#ang kambal x reader

[0710studios]

MGA KARAKTER. dad!jaemin x mom!reader (kuya's bff universe)

TAGS. fluff, parenting!au, married!au

BILANG NG MGA SALITA. 2.4k

MGA BABALA. profanities, mentions pregnancy, pregnant!reader, descriptions of childbirth, mentions blood, BASTA PURE FAMILY FLUFF DAHIL NAMISS NAMIN SILA JAEIN, JAEMIN AT Y/N

CHIKA NG ADMINS. we remembered the anon na nagtanong sa prev account namin if we were planning to post dad!jaemin from kuya's bff universe and meron naman talaga, ito 'yung hindi na namin sinama sa pinakastory (or sa alternate ending)! anyway, s/b po kami ngayon kaya medyo tahimik kami, kinocontact na rin namin si tvmblr pero walang response so hopefully this post will find you all :(

HAPPY JAEMIN DAY!!! <3

NUNG NALAMAN MONG BUNTIS KA, HINDI MO AGAD SINABI KAY JAEMIN.

isang buwan kang hindi dinatnan, sobrang sensitive mo rin sa mga bagay-bagay at simpleng yakap lang ng asawa mo, mabilis kang mairita. madalas kang tulog agad pag-uwi galing trabaho o pagkatapos niyong maglambingan ni jaein, nadadatnan ka ng asawa mong tulog sa sofa niyo. madalas ka ring sumuka tuwing umaga and that's when you decided na bumisita sa doktor. nung una dapat pregnancy test lang, pero mas mabuti na 'yung siguradong sigurado ka sa resulta. "mrs. na, you're 5 weeks pregnant" ngiti ng doktor sa'yo, "this is the time where your baby's body begins to form na, it's a little structure palang naman. you can come back two weeks from now para madetect natin ang heartbeat ni baby. for now, be safe muna dahil maliit pa si baby sa tyan mo"

naghahalong kasiyahan at kinakabahan ang nararamdaman mo nung lumabas ka sa clinic ng doktor, hawak hawak ang resulta mo. after 7 years, masusundan na si jaein. though it did worry you sa age gap nila, may kalayuan kasi ito at nasa edad si jaein na sanay na siya na siya lang mag-isa, na sa kanya lang ang atensyon niyong mag-asawa. hindi naman siguro magiging problema 'yun di 'ba? isip mo habang nagmamaneho papunta sa bahay ng kuya mo dahil si ria ang sumundo kay jaein ngayon sa school. wala kasi sa siyudad si jaemin dahil may project raw siyang inaasikaso kaya hindi niya masundo ang panganay niyo madalas. 

pagdating mo sa bahay nila ria, nadatnan mong nakikipaglaro si jaein sa mga pinsan niya. kambal kasi ang anak ng kuya mo, the 5 year olds, jia at jio. isang taon palang silang kasal nung nalaman nilang buntis sila sa kambal. hala, paano kung kambal rin 'tong pinagbubuntis ko? isip mo, napansin ni jeno na bigla kang namutla at natulala. kinaway nito ang kamay niya sa harap mo, "okay ka lang, bunso?"

"ha? ah, oo… may naisip lang," sagot mo, "jaein, get your bag na anak." tumango ang bata sa'yo at pumunta sa sala kung saan niya iniwan ang gamit niya kanina, "i have a question, kuya"

"hmm?"

"mahirap ba?" tanong mo, nagtaas ng kilay si jeno, "mag-alaga ng twins nung baby pa?"

“mahirap kung mag-isa ka lang, naawa nga ako kay ria nung natapos 'yung paternity leave ko kasi kambal 'yan. buti nga andyan kayo ni jaemin para tulungan siya eh” sagot ng kuya mo, “bakit, buntis ka ba?”

nanlaki ang mga mata mo, sa dami-daming pwedeng maging suspetsya ng kuya mo, talagang ‘yun pa ang una niyang naisip. umiling ka at tumawa para hindi mahalata, “naisip ko lang, buntis kasi ‘yung katrabaho ko. kambal raw” pagsisinungaling mo, pakiramdam mo rin kasi masyado pang maaga para sabihin sa kanilang lahat na buntis ka. baka ma-jinx at kung ano pang mangyari sa inyo ng batang dinadala mo. “thank you for picking her up ah, may emergency kasi sa trabaho kaya ‘di ko agad nasundo”

“okay lang, ano ka ba. ate ‘yan nila jia at jio, tsaka nasa iisang school lang naman sila kaya mas madali” ngiti ni ria, nagbeso si jaein sa mga pinsan niya at sa tiyuhin bago tumakbo papunta sa kotse mo. habang nagmamaneho ka pauwi, pinapakinggan mo lang ang kwento ng anak mo. tuwang tuwa siya palagi kapag kasama niya ang kambal, sobrang close na rin kasi nilang tatlo dahil sabay-sabay silang lumaki kahit mas matanda ng dalawang taon si jaein. spoiled rin ang tatlong apo sa mga magulang niyo ni jeno, madalas silang nagd-date lima para lang mabigyan kayo ng alone time kasama ang mga asawa niyo. 

and the last alone time you had with your husband? ito na, nakabuo na. hindi mo rin alam kung bakit ka nag-aalala, kasal naman na kayo ni jaemin, mag-lilimang taon na nga a few weeks from now pero natatakot ka sa magiging reaksyon nito. after a few years, ngayon ka lang ulit magbubuntis pero this time, you’re a much stronger woman unlike nung pinagbubuntis mo si jaein. fragile ka pa ‘nun at mag-isa sa ibang bansa, wala pa si jaemin ‘nun. you absolutely have nothing to worry about now, you’re married and jaein’s at the right age na rin to understand your situation. you just need to figure out kung paano mo sasabihin sa asawa mo.

“mommy, are you okay?” tanong ni jaein pag-pasok niyo sa elevator, “you look tense”

“mommy’s okay, anak. pagod lang sa work,” sagot mo, “do you have homeworks today? kumusta ang school?”

umiling ang bata, “nope! walang homeworks and school was alright, i got a perfect score sa quiz and teacher said i’m exempted sa exam because i answered her question correctly!” masayang balita ng bata, tulad ni jaemin, natural na matalino ang anak niyo. hindi na kailangan ng tutor, basta matyaga lang kayo ni jaemin na tinutulungan siya pa-minsan minsan sa mga homeworks niya. “can i play with my ipad mamaya since wala naman po akong homework?”

“of course anak, basta once we got home, take a shower muna”

over the course of the next few weeks, hirap na hirap kang itago ang sikreto kay jaemin. gustong-gusto mong sabihin na sa kanya pero madalas kasing late na nakakauwi ito galing trabaho, hindi mo rin naman pinagdududahan dahil oras-oras sa’yong nagtetext ng pictures sa trabaho at sa site ng proyekto niya. at pagdating nga ng araw ng anibersaryo niyo, sa wakas, matapos ang paghihintay ng ilang linggo, nasabi mo na sa asawa mong buntis ka at nalaman mong ang proyekto palang ginagawa niya ay ang magiging bahay niyo. bilib ka rin sa asawa mo dahil isang taon niyang natago sa’yo itong bahay na ‘to, kaya pala madalas siyang wala sa bahay kahit weekends dahil namimili pala ng gamit para sa bahay na ito.

bilib ka kay jaemin dahil kilalang kilala ka niya, alam na alam niya ang mga gusto at ayaw mo sa bahay— pati na rin ang gusto ng anak niyo! naalala mo kasi nung pumunta kayong tatlo sa ikea, sabi ni jaein, nagustuhan raw niya ang isang design ng model room at kung anong itsura ng model room na ‘yun, ganun ang itsura ng kwarto ng panganay niyo. may kalakihan ang bagong bahay, limang kwarto ito, apat sa taas at isa sa baba. may extrang kwarto pa siyang pinagawa para maging office niyong mag-asawa tuwing sa bahay kayo nagtatrabaho. natatawa ka nga dahil sabi ni jaemin, kung maaga mo daw sinabi na buntis ka sa kanya, papapalitan raw niya agad ang design ng isang kwarto pero sabi mo naman, masyado pang maaga para mag-design ng nursery dahil hindi niyo pa naman alam ang kasarian ng bata.

buti na lang at hindi madaldal itong panganay niyo dahil sinabi niyo sa kanya na magkakaroon na siya ng kapatid nung birthday ni jaemin. jaein’s reaction was the complete opposite of what you expected, ang ineexpect mo kasi ay magtatantrums ito. naiyak ka dahil niyakap ka ng panganay niyo at nag-thank you sa’yo, in her words, “hindi na ‘ko magiging lonely, mommy”. you three snuggled in your new living room that night, watching disney movies. 

breaking the news to both his and your parents, as well as your brother became so challenging. sobrang hirap itago ng lumalaki mong tiyan lalo na nung nag-aya silang mag-family outing sa beach. gulat na gulat sila nun dahil madalas kang nakapang-swimming, pero lumabas ka sa villa niyo na naka-malaking t-shirt at taklob na taklob ang katawan. may suspetsya na si jeno na buntis ka nun kaya umamin na rin kayo ni jaemin na apat na buwan ka na ngang buntis. by the end of the day, both families toasted and wished you an easy and safe pregnancy.

jaemin was very hands-on during the pregnancy. willing mag-drive papunta sa kabilang siyudad dahil gusto mong kumain ng pizza na olives lang, walang cheese, walang sauce at galing pa sa isang pizza parlor na hindi available sa siyudad niyo. nagdadrive kayong dalawa ng alas tres ng madaling araw para kumain sa mcdo kapag nasa sleepover ang panganay niyo sa mga pinsan o sa bahay ng mga lolo at lola niya. kahit sa mga check-ups mo, hinding hindi ka pinapayagan ni jaemin na pumunta mag-isa. mas marami pang tanong si jaemin sa doktor kesa sa'yo, sabi niya kasi, hindi daw niya alam kung anong gagawin niya dahil mag-isa kang nagbuntis kay jaein. nung nalaman niyang lalaki ang magiging anak niyo, naiyak siya sa sobrang tuwa dahil inggit na inggit nga raw siya kay jeno dahil sa unang try ni ria at jeno, kambal agad tapos babae’t lalaki pa (bwisit na bwisit ka sa kanya nung sinabi niya ‘yun kaya binatukan mo siya). 

ilang linggo na lang at dadating na ang bunso, kaya nag-leave si jaemin sa trabaho para makapagbakasyon kayong tatlo. sabi niya kasi, ito na raw ang huling moments niyo na tatlo na lang kayo. he wanted to savor these little moments before the baby comes. jaemin loved taking candid photos of you and jaein; his favorite one is the picture na nakapatong ang ulo ni jaein sa tiyan mo at kinakausap ang kapatid sa loob. even the randomest moment, like you using a fetal doppler and arranging the diapers in the nursery. mukhang may tatalo na ata sa paboritong picture ni jaemin dahil ngayon, napicturean niya kayo ni jaein na naglalakad sa beach ng sunset at nakahalik ang panganay niyo sa tiyan mo.

"see you in a few weeks, baby jae" sabi ni jaein, sabay halik ulit. nakangiti ka at hinaplos ang pisngi ng anak mo, "mommy, take care rin po sa hospital ah"

hindi kasi sasama si jaein sa ospital kapag nanganak ka na, iiwan niyo muna siya sa lolo't lola niya pansamantala hanggang sa makalabas na ang bunso. like her dad, jaein was really helpful rin during the pregnancy. laging naka-alalay tuwing bababa ka sa hagdan and even the smallest ways, she'd try her best to serve you dahil medyo maselan nga ang pagbubuntis mo.

"how are you feeling, mahal?" tanong ni jaemin sa'yo habang minamasahe ang kamay mo. hindi mo siya nasagot dahil nanghihina ka kada contraction na nararamdaman at nararanasan mo. tahimik pa sa loob ng delivery room dahil kayong dalawa pa lang, kaya humalik si jaemin sa noo mo, "i'm sorry wala ako nung pinanganak mo si jaein… that must've been worse kasi mag-isa ka lang"

"partly, it's my fault, jaem… natakot akong sabihin sa'yo eh," sagot mo, "pero andito ka na, ilang oras na lang rin lalabas na si jaejun." napailing ka dahil medyo malakas ang naramdaman mo, parang gustong gusto na atang lumabas ng bata. "jaem, tawag ka ng doktor, please… i think ito na."

a loud, piercing scream comes out of you the moment the doctors checked you. you were fully dilated and kitang kita na ang bumbunan ng bata. kada ire mo, umiiyak ka, walang magawa si jaemin kundi halikan lang ang bumbunan mo at hawakan ang kamay mo. punyeta ang laki ng ulo ng batang 'to ah, isip mo sa tuwing sinasabi ng doktor na umire ka. and on the last final push, the two of you finally heard jaejun's first cry. parang bumagal ang takbo ng mundo nung narinig ni jaemin 'yun at nung tumama ang mga mata niya sa batang nilipat sa isang lamesa para linisin ang mga dugo at iba pang likido na nakadikit sa katawan niya. 

"mr. na? sabi po ni misis kayo ang magc-cut nf umbilical cord," sabi ng isang nurse, nanghihina kang tumango kay jaemin at pinakawalan ang mga kamay niya. hindi niya alam kung bakit manghang-mangha siya habang tinuturuan siya ng mga nurse kung paano ang gagawin niya.

"ay, anak bakit ka umiiyak? gusto mo kay mommy?" paglalambing ni jaemin pagtapos niyang i-cut ang umbilical cord. "jaejun na, welcome to the world, anak… kamukhang kamukha mo si mommy ah" 

halos mapunit ang mga labi ni jaemin kakangiti dahil hawak-hawak mo ang bata, isang araw pagkatapos mong manganak. he even tried skin to skin for a few minutes hanggang sa umiyak ito dahil gutom na. ngayong araw pupunta ang panganay niyo dito para makilala ang bunso, kahit puyat dahil iyak ng iyak si jaejun, maagang nagising si jaemin para maghanda. pagpasok ng panganay niyo sa loob ng kwarto, nakangiti agad siya at yumakap sa tatay. "dad, gising na po si mommy and bunso?" tanong nito, "i want to see them na"

"yes anak, careful lang ah. 'wag masyado malikot sa tabi ni mommy kasi nagpapadede siya" ngiti ni jaemin, agad na tumakbo papunta sa'yo ang panganay, iniwan na ang mga lolo at lola niya. "ma, pa… pasensya na po sa abala kay jaein ah."

"ano ka ba, jaemin— wala 'yun." sabi ng nanay mo, "kumusta? anong oras pinanganak si bunso?"

"7:27 am po, nahirapan si y/n kasi… malaki po 'yung ulo" napakamot ng batok si jaemin habang natawa ang mga magulang mo, "pasok po kayo, gising po sila pareho"

natapos ang araw, bumisita na sila jeno pati ang magulang ni jaemin. lahat sila iisa ang sabi, kamukhang kamukha mo raw at isa lang ang sagot mo, "dapat lang, 9 months ko 'yang dinala eh" biro mo. para tuloy kayong set ng kambal apat dahil si jaein ay kamukha ni jaemin, tapos ngayon naman si jaejun kamukha mo. nagpaiwan na si jaein sa ospital dahil gusto raw niyang matulog sa tabi ng kapatid, pumayag na rin kayo ni jaemin dahil namiss niyo rin naman ang panganay niyo. alas dose ng madaling araw, pareho kayong gising ni jaemin dahil ngayon palang kayo kakain ng hapunan. nakatingin si jaemin sa dalawang anak niyo, si jaein na nakahiga sa sofa at katabi ang crib ni jaejun. 

hindi niya maiwasang hindi isipin kung gaano kagaling ang tadhana, kung paano tumakbo ang mundo. jaemin once lost you, but eventually you found each other again. who would've thought na ang childhood friend na kapatid ng best friend niya na naging fubu niya pala ang makakatuluyan niya? it was like some twisted fate.

"tulala ka, hon" sabi mo, hinaplos mo ang pisngi niya kaya nawala ang pagiging tulala nito. "lalim iniisip natin, mister ah?"

ngumiti si jaemin, "iniisip ko lang kung gaano ka-amazing 'yung naging takbo ng buhay natin," sabi niya, "we were childhood friends, tapos—"

"kinakarat mo ko sa likod ni kuya" asar mo, narinig mong nag-tsk ang asawa mo kaya natawa ka. "alam ko kung anong sinasabi mo, jaem. hindi tayo magiging ganito ngayon kung pinilit mo 'ko magstay dito nung aalis ako papuntang paris. iba ang takbo ng buhay natin"

jaemin leaned over to kiss you, napangiti ka kahit pagod na pagod ka buong araw. "i love you, baby"

"i love you too, kuya jaem" asar mo pa, nakita mo ang pagbabago ng ekspresyon ng asawa mo.

"baby naman eh"

kinulong mo ang mukha niya sa dalawa mong kamay at humalik, "i love you too, mahal"

TAGLIST: @butterjaems @shairamaexx @yoitlover @haebragi @maleegayuh @thesirenita @hanjisungpark @luvenshiti @j00reads @jaefam @mklver @stickerjae @winwinxiiv @91qowngus @dxoah @dongsicheng28 @bebskyy @ciscachenh @xnishimura @jenoluuvvs @yoitculture @moonattelli @markibo

[adarlingwrites]

Leave it to the Wind

Summary: Between deadlines, an awful transport system, and aswangs lurking about in the shadows, you have much to worry about as a college student in Manila, and it's so much that your social life is practically dead. Your wind people roommates want to help you remedy that.

Words: 9343

Relationships: The Kambal/Reader (Crispin/Reader/Basilio)

Warnings: Adult content, alcohol, brief scene of sexual harassment

Author’s Notes: God, the fandom is so thirsty for the Kambal, and so am I. Finally, some Filipino himbo representation.

The premise is: Hannah and Amie decides to play matchmaker. Hilarity ensues. Smut ensues. Please be nice, I based the characterizations of the character on the Netflix series and Trese wiki pages since I couldn't get my hands on the original comics yet oof. Some words, like terms of endearment and curse words, will remain in Filipino. Translations are provided. Reader is AFAB and is referred to with female pronouns.

Reposting this from AO3 with all three chapters in one post. A Filipino (Taglish) translation is in the works!

I

You don’t know how they managed to convince you, to be honest.

You rarely ever go out at night anymore. So many strange incidents transpire in Manila’s narrow streets. Just recently, you’ve heard of a new story about a tikbalang who allegedly participated in illegal street races.

So when your roommates and friends Amie and Hannah invited you for a night out, you hesitated. You gave them every excuse you can think of; you needed to do laundry, you needed to study, you needed to finish a project, and so on.

You know that the two of them are wind people, but you can’t help but think. Which of the various stories you had been hearing are real? What else in this world you haven’t witnessed yet?

“Aw, you’re such a buzzkill! Pretty please? You don’t go out with us as often. Enjoy yourself a little,” Amie whines, lying on the sofa of your living room.

On the other hand, Hannah turns to you with a mischievous grin on her face. “C’mon, get dressed already,” she commanded. “There are some total hotties we’d like you to meet! One of them might catch your eye!”

“I told you, I don’t need a relationship. You two try this every week. How do you even know so many people?” you retort, laughing softly at yourself.

“Well, our night lives are active,” Hannah retorted. “Don’t forget our sex lives!” the other added. Hearing those words, you felt your face get flushed with heat.

You needed a good fuck.

“Damn it, fine! As long as you pay for me.”

They finally got you to say yes.

As the night went on, you went to several bars, and you swore that you had explored every crevice of the city. It doesn’t help that the guy Amie and Hannah were with, a tall, dark and handsome man with flowing locks of black hair, drove like a demon. You got around quickly in no time.

Around an hour after midnight, you’re all exhausted from a night of dancing and mingling. None of the people your friends introduced to you caught your attention. At that point, you just wanted a stiff drink to unwind.

Voicing it to your drinking buddies, they nod in agreement.

“I know just the place, in Malate,” the man you’re with said. “Quiet. Discreet. I can take you there, if you want.”

“You mean The Diabolical, right? Let’s go! Text Crispin and Basilio, they might be hangin’ there too,” Amie croons.

A chuckle escapes your lips upon hearing their names. “Huh? Were they named after the characters in Jose Rizal’s novel?”

“I think so? Whatever! But seriously though… Those two can totally make you scream their names louder than Sisa ever did! Best lay I ever had!”

The remark made you laugh so hard, you swore you can be heard in the next city. “What the fuck! Amie, gaga ka, Sisa was their mom! The context of that scene was rough.”

Hannah’s mischievous grin spreads on her face once more, and she gently elbows your side. “Well, if you’re lucky, in this context you’d be crying their names while your eyes roll to the back of your head.”

You’ll never admit it, but you had hoped all their teasing would come true.

It didn’t take long for the four of you to reach your destination. As you enter The Diabolical, a strange chill envelopes you. The air feels different inside; it’s almost as if you stepped in a different world. Perhaps it’s the alcohol, but when you looked around, you saw a duwende sitting by the bar. Or was it called a nuno? At the end of the bar, you saw them; two men both dressed in black suits. One has short hair, while the other one has longer, reaching past his shoulders. However, they’re facing away from you. Only the back of their head and part of their cheeks were visible where you stood.

You snapped out of it when the man you three are with spoke up. “I’m gonna call it a night. Have fun, you three.”

“For real? Wow Maliksi, this is the first time I ever saw you wanting to leave early. Aren’t you gonna stop by and say hi to Alex?” Hannah asks him.

“Maybe next time,” Maliksi answers back, a somber expression on his face. “Oh em gee, did you two fight? Wait, what are you two?” Amie asks.

“Whatever. It’s complicated. I don’t wanna talk about it.”

Your friends nodded and let Maliksi be. He waves at your group, and heads out the door. The engine of his car roars to life, and his car screeches away.

As the car moved farther away though, it seems that the screeching of the tires turned into hoofbeats.

Perhaps it’s just your imagination.

“Amie! Hannah! Have a drink! Hey, who’s that with you? Is that the person you’ve been wanting us to meet for ages now?”

Your head turns to where the voice was coming from; one of the men in the suits, the one with short hair in particular. You finally had a good look on their faces.

Twins?

“Crispin! Meet our friend! This is…”

As Amie and Hannah introduce you to the Twins, you can’t help but stare. You took the sight of their features in; they’re tall, with broad shoulders, and hard muscle underneath that black suit and white tie ensemble. They have wide noses with a high bridge, prominent bone structure, and a prominent widow’s peak.

Merciful Bathala, they’re gorgeous.

What caught your attention the most are their eyes. They're pitch black, save for the small reflection of light.

Are these people even human?

“Stare at them like that any longer and they might melt,” Amie teases. The two of your friends are giving you an ear-splitting grin due to your reaction to the Twins.

“I, uh-” you stuttered, and you could feel the heat rising in your cheeks.

“Hey, don’t be shy. You can sit between us, miss. We’re all friends here,” the twin with the longer hair says. If the other one is Crispin, then this must be Basilio.

Behind you, your friends are already giggling. They took their places next to the twins and leaned on their biceps. Across from you, the bartender comes to take your order.

“What’ll it be, kid?” he asks.

For some reason, you’re panicking. Maybe it’s because of the alcohol in your system. Or maybe it’s because you’re sandwiched between the twins. “Uh, what would you recommend, manong?”

Laughter erupted from the twins. “Hank, she called you manong!” Basilio teases while grinning like a fucking dog. “Geez, are you really that old?” Crispin eggs him on, giving him a shit-eating grin. Hank takes a wet rag he uses to wipe down the countertop and strikes the two down. “You goddamn assholes!”

You couldn’t stop yourself from laughing with them.

“Ow! Alright, we’re sorry, we’re sorry. Get them the best seller, Hank. We’ll pay for their tab,” Basilio says, and Hannah and Amie squeals with joy.

“Oh em gee, you boys are so sweet! Thank youuu!”

As Hank prepares you a drink, you try conversing with the twins. “You two seem fun to have as drinking buddies.”

Hank turns around to reach a bottle from the shelf. “Those two are mischievous little shits, that’s for sure. You know, when these two were kids...”

“Hey man, don’t embarrass us like that in front of our new friend,” Crispin whines.

While the three continues fucking around, you leaned back slightly to glimpse at Amie, who was trying to get your attention for a while now. She points to her phone, and you fetch yours from your bag.

You read your group chat with them. “Soooo, do you like, like them?” Hannah’s message said.

“You’re into them aren’t you? You got so shy around them, it’s so cute!” Amie’s message said.

“Right? It’s rare to see you so flustered!”

You typed away furiously at your phone, cautious to not let the twins beside you see the conversation.

“Well, they’re an improvement from the ones you introduced me to earlier. Easier on the eyes, too…”

Your friends giggled, and as their drinks arrived, they stood up. “Girl, we’re gonna leave you with them, there’s some super hot tikbalangs who just came in the bar. Byeeee!”

“Hey, wait!”

They didn’t heed your words and went to sit on the tikbalangs’ laps.

Fuck, tikbalangs are real? Is Maliksi a tikbalang too?

“And off they go, flirting with those beasts after they’ve used us for drinks,” Crispin laments, voice dripping with light-hearted sarcasm.

“It’s not like it’s the first time we got used by them though,” Basilio adds, cringing.

You can’t help but laugh.  “Yeah, I’ve heard.”

Basilio’s head whips towards you, sweat gathering on his brow. “Seriously?! Shit, what did they say about us?”

“All good things, don’t you worry,” you answered.

“Nah, I need to hear what they said word for word,” the twin with long hair responds. “This is making me paranoid!”

Crispin moves closer to you, Basilio puts a friendly arm around your shoulder, and you can only smile. All of you are inebriated and if you were sober, and if someone else dared to get this close to you, you might’ve slapped them. But you feel good about the Twins, and your roommates never put you in harm’s way, so your trust for them extended to the brothers, somehow.

“Just tell us already,” Crispin slurs. “Tell us what they said about us. We’re curious.”

“Fine, fine. Okay, Amie and Hannah mentioned your names when Maliksi suggested that we head here to drink. Then, I mentioned that your names came from Rizal’s novels.”

“Then Amie said,” you continued, pausing briefly to come up with an impression of your roommate’s speech. “‘Seriously though… Those two can totally make you scream their names louder than Sisa ever did! Best lay I ever had!’ Fuck, it was so messed up!”

“That’s messed up, alright,” Basilio sputters, his face a deep shade of crimson. “I’m this hot and those are the only details they can spare?!”

“Ok, but that Sisa joke was kind of funny though. But it was still fucked up,” Crispin adds, and he takes a sip of his drink.

“Hold your horses, the story’s not done yet,” you say. You’re starting to feel more confident around the two.

Your conversation went places, until you found yourselves drinking until three in the morning, and at that point, it’s only just the four of you in the bar; Hank, the Twins, and you. Even Hannah and Amie are nowhere to be seen. Knowing them, they probably took the tikbalangs they were flirting with back to your apartment.

They didn’t even wait for you. Looks like they’re really setting you up tonight. Maybe they wanted the apartment to themselves tonight, and they got exactly what they wanted.

You had planned on getting up to go to the restroom, but when you tried standing up, you almost fell from the chair. The Twins caught you before you landed face first against the floor.

“She’s had enough to drink,” Hank comments. They set you on a chair with a backrest. “How will she get home? We can’t send her off in a cab at this rate. The train doesn't run this late either.”

“Hannah left her behind too,” Crispin adds.

“Hey, how are we gonna deal with this?” Basilio asks. “We can get you home once we sober up a little. It’s fine if you-”

Basilio never got to finish what he was going to say, because you nodded off against his stomach, and puked your lunch out.

You don’t remember anything after that.

When you awaken, the sun is already high up, and the first thing that greets you is the fan in the ceiling. Your muscles are screaming at you, and your throat feels dry. Memories of last night came crashing back and you started sweating in horror. Maybe it’s just a drunken dream, but it felt all too real.

You were flirting with these gorgeous twins, had too much to drink, and at some point puked all over one of the twins’ shoes.

And now, you don’t know whose bedroom you are in. You check yourself, and you’re still wearing the same clothes, with nothing out of place. There are no bruises or marks on your body either. You looked around you, but there was no one else in the room.

The doors crack open slightly, and you see two pairs of void-black eyes.

“I… um… good morning?”

“It’s… already 2 in the afternoon,” one of them says. He has long hair. This one is the twin you threw up on.

“Why don’t you have some lunch?” the other one said.

You just nodded and said nothing else, ashamed of yourself. You threw up on one of them and now you’re eating at their table. You just wanted the ground to swallow you alive.

“Sorry for puking on you last night,” you near-whispered to Basilio after you swallowed your first bite of food.

The silence broke when Crispin roared with laughter, tears pooling at the corner of his eyes. Meanwhile, Basilio was glaring daggers at his brother. He’s frowning like a child whose toy got taken from him. “Sure, keep laughing, kuya.”

“I’ll never show my face here again, I promise,” you say to them, hiding your face behind your hands.

“What’re you talking about? Forget about it. We’re friends now, right?” Basilio tells you, smiling. “But next time, vomit on my brother too.”

“No one’s throwing up because I won’t be allowing any of you to get wasted that bad ever again,” Hank announces as he enters the room with a carafe in his hand. “Bossing’s not gonna like it if the bar ends up smelling as bad as Basilio’s room. Here, have some coffee.”

“We should introduce you to bossing next time too. She’s not here at the moment,” Crispin adds. “Let’s do this again next week.”

The invitation made you smile, and you poured yourself a cup of coffee. You continued eating the rest of your meal.

“...my room doesn’t smell that, right?” Basilio asks after a few moments of silence.

“Gago, it stinks so bad. It’s why we made the guest stay at my room, because if she stayed at yours she could’ve died from how bad it is,” Crispin exclaims. “Seriously, how can you live with bringing women to your room at that point?”

“Kuya, you’re embarrassing me to our guest!”

Translations for non-Filipino speaking folks:

bossing: a somewhat affectionate way to say “boss”. Comes from the old tradition of adding -eng or -ing to ones name to make a nickname, e.g. Luciana - Lucing

Gago/gaga (ka): (you) idiot/moron - someone stupid, foolish or ignorant

Tikbalang: creature from Filipino mythology similar to a centaur. They are hulking beasts with a horse's head.

manong: a term for endearment to an elderly male relative, or elderly men in general. Originally an Ilokano term referring to the first born son in a nuclear family.

kuya: big brother. Can be used to refer to one's own older brother, someone else's older brother, or an older peer or male acquaintance.

II

Author’s Notes: This chapter was heavily inspired by Bita and the Botflies' song Manghuhula.

Warnings: brief scene of sexual harrassment

After washing up, the Twins accompanied you to the gate, exchanging glances at each other behind your back. Little did they know, you definitely noticed it.

“Wait,” Basilio says, tapping your shoulder lightly with a large hand.

Crispin takes his phone out of his pocket. His younger brother proceeds to do the same. “Give us your phone. We’ll add our numbers, and you can text us if something happens,” he says.

“Or when you get home safe,” Basilio adds.

You look at the two of them back and forth. “This isn’t just an elaborate excuse for the two of you to get my number, right?”

Neither of the two spoke, giving each other a nervous glance.

Their reaction made you laugh out loud, and you took out your phone from your bag. “Here. I’ll give you my Facespace too.”

With the tension broken, the three of you exchange a chuckle. You punch in your number in their phones, while they did the same to yours. Crispin looks over his brother’s shoulder and frowns.

“Epal,” Crispin says to his brother, snatching your phone away from him. The older twin types something in, and it’s the younger one’s turn to stick his nose in. Basilio attempts to get the phone back, cursing all the time.

“You’re going to break her phone, gago,” the older twin curses, pushing a palm against Basilio’s face. “Then let it go! You’re the epal, I wasn’t done yet,” the younger one snaps back.

You give them a look of irritation, and check out what they’re arguing about.

“What the hell are you two grown-ass men fighting about?” you ask as you butt in to look at what they’re doing.

A loud snort bubbles from you as you see it; Basilio added “the hot twin” next to his contact name. Crispin added “the hotter twin”. Now, the former wanted to outdo his older brother.

Against your better judgment, you say, “You’re twins. You look like each other. You’re both hot. Now stop fighting over my phone.”

Perhaps it’s the afternoon heat, but there is a tinge of red in their cheeks after your remark. You waved them goodbye as you got in a tricycle that’ll get you to the nearest train station.

The MRT, in some strange miraculous twist of fate, isn’t as packed as usual. It’s still populated, but there were a few seats waiting to be taken. You sit down somewhere away from direct sunlight, and you take out your phone to tell Hannah and Amie that you’re on the way home.

The first thing you see is a text from Basilio. Then, a text from Crispin. You tell them both that you’re on the train now, completely forgetting about messaging your roommates. To pass the time, you launch the Facespace app and decide to look up their profiles, only to find out that they’ve already sent you a friend request.

Upon seeing Crispin’s profile, you did your damn best to stifle a laugh.

His work description says “works at the Krusty Krab,” but that wasn’t the craziest thing about his profile. At first, the Bible verse in his bio caught you off guard, thinking that someone like him didn’t seem religious, but when you quickly looked up “Ezekiel 23:20,” you did your best not to howl with laughter.

Basilio’s isn’t any better.

In his work description, he put “Model at For Her Magazine,” and “edi sa puso mo.” Then you scroll down to see a thirst trap of him pulling his shirt up with his teeth, and you can feel the heat rising to your cheeks again. Well, at least that work description is believable.

They’re- what was that term your younger university friends were using again?- himbos.

They’re definitely himbos.

Arriving at your place, you slot your key inside the doorknob and twist. As you enter the door, the heavy, musky scent of sex and sweat hits your face, and you regret getting too wasted last night and losing your chance to hook up with one of the Twins.

Or both.

Both?

Regardless, at least they’ve invited you again to hang out next week.

You raise your eyebrow and cross your arms at the scene before you. Cans of beer litter the living room, and your roommates are taking a nap by the couch. A tikbalang comes out of the bathroom, glamor off, and you snort as you watch him duck under the door frame because of his massive height.

“It’s already four in the afternoon. Time to go, big guy.”

He nods awkwardly in acknowledgment, morphing into his human disguise, and exiting your apartment.

You sit between your roommates, rousing them from their sleep. “I’m not going to clean this mess up,” you tell them, motioning to the trashed state of the living room, and reaching for the remote to turn the TV on. You just want to take a shower afterwards and sleep in your own bed tonight.

After rubbing the sleep from their eyes, your roommates near-tackles you on the couch, a curious, excited look on their faces. You forgot all about what you were watching and stared at them in surprise.

“So how did it go? Did you get to hook up with any of them?” Amie asks.

“Or both of them?” Hannah adds.

“Gaga, nothing like that happened.”

The two of them let you go with disappointed looks on their faces. “So sayang! Here we were thinking you finally have a sex life,” one of them says as you lean back on the backrest, closing your eyes as they continue to pester you for details.

“Why are you two so determined to get me to screw someone?” you finally snapped, amused and irked at the same time.

“Because you’ve been doing nothing but totally stressing yourself out! See how super fun it is to let go every now and then?”

“Thanks for the new drinking buddies, girls, but I have my fingers to keep me company. Hookups are too much work,” you lie to them, eyes still closed.

“That’s a toe-curling, full-body orgasm you’re missing out on, girl!”

“That’s assuming that the person I’m with knows what they’re doing,” you retorted.

One of them pokes your side with an elbow, and you assume it’s Hannah. “The Twins do.”

You opened your eyes, and you guessed right; it’s Hannah. You give her a look, before rolling your eyes, appearing to look disinterested. The smirk tugging at the edge of your lips says otherwise, though.

“So what happened last night?” Amie asks.

“I got wasted and threw up on Basilio’s shoes. Then, I ended up sleeping in Crispin’s room. When I woke up, they fed me and sent me home,” you tell them. Your roommates giggle at the story.

“Ah, speaking of which, I gotta let them know I got home,” you said off-hand, and somehow the remark only spurred your wind people roommates on.

“Yieee, you’re friends with them on Facespace already!” Amie quips, leaning in to see what you’re typing. Playfully, you move your phone away from her to conceal what you’re typing.

“Make a group chat with them!” Hannah exclaims, taking your phone away from you. You tried taking it back, but Amie joins in the mischief and blocks you from doing so.

When you got your phone back, the deed was done, and the chat was renamed to a single eggplant emoji. The like button was replaced by an eggplant emoji too.

Panicking, you add your roommates to the group to avoid looking suspicious, and swiftly type up a defense.

“Please ignore that, Hannah made this chat using my account.”

The teasing never stopped after that.

Weeks passed and you never bothered to change it, though.

It’s been about two months since your first encounter with the Twins. You’re becoming a familiar face at The Diabolical, going every Saturday to see them. Sometimes Hannah and Amie didn’t accompany you anymore. You’ve met the Twins’ bossing a few times, who turned out to be none other than Alexandra Trese. You’ve heard of her exploits and the two imposing bodyguards who were almost always with her. It surprised you that they’re none other than the Twins you knew, but it made perfect sense. Those two were jacked, and those muscles aren’t only for show.

Of course, because of your increasing presence in the bar, it didn’t take long for the rumors to circulate. Word on the street is both of the Twins had a thing for you, and neither is making a move out of consideration for the other. They are waiting for you to move.

You elected to ignore them, perfectly happy with your arrangement of having two handsome men to keep you company while you unwind. The thought of getting together with one of them, or even both of them did cross your mind a few times, however.

Ultimately, you wouldn’t know what to do if the day comes that you’ll have to confront how you feel and choose between the two.

Do you have to?

Crispin and Basilio are twins, but they’re distinct from each other. The older is more serious, with a dryer sense of humor, while the younger is goofier, and somewhat softer. One complements the other, and they’re both good company despite their differences.

Speak of the devil. Your phone buzzes and you see that the eggplant chat is active. The Twins are inviting you to The Diabolical again.

“See you guys at eight,” you type in. Someone reacts with an eggplant to your message. Then the next few messages were nothing but eggplant emojis, followed by Basilio sending “#TeamTalong”. Crispin cusses him out for it, but sends the same message right after.

Yeah, that became a thing among the five of you.

You and the wind girls got dressed and took a taxi to the bar, your favorite jacket draped over your shoulders. Pressured by your roommates, you wore something nicer tonight; a black faux leather dress that hugs your figure deliciously. The shiny fabric added to the effect. The six bottles of Pulang Tikbalang beer the three of you shared before going out might’ve contributed to your newfound bravado.

But now that you’re actually wearing it outside your apartment, you feel a little reluctant.

“Maybe wearing this is a bad idea,” you mutter to no one in particular, tucking a lock of hair behind your ear out of self-consciousness.

Amie taps you from behind. “Oh hush, that outfit is totally sexy,” she comments. “Finally ready to get dicked down tonight, girl?”

“Shhh, gaga ka, manong driver can hear you.”

That didn’t deter them from making more inappropriate comments, much to the manong's ire.

It’s nine already when you get there, you’re in the Philippines after all. The merriment is already in full swing when you step through the door. Hannah and Amie went ahead and sat next to their lay of the week. The Twins wave you over from their usual spot, but before you can reach them, a man you’ve never seen before tries to get your attention, snaking an arm around your waist.

“Hey baby. You’re a regular here, right? Want to drink with me?”

“Sorry, I’m here with someone else,” you tell him, moving away.

“Ah, here to see the Twins? Why don’t you ditch them for a change of pace and come with me, babe?”

“Not interested,” you flat out said. “Please move, or I’ll make you move.”

To your surprise, the man drops his glamor and reveals himself to be a kapre. He looms over you, cigar in his mouth, and you can feel the tension rising. People are starting to stare, and your friends took notice of it too.

“Try,” he huffs, puffing smoke to your face. You give him a sour glare while trying not to cough.

Before your roommates or the Twins could come to your aid, you panicked and saw an empty bottle of Pulang Tikbalang on a nearby table. Emboldened by the alcohol in your veins, you shatter the bottle and point the jagged edge at the hulking beast, hands shaking. You are a tiny thing compared to the enormous creature before you, after all.

“Don’t you dare look down on me.”

“Already doing that, honey.”

“I’m not your honey,” you say as you press the edge against his stomach, not enough to draw blood, but hard enough to hurt.

“I love it when they fight back,” the kapre croons.

Under the haze of alcohol, you were more than ready to shove the edge in, consequences be damned.

Before things could escalate, Crispin takes the broken bottle off of your hands and steers you away from the stranger, while Basilio steps in to defuse the tension. “Hey, why don’t you back off, pal? Our friend said no. You wouldn’t want us to tell our bossing to ban you from the place because of this misunderstanding now, don’t you?”

Heart in your throat, you turn to the Twins, then to the kapre. The tree giant pauses, looking at the three of you, then smirks.

“Heh. Fine. But if you torpe whelps don’t make a move, I will.”

The giant puts his glamor back on and skulks away.

“Wow, what a jerk! He only left you alone when the boys stepped in,” Hannah quips, tossing her hair in indignation.

“You almost didn’t need rescuing, but I’d hate to help Hank mop the blood off the floor later,” Basilio comments, nudging you gently with an elbow. His eyes go a little lower from your face, and you see him look away.

You realized Crispin hasn’t let go of you yet.

“C’mon, let’s just go,” you tell everyone. Crispin proceeds to remove his hand away from your shoulder, and you take your usual seats by the bar.

The bar is loud, but the silence between the three of you is deafening. Even Hank seems to have taken notice, eyeing your usually loud and cheerful group.

“What’s up with you three? What happened back there?” the older man asks, leaning over the bar top.

“Just a handsy kapre who couldn’t take no for an answer. I won’t let it spoil the night,” you answer him.

“That’s the spirit. Holler if he tries something like that again, I’ll have him kicked out,” Hank replies, setting down three ice-cold beers in front of you guys.

Yet somehow, the conversation never livened up.

Three bottles of Pulang Tikbalang later, you’ve had enough.

“This is about what that kapre said, isn’t it?” you finally say, slightly pissed.

The Twins look at each other with guilty expressions, and simultaneously nod.

“Do you boys wanna talk about it?”

They look at each other again. “Shit, this is awkward,” Crispin comments, scratching his head. Basilio nods in agreement, uncharacteristically silent. “We didn’t want to pressure you into anything you didn’t want to do,” the older twin continues.

“Look, I don’t want to ruin my relationship with my kuya just because we’re interested in the same girl,” Basilio says. “Same here,” Crispin adds.

“So we were waiting for you to make your own move,” Basilio continues.

“Ah. So the rumors are true,” you sighed.

“We’ll accept whatever outcome there is. If you choose me, or Basilio, or neither because this is fucking messy, we totally get it,” the older twin says, leaning back to stare at the ceiling.

Now the decision rests in your hands.

“Why don’t we talk about this somewhere more private?” you ask them.

You watch as both of them gulp. “Where do you wanna talk?” Basilio asks.

“Anywhere private.”

“I just cleaned my room earlier. Why don’t we continue this there?”

You nod, and they lead you away from the bar.

Looks like it’s going to be a long night.

Translations for non-Filipino speakers:

epal: in Filipino slang, usually refers to a person who inappropriately presents himself in a situation or butts into a conversation.

kapre: a tree-giant from Filipino mythology. Often described as very tall, dark, and hairy. Almost never seen without a cigar.

sayang: literally means waste. Can be used alone as an expression similar to "what a waste!"

torpe: someone who cannot spit their romantic or sexual feelings out to a crush or love interest

III

Author’s Notes:

Warnings: Smut. Filthy smut. Writer-is-definitely-going-to-the-second-circle-of-the-Seven-Circles-of-Hell-levels-of-filthy smut. Bawal bata, tulog na. If you're under 18 please turn back.

After the door closes behind the three of you, you sit on the bed, while Crispin sits on a chair near his brother’s desk. Basilio locks the door, and leans against it, unable to look at you.

“Right. So. How are we going to deal with this?” you ask them, crossing your legs.

“Don’t ask us,” Crispin says, swiveling the chair to face you. “You’re the one caught in the middle after all.”

Curse his choice of words.

“This is too weird,” Basilio speaks up. “If you want me to unlock the door, just say the word. We can walk out of this like nothing happened.”

“And then what? Things are going to be awkward between the three of us, I just know it,” you say to him, palming the back of your neck. “Things might get awkward with Amie and Hannah too, and I live with them. I don’t want our tropa to disband just because of relationship drama.”

“What about Amie and Hannah? Is it because we have history with those two?” Crispin asks.

“They’ve been trying to set me up with either of you. The fact that they also slept with you in the past also doesn’t help. Shit, this is messy.”

“Er, um,” Basilio stutters. “That might’ve been our fault.”

You furrow your brow and cross your arms. “Keep going.”

The Twins look at each other, as if gauging who should explain the situation. “So, we remained in contact after being used as a prize for bossing’s race with Maliksi, right?” Crispin starts.

“Uh huh.”

“Well, they mentioned a third roommate in passing and joked about lending us to her. Of course we blew them off, then Amie showed us a picture of you. We got curious and asked them to introduce you,” Basilio continues.

“I didn’t expect us five to become friends. And now we’re in this mess,” Crispin adds.

You look at them back and forth, and laugh in resignation. Elbows digging against your lap and palms pressed against your face, you rub your face and run it through your hair. “Amazing. Just amazing. See, I have a problem too.”

The Twins didn’t respond, eyes fixated on you.

“I like the two of you.”

You feel the air shift around you. Basilio’s standing upright by the door now, and Crispin straightened up too. The room is so quiet, you can hear them gulp in anticipation for what will happen next.

“There. I said it. The reason why I haven’t made a move at all is because of this exact moment that I was dreading. I didn’t want to choose,” you admit, feeling the blood rush to your head. “I just wanted for us three to stay like that, drinking buddies sprinkled with sexual tension.”

“And you’re in the middle, enjoying our attention,” Crispin says, crossing his arms.

“Selfish, I know,” you admit, head hanging low.

This is it, the moment that can make or break you three.

“Us three. If only...” you whisper, only for the words to fall flat on your tongue

You stand up, gathering your things and carrying your bag. “Nevermind. What a mess we’re in. I’ll go so you two can sort things out between the two of you. It’s been a fun ride.”

Basilio doesn’t move from the door, and behind you, you can hear Crispin getting up from his seat.

“We can still make this work, right kuya?” Basilio starts, looking over your head to give his brother a knowing look.

“Yeah, I think so,” Crispin replies. “What was that you said? The three of us?”

Your eyes widen, and you look at them back and forth. Their bodies are dangerously close to yours. Now you’re literally caught in the middle.

“I- uh…”

“I think we can work out an arrangement,” Basilio whispers, one hand moving to hold yours.

“Only if you want to,” Crispin adds, his breath kissing the back of your neck.

“I don’t want to lose either of you,” Basilio adds.

“Same here.”

Damn it all.

Giving in to your darkest, most hidden desires, you lean in to capture Basilio’s lips with yours, leaving his black eyes wide open in surprise. They flutter close, and he savors the kiss, slipping a tongue in. Then you turn to Crispin, and you give him the same sweet kiss as well.

“Damn, I didn’t mean like, now,” Basilio mutters, feeling the front of his trousers get tighter as he watches you make out with his brother.

Bringing your attention back to the younger twin, you loosen his tie, while you push out your ass to grind against Crispin. “Are you complaining?”

“Not at all.”

“Wait, are you sure about this? All of us drank tonight… we don’t want you to do something you’ll regret,” Crispin says, moving his hips away from you. Basilio pauses too, and wraps his hands around your wrists to still your hands, a look of concern on his face.

“Kuya’s right.”

“I’m a grown woman. I might’ve had a few bottles, but I know what I want,” you reassure them, waiting for the two to make a move. “I know I want you two for months.”

Basilio lets go of your hands and lets you do as you please, a cocky smirk on his lips. Behind you, you can feel Crispin’s gloved hands reaching for the zipper of your dress. “Really? How much do you want us? C’mon, say it,” Basilio asks, moving in to place kisses on your neck.

“I wanna hear it too,” Crispin whispers against your shoulder, and he punctuates it with a light kiss.

All of a sudden, you felt shy at the prospect of confessing your fantasies out loud. “Why don’t I just show you boys?”

“Oh no, you’re not getting out of this one,” Basilio teases. “Consider it as payback for throwing up all over my shoes.”

“You’re still- ah!- mad about that?” you ask him, gasping in the middle of doing so when you felt a hand snake between your legs from behind. The older twin slips his fingers past your underwear, circling your clit with slow strokes.

“Not mad, I just want things to be fair,” Basilio teases, pulling your dress down. He gives your breasts a squeeze, fondling and rolling your nipples until they harden, and he seals his lips over your right one. Crispin moves from behind you and he takes his place next to his twin, lathing his tongue over the left. All four of their hands pawed at your flesh greedily.

You were at a loss for words because of how good they’re making you feel, soft moans bubbling from your throat.

“Speechless already, huh?” Crispin mumbles against your skin.

“Ngh! The wind girls weren’t lying, you two know what you’re doing,” you gasped, face flushed as you watched the Twins lavish their attention on your breasts.

“Shhh, stop changing the subject. Play along, or neither of us will make you cum,” he adds, pausing to give you a teasing lick, and resting his tongue on top of the hardened bud. On the other hand, Basilio is sucking like a starved babe while squeezing your still clothed behind.

You fake a scoff of indignation and grin. “Fine. I- oh fuck- want you two so much, I’ve been fantasizing for weeks.”

Basilio pauses to address you. “Describe them.”

You’re a little mortified, but the alcohol in your system pushes you to be bolder. “I imagined Basilio punishing me for ruining his shoes.”

“And how did he do that?” Crispin’s voice.

“He asked me to suck him off,” you start, and a pinch on your bottom from the subject of your fantasy tells you that he wanted to hear more details. “He fucked my face while pulling my hair and told me how good I was the whole time and that he forgave me.”

“What about me? What fantasies did you have?” Crispin asks again.

Your breath hitched in your throat but you pushed on. “Hearing how you scolded Basilio, I imagined you taking me from behind and saying the meanest, dirtiest things possible.”

The Twins looked at each other, and stopped, their lips leaving your breasts with a lewd pop. “You want to make them all come true?” Basilio asks.

Cheeks burning, you give them a curt nod.

The two of them lead you to the bed, where Crispin puts you on all fours, and he takes his place from behind. On the other hand, Basilio is standing near the edge of the bed, the bulge in his pants inches away from your face. You stare at it, licking your lips.

As you undid Basilio’s pants, he shrugs off his suit jacket and takes off his tie, then he takes off his dress shirt, revealing his abs and the trail of dark hair on his lower abdomen, disappearing into his briefs. From behind, you hear fabric shifting, then Crispin peels your panties off of you. He brings a gloved hand against your skin in a loud smack, making you cry out.

“Ah, wait, we need a safeword,” Crispin mentions, soothingly squeezing your skin.

“What about Eternos?” Basilio suggests, and Crispin cocks an eyebrow. “Wait, you mean, like the game?”

You stifle a laugh. “I’m fine with it,” you say to them, and they take it as a signal to continue.

The older twin dips a gloved finger between your folds, gathering your wetness, and tsked. “Look at you, already so fucking wet. You want this so much, huh?”

You nod frantically, then Basilio stills your head. “Open your mouth, baby. Tongue out.”

You oblige, and Basilio fishes his cock out of his briefs. Your eyes grow wider as you take in the sight of it; girthy, with a nice length, and a few veins running on the underside. You wonder if Crispin’s is the same. The twin in front of you lightly smacks his member against your tongue, and you proceed to lick it, running from the base to the tip, slicking it with saliva. You swirl your tongue around it, then try to slide it in your mouth as smoothly as possible.

As Basilio begins to breathe harder with each bob of your head, Crispin pulls your ass towards his face, and a choked moan escapes your lips as you feel his mouth on your heat, toying with your folds before he finally finds that sensitive nub. The older twin proceeds to lick and suck at it, eating you out like you’re the best damn meal of his life.

Meanwhile, you push a palm against Basilio’s thigh to make him pause, and before he can ask you if you’re fine, you take his balls in your mouth and fondle him with your tongue. Your hand pumps his neglected cock as you did so.

“Shit! Your mouth feels so damn good,” he hisses, breathing hard. When you take his dick back into your mouth, Basilio gathers your hair and uses it as a handle, watching his length disappear in your mouth over and over, his black eyes hazy with lust and his mouth whispering words of praise.

Crispin looks at his brother with a hint of envy, cock painfully hard against his trousers. He unzips it for relief, and proceeds to stroke himself as he continues to prepare you.

“Hey, Basilio, got any lube?”

“Um, there’s- ungh- a bottle of it under the pillow.”

“...you keep lube under your pillow? What the- and condoms? Can’t you put them in your drawers or something?”

Basilio doesn’t give his brother a response and focuses his attention on you. You gasp against his cock as you felt a cold, gloved hand prod against your asshole, and goosebumps formed on your flesh as you felt the cold lubricant smearing against your entrance. Crispin pushes his lubed thumb in, and you cry out in pleasure, your jaw opening wider for Basilio to claim. Then, two more fingers prod at your pussy, and you swear you can see stars as they slid in. The older twin toys with you while eating you out, and you feel a knot forming at the base of your stomach, threatening to uncoil at any moment.

You couldn’t take it. Basilio’s cock slides out of your mouth and you look over your shoulder, moaning and panting.

Crispin pauses from eating you out to ask you a question. “You’re gonna cum? You wanna cum on my fingers like the filthy slut you are?”

“Yes, please, please, let me cum,” you begged, and with a devilish smirk, Crispin dives right back in to finish the job.

You squeezed your eyes shut as the pleasure inside you exploded, shameless moans coming from your throat as your first orgasm hits you. Basilio watches the look of pleasure on your face as Crispin makes you cum, making his cock twitch.

“Now that’s how you please a woman,” Crispin teases, shooting his brother a challenging look while wiping your juices off of his face.

“Wait until it’s my turn,” Basilio replies, smirking.

Panting, legs wobbling, you didn’t get to rest as Crispin takes his cock and slides it in you. In front of you, Basilio cups your face and directs you back to his cock, smirking. “You’re doing so well, baby. You’re taking us like a champ, you know that?”

“Fuck,” Crispin hisses from behind you. “You like this, you little slut? You like being fucked by two cocks at the same time?” he asks you, each word punctuated with a hard thrust.

Now you’re really caught in the middle.

Basilio’s panting heavily now, his thrusts becoming erratic against your mouth. You know he’s close, and you brace yourself for what’s coming. Eyes screwed shut, he lets out a low groan as he spills inside of your mouth, his cum painting your tongue white. You try to swallow it all, but a few stray drops dribble down your chin. The younger twin cleans you up, and kisses you deeply, not minding his taste on your mouth. He sits on the bed to catch his breath, and allows you to rest on his thighs.

Behind you, Crispin begins to rut faster, his thumb still in your ass as he pounded you. You writhe and cry against Basilio’s lap, bracing yourself from each harsh thrust. The younger twin pets your hair, but he moves his hand away when Crispin pushes your head against his brother’s lap.

“Take it all of it,” Crispin groans. “Ungh, you make me so horny, you little slut.”

Not wanting to miss out on the fun, Basilio gets an idea.

“Hey, kuya. Hold her up.”

Crispin blinks before obliging his brother’s request, clamping a hand around your throat. “Is this fine?” he asks you, and you nod a few times. He tightens his hold and pulls you to his toned chest, your hair sticking to his skin from your sweat. Basilio kisses you, then latches on one of your breasts. One gloved hand fondles and pulls at your nipples, while the other moves south to stroke you.

“Ah! I think I’m gonna cum again…” you choked, face red and tears forming at the edge of your eyes.

“Say our names,” Crispin whispers against your ear in a low growl.

You mutter their names at first, but it turns to full blown cries as your climax fast approaches.

“Crispin! Basilio!”

It hits you so hard, your eyes roll to the back of your head. You cried shamelessly, and Crispin places a kiss on your open mouth, tongue slipping in and teeth clashing with yours. He pulls out and finishes on your back, cock resting between the valley of your cheeks, still half-hard.

The Twins move to clean you up, looking around for tissues and anything to wipe you with.

“So,” Basilio says. “One more round?”

Your eyes widen, and you look down to see that Basilio is hard again.

“How- what the fuck? What are you two?”

Crispin sighs. “Hannah and Amie never told you? We’re demigods.”

“We don’t get sick and our injuries heal really fast. Talagbusao is our dad,” Basilio adds, and you give him a disbelieving glare.

“You didn’t need to let that last detail slip out, gago,” Crispin berates him as he pulls you close to his muscular chest. He lay down on a pillow, one arm propping his head up.

After a few seconds of silence, you say something. “At least let me have some water first.”

“Right.”

The Twins stare at each other.

“One of us has to fetch it,” Crispin says.

“What? Why me?” Basilio complains, scratching his head.

“Because I’m older, and I’ve worked hard to give her two orgasms in a row.”

“Hey! I’m sure that last one was thanks to me.”

You groan, grabbing a pillow to cover your face. “Ugh, please don’t turn this into a competition about who made me cum the most. Just get me my water, pretty please, Basilio?”

At the request, Basilio smiles and dresses haphazardly to get it for you. “Don’t start without me.”

You close your eyes with a smile. Crispin buries his face against your hair and plays with it. “You have him wrapped around your finger, you know?”

You chuckle at the remark, and Crispin kisses your temple. “Just don’t hurt my little brother.”

“I have no intention of hurting either of you,” you tell him.

Basilio comes back with a pitcher and some glasses, and once everyone’s hydrated and ready, the night continues.

The Twins spoil you with their attention, hands roaming your body as they planted kisses on your skin. Basilio sucks on your collarbone, biting experimentally and leaving marks that would darken in the morning, which draws a whine from your throat. Not wanting to be outdone, Crispin kisses your back, then the back of your neck, and he found a sweet spot that made you moan at that place where your ear connects to your neck. Basilio observes this and does the same to the other side.

“Hey, um, can I do it in your ass?” Crispin whispers in your ear, almost sheepishly, and you stare at him for a few seconds before nodding.

“Sure. Be gentle. And use a condom.”

“Of course. You go on top. What’s our safeword again?” he asks you, testing your knowledge.

You roll your eyes and try not to laugh. “Eternos.”

“Good girl,” Basilio says.

Flipping yourself around, you lean into Crispin’s lap. “Here, let me help,” you say as you grasp his cock and start to pump. The younger twin behind you reaches for the lube and prepares your ass. You sigh with pleasure as you feel the cold sensation of the product on your skin. Crispin sighs as you slide his length between your lips, head bobbing up and down, and you feel him grow inside your mouth. You give the tip a small lick before doing the same thing you did to Basilio, cupping his balls with your mouth and fondling them with your tongue.

“I want you now,” Crispin rasps, tugging your hair to get you off of him.

You smirk, turning around to give him a great view of your ass. He reaches around for a condom, finds one, and tears the foil open. After sliding the rubber down his shaft, he positions himself against your hole, pressing against the tight ring of muscle. You wince in pain as he starts penetrating you, prompting him to squeeze more lube to relieve your discomfort.

“Relax,” Basilio instructs you, planting soothing kisses at your jaw. You did as he said and unclenched your muscles, entrusting yourself to the two of them.

As Crispin pushes past the ring of muscle, you sigh in relief, discomfort replaced with the feeling of fullness. You lean back into his hard chest, a soft sigh leaving your lips as he starts to move. Meanwhile, Basilio kneels between your legs, rubbing your clit with the head of his dripping cock, but he freezes before he slides it in.

“What?” you ask with concern.

“We’re out of condoms.”

“Just pull out,” you tell him with a strained voice, gasping as Crispin moves inside you.

“No, you don’t understand. We’re demigods. Our… um.. Yeah, we’re really potent.”

You smirk at him. “I’ll ask the girls for something in the morning,” you say against your better judgment. “It’s a risk I’m willing to take. Cum all over me.”

His cock twitches at your last suggestion.

“Ugh, Basilio, you’re really killing the mood here,” Crispin strains to say, holding you gently by the neck. “I pulled out too, remember? Make up your mind already. I wouldn’t mind having her to myself for now, though.”

“Not a chance,” Basilio retorts, sliding the tip of his cock past your folds and pushing inside.

A loud cry rips from your throat at the sensations, feeling stuffed to the maximum as two cocks start to pump inside you. Crispin’s grip on your neck tightens, while you tangle your hands through Basilio’s hair, pulling him closer and kissing him.

Soon, The Twins find a steady rhythm, syncing their movement so you can feel the full force of their thrusts. Basilio throws one of your legs over his shoulder and begins to massage your clit with his thumb, while Crispin fondles your breasts with his free hand, using the tip of his fingers to roll, squeeze, and pull at your nubs. With every thrust they give, you clench, drawing a groan from both of them as they felt themselves being squeezed by your muscles.

“Oh God,” you whine. “Fuck, you both feel so good.”

“Say our names,” Basilio growls, and you oblige.

You chant their names like a prayer, underscored by the slapping of skin as the Twins fucked both of your holes. Hearing their names only spurred them on, and their movements became more desperate, sweat rolling off of your bodies.

“Basilio! Crispin!”

Underneath you, Crispin gropes at your breast harder, beads of sweat rolling off of his forehead and dripping to your skin. “Your ass feels too good, I’m gonna cum,” he hissed between clenched teeth, and you silently thank Bathala that he’s near his limit. The lube is starting to wash off.

With a few more rough thrusts, he cums, shooting inside the rubber. Crispin cups your jaw and kisses you, deep and sweet, tasting your tongue. You’re on the verge of climax now too, and you give Basilio a desperate look. He understood what you meant.

The younger twin thrusts harder and faster while still rubbing that sensitive nub between your legs furiously, and the older one helps by stimulating your nipples once again. The bombardment of sensation is too much, and you feel white hot heat racing through your body as you cum one last time, voice hoarse as a throaty moan escapes past your open mouth.

The spasm of your muscles is enough to send Basilio over the edge too, pulling out of you and spilling his load all over the mound of your pussy, and your stomach. You feel Crispin slip out of you too. Basilio leans in to kiss you, almost tenderly, but still full of desperation, tongue and teeth.

After a quick cleanup and another drink of water, the three of you lay in a heap of limbs, exhausted. Crispin doesn’t shift at all, content on letting you lie next to him, while Basilio moves next to you, effectively sandwiching you between the two of them on the narrow bed.

Everyone is sated, and with your eyes growing heavy, you wanted nothing but sleep.

“So, who’s better?”

You don’t know who said it, but you raised your hand to give him a middle finger. “Tangina niyo, you’re both good. End of discussion. Now please let me sleep.”

Thank Bathala that they did.

The next morning, all three of you wake up sweaty, stinking, and really, really hungry.

“Good morning to you two,” you sigh, snaking your arms around theirs. Each of them gave you a kiss on your temple. “Damn, I’m starving,” you said, sitting up. “Let’s take a shower and grab something to e-”

Underneath the three of you, the bed’s legs give out, and a loud thud can be heard throughout the house. As you three scramble for purchase, frantic footsteps are approaching, and the door bursts open.

“What was that? Crispin is missing from his room and-” Hank blurts, toting his good ol’ triple barrel shotgun "Ama, Anak, at, Espiritu Santo". Funnily enough, when he sees the tangle of limbs before him, he utters the same words and quickly turns away. Alexandra arrives shortly after, gives them a quick glance, and shuts the door.

Breakfast with their bossing is filled with a mortifying quiet.

You barely touch your food, embarrassment burning your cheeks, and you shoot a glance at your twin lovers.

“Next time, lock the door,” Alex finally says, getting up from the table with a coffee in her hands. She’s too fucking exhausted to deal with this.

“It’s Basilio’s fault!” Crispin yells after her. Basilio made no attempts to defend himself, knowing that he forgot to lock the door again after he came back with the water.

Grumbling, you finally take a bite of your breakfast, jacket draped over your shoulders despite the heat to hide the bruises on your body. “The girls are gonna have a field day when they see me like this.”

“I need to replace the bed,” Basilio mumbles, stuffing his mouth with rice.

The three of you looked at each other, and laughed.

“So, see you next week?” Crispin asks with a smile, and Basilio gives you a pleading, doe-eyed look.

“Yeah. See you two next week.”

Translations for non-English speakers:

tropa: ground of friends. People you chill with

tangina niyo: Filipino profanity. Roughly translates to "you sons of bitches"

Ama, Anak, at Espiritu Santo: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It’s Hank’s weapon’s actual name in the comics.

[thera-daydreams]

INDAY

± A Trese Fic ±

[Crispin/Basilio/Maliksi/Dominic x Skymaiden!Reader]

01: Noon at Ngayon (✓)

02: Ang Kambal na Anak ni Datu Talagbusao, Diyos ng Digmaan (Link)

03: Ang Prinsipe ng Mga Tikbalang (Link)

04: Ang Pinuno ng Mga Aswang (Link)

05: (Link) 06: (Link) 07: (Link)

01: Noon at Ngayon

Back then, long before you were born, your mother used to work as a katulong of the Trese Family and was very close to its matriarch, Miranda Trese. Coming from the province, she was no stranger to superstitions—even more so after knowing the work of Miranda's husband Anton Trese, who was actually the Babaylan-Mandirigma of Manila.

Years later, after giving birth to you around the same time Miranda gave birth to her twins (one a stillborn, unfortunately), it was you and Alexandra who became best buddies instead, as different your personalities were. You two had practically grown up together and you yourself heard countless stories of the supernatural from your Tito Anton. It wasn't that hard to believe when he and his sigbin companions would sometimes come home tracking blood prints on the floors (which you'd helped your mother clean up). Heck, you'd even met Señor Armanaz, the Great Stallion himself and the ruling tikbalang of the Armanaz herd. That pretty, white-haired diwata seemed extremely fond of you, too, which was evident when you'd sneak in with Alexandra to Tito Anton's meetings and she would smile (even wave) at you happily.

You had absolutely no idea why the fae-like lady was so nice to you, but you weren't complaining at all!

However, in spite of your experiences with the supernatural, you and your mother always believed that you were normal humans. In actuality, that was who you were for the majority of your childhood. It was only until Miranda herself saw a vision of you—a much older you—fighting the monsters of the Underworld alongside her own daughter. During dinnertime, Miranda told your mother that she saw you blessed by the heavens with powers that would aid in the battle against evil.

It sounded absolutely ridiculous, right? Yeah, your mom thought so, too.

Your mother only laughed it off as she placed a steaming bowl of tinola in front of Alexandra's brothers, who instantly dug in like they haven't been fed in years.

"Boys! Dahan-dahan lang," Anton reprimanded his sons. "Or else you'll choke and the soup will come out of your noses!"

"Okay, Papa."

"Grabe ka naman, Miranda. I doubt that anything like that's going to happen to my daughter," your mom chuckled, watching your little hands try to feed Alexandra with a piece of chicken. "Unlike you guys, our lineage isn't anything special. Ordinaryo lang ang lahi namin."

Miranda sighed, looking at you and her only living daughter enjoying your time being kids, "I guess you're right. Baka panaginip lang talaga 'yun."

Anton glanced at her knowingly. Although he was aware that you and your mom didn't dabble in magic or anything like they did, he knew that whenever Miranda—one of the Seven Seers—had such vivid dreams, it was something of great importance. But he decided to say nothing, understanding how much your mother wanted to let you live as normal of a life possible in this household.

That was when you were seven years old. One year later, Miranda died fighting against a group of aswang who decided to betray Anton. Said man found the eight-year-old Alexandra hiding in a corner behind the waterfalls, scared and holding Sinag close to her heaving chest as she tried to hold her tearful sobs in.

Of course, a few days later, you and your mother attended the funeral with the mourning Trese family. All the brothers had done their best to stay strong, especially for their little sister who didn't fully understand yet what just happened. Little you ran towards Alexandra, holding her hand tightly as her mother's casket was lowered. Around you were various comrades, both human and non-human, paying their respects to their bereaved allies.

That day, as you turned your back to return to your mother's arms, you knew you would never forget the feeling of numerous unearthly eyes following your every movement.

Even they could sense that there was something about you, a so-called regular human child. You smelled human and had the aura of one, but there was something they couldn't place. It was like a tiny rock getting into your shoe, not coming out at all.

Much changed after that, but you and Alexandra remained close together. To your dismay, just after you graduated elementary, you and your mother had to move back to the province to stay with your sick grandparents. The last thing you could remember was kneeling in the back of the car, looking sadly through the rear windscreen as Alexandra and her brothers waved goodbye to you.

More than a decade had passed since then. You used to write letters to Alexandra, but after Hank told you she had to undergo the trials of the Puno ng Balete, you haven't heard from her (although Hank did disclose that she'd managed to come home safely, which was a great relief to you). You didn't blame her; you knew Tito Anton had passed away in the five years she was gone and that she had to take over the title of Lakan, as well as the Babaylan-Mandirigma of Manila. It was a demanding job! You remembered Tito Anton sometimes staying up all night—breakfast would be served and he would still be in his study, going over paperwork. On other days, he would be gone for consecutive nights handling cases all around Manila. You could only pray Alexandra was fine.

Your life had continued on, as well—you took care of your ill grandparents until they died, helped your mother in the province, went to a good highschool, then earned your degree in another prominent city that wasn't Manila.

Your mom actually recommended that you go to school somewhere else, given the constantly rising number of attacks in the capital of the country. And so you did. Life was hard, but normal until then.

The funny thing was that, when you reached the age of twenty-one, you finally understood why those supernatural creatures kept looking at you weirdly as a kid (and why Lady Diwata liked you so much).

What was even funnier was that the dramatic revelation came to you when you weren't in the Philippines. It was after you freshly graduated college, when you were traveling all over Asia to volunteer in charity projects. It was always your dream to one day expand your horizons not only beyond your province, but the Philippines itself, while also doing good in the world.

And here you were, walking that path you dreamt of.

The organization you luckily managed to become a member of provided everything you needed, and every few months, you would move from country to country. Because of that, you'd already been able to travel to so many places. First it was Thailand, then Indonesia, China, South Korea, India, Japan, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Malaysia, and currently, you were in Vietnam. Visiting those places was fun and gave you a whole new perspective of the world you lived in; it was a... learning experience, too.

Still, that incident happened when you were in Thailand, when you were the last one in the rented apartment balcony taping up the boxes for the donation drive tomorrow. Yawning, you cut more duct tape and stuck them to the open boxes tightly.

"Inday," someone said from behind you. You didn't bother turning around, thinking it was one of your fellow volunteers looking for you this late at night. Probably your roommate. She was the only one who usually called you by your nickname instead of your real name.

"Hmm?" you hummed, taping up more boxes. "Papasok na ako sa kwarto, Lyn. I just have a few more boxes to close. Alam mong mapapagalitan ako kung may hindi madidistribute bukas."

"Hindi ako si Lyn."

You paused, then slowly turned around, flinching at the sudden bright light that shone right against your eyes. For a moment, akala mo namatay ka na at hinaharap mo si San Pedro.

It was a glowing figure in white whose face you couldn't clearly see, which frightened you even more.

"Ay, mama!" you exclaimed, shielding your eyes and falling to your knees. Then, you gasped loudly, patting your body and panicking with closed lids. "Oh my God, am I dead? Nasa heaven na po ba ako?" Your lips wobbled. "Ngayon pa nga lang ako nakaalis ng Pilipinas... I haven't even done all the things I've wanted to do! Hindi pa ako nakapagpaalam sa nanay ko—aray!"

You'd felt something hit the back of your head. Hard. It was the glowing figure in white, but now you could see their unimpressed face scowling at you.

"Kalma lang, Inday. Hindi ka pa patay, pero makinig ka nang mabuti," they shushed you urgently (you weren't sure if they were male or female). "Do not be afraid. I am a messenger from the heavens, and I bear great news!"

"Great news...?" you trailed off, then your eyes widened excitedly. "Like, nanalo ba ako ng lotto? Isang milyon? Bilyon? Hala! Wait, is this a Mama Mary moment? I'm not ready to be the next immaculate conception!"

They glared at you, making you shut up instantly. "Sorry, I'll shut up now," you apologized with a mumble. This person (thing?) was kind of... strict. Whatever did you do wrong? You were just sleep-deprived and running on energy drinks (as well as kape).

"I have come to tell you that you are the vessel of the last skymaiden," they revealed, arms wide open. The light around them seemed to grow even brighter, making you squint. You felt like you were about the go blind! "Ikaw ang huling biraddali, Y/N L/N."

At ayun, zero brain cells remaining. Tunay na nagloading screen ang brain mo. Nag-error at nagcrash pa nga siguro, eh.

"... Ha? Ano?"

You blinked, completely speechless—as seen by how wide your jaw had dropped open. It wasn't that you were unfamiliar with the biraddali, it was just that you'd only heard of them once when you were just a young child. Your Tita Miranda had mentioned they were long gone from the world of the supernatural.

"Oh no, me? A biraddali? You're joking," you stuttered out, pointing at yourself. "Aren't they extinct or something? And, uh... not human?"

They nodded, "Yes. It is correct that everyone in the mystical world thought that the biraddali were long gone, even before the colonizers came to conquer the native lands. However, before the skymaidens all disappeared, the youngest and most powerful one among the seven sisters sealed her soul away to the rivers of time until the strength of a heavenly being was needed to help purify the evils of the world." The figure floated closer to you. "That last biraddali's soul, along with its corresponding power, traits, and knowledge, had chosen to reside deep within you the moment you were conceived."

Honestly, how were you even supposed to react? Your life was nowhere near ready for something like this. Was this a prank by your friends? Your colleagues? The light around this person seemed too authentic to be fake, though.

You stayed in shock for an entire minute, silent. The being in front of you only waited for a response.

"Ano 'to, Sailor Moon? Winx Club?" you whispered to yourself, before slapping your own cheek and scolding yourself. A stinging red mark was left on your face. "Inday, kakamanhwa mo 'yan! Nasosobraan ka na ata, matulog ka na!"

Sighing heavily, you rubbed your face tiredly, still in disbelief that you—according to this stranger—were apparently some old soul from a species of ethereal beings that were long gone. It sounded like something out of those reincarnation webnovels you got addicted to. What now, you were the MC? Wattpad ka, girl?

"Look, this is a mistake. I still have to wake up early tomorrow to give out the donations," you spoke to the glowing being (or whatever it was), laughing nervously. "I'm sorry, but I think you have the wrong person. Either that or I must be hallucinating from sleep deprivation, because I'm definitely not a divine creature. You're probably just a product of my imagination. Sorry, I'm going to bed."

Bang!

At that moment, the power in the building went out. The only thing you could see was the thing who assumed you were a biraddali (they were so bright they were like a flashlight in the dark for you).

"Brownout?" you blinked. It felt wrong, though. It was eerily silent. "Did a fuse blow up?"

"Nagsimula na ang iyong unang pagsubok, Y/N," they announced seriously. "Creatures of the dark have already begun to take over this building. You may not have noticed, but all throughout your life, you have always been helping and giving. It is your nature as a being descended from the heavens themselves, and now, it is time for you to accept your destiny."

"Hoy, sandali lang! Sandali, sandali!" You were absolutely wide awake now as you heard the sounds of strange whispers around you. It was terrifyingly creepy, much creepier than whatever you'd seen back in the Trese Residence (and you'd seen a lot in that house). You did not want to be a part of a horror movie-like lifestyle. "Don't I have a choice in this?! I—I don't have any training or fighting skills! Hindi ako Alexandra Trese o Babaylan-Mandirigma! I'm not ready for this, holy sh—"

The candescent creature raised a brow at you, "Inday, I just told you that you have the power of a lost mystical being. And tell me, if you had the power to save your companions in this building from the forces of evil, would you save them?"

You were silent, knowing the answer.

"Well?" they prodded.

You bit your lip, "Oo naman. I'm not heartless!" But you were a little impulsive. And apparently, insane.

"That's what I thought. I just need you to believe in yourself," the being encouraged, gentler this time. It transformed into something smaller and rounder—like a ball of light. "Ikaw ang huling biraddali, Y/N, at marami kang kapangyarihan. Isa dito ay ang pagtulong sa mga nangangailangan, lalo na laban sa masasamang nilalang."

Bestie, what had you just gotten into?

You swallowed apprehensively, then nodded in determination, "Sige. So, how do I save the people in the building? Biraddali were said to be able to shapeshift, right? If I remember the tale correctly. Oh my God, I can't believe this is happening to me right now."

"That's just one of your abilities, but I'll teach you. I'm actually your guide," they replied confidently. "With me, you'll be able to master your powers and exceed your capabilities in no time!"

"Wait! Anong pangalan mo?" you asked breathlessly, following them as they speedily flew out of the room. "Grabe, slow down! I'm not athletic! I haven't even exercised this week, goodness."

"... Gabay. Ako si Gabay."

Despite the adrenaline and fear running in your veins, you still grinned up at the ball of light, "Okay. Nice to meet you, Gabay."

This was just the beginning of your supernatural combat training abroad. When you returned to the Philippines three years later, you were stronger, faster, and more powerful than you'd ever felt before. It was crazy.

Oh, that guy who tried to rob you when you came back to Manila was crazy, too. The two identical-looking men in dark suits and white ties—you wondered how they were surviving the heat in that attire—could only watch in awe as you chased down that man who stole your bag while doing acrobatics and parkour.

"Uy, Kuya Crispin, sino kaya 'yun?"

"Ewan ko, Basilio."

"... She's kind of pretty. Type ko. Type mo rin ata."

"The more important question is, paano niya na nahuli ang magnanakaw?"

"Oo nga, no? One in a million chance 'yan dito sa Maynila, haha! Ang astig ni ate!"

(Next Chapter.)

± Author's Notes ±

Ayieee, type daw tayo ng kambal! 😌

How the hell did I write this entirely random thing in one day? 2k+ words? Ano daw? 😃⁉️

You know, this was supposed to just be a Trese one-shot or a bunch of drabbles for the characters I'm currently simping for... but it turned into a full-blown, shameless self-insert slash crackfic. Kakacellphone ko 'yan. 🤦‍♀️

Nagresearch pa ako ng articles about Filipino skymaidens because I wanted something similiar to the Japanese celestial maidens (tennyo). Very random idea but why not? Gusto ko ng badass Y/N na hindi takot lumaban sa mga mumu! 👻

Also, pagbigyan niyo nalang ang matandang 'to kasi ilang taon na akong hindi nagpopost ng mga writings ko. May track record pa naman ako bilang author na hindi nagtatapos ng mga fanfic, hehe. I also haven't read the comics so please forgive me for any inaccuracies and of course, misspellings/errors. Gusto ko lang matapos 'to para makakabalik na ako sa Jujutsu Kaisen. 🥲😗

Anyways, comments and constructive criticism are welcome! Hit those heart, reblog, and follow buttons for updates! Just comment if you want to be tagged in the next chapters. ❤

[buckybarnesthehotshot]

Reunion (Alexandra Trese x Reader)

gif not mine    |main masterlist|

summary: Alexandra reunited with an old friend (based off this request)

word count: 1068

warnings: Sharp objects? Conyoness from the kambal, I don’t proofread stuff

a/n: i have a trese taglist, just send an ask to be added :))

        “Hank? Where are you going?” Alexandra questioned, watching as Hank, dressed up in what he would call his ‘best’ clothes, heading out the house.

        “Oh! Alexandra, you should come with me,” Hank insisted, an excited smile on his face as Alexandra gave a confused look, still not understanding where Hank was trying to drag her to.

         “Wait, where are you going?”

          “It’s a surprise, Alexandra. Now, if you want to change your clothes, go ahead. Heck, tell the Kambal to tag along as well. I’m sure you’ll all like this surprise,” Hank urged her, earning a small nod from Alexandra before she shook her head abruptly.

           “But what if a case comes up? I need to make sure I’m in the city if something happens,” Alexandra stated firmly as Hank chuckled.

          “You know, bossing, you’re too dedicated to your work. Besides, we’ll be close enough to the city in case anything happens. I’m sure you’ll enjoy this surprise.”

           “Alright. But if anything happens and I don’t get there fast enough—”

          “You’ll have dragon’s blood. I don’t think you’ll have to worry about traffic then.”

          “Fine. I’ll go call the kambal,” Alexandra nodded, making her way towards the twins’ rooms. It came as no surprise to her when she found each of them fast asleep. She couldn’t blame them, though. They all had a pretty rough night prior to that.

           She shook them both awake, and of course, their first responses—well, besides trying to shake Alexandra off—were to ask her, “There’s a new case already, bossing?”

           And to which, she would respond with an explanation of how Hank wanted to bring them somewhere as a surprise. The twins were more than pleased to hear that. A day out with Hank was a welcome break from all the fighting and cases.

          Alexandra found herself opting to wear something more “dressed up” compared to her usual attire. If Hank was wearing his best clothes, she figured it wouldn’t hurt her to do the same. She threw on a black t-shirt, pairing it with a pair of black trousers, and a black blazer. She took a look at herself in the mirror, letting out a chuckle at how her clothes reminded her of what Crispin and Basilio would usually wear. Of course, with her own personal touches to it…like the vial of Dragon’s blood tucked into the pocket of the blazer.

         “Bossing, are you guys ready?” Hank questioned, taking in the difference in Alexandra’s appearance as she and the twins headed into the living room. Alexandra gave a cut nod as Hank led them into his car as he took the wheel.

          “Kuya, do you know where we’re going?” Basilio questioned, turning to Crispin with a confused expression on his face, “Even bossing got dressed up for this.”

         “Nope,” Crispin responded, watching as Basilio stuck his head out to the front.

         “Hank, where are we going?”

         “If you must know, we’re going to meet up with someone in BGC,” Hank responded curtly as Basilio slumped back into his seat in the back, an excited expression on his face.

         “Uy pare, we’re like parang going to BGC daw oh,” Basilio quipped, watching as a smile slowly made its way to his brother’s face.

          “Ay gago, pare. BGC? Pare, pero ang init dun, bro,” Crispin responded, holding in his laughter. In almost no time, it was as though Crispin and Basilio were both trying to out-conyo each other, every statement more outrageous than the other.

         At some point into the ride, Alexandra found herself welcoming the warm feeling of a nap. The traffic on the way to Bonifacio Global City giving her more than enough time to wake up feeling well-rested when Hank parked the car in front of one of the Filipino restaurants in BGC.

        “Reservation under l/n?” Hank questioned, when the hostess asked if they had a reservation. The hostess nodded, leading them to a table where a woman had been waiting for them, her head tilted down and facing her own phone.

         Hank cleared his throat and the woman looked up, an excited expression on her face—it was a face Alexandra recognized immediately. It was y/n l/n, one of her friends before the trials of the Balete tree. The last time she’d heard of the girl was that she was in the states, finishing her studies.

         “y/n!” the twins exclaimed, getting a few odd looks from the other patrons at the restaurant when they rushed to y/n’s side.

         “You guys look so different!” y/n exclaimed excitedly, giving both the twins a hug before her gaze turned to Alexandra, “And Alexandra! Oh my god, it’s been so long since I’ve last seen you! How are you?”

          “I’ve been great—granted, keeping up with the Underworld isn’t exactly an ideal line of work to be in,” Alexandra let out a soft smile as y/n chuckled, ushering them into their seats.

         “I’m so sorry I haven’t been able to visit sooner. Work kept me pretty busy,” y/n smiled sadly as Crispin and Basilio sent her reassuring smiles.

         “It’s fine. You’re here now, aren’t you, ate?” Basilio smiled excitedly, eyeing the big paper bag y/n kept tucked beside her legs, “What’s in the bag?”

          y/n rolled her eyes, a bashful smile on her face as she brought out different things from her time in the States, “Some snacks, chocolate, souvenirs from all my other business trips. Every time I went somewhere, I always made sure to get you guys something in case I ever got to visit,” y/n smiled sentimentally, “And well, I’m here now, even if it’s for a business trip.”

        “I’m glad you’re here, though,” Alexandra smiled, unconsciously taking the seat next to y/n.

         “I’m really excited to be back, it’s been a long time,” y/n chuckled before excitedly pulling something out from her bag, “I don’t remember where I got this, but when I saw it I knew I just had to get it for you.”

           Alexandra took the box y/n handed her, pulling open the top to reveal an engraved dagger, every curve of it polished to perfection. She smirked, putting the knife down on the table and wrapping her arms around y/n.

         “I’m glad you like it. That knife took quite a bit of effort to get through customs,” y/n quipped as Alexandra gave her a smile, “Now, let’s go order something, I missed Filipino food.”

TRESE TAGLIST: @thatmultifandomloser​ / @sitherin-mxschief​ / 

[aeonghaseyo]

Around You

Summary: The actions of a street cat taught you to shoot your shot and approach the older Kambal. But it didn't necessarily mean you had to change into a cat yourself to get his attention. ...right?

Word Count: 1459 AO3 link

Relationships: Crispin x CatSigbin!Reader Category: F/M Characters: Manang Muning, Crispin, Basilio Languages used: English, Tagalog Author's Note: I saw @adarlingwrites's sigbin OC in her Tumblr and I thought, why not write a fic with a cat sigbin reader? And here we are. 'Sup Crispin simps, I dedicate this to you. I hc that he's fond of cats, but that will have to wait until the next chapter. Enjoy! Inspired by the song Around You by LOONA Hyunjin

Chapter 1

“Halika dito anak, kumain ka muna.”

Manang Muning’s hushed tone beckoning you to join her and the rest of her feline family for dinner gave you a sense of comfort amidst the turbulent feelings that stirred your being. Normally, someone like you, who thrive among the middle-class folk in Malate, would help themselves to a pint of ice cream just for love troubles. But then again, you couldn’t refuse freshly-cooked daing straight from the old woman herself, which was why you went to her stall that one peaceful evening.

Out of the need to seek comfort through food prepared by your favorite vendor by the church, you quickly wolfed down the pieces of smoked fish in your plate, of course trying not to ingest the spines that clung to the meat. It didn’t take long before Manang Muning noticed your troubled disposition mid-meal and placed a hand on your back soothingly.

“(Y/n), anak, parang nagdadalamhati ka yata,” she spoke, which got your heart fluttering in surprise.

After swallowing that one last bite of your meal, you turned to her and said, “Okay lang po ako Manang. Wala lang ‘tong iniisip ko.”

Another wave of surprise caught you on your toes when Manang Muning once again asked, “Tungkol ba ito kay Crispin?”

Eyes widened, you mustered a quick response that turned into yet another question, “P-paano niyo po nalaman?”

Your inquiry made the old woman laugh heartily while a tuxedo cat nearby sauntered towards her, nudging her forearm to ask for more pets. As she let the cat settle on her lap, Manang Muning finally replied, “Anak, malapit ang loob natin sa isa’t-isa. Tuwing nakikita ko ang paningin mo, parati kong nakikita ang pagmumukha ng lalaking yun. Mukhang sinusundan mo yata pagkatapos mong samahan ang aking mga pusa kapag malapit sila sa pinanggalingan nila ng munting Trese.”

You didn’t think that every time you would be in your cat form tailing after Alexandra Trese and her adoptive twin brothers, your beloved old friend would tap into your vision just to see how you were doing. It was apparent that you weren’t bound to make advances of your own towards the trio in black, especially the short-haired twin, and even in plain sight you weren’t much noticeable. After all, who would pay mind to a small house cat, let alone think that it had emotions of its own?

Your heart sinking within your chest, you let your head bow down and your eyes closed as you dwelled in your disappointment. Trusting in Manang Muning, you let out the woes that plagued you that involved you, Crispin, your habit of stalking him whenever he’s nearby, and how you couldn’t get yourself to approach him and let him know you exist.

A chuckle made its way through the old woman, then she wrapped her arm around you, squeezing the farthest arm of yours from her soothingly and began to impart advice of her own. “Anak, talagang hindi mo makukuha yung taong gusto mo kapag naghihinayang ka masyado. Talagang kailangan mo siyang lapitan para mapansin ka niya.”

It didn’t help that whenever Manang Muning would soothe you with advice of her own in such a comforting manner that your eyes would tear up automatically. As you heard her tranquil voice speaking to you, your eyes were glossed with tears which also somewhat accumulated on your lower eyelids.

So you inadvertently looked like the puppy eyes emoji in Facebook Messenger when you looked at her and said, “Di ko po alam kung paano.”

“Anak,” Manang Muning calmly chided as she stroked the tuxedo cat who was nestled on her lap, “tignan mong mabuti itong alaga ko. Kanina, gusto niyang haplusin siya kaya niya hiningi ‘to sa akin. Hinaplos ko siya at hanggang ngayo’y hinehele ko siya gamit ang haplos ko. Alam mo kung bakit nakuha niya ang haplos na gustong-gusto niya?”

You glanced both at the cat in question and looked back at the old woman. It was then that you realized what you could do to charm the demigod you were yearning for.

---

From the way you held your ice cream cup as you feasted on the frozen dairy treat, you were nervous as hell, and it was very telling. You could have sworn that your ice cream permanently rendered your hands akin to popsicles as you stared at the dessert on your non-dominant hand. You knew what to do the next time you encounter Crispin, but how would you pull it off smoothly?

Remembering that one night when Manang Muning imparted a valuable lesson to you to limit your hesitations and shoot your shot with the demigod, you knew very well that she meant to tell you to just approach him. It didn’t mean she recommended you to change into your cat form and get his attention the way that other cat did to your beloved manang. But then again, it was your idea. You told her you were going to get Crispin’s attention as a cat. Everyone loves cats right? Besides, it was better than stalking your object of adoration from the alleys and in plain sight, even just as a regular house cat. (Or street cat? Technically, you did have a home.) Love really makes you come up with stupid ideas for sure.

Speak of the devil.

The demigod twins were right at your proximity, and you could tell from the ringing of the entrance door which revealed the both of them entering the premises. Basilio, the younger, long-haired twin, was chattering away while Crispin seemingly paid no mind to him. It seemed strange, however, that their Bossing was not with them. It didn’t take long for you to notice that you were staring at them as the older twin glanced at you for a moment, prompting you to look away and finish your ice cream. What you failed to see next was him smirking to himself before he went to the food aisle.

Your thoughts plagued you as you paused and stared at your now empty cup.

‘God, I can’t believe that shameless idea came to mind. If this backfires I’ll never find love again. Why is this so hard?!’

The stress that accompanied your thought made you unknowingly snap your tiny spoon in two with one hand. It did not help that since the twins were nearby, the sound was enough to make them notice, so their heads immediately turned to where you sat.

“Yikes, the spoon did nothing wrong,” said Basilio in a joking manner as he got a bag of chips from the display rack.

Clearing your throat, you muttered a "sorry" as you got up from where you were and walked to the cashier with your wallet in one hand, wishing to buy another cup of ice cream to calm yourself down. You immediately asked the cashier to serve you that same flavor of ice cream that you loved so much, but as you fished through your wallet for a smaller bill, you noticed that all you had was a 1000-peso bill. As soon as the young man behind the cash register handed you the frozen treat, you blurted out, "I'm sorry, I don't have a smaller bill, do you have change for 1000 pesos?"

The cashier, checking the cash register for enough money for your change, grimaced slightly as he said, "Sorry ma'am, we don't have enough change for that."

Your heart sank all the more as you realized you technically had nothing to pay with, but all of a sudden, you felt as if that heart of yours was caught and gently lifted up as someone handed the cashier the exact amount of money you were supposed to pay the him. You looked closely at the arm and the man it belonged to, and your heart skipped a beat as you noticed that it was actually Crispin who handed the money.

A blush formed on your cheeks as you thanked him for the treat. "I-I have to repay you that same amount next time, don't I?"

Crispin winked at you and replied, "Of course not. Unless you wanna see me again. Now go enjoy your ice cream before it melts."

That smooth motherfucker.

'Jokes on you. I'm the one who's melting, not the ice cream.'

You walked back to that same table you sat by, savoring your first small scoops of ice cream with a new spoon as you glanced back at your crush and his twin brother. By the looks of it, the younger twin seemed to be teasing his kuya, nudging him a few times with a shit-eating grin on his face. Maybe you finally got through to Crispin?

Now you began to second-guess turning into a cat to get his attention.

[thera-daydreams]

INDAY

± A Trese Fic ±

[Crispin/Basilio/Maliksi/Dominic x Skymaiden!Reader]

01: Noon at Ngayon (Link)

02: Ang Kambal na Anak ni Datu Talagbusao, Diyos ng Digmaan (Link)

03: Ang Prinsipe ng Mga Tikbalang (Link)

04: Ang Pinuno ng Mga Aswang (Link)

05: (Link) 06: (Link) 07: (✓)

07: Home

⚠️‼ Warning ‼⚠️

Contains your favorite smidge of angst, depression, mentions of suicide, more character death(s), around three paragraphs of horror because of the devil himself, and the author having a hard time writing the ending because she never usually finishes her fics (which is why this nearly 9K-word chapter took overly long to write). Bewaaaare! 👻

Hearing your words, their faces morphed into those of pure worry and dismay. You cautiously wrapped the blue cotton blanket tighter around your body, uncomfortable with so many strange yet familiar people—otherworldly creatures, actually, from the unusual auras you sensed from them—in the vicinity.

"Inday?" It was Gabay who spoke, manifesting as a sphere of white light. They floated closer towards you.

"Gabay?" you asked in a low voice, eyes darting from your mentor to the strangers. "Nasaan ako? Ba't nandito si Alex at si Manong? Sino 'yung ibang mga taong nandito?"

"You... don't remember, Y/N? They're your friends," Gabay clarified, reminding you of who the others were. "Mga kaibigan mo sila. Nandito ka na sa Maynila."

Concerned, Alexandra moved closer to you and sat on the bed, taking your hands in her own. "Y/N, you've been here with us for months. Dito ka na nga nakatira sa bahay ko. You even fight with us and accompany us on missions."

You blinked, "Us?"

"Nakalimutan mo na kami, Y/N? Ouch. Ang sakit mo naman magsalita." It was a man with dark scleras and short hair who spoke. He was wearing a black, fitted t-shirt over his torso and a pair of grey jogging pants.

"Oo nga, tama si Kuya. Binibilhan ka pa namin ng pagkain after every mission. You still owe me for that lumpia and batchoy, missy. Two-fifty ang utang mo." It was another man—identical to the one that first spoke, but with longer hair. He was clad in a white sando and some basketball shorts (you really did try to avert your eyes from his muscular biceps). However, their words stirred something in your foggy brain. You thought hard (evident when a vein popped in your temple)—you were starting to remember. You were in Manila. You were in the Trese residence. You were always helping Hank, Alex, and... oh. Ohhhh.

The twins. The sons of the wargod Datu Talagbusao whose names were the same as those of Rizal's characters. The ill-fated brothers; your friends whom you had a slight crush on since the day you first met them while chasing that snatcher. They were buying barbeque that afternoon, right?

"... Crispin? Basilio?" While you started recalling, your head began hurting. You tried to ignore the ache of your mind and body and turned to the other occupants in the room. There was another man with long hair, but he had a brown leather jacket on. His denim pants looked simple, but those car keys attached to one of the belt loops said otherwise (that logo was sportscar material). Rich. You were 100% sure it was—

"Maliksi?" You rubbed your bleary eyes as you recognized the tikbalang. Of course you would. He practically chased you down and led you in circles in his huge hotel before inviting himself to your breakfast. Oh, he bought you some real good kwek-kwek, too (which had become a frequent gift from him since you got to know one another). "Ba't ka nandito?"

He smirked at you, yet there was a spark of relief in his eyes as he walked closer to your bed. "Welcome back to the world of the living, sweetheart. Tinakot mo kaming lahat."

You tilted your head, trying to distract yourself from the pounding in your skull. It was getting stronger. "Huh? Bakit?"

"You've been out for almost five days. Of course you scared the shit out of us, woman." This time, it was a pale man who answered. Like two of the other men in the room, he also had long hair (much wavier and wilder compared to them, though). He seemed intimidating and cold, but those eyes of his reminded you of a certain dog that you—ah. Ahhhhh. You remembered him now. The Prince of the Aswang whom you first met as a dog.

"Dominic?" you rasped out. Behind him were two other aswang women; his loyal and devoted servants, Viatrix and Ursule (how the names came to you, you weren't entirely sure). A lady who had a Japanese, princess-style haircut rushed to your opposite side.

"Y/N! You had us so worried, dearie." What was her name again? Rebecca? Rhea? No, that wasn't right. You remembered that she was a manananggal. Dominic's sister. You saved her back then. Healed her. Was her name Ramona? No, no—that was the kambal's late mother. Rosalinda? Rabiya? Rayna? Oh, you were getting close. Very close. It was just at the tip of your tongue. Reyna Manananggal... what was her name?

"Regina!" you exhaled. "Okay... yeah, okay. I got it. Naaalala ko na konti. Pero bakit ba nandito kayo lahat? What's the occasion?"

"Y/N?" You could definitely recognize those voices, but it wasn't chipper and as happy as you remembered it to be. The wind... a wind spirit. Two wind spirits. You stared at the two taong hangin in worry.

"Hannah! Amie! You gals are here, too?" Hank was beside them, a sullen look on his face. You didn't understand. "Hank? Ba't ang lungkot mo tignan?"

Chewing his lip, he stayed quiet. You were missing something here, weren't you? Your brows furrowed in total cluelessness and frustration, "What are all of you not telling me!?"

Ba-dump.

Your eyes widened. For a moment, your heart skipped a beat and simply clenched. Just clenched. With how strong it was, you could hear your blood rushing—echoing in your ears. Your hands whizzed to reach out to your back, where you felt two slight bumps—stumps?—that weren't supposed to be there. They almost sizzled at your touch, too. And the pain... the wildfire. It all came rushing back to you now. The flames, the burning, the ripping, and the killing.

The killing.

"Inday, si Isagani..." Gabay tried to explain, but stopped. A single, lone tear dropped to the blanket on your lap, darkening it in one miniscule spot. Your face was suddenly void of any previous emotion. All of a sudden, you wished you were asleep again. You wished that you hadn't remembered anything at all.

"... Patay na siya, 'di ba?" you repeated to yourself. "Then... does that mean...?"

Alexandra pulled you into a tight hug, "I'm sorry, Y/N. Tita... she's not here anymore." So it wasn't a dream, then. Or a nightmare. Your mother was gone for good.

±

How much time had passed? A week. Yes, a week. You were fine. You were okay... or at least, you tried to be. You convinced yourself to be. Whatever the clan healers and Gabay did, the burning from losing your wings was gone, thankfully.

However, it was replaced by a void. A seemingly eternal absence that spread through every single fibre of your being. It was everywhere, and because of that, you felt like you were nowhere. Every single day seemed to lose its color, even if you forced yourself to try to spring back to your feet. The world kept spinning and you just watched as it kept going. It didn't stop. You tried not to stop. You hated having to stop; you were aware that the world didn't revolve around you. You tried to go back to normal; to keep smiling like how you used to while at the same time getting used to the fact that the most important person in your life was dead. Plus, you were back to being human again. A wingless biraddali was no biraddali. You'd learned that a long time ago. This time... the emptiness just seemed emptier than what happened eons ago.

Everyone around you seemed surprised that you'd gone back to functioning like a normal human the moment you could stand up and walk around; preferring to do things on your own. But they could tell something had changed. Of course it would. It was a given when you were dealing with personal loss. On the outside, you looked like an... operational human being. Yet, if anyone who knew you looked closer, your movements were robotic; living, but not living a life. Talk, eat, clean, bathe, sleep, repeat. All your actions and words were mechanical... almost rehearsed. Everyone in the household, as well as those who visited it, walked mostly on eggshells whenever your eyes had that conditioned, faraway glaze in them.

The first time your unhealthy coping mechanism concerned them was when you were cooking, a month after your recovery. It was Crispin who first noticed that something was very wrong. You had been chopping vegetables while he was boiling some hot water when you just... stopped, staring intently at the sharpened knife. No matter how many times he called your name, you didn't respond. He was worried you were planning on harming yourself with the knife. It was only when he touched your hand—the one holding the knife—that you snapped out of your stupor, blinking slowly.

"... Crispin, oh my God," you whispered, turning to him shakily. His eyes grew even more worried at seeing your rattled state. He held your shoulders tight, rubbing the sides comfortingly to keep you grounded to reality. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God..."

"Hey, hey, what's wrong? Masakit ba ang likod mo? Is it aching again?" he inquired in a soft, gentle voice, cupping your cheeks and wiping those pearly tears away. You continued to shake, the knife clattering to the floor as you pointed at the bright vegetables. You weren't thinking right from the overwhelming anxiety in your gut. Your head felt consecutive pangs on pain. It hurt again. But that wasn't what you were wholly focused on. Something else happened.

"I... I can't see it anymore. I can't... see it. The colors, they're gone. Why? Crispin, I'm scared. Oh my god... holy crap..."

He was speechless as you started crying.

"It... It just disappeared. Nawala lang siya. 'Yung mga gulay, bigla lang naging kulay-abo." You swallowed, searching his face for answers. They had none. "What's... What's wrong with me? Ano bang nangyayari sa akin? I don't understand!"

He shook his head hesitantly, "I'm sorry, I don't know. Tawagin natin si bossing at si Gabay. Maybe they can help. Maybe this is just a temporary side effect of losing your, uh, wings. Breathe."

You bit your lip, glancing at everything around you. It was all bleak and grey now. After remembering your mother's death, all the colors had dulled, but you thought that was just your grief affecting your vision. Now, it was just completely black and white. It terrified you. This had never happened before. "Hindi... Hindi naman 'to nangyari dati 'nung ninakaw ang pakpak ko."

Crispin had no idea how to respond. Turns out, that was just the first of many trials to come.

±

After you lost the color in your vision, no healer or spirit, including Gabay, could make you regain it. The nights, too, had become increasingly hard for the members of the Trese residence. It was painful to sleep when almost every night, you would wake up screaming from nightmares and there was absolutely nothing they could do to help you.

Tonight, you were frantically shrieking in your sleep again. It was high-pitched; full of terror and pain, like you were getting stabbed by a murderer. Maybe you were. Usually, it would be Alexandra who'd help, but she and Crispin were out visiting Kapitan Guerrero for a case. Gabay was with another clan healer of Lady Diwata's in Visayas, still searching for a cure for whatever had taken your color vision. The Babaylan-Mandirigma had instructed Basilio to stay behind to protect you should anything happen, and it was him who ran to your room first, seeing you writhe and cry, unable to escape whatever you were feeling. Hank had followed, but after seeing that the younger demigod brother had run into your room, he let you two be with a sigh.

When did you even last sleep peacefully?

"Y/N? Y/N," Basilio called out, briskly sitting on your bed and shaking you awake. You woke up with a jolt, wheezing, clawing at your clammy skin and panting heavily—pale and sweaty from the adrenaline... the fear. He was prepared for this (with how bad all the previous nights had gone), so he'd brought a face towel to wipe your cold sweat away. If you were in the right mind, you would've appreciated his sweet gesture. But you weren't. You were going insane.

"The needles... the bugs," you sobbed, still half-asleep, scratching your arms until red lines appeared. Basilio held your wrists to stop you from hurting yourself more. "So itchy... t-there's so m-many... andami nila... they're all c-crawling over my body... hindi a-ako makasalita... o m-makahinga... at—"

"I'm here, I'm here." Basilio pulled you into a tight hug, rocking you in his arms. "There are no bugs and needles. Ligtas ka dito."

"N-Nandun siya, Basilio," you hiccuped. "Naghihintay s-siya sa akin. Sabi n-niya malapit na d-daw ang panahon k-ko. Naghihintay s-siya."

The wargod's son knew exactly who you were talking about. Hell, from all your nightmares, he and Crispin had begun calling the psychopath McBangungot. Inside, his blood boiled. Even in death, Isagani still wouldn't let you go, would he? Right now, he didn't care that his shirt was soaked with your tears and snot. He wanted to shoot somebody. Or stab them. Perhaps he could ask his bossing if there was a spell that allowed people to enter dreams so that he could end your nightmares once and for all.

"Natatakot a-ako, B-Basilio. I can't... I can't b-breathe..." You closed your eyes. Every time you did, you could see Isagani, just smiling that wretched smile of his and waiting for you with arms outstretched. Then you would see your mother, skin rotting and bones showing as that disease ravaged her from within.

Ravaged you from within.

That was what was happening to you now, wasn't it? When Isagani had your wings ripped and decimated, he'd done something to you. His deal with Sitan had done something to you. Every single day, you grew weaker and weaker. You felt your life practically slipping from your fingers every minute.

Gabay was right. Having your wings stolen and having your wings torn out were two very different conversations.

After grabbing a paper bag from the kitchen and helping you breathe into it, Basilio stayed with you that night, quietly singing a lullaby his mother used to sing to them before she passed away. He held you until you forced yourself to sleep.

±

You were getting worse. That much, he could tell when he visited you again after two weeks away because of business. Dominic entered your room, already sensing the atmosphere of illness and gloominess even before he opened the door. The airconditioner was on, but even the aswang prince felt a coldness which was far beyond what could be felt through temperature.

You were propped up on the bed with a pillow on your back, an oxygen mask over your nose and mouth as you scrolled down your phone, the blue light emitting from it making the hollowness of your cheeks sicklier. Noticing he entered, you turned your phone off and placed it by your side, weakly smiling at him, "Oreo."

Ah, you still called him that stupid dog nickname. He wondered how someone in your state could still even smile. Humans truly were strange and too fragile. If they previously thought you'd lost weight from not getting sleep before Isagani kidnapped your mother, you were a whole new level of skinny now. Practically just skin and bone.

Your state was distressing; almost disgusting.

"... You look like crap," was the first thing the aswang leader told you. He sat on a chair by the bed. Of course, you rolled your eyes.

"Been a while since I last saw you, Oreo," you retorted playfully. He snorted, but didn't comment on the nickname. He wasn't arguing or fighting with you much lately; he really didn't want to stress you out even more. "What brings you to this humble abode?"

Dominic frowned deeply, "The Lakan said you can't see colors anymore and that you've been having difficulty breathing lately. You're not sleeping, says the youngest son of the wargod." He glanced at the oxygen tank nearby. "Nabubulok ka lang, biraddali. Have they still not found a cure to whatever disease this is?"

You shook your head, not looking him in the eye, "Whatever Isagani planted in me, I know it's spreading... and that we can't stop it."

"So that's it?" Dominic asked, almost incredulously. Okay, maybe he still argued with you a little. He couldn't help it; some of your decisions were just... illogical. "Sumusuko ka na?"

Your eyes narrowed at his sudden change in tone, "What choice do I have?"

"You can't just give up, Y/N!" he exclaimed. He expected you to get angrier, but you did the opposite. You calmed down, and even adjusted the pillow so that you were lying flat down.

"Dominic, you don't understand," you sighed exhaustedly. "I... lost my mom... and my wings. The latter is like a death sentence to me already and add that with whatever Isagani did to me." You raised your hand, the veins on your waxy, wiry palms much more prominent that it was before. "Wala na akong gana, Dom. It's useless to struggle, so why resist?"

"You're right. I don't understand," he spoke, sitting back down and scowling. "But this isn't right... you just... just waiting to die."

"It's okay. We all die at some point," you closed your eyes. "It'll be fine."

"The Lakan is your best friend, right? You can't just leave her alone," Dominic tried to convince you. "You'll be leaving so many people behind. People who care for you. Your teacher and that human man, Hank, right? At 'yung siraulong kambal at tikbalang na 'yun. Then Regina and even Viatrix and Ursule are fond of you."

"... And are you?" you pressed. He blinked at you, not understanding. A mischievous smile crept up your lips. "Are you fond of me, too?"

Silence.

Then, when you thought it was impossible, the aswang leader's ears became pink. He sputtered indignantly, scoffing as he tried to hide his embarrassment, "A-Anong pinagsasabi m-mo!? Siraulo ka din pala, biraddali. This is no time for jokes."

You waved it off, laughing softly, "I'm just kidding, Dominic. 'Wag mo nang isipin 'yan."

Suddenly, you removed the oxygen mask from your nose as you were thrown into a rough coughing fit. There was something creeping up in your throat—thick and viscous. You could taste the iron in your nose and throat. Covering your mouth, you hacked your lungs out. Dominic immediately stood up, rubbing your back to ease the pain. Neither of you expected blood to come dribbling down your mouth and nose, as well as the greenish black substance that was very similar to the miasma that Isagani had once used to kill supernatural creatures.

"Shit," Dominic cursed, looking for a spare towel. "Has... Has that happened before?"

Wide eyes staring at the tar-like mix of blood and liquid miasma you'd coughed out into your hand, you trembled, "No. Never." Your chest began to feel strange, and before you knew it, you were coughing out even more the next couple of minutes. Hank had quickly come in to help you and Dominic with the mess you'd made (the twins and Alex were out on another investigation, unfortunately). Plus, you'd barely even seen Gabay from how busy they were trying to search for a cure. When your coughing fits were done, your entire bed and the front of your body looked like a crime scene.

"... That's... an abnormal amount of blood you threw up," Dominic muttered. Even he, an aswang who regularly feasted on human innards, found that there was something wrong with the way the blood smelled. It wasn't normal. It smelled like foul sickness and death. The disease was too aggressive.

This was worse than he expected.

±

Every month since the tikbalang prince met you, he would treat you out to streetfoods and of course, the legendary kwek-kwek that made him stumble into you in the first place. Your strange sickness didn't change that. Unfortunately, the disease was stealing too much from you. You had lost your color vision, you would randomly feel as if bugs were crawling on your skin (sometimes, needles digging into it), and you would go into traumatic coughing fits, spitting out blood and miasma every once in a while—rendering you unable to properly breathe at times.

"They weren't lying when they said you looked like shit. You look even worse than last time," Maliksi muttered, helping you sit up while placing the bowl of kwek-kwek on the nightstand. Behind him, the twins snorted. A sleepless Alexandra was reading a book (about magic and illnesses; probably still looking for a cure to what was happening to you) while Gabay was in the form of a white cat at the end of your bed. The air in the room was somber... sterile. Dominic had allowed some medical equipment from the aswang abortion clinic to be transferred to your room; you refused to go to the hospital (knowing they probably wouldn't be able to treat you), but should anything happen, at least you had a few stuff that could maybe help.

You had grown impossibly thinner, your eyes slightly bulging out from your sockets from how tight your skin was to the bones. Your cheeks had become hollower, and the dark bags under your eyes hadn't found any rest since the night you saw Isagani in that restaurant. Strands of hair had fallen aside as Maliksi helped you up, revealing to him your slimmed neck and part of the back of the hospital gown they had dressed you in. The bones of your spine were protruding; whatever was happening to you was leeching off your life force day by day.

Maliksi wondered if you'd even last a week at this point.

"God, it's strange to see those neon orange balls so... grey," you rasped out, looking at the kwek-kwek he'd bought.

"Can you eat them? And keep food down?" Maliksi asked, concerned. You slowly nodded, removing the oxygen mask from your face.

"Don't force it, Y/N," Alexandra spoke up, closing her book. "You nearly puked out the chicken we served you for lunch."

"Nearly," you pointed out with emphasis, for once excited to eat as you saw the kwek-kwek. You happily popped a quarter of it into your mouth, chewing carefully. You continued to chew, sensing something different and smelling the snack.

"Is there something wrong?" Basilio and Crispin simultaneously asked.

"Do you want sauce? I brought some, too," Maliksi said, pulling out a tupperware of it out of nowhere (likely some horse magic). You nodded, dipping the kwek-kwek into the sauce before popping another bit into your mouth.

"Gabay, can... can you try this for me?" you requested your mentor. The cat complied, taking a slice of the fried eggy goodness into their small mouth.

"Mm, tastes good. Tastes like sweet kwek-kwek," your guardian spirit commented. "A little spicy. I don't find anything wrong with it though, Inday."

"Then... there's something wrong with me. Not the food," you realized, swallowing the remnants of food into your mouth and smelling the kwek-kwek. You set the bowl down on the nightstand, chewing on your cheek. "Gabay, wala... Wala akong malasahan o maamoy. I can't taste it. I can't even smell it now." You put on your oxygen mask and deeply inhaled the air in it. "I can't. Even the smell of antiseptic and clean air is gone. Gone. Just like how my color vision went."

As your shoulders shook, slumping down on your bed, Alexandra ran towards you and comforted you with her presence. But you hated the fact that you could no longer smell the fragrant antibacterial soap from her skin and the familiar fruity scent of her hair. The rest of the occupants in the room could only watch in pity at the scene unfolding before them.

"Putanginang gagong 'yon," Crispin muttered from where was sitting beside Basilio. His younger brother growled, "Sugurin nalang kaya natin ang Kasanaan, Kuya. Can we teleport there or something?"

"Only the sinful dead can go to Kasanaan," Crispin replied with a sigh. He hated what was happening to you. No one innocent deserved this. "Pero bossing, baka pwede mong tanungin si Emisaryo kung paano natin makikita si Sitan o si Isagani."

"I don't think that's how it works. We can't mess with afterlife stuff like that," Maliksi interjected, shaking his head. Being older than the twins, he had a little more knowledge about this than them. "But if you guys are gonna try, sasama ako sa inyo. I'll help kill him twice."

"I"ve... actually asked, but Emi isn't... sure," Alexandra replied, still determined as she tried soothing you. "Did Dominic or the other aswang call? And what about Hannah and Amie?"

"Still no news this morning, same as Gabay's progress," Crispin shook his head. "Regina and Dominic have used their many connections already, but none of them have any clue what the disease is. They called me yesterday. And Amie already tried spreading the message across the other angkan outside Manila with Hannah, but still, nothing."

At this point, you just wanted it over with. You didn't mind dying, but getting every sense taken away from you as you awaited your slow, painful death? In your mind, there was just only one thought: saksakin niyo nalang ako. This shitty life wasn't worth it.

Right at that moment, you felt a twinge of pain in your stomach. Before you knew it, more blood and miasma began spewing from your lips. With her quick reflexes, your best friend grabbed the basin kept under your bed while you vomited out the poison and dead blood cells. It was a common sight now, but it never got easier for any of you.

±

Wires, tubes, and tanks everywhere. Almost four months after the incident with Isagani, you'd finally gotten to the point where you were hooked up on various devices in your room (you felt that Mal and Dom probably pulled some strings to get this stuff inside). You spent most of your time just trying to sleep now—and even that was a challenge for you. Your vision was duller, you couldn't breathe without manual assistance, you couldn't smell anything, you couldn't taste anything, you couldn't even keep solid food down. Then the puking.

You were miserable. Absolutely fucking miserable. All that was left for you to sense—to feel—was your misery and grief over your mother's passing and the loss of your wings. You had become bedridden; unable to stand up with your weakened, feeble muscles. You could only dwell on the unbearable pain within you.

Had you lost hope? Yeah. You did. Long ago. As you stared into the plain ceiling above you, you couldn't help but wonder if this was part of Isagani's revenge for you leaving him. Why hadn't he taken you yet? You were ready; anything to end this life which couldn't even be called a life. You hated your situation. You didn't even want an afterlife anymore or to be reborn or reincarnated again. You just wanted to disappear into nothingness. Living was too difficult. Assisted suicide or euthanasia sounded like a reaaaaally good idea.

As much as you wanted to join Team Trese again, you couldn't. And you could only usually talk to either Gabay or Hank about whatever investigations they were having while they were gone. You couldn't remember much now... just something about a freaky mayor doing some shady stuff in Bilibid while—

Beep. Beep. Beeeeeeeeep.

Oh. The EKG monitor beside you flatlined. What great timing while you thought about death. Your last thought was whether Gabay would find you dead after they came back from getting you a fresh pair of sheets and pillowcases downstairs. Your last sight?

Two dark shadows covering the room in total blackness. One of them appeared on your right side, kissing your knuckles, "I'm here, mahal. It's time for us to go."

The other one—larger and much taller—leaned over you as your heart pumped for the last time, his dark scleras poring over your features. A god.

"Hello there, biraddali." Sitan's smiled practically reached his eyes. "Ah, your friends would be very surprised to see this right after sealing Talagbusao away."

With that, your life ended.

±

The fight was done. It was over. Everyone gathered where the Puno ng Balete was, tired from the battle with the wargod who'd been getting on their nerves for the past few supernatural cases. Everyone was present to assist the Babaylan-Mandirigma and the Kambal in their cause: ang Prinsipe ng mga Tikbalang, ang Pinuno ng mga Aswang, ang Reyna-Manananggal, mga taong hangin, Kapitan Guerrero, and more of their allies.

"Tapos na," Alexandra panted, having gone through the Dragon's Gate. She was still a bit bothered by what Talagbusao had monologued regarding her late sister and father, but who knew how much lies he was spewing?

It was when everything had calmed down that the Emissary suddenly appeared in a flurry of moths before everyone. She approached the Babaylan-Mandirigma, then bowed, startling her lover. "Ibu, the Goddess of Death, asks for your assistance, Lakan ng Sangkatauhan. It is a matter of great urgency. Paumanhin, but we must hurry."

The Lakan's eyes widened at her girlfriend, who would only usually bow and address her with her titles when it was regarding supernatural matters. About their... jobs. "May nangyari ba, Emisaryo?"

The others watched as the woman with a veil lifted her head, her mouth tight in a grim line, "I am afraid that the last biraddali has passed away recently."

There was a period of stunned silence amongst the onlookers.

"No, no... that... that can't be true. Just now?" Alexandra whispered in denial. "Hank or Gabay would have called to inform us, at least!"

"Holy shit," Maliksi mumbled, completely shocked. He knew and had tried to prepare for your death—all of the people present here did—but no matter how much you tried to prepare and accept death, it would always shake you. From beside him, the aswang prince and the wargod's twin sons had more or less the same reaction.

"... Ngayon lang?" Dominic mumbled to his sister, who was also startled by the news.

"That is what is strange, Alexandra," the Emisaryo explained. Through her powers, she was able to summon a portal from their current location to the Trese residence. On the floor of your room was an unconscious Hank. "I only found this human in the residence... as well as the biraddali's—" She paused, feeling the sullen atmosphere as they passed through the portal. "—cadaver. But her soul is nowhere to be found, which is unusual. There had been an intruder."

Your dead body lay on the bed. To the untrained eye, it simply looked like you were asleep, finally at peace after everything you had gone through. But for people who dealt with the supernatural on the daily (and were members of the mundo ng mga kababalaghan), there was a disturbance in the room. Someone had been in it.

"Bwiset, pumunta ata si McBangungot dito," Basilio hissed, jaw clenched as he saw that you were now lifeless. You were like a doll, limbs splayed out strangely. You weren't supposed to be like that. You were supposed to be healthy, active, and happy!

"Meron din siyang kasama," Crispin sensed as he helped his brother move the knocked out Hank to the sofa in your room. "Isang diyos. The energy is all... bad and icky, too. Iba siya sa ama namin."

"Malamang si Sitan," Regina finally said something, trying not to look at your skeleton-like form on the bed. She'd seen hundreds of corpses but yours was one of the worst. "Who else would it be? We just sealed Talagbusao away."

"We... can try to track their trails with the wind," Hannah offered, opening the windows. Amie nodded along with her, using their powers to revert to their air-like form. They flew out into the open.

"Si Gabay? Sinama din siya?" Dominic asked, the usual scowl on his face deeper. As dead as he was, he didn't want to see you dead, too. He turned to his two loyal servants, silently signalling to them to help the wind women in searching for a trail. Ursule and Viatrix gave a solemn nod, then quickly vanished in a blur.

"Unlike Talagbusao, I have no idea what Sitan is like," Alexandra quietly said, sitting on your bedside and holding your hand. Inwardly, she was angry at herself for not being there in your last moments. She had spent those moments being taunted and provoked by a wargod about her past. Now, her present—her best friend—was gone, too.

"I must say, today has been quite an interesting day."

Guns, arrows, a knife, and a pair of claws were pointed at the new voice. They hovered before your corpse protectively. Sitan—looking inhumanly handsome just like the Bible's Lucifer—raised his hands in surrender, chuckling at their reactions.

"Relaaaax. I'm just here to watch the end of the show," he defended, an impish smirk on his face as black apparitions scattered in the room. "Your precious biraddali and her guardian spirit are all safe and sound. I'm letting them speak as of the moment." Sitan glanced at the Emisaryo, waving his hand at her. "Ah! Ibu's Emissary. Here for a soul already, so punctual, as always. You'll get the soul scheduled today, no worries."

The others didn't let their guard down nor release their defensive positions. Sitan scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Oh, please. So testy, every single one of you. I can taste so much negativity in here."

"How do we know you're not lying about Y/N?" Maliksi challenged.

"Well, that is up to you, mortals and immortals," he hummed. "I've already gained my prize and my part of the deal. Isang napakasamang kaluluwa ang nakuha ko sa araw na ito. I'm in a very good mood, if you haven't noticed. Hindi ko na nga isinama ang apat na alagad ko dito. You should be thankful I'm offering peace."

In his hand materialized a miniature version of a soul, particularly, a certain someone they knew and loathed. Isagani.

"You liar! You said that if I ripped her wings out, I could be with her in the afterlife!" Isagani's soul snarled in the palm of the god's hand. "You promised that in death, we would be together! Pinangako mo 'yan sa akin!"

Sitan grinned—he really did look like a creepy Cheshire cat. "I did, naive one. I let you be with her in death. In the afterlife. Nagsama naman kayo."

"For what, thirty damn minutes!? Puta!" Isagani screeched, his miniature soul practically in flames. The same flames you felt when he inflicted that disease on you while tearing off your wings. The same flames that were born from Kasanaan, the village of suffering. The same flames that came from Sitan himself. "You tricked me! Niloko mo ako!"

"Niloko?" Sitan slyly tutted. "Ah, but it was never stated in our agreement centuries ago how long you two would be together. You should've specified you wanted to be together in death forever."

"No!" Isagani refused. "This wasn't our deal!"

"I gave you the power to take what you wanted in exchange for your soul. If I recall, you had no money or blood sacrifice to give," Sitan cooed, changing his face into a grinning baby's (frankly, the others were disturbed at the sight). He reverted his face back into an adult man's. "I told you to cause some anarchy here and there... to keep me entertained... and you did. Well done," he mocked. "Are you not pleased with the success of our contract?"

"Bullshit!"

He turned to the spectators, who couldn't believe he just easily reduced Isagani—who nearly killed them all and practically killed you from the inside-out—into a filthy, sobbing mess. To Sitan, it was as effortless as breathing. "See, kids? This is why you never make a deal with the devil." His face morphed into something more horrific; burnt, scarred, and decaying as he stared at the people you deemed friends. Sitan was something out of a horror movie (and that was saying a lot given their identities and occupations). "The terms and conditions can be so... easily twisted. The devil always find a loophole... you get what you want, but you lose what you have." Sitan's voice became childish, sending chills down their spine. "Ehehehehe, hihihihi, hahaha, ahaHAHAHAHA!"

The diabolical grin he had violently split his face open, making brain guts burst out of his head (it was a traumatic sight even for the immortal aswang present). From his humanoid form emerged a creature which seemed like a hellion from the gates of Kasanaan, springing out as if it was the Chestburster from that Alien movie. It was a demonic, hairy, bat-like creature that sent the cross hanging on your wall (as well as the rosary on your bedside) into flames. He immersed himself in the shadows, black scleras turning a bloody, glowing crimson that became the only things visible in the umbra. Sitan's serpentine laughter and Isagani's wails would echo in the room for minutes even after they left in phantasms of darkness and voodoo. Lights started flickering, sounds of a haunting melody played out of nowhere, and blood with some pungent black liquid began leaking from the ceilings as well as the walls of the room. Large rats came out of nowhere and a typhoon-like draft from outside cracked the glass of your windows. It was like the Exorcist in real life.

All the while, your cold body remained still—untouched on the bed. Eyes closed from the repulsive disarray Sitan had caused, Alexandra could only hope Gabay had done something to save you.

Why else would your mentor not be present here with them, mourning your death? It meant that the guardian spirit of the rainbow had something up their sleeve, now that Isagani and Sitan were out of the picture.

"Tiwala lang," Alexandra held your hand tighter. "Babalik si Y/N." The rest of the people in the room hoped for the same thing.

In Gabay, they trusted.

"That exit nearly made me shit my pants," Maliksi muttered.

"Much worse than Talagbusao coming out of the General's body," Dominic commented. He thought he'd seen and done terrible things as an aswang but Sitan's display easily overtook the Top 1 spot.

"Absolutely," Crispin and Basilio said at the same time, cringing at the damage done to your room. "... Hank's going to have a fit when he wakes up and sees this."

±

You didn't exactly know what happened nor were you in the best headspace after you died, but you did know that you had been in Isagani's arms for some time as he whispered sweet nothings into your ears before he was dragged out by someone. Or something. You weren't sure. The afterlife was a strange place. You felt like you were just floating in the air, as light as a feather. Weightless. Free. You might as well have been a cloud.

Then you found yourself into a place that looked like your cute little apartment in Vietnam, just... brighter and different. A good kind of different. Dreamy, almost. You could see colors again. You could feel the sunlight as it seeped through the window. You could smell the small potted plants by the sink and feel the roughness of the mahogany table under your fingertips. You could breathe so deeply and smoothly it felt like you were dreaming. Did you even need to breathe? Or eat (and taste food again)? Maybe you didn't. This was the tranquil afterlife. No nightmares were here.

It felt like you were more alive now than when you were in life. How strange.

"Inday." You turned around, seeing Gabay in their original form of a huge ball of light. It was like the day they first met you in your earliest weeks as a volunteer.

"Gabay?" You blinked. "Patay ka na rin?"

"... No. Not yet, at least," they answered mysteriously. Was it just you or was Gabay's voice sadder for some reason?

"Ba't ganyan ang boses mo?" you asked, leaning on the table (only then did you realize you had been standing and even walking around—you hadn't been able to do that in a while). "Malungkot ka ba, Gabay? But I'm at peace now. Why are you worrying?"

"It's nothing," they said. "I knew this would happen."

"This?"

"Your death."

You didn't understand. "I knew it, too. Everyone did. It was a death sentence the moment my wings were torn out. I'm supposed to go now."

"It had to be done. It was the only way." You still had no clue what your teacher was saying. They flew closer to you, resting themselves on your cupped hands, like you were lifting water from the lake with them. This was one of the rare occasions Gabay let you hold them while they were in a non-human or non-animal form. "Inday, this is the only way to save you."

"Save... me?"

"You have to die to be saved. To be revived and cleansed of the miasma—for me to be able to do what I'm going to do now," Gabay told you gently.

"But I don't need to be saved...?" you said to your mentor, shaking your head. "I'm in the afterlife now. I can move on. I can be with my mom. Maybe I can even meet my dad. Reunite with my sisters. And Isagani is weirdly nowhere to be found. I can go."

"No, no. You had... have a life ahead of you, Y/N," Gabay revealed. "A life with your best friend, who's currently trying to hold back her tears while she holds your dead hand. A life with your new family and friends." Before you could speak again, you heard someone else talk.

"Anak."

You swerved around so quickly you thought you died a second time. It was your mother, her spirit—all dressed in splendid white—smiling at you. Beside her was the man you recognized as your father from pictures, in matching brilliant white, too. And beside them...

"Hello, sister," the souls of the six late biraddali chorused. Their voices were so melodious. Wonderful. Familiar. They weren't dressed in white, but the colorful, silky robes you remembered them dancing in during your days in the heavens. Indeed, in person and up close, they looked like goddesses. Nymphs, too. Even if the six if you didn't look remotely alike, the silvery, almost transparent wings on their backs reminded your of your lost heritage.

You felt yourself tearing up, wanting to hug them. However, your parents and sisters shook their heads, stopping you from launching yourself at them. "Huh...?"

"Y/N," one of your sisters—the eldest one—spoke. "It's not your time yet today."

"What are you saying? Patay na ako!" you exclaimed.

"You are," your dad agreed. "But you won't be for long."

"Wh—? For long?"

"We're actually waiting here for someone else," your mother disclosed with a half-sorrowful, half-joyful smile. "They're right beside you."

Gabay? Why? You didn't understand. Why were they waiting for Gabay and not you?

"I don't think she remembers what happened right after Isagani disappeared with Sitan," your second and third eldest sisters said simultaneously. Your fourth ate tilted her head at you.

"Dear," she pointed out. "You don't notice it? Why you see colors again? Why you can feel, smell, touch, taste, and breathe again? Why you feel so alive?"

"It's not just because the disease is no longer in you and because you've died," your fifth ate shared.

"You're whole again, sweetheart," your mother reached out to you, but never touched you. Her hand was just a breath away from your cheek. "Do you not know why?"

"They're beautiful, you know. Much more than ours and your old ones," the sixth eldest biraddali giggled. "What do they call it in this generation? An upgrade, right?"

Mas lumala ang simangot sa mukha mo. You really didn't understand, "... Upgrade? What exactly are you talking about, ate?"

"Bunso, your feet aren't touching the floor and it's not because you're a ghost," the wise, eldest biraddali hinted. "Look behind you."

Then, you saw it. You hadn't realized you'd been feeling it the moment Isagani vanished. This was why you felt complete again. Behind you was a set of large, butterfly-like crystalline wings. They were bigger and stronger than your old ones, too. The thing that stood out most about it compared to the ones that were torn out? They lightly tinged with colors of the rainbow, like faint watercolor on the finest silvery-white tapestry of the heavens. It dawned unto you why Gabay was the one your family was waiting for to cross the other side.

"Gabay..." you barely whispered. "Please don't."

"Don't be dramatic, Inday," they chided. "It was always meant to be this way. The student isn't supposed to die before the teacher. And after consulting all the clans' healers only to find no cure, I knew this would be the only solution for you to live again."

"You... You gave up your life to give me wings? Is that... is that why you're here in the afterlife?" You didn't know what to feel. It wasn't anger, no. It was more of frustration and heartbreak. Sadness. "Iiwanan mo na rin ako?"

Today, you'd be losing another loved one, too.

Your mentor didn't answer the question, instead throwing another back to you. "Remember when we first met before I mentored you? When you asked yourself if this... biraddali thing was like Sailor Moon or Winx Club? I didn't get your pop culture reference, so I spent some time watching those stuff." Gabay laughed. It was full of mirth, as if they didn't just do what they just did. "Now? I was thinking more of Barbie Fairytopia. I made sure that those new wings of yours would be better and prettier than the troublesome old ones. Ako pa! You would receive all my powers and your sisters' gifts to you before their deaths would be strengthened, too."

"Gabay, I'm not kidding! I'm being serious here!" you cried out. "Why? Why did you—"

"Y/N," they began. "I've watched over you ever since the heavens decided to create skymaidens. You're my student. My apprentice. Practically my daughter, too. Masungit ako pero mahal ko naman kita. I only want what's best from you." Gabay glanced at your other family members. "We want what's best from you, and that includes you being complete."

Your lips wobbled, "But... you're leaving me. All of you are. Paano ako magiging kumpleto kapag wala na kayo lahat!?"

"You won't be alone, Y/N," your parents and sisters assured you. "You have those friends of yours. Your new family. Even so, we'll always be here for you."

"Think about it this way, Inday," Gabay assured you, gazing at the wings now attached on your back. The scarred stumps that used to be there were a hundred percent nonexistent now. "I'll be your wings forevermore. From now on, I'll always be there for you that way."

The ball of light morphed into a somewhat angel-looking, androgynous, humanlike being that kissed your forehead. You inhaled deeply, doing your best not to bawl your eyes out. You were stronger than this. You wouldn't disappoint your teacher like this, "... You'll be my wings? Promise me that you won't completely leave me alone?"

"I will always be a part of you, Y/N, wings or not," Gabay smiled, crossing over to the other side of the room where the rest of the family was.

"So will we," your sisters and parents added, also smiling. "Live, Y/N. For us."

Wiping your eyes, you hesitantly nodded. "Okay. I'll try." Inhale. Exhale. Breaaaathe.

"I'm not leaving with just that," Gabay rolled their eyes. This would be the last of the hundreds of times they'd done that to you.

"I will," you vowed genuinely.

"Ayan. Ganyan dapat," Gabay poked, satisfied at your answer. "That's the spirit."

Everything was now shining with a pale yellow blinding light that engulfed the whole area. The apartment around you was no more, and you couldn't help but close your eyes to shield yourself. So... bright... so... bright!

"I love you," you shouted out to all of them, squinting through the light. "Gabay, Mama, Papa, mga ate! I love you so much!"

"We love you too!"

"And Gabay?"

"Hm?"

"Thank you. For everything." You smiled at the guardian spirit, holding back your tears. "See you soon."

Gabay chuckled, "Just not so soon, okay? Come back when you're old and happy."

That was the last time you heard from them. For a moment, you thought you glimpsed Ibu's Emissary leading all of them away, but before you could think more, it all went black.

±

More than a week had passed since Gabay disappeared and you had died. The only hope they were holding onto was the fact that your body didn't decay at all. Not one bit. There was no smell and no signs of deterioration. Aside from the fact that you were motionless and lacked a heartbeat, you looked like you were asleep. After Sitan had wrecked your room, they had transferred your corpse to one of your Late Tito Anton's rooms; one that was more sealed away and secured by spells. The bed you lay in was a simple single type, and your worried friends would often come in everyday.

Every day, it was the girls who would clean your body. Today, Regina had given you a sponge bath while Hannah dressed you in a fresh set of clothing—backless, so as to air out the remnants of flesh which was once your wings. Amie was brushing your hair quietly, and Alexandra was there checking if the runes on the floor had changed. She had casted a spell to inform all of them if something about you had changed. For the past ten days, nothing did, but they continued to wait. Your body not rotting away meant something good, right? All of a sudden, Regina gasped, alarming the other women in the room. The runes around your bed glowed white, too. "Look!"

"What is it? Anong nangyari?" Alexandra rushed to your side. Her eyes widened as she saw your chest begin to move up and down subtly, "She's... Y/N is breathing! She's breathing!"

"Her skin, too," Amie pointed out. It had suddenly started to fill out from all the weight you had lost over the months. Slowly, you looked less like a skeleton and more of... you. The healthy you. The hollows of your cheeks and temples fleshed out, then the dark, ghastly purple bags under your eyes faded away. The supple, healthy color in the apples of your cheeks and the plumped skin of your lips returned as blood rushed through the rest of your body. The blue bruises on your arms and legs from how brittle your skin was—especially the delicate vessels beneath it—also vanished. Amie, who was in the middle of combing your hair, noticed that it regained its liveliness and color back.

Hannah placed an ear over your chest, "Her heartbeat... it's back! Buhay siya!"

However, your eyes didn't open yet. Your other allies had poured into the room like a wave, hearing the loud commotion in your usually quiet new room (the spell Alex had casted told them, too). Hank got there first, then Maliksi, who saw Hannah listening to your heart. She nodded at him with a relieved smile, and the tikbalang prince felt like a huge weight—one that had been bearing down on him for the past few months—was lifted off his shoulders. His body sagged in relief. Dominic came in next, his hair all messed up from speeding to the Trese residence from where his hacienda was. He came as soon as he heard the news. He also noticed that his sister was there, still holding the damp sponge for your bath, in awe at what was happening. The twins came in the room last, the grocery bags in their hands dropped to the floor. They had never run and flew so fast in their entire lives.

Inky white markings, the ones that characterized your legacy and identity as a biraddali, enchantingly swirled back into your skin. If one looked closely, they weren't completely white anymore; they had a faint, iridescent gradient that shimmered more in the light.

Then suddenly you sat up stretching (honestly, the unanticipated movement spooked the others in the room). Something behind you which was as pearlescent as your tattoos was unfurling, too. Everyone stared as a kaleidoscope of colors fanned out on your back like a stained glass window painting in the Notre Dame Cathedral.

You rubbed your eyes, yawning as your lethargy began to clear up. The first thing you noticed was the entrancing, glittering patterns on your skin. "What...? Ano 'to...?" You blinked slowly, trying to adjust to seeing such vivid, marvelous colors once more. Processing, processing (medyo sabog ka pa, eh). Then, you felt something flutter on your back. When you turned your head to check what it was and saw it, you audibly gasped (and promptly fell off the bed in amazement). "Holy sh—may pakpak ako! What...!?"

On your back were a pair of glorious, prismatic wings. Only then did you remember what happened to you. Sitan and Isagani, then Gabay and your family, and then—

"Inday?" Hank was the first to talk.

"Whoa," Maliksi and Basilio couldn't help but breathe out, seeing you alive and those wings. "Damn."

"Your wings are... they're out of this world," Crispin complimented, already wanting to touch the fluttery things.

"... An angel," Dominic whispered (more to himself, actually, but everyone else heard it and none of them could disagree). He then laughed to himself, "Biraddali ka talaga. A maiden sent from the heavens... but risen from the dead. Never in my life would I have thought I would see this."

Hank and the other girls were the ones to slap some sense into them (they all looked like deers in headlights and your non-simp friends didn't want you to get so creeped out right after you'd returned from the afterlife). Alexandra pulled you into a tight embrace, and you practically melted in your best friend's warmth. It was the best feeling anyone could ever ask for after dying and becoming alive again.

"Welcome back," she whispered in your ear. She couldn't describe how grateful she felt that for once, her precious person wasn't taken away from her. Mentally, she prayed to the gods and thanked them for letting this happen. Squeezing her, you glanced at your other friends, smiling at them.

"I'm home."

(End.)

± Author's Note ±

Aaaaaaand, cut! 250 blocks limit reached and nearly 9000 words done! Sorry for the long wait, but I didn't want to rush an ending too much from the pressure (so I took my damn time and chilled). I originally planned on a sad one where Inday died in the end and didn't come back, buuuuut here we are. Isagani got what he deserved, too. Road to spinoffs and a masterlist, here we go! 🏃‍♀️🎬

I hope you enjoyed your moments with the Simp Squad in the finale. Sanaol kinakantahan ni Basilio ng lullaby. Hmph, swerte niyo. 😤🙄

Anyways, ya'll know it already: comments n' constructive criticism are very appreciated! Hit those heart, reblog, and follow buttons for updates of my other work. It both relieving and stressful to finally be able to finish one of my more successful fics. Salamat sa suporta, everyone! Gotta finish my Dominic x Reader oneshot now. Bye! 🥰💞

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