#are you willing to watch another desire such a horrible fate?

[chiangyorange]

This place is a message…and part of a system of messages…pay attention to it!

isles echoes so much of s1 that it felt like a show play. theres something harrowing as an unknown entity. nothing primordial like the light and dark, or maybe it is. isles wasnt a True universe in the way that mianite seasons 1 and 2 were. it was called mianitian isles. something close, something similar, but not quite the same as the others

it wants to be adored by silly little mortals who will devote themselves to its cause. it wants to be human, but only the shape of one. it wants to be greater than mere mortal beings. it wants to be indescribable.

sounds kind of like it wants to be a god

[onyourowndaisymae]

don't mind me... just thinking about the dateables slowly dropping the rest of their roster for you as they fall head over heels...

diavolo (you are here) // barbatos // simeon // solomon -- gn!mc, NSFW under the cut -- warning for mentions of intimacy without reciprocated feelings & the angst associated w it + minor s2 spoilers

diavolo, who is fascinated by humans. when he proposes the exchange program, he's being honest when he claims its to strengthen the bonds between all three realms. but he also has the selfish urge to have humans up close-- he just finds them so interesting. virtually powerless next to angels and demons, yet strong-willed and stubborn despite it all. solomon had been an object of his fascination for awhile, but that was a powerful sorcerer who was practically immortal. but you... like a child with a new puppy, diavolo had to resist the urge not to follow you everywhere you went, burning the observations into his brain for the future. barbatos was his saving grace, redirecting him when his question became too enthusiastic or overbearing, keeping him on task with the grace he'd been known for over the last few centuries. oops. well, at least he would have a whole year to get to know you better.

diavolo, who has high hopes for you. he sees the way you've intertwined yourself so thoroughly into the hearts of the demon brothers, how you've repaired their broken dynamic and made friends of all of them-- even lucifer! as the exchange program drew to a close, he was admittedly quite sad to see you go. he hadn't spent as much time with you as he wanted. he watches your goodbyes with the brothers with a somewhat envious eye. how unfair of his duties to keep him so occupied that he doesn't know you until you're leaving! how wicked, how cruel. he's throwing a pity party for himself behind a stoic expression. but regardless of his reservations, he sends you back to the human world with a smile and a promise that they'll all be waiting for you. and when you finally return to the devildom with solomon, popping in on a random student council meeting with an aloof grin, he can't help but thank fate for the gust of wind that dropped your information at lucifer's feet while they were searching for exchange students.

diavolo, who is royalty-- and looks the part. muscular frame, large stature, gorgeous face and body sculpted to perfection, with the wingspan and horns adorned with gold... it was clear he was a step above the rest. but being royalty had its drawbacks. the expectations that sat on his shoulders were heavy, but they were a burden he had to bear. a suitor of his was watching him from across the party with a knowing smile, eyes sharp, before finally summoning him with a single "come here" motion of their finger. and that was it. the death of his fun evening with friends for the sake of the kingdom. he spared you, the demon brothers, the angels, and the sorcerer one final look before joining the demon's side with a fake smile. he felt horrible. the demon did truly desire him, but diavolo couldn't muster up the same passion for them. not while they stowed away to his bedchambers. not while they were on their knees between his legs, lips and tongue kissing across his hardened length, deep groans rumbling in his chest. not while he returned the favor, enthusiastically lapping at their juices as he prepped them for his cock. and not while fucking them, either, their keens muffled into silk sheets as they clenched around his cock with another orgasm, his murmured praises almost lost in the heat of it all. as his arms wrap around the slumbering demon, tuckered out from a night of intimacy, he wonders if this is the life he's been resigned to. were demon politics so fickle that he'd truly have to marry not for love, but for the good of the devildom? he longed for the freedom of someone he knew... of you. his heart ached as his thoughts wandered to you. at every turn, you'd chosen the decision you wanted, even as the world closed in around you. you followed your heart through every crossroads and ended up on top at every turn. diavolo longed for the freedom you enjoyed-- and maybe that's why he was so fond of you.

diavolo, who eagerly awaits your next visit to the castle. lately he's found himself growing impatient for your visits, easily distracted by the knowledge that you'll soon be at the castle with him. it annoys barbatos to no end. this, he feels bad for... but really, can you blame him? he's giddy with excitement by the time you finally arrive, and it causes him to act familiar with you in a way he maybe shouldn't. he sits not opposite of you but next to you for tea, offering to pour your tea and add sugar cubes to your liking as he listens to you talk about the shenanigans that happened this week at the house of lamentation. your smile is contagious-- he finds himself mirroring it with warm cheeks. he doesn't know who starts it, whether it be his hand brushing against yours or your pinkie reaching for his, but soon your fingers were intertwined as colorful stories fell from your lips. you exchange words like that for awhile, neither one of you daring to ruin the moment by mentioning your hands. and your reward is even better-- eventually his large hand finds your cheek, stroking it with kind eyes for a moment before pressing a kiss to your lips. it's soft and hesitant, an unspoken desire, and he starts to pull away. but you don't let him. you lean in, lips moving against his, gripping his hand a little tighter to let him know you're on the same page. when the kiss is over and you two part, his head is surprisingly blank. all that pining really must have turned his brain to mush after all...

diavolo, who is so proud to call himself your partner. who would follow you to the end of time if you'd keep looking at him like that. greed and lust swirl in your gaze as you pant desperately, tugging a little on his hair when his movements still to watch you. his tongue laps desperately at your hole, chuckling to himself as you clench around nothing. his hands toy with the most sensitive part of yours sex, movements purposeful yet almost lazy in their pace. he's teasing you. his wings flutter a little when you tug at his hair again, and he pulls back enough to let you watch him stick two of his fingers into his mouth. from the movement of his cheeks, he's sure you notice the way his tongue swirls around them, drenching them in saliva before pulling the slick digits out. he eases one into your hole with a little bit of coaxing, the other running carefully along your sex in anticipation. they scissor in sync when they're both in you, purposefully stretching you open, lovingly prepping you for his cock. but it's never enough, is it? the same familiar stretch, that slight burn, makes your clench the sheets in your fists. his words are quiet and calm, sweet nothings against your shoulder and neck as he leaves a few kisses in his wake. he feels guilty each time you're intimate together for the pain he causes you-- he knows demons are bigger than humans, and that you're with him willingly, but the guilt lingers regardless. that is, until you give him permission to move. the first thrust makes you gasp, but after a few shallow movements your pretty eyes roll back into your head. this, he reminds himself, is why he loves fucking you. he hasn't moved beyond a shallow, careful pace, but you're already pulling at his shoulders and writhing underneath him. his golden eyes sparkle with fondness as he begins to move a little faster, hit a little deeper, watching you quickly become cockdrunk and forget the pain of the first few thrusts. he loves you so dearly that it makes his fingers tremble as he intertwines them with yours, pinning you down to his bed as he grinds into you. he is hopeless. a lost cause. walking around blindly, lovedrunk, powerful yet helpless to your whims-- lord diavolo would stop at nothing to bring the three realms to harmon, if only to justify keeping you by his side.

taglist for this series: @the-demonus-aunt // @scienceisfornerds // @hostilemakeover // @snow-fall1 // @kachan890 // @rphantom1 // @respitable // @deepseafragments // @niinian

[coelii]

let’s talk Castlevania lore~

so it occurred to me that, within the game material (I haven’t watched the TV show or anything like that so that’s not personally interesting to me for this discussion, sry sry), we don’t have all THAT clear an idea of why Dracula is A Bad Guy Who Must Be Stopped At All Costs, do we? I kinda feel like it’s mostly just treated as “c’mon, it’s Dracula, let’s go vampire killin’”

I mean we’ve got the accusation that he “steals men’s souls and makes them [his] slaves,” and, okay, if true (do we ever, like, see that?) I guess that’s pretty not great. And I’m willing to accept just a priori that he is A Vampire and therefore, okay, presumably there’s some drinking of innocent blood or something, not ideal. (Again, not sure that ever occurs on-screen?) I guess he also cursed Simon to have some pretty horrible nights? That’s not rad, i guess.

But like, fundamentally, do we ever have actual word in the games/game material of what exactly Dracula’s menace really IS? Just what kind of fate is the Belmont clan (et al.*) supposedly protecting us from? I guess I probably don’t want to live next door to an Active Vampire, but honestly it’s pretty amusing to me that I can’t actually think of what Dracula supposedly, like, wants.

(*from the Latin “et Alucard”)

So if we’re strictly looking at game material (and specifically main game and not the Lords of Shadow reboot) in my opinion there’s two origin games that have made a case for Dracula’s desires.

Castlevania Lament of Innocence

As covered in another recent ask, this is the official first game in the timeline

Here you play as Leon Belmont whose betrothed Sara is kidnapped by an ancient vampire named Walter Bernhard. Leon’s close friend Mathias Cronqvist, an alchemist who is grief stricken over the loss of his wife Elisabetha (who died of an illness while he was away), informs Leon that Walter was the one who kidnapped Sara and Leon goes to save her. Over the course of the game you learn that there are two powerful vampire relics and Walter is in possession of one: the Ebony Stone that produces darkness and makes Walter effectively invulnerable (as he is strongest in the darkness the stone produces).

You also create the Vampire Killer whip during the game which has the power to break the Ebony Stone and make Walter susceptible to damage. At the game’s climax, when Walter is close to Death (both metaphorically and physically) it’s revealed that Leon’s buddy Mathias had the other vampire relic, the Crimson Stone, the whole time. This relic absorbs the souls and power of other vampires (kind of a Ghostbuster situation).

Walter’s soul is captured in the stone, but Mathias uses it for his own dark purposes - to become a vampire himself and take revenge against God (whom he curses for taking his wife from him). Mathias eventually gives up his name and adopts the name Dracula instead and is canonically the Dracula in all Castlevania Games.

This origin story unfortunately leaves a lot to be desired in Dracula’s motivations because it basically amounts to Dracula being a man who’s just mad that God took his wife from him and uses another Vampire’s power (Walter) as his own. He isn’t noble or powerful without the stone (which is this red thing he wears in much of the official artwork apparently)

But I guess “stick it to the man” is technically a motivation…

Castlevania Legends

Now I’m a Lament of Innocence denier personally and would prefer to use the older games as the source to answer this question.

According to the Legend’s instruction book the story is:

IT WAS THE MIDDLE AGES IN TRANSYLVANIA. ONE MAN CAME INTO POSSESSION OF AN EVIL POWER, AND THE PRINCE OF DARKNESS WAS BORN. BEFORE LONG, THIS BEING HAD USED HIS NEW-FOUND SUPERNATURAL POWERS AND THE MAGIC POWERS OF HIS FOLLOWERS TO SPREAD HIS PLAGUE OF DARKNESS AND DESPAIR THROUGHOUT THE EUROPEAN CONTINENT, HE WAS COUNT DRACULA. EVEN TO MENTION THE NAME OF THIS PRINCE OF DARKNESS WAS TO CAST FEAR INTO THE HEARTS OF THE PEOPLE IN THE LAND, WHO WERE POWERLESS TO DO ANYTHING SAVE VOICE THEIR CONCERN. HOWEVER, AT ABOUT THE SAME TIME A BABY GIRL POSSESSING SPECIAL POWERS WAS BORN TO A FAMILY LIVING IN A REMOTE AREA OF THE COUNTRY. "YOUR POWERS ARE MEANT FOR A HIGHER PURPOSE AND NOT ONLY FOR YOURSELF” SHE WAS OFTEN REMINDED AS SHE WAS GROWING UP. THE PLOT OF THIS GIRL'S FATE BEGAN TO DEVELOP ONE NIGHT IN HER SEVENTEENTH YEAR WHEN SHE MET UP WITH THE YOUNG ENIGMATIC ALUCARD, WHO WAS ON A JOURNEY TO SEARCH FOR THE FATHER THAT HAD DESERTED HIM. THE YOUNG GIRL'S NAME WAS SONIA BELMONT, AND SHE WAS THE FIRST OF THE VAMPIRE HUNTERS IN THE BELMONT FAMILY TO BECOME LEGENDARY.

Now unfortunately this doesn’t tell us too much. In this origin Dracula exists already, obtained his power by coming “into possession” of it, and his motivation is simply “spread his plague of darkness and despair throughout the European continent” (Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Australia are all safe apparently).

Now I don’t want to theorycraft too far off the actual game material here, but I do know that Vampire Hunter D was heavily inspirational to the development of Castlevania. Many people know the anime films, but Vampire Hunter is a series of novels first published in 1983 (three years before the first CV game was released) and in these novels the being known as the “Sacred Ancestor” is the progenitor of all the other vampires and the oldest among them. He is known as the Vampire King or God and D is the Sacred Ancestor’s son (so to speak). This was the inspiration for Alucard, who we know in Castlevania lore to be Dracula’s direct descendant.

The VH novels present vampires as a race unto themselves, not the traditional mythos of humans given vampiric power (although they can still create vampires from humans).

Novel #17: White Devil Mountain (published 2014) is more explicit in this stating that vampires predate humans by possibly millions of years. The Sacred Ancestor, as the oldest among them, felt it was his duty to watch over his people and did many experiments over the years to try and save his race from eventual extermination (not necessarily by the hands of Hunters, but through a variety of circumstances). Some experiments included inventions that could block out the sun and give eternal darkness (a common theme in vampire lore).

The Dracula of Castlevania seems as much inspired by Bram Stoker’s creation and the historical Vlad Tepes as he was by Vampire Hunter’s Sacred Ancestor.

If the Sacred Ancestor’s motivation was as ward and protector of his race, acting in various ways to save them and ensure their continued reign and existence then I would say Dracula’s motivation is similar: “spread his plague of darkness” by ensuring that the curse of night spreads and his people can remain powerful and eternal.

In Short

Both games present Dracula as a man who obtained power through unholy means. Walter Bernhard’s origins aren’t necessarily explained in the game and it’s possible that like Vampire Hunter D he is of a race of vampires older than humanity and Dracula simply is just a man using his power as his own. However I feel Dracula’s motivation may still be similar to that of the Sacred Ancestor from VH: with great power comes great responsibility (thanks Ben!) and his duty is to protect and allow his people to thrive in a world hellbent on destroying them.

[morwen-elf]

PROTECTION | LEGOLAS PRINCE OF MIRKWOOD

SUMMARY ➪ YOU ALMOST GET INJURED IN A FIGHT WITH ORCS, AND LEGOLAS SAVES YOU

WARNINGS ➪ MENTIONS OF BLOOD, AND FLUFF

NOTES ➪ SORRY FOR TAKING TOO LONG ON DOING THIS REQUEST, I HOPE YOU LIKE IT ANGEL @scarlettgrant99

The orcs were creatures that everyone knew, they were wild and aggressive, unable to use their brains properly, and created to serve their leader. Their appearance was unappealing and their smell made people and elves nauseous, their skin was pale and it was always covered in blood and dirt, not to mention all the wounds that covered their faces.

They were soulless creatures, eager to end the era of men and thus initiate the time of their race.

Y/n had grown up hearing about them and when she was twelve she met them in person, they were attacking her town and there were not enough people who could protect them, for that reason she decided to take a sword and accidentally buried it in the stomach of one of the orcs that had planned to attack her.

Her life had changed quite a bit since then, but something that always haunted her was the battles. She had to be alert at all times and resting was something that was difficult, especially now that Frodo and Sam were on their way to Mordor to destroy the ring.

Everyone's fate was hanging by a thread and that was keeping them all on the edge.

The screams of men and orcs being attacked were the only thing that reached her ears, as she continued to struggle to make it out of the battlefield alive. Death would catch up with her at some point, but not yet. Y/n was on top of her horse, burying her sword in all the creatures that were willing to attack the poor town of Rohan, they had no compassion for the elderly and much less for the children. Blood flowed everywhere and the loss of warriors was practically uncountable.

The girl's breathing was rapid and she felt her heart stop as an orc attacked her horse from the right side, causing them to fall to the grass. The blow had been strong and Y/n took a few seconds to get up with her sword raised, she was a strong warrior and she would not give up easily.

The orc let out a horrible sound as he lunged at his figure, Y/n's sword collided with his weapon managing to stop his attempt to cut her arm, the beast seemed to get more annoyed with each passing second and that's why he was quick to back off and launch again against her.

The hideous creature's movements were quick and disorderly, but still managed to hit her hard. The air was leaving her lungs and her desire to rip his attacker's head off was getting bigger and bigger, but that wasn't enough.

In battle, you can't afford to be distracted and Y/n did exactly that.

For some strange reason, she felt the need to look for an elf with blond hair throughout the field, which gave the orc time to send a direct blow to her throat completely cutting off her air passage. Y/n promptly fell to the ground, bringing both hands to her neck, coughing desperately for oxygen.

Legolas had been in charge of keeping an eye on the figure of the girl throughout the battle, but as expected, he lost sight of her from one moment to another. The people who were left standing were less and less and that is why he focused on searching the grass, fearing to find her frozen and lifeless body.

An orc caught his attention and he could see how he plunged the point of his weapon into Y/n’s leg, she let out a cry of pain as she tried to get away from her attacker. Legolas immediately ran towards her and it didn't take him long to shoot two arrows at the orc's head, watching as it fell slowly and defeated to the ground.

"Legolas..." Y/n sighed, feeling relieved when the boy's face appeared in her field of vision

The girl tried to get up and the elf quickly stopped her leaving her on the grass again "Don't even think about trying to walk, you will only worsen the wounds"

Y/n closed her eyes for a second, before opening them and staring at her leg. "How long do you think it will take me to heal?"

The elf didn't want to give her the answer, but he knew he couldn't lie to her, so he decided to avoid her "We have to get out of here, you can't keep losing blood"

Legolas put one of his arms behind her back and the other under her knees, without a hint of effort he lifted her from the ground and began to walk between the bodies of orcs and men.

"Thank you," Y/n murmured gently, laying her head on his shoulder

The prince of Mirkwood smiled slightly at her words and looked at her tenderly, her eyes were closing and that left him a perfect view of her long dark eyelashes, her skin had a layer of sweat but she still looked extremely attractive.

“You are going to be okay, I'll make sure of that”

[rare-yanderes]

I came across your Arishem content the other day and was meaning to say, firstly, your depiction of Yan!Arishem is terrifyingly good. Secondly, how would Arishem react to a reader who on the slim to none chance did escape? Like they managed to planet hop just enough with Eros’ help to get away.

A/N: I’m glad you like my portrayal of Arishem!

On the slimmest chance reader does not return to Earth (on the first time, that is,) they’ll live in constant fear for the rest of their life. Arishem will experience a growing sense of longing and a dooming sense of loneliness that begins to unravel him. He remains eerily (and deadly) calm in his ruthless endeavor to find and recapture you again, but the other celestials and Eternals will sense his imbalance.

Arishem does not feel panic, but he does feel an even more intense desire to have your company again which begins to show through his actions. Each planet he teleports to will be throughly searched, memories scourged so that he can mark off returning to the planet if you’re not there or to trace your presence and reveal what location you went to next. He may even employ Eson the Searcher and Gammenon the Gatherer to assist him in his endeavor. Then, he will communicate to the prime Eternal of each planet to notify him if they see you. So, not only do you have one celestial now chasing you, but three. And thousands of Eternals on the lookout. Nice.

You may have escaped but staying escaped is literally never going to continue unless you have the infinity gauntlet, a companion strong enough, or another celestial, (maybe Tiamut?) to keep your whereabouts hidden. (Oh, and word of advice for seeking out Tiamut’s help, do not let him sweet talk you into hiding in that hole that goes deep within the Earth where he is laying. You’ll find it rather hard to ever come back out.)

If you never ever return to Earth, You will likely become a nomad, hopping from planet to planet forever while fearfully wondering what day will finally be the one Arishem’s metal bonds drag you into the sky again. You won his game fair and square. There will be no physical punishment for you. However, to keep you close, you will spend a significant amount of time as a satellite of Arishem’s, trapped by his gravitational pull and staying within nearby orbit if you’re not pinned against him already.

Unfortunately, Eros is going to be destroyed once Arishem realizes his rebellion in this. He was already defective and rebellious of his original purpose so Arishem sees no reason to let him live. Anyone else who helps you meets the same fate eventually after Arishem slowly loses more and more time without you by his side. Arishem will never lose sight of his original goal of universal rebirth, but he will indeed become far more willing to bend the rules if it means finding you.

Eventually, as a last resort, Arishem will likely hold a planet hostage (especially a planet deemed unworthy,) or various people to scare you into returning. Unless you want billions of deaths on your conscious, you’d do well to listen.

Seeing how afraid you are for other people, Arishem discovers a new form of control and will use it to his advantage. If he manages to recapture you, your memories will not be deleted. Arishem will realize he can enjoy your presence in full, without your disorientation. You will have every memory returned to you. The ones where he stole you from your planet. The one where you panicked and pleaded not to have your memories erased for the god knows what time. The one where you shakily asked if and when he would return you. All of them. That may just be your punishment, remembering every horrible event and how oblivious you remained for millennia.

Eventually, Arishem will even drag you along with him on his various escalades to planets, forcing you to watch as he destroys them or culls deviants or whatever else. Maybe if you see how little everything else is compared to him, you’ll give up thinking any of it is worth it down there.

[mlwritingprompts]

Hollow Corruption, a submitted Bleach and Miraculous Ladybug Crossover Prompt.

Inspired by this post from walks-the-ages.

TW: Major character/child death (Marinette dies, and that's just the beginning of her story) Angst. Horror.

Very major AU where Adrien is actually a good person who treats Marinette with respect and compassion and is a responsible hero who actually cares about protecting people instead of endangering them for fun and they actually like eachother as friends, lol.

---------

"No..."

That was what she tried telling herself. Despair and denial clear in her tone.

"This can't be..."

She was unable to process it.

Marinette watches from afar, now nothing but a soul, chained into the Agreste mansion where Gabriel had murdered her.

She watches as he burned down her school in board daylight.

Marinette was far away, but she could hear it regardless.

The screams of her friends being hurt, victimized and tormented.

People yelling in fear, parents and children yelling, calling for help, begging for the heroes, anyone, to help them and save their loved ones.

She can hear the laughter of Gabriel as he was out fighting the heroes along with another victim he akumatized against their wills, with an amok he viciously controls.

And it's too much.

She had been bound into the Agreste mansion ever since Gabriel had murdered her.

She had been a prisoner in this horrible house, unable to do anything but watch as Gabriel abused his servants, his own son, Adrien who had been and still was her partner. She watched as Gabriel tormented them, unable to do anything to stop him from hurting them.

Unable to save any of them.

Tears came from her ghostly eyes again, just like the many times they did as she watched that monster torture and destroy anything he wanted.

She felt rage, a feeling she was used to by now.

The only difference is that it was so much more intense than before.

Hate. Wrath. Sorrow. Despair.

These feelings ate at her soul, the chain attached to her chest disintegrating at a rapid rate, but she did not care.

She could only think of the many people Gabriel had hurt, the many atrocities he comitted...

And she could only feel rage and desire to just murder the bastard that caused all of that.

Her Chains of Fate completely erodes, and she could only feel pure rage as emotions consume her.

"GABRIEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLL! I WILL KILL YOU!"

Her spiritual body glows, energy flaring and consuming it. Twisting, as a new spiritual body emerges.

A large body similar to that of a ladybug, a protective hard red back with black spots and six legs, with white mask similar to a ladybug's face.

And Marinette the Human/Spirit was no longer there. She had now turned into a Hollow.

A Hollow desiring nothing but to end that menace called Gabriel.

And protecting what she holds dear.

The Hollow looked around, able to exit that damned house for the first time in months.

Energy instictually flared from her as she flew, her body passing though the walls like nothing.

Rushing toward the emotional predator and terrorist, Hawkmoth.

-------

Gabriel avoided another strike from Honeybear, Marinette's father, and his Venom as he swung his cane to hit the bee hero.

Tom easily blocked the strike, only to jump away from a stream of black flames made by Gabriel's latest Amok.

The other heroes were also dealing with their own sentimonsters along with the Akuma of the day, and things were not well for them.

And Gabriel knew it too.

Sure, he can't defeat them completely, but they too can't overpower him and actually defeat him either.

This was just nothing but something he does to gain the rest of the miraculouses and for fun as well.

He loves it when they try their hardest to catch and defeat him, only for him to escape.

"Just give up, you idiots! Maybe if you do, I will be nice and revive one of the victims I killed before!"

He taunts them to their faces, clearly knowing that he is hitting a nerve in them.

Tom feels furious, he wants to smash the face of this monster in front of him, so does Sabine who was wearing the Fox miraculous, and the rest of the heroes.

But it was impossible to do so. Not when Hawkmoth is so prepared.

The fight continues for more minutes, before Gabriel decides that it's time to escape as the heroes finally managed to defeat his minions and backup ones.

He manages to take the chance to leap back, even as they try to stop him.

He easily runs away, jumping further and furth-

And pain invades him as he is in mid-air.

It was sudden, unexpected, and completely out of left field.

He felt himself black-out for a second before he awakens, his body hitting the ground.

Gabriel immediately jumps to see what is going on, looking around as he-

"What!?"

He looks down, at his chest, feeling something there.

He sees a chain embedded into his chest, and as he looks around cautiously, following it, he sees...

"...My body? What the...!?"

He is shocked and surprised as he sees himself, comatose on the ground.

"What is going on!? I am here! How is my bo-!?"

His voice was cut off as a sound is heard.

The sound of a growling creature, and he immediately looks behind as he sees-

"!?"

A large ladybug-looking monster was looking at him- no glaring at him.

"Gabriel..." she growled lowly, hate and wrath clear in her tone.

'Wh- what is that thing!? Impossible! I should have been able to see it with how big it is! It had appeared out of nowhere!'

Primal fear consumed him as his mind kept thinking what is going on, unable to comprehend what just happened. He can feel it! This being is completely terrifying! It will cause his end!

Not caring about Gabriel's horrified and shocked face, Marinette rushes towards the villain's soul, her mouth widening and growing to fit half of him in one bite.

Gabriel doesn't have time to escape or avoid her, being only able to raise his cane to try and attack her, only for it to shatter like glass as it made contact with Marinette's jaws-

And Gabriel could only look hopelessly as Marinette's huge lower Hollow teeth reached towards his torso, as his spiritual body was halved into two.

She looks a minute later at his physical body, still seething as her rage is not extinguished yet.

She yells a loud glass-shattering scream that only other Pluses and spiritual beings and these aware of spirits can hear, but it made no difference as the normal civilians can hear as the glass breaks, and buildings crack from her overflowing energy.

She can see the heroes, her parents jumping, as their expressions turn into shock and horror as they see Gabriel's body, dead.

They don't see her. They are not spiritually aware of her.

And as she looks at them, an instinctual feeling burns in her body.

Protect...

She felt like smiling.

That's right... she needs to protect them...

She didn't notice or care as her mouth started to widen.

Even if it required making them like her...

-----

END.

[yoongsisbae]

Handshakes of a Lifetime - Chapter 6

BTS soulmate AU. OT7 x reader / Taehyung x reader focused in this chapter, slight Jungkook x reader and Namjoon x reader

Usually by the time I finish a chapter, I will have a nice chunk of the next chapter done, when I finished chapter 5 I had TWO SENTENCES FOR THIS CHAPTER cries, ugh this was a journey lol but I had fun along the way :). Also, I wanted to shoutout @missseoulite I remember having a really bad day when I saw your sweet comment about being eager for the new chap and just knowing someone cared enough to wish me safety and care about my well being, well it meant a lot to me, so this chapter is dedicated to you my dear!!!! <3

Word count: 10.3k

Warnings: death, mention of a suicide, if you’re like me and don’t like to think about being old this chapter might trigger an existential crisis lol, cheating, men being sexist, angst but also fluffiness, sex with Taehyung, breeding kink, a character calls you and Tae children but you are two very grown adults I just wanted to make that super duper clear.

---

“I want to try, I think it would be worth it, you’ll be worth it.”

‘Why did he have to say that,’ you wince, looking over at the idol. He is beautiful, way out of your league, above you in every way, and he’s looking back at you like his whole world hangs in the balance. How could you reject him now. You groan.

You stand up. You place your palm in front of his face, your fingers splayed out, you can see his wide excited eyes in the gaps between them. You look at him expectantly. Taehyung nods, places his palm to yours, interlocking your fingers together.

Your heart thumps wildly as darkness fills the room. You open your eyes once you hear the familiar voice of your husband call out to you, “No need to fret anymore, my beloved. I’m here now.” Taehyung’s hand covers your old and frail fingers. You lie in your bed, body tired and weathered from all the years you’ve spent on this earth.

Your eyes roam over the room, taking in all the faces of your beautiful children and grandchildren. The pain in your tired joints fades as you focus on the man you’ve only grown to love more in all the years you’ve been together. It’s because of him you’ve lived a fulfilled life full of love. With him by your side you’re ready now.

You look up from your crouched position, the flowers you’ve picked lie fresh and pretty in your basket. You look to the dirt path where a man is running towards you. ‘What is a man doing here of all places?’ you think.

He comes to a stop once he sees you, hands on his knees as he gasps for breath. He looks young and beautiful, though his robes are askew and torn and his face glistens as sweat drips from his chin. You almost decide to ignore him and go back to your duties until you notice the red lines that peak from the uncovered parts of his torso. The cuts look painful. You hesitate, “Do you need some assistance?”

“Don’t mind me, fair maiden,” his breathing is still heavy as he speaks. He looks around, taking in his surroundings. ‘What is he looking for?’ you wonder. You can tell he is trying to hide his panic, but it comes through in his tense movements and jittery eyes.

“Are you sure you don’t need help?”

Four men on horse approach you. You notice they are soldiers by the gold plates that cover their body. You hold the flower basket a little tighter to your chest. The first soldier speaks, “Have you seen a man come through this way?”

“You’re the only men I’ve seen for days.”

You feel their lewd stares on you, your stomach churns from the unwanted attention. One soldier dismounts his horse and stalks closer to you. “A pretty little thing like you wouldn’t dare lie to us?” he questions.

“I swear on goddess Athena.” You stand still and look to the ground as he invades your space. The soldier brings a calloused hand to your chin to make you look at him, his companions snickering at your discomfort.

“For days? You must be lonely, poor sweet thing you are.” The other soldiers dismount and circle you. You try to keep your face neutral from the disgust you feel as their eyes rake over your body.

“It is as I said,” your eyes shift to the marble walls of the temple behind you. “I would not lie in Athena’s name, I am protected by her watch.” You emphasize your last words, keeping your limbs close and suppressing your instincts to fight and draw this encounter out any longer than need be.

The men look over to the temple and begin to move closer to the entrance. You follow after them, dropping your basket and letting the flowers scatter into the dirt in your haste.

“No men shall enter, unless you want to face the wrath of the goddess herself,” you yell from behind them. The men laugh. You find the courage to pull at the leader’s armour to cease his advancing. “You will be cursed if you go in there, sir!”

Taehyung’s eyes go wide as he hides underneath the blanket you’ve covered him in. He removes his hand from the temple’s wall, and brings his knees up and off the floor, trying to touch as little as possible of his surroundings.

The men scoff at your words, the leader shoves you away but does not advance any closer. You’ve taken up enough of their time, and they need to find this criminal before The Queen bestows her own kind of punishment upon them.

“Be careful, girl. There is a dangerous man fleeing prosecution, pray to your Goddess we find him before you do.” You find their warning quite ironic as you watch the leader kick your basket. You assume in an attempt to be intimidating, but in your opinion it makes him look more like a petulant child, your brow ticks in annoyance.

Only when they are completely out of your sight do you let go of the breath you were holding. You run into the temple, crashing into the stranger as he runs out.

“I’m sorry!” He exclaims, his hands grabbing onto you to keep you from falling. Electricity zips through you as you both break away stunned. You rub at your arms to take away your goosebumps. The stranger lowers the hand that clutched at his chest, his wide eyes looking at you in question.

“Is it true? A curse is the last thing I need right now!” he laments. You giggle. The soldiers called this man dangerous?

“The rules say no man is to enter, yes.” His horrified expression makes you laugh even more. “But...they are more like guidelines,” you assure him. “Enough temple priestesses have brought their fair share of men back and nothing too sinister has happened yet, by the gods.”

It does little to lessen his worry. He looks at you skeptically. “I thought Athena’s priestesses were supposed to stay virginal in honor of the goddess’s protection.”

“Oh,” you offer him a smile, “that is her protection. It is perception that protects us.”

You eye the man, his features are sharp, striking; almost intimidating; but his aura is quite soft. “...protects us from men. In this world there are very few true heroes, I’m afraid most only live inside songs.”

He looks at you in understanding. “My apologies, you had to deal with those soldiers alone. I couldn’t do anything to defend you.” He winces at the thought, “For you to have shielded me instead, I thank you.” He offers you a deep bow and you feel butterflies dance in your chest.

“Can I ask as to why you’re running?”

He looks to the direction he came, unable to meet your eyes. “Ahh, well...I am in poor favor with The Queen.”

Your eyes widen, you’ve heard rumors of her beauty even in the remoteness of your area, and even more of her kingdom’s hedonism. The man in front of you is truly beautiful. He could be one of her lovers, you think, he most definitely looks the part. His robes though now disheveled are of expensive fabric and show off his lean body, and the way he holds himself you can’t imagine him to be a common worker. “So, you and The Queen, I see...”

“Oh! It’s not what you think...I’m a mere poet. I sing to The Queen and her Court, but she suddenly wanted more of me than I am willing to offer. I-I rejected her.”

Your eyes widen again. “That was most unwise.”

He smiles, his eyes cast down. “I can bear the weight of my faults. I plan to leave to another province.”

“You’ll rather leave your home? But it is The Queen!”

“As you can see, there is punishment in denying The Queen of her desires.”

You’re astonished. “I can’t imagine being with her to be so horrible you’d choose to run instead, give up all you’ve acquired?”

“I rather give myself to someone for love.”

You feel your heartbeat quicken at his words, ‘so idealistic.’ You’ve never encountered an individual with such delicate presence, a trait you find most unconventional. A smile pulls at one of the corners of your mouth, “Aphrodite must favor you.”

Taehyung laughs, his eyes softening, “Thank you again, someone must favor me to put you in my path.” His warm dark eyes hold your gaze. “I mustn’t stay too long…”

“Yes, of course! Well then…” You falter in your farewell. He struggles with the decision to leave. Taehyung knows he must, The Queen’s soldiers could come riding through again at any moment, and he doesn’t want to think of the punishment they would bestow upon you if they learned of your lies, so why can’t he seem to let go of your company?

He notices the trampled flowers littered on the ground around you, the colorful petals lay beautiful and ruined, a fate he worries will become yours if he doesn’t make haste. He picks up an unbroken blossom. “Thank you again.” He places the flower in your palms, a warmth spreads over you through your fingertips as you hold your breath in reverence. His thumbs stroke your fingers gently, and then he nods at you one last time and moves to run again. You feel a pressure building in your throat, unready to bid him farewell, and you don’t understand why this man whom you’ve just met is affecting you so. His kindness and his gentleness makes your body yearn to learn more. What can you do, he’s a stranger and not yours to keep, you must let him go.

His flower stays cradled in your hands, you feel your chest tighten more and more with each step he takes that brings another stretch of distance between your bodies. Your limbs itch to move. What should you do? It is what you want to do that makes you so afraid. You silently ask Athena for guidance. It is only when he turns past the treeline and out of sight that you can’t take it any longer.

You run into the temple. You race to your small quarters, and gather anything you deem valuable, not very much. Pushing down the thoughts that tell you you’re acting crazed and without reason, you fasten your belongings to your body. You race out of the temple's entrance and crash once again into a body that jolts your nerve endings with an undeniable energy. You stare into his eyes once more, the man you saved. He looks down at you, eyes wide with surprise but full of mirth.

A horse carries you and Taehyung farther North. You travel in comfortable silence, as your hands rest snugly around his waist. After riding with him for so long, you are no longer shy to hold him, accustomed to being pressed up against his back. You listen to the steady rhythm of horse hooves against the earth. It is peaceful and you find yourself smiling against Taehyung’s back.

The bright lush green landscape turns dark and threatening as the two of you ride past an abandoned village. The wooden wreckage smolders still. You gasp at the sight, so many homes lost. Taehyung taps the horse’s body with his foot to quicken its step.

“Stop!” You yell at Taehyung once you notice a shift amongst the rubble. You jump off before he properly stops his stead, running towards the wreckage to confirm what you thought you had witnessed.

Taehyung runs after you, warning you to be careful. Once you reposition a large plank of wood, you gasp at what you see. There’s a bleeding old woman pinned underneath, still alive. You call for Taehyung’s help, the both of you pulling her as delicately as you can manage from beneath the rubble.

“I can’t believe you’re still alive, it’s a miracle by The Gods.” Taehyung holds the old woman’s hand as you run to the horse to fetch a canteen of water.

“Oh, a miracle yes,” the old woman coughs out, “fate has blessed me after much burden.”

You work to clean her skin of dried blood and ash, offering her water to drink. “What can we do to help?”

“My walking stick, it is most important.” Her eyes stay closed shut in pain, as she gestures to the place you’ve pulled her from. Taehyung rummages around until he pulls an item from the wreckage, an impressive staff decorated with gold markings and a large green gem adorned at its apex.

The old woman offers Taehyung her gratitude, feeling much more at ease she opens her eyes to look at the pair of you. You stare into the old woman’s clouded grey eyes in surprise.

“Thank you child, but hurry, the rain will wash the flames away, but will halt your journey for the day.” Taehyung looks upwards at the old woman’s words, white clouds are traveling across the bright clear blue sky.

You can’t leave the blind woman alone after everything she’s been through. “If it’s going to rain, please let us take you to the next village for shelter.” She nods and walks staff in hand towards Taehyung’s horse.

“Only a bit further, we will make it before it rains,” the old blind woman promises. Sounds of thunder echo faintly in the background. The sun is no longer out, hidden behind dark grey storm clouds. You shiver and rub the exposed skin of your arms for comfort next to Taehyung as the two of you walk next to his horse. He grasps your hand and pulls you closer to him. He radiates warmth. You never know how to react to his kind gestures. You look up at him and meet his gaze, sending him a shy smile. He rubs his thumb on your knuckles, smiling brightly back. If his intentions were to make you warm, he succeeded, your heart feels full.

“This is a farming community. They are a kind people who serve Demeter, the two of you are safe here,” At the old woman’s declarations you and Taehyung look at each other, exchanging unspoken words.

“This is where our paths must diverge. If you continue to follow this road, you’ll find sanctuary for the night, I promise.” Taehyung helps the old blind woman down from his horse. “Thank you again, children. I don’t have anything to offer you in return for your help, but I can give you some words of wisdom.” She smiles kindly at you both.

The old blind woman still holds Taehyung’s hand in hers. She turns his palm upward, her fingers trace the lines of his hand. You watch her curiously. “Ahh, your soul holds so much talent, you’ll find it’s both a blessing and a curse.” You giggle, Taehyung shoots you a look, his lips curving into a half smile. “Ahh, you know of it already. In the future, you’ll have a great choice to make, I can’t choose for you, but as someone who's lived many years and knows how dreadful and gray the world can become, my advice is to choose the path of love.”

“Always,” Taehyung’s eyes cast a look over to you and you feel shy once more under his gaze.

She brings her hand to Taehyung’s face to pat his cheek. “Dear child, too beautiful for your own good. It won’t be easy for you, for either of you, this path before you. Hermes wings have found your heels, you won’t find much rest in this life.” She looks sympathetic as her head turns towards you.

“Much like the universe has brought you to me, I see destiny is not a stranger.” She smiles at you knowingly. You hold your breath as she reaches for your hand, studying your palm alongside Taehyung’s. “Your souls...they have been linked together. I see the red string of fate wrapped tightly around you both.”

You find yourself wanting to believe her. Her words seem heartfelt and true, and you can’t deny her strong aura despite her fragile appearance. You catch Taehyung’s eyes again. Has he been looking at you this entire time? She continues, “This bond you have is quite unbreakable, not even death can cut what tethers you together.” She studies your hand more carefully, “Ahh, peculiar...”

“Do you see something worrisome?” you ask, concerned.

“It is nothing to worry dear, you have much love that surrounds you. Let yourself love. There will be those who will try to keep you apart, but take it from an old old woman, love is a stronger force than even the gods can imagine. It glitters brighter than gold and gives you riches greater than Kings. In the end, you’ll find a way.”

You think of her words all night. You look over to your companion, he sleeps peacefully next to you. Do you love him? Is this love? Is he your destiny? You pray to Athena for answers, but only more questions arise in your mind.

You think to the day you first met him, the memory bringing a smile to your face. You left with him, in the end. It was you who found the courage to ask him to take you with him, on the premise of wanting to see the world while moving to another temple. You expected him to let you down gently, you remember his hesitation still, but instead he had not refused you, and you have been traveling with him ever since. Being with Taehyung filled the holes of loneliness that punctured your existence before meeting. Your world had been small, consisting only within the temple’s walls. Now your world feels infinite, it’s thrilling and terrifying, and at the center of it all is Taehyung, gentle and kind and sincere in his affection.

---

You are jostled from your sleep. Taehyung pulls you gently from your bed, his lips placing tender kisses across your forehead as he pulls you to your feet. “I’m sorry, we have to leave again.”

This is not the first time you've had to run, or the second or third. So you pack the things you cannot part with and say goodbye to the rest.

Taehyung, the beautiful poet with a voice that can capture any audience's attention, has always been able to afford you both a roof and a meal. Taehyung’s performances become the talk of whatever acropolis you find yourself in, and his fame grows until his looks and voice catch the attention of someone too important to ignore. Fame is a wonderful thing until it becomes too much, too demanding, and all too quickly can Taehyung’s admirers turn into attackers, vilifying his every action. When that happens he decides to run, and you follow. You worry if it goes on like this you’ll have no more places left to run to.

You liked this place the most, it pangs your heart to lose your home again, but you know your true home is in Taehyung’s arms. You pack as many mementos of this place as you can carry, and hold the rest of your memories close in your heart.

---

“Like this,” you pull your bow back and look to the trees ahead where three pheasants sit perched. You choose the biggest bird and aim your arrow. You make sure Taehyung is studying your form and then you let the arrow go. The bird squawks sharply before falling to the ground, and the others scatter to the sky.

“See!” you laugh at Taehyung’s astonished face.

“How are you so much better at this than me?” The poet whines as you hand him back his bow and arrow. You laugh again. You and Taehyung have been learning to survive by yourselves through trial and error, more error than not. You’ve never had to hunt for food before, but you quickly found yourself skilled, and you think it’s quite fun. At least when you’re not starving, stomach already full from fresh berries Taehyung had picked for you to share. He had picked you flowers as well. They sit in your hair in an intricate pattern after you complained to him you couldn’t eat flowers. You slowly remove the arrow bag from around your neck, so as not to ruin the halo he so carefully crafted.

“I caught it, so you cook it,” you tease.

He brings your hand to his lips for a quick kiss. “That, my fair maiden, I can do!”

---

It is late and Taehyung has not arrived home. His performance should have been done hours ago. You try not to let your thoughts wander into the dark depths of your worst fears as you settle into a restless unease. Your home is quiet and still, too quiet. You keep your ears focused as you wander around the house.

It goes from quiet to chaos too quickly, you hear shouting in the distance. A hand grabs your mouth before you can scream, you start to kick but strong arms hold you tightly. Taehyung shushes you as he pulls you to the back entrance of your home.

You’re running into the woods with the poet, he pulls you to the ground and holds you beneath him. From the bushes you watch men with swords circle your house. You feel violated as you watch them enter your home. Crashes inside make you flinch in Taehyung's arms. “We’ll go back to fetch our things once they leave,” he shushes you.

The soft warm glow of your house becomes bright, light filling up the night sky as a fire breaks out and the men continue to destroy your home. Taehyung covers your mouth to stifle your cries and holds you close to him, whispering countless apologies. You can only whimper in his arms, your shoulders shake in grief as you watch everything you own go up in flames.

When you first came to this place, you and Taehyung stood out too much for the villagers' liking. You were strangers, you didn’t look like them, and they targeted you constantly for the pettiest of things. But this area was remote so you endured their hateful ways. It didn’t help matters when Taehyung, a much better singer than the locals before him, was offered an audience with the region’s King. Taehyung never made an appearance, letting other singers he befriended attend in his place, hoping to gain some favor with the locals, but it only angered the King. Feeling insulted, he killed the poets. And now, with enemies at both ends, and anger consuming the villagers, Ares wrath scorched your home to the ground.

You’re quiet next to Taehyung. Your feet ache from walking. No horse, no food in days. It’s nightfall and cold, you wear his cloak and shiver still. You walk beside the poet, but he feels oceans away. His usual bright eyes are dull and full of sorrow. You didn’t realize how accustomed you were to his touch until he had stopped. Your body aches to be in his arms, to hold his hand while you walk. You feel loneliness twist around you instead.

It is Taehyung who breaks the silence. He speaks softly, “There is a famous temple of Athena in this city, hopefully we can convince them to let you stay.”

The idea revolts you, pulling at the pit of your stomach. The thought of going back to your old ways, as if it would be a reprieve or something you missed, makes you nauseated.

“No.”

“I thought it would be enough...I-I was naive. I’m truly cursed. I can sing all about love, paint beautiful stories of love’s triumph, but when I cannot give you anything else but my devotion, it’s not enough. I can’t stand to watch you wither away in front of me. You deserve more.”

“The oracle said-”

“What kind of life is this for you?” He stops walking, his voice breaks in his anguish. “I-I’m sorry. I should have never taken you away from safety into this reckless existence. This should have been my burden alone.” Tears fall down his face as he shudders. You reach for him, cup his face in your hands. How can you make him see he’s all you want? He lets you wipe away his tears. You pull his head down to meet yours.

“What kind of life is this? The best life I’ve ever could have wished for. A life full of love. I’d trade everything I have for you.” You brush your lips against his, it stops his tears. His eyes fill with adoration, a blazing intensity that makes your heartbeat quicken.

“Stop this worrying, let’s go.” You grab his hand and pull him along. The silence hangs heavy in the air, the stillness of the night frightens you.

“Sing me a song please.”

“From now on I’ll only sing for you.” Taehyung says his words quietly, but his resolve thunders to the heavens, shaking the course of your lives.

The light of day shines through your open window, it illuminates the thin white fabric pulled over your head and wakes you. The white cloth flitters in the breeze of your bedroom and you catch a peak of the handsome man lying next to you. His dark warm eyes are already open as he watches you stretch your sleepiness away. He lifts his head, pulling the sheet higher, so he can get a better look at you, “Good morning, my beloved.”

Taehyung’s dark hair and tan skin against the glowing white backdrop of your bed sheets makes him look ethereal. You watch him in awe, “Good morning, dear husband.”

Your body feels heavy and rested. Your bare skin is warm against his and the sun heated sheet, the soft fabric pulls over your bodies, everything is so soft and warm.

Taehyung buries his head in your chest, smiling against your skin. “I love you.”

Your fingers play with the curls of his hair. “And I love you.”

Underneath the covers, you create your own little world, away from the responsibilities of your lives, the expectations of the day.

Taehyung runs his lips across your naked chest, kissing, licking, biting all over your body. You giggle at his playful teasing touches. “You’re perfection, so soft and pretty.” He captures your lips in a kiss, moving his mouth against yours slowly as his body rests between your legs. His hands find your waist and pull at your skin as he explores your mouth with his tongue, swallowing your moans.

Your legs wrap around his torso, you can feel him growing against your slick core. Taehyung's fingers find yours and he intertwines them together, pulling your arms above your head. He nibbles on the sensitive skin below your jaw.

“You smell so good,” he moans, “you taste so good.” His low baritone voice sends shivers down your body. You whimper, breathless from his caresses. He thrusts in slowly, rolling his body into you, slow and steady until you’re both feverish from mounting pleasure. “What do you want, my love?”

“Just you, please, I want all of you.”

He rolls you over so your body is on top of him. “You have me forever. Now show me how much you want me.” Your playful lover bites his lower lip, pulling on your hips to make you move against him. Your body moves up and down his length, Taehyung’s moans and devastating lustful looks spur you on to please him.

You roll your hips faster, so close to release. Taehyung notices your frenzied state and grabs your hips to hold you still, thrusting up into you instead. His hard length fills you up so deliciously. His grip on you is searing yet soft, you focus on his body below you, his tight muscles and golden skin. “I-I’m close.”

“Touch yourself for me.”

The room fills with sinful noises as your bodies converge again and again and you cry out in euphoria. Taehyung stills inside you as you reach your high, mesmerized by the way your body twist in pleasure in his arms.

Taehyung lays your trembling body down against the soft sheets of your bed, grinding his hips into you as you continue to pulse around him. “Eyes open, look at me my love.”

You struggle with his command, but hold his gaze as best you can, his physique shines with sweat and his hungry eyes roam over your spent body, the erotic way he looks at you ignites the desire in between your legs once again.

He’s so close to release. Taehyung quickens his pace, making you tighten around him, senses overloaded. You moan, encouraging him to keep going.

“You’ll let me fill you up? Have my baby?” His long fingers find your sensitive nub, applying pressure and making you cry out.

“Y-yes!” You can only feel blinding pleasure as Taehyung thrusts into you deeper.

“How beautiful you’ll be, glowing and pregnant with my baby growing inside of you.” He groans. Your stomach tightens as his cock swells, pressure filling you before you feel yourself snapping again. Taehyung’s own release following, your tightness too much for him to handle.

You hold him close to you as you both work to steady your breathing, “We have to start baking soon,” you softly remind him, “before the market opens.”

Taehyung cuddles closer to you, “It’s okay, they’ll wait for my bread, it is the best in the city.” He grins, kneading at your breasts with his large hands. You laugh, relaxing into his embrace.

“Okay okay, we’ll stay a bit longer.”

Your children gather around you in prayer. You take in a ragged breath. Your bedridden aging body feels heavy. Soft light begins to cloud the edges of your vision as you listen to the wistful voices of your sons and daughters shower you with love. Taehyung's fingers brush against your wrinkled digits.

“My beautiful wife, how I missed you.”

You call out his name. Your eldest daughter soothes you, brushing her hand over your forehead. You thought you would be afraid once teetering on the edge of your own mortality, but with him here, holding you again, fear is unable to reach you. You’re already so full of love.

Taehyung comes into your focus, still beautiful in his old age, still the gentle man you love, he places a feather light kiss on your temple. Relief washes through you, the currents pull the burdens on your soul away, and you feel light, floating between worlds.

“I’ve waited for you,” Taehyung’s deep voice fills your mind, “Are you ready to travel with me again?” You know your answer, innate as the love you felt when you first met him.

You take one final breath, letting go and following Taehyung again.

---

Your eyes flutter open. You’re lying face down on the hotel bed. As your eyes begin to focus, you are met with the singer’s face next to yours. Taehyung is lying on his back next to you, grinning from ear to ear, your fingers are still interlocked by your heads.

“What happened?” you whisper.

“I don’t know, I think we passed out, I woke up right before you opened your eyes.”

He looks at you, still beaming, a boxy smile plastered on his face. You try not to smile back. He shouldn’t be this happy!

“That wasn’t bad. You made it sound bad.” he pouts.

You hum, looking at your still intertwined fingers. You study the smooth skin of your hands, the wrinkles and veins you’d seen now only a fleeting memory. You feel tired.

Taehyung feels like he’s just woken up from a long dream. Memories of last night feel far away, more distant than memories presumably lived centuries ago. He focuses on the only constant, you.

“Do you regret it?”

You let out a deep exhale, you move your hand to trace his cheek, his nose, his eyebrow; he watches you quietly. You flick him on the forehead.

Taehyung yelps, looking quite betrayed by your actions. You smile, and his expression switches easily back to happiness. “It’s okay, you don’t have to admit I’m right,” he teases.

You let out a huff, “Doesn’t it bother you? It should bother you! Why is this happening...it’s exhausting...”

Taehyung wraps his arms around you and pulls you close to his body. “I don’t care why,” he mumbles into your hair. Your breath catches in your throat as he cuddles closer to you.

“Do you want me to stop?”

Your heart pounds. You try to stay calm. “No,” you whisper.

His arms tighten around your frame. His warmth envelopes you, it feels like there’s fire inside you, burning down all your apprehensions.

“So this is how it feels. I thought I understood Jungkook. But this is....” you feel his body vibrate as he laughs to himself. “It’s not something you can put into words, right? I understand what he means, about not wanting to let you go.”

Closing your eyes you can picture yourself being in a different place, a different land, another time, you let yourself relax into Taehyung’s embrace. You can feel his hands caress your body, his long fingers travel to the back of your neck and down your spine and the curve of your back.

“I know I’ve never hugged you, but it feels like I’ve done this a hundred times before. Like you belong with me.” His voice is low in your ears. You try to ignore how you feel, how true his words are, but you can't.

“Right? At least admit that to me, y/n.” He whispers. His fingers dig into your skin as he pulls you even closer.

“Hm?”

“You belong with me.”

“I-” A knock on your door makes you break away from him. Taehyung flops on his back, sighing. You open the door to the youngest and oldest members smiling at you.

“Good morning!” You internally wince at your unusually high voice. Jungkook looks over your shoulder, noticing movement inside your room. He sees Taehyung sitting cross legged on your bed, leaning back on his palms with a grin on his face. Jungkook’s doe eyes go wide as his head turns slowly over to the eldest, who then mirrors his expression. Their surprised faces would be comical to you if you didn’t feel responsible for their reactions.

Everyone’s silence is making your stomach twist into knots. You clear your throat. “I touched his hand, if that’s what you’re wondering.” Unable to meet their eyes, you feel the need to add, “That’s all that happened. So...okay, let’s go!”

---

Everyone is sitting in the penthouse, around the coffee table filled with plates piled high with different breakfast foods. Some are sitting on the floor, some on the couch with plates in their laps. Jin ushers you next to an open spot next to J-Hope and sits on your other side. Taehyung and Jungkook have been quietly talking behind you and find seats in the empty gaps.

“The food here is really good,” Hoseok says in between bites as Jin serves you a plate. He smiles brightly at you. Hoseok wishes he wasn't so apprehensive with you. He aches to get to know you, learn all your quirks, learn about your childhood and what makes you happy so he can shower you with more of it; and what makes you sad so he can make sure you never experience it again. But he's too scared, Hoseok feels too much guilt.

His hair is messy and sticking up in weird angles, you resist the urge to fix it. ‘Just keep your hands to yourself, y/n. He’s not your friend,’ you chant in your head. You look around at the men, cozy and warm in their group. You realize how much of an outsider you are.

“Here,” Jin places a triangle of sweet toast on your already overflowing plate. You eat quietly while the members talk to themselves and check their phones. It feels nice, like a big family dinner on the holidays. You watch Hoseok take a selfie with his phone, a minute later you feel your phone vibrate with a notification.

“You posted to twitter just now?” Hoseok notices the panic in your voice as you magnify the picture to make sure there’s no item or reflection that might incriminate you.

“Err yes, why?” he scoots closer to you to see what you’re doing.

“I just-didn’t think it was that easy.” You scroll quickly through your timeline now that you’ve made sure you’re safe, Jin and Hoseok both moving in your space to stare at your phone much to your dismay and you think it’s time to put it away after the third photo of Namjoon’s toned arms pop up on your feed.

After stuffing yourselves full, the time has come to address the elephant in the room. The members take turns reliving the moments of last night, and in Taehyung’s case this morning, explaining everything so the group could all remain on the same page.

Namjoon should have been upset, once Taehyung shocked the rest of the group by speaking, but being in the same predicament himself, he was not surprised to learn Taehyung sought you out, he had barely slept toying with the idea himself.

You don’t talk much, just confirm certain details. You noticed how the men glossed over the most tragic parts of your visions, and you don’t care to interject. You learned new things as well...

Jimin finding his way back to your farm, only to find it destroyed and you gone, and unable to live with himself after that. You can’t meet each other's eyes when you tell him your own version of events.

Jin wanted to propose, he had picked out a ring, a bright blue gem like the ocean.

Taehyung had convinced you he stopped singing as a bard because he grew to hate it, but he confessed, to your suspicion, that wasn’t the case at all. He promised you he never once regretted his decision.

Hoseok took the job as a DJ because when you were younger you were obsessed with your local station, swooning over the DJ's voice and always calling in to win contests for you and Hoseok. He always had an affinity for music, but mostly he did it for you, to impress you.

Yoongi almost didn’t admit he had never really left your side, how he never stopped protecting you. That had shocked you the most. Your heart screams to comfort him, to comfort all of them.

Jungkook excitedly tells you everything he had planned for your escape, he used his life’s savings to find you and him a new home far away. He tells you how if you both had succeeded you would have been so happy with him.

It felt weird. All these lives inside you itching to burst through, you didn’t feel like yourself anymore. You meet the idol’s eyes sitting next to you, and when he looks at you so tenderly, you wonder who he really sees.

“Yoongi’s life was the coolest.” The quiet rapper keeps his head down, only nodding in acknowledgement at Jimin’s comment.

“Well I liked mine,” Taehyung declares. “Which one was your favorite, y/n?”

“I’m not answering that,” you mutter, growing hot under the sudden attention.

“Hmm I don’t see a connection.” Namjoon hums. “Apart from y/n.”

“Should there be one?”

“I’m assuming nothing strange like this has ever happened to you before?” Namjoon turns to you. You shake your head. “Have you ever had dreams, um, of us?”

“No! I mean-what? No.” You pull the neck of Jungkook’s hoodie over your mouth to hide your embarrassment, with no intention on admitting anything. What does dreaming have to do with this?

Namjoon stays silent in thought. Should he tell the group now?

“I should probably go now.” It’s no longer morning after talking for so long. You have a life to go back to; chores, work. You hope being back in your home will make you feel more like the old you, before everything you thought you knew was turned upside down.

Jungkook stands up, “Why!”

“I have work in the morning? Not everyone is a famous world class musician,” You try to keep your tone light, but you’re bothered.

His lips press into a tight line. “I know, just…”

You have responsibilities, a job to go to tomorrow, you don’t want to entertain the wild fantasies arising in your mind at the way he looks at you so pleadingly to stay. “I can’t stay here all day.” You stand up as well, the members’ eyes dart back and forth between you and Jungkook, like they were watching fighters in a match.

“I don’t want you to leave.” Jungkook blurts out.

You close your eyes and rub at your temples. It’s becoming too hard, to keep pushing these feelings away, you cannot allow yourself to feel things for these men. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. What do you want from me?”

Jungkook speaks louder, “Do you not want to be with me?”

“I’m-that’s not-it’s not that simple. You don’t even know me! Do you want to be with me-”

“Yes.”

You let out an incredulous laugh and look around the room, but the men look starkly serious. You focus on the youngest again, raising your voice so everyone can hear you clearly. “I’m a nobody. You don’t know me. Name one thing you know about me other than my name...name my favorite color! If you can name my favorite color I’ll sta-”

Jungkook names your favorite color. His eyes piercing through you. Your breath catches in your throat.

‘How did he-wait...was it her favorite color too?’ Tears well up in your eyes. “...I’m not her.”

Jungkook winces at your words, “You’re right, I don’t know who you are right now. But you are...I know you are...the woman I fell in love with. What are you so afraid of?”

You look down at the ground to your feet. You can only shake your head at him and keep your mouth shut so you don’t start crying in front of them. You feel a hand wrap around yours and you already know who it is. You yank your hand away. If Yoongi is hurt, he doesn’t show it to you.

“I’m sorry, I know my life is difficult, that I’m a ‘famous musician,’ but isn’t it better than a poor stable worker? Can’t you see how meeting you again, this might be, maybe...fate?”

A pained laugh escapes your throat, letting go of the pressure you built up in your forced silence. “Oh my god. This is not happening.” Yes, maybe you can finally admit what happened was real, but what does that change? It’s not like you can run away with him in this life either, the entire world recognizes him now.

Your hands hold your head, your nails dig into your skin to concentrate on anything other than Jungkook’s continuing pleas. It’s just laughable to think this idol is begging you to stay with him. A sick thought invades your mind that maybe you’re doomed to repeat your transgressions. The memory of his bleeding body flashes in your mind, you’re not meant to be with them, how could you be? They’re the most famous singers in the world, yeah, you are afraid.

Jimin tries to calm down the youngest, “Kookie, you can’t force her to stay here…”

Jungkook is beside himself. He feels you slipping through his fingers again, away from him and even if it’s different now, it feels too sickeningly similar.

“Hyung please, you’ve been with non-idols, please talk to her...please!” Jungkook is crying, begging Jin.

A strangled sob escapes your throat at his cries. Hoseok rushes over to you, but you scramble away from his touch. You know you’ll break the second you let him comfort you.

Jin’s heart is breaking; for Jungkook, for you, for himself. He doesn’t know what to say, he’s just afraid as Jungkook of letting you go. Finally Namjoon decides to take control of the situation, the only one with a clear head. “Everyone leave. Now. Y/n deserves her space, and we still have four more days left in this city. Alright go!” The boys pull each other away, holding onto each other for strength, trusting their leader.

Yoongi pats a crying Jungkook on the back, “It’s okay, Joon will convince her.”

---

Your eyes hurt from crying, puffy and dark. You feel pathetic. Your head is pounding, you lean against the car window as you watch the blur of the city go past.

“Here.” Namjoon sits across from you, leaving the middle seat open. He hands you a cell phone.

You hold the sleek new model in your hand, “What is this?”

“It’s a hand phone,” the idol says teasingly.

You can’t help but let out a small laugh. “What is this for?”

“For you, to contact us.” Namjoon shrugs, “If you want to.” You sit in silence as his driver takes you home.

“You haven’t asked to touch my hand. Do you not want to?” You ask, sneaking a glance at the rapper.

“Of course I want to,” he speaks softly. “It’s all I’ve thought about since I saw you. But you’ve gone through a lot. I’ll let you decide if it’s something you want to do, and when you’re ready I’ll be here.”

You bite your lip. “For four more days.”

Namjoon smiles, his dimples on display. “Yes, I’m guessing you didn’t get tickets for the next city?”

“No, I wish. Those fanmeet tickets weren’t exactly cheap.”

Namjoon chuckles softly, “Ahh sorry.”

“Well, I did get a free breakfast with BTS, lucky me,” you hum. He nods, his eyes cast down. You hope he didn’t catch any bitterness in your tone, under any circumstance you would be dying of happiness.

You let the silence envelope you again, as you start to recognize the streets, you’re getting closer to home and to being left alone. You sigh, running your hands over your face, “Oh god, this is a mess.”

“I don’t think it is. I think there’s a reason for everything. And I think there’s a reason why this happened to you. To all of us.”

“What could that reason be?” You ask him genuinely, maybe the genius idol sees something you don’t.

“I don’t know. I do know it’s lonely being an idol. It’s hard to love, to find someone to love you and not break under the constant pressure.”

“I don’t know if I can be that person.”

“Well to me, it sounds like you’ve already been that person.” You want to scoff, but the sincere look in his eyes makes you stop. The GPS signals your arrival home.

The air is heavy as you gather up the strength to leave, “I will message you later, I promise. Just give me some time.”

You watch the expensive van leave your entrance. You couldn’t see through the dark tinted windows, but you had a feeling the idol was watching you, so you held yourself together and waved goodbye.

---

You know you should have just gone inside your home, but you had something to do first, it was driving you mad not knowing. So now you stand in front of a door that’s not your own still in clothes that are not your own. You send a text of your arrival and knock.

“Hi!” You pretend you aren’t exhausted, “I just have to try something-”

He looks at you dumbfounded as you grab his hand and start shaking it. Nothing. ‘Of course, just wonderful.’ You switch to two hands, shaking more forcefully.

“What’s going on...” his voice is shaky from the intense movements of your greeting. ‘Why is nothing happening, why is it only them, Ugh, why!’

“Earth to y/n...” why why why why.

He grabs your arms to stop your movements “Hey, are you okay? You never responded to my calls, I was worried.”

“I’m sorry,” you look into his concerned eyes. It feels like eons ago, whatever budding feelings you had for him. Why.

“Do you want to come in?”

“No, I better go.”

“You came all the way over here and you don’t want to tell me how last night went? You meet BTS and now you’re acting all crazy! You didn’t decide to leave me for one of them, did you?” your friend jokes.

“Ah ha aha…”

He raises his eyebrow at you. “I have work tomorrow...I just wanted to see you.” It’s the truth, you’re not lying. “I’m sorry for not responding last night. I’ll see you later?”

He gives you a kiss goodbye. ‘Oh no.’ It all feels so wrong.

---

The first day, you send Jungkook an apology. He sends you a ton of voice memos and selfies, just happy to talk to you again. You respond with light replies, trying not to dig your hole any deeper.

The second day, that night you break down. You send all the boys a simple “hi”. Yoongi, Jin, Taehyung, Jungkook, and Namjoon all respond. They send messages about their day. Jin sends you a picture of his food. Yoongi says he misses you. Against your better judgement you tell him you miss him too. Suspiciously, after your reply Jungkook and Taehyung message that they miss you seconds apart from one another. You tell them you miss them too, when Taehyung says he wants to see you, you’re too scared to respond.

The third day you stay busy with work. Hoseok sends you a picture of the sunset, his first message to you, nothing else. You wait until the night comes and send a picture of the moon from your window, and ‘Goodnight. Sweet dreams.’

The fourth day the pressure becomes too much. You hover over the call button all day but you can’t do it. By dinner time, you get a call from Jungkook. You try to swallow down the tears you’ve cried all day and sound cheerful when you answer.

“I just wanted to call before we get on the plane,” he says.

‘It’s too late. No.’ you think. “I’m sorry, tell Namjoon I’m so sorry. I should have seen him before you all left, I should have...”

“Don’t worry y/n. No one blames you.”

“That doesn’t mean what I did was okay. I wanted to see you all again.”

“You did?” The way his voice becomes more cheerful tugs at your heart. “You can make it up to us by talking more. Can I video chat with you later?”

“Okay.”

“Okay, got to go...Bye Beautiful.” He sounds like he’s in a much better mood, you can hear the teasing lilt to his words.

Weeks go by. You keep your promise. It’s easier communicating through the screen of your phone. You can imagine them to be online friends, people who are not famous. Some conversations stay light, some become deeper. They pry information from your life, learning more and more about you, and you feel yourself getting attached to their morning greetings and late night calls. Meanwhile, with family and friends you try to act like everything is normal, keeping this weird new world hidden, but you’re still constantly haunted by your memories with them. Your past lives play through your mind all day long and replace your dreams. Everything else felt so wrong now, so not you anymore, so gray. You feel like a bad friend, a bad daughter, a cheater.

---

Namjoon wakes up, groaning, his body still heavy from sleep. He quickly changes into a pair of slacks and a button down shirt. He chooses a forest green vest to wear, like the plants in his room. He runs pomade in his hair before heading downstairs to get ready for the morning.

He unlocks the door to his bookstore, before he can turn around the door opens with a loud ding. You walk in and make a beeline to the center table. Namjoon laughs, “Back so soon?”

“Of course, I’m so bored! My crops won’t be harvestable for another couple of months. Any other recommendations? I loved your last one.” You smile brightly at the bookstore owner, he’s always so kind to you and doesn’t make you feel like an outsider when you visit. If you could, you would spend all day in his store, talking about the latest novels and picking each other's brains. “Before I forget! For you...” You hand him two jars of homemade jam.

You're his favorite customer. And if Namjoon is being honest, he has a crush on you. He pulls a book from high above a shelf, a pristine copy. “This one, it should keep you busy.” Your eyes sparkle as you take in the large leather bound novel, gold letters adorning it’s spine. “How much?”

“Don’t worry, this one time I’ll take jam as payment.”

“No, that was a present,” you pout.

“Well, then this is a present for you.”

“Sir, if you don’t let me pay, I will throw a fit! I need you to stay in business.” It’s always like this with him, you’ll be damned if he doesn’t let you show him how much you appreciate him.

Namjoon laughs, “Alright alright. Then promise me you’ll come visit as soon as you finish.”

You nod, holding your new purchase close to your heart. He watches you leave, his eyes lingering on your body. You hold onto his book like a prized trophy. It’s another thing he loves about you, the way you treat things with so much care. His eyes still linger on you as you stand outside his shop. He sees a stranger run into you, you stumble back and almost fall, he rushes to the door to help you but stops in his tracks as the man's face comes into focus. “Jimin?”

Namjoon wakes up startled. He runs his hands through his hair, disturbed at what he saw. He’s covered in sweat, inside the cold room of his bedroom. Every night he’s had dreams of you, but this one was different. Should he go talk to someone about it? Who would believe him? He feels like every day he’s slowly getting closer to losing his mind. Today is going to be a long day full of press junkets. He rubs at his eyes trying to forget what he saw, what he felt.

---

Today you decide to call Namjoon. Usually, you’ll wait until one of the members decides to call you, but you had to talk to him before you lost your nerve. He picks up on the second ring. “Hey, I can’t talk for that long, is everything okay?” you can hear how busy it is in the background.

“No it’s my fault! I’m sorry, I’m an idiot, of course you would be busy. Call me when you’re free.”

“No! I have some time, we can talk.” You hear him shuffling to a quieter location.

Are you going to regret this? You take a deep breath. “I want to see you again. I-I don’t want to forget about what happened and go back to my life like everything is normal when it's not. You were right. I’m sorry...I’m sorry it took me so long to realize it.” You wait for Namjoon’s response, the silence fills you with anxiety. You would completely understand if he brushes you off now.

“I’ll figure something out. Okay y/n?”

“Okay.”

“I’ll see you soon.”

“See you.”

That night Namjoon sends you a series of text messages with instructions. Your eyes go wide over the new information. You look around your home, you know you should feel some sadness, but only excitement bubbles inside you. ‘I guess this is it.’ How are you going to explain this to your family and friends, to your boyfriend? A special internship in South Korea, you guess is how you’ll start.

---Three Months Later---

Namjoon splashes cold water on his face, he looks up into his bathroom mirror and blinks at his reflection. Namjoon’s eyes are not his.

Namjoon wakes up yelling. He falls back into bed, catching his breath. He checks the time. You should be on the plane right now. The idol rapper has always appreciated the wealth he’s accumulated over the years, but he feels especially grateful in this moment, now that he has found himself in a position of power large enough to secure you with a translation job within his own company.

---

A man holds a sign with your name on it. You walk towards him, your suitcase ticking on the airport concrete as it rolls on the ground behind you. You spent the last three months preparing for this, studying over language books every night and saying goodbye to family and friends. Your parents didn’t understand your sudden change of career, but you promised them the pay was better and it wouldn’t be forever. Your boyfriend was not so understanding, especially when you wouldn’t give him any details as to why you’re leaving the county. You and him weren’t even that serious to begin with but the breakup was messy.

You followed the driver’s instructions once he dropped you off in front of a very posh looking complex, entering key codes, up the elevator, down the hall, until you stood in front of the correct numbered door. You use the key he gave you to unlock the large door and walk into a massive apartment. Every member is already inside, waiting for you. You feel relief wash over you, you can’t help but smile at the group. They cheer at your arrival, you notice balloons and a makeshift welcome sign. The mood is definitely much more relaxed from the last time you all gathered together.

“Is this your place?” You ask as Jungkook takes your suitcase.

“No, this is your apartment.”

Your eyes go wide, “This is way too big!”

Taehyung jumps up and gives you a hug. The months you talked made you feel much more comfortable around them, but you still weren’t prepared for the rush of emotions that filled you once in his embrace again.

“It’s the smallest unit in this building,” Yoongi lets you know.

“And I’m guessing I can’t go to another building.”

“Our dorm is in this one,” The youngest member explains.

“How…” You take a deep breath, eyeing Jungkook up and down, “...convenient.” You take a seat with them on the ridiculously huge couch, next to Yoongi and Jin.

You sigh, stretching your sore jet lagged muscles. “Need to go to the bathroom?” Yoongi whispers at you teasingly.

You snort, his words taking you out of your worries. “Funny,” you mutter.

The eldest helps you fill out a stack of forms for your employment while the rest set plates of takeout on the living room table. You eat your first meal in Korea together. Sitting together, laughing together, you feel better than you have in months. It’s that feeling you get when you’ve finally completed a puzzle, placing the last piece in its place. You feel complete.

Taehyung’s words pull you from your thoughts.

“So y/n, when are you gonna hold Joon’s hand?”

“Oh, um…”

“You came all the way to Korea for him, right!” Taehyung teases.

“She doesn’t have to...” Namjoon murmurs.

“Oh c’mon! You can’t tell me you haven’t been going crazy waiting!”

“Yeah, I agree with Tae!” Jimin laughs.

“Do it!” Jungkook cheers.

“Do it! Do it! Do it!” The youngest members are chanting at the pair of you. You feel the heat rise in your face. You had planned on it, you wanted to find a way to get Namjoon alone, but now with all the attention on you, you feel apprehensive. You look over to Namjoon who looks equally as embarrassed. ‘I don’t want to do this,’ the thought screams in your head.

It has been months, Namjoon has waited for this moment. Now that he’s being put on the spot, he’s apprehensive. Ever since his bandmates touched you, they have acted differently, it might not be noticeable to anyone around them, but Namjoon noticed. Would he change too? Before he can yell at his bandmates, you stand up and walk over to his seat. “They aren’t going to stop,” You whisper, holding out your hand. He sighs and stands up.

“So?” Jin asks when he notices the lack of reaction from both of you as you grip each other's hands.

“Um, nothing is happening.” You stare at the rapper, but his attention is on the place where your hands meet, brows furrowed in disbelief.

“This doesn’t make sense..” He starts shaking your hand up and down as if that might help, it reminds you of the night he dropped you off, and you know exactly how he feels.

“Maybe it’s because I’m jet lagged or something? We could try again later...” you try to soothe the rapper but you can tell he is growing more and more upset with each passing moment, and your arm feels like it's going to dislodge from your shoulder the more he shakes.

The members have all gone silent.

“Maybe you don’t have a past life together?” Hoseok places his hand on Namjoon’s shoulder to stop his movements. No one expected this.

“No, that’s not-we have to-I know it!” Namjoon tries to stay calm but his voice is full of panic.

“Maybe it had something to do with that time, the planets aligning or something?” Jimin says. Is this your fault? Because you were too scared. What have you done? You’re rethinking everything now, you shouldn’t have come here.

“No.” Namjoon is right, he knows it, “that’s not it...” It doesn’t make sense, he knows there’s a connection between you and him. He lets the confession tumble out of his mouth before he can properly think. “Your name, I knew it! How would I know your name?”

You look at him confused, “What do you mean?”

Namjoon bites his tongue. He lets go of you. He blinks his eyes to get rid of tears threatening to spill. The mood is gone and everyone is silent. You feel horrible. Somehow this is your fault, you know it.

“Joon...” The eldest member calls out to him.

“I-I need some air.” Namjoon breaks away from the group.

“Wait!”

---

OOOOooo you had a whole ass boyfriend and you went and tongued Yoongi, scandalous. Looks like poor Joonie got the spiritual cockblock. Should I explain myself lol or do you like drawing your own conclusions?

Oh! Fun fact, the two sentences were this: Your eyes flutter open, you’re lying face down on the hotel bed. Taehyung is lying on his back next to you, grinning from ear to ear, your fingers are still interlocked by your heads. That’s what I had to go on T_T hah. Anyways let me know what you think <3

[thehomothings]

Analysis of Kite's conflicting moralities, relationship with death, and the toll reincarnation may take on one's psyche

So, today I decided to compile all the thoughts I have had about Kite's interesting worldview since the first time I saw him into one post, mostly for my own sake, really. If you're familiar with the few posts I've made, you know it's gonna be a mess, but hopefully a comprehensible mess.

A heads up, this is going to be spoiler-heavy, and very much deal with subjects of death and dying as a whole. Also, some of these conclusions are drawn from my own experiences and close brushes with death, I'm not going to go into much detail but it might get personal and definitely dark. I'm not even sure if I can call this a meta-analysis, and I'm obviously no expert, so mayhaps take all of this with a grain of salt.

Been getting into drawing lately, and during the more simple and mindless part of the painstaking process of dotting every single star in this, I let my thoughts wander through the latest part of the fic I'm writing, and I got a better grasp on what exactly made Kite such an elusive character to me.

I'm not quite sure why I got so attached to Kite. Perhaps it was the air of tragedy surrounding him, how despite his sordid past he remained still open and gentle even if outlined by a healthy dose of cynicism.

But sometimes, I think it's the fact that he is so paradoxical. He's brave, yet fears death to such a degree that creates a whole Nen ability around it, is a pacifist yet will not hesitate to spill blood for his own sake or someone else's. Despite the many ultimatums and warnings of 'I will not protect you', he gave his arm and then his life to save Gon and Killua. He approaches each hunt and battle with a clear plan of action in mind, but his Hatsu takes the form of a roulette that gives him random weapons which are never what he wants, but what he seems to need for that exact situation, which he cannot dispel without using. When he draws a weapon, the decision is locked in and his or his opponent's fate is sealed. That's why each time he dubbs his weapon a bad roll. Every time he has to gamble, he sees himself as having run out of luck. When it comes to having to choose between himself and somebody else...well, there had never been a choice. In fact his aversion to using it may feed into its sheer power that we, unfortunately, saw too little of.

Let's go over his very first appearance when he saves Gon from the mother Foxbear.

It's not hard to see the strain searching for Ging has put on him; he's rash, prone to anger and punching a child for daring to get into trouble. In his mind, he's failing at his most important task, has not yet earned the right to call himself a hunter despite being in possession of his very own hunter license.

After killing the mother Foxbear and raging about having done so, he says this interesting line:

So yes, he finds killing for any reason rather irksome as most would do, yet I think something deeper caused him to absolutely lose it in this scene:

He had not been aware of Gon's identity, and despite being an animal lover and a naturalist, he made a choice to save the human instead of allowing nature to run its course. In fact, he says: 'No beast that harms a human must be allowed to live.'

How does one weight one life against another? How is the worth of it determined? The value of life... an impossible choice he's faced with and a choice which he seems to regret to some degree.

The Foxbear cub.

Here, he's speaking from experience, a tangible loss he has felt himself, and a hard and bitter life he does not want to impose on the cub.

His backstory is exclusive to the 2011 anime adaptation but there are hints alluding to it in the manga, for example, the fact that he does not seem to know his birthplace, or:

The choice of words is chilling.

Reading between the lines, one could draw the conclusion that he is an orphan. Something supporting this hypothesis is how he visibly deflates after Gon tells him his parents have (presumably) died.

So we see he is willing to go against his own moral code of not killing as to not doom another living being to the life he led, a lonely, hopeless existence that could barely be called one. He saw it best to put down the cub rather than leave it to die a painful, slow death.

The reason Kite himself isn't as cynical and cold-hearted as one would be after witnessing cruelty in its rawest form is those small crumbs of human kindness which he may have found in Ging.

It was not only a chance at an honorable life being Ging's apprentice gave him, but it also 'saved' him from being broken and twisted into what he hated and worst of all, death.

If we take that one minute of backstory as canon to his character-which I find myself inclined to do- these quirks of his make much more sense. He lived on the run. He lived on the knife's edge between giving up or pushing forwards. He lived as so a wrong move could be the difference between survival and the end.

Between rock and a hard place creates a mentality of black and white, absolute good or extreme evil, this or that. Except in reality, it's much harder than that. Deciding who to save and who to strike down is a heavy burden to bear.

It's almost easy to see how struggling to keep surviving could lend itself to a crippling fear of death and subsequently developing a Nen ability which once more goes against his own moral code in order to give himself a second chance...yet something about it strikes me as unlikely when I look at it this way.

Living life knowing it could end at any moment has the opposite effect, at least for me it did. One comes to accept that it is fleeting and while not eager to let it go, when death eventually and inevitably does come, there is no fighting it.

Especially when there is no hope that tomorrow will be a better day than this one.

Frequent near-death experiences numb one's fear in a way, even if it drives them to take precautions that render it unlikely to happen again and results in c-PTSD, but still, it does. It sparks a certain nihilistic view of 'if it all can end so easily, then what's the point of it all?'

Unless there are things to live for, a sure promise of a better future, and Ging gave Kite that. When he faced the threat of losing his second chance at life:

Really, what else could lead someone to develop the ability of 'the hell I'm going to die like this'?

I think a separate event, an even more brutal near-death experience that almost cost him his life as the hunter he so strived to be set him off to develop the secret roll of Crazy Slots, what I call Roll No.0, Ars moriendi. Unlike other weapons, it cannot come up in random and is directly summoned by him, or better said, summon by his overwhelming will to keep going and hopelessness of fighting a losing battle. I don't believe roll No.3 was the weapon that allowed him to reincarnate. I've named that one Wand of Fortune, a sort of armor instead of an offensive weapon since I find it hard to believe Kite, a Conjurer, would not focus on defences as well, and I will go into both mechanisms of these weapons hopefully in his backstory.

Despite knowing this battle to be a pointless one and being acutely aware of his soon to be demise, he did not immediately draw Ars moriendi, no, he stayed back and fought for the sake of the boys, kept Neferpitou occupied until they could reach safety. We can see evidence of this in the aftermath of the battle that seemed to have gone on until dawn, a torn apart landscape only signaling a fraction of the devastation that was Kite's power unleashed. It still wasn't enough.

In the anime sub I watched, when Gon apologizes to Ging about Kite's death, Ging said a sentence that infuriated me, because it belittled the utter suffering of the NGL trio.

"He would not die in your place." (No screenshot, sorry)

And I remember practically shouting at the screen, screaming 'how could you possibly say that? Of course he did. He absolutely did die in their place. How could you not know your own apprentice? Why-'

It was only last night that it hit me why Ging would say that.

Once upon a time, maybe Kite would not have given his life for anybody under any circumstances, even if he had a way out of it all. He would still need to die to come back to life.

His Thanatophobia could be attributed to the (possibly untreated) PTSD of the near-death experience in his later life, being so certain of dying that finding himself alive afterwards drove him to never want to go through that again. He quieted his fear by creating a sort of a loophole, that even if he lost the battle he would remain. Ging remembered that, but as evidence shows, something changed. Maybe he healed a bit, perhaps growing up dulled his fear to a certain degree, but eventually when it came down to his life or another's, he didn't choose himself.

Now, I can hear you saying 'but he didn't die, so what are you going on about??' And so I reply: Yes, he is alive, but he did die. He experienced that painful, horrible moment of staring death in the eyes and thinking 'This is it, this is the end', went through the actual process of having his soul removed from his body. And that moment stretches into infinity, ten lifetimes condensed into the mere seconds before oblivion.

Dying isn't so hard if one stays dead.

It's not so easy to open one's eyes and find oneself alive again after that, no matter how much that is the heart's desire. It's difficult, nigh-impossible to reconcile with life and walk amongst the living when everything had been so final, when death had been accepted to its fullest.

So Kite awakens, the twin of Meruem and back from the dead, his mind and identity both intact and fractured. In that he is Kite is no mistaking, yet he is not the same gentle pacifist whose first reaction upon sensing a monster's aura was to shield two kids from it at the cost of his arm.

I don't think many of you are familiar with Zoroastrian ideology, but Togashi is known for loving his religious imagery, and it's not only Christianism he derives inspiration from (evidence of which can be seen all over Kite's character and resurrection).

In Zurvanism-a branch of Zoroastrianism- there is talk of the twin spirits: Ahura Mazda -epitome of all that is good- and Ahriman -epitome of all that is evil-, the parent god Zurvin decides that the firstborn may rule in order to bring "heaven, hell, and everything in between."

Upon becoming aware of this fact, Ahriman forcibly tears through the womb to emerge first. Sounding familiar yet?

Zurvan relents to this turn of events only on one condition: Ahriman is given kingship for 9000 years, and then Ahura Mazda may rule for eternity.

Meruem ruled for 40 days, his death leaving the throne vacant for ant Kite, wearing a dead girl's face and seeming to be brewing some nefarious plan. No more is there any sign of that unrelenting pacifism and the sanctity of life he held so high, losing his own may have only served to show him how meaningless the pain and suffering he went through had been, dying only to be reborn as a member of the species that killed him. It may be that he has no desire to rule over the remaining Chimera ants or create an army of his own-

Yet I dread to think what a broken mind possessing limitless power might do to the world.

And that's it. If you made it this far, thank you for reading! If you found it interesting, stay tuned, as I think a lot and I will make it your problem.

[themonotonysyndrome]

Guilt Eater

Part 4 of the ‘Successors of the Future’ is here! And yes, I will do my absolute best to squeeze in as much Blazblue reference in this series until I can’t! (I mean, that’s how I got the plot bunny for this series anyway~)

We’re moving the spotlights today to Malleus and Ace and a special guest! I thought it’ll be an interesting shift of perspective and change. Don’t worry, we’ll get right back to the kids in the next oneshot. 

As always, big thank you to @tri3tri for letting us expand her Second Wive AU. Hope you guys enjoy this oneshot. 

-

Time tend to leave its mark differently on each species. 

For creatures who only grew stronger with time while their bodies remain near immortal, the passing of time means nothing to the Fair Folks. Time is likened to the ocean; ancient yet full of wonders. 

For Malleus, however, time has not been kind to him. Not since his dear heart and children vanishes. 

Ever since then, there is an unspoken rule among the residents of the Castle of Thorns: the Queen’s family wing is forbidden to everyone but the King.

Even Lilia nod his head to the rule; even he has been walking on eggshells around their King. 

And the years had transformed the Queen’s domain into a catacomb. The rumpled beds, the toys littered in Princess Sherrie’s bedroom, the Queen’s favourite book on her study table - everything is left untouched with layered of dust and cobwebs covering every inch of the surfaces. 

Every evening, the King would stalk the empty halls and bedrooms like a ghost; constantly yearning to feel the memories that embedded on the walls. Once he did his duties as the King and beget the male heir that the court had been pushing, Malleus has been living in regret ever since. 

He should have known that his beautiful wife would attempt to escape during the night of his second wedding. He should have tightened the security not on his concubine, but to the Queen and their Princesses. He should have assured Renata and Sherrie that only their mother holds his heart and that Bellatrix is just a means to an end. 

He should have told them that he loves them. 

Regret and guilt are terrible poisons. It festered under your skin and twist your heart painfully. They plague your mind with ‘what if’s’ and ‘should have’s’ and Malleus have been carrying them ever since that night. 

Tonight, he lost hours inside Renata’s bedroom, just staring at her favourite doll that he bought for her. He still remembers how her eyes lit up and how sweet her smile was when he presented the doll to her; how she was so happy that she clings on him and the doll that day. Deeply amused, he humoured her and carried her in her arms the whole day. Malleus even brought her to his court session, regardless how it broke propriety. 

His every waking moments now drift to MC and their daughters. Where are they? Why couldn’t he find them no matter how many soldiers he dispatched across Twisted Wonderland, no matter how far his magic blanket the lands? Are his daughters healthy, happy? What are they currently doing now? Are they safe? Have they forgotten about him - 

The mirror on the vanity table shattered. Malleus releases the doll in his grip and struggle to calm himself down; his body curl inwards and his breaths erratic. The thought of his wife and children far away and happy from him nearly drove him crazy if it weren’t for Lilia’s quick and careful words of consolation.

“They can’t hide forever, Malleus. Don’t ever give up, you hear me? And once we’ll find them, we’ll make sure her little escape routines are put to a stop. Permanently.”  

Lilia’s words are enough to ground him. For now. 

Malleus failed to assured his wife and daughters his love towards them, failed to show just how deep his convictions towards them are. The moment he finds any threads of their whereabouts, he’ll make sure to rectify that. 

And as the night made way for morning, Malleus forces himself to leave his daughter’s abandoned bedroom to prepare for another long, monotonous day. The only reason why he hasn’t delegate his duties to Lilia was because of his grandmother. His grandmother had come to visit on the eve of his second wedding and stayed when a frantic Silver announced MC and their children’s disappearance. If it weren’t for her, Malleus would’ve burned away his suit and transform into a dragon to search for them. While Lilia organise a search team with Silver and Sebek, his grandmother made sure he understood his duties as King once more. 

That was the first and last time he slept with Bellatrix before his thoughts and desire are consumed with the need to find his family. At that point, neither Lilia nor his grandmother could’ve stop him. 

The castle staffs and guards know to scattered when they see him step out of the Queen’s wing. The moment they heard the door creaked open, the room is empty. 

All but for one individual. 

“Good morning, Father!” 

Malleus stop his track. He tilts his head towards his heir, expressionless. Victor refused to be deterred by his Father’s gloomy aura yet he’s smart enough to carefully approach him. 

The king is stoic on the best days, frightening on his worst. 

“Will you be joining us for breakfast later? I heard from Grandfather Lilia that the kitchen staffs are planning to cook your favourites.” 

“I’ll be taking my meals in my office as usual.” Malleus reply and starts to walk away. 

Victor’s smile drop a little but he pressed on, jogging behind his father. In a rare burst of courage, the Prince grab Malleus’ hand. Surprisingly, Malleus stops walking. He stares at his hand before narrowing his eyes at Victor. 

“W-Would Father like a report of my recent academic progress? My tutors said that I’ve been doing well in my magic classes! O-Oh! I’ve also been diligently keeping up with my etiquette lessons.” Victor stutters out after he immediately let go of his Father’s hand. Feeling like he just committed a grave crime. 

“No need. Your tutors have been sending letters of your progress, daily.” 

“Oh... then would Father be willing to... to train me - ”

“I’m busy. Ask Lilia or any of your tutors.” And with that, Malleus refused to linger any longer, leaving Victor in the empty room. 

Crestfallen, Victor watch his Father go. Knowing that if he bothers him even more, it will just upset him and another storm would loom over the castle for the next few days. His expression immediately morph into a combination of anger and sadness as he stomps away before the staffs could return, not wanting them to see him vulnerable. 

As usual, Victor desperately hopes that one day his Father would finally acknowledge him as a son, not as his Prince. 

-

Time tend to leave its mark differently on each species.

For creatures with a set of years as flimsy as a lit candle’s flame, humans are creatures who bear the passing of time with a passionate vigor. Time is likened to fireworks; beautiful, bright but only for a short moment. 

For Ace, however, time is a constant remainder that he had failed his best friend. Being vulnerable in Night Raven College is a sure way to be taken advantage off and Ace is never known as anything but his brutal honestly, mischievous streaks and habits of getting himself (and others) into trouble. 

But when the headmaster announced that he couldn’t find MC anywhere the day after their senior’s graduation, was the moment that he, Deuce and Grim completely lose their composure. Deuce was too shocked to say anything while Ace couldn’t stop screaming alongside Grim. 

She couldn’t have just vanish! People don’t work like that! 

And even if she finally somehow found a way back to her world, she wouldn’t just leave without saying goodbye! 

Ace hated himself as that moment. If only he texted them the night before. Why didn’t he? They usually send stupid texts to one another! If only he kept a closer eye on them. If only she kept Grim close to her. 

For once, the headmaster drop all pretence. For once, his guilt laden answer and heavy sags of his shoulders are genuine. 

MC is gone and he has no idea how or why. But the three of them refused to gave up just like that. Ever since that day, they would do their best to figure out or research about MC’s fate. Jack and Epel, after finding out what happened, did their best to help out too. But days passed without any leads and with heavy hearts, they accepted that their friend is lost to them. 

That was not a good day. 

After Ace and Epel managed to pull Deuce and Jack away from one another (Deuce had completely lost it when the wolf boy reluctantly admit that maybe it was best to stop their research), strangely enough, it was Sebek who finally interjects. 

They need to accept that MC is gone. Even if they could never gain the closure that they desperately want, it’ll be no good to carry this sort of horrible guilt with them forever. With a long sigh, Sebek told them to find peace with it, even if it’s hard. 

Easier said than done. Even now that he’s already an adult and have a son, Ace still couldn’t help but wonder what happened to his friend. He hopes that wherever she is, MC is safe and happy. Anything other than that Ace couldn’t bear to think. 

Ace takes out his phone and checks the calendar app. The anniversary of MC’s disappearance is coming. Usually, Ace would cook MC’s favourite food in honour of her memory and over the years, he has gotten pretty good at it. Good enough that it also becomes his son’s favourite dish. 

Just as Ace was about to put down his phone and get ready to go out for lunch with his older brother, it suddenly rings.  

The name on his phone surprises him. His son rarely calls him ever since he got accepted to Night Raven College. Something about wanting some independence from his old man that Ace retaliates by ruffling his hair because of his boy’s cheekiness. 

Ace press the accept button with a grin, knowing that this is going to be good. “What’s up, kiddo? Finally admit that you miss your old man?” 

He expects a scoff, maybe a reluctant admittance, hell even his son’s rare bout of innocent honesty. What Ace didn’t expect however, is hearing his son’s frightened shriek.

“Dad! You knew a MC/S before right!? Please tell me you know what to do when she went batshit insane!” 

“Whoa, whoa, slow down! What are you talking about? I can barely hear you!” 

Ace impatiently wait while pressing the phone close to his ear as he hear his son rapidly talking to someone, shouting apologies and heavy breaths as if he’s currently running. 

“Oh Sweet Seven, ok, I think we managed to hide from her.” His son panted. “Yeah, so, I might have, uh accidentally threw my food tray all over this girl and she immediately went supernova. We barely managed to dodge her fireballs!” 

Suddenly, Ace felt his heart drop. “Girl? What girl? Night Raven College is an all-boys’ school.” He heard himself reply. Absentmindedly, his mind brought up the memories of his Entrance Ceremony, years ago. Of a girl that looked so lost in her robes as she stood in front of the Mirror of Darkness. 

“Renata MC/S. She’s the only girl that ended up a student here. I remembered that you had a friend with that surname so I thought she might be related.” 

At that moment, Ace choose to believe it. It’s way too coincidental for it not be. A girl that shares his lost best friend’s surname who also just happend to be the only girl to be accepted in Night Raven College? 

But what Ace doesn’t understand is his son’s comment about the girl throwing fireballs. MC doesn’t have magic. So what’s going on? 

“Hmm, I usually gave her some space before I apologised to her. And a little bribery never failed too.” Ace advised, recalling how MC reluctantly accepts the candy that he offered after he upsets her. 

“That’s not a bad idea, Dad! Will report back the result if I’m not scorched to death.” Ace’s son dryly answer. Some rustling noises and hush whispers can be heard through the phone before his kid ended the call. 

Ace is already calling Deuce’s number. He needs to know about this. 

-

I hope I managed to did Malleus and Ace justice in writing them! I’ll get better with writing the rest of the boys once their children are introduce. Because Renata needed friends/allies against Malleus after all~ 

Speaking of Victor, I was really nervous when I was writing him. Here, he’s not all haughty because deep down, all he want is some praises and love from a Father who only see him as something to appease his court. Not a son. Hope I managed to portray that properly! 

(Also, the name of Ace’s son and two others will be reveal in the next oneshot)

[fanfic-she-wrote]

Imagine being the reincarnation of Dracula's long lost love: part 10

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9

Dracula helped you out of the coffin and held you close in his arms, not wanting to ever let you go again.

"Vlad, I was so scared." You told him, pressing your face into his chest.

"Me too." He said, stroking your hair. So he was right after all. You were Maria. You had finally come back to him at last.

You still felt weak and held on to Dracula for support. Not only did you feel weak, but you felt... different. You didn't know what it was, but it was like all your senses were maxed out. It was so overwhelming. There was also this new scent that you discovered. It smelled delicious, but what was it? You wondered looking around trying to find the source.

"What did you mean that you remember everything?" Van Helsing asked, concerned for you.

You faced him, realizing just where that smell was coming from. Your eyes shined bright red, an intense hunger in them...hunger for blood. Normally you would have been repelled by such a thing, but right now you needed it more than ever. Van Helsing watched you nervously as you inched toward him.

"Y/N?" He said nervously backing away, but you did not answer. All you could think about was his blood, the taste of it on your lips. Dracula noticing your odd behavior, grabbed you by your shoulders and held you back. Why? He did not know. He had wanted to kill Van Helsing himself earlier. Perhaps he was trying to prevent you from doing something you would regret.

You squirmed, trying to wriggle free, but Dracula held you firmly in place. "Let me go!" You hissed at him, revealing for the first time your fresh new set of fangs. Van Helsing stared at you wide eyed. What had he done? You were no longer the sweet, brave, and kind Y/N, you were now a monster. He should never have let Dracula turn you. But then you would be dead...looking at you now, maybe it would have been better that way. He just lost it in a moment of grief.

"Calm down, darling." Dracula spoke in a soft voice, trying to soothe you. "You will feed soon, I promise."

Van Helsing glanced up at him. "What do you mean?" 

"She is in a very crucial time right now. She needs to feed." Dracula urgently explained to him.

"So what will you do, go kill another innocent person?" He asked, raising his voice.

"We have no choice."

Van Helsing sighed. "Then she can have some of mine."

"That is not necessary, Doctor Van Helsing." He refused.

"Yes it is. I won't have you or her killing anyone else. I'll run into town and get my supplies. I'll be back soon." He said, buttoning up his coat, turning to leave.

"Henry, take the coach if it's still there and take him home." Dracula ordered. Henry nodded and promptly followed Van Helsing out.

A few minutes later the tapping of horseshoes against the ground could be heard as they disappeared into the night leaving you and Dracula alone. You closed your eyes and let out a long sigh, then looked up at him.

"Is that what it's like for you all the time?" You asked, now realizing how difficult life was for him. How tempting it was to feed on human blood. Even now with no mortals around, you desired it. Dracula simply nodded. "It's horrible...I can't believe I wanted to...to..." You winced at the thought of hurting, maybe even killing Lawrence. He wrapped his arm around your shoulder and held you close.

"Come, let's wait for them upstairs." Dracula said, guiding you from the dungeons and up the stairs. When you reached the entry hall your mouth fell open in shock. This was the first time you had seen the castle in ruins. You felt a very intense anger. How dare the townspeople do this to your home, to Dracula's home!

"What do we do Vlad?" You ask, looking around. He squeezed your shoulder and replied, "We'll find some place else. Anywhere is home as long as I have you."

As you waited for Van Helsing to return, your mind wandered. You thought about how strange fate was. In your previous life you were married to Dracula and Van Helsing was his power hungry step-brother who killed you. In this life you were Van Helsing's friend who ultimately reunited you with your lover.

"What's wrong?" Dracula asked, noticing how quiet you had become.

"I was just thinking. What happened after...after I died all those years ago?" You asked. Dracula knew this question was inevitable now.

"Well, Van Helsing fled and joined the Turks. Soon after, we went to war and I was killed during one of the battles. As I lay there dying from my wounds, the devil appeared to me. I sold my soul and in return I would have my revenge on the Van Helsings." He told you.

"That's when you became one of the living dead?" You asked. He nodded. "But Lawrence doesn't know about any of that. He told me he wanted to get rid of you because he thought you were a threat to humanity."

"He's right. I am." He admitted. "I didn't care how many lives I took. How much blood I spilled. None of them mattered as long as I didn't have you. I was just as ruthless in life as I am in death."

"And now?"

He paused for a moment, thinking. "I don't know..."

Suddenly, from out of the wreckage you heard some rustling followed by a series of painful moans. Dracula pushed you behind him ready to attack whatever it was. From beneath the debris, a man crawled out. He was covered in dirt and blood, the smell instantly flooded your nostrils. "H-help me..." The man pleaded as he slowly pulled himself across the floor. Dracula looked over at you and saw the hunger return in your eyes and how you licked your lips, desperate for just a little taste. He didn't want to admit how turned on he was by this. He smiled and stepped aside, letting you pass. He wasn't about to let you miss out on your first meal.

Your eyes were fixed on the man before you, like a predator staring down it's prey, waiting for the right moment to pounce.

"I'll help you." You lied, your voice sounding menacing.

"Oh, thank you I-" He peered up at you and saw what you had become and let out a blood curdling scream. "Nonnnoo! Please!" He cried, cowering away, but you didn't hear him. You were focused on one thing. You grabbed him by his collar and lifted him off the ground making him eye-level with you. You hesitated for a moment. You knew you shouldnt. That this was bad, but he did try to kill you and your love after all. He deserved it. Your mouth was practically watering as the sound of his pulse pounded against your eardrums. Dracula stood behind you and whispered in your ear, "Do it." Before the man could utter another plea for mercy, you sunk your fangs deep into his neck. His blood dripped down your lips and chin as you sucked every last drop from his body. Dracula wanted you now more than ever. You moaned and threw your head back enjoying the taste of blood as it ran down your throat. Once you were finished, you tossed the corpse back into the rubble he crawled out of.

"How do you feel now?" Dracula asked, eyeing you lustfully. You grinned at him. "Much better, darling." You answered in a husky voice, running your finger under his chin. Unable to resist you a moment longer, he twirled you around and pressed you flush against him. Leaning down he licked some of the blood from your lips, then he roughly pressed his mouth on yours. He could still taste the blood as he slipped his tongue inside. It drove him mad. You couldn't help but let out a moan when he suddenly nipped your bottom lip as he pulled away. You both stared longingly into each other's eyes for what felt like an eternity.

You went to kiss him again, but were interupted when Henry and Van Helsing returned.

"Y/N! What have you done?!" He exclaimed noticing the fresh blood around your lips, running towards you. He looked down at the man's lifeless body, a horrified expression on his face. "You killed him..."

"What of it?" Dracula sneered.

"Don't you understand? She killed an innocent man!" He yelled.

"He wasn't so innocent when he tried to kill us." You quickly pointed out.

"Y/N, why? I thought you were better than this." 

"I guess I'm not who you thought I was." You said coldly. Van Helsing felt his heart break again at how much you changed. He wanted to take you far away from here, far away from Dracula. To try to find a way to get his Y/N back. He'd rather you be dead than live out eternity like this...Van Helsing sighed. He had no other choice. He had to kill you and Dracula before it was too late.

"I guess not." He agreed. "There's nothing more I can do if this is the life you've chosen. I'm leaving for London tomorrow." Dracula eyed him suspiciously. Was he really willing to just leave you alone? To just ignore the fact that you might kill again. Did he really care for you that much?

"Will I ever see you again?" You asked, still wishing to remain friends. Even though his ancestor had murdered you in your past life you didn't hold it against Lawrence. He was different.

"No, I don't think so." He replied, looking away.

"I'm sorry to hear that." You said sadly, but you understood.

"I am as well." Van Helsing said. You pulled away from Dracula and went over to your friend, pulling him into a hug. Why did you have to do that? He thought. It only made things more difficult for him. He knew the real you was still in there somewhere, but the vampire took her place leaving a shell of what you once were. You placed a quick peck on his cheek and backed away.

"Goodbye, Y/N." He said, knowing that this was the last time he was going to see you alive, knowing that when the sun came up it was up to him to end your damned existence. He turned and left without another word.

Dracula felt your distress and wrapped you in his arms in a comforting embrace. It was getting close to dawn now. He needed to find you a coffin before daylight broke. So, after he knew you were alright he left with Henry to the local cemetery to find you a coffin.

You wandered the castle ruins thinking about Lawrence. He had been your only friend in the world till now. No one else had stopped to give you a second thought, but he did. He was there for you when no one else was. At one point before you came to Transylvania, you thought you loved him, but he was too involved in his work. His work was his ultimate passion, and you knew you couldn't compete, so you never did. You sometimes wondered what it would be like if you had chosen a life with Van Helsing. Would you be a silly little domestic couple with a house and kids? It was an amusing thought, but neither of you were the type.

Finally, Dracula and Henry returned a little while later carrying a coffin. It wasnt anything fancy, but it would do. Perhaps later, you could get a better one. Sunlight started peeking in through the windows as they hurriedly carried it into the dungeons, placing your coffin beside Dracula's.

"Too bad they don't make couple's coffins." You joked.

"Maybe we could have one made." He teased, kissing your neck where he had bitten you, making you shudder. "I love you." You said softly running your fingers through his hair.

"I love you too." It was so pleasant to hear him utter those words. You wanted to hear him say it again and again.

"Sleep well, darling." You said with a yawn, as you lay down suddenly feeling tired. You took one last look at him before shutting the lid. This wasn't an ideal lifestyle, but you loved him and that's all that mattered.

The sun rose into the sky and the birds began to sing their morning song. It would have been a beautiful day if it not had been for the task that Van Helsing had set out to do. He crept back inside the castle, bag in hand, being careful not wanting to draw attention to himself. He stood in the doorway to the dungeons, contemplating his next move. His chest was heavy as the thought about driving a stake into your heart. But he had to do it. He slowly opened the door and walked inside, and down the flight of stairs to the room where Dracula's coffin had been earlier. Now he noticed, that there were two coffins lying side by side, one belonging to you.

He reached inside his bag and pulled out a hammer and a couple of stakes. Van Helsing strode over to your coffin and pulled open the lid. Inside, you lay looking peaceful and content, a small smile on your face. If only it didn't have to be this way...

He pressed the stake between your breasts and raised the hammer high into the air, ready to strike. But he couldn't. The longer he stared down into your beautiful face, the harder it became to do it. He closed his eyes. Maybe if he didn't look at you...But he just couldnt. Why was this so difficult?

Suddenly, a voice shouted out behind him startling him. "Hey! What are you doing?!" Henry shouted, running at him, tackling him to the ground.

"Stop!" Lawrence yelled, shoving Henry off of him. Not listening, Henry raised his fist and slammed it into the side of Van Helsing's face, quickly tearing the stake and hammer out of his grasp.

He shook his head, feeling dazed for a moment.

"How could you do that?! I thought you wanted her alive?!" Henry asked throwing away his weapons across the room.

"I did, but after seeing what she has become I couldnt let her live like that...but I can't do it. I can't release her from this curse....It's all my fault." Van Helsing sobbed, his head throbbing. This is why he never let anyone get close to him in the first place. He had only himself to blame for this. There had to be another way and he was going to find it by any means necessary.

[strawbabysimp]

Adult Trio as Yanderes HCs

Chrollo

He's so lonely traveling around for jobs, it's an unstable life and he doesn't have any real motivation for doing what he does. But you? You were so interesting. He made obtaining you a sort of game, except this was a far more exhilarating game than he'd ever played before. It was a new sort of mission that required a different way of going about things and that sparked something in him. Something he had been missing and craving this entire time unknowingly.

You quickly became friends with the new charming man in town, he asked you out a few times and it was all going well. He brought you flowers and candies, showering you in expensive gifts that you didn't have to even do anything special to receive. You said he didn't have to do these things but he made it clear he was glad to do it.

It's a very gradual progression as he gets more and more possessive. He'll want you to wear everything he's given you, especially when you go out in public. The way he turns your head to meet his gaze even when you two aren't talking, as if your attention had to be directed at him for fear that your outside surroundings would somehow taint you.

When you bring up cutting your hair differently or trying a new look he's quick to panic, telling you in a breathy voice that that was a horrible idea and you were perfect just as you are. He wants to keep you the same as you've always been since he first met you, only allowing you to change to his wishes, never your own.

"You belong to me just as you are. Nothing will change that. I won't allow it to." His gaze is gentle but his words held an unspoken threat that both of you were very aware of. You were his rock. The only constant in his life and after gaining such a thing he would destroy anything that could possibly take that away.

You come along with him for all his jobs, no point fighting someone when there was no chance of getting away. You had to admit the life was somewhat entrancing; traveling around with a man quick to give you anything you so desired, only having eyes for you, a precious gift. He's never cruel, always so tentative, the darkness only fills his aura when directed at others for you could never do wrong in his eyes. The world was what was corrupt and ever-changing. He was a clear example of that.

Hisoka

Hisoka is the king of manipulation and while some part of you respected his skill, when it's directed at you it's an entirely different story. When it happens it just seems like jokes, small things he says that plant these cruel ideas in your mind, and they just keep building up. When you bring up his comments he laughs you off, saying if you are overthinking things perhaps there is a good reason for it. That was the start of it all.

Your idea of your friends was tainted, the way they smiled at you became a reminder of the horrible things Hisoka said a smile could hide. Your own family made you doubt your worth, thinking you'd never reach their standards. When you walked with Hisoka those harsh thoughts remained in your head but the presence of the magician made you happy, the way he had said you were perfect for him and that he didn't have expectations for you. He simply wanted you and everything you were willing to give. Only he didn't tell you he would have you give everything you had to offer and make it seem as if it was all your own choice.

You went on about your insecurities, voicing the fact that the world could be such a confusing and unfair place. It made him angry. The card would slip from his fingertips, blood rushing to the surface of your skin as the sharpened edge brought about a twinge of pain. Your eyes widen but a guilt fills your stomach. Hisoka had said you were perfect so why did he hurt you? He remains quiet as he walks towards you but his calm demeanor does nothing to calm your nerves. He explains in the sweetest voice a blood-thirsty man could provide - which was the equivalent of honey in vocal form for this gifted performer - that he was not mad at you but your words. To stop putting yourself down and instead direct your hate at the world. Your mind quickly twists things, Hisoka seeming to have had a sweet reaction. He wasn't mad at you. He loved you. He just wanted you to be happy and the fact you weren't stirred something in him. He cared and the world didn't.

He shows you off to the crowds like you're some divine thing. Something to be proud of. You're happy and he gives you a tender smile whenever he finds you in the stands of the arena. He'll dedicate the following bloodshed to you and call out in your direction his words of dedication. It was violent yet loving, a perfect description of the man who you cared for.

The death didn't stop at the stage, however. You'd find him coming home with clothes stained red from a person he never tells you the name of, going on about how he loves you so much sometimes he just can't help but express it. How he makes the last words those people mutter be your name as blood spills from their lips. You grimace. This isn't what you wanted. But what can you do? He loves you.

He lets you go out on your own, knowing you'll always come back. If you don't? That's not even a possibility at this point. Everything you are is his. You placed the very value of your existence in this beautiful man and he eats it up greedily. Without you, he'd starve. You didn't want to be cruel after he helped you accept the world as it is and yourself. The killing never stops but you do learn to accept it. Eventually, a smile finds its way onto your face as he drags a bloody finger across your cheek, leaving a red streak he kisses gently before dragging you to the shower to wash up with him. If the world is already cruel then isn't he just a byproduct? An adapter? Simply someone who has learned to love in a place where even love can't remain untarnished?

Illumi

You're getting kidnapped right off the bat. This man takes you the second he finds any sort of special interest in you as a person. He has this urge to protect you, the same as his own blood, that's not something he can just ignore. He won't be like his father. He won't allow you to rebel against his wishes or run off with another. He'll keep you to himself until you yearn for nothing more. Your cries fall on deaf ears as he looks on at you emotionlessly. This is for the best.

You'll be walking one day, there won't be many people around or none at all, and then he'll just appear. You hadn't met him before, he had wanted to study you to see if the two of you were compatible before he actually moved forward with his plans. One moment he's standing before you and the next you're out cold, a needle placed perfectly in your neck causing you to fall limp in his hold. He cradles you gently against him as he quickly makes his way to a secure home for the two of you. He wouldn't allow his family to have a taste of you. He didn't need their help. They always failed it seemed and he wouldn't have you suffer the same fate.

You wake up in a home straight out of your wildest dreams. You think you're still asleep as you first take in your surroundings. It's simply perfect. Your dream room. Your feet find the floor and as you put yourself upright a voice calls out to you asking if this setup pleases you or if you'd like something different. You're stunned and the ground beneath your feet suddenly feels all too real. The long-haired man comes to face you, his speed inhuman as he soon stands before you. You're scared and you're confused but the night before comes back to you and the explanation is clear. This man had taken you and it doesn't seem as if it had been the first time he laid eyes on you.

As time goes by he stays at your side, quietly observing you as you go about your day in the confines of the home. You'll walk to one room only to turn around and find him relaxed in a different spot only a few feet away. You were never out of his sight. You began to become curious about his intentions, why he was acting so nice - albeit a bit creepy - after taking you away like this. "My parents attempted to make the perfect family through what most would deem as cruelty. It didn't work out in their favor. I thought I had turned out quite nicely but they did not think the same. The closest thing to perfection for them is my brother but even he is not right yet. They treated him far... kinder than me you could say. Perhaps if I treat you even better you will be good for me."

With no way to escape, having witnessed this man's own abilities the first day of your "stay," you adapted to the situation. Becoming docile yet not overly submissive. You were still you and it seemed he was content with your occasional minor defiance and own personal wants or needs. It seemed he only wanted your presence and something about that was far easier to accept. He doesn't force you to do anything but rather encourages your interests and even becomes curious about them himself. While he wasn't much one to talk in the beginning he became more comfortable in your presence. You both had to adjust to the other despite him being the one in control of the situation.

Being with him is a reassuring thing, the little gleam in his eyes as you show him something new or express your gratitude over something he does/brings you has your heart beating loudly in your chest. You had begun to care for him. You missed the world and the new adventures and life you used to live but there was no fighting to be done. You knew what the result would be. In the back of your mind you knew this was wrong and an inhumane thing to do to another person but he seemed so tender with you. You watched him grow into himself and what's wrong with making the best out of a bad situation?

[perthshirecottage]

I have been rewatching Deception lately and I forgot how amazing this show is! Seriously you should watch it. And I have so many thoughts! There are spoilers below.

So one of the things I don’t get is why everyone in the FBI is so distrustful of Jonathan. I mean I get that he is a convicted felon but like, it was for involuntary manslaughter. Which isn’t good but the word involuntary is also in the literal name of the crime. It means he did something reckless and person died and he is being punished for his stupidity but he also didn’t kill a woman on purpose?! And yes after the crash he ran. But they don’t act like there was a massive manhunt so it was more of a run in the moment panic but he also let himself get caught even though he is a master of disguise? Which could also be attributed to not wanting Cameron to go to jail for his mistakes because I doubt that the first thing the cops did after Cam said the man in the photo was his brother that they let Cameron go with a pat on the back. Cameron was probably brought in for questioning and would have been convicted if Jonathan hadn’t turned himself in to corroborate the story. So while he ran he did still make sure another innocent man didn’t take the fall for a crime that neither of them committed. But when Jonathan is let out of jail to help save Cameron Deakins and even Kay act like Jonathan is some master criminal who can’t be trusted in the slightest. Again it isn’t like it was purposeful and premeditated murder. It was literally an accident and is even how he was convicted. As in causing an accident in which a person died! And if the argument is that well of course he is bad he has been hiding his existence for 30 years...well, so has Cameron! And Dina and Jordan and Gunter! But they can be trusted. They also lied! I will come back to this in a minute.

Why is the FBI so mistrustful. Especially once they have evidence that maybe Jonathan isn’t making it up and is actually innocent. I can actually get on board with Deakins’ not trusting Jonathan. She doesn’t know him beyond‘convinced criminal bad’. But Kay believes Cameron when he says his brother was set up. She knows that she is getting an innocent man out of jail to help find his missing brother. And yet Jonathan is treated like a low life scum bag. Mike is just as distrustful but he also has personal issues with Jonathan so...and yet Mike treats Jonathan the best because he doesn’t actually think sending Jonathan back to jail is the right move because he knows he can help find Cameron. Mike even takes Jonathan back to the Archive to say goodbye to Dina despite the fact that Mike can’t stand him. Mike’s issues are purely personal and have nothing to do with Jonathan’s conviction and yet Mike puts aside those personal feelings. Mike has my respect for that.

It does make me wonder though why Jonathan isn’t allowed to benefit from this deal with the FBI. There are people who have done truly heinous things. People who murdered dozens of people and sold drugs and done a lot of horrible things and yet are allowed to go into witnesses protection or have lighter sentences in exchange for turning in people who are actually worse than them! And yet Jonathan who accidentally (again that is his legal conviction!) killed someone isn’t given any sort of incentive? In Escapology Kay straight up says that Cameron needs to be careful about having Jonathan ask questions in prison because people won’t be happy to find out that he is helping the FBI. So Jonathan is helping the FBI, is basically a criminal informant and is risking his own life to save a woman’s life and yet is not allowed to get some time knocked off his sentence. If he is helping the FBI why can’t Jonathan be allowed to go under house arrest instead? That way he can help while not being in prison and can a little more comfortable for his incarceration? Why can’t he get some time off his sentence for community service? The FBI wants to take and take from a guy who isn’t the worst criminal out there and yet despite all the help he has freely offered with nothing in return they act like he is the lowest of the lowest. Like if he was given the chance to run he would and he would gladly leave his brother to who knows what kind of fate. And in a moment of adrenaline and weakness where Jonathan pointed a gun at a woman (which he didn’t fire!) it confirms all their suspicious that he deserves to be labeled a criminal. Again, this is coming from Kay who says that she believes that he is innocent. Kay even made sure that MW was caught on camera because she believes that MW is the real criminal. I don’t get why Jonathan is given the short end of every stick and treated so terribly because he made one mistake. Even for the people who believe he caused that accident. No wonder Jonathan snaps at the end of the season. The FBI wants to treat him the worst bad guy, then fine he’s the bad guy. And unfortunately Cameron is the face the FBI sends in to talk to Jonathan for help and so Cameron gets the brunt of that anger.

And now back to the secret that has been kept for 30 years. Why is Cameron the scape goat for being the one to keep Jonathan trapped when there were 3 other people who knew? At least Cameron and Jonathan have the excuse of having an abusive father who pounded it into their heads that Jonathan must remain secret and I’m sure there is some leftover mental scaring which is part of what kept both of them in the cycle of keeping Jonathan secret even after their dad died. It’s the only kind of life either of them had ever known and it must have been terrifying to think about breaking out of that. And what is the crew’s excuse. They were all fully adults when they found out and none of them helped the twins get out of that toxic mindset because it does make a really cool show. Dina dated Jonathan and obviously liked him but she wasn’t any more willing to help Jonathan step out of the shadows than anyone else.

Why is Cameron blamed so heavily for Jonathan’s life being miserable? I mean think about it. Sebastian is obviously the one who started the whole mess and is truly to blame for everything. Cameron and Jonathan were just kids forced to do their dad’s bidding. Then after they became adults neither of the brothers revealed that there were two of them. Jonathan was legally an adult when their dad died. Why couldn’t Jonathan say screw the show and walk out on stage with Cameron and reveal the truth? No one was stopping him. And you can’t tell me that if Jonathan really and truly wanted out that Cameron wouldn’t have made it happen. Cameron spent a year of his life ruining his own career and driving himself crazy trying to find proof of his brother’s innocence long before meeting the FBI. Cameron refused to do anything to better his own life until he saved Jonathan. Cameron loves his brother more than anything and it’s so obvious. Cameron even turns his back on Kay, a woman he is starting to fall in love with. Cameron decided to become a criminal and go on the run because he loves his brother. Cameron would give his own life if it meant his brother could be free. Everything Cameron does is for his brother. And yes, Cameron didn’t steal the diamond but letting an innocent woman get in trouble for his own crime isn’t that crazy of a line to not want to cross. Cameron knows intimately what it’s like to feel guilty for an innocent person losing everything because of his own perceived mistakes. But when it’s just Cameron’s life on the line he is all in.

When I think about Jonathan wanting to end the charade I imagine the conversation going like this:

Jonathan: I want out.

Cameron: but we could do such a cool show.

Jonathan hesitating for a couple of seconds: ok.

I don’t think Jonathan put up that big of a fight. If he had made it clear that he wanted nothing more than to get out Cameron would have let him! Jonathan gave in easily and let himself stay there because it was easier than dealing with the consequences of actually going through with it. Again that mental scaring coming into play. Jonathan has only been known as himself by a very very small number of people. Everyone else in the world knows him as Cameron. So he is probably scared of what would happen if he were to reveal himself. He knows everyone loves Cameron but would people actually accept Jonathan? What if the answer is no? What if everyone is disappointed to find out that Cameron has a brother? What if Cameron is accepted and Jonathan is rejected? Would Cameron continue living his life and Jonathan would be forced out and stuck watching his brother from afar and wind up completely and totally alone? So Jonathan stays.

And Cameron loves his brother and knows his brother is amazing. What happens if people discover Jonathan and they all realize how amazing Cameron already knows he is? Will Cameron lose his brother? Will Jonathan realize there are people out there who are better than Cameron? And since Jonathan isn’t forced to spend time with only Cameron will he leave? Cameron couldn’t be truly known any better than Jonathan. Despite having a ‘life’ Cameron was just as trapped and isolated by this secret as Jonathan. Cameron lost a woman he loved because he couldn’t tell her he had a twin and so was accused of cheating because no one thought he should be allowed to trust her with something that important. I think the psychological toll this whole act took has been affecting the twins their whole life. It’s just that when the truth came out it was way worse than either ever imagined.

Again the crew sees themselves as family but they never did anything to encourage the twins to reveal the truth. I’m sure they heard Jonathan express his desire to stop hiding at some point. And none of them advocated for him. None of them helped the brothers to see that their life was actually messed up and that they both needed help. They saw Cameron devastated over his breakup because of this secret and they never said ‘hey, maybe it’s time you were both allowed to have a full life?’ Jonathan was able to actually maintain a relationship unlike Cameron because Dina was aware of both brothers and he didn’t have to hide from her. Jonathan screwed that up all on his own. Because at the end of the day Jonathan and Cameron were both victims of Sebastian’s terrible parenting.

This show has so much going for. I will be forever disappointed it never got the second season it deserves!

[malethirsty]

Loyalty - Alaric Saltzman

Summary: In a time of despair for the former Hybrid host, Klaus decides to have some fun with him, which leads a darker Alaric to ravage you, one beyond control. 

Warnings: M/M smut (21+), Bareback (Wrap Before You Tap!), Daddy Kink, 

Inspired by: https://twitter.com/MaleThirst/status/1202936339643023360

Whilst you had been living it up between Klaus, Tyler, Stefan & Marcel, things had fallen apart back in Mystic Falls. Damon in his alcoholic mess of a state, had sipped on the wine at the Mikaelson Ball and after Esther followed through with staking Finn, he of them bit the dust. Elena & Jeremy were furious and had used Bonnie’s magic to track you to New Orleans, if only they’d known what happened to witches there. Having informed Marcel of Elena’s judgemental behaviour, he had his armed progeny lock her up in the quarter’s dungeons, from the front row seat with Klaus, you saw Jeremy, heartbroken and crying at the sight of Marcel & his allies celebrating his half sister’s fate. You’d feel bad if it wasn’t for how she had you isolated and you were initially relieved that the Gilbert had been dragged away by an eager Kol, catching a few words of what he said as he dragged Jeremy away “Darling stop struggling, you’re gonna love the life I have planned for you.” The relief however was cut short as Kol’s idea of Jeremy’s new life was turning him into a vampire and capitalising on his newfound thirst for blood & sex to start a relationship with his new protege. With newly turned vampires, their need for both was incredibly persistent, and this raised the problem, how were you supposed to do your business with Klaus, Tyler, Stefan & Marcel, when Kol & Jeremy were seemingly attached at the ass every waking moment of the day?

“KEEP IT DOWN!” You yelled down the hall after another fuck with your harem was ruined by persistent loud noise from Kol & Jeremy “Not my fault we’re hot and heavy darling.” Kol sniped back “For Fucks Sake!” You groaned, turning to Klaus, Tyler, Stefan & Marcel, another romantic night ruined. “This is a fucking disaster.” Stefan put simply, “Can’t we do something?” “We can’t exactly ask him to leave.” Tyler pointed out “He’s still Klaus’s brother.” “Well Klaus’s brother is stopping our sex, and I need to fuck Y/N.” “You all do!” You state, trying desperately to stop an argument blowing up “Klaus, do you have any ideas? WITHOUT a White Oak Stake!” You specified, knowing more staking would result in Elijah and Rebekah mutinying. “I do have an idea, but you may not like it.” “At this point, I’m willing to do whatever.” Klaus smirked at your desperation “Y/N, I think it’s time we paid your old crush a visit.” You gulped as Marcel raised his eyebrows to you, intrigued by Klaus’s statement “You sure?” Klaus nodded at your question “It’s time you taught your teacher crush how to worship you like you adored him.” 

Due to Damon death and the sudden disappearance of Elena & Jeremy, Alaric had withdrawn from Mystic Falls & now the lounge of the Gilbert was his domain, sleeping on it almost every night and even for long hours into the day, however today was going to be different for the hunter. Whilst he was in his dreamscape, he heard a voice calling him, “Alaric” it decadently said. “Who’s there?” He responded “Do not be afraid, I have come to offer you what you need: The Gilbert siblings Elena & Jeremy” Alaric looked startled “Where are they, how do you know I need them?” “They’re in New Orleans, kept under lock and key by the Mikaelson empire.” Alaric looked shocked as a “Fuck!” Fell from his mouth “It’s horrible, the sounds that come from the dungeon, lest of all when Kol arrives to see Jeremy! loud cries, lord knows what The Mikaelsons are doing to him!” “You need to take me to him!” Alaric cried out, now starting to panic as the disembodied voice told him of Jeremy’s suffering. Suddenly hands encased him “Calm yourself.” The voice said, moving out of the darkness of Alaric’s head to reveal the speaker: a young woman with chocolate brown hair. “Who are you?” Alaric asked “My name is Davina Claire. I’ve sensed your anguish and have come to save you.” “Like some kind of Fairy Godmother or something?” Alaric questioned, Davina tilting her head “Something like that yes.” At this the hunter began to get nervous “What’s the catch? With your kind there almost always is.” Divina’s head tilted “What’s the matter? Do you always have to think someone has got it out for you? I am merely trying to help, that’s all, nothing else.” Alaric gazed into Davina’s eyes, and finding no trace of malice, let his defences down. “Good, now grip my hands. I will take you safely to New Orleans to free him.” Alaric grabbed onto Davina’s outstretched hands very tightly whilst repeating a vivid incantation. Images began to flash in Alaric’s mind, initially of him and Jeremy, but after a while the images no longer included who he wanted to see. Instead images of beatings, murder, prejudice, expulsion, loneliness, were shown to Alaric, him seeing the events like it was a faded out postcard, Klaus & Y/N eventually melting into these moments, these were their memories. “Let me go!” He growled at Davina attempting to pry his hands away, but they were stuck like glue as Davina repeated her incantation again and again even louder this time. Alaric began to sense what Klaus & Y/N had felt since they had contacted Mikael, Esther, Elena, Damon, Bonnie, Caroline, the angst, the neediness, the anguish, the pain all collided together in one massive hit to the hunter and it filled him with rage, especially knowing he had influenced it “Make it stop! I’ll do anything!” cried Alaric, tears beginning to form, “Anything?” Inquired a familiar voice “Klaus!” Alaric gasped as he turned around to see the grinning hybrid appearing with Y/N, your voice now becoming part of the fray “It’s about time we got on the same level, don’t you think Ric?” 

In Davina’s room, you sat back, watching Davina chant her spell, gripping onto Klaus as he connected outward with Davina, your memories and pain being cast onto Alaric in some type of emotion sharing spell that she had located in her books, whilst you were quiet down in New Orleans, you and Klaus were verbally speaking to Alaric due to the spell, hopefully changing his thoughts on Klaus as a whole. Marcel stood behind Davina, making sure she was safe, as these types of spells take a lot of magic out of a witch, Stefan & Tyler shifted behind Klaus & Y/N, wondering how the spell was going, and if all was working out on getting Alaric to turn sides. They didn’t have long to wait however, soon a swirl of magical energy began in the centre of the room, wind whipping as a miniature looking tornado span out of thin air, yet everyone remained stock still, looking forwards to see Alaric slowly appear in the room. As soon as he became more pronounced, the wind stopped howling, and he appeared in full before everyone. “Y/N?” Alaric searched, and you got up and crossed to him “I’m here Alaric, I’m right here.” Alaric threw his arms around you, hugging you deep, as if to make up for pushing him away after you turned to Klaus. Behind you both, motions continued, Marcel taking Davina back up to her room to properly rest, Stefan & Tyler leaving upon Klaus’s orders to stave off Kol & Jeremy. Soon after everyone had broken away, Alaric let go of you “Y/N is easily happy with a hug but I think I should tell you what I, or rather we” he gestured to you & him “Need from you Alaric. As King of New Orleans, my respect must be earned” Klaus informed him, wanting to test the hunter on his loyalty. Alaric nodded towards the hybrid “What do I have to do?” He asked, to Klaus’s dimply grin “You know what you must do Alaric, I’ve been inside you, I know how much you craved Y/N before I came into the picture, was so hard to control myself and not seduce him for you, have you watch trapped as I exercised the thoughts you stroked yourself to every night, lusting after Y/N like some horny desperate man determined to empty his balls cause his wife left him all alone.” Klaus was standing right in front of Alaric, grin prominent as he controlled the situation, Alaric’s look becoming darker with lust as he took in what Klaus was saying “Follow me Ric” You said, breaking the tension, “We have a lot of catching up to do.” 

Having led him to Klaus’s bedroom and told him to follow where his desires took him, Alaric imparted in you his ideal sexual roleplay, and told you what you needed to do, with Klaus keeping position in a corner, listening out for Kol & Jeremy’s return. Alaric sat down at a desk dragged into the room for him, and wrapped twice on it. Knowing that was your cue to begin, you raised your hand and knocked on the bedroom door “Come in” came Alaric’s voice, and you crossed the threshold with papers “Y/N, what do I owe this visit to?” “Hi Mr. Saltzman, I’m here to drop off my grading papers.” You said, holding up the assorted items in hand, Alaric nodding his head up at you “Ah, set them down on my desk Y/N.” You did so and looked up to catch Alaric’s tired expression, complete with overdramatic huffing “Is something wrong sir?” You asked, him looking back at you “Nothing to be concerned with Y/N, you can go.” But knowing from his briefing that he didn’t want you to leave, you sat down before him “Alaric, you’ve listened to all of my problems and helped me out, the least I can do is the same for you.” Alaric sighed and then said “I’ve been looking for my wife, she ran off a long time ago with some asshole, never told me why, I’ve been trying to track her down and have her at least explain why she left.” You looked sympathetically at him and shortly responded with “Fuck her, any reason she left is shitty, you’re an amazing man Alaric, she was too bound up in her lust for other men to see it.” Alaric looked surprised at you “Why would you say that? You’ve barely known me.” “I know enough of you to know that you are one of the kindest, selfless and hottest men around, anyone would be lucky to have you Alaric, don’t forget that.” Surprised but satisfied at your outburst, Alaric opened his mouth, and then shut it again, processing what he was going to say, eventually settling on “Thank you Y/N, thanks.” You held out your hands to the distressed man and he eventually folded himself into you, hugging tightly, head resting on your neck, you took in the moment, tension simmering but waiting for the right moment to make a move.

As Alaric moved his head to match your eye line so you could gaze clearly into his, aged yet longing in them, and somehow reached the same moment together. You both surged forwards, kissing deeply, you wrapping your hands around Alaric’s neck, soaking in the boldness and warmth of the history buff, him no doubt indulging in the same energy as yourself. Eventually the two of you broke apart, and Alaric looked stated but soon was replaced by a look of shock “I can’t Y/N, you should go.” “Alaric please.” “Y/N go. We can’t work, not like this.” He said in pain, like it was hurting him to release you, the same pain echoing on your face as you slowly turned away, wanting one more glance of the man of your dreams. Eventually you turned around but only made a few steps before you suddenly got turned around, and were met with Alaric again enfolding himself into you, this time leading the kiss. You wrapped your legs around Alaric’s waist this time, as he led you to his desk, depositing you on it as he mapped out your mouth with his tongue, wanting all of you. He soon pulled away with one clear instruction “Take off your clothes.” You rapidly pulled garments off and threw them every which way, your adrenaline peaking once you heard Alaric’s belt clutter as it was disposed of, as you turned back, you saw him removing pants and underwear, his cock springing out, very hard in front of you. You looked up Alaric’s hairy body, falling more in love as you saw your strong man in front of you, all daddyish and seductively horny, a glint of lust in his eyes “Fuck Y/N, on your knees, suck my dick.” The command was short simple and to the point, and as you disappeared from view behind the desk, you took Alaric’s massive cock into your mouth, swallowing him deep. “Oh fuck” He growlishly moaned out “Suck it, like that Y/N, so fucking good for me.” After a while you moved off him, noticing movement behind Alaric and caught a full sight of Klaus across from you both, stroking his cock to the show you & Alaric were putting on. With your confidence growing, you decided to be bolder and so eventually you missed his cock, instead sucking his balls deep, Alaric letting out a lustful cry of “OH” right above you “God Y/N, you’re a fucking master at this, you know every part that aches for you. You’ve been waiting for this haven’t you? wanted me to give into your slutty ways and have you so wantonly and passionately, God damn it Y/N, keep fucking going!” 

You did as he instructed, gripping onto Alaric’s ass for leverage, running your hands down it, also appreciating the hair there as well, Alaric was the daddy type and you were going to relish in the man presented to you. Alaric was right, you’d waited so long, let your thoughts take you to the most horniness of scenarios, and now here was Alaric Saltzman, all for the taking. So indulged were you that you didn’t notice Klaus gripping you and pulling you away from Alaric and straightening you up “I can hear Kol & Jeremy, you better get ready to fuck now.” Taking Klaus’s warning, you knocked the items off the desk as you sprayed across it, Alaric longingly taking in the sight “I guess this is what it all led to, all those long gazes you gave me, the smiles we sent each others way, you improved under my guidance as I cared more and more, and now here we are, about to fuck. Ready for me?” Alaric asked, and you nodded. Lining up his cock with your ass, Alaric thrusted forwards, burying deep as you both let out loud cries of pleasurableness, though in your case pain as you were being stretched out as Alaric became intoxicated by your walls clenching around his cock. “Fuck Y/N, you’re so tight for me, God I’m gonna fucking love this!” He began a smooth pace, getting you used to his length, you looking up at Alaric’s face, utter bliss upon it as he fucked into you. “That’s right Alaric” came Klaus voice “Fuck our Y/N, look at how he’s falling apart for your dick, and this is what you were missing out on whilst you ran off with Elena & her possey.” Alaric growled angrily “Never again, I want you and Y/N right by me.” Klaus appeared behind Alaric, a look of utter lust in his eyes “They’re here, from what I can tell, making out in the hall, now is when we strike.” He gripped both of you and sped you into the wall “Fuck, as loud as you can, let go.” 

It was as if you’d hit a green light and floored the gas, Alaric started to ram in and out as a fast rate, which would alarm any woman he’d fucked before, but you welcomed it with the loudest of moans “Fuck daddy, use me, fuck me hard!” Alaric grinned and grunted as he continued to piston his hips forwards “Fucking tight slut, you wanted this dick, now fucking take it!” All of a sudden, you heard a commotion from the room across from yours, you kept going of course but knew that Kol & Jeremy had heard you both. Having known this could happen, Klaus sped to the door and held it down as it began to buckle forwards from sharp punches on the other side “Niklaus, open this damn door now!” Came Kol’s voice, dripping with anger. “No!” Cried Klaus “You have deprived me of Y/N for far too long Kol, now we’re in control. Y/N is fucking Alaric, and God is it the most erotic thing you’ve ever seen.” Deciding to bury the dagger in deeper you cried out to Kol “Not my fault we’re hot and heavy, darling.” You heard screaming from the other side of the compound which soon vanished, Klaus relaxing from the door “Love, he’s gone, I’m assuming Jeremy ran off, so Kol’s gone to look for him.” You somewhat relaxed, it was understandable, his parental figure was fucking in the room right next to him, of course it would be awkward, but you snapped out of your thoughts as Alaric went deeper, hitting your prostate and making you scream out yourself, only in pleasure instead of pain. “Thank fuck, cause I can’t last much longer” Alaric cried out, “Oh fuck babe, you’re doing so good, daddy’s gonna come soon, so clench around my cock tight!” You did as the older man instructed “How good is it, to take this big dick as a fucking reward for being so good to me?” Alaric questioned “So fucking good Daddy, keep doing it!” Alaric grinned “Of course I will baby, this isn’t going to be a one time fuck, not with this tight fucking hole. Oh fuck, I’m gonna come!” Alaric cried out his blissful release as he shot deep, but somehow kept going, before you realised you had been close but not enough to come at that same moment or before Alaric. No sooner had you thought that, but Alaric fucked in so deep that your tipping orgasm dropped over the edge, you yelling out as you came for Alaric.

You collapsed against each other, sweaty and winded. “Fuck” you got out “I know” grinned Alaric, “Damn Y/N, that was by far the best fuck I’ve ever had.” Knowing you had done better than Isobel, the woman he wifed up built your confidence more, Klaus detecting it, grinned. “You can all come out now.” He said, seemingly to thin air, although you were stunned when Tyler, Stefan & Marcel all popped up out from various spots, Tyler through the door leading to the hallway, Stefan from the wardrobe and Marcel from the landing “That was quite a show” Stefan complimented, “Y/N, you are a fucking hot whore, I’ve missed this side of you” Marcel grinned over at you, “Master, can we?” Tyler said longingly, looking at Klaus for approval. Like a flash, Klaus sped towards you, depriving you of Alaric and flinging you towards the bed, you landing flat. “What the hell?” You shouted, clearly in shock, but your questions were answered before you could ask as a bunch of speedy whirs appeared before you, soon dispelling Klaus, Tyler, Stefan & Marcel as naked as Alaric. “We’ve waited so damn long for this, we’re gonna fuck you so good tonight, so hold on tight love.”

[depressedhatakekakashi]

Red string of fate au with kakagai and yamairu

Maybe their strings are tangled and so they think yamagai and kakairu are their pairs until one day theyre all together and somehow it untangles and everything makes sense and theyre happy

AO3

Kakashi never really understood it, no matter how much Minato-Sensei tried to tell him or how often Gai would say ‘it’s fate. It’s who we’re supposed to end up with’. Having fate tell him who he belonged with didn’t sound fun. 

It only got worse when he actually met the person on the other end of that red string. Not that there was anything wrong with Iruka. It was just that Kakashi never felt those fireworks that Asuma would talk about when he saw Iruka.

There was no desire to get closer, no urge to kiss him.

Iruka was his friend, and no matter how hard he tried to force himself to feel something more it never happened. His heart refused to agree with fate. Kakashi was starting to wonder if he was just broken. If this was another thing in life that seemed so much easier for everyone else.

Then he asked Tenzo about his string one day, while they were out to lunch with Team Kakashi. He didn’t make a habit of asking people about their soulmates. If they had seen who was on the other end of their string, or if the string was even there at all.

He knew too well that it could end poorly. Some people’s soulmates had died long before they found them, others like Genma didn’t have one at all and that was perfectly fine for them.

But when he had asked Tenzo, the Mokuton user got a sad look in his eyes and stared down at his hand. Clearly, there was something there, so why was he upset about it?

“They’re not what I thought they would be,” he explained when Kakashi pushed for more information. “They...I think they’d fit better with someone else.”

He doesn’t bother to ask for a name. That’s Tenzo’s secret to keep.

It’s just something that the two of them will ignore. That’s a good way to deal with a bad hand in fate, he was sure of it.

At least, he was until Gai came bounding up to him one day with the most stunning smile and a terrible idea. 

“A double date?” This sounded like the kind of idea where only terrible things could happen. “You want to go on a double date, with me?”

“Well, sort of,” His heart sank. Why was it that fate told him he was supposed to be with Iruka, but hearing Gai suggest that he was going on a date with anyone other than Kakashi broke his heart? Did other people experience this? Did it hurt this much for them? “You and Iruka will go on a double date with Yamato and Me.”

Tenzo?

Tenzo got to be the lucky one to go on a date with Gai?

How was that fair? Tenzo and Gai were a terrible match-up. Tenzo looked at Iruka with wide happy eyes. He adored Iruka, was always desperate to spend more time with the Acadamy Sensei. 

Why did he get the one person that Kakashi wanted?

“Fine,” pushing his feelings down, he turned his eyes away from Gai. Desperate not to let him see how much his words had hurt. “It can’t be that bad.”

It was going to be horrible. He hated this already.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

All-day Kakashi had been dreading this date. Trying to think up any way he could to get out of it. Maybe he could feign illness, or just tell Gai he had too much paperwork?

If he really needed it to be believable, he could convince Tsunade-Sama to give him some extra work. It had to be better than dragging himself out into a date he didn’t want to be on.

But then he arrived at the shop that Gai had told him they would all meet at, and suddenly things didn’t seem so horrible.

There was Gai, a beautiful smile on his face, and a stunning green Hanfu complimenting his body perfectly. Highlighting his face, showing off his broad shoulders.

It was the most stunning picture Kakashi had ever seen, and his fingers itched to bury themselves into that soft fabric. To hold him close to the man he adored so much.

“Rival!” Those soft cheerful eyes turned to him, brimming with excitement. “Iruka and Yamato are inside waiting for us!”

Iruka, right.

He was here for a date with Iruka. Gai was here for…

Giving his head a shake, he stuffed his hands into his pockets and made his way to Gai’s side. On the bright side, at least he would still be there with Gai.

That was a victory for him.

“How long have you been waiting?” He asked as Gai turned around and led him into the shop. He knows he’s late, but he can’t be fussed to care. Surely Tenzo was enjoying the chance to talk to Iruka himself. He wouldn’t be mad at Kakashi for giving him that extra time, and Iruka’s anger was something he could deal with.

“I told the other two to meet at six,” Gai smiled back at him. “I knew you’d be late for the five o’clock meet-up time I gave you.”

Always thinking ahead. He adored that about Gai.

“Senpai!” Hearing Yamato’s voice calling out to him, Kakashi looked up to see him sitting at a table beside Iruka. The opposite side open and waiting for Kakashi and Gai. “you’re here!”

“I’m not going to leave you to suffer alone, Tenzo,” Kakashi joked, pretending for a moment that he hadn’t been planning to do just that. “You seem to be having fun.”

“Iruka was just telling me about your first meeting,” great. He was already making a bad first impression. “I hope that’s ok.”

“I wouldn’t dream of telling you two what to talk about,” reaching out for his chair, Kakashi blinked when Gai moved in front of him and pulled the seat out for him. “Oh, uh…thanks…”

He wasn’t blushing. He refused to blush.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen your face so red, Kakashi,” Iruka chuckled. “Sit, join us. We don’t bite I promise.”

Dragging his eyes off of Gai, Kakashi took his seat across from Iruka.

“I don’t suppose there’s anything I’m willing to eat here?” He asked, already reaching out for the menu when Iruka snatched it away. “Hey!”

“Gai-San already ordered for you,” the academy Sensei beamed. “He also got some tempura, but he said he’d steal your portion because you have no taste buds.”

That last part was added by Iruka. It had to be. Gai would never say such a thing about him.

“I said he had sensitive tastebuds,” Gai corrected himself, buckling when Kakashi’s head fell forward with an air of defeat lingering around him. “It just means more food for me, Rival. I’ll never complain about that.”

At least Gai got some use out of his picky eating habits.

“Well, we’re all here now,” Iruka smiled. “I guess that means the whole double date starts, right?”

“It does,” resting a hand behind Kakashi’s chair, Gai beamed when the Copy Ninja glanced his way. “I knew you were never going to ask him out yourself, Rival.”

Kakashi longed to scream. To tell Gai that he didn’t want to ask Iruka out. That Iruka was his friend and he valued him, but he didn’t want to date him.

He choked the words back.

Refusing to be the one to ruin everyone else’s night.

“It’s like a knot,” Iruka’s voice caught Kakashi’s attention, pulling him out of his thoughts and towards the spot where Iruka’s eyes were glued.

The middle of the table.

There, between the four of them was a giant knot. A red string tangled between each other.

It was weird. In all of his research about soulmates, Kakashi had never heard of anything like this, and why was it here? Between the four of them.

“I wonder,” tugging his hand back, Tenzo yelped when the ball knot tugged loose. Not falling apart, but becoming smaller. Less complicated. “Is this normal?”

“No one I know has ever had this happen to them,” Iruka grumbled, giving his own string a tug, his eyes scanning towards Kakashi as if he was looking for the other end. For the spot where his string had always connected. “Surely we would have noticed before, right?”

Thinking back, Kakashi frowned

The four of them had never been in the same room together. The most they ever had were three of them at once, so maybe the knot hadn’t shown up because there was a piece missing.

The middle was further away, but now it was here. Right between the four of them.

“What happens if…” testing out his theory, Kakashi reached out towards Iruka’s hand. The knot tugged again as if Kakashi was pulling away from the other side of his string, instead of grabbing towards it. “Huh.”

“What do we do?” Gai looked over at Kakashi for an answer. “Do we just… leave it?”

Thinking quickly, Kakashi smiled.

“Maybe if we each pull away, it’ll come lose," he suggested. “It must have just gotten tangled somehow while you were running around organizing this date.”

It doesn’t make sense, but that has to be it. There’s no other reason he can think of for this to happen.

“On the count of three then,” Gai agreed “we all pull our hand away. Fix this little issue of ours.”

“That sounds good,” Tenzo nodded. “One.”

“Two.” Iruka continued a determined look in his eyes now.

Well, this was the plan, so Kakashi may as well go with it.

“Three,” he pulled his hand back at the same time as everyone else and watch as the knot came unraveled. The two strings breaking free finally and finding their place once again. “Uh…”

Looking at Iruka’s hand, Kakashi followed the string wrapped around his ring finger to the other end.

To Yamato’s hand.

“You…” Tebzo’s eyes shot up to Iruka. “You mean I’m not… Gai-San isn’t…”

Iruka surged forward, wrapping his arms around Tenzo’s neck with a sound of pure joy.

“My soulmate isn’t Kakashi,” He cheered, wincing when he realized who was sitting across from him. “I mean, uh… sorry.”

Giving his head a shake, Kakashi looked down at his own finger.

Iruka wasn’t his soulmate. He wasn’t meant to be with him, or with Tenzo. Which could only mean…

Following the bright red string, he felt a smile pulling at his lips when he found the other end tightly wrapped around a familiar finger. Attached to a hand he had dreamed of having in his hair too many times to count.

That he would give anything to feel against his face.

“Rival,” Gai’s voice is full of excitement when he speaks again, a smile plastered on his face when Kakashi looks up at him. “I…”

“A double date,” Kakashi interrupted him, his heart pounding in his chest. “But I think Iruka’s better off with Yamato, don’t you, Rival?”

Never in his life had Kakashi been so happy he didn’t cancel plans. That he had held out and gone through with Gai’s plans and put himself in a situation he was dreading.

After all, he got to find the truth.

He finally understood why his heart was always set on Gai, and that was worth it all in the end. Just to know that he belonged with Gai.

That fate hadn’t handed him the wrong hand, it just decided to mess with him a little

[maxwell-grant]

That time The Shadow kidnapped a guy in order to walk into a death trap in his place, and then tried rescuing the villain from his own death trap while wounded and barely conscious

The Radium Murders is definitely one of the more underrated Shadow novels, even I’ve never quite paid much attention to it recently. It’s one of those novels I’d particularly recommend to those who want to get a solid grip on The Shadow’s characterization. So I’m going to highlight some of my favorite sections of it, such as the part mentioned above. SPOILERS for The Radium Murders, should you decide to read it, which you should.

Context is, The Shadow is investigating an old professor who’s murdering his investors through radium poisoning, and has contacted one of the investors soon to visit him and fall victim. He warns the man repeteadly that he must quickly take his place, but that doesn’t work and said man attacks him.

"What has happened?" he asked. "Nothing about the invention − I mean, nothing has happened to Professor Dorth?" 

"Nothing," replied The Shadow, "except that there will be danger if you visit him. There is no time for lengthy discussion, Mr. Wadsford. I need your full confidence!" 

"Concerning what?" 

"The visit to Dorth's. I intend to go in your place!" 

Wadsford came to his feet, glaring at The Shadow, who was seated in the chair nearest the door. "Professor Dorth warned me of this!" exclaimed Wadsford. "He told me to beware of strangers who might seek facts concerning his invention. If −" 

 "Calm yourself, Mr. Wadsford," interposed The Shadow, his eyes fixed upon the man. "I said before that time was limited. I intend to give instructions, your part is to follow them!"

Wadsford's teeth gritted. Angrily, the man reached for the doorknob. The Shadow extended an intervening hand. He caught Wadsford's forearm in a rigid grip.

"Remain here," ordered The Shadow, "until we have made our arrangements concerning −"

Wadsford interrupted with a sudden action. Twisting, he lunged for The Shadow, trying to thrust back the arm that held him at length. Wadsford's thrust was powerful; he started a shout as he came. The Shadow stopped him short. The gripping hand tightened; it twisted. Wadsford writhed; The Shadow's free hand clapped upon his lips. 

With a shove, The Shadow sent his attacker half across the drawing−room, then used Wadsford's own weight to pull himself to his feet. Clamping his forearm about the man's neck, The Shadow added a quick choke that dropped the fellow limply into a chair. Wadsford gasped helplessly; he was dazed by the jujitsu thrust. 

The Shadow clamped the man's hands behind him; bound them with a leather thong, that he had carried on this expedition in case of trouble with Dorth's dead servant, Tardon. He used Wadsford's handkerchief to gag the man. Another strip of leather took care of Wadsford's ankles. It was swift work; and with double reason. 

Wadsford was recovering by the time The Shadow completed the task; moreover, The Shadow had much to do within the coming minutes.

And then, he succeeds in quieting the man by reenacting a scene straight out of a horror movie, where he proceeds to shape his face into the man’s own right in front of him. Which does the trick in regards to scaring him into sitting down quietly.

The Shadow had dropped his cloak upon a chair, with the bulky objects beneath it. Staring with wide−opened eyes, Wadsford saw him lift the cloak and lay aside a brace of automatics. He watched The Shadow pick up a flat box, which proved to be a make−up kit. Propping Wadsford back against a chair, The Shadow rested the make−up box in his own lap. Eyeing a mirror, looking beyond it, he began a facial transformation.

Steadily, carefully, he bulged the contour of his forehead; squared his jaw; added a putty−like substance to his cheeks. It required longer for The Shadow to shape his nose like Wadsford's. Then, with a warning whisper, he leaned across and pulled the gag from Wadsford's teeth.

The prisoner made no outcry. He was as awed as he was helpless. The Shadow studied Wadsford's lips; tightened the gag between the man's teeth; went on to complete his make−up.

As a final touch, he took a shell−gold tooth from his make−up kit and fitted it over one of his own bicuspids, to match a gold tooth that glittered from Wadsford's own mouth.

Packing his make−up kit, The Shadow followed with a careful search of Wadsford's pockets. He found various items that he wanted, including Wadsford's Pullman ticket stub. Rising, The Shadow picked up his various belongings, turned out the drawing−room lights and opened the door.

He saw the porter sitting idly at the front of the car; the attendant was the only person faced in The Shadow's direction. A moment later, the porter dozed. The Shadow stepped from the drawing−room and closed the door behind him.

And then, as he predicted, the villains proceed to try and trap him. Most would expect this to be the point where The Shadow breaks out into a storm of cackling violence against them, and they definitely deserve it by this point. But that’s not how the pulp Shadow works. Because there are very hard lines that The Shadow respects when it’s time to decide to take a life. One of those being, he will only address deadly force towards murderers. He offers one of the villains, a swindler involved in the professor’s schemes, a chance, and he’s willing to throw his life on the line to see if he takes it, and of course put on a very convincing act to do it.

At any instant, he could have ended this farce; sudden blasts through the leather would have dropped Jadway before the plotter could fire.

Such action would have left Dorth and Van Bryck dumbfounded, easy prey for The Shadow. Nevertheless, The Shadow desisted from the move. He was willing to continue his part as Price Wadsford for a while longer. 

The Shadow had given Jadway a chance to play square. The crook had not taken it. Therefore, Jadway deserved the same fate as Dorth and Van Bryck.

Yet The Shadow was giving him the absolute limit, to see if he wavered at the sight of an innocent man going to doom. It was only one chance in a thousand that Jadway would do so; yet until the swindler had actually participated in a move of murder, The Shadow intended to let him live.

Mechanically, his lips wavering piteously, The Shadow moved back into the horror cell, still clutching his briefcase and the gun within it. Jadway snapped an order to Dorth:

"Close him in!"

It was the verdict for death. It marked Jadway as a murderer. Dorth pressed the switch; the wall turned and the opening was closed.

As the window holes went by, Jadway saw the terrified face of Wadsford; the victim appeared too scared to move. Jadway laughed gloatingly at the view.

And even later, when he breaks out of the trap and the novel’s ending on a gunfight, and the professor is the only one left and he is about to suffer the karmic death that befalls the usual Shadow villains, The Shadow even tries to rescue him, to spare him the cruelty he so gleefully inflicted on others (including The Shadow and Harry Vincent prior), and is stopped from doing so because he’s bleeding out and losing consciousness and barely able to move in a spinning room.

The Shadow, wounded, would seek refuge. His only place would be the horror cell. That would afford him as good a barrier as the desk which served Dorth. If The Shadow entered the cell again, there would be a chance to trick him − so Dorth reasoned.

Even while the room revolved, The Shadow acted in a manner that made Dorth chuckle. He seemed to be taking the bait; with backward crawl, he was moving toward the opening that would soon be the entrance to the cell of doom. When the room stopped, The Shadow was but a few feet from the opening. He made a final effort; then slumped and flattened on the floor.

The Shadow lay silent, his arms obscured beneath his cloak. Dorth thought that he lacked effort to move farther. With a fiendish chuckle, Dorth pounced out from the desk; bounded forward, aiming as he came. As Dorth pressed the trigger for the first, a report sounded from the folds of The Shadow's cloak. A flash from a revolver muzzle ripped straight for Dorth's body. Dorth had taken the bait; not The Shadow.

Staggering wildly, Dorth lost his gun; he clamped both hands to his body and reeled forward, blindly. He stumbled upon The Shadow; lost his footing and pitched headlong, straight through the opening into the crackling cell.As he writhed upon the floor, Dorth realized where he was. Screaming, he tried to gain his feet; he failed.

He saw Dorth claw the sides of the cell; then sag. The murderer was withering under the devastating rays of his own death device. The cell had reached its fury point, wherein a single minute would suffice for death to overwhelm an unfortunate occupant. 

The Shadow was rising; he steadied and turned toward the cell. Though Dorth deserved death, The Shadow had no desire to see him suffer so horrible a fate, even though it was the sort of retribution that belonged to the old professor.

The Shadow stepped toward the cell; then wavered. His wound had brought a loss of blood; he was too weak for heavy effort.

Clutching the wall of the room, The Shadow tried to steady. He heard Dorth utter a last gasped scream; saw the murderer stretch upon the floor of the cell. 

Hardly had Dorth's fate been settled before a click sounded; the glaring ceiling light faded; the floor sagged downward. Dorth's body slid through the trap; passing from The Shadow's view, it dropped to its final resting place. A crash told that the old professor had landed among the bones of his own victims.

[hellowkatey]

Febuwhump Day 11

Prompt: Hallucinations

Warnings: illicit drug and alcohol use

Read on AO3

I Carry On

In her defense, Ahsoka literally just left the Jedi Order. Like, hours before walked down the steps of the Temple, leaving her Master standing there looking as though he had been punched in the gut. She took no pleasure in his disappointment, but she knew she had to leave.

Ahsoka just wasn't sure where to go.

Her whole life has been spent either in that Temple or on a Star Destroyer in the middle of a galactic war. Not exactly the usual upbringing. As she walked through the streets of Coruscant, stripped of her lightsaber and her identity, Ahsoka had the overwhelming desire to buy a blaster.

Apparently, it is difficult to be a seventeen-year-old girl and buy a blaster. Legally, at least.

Which is how she ended up a few levels lower than she has ever been. Which is also how she ended up getting a bargain-- a lightly used blaster with no (traceable) criminal history, as well as a pamphlet for a club opening a few levels up.

A part of her was hesitant. She's been in plenty of cantinas, and she is of the age of responsibility for drinking, but a night club is a different story. But the prospect of spending the night alone with nothing but her old life as a Jedi on her mind seemed like a horrible idea.

As it turns out, a nightclub is an incredible place to escape reality. Lights of every color flash through the darkened multilevel club. A wrap-around bar covers three sides of the first level while the center is a massive dance floor filled with what seems like every species in the galaxy. Ahsoka marvels at the upper stories of additional bar and VIP seating that tower above her, all also filled with people.

It's loud. The music shakes the ground and makes her ears ring. People are constantly shoving into her, and the accompanying scent of sweat and alcohol is strong enough to put down a banta.

Strangely enough, she loves it. The chaos energizes her a well as the feeling of being close to so many people. Though they are strangers to her, she feels comforted by brushing arms with those she passes, or the grins of other young women with rosy cheeks and glossy eyes. When Ahsoka goes into the fresher to relieve herself, she discovers a whole other aspect to club life that quickly becomes her favorite part.

"Oh my gosh, I love your face paint!" a human woman about her age squeals as she comes out of the stall. Ahsoka doesn't have the heart to tell the stumbling girl that her markings aren't painted-- she has a feeling the concept won't stick-- so she smiles instead.

"Oh, uh, thank you!"

The woman grins, pulling at the hem of her short black skirt. "My name is Caly."

"I'm Ahsoka."

To her surprise, Caly embraces her tightly. "Such a pretty name Ahsoka! You're so pretty too. Are you here with people?"

"Uh, not really."

Caly pulls away, looking at her with wide brown eyes. "You're here alone? Damn girl, look at you being an independent gal. Do you want to hang with my friends?"

Ahsoka didn't really expect such warm kindness from the club refresher, but she can feel Caly's genuine feelings in the Force. Light lines her Force presence, and so Ahsoka agrees. Caly guides her through the crowd to a group of other sentients near the corner of the dance floor. Most look to be human, but there are also a few humanoids and a Twi'lek in the group. Their introductions are cut short by the song changing, and another girl Caly called Raan squealing in delight.

"It's our song!" she yells, and as though this is their battle cry they go running onto the dance floor, forming a circle amongst their group. Ahsoka follows, completely starstruck with the entire encounter. From what she can tell, most of the friends are around her age range. Much of the club seems to be young, as far as she can tell, which leads her to believe that if she weren't a Jedi, this is how she'd be spending her free time-- dancing and drinking with friends.

But you're not a Jedi. Not anymore, the less fun part of her brain tells her. Ahsoka decides to shut up that voice by downing the rest of her drink.

Drinking is another thing she isn't accustomed to, but she's had a few brews with the troopers before. She quite likes the warm buzz that the alcohol gives her as it settles in her stomach, and she goes to order another. When Ahsoka returns, "their song" has ended, and they have reunited back in the original spot. Caly smiles when she returns.

"Ahsoka! There you are. We were just about to move upstairs."

"What's upstairs?"

"A place to sit. Watch the fun. Have some fun," she says with a wink. Ahsoka suspects she is supposed to know what that means, but she doesn't. But with two drinks in her system now, she is willing to find out what it is her agemates do on a night out. So she follows them. Ahsoka settles between Caly and Raan in a couched area at the corner of the club. The music is quieter, but the lights still shift colors every few moments.

"What brings you to a club alone, Ahsoka?" Caly asks, taking a little box from the person next to her and taking out a small tablet, and setting it on her tongue.

"I... had a bit of a bad day."

The girl looks at her with sympathy. "I'm so sorry, what happened?" she asks as she passes the small box to Ahsoka. She stares at the colorful tablets inside a moment and then looks back up at Caly. "Do you want one?"

"What is it?"

"Dreamdust!" she pauses. "You don't have to have one, just if you want one. It might help with your bad day."

Ahsoka has heard of dreamdust, actually. A padawan she once knew told her all about his escapades with different drugs and how they felt. He tried dreamdust and said it made him feel amazing, close to the Force. And if it will silence the voice in the back of her head that plagues her with reminders of Anakin and Master Obi-Wan and Rex and the war, then she will accept the chemical fix. She takes a tablet from the box, popping it onto her tongue as Caly had done, and passes it to Raan.

"I got fired," Ahsoka says to Caly, before sighing. "Or, I guess I quit."

She giggles. "How do you get fired and quit?"

"They were going to fire me, and then I quit when they decided not to."

"Well hell yeah, sounds like they didn't appreciate you. I'm sure they'll miss you once you're gone and they know what they lost."

Ahsoka sighs. "I doubt it, but maybe."

Caly wraps an arm around her shoulder. "Getting fired sucks but you'll find somewhere else. Gotta find a place for the next chapter to start anyway."

A voice hollers from the other side of the circle. "Cal, are you getting philosophical again?" The others laugh. Picking up strays from the fresher must be a common occurrence.

"What, you want to receive my wisdom as well?" she grins.

"I get far too much of your wisdom."

"Then why are you still so dumb?"

Another roar of laughter and Ahsoka melts back into the comfortable couch. She can't help the smile that comes to her face watching the group of friends bicker. Though all of this was to get her Jedi life out of her mind, it's only managing to make her heart ache with the idea that she won't ever again get to spectate on one of Anakin and Obi-wan's sass battles. Or sit in the mess with the clone troopers as they try to teach her curses in Mando'a. Or getting to see her crechémates when she goes back to the temple and catching up on all their adventures with a bottle of Jawa juice and a game of sabacc. Suddenly her life is divided into before and after.

She knows she can't take it back and go back to the way things were. She won't let herself give the council that satisfaction.

"Well doing what the council says, yeah, that's one thing," a familiar voice rings out. Ahsoka's body feels heavy and tired, but she looks up slowly. Standing at the end of the table is none other than Anakin. She nearly jumps with surprise, but her body doesn't seem to want to respond. "How we go about doing it, that's another idea."

"Master?" she squints at his distorted figure. His hair is shorter, cheeks rounder, and all of him seems to be transparent to the lights that shine from the dance floor. It's all wrong, but from the way the walls are melting away she has a feeling nothing is as it seems.

"Ahsoka," he frowns. "What in blazes are you doing here?"

It's Anakin's body and lips moving, but her master has never had a core accent. He crosses his arms, jetting out his hip like Master Kenobi does sometimes, but it just looks awkward on Anakin. It makes her giggle until she feels a nudge at her side.

"What are you laughing at, young one?"

Master Plo. Caly is gone and Master Plo now sits next to her. "Master Koon what are you--" She looks to her other side where Raan was just a moment earlier but it's Chancellor Palpatine, staring at her with his dark, beady eyes. Panic fills her to the brim and she moves for Master Koon's comfort, but the space next to her is empty. She looks for Anakin, Obi-Wan, anyone but she is alone with the Chancellor.

"You have been charged with sedition against the Jedi Order and the Republic itself," he says, a menacing smile stretching across his features.

"No," she says, jumping to her feet. Somehow he still seems to be standing higher than her. A platform that continues to rise.

"This court," his words echo off the walls, growing louder with each repeat. "Will decide your fate."

She turns to run, but she slams into a wall, staggering backward as the bitter bite of the whistling winds and heat of the lava pits fight for dominance.

"You have been charged with sedition against the Jedi Order and the Republic itself."

"It's not true! She cries, turning around and around only to realize she is in a cell and not a night club. The impenetrable walls of the Citadel are closing in on her, pulling her into the darkness of their keep. She bangs her fists against the walls as though her strength could really break through solid rock and steel. Finally, she stands back, taking a deep breath, and then putting all her weight into a running start. Her shoulder smashes into the wall, but the rock and durasteel shatter like transperisteel, and she is falling, faster and faster through the open air. Ahsoka closes her eyes, reaching out with the Force to grab onto something--anything-- and her breath is nearly knocked out of her when the Force responds immediately. She's suspended midair, the Force pulsating around her with life and the rest of the world frozen in a moment of time. She walks through the nothingness to the nearest solid ground, only to find herself atop a rocky cliff of a lava planet.

"What about me?" Anakin yells, his eyes shimmering a bright gold as he looms over her. When did she fall over again? How did she get on the floor? And why is he staring at her with such malice? "I believed in you! I stood by you!"

"What are you going to do?" she bellows, realizing his lightsaber is in his hand, and there is dangerous darkness surrounding her master. A darkness she has never felt before, like needles going through her bones. She reaches through the Force, expecting to find their bond, but instead, she feels an eerie nothingness that makes her audibly gasp. Anakin shakes his head, a tear dripping down his cheek.

"What you made me do," he says in a low voice, looking past her and igniting his saber. She has to roll out of the way to avoid his pursuit, expecting the burning light of his weapon to slice her in two. But he doesn't. She opens her eyes and his lightsaber is smashing against the readied weapon of Master Kenobi. They fight furiously, desperately. Not like when they spar, but when they go up against real enemies with real motivations to kill.

"Stop it!" Ahsoka yells, but they pay her no attention. She pulls herself to her feet, tears streaming down her face. "Masters, please! I'm sorry!"

"Stay out of this!"

"Stop it!" she repeasts.

"Be at peace, Ahsoka," Master Obi-Wan's voice feels like it's speaking directly into her mind. Her eyes grow heavy, and the lava around her bubbles and spreads until it explodes into a brilliant geyser of bright yellow and red molten rock. "And sleep."

Before she makes it to her knees, the world turns muddy, and then a dark blue. Lights flash overhead, and it takes her a moment to realize it's the lights of ships and speeders flying through the Corescanti night. She's lying on her back, the faint smell of tobacco reaching her senses, making her cringe.

"Good morning," a soft voice says. Ahsoka sits up, already feeling a horrible headache pulsating in her temples. Caly sits next to her, taking a drag of a death stick. Where they are sitting is a whole other question.

It's a rooftop of some sort, somewhere in the Upper Crest by the looks of it. Caly is no longer in the party attire Ahsoka met her in, but a pair of baggy pants and a tight-fitting long-sleeved shirt. Her short blonde hair is pushed back with a thick piece of cloth tied at the nape of her neck.

"What happened? When did we--"

"Bad trip. You needed air," Caly says, shaking her head. "You should have told me you were a Jedi."

The words hit harder than they should. Ahsoka tries to bite back the urge to cry but she doesn't seem to have any control over her emotions currently. The tears are coming before she can try to hide them. Caly scoots closer to her, rubbing circles on her back.

"I'm not a Jedi," she says between sobbing gasps. "Not anymore."

And they sit there in the cool dawn air, only the sound of speeders and Ahsoka's crying to fill the space. She expects nothing of this girl that she met in the fresher of a club, but yet, the kindness of a stranger seems to be the only thing Ahsoka has to hold onto. Caly, ever the one to continuously surprise her, pulls her into a tight embrace, tucking Ahsoka's head into her shoulder.

"What I told you earlier still applies. This is your next chapter, Ahsoka."

"It started out pretty shitty."

Caly laughs. Squeezes Ahsoka a little tighter. "It was just a bad trip. Jedi-- uh, Force-users, react to dreamdust a little dramatically. You didn't know."

"How do you know so much about Jedi?" she sniffles as she pulls out of the hug. "And how we react to dreamdust?"

"You're not the first to break away from the Temple for a night of fun," she winks. "Usually they are a bit more obvious."

"Baggy robes?"

"Oh, yes, you know the ones."

Ahsoka manages to smile, wiping away the stray tears. "Thank you, Caly. You've been... a great friend when you had no obligation to be."

"Well I did provide you with drugs that made you nearly punch a security guard... so don't thank me before you find out you've been banned indefinitely from that club."

"Probably for the best,"

They laugh. It's comfortable but not familiar. Not the laughs she's used to sharing. After a long time of just staring at the morning traffic begin to pick up, Caly stands.

"I gotta go. But I'm glad you're okay." Ahsoka is far from okay, but she's better than she was before. She smiles, thanking Caly once again. The girl from the nightclub starts to walk off, but then she stops, looking back. "Do you know what you'll do now, Ahsoka?"

The former Jedi smiles solemnly. Over Caly's shoulder, she can see the Jedi Temple in the distance. By some miracle, she doesn't feel the urge to sob just by looking at it. It's a tug at her heartstrings, the same feeling she gets from a sad song or when the troopers talk about their fallen. Dull, painful, but every time she looks or thinks about it she knows the pain will lessen.

"For now, I will carry on."