#also let it be known that i’m in no way saying that vex is a bad sister or that she doesn’t need/love her brother | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ogdoadfates · 1 year

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It was only a cough: #6 Rage

Here we go! Next chapter is out! Start with Kiki, end with Grog! Hope y’all like it! We gettin closer to that Hospital scene! Like always here’s a link to the story on AO3! Also wow we don’t have a lot of fics that have Grog and Vex chattin together.

Keyleth was restless. A tiger held in a cage far too small for its enraged size, pacing along the gate waiting for its sanity to snap and claw its way out of this infernal entrapment it found itself in. She knows her restlessness is both a blessing and a curse for the others, on one hand she able to walk, her muscles aren’t in as much agony anymore, she’s coughing less, she’s getting better but at the same time it means she’s refusing to stay in one place, refusing to rest, she’s a bit snippy, quicker to fall prey to anger, not letting herself get better quicker.

It’s a double edge sword, keep still while her skin buzzes begging to move, to do SOMETHING, staying in bed and recovering or move and relieve the burning desire to move but at the sacrifice of potentially halting her recovery or even worsening her state.

She’s been watching the majority of the group rearranging stuff in the van for the past few hours from the window in the room she’s been stuck in for the past few days. Vax has refused to leave her side, even when Vex tried to convince him to at least go outside for a few minutes he wouldn’t budge. Keyleth doesn’t know how to feel about that, on one foot she wants him to go get some fresh air, stretch, something to let him be free for just a little while but at the same time she doesn’t want to be away from him, she knows he’d never willingly leave her but if her past has taught her anything, it’s that people leave.

She can see him just out of the corner of her eye, looking over her shoulder to also observe their friends. He must have noticed her looking because his face turns from neutral to a warm soft smile, Keyleth returns his smile for a moment before letting it gradually fall with a sigh. Oh, what a pair they make. A tiger and a bird in a cage, the bird refusing to go through the wide gaps between the bars to freedom.

Vax frowns looking to the ground in thought before he perks up, walking more behind her before wrapping her in his arms, pulling her into him. She lets him, soaking up the comfort he tries to give her. They’re leaving the day after tomorrow and once on the road it’ll only be a few hours before the majority of them will be walking into the lion's den known as a hospital.

Percy and Scanlan will be staying with her in the van while Grog, Pike, and the twins will head in. It was a tough call on who’d get left behind in the van with her, Vax wanting someone with medical training to stay with her, most likely thinking his sister to keep her safer as well, but ultimately they went with Percy staying behind with her and Scanlan, who chose to stay in the van, so that way he can snipe anything chasing after the scouting team if they have a rough exit from the hospital.

The two of them jolt a little when they hear the door to their room open, both of them calming down when they turn slightly to see it’s only Percy. He gives them a small smile before closing the door behind him, walking towards them. He leans against the windows edge looking out briefly to their friends before returning his gaze to the couple.

“How are you two holding up?” Percy asks them. Keyleth sighs and Vax tucks his head a little into her neck.

“I’m feeling better, fits are now basically hours apart and my muscles aren’t trying to kill me but I guess that part is kind of obvious.” She says and she relishes in the slight chuckles she gets from the two men at her last few words. She’s been driving everyone up the walls since her muscles have let her walk mostly unhindered.

“Vax?” Percy says when the other man doesn’t make a move to answer his question as well. Vax sighs and burrows his face further into Keyleth’s neck, before mumbling into her skin, yet still audible.

“I don’t like this Freddie, you know I don’t.” Percy gives a nod, folding his arms and returning his gaze to the window.

“Believe me none of us do but it’s not like we have much of a choice.” His brow furrows in thought for a second before looking back at Keyleth. “How many days of travel do you think before we reach ice or snow?” Kayleth’s own brows furrow at his question, it’s been getting colder just like she predicted and her father was able to tell her in their last emails, which now, that she’s thinking on all of this, was probably the last email any of them could send and receive.

It’s been long enough that powerplants left on and alone have run out, run down, or been scavenged to pieces, the same can be said for the internet and other such things. It was already getting very spotted but they haven’t been able to do anything for a while now. Plus with the cold some might have just froze. They’ve only seen specs of snowfall so far but what that means is they're getting closer.

“A month or two’s worth of travel, I’d say before we reach snow. Maybe three or four before we start having negative temps during the day as well as night. But that’s only a guess.” She says, taking one of her hands and gently resting it on one of the arms Vax has wrapped around her.

Grog wasn’t that happy, not because he’s one of the ones going into the hospital when they reach it, hell no! He wants to fight something he’s been cooped up for too long but he also doesn’t want them to do what they did last time.

He hates it when everyone suggests they split up to cover more ground, all it does is make them get separated and hurt. He can’t protect them if they aren’t near him and it angers him but not in the fun angry way no it’s the fear anger way. Grog doesn’t like fear anger, he doesn’t like being useless and he doesn’t like his family getting hurt.

For now he focuses on putting things back into the van and rearranging them with the help of Pike and Vex, Scanlan perched on top of the van keeping a lookout. It feels like it should take long to bring all their supplies into the van, even more so with the fact they took a few things from the motel, but it only takes a two to three hours and then they head back inside, well all except him.

Grog stays outside leaning against the van messing with the fidget spinner Vax gave him a while ago. This entire situation frustrates him, he likes fighting but doesn’t like killing. He wishes everything could be normal again, getting into bar fights, Pike patching him up, Vex rolling her eyes at him, Vax and Keyleth’s relentless awkward pining, Scanlan and him getting shitface drunk, and Percy making him and Keyleth little fidget toys. Most of that's gone now. Or at least the meaning behind them has, now Pike patches him up fast and worried instead of with a chuckling smile, Vex relies on him to do what's right and not goof off-no rolling eyes when you can die any minute, Vax instead of Percy giving him new toys because Percy’s too busy repairing everything, the only good change being that Keyleth and Vax finally got to together.

He gives the spinner a faster spin, staring at it as its colors blur together from the speed. Everyone’s so high strong and it’s starting to get to him, he can’t even go to Scanlan because he was one of the ones most high strung right now, Vax is worrying over Keyleth even though she’s getting better, Pike is already having to juggling just about everyone, Keyleth is frustrated for just about every reason, which only leaves Vex and Percy. Both are frustrated as well but better at managing it.

With a grunt he stands on his own and walks back into the motel, it takes him a while but he eventually finds Vax sitting down and staring down at their map, her head in her hands. She looks up to him when he takes a seat across from her at the small table.

The two just stare at each other for a few minutes. “No splitting up.” He says with no further explanation but he knows she knows what he’s meaning. She continues to stare at him for a moment before sighing, bringing her hands down over and off her face before leaning back in her chair, facing the ceiling.

“If we can we won’t but I can’t make any promises Grog. That depends on way too many things for me to give you a promise.” She says and all Grog can do is grunt in annoyance and frustration, his gaze turning to the map with a rage ever so slowly boiling underneath his skin. Not at Vex but at the damn world.

“I really am sorry I can’t promise you Grog, gods know I’d give anything to be able to give one of us some certainty.” Grog hasn’t heard her this exhausted since their first big scare and he can’t help but let some of the memories resurface. He’d never forget that day, he really thought he was going to lose Pike, his best buddy, covered in blood and wounds. In some ways they were lucky it was from other survivors and not zombies. Grog doesn’t like killing but that one had been one he didn’t regret.

“Not your fault.” He tells the woman across from him, Vex attempts to give him a smile but in truth it was just a slightly upturned frown, not a smile but not a complete frown, a weird in between. “How big is it?”

“The hospital?” Vex asks, to which Grog nods. “Gods I wish we knew, I doubt any of us have been there. I mean there is a slight possibility Keyleth has? But I doubt she’d not tell us so if she has, only her father would know and we lost the ability to contact him and anyone else a while ago.”

Grogs groaned and dropped his head onto the table with a thud. “I’m tired of this shit.” He grumbles, Vex just gives him a tired smile, chuckling a little at his antics.

“You and me both Grog, you and me both.” She says just above a whisper.

The two of them stay there for the remainder of the day in silence, Vex getting up to leave once she notices the night taking over.

The large man remains, his head still laying on the table with his eyes closed. He isn’t asleep just yet when he suddenly feels a soft blanket be draped over him, Grog waits a moment before barely opening an eye to see Vex leaving the room. “G’night.” He tiredly grumbles out, stopping her in the doorway.

She turns a bit around to face him “ Goodnight, Grog.” And then she leaves. Grog rearranges himself into a comfier position, taking one last glaring glance at the map before going to sleep.

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thessalian · 2 years

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Thess vs TLOVM Reviews

The other day, I decided I’d go looking at the reviews for Legend of Vox Machina S2. Just ‘cos. I mean, I knew I liked it, but it’s nice to see what other people think, because I won’t say it’s perfect and it’s sometimes interesting to look at what other people think works (or doesn’t work, depending).

I gleefully noted that 97% of the reviews given in the UK were 5-stars. Lots of good commentary, both from people who’d watched the campaign and those who hadn’t. I also noted, with some interest, the five or so that gave it 1- or 2-star reviews. So I thought I’d have a look and see what they were saying.

I mean, first thing I noticed was that the things were very short and badly spelled with zero grammar and couldn’t even be bothered with capitalising the beginning of sentences. I mean, okay, if that’s how you write, go ahead, but I’m going to side-eye you a little if you’re offering critique that way. And then I read them. Obviously it did not take long.

My sheer disbelief over what I saw, however, engendered a lot of thinking of the angry, “Why do people review shit when they obviously did not actually watch the damn thing?” variety. So now I’m putting my thoughts on virtual paper.

The one that came up a lot was, “No plot”. Um. Okay, there’s a two-pronged answer to that one. I mean, S1 was “Oh fuck dragon infiltration” plus “vampire and necromancer infiltration and oh yeah they murdered one character’s entire fucking family“ plus “And now we have to deal with the demon said character allowed into his soul when he was clawing for survival and revenge after barely escaping with his life”. And when we get to S2, we get, “Oh fuck dragon infiltration was the step in a larger plan!” plus “We need serious weapons to deal with this” plus “What I Will Do To Save My Sister’s Life: A Compendium” plus “When people tell you that your sword is being an asshole, maybe LISTEN” plus “Let’s touch on the pain and tragedy of everyone’s backstory for giggles” with a topping of, “Could strange bedfellows not roofie our known allies, please? I mean-- wait; BBEG is doing what?!?” All of this sounds like plot to me, both of the personal development variety and of the “completing a mission” variety. Soooooo ... not sure where that one came from but at least four people said it. Also apparently focused more on the “sex-starved gnome” (ignoring Scanlan’s character development entirely) and “the alpha male beard guy” (and never mind that Grog has never been the dominant figure in the group and spent a whole lot of S2 showing his soft side and weaknesses - ‘alpha male’ my entire ass; it doesn’t just mean ‘big strong muscular person’ even to the assholes who believe in the term).

And then there was, “They always win; the things that they need always just appear and there’s never any feeling that they might lose”. Which is the point where I start asking, “What the fuck show did you watch?” Focusing entirely on S2 for a moment, we have:

Ep 1: Vox Machina and the entire city of Emon get their collective ass handed to them by the Chroma Conclave; Vox Machina specifically barely escape with their lives twice - once from the city itself, once from the Keep into Whitestone.

Ep 2: Mighty heroes go to Vasselheim for help, basically get told to go fuck themselves, eventually manage to get a tiny shred of information to go on after having their asses handed to them on the emotional level by a couple of spiritual know-alls.

Ep 3: Vex. Fucking. Dies. And that’s leaving out nearly getting drowned by fish people.

Ep 4: Vex is revived through her brother throwing himself into an open-ended deal with a death god, and then they all more or less get their asses handed to them on one level or another; only get out because Vax took self-sacrifice to its greatest heights.

Ep 5: “I AM VERY FLAMMABLE!” That one only gets resolved when Keyleth finally lets go of her anxieties (and if we’re talking about ‘the things we need just appearing’, if she’d figured that out when it was needed, a lot of things would have been a lot easier over the last season or so).

Ep 6: Vox Machina get their asses handed to them again, this time by sphinx. Saved again by character development and someone finally realising that not all wounds are physical ... only to get their asses handed to them yet again by black dragon asshole who takes everything they managed to earn in that entire fight - ally and Vestige. Oh, yeah, and buddy-on-buddy stabbing because of fucking evil sword, and splitting the party.

Ep 7: Both halves of the team end up crippled - Team Gnome And Goliath because weapon (and the shit Grog goes through trying to shake the curse ... and it doesn’t even really work), Team Half-Elf And Know-All because half the party ends up tripping balls. The latter has the worst of it because the two guys get their asses largely kicked by Jell-O.

Ep 8: If people got what they needed exactly when they needed it, Vex would have had even the tiniest bit of support when she was soloing an archfey - one with a fucking Vestige, no less. (The twins have shit luck and worse resistance when it comes to powerful beings making passes at them, I swear.)

Ep 9: Team Gnome and Goliath have to more or less resort to sneaking, gain some allies ... kind of, but since most of them are terrified, that’s not really a lot of help. Beyond that, the only reason they don’t get their asses kicked is because they know they’re going to get their asses kicked. ...And then Grog goes anyway because fuck that, apparently.

Ep 10: What some might call ‘convenient’ breaking of curse is honestly about the only self-reflection someone with an INT of 6 and no real WIS modifier is going to get without flash cards. Then Vox Machina throws everything they have at the enemy and it still isn’t enough. Grog had to more or less kill himself to win that one, so shut up with your “It never feels like they’ll lose”.

Ep 11: Fancy trap? Nope. Get literally inside the dragon and pin it in place from the inside? Nope. Umbrasyl kicks their entire collective ass, even with Herd of Storms and three fucking Vestiges on side.

Ep 12: I found how this one ended interesting because it’s almost a callback to how they beat Brimscythe - distract by clearly being unable to fight, then hit with whatever you’ve got left. The only reason Vox Machina defeated Umbrasyl is because most of the team got their asses kicked so hard that they bowed to what they saw as the inevitable and Scanlan used Umbrasyl’s very draconic gloating (seriously - black dragons get off on people’s pain and misery) to ... let’s think how this would work because we couldn’t see it: get close to Umbrasyl while the dragon’s distracted, climb Umbrasyl’s right front leg, undo the straps tying Mythcarver to Umbrasyl without dropping Mythcarver, take up Mythcarver so it ended up more gnome-sized, get off Umbrasyl without him noticing, climb a bit of rock debris without making enough noise to wake the dead for the sheer momentum he’d need to pull that off, and then get Umbrasyl’s attention enough so that his strike would hit the weakest point on Umbrasyl - the eye, because he had no idea if Mythcarver would cut dragon hide without a lot of weight behind it and Scanlan is a fucking gnome and thus does not have that kind of weight.

I have seen the campaign - in fact, campaign 1 is the only one I’ve seen in full. I knew they were going to come out okay up to this point. But I was still on the edge of my fucking seat on these. So anyone who’s all about “They get what they need when they need it and they never lose” ... really has not been watching this show. Vox Machina has got its collective ass kicked so many times - Brimscythe, the Briarwoods on multiple occasions, Raishan, Vorugal, half the Feywild, the Herd of Storms, Umbrasyl at least three times... They win out eventually, but honestly that makes as much sense as anything else. It’s that “It’s always in the last place you look” thing - once you’ve found it, you stop looking so it’s obviously in the ‘last’ place you look. They fight until they win or everybody’s dead. If everybody died, that is the end of the damn show. The fact that they keep repeatedly fucking up until something works is actually pretty true to life. Sometimes you need to think more; sometimes you need to think less and act on instinct. They just do the thing until something works. But that’s not instantly “getting exactly what you need when you need it”. That’s trial and error.

Honestly, the main reason everybody loves Vox Machina so much is because they remind us of ... well, ourselves. We, too, are just flailing around the place until something works. Fine, we don’t have physical dragons to deal with, but our problems feel just as big and terrifying. It’s comforting to know that if you keep at it, reaching for help wherever you can find it at a price you’re willing to pay and just never giving up, you’ll survive this.

Oh, and don’t even get me started on the ones who call Vox Machina “horrible role models” and complain about the “debauchery and crude behaviour”. It’s rated minimum 15 and maximum 18 for a fucking reason. Your kids should not be watching this, and if you’re offended by a few four-letter words and some carousing? You probably shouldn’t be watching it either. You were warned. There were warnings out the ass. Just because it’s animation doesn’t mean it’s for kids, doesn’t mean it’s going to be everyone shiny and happy and wholesome at the end talking about the power of friendship or how knowing is half the battle. We left that behind in the 80s, when cartoons were half morality play, half toy commercial. Respect the art of animation ... or at least please check the parental guidance on these things. This is like giving your kids Neon Genesis Evangelion to watch because that’s animation.

It would have been nice if the bad reviews were even remotely worthwhile? But this is ... this is just “people who didn’t actually watch the show but hate it when people have nice things”. It has to be. That or people with the situational awareness of a whelk.

#tlovm season 2 #tlovm spoilers #Thess gets aerated #Thess watches Critical Role

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cryptidcircusco · 8 months

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there’s a lot of soft domesticity in my system and im emotional so im gonna talk about it yippee 🥄🌱

so I have a LOT of introjects. The way my system works is that most of my introjects aren’t characters I relate to or whatever, they’re just characters I liked and would probably trust, especially the ones who have important jobs that can sometimes be scary. Nobody really talks about the fear and mistrust around alters who know things that you don’t, or who take your memories from you, even the ones that seem normal because it’s a trigger or something you shouldn’t remember.

But after the initial fear of being a system, and in all the grief there is around knowing why and not remembering and not experiencing it all, I found a little bit of peace in learning about my alters. The ones I would have tried to repress because they’re assholes are genuinely sweet, they just don’t express it well. The ones I think of as soft can take a beating, and they can fuck people up if needed. The ones I think of as anxious and paranoid and potentially dangerous are some of the most gentle with me.

Tim, or Pookie Bear as he goes by online, is an introject of Tim Wright//Masky from Marble Hornets. He’s anxious around people and cameras, he drinks in headspace which can upset some alters with addiction issues, he’s the first to revert to what we call the Masked State* when we’re in fight-or-flight. But when we had a long day or week or whatever and we can’t sleep, he’s the first one to help. He shows up, he puts on his playlist in our headphones, and he sleeps in all the blankets and keeps the nightmares away.

Jack is a feral animal loosely based on Eyeless Jack. It’s usually skittish, it’s not good at the whole human thing. He tries his best, but it’s not easy being so suddenly disabled when you were an apex predator for nearly 300 years. But Jack is the one to notice when we’re overdoing it, and either tells us directly to stop and take a break or sends a message to whatever alter is close by.

Gina is so sweet. She’s a mix of Jeff the Killer and Nina the killer, her story being that “Nina” was a cover for Jeff’s transition. She changed her name a couple of times and settled on Gina. She’s pure scemo sunshine. She’s the kind of girl you could say anything to without judgement and she’d hug you or give you advice or whatever you need. She will also kick someone’s ass for you. Gina can be vicious when we need her to be. She’s finished countless arguments we got dragged into by people we shouldn’t have been talking to, she’s shut down Jeff and Corvus and even Sorrow when they try to start something. Yesterday I was gonna be late for a date because times got changed and I was panicking and Corvus and Jeff were bickering and then Gina shows up, tells them to knock it off for a sec. And she let me borrow her clothes. And she helped me with my hair.

Brian is a big one. He’s nice to other people on the outside, he’s good at masking, but internally he’s cold. He’s tired. He went through a lot during Marble Hornets, and then afterwards when he spent years as a proxy. He held everything together then, and he was our sole gatekeeper/manager for two years. He’s always been the guy to take it and be too strong so nobody else has to be. But when he lets things go, when he accepts a little help and shows up, he REALLY shows up. Brian was there when my family wasn’t. Brian is there when I want someone to hang out with, he’s there when I feel depressed and can’t get out of bed or shower or eat. He’s there in the back when I’m sick, reassuring me, congratulating me even for making it this far because I’m ALWAYS sick and it gets tiring. He’s the guy ever.

Vex, or Ilana as she’s formally known, is a dreamwalker succubus. She’s at the top of the pyramid. She’s out of touch with a lot of things, like emotional relationships and our disabilities, but she’s good at her job and knows when to step back or step up. She went dormant for a while and recently came back, but before that she was our main security. She would be able to knock alters out for short periods of time when they got violent, but she wasn’t able to help the root cause and when we found someone else who can, she immediately asked “What do you want me to do?” She knows how to work well with others. I’m so grateful for that.

Johnny is an introject of The Spot way after it’s cool to split ATSV introjects. He’s just a guy. He’s the silly. He has top surgery scars and he treats me like one of the guys and it’s helped me start to come to terms with my gender and I love him for that.

Jeff is a big one for me. We thought he was a persecutor at first with how much he hated one of our friends, but he was right about that person being dangerous for us. He’s an asshole a lot of the time, but it’s his main method of reality checking us out of oncoming psychosis. He’s secretly so sweet to our littles, especially the ones who aren’t sweet little kids. He knows how to be firm and when to shut someone down if they’re trying to be unsafe or manipulate the others.

Sorrow is tricky, because Sorrow is actually a subsystem. They have a few different alters and are an introject of our self-insert OC, who we also wrote to have DID. They’re a good companion to whoever needs help in security, usually Jeff or Brian. They’re small, like really tiny and thin, but holy shit they have taken down almost everyone in the system at one point or another. Jack might be our resident Guard Dog, but Sorrow would be our sheepdog. In addition to being really good at tackling people, they are soft and quiet when we need someone to sit back and just watch without a lot of noise. Sometimes, having alters around while you’re in a vulnerable emotional state can overwhelm you, so Sorrow takes a lot of that on. They’re gentle when they need to be. There’s a lot of duality like that in my system. And I love my alters.

*The Masked State is when our CRP/MH alters revert back to source, or in the case of Tim and Brian, their personas of Masky and Hoodie. In this state, they tend to be more violent, more prone to physical aggression within the system and outside of it, and have drastic personality shifts.

#system stuff #alter love letters #did system #endos dni #anti endo #my system #my system not necessarily yours

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angelsndragons · 2 years

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love how life keeps getting in the way of my control party post but anyway-

the thing, the thing that i love about last night’s episode is:

matt and the rest of cr has always played fast and loose with alignments. sure, there are characters we can map to particular alignments (ie ikithon is definitely CE) and sure, they sometimes use alignments to help demonstrate a character’s growth over the course of a campaign (vex and caleb) but.

but.

it’s mostly been with the understanding that alignment is itself is bullshit. no one person is one or two singular ideals all the time. even if there are general trends which is what alignment can embody, the exceptions to said trends matter just as much if not more so than the trends themselves. after all, should jester be more defined by her chaotic, go with the flow self or should she be defined by the moments she buckled down and said, ‘no, we’re doing this’? do her moments of amazing selflessness better define her than her moments of selfishness and, sometimes, which is even which?

aabria’s time as DM played into this questioning of alignment masterfully. sure, she explicitly called out and used characters’ alignment in a way we hadn’t really seen before. but she’s also the person who introduced and reinforced time and time again that power is power and it’s how you use it that matters. (also let’s take a minute to mourn the fact that calamity is what aabria was gunning for in terms of the lore department but she had to contend with level 3 dumbasses who did not care in the slightest what their place in the world was or how they intersected with the larger history).

all of this is to say: gracious that asmodeus scene last night was amazing. the sheer discomfort of that scene, for me, is how you can’t shove asmodeus or zerxus into neat little boxes and understand what precisely is at play from both of them. it doesn’t work; they both zig and zag too much. asmodeus isn’t even playing into a classic paradise lost interpretation of the devil because unlike the devil even there, he has legitimate reasons and grievances with his fellow gods. this isn’t ‘dad made new toys and now i’m not as special, i’m going to go wreck shit,’ this is ‘we had an agreement, with rules and terms, and they broke them.’

and i know what people are going to say, that we can’t trust a single solitary word out of asmodeus’ mouth. and sure, i agree with you to a certain point. but here’s the kicker, his interpretation of events isn’t wrong. we know that there was a war between the primordials, who, again, were on exandria before anything else, and the prime deities, which the books say occurred because the gods were tired of having to remake their mortals and so sought to make the world more inhabitable for them. we also know that sometime before the schism, the gods taught mortals arcane magic. we know that the efforts of mortals and gods would banish the primordials to specially created planes, or prisons, if you want to call them that, forever.

given the parallels that brennan is weaving into story, how it’s druids, with their connection to nature magic, that wizards have a pact with, to only take so much and to give back so much, given that the wizards resent the hell out of this pact, that they think it beneath them...

i don’t think asmodeus is lying here. spinning, certainly, framing himself in the best light possible, yeah, no shit, trying to play on zerxus’ desires to protect and to avenge, absolutely. but i don’t think he’s lying or playing up his injuries or trying to break down zerxus’ defenses directly. zerxus already doesn’t believe in or worship the prime deities. the whole city of avalir has moved away from that. all asmodeus is doing is confirming what zerxus has believed and known to be true all along: that gods are just other beings and they’re not necessarily worthy of worship nor are they working from an objective good or truth.

part of the scene’s tension comes from audience knowledge and anticipation. we know that asmodeus will pull this same ‘trick’ on raei the everlight and damn near destroy her and her followers in one swoop. but that’s the thing, isn’t it? the calamity was a war and both sides did terrible things. we noticed that asmodeus promised zerxus nothing save to remember him, even as he wound zerxus up and sent him back to avalir like a laser-guided missile.

but the major kicker of the scene for me is: zerxus is trying to play asmodeus just as much as he is being played. he asks asmodeus to remember the mortals on the material plane, to not take his wrath out on them now that he’s free. he tries to heal and form a bond with this man, this being, and he talks about evandrin. he talks about how much he loves him still, how he couldn’t do anything to save evandrin, how he doesn’t buy that nothing could be done for him, in this, the great city of wonders. mechanically speaking, zerxus doesn’t yet have access to 5th level spells like greater restoration or raise dead. he will never have access to true resurrection, which is what he requires to bring evandrin back without his body. and yet. and yet.

there are oracles in this city. clerics. clerics only need to be 9th level characters to gain access to those 5th level miracles. and they didn’t do it. for whatever reason, zerxus believes that someone intentionally withheld potentially life-saving treatment from his husband. and then when he was gone, zerxus believes that the city continued to withhold that power, that 9th level spell to attempt to bring evandrin back. evandrin was first knight, he was the front line defense for the entire city and served honorably, is remembered fondly and painfully even five to ten years on. zerxus still doesn’t know what happened to his husband. and looking at how this city functions, yeah, i get it. this city has the wealth and power to work this miracle, this one act that would mean the world and more to zerxus and their son elias. but it’s so panache, so pedestrian, so boring. bringing people back from the dead is old hat, darling. godhood is where it’s at and even then, why would you want to try that when it’s already been done?

zerxus has been looking for a target, someone he can blame, and, potentially, someone he can force to fix this injustice. who better to ask for this information than the father of lies, the being who encompasses lies and deceit? so when asmodeus points him back at his friends - friends that we the audience know are actively lying to him about what happened to his husband (laerryn carries the guilt of his loss and convinces herself that the interplanar travel she gained is worth his loss, quay actively removed something from that reporter’s records about evandrin, and isn’t it interesting that this guilt, of all things, might be what drove them apart in the first place) - well.

it’s called the calamity for a reason. and we’re watching it play out in miniature in front of us.

#cr spoilers #exu #exu: calamity #calamity meta #cr meta #exu meta #exu spoilers #zerxus #lord of the hells #long post #my meta #zerxus wasn't being tricked #he was walking in ready to make a deal

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luckthebard · 3 years

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One criticism I've seen of how Aabria is running "Exandria Unlimited" that I want to unpack and push back against (because I think it speaks to a wider problem Critical Role is going to grapple with the more they tell different stories in a shared universe) is this one: "The way she is narrating Emon is disrespectful toward/ruining Vox Machina (or specifically Vex as part of the council) because if it was true to their characters they'd step in and solve it and/or never have allowed corruption or crime or problems like this to get this bad in the first place." And I'm not sure to what extent people realize that what they're actually saying is: "this is set in Emon, why isn't this Vox Machina's story?"

(As a quick aside, the higher level the Mighty Nein got, the more I started to see this idea hovering over that campaign as well. Any problem the M9 encountered that seemed even mildly "big" on a world-level would be met with a certain amount of "why wouldn't Vox Machina just step in and solve this? They're famous and well-known level 20 adventurers." I would be willing to bet anticipation of that kind of question was at least part of why Matt staged the final battle of the Mighty Nein campaign on another plane of existence, and it certainly played into his "minimal crossover between campaigns" rule.)

What's happening is an idea that because other characters have previously existed in the world and now hold positions of power/fame, it would be "disrespectful" of their journeys to have any future conflict or corruption in the narrative for new characters to grapple with. But that is stifling on a storytelling level. Aabria's version of Emon is cool, and layered, and interesting, and engaging with complex real-world dynamics in a fantasy setting. Why should she be prevented from telling that story just because "Vex wouldn't have let that happen"?

For one thing, the Vox Machina characters aren't saints. It's frankly weird to hold onto them as sacred cows. They're not going to solve all problems or always do everything perfectly. That to me seems more a misunderstanding of those characters than allowing the world to grow beyond them does.

But on a larger level this gets back to the point about shared universes that I wanted to get into: with shared universes like this, at a certain point part of audience buy-in has to be that, just because it's existing in the same universe, doesn't mean it's a story about all of the characters in that universe. Big comic book properties have this as a sort of understood rule. A Jessica Jones story might have a really powerful and frightening villain, and that villain is going to be defeated by her because it is a Jessica Jones story. It's possible to ask "Why wouldn't Spider-Man step in if this were happening in New York?" or "If this is so bad where are the Avengers?" - but the conceit of the medium means that's not a good question, because the simple answer is it's not their story. And it's also not a reflection on them that they somehow didn't prevent the problem in the first place, in spite of existing in the same world.

Idk how I want to end this, other than that it's something I've been wary of seeing misunderstood about a shared Exandrian universe since at least the mid-Mighty Nein campaign. References to the shared universe itself and potentially the other characters are bound to happen! But to expect it to center or be behold to the old characters is a refusal to accept the conceit of the new story. Allowing for different stories to exist and have their own themes and ideas is part of how a shared universe diversifies, on every level.

#long post #meta #mentions of criticism so I guess #cr discourse #exandria unlimited #critical role

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bluefox4 · 2 years

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So, recently I watched the Tales of Arcadia series. I have mixed thoughts on it overall. I liked most of the characters but it definitely had a problem with the idea of any character being morally gray. Characters had to be either a Good Guy or a Bad Guy.

Which its a kids show so that makes sense, a lot of media aimed at kids has that as a standard so this is more of just something about the type of show that it is. But the parts that it hurt was when they were trying to get into grey areas.

Like in Wizards, I’m totally on Morgana’s side here. But the show is trying to say that she is the one in the wrong, that we should be siding with Merlin and Author about dealing with the Troll stuff (it excepts us to agree with them since we saw what she was like in Trollhunters). And once the show decided that she was sympathetic it was just oh she’s a good guy now. Let’s just ignore that she has since then possessed Claire, sided with Gunmar who she saw kill one of his own men to test the extent of a power that she gave him, and the other things that she did during Trollhunters. It would have worked better if she was given an arc where she examined her actions and how it hurt the people that she was trying to help. She had originally wanted a world where magically beings would be safe and equal to humans. And her conflict with Merlin and Author she was in the right. Author kept breaking the treaties with Trolls. But her methods, the people that she sided with were questionable. Giving someone a mind control weapon is bad.

Also, 3Below they really didn’t want to make it that the King and Queen had been wrong about things. I do want to say that there was a pattern that the writers seemed like they were trying to make but also didn’t want to commit to with them. Vex’s family was killed by Zeron Brotherhood when catching a single bounty but then it turned out to be a hired gig by the main villain as a way to turn him against the royals when they didn’t do anything about the Brotherhood taking innocent lives. It was sort of like they were saying that the King and Queen weren’t at fault because this was something set up, but at the same time General Morando had to have known that they wouldn’t have taken action for his plan to work in the first place. They didn’t take action to help Tronos’s people when they asked for help. There is evidence in the show that they didn’t use the power that they did have to help or try to put a stop to threats where they could have. Even with the Zeron Brotherhood being hired to kill Vex’s family they sill should have had some authority to stop their bounty hunting, at least in their section of space and made it that if they came into their space that they would be arrested and put on trial for the civilians that lost their lives to them. But the show really doesn’t want to commit to the idea that they were morally grey. That they didn’t look out for all of their people. That the only people that would support General Morando would be evil or that they were tricked and lied to. Yes, he lied to Vex but Vex does have a legit grievance with the royal parents. It wasn’t just his family killed by these bounty hunters. When we first learn of them Vex says that they have killed hundreds of civilians to just get a signal bounty. There were probably steps that could have been taken. But instead we get one episode where Aja says that she will be better ruler than her parents. That seems like something that could have been an arc; Aja looking into the actions of her parents and seeing where they failed as rulers. Morando clearly has followers for a reason otherwise his rule would have been very short before the Omens were made.

I like the characters, but they needed to commit more to grey morality when they introduced the idea.

#Tales of Arcadia #TOA #3Below #Wizards #Trollhunters #We're only shown the people that are loyal to the royal family when we flash to Akiridon-5 #we don't see what the social issues are like there

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romeoandjulietyouwish · 2 years

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submitted by the wonderful @essayofthoughts

Saw This Ask and it prompted thoughts. Because I have found my spoons, this has also been crossposted to AO3, Here.

Percy stays as Vilya is driven up to the door and emerges from the car. He stays as Keyleth gasps and gapes and sobs and runs to her mother, he stays as Vilya and Keyleth and Korrin embrace, he stays as they all herd inside and sit down for tea and hugs and catching up. He stays at Keyleth’s side, his hand on her back, as Vilya recounts her time away, and he lays the table for dinner and helps clear the meal away at the end.

And then. After dinner. After Vex and Vax have made their way over, after Vax is keeping Keyleth company and he’s pretty sure he can get away with vanishing, he climbs the stairs to his room, clambers out of the window, and sits on the roof to one side of the dormer.

No one ever expects him to come up here. His fear of heights is as notorious as his dislike of fish and swimming in the ocean; the only one who knows how he comes up here when he struggles is Minxie and right now Minxie is downstairs, wound around Keyleth’s ankles and Vilya’s and purring up a storm.

He is happy for Keyleth. He is. He remembers how Vilya vanishing had wrecked her when they were younger - he remembers thinking just how unfair it was, that someone as lovely as Keyleth should lose her mother, that someone as kind as Vilya should be so unlucky. He’s glad Keyleth - as much family to him as his own ever has been - gets her missing family back.

He just wishes that he did too.

“Percival?”

He startles at the familiar voice - Vex’s dark braid is dangling over the edge of the windowsill, her face turning towards him as a familiar pair of paws press to the wood.

“Here,” he manages. “Don’t let Trinket jump, he’ll slide right down.”

“Yeah,” she agrees, spotting him then glancing to her dog. “Sit, buddy.”

Dog presumably sat, she proceeds to clamber up and out of the window, carefully shuffling her way across the roof to him. Were it anyone else he’d wonder at how easily she did it but - its Vex. She and Vax gained a reputation for breaking out of the dorms within a fortnight; the idea of her clambering across roofs… it scans.

“Hey,” she says, voice soft as she settles beside him. “I’m guessing if you’re up here, you’re not doing so good.”

He shakes his head.

“No,” he agrees. “Not really.”

“Trinket noticed you were gone,” she says, when he doesn’t add anything else. “I got Vax’s attention, so he knew where I’d gone. I don’t think the others have noticed yet.”

“Good,” Percy says, and means it. “Good. They shouldn’t-”

Gently, almost tentatively, Vex’s hand finds the back of his neck. It’s easy to relax as she starts to deftly massage the tense muscles there. Vex has always known what he needs.

For a long while they don’t say anything at all. It’s… helpful. No pressure to speak or explain himself. Either Vex understands or trusts he’s going to explain himself; she never pushes him to give her answers, just makes it clear when she wants them and lets him decide when and how to give them. He tries, when he can, to do the same for her.

“They’re happy,” he says, looking out into the dark fields surrounding the farmhouse. There’s lights on the driveway and the lanes to the cottages but Ashari Farm village is a good mile away and circled by trees and a particular alabaster rock formation; he can’t seeit from here. “And- they’re happy and I want them to be happy, they deserve to be happy-”

He chokes off the rest but the words are still there.

It’s not him that says them though - it’s Vex.

“But you wonder why you don’t get to be happy too.”

Oh. Oh of course she understands.

“Yeah,” he manages to choke out. He’s not angry at Keyleth. He can get annoyed at Keyleth but she’s never made him angry and the fact she’s just got her mother back isn’t going to change that. He knows just as much as the twins do what that means. He’s happy for her.

He’s upset for himself.

Why is this how it is? Why do people have to steal lost people away or take advantage of them and abandon them or - or outright just hurt them for monetary gain? What does it gain the world in the end but just- just grief and sadness and all these awful emotions and he misses them. He misses them, his family, and he doesn’t get to see them anymore and some days Cass won’t look him in the eye and he feels more alone than ever then. He misses his father’s hand on his shoulder or his mother bringing him a new book suggestion, he misses Julius’ teasing and Vesper’s mugs of tea, he misses Oliver and Whitney causing absolute chaos and Ludwig asking for homework help - he misses their home, warm and lived in and full of people and he can’t quite go back there because he and Cass aren’t enough to fill it and like her not meeting his eyes it’ll feel worse than not being there at all.

He doesn’t realise he’s started crying until Vex pulls him against her, bracing her feet against the old iron gutter so they don’t slip down the shingles.

By the time he stops crying his eyes are red and raw and he’s got a headache from it all and his throat still feels like he’s got a lump of lead lodged in it. But… he feels clearer.

“If we weren’t on the roof,” Vex says, “I’d get Trinket to join us.”

Damply, he laughs. “We can head in,” he says. “If you want.” He glances out at the dark fields, then up at the stars. “They’ve probably almost finished catching up by now; I should say hello to Vilya properly.”

Vex’s arm is warm around his shoulders.

“Yeah,” she says. “And- Percy? You know we’re here for you, right?”

He does. He forgets it sometimes, when everything hurts and he just wants to be alone, but he does know it. Vex hunting him out and keeping him company only proves it.

“Yes,” he says, and kisses her.

#submitted #critical role #kiki and percy childhood friend au #percahlia #god i adore them so much thank you so much for writing this <3

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infinitewarden · 3 years

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Osiris isn’t Savathun.

Great! Now that I have your attention:

Man you guys tire me out about Osiris. If you truly believe this is Osiris I don’t mean to sound like That Guy that’s like “you don’t know what you’re talking about” but... You don’t know what you’re talking about.

So.

Let’s talk about how much Osiris cares about the City and humanity and why the Osiris in Epilogue is not actually Osiris.

Alright. Let’s start off with context. I think it’s super important to see what we do know as Osiris’s views. From my heavy analyses of him since 2020 I can confidently say these are what he views as the most important things a person can do:

Keep promises

Speak their truths

Protect the City & Humanity

Know that the Vex are true Evil.

Now, I won’t be doing a breakdown of each one individually but I will be talking a great deal of how important honesty is to Osiris, the City, and his views of the Vex.

Speaking honestly and bluntly.

I don’t know how many of you were into Destiny before Beyond Light, so if you were unaware of this it’s not your fault. However I’ve seen a very strange change in tone when it comes to how people view Osiris. Before Season of Hunt people hated - and I mean hated - Osiris. Why? Because he was blunt. They viewed his bluntness as rudeness.

To see a sudden switch to him being secretive and scheming is... alarming, to say the least. (And to see people think that this is the norm is also alarming but in other ways.)

The Osiris before Hunt was not secretive and scheming. He sought knowledge openly. He sought, specifically, the truth. I must stress just how open he was about his plans. First I’ll give you a few in lore examples:

I admit, I found your questions divisive and disloyal, and I feared you might be capable of breaking our unity when the City's position had grown so tenuous. Why divert attention away from the Traveler, our only hope? And then it got worse, dabbling in thanatonautics, Ahamkara-lore, chasing after Xur and the tricks of the Nine. Launching expeditions into the Reef and beyond at a time when ships were irreplaceable. Your quest split Guardians along ideological lines. This was your greatest crime: Hunters chose to pursue your visions instead of protecting refugees, Titans assembled teams to chase the legendary Vault of Glass instead of striking the Fallen, and Warlocks turned away from the study of the Traveler in favor of your ultimate obsession... learning the exact nature of the Darkness. ... Perhaps what drives a Warlock to madness is truth.

Osiris.

"Do not romanticize this burden. We wield a weapon." The Speaker shakes his head. "The Light wields you, Osiris. You are what you make of it. A glorious extension of its majesty, in many directions." Osiris paces at cadence with his words. "Then it would do well to speak clearly. To better direct me." The Speaker cocks his head. "Without will? Then it would be no better than the Darkness." "I am asking only for guidance; it is a delicate game we are playing." Osiris's voice, distressed. Regal again, the Speaker motions to the stone garden. "Will you sit with me?"

13: Margins Part II.

And, while I don’t particularly like using the Fall of Osiris comic as a source, it does have very important lines on his viewpoints that I find relevant yet.

Fall of Osiris #1.

Hell he was open about his plans to fuck with time itself to bring Saint back.

Sagira narrowed her eye at the rogue Lightbearer and lowered herself to Osiris’s shoulder. “Why’s he here?” she asked quietly. “I asked him to consult on the engineering work,” Osiris replied, crossing his arms. “You sicko,” the other man declared, walking a circle around the Warlock, his eyes darting along every surface of the Sundial around them. ... “Just one more question, then. Why all the fuss?” “I owe him.” “I owe a lotta people, Warlock. You’re opening the gates of hell with a Vex key.” “When the Traveler brought me back, I had no friends. No family—” “No one had anything in the Dark Age.” “But Saint was always there. And I saw him grow from neophyte to demigod.”

The Sundial.

"You haven't left the Forest in years," Ikora said to Osiris, the only one to address him directly. "I need help," Osiris replied. "I know," Ikora responded, hands clasped behind her back. She stared intently at her former mentor. Back in her Crucible days, that uncompromising gaze was often the last thing her opponents saw. Aunor glanced sidelong at her superior. Harper coughed and looked down at his datapad. "Two years ago, Guardians entered the Infinite Forest," Osiris continued. "They aided me in defeating the Axis Mind Panoptes, preventing a Vex apocalypse from befalling this system. "In the process," he looked between each of them in turn, "Some Guardians reported a body they found in the Forest depths." Ikora sighed. "Saint-14 never came back from that last mission to Mercury. We finally knew why. I reacted to it the only way I knew how."

Desperate Times.

“I do not understand all of this code. This is Geppetto’s specialty,” Saint-14 says while standing bent over a wide desk covered in data tablets. Holographic images of the Lighthouse shimmer in the Hangar lights. “We could use the Crucible right now. Your trials. This will be very helpful. You mean to stay, yes?” “I will. Long enough to show you how to implement the simulation; but tonight, I must disembark,” Osiris says. “So soon?” Osiris tenses his jaw in forced silence. He twiddles with code. “I’m worried about what Vance found.” Saint places a heavy hand on Osiris’s chest. “Let go of your obsession. Do not leave chasing phantoms again.” “Phantoms… You think the Darkness is satisfied? This is just the first move. I need to know the next before it’s made.” “If there is something you fear, let me help you. We face this together.” Osiris’s mind drifts to the Dark anomalies. Saint doesn’t need another burden. “The safest place for you is the Tower, Saint. Time... tends to renege on its gifts.” “So, your mission is dangerous?” Osiris considers lying. “Potentially.”

Immolant I.

There are many more sources I could list on his bluntness and honesty but there’s honestly too much. What is important to extrapolate from all of it is this:

OSIRIS SPOKE THE TRUTH NO MATTER IF IT GOT HIM IN TROUBLE. IT IS ONE OF THE MAIN REASONS HE GOT EXILED.

Protecting the City & Humanity

Idk where people get the idea that he’s abandoned the City and humanity. And I don’t understand where people think it’s “typical Osiris behavior” to choose to put the City in danger.

I want to make something very clear here:

Osiris was exiled. He did not abandon the City. And though others view him as abandoning it, that wasn’t his intention. He never intentionally abandoned it. Everything he did was in pursuit of a brighter future for humanity. Let’s look at one of his lines from the Sundial activity during Dawn.

“By the time I left the City, many believed my practices to be sacrilege. But my methods have prevented countless futures not unlike the one you walk now. When it is laid out before you, would you not sacrifice anything to see this future shut?”

The Sundial.

He left because he weighed his options and he saw that humanity would have better use of him if he left. He cares A great deal about the City. He cares almost too much about it. He would never give Lakshmi the technology to cause it harm, especially knowing that she’s unstable. And I’ve seen some people think he’s playing 5D chess? In what world would he ever choose to bring harm upon humanity for some sort of... agenda; which I’ve already cleared up earlier, he’s open about his plans.

Let’s look at more known lore about Osiris’s feelings of the City & humanity.

"You've wrapped your mind around an idea of your own making. I have always tolerated this fawning 'movement' of yours, but this is a step too far." Osiris seethed. Brother Vance was awestruck. He stared blankly at Osiris, unsure of what he could say to quell his anger and dissolve his frustration. "What I have discovered…" "…is dangerous enough to destroy every man, woman, and child in existence. You're meddling with forces outside your grasp," Osiris reprimanded. "I warn you here and now, remove yourself from this Lighthouse. Find a simple life. Start a family. Write music. Leave Mercury and this fool's errand behind."

Chapter 8: Idolatry.

Osiris was furious to find out Vance was experimenting in his name by endangering people for his goals. And he was especially mad that he would dive into such dangerous areas so much so that it had the potential to destroy humanity.

"It's truth." Osiris considers this. "Truth seems subjective these days," Osiris says, finally observing his entourage for the first time. Among them, a small group of men and women, stand two wayward Guardians—Warlocks, it appears—and a child. Their forlorn faces resonate with him. Castaways and believers. The weeks since his departure from the Last City have worn on him. He was used to working alone, knowing he could fall back to the City's resources should he need them. Now, adrift in the expanse of purpose, he finds himself longing for a place he could return to. A sanctuary.

Chapter 2: Postexilic.

Here’s a few lines from Season of Dawn:

“The Traveler, mutilated. Mercury, a desolate warzone. This is the bleak future the Cabal wants for us all. We do not know what has become of humanity here. I hope we will not find out.”

“There are many terrible futures, but I have not grown numb to seeing them. The future the Cabal wish for is a nightmare for humanity.”

“If the Traveler fled the system, there is a chance that the Darkness would ignore our region of the galaxy entirely. It would sacrifice our second awakening, our ability to wield the Light, but potentially continue our Golden Age. There are too many variables at risk, but it's a variant path worth investigating in the Infinite Forest.”

“This battered Mercury is a blueprint for our system. Lightless, bowed, and nothing more than fuel for an endless war. It must never come to pass.”

The Sundial.

There are many. Many. More lines I could put here about how much Osiris doesn’t want to see humanity suffering. And especially how he doesn’t want the City to be at risk. But I think you get the picture.

Know that the Vex are true Evil.

So. We all know Osiris as “the Vex guy.” His whole thing is on fighting the Vex. However it seems people think that he’d be okay with using them for grounds of a higher purpose? Or something? I don’t know, everyone I see rebuffing Osiris’s actions with Lakshmi don’t seem to be interested in explaining this one.

So anyways. Let’s talk about how Osiris views the Vex as true evil compared to other species.

“The Fallen are not so different from us. How hard would you fight if the Light were taken from you?” “Those stories ring false to me,” said Saint. “They are not a noble people. I’ve fought them, and so have you.” “I have not fought them all,” the Warlock replied, pulling his hands apart to create an intricate web of hovering cubes and points of light. “They are nothing, no threat—not like the Vex. Not like the Darkness.”

Vanguard Commander.

[u.2:06] Have you spoken to the House of Light, like I asked? [u.1:07] I would rather not speak with Fallen. [u.2:07] They may need our help. Their cause is just. [u.1:08] What happened to “trust no one?” [u.2:08] What happened to your sense of right and wrong, hero?

Maintenance Operations Log 30037.

The unenlightened wonder at my so-called "fixation" upon the Vex. They believe our gravest existential threat is the Hive, for those beings have made a pact with the Darkness itself via the medium of the Worm Gods (according to Toland, at least, and I see no reason to doubt him in this). But Darkness is not merely absence of Light. Darkness is an entity unto itself. Put simply, Darkness is not Nothing. But the Vex? The Vex seek neither Light nor Darkness. They seek Convergence, the reduction of all life to its simplest, most meaningless form. An entelechy of zeros and ones. "Evil" is a word for sentimentalists and fools. But, in the ontology of the sentimental, the Vex are more deserving of the term than the Hive. Given a choice between Darkness and Convergence, I would choose Darkness. It is a logical choice. Yet for this they banish me.

Kairos Function (Hunter).

This one is important because Osiris doesn’t subscribe to the idea of “good” and “evil”, and that he would go so far to say that the Vex are Evil shows just how much of a threat he views them as.

It’s just. Mind boggling to me that people think that Osiris would be okay with a Vex invasion. That Osiris would encourage Lakshmi to open up a rift to “send the Fallen away” (Despite being one of the earliest sympathizers!) Osiris isn’t ineffable, he’s just a man trying to do his best to help humanity. His actions aren’t difficult to understand, they have been written to be very clear and with understanding his motives.

Saying that it’s natural for him to be secretive and have contradicting opinions and actions is just. Wrong. It’s not him. It’s not how he’s supposed to be understood. Even in Curse of Osiris I don’t think his actions didn’t make any sense.

This is going to sound very mean but I want to be 100% clear: If you think that Osiris would actively choose to put the City in danger of the Vex, if you think that he would actively choose to stand calmly and watch as his lover was about to die to the very things he spent millions of lives to save... You don’t understand Osiris. Go back and reread his lore.

I leave you with this:

The Vanguard is dubious of our intent and ability, fearing corruption and displacement. They do not trust me. You were held in similar contempt for speaking your truth and empowering free thought. You know what it feels like to be chastised and labeled a traitor. We are mere steps away from a disintegration of our institutions, and they cannot see destruction staring them in the face. ... For so long, we have clung to the Light, denying the strength offered by the Dark. By using Stasis, we will end this war. We see this contest for what it truly is: a game, played by our adversaries. And we have been the pawns. We are pawns no more. This is not a battle I want to wage without you, although we may not have a choice in the matter. Wherever you may be, please come back to us.

To Osiris.

#theus.exe #lore.exe #osiris #destiny osiris #osiris destiny #destiny spoilers #long post

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nochiquinn · 3 years

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legend of vox machina episode 7: scanbo OR it’s only comic relief until it stops being funny

I got so excited when I saw the title of this episode

all the reactors I've seen thought stonefell was anders on account of the weird cut/camera focus when percy was talking about them

yes your honor I would die for cassandra de rolo

she does sound moderately like a fable npc

mala: that was an assassination attempt

anders is built like a pear on a barbecue fork

like okay. he's not wrong about the baby de rolos being pampered b u t that's not THEIR fault. kids are never responsible for the situation they were born or brought into, only with what they do with it once they're old enough to develop agency. he's just lashing out at them bc they're easy targets. and papa de rolo is right, it's NOT his job, and if it's not an urgent "everything's gonna blow up if we don't do this" matter he shouldn't have kept pushing. also don't bitch about your students' parents in front of them, let alone directly TO them.

okay I'm done now we can continue

I did NOT see the nails holding keyleth's effigy's antlers in place until mica pointed it out and for the record: I hate it

"I assure you, I'm in control" press x to doubt

his hair is getting a lot fluffier/less coiffed as time goes on (good)

"if you turn that thing on any of us again, I will not hesitate, I will kill you"

imagine knowing what percy's guns can do, even if you don't know what they are, and seeing him use them brutally and mercilessly on two prone, helpless people in two days (never mind what they all knew stonefell was and what he did), and now he's leaking smoke and his eyes are black from corner to corner and he's pointing it at you. and if he'll point it at you, his teammate (you'd like to think friend), who won't he point it at? vex? keyleth? and the only way you know to stop him is to put him down.

there's gonna be a lot of meta/fic in these next few recaps and I refuse to apologize

this means he kept the de rolo crest buttons this whole time

I love how they visualized this. just this whole sequence with the hammers and the barrel clicking

how'd he get a forge tho

scanlan

mala pointed out this is how early scanlan deals with dark shit, is to make a joke out of it, but has no filter on when it's appropriate to say it out loud

pours one out for matthew mccoughnatree

this is a really nice sequence tho

when keyleth's ambition outstrips her control

"who's the sixth barrel for?" props to whoever it was caught percy's shadow

I wasn't sure ale would put out a fire instead of dousing it but it probably has a pretty low alcohol content compared to like vodka

it's like dousing a fire with natty light

vax actively countering vex instead of just sniping at her

"this is bigger than all your personal shite" I mean yes but I would like more of the personal shite

s c a n l a n

like he has one job and that's fucking with everyone but. scanlan.

can archie like. wipe his face. it wasn't bothering me until mala pointed it out.

venkman

"let. me. be. ANNOYING." huge tiktok audio potential

me: oh no is this a musical episode mala: it was threatened

this was INTENSELY unneccesary

CrItIcAl RoLe WaS nEvEr ThIs CrAsS

D&D GUARDS

I'm sorry, they're clearly playing bunions and flagons

blink? I assume?

"how would this ever help?" idk if you needed to get inside a dragon

nut check WITH the gauntlet

I remember the fire breath being much more controlled in the stream, I am probably remembering wrong.

scanlan: literally a thirteen year old

yes. YES. the triceratops is LOOSE.

doors: the only thing to stop a charging triceratops

"who let that sex-crazed gnome do this solo?" "uh...you?" "never listen to me again."

"excellent plan, vox machina" "I mean that is what we're known for" rank lies

"I was dead yesterday, remember? can only improve from here."

tbf the DOOR wasn't trapped. just the everything else.

I just love how bigby's scanlan's hand has been used in the show, much more versatile than I remember it being in the stream

(or it was just so ubiquitious in the stream I stopped appreciating it properly)

you have activated GrogRage™

"oh man, they are fucked now"

mala pointed out vex and keyleth still work together in battle, regardless of their personal squabbles. they can hate each other later when they're still alive.

(also probably helps that keyleth actually has no beef with vex, and is likely absolutely bewildered at the way vex has been treating her lately)

COCK LIGHTNING

no! double-tap! confirm the kill!

"good show, scanlan."

I legitimately loved vax running in ahead to find anders (and percy beating the shit out of him for it later) but this does make more narrative sense

"let her go and we can discuss a future where you're still breathing."

hey show what the fuck

hey show what the Fuck

#the legend of vox machina #lovmtag #critical role #spoilers #crititag #liveblog #reaction post

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missizzy · 2 years

Text

New Fic: The Paladin Forgotten(Critical Role)

(Note: This as written as a reaction to the second episode of Exandria Unlimited: Calamity, and is half spoilers, half speculation)

For first minute or so after he closed his eyes on his grieving family and sunk away-or it might have been much longer than that-Percy honestly wasn't able to comprehend much. He would never even know where in the multiverse he first was. There was Orthax there, and he had come for him-he certainly grasped that much.

He didn't think the demon got near him, though, after he first came there, because he was rapidly shoved away from him by a familiar enough figure, still wielding his daggers like he had in life.

Except the thing that stood out to him, the thing that drove every other detail of his current situation far away, was when that figure turned his head and hissed, "Get further back," and suddenly, he wasn't familiar at all, and Percy knew the being before him was not his brother-in-law, much as he bore his features.

The grief that took him then was far fiercer than any grief or fear he would've ever felt for himself. The thought of Vax being truly gone...and when he had hoped so much he would still be there for them, when it was time, if only to take them at the end. He had wanted it so for Vex most of all, but for himself as well, and for their children, that had only known their uncle through stories and through his ravens, and for all their friends.

It was so overwhelming that, at first, Percy didn't react when he saw the second figure there also fighting Orthax. But he eventually found himself taking note of the strange red-haired half-elf, hacking ferociously at the demon with a great golden blade, especially when he yelled, "Back! Back! This one you will not have, demon."

The two of them together were more than a match for him, and Percy saw Orthax retreat. "That one should be mine," he hissed, and it chilled Percy to the bone, made him momentarily fear his soul would shatter.

"Not any more, Orthax; all those bonds are broken. Return to the Hells, and pray my friend here doesn't go there to kill you once and for all. I've known him to do that at least once." Indeed, on hearing his companion's words, the redhead hissed and raised his blade again. Orthax took the warning; Percy watched him fade out, and maybe, he thought, he would be free of him at last.

The he heard the anxious, affectionate murmur of, "Freddie?"

He looked again, and saw the change in his eyes. He who might not have been Vax'ildan only a moment or so ago nonetheless was him again now.

The relief crushed him even more than Vax's arms did a second later, and Percy could do nothing but let them. He wondered if either of them was still able to cry.

He had even momentarily forgotten about the red head. At least until he heard him say, "I'm afraid we'll have to part ways here, Champion. I may be as much a friend to his champions as I am to any such people, but I still won't go to his realm."

"I know," Vax said softly. He let go of Percy and more or less floated back over to where he was. "Thank you, Evandrin. You know how much this meant to me."

"Yes, thank you," Percy echoed, remembering his manners at last. "It seems that I literally owe you my soul."

But Evandrin's face turned hard as he looked at him, and he said, "I didn't do it for you. Don't think I don't know what you've done, Percival Fredrickstein von Musel Kossowski de Rolo III, and how much death and suffering it has caused and will cause. But your wife is a hero, and she deserves to have her husband waiting for her when her own time is up, and it seems you have not gone quite beyond forgiveness, at least for the sake of sparing another hero my fate."

And with that, he turned away, his cloak whirling around him, and after another moment he was gone, and it was only Percy and Vax there in that strange place.

Vax came back over to him and took his hand. "Come, Freddie," he said. "You have been granted a place in the outskirts of Pelor's realm, where my sister will be able to come to you as she likes, as will much of your family, I believe. You could even go meet with Grog, since he turned down a spot in Kord's realm to wait for Pike's on the outkirts of Saranrae's."

"That," said Percy, as he accepted Vax's arm and let him lead him, "is as good a fate as I could have possibly hoped for. Indeed, I can't say I'm not surprised by hearing I wasn't beyond forgiveness." His voice maybe shook a little, now at the thought of facing his parents. He didn't know how they were going to react to him.

"Well," Vax said to him, "you get a different perspective here. Evandrin certainly has one, since you didn't cause the Calamity."

"The Calamity?" Percy nearly stopped moving in his shock. "You're not telling me that man was involved in that. I never saw his name in any of the accounts of it. Of course a lot of the events around its start do remain a mystery, but was it not caused by a mage? Was that account wrong?"

"It was incomplete," Vax explained. "The Calamity, at least as Evandrin has explained it to me, was effectively caused by two people who entered the service of Asmodeus; Vespin Chloras was the one of them whose name made it into the records. The other was his husband."

"Oh," said Percy, because there wasn't much else to say to that. He had told Vex, once, that it was all right even if she turned evil. Maybe it even would have been. He still would have loved her no matter what she'd done, that was a given. But thinking about it now, Percy knew that he didn't know how he could've bourn it, had she ever done anything that extreme. Or how she could've, if he had.

And he'd had it in him, he knew that. Probably she did, too. Sure, they'd saved the world instead, but had their circumstances instead gone wrong enough...well.

And then Vax kept talking. "And the most painful part of it? He did it out of love for Evandrin. Or rather, out of grief and rage over his death. It puts Evandrin in an impossible position, too, because how can he forgive him for that, but how can he not forgive him for that? It doesn't help matters that they had a son, and his attitude is just...except it doesn't matter, because he truly will never see him again."

The first part of that story was sounding even more familiar to Percy, and now he couldn't help but say, "And now I will see my family again, you say."

Vax must have guessed his fears. "You've done nothing they won't forgive you for, Freddie. I'm certain of that. Indeed, I have seen enough to say that in the peace of these realms and all the time of eternity-although time does not behave here the way it does elsewhere, most pains fade. Though," he looked back to where Evandrin had last been before his departure, "there are some exceptions.

Evandrin's been here since his death; like with me, the circumstances of it left him a little tied up with the gods. Yours is not the first soul who's done wrong which he's chosen to save, for the sake of those who love them. He does for them what he could not do for the one he loved."

That was the last they spoke of Evandrin, then. There were other things to discuss, including how things would work in Pelor's realm, and Percy was very glad to hear that Vax would be able to come see him and Grog at least at times-and his explanation of how he was in fact with the Raven Queen at that moment, even as he lingered there with his brother-in-law, could not help but fascinate Percy. But even in all the eternity he apparently was going to get, Percy knew he wasn't going to forget him.

#critical role #vox machina #exandria unlimited calamity #percival de rolo #vax'ildan #evandrin

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nanaminokanojo · 3 years

Text

Play the Game | Nanami Kento X You | Part 8/8 [COMPLETED]

collection masterlist

one - two - three - four - five - six - seven - eight (final)

"Play the Game" Masterlist

You stood by the door, watching the chaos in your brother’s bedroom as he prepared for his wedding at sunset, waiting for everyone to leave so you can finally speak to him in private. He was, after all, the only one in the family you cared for enough to inform him of your decisions.

People always say you and Gojo were similar. However, those very things that made you alike also set you apart. Besides the platinum white hair and remarkable blue eyes you shared – unique even within the clan – being the absolute obvious, the similarities stopped there.

You siblings were supposed to be akin to one another, but the same things they loved about your brother were the same things people abhorred about you. You and your brother were both prodigies. He was richer than the whole clan, all assets combined being the successful businessman he was ever since he was in his teens. It was as freakish as it was awe-inspiring. You were an artist of great renown with your multi-million dollar pieces and the youngest to have been dubbed as a national artist when you were the same age as him.

But where he basked in fame and acclaim, your prominence was fueled by infamy. Gojo built an empire that served as one of the pillars of the local economy. You produced artistic pieces that inspired execration and controversy. Undeniably brilliant, yes, but absolutely contentious.

Your brother was kind. In fact, he was the best older brother one could ever ask for, and that was not lip service nor was it because of your biases towards him. You can never discount how caring he is to you, how hard he tries to make you happy and how he would go through lengths as to be the idiot just to satisfy your whims. He was just genuinely good-natured although he appeared somewhat insouciant. He had his evil streak, too, which is established in the clan, but his goodness radiated like a light that followed him wherever he went.

However, you have long accepted that your side which reflected Gojo in every way when you were younger had long died. Altruism wasn’t one of your strongest suits and you were only ever affectionate to people you had deep, deep fondness for. And that wasn’t even something common. Even your parents had always been the receiving end of your lackadaisical attitude.

He attracted people, you repelled them. Being surrounded by the good people he called friends was a testament to that no matter how vexing his personality was, and more people want to be near him. Apart from your three friends, you didn't make any more and your school life sucked because majority of your classmates hated you. For what, you didn't know. You don’t think you will ever understand.

It was your seven-year gap that made all the difference, you liked to think. It was much easier to swallow than the concept of the whole cosmos conspiring to create two creatures to be equals but of the opposite nature. Maybe it wasn’t meant to be that way, but you will always be the one looking up to him regardless if you did not choose the same path as his; regardless of whether there were no comparisons with what either of you endeavored to do.

And above everything else, you loved Satoru very much.

“Got a minute?” You began, standing before him in front of the mirror. It was rather annoying watching him struggle with the cufflinks, and you didn’t think he would manage to fix the bowtie still hanging loosely on his neck. Thus, you thought of taking charge. “Give it here.”

Gojo was surprised, but he was nonetheless happy. He wore his heart on his sleeve after all, and you could only guess it was that vulnerability he risked showing that attracted people to him. You have only learned the intricacies of such a matter recently, something you had to agree with since it all made perfect sense.

“Thank you,” he said, tilting his head to the side, watching you work on his cuffs.

“You’re really getting married, huh?” you began, feeling yourself start to falter, but you have decided. You may not have gotten him the best wedding gift materially speaking, but you swore to let him in on what was going on with you, to be honest with him like you hadn’t been for the longest time. “Who would have known?”

“Am I finally getting that emotional pre-wedding sibling talk?” he asked, walking towards the seats by the window and looking out into the garden.

“You’re getting married, not being sent away to prison. I don’t even understand why this happens during weddings,” you quipped, sighing. “But I guess you could call it that.”

He smiled at you, patting the space beside him. You did as you were told, assuming the spot, but also looking out the window, watching as the organizers made finishing touches to the garden below. No expense was spared to make the occasion as perfect as it could get. You couldn’t argue with it. Gojo deserved the best, and to him, Utahime did, too.

“I’m waiting,” he said, breaking the silence that had befallen the room. “You’ve been pacing before the door for god knows how long when you should have been getting ready.”

“I got ready much faster than you did.”

“And you look beautiful.” He tilted his head to the side, eyeing you appreciatively. “Sometimes, I can’t believe you’re all grown up. And what a beautiful woman you’ve become.”

You smirked. “You’re looking at your mirror image after all.”

“Well, there’s that, of course.” He laughed slightly. “But I’m not just saying that because we’re basically the same person. You really are beautiful, baby sis.” He tucked a stray strand of hair behind your ear, opting for it instead of his usual choice of mussing your hair since it has already been styled for the wedding.

You just shook your head. “Thank you, Satoru.”

“So, what did you want to talk about exactly?”

“The other day…” Your voice trailed off, thinking about what to say. It wasn’t that way before between you and your brother. He was always the easiest person to talk to, always open minded and optimistic about matters. But now that you were going to discuss something that he had vocally opposed, you were a bit scared of saying anything. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t do Nanami justice if you decided to hold back now, considering that he was more than ready to speak to your brother.

You’ve both initially decided to sit Gojo down and tell him about your decisions together, but you informed Nanami earlier in the day that you needed to have a proper conversation with him first. It wasn’t just your choice to be with Nanami that was the matter, and you wanted to get things straightened out with Gojo before he gets married.

“Yes?” he prompted.

“You said I don’t talk enough to you; that I don’t tell you things anymore.”

Gojo slowly nodded.

You breathed out. “Things changed. We can’t deny that. I grew up and you…well, you’ve decided you want to spend your life with Iori and build your own family.” Your lips curled up awkwardly as you tried to keep your emotions at bay. It was new territory having such talks with him when you’re used to your easy-going dynamic with him. “I’m scared, too. I mean, I can’t just bother you anytime anymore cause you’ll have your wife and eventually children to pay attention to and prioritize.”

He was taken aback by what you said, immediately drawing closer. “What are you saying, Y/N? You’re my sister. Nothing will change –”

“Our bond will not change, dude, but you have to admit that what I’m saying is true.” You took his hand in yours, squeezing it gently. You beamed at the fact that your fingers were structured in the same tapered manner as his. Even the shape of your fingernails were the same, just that his hands were bigger than your delicate ones. “What I’m saying is that even if you need to do that, I will be fine.”

“Of course, you will be. You’re my sister, and above that, you are your own person, and you’re stronger than you think. You’ve been handling things on your own for as long as I can remember.” He pouted, trying to act cute with you. “It’s disappointing, to be honest, because you’ve never really given me the chance to play my role in your life because you’re always the mature one.”

You were confused now. “What are you on about? You’re my only brother, but I can’t imagine anyone else holding that position in my life. You’re the best I could have asked for. I’ve always looked up to you. You’re my role model.”

“I am?”

“Yeah. The fuck are you so surprised for?” You snickered. “That aside, if you felt like I’ve been leaving you out, that’s not the intention at all. I always want you to be the first one to know what’s going on with my life…”

He clucked his tongue. “I understand you’re not doing it on purpose, kid. I’m just worried that you didn’t think I’m worth telling anything because, well, I’m not exactly a proper adult, am I?”

“You’re realizing that now that you’re about to get married?” you taunted him, jabbing your thumb towards the direction of the garden. “Should I tell Iori to call this whole thing off?”

He waved you aside. “Hey, don’t say that!”

You chuckled, shaking your head. “Anyway, there’s something I wanted to tell you for a while now.”

“How long is a while, exactly?”

“Years and years.” You flashed him a rueful smile. “I just couldn’t figure out how to tell you because I am not exactly sure how you feel about it although you’ve told me many times you were opposed to it. What I’m saying it that, I know that fact, but it’s the motivation behind it that is beyond my knowledge.”

Gojo’s eyes rounded, realizing what you were saying. “Are you…”

You nodded. “Yes, I am talking about Kento.”

He just blinked and stood up, pacing around in front of you for a while that you had to stop him from doing it. He had such a bad habit of doing that when he is in deep thought, and always in front of you, too. He was making you dizzy.

You seized him by the wrist. “Please say something.”

“I…”

“Why are you opposed to it?”

He stopped pacing and faced you, taking you by the shoulders, his eyes starting to water. “Y/N…”

“Oh no, are you gonna cry?”

He furiously blinked his tears back, the action almost comical if it weren’t for the serious look on his face. “Because you are my little sister. You think it will be easy for me to just hand you over to anyone? My friends aren’t exceptions to that although I trust them with everything that I have. I will always, always worry about you when it comes to that matter because I don’t want you to get hurt. I don’t want you to be taken advantage of, and I don’t want to have to break either Suguru or Kento’s bones when the time comes.”

“I can manage the latter on my own.” You sighed, finding your resolve strengthening. “But like you said, I’m this old now. I want you to understand that I know what I am doing and I am confident about my decisions. Honestly, I didn’t want to talk about this as if I am asking for your permission. This is what I meant when I said I will be fine. I am not saying you don’t have a say in my life, but I am telling you this time because I want you to know before anyone else does.”

“Suguru doesn’t know?” he asked, eyes sparkling.

“Don’t be petty. I tell him things I can’t tell you just like you tell him things you can’t tell me,” but you nodded anyway. “He doesn’t know yet…I think.”

“So…you and Kento…”

You nodded again. “I’m in love with him, Satoru. And he feels the same way.”

“You are?” His expressions softened, hugging you to him. “You’ve grown. Really grown.”

You returned the gesture, holding onto him tight. “Please don’t ever think that I am leaving you out of my life because I always want to tell you everything.”

Just then, he pulled back, his brows furrowing while his eyes narrowed at you. “So, why isn’t he the one telling me this? Where is that bastard?”

You shrugged. “He wants to be here. Trust me. I just asked him if I could talk to you first because I have issues to resolve with you apart from my relationship with him.”

Gojo exhaled, nodding in understanding. “I understand, Y/N. But are you certain?”

“Yes. I’m scared of hurting him, but I’ll do my best, I guess.”

“Hmm, yeah. Maybe you should tone down on your mischief, too. I don’t want him dying of stress because of you. He’s still precious to me.”

At that, you laughed. “I know.”

He poked you on the cheek. “Alright then. If that’s what makes you happy, I won’t stand in your way. You have my blessing.” His teeth clenched then. “But I’m still going to have to talk to him man to man in case he thinks he’s off the hook.”

“Worry about your wedding first,” you jibed.

“I almost forgot about that.”

“I’m telling Iori.”

He shook his head, feigning panic. “Don’t.”

You both ended up laughing, joking about the guests who were arriving at the garden, poking fun at the relatives you both detested but had no choice but to invite. Just like that, you were back to how it used to be, easily conversing and sharing the same sentiments about things and same penchant for devilry.

Soon, the organizer came to his room, informing him that he needed to go to the garden to prepare. You reached up and fixed his tie and jacket for him, holding him at arm’s length to appreciate your handiwork. “You’re all set.”

“Thank you.” He smiled wide but you saw the nervousness in his eyes. “I’m getting married!”

“You are.”

“I’m more anxious about seeing Kento after what you told me,” he stated dramatically.

You eyed him witheringly. “Shut up and pull yourself together.”

He snickered then. “Kidding. Let’s go.”

“Okay.”

The two of you walk to the garden, your arm around his. He stood at the spot just by the last row of seats with you, grinning at you when he saw you looking at Nanami who was already dutifully standing on his spot, speaking to Geto.

“Concentrate on your vows, yeah?” you told your brother.

“I’m off.”

“In case we don’t get to talk before you leave for your honeymoon,” you began, “Just know that I am waiting for the speedy arrival of my nieces and nephews.”

Gojo laughed at that, but nodded anyway and said, “I’ll do a good job, I promise.”

“And Satoru?”

“Yeah?”

“Love you.”

“I know, kid. I know.” He turned on his heels and walked towards his place at the front pews while you watched, his steps leading you towards the very man you would want to see standing there when the time comes, his halo of golden locks bright under the setting sun but you knew your future with him would be even more brilliant.

The familiar bars of Johann Pachelbel’s “Canon” began to play in a modified, slowed-down wedding version made especially for Gojo and Utahime’s wedding, played on the harp, piano and violin, cueing the beginning to the entrance of the bridal entourage. It began with the entrance of the flower girls who scattered petals of different flowers on the white carpet that lined the long aisle.

Arches and bouquets of flowers festooned the garden, with gossamer cloth hanging about, interlaced with live wisteria that hung down from the canopy along with fairy lights that progressively turned on as the sky grew darker. White and pink dominated the color palette as Utahime had wished and the same goes for the reception area. It was probably one of the most beautiful wedding setups Nanami has ever seen.

But his eyes weren’t on the ornaments. They were trained on the end of the walled garden, waiting for your ascent on the marble steps where the white carpet extended, the march made more dramatic by the organizers by opting for a meandering aisle instead of the traditional, straight walkway for the bride. And it did achieve the desired effect when you finally emerged from the steps and into view.

He couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips upon finally seeing you clad in that familiar faded rose gown he had first seen being fitted on you to perfection. He kissed you while you wore that very article of clothing not long ago at the couturier’s shop, and though he thought back then that he has never seen anything more beautiful, he was amazed at the fact that you looked even more gorgeous in it as you glided towards the front.

He loved you so much it hurts, and although you’ve both professed your deep affections for one another and decided to take things head on together, he still felt like he was in the middle of a dream he didn’t want to wake up from. You came closer, and once more, he was back at the semi-outdoor ballroom the first day he came that week, beholding the goddess that was you but seemingly in a different light – brighter this time, overwhelming him to the point that he had to remind himself how to breathe when you finally looked his way and beamed unabashedly, your affections towards him unmasked, real and not under the guise of a game.

“Kento,” he heard Gojo say softly just then, the man’s blue eyes furtively glancing at him.

“Yes?” he answered in hushed tones.

“Hurt my baby sister and I’ll have your severed head hung by the gates of the estate,” he said. “Are we clear about that?”

Geto snickered, concealing it by facing the other way.

“Understood,” Nanami said seriously. “I’m counting on it.”

When you were near enough, you smiled at your brother and Geto before turning your attention to Nanami. You winked at him as you passed by before turning towards your spot opposite them across the aisle, your attention trained towards the point where you came from.

He couldn’t stop looking at you, not even when he felt Gojo hold onto his arm, squeezing tight as Utahime came into view. He didn’t mean to be insulting to his friends. She was beautiful in her wedding gown and he couldn’t help but be moved by the loving look that your brother had on his face as he watched his wife-to-be come closer, guided by her father who will give her away as the sun set. It was poetic. A new beginning after a beautiful end. He probably looked the same whenever his eyes would find you.

The ceremony carried on as everyone sat down, waiting for the couple to exchange their ‘I do’s.’ their vows, rings and the much-awaited kiss. It was making him emotional, thinking of the time when he himself would draw your veil and get to claim you as his for life in front of everyone you both loved and cared about. He couldn’t wait for it, and he may be getting ahead of himself, but he wanted what Gojo and Utahime had with you.

As the minister announced the pair man and wife, everyone applauded and cheered for them. He did so, too, chuckling when Geto whistled loudly, being his cheeky self. Just then, he nudged Nanami on the side, grinning impudently.

“Is it safe to assume you’re next?” he queried in the same manner.

Nanami rolled his eyes, shaking his head. “Who knows? Someone might actually steal your heart in the next months and we’ll be seeing you crying as you watch your bride walk towards you by next year.”

Geto snickered at that. “Yeah, right. You looked like you wanted to jump Y/N and replace Satoru and Iori at the altar all this time.”

“Who wants to replace my brother and sister-in-law at the altar?” they heard you say, appearing out of nowhere, your head tilted to the side as you shifted your blue orbs between the two males, but before either of them could answer, you linked your arm with Nanami who smiled down at you blissfully. You returned the gesture, your cheeks blushing prettily under the twinkling lights overhead.

“I see you’ve figured things out.” Geto smirked, patting Nanami on the back just as Shoko came into view, taking the former by the arm, claiming she needed a smoke. She pulled him away, leaving you and Nanami to yourselves, winking as they walked away.

“So, you told him?” you asked, cocking your head towards the wide lawn where the pergolas were, built on three sides of the square and closed by an elevated area for the band, all surrounding a dance floor under a huge, white tent above, also adorned with thousands of lights. It was your design, solely for the wedding reception and a form of gift to the newlyweds.

“Satoru did indirectly when he said he’ll have my head hung at the gates of Gojo Manor if I hurt you.” He shook his head, laughing slightly. “Bastard had the gall to laugh at me, too.”

“He nearly cried when I told him earlier,” you said, regaling him with how your conversation with Gojo went. “He trusts you and is actually afraid I’ll hurt you, too.”

He shook his head. “It’s all part of the process, isn’t it?”

“Mhmm.”

“We’ll take it head on.” He held your hand, twining your fingers together.

You nodded, squeezing his larger hand. “We will.”

Just then, your friends emerged from the reception area with Noabara taking the lead, mischief drawn all over her face as she approached you. “I took care of the sitting arrangement,” she said to you then turned to Nanami. “Take care of Y/N. Make her cry and –”

“You’ll have my head?” Nanami supplemented but Nobara shook her head. “I’ll tan your hide. Satoru gets your head apparently.”

At that, Nanami laughed, nodding nonetheless. But to your surprise, she also turned her attention to you, holding you by the shoulders. “Are you still playing?”

“Nope.” You pressed your lips together, shaking your head slowly.

She smiled then. “Good.” She glanced at Nanami. “You’ve got you a good one here.”

“I know.”

They left you alone after that much to his relief, but then you said, “Wanna play a game?”

His eyes rounded and he felt tension again once he heard you say those familiar words, always the preamble to every single mischievous stunt you’ve ever pulled on everyone including him. He paused and looked at you. “I thought no more games?”

You smirked at him. “One more won’t hurt.”

He sighed, giving in. “You’re going to be the death of me, I swear to god.”

“So, are you in?”

“When did I ever say no to you?”

You giggled. “Great.”

“What is it about this time?” he asked, indulging you.

“Whoever gets a rise out of Satoru first wins.”

“The stakes?”

You just winked suggestively at him.

You forfeited. For the first time, you lost in your own game. It counted – albeit momentary – because you initiated the game…said the very words that began everything that paved the way to the result you’ve always wanted. But you did not really consider it a loss when for the long run, you’ve gained the very person you’d always gladly lose to at any given time.

After you father offered a toast for the newlyweds, the speeches began, starting with Utahime’s parents then yours, eventually moving on to you, then the bride and groom’s shared close friends. Geto had been rather irreverent as usual, pointing out the things that both Gojo and Utahime supposedly disliked from one another yet brought them closer, making everyone laugh when Shoko came up the stage and began her speech, saying, “Opposites do attract.”

You sat on your table with Nanami, both of you waiting for your turns. He was next in line after Shoko, smirking at you as he stood up and walked towards the platform and began his piece by congratulating Gojo, “for landing a very gracious woman who has the most enduring patience I have ever known in all mankind, given the grief that Ieiri, Suguru and I had to endure before Iori came to his life.”

He continued on with his witty address, pretty much reflecting what Suguru said and entertaining the crowd enough when he started to express his gratitude. “While I know that this changes nothing between us as the best of friends – including your nature that tested one’s forbearance – I would like to say thank you for many things. Thank you because you are, well, you…” He did a dramatic eye roll.

The guests laughed.

“Thank you because you are a real person who offered friendship to quiet, boring old me,” he said, droning on about the things he appreciated about the couple before saying the things he was thankful to Gojo about. “And thank you, because without you, without our friendship, I wouldn’t have met the very person I also want to walk this earth with for the rest of my life.”

You would have fallen off your seat when Megumi playfully nudged you if it weren’t for Yuuji who also held onto your shoulders from behind your seat, shaking you excitedly.

“If it weren’t for one Gojo Satoru, I wouldn’t have met Y/N.”

You felt all eyes turn towards you, including your parents and your brother, heat suffusing your cheeks as you tried hard to keep yourself from smiling like an idiot for everyone to see. Nanami has outdone you this time, and you knew you didn’t have a chance to go against that when he had so publicly expressed how he felt about you.

“I love her with everything that I am,” he continued, “and I will continue to do so even without your threat to behead me.” He raised his glass. “To Iori and Satoru. May you have the happiest, most prosperous married life from today and for always.”

Geto whistled loudly while the guests applauded. You also stood up, clapping your hands slowly as you shook your head. You’ve lost big time, backed by the fact that your brother stood up raising his glass as he said, “I couldn’t have wished for a better future brother-in-law.” He then looked at you, smiling fondly.

Nanami got Gojo to state his approval for everyone to hear. You can’t win against that even if you nearly made the latter cry.

And now, you were just happy to be in Nanami’s arms as he swayed you both to the tune the jazz band was playing, your arms hanging around his shoulders and your fingers playing with the hair at the base of his head while he held you against him by the waist.

“So?” Nanami began. “How’s that for a final game?”

“Not bad,” you acceded, smirking at him. “I’ll admit defeat.”

“Damn right, you are.” He smiled down at you, his dark eyes reflecting the muted, xanthic lights that surrounded you. “I have a couple of things I’d want you to do for me, by the way.”

You nodded slowly, keeping a straight face at the mention of his prize. “Rules are rules.”

His brows furrowed slightly. “Then again, you haven’t told me what you wanted when you won a week ago.”

You grinned, burying your face on his chest, listening to the faint sound of his heart. “But I did get what I want.”

“And that is?”

You met his gaze from under your lashes. “You,” you stated in full confidence.

Nanami nodded, suppressing a smile. “If you say so.”

“I wouldn’t wish for anything else.” You pulled him towards you so you could peck him on the mouth. “Thank you.”

“I don’t know what for, but as always, anything for you.”

You chuckled at that. Knowing him, he’ll make good on his words for sure, so much so that you didn’t feel the least bit of worry where your future with him was concerned. “You have to learn how to say no to me.”

“I guess, but since I won, have I finally made it to the list of people you don’t mess with?” he asked.

“As promised, yes.”

“No more games?”

“No more games,” you repeated. “Although I have to say it keeps things interesting between us. Don’t you think so?”

You both dissolved in laughter, the merry mingling of your voices coming to a standstill when he bent down and cupped your cheeks, running his thumb over your cheek before staking his claim on your lips while you returned the gesture in kind, locked in each other’s arms, glad you both played the game. And won.

-THE END-

I would like to say thank you to everyone who read this and kept up with my erratic updating. It's been a good 6 weeks. Thanks!

*I used “you” here, but since my character is Gojo’s little sister who is established to be his female clone for reasons essential to the plot, she possesses the same blue eyes and white hair. I did not exactly want to create an OC (although technically, I did by describing Y/N), but I opted for the best of both worlds in this fic, leaning more towards the literary aspect of it as opposed to it just being reader/you-oriented. I hope this isn’t iffy to anyone, and yeah, i’m not being exclusive or whatever.

Thank you so much for reading. Likes, comments and reblogs are deeply appreciated! Hope you enjoyed it.

PHOTO/IMAGE/GIF/FANART CREDITS TO THE RESPECTIVE OWNERS.

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joontier · 3 years

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Subliminal in Scrubs | V2; report xii

pairings: dr. jeon jungkook x female reader

chapter rating: PG-15 | genre: humor, workplace relationships

warnings: none to note

word count: 2.6k

g/n: jungkook is a brat wbk; also,,, hoseok here is supposedly as old as seokjin heh i had an internal debate whether or not i should include two other scenes but aslkdfjkasljfas but i ended up with this instead skjff hope yall enjoy!!

[taglist]: @nottodayjjk @ditttiii @zeharilisharaban @btsbunny07 @turquoiseandplaidinautumn @aamxxrii @codeinebelle @btsmakesmehappy @stargukkie @moonchild1

Subliminal in Scrubs (the records) | navi. | m.list

The orientation went by like a breeze with Ms. Narae’s quick run throughs of Woocheon’s clinical processes and systems, training programs, hospital expectations, and the explanation of the rest of the map of the hospital you weren’t able to cover during your tour earlier. Before she wraps up, she retrieves your IDs from underneath the table and places them on top of the desk for everyone to get later. She dismisses the orientation exactly ten minutes before twelve, requesting everyone to head straight to their department’s on-call room after the break.

Soomin, who you’ve recently discovered to have her own Youtube channel, takes out her phone and records a video. You watch from the side as Soomin does her thing, until she tries to call you all over and officially introduce you as good friends turned work colleagues to all her subscribers.

You hadn’t really expected this whole vlogger thing from her, especially when Soomin was a bit reserved when you were first acquainted with each other, but then again, as your friendship grew, you realized that she had a bit of Chohee in her as well and you thought that’s what caused you to gravitate towards her naturally.

“Anybody up for lunch?” Soomin asks, rubbing her hands together after she finishes her short recording and tucks her phone back in her pocket. “Yeah, I’m starving...” you murmur, placing a hand on your belly as you hear your stomach grumble its complaint.

“I heard Woocheon is known to have the best hospital food in Korea. Ever.” Jungkook says, looking around. You’re starting to get skeptical about how Jungkook is lingering around Jimin...Or was it the other way around now? “Shall we?” With Jungkook’s undeniable proposition, Soomin briefly glances at your reluctant face, her own lips pursing with your reaction. “Fine,” you sigh.

There’s no getting rid of Jungkook now.

Woocheon’s cafeteria...does not look like a cafeteria at all.

You weren’t expecting an...urban haven of some sort, a portion of the hospital that you had least envisioned to what seems to be the warmest part of Woocheon. The laminated flooring, faux wooden grain wall panels, along with the suspended lights from this wave-like uneven wooden ceiling - it was as picturesque as a spread on an interior design magazine.

The interior could easily outrival any other kitchen in the city. “Are you sure this is not some hotel we just walked into?” Jimin questions as he marvels over the sleek urban design of the cafeteria. There’s even a café - which you recognize holds the same logo as Good Day café. You ought to confirm this with Jimin later.

As you near the serving area, the unmistakable aroma of roast beef fills your senses, making you hungrier than you were just seconds before. “Please don’t tell me Woocheon is actually serving roast beef...”

You practically salivate at the sight of the food in the counters, a lot of which you realized were influenced by western food culture. There were three different kinds of salad to choose from, baked potatoes, burgers, seafood stew, stir-fried meat, as well as the Korean classic side dishes that you’d never miss in a meal. And, true to your trusty sense of smell, roast beef was at the end of the line up in all its roasted glory.

“Yeap,” Soomin says as she turns to face you, “You have three options for the sauce too: mushroom gravy, pepper sauce, or truffle sauce,” Soomin replies matter-of-factly, pointing at the farther end of the food counter.

“Oh I love this place already!” Exclaims Jimin who’s undecided between eating to his heart’s content and risking a stomachache on the first day of work, or sacrifice half of the dishes for a later time in your stay at Woocheon. Thankfully, Jimin decides on the former.

“Make sure you have your IDs ready,” Jungkook announces as he joins the line after you. “You’ll have to tap it against this tiny device then they will automatically deduct the total amount of the food you got from your account.”

Jimin’s face falls instantly at the realization. Jungkook claps the other man’s back, face crumpled as he keeps his laughter in. “Still love this place, Jimin-ssi? Don’t worry now, the three of us can pretend we didn’t hear anything at all.”

With features forlorn, Soomin makes a hilarious attempt to appease Jimin’s disappointment by stating facts - “Jimin-ah. Hospital food isn’t free.”

“Yeah. I realize that now,” Jimin replies, an ingenuine smile playing on his lips.

“Cheer up though! Ms. Narae did mention faculty and staff get a five percent discount on all hospital services...just so happened that they included the cafeteria there as well.”

Albeit reluctant about the price, Soomin manages to convince your entire group to try out the roast beef for once (and probably your last too. Figures.) “Oh, and by the way, there is one thing that’s free actually. It’s the drink of the day - free for all staff. One each, and available during lunch only.”

Your eyes travel to the end of the counter straight away at Soomin’s reminder. Calculating the number of cartons left and the people left in the queue, you’re beyond pleased at the fact that you’ll be able to get a free 250ML carton of banana milk today, and also the last person to do so.

Unfortunately for you, a staff member returns to the counter and retrieves a tetra pack, claiming it was for a senior doctor who forgot to claim the drink. Much to your dismay, a middle-aged man in a white coat was waving to the counter, with his other hand pointing to his tray to prove that he really wasn’t able to take any milk with him. You can’t hide the scowl that creeps on your face.

Through your peripheral vision, you notice Jungkook closely monitoring the milk as well, the same look of disappointment evident on his face. Maybe losing the milk wasn’t that bad. After all, if you couldn’t one, Jungkook wouldn’t be able to score one either.

While Jimin checks out his food, one of the kitchen staff suddenly retrieves another carton from the other side of the counter, mumbling about how it must’ve fallen over earlier. You were just about to grab it when the lady at the till calls you next, and you’re forced to move your tray sideward so she can calculate the total amount of your order.

When you look up to grab your free drink, Jungkook reaches out at the same time and manages to snatch the milk quicker than you. “Hey!” Jungkook simply shrugs his shoulders at your indignant tone. “Sorry darling, finders keepers.”

You stare at him in disbelief, until the lady calls for Jungkook next, a little too loud for your liking. Your eyeroll comes almost involuntarily, and you shake your head as you follow where Jimin and Soomin were headed to as they look for a seat.

Jungkook arrives shortly after you do, so you immediately lose the chance to rant about your annoyance towards the latter. He decides to sit across you and you don’t have the chance to complain about it either when he sticks the straw in his milk while he smirks at you.

What an actual kid.

You promised yourself you won’t let him get to you, choosing inner peace over fighting with a brat. Besides, two can play at this game, and it’s going to take more than a small carton of milk for him to truly vex you, so you simply smile at him back, returning the favor (of course, while secretly wishing he might choke on his banana milk too).

“Would you guys mind if I recorded a little bit?” Murmurs of agreement are heard across the table. “Alrightey then,” says Soomin, “This time, none of you boys will be able to escape the camera this time around.” Just as you’d expected, Jimin and Jungkook whine in chorus, vocally expressing their petulance towards Soomin’s ‘vloggering’.

“Hey! For all you know, you two might even bring more subscribers when I put you two as my thumbnail!”

“I’m shy…” Jimin argues as he poorly covers his face with his small ID, yet continues to peek through the small gap between the card and the lanyard.

Soomin rolls her eyes at their childishness and records her food first, praising how surprisingly appetizing the hospital food is. She proceeds to pan the camera towards you as you say hi for the second time today. As Soomin moves onto Jimin, he instantly puts his ID down and waves at the camera sporting a cute smile. “Everyone, this is what ‘camera shy’ looks like nowadays.”

On the other hand, Jungkook, shameless as ever, pretends to not pay any regard to the camera but he decides to chew on his food with much suave, jaw tightening with every bite of the beef. Soomin calls on Jungkook to say hi, to which he responds by introducing himself and punctuating his statement with a flirty wink.

For some reason, you feel your stomach drop at the action, causing you to look away momentarily while Soomin instantaneously switches back to her front camera, “Okay, everyone, let’s just pretend these two weren’t flirting with the camera just now.” Soomin shakes her head at the two, deciding that was enough content about lunch at the hospital cafeteria.

“Shame the camera couldn’t handle it,” Jimin says, pouting as he places a hand over his chest.

“Maybe it was the lady behind the camera that couldn’t,” adds Jungkook who continues to wink, alternating both his eyes before making a weird face.

“Okay Jeon. I think that’s enough winking for today.”

Jungkook wouldn’t stop though and Soomin finally looks at you for help, “Diagnosis: winkitis, ophthalmologist recommends immediate enucleation.”

“Of course! How could I forget? A wink for this young lady over here too.” Jungkook turns to you now but you simply squint your eyes at him as you fake choking on thin air, “I think I might have lost my appetite altogether.”

As the three of you head back to the locker rooms to retrieve your stuff before going to the surgery department, another hospital staff stops briefly on their way to greet Soomin. It’s the third time in ten minutes and you’re starting to think Soomin knows not just ‘someone’ from the hospital. Strangely enough, they all seemed like they came from different departments too. This particular person must be of high authority or someone really famous to have people greet her as often as this.

When you round the corner, at the end of the corridor is a lady in formal attire, sporting the same ID as yours and it’s Soomin who approaches this person this time. As she pulls the person aside, she urges the three of you to go ahead, telling you she’ll catch up in a moment, leaving you sandwiched between Jimin and Jungkook who tower over you easily.

“Jimin, do you happen to know who it is exactly she knows here?”

The blond shakes his head no. “She’s never mentioned anybody in particular...all I know too is that she knows somebody here.”

“Some relatives perhaps? Maybe she’s a family member of a renowned doctor here?”

“How about her Youtube channel? Maybe she’s famous then? How many followers does she have?”

You quickly tap on Youtube on your phone with Jungkook’s prodding, looking up her channel on the app. “It says here she’s got quite the following actually... “ you tilt the screen for them to see, “six thousand followers…”

“That can’t be it. The second one who greeted her was at least in his mid-fifties...Boomers couldn’t have possibly been following...what does she vlog about again? Um… a day in the life of a med student…”

From behind you, you faintly hear a ‘goodbye’ and you clear your throat, alerting the two of Soomin’s return. “What were you guys going on about here?”

Jungkook chuckles, smoothly making up an alibi as he takes your phone in his hands, “Hope you don’t mind us checking out your channel…” Surely enough, your screen was showing a video of Soomin studying for her finals.

“As long as you subscribe, it’s fine with me.” She gives you all a thumbs up. “It’s been a while since I posted anything though...Maybe if we get to the on-call room early, maybe I could film a few shots too! Come on!” Soomin hooks your arm in hers and drags you to the locker rooms, leaving the two boys standing there in the middle of the hallway.

You figure the four of you were the first interns to arrive, as most of the doctors lounging around were either in their scrubs or heading out for lunch. “Soomin,” Jungkook seemingly deep in thought, taps the girl’s shoulder.

“Hmm?”

“Remember when you bumped into me on the day of our graduation...you were with someone right? Um...Jung...Ho...I can’t quite remember his name…”

“Oh you mean Jung Hoseok? He’s my cousin.”

As Jungkook opens his mouth to reply, someone calls Soomin from the other side of the room. “Soomin! You’re here!” You spot the surgeons you’ve met during the hospital tour earlier this morning - Dr. Min Yoongi, Dr. Kim Seokjin, and Dr. Kim Namjoon. You all bow promptly as soon as they stand up.

“I didn’t really have that much of a choice,” Soomin grumbles as she gets squished with each of the doctors’ hugs. “Come on! You’re saying that as if Woocheon isn’t any good at all!”

The three of you stand awkwardly in the corner while Soomin and the other doctors mingle with each other. You nudge Jungkook’s elbow, “Hey what’s with Soomin’s cous--?”

“Oh right! These are my friends - ________, Park Jimin, and Jeon Jungkook. We’re all under your care now.” The three doctors call you over, extending their arms out for a handshake, “Ready to lose your social life?” Dr. Min asks, his bright tone contrasting his drift.

“It’s an honor to meet you Dr. Min, Dr. Kim, and Dr. Kim.” You bow curtly. “Oh doctor? It's too much! Call us sunbae instead. Oppa is cool too when we’re not working.” Dr. Seokjin’s handshake lingers a little longer than usual and you feel your cheeks start to heat up. “Besides, I don’t know what I’m doing most of the time.”

Yoongi visibly grimaces at Seokjin’s words, while Namjoon covers his face with his hands, mumbling, “Hyung.... For the love of god, please make sure the patients never ever hear that…”

Namjoon’s reaction elicits laughter from the whole group, but someone’s laugh stands out above all and it’s coming from the other side of the door. Soomin seems to recognize the voice instantly. “He’s here!”

“Soooommmiiiiiinnn!!!” A loud voice echoes throughout the room. He hugs Soomin briefly, and addresses the rest of you. “Wassup bros?” The newcomer gives each of the surgeons a dap in greeting then turns to greet you three.

“The whole gang's here!” He says, rubbing his chin, “Let me guess...Jeon Jungkook, _________, and Park Jimin, right?”

Eyes wide in surprise, you nod slowly. “Soomin here has told me all about you!” Soomin is behind the man, drawing a hand across her throat. “My name’s Jung Hoseok, by the way. Nice to finally meet you all.”

“He’s the next chairman of the Woocheon Medical City,” Seokjin whispers as he winks in your direction. Hoseok elbows him in the ribs. “No I’m not.”

“Ah yes. Correction. Not yet.” Seokjin mumbles, massaging his sides. You, Jimin, and Jungkook look at each other with knowing gazes. So that’s the ‘someone’ Soomin knows.

Woocheon ought to be...interesting.

#jungkook x reader #btswritingcafe #bangtanarmynet #btsghostie #jeon jungkook #bts aus #bts fic #jeon jungkook x reader #jungkook fluff #doctors au

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thran-duils · 3 years

Text

Lost In Zero Gravity (P.18)

Title: Lost In Zero Gravity (Part Eighteen) Summary: Fem!Reader x Mob Boss!Tony Stark x Mob Boss!Steve Rogers. Reader is a call girl who runs high end parties. She catches the attention of Tony Stark who invites her back to his room with his friend. She might have performed too well because she becomes their new favorite play toy and they don’t like to share. Words: 2,342 Warnings (for the fic in entirety): Smut, prostitution, infidelity, angst, domestic violence, stalking, possessive behavior, drug use

Part Seventeen || Part Nineteen || Masterpost (mobile) || Fanfic masterpost

The keys were in the door and you turned your head confused considering Tony had just left minutes before. Maybe he forgot something? But Steve walked in, much to your surprise. He had not been around. He looked nice as usual, charcoal slacks and his navy button down fitted across his chest, the top couple buttons undone.

“That’s a good color on you,” you complimented as he walked up towards the kitchen island.

He tossed his sunglasses and keys on the counter, but not the bag he was holding, and smirked briefly, “Thanks, dove.”

“Where have you been?” you asked him, lightly, resuming rinsing your dishes.

“Preoccupied,” Steve said curtly, coming around the island towards you. He reached out past you and turned the water off. Your hands dropped with the plate you had been rinsing, staring at him. Holding the bag out to you, he said, “Here.” You put the plate down and dried your hands before taking it from him as he explained, “I’m gonna need you to change into that really quick cause we have to go.”

“Go where?”

“I have a meeting. It’s time sensitive.” He wrapped his arm around your hips and gave you an encouraging push towards the hallway. “We’ve got about ten minutes to leave, so let’s go.”

He was impatient, so you took the hint and went to the bedroom to do the what he asked.

Steve was waiting for you in the kitchen, and he looked you over quickly before giving a quick nod. You were unsure why you needed to go to a meeting with him, let alone wear a dress that barely covered your ass for it. At least the stilettos had an ankle clasp to give you some more balance. He adjusted the necklace at your collar bone and said, “Good. Go grab some of your makeup, we can take it in the car. And whatever you can do for your hair quick.”

Walking out of the apartment, you clutched your bag, waiting while Steve locked the door. Terrence was approaching, “Do you need us to go?”

Steve shook his head, “No. Just stay here. It won’t be too long.”

As Steve took off away from the curb, he told you, “Turn your phone off.”

“Why?”

He shot you a quick, vexed look, not taking his eyes off the road for too long. “Because I told you to, for one. Secondly, where we are going, they don’t take too kindly to cell phones. In fact, I’m going to have to leave mine in the car too.”

“That doesn’t sound safe…”

“It’s how it’s done. You wouldn’t know,” Steve said to you. “Now. So you don’t forget. Please.”

You pulled your phone out of your purse and reluctantly powered it down. Steve’s phone started ringing and he ignored it in his pocket, his hand coming across to rest on your thigh.

<><><>

Tony walked into the office, and his assistant, Quentin, perked up seeing him having been on his phone. He quickly tossed his phone down and smiled warmly.

“Mr. Stark,” Quentin greeted him. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” Tony said absentmindedly, walking down the hall towards Steve’s office.

Before he reached it, he saw the lights were off. He came to a stop in front of the open door, looking into the empty office. Jaw clenched, he turned back to go down the hall to Quentin.

“Where is Steve?”

Quentin said, “I’m not sure, sir. He hasn’t come in yet today.”

Tony cocked his head, “He hasn’t been in all morning?”

“No, sir.”

Inhaling deeply, trying to keep his cool, Tony clipped, “Thanks. I’ll maybe be back.”

Before Quentin could say anything else, Tony was already heading out the door. What was Steve playing at? How would he have known Tony had not gone into the office if he was not at the office? Which meant he had seen Tony’s car was street parked.

Whipping out his cell phone, Tony called Steve. It rang, going to voicemail.

“Call me back,” he snapped, hanging up before dialing Y/N next. Her phone was completely turned off, which instantly made him worry. She never had her phone off. He tried again and he got the same thing. He swore as he picked up his pace as walked back out of the facility, “Fuck me.”

<><><>

Steve pulled up to the marina, coming to a stop. “Here, do your makeup,” he said, turning the car off. He reached over, pulling your mirror down for you.

“I didn’t bring enough for full face,” you admitted.

“That’s fine. You’ll look lovely regardless,” he responded.

He was watching you closely, you could see that out of your peripherals. You winged your liner carefully, trying to ignore his stare before putting your mascara on. Lastly, you grabbed the lipstick you had brought, running it across your lips.

After you had put it back in your purse, Steve reached out, turning your head to face him. “I got you that shade,” he said. You nodded and he smiled, pleased.. “It looks good. Especially with the color of the dress.” You thanked him quietly.

Steve’s attention was suddenly off of you, staring out the windshield. You followed his gaze, seeing an SUV had pulled up close by and men were starting to get out of it.

“That’s us,” Steve informed you, unbuckling himself. You followed his lead, unbuckling yourself too. As you reached for your purse, Steve laid his hand on yours, stopping your movement. “Leave it.”

“But—” you started to say, and he interjected.

“Remember what I said about the phones. You having a purse isn’t a good look. No one is going to break into the car, it’s fine.” Your hand fell back to your lap. “Before we go though, keep quiet. Don’t engage conversation with them unless you’re directly asked something. Understand?” You nodded and he said, “Good, come on.”

There was a small group of men standing by the entrance to the ramp leading down to the dock; they were dressed fashionably like Steve and you began to wonder what type of meeting he was allowed to bring you to and if it was going to put you in danger if you overheard anything they discussed or witnessed anything. You walked close behind him, trying not to get your heels caught anywhere in the pavement. Steve reached behind him and you took his invitation, grasping his hand, feeling more comfortable that he had a hold of you.

As the two of you approached, the man standing a few paces ahead of the others gestured towards the ramp. His eyes flashed with interest at the sight of you up close and you moved instinctively closer to Steve as the pair of you moved ahead of them, beginning to descend the ramp towards the boats. You could just feel the man leering at you from behind.

Steve came to a stop in front of a yacht. “No need to go on board,” he said as he turned around to face where the men were coming up behind you two.

You looked up at the yacht, taking in the tinted windows and you heard laughter coming from inside, music pouring out.

The man that had been behind you chuckled, “No time for even one drink, Rogers? That’s unlike you.”

Steve dropped your hand and put his hands in his pockets. “No, sorry, Perez. Not today.”

“Hmm, pity,” Perez shrugged. “Well, straight to the business then.”

His eyes fell on you now and Steve gave you a nudge forward towards him, forcing you to take a couple steps away from him. You shot him a questioning look as the man said, “So, this is her?” Steve nodded and your face screwed up in confusion at him, which he was ignoring, his eyes on Perez. Your heartbeat was starting to pick up speed, alarm bells starting to go off.

Perez drew your attention back to him as he began closing the space between you. “On the surface, the price sounds right.” His eyes were running up and down you, lewdness in his expression, “Something wrong with her?”

“Novelty just wears off after a little bit,” Steve answered. “You understand that, right?”

Perez chuckled, “I sure do. Thankfully, it’ll be all new to me.” He had begun to circle, slowly around you. You turned trying to follow him but he tsked, “Eyes forward, pet.” You bit your cheeks, standing stiffly. “I can guess she will be good amusement for my trip?”

“She’s quite the ride,” Steve confirmed. “Catches an attitude sometimes but it’s easily squashed.”

No no no. He was not doing what you thought he was doing.

“Steve?” you asked, trying to keep the warble out of your voice as the man came back around, his eyes still trained on your body.

You stepped back towards Steve, but his hand came to your back to stop you, keeping you in front of him. You looked over your shoulder at him and asked worriedly, “What is going on?”

“Just stay where you are,” Steve ordered you firmly.

The man stepped back again from you, giving you a final look over before he grinned past you at Steve, “Yes, this satisfies.”

He snapped his fingers, gesturing towards Steve. The man with the briefcase moved forward, opening it and holding it up to Steve to inspect. Steve thumbed his way through the stacks of bills.

“That should cover the shipment and also the extra for her,” Perez said to Steve.

Your head snapped towards Steve as it was confirmed he was doing exactly what you feared. Steve would still not look at you even though you knew he saw you were looking at him. You made to move, and he said again, “I told you to stay where you are, Y/N.”

“You can’t just sell me!” you pleaded.

“I actually can. If it somehow has slipped your mind, you owe me money because I bought your contract. Now, he bought you out,” Steve said closing the briefcase and finally looking at you.

Anger swelled and you stepped close to him, ignoring his order to stay. You demanded, “Where is Tony?”

“At work, obviously, Y/N,” Steve responded calmly. “Why do you think he left this morning? He couldn’t do it himself, so I was left to do the dirty work as usual.” Your heart sank at that, hope fizzling out. Tony agreed to this? Steve saw the look on your face and simpered, leaning in close. “I’m seeing you were thinking too much of yourself as usual.”

“Steve!” you said more forcibly as you were dragged away from him by men you did not know.

Steve and Perez shook hands. “Until next time,” Steve told him, giving him a brief smirk.

“Until next time,” Perez confirmed.

Without sparing you another glance, Steve turned on his heel and began walking down the dock.

“Stop it!” you said to the man who had an iron grip on your arm. He ignored you, continuing to yank you towards the ramp up onto the yacht. Craning your head, you saw Steve through the group of them, walking away with the briefcase. Shrilly, you called again, “Steve!”

You went weak seeing he was not coming back. He really was leaving you here with these men you did not know. Tears pricked your eyes as the goon took advantage of your shocked state to bring you completely onto the yacht.

Perez came up to you on the deck and grasped your chin, turning your head side to side to look at your face again. He tsked seeing your watery eyes. “Now, don’t go ruining your makeup, pet. You should be used to this, yeah? Or did you make a mistake of getting attached?” You said nothing, sniffling. You did not like him just by the look of him. He was handsome, that was true, but he had an air about him that set you on edge. He let go of your face and told the man holding onto you, “Show her to the bathroom so she can touch herself up and then bring her back up.”

<><><>

Steve turned around, letting them take Y/N. He ground his teeth hearing her call out for him desperately, but he stayed strong. He could not fuck the plan up now. He clutched the briefcase and walked around the front of his car, throwing the driver’s side door open. He tossed the briefcase haphazardly onto the passenger seat next to her purse.

He took his phone out of the center console and saw that Tony had left a voicemail and called three more times since he had first called. Ignoring that, he swiped his phone open and dialed.

“Cameras working,” Sam answered on the second ring.

“Good. It’s a clear picture?” Sam confirmed it was and Steve asked, “Is the speedboat ready?”

“Yeah. Parked down the pier a bit from where you are. Bucky and I are ready. I still think this is a risky plan. She could get hurt and Tony will kill you.”

“He’s already going to kill me probably for a handful of reasons. But she won’t get hurt,” Steve said with confidence. “We are going to be quick about it. Perez won’t have time to get her undressed. I’ve seen him with women; he is a wine and dine her. So, we have time. We just need to get a visual of him on the boat with Qian before we go in.”

“Right. Well, your suit is ready,” Sam told him. “Bucky is rearing to go. I wish he would stop glaring at me.”

Steve chuckled at that, “I’ll make my way down there. See you in a few. Don’t kill each other before I get there.”

He hung up and started the car back up. Sam was right; this was risky. Especially if Y/N was pregnant. But Steve had confidence in himself and his team. Plus, she was his to use and this is what he needed her for right now.

~~~

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