#anyone who looks at you will be killed by me. i cannot stop starting fights because im convinced they want you (and they do ! because youre

[dirt-str1der]

Ive said it a million times omegaverse power dynamics are worthless uninspired and boring— HOLY CRAP hes standing on a branch like a real bird ...

[marvelmymarvel]

Not Special

Kakashi Hatake x NarutoMotherFigure!Reader

Synopsis: Before Naruto, you were a feared kunoichi who killed thousands before the age of 14. Naruto didn't know any of this, which is why you weren't anything special to him. But that all changes after the Hokage asks you to pick the sword up again to protect the village against an impending threat.

Naruto Masterlist: Here

“My mom isn't anyone special. She's just normal!”

Kakashi’s eyebrow shot up at that, eyes landing on the blonde as he talked adamantly to Sakura about how cool the other kid's parents were - and how uncool you were. He pursed his lips, fighting back the urge to spill the truth about you and your past, but he knew you wanted to keep it a secret. You weren't proud of it; it was much bloodier than his was. You gave it up for Naruto when he came along. Your time in the ninja world was short, yet many feared you.

All things Naruto didn't know.

But Kakashi couldn't stop his questions from coming out, wondering why Naruto saw you as a ‘weakling’ in the first place. “You say Y/n isn't special? How come?” Naruto stopped in his tracks, eyes narrowing at Kakashi. “Well, she’s not a shinobi, first off. Secondly, all she does nowadays is help out at the daycare-”

“So that makes her not special?”

“Come on Kakashi-Sensei. You know what I mean! She's just not as strong as we are… Ya know?” 

The silence that hung in the air made Naruto shift on his feet, unnerved by his Sensei's sudden change in attitude. It was almost like he was challenging him to say another word. But Naruto knew better. “You don't know anything about who she was before you came along, Naruto….” 

“Wasn’t she 14? Kakashi-Sensei, I’m not sure she could have done much damage by the time she had turned 14-”

“That's enough” Kakashi’s sharp tone had Naruto shutting his mouth from fear; he didn't know how or why, but his statement cut deep. Kakashi wished you would have told Naruto about your past, why you stopped fighting, and why you kept it hidden. He wouldn't have to continuously hear about how ‘weak’ you were if you had just told Naruto everything.

“Now, let's begin our mission, shall we?”

Days had passed since Naruto left for his mission with the rest of team 7. You made Kakashi promise to keep him safe, which allowed you to focus on other ways to help the community. You had just handed off the last toddler to their parent and headed into the daycare to clean up your room. A figure in the middle of the mess caused you to jump in your spot - “Lord third! You scared me.”

He hummed at that before leaning against a bookshelf, pipe in between his teeth as he took in the chaotic room. The Third Hokage was against the path you chose; he’d have you as his personal guard if it were his way. He respected your wishes and respected them for 12 years, but now, as the threat of an enemy loomed over the village, he was coming back to you with a new offer.

One you simply cannot refuse.

“It is quite a shame that you gave up the Jonnin life at 14. You were a fine student, almost, if not better than Kakashi was,” He started as he moved through the room, his old eyes scanning over the arts and crafts drying on the tables. 

Your lips pursed at the sound of the Third Hokage’s words. You’ve heard this rant before; it was his specialty. He’d build you up with praise and acknowledgment, making you feel like you were the only person who could save the village before throwing an offer for you to return to the ninja life. You couldn't deny you missed it but didn't miss the blood. Didn't miss the death. Raising Naruto was more rewarding than killing hundreds of people for the village's sake.

Yet, you listened. Soaking up every word he told you as if you needed to hear them. He continued, recounting all of your successes before stopping to look at a particular picture on the wall. It was of you and your classroom, all in the picture, smiling. Did he want to do this? You sighed before bending down to pick up the toys on the floor.

“You don't just give praise without a request. Get on with it, Lord Third. I have a classroom to clean up.”

His eyes flicked to your figure. Your tone alone told him that your walls were up, and you wouldn't let him easily throw his suggestion over them. You would put up a fight, but maybe if he added Naruto into the mix, then you’d listen.

“You care about Naruto’s well-being, yes?”

Your body froze as your fingers hovered over a toy, your heart lurching in your throat as you braced yourself for this new approach. This was a sick, twisted way of getting what he wanted. He’s done this to you many times before, and while you know it's a trap, you always walk into it. You don't answer him, but your silence does.

“There's a threat looming over the village… I’ve gathered my best men, but I’m still missing the greatest one of all….” You sighed at that, eyebrows crinkling in pain as you felt the guilt creeping up your neck, practically strangling you with its cold bony fingers. “Naruto won't be safe if you can't help protect the village.”

There it was. 

Your e/c eyes flicked to his as you stood up straight. He was right in a sick, twisted kind of way. If you were involved, the threat would be easily avoidable. But how would you tell Naruto? You never once told him how many you’ve saved and never how many you’ve butchered in the name of the leaf village. He didn't know of the nightmares you shared with Kakashi or the vomiting due to the stress your young body was under.

He didn't know any of it. 

To him, you were just a daycare teacher. But to the village, to your Hokage, you were more. 

“I would like you to join the ANBU. When the threat passes, I will let you decide if you want to stay in the ANBU or return to this lifestyle.”

Your eyes brimmed with tears, and you fought the panic in your chest. You’ve been on a couple of missions with the ANBU; they were more ruthless than you were. Your teary eyes drifted to the picture beside the Hokage, lip pursing as you took in the smiling faces of the children you cared for daily. It wasn't just about you or Naruto; it never was.

“What do you say?”

You looked back at him before nodding slowly, “I will join the ANBU, but once this is over. I will never be picking up a Kunai again.”

Naruto bounded back into the village as their mission got cut short. The news spread like wildfire that a threat was coming down on the village, and all ninjas had been requested to return for backup. He raced to the daycare despite Kakashi’s yells. He had to get you to safety. You were the only person he cared for the most in this entire world. If anything happened to you, he would lose himself.

Naruto screamed your name as he ran up to the daycare, flinging open the doors as he flew down the hall. The lights were off, and a cold breeze flew past him as his eyes landed on the sight of your daycare room. Bodies lay everywhere, causing his eyes to widen at the sight of the enemy ninja strewn along the floor with jagged stabs in their chests. He backed out of the room; breath growing labored as he thought through where you may be. Naruto wasn't thinking clearly as he flew out of the daycare building. He would have known that the trap was set just for him if he were thinking clearly.

And he walked right into it.

A bag was shoved over his face as he was tackled. He called out for help, kicking and screaming for the men to get off him. The sound of slicing filled the air, and warm liquid splattered all over him; bodies were shoved off him one by one. Before long, he had freed himself from the group and ripped off the face covering. The sight before him made him stare in awe - A female ANBU officer was slaughtering the ninja one by one without breaking a sweat. It was as if they were nothing to her, almost as if she could take a hundred of them all at once and never falter in her movements. Finally, her sword drove through the chest of the last remaining ninja.

Naruto’s mouth hung open as she ripped the sword from the man's chest, sighing as she looked down at herself. She was drenched with blood. It was on her uniform, on her mask, in her hair, on her hands. The only thing she could wipe off was her sword. 

“Wow! That was, uh… Thank you” 

Her head snapped to the side to look at him before she once more let out a sigh. She slid the blade against her pant leg, trying to wipe off the blood she had accumulated in the past couple of hours. She put the sword back in the sheath on her back before storming towards him; reaching down, she hauled him back onto his feet.

“Why are you here?! Where is Kakashi?!” 

Naruto’s eyebrows furrowed at her words, the voice sounded familiar, but his brain refused to connect the dots. “You know Kakashi-Sensei? You’re starting to freak me out, lady.” The woman froze before him, realizing she had made a deadly error and there was no going back. She sighed before lifting her hand to her mask, “You can't tell anyone, Naruto.”

Naruto’s jaw dropped at the sight before him, “Hey… What the hell?!”

You shot a warning glare, silently scolding him for his language, but he didn't care. You were the ANBU lady??? The one he just saw brutally murder the 20 men lying around you. His eyes wandered around your face, brows crinkling in confusion as his brain caught up to the fact that you were in front of him, wearing an ANBU uniform and covered in blood. Lots and lots of blood.

“But, you’re not a shino-”

You sighed at his statement before he even finished, “A shinobi, yes I haven't been one for years” Naruto grew more confused at your confession. “For years? You were a shinobi before?” A small laugh flew from your lips as you face-palmed yourself. The blood on your hand smeared onto your face, making you cringe at the feeling and smell. Your heart started to race as you brought your hand from your face, eyes wide as you took in the crimson staining your skin. It made you feel sick; you didn't miss this at all. 

“Didn't I tell you to stay by my side Naruto?” Naruto jumped at Kakashi’s words as he landed beside you, slowly approaching you as if not wanting to spook you. “God, I hate this, Kakashi,” you whined out as you tried to look away from the blood on your hands. Kakashi quickly wiped it away with a small rag, reassuring you that you were doing something good, even if it meant killing people. There had been many nights where he’d have to reassure you in such a manner. The guilt you felt drove you mad; in a way, you were thankful for Naruto, who gave you a way out.

“How many did you kill, Y/n?” Kakashi whispered as he looked around the daycare. He was trying to gauge how many angry men would come after you. “About 70” 

Naruto gasped at the number, eyes widening as you turned into Kakashi. “So we should prepare for 100 more coming your way?” 

You nodded as your lip quivered - “I don't want to kill them. I can't do it anymore. I’m so tired.”

Kakashi nodded before starting to take off your vest. If he could get you out of the recognizable outfit and away from the fighting, he could quickly finish off the 100 angry men for you. “I can handle them; it's fine-”

“70?!” 

Your eyes shot to Naruto’s, and you froze at his awe-struck face. You didn't know if he was amazed or disgusted, but both reactions would have made your stomach churn all the same. Kakashi felt your sickness by the way you swayed in his arms, “Naruto, now is not the time-”

“I mean, how badass are you!? And you didn't even tell me?!?!”

Your eyes grew wide as you scanned the tree line for incoming intruders; suddenly, your fear-stricken face turned hard. Snatching up the mask from the ground, you shoved it on before drawing your sword. Kakashi held his breath. Your hearing was much sharper than his ever was. Before you knew it, 100 ninjas surrounded you three. You’ve fought more in one go; it was a simple task compared to other things you’ve had to do.

But doing it in front of Naruto made you falter. 

Did you want him to see the beast inside of you? The beast you hid from him as best you could. You let him believe you were boring to conceal that you were a kunoichi feared by many nations. You killed many men without mercy because you were instructed to, just as a good soldier does.

One of the ninjas looked toward Naruto, causing you to jump into action. You screamed for Naruto to run before slicing your sword to kill them quickly before they could get their hands on him. Naruto, for once, listened and ran to hide behind the building wall, far enough from the fighting to stay safe but close enough to watch you fight through the group. Kakashi did help a little, but you did most of the work. He was amazed and felt slightly guilty at his previous assumptions about you being weak. The display before him was anything but weak.

Within minutes, you had thinned down the group until the last one remained. Naruto expected you to kill him, but you did something else entirely. Your fingers gripped the bleeding man's collar, ripping him up so he was face-to-face with your ANBU mask. “Who do you take directions from? Who was the leader of this attack??” Your words were icy and full of hatred, not full of the warmth and love Naruto was used to. A shiver ripped down his spine as he watched you cock your head at the spluttering man. “Who. Is. In. Charge.” your snarl made the man break as he screamed out the name of the person in charge of the entire thing. You scoffed at him before driving your sword slowly into his chest. It was deliberately pushed in at a location that would  ensure a slow and painful death. It was then that Naruto realized this was the same ninja that looked his way at the beginning of the fight.

You ripped out your sword, letting the man fall to the ground as you watched him gasp for breath. Blood bubbled up from his throat before spewing from his mouth, he wouldn't die from internal bleeding, but he would die from drowning in the blood pooling in his lungs. Your head turned to the side, and while Naruto couldn't see your eyes, he knew your gaze was locked on him. You scared him and amazed him at the same time. He was amazed that you had taken down so many men without a worry in the world, but he was also scared at how fast you turned off your emotions when you went into killing mode.

You weren't the same. He didn't like this side of you.

A sigh flew from your lips as you read him like an open book. He was always so easy to see right through. You saw the fear radiating off him, causing you to drop your sword and rip off your mask as if trying to show him it was still you. That you were still the mom he loved so much. 

That you were nothing special.

But that wasn't true anymore; at least the last part wasn't.

You stepped towards him, head cocking as he cowered behind the wall. “Naruto, honey, I won't hurt you.” He didn't budge, didn't dare to, as you walked closer to him. “You aren’t my mom. I don't know who you are, but-”

“You’re right. I’m not your mom,” you stated firmly as you dropped into a crouch feet away from him. He jumped in his spot, flying back as you startled him. You smiled at his jumpiness but knew that this reaction was warranted. His lips trembled at your statement, and you realized your mistake. “No, no, that's not what I meant. The mom you know is not the mom in front of you. The person standing in front of you is someone that hasn't existed for 12 years. Naruto, I hate this person more than you would ever know. I let this person go so I could raise you, and after tonight, she will never come back.” You moved to sit cross-legged before him, hoping the childlike position would reassure him that the one he was talking to was his mom. 

The old you was far gone.

Naruto’s blue eyes flicked from you to Kakashi, who stood quietly behind you, hands in his pockets as if all this was old news. Because it was. Kakashi was the one that got you out of this mindset, and it silently terrified him just how easy it was for you to slip back into it. He knew he needed to bring it up later but now was not the time.

Seeing that his Sensei was calm and collected, Naruto nodded at your words before crawling towards you. Your eyebrows furrowed as he approached you, but they soon relaxed once you realized what he was doing. Naruto climbed into your lap, forcing your arms to wrap around him and cradle him in your embrace. You bit back a chuckle and pulled him in more, the blood smeared all over his clothes, but he didn't mind. He just needed to be reminded that you were his loving, carefree, warm-hearted mom. He didn't want a mom that was special. He didn't want a mom that was a renowned shinobi. He just wanted you. As you held him close, you decided then and there that you would never pick up a sword again, because caring for Naruto was more rewarding than wearing a mask and protecting the village. 

And nothing would change that.

[iamumbra195]

School Bus Graveyard incorrect quotes because I'm bored

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Taylor: Look how creepy it is looking down this hallway.

Ashlyn: I'm gonna get vertigo.

Aiden: I'm a Virgo!

Tyler, deadpan: No, you're a virgin.

...

Aiden: You lying, cheating, piece of shit!

Tyler: Oh yeah? You’re the idiot who thinks you can get away with everything you do. WELCOME TO THE REAL WORLD

Aiden: I’m leaving you, and I’M TAKING ASHLYN WITH ME

Logan, picking up the monopoly board: I think we’re gonna stop playing now.

...

Taylor: Why is Tyler so upset?

Logan: He took one of those “Which Character Are You?” quizzes

Taylor: And...?

Logan: He got Aiden.

...

Ashlyn: What did you do with the phantom's body?

Aiden: What didn’t I do with the body?

Everyone:

Aiden: Okay, that sounded more sexual than I intended. I disposed of the phantom respectfully.

...

Aiden: Here’s a fun Christmas idea. We hang mistletoe, but instead of kissing, you have to FIGHT whoever else is under it.

Logan: Aiden, no.

Ben, with text to speech: Mistlefoe.

Logan: Please stop encouraging him.

...

Taylor: Who thinks I can fit 15 marshmallows in my mouth?

Tyler: You’re a hazard to society

Aiden: And a coward. DO TWENTY.

...

Emma, trying to be nice to Ashlyn's new friends: Would you like to stay for dinner?

Mike, excited for his daughter: WOULD YOU LIKE TO STAY FOREVER?

...

Logan: What's a word thats a mix between 'sad' and 'mad'?

Ben: Disgruntled, miserable, desolated-

Aiden: Smad.

...

Ashlyn: Why are you on the floor?

Aiden: I'm depressed.

Aiden: Also I was stabbed, can you get Ben, please.

...

Taylor: Aiden and I were crossing the street, and this dude drove by and honked at us

Ashlyn, sighing: What did he do?

Taylor: he chased him to the next red light, then reached into his window and...

Aiden: Who wants a steering wheel?

...

Aiden: If I accidentally sat on a voodoo doll of myself, would I be trapped forever in that position, doomed to starve to death?

Logan: How am I supposed to know?

Tyler: You say that as if we don’t use you as a source of knowledge of the occult.

Logan: ...You wouldn't be trapped.

...

Ashlyn: Tyler, keep an eye on Aiden today. He's going to say something to the wrong person and get punched.

Tyler: Sure, I’d love to see him get punched.

Ashlyn: Try again.

Tyler, sighing: I will stop Aiden from getting punched.

...

Aiden, holding a python: Guys I impulsively bought a snake, what do I name him

Tyler: You did WHAT–

Ben: William Snakespeare

...

Ashlyn: Dandelions symbolize everything I want to be in life

Taylor: Fluffy and dead with a gust of wind?

Ashlyn: Unapologetic. Hard to kill. Feral, filled with sunlight, bright, beautiful in a way that the conventional and controlling hate but cannot ever fully destroy. Stubborn. Happy. Bastardous. Friends with bees. Highly disapproving of lawns. Full of wishes that will be carried far after I die.

Aiden: edible

...

Taylor, whispering to Aiden, who’s on the phone with Ashlyn: Ask her something!

Aiden: How are you feeling?

Ashlyn: Fine.

Taylor: Something personal!

Aiden: At what age did you start hearing voices?

...

Aiden: If I die, my funeral is going to be the biggest party ever and you’re all invited

Logan: If?

Tyler: Great, the only party I’d actually go to and he might not even die.

...

Logan: We need a distraction.

Ashlyn: Is anyone here good at jumping up and down and making weird noises?

Aiden, whispering: My time has come

...

Tyler: Where are you going?

Taylor: To get ice cream or commit a felony, I’ll decide on the way there

Tyler: I'll come with

...

Mike, buying a whole bag of knives, guns and other weapons like he's going to war on a random Tuesday: I can explain

Jacob (shop owner): Can you?

Mike: If you give me thirty seconds to think of a lie.

...

Taylor: Heads up, if you try to make a candle with food colouring, it will just sink to the bottom of the glass, and when the flame eventually reaches the bottom all the food colouring will catch fire and become one giant tall flame that you cannot possibly blow out and the glass will start to crack and then you'll throw your tea on it in a panic and then the extremely hot food colouring will boil and sizzle horribly and then the glass will shatter.

Tyler, sighing: What did you do?

Taylor, wailing: A MISTAKE

...

Mr. Thomas: What are your goals?

Ashlyn: To pet all the dogs.

Mr. Thomas: No, I meant your goals for this trip.

Ashlyn: To pet all the dogs in Savannah.

...

Logan: Is letting someone win at chess sapiosexual bottoming?

Ashlyn: Does anyone in this godforsaken group ever think before they speak?

...

Taylor: Aiden isn’t answering their phone

Ashlyn: I’ll call

Taylor: Ben and I have both tried six times each, what makes you thi-

Aiden: Hello?

...

Aiden: I was arrested for being too cool.

Tyler: The charges were dropped due to a lack of supporting evidence.

...

Aiden: Jail is no fun. I’ll tell you that much

Taylor: You’ve been to jail?

Aiden: Once. In Monopoly.

...

Mike: You love me, right?

Emma: Normally, I’d say yes without hesitation, but I feel like this is going somewhere and I don’t like it.

...

Aiden: Let’s watch Sharkboy and Lavagirl.

Ashlyn: Okay

Aiden: And make out during the scary parts.

Ashlyn: The-

Ashlyn: The scary parts?

Ashlyn: Of Sharkboy and Lavagirl.

...

Ashlyn: How petty can you get?

Tyler: I once edited a Wikipedia article to win an argument I was wrong about.

Taylor: I KNEW IT-

...

Aiden: I've already sent good vibes your way… they’re coming. There’s nothing you can do to stop them.

Logan: This is the most threatening way I’ve ever been cheered up.

...

Mike: So what’s for dinner?

Emma, staring at the food she just burnt: Regret.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

That's all for today!

[mcflymemes]

PROMPTS FROM A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES *  assorted dialogue from the novel, adjust as necessary

don't feel bad for one moment about doing what brings you joy.

be glad of your human heart.

has anyone ever taken care of you?

i heard you scream.

i figured that would get you to stop crying.

stop? don't pretend you care, human.

what is that bruise?

before you start yelling...

do you lie awake at night to come up with all your witty replies for the following day?

i'm tired and lonely, and you're the only person i can talk to without putting myself at risk.

you can leave if you're just going to insult me.

i would have been gentle with you, though.

pity those who don't feel anything at all.

when i kill, i do it slow.

killing is easier in pants.

i didn't want to consider what the punishment might have been.

we're too powerful, too bored with immortality, to be checked by anything else.

i wanted you everywhere. i was drowning in that need.

i don't particularly enjoy losing, so i took it upon myself to become good at them.

what's it doing?

why are you telling me this?

i don't think it's absurd at all.

remember the last time you ignored my warning?

fear no evil.

would you like me to grovel with gratitude for bringing me here?

i might die of surprise. you made a joke, [name].

your hair is... clean.

when the legends get written, i don't want to be remembered for standing on the sidelines.

look how you're trying not to cry out in terror.

i didn't want you to fight alone. or die alone.

you don't hold on to power by being everyone's friend.

each of us has a beast roaming beneath our skin, roaring to get out.

against slavery, against tyranny, i would gladly go to my death, no matter whose freedom i was defending.

i love you. thorns and all.

for someone with a heart of stone, yours is certainly soft these days.

we need hope, or else we cannot endure.

i threw myself into that fire, threw myself into it, into him, and let myself burn.

you look... better than before.

it's a rare day indeed when someone thanks you for bringing them to their death.

if i offer you the moon on a string, will you give me a kiss too?

you humans are truly grateful creatures, aren't you.

well... goodbye for now.

you didn't ask.

the answer to the riddle is love.

you don't look half as bad now.

everything i love has always had a tendency to be taken from me.

i wouldn't want to die alone.

you didn't need to bargain with me.

how am i to blame?

the tunic isn't as pretty as a dress.

what have you done to me?

do you ever stop being so serious and dull?

make it go away.

i'd prefer not to wear that dress.

do you ever stop being such a prick?

i would have taken a very, very long time.

i'd want someone to hold my hand until the end, and awhile after that.

you didn't tell me this would happen.

your human joy fascinates me - the way you experience things in your life span, so wildly and deeply and all at once is... entrancing.

i'm drawn to it, even though i shouldn't be, even when i try not to be.

there was nothing that could slow me down.

i don't know why i feel so tremendously ashamed of myself for leaving them.

all those years... what i did for them... and they didn't try to stop you from taking me.

you might have gotten away with it.

i came to claim the one i love.

i hadn't thought of it as a weakness until now.

[ethereallocs]

I Will Break You

Pairing: Aemond Targaryen (Pirate) x Fem OC (Mermaid/Siren)

Word Count: 1,700

Content/Warning(s): !!18 PLUS!!, Non-Con/ Dub-Con, Violence, Descriptions of Blood, Attempted Drowning, Abduction, Obsession, Toxic.

Author’s Notes: This is set within The Golden Age of Piracy (1650 to 1726). I don’t know why I thought of this, but I think the best stories are the ones that just pop into your head. I hope you enjoy it.

Chapter 1.

King’s Landing knew him as “Aemond One-Eye” or “The Kinslayer”. He had become a well-known enemy of the monarchy. After killing his nephew; Lucerys in cold blood he escaped his execution by a hair and in the midst of his exile he created a band of the most ruthless criminals he could find to sail across The Narrow Seas and reek havoc on any unsuspecting ships and pillaging any lands nearby. Many men aboard “Vhagar” spoke of the mysterious sirens that plagued the seas and took many men to an unpleasant death.

Aemond listened to the tall tales and wondered if they’d ever encounter a swarm of them and if they did would they live to tell the tale? It was a rather misty night with the moon high and the entire crew was asleep. Aemond did not sleep often he was usually up planning his next attack. The sea was strangely calm putting Vhagar on a steady course. The sounds of faint splashes against the small waves and soft singing alerted him and he left his cabin to go on deck.

He held a lantern in his hand as he walked across looking out into the thick haze and he saw a glimpse of feminine face. He called out into the darkness. “Hello is anyone out there?! Do you need to come aboard?” All he could hear was the sweet sounds of a woman singing. It was alluring; seductive. He started to lose his train of thought with the melody wrapping itself around him. The sounds of the sea became muffled once those sea green eyes found his and his body moved uncontrollably toward the port side of the ship desperately climbing over it to get to that sickeningly sweet voice.

Without warning one of his men pulled him back aboard just as he was going to plummet into the darkness which was not an easy task. Aemond fought him tooth and nail trying to get to that sound. “No! No! She’s calling me!!!” He finally held his hands over as his ears. “Captain! Fight it!! Ye’ cannot follow the sound. It will lead you to your death!” He pulled him below and smacked the living daylights out of him. He finally stopped wailing like a mad man. He realized he was drenched in sweat and his chest heaved heavily.

“Daeros..? What…what happened?” He ran his fingers through his hair feeling as though his heart was longing for something that he could not reach. It was a dull ache that he wished to be rid of. “Captain..ye’ were bewitched by a sea devil. Ye’ must resist the lot of them or it will be eternity in Davey Jones Locker for ye’.” This particular creature had been following them for quite some time. She had the sapphire within Aemond’s skull by chance one night and she wished to pluck it from his eye socket and save it for the rest of her collection of shiny or precious things.

She had been observing him for quite sometime noting how the darkened circles under his eyes never left and he often seemed without rest. He was the only one on board who didn’t use precautions and stuff his ears like the rest of his crew. Obviously he did not believe in her kind’s existence and his ignorance would be the death of him. But tonight she was deterred and obviously angered by the interference of another. She almost had him she thought. She found refuge within a nearby cove and thought of what to do next.

Daeros left Aemond to get some rest but instead he stared at the ceiling of his room thinking of that voice and those eyes he would never forget them. The next day the sky was clear and the mist dissipated. Aemond wandered into the deck tired as usual still not finding rest. He sighed with that creature still on his mind. It haunted him so such a dreaded creature with eyes that pulled him closer and closer to his demise and yet he would risk it just to see them again.

Nights had passed and there was no sign of her, but she was there watching and waiting. He was expecting her again and she knew it she could tell by the way he roamed the deck when the moon was high. He paced back and forth and stayed there until dawning hoping to hear her song again. Finally, after days of them pillaging another unsuspecting village they stayed docked for a while making plans to set sail the next day and she knew this was her last and only chance. He had decided to take refuge as large water pool where it stood stagnant away from the harsh waves. He knew he was being watched small splashes alerted him, but he stayed calm and never showed that he knew she was there.

He smirked to himself whistling while the reflection of the moon rested on the body of water. Then in the distance he heard her and his heart fluttered with anticipation. He would finally have his chance, he could see her head peaking from the water far enough for her to swim away and deep enough to pull him to a watery grave, he stood to his feet instantly become captivated by the sound of her voice. Her voice pulled him in and the feeling the ice cold waters didn’t even make him flinch she had him where she wanted him so she swam forward wrapping her arms around him.

He finally saw her face. She was alluring and ethereal. He’d travelled the world and he hadn’t seen such beauty until her. Her wet tresses were as black as the sea and her eyes as deep as the ocean itself. She reached to pull away his eye patch, but was met with the dull sting of a knife being pushed into her tail. Her cries of pain were inhuman it almost sounded like a banshee screeching. He smiled at his victory and the pain her eyes held. She thrashed about trying to escape him and he didn’t fight to let her go, but just as she thought she could flee a net was thrown her, tangling around her.

She fought with all her might, but the pain and loss of blood began to slowly deteriorate her energy. His crew pulled her ashore and carried her away onto his boat. She was to be held below deck within a tub like a pet. Aemond came down to see her and help the wound he caused and she wasn’t happy to see him in the slightest. She hissed at him as her body laid with something that gave off the look of a tub. Her right arms was chained to the floor. Her instinct to push back and make herself smaller as he came closer made her feel helpless. She looked for an exit anywhere being inside of this thing.

“I will not hurt you again. So long as you don’t try to drown me again. Deal?” If looks could kill hers would rip him apart. He chuckled to himself and took the rag with ointment on in and began dabbing it against the wound. “I guess…you don’t speak my language…hmm..I heard your kind looked grotesque and hideous, but you….you are far from hideous.” She flinched and hissed from the stinging pain. “I’m sorry about that, but you would’ve gotten away from me…I couldn’t let that happen.” She stayed silent listening to him talk all the while planning how she could somehow find her way back to the sea.

“Don’t get any ideas…you should get used to seeing me. We are headed back to my home and you are to stay with me. I heard that after some exposure to the dry elements you sprout legs. A painful transition I suppose, but it can’t be helped. You will never see the sea again, well from your window you will.” She could feel tears flowing down her face something rather unfamiliar. She detached from the moment thinking of her sisters that she was leaving behind and the ocean that she loved so dearly. He was to hold her captive like some prized possession and she was going to be helpless.

“P..please…” She muttered lowly. He looked up in surprise. “So you do speak…Wonderful. You will learn to get use to what will now be your life. I can be very pleasant if you can learn to behave.” Her face twisted and she bared her fangs and extended jaw at him. “There she is…you didn’t like that word. I know you don’t know what it is to be tamed…but I will bend you to my will one way another.” He dug his fingers into the wound causing her to screech trying to pull away from him but she was too weak. “Please!!!!” Was all she could say unfortunately it was the only word she knew.

He pulled away and savoring the sounds of her screams. “I will be back to check on you…we will be home soon.” She fell into the tub wrapping her arms around herself and shaking. The rocking of the boat reminded her of the push and pull of the ocean and eventually she fell asleep. She thought it was all a nightmare. But she was awakened by excruciating pain. It felt as though her tail was being ripped apart. She screamed out, tears pooling in her eyes. Hearing her screams he ran to her aid and saw the most gruesome scene.

Her tail was becoming two and her scales were falling off blood pooled within the tub and she reached for him hoping he could make it stop. He for a second felt empathy wanting to throw her back into the dark sea, but he wanted her with him and he could not let her get away. Instead he pulled her from the tub and into his lap wrapping his arms around her as they sat on the floor. It was to be a long night and an even longer day once they got to his home.

To be continued….

@izzy-the-ginger

[benedictscanvas]

Nobody on the BAU team believes Jack Hotchner when he says his father’s new girlfriend is rich and famous. Then they meet her.

A theoretical opening to an Aaron Hotchner x f1 reader if you’re interested, but also no pressure if you don’t vibe with it. I don’t want anything too specific, just happy chosen family shenanigans. Sending all the love to you 💛💛

cute cute cute. as i'm writing this i'm pretty sure i've seen this type of thing before but i cannot remember for the life of me who wrote it! so pls let me know if anyone knows and i'll tag them. sending you all the love back anon <3 || 1.5k words, fem!reader

"Jack, come on man! Has your dad put you up to this?"

"No!" the boy insists, then lowers his voice again, "Dad told me not to tell you, but I couldn't help it."

Derek feels his chest swell with pride until he remembers what Jack's trying to convince him. He narrows his eyes at him again.

"Dave then? Trying to pull one over on me? Just because I switched out his-"

"Derek! I'm telling you the truth. I even have proof," Jack said, eyebrows raised, waiting for Derek to take the bait. His proof was poor at best, but he needed to talk to someone about this.

"Go ahead, kiddo."

Jack pulled out his phone, tapping furiously. Derek waited impatiently, even though he was an inch more intrigued than he had been 30 seconds ago.

When Jack showed him the blurriest photo in existence, that hope was snuffed out immediately.

"Okay, I'm leaving."

Jack grabbed at Derek's arm to make him stay, let him explain and it was enough to catch the attention of the rest of the BAU at their desks. Hotch was in his office, oblivious to the scene, one he would have put a stop to before it started.

"What's Morgan done this time?" JJ asked, making her way over with a smirk. Spence and Emily were listening from their desks too and before Jack could answer, Derek was already speaking.

"No no no, you're not blaming this one on me. Jack's claiming our very own Hotch is dating the Y/N Y/L/N. You know, she's an actress?"

Emily gasped.

"She's not just an actress, she's the actress, thank you Derek. I worship that woman."

"She's pretty amazing," Spencer added.

"Derek," Jack practically whined, "Dad's gonna kill me. I told you in secret!"

"Okay, but you're not serious Jack."

"You can't be."

"I am! So serious. So so serious that you all have to swear you're not gonna tell my dad about this conversation," Jack said, and upon seeing the amused looks of the people that were practically family, he glared at them, "Swear!"

"I swear, Jack," Spencer took pity on him first, but soon JJ and Emily did too, seeing the flush that had travelled up the young boy's neck. He may have grown a lot in his first few years of being a teenager but he kept the same tells that they could all read. Even Derek.

"Alright, alright, I swear too. But when I find out what you're trying to pull, I'm gonna pull something right back. You'll never see it coming, kid."

"Sounds like fighting talk, Jack, you need me to handle this for you?" came a teasing voice, silky smooth, from behind the group. Jack was the only one facing your way, and his face lit up at the sight of you. He went to stand at your side as the rest of them turned to see you in all your glory, smiling at them with that grin that they'd all seen so many times before.

On red carpets. Or movie theatre screens. Never in their office.

"Nah, you're alright Y/N," Jack said, greeting you with a brief but intricate handshake the others couldn't catch in time, "This is Derek, you've heard so much about, and he doesn't believe you're dating my dad."

"Ah, Derek Morgan," you said, enjoying the shock on his face as you said his full name, "You're right to be skeptical, you know. This one ate the last of my cereal this morning, though he swears it wasn't him."

Jack retorts instantly and just like that, the two of you have entered easy banter that the others can't help but sit and stare at. The conversation stops short when Jack bursts out in raucous laughter and you're grinning again, but you quickly turn back to the others.

"I'm so sorry," you say, and it's genuine now without the playful edge, "To show up like this, unannounced, and not even introduce myself. When I practiced this in my head, just know I blew you all away with my first impression."

They all rewarded you with a chuckle and it was enough to put you more at ease.

"I don't think you really need to introduce-"

"Y/N?"

Emily was cut off by another voice behind the group, this time one they knew well from their day to day lives. When they turned, comically in time with one another, they found Hotch at the top of the stairs, brow furrowed as he took the steps downward and walked towards them all.

Or, more accurately, towards you.

"I thought we were meeting you there?" he asked, voice low once he reached you and getting lower still as he murmured, "You don't have to do this, you know."

"I know. I want to," you assure him, eyes all sparkle as you look at him and reach out to briefly squeeze his arm, "Promise."

He nods once, like he's made up his mind. When he turns to the others, he's almost smiling. Spencer finds it a little eerie.

"Everyone, this is Y/N Y/L/N. My-" he stops short, and doesn't realise the entirety of his team is revelling in him being so flustered, "We're seeing each other."

"I'm his girlfriend," you supply, shaking your head at Hotch but you can't keep the smile from your face, "He just hates saying it."

"No," he grinds out, looking at you with nothing but fondness despite his warning tone, "It just doesn't cut it. It's not enough."

"What would you prefer?" Derek butts in, "Your significant other? Life partner? Lover?"

"Enough. She's important to me, let's leave it at that, shall we?"

Derek's suggestions had made you chuckle but Hotch's assertion had made you positively beam. JJ could read it all over her face. She'd moved past being starstruck and into being incredibly happy for Hotch.

"Jack I think we all owe you an apology man," Derek began, then winced and corrected himself when Emily elbowed him right in the ribs, "And especially me. I really thought you were kidding me."

"Jack, you told them?"

Hotch's voice is still stern, but this time directed towards his son. Derek winces again, knowing he's put his foot in his mouth as Jack's shoulders slump. Still glowing, you come to his rescue.

"Oh, Aaron, he's just happy for you," you say placatingly, a hand at his back, a reassurance, before you turn to the team, "It was me who wanted to keep this quiet, not Aaron. I was trying to protect him from my life, but I think I kept it up a little too long. That's why I'm here."

Spencer thinks Hotch might be glowing too. You, you're all ethereal anyway, and there's the essence of something angelic about you, but you seem to have pulled Hotch into your orbit. He's definitely smiling now, just a little. Spencer is trying not to frown at the difference of it all.

"You don't mind that I told them?"

"Not even a bit, Jackaroo," you chuckle when he rolls his eyes fondly at the nickname, "Been wanting to show your dad off for an awful long time, really."

It's cloying, really, the way you hang onto his forearm as you say it, but he's drinking up every drop you send his way. He even goes as far as to rest a hand on your own arm in return, and keeps you close.

"Other way round, sweetheart," he mutters, in some vain hope only you will hear him. He doesn't get his wish. As soon as somebody sighs wistfully, he's stiff again, back straight, "But I think we've shown off enough for one day. Lunch?"

Jack nods enthusiastically, still seeming relieved that you've helped him avoid any scolding, not that Hotch is very good at that, surprisingly. You nod too, sending a last sweet smile to the whole team and insisting that now they've met you, they won't be able to get rid of you. Another round of chuckles.

Emily insists they won't want to get rid of you and she's a little too eager. A little too superfan. If you notice, you don't show it, only saying goodbye to her with an extra warm hug that she can't shake off.

The three of you head off, you still hanging off Hotch's arm, your cheek now smushed against his shoulder. But he's silent, and you're blabbering away with Jack again, more laughter. When they get into the elevator and Derek cranes his head, he can see the real smile on Hotch's face and he gets a little choked up.

"Well shit," he says to the others, coughing it away, "That's me not getting any real work done today."

"You can say that again," somebody says, and soon they've devolved into sitting on desks and gossiping right into the afternoon.

When Dave and Penelope trudge back in after their early lunch to the commotion of everyone's reactions after you'd left, Dave simply asks them how they didn't know sooner. They're not surprised.

And if Penelope cries a little at the thought of just missing you, you'll never know. She has the others sworn to secrecy.

(hotch doesn't return at all)

if you'd like to request something, please do so here! i'd love to hear from you sunflower <3

[spicyvampire]

Man, I cannot stop thinking about Chalothorn coming to save Tharn and listening to Tharn when he asked to not kill Montree (and u know it's serious cuz i'm using his actual name)

Like that is when Tharn understood what he had to do to break the curse isn't it? Like this is when he went from grieving having to leave and accepting it because he knew what he was going to do while he was gone and he didn't know if it was going to work but he was going to try like this is a man with determination right there, like he isn't only looking at Montee he also has a goal in mind

and I feel like talking about this process Tharn went through but also just going through the trio's "character descriptions" as in Chalothorn being a fighter (maybe not talk about Chalothorn in this specific post I want to give him a whole post for himself), Wansarut/Tharn being an healer/protector (mediator?) and Sakuna/Phaya being a fighter (somewhat a little bit of a protector Wansarut/Tharn kinda rubbed off of them akasghjsgajhad like literally) and also just talk about power levels and who would match who in a fight and how that affected Tharn's decision or something idk we will see

Disclaimer : pulling all of this completely out of my ass from watching the show but it makes sense to me, might not make sense to anybody else cuz these are just raw out-of-order thoughts

I think I'll put everything under a keep reading cuz I know We about to spend an hour on this cuz this is taking too much space in my brain and I got school assignments to do so we just gonna throw it up right now

WANSARUT

Let's start with the fact that Wansarut is a healer/protector (and a mediator of some sort maybe? idk) like from the get go you got Wansarut saving Sakuna and healing him, simply because Sakuna was still alive (ep 8)

Like they are enemies at that point??? and what if Sakuna decided to kill Wansarut when he got better? And you can see that Sakuna does not understand Wansarut's actions cuz like they are enemies! That is a big risk Wansarut took simply because he was still alive, because it's not in Wansarut's nature to just sit there and watch someone die, whether they are from the enemy side or not, and Wansarut tells Sakuna to leave as soon as he feels better too, because Sakuna is clearly in Naga territory and it's dangerous for him there, and Wansarut didn't ask anything in return until Sakuna proposed it, and what Wansarut asks is just so goddamn UUUGHHHRBSGUYAHFG [tv static noise]

I literally do not know how to describe it but like Wansarut has an entire Garuda that is the literal Garuda king's brother saying he will give Wansarut anything as a favor because Wansarut saved him and Wansarut asks for peace between their people??? That's why I was like Wansarut is kinda a mediator, also later Wansarut says this

Really showing even if Wansarut would be happy with Sakuna, this situationship they got going on, Sakuna's presence in these woods, could make the war both of their people are living worst, and Wansarut do not want to cause harm, it would go against Wansarut's healer/protector nature

Also random sidenote : the way Wansarut talks the human world and about that Naga legend of a Naga turned human that wanted to be a Monk, is such a benevolent and loving god way of talking, also the fact that Wansarut is showing this whole part of Naga culture (Naga offering and breathing fire to pay respect to Buddha, on the 15th nigh of the 11th waxing moon) to Sakuna an outsider??? a literal enemy of Wansarut's people???? mind fucking blowing if you ask me

THARN

Ok enough about boyprincess time to talk about babygirl Tharn and how Wansarut's healer/protector (mediator) nature translated to him

Let me start with the fact that Tharn almost never attacks anyone first, and is always ready to put his gun down, and literally never shoot if he doesn't have to, let's just take a look at how fast he put his gun down in ep 12 and the fact that he didn't just shoot Montee goon in the back which gave him the time to disarm Tharn

Also when he could have literally shoot Narong possessed by Chalothorn back in episode 5, the coast was clear Phaya was out of the way and Narong was attacking Phaya so he had "reasonable" reason to just shoot the guy, like hell they even made eye contact and Narong (Chalothorn) just fully ignored him cuz he knew Tharn was not gonna shoot and Tharn really just didn't shoot

And don't get me started on the fact that Tharn took that stab for Phaya i'll be here till next year like!!! All that was in his mind was protecting Phaya and if he get hurt doing it so be it, which is literally exactly what his past self did, they will protect what they love, whatever the cost

Like it almost doesn't make sense that Tharn is a cop in this lifetime because of his healer/protector nature, if they still were making him a first responder, it would have made more sense if Tharn was a paramedic or something, but because his parents were killed it and he had to get justice for them he was knocked off the typical healer/protector path slightly, but he was still doing his cop job like he was a healer/protector (which is what cops should be tbh. but that's another discussion), like i wouldn't be surprised if Tharn's other reincarnations were in the medical field in some ways (but again how do you tell this story if they aren't in the same field of work? that's another problem innit)

SAKUNA

Unfortunately I gotta stop talking about babygirl Tharn and talk about our resident bird

Sakuna is fighter first and foremost like there is no questioning that, but I think he is a level lower than Chalothorn, like Sakuna is a high ranking soldier, probably his brother's right hand man but both time Sakuna tried to fight Chalothorn he lost, first time he was hurt very badly and Wansarut had to heal him, second time cost him and Wansarut's life and that's how the cycle started

And it honestly doesn't look like he match Chalothorn's powers even in garuda form, I think the garuda that would match Chalothorn would be Sakuna's brother (ep 12), unfortunately Sakuna would never get to a level where he could win since he died, and just keep dying every reincarnation after that, and I assume he just keep dying before he reach his full powers

But anyways by the end of Sakuna's life he wasn't only a fighter, you can see he genuinely was worried and wanted to protect Wansarut and he didn't care for his brother's war all that much, he did fight but that was to prove his love

And that's kinda beautiful isn't it? that's the effect Wansarut has on people Wansarut is close to and that's honestly the most powerful talent, like more powerful than the actual magic Wansarut can do

PHAYA

Phaya bird man extraodinaire is yet again a fighter (soldier) in this life, quite literally in the investigation team, but you can see that he has leadership qualities real early on (ep 2)

He is honestly a natural leader and I'm sure Sakuna was too, but on the powers side, his garuda powers like dormant/just under the surface this whole series, the best we get are little sparkles (ep 5 + ep 12)

His best qualities : his sparkles

Sidenote : let me just mention how protective Phaya is of Tharn, guy put his whole body over Tharn when there is a blast near, he is always in front of Tharn when they are fighting, not just episode 12 but simply all the time, like both time we saw his sparkles were related to protecting Tharn in some ways, like this man has a very fighter way of being a protector

But anyways my little birdy you are doing amazing tweety and I love you, but like how is he supposed to fight this fucking thing with goddamn garuda sparkles????????????

Well the answer can only be that he was never supposed to fight it. Like let's think about this for a sec, every goddamn reincarnation before phayatharn died why do you think? well idk but I can at least say for certain Sakuna and Wansarut died because Sakuna chose to fight. Literally every goddamn time this shit has always gone down south and we can assume it is because they fought Chalothorn. Fighting was literally NEVER the answer, but they kept doing it and honestly isn't insanity doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results???? They've tried Sakuna and Chalothorn's way and the only thing it got them, is them both killed in all their past reincarnations and Chalothorn being honestly one reincarnation kill away from turning into a Naga forever

Also like sidenote : there is no sign of Tharn's Naga form, like what we got from Tharn are some somewhat powerful sparkles but you can't seriously tell me he can fight Chalothorn literal king of Nagas with that, like the sparkles were only there to protect Phaya, Tharn/Wansarut were never meant to be fighters (ep 5), like even with Phaya and Tharn's powers combined it wouldn't work tbh

Problem is, this whole situation with Tharn's parents dying and people Tharn love dying did make Tharn forget who he was, so much suffering and hurt and grief from a young age can change a soul, Tharn was looking for justice for his parents and frankly was kinda impulsive and reckless about it, and thats why the abbott's role in this show was so goddamn important, he was here to remind Tharn of who he is (the lion king simba and mufasa style REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE), and that is a healer, a protector and a mediator first and foremost, he even said this in episode 3 and he is right Kindness is Tharn's biggest weapon (and Phaya's btw because Sakuna's soul has changed a lot over the courses of reincarnations and he is such a sweetie, that is until Chalothorn walks into the room)

FINAL

bro where was I even going with this? Idk but back to Chalothorn listening to Tharn in episode 12, I think that's when Tharn got a declic as to what the abbott meant by all of his mediation and precepts stuff, Tharn understood then that first of all Chalothorn is not only a killer, the person he has known all these years that cares about him and his wellbeing is there, he literally came to Tharn's rescue twice, in ep 11 when Tharn was falling off the cliff and with Montee in episode 12, the problem is you cannot talk calmly to Chalothorn with Phaya in the room, it's just never going to end well, you put those 2 head strong (mostly) fighters in a room and all hell break lose and people literally die

So Tharn knew he had to leave, but this time, in contrary to the end of episode 11, he had a purpose, the purpose was to change Chalothorn's mind from the inside, because Chalothorn's has show signs of caring and kindness (again he probably got that from hanging out with Tharn tbh), but Tharn didn't know if that would work, he didn't know if he was going to be able to come back to Phaya, and that's why he was saying goodbye like that

That's why it felt like, contrary to episode 11, this goodbye from Tharn had an air of acceptance of his fate, because he knew it was his time to go and fight for his and Phaya's love, but this time he was going to do it his way, and that way is with kindness, love and empathy, like the healer/protector that he is

[scoobydoodean]

Something fun for you to ponder. When Sam was soulless, Bobby thought there was a chance that, "This is just Sam." I think it's because Sam tends to perform empathy somewhat selectively, at times more cognitively than emotionally. Do I personally think it's a neurodivergent trait? Yes, I do. BUT. It's hilarious to me that Bobby looked at soulless Sam and thought, "Hmm. There's a good chance that's just Sam." No?

Ho ho! Very interesting.

From 6.06 "You Can't Handle the Truth":

DEAN I don't know how much longer I can do this, Bobby. You got to figure out what the hell he is and fast. BOBBY I'm trying. But, Dean, there's a worst-case scenario. DEAN What, Satan's my co-pilot? Yeah, I know. BOBBY Well, that'd be the other worst case. DEAN Well, then what? BOBBY Maybe it's just Sam

Notably: This happens before anyone knows Sam is soulless and before Sam has admitted that he doesn't feel anything, but after Sam has let Dean get attacked and turned by a vampire.

I don't think that Bobby disagrees with Dean that Sam is acting different from before (I think that's why he calls it a worst case scenario). Sam has been putting everybody on edge, not just Dean (Samuel says that Sam scares him in 6.07). I think what Bobby is considering is that Sam simply isn't the same person after The Cage—that Sam compartmentalized his emotions to deal with the trauma—turned himself into a stone cold killing machine as a coping tool—and now Sam doesn't know how to warm back up to feeling anymore or caring about anyone or anything (or maybe can't because it's still too raw). Bobby's considering the idea that Sam may have simply cracked open and spilled his emotions out on the floor somewhere and left them behind... which ironically, is pretty much what happened?

Bobby is aware of similar (though less extreme) behavior from Sam in the past in coping with trauma. In fact, he arguably knows this side of Sam better than Dean does. Sam ghosted Bobby while Dean was in hell (and for months in 3.11 "Mystery Spot", though Bobby doesn't remember that). It wasn't that Sam stopped feeling (he was full of anguish and rage), but he did push Bobby away and focus obsessively on revenge, hunting like a machine. Sam pushed away the potential to talk through Dean's death with someone else who loved Dean and understood a lot of the grief Sam was feeling because it opened him up to a dangerous amount of vulnerability.

This is very John-coded behavior from Sam and it doesn't represent a lack of emotion as much as it represents "I feel so much that I cannot stand the idea of touching that emotion or I will break". It's a refusal to engage with and feel certain emotions, because if he did, he wouldn't be able to get up. Anger is fuel that burns hot and keeps you moving, but grief and fear can rip the life from you.

Consider even John's way of dealing with the worry he perpetually felt about Sam. Yelling and telling Sam never to come back when Sam wanted to go to school, making the fight all about betrayal and responsibility when deep down the entire time, John was just scared that Sam would get hurt (1.08, 1.20). Griping at Sam as a kid for wanting to play soccer (1.08), but without Sam's knowledge, quietly placing Sam's soccer trophy in a storage unit because John couldn't bear to throw it away even though there was no room for it on the road (3.03). John buried certain representations of affection and love because they were fraught with so much terror. Being open about how much he cared exposed him to feeling so much fear he couldn't cope with it, and John feels emotions incredibly deeply like Dean does. When the crying starts he cannot stop. It isn't macho bullshit—it isn't "I'm a man so this is unacceptable"—it's "If I feel this emotion right now at this exact moment then I will shatter into a million pieces".

Sam does the same thing when Dean is dead. Bobby represents vulnerability, family, and love—talking about how much Dean meant to both of them. The rage is easier. Being a hunting machine in 3.11 is easier. Focusing on murdering demon and training to kill Lilith is easier.

When the people Dean loves are in pain, Dean talks to them—he tells them how much he cares about them. He lets himself be vulnerable with it. Sam wants something to do and he needs to take charge. We see this is in 5.07 after Bobby reveals that he's having suicidal thoughts. Dean is distraught, and Sam is too (we see how much Bobby's opinion of him matters to Sam in 5.01)—but Sam just tells Bobby he isn't going to let him sacrifice himself, then jumps into action and focuses on the mission, while Dean lingers at Bobby's side. Then at the end of the episode, Dean sits down with Bobby alone and tells him how much he loves him and needs him. I don't think Sam could have that conversation at that point in his life. I genuinely don't think he could—and not because he doesn't love Bobby, but because he can't touch the distress that would surface from a discussion like that. One could argue Sam really does the same thing in 3.10, stepping outside of Bobby's house and seeking out Jeremy inside Bobby's dream while Dean goes up the stairs and finds Bobby and again—opens himself up to vulnerable emotions and expresses how much Bobby means to him—that he sees him as a father and he can't lose him. Sam focuses on finding the guy doing all of this and skirts the emotional vulnerability.

I think this is something Bobby, then, is very familiar with from Sam, so when he takes it to an extreme, where Sam is now dealing with a traumatic experience from being in The Cage, he can easily see how Sam would suppress his emotions and focus on hunting like a machine yet again, and how that could possibly reach such an extreme that Sam would stop feeling altogether and maybe not know how to or not be able to come back from that. And you know... I've never thought of this before in this exact way, but how did Sam's soul and body get separated in The Cage? Is there anything that disproves the idea that Sam himself ripped his soul from his body to cope with Lucifer's torture?

[sweetestofchaos]

Run From Me - One | K.TH

p. vampire!taehyung x vampire hunter!reader

g. soulmates - enemies to lovers - reincarnation

r. 18+

w. mentions of blood - hints to murder - mentions of torture - hints to a past life - verbal threats

wc. 782

an. divider and support banner made by @benkeibear

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Taehyung licked at the blood that bubbled to the surface of his split lip.

He had forgotten how much of a fight you liked to put up. He chuckled as he wiped his mouth with his thumb. The digit, soon wrapped within his lips as he sucked the blood back into his body. You backed away panting. Your chest heaved up and down, your pulse, even as faint as it was, drummed rapidly. Taehyung smiled as the broken skin on his lip started to heal.

"Run from me again and again. I will find you. Every. Single. Time. You are mine. You were mine then as much as you are mine now, my dear."

It was an unspoken truth. You belonged to him. You belonged by his side. You belonged in his bed. It was a tale as old as time.

"So, run. Flee from my arms and take shelter from my eyes. I will grant you this wish, but know this dear one." He stared right at you unblinking. His brown eyes were nearly black as he stepped forward and you took a step back. You didn't want the distance between you to lessen. Not if you could help it. He flashed a wicked grin.

"If anyone else so much as looks at you, I will rip their throats out. I will serve you their blood in the finest of glasses whilst filling a pool. I will burn this world and all those who stand in my way to hold you in my arms once more."

You shook your head in disbelief. Your face twisted in disgust as you looked for a way out.

"Do you think I'm joking, dear one? Do you want me to act upon my words?"

Your eyes snapped to Taehyung's face at the question. How could he be so cruel? Was this nothing more than a game to him? It angered you like never before. Who was he to torment your very soul?

"No?"

You blinked and he stood in front of you. The toes of your shoes touched, your chest raised with each breath and touched the fabric of his red blouse. "Hmmm, how much I have missed this. Missed you."

Taehyung's voice was so warm as he stared at you. He spoke with such honesty that it scared you. Your breath froze in your throat as his hand cupped your cheek; his thumb brushed against the soft skin under your eye.

"Come now, there is no need for tears." he whispered to you. "You can run if you would like. I will not stop you. I would never stop you...the chase is just as fun as the catch."

That mocking smile was back on his lips and you felt your heart squeeze painfully in your chest. What did Taehyung mean? Why did he speak to you as if-

"Be a good little hunter and make it a challenge this time, yes?" 

The hand on your cheek slipped down to the back of your neck. His thumb stroked the curled hair as he spoke. "I wouldn't want to spoil the fun too soon."

Horrible images of dead bodies with their throats torn out came to mind. Streets painted in red, the blood of millions.

"Don't give me that look, dear one. You know what those eyes do to me." The grip on your neck tightened and Taehyung pulled you closer, your chests now touching. You tried to move your face away but he held you firmly, forcing your cheek to rest on his shoulder. He inhaled your scent, creamy sandalwood and cardamom spice with a hint of green citrus.

"Mmmm, maybe I shouldn't let you go?" He nuzzled his nose into the throbbing vein of your throat. His lips ghosted over the tender skin.

"Should I lock you away? Chain you to our bed? Run a stake through your heart while you sleep, so peacefully beside me?"

Your body shook as he listed all the way he could and most likely would kill you. You found yourself asking as much. Wondering if the vampire would be merciful enough to do it quickly.

"Kill you? No, no. I would never kill you, dear one. I cannot live without you. A stake would insure your place by my side, that is all."

You felt sick..A place by his side? He was insane!

"Oh, forgive me. It seems my words have frightened you. Apologies, dear one. I am just rambling. I would never act on such foolish ideas." He inhaled once more before he stepped away from you and licked his lips.

"Now, will you run or will you stay? The choice is yours, of course."

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[bellarkeselection]

Hey, I have another Klaus Mikealson x reader idea for you. It's a little long and if you're not comfortable then that's okay.

Here is the idea: The reader is taken by an enemy of the Mikealson's who wants to kill them. The reader is compelled by this enemy to go to the Mikealson's home and steal the white oak stakes. The reader is caught with them by one of the Mikealson's who know almost straight away that the reader was compelled (their vervain jewellery taken and them compelled not to notice.)

Klaus then comes up with a plan to trick the villain after doing so he makes sure that the reader cannot be harmed by another villian of his.

Have a great day/night

You Won't Be Compelled Again

Running out of the Mikaelson mansion with the white oak stake hidden underneath my red leather jacket. My hearts was pounding in my chest where I almost met up with Damon Salvatore who had asked for my help with getting the weapon that could kill an Original vampire. Throwing my hair around I halted in my tracks seeing Damon where I started to hand the stake over until his neck was snapped and my gaze met Klaus. "Nik..."

"Y/n, where is the necklace I gave you?" He asked dropping Damon's body from his grasp placing a hand on my shoulder scanning my face.

I attempted to move around him needing to follow through with what I was supposed to do. But I didn't really know why I was so insisting on giving him this stake. "I don't know. I just need to get this to Damon and Stefan. I said I would help them. Now let go of me."

"You've been compelled haven’t you?" He didn't move from his spot instead taking a hold of my other shoulder staring deeply into my eyes. "Tell me the truth, love. What do you remember from what they told you to do?"

Shaking my head I made a confused face at him and what he was asking. "I...I don't remember anything. I just know I have to do what they told me to do...even though I don't remember anything."

"Come with me, love. I'll fix this." He tugged me inside the mansion even though I was fighting until he told me to stop and trust him. He led me up the stairs and into his bedroom where I immediately laid down on the bed really tired where he watched me closely.

The next morning I woke up I rubbed my eyes feeling off where I lifted myself up on my elbows hearing Klaus walking into the bedroom offering me a half smile. "Nik, what happened last night?"

"You were apparently compelled to steal this by Damon." He drew the white oak from inside his jacket seeing utter confusion on my whole face. "He compelled you not to remember either so don't feel bad you didn't know. I am only sorry that I didn't see this coming for you."

Running my fingers through my hair I sighed heavily feeling so stupid that I let him take my vervain necklace from me that Klaus had given me. He warned me to never lose it and that’s exactly what I did in this situation. “Nik, I’m sorry. You told me to lose it and I messed up…how could I be so stupid.”

“You aren’t stupid, sweetheart. Damon and Stefan took advantage of you. But I assure you it won’t happen again. I will hurt them both so that-“

“Klaus no!” I snapped towards the hybrid cutting off his next words already knowing that he was planning a threat in his mind. “If anyone is going to get revenge on them it will be me!”

He reached over grasping my hand in his gently. He had taken quite the shine to the human girl in front of him. She wasn’t weak as Elena. She was very skilled like Caroline and embraced the supernatural world with open arms rather then run away. “What do you suggest then, darling?”

“First you have to turn me. That way I will never be able to be compelled again. And I know what you are going to say, are you truly ready to become immortal, are you ready to not age or have kids. Yes I am. This whole thing just opened my eyes to what I needed and I am tired of waiting.” I got in his face seeing his eyes scan over my face looking for me to back out but a smirk grew when he didn’t see anything hesitation.

Klaus reached up brushing some hair out of my face resting his hand on my cheek where I leaned into his touch. “So once I turn you. What is next, my queen?”

“Then you and I will…” I trailed off climbing in his lap since he was sitting on the foot of the bed wrapping my arms around his neck. Pressing my lips onto his he smiled instantly leaning forward and deepening the kiss until I broke it smirking at the hybrid. “Paint the world red and get our sweet revenge on those Salvatore brothers.”

He vamped me back on my back on the bed making me gasp smirking above me before he smashed his lips onto mine. “You and I are going to be the perfect pair. Now from this day on you will never be compelled again, I promise Y/n.”

“Then what are we waiting for, Nik?” I asked him where he tugged me to sit upright with him biting into his wrist holding the bleeding wound out to me. Drinking from his wrist he ran his freehand through my hair kissing the crown of my head before he placed his hands around my neck snapping it as gently as possible knowing that when you woke he would have an entirely with the woman he loved. And that revenge would taste so much sweeter with you.

Comments really appreciated ❤️

@rosie-posie08 @colbysbrocks

[pix3lplays]

Hello, @moonsaver here! Its a side blog so i cant quite send an ask from that account itself, whoops.

Anyways, I was kind of contemplating on whether or not sending a message because i didnt want to overstep any boundaries and accidentally make it seem like i sent a request when theyre closed haha.

I wholeheartedly believe in your characterization of Argenti, and would like to propose a role he could play in a royal!au

A knight

I mean.. obviously. It would be even funnier if all the knights under him were like.. kind of incompetent and love the peace between the nations thoroughly and just spend their time singing praises for Idrila. Maybe he's a royal knight and the reader could be a prince/ss who often makes trips to towns and provinces to check on celebrations, and their Father's all like "oh they'll need a guard, I'll assign them the most HANDSOME guard of my men!" And shows up Argenti singing praises to reader waking them up at like.. 5 AM? He's a handful already and the day's barely begun. His getup is probably flashier than reader's who is literal royalty. Everyone's cooing at him in the streets and it's hard to not blow your cover off

Oh my goodness hello, I’m so excited that you sent this to me~

(I am ALWAYS up for hearing ideas, hehe)

And I’m SO glad you’re in agreement with my characterization of our beloved Argenti~

You’re saying…Argenti would be a KNIGHT in a Royal au???? Are you feeling alright??? Jk jk of course he would be.

I love this so much. I bet Argenti wakes up like Cinderella. Birds flying around his room and everything. Though he canonically doesn’t know how to sing so it’s admittedly a lot funnier than Cinderella, listening to him sing all terribly while birds flap around his sleeping quarters.

‘Handful’ is a very nice way to put it…he never Means to be overbearing, and I am in agreement with the assessment that he’s not vain or purposely annoying or anything he just…cannot read a room for the life of him.

Suddenly you’re getting roses alongside your morning breakfast, and it’s admittedly a little funny to imagine him hunting down your butler to put the flowers on your food tray.

Also I see it so, so vividly. You’re trying to be subtle with your knight bodyguard, just trying to quietly survey the town to make sure everything’s going smoothly…and Mr. Tall, shiny armor, and Bright Red Hair is already making the two of you stand out…but he also stops and talks to anyone and everyone who shows him attention, sigh…

Maybe that person is waving him over because they need help!! Oh…no they wanted to ask him if he was single…

Please consider…going to a tavern…you want him to wait outside because surely there would be people in there who weren’t a fan of knights.

A few minutes later you look over and guess who has wandered into the bar and is now chatting up a group of rough looking characters…oh Argenti…

He’s so pretty. No one really suspects from his initial appearance that he’s as strong as he is.

Bar fight ensues because HEY this guy’s a KNIGHT >:( and Argenti promptly dispatches them, of course without casualties, he would never kill unless it was truly necessary.

He’s so sweet, but genuinely so confused about why a fight started over him. For a knight he sure is…not very well-versed in the ways of the world.

But you can’t say much as a Royal, can you?

You can share your limited knowledge with each other, haha…maybe form some sort of picture of how to successfully navigate the world.

And, ok I’m sorry I’m a sucker for this but, a cute little scene with him teaching reader some basic self-defense?? Ugh that’d be so cute…I’m so normal about it. The closeness of your bodies, the intimacy of him showing you how to properly hold a spear by taking your hands in his and demonstrating for you.

But of course…there is also the potential forbidden aspect of it all…a knight…he cannot be in love with a royal…it’d be a SCANDAL. So he pushes you away, tries to keep it professional once he realizes that he’s growing much too close to you…

It’s painful, and confusing to see him suddenly growing so much colder towards you, and always looking at you with those sad eyes…

Argenti….

It’s fine I’m fine.

Thanks for sending this in, moonsaver. I definitely didn’t make myself sad thinking about it, nope not me.

[rayrayvan]

It's okay, I forgive you

Pairing: Shuri x fem!reader

Note: This request was made by @kingstormpostsshit and I hope you like this piece. Enjoy everyone 🤗

As the Shuri coped in her lab figuring out how to recreate the heart-shaped herb, you and Riri helped make suits for the battle between Talokan and Wakanda.

“Griot what’s the probability of the herb?” Shuri asked her AI and when Griot told her it was about 97% , you immediately stopped what you’re doing and rushed to her side.

You embraced her immediately “Well done my love” You told her “Will it work?” Nakia asked, “It will work if it closes” Shuri told her “Griot print it out. The three of you rushed to the printing machine and the process of printing started.

After it was printing it closed up and glow into a purplish color. Nakia hugged Shuri and both nodded to each other.

“Just prepare if I ever I have a cardiac arrest okay?” Shuri told both you and Nakia as you settled your kimoyo beads to her chest “Wait cardiac arrest?” Riri was baffled at how the ritual would go. You leaned closer to your girlfriend and held her hands “Just promise me, come back to me, to us, to Wakanda okay? I love you” You whispered and kissed her forehead lovingly “I love you too, I’ll be back” She promised you

As Nakia started the ritual and Shuri drank the purple liquid, you three awaited for it to work.

Suddenly Shuri woke up, Nakia rushed to her side while you wait “Who did you see?” Nakia asked but Shuri was hesitant to answer “It didn’t work, it’s not, I know it’s not” Shuri repeated over and over and you were quick you hold her “Shuri we don’t know, calm down my love, it’s okay” As you reassured her, she pushed you accidentally and you flew across the room and slammed into a window pane. Riri was quick to your side to aid you. The pain you felt was running through your back, some broken glass scratched in your arms. Shuri was in shock that she did something to the last person who knows her more than anyone even herself.

As Riri helped you stand up, you broke free from her grip and limped your way to your shocked girlfriend. “Hey , Shuri look at me” You told her and cupped her face between your palms “I hurt you” She repeatedly whispered and her eyes are frantically looking everywhere except your face “Shuri, it’s okay, hey, it’s okay, I’m okay” You told her . She looked directly to your eyes and when she saw blood in your cheek, she sobbed “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry” She repeatedly apologized to you. You embraced her quickly and told her it was okay and you forgave her.

A few hours went by and you were patched up, you offered to help them build weapons and armours for the fight. As Shuri was building her Black Panther suit, her eyes were always on a look out for you and when you caught her looking at you, she’d look away, so you decided to approach her. “You seem to miss me everytime I’m out of your peripheral view” You told her jokingly and as she looked up to your face, her eyes saw how patched up your arms were so she averted her gaze. You took notice of this and told her to look at you.

The hesitation to look directly at your eyes was evident around her face, so you cupped her face between both of your palms. You smiled when you saw her eyes, she was slightly taller than you so you had to raise your head to look at her beautiful face. “My love it’s okay, I forgive you” You told her but she went on to saying “How could you forgive me? I almost killed you, I cannot lose the last person who knows me well. I’ve lost too much , losing you would break me. You’re the only person left to keep me sane. I’m so sorry Y/N” She cried and you hugged her “It’s okay my love, I’m right here.” You told her reassuringly.

And that day on, you both made silent promises that were kept to yourselves. Shuri vowed to handle you with care and love. As for you, you vowed to stay beside her side and when things get tough, you stay for her.

[kedreeva]

Why I’m Mad About Eddie

Okay, so, like I said earlier, I’m not mad about the fact that Eddie died, the fact that he died is NOT the source of my anger. I’m mad about the poor storytelling that led to it not even being a good death, after they set it up to be a GREAT death. I’m mad (furious) because I deserve to be heartbroken over his death, I deserve to have bawled my eyes out, I deserve the catharsis of a good character death, not this rage burning in me over the disservices done.

If you’re mad about it but can’t quite place why you’re mad (instead of heartbroken, like we deserve to be, I deserve to be suffering a raw, gaping wound in my chest right now!!!), maybe this will help.

I want to be clear at the start here that the following is not an analysis of Eddie as a person, none of this is going to be treating him as if he were a real person. This is about Eddie as a tool of the plot, as a tool of the writers, as a character within a story being told by people that should be able to do their jobs better. If you see me saying things like “Eddie did X” or “Eddie thought X” the intent is not that Eddie, the person, performed these actions, but rather that the writers wrote him as performing these actions.

So with that, let’s proceed.

The core of my problem with Eddie’s death is that the manner in which he died is trying to sell us the opposite message to what the narration showed us to that point. The way the death is set up, the writers are trying to sell us on the message “Eddie is a coward that becomes a hero when he stops running away.” Unfortunately for the writers, that’s NOT what the rest of the narration has shown us, so that message ends up feeling empty.

So let’s look at that. When does Eddie run away?

The first and biggest instance, the one he remembers right before he turns around, is when Chrissy dies. Now, we as viewers might be tempted to believe he “ran away” here, but that’s only even slightly true when we look at him through the lens of having experienced the other characters. Look at the situation objectively; he invites a nice girl he’s a little soft on over to buy some drugs to help her relax because she’s CLEARLY going through it. He leaves her alone for a few seconds to look for said drugs, and when he comes back she starts levitating with her eyes rolled all the way back in her head, and then all of her bones break for no visible reason, and her face implodes. I don’t know anyone who would stick around through that, that is objectively horrifying, so I don’t see taking off as a cowardly action AT ALL,especially since there’s no way for Eddie to know if whatever caused that will turn and do it to him next.

I’m sorry but a 20 year old kid still literally trying to just graduate high school, whose life has been Very Normal up until now (or at least, Very Mundane) is excused from taking off at this point, especially because what’s he gonna do if he stays? He cannot help her. He cannot call the cops himself; there’s absolutely NO chance a cop believes “officer she levitated and something invisible broke all of her bones and smashed her face in, it totally was not me” from the town drug dealer. They should because it’s literally true, but they aren’t gonna. They are going to, reasonably for the information they would have, believe he’s on drugs and killed her. And Eddie learning what actually happened after the fact? Learning it was a supernatural monster that he literally would have had zero power to stop? I can, a little bit, understand him feeling like he SHOULD have been able to do something, but narratively speaking from outside of the story, taking off wasn’t a cowardly move. That was the right move, and the only one he could have made. We know, and he finds out, that there was fuck all he could have done except leave to stay alive to fight another day.

Okay, so when else does he run, that would support the narrative that he’s a coward? He runs from the cops when they’re trying to track him down for murdering Chrissy. But… he didn’t murder Chrissy and, again, there’s no way the cops are going to just believe him if he tells them the truth. Also like!! Good for him for running from the cops, this is not the day and age to tell a story about how you should turn yourself in for crimes you didn’t commit. So that’s another example of Eddie bolting when it’s perfectly reasonable and ostensibly correct to do so.

So when else? Well, he runs from the jock pack when they come to try to kill him with guns. I don’t know about you but if I know meathead religious fanatics that hate me are coming for me with guns, I’m not sticking around to test the theory that I’m bulletproof. I’m getting the fuck out of there, and Eddie did too, and he was right to do so. That’s self-preservation. That’s the only correct move to make, again. Lose the battle, win the war.

As another example, my friend brought up the DND game where he advises the players to run instead of fight, and I can’t really take this one seriously because there’s no stakes and he’s the DM. If they fight or run, there’s no real life consequences. No one actually gets hurt, no one actually dies. DMs are supposed to give their players a little shit. They’re supposed to goad them a little. They’re also supposed to watch out for them; he’s got their info, he’s got imaginary Vecna’s info, he knows the odds. Any good DM wants the players to have a good time, not just have their characters die for no good reason and them be upset IRL(the irony here is outrageous, with that the writers of this fucking show should want the viewers to have a good time not just have characters die for no good reason and us be upset… but I digress). So imo, again, he’s not acting as a coward, he’s acting as a DM responsible for the good time of other kids he’s playing with.

Those are the major times I can think of that Eddie is shown “running away” and none of them are acts of cowardice. They are all reasonable, normal reactions to incomprehensible and/or dangerous situations. So where is the narrative that he’s a coward coming from?? Because you know what I see? I see exactly the opposite being told to us, in the chances he has to run away where he chooses NOT to run already. They play his death like it’s somehow the first time ever that he’s chosen to not run but it’s literally not even the second or third time!

He may not stay to fight an entire posse of armed jocks, but you know when he does hold his ground? When Steve is jabbing around the boathouse with an oar. Eddie doesn’t hesitate to defend himself at that point. He’s ready to fight Steve with just a broken bottle rather than bolt. He ran when he was panicked, terrified, out of his normal mind with confusion. But as soon as he has his feet under him and is dealing with something he understands? He holds his ground.

The girls jump into the water after Steve, and Eddie tells Steve after that, you know, what was he going to do, NOT go after them? And he’s kind of playing it like he didn’t have a choice because he didn’t want to be shown up in courage by the girls, but I’m sorry, an actual coward would not have gone after them regardless of reputation. At the very least, a coward would have waited in the boat, and reasoned to himself that, well, someone needs to be here when they get back, someone needs to be able to pull them out of the water etc (which imo isn’t even all that cowardly, that could be very helpful if they needed it). A coward does not dive into a pitch black lake in the middle of the night, to swim through the little fiery gate to hell at the bottom. That’s not cowardly behavior, even if it is motivated by not wanting to look bad in front of others. He is scared, terrified, and he goes anyway, knowing full well he might die. That’s literally the definition of bravery: being afraid and doing it anyway. And what’s more?? Is that by that point, they’ve explained the deal to him. He is informed about the Upside Down by then. He was told the equivalent of “hell is trying to break into our world and we’re the only people that know and we have to stop it but we might die” and he fucking goes anyway.

Which is like. The Mordor speech is another point. They explain to him the deal, and they give him an out when there’s no pressure. He can hide out safely here, they’ll go do what they do (what they clearly know how to do, have done before, and are pretty sure they can do), and he does not need to be involved. No one is currently actively in danger when they ask him. The people around him clearly understand that what they are asking is Big and no one there is going to blame him for saying yeah, I think I’ll stay here, good luck. THAT would have been the action of a coward. That would have been the point to run away, when he could have done so with some modicum of dignity. But instead, he stands up and he tells them he doesn’t want to do this, but it’s the right thing to do, and he’s going to do it with them. That is a hero’s choice. He knows there is a chance he will die, he knows there is a chance they all die, he knows there’s a chance it will hurt and be terrifying and that if they fail the world might end. He knows!! He knows because they told him and he says Alright, let’s do it. Bravery is not the absence of fear, it is being terrified and doing it anyway, and that’s what Eddie chooses in that moment and in the lake and at the trailer. Even if he’d run away the entire rest of the season before that point, THAT moment in the woods is the point Eddie decided not to run away. That is the point, narratively, where choosing to not run away mattered; when he knew the stakes and chose to stay despite them. That’s the point where Eddie decided, narratively speaking, to become a hero.

Which is kind of weird, because the writers shortly afterward try to sell us, the viewers, on the opposite message. The group comes up with the plan; Eddie and Dustin square off with the demobats while Steve, Nancy, and Robin square off with Vecna. Neither group can handle both things. Both groups are important to the success of this mission. The trio is going to be sneaking up on what is basically a sleeping target, and with the bats gone all they have to do is watch where they step. Eddie and Dustin, on the other hand, are going to be literally facing off against hundreds, if not thousands, of massive, demonic bats that want to literally eat them alive. And the writers look us dead in the eyes and try to tell us through Dustin and Steve and Eddie’s conversation, that this is somehow NOT heroic.

Excuse me?

If I was faced with calling hundreds of giant killer demon bats to me, I would 100% consider that a heroic action. That’s brave as fuck!! Eddie has seen those fuckers up close and personal! He knows the damage even just one or two can do. He’s WELL aware he ends up as lunch if he’s not good enough. But he does it. He plays right there out in the open and then he stands back to back with Dustin and fights the bats that get inside. They both fight like hell to keep the demobats’ attention and keep each other alive.

So, up to this point… the narrative has shown us that Eddie actually doesn’t run away. In fact, it’s shown us the exact opposite: that given information and a choice, Eddie chooses, repeatedly, to stay, to help, to fight. Eddie chooses bravery (being afraid and doing it anyway) SEVERAL times in major ways.

Which is the first reason why his death rankles SO MUCH. The writers tried to TELL us that Eddie was “redeeming” his earlier cowardice (running away) by choosing to stay and fight, but they told us this after spending all season SHOWING us the opposite. Bad.

But… that’s also not all.

While the mixed message of cowardice/bravery does suck, it’s not the only fuck up in this death. It’s the characterization fuck up, it’s the one that leaves me feeling confused and the action devoid of emotion; you can’t turn someone into a hero if they were already a hero. It’s an empty message. Hollow.

------

The other major reason revolves around the plot.

Like I said above, the point where Eddie actually decided to stay and fight was during the Mordor speech. That was the point where he was no longer running. But, let’s pretend that this wasn’t obvious enough, or even that it’s “easy” to decide to stay when nothing bad is currently going on in their vicinity. Maybe the argument is that bravery only counts when the shit hits the fan. Okay. So when does the shit hit the fan?

The shit hits the fan when the demobats are breaking into the trailer.

Back up a little, for clarity. The PLAN goes like this: Eddie and Dustin distract the demobats, to buy the trio time to get to Vecna. When the trio reaches Vecna, the demobats will turn their attention away from Eddie and Dustin, and go for the house to protect Vecna. This is understood by all party members, and is incorporated into the plan.

Now, here’s what the writers tell us the characters “know.” Attacking Vecna will alert the bats, as will touching vines, and the bats will leave the trailer to go to Vecna if either occurs. The Upside Down creatures they are going to be dealing with are a hive mind- if ONE of the creatures notices them, ALL of the creatures will notice them (which we and they have also seen in other demo-creatures in other seasons, so there’s no reason not to believe this is true).

What this MEANS is that as far as the characters know, as long as the bats are at the trailer, the trio has not A) stepped on any vines or B) started the fight. This also tells us that the trio expects the bats to fly from the trailer to the house and that that time is immutable and factored into the plan already. It also means that Eddie and Dustin can be sure that as long as the bats are at the trailer, the trio is fine (see A and B above) and on plan.

So, that leaves us with this: as long as the bats are at the trailer, Eddie and Dustin have NO reason to believe the trio is off-plan or in need of anything. As far as the duo knows, the trio has not been caught by vines (they have, but there’s NO WAY for Eddie and Dustin to know that, and in fact they must assume the opposite given what we have been shown they “know” about how touching the vines will alert the bats). The demobats (according to what we have been shown the characters know) will remain at the trailer trying to get to them until one of three things happens- they acquire new prey (the trio), they kill the duo, or the duo escapes in a way the bats cannot follow and they give up (at which point they may or may not leave, if they have nowhere in particular to go, we don’t really know what they do without prey besides fly around I guess).

Given that the bats ARE still at the trailer (meaning the trio is on task and safe) and ARE still trying to get to Eddie and Dustin (meaning the immutable flight time between trailer and house has not begun)… what is Eddie buying time FOR? They have the bats’ attention whether or not he does what he does. The trio, as far as he has any reason to believe, is safe. They haven’t communicated any problems. And (and this is IMPORTANT because we are talking about the WRITERS) we, the viewers, are not shown any indication that the plan is delayed in a way the Eddie or Dustin characters would be aware of. Neither of them mention “it’s taking too long” re: the Vecna battle beginning. From Eddie’s POV, we are given NO indication whatsoever that there’s any REASON to need to buy more time. We are shown that the trio is in distress, being strangled by vines but a) Eddie doesn’t know that, because touching the vines is supposed to set off the bats and they’re still at the trailer and b) he cannot “buy time” against the vines strangling them because extra time won’t do anything for that.

Narratively speaking, there’s no good reason for him to try to buy more time in the first place, either from his POV or outside of his POV.

On top of that, we’ve reached the “the shit hits the fan” moment, when Eddie is staring up at Dustin, the demobats are closing in, and Eddie is faced with a choice- leave with Dustin (which is following the plan and is a good move to make) or stay and fight (or to “buy time” for whatever that means). He chooses to stay to buy time for the trio. My wife pointed out that she thought he might be buying time for Dustin, but I would counter that with saying that there’s no indication of that. Their mission is to buy time for the trio, and he doesn’t say “buying YOU time” he just says “buying time.” To me, this indicates he is attempting to further their original mission.

Now, don’t get me wrong here. Eddie’s attempt to “buy time” was not completely without merit, it was just completely without merit the way it was set up and fulfilled. And that’s because it came before his clear “decision” to stay and fight was shown to us in flashbacks, without any indication that more time was actually needed, and because what he did before fighting (staying, running) was not recognized for what it was.

Here’s the deal. They have two sets of time which they could choose to try to increase; the time they are holding the demobats’ attention and the time it takes the demobats to get back to the house. The former increases no matter what, as long as they are focused on Eddie. The latter ONLY increases if Eddie is in motion away from the house, thus leading the demobats farther away and increasing the time it takes to fly back. The literal ONLY way to buy time in that second set is to run away from the house, and keep running until he cannot do so anymore.

Which is WHY it’s so senseless for him to have turned around to fight in the middle of running. He cannot win a fight against hundreds of demobats. He just can’t. And they were going to give chase to him again momentarily whether he turned around or not, so the best use of his time and energy is in fact not fighting, it is putting one more foot and one more foot and one more foot of distance between the demobats and the house where the trio is going to be fighting. Running away is literally the best way to buy time and save them.

Not fighting, not hiding, not holding down the fort. Running. Away. The thing we’ve been told he does, the thing he believes he does, even if we’ve been shown the opposite. The writers set up the exact situation in which running away is literally the correct and best answer for how to save the group. And then they give the extremely mixed and empty message that actually, turning to face the monsters and fight them for no good reason is the heroic thing to do. But why? They show us flashbacks at that point that are supposed to tell us that Eddie is just now considering that he should stop and turn and fight. NOW of all times??? NOW is the first we are shown that he thought of it? The writers certainly seem to think that this is the point, because they are flashing us back now. But that’s ridiculous, narratively, because he already decided to stay instead of flee, back at the Mordor speech. He already decided to sacrifice himself back at the trailer. We’ve been shown that he only runs when it’s sensible to do so, and that he’s perfectly willing to be brave when it’s appropriate, especially if it means protecting others.

So one of my other friends brought up this: Eddie believes he is a coward, regardless of his actions. She pointed out that she could see where even if he was not a coward, he might believe it enough to do what he did. The problem with this is... Remember way back at the beginning of this post where I said I will be talking about Eddie as a character and a plot tool? Eddie "believing" he is a coward is taking Eddie as a person, not a character in a narrative. It is perfectly reasonable for a character to believe something counter to the narrative! But... it has to be shown that it actually is counter to the narrative. There has to be some indication, an acknowledgment from the narrative, that while this character believes X, the truth is actually Y. And that doesn't happen here. The indication we get is that the Eddie character believes the times he ran were cowardly and that the actions that get him killed are not, and the writers, instead of reminding us that's not actually true by what we've been shown, try to use flashbacks to tell us that we should agree because they think the narrative supports that conclusion. Except it doesn't. Despite their best efforts, the narrative so far has communicated the opposite of what they try to sell us at the moment of his death. They want us to look at those flashbacks, agree that he's been a coward, and be happy that in this moment he is turning around to become a hero. But Eddie didn't become a hero in that moment by turning around. Eddie was already a hero. Eddie has been a hero practically the entire season so far.

-----

And that’s just… the problem. The writers completely failed to communicate the messages they wanted to communicate, and this meant that the things they SAID to us were hollow compared to the things they SHOWED us, and also ill timed.

Hope that helps.

This is part 2, that I added in a reblog but I'm including here now so I don't have to keep looking up the reblog:

Oh my god I'm sorry, I'm apparently not finished, a 4500 word dissertation was apparently not enough to locate all the things they did poorly with regards to Eddie's death and storyline.

I messed up, I looked at this purely from the perspective of Eddie as if he was in a vacuum, and he's not, and the entire- the whole entire season, everyone's plotline revolves around how running (or walking) away is the right decision sometimes. The literal threaded theme music through the season is 'Running up that Hill.' And yeah, some of the message is that at some point, turning to face the music (I'm sorry) may be necessary, but not until you're prepared to do so. Not when you're alone (at least not unless you're alone and cornered). Not when doing so will get you killed.

In Max's storyline, it's actually vital that she run away. She's the party's zoomer, running and being fast is built into her character design. Running from Vecna is what saves her life the first time he comes for her. Listening to a song about running away keeps her safe until they have a plan. More importantly, running to her support group, to her friends, to help so she's not alone, is what saves her fucking life. When she finally does face down Vecna? She hides. The plan is to have her hide out in the school dance gym, where she won't have to fight. Hiding, after spending all this time running, is good and right!! When she must be alone with no one able to help - just like Eddie being alone for Chrissy, for the cops, for the jocks - her job is to run, to hide, and to wait for support. Running is good because fighting alone is bad.

El's big moment with Papa this season? It wasn't when she fought him. It wasn't when she faced him down, those were the lead ups. Her crowning moment with him was when she ran from him. It was when her support group reached her and she looked at him as he was dying and asking her to stay, and she walked away from him. She was not the one to take him down. She tried facing him. She tried fighting him. It didn't work. Leaving, running away, was what finally got her free of him (and this also tracks with season 1, where literally the entire show launches because she ran away from danger and found support to stand beside her). And she was right to do so! I cheered so loud when she left him to die in the dirt. I rooted for every step she took trying to escape him. Running away was good and right because fighting alone is bad.

Jonathan, Argyle, Mike, and Will all ran away from the bad guys, taking the pizza truck and fucking booking it out of there to safety. They spend most of the season on the run! And you know what? It takes them right where they need to be, to catch El when she's falling. Running when you can't beat the odds is right and good. Running so you can fight another day is the smart move, sticking together and finding your group members is the best course of action.

Hopper, when he is alone in Russia, isn't about to take on the entire prison. What's his plan? Fucking run the fuck away!! Of course it is!! That's the only sensible plan he can possibly have! Running away from that danger is right and good! They only go back when he finds the others and they have a plan.

Go back to season 2- when does Will really get into trouble? When he takes the bad advice from Bob that he should turn and face his attacker. When he stops avoiding the mind flayer, it takes him. Bob's advice could have been good advice... in a mundane situation. But they're not in a mundane setting. They're in a supernatural horror setting, and turning to face the monsters when you're alone and have no plan gets you killed. His mother moves him all the way across the country to get him away from it, and granted it finds them anyway and they do end up going back, but... it's after they find Hopper. Joyce left after losing that part of their support network. El, as part of that section of the story, faces her attacker (the school bully) alone, and both times it gets her into worse trouble than walking away, even getting her arrested, taken away from the group and ultimately getting the group chased after (hey look running away) by people who try to kill them.

Just about the only character that routinely snatches up a weapon and stands their ground seemingly on instinct is... Steve. And you know what? He repeatedly gets his ass kicked because of it. He gets his ass kicked so many times it has become a running joke that he can't win a fight. It's become a staple of his character, even to the point of Dustin, in season 3, straight up making a plan that outright involves Steve not getting into a fight (and ironically that's the one human fight he wins) because that's a bad plan. It's a last resort. Fighting is what they do when they've exhausted all other options and have no choice (and this is also a message repeated many times throughout the series, as "this sucks and we don't want to/shouldn't have to do this but there's no one else and no choice, we have to fight").

Over and over and over and over the writers show us "running away is sometimes the right choice to make" and yet... And yet they tell us "Eddie Munson is a coward for running away." Why? Why is he any different than literally anyone else? Why, when he is alone and cannot possibly win, is he the only one punished for running away until the group can find him? He didn't run away when it mattered! He chose to fight with the group when it would make a difference, when they had a plan and were able to support one another. Narratively speaking his death was a horrible mixed message compared to the narrative of the entire rest of the season, and every other character.

Anyway I've run all the way up this fucking hill, I guess I'm gonna die on it.

-----

Allow me a few more minutes of your time, I know this is long already but hear me out about a couple simple changes to the narrative that would have shifted everything:

Imagine if you will, that we have everything set up the same, right up until Dustin goes through the gate into Eddie’s trailer in the real world.

And then imagine that this is the point where Eddie pauses, and remembers being in this very same fucking trailer with Chrissy and being helpless. There’s nothing he could have done then. Imagine getting the flashbacks NOW, while he’s still in the trailer, and his decision hinging not on his guilt over running (which was reasonable) but on his helplessness in that moment. He couldn't save Chrissy but he can save these people, here, in the now. Imagine him remembering the trio talking the timing of the plan over, and imagine Eddie communicating to Dustin in the now that “It’s been too long. The bats should be heading for the house by now. They need help.” and imagine him telling Dustin that he’ll get the bats out of there, lead them away, buy time, and that Dustin needs to go help the others. In no way does he want to send Dustin to do this, in no way does he want to endanger Dustin, but he’s the only one there is and the fate of the fucking world may depend on the party succeeding. That, and it’s currently far more dangerous right now to be demobat bait.

Imagine that he gets out of the house, and onto the bike, knowing full well that if he doesn’t get the bats as far away as he can as fast as possible, the bats may see Dustin (which incidentally places the emotion of the moment on a character we know and love and are also invested in, instead of some random person we had for half a second 4 seasons in). Imagine that he’s desperate to buy that time because it matters now, the stakes of him buying time are so fucking high now. He’s learned to run, and now running is the thing that is going to save the others, maybe the world. He’s running knowing full well that running may get him killed, because the bats are faster than he is, but the group needs him. Running, in this moment IS an act of bravery. This is what he can do, he’s supposed to be good at it. So he does it.

And imagine the moment the bats do catch up, and they do drag him off the bike, and there’s no help coming, and imagine that he literally walks backward deeper into hell while fending them off, fighting tooth and nail for one more foot of distance, and one more, and one more, because the farther he can walk, the farther the bats are from the trio and from Dustin. The more time he can buy for Dustin to reach them, the better their chances of surviving are, even if Eddie doesn’t.

And imagine that this makes a difference. Imagine Dustin reaching the group and pulling out one of the firebombs from their dropped packs, and burning the vines into releasing the trio, and someone demands to know where Eddie is, and Dustin telling them he’s being a hero, don’t waste his sacrifice, and he looks like he’s gonna cry but they don’t have TIME. And Vecna is aware of them now because of the firebomb, but when they get there, his attention gets yanked to El arriving in the Upside Down and challenging him and he can’t split his attention. So they attack him while El is attacking. Maybe it trades off where he’s focusing. Maybe their attack is what distracts him just enough for El to hear Mike and get out of her vines after Vecna was starting to win.

And maybe none of that makes a difference in the end, maybe what ultimately happens to Eddie doesn’t change. Maybe Eddie does die knowing full well that that was the inevitable consequence of his choice. Or maybe they beat Vecna fast enough the bats drop and he lives. At that point, living or dying is narratively the same intensity (although obviously I would prefer he live, I would have accepted and mourned if he has died, instead of being full of rage). Either he died an actual hero whose actions really did buy time and allow the party to survive, or he lives knowing that sometimes, actually, running is the right choice, if it means surviving to continue the fight.

So. That’s why I am mad about his death. Not because it happened, but because it happened in such a completely senseless and ultimately useless manner. He didn’t buy time. He didn’t actually save anyone. He didn’t even really complete his own narrative arc the way it had been set up. He just died and we’re being told we should be very proud of him and terribly sad because he was a hero, and instead I’m mildly disgusted, disappointed, and furious at the inability of the writers to tell a coherent story about his death.

Hope that helps.

[kimjun]

Okay, but thoughts on Damian Wayne x happy, bubbly reader who he always thought was this weak, powerless little thing, and then he sees her fight better than anyone he’s ever seen-

Delicado | Damian x leitor

Você era a definição de adorável aos olhos de quem olhava para você. Suas roupas eram sempre adoráveis, assim como seus brincos divertidos, sempre tinham formatos diferentes, flores, corações, jujubas eram sempre diferentes. Você sempre teve o cabelo preso em formatos diferentes, sempre tinha alguma coisa enfeitando sua cabeça.

Damian always thought you were as delicate as a flower, and he was always careful with you, he was always soft even in touching your skin, the boy was afraid to hurt you. Damian worried when you found out he was Robin, he thought you would be in danger, so he trained more, he wanted to protect you. Leave danger away from you.

Helpless and cute, you've heard it many times even with your boyfriend's family. Just because you dressed in a delicate way does that make you defenseless? Everyone saw you like that and maybe it bothered you. Damian didn't say that out loud, but you knew he thought you were fragile. Your best friend Jason was the one who didn't really see you as just a helpless girl. So he was the only one who was not in shock now.

Everyone in the cave was paralyzed, no one was really blinking because the scene in front of them was something that couldn't be reality.

You the sweet yn that dressed in a lovely way, was with one of Damian's blades, but what really shocked everyone was that the blade was on Bruce Wayne's neck, a cut that was bleeding a lot, the look on his face was something that no one had ever seen. You were in front of Jason like an ounce protecting your young from a predator.

It all happened because Jason had gone after Joker, but Bruce brought him home again, and a fight started, Bruce went over to Jason to punch the boy. It was at that moment that you got into their fight, you took Damian's blade, you kicked Bruce's arm the moment he punched Jason more, you slid the blade around the neck of the man who groaned away, the tip of the blade slid into a vein in the neck. No one has ever seen Bruce freeze. But there was Batman, frozen because a girl in flower pajamas had a blade around her neck.

Bruce saw the look you had, you were really willing to wear the blade deeper in your neck. Bruce swallowed dry, he saw that no one moved, all petrified.

— You are thinking about how you are going to kill me, I can read you now.- Bruce whispers, you are still firm with the blade. — We didn't kill Yn.

— Maybe, I'm not your kids who follow your rule, Do you really believe that something as small as a rule, or a law, can stop me from protecting Jason from you?

— Love, you shouldn't play with blades.- Damian comes back to you, he runs to you.

— If you try to take this from me, your father will be dead.- you look at Damian. — You will never hurt Jason again, did you hear me? - you looked at Bruce.

— Yes.- Bruce releases the air when you throw the blade on the floor and go to Jason.

— Did you also see Damian's girlfriend threaten Bruce? - Dick whispered in shock.

— That was shocking.- Cass speaks.

— Were you really going to kill Bruce? - Jason asked, you and Damian were helping him. Damian seemed to expect an answer.

— Not in front of you, my mother taught me to do this without leaving a trace... He had many eyes on me at that moment. - Damian looked at you surprised.

— What do you mean? Did your mother teach you how to kill? - Damian chokes, he cannot believe that his helpless yn is nothing helpless.

— My mother is a black widow... Do you think she taught me what? - you laugh leaving a kiss on Damian's cheek, you went out to get first aid.

— I was also shocked when I saw her come out of adorable yn for a yn fuck.- Jason laughs at Damian's shock face.

[ilynpilled]

I think most people started liking jb as a couple after the bear pit scene, but when I read the books back in freshman year I think it was the sword fight. Maybe it is the fucked up dynamics enjoyer in me, even though jb ends up being relatively wholesome (at least for this series’s standards lmao). The chemistry in that thing was tangible. It is so funny too bc I always viewed it as proof of Jaime’s attraction/admiration/complex feelings for Brienne already being a serious problem in his subconscious from very early on. Ofc once he actually clashes swords with her, his respect grows noticeably because he also realizes her skill and strength, and Jaime is dudebro powerscaler coded like that. Nonetheless, Jaime at that point being a character that just wants to “cut through” his problems puts that entire scene into a very interesting perspective. Brienne is literally a problem that he wants to cut through. “His brother never untied a knot when he could slash it in two with his sword.” He is in such a dark place as a character that his instinct is to kill his problems, even if said problem is a living person.

“Jaime had told him of it often enough. How time seemed to blur and slow and even stop, how the past and the future vanished until there was nothing but the instant, how fear fled, and thought fled, and even your body. "You don't feel your wounds then, or the ache in your back from the weight of the armor, or the sweat running down into your eyes. You stop feeling, you stop thinking, you stop being you, there is only the fight, the foe, this man and then the next and the next and the next, and you know they are afraid and tired but you're not, you're alive, and death is all around you but their swords move so slowly, you can dance through them laughing." 

He uses violence as a means of depersonalization, as by killing he transforms into some beast who operates on impulse. If he is so powerful physically then he is untouchable and does not have to face complex paradoxes that he cannot seem to overcome inside of his mind and heart. This is also why when this ability is robbed of him he is forced to confront himself.

This parallels Brienne pretty nicely bc she too views fighting as an effective coping mechanism, though it is considerably less dark for her. It is less about enacting violence upon your problems and destroying them and more about protecting yourself from them.

"Fighting is better than this waiting," Brienne said. "You don't feel so helpless when you fight. You have a sword and a horse, sometimes an axe. When you're armored it's hard for anyone to hurt you."

This is also present in the fight itself: “yet somehow he could not reach her. It was as if she had an iron cage around her that stopped every blow.”

Fighting is like a different language these two share. It means more to them than it does to most people. It is a means of survival, not just physically but mentally. No wonder their dreams are often them fighting a manifestation of their trauma with swords. Already there will be a level of intimacy at play during their clash. It is also interesting that this established dynamic of Jaime on the offense, and Brienne on the defense, changes as the fight goes on.

Back to Jaime and how he views her though: She is his captor, sure, but she is also someone that is challenging his entire world view that he constructed for himself to enable his behavior and not get crushed by the weight of his self-concept. She is someone whose judgement of him is so thoroughly founded in genuine care about his victims. She faces him with it head on, not behind his back. The way she dehumanizes him bothers him so much, because she already proves herself to be someone whose opinion of him has weight. She stops to bury innocents that fell victim to her supposed “allies”. He stops to imagine her in Cersei’s gowns, and looks at her muscular calves and arms as she rows, even though the only woman he ever wanted was Cersei. She is his other half, after all. She is a woman that is very competent in a role that was not meant for her by the rules of the realm. So much of his animosity towards her is rooted in all of this, especially considering that she judges him so harshly, with her absolutist morality and naivety pissing off Jaime even more. There is a big part of him that desperately seeks her approval.

THEN THE WAY IT IS WRITTEN. I know George gets shit for his sex scenes but this shit is so good idc. That old man went off here.

“Give me the sword, Kingslayer.” “Oh, I will.” He sprang to his feet and drove at her, the longsword alive in his hands.

The swords kissed and sprang apart and kissed again. Jaime’s blood was singing.

“swinging so hard that sparks flew when the swords came together, upswing, sideslash, overhand, always attacking, moving into her, step and slide, strike and step, step and strike, hacking, slashing, faster, faster, faster… …until, breathless, he stepped back and let the point of the sword fall to the ground, giving her a moment of respite.”

The dance went on. He pinned her against an oak, cursed as she slipped away, followed her through a shallow brook half-choked with fallen leaves. Steel rang, steel sang, steel screamed and sparked and scraped, and the woman started grunting like a sow at every crash”

“Come on, come on, my sweetling, the music’s still playing. Might I have this dance, my lady?”

She is stronger than I am. The realization chilled him.

“His point scraped past her parry and bit into her upper thigh. A red flower blossomed, and Jaime had an instant to savor the sight of her blood before his knee slammed into a rock. The pain was blinding. Brienne splashed into him and kicked away his sword. “YIELD!”

Jaime drove his shoulder into her legs, bringing her down on top of him. They rolled, kicking and punching until finally she was sitting astride him. He managed to jerk her dagger from its sheath, but before he could plunge it into her belly she caught his wrist and slammed his hands back on a rock so hard he thought she’d wrenched an arm from its socket. Her other hand spread across his face. “Yield!” She shoved his head down, held it under, pulled it up.

Brienne lurched to her feet. She was all mud and blood below the waist, her clothing askew, her face red. She looks as if they caught us fucking instead of fighting…Small wonder, we were making enough noise to wake a dragon.”

“Well met, friends,” he called to them amiably. “My pardons if I disturbed you. You caught me chastising my wife.” “Seemed to me she was doing the chastising.”

Swords being used as phallic symbolism is nothing new in literature. Also so funny to me that people think jb being “sexual” would ruin the “purity” and “depth” of the relationship. lmao we are way past the point of it being the “the platonic comrades with mutual respect” thing some of you see it as. I am hesitant to believe that was ever really the case with this relationship.

[aloneatpeace]

𝙰𝙿𝙾𝙲𝙰𝙻𝚈𝙿𝚃𝙸𝙲 𝚆𝙾𝚁𝙻𝙳

HORRORS OF THE NIGHT '8'

.→✒️:★: ͜͡✿͜͡ →. I have been in hell when i couldn't write anything. I thought i could focus on studies but writing the only thing that keeps me sane.

TW : Major character death (sorry)

One stabbing oneself.

Have good reading ❤️

▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄▀▄

The night felt similar to that of when you had spent the night in the maze but more terrifying. Everyone knows what coming out of the maze to hunt them and they don’t have an efficient defense system to save themselves.

Yoongi knows that as well. Despite knowing that the grievers in the maze is something they cannot easily defeat, they never thought that a day would come where they have to fight the grievers for their life. These walls were the only thing that kept them away from the boys now the doors are all open leaving them vulnerable to the creatures

“Taehyung, tell everyone to gather at council hall” he commands taehyung took off running nodding “Winston goes with him” he turns to hoseok “hoseok grab every weapon we have we will meet council hall”

Hoseok nods leaving with seokjin, gally instruct some of the boys to go hide in the woods.

Yoongi grabs you by your hands “you and Theo are going you get Namjoon and jungkook and jimin all right?” he asks looking at in your eyes snaping you out of your mind. You wordlessly nod. But before you and Theo can leave the sound of boys shouting from the distance is heard the group of boys come running out the words that not only thing from the darkness of the maze a giant figure creeps in.

The roaring of griever echoes through the open doors making everyone turn, the limbs of the griever is all you see everything in you scream to run and hide “Everybody hide!”

You all run to the corn filed hoping the large plants will cover and hide you all from the creature the screaming of boys still echoed from the distance no doubt that they are also being hunted by the creature.

Panting you all sit down the field yoongi’s hands clasp around you making you look at him he gestures everyone to be quiet as the sound of the griever nearby followed by the screams of someone.

That’s when zart get grabbed by it as the creature’s meatal limb clasp around his back a scream leaving his mouth. You scramble to grab his hands but he was already taken by the creature.

yoongi pulls you back. And once again you all starts running for your life, halfway you guys meet with Namjoon who is being supported by jimin and jungkook.

“y/n what’s going on?” jimin asks

You stop Infront of them “the grievers they’re here”

“We need to get council hall “yoongi state he glances at Namjoon, jimin and jungkook “you three sticks together”

You, yoongi and Theo takes torches and weapons that you find anything that could save you all as on from every side the grievers killing the boys.

Just as you all run towards a griever crash right Infront of you it snarls the mechanical tail lifting as its claw extends to grab anyone that it can reach.

Theo quickly grabs a jar that use to light and throws it at the griever igniting the thing on fire, the creature screech as the fire consumes it completely. Now that it is away from the path the running starts again, the creature following with aggravated snarls.

Namjoon trips and falls bringing jimin and jungkook down with him jimin yells at Namjoon for falling but nonetheless he helps him along with jungkook.

You and yoongi draw out your weapons as the creature stand Infront you, pushing the three behind you.

With adrenaline rushing through you stand Infront of them screaming at the creature to fight chest heaving.

Before the creature can hurt any of you it was struck by spears, hoseok and seokjin come running towards you.

“GUYS COME ON” Taehyung yells from the council hall waving at everyone to come fast.

Hoseok who is the last one to get in shut the doors backing away from the door everyone stands in fear silently afraid to make noise that could get them all killed flinching when it starts pounding on the door.

The creature circle around looking for a way to get in, the creature jumps on the roof and everyone huddle towards the door suddenly the creatures tail breaks the roof and pulls up the pole that hold the roof up making it come crashing down everyone.

One of the boys get grabbed by the creature before anyone can save him, everyone gathers around again the creature again circle around and it penetrate through the walls grabbing the boy who was close.

Jungkook screams when the creatures claw gets wrapped around his torso, your eyes widen when he gets lifted reaching for his you get hold on his hands and everyone join in pulling jungkook back.

“Jungkook don’t let it go” jimin screams at him.

“NO SHIT”

Namjoon pants holding his sides his face hardening when he sees the stung getting ready to inject jungkook, pushing himself up he garb the machete and with yell he cuts the tail making the creature retreat and jungkook to falls on tops you all.

You garb jungkook faces making him look at you “are you okey?”

He coughs “yeah. I’m fine” sitting up jungkook doesn’t seems to fazed at all he takes the stung that fallen off from creature and turns to namjoon “thanks namjoon”

You let out a sigh of relief sitting down for moment too quickly as the tail come right back namjoon name leave your lips with scream when he gets grabbed pushing yourself stand up you dash towards him grabbing on to his hands.

You pull him towards you with all your strength “hold on”.

Namjoon eyes watch you with longing as maybe this is how things mend to be, maybe this is the last time he gets to see. He never regrets meeting you, being friends with you, falling for you, loving you. his only regret is that he didn’t get tell you that, hold you one more time, kiss you once again to feel what is like to live that moment.

He neglects the fact that being with you, getting his friends involved with you a factor that led to the decision of them sending him and his friends in the maze.

He doesn’t know how you got here, why would they send you down here but he knows that you will get them all out of here.

“You, get them out.” He whispers to you maybe you knew that he’s giving up because he could feel your tightening your hands around his.

You scream for him when his hands leave yours running out the hut not stopping when the boys protest against.

The glade is destroyed distant screams of boys and snarling of grievers still echoes a devested look falls on everyone’s face, Theo watches you as you take in the site Infront of you sadly.

Gally come speeding towards you a glare fixed on his face the boys who was still unable to digest the fact that Namjoon is gone again didn’t see him.

Jungkook is blaming himself for what happened and his friends knows that seokjin hold him by his shoulder sharing knowing glance with yoongi and hoseok. Taehyung and jimin silently mourn the loss of Namjoon.

Their attention is taken away when Theo yells for you as gally punch you square in the face making you fall down. Theo run towards you just behind him jimin and jungkook as yoongi and hoseok, taehyung and seokjin held gally back putting distance between you and him.

“This is all you, y/n! look around” gally screams at you.

Jimin and Theo helps you stand up, the hit was hard you could fell the split lip when you hit the ground

“Back off, gally it’s not her fault” hoseok yells at him.

“You heard what Namjoon said. She’s one of them!”

“One of who?”

“She’s one of them, and they sent her here to destroy everything, and now she has!” he states thrashing around the boys hold.

The accusation weighting in you, he is right Namjoon even said he remembers that you wereone of them that send them here.

Namjoon….

“Look around, y/n! look around! This is your fault”

You hung your head not having any words to defend yourself agreeing with gally words, but you don’t remember anything.

Your eyes find the stung that jungkook hold in his hands.

“Back off, gally this is not her fault! Stop blaming her” taehyung glare at him

“This is no one’s fault. Stop starting a fight gally. Calm down” yoongi said sternly “let go him” he said “And you better stay put” he warns him authority evident in his tone as the boys let go him.

Jungkook look down in his hands when he feels the device being taken away from his handsturning away from them, he sees you.

You take the stinger, fear and guilt creeping in you rapidly making you heart tight “maybe he’s right.” You mumble

Jungkook hear this “what?”

Jimin and Theo share knowing look as jimin slowly walks towards you “hey, don’t listen to him” he softly said. Theo calls your name but you seem not hear them your intense gaze fixed on the device.

“I have to remember, have to remember” you state before jungkook can stop your hands you stab yourself with the stinger a loud gasp escaping you. the others turn to you when they hear your name being screamed in panic Jungkook and Jimin’s hands stretch to catch you as you fall the others too come running towards you.

Everything turns blurs the sounds starts to fade away the last thing you register is the boys panicked face and Theo screaming for the vial that contains the serum.

A lady in white coat smile at you as you hand her new reports.

Theo sat across you as he works, he’s eyes finds yours.

“Why are we doing this?”

“Excellent work y/n, come with me"

The beeping of heart monitor, the next thing you feel immense shock wave rushing your body.

“Wicked isn’t good.” Theo said.

“Wicked is good” the women said you nod at her as she leaves you turns to the pot that keep

the boys, the text subject in water.

“How could be this be my fault?”

You watch Namjoon lay in the pot with wires connected to him.

As you walk through the hallway with Theo wicked guards drag away barley conscious yoongi and seokjin making you pause but Theo pulls you away.

Taehyung bang on the glass window his eyes plead at you with something you don’t know.

You stand behind the glass door watching jimin and jungkook memories gets wiped out.

“I can’t watch them die again” you said to Theo he says nothing.

You watch Namjoon, yoongi, seokjin, hoseok, jimin, taehyung and jungkook sits in circle in the middle of night talking among them in the glade.

“I can’t let them suffer any longer”

"Do you know them?" Theo asks taking your hands in his.

You glance at the boys before meeting Theo’s eyes “No”

The boys sit around under the shade they have been sitting here after gally had ordered to put you and Theo in the pit.

The Glade is destroyed the Gladers are in Gally’s favor, he is the first in command, the boys had no strength to fight him. They were given the ultimatum.

“Seems like no one is going to say but so I will” Taehyung voiced capturing everyone’s attention

“we can’t stay here, any longer. At night those things are going to come back and….” he bites

his lips shutting his eyes “I can’t lose another one of you”

Jimin clasp his hands on taehyung knees squeezing his leg as latter’s voice shake at the end.

“He’s right” hoseok speak up “we have to get out of here” he glances at yoongi who laying down his eyes are closed but hoseok knows he is awake.

Jin turns to hoseok “you’re saying get out way you and y/n found”.

“Yeah, I have the key and I know the maze like the back of my hand”

“What about the others? What about Y/n?” jungkook finally speak up he has been silent since the incident at the council hut. His lift his head sitting straight from the slouched posture receiving sympathetic glance when they see his red puffy eyes, face sticky from tears. “We can’t leave her”

“We are not leave anyone behind if anyone want to come, they’re welcomed. But then again,

we don’t even know if we can pull this off” jin explains.

Jungkook open his mouth but jimin cut him off “that not what he meant.” They glance at jimin and jungkook in confusion.

“When we are with him at the med jack, Namjoon was rumbling about her” he looks apprehensive “he kept saying that he remembers her that he couldn’t believe that she is here, how did she do it and why was she here. At first, I thought he might be angry at her you know he’s the one with the memories now. But he was surprise and scared for her”

“Why?” yoongi who now sitting up questions with uncertainty in his orbs seokjin, hoseok and taehyung share the same emotion.

Jimin shrugs “he didn’t exactly tell us, said that we all have to get out the maze before they take her away again. And who is they I don’t know we couldn’t ask by then we heard shouting and came out looking for you guys”

“What do we do now?” taehyung asked

Yoongi exhale running his hands through his hair “you three” he points at hoseok, taehyung and

jungkook “pack essential things and figure out what’s exactly gally going to do, the rest of us will talk with her. then we are getting out of here one way or another”

Theo looks down on his lap gazing at your face, he moves the stray hair on face tucking it behind your ears.

“Tell him to stop touching her” jimin lean towards yoongi whispering without taking eyes of

Theo. His eyes widen when Theo wipes dried blood off your lips.

“I don’t like this”

Seokjin pats on his shoulders “we know”

“Is she waking up?” yoongi asks Theo

Theo glance up “no, should I wake her?”

“yeah” taehyung said “as much I would like her to rest, she needs to know what’s going to happen” he adds.

Yoongi and seokjin nods sighing Theo gently shakes you.

Your eyes flutter few times and Theo’s face fills your vision “Are you okey?”

“Sweetheart are you alright?” an enthusiastic voices call.

“Keep it down” jin smacks jimin head making him whine “yoongi, can you move a little?” jin crouch down as you sit up with grunt. He calls your name making him look at you his kind smile falls “WHAT IN THE WORLD WERE YOU THINKING? HUH” Jin’s loud voice startle everyone.

“ARE YOU OUT YOUR MIND.WHAT...MMMM” his words cut off his mouth is shut with yoongi hands.

Disoriented you look around “What? what happened? Why are you yelling?”

“Gally has taken control.” Yoongi said take his hands off jin’s face silently warning the male. “He said we had a choice either join him…or get banished with sundown with you”

You see hoseok, jungkook and taehyung missing and that’s making disappointed maybe they resailed that you’re not worth the trouble. “And the others agreed to that?”

“Hoseok and the other two with gally trying to negotiate” seokjin explained.

“Gally has everyone convinced that you’re the reason all this has happened.” Theo adds

That’s the truth isn’t it, you are the reason why it all happened “well, he’s been right so far.”you said numbly.

“What are you talking about” jimin frowns not liking the statement at all the other share the sentiment.

Wrapping your arms around yourself you lean against the wall of the pit “this place it’s not what we thought it was. It’s not a prison, it’s test. they were experimenting on us. And then people started disappearing. Every month, one after other, like clockwork.”

“They were sending them up in the maze.” Yoongi speak up.

“Yeah, but not all of us.” Your words dry out guilt creep up on your throat “guys, I’m one of them. The people who put you here, I work with them. I watched you guys for years.”

As the word leaves your mouth you brace yourself for there reaction, jin to yell at you, jimin to leave you and yoongi glare with hatred anything but they didn’t when you look at them, they look away and somehow that’s hurts you more than it should.

“The entire time you been here, I was on the other side of it. so were you.” your eyes locking with Theo.

“What?”

“Theo, we did this to them.” You conclude with heavy heart.

Theo shakes his head in disbelief that he would do something like that “No. that can’t be true.”

“It is. I saw it.”

“Why would they send us up if we were with them?” Theo voice shake with frustration.

You shrug shaking your head “it doesn’t matter.”

“She’s right.” Yoongi voice cut through making everyone look at him, his eyes were on you pining you with his intense gaze “it doesn’t matter. Any of it because the people we were before the maze don’t even exist anymore. These creators took care of that but what does matter is who we are now, and what we do right now. You went into the maze and you found a way out.”

“Yeah, but if I hadn’t Namjoon would still be alive.”

It the truth and that’s make yoongi pause “maybe, but I know that if he were here, he would be telling you the exact same thing. Pick yourself up, Finish what you started because if we do nothing then that mean Namjoon died for nothing, and I can’t have that.”

Seokjin smile at yoongi words grateful that he didn’t lose himself after everything, jin knows how deep yoongi feels how he burden himself everything, alone. afraid to let show his buddled- up emotions.

Yoongi is right Namjoon would want you to continue as well that’s what he said, you have to get them out of here, for Namjoon’s sake, for everyone’s sake.

And for yourself as well, somehow, you’re the reason that they are all trapped here and treated like lab rats, the only way to undo it to get them out of here even if its mean to sacrifice your life for that you would do it, for them.

“Okey, but we gotta get through gally first.”

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