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crowsnests · 3 years

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taste of certainty - part three

Fandom: The Arcana Pairing: Julian Devorak x OC Apprentice (Syran Elkas) Tags: friends to lovers; modern times au; friend group dynamic; slow burn; pining; really just Julian being Julian and Syran being Oblivious Words: 7453 Warnings: mention of anxiety, migraines, insomnia, alcohol

part 1 2 3 4 5

playlist

I see the walls that are torn and bent The tug of war in the now, not yet Holding back what they can contain Can you tell me why I feel this way?

- trust; half-alive

III. sweet hurricane

Wednesdays are chill enough workdays, usually. It’s when Miss Eirsdottir has the least meetings, so Syran gets to calmly sit at her desk, processing new proposals and arranging schedules.

Not this Wednesday, though.

Miss Eirsdottir has Syran basically assist Varya in running all sorts of errands: moving from one side to the building to the other, carrying boxes of products for her to review, making sure the interns get the right coffees for the guests in the meetings, rushing to bring important folders to the PR office, assisting in said meetings. Varya is nice and helps Syran feel more at ease with the amount of workload, but it’s still quite stressful.

Syran forgot the days close to the launch of a new product could get so hectic. Her recurring migraine starts to make itself heard.

In the midst of it all, she gets a moment to catch her breath, during her lunch break. She goes and sits outside, despite the cold, on a bench in the courtyard inside the building. As she unfurls her lunchbox – a chicken sandwich, a carrot, and a bunch of blueberries – Asra and Pasha join her at the bench.

“Well, you look like shit,” Asra says, not even bothering with formalities as he sits down and opens his ricebox. A spiced scent trails out from it.

“Thanks, feel like it, too,” Syran answers, then bites into her carrot. Her head is pounding with pain and the nausea that comes with it doesn’t make her food look all that appealing, but she’s used to it at this point. She vaguely explains the reason for her exhaustion, her two friends nodding in understanding.

“Yeah, this week is tough, huh?” Pasha looks concerned as she takes out her lunch from her bag. A clear box with pasta in it and some orange juice.

“Yeah, pre-release is hell up in management,” Syran sighs.

“Well, at least you get to have fun next weekend! It’s gonna be a blast.” Pasha winks.

Syran looks at her confused, blinks a couple times, her brain slowly moving its gears together.

Asra looks at her pointedly, mouthing something.

Syran can’t decipher it, but a light goes on in her brain nonetheless.

“Oh shit, it’s your birthday! Yeah! Can’t wait for that!”

“You and Nadi always know how to throw a good party, I’m excited,” Asra smiles, bright eyes wrinkled up in joy. He does love partying.

Pasha laughs, then goes on to describe how she’s planned this carefully, how the theme is Vintage Masquerade, or something, and how she can’t wait to see everyone’s costumes. Asra engages with her eagerly, giving advice for decorations and getting excited over the food.

There and then, Syran realises two things.

One: she has no fucking clue what to wear to something like that.

Two: she’s supposed to see Ilya today and get Pasha a present.

As if summoned, her phone goes off. Ilya’s name on the screen makes her insides squirm but she opens the text trying not to arouse suspicion.

dr. hulian - 13:12 Do you think Pasha would like this?

Attached to the message, there’s a picture of a– well, a skull, looking pretty real and being held by what’s clearly Ilya’s hand. Syran finds it a little eerie, but she can’t hold her smile back.

To: dr. hulian - 13:13 Mmmh, maybe if you decorated it a bit?

She starts eating her sandwich, itching to get a reply, but acts as if it’s nothing. She gets back into the conversation with Pasha and Asra, trying to get distracted. Asra is now suggesting he could give tarot readings to the guests for a little bit during the party, Pasha seems elated at the idea.

Then, Syran’s phone vibrates again.

from: dr. hulian - 13:16 - You mean like this? - His name is Ferdinand, by the way

This time, the skull has a thin golden scarf with an intricate flower pattern tied all around, complete with a fancy bow on top. It’s ridiculous and endearing at the same time. Syran tries to stifle a laugh.

To: dr. hulian - 13:18 - hell yeah, ferdinand looks perfect in that, love it - where did he get that, looks extremely fashionable

from: dr. hulian - 13:18 - We stole it from nadia’s bag while she went to the bathroom. I suspect mere seconds before we get punished for our crime. - oh no, she found us

Syran laughs again, this time she can’t hide it as she types a reply.

To: dr. hulian - 13:19 - Just blame it on Ferdinand! i’m sure she’ll understand

“–kay, what’s going on, Syran?”

“Huh?” She blinks up at the two pairs of eyes scrutinising her.

“Who’re you texting?” Asra looks smug, ready to pounce.

“Looks like a pretty nice convo you’re having there.” Pasha adds, leaning forward to rest her chin on her hand.

Syran scrambles for a reply. There’s no way in hell she’s going to be honest with them on this, not today.

Or ever, probably.

“Just– Ran. She was showing me her dogs, back at home,” She smiles at the end, desperately hoping to sell the lie.

Pasha lights up at the word dogs, but Asra doesn’t seem convinced.

“Really? She never mentioned dogs to me,” He narrows his eyes.

“Oh, yeah, she has two mixed breeds and– and a parrot.”

I mean, it’s not as much of a lie as a past truth. Ran used to have two dogs and a parrot in her old home. Now it’s just one of the dogs, who’s gotten pretty old, too.

“That’s cute! Can I see?” Pasha eagerly leans over to glance at Syran’s phone, now sitting face up on the table.

“Uh– I– I guess–” just as Syran tries to make something up, the phone goes off again, this time with a call. Ilya’s name flashes on the display for everyone to see.

Syran just stares at it, startled.

“Well, aren’t you going to answer?” Asra suggests, teasingly.

Syran chuckles nervously, then reaches for the phone.

“Hello?”

From the other side there’s noises and two distinct voices arguing, albeit muffled. None of them talking to her.

“H– hello?” she tries again, this time genuinely confused.

“–ust for a second! Don’t get mad at me, come on–”

“–you should know better than to steal from me, Ilya,”

“Come on, Nadi– ust a joke!”

“–going to have a better excuse– this was a gift!”

Asra and Pasha lean closer to try and hear what’s going on, but Syran swats them away.

“Must be a butt dial or something,” she mutters, just as Ilya keeps talking and exclaims an apology.

Pasha rolls her eyes. “Is it my brother?”

As Nadia seems to reprimand Ilya more, Syran nods, looking confused enough for her friends to frown with her.

“– an excuse to talk!” Ilya’s exclamation gets Syran's attention.

“You’re a lost cause, Devorak,” This time Nadia’s voice is a little more clear.

“I know,” Ilya says.

When they go silent Syran tries again.

“Uhhh, hello?”

More noises. Something scrambling by the mic.

“Oh, shi– goddamn– hello? Syran? That you?”

“Yep,” She deadpans, avoiding Pasha and Asra’s eyes, “In the flesh.”

“Uh– did you– did you call me?”

“I believe you called me, Ilya,” she arches an eyebrow.

On the other side of the table, Pasha is making a kissy face and hugging herself, then mouths the word smooch. Next to her, Asra snickers. Syran rolls her eyes and turns on her seat, her back facing them.

“Ah. Right. Well, that was– not intentional. I was– discussing, with Nadia, you see.” Ilya utters, embarrassed.

“I figured,” Syran laughs, “Pretty important discussion, it seems.”

“Uh– did you hear much of that?”

Syran could barely understand, really. “Nope, mostly that Nadia’s mad about your theft.” She smiles.

“Yes, indeed. But Ferdinand and I will be okay,” He laughs, clearly more relaxed. “We fought hard and we lost our treasure, but we came out of it unscathed.”

“That’s not true–” Nadia chimes in from somewhere next to him.

Syran can’t help but laugh louder at Ilya’s theatrics this time, “Well, I’m glad you’re alive, at least.”

She is also glad that her friends can’t see her face right now, because it would be so, so, incriminating.

“So, uh, well,” Ilya continues, “Since we’re here, I was– I was wondering if you’re still on for later? For the– uh– secret mission?” Syran smirks at the way he whispers it, not subtle at all.

Suddenly aware not only of the pair of devils behind her, but also of the fact her and Ilya’s mission involves a surprise for one of them, Syran tries to not give herself away. She also probably needs to close the call, before she makes things worse for herself.

“Yep, yep, sure.” She says, quickly. “No worries.”

“Oh, great, so I’ll come–” Ilya starts.

“Yeah, work’s definitely busy today!”

“Uhm, okay, so– does that mean–”

“No, it’s fine!” Syran exclaims, trying her best to act convincingly. “Well, good luck with your– things!”

“Okay, bu–”

Syran hangs up before Ilya can finish.

“Wow,” Asra says from behind her.

Syran breathes in and takes a moment to turn back towards them, then hides her face in her sandwich.

“You two were straight-up flirting,” Pasha says, smile on her face.

Syran talks with a bite of sandwich in her mouth. “Do you even know what flirting entails? Because that was not it. That was a normal conversation. If that was flirting, then I’d be flirting with all of you. All the time. That’s not flirting.”

Cool, now she's talking way too much.

“Ah, the sweet taste of denial,” Asra sighs, dramatic and starry-eyed.

“Seriously, you guys are delusional.” Syran gives one last bite to her sandwich. “That was just an accidental dial, nothing more.”

“Yes, but why, oh, why, I wonder, was it to you? Were you so high up in his recent contacts?” Pasha squints at her, sly.

“You’re reaching. We all have a groupchat together, it could have been for any reason. You know how clumsy Ilya can be.” Syran shrugs, praying that they’ll let her live. Seriously, she does not deserve this torture. “Why are you guys so obsessed with this anyway?”

Pasha and Asra exchange a look, then they both lean back, in sync.

“Okay,” Asra states. He narrows his eyes and crosses his fingers on the table like he's a renowned detective, or something. “Let’s assume you’re right.”

“Which I am–”

“Did you mind, though?”

“What?”

“Did you mind that Ilya butt-dialed you?”

“What sort of question is that?” Syran widens her eyes, taken aback. Really, why are they so stubborn.

“Just answer, perp!” Pasha points a finger at her. Now it really feels like Syran is in an interrogation room.

“I have nothing to answer, because that is a stupid question.” She closes her lunch box with finality, looking straight into Pasha’s eyes.

“Admit it!” Asra slams a hand on the table, “You enjoy talking to him!”

Syran groans, exasperated, “Of course I do, he’s my friend! It would be mean if I didn't!”

Pasha and Asra smile at each other, “We got her, chief.” Pasha says.

“You got nothing,” Syran glares at them, “I’m going back to work.”

She gets up and gathers her things, ignoring the chorus of booos coming from her friends.

God, she loves them to bits, but they can be so annoying at times.

🂱

Somehow, she manages to slither away from the others and get back home safe.

After having sent Ilya a few explanatory texts and having agreed to meet at a cafe nearby, she finally takes a look in the mirror.

She really does look tired. Without distractions around her, the migraine is harder to ignore. She takes a relief pill and washes her ruined makeup, her face feeling cleaner. The heaviness of the day is starting to take a toll on her, she can feel it in her muscles.

When she checks the time, she realises that she’s going to be late if she doesn’t hurry up.

Quickly, she reapplies her makeup as best as she can, then throws on some clean and more comfortable clothes.

Persephone meows at her from the foot of her bed; it’s almost as if she’s smirking at her, knowing more than she lets on.

“Oh, not you too,” Syran pleads.

🂱

When she arrives at the cafe, Ilya is waiting by the entrance, casually leaning on the wall behind him. She takes a moment to look at him while he’s distracted by his phone, all perfectly styled auburn hair and dark clothes. She hates how good he looks.

(She doesn’t hate it, really, but she’ll die before she admits it.)

When he meets her eyes, a big smile sparks on his face.

“Hey,” she waves. “Hope you haven’t been waiting long.”

“Hey,” he echoes, “Not at all.”

“Shall we?”

“Ah, yes, uh– should we get some coffee to go, first, since I owe you that?” He smirks, but then his eyes glance down to the side straight away. “That’s if– if you want, of course.”

“Sounds great!” Syran nods, delighted at the thought of a hot beverage in her hands.

The cafe is cozy and warm, most of the tables are filled with people chatting or working on their laptops.

As they wait in line, Ilya and Syran talk a little about their days, how Ilya’s research is driving him insane, how Syran’s boss gave her a hundred errands until late.

“Yikes, that must be tiring,” Ilya says, concerned, as they wait for their drinks.

Ilya has ordered a black coffee with a splash of milk, Syran has opted for a matcha latte. She likes coffee, but on days like this it makes her a little too jittery.

“Yeah, I mean, no more tiring than any other job. Plus, I learn a lot. Miss Eirsdottir is tough, but she’s brilliant.” Syran finds herself fiddling with her hands. “Hopefully one day I get to do more of the parts that I really love, though.”

Ilya smiles down at her, handing her the drink. There’s a glint in his eyes that makes Syran feel light. “I’m sure you will.”

Finding a present for Pasha isn’t as easy as they thought. They scurry through shops, trying things, looking at clothes, bags, books, videogames, jewelry, vinyl records– they contemplate wine at some point but realise Nadia would like that more. Then they go back to books, but nothing seems right.

Syran would lie if she said she isn’t having fun, though. Despite some moments where she really wishes she could hide her blush, she and Ilya fall into a rhythm made of jokes, laughter, chatter, and comfortable silences.

It’s nice. Really nice. It's. You know. Friendship.

Eventually, they walk by a window that’s displaying a various array of scarfs, ranging in colours and materials.

Syran does a double-take and spots a muted orange one that makes her think of Pasha immediately.

“That one!” She exclaims pointing at the glass.

“Huh?” Ilya seems taken aback, interrupted in the middle of his story on how he once got his hand stuck in a vending machine.

“Look at that scarf, isn’t it perfect for Pasha?”

Ilya squints at the glass, trying to figure out what Syran is pointing at. “The orange one?”

“Yep! It looks so pretty!” Syran turns to him, beaming, “We should go see it!”

Ilya nods, smiling back.

The scarf turns out to be even better than they thought. It’s made of soft and light cotton, with a delicate golden pattern woven on the edges. Ilya seems elated, saying that she will love it, right? Will she love it, Syran? I think she will.

Syran smiles at his excitement, glad to see him happy about the choice. The clerk wraps it up in a beautiful gift box, eagerly explaining how the cotton is of a refined but durable quality, it makes for perfect everyday use, but also works really well for more elegant events. Ilya listens intently, as if he’s trying to remember all of it to then tell Pasha.

Ilya has a big smile plastered on his face as they exit the shop, then he turns to Syran and hugs her, all-encompassing. She’s startled, but she gingerly hugs him back.

“Thank you so much, seriously,” He mutters in her hair.

She really really hopes he can’t hear how loud her heart is beating this time.

It’s not a crush.

Is it?

When he pulls back, they’re both a little flustered. “Ehm– I mean, yeah. Thank you.”

Syran is still trying to regain herself from the sudden hug, but something in Ilya’s tone makes her wonder.

“Can I ask you something?”

Ilya seems a little surprised by the question, but nods nonetheless. “Sure.”

“Why were you so worried about this? Besides the regular stuff you told me, like. What are you really worried about?” More than out of curiosity, Syran is asking because she can sense that there’s still something bothering Ilya.

He blinks, eyes wide. Then he looks down, as if caught in the act.

“Well– I– to be honest, it’s been a little tough lately, and the work at the university isn’t helping. So I haven’t been able to be there for Pasha as much as I’d like.” He sighs, but Syran gives him time, sensing that’s not the whole story.

He looks at her, visibly worried now. “And. Well. Pasha and I have– not always been close. Our parents divorced when we were fairly young and we took different paths after I graduated high school. I left, wanting to get away from it all, and she stayed. I made mistakes, resented her for it. We argued a lot, eventually had a big fight, and– didn’t talk for a while after that. It didn’t feel good, but I was reckless and hurt and too prideful.”

He looks so sad Syran can’t help but reach out to hold one of his gloved hands. Then, he smiles, although a little bitterly. Syran thinks she sees tears in her eyes. Her heart drops to her stomach.

Ilya continues, “I mean, we fixed things in the past years and now that we live in the same town it’s great, but– I still feel like there’s an unspoken distance. I fucked up so many times before–” He cuts himself off, like it pains him to go on. “So– yeah, I just want us to get close again– I feel like I need to make it up to her, somehow.”

He blinks the tears away, chuckling nervously. “God, you must think I’m an idiot.”

“What– no!” Syran’s chest is tight. She never imagined Ilya had all of this inside. She knew there was some sort of situation between the two of them, but Pasha never liked talking about it much.

“I–I think you’re very thoughtful. And mature for wanting to own up to things. It’s heartwarming to see how much you care,” She continues under his cautious stare. “Look– I don’t know, maybe it’s not my place, but I don’t think you need to make anything up to her. You’re a wonderful brother and person. Look at how much thought you’re putting into this! Whatever happened, I am– I’m sure she knows how much you love her. I can see how happy she is to have you back in her life, too – well, in between all the bickering.”

Ilya laughs at her last words and she joins, happy to see him smiling again.

Then, her gaze softens. “I think you will be just fine. You are trying really hard, you should give yourself a break.”

Ilya smiles, gentle. Then, he seems more relieved. “Thank you. You’re– uh. Quite good at pep talks.”

She winks, “I know.” She can’t help but squeeze his hand a little. He squeezes back. Syran feels a little dazed and her chest feels a little tight, her and Ilya exchanging a soft gaze.

She’s so fucking gone, it’s no use ignoring it.

It might just be a crush.

Then, Ilya’s eyes widen, and he gasps. “You still need a present!”

“Oh, yeah,” Syran realises, waking up from her thoughts, “We don’t have to get it right now, though, I can always–”

“Nope, you helped me, now it’s your turn! Let’s go!”

He drags her through more streets like he’s a kid on a mission, it makes Syran laugh. They stop at various shops, once again searching for something perfect.

She can’t deny it, though, there’s a newfound feeling between them, maybe one of strengthened trust. They’re both laughing more, feeling more comfortable with each other than before.

Finally, a small antique shop catches Ilya’s eye. Syran walks back to look at the window with him.

It’s filled with various objects, old pocket watches, silver paraphernalia, old vases and pots, ragged dolls. Ilya seems enthralled by an old model ship, perched precariously on a small shelf.

“My grandma used to have one like that in her house,” He smiles, fondly. “I demanded to play with it whenever we visited, but she always told me it was too delicate to even look at, let alone touch.” He laughs. “I’d get all whiny then, but I get it now.” He turns to Syran, almost a little sorrowful.

“Some things are just too delicate to be reckless with.”

Syran blinks at him, ignoring the blood rushing to her ears. She turns to look at the ship again.

“I don’t know,” she says, “It looks pretty sturdy to me. It might not be ruined, but now it’s sitting in a dusty display.” She turns to him and shrugs. “Isn’t it better to enjoy things while they last, instead of holding back? ”

She’s not sure they’re talking about the ship anymore– Ilya’s gaze on her makes her breath hitch in her throat.

She turns to the window again, flustered. As she stares intently, she realises that there is a little jewelry display on the bottom. In the midst of overly ornate rings and delicate pendants, she notices what looks like a brooch.

“Hey, what do you think of that?” She points at it, hoping that Ilya will see it amongst all the things.

He leans over her shoulder– too close to her, it takes all her might not to wince, ignoring the butterflies eating at her stomach. “Which one?”

“The– uh– the little brooch with the flowers?” She looks closer. It seems like real dried flowers encased in resin. They’re small and of a pale yellow, with a few crimson ones, on a white background. A delicate pattern made of golden metal frames it.

Ilya gasps, “That looks wonderful! It might go well with the scarf too!”

Syran agrees, although she hadn’t thought of that. She swallows, then suggests they head into the store.

As she talks to the owner, Ilya looks around the shop, curiously admiring the various displays. The brooch is even more beautiful up close, and the shopkeeper explains to her how this is special and one of a kind. Promises that she will give Syran a good price for it. She thanks the woman, and asks if she can wrap it as a gift.

“No problem, dear,” The lady says, reaching for a little red satin bag. As she fills it with some cotton to shield the brooch, she glances up at Ilya, who’s now looking at a small display of old books.

“Those ones are almost all first editions, you know,” she tells him.

“Oh– really?” Ilya turns, eyes filled with wonder. “They seem well preserved!”

“Of course,” The lady nods, delicately putting the brooch inside the bag, “I only get the best quality things.”

Ilya laughs, then moves onto another window. The lady slowly ties the bag with a textured ribbon, “Your boyfriend’s got a good eye,” she whispers.

Syran’s eyes widen, and she starts to stutter. “Oh– n– he’s not– we’re not together– he’s not my boyfriend.” She matches the shopkeeper’s tone, hoping that Ilya hasn’t heard them. Luckily, he seems too enthralled by the various objects to notice.

The lady throws another look at Ilya, then raises an eyebrow with a sly smile. “Are you sure?”

Syran doesn’t know how to answer for a second. Then she nods, slowly. “Yeah, uh. I am.”

When they leave the shop, Syran sighs in relief. Partly, because she’s got a present she’s really happy with. And also because she’s out of the shopkeeper's enquiring gaze.

“Happy?” Ilya asks her, smiling.

Syran looks up at him, startled. “Ye–yes! Very! I really hope she’ll like it.”

“Oh, she will,” he reassures her.

As they make their way back, Ilya starts wondering about what to wear at the party.

“I mean, I love her, but what sort of theme is Vintage Masquerade? Like, couldn’t she pick something simple? I don’t know, casual party attire?”

Syran laughs, although she agrees. She has no idea what to wear either.

“I mean, you kind of got it easy, you could throw on some slacks, a shirt, and some suspenders or something. Or a vest. Those are vintage.” She shrugs. She doesn’t know much about this stuff, really, but she does like dressing up. That is, when the theme is clear and easy.

“I guess– not even sure I have a vest, though,” Ilya ponders.

“Well, hey, you’re going to have to ditch your bomber jacket anyway.”

He gasps, fake offended. “Excuse me, this is my piece of resistance! Keeps me warm and looks amazing!”

Syran laughs it off, “Sure, but– still doesn’t quite hit the mark, does it?”

Ilya huffs like a pouting child. It’s endearing. “Whatever, I’ll figure something out, I guess.” Then he turns back to Syran.

“What about you?”

“What about me?”

“What are you gonna wear?”

Oh. With all the business of the day, she had forgotten to look for clothes or even think about it. Again.

“Uhmm–” She thinks back to her wardrobe. Mentally scans through her more formal things.

“Dunno– I guess I have a lilac dress I could wear? It’s kind of vintage? It’s the best I can do, honestly.” She huffs a small laugh, but the more she thinks about it the more she thinks the dress will be fine.

It’s made of a light and flowy material, with a high neck that closes with a few small buttons, leaving a drop–like window on the chest. It’s a delicate dress, but the knee-length skirt and cut are vintage-inspired, at least.

“That sounds nice,” Ilya hums. “Now we just gotta find some masks to go with it,” he sighs.

“Oh, well, we have about a week for that, at least.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Ilya frowns as if he’s trying to think where he could possibly find a mask.

“Although I think Pasha said there will be an array of masks to choose from at the party? Nadia knew a place or something, I think it’s to prevent people from showing up without one,” Syran realises with a smile, thinking of Pasha’s resolve and Nadia’s attention to details.

“Well, one less thing to worry about then,” Ilya sighs. “Although I hope to find one that works with my look. I’m a man of fashion, after all.”

“You could always make one,” Syran cackles, playfully hitting his arm. “And you didn’t know what to wear until I told you!”

He laughs back, teasing. “Hey, doesn’t mean I can’t dress at all!”

Syran’s smile only gets wider. It stays like that even after they’ve parted ways.

🂱

Syran doesn’t know how she got roped into this.

It all started with Asra and Nadia inviting her out for a few drinks– sure, it’s a Friday night, what’s a cocktail going to do?

So she got ready, wore one of her favourite outfits just as an incentive to feel more like going out, and met Asra at their usual place.

Except, when she arrived at the Raven, Asra and Nadia weren’t the only ones sitting at the table. A familiar head filled with auburn hair was sitting next to them, too.

Syran joined them, all smiles and greetings, and then dived immediately for the bar– anything to escape Asra’s knowing smile, Nadia’s attentive eyes, and Ilya’s annoyingly pretty face.

The bar isn’t too crowded, but thankfully still enough for her to blend with the people around her. She leans at the counter, waiting for a familiar face to greet her. Tonight Joon is working, which makes her smile. Since she and Asra have been coming here, he’s quickly become friends with them. She orders and idly chats with Joon as he makes her drink.

“Getting the usual?” A deep voice startles her.

Oh, she really can’t escape this shit.

She looks up at Ilya, who’s smirking at her. She does feel more relaxed around him now, but there are still moments like this, where he sneaks up on her and all of her blood rushes to her cheeks. To add insult to injury, Syran’s eyes can’t help but trail to Ilya’s outfit. He’s wearing a sleek black turtleneck that fits him like a glove. She doesn’t know if she hates this more or the shirts with the unbuttoned tops.

She turns back towards the bar, “Yep. Oaxaca old-fashioned all the way, baby.”

She taps her fingers on the wood and leans a little forward to look behind the counter, where Joon is just about to hand her the glass.

She grabs it with a smile, carefully taking the first sip. “Ah– you’re the best, Joon. Thank you.”

“Anytime, dear,” Joon winks at her. She loves him, honestly, and not only because he’s nice and handsome. He genuinely makes her laugh and has helped her more than a few times when unpleasant patrons have bothered her.

“Well, good, because I’ll definitely be back for another one,” she smirks and winks back.

Joon laughs, then turns to Ilya, “what can I get you?”

When Syran looks up at Ilya as she takes another sip from her glass, she notices the weird expression on his face. He’s almost frowning at Joon, but she brushes it down to his bushy eyebrows. He can unintentionally look like he’s glaring at people, when the light is right.

Then, he turns to Syran with a sly smile, “You know, I’ve never had an Oaxaca old-fashioned.”

She swallows, then puts the glass down, “You should! The ones Joon makes are god-tier.” Syran suggests excitedly.

Ilya seems to ponder on it for a second, “Mhh– but what if I don’t like it?”

Ilya’s never struck Syran for the indecisive type. But then again, maybe he just really wants to get a good drink right now. He seems to come to a realisation, just then.

“Ah– what if I tried yours?” He asks, genuine, but with a weird glint in his eyes. Syran did not expect the question, it leaves her a little dumbfounded.

“S–sure, why not–” She hands him the glass, and he grabs it, eagerly.

“Thank you,” Ilya proceeds to take a small sip from the glass, and Syran can’t help but notice that’s almost where she drank from, his lips dangerously close to the subtle stain of her lipstick.

Syran throws a glance at Joon, who’s patiently waiting for them. He shoots her a questioning look, raising an eyebrow. She just kinda shrugs.

Ilya puts the glass back on the counter, “That’s actually really really good.” He looks at it like he’s surprised.

“Told ya’,” Syran smirks.

When they get back to their table, equal drinks in their hands, Nadia and Asra are animatedly engaged in conversation. They kinda stop when Syran and Ilya arrive, turning to them with coy smiles.

Asra notices the drink in Ilya’s hand and then gasps, “Wow, she convinced you? She’s been trying to get me to drink that since forever.”

Syran rolls her eyes, “I gave up, you clearly only like extremely sweet shit–”

“And happily so,” Asra mocks her, then turns to Ilya again. “You actually like it?”

Ilya nods as if he doesn’t see what the fuss is all about, “Yeah, it’s really good.”

“It’s not as bad as you make it to be, Asra,” Nadia chimes in.

Ilya shrugs, then takes another sip. Syran can’t help but smile proudly at Asra, like she’s won an ongoing battle between the two of them.

“Well, it’s good to see you both have clearly similar tastes,” Asra says, before carefully drinking from the straw in his tall glass, filled with a bright pink cocktail. Both Ilya and Syran widen their eyes.

“Ah– guess so,” Ilya chuckles.

“Yeah,” Syran mutters, glaring at Asra. “Anyway, you guys noticed how they changed the backlight of the sign behind the bar? I actually like it better now,” Syran starts, trying to sway the conversation.

Maybe it’s not as graceful as she’d like, but it works. They all start talking about the bar and its decor, how they’ve always loved this place; time passes by and soon they’re all a little flushed and tipsy, except Nadia, who’s the designated driver for the night.

Then, at one point, Asra’s eyes trail behind Syran, and they widen in shock.

“Oh shit,” He says, crouching down as if to hide behind his drink. Nadia puts a hand on Asra’s back, concerned.

“What?” Both Syran and Ilya turn towards where Asra looked, trying to figure out what happened.

“Don’t look, you idiots!” Asra whispers, angry. “Valerius is here! Shit!”

Syran then realises, “Oh, fuck, really? I thought he didn’t come here anymore!”

“Yeah, well, he’s by the counter. Shit, fuck!”

“Who’s– uh– who’s Valerius?” Ilya asks, clearly confused.

“Asra’s awful ex,” Nadia explains, “he was an asshole and we all hate him, viciously.” She’s got fire in her eyes, and Syran knows she is mirroring it herself.

“He fucking– he cheated on me and then said it was my fault. It was– it was fucking awful.” Asra looks like he’s about to cry. Syran wants to reach for him and hug him. She knows Asra’s wound is still fresh and knows how hard it was for him to move on from the hurt.

Ilya sneers, “That’s disgusting.”

“Damn right,” Nadia adds, glaring towards where Valerius is.

“Hey, it’s okay, we can leave if you want,” Syran reaches out for Asra’s hand, trying to reassure him.

He shakes his head, sneaking another glance, “Then he will have won. Again.”

“No, he will not,” Nadia declares, “If he says anything we’ll beat the shit out of him. Fuck, even Joon will be on our side on this.”

“Nadia’s right,” Ilya adds, “Plus, I’ve dabbled in bar brawling before.”

It makes the table laugh, if a little, but it lightens the mood. It doesn’t last long, though.

“Shit– is that? Is that Lucio? Are you fucking kidding me?” Asra says, now even angrier than before.

“Oh, hell no–” Nadia goes to get up, but Asra holds her down.

“Nadi no, I just– I don’t want to see them.”

“Do you want me to drive you home?” Nadia asks. Asra nods, gingerly.

“That’s cool, Asra, we can go–” Syran starts.

“Not all at once, though–” He says, resolute. “I don’t want to draw attention.”

There’s a joke Syran could make there about how Asra doesn’t exactly blend in the crowd, with his flashy fashion and white hair, but she knows that wouldn’t make him laugh right now– clearly, all he wants to do is disappear.

“How about this,” Nadia says, turning towards Syran and Ilya, hand still on Asra’s back, “I’ll take him home and you guys enjoy the rest of your drinks. You’ve barely started these glasses, while we’re almost done. You call me when you’re finished and I’ll come back to pick you up, okay?”

“Nadi, you don’t have to–” Ilya starts, but she waves a hand to interrupt him.

“It’s no problem, really,” she smiles kindly, “You guys just enjoy the night, yeah?”

Syran looks at Asra, now clearly on the verge of tears. Whether they’re from hurt or anger, she can’t tell. Probably a mix of both. But he knows what she’s about to say nonetheless.

“Don’t worry, S,– I’ll be okay, yeah? I asked you to come out, it’s just fair that you enjoy your time. Seriously.”

Syran nods, resigned, knowing how stubborn Asra can get. “Okay but–”

“I’ll call you later, promise.”

“Promise,” Syran retaliates. A concerned frown doesn’t leave her face, even as Asra and Nadia carefully slip out the table, then towards the end of the counter, well hidden from Valerius’ attention. Syran spots Nadia talking to Joon, probably asking him to let them out through the back.

And just like that, Syran is left at the table alone with Ilya, both of them in awkward silence, staring at their drinks. Finally, Ilya speaks.

“I’ve never– I’ve never seen Asra like that.”

Syran looks at him, notices the worry in his features as he twirls the glass in his hands.

“Yeah, he tries to hide his feelings, when he can, the idiot,” she smiles bitterly; stars know how many times she’s tried to tell Asra that bottling it all up doesn’t help anyone.

“I can understand that,” Ilya looks up at her. “I hate to pry but– who’s–”

“Lucio? The guy Valerius cheated with. Also, Nadia’s ex of like–” She tries to do mental math. “Four? Years ago?”

“Yikes,” Ilya just says, taking a big sip of his drink.

“Yep– it’s– a lot.” Syran sighs, “We thought he was going to be out of our life after Nadia broke up with his ass, but– guess not.”

She inhales, exhausted only at the thought of all that happened in the past. Things were definitely messier than now. She takes another swig of her drink.

“Well–” Ilya smiles, putting his glass down, “what if we did something about that?”

The glint in his eyes is mischievous, and Syran raises an eyebrow from behind her drink.

“What do you have in mind?”

🂱

Pranks have never been something Syran thought about. Never felt the need to fill someone’s shoes with toothpaste, or hide a fake spider in the bathroom, or whatever it is that the kids do these days. She always felt bad for those people in prank videos that get visibly hurt.

But this– she didn’t mind this one bit.

She and Ilya are running out of the bar, lungs filled with laughter, as Lucio and Valerius’ screams fade behind them. They run long enough until their legs give up, and even then, they find it in themselves to keep laughing.

“Jesus– their face– priceless!” Syran heaves out.

“I told you–” Ilya adds, big smile not leaving his face, eyes all crinkled up and blush on his cheeks. “Cranberry juice always works–”

They haven’t done anything that spectacular, really, but Syran will realise this later, when the adrenaline has rushed out of her. Right now, spilling juice on those two idiots’ white clothes and making Lucio trip on his ass was enough to make her night.

“Didn’t expect you to punch Valerius, though,” Ilya grins at her, as if impressed.

Yeah, and that too.

“Me neither– I don’t condone violence, but–” Syran finally feels her breath coming back to her, “–but, god, he deserved it.”

“Sure did–” Ilya laughs with her, adjusting his coat.

They stare at each other for a few seconds, all smiles and excitement, rush of electricity that Syran hadn’t felt in a while. Not like this.

“Well–” Ilya starts, “Maybe we should– uh. Go?”

“Yeah– I could call an uber?” Syran suggests.

“Actually, I was more thinking, like– I can walk you home, maybe?” He seems almost scared to ask for a second, but then his features relax. “Honestly, I feel bad calling Nadia now and it might be good to shake the alcohol off.” He looks up at the clear sky. “It’s a nice night, anyway.”

He’s right. It’s hard to see stars from the city, but the moon is bright and beautiful.

Syran doesn’t quite know what to say, though she agrees with not bothering Nadia. She is probably busy taking care of Asra right now, and that reassures her a lot. But Syran’s house is a good thirty minutes walk away, not to mention that Ilya would have to walk back through the city for more than that.

“I– I don’t know. It’s a long way for you– and it’s late–”

“Syran, I assure you that I’ll be fine, I like walking.” He chuckles, “If anything, I know you will punch whoever gets in our way.”

Syran laughs, although a little flustered under Ilya’s endeared stare. “Yeah, I’m basically a pro wrestler now.”

They end up chatting along the way, although the cold winter wind catches up on them, but they don’t mind that much. They’re too distracted by their conversation to think about that.

Getting to know each other like this, casually, with no pressure, without inhibitions, has become natural to them. They get to talk about things that they never addressed, make jokes that seem so dumb and niche they are surprised when the other laughs.

Ilya was the last one to join their group of friends, so she can imagine he felt a little distant from everyone else at first. But it’s been over a year now, and the group feels really solid, like pieces of a puzzle fitting together with harmony.

Still, Syran always felt like her and Ilya never really got to talk much like this, just the two of them. And maybe it’s the alcohol, maybe it’s the way Ilya makes her feel at ease, but she doesn’t feel as skittish around him anymore.

Sure, her heart still jumps when he laughs, and any little brush of their arms makes her breath hitch, but– but– there’s not much of an excuse for that, other than she’s clearly got feelings for him.

It is a crush. A heavy one at that.

But she can live with it, she can just enjoy their friendship and not act on them.

They are close to her building when they are laughing at a story Syran is telling, of one time where she and Asra got lost in a park and thought a ghost was haunting them.

“I swear, Asra tried to act all brave, but–” in the middle of the phrase, a strong fit of pain hits the side of her head. She had managed to ignore the creeping migraine until then, but suddenly, it feels like her brain is about to explode. She holds a hand to where the pain is, eyes shut and slightly crouching forward.

“Syran? You okay?” Ilya reaches a hand to her shoulder, tone immediately shifting to heavy concern.

“Yeah– just– I get migraines– sometimes,” she mutters through the pain.

“That’s not good,” Ilya says. “We’re almost to your place, you think you can make it?”

“Ye–yeah– sorry–”

“Why are you apologising? Had I known, I–”

“Don’t want you to worry,” she utters, finally feeling like she can open her eyes a little, “I’m used to it.”

It does nothing to ease Ilya’s concern though. If anything, he seems to worry more, reaching to fully encase Syran in his arm, supporting her as they walk.

“Really, I’ll be okay,” she says.

“Yeah, I’ll believe that when you’re home and feeling better,” He scoffs, his hand rubbing up and down Syran’s arm. “Don’t forget I’m basically a doctor.”

It makes Syran laugh a little, “Right, Doctor Devorak, ready to help.”

“Is that a mocking tone I’m sensing, Miss Elkas?”

“No–” Syran says, teasing, although through the pain, “I wouldn’t dare.”

Ilya laughs, then seems to hold her tighter. “Almost there.”

They finally reach her building, and she gingerly gets out her keys to open the door.

“Thank you,” she turns to say goodbye to him, “Get home safe.”

But he just stares at her. “Didn’t I say I’ll stop worrying until you’re home?”

Syran chuckles, “But I am–”

“Yeah, I meant home home. I’ll take you up–” then he widens his eyes, catching himself. “That’s if– if you’re okay with that, of course.”

Syran thinks about it for a second, but the pain is too strong to argue right now. She just nods and mutters a okay, and goes to let Ilya through before her.

Sometimes things just don’t go as planned, though.

As she’s about to follow behind him, something hits her shoulder, and hard. She turns just in time to see someone running past her, then she loses her balance and hits the floor.

The last thing Syran sees before passing out is Ilya’s hands reaching for her.

#an writes #fic writing #julianxapprentice #julianxsyran #julian devorak #portia devorak #ilya devorak #pasha devorak #nadia satrinava #lucio morgasson #asra alnazar #muriel #the arcana fic #the arcana #part 3

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i-am-just-a-kiddo · 4 years

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2020 content creator review

i was tagged by @vishcount as usual, thank you 💕 i answered the questions below the cut, and everyone that is tagged is there too, if you just wanna skip my ramblings and go straight down there. (also gosh i hope all the links work rip)

1. first creation and most recent creation of 2020:

this lan wangji oneshot, apparently. i can’t remember when i actually wrote it, but my ao3 tells me i posted it in january 2020. i remember i just wanted to explore lwj’s time of mourning and dive into his mind of that time, even if it made me eternally sad?

my most recent 2020 creation that is public, is the second chapter to this casmund/edmund character study fic i started writing in 2016. i did not expect to return to that but rewatching the narnia movies did that to me. i guess it’s one of those ever-returning fandoms

2. one of your favorite creations from 2020:

my niemo (nie huaisang/mo xuanyu) fic, no question. diving into this, i fully knew that this pairing probably has a tiny audience and honestly, i did not expect to churn out 30k for them. god. am still suffering because why the fuck did i do that to myself (and everyone reading). thank you vishie for standing by me all the time.

3. a new style you tried this year and a gifset edit that uses it:

my historical taegi AU set in silla korea - i don’t think it’s actually a new style writing-wise, but it was an entirely different process of creating. i did a week of only research, diving into amounts of academic texts and sources to figure out my frame and setting. it was so much fun and in the end, with everything i learned, it felt like the fic was only just the ‘by-product’ of my research. though i must say, writing the story itself was challenging in a very different way, by that i mean that the characters made me furious and yet i had to write it like that cause i like to suffer :)

as for gifset, am not sure? i can’t think of any so i am just linking the daechwita mv cause it’s iconic. i guess this mv is more joseon inspired, while my setting was silla somewhere between the end of 7th and beginning of 8th century; but it was the final straw to finally make me write that historical taegi au i always wanted to write with hwarang tae. also this mv inspired me to have yoongi as a tyrannical king cause why not amirite?

4. a creation to be proud of:

my wei wuxian oneshot during burial mounds; i had a lot of fun writing him and projecting all my nightmares onto him. i went in without a plan and ended up with something i am actually quite proud of? it gave me so much space and room to just...pour out my words and not worry too much about anything else.

5. a creation that took forever:

my post-canon wangxian adventure or qinghe chaos, as i lovingly call it. i think i started writing it in november 2019? not entirely sure about that, i only know it took ages. i wanted to create a whole new political environment, as it takes place somewhere around 70 years after canon (they wanna be immortal, shut up) and it was fun thinking of new challenges and new obstacles that face the new generation of cultivators. unfortunately i did not have the capacity to write a full blown political conflict. that’s why i never really incorporated all my thoughts into the story itself, but hey, if anyone has questions i have notes (and vishie, once again, is the most blessed person to plot with me, ily)

6. your creation from 2020 that received the most notes:

am gonna measure this by kudos on ao3 in that case, which would be the aforementioned lwj oneshot Cold Moon, Long Nights Moon. I feel incredibly fond of it and i’m really happy that people liked it. it feels special somehow and i just want to thank everyone who read that and liked it.

7. a creation you think deserved more notes:

oh i wrote many fics that year for smaller fandoms, which makes me grateful for every single feedback i received. i think i had hoped my previously mentioned historical AU would receive more, but it’s okay because i still loved it.

another one is this princess sook myung/ah roh fic that i wrote for my ‘make hwarang gay again’ series. i finally finished this show and it furstrated me so much - the gay potential that went to waste, the horrendous writing for female characters. i liked the chemistry between ah roh and the princess, and yes i get it, it’s a rare pair and this fandom is kinda dead, but. the girls deserve their shine and love (though still, i am grateful for every single kudos i receive and i am still proud of it)

8. a new fandom you joined and a creation you made for it:

i joined many new fandoms this year for which i wrote, but i want to mention my shang xirui character study for winter begonia, because it was very interesting to explore that? and i had fun too, it was one of the first things i properly wrote after my hiatus, so i felt quite proud. also once again, this fandom has way too little content and the show is underrated.

9. a creation you made that breaks your heart:

i wanna mention two here. first is this wen ning & song lan oneshot that was a pure joy and also very sad to write. i just love these two so much, and i love them together even more. i have many thoughts how much comfort they could give each other and believe me, i have many more that i want to explore in the future.

the second one is the mu nihuang & xiao jingyan oneshot i wrote for the nirvana in fire gift exchange 2020. it broke my heart, but at the same time it felt like something was healing too? it hurt at the pain both characters go through, but i also felt fond that maybe, they were not alone.

10. a ‘simple’ creation that you really love:

hmm there are a few, i mostly want to mention my fei liu character study? it has no plot or anything, it is just an exploration of his mind and thoughts, which was an absolute joy to write and somehow so easy.

i also quite like the yyy series i started - maybe i can write more for these two because they somehow give me the feels.

11. a favorite creation created by someone else:

alright here we go folks:

first i want to mention my dearest @vishcount because newsflash!!! i am the biggest fan. of course i need to mention your wondeful, stunning, breathtaking masterpiece that is your xicheng novel (and yes it is a novel, i say so). it is still ongoing and you started it in 2019, but i need to mention it here because it truly is something that is lifechanging. i feel so blessed that i get the front seats and vip access to all the updates, to all your thoughts and ideas. you go through a lot with it and i am never not proud of you ❤️ another one i want to mention is this wei wuxian & mo xuanyu oneshot you wrote for me because i am still crying about it. i have no words. honourable mentions: your easter islanders (lan wangji and jiang cheng) and this xicheng soulmate au

another creator i want to mention is @the-cloud-whisperer and their nirvana in fire fic Heroic Woman（烈婦） , which is absolutely wonderful. i found you through your ATLA fics (which i adore) and saw you posting about nirvana in fire and this year, finally, i watched the show and was blown away. i love your other NIF fics too, but this one feels very special because i always thought li yang’s character was so incredibly fascinating. thank you for writing this 💕

for more other creations just look at my bookmarks on ao3, there is the untamed, nirvana in fire, yyy the series, hwarang, winter begonia and original sin (from 2020 and many more if you scroll further) please give everyone i mentioned love!!!!!

12. your favorite content creators and blogs that you appreciate:

oh boy here we go. once again @vishcount, @the-cloud-whisperer, @intyalote, @sassyassassy, @isabellaofparma, @passionpeachy, @finny-red, @guzhuangheaven @honeyiling, @holmesandwhatson @bloody-bee-tea, @leoyunxi, @gusucloud, @ohsehuns and many many more that must slip my mind.

all of you, consider yourself tagged in this game and even if we never spoke to each other, i greatly appreciate all of you and i want to give some love. if you feel like doing this, i hope you can have fun! 💕

#phew #another one done #all my usual suspects must be tired of me dfghj #but this is so lovely and fun #thanks dear #tag game #personal #2020 #writing

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billyboymiki · 4 years

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5 Works Tag Game

Rules: it’s time to love yourselves! choose your 5 (ish) favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and post or link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2020. tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works!

I got tagged by @tippenfunkaport and @caramelaire for this tag game!!

I’m not one to compliment myself on anything honestly. Recently I remember thinking about how I barely drew anything this year. There was a part of my brain nagging at me to check how much I had drawn last year. So, I uh did. Turns out I drew basically nothing?! I triple checked this in fact. My DeviantART, Tumblr AND my camera roll. Nothing . . . I drew 5 very basic pinback button designs and that was it. I couldn’t believe it; but, it made be feel so much better about what I did this year. Basically my whole instagram is all artwork from this year, since I am actually really new to IG. I got super close to 40 works this year!

Now onto the works! They are in order of when I drew them 😊

Glimmer Inspired Patterns

I wanted to teach myself how to make patterns on Clip Studio so bad! I watched a couple of YT tutorials, and I can’t even remember why I decided to make She-ra ones specifically; I’m glad I did though! The Glimmer one means so much to me. Just looking at makes me so happy! The fact that so many people have now called it ‘aesthetically pleasing’ makes me feel as though I actually created a work that others could relate to. That was enough praise for me; to create something for myself that everyone else loved as well 💖

Glimbow Cuddle

This was my first real She-ra artwork. When I saw there was a Glimbow Week again I knew I had to join this one. I don’t know if anyone knows this; but, drawings take me forever to make. I used to be strictly a traditional artist and still prefer to draw rough drafts on paper. I couldn’t decide if I wanted them on Glimmer’s window seat or in Bow’s dads’ library. I was afraid of doing backgrounds; so, both sounded absolutely terrifying. I decided to go for the fireplace even if it meant fancy lighting on top of the background aspect. I think I actually spent more time on the lighting that’s hitting Bow than on anything else in this picture. It was worth it though. I studied how the show did backgrounds and lighting for a while. I tried so many different attempts at how I wanted it to look and ultimately went with this one! I love it so much 🥺

Bow’s list with doodles

Ah, yes the drawings I did for Tippen’s birthday!! I knew I wanted to draw a scene from ‘Tuna Cans’, but I was worried to try something like this. You see, I’m somebody that likes to stay in a comfort zone and only uploaded fully rendered perfect artworks. This year was the first time that I let the ‘fun’ aspect overrule my perfectionism. I’m so happy that I stepped out of my comfort zone for this, because I love Chibi styles so much. I can’t even explain the absolute joy I had drawing these. I didn’t tell anyone what I was up to, so it was just me laughing at myself for being an absolute goofball. The end result and everyone’s reactions were more than I could have ever expected. I’ve decided I’m going to revive this style soon as well so please look forwards to it!!

Space Suit Squad

Okay, so I cheated a little with this one! I couldn’t just pick ONE of the squad. Honestly though, I drew these with the thought of making them into prints in the back of my mind. I taught myself how to draw a space background and I’m really proud of it! So much in fact that the one in the final pictures is the first and last one I ended up doing! If I had to pick my favorites I think I’d have to pick Glimmer, Bow and then Catra. I LOVE the way I draw Catra I don’t know why? Maybe the eyebrows I’m not sure 🤔 It took me a while to decide on expressions and poses; although, I figured these were the ones because I could look at them and go ‘yep that’s them.’

Winter Glimbow

This one took me soooo long; I actually had to tell myself that I should put my pen down because it was done and I should stop touching it!!! I was sketching pictures in my sketchbook to make more patterns for my Redbubble account, and of course I’m like 100% Glimbow brainrot. My brain went, oooo you know what would be cute? If this skate was actually Bow’s and not just generic. So, I ended up sketching Glimmer’s as well. The heart that their skates make is like the cherry on the top for me, it had to be done! I’m not sure I did the background justice on this one? It doesn’t matter to me though because the concept was worth the effort. It was snowing here and I needed this picture like I needed air, even if it wasn’t even December at the time I posted it 🤣 I liked this one so much that I have similar ideas for the other seasons sketched out as well 👀

I’m sorry that I ramble so often. I’m like this quiet person; yet, it’s hard for me to get out everything I want to say? I’m horrible at it actually my brain runs at a hundred miles a minute and I’m not good with words most of the time. This turned out as more of a thought process than my actual feelings on each one I suppose. SO, in conclusion. I drew A LOT, I stepped out of my comfort zone, taught myself digital art and patterns. I let myself come to terms with the fact that not every piece of art has to be ‘perfect’. I drew at least 5 FULL backgrounds and I never used to draw them! I’ve also always been one for simple shading and lighting, and I do think there’s a time for that type of style, while other times sometimes a more difficult one might be appropriate. I’m glad that I did both because now I know I can do both, and they each give a characteristic that I adore 🥰 Thank you to everyone that has followed me through this journey, or just anyone who read my rambling! I have an honorable mention under the cut and some originals for anyone that made it this far! 💖

I’m not going to tag anyone; but, if you want to do this PLEASE do it. It was so great to reflect on what I did this year, it really surprised me and I think what you have done will surprise you as well! It’s been a rough year, and in the end we have been here supporting each other and that’s one of the most rewarding parts of being in a fandom! 💜

Glimmer screencap redraw

Another picture where I really tested myself on drawing a background! I love it even if it killed my hand!! The background definitely took the longest on this one too. My sister literally said ‘Wait, you did the background? I thought you just drew her?!’ And that was the only validation I needed!! I ended up thinning out Glimmer’s outline so she matched the background better. If you use the vectors on Clip please use this feature! You can do the opposite as well, it’s super useful!

Oh hi! Remember when I said I couldn’t decide between the two locations? Truth is, I also couldn’t decide if I was going to make it traditional or digital. I ended up getting really mad at the traditional version unfortunately. I haven’t gotten the hang of traditional backgrounds. In the end, I should have also done it in Copic and not cheap pencil crayons 😫

Just some space friends! There is something so rewarding about traditional art. Yes, I can see the mistakes and the proportions are most likely off; yet, it doesn’t bother me? I wanted to also show these bonus drawings because nobody is perfect and I thought some of you might like to see some of my process. Being able to hold it in my hands is something I will never tire of, in a way it’s super rewarding. I keep all my art actually and sometimes I like the rough drafts more than the finished work 👀 Outlining artwork can actually ruin the charm every so often 😔 I do really love the final versions of these though!

Annnnnd the last bonus!! As you can tell the final version stayed pretty true to my sketches! I almost went with a more realistic look and made the symbols ‘stitched’ onto the skates. In the end it felt like it didn’t fit the rest of the drawing unless I wanted to add extra details to the clothing as well. The wings on Glimmer’s skates turned into ‘Shwings’ PLEASE tell me other people know what that is? I had a pair a few years ago and misplaced them. I was doing the rough draft and it popped into brain and I treated it as a joke at first, until I gave it a proper chance XD In the end I fell in love with it!!!

#she-ra #spop #fanart #tag game #billyboymiki #Miki speaks #long post #sorry #my art #I actually cried a little writing all of this 😱#the only thing I wanted to do really bad this year was make an spop amv #I might juggle art and making one so I can get one out at some point

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ink-and-flame · 4 years

Text

Kinktober Day 12: Intensity Imposed

Kinktober Day 12 Prompts: Given away to another Dom (temp) ~ Manicures (giving) ~ Lectures for misbehavior Fandom: Original (Auchendale Archives) Tags: exophilia, dom/sub, angst, Pairing: ?(M)/Human(f), Orc(m)/Human(f), Lucien/Lia, Darnok/Lia

[Author’s Note: I have been reading the comments for this series on the blog and on my Ao3 and I appreciate everyone who chooses to comment. Though I feel that the line of commenting requires me to warn a little more heavily that this story is going to get more angsty and a lot darker going forward. Later parts will have quite a few trigger warnings for content. I have this all mapped out and there may be some changes in where events fall, but I just want to put that out there for people that might be sensitive to it.]

The club had hosted events over the last few months, a couple for everyone and one that was meant for the VIP guests only. Darnok and Lia attended them all and found joy in experiencing new scenes, watching others, and learning more about each other. As time passed, they grew closer and the lines began to blur between their dominant and submissive lifestyle, and their vanilla ones.

Darnok had been texting and calling Lia more frequently and had even done so while he was working, something he had never done in the past. While Lia had come close to inviting him over several times, instead she invited him to a work event where she was allowed to bring guests. It was expected that he would decline, but she felt she needed to at least invite him.

It was needless to say that Lia was shocked when he showed up, cutting quite the figure in his custom suit. Her coworkers did not stop asking about him for weeks after that and she had to insist that he was just a close friend as she feared what might happen if she let herself say they were more. She wasn’t comfortable explaining their actual relationship with anyone, but honestly they were feeling more and more like a couple as time passed.

There were still a few instances that had Lia a little suspicious, but nothing that stood out in a way that said she needed to worry. She understood that Danok needed his privacy and she had made peace with that. Something that had taken time, but Lia was still proud of herself when she realized it didn’t bother her as much. She was certain it had to do with the increased amount of time they spent together, and all the new scenes they were doing. It was hard to be bothered by something when she was having the best sex of her life.

Each new scene brought with it a new thrill, and new kinks to discover. Not every one of them worked out, and some of them were absolutely a sometimes thing and not an always thing. Lia was happy she wasn’t the only one finding new kinks to enjoy. Darnok had explored a little as well and found things he liked that he had never thought of before. Lia was still submissive in these scenes, but he had begun to enjoy their role play scenarios more and more with each one they tried.

Lia was waiting at the club in the lounge with Ember. Darnok had warned her he would be late just so she wouldn’t worry too much. Lia had noticed some tension in him the last few weeks or so and figured it was something with work. Especially with him being late, he was never late on their club weekends.

Darnok had been fighting with himself over the decision he was about to make. It could break things with Lia, but it was necessary. He had overstepped in their relationship, had grown too close, too possessive, and he was worried for how it was making him treat his beautiful little sub. Lia deserved everything, the world really, but he was limited in what he could give her. He only wanted what was best for her, what would fulfill her, and he realized that maybe he was holding her back from finding something more.

He could not budge on the restrictions he had placed on their relationship. His vanilla life had to remain separate and as time went on, it became harder and harder to make that separation with Lia. Darnok knew he had feelings for her, how deep those feelings went were still a mystery. There were times he was convinced he had fallen in love with her, but worried that it was infatuation and not actual love. She was different from the women he was used to. She didn’t seem to be attracted to his power or money, but that didn’t mean she was immune to it. He was used to being used by women, but Lia was different from every other woman he had grown close to. It was making him just a little crazy.

Tonight, he worried she wouldn’t understand. That his choice was to hurt, but it wasn’t. He wanted her to experience more than she had so far and there was only one way to do that. Maybe this was selfish, maybe he was pushing her away now before she could hurt him, but he wasn’t trying to push her away completely. He just needed to know the truth. Was it him, or could any dominant bring out her perfection?

Arriving at the club Darnok was happy to see that Lucien was already there and sitting with Lia and Ember. He had to admit, Ember had been a blessing for Lia. Having a friend she could confide in, and draw strength and confidence from was a beautiful thing. Heading over to the crew Darnok sat next to Lia and kissed her hand in greeting. This would not be easy, and he was close to backing out.

“Ah finally, I have been practically vibrating with excitement. I almost blew the whole thing!” Lucien bounced on the couch in the most dignified manner.

Lia laughed and looked at Lucien. “Almost blew what, and you excited is weirdly adorable.”

Lucien made a noise that sounded a bit like a squeak, which was an accomplishment as his voice was quite deep and had a strange echo to it.

Before Darnok could address the situation properly Lucien blurted out the surprise. “Tonight Lia, you are mine!”

Lia’s eyes were wide and she turned slowly to Darnok who looked somewhere between exasperated and displeased.

“Yes, tonight, after months of being badgered, I have agreed to allow Lucien to scene with you tonight. As always, you are not my slave and you can refuse, but it is my hope that you will agree to this.” Darnok’s tone was even, his expression somewhat guarded. He did not want to influence her decision.

Lia frowned looking confused. “Did I do something wrong?”

Darnok shook his head. “Of course not. I thought it would be good for your continued education to experience a different dominant, someone who has different wants and experiences than myself. Lucien has been offering me nothing short of his soul for this opportunity. I felt that this would be the perfect time as we are both expanding our interests.”

Lia glanced at Lucien and could see his barely contained excitement. His eyes were so bright she was convinced they were glowing. Looking back at Darnok, she had to ask. “Are you taking one of his subs in exchange?” This was a hard question to ask, but she had to know.

“No. This is my way of trying not to ruin your weekend by needing to cancel. I am afraid something came up. I have to meet with an orc from another clan. This was sprung on me and while I know a little about Gorvaal, we have never officially met. He insisted it be this weekend, and I could not get out of it.”

It was hard to hide her shock. Lia had never heard Darnok speak of orc clan things, he tended to keep that part of himself private as well. Though Lia wasn’t sure why but maybe it was because she wasn’t an orc and perhaps he felt she wouldn’t understand. This sounded important and she was sad to lose time with him, but understanding overall.

“Darnok, you could have just canceled I would have understood.” She wasn’t trying to insult Lucien, but she wasn’t sure how comfortable with all this she was.

“I am aware, but I felt that at least one of us should have a nice weekend, and Lucien was never going to stop so this seemed like a fun compromise. He knows that if you aren’t comfortable with something, that you wont do it and that he cannot force you. He is safe, I promise Lia, I would never hand you over to someone I did not fully trust.” Darnok smiled and stroked Lia’s cheek. “Also, having Lucien in our debt could be quite lucrative for us. Maybe not island get away lucrative, but still.”

Sitting there looking a bit thoughtful, Lia realized that perhaps this wasn’t the worst thing that could happen. Darnok wasn’t tired of her or angry, he just wanted her to experience something different. The last part about Lucien owing them, well that was interesting. If she was honest she didn’t know Lucien all that well and this could be her opportunity to learn more about him and having him as a friend was never a bad thing.

“Ok, you are right I was being sensitive. This is a good learning opportunity. I hope everything goes well with your meeting.” Lia smiled up at Darnok.

“Perfect.” Darnok leaned in and kissed Lia on the forehead. “I must go, I trust Lucien with my own life, and I am trusting him with yours.”

Darnok stood and headed out. He hoped that they both got what they needed from this evening, though a small part of him hissed little words of worry at him. The seed of jealousy planted, not yet growing, but there ready to sprout if tended to.

Lia turned to Lucien. “I, don’t really know how to begin.”

“Oh don’t worry darling. I already have a room set up for us and my bags are there. We don’t have to start until you are ready. I promise, no matter what you are expecting, it wont be.” His smile was cryptic as he brushed his long hair from his face.

It was probably her imagination, but Lucien’s horns looked larger somehow. His ears more pointed, his skin more textured. He was looking more inhuman the longer she stared and Lia was worried she was imagining things because she was worried. “I know you wont hurt me, we can start, or at least head to the room and begin negotiations.”

Lia waved to Ember and followed Lucien to the room they would be using. She was nervous but also a little excited. She had not really expected anything like this and wasn’t sure what Lucien would have her do. The room had a table, some comfortable chairs, and some other basic furniture. Overall, nothing too extreme in that sense and it helped her relax a bit.

Lucien sat down and waved her over to a chair opposite him and began to place items from a bag on the table. “I know you won’t have any professional experience. I am not looking for that today. This is just soothing to me, don’t judge.”

Confusion filled her as he placed bowls, small jars, brushes, and mixtures she could not immediately identify on the table. Once she saw the nail polish she was even more confused and her confusion showed clearly on her face when she spoke. “What? Um what are we doing?”

“You, dearest, are going to give me a manicure. I like to be pampered by those that serve me. I had considered letting you do my horns, but I thought I would start with something simple. Don’t worry I can provide instruction if you get lost.”

Lia blinked, looking at Lucien suspiciously. “You hounded Darnok for months, and you want me to do your nails?”

The smile on Lucien's face unnerved Lia a bit. There was something deeply unsettling about that smile and she felt somewhat like prey that has gotten a little too comfortable with a predator.

“For now, that is all I am asking of you.” Moving his hands on the table he gestured to the bowls. “First you will need to put some water in and mix a little of the contents of these jars and I can soak my hands first.”

Lia nodded, following the instructions. She was still suspicious but this seemed easy by comparison to anything else that had ever been asked of her. His hands felt interesting and she found herself stroking over his skin, and marveling at his long dark nails which looked suspiciously like claws to her.

“You love him.”

Head lifting up quickly Lia looked at Lucian with wide eyes. “What?”

“You love him, you love him so much it hurts you. I can see it, sense it, smell it on you. He is more than just a dominant to you. You love him and you want to be with him.”

Swallowing hard Lia looked down and focused on the hands in front of her. She could lie, say he was mistaken, but she felt that he would point out that lie and she did not want to risk angering him. “Why does it matter?”

“I could ask you any number of similar questions, but the truth is you love him.”

“If I do?” Lia was curious now, what Lucien wanted from all this.

“I like you.” Lucien was smiling, this one more gentle. “I worry for you little mortal.”

Lia stared hard at him, questions on the tip of her tongue she feared asking outright. “You like me? So you are hoping to entice me away?”

Lucien laughed his eyes sparkling. “I doubt that I could. Such is the way of mortal love. Once a heart is as set as yours, swaying it takes more than one of my kind would usually bother with. Though the reward would be worth the pain, I assure you, but no, that is not my goal.”

It was hard not to be suspicious of him and now Lia had to wonder just what Lucien really was. “So if you aren’t trying to steal me away, why are we here talking about my feelings?”

“I told you. I am worried. You are holding it inside yourself. I can see that you are in pain, that you are taking risks. You let him guide your wants and desires but do you do it because you want it, or because you hope if you impress him enough that you will earn what you want most from him?”

Lia winced, a twinge of pain twisting through her as she dried his hands and began to clean away the dead skin, rubbing a nice lotion in at his request, and starting to shape his now somewhat softened claws. Though if she was honest, she was sure they weren’t actually softer it was just her mind telling her that was how it had to be.

Lucien had hit on something tender and fragile inside of her. It was a question she had asked herself many times and it was one she had yet to answer. She wanted to believe she did it for herself, but there was a nagging voice that told her she also wanted to impress Darnok. Lucien was not far from the truth, but it wasn’t a simple either or situation.

“You seem to know everything, you tell me.” It wasn’t the nicest answer and Lia expected a reprimand.

“I wouldn’t say everything, but I know more than most. I see what mortals cannot or will not, and I read people better than they know themselves. Your anger is misplaced. I am not the one you should lash out at.”

“Then who?”

“Well now, isn’t that the question of the day? Learning to ask the right questions is the first step to further opening your mind, and that is really all I want from this session today.” Lucien pointed to the colors he wanted and picked up his phone to show her the design he was after. “I hope it isn’t too complicated?”

“No, I can manage that. I do my own nails sometimes, never anything like this though.” Lia used the distraction of the manicure to think for a bit.

What did Lucien actually mean about asking the right questions. Why couldn’t he just tell her and not be cryptic. It was frustrating, but entirely Lucien. She honestly wasn’t surprised that he was turning out to be some cryptic elder creature or some such. She was still torn between dragon and demon, though he could be something else entirely as well.

“These are nice colors. I think they will look striking on you.” Lia made conversation, not really knowing where to go from her.

Her heart sank as she thought of reasons why Lucien would choose this topic, of everything else they could talk about. What if that orc meeting was an arranged marriage. That was a horrible thought and Lia had to physically shake her head to banish that thought and looked up at Lucien with a blush.

“You make it seem like we are going to do scenes together again.”

“Well I certainly hope we do. I know that you will never see me the way you see him, and that I cannot give you your heart's desire, but I can give you other things. It would please me if you would consider, when Darnok is not available, that I be a substitute for loneliness?”

Lia found that there was something in his eyes that seemed genuine enough that she wasn’t ready to outright say no. “Does Darnok know?”

“About the topic of our discussion? Or that I want to spend more time with you?”

“Both.” Lia was pleased with the base coat and the first coat of the polish. She was happy it was gel polish, not wanting to wait for standard enamel to dry before applying another coat.

“No, and yes.” Lucien answered in order. “He doesn’t know the content of what types of scenes I wanted with you, just that I did. He also has no idea how deep your feelings are, but I think a part of him senses it. He isn’t completely oblivious, only mostly so.” Lucien chuckled and winked at Lia.

She laughed, it felt wrong but she laughed. “Well, he has a lot on his plate. It must be hard being whoever he is and doing whatever it is he does. I get the struggle, keeping your vanilla life and this life completely separate. It has to be harder when you have more of a life to deal with.”

Lucien regarded Lia for a long moment as she painted over his nails with another coat of color. “How much do you know about Darnok? His personal and professional life outside of this I mean?”

“Next to nothing. He is clearly rich and powerful. That much has been made clear multiple times. I try not to let it make me uncomfortable, but sometimes I feel I don’t know who he is at all, but then I know that I know the most private parts of him, so maybe I know him better than the other people in his life. It is hard to really say.”

“I see.” Lucien grew quiet for a moment. “So you have no idea, at all, who he is?”

This made Lia look at Lucien with narrowed suspicious eyes. “I know he is Darnok, that is what I know. What do you mean who he is?”

For the first time since Lia had met him, Lucien looked decidedly uncomfortable. It was strange, it looked wrong on him somehow and that made her nervous.

“He is Darnok, as you said.” Lucien cleared his throat and fought to tap his nails, not wanting to ruin her concentration.

“Ok, well, clearly you know more than me and I know if I ask you will either give me half truths or nothing. So is there a reason you brought it up?”

“Darnok is a dear friend, and who he is has been a problem in the past. You love him, despite not really knowing and that makes it even more beautiful to me. You truly do not care about his money, his power, any of it, do you?”

“No Lucien, I don’t. I care about him. I want him, and I don’t know if the problem here is me or him.”

“It’s him. It is always him. You are a blessing. A sweet mortal with a good and kind heart. Darnok, on the other hand, is emotionally constipated. You have a lot of work ahead of you if you want to pursue this.”

“I feel like this is more of a lecture than a conversation.”

“It wasn’t intended to be, but I can lecture you if that is what you are into?”

Lia laughed and shook her head, carefully painting the design on his nails. It wasn’t perfect, but she suspected he didn’t need it to be.

“Maybe later, who knows, maybe I am into it.”

Lucien regarded Lia for a moment. “You are lovely and kind, if I asked for more than this, would you?”

“I guess it depends on what you actually want. There are lines I am not sure I am ready to cross and I am still learning my limits. I don’t know you as well as I know him, my own nerves could be a problem.”

“I can be gentle, when I choose to be and when it is desired.”

“I would hate to mess up your manicure.” Lia teased with a smile.

“If it got messed up I would just have to have you do it again, but I understand. Not tonight?”

Looking thoughtful Lia considered their conversation. Darnok didn’t know what they were going to do, and had still handed her over. Lucien knew how Lia felt and wasn’t seeking an emotional connection. Perhaps this could work out for her and help her release some of that frustration.

“Ok, well I mean we do have this room for a while. What did you have in mind?”

Lucien’s eyes glowed. His smile brightened his face as he grasped her hands letting his thumbs brush over the backs of them. “Oh lovely little Lia. All I ask of you is simple.” Lucien paused letting go of her hands and standing up.

Coming around the table he picked her up easily and carried her over to the bed on the other side of the room laying her down and looming over her.

“Let me worship you.”

#exophilia #human/monster #intensify series #Auchendale Archives #Kinktober 2020

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philliamwrites · 4 years

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i could make you want me (pt.1)

Fandom: Persona 5

Pairing: Akira/Akechi

Tags: #persona 5 royal spoilers, #pining, #crossdressing, #kissing, #light roleplay, #akechi rank 3 spoilers

Words: 2.6k

Summary: Akechi allowing Akira to dress him up makes Akira wonder what else the detective might allow him to do.

Note: Part 2

i could make you want me

“I really don’t think this is a good idea,” Akechi says, smile still plastered on his face even though it is quite the definition of ‘forced’. Someone glued it on and forgot to remove it, and now the whole concept of showing what he really thinks about this seems foreign to him. Akira can’t imagine he’s all too happy.

“Trust me, this will be great.” Akira’s hands strain trying to reach Akechi’s hair. His fingers around Akira’s wrists are burning hot, and for someone as skinny as Akechi, he’s surprisingly strong. Yet another little fact Akira is going to hide in his chest so he can unfold it later and put together the puzzle that Akechi is. The first fact he’s learnt: Akechi smells really good.

“You didn’t have to take it literally, you know.” He’s still struggling against Akira’s grabby hands, his back bending further and further over the sink and Akira summons every ounce of self-control so he doesn’t step closer to push his pelvis against Akechi’s. He’s come this far; he won’t fuck it up by allowing his hormones to take over.

Luckily, the restroom inside the café is empty, though not for long Akira imagines, and he’s sure whoever enters next will interpret this scene as Akira trying to assault the famous detective and call the cops on him (which isn’t news but he’d still rather spend his time with Akechi in peace).

“It’s really—” Akira grunts. “For your own good.” A step to the side, his hip against Akechi’s and there you can see his self-control flying out of the window. Akechi makes a choking sound, but the brief contact is enough to make him lose focus and not a second later are Akira’s hands back in his hair.

Silky brown hair glides through his fingers. Leaning in to examine if it smells just as good as it feels would be too much, but damn it if Akira isn’t tempted. He does a good job in making total chaos of Akechi’s usually kempt hair, eyes intensely focused on the task because he’s sure meeting Akechi’s death glare might spur him to do more things he’ll regret later.

Kiss him for example. Which is a long stretch, it’s only their second date and they haven’t had a real dinner yet. Not that Akechi thinks the same. Probably not. Which doesn’t explain why his hips are still locked in place, comfortably pressed against Akira’s.

For good measure, Akira gives a last tug to the hair curling around Akechi’s nape, finding enough courage to finally lower his eyes to see what kind of expression he’s wearing.

God help him.

In search for a witty comment, he pretends to work a little more on the strands of hair falling in Akechi’s face so he can accidentally brush a thumb over crimson red cheeks. Akechi’s reaction is a guttural sound from his throat, and Akira plays a round of suck him off, don’t suck him off in his head, plucking the white petals off a daisy flower. He’s recently learnt besides innocence they also mean beauty and loyal love.

See, he can be a romantic even before hitting second base.

Though Akechi looks like he’d rather have his hands around Akira’s throat (not in a kinky way, which is a shame) than anything else, so when Akira deems his masterpiece finished, he takes a step back and gives Akechi the last once-over.

He looks terrible, like a dog left in the rain, and if that is how Akira looks every day by default, no wonder Takemi still doesn’t want to meet up with him.

“You look great,” Akira says and puts as much conviction in his voice as his conscience allows.

Akechi considers him with a blank expression. “Let’s get this over with, shall we.” He leads the way back outside to their seats on the patio. Only then Akira realises what’s missing to make the disguise perfect—the very reason that started everything.

“Also, put these on,” he orders, pushing his spare pair of fake glasses in Akechi’s hands. He inspects them first, then Akira, and realising there is no way for him out of this, Akechi obeys and slides them on his nose.

Akira almost misses his seat and quickly grabs onto the railing before landing face first on the ground.

A thin, white line is where Akechi’s full lips usually are, his eyes obscured by the reflection on the glass and Akira feels his fingers itching to get his phone out and take a picture.

Despite everything, it works and the little crowd gathering in front of the café quickly disperses, leaving them alone again. Akechi’s hands move fast to bring order back to his appearance, though there are still strands sticking out in every direction and Akira chooses not to tell him.

“I can’t believe you really did that,” Akechi says. There’s a smile flirting with his lips that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “I suppose I’d better learn to watch what I say around you.”

He’s already made a mistake a month ago. Akira just needs to figure out where it belongs and what to do with it. But that’s an issue for later, when he isn’t preoccupied with trying to get into the detective’s pants.

Akira crosses his legs and taps his foot against the metal table leg. “I should have taken a picture,” he mutters.

Akechi’s smile is razor-sharp and Akira doesn’t doubt he’ll cut himself if he tries another stunt like that. The hollow laugh following that sounds ghastly. “Are you familiar with the legal right of portrait?” Akechi asks, the lack of actual joy in his tone only stoking the heat of a threat Akira would love to see playing out. “Or privacy, perhaps?”

I know I want to get more private with you, Akira doesn’t say because that will surely land him the fork laying in front of Akechi somewhere he’s too fond of to part with, so instead he slides a little down his seat, cocking one head to the side. “I think it worked out well. Nobody paid you attention after that, right”?

“That is true,” Akechi admits begrudgingly, staring down into his cup like the secrets of the universe might be displayed there. Or a way to ditch Akira in a pit without too anyone noticing.

Tap, tap, tap, continues Akira’s foot against the metal pole, and Akechi’s silence makes him wonder if he went a little too far for how little acquainted they are.

But then he feels something warm slide up against his calf, definitely not the table leg, which only leaves one option and Akira has to hold on to something or else he might just turn into a puddle. Every muscle in his body tenses with the effort to maintain his poker face as he looks up at Akechi.

“You did show me that trying something new isn’t a bad idea,” he starts, and Akira waits a full solid minute to give Akechi time to retreat if the contact was a simple accident—maybe just some stretching that went in the wrong direction. If anything, the pressure against his leg only doubles. “It makes me think about all the other things I’m missing out because I simply choose to follow routine instead of thinking outside the box.”

Akira leans forward now, resting his chin on his hand.

Akechi mirrors the movement, a glint flashing in his eyes that is more challenge than everything he’s said until now.

“And what kind of things are you missing out on, pray tell.”

“How about next time we change things and you leave the dressing up to me.”

“Oh?” Akira’s eyebrows arch up. “Anything in particular?”

“Where would be the fun in telling.” The warmth against Akira’s leg disappears, and he’d wonder if he’d imagined it were it not for the little playful smile tugging at the corners of Akechi’s mouth. “What was it you said? Ah, yes. You’ll just have to trust me. It will be great.”

#philliamwrites #ao3 #fanfiction #persona 5 #p5 #persona 5 royal #p5r #shuake #goro akechi #akira kurusu #ren amamiya #persona 5 joker #p5 joker

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saiilorstars · 5 years

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Next Stop, Everywhere

Fandom: Doctor Who

Pairing: Female OC x 10th Doctor

(OC Face claim: Victoria Camacho)

// Story Masterlist //

Chapter 5: A Christmas To Die For

Chapter summary: The next time Joy sees the Doctor, he’s crashing his TARDIS into the street and he’s not who he was before. It’s only when Rose explains to her and the others what happened that Joy (as well as Jackie and Mickey) can believe the Doctor has returned.

~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~ 0 ~

"Jackie!" I rushed inside to get rid of the cold prickling through my skin. I shut the doors behind me. "Guess what!? I got the raise!"

She hopped off the small stairs by the Christmas tree and rushed to hug me, "Oh, that's fantastic!"

We hugged and squealed in delight.

"She said yes because I had made quite the progress in some of their biggest experiments," I explained, laughing, "She might be a prune to people but to me she's been quite right."

"It's a Christmas miracle then!" she gestured to the newly decorated tree.

"Yes!" I went around it, "You did a good job. It's lovely! Oh, and Santa came!" I looked down to the presents underneath.

"Yes, he did," Jackie smiled, "And I think there's a present for you and Rose."

I glanced at her, smiling, "Thank you."

She opened her arms and I gave her another hug. As we did, we heard a sort of...wheezing sound? We both pulled back and remained quiet as the noise became more and more audible. Without a warning, not that it was needed, we dashed out of the apartment and down the stairs. On the street, we met up with Mickey.

"The TARDIS!" he exclaimed, pointing.

I nodded happily, "I know! They're back!"

"But...but where are they?" Jackie looked around.

All three began spinning around, frantically looking for the box of wonders. Suddenly, we saw it...crashing down against the sides of the buildings. Jackie screamed and held onto Mickey. I spun round and round, trying to keep up with the radical box. It crashed down in front of us, but finally came to a complete halt.

As soon as it did, a head peered out with a wide open grin. "Here we are!" it was a man, "London! Earth! The Solar System! We did it!" He stepped out in the Doctor's clothes.

I blinked, my mouth hanging open. Mickey and Jackie were right beside me, both silent like I was.

The strange man turned to us, as if just realizing we were there. "Joy! Jackie! Mickey!" he exclaimed, "Blimey! No, no, no, no, hold on," he stumbled backwards, "Wait there, I've got something to say. There was something I had to tell you," he paused, "What was it? Hold on...hold on..." he walked up and grouped us into a hug, "Now hold on, shush, shush, shush, shush, shush...OH!"

Us three jumped back in alarm. He, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to everything...and very excited for some reason. I glanced back at the TARDIS, wondering who the hell this was. Was there a third box? A third man with the a box like this? Oh, the Doctor just had to explain this to me now. He'd simply refuse to talk about the possible dual ownership of the boxes.

"I know!" The man grabbed my hand and pulled me against him, leaving me wide-eyed as I blinked, "Especially you. I haven't seen you in a long time! Blimey! Now... what was it I had to say? Ah yes, Merry Christmas!"

And then, he collapsed right in front of me...and right on me.

I stumbled back with this great, strange man on me, "Uh...a little help?" I tried pulling him to his feet.

Mickey and Jackie quickly pulled him off me and set him on the ground. Rose came out of the TARDIS and ran to us.

"What happened? Is he alright?" she asked.

"Rose, where the hell is the Doctor?" I demanded, "And who the hell is this?"

"That's the Doctor," she answered quietly, "Right there," she pointed.

I looked down to the strange man on the ground, "What?" I looked him over, "That is not my stupid alien with big ears."

"It is," She nodded, "Can can you help me get him up please?"

~0~

"I still say we should bring him to the hospital," Jackie remarked as Rose put a stethoscope to the 'Doctor's' chest.

"We can't. They'd lock him up and dissect him," Rose answered, "Oh good, both are working."

"What do you mean both?" I asked, confused.

"He's got two hearts."

"Two?"

"Yeah, don't you know?" she looked up.

I crossed my arms, severely irritated I had not been informed of this massive 'secret', "No..."

"Oh..." she removed the stethoscope from herself, "Must have slipped his mind."

Somehow, I doubt having two hearts could be easy to forget...

"But...this is him?" I pointed to the man on the bed, "This is the Doctor?" She nodded. "Rose..." my voice cracked, "What?"

"I'm sorry, but I just don't know," she stood up, frustrated, "If you can find out, by all means do it," she walked past me, "I need some air."

Jackie glanced at me, hopeful that I'd let her go off with her daughter. Like she even had to ask? "Just go," I sighed, looking back to the Doctor. She followed her out while I remained in the room.

I stared at him...terrified, but sad at the same time. Slowly, I walked round the room, my eyes always fixated on him. I took Rose's seat and stared and stared.

"You lied," I whispered, looking him up and down with such sadness, "You didn't come back. We didn't get to talk. But I should have known right? It's you and Rose...Joy's just the tag-along."

Suddenly, he opened his mouth and out came golden dust. I leaned back on my chair, eyes wide with shock.

"Rose?" I said, but really quiet. I figured I should go and get her, seeing as she knew him much better than I. I stood up from the chair and rushed out. I was going to bust into the kitchen but I saw Rose had red, puffy eyes. Quickly, I remained against the wall.

"The thing is, Mum...I thought I knew him..." Rose was saying, almost to tears I should add, "I thought me and him were..." I looked to the side, somewhat sad. "And then he goes and does this..." She sniffled.

"You fell in love, you idiot," I muttered then walked back to the Doctor, staring harshly at him, "I told you not to..." I walked up to him, "And don't you dare say I didn't because I did. You fell in love with her."

And even though I hadn't told him word for word of his growing feelings for Rose, I had made subtle comments when Rose made calls home and the Doctor had been passed on to me. But he was just such an...idiot? Oblivious? I don't know...

"Joy?" Rose's voice startled me.

I quickly turned around, "Sorry, yeah?"

"Do you mind staying here and um, watching him?" she pointed, "Mickey and I wanted to, um..."

Understanding, I nodded, "Go ahead. I'll stay here..."

She smiled, 'Thanks. My Mum's here too."

I nodded again. "Thanks..."

She walked out.

I sighed and turned back to the Doctor, "What's worse, she fell in love with you too."

~0~

"Are you really reading on Christmas?" Jackie came in with a tray of tea, "Come on and let's finish the tree."

"It's okay," I shook my head, taking one cup of tea, "I think I should stay here, and um, babysit."

"You know," she leaned by the doorway, "I don't think it's fair how he treats you."

I smiled, looking confused, "What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean," She nodded, "Honey, he doesn't even know you and much less what happened to you after he just dropped you off."

"I asked him to," I reminded quietly, not wanting the full blame to fall on him.

"Don't make any excuses," she scolded lightly, "My own daughter takes part in this and the only reason I don't say anything is because you've asked me not to. Why won't you just say something?"

I sighed, glancing at the sleeping alien, "He's just been...preoccupied. But he'll see what he's doing soon. Maybe this version of him won't be so oblivious."

"New version?" She raised an eyebrow.

I nodded, "I was reading on the Internet earlier and I managed to hack into UNIT where this man," I gestured to the alien, "Apparently worked in. Well, still works anyways...never quite resigned," I eyed him again, "And apparently, he has the ability to change his whole body to avoid death."

"That's bloody insane!"

"...that's...that's brilliant," I corrected softly, taking in the new features of the Doctor quickly, "I mean, for his species anyways. Humans wouldn't be able to control that kind of power; always cheat death. But he could, he's always noble and...generous. He'd never take advantage of that power."

"Well, let me know when he knows your name, alright?" She scoffed, shaking her head. "And why'd you even read about him?"

"Because I wanted to know how he did it," I explained, "And now I wanna know why he had to do it. Why was he going to die?"

"Oh Joy, this is what I'm talking about. He doesn't deserve your kindness."

"Jackie don't say that," I scolded, dead serious, "This man has saved my life countless times. He deserves that and more."

"What kind of hero saves the world out of habit yet continously hurts his friend?"

I sighed and moved my chair closer to the Doctor, "But he'll see what he's doing sooner or later."

"You have such hope..." she sighed, Well, when he wakes up, you give him a slap across that new face of his and get that soon sooner...and maybe give him that cup of tea too," She pointed to the tray on the table.

I chuckled, "Jackie Tyler..." I shook my head. My laugh was cut short by another wisp of golden dust coming out from the Doctor's mouth. "You're still weird." I declared then sighed. "But you'll realize soon enough what you're doing to me. I'm sure you will. You'll realize it all on your own then apologize. And I'll forgive you...I will forgive you in a heartbeat because I know you're not mean. And, I know you don't think I'm not important, I hope."

I admitted to myself that the reason I didn't want to tell the Doctor of his hurtful attitude towards me was because I wanted to see just how much his focus on Rose was. I wanted to see how far I'd be cast away on account of his feelings for the blonde. As hurtful as it was, I wanted to see if he cared for me like he cared for her, on a platonic level though. He'd never turn twice at me anyways. But I wanted to see if I was on his list of important people, right there with Rose.

~0~

I continued reading my book until I heard commotion coming from the living room. It sounded like Rose and Mickey were back.

A few minutes later, there were yells. I jumped up from my seat when the three entered the room in a rush. "What's going on?" I demanded, but received no answer.

Jackie and Mickey slid a wardrobe piece in front of the door. Rose rushed over and pushed me out of the way. "Doctor, wake up!" she shook him gently, "Doctor please..."

There was commotion on the other side of the door. Mickey and Jackie leaned against the furniture piece. Rose took out the Doctor's screwdriver from his jacket and placed it in his hand, but in vain. Suddenly, our Christmas tree burst through the doors, sending Mickey and Jackie to the ground.

"I'm gonna get killed by a Christmas tree!" Jackie cried.

Rose leaned down to the Doctor's ear, "Help me," she whispered.

I was much surprised to see him actually wake up and sit up. He pointed the screwdriver at the tree and made it explode.

"Remote control, but who's controlling it?" he got out of the bed.

I couldn't stop staring. I was just...dumbfounded. Maybe stupefied?

We followed him out to the balcony where he looked out to see three plastic Santas below, staring up at him.

"It's them," Mickey pointed, "What are they?"

"Shush!" Rose exclaimed.

The Doctor pointed the screwdriver at them and slowly they gathered up and disappeared.

"Can someone explain to me what the hell just happened?" I looked around, "Rose?"

"Pilot Fish," the Doctor said, coldly.

"Excuse me?"

"They were just Pilot Fish." He began coughing and suddenly, pushed himself against the wall in pain. We all hurried beside him.

"What's wrong?" Rose asked.

"You woke me up too soon," He answered in between his panting, "I'm still regenerating. I'm bursting with energy."

"Aren't you always?" I blurted. He looked at me with an amused smile.

He let out more golden dust from his mouth. "You see? The Pilot Fish could smell it from a million miles away. So they eliminate the defense, that'd be you lot, and they carry me off. They could run their batteries on me for a couple of year-" he groaned, forcing himself forwards. "My head!" he gritted his teeth, "I'm having a neuron imlosion. I need-"

"Yes, what do you need!?" cried Jackie frantically.

"I need-"

"Tell me!" Jackie said, "Say it, c'mon now!"

"I need-"

"Pain killers?"

"I need-"

"Do you need aspirin?"

"I-"

But Jackie would not let him finish.

"Codein? Paracetamol? Oh I don't know, Pepto Bismol?"

"I need-"

"Liquid paraffin? Vitamin C? D? E?"

"I need-"

"Is it food?" Jackie insisted. I sighed; it was only a matter of time before he snapped. "Or how about a nice bowl of soup?"

"I need you to shut up!" The Doctor exclaimed.

She frowned, "Well, you haven't changed that much."

He forced himself up against the wall, "We haven't got much time. If there's Pilot Fish then-" he took out an apple from his robe, "Why's there an apple in my dressing gown?"

"That's Howard's," I pointed.

"Who the hell is Howard?" he snapped. I looked to Jackie, letting her have that one. "Is he your boyfriend?" he asked.

I snapped my head at him, "What? No! I'm only-"

He suddenly shouted in pain again, collapsing to the ground. "Brain...collapsing..." Rose quickly rushed over to him, trying to help him back up. "The Pilot Fish..." he told her, "It means...that something...something..." he paused and took a deep breath, "Something's coming," He collapsed into Rose's lap.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. For the first time in my life, I admitted I needed someone's help. Too bad that this one time that I actually needed it, he was horribly sick.

~0~

We brought the Doctor back to bed and helped him, or Rose, I should say, helped him. Mickey passed by with the laptop, nodding to us then continued his way to the living room.

"Rose..." I stepped up, "If you want, I could help-"

"It's okay, I've got it," she cut me off.

"Right, but um, I actually know my way around the nurse fiel-"

"Look, I said I've got it," She glanced at me, slightly irritated.

I tried to keep myself contain as usual.

She was hurting. She was hurting. She was hurting.

I needed to remember that because otherwise I might pop. With a sigh, I turned on my heels then walked into the living room.

"Didn't go so well?" Mickey asked from his seat.

"Not really."

"I still say you should say something."

I took a seat beside him on the couch, "For what? To play the guilt card?"

"No, to let them know how you feel? You know you exist, right?"

I nodded, "I do."

"Well, let them know."

I smiled and shook my head, "Maybe later..."

~0~

"I found it," Mickey announced as Rose came out of the Doctor's room. She and Jackie crowded beside us. "They're scavengers like the Doctor said. Harmless. They're tiny but the point here is...the little fish swim alongside the big fish."

"You mean like sharks?" I asked.

He nodded, "Always on the point, Minnie." I smiled. "So, what the Doctor means is, we had them...now we get that," the shark on the screen snapped.

"Something is coming..." Rose repeated. The TV in front of us suddenly went static. "How close?"

"There's no way of telling but the Pilot Fish don't swim far from their daddy," Mickey said.

"So it's close?"

"Funny sort of rocks," Jackie looked to the TV.

"That's not rocks..." Rose shook her head.

"Coming live from the depths of space on Christmas morning."

An alien appeared on the TV screen, roaring out loud.

"I think it's here," I nodded slowly, my eyes fixated on the screen.

"What do we do now?" Mickey asked.

"Access UNIT," I ordered, "Access the accounts or files or something. But we have to know what's up there."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Mickey glanced at me.

"Because you can?" I raised an eye brow, "Because I did. Now do it."

"How do you know about UNIT?" Rose asked me while Mickey worked.

"The Doctor and I had some kind of a conversation," I shrugged, "You don't have the Doctor, resort to UNIT."

We waited for Mickey to access what I had ordered and when he did, we quickly looked into the laptop screen once again.

"There's a ship," he began, "It's big, it's fast, and it's on its way."

"It's coming for the Doctor," Rose whispered, sadly.

Four aliens of the same type that had been on the TV, appeared on screen. It was talking, no doubt, but what it was saying? Who knew.

"I don't understand what they're saying," Rose frowned, "The TARDIS translates alien languages inside my head all the time. Wherever I am."

"So why isn't it doing it now?" Mickey asked.

"...must be the Doctor." I said, quietly.

"Yeah," Rose agreed, nodding her head, "It's like he's part of the circuit, and he's..." her gaze fell to the ground, "He's broken."

~0~

Mickey continued doing his research and Rose was by the Doctor's side. Me? I only watched. Rose wouldn't let me help, and I know she didn't mean bad but it was getting annoying. I just wanted to help!

In the end, I did end up asleep on the ground. I was clever, but I couldn't do anything...

I was awakened by the sound of television. I fluttered my eyes opened and saw none of them were in the room anymore except for the Doctor and I. I stood up and walked out into the living room.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"We're done," Mickey looked at me, "No one to save us now."

I didn't get it at first, but then I saw Rose holding back her tears. Things had gotten worse overnight. I rubbed my face and groaned.

"I refuse," I spat, making them turn to me.

"What are you saying?" Rose asked, "They're asking for the Doctor and he's not here. We're just humans, we can't do it."

"I may be human and I may be non-special, but I refuse to hand over my life," I snapped, growing angry, probably more since it had been suppressed since she and the newest Doctor had arrived, "You've traveled with the Doctor much longer than I have. Shame on you for giving up! You don't do that, Rose. Ever. You don't ever give up," I turned back for the room and stared at the Doctor, "He taught us, and you should feel ashamed you didn't learn."

While Rose remained with her mother, crying and crying, I remained with the Doctor. I didn't believe I was quite ready to rejoin them. It was just so bothersome that she traveled much more with the Doctor and she didn't learn anything!

Suddenly, the windows smashed into pieces. I jumped up from my seat and looked around. I peered out through the broken window and saw a spaceship flying in the sky.

"Rose?" I called, deciding to let go of my annoyance for a moment. A few seconds later she ran inside.

"We're carrying him," she and I both said.

~0~

"So how exactly do you fly this thing?" Mickey walked around the console.

"No idea," Rose shook her head.

Jackie and I were setting the Doctor against the wall. "But he taught you," I reminded. I took the food Jackie had brought along with us.

"But it's been like...wiped out of my brain," She leaned against the console, "Is there a chance you know?"

I scoffed, "Please..." I set down a thermal canister beside us, "Might as well sit down for tea because we're not going anywhere."

"Solution to everything," Jackie nodded, "Now hold on, I'll go get the rest of it," she walked out.

Mickey went along the console, stopping in front of the computer screen. "How does this thing work? It picks up TV, maybe we could see what's going on out there. Maybe we've surrendered."

"I don't know, it sort of tunes itself," Rose snapped.

Mickey started pressing the buttons around it. There was a bleeping sound becoming audible for all to hear. "Maybe it's a distress signal," He suggested.

"Fat lot of good that's gonna do," Rose continued with her attitude.

"Misery all the time now?" I glanced at her, "Don't."

"Yes," she snapped, even throwing me a glare.

"May I suggest you go see what's taking Jackie so long?" I asked, gritting my teeth.

I understood she was hurting but that did not mean she could be rude to the rest of us. Now, I was not the fighting type but if she kept pressing my buttons, she'd get hurt very soon.

"I will," Rose muttered and walked to the doors. As soon as she opened them, she screamed!

"What the hell!?" I turned to her but saw she was pulled back.

I was going to dart for the door but Mickey shook his finger to me and rushed after her. When he did, I heard Rose yell to him. The doors became shut with a loud thud. I jumped up and rushed to them, going to open them but heard unfamiliar sounds from the other side. I realized I should stay inside and try to help from here. I ran back to the screen and tried playing something that would tell me where we were. I heard the familiar roars from the aliens. I looked to the doors, shocked.

We weren't on earth anymore.

"Oh we can't be..." I mumbled, stumbling back. My foot kicked the tea thermus and spilled it around the Doctor. "Oh, crap," I bent down but then sighed, "You know what," I stood up again, "What does it matter if you smell like tea? It'll be a step up from Howard's robe," I walked around the console.

"Think, think, think," I said out-loud, taking steps towards the doors then backwards repeatedly. "Joy, you don't give up. That's one good thing you got from your mother: you're stubborn. You're hot-headed. And you refuse," I nodded to myself, "And I refuse to die." A steaming noise made me turn around. I gasped when I saw the steam engulfing the Doctor's head. "Oh my god!" I clasped my hand over my mouth.

He inhaled deeply then let out more golden dust.

I looked around the console as it began lighting up. "Just like the desert..." I remembered the steam coming from the TARDIS. The screen even came to life and soon I heard Rose's and the alien's voices. I turned to it, forgetting about the Doctor momentarily. "How on earth did we move?" I muttered to myself. "Really?" I stopped, standing straight, "I'm in the middle of an alien invasion, in an alien spaceship, next to an unconscious alien, and that's my question?"

A tap on my shoulder made me scream and turn around. My eyes widened when I saw the Doctor standing right in front of me. My eyes flickered from him to the place he had just been on the ground, wondering how the hell he had managed to move so quietly.

"But...you...but..." I pointed between him and the ground. He remained silent as I continued my stuttering. "I don't...Rose..." I pointed back to the doors.

He tilted his head, staring intently, "I never noticed your eyes before."

And for some reason, they were wide as could be. I was both nervous, terrified, and just shocked. How am I supposed to be calm about this? Was there a way?

He carefully stared into my eyes, as if trying to figure something out, "Their color...are they...Jade?" He stepped closer.

"Uh...yes?" I moved to back away but remembered I was already against the console and therefore remained in place, swallowing hard at our sudden closeness.

He half-smiled, "I like them..."

"Th-thank you," my nervousness would not die down, "There's an alien invasion out there, just so you know. If you wanna stop it...that-that would be great."

"Oh, yes!" He looked up, realizing, "Let's go!" He grabbed my hand and yanked me towards the door.

"Woah!" I was brought to the doors in a snap.

"Don't just stand there, we've got visitors!" He exclaimed, noticing my abrupt stop.

I blinked, stepping back, "I'm scared," I said the first thing to come to mind.

"Hm, take a moment, then," He opened the door and walked out.

I watched after him, completely awestruck. This version seemed more...odd? I don't even know how to explain it. He seemed less worried of personal boundaries and more studious. I took a moment to gather myself then rushed out. I bumped into one of the aliens, causing me to yelp.

"Minnie!" Mickey exclaimed. I rushed over to them, keeping my head down.

One of the aliens tried attacking the Doctor with a staff. The Doctor simply snatched it and snapped it over his knee then threw it to the floor. "You just can't get the staff," He wagged a finger, "Now just wait, I'm busy," he turned to us.

"Mickey! Hello!" he exclaimed, giving a handshake. "Good to be back," he moved onto me, "Minnie?" He raised an eye brow, "We'll discuss that later. But thank you for leaving that tea on the ground. I won't be smelling like it just so you know..." He strolled off to Harriet Jones. "And Harriet Jones MP for Flydale North! Blimey, it's like 'This is your Life!" He moved to Rose. "And you, I've got a serious question to ask." Rose nodded, ready for such a thing. "Am. I...Ginger?"

I looked down, shaking my head. And he seemed just as stupid as the last version.

"No, you're just sort of brown..." Rose answered quietly, mimicking his new, big hair.

"Aw," he looked away, pouting, "I wanted to be ginger. I've never been ginger!" He turned back to her with a violent, pointing finger, "And you, Rose Tyler, fat lot of good you were- you gave up on me-oh," he paused, "That was rude. That's sort of man I am now? Rude," he thought about it, "Rude and not ginger."

"I'm sorry who is this?" Harriet asked, done with the man's rambles.

"I'm the Doctor," he turned.

"But what happened to my Doctor? Or is it a title that's just passed on?"

"I'm him. I'm literally him," he walked up to her, "Same man, new face. Well...new everything."

"But you can't be..."

"Harriet Jones, we were trapped in Downing Street and the only thing that scared you was the thought of your mother being on her own."

And with that, she stood dumbfounded. "Oh my god...it is you."

"Did you win the election?" he asked, smiling.

"Landslide majority."

"If I might interrupt!" the invading alien yelled.

"Yes, sorry big fella," the Doctor turned to them,

"Who exactly are you?"

"That's the question."

"I demand to know who you are!" the alien roared.

"I DON'T KNOW!" the Doctor imitated his roaring yell, "See, there's the thing," he continued calmly again, "I'm the Doctor but beyond that I...I just don't know. I literally do not know who I am. It's all untested," He started walking around, looking at each of us, "Am I funny? Am I sarcastic?" He stopped by Rose, "Sexy?" He winked then continued on his way.

"Forgot to ask if he was more deranged..." I said without thinking and earned a snicker from Mickey. I saw the Doctor throw me a glance. I quickly looked away, biting my own laugh down.

"Right old misery?" He continued his speech, "Life and soul? Right-handed? Left handed? A gambler? A fighter? A coward? A traitor? A liar? A nervous wreck? I mean, judging by the evidence, I've certainly got a gob," his smile turned wickedly insane when he saw the big red button at the top of stairs, "A great big threatening button!" He exclaimed, running up the stairs, "A great big threatening button which must not be pressed under any circumstances. Am I right?" He looked around. "Let me guess, it's some sort of control matrix? Hold on, what's feeding it?" He bent down and pulled open a door under the button. "And what have we got here? Blood?" He dipped his finger in a red liquid. "Yup, definitely human blood. A-Positive. With just a dash of iron. Blood control! Haven't seen blood control for years! You're controlling all the A-Positives! Which leaves us with a great big stinking problem...cause I really don't know who I am. I don't know when to stop. So if I see a Great Big Threatening Button Which Should Never Ever Be Pressed...then I just wanna do this," he pressed the button with all his might.

"No!" Rose and Harriet cried.

"You killed them!" A man yelled.

"What do you think, big fella?" the Doctor calmly turned to the alien, not at all worried by his action, "Are they dead?"

"We allow them to live," the alien announced.

"Allow?" the Doctor scoffed, "You've no choice! I mean, that's all blood control is! Cheap bit of voodoo! Scare the pants off you but that's as far as it goes. It's like hypnosis. You can hypnotize someone to walk like a chicken or sing like Elvis but you can't hypnotize them to death. Survival instinct's too strong."

"Blood control was just one form of conquest. I can summon the armada and take this world by force."

"You could do that, of course you could. Look at these people," the Doctor gestured to us, "These human beings. Consider their potential. From the day they arrive on the planet and blinking step into the sun. There is more..."

As he continued speaking, I started thinking of those words he was saying, sounding awfully familiar. Finally, it donned on me what they were. I cleared my throat, "Uh...Doctor?"

He quit talking and glanced back, "Joy? A little busy here," he gestured to the aliens.

"Yeah, sorry, but um...that's the Lion King," I pointed.

He blinked, "Is it?" I nodded, "Oh..." He turned back to the aliens, "Always right, this one," he shook his head, "Well, the point still stands. Leave them alone!"

"Or what?" the alien sneered.

"Or..." the Doctor grabbed a sword from one of the aliens around then rushed down the stairs, "I challenge you," he raised the sword in the air. The aliens began laughing at him, "Oh, that struck a chord, am I right that the sanctified rules of combat still apply?"

"You stand as this world's champion?" the alien walked down the stairs calmly and held out his sword.

The Doctor shrugged of his robe and chucked it to Rose. "Thank you. I've no idea who I am but you just summed me up. So, you accept my challenge? Or are you just a cranak pel casacree salvak?"

The alien hissed angrily, "For the planet?"

"For the planet."

And so they began their fight. I had to admit, I didn't like the idea of the Doctor with a sword. He was clumsy, that much I knew. And that was all I needed to become nervous. What if this version was even clumsier than before?

In one of those, the Doctor was thrown aside. He ignored the laugh from the alien and stood back up. He led the alien back up the stairs. "Bit of fresh air?" He asked before hitting a button and making a door open.

We quickly followed the two outside the ship. The alien was able to slightly get the Doctor on his nose. The Doctor groaned and shook his head. He saw Rose coming to him and quickly stopped her.

"Don't! Invalidate the challenge and he wins the planet," he warned.

"Rose, get back here," I quickly ordered, "I like my planet and I wanna keep it."

The pair clashed swords and the Doctor was sent back to the ground. The alien neared him and slashed at the Doctor's wrist. I gasped when his lower arm fell below. It was actually cut off.

"You cut my hand off!" the Doctor exclaimed.

"Yah! Sycorax!"

The Doctor got on his feet, "And now I know what sort of man I am. I'm lucky. Cause quite by chance, I'm still within the first fifteen hours of my regeneration cycle. Which means I've got just enough residual cellular energy...to do this," He held up what used to be his full arm and allowed us to see it regrow. He had his full arm back!

"Witchcraft," the Sycorax spat.

"Time Lord," the Doctor declared, dead serious.

"Doctor!" Rose cried and threw him a new sword.

"Oh, so I'm still the Doctor, then?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Rose smiled, "No arguments from me!"

"Wanna know the best bit? This new hand..." he acquired a Texan accent, "It's a fightin' hand!" He ran to the Sycorax and clashed swords. He took opportunity and jabbed the sword into the alien's stomach. He repeated it twice more and sent it to the ground. "I win."

"Then kill me..." the Sycorax struggled to speak.

"I'll spare your life if you'll take this champion's command: leave this planet and never return. What do you say?"

"Yes."

The Doctor pointed the sword to the stomach of the alien, "Swear on the blood of your species."

"I swear."

"There we are, then!" he exclaimed, "Cheers big fella!" He let the sword go.

Harriet clapped, "Bravo!"

Rose rushed to him, "That says it all. Bravo!" She helped him into the robe again.

"Yeah, not bad for a man in his jim-jams," I chuckled as Mickey and I approached them.

"Hold on, what have I got in here?" He took out a satsuma from his pocket.

I smiled, "Howard."

"Quite the friend," he nodded. He gestured for us to start leaving.

"He's Jackie's friend," I corrected before he got any crazy ideas.

Mickey and I went ahead, with Harriet beside us. We weren't even midway through when I saw the satsuma hit a switch on the wall. The ground began to crumble and when we turned around we saw the alien the Doctor had fought tumble down.

"No second chances. I'm that sort of a man," the Doctor said coldly.

When the spaceship finally left the planet, we erupted in cheers. I watched Mickey and Rose hug and yell happily. Jackie and I hugged and laughed. The Doctor neared Harriet and started talking, although I couldn't exactly hear them.

"Minnie!" Mickey yelled, opening his arms for me. I rushed to give him a hug. "We did it!"

"Yeah we did!" I pulled back.

"So, are you gonna tell them now?" he asked in a quieter tone.

"It's Christmas," I reminded, "It's not important and you know it."

"It's not good to keep it in."

"But it's fine."

"Minnie Souza, don't you lie."

"Oh, stop it," I pushed him.

He chuckled, "Merry Christmas!"

Jackie and Rose called the Doctor forwards. I noticed a man coming up to Harriet and saying something quietly. I took a few steps forwards and heard just in time.

"It's a message from Torchwood. They say they're ready," he said to Harriet.

I blinked, "Wait, Torchwood-"

"Tell them to fire!" Harriet ordered.

"No!" I exclaimed, but it was too late.

"Fire at will," the man instructed through his earpiece.

I looked up and saw a beam of green light shooting up. Three more of them fired to become one massive attack. A few moments later, the crashing of the ship was heard.

"That was murder!" The Doctor marched towards Harriet.

"That was defense," Harriet corrected, "It's adapted from alien technology. A shop that fell to earth over ten years ago!"

"But they were leaving!"

"You said it yourself, it'd go back to the stars and tell the others about Earth," Harriet sighed, "I'm sorry, Doctor, but you're not here all the time. They were murdered. They died right in front of me while you were sleeping. We have to defend ourselves."

The Doctor looked her over with disgust, "Britain's Golden Age."

"It comes with a price."

"I gave them the wrong warning. I should've told them to run as fast as they can. Run and hide because the monsters are coming: the human race."

I had to admit, I took offense to that. But he was so angry I didn't dare make a remark.

"Those are the people I represent," Harriet stood calm, "I did it on their behalf."

"On their behalf?" the Doctor raised an eyebrow. He glanced at me and suddenly yanked me towards them. "Joy, would you have want this?"

"What?" I blinked, too rattled from his yank to understand.

"You're part of the people she represents. Would. You. Have. Wanted. This?" He gritted his teeth.

"N-no," I answered, looking between him and Harriet. I was a little scared by the way he was looking at me. "I don't believe it was necessary. They were leaving."

"But they would have killed you," Harriet reminded.

"We don't know that," I said, bluntly, "And we never will."

She wasn't at all happy with my response. "Hm, that's one little girl, not the entire population."

I frowned, "Oi, I'm not a little girl."

"Harriet Jones don't test me," the Doctor shook his head, "I'm a new man and I could bring down your government with a single word."

Harriet smiled warmly, "You're the most remarkable man I've ever met but I don't think you're quite capable of that."

"You're right...it'd only take six," He looked down at her.

"I highly doubt it."

"Six."

"Now stop it."

The Doctor stared for a few seconds before walking around her to the man who had given the orders. He whispered something in his ear then stood straight with a dim smile. He walked past them towards the rest. I looked between him and the now-alarmed Harriet Jones.

"Doctor, what did you say!?" She cried, "Doctor! What did you say!?"

But the Doctor continued walking without a word back.

"I'm sorry," Harriet said, much quieter now.

Gazing upon her like this made me feel pity. I rushed to catch up with the Doctor. "That was a bit rash don't you think? What did you say?" He looked down at me with a serious look. "Sorry I asked," I muttered and walked ahead.

~0~

"I still don't get why you eat turkey on Christmas," I chuckled as Mickey carved a turkey in the kitchen.

"I still don't get why you won't eat it," he imitated me, earning a whack from me.

"What did you eat back home?" Jackie asked, taking out glasses from the cupboard.

"Well...nothing really," I shrugged, "Whatever my parents brought on the way from work."

"Nothing?" Mickey raised an eye brow, "You're joking?"

I smiled, "Well...my grandma, she used to help bake these delicious snicker doodles on Christmas day."

"Why didn't you say so? I could've brought the mix!" Jackie exclaimed.

"It doesn't matter."

She tilted her head, wagging a finger at me, "You need to quit saying those words."

"Sorry," I said as she walked out.

Rose walked in and joined us, "How's the turkey coming along?"

"Want a slice?" Mickey held up a piece for her. She swatted his hand away. "Don't worry, this one's for Minnie," he glanced at me.

Rose smiled, confused, "Why do you..." She pointed between us, "...call her M-""

"Joy?" Jackie walked in, holding her cellphone in hand, "There's someone on the line..."

"Who?" I asked, almost not believing. It was Christmas!

"Work," she said serious.

"You found a job again?" Rose asked. I nodded. "Congrats!"

"Thanks," I glanced to Jackie, "But..."

"She doesn't sound too happy..." Jackie warned.

I sighed, "I'll be outside." I took her phone and walked for the door. "Hello?"

Her piercing yell made me hold out the phone. I walked out and leaned against the rail. "If you could calm down..."

But she kept yelling.

I became angry as well. My patience was running thin from today's events and the last thing I needed was a woman yelling at me over the phone.

"I don't have to explain my beliefs to you. That's not part of the job description. And pardon my language, but I am off the clock, who the hell do you think you are calling me on an Off Day otherwise known as Christmas to demand an explanation of my opinions? Quite frankly, I think she messed up and she's paying the price. You follow orders and so do I when I'm on the clock. And if you want to talk about my job on Monday, then by all means. But for now, Merry Christmas and a happy new year." I hung up and groaned in frustration. I took a moment to process what had just happened. I stood straight and sighed. "I think I just lost my job."

"Something the matter?" The Doctor's voice startled me.

Wearily, I glanced over. My eyes half-widened when I took in his new wardrobe. I looked him over, up and down, down and up...

"Joy?" He called again, slightly confused.

I blinked, "Oh..." I looked away, realizing my long stare and blushing.

"Are you okay?" He stepped closer.

"Uh...yeah, yeah," I kept looking away, "You changed..."

"Huh? Oh yes, yes! Do I look fine?"

I forced myself to give him a quick glance, "Just fine..."

That pleased him, according to a grin he now wore. "Did you say something about a job?"

"Um...yeah, I got a new job," I said, not so convinced after what I had just told the boss.

"You did? Oh that's great!"

I smiled, slowly able to look at him once more. "Yeah, it's great actually. Everything's actually great right now..." My smile grew bigger. It was as if I wanted to say everything fast because he was actually paying attention and I was afraid I'd quickly lose it.

"Is it?"

I nodded, "Yeah! I think I'll finally be able to save some money again. Hopefully..."

"Oh, that's great!" He hugged me. Taken aback, I lightly patted his back. "I also wanted to thank you..."

"For what?"

"Not giving up."

I stared, still not getting it.

"I heard what you told Rose while I was, uh..."

"Taking a nap?"

He playfully rolled his eyes, "Yes, taking a nap."

I smiled softly, "Well, I meant every last word of it. You taught us giving up should never be an option. I don't ever give up."

"No you do not," he agreed.

I chuckled while he smiled and stared in silence. What?" I asked, smiling nervously as a minute of silence had passed by and he hadn't stop.

His smile deepened, "Your eyes are really beautiful."

"Oh," I felt my face warm up, "Thank you..."

"Jade, right?"

I nodded.

"I've traveled for years and I've seen green eyes all the time, but that shade of Jade? You're the first."

"Well, I'm honored to be the first," I joked, not finding anything else I could say. "Jade is a difficult green shade to have," I moved for the door, as my face would not cool down. "Shall we go inside?"

"Yeah," he followed me in.

When we entered the house, everyone was already sat by the table with the food set in front of them.

"Minnie! I've got a cracker!" Mickey waved.

I smiled, walking to the seat between him and Jackie, "I've never used one."

"What?" He asked, genuinely shocked. "What kind of Christmas do you celebrate?"

I chuckled, "I already told you."

"Next Christmas, I'm buying the snicker doodle mix," Jackie announced.

"You don't have to," I shook my head.

"Oh, please, I can see right away that you would love to have one at this moment."

I smiled, sheepishly, "Well, my grandma always made them at Christmas and they were so irresistibly delicious I always devoured them. It became a tradition, actually. Each Christmas she'd bake those snicker doodles and sometimes I'd help her. But I always ate the left over batter afterwards."

"Rose used to do the same thing with chocolate chip cookies," Jackie threw her a glance.

Rose shrugged, nonchalantly, "They were good."

I placed Jackie's cellphone on the table and passed it to her, "Thanks."

"Doctor," Rose waved her own Christmas cracker.

He had taken the seat beside her and was more than ready to try it. Both pulled and even though the Doctor won, he gave it to her.

"This one's yours," He chuckled as he handed the pink party hat to her.

"Minnie, now you try one," Mickey held out a new one for us.

"Okay, but it better not be loud," I grabbed onto the cracker.

"1...2...3!" Mickey yelled and we pulled the cracker.

I yelped, shutting my eyes for a moment. "I told you!" I whacked Mickey's arm.

"In any case, you won," He held out the paper hat.

"I hate pink," I muttered, "Give me a red one instead," I took the hat and put it on, chuckling, "You better bow down."

"Look, it's Harriet Jones!" Rose pointed.

We turned back and saw the prime minister on the television. I noticed the Doctor placing on new, black and thick-rimmed glasses.

"Since when do you wear glasses?" I asked.

"Sh!" He fixed his gaze on the TV.

I rolled my eyes.

Prime Minister, is it true you're no longer fit to be in position?

Poor Harriet was being bombarded with so many reporters and their questions.

No. Now, can we talk about other things.

Harriet looked distressed as she tried keeping up.

Is is true you're unfit for office?

Look, there is nothing wrong with my health! I don't know where these stories are coming from! And a vote of no confidence... is completely unjustified.

Jackie's cellphone went off in the midst of the commotion. Harriet could barely keep up. I truly felt sorry for her.

"What did you do?" I turned back to the Doctor.

He looked at me through those new glasses, emotionless. I grew irritated with his silent answers, if they could be considered answers. I was going to repeat the question when Jackie tugged on my arm.

"Joy, it's for you," she said, holding out the phone,

"If it's them again tell them I'm-"

"No," she shook her head. I noticed by her reserved attitude that it was someone completely different.

"Who is it then?"

She looked around before answering. She shook her head, "Here..."

I wouldn't take the phone. "I want to know who it is."

"Joy...it's your..." she bit her lip. I gestured I was waiting for her to finish. "Honey, just take it." She grabbed my hand and placed the phone.

I looked at her, strangely. I raised the phone to my ear, "Hello?"

"Sweetie, thank god you're alright!"

My eyes widened and I threw the phone to the table.

"Minnie what is it!?" Mickey quickly reached for me.

My eyes frantically looked around the table while my brain registered the voice on the phone.

"Is she alright?" I heard Rose question.

"Joy, who was it?" the Doctor asked.

"No one important," I whispered.

"Honey," Jackie reached for the phone, "Take the call."

I shook my head, "No."

"But it sounded like she was worried. Take the call. It's Christmas."

I looked to her, biting my anger down. "No."

She sighed. Mickey reached for the phone and scooted closer, "Minnie, take the call. It'll do good for both of you," I remained silent and didn't move. He sighed, "You're being stubborn. Don't be stubborn on Christmas. Take the call."

I stared at the phone, my eyes threatening to spill tears. For that matter, I took the phone and stood up, "I'll be outside," I announced quietly and went out.

With a trembling arm, I raised the cell phone to my ear again. "H-hello?"

"Joycelyn, is that you?"

I laughed, sarcastically, "Huh, you dare ask? What are you doing? What time is it? Isn't it pretty early over there? And the most important question of all, how did you get this number?"

"We're 8 hours behind, not a day. And...an important man helped. "

'Right..." I muttered, rolling my eyes, "...and who the hell is the man?"

"I just wanted to call. Your father and I were worried sick over you. Are you alright? Were you hurt?"

"If you're referring to the alien attack, then you can rest assure I am fine. You can go back to work," I looked out into the view from the rail.

"Why don't you come back? We'd love to have you again."

"Which one of you would I be seeing?"

"Don't snap young lady. I'm your-"

"Yeah, my mother," I rolled my eyes, "I know."

She sighed, "What's the necessity of you living in a girl's bedroom with people you don't even know? You have your perfectly, large room here with everything you could possibly want."

"I do know them. They know me better than anyone else. And I stay because for once, I'm actually steady with a job. I haven't traveled anymore because I found a place I actually love. You wouldn't believe it, Mom. I found this job that is just perfect and all I do is-"

"Why work? There's no need for you. Come back, you're just a little-"

"If this is why you called, then we can end it here," I said, coldly, "It's not the night for it."

She sighed again and for a moment, I believed she hung up on me. It wouldn't be the first time. "...Merry Christmas, sweetie. I love you."

I shut my eyes and sniffed very deeply, "...Merry Christmas, Mom."

I can't believe she called. That was a Christmas miracle. I loved her, I really did , but...

I placed a hand over my mouth to muffle my sobbing. Something white caught my eye and made me look up. It was snowing. Slowly, I lowered my hand and walked forth to the railing. It had begun snowing and people were already hurrying outside.

Maybe this was a sweet gesture from the stars to make me stop my sobs. I hurried down the stairs, but not before yelling for the others. I hopped onto the mushy, white ground. I laughed in delight as the snow started hitting my face and wetting my hair. I held out my hand and caught snow.

"Got you!" Mickey jumped on me from behind.

I yelled shortly then laughed, "Not cool!" I turned around, frowning.

"So, how'd it go?" he gestured to the phone in my hand.

I sighed, "She was worried. The aliens freaked her out. For the first time, she gave a crap about her last child."

"And the only," he corrected, "Therefore, of course she'd call."

"Yeah, but it didn't get us through a breakthrough. She wants me to come back and be what I used to be. Never." I crossed my arms. I noticed the Doctor and Rose coming forth with Jackie a few feet behind. I looked up to the sky and saw what looked like meteors falling through. "Look!" I pointed, "Meteors!"

"They're not meteors," the Doctor corrected, oddly (for him anyways) quiet.

"What is it?" Rose asked curiously, also looking up.

"This isn't snow. It's ash."

"Not so beautiful anymore..." she muttered.

"This is a brand new planet Earth. No denying the existence of aliens now- everyone saw it," the Doctor looked up, "Everything's new."

"Oh...and what about you?" Rose asked, suddenly growing quieter as well. "What are you gonna do next?" She maintained her look on Mickey and I, like she was avoiding him.

"Well...back in the TARDIS...same old life," the Doctor answer, not very spirited if you asked me.

"On...on your own?" Rose bit her nail.

"Why, don't you wanna come?" He looked down to her.

"Well...yeah..." she finally looked at him, nervously.

"Really? I just thought...'cause I changed..."

"Well I thought...'cause you changed...you might not want me anymore," Rose dimly smiled.

"Oh I'd love you to come!" He finally showed some excitement.

"Okay!"

Mickey and I glanced at each other, amused, then rolled our eyes. I walked over to Jackie and held out her phone. "Thank you."

She smiled warmly, "How'd it go?"

I sighed, looking around, "You know...mother calls, mother says a few things, mother hangs up." I paused, "Joy remains Joy."

She tilted her head, "It sounded like she was really worried."

"Yeah, I don't doubt that. But I don't think she wants me home for that reason; to be safe. And I can't go back like that."

"Be honest with yourself, do you ever plan on going home?"

The thought of it sent a short tremble through my body. I shook my head, forcing very hard to keep all my tears inside my eyes. "No..."

She tilted her head, "Not on Christmas you don't," She wiped a tear off my cheek.

I smiled, "You know what?" I looked at her and Mickey, "I'm gonna show you how I celebrated Christmas once upon a time!"

They glanced at each other, surprised. They gave each other a nod then turned to me with smiles.

"Really?" Mickey raised an eye brow.

I nodded, "Well, the way grandma and I celebrated it anyways. I'm thinking," I put a finger to my cheek as I thought, taking a step back, "A really good movie. Oh! Like the Breakfast Club! With some hot chocolate!"

"Should I run and get the snicker doodle mix then?" Jackie pointed, "I'm sure there's one store open around here."

I laughed and shook my head, not wanting her to go through the trouble. I looked at her and Mickey for a good moment and sighed with content. I thought Christmas this year would be a joke and plain bad but I was so wrong. Never did I believe in my years of traveling that I'd ever spend Christmas with people I could call family.

"Joy?" the Doctor called, cutting my thoughts short. I turned around to him and Rose. "I want you to come with us," he stepped forwards.

"Where?" I raised an eye brow.

"Anywhere," He shrugged, "Still haven't figured that part out yet. But I'd like you to come with us," he gestured to Rose.

"Why?" I asked, wearily. The thought of being a third wheel made me so tired. I didn't want to be a third wheel...

"It's my thank you," he stuffed his hands in his pockets, "Because if it wasn't for your cleverness and your clumsiness, everyone would have probably died tonight."

"It wasn't me," I said flatly, "Rose brought you here and Jackie made the tea."

"Joy," he walked up to me and looked down with a new serious face, "Please. Let me thank you."

I looked up, remaining silent. I knew it drove him crazy which is probably why I took a little longer. A little pay back here and there wouldn't hurt anyone. "Okay..."

He smiled brightly, and hugged me, "Brilliant! We'll have fun, that much I promise!"

I chuckled, "With you it's bound to happen some way or another."

I would only travel one trip. No more. I still didn't want to be a third wheel. I guess I was also hoping he'd actually acknowledge my existence since this was a trip to thank me.

#noblecrescentedit #10th doctor x oc #oc: Joy Souza #oc: Minerva Souza #10th doctor imagines #doctor who imagines #10th doctor x original female character #doctor who #10th doctor #rose tyler #mickey smith

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novantinuum · 5 years

Text

Crack the Paragon, Chapter 8

Fandom: Steven Universe

Rating: General Audiences

Words: 6.5K~

Summary: In another world, he doesn’t have his mother’s sword or shield to hide behind when Bismuth lands her strike. The bubble pops.

Steven falls apart.

Chapter summary: In which together breakfast can’t solve everything.

You can find the first/previous chapter and AO3 links in the reblogs! (I have to omit them from the original post these days to ensure this will show up in the tags.) If you enjoyed this, I’d greatly appreciate your support through reblogs here, or kudos on AO3 as well.

Chapter 8: Fissures

In time, the rest of the household bursts to life.

His dad wakes up an hour or so later on his own accord, rolling out of bed and groggily stumbling into the bathroom to soak in the shower for a solid twenty minutes. Steven eagerly shares the good news— I’m whole again!— after he finally emerges, and while it takes a fair moment for his still half-conscious mind to fully grasp what he’s attempting to explain, when the message finally lands Dad lifts him off the floor and spins him around in his arms, laughing with joy. Compared to Pearl, his reaction to the gem’s rotation is minimal, which comes as a sweet relief.

“I’m just glad to see ya’ smiling and in one piece again,” he says, holding him close.

After sharing an amicable nod of greeting with Pearl, his dad sets out from the house to check on his van, promising he’ll be back in a few minutes. Apparently he needs to lock it, because he totally forgot last night. Again. Also, he did say he’d grab the waffle iron before he went to bed, so fingers crossed for that. Steven’s mouth waters at the mere thought of Dad’s homemade waffles, golden, crisp, and stacked sky high, their flavor— buttery, with a hint of lemon zest— bursting like fireworks against his tongue. Nobody makes waffles like he can, not even Pearl. While waiting for Dad to return with breakfast materials, he changes into clean jeans and a shirt. Lazily, he flops onto his belly on the couch with plans of playing Splashy Shark on his phone, only to find...

Steven groans, dropping his head face first into the middle of the cushion. His phone’s battery is so low it won’t turn on at all. Dead as a doorstop! It seems he forgot to plug it in before falling asleep once more, for the umpteenth thousandth time, even though he tried to remind himself early this morning on the beach. Typical.

“Is the world ending again over there?” Pearl— currently lounging at the kitchen counter— asks with a playful lilt to her voice. “Do we need to call in the rest of the resistance?”

“Noooo, it’s fine,” he replies, drawn out. “This is a path I must walk alone, for I’m the lad who forgets.” He rolls over onto his back, stretching his free arm towards the ceiling as if desperately reaching towards the stars. “And to forget is the dark burden I bear,” he whispers dramatically.

“You didn’t plug your phone in last night, did you?”

“Whoa, how’d you guess??”

“Steven, you do realize I’ve lived with you for almost three years, yes?”

“Oh,” he says, brows shooting up. “Right!”

Humming, he pulls himself off the couch and trots up the steps to the loft. He sets his phone on his nightstand and connects it to the charge cord. Unfortunately, it'll take a while for it to build up enough juice to turn on again. That’ll teach him. Or maybe it won’t, time will tell. He hopes it won’t be out of commission for too long, though, because he really should call Connie about all this…

The temple door begins to open. He rapidly turns upon hearing that familiar sound, just in time to see Amethyst emerging from the depths of her room. Her hair is a mess, her eyes droop in exhaustion, and for a moment one of her fingers digs halfway up her nose. More than anything, she looks like she needs a great big hug.

“Hey,” she mutters, and yawns. “Any word on ol’ Steven 2?”

“Amethyst, Amethyst, Amethyst,” he hollers, beaming from ear to ear, and leaps from the loft to greet her. He doesn’t even bother floating, with no need for a soft landing from this height. The impact of his bare feet against the floorboards reverberates through the whole house. “Guess what??”

He flings himself around the purple Gem, almost knocking her clear over in the shock of surprise affection. (Although by this point, if she’s not used to his hug attacks that’s her problem.)

“Uhhh, what?” she says, face blank even in the wake of his effervescent enthusiasm.

Pearl’s hands go to her hips. “Steven, what have I told you about jumping from the loft?

“I’m the full package again,” he declares, and throws his arms wide, pointedly ignoring her for the moment. “My gem reformed and then we fused!”

Despite her low energy otherwise, Amethyst cracks a grin at his good news. “Whoa, really? When was this?”

“This morning! I was up super early. Couldn’t sleep.”

“Sheesh. You and me both, bud.”

“At least you don’t actually need to sleep. Lucky.”

“Yeah, but I’ve been making a habit of it for so long that not sleeping pretty much has the same affect,” she says, and crosses to sit on the couch. She stretches back, body sinking into the familiar curves of the cushion she always claims. She props one of her hands behind her mass of lavender hair. “Ah, that’s more like it! So… after everything,” she begins cautiously, balling the other hand up against her gemstone, right against the facet she herself cracked about a year and a half ago. “How do you feel now?”

He shrugs one shoulder, the corner of his mouth twisting upwards. “Okay, I guess. I’m in one piece, but… everything’s different now, y’know? Even though I don’t want it to be.”

Her expression grows more downcast, the fringe of her hair shadowing her features. “Yeah.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Steven catches Pearl watching their conversation from the kitchen. It’s painfully obvious she’s trying to keep her dutiful surveillance on the down-low, her side glances interspersed with time spent washing raspberries and gathering waffle ingredients for his Dad, but he doesn’t get why this secrecy is necessary on her part. It’s not like they’re not openly discussing this in the middle of the house. If he and Amethyst really wanted to talk privately they’d wander outside, or into her room. Nonetheless, there’s nothing he could say that Pearl hasn’t already heard.

Although now that he thinks about it, there’s plenty of stuff he hasn’t told Amethyst yet. He purses his lips, unable to shake the thought of her visceral reaction to the reveal about his mo— about Rose— that dropped like an anvil on their family last night. With that in mind, how will she respond to the permanent visual reminder of this change that he now embodies?

With a quick glance between Pearl and the doorway his dad left through, his mind is made. If he isn’t forthright now, she’ll find out eventually. He figures it’s better she hears it from him rather than through the grapevine.

“Y’know, I should probably mention,” he says with a half laugh. “My gem did a bit of a weird thing. It kinda… flipped?” To prove his point, Steven lifts up the hem of his t-shirt, barring the diamond for all to see.

Amethyst squints as she peers at his gem. “What the fu—“

“Amethyst,” Pearl interjects sternly, crossing towards the pair of them.

“—uuuuuudge is that? Gems can do that??”

She rolls her eyes. “Somehow I doubt that every Gem can—“

“Oooo, lemme try!” she gleefully squeals, leaping to her feet in one bound and throwing her arms aloft.

Her gemstone begins to glow a soft purple as the finer details of her form blur into an indistinguishable mass of light. The edges of this light bend and wobble, and she seethes in intense concentration, but despite her efforts her gemstone refuses to budge.

Gasping for breath, her hard light form snaps back into its customary shape like a rubber band. The light fades, revealing her scowl. “Aww man, no fair! Everyone else gets all the cool powers.”

“Haha, well I didn’t exactly do it on purpose,” Steven says, shrugging nonchalantly.

The screen door slams open, prompting everyone in the room to sling their attention to the man standing tall and proud with the cast iron kitchen appliance brandished like a sword in his hands.

“Who’s excited for waffles??” he asks, his grin contagious.

Steven shoots his hand in the air. “Oooh, me, me! I’m excited for waffles!”

“Then guess today’s your lucky day,” he chuckles, moving across the house to the counter. “Pearl, ‘ya wanna help a man out here?”

“Ah, yes!” she chimes, raising en pointe as she triumphantly jabs her finger in the air. “Of course! I’ve even taken the liberty of gathering the ingredients for you already.”

Dad stutters for a moment, clearly not expecting this turn of events considering her former animosity towards him. Their family trip to Empire City— the night the tides forever changed— wasn’t that long ago, after all. He threads anxious fingers through a thick length of hair.

“Wow, you, uh- thank you.”

Steven follows them to the kitchen area, stars in his eyes as he rapturously watches their amicable interactions. Showcasing a surprising capacity for teamwork, they set up the waffle iron and start to prepare that gooey, delicious batter. His mouth waters at the mere scent of the lemon his dad squeezes into the bowl. Acting on unspoken impulse, Pearl grabs a whisk and accepts the bowl from him, beating the mix of ingredients until it’s reached the perfect consistency. The tastiest pancakes and waffles come from batter that’s still a little lumpy, his dad always says, since that causes them to rise better. In any case, his taste buds can hardly wait.

“I’m so hungry I think I could eat like, four bazillion waffles,” he tells Amethyst in the most candid voice he can muster, relocating to the couch she’s lounging on with a hop and a skip.

“Heh,” she says, a suitably up-to-no-good smirk framing her face. “Not if I get to all of ‘em first!”

“Whaaat? Naw, come on, you wouldn’t do that to your favorite Steven!”

“Are you kidding? I’d steal food from myself! After I swallowed it.”

“Ewww,” he laughs, his nose scrunching up.

They continue to laugh together for a solid few seconds, but the enthusiasm holding their facades together so precariously soon fades. Meanwhile, in the background Dad and Pearl converse as easily as if they’d never carried a decades-long feud to begin with. (Oh, the sweet irony of this reversal!) Steven clamps his lips together, for once clueless what to say to Amethyst to make everything better. Their conversations aren’t usually like this. They aren’t so… stilted, like he has to traverse across a lake of thin ice. He sighs, feeling his chest rise and fall with a weight almost heavier than the memory of the last few hours. That’s the one thing he fears most, if he’s honest about all this— that as a consequence of the mess Rose left him, his relationships with the Gems will never be the same again.

He can only guess Amethyst heard his sigh, because she’s the one who first moves to break the silence.

“Hey, uh,” she begins quietly, and shoots a quick glance at Pearl, meeting her eyes briefly before looking back at him. “I’m sorry for… well, everything, really. That I said last night.”

He frowns, the memory of her words’ sting suddenly looping itself in his mind like a broken record.

“And then, what? She creates you just so she doesn’t have to deal with the fact she’s a liar?”

“Oh. You, uh,” he scratches at the back of his neck, “you don’t need to apologize for that. We were all pretty stressed, I get it.”

“No. I do!” she insists, her expression stretching wide. “What I said, it wasn’t just mean, it was wrong. Like, I still feel like I don’t know anything about Rose, or Pink, or whatever anymore, okay? But just because I don’t get anything doesn’t make you— gah, forget it,” she says hurriedly, waving the thought away. “The point is, I’m sorry, y’know? For real.”

The earnesty of her apology covers his wounds like a salve. Blinking heavily, he throws his arms around her, burying his face into her hair.

“Apology heartily accepted,” he says, muffled.

The stiffness in her form eases up, and she finally, truly allows herself to hug him back.

“Thanks, dude.”

From that point forward, the atmosphere of the house grows lighter. No longer needing to worry about the state of his relationship with Amethyst, Steven throws himself into the nuttiness and excitement of family time feet first. The two of them horse around while Dad and Pearl continue making breakfast, wrestling each other in front of the warp pad. It doesn’t take long for a stack of waffles to pile up on the counter, cooked to a golden brown perfection. Catching his breath from all the play fighting, he eagerly rushes to sit himself at the counter next to the purple Gem, empty plate and utensils already set in front of them. His legs freely dangle, not long enough yet to reach the foot rest midway down the stool. He’s not paying attention to hear it, but his dad must have said something witty because Pearl is chuckling breathlessly. It’s probably one of his corny dad jokes. Pearl will never admit it, but she has a secret sweet spot for his puns.

The temple door slides open— a rush of slightly stale air wafting in to greet them— as Dad removes the last waffles from the iron. Beaming, his attention immediately peels away from the promise of food in favor of the entrance of one of his favorite people.

“Garnet!” he calls, throwing his arms wide.

“Good morning, Steven,” she says with a slight sing-song lilt in her voice, crossing the room towards the rest of the family. With a slight smile, she places her hands solid on his shoulders. “I presume you figured out how to fuse back together with your other half.”

“Yup! All together,” he grins, titling his neck back to peer up at her.

“Except his gem flipped, and now it’s all funky,” Amethyst interjects in a flash, playfully jabbing him right at his navel.

Garnet’s comforting grip slackens, her hands slipping free.

“Hey!” he giggles, smacking Amethyst’s arm away. “No tickling!”

“It’s not tickling, it’s revenge!” she says with a loud raspy chortle, and puts him in a headlock, scruffing at his hair until it’s a frizzy mess. He kicks his legs in futile protest as she mounts her attack, laughing until the pressure in his lungs is too much to handle and tears prickle at the corner of his eyes. It’s the most he’s laughed since… well, since before he was cracked.

The others, however, aren’t smiling. They don’t seem to be paying any attention to their antics at all. Pearl’s hand is balled at her chin, her soft blue eyes pinned on the Crystal Gem leader. Even his dad’s peering at her with concern, the spatula dangling off one finger.

“Garnet?” his dad asks, his frown deepening the faint wrinkles around his eyes.

“Are you all right?” Pearl chimes in.

“I…” She clenches her fists, averting her glance. “I don’t understand. Your gem—“

Amethyst scoffs. “—is all diamond shaped now, and it’s totally weird. Steven, show her!”

He gives a slight scowl, subtle enough that the others wouldn’t pick up on it right away. It would be nice if she wasn’t being so pushy about this, if he could find the right moment to tell Garnet himself. But with everyone here watching in anticipation, there’s really nothing else he can do.

Sighing heavily, he lifts his shirt, exposing his gem. “After I fused with my gem half, it was just like this. I still don’t get why.”

Her visor may cover her eyes, but he knows the spectrum of her expressions well enough that he doesn’t need to see them to know all three pupils have shrunk into pinpricks. Her mouth widens into a circle, crystallizing in her shock.

“Oh,” she breathes heavily, grinding her teeth against each other hard. “I- I never foresaw this possibility.”

Sweat beads at his brow. Even though she’s trying to mask it (probably for his sake), he can tell she’s struggling to keep from falling apart. Her hands are visibly quivering, and the gems inlaid in her palms pulse with light. He swallows hard, lump hanging in his throat. “Heh, what can I say?” he shrugs with a nervous laugh. “Guess I’m just really unpredictable!”

“Perhaps,” she says quietly, thankfully managing to pull herself together again. She flexes her fists, their tremor receding. Crossing her arms, she moves to lean against the wall by the fridge.

The household falls so quiet that Steven can hear his own stomach gurgle, everyone staring at the fusion in wordless worry.

His dad coughs. “Well, anyways,” he says, spinning the spatula in a circle. “Who else wants waffles?”

“Lay ‘em on me,” Amethyst says, holding out her plate. He serves her two to start. She shoots him a pair of finger guns, and digs in.

“Okay. I’m assuming none for Pearl?”

“That would be correct, thanks.”

He promptly turns towards the Crystal Gem leader, a weak grin stretching across his face despite the soured atmosphere.

“What about you, Garnet?” Wanna try the ol’ Universe family recipe?”

She shakes her head in singular motion. “No.”

The churning in Steven’s stomach fades into obscurity in light of the bitter prospect of his guardian’s emotional instability. So much for daring to hope that they could all make amends where needed, refrain from obsessing over their problems, and move on. He slumps on his stool. Dad deposits a pair of golden, buttery waffles on his plate, artfully garnishing the stack with a dollop of whipped cream and a cluster of raspberries from the bowl of them that Pearl washed earlier, but the idea of together breakfast no longer sounds very appetizing anymore. After all, it’s not the food that makes a together breakfast, it’s the company. And with Pearl and Dad standing nervously to the side, Garnet struggling to remain stable, and even Amethyst sapped of her usual spunk in the light of their demons, this is about as far from together a family can get. What did he do wrong? Why isn’t this the sunny future Garnet showed him last night?

Leaning his cheek into the palm of his hand, he aimlessly picks at his breakfast with his fork.

Amethyst glances over at him, already neck deep into her own meal. “Eat up little man, they’re super good!” she declares.

His mouth turns up into a small grimace the longer he stares at the food. It looks wonderful, but...

“Actually, I’m not all that hungry anymore.”

“Steven, you need to eat,” his dad says.

“I just said, I’m not hungry.”

Dad’s brow furrows as he leverages one of his rare father knows best faces at him. Steven looks to Pearl for rescue, but she (perhaps wisely) averts her eyes, choosing not to interject herself into Greg’s parenting.

Amethyst, however, is more than willing to take up the charge. “If you don’t eat up in two minutes, I’m claiming them,” she threatens, deadpan. “I’ll lick them, nice and slow, with lots of slobber, and then they’ll be mine.”

“Okay, okay!” he says, holding his hands up defensively. “Geeze.”

He blows a weary burst of air past his lips, grabs his fork, and begins digging in to appease his dad. The first bites settle like stones in the pit of his empty stomach. He has to admit, even if his appetite is zilch, at least they’re good tasting waffles. All his guardians visibly relax upon seeing him start to eat breakfast. Amethyst’s tensed shoulders drop. Pearl allows herself to lean back against the counter. Garnet uncrosses her arms. Out of the corner of his eyes, he catches a glimpse of the fusion picking up the can of whipped cream and squirting some directly into her mouth when she thought the other two Gems weren’t looking. The corner of his mouth perks up. Looks like someone has a secret sweet tooth!

He’s halfway through the second of the pair of waffles when the short quartz sitting next to him grins devilishly.

“Hey, Steven…”

“Hnn?” he utters, muffled through the food in his mouth.

She flicks a raspberry at him. “Catch this hide!”

He yelps, just barely ducking in time to miss the fruit. It falls apart upon impact on the floor, its juices exploding outward across the wood.

“Touchdown,” she says, and blows off her finger as if it were a pistol.

The edge of his lips curve up, chipping away at his melancholy. “Oh, I see what you’re steppin’ in!”

Pearl groans, throwing her hand against her temple. “Must you two really—“

“Let them have this,” Garnet says coolly as she leans back against the fridge, the whipped cream can still dangling at the edge of her grasp.

“But we just cleaned this place!”

Amethyst chucks another cluster of berries at him, but this time he’s expecting her fruity projectiles. He cranes his neck back, letting his mouth fall open wide. One of the raspberries bounces off his chin. Close, but not quite. If he’s quick enough, maybe he can catch one in his mouth. That’d be pretty awesome! Thankfully she seems to catch on to his ploy, because she starts to toss them underhand. He stifles giggles as he successfully snaps one— no, two— berries right out of the air.

“There’s some days I feel like we’re raising two children,” he hears Pearl comment to his dad offhand, as they watch them fool around with their food from the sidelines.

“And there’s some days I feel like I’m raising four,” he mutters under his breath.

“What?”

He coughs into his fist. “Uh, nothing!”

She raises a vaguely disgruntled brow at him, but doesn’t say anything more on the matter.

He and his quartz sibling gleefully continue messing around with their edible projectiles until they grow bored of it, soon returning to eating their food like (mostly normal) beings. Really, he can only speak for himself, since she’s recently taken to eating the paper plates along with her breakfast. He grins through a mouthful of whipped cream. This is one of the many things he loves and admires about her, that she always knows how to cheer him up when he needs it. Before their little food fight, the soured atmosphere of his household left him almost feeling sick, but he already feels a lot better now. Needless to say, with his restored appetite the last waffle doesn’t take long to disappear.

“Next time you really gotta try one!” he enthuses to Garnet as he discards his paper plate, weaving between Pearl and his father as they begin to clean the kitchen. “Dad’s waffles are batter than anything!”

He contorts his features into the most exaggerated expression he can muster, waiting with baited breath for the shoe to drop. On the other side of the counter, Amethyst snorts.

Her nostrils twitch with an uncertain air, the straight edge of her visor casting a deep shadow on her face. She stands with her arms wrapped tight around her torso, like a tourniquet wrapped around a bleeding wound. “Hmm. Perhaps one day.”

And in the space of those three simple words, his little heart breaks into pieces. She almost always chuckles at his corny puns, always! So for her to barely even acknowledge them, for her to bottle away all her usual joy and confidence and quiet wit and hide it under a rock solid mask of falsified indifference, it stings more than anything. He thought she’d grown past this.

“Garnet, what’s wrong?” he asks, voice cracking in his anguish. The others all look up from whatever they’re doing with obvious curiosity, all of them silently asking the same question but none of them having the courage to approach their leader directly. “You’ve been like this all morning, ever since—“

With a shallow gasp, his eyes grow glassy. Her mood drastically changed the moment she saw his flipped gem. He clamps his hands over his mouth.

Oh, shards.

He did this.

Both Pearl and Dad move on automatic at the sight of emotional distress, the Gem solidly clasping his shoulder, and his father wrapping his arms around him. Across the room, Amethyst bites at her bottom lip, expression alight with genuine compassion.

“Steven.” Garnet kneels to address him face-to-face, sighing heavily in her exhaustion, worrisome as that is. He quickly blinks through the burn of unshed tears, glancing up at her. “The truth is, I— we have something we need to share. With all of you.”

The room fills with uncomfortable tension, the shock of her admission and its concerningly specific wording sinking in like maple syrup soaking through a waffle’s airy layers.

He rubs at the corner of one of his eyes. “W- we? I don’t—“

Pearl steps towards her, shaking her head in a daze. “Garnet, no, surely you can’t mean that…”

“Ruby and Sapphire have decided they want to take some time apart. Indefinitely.”

His mouth falls ajar, but there’s nothing he can think of to say. Steven’s chest rumbles, shaken with cries anchored too deep in his soul for him to actually express. In a heartbeat his dad pulls him closer.

“But… why?” Amethyst asks, face painted in shades of faint betrayal.

She adjusts her visor. “Because in the wake of recent revelations, we’ve realized that we only remained Garnet because of her.”

“Garnet, you—“ Pearl stammers— “now you know that’s not true! You saved each other’s lives, you fell in love with each other, you—“

“We stayed fused because a diamond took us by the hands and ordered us not to question who we were as Garnet,” she corrected. “Ruby and Sapphire, they never truly got the luxury to seek self fulfillment as individuals, not like you or Amethyst did. We… we both need time to reflect on what’s happened.”

Slowly swaying in his dad’s embrace, hugging those sturdy, dependable arms to his chest, Steven quietly speaks up.

“If both of you have been hurting ever since last night, then why didn’t you unfuse already? Why push through it just to come to breakfast?”

The fusion pauses, probably considering her phrasing. She briefly balls her hand at her chin, fingers pressing against one of her gems, and then taking a breath, allows her visor to shimmer away entirely. Her eyes glisten as she imparts her honest answer.

“If I unfused earlier, I wouldn’t have gotten to hug you goodbye.”

He can’t stifle his sobs any longer. Breaking away from his dad, he throws himself at Garnet and— pressing his cheek against her chest— gives a keening cry, the mounting pressure abruptly releasing from his chest but manifesting across his features as dry as a bone. He’s cried too many tears in such a short span of time that he almost wonders if he’s finally hit the bottom of the well. His fingers grip at her familiar form as if he can single-handedly keep her here together with him forever. He dry sobs in her arms until he aches, vying to burn the comforting sensation of his guardian’s solid hold, the assurance of the even thrum running through her hard light body, into his memory forever more.

The other two Gems join in the embrace, kneeling on the floor with him and wrapping themselves around him like a blanket.

“You- but you can’t just leave us,” Amethyst whispers brokenly. “Not now!”

Her voice hitches. She sighs, pressing her forehead against the smaller Gem’s. “I know this is gonna hurt you, I know. And we’re sorry. We’re so, so sorry. But we need time to reflect, to understand who we are apart from Garnet."

“Yeah, but…”

“Listen to me,” she says gently, pulling back and lifting her chin. “You are enough. An inimitable cut of quartz, just as you are. Please. Even in your darkest moments, never let yourself forget the depth of your worth.”

She nods, her lip quivering.

“And Pearl.”

The ebony Gem peels away from the hug at her beckoning to catch a glimpse at her, her pale blue irises glinting through the liquid pooling over them.

“In my absence, I need you to be strong. Not only for yourself, but for all of us. The Crystal Gems will do well under your leadership.”

She hums in confirmation, taking her new mission to heart. “Of course,” she says, straightening her back and sniffing away her tears.

Garnet turns her saddened gaze to him next, passing her fingers through his tangled mop of hair. “Steven.”

“Y-yeah?”

“None of this is your fault.”

“B-b-but—” he blubbers.

“None of it. The past is not your burden. And any time you begin to fear it is, I want you to pause… take a deep breath… and remember how much we all love you. You are your own Gem."

He bobs his head slowly, sniffling as his breath evens out.

The fusion sits back on her heels, ending their long embrace.

“Greg,” she says as she stands, leveling her three eyes directly at him. Though Steven has no clue what, some silent conversation passes between the two of them— like charge passing through circuitry— in a series of subtle, indecipherable expressions. “Take care of my family.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he replies evenly, wiping a stray tear away from his own cheek.

Closing her eyes, Garnet begins to glow white, the gems at the core of her being shifting and separating into two smaller light bodies. They’re still holding hands at the moment the glow fades. Sapphire is the first to let go, letting her gloved fingers fall loose against the skirt of her dress.

Ruby’s face is a blank stone wall, one that’s been visibly chipped away at. Her eyes clearly glisten, as if she’s about to fall apart at any moment yet is stubbornly holding this outburst of emotion back until she can escape to a place of privacy. Sapphire, on the other hand, makes no attempt to mask her distress. As always the fringe of her hair covers half of her face, but the tracks of her tears flow down her cheek and to her chin, threatening to drip onto her bodice.

Despite the unfortunate nature of their appearance, Steven can’t deny he’s still glad to get a chance to see them.

“Um… h-hi, Ruby, Sapphire,” he stutters with his best attempt at a smile. “Long time no see?”

“Hello, Steven,” the blue Gem responds in amicable but still relatively formless monotone, as she clasps her gemless hand over the other. She sniffs, wiping the stray lines of hard light based fluid away from her eye and nose before allowing her expression to crystallize again. Gathering herself, she turns to face the group. “If all of you will excuse me, I need some time to think. Alone, for once.”

With not another word— not even an attempt at greeting the others, or consoling Ruby, who looks ready to cry at a moment’s notice— Sapphire turns on a dime and effortlessly glides across the warp pad to the temple door. She holds her right palm to the crystals embedded in the stonework, the blue one glowing bright in response. The seldom used entrance unlocks with a sonorous click. They all watch in stunned silence as she disappears through the opening, into the vast depths of the Crystal Temple.

The group stands ramrod straight, no one budging an inch as they stare vacantly at the doorway. Ruby folds her hands tight together, pressing them to her chest.

Pearl, thankfully, is the first to break the spell. (He’s thankful because he isn’t sure if anyone else here could’ve gathered the courage in the light of everything that just happened, himself included.)

“Oh Ruby, I’m so sorry,” she whispers, balling her hand against her mouth.

“D’ya wanna go punch some stuff in the Kindergarten with me?” Amethyst offers softly, slinging her arm around the shorter Gem.

Steven weakly raises a finger in suggestion. “Or we could play some games here. I finally found that limited release console version of Fight Fighters a few days back, if that’s up your alley.”

“And I could always take you for a quiet drive up the coast,” Greg says.

She shakes her head, shrugging away from Amethyst's attempt at comfort. “I- I don’t really wanna talk to any of you right now, to be honest. S’ not your fault, but—“

Ruby pauses, her small form nearly shaking as she averts her gaze from them all, staring into the middle distance with glassy eyes.

“I think… for now, I jus- I just need to run away,” she croaks. “Sorry."

Not even bothering to hold back her sobs anymore, she barrels across the room in a flurry of anguish and climbs the steps to the warp pad. Everything happens so fast that no one can react quick enough to stop her before she activates it, a burst of cyan light springing forth to whisk her away into the stream. In seconds, she’s gone.

Steven shuffles his feet, feeling for all the world as if some antagonistic force of the universe just stole a decent chunk of his heart away.

“Well, now what?” Amethyst says with a big shrug.

Pearl crosses her arms, her lips curving into a subtle sneer at the glibness of her attitude. “What do you mean, ‘now what?’ We’re going to go round them up, sit them both down, have a calm, rational discussion, and fix this!”

“But you can’t just— ughhh,” she groans, throwing her head back. “They’re not inanimate objects for you to sort into piles, P! You can’t expect to throw them together and like, make them fuse again! That’s not how it works!”

“Now, that’s not what I meant, I—“

“Bull! It’s exactly what you meant!”

She haughtily turns up her nose, aghast. “I don’t appreciate the accusatory tone you’ve taken with me!”

“And there you go, gettin’ all defensive,” she says, throwing her arms up. Her form glows white as she effortlessly shapeshifts into a picture perfect purple doppleganger of her. “Blah, blah, blah blah blah,” she spits in the most exaggerated voice she can muster, twirling the bottom ribbon of her sash on her finger. “I’m Pearl, and I know better than everyone else ‘coz I’m always right!”

“Amethyst! That’s enough!”

He pales as he watches the two of them outright self destruct. In many ways, it’s a disappointing step back. He hasn’t seen them spat this badly for almost a year. His feet shuffle awkwardly beneath him, bare toes twitching as his mind yearns for some brilliant idea that could stop this fight in its tracks, but at the current moment he’s got nothing.

“Daaaad,” he whispers lowly, obscuring his mouth from their view with a cupped hand. “Help me out here?”

His father grits his teeth, nervously stepping forward between him and the two Gems at each other’s throats. “H-hey, you two, how about we all take a deep breath a—“

“Shut up, Greg!” they shout in unison, whirling on him.

He throws his palms up, immediately backing away from their vitriolic spat. Steven grabs onto his arm once he’s returned to him, hugging it close to his chest, which is growing tighter and tighter by the second. He absolutely hates seeing his family fight, more than anything, but when they refuse to listen to reason, what can he do about it?

“As I was trying to say, you’re completely taking my words out of context,” Pearl hisses, advancing on her.

“No, I’m not!” she hollers, her voice echoing into the rafters of the compact beach house. She jabs her finger under the other Gem’s nose, the action violent enough in its intensity that Steven can’t help but flinch at the sight. “You still wanna think you can wave your little hand and have everything go back to the way it was, poof, like magic! But guess what?! You can’t!! Garnet’s gone, we have no real leader, Ruby disappeared to shard knows where, you can barely explain a single thing without locking up, basically everything we ever knew about Rose was a complete lie, a-and, and—“

“And now it’s Steven’s turn to leave,” he declares abruptly, the tension held in thick knots within him easing at his bold decision.

This is apparently enough to snap Pearl out of her emotional tizzy, his guardian whirling to face him with an embarrassed flush blooming blue across her cheeks. “Oh, Steven, I—“

Spinning on his heels, he scrambles away from the others as fast as he can, heart racing, only pausing to retrieve his phone from where it’s been charging and to slip on sandals. “I’m sorry, can’t talk, I’m headedtotown, needsomefreshair, bye!”

He lets it slam behind him as he races out into the arms of Beach City’s breezy, overcast morning. His flip flops clap rhythmically against his heels.

“Wait! Steven!” his dad calls after him, but it’s already too late. He’s not going back in, he refuses. Not now, not with everyone being so sullen and argumentative and weird.

He thought they could move on, he thought all this repressed pain and feelings of betrayal could heal and they could all grow closer for it, but apparently he’s wrong. Nothing about this messed up situation is ever going to get better, is it? He doubles over as he passes the mailbox, his sprint slowing to an abrupt halt. His teeth clench, his fingers digging into the fabric of his jeans like rose barbs through delicate skin as he catches his breath. Steven digs into his pocket for his phone.

“Hoh geeze,” he mutters, holding down the power button to force restart. “This is such a mess.”

At least he was wise enough to grab his phone in the first place. Blessedly, the screen finally lights up.

And as feared, he’s met with a hefty cluster of missed notifications from Connie. Sweat beads on his brow as he begins to scroll through them, even though he knew darn well this was coming.

Connie: Um?? How was any of that supposed to not make me worry?

Connie: Are you okay?

Connie: Steven? ???

Missed call- Connie Maheswaran, 7:02 am.

Missed call- Connie Maheswaran, 7:04 am.

Connie: Pls call me when you can

Missed call- Connie Maheswaran, 7:51 am.

Missed call- Connie Maheswaran, 8:47 am.

Connie: Seriously I’m kinda freaking out rn what’s going on over there, I’d come over as backup if I could but I’m packing for the India trip and mom won’t let me leave

He purses his lips, silently smacking himself for sending that stupid, stupid text early this morning in the first place. “Yeah, I should probably clear this up,” he mumbles.

Steven swipes to unlock his phone, navigates to Connie’s contact, and presses the video chat button. Forget calls. This is definitely a scenario in need of face-to-face communication. If they can’t be in the same place at the same time, a video chat is the second best thing.

He plops himself down in the sand, and patiently waits through the first and second dial.

____

Notes:

Woo, this was a fun one (see: heart wrenching) to write. I enjoyed tackling a wide variety of family interactions here.

Some random notes for this chapter:

-HC: while Pearl hates eating, she's actually a fairly good cook. She's the one who makes sure Steven's getting some good ol' healthy food in him.

-Uhh, that game Steven was gonna play before he realized his phone was Dead with a capital D, 'Splashy Shark,' is just this universe's version of Flappy Bird, honestly. Don't ask why, haha, I thought it'd be amusing. XD

-I HC that non-diamond type Gems wouldn't be able to flip their gemstone like Pink/Rose/Steven can. It's something that requires a whole lot of power to carry out. Thus why even Amethyst, the shapeshifting master, can't manage it. As an added point, Rose was able to shift the color of her skin to a far lighter shade and completely change her eyes, whereas other Gems tend to retain their color scheme when they shapeshift. Rose definitely had an extra strong shapeshifting ability in the first place.

-After chapter five, the insinuation is that Garnet went into the temple, unfused, and Ruby and Sapphire had their little falling out there. They only fused again to come out for breakfast because they realized Garnet never got a chance to hug Steven goodbye for now- and they weren't sure when (if ever) they'd be fusing again. Whether this softened the blow or made it worse for the kid is up for debate.

-That being said, I want to clarify that this definitely isn't the end of Ruby and Sapphire's relationship. I'll tag more thoroughly once I start diving into specifics, but their arcs will be about self discovery, both about who they are as individuals and in relation to each other.

-I did not expect to end up writing a Pearl and Amethyst spat in this chapter when I first planned it, but I'm certainly not complaining. It just sorta... organically happened. XD

-The title of this fic actually has a double meaning... the word 'paragon' can refer to both a diamond, or something that is an example of perfection. The divergence in this world led to Steven's gem being cracked, but it also essentially shattered the perfect little family dynamic that he'd had for so long at this point.

#su #steven universe #su fanfiction #su fanfic #crack the paragon #garnet #amethyst #pearl #greg universe #ruby #sapphire #my writing stuff #i swear if this doesn't show up in the friggin tags... *grumble grumble*

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daffietjuh · 5 years

Text

Oh gosh! It's time for my contribution to the Roswell Cosmic Love Exchange! It’s technically the 14th where I’m at (it’s 6am but who really cares) so here it is! My wonderful subject (wait, that's a strange way to say that…. whatever) is @manesframe was such a joy to find a new blog that I love, with a user name I adore! I'm currently on vacation where the wifi is shaky at best, I've had to try just about every possible way to get this up, so I really hope this does what it's supposed to.

I was going to make this little story about Alex and his Beagle longer, but I've been sleeping awfully and I can barely remember my own name at this point.

Also, shoutout to @goodvibesinroswell for the awesome idea! We need more love in this fandom! Now, on with the show....story... whatever.

----

When Alex’s therapist first suggested he should get a dog, he’d been a little apprehensive about it. How was he supposed to look after a creature, if he could barely look after himself? But his therapist, a lady in her late thirties who had experience with (ex)military personnel, seemed pretty enthusiastic about it. The dog would give him goal every day, get him out of the house and it would give him a sense of security at night. Like a teammate watching his back, which was an thought that definitely appealed to him. So, after thinking about it for a few weeks, Alex found himself at a shelter a few towns over where there was no chance of running into people he didn’t want to see.

He was going there to get some sort of Shepard, if it was supposed to make him feel safer, he should get a guard dog of sorts, right? He told the lady from the shelter as much and she happily lead him towards the bigger dogs. They passed several cages with small mop-like dogs, some curly haired spaniels, some rough looking black dog and… oh. The last cage of the row contained a small, sad looking pile of what appeared to be a Beagle. It’s ears were flopped down around his head, its little snout buried between its paws and it was curled up in the corner of the room.

Alex slowed down almost automatically. The lady from the shelter, her name tag read Allison noticed.

‘Ah, I see you’ve spotted Charlie.’ She sighed. ‘A really sad case, that one. His owner died very suddenly and no one in the family would take him in. We think he misses his old owner, because we just can’t get him to be happy.’ Alex felt a sharp pang of something that felt like heartache. He knew what this dog felt like.

Alex didn’t know how to be happy anymore either. He’d also lost friends, brothers.

‘Would you like to say hi to him?’ Allison asked. Before Alex’s brain had the chance to point out all the reasons he should say no to that, he was already nodding.

‘Yes, I’d like that.’ Allison opened the cage and let Alex step in. The dog lifted his head just a little, his big, brown eyes looked impossibly sad. ‘Hey there buddy.’ Alex let his instincts guide him and he sat down on the floor, a few feet away from the Beagle. Allison stayed quiet as Alex softly started to talk to the dog. ‘I heard you lost your best friend. I know what that’s like. I’m sorry to tell you this, but you never quite get over it. It sucks, but you can find ways to get back to living again, or so my therapist tells me.’ Alex shrugged, the Beagle had perked up a little, watching Alex with something close to interest.

‘I still don’t really know what I’m doing, but she suggested I should get a friend, when I told her I wasn’t very good at making friends anymore she told me to get a dog. Well, that’s not quite the truth, there were more reasons why she suggested it, but it was a part of it.’ Alex made sure his hand was resting on the floor towards Charlie, an offering. Slowly, keeping low to the ground, Charlie shuffled towards him, nudging his cold, wet nose against Alex’s hand. Alex smiled at him, he wasn’t sure why he felt so emotional all of the sudden.

‘He is very kind-hearted. Not quite what you were looking for, but sometimes life just brings you what you need.’ Allison said quietly from the left, Alex had almost forgotten she was there.

‘Yeah.’ He sounded much more chocked up than he was willing to admit. ‘Maybe you’re right.’ He said while he slowly pet Charlie over his soft back. He could feel the knobs of the Beagle’s spine. When he fell silent, he could actually hear a soft thump, thump, thump. When he looked over at Charlie, he realized the Beagle was softly wagging it’s tail. Not quite full on, but more than Alex had seen him do so far.

He brought the little one home, because he was a big fat softy.

It took them a few days to figure each other out. At first Charlie would get confused when Alex would walk around the cabin with his crutches. Alex would startle sometimes when he heard Charlie’s nails scratching over the hardwood floor. But they figured it out. Alex slept better at night, he wouldn’t wake up feeling like death anymore. Charlie got happier and more enthusiastic as the days went on. Alex realized it was good for him. Charlie liked routine, Alex liked routine. Charlie required regular walks, the outside air was good for Alex’s head and the walking was good for his leg. Alex didn’t feel so overwhelmingly alone anymore. Charlie even made Alex a friend, an actual human friend. He met Faith at the dog park (which Alex hadn’t even realized Roswell had), her dog Bowie immediately got along with Charlie and so Alex ended up making small-talk. Small-talk that turned into coffee, that turned into movie nights.

They were just similar enough to get along, but different enough to add something to the other’s life. Faith convinced Alex to go back to talking to Kyle, and then Liz and then Maria. Eventually, she even convinced him that talking to Michael wasn’t a horrible idea. It took time, months, but he got there. And so did Charlie. He adored Kyle and the girls from the moment he met him, he took a little time to warm up to Michael but he caved after a while. Like owner, like dog. Charlie even turned out to be a half-decent guard dog. When a bunch of drunken teens accidently stumbled across Alex’s cabin in a drunken midnight trek through the woods, the kids were convinced Charlie was a Doberman.

All in all, Charlie helped Alex heal, bit by bit and Alex helped Charlie find his groove again, bit by bit.

And when the latest threat, a purple-ish looking creature tried to go at Charlie, Alex but a bullet in it’s head without hesitation or shaking hands. No one touched his dog.

#cosmicloveexchange #cosmic love exchange 2019 #manesframe

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nefertittythegreat · 5 years

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When We Once Were There

Years after their lives sent them apart Adrien and Marinette meet once again this time as the parents to two little girls.

I’ve been in love with fics like this lately for every fandom and I felt the Miraculous Fandom could use one more. So here’s my Single Parent AU!

AO3[x] Chapter 2[x]

Marinette found herself checking her watch over and over again during this meeting. She was careful to appear to pay attention to what the man was saying in front of the room, but she already knew what this was about. Blah, blah blah budget, blah blah blah brand integrity Blah Blah Blah Press conference. If she didn’t know any better she would have thought her boss sent her here as some cruel joke, but it was widely known that Gabriel Agreste didn’t have a sense of humor. She had already given her presentation on what was going to be the main theme from this year’s Spring line, with the prices on fabrics needed, but it seemed they needed her to stay for a portion that had nothing to do with her job. She longed to be back in her office, or at least wish she brought her sketchbook, but last time Nathalie had lightly scolded her. Still, Marinette couldn’t help but feel her mind wander, and wondered if she was the only one. However it wasn’t just boredom plaguing her, Marinette had somewhere she needed to be.

“I think we get the point, Monsieur,” Nathalie said standing, signaling an end to the meeting. Marinette threw the woman a grateful look, and though Nathalie caught it she didn’t respond. “I’ll be sure to get all of these reports to Mr. Agreste. Though I can already say everything looks satisfactory. Let’s continue to make good of the Gabriel name, shall we? Good day.” At her words, everyone stood up and began filing out of the conference room. Marinette picked up her handbag, a Gabriel of course. and began to leave.

“Marinette,” Nathalie called causing Marinette to stop just short of the door. “Great work today, Mr. Agreste will be pleased.” Marinette fought a blush and thanked the woman. She was young, very young to be working this far up in the company, but Gabriel himself had kind of taken her under his wing. Marinette was grateful he did that, even considering her situation. “Mr. Agreste wants to know if you’ll be needing to leave work a little earlier with school in session now. He heard that Madam Paulette was giving you some trouble in regards to that.” The blush Marinette was fighting back with a vengeance as she felt her face turn crimson.

“No, no, no!” She exclaimed hoping not to cause any trouble. “We were able to work it out. I understand the kind of position I’m putting everyone through, even with my daughter I have to continue to pull your weight.” Marinette replied Nathalie’s expression, of course, did not change.

“Of course. As you know Mr. Agreste hired you knowing your situation at home and as someone who was a single parent himself, he does not want you to feel discriminated against at work and wants to be able to work with you around your daughter. Please if you have any more problems with Madame Paulette don’t hesitate to contact me. I’ll be able to straighten it out.” Nathalie responded before leaving the room. Marinette sighed. It was no secret Gabriel had taken an interest in her, and she hoped his apparent favoritism hadn’t caused anyone problems.

Marinette checked her watch one more time and heaved a sigh of relief. She should still make it on time to pick up Emma if she left now, Walking out of the room Marinette saw the Elevator filling with people. It would be a while before it was back and Marinette really needed to get to her car. “ Wait please!” She called out and began to run toward the elevator when she ran face first into something hard that sent her crashing into the ground. Dazed Marinette placed a hand to her now pounding head confused as to what just happened.

“Oh god, I’m so sorry, Miss.” A masculine voice said to her, causing Marinette to curse her luck and her lack of coordination. “Let me help you up.” At least he was nice about it. Most men in this building would have berated her for running into them, Marinette grabbed his hand and he quickly helped her up

“Thank you so much-“ She went to thank him when she finally got a good look at the man she probably almost maimed. His hair was shorter then she had ever seen it, but she could recognize those green eyes anywhere, Adrien Agreste.

“Marinette?” He asked. Green eyes sparkling with joy. She was surprised he remembered her. They hadn’t seen each other since they graduated Lycée. She remembered he went off to model in America while she stayed and went to University. He never came back. Instead, he moved to Japan and got married.

“ Adrien! It’s uh... Good to see you again!” She said willing herself to do what she was never able to in Lycée, Hold a decent conversation with him.

“Yeah, it’s been years.” He laughed. “I didn’t know you worked for Gabriel. though I guess it does make sense. My father always did think you were very talented.” He said. Marinette blushed at the compliment. He hadn’t changed in all these years. Still the sweet boy she remembers.

“Yes, Mr. Agreste has been very kind to me the past few years. Are you here to see your father?” Marinette asked. She figured he was visiting him. Though Marinette can honestly say in the time she had been working here he never has, but she knew what their relationship had always been like.

“Umm… Yeah actually, Kinda?” He paused. " I work here now.” He revealed almost making Marinette’s jaw drop. “I moved back to Paris, and Father wants me to work on the business side of things. I guess as he’s getting older he’s more worried about his art. “

“That’s great. I guess we’ll be seeing each other around then.” Marinette smiled and tried not to panic.

“Yeah, I got to go see father, but let’s catch up another time, Marinette.” He walked away sparing her a wave which she returned. and Marinette found herself screaming inside her mind. Adrien Agreste was back in Paris working in the same building she was. If Marinette was 14 she’d be screaming for joy, but now all she could think about was how difficult working around him was going to be. She had loved him for years, and he had never noticed. Then he went off to America, then Japan, and married Kagami….

Oh...

Marinette had almost forgotten, but she couldn’t dwell on Adrien when she had her own problems like picking up Emma. Shaking her head clear of any thoughts regarding Adrien Agreste, Marinette walked out of Gabriel and to her car. She’d be at Emma’s school in no time.

“Father,” Adrien greeted as he stepped into Gabriel Agreste’s office.

“Ah, Adrien. I see you made here on time, good.” Adrien fought the urge to roll his eyes business as usual when dealing with his father. “Tomorrow I’ll be holding a press conference and introducing you as the new CFO to Gabriel and the public.”

Adrien raised an eyebrow, “You haven’t sent the news to the company about a new CFO. Father, that’s-“ Gabriel held up ahead silencing his son, and make Adrien feel like he was 14 again.

“I gave word to those who needed to know, but everyone else will learn about it at the press conference tomorrow.” He said, “ I’ll have Nathalie escort you to your office, and please remember that though I’m sympathetic with your situation I’m still expecting great things from you, Adrien.” Adrien felt his hands tighten to fist.

“Of course, Father,” Adrien said tightly and moved to follow the silent Nathalie out of the room. When they were clear of the room Adrien spoke to himself. “Why did I even bother coming back.” He spat hating the way his father made him feel.

“Well, I for one am grateful. This move was beneficial to you both.” Nathalie replied catching and pulling Adrien away from his thoughts. “And having your father be able to focus on Paris then you in Tokyo is going to do wonders for my nerves.” Adrien laughed a little at that, though he knows on some level it isn’t true. His father had been more attentive of him lately but he was sure it was going to pass soon. And Gabriel had never really worried about him in the way that Adrien thought was fatherly.

“Thank you, Nathalie. Out of this, at least being closer to you is a benefit.” Nathalie smiled in response

“Your daughter, Ayako, How is she?”

“She’s doing great! Handled the move like a pro, and she’s….” Adrien looked down at the watch on his wrist and noticed the time. “ At school! I’m sorry Nathalie I have to go get her!” Adrien said running down the hallway and to the Elevator. As he got in his phone buzzed with a message from Nathalie over all the things he needed to go over before tomorrow and the number of his office, and he ran toward his car barely stopping to thank the doorman and igniting the ignition as quickly as possible and thanked God for push starts. Soon he was out of the parking garage and on the street. The great thing about Ayako’s primary school was how close to the office it was. It made things easier when Adrien had a slip of the mind like this. He couldn’t believe he was late picking up his daughter on the first day. He hoped Ayako didn’t get on him too much.

Adrien pulled up to the school and quickly walked inside finding a receptionist who simply waved off his panic look and said it happened all the time before walking him outside to the other children in “Aftercare” as she called it was. It didn’t take him long to find Ayako or really for Ayako to find him.

“Daddy!” She ran up to up and hugged him by the legs with a shout. “I thought you forgot about me!” She said while staring up at him still holding his legs "but Emma’s mommy said you’d be here soon and she even let Emma stay and wait with me! We played tag and-“

“Hold on, Aya. “ He said scooping up his child. “Okay from the beginning and who is Emma?” He asked with a laugh

“I made a friend!” Aya said proudly. “She’s nice, daddy. and she knows how to sing really well. In music class, she sounded better than everybody else and knew that a piano had strings in it!”

"Really now?” Adrien replied, happy that her first day was at least a happy one his late pick up excluded.

“Yup! Her mommy’s really nice too and waited with me too! Come meet them!” Aya kicked her legs asking to be let down and began to drag her father over to the small pavilion where he found a very familiar face one he had literally just run into.

“Well, I did say we could catch up later, Marinette,” Adrien said as he stared at the woman he had just pumped into 30 minutes ago. This time he was able to get a better look at her. In Gabriel, he only saw bluebell eyes and freckles, that could belong only to her, but now he could see just how different she looked. Her hair was longer then it had been in Lycée and she had clearly grown. Adrien noting how good she looked, but he always thought she was one of the prettiest girls in his class, though at the time he was more worried about Kagami. It was no surprise that Marinette had grown to become a beautiful woman. “I didn’t know you had a daughter,” Adrien said spying a small black haired girl hiding behind her mother’s pencil skirt.

"Yeah! This is Emma. Emma, sweetie, please say hi to mommy’s friend. Mr. Adrien.” Marinette pushed her daughter around her.

“Hi.” The girl responded softly and shyly.

“Emma it’s not shy time, This is my daddy. Remember I told you about how cool he was. He looks like the prince from the movie!” Aya said stepping forward, trying to urge the girl out of her shell. It seemed to work.

“Are you a prince, like in the movies?” Emma asked with wide eyes. At this both Marinette and Adrien laughed.

“No Sweetie, but even I have to admit Mr. Adrien has always been very prince-like,” Marinette replied, causing Adrien to look up quickly at her. Prince-like? That was what she thought of him.

“Daddy, I didn’t know you knew Emma’s mommy?” Aya said confused.

“Daddy knows a lot of people, baby,” Adrien replied smirking at his daughter’s pout at his answer. “But in this case, I and Ms. Marinette went to school together.” Emma perked up at this.

“Like Me and Aya?” she asked. Marinette nodded.

“Yes, but we were a little older when we meet. Not as lucky as you two.” Marinette hooped her daughter’s nose, who giggled in response. It seemed being a parent suited Marinette not that Adrien was surprised. She had always taken care of everyone around her. Being a mother suited her.

“Mommy,” Emma pulled on her mother’s red pencil skirt. “Can Aya and I play some more?” Marinette quickly looked back up at Adrien then down again at her daughter.

“I don’t think so sweetie, I’m sure Mr. Adrien is very busy. You can play with Aya another time.”

“Dame!” Aya grabbed her father’s hand, “Daddy, please let me play with Aya more! I’ll never ask for anything ever!”

“Me too!” Emma grabbed his other hand, “Please Mr. Adrien?” With both of them giving him puppy dog eyes Adrien could feel his resolve shrinking.

“Well, I don’t have to go back to the office.” Adrien scratched the back of his head. "If your free Marinette, we could go to the park, get some ice cream. I did promise that we would catch up.” at this both girls turned their attention to Marinette freeing Adrien from the hot seat.

“Ice Cream!” Emma shouted “Please Mommy!!”

“Yes, Emma’s mommy, can we go get ice cream then play together!” With both girls pleading at her Marinette turned to glare at Adrien who had the gall to look as innocent as possible. How could she say no when they were both begging like this. It wasn’t like she had to get back to the office either.

“You know what, ice cream sounds great.” Marinette smiled at Adrien. Her heart melts as the two girls cry in delight. How could she have said no to that? Seeing the two spin around in joy was worth staying out a little later.

It was a short walk to the park and the ice cream man. The line was short, which was rare as he had a tendency to be very popular. The park as a whole was quieter then it had been in a while. Marinette was expecting more children as it was after school now, but it seemed she was wrong. It was very peaceful. Adrien pulled out his wallet and handed his daughter a few bills, "Go and get you and Emma some Ice Cream, Okay?” Aya smiled up at her father, Before nodding and running off with Emma.

“Thanks for that, Adrien, but I could have paid for Emma’s ice cream,” Marinette said as she sat down on the bench.

“It’s just ice cream, and I’m not exactly hurting for money,” Adrien shrugged. “But how have you been? It’s been what 11- 12 years.?”

“Yeah, you went to university in America right?” That was the last time they saw each other, freshly 18, out of lycée, and heading out into the world. It was where Marinette’s 4-year crush had to die, and where their friendship came to an end.

“Yeah,” Adrien rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. A habit that he had done for years when he was feeling uncomfortable. "I should have kept in contact better.”

“It’s okay, It wasn’t like we were super close anyway.” Not for Marinette’s lack of trying though, “You kept in touch with Nino though. He always told Alya and me how you were doing. Besides I’m sure America was good for you. To get away from… everything here.” Adrien’s smile left, as he sighed. His home life as a kid was never really a secret especially to his friends, and Marinette was one of them.

“Yeah, it was good for me. Kagami was the one who’d convince me to…” Adrien trailed off. It was easy to forget, especially at times like this when he was remembering the past.

Marinette placed a hand on his shoulder. “I heard about….” Marinette searched for the right words, but she wasn’t sure she had them. “I’m so sorry, Adrien. I can’t even imagine. what you’ve been through.” When Nino had gotten the news about the accident, he’d flown to Japan immediately to help Adrien. Alya and Marinette had helped him packed. From what Nino told him, Adrien had been in rough shape, but that was almost 2 years ago. And Nino hadn’t even told them Adrien was moving back to Paris. She assumes he hadn’t known

“Thank you…” Adrien Brushed his hair away from his eyes, and that was when Marinette noticed that a scar on his eyebrow hidden by his hair. A permanent reminder. “I’m becoming okay again. I have someone else who needs me after all. I couldn’t completely fall apart.”

“I guess that’s true,” She acknowledged.

“Besides Moving back to Paris is going to be great!” Adrien said bringing a smile to his face. " I’m back where my friends and family are. And I think Aya will love it here. This is her first time in Paris. I’m honestly so impressed with her. Her French had always been good, but she prefers Japanese. I thought for sure she wouldn’t speak it too much when we got here, but she’s really blown my expectations out of the water with how she’s assimilated. Honestly, I uprooted her to a completely different culture, but then again she was a little forward for Japan. Kagami used to say she gets that from me, but I’ve never really seen it.” This piqued Marinette’s interest. Adrien had always been reserved, sweet to a fault but reserved. Foreward wasn’t a word she would use to describe him. Kagami, however, was always very forthcoming about her feelings for Adrien, Unlike Marinette herself. Marinette often wished she had Kagami’s confidence.

“But what’s your story these past few years. I mean it seems you’ve got everything you wanted, A designing job at Gabriel, and a beautiful daughter. Though I would have thought you would have been married by now.”Adrien's hand flew up as the words flew out of his mouth Adrien realized what he had said. He had noticed the lack of ring on her finger and assumed. He was trying to restart his friendship with Marinette now he probably ruined. “I Swear I didn’t mean it like! -“ He started but stopped at the sound of her laughter. She was laughing harder then he had seen her laugh in over a decade. A true genuine laugh that was infectious and soon made Adrien start to laugh too. When was the last time he had laughed like this? It had to have been since before the accident. It had been a while since he had said something like that so true to his inner thoughts too.

“I’m sorry.” Marinette wheezed in between laughs. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so…. “ She searched for the words. her yeas rolling looking for the right word. “Panicked. You’ve always said the right thing. It’s nice to see the other side, the side that’s a little more human.”

Adrien raised an eyebrow, “Well, I’m far from perfect….” He hadn’t realized he portrayed that sort of image to Marinette, that certainly did explain her prince comment from earlier. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to make it sound like….” He trailed off unsure of how to make this any less awkward.

“Hey,” She waved him off. “It’s fine, and nothing worse then what I hear from my mother on a weekly basis.” Marinette rolled her eyes, “And being married was something I’ve wanted since school. Everyone in our class knew about my dream to marry have a nice house with a picket fence 2 sons, a daughter, a dog, and a hamster. It wasn’t that big of a secret, no matter how hard I tried to keep it that way.” Marinette mused back to her old self in school. She was so... 14. Yes, she was a fourteen year old with far too big of a crush, and too much time on her hands. “But to answer your question, Life isn’t what you dream of at 14. It’s a lot…Harder. And I made some decisions most of them bad but a few good ones, and I can say Emma was the best of them, even if don’t have all those things I dreamed up as a kid.”

Adrien watched Marinette as she looked out her eyes finding her daughter and the smile that graced her lips were something he hadn’t seen in a while, but something he knew. A mother’s love. A parent’s love, hell he looked at his kid the same way.

“I will say Emma was not part of the plan, but I loved her, and I always wanted a kid anyway. I just had to do it on my own. Sure it was scary, but she’s worth it.” Marinette had said a lot and had said nothing at all. It had made Adrien curious, but he wasn’t going to force her to open up to him. After all, they hadn’t seen each other in 12 years.

“I understand,” Adrien replied earnestly. He opened his mouth to ask her about how her parents were doing when A familiar shout came from the playground that made both he and Marinette stand. They both rushed over, but it was Adrien who got there first his height playing to his advantage, where he found Emma cradling her forearm, and Aya trying to calm the wailing girl down though she looked to be on the verge of tears herself

“Hey, girls, what happened? Are you alright?” He asked, but suddenly found himself narrated with wails and Aya trying to explain despite being panic. It was mostly a mesh of Japanese and French that Adrien could barely understand over Emma’s cries. It seemed right now he wasn’t gonna learn anything until he got Emma to calm down. Adrien crouched and pulled Emma into his lap an Automatic reaction to seeing a girl his daughter’s age crying. He was worried if she had broken her arm.

“Hey, Emma?” He said gently. “I see you hurt your arm. Can I take a look at it.” Emma looked at him hesitantly at first but stopped wailing at least, and held out her arm with a nod. Ah, There was the source of the crying. I large scratch going up Emma’s forearm, more than likely from a rock. Poor thing it looked like it hurt, but at least it wasn’t bleeding heavy. Luckily Aya was known for being a little more than rambunctious and he always had Bandaids on him. He reached in his pocket pulling out some Neosporin and bandaids. “This is going to help okay, but it might sting a little. Is that Okay?” He asked. Emma sniffled now the crying was coming to an end, but she nodes once more, and Adrien began to bandage her arm. Just as he was finished Marinette finally caught up, not that he could blame her, she wasn’t exactly mobile in her pencil skirt and heels.

“Is everything ok? Emma!” She said noticing the decent size bandaid on her daughter's arm. She crouched to her daughter’s level who immediately jumped out of Adrien’s grasp and to her mothers. “Emma, what happened to your arm?”

Adrien stood dusting his pants off, "I think she fell and scraped her arm on a rock. Don’t worry I disinfected it and wrapped it up. She’ll be fine, it wasn’t even really bleeding. I think it was the shock if anything.” Adrien places his hands in his pocket as he watched Marinette pull Emma close and whisper something in her ear.

Marinette smiled, “Talk about super dad. You just happen to carry Bandaids and disinfectant on you?” Marinette asked impressed. Not even she did that.

Adrien shrugged, “let’s just say Aya is a little more accident-prone than normal and leave it at that.”

“Well thank you, Adrien,” Marinette said. “Emma what do you say to Mr. Adrien for helping you with your arm.”

“Thank you, Mr. Adrien,” Emma said shyly. A trait she must have gotten from her mother. Remembering their earlier conversation Adrien swept himself into a gallant bow

“It is always an honor to help royalty like you, Princess Emma.” The excited gasp he heard from her was enough to make him smile.

“I think It’s probably time to head home now.” Marinette stood up with Emma still in her arms. “It’s been great Adrien. Let’s do this again sometime.” She said. “Say goodbye to Mr. Adrien and Ayako, Emma”

"Bye-bye,” She waved as her mother turned and began to walk back in the direction of their car. Adrien and Aya returned the farewell while watching the mother and daughter leave. Adrien couldn’t believe today, both he had Marinette were parents to girls in the same class, coincidence didn’t even express how amazing that was. Not to mention, it seemed they still got along as they did in Lycée. He was lucky. When he left Paris 12 years ago. He didn’t want to come back. While school had been fun thanks to Nino and Kagami, and Marinette he still had too many bad memories and not to mention his father around that made staying in Paris not ideal. When Kagami asked him to go to America with her, he hasn’t hesitated, but he realized how much he missed. The lives of the friends he had just left here, Marinette had a child and he was sure other’s from Lycée were parents too. He couldn’t believe it. He should have kept in touch better, but that was in the past and he couldn’t change it now. he could, however, learn from it.

"Hey, Marinette!” He called making the two stop and turn around. He ran over to them a confused Aya following behind him. “look I know you have to get to work pretty early and actually most mornings I get into the office after the girls are in school. and I’m pretty sure you’ll get off before me, so How about we work together in this single parents helping each other out.” He said, “I can take the girls to school and you can pick them up starting tomorrow and when I get off I can get Aya from.” He offered. This would save him in the afternoons. He couldn’t get out at 2:30 obviously going by what happened today, but Marinette had made it with enough time to spare. “What do you say?”

Marinette bit her lip. Dropping off Emma in the morning early to Adrien’s would take a load off her shoulder’s and it wasn’t like he was a stranger either. He was another working parent trying to make this work. It couldn’t hurt, and it meant Madame Paulette would get off her back if she should up early like she was supposed to.

“Deal.” She said, “on one condition.” She added milking Adrien’s confused expression. “I need your phone number.”

He sighed in relief, “Of course” He said before pulling out his phone and reciting his number to her. Which she did back to him as well. “So, I’ll see you in the morning then. “

“Yup, and don’t forget to text me your address,” Marinette said with a wave before departing.

Yeah, something inside Adrien’s gut told him this move was going to be a good thing.

Next Chapter[x]

#nef writes #miraculous ladybug and chat noir #miraculous ladybug #Single Parent Au #adrienette #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #nathalie sancoeur #LadyNoir #ladrien #gabriel agreste #ladybug #marichat #lukanette #coming soon #I swear

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taotrooper · 5 years

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Reasons to live and die for

AO3 link Title: Reasons to live and die for Fandom: Mo Dao Zu Shi Characters: Wen Ning, Wei Wuxian Genre/tags: Gen, friendship, introspection, character study of sorts, banter Summary: Post-canon and novel spoilers up to Exiled’s translation. After that long honeymoon and returning to the Cloud Recesses, Wei Wuxian decides to visit Wen Ning to see how he's faring, and what he wants from the future. It turns out that Wen Ning's conclusions about life and death and love weren't so different to his own. Notes: Written for my sweet boy’s birthday. For @modaozushi‘s prompt: choices. I feel WWX and WN’s relationship is quite underrated even in canon, so I wanted to fix it a bit into something that shows how much both of them have grown during the book and how they could still overcome the previous master-servant awkwardness and their individual sadness as well.

"Even if I'm not a natural part of it," Wen Ning began, "life is beautiful. Don't you agree?"

"Yeah."

"So I wish to enjoy the time I have left as much as I can. I cannot change what I've done, I cannot atone for all my sins, and neither can you, but I think it's alright... to feel selfish and want to exist and be loved. To see the sunrise or hear the crickets. To feel the rush of adventure. To look forward to smiles and laughter and hugs. It's alright. Even if my heart doesn't beat, it still feels those blessings."

Wei Wuxian blinked.

"If I may be so bold, doesn't young master feel the same?"

It wasn't hard to find the modest wooden cabin at the foot of the mountain, barely hidden in the shade of the forest. Following Sizhui's directions, Wei Wuxian managed to navigate across a lagoon of trees, green canopies allowing shining rays of light to shimmer above his dark hair. Crickets and birds sang around him, and they was the only sounds his boots interrupted.

As he reached the place, a strong feeling of nostalgia filled him. That shabby little hut looked exactly like the ones back in the Burial Mound. Not like it was a surprise, as a good part of them were built by Wen Ning himself. He had followed the suggestions of the rest of his family, of which none of them knew a thing about architecture. Just a rooftop and walls to cover against the weather and possible corpse attacks. Those were the luxuries they could afford.

The fact his friend had even built a place was a pleasant surprise, in fact. Sizhui had told him he hid in a damp cave at first, not unlike Wei Wuxian back in the day. Maybe he was bored and wanted to make something. Maybe the cave was inhabited by bears or some other beast. Regardless, this was a good thing.

Before he knocked on the misshaped plank that could be called a door, it swung open and his eyes found an ashen face receiving him. By instinct, he jumped two steps back.

"Young master Wei!" While his expression hadn't changed, his voice expressed joy.

"Hey! It's been a while, Wen Ning," he smiled.

"Yes. A-Ah... Please come in..."

The man moved to let the other pass inside. The interior actually had more things than Wei Wuxian expected. A large bed and some cushions and mats to sit. A solid table, and on it there was a lamp and candles, despite the fact Wen Ning could see in the dark. A big wooden chest that stood against the wall.

"Please sit," Wen Ning said, his fingers straightening his shirt. "Would you like some tea? I have leaves for black tea, your favorite type."

That's when Wei Wuxian saw the makeshift kitchen in the farthest corner. Inside the half-open cupboard, there was an old teapot and several cheap cups and dishes. There was a large jar of water, half full.

"Sure," he replied. "You're treating your visits well, huh?"

"Um, I try." Shyly, he moved and got the teapot out.

The reason for that house and all those basic commodities, of course, had become obvious. They were not for Wen Ning's sake, but for the boys'. A place to hang out with the junior disciples when they weren't night hunting. A bed when any of them was wounded or had to stay for the night. Just in case they were needed.

"I would've liked some wine better, but I doubt you can afford it," Wei Wuxian joked while his friend filled the container with clear spring water. "Let me help, I have a fire talisman."

Both of them stared at the fire while the teapot simmered. Wen Ning shook his head.

"Even if I had money, I wouldn't buy wine," he carefully replied. "The boys are too young for that, and young master Wei drinks too much."

Wei Wuxian glared at him. "Okay, one: no, they're not. I had alcohol for the first time when I was fourteen, almost fifteen." It was Wen Ning's turn to frown at him. "Two: I've seen some of them drinking in secret! Don't let them fool you. You'll be so popular if you sneak booze for them. Three: I do not! I'm fine!!"

"For now. It slowly destroys your liver," Wen Ning retorted. "Studies prove it."

"And spicy food will destroy my digestive system. I know." He had heard the same speech from Wen Qing's mouth for months, and it was just as annoying.

"You just got a body and you have to take a better care of it," Wen Ning said, now with a sad tone.

"I've done worse things to it, what's one more thing?" A shameless grin was on his lips. He doubted Mo Xuanyu would mind about a slowly poisoned liver more than the stab on his stomach or the frequent wounds or the intense love making. "In any case, I'll probably drink less for the time being. Have you heard?"

"I've heard a lot of stories about young masters Wei and Lan's adventures, but I can't say I know what you mean." Wen Ning took the then hot teapot and one cup to the table. Wei Wuxian noticed he wasn't holding it by the handle. They sat down on two mats and he watched the fierce corpse put the leaves in the cup and serve. They let it soak.

"What a coincidence! We've also heard about you and the kids plenty! Three night hunts, huh?"

If Wen Ning could blush, he was sure he would be after that comment.

"I... see. Regardless, what brings you to Gusu? Is there anything you wanted to hunt? I could give you a hand if you need it so... Ah, but maybe I'd get in the way of you two..."

Wei Wuxian chuckled.

"Don't fret so much! Nah, that's what I was going to tell you. I'm not here for a night hunt. We're staying in the Cloud Recesses for the time being."

"Wait, really?" Wen Ning's jaw dropped. "But Senior Teacher Lan..."

"He missed Lan Zhan so much that he reluctantly allowed me in. I don't think he'll remove that stupid new rule about talking to me soon, but no one's going to obey that one anyway."

"When did you come back?"

"Three days ago. Lan Zhan is busy helping out with clan stuff, so I'm incredibly bored and I asked Sizhui about your location. I figured you'll be bored as well."

"It's relaxing by myself, but I'm honored you decided to visit me." Wei Wuxian mentally called bullshit. As much of an introvert Wen Ning was, he knew he was happier surrounded with his closest people. The same could be said about Lan Wangji. Even Jiang Cheng back then and Jin Ling nowadays, in his opinion. Wei Ying always ended up winning the affections of people with low social activity somehow.

"I would've come sooner but we were dragged into a family banquet just as soon as we got here."

"Ooh, that sounds so nice!" Wen Ning forced a kind smile that wasn't fake.

"It wasn't," Wei Wuxian shook his head. "It tasted as bland to me as it would probably taste to your dead tongue. I remember your sect's over-the-top banquets from that archery competition, and let me tell you: you wouldn't have called that dinner a Banquet at all either!"

"...Oh."

"It's alright, I just had delicious food delivered later, in private." Wei Wuxian sipped his tea. Not bad, not bad. Could use some snacks, but he wasn't going to push it on Wen Ning's limited hospitality.

He glanced at his former servant again. His dark clothes were brand new, no longer the rags he had been wearing the last time they saw each other, three months before. The hole in his chest was gone, too. The boys had a hand on it, surely. He could see some holes sewn, as if Wen Ning had teared it apart during their fights and had it fixed. One of the boys' hand too, perhaps: fingers of a corpse would have a hard time holding needles.

"Wen Ning." The sound of the long teacup clanging on the table echoed through the shack.

"Young master Wei?"

"What are you doing?" Wei Wuxian's question was said with a serious stare, no smile on his lips.

"Young master Wei..." he looked down, avoiding his eyes.

"It's not my place, but I worry you're revolving your existence over one person once again. Don't replace me with Sizhui, Wen Ning."

"I'm not!!" Wen Ning shouted. His hands curled into fists and hit the table, thankfully just a touch that wouldn't break it.

Wei Wuxian just stared in silence, allowing his friend to get upset.

"Not anymore. At first... perhaps I did... He was like sunshine in the darkness." Wen Ning finally admitted.

He gave him more time to sort himself out and drank more tea.

"While Sizhui and the others are back at home, I've had time to think. About being alive, about what I want to do, about whether I deserve this chance or not."

"That's good. So, what's your conclusion?"

"I think I have the same reason to live than you, young master..."

"Ha?" Unless Wen Ning had suddenly gotten a gorgeous bride or groom, he honestly doubted it.

"Let me show you. Do you mind if we walk around?"

Wei Wuxian agreed, his curiosity piqued. The trip out of the woods was annoyingly silent while he waited for Wen Ning to speak again. It didn't happen until they were past the exit, standing on a plain with tall grass caressed by the wind. The sky was clear and the same hue of blue as the embroidery of clouds on the Lans' uniforms and ribbons.

"Even if I'm not a natural part of it," Wen Ning began, "life is beautiful. Don't you agree?"

"Yeah."

Wei Wuxian blinked.

"If I may be so bold, doesn't young master feel the same?"

With a tug in his heart, Wei Ying remembered the first day in his new body. How much fun he had when he shocked the Mo family and the Lan juniors, his time wandering at that village. And despite the bad moments, living remained fun for the next days, for the next months. He agreed and nodded with a cackle. Yes, life could be wonderful by itself.

The fact Wen Ning, so taciturn and melancholy, also reached that point of view even with his limitations could only be good. Maybe bringing him back wasn't so bad, after all.

"Of course, I do feel more alive when I spend time with A-Yuan and young master Jingyi and young master Jin and everyone else. And I do want to do everything for them and protect him with my life. That's not all there is to it, though." His eyes smiled where his lips couldn't. "However, yes, I do think that after losing all my family, my main reason is being with those I love when possible. I'll have no regrets when I finally leave this world if I'm allowed to stay with them, and young master Wei too, for as long as I can. Also... I never found night hunts fun when I was alive, but now I look forward to them so much it hurts."

"That I can understand," Wei Wuxian beamed. "Night hunts are better with people you love."

"Is that so?"

"I mean, I've always loved them but it's true. Jiang Ch—" he stopped, not wanting those memories of happy times to resurface. "Anyway, not limited to cultivation partners. Family hunts are awesome, too."

"Sizhui and the others would love to go with you, too. Uh, so do I..."

"I'd love to!" He felt tenderness when he thought about the brats. Yi City with them had been relatively amusing. "Old man Qiren will have a heart attack, but I'm in. Hanguang-jun will be there as well." He probably should ask if it was okay to drag his husband to that, if Wen Ning would mind, if Lan Zhan would mind. But Wei Wuxian wasn't the kind of person who asked for permission. "The kids are fun to be around and so easy to tease."

"Young master Wei, don't tease them so much..."

"They need to learn how to deal with teasing. You know what's sad, Wen Ning? We're adults, but our the rest of our friends and allies are teenagers! We should probably fix that."

"I don't mind much."

"Haha! They are way better than our generation, aren't they?"

They kept walking towards the foot of the mountain, where the long road back to the Cloud Recesses stretched upwards.

"What do you mean with the 'rest of our friends', by the way?" Wen Ning asked.

"Let's see. Lan Zhan is my friend but he's also my lover and husband so I guess that's not really just a friendship anymore."

"I suppose not?"

"And then there's you and me! So, the rest of my friends is everyone else."

The range of emotion a fierce corpse with years of rigor mortis had was next to null, but Wei Wuxian could tell the ones Wen Ning was feeling as clear as day. Incredulity, relief, affection, joy. Not unlike the first time they had met and he had defended his archery skills, perhaps. They had gone through so much together, and yet Wei Ying hadn't realized until that moment how important Wen Ning's silent presence was to him. He didn't treat him as well as he deserved, and he had to work hard on improving that so the other would accept they weren't master and servant anymore, but equals.

"Take care of yourself, Wen Ning," he said with his hands on the man's stiff shoulders. "I'll visit more often, okay?"

"You mean when you're bored, the boys are in class, and young master Lan is too busy to, uh, do things with you?"

"Stop calling me and my sex life out!" He punched Wen Ning's shoulder, with no reaction. "But... yeah, pretty much."

"That's good enough for me, thank you." Wen Ning's lips lifted up as much as they could.

"Ah, and don't sacrifice yourself for the boys, okay?"

"..."

"Yeah, sure, I get it!" Gods if he got it. Most of his two lives were consequences from his constant sacrifices to help people out. "I'd probably die for them in a heartbeat too, especially Jin Ling. And Sizhui, he's my son now—"

"Actually—"

"Shush. By marrying his father I've been promoted from Brother Xian to Dad." He ignored the skeptic reaction, just as he ignored the fact Sizhui had never called him that way. "And you know what, Jingyi isn't related directly to me but fuck it, I'd die for him too. And Ouyang Zizhen, he defended me from a mob. And— I'm losing my point. Listen, let me give you an advice because I just learned this lesson the hard way."

"...What is it?"

"Be less reckless. Avoid dying. For all the cultivation world would love it, you leave behind the ones who love you. You want to stay with them and they want to stay with you. And even when that's no longer the case, and paths separate, new people to love will be here with you. No one is going to think your second death is enough redemption anyway, you know. So! Don't make Sizhui cry, you hear?"

"I'll try... Did your relationship with young master Lan teach you that?"

"In big part. I sure don't want him to mourn me again so soon! But he's not the only one who missed me, was he?"

Wen Ning and Wei Wuxian looked at each other in the eye.

"He wasn't."

Wei Wuxian leaned and rubbed Wen Ning's hard back. He thought about making a comment about how while he didn't cry when he thought Wen Ning and Wen Qing had been burned, he did start to lose his mind from that point. But that wasn't precisely nice to hear, and the other man likely could feel his pent-up anger and loss of control from whenever he had been locked in. Feeling awkward, he finished the short hug with a couple of pats.

"See you around, then! I'll bring my own wine and snacks next time!" he beamed.

"See you around, young master. And don't die either!"

"I sure won't. This pig has cabbage to eat."

Whistling a cheerful, hopeful tune that he knew Wen Ning could hear and feel on his way back to his hut, he ascended through the mountain path.

#mo dao zu shi #wen ning #wei wuxian #mdzsnetwork #$fanfic

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camomills · 5 years

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Title: Pit-bottom Relationships: Lisbeth/Sinon; Lisbeth/Asuna (kinda) Fandom: Sword Art Online Word Count: 1797 Summary: Lisbeth thinks about what love is. Different times in her life bring her to different definitions. Notes: Made for SAO Pride Week 2019 - Day 5: Past, Present and Future. I’ve had so many conversations as to why I interpret Lisbeth as a victim of compulsive heterosexuality that it was only a matter of time until I wrote something that delved into it at least a tiny bit. Thanks to @thegayfromrulid for beta reading.

AO3 Link

Lisbeth was 16 years old and at pit-bottom, figuratively and literally.

“You’re alive,” the boy in black says.

That much was true.

That morning, she wondered if that day would’ve been the day she’d rack up enough Col for a second waterwheel. That seemed like a meaningless worry at that moment, as she stared upwards, the foggy canvas of the sky framed by the walls of the hole she and Kirito had fell in.

The cold was oppressive and all-enveloping down there, but it paled in comparison to the still-settling realization as the teleportation crystal ignored her commands:

She was going to die in that pit.

It was so, so unfair. She did everything right. She stuck to the middle floors. She took to the mostly-civilian lifestyle of a blacksmith and enabled those that’d fight for her liberation. She grew her modest alleyway business into a legitimate shop, and she could feel pride whenever she saw her name emblazoned on that copper sign by its entrance.

All of this was made while latching onto the hope that she’d survive this game and go back to the real world.

And now I’m going to die because I insisted in tagging along with this weirdo.

There were so many things she hadn’t done yet. She wanted to hear her name being announced during roll-call at her graduation ceremony. She wanted to see the Tokyo Skytree. She was considering coursing Engineering at college, despite the demanding entry requirements.

She wanted to kiss someone, just once.

Ah, she thought. I didn’t even get to fall in love, did I?

While they prepared their sleeping bags, she mused for a moment over whom she would fall for had she the chance to so, and wasn’t bound to waste away in icy demise. Shinichi from Class 1-B at her school was cute. Sawamura from her class was okay too, she thinks. Even then, she’d been trapped in Aincrad for over a year, so they’re probably a grade above her now. A shame, really. Rumor has it that Sawamura was a good kisser.

Asuna’s smile flashed in her mind as she catalogued boys, and something in her jolts.

Is Asuna a good kisser?

That was an odd thought. Asuna wasn’t a boy.

As panic subsided and she came to terms with her predicament (Kirito’s words, despite his stoic tone, assuaged her fears), her mind stopped wandering too far out. She was stuck down there with this boy she’d met only hours prior, and the world seemed to shrink as the hours went by: there’s nothing beyond this pit, towering walls of frost and cold floor of snow, and him, roguish charm encased in dark leather.

She hungers for warmth, for touch, for romance, for other things she didn’t get to have due to this game. For the opportunities that were stripped away from her. Her sleeping bag, these clothes, can’t keep her warm. She knows they’re nothing but strewn data, calculating code colder than the surrounding ice.

These won’t do.

It has to be someone, her mind finally registers.

He was the only thing there, other than herself, that was in any way warm. She asked him to hold her hand, and he did. It was a sensation, real and cozy, that she’d seldom experienced in a world of uncaring numbers.

The closest she’d ever had to this feeling, she realized, came from Asuna’s embrace, casual, deliberate, and always so soothing.

As sleep overtook her and her eyes droop closed, she thought of how worried her best friend must have been for her.

At the following sunrise, she wasn’t dead.

In fact, Lisbeth felt very much alive.

She was sent heavenwards while in the arms of this boy, Kirito, his skin brushing against hers, adrenaline and fire rushing in her veins, inferno of emotion hurling through the sky.

She was invincible in that moment, young and unafraid. Everything about it felt so right. That endless thrill, that beautiful sunset born from the parting of clouds: all coalescing into a book-worthy moment.

That must be what love is. That burning in her chest. Lisbeth was sure of it.

With wind howling in her ears, she decided that she was just going to say it.

“Kirito! You know, I…”

“What?!”

“I love you, Kirito!”

He couldn’t hear her ecstasy-fueled confession, and a part of her was happy about that.

It would have been embarrassing. Yes, that must have been the reason she was happy about it.

It’s what makes sense, after all, when she examines herself, heart blazing in the cold and quickly pumping exhales visible in the frost.

Rika was 18 years old and the aroma of freshly brewed black wafted through the air in Dicey Café. Her and Asuna’s laughter blows on the steam rising from their mugs.

“So… you had a thing for me?” Asuna asked. There was no judgment in her tone.

“Yeah,” Rika said. “Took me a while to figure that one out, though. I guess I couldn’t admit to myself that I liked girls too. And then Kirito was right there, the perfect scapegoat for those feelings.”

She tried to take a first sip from her mug, but the heat bit her tongue. Still too hot.

“He had the whole Mysterious Hero thing going on back then, and we had that wild trip. It got pretty easy to convince myself that I was into him. But when you two started dating, it wasn’t you that I was jealous of…”

Rika stared at Asuna expectantly, then smirked.

“I guess I must have been pretty desperate for a love story, if I tricked myself into liking him.”

Without missing the cue, Asuna elbowed Rika.

“He’s still my boyfriend, you know!”

Rika laughs at Asuna’s indignation, and Asuna laughs at Lis laughing at her. The blacksmith’s crude laughter was nothing if not infectious.

Their shared laughter reminds her that Asuna loved her, in the same way she’s always had. And that she still loved Asuna, albeit in a different way than back in Aincrad.

Rika is unsure of what love is, but she thinks that’s a good thing. Maybe the answer isn’t meant to come easy. It’s been two years since the ice dragon incident, and if there’s one thing any SAO Survivor understands is: a couple of years can change everything.

At the very least, it’s enough for a change in perspective. It’s a boost in maturity, as small as it is, that makes her understand that love is not something you seek in desperation, blurting out mindlessly in a moment between life and death. It’s probably something softer, found in the touch of a friend, amidst inside jokes and shared moments of joy like this. And probably not at the bottom of a pit.

Asuna was her best friend, both in Aincrad and in real life. Keiko never missed a day to share recess with her. Klein would take her teasing with little to no complaint. Agil offered her a part-time job at the bar last week, when she turned eighteen.

And, despite everything she says, she has a soft spot for Kirito. He’s a good friend. She’d never say that to his face, though, in fear of his head getting too big for his body.

She doesn’t need to hunger for love, as long as she has these connections.

If the other kind of love knocks at her door, though, then all the better.

The bell by the door chimes, and Asuna and Lis both turn on her stools, sure of who’s there before their vision catches them.

Kirito stands by the entrance and greets the both of them, unaware that he was a topic in their conversation moments ago.

From his side, a bespectacled girl sheepishly waves.

Rika is 22 years old, and she’s late to her part-time job.

It’s not her fault, though. There’s a dog in the apartment.

“Puppy!” Rika coos.

The Japanese Akita simply stares at her, a bit too stoically for a dog, dark slits for eyes betraying nothing.

Shino, sporting her police uniform, stops Lis’s hand as she offers him a corn chip.

“He can’t eat that. He might get sick. He’s got work to do.”

Shino’s dream of becoming a police officer came true, and she’s glad she has enough of a handle on her hoplophobia to manage it. She’s surprised that she was approved into the dog handler unit in her first try, though.

“Hecate is a police official, Rika. You should show him some respect.”

Hecate ? Lis considers teasing her on the name, but concludes otherwise. Shino had her reasons.

Perhaps her face gives her thoughts away, however, because Shino justifies herself.

“Yes, Hecate. He’s my partner, after all.” She manages not to look embarrassed.

Rika giggles. She at times pondered over how come she and Shino wound up together, when she herself scorches like a furnace, hot-red emotion barely contained in her body, while Shino, comparatively, runs cold like the steel that forms the barrel of a firearm.

Rika fancied herself gunpowder.

“I don’t know. Maybe he’d look cuter if he was fat,” Rika threatens. “Big, fat boy.”

She flicks a chip from the bag she was eating into the air. Hecate, shooting up as if a bullet from the homonymous sniper rifle, springs towards the airborne target, corn and wheat meeting trained teeth in a satisfying crunch. His canine expression remains dutifully cold, even as he chews on it.

Shino tries to grimace, but it’s hard while trying to kill a laugh at the same time. She changes the topic, a pair of fingers pressed to her temple.

“Shouldn’t you be at work instead of poisoning the new dog? Agil is going to give you an earful again.”

Rika smirks smugly, and there’s a bit of Lisbeth in that smile.

“It’s okay, he loves me!” She positions a proud hand over her chest. “I’m his only company in that dingy bar.”

Despite her cheeky reply, she puts on her boots faster. Even if her parents are helping with her tuition, she still needs to pull her weight. Engineering is a course with hefty tuition fees.

After a roughly affectionate tussle to the dog’s fur and a quick peck to Shino’s cheek, she runs out the door.

Now an adult, Rika can forgive her younger, juvenile self; that old definition of love, troubadour and romantic, feels endearing in its foolishness. She has a hard time appreciating that romanticized romance now, though, as she gets to bask in what she has available to her now: the domesticity in sharing as well as the presence of her friends. Now that her hunger is sated, her vision clears to what matters.

Her connection to them, all of them, must be what love is.

#SAO #Sword Art Online #saoprideweek2019 #Lisinon #AsuLis #Fili writes

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tallulahchanel · 6 years

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This is my submission for the With Love, From Wakanda Fic best hosted by @hoopshoney and @purple-apricots

Fandom: Black Panther

Pairing(s): Nakia & BabysisterReader; Nakia/Everett

Prompt: "You're part of the family, don't you know?"

Notes: Reader is black, but non-black readers are free to enjoy as well. Drew some inspiration from Over Time by bitofageek. The following gif was created by @bisexualcarol (please don’t sue me, I legit have nothing you would want). Also, please don’t kick me out of the fandom or revoke my black card for my pairing choice (LOL).

Warnings: Just pure shenanigans.

Words: 3.5k

Tags: @queen-of-the-jabari @zaddysqueen7

You rocked back and forth on your heels and toes, unable to contain your excitement.

Today you were going to see your big sister for the first time in weeks. Of course, there were the occasional kimoyo bead calls, but with her running the Outreach Center, your classes at the University, and the time difference, the calls were few and far between. Now, she was returning home, but only long enough to attend the wedding and go back to Oakland.

The Talon jet came into view and your face lit up with joy as it took its place on the landing pad. The ramp was barely opened before you sprinted towards the jet and engulfed Nakia in a hug, almost knocking her down in the process. Fortunately, she was able to catch herself before embracing you.

"Usisi omkhulu!"

"Omncinci," she addressed you by your special nickname before planting a kiss on your forehead. "I missed you too."

"So, how's the center? How's Oakland? Do you have time to go to the beach?" You bombarded her with questions after you pulled away and began exiting the jet.

She chuckled, basking in your curiosity. "We have plenty of time to talk about those things. As much as I missed you, I had a long trip and would like to rest and freshen up before the Rehearsal Feast tonight."

"Right," you responded with a nod.

Later on that night there was to be an exclusive feast in celebration of your baba, the River Tribe Elder, marrying the Mining Tribe Elder, Babalo. When the pair announced their engagement at one of the meetings, King T'Challa became ecstatic about the amount of good press and a possible merger this could result in. Unfortunately, both elders became the butt of a few bedroom jokes from the king's cousin, Erik, but your baba was happy, and that's all that mattered. It has been years since your umama died, and you thought it was time that baba moved on with another woman, especially one as beautiful, kind, and nurturing as Babalo.

"Where's my welcome wagon?" Nakia asked while you two made your way towards the palace doors.

You chuckled. "It's only just me."

"Really? Just you?"

"Yes," you answered with an eye-roll. "I mean, everyone has their hands full with this feast tonight. Besides, your returns to Wakanda are so frequent that they're not special anymore."

Nakia playfully swatted you on the behind while chuckling. "I still can't believe that T'Challa is making such a big deal out of this."

"You're surprised?" You questioned with a raised brow. "Two Tribal Elders are getting married, and you don't expect the king to make a big deal? And it's only an exclusive dinner with family and a few prominent members of each tribe. It's not like he's throwing a big parade in the streets."

Nakia sighed. "I suppose you're right."

"He's saving the parade for the wedding day."

"What?!" Nakia asked with widen eyes.

"I'm kidding," you said with a giggle.

She rolled her eyes, but smiled nonetheless.

You two continued walking the long corridor in silence before you broke it, remembering something you needed to tell your sister.

"Agent Ross is here, by the way."

"He's is?!" Nakia questioned, causing both of you to stop in your tracks. "Why?"

"He was rushed to the hospital after a deadly injury during one of his missions. When he was allowed to be moved, T'Challa had him brought back here to recover. He's fine now, and Shuri kicked him out of the lab the other day. He’ll be staying in one of the guest suites while he recuperates."

"And why am I just now hearing about this?" Nakia had a look of grave concern on her face, one you've only seen twice in your life—the day you got the news of your umama's death, and the day you took three bullets to the chest while accompanying Nakia on a mission.

"I um….kind of forgot to tell you," you said, feeling your cheeks get hot with guilt and embarrassment.

"You what?!"

"It slipped my mind. In my defense, I'm taking fifteen hours worth of classes, and every time I turn around, a professor wants a five-hundred-word paper about something as ridiculous as air. Along with that, I just started a new job at the market's smoothie stand, all the while trying to help prepare for this wedding. I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

Nakia held an arm out and pulled you into a hug, placing a kiss on your forehead. "It's alright, omncinci. I understand that you're taking on a lot. I'm not mad, I promise."

You smiled and hugged her back before you two began walking again.

"So, besides all of those papers, how is school going?"

"Well....." You began, but you got distracted by a figure turning onto the same corridor you and Nakia were walking. "Agent Ross."

"Hello," he returned as he began walking towards the both of you with a friendly smile.

Nakia smiled upon seeing him, and she couldn't help, but notice how perfectly the dark grey robe swayed around him as he walked towards you two, complimenting his ivory skin—almost like it was tailor-made for him.

"Hello, Miss Nakia," he greeted her, and you noticed that his smile grew brighter upon seeing her.

You weren't surprised by this. You knew there was tension between your sister and Agent Ross since the UN Conference in Vienna, where you and Shuri sat next to him while he and your sister kept stealing glances at each other.

"Hi," Nakia returned. "I just heard you were here."

"Yeah," he replied as he began to rub the back of his neck. "I....uh.....there was an explosion."

"Ah!" Nakia nodded in understanding, sensing that he doesn't want to go into further detail. Knowing all too well about the effects that dangerous missions can have on the psyche, she decided not to press on.

"Agent Ross," you murmured under your breath. “Why don’t you come to the feast tonight?”

You hoped your sister would pick up the hint, but she continued to lock eyes with Everett as if the man would disappear if she were to take her eyes off him. Rolling your eyes, you spoke a little louder this time.

"Agent Ross," you got his attention. "There's a feast tonight to celebrate the engagement between my baba and the Mining Tribe elder. I....we," you corrected yourself as you wrapped an arm around Nakia's shoulders, "would love for you to come."

"I don't know," he responded sheepishly. "I heard it was a family thing."

"You're part of the family, don't you know?"

"I am?" Everett raised his brows curiously.

"Yes," you answered with a nod. "After all, you saved my sister's life. That makes you like a brother in my book." You resisted the urge to add -in-law. You didn't want to push that agenda.....not yet anyway.

"Well, if you insist...." he trailed off as his eyes moved from you to Nakia, seeing if she'll protest, but you interjected before she could get the chance.

"Oh, we do!"

"Omncinci," Nakia tried to get you to stop, but you purposefully ignored her and extended an arm towards Everett.

"Come on, Agent Ross. Why don't we get lunch while Nakia rests and gets ready for tonight? My treat."

"Alright," he said with a friendly smile and linked arms with you.

Before you managed to pull him away, he stole a glance at Nakia, who shook her head at your antics.

~~~

The day passed by faster than anticipated, and before you knew it, the night fell and you were at the feast, sipping cider—because you didn’t like the taste of champagne—and chatting it up with your soon-to-be brothers, Masamba and Khamisi.

The palace ballroom was filled to the brim with prominent members of each tribe and distant relatives you hadn't seen in months. The beautiful decorations consisted of clover and juniper green ceiling drapes, representing the River Tribe, and was complemented by the crimson and burgundy red wall drapes that represented the Mining tribe. The decorations were your idea, and you wondered if you should give up your dreams of becoming a doctor and go into interior design instead.

You glanced over at Everett, who was conversing with King T’Challa and Queen Naomi, and you noticed that he was trying to seem attentive, but he kept looking around—more like looking for someone in particular.

It was already thirty minutes into the feast and Nakia has yet to make an appearance, for reasons you will never understand. Then again, she was probably trying to make an entrance. Despite her controlled and collective demeanor, Nakia does occasionally have a flair for the dramatics.

You caught his eye and he gave you a friendly smile. You returned it and excused yourself from Masamba and Khamisi before going over to him. “Agent Ross,” you greeted him, then turned to T’Challa and Naomi and gave them a respectful curtsy. “Good evening, wam kumkani and ikumkani wam. I can’t thank you enough for organizing this wonderful feast.”

“You’re welcome,” Naomi replied with her charming smile. “We were honored to do it.”

“If you don’t mind, I would like to borrow Agent Ross. I’m sure my baba would like to meet him.”

Without giving them an opportunity to respond, you linked arms with Everett and guided him over to where your baba and Babalo were chatting with M’Baku and his companion, Lady JoAnna.

“Good evening,” you greeted the group before turning your attention to the River Tribe elder. “Baba, I have someone I’d like you to meet. This is Everett Kenneth Ross. He’s a friend of Nakia’s, and he saved her life.”

“I...um,” he stammered as a blush crept on his cheeks, “I was just doing my job.”

You chuckled. “Don’t be so modest. After all, who knows how that bullet could’ve hurt my sister if you hadn’t jumped in front of her.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” your baba said to Everett as he held his hand out for a shake. “Any friend of Nakia’s is a friend of mine.”

Everett returned the handshake. “It’s a pleasure to meet you as well.”

“Speaking of Nakia,” your baba began as his eyes landed on you, “where is your sister?”

You opened your mouth to answer, but a figure on the balcony caught your attention. You smiled when you noticed that it was your sister making her way to the grand staircase, the lime green V-neck, Asymmetrical dress swaying perfectly with her fluid motions while her beautiful auburn curls were styled in a beautiful afro. She caught the attention of everyone in the ballroom, especially Everett, who followed her every move with his eyes.

You were the first to greet her once she descended the staircase. “You look beautiful, usisi omkhulu.” You gave her a hug before whispering in her ear. “And might I say that you caught the attention of a certain CIA Agent.”

“Omncinci,” she addressed you in a scandalized tone, but you could tell she was blushing even though her pigmentation didn’t show it.

You giggled and linked arms with her. “Come on, the food will be served soon.”

Everyone took seats at their assigned tables as you escorted your sister to the grand rectangular dining table. Being the lady you are, you pulled Nakia’s chair out for her and held it until she sat down and thanked you.

You gave her a smile in return just as you caught sight of Everett.

“Agent Ross,” you called him over while you held onto the chair next to Nakia, the seat that was assigned to you. “You can sit here.”

“Are you sure?” He asked, not wanting to overstep. He glanced over at your sister and baba for any signs of objection.

You could feel Nakia glaring at you for your shenanigans, but, as usual, you ignored her. “I insist.” You held out the chair for him, and once he sat, you went to the chair next to him. “Move,” you told Shuri, kindly gesturing for her to move over to the next chair while you took over that one.

Supper was going great as everyone fell into a series of conversations—updates on the programs King T’Challa has put in place, Shuri’s new inventions, and even things at the university.

"Nakia is doing very well at the Outreach Center," you said to Everett, causing groans and eye rolls at the table.

For the past hour or so, it's been "Nakia this. Nakia that." Even when someone tried to change the topic of conversation, such as the wedding or Shuri's work at the Science and Information Exchange, you still manage to interject something about your big sister.

"After all, she is such an inspiration to the people of Oakland, especially the little girls. In fact—OW!" You were cut off by a swift kick to your shins and you glared at the teenager beside you.

You glanced over to your sister, who mouthed a "Thank you" to Shuri, and back again.

"Well," you began with an offended tone and eye-roll, "I was just stating how proud I am of my big sister, but I can see that I managed to annoy everyone in the process."

At least you got a chuckle out of Everett, who found your shenanigans quite adorable.

~~~

Later on that night, after the feast, Nakia—still fashioning the dress—was in the garden gazebo, taking in the beautiful and rare flowers. Spending time in Oakland doesn’t allow her such luxuries. That’s not to say she doesn’t enjoy her work there. She gets to help people like she always wanted without having you worry about losing her.

The sounds of footsteps brought her out of her revelry, and she stood up from her seat, the matching lime green shoes in her hand, to see who it was. After all, who else, besides her, would be in the gardens at this hour?

“Agent Ross?” She addressed the man when he came into view.

“Oh,” he expressed his surprise at having seen her. “I didn’t know anyone was out here. And please, call me Everett.”

She nodded and took in his appearance. A black robe and black sandals adorned him, and she admitted, once again, to herself that he looked good. “What brings you here at this hour?” She asked, even though she already knew the answer.

“I couldn’t sleep.”

She gave him an understanding nod. She remembers the sleepless nights from her days as a War Dog, too afraid to sleep because the events would replay in her dreams. It took three weeks before she was able to sleep after the plane crash.

“Do you want a snack? My omncinci and I keep a stash here in the gazebo.” Nakia walked over to the bench she had vacated and squatted to open a secret drawer that contained a jar of french onion dip, a family-sized bag of chips, snack cakes, and bottles of water.

While she did that, Everett couldn’t help but admire how the beautiful Wakandan moonlight illuminated Nakia’s luscious dark chocolate skin.

“Everett?” Nakia brought him out of his thoughts. “I asked if you wanted to share a snack with me.”

“Oh! I would like to.”

Nakia smiled and invitingly patted the seat next to her. She opened the jar of dip and handed him the bag of chips. “Would you like some dip? It’s the best Wakanda has to offer.”

“Sure,” he said with a nod before scooping some of the dip with the chip.

Nakia watched patiently for his response, and she smiled when she saw his eyes light up.

“It’s delicious."

“I told you.” She took a chip of her own and scooped it in the dip before handing him the jar.

The pair fell into a comfortable silence before Nakia decided to break it.

“About my omncinci….I just thought I should apologize for….” she trailed off, trying to figure out a way to word your earlier stunts.

Everett chuckled and shook his head. “There’s no need for that. She’s…..one-of-a-kind, I guess you could say.”

“That she is,” Nakia replied before eating another dip-covered chip. “She takes a lot after our umama.”

"Tell me about her."

"My umama?"

Everett nodded. "I would love to hear about her, but only if you want to tell me."

Nakia took a minute to chew on the snack cake she had just opened. "What can I say? She was strong, smart, beautiful, and she could kick butt like no ones business."

"Sounds like you have it honest."

Nakia’s cheeks began to heat up, and she was grateful that Everett wouldn’t be able to notice because of her skin tone and the darkness of the night. “She died honorably serving our country.”

Everett sighed sympathetically. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“It’s okay,” she said before taking another bite of her snack cake. “It was years ago. Of course, it’s not something that's easy to get over, but she wouldn’t want me to dwell on it for the rest of my life.”

Everett nodded in understanding, knowing how it feels to lose a parent. He was eight years old when he lost his dad, an Air Force pilot, to a bombing. Even at his advance age, he still feels that twinge of pain in his heart for him.

"I'm retiring from the CIA," he said suddenly, breaking the comfortable silence that fell between them.

Nakia looked at him with furrowed brows. "Why?"

"Honestly, I'm getting too old to be dealing with explosions, car chases, and running after criminals."

Nakia chuckled, but she understood where he was coming from. Even though she was doing good for people as a War Dog, she knew that eventually she was going to get tired of the adrenaline-pumping work - especially after it has cost her so much already.

“So, what are you going to do now?”

Everett shrugged. “I’m not sure just yet. Maybe I can start training the younger generation to take over.”

“I’m sure they can learn a lot from you,” Nakia said just before a yawn escaped her lips. “I’m sorry. I must be tired from today’s events.”

“It is late,” Everett agreed. “What time is it?”

Nakia tapped one of her kimoyo beads to check the time. “It is 2:48.”

“We should get some sleep.”

Nakia nodded agreeably before putting the snacks away and grabbing her shoes. “Are you going to be able to rest?”

“Yeah. I usually fall asleep easier after a walk.”

She linked arms with him. “I can escort you back to your quarters. I insist,” she added, noticing that he was going to protest.

He decided it was best to go with her instead of disputing.

The silent walk to his suite was shorter than Nakia would’ve liked, but there they were.

“Thank you,” Everett told her.

“It was no problem,” she said with a smile.

He turned the knob to go inside, but Nakia’s voice pulled him back.

“There’s….um...an annual ball in a couple of months, and I was wondering if I could save you a dance. Only if you’d want.”

He grabbed her hand and gave it a tender kiss. “I would love to.”

She smiled. ��Well, have a good night, Everett.”

“You too, Miss Nakia.”

“Please. Only Nakia.”

“Nakia,” he said, and she kind of liked hearing her name on his lips.

After he went inside, she lingered there for a minute before turning towards the direction of her quarters.

“Not a word out of you,” she told you the minute she laid eyes on you at the end of the corridor.

Raising your free hand defensively while the other craddled a fudge pop, you released a small sigh. “Okay.”

Nakia furrowed her brows curriously. “Why are you roaming the halls this late? You should be resting for the wedding.”

“I should be asking you the same question.”

“None of your business,” she gently retorted before walking passed you.

Fashioning a smirk, you turned and followed her. “I can’t believe that you asked him to dance with you at the ball.” You released a squeal, but Nakia immediately shushed you, so you wouldn’t wake everyone in the palace.

“I did, and he said yes. End of discussion.” You recognized the finality in her voice, and decided not to press the issue. “Besides, we need to talk about your knack for meddling in my affairs.”

“Well, as much as we need to have that conversation, it’s getting late, and I really need to head to bed.” You emphasized your statement with a faux yawn that Nakia caught on to.

“Omncinci,” she addressed you with a firm tone, but, yet again, you purposefully ignored her.

“Goodnight, usisi omkhulu.”

Before she had a chance to stop you, you quickened your pace to head towards your room for the night, leaving Nakia to wonder what she was going to do with you.

~~~

Translations

Usisi omkhulu – big sister

Omncinci – little one

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