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#anyway. i’ve made it past the big emotional reaction so the finales not as bad to me as it was last night
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I agree that the gender fluid thing is queerbait if I'm understanding you right. Like I think it's like one of the only instances of queer baiting in the show
yeah like i don’t think lokius is queerbait by the definition (they never actually said it was gonna happen, or heavily hinted at it, etc). BUT i do think that if you observe their interactions in the show it’s clear they were doing SOMETHING with that. just thinking in a sense of like, if they were a straight couple then people would absolutely be saying yeah there’s something there. but i don’t think it’s queerbait because while yeah it’s in there, the creators, writers, etc. never actually said anything about that.
and the whole thing about him being genderfluid. it. bugs me so much because before the show came out i was so hyped for that because they DID say like, yeah in the show he’s genderfluid and then didn’t actually do that. the credits scene with the file where it says sex: fluid was. idk not good rep at all because it’s SO EASY to miss even if you do watch the credits. and then playing it as if the loki variants think it’s strange that there’s a woman variant of them. it’s not at all what they made it out to be and it bothers me so much. like the queerbaiting there was absolutely intentional.
ALSO i was very disappointed at the bi rep. like it’s more than i expected from marvel honestly BUT they still hyped it up as this big thing like yeah loki’s bi!! it’s canon!! and then just threw in a 3 sentence thing that’s super easy to miss. and then like. never brought it up again ever. and that wouldn’t be a big deal to me in the sense of like “yeah, he’s bi, it’s normal it’s not a big thing, it’s just part of who he is” like i would think that would even be a great aspect of it IF they didn’t hype it up so much and make it a big thing outside of the actual show. it’s just. idk it bothers me
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queen-haq · 3 years
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Fic: A Woman Scorned - Part 17
Fic: A Woman Scorned - Part 17
Pairing: Billy Russo x Reader
Rating: R for language and smut.
Words: ~3300 words.
Summary: You’ve been sleeping with Billy Russo for a few months now. Knowing his aversion to emotional commitments, you’re satisfied with your clandestine arrangement until you catch him having dinner with Dinah Madani one night. Then it finally dawns on you. It’s not that he doesn’t want to commit, he just doesn’t want to commit to *you*.
Billy may think he knows you, but he has no idea what he’s just lost…
Part 1   Part 2   Part 3   Part 4   Part 5   Part 6   Part 7   Part 8   Part 9   Part 10   Part 11   Part 12   Part 13   Part 14   Part 15  Part 16
Part 17
Billy couldn’t stop gawking at you, wondering how it was possible you grew more beautiful each time he saw you. The red wrap dress you were wearing accentuated all your curves, and it took every bit of willpower he had not to rip it off of you and fuck you senseless right then and there. Unfortunately, he had to behave himself. Caravan was a pretty bouji place that had recently been labelled as one of the hottest restaurants in Manhattan and he had to pull a few strings to get a last-minute reservation for tonight. But seeing the smile on your face when you realized this was where you were dining had been completely worth all the hassle.
As the hostess guided the two of you to your table, he noticed a few assholes at the bar admiring you from afar. Immediately he snaked his arm around your waist to draw you in closer. You were his. If he could he’d pluck out every one of those fuckers’ eyes so they never made the mistake of looking at you again. Better yet, he’d keep you locked behind closed doors. Of course you wouldn’t agree to anything like that because you were too goddamn independent for your own good.
“What’s wrong?” you asked, taking a seat at your designated table.
Billy’s attention returned to your face as he followed suit, his gaze inhaling you in. “You look too hot. Too many assholes staring at you,” he grumbled.
The worried look on your face was replaced with a beaming smile, one that made his cock twitch.
“You’re being ridiculous” you remarked, scanning the menu.
His eyes drifted down to your chest, the swell of your soft, supple breasts just begging to be kissed and licked by him.
“Stop staring at my boobs, Billy,” you chastised even as a small smile graced your lips. “This is a proper first date. You can’t just ogle me like that. You have to behave like a gentleman.”
He quirked his eyebrow. “Sweetheart, I’ve never been that.”
“Well, try,” you ordered.
The waitress came by with the bottle of red wine you’d requested and poured some in both of your glasses. He noticed the redhead giving him a friendly smile, her green eyes lingering on him for a second too long. Fine, yeah, she may have been hot but she wasn’t you. No one was. So while he would have happily slipped her his number in the past, now the idea of being with someone who wasn’t you no longer excited him.
Once she left, he took the opportunity to move a few inches closer to you. What he really wanted was to get on his knees and bury his head between your legs, but something told him eating you out in in the crowded restaurant wouldn’t go over very well with you.
“I think she likes you.”
Hand propped on the back of your chair, he started playing with your hair. “Who?”
“Our waitress. She didn’t look at me once, her eyes were on you the entire time.”
He leaned in, ecstatic at the thought of you acting possessive. Even though you’d confessed to having feelings for him, Billy still worried you were ready to bolt at any moment. To see you jealous meant you genuinely cared and he didn’t have to worry about you leaving him. “She’s not my type. I have my eyes on someone else.”
You made a show of looking around the restaurant. “Oh, is Madani here too?”
“Funny,” he retorted, taking your hand in his.
“Your ginger’s lucky. I’m dressed way too nice or I’d take my knife and stab her with it.”
He smirked. “You’re vicious when you’re jealous.”
“I’m not jealous. I just don’t like bad service.”
“Bullshit.”
“Billy, you’re hot. You know that. All the women here are checking you out. If I freaked out every time someone did that, I’d have a breakdown.”
He wanted to destroy the fucking world at the thought of someone even looking at you but apparently you were simply ambivalent about him. “So it’s that easy for you? Your brain tells you to turn off a feeling and your heart just does it?” Even to his own ears he sounded bitter. “Guess you’re not all that invested in me.”
Your eyebrow quirked up, apparently surprised by his edgy tone. “Do you want me to go nuts?”
“Just want you to give a damn.”
“You think I don’t?” you snapped. “Every time she looks at you I want to tear her hair out. Even though the rational part of me knows she’s probably just flirting with you because it’s part of her job or she’s hoping for big tips. Or maybe she really does want to fuck you. Either way, I want to punch her across the face. Happy?” You gulped down your wine.
Grinning, he squeezed your hand. “Then why not just tell me that? Why act like you don’t care?”
The agitated expression on your face was replaced with tenderness, your eyes soft. “Just because I don’t have a jealous fit doesn’t mean I don’t care. I just…” You exhaled a sigh, and he sensed this was difficult for you. “I express my emotions differently than you.”
“I noticed. You put on an act while holding everything in.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“But I want you, the real you, not the version everyone else sees.”
“It’s not that easy, Billy.”
He brought your palm to his lips. “I’d never told anyone about my mother.”
“You didn’t tell me either,” you pointed out.
“You found out anyway, and I’m so fucking glad you did. Otherwise I wouldn’t have realized I could be real with you.” He placed a tender kiss on your skin. “I don’t want to hide anything from you, Y/N.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Then tell me about William Rawlins.”
Your request gave him pause, his eyes roaming over your face. He’d taken painstaking measures to keep his partnership with Rawlins a secret yet you’d discovered it. “What do you want to know?”
“He gave you a lot of money.”
“I earned that money,” he said in a defensive tone. “He and I were partners for a while. Then he died.”
“You went to a lot of trouble to hide your connection to him.”
“You found out about it though.”
You shrugged your shoulders. “I’m good at what I do.”
“Yeah, too good,” he muttered. He released your hand, watching you intently. “So what do you want to know?”
You leaned in closer, your voice barely above a whisper. He was momentarily distracted by the sensation of your tits pressed against him but he forced himself to concentrate.
“What happened to Rawlins, did you have anything to do with it?”
Billy took a swig of his wine. “Why do you think that?”
You quirked your eyebrow at him. “Knifed by someone in the parking lot. They never found the guy who did it.”
“He had a lot of enemies,” he pointed out.
“Okay, so maybe I was wrong.”
He studied you for several seconds, trying to decide if he should take the leap or not. “You’re not wrong.”
Realization dawned on your face as the truth set in. “Why did you do it?”
“You sure you want to know?”
“I’m asking, aren’t I?”
So he told you, about Operation Cerberus, his role in it and the money he earned, how he’d eliminated Rawlins a year ago when the prick plotted to take out Frank and his family. To this day Frank didn’t know about Billy’s partnership with Rawlins or how close he came to dying and he intended to keep it that way.
Throughout his confession his eyes were glued to your face, gauging your reactions. The part of him determined to do anything to be a success, the one who didn’t let society’s morals get in the way of his ambitions, would never be accepted by his closest friends. Despite the myriad of reasons to have kept that side of himself hidden, he didn’t want to do that with you. Because as risky as it was to be so open with you, it was also exhilarating. There was no one in this world he’d ever been this honest with and that kind of intense connection with you was addictive. He wanted you to know everything about him, all of the dark and vicious thoughts that ran through his head, the burning ambition that kept pushing him forward. He wanted you to know him inside and out and he wanted the same from you.
Before he could prod you to speak your mind the server came by with your dishes, setting your meals on the table. The redhead took her time, all the whilst your gaze was focused on the table, avoiding his. Billy’s heart started to pound in his chest, he was suddenly filled with doubt. Had he made a mistake in telling you the truth? Did he just completely fuck this up? Every second the goddamn redhead lingered at the table felt like an eternity when all he wanted was to shake you out of your stupor.
The second the server left, he moved in on you. “Are you gonna say something?”
You finally looked at him, your forehead burrowed. “We need to do a better job of hiding your history with Rawlins. I found it, that means someone else can too.”
“You gonna help me with that?”
You shook your head ‘yes’. “Yeah, I have to. You need me.”
“What I did doesn’t bother you?”
You exhaled a heavy sigh. “Of course it does, but there’s nothing I can do about it. You’ve seen me at my worst and you didn’t judge me. I won’t do that to you either. Besides, when the universe deals you a shitty hand you’ve got to find other ways to even out your odds.”
A strange feeling of warmth flooded over him, compelling him to angle forward and kiss you on the lips.
You pulled away a second later, smiling at him as you rubbed the corner of his mouth. “This lipstick isn’t kiss-proof.”
“I don’t care.” Wicked visions of you flashed through his mind. Your bold red lips wrapped around his cock, sucking him off the way he liked it. His cum spread over your tits, your neck, your lips. The taste of your sweet, delicious cunt on his tongue as he fucked you with his mouth. The heat of your tongue against his as he rammed into you over and over-
“Stop looking at me like that,” you warned.
“Then stop looking so hot,” he snarked.
You smiled, biting down on your bottom lip.
It blew his mind how sweet and shy you were when he paid you compliments, like you didn’t expect that from him. Obviously he needed to fix that, because you deserved to know how insanely beautiful you were all the time.
“Has Anvil been okay without Rawlins?” you asked, taking a bite out of your butternut squash ravioli.
Swallowing his steak, he wiped his mouth with a napkin. “It was tough for a while but we’ve been doing pretty well the last few months.”
“You should be proud of what you’ve accomplished, Billy. You took a big risk going into business for yourself and you made it work. That’s amazing. I could never do that.”
Billy’s insides radiated with happiness. Other than Curtis and Frank he never really had people who genuinely believed in him so to have you cheering him on was exalting. Especially considering you were great at what you did and he had so much respect for you.
He poured himself and you more wine before reaching for your hand again. “I think you could. You’d make a shitload of money if you freelanced.”
You shook your head ‘no’. “No way, I’m too much of a coward to take a risk like that.” You took a sip of your wine. “Plus I get to go to Paris for work.”
“Or you could go to Paris on vacation and not work.”
“Then I’d have to pay for it,” you pointed out, grinning. “When you grow up the way I did, you learn to appreciate free things.”
Your enthusiasm was infectious, he couldn’t hep but smile back. A part of him was hoping this would be the perfect opening for you to talk more about your childhood, about everything you went through, because he desperately wanted you to trust him as much as he trusted you with his secrets.
“I’ll be there for two weeks,” you continued, oblivious to his disappointment. “We’re going to scout out locations for the new branch and-”
“We?” Billy interjected.
You cast him a quick glance. “Roger’s coming with me on the trip.”
The jealousy that struck him felt like a swift kick to his gut. Images of you and that goddamn bastard traipsing around and enjoying romantic date nights in Paris assaulted his mind. Agitated, he pulled his hand from yours. “I bet that fucker can’t wait to be alone with you.”
“Billy, come on. You can’t be serious.”
“How would you feel if I took off with someone who wanted to fuck me?”
“First of all, he doesn’t want me.”
His jaw clenched with frustration as he glared at you. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you. He’s thought about fucking you.”
“Even if he does, I don’t want him.” You reached out to cup his face, your voice so soft and tender in your attempts to placate him that he momentarily forgot how upset he was. “You really think I’d jeopardize what we have for a fling with Roger? I wouldn’t do that.”
“Then don’t go. Turn him down.”
Irritation flickered over your face, he could tell you were done coddling him. “Billy, you have no right to ask me that. I’d never interfere with your work.”
Underneath all that jealousy he knew you were right. As much as he despised the idea of you going away to Paris with another guy, he couldn’t demand that you not go on work trips. If you did that to him, it would annoy the fuck out of him. Yet despite his rational side recognizing he was asking for too much, he couldn’t help but feel bitter. “That asshole’s gonna make a move on you, I know it.”
“What if he does? What do you think is gonna happen?”
Hs eyes met yours, urgently seeking some kind of validation from you. “You tell me.”
“Do you think I’m going to sleep with him?”
He flinched. “Don’t talk about fucking another guy, please. You’re gonna make me lose my appetite.”
You took his hand and placed it over your left breast, probably to distract him from all the disgusting images that were running through his brain. “I wanted you so badly and even then it took me like a month to fuck you. Trust me, I’m not going to sleep with him when I’m not even attracted to him.”
Spotting the earnestness in your eyes, the knot in his stomach finally loosened. Roger may have had a hard-on for you but Billy knew you felt nothing for the fucker. He’d noticed that even at the night of the gala. So that meant he had to trust you, there was no reason not to. “Call me every night when you’re there,” he grumbled.
“Every night? You’re probably going to start blocking my calls,” you laughed.
He booped your nose. “Every. Fucking. Night.”
You beamed. “Fine.” A wicked glint flashed in your eyes, a seductive smile on your lips as you slowly moved his hand lower, his fingers now on your nipple. “Hey, just ‘cause you’re not there with me doesn’t mean we can’t have fun.”
He stroked your nipple over the fabric of your dress, enjoying how the nub hardened under his touch, the way your breath hitched in your throat when he continued his ministrations. With his other hand he tucked your hair behind your ear, whispering to you. “Phone sex is alright, but nothing beats this.” His tongue curved along the shell of your ear, and you trembled against him. “Right?”
The waitress seemed to come out of nowhere this time to ask how your meals were, and you jumped back. Disappointed, he sighed.
“Food was great. Thank you,” you replied, smiling stiffly at the redhead.
“Can I get you anything else?”
“Privacy would be great,” Billy muttered.                                                            
You kicked him under the table. “Dessert menu?”
“Sure. I’ll bring it right over,” the waitress said, taking your plates away.  
“I’ll give you all the sugar you want once we get outta here,” he murmured seductively, caressing your thigh.
You giggled, rolling your eyes. “That’s a terrible line!” You took his hand and removed it from your thigh. “Billy, I’m not sleeping with you tonight.”
“Why not?”                                                      
“Because it’s our first date and I don’t put out on the first date.”
“Now that’s a terrible line,” he fired back, mimicking your earlier tone.
“Also, we already had sex this morning.”
“So? I’m greedy. I can’t get enough of you.” There was that shy smile of yours again, and he reached out to give you a sweet peck on the cheek. “You blush every time I tease you.”
“I do?”
“Yeah, it’s adorable.”
Your cheeks grew even more red. “I’m not used to it from you. A part of me still thinks you’re bullshitting me.”
Billy stiffened. “Really?”
“I know you’re not playing me,” you reassured. “It’s on me, not you. I just have a hard time accepting when good things happen.”
The waitress came by with the dessert menu. He briefly glanced at it before ordering a slice of pecan pie while you ordered a piece of chocolate cake.
As soon as the redhead left, he broached the topic with you again. “I’m not gonna hurt you, babe. You have to believe that.”
You didn’t look at him, your eyes fixed somewhere on his chest. “I do. You were so pissed off at me last night. I honestly expected you to hit me because you were so angry. But you didn’t.”
It made him sick to his stomach that you actually thought him capable of hitting you. It hadn’t even occurred to him that you would worry about that, but of course you would. With your childhood it made perfect sense, he was just a fucking idiot who hadn’t realized how much it still impacted you. “I’m never gonna lay a hand on you. I swear.” His eyes locked with yours, hoping you can sense how much he meant those words.
“I believe you.”
His voice was insistent, his gaze boring into you. “Why did you think I would?”
Your eyes wavered from his eyes to his lips for a long time, the atmosphere thick with tension. Your facial expressions ran the gamut of painful emotions, from uncertainty to fear to sheer panic.
It finally sank in that maybe the reason you were keeping the truth from him had noting to do with if you trusted him or not. Maybe you didn’t want to be assaulted by memories from the past that caused you so much pain. The last thing he wanted was for you to experience that hell again. Regretting his demanding tone, his hands caressed down the length of your arms. “You don’t have to tell me, It’s okay.”
Your eyes brimmed with aching vulnerability as you looked up at him. “I want to… I just… give me some time, okay?” You pressed your lips against his, giving him the softest, sweetest kiss. “I’ve been looking forward to tonight for so long, I don’t want to ruin it, you know?”
His heart felt full, his mind reeling with wonderment at the thought of you truly reciprocating his feelings. His arms wrapped around you as you sank into him, burying your face in his chest. His fingers stroked the back of your hair, murmuring soft, soothing words to you. Somewhere in the distance he heard the server’s voice trying to interject, but he didn’t give a damn.  He was yours and you were his and nothing was going to ruin that. Nothing.
Part 18
A/N - I realize not much happened in this chapter but I just reallly wanted to write a dialogue heavy part where they simply get to know and enjoy each other. I think they’ve earned some fluff. LOL.
As always, thank you for your kind words of encouragement. Please let me know your thoughts.
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jennagrinsoverml · 3 years
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Do you have any Adrien-centric angst fics? Like, fics that will completely gut you emotionally and you have to lay down for an hour after you read it just to decompress?something like that?
I've recced angst fics before, but let's have some SADRIEN hours around here, shall we?
a fight that you were born to lose by @captainkirkk
When the prosecution starts throwing around the word victim in reference to Adrien, he has to stuff his hands under his thighs to keep himself from bolting out of the courtroom.
Adrien had felt unsafe during those last few weeks, but, until he had woken up and seen Father silhouetted in his bedroom doorway, that had only been paranoia. Father was controlling and cold, but he wasn’t hateful. Adrien was isolated. He was often hungry. And some weeks ago, when he had snuck out to visit Nino, sitting thigh-to-thigh on his bed while Adrien cried in that silent, crumbling way of his, he hadn’t argued when Nino put a hand on his shoulder and said, tentatively, That’s abuse.
But Adrien remembers being small and Father touching his hair after he’d aced another test; Father holding his scribbled drawings like they were something precious, and framing them around his office; Father, dressed as Hawkmoth, his eyes wild behind the mask, lashing his sword against Adrien’s baton; Father, collapsed against Mum, crying into her ashy hair.
Adrien finds out Gabriel is Hawkmoth, and Gabriel gets to bring his long-waited plan into action.
One-shot. (But a LONG one-shot--it's 18k.) This one really digs deep into the abuse that Adrien suffers at Gabriel's hands and the emotional fallout from that. Gabriel is really, really, really terrible here. Worse, I don't think it's OOC at all. This fic is gorgeous, but it's a hard read and it goes to some dark places.
Anhedonia/When Adrien Met Marinette... by @mikauzoran
Chat Noir hadn’t been lying when he told Ladybug he’d moved on. It was only when he found out that Ladybug was Marinette that he realized he was wrong. Meanwhile, Marinette thinks that she’s missed her chance when Adrien insists that he’s gotten over his feelings. Now, they’re roommates and making themselves miserable as they pine for one another, thinking the situation’s hopeless. Things finally come to a head, and they’re forced to sit down and have an honest conversation about their feelings.
One-shot. Adrien's just so sad and lonely and pining here, and I'm here for it. I really found myself getting swept away in his feelings as I was reading. This isn't dark and doesn't get into any heavy issues like some of the other fics on this list, but I found that it was very relatable and evoked a lot of emotion.
Adrien and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by @vickyvicarious
Chat Noir's used to bad luck - it kind of comes with the territory. But detransforming in the middle of a crowd of reporters is a little worse luck than he’s used to having.
And he hasn’t heard a thing from Ladybug since.
(AKA the "everyone finds out all at once" angst fic no one asked for.)
One-shot. Oof, does this one ever hurt. Adrien's painfully in-character, and the way he's trying so very hard to stay positive even as his life is completely falling apart and everyone keeps hurting him...it's so him and it packs a punch.
The Importance of the Black Cat by @chatonne-rousse
Plagg gets down almost two full wedges of cheese before Adrien sits down on the edge of his bed with a heavy sigh.
“Hey, Plagg?” His voice is quiet but doesn’t betray any emotion yet. That’s actually more worrying.
Steeling himself, Plagg swallows the last big bite of cheese and zips from the desk to perch on top of the globe, facing his holder. “What’s up?”
He heaves another sigh before looking up into Plagg’s eyes, emotions still unreadable.
“How important is the black cat?”
*****
Adrien has a lot on his mind - concerns, questions, doubts. And right now, he has only one being to confide in. There is not enough cheese in the world to make Plagg want to handle this situation, but his holder needs him, and he knows two things with certainty: his very important place in the world, and that no one hurts his kitten. Not if he has anything to say about it.
One-shot. You want some season 4 flavour Adrien angst? How about some post-Optigami wallowing? I love the portrayal of Adrien and Plagg's relationship with the mix of light and heavy. Pretty sure I still owe Rosie a sequel to this one because I wanted to see more resolution afterwards and made the mistake of sharing my thoughts on that 🙈 It's just very thought-provoking!!
Working Past It by Taitai83
Chat is deeply hurt by Ladybug's actions, and he needs to process those feelings. He finds that confiding in a friend is helpful in finding clarity.
One-shot. Here, have some more season 4 angst! This one is shamefully overlooked. Go read it and help fix that!! Remember when Gang of Secrets came out and we all wondered how Chat would react when he found out Ladybug told someone her identity? This was an early stab at that, and I found the reactions and thought processes here to be so in character. Plus there's some nice marichat hurt/comfort, though purely platonic.
Timetagger 3 by rosebud1000
Years after Hawkmoth's defeat, Marinette and Adrien encounter Timetagger for the third time. And this battle hits closer to home than any other.
One-shot. Here we have some more of the fallout from Gabriel being a shitty parent, only we have an adult Adrien who is a father himself struggling to reconcile how his father acted with his own parental feelings. As a parent, I really felt this one.
Chat Noir's Family by fleurjaune
The thing is-
The thing is Adrien doesn’t actually mean to lie. Not at first anyway, but they have to keep their secret identities secret don’t they?
And his family, well, their tragedy is out there for the world to see and the world did see it.
One-shot. The more Chat lies about his life and his family, the more we learn about Adrien and see how he wishes his life was. And that chasm...really fucking hurts. I wish this sweet boy could have the kinds of relationships and family dynamics he lies about.
Partners by @karkalicious769
"Um." Alya fidgeted nervously as her earrings beeped their countdown. "Ask me a question that only Ladybug would know the answer to."
Chat Noir barred his teeth, and— Were they always that sharp? At least he wasn't growling again. "You are not Ladybug," he snapped.
"Just do it!"
It was all Alya had to go off of and she really needed to pull this partnership together before the akuma got any worse. She wasn't deluded enough to think that she could do this without Chat Noir.
One-shot. SPOILERS FOR HACK-SAN!!! And yet some more season 4 feels because let's be serious, this season is putting our kitty through the ringer. And this fic definitely does it, though by playing with the episode a little. Although we've got a tight Alya POV, Adrien's hurt and suffering is palpable, and made all the worse by how resigned he is. Read this and sufferrrrrr.
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retrievablememories · 3 years
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stuck with you | yoongi
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title: stuck with you pairing: yoongi x reader, taehyung and jimin as side characters genre: fluff request: “Can you do a idol!Min Yoongi of BTS request of his crush being best friends with Jimin and Taehyung and him and his crush consistently fluster the other but they never realize until one day he does and finally make as move despite everyone telling them for weeks that they like each other?” word count: 3.3k warnings: some cursing, mentions of the pandemic a/n: i’ve been actively avoiding writing anything concerning the pandemic/lockdown cuz let’s be real, we’re all here to have fun, not think about real-life shit...but i decided to try it here
i wasn’t sure how to write their living arrangements tho since most of them seem to have their own places? so i just used the hannam the hill house for reference 🤪
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“How have things been for you guys lately?”
Taehyung and Jimin exchange skeptical looks with each other, which you don’t catch because you’re too busy picking over your food.
“We’ve all been stuck in the same damn place for weeks now, so you tell me.” Taehyung chuckles, shaking his head. 
You visiting their house right before the stay-at-home mandate was issued ended up with the three of you—plus Yoongi, to your luck—being cooped up in the same house for almost two weeks now. It wasn’t wholly a bad thing, since you got to be with your two best friends, but living with three men was pretty much as messy as you’d expected it to be. “Wow. Never thought we’d run out of things to talk about.”
Jimin tries to humor you. “Things have been fine, you know...same as always. Except for Yoongi-hyung acting like a lovesick weirdo. But you wouldn’t know about that, would you…?” Jimin feigns an innocent look.
You look up from your plate. “A lovesick weirdo for who?”
“We’ve been through this like 20 times already, Y/N,” Jimin sighs.
“Yes, and every time I tell you you must have the wrong person because that makes no sense whatsoever.”
“He’s lovesick over you,” Taehyung reiterates, like you didn’t catch the gist the first time around.
“I don’t think Yoongi likes me.” You shake your head and make a face at the notion of it, trying to disguise your irritation at them constantly trying to provoke your emotions.
“Why not? There’s a lot to like about you, don’t downgrade yourself.” Jimin insists.
“He doesn’t even act like he does. If anything, he gets all odd around me.”
“That’s just how he is,” Taehyung says, leaning back in his chair. “You’d think you’d start to catch onto this after being here for so long, but…”
“No, she’s too busy being too embarrassed and intimidated to even get within 4 meters of him.” Jimin and Taehyung both giggle at that, and you shake your head.
“You guys are like little schoolkids. How many more big tales are you going to think up before our quarantine lifts? You could probably write a book by the end.”
Taehyung shrugs, putting his arms behind his head. “I might do that, as long as you let me make you and hyung the star-crossed lovers who are too dumb to tell each other how they feel.” He stretches his leg under the table to nudge your shin with his toes, knowing how you hate when he puts his bare feet on you, and he cackles when you protest loudly.
“Will you stop trying to get my hopes up for nothing—?” 
Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Yoongi steps out onto the terrace with the three of you a few minutes later. He shields his eyes against the sun’s sudden brightness after he slides open the glass door, holding his other arm up.
“Look who’s appeared!” Jimin says excitedly, his eyes glittering with enthusiasm.
“You’re loud,” Yoongi grumbles, though he’s mostly speaking to Taehyung and Jimin. “I can hear you laughing from downstairs.” Your body tenses up and melts all at the same time, and suddenly you feel like you don’t know how to do anything right—like hold your chopsticks correctly. They shoot out of your hand when you try to use them again and hit the patio floor. You look at them forlornly.
“You good?” Yoongi asks, a smile fluttering across his lips at your clumsy actions.
“Uh, yeah I’m fine.” You can only glance back at him, embarrassed that you’ve made yourself look like a clown. Jimin laughs like he’s just witnessed the funniest thing on Earth. You shake your head and push away from the table, wanting—no, needing—a quick exit. “I’ll just find some more of those…”
Jimin shakes himself free of his sudden bout of laughter and jumps at the opportunity. “Wait, I’ll get them for you.” He bolts up from the chair before you can even think about it and goes back into the house, already planning to take his sweet time on his mission to get you new chopsticks. Taehyung picks up the hint almost instantly.
Yoongi turns back to the doorway after Jimin disappears through it, his movements a few beats too late—as if he’s just now realizing the other man left. “What was that about—”
“Oh shit!” Taehyung’s exclamation cuts into Yoongi’s question. In a sweeping motion, Taehyung “accidentally” elbows your water off the table, sending the bottle splashing out onto the patio in sad little streams. You jerk away from the splash, but the water droplets have already gotten you.
“What the hell?!”
Taehyung shrugs like it was inevitable and gives a sheepish smile. There’s an undeniable scheme lingering in his eyes, though. “Looks like I’ll have to get you another one.” He stands up to get your aforementioned water, though you begin to form the idea that you’re not getting any water at all.
You sigh and rub your fingers across your forehead. The heat of the sun has turned from pleasant to uncomfortable, and you don’t even have your water to take the edge off. Great.
Yoongi turns back to you, his eyebrows creased. “That was weird.”
“They’re just trying to…” Force us together? You’re too embarrassed to say anything like that, and your words trail off in a stammer. Why did they ever think this would be a good idea? Yoongi raises his eyebrows in curiosity at your bitten-off answer. “An-anyway, that doesn’t matter. So...what are you doing out here?”
Yoongi shrugs, smirking slightly. “Well, I do live here.”
You snort to cover the way your stomach cuts a flip at his smirk, and you reach for your food in a nervous gesture before you remember your chopsticks are still gone. “You sorta seem like a vampire, though. I’m surprised you came out to get some sun.”
Yoongi mulls over that thought. “Hmm…a vampire, huh?” He runs a hand through his pitch-black hair, and even though the gesture is just an afterthought, it makes your heart skip a beat. You almost want to roll your eyes at your reaction to that simple movement. “Don’t tell me you were one of those obsessive Twilight fans over a decade ago.”
“And if I was?”
“Would you enjoy being bitten by a vampire?” Yoongi regrets it as soon as he says it, and you ducking your head into your hands doesn’t help the flaming embarrassment. “Fuck, that was stupid—sorry.” Your shoulders are shaking with laughter, and even though it’d be cute in another context, he feels like he’s about to combust. So he decides to make a run for it. Maybe a cowardly move on his part, but it seems like the best one right now.
“Hyung, you can’t be serious—” Jimin calls out to Yoongi as the older man brushes past once he gets back indoors, but the other man tries his best to ignore Jimin as a blush crawls up his neck. “Go back and tell her. It was the perfect moment!”
“There’s gonna be a lot more of that mess until we can leave,” Taehyung says, peering through the glass at your now confused expression and shaking his head. “God, one of them needs to say something before I lose my mind.”
--
Like Taehyung predicted, there’s a lot more of “that mess” over the next week. You and Yoongi continue to tip-toe around each other, unsure of how to appropriately handle each other and never unable to shake the awkwardness that colors every interaction.
The most notable incident of all, however, occurs when Yoongi does his laundry one day and somehow finds a pair of your underwear mixed in with his clothes after taking them out of the dryer. How the hell did they even get there, and how did he not notice them before?
Bound to his usual fierce overthinking, he stands there for a few long moments, wondering what he should do. Obviously, the only answer would be to return them to you. But then what if you think that’s weird, him somehow having your underwear? Or what if you assume he’s some pervert who’d taken your panties on purpose?
And to his great luck, that’s precisely when you walk into the laundry room. You give him a timid smile and greeting, which melts away into pure embarrassment when you see him standing there as if he’d just been framed for murder—and your deep red panties sitting in his laundry pile.
Yoongi’s gaze darts between the laundry and your eyes, his jaw working aimlessly as he tries to come up with something that makes sense.
He decides on “I didn’t know they were there,” though this feels just as inadequate as it sounds.
“M-maybe I threw them in the wrong bin,” you rush out, and in the same breath you cross the room to practically snatch them out of the pile of his clothes. You know you couldn’t have done it, though, which leads your mind back to those two sneaky men who’ve been trying to exercise their terrible matchmaking skills as of late.
“A-ah, yeah—maybe,” Yoongi agrees half-heartedly, rubbing the back of his neck.
You both pause for what feels like an eternity, for a reason you can’t decipher, and you think you might burst from the sheer discomfort of it all. “Well—th-thanks. One less thing to wash, I guess.” You try to laugh, but the sound comes out high and forced. Similarly, Yoongi’s answering smile is tight around the corners.
The next few days after that, you are both unable to maintain any kind of eye contact. Taehyung and Jimin are endlessly amused by the way you and the older man dance around each other like two ghosts struggling to inhabit the same space.
You make up for it slightly by turning all of Jimin’s white shirts into a splotchy pink once you find out that this was indeed his terrible and silly idea.
--
You’ve been sleeping in Jimin’s and Taehyung’s beds since you’ve been barricaded in their home with them, which none of you really think twice about. You’ve been friends with them for years and don’t see either of them other than platonically, so it’s not awkward for you or them. Although it was originally intended for you to mostly stay in Jimin’s bed, you end up alternating between the two, climbing into whoever’s bed you feel like that particular night. Neither of them mind the switch-up, and Taehyung likes using you as his personal pillow, so it all works out.
If there was anyone who minded at all, it was Yoongi. It wasn’t a burning jealousy, because he knew he had no right to feel like that about you—not when he couldn’t even admit to you that he liked you. But it didn’t make him want to jump for joy to know you were in either of the younger men’s beds, even just as friends.
He spent many nights imagining you were beside him instead, warming the empty spaces of his bed, whispering to him and telling him about your day. It didn’t matter if he already knew everything you did that day because you’d all been living in the same space for weeks. He still wanted to know. 
But until either of you made a move, he didn’t know when that would happen. If ever.
He didn’t even know if you’d be interested, or if you saw him the way he saw you. You were never as close to him as you’d been with the other two men, and although that could be explained by you being best friends with them for years, he honestly chalked it up to you not liking him as much. Taehyung and Jimin had tried to tell him the exact opposite several times before, but he wasn’t really convinced. Not with the way you seemed to lock up around him—like if you said or did the wrong thing, he’d hate you forever.
If only you knew he could never feel that way about you.
--
You decide to sneak your way to the kitchen for a late-night snack one night, your socked feet scuffing quietly on the floor as you make your way to the kitchen. However, your plan is derailed when you run into Yoongi in the hallway, who has apparently just taken a shower. He’s fully clothed—thank God, because you’re not sure how you would’ve survived it otherwise—but the towel on his wet hair speaks to his recent shower. Your immediate response is to jump in surprise, feeling like you’ve been caught red-handed; although there’s no law stopping you from getting something to eat in the middle of the night.
“Oh—Yoongi.”
“You’re still up?” he asks, pulling the towel away from his face so he can see you better.
“Uh, yeah...I was just getting something to eat, I guess.”
“No crime in that. You’re tip-toeing around like you’re nervous about it, though.”
“I didn’t want to wake anyone up.” You shrug your shoulders, trying to appear more nonchalant than you really feel. “But I see you’re already up…” Your words trail off behind you as you walk into the kitchen. Yoongi watches your retreating back before making the split-second decision to follow you. He’s not really sure why, previously intending to go back to his own room. 
“Were you getting something to eat too?” you ask, turning back to glance at him when you hear his footsteps behind you. You’re admittedly happy at the idea of spending a little more time alone with Yoongi, though you’re still nervous as hell.
It’s probably not the best idea to say I just came because I wanted to be next to you, so he nods to your question. "Uh, sure, I guess. What were you gonna get?”
“I don’t really know, just whatever’s in here…” You open the fridge and stare into it absentmindedly, your eyes raking over the food but not really seeing it—not with Yoongi’s presence hovering behind you.
Eventually you settle on some leftover rice and kimchi—which there’s always plenty of—not wanting to expend too much energy on cooking anything new.
You and Yoongi sit at the table together, using the light of your phone’s flashlight and the under-cabinet lights to illuminate the room instead of the overhead. Maybe it’s a little strange, but you like the ambiance of it more than having the harsh overhead light on.
The room is quiet for a while as you both eat, which you don’t initially mind. But you can’t ignore how Yoongi keeps stealing glances at you, like you aren’t going to notice, like he isn’t sitting right in front of you where you can see. It makes you antsy, but not necessarily in a bad way.
“Is something up?” you finally ask, keeping your eyes on your half-empty bowls, too nervous to look straight at him.
He hums like he’s thinking intently about it. Then he decides to rip the band-aid off and says, “You’re always tense around me.”
“Oh.”
He chuckles at your short response. “Why?”
You feel like you’ve been backed into a corner, and you hesitate. “Well, you’re always weird around me. Why is that?”
“Touché.” Another tense pause where he thinks of what to say, and then, “Jimin and Taehyung swear you like me.”
You try not to react so obviously, but your spoon clatters against the side of the bowl. If he’s acting weird because of the idea of you liking him, how can it be possible that he returns the feelings? Maybe he doesn’t know how to let you down easily. You suddenly feel ridiculous, like you’ve been wasting your emotions on nothing. “...I see.”
“I thought they were...trying to play some game. But, since you’re here now...is it true?”
Maybe if you close your eyes hard enough, you can poof yourself out of existence. If you felt trapped before, you really are now. You blurt out the first thing you can think of, trying to save yourself.
“Before you think I’m stupid for liking you, you should know they’ve been saying the same thing to me about you. So. Yeah.”
Yoongi looks at you full-on. “They told you I like you?” A nervous grin fixes itself on his lips, which makes you second-guess yourself. At this point, your head and heart are tangled in a knot. Why does your love life have to be this difficult? “So that’s it, then.”
“What is?”
“We like each other.” That makes your heart rate pick up. “...and didn’t even figure it out until just now, despite everyone else’s ‘help’.”
You take a shaky breath. “You like me.”
Yoongi nods, glancing between his hands on the table and your face. “I should’ve said it sooner.”
Despite yourself, you feel the corners of your mouth twitch into a slight smile—one that’s colored with relief and a tinge of lingering nervousness. “Later is better than never, I guess.” You find yourself laughing from the way all your stress slowly unwinds itself from your body, and Yoongi joins you, his eyes sparkling in the dark.
“So. This means we’re dating now, right?”
“I hope this isn’t considered our first date.” You snort, looking around the kitchen.
Yoongi shakes his head, placing his cheek in his hand with a sleepy smile. “I promise I’ll take you somewhere nice...after the pandemic is over.”
“We might be waiting a while, then.” Finished with your food, you go to quickly wash the dishes in the sink, and Yoongi slides in next to you to do the same. Another silence falls over the two of you, but for the first time, it’s not uncomfortable or pulled taut with words unsaid.
When you finish, Yoongi leans against the counter, his eyes openly tracing over you, wearing just a big T-shirt and shorts. It’s a simple outfit, but it warms his heart.
“Come sleep with me,” he says suddenly. You crack an awkward smile at that, and he’s blushing before the last syllable even leaves his lips, because he understands how that sounds. “I mean, actually sleep. It’s late.”
You pretend to hesitate on it. “I don’t know, Taehyung might miss me…”
“Taehyung and Jimin have had you all to themselves the past few weeks. It’s my turn now.”
And with that, you let him take your hand and guide you back to his room, maneuvering carefully through the dark house. His bed is new to you, but it’s instantly comfortable—like home. The smell of him surrounds you, as does his arms when he pulls you closer. You smile against the fabric of his shirt as you tuck your face into his chest, his chin on top of your head.
“Goodnight,” he murmurs, his fingers curling around your shoulder. His voice is soft and low, already halfway to sleep.
“Goodnight, Yoongi.”
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katzkinder · 3 years
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Little Boy Blue
Mahiru is tired.
Kuro can see it, in the way his folding isn’t as neat, in the way the vegetables in their dinner aren’t as uniformly chopped, in the way his head bobs during school lessons, his laughter isn’t as loud, how he doesn’t check half so well before he crosses the street and needs the ever watchful hand of Sakuya to drag him back from the curb, a shout on the subclass’s lips, scolding and fussing about the car that had just whizzed past their little group.
Mahiru is tired, but he refuses to rest.
And it’s driving Kuro mad.
It’s as Mahiru is jerked and prodded, worried and fussed over by his trio of school friends, that Kuro makes a decision.
His Eve will get some sleep, whether he wants to or not.
Thankfully for him, he knows Mahiru wants it. The frustrating part is that his stupid, incredible, wonderful human doesn’t think he’s earned it. Not yet. Not when there was still more to do.
Which meant, joy of joys… He needed some help.
Good thing he had three ready made volunteers right there with him on the curb.
Now to convince them.
***
The easiest part, by far, was getting them to go along with his plan. Slipping into Mahiru’s bag to use the cellphone Tooru had bought him (every time he thought about it, he still couldn’t believe it. His own phone, his own clothes, his own games, his own… Everything, really), he sent a single text to three different numbers.
Mahiru’s exhausted. Help me get him to chill out?
The hard part…
“Hey, Mahiru! It’s been a while since we all last had a sleepover, right?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah, it has…”
“Since we’re already going to be walking you home to make sure you don’t wander out into traffic…”
“It was an accident!”
“Party at Mahiru-sama’s place~!”
“Would you stop with that stupid… Fine! But Sakkun is paying for the food!”
… Wasn’t actually that hard? But, well. Leave it to the grungy joker to just… Steamroll his way into Mahiru’s place, invited or not. And become a steamed cabbage in the process.
The power of Mahiru-sama is frightening indeed…
***
The first order of business when the five of them arrive at Mahiru’s apartment is taken care of handily by, once again, Sakuya.
“Pizza time!” he crows, tapping the order into a website Kuro only vaguely recognizes the name of. It’s not a delivery app, but the website’s own page, and while he’s busy with that, Kuro hops out of Mahiru’s bag, ready to go fetch blankets and pillows from the linen closet in order to set them all up.
Except Mahiru’s two human friends beat him to it.
All the better, he thinks, as he hops up onto the couch to watch them spread things out right in front of the TV. The living room is small, the area they’ve chosen to occupy even more so, but it’s what he would have chosen for Mahiru, too, to cram them all together, to surround his Eve with the simple pressure and warmth of his loved ones crowded close.
Not for the first time, and certainly not the last, Kuro is so… Grateful for Mahiru’s friends. Before him, and even after him, they will love Mahiru like a brother, like a family, know him in ways he can’t, the same way Gear knows him in ways Mahiru never will.
And that’s fine. To be known is to be loved, and more than anyone, Mahiru deserves it.
“Mahiru, can you help Ryuu-chan? I’m gonna go make sure Sakuya doesn’t burn your kitchen down trying to make popcorn.”
“Hey! I’ll have you know, I’m always the one who makes the popcorn when Shamrock can’t!”
“And how much of it do you burn?”
“Less than you, so nyeh.”
… Maybe he should go watch them.
“Ah, Kuro, don’t get your fur on the counter!”
“Can’t deal…”
At the least, Mahiru seems to already be feeling better. It’s like magic. The best kind Kuro has ever seen.
***
Kuro spends the night as a cat, nestled in Mahiru’s lap or lying across his back, little paws kneading his Eve’s flesh and purring up a storm, extra sweet and extra soothing, while the other three pile around them. Mahiru is… Quiet. But not a bad quiet, no. A good quiet, letting the presence of the other people in their home wash over him, their bickering and their teasing, not a host but just a friend, just another kid, a kid with greasy fingers and a half drunk bottle of cola and two boxes of extra large pepperoni pizzas with cheesy bread set out before them.
“Where the heck do you find these pizza places I’ve never heard of?” Ryuusei asks after a particularly long cheese stretch has him craning his head back and holding his arms out, making the other three laugh, “This is great.”
“Vampire SNS,” Sakuya tells him proudly, and snickers once more at the tongue click it nets him.
Much to Kuro’s surprise, after building their little nest, the green haired vampire had graciously given up his preferred spot next to Mahiru without a word, instead settling himself shoulder to shoulder with the short one, Ryuusei, while he and Koyuki had pressed themselves up against Mahiru like they were trying to merge with him. It’s a tangle of arms and legs, like cats lying one on top of the other, physical closeness that speaks volumes of the emotional one they’ve cultivated with each other, and which they were slowly, Kuro felt, trying to ease him into.
It was a strange feeling. Being included.
But it wasn’t one he hated by any means.
Ryuusei flops his head against Mahiru’s arm, cheek squishing ridiculously as he squints at the screen. “Who picked this again?”
The crunching from Mahiru’s right stops, and a bowl of half eaten popcorn, buttery and with the perfect amount of salt, is nudged his Eve’s way. Wordlessly, Mahiru grabs up a big handful of it, stuffs it in his mouth with a knowing little smile, a sort of carelessness Kuro can never seem to invoke on his own.
The shuffling of fabric, and Koyuki leans onto Mahiru’s shoulder as well, the barest hint of a pout to his voice. “Does it matter? Even bad movies are fun when we’re together.”
“You’re cheesier than this pizza,” Sakuya teases, and Mahiru grins, laughs, finally says something, the exhaustion all but gone from his voice.
“That means Koyuki definitely picked it.”
“So you’re the one responsible!” Ryuusei shouts, and Koyuki flicks popcorn at him, bounces it right off his head.
“Shut up! You can change it, y’know.”
“Well, we’re already this far in,” Mahiru muses, and Sakuya quietly plucks the floor tainted popcorn up to place on a napkin, “Might as well finish it.”
Kuro is… So glad that Mahiru has friends who can do this for him. To do the things he can’t. This sense of total normalcy, of being just another teenager… It’s not really something he can help with. Not really. He knows he’s the type to overthink, to become discouraged when his efforts don’t get immediate results.
But now Mahiru is laughing again.
It’s everything he could have asked for.
***
Hours upon hours later, the only light in the room is from the flickering TV screen, and the only sounds are the soft breaths of four teenage boys, fast asleep right there on the floor.
Kuro finally rouses himself, gets up, stretches, and carefully picks his way down Mahiru’s back. Only then does he allow himself to transform back into a human, cracking his neck, his back, and sighing heavily at the relief it grants his stiff joints.
It’s time to get to work. All that effort would be meaningless if Mahiru woke to a mess, so clean up crew Kuro shall be.
First go the soda bottles. Back into the fridge, without a label or a care for who had drunk from what, because it’s not like those four cared anyway, but Mahiru hated to waste food. Honestly, Kuro was in agreement on that much, but especially when it came to his favorites. So, twisting each cap tightly back into place, he made sure to set them up in plain sight so that they’d be finished in the morning (and if not by their owners, by him), blocking the light of the fridge with his own body and the tails of his coat so as not to disturb the quartet of friends.
Next were the pizza boxes. Each one was completely empty, but that was no surprise, given that there were two shared between the five of them. Even the little banana peppers included had been devoured. If Kuro had to guess… Mahiru. For some godforsaken reason, his Eve adored things that set his mouth on fire, and no amount of “it’s not that spicy!” would change Kuro’s opinion that Mahiru, sweet faced, stubborn, wonderful Mahiru, just wanted to see what the fires of hell tasted like.
(And maybe he was a bit of a baby when it came to peppers, but clearly that wasn’t his fault)
Onto the counters the pizza boxes went.
Next came the bowl of popcorn, filled with nothing but unpopped kernels, then the plates, then the napkins, then the painstaking process of picking up every infernal piece of popped corn that had been jokingly thrown about between friends with zero thought for who would have to clean it up all up.
Considering how many Sakuya had tossed, he had a feeling the other vampire had known Kuro would take it upon himself to tidy up their garbage, and found himself cracking an annoyed, if fond, smile.
Little brat.
Mess more or less taken care of, Kuro had one last task to complete, and fetching the fluffiest quilt he could find from the closet that hadn’t already been used to pad out the hard tile in front of their TV, he carefully, carefully, spread it out over the pile of sleeping boys. Not a one stirred, not even Mahiru.
His smile turned ever so slightly bitter.
Well, that was fine. That was good, even, because it meant that, more than he’d thought, Mahiru had needed this night, this little slice of being normal, of simplicity.
Looking at each face in turn… He thought that maybe, all of them had.
Himself included.
Tucking himself into the crook of Mahiru’s neck was easy, a warm, furry weight that had his Eve curling up even more, ever so slightly, setting off a chain reaction as each teenager also shifted, one or two murmuring in their sleep, shuffling closer to each other like small birds seeking safety and comfort during a storm.
And that was fine, too. Kuro would watch over their dreams, every one.
Sleep tight, guys. Sweet dreams...
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slasherhaven · 4 years
Note
Hi there, I’ve spent all day reading your fics and I’m in love with them 💕 I was wondering if it’s not too much trouble could you please write for Jason, Thomas and Vincent, about the first time they remove their masks for their S/O? I’m in need for some fluff and insecure slashers lol thanks so much!
Thank you! I sure can, here you go!
Thomas, Jason and Vincent removing their masks for their S/O:
Thomas Hewitt
Thomas took to hiding his face not only because of his own insecurities but also because of the bullying he received because of it.
So, it made sense that he was so hesitant to show himself to you. He doesn’t even take his mask off around the family anymore, he only does so in private and then he won’t even look in the mirror.
You’ve had both Thomas and Luda May explain this to you in various ways and you were truly understanding.
You had told Thomas that you didn’t care what he looked like, you would still think he was handsome and love him with everything you had. No matter what.
He wanted to believe you, he really did. And he knew that you wouldn’t lie to him, that he could trust you. But there was another part of him that just couldn’t believe you. 
How could you ever find him attractive once you’ve seen the worst of him?
The thought of you seeing his face is enough to nearly send him into a panic attack. So he pushed the thought to the back of his mind.
When you bring it up again, just wanting to reassure him that you would accept him exactly as he was, it gave him a lot to think about.
Could he really expect you to stay with him if he couldn’t even show you his face? That didn’t seem right. If he wanted to marry you one day you had a right to know what he actually looked like...
Maybe you really meant it, maybe you really would love him and accept him for exactly who he was. You had already done so and maybe his appearance really wouldn’t be a deal breaker for you.
When he finally agrees to remove the mask, it’s a quiet night were you are both just sitting in his bedroom together.
“You know I wouldn’t make you do anything you didn’t want too, Tommy, because I know you wouldn’t make me do something like that either. It just breaks my heart that you think I’d ever stop loving you over something as vain as your appearance. I just want you to know that I love you, and I’ll keep loving whether you choose to show me your face or not...I just want to be able to see all of you”
Thomas had already been considering letting you see his face and your sweet little speech you just gave him while cuddling up to his chest was the push he needed.
He held you gently by the waist as guided you away from his chest, but not removing you from his lap.
The action made you look up at him, knowing that there was intention behind it.
He unwrapped his arms from you and reached up towards his mask, making your eyes widen slightly.
You knew he would get there eventually but you didn’t expect him to do it right now.
But you calmed yourself, not wanting to show too much of a reaction and let Thomas talk himself out of this.
He undid the fastens on the mask, holding it over his face but not pulling it away.
He just needed some more reassurance.
Gently, you placed your hands over his and just rested them there as he lowered the mask, slowly revealing his face to you.
The mask was placed down on the bed beside you both. 
You pulled your hands away from his and brought them up to cup his face, stroking your thumbs over his scarred cheeks.
Thomas was amazed. In awe.
You were looking at him just like you always did, with love in your eyes and a soft smile on your lips.
You touched the scarring on his face without hesitation, since he had told you in the past that it didn’t hurt, like it didn’t repulse you.
“You’re so handsome, Tommy. I really wish you would let me properly see you more often. Let me love you like I want too” 
Thomas nodded at your words, letting you guide him into a gentle kiss. It felt good to both of you, finally being able to do that without the mask in the way.
He could just cry from how loved he felt in that moment. 
Unconditional love...something he didn’t think he deserved but you gave him anyway. He loved you so much.
The mask wouldn’t come off for good. It was still on around the family and even around you. But of a night, he’ll occasionally slip it off.
The longer you are both together, the more love you give him, the more the mask will be off around you.
Jason Voorhees
One of the things that encourages Jason to remove his mask is that he thinks it’s only fair. You’ve already given up so much normalcy for him, you at least deserve to know what he actually looks like.
Of course, the main thing that encourages him to remove the mask if simply your love and support.
You never pressured him into taking off the mask but you had expressed your desire for him to do so, promising him that you would love him no matter what but also that he didn’t need to do anything that he didn’t feel comfortable with.
Your patience amazes him. Never once did you get frustrated with him.
You would just tell him that you loved him, that you would love him with or without the mask, and left it there. He really appreciated that.
And when he decides to show you his face, it’s by himself without any recent encouragement.
It’s been quiet lately, he’s had more time with you, and you’ve reminded him how accepting of him you truly are.
So he decides that today is the day.
He sits you down and explains that he wants to show you something, which excites you a little, surprise clear on your face when he gestures towards his mask.
But you’re encouraging.
He warns you first. Signing a few buzzwords. Ugly. Scary.
You frown and take his hands in yours, stopping him from signing those awful words.
“I could never think you are ugly or scary. Never. I promise” you sounded so sincere that Jason might just start crying right there and then.
Part of him is even more sure that he wants to do this. Another part of him is even more afraid that you’re going to be proven wrong.
But he slowly pulls his hands away from yours and you allow him to.
He removes the mask and places it down on the table beside you both.
And he looks at you, tears already brimming in his eyes.
Jason never failed to amaze you. He was so big and strong, he scared so many people, hurt so many people, but here he was...nearly crying at the thought of you finding him unattractive and leaving him. Which you could never do!
It reminded you of just how human he actually was. 
“There’s my handsome man” you smiled affectionately as you cradled his face in your hands.
Jason let out a sigh of relief when you didn’t run away or ridicule him for his appearance.
Now he was nearly crying about how you stayed and accepted him. He hadn’t felt this emotional in a long time.
Cover his face in kisses!
Show him just how much you love him, how much you love his face.
He’ll melt under your touch.
And finally, show him a real kiss. He could just burst when you gently pressed your lips to his, nothing forceful or even expectant, just a sweet gesture to show him how much you love him.
You really were a blessing to him, a blessing that he didn’t think he deserved. But the more you showed him love, the more he thought that maybe even he deserved this love from you.
The mask comes off a lot more! Whenever he’s home alone with you, the mask is off because he knows that you love him and he loves how you smile when he reveals his face to you.
Vincent Sinclair
It takes a long time and he genuinely feels bad about it. He wants to be open and honest with you. He wants the two of you to be able to share everything and trust each other.
And he does trust you, more than anyone, and he loves you. And he feels bad that he can’t even show you his face.
But you’re always so understanding and patient, giving him as much time and space as he needs.
Vincent honest hates his face, he always has. To him, it’s ugly and scary and nobody would be able to look past it.
And he really doesn’t want to scare you away, he doesn’t want to disgust you, he doesn’t want to lose you.
He actually tenses every time you reach up just to cup his face in your hands or to caress his cheek, thinking you were trying to remove the mask. It breaks your heart to see him panic at the thought, but you would never do that do him.
You understand that it is something that he has to do in his own time.
Patience really is key here.
Whenever he gets close to building the confidence to show you his face, he talks himself out of it.
Bo has even commented on it, something along the lines of “you expect them to stay with you when you can’t even show them your face, get a move on Vincent”...at least he wasn’t berating his appearance? Bo in an asshole and you all know it.
It should have pressured Vincent to remove the mask but he only pushed him further away from that goal.
He was just so sure that you would leave him, that you wouldn’t love him anymore. And the thought of losing you terrified him, he wouldn’t know what to do with himself.
It was actually Lester who gave him a better pep talk. Bo thought he was helping, but he wasn’t.
In the end, the only opinion he cares about is yours, and you had told him many times that you would love him no matter what. So that’s what he focused on, that’s what encouraged him and gave him the confidence to do what he was about to do.
He waited until late, when Lester had gone home and Bo wouldn’t be disturbing either of you.
He took your hand in his and guided you up to his room, making sure to lock the door just in case Bo barged in.
Of course his brothers had seen his face before but this wasn’t about that, this was a private moment for the two of you and that was important to him.
You were confused as he sat you down on the bed, shifting nervously before sitting down with you.
The two of you turning to face each other, sitting cross legged.
Of course you questioned him, asking if he was alright, but he just nodded before reaching up for the mask.
You couldn’t help the butterflies you felt in your stomach, whether it was nerves or excitement you weren’t sure.
He took his time, holding the mask in place and taking a breath before lowering it. But you waited, letting him take as much time as he needed. You knew this wasn’t easy for him.
But he eventually had the mask off and placed on the bed beside him.
The only thing was that he was still hiding his face. Hanging his head and letting his hair shield him from your sight.
“Vincent” you spoke softly as you brought your hand up, gently brushing his hair back and making him lift his head. “You’re okay” you promised him as he still turned his head away from him. 
You wouldn’t force him to look at you so your touch was still faint, but you felt your fingertips brush against the scarring on his cheek.
Finally, he looked at you properly, giving you a proper view of his face.
“There isn’t a single thing for me to not like. I love every single part of you, Vinny. I still do” you promised him, leaning in to press a gentle kiss to the scarred side of his face. A sweet gesture that made his eye tear up.
Before you knew it, you were being pulled into a tight embrace as he buried his face into the crook of your neck.
Just hold him for a while, stroking his hair, he’ll be okay.
The mask still doesn’t come off a lot, more from his own insecurities than fearing your reaction.
But he’s much more comfortable with taking it off when you go to bed before you go to sleep, normally he would wait until you were sleeping before removing it, then laying facing away from you. Now he can hold you properly, not needing to hide from you anymore.
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haleigh-sloth · 3 years
Note
I have a question but why do you think so many people are against Dabi/Touya getting a redemption arc or getting saved? Like some are against him being saved but are all down for Shiggy and Toga to be saved? I usually see the same argument and it’s frustrating! Like before I explain myself just want to say I’m not hating on Shiggy or do I feel like he’s any less worth saving but I see these arguments that leave me baffled. So the arguments I have seen before is some people don’t think Dabi/Touya can be redeemed or saved because he has murdered 30+ people, but like Shiggy has probably killed the same amount of not more people so that logic doesn’t really cut it. So why does it make a difference? Like why are people so against Dabi/Touya being saved or redeemed?
Well, I'll start this by saying that Shigaraki has ABSOLUTELY KILLED MORE PEOPLE HOLY SHIT DUDE. It's not even up for debate 😂 that boy flattened two cities with the touch of a hand. Shiggy is my favorite hands down and I'll defend the boy til I die but he has done so much more damage. That's kind of the point to his arc--actually. But anyways~
Content Warning of abuse below the cut a bit further down--
So with that--I've wondered the same thing you're asking. Why is Touya getting so much hate? Why not redeem him? Well, there's a few reasons that I have seen:
Endeavor- This is the first and foremost reason I can see for Touya having so many antis. This is something I can't grasp or fathom--Why do so many people like Endeavor? Or more like--why do so many people want to see an abuser thrive and his victim be put down? I can understand wanting to see an abuser better himself AND wanting to see the victim thrive, and I can see people wanting the abuser to be put down and the victim to thrive. But to just want the abuser to come out on top? No. Fuck you. (not you anon). So for whatever reason that I cannot fathom, people can't stand the idea of Touya surviving, being saved and redeemed, because it means that Enji has failed (which he already has but--again I really don't understand that side of the fandom and quite frankly I don't want to). So yeah, Endeavor has a lot of ridiculous fans. Hawks- I've already talked about how ridiculous some of the Hawks-stans are. I'm sorry but---they're fucking ridiculous. Some of them need to step away from their computer, go outside, breath some outside air, and shut the fuck up. And let me tell you---we sometimes joke about how the hero-stan side of the fandom lacks critical thinking skills and can't read past the surface--but I want to disagree with to an extent. I can tell you right now, Hawks's stans saw THIS:
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And they knew. Seeing Hawks remain in the dark while Dabi walked toward the light. They knew what this was foretelling. And they didn't like it. And then this happened:
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And they DEFINITELY did not like that. And then Dabi went and made fried chicken out of him and they found more reason to hate him with all their being. Hawks was kind of set up to die heroically--and even though his arc is pretty bad right now, I still think that at this point that’s the best ending for him. For me, he’s gone too long without even remotely thinking of changing his ideologies, and has been backing Endeavor unquestionably for a bit too long now. It’s just not looking good for him survival-wise. And his stans either SEE this very clearly and are in denial and need something to hate in order to deal with it, OR they really just aren’t looking as deep into the story as they need to. Those panels I used above though honestly tell it all. That being said he very well may survive and not have any consequences from his low point at all--but then he gets thrown in the “BNHA’s shittiest written arcs” pile. But whatever. 
Also--shoutout to the blogs I follow and people I talk to who genuinely LOVE Hawks’s character but like--aren’t ridiculous about it and don’t harass people in their inboxes about it. Who also try to understand his character and not just make him out to be a uwu baby that never did anything wrong. TRUE Hawks-stans if I ever saw em.
Shouto--This is FAR less common than the other two reasons, but I have seen a few people who think this. They love Shouto (understandably--he’s a fluffy boy who needs a hug from his big brother Touya), but they think that Touya is going to be Shouto’s “final boss”, or his mortal enemy or something. Which--idk if they just refuse to read into Shouto’s awesome character on purpose or not, but he is not about to go out there and try to kill his big brother, who he never got to know, who he KNOWS suffered because of their father, and who is very very clearly in physical, mental, and emotional pain. Again--Shouto-stans are a  far less part of the problem. But I’ve seen this misunderstanding of Shouto’s character go around a few times. 
This next one is also big, and kind of falls into the same category with Endeavor up top--but it’s such a huge issue that I’m seeing that it needs its own paragraph: People don’t understand children’s behaviors, abuse, abusive family dynamics, and just child psychology in general. Child psychology is hard to understand--but also very simple. It’s hard as an adult to think back to how black and white the world was when you were a kid. Your parents were your safe place--they were your guardians. Or rather--they were supposed to be. This isn’t always the case though. And the Todoroki family exhibits a lot of realistic aspects of abuse. Even though the Todoroki backstory was very messily written--one thing is absolute: Endeavor emotionally abused his child. The issue is that Shouto’s and Rei’s physical abuse was shown FIRST in the story--and THEN we were shown what really happened with Touya wasn’t so easily identified as abuse (I mean it is--to me, but not to everybody). And people got stuck on comparing Touya’s and Shouto’s childhood instead of viewing them as two completely separate crimes Endeavor committed against his family. And they misunderstand Touya’s behaviors. Peep back at when I said that your parents are supposed to be your safe place--well, for Touya, Enji WAS his safe place, his guardian, his world. And then suddenly all of that disappeared without reason (good reason I mean). And that takes a serious toll on a child. I could honestly go on and on and on about this topic in particular but it’s not necessary for this ask. The point is---people don’t think Touya was actually abused or that he suffered as a child. They seriously lack an understanding when it comes to stuff like that. And they aren’t shy about showing it to the rest of the internet. 
The last reason which I think kind of encompasses all of these reasons: People don’t understand redemption arcs--because they’re not your run of the mill Heroes vs. Villains story. It makes it to where it’s not clearly obvious whose side you should take. I guess people don’t like that---but I love it. Why not take BOTH sides?
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You get to have more fun this way imo. You get to watch and see how the two sides come together--rather than just stick to one ideology til the end. I think it’s because people don’t like having their ideals, beliefs, and values challenged. It may be personal for some people--but forgiveness is a touchy subject as well.  And I also think a lot of people very much think that the rules of our reality should exist within fiction. People forget that fiction exists for us to escape reality--I don’t know why this is so easily forgotten. But what’s cool about fictional stories is that everybody can have a happy ending--no matter how many atrocities they committed, people they hurt/killed, because guess what? NOBODY ACTUALLY GOT HURT! 
But anyway---these are the conclusions I’ve come to regarding why Touya has so many haters. Some are legitimate reasons (the last two I listed) and some are just outright ridiculous (the first three I listed). 
I’m not bothered though. I would LIKE to say that when these villain-saving chapters come out I’ll laugh hysterically at all the villain-haters’ reactions---BUT I already blocked almost all of them. 😂
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canary3d-obsessed · 4 years
Text
Restless Rewatch: The Untamed Episode 16 part one
(Masterpost of All the Recaps)  (Canary’s Pinboard)
Warning: Spoilers for All 50 Episodes
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All righty, this one is going to be a laff riot...not. Let's do it.
The first half of this episode is like a beautifully executed standalone tragedy, while also threading together all sorts of themes and paying off all sorts of relationship building that's happened in the previous episodes. My hat is off to the writers, while I also shake a fist at them for making me cry an unreasonable amount.
We’re Sailing on a Strange Boat
The episode starts right off absolutely DESTROYING me with the Yunmeng brothers holding hands, fingers interlaced, in the first of many hand-touching moments that punctuate the episode.
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Jiang Cheng has to be pretty far gone to accept this degree of comfort and tenderness. I think, from their positions, he is also holding Yanli's hand out of the camera's view. 
Zidian finally lets the trio go, and they immediately turn the boat around and head back to Lotus Pier. Wei Wuxian gets the clever idea to turn the benches into makeshift oars but nobody gets the clever idea to use magic to push the boat like they do literally every other time they are in a boat. 
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Their emotional need to go back to Lotus Pier is understandable, but they are being disobedient and irresponsible by doing it. Jiang Cheng is the future of the clan, and should not risk his life, particularly after his mother chose to sacrifice herself to protect him and after both of his parents told him to go hide with his sister and personal bodyguard brother. 
On the other hand, Jiang Fengmian, as clan leader, probably had a duty to go into hiding himself rather than go home to die romantically, so his authority is questionable at this point. Anyway, this is the Jiang Clan, they get to kind of do what they want, except when that pisses Jiang Cheng off.
Lotus Pier Massacre
Back at Lotus Pier, the Wens are kicking Jiang ass. The fight choreography is pretty good, taking full advantage of walkways, railings, pools, and other features of the environment. 
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Using the set this way always makes fights feel more kinetic and real, as opposed to simply sparring in an open area. 
(more after the cut)
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Yu Ziyuan is fighting adequately with a sword, having given her preferred weapon to her son.  She's clearly been at it for a while, and is tiring; the Wen soldiers are starting to land more and more sword blows but no critical hits yet.
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Wen Zhuliu is kicking ass and possibly melting cores, although we don't see him do it to anybody yet. Later we'll hear from Jiang Cheng that he crushed the cores of his parents, but it's not clear when that happens.
Sixth young master replays Jiang Fengmian's entire archery lesson in his head while he waits, and waits, for Wen Zhuliu to finish strangling a dude the right moment to shoot an arrow at Wen Zhuliu. 
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Homicidal tart Wang Lingjiao notices him lining up a shot, strolls over, and stabs him in the back while he's still thinking about what Jiang Fengmian said. One could wish that JFM's archery lessons weren't quite so wordy. 
Wang Linjao normally doesn't carry a sword because of her low spiritual power, but apparently can use one just fine when she's killing kids.
If you start feeling like this episode is unreasonably painful, just think of it as building up calluses so you can handle Yi City when the time comes.
Jiang Fengmian to the Rescue
Jiang Fengmian shows up very far past the nick of time, although he is not actually useful, so it's questionable whether arriving earlier would have helped. But his wife is glad to see him.
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Netflix subtitles say that Jiang Fengmian calls Yu Ziyuan "My Lady!" which sounds courtly and romantic in English. His actual words are "San Niangzi" which hunxi-gullai breaks out here.  I might render this as "lady wife!" rather than "my lady" but I don't think English really has a perfect equivalent.
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Jiang Fengmian sails across the courtyard, knocking down a few Wen soldiers and becoming a young, slender man in the process.
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I mean, come on, that stunt double does not look like a boxy middle-aged man from any angle.
The Dying Bit
The episode splits up the big death scene for dramatic effect but I'm recapping it all together to keep things simple.
Within moments of arriving, Jiang Fengmian gets shanked by Wen Zhuliu like Scatman Crothers in The Shining (or Groundskeeper Willie in The Shinning).
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Wen Zhuliu stops a Wen soldier from finishing JFM off, just so that a different Wen soldier can deliver the killing blow from the back, which is kinda harsh. With all this spin-fighting there is probably not an implication of cowardice when someone dies from a stab in the back, but still. Too rude, Wen Zhuliu.
Yu Ziyuan sees Jiang Fengmian fall, and after having a moment of sorrow and despair, she stabs herself in the heart, falls down, crawls to him and interlaces her hand with his. He revives just enough to give her hand a squeeze and say "San Niangzi" one last time before dying. 
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She dies next, with a smile on her face at the end. The soundtrack plays that amazing "horribly emotional death scene" music that isn't one of the tracks available on the OST, argh. This same music appears at the end of Xue Yang's story.  
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Of the many things I love about the Untamed, the complexity of all the minor characters is possibly my favorite. These two people suck at parenting, and suck at being married, and ultimately suck at protecting and leading their clan, making stupid, selfish choices at every step of the building conflict. 
And then they have this incredibly romantic death scene, in which they both face the inevitability of failure, and find comfort in failing together. Yet their death scene is totally in keeping with who we know them to be, and who they are to each other; the drama doesn't cheat by making them ideal lovers or great people at the end. But they have a great, great moment.
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Jiang Yanli, waiting in the woods while her brothers are presumably running toward Lotus Pier, drops her lotus pendant, which is made of the loudest jade ever discovered, and it breaks with a crash.  
Yanli, who is a well educated young lady, knows a moment of doomy symbolism when she sees it.
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Jiang Yanli: Who put a giant rock out here in the woods? What are the odds I’d drop my pendant directly on it? 
It’s all Over Except for the Crying, Running and Choking
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The brothers climb up on the roof and are shocked to see nothing but Wen soldiers and piled up Jiang corpses... 
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...including one child who is either about to become a zombie or who is being played by a young actor who can't control their curiosity, judging by the way this eye is sneakily opened while the camera is running.
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There's a moment where Jiang Cheng is saying they must have spared his parents, they must be okay, where Wei Wuxian's face is just...wow. You can see right here the gulf in life experience between these two. 
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Wen Zhuliu roams around looking troubled while searching for more people to kill. He’s an interesting villain; someone who believes his loyalty to his boss makes him a good guy, but knows his boss is a bad guy. 
Then we are treated to a hell of a camera move, where it tracks over Yu Ziyuan and Jiang Fengmian together on the floor, heroic in death and still holding hands, and then sweeps up to show their killers sitting on the lotus throne. 
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The dead couple were at odds for their whole lives together, while the evil people who killed them are acting like devoted lovebirds. It's a stunning shot and a terrific thematic contrast. When Wei Wuxian eventually comes to take his vengeance, he will spend some time turning Wen Chao and Wang Lingjiao against each other, before ending them. 
The camera shows us JC's reaction, then shows his mother, then WWX’s reaction, then JF; each reacting to the death of the person who loved them. Some folks may feel that Jiang Fengmian actually did love Jiang Cheng but was just bad at showing it. But Jiang Cheng doesn't think so, and I don't think it's a given that parents love their children.
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Side note: Macroexpression king Wang Zhuocheng is able to open his eyes so far that a giant strip of white shows above his irises, and keep them like that, which is quite a trick. Try it yourself.
Meanwhile Wang Lingjiao and Wen Chao gossip about YZY and JFM's bad marriage. Wen Chao admires YZY's beauty, and Wang Lingjiao insults her character, and announces that she's going to stab YZY's body a few extra times. Jiang Cheng briefly faints at this, taking a page from Wei Wuxian's book, and rolls off the roof. 
Run Run Away
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Both young men run, and run, and run away from Lotus Pier while Wen Chao and Wang Lingjiao mistreat the bodies of Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan 
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The stabbing happens off camera, because it's ok to stab a live child on camera, but not a dead adult. (As always, there are cultural reasons for "what's ok" in any country, and I'm not saying anybody's wrong about these choices). 
Wen Chao follows this up with pouring a cup of wine across their faces. He does this in the style of a libation for the dead, but as a desecration, combining mistreatment of bodies with profaning a ceremonial rite. In a world where ghosts are real and have sharp fingernails, this is deeply, deeply stupid.
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Yu Ziyuan’s actress Zhang Jingtong is able to have liquid poured INTO HER EAR without flinching. Mad props.
The brothers eventually finish running and arrive in a field with an extreme purple photo filter on it. Which I've done my best to remove for these gifs, with variable results. 
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Jiang Cheng wants to turn around and go back to Lotus Pier. He says he wants to retrieve his parents’ bodies and to take revenge, but he's devastated and it seems likely he just wants to die with everyone else.  
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Wei Wuxian pleads with Jiang Cheng to calm down and stay safe, while Jiang Cheng gives himself over to anger and shock as the brothers shout at each other.
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Punching and running ensues, and Wei Wuxian tries to hold his brother back, grabbing him around the shoulders him in a gesture that painfully echoes the many hugs he's given over the years. 
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This time Jiang Cheng doesn't just push him off. He turns around and chokes his brother for nearly a full minute, while screaming at him and blaming him. 
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Just as when Madame Yu beat him, Wei Wuxian doesn't fight back; he pulls on Jiang Cheng's wrists but doesn't hit him or try to break his hold.
Finally Jiang Cheng lets him go, and cries out for everyone he's lost, while Wei Wuxian weeps silently next to him. Eventually they fall asleep in the grass together, their bodies curled up in the form of a heart. 
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Damn, this episode really brings it.
Side Note: during their argument, Wei Wuxian says, among other things, that "revenge is a dish best served cold," according to subtitles. It's a French saying from the 1800s so it's probably not precisely what Wei Wuxian is saying. More importantly, as a longtime Star Trek fan I can't help but hear James Kirk yelling "KHAN!!!!!" whenever I encounter that phrase.
There’s Got To Be A Morning After
When they wake up in the morning, Jiang Cheng is still in his feelings, but now his feelings have moved along to despair, from anger.
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I feel bad for noticing how handsome they both look in this scene. Let's all feel bad about this together.
Jiang Cheng is free to have this level of emotional breakdown because Wei Wuxian is there keeping his own shit together and focusing on what matters.
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When Jiang Cheng refuses to get up, Wei Wuxian reminds him, very, very gently, that they have a sister, who has waited all night to know what happened.
At this, Jiang Cheng gets up, but won't look at Wei Wuxian, continuing to blame him for everybody else's actions, as he walks onward to find Yanli.
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Wei Wuxian follows, hurt and bereft, as he gets to work internalizing everything that he's being accused of. This is good practice for his future as a widely reviled bogeyman.
Part two will be slightly less awful! Coming soon!
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ramblingguy54 · 3 years
Note
So, you see that season 3 trailer that was revealed on Braly's Lightbox Expo panel? How much does that make you excited for season 3 of Amphibia like with Sasha's redemption (especially when she is reading Anne's journal), those scenes of Olivia and Yunnan (that's gonna fuel Olivia/Yunan being Marcy's lesbian moms idea) rescuing Marcy, the Plantars having to blend in and wear human clothing, and Anne, her parents, and Plantars on Earth stuff?
     I didn't actually see it on Matt Braly's Lightbox Expo panel, but checked it out today as I've been busy with stuff on my end. 
     Anyways, I'm just as pumped as anyone else in the fandom currently is to get more footage of Season 3 before it airs in early October! It's very cool and interesting to see Olivia & Yunan switching sides, which people had been speculating about whether or not they'd stick with Andrias after he revealed what a cold blooded tyrant he truly is by Season 2's finale. I noticed we get a shot of Olivia showing Marcy Newtopia's environment when she first presumably arrives there in a flashback from her reflecting on feeling bad for the kid after all that has transpired currently.
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     It does make sense why Olivia would turn on Andrias after she devoted herself to serving for Newtopia's greatness for awhile. To see it all be risked of getting wiped out because of Andrias' lust for universal conquest was a grim reality check, no doubt. Olivia may be stuck up to a degree in how she carries herself, but this lady isn't heartless for sure. Olivia made it evident in Marcy At The Gates how much respect she has to Marcy as a person for the accomplishments and help she's lent their society as a whole. It'd be pretty strange for her to willingly go along with seeing Andrias torment a poor kid through God knows what kind of experimenting.
     You can easily make the same argument for General Yunan, too. The Newt Warrior poured a lot of her passion into what she did for Andrias. Yunan was doing it to be acknowledged, hence the whole repeating her name running gag deal, where seeing Andrias' cruel nature must've been hard to accept after how kind he's been previously. I wouldn't be surprised if Olivia probably helped convince Yunan to stand up against Andrias and save Marcy, so it'll be cool to see how this all plays out.
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     God, I’m so looking forward to seeing what kind of dramatic stuff we’ll get for Sasha’s redemption arc in Season 3′s run time, overall. Seeing her come across Anne’s forgotten journal in the Plantar’s basement is gonna lead into some very good stuff for Sasha’s newfound remorseful nature. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if she comes across an entry from Anne’s journal detailing the events of their big falling out in Season 1′s finale, Reunion. Looking at these two pics get me so emotional right now because I love we don’t get to see Sasha’s reaction to stumbling upon this item, but you can damn well bet she’s feeling so regretful after backstabbing Anne.
     After seeing the level of care Anne & Marcy’s characters had in the first two seasons, I’m stoked to find out how they’ll do Sasha Waybright journey of moral improvement justice. She’s arguably the most interesting of these three girls for that serious amount of insecurity Sasha tries to cover up with strength and control. Knowing we’re gonna see Anne’s parents has me wondering about what we’re gonna see outta Sasha’s family background, considering the focus will be a lot more upon her learning to grow past whatever deep seeded issues she has.
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     I’m sure there will be plenty of funny scenarios the Plantars will get themselves into, although more than anything I’d say what I’m most looking forward to is seeing how they’ll further deepen their bond with Anne as a whole. Anne slowly became accustomed to their reality learning to live off the land, fend for herself, and most importantly fit into their town of Wartwood. Now it’s the Plantars turn to be thrown into the very same seat of understanding how Anne’s world exactly operates. 
     This reversal allows for more stuff to occur like Anne & Sprig getting more sister/brother bonding, Polly & Anne material, and Hop Pop getting some quality time with her as well after their dramatic tension in Season 2 with his lie about the Calamity Box coming out into the open. Who’s to say there couldn’t be a future episode addressing Anne & Hop Pop relationship coming into another situation requiring one another’s trust?
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     Anne’s parents being thrown into the mix for a new change in dynamic for her emotionally is high upon my list of stuff I can’t wait to see play out. She doesn’t have just one family to protect anymore, but two. Her parents & the Plantars mean everything to Anne, so I totally see a bunch of drama happening where she’ll try to shoulder the responsibility of handling Andrias’ ominous threat over Earth. After everything Anne has gone through these past two season the kid has a ton of baggage on her plate whether it’s watching Marcy be stabbed, feeling betrayed by her two closest friends, making her parents worry about where she could’ve disappeared off to, and most importantly learning to harness the Calamity powers to protect everything dear to herself.
     Amphibia Season 3 has a ton of stuff I’m looking forward to seeing unfold throughout this final part of a great story about friendship and family. The drama has been so well written watching Matt Braly & crew top their efforts for crucial storytelling time and time again. So, yeah, I’m very happy to see it return. October is going to be a damn treat for the Amphibia community and just in time after Owl House ended it’s first part of Season 2 on a powerful cliffhanger.
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aliixen · 3 years
Text
Soft[Christa Lenz x Fem!Reader]
Okay so I’ve got some ideas in my head that I need to get out. This was one of them, I started writing them down because they just keep coming to me and I;m still on my attack on titan brainrot, so please bear with me. This is a short one shot where reader is part of the 104th Cadet Corps and Christa’s best friend. There are no amazing things here, just pure fluff so if any of you need some sweetness today, here you go. Enjoy!  ❤️
Note: Sorry for mistakes and bad writing, I’m still a novice and English isn’t my first language. I also have a problem with writing short snippets because I always end up making them longer and longer, adding new things so this is one of the first I managed to write and not turn into a story with chapters 😖
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- You should watch out for yourself dummy! You’re always making me worried! - Christa said as she cleaned another cut on your face, a result of your recklessness during training session - What if something happened to you and I wouldn’t be there?
- Relax Christa, it’s just a small cut! It will heal in no time so it’s not a big deal - you gave her your award winning smile to show her everything was alright but it quickly turned into a pout when she gently smacked your forehead with her small hand - Meanie.
- Oh don’t be like that you big baby. Besides, you always say that it’s just something! If you’d only watch out for yourself more… - you saw a glint of worry in her eyes and it made you feel guilty about your actions.
You often got hurt while you were training and Christa, your best friend, was always there to help you, knowing you had a knack for getting in trouble. Today was no exception and once again you found yourself sitting on Christa’s bed in the shared room, her soft hands treating your injuries as you gazed into her blue eyes. You were alone and it was hard to focus on anything else since for the past few months you grew to love your dearest friend, although you kept it to yourself, too afraid of losing her to even try and do something about it.
It was no wonder. Christa was a literal angel, both in looks and character and everybody knew it. That was why she was so popular with guys and girls alike, her good heart and sweet smiles always making them feel like they were being graced with the presence of a goddess. 
You were the lucky one that got the privilege of calling yourself her best friend but you were still far behind Ymir. Ymir. Every time the two of them interacted together you felt jealousy tug at your heart and even though you hid it well it was still bothering you greatly. There was no chance for you and Christa happening, yet the possessiveness inside you wanted her to be only yours, to the point that you stopped hanging out with her while Ymir was around. It just hurt too much. Maybe that was the reason for your recent rise in times you got injured. It meant being alone with Christa like right now and you would do anything to have more of those moments.
- What is it? You’re spacing out again Y/N. Are you sure you’re alright? - Christa’s worried voice reached you and when you focused on the present, you realised she was closer than before, so close that your noses were brushing. Christa stared into your E/C eyes, searching for something before she pressed her forehead against yours. You could have sworn your heart stopped for a second as a crimson red blush spread across your cheeks, her presence this close to you rendering you speechless - Hmm, you don’t have a fever...but your face is all red! Do you feel lightheaded? Or hot? I can bring you some water, you just have to wait a…
- No! Please don’t go! - you cut her off, unable to stop yourself from reaching out for her as she was about to turn to leave. Your arms wrapped around her middle and you pressed yourself into her stomach with your eyes closed, afraid that if you open them you will have to see her reaction to your sudden outburst. And you didn’t want that. You weren’t usually clingy but today was actually the first day in two weeks that you got to be alone with her. You didn’t want that to end so you just squeezed tighter, holding on so that you could get just a little bit more time with her.
- ...Y/N? Hey, it’s alright. I’m not going to leave, so open your eyes, please? For me? - her warmth and soothing voice calmed you enough to loosen your grip on her but not let go completely. Your heart jumped when you felt her pet your head gently, running her slender fingers through your hair and the gesture made you calm down. You breathed out and slowly tilted your head up to look at her, meeting her light blue eyes that emanated such kindness and warmth - So? Tell me what’s going on, please. I don’t like it when you’re bothered by something. Oh no. Did I do something wrong?
- No! No! It’s not your fault, it’s just that...No, I’m sorry, it’s stupid anyway - you hid your face from her once again but she was quicker than you and before you could successfully bury your head between your arm and her shirt she managed to grab you, squeeshing your cheeks playfully as she made you look up once again.
- Tell. Me. - Christa said in an authoritative tone that was accompanied by a pout and the combination made you smile slightly as you watched her tenderly. Even when she tried to be firm, she was still as cute as ever. If she was going to give you this face, how were you supposed to keep quiet?
- I just...I missed you. Being with you - you managed to get out, ignoring the lingering fear that gripped your heart - We don’t see each other as much as we did with all this training and stuff.
- What do you mean, silly, we see each other everyday! - she gave you the biggest smile she could muster to make you feel better and the butterflies in your stomach danced at the sight.
She was right of course, but that wasn’t what you were talking about and you wanted her not to worry about your weird behavior. Unfortunately, due to her sweet nature, you knew she would do everything in her power to get to the bottom of the problem and help you, so you had to tell her the real reason eventually. You detangled yourself from her form, feeling a sudden wave of courage and confidence wash over you before standing up and grabbing her face in your hands, the same way she did to you just a minute ago. You towered over her and watched as her expression formed into one of surprise.
- I know, but it’s not the same. I meant we don’t see each other like that anymore, just the two of us...I like that. Having you all to myself, I mean - her blue eyes widened at your admission and you couldn’t stop the blush spreading on your cheeks up to your ears, their tips red, betraying your emotions - I like being with you, you know...and I, umm...I mean, maybe I shouldn’t be saying this, but...oh my god, why am I stuttering….I….I’m sorry, I don’t…
Your embarrassing rambling was stopped when you felt Christa’s lips on yours, a state of shock paralyzing your senses that couldn't process what was going on. The softness and sweetness of her lips was all you could focus on and you couldn’t believe this was happening but for now you decided to not dwell on it and simply kiss her back as your heart fluttered in your chest. Your best friend, this beautiful, gentle angel was here in your arms and you couldn’t be happier. This was all you wanted. To your dismay, as soon as you started to move your lips against hers, Christa pulled back quickly and covered her mouth with her hand as her face became red in an instant.
- I’m so sorry Y/N! I don’t know what came over me, you just looked so cute when you rambled so I… - she started to explain herself but was interrupted with the sound of your chuckling. She stared at you for a few seconds before a pout appeared on her face and she stamped her foot on the ground, seemingly irritated - Geez, why are you laughing!
- I’m sorry, I’m sorry! - you managed to get yourself under control and gave her a cheeky smile. Taking a step forward you closed the distance between you two and ruffled her hair, too happy to worry about the possibility of making a mistake - I’m not mad or anything! I like you Christa, so I’m really happy right now.
- Wait, what….? You like...me? - her face became even redder as you leaned in, placing a gentle kiss on her nose and smiling gleefully. She averted her eyes, opting to look at the floor instead and you had to stop yourself from squealing at how cute she was - But I thought...I mean you weren’t hanging out with me as much as we did before and I got worried and then...I realized I like you too?
She almost whispered the last part and you had to focus on what she was saying to hear, but as you did, you felt an immense amount of happiness fill you before you grabbed Christa and lifted her in the air, turning around with her in your arms, her sweet laugh echoing through the room.
- Y/N! Put me down, we’re gonna fall! - she protested but her eyes were closed and she seemed just as happy, her hands squeezing your neck tightly in an attempt to hold herself up. As your head started spinning you thought it was time to stop your twirling before you really fall down, so you slowed down but still kept Christa in your arms, refusing to let her down just yet. She was now as high as you thanks to your hold and it was all so perfect that you couldn’t resist the urge to kiss her again. She squealed against your lips before relaxing in your embrace, her gentle hands tightening her grip on the back of your neck. Both of you smiled into the kiss, happy to finally be together like you were supposed to. You broke the kiss and leaned your forehead against hers, gazing deep into her blue eyes that you grew to love so much during those hard months of training. They were still the same as at the beginning, warm, kind and making you feel like this world might not be so bad after all.
- My sweet darling… - she blushed at your worlds and let go of you to hide her face behind her hands, the tenderness of your words making her heart beat twice as fast, in par with yours.
- Stupid! You’re making me blush, quit it! - you smiled and grinned at her, knowing that this would only be the beginning of your teasing now that you were together. She would learn that soon enough.
- Never, my dear. I like you too much.
- Oh, you. I like you too, dummy...
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andraaste · 3 years
Text
I am not your enemy - Lance fanfiction part 8
This is the chapter of which I had published an excerpt the very first time, so here’s finally the full version ! This is one of my favorites, I hope this will also be the case for you 💕
(Link for Chapter 9 here)
Chapter 8 : Your powers are still there
The door slammed shut and I felt Lance's large body pass near me, brushing my arm nonchalantly as it passed. My stomach contracted in apprehension.
I had most likely just interrupted him during a workout because, without ever completely turning his back on me, he grabbed a towel and quickly wiped his abdomen before putting on some of his armor, completely covering his neck and chest.
- Are you afraid that I will try to attack you from behind again ? I said ironically to see him cover himself like this, especially the back of his neck.
The dragon smirked at my remark. He stole a glance at me as he finished covering himself.
- You know very well that it is you who would gain the most to protect yourself in my presence rather than the other way around, he replied as naturally as possible. If I wanted to, I could have killed you in the market place without anyone seeing anything.
Good.
- It's just that I never completely remove my armor in the presence of another person, just a matter of habit, he explained to me then.
An ironic pout on his lips, he added :
- And indeed, I understood that you were rather unpredictable, as a girl. I prefer to avoid the risk of attacks in the back.
- At least I'm making an impression, I continued in the same vein. Should I also fear for my survival by leaving the door closed ?
My question was meant to be amused, but his indecipherable gaze still gave me a slight doubt.
- For you to see if you decide to trust me or not, I could completely lie to you by telling you that you do not fear anything here.
Where was he, the sensible little smile to accompany this kind of thinking ?
- But you came on your own, so I take it you know what you're doing, he finally concluded.
If he knew how much I had no idea...
I looked away to observe the room around me (and potentially discreetly analyze my chances of running away from here in the event of a life or death story), never having had the opportunity to see in which type of place Lance could live well. Another detail ends up intriguing me. The room was really ... sober. Other than a bed, all kinds of weapons and armor, and a few books, the room showed no particular sign of singularity. Having probably noticed that I was inspecting his lair with my eyes, Lance explained to me with a shrug :
- I don't particularly like wasting my time settling somewhere, I have relatively few personal effects.
Much more than its sobriety, I was also surprised to realize that the room was perfectly tidy. Having arrived unexpectedly, it would have been normal to find even two or three things that were out of place, but nothing seemed to hang around despite my research.
- Why don't you like to settle down ? I asked him, genuinely curious to know his way of seeing things.
My question seemed to catch him off guard too, for he seemed to be trying to find his words for a moment.
- I just think I never really had a home.
I turned to observe him. Looking thoughtful, he didn't seem to have noticed me.
- I've always migrated quite a bit, and even if it's not the first time I've moved somewhere for a long time like here, I prefer not to get too attached to a place and be free to leave when I want. Moreover, as a warrior, you have to know how to be ready for any eventuality and not get too attached to such trivial things.
I pondered his words as silence fell between us. Lance really had a knack for turning everything into drama.
Or the bombastic.
- But every good warrior must have a home waiting for him somewhere, right ?
- When you have one, probably yes. But what connects me to this place is not one of them.
I thought back to what I had been told about Lance's return to custody. His need to redeem himself was probably the only thing holding him back here. The memories in that place were probably going to hurt more than anything to him. He had suffered a real emotional shock, even though he had totally sought it out.
- I think I understand what you mean, I started cautiously. Me neither, I don't really have a home anymore, with the difference that I already had one. When I got to Eldarya, I lost everything else. Everything that made Earth home to me.
Memories of arriving here flooded through my head, especially the potion Miiko had forced me to drink soon after. It was clearly not glorious, but at least it had made it a little less difficult for me to accept this forced new start.
- I finally managed to recreate a semblance of home here, but then...
Seeing that I did not continue my sentence, the dragon deduced it for me.
- I pushed you to sacrifice yourself and lose everything once again.
His words were harsh, brittle, yet he let no emotion betray his face. He pursed his lips as if to keep from adding something. I was confused.
- Yes, I breathed so low I doubted he heard me.
- Look, I'm not going to apologize again. If that's what you're here for, you can leave, nothing is holding you back and certainly not me.
His jaws were twitching as he spoke, which irritated me in turn.
- I'm not here tonight to blame you or try to make you apologize, so you don't need to make those kinds of threats to me. And I'm a big girl, know that if I want to leave I don't need your approval.
- We at least agree on this point.
It was my turn to cringe. Damn, why was he being so rude again ?
- I'm glad to see that you still have your bad temper anyway, I said bitterly.
He gave a sharp laugh that made my hair stand on end.
- People don't change fundamentally, Andraste. They each evolve in their own way, but their nature remains the same. Remember that living in redemption doesn't change who I am.
- So you're telling me that all the nice words I've been hearing about you for weeks are wrong ?
- That's not what I'm saying and I don't know what you've been told about me. Anyway, I don't want to know, even if I have my little idea about it.
- Oh, but I don't doubt that, no. You have to believe that you did a good job of putting everyone in your pocket.
I could see his jaws twitching sharply under his tanned skin.
- That's not what you think, Andraste.
- I thought you had nothing to do with what I thought ?
- Do not distort my words.
- So you have something to do with it ?
- That's not what I said either, stop playing it.
I put my fingers over my eyes, trying to calm the anger rising in me. He might be working for Eldarya's good now, but other than that he definitely hadn't changed. Lance might have been calmer and more thoughtful than before, but he still remained the same to some extent. It all reminded me too much of Ashkore.
- Look, I don't even know why I decided to come see you here, but what is certain is that it was a mistake. We are definitely not meant to get along, you and me.
Pissed off and frustrated, I headed for the door to leave this stuffy place, when his hand grabbed my forearm and stopped my gesture.
- Andraste, calm down.
I didn't answer. I just waited for him to make up his mind to let go of me, still turning my back on him.
- You still haven't told me why you came here, he continued.
- I already told you, I had no particular reason, so let me go please. I thought you won't hold me back.
- I won't hold you back when you explain it to me.
His tone was dry, but nonetheless he pulled gently on my arm to push me to face him. With our sleeves rolled up, this was the first time our two bare skins had touched each other, the dragon usually always wearing gloves, and that contact felt like pricking my skin. Feeling a strange sensation arise in me, I finally unwrapped everything for him, trying to hold back my tears of frustration in the process.
- I feel lost, Lance. I feel like I have to start all over again, except this time around, a chasm seems to separate me from those I already knew. I am tired, my body can no longer keep up. And I feel ...
I looked for a moment at his hand, which was still holding my forearm firmly, the paleness of my skin contrasting sharply with the tanned complexion of his, before looking up at him.
- Incomplete, I finally concluded. I feel like my body needs to regain its powers, but I can't.
Lance observed me for a long time before lowering his eyes in turn.
- Look.
I followed his movement to discover a soft light escaping from my palm held between us. I was speechless.
- How...
My voice stopped. Why were my powers awakening at this precise moment? Since that famous training with him, I had tried several times to use them again, but each of my attempts had resolutely turned out to be luck.
Lance's fingers grew colder and colder and soon, faint streaks of ice appeared on my skin and descended to the heat source in the palm of my hand. When the two elements met, I felt an incredible force spread in me and with the same impulse, the light which escaped from my extremity suddenly burst a bluish color. My hand and arm were almost completely covered in ice, but yet I only felt a slight chill run through me.
He released the pressure on my arm before sliding his fingers until finally let go of me. When the contact between our skins broke, my light flickered for a moment before disappearing. No more sign of magic marked my numb member.
- Your powers are still there, Andraste.
He paused before adding :
- And obviously, they seem to react to mine.
I didn't understand exactly where he was going.
- To react to yours, what do you mean by that?
The dragon had let go of me, but he still didn't back down. His large build blocked my view, I only saw him.
- I don't know exactly, I’ve never had this kind of reaction before. But aengels and dragons have a rather complicated common past, that would explain some events like this one.
I thought back to the fight Leiftan and I had faced him seven years ago. Our powers had as it were merged that day. I thought this only happened because we were both aengels, but was it possible between beings of different origins ?
- Have you ever heard of people merging their powers? I inquired, nervous at the thought of his answer which I certainly wasn't going to like.
His gaze remained impenetrable.
- Apart from Leiftan and you, no, not that I know of. But our races being extinct, we know very little about these kinds of facts.
A memory came back to me then.
- And Fáfnir, he could tell us more !
Lance didn't move but I felt him imperceptibly tighten, which made me anguish. I asked the question that nagged me cautiously.
- Something wrong with Fáfnir ?
He seemed to hesitate to answer me for a moment, but finally spoke, his tone heavy.
- Andraste ... he breathed in contrition and I thought I saw a few sparks of ice escaping from his lips. Memoria is gone, he said, and the dragon's eye too.
I was speechless in amazement. He gave me a few seconds to digest the information before continuing cautiously.
- We don't know where the dragon souls are at the moment. Shortly before you woke up, quite a few unexplained events like this happened. Fáfnir is ... nowhere to be found, let's say.
For the first time, the man's gaze in front of me seemed to waver slightly. The dragon never let it show, but yet I knew it disturbed him more than he made it seem.
- Lance ...
- It's not important, he cut me coldly. We will inevitably find them eventually but for the moment, we cannot count on the knowledge of Fáfnir. However, I would like to know one thing.
I looked at him questioningly.
- How come my ice didn't do anything to you? You didn't seem to feel the cold.
I was taken aback. Granted, only Lance was the only one who really knew what was happening to my body after seeing the miraculous healing of my wound, and my unexplained blood loss, but I hadn't told him all the details I had. had counted on keeping for myself.
- It's probably because of this merging of powers thing, nothing more, I argued with a shrug that wanted to be nonchalant. We do not yet know anything about this phenomenon after all.
Unsurprisingly, the young man did not seem entirely convinced by my answer. He was definitely a formidable adversary, even in areas other than combat. It was my luck.
Cautiously, he moved closer to me, his gaze fixed on mine.
- So, you know if you trust me?
Getting a little closer, he lifted his hands and slowly directed them to my neck, probably giving me time to decide whether or not to let him.
- Let me try something, he whispered to me.
Cradled by the calm tone of his voice, I let his hands reach the thin skin that covered my neck. His long, slender fingers encircled the entire back of my neck, he barely touched me, as if he was afraid that I would push him away. I plunged my questioning gaze into his, his gaze totally focused on his task, when the tingling sensation I'd had earlier on his touch began again, this time where his hands covered me in.
His concentrated face was now tilted so close to mine that I only had to whisper for him to hear my question.
- What are you doing ?
I suddenly felt the same streaks of ice run through my skin. Rising to the bottom of my face, they marked my skin with a slight tickle. Despite everything, I only felt a small sensation of cold.
Lance smirked weakly.
- Breath, he intimated in a deep voice.
Without really knowing why he was asking me to do this, I still breathed weakly into the small space between us. It was then that with amazement, I observed light crystals of ice escaping from my mouth, until gradually transforming into a sort of bluish flame. I widened my eyes at this phenomenon, it was his dragon fire !
His smile widened then.
- A real little ice dragon.
A light expression floated on his face as he gently removed his hands from my neck, removing the last traces of ice that covered me. Slowly, he pulled away from me as well, putting a distance of convenience between us.
I was obsessed with the feeling of fierce power that had invaded me for a brief moment. So that was the strength of the dragons? This feeling of invincibility so primitive. I understood better why they were so formidable, when I had yet tasted only a tiny part of his powers.
- How did you do that? It was amazing!
The latter observed me, his face suddenly slightly serious.
- To be honest, I didn't think it would work. This is the first time that I have tried to impart some of my power to someone else, I didn't even know it was possible.
We both watched each other silently in the stillness of the room, each realizing the extent of the communion of our respective powers.
And it was ... almost scary, to be honest.
The dragon's voice finally broke our silence.
- Andraste, I will advise you not to tell anyone about this phenomenon for the moment, I do not yet know what that could imply.
I nodded without batting an eyelid, I totally agreed with that idea. On the other hand...
I fixed his blue eyes with a determined gaze.
- Lance, I would like you to help me regain my powers.
I paused, hesitating on what to do next.
- But maybe ... out of sight, like here.
He raised an eyebrow in disbelief, a thin smile on his lips.
- The little human wants to make clandestine dates in my room ?
(Chapter 9)
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damn-stark · 4 years
Text
Harmless Endeavors
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Chapter 4 of Different Light
A/N- I always have so much fun writing these chapters and I especially can’t wait for the next one! Let me know what you thought?! I hope you guys liked the chapter :)
Warning-slight angst, SLOWBURN, typical teenage awkwardness and just a disaster trio starting their new hobby.
Pairing- Harry Potter x Malfoy!reader, Fred Weasley x Malfoy!reader
Takes place during; The Goblet of Fire
(Let me know if you want to be tagged)
————
“Alright Malfoy we have a question for you.” George began to probe while he stood beside you.
“Okay,” you muse skeptically, poking your head over the brick barriers between the hall's arches, whilst you gripped onto your wand. “Shoot.”
Fred snickers on your other side and asks their obvious curious question. “Where is Durmstrang exactly?”
“Well, obviously it’s…” you pause and blink as you somehow come out blank. “Well...I,” you gasp as your mind is still unable to recall any sort of direction at all. Everything just comes out blank. “I don’t recall exactly. That’s,” you mumble, “odd.”
Fred and George snicker and give one another a high five behind you after hearing your useless given answer. Finding your bafflement somehow amusing. Because of course they did.
“I told you, Freddie.” George said proudly, “no present, nor past student knows where Durmstrang is.”
“Most likely some type of memory charm,” Fred chimes in with the equal amount of pride as George. “Or maybe just too much dark magic messes with their heads.”
You slowly turn your head to face him and shoot him a pointed glare, causing him to just shrug nonchalantly and smirk. Wanting to remark on your glare, but not doing so as you pulled them both down when you heard the footsteps of your first victims approaching the hall. “Ready?” you whisper as you raise your wand to point it at the hidden floating bucket.
“Ready.” Fred repeated, lifting his wand to point at another bucket, whilst George also did the same, but faltered as he spotted the problem.
“Are you sure you want to do this, Malfoy? It’s your brother coming down the hall.”
Without any sign of hesitation you nod almost enthusiastically, “oh, I’m sure.”
“Okay then,” Fred continued smugly as he poked his head out to get a better view at the passing group which involved Draco, Crabbe and the tiny and snobby Pansy, “in 3,2,1.”
Without a second to spare George cast the flipendo jinx that knocked down a bucket filled with ink so it could drop over the group, while Fred makes a bucket pop out of the floor as fake bricks open like a small door, leaving you to knock down and drop the one behind them. Soaking them from head to toe in ink that made Pansy squeal and the two boys shriek out like little girls.
The whole scene overall making the three of you instantly drop and hide between bushes. Trying with all your might not to reveal yourselves with the laugh that threatened to spill out. Having to distract yourselves with listening to the group whine and grow upset. Draco most of all.
“Come out and show your face! Don’t be a coward!”
You bite your lip to keep yourself from bursting out, not daring to even move a muscle in order to keep yourself hidden.
“Just you wait! You will all get expelled!” Draco bellowed, before he and his group were heard storming down the hall, each second their footsteps echoing further and further away until they were just no more. Finally letting all of you burst out into a fit of uncontrollable laughter that made it hard to breathe. Causing you to gasp for air as you completely slumped to the dirt ground.
“I wish I could’ve…” Fred wheezed, “seen their faces!”
“I-it must’ve been spectacular!” George added excitedly. “Just you wait!” He then mocked, making you laugh much harder, feeling your sides hurt but unable to stop.
“Ah,” you gasped, “that-that was fantastic!”
“You knew didn’t you!” Fred jabbed, “you knew your brother was going to come down that hall. You had it all planned?!”
Once you are able to be somewhat contained, you shrug innocently. “It was just an innocent prank on a couple of passing kids.”
“Sure it was,” George chuckles, “you sneaky little genius.”
You grin smugly and flip your wand in your hand before placing it back inside your robe.
“Well you shouldn't have to hide it, you know we would’ve been down to prank your brother.” Fred adds, “with only your permission of course.”
“Of course,” you mock. “Anyway,” you shrug, “he deserved it, he was an arse.”
George scoffs, “isn’t he always.”
Your smile falters at George’s comment, but it’s just that and nothing else. You don’t let it or want it to affect you because it’s true, even if it feels weird hearing others bad mouth your brother.
Regardless you shrug it off and yet are unable to express anything else after you managed to calm down since down the hall, where Draco and his friends had left, quick multiple footsteps were heard approaching. Causing Fred to grab your hand to pull you with him as he jumped to his feet, meanwhile you grabbed onto George’s hand to pull him. Not daring to wait to see who it could be in case it was Draco coming back to search and snitch with an army of professors.
“Come on,” Fred urged as he tugged your hand and you tugged George’s to break into a sprint down the courtyard. “Let’s go!”
Again the three of you fell into a fit of laughter when you looked over your shoulders and saw Draco had returned, fuming to hopelessly search for the guilty party he was never going to find.
——
It so happened that waiting and searching for Dobby was much harder to find than accidentally bumping into him. And it’s not like you could just say his name and he’ll appear out of thin air anymore, he wasn’t your family’s house elf. So you were forced to pace out the kitchen to wait in the knowledge that he should have gotten the letter by now, there shouldn’t be a reason for him to take so long.
Athena, yours and Draco’s Eagle-Owl was a fast flyer, she wouldn’t have taken that long to deliver the letter after Draco passed it to her. In fact she should be back with a small package or more letters.
Unless...Dobby got caught. No...he couldn’t. The outcomes of that possibility would be out of your control and it would’ve been news you would’ve heard by now. He couldn’t have been caught.
Suddenly your name is uttered loudly down the hall. Followed by small quick footsteps speeding towards you—when you turn around you see Dobby’s little body coming towards you with an envelope half his hands size in his hold, whilst a big beaming smile decorated his features. “I’ve got it! I’ve got what miss Malfoy asked!”
A weight lifts from your shoulders at the sight of the little elf more than at the sight of the letter he carried. You sigh with relief and look down to the elf with a small smile. “I’m so glad you’re alright.”
“Dobby is very honored, miss Malfoy trusted Dobby with such a task.” The little elf squeals cheekily, “Dobby snatched the letter from the Manor and guarded it with his life for you, miss. And he never got caught!”
“That’s good. I’m so proud of you Dobby.” You beam, making the little elfs smile falter.
But not because he was upset, but because of the emotions he began to feel at your comment. “Miss Malfoy is proud of Dobby? Oh, Dobby is so happy! Here.” He hands you the letter as his eyes gleam with welled up tears. Letting you hand him a small wrapped package that had his name on it. Making the elf get even more emotional as he opened it to find a knitted sweater and a couple of Galleons. “Thank you! Thank you.”
“Thank you, Dobby, you’ve saved my life.” You assure him, glancing at the end of the hall to see more house elfs come out of the kitchen as breakfast was going to be served, “thank you. And I hope that if Draco keeps doing this that I can count on you to do the same? If that’s no trouble?”
“It’s never trouble. Dobby is honored to help.”
“Good,” you nod with a grin before you’re moving past him, “thank you again and I’ll see you again soon!” You wave at Dobby and he waves back. The sight of his little figure is gone as you leave the kitchens and head towards the great hall to join your only two friends for breakfast. Catching them on their usual table with a gap left between them for you to sit, both at the same time catching a glimpse of you before waving you over.
“Where have you been?” George asks while you take your seat.
You shrug and hide your smirk, “busy.”
“Causing trouble so early in the morning, Malfoy?” Fred probes.
You chuckle and serve yourself breakfast, only shaking your head as a non-helpful response to his questioning. Choosing to leave it at that and say nothing else on the regard—knowing if you did let them in to your secret plan, someone around could hear and tell. Destroying your whole plan and leaving you in hot water.
So as for now it would be well not to tell and just leave them in the dark.
All you could do, now, at the moment was enjoy breakfast. You could worry about focusing on rewriting the letter and sending some of your own later.
“....Mom sent me a dress.”
Fred giggles beside you and pulls both yours and George’s attention to focus on his youngest brother.
“Well it does match your eyes,” you hear Harry tease, making you grin and forget the breakfast you were so intent on eating moments ago to focus on the trio causing an amusing scene; “is there a bonnet?” Harry reaches to pull the exact item of clothing from the box, “aha!” Harry grins cheekily, making Ron roll his eyes and dismiss his friend's comment.
“Nose down Harry,” Ron takes the odd, ghastly looking robe to his sister. “Ginny these must be for you.”
From the side of the table you’re sat on, you couldn’t see the youngest Weasleys exact facial reaction, but by the obvious disgust in her tone you could tell it was just as her voice was heard. “I’m not wearing that, it's ghastly.”
You giggle along with the rest of the students, noticing Ron’s unfocused gaze as he walks back after he hears Hermione giggling. “What are you on about?”
Hermione giggles, “they’re not for Ginny. They’re for you.”
The twins as well as you and the group of students paying attention to the interaction burst into a louder teasing laugh, continuing on as the explanation continued—“dress robes!”
“Dress robes?!” Ron snaps back as his eyebrows knit together and his nose scrunches up, “for what?!”
You chuckle and add a long time knowing answer to his question, “the Yule ball of course!”
——
“The Yule ball is approaching—a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament and an opportunity for us to socialize with our foreign guests.” Snape announces to the house of Slytherins in such an unbothered and monotone way, “the ball will only be open for fourth years and above. Of course you may invite a younger student only if you may want to.”
Of course you knew like the many times before, what was to come for this school year, but that still didn’t excuse your gut wrenching nerves that knotted your stomach at the thought of such an important event. The main reason being who would ask you, or really if anyone would?
Of course you could ask someone; and you could see some people already looking at you as Professor Snape announced the event, but you didn’t really wish to go with any. Not to be cruel really, but the reason being, was that you didn’t really wish to actually go with anyone from Slytherin house. Not only because you didn’t know a soul personally but well...it was just that. You wanted to go with someone you did know—which wasn’t a lot of students, but you still hoped really.
“Dress robes will be worn,” Professor Snape continued stiffly, “and the ball will start at eight o’clock on Christmas Day. No later. It will finish at Midnight, so please no late arrivals. And of course.” Professor Snape cleared his throat as he looked to the crowd of older Slytherins, “I will expect Slytherin to behave and not act like wild animals. If I catch anyone out of hand I will take points. So act decent if you want to win the house cup at the end of the year. Okay? Everyone up and to the center of the room!”
——
“...I’m so glad to hear that you’re enjoying your school year at Hogwarts. However I’m saddened by the fact that I won’t get to spend Christmas with Draco and you this year, it’ll be odd having the house so alone in such a wonderful Holiday, but I know you two will be up to far more exciting things with the Yule Ball approaching. I can't wait to hear all about it and who you’ll go with, so please as soon as someone asks you, write to me! I’ll be waiting with so much anticipation. I miss you and I hope we see one another soon.
Love, Narcissa
Of course in that small detail of the letter where Narcissa says to write her as soon as someones asked you, she left out that part that it couldn’t be just anyone—No mud-bloods, nor blood traitors. Especially no, Mud-bloods! That’s key. Your father would most likely come to the school and grab you by the ear to take you back home.
Perhaps it was good that no one has asked you. Saved you a bunch of unnecessary problems.
Like you would care regardless.
“Are you done with the letter yet?” You question Draco as you walk behind him on the chair to hit the top of his head with the couple of envelopes in your hand.
He winced like the dramatic boy he was and threw his arm back to hand you the wanted item, adding as always a comment. “But don’t read it! I’ll know if you do.”
You snicker and walk back towards the door, “why? Got some special news to tell mummy that you don’t want me to know about?” You smirk, “like how you got supposedly bathed in ink?” You do air quotes with your fingers and try to surpass the fit of laughter that threatened to burst out.
Draco snapped his body to face you so quickly that you’d thought it’d just crack in half. “It’s true! You just didn’t see it because it was invisible ink to everyone else!”
You offer a narrowed gaze and a mischievous smirk he didn’t understand the meaning of—or else he would’ve turned crimson. “Okay,” you shrug casually, “invisible ink? Whatever you say.”
Draco’s face scrunches up and he throws you a pillow that luckily doesn’t hit you as you shut the door in time. Albeit you don’t fail to laugh. Receiving odd looks from passing students was the only thing that made you hold your laughter and bite your tongue from going hysterical.
If only Draco knew. If only he knew.
“Y/N!”
Suddenly your attention perks up as you hear your name called out behind you. When you turn you see only one Weasley twin; which going by the hair and how it kind of swooped at the tips, it was Fred.
You smile and stop so he could catch up, “hello, Fred. Long time no see.”
He laughs softly and runs his fingers through his hair, stealing glances at you as he begins to walk with you. “So what do you think about the Yule ball? Get asked yet?”
You shake your head and purse your lips, “nope not yet, but I do see some boys following me at times throughout the day and stare at me as if I’m some shiny toy.”
Fred puts his hands in his pockets and grins, “maybe they’re scared of you.”
You chuckle and spin to face him, walking back as he walked forward to joke along. “Is it my hair? Or do you think they know we're trouble? Or is it my family name?” You giggle, “maybe I’m just too funny for them, hmm? My jokes are too grande for them.”
“Ahh,” Fred teases with a goofy grin, “that’s it. They just don’t understand those hysterical jokes and the mindless pranks you hide in their morning pumpkin juice.”
You snort and playfully hit his chest before you fall back at his side, wanting to add something but cut off as Fred continued.
“Well now that we’re on that topic of dates, I wanted to ask if you’d go with me?”
Suddenly your stomach drops and your heart goes wild like a kid on a sugar high. Your smile drops but it picks up again, going in that nervous routine for a couple of seconds until you stop and make Fred stop to fully face you.
“You want to go with me?” That was a stupid question, but it just came out. Why didn’t you ever think of the twins?
Maybe because you thought they wouldn’t ask. Especially not Fred since you’d see him talk to his friend Angelina at times before George and him would join your side. You’d thought he’d ask her instead.
Guess you stand strongly uncorrected.
Fred chortles, “of course that’s why I asked.”
“Oh,” you feel your cheeks burn and your wrist begins to ache as the habit to nervously rub it annoyingly ticks at your brain. “Well, yeah I’d love it to.”
Fred’s grin widens and goes somewhere between cocky and flustered, but he hides it well with a cool nod. “Alright then can’t wait, I’ll see you later.” He begins to walk back as you do too, continuing to your previous path.
A shy smile grows on your lips and you wave at him like a dork, not seeming to keep your eyes off each other until you both turn to your destined halls. Causing your overly giddy grin to last until you reached the top of the Owlery. Dropping your smile to a small faint one as you offered it to a girl in your same year, Cho Chang as she passed by you on the snow covered stairs.
Moments after, your mind hardly paid attention to what was going on around you as you focused on the ice and snow.
Because of that causing your body to almost collide into Harry.
“Oh, Harry, I’m sorry.” You excuse yourself as your smile falls and your cheeks tingle with a threatening warmth. “I wasn’t paying attention to where I was going.”
Said boy giggles nervously and sways from side to side like an awkward dance as you both try to go past each other.
It’s not until you grab his shoulders to turn him to where he was headed does the funny interaction stop, and you’re left standing awkwardly for a few moments until he waves goodbye, followed by a soft departing word too. Letting you think that was it, but standing strongly uncorrected again.
“Y/N!”
You turn back on your heels and your eyebrows lift as you answer back, “yeah?”
“Uhmm,” he swallows thickly, “Wangoballwime?”
Your eyebrows knit together like your stomach does, but both for entirely different reasons. “Huh? Sorry I didn’t quite get that.”
Harry shoves his hands in his pockets and his eyes bounce all around your face, an obvious rosy tint growing on his cheeks and neck—for cold reasons or different you couldn’t quite understand. “Uhm, I was just wondering if maybe you wanted to go to the ball with me?” He spoke slowly and clearly this time, causing your eyes to widen and your face to burn.
You could your heart rush again, or maybe this time much quicker, but it did. It was going to just burst out. While also this time you couldn’t help but nervously rub your wrist. Forcing yourself to answer with the disappointing truth—for him anyway. “Oh, uhm, Harry I’m sorry, but someone’s already asked me.” You reveal with a hurt look, “and I said I’d go, sorry.”
Harry rips his hands out of his pockets and nods whilst he answers in the most assuring way possible. “Okay, yeah, great no problem. Okay, good.”
You offer him an apologetic smile and watch him walk back until you call to him, “Harry.”
At the call he runs back and waits.
“I really am,” you assure him shyly, “sorry.”
“Well that’s okay.” Harry reassures you, saying nothing to let your gazes linger until he bursted out with a question. “Who’re you going with?”
“Fred,” you smile sweetly, “Fred Weasley.”
.
.
.
.
Tagged- @peter-laufeyson , @swiftlymoniquesblog , @spideyyypeter , @gsvshsjsbs @accio-prozac , @cherriesanwine @kokomaesadie , @april-14-blog, @prettypinkpeachh
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kelieah · 4 years
Text
an unexpected gift (tom holland x reader)
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summary: tom gets an unforgettable and a long-awaited birthday gift
word count: 2.9k
 warnings: angst, fluff, suggestive content, a TRIGGERING TOPIC struggling fertility! please don’t read if it’s a sensitive topic for you ❤️ (also i am here if anyone needs to talk, you’re not alone love)
edited: so this fic took me forever, and here i am posting two fking days after his bday 😭 with everything going on i hope this takes your mind off it for a milisecond, ily all. stay strong 🥺
a/n: i knowwww i know it’s his bday but i couldn’t help but add some angst jdsabfk anyways HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY THOMAS STANLEY HOLLAND we all love you so much hehe
masterlist
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[05/29/20]
Your mind swirls with emotion as you wait patiently for what felt like the millionth time.
Please. Please. Please.
You thought to yourself as you pace around your bathroom. You inhale deeply and look down at the fifth pregnancy test you took in your trembling hands. Your eyes begin to blur with tears when you notice the two bright pink lines slowly appear in the little box. You let out a shaky sob, “O-Oh my god. Oh my god, thank you. Holy shit. T-Thank you,” you whimper happily.
You place the test aside, feeling as if a weight was lifted off your shoulders. You run your hands through your hair and back up against the bathroom door, sliding down to the floor. You feel your tears stream down your cheeks while a smile makes its way onto your face.
You and Tom have been married for about two years and been trying to have a baby for the past year. It’s been a rocky road of trial and error, medicines and doctors visits. Now, you both finally just received the most precious and priceless gift anyone could ask for.
You stand up taking a deep breath and close your eyes. This is what you and Tom have been waiting for, what you both have been hoping for. You finally got pregnant, after countless attempts. You didn’t expect it to happen so soon but you couldn’t be more grateful.
You breathe out, your lips quivering as you pick up the test once again. You think for a moment and add up the weeks in your mind. You’re about a week pregnant. You assumed the symptoms you were having were just PMS, but look where you are now. Pregnant. Unbelievable. It truly is a dream came true.
Tom wasn’t home yet because he’s been gone for press the whole day. You wanted to burst into some random interview Tom is in right now and tell him the news, but you’d rather plan something out for him. Especially since his birthday is coming up.
You walk over to your bedroom and pick up your phone, immediately calling your parents to tell them the news. Emotions were all over the place once you told them, their reactions similar to you finding out for the first time.
“I know. I know Dad,” you laugh weakly, wiping away some tears. “I love you, okay bye. I’m going to call Nikki.”
You feel yourself grow more excited, “Hi Mom,” you say as she picks up.
“Hello, sweetheart! I love it when you call. I hope Tom isn’t being a hassle,” she teases.
You giggle at her joke and pause for a moment before springing the big news on her. “Nikki, I’m p-pregnant,” you spill out, still in disbelief even though you already told your own parents.
“Bloody hell! Seriously!?” she cries out in joy, “Dom!” she yells, walking off with her phone.
You giggle, sniffing and swipe away tears that fell once again, “Yes, darling? What’s with the shouting,” Dominic comes into view.
“She’s pregnant, oh my she’s- they’re pregnant honey,” she hugs his arm. 
His eyes widen as he gasps, “Congratulations Y/n! We know how long you and Tom have been trying, this is wonderful!”
“T-Thank you, I know,” you chuckle softly, “S-Speaking of Tom, I’ve been planning a lot for his birthday. So I was thinking you all should fly over from London, I may have already bought some tickets.”
“Y/n,” Nikki covers her mouth, “You didn’t have to.”
“Oh but I wanted to, I emailed you the tickets. Your flights leave tomorrow, I hope that gives you enough time.”
Before you found out you were pregnant, you already had a couple of plans for Tom’s birthday. To fly over his family, including Tess of course, and set up a surprise birthday party. 
You debated if you should’ve invited any of his celebrity friends, but with the big news you know he would want to keep things more secluded. Which you completely understood. Memories of you and Tom getting together for the first time yet being outed to the media within weeks flooded your mind. Great times.
Tom hasn’t seen his family in a couple of months because he’s been recording and doing press here in America. Though you both live in LA, you two made sure to visit London frequently. Not only because you loved spending time there, but seeing his family was always so heartwarming and uplifting. His family is so kind and fun to be around just like him, you always felt right at home with them.
But to kill time, you thought why not mess with him a bit. You’re now waiting for Tom to come home from press, dinner time nearing. You sprawl out, stomach flat on the bed you share with Tom, scrolling through your phone mindlessly.
You let out a quiet gasp as you feel a weight on top of your body, “Hi my love,” he chuckles, lying on you.
“Hello, Tommy,” you hum, “Get off though, you’re squishing us,” you pout, shrugging him off.
He tilts his head and quickly gets off of you, sitting next to you, “Us?”
You cup your breasts, winking at him, “These girlies,” you joke.
“Oh woman,” he tackles you gently back on the bed.
“Excuse me?” you gasp dramatically, looking up at him as he pinned you down to the bed.
“You heard me, my woman. My beautiful, beautiful woman,” he teases. You give him a look and he leaves kisses along your jaw, “You know I’m only joking, my wife.”
“That’s better, Daddy,” you grin at the name, feeling like a giddy teenager for knowing something he doesn’t.
“Love, we haven’t even had dinner yet. You know what that name does to me,” he grumbles.
“Don’t be a big baby, I’m just teasing,” you peck his nose.
“Better be pretty girl, I missed you,” he sits up and lifts you onto his lap, “How are you doing?”
“Much better now that you’re here,” you rest your arms lazily on his shoulders, “I’ve already prepped dinner, do you want to help make it?”
“That would be lovely,” he presses his lips against yours which you kindly accept and kiss back.
[05/31/20]
“Thank you again, sweetie, you truly didn’t have to. We could’ve paid,” Nikki says pulling away from hugging you.
“Nonsense, it’s the least I could do for everything you all have done for us. Tom’s actually staying overnight at a hotel with the cast, so it’s perfect for us to get things ready,” you beam, smiling at the rest of Hollands.
After reuniting with his beautiful family and helping them settle into a nearby hotel, you all began to set up for his birthday.
“Hi Tessa,” you squeal, playing with her as she jumps around on you, “I know, you miss daddy? I miss him too,” you ruffle her head.
“Should this go over here?” Harry asks, lifting up a decoration to the wall.
“Yep, a little bit more to the side. Perfect,” you give him a thumbs up.
“Thanks, Mom,” he teases. 
You roll your eyes, fanning him off, “Oh shush, Uncle,” you retort playfully.
You walk around helping everyone out and make sure things are in place. You walk over to the balcony to see Paddy leaning over the railings, “Hey Pads, everything okay?”
He smiles and looks back at you, “Oh yeah, it’s nothing,” he mutters quietly. You immediately catch him wiping away a tear and walk over, opening your arms up. He quickly hugs you, placing his head on your chest.
“Sweetheart,” you pout, rubbing his head, “What’s wrong?”
“I-I can’t believe I’m going to become an uncle,” he sniffles. 
Your eyes soften and you run your hands through his hair, “An amazing uncle.”
“I’m only 15,” he huffs.
“Almost 16,” you remind him, shrugging. “I’ve seen younger uncles,” you reassure playfully making him chuckle.
“I’m so happy for you two, I know how much you both have been waiting for this,” he pulls away, wiping away more tears. “You know,” he sighs, looking back out at the city.
“Hm?” you lean on the railing with him.
“I know you know this already but, Tom really does love you. I remember how heartbroken he’d be after you both failed to become pregnant over and over again, he used to call us each time. His voice was almost gone, his eyes red and puffy. He felt so bad, he felt like it was his fault at times. Telling us how helpless and disappointed he felt,” he mumbles softly.
You look over at Paddy in bewilderment. Tom never told you that, and you assumed he tells you everything. “I didn’t,” you trail off your heart tightening at the thought of Tom in such a vulnerable state, “I didn’t know that Paddy, thank you for telling me that.”
“I think he might pass out when you tell him, no joke,” he smiles sadly. 
You both look at each other for a moment and begin to giggle, “I’d actually love to see that.”
“Me too,” he snorts. 
Both of your laughter dies down, you ruffle his hair for the last time, “I’ll talk to you later.”
“Y/n?”
“Yep?”
“You two are going to be amazing parents.”
[06/01/2020]
“How was your night?” you smile, leaning against your bedrest looking at your tired husband through the screen.
“It was really fun, they wanted to celebrate for my birthday of course. So we drank a bit, got to know each other more and just messed around, it was a nice way to get close to the cast,” he yawns.
“That’s great, I’m glad you got to. My birthday boy must be exhausted, huh?” 
He chuckles softly, “Sure am, one more recording today, and then I’ll be home before you know it,” he reassures. “All good babe, it’s just me and,” you look around your room, “Oh right, it’s just me,” you sigh dramatically. “Darling,” he whines, hugging a pillow to his chest, “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be Tommy, I’m only joking around of course. I love you. I can’t wait for you to come home, so we can have our own little celebration,” you wink.
He giggles and looks back at the camera, “I love you so much. I don’t know what I would do without you, seriously,” he mutters, watching you.
You blush underneath his gaze, “I could say the same.”
“No seriously princess, you’re so understanding and compassionate. Unbelievably amazing, an actual angel. I don’t even think you belong on earth, let alone with an earthling like me,” he bubbles happily.
You snicker quietly, “Okay, Peter Parker,” you tease making him roll his eyes, “Thank you though Tommy, I love you more. You’re such a sap.”
“Only for you. I have to go, see you later?”
“Yup. Forever and?”
“Ever.”
You end the call, tossing your phone aside and hop off the bed. You freshen up a bit and change into more suitable clothes.
You walk around your apartment, smiling softly at all the decorations you and his family had recently put up. 
You call Sam and let him know that Tom’s coming home soon. He tells you they’re all on their way.
You tidy up a bit more and heat up some food. You open the door to the Hollands and smile, “Hello hello, again,” you let them inside.
They greet you once more and place presents in the living room. Dom pulls you aside, “How are you feeling, are you ready to tell him?” he asks.
You smile warmly and nod excitedly, “Definitely. I can’t imagine what his reaction is going to be like.”
“We can’t either,” he laughs, “So where do you want us to hide?”
About half an hour later Tom says he’s on his way home, so you look around doing a final check and smile in content.
You walk out to the balcony and check the corner to see them all bunched up together, “You all okay?” you ask.
“Yep,” Harry gives you a thumbs up, everyone else agrees.
“Are you gonna be quiet Tess?” you scratch underneath her chin as she walks up to you. She looks at you with curious eyes and you accept that as her response, “Good girl,” you kiss her forehead.
You check your phone and look up back up at them, “He says he’s five minutes away,” you chirp. They nod and you close the sliding door, walking back inside.
You feel your heart begin to race as you play out every reaction Tom could have. He could actually pass out, or maybe think it’s a joke? You have no idea, but nonetheless you were excited.
You jump at the sound of the door unlocking and opening, “Darling?” he calls out. You rush over to him before he comes inside, and tackle him into a hug.
He stumbles out into the hallway and holds you close, “Happy Birthday again,” you grin, wrapping your arms around his neck.
“Thank you again,” he kisses your cheek and squeezes your waist, “I have a feeling you’re hiding something my love,” he hums, trying to push past you.
“Well, it’s nothing big,” you move out of the way, letting him inside. You swear you see his eyes twinkle when he looks around the apartment.
“Nothing big? Babe,” he pouts and places down his baggage, “I love this so much, you’re adorable,” he opens his arms.
You bite your lip and close the door behind him, hugging him tightly, “Why don’t you freshen up a bit and meet on the balcony? You smell like hotel,” you joke, kissing at his earlobe.
“Alright alright, meet you out there,” he grabs his bags and walks over to your bedroom. You grin grabbing your camera and hide in the kitchen.
You wait about ten minutes and text Harry some quick updates. You hear Tom walk over to the balcony, sliding the door open. You instantly pop up and stealthily follow him while recording.
“Love?” he steps outside, looking around.
“Surprise!” his family shouts out.
He lets out a scream and holds out his fists in defensive. You all burst out in laughter and Tom immediately looks over at you, “Jesus, you guys!” he cries out.
He trips on the rug but makes his way over to them, hugging them tightly, “Happy Birthday sweetheart,” Nikki chirps, squeezing his arm.
“Thanks, Mum,” he smiles warmly, “Tessa! You’re here too?” he bends down, hugging her as she jumps into his arms, “How?” he pretends to sob happily.
“Your wonderful wife of course,” Sam motions over to you, while you smile proudly.
“Thank you all, seriously,” he stands up, hugging them all again.
“When you all are done reuniting, I think lunch is ready,” you hum, winking at Paddy who helped you prepare the meals beforehand.
Shortly after you all ate together and caught up, it was finally present time. You recorded as he opened up his family’s gifts for him.
“Alright alright, it’s my turn,” you pipe up, handing the camera to Paddy. Paddy grins happily and takes a step back to get you and Tom in the shot.
“I thought you bringing them here was my gift from you already?” Tom tilts his head.
“Of course not, there’s always more,” you roll your eyes playfully, calling Tessa over, “You should know me by now, c’mon.”
Tessa walks over with a gift bag in her mouth, sitting in front of Tom, “Tess! What a good girl, look at you,” he gently takes the bag and pets her admiringly. 
He smiles at you and opens up the gift, he pulls out a little folded spider-man onesie. He assumes its for Tessa and laughs, “Don’t we already have one for Tess?”
“Oh yeah, true.”
He raises an eyebrow and opens it up more, examining it. His eyes widen and quickly darts over to you, “N-No.”
You feel your eyes gloss and you nod slowly, “Y-Yep.”
“Y-You’re not joking?” he walks over to you, falling to his knees.
You stifle a cry and cups his face, “D-Definitely not, look in the bag.”
He reaches over and pulls out another wrapped gift. He opens it up to see your pregnancy test in a bag, “Fucking hell,” he places it aside and hugs you close as you kneel down.
You feel him begin to tremble against you and your heart swells, “Tommy,” you sniffle, running your hands through his hair.
“You’re p-pregnant? W-We’re pregnant?” his voice wavers, tears spilling from his eyes.
You nod again, wiping away his tears, “Y-Yes we are,” you utter.
He holds you close and sobs into your neck. You look up at his family for a moment, chuckling in between cries noticing they’re crying with the both of you.
You whisper sweet nothings in his ear and rub his back, “You okay, bubby?” you sniff. 
He nods and pulls away looking up at you, “M-More than okay,” he hiccups, smiling cheekily. “It’s the best bloody gift I could ever ask for,” he cups your cheek, wiping your tears away as well.
“It truly is,” you murmur softly. He stands you up and kneels down, placing his hands on your sides, “Tom?”
“Let me talk to my other b-baby girl or boy o-of course,” he blubbers, pressing a warm kiss against your stomach. 
Everyone laughs including you, “I’m glad you didn’t faint, Paddy was betting you would,” you thread your fingers through his hair.
He glares at Paddy playfully as he places his face onto your stomach, “Of course he would.”
Paddy whines behind the camera making you both chuckle, “Tom, I’ve only been pregnant for a week,” you hum, looking back down at Tom.
“It’s my birthday, let me have my moment,” he replies sassily, hugging your waist closer.
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dsmp-shitposts · 3 years
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OKAY I'm in an analysis mood so!!
Here's why "Savior" by Rise Against is such a good song about c!wilbur and c!Tommy's relationship in the dream smp!
Firstly tho I just want to give an honorable mention to the first lines of the song: "it kills me not to know this / but I've all but just forgotten / what the color of her eyes were / or the scars and how she got them." it's such a good c!bee duo line and I might have to analyze it in another post lol
(there's kinda a tldr at the bottom if you don't want to read the specific lyric analysis and just was the overall analysis!)
The lyrics I want to analyze (these are more about characterization) are: "as the telling signs of age rain down / a single tear is dropping / through the valleys of an aging face / that this world has forgotten." this is about wilburs resurrection. the first lyrics, "as the telling signs of age rain down" are about how much more different Wilbur looks to Tommy after he was resurrected. wilbur was in limbo for what he perceived to be 13 years, and he shows it physically. he has the white streak of hair that signifies his revival, and I know there's a popular headcanon that wilbur came back "wrong." "A single tear is dropping" is referring to Tommy's reaction to the revival. we know he was in disbelief and even angry at wilbur being back, but intense emotions also can bring on tears. it's a very natural response from your body. The third line is pretty much the same as the first, but "that this world has forgotten" is about wilburs impact on the history of the smp. obviously he's been a very big player in many major plot points, but since his death he has mainly faded to the background in most characters minds, especially after ghostbur's library with all the records from lmanberg got destroyed. as the smp progressed, wilbur got talked about less. focus shifted from him to dream who really emerged as the villain in the story after wilburs death. we can see the impact of this after wilburs revival. everyone on the smp had gotten used to living without him for so long, growing past the people they were when Wilbur was alive. and now when Wilbur gets revived, he expected fanfare and everyone welcoming him back, but in reality people's memory of him faded.
okay now that we have the preface lyrics, we can go into the ones that are more about tommy and Wilbur as a duo. the first ones before the chorus are "but seldom do these words ring true / when I'm constantly failing you / walls that we just can't break through / until we disappear." I'm gonna analyze this with the first two lines and the last two. the first two lines are from Tommy's perspective about him trying to constantly please wilbur. we see this with him gathering lots of stone for him and following Wilbur to stand against Las nevadas and quackity. but even with all of this, Tommy still feels like he's "constantly failing" wilbur and that he needs to do more in order to stay in high regard in Wilbur's mind. we could even look at these same lyrics from wilbur's perspective! wilbur might have felt like he's failed Tommy for not being there for him for the time he was in limbo. I know Wilbur doesn't know about what dream did to Tommy in the exile arc, but I'm betting that if/when wilbur finds out about that, he will feel horrible for not being there himself to stop dream because wilbur cares about Tommy. (this could even lead to him resenting ghostbur more because ghostbur was there but wasn't able to do anything). now with the second half of these lyrics, the "walls that we just can't break through" is referring to the emotional vulnerability, or lack thereof, between the two. I'd argue that wilbur is more emotionally vulnerable to Tommy than Tommy is to wilbur. now, there is a severe lack of communication between the two, but wilbur drops "trauma bombs" where he'll unload something all at once and suddenly. he doesn't do much internal reflection of his feelings, instead wanting to share with others, Tommy in this case, to get validation. with sharing, he wants people to agree that he's a bad person but at the same time wants them to refute those ideas so he feels like he's healing without actually doing anything. now Tommy does more introspection about his feelings (cc! Tommy monologuing) and doesn't feel as big a need as wilbur to share his feelings and trauma. and besides, Wilbur dominates the conversation most of the time anyways so Tommy wouldn't likely be able to carry a constructive conversation about his own feelings without getting talked over by wilbur.
now we're moving onto the chorus! it goes: "that's when she said / 'I don't hate you / I just want to save you / while there's still something left to save' / that's when I told her 'i love you / but I'm not the answer / for the questions that you still have.'" I see this as a conversation between Wilbur and Tommy; Tommy saying the "I don't hate you" section and Wilbur saying the "I love you" section. it's important for Tommy to make it clear to wilbur, and himself, that he doesn't hate Wilbur despite his past betrayal of lmanberg. wilbur thinks everyone hates him, so Tommy consistently sticking by his side is a reminder to Wilbur that he isn't alone. Tommy staying by wilburs side is also how he's ensuring that wilbur doesn't spiral again ("I just want to save you"). he knows that wilbur still isn't in the best mental place, not having the right environment to heal in limbo, so it's more crucial in his mind to be wilbur's crutch right now because it'd be very easy for wilbur to spiral again ("while there's still something left to save"). wilbur, with his part of the lyrics, wants to ensure that Tommy knows he still cares about him despite being gone for a long time. now for the last part of wilburs lyrics, I would love for it to mean that "wilbur understands that he can't be a good mentor to Tommy anymore because of everything that happened. he wants Tommy to realize that he does care for him but their relationship shouldn't function with Wilbur as a mentor anymore," but that wouldn't be accurate to their canon relationship. wilbur still wants to be Tommy's mentor because that's how their relationship has always functioned. my hope is that in wilbur's healing process that he realizes he doesn't have to be a mentor to Tommy, they can just exist as friends. and I would love for Tommy to realize that it's not his job to save Wilbur! while having friends you can talk about your emotions with is good, he shouldn't have to push his own feelings aside to prioritize wilbur's. wilbur also needs to learn that self reflection is a part of healing
the final specific lyrics I want to analyze are: "one thousand miles away / there's nothing left to say / but so much left that I don't know / we never had a choice / this world is too much noise / it takes me under once again." the first three lines, in my opinion, all relate to the fact that Tommy had gone through so much while wilbur was dead, such has dream's manipulation. the last three lines of this section, which are honestly my favorites, are relating to both of their revivals. even though wilbur and Tommy have developed so differently since the lmanberg and pogtopia eras, they have this one thing in common. Tommy didn't have a choice in his death or resurrection. both were committed by dream and have contributed to the massive amount of trauma and PTSD that Tommy has. wilburs death was practically by his own hand as it was an assisted suicide, but his resurrection wasn't his choice, again done by dream murdering ghostbur. that line could also refer to wilbur not feeling like he had a choice in living anymore, feeling like death was the only option for him at the end of his spiral. the last two lines refer to the mental problems that both Wilbur and Tommy are still facing. we talked about wilburs a bit with his need for validation and him villainizing himself in his mind. Tommy still struggles with suicidal ideation, seen most recently with his comments while on the balcony in Las nevadas. he also struggles with his triggers from the final control room and the prison that we see him try and speedrun exposure therapy for. what I'm trying to get at with this is that wilbur and Tommy have developed so differently while away from each other but they have their resurrections in common.
OKAY CONCLUSION TIME!! (also kindof a tldr)
while Tommy and wilbur have been apart from each other for a while and developed in different ways, their relationship after both of them have been revived is centered around both of their relationships to healing from their trauma. Tommy feels like he's the one who has to "save" wilbur and keep him from spiraling again, letting his own feelings be pushed aside to prioritize wilbur's. wilbur lets himself be the saved to Tommy's savior. he consistently seeks out validation for his own feelings instead of taking the time to sort out how he really feels about the things that have happened to him.
if you read this far then oh wow thank you!! I hope this made sense and I'd love to hear what you think of the comparisons to this song!
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tearblossom · 4 years
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Orbital Station Scene Analysis: Part 3
Lmao here we go again. Ready to fall even deeper down the rabbit hole that is this scene with me!? This one scene functions simultaneously as my source of joy and depression and I watch it more than I would care to admit. So, naturally, I have even more to say about it! It’s going to be long. Sorry.
Part 1- https://tearblossom.tumblr.com/post/645095661644251136/scene-analysis-this-is-just-what-i-personally-feel
Part 2- https://tearblossom.tumblr.com/post/645776311115186176/i-was-thinking-some-more-about-the-final-scene
In this one, I’ll be going into more detail explaining the emotional mask that I believe Takemura is trying so desperately to keep on during this scene (and undeniably fails at several times, with it coming off entirely upon the scene reaching a certain pivotal moment) and also pointing out the instances that I feel the mask slips occur. Honestly, it’s pretty easy to tell for reasons that I will explain. I’m going to reiterate the fact that I am not a facial expression/body language expert. This is just one human being looking at another human being and trying to figure them out. This is just my personal interpretation of this scene. Prepare yourself for many, many screenshots and gifs. Also, I will be using the same video sources as the other two posts because I don’t have my own footage. 
https://youtu.be/ra-Ij1KU8r4
https://youtu.be/PUmQqVOq5oY
I failed to mention before the reason that Takemura even had to put up the cruel facade in the first place because I didn’t want to state the obvious and insult everyone’s intelligence. We all know the reason but I’ll just say it here anyway: Arasaka. 
Arasaka is listening to Takemura’s every word so he literally cannot say shit to V that would hint at any sort of affection for him/her and absolutely nothing that would indicate any growing uncertainty in said corporation. Words mean nothing here. He has to speak through his eyes and expressions because that is all he has to offer, the only cards he has to play. That is why the meaning of this scene can be so easily missed and flies over so many people’s heads. I do not fault anyone that may have missed this on a first playthrough or even those that are still unaware of it whatsoever because Takemura is very, very convincing at first (his face becomes an open book once the contract gets brought out but we’ll get into that later) and besides, to truly understand something that involves emotions as complex as these caused by equally as complex reasons or anything involving subtext really, takes multiple viewings to truly appreciate.
In summary, what I believe is happening here is that during the entire scene up until the contract gets brought out, his mental state is constantly teetering on the edge of a cliff so to speak. He is trying so hard to fight his sentimentality and control his emotional responses not only to V’s misery and pain but also his own wavering faith in Arasaka because they are watching, listening, and monitoring. And he succeeds extremely well at first but it gets harder and harder for him to maintain the mask. The closer he physically gets to V, the harder it is to pretend, to hide. His eyes alone betray him on several occasions but eventually the whole facade just crumbles and he falls. And when the contract comes into play is when he truly, honestly looks at V and the communication through his eyes really begins.
Here is the key thing- it is the most important visual clue to understanding when things happen: When Takemura is feeling any doubt or his emotions begin to overwhelm him or he fears that they might, he promptly averts his eyes to get himself under control and readjusts the mask that has slipped. 
He looks away from V during these moments!
(Just to clarify, I don’t think that every single moment in the scene that he looks away from V has this deeper meaning behind it. When people talk it’s completely natural for them to turn their heads, avert their eyes to look at other things, etc. These are just some moments that particularly stood out to me as signs pointing to my little theory.) 
Okay...let’s start deciphering this conflicted, broken mess of a man.
Scene starts. Takemura is fiddling with the Rubik’s Cube. He puts it down. Expression cold as ice.
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mask on full display in all of it’s glory
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They talk about Saburo being back in the body of his son and have this exchange of words:
V: “Saw Saburo Arasaka’s back. In Yorinobu’s body.”
Goro: “Yes. Justice has been done.”
And then it happens for the first time...
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(Could this be...doubt perhaps? Has justice really been done?)
Moving on- he walks over to stand behind the chair across from V, telling them of their imminent death.
Goro: “I will be blunt - the surgery did not help. You will be dead before winter.”
And then he proceeds to make this face immediately after...
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(Lovely, isn’t it? Just full of sympathy. His mask game is strong. But don’t worry though because V wins in the end BIG TIME.)
Understandably, V gets very upset upon hearing this news.
V: “How... how’s that possible? Arasaka’s got the best and the brightest.”
And then something happens again. Whatever could it be, I wonder!
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But wait, there’s more!
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(He couldn’t even wait until he finished talking before looking away! It’s getting more difficult for him to look at V with a straight face every second! Also, his expression here is the most broken looking yet.) :(
He must not reveal what is hidden behind this emotional wall that he’s worked so hard to build up specifically for this meeting because the room they are speaking in may just as well be made of glass with Arasaka’s unrelenting gaze, an ever-present entity, on the other side of it. He will do so soon though, when he offers V salvation. The contract raises the stakes. The rules change. He feels the wall breaking and there isn’t anything he can do about it and he knows it.
IT’S CHAIR TIME, CHOOMS!
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He looks away another 6 TIMES! Leaning more and more over that edge. Feast your eyes...
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IT’S CONTRACT TIME, BABY!
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Oh, shit!
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It’s happening!!
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He does look away here but there’s no mask on when he looks back...only despair.
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It’s gone.
TO SIGN OR NOT TO SIGN
The disguise is off now. From this point onward, Takemura looks at V with his true feelings on display. This is where the ability to read the emotion portrayed solely through one’s eyes really comes into play because even though he’s not trying to hide anything anymore, he still can’t say what he really wants to say. We have to feel it through his expressions. His thoughts are so loud during these final moments of the scene that we don’t even need words to know what he’s saying.  
REFUSE TO SIGN
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SIGN
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HOLY GRAIL MOMENT!
(I’m literally going to copy and paste what I have in my part 2 analysis about this section because I explained my thoughts on it about as well as I am able to there and have nothing else to add. My apologies for repeating myself but I feel the exact same way about it so it still applies here.) 
These reactions make perfect sense because we’ve always known that he cares deeply for V and never stopped. He just couldn’t hide it! But even with this treasure trove of emotional mask slips and unintentional displays of affection, I still wasn’t sure exactly how deeply he cared for V. In other words- if he was actually in love with V or not.
Is he already in love or is he still in the process of falling in love? Is it just a friendly love? (hell no! I knew that was definitely not the case but I still had to ask just so I could cross it off the list!)
And then the two of them walked to the door and said their parting words.
V: “Gonna see each other again?”
Goro: “I believe we will.”
V: “So… see you.”
Goro: “Visit me in Kagawa - I will show you what is real food.”
And then…
he proceeded to make these faces…
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HOLY
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SHIT!
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(The mask isn’t just gone now- it’s burned, splintered, shattered, exploded in a million pieces, disintegrated!)
This man just had the biggest revelation of his entire life: the realization that he is in love with V. These are looks of love and I will not be convinced otherwise. I’m not a facial expression expert or anything, only stating my humble opinions here, but are you seeing this!?
He realizes the truth and it catches him so off guard that he has to look away. He contemplates these newfound feelings and tries to sort them out in the few seconds that he has left with V. And he does. He accepts them. He welcomes them. The gentle, knowing look he gives V when he looks back at them is saying just this.
He also knows that he is now fucked because his love for V is going to complicate things so much more than they already were. Now that he is fully aware that he is in love, these feelings are going to directly conflict with his duties to Arasaka later if a situation arises that places V and Arasaka on opposing sides and I think we all know that is most definitely going to happen at some point.
And now he has to see the love of his life die and just leave this place and go on with his day. Damn. This is turning into one of the saddest love stories I’ve ever seen. Something major is going to happen in the dlc that is going to force his hand one way or another: V or Arasaka? I hope that Arasaka somehow fucks up so bad that it makes his choice easier but my heart breaks imagining the amount of conflict and torment that await him.
The Beginning and The End
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Hello there. I have a question (more like a thesis): What would have happened if Cas told the Truth anywhere between season 7 and 15? Do you think it would have had the same impact on Dean? Logically speaking Cas could have told him anytime.
Oh gosh, yes. I mean Dean’s reaction in season 15 is still the best it could have been really :P He was in the best place and most accepting of himself and he still had a BSOD for a moment and then Cas had to shove him away so he could go die... (Assuming you take the on screen boring presentation of what happened as canon and not throw in the reciprocation, tears, pull in for a kiss, etc that we know exists either in our hearts or on Jackles’ phone.)
I’ve been thinking about this and the parameters we’d have to apply if we were gonna get something like the show being self-healing back to its self as we know it but we were allowed a confession. Also the show has to be as punishing as ever. So these are my personal theses on each season... 
Season 7 the confession would have to be after Cas comes back, and everything in 7x17 that looked like Dean was jealous of Daphne and Meg textually was meant to be read that way in the set up for the confession. To make it the most painful obviously we still get Cas exactly as he was all through to the end of the season and he never really says anything too different but then right when they’re having the “cursed or not” discussion he’d bust out of nowhere that he supposes it is inevitable Dean would talk him into going on this dangerous mission to get Dick because obviously Cas loves him. And Dean, who is in a weirdly zen sort of place in the remaining minutes of season 7 after Bobby’s send off and final words that helped him go make up with Cas, is in a similarly season 15 oddly okay spot, mental health wise. At least. COMPARED TO ALL THE REST OF SEASON 7. But I still personally have always read it as a genuinely good place for him that could have endured much longer if not for *gestures everything that happened after stabbing Dick* and obviously making up with Cas was step one and a huge part of his process. 
(idk if you’ve noticed but 7x23 pretty much has no Sam and Dean interaction after Bobby’s send off, and their last good broments are really scarce; it feels sort of natural for abrupt calamity and no time for teary farewells in a season with a strong commentary on grief, which also hyperfocuses the attention on Dean n Cas there.)
So I think Dean would maybe be stunned but maybe quirk a sceptical smile like “He can’t mean it like that and anyway he’s currently coo-coo, this doesn’t mean anything hahaha oh Cas :)))” and then idk shake his head and move the story on and Cas just turns one longing look after him like “dammit that didn’t work out like planned” 
Anyway then the exact plot beats of 7x23 follow, exactly as seen on your screens, but we’re left going into season 8 and Carver era with Dean far far more messed up about Cas and it can force clarification in 8x02 in Purgatory where Cas is entirely adamant he meant what he meant and furious at Dean for being mad at him and Dean’s mad at Cas for all the season 8 reasons so they continue angsting at each other but Benny’s reaction shots are just 10x funnier. This is followed by Dean’s reciprocation of “I love you” instead of “I need you” in the crypt scene in 8x17 and from there honestly it’s been built up into canon in such a way that the emotional arc of the show has to go off the wheels and I can’t keep to the self-healing model to continue following the “real” plot and contain this much raw power.
Coincidentally, if the first confession is in season 8, it would be “what broke the connection” after a season 8 where nothing was different up until that point. Cas flaps off while Dean is still processing that the answer was “You. I love you.” and Dean is left yelling at the empty crypt like “What the hell, Cas?!” 
Then he’s as mad at him as he was in canon except instead of being borderline a really bad overreaction into his anger phase which we have to weather as miserable fans tethered to this ship who know sometimes Dean gets mad and yells at Cas for no reason, he’s reacting proportionately. It’s always seemed like 8x22 only makes sense if Dean is furious at Cas for confessing and fleeing except, obviously, in our “”real”” canon, it can only be like Cas confessed and Dean took it that way and also felt embarrassed how far he went with his own feelings only for Cas to run. 
This would make the bar scene with the cupids in 8x23 make a lot more sense too, and after they get the cupid bow Dean’s going to turn to Cas and give him a nervous smile, and then - Naomi flaps in like she does and distracts them away from reciprocation. 
I think this one could go long - maybe even season 13 Cas being dead and Dean being like “FUCK I never got a chance to work things out with him” and 13x06 onwards is where we get any actual work on the ship, because Carver era was so determined to be emotionally gruelling and unsatisfying and relentless from one issue to the next. And the confessions are so bound up specifically in the moments of miscommunication or failed attempts, cut off conversations etc that whether Destiel is canon or not, they’re never gonna get to talk it out under those conditions. Cas is only explicitly the grieving wife and jealous ex to Crowley’s smug take over of Dean’s affections rather than subtextually. 
The season 9 confession... I feel like we’d come perilously close to the Monkey Paw curse we once envisioned of Buckleming making it canon because they love jumping the gun on plot points and making them too obvious. So the end of 9x03, Cas is really blatantly angling to come in with a big “Hey I’m human can I live in the Bunker look at me I learned to do The Sex can we do it now” kind of vibe. All the enthusiasm he was giving to eating that burrito in the background while “Zeke” was trying to get him kicked out, but with lusting over Dean :P 
If we avoid that we can leap to Mr Bobo Berens and his first episode, and have this thing handled by a pro, as it’s already very much about Cas as a homeless queer man with a bad ex he still loves rolling into town where he’s just trying to make a new life and play straight - I mean human - for his own survival. I suspect the confrontation with Iphraim would make it really obvious that Cas didn’t just want to live as a human but had an eye for living as a human with Dean, and then he’d attempt a confession right before Dean would accidentally talk over, like, the L in “love” honestly, to tell him that sorry things do still stand that you can’t come back with me. Leaves Cas utterly devastated but Dean is none the wiser and he drives off and Cas pines piningly at the pine trees in his Gas n Sip. 
Again the end of season probably would force the real confession, since there’s a ready made moment in 9x22 where Hannah tries to force Cas to kill Dean and he gives it all up for one man. Cas can just lower that knife and be like, “No, I love him,” talking to his shoes and Hannah rather than meeting Dean’s eyes. Mark of Cain Dean is fuuuucked up at that point but we still get the moment where Dean carries Cas’s bag into the bunker and sits down with him and tries to care about his health and now also this confession. Sussing out what the heck is up with Cas, and maybe he looks like he’s playing it cool and is still so messed up but Cas is vulnerable, and finally Dean starts to reach across the library table for his hand, and it’s a moment where maybe things could have started to go better for them...... Cue Gadreel walking into the library, Dean going feral, blah blah demon!Dean, blah blah explicitly stated Drowley, blah blah muuuch healing and Cas giving Dean a wide berth for a lil while. Though, in this scenario, 10x22 is far worse but has the reverse crypt scene moment, so Dean can be more obviously unable to kill Cas because he loves him, and then he walks out, followed by season 11 and Cas being returned to them. Unfortunately. Yep. Another finger curls on the Monkey Paw... 11x03 by Buckleming would absolutely be where Destiel goes undeniably canon as it is their first real interactions post Mark of Cain. Our only consolation - directed by Jensen Ackles.
Season 10 confession, hm. Poor Cas. He has the option of 10x03, of confessing and then immediately apologising and walking off to handle stuff with Hannah (thanks Buckleming!) or the Burger Date, where Dean may be slightly less stunned stupid but still likely to laugh it off and not believe it. There’s not much heavy tension between them most of the season so it’s possible that the only time Cas would really get is to confess in 10x22 while telling Dean that he would have to watch him murder the world, and that would suck because I love you. At which point the story dictates that Dean beats Cas to paste so it’s a very bad look. Season 10 destiel confession is the worst. 
Season 11 may be better because Cas has options to be jealous of Crowley and Dean’s connection to Amara multiple times and then Casifer happens and that can really play up things in a season where a confession is coming. 
I think the Beer Run in 11x23 might be the only viable place, where Dean grabs Cas and takes him out for that drive for last drinks before the end of the world. Cas gets the “you’re our brother” thing and just lays into Dean with the certainty of someone who knows this is it - now or nothing - with “You know that’s crap, Dean. You wait until the end of the world and you can’t even say it. Well I can; I love you.” 
Cue awkward tension, well-placed interrupting Moose, and then the world very much not ending so that when Dean n Cas hug and kiss in front of Mary in 12x01. Well. There’s even more explaining to do to her. Since we’ve made it to Dabb era, I believe any confessions from this point onwards can just slot into the show as we got it from there since it’s entirely compatible to start season 12 assuming Dean n Cas are literally married and never be contradicted by the text in their behaviour. But since we’ve had canon Destiel since whenever, obviously the final episodes are good instead of. That.
Season 12... Going to have to go with the first sniff of true canon coming in Lily Sunder with just a few lines leaning even further in the Cas’s Angel Family Are Homophobic Assholes metaphor, leaving Cas’s relationship with Dean even more live wire exposed. Followed by The Mixtape Scene where Cas is going to confess to Dean and get him startled up out of his seat, accidentally knocking the mixtape to the floor and for a moment it’s like, did he throw it is he mad? but then he’s smooching Cas, fade to black, return to scheduled programming but the whole line about Cas stealing the Colt from under Dean’s pillow makes fuckin sense, as well as the fall out argument and how mad Dean was at Cas followed by how devastated he was at Cas’s death. This just means Dabb era continues as planned except we get a kiss in 13x06 under that big glowy cross, and some more smooching here and there when things are good from then on. 
Season 13... Hm. Cas has to do the confessing and I don’t think he’d throw that at Dean on return from death so unlike if Dean was the one who was being made to confess obviously the aforementioned glowy cross scene obviously would be it for him... Cas could keep that bottled up much longer, especially as he has so much to do with Jack this season. It’s entirely possible we go through the whole season and then Cas lobs it at Dean as a final card when he’s making his Michael decision and we actually see the scene that we didn’t get, where Cas has to watch Dean getting possessed. Except Dean is like, tearful and furious like why would you tell me that now, and anyway i’m doing this for you as well dumbass but fuck you but also how dare you anyway I need to be an archangel now and save our - your - son, bye. Cue Cas sitting there not just in total horror at what happened but also kicking himself for fucking up the moment :P I guess this way at least we can have that moment where Dean is un-Michaeled and tells Cas he’s going to shower and finger guns at him, and now we can have Cas wordlessly and furiously follow him. 
Season 14, we get Cas at Rocky’s bar confessing to Dean while figment!Pamela cheers the whole thing on. If there was EVER a time to use the power of love to snap Dean out of it, Cas upsetting his cosy routine with “this isn’t real, I’M NOT HERE IN YOUR FANTASY” is absolutely the time to pull a reverse crypt scene which has such low stakes in terms of neither of them needing to punch each other when Michael is an external aggressor.
My ONLY issue with this is that Sam has to witness the whole thing and we would get reaction shots and I am a weak mortal who will start cackling at them when I’m supposed to be having the transcendent moment of canon and the whole thing would be ruined just because of the way Jared gurns when doing reactions to dean n cas interacting. Wow thanks. Thanks a lot. 
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