ordered everyone to praise him until you ruined it. Everyone was complimenting him on how handsome, talented, and sophisticated he is meanwhile you complimented on how his newly inked skin will taste better if you either boil or fry it.

• Jamil realized that the cannibalistic compliment was from you and became alert. Azul and the other deadpanned at you, practically tired of your bullshit. Jamil attempted to whoop your asses again, this time permanently. The meat dragon charged toward him but the Overblot monster crushed and tore it to pieces. Everyone braced for impact but the attack never came. Everyone looked to see Jamil looking at something.

• Why did Jamil.... A... Crack?! In the sky!? ....

• Everyone turned to you, knowing that this is definitely one of your doings. You tried denying it but eventually revealed that you may have created a crack through space time. Azul was about to argue with you but Jamil interrupted with an attack. Jade and Floyd used this momentum to shield Azul and attack Jamil. Kalim shouted that they do not have time for arguements and that they must do their best to defeat Jamil.

• As the crack grew bigger, another flying creature that looks like a giant otter come falling to the ground... marshmallows?

Pink Marshmallow: "The otter won't fly!"

White Marshmallow: "Great, not again! Now where the hell are we?!"

• Talking marshmallows!? This has got to be one of your creations beside the meat dragon.

Pink Marshmallow: "Oh shoot! It looks like these randos are attacking this rando."

White Marshmallow: "Finally! We can attack people as much as we want!"

Pink Marshmallow: "Can we eat them too?"

White Marshmallow: "What, are you kidding? Let's set them on fire!"

Pink Marshmallow: "Ugh! We always set fires! It's boring!"

White Marshmallow: "Let's just beat up this guy and be done with it!"

Pink Marshmallow: "AAAAHHHH!!!"

White Marshmallow: "AAAAHHHH!!!"

• For some reason, these... Things joined in on the fight, which doesn't really help much until the white marshmallow pulled out a knife and begins to stab Jamil's leg and the pink marshmallow ran to bite Jamil's snake hair. It was horrifying to watch but at least he didn't die.

• After a harsh battle with blood and sweat, morning comes, the skies finally cleared up and Jamil's magic was broken. The ink was out of Jamil's body and the monster disappeared. Kalim threw himself on Jamil and cried out his apologies. Azul checked everyone for injuries and gladly, no one was hurt... Too much.

• Post-Overblot, The Octavinelle Trio's alliance with you has come to an end as they went back to Mostro Lounge and hopefully, you'll eat befriend them in the near future. Kalim has repaired his friendship with Jamil and now, Jamil won't be holding back his talents.

• He's gotta say, it was horrifically bad knowing you but you saved him and for that he's somewhat thankful towards you. At least you didn't kill Kalim. He may not remember a thing from his Overblot but he does remember you trying to skin his face.

• Speaking of Kalim, he asked you at Kalim's victory party about why you chose not to kill anyone for now. You replied that you wanted someone to acknowledge the effort you made with your... Macabre art. He guesses that you have a that complex where serial killers want attention for the crimes they commit.

Jamil: "I don't get it... I don't get you... I don't know if I can ever understand why you keep on doing this... I don't know how you'll benefit from making these... why? Just why?"

Carl! Yuu: "Possibly because I am a dangerous sociopath with a long history of death, violence and genocide."

Jamil: "............"

Carl! Yuu: "............"

Jamil: "That explains a lot. You do have a problem..."

Carl! Yuu: "You're right. I have a problem. I have a very serious problem. I don't know how you keep forgetting that, Jennifer."

Jamil: "Ugh, my name is Jamil!"

Carl! Yuu: "Oh, it is?...I thought you were a woman."

Jamil: "How could you not know that? And why would you think I'm woman?"

Carl! Yuu: "Mostly the hair. Are you sure?"

Jamil: "Yes!"

Carl! Yuu: "Yeah, I didn't know that. I'm in the wrong here. I suck..."

Jamil: *sigh*

• When he got to learn more about you during the VDC arc, he's come to a conclusion that you do these things as an impulse. That you have some kind of mental disorder that revolves around normalcy and sociopathic tendencies. You believed that killing things are what you are good for and nothing else. You're afraid that if you'll be admitted to a mental facility, you'll just be a normal llama guy with a hat.

• But look at what progress you've made! You've befriended people and made new enemies, you turn your cannibalistic behavior to a minimum, try to cause less damage, and even developed some hobbies aside from killing things! You can see people more than just bodies filled with blood and meat.

• Grim got used to your abnormalities but you got to remind yourself that if you did something unforgivable and got expelled, who will take care of Grim? So he became one of the motivations for you to change your habits.

• You and Jamil became frenemies. On days you take favors from Jamil in exchange for meat and on other days, he'll argue with you about Kalim's safety. However, you'll still involve them in other atrocious project of yours. But it became less bloody poor Kalim. He doesn't know if you've learned to be more civilized or that you've learned to hide your unhinged tendencies better. He cooks for you sometimes as to lessen your affiliation with raw meat.

• Jamil gifted you a new hat on your birthday since he noticed that your old hat is worn out and you loved it! It looks just like your old hat but fancier. Ah, this takes you back to day you met Paul--

• ..........................................................................

• .........................................................

• ..................................Let's not talk about him.

• You're still fighting the need to stab and eat everything. You need to control your hunger. You need to control your impulses. Besides! If you've become normal, you'll see him alive and well again! Right?

• This was all he ever wanted... A normal friend. A normal day. A normal life. Right?

• He won't have to shout your name every time you do something wrong again.

• ...Right?

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• What happened to the marshmallow people? Well, let's just say that they didn't make it to the end and are in a better place now...

Carl! Yuu: "BUUURP!"

[reixona]

The sun hung low over the Ramshackle dorm, painting the sky in hues of gold and orange. The warm feeling of the sun contrasted with the chilly feeling of the winter air.

Leona stood before them, his expression unreadable, sharp green eyes shadowed beneath his messy brown locks. The usual lazy smirk was gone, replaced by something quieter, something heavier.

"You're leavin, huh?" His voice was rougher than usual, like sandpaper dragged across stone.

Yuu swallowed the lump in their throat. "I have to go back. Crowley found a way for me to go back. I can't just... stay here forever."

Leona scoffed, looking away. "Hmph. So you finally get your wish. Should be happy, shouldn't ya?"

Yuu wanted to say yes. To nod, to assure him, to put on a smile and pretend that this was the perfect ending to their twisted fairy tale.

But the words refused to form, instead, their fingers curled into fists, nails digging into their palms as they fought back the threat of shedding tears.

"Leona..."

"Save it." His voice was sharp, cutting through the space between them. "No point in draggin this out, you wanna go, then go."

That answer and his tone hurt them more than it should have. Yuu clenched their jaws, trying to keep their voice from breaking. "Is that really all you have to say? After everything? After-"

They stopped before their voice cracked, they took a forceful yet shaky breath. "I thought we were friends."

Leona let out a short, humorless laugh, stepping closer, until they were only inches apart. "Friends, huh? You really are clueless."

His tone was almost mocking, but his eyes—his eyes told a different story. "You were a little herbivore that wandered into a lion’s den. Did you really think that wouldn't mean anything?"

Yuu's breath hitched. "Then why are you acting like this? Like you don’t care?"

"Because it is easier that way!" Leona snapped, his voice uncharacteristically raw. "What? you wanna hear me beg you to stay? Wanna hear me say somethin pathetic like 'please don’t go'?" He let out a harsh breath, running a hand through his hair. "Tch. Not happenin. I ain't that kind of guy. Not for anyone, not for you."

Silence settled between them, heavy and suffocating. Yuu felt their chest tighten. "Then... I guess this is it."

Leona didn’t respond. He just looked at them, his expression unreadable once more. Then, slowly, he turned away. "Yeah. Guess so."

Yuu wanted to say something else. Anything. But their voice failed them. Instead, they took one last look at him, at the man who had become so much more than just a reluctant ally, and turned on their heel.

As they walked away, they could hear the faint whisper of his voice carried by the wind.

"...I wanted you to stay."

But by the time Yuu turned back, Leona was already gone.

--

Oh hey! it's my first official short fan story for twisted wonderland, please comment if it doesn't fit the characters, where to improve and what to note if I ever try another one of these.

[twstbookclub]

Sharp Teeth, Tough Love

Summary: You caught Floyd's interest the moment fire and chaos erupted in the Mirror Chamber. One chance meeting gave you the nickname Shrimpy, and another left Floyd sinking deeper into the depths. POV: 2nd Person Pronouns: Gender-neutral Admin/Writer: Cressa🦋 Tags: Romance, Angst, No happy ending, sorry folks, Floyd Being Floyd, Slow Burn, Minor ADeuce and Grim Shenanigans again, Unrequited Feelings, Floyd's POV (I hope yall remember whose nickname belongs to who) Word Count: 3, 044 If yall needed to know, I wrote this on the same day I wrote the Riddle fic. My brain is spent on these two, and I couldn't be any happier. I wish I could end this another way, though. Poor terrifying and violent Floyd. One thing to note, it's really fascinating how he only calls someone by name if he really respected them. Also, if yall catch that reference to one of Floyd's lesson chats, I will love you forever. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy again 💕

Floyd could never forget the first time he saw you.

Your face was twisted into a flabbergasted frown, mingled with distress, confusion, and exasperation. The cat monster—he’ll call it Baby Seal since its tiny height and gray fur reminded him of one—ran amok and spewed fire everywhere. Kalim’s screams rang in the air, followed by Crowley’s indignant shouts. He watched the chaos unfold with intrigued eyes and a widening grin, revealing sharp teeth and a thirst for more wreckage.

Amidst the smoke that billowed and swirled in the Mirror Chamber, you stood in the middle of it. The harsh glow of the fire pierced Floyd’s eyes, but all he saw was your silhouette surrounded by dying embers and crackling flames. Just as his gaze landed on you, your head swiveled around to look back at him. As if some invisible force compelled you to find the eyes that burned into your figure.

He wanted to see you again.

The next time he saw you, you were with Baby Seal and those two freshmen in Heartslabyul: Crabby and Little Mackerel. Even Goldfish and Sea Bream were with you. The six of you lurked in the courtyard, as if trying to spy on something. Whatever you were doing, it caught his attention.

“Careful, Floyd,” Jade simpered after he followed his brother’s line of sight, “don’t scare the fish away.”

Of course, Jade already knew what Floyd was thinking with one look. There was a reason why they chose each other and survived the coldest, harshest waters.

“Yeah, yeah.” Floyd flippantly waved away Jade’s words with a languid grin, before he snuck on the group. It was laughable, how they didn’t notice his tall and gangly figure slink in front of them. The six students spoke in hushed whispers, too engrossed in their conversation to see the shadow that loomed over them. His eyes roamed each freshman, checking the fresh meat, but they lingered on you.

You looked so small, and he had to tilt his head down to see your eyes. Back then, during the entrance ceremony, you hunched over as if to curl into yourself. Small and weak and afraid.

Floyd’s lips stretched from one ear to the other. He’ll call you Shrimpy.

“Oh ho ho! What is up, Lil’ Goldfish?”

Goldfish jumped, sputtering and floundering like a fish caught by its prey. The rest showed varying degrees of surprise. Sea Bream’s smile became strained, and Floyd could see the junior sweat a little. Crabby flinched, while Little Mackerel took a step back with wide eyes. His fists were raised to his chest, and Floyd’s eyes narrowed at that.

Huh, one of them was ready for a fight. Interesting.

His attention shifted to you, wide eyes fluttering in disbelief. You craned your neck to look up at him with parted lips. As Floyd engaged Goldfish in a conversation more like interrogation, he felt like he was floating. It’s as if he could run around the track field without breaking a sweat from the look you gave him.

He wanted to see more of that. He wanted to see you more.

Your gaze drifted to Jade, and you froze. Floyd brushed it off as fear. That was how people usually reacted to them, anyway. It was nothing new. He focused on the conversation with Goldfish without sparing your reaction another thought.

One sunny day, a few days after that chance meeting, Floyd saw you in the courtyard again. You were with Baby Seal—he always was—along with Crabby and Little Mackerel. The latter two stood in front of you, who sat on the edge of the fountain. Baby Seal was standing next to you with this annoyed look. Meanwhile, the Leech brother was lounging on the grass. Alchemy class bored him, so he decided to skip and bathe in the sunlight on the courtyard.

None of them seemed to notice him. Floyd watched, still bored out of his mind. He was debating on whether to spook the group or otherwise, when he heard you laugh.

You tilted your head back, letting the sun illuminate the smile on your face. It was a toothy grin, one that crinkled your eyes and emphasized the chub of your cheeks. He barely saw the color of your irises, and your unrestrained laugh echoed in the desolate courtyard. You even snorted.

You tilted your head back so much that you tipped over and fell into the fountain with a loud splash. Floyd snickered, ignoring the warmth in his chest and the flutter of his heart. Howling laughter followed your fall. Crabby clutched his stomach and doubled over. Little Mackerel held back a smile as he flailed, unsure of how to help you, in front of the fountain. Baby Seal was laughing his ass off, belly flopping on the edge of the fountain.

He decided to stand from his spot and help you, since the entire thing entertained him. Although, when he stood tall and took a step towards the fountain, he paused. You were drenched in water, from the top of your head to the tip of your leather shoes. Locks of hair stuck to your forehead and cheeks. Your uniform clung to your skin, and it looked uncomfortable. Despite all that, your smile remained.

“You assholes!” You laughed with a loud wheeze, happy and carefree with that toothy and blinding grin. He could clearly hear you laugh and sputter, even with Crabby’s and Baby Seal’s loud snickers and laughter. As he watched Little Mackerel help you—and fail, because you slipped back into the fountain—a thought nagged at his mind. 

What should I do to make Shrimpy laugh like that again?

“Hey, Shrimpy!” Floyd chirped, grin too wide and sharp to be considered friendly. Little Mackerel and Crabby stepped back, as the sophomore grabbed your arm and tugged you out of the fountain. Your hand shot out to grip the edge, while you stood from the water.

“Need a lil’ help?”

“Oh merciful Seven—” Floyd pretended not to notice how your vocabulary changed in just a few months— “thanks, but how much did you see?”

The fact that you nonchalantly accepted his help, that you didn’t flinch from him, made Floyd’s heart do somersaults and cartwheels. The corners of his lips stretched towards his ears. He squeezed your arm and watched you step out of the fountain.

Water dripped from your uniform, and Floyd observed the droplets fall from your hair and fingertips. He briefly wondered what you’d look like if he dragged you into the sea. Would you be surprised? Would you scream?

Would you laugh and call him an asshole, like what you did earlier?

“What answer do you wanna hear, Shrimpy?” He teased, still grinning and holding your arm. For some reason, Floyd didn’t want to let go.

“The one that doesn’t embarrass me, thanks.” You chuckled, despite the other three freshmen being silent spectators of this interaction. As you thanked him again and flicked the water off your hands, Floyd couldn’t help but grin wider.

Another month passed. After that admittedly hilarious outburst from Azul, you became a regular at Mostro Lounge. You visited during the weekends, even if you were wary at first. You fell into a routine, just as fast as how you picked up on the lingo in Twisted Wonderland.

You walked in during the weekends and stayed for as long as an hour and thirty minutes. (Yes, Floyd kept count.) You’d talk to either Jade or himself, depending on whoever was waiting tables at the time. Azul passed by at times to make sure you were having a good time, obviously to maintain Mostro Lounge’s good reputation. After a few visits, Floyd began to monopolize your attention by literally taking over server duty during the days you visited.

Even if he had to subtly threaten Azul with profit loss via property destruction and sabotage.

“Hey Shrimpy,” Floyd drawled, sitting across from you in one of the booths. It was a slow day today, and all you ordered was a fruit shake. A history book was opened to some page Floyd didn’t care to know. Notes littered your table, and your penmanship occupied his attention a little.

That was, until he grew bored of the sounds of pen scratching paper and the clinking dishes in Mostro Lounge.

“Hm? Yeah, Floyd?” You asked, flipping a page and jotting down something on your notebook. The tall merman pouted, before he reached over and snapped your book shut. Before you could even react, he snatched it away and lifted it far from you.

“I’m boooored. C’mon, play with me!”

Floyd grinned when you stuttered and glared at him. Your reactions always amused him, moreso whenever you were irritated or angry. Something about the way your brows furrowed and your nose scrunched made him want to tease you more. When you began to flail your arms and make animated gestures, that was when he knew you were really fed up.

“You—” You sighed and stood up, trying to reach for the book. Floyd only lifted it higher, and he didn’t even need to stand up. The corner of his lips twitched, while he watched you struggle and stretch to snatch the book back.

“Floyd, give it back! Please? I promise I’ll—”

There was a reason why he always tried to annoy you. You’d always promise him something in the end: treat him to lunch, hang out with him in the Lounge, watch his basketball matches (even if you were there for Crabby, too). It was the only way he could spend time with you without outright asking for it.

Floyd wasn’t an idiot. He knew he liked you, and it all began with that incident involving the fountain. Even Jade pointed out the many times Floyd’s face lit up every time you were around. He couldn’t ignore how much his heart pitter-pattered every time he saw you. He couldn’t pretend that he wasn’t grinning every time he caught sight of you. The way his name rolled off your tongue made him giddy enough to want to throw you over his shoulder and skip class with you.

If he had a choice, he’d drag you to the deepest parts of the sea and keep you to himself.

The book was plucked out of his hand, but your own hands were empty. You owlishly blinked, and so did Floyd. Both of you stilled, until another voice broke through the quiet hustle and bustle of the Lounge.

“It’s not nice to play with the food in front of you, Floyd.” Jade smiled, the kind he usually wore that fooled anyone into thinking he was the safer option between the two brothers. It was still funny to Floyd how everyone gravitated towards Jade, only to realize the jagged teeth behind that fake smile of his.

You took your book from Jade with an awkward smile. “Ah, thanks, even if you said something subtly backhanded…”

“It’s my pleasure, Prefect,” Jade answered, his smile never wavering in that moment. Careful hands gripped the book and slipped it off his gloved one.

Without missing a beat, you set the book aside and asked, “How are you then, Jade? You and Floyd are usually together, but I haven’t seen you in a while.”

The book remained shut, as if you weren’t trying to get it back from Floyd to study earlier. The lazy smile he had dropped into a thin line. His eyes drooped as he watched the conversation between you and his brother. On the other hand, Jade still wore that perfected smile of his with a hand over his heart.

“I’ve been doing fine. Thank you for asking.” Jade hummed before adding, “I found this lovely new specimen—another species of fungi—while on a hike recently. You were interested in mountain hiking and foraging, am I correct?”

“Oh, yeah.” You laughed, light like tinkling bells. It was a stark contrast to the boisterous laugh you usually had. Floyd’s chest tightened, and his hands clenched into fists under the table.

Letting your laughter die down, you continued with a smile, “Can I join you next time? If not that, you have terrariums, right? Can I see them some time?”

Your smile was small and practiced. Whenever you smiled, it was always toothy and the corners pushed your cheeks up. Now, it reminded Floyd of a prissy princess who had been sheltered all her life. You smiled like a noble that faced the aristocrats in hopes of a good impression. You smiled like the guests his parents had, trying to curry their favor, while he and Jade grew up.

You solely focused on his brother, as if Floyd wasn’t sitting right in front of you for the last hour. Your book and notes laid forgotten on the table. Condensed droplets began to drip from the glass, and the fruit shake was forgotten as well. Even when the edge of one of your transcripts became wet, you didn’t bother moving it away from the glass.

Floyd wasn’t an idiot. Of course, he wasn’t.

His eyes flitted towards the smile you had, softened with an emotion he didn’t want to see. Your own eyes appeared brighter, livelier than whenever you were with him. Even when you sat down, your body was angled towards Jade as you leaned on the table with crossed arms.

His mood soured in that instant, and the pitter-patter of his heart dulled into silence.

Floyd scowled, standing from the booth and shoving his hands in his pockets. You jumped a little, while Jade watched him with that carefully crafted smile. He didn’t bother explaining himself. Jade knew already, and he didn’t owe you anything. You’d only take this as Floyd sulking because his brother ruined his fun.

“Whatever,” he mumbled and trudged out of the restaurant with an air of annoyance. Everyone who happened to be in his way immediately skirted around the Leech brother. One wasn’t fast enough, and Floyd’s arm knocked the tray out of the poor student’s hands.

His scowl deepened. He loomed over the terrified boy with his jaw clenched and eyes glinting ominously. The aggravated tone rang clear in his voice when he threatened, “Watch it, or do you want me to squeeze ya, huh?”

The Heartslabyul student silently despaired about his lunch. He was too intimidated and afraid of Floyd to even squeak. The merman left Mostro Lounge with a scowl and his fists in his pockets, like a child throwing a tantrum. He didn’t bother looking over to see your reaction.

Floyd was growing irritated at the thought that you’d give all your attention to Jade. He’d rather not see you make goo-goo eyes at his own brother. He didn’t want to think too much of it. Maybe he’d find something to do; something to get rid of this itch in his chest and fists.

If he couldn’t, then Azul would just have to deal with Crowley later. He wasn’t going to sit in that cramped office and get lectured by a headmaster that preened over his and the academy’s reputation.

As Floyd stomped through the portal that led back to Night Raven College, his thoughts veered towards you and Jade. His mind conjured every memory he had of you: how you perked up every time you saw Jade; how you always asked about him, even if you thought you were subtle about it; how you subconsciously gravitated towards Jade every time he was there—

A pair of Pomefiore students skittered towards the wall as Floyd passed by. A shadow loomed over his scowling face, which accentuated the dips and curve of his mouth. His blood boiled, and his footfalls grew heavier with each step. If he went on like this, Floyd would dig potholes in the corridors with his feet alone.

He always saw your smile brighten and look dainty around Jade. Your laugh grew softer, restrained and freakishly refined. It was as if you deliberately controlled yourself to look more appealing to his brother. It was annoying Floyd more than it should.

He liked you, even when your body tipped back and doubled over from laughing so much. He liked you, even if your laugh sounded like a dying whale. He liked you, even when you snorted so hard that it hurt your nose. He liked you, even when you smacked him on the shoulder out of exasperation. He liked you so much that he was tempted to tickle you in front of Jade—just so he could hear your loud and carefree laugh again.

He wanted all of you, even if you were weak and frail and helpless. He just wanted you.

He already hated how cheesy he sounded, but his heart called out for you with each waking moment. The image of your smile overlapped with his memory of your laugh. Your name was scrawled in his mind, his heart, his lips, his very soul. Floyd already knew it was bad if he was being poetic, sappy, and romantic like Seagull.

So, why’d you like Jade? His brother could care less about you in that sense. Floyd was already annoyed that Jade moved things behind the scenes: making sure that you were alone with Floyd as much as possible. They were brothers, but none of them would ever admit that they cared for each other out loud. That didn’t stop people from thinking Jade was the more capable and reliable brother than Floyd, cunning and mischief aside.

Floyd was the one who helped you out whenever he could. He was the one who spent the most time with you in Mostro Lounge. He was the one who made a beeline towards you every time he saw even a glimpse of your head. He was the one who made you laugh and smile, especially whenever he noticed that you were down in the dumps.

He found himself in the courtyard, and his mood soured more at the sight of the fountain. The memory of you, laughing and sitting like a drenched duck in the water, overlapped with the image. Grumbling, he kicked a pebble off the path and clenched his jaw.

“Ah…” Floyd sighed and ran a hand through his hair, before ruffling the locks on the back of his head. His feet halted right in front of the fountain, with its clear and burbling water. Looking down at his reflection, he saw your face beside his—all smiles and eyes hiding behind your cheeks. His heart felt weird, as if being strangled by some invisible force that Floyd couldn’t punch nor squeeze.

He clicked his tongue and looked away from his reflection. With a frustrated groan, he mumbled to himself, “Why did it have to be Jade, Shrimpy? I’d fight tooth and nail for ya, but it’s Jade.”

With that, Floyd kicked the base of the fountain like a petulant child. A dull crack echoed in the desolate courtyard, before water gushed out of the broken stone. It spilled through the fissure, and Floyd took a step back to keep his shoes from getting drenched.

He frowned again and stalked off to find something else to occupy his time with. The afternoon sun showered the courtyard with a golden glow, which only reminded him of the time the sunlight illuminated your grinning face as you laughed.

“Why’d it have to be you, Prefect?” Floyd mumbled, shoulders sagging and foot kicking another pebble in the way. Maybe, in the near future, he’d get bored and forget about you. His heart wouldn’t do that weird pitter-patter, and his lips wouldn’t twitch into a grin with one look at you. His chest wouldn’t grow fuzzy and warm. He wouldn’t get the urge to run to where you were whenever he wanted to see you—which was every day, honestly.

Floyd hoped he would forget about you, but you were so difficult to forget. He’d never find someone else who captured his interest this much. He’d never find someone who looked so beautiful, even if the noises that left them were unattractive and childish. Even if their smile was too wide to be natural. Even if they were fascinated by him at first sight, rather than scared and intimidated.

No one else would be like you, but you just had to like his brother instead.

[jester-lover]

Floyd gives me the energy of a less murder-y Stu Macher from Scream

[brights-place]

[TWST] First years & Reader

Warnings: Cursing, Stupid Slang Prompt by: bakuhve

A/N: I HAD TO WRITE IT OKAY IT WAS SUCH A GOOD IDEA LOVE BAKUHVE FOR EXISTING YOU GORGEOUS HUMAN BEING! Banner art is by @maenongdeuce on x @/ List: @c0ralrubi , @writingbluerose , @bakuhve, @goose-things, @s0mething27, @kingheinrey, @gracegarnet, @honey-inthe-moon

Summary: [MC] joins the first years on a recent trend in TWST, GEtting the prefect to read off twisted wonderland lingo from a paper meanwhile the others take a gulp of water trying not to laugh. The only thing though that made it funnier was the fact that [Mc] was staring at the piece of paper like it was the most unhinged thing in their grasp

You blinked in surprise, staring down at the sheet of paper in your hands before glancing up at the group of first-years, who eagerly gave you a thumbs-up.

The moment the video started, Ace barely managed a snort before immediately choking on his water, sputtering and coughing in an attempt to recover himself. You haven't even started on speaking, your lips twitching up seeing how Ace reacted before you even said the first thing on the paper, Deuce, caught between concern and stifled laughter, clamped a hand over his mouth, while Epel burst into uncontrollable cackles at how quickly Ace had lost his composure. Meanwhile, Jack stood off to the side, arms crossed, exchanging a puzzled glance with Sebek, who looked equally bewildered by the scene unfolding before them. Ortho, positioned slightly apart from the group, blinked in amusement before letting out a cheerful laugh, muffling it behind his robotic fist. "I DIDN'T EVEN SAY ANYTING YET DAMN?!" You exclaimed smacking Ace who grinned. Grim, who had been lounging off to the side munching on his tuna, barely spared a glance before blinking and going right back to eating.

After a brief pause to let Ace stop dying, the group restarted the recording. You stood in the middle, gripping the paper like it held the secrets of the universe. With a deep breath, you squinted at the words, already side-eyeing the group, who were barely containing their laughter.

Your e/c eyes scanned the paper. “…‘Where the huzz at?’” A chorus of barely restrained giggles filled the air. Epel’s shoulders started shaking violently, and Ortho, standing beside you, blinked as his pupils dilated. His scanners were running at full capacity, desperately searching his database for any form of context. “‘Skibidi… tuah…? Hawk tuah rizz?’” you continued, blinking in confusion. Jack’s tail stiffened, wagging slightly as he tensed, trying not to laugh. The water in his mouth swished dangerously from side to side. Deuce, meanwhile, was already tearing up, his hand clamped over his mouth as he turned away in a last-ditch effort to maintain his dignity water dribbling onto the floor as he sucked it in. Ortho, despite being a robot, looked like he was about to short-circuit from secondhand embarrassment, while your own awkward grin only made the situation worse.

Then came the final blow

“Level 10 Gyatt…?" you mumbled, mispronouncing the word entirely.

That was it. Ace completely lost it. The redhead was gripping your shoulder like his life depended on it, cackling so hard he went limp, before suddenly spitting out another mouthful of water. It dribbled down his chin as he wheezed, clutching onto you tighter for support. Deuce, in sheer panic, smacked Ace’s back probably not to help, but just to distract himself from laughing. Sebek stood stiffly to the side, his brows furrowed as he tried to make sense of the madness. He turned to Jack and Epel, hoping for answers, but found only barely restrained chaos.

“Fine Shite?” Epel, in that exact moment, wheezed so hard he started choking on his water, doubling over and nearly collapsing to his knees. Jack’s tail wagged like crazy as his ears twitched, his restraint barely hanging by a thread.

Sebek, utterly lost, turned to Deuce with the intensity of a man demanding answers to the universe’s greatest mysteries. He gestured wildly, his hands cutting through the air like he was conducting an invisible orchestra of confusion. “EXPLAIN!” his eyes practically screamed.

Deuce, however, was in no state to answer. Face red and trembling from suppressed laughter, he barely managed to choke down his water before doubling over, wheezing "Negative 1000 aura" You uttered with a raised brow.

Ortho knelt beside Ace, patting his back with the solemnity of a grieving widow at a funeral. Ace, still sprawled out on the floor, was wheezing so hard that he looked like he was about to pass into the afterlife.

“N-Negative… 1000… aura…” he gasped between ragged breaths, tears streaming down his face. You surveyed the utter carnage before you, the sheer stupidity of the situation making your brain short-circuit. With a deep, exhausted sigh, you pinched the bridge of your nose.

“…What the hell did I just read?” Epel, positioned beside Ace, let out a laugh so violent it sounded almost inhuman. His legs flailed in the air, kicking wildly as he cackled like a dying horse. Deuce turned to you, still laughing but visibly fighting for his life to not end up on the floor alongside the others. Jack and Sebek, however, remained standing barely. Jack’s shoulders twitched like he was trying to physically restrain himself, and Sebek stood stiffly, looking dangerously close to short-circuiting.

Ortho, ever the curious observer, peered over your shoulder, scanning the paper before pointing at the next phrase with his mechanical finger. “There’s more,” he helpfully informed.

You hummed, looking down before hesitantly reading aloud, “…Raise your ya ya yas’?” Silence filled the room before Jack exploded.

The wolf beastman bent over, gripping his knees as his entire body shook with laughter. His canines flashed in a wide grin before SPLOOSH the water he had been holding in his mouth shot out like a geyser.

Right onto Ace and Deuce’s already suffering faces. Sebek, who had been holding in his composure like a dam about to burst, could no longer take it. His patience snapped like a twig in a hurricane.

“WHAT ARE THESE SAYINGS?! WHAT DO THEY EVEN MEAN?!” he bellowed, eyes wild as he snatched the paper from your hands, shaking it as if that would somehow force it to reveal its secrets.

Jack, still doubled over, was barely holding himself together. The rest of the group was done. Sebek, however, was not.

He stormed over to you, planting himself at your side, his booming voice practically rattling your skull as he yelled at the others, demanding explanations while trying to read the paper. Before anyone could answer, Epel, still weak from laughing, tried to take a step only for his foot to land right on the puddle of water Jack had spat out.

He went down like a crate of spilt apples.

“AH—!”

With an ungraceful thud, he tumbled forward right onto Deuce.

“AGH—DUDE?!—”

Deuce yelped, the sudden impact knocking him clean off balance. He flailed helplessly for a moment before crashing straight into Ace, who was only just recovering from his previous collapse.

SMACK—THUD!

Ace let out a shriek of laughter as he lost his footing, landing square on his ass with a loud oof.

The room fell into stunned silence, everyone processing the absolute disaster that had just unfolded in real-time.

And then

“…‘Ohio Oni-chan’?”

The second the words left your mouth, the room ERUPTED. Ace was gone, his laugh turning into a dying wheeze as he clutched his stomach. Deuce slammed a fist into the floor, absolutely done. Jack had to physically turn away to keep himself from collapsing. Ortho let out a gleeful robotic giggle, his eyes flashing brightly as he recorded everything for future blackmail.

Sebek, however, did not look amused. His eyes twitched violently, his entire body stiff with frustration.

You sighed, lips twitching despite yourself as you took in the absolute mess before you the heap of bodies on the floor, Jack barely holding it together, Ortho just enjoying the show, and Sebek, who looked like he was questioning his entire existence.

Honestly… you couldn’t even be mad. A grin tugged at your lips as you shook your head. “…What a disaster.” you muttered grinning

[un-fwuit-un-fwog]

0v0 Leona brainrot may I request a thing on Leona x reader where reader is mute from family trauma 0v0 (note love your stuff you feed my brain rot everyday also if you) also can you make it that in the story we have Reader think Grim is now our Son/or we see little brother and we talk to only him but then as per Leona x reader we talk to Leona at some point

Arm still hurts, but I put on a brace, so LET'S GO (don't follow my example)

Thank you for the Request! Leona has consumed my thoughts as well.

Synopsis: Reader with selective mutism slowly grows fond of the cold lion.

TW: mentions of reader having a bad family life; reader has selective mutism; reader is initially scared of Leona

Selective mutism can be caused by a variety of factors such as an anxiety disorder, self-esteem issues, speech problems, and etc.. Yours stemmed from. . . poor family relationships, to put it delicately.

Coming to Twisted Wonderland was like both a blessing and a curse.

A blessing because you made it out

A curse because, well, YOU WERE TOSSED INTO ANOTHER WORLD WITH NO TIME TO PROCESS. So, of course, your anxiety levels spiked.

It took you a bit to figure out how to explain to Crowley that you struggled with selective mutism, and even when you did, he took it as you trying to say you were entirely mute. You supposed you could live with that. It would definitely help quell the intrusive questions and ignorant statement if not just by a bit.

It took a while, but you managed to get comfortable enough around Grim and the Ramshackle ghosts to talk. You had grown to see them as the family you never had. A family you chose.

You weren't sure whether to classify Grim as a younger brother or a son, but you figured that wasn't all that important of a distinction for you to make. He's your family and that's what counts.

When you did finally talk for the first time around this little group they were certainly shocked, Grim more so than the ghosts. However, they were patient and allowed you the time and space to explain (even if that was because the ghosts held Grim's mouth shut).

In the end, you all decided it was probably best that you keep the reality of your muteness a secret as people knowing could cause problems (and just be annoying for those too ignorant to understand or too curious to understand personal space).

When you first met Leona, it was when you stepped on his tail in the botanical garden. You bowed profusely as a way of saying sorry, but he either didn't get it or didn't care.

"D*mn Herbivore." He growled. "You think you can just step on my tail and get away with it? Not even gonna properly apologize for waking me with your foot digging into my tail?"

Clearly, he had not been paying attention at orientation. You were never too great with confrontation, quite frankly, it scared you, so you ran. You could hear his angry shouts from behind you as you booked it out of there, but you paid no mind to his words (not that you could even hear them with the blood pumping so violently in your ears from the adrenaline).

The next time you met him, like truly met and talked to him, was after the spelldrive game when you got nailed in the head with the disk.

When the unusual group of Ace, Deuce, Jack, Ruggie, Leona, and Grim came into the infirmary you were understandably wary. Afterall, Leona hadn't exactly made a stellar first impression.

However, your opinion shifted a bit when a little ball of energy and pure joy came bursting into the room to meet Leona. You had felt some sympathy for him after seeing his dream, you didn't have the best family life either, but you also weren't a massive jerk. A hint of worry grew in your stomach when you saw the small lion jump on Leona's bed and bounce on his stomach, but you froze when you saw the man's reaction.

He may have seemed harsh to most with the way he treated and talked to the child, but you could tell he was anything but. The way his eyes softened ever so slightly and his muscles relaxed. And, if you didn't know any better, you would've sworn you saw the corners of his lips twitch upwards just a bit.

The way someone treats their family can tell you a lot. The way Leona treated Cheka told you a lot.

You turned your attention away from Leona to sign something to Deuce (he learned a bit of sign language from his mom).

Leona would have cursed had Cheka not been right there. Great. Now he felt like an *ss.

Perhaps that guilt is what led him to so easily letting you stay in Savanaclaw during book 3.

He led you up to his room and told you how to fold out the couch (it was a futon). However, other than that, he didn't say much.

The only word you heard him speak the first night was a brief "sorry". He didn't elaborate on it, but you were fairly sure you knew what he was apologizing for.

At some point, you had made a habit of lightly tugging on your friends' sleeve when you needed their attention. Out of habit, you accidentally did this to Leona once. You didn't even notice until you saw the other Savanaclaw students' horrified faces. You whipped around to apologize to Leona, but he looked entirely unbothered.

"What'd ya need?"

On the last night when you needed to get Leona's help, you didn't exactly have the option of yelling, and banging pots and pans didn't exactly cross your mind. At that moment, you were just so tired and so stressed that all you did was silently tear up.

When he noticed your crying he momentarily froze. His eyes widened to the size of saucers and he just stared at you.

You really had a knack for making Leona feel scummy.

Before he knew it, he was getting up and trudging across the room.

You flinched.

Leona mentally bashed his head into a wall repeatedly.

"I'll help. . .just. . .cut it out with the water works." He handed you a tissue box and that was that.

You grew steadily closer over time, but he didn't hear your voice until around the end of book 6.

You had gotten back from STYX and your dorm was still in shambles, so you were left to stay at Savanaclaw. Other dorms were going to offer, but before they could even open their mouths, Leona sighed dramatically loud and announced that he guessed you'd have to stay at Savanaclaw sing you had absolutely no other options.

You trudged into his room together and watched as Grim immediately conked out on a plush chair next to the couch.

Leona was about to collapse on the bed (he was too tired to shower or even change clothes) when he felt a pair of arms wrap around his torso and a wet spot forming on his chest as your tears soaked through his shirt.

He was not cut out for these kinds of situations.

Despite this thought, he soon sighed and wrapped his arms around your back as well. The two of you stood there like that for what felt like an eternity before the silence was finally broken.

And not by him.

"I-I'm so glad you're safe." Your voice was hoarse from lack of use, and your words were hard to decipher as they came out as more of choked sobs.

A million questions ran through Leona's mind at that moment, but none of them left his lips. Instead, he simply replied: "Yeah. . .'m glad you are too."

His questions could wait until tomorrow.

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[heartsiebyul]

Twisted Wonderland characters reacting to their lover—flushed and glistening with sweat—saying 'It's so hot,' completely unaware of how seductive he look.

— Heartslabyul : Savanaclaw : Octavinelle x male!reader. cw: slightly suggestive.

— Heartslabyul

Riddle Rosehearts

Riddle was mid-sentence about the proper way to organize summer tea sets when he saw you wipe sweat from your brow, cheeks flushed, shirt clinging ever so slightly to your back. The way you absentmindedly fanned yourself and sighed, “It’s so hot,” made his voice catch in his throat. His words faltered, his face nearly matching yours in color. He quickly turned away, ears red, muttering something about sunstroke.

“Y-You should change into something lighter,” he stammered, grabbing a fan and thrusting it toward you like a weapon. But even as he handed it over, he couldn't stop glancing at you—his proper, rule-abiding brain spiraling into chaos at how unfairly tempting you looked. You had no idea the kind of effect you were having on him… and that made it so much worse.

Trey Clover

Trey did a double-take when he saw you panting, red-cheeked and fanning yourself, clearly miserable in the summer heat. “You okay?” he asked, but the glint in his eye said something else. His gaze lingered a little too long on your flushed lips and glistening skin. He swallowed and looked away, rubbing the back of his neck as a crooked smile played at his lips.

“You’re lucky I’m not the kind of guy to take advantage of the situation,” he said, voice low. “But you’re making it real hard to behave.” He got up, brought you an ice-cold drink, and pressed the frosty glass gently to your lips himself. His eyes never left yours. “If you keep looking at me like that… heat’s not the only thing we’ll be sweating over.”

Cater Diamond

Cater practically dropped his phone when he looked up and saw you sprawled on the couch, flushed, panting, glistening from the heat. “Whew~ okay, you cannot just say ‘it’s so hot’ while looking like that, (name),” he drawled, clearly flustered but very into it. He sat beside you and angled his phone like he was scrolling… but he was definitely trying to sneak a few pics of your glistening face.

“Don’t worry, I won’t post them,” he winked. “These are for the private gallery~” Then, more sincerely, he leaned in and murmured, “You look way too good like this. It’s dangerous.” The teasing tone dropped into something deeper, more real—Cater’s playful flirtation tinged with craving. “You seriously don’t get how much I wanna kiss you right now, huh?”

Ace Trappola

Ace raised a brow, looking at you like you’d just dared him to sin. “It’s so hot,” you mumbled, flopped on a bench, glistening and panting softly. You didn’t even realize how your shirt had ridden up slightly or how red your lips looked. Ace did. And he was grinning. “Yeah, I know what else is hot,” he snickered, shamelessly looking you up and down.

He dropped beside you and slung an arm around your shoulders, his fingers deliberately brushing your neck. “You trying to tempt me, babe?” he teased. “'Cause if not, you’re doing a hell of a job on accident.” He leaned in close enough that his breath ghosted your ear, voice dropping just enough to send chills down your spine. “Should I help you cool down, or... make you hotter?”

Deuce Spade

Deuce was trying to act normal—really, he was. But the moment you said, “It’s so hot,” with your flushed cheeks, sweaty brow, and glistening collarbones on full display, his brain stopped functioning. He stared for a solid three seconds before violently whipping his head away, his face the definition of panic. “I-I’ll get water!” he yelped, almost tripping as he scrambled to his feet.

Behind his back, he was chanting every rule and moral he knew. This was his boyfriend, and you looked like that?! Was this a test?! He splashed cold water on his face in the nearest bathroom, berating himself for the mental images invading his head. The whole time, he couldn’t stop wondering if you knew how irresistible you looked—or if you were just that innocent.

— Savanaclaw

Leona Kingsholar

Leona had just been lying back, eyes half-closed, pretending to nap when your voice cut through the air—"It’s so hot"—followed by the sound of your slow, heavy breathing. He cracked an eye open, and the sight of you panting lightly, your cheeks red and shirt sticking to your skin, hit him like a punch. His gaze sharpened instantly. You had no idea, did you? No idea what kind of thoughts that look was stirring up in his lazy lion brain.

“Tch. You really gonna say stuff like that while lookin’ like you just rolled outta one of my dreams?” he grumbled, sitting up with a grunt. His tail flicked, betraying his rising interest. He reached out and tugged your collar a little. “You’re the one makin’ it hotter, herbivore. Don’t blame the sun.” His voice dropped low as he leaned in close enough for your sweaty foreheads to nearly touch. “Want me to help you cool off… or overheat?”

Ruggie Bucchi

Ruggie paused mid-bite of his sandwich when he noticed how breathless you sounded. “It’s so hot,” you said, completely unaware of how sinful you looked, chest rising and falling with each pant, skin shining in the sunlight. He blinked. “...Wha?” He gawked for a second, then quickly turned his head, laughing nervously. “Oi oi, you tryna kill me or somethin’?”

“You can’t just say stuff like that while lookin’ like a whole snack,” he mumbled, face red despite the grin on his lips. He leaned back with an exaggerated sigh. “This is karma for stealing that extra donut this morning, huh?” But the longer he stared, the more he fidgeted—his eyes flickering over you, lips parted just a little. “If you're gonna keep lookin' that good, don’t be surprised if I pounce.”

Jack Howl

Jack froze when he heard you sigh and fan yourself, and the moment he looked over… it was over. His eyes widened, catching the sight of you flushed, panting softly, sweat trailing down your neck. “Wha—?!” He nearly dropped his water bottle and stood up way too fast. “Y-You should go inside! It’s… dangerous to stay out here in the sun!”

He turned his back to you quickly, ears twitching and face flushed redder than yours. He paced a little, clearly flustered, muttering under his breath. “Get it together, Jack. He didn’t mean it like that.” But when you asked what was wrong, his tail thumped against the ground in betrayal. He exhaled through his nose and mumbled, “Nothin’. Just… try not to look so good when you're overheating.”

— Octavinelle

Azul Ashengrotto

Azul had been trying to maintain his composure while reviewing contracts, but the moment you leaned against the wall and exhaled, “It’s so hot,” with that look—skin glistening, face flushed, lips parted—he forgot how to breathe. His pen froze mid-signature. “Oh dear…” he muttered, eyes flicking up over the rim of his glasses.

He stood slowly, clearing his throat, adjusting his tie even though it suddenly felt too tight. “You should hydrate… and perhaps… consider wearing less,” he said, voice faltering as he offered you a glass of water with a trembling hand. “N-Not that I’m suggesting you—! I mean—!” He looked away, his face red as a lobster, silently begging the sea to swallow him before his thoughts betrayed him further.

Jade Leech

Jade noticed immediately—the way your breaths came slow and heavy, the way your shirt clung to your form. His smile turned sharp, unreadable. “Is that so?” he said when you muttered, “It’s so hot,” fanning yourself absently. “I hadn’t noticed the heat… until now.” He leaned in, his gaze trailing over you like he was memorizing every flushed detail.

“Are you trying to tempt something out of me, darling?” he asked calmly, even though his voice had a husky undertone. He reached out and brushed a damp lock of hair from your face, fingers lingering far longer than necessary. “You look rather… delectable like this. Are you sure it’s just the sun making you burn up?” His tone was playful, but there was something possessive in the way his eyes refused to leave you.

Floyd Leech

Floyd’s eyes lit up the second you sighed and panted out a whiny, “It’s so hot,” without even realizing how flushed and shiny you looked. “Eeeeh~? You look super tasty right now, Shrimpy,” he purred, already looming behind you before you even knew he moved. He wrapped his arms around you from behind, pressing his cool cheek to your sweaty one. “Wanna get even hotter~?”

He wasn’t subtle—his hands snaked beneath your shirt just to feel the heat of your skin. “You always look this good when you’re sweaty?” he asked with a lazy grin. “Cuz I think I just found my new favorite weather.” Floyd laughed when you squirmed, tightening his grip a little. “Nah, no running now~ you look like you need to be taken apart.”

bye-

[remireee]

Obsession

/əbˈsɛʃn/ noun the state of being fixated with someone or something.

˚ʚ yan! malleus x gn! reader

˚ʚ tw: implications of stalking, mentions breaking and entering, forced wedlock

ahhh I just love malleus so much, call me basic but who doesn't love our little dragon boy, especially when he's a little more in love than usual? (´,,•ω•,,)♡

Yan! Malleus who’s curiosity quickly turned into infatuation with each time that you two met. Those eager eyes that would stare up at him, trying to uncover who he is but slowly coming to accept him as the mysterious figure that would visit every now and then. The way you’d speak to him like he wasn’t the most powerful mage of all Twisted wonderland, like he was normal… like he was ‘human’.

Yan! Malleus who loves to watch you sleep, quietly observing through your window, trying to remember every little detail of your face, body, and subtle habits so he could write it down on a little journal he has that was covered from page to page with nothing but stuff about you similar to the one he has about gargoyles.

Yan! Malleus who breaks in and enters into your room at night for cuddles. He could still remember the first time, he had never felt so nervous in his entire lifetime, yet he just couldn’t resist the sweet warmth just radiating from your body. He’ll just stay like this, curled over you like a dog to its favorite toy, for only a few minutes… right? He didn’t manage to leave till dawn.

Yan! Malleus who’d still feel shivers each time you’d refer to him as ‘Hornton’. Throughout his time of following you coincidentally stumbling upon you, he’s never once heard you call any other by a special name—him, only him.

Yan! Malleus who is extremely prone to jealousy yet is almost never violent about it, just fairly insecure. The poor baby requires so much comfort from you to reassure his soft little heart that you’d never leave or replace him with anyone else.

Yan! Malleus who couldn’t help finding pleasure in the fact that some of the student body are now starting to avoid you like the plague for just being associated with him. Of course, he feels slightly guilty for making it partially impossible to make any new acquaintances, but why would you need anyone else when you have him? Isn’t he enough to satisfy your curiosity about this world? 

Yan! Malleus who craves affection like a starved cat. He would never openly ask for it but you can definitely tell from his actions when he starts feeling a little needy; slender hand gently brushing against yours when walking together, or staring down at you with those bright doe eyes. Either way, you’re going to give it to him whether you want to or not, because the consequence of not complying is having to deal with a sulking Malleus whose pouty expression may or may not attract the attention of either Lilia or Sebek.

Yan! Malleus who'd promise to marry you right after graduation, making you a little ring made of vines and flowers in advance that, when worn on your ring finger does�� nothing, what, did you expect every gift from him to be cursed or something. It only just tightens itself so it doesn’t ‘accidentally’ slip off of your finger.

[kiame-sama]

Humans Are Extinct (Yandere!TWST x fem!Reader) Monster AU- pt 19

(As a Kelpie, Trey is carnivorous and has a tendency to hunt his own meals. From deer, to rabbits, to fish, he will catch and consume his prey. He was far more driven by predatorial instincts as a child and actually bit Riddle once when Trey's parents were trying to teach the Unicorn to swim. Riddle has not forgotten or forgiven the bite as it did need stitches. To this day, Riddle refuses to swim with Trey because Trey bit him when they were kids.)

Warnings: yandere, yandere relationship, yandere behavior, multiple competing yandere, romantic intentioned Yandere, platonic intentioned Yandere, Harpy, Selkie, Sphinx, Spirits, Dragon, Hellcat, Vampire Bat,

~~~~~~~~

"Any word on what has been decided?"

The staff murmured quietly in the very early morning, most of them somewhat asleep as they met for what felt like the umpteenth time in the past three weeks. They had much to discuss and iron out as a group given the more than eventful few weeks it had been. Barely into the official academic year and they already had to meet almost every other day due to the impromptu student.

Not to say they minded the soft and abnormal student they all found themselves adoring and looking after, more they minded how others seemed to look at that soft student. Many of the staff were of the mentality that they had to be guides and enter parental-like roles for this wayward soul tossed to the mercy of the least inviting academic setting to such a creature. Most students of Night Raven College were confrontational, selfish, and butting heads on a good day. Tossing in a lone female student in an all male student body was trouble, tossing a soft Human female into the adult all male population of Night Raven students? An absolute upheaval of social norms and settings.

The staff had no choice but to take on parental roles, lest the students gnaw free of their own inhibitions and leap like slavering beast at the soft Human. At least with the staff standing at the ready as deterrents, few students had the agency to try anything. Still, that didn't mean the many self proclaimed poachers and Humanfuckers alike weren't equally thrown off by the staff.

Beyond the threats on Sage Island, more still needed to be discussed.

"The evidence was more than damning, and it wasn't hard to figure out where he had been siphoning funds from. To think, someone so high-ranking could turn on a critically- and effectively extinct- species to secure their own fragile sense of power. The execution will take place in a few weeks time. She is required by the laws observed in the Queendom of Roses to be present and even witness the beheading."

Professor Trein winced at this, setting down his delicate tea cup in the saucer. The older Sphinx had been the primary source of fatherly wisdom as he raised his own cubs and had the most accurate recollection of Human history in Twisted Wonderland. Naturally, he was opposed to such a grisly prospect.

"Where I agree the punishment must be severe for the crime committed, does she truly need to be present for that? It is a messy affair to see a beheading and I can't help but worry she may not be able to handle such a violent act done exclusively in her name."

"I disagree," Divus now spoke up, tapping his typical riding crop against his leg in thought, "I feel she will be more than willing to see the one who targeted her and Grim be punished for his crimes. Now, she can't go alone, that is out of the question, but who would be assigned to go with her? Surely a staff member familiar with the Queendom, such as myself, but we all know the upheaval that will come from all students should we limit who is allowed to attend."

"Perhaps it would be best to let her decide who she feels safest with? It is several weeks out, we have time. What is more pressing of an issue is who shall be next to act as her guards this time around. There is also the issue of Mr. Draconia being absent from Diasomnia for so long. To restrict his access would be best for Diasomnia, but may result in violence from him."

Crowley tilted his head before he seemed to realize the problem. He had forgotten to do the raffle again which meant none of the students knew who was expected to act as guards. Hopefully with this changing of the guard, Hades would also be content to return to the Isle of Woe.

"Why not just select the dorm that has obviously been maligned since her arrival? Savanaclaw deserves to be selected and Leona has more than proven he is a competent protector on several occasions."

"Excellent idea! Though, there is no Vice-Housewarden for Savanaclaw. Perhaps it should be a rule that at least two or more students from the dorm need to be selected as guards. Though I don't doubt Mr. Kingscholar is effective on his own, more eyes to watch for danger is not a bad idea."

~•§•~

You were somewhere between asleep and awake as you cuddled into the blankets and the warmth that seemed to surround you. Snoring softly in your arms was Grim as the young Hellcat decided early in the evening that he was going to stay close to you. Behind you, with his arms, tail, and wings wrapped around your figure, slept Malleus. The Dragon had been insistent that you stay in his embrace following the increased interest you gained after your day-long cooking feast.

As far as you were aware, everyone in the nest was still asleep.

Somewhere you vaguely figured that everyone was going to spend the day sleeping off the copious amount of sweets and other foods you had made the day prior. Ruggie had looked like a bloated balloon about to pop by the end of the day, though he certainly wasn't alone in that respect. Several students remained in the many different unoccupied rooms in Ramshackle following the feasting, Ruggie included.

Honestly, you were surprised when he began to weep upon eating a donut. It was odd to see the large fat tears rolling down his muzzle as he began obsessively shoving more of the fried sweet into his face, but his continued consumption told you he was happy. He ate until he was flat on the floor with his bloated belly on full display. Part of you wanted to scratch the little heart shape on his stomach, but your respect for the Gnoll kept you from treating him like a puppy.

Trey had been enthused with the donuts more than you expected and he was eager to help in every step of the process. From using the standing mixer- of which he begged Idia for his own- to helping you concoct the exact portioning of powdered sugar to water ratio for the glaze. With how happy the Kelpie was in the creation and consumption process, you vaguely began to consider Crowley's somewhat flippant question from earlier.

Perhaps you should take him up on teaching cooking classes. If all the ones who took the course were as willing to learn as Trey, perhaps it could be the start of something grand.

While you were lost in thought a soft light compelled you to open your eyes. Glowing on the other side of the room was a mirror, seeming to be shining from within. Something deep within your very soul urged and begged you to investigate, carefully wriggling from the Dragon's hold.

The only indicator that Malleus noticed your lack of warmth was the way he seemed to furrow his brow. Luckily for you, you had chosen a spot near the edge of the nest and didn't have to sneak across your nestmates. It vaguely intrigued you that you managed such a feat, as they had previously been woken by very little in the past. Perhaps it was your innate tallent to sneak away despite being entangled, or perhaps something more were at play.

As you approached the mirror, a soft whispering of many voices could be heard. It hummed and murmured words too low for you to understand and seemed to only intesnify as you got closer. When your hand reached out to touch it, the whispers fell silent leaving you in the quiet room once more.

You only somewhat noticed the movement in the corner of your eye, so dazzled by the mirror you almost missed the translucent figure floating next to it. The figure had a gaunt look to it as it was skinny and ethereal floating before you. Despite the oddity of its presence, you didn't feel afraid of it. If anything, the specter seemed to be Human.

Beckoning, the silent being floated backwards and away from you, encouraging you to follow the insistent gestures. A faint voice hummed in your mind as the spirit phased through the door.

'P l e a s e . . . T h e r e i s m u c h t o b e s a i d.'

You were hesitant and cautious, but this image of a Human in a world where Humans were extinct was rare. If there was a chance this thing was Human, or once was Human, you had to at least try to investigate it. Maybe they could help you get home without the monsters following suit.

Stepping lightly- oddly silent in the old creaking dorm- you followed the beckoning spirit.

The being led you to an old forgotten storage room across Ramschackle. Despite the unkempt look of the room it was void of all dust and incredibly cold. It was there two other spirits appeared, one was oddly small and difficult to see from how faded it was, barely visible among the many boxes. Last was a large spirit that was surprisingly opaque despite the ghostly appearance of the other two.

"What'dya know? A Human. You're actually... I thought we were all gone."

The largest of the spirits hummed out, a deep voice they kept low to minimize the sound they made. They looked so Human and yet the see-through appearances of the first two led you to believe they were dead. You didn't know actual spirits were a thing, but then again this world was quite different from your own.

"Sorry for frightening you," the first spirit spoke in a reedy whisper, "but I couldn't risk them noticing. It is hard to find a moment alone with you."

"Unfortunately, I rarely get to be alone these days."

"We've noticed. We're Human- well, we're what's left of the Humans that lived on this world. We want to help you. You're a lot like us, but something tells me you're not from here. Even so, you have the same aura as us."

"Aura?"

The three ghosts nodded, the room around you suddenly going pitch-black. A soft glow came from the spirits and the second moved around you, covering your eyes with their transparent hands. Through their fingers you could see a similar glow coming from yourself.

"Something spirits can see about other spirits. Through a spirit, the living can see it as well. All Humans have this aura and it seems to magically impact the other species."

"I thought Humans didn't have magic?"

"We don't. We have something else, kind of like a natural armor or defense instead of magic. The way it impacts magic users is stronger than any of them realize. It's how we knew you were a Human for sure."

"Wait, I'm not from this world, why do I have this aura too?"

"We don't know. I think your world came from ours, or you somehow did. Not sure. All I need to know is you have somewhere to go back to. You shouldn't stay in this world with them, and we are willing to help you find home again."

You somewhat perked up at this, glad to hear the spirits intended to help you. The largest of the spirits gestured the mirrors.

"We can look around the different mirrors and see if one can send you back, but it takes time. We don't want to risk being seen."

"I wouldn't want you all being discovered because of me."

"We've been here a while, we can hide well enough."

"... Will you let me know if you find anything?"

"The moment we find something, we will try to tell you. Still, it's nice to see one of us alive."

"I have so many questions for all of you, if you'll indulge me."

"We can try to answer your questions, but there isn't much time. Once the others notice your absence, they will search."

"How does this 'aura' act as a defense? Does it deter or encourage-?"

The sound of movement, fast and frantic, met your ear. No doubt the Dragon awoke and was less than pleased to discover you were missing from the nest yet again. Since you left Grim there- fully intending to double back for him if shown the way to escape- they no doubt took your absence as a grave concern. You couldn't let them find the Human spirits.

Without another word you ducked out of the room, closing the door behind you as you turned towards where the sound had been. Frantically searching the various empty rooms was Malleus, his eyes glowing in the darkness as he glanced over another empty room. The floorboards creaked loudly beneath you, making his gaze snap over to you sharply, dark pupils expanding as they landed on your figure.

He was quick to approach you and examine your figure for any injury. When he saw you were unharmed he breathed out a long sigh of relief, those same eyes locking on you as a pout took over his lips. You would have laughed at the almost innocent look of displeasure but something told you Malleus would not appreciate the act very much. It was odd to think about, but Lilia told you during the feasting about Malleus and his proclivity to possessive behavior.

According to Lilia, all Dragons obsessed over their Hoard, to the point of violence towards others. Hoards were exclusive and built upon the personal taste of the Dragon, guarded as greedily as treasures and jewels. You were more prone to wandering than the other members of the Hoard and it distressed the Dragon to know you could wander off from his protection so easily.

"(Y/n), why must you insist on disappearing at all hours of the night? It was my understanding that most creatures are not nocturnal."

"Sorry, Tsuno, I couldn't sleep. Nightmares again..."

His hard expression softened at this, seeming more understanding with your vague explanation. The pair of wings lowered as he calmed and took in your relaxed presence, relaxing as well. Truthfully, he struggled to remain displeased with you and felt compelled to forgive as soon as he understood you were safe.

"I often find my own sleep to be restless most nights. It has been somewhat better, having my Hoard around me almost every evening thanks to you, but I too struggle with rest. You are always welcome to wake me if you cannot sleep. What were you doing this far into the dorm and away from your room?"

You avoided the question somewhat, instead trying to steer the conversation a different direction. Hopefully Malleus wouldn't press the issue as you had no desire to share your new secret with anyone just in case.

"Exploring to quiet my mind. Are all Fae nocturnal?"

"No. There are Night Fae and Day Fae. Lilia, Sebek, and I are Night Fae. Sebek is half-Fae technically, but still Night Fae all the same. Night Fae are typically nocturnal."

"... Tsuno, can we sit somewhere? Somewhere quiet, or even the roof would be fine, it feels too stuffy in here."

You were surprised when Malleus lifted you quickly, exiting the large window nearby. A startled cry escaped your lips in a squeak which only made the Dragon chuckle, carrying you up to the roof of Ramshackle with several beats of his wings. Sometimes you forgot Malleus was not Human and even forgot he was considered one of the most powerful in the world.

The Dragon hesitantly set you down, hands struggling to release you now that he was acutely aware of how high up you both were and how fragile you were compared to himself. His tail raised up to somewhat act like railing around you, ensuring there was no way you could fall as you both sat. It felt excessive for him to be so protective of you, but he still seemed much calmer now.

On the horizon, light slowly began to seep into the sky as the sun started the long tireless treck across the sky once more. Something about this place seemed so keen to wake you before the sun. As the stars flicked out of sight one by one, your nightmare from what feels like ages ago caressed the edges of your mind.

Your survival hinged upon staying around the monsters that were fond of you, but you needed to be alone to talk to the Human spirits without exposing them. A present need to be protected at all times yet what you truly wanted was kept at bay by that same protection. Freedom in a world that both cherished and despised you was a laughable concept.

Of course, this was also not to mention how none of your protectors seemed particularly mentally sound. Even the noble Malleus had this obsession to him, but then again it could just be the fact he is a Dragon. The words of the ghosts echoed in your mind as did the questions you were desperate to ask. Perhaps the reason these monsters acted the way they did was because of that aura the ghosts mentioned.

"Tsuno, how did you know I got up?"

"Your warmth lets me know you are alive and safe. Silver has a similar warmth, but many Fae do not have the same heat to them. The nest gets cold without you there warming it up. What I want to know is how you left the room without waking us. The doors and floors creak, you shouldn't be able to be so quiet."

You hummed, having wondered the same question. It was very likely that the ghosts of the past Humans have been aiding your escape from the nest. Truthfully, you had noticed how silent you had been while following the ghosts versus the loud floorboard creak when you approached Malleus.

"I don't know. I just got up and walked out. It didn't seem quiet to me-"

"MAMA!"

The sudden cry of a familiar voice had you sharply standing, Malleus following suit as your stress rised exponentially. That voice belonged to none other than Grim and it made your heart hurt horribly to hear the frantic wailing. Malleus was quick to grab you once more, ducking back into the window you came from.

You didn't even wait until Malleus had let you go before you wrenched yourself from his grasp and shot off down the hall. The crying continued and you almost threw yourself into the door to get to the sobbing kit. His paws covered his eyes and his wings smacked away Lilia's hands as the Bat was attempting to soothe him.

"Grim!"

"Mama!"

The Hellcat thew himself into your arms, snuggling and cuddling into your embrace as he sniffled and mewled pathetically. You were quick to hold securely to the little feline that hiccuped and sobbed.

"Grim, honey, what happened?"

"I w-woke- woke up, an-and- and you were- you were gone!"

"I'm sorry, sweetling. I had a bad dream and Tsuno was talking to me. We didn't want to wake any of you."

The kit sniffled, looking up at you with those large blue eyes as he pressed his cheek against your chest. His fur was fluffed and his eyes were swollen with tears as he used his small paws to grab your hand and rub against your fingers. You quickly picked up that he wanted to be pet, stroking the soft gray fur of his little head.

"So- so you're not- not leaving? Y-you're not ab-abandoning me?"

"No. I would never abandon you. If I planned to leave, I'm taking you with me. No way would I ever leave you behind like that. Never."

"Ne-never ever?"

"Never ever."

This seemed to be enough to soothe the sniffling Hellcat as he hiccuped and sniffled, cuddling into your warm arms and slowly quieting. As Grim calmed, you began to calm as well, cradling the little cat affectionately. Lilia cast a quick glance at Malleus, the two speaking with their eyes before he looked back at you, approaching slowly to not seem like a threat to you or your young Hellcat.

"He was frantic when he couldn't find you in the nest," Lilia started, peaking over at the kit, "I figured you were with Malleus, but he wasn't hearing any of it."

You just let the Bat speak as you continued to soothe Grim, kissing the kit's forehead. This made Grim slowly begin to purr, rubbing up against your hand affectionately. Even if you did find a way to escape with the help of the Spirits, you planned to always bring Grim with you. He was your Boy and you were his Mama, nothing could change that.

[lovelyyandereaddictionpoint]

Oo can we get a part 3 to the yandere male Alice story?? This is getting so good! Or just some headcanons about him. Hes just so interesting.

Yandere Genderbent Alice x White Rabbit Reader Head Cannons

Alice is a part of Wonderland in the same way Wonderland is a part of Alice

So the story goes that a long time ago when life was hard a very young Alice found himself retreating to Wonderland

Following a young clumsy bunny-you into the hole that leads to Wonderland

Back then Wonderland was a simple adventure everyone a simple character to have fun with or runaway with 

Back when Alice was innocent Wonderland was innocent

But shortly after something changes for Alice 

Something begins to turn 

And while Alice is attempting to wrangle his everyday life

The citizens of Wonderland must deal with their own changes

Many things are corrupted with a twisted kind of darkness that makes life much more violent

In the forests you and cheshire kitten used to frolick 

Now you both skillfully dodge and weave through the wood with your overpowered strength 

You both still frolick it’s just different

Everyone in Wonderland has changed

While not everyone’s personality takes a turn for the worse their interests do 

But no one is worse than Alice Lidell 

The innocent and curious boy you once led into hole is no more

Now a man that embraces the familiarity of the wacky world

He doesn’t ask questions about the world this time

Just listens to your guiding statements as a fond routine 

But while he’s sweet with you and is finally acting on the feelings he’s kept to himself for so long

Those aren’t the only feelings he’s acting on now

In Alice’s opinion: his world sucks 

His world is filled with growing technology, more surveillance, appearances that must be kept, unpredictable people

But not Wonderland, he knows Wonderland, he knows all the characters so well nothing they should do should surprise him

He should be able to hunt them without obstacles

But as he’s realized just how much there is of you to fall for 

He realizes how the subjects of Wonderland are not as stagnant as he thought

They move they live and they don’t seem to mind attacking him back

Which originally got on his nerves

This was supposed to be his paradise 

But that’s okay 

He’ll just do what he does in his old world

Elimate confusion and maintain control 

specifically over other’s lives 

He’s made protecting you his reasons for some more excessive hunting

But seeing how many others are getting so up and arms about it he might have to do something drastic

Like overthrowing the weaker royal

Afterall wouldn’t his bunny love to rule beside him 

Because he’s certain you hate how much that wicked queen bosses you around you don’t

But even if he fails in the end it won’t be bad

He can always go back to his world

Of course with you in tow

Being a world traveling bunny means you’ll probably do just fine if he does have to relocate you

But he loves seeing you twitch your nose in excitement when your at tea parties

Or jumping for joy at some Wonderlandian phenomena

So he’ll try and reign the urge to flee

If only for you

[patrioticaboutpomefiore]

Tongues and Teeth :: TWST

Something I made at literally 12 AM... not proofread so like go easy on me thanks </3 Kind of?? An AU of my TWST X Reader ??? Yeah. (Not really ig idk) Also angst?? I guess. Slight panic attack from Kalim and MC. Lot's of crying via Kalim <3 Characters: Kalim, Jamil, (fem!) MC Song: Tongues & Teeth, The Crane Wives {{Jamil to MC, MC to Kalim}}

I’ve grown a mouth so sharp and cruel

“For what it’s worth Jamil, I don’t forgive you.” You spat the words out like venom as you stared at the servant, your lips pressed into a thin line as your nose remained scrunched in distaste.

It’s all that I can give to you, my dear

You stared blankly at the flower that sat atop your clothes. The beautiful petals seemed to have a certain aura– one of purity. They remained uncrushed, unlike the flower Kalim had oh so kindly gifted you.

And when you come in quick to steal a kiss

You blinked owlishly as you touched your lips. The kiss Kalim had given you was chaste– quick. A small peck. For some reason, it left a bitter feeling on your lips– which was odd, because Kalim’s tasted as sweet as coconuts.

My teeth will only cut your lips, my dear

You watched from afar as Kalim sobbed violently over Jamil, the servant keeping his head low as he clenched his fists in irritation at the entire situation. The constant wailing of Kalim’s voice in his ears surely didn’t help.

And I know that you mean so well

The flower was gorgeous– a pristine white that separated itself from the dark of the night sky you and Kalim sat under. Kalim’s hands were gentle as he set the flower in your hair, his fingers brushing against your cheek.

But I am not a vessel for your good intent

The black and blue swirled and mixed, unnoticeable to the human eye as it settled in your gem. Your eyes stayed on the sand, your lips pressed together as you listened to the music. 

It was so odd how humans bounced back.

I will only break your pretty things

Wide eyes watched as Jamil crushed your flower– your flower. The white petals separated from one another, rips and tears in what used to be their flawless and soft petals. Now they remained crumpled up on the floor, sitting in a disgusting pool of ink.

I will only wring you dry of everything

Covering your arms, you watched as Kalim happily chatted with Vil– a certain gleam in his eye as he babbled on and on about what repairs needed to be done to Ramshackle and how excited he was to help with the money. Next to him stood Jamil, the brunette eyeing the younger housewarden with a hidden layer of irritation and exasperation.

But if you’re fine with that

You can be mine like that

Abandon all your stupid dreams about the girl I could have been, my dear

Somewhere out there, surely, there was a version of you that was happy in Twisted Wonderland. It was made clear to you by everything the world threw at you that you should be here. It wouldn’t let you go home.

But you don’t think that happy version of you existed here, in Night Raven.

‘Cause, in the night, I know you burn with feelings 

You stared at Kalim curiously from under your lashes, the cold wind whipping and tugging at your skin harshly. His smile was soft as he stared at the sky.

That was just about the only good thing to come from Ramshackle. The view it provided.

I cannot return my, dear

“I’m always chosen. Always. That’s such an obvious truth that I’ve never consciously processed it.” He admitted softly, shrugging his shoulders rather pathetically at you.

Oh my, dear

You gotta know that this won’t last

It was a calm reassurance you had told Kalim– a true one, by all means. Kalim was not responsible for Jamil’s overblot. At least, not entirely. It was high time that both he and the servant come to that realization, for the dancing back and forth over who was right and who was wrong had long worn out both their dancing shoes, you believed. 

It had begun to get irritating. 

But it was a sweet moment– a kind, moment. And that was something you didn’t get very often.

Desperation will erase that fact

Your cries echoed through the hallway of Ramshackle– like a gentle ghosts cry, it haunted the quietness of the night, all through your bedrooms door.

Jamil’s hand hovered over the old wood, never fully touching it as he listened to your wails as you wallowed in your own pool of misery. Eventually, he let his hand fall to his side as he heard your cries come to a stop.

“She must have gone to bed.” He muttered to himself, staring at your door one last time before walking off.

I’m keeping all of the answers in my cigarette box 

Your hands gripped the ghost camera. The stupid, orange, and old camera that Crowley had gifted you. It was practically useless to you– you’ve only ever used it a handful of times before. And that mouse motif– oh, the horrid mouse motif.

It was a stark reminder that you lived in a different world. A world that, by all means, should not be possible.

But it was, and you were stuck in it.

Yeah, the answer’s in the second before the other shoe drops

The confetti rained down on you, but not for you. The colorful pieces of paper dusted your skin as yells and hollers filled the air.

But not for you. Never for you.

Slowly, your eyes found Jamils. His dark eyes stared into your own, both of you looking at each other with what felt like apathetic expressions. But there was a layer of irritation under both of your surfaces as you attempted to drown out the wails of Kalim.

And for a moment, you realized– you were witnessing Kalim’s second loss.

Ever.

And one of your many.

And if you’re blind to that

I am fine with that

The wails of Kalim echoed through the empty Ramshackle dorm as he sobbed and cried for you and Jamil to come back. His hands shook as he raked them through his hair, his ruby-red eyes doused in tears.

His body couldn’t stop itself from shaking, his lips trembling as he yelled, and screamed, and soon he began to mutter under his breath. His words were so jumbled together that even Rook had a hard time understanding the housewarden.

Oh, I will ruin you

You felt like you were in a daze– a neverending one, to boot. Your heart beat in a way it shouldn’t as you ignored Leona’s voice, your eyes focused on the passed-out Jamil.

His hair covered his face in a delicate curtain as if shielding him from the world. It was as if the pure sight of him had been enough to reel you back in. As you caught your breath, you listened to Leona quietly.

But never did your eyes stray from Jamil.

Oh, I will ruin you

Each overblot. Every single one of them– in a way, they had all turned out the same, hadn’t they?

Each boy made it out alive.

They got to apologize– but never did you ever feel quite satisfied with them. A mere apology wouldn’t make up for the trauma they caused. 

But despite it all, nothing ever changed. Another overblot always took the old ones' place. A different person. A different time. A different challenge.

But you always stared it in the face– and you always saved the day.

It’s a habit, I can’t help it

I know that you mean so well

Child Kalim laughed happily as he ran in circles around Child Jamil, the light shining down on them as you and Jamil stared at the scene with dull eyes.

But I am not a vessel for your good intent

Jamil’s hand wrapped around your own as you both stared at a similar scene– your, scene. 

He squeezed it.

And you squeezed back.

You and Jamil– however harshly you had treated one another, in a twisted, sick, and hell-bent way– understood each other.

And you weren’t sure if Kalim ever quite could. 

I will only break your pretty things

The flower Jamil had gifted you (as a replacement, you added solemnly in your mind) has long since been discarded. Where it lay now, you had no clue. 

It was a shame, you thought. 

Even a replacement for the purest gift you had been given had been lost.

Perhaps you were just never meant to have one.

I will only wring you dry of everything

The red outfit you had been gifted was tucked away in your closet. Grimly, you shoved the clothes Crewel had given you aside as you stared at it.

You really, really liked the outfit. 

It was beautiful and dripping in gold– the silk shifted against your skin, causing you no irritation.

It was expensive, to boot.

Such a shame its history was riddled with something so horrible, you thought with a frown before slamming the closet doors shut.

And if you’re fine with that

If you’re fine with that

Kalim stared at you with wide eyes, his lips parted in disbelief as you and Jamil stood in front of him. 

Jamil had…used his Unique Magic on you?

Multiple times?

Questions swam through his head at the speed of light– were any of the moments you and he shared in Scarabia together real?

When were you under the spell and when were you not?

I will poison all your happy thoughts

I will love you like the ashes in my cigarette box

And if you’re fine with that

You can be mine

If you’re fine with that

The dress was long, and the gold that was embroidered on it glistened in the light as you made your way down the aisle. Red flowers decorated the venue as you avoided everyone’s curious gazes on your form, with your head dipped low as you continued. 

“You look gorgeous.” He whispered to you, making a small smile appear on your lips.

And as you peered up, you met his eyes.

But for some reason, you couldn’t tell if they were red or a dark, rooted brown.

You can be mine

[cyber-dump-171]

Chapter 1: Fire

Objection! Stand your ground! Marvelous! (Twisted Wonderland x Reader)

← Prologue | Masterlist | Chapter 2 →

Word count: 4.4 k.

WARNING: N/A

Note: thank you for the likes, reblogs, and comments! I'm really happy you guys are enjoying this story! This chapter is based on the beginning of the manga "Disney Twisted Wonderland - Episode of Heartslaby

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You stand on the edge of a cliff. Below you, your boots leave deep impressions in the dark green grass, and the loose parts of your wet clothes dance with the violent wind.

A storm. It was supposed to be a thunderstorm, but somehow it turned into a powerful hurricane.

You can't see what's in front of you, just three silhouettes — on the opposite sides of you are two people you believe to be male. They're screaming, but not a sound is coming out of their mouths.

But there's a third figure in front of you, a terrifying gigantic creature emerging from a whirlpool created by the pale blue sea.

Elongated limbs with claw-like fingers extend into oblivion, a set of pointy teeth form a psychotic smile that opens and closes as if it is laughing or talking, and sharp spikes sprout from its head, forming a crooked crown. But what scares you the most are its empty, void-like eyes. Even though the creature is shrouded in darkness, you can feel it staring at you. Not with anger or hunger, but… with curiosity.

“Kneel, for before you rises the king of gods!”

The gray light in front of you casts a shadow on the monster, making it appear ethereal, even though its form is that of what you would find in your worst nightmares.

“Thine presence in this world…”

Before the voice can finish its sentence, you awaken.

✦•······················•✦•······················•✦

Everything around you is silent. Small particles of dust dance around your body, landing softly on your hair, eyelids, and chest. You feel dizzy as your eyes open and confusion sets in as you find yourself surrounded by a terrifying darkness. It's so dark that you can only see your own hands and shoes and nothing beyond.

The piercing headache from earlier has now subsided to a mild throbbing, a reminder of the voices that once plagued your thoughts, begging you to reveal your hidden desires. Under your hands you feel a velvety surface, like that of felt, gently scratching against your palms. Your back feels warm, but the rest of your body is strangely cold.

"Where am I?" you whisper weakly, raising a hand to reach into the void, only to come in contact with an icy, solid surface a few inches away from your body. Moving the rest of your limbs, you try to measure how much space you have, only to find yourself constantly bumping into a steel-like material.

You feel enclosed, as if you have been placed inside a box. And suddenly, a flood of memories comes back, the scenes flash like a movie as you remember the horses, the missing people, the hearse carrying three coffins... wait a minute.

"Am I... dead?"

No way! You can still feel temperatures and sensations, so you must still be alive. But just in case, you decide to double-check, as your hand immediately flies to your neck and quickly finds your carotid artery. You breathe a small sigh of relief as you feel the pulse of your heart beating against your fingers, but your stomach drops as you reach a secondary and more terrifying conclusion.

You are going to be buried alive!?

Panic runs through your veins as your hands fly over to the object on top of your body, and you begin to push with all your might. Damn it! You don't want to die like this, you thought your death would at least be peaceful and in your sleep, surrounded by your loved ones or your precious and extremely expensive figurines. Instead, you probably got run over by a horse and are now being buried alive by accident or worse, on purpose!

There’s something strange though, as you don’t feel any pain. You were most likely crushed beneath an animal that on average weighs around 900 to a thousand pounds, followed then by a vehicle that’s carrying three coffins. Yet you feel completely normal, minus the small headache. No body pain, no broken bones, not even a single scratch. Just what is going on!?

But your thoughts come to a screeching halt as you feel your hands push the lid open with surprising ease. After applying a little more force, the lid slams against something, the loud sound making you cringe. Light finally pours into the small, darkened space and your eyes squint, taking a while to adjust to the brightness. 

"Holy shit! Someone else managed to open the 'door' by themselves!" you hear hushed and surprised whispers outside your box, eerily reminiscent of the voices that plagued your mind earlier, but thankfully not coming from inside your head. ‘Okay, time to find out who the hell wanted to bury me alive.’

You stumble out of the space, your bag smacking the side of your thigh as you accidentally miscalculated the distance between the floor and where you're standing, but fortunately, you don't fall. The whispering grows even louder, as if your appearance stirs something in the room. The slightly warm air from the room brushes against your cold skin, sending a shiver down your spine as you open your eyes to examine your surroundings. 

An enormous glass chandelier hangs over your head, its warm light reflecting off the huge mirror that strangely floats below. Elegant curtains are placed in front of the tall windows with intricate designs showing the stars that decorate the dark sky, and in their reflection, you can see the flames of the small candles softly dancing.

Your eyes widened in disbelief at the hundreds of coffins floating softly around the mirror, the lid in yours fully open revealing a burgundy-colored interior. Were you drugged? No, maybe you're still dreaming! Nothing like this is physically possible unless you have landed in some sort of simulation, or perhaps you somehow ended up inside an elaborate theme park.

As you turn your head around to see the source of the whispering, you can feel the color drain from your face as your mouth hangs open in pure shock and your stomach lurches. Sitting in rows of pews there’s a sea of people in front of you, wearing elaborate black and purple cloaks that obscure their features. “Is this a cult!?” you can’t help but shout at the scene in front of you, quickly backing away from them as if they were a group of predators. Your outburst causes some figures in the crowd to snicker and snort at your comment, others taking out their phones or using their figures to point at you.

“Honestly, you children are very impatient! Coming through the door of your own accord is practically unheard of”, a voice speaks in an exasperated tone, as you hear the sound of a cane approaching. Instinctively, you turn in the direction of the voice and laugh almost sarcastically when you see the person standing in front of you. You're too tired and confused to even question what's going on.

What the hell is that man wearing? Two glowing orbs are staring right at you from behind a crow mask, the over-the-top feather coat completely ruining the rest of his expensive-looking outfit. You wonder how long it takes this man to get dressed and undressed, given the amount of accessories he carries.

"Hello? Are you listening, young-", out of the corner of your eye, the crow man slowly approaches, golden claw rings shining in the warm light of the chandelier as a hand reaches out to you. Out of instinct to get away from this man, your hand quickly reaches into your pocket before coming in contact with a small rectangular object. 

Driven by pure adrenaline and desperation to get out of this place, you pull out said object and point it at the man, who recoils in shock. Wasting no time, you turn the device on and press the button, a flash of light followed by a crackling sound has the man emitting a short shriek. "One more step and you'll be eating 50,000 volts of pure electricity, my friend."

"What is wrong with you two!? First, you break the door and get out before being called, and now you two are threatening me with weapons!" Two? Who else is he talking about? The man steps aside, revealing the other person he was referring to, a young man holding a large covered object while pointing it at the crow man.

Your breath catches as you instantly recognize the undercut haircut and piercing eyes. You briefly recall his grandmother's screams and the CCTV footage of him exiting the gym before it cuts to black still very fresh in your mind.

"Yuuken Enma?" you whisper his name in disbelief, it feels unreal to see him in the flesh after spending so much time discussing his disappearance. 

Hearing his name, the Kendo student turns in your direction, his eyes widening in surprise, and he opens his mouth to speak, but he resumes his defensive position as soon as the crow man moves again.

"Please, both of you, calm down, I mean no harm!" he raises his hands in surrender, and you loosen the grip on your taser slightly. You have tons of questions that desperately need to be answered, and it doesn't look like the crow man has any intention of harming you.

To be honest, he looks even paler than when you first saw him, so it's best to interrogate him before he shuts down and refuses to answer any questions. 

"No offense, dude, but you're suspicious as hell," you suddenly find Yuuken standing at your side, still holding what you assume to be his Kendo sword. When did he get here? You weren't the only one who didn't notice the sudden movement, as the crow man stares back and forth from where the Kendo student once stood to you.

Anyway, you don't have time for this, you want to get out of this bizarre place as soon as possible. "Where are we?" you begin, getting straight to the point. At your question, the crow man relaxes, his shoulders straightening as he clears his throat. "I see, you two aren't quite lucid yet. Ah! Must be the effects of transportation fogging your brains," he whispers the last part, a pointy finger scratching his chin. 

You and Yuuken exchange a confused look. With a sigh, the crow closes his eyes before continuing. "Very well, let me explain. You're currently at Night Raven College, a magic school in Twisted Wonderland. Here, students with exceptional magic gather and are trained to become the best magicians in the world," he explains, proudly puffing out his chest like a bird as he finishes his explanation.

On the contrary, you and Yuuken are completely lost, the explanation making no sense to any of you. "Ma... gic... As in the type you see in an anime or a movie?" the black-haired boy asks innocently, his eyes widening in shock. You can hear the previously silent "students" now laughing softly at the two of you, mockery evident in their voices as they whisper between each other. Fuck this, you're so over this sick joke! 

"I don't know what kind of crazy cult you're running here, but we want nothing to do with it!" you yell, this time tightening your grip on the taser. Even though you're speaking on behalf of Yuuken, you can guarantee that he's also incredibly disturbed by what's going on here.

"Well, you're here because the Mirror of Darkness" — the crow-man points to the giant floating mirror in the middle of the room — "has recognized your magical abilities. You were picked up by a carriage, weren't you?" you instantly remember the panic that ran through you as you watched the horses run towards you. That thing going so fast was supposed to pick you up? 

You slowly nod. "I see! Now that we're done clearing up any questions, it's time for the entrance ceremony to begin!" his tone suddenly changes to a more cheerful one and the crow man begins to walk away with a slight bounce in his step. Millions of questions run through your mind, but his nonchalant reaction makes you even more angry.

"Wait a damn minute! We were never even informed of this decision! Our families must be so worried, we suddenly just disappeared out of the blue!" you yell angrily, while Yuuken nods fervently at your side. "Yes! Besides, the two of us can't even use magic!" This sentence seems to silence the entire room. Suddenly, the student's eyes feel like bullets as they dig into your back and neck, staring at you with scrutiny or surprise.

"What did you say?" the crow man stops and turns to look at you with a puzzled expression on his face. Is this man on drugs? No one can use magic!

Fortunately, Yuuken has grown tired of the conversation and prepares to leave, swinging his Kendo sword over his right shoulder and grabbing the strap of his gym bag with his free hand. "This is pointless! Pembroke and I have important things to do, and our families must be worried. So excuse us," you're surprised he knows your last name since the two of you never really interacted.

But you don't pay much attention to it, giving the crow man a nod before turning off your taser and stowing it in your bag as you follow Yuuken down the large corridor. The whispers of the "students" now turn into full conversations, expressing their disbelief that the two of you would just walk away from a "once in a lifetime opportunity", as one of them put it.

Yeah, right... being kidnapped from your hometown to suddenly wake up in a coffin with bizarre special effects decorating a gothic-looking room, and having a cult leader with furry tendencies dressed like a crow tell you that you're in a school where they can teach you magic. Ha! ‘A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, my ass.’

Behind you, you hear a gasp before a pair of footsteps quickly approach the two of you.“W-wait just a moment! Let’s all calm down and–”

BAM!

The sound of breaking glass frightens everyone in the room, shocked gasps and quiet screams can be heard as everyone turns to face the source of the sound. The window behind the mirror now has a huge hole in the middle of it. Shards of crystal fall at your feet, but what scares you most is the creature that has caused such a scene. 

A rather large gray cat with blue flames sprouting from its ears and a tattered black and white ribbon tied around its neck stands proudly on its hind legs. Its right paw reaches to the sky, showing a row of sharp claws before it points them at you and Yuuken. "I've been listening to ya!" it, no, he shouts proudly. "Do ya know how many people would kill for a chance to get into this school?"

The little guy walks awkwardly towards you, and you can't help but freak out as you stare at whatever this creature is. "So, tell ya what? If you don't want it, let me enroll in your place!" the cat exclaims happily, a grin spreading across his face. You can hear the crow man complaining about something, but you're too busy trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

"Pembroke," Yuuken's soft voice snaps you out of your thoughts, and you turn to face the young man. A look of pure disbelief is on his face as he points a finger at the creature. "Why is the raccoon talking?" the creature's face contorts into an expression of annoyance, the flames on its ears growing larger in pure rage. "HUH!? I AM NOT A RACCOON! I am the Great Grim, who’s going to become the greatest wizard of all time!"

You’re going to pass out. Laughter can be heard across the room as the "students" criticize and mock the cat's sentences. This angers the creature even more. "Yeah right! A monster becoming a wizard? As if!" a certain row of students to your left roars in laughter at the thought, but you are more concerned with the next words "Grim" says.

“OH YEAH!? I just have to show ya, what I’m made of!” the creature spits a small ball of flames as a test try, before inhaling a large gulp of air and–

FWOOSH!

He’s setting the students on fire!

In a matter of seconds, the entire room is engulfed in blue fire and chaos. The beautiful linen curtains burn quickly, you hear how the chandeliers fall and the metal twists in the flames, and you feel Yuuken take your wrist as he guides you through the sea of ​​people trying to escape the room. 

The students scream in panic, and you end up helping several of them extinguish their cloaks that have caught fire. As one boy thanks you under his breath for the help and promptly heads for the door, another guy accidentally runs into you while screaming at the top of his lungs, the tail of his cloak slowly burning.

You don't waste a second before stomping on the fabric, quickly extinguishing the fire as the boy breathes a sigh of relief. "Thanks for the help!" he replies in a cheerful tone, surprising given the situation, short white hair peeking out from under the hood as his red eyes stare up at you. He's quickly led away by another man who carries him to safety.

Your head swivels again as you hear more cries for help, but out of the corner of your eye, you see a strange movement in the background.

One of the coffins floating near the ceiling begins to move violently from side to side. You don't know if it's the heat waves or the smoke that's making you cough and sneeze, but you swear you can see the lid starting to open. You are still unable to move, a blockade has now formed at the entrance of the room, and the students are shouting in panic for those at the front to move.

"I'm not done yet!" Grim continues to spit small balls of fire, not aiming at anything, just showing off the amount of chaos he can cause. Your eyes briefly focus on the creature jumping happily in the middle of the room- ‘That thing's a tiny psychopath!’ -but your attention is quickly diverted as you hear a loud banging noise.

Your eyes focus on the previously moving coffin, the lid now open and whoever was inside is lying on his side on the floor, completely still. The flames continue to spread and you soon realize that the most likely unconscious person is incredibly close to a curtain that is about to be completely consumed by the fire. 

"Enma! I’m going over there! Another person has escaped from the coffin! You get out!" you free your wrist from Yuuken's grip and move skillfully through the crowd, slowly approaching the person.

‘Move! Move! Someone is about to be burned alive!’

Yuuken shouts for you to wait for him, but you don't pay attention, as you manage to get out of the crowd and can move more freely. The person is already a few meters away from you, curling himself into a fetal position, the fall of the coffin has possibly knocked the air out of him, or worse, a rib may have been broken. ‘Shit! Hopefully, the injury isn’t too bad!’

You're stopped in your tracks, however, when a red-haired young man crosses your path and begins to make his way to Grim with full determination. "First people refuse to enroll, and now a monster breaks in? How dare you sully our initiation ceremony!" the young man points what looks like a pen at the creature, who glares back at him with a frown.

"You... REMOVE YOURSELF FROM THIS SCHOOL IMMEDIATELY!" his scream projects throughout the room, causing some of the students who were previously panicking to stop dead in their tracks. You, on the other hand, are completely taken aback by the display in front of you. What is this kid thinking? Does he have a death wish!? Grim, however, takes his command as a challenge, as you can see the hairs on his back stand up, and this time he stands on all four paws.

"Get out of my WAY!" the small creature screams, spewing a huge ball of blue fire straight at the boy. Even from where you stand, you can feel the heat of the fire warming your skin. The boy does not even attempt to move out of the path of the threat, much less impressed at the magnitude of the attack.

You turn your head to look at the crowd behind you, staring intently at the scene. "HEY! ALL OF YOU, GET ON THE GROUND, NOW!" you yell, snapping some students out of their stupor.

Instinctively, as if you were a puppet, your legs move on their own as you run toward the redheaded boy, the projectile growing larger and larger. Your right arm quickly hooks around the young man's waist, and you pull him hard against your chest, he gasps in surprise as his hands clench into fists and grab a hold of your shirt. You pay no attention to it, more preoccupied with the threat in front of you, so you quickly maneuver your two bodies away from the path of the fireball.

You turn your head to look at the students, who fortunately heard your command, as they lie flat on the floor, the fire quickly leaving the building through the open doors and exploding in the air outside. Some students scream at the sound, hands flying to their ears; from the corner of your eye, you see Yuuken covering the heads of some boys, shielding them from the debris.

You breathe a sigh of relief, thankful that nobody got hurt. But the momentary calmness is gone when you hear someone grunting in anger. "You... JUST WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?" the pair of hands that were clinging to your shirt now lie flat on your shoulders, and he shoves you, hard, your back hitting the side of a nearby pew, the air momentarily leaving your lungs. 

You stare owlishly at the red-haired boy, who doesn't even spare you a glance as he points his pen at Grim. ‘How the hell does such a tiny person have so much power?’

Your lungs feel like they're on fire, the room spinning as the throbbing of your headache seems to rear its ugly head around the corner. You feel two pairs of hands grab your forearms tightly, lifting you off the ground with ease, and you come face to face with Yuuken, whose expression is one of concern.

"Pembroke, are you okay?" the tone of his voice is soft, you can hear it despite the screams and relaxation in the background. You nod slightly, the adrenaline coursing through your veins a few minutes ago now replaced by exhaustion. "The guy... the one who fell out of the coffins," you remember the poor man writhing on the ground in pain and Yuuken takes his eyes off your face for a moment to observe where the boy is. 

"I'll go get him, you get out of here, and we'll meet again outside. Can you walk?" the Kendo student studies your appearance with complete determination, and you nod quickly, praying that nothing has happened to the boy. You feel a tad intimidated underneath his watchful eyes.

After a few seconds of staring, the two of you separate, Yuuken swing his gym bag on his free shoulder, sprinting towards the figure at full speed while you make your way to the entrance, helping various students up from the floor and pushing them to get out of the boiling hot room.

"SILENCE!" the redheaded boy yells behind you, but you ignore him, still pushing through the crowd. "Get ready!" someone steps hard on your foot, and you're pushed, your body turning to the opposite side. Yuuken grabs the injured man's arm and swings it over his shoulder, helping him to stand.

"OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!" your eyes shift to the redhead, watching the tip of the pen lights up before it shoots a bright light. Dust-like particles, twinkling like stars, surround the creature's neck before a heart-shaped collar magically appears on the creature, who screams in disbelief.

‘… No way… there’s no way…’

"What is this thing? Get this shit off me!" Grim uses his small paws to pull at the collar, then his hind legs to kick at it, but the object doesn't even move. His head whips around to look at the redhead with fury, and he sucks in air again to launch another attack. But this time, not even a tiny flame comes out of its mouth. "HA!? My magic! What have you done to the Great Grim?"

The red-haired boy sneers, and even from where you're standing, you can feel the shit-eating grin he's giving the monster. "I used my magic to seal yours," the Grim's eyes widen in shock as he continues to kick at the collar, unintelligible complaints and colorful words coming out of his mouth.

Soon, several cloaked figures begin to use their "magic" to put out the fire, spraying water on the flames that are eating away at the curtains and carpet. Another group focuses on calming the students, getting them back into the room, and checking for injuries; fortunately, it doesn't appear that anyone has been badly burned beyond their clothing.

Suddenly, the crow man, who you strangely didn't see during all the chaos, reappears from the shadows and proudly claps as he heads towards the red-head. "As expected from the Heartslabyul house warden! Great catch, Mr. Riddle Rosehearts!"

Suddenly, the crow man, who you strangely didn't see during all the chaos, reappears from the shadows and proudly claps as he heads toward the redhead. "As expected from the Heartslabyul house warden! Great catch, Mr. Riddle Rosehearts!"

The boy named Riddle is showered with compliments, however, he ignores them, more concerned with cleaning the dust and debris that have soiled his cloak. But, between the celebrations and gasps of relief, you and Yuuken stare at each other with pale complexions and worried looks.  It's clear you're both thinking the same thing.

The monster, the magic fire, the heart-shaped collar and the pen... where exactly are you right now? How far away from home are you?

Honestly, fuck this place.

✦•······················•✦•······················•✦

Tag list:

@rotknox @agaygothicmushroom @sherryclover @mielle-estelar

[faebaex]

Tangled in Wonderland - Cornered

author note: Hiii next chapter! I’m so glad you guys enjoyed the twist, it makes me so happy! This might not be the chapter you expected, as it focuses more on the aftermath, but rest assured more is to come! ʚ(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )ɞ Please make sure you read the warning underneath before proceeding to read this chapter. Thank you!!

characters: Rook Hunt x GN!Reader

Warning: This chapter deals heavily with mental health, with a description of a panic attack from the outset and descriptions of depression early on in the chapter. This chapter also mentions stalking. Please do not read if these topics make you feel uncomfortable in anyway.

“… Vital signs… Erratic…”

“… scan of… quickly!”

“… Bioscan…”

You felt disorientated. A ringing in your ears, accompanied by different, distinctive sound, drowned out most of the sounds you could hear. It took you a moment to realise that the other distinctive sound was the thumping of your own heartbeat in your ears.

“… Complete… Pref… signs… attack…”

Your entire body felt rigid, as if encased in ice, yet your skin felt like it was on fire. There was a deep dread, which felt like it was simultaneously seeping out of your pores and clawing up your throat, threatening to close it in it’s merciless grasp. You couldn’t breathe. Were you going to die? Can’t breathe, can’t breathe, can’t—

“P-prefect!”

The feeling of hands on your shoulders suddenly brought your awareness back, and you realised that you were still in Idia’s dorm room. But something wasn’t right… What was happening…? What is that noise…?

“Prefect, I need you to breath.” Idia told you, his voice not stuttering despite the frantic look on his face.

What is he talking about? Is that sound… You?

It took your brain a moment to process that you were hyperventilating, your breathing coming out in short, terrified gasps. You were shaking violently, and it felt like Idia’s hands on your shoulders were the only thing keeping you grounded.

“I-I can’t!” You managed to wheeze out, your voice high-pitched and laced with distress. Your eyes darted around the room wildly, as if you were looking for somewhere to go but finding no way out.

“Yes you can,” Idia instructed firmly, “focus on me, and I’ll help you.”

Your eyes snapped onto Idia’s golden ones, and you held onto his gaze like it was your only lifeline, because in that moment, it felt like it was. Slowly, he coached you through how to breath, counting steadily up to five when you breathed in, and down from five as you breathed out, his hands on your shoulders the entire time.

“Commencing bioscan of target…”

You closed your eyes, blocking out Ortho as you focused solely on your breathing. Breathe in for five, breathe out for five, breathe in for five… Breathe out for five…

“… Panic symptoms receding… Heart rate slowly lowering back to base line…”

It felt excruciating, but eventually the ringing in your ears faded away and the thumping of your heart grew steadier. The dread was still there, curled deep in your stomach like a heavy weight, but the fear was no longer clawing at your insides, constricting your throat like a noose. You kept your eyes closed as you continued breathing deeply, until you felt a squeeze on your shoulders. It was light, almost feeling shy, but it was definitely there.

“… A-are you okay?”

Your eyes snapped open, and you finally took in your surroundings properly.

You were still in Idia’s dorm room, sitting on his bed, but now Idia was awkwardly crouched in front of you, his hands on your shoulders, and Ortho was floating beside you. They both looked very concerned, but Idia seemed to notice that they were crowding you a little and let go of your shoulders, sheepishly taking a step back and slowly sitting back in his desk chair. Ortho remained at your side however, head tilted as he studied you.

“… Prefect?” Ortho verbally nudged, and you swallowed. You were frightened to speak. Frightened that your voice would crack and betray your inner turmoil.

“I-i…” You began, and your voice got stuck in your throat. Ortho zoomed to the side, rummaging through one of the boxes you had brought back to the dorm together earlier and returned to you, coaxing a bottle of sports drink into your hand.

“Sip this, you need the electrolytes.” Ortho advised, and your shaky hands struggled with the sealed cap before Ortho pinged it off with one well timed flick. You’d have been amused in a different situation. You slowly sipped at the sports drink, absently noting its berry flavour, as you tried your hardest not to think. You really didn’t want to think right now. Not about that.

“I-I have to go…” You stuttered out. You prayed that your legs would be able to hold your weight as you attempted to stand, and thankfully they were, despite how badly you were shaking.

“Prefect, wait—” Ortho began, but you didn’t listen, heading straight for Idia’s door.

“Let them go, Ortho.” Idia said quietly, slumping down in his chair as he watched you leave.

Your shoulders were hunched and you kept your head low as you walked back to Ramshackle, internally begging whatever cruel fate was out there not to allow you to run into anyone. Thankfully, you didn’t, and you have never been more grateful that Ramshackle was fairly close to the Hall of Mirrors than you were today.

In another positive turn of fate, Ramshackle was empty when you arrived. That must mean you had been in Ignihyde all morning, and the NRC Tribe had already left for their afternoon training in the Pomefiore ballroom. You headed straight for your room, securing the door closed and drawing your curtains, descending your bedroom into darkness. You didn’t even bother changing out of your clothes, immediately seeking refuge in your bed, curled up in the foetal position with your head under the covers. You didn’t want to know. You didn’t want to think. You just wanted the darkness to swallow you up.

You stayed like that for three days.

The first day was a Sunday, so whilst your absence was seen as laziness by your more judgmental peers, it drew no particular concern. But the second day was a Monday – a school day. Grim had tried to drag you out of bed, coaxing and complaining that if you didn’t get up now, you’d both be late. But you didn’t move, and slowly it started to dawn on Grim that something wasn’t right with you. Eventually, and rather reluctantly, he left for school, casting a worried glance at you before he closed the door.

When he returned at lunchtime, he noticed that you had barely moved, and his worry swelled. He had brought you a sandwich he had snagged from the cafeteria, placing it on your pillow as if that would somehow coax you to eat it. He joked that you had to eat, because he needed his henchhuman on top form to be able to carry out all his deeds for him. When you didn’t crack a smile and just stared blankly at him – through him – his fur puffed up, stricken with concern over your state. He spent the rest of his lunchbreak running around Ramshackle, gathering things that he thought could help. He placed a glass of water on your bedside table, and tugged another blanket out of your wardrobe and laid it haphazardly over your curled up form. He even swiped a diffuser from who knows where and placed it on the fireplace by the mirror, the scent of lavender slowly filling the bedroom.

Grim soon had to leave again to return to the main building for afternoon classes, and you were once again left alone. Your eyes were tired but whenever you slept, you kept seeing that picture. Like it had been seared onto the inside of your eyelids and burnt into your brain. You didn’t want to see it. You didn’t want to think about it. So you stayed awake, huddled up in bed and away from the world.

Grim returned immediately after classes ended, his face showing how anxious he was as he opened your bedroom door and hopped on your bed to check on you. He noticed that the sandwich he brought you at lunch was untouched and, in a fit of desperation, he disappeared downstairs only to return with a can of his premium tuna. He placed in by the sandwich and tried to talk to you, only to receive no response again. Ultimately, he gave up, but instead of leaving he dove under the covers and curled up by your side, not moving for the remainder of the evening and night.

The third day mimicked the second, with Grim bringing you another sandwich from the school cafeteria in hopes that it would entice your appetite. He was glum when he left, feeling like he was getting nowhere. But it was that afternoon when he returned from classes that he finally snapped, the anxiety too much to bear. He dove under the covers once again but this time he pressed his face close to yours, his big blue eyes looking straight into yours. You could see the worry and concern swirling in them, a faint glimmer of tears starting to threaten the surface.

“Henchhuman, you gotta eat!” Grim implored, the desperation clear in his voice, “you haven’t moved in days. Should we go to the infirmary? … Tell me what to do!” He begged, wanting nothing more than some guidance on how to deal with this situation, guidance on how he could help you. His desperation only grew as you said nothing.

“Is the food not good enough? Tell me what you want, I’ll get you anything! I’ll even work a shift at the Mostro Lounge to get you the good stuff! J-just tell me what I can do!” It was the sound of Grim’s voice cracking that broke through your somber reverie, like a chisel through ice. Your limbs still felt heavy and your mind clouded by fog, but something inside you had changed. You had been blind to how your behaviour had been affecting Grim, and now guilt started to well up in your heart. You blinked, and slowly you shifted in the bed. Your body felt stiff, your muscles tensing and screaming out at the slightest motion but you persisted until you were leaned against the headboard. With shaky hands from malnutrition, you managed to unwrap the packaging of one of the sandwiches that Grim had brought you, taking a small bite out of one before recoiling and immediately reaching for the glass of water on your bedside instead and quickly sipping some. Your mouth was so dry that it made the sandwich taste like cardboard, and the water turning the sandwich to mush wasn’t exactly any more pleasant but at least you weren’t at risk of choking.

Grim had crawled out from under the covers, watching you with hesitant eyes. You tried to give him a small smile to reassure him but with your lips so dry, it only caused the skin there to crack painfully, so you stopped. “I’m sorry Grim…” You managed to murmur, your voice hoarse, “I’ll come with you to class tomorrow, I promise…”

Grim stared at you for a long moment, worry still shining in his eyes before he shook out his fur and clambered onto your lap, pushing the hand the held the glass of water softly, urging you to drink again. “Y-you better, henchhuman! Crewel has really been on my case, y’know! He said we’d have to do double homework to make up for it if you missed any more classes!” Grim nagged, and it was clear he was trying to encourage you in his own little way, refusing to mention how he had been watching you lifeless in bed for the last few days.

You ate the sandwich in silence, having to force the last quarter down but doing so because you knew your stomach needed the food. The whole time you stroked Grim’s head with your free hand as he laid in your lap. Usually he’d make a fuss if you treated him like this, but today he sat quietly, letting you brush your fingers through his fur.

You took one last sip of water and slowly lowered yourself back down into the bed, forcing yourself to resist curling up in foetal position and give your limbs some much needed stretch. You promised Grim again that you’d definitely go to class with him tomorrow and you closed your eyes, cuddling him into your side.

The next morning was hell. You woke up earlier than you’d usually do, knowing that you’d need the extra time to prepare physically and emotionally to leave your bedroom. You left Grim snoring away in bed as you walked into your bathroom, grimacing as you caught sight of yourself in the mirror. The circles under your eyes were awful, and you didn’t want to imagine the snark that Vil would have in store for you if he caught sight of them. This was going to take a lot of work. You stared at your reflection in the mirror, your dull eyes staring back at you. Mentally, you tried to give yourself a pep talk. There was no point getting so distressed over what you had discovered at Ignihyde, you told yourself. You had no leads at the moment, so any lead was a good lead, right…? You felt despair start to curl in your heart when you thought that home might not be what you think it is. Desperately, you reached up and pinched your cheek hard to snap yourself out of those thoughts. Ow.

Thankfully you were up early enough that the hot water hadn’t been used up yet by the rest of your little house guests, so you could at least enjoy a hot shower. By the time you had finally made yourself look presentable enough, it was almost time to leave, so you had to make use of one of the sandwiches that Grim had brought you for you, splitting half with him. Throwing on a face mask for good measure, you turned to pick up your phone from your bedside table and froze. Your hand hung in the air for a moment but then you let it drop, staring at your phone conflicted. Eventually, you picked up Grim and finally left your bedroom.

You walked to classes with Ace and Deuce, who both shared concern over your sudden illness. It seemed that Grim had told people that you weren’t feeling well, and Ace and Deuce hadn’t been able to check on you because Vil was concerned you could be contagious. He wasn’t letting anything ruin their chances at the SDC, especially not the common cold. You assured them both that you were fine and instead asked them about their competition training, successfully filling up the conversation until you reached classes.

The day of classes was dull, and you understood almost none of it considering the past few days that you had missed. Thankfully, you didn’t catch an earful from Crewel. He had taken one look at you before ominously tapping his pointer to his gloved palm a few times before warning you to make sure you caught up on the subjects you had missed. Despite how boring your classes were today, you wished they wouldn’t come to an end. Because you knew when they came to an end, you’d have no choice but to confront the inevitable.

But sooner than you would have liked, you were exiting your final class of the day and splitting off from Ace and Deuce as they went to continue their training at the Pomefiore ballroom, and Grim mumbled an excuse and took off without telling you where he was going. That was never good, but considering Grim had sat painstakingly by your side for the last few days, you could turn a blind eye to any of his troublesome activities for a while.

Muscle memory took you to the library, but as you sat yourself at your usual desk, you found yourself just staring into space. You hadn’t even opened any of the books on your pile. With a deep sigh you pushed yourself away from the desk and took your leave. You knew you had to confront what had been plaguing you these last few days, and even as bile rose up in your throat just at the thought, you needed to rip off the band aid and be done with it.

You had just made it out of the school building and were starting the long walk back to Ramshackle when a voice called out behind you. It wasn’t a voice you wanted to hear, your shoulders tensing just at the sound of it.

“Prefect, bonjour!”

Of all times, now was not when you wanted to have to deal with Rook Hunt.

You sighed as you turned your head, seeing Rook waving at you grandly as he approached you. “Are you walking back to Ramshackle? Then I shall accompany you! I foolishly left my stretching bands, and Vil will be very displeased if I turned up to practice without them.”

“We can’t have a displeased Vil…” You muttered dryly, and Rook nodded in agreement with his usual eccentric smile. “I do hate disappointing beautiful Vil, so let us walk together.”

You knew better than to walk in silence with Rook, even if that is what you would have actually preferred, so you initiated some small talk about how the preparation for the SDC was going. As usual, Rook was eager to sing the praises of the NRC Tribe’s members; he spoke of how much Ace and Deuce had improved with their footwork in leaps and bounds, and how Epel was blossoming into his beauty. How Kalim’s smile shone through even the darkest of practices, and how Jamil was starting to break out of his shell and fill the stage with his presence. And of course, he sang about Vil’s leadership and tenacity to shape even the roughest of stones into beautiful gems.

“Ah, but I digress! I would love to hear about you, prefect! Where have you been these last three days?” Rook inquired, his unreadable eyes fixed on you. His gushing about the NRC Tribe had only taken you halfway to Ramshackle, and there was no point trying to outrun a hunter. That would probably just excite him.

“Oh, I wasn’t feeling too well so I took a couple of days to rest in bed.” You responded. It wasn’t necessarily a lie, but Rook’s eyes narrowed on you all the same before a small smile played on his lips.

“Really? Because I associate the behaviour you are displaying more with fear than fatigue from illness.” He said nonchalantly and you whipped your head around to stare at him before you could stop yourself. He had that infuriating little smirk on his lips as he watched you, studied you, taking in every little detail of your reactions.

“I thought the beastman students were more your vibe.” You snarked at him, not bothering to hide the hostility in your tone, he’d detect it either way. Rook only shook his head, maintaining his smug smile.

“Non, non, non, sweet Trickster! I observe those who interest me, and you are very interesting.” He informed you, taking a step closer to you which made you immediately sidestep away with a frown. Rook didn’t look offended or perturbed, he simply kept speaking. “Your heart rate is higher than usual, your pupils are dilated and your hands are shaking. Your complexion is paler than the norm, and you are wearing concealer to hide some rather unsightly dark circles beneath your eyes.”

Rook watched you as he delivered his analysis but you said nothing, keeping your eyes away from him and staring at the floor instead. Rook was silent for a moment before he delivered his final judgment.

“Those aren’t the symptoms of someone suffering from fatigue, sweet Trickster. Non, those are the symptom of someone who is very scared. What happened to you when you went into Ignihyde?”

You grit your teeth, feeling an odd sense of outrage fill you. It shouldn’t be surprising to you that Rook knew you went to Ignihyde that day, he stalks everyone that he finds interesting, and he already let you know he finds you very intriguing. But no matter how you tried to rationalise it, the knowledge that he had been stalking you had you brimming with resentment.

“If I complained to our beautiful Vil that you have been stalking me, you could lose your position as Pomefiore’s vice housewarden.” You stated cooly, “I might be magicless, but I am the Prefect of Ramshackle Dorm. An allegation from me would have to be taken seriously.” You hid none of the animosity from your expression as you turned your head to glare at him.

… But his expression surprised you. He had his hands raised in surrender at your threat, but instead of the smug smile he usually wore on his face when he was goading his prey, he looked concerned. Like he was worried about you.

“Forgive me, sweetest Trickster. Usually, I abide by Roi du Poison’s words not to interfere with other dorms’ affairs, but after seeing you look akin to a terrified lamb marked for slaughter, I felt so uneasy that I couldn’t help but check in with you.” Rook told you gently, and you pursed your lips. You didn’t know whether to feel annoyed or thankful for his concern, to be honest. Would he even be concerned over you if you weren’t an interesting little prey for him to toy with?

“You went back to Ignihyde with Monsieur Doll after running into him at the Mystery Shop, even assisting him with his shopping. A kind act from our sweet Trickster. But then you took to your room for days and began behaving like a frightened dove upon contact. Monsieur Doll doesn’t seem like the type to behave untowardly…” Rook continued, watching your expression for even the smallest micro-expressions, no doubt.

You could finally see Ramshackle coming into sight and you had to stop yourself breathing a sigh of relief. Rook wouldn’t be able to bother you for much longer whether he liked it or not – he’d need to get to the Pomefiore ballroom before Vil noticed he had been absent for too long. But considering he knew that you had gone to Ignihyde, you didn’t want him to start snooping around there to see what had happened. What if he found out? Found out that you’re…

Your tone was sharp as you addressed Rook.

“It’s none of your business why I went to Ignihyde. And for the record, Ortho was a very gracious host. You’re doing him a disservice by assuming any different. The fact of the matter is that I got sick. I got sick in a place where I have no family or connections, where I have nothing, so sue me if I got a little shaken up about the experience. Again, not that it is any of your business.”

It was a weak excuse, one that you had thought up on the fly and you were certain that Rook wouldn’t believe it at all. But that didn’t matter. All that mattered what making sure that he didn’t go meddling around Ignihyde and finding out anything. Ortho might be able to hold his own, but you weren’t sure how well Idia would fare against the enigmatic Rook.

You were a little worried that he wouldn’t let it go, but Rook simply nodded. The unreadable glint in his eye was back, so you had no idea what he was thinking. You could only hope that it was something about leaving you alone.

You walked the rest of the short distance to Ramshackle in tense silence, but the ever-eccentric Rook still opened the Ramshackle main door for you with a dramatic flourish, as if he wasn’t affected by the tense atmosphere at all. Of course he wasn’t. Being the root cause of many tense situations must give you some resistance.

You were given no reprieve from Rook yet, considering you both walked up Ramshackle’s staircase for different reasons. You to hole yourself up in your bedroom, and him to collect his forgotten stretching equipment. Now you were wondering if it was even truly forgotten, or if this was just a convenient excuse for him to ambush you. This school was truly turning you into a cynic.

“Trickster, if I may…” Rook began as you began to part at the top of the stairs, ready to turn in different directions for your respective rooms. You stopped reluctantly, but only half turned toward him, showing that you very much considered your previous conversation over.

“This may seem a little ingenuine now, but should you ever feel yourself floating adrift without aid, I will happily be your paddle. You need only let me know.” Rook imparted, and his tone seemed pure, despite how flowery he had come across.

The promise didn’t fill you with any warmth or security, nor did it make you feel bad for the animosity you had shown him, but it did soothe the burn you were feeling from having your privacy invaded somewhat. You didn’t smile, but simply nodded at him. “I’ll keep that in mind.” You responded diplomatically.

Rook’s cheerful smile was back on his face, as if your hostile conversation had never occurred. “Now I must hurry back to my tribe! To think such beautiful moments are happening without me catching sight! A tragedy! Adieu, sweet Trickster, until we meet again!”

You rolled your eyes as you turned away and continued back to your own room. Hopefully that meant that you were free from Rook’s sights for a while. You knew you’d need to be extra careful going forward, as its not like you can tell when Rook is watching you.

You entered your room and closed your door with a heavy sigh, as if you were breathing out all the interactions you had sat through that day. You pulled off your face mask and flung it to the side, taking a heavy seat on your bed. Like it or not, it was time.

Your eyes fell to your phone, that sat cold and discarded on your bedside table. Your only lead, perhaps the answer to everything, was housed inside that phone.

But why was it so terrifying?

You sat there, just staring at your phone for a long moment, trying to build up the courage to simply pick it up and hold it in your hands. You knew you needed to act, you had no idea what time Grim was going to be back home – perhaps early if he was going to check up on you – and you didn’t want to give him any more cause for concern.

You swallowed hard… and reached out for the phone. It was time.

[bvidzsoo]

Lullaby of the seas

Author: bvidzsoo

Warning: violence, blood, mentions of eating humans but nothing graphic

Pairing: Choi Jongho x female reader

Word count: 15,2k

Summary: Choi Jongho could be described as a dreamer; he loved folklore and fairytales. His father was a sailor and often brought his son out on the sea with himself, thus they lived off of selling fish and pearls. Jongho was well raised and always kind, a very hard-working son, therefore it came as no surprise that he accepted the job offer of a mysterious pirate when his father's house got destroyed by a storm. Jongho was quiet and didn’t bother others, did his job very well and secretly fantasized about meeting a mermaid one day. There was one tiny problem, the seas they sailed had no mermaids in them, only vicious sirens out for the blood of unassuming pirates and sailors. (Reader is called Sunmi in the following oneshots.)

A/N: Second part of the series is up, lovelies! It's like the Flash possessed me or something by how quickly I finished this part lol; I'll try to post San's part before I go on vacation, but no promises. I hope I did alright with this part, and don't be shy, leave feedback, let me know your thoughts! Enjoy now!

Taglist: @pingyu-in-wonderland @marievllr-abg @lelaleleb @loveforred @horanghae8 @jeonghanscarat7 @orshii @mundayoonimnida @m3tavita @silentcry329

Series Masterlist ↭ Previous Part

               I sat on a rock, close by the shore, watching the waves crash against the beach, occasionally washing up pearls and seashells. The light breeze was slowly picking up into a more powerful wind, blowing my wet long, black hair in my face. The sun was setting in an hour, the air not as warm as it was throughout the day, and I took a deep breath, closing my eyes as I exhaled. This was my home. The sea. The ocean. The water. I have never touched land, or walked on it, as I lacked legs, as humans called them, to be able to do so. Instead of legs, I had a long-scaled tail, sturdy and strong. The black scales traveled up my stomach in an uneven pattern and covered my breasts scarcely, creating the illusion that they were molded into my skin. Despite sitting out in the sun quite often, I was rather pale, the only color on my face being my red lips which hid my sharp teeth, perfect for hunting. Despite popular beliefs, folklore was the one responsible for twisting the truth about Sirens, we only ate once a month and it was during the full moon. We recharged through the energies of the moon and through the blood of the sailors we took as our prey. Our beautiful voices lured them in, creating the perfect distraction for us to group around their boats and then attack as they were just waking up from the daze our lullabies put them into. No matter how cautious they were, they usually never made it out alive. The Raging Sea was our territory and despite sailors and pirates knowing about it, they still tried their luck and travelled through it. If the violent storms didn’t kill them, the sirens lurking in the depths surely did.

I opened my eyes and they fell on a large ship in the distance, sailing away peacefully, unassuming of the doom they were about to face tonight. It was a full moon and the swarm was hungry. Last month we didn’t find enough sailors for ourselves and had to share our prey among us, something which left us weaker than usually, thus we were starving, bloodthirsty and slightly desperate. Their blood wasn’t the only food, human flesh was tastier than anything else. Some were sweeter than others, mostly women, but we rarely had the pleasure to kill one, so we had to suffice with the disgusting sailors. Pirates were harder to trick, but if you stayed persistent, they’d willingly come to swim with you which made our job so much easier.

Bubbles travelled to the surface of the salty water before a head popped up to the surface, light green eyes staring into my icy blue ones, “Here you were.”

It was Serena, we were from the same swarm and she was someone I considered a friend. We usually stuck together when hunting in case anything went wrong, someone was there to help. Sirens didn’t make connections between each other like humans did, but I trusted Serena enough to allow her to approach me whenever she wanted. Despite living in a swarm, each one of us went on their merry ways, only reuniting when the full moon was to come up. We were stronger together than alone.

“Do you need something?” I asked her as she swum around the rock before pulling herself halfway out of the water, forearms resting on the solid surface. Serena’s head tilted and she smiled, her sharp teeth showing.

“Are you contemplating again?” She asked amused and I looked away from her, eyes focusing on the ship again. She followed my sight of line and her smile disappeared.

“About what?”

“Life.” Serena said, her expression mirroring mine. Our sharp eyes were narrowed and mouth slightly salivating at the sight of so many humans. We couldn’t help it; we were hungrier than ever before.

“I was actually fantasizing about the taste of those sailors.” I said to Serena, her eyes looking back at the ship.

“They are actually pirates,” She corrected me and then chuckled, “Silas asked us to meet near the cave, I came to let you know.”

I hummed and jumped off the rock, the cool water washing over my warmed-up body. My skin was slowly drying out from staying in the sun for so long and out of water, but it instantly rejuvenated once in the salty water. My body was light in the water and once Serena was underwater too, we swam off, headed to the cave. Our feast was soon about to start.

            The sun had set hours ago and the pirates lowered their small boats into the water, getting into them with torches in their hands. The swarm watched from afar as they started paddling towards the small deserted island. There was nothing on it except for a little green here and there and perhaps pearls, it made no sense that they were headed towards it, but nobody seemed to care. To be fair, even I could only think about their warm blood gushing into my mouth once I ripped their throats apart. There were fifteen of us in the swarm, Silas being our leader. He looked at everyone before slowly immersing himself fully underwater, everyone following after him. Our scales had a light fluorescent color in the water at night, making it easier to see each other. And even if they didn’t, our light eyes glowed in the dark, making us scarier looking than we already were. We were creatures of the sea and darkness, designed to be alluring in order to survive. We didn’t have much purpose besides feeding and playing into humans fantasies about peculiar creatures. I’ve heard many talking about mermaids while they sailed the seas, if it wasn’t a full moon we usually wouldn’t harm them. I liked to follow them closely on those days, letting them catch a glimpse of my tail in order to make them think they were hallucinating or seeing a bigger fish maybe. I heard the stories about mermaids, how friendly and sweet they were. But in reality, there were no mermaids. Only Sirens. And we weren’t friendly nor sweet. We were dangerous and lethal.

The swarm traveled carefully, making sure to remain unseen until the right moment. There were three boats in the water and five of us swam underneath each one, listening to pirates’ conversation carried by the water. The sea was quiet tonight, the full moon high up on the sky, luminating their dark paths. It was as if nature was the quiet before the storm, the storm being us. I watched as a pirate leaned over the boat slightly, his face blurry through the water and I smiled. Wasn’t he so eager to get into the water? And he wouldn’t have to wait for so much longer. Silas’ whisper carried around us like a caress, resounding around us softly and clearly, as he let us know that it was time. Serena smirked as we made eye contact and then slowly surfaced, showing her face to the pirates. I swam up as well, only peaking my eyes out, nose and mouth still underwater. The men were staring at us in awe, looking at us as if they’ve seen the biggest treasure of their lives. My eyes ran over the boat filled with six men and I found one who looked horrified. His mouth has fallen open and if I didn’t know better, I would’ve said he stopped breathing by how red his face had gotten. He was shocked, but intrigued at the same time, as I swam closer to the boat, our eyes locked onto each other. His were a dark brown, and he pushed one of the man to the side to get to the edge of the boat. I pushed my head fully out of the water and smiled at him sweetly, hiding my teeth. His eyes were wide as he stared at me and I sighed dreamily, making his eyebrows furrow.

“You’re real?” He whispered, more to himself, as I parted my lips and allowed the first note to slip through them. Our voices were angelic, high and melodic, they could lure over even certain sea animals. I didn’t think the pirate’s eyes could get any bigger than they already were, but it did, so I continued singing the lullaby, holding eye contact all the time. His body slowly seemed to relax as my voice carried higher and higher, slowly waddling closer to his boat. The pirate was fixated on me, eyes slowly dazing over, mouth slightly opening. His brain was fogged and body probably going numb from the Siren song. It was like a sweet poison, overtaking your whole being, rendering you completely helpless, allowing us to be in full control. I reached the boat and touched the side of it with my hand, nails long and pointy, as the pirate leaned closer, over the boat. His cherry-colored lips were pouty and his skin tan from staying out in the sun. I smiled at him as a few of the sirens already brought their prey into the water with them and I allowed my hand to reach the edge of the boat, lightly graze the pirate’s lips. He smiled dazed and gripped the sides of the boat, my song luring him inside the water. And as he got rid of his jacket, the muscles on his high cheekbones twitched. I ignored it and gripped the boat, next to the pirate’s hand, our skins touching. His was extremely hot compared to my freezing one. I smiled sweetly at him again, nodding in reassurance. He seemed to be taking his time in getting into the water compared to most of companions, who were already in it. But I remained calm and patient. I caressed his hand with my other one, and his eyebrows furrowed. Perhaps my song wasn’t powerful enough, so I raised my tone, taking his hand in mine and lightly pulling on it. He started getting up from his seated position, finally manipulated into coming inside the sea. But the muscles of his face twitched again and his lips pulled into a straight line, suddenly snatching his hand out of mine. My eyes widened but I didn’t let that discourage me as I continued singing, voice louder and more aggressive as I maintained the eye contact, but the haze was starting to disappear from the pirate’s eyes. What was happening? Was I not powerful enough anymore? That was impossible, the full moon enhanced our powers.

“No, no, no—” The pirate started muttering to himself, shaking his head as he started blinking, “No—Stop!”

I gasped as my lullaby came to an end, watching the pirate jump up and shake his dazed mate, “No, stop listening to them! These are sirens, they’ll—”

The man behind him screamed as a Siren bit into him and pulled him underwater forcefully, snapping a few pirates out of their daze. They looked horrified as they jumped to their feet and grabbed their weapons. Silas’s high-pitched wail pierced the pirates ears as the ones in the water fought for their lives, only to have their necks pierced by the sirens sharp teeth.

“Father!” The pirate I tried to lure into the water screamed at the dazed man still sitting, hand in water, Serena whispering sweet things to him. I smirked and went underwater again, wanting to antagonize the pirate a little bit more. Chaos had already erupted, and the pirates in the water were lost forever, however, the ones in the boats searched for their weapons, wanting to harm us. As a bullet pierced through the water I hissed and crashed into the bottom of the boat forcefully, rocking it quite harshly. I heard thuds and got back onto the surface, watching as my pirate fought against Serena as his father still didn’t snap out of the daze. Gunshots echoed through the night and a siren wailed loudly, making my head snap in their direction. Their eyes were wide open as a bullet pierced their forehead, making me cry out loudly. It pierced the humans eardrums and I looked back at the pirate now aiming his shotgun at Serena, and I knew what I had to do. I quickly swam to the boat and jump out, gripping the pirate’s arm as I pulled him with me underwater. He had dropped his gun in the boat in shock and tried to swim away, but I wrapped my hand around their torso and head, holding them against myself. The pirate startled struggling and just to spite him more, I started singing, smirking at him when he realized what was about to happen. I opened my mouth wide, sharp teeth visible, as the pirate started choking on water, kicking anywhere he could to no avail, as my teeth sunk into his neck. I moaned at the taste of blood in my mouth, my body warming up from the top to the bottom. I closed my eyes as I took us deeper underneath, losing myself in my lust for his blood, sweeter than anything I have ever tasted before. I could feel my skin glowing, buzzing with electricity as I drank more, saliva mixing with blood at the thought of the taste of his flesh. I couldn’t imagine how tasty he’d be if his blood was this sweet. But as he finally stopped flailing around in my tight hold, something sharp pierced my neck. It was plunged deeper and the sudden pain shooting through my body made me release the pirate and scream loudly, the sound echoing around in the water, getting everyone’s attention around us. It was loud and filled with pain and I tried to swim away, panicked, but something grabbed my tail and started pulling me upwards. Bubbles left my mouth as I screamed for help, but Serena was nowhere. I knew nobody else would help me. Despite the fresh energy coursing through my veins, I felt power slipping from my fingers and tail as it went numb, the water around me colored a deep red. I was loosing blood dangerously fast and when my head suddenly hit the surface I choked, breathless and kicking around to get back underwater, but I was pinned against the sand. Someone was coughing on top of me, wheezing and groaning in pain. Our eyes connected for a second, revulsion reflecting on both of our faces, before I gasped for air, the world going black around me.

            Falling unconscious in water could be just as scary as falling unconscious on land for a Siren. We could breathe underwater, but still needed to come up to the surface to take in some fresh air, or else our lungs would start burning, making us choke like any human being. Falling unconscious on land, however, nobody knew the repercussions of it as we’ve never ventured close enough to find out, but it most certainly meant death as our bodies dried up fast, scales itchy and head dizzy from staying out of the water for too long. So, waking up panicked and confused was rather understandable as I kept banging against something hard, my body curled up as if I was confined in a small space. When my eyes opened, I gasped, taking in my surroundings. All I could see were men, so many of them, walking around, talking loudly, peeking at me in horror. I swirled around in the water, heart beating fast as I slowly realized what was happening. I was captive. In a glass box of sorts, enclosed in a small space. I couldn’t even stretch my body fully, tail curled up, as my box was put on display in the middle of the ship, held down by several thick ropes. I was on a pirate ship. The pirates we attacked during the full moon, were here now, holding me captive.

I started breathing fast, heart beat accelerating even more, my lungs asking for fresh air as I started choking on the water. I looked around in my little cage, and noticed that the water didn’t reach the top of the box, and there were little circles cut into the top of it in one corner. So, holding onto the glass on both sides, I pulled myself to that corner as I raised my mouth and nose out of the water, taking deep breaths of air. I closed my eyes and tried to relax, pretend that I was in the sea, coming up for some air. If I didn’t stop panicking, I would die from choking. And that was a dishonorable death for a Siren, I’d rather die at the hands of a pirate. However, my little bubble of fantasy was destroyed quickly as something starting banging against the glass, making me jump and hit my head in the top glass. I heard muffled laughter and turned my head only to come face to face with a man. He looked amused as he tapped the glass again, taunting me with his wide smile. I snarled my teeth at him, but he didn’t look frightened as his eyes ran over my body. His blond hair was longer at the back and black was smeared around his narrowed eyes. The white cloth tied around his right forearm told me that he was the captain. His mouth started moving, but the glass was thick and I couldn’t make out their words, so I watched their lips move, trying to decipher what they were saying.

“Nice catch, isn’t she?” He said to his men, who seemed afraid enough to keep their distance from my glass box, “Wonder how expensive she’ll be.”

A strikingly beautiful man showed up, his wavy black hair pulled in a ponytail, a shiny golden compass around his neck, “We’ll ask around once we dock down in the Sun Set Kingdom.” He seemed to be the least interested in me, not even glancing in my direction as the captain turned his head back at me, a menacing smirk slowly sneaking onto his face. I could feel myself itch from his gaze, fury and helplessness overtaking my body.

“Thanks to you I’ll be filthy rich, gorgeous.” It was as if he knew I would understand his words, his lips articulating his words slowly and obviously, making me scream out. The pirates held onto his ears as I screamed, starting to throw my body against the glass. I wouldn’t let them sell me off to anyone. I couldn’t die like this. This would be a disgrace to my species, centuries of anguish to follow. If the world finds out we truly exist, we’ll be hunted down for the mere sick enjoyment of humans, eliminating our species. I couldn’t be the cause of it, the thought made me sick. It didn’t matter that my body was aching from how violently I was throwing myself against the glass, banging on it with my fist, even trying to break it with my tail knowing it was strong, but nothing was working. It seemed that it was unbreakable, but the mocking laughter of the pirates egged me on more to keep on trying, refusing to appear helpless and frail. As my lungs started burning from exhaustion, I knew I had to stop and take a breath, there was suddenly commotion in the crowd gathered around me. I pushed my head to the little circles, and took deep breaths, watching what was happening. A man appeared to be pushing everyone out of the way, screaming something. I tried to make the words out, but all I got was ‘stop’ and ‘get away’. The voice sounded almost familiar and when I turned around, my eyes fell on a very familiar face. I gasped as my icy blue eyes widened, dark brown ones staring back just as shocked. I snarled my sharp teeth at the pirate, hitting the glass with my fists, hatred radiating off of me. He was the reason I was here. He was the pirate I tried to kill, the one I bit, but then he stabbed me, brought me to land, and captured me. My eyes fell on the bandage around his neck and it made me touch my own neck, feeling the bump of a wound. It seemed to be sealed, and my eyebrows furrowed as I looked at the pirate, who seemed to be watching my reaction. I snarled again, and crashed against the glass, trying to scare him off like I did to the others who have already scattered around, but this pirate didn’t budge, he kept on watching me, eyes slightly wider. He seemed to be amazed, eyes taking in my body, freezing on my tail for a second, making me crash it into the glass, the pirate jumping in reaction. I was glaring at him hard, baring my teeth at him when he stepped closer to the glass, a hand touching it. His eyes carried resentment as his lips opened, “You should’ve swum away when I snapped out of your song’s control.”

I understood, because he mouthed it slowly, his eyebrows furrowing when I didn’t react. I just turned my head to look away, done with entertaining him. He did not deserve my attention. He made me wonder how he snapped out of the daze induced by the Siren song, but he’ll never hear my voice ever again. I wasn’t going to utter one word to these monsters. Despite the pirate’s fascination with me, he didn’t seem too keen of me, as I watched him walk up to an older man, who was holding a wooden cane, the resemblance between them quite obvious. So, his father survived too, what a pity.

            Time seemed to jumble together, I tried to keep up with the rising and setting of the sun, but after a few days I lost count of it. I assumed I had been on this ship for around a week now. The Raging Sea could be tricky and hard to navigate, yet these pirates somehow sailed it without many difficulties. They seemed to avoid the storms best and travel around them, their navigator quite talented. Perhaps if I had known that their navigator was the pirate who captured me, I wouldn’t have thought that about him. The Sun Set Kingdom and the South Kingdom weren’t very far from each other, if you were lucky enough you could sail through the Raging Sea in two weeks, however, the constant storms made it sometimes impossible to get through it. Sailing out into the Black Ocean was even more dangerous due to its huge creatures, best you could do was say a prayer and hope someone in the Heavens blessed you to have an easy adventure, that is, if you believed in such a thing. Humans easily believed in anything, you just needed to appear even a little bit confident when trying to sell your idea, and there it was: a new belief, a new tale. I suppose the confirmation of our existence would just send them into a frenzy of confusion about what was real and what was not. Humans were afraid of the unknown, and I was considered already a dangerous creature. The fearful glances of the pirates working on deck never seemed to cease and if I happened to be looking at them, they’d shudder and look away, avoiding eye contact. I knew the fact that I was a Siren wasn’t the only scary thing about me, without my songs, my appearance was rather odd than beautiful.

However, there were some more daring pirates, who seemed to fear no God or even their very own Captain. I heard it loud and clear when he shouted that nobody was allowed to get close to the glass cage, touch it, or even think about opening it. I was a prize he wanted to sell, assuring his riches for a lifetime. However, three pirates seemed to be stupid enough to not listen to their captain as one evening, while I was thinking about the ocean, they approached me. It was a windy evening, waves crashing into the ship, rocking it left and right, yet the sky was clear and non-threatening for now. Here, the weather changes abruptly, but this being my home, I knew it wouldn’t storm just yet. My skin wasn’t as smooth anymore as it used to be, the water they kept me in stale and rather smelly. I was lucky they were smart enough to allow me to breathe fresh air, as I found myself needing it more often than usual. Being out in the sun all day long was taking its tool on me as well, my body not used to the constant heat. I would sit on rocks quite often, but never for too long during noon, and then I would retreat to the depths of the sea, where it was cool and dark. I sighed loudly as I watched the waves crash against the side of the ship, some water getting on deck. My hand reached out, almost as if I had forgotten I couldn’t reach it, missing my home like crazy. I probably should enjoy the little time I have left of being close to water, once we hit land, there’s no guarantee to what’s happening to me. Letting my guard down, thinking that I was finally alone on deck, was a mistake. I started humming to myself, missing the voices of the other sirens and our little games of hide and seek. Our songs weren’t just for luring in the humans, it allowed us to communicate between each other as well. The melody I was currently humming was the one Serena and I would sing whenever we finished hunting and were searching for each other, making sure we were alright. I could imagine her singing it after our last hunt together, never getting a response. At least she knew I was gone and she wouldn’t search for me, stray away from the swarm and endanger herself.

The sudden crash of something hard against the glass made me jump and I whirled around fast, eyes falling on three pirates who were smirking and slurring their words. They were swaying as they stood, probably drunk, holding tridents in their hands. One of them had a giant key in their hand and my eyes went to the giant padlock holding the top of the glass secured to the rest of it. I knew these dumb pirates could hurt me, but if I outsmarted them, I could escape. So I watched them innocently and figured out that they wanted to kill me before we’d get to land and sell me themselves, betraying their Captain. I chuckled, knowing very well they were just as dead as me once their captain finds out they are traitors. The one holding the key pushed his mate forward, and he crashed into the glass. He stared at me frightened and when I smiled and raised my eyebrows at him, his eyebrows furrowed. The other man, who was clutching his trident harshly, kept his distance, visibly afraid. The pirate with the key went to open the padlock, and that’s when I started humming loudly enough for them to hear me. Their bodies tensed, eyes widening as I lured them in with the song, eyes softening, lips pulling into a smile. The most frightened one dropped his trident and fell to his knees as he crawled towards the glass cage, watching me mesmerized as I got closer to the glass, bewitching them. The other pirate pushed himself against the glass, his weapon still in his hand, but he had obviously forgotten about wanting to kill me. The one holding the key, however, moved accordingly to my own will, leaning up on his tiptoes, hands gripping onto the padlock as a rather harsh wave crashed into the ship. I didn’t let that distract me as I continued singing the lullaby, pitch higher than before, icy blue eyes glowing in the dark. The three pirates became my puppets and I could feel my heartrate pick up as the one with the key finally inserted it into the padlock and slowly started turning it around. I pushed myself against the glass, hands on the top of it to break free once the padlock is unlocked, but the serenity and spell broke when someone came rushing down the stairs, screaming.

It was that one pirate again, my pirate. The one I almost killed, the one I wished nothing more than to kill. He almost fell off the stairs as his feet tangled together in his rush, a thick looking notebook clutched tightly in his hands. He was screaming at the pirates to stop listening to the song, but it seemed as though they were too deep in to even hear his words. So I continued my song, smirking at the desperate pirate as he shook the one holding the trident, and once he realized what was happening, tried to stop the one from opening the padlock. I was so close, one more click, and I’d be free. I started pushing against the glass, struggling to open it, I was so close.

“Kim Hongjoong!” The familiar pirate shouted at the top of his lungs, physically having to remove the pirate from the padlock, fighting against him as he cried out that he needed to open the lock. Seven other men came bustling down the stairs, eyes wide and sleepy as they assessed the situation. Everyone but the captain seemed to be wearing more casual, comfortable looking clothes, as they realized what was happening. I raised my voice higher, louder, allowing my voice to travel to their ears as well, watching as one of them tensed, appearing to be in a daze.

“No! Stop listening to her!” My pirate screamed again, somehow pinning the one with the key against the floor boards, struggling to hold him down because of his violent kicks and screams, “Think about something, don’t allow her voice to get inside your heads!”

But that one pirate seemed to be already under my influence, and I beckoned him over with the wriggle of my finger, a smile appearing on his lips, “Take Wooyoung away!” A taller man next to him, who seemed to be struggling against my lullaby as well, grabbed Wooyoung and dragged him away, slapping him hard when Wooyoung started screaming that he had to get to me. It all happened quickly, the remaining five pirates helped out my pirate in keeping the man down, taking the key from him and handing it to the Captain. His body seemed to be shaking, forehead sweaty as he approached me, eyes ablaze. He was fighting the siren’s song, but was close to giving up.

“If you don’t stop—” He gritted out, suddenly raising a shotgun against the glass, “I will kill you this second.”

Dying by a bullet wound seemed unworthy, but at least I wouldn’t get exposed to the horrors of other humans on the mainland. It seemed like a reasonable death all of a sudden, so I didn’t stop, just continued singing and closed my eyes. I heard the click of something, and I knew it was coming.

“No! Stop, Hongjoong!” I knew that voice, it was that pirate again, “Don’t kill her, please!”

The melody froze in my throat, eyes opening and falling onto that one pirate again. His eyebrows were furrowed and he was breathing hard, clutching that notebook again, looking at the Captain with pleading eyes, “Please.”

I took the momentum to my advantage and tried to open the top of the glass again, but the Captain acted first, locking the padlock again, throwing me million steps away from my escape. I screamed and bashed myself against the glass again, wanting to tear their throats apart. The pirates who came here initially to kill me snapped out of their dazes and looked around them frightened, bodies shaking as one of them started crying. I snarled and whipped my tail at the glass, making them jump.

“What were you doing here?” The Captain demanded to know, voice commanding. The three pirates lowered their eyes to the ground, shaking their heads and saying nothing. I glared at them, hissing when they wouldn’t state their reasons. My pirate noticed my anger and looked at me, approaching the glass cage. I refused to look at him, he once again stopped me from escaping.

“I asked a question!” The Captain shouted and the men shook their heads again, bodies shaking. I went to take fresh air again, lungs beginning to burn from exhaustion and my eyes fell on the Captain. If my Siren song couldn’t cause chaos, my words definitely would.

“They were here to kill me.” All heads whipped in my direction, shocked at the hear of my voice. It wasn’t as majestic as my voice when I sung, it was rather husky and scratchy, my throat currently burning too.

“She can speak?” One of the pirate’s who came down with the Captain wondered out loud, dumbfounded as he looked at me. But that was all I would say.

“Of course, she can.” The familiar pirate spoke up softly, eyes finding mine, “The only difference between a mermaid and a human are the tail and legs, San.”

The pirate looked at me as if asking for confirmation, but I just averted my eyes, disgusted by his attempt of making conversation with me. I was not a mermaid, I thought that was clear by now.

“Judging by your current positions and your missteps in the past,” The Captain spoke up, jaw clenched and eyes glaring down at the three pirates, “I’m ought to believe the monster.”

These humans were the real monsters, not me, “She’s not a monster!” My pirate snapped; eyebrows furrowed as he looked at me. Why was he defending me? What was it in for him?

“Whatever, Jongho,” The Captain muttered tiredly, “Takes these three to my office, I’ll take care of them.”

And just like that, one by one, all pirates retreated back to their previous activities, neither throwing a second glance my way. All except one. The one I tried to kill, the one that tried to kill me, my pirate. He lingered behind, almost by the stairs when suddenly he ran up to the glass cage, tapping the window softly. My eyes pierced into his as I glared at him, snarling.

“My name is Jongho,” He said cautiously, almost afraid to do so, “And yours?”

Siren’s names were sacred, so I huffed amused and turned around, ignoring his burning gaze on the back of my head. I refused to let him know my name. Realizing he wouldn’t get an answer, he walked off, notebook already opened as he made his way up the steps, a pen in his hand. He was peculiar. His resentment towards me was very obvious, yet his eyes held fascination each time he looked at me. I couldn’t decide whether he wanted to kill me or protect me.

And it only became more confusing as the week went by and this pirate continued to approach me more than once a day, talk to me, ask me questions. I didn’t answer him, I didn’t even listen to him at most times, glaring and imagining all the ways I would rip his throat out during the next full moon. I couldn’t bear being in this cage anymore. My bones were aching, my tail was numb from not using it for so long and the smell inside started making me nauseous. The circles allowing the air inside seemed to be getting smaller, suffocating me rather than offering fresh air. I was slowly going mad, banging against the glass, desperately trying to break it. I needed to get back into the sea, I had to save myself.

            Two more days passed by barely, nothing happening as the pirates carried on with their usual shenanigans. My pirate, Jongho, as he had called himself, seemed to be glued to the glass cage, refusing to even sleep in his usual place, afraid someone would try to attack me again. I didn’t understand his concerns and why he was going out of his way to keep me safe when it was clear he hated me for what I did to him. I hoped he knew I would do it again, no feelings of any sort tying us together. A soft-spoken pirate, whom I noticed would check up on Jongho’s wound from time to time, seemed to be the only one able to convince the pirate to retreat to his quarters and leave me alone, scared for his safety. Jongho refused him numerous times at the beginning, but when the strikingly handsome pirate interjected with their conversation, Jongho finally seemed convinced enough to leave me alone. I couldn’t have been more thankful for the two for making the man leave, I have had enough of him. He talked a lot. He asked a lot of questions. But I also noticed he muttered a lot to himself whenever he was working on the maps, making strange lines with some sort of pencils and rulers. His eyebrows were always furrowed when he watched the stars with his binoculars at night, checking the direction of the wind every half an hour. If something seemed to confuse him, he’d curse to himself quietly and would start from the beginning, never giving up. The other pirates seemed to rely on him a lot, I figured that he was probably their navigator, his father helping him out from time to time. The two seemed to be quite close, often helping each other out. Jongho’s father was repulsed by me, it was quite obvious, and he screamed at his son often for not staying away from me, scared that I would bewitch him again, but Jongho remained persistent and kept on insisting that someone needed to keep an eye on me and who was better than him? Apparently, he knew everything about my species there was to know. I highly doubted that as all these stupid pirates seemed to think I was a mermaid, but Jongho was right in one thing. He somehow became immune to my Siren song, blocking his mind from my melody’s allure. I did not know such thing was possible, and even Jongho seemed surprised at his discovery. The thick notebook was with him at all times, and I found him doodling something in it while sneaking glances at me. I did not want to know what it was, I just wanted to be free.

And it seemed like my wish would become reality faster than I thought so. Except, it wasn’t exactly in the way I imagined it to be. And it just so happened on the night Jongho decided to finally leave me alone. But that was perhaps better, because I was woken from my slumber to the violent rocking of the boat, and fireballs flying in the air. I watched with wide eyes as a fireball flew over the deck, dangerously close, yet missed anything important. I didn’t understand what was happening until all the pirates ran up on deck, each holding weapons of all sorts in their hands. Most were shotguns and the tall one who took Wooyoung away seemed to be the one in charge of all the gunners. He was shouting orders left and right, instructing the rest of the men when to fire and when to duck down. He seemed to be the most skilled as his shots never missed their target. When another fireball wheezed through the air it crashed into the mizzenmast and broke it in half, sending flying wood all over the deck; I finally realized the ship I was on was under attack. An enemy was trying to kill us. I started laughing bitterly as a pirate screamed, his clothes caught on fire, barely believing that I would die from getting attacked by an enemy ship. It was the most hilar thing in the whole four seas and four kingdoms, I couldn’t believe it was real. Well, if I had luck, then I would die and if I was unlucky, then I’d be taken by the enemy ship and either sold off or killed on the spot. My future didn’t seem too bright at the moment and I found myself laughing at the chaos unfolding around me. I was right in the middle of it, yet remained safer than anyone else on this ship. I watched as the pirates protected their ship fiercely, the captain and two other men on his right and left, leading their crew and throwing small things overboard, them exploding once they landed on the other ship. I figured they were some sort of explosives; I have never seen them with my own eyes. I watched two men trying to fix the damages at lightning speed, one was the soft-spoken man, thought he was called Yeosang, and the other one seemed smaller than a regular man, but it wasn’t my place to question their appearance. I watched Jongho do his best in getting the ship away from the enemy as fast as he could, Wooyoung next to him, barking orders, pulling on several ropes as he was trying to fix the sail of the mizzenmast. Another hard rock of the ship sent the pirates tumbling down and I crashed into the glass rather aggressively as one rope holding the cage stable broke. I watched wide eyed as nobody paid attention to me, a siren being least of their concerns right now. And to my utter shock, three bullets came flying into the glass, but it was so thick that they remained stuck in it. I watched amazed as a thin crack ran from one of the bullet holes down to the bottom of the glass. This was my chance to free myself. Nobody was paying attention; nobody was here to stop me. Freedom was just a few steps away. So, gathering all my energy, I started throwing myself against the glass, groaning and panting when the little crack didn’t seem to expand. I was growing frustrated and I screamed and I whipped my tail against it with all the force I had left in my body, but nothing happened. I felt helpless, useless, and defeated. Cannonballs going off from underneath us deafened the humans on the deck for a second, my sensitive ears started ringing. I have never cried in my life before, but for the first time, I felt a lump in my dry throat, squeezing and squeezing. I had to try once again, get out of this prison. So, once again, I banged my tail against the glass, letting out a frustrated wail as nothing happened. The cannons went off again, shouts coming from all directions on the deck, and then something miraculous happened. The Heaven’s listened to my cry of help.

The glass started breaking more, the little crack growing, expanding all over it. I took a deep breath and held it for a second, placing my hand against the broken glass, lightly pushing it, not expecting much. But it broke. To a million of pieces, the salty water crashed against the floorboards and so did I, falling face first onto it. I gasped loudly, my heart beating fast as the muffled screams and shouts loudly enveloped my surroundings all of a sudden, the rocking of the ship more violent and real, now that I wasn’t confined inside the glass cage. The chilly air hit my skin like rocks, and I gasped for air, lungs filling to the brim with clean and fresh air. Breathing has never felt so good before. I couldn’t believe I was free. I didn’t even notice the shards cutting into my skin as I pushed up onto my forearms, wincing at the sudden pain shooting up my tail. My numb body was finally able to move, I could finally stretch out. I could finally escape. But as I started crawling towards a hole in the side of the ship, the pain in my tail became more and more unbearable, making me let out a painful scream. It paralyzed my whole body and I started shaking, scratching at the scales covering my body, itching terribly. What was happening to me? Was it because I was out of fresh water for so long? Was I dying? And as the pain became unimaginable, veins showing through my translucent body, head thumping and eyes popping out of its sockets, my body started convulsing. I couldn’t control it, all I could do was take it in, accept it, and scream. But my throat was so raw, no sound made it out anymore. I wanted to reach the water; I needed it. The Sea would heal me, the Sea would save me. Something started streaming down my cheeks and I would’ve laughed if I could’ve, I was crying. Sirens never cried.

And as my back arched of the floor, hands clawing at anything they could, it all stopped suddenly. My mouth was open, about to let out a gut-wrenching scream, but it all stopped. It just…stopped. The pain. It went away. As suddenly it came, as suddenly it went. I was gasping for air, touching my face and neck. Something felt wrong. My body…felt heavier. My tail…I couldn’t feel it. So shooting up in a seated position, I screamed at the sight. My tail was gone and instead two dangling abominations took its place. I had legs! I started shaking my head, muttering no to myself over and over again, pinching the skin and crying out when it hurt. I could feel them, but I couldn’t move them. They were so heavy I didn’t think I could even stand. How was this possible? Where did my tail go? Was I no longer a Siren anymore? My heartbeat picked up at the thought again, and I turned around, eyes falling on the sea through the hole. I needed to get into the water right now. But as I wanted to turn around and continue crawling, a burning wooden plank from the mizzenmast broke off, plummeting straight towards me. So, this was it, I would die on a pirate ship as a human, bringing shame to my people. I closed my eyes, unable to save myself, awaiting the excruciating pain, the heat of the fire, but it never came. Before the burning plank could kill me, a body crashed into mine, making me yelp, as we tumbled to the side, tangled together. I lightly hit my head in a barrel and groaned, my body feeling numb from the torment it went through in the past few minutes.

“Why wouldn’t you jump away if it’s falling straight at you—” The panicked voice stopped screaming suddenly, pushing themselves off me, “It’s—you?”

I turned my head and came face to face with a shocked Jongho, wide eyes running over my body before he stiffened and his face became red. He suddenly stood and ripped his long coat off of himself and threw it down on me, turning away, “Put that on.”

Despite the chaos going on around us, I looked down confused and realized I was totally naked, oh. I chuckled, finding the whole situation hilarious as I pulled Jongho’s coat over myself, mimicking the way he wore it.

The blast going off not too far away from us sent Jongho into action, making me gasp and tense, when one of his arm’s went around my torso and the other underneath my now, legs, more specifically knees. I started pushing Jongho away as he held me firmly in his arms, baring my teeth at him, about to sink them into his neck, but he threw me a glare and hissed, “Stop it, will you! I’m trying to save you!”

His words made me freeze and I stared at his profile as he ran around the pirates, avoiding bullets and explosions as he brought us to relative safety, having run down the steps, placing me down next to them. It seemed like I weighed nothing to him, he showed no signs of struggle to hold me despite my heavy good for nothing legs.

“Stay here until I come to get you.” He pointed a finger at me and hesitated for a second, until I nodded at him. Where could I even go? I couldn’t walk or run like him. My legs weren’t usable, they were an abomination, turning me into a freak I never was. I allowed my thoughts to take me away from the reality I found myself in, tunning out the battle sounds, cries and shouts. All I wanted was the sea and my tail back.

            I had no idea for how long it lasted. Or how many died. Or if anyone even won. What was the reason of this attack? All I knew was Jongho coming back and lifting me up in his arms again, as if I was a feather, taking off towards another set of stairs. I held onto him tightly, watching his clenched jaw, his skin glistening with sweat and eyebrows furrowed. I had no idea where he was taking me or what he’d do to me, but I had no energy in me to fight back. I was even more useless now that I had legs. The ship seemed to have quieted down, no more screams and shouts, no more cries of pain, no more gunshots and cannonballs. The fight was over.

Jongho kicked a door open with his foot, and my eyes took the room in quickly, figuring it was a living quarter of sorts. There was a bed fit for one person, a huge desk littered with maps, notebooks, books, pencils and pens and ink. The floor next to the desk had even more rolled up papers, maps and books. There was a closet too, not too big, and next to it a wooden chair. The tiny window allowed me to see the moon, and I sighed as Jongho placed me down on the bed. It felt weird, the texture underneath my legs. It was soft and it didn’t hurt me. I touched it with my fingers, eyebrows furrowing.

“That’s called a blanket.” Jongho muttered as he started unbuttoning his shirt which was covered in dirt, sweat, and even blood. My eyes pierced him, watching carefully his every move. He turned around before opening his shirt, obscuring my eyes from the sight of his torso as he walked to his closet, opening it. He pulled out a clean looking shirt and dropped the one on him onto the floor, the muscles of his back showing. He was well built and strong looking, it shouldn’t have been a surprise that he carried me so easily. The view was gone as Jongho pulled the black shirt over his body, doing the buttons up to his chest. He grabbed another shirt from the closet and walked closer, his eyes watching me carefully. He was wary, as he should be. I was also wary of him; I couldn’t know what he’d do to me if I didn’t stay alert.

“Put this on,” He spoke up, handing the shirt to me, “I’ll be right back. You need more fitting clothes of which I don’t have.”

And with that, he turned around and quickly left, not closing the door fully. I stared at the shirt for a few seconds before deciding to put it on, the coat currently on me offering no warmth, I was freezing all of a sudden. I mimicked Jongho’s actions, pulling the shirt over my back once the coat was off, pushing my arms through the sleeves of the shirt, and one by one started doing the buttons. They seemed a little difficult at the beginning, but I got the hang of it as Jongho came back inside, eyes falling on me. Since I didn’t know how much I should button up, I stopped at my chest, looking up at Jongho when he cleared his throat.

“That’s too low for you.” He muttered and placed the soft looking garments in my lap, hands going to the buttons of my shirt. I recoiled and he pulled away quickly, holding his hands up, “I’m sorry, but you should do two more buttons.”

I just stared at him, with no intention of doing what he just told me, making Jongho sigh. He slowly approached me again, hands going to the buttons, letting him touch me this time as he made quick work and did the two buttons he said I should do. My eyes fell on his chest, on the black pearl he had on the string around his neck. As he went to step back, my hand flew out swiftly, gripping the pearl and stopping him. Jongho froze and fell forward a little when I tugged on the pearl, examining it from up close. He was hovering over me, arms in the air once again, eyes looking at the wall as my nose scrunched after smelling the pearl. It seemed to be authentic, and it was a black pearl. Those were really rare.

“My father and I used to be fishermen when I was younger,” Jongho spoke up, making me look up at him, “I like collecting pearls, that’s why I have this one. It’s rare.”

I nodded and slowly released the pearl, eyes never leaving Jongho’s. He gulped and pointed at the things in my lap, “There’s undergarment and pants, you should put them on.”

I looked down at them and gripped them, holding them up to my face. There was a thing which seemed to be smaller than the other one.

“The smaller one is to protect your genitals, and the other is to cover your legs. They are called pants.” Jongho explained as I had no idea what I was supposed to do with these, and looked back at him, but he had already turned around. I frowned, not quite understanding why. I placed the pants on the bed next to me and held the smaller ones up, looking down at my legs. How did I even moves these things? I bit my lower lip, trying to lift them, at least one of them, but they weren’t moving. Why? They must work like arms, so I tried again, but they didn’t even lift an inch off the bed. I groaned frustrated, but Jongho remained with his back facing me.

“I can’t—” I croaked out, embarrassed, “I can’t put it on.”

Jongho sucked in a breath, “Why?”

“I don’t know how to move my legs.” I whispered; eyebrows furrowed as I stared down at my lap. Jongho whirled around, eyes wide and a shocked expression decorating his face. He seemed embarrassed, as if what I just said was normal.

“I didn’t think you’d—I’m sorry.” He apologized, making me look at him confused, “Of course, you don’t know how to move them…may I help?”

I bit my lip and contemplated a little, nodding at last. I wouldn’t be able to do it without help, if he was offering it then I would take it. He seemed a little reluctant and hesitated when I reached my hand out holding the smaller pants, his eyes avoiding mine as I looked at him. He took it and then got down on his knees, fist clenching before his hand touched my calf. I gasped and gripped the blanket on the bed, skin very sensitive on my legs.

“I’m sorry!” Jongho apologized quickly, looking at me with a panicked look in his eyes.

I cleared my throat, “The skin is sensitive, that’s all.”

He looked at me for a second, before nodding and proceeding with his previous actions. He lightly touched my left calf before gripping it, his cold skin making goosebumps erupt all over my body. The feeling was new, unknown, intriguing. I watched as he tried to avoid skin contact as best as he could as he placed my legs through the holes of the small pants and then started pulling them up my legs, stopping bellow my thighs. He gulped and his eyebrows furrowed before he looked up at me, face flushed.

“I can’t—I can’t pull it all the way up if you’re sitting.” He seemed flustered; I did not understand why.

“Well, I can’t stand up.” I muttered, and Jongho nodded, seeming to think for a second.

“I’ll support you and then you can pull it up yourself.” I nodded at the solution and watched as he gulped again, his finger lightly grazing my thigh as he stood, gripping my forearms before he helped me up. I tried to stand on my own feet, but they weren’t working, without Jongho’s support I would’ve fallen. I gripped the smaller pants and pulled them up until they allowed me to, noting how Jongho was looking over my head, eyes never falling on me. These legs weren’t long enough as I appeared to be a lot shorter than him. I cleared my throat and he glanced down at me cautiously before sitting me back down and doing the same with the real pants this time, these being a struggle a little bit as they were tighter. The feeling was totally new, warmth covered my whole body, finally I stopped shivering. The pants seemed comfortable enough as they hugged my legs and I touched the fabric, hardly believing that I was wearing one. The silence was interrupted as hurried footsteps ran down the hallway, nearing the room we were inside, and the door was kicked open. I jumped at the loudness of it, eyes falling on seven other men. They were the same men that came up onto the deck the night those three pirates tried to kill me. The Captain stepped inside, followed closely by the strikingly handsome one, and the others seemed to push each other around in order to see inside the room. It was a peculiar image as one of them cried out before kicking the other one for biting them in order to get them out of the way. Did humans also bite each other? To my knowledge, they didn’t feed off of blood.

“Where’s the mermaid—”

“Hongjoong, I told you she’s not a threat—”

“Is that the mermaid?” The Captain asked horrified once his eyes fell on me. I looked at him with a glare, fed up with them using the wrong term about my species.

“I’m not a mermaid.” I snapped, flashing my sharp teeth at them, “I’m a Siren.”

There seemed to be a moment of silence filled with shock before the man standing behind the Captain spoke up, “Where’s your tail?”

I scoffed, slapping my thigh, instantly regretting it as pain shot through my muscle, “I would like to know that too.”

The Captain walked closer, grabbing my chin tightly, making Jongho protest, “Don’t be smart now, monster, what did you do to your tail?”

I slapped his hand away and hissed, annoyed that this man wasn’t afraid of me anymore, “I cut it off.”

I heard chuckles coming from the doorway, the other seven men looking at each other amused as Jongho seemed unimpressed and the Captain, drew his sword out, “Your legs will be the ones cut off—”

“Captain,” The strikingly handsome one spoke up calmly, placing a firm grip on the Captain’s shoulder, “I think she’s honest. She made no attempt to walk away from the falling plank back on the deck, meaning she’s never had them before”

The Captain huffed and placed his sword away, shaking the other man’s hand off himself, “Then where is her tail, Seonghwa?”

The two men looked at each other, but the handsome one, Seonghwa, shook his head, “I do not know, Hongjoong, I did not see what happened.”

Silence fell over the room, everyone confused as to how to proceed, until Jongho spoke up, “She could be shapeshifter. They have a tail in water and legs on land—”

“I’m a Siren.” I snapped, shooting him a glare.

“Is this your first time out of the water?” He asked and I looked away as I nodded, not too happy about admitting to personal things about myself in front of a pirate crew.

“You could be a shapeshifter siren, then—”

“Ten seconds ago you still thought I was a mermaid.” I threw Jongho a glare and he sighed, massaging his forehead.

“That is not exactly true,” He tried to defend himself, “Based on my studies you exhibited no behavior of mermaids, so I knew you were something else—”

“Mermaids aren’t even real—”

“Enough!” The Captain exclaimed and both Jongho and I shut up, looking at the wall, “I don’t bloody care what you are, just get that tail back so I can sell you.”

I snarled at the Captain and would’ve clawed his eyes out if I could walk to attack him, “Everyone, get back to your posts, we have a long night ahead of us to fix the damage Lee Yuri left behind.” The Captain’s mouth twisted, seemingly disgusted at the mention of the woman, his expression annoyed. Everyone yelled a ‘Ai, Captain, ai’, and then started leaving, but Jongho was stopped from doing so.

“Not you, mermaid boy, keep an eye on your monster.” The Captain said, holding him back from leaving the room. I sighed at the use of that term again, fed up with it.

“She’s a Siren, not a monster.” Jongho muttered as the Captain left too, slamming the door shut behind him. I looked at Jongho and he sighed, looking at me.

“You can sleep meanwhile I check the maps; I promise not to touch you without your consent.” Jongho said as he walked closer, making my eyebrows furrow.

“I’ll bite your finger off if you touch me while I sleep.” I threatened menacingly, making Jongho chuckle as he helped me lay down.

“I do not doubt that.” He whispered more to himself, pulling the blanket over my body, the feeling foreign. The bed felt comfortable. Very warm and cozy. It also smelled like salt water; it reminded me of the sea I missed so much. I sighed and closed my eyes, my back facing Jongho as he sat down at his desk, papers shuffling.

“You can call me Y/N.” I found myself whispering, making up a name on the spot. I would never let a pirate know my real name. Jongho hummed and said nothing, the sound of scribbling resounding in the room. The soft rocking of the ship quickly lulled me to sleep.

            Time moved faster than the ship we were on, slowly, we were approaching the Sun Set Kingdom. You could see the shore in the distance, it would take around three more days to reach the mainland. I couldn’t ignore my feelings of distress whenever the topic was brought up by Jongho, who by the way, kept me prisoner in his room. Everyone else seemed afraid of me, not forgetting that I was still a Siren as a few days ago the tall pirate, who’s name I learned was Mingi, mocked me that I was a regular human now, so, I almost made him jump into the shark infested water, proving it to them that I was still a Siren. Jongho was rather appealed each time someone called me a monster, defending me, leaving me confused each time. He seemed to have gotten used to my presence in his room and spent most of his time with me willingly, either scribbling in that thick notebook of his, silence engulfing us, or he would ask me outrageous questions about my life. I rarely answered him, throwing him a glare each time he’d bring up the Siren topic, which he seemed to be obsessed with. Despite my protests, he also started feeding me fish, seemingly thinking I was some sort of pescetarian…that is until I threw up on him, he finally stopped playing smart with me. After that I explained, once again, that I only ate during the full moon and my meal was human flesh and blood, not fish. Those were my favorite’s and anything else made me sick. Jongho seemed terrified a little bit when he learned this information, muttering something as he started writing in his thick notebook. I started figuring out that he was probably noting down everything I said, it was probably his diary. His father, however, hated me and had a knife pointed at me each time we crossed paths, saying that he’d slash my throat if I dared to lay a finger on his son. To my amusement, I told him that I had to touch Jongho quite often as I couldn’t move on my own, almost getting my head cut off if it wasn’t for the Captain screaming at the man to stop. They were still trying to figure out how to get my tail back, and it was rather hilarious as I sat on top of a barrel, watching the men throw ideas at each other.

“Here,” The smallest looking pirate approached me, handing me a dark colored fabric, “They are undergarments, Jongho told me he borrowed one from me. You can’t have just one though.”

I took in the pirate’s appearance, the long curly hair and feminine voice confusing. Her hair was a vibrant red and her lips were plump, a little gap between her two front teeth as she smiled at me brightly, “What are you?”

The pirate chuckled, looking at a man who was carrying a list in his hands, checking the barrels on the deck, immersed in his job, “You’re quite brazen, aren’t you?”

“Am I supposed to be any other way?” I asked confused, not quite understanding this weird pirate. They just shook their head, pulling the bandana wrapped around their head off.

“I’m a woman.” I watched her open her shirt, showing the fabric wrapped around her breasts, flattening her chest. I knew she wasn’t a man, her voice too soft and face not as harsh as a man’s.

“Then why are you pretending you’re not one?” The woman chuckled as she buttoned her shirt up, making eye contact with the man checking the barrels. His lips pulled into a soft smile, eyes lingering on her for a second too long.

“It’s a long story, but I’m not pretending anymore.” She explained, reaching her hand out, “My name is Taeri, by the way.”

I looked at her out stretched hand and nodded, not quite understanding what I was supposed to do. She chuckled amused and took my hand, making me hiss, and shook it, “Don’t hiss at me and introduce yourself.”

I snatched my hand out of hers, not understanding her weird gesture, “Stop commanding me, my name is Y/N.”

Taeri ignored my words and stepped away, looking around on the deck, “Can you walk?”

“Not without support, Jongho’s been trying to teach me but I don’t want to walk.” I muttered, crossing my arms in front of my chest as my eyes fell on the mentioned pirate, he was checking his map again.

“You’re lucky you’ve got Jongho,” Taeri said quietly as she leaned closer to me, “The others wouldn’t treat you so kindly.”

“I do not care how I’m treated,” I snapped, eyes glaring at the woman, “I belong in the sea, not on land, but your Captain is hungry for a prize he will never get. I am worth more than anything in the four seas and four kingdoms.”

Taeri chuckled patting my cheek, making me pull my head away, “I like a woman who knows her worth.”

Before I could say anything else, she stalked away towards the pirate who had stopped checking the contents of barrels, and they started conversing as the man pulled her slightly closer to himself by her waist. I watched their interaction closely, noting how comfortable they seemed to be in each other’s proximity. The woman didn’t flinch at his touch, she even seemed to be enjoying it. The man was smiling at her and he adjusted her bandana before grabbing her hand and pulling her with him, headed towards the stairs leading downstair. Human connections seemed more complex than the Siren ones. That couple appeared to be…quite fond of each other.

“It’s time for your daily walking lesson, Y/N.” I jumped at Jongho’s voice being close to me, having not noticed him approaching me. I looked at him, analyzed his stance, and noted how relaxed he seemed. He was smiling as he extended one hand, even looking excited. I couldn’t exactly understand why this man seemed so amazed by me, always watching me closely, and paying attention to everything I said or did. He always apologized if he touched me unannounced and kept asking me if I was alright while he did so. I didn’t like people standing too close to me, but Jongho’s constant questions were irritating as I found myself more accepting of his proximity. He wasn’t as bad as the loud pirate he seemed to work with the most, Wooyoung. The first time he tried to touch me, I punched him in the face and ever since he’s been glaring at me whenever we made eye contact. I wasn’t some sort of animal put on display for others to touch or talk to whenever bored.

However, the little freedom I seemed to have was quickly taken away a few nights ago as I had attacked Jongho while he was asleep. I had warned him before, that if he ever fell asleep around me, I would attack him, but apparently he thought I was joking. I found it rather annoying as the Captain placed handcuffs around my wrists, securing me against the leg of the desk Jongho had in his room. He growled at me that he’d kill me if I dared to harm his crew even once more, making me chuckle as I started humming, warning him that I was still a Siren, and I could still make them do whatever I wanted to. Jongho had started training them in how to block the Siren song from getting to them, but the Captain seemed to still have trouble with it, so I loved antagonizing him. The attack I conducted on Jongho which led to my current predicament was a mere experiment, I felt like checking if I still had it in me. I was woken from my slumber by loud snores coming from the desk behind me, and when I turned around, I found Jongho with his head on the desk and eyes closed. I watched him, confused by the sounds he was making, until I realized it was probably snoring. He looked serene in his sleep, body fully relaxed. I could’ve easily ripped his throat out, so enticed by the thought, I found myself sitting up. I still couldn’t walk on my own, these legs were just too heavy for my body, but if I leaned against a wall and held myself up, they worked pretty fine. The were still sensitive and my feet would hurt if I stood on them for too long. I didn’t know having legs was this exhausting. After I reached Jongho, surprised that he didn’t wake up as I crashed into the wall and even fell a few times due to the rocking of the ship, I leaned my head close to his. I gripped the desk tightly, eyes trailing his smooth skin, missing my own being like that. My body was doing a lot better than I expected out of water, but it felt dirty and extremely dry. Drinking water strangely seemed to hydrate my skin though. Jongho sighed loudly in his sleep and my eyes fell onto his neck, the scar of my teeth never disappearing. The wound has healed, but the scar remained. I had a scar on my neck too because of him, at least we were sort of even. Jongho’s eyebrows furrowed and suddenly his eyes opened, making me take action. As he stood up straight, I gripped his neck and squeezed it, snarling at him as his eyes widened. He looked confused as he tried to pry my fingers off himself, making me chuckle. When I showed him my sharp teeth, his body tensed and suddenly he jumped up, twisting my wrist with one hand, making me hiss in pain. I couldn’t exactly react as he gripped my neck and suddenly my head was pinned against his desk, cheek getting squished.

“What in the Heavens are you doing?!” Jongho snapped, voice laced with fury and bewilderment.

“I told you I’d kill you if you fell asleep while I was in the room.” Jongho chuckled amazed, unbelieving what he was hearing. I smirked, but it was quickly wiped off as the door opened and his father walked in. He quickly created a big scene, totally unnecessary, and ten minutes later I was chained against a desk, forced to sit on the floor as the chains weren’t long enough to reach the bed. Hongjoong said if I behaved like an animal then I’d be treated like an animal, and after that I barely saw Jongho anymore, Taeri being the one checking up on me from time to time. She said we’d dock down soon, making me nauseous. That meant I was dying soon.

            I had fallen asleep after Taeri’s visit, head resting against the wall as my lower back seemed a little numb from always sitting. This human like body was a rather painful experience. My head banged against the wall and I woke with a start, startled by the screaming coming from above me. My eyebrows furrowed as I looked around, and realized the ship was rocking terribly from side to side. Something wasn’t right, I could feel it in my bones. I quickly looked outside through the window and saw darkness covering the sky, rain falling rapidly. We had run into a storm. I looked around the room, realizing there were very low chances of survival on this ship, so I needed to leave now. I could use my legs this time, support myself against the wall, and just jump into the water. I had no idea what would happen if I did so, but I hoped I’d get my tail back. I tugged on the chains, but obviously they were too strong for me to break, and suddenly, my eyes traveled up to Jongho’s desk. Underneath all the papers, a shiny thing peaked out. The key. I gasped and leaned up, grabbing it, and hurriedly undid the chains around my wrists. I smiled in victory, excited to finally leave these awful pirates behind, excited to return back home. I could hear the Sea calling me as I carefully stood, trying to find my balance despite the harsh rocking of the boat. It was hard, but I wasn’t about to give up.

Finding support in the wall was hard, but I found myself out in the hallway, half dragging myself half actually taking steps as I walked. It must’ve been a hilarious view, but it was the best I could use my legs. The shouts of orders got louder and louder as I made my way up the stairs, only being able to take one step at a time. My thighs were a little bit numb by the time I made it all the way up the two flight of stairs, feet aching. I did not understand how humans were able to stand on their feet all day long. I had to grip onto the railing tightly as the waves rocked the boat aggressively, struggling to stand up straight. I peaked my head through the corner and watched as the pirates tried to hold the sails still, the Captain trying to steer the ship away from the storm, but that was impossible. At this point, they had to ride it out, we were too deep in it. I took in the situation, wondering whether these men and Taeri would survive this storm, so close to the mainland, yet so far away. What a pity. But once again, I had to take advantage of the situation and I made my way onto the deck, the rain hitting my face, making me look up at the sky and laugh. I haven’t felt water on my skin in so long. It didn’t feel like the salty water that I have missed so much, but it still felt majestic. My clothes got soaked in mere seconds and I fell onto my knees as a wave crashed into us harshly. But I had to get up, so I did, I gripped a barrel and pulled myself up, eyes falling on the railing. I just had to get to it, and from then on, I was free. I have never been so close to freedom before. And so, I started taking baby steps, legs and core tense as I tried to keep my balance, having to forget about the support of other things around me as I had to cross through the middle of the deck. But as I was walking, amazed by myself, someone blocked my path making me look up at them, their breathing ragged.

“Good, you’re here,” The pirate shouted over the loud thunder, and my eyebrows furrowed, “The more the merrier! I need you to tie those barrels against the mainmast, fast!”

He pushed a thick rope in my hands and my eyebrows furrowed as I watched the pirate run off, helping his mates in need. He was the man Taeri seemed close with, his name was Yunho, she has told me. I felt frozen to my spot as I gripped the rope, eyes falling on the three barrels Yunho was talking about. I wondered if he realized that I was the Siren and just went on, asking for help. I did not understand why, but I found myself walking towards the barrels, the rope already wrapped around the mainmast, I just had to push the barrels closer to it and secure the rope around them. It was rather hard, I could barely walk, let alone push some heavy barrels. And yet, I found myself on my knees, pushing with my whole-body weight, groaning when the barrels barely moved and the rain made it hard to see, the waves constantly making me lose my balance. This seemed to be an impossible task and I stopped, catching myself. Why was I helping them? I was their prisoner. They deserved to die. They took me away from my home and they want to sell me. If anything, their deaths will only bring satisfaction, not an ounce of regret or sadness. So I stopped. I dropped the rope and pulled myself up, ears picking up on a frustrated cry. It was a familiar voice and I looked in their direction, eyes falling on Jongho. He was by the railing, pulling on the rope of the mizzenmast’s sail, as it had sprung free from its place. He was screaming at Wooyoung to bring five men and help him tie it back before the wind rips their sail apart. There were tiny rips in the main sail already, which wasn’t a good sign. I took one step, two steps, three steps, and suddenly, my body was thrown against the wooden floor, head crashing against the barrel I was holding onto. Suddenly, everything was hazy around me, voices muffled and head throbbing. I couldn’t feel my legs nor my hands as I gasped for air, blinking but not seeing. Panick seeped through my body, hard to breathe all of a sudden as I clawed at my neck.

“Hey, hey!” The voice shouting seemed to be at a distance and I felt something colder than the rain pressing against my cheeks, “Y/N, hey! Calm down, you’re alright!”

I squeezed my eyes tightly shut together, when suddenly I felt a light slap on my cheek, the person talking to me demanding me to open my eyes. My eyebrows were furrowed as I forced my eyes open, seeing but black dots covered everything; Yunho was the one holding onto me, “Take deep breaths!”

I did that and found my vision clearing a little bit, but it was still hazy. There were zero chances that I could stand up with the nausea I was feeling. I have never been this sick.

“Everyone get under deck!” Suddenly a strong voice shouted over the thunder, “Right now!”

People started abandoning their previous tasks as everyone hurried underneath deck, but Yunho stayed by my side. He figured I couldn’t walk and suddenly I was hoisted up, carried towards the stairs as he looked around frantically.

“Yunho!” A feminine voice called out behind us and Yunho turned around, letting out a deep breath.

“Come on, Taeri!” And the woman caught up to us and held onto Yunho’s bicep as the three of us left the deck, me confused about what was happening. The hallway was filled with the pirates, everyone panting and drenched.

“We can’t stay up there anymore, nothing we do can save the damage.” Hongjoong breathed out defeated, eyebrows furrowed, “All is left are the prayers.”

A deafening silence fell over the hallway, nobody saying anything as their fates sunk in. I gulped, suddenly feeling the doom looming over our heads. I would survive it; I was a Siren. But nobody else on this ship would. My eyes ran over the people’s faces, searching for only one. Jongho. He seemed nicer than anyone else on this ship. He treated me decently when everyone else called me a monster and was afraid of me. I found myself thinking about how he didn’t deserve a harsh death. He taught me how to walk. He tried to feed me; he brought me water. He dressed me up and always tried to keep his distance if it wasn’t necessary to be physically close. He told me stories of his life before he became a pirate, how his father and him would spend their days on a boat fishing. He loved pearls and even showed me his little chest filled with them, wanting to give me one but I didn’t want it. He was hardworking and dedicated, very good at his job. Yunho suddenly placing me down snapped me out of my thoughts and I realized how fast my heart was beating. I was scared…but not for myself. For Jongho.

“Where’s Jongho?!” And as if the Captain read my thoughts, he called out. Everyone started looking around frantically, checking who was standing next to them.

“Jongho?!” His father called out, pushing people aside as he looked for his son, eyes wide and frantic, “Where’s my son?!”

I gulped, doom settling in the pit of my stomach. Jongho wasn’t here. And he wasn’t on deck. And if he wasn’t here and there neither…he was in the water. I gasped and felt my body tense up as I grabbed onto the wall harshly and started moving without a second thought. I never knew legs could be this strong, they didn’t hurt as I found my balance without holding onto anything. I pushed the few people standing in my way aside, making eye contact with the Captain before I started hopping up the stairs. I couldn’t run, I still didn’t know how to move my legs accordingly, but this was the fastest I have ever moved. My legs carried me back onto the deck and my eyes settled on the water. There was nothing and nobody stopping me anymore from jumping in.

“What are you doing?!” I heard Hongjoong shouting after me as I gripped the railing, heart beating like crazy. The water has never looked more inviting than right now, and without a word, I found myself leaning over the railing, arms out stretched as I fell rapidly towards the water. I was smiling from ear to ear, waiting for the moment when my skin finally made contact with the water. And when it did, all my worries seemed to disappear. I gasped, bubbles surrounding my body and sticking to it, everything so much quieter underwater. My ears stopped ringing, my hair regained its glow and my skin felt new, clean, fresh. The heaviness bellow my waist disappeared and when I looked down, the ripped pieces of the pants floated away, my long and strong tail replacing my atrocious legs. I started laughing, tearing the shirt off my body, a lump in my throat forming. I was a Siren. My tail was back. I didn’t turn human. I was free. I started moving my tail, chuckling at how easily it moved, how light I felt again. But my moment of euphoria was interrupted by screams of help, making me turn around as my eyes fell on human legs. It was Jongho. And he was still alive. I swum over faster than ever, but when I tried to get onto the surface, a huge wave crashed against me and sent me deep underwater, away from Jongho. I shook my head and hissed, searching for him as I couldn’t see him anymore. My glowing eyes seemed to be of no help all of a sudden. I thought he was forever lost, swallowed by the depths of the sea, but I caught his body. Little bubbles left his mouth as he was being pulled deeper and deeper by the current. It looked like he wasn’t even fighting back, face almost serene as he accepted his fate. My heart clenched and I found myself near him in mere seconds, his eyes closed. I panicked, but knew it still wasn’t too late as I could hear his heartbeat now that I was back in the water. I grabbed Jongho’s cheeks, making his eyes fly open in shock, and pressed my lips against his. He didn’t seem to understand what I was trying to do, so I forced his lips open with my tongue and blew air inside his mouth, supplying his lungs with enough air for us to get to the surface. Jongho seemed be dumbfounded as I pulled away and wrapped my arms around him tightly, swimming towards the surface, feeling where the current tried to take us, but fought against it. Our heads popped above the water and Jongho took a deep breath, slightly choking as he started coughing and he clung onto me as I stared up at the tall ship.

“Kim Hongjoong!” I screamed as loudly as I could, allowing my Siren voice to carry it to the ship, above their deck. It didn’t take much for the Captain to look overboard and once again, I screamed, “Go to the kitchen window! I can hand him back through there!”

The Captain said nothing but I knew he understood as he disappeared from the railing, I looked at Jongho, who was smiling in awe at me, “Take a deep breath.”

He sucked in a deep breath and we submerged underwater again as I swum around the ship, towards the kitchen window. Jongho didn’t stop smiling and when I pushed him towards surface, he gripped my arms tightly and pulled me above water too, panting as he stared into my eyes deeply. I didn’t move as a wave hit us, but had to hold onto Jongho to keep him above the water, his body not strong enough to do so. The kitchen window wasn’t open yet, it took some time to get there from the deck. Jongho’s warm brown eyes were soft as he tried to push his hair out of his face, watching me.

“You’re so beautiful.” I felt my body warm up at his words, a little taken back by them. Despite knowing I was a beautiful creature, his words seemed to have an effect on me. I knew my eyes were glowing and my skin was almost translucent again, yet Jongho caressed my cheek and pulled me in. His warm lips were cracked from him biting them so much, but their plumpness made them softer than I imagined they would be. I found myself kissing him back eagerly, wondering where these desires were coming from. Our lips moved perfectly against each other; the waves not even capable of breaking us apart. Jongho held onto me tightly, lightly shuddering from the coldness of the water, holding my cheeks firmly. It felt overwhelming to be held like this, to have lips against mine, to have someone like Jongho call me beautiful. He was the beautiful one, in fact. I’ve never seen a human like him before. So joyous of what life had to offer him. Friendly and accepting despite the strangeness of my nature to him. When I pulled back, I couldn’t breathe properly. I never knew a kiss could steal your breath away. I gazed at Jongho starstruck and he chuckled, planting a shorter but strong kiss against my lips again. I suddenly wondered what love felt like. And if the person who loved you gave you kisses like Jongho’s all the time. How would Jongho be if he were in love with you? Sweet, attentive, and loving?

I could hear the pirates struggling to open kitchen window, they were annoyingly loud. I didn’t want our little moment to end, but I had to hand them Jongho. He was a human, and I was a Siren. We were creatures different from each other. Our lives had no future if intertwined. It was best to let go while you could.

“Sunmi.” I said to Jongho as I heard the window opening, “My name is Sunmi.”

Jongho’s eyes widened at the hear of my real name. One night, when he wouldn’t stop asking me questions, I decided to tell him that the name I told him to call me by was fake as Siren’s names were sacred and only their swarm knew them.

“We’re here!” I heard Hongjoong screaming from above us and I turned around, looking at them. Yeosang, who despite seeming so soft was awfully strong, was leaning out the window, being held by Mingi and Yunho. Hongjoong was also leaning out, held down by Seonghwa and the one pirate who thought I couldn’t speak, San. Jongho and I shared one last look before I swum him closer to his mates, raising him out of the water as best as I could, until Yeosang and Hongjoong were able to hold him by his arms.

“Goodbye.” Jongho mouthed to me and I smiled as I watched him being pulled back to safety, the window slamming shut once his body disappeared through it. I jumped back underneath, swimming further and further away from the ship, feeling the sea calling out to me, guiding me towards my home.

I knew one day Jongho would tell his children about his encounter with a Siren, and if they happened to follow their father’s footsteps and sailed out onto the Ragging Sea, I would make sure to save them if needed, like I have saved Jongho.

Next part (divider)

[mads-nixon]

Epiphany Pt. 12: You're On Your Own, Kid

Lewis Nixon x Reader

Masterlist

Series Masterlist

Title inspo - you're on your own, kid: taylor swift

A/N: this is my first post on my hbo war side-blog! yay! this chapter is the calm before the storm, y'all. this is about the fictional portrayal of easy company on the show. nothing but love and respect for veterans on this blog!

Word Count: 4.1k

Summary: Ill-equipped and poorly supplied, (y/n) and the rest of Easy do their best to survive in the frozen Ardennes Forest of Bastogne.

Warnings: description of injury, very soft lew

December 20, 1944: Ardennes Forest, Belgium

The forest lay under a heavy blanket of snow, the silence only broken by the occasional gust of icy wind, quiet conversations, and the all-to-familiar whistling of incoming shells. (Y/n) sat on the edge of her foxhole, her breath visible in the cold air as she gazed out at the German line. Through the veil of swirling snow, she couldn’t make out their silhouettes, but she knew they were there. It was a landscape of paradoxes: serene yet charged, beautiful yet deadly. 

With her gaze still fixed in the white haze, she felt a surge of frustration and anger rise in her. It was fueled by the knowledge that the Krauts had the supplies that they desperately needed. It was a cruel twist of fate that Easy was hungry, cold, and struggling, while the enemy, albeit just across the way, had the sustenance and warmth they lacked. They had a few missed supply drops to thank for that.

The air was frigid, cutting through layers of clothing and seeping into her very bones. (Y/n) hugged herself, arms wrapping tightly around her body in a futile attempt to capture a semblance of warmth. Her gloved fingers, numbed by the cold, clutched at the fabric of her uniform, seeking refuge in the familiar touch.

“(Y/n), remind me to never complain about the heat again,” Skip jested through chattering teeth, a weak smile attempting to mask his discomfort. 

“Yeah, this makes those Georgia summers seem downright pleasant,” Don added with a forced chuckle, the words barely leaving his blue-tinted lips.

Skip waved a hand in front of (y/n)’s distant gaze, breaking her trance and pulling her back to reality. “Earth to (y/n). You with us?”

Shaking from her thoughts, she turned towards the group, forcing a chapped smile. “Yeah,” she muttered, pushing herself up from where she sat in the foxhole, trying to get blood circulating in her numbed limbs. “I’ll be back.”

“Don’t get lost out there,” Malarkey called out, his voice tinged with concern as she swung her rifle onto her shoulder. 

“A walk in a winter wonderland,” Skip chimed in, his grin mischievous as he wiggled his eyebrows. “Is that code for, ‘going to see your favorite captain’ by any chance?”

A playful scoff escaped her lips in a huff. “Shut up, Muck. I can’t feel my toes, so I’m going for a walk to fix that.”

Malarkey shrugged, feigning innocence. “Yeah, sure. Have fun on your walk.”

The woman shook her head fondly at her friends as she slowly walked away from the foxhole. Her limbs didn’t want to work correctly, so she found herself doing a pitiful half-limp around the forest as she attempted to get some blood flowing to her feet. 

Despite her and Nix’s efforts to be discreet, the Toccoa men who had watched them from the beginning couldn’t be fooled. While nothing was openly acknowledged, there was a shared understanding that something was going on between the couple. Only Harry and Dick knew for certain, and only because they grilled Lew when he returned from Paris.

Maybe she would pay her favorite Captain a visit.

“Hey, Cripple!” someone called out. Groaning, (y/n) turned to face the voice, ready to retort when the very ground beneath her seemed to tremble and shudder violently. An explosion erupted from behind her, a deafening roar as the shockwave threw her off balance, sending her to the ground in a heap. 

She curled into a protective ball, her hands instinctively shielding her head as the world was swallowed by chaos. The relentless barrage of mortars painted the sky, their descent announced by menacing whistles. The once serene forest became a frenzied battleground, trees splintering and snow erupting into wild flurries. 

Amidst the disarray, a call pierced through the mayhem. “(Y/l/n)! Over here!”

Scrambling to her feet, her heart raced with adrenaline and drowned out the pounding explosions. She didn’t spare a moment to see who called, her focus solely on getting to cover. (Y/n) snatched up her rifle from the snow-covered ground and sprinted towards the direction of the voice, her heavy breaths misting in the frigid air.

As she ran, her foot caught a fallen tree branch and she was sent tumbling into the freezing embrace of the forest floor, awkwardly landing on her arm. Pain flared in her wrist as she fought to get to her feet, panicking at being exposed without cover. Then, like a savior, a hand extended towards her and hauled her into a nearby foxhole. 

Joe Liebgott’s face appeared in front of her, and his eyes reflected the same fear and helplessness that she felt. She let go of her rifle, allowing it to rest in the snow as she clamped her hands over her ears, desperate to drown out the deafening noise that assaulted her senses. (Y/n) clenched her eyes closed, seeing refuge in the darkness as Joe pulled her tightly into his body, shielding her from the relentless barrage. The concussive blasts continued, each one sending shockwaves through the ground and dirt, snow, and ice raining down on them. She held on, feeling the frantic rise and fall of Joe’s chest against her, praying that it would all stop soon.

Seconds, minutes, hours, (y/n) didn’t know how much time had passed when the earth-shattering blasts ceased. A few gentle pats on her helmet were the only indication it was over. Slowly, she released her grip on her ears, the painful ringing subsiding to the backdrop of her ragged breaths as she looked up at him with wide eyes.

“You alright?” Joe asked, his concerned gaze scanning her for injuries.

(Y/n) nodded, wincing as she flexed her wrist, attempting to brush off the debris clinging to her skin. “I’m okay.”

His eyes narrowed, shifting from her face to her arm and then back again. “You sure?”

“I just landed on it weird,” she replied, clenching her teeth against the searing pain that radiated up her arm with every movement.

“Let me get Doc, (y/n),” he offered, about to get up, but her good arm shot up and pulled him back down.

Sitting up, she carefully retrieved her rifle and climbed out of the foxhole, cradling her aching wrist to her chest. “I’m fine, Joe. Thank you, but I need to check on my foxhole.”

“Alright, be careful,” he called after her as she made her way back toward her foxhole, her chest tight with anxiety. As the shock and adrenaline from the bombardment began to fade, the reality of (y/n)’s situation settled in: her wrist was not just a minor discomfort. What had initially felt like a sharp jab upon impact turned into a persistent, gnawing pain radiating from her wrist and traveling up her arm like tendrils of fire.

Each movement she made, whether to clutch her rifle or steady herself against the uneven ground, sent surges of pain shooting through her hand and forearm. With each passing second, the pain seemed to intensify, becoming an unrelenting companion in the desolate frozen landscape. Her fingers, once nimble and deft in handling her rifle, now felt like lead, unresponsive and clumsy. The smallest tasks, like brushing off the clinging snow or gripping her canteen, became monumental efforts, each movement a harsh reminder of the shelling. A simple flex of her wrist, something that she took for granted in the past, was now an act that set off sharp jolts of pain. (Y/n) found herself trying to ignore the pain, focusing on the task at hand, but the throbbing in her arm seemed to pulse in sync with her heartbeat, making it impossible to overlook. She knew she should probably see Roe about it, but she heard he didn’t have much to work with. So, she made the choice not to burden their already diminished supplies on what was likely just a sprain.

After a while, she found herself approaching the spot she’d left Malarkey and Skip, scanning the area for signs of life. The once-snow-draped ground was now a maze of impact craters and debris. As she reached the foxhole, her heart swelled with relief seeing Skip and Don huddled inside, still in one piece. 

“Hey,” she called out, her voice cutting through the eerie calm. Relief washed over her as they looked up, their faces lighting up at the sight of her.

“(Y/n/n)!” Don exclaimed, a hand clutching his chest dramatically. “We were worried!”

Muck tossed his helmet towards her, a hint of concern on his face. The helmet collided with her wrist, causing her to stifle a cry. “Take a look at this crap, (y/n). They peppered my helmet!”

Gently cradling her wrist, she examined the shot-up helmet in her lap, a half smile playing on her lips. “Good thing you weren’t wearing it, Skip. Was everyone okay over here? I ended up in Lieb’s foxhole.”

“Wasted my dagum coffee,” Smokey lamented from the foxhole ahead of theirs. “It was a whole helmet-full, too.”

A chuckle bubbled from her lips as she watched him setting his contraption back up. “I’m sorry, Smoke. Next time, you should tell the krauts to wait until you’ve had your coffee to shell the crap out of us.”

“You know, I might just do that,” Smokey mused, staring out at the German line with a faraway look. “We need a break.”

“Oh, (y/n),” Don interjected, fishing for something in his pockets. “Do you have any morphine in your aid kit from Holland? Doc’s looking for some.”

“Mine got used up when I got hit,” she replied, her mind drifting back to that night outside Arnhem. “That feels like so long ago now.”

Skip, ever the calculating one, counted on his fingers thoughtfully. “It’s only been what, three months?”

“Yeah,” she murmured, staring into the forest as she contemplated the whirlwind of events since that time. Between getting shot, going to the hospital, then Paris with Lew, and now Bastogne, a lot happened in those three months.

Their conversation carried on, but (y/n) was lost in her thoughts. Her life had changed drastically in this span of time, the most significant development being her newfound relationship with Lewis. A mere week and a half had passed since Paris, yet it felt like a lifetime. Memories of the quaint cafes and charming streets danced in her mind, a reminder of what they were fighting for…a return to a life untouched by the horrors of war.

A crunch of snow behind her snapped her back to the present. She grabbed her rifle, swiftly turning, a surge of pain shooting up her arm. A grimace contorted her face as she eased the strain, her aim dropping as she recognized Lip.

“(Y/n), Winters wants to see you,” he relayed, crouching beside her.

“We’ll catch up later, alright?” Don patted her shoulder gently, a worried look in his gaze as he looked down at her wrist.

“Duty calls, boys. See ya later.”

She pushed herself off the snow with her good hand and started following Lip toward Captain Winter’s tent. As they walked, she saw the destruction the various shellings had left in their wake. Trees were downed everywhere, feet-long splinters littered the snow, and there was the occasional red stain of blood on the white ground.

“Can you believe it’s just a few days till Christmas?” Lip’s voice broke the silence, filled with nostalgia and yearning.

She nodded, a bittersweet smile playing on her lips. “It’s hard to believe, isn’t it? I remember my last Christmas home so vividly…and now, here we are two years later.”

He glanced at her, a fond smile on his face, despite the flicker of sorrow in his eyes. “My wife, JoAnne, makes the best gingerbread cookies on the planet, and I can just see her in the kitchen, working her tail off to make them for our family Christmas party.”

(Y/n)’s lips twitched into a faint smile. “What I wouldn’t give for some gingerbread cookies,” she sighed. “It’s just…well, being away from family at this time, it’s tough. But at least we have each other, right?”

“Yeah,” he replied, nodding ahead of him. “Here we are.”

“Thanks for walking with me, Lip,” (y/n) grinned, approaching the foxhole.

“You’re welcome,” Carwood grinned. “And (y/n), get that wrist checked out.”

Her mouth slightly agape, she looked at him in disbelief. “What?”

“I’m not as clueless as the others. Get it looked at.” His eyes held a genuine concern.

Nodding at him, she walked up to the hole where Dick was crouched, writing a letter. “Captain Winters, sir?”

He looked up from his letter, and an uncharacteristic smirk formed on his face when he recognized her. “(Y/n). Nix wanted to speak with you.”

A flush colored her cheeks as she stood there. “Oh, alright. Where is he?”

Winters nodded to the hole ahead of him. “I’m right here, so please don't try any-”

A blanket was thrown off the adjacent foxhole and Nixon popped out, his dark hair a mess atop his head. “Gosh, Dick, we’re not gonna do anything,” he hissed, rolling his eyes.

Embarrassment coursed through (y/n) at the implication, and she brought a hand to her face, wishing she could disappear. “Yes sir,” she stammered, her voice slightly uneasy as she walked over to Lewis. 

“Are you crazy?” she asked, casting anxious glances around the forest.

Nix shrugged and pointed to Winters. “We’re fine. Dick’s gonna keep a lookout…right Dick?”

“I’m going to be writing my letter,” Winters replied, not looking up. “And I’m not seeing this.”

“Thanks, pal,” Lew called, extending a hand to help (y/n) into the hole.

“Alright,” she muttered, unable to keep a nervous smile from playing on her lips a the thought of some time with him. She started to take his hand with her hurt one, but quickly switched hands, letting the other painfully dangle at her side. He gave her a questioning look as she took his hand, but (y/n) just shook her head, dismissing his concern. To her surprise, he seemed to let it go. 

Nix’s foxhole was a decent size, and (y/n) carefully tried to settle against his side without showing her injury. He pulled the blanket over the top of the hole, insulating the space and giving them a sliver of privacy. Looking around, she spotted an empty pack of Lucky Strikes and his silver flask in the dirt beside her.

“I really like what you did with the place,” she grinned, kicking the empty box with her foot.

Lew chuckled, snaking an arm around her waist and pulling her close, placing a soft kiss in her hair. “Yeah. Interior decorating was always Blanche’s thing.”

His warmth seeped through her frozen uniform, and she sighed contentedly, resting her head on her shoulder as she closed her eyes. The throbbing pain in her hand seemed to slightly fade in his comforting presence. 

“How are things on the line? We still get artillery back here, but it’s not as bad as up there,” he asked quietly, leaning his head atop hers.

“It’s not good, Lew,” she mumbled into his neck. “We’re running low on everything, and the krauts seem to have an endless stream of artillery. It’s like they’re not even affected by the cold or anything. We’re just holding our ground and doing what we can.”

He tightened his grip around her, attempting to offer some comfort. “But you’re holding up okay?”

A half-hearted smile tugged at her lips, tinged with sadness. “We’re surviving, but it’s getting harder every day. The men are tired, Lew. We’re all tired. We’re all hungry. We’re all cold.”

“I know, doll,” he sighed. “Sink and General McAuliffe stopped by earlier, and they didn’t have any good news. Last night, I took a walk on the line at about 0300 and I couldn’t find the 501st on our right flank. I had to pull in 2nd platoon to fill the gap, but the General seemed like he couldn't care less.”

(Y/n) groaned. “His relentless optimism kills me. At least Sink is realistic.”

“‘Hold the line and close the gaps’, was all he said. And that 1st battalion just pulled out of Foy with krauts on their tail…so there’s a bunch of crap coming our way.”

“Of course there is,” she grumbled, bringing her knees up to her chest.

Lew’s thoughts became consumed by worry for (y/n) and what was going to be thrown her way. He gently traced circles on her back, trying to find the right words. “I can’t help but be worried about you, (y/n/n). Knowing you’re out there every time I hear a shelling, it’s…it’s tough.”

She sat up and turned to face him, her eyes reflecting the same fear. “I know, Lew. I’m scared, too. But I’m doing what I can to take care of myself and the guys. We watch out for each other.”

He ran a hand through his hair, frustration clear in his voice. “It’s just hard being here, not able to do much, not even being able to be with you when you’re out there facing the worst of it.”

“You’re doing more than you think,” she said, gently touching his arm. “This helps me so much.”

Lew brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face, his cold fingers gentle on her warm cheek. “Promise me you’ll be careful,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “Don’t take any extra risks…please.”

(Y/n) looked into his eyes, finding a sea of emotion. “I promise,” she replied, her voice equally soft.

Nix leaned in, slowly closing the distance between them, his eyes flickering to her lips before meeting her gaze once more. Their lips met in a soft, tender kiss as Lew cupped her cheek. Time seemed to slow down as they kissed, a sense of calm washing over them. As they pulled away, their foreheads rested against each other, their breaths mingling in the chilly air. 

“Have you been able to keep warm at all?” Lew asked softly, his fingers tracing over her gloved hand gently. 

(Y/n) nodded, trying to keep her discomfort at bay. “As warm as one can be out here.”

Lew noticed her wincing slightly and, concerned, his hand unintentionally brushed against her injured wrist. She gasped, tears brimming her eyes as pain shot through her arm.

His eyes widened, fear coursing through him as he quickly retracted his hand “(Y/n)? What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

(Y/n) leaned her head back against the hard wall of dirt behind her with a thud. “I tripped during the shelling earlier and landed on it wrong,” she whispered, voice trembling as she cradled her wrist.

“(Y/n),” Lew sighed, his heart aching at her pain. “Have you seen Doc?”

She shook her head, tears welling up. “No, not yet.”

He reached for her hand slowly. “Let me see it, sweetheart. I’ll be careful.”

She hesitantly extended her gloved hand to him, a single tear leaking down her rosy cheek. “You’re okay,” he cooed, holding her forearm with one hand while the other carefully slid the glove off. 

“Shit,” Lew muttered, his brows furrowing at the sight of her wrist. “This is bad, (y/n).”

His concern deepened as he saw the extent of the injury. He had expected it to be sore, maybe a minor sprain, but what he saw made his heart clench with worry and anger. Her once delicate wrist was now swollen to nearly twice its usual size, the skin on her palm and wrist discolored in ominous hues of deep purple and angry black. 

“(Y/n/n),” he said gently, his voice soothing to her distress. “We need to get you to Doc. This could be broken.”

The tears finally fell from her eyes in a mixture of pain and frustration. “I know,” she whispered, her voice quivering. “But the medics are already low on supplies, and they need that for others that are worse off.”

Lew cupped her cheek tenderly, wiping away a tear with his thumb. “Just because someone may be worse, doesn’t mean you can’t be looked after, too. Let me take care of you, please.”

(Y/n)’s expression softened, touched by his sincerity. “Okay,” she nodded. “Thank you.”

He held her wrist gently, a tenderness in his eyes that melted her worries, even if just for a moment. He brushed a feather-light kiss on her injured wrist, a silent promise that he’d take care of her. Nix helped her slide the glove back on, ensuring it offered some support for her wrist. He then threw off the blanket and helped her to her feet, his arm securely around her for support. She wasn’t going to let her injury hold her back, but she knew she needed to get it checked before it got any worse.

Winter’s eyes widened at the pair’s dramatic exit from the foxhole. “You alright, (y/l/n)?” he asked, eyes furrowed in confusion.

“She hurt her wrist,” Lew replied, glancing at Dick who nodded in response. “We’re finding Roe.”

They found Gene in his foxhole, staring off into the forest, a cigarette hanging from his lips. “Hey Gene,” Nix called, catching the man off guard. He jumped slightly, turning around like a deer in headlights.

He sighed seeing who it was. “Captain Nixon, what can I do for ya, sir?”

“(Y/n) here took a tumble during the shelling. Her wrist is pretty banged up.”

Roe nodded, motioning for her to sit down on the edge of the foxhole. “Let’s have a look, chérie.

She did as told, taking a deep breath to brace herself for any pain. The cajun carefully peeled off the glove from her injured hand, revealing the purple and black bruises. The medic furrowed his brows at the sight, his experienced eyes evaluating the damage. He lightly prodded along the wrist, feeling for any unusual shifts in the bones beneath. 

“I’m worried there might be a hairline fracture here,” he explained, his voice carrying a tinge of concern. “But I can’t confirm it without a proper x-ray, and we don’t have any equipment like that back in Bastogne.”

(Y/n) nodded, bracing herself for what she knew was coming. “So, what can we do?”

Roe began to secure her wrist carefully with a makeshift splint, wrapping it snugly to provide some stability and reduce the risk of further damage. “Right now, we’ll immobilize it as best as we can. I’ll wrap it up, and you need to keep it still as much as possible. Ice will help with the swelling.”

Smirking at the situation, (y/n) couldn’t resist a touch of humor. “Well, at least we’ve got an abundance of ice around,” she quipped, waving her good hand at the frozen forest surrounding them. “Nature’s icebox, right?”

Lew chuckled at her attempt to lighten the mood. “The best ice supply in Bastogne,” he replied, playing along. 

As Gene finished the wrapping, she flexed her fingers slightly, testing the newfound stability. The pain had dulled a bit, and it was a relief, albeit a temporary one. They thanked Roe and went on their way.

“I’ve got to go back to the boys,” she said, peering up at him as they walked. 

Lew nodded. “Take it easy, alright? Your arm can’t heal if you keep using it.”

“Yes, sir, Doctor Nixon,” she grinned, fake saluting him with a playful twinkle in her eyes.

They made their way to her foxhole, and Lew resisted the urge to give her a kiss, aware of the many eyes watching. Instead, he gently patted her helmet, a gesture that he’d decided was his new favorite because it sent the front of it down past her eyes.

“Malarkey,” Nix called out, waving his over. “Don’t let this one overdo it. Roe said she needs to take it easy.”

Though he was confused, Don nodded. “Yes, sir.”

With a subtle wink, Lew turned and left for his own foxhole. 

“What happened to you?” Skip asked, eyeing her wrapped wrist as he appeared next to Don. “Did the Captain take care of you?”

(Y/n) laughed under her breath, watching Lew’s figure disappear into the white haze of the forest. “I’m alright.”

Malarkey’s eyes widened as he turned to Muck. “She’s not denying it, Skip!”

“I knew it!” Skip exclaimed triumphantly, the corners of his mouth curling into a grin. She began to walk away when Don gasped suddenly. 

“We have to tell you about Hinkle!”

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Stucky

A collection of Stucky x reader stories. Give writers love.

No Smut

Smut

NO VACANCY @cockslutpadalecki Summary: After taking an accidental detour on your way to a remote getaway, you and boyfriend Zach end up in the middle of nowhere. And it is causes you to run into some killers. Warnings: Rape, Murder, Violence Special Tag: Dark, Serial Killer AU, Poly, Rape, Horror

Boys @disasterofastory Summary:  You are their favorite professor. Warnings: None Special Tags: College AU, Teacher AU, Dirty

Bloodbound @straywords Summary: Despite your best efforts, you find yourself pulled into the orbit of Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes, the most prominent couple on campus. Warning: Rape, Manipulation, Physical violence Special Tags: Vampire AU, College Au, Dark, Multichapter

The Master's Wonderland @kinanabinks Summary: Carnivals are a place for fun, food, and friends. But your night with your new boyfriend takes a twisted turn, filled with gore, horror and fear. Warnings: Rape, Murder, Violent Sex Special Tags: Horror, Serial Killer AU

Breaking the Rules @toastedkiwi Summary: Alphas aren’t allowed in omega dorm rooms. You have two alphas in your room. Warnings: None Special Tags: Omegaverse, College AU, Hyperfem Reader, Dirty

The empty sarcophagus𓂀 @buckyscombatboots Summary: The Mummy comes out to play. Warnings: Cocking, Dubious Consent, Dirty Special Tags: Mummy! AU

Ft. Sam (Smut)

Makes You Feel Good @targaryenvampireslayer Summary: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝. Warnings: None Special tags: Dirty