#destined partners destined rivals etc

[jmgangel]

The difference between Souyo and Shuake is so stark but also they are the same To Me.

[n0v4t33z]

The Syndicate - Chapter 1: Misfortune of a Prodigy

Pairings: Choi San X Female Reader, Park Seonghwa X Female Reader, Ateez X Female Reader, Bangchan X Female Reader

Summary: Y/N is a Detective with a promising future in the police department until she's kidnapped by the infamous mafia boss Choi San and from him, she learns the dark secrets her superior has been hiding the whole time so she teams up with him in order to put a stop to it.

Genre: Lots of angst, Romance, Crime Fiction, Psychological Drama

Word Count: 2.9k

Tags/Warnings: For Mature Audiences, Language, Graphic Violence, Mentions of Illegal activities (i.e Kidnapping, extortion, assassination etc.), y/n gets roughed up by Wooyoung in the beginning , Slow Burn, Fluff sometimes, Work In Progress, Non-Idol AU, Mafia AU, Very suggestive at times, y/n cries alot, y/n having inner turmoil, Ateez being bad boys, Wooyoung and Yeosang are a little mean in this story tbh, Guns, Gunshot wounds, Assassination attempt(s)

I'll update tags as the story progresses

MINORS DO NOT INTERACT!!

Spotify Playlist🎵 | Series Masterlist 📝

Author's Note: Hi guys! This is the very first story that I grew courage to post on here, so please be kind! I would also like to just kind of let you know that this is a work in progress so updates may not be as quick and they will be pretty slow as I am quite busy with work although I'm quite a bit ahead in the story writing wise so in the mean time I have enough chapters to be able to post. I really hope you guys enjoy the story! 💜

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After being called into a crime scene, I finally arrive to my destination and notice a couple of bystanders and a few journalists outside the hotel, I show my police shield to the officer guarding the crime scene and I head inside. I look around and notice the beautiful crystal chandelier on the ceiling and the beautiful marble floor of the lobby. I’m assuming it’s another one of Aurora Syndicate’s rival gang member’s death. I head over to the presidential suite of the hotel and there he was, a man who was around his 50’s bludgeoned to death, judging by his clothes he had a lot of money too. While my mind was focused on the crime scene I feel a hand on my shoulder interrupt my thoughts then I turn and realize it’s my partner Detective Christopher Bang “ Hey, I genuinely thought you weren’t going to come since it’s past the time you get off” He gives me a smug smirk judging from the tone of his voice. I shrug keeping my eyes focused on the victim’s position.

“Well, duty calls. Besides it has to do with AS so you know I’m up for this. So, whose this guy? He looks like he’s loaded" Chris takes out his notepad and hands it to me for me to read “Well, the guy’s name is Shiro Ito judging from his bank cards and identification used to get this room. He was allegedly involved in laundering money for The Aurora Syndicate, my guess he might have been stealing or giving out information which is why they probably killed him.” I slowly nod then I hand Chris his notepad back “Makes sense why they would have killed him, were his records clean?” He nods “Yep, clean as a whistle. The receptionist downstairs told me he was the owner of a few clothing stores which makes sense and is probably how he was able to launder money for so long without being questioned.” I get a little closer to the body and I look at the impact wounds. The wounds looked very deep, something very personal was the reason this man was killed. The suspect is definitely not a female, judging by the severity of the wounds it was definitely a male. I shift my gaze over to the man’s hands whom was holding on to something tightly.

With my gloved hands I pry open the victim’s right hand to reveal a cuff link with a beautiful iridescent stone. My face instantly lights up and I put it in an evidence bag. “Chris, this was not a woman who killed him. Look, a cufflink with an Aurora Borealis stone and it doesn't belong to Mr. Ito, he took it off of the attacker while he was trying to fight him off. If we find who this cufflink belongs to we've got our guy.” Chris’ eyebrows slightly raise while crossing his arms in front of him “Narrowing it down won’t be too hard, I’m positive it’s someone in the AS’ inner circle hence the name of the stone.” I turn and hand it over to a crime scene technician “Put this in evidence please this one is very important.” the technician nods and marks the evidence, I look back over to my partner who was engrossed looking at his notebook and I let out a small yawn “I’m heading home now, I’m exhausted. You mind finishing up here? I'm also almost finished with the police report from the last case so I'll turn it in first thing tomorrow cool?” He nods while he puts away his notepad in his back pocket and looks to me with a small smile “Yeah for sure, see you tomorrow.” I wave goodbye and I head back to my car and drive home for the night.

While I driving home I begin to think about that cuff link. Whose is it? And why was Mr. Ito killed? Hopefully we’re able to get the suspect’s print off of the cuff link but I highly doubt that since it’s probably covered in Mr. Ito’s prints.

When I arrive at my apartment complex, the lights to the parking lot are busted so it was kind of dark but not enough to where I couldn’t make things out. While I carefully get out of my car and I start to walk to my apartment. While I look through my purse to find my house keys I hear the cocking of a gun behind me “Take one more step In that direction and I will kill you.” I jump up and I turn around dropping my purse on the ground. I focus on both figures both dressed in black one was average height with jet black hair framing his face, and a tall one with blonde-brown hair. I raise my hands slightly to show I have nothing in my hand then the tall one removes my gun from my holster. The guy with the black hair grumbles “Mingi hurry up, I have a feeling someone saw us.” The dark haired male grabs me and points a gun to my lower back while his hand covers my mouth and nose with a cloth “If you scream things will get much worse from here, you wanted to be the hero so now’s your chance to take the fall.” Mingi the tall one, walks up to me and injects something into my neck, zip ties my hands and slings me over his shoulders like a rag doll. I have to fight to stay awake. I have to at least see the vehicle. I force my eyes open trying to stay awake whilst trying to free myself from Mingi's strong grip but my eyelids become unbearably heavy and I fall unconscious before I’m able to see the vehicle.

A few hours later, I wake up in a lowly lit room and quickly realize I'm tied up to a chair. Slightly groggy, I look around and see no one was in here. This empty room, is practically a near empty room with a crudely made empty bookcase behind me which looked like it hadn't been cleaned in years along with a mix of bunch of random debris on the ground and dried blood. I sigh then I yell out “Hello?! Let me out of here please!?” After yelling for what seemed like a little while I hear footsteps fast approaching, and soon the door clicks open. It was the dark haired guy who abducted me again. “So you finally woke up, it took you long enough.” He stands in front of me and stares me down all while I look up at him trying to show him I wasn’t scared of him which was an obvious lie considering how I was manhandled earlier so easily. “Why am I here? Who are you?” Completely ignoring my question he reaches over and squeezes my cheeks really hard to the point where I jerk my head back in pain unable to escape his grip “You know, I hate cops. I hate how they try to dig up your business.” I glare at him “Well, maybe you shouldn’t be getting rich off of illegal businesses and death. ” He lets out a mocking laugh and lets go of my cheeks slightly throwing my head back with force that was pretty aggressive “Wow, Detective you’re funny. You know not everyone grew up with the same stupid sense of right and wrong as you right? We do what we can to survive.” I shake my head “No, you and your stupid mafia sheep are just a bunch of idiots who will eventually fall victim to natural selection.” He grabs a fistful of my hair “Oh, we’ll see about that.” He leans in close to my face “I need the rest of the names of the cops who are working on the Ito case, you pigs have something that belongs to San.”

Oh god, is he talking about Choi San? So it was his cufflink, I should have known. I shake my head “No, I won’t tell you anything...” He mutters under his breath “You little- I seriously don’t have patience for you...” he grabs me by the collar of my shirt and punches me in the jaw. A sharp pain shoots through my jaw and the taste of blood fills my mouth, for a few seconds I look at him slightly dazed while I mumble “I’m not telling you.” He shakes me violently pulling me from the rope I'm tied to “Talk! I need those names now!” he pushes me back and I fall on my back and on my arms letting out a pained cry “No! I’m not going to tell you anything!” The male walks over to me and kicks me several times in the stomach causing me to let out pained screams and cough up blood. Slowly I start feeling like I was losing my consciousness again but before it happens he grabs me by the rope I was tied up with again and pulls the chair back up “Hey, are you passing out? Come on, tell me names and It’ll all stop. I promise.” He spits out mockingly. I shake my head while I look at the floor trying to dissociate myself from the situation I’m in. Blood profusely drips from my mouth onto my white collared shirt soaking through the shirt and feeling the dull drops of blood fall onto the fabric. One, two, three..

The dark haired man walks over to the corner of the room and grabs a crop whip and hits me so hard I could hear the whip crack. I let out a cry of pain and suddenly a thin, tall, dark haired man dressed all in black wearing a leather jacket comes in and grabs his shoulder “I think she’s had enough. You can stop hitting her now Wooyoung, she’s not going to talk.” Right after he comes in another man enters the room, he wore a wine colored dress shirt and some fitted dress pants with his dark hair slicked back and black rimmed glasses. It’s Choi San, the current leader of Aurora Syndicate. He looks exactly the way people described him to be. Handsome, cat like eyes with a jawline sharp enough to cut diamonds, and a very intimidating prescence. Wooyoung, slighty nervous knowing he messed up looks over at both guys and says “Seonghwa, San, I tried being nice but she was being so rude I didn’t have a choice.” San looks over at Wooyoung quite irritated and says “Can’t you ever follow orders? We need her alive. I never asked you to do this.” Wooyoung raises both of his hands and nods “Alright, alright fine. I’m sorry. I just thought that because you usually-” San turns to Seonghwa and cuts him off “ Seonghwa, please take her to the infirmary and ask Jongho to clean up Wooyoung’s stupid mess” San then makes his way over to me and kneels down, looks at me for a few seconds and lifts my chin up with his finger to meet his gaze all while wiping the blood off my chin with his thumb “I’ll talk to you later Detective, we have some things I wan to discuss.” he gets up and wipes the blood he wiped off of my chin onto Wooyoung's shirt. Slightly annoyed by this action, Wooyoung scrunches up his face in distaste and follows behind him leaving me alone with Seonghwa.

The man quietly walks over to me and uncuffs me from the chair. “That’s a lot of blood, I hope Wooyoung didn’t do too much damage.” His soft voice had some calming effect to where I was slowly coming back from my dissociation and felt a bit more grounded. He kneels next to me and for a few seconds he lets me recollect myself “Let’s go to the infirmary, hopefully you can get rest there.” Slowly tears well up in my eyes making my vision blurry. He lets out a soft sigh and gently pats my back “It’s okay, don’t cry. I can’t guarantee that nothing will happen to you but I suggest you just listen and answer the questions you’re asked.” I shake my head “No, I’d rather die than throw my whole squad under the bus.” He fixes my disheveled hair and says “I know, but trust me the faster you fess up the faster you’ll be able to leave. Just think about it, please.” He slowly helps me up and picks me bridal style in his arms.

While we head over towards the infirmary I break the silence by saying “Why are you being so nice?” For a few seconds he stays quiet until he finally responds “Well, I believe in treating people with kindness despite whether or not I dislike something about them. For instance, I don’t like the feds but that won’t stop me from being a decent human being.” I look up at him in sheer confusion “But you’re a literal criminal. You steal and kill people for a living.” A small smile appears on his face and he says “Criminal or not i’m still human. Remember, we all have reasons as to why we do things even if sometimes those things aren’t good.” He’s right, even the people on the other side of justice have their reasons for being criminals. Not everyone decides to do it because they want to be evil, most of the time it’s the lack of money, or a cry for help. Everyone is different.

When we finally enter the infirmary it smelled exactly like a hospital, intoxicatingly sterile. Jongho was at his desk on the computer but as soon as he sees me in Seonghwa’s arms he quickly gets up and walks over to us. Seonghwa gently sets me down on the examining table. Jongho looks at me for a brief second in horror then looks over at Seonghwa “What the hell happened? Why does she look like this?” Seonghwa looks at Jongho and says “It was Wooyoung, San got pretty upset about it too.” Jongho looks over at me and glances at the police badge around my neck making a very uncomfortable face and huffs under his breath “That bastard..” He uncomfortably smiles “ Seonghwa, I’ll take it from here thank you.” He nods and walks out the door closing the door behind him. Leaving Jongho and I alone.

Jongho puts on some latex gloves and he grabs his stethoscope from a drawer near his desk. He gently places the chest piece on my chest and does a whole routine check up listening to my breathing and what not, shortly after he finishes he puts his stethoscope around his neck and clears his throat “I listened to your organs and everything sounds fine, no broken ribs which is good. I see that your arms are quite red, so you might get bruises but no broken bones which is good news too. I also see that you coughed up blood but you’ll be okay you’ll just be sore for a couple of days the internal bleeding will heal on its own as it's not severe. I'm going to give you some pain killers, they’ll help for a couple of hours.”

After taking the medicine he proceeds to clean my busted lip “Thank you, but I have a question.” His eyebrows slightly raise “Oh, sure what is it?” I give him a pleading look and I say “Why am I here?” his face grows a little serious and he goes back to cleaning my wound “Oh, well you’re here because San Is looking for a family Heirloom he lost... That heirloom is so important to him because it was a gift from his father and to get it back he decided he was going to hold you for ransom until the police hands it over.” I sit there trying to process everything for a few moments then I respond “Isn’t that a little overboard for a cufflink?” Jongho shrugs “It is, but knowing how San is since he really treasures everything his father gave him. I’m sure he really doesn’t want to replace it and it’s understandable.”

San’s father, Junseo “The Phantom” Choi. He was killed in a shootout last winter at a restaurant he frequented. I look down at my police badge then I look over at Jongho “San could have just asked me to give it to him. It's really that simple.” Jongho shakes his head “I wish it was that easy but it’s complicated, let’s just say that your Captain and San’s family aren’t on great terms so in a way this is payback .This is as much as I can tell you because to begin with I wasn’t even supposed to tell you any of this so please just act like it’s the first time you’ve heard about it when San questions you.” I nod “Of course no worries. By the way thank you for not trying to kill me.” Jongho’s small smile comes back and he says “Of course, none of this is your fault to begin with.” Suddenly a guy with light grey hair that almost looks white comes in and says “Hey, I’m taking her from you San wants to talk to her. Is she clear for interrogation?” I give Jongho a worried look and he gives me a small reassuring smile, helps me get off the examining table and walks me over to the guy at the doorway “Yes Hongjoong, she's clear.”

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Next Chapter

[corriganatheart]

Tug of War

Jude Bellingham x reader

Synopsis: Y/N Gonzalez has always been the perfect daughter, sister, and friend to everyone. She is seen as the angel of the Gonzalez family and the perfect sister of Pedri Gonzalez. Her life had always been simple and planned until her brother's biggest rival took an interest in her, taunting her in every way that her body shouldn't want.

Genre: Forbidden romance x Enemies to lover

Pairings: Jude Bellingham x reader ft Pedri and Gavi.

Warnings ⚠️: Mention of drugs, sexual content, and cursing. 🔞

You can feel his eyes on you as you sip your drink. Of course, it wasn't alcohol or anything boozy, but how your body reacted to his gaze would only let people assume you were drinking an alcoholic beverage.

Your brother casually glances as you stare at his champagne. The drink was foreign to you, and even though you were at the age of drinking in Spain, you couldn't even be around the drink unless he was accompanying you. But, of course, it wasn't like you were able to go anywhere without his permission. "You ok, bebé?" your date asked as he trailed his fingers down your back. You shiver under his stomach and nod without meeting his gaze.

Gavi has always been the one person that your family favored for you. He and your brother are best friends and, quite frankly, best teammates. As long as you can remember, Gavi has always been in your life and was always destined to be your partner. You weren't sure if he ever liked you in that way, but after you grew into a more mature girl, you noticed his favoritism towards you. You were always told to go to his game, his parties, his interviews, photoshoots, etc. And it has been well known in the news that you guys were "partners," although it was never confirmed. As far as you know, he never asked you to be his girlfriend but has always acted like you two were an official couple.

"Y/N, look at me," Gavi demanded softly. You look around the table to see your parents eyeing you and your brother sternly glaring at you, giving you a warning look. They all wanted you to listen to Gavi's demand and not cause a scene. Feeling annoyed, you firmly place your glass on the table and shift your attention to Gavi. He wraps his arms around your table and smiles at you. "You look ravishing like always," he says while patting the back of your head. You fake a smile and nod, "Thanks." Your brother clears his throat, causing everyone to turn his way. "Tonight's charity consists of betting on who to dance with. So you are probably going to get many votes." Pedri then nods toward the table of men surrounded by numerous models, influencers, and gorgeous girls. "Those guys will only want you to get on our nerves. Just dance, and move along." You glance at the group of men three tables away from yours, and like he felt your stare, Jude Bellingham immediately makes eye contact with you. He had a brunette and a blonde by his side, shamelessly touching his chest and thigh. His dark eye stared into yours sternly, not wanting to look away, and even though you should, you couldn't shift your eyes out. It was like he had you hypnotized and under his command. You watch as he lifts his glass of champagne and drinks it in one gulp. You stare at the way his throat moves as he swallows the drink and licks the tip of his lip. "Y/N?" Gavi's voice brought you out of the hypnotism, and you went back to faking the persona that was built in you.

The two hours of constantly nodding and saying yes to your family finally ended as the bidding started. Not to your surprise, your date was popular with older females and was in line to dance with numerous of them. Your brother was also popular, and he didn't seem at all phased about having to dance with many girls. You, on the other hand, were under pressure to be perfect, so you were stressed, and the fact that your card had the most names was not helping at all. "Make sure to keep your dance," Gavi whispers and kiss your head before he leaves the room for the dance floor. The lady that he had to dance with was at least six years older, but she was still incredibly stunning. "Don't cause a scene," Pedri warns as he takes the hand of his partner and guides her to the dance floor. You nodded and rolled your eyes when he was out of sight. Feeling a bit anxious, you stare at the champagne Gavi left behind and quickly gulp it down. "Y/N?" a soft voice asked, and you quickly froze and tried to cover your crime, "wait, I'm sorry, I thought it was water." You wait for a spat or someone to pull your arms away, but instead, the person chuckles. You look up at the form to see a familiar face. You recognize him as a member of England's National team and Liverpool's defender. "I believe I am the first to have the privilege to dance with you," he says and holds out his hands. Calming yourself down, you take his hand, and he grins at you before guiding you to the dance floor. You feel the stare from earlier, one of your current partner's teammates. There were other stares from your brother, Gavi, and their acquaintances. "Don't mind them," your partner whispers, and the both of you stand in your designated area and join the others. "The name is Trent Alexander Arnold, by the way," he says. You smile, "I know who you are." Trent chuckles and twirls you around. "Would you like to know why I chose you?" He asked. You look around the dance floor to see your brother is preoccupied with his date while Gavi looked very uncomfortable with his. "I'm assuming it has something to do with my brother," you mumbled. Trent laughs, causing a few eyes to look his way, and you awkwardly look down. "Did I say something wrong?" He shrugs, "I think it's obvious that everyone is enchanted by your beauty." This time it was time for you to giggle and blush a little. You get compliments all the time, but most are from your brother's acquaintances and business partners, not one of his rivals. Trent continues to talk, mainly about football and his life. He did ask you personal questions, but you tried to avoid answering as much as possible. "Unfortunately, my time is up," Trent says and kisses your hand. You blush and watch as he walks away, going back to his table instead of dancing with another lady.

Your next couple of dances were with older men that were ridiculously annoying and perverted, but you endured the minutes with them to prevent causing a scene. "But yeah, I own the entire hotel as well as the ones across from it," your current partner brags. You kindly smiled and continued to listen to him talk about his wealth until you felt a cold demeanor behind you. Although you have no sight of who it was, his cologne was enough to have you almost fall. "Bellingham," your dance partner nods before he immediately lets go of you and walks away quickly. "I believe it's my turn," he says with his well-known English accent. You turn around, and the two of you immediately make eye contact. Jude stares down at you with a stern look like before, and this time he really looks at you. His eyes trace every feature of your face. From your hair to your chin, like he was memorizing it. You do the same, from his deep brown eyes to his thick lips. "You are my highest bidder?" you asked, realizing that he was the last dance, meaning he gets the longest time with you. "I believe I am," he says and holds out his hand. You gently place your hands in his, and he guides you where he wants the both of you to be, and that is the center of the room. You can feel your brother's gaze on you as well as Gavi's. You briefly make eye contact with Gavi, and he glares at Jude, who seems like he is enjoying the attention. "I might have an idea of why you picked me," you said. Jude smirks down at you and starts guiding you to the romantic song playing in the background. "Yes, I wanted to see the angel of the Gonzalez family for myself." You hum, a bit disappointed about his answer. "You are quite well known among the football community. The beautiful little sister of Pedri Gonzalez and the girlfriend of Gavi." You glance at your brother, who is now dancing with one of the girls that were sitting at Jude's table. She looked to be quite attracted to him, whereas he was constantly glancing over at you. "I believe I am only known to be associated with my brother," you muttered. Jude raises an eyebrow, and the two of you continue to dance for a few minutes before he starts to speak again. "Let's subtract the last name, then. Whose the real Y/N?" He questions. You look around, and luckily your brother and Gavi are no longer paying attention. "What do you mean?" you asked, even though you knew what he meant. "I'm sure there is more to you than a pretty face," he says. You stay silent as he twirls you around. You really want to tell him everything there is to know about you, but unfortunately, you can't trust a stranger, especially someone that your brother doesn't fancy. "I am Y/N Gonzalez," you mumbled. Jude smirks, and the two of you continue to dance in silence. He was quite good at dancing and, surprisedly, a gentleman, barely touching your back or bumping into your chest. But you can't assume he was a good person or be charmed by his incredibly good looks. After this dance, he was going to go back to the models around him. "You know, the rumors about your looks did not disappoint," he compliments after the last song. "But unfortunately, I am disappointed that there is nothing to you but a pretty face." With that last comment, Jude Bellingham walks away from you without a second glance.

You've heard many harsh things about you, especially from Gavi's teenage fangirls. Usually, things don't bother you because you've become so numb to them, but the stern statement that Jude left you with has been on your mind for weeks. The charity event went well; you stayed away from Jude the rest of the night, and he paid no attention to you. But you couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if you did tell him everything about you. Now he was on your mind for weeks, and you weren't sure when you'll see him again. “What's on your mind?" your brother approaches you and asked. You glance up at him and hand him a bottle of water. He chugs it down in a heartbeat, breathing heavily from his workout. "Do I really have to go to the event?" you asked. Pedri glances down at you and throws the bottle of water across the room, where it lands in the trashcan. "You are Gavi's date. He wants you there." You look down at your hands and fidget with them, not wanting to continue the conversation. You knew it was helpless. "Are you not wanting to go with him?" Pedri asked. You were genuinely taken aback by his question because your whole life, you were never given an option. "Why must you ask? You know the answer." Pedri stares down at you and sighs, "he's the perfect guy for you. The two of you make sense," your brother says. You tried not to show your annoyance at that because, as far as you know, Gavi thinks he owns you just because your family accepted him. Maybe it was because he was also young, but he never once asked you out and was constantly acting possessive for no reason. "I never had the chance to ever get to know anyone, Pedri; what do you expect?" Your brother glares at you and shakes his head. "It's Gavi or no one. He's a good guy and has tried; maybe you should open your eyes instead of ignoring him." Without letting you say anything else, Pedri walks away from you, not giving you any other option.

"That is the perfect dress for you," your mother proudly says when the designer finishes his final touch. You glance at yourself in the long mirror, looking incredibly fancy in the sparkling navy blue dress. The goal of the event was to blend in, but your mother's mission was to make you outshine any celebrity that was supposed to be there. You tried to convince her to let you go with a plain dress, but unfortunately, you had no say in what you wore either. "Well don't you look amazing," Gavi leans on the doorframe and says. He was heavily grinning, checking you out from head to toe. You also took the chance to look at him; he looked really handsome in his black suit and much more mature. "You look good as well," you said softly, shocking him. He comes into the room and holds out his hand, and this time you take it with no hesitation.

"Gavi! Look over here!"

"Y/N what designer are you wearing?"

You try not to look directly into the camera as paparazzi and fans flash their phones and cameras at you guys. Gavi was holding your hand tightly, whereas your brother was walking ahead of the two of you, ignoring everyone around him. "Come on, bebé, I got you," Gavi whispers as he leads you to the door. You felt suffocated, like you were going to faint as questions were thrown at you from left to right. It has been years, but events like this never gets easier. "I need to get some alone time," you said as soon as you guys got through the crowd and entered the museum. Gavi reaches for a glass of water and hands it to you. "I'll take you," he mumbles, but you shake your head. "We have been here before. Everyone's too occupied with one another; let me be alone for a minute." Gavi hesitated for a bit, and you see the wary in his eyes, and to calm him down, you peck his left cheek. He was taken aback by your gesture, and you took that as a chance to escape the crowd.

Walking down the hallway, you look at the different sculptures and paintings on the wall. Coming to the event, you didn’t know what to expect. Your brother wanted you to open up to Gavi, and you think he might be right. Lately, Gavi has been putting more effort into building a relationship with you, and you’ve been pushing him away. Maybe it was your gut telling you he wasn’t the one for you, but who were you kidding? You’ve never experienced love to know what’s best for you. Sighing, you were about to return to Gavi when the giant door to a room opened. A beautiful girl angrily stomps out, her high heel clicking. You glance back at her before peeking inside the door, only to see Jude Bellingham sitting on a leather couch, looking up at the ceiling. You stare at the way his Adam’s Apple pops out and the way his black suit fits him perfectly. He must’ve sensed your presence because his eyes were now on yours, sternly glaring at you. You awkwardly stand at the doorway, unable to move. It was like you were under his hypnotism again. “Wanna come?” He asked and patted the space next to him. You look around the hallway, hesitating about what to do. On occasions, you would listen to people’s demands. But Jude wasn’t demanding you; he was giving you an option. “If you're just going to stand there, might as well close the door,” he says and goes back to closing his eyes and leaning his head on the couch. You nervously bite your lower lips and glance behind you. Nobody was around, so it wouldn’t hurt to hide in the room for a couple of minutes. With butterflies in your stomach, you walk into the giant room and close the door behind you.

Jude doesn’t open his eyes nor say a word as you look around the room. It was a historical library with books that were written way back. The walls were decorated with portraits and paintings from different artists. The room was cozy, with a fireplace and seats to accompany the setting. “What did you say to that lady to make her angry?” You asked while sitting across from him. Jude opens his eyes and directly stares at you and says, “I didn’t fuck her.” You froze up, your mouth widened, and your eyes almost popped out. From all the cruel things he could’ve said, that was the reason why she cried. You were too stunned to speak and stared at Jude. He took this opportunity to admire the way you reacted to his words. You’re an innocent piece of art, and the word fuck was not even in your dictionary, and it amuses him that he was expanding that brain of yours.

“You do know what that means, right?” He asked with a huge smirk. A blush immediately approached your cheeks, and Jude admired how your body became hot and flustered. “Of-of course I do! I’m at the age,” you stuttered. He lowly chuckles and crosses his arms around his chest. “Have you ever been fucked little Gonzalez?” He asked boldly. Your eyes widened, causing him to smirk even more. He heard rumors that you were so sheltered that you barely knew anything sexual. But Jude had questions, especially since you’re always by Gavi’s side; he’s sure you’ve been corrupted. “That’s a very vile thing to ask,” you said, uneasy about the subject. Jude shrugs, “We are both adults; no need to hide our sexual activity.” You awkwardly chuckled and tried to look at anything except for him. Jude noticed your uncomfortable face and quietly cursed himself for being an ass. He knew you were innocent and all, but wanted to taunt you simply because he wanted a reaction out of you.

“Why aren’t you with your date?” He asked, shifting the conversation towards a different route. You thought about the situation for a second before answering him. “I needed a breather.” Jude nods, totally understanding where you’re coming from. “You know. You're not fooling me,” he says, “I know you’re unhappy with the arrangement.” You glance at him. No one has told you that. Either you were good at faking it, or no one has the guts. “Gavi is kind; of course, I like him,” you said. It wasn’t entirely a lie, he was kind, and you do like him, but not in a romantic way. “But not enough to be with him?” Jude asked, even though he already knew the answers to that. You don’t give him a response, and your silence confirms it all. Jude smirks and reaches into his pocket. You watch as he types something on his phone. “Your social media is private,” he says, “it’s harder for me to know you.” You smile and reach into your purse, and get out your phone. Usually, you weren’t allowed to be on social media when attending events, but for some reason being around Jude makes you bolder.

“It would be very controversial if you follow me,” you mumbled and looked at your Instagram request list. “And that’s why I made a fake account, especially for you, angel,” he says with a hint of flirty humor. And as Jude said, he did make a fake account to follow you, and with no hesitation, you accepted it. “You wouldn’t mind me texting you, don’t ya?” He asked casually. Maybe it was how he offered to do this risky stuff without caring, but you couldn’t say no to him. Not one bit did your heart say no. “My brother, he doesn’t like you,” you mumbled. Jude laughs and shakes his head, “It’s not your brother I’m trying to win, love. If it’s not fucking obvious, I’m hitting on you.” You blush under his grin, and Jude stares at your lips. “Have you been kissed before, Angel?” He asked. You lick your lips and nervously bite them, which only causes Jude to want you even more. “I’ll take your silence as a no,” he says darkly. You don’t miss the way he tugs on his tie, causing it to hang loosely. “I’m not allowed to have physical contact,” you explained. That only causes Jude to close his eyes and calm down his breathing. You were so fucking gorgeous and innocent; he just wanted to corrupt you. But even he knew it’d take time. You are the sister of his opponent, and there was no way he could openly take you away from Gavi. But he knew he wanted you, and the fact that you’re a hidden gem only makes his desire for you grow. “Do you want to be kissed?” He asked. You look around, contemplating what to do. Jude was doing everything your family had warned you to avoid, but something was also exciting about it. Your whole life, you’ve been a good girl, obeying everything your family tells you to do. But this was something else; you’re attracted to the guy, and your body reacted differently to him than it would to Gavi. “You will show me how to kiss someone?” You timidly asked. Jude shakes his head, “I will show you how to kiss me.”

Jude was very gentle and sweet as he guided you into his lap. The blue dress that you’re wearing was all of a sudden his favorite color. He never knew he had a thing for unreachable girls, but he does. You’re the precious gem of the Gonzalez family, and it no doubt a jackpot if anyone scored you, but here he wanted to corrupt your innocence and show you the truth of this world. Your whole life, you must’ve been so sheltered even to know what sex, drug, parties, and life was even about. Your parents had every right to guide you, but you only live once, and what you’re doing is nowhere near living. “Shhh relax, baby,” Jude whispers when he feels you tense up. You nod and wrap your arms around his neck, causing him to smile. Jude places his hands on your bottom and pulls you closer to him. The two of you were now chest to chest, eye to eye, and mouth a couple of inches away from one another. You’ve never been kissed on the lips, let alone be this intimate with someone. It was new, but for some reason, Jude made you feel safe. You hesitated briefly, but you softly traced his jawline, loving how he stared at your every move. It felt good to have control for once, and it felt good to feel dominant. “This mouth is all yours,” he muttered. You stop at his chin and look around the room, scared that your brother will jump out of nowhere and drag you away. “There is no one else but us, Angel. Feel me,” he murmured. “I don’t even know you,” you whisper. Jude grabs the hand that was on his chin and kisses your palm. “You can know everything. You can do everything. You can have it all,” he says, and you know there’s a deeper meaning to his words. Gulping, you slowly move your lips towards his, and to restrain himself, you feel him squeeze your thighs.

You don’t know what will happen to you if anyone ever finds out, but you can’t go back. The moment you felt his lips on yours, fireworks lit inside your heart, the temperature rising from above, and butterflies growing in your stomach. Jude’s lips were soft and complete, and he knew this was your first, so he guided you through the kiss. He was in no rush, but his hands roamed every inch of your body. Nothing could top your first kiss and how every emotion would jump out of your chest. Your body reacted to every touch and movement he guided you. Your thighs were shivering, your hips were grinding, and soft moans were coming from your mouth. You must be doing something right, though, because Jude constantly squeezes your thighs, butt, and every part of your body whenever he hears your voice. He wasn’t quiet either, continuously complimenting how well you were doing and how much he enjoyed this. “Fuck,” he growled, “I told myself I would hold back, but you’re making this so fucking difficult.” You moan in response and go down for more kisses. This felt too good to last only minutes; you want hours' worth of Jude’s attention. “Gosh, Angel, you’re driving me crazy,” he whispers and places his head on your shoulder. You hug and soothe him as he tries to calm himself down. You could tell he was trying his best not to break his control, and it feels good to have someone feeling that way about you.

“My brother is going to look for me. I need to go back,” you said and got off of him. Jude watches the way you fix your dress, your hair, and your makeup. He wanted a simple kiss from you, but now you’re leaving him with an enormous hard-on. He could cum from just watching you. You looked so innocent, sweet, and angelic, but how you were grinding on him only confirmed his assumption that you might be more than that. He knew he couldn’t have you, but he could have you behind closed doors, which was enough for now. Jude smiles and gets up from the couch; he then reaches for your hand and kisses your knuckle. “Until next time,” he says.

Gavi’s hands soothe your back as he speaks to some people, and you try your best to pay attention. It was hard, especially when you had a complete make-out session with Jude Bellingham. Your eyes drift to where Jude is; he happily chats it off with his teammate and a model around his arms. Jude was doing the same thing Gavi did to you, but there was nothing the two of you could do. He was your brother’s rival; there would never be a romantic relationship between you and him. As your brother said, Gavi makes sense for you, and Jude is the opposite. It wouldn’t be good for either of you, but the way Jude was eyeing you as he soothed his date’s back only makes you think this was the beginning.

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[dballzposting]

If Gohan never met Videl then he never would have secured that sort of intimate relationship. He likely would have remained a bachelor for life, or the alternative is that he would have married some girl just to make her happy. It would not have been the partnership of equals and mutual-understanding-of-madness that he has with Videl.

If Videl never met Gohan then she still would have eventually entered the dating scene and she would have gotten married, but it would have undoubtedly been a dynamic that places her as more Formidable than her husband. She is of a prestigious name and she would still be one of the strongest humans on the planet; and she is still damn quick, clever, observant, insightful, and deep. Hence, she is destined to be the "bigger" one in any relationship. Cooler, smarter, richer, stronger, more beautiful, more worth it, more fair, etc.

If she were in a relationship and her partner duly accused her of acting like she is better than he is, then all her convictions regarding equality and justice go on the back burner for a moment - because YES, she IS better than you, WHY are you getting sore about it when you knew that going in? She is not wanting to FLAUNT it or HOLD it over you, but - don't ACCUSE her, like it's a character flaw, when she is simply behaving in line with the truth! More pertinently - it is much more how others treat HER than it is how she treats HERSELF. If you don't want her being the one who wears the pants in the relationship, then maybe don't subtly subvert to her or fear her?

So, in all her relationships - and in her ultimate theoretical marriage with someone who isn't Gohan - she is the one in the big dog seat. And she's content with that, the way that one is content smoking a cigar on a third-story balcony overseeing a lovely estate. But it's not everything. And it's not perfectly satisfying. Maybe she would come to grow complacent in her father's riches and in the world's admiration. But there are still "truths" in the world that have yet to make sense to her. She can socialize with city scholars all she wants, but all their research and philosophizing doesn't cover the mysteries of the world - such as the strangers who appeared to fight Cell, such as the bizarre entrants in the 21st through 23rd world tournaments. Real life and mysterious things originate in rural corners, it seems - and she won't get answers living in one city.

This is why Gohan and Videl are so perfect for each other .... Without Videl, Gohan never would have found anyone who would really connect with his inner world and could support him, whom he could trust to tell it all to, who would be strong enough to digest it. Without Gohan, Videl would have been doomed to a life of elevated status, and her fiercely inquisitive spirit perhaps never would have found relief.

That last detail is proof enough that Videl and Gohan would have eventually found each other in any timeline, honestly - I don't want to believe that Videl could stay complacent her whole life. At some point she would honor her doubts and embark on a journey for answers. She would have a satchel full of conspiracy theories and a burning drive to figure out which ones are bullshit and which ones are trustworthy accounts.

Gohan & Videl are able to have a partnership of equals and I really don't know if they could have settled to try to forge that with anyone else.

With Gohan, Videl gets to experience what it's like to have a partner who excels (or serves to rival her) in her native trades - fighting and intellect.

Otherwise, Videl would of course TRY to build people up and pursue a relationship of equals, but in the end - she is just the most competent, so why doesn't she just go on ahead and do everything, huh? Do all the conflict-navigation, all the thinking, all the paying.

But since Gohan is COMPETENT, she is free to relax a little and not be such a hard ass. After Videl begins her friendship with Gohan, we see her change - she acts more goofy, she smiles and laughs more, she does the silly Saiyaman thing with him, she wears cute outfits. This is a joy that she may not gotten to experience otherwise! At Videl's debut, she wears straight-forward clothes and a serious demeanor. She is young enough to believe in justice but not old enough to know what real reform would look like; she's young enough to not know herself but old enough to pretend that she does. She is authoritative and opinionated enough to assume responsibility of the world and of others, and that assertiveness treats her well, but there's a lot she doesn't know yet - one of which being how to chill out! But how could she, when at the back of her mind, the world doesn't make sense and her father feels like a liar.

Gohan has a lot of book smarts, but like, NO working experience with anythign other than saving the world. Videl is still and will always be a better judge of people and a better navigator of any social institution. For an example I don't know if Gohan has ever been to a bank before

Gohan is genuinely kind of goofy in his soul, and he can be a genius at battle strategy, but he also misses some pretty big patterns sometimes. He and Videl are able to be equals becasue while they ae both excellent students of the world and are always thinking, not one is smartER than the other. Videl has a searing intellect and I think as she ages is able to connect observations across psychical-emotional-spiritual lines and make meaning of them. Gohan is good at quoting sources at you, and Videl is good at telling you the perspective that is the most helpful at this current time and that will get you home fastest. Not that she doesn't love being the devil's advocate. I mean it's in the name

My take on Videl is that the side of her that functions in the world is sharp and decisive and observant; and the side of her that deals with people is kind and feminine and considerate and forgiving (naive in youth, brave with age); and the side of her that is romantic and intimate is like ... a dark bloody ocean. She likes Gohan becasue he is so goofy but underneath there is Madness NOT OF THIS EARTH yet necessarily, LOYALLY, tethered to this planet's surface. He is experienced and emotionally intelligent enough to have sharp eyes and wise conversations with her, and the nuances of his soul are so DREADFUL and DISTURBING like the sporadic pattern of poisonous berries on the stem - something is just Off. He is beautiful and kind and insightful, but at times necessarily daft to remove himself from obligation of feeling - and I think that Videl deeply needs something wicked and raw like that to connect to. She needs to be FASCINATED in order to satiate her inquisitive spirit. She needs to not just love, but to fixate on. She needs to dig her hands into some guts and find something of worth and only for her eyes.

I think that this is just the nature and expression of her libidinal energies, and Gohan & Videl are able to have a platonic soul bond on top of that which is just so awesome for them ... they really Get Each Other and it was the best outcome that they found each other when they did. It was a crux for both of them; Videl coming up on a disillusionment for the lies she's been told, and Gohan coming up on the prospect of becoming visible to peers. Gohan came to Videl with answers, and Videl came to Gohan with an unremitting stare.

SUCH BEAUTOFUL STUFF. Very grateful

[exim-pedia]

Top Export from Russia: A Comprehensive Guide

Russia, formally known as the Russian Federation, is the world's largest country, encompassing about one-tenth of the planet's surface. It is renowned for its vibrant culture, customs, literature, dance, and music. Despite its vastness, Russia is a superpower due to its abundance of minerals, oils, and other natural resources. The country has been a major producer and exporter of various agricultural and natural products for centuries.

In this blog, we will delve into the main exports of Russia, its primary export partners, detailed export data, and more. Let's begin by discussing the trade relationship between India and Russia.

Trade Between India and Russia

Russia and India have close trade ties. The bilateral trade between the two countries during 2022–2023 amounted to US $49.36 billion, with exports to Russia from India amounting to US $3.14 billion, and exports from Russia to India amounting to US $46.21 billion. As India’s rival, China’s relations with Russia grow closer, with Putin describing them as “the best in history,” it raises concerns for India. To strengthen ties, Modi’s first visit after winning the 2024 election is to Moscow, aiding in rebuffing Western efforts to cast Putin as a pariah and boosting relations with its key oil trade partner.

Export from Russia: Facts and Figures

In 2022, Russia was ranked 12th globally in terms of exports, with total exports worth $486 billion. Over five years, from 2017 to 2021, exports from Russia surged from $126 billion to $486 billion. Oil and petroleum products dominate Russia’s export landscape, with approximately 30% of the country's GDP derived from exports. Russia exports globally, totaling around 42,000 shipments, including natural gas, oil, cereals, metals, and fertilizers.

Major Exports of Russia

Here is a list of Russia's major exports:

Minerals, fuels, oils, etc.: US $348.35 billion

Iron and steel: US $21.49 billion

Fertilizers: US $17.36 billion

Pearls, stones, precious metals: US $16.85 billion

Aluminum and aluminum articles: US $9.96 billion

Wood and wood articles: US $8.56 billion

Fish, crustaceans, mollusks, etc.: US $7.78 billion

Cereals: US $7.24 billion

Copper and copper articles: US $7.15 billion

Inorganic chemicals: US $5.8 billion

Top Export Partners of Russia

Here are the top export destinations of Russia:

China: US $101 billion

India: US $40.4 billion

Germany: US $27.7 billion

Turkey: US $25.3 billion

Italy: US $25.1 billion

Around 55% of Russia’s total exports are shipped to these countries. Check out the Eximpedia.app dashboard and our Russia export data to find out more about Russia's export partners.

Top Ten Exports from Russia in Detail

1. Minerals, Fuels, and Oils

Minerals, fuels, and oils are Russia's biggest export products. In 2022, Russia exported these goods worth US $348.35 billion, comprising around 71.6% of total export products. Major exports include crude petroleum, refined petroleum, petroleum gas, coal briquettes, electricity, coal tar oil, petroleum coke, petroleum jelly, and lignite. The primary destinations for these exports are China, India, Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands.

2. Iron and Steel

Iron and steel are the second-largest export commodities in Russia. In 2022, Russia exported iron and steel worth US $21.49 billion, accounting for 4.3% of total exports. Key exports include wrought iron, cast iron, martensitic alloys, weathering steel, pig iron, and manganese. The main destinations are China, Italy, Kazakhstan, and Germany.

3. Fertilizers

Russia is the largest exporter of fertilizers, exporting 38 billion metric tonnes in 2022. This export was valued at US $17.36 billion, constituting 3.5% of total exports. Major exports include potassium chloride, diammonium phosphate, phosphate rock, and triple superphosphate. Leading destinations are Brazil, India, the United States, China, and Indonesia.

4. Pearls, Stones, and Precious Metals

Russia is the second-largest exporter of pearls, stones, and precious metals. In 2022, these exports were valued at US $16.85 billion, constituting 3.46% of total exports. Key exports include platinum, vanadium, gold, industrial diamonds, and cobalt, along with gemstones like demantoid garnet and Alexandrite. Major destinations are the United Arab Emirates, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Hong Kong.

5. Aluminum and Aluminum Articles

In 2022, Russia exported aluminum and aluminum articles worth US $9.96 billion, constituting 2.04% of total exports. Major exports include raw aluminum, airplane parts, window frames, radiators, foil, and air conditioning units. Key destinations are China, Japan, Turkey, Germany, and the United States.

6. Wood and Wood Articles

Russia is a competitive exporter of wood used for fuel and furniture manufacturing. In 2022, wood exports were valued at US $8.56 billion, holding a significant share of 31.76% of total exports. Major exports include beams, planks, fitches, boards, laths, fagots, twigs, and rough sticks. Key destinations are China, Uzbekistan, Japan, Kazakhstan, and the United States.

7. Fish, Crustaceans, Mollusks, etc.

Russia is the 7th largest exporter of fish, crustaceans, mollusks, and other seafood, valued at US $7.78 billion in 2022. Leading destinations are Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Germany.

8. Cereals

Russia is the 6th largest exporter of cereals, exporting 48 million metric tonnes in 2022. These exports were valued at US $7.24 billion. Major exports include corn, rice, barley, and rye. Leading destinations are Turkey, Egypt, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Pakistan.

9. Copper and Copper Articles

In 2022, Russia exported copper and copper articles worth US $7.15 billion, holding a 1.47% share of total exports. Key exports include copper alloys, copper foil, and unrefined copper. Major destinations are China, Germany, Turkey, the Netherlands, and Chinese Taipei.

10. Inorganic Chemicals

Russia is a significant exporter of inorganic chemicals, valued at US $5.8 billion in 2022. Major exports include aluminum oxide, aluminum hydroxide, synthetic rubber, filaments, sodium, fluorine, and caustic soda. Key destinations are China, Brazil, Belarus, India, and Kazakhstan.

How to Find Buyers from Russia?

To find the best buyers in Russia, visit Eximpedia.app. This platform provides detailed data on Russia's export by country, export data, buyer data, product-specific data, and more.

Conclusion

In this blog, we explored how Russia's main exports contribute to its GDP and overall economic welfare. As one of the world's largest economies, trading with Russia benefits both importers and exporters. Accessing accurate Russian import and export data is crucial for making informed trade decisions. Eximpedia.app provides comprehensive Russian trade data, helping traders navigate international trade more effectively.

For more detailed information, visit Eximpedia.app and enhance your international trade journey.

[aiura-stan]

ok, so as per my last post, here is my Saiki k soulmates theory/mechanic, which I think Aiura would explain to Saiki.

(Aiura explains how she is Saiki’s soulmate.)

In popular culture, soulmates are two individuals who are destined to be romantic partners, either by God or the universe.

The concept of soulmates is based off of the mechanic of fating, which is something that Aiura can see and measure as a clairvoyant psychic.

Popular culture describes platonic and romantic soulmates, but there’s no real difference in the way the mechanic works. Classmates, coworkers and colleagues of all sorts may be fated together. People who do not like or hate each other can be fated together. Best friends and romantic partners may be fated, of they may not be.

This is because the purpose of fating is to bring together two people who fit a particular role in one another’s life. This role does not exist to serve that person, but to balance out the social sphere on a macro level.

In relationships, it serves as a neutral factor- that is to say, fating itself neither encourages nor discourages romantic connections- indeed, fated partners run the gamut of human relationship types. There are no disadvantages to befriending or entering a romantic relationship with someone who you are not fated with.

The only advantage of relationships with fated pairings is a possible empathetic link, or a telepathic link (exclusive to psychics.) These are much less useful than they might sound.

Family usually are not fated, as they are already ‘thrown together’ so to speak, by definition. Therefore it is rare except in cases of long lost relatives. Most people who are fated together end up as friends or colleagues on civil terms.

There are four main categories of fating. One can be said to be:

Fated in tandem

two people with many similarities who work well together. Most of these end up as friends. Also, the highest percentage of romantic relationships fall under this category of fating.

(what people traditionally associate with “soulmates” and romance)

Fated in balance

two people with some similarities and some differences who balance one another effectively. Many of these become good friends and strengthen over time. Romance isn’t uncommon in this category.

(‘peas and carrots’)

Fated in opposition

two people who serve as compliments to each other and challenge the other. Most can eventually come to reach some form of mutual understanding. Many can become friends with one another (think narrative foils, rivals, kismesis, etc.)

Fated in destruction

People with many differences who push one another past the realm of comfort and safety. They distain one another, or may respect but still dislike each other. Often, these relationships end poorly, but not all of them do. Some even become friends. It’s pretty rare for them to become romantically involved.

(rivals, enemies)

The categories are based on the compatibility in personality, going from highest to lowest. Why would two people with low personality compatibility be thrown together by fate? Because fating is fundamentally about fulfilling a role, regardless of how the people involved relate to each other. The mechanics do not serve those involved, only the universe’s own purposes of balancing things.

People who are fated together will end up coincidentally meeting much more often than is normal. Fating doesn’t guarantee that two people will make a connection; it merely increases the chances of it happening.

When someone meets another they are fated with, they may feel a certain pull towards them, like an unexplained magnetism (these are called abstract interest.) If it isn’t explained by desire for friendship, attraction or casual interest that tie back to a concrete quality, and it continues until the people involved regularly meet, then it is fating at work. (These are called concrete interest.)

However, people may be concretely interested in their fated match as well, so this test won’t work in many cases.

Empathy Link

Over time as a relationship develops, both partners may develop some level of empathetic link with their fated partner. This enables them to experience the emotions of, thus better understand, their partner. Many people will develop at least a weak link to their fated partner. Some will develop further, having a grasp on their partner’s every fluctuation of mood. The benefit of this will depend a lot on one’s skill with identifying emotions.

Telepathic Link

A two way telepathic linking can form between fated partners, if both partners are form of psychic. With effort, both sides can tune into the connection. Actual telepathic communication is difficult, as focusing on another’s thoughts naturally cancels the ability to focus on or allow entry to one’s own thoughts. It’s possible to set up a laborious turn based communication system when one is able to communicate face to face with body language or spoken language (making it more of a supplemental than replacement communication method.)

Some psychic fated partners’ empathy and telepathic links can connect them on a fundamental level, such that they can be said to share one mind. However, if one partner is killed, the other will continue to exist as they did before they formed the partnership, as they are not actually physically integrated. 

New fated matches for someone can appear over time. They can also be dissolved, though this is difficult to achieve, and requires a genuine and concerted effort by one or both parties, with the goal of preventing future coincidental meetings. Some psychics have the natural ability to dissolve fated matches for others, though there are wider and unpredictable repercussions to this act.

Once people learn what fating actually is, they tend to discredit its influence. However, this is unwise, as knowing who one is fated with can help foresee future obstacles and better prepare for the future.

[ernmark]

One Possible Read of The Green Knight

I say one possible, because this is the story as I understood it as I was watching the film. When I mentioned it to my partner, he didn't take that away. I'm not saying my take on it is right or wrong (I think it's hard to say that about most reads for a movie like this), but I submit it for your consideration.

(Spoilers and a fairly thorough plot summary under the cut)

(Holy moly this got long)

A brief caveat:

Caveat the First: I'm basing this off a pre-existing understanding of medieval stories, which don't necessarily follow the same narrative structures as modern ones. The world they lived in was weird, so sometimes weird shit just happened for no reason, often very conveniently. (If anything, I think this movie did less of that than existed in typical medieval stories.) They also heavily relied on archetypes rather than distinct characters with backstories, as well as a pre-established understanding of the story you're listening to. Like the puppet show that shows up in the story, the kids in the audience had already heard the story enough times that they could follow it without any actual words. On that note, I've also read a version of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.

Caveat the Second: I immediately distrust anybody who talks about any story older than three centuries or so having an "original" version. There are some stories that have distinct authors, but often these stories were retold and rewritten to suit the tastes of their latest audience. So I refer to the version I read, not "the original". I take my reading of that story into my interpretation of what I saw. I'll note the details from the version I read where it's relevant.

The Story

We start with Gawain, King Arthur's nephew, waking up in a brothel with his sex worker lady friend. She sends him on his way back home to Camelot where his mother greets him and kindly asks him where he's been all night. Oh, off at Christmas Mass, naturally, is what he tells her. She counters that clearly he's been drinking all the communion wine, because she can smell it on his breath.

She tells him she's not feeling well, so he should go to the Christmas celebration without her and tell her all about it afterward.

[I don't recall hearing her name in the movie, but in the version I read, the Green Knight is sent by Morgana. Between his mother being described in dialogue as Arthur's sister and a known witch, I'm gonna run with that assumption and call her that.]

This is where my reading diverges: I take all of this as being almost entirely Morgana's story. And from her perspective, it's kind of hilarious. Because this isn't the story of Gawain's journey into Manhood, but of a very frustrated mother's attempts to save her beloved (if disappointing) son.

While Gawain is partying with the sickly King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, Morgana joins three of her fellow witches and they enact a spell, summoning the Green Knight and a very specifically worded challenge. The Green Knight presents a game: any one person in attendance may injure him and get his badass axe as a prize, but in a year exactly he'll have to go to the Green Knight's chapel and allow the Green Knight to return the exact same blow to him.

Arthur says he wants to do it, but acknowledges he's too sickly to do so. Gawain, already embarrassed once at this party, jumps up and volunteers to be his champion. And when he steps into the ring with the Green Knight, he cuts off his opponent's head. He'd think that was the end of it, but the Green Knight just picks up his severed head, reminds him of the deal to bring the axe back and let himself get beheaded in a year, and leaves.

[In the version I read, this was a ploy on Morgana's part just to freak out Guinevere. Seriously, that was the entirety of it. Just fucking with her rival/sister-in-law.]

In the movie, I got the vibe that Gawain was never meant to be in the line of fire. I suspect that either Arthur or one of his knights was meant to be the Green Knight's opponent, who would die after a year to get his affairs in order. Given that Gawain was Arthur's next-of-kin, that would have given him plenty of time to pass the crown to Morgana's beloved son. Unfortunately, Gawain stepping up messed up her whole plan.

During the intervening year, we see Morgana and the other witches working together to weave the Girdle of Invulnerability. As the name suggests, it's laden with magic to protect him from all harm and all blows from anyone. So long as he wears it, she explains, he'll make it home in one piece.

[In the version I read, the girdle is given to him by another woman later on at a weirdly convenient time. More on that later.]

Gawain barely makes it out when he asks directions from a young man looting the corpses on a recent battlefield. Being the idiot that he is, Gawain takes the young man's directions straight into a trap, where the young man and several other bandits are lying in wait. Despite his mother's assurances that he's invulnerable, he stands down immediately, allowing the bandits to take the Green Knight's axe, his Magic Girdle, all his money, all his supplies, etc.

During all this, three things happen: first, we see A Fox. Second, when the bandit takes the axe he goes all weird and runs off on the horse, forcing the other bandits to chase after him and leaving Gawain unobserved. Third, we get a weird vision of the future where Gawain remains where he is, tied up, until he rots away and he's left nothing but a skeleton.

My read is that The Fox is either Morgana or one of the other witches shapeshifted to keep an eye on him (alternatively, the fox is Reynard or a similar magical creature employed by them for the same purpose.) The Fox then enchants the bandit into running off with the Girdle and the Axe, leaving Gawain relatively safe. And when he fails to do anything with this spectacular opportunity, the Fox gives him the vision of what's gonna happen to him if he just waits around to be rescued.

Prompted to action, Gawain manages to free himself and continues his quest on foot. Eventually he comes across an abandoned manor. Inside, he meets a ghost who asks him to retrieve her severed head, which was thrown into the nearby spring. After some hemming and hawing, he does. When he returns to the surface with the woman's skull, the ghost is gone, but the Fox is watching him.

My take is that the ghost disappeared. They do that. The Fox, being sent to watch him, saw him actually step up and do a brave and selfless thing for once. This is what cements to the Fox that Gawain isn't a perennial fuckup, he's able to grow and mature if he's given the chance.

Gawain returns the skull to the rest of the ghost's skeleton, and he's rewarded by regaining his lost axe. (The axe placed there by the Fox, who took it from the enchanted bandit.)

So this is great, right? Gawain's fuck-upery has been cured and he's doing the responsible thing. Yay, right?

Except he's a fuckup who spends more time drinking and hanging out in brothels than doing Knightly stuff, so he doesn't know basics. Like how to start a fire or get food. Offscreen, Morgana must have been bashing her head into a wall, because her beloved son is going to get himself killed.

The Fox appears to him, and after his initial attempt to drive it off, Gawain lets it stay with him. From this point forward it stays by his side, not-so-subtly giving him directions and keeping him generally safe.

Later we meet some giants, because sometimes there are just giants. We don't question these things in Arthurian fantasy. Gawain asks them to give him a ride to his destination, but when one agrees to help him, he freaks out at the last second and refuses. The Fox speaks to the giant, quite possibly apologizing for its very rude human friend, and the giants go on their way without him.

Gawain is most of the way there by now, but it's late December in Wales, he's super cold and hasn't eaten anything but trippy mushrooms, he can't build a fire, he's been walking for days. He collapses, but the Fox urges him to go a little further and leads him to another manor house. Fortunately for him, this manor has living people in it, who clean him up, put him in a warm bed, and give him food.

We get a dreamy scene where he's being tended by his mother before he wakes up in the care of the manor. My read on it was that this manor and the people in it were sent directly by Morgana to save him. I don't think the manor was even there ten seconds before he collapsed the first time. Because Morgana loves her son, but he is REALLY bad at this.

Notably, it seems that the only people here are the Lord and Lady of the manor, as well as a blind old woman who seems to be the lady's maidservant and/or mother? Hard to tell.

Some flirting happens between Gawain and the Lord and Lady. The Lord of the manor explains that conveniently, Gawain's destination is only one day's walk away and he's several days early, so why not take some time to rest and gather his strength. The Lady shows off her library and her fancy daguerreotype-like mechanism, etc. The Lord suggests another game (mirroring the game presented by the Green Knight) : the Lord will go hunting the next day and give Gawain whatever he catches. Gawain will in return give the Lord whatever he gains throughout the day.

[In the version I read, this happens over the course of three days. Each day the Lord leaves, the Lady tries to seduce Gawain but he refuses, only accepting a kiss from her on the first two days; when the Lord returns with a hunted animal each day, Gawain gives him the kiss that the Lady gave him. On the third day, the Lady also gives Gawain a previously-unmentioned enchanted Girdle of Invincibility, which he neglects to pass along to the Lord, opting just to kiss him instead.]

In the movie, this is condensed into only one day. Gawain wakes up with the Lady creepily watching him sleep, wearing the Girdle of Invincibility that Morgana made for him. She invites him into bed and offers him the Girdle, reminding him that it can render him invincible. The scene gets a bit weird after that-- sex acts of some sort ensue, and the Lady walks away, leaving Gawain with post-coital shame and the Girdle.

Upset, Gawain grabs his stuff and makes to leave. Along the way he runs into the Lord in the middle of his hunt, and he declares that he's going to meet the Green Knight a day early. Citing their game, the Lord presents Gawain with The Fox (who is alive despite having been caught by a hunter, hmmm) and requests Gawain's "winnings" in return-- which he claims by stealing a kiss. I dunno about you, but it seemed to me that Gawain was Into It, at least before he remembers to be freaked out and runs off.

He's nearly at the place where he's to meet the Green Knight when the fox stops him. Now it starts talking, its voice shifting from masculine to feminine. It tells him that he's done a great job, and he can turn back right now and go home and nobody will know but the two of them. He doesn't have to go through with this. But Gawain, determined to fulfil his quest, drives the Fox off once again and goes the last bit alone.

Here he meets the Green Knight in the ruins of an old chapel, though because he's early the Green Knight is little more than a statue, awake but unmoving until the appointed Christmas Day. All the while Gawain just has to sit there and stew in the knowledge that he's gonna die. Finally the Green Knight stirs, asks Gawain if he's ready to die, and readies the axe that Gawain returned to him.

Throughout this, the light hits the Green Knight differently, making him look an awful lot like the Lord of the manor. After Gawain flinches away from the axe the first time, he speaks gently to him, almost tenderly.

[In the version I read, the Green Knight and the Lord of the manor are the same person, and the Lord/Knight is aware of Gawain's magic Girdle, because this was all an elaborate ruse. Because of Gawain's invincibility, the Green Knight only scratches his neck, permanently scarring him as punishment for lying about it and cheating in both their games, but doesn't hold it against him. Gawain then returns to Camelot and they keep the Girdle at the round table as a symbol that all of them have their failings.]

In the movie, Gawain flinches one more time. We then get a second very lengthy vision of an alternate future: Gawain flees the Green Knight and returns home, where he's welcomed back without external consequences. However, he's haunted by his own cowardice, giving up a difficult love in favor of living up to expectation, only to lose everything in the end anyway. His life following the cowardly route was longer, but it wasn't a better life.

He stops the Green Knight one last time, only to remove the Girdle and set it aside before declaring himself ready. The Green Knight is genuinely pleased by this, and he leans in and simply traces a finger over Gawain's throat, before happily saying. "Off with your head."

The movie ends there. Whether the Green Knight leaves him alive or kills him is up for interpretation. But even if the Green Knight wasn't on Morgana's payroll, I feel like he's way too fond of Gawain to do him real harm at this point.

And so Gawain has grown up-- he's brave, he's honorable, he's learned to keep his word and face the consequences of his actions. And Morgana, after some major struggles and a lot of called-in favors, has managed to keep her son from dying on his quest. Victory all around.

There's also an after-credits scene: just a little girl playing with Arthur/Gawain's crown. Notably, this little girl is neither of the children Gawain had in his vision of the cowardly future, so I interpreted it as a new future with a new child with potential all their own.

But that's just my take.

[moral-turpitudes]

I’ll Follow You Into The Dark:

Masterlist | Rules | Peaky Prompts

Trigger Warnings: ANGST, Explosions, Mentions of Blood, Gore etc, and some Fluff.

*Based on Fluff Prompt #1 from my Peaky Prompts list.*

Word Count: 1,695

Characters: Thomas Shelby x Reader

Requested: Yes

Requested by: Anon, you can find it here.

Summary: When Thomas and the rest of the blinders head towards a trap, Y/N has to decide if they’ll stay behind or go with them. Knowing that they vowed to be with him until death.

“If heaven and hell decide That they both are satisfied Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs If there's no one beside you When your soul embarks Then I'll follow you into the dark”

- Death Cab for Cutie

The sound of explosions rang faintly in the distance as you held your hands over your ears, the impact dulling your hearing as a sharp ringing filled them.

“Tom!” You yelled into the void, hoping to hear him through the chaos.

Silence.

Your heart pounded in your chest as you crawled through the sharp debris, looking for the bomb that was set off nearby, hoping to find the remnants of the man who taunted your family and made the fatal mistake of stepping in his own trap. His evil smirk etching it’s way into your memory as he walked in the lavish room ever-so carefully. Thinking he’d be able to avoid the perilous wires near his foot as you spotted them before he did, your warning causing him to take his final step. Your hands soon scraping through the chunks of drywall and broken glass as the dust and smoke burned your eyes and lungs, your mind racing with finding the man whom you’d followed that day into the trenches, so-to-speak. 

Every Peaky Blinders mission for Thomas was like a battle, his mind always set on planning attacks to escape the scraping sound of the shovels against the hot, dark tunnels. But as always, no matter how many times he tried to stay one step ahead of his rivals, someone always got in the way. 

It started out as an ordinary day, Thomas calling a meeting and giving orders to head to the latest location on his mental hit-list. The name making your heart sink as you realized he was walking into a trap. The infamous, cunning gang leader you’d came to share a bed with was going to waltz right into what he swore he never would.

“Any questions?” He asked, his eyes lingering on yours as he blew out a puff of smoke.

Everyone nodded along except you, knowing the people they were going after were just as dangerous. That week, the rival gang had crossed the line, threatening and taunting the Shelby family with letters and fake explosives just to remind them of “who really ran the town.” One of them said in a tense phone call to Thomas, setting off the chain of events leading up to now.

The decision to leave your clerical duties was a rash one. Nervously following your husbands car to their destination. Once there, you parked a ways back, behind a slew of trees. Your steps light against the cobblestones as you got closer to them, knowing in your heart you had to warn him, even if it was the last thing you’d say to the man you loved.

“Tommy! Wait!” You said loudly, your heart racing from the effort it took to catch up to him and his brothers.

“Y/N...you need to go back to the shop, it’s not safe. Go.” He said lowly, not wanting to call attention to you all.

“I came here to warn you Tom. Remember when you sent me to sit in on their meeting at the pub? They mentioned a trap. I-I didn’t think much of it then, but after the threats...Tom I know it’s a trap. If you go in there now you won’t make it out.” You said as tears formed in your eyes, your nerves getting to you as you struggled to speak. 

“I have to, love. Now go.” He said, kissing you quickly. 

“No. I’m going with you.” You said defiantly, pulling out the handgun he gave you, checking to make sure it was fully loaded.

He had a pained look on his face as he nodded, knowing he wasn’t going to be able to change your mind. You’d been a good shot in the past, but that didn’t exactly mean much when explosives were concerned.

You all had barely made it through the first floor of the large manor before the first one went off. Thomas shoving you to the ground, shielding you from the small debris falling through the air. As the haze cleared, you sat up, feeling Thomas pull you to the nearest wall, yelling orders at his brothers before checking his bullets.

“Keep your eyes peeled for the wires yeah? Stay behind me.” He said, opening the door as the dust covered space cleared. You walked closely behind, quietly looking at the ground for any signs of the deadly wires as you heard yelling upstairs. Arthur was shouting amongst gunfire, and John sounded like he was scrapping with one of the men they were after.

Thomas roughly took your hand, leading you up the stairs in a sideways motion, backs towards the wall, checking around the corner with a quick glance before a bullet whizzed past your head. A scream caught in your throat as you realized how close you were to the darkness of death itself. Thomas soon returned fire, the screams of the man he hit echoing through the stone hallway that led to his brothers.

Upon arrival, you flanked your husband, pointing your gun at the man holding John down as Thomas shot the other.

“Get off of him!” You yelled, catching the mans attention enough to where John could get a punch in. The man hurling himself angrily at you soon enough until you shakily shot him. The man falling limp to the ground within seconds. Your hands shook as you took in the sight, trying to distract yourself from the blood by looking at the ground for more wires.

Almost as soon as you’d said that though, the man who’d sent you all the taunting letters came in with a menacing smirk, stepping in a weird way so as not to disturb the floor. But your eyes saw the colored wires poking out ever so slightly, your brain wondering how in the hell you all avoided it earlier.

“Everybody down!” You yelled, causing the man to misstep, setting it off. The wind soon knocked out of you as the blast hurled everyone to the ground. The ceiling caving in in various places as well as part of the floor below you.

You felt yourself relax as you breathed in the smoke, feeling as though you were going to pass out from the ordeal. The sharp pain of the glass shards stuck in your now shredded coat the only thing keeping you clinging to consciousness. As you closed your eyes, you pictured what life would be like if he’d never had the family business thrust upon him after the war. How he’d have probably married you sooner and how you’d probably be chasing little kids around by now in a big house on the outskirts of town. But now, reality set in as Arthur’s shouts came through the muddled noise, Johns following not too far behind as they ran towards you, grabbing you up in the knick of time. The once lavish building crumbling before your eyes as you knew the one you loved was most likely gone.

“Tom!” You called out, hands still scraping through the rubble of the first floor as Arthur and John dug through the rest of the larger stuff. Tears visibly splattering on the dust covered floor, the tiles smashed beyond repair.

Your heart ached knowing you’d never find him as you scraped through the debris, your hearing slowly coming back and eyes watering as you continued on, stopping once a hand reached out from one of the corners.

“Y/N.....” Thomas said weakly, his arm badly cut and his face busted up as he spat up blood, most likely from his busted lip or the jagged stone poking him in the chest. It most definitely broke a few ribs, causing him too much pain to move as he thought about what to do, even though he couldn’t do much of anything at the moment.

It seemed like he waited longer now, than he did for the calvary in France, for his brothers to make it to where he was. Helping him up despite his loud groans of pain.

You watched in horror as they drove him to the hospital, his face paling as you followed behind their car, hoping that neither heaven nor hell would take him, even though he belonged to the latter. Hoping that he would stay here, for you. For his family.

Hours had slowly passed until you’d gotten word he was going to make it, the doctors saying he was damn well close to dying by the time they’d got him in surgery.

“There you are love.” He said weakly, the meds doing his head in as he saw you walk in carrying his beloved cigarettes and his bloodstained coat. Your own body covered in various bandages as you sat next to his bed.

“I thought you were dead.” You said, tears rolling down your cheeks as he cupped your face with his hand. A small, pained laugh escaping his lips.

“You can’t get rid of me that easily, Y/N.” He said. Knowing he might as well have nine lives with as close he’s been to death over the years.

“I know...” you said shortly, holding his bruised hand in yours that were bandaged up.

“But...please promise me...that next time you’ll listen to me. At least when I know it’s a trap alright?” You asked, concern lacing your every feature as you felt him pull your hand to his lips, kissing the top of it gently.

“I will, but promise me something as well.” He said.

“What?” You asked.

“Promise me you won’t follow me next time. You shouldn’t have to risk your life for me.” He said, a serious look in his tired, blood-shot eyes.

“I can’t promise that Tommy. I’ll follow you into the dark not matter what. I fucking vowed to you know.” You said, pointing at the diamond on your ring finger.

“Aye, but you’re my partner. Can’t have you dying too.” He said.

“That is true, but what is love without sacrifice?” You said, giving him a light kiss as he pulled you close despite his injuries. Wanting to feel you beside him, to know that he wasn’t stuck in the rubble anymore, to know that he had you, and you had him.

Thomas Shelby Tag List:

@msbzowy, @nofckingfighting, @aranoburns, @sighonahurricane, @ugly-crying-over-bucky-barnes, @gaytommyshelby,  @fifty-shadesof-tommyshelby, @inglourious-imagines, @thebloodyshelbys, @tsolomons, @blinder-secrets, @reveparade, @shelby-fanatic, @ta-ka-shi-ma, @psychkunox, @peakyxtommy, @captivatedbycillianmurphy,@dreamwastakenx,

@lovemissyhoneybee @thomashelbyswhore​, @xxbeckybeexx-blog

If you’d like to be added/removed just send me an ask or message! :)

[kth1]

Cut Shot [MYG]

Cut Shot [Yoongi x Reader] ⟶ Credit: @kimtaehyunq​​ ⟶ Genre: Smut | 21+| Boyfriend AU | One Shot ⟶ Warnings: Established relationship, explicit, oral (M/F), alcohol use, condom sex, massage oil, lovey-dovey-flirtations, hint of cute jealousy, etc ⟶ WC: 10k+ ⟶ Summary: He hates the water, he hates the heat, and he hates the Sun. Any form of physical activity is a big no-no, yet Min Yoongi will go out of his way to show that he loves you on your mini vacation. ⟶ Teaser: “Breathlessly nodding your head, you drone at the loss of his fingers. You beam a hazy smile, the post orgasm paradise you swim in radiates off you. “Let me help you,” your arms stretch out to him.” ⟶ Beta Reader: None other that @shadowsremedy​ (thank you for doing this in a timely manner 🧡 you’re awesome!) ⟶ Author’s Note: This fic is apart of @jamaisjoons​ Summer Bucket List Collab. This is my very first collab I have been apart of and I am very happy to have been associated with this project!

The blistering sun beams from above, heat rising scorching hot off the sands. Seagulls squawking in the distance, some scavenging around for disposed food – or snatching some from the unattained.

Yoongi trudges along the beach, black Raybands sit on the bridge of his adorable button nose, a large sunhat, sandals, an excessive tropical theme button-up shirt, and obnoxiously colored swim trunks to set his attire. With each step he takes, his feet kick up sand behind him, a half empty beer in hand in a pink koozie snuggled around the bottle as he sips away at his delicious beverage, merrily.

He sees you ahead, prancing around on the beach volleyball courts with your pony-tail rung high and skin glistening in the light. Right beside those said courts is his destination – the row of canopy tents that provided him his only relief. Shade!

Groups of people huddle around the area, humans of all ages, shapes, color, and size. He secretly hopes the smaller children applied much more sunscreen than normally, especially how they’ve been in and out of the ocean’s water at least five times now. But who’s counting?

Yoongi trails himself back to your shared designated tent, plopping himself down on the double wide reclining lawn chair. Here, he gets a front row seat at your court and some relaxing shade. Feet up, cooler full of snackable food and drinks besides him, and the best view in town – you.

You, the outgoing bubbly beauty, are playing a fun pick-up game with the rest of your party along with a handful of locals. Volleyball is your game much like music is Yoongi’s muse. Even with several differences in interest, the two of you get along quite well emotionally. 

Many times Yoongi catches you thanking Hoseok for introducing you to him, in all honesty that is the only way he would notice you. Yoongi prefers to stay in isolation, nose shoved deep in a music sheet or much too invested in staying in bed all day. Once in a while he will strike up a game of basketball with his friend group, but only on a good day.

At first Yoong was incredibly confused towards you. Why would you want to meet him? Who even were you and when or how did you guys ever run into another? Upon Hoseok’s persistent pleading, insisting that he ‘has a good feeling about the two of you’, Yoongi eventually agreed to meet up with this friend of Hoseok’s.

It was a small date, nothing fancy, just a warm afternoon coffee meet up in the middle of September. Yoongi sat with phone in hand, iced americano in the other, at the bar seats set up at the windowpane in the front of the store of the local café. He was so indulged at tapping away on his phone, he didn’t even register the presence of another standing right next to him. You found it utterly adorable how Yoongi nearly spat out his drink as he stood up to greet you properly, profusely apologizing for his behavior.

Yoongi admitted, he remained skeptical throughout the date, though he was completely intrigued by you. Not only were you attractive in his eyes, cute with a bit of a feisty bite, he admired the way you spoke. You had a hidden passion behind your words – you spoke with confidence, sometimes even assertive… and he liked that.

But, what he enjoyed most is how you would get lost in your words, ranting long sentences when you hadn’t realized you had said too much. Something about the way you talked perked his ears like a silent harp playing in the background of the world. What Yoongi noticed after that date was how you kept his attention the entire time. How it seemed that the two of you were vastly different in many ways, but he found something in you that reeled him in instantly. Before bidding goodbye after the cheap coffee date, he reached for your hand as he asked if you would like to do this again sometime.

Nine months later, he finds himself sitting court side to your beach volleyball game. On vacation with a few of his closest friends at a beach house along the coast. A quick getaway from home, promises of having some game nights and visiting a few touristy areas. The group was partially here to support you at your annual volleyball competition, but other than that they came to party.

“Got it!” you shout, alerting Hoseok – your current teammate – that you were receiving the ball. Yoongi watches as you dive forward into the tan sands, getting an arm under the ball just in time to pop it up for Hoseok to assist.

On the other side of the net, acting as your current rivals were Jungkook and Hoseok’s long-term girlfriend, Haru. They readied themselves up for a freeball to come over, acting fast when Hoseok sent the ball to the deep back corner of the court.

It is worth it to Yoongi to see your beautiful smile light up as you were enjoying the hobby you love most, watch you ravish the sport as if it were your natural element. The sweat beads off of your brow, forearms, even soaked the fabric slightly under each of your breasts of your bikini top. 

A small bickering emits from Jungkook by the looks of it, clearly arguing about something that he finds unfair but it soon washes over from Hoseok kicking up sand at another for the sake of giggles. 

You walk your way over to the tent with Haru after the two rambunctious men chase another towards the ocean. Your boyfriend, who looked completely unbothered by the environment around him even though you knew he’d do anything to be back inside with the cool air conditioner, welcomes you with a warm smile and an iced cold water bottle from the cooler that he has been monitoring because it harbors all the beers. 

“Hey babe,” you lean down, placing a quick peck to Yoongi’s plump lips. He tastes the salt of your sweat, and you taste the alcohol on his breath. “Day drinking much earlier than yesterday?”

Yoongi shrugs in his chair, tilting his head back to finish off his current beverage, “It’s 5pm somewhere... It’s a vacation after all.”

You guzzle down your fresh water, towel wrapping around your neck to help pat down the glistening sweat that coats you. “I’m not judging,” you smile with a wink, “just observing. I don’t want you to be bored.” 

“I’m not bored when I watch you. Plus it’s fun to see Jungkook get riled up.” 

Grabbing hold of one of the many randomly scattered candy bags, Jungkook’s unhealthy snack choices at it’s finest, you settle with a few gummy worms to toss in your mouth. “He does get worked up fast when it comes to games.” The two of you laugh while looking over at the ocean to see Jungkook having Hoseok flipped over his shoulder and walking deeper in the water for a proper body slam. 

“What should we have for dinner tonight? Home cooked or take-out?” Haru inquires, scanning over her phone for local restaurants that may peek the group’s interest. 

Yoongi checks the time on his watch, grimacing at the thought of food shopping so soon when it nearly took you all three hours. A wad of cash was eliminated from his bank account, in the store to pack for the trip in the first place. Thankfully you had offered to him that he wouldn’t have to pay a single dime the entire vacation to make up for covering everyone that day. 

“Let’s grab a bite somewhere, I’ve been to a place called Poseidon’s, lots of seafood and such! My treat.” You gleam a smile towards Yoongi who’s eyes widened at the word seafood, knowing very well how your man enjoys himself some nice cooked lobster. 

Another day, another play. 

Ever since visiting this great spot, your party visited the beach nearly every day! You on the other hand had no choice in the matter because you were practicing for your tournament at the end of the week with your partner. Annually, your old high school best friend and you would sign up for this beach tournament, catch up with another and reminisce on the younger years. It was only for the first week that you’d be tied to this obligation and luckily your group booked the rental house for two weeks, giving you more time with your friends afterwards. 

Maggie, someone who you grew up with ever since befriending another in middle school, was your go-to gal for years before college separated another. She continued to a division one school on an all paid scholarship for volleyball. Your interests were a bit more separate from hers and you find yourself attending a creative arts school, division three, but you still continued to play for your schools team. As much as volleyball will forever be embedded into your blood, you found a new focus when it came to creativity and joined a school where you’d learn how to become a creative director of some sorts. 

Together, Maggie and you spent most days making up the lost time. Your group was more than understanding prior to even agreeing to this vacation, and you all promised to make it worthwhile. One day, Yoongi had joined Maggie, her boyfriend Taehyung, and you on a lunch date. You were happy Yoongi showed up, given the fact that he’s a bit introverted and shy, but regardless the lunch went smoothly and to both Maggie’s and yours surprise - the two of you had found out that Taehyung and Yoongi knew another because they, too, went to the same high school.

Now, as you practice your heart out on the beach courts, Hoseok and Yoongi are padding their feet across the hot sands, hauling the belongings with a small wagon, far away from sight. 

“I know the basics - the idea of how to play.” Yoongi insists, “I just want to be able to play with her. Nothing fancy.” 

“Sounds pretty fancy to me. C’mon she’s the first girl to get you up off your ass. You must like her enough to endure the summer heat, exercising, the sun…” Hoseok counts off his fingers one by one.

“Alright, alright. I get it.” Yoongi shoves Hoseok in the shoulder. “Just get on with it and show me what I need to do.” 

“Ok, first, you smile wide like this!” Hoseok giggles and manages to duck just in time from Yoongi’s flying hand. 

The two pivot themselves off in the distance, much further down the beach than the volleyball courts could see, and far away from your view. To your knowledge the entire group dispersed to enjoy whichever activities they wish to do while you practiced with your partner. What you didn’t know is that Yoongi had asked Hoseok, on one of his drunken moods, for some one-on-one training so that he can pick up on the hobby you love most - to surprise you by the end of vacation and play a game of pick-up with you. 

“Pass this!” Abruptly, Hoseok chucks the beach volleyball at Yoongi - only for him to naturally catch it with his hands. “No! Shake that basketball reflex, arms together! And extend! Make a platform - now pass it.” 

Biting back his sharp tongue, Yoongi tosses the ball back for Hoseok to repeat the action, this time now he is prepared to pass it effortlessly with his forearms. 

“Great!” Hoseok squabbles, “but, now you need the proper position. Bend your knees.” 

“I have to bend them?” Yoongi reacts with a distasteful gesture. 

“Center of gravity needs to be low for movement. Don’t plant your feet! The sand makes it much harder to move in.” He scolds with a push of his hands to Yoongi’s back, knocking the older man off balance. “See, you’re off center!” 

Yoongi scoffs, “Pushing me around isn’t helping!” He fixes his friend with a stern glare through his cat-like eyes.

“Yeah, but it makes you focus. You do better when someone’s on your ass. I hear it all the time back at the apartment, Y/n is a bit… assertive in the bedroom.” Hoseok winks, eyes squinting from corner to corner. 

“It’s no better compared to the amount of broken furniture that came from your room,” Yoongi quickly retorts, “even the damn couch is still broken!”

Hoseok shrugs, “not my fault both Haru, and you enjoy being bossed around by their significant others.” 

Yoongi retaliates, “It’s not being bossed, maybe in your case, but not mine. We go both ways.” 

Hoseok tosses the ball once again, hoping to pepper aimlessly with Yoongi and get him used to moving around, “You sure about that? You’re a passive person, Yoongi. Even I can pick on you and get away with it.” Hoseok taunts with a light heart, returning the ball back and forth between the two of them. 

“Not everything is about being physical.” 

Hoseok smirks, a judging last look before lightly hitting the volleyball down into Yoongi’s platform with the snap of his wrist, “We have a lot to work on, especially when it comes to hand setting. Maybe tomorrow when Y/n isn’t around we can snag a court and play a game with Haru and Kook.”

“We’ve exhausted spades, go-fish, and even tried blackjack.” Jungkook slurs his words around the neck of his beer bottle. He curls up along the armchair where he aimlessly stares up at the ceiling fan, counting out how many times it spins until forgetting where he left off. 

“Well, it’s not the weekend just yet, so the bars won’t be that fun right now.” You speak, a small smile spread across your face as you glance over the table at your boyfriend who is nose deep into another playing card manual. 

Jungkook’s large eyes look at you with hope, “will you go bar hopping with us when we do?”

“We’ll see how tired I am after the tourney, but I would love to, Kook!” 

“Bullshit!” Hoseok’s voice pierced through the sound of pop music playing from Haru’s phone, hand slapping the table timed at the sound of his voice with a finger pointed up on the other as if a lightbulb had gone off above his head. Everyone glances over at him from the sudden outburst, “we haven’t played bullshit yet!” 

You blink, shock value very evident on your face at Hoseok’s accusation. “For a second I thought you were calling me out, saying I wasn’t going to go out.” Laughing, you gather up a handful of playing cards that scattered the tabletop and begin shuffling the deck. 

“Well, that too. We’ve been here only a few days, but you’ve been a bit too busy for some things. And a bit cranky at night too.” Haru jabs Hoseok with her elbow to his side, making him wince the moment her pointy bone contacted him. 

Raising a questioning eyebrow at him, you briefly peeped over at Yoongi who only raised his shoulders to indicate his indifferences under your stare. 

“I’m sorry,” you mutter. “This tournament is important to me, and it’ll be over just after the weekend. We’ll still have a few extra days for activities.”

“Yeah, noona is going to dance with me. It’s already set.” Sweet, drunken Jungkook sighs, head tilt back on his chair. His lips pursed, eyes closed as he imagines the upcoming bar crawl. 

Yoongi interjects, head snapping up to glare over Jungkook, “You’re not going to get all handsy with my girlfriend.” He frowns, tossing a handful of papers to the side. “There’s plenty of single locals here. You’ll have no problem picking one up at a bar.” 

Jungkook peeks one eye open, a cocky grin drawn to his face, “Worried about me taking Y/n?” 

You sit there rolling your eyes, Hoseok too preoccupied by Haru snuggling up against him, and Yoongi death staring Jungkook - probably lighting him on fire in his mind. 

“As if.” Yoongi challenges, grabbing hold of his almost empty drink to finish off with one swig. 

“Guess noona never told you about Valentine’s day weekend? It was magical.” Jungkook snickers, until the push of Yoongi’s chair alerts the younger one of his hyung standing up, ready to go straight for Jungkook. Quickly, the tyrant Jungkook, jumps himself off the chair, throwing a pillow back towards Yoongi as he scampers his way down the hall, away from Yoongi’s wrath and out of view. 

Yoongi shakes his head, “this kid is always so scared of me.” He collects the litter of empty bottles from the coffee table, gathers up the useless waste of napkins and food wrappers around the room to dispose of them in the trash. 

“I’m sure he has many reasons to fear you. I had only given him a kiss to his hand when he burnt it when taking the pizza out of the oven. Guess that’s enough leverage for him to toy with.” You laugh, joining him along with cleaning up the table where you sit. 

“I know,” he chuckles. “The moment it happened he came running into the living room to tell me. He acts like there was more to that.” Yoongi side-eyes you skeptically, almost playfully, “better be all that there was.” 

For some time now, Haru rests her head against Hoseok’s shoulder and you were sure she was probably too tired to do much else, especially at the way she nearly tilts forward when Hoseok moves his body. Haru braces herself quickly, eyes shot wide, and glances you with a sheepish smile. 

“Go to bed.” you urge, “both of you. Aren’t you going to the festival in the morning with us? Get some rest.” 

Both Haru and Hoseok sluggishly get up from their spots, placing a few empty glasses to the counter before departing the room to their quarters. It is a bit late after all, and once the alcohol sinks in a bit everyone starts feeling a bit tired. You’re sure by morning everyone will be rejuvenated, energized to go straight back to partying. 

Without notice, Yoongi stood behind you, resting his hands on both of your shoulders. “Hey…” He whispers.

You make a noise of acknowledgement, raising one of your hands to lay on top of his to rub soft circles around his knuckles.

“You okay, babe? You seem… stressed.” His hands emphasized the word by lightly squeezing the tendons of your shoulders. He feels your body react instantly, the tightness of your back slowly being worked over with his firm thumbs. Rolling over a tight knot, the flick of his thumb forces you to jolt from the straining muscle.

You laugh at your reaction, “Yeah. I guess I am. I’ve been so busy with practicing for the tourney, I guess I haven’t noticed my body has been so –“

“Stiff?” He is quick to finish your sentence, dipping his head down to peck an innocent kiss to your head. You nod with a sigh.

“You’ve been so occupied,” his lips came back down, “you probably forgot that you’re on a vacation.” He smirks into your hair, running his fingers up your neck to your jaw. Yoongi tilts your head back, enough to kiss you upside down.

It's lazy at first, soft pouty lips peppering another in sync. Until Yoongi deepens the kiss, daring himself to push his tongue into your mouth. The wet muscle met with you in a savory passion.

He tastes just as you expect, a hidden spike of whiskey and the odd flavor of mint lingering on his breath.

“Come.” Yoongi breaks away. Walking in front of where you sit he takes your hand in his, leading the two of you back to your bedroom.

“Yoongi…” you drawl out the syllables of his name with a sigh of defeat. “Yoongi, I’m sore.”

Before making it completely down the hallway, he pulls you into him with an arm snaked around your waist and a hand lifting your chin. With a soft smile across his face he gazes down at you with mirth, “I know babe, I’m here to make it better.”

You smile, raising your eyebrows in question, “Oh, yeah?”

Yoongi almost matches your mannerism, but instead gives you a sly look with a poke to your nose. “Yes. Now come.” With a flip you’re facing forward. His arms securely around your middle, Yoongi proceeds to waddle the two of you the rest of the way down the hall and into your room with a fit of shared giggles.

He kicks the door close behind him, ushering you to the edge of your shared bed. Before he let you turn, nuzzling his head between the crook of your neck to leave fleeting kisses across your supple skin.

“Can I take this off?” he whispers, picking at the hem of your shirt.

You hum a tone of acknowledgement, smirking as Yoongi raises the loose material off your body. From here he can see your tan lines complemented by your sports bra, a slight shade darker than your beautiful natural skin tone.

He lightly tugs at one of the crossed straps, allowing it snap against your back. “This too.”

You look over your shoulder with a playful smile, “Of course.”

Cuffing the bottom of your bra you raise it up, allowing freedom to your soft set of mounds before Yoongi is fast in scoping both up with his hands before you could toss away the piece of clothing.

After disposing your athletic top his lips peppered along your shoulder blade.

“Now what?” You question while topping your hands over his.

“Lay down for me,” he directs with a loving slap to your right ass cheek, “face in the pillows.”

Cautiously, you kneel your way up the length of the bed, watching Yoongi who had walked over to a bag besides the dresser. He shuffles through its contents before pulling out a clear bottle with a rosé color top. Your eyebrows scrunch together in confusion while pressing your cheek to the fluff of a pillow.

Reading into your quizzical look your boyfriend responds with a wink, “Amber and argan oil.” He teasingly shook the container while stepping closer to the bed.

“You brought massage oil?” You ask, stunned.

“Thought we’d try it out.” Yoongi shrugs, lifting the remainders of your hair off your back, clearing up his workspace.

You groan with satisfaction as Yoongi perches himself over your body, resting his ass on the back of your thighs. “Mmm, I fucking love you,” you giggle into the sheets.

The sound of the cap popping off the bottle arouses your ears and soon enough you feel the lukewarm drizzle down the base of your spine. Its lightweight aroma is subtle, but has a soothing sweet smell. 

Instantly your body melted into Yoongi’s fingertips, they diligently work the slippery liquid across your skin.

“I love you, too.” The smile is heard through his voice. He enjoys the way your back arches towards his hands, the way it chases his touch. He isn’t featherlight, his deft fingers are trained well against the taught muscles of your back, aiming to help un-knot you a bit.

His thumbs are quick to find the tightness along your shoulder blades, taking note to pay special attention to the areas with rigid and stressed muscles.

You deeply sigh into the pillow; eyes close comfortably in relaxation by Yoongi’s skillful digits.

A soft chuckle resounds from his chest, “you’re already moaning for me, babe?”

You nod your head, unashamed.

He watches the scattered goosebumps decorating your back appear and deplete in small fractions. Takes in your sun-kissed skin, the smooth gleam of oil slicking the surface. He smirks at your soft noises and the pleas that ask him to go softer or harder.

Boldly, Yoongi makes an effort to venture lower, dipping his hands into the waistband of your shorts. He rests the elastic below the swell of your ass, grabbing a firm handful of cheek in both palms.

You grumble in submission, not particularly upset with his choice of massage pattern.

Involuntarily, your body acts on its own accord. Arching yourself to further lift your bottom into his kneading hands.

“Careful, Y/n.” Yoongi spiritedly warns. “You’re going to make me hard if you keep that up.”

His thumbs hooked into the muscle of your exposed butt, applying a strong prod into the tenderness. You squirm under him, teeth trapping your bottom lip as a small mewl escapes your nose.

“Easy, easy!” He lets up, moving his hands to your hips. Running circles into your skin with the pads of his fingers, he continues to coax you. “I’m just trying to loosen you up.”

“I know. It feels good. It feels really good, Yoongi.” Huffing with a laugh, “I can’t believe how sore I am.”

Yoongi leans up, clutching his hands around your shoulders and casually dipping himself closer to you. “I can,” he whispers. Yoongi plants a small kiss between your shoulder blades, his hips leaning closer to the round of your ass. There you feel it – a slow drag along the crack of your cheeks of his hardening dick stuffed insides his shorts. He hums when you purposely push up to feel him more.

“I see that someone else also needs to loosen up a bit.”

Yoongi leaves room for you to spin in your spot. Once face-to-face he dips his head closer to yours, nudging your nose against his. “Maybe. Will you help me?”

Your hands raise the material of his shirt up his thin torso, watching Yoongi expertly yank it off in one swift movement.

“Of course, I’ll help you.”

Your smile met his lips with a soft peck that soon turns into a more heated make-out. Your tongue grinds against his just how his hips did into your pelvis.

Those nimble hands of yours traveled the expanse of his sides, legs raised for him to slot between. The kiss races into fervor, your fingers brush against his undercut, tugging at his thick locks and his fingers are desperate to tease your nipples. 

You missed this, you missed him.

“Hold on, let me grab a condom.” Yoongi detaches his lips from yours reluctantly, retrieving a foil pack from a nearby drawer.

Your tongue quickly swipes between your parted lips, watching with a craned neck at your boyfriend who exhausted no time clearing his shorts and slinking the rubber snug along his swollen length. With a few languid tugs at his cock he wiggles his eyebrows towards you. 

Whining almost pathetically, you rub your thighs together as you take his image in. Your boyfriend is handsome after all, you yearned to meet him many months ago because of your massive attraction to the way he looked. Learning to love him, and how dedicated and invested he is with parts of his life which make him happy – you being one of those things. 

You grow more attracted to his whole being, ethos and all. His intuition, spirit, and character as a whole is what draws you into him every time. He makes you feel normal and special at the same time. Yoongi has a way about him that always makes you think about how deep his mind actually can be, always surprising you when he opens up. 

Yoongi saunters back over to you, hands at your knees and running up the plane of your thighs to pull your bottoms off with your assistance.

“Wanna see how wet you are,” he rasps with the spread of your knees. Yoongi positions himself between your limbs, groaning when your slick glistens in the light. Inserting two fingers with little resistance, he listens to the high pitch breath that catches in your throat. With a thumb at your clit and two fingers knuckle deep – he sets a speedy pace.

You clench and unclench in unison to his pads stroking against the rough spongy area embedded in your walls. Yoongi stares at the rise and fall of your chest, the way your mouth parts with each soft moan. You’re beautiful and he knows it, but he wants you to know it – and feel it.  

The warm sensational build up lingers in the pit of your stomach, an all too familiar sign to tell you’re coming close to your peak. Yoongi smirks, noticing this behavior, if not by the way your legs wiggle more and the way your head tosses to the side, but also by the way your cunt tightens around his two slim digits.

“Yoongi –“

His name rolls off your tongue as lustful as ever, your hand latching around the wrist connected to the fingers that assault your in a blissful manner. With his unoccupied hand now holding your hips in place, he inclines his head closer to your core. He replaces his thumb with his mouth, matching the rhythm of his deft fingers.

You shutter underneath him, both hands carding his hair for purchase while waves of pleasure vibrated through your cunt and the expanse of your body. The cream gathering around his fingers made its way into his mouth, savoring your natural essence.

“Feel good?”

Breathlessly nodding your head, you drone at the loss of his fingers. You beam a hazy smile, the post orgasm paradise you swim in radiates off you. “Let me help you,” your arms stretch out to him.

Gladly, Yoongi careens closer, angling himself expertly so that the tip of his condom-covered cock dipped within your folds. Without dithering he pushes forward, sinking his cock in your wall-hugging slippery warmth. Inch by inch he disappears inside you, hitting the base of his pelvis against your clit. With arms snaked around your naked body he rests his head against your shoulder, turned enough to nip along your jawline.

His dick fills you up completely, deliciously. If it wasn’t for the slow shallow deep thrusts he gave your cunt, you’d be completely happy just holding him inside you for hours. In this position it was easy to grind himself into your clit, also easier to lock eyes with your flushed-out expressions.

The two of you exchange pleasurable moans that boosts another’s confidence. Audible noises that turned each other on even more, stroking your lustful pride that the both of you are fully enjoying the dirty act.

“Faster, please.” You match your hips up with his. Squelching noises fill the room with the snap of Yoongi’s thrusts. The wetter you get, the more tempting it is for Yoongi to ram straight into his your pretty cunt.

The jutting of his body scoots yours up with each stride, your legs locked around his waist and arms hooked around his back to anchor yourself. 

Sweat coats around his hairline, threatening to form droplets that eventually would escape his body. The summer night’s dry air hugs the two of you, rising temperatures amplifying your bodies. The smell of sex loiters in the room, no doubt. And you silently thank that famous engineer for inventing the air conditioner, the one that sat in the window to your right - you’re positive the both of you will rush straight to it after this intimacy ended. 

Between grunts, Yoongi whispers profanities. Swearing under his breath and murmuring dirty words into the shell of your ear. “Did you like my fingers in you?” “Like this cock deep inside you?” “You feel fuckin’ fantastic.” “I want to bury myself inside this pussy every night.” “I love you.”

Each sentence fills your mind, swirling your emotions and hormones. It is hot. You sang back your appeals, smiled wide as he sends your body into pleasure.

“Flip.” You request, hauling Yoongi enough to make him roll with you.

You settle atop him, dick still very much intact inside your body. Yoongi gazes at you with hooded eyes, his hair fanning around his head. The beat of his heart matched the same pace as your own, both panting for oxygen and running with the enjoyment your bodies are experiencing.

Bouncing on him with what little strength you still have, you fuck yourself on his swollen cock while Yoongi’s hands are gripping your waist like a vice. The bed squeaks under your weight, his head bobs along with your ministrations, Yoongi’s jagged breath warns you that you’re doing exactly what his body wants.

“Babe, I’m…“

“Me too.” You gasp once his thumb locks onto your clit again, drawing figure-eights quickly. Your walls squeeze around his tender length, body jerking with each ambitious dive of his cock into your cervix.

Yoongi’s head tosses back, brows furrowed in concentration while his bottom lip traps itself between his set of teeth. The erratic moment of your body convulsing on top of him made him lose it – draining himself in the condom with lewd moans and nails digging into the flesh of your hips.

“Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” he chants with declaration. Mere seconds after his orgasm, you find your second one. A cry breaking free from your mouth, you rock yourself on his shaft throughout your fervent ride, arousal seeping all around his pubic hairs.

Leaning down, you kiss another between labored breaths, “Thank you so much.”

He snorts a laugh, holding you against his chest as his softening dick slips out from your spent hole. “You feel a bit better?”

“A lot better.”

As much as you love to cuddle against your boyfriend, the two of you became much more socially aware of how agonizingly sticky your bodies have become. Unenthusiastically, you peel yourself off the top of Yoongi, rolling yourself to your back. You stare senselessly at the air conditioner that mocks you, frowning about how far of reach it is from the bedside. 

“You think if we turn it on full blast, by the time we’re done with a shower it will be super cold in here?” Yoongi asks, sitting himself to the edge of the bed to carefully yank off the condom without spilling his seed. He looks over his shoulder to you, back and buttcrack exposed to your view and you couldn’t help but smirk fondly at him. 

“God, I hope so. I feel so disgusting right now.” 

Giving yourself enough recuperation time, the two of you finally lift yourselves off the bed, turn on the air conditioner and work your way to the bathroom. The brisk shower remains lukewarm, the sticky sweat washes away with soap sudz and water. Your boyfriend and you came back to a frigid bedroom, a perfect temperature to slink bodies together and canoodle another under the comfort of a blanket for the rest of the night. 

Rejuvenation at its finest, indeed.

Now that it’s Friday - a day before your tournament - you join the group along with the festivities taking hold at the beach front. You share a way-too-sweet customized coffee, some delicious chocolate dipped churros and apple fritters with Yoongi. Battle Haru and Hoseok with the water-shooting contest and also were able to pick out a few hand-made beaded bracelets to gift to your entire party. 

Jungkook and Yoongi went head to head at being the winner with the highest score on the dunk tank, earning one of the larger stuffed purple koalas. To your amusement, and Jungkook’s ego, he gifts you the prize after rubbing his victory in Yoongi’s face. 

“He does it on purpose, Yoongi.” your arm linking around his, watching Hoseok share a singular strawberry malt with Haru between two straws. A corny-coupley thing that you find cute. 

Yoongi tips his hat forward, rubbing his nose quickly to act as if he wasn’t bothered. “I let him win that.” 

“Right,” you peck his shoulder with a kiss. “You reacting the way you do only compels him to continue.” 

“Yeah, one day he’s going to get it,” he pouts, turning over to look at you with a concerned look. “Can’t have him thinking he has any chance.” 

You bite back a smile, squeezing his arm tighter to your body. “Never. Kook isn’t my type.”

“And what is?”

“You,” you coo, grabbing hold of Yoongi for a kiss now to his lips. “Your voice, eyes, that gummy smile of yours.”

“Irrelevant.” Yoongi smirks, nudging you forward toward a booth with swinging basketball hoops. 

“That deep sexy voice of yours, especially in the mornings when I wake up next to you.” You continued to list more things off despite Yoongi’s pleas for you to stop. “I even have a thing for…” you look down his front with a playful smile, wiggling your eyebrows at him. 

“Enough, enough!” he laughs, shaking his head at your ridiculousness. 

Even though from the outside it never seems like Yoongi enjoys attention, compliments, or too many loads of love - you know he appreciates everything positive you say about him. 

“But, what I like most,” Yoongi pays a staff member a few dollars for his shot at the game. You watch his first throw, sinking the ball straight into the moving basket that is purposely bent to rig the game. “The way you are very genuine about everything. You wear your heart on your sleeve. How you can’t hide your fond expressions when someone you care for does something endearing. When you shy away from affection but secretly crave it.”

Yoongi turns his head to look you in the eyes, even with puzzlement dressing his soft face you can see the wonder lurking in his sharp eyes. He shuffles his basketball between his hands anxiously, anticipating your next words. 

“You have one of the most kindest of hearts I have ever had the privilege of getting to know. And I love you.” 

With another flick of his wrist his ball goes to the air, bouncing against the backboard of the moving basket and lulls itself into the hoop. You see the bob of his Adam's apple, a slight furrow of his brow, but what you can’t realize is how your words truly affect him. You live with the comfort knowing that Yoongi has a hard way of expressing his emotions, the thoughts in his mind that race in and out can not form coherent sentences to explain what he is feeling. 

Managing to score four out of the five throws, Yoongi alternatively wins a prize from the top shelf. His hand skims the small of your back, drawing you closer to his side as he requests you to pick one to your liking. You point at a stuffed flamingo, excitement runs through you when the item turns out much more softer to the touch than what it looks like - much like your boyfriend who now stares down at you with precaution. 

“I love you, too.” he mutters, a small coy smile spreading across his lips. 

You had practiced one last time with Maggie before the tournament day, during which Yoongi and Hoseok managed to snag in more volleyball learning without your notice. Even this time they had Haru and Jungkook to help with learning, and surprisingly Yoongi had caught on to the game fairly fast. Even shocking Hoseok with the way Yoongi became a very strong setter with lack of experience. Something about Yoongi with his hands made everything come a bit natural. 

You try - try - your best to go to bed at a decent hour that night, considering that you had to wake up and check-in to your tournament by eight in the morning, set up your canopy and figure out which court you’d be playing on. It was hard to fall asleep at a reasonable hour no thanks to Hoseok’s obnoxiously loud laughter and sputtering words that broke through even the heaviest set of walls. Not even the hush of the air conditioner blowing cold air on high could overcome the harsh vocals of tipsy Hoseok. 

Thankfully, your boyfriend who checks on you a few times within the early night solves the problem of the loud outbursts emitting from the living area of the house. Mainly after the death glare you had shot him with only out of annoyance and a curse under your breath saying “i’m going to fuckin’ murder Hobi if he doesn’t shut the hell up.” 

It was quiet after that and the moment your body found solitude to drift itself into slumber it was comforted by the warmth of Yoongi’s arm slinking around your waist, drawing your body against his as his warm breath fans out of his nose into the back of your neck. 

Your eyes remain shut until the blurting noise from your cell phone awoken you in the morning. 

Now you find yourself in your first match, first set against an opposing team. The air runs from the ocean, a cool breeze before the hot summer sun decides to warm up the sand below your feet. Pool play usually is hit or miss, sometimes a random good team would dominate the other teams in the pool, and luckily you were that very team. 

As the day runs, both you and Maggie go against the other four teams - coming out on top in each match, besides one where the teams split wins. You’re feeling great, Maggie and you become a massive threat towards nearby courts, people knowing who may be the future competition once pool play is over and the winning teams advanced to the next level. 

During the middle of your games, your party finally joined Maggie’s boyfriend under the tent, in favor to help support you to the fullest. It makes you happy to see your favorite humans watch you do well, a boost of confidence always spiking when you can hear the loudest cheers from the sideline knowing damn well it was your good friends rooting you on. 

Tip-toeing along the hot sand side-by-side with Maggie, you run over to give Yoongi a quick hug as you collapse yourself on his seat. “Slept in later than expected?” You tease, noting the time on your watch. 

Yoongi ticks his head towards the youngest who had found purchase in a lounge chair, beach blanket covering his body, “He got a bit more wasted than he expected. Took Hobi and I three different styles of waking his ass up.” 

“And what was the solution?” You laugh with the twist of your water bottle cap, graciously taking a well deserved swig of fresh water. 

“Titty-twisters.” 

You hear a subtle groan from under the blanket of which Jungkook lays, earning a chuckle from the crowd around him. 

“I see,” you snuggle yourself closer into Yoongi’s embrace. “Guess Jungkook doesn’t have it in him to dance with me tonight after the tourney...” 

“Wait - no! I’m fine!” He jumps up, blanket falling off abruptly to unveil the round, red, puffy, sleepless eyes of Jungkook. They wince due to the sunlight bouncing off the surroundings, hair array every way possible. “We’re dancing!” 

“Get more rest and some tylenol in you before even thinking about going to the bar tonight.” You scold, tossing him a random snack from the side pocket of your duffle bag. “And start eating some non-greasy things.” 

Both Maggie and you had finished your lengthy beach tournament; ending up losing in the finals against one of the recurring top teams known to play at this competition. It was close of course, only losing by a few point differentials but it didn’t matter to either one of you at that point in the day because second place has been the farthest the two of you ever had come in the years of playing in this tournament. After surpassing through the semifinals, the two of you were content with whichever outcome you had coming. 

And hey, you guys still won some cash prizes for being in second seat!

After packing up your canopy, riding back to your temporary vacation home to wash up and take a small nap before heading out for the night, you had promised the entire group that you’d take care of tonight's bill and urged the drinkers to go buckwild. 

Poseidon’s pub and nightclub is one of the top hotspots in this area, great live bands every weekend with two different decks and three separate bars, this establishment was your top priority to show off to your friends. By the time your party shows up to the club it’s blasting out loud pop music and flashing lights all around. 

Jungkook, who had slept off his previous night’s hangover, has been completely recuperated and is ready for another night of binge drinking. Hoseok and Haru were first at the nearest bar, darting over to grab a handful of shots to start up the night with courtesy of handing over your card to the bartender for the tab. Yoongi holds you close throughout the waves of bodies dancing and lingering around the floor, your eyes set to your phone as you text Maggie that you had arrived and hope to see her - eventually. 

It wasn’t long until everyone found their inspiration to party, exhaustion aside and now jitters coursing through your body like fireworks, perhaps it was thanks to the alcohol sinking into your system. Bioluminescence lights glisten off the top of your boyfriend's hair in which you run your fingers through, reflecting off just how it did to everyones; his dark sharp-cut eyes even darker with the lighting around him. He smells of fresh aftershave, a minty aroma tingling your nose as you drive your face into the crook of his neck. 

You two enjoy a slow grind to the current song, swinging your hips in sync with another’s, hands never daring to leave each other’s body. Yoongi milked his beers after the first round of shots, tried claiming that liquor before beer you’re in the clear, until Jungkook slides the two of you each a larger drink; a bright red concoction of something massively fruity with a single cherry topping above the ice. 

“It’s called the Red Devil! Haru had one, I had one, now it’s your turn! It’s so good!” Jungkook yells above the music between the two of you, slinking his body against Yoongi and you due to the small areas between other bodies. Jungkook practically shoves a glass into your lips, the other in front of Yoongi’s chest, forcing the two of you to separate enough to clutch each glass. 

“It smells like shit.” Yoongi grimaces, mouth turning downwards into a harsh frown. 

You on the other hand, have no choice but to taste the alcoholic drink because of the clink of the glass against your teeth. It was sweet at first, an indistinctive flavor touching your tongue, causing you to inspect the red liquid as you ponder. Until you see the wide smile from Jungkook, teeth beaming towards you with a mischievous grin. That’s when you notice the tang of flavor spikes, an after taste of cinnamon practically burning its way down your esophagus. 

Coughing, you push the glass back to Jungkook, eyes slightly watering from the sudden flavor. “Oh god, you know I can’t handle spicy shit. That thing is vile!” 

“It’s called Red Devil for a reason!” He laughs, taking the drink back and gulping down a portion of it. At this point Jungkook is going to revisit another nasty hangover in the morning, but you can’t blame him for enjoying his vacation to the fullest. 

Yoongi pushes the glass back to Jungkook, “Give it to Hobi, I'm not drinking this.” 

Infuriating enough, the youngest pushes the glass back, “you give it to him. It’s about time I get my dance with Y/n anyways. You’ve been hogging her all night.” 

“She’s my girlfriend!”

It’s possible that the larger crowd and uncountable ounces of alcohol that Jungkook has taken, causes him to be much more bolder, brasher than usual. He ignores the glare Yoongi sends his way, especially when Jungkook steps between the two of you; back now facing Yoongi. 

You raise your eyebrows at Yoongi, shrugging into your sentence, “Just one song. I’ll come right back to you. I did promise him I'd dance with him.” 

Yoongi doesn’t stay mad too long, but now both of his hands occupy glasses of an unfavorable drink as he walks away to search for Hoseok. He knows Jungkook is just going to pester them the rest of the night if he refuses to allow it and a dance isn’t harmful at all. Even when he perches himself against the wall besides Hoseok and Haru, eyes watching you stare back at him with a smile. 

“You going to pick up any of these people around us?” You question Jungkook who gyrates around you to the new upbeat flow of music. It’s more cluby now, the song switches between motions of fast pace and a slow break down during the chorus, Jungkook perfectly matching the synergy of the music. You glance over at Yoongi a handful of times, shaking your head at Jungkook’s perky dance moves and laughing with the amusement that dresses his face. 

“Actually, I have one coming back with us already - if that’s cool.” Jungkook swings your body around, his front now facing your back. He places his chin on your shoulder as he scans the bodies dancing around. “Long black hair, mini skirt, nine o’clock.” 

“Oh, i’m impressed, you’re a fast worker.” You laugh, spinning back around in place. You push Jungkook softly against his chest, “I expect you to go dance with them instead of me.” 

Jungkook pouts, hair falling short in front of his eyes from bopping his head, “but I have a vendetta with Yoongi, gotta get in my daily annoyance. Plus you’re fun to dance with.” 

“You really do enjoy messing with him.”

Jungkook nods excitedly, eyes scanning the perimeter until he spots the dark haired elder leaning against the wall staring straight back at him. He takes both of your hands in his, raises them up to make kissy noises against each of your knuckles as he laughs along with you. The second Yoongi pushes himself off the wall, Jungkook snaps his head back towards you, bids you farwell and rushes himself through the crowd towards his new acquaintance.

You match Yoongi’s trudges, meeting up with him halfway before he could go any further towards Jungkook. By the look on his face you can tell he was ready to show his dongsaeng who’s boss. 

“Ya know, you’re kind of cute when you get jealous.”

“I’m not jealous.” Yoongi rebukes. 

“Are you mad?”

Looking over Yoongi’s features, his posture remained relaxed but his eyes looked like they were burning holes into the back of Jungkook’s head. “Nah. I just think Jungkook wants to play. It’s funny, honestly. Just don’t tell him that. I’ll just let him believe that i’m mad.” 

His hands lock themselves around your waist, drawing you in closer to his frame. “If anything,” Yoongi latches his lips to yours, “he’s the one who’s jealous. He can’t have you.” 

Soft moans escape through Yoongi’s parted mouth, lips slightly trembling with pleasure building up within his body. You hollow your mouth as much as possible, dipping your head as far down as you could take him before your gag reflex threatens to betray you. Saliva accumulated around the base of his cock, your free hand wraps around the skin you couldn’t fit inside of your mouth just to help add sensations to his entire length. 

It was early, you can see the subtle light leaking through the crack of the curtains of your room; light chirping of seagulls out in the distance along with the winds banging against the chimes outside on the deck. Yoongi’s hand assists with holding your hair up as your head towers his cock, bobbing it up and down beneath the covers. 

The two of you did sleep quite well once you got home, even managing to ignore the random bumps and noises coming out of Jungkook’s neighboring room - he did end up taking that random person back home. 

Though you couldn’t get as drunk as you’d like between the tiredness your body has already undergone, holding Haru’s hair back from puking her stomach out in the club’s bathroom and dealing with a much more drunken Yoongi. Once you rallied up your troops you closed your tab, called a cab and headed home for the night. 

“S-suck harder.” Yoongi begs you in a whisper, cock twitching inside your mouth. 

You slurp, hard, on your next drag up his length. Yoongi inhales sharply, fist tightening within your hair and hips bucking up to chase your mouth. He was coming close to unfolding himself into you, visions of dressing your mouth with his white hot cum rushing through his mind. 

By introducing your free hand to his balls you earn a low guttural groan from Yoongi. Massaging them gently within your palm as you tease your tongue right under the head of his dick. He chokes on his words, hand abruptly forcing your head down to take his cock deeper as he empties himself deep in your throat. 

After swallowing what you can, you wipe your lips off with the back of your hand; other hand lazily tugging Yoongi’s softening cock. You smile up at him. 

“Thank you.” He mumbles, voice croaky. 

He was half asleep when you began to suck your boyfriend off but now you were sure he had become wide awake. 

“I’m sorry I woke you.” 

“I can’t complain.” He smiles lazily, eyes closing as he embraces his post orgasm state. 

Climbing up the side of his body, you card yourself into his arm as you snuggle closer with the blanket. Yoongi looks so at ease with the moment even with the disheveled bed head he’s rocking and puffy cheeks. 

His hand slowly rubs against your back in a soothing pattern, fingers featherlight with each tender stroke. 

“Do you want me to make you some coffee?” You offer, knowing well that Yoongi needed some substance other than alcohol to enter his system. 

Yoongi shakes his head, deciding to curl himself up against you instead, “No, not right now. I just want to stay like this.” 

You weren’t sure how long the two of you remained in each other's embrace, Yoongi quickly fell back asleep against you. The soft pitter-patters of feet outside your room notified you that somebody - probably Hoseok - was up and shuffling his way to the kitchen. Silently, you slip yourself out of Yoongi’s arms and throw on a pair of shorts so you weren’t walking around in just a shirt and underwear. 

“Morning,” you chirp as you enter the kitchen, seeing Hoseok staring at the coffee machine as it drains itself into his awaiting mug. He grumbles his acknowledgment, clearly a bit cranky.

“Jungkook keep you up?” 

“No.” Hoseok sighs, rubbing his hands over his sleep-crusted eyes, “Haru wouldn’t stop crying. She kept saying how sorry she was for throwing up and was worried that she would spend the entire day in bed with a hangover.” 

You voice an ‘oh’ as you place your own mug to the coffee machine after Hoseok takes his in hand, wrapping around the island counter to sit on one of the stools. 

“What time did you manage to sleep?”

“Six.” 

The automatic clock hung on the kitchen wall and flashed a few minutes after eight. You clench your teeth together and you see Hoseok nod in affirmation. “Yeah.” 

You pat Hoseok on the back after grabbing your fresh coffee before shagging his hair up, “Try to get a nap sometime today. I think Jungkook wanted to go to the beach again after hitting up a few shops, you’re more than welcome to come along.” 

“I had already told Yoongi I'd help him with something but we’ll meet you guys at the beach!” 

Before leaving to go back to your room and hand over the cup of coffee to Yoongi, you give Hoseok a confused look. He avoids your eyes, averting his own to the magazines scattered around the counter. 

“You literally have twenty minutes before Y/n comes back here with Jungkook. He’s been trying to stall her as much as possible.” Hoseok warns Yoongi as he stomps his way through the sand and back to the court, hands rubbing the extra sun-screen across his skin. 

“I shouldn’t have drank so much last night.” Yoongi frowns at the volleyball in his hands; he stands at one endline and waits for Hoseok to walk on the court on the other side.

Haru, who also is suffering from too much intoxication, holds her own as a setter between the two courts, ducking herself beneath the net everytime the ball gets sent over. As long as Yoongi and Hoseok maintained control of the ball they could pass it to her zone so she didn’t have to do as much work. 

They play a game, not massively competitive, but enough to get warmed up before you come back for Yoongi’s surprise. He has worked incredibly hard in secrecy. Also, Hoseok proved himself as a decent volleyball coach in the making. 

“Burn it off. I saw you chug a good amount of water already. Work through it and you’ll sober up.”

“I just don’t want to be a complete ass when I play with her.” The sun beams down hard from above; Yoongi’s hat, arms, and feet burn from the contact of the extra exposure. He made sure to apply his own sunscreen at least three separate times ever since he’s been outside, and as much as he loathes the heat and unbearable humidity, he still chooses to play the sport you love most. 

Yoongi serves the ball enough to lollipop the ball over the net in Hoseok’s vicinity. They practice, all three of them, enough to rally the volleyball around. Yoongi still has his moments where he refuses to bend his knees for a pass, insisting that the ball was ‘too high’ for his liking. But what surprises Hoseok the most is Yoongi’s ability to jump fairly high in the sand, it must be the basketball skills that help him perform much better. 

In the middle of a play the group hears a yell from afar. As they turn, they see Jungkook waving his hands in the air with a cheerful smile in the distance, bags in each hand swing aimlessly with his movements. “We’re here!” he screams across the beach, ignoring all the curious bystander’s stares. 

You trail behind Jungkook, tugging the cooler on wheels behind you. Even as you walk towards the courts, your head tilts left and right like a puppy trying to understand what you think you had just seen. Did you see what you think your eyes saw? Is your boyfriend standing in the open sun, on a volleyball court, with a volleyball in his hands right now?

“What are you doing?” You question Yoongi as you step closer, plopping down the cooler under the pitched tent. You’re befuddled, looking between Haru, Hoseok and Yoongi as you try to process any ideas on what is actually going on. 

“I wanted to surprise you.” Yoongi, who now seems incredibly embarrassed with his hand rubbing the back of his neck, spoke softly towards you. 

You smirk with joy, touched that Yoongi has gone out of his way, out of his comfort, to surprise you with a sweet gesture. “Where did you? How? When did you learn?” 

“Hobi’s been helping me a little, i’m not great, but i’m alright.” 

Running over to hug your boyfriend, you giggle into his chest. “This is the cutest thing, I don’t even know what to say.” 

“Say ‘Heads or Tails’.” 

“What?” You turn to look at Jungkook who holds a coin in his hand, prepping it to flip in the air.

“You and Yoongi verses Hobi and I.” He smiles wide, tossing the coin up high into the air. “Call it!”

In unison both Yoongi and you declare tails, and as the coin is caught and flipped in Jungkook’s hand, it reveals that very end. 

“We’ll take recieve.” You chime in, excited with the way Yoongi challenges Jungkook with playful banter. 

Enthusiastically, the groups plant themselves on opposite sides. Whispering small strategies and goals. You tell Yoongi to aim for Hoseok, keep it away from Jungkook, mainly because Jungkook was the stronger hitter of the two. Haru sat in the shade, choosing to be the referee and scorekeeper. 

The game started off light, a few points given to another over silly mistakes and miscommunications. Yoongi shys away from the ball most of the time, thinking you should take most balls because of your experience and that you were generally better at the game. If it wasn’t for you yanking his arm to make him snap out of whatever trance he was in, he’d probably end up letting a ball drop two feet in front of him. 

He was nervous after all, he wants to play well. 

It wasn’t until Hoseok started scuffing up some small trash-talk through the net, more like a taunt towards Yoongi, a tactic to see if Yoongi would step up his game. 

And it was working. 

Especially after Hoseok discusses openly how Yoongi only does well when he’s being bossed around. A small inside joke only the two of the men understood. But what had tilted Yoongi the most was once Jungkook pitched in, adding his own form of toxicity in the mix. Which they all knew would be one thing… using you as leverage to piss Yoongi off.

“Y/n and I had so much fun earlier today. We shared some snacks together, went in a few clothing stores where Y/n tried on a few nice pieces…” 

You roll your eyes, sighing as you look over to Yoongi who stares straight into Jungkook. “Here we go again,” you mutter to yourself.

The next play felt more intense, you even noticed Yoongi stepping closer towards you to pick up the ball more than normal. He wants the ball, he wants to do something with it. 

Yoongi continuously aimed his hits towards Hoseok, nothing too hard, but it was noticeable how he was favoring his spikes towards his roommate. That alone motivated Jungkook to tease Yoongi some more, “Can’t hit at me now? Are you scared or something?” 

The fun laughs and giggles turned into grunts and pants, both you and Yoongi work hard on your side of the court, and you love every second of the heated game that blazed along the summer heat. Jungkook manages to swing very hard, directing his spike right in front of you, but you had just enough time to stick your arm out and pass the ball up before it lands. 

Yoongi rushes over, a dive with his foot, kicking the ball up high enough for you to pass the ball deep into Jungkook’s corner. The youngest scurries himself quickly across the sand, almost colliding with Hoseok in the process. He saves the ball from landing, freeballing it back over to Yoongi’s area. 

“Go outside!” You yell towards Yoongi after he passes the ball high enough for you to square yourself up by the net. 

The pass, the set, the entire momentum of the play came out pristine and this was the golden opportunity for Yoongi to show off his skills. Jungkook sees the chance Yoongi is about to make and runs himself up to the net and readying himself to block Yoongi’s oncoming hit as Hoseok adjusts his positioning in the back court. 

Both men jump, Yoongi winding his arm back to fling it forward, snapping his wrist on top of the ball the moment his hand came in contact with it. He angles his swing, cutting the direction of the ball to the open area just inside the ten-foot line that remained uncovered. 

In the process of the hit, Jungkook leaps himself up, arms raised high in an attempt to block the spike. He does manage to block the direct path of the volleyball… but with his face instead. 

The volleyball smacks hard into Jungkook’s face, cutting straight down into his side of the net as Jungkook stumbles back to save the ball from completely falling, but fails as he lands on the ground. His nose quickly turns red from impact, scrunching his face as his hands cover the sore appendage. 

Both you and Hoseok sputter out words, asking Jungkook if he’s alright as he locks eyes with Yoongi. Yoongi stands stunned at the incident, eyes wide and mouth gaping as Jungkook smiles back at him after making sure his nose wasn’t bleeding. 

“Guess I deserve that, huh?” 

Yoongi shrugs, holding his hand out for Jungkook to help lift himself up, “Yeah, probably.” The two of them laugh it off, shaking the sand from their bodies. 

Before ending the game and walking back to the shade of the tent, Yoongi pulls you in for a hug, kissing your temple. “Told you he was gonna get it.”

“Yoongi!” you scold with a laugh, shaking your head in disapproval yet he knows you find it enjoyable. 

© All rights reserved under @kimtaehyunq​ - do not copy, repost, modify, edit, or translate any of my work without my direct consent. This tumblr is the ONLY place my fics are posted.

[dailytafsirofquran]

Tafsir Ibn Kathir: Surah Al-Baqarah Ayah 165-167

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

165 And of mankind are some who take (for worship) others besides Allah as rivals (to Allah). They love them as they love Allah. But those who believe, love Allah more (than anything else).

If only, those who do wrong could see, when they will see the torment, that all power belongs to Allah and that Allah is severe in punishment.

166. When those who were followed disown (declare themselves innocent of) those who followed (them), and they see the torment, then all their relations will be cut off from them.

167. And those who followed will say: "If only we had one more chance to return (to the worldly life), we would disown (declare ourselves as innocent from) them as they have disowned (declared themselves as innocent from) us.''

Thus Allah will show them their deeds as regrets for them. And they will never get out of the Fire.

The Condition of the Polytheists in this Life and the Hereafter

In these Ayat, Allah mentions the condition of the polytheists in this life and their destination in the Hereafter.

Allah says;

And of mankind are some who take (for worship) others besides Allah as rivals (to Allah). They love them as they love Allah. They appointed equals and rivals with Allah, worshipping them along with Allah and loving them, just as they love Allah. However, Allah is the only deity worthy of worship, Who has neither rival nor opponent nor partner.

It is reported in the Sahihayn that Abdullah bin Mas`ud said: I said, "O Messenger of Allah! What is the greatest sin'' He said: To appoint a rival to Allah while He Alone has created you.

Allah said:

But those who believe, love Allah more (than anything else). Because these believers love Allah, know His greatness, revere Him, believe in His Oneness, then they do not associate anything or anyone with Him in the worship. Rather, they worship Him Alone, depend on Him and they seek help from Him for each and every need.

Then, Allah warns those who commit Shirk, If only, those who do wrong could see, when they will see the torment, that all power belongs to Allah. if these people knew what they will face and the terrible punishment they are to suffer because of their disbelief and Shirk (polytheism), then they would shun the deviation that they live by and that Allah is severe in punishment.

Allah mentions their false beliefs in their idols, and that those they followed will declare their innocence of them.

Allah said:

When those who were followed disown (declare themselves innocent of) those who followed (them), the angels, whom they used to claim that they worshipped, declare their innocence of them in the Hereafter, saying:

We declare our innocence (from them) before You. It was not us they worshipped. (28:63)

and:

"Glorified be You! You are our Wali (Lord) instead of them. Nay, but they used to worship the Jinn; most of them were believers in them.'' (34:4)

The Jinn will also disown the disbelievers who worshipped them, and they will reject that worship.

Allah said:

And who is more astray than one who calls on (invokes) besides Allah, such as will not answer

him till the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls (invocations) to them. And when mankind are gathered (on the Day of Resurrection), they (false deities) will become their enemies and will deny their worshipping. (46:5-6)

Allah said:

And they have taken (for worship) alihah (gods) besides Allah, that they might give them honor, power and glory (and also protect them from Allah' punishment). Nay, but they (the so-called gods) will deny their worship of them, and become opponents to them (on the Day of Resurrection). (19:81, 82)

Prophet Ibrahim said to his people:

You have taken (for worship) idols instead of Allah. The love between you is only in the life of this world, but on the Day of Resurrection, you shall disown each other, and curse each other, and your abode will be the Fire, and you shall have no helper. (29:25)

Allah said:

But if you could see when the Zalimun (polytheists and wrongdoers) will be made to stand before their Lord, how they will cast the (blaming) word one to another! Those who were deemed weak will say to those who were arrogant: "Had it not been for you, we should certainly have been believers!''

And those who were arrogant will say to those who were deemed weak: "Did we keep you back from guidance after it had come to you! Nay, but you were Mujrimin (polytheists, sinners, disbelievers, criminals).''

Those who were deemed weak will say to those who were arrogant: "Nay, but it was your plotting by night and day, when you ordered us to disbelieve in Allah and set up rivals to Him!'' And each of them (parties) will conceal their own regrets (for disobeying Allah during this worldly life), when they behold the torment. And We shall put iron collars round the necks of those who disbelieved. Are they requited aught except what they used to do. (34:31-33)

Allah said:

And Shaytan (Satan) will say when the matter has been decided: "Verily, Allah promised you a promise of truth. And I too promised you, but I betrayed you. I had no authority over you except that I called you, and you responded to me. So blame me not, but blame yourselves. I cannot help you, nor can you help me. I deny your former act in associating me (Satan) as a partner with Allah (by obeying me in the life of the world). Verily, there is a painful torment for the Zalimin (polytheists and wrongdoers). (14:22)

Allah then said:

...and they see the torment, then all their relations will be cut off from them.

meaning, when they see Allah's torment, their power and means of salvation are all cut off, and they will have no way of making amends, nor will they find a way of escape from the Fire.

Ata reported that Ibn Abbas said about: "meaning the friendship.''

Mujahid reported a similar statement in another narration by Ibn Abu Najih.

Allah said:

And those who followed will say: "If only we had one more chance to return (to the worldly life), we would disown (declare ourselves as innocent from) them as they have disowned (declared themselves as innocent from) us.''

This Ayah means:

`If we only had a chance to go back to the life so that we could disown them (their idols, leaders, etc.) shun their worship, ignore them and worship Allah Alone instead.'

But they utter a lie in this regard, because if they were given the chance to go back, they would only return to what they were prohibited from doing, just as Allah said.

This is why Allah said: Thus Allah will show them their deeds as regrets for them.

meaning, their works will vanish and disappear. Similarly, Allah said: And We shall turn to whatever deeds they (disbelievers, polytheists, sinners) did, and We shall make such deeds as scattered floating particles of dust. (25:23)

Allah also said:

The parable of those who disbelieved in their Lord is that their works are as ashes, on which the wind blows furiously on a stormy day. (14:18)

As for those who disbelieved, their deeds are like a mirage in a desert. The thirsty one thinks it to be water. (24:39)

This is why Allah said, And they will never get out of the Fire.

[bitchiha]

A/N: I accidentally posted the request before I finished LOL. So I don’t know much about Tsundere relationships, but I did some reading on it just before I started writing and I hope I did the request some justice! Also I’m literally Kankuros bitch <3

Ps, I’m sorry I didn’t put a keep reading thingy idk how to do it on mobile and my trash laptop is broken 😭😭

Also I didnt include tobirama bc I absolutely hated how his turned out and I had to delete it im sorry 😖

✎ Tsundere relationship! (Hidan, Kank, Naruto)

Kankurō

Ahh, where to start? I think you’ll meet on a mission co partnered with the Leaf...

You and Shikamaru are sent to assist the Sand on a mission. Now, we already know Kankurō is a bit of a sassy mf when it comes to the Leaf like I think he whole heartedly believes the Sand is superior and you also have those feelings about your own village... So there’s an instant dislike for one another. Kinda like an instant rivalry.

Literally the first thing you say to him is “So, the Sand can’t take care of their own missions?” And that sets Kankurō off, “What, how dare you- ack! Temari, that hurt! I’m not gonna let her walk all over us like that, I’ll fight you right now you Leaf Village bi- ow! Temari!” Shikamaru has to hold you back LMFAOO you’re ready to throw hands “Huh, what’s that? Sounds like you’re really determined for me to kick your ass?” He lowkey liked when you said that to him lol.

Anyways, the two of you are bickering the whole entire way to the missions destination. You’ll tease eachother about anything and everything you can. So, once you find out about his puppet master jutsu its only natural that you fall on the floor with laughter. Like full on tears and strangled breathing. Now this is something you can really tease him about.

“What! You still play with dolls? I bet you have little sleep over parties with them and do their hair-“

You’re cut off because he tries to trap you in the Ant. Temari has to strangle him and force him to let you out. You’re lucky he didn’t iron maiden your ass LMFAOO.

This is the kind of the energy you guys carry whenever you see eachother from now on. He’ll see you more often too because you carry out a lot of Leaf and Sand allied missions and duties. Rip to anyone who gets put on a mission with you two tbh.

But on one particularly hard mission it ends up down to the two of you fighting off like 10 enemies. He’s trying to focus on fighting them, but he can’t stop thinking about if you’re okay. His distractedness earns him a particularly hard blow.

You end up having to fight off the remaining enemies yourself, all the while protecting him. The last thing he remembers is you screaming his name when he gets hit and the fear that was in your eyes at seeming him like that. It slowly turns to anger and then you kick the bad guys asses. He’s like half conscious but is laying there like: whatta bad bitch. Then he passes out.

Starts to really admire you after that and his comments aren’t as snarky when he sees you next. It’s more like little jabs and teases because that’s how he shows his affection, but they were no longer the hardcore roasts he’d dish out before. You probably stop flaming his ass too because let’s be real here; you’ve both obviously been attracted to each other from the start you just didn’t want to admit it.

Like cmon, he didn’t wait for you at the gates every single time he knew you were visiting just to insult you first. No. He came there to see your cute ass first!!Same goes for you, like you didn’t take all the missions to the Sand for nothing. You came there to see your fav hot headed puppet master.

He’ll ask you out a few months later, when you end up at the Sand again. Probably takes you to dinner before going back to his place. I 100% see him showing you his puppets and this time you’ll actually show your interest and not just tease him lol. Probably ends up making out with you on his workbench. Ok that’s all.

Naruto

You meet eachother for the first time at Ichirakus. Second to Naruto, you actually bring in the most cash for the place. So it’s surprising you two had never met each other before.

Until now of course. He’s just gotten back from a long mission and he’s dying for some ramen. He strolls right in and orders a miso pork ramen, but the old man tells him there’s no more pork left.

Probably flips his shit like who tf ate it all?? Then the old man points at you. You’re sitting there chowing down you’re literal 15th bowl, the giant stack of empty bowls next to you proving it. You watch the blondie charge right at you while you eat the last miso pork bowl of ramen for the day.

You put the bowl down and wipe your face just as he stops right infront of you, very close to your face. You can see the anger in his eyes, but you are not giving up. Also, the guy looks sorta comical so you basically laugh in his face which gets him more worked up.

“What are you laughing about? You just ate all of old mans pork for the day!! That last bowl is mine, believe it!” Once again you laugh in his face because you just can’t help yourself. Probably end up fist fighting eachother on the spot. Neither of you win because one of you ends up smashing into the bowl, sending it flying right at the old man. He kicks you both out, right after you pay your tab of course.

This arises a competition of who will eat all the miso pork ramen first, it goes on for a good few months. Ichirakus is swimming in your money now. Until one day, when you two arrive at Ichirakus at the same time. You basically have a show down. Unfortunately both your wallets are cleaned out and you can’t even pay off your bills anymore so you’re now indebted to the ramen place.

Narutos mission money won’t even cut it anymore and you can’t pay your debt off either. So you both have to get a job doing Ichirakus dishes until you can pay your debt off.

At first you two wanna strangle each other everytime youre in each others line of sight. But slowly — veryyyy slowly, you start to bond over your love for ramen. Like you can probably sniff the bowls before you clean them and tell instantly what ramen was eaten out of it.

You discover you both have the same favourite instant ramen, the same favourite Ichirakus order, etc... Then before you know it you actually start dating. Nobody knows how it happened because you were rivals for a good couple of months, but now all the sudden your holding hands while and eating ramen together peacefully. Mind blown.

Hidan

You’re a brand new Akatsuki member and you’re cute. Really cute. Not only was Deidara drooling over you too, Kakuzu just asked to file your taxes. Do you even do taxes? You’re a rouge ninja. Anyways, Hidan is so sure that Jashin would love to have you.

You two start taking to eachother and actually getting along pretty well, until he mentions Jashin. You shut him down so quickly after that. Like you’re not interested in his fake God, no matter how cute he is.

From then on he tries to ignore you or is just super petty towards you all the time. Like you just got back from a failed mission with your Akatsuki partner and he’s at the hideout mocking you like “if you prayed to Jashin with me this wouldn’t have happened.”

Literally so fucking petty.

Anytime you suggest an idea to the Akatsuki he immediately tears it down. It doesn’t really matter when he does though because nobody really listens to Hidan anyways, it’s just annoying.

You two get put on a mission together one day because Kakuzu has some important money buisness to take care of. Hidans so pissy about it, “oh come on! Out of everybody you picked y/n? She doesn’t even respect my religion, how are we supposed to work together!?” Kakuzu just looks at him and is like “Hidan, I don’t care about Jashin either.”

Butthurt the whole journey. If you guys get bombarded or run into trouble he probably doesn’t even bother backing you up. If anything he tries to feed you to them LMFAOOO. Such a jerk.

Then, once he thinks that all the bad guys are gone he turns to you all confidently because you got your ass whooped and he’s like “see, I bet if you prayed to Jashin you wouldn’t be injured this bad-“

An enemy just stabbed him right through the chest and he watches the look of shock on your face. That’s when he gets an idea. He falls on the floor super fucking dramatically and you have to take the last guy down for him.

Then you kneel next to him and cradle his body because yes he was such a petty bitch but he actually started to grow on you. So you cry and in this distressed moment you probably even attempted to pray to Jashin because you’re desperate as fuck.

This bitch really makes his eyes flutter open and is like; “y/n?” Really fucking plays off that he was unconscious, “Jashin... Jashin saved me.”

Your ass just got clowned but I mean you believe it because like he just got stabbed right through the heart. Even immortal people should die if they were stabbed in the heart, right? It seemed like it was the case.

So yah he basically just emotionally manipulated you into being semi interested in his religion.

Then he stops being petty with you and probably asks you to sleep with him as an offering to Jashin. “It’s only fitting! He just saved my life afterall.”

Literal definition of a sleeze bag <3

[destinedcoin]

hello my name is ani and i am excited to be here ! before i start, i would like to add a little disclaimer that i know little to nothing about got but i am tryING. anyhow below the cut you can find some information of my rendition of aegon ! if you would be interested in plotting with this absolute disaster hit me with a like or simply come invade my dms ♡

tw. substance abuse. death mention. drugs. 

✦ ▓ AND WHO GOES THERE? oh, it’s just [ AEGON TARGARYEN ]. some say [ HIS ] resemblance to [ AVAN JOGIA ] is almost uncanny, but the [ TWENTY-FIVE ] year old has been in the capital for [ TWENTY-FIVE YEARS ]. many suspect that they are the notorious [ TORPEDO ] of the [ TARGARYEN ] family: perhaps that has made them [ CLANDESTINE ] && [ CALCULATING ] of late, when they used to be so [ DEVOTED ] && [ CHARMING ]. during the daylight hours, [ AEGON ] can be found working as a [ SOCIALITE ], but when night falls over king’s landing, they are best remembered listening to [ LOSIN CONTROL by RUSS ]. may the gods be with them in these dark streets.

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙣𝙚. the statistics. 

name. aegon targaryen. 

age. twenty-five. 

gender. cis-male. 

pronouns. he/him. 

orientation. bisexual, biromantic. 

occupation. socialite & torpedo. 

affiliation. targaryen. 

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙬𝙤. the story. 

what more could you want?

his very existence was drowned in ornamental magic. a gilden cage, a throne composed of insufferable privilege. his father’s reign was harsh, but his mother’s love ever just.

abandonment drove the little boy away from his father and into his mother’s arms. his sister, his guardian, he would follow through the limelight and hide behind her shadow. he was but a little boy then, whom feared the man he was capable of becoming.

cursed was their lineage.

the gods flip a coin everytime a targaryen is born, to see if they are destined for madness or greatness.

oh how the little boy quivered before his fate. destiny called and he refused to answer. ever following the path created for him, falling into line as a good soldier did. never once questioning whether this was all there was to life.

though the prophecy loomed over him, a monster with sharpened claws ready to pounce. ready to eat him alive.

he felt wrong. it felt wrong. his life was a lie.

as the little boy slowly became a man he basked himself in the glory of his name. fame was far from a virtue, it was poison. slowly the darkness crept into his mind and the only way to survive it was to accept it. to let it consume him.

the prince had fallen. silencing the voices through substances, altering the world he lived in not by growing and doing good but rather by playing a dangerous game– always living in fear of falling into the abyss.

until he fell, and no rope was long enough to be his lifeline. no matter how much he scrambled for control he slipped further and further into the patterns of his forefathers.

a cursed little boy became a twisted and broken man, forever living in the grey.

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚 . the facts. 

aegon was raised with a silver spoon, he has never had to worry about anything material in his life. due to this he often lacks compassion or even understanding of other perspectives and genuinely lives in his own privileged bubble. 

for most of his life he’s been wary and afraid to do anything wrong. but ever since the scandal with his father he sort of fell off the rails? he has a small big narcotics and alcohol problem. he often hides behind this mask of simply being “the life of the party” because he doesn’t want people to see just how broken inside he really is. and somewhere along the way he lost himself, always seeking new thrills and adventures to quench his appetite for more. 

this destructive pattern often got him into difficult situations. nevertheless, there are expectations he has to live up to as a targaryen and that includes pulling his weight in the family business. 

but unlike his sister he was never brilliant, unlike his mother he was not wise, unlike his aunt he was no leader. he was crooked, and what he was good at was participating in illegal things. he made various connections of his own in the criminal underbelly of king’s landing and slowly but gradually he found his purpose in the role of a torpedo-- essentially he became an assassin. 

to the public he is the “fallen prince” a mockery truly, drinking his life away and taking drugs in expensive vip areas. but he’s more cunning than that, he knows the image the world has of him and he uses it to seem useless. he uses it to mask his true life’s work i.e. getting his hands dirty so that the family syndicate may thrive. 

and the more he lost himself in this work the more he lost the little boy he once was. sleepless nights plagued him, and the fact that he had ended various people’s lives was not something he could forget, no matter how much he tried. no matter how many drugs he took at the end of the day he was scum. 

𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙧. the connections.

i. in another life. they were childhood friends, perhaps despite the odds of their reality etc. eventually as they grew up they were forced to grow apart and entirely lost touch with the other-- insert crying emoji, lost friendships :’ ( . 

ii. lean on me. his job is hazardous and so are his baD HABITs (rip) the other doesn’t exactly know what is wrong with aegon but they want to be there for him. when he comes home battered and bruised they are there to patch him up. when he’s passed out in a random bar their’s is the number the owner knows to call to get him home. perhaps he doesn’t understand just how much he owes them yet, but we grow !    

iii. silken sheets. he doesn’t understand love and his engagements usually don’t make it further than one night stands. this was such an incident and well, he wasn’t exactly a gentleman when he showed the other the door in the middle of the night, hold it against him, tell him he’s a piece of shit ! he deserves every bit of criticism !    

iv. draped in red. they absolutely despise each other, i live for heated arguments and rolling their eyes at each other simply existing. give me enEMIES !!!    

v. comrade. they are both torpedos for the targaryen syndicate and often have to work together. do they get along? do they not? up to us to figure out ! 

vi. others ! partner in crime, a good influence on him, someone he is a bad influence on, best friends, ride or die, they only get along when they’re intoxicated, rivals, skinny love, someone he’s protective over, someone that brings him food because they know he’s useless at taking care of himself and how long can you really live off of junk food deliveries?, you mess with my sister and i’ll hate you vibes, they don’t know each other by name but they see each other often and get along (would be amazing if they were from rival syndicate families ooooo romeo and juliet but could be platonic??), party buddies, flirtationships, etc.

these are just some ideas to get the plotting started, but please don’t be afraid to shoot any other ideas you may have at me !  ♡

[bintturaab]

Do we have to call ourselves salafi if the Quran tells us to be Muslims and die as Muslims etc... Does this term create divisions, please provide solid evidence for me because I'm genuinely conflicted even though I try my best to follow the way of the salaf us saliheen

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

Forgive me for the late response anon. As long as we are following the Qur'an and the Sunnah, and strive to follow the way of our pious predecessors (salaf us-salih), we are not obligated to call ourselves by any other name or add any other name. Allah عز وجل has named us Muslims, and that is sufficient for us.

The following has been taken from islamqa (here) :

Praise be to Allaah.

Each person is obliged to follow the guidance of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and his Companions. This is the way of Ahl al-Sunnah wa’l-Jamaa’ah and the followers of the righteous predecessors (al-salaf al-saalih). Allaah says (interpretation of the meanings):

“Say (O Muhammad): ‘This is my way; I invite unto Allaah with sure knowledge, I and whosoever follows me with sure knowledge. And Glorified and Exalted be Allaah (above all that they associate as partners with Him). And I am not of the mushrikeen (polytheists… those who worship others along with Allaah or set up rivals or partners to Allaah).” [Yoosuf 12:108]

“And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger (Muhammad) after the right path has been shown clearly to him, and follows other than the believers’ way, We shall keep him in the oath he has chosen, and burn him in Hell – what an evil destination!” [al-Nisa’ 4:115]

Whoever follows the way of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) belongs to the salaf al-saalih, even if the people call him something else; by the same token, whoever goes against it and deviates from the Sunnah is an innovator, even if he claims to be a Salafi.

If a person calls himself a Salafi to express his gratitude for having been guided to this way, or to clearly distinguish himself from innovation, then this is OK and is allowed in Islam. But if he says it only for the purpose of praising himself, then this is not allowed, because Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “… therefore justify not yourselves…” [al-Najm 53:32 – Yusuf ‘Ali’s translation]. Similarly, it is not allowed if it is said in a spirit of tribalism or sectarianism, because such attitudes are forbidden, as is clear from the following story: Jaabir ibn ‘Abd-Allaah said: “A man from the Muhaajireen shoved a man from the Ansaar from behind, so each man’s people gathered around him, saying ‘O Muhaajireen (come and help)!’ or ‘O Ansaar (come and help)!’ News of this reached the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and he said, ‘Stop this, for it is repulsive.’ Then he said, ‘What is this call of the people of jaahiliyyah? What is this call of the people of jaahiliyyah?’”

(Reported by Imaam Ahmad, 14105; the hadeeth is also to be found in al-Saheehayn).

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) called it the call of the people of jaahiliyyah and described it as repulsive, even though the words “Ansaari” and “Muhaajiri” are Islamic words, the first referring to those who supported Allaah and His Messenger, and the second referring to those who left the land of kufr and migrated to Allaah and His Messenger. Why were they described in this manner? Because in this instance, the words were not used in a permissible fashion; the usage was a sectarian and political one that could have led to fighting between the two groups. The same applies to the word “Salafi”.

If the Ahl al-Sunnah and the salaf draw a line between themselves and the innovators, this is not considered to be dividing the ummah, as those who criticize the use of this word think is the case, but this distancing of oneself has to be done in accordance with the degree of bid’ah – whether it is major or minor – and should be regulated by the overall interests of the Islamic da’wah.

With that said, the modern day salafis have turned salafiyyah into a cult, whereas it was always meant to be a methodology - an approach towards practising Islam that we adopt. Shaykh 'Uthaymeen (رحمه الله) addresses this issue here and says:

Salafiyyah is to follow the way of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and his Companions, because they are the ones who came before us (the Salaf) and who advanced ahead of us, so following them is Salafiyyah. 

With regard to taking Salafiyyah as a path or methodology which a person follows and regards as misguided those Muslims who differ with him, even if they are following the truth, and taking Salafiyyah as a partisan path is undoubtedly contrary to Salafiyyah. All of the Salaf or early generations called for unity and harmony around the Sunnah of the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and did not regard as misguided those who differed with them with on the basis of their understanding and interpretation, except when it came to matters of ‘aqeedah or beliefs, because they regarded those who differed with them in these matters as misguided. But with regard to practical issues they were often easy-going. 

But some of those who followed the path of Salafiyyah in modern times started to regard as misguided everyone who differed from them, even if that person was correct, and some of them adopted a partisan approach like that of other parties which claimed to belong to the religion of Islam. This is something that is to be denounced and cannot be approved of, and it should be said to these people: Look at the way of the righteous early generation (al-salaf al-saalih), what did they used to do? Look at their way and how open hearted they were in the case of differences in which ijtihaad is justified (and differences of opinion are allowed). They even used to differ concerning major issues, matters of belief and practical issues. You will find some of them, for example, denying that the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) saw his Lord, whereas others say that he did see Him. You will see some of them saying that what will be weighed on the Day of Resurrection is deeds, whereas others will say that it is the books of deeds that will be weighed. You will also see them differing a great deal with regard to matters of fiqh having to do with marriage, shares of inheritance, buying and selling, and other issues. Yet despite all that they did not regard one another as misguided. 

Salafiyyah in the sense of being a particular party with its distinguishing characteristics and in which the members regard everyone else as misguided, these people have nothing to do with Salafiyyah at all. As for the Salafiyyah which means following the path of the Salaf in belief, word and deed, in calling for unity and harmony and mutual compassion and love, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “The likeness of the believers in their mutual love, mercy and compassion is that of a single body; when one part of it is suffering the rest of the body joins it in fever and staying awake” -- this is the true Salafiyyah.

[khutbahs]

What is the true meaning of shirk and what are its types?

I often read that “this action is major shirk” and “this is minor shirk”. Could you explain to me the difference between the two?.

Answer

Praise be to Allah.

One of the most important obligations is to know the meaning of shirk, its seriousness and its different types, so that our Tawheed (belief in the Oneness of Allaah) and our Islam may be complete, and our faith may be sound. We say – And Allaah is the Source of strength and true guidance comes from Him:

Know – may Allaah guide you – that the word shirk in Arabic means taking a partner, i.e., regarding someone as the partner of another. It is said [in Arabic]: ashraka baynahuma (he joined them together) when he regarded them as two of equal status; or ashraka fi amrihi ghayrahu (he introduced another into his affair) when he made two people involved in it.

In terms of sharee’ah or Islamic terminology, shirk means ascribing a partner or rival to Allaah in Lordship (ruboobiyyah), worship or in His names and attributes.

A rival is a peer or counterpart. Hence Allaah forbids setting up rivals with Him and he condemns those who take them (rivals) as gods instead of  or besides Allaah in many verses of the Qur’aan. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Then do not set up rivals unto Allaah (in worship) while you know (that He Alone has the right to be worshipped)”

[al-Baqarah 2:22]

“And they set up rivals to Allaah, to mislead (men) from His path! Say: ‘Enjoy (your brief life)! But certainly, your destination is the (Hell) Fire!’”

[Ibraaheem 14:30]

In the hadeeth it is narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Whoever dies claiming that Allaah has a rival, will enter Hell.”

Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 4497; Muslim, 92.

The types of shirk:

The texts of the Qur’aan and Sunnah indicate that shirk and the ascribing of rivals to Allaah sometimes puts a person beyond the pale of Islam and sometimes does not. Hence the scholars divided shirk into two types which they call shirk akbar (major shirk) and shirk asghar (minor shirk). There follows a brief description of each type:

1 – Major shirk

This means ascribing to someone other than Allaah something that belongs only to Allaah, such as Lordship (ruboobiyyah), divinity (uloohiyyah) and the divine names and attributes (al-asma’ wa’l-sifaat).

This kind of shirk may sometimes be outward, such as the shirk of those who worship idols and graves, or the dead or absent.

Or it may sometimes be hidden, such as those who put their trust in other gods besides Allaah, or the shirk and kufr of the hypocrites. For even though  their (hypocrites’) shirk puts them beyond the pale of Islam and means that they will abide  forever in Hell, it is a hidden shirk, because they make an outward display of Islam and conceal their kufr and shirk, so they are inwardly mushriks but not outwardly.

Shirk may sometimes take the form of beliefs:

Such as the belief that there is someone else who creates, gives life and death, reigns or controls the affairs of the universe along with Allaah.

Or the belief that there is someone else who must be obeyed absolutely besides Allaah, so they follow him in regarding as permissible or forbidden whatever he wants, even if that goes against the religion of the Messengers.

Or they may associate others with Allaah in love and veneration, by loving a created being as they love Allaah. This is the kind of shirk that Allaah does not forgive, and it is the shirk of which Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And of mankind are some who take (for worship) others besides Allaah as rivals(to Allaah). They love them as they love Allaah”

[al-Baqarah 2:165]

Or the belief that there are those who know the Unseen as well as Allaah. This is very common among some of the deviant sects such as the Raafidis (Shi’ah), extreme Sufis, and Baatinis (esoteric sects) in general. The Raafidis believe that their imams have knowledge of the unseen, and the Baatinis and Sufis believe similar things about their awliya’ (“saints”), and so on. It is also shirk to believe that there is someone who bestows mercy in a manner that is befitting only for Allaah, so he shows mercy as Allaah does and forgives sins and overlooks the bad deeds of his worshippers.  

Shirk may sometimes take the form of words:

Such as those who make du’aa’ or pray to someone other than Allaah, or seek his help or seek refuge with him with regard to matters over which no one has control except Allaah, whether the person called upon is a Prophet, a wali (“saint”), an angel or a jinn, or some other created being. This is a kind of major shirk which puts one beyond the pale of Islam.

Or such as those who make fun of religion or who liken Allaah to His creation, or say that there is another creator, provider or controller besides Allaah. All of these are major shirk and a grave sin that is not forgiven.

Shirk may sometimes take the form of actions:

Such as one who sacrifices, prays or prostrates to something other than Allaah, or who promulgates laws to replace the rulings of Allaah and makes that the law to which people are obliged to refer for judgement; or one who supports the kaafirs and helps them against the believers, and other acts that go against the basic meaning of faith and put the one who does them beyond the pale of Islam. We ask Allaah to keep us safe and sound.

2 – Minor shirk

This includes everything that may lead to major shirk, or which is described in the texts as being shirk, but does not reach the extent of being major shirk.

This is usually of two types:

1 – Being emotionally attached to some means which have no basis and  for which Allaah has not given permission, such as hanging up “hands”, turquoise beads etc on the grounds that they offer protection or that they ward off the evil eye. But Allaah has not made them the means of such protection, either according to sharee’ah or according to the laws of the universe.

[Translator’s note: the “hands” referred to are objects made of metal, pottery etc, usually blue or turquoise in colour, that some people hang up to ward off the evil eye, according to their mistaken belief]

2 – Venerating some people or things in a way that does not go so far as ascribing lordship to them, such as swearing by something other than Allaah, or saying, “Were it not for Allaah and So and so,” etc.

The scholars have stipulated guidelines to distinguish major shirk from minor shirk when shirk is mentioned in the texts of sharee’ah. These guidelines include the following:

(i) – When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) states clearly that this action is minor shirk, such as in al-Musnad (27742) where it is narrated that Mahmoud ibn Labeed said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “The thing that I fear most for you is minor shirk.” They said: “O Messenger of Allaah, what is minor shirk?” He said: “Showing off, for Allaah will say on the Day when people are recompensed for their actions: ‘Go to those for whom you were showing off with your deeds in the world, and see what reward you find with them.’” Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, 951.

(ii) – When the word shirk is used in the texts of the Qur’aan and Sunnah in the indefinite form [without the definite article al-]. This usually refers to minor shirk, and there are many examples of this, such as when the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Incantations, amulets and love spells are shirk.”

Narrated by Abu Dawood, 3883; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, 331.

What is meant by shirk here is minor shirk, not major shirk.

Amulets are things that are hung on children such as turquoise beads and the like, which they claim will protect them from the evil eye.

Love spells are something that they do, claiming that it will make a woman beloved to her husband and a man beloved to his wife.

(iii) – If the Sahaabah understood from the texts of sharee’ah that what was meant by shirk here was minor shirk, not major. Undoubtedly the understanding of the Sahaabah carries weight, because they are the most knowledgeable of the people concerning the religion of Allaah, and the most knowledgeable as to the intent of the Lawgiver. For example, Abu Dawood (3910) narrated from Ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Tiyarah (superstitious belief in omens) is shirk, tiyarah is shirk,” three times, and there is no one among us but (will have some of that) but Allaah will rid him of it by means of tawakkul (putting his trust in Allaah). The words “there is no one among us…” are the words of Ibn Mas’ood, as was explained by the prominent scholars of hadeeth. This indicates that Ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased with him) understood that this was minor shirk, because he could not have said, “There is no one among us…” referring to major shirk. Moreover, major shirk cannot be eliminated by means of tawakkul, rather it is essential to repent therefrom.

(iv) – If the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) interpreted the words shirk or kufr in a manner which indicates that what is meant is a minor form thereof and not the major form. For example al-Bukhaari (1038) and Muslim (74) narrated from Zayd ibn Khaalid al-Juhani that he said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) led the morning prayer for us at al-Hudaybiyah following rainfall during the night. When the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) finished, he turned to face the people and said to them: “Do you know what your Lord has said?” They said: “Allaah and his Messenger know best.” He said: “This morning one of My slaves became a believer in Me and one a disbeliever. As for him who said: ‘We have been given rain by the grace of Allaah and His mercy,’ that one is a believer in Me, a disbeliever in the stars; and as for him who said: ‘We have been given rain by such-and-such a star, that one is a disbeliever in Me, a believer in the stars.’”

The interpretation of the word kufr here is given in another report narrated from Abu Hurayrah who said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Do you not know what your Lord said? ‘I do not send any blessing upon My slaves but a group among them become kaafirs thereby because they refer to the stars and attribute things to the stars.'" This explains that if a person attributes rainfall to the stars by believing that they caused it to fall – when in fact Allaah has not made the stars a means of causing rainfall – his kufr is a kind of ingratitude for the blessing of Allaah. It is well known that ingratitude for the blessing of Allaah is minor kufr. But if a person believes that the stars are controlling the universe and they are the ones that cause the rain to fall, then this is major shirk.

Minor shirk may sometimes take the form of outward actions, such as wearing talismans, strings, amulets and the like, and other words and deeds. And sometimes it may be hidden, like a little bit of showing off.

It may also take the form of beliefs:

Such as the belief that something may be a cause of bringing benefit or warding off harm, when Allaah has not made it so; or believing that there is barakah (blessing) in a thing, when Allaah has not made it so.

It sometimes takes the form of words:

Such as when they said, “We have been given rain by such and such a star,” without believing that that the stars could independently cause rain to fall; or swearing by something other than Allaah, without believing in venerating the thing sworn by or regarding it as equal with Allaah; or saying, “Whatever Allaah wills and you will,” and so on.

It sometimes takes the form of actions:

Such as hanging up amulets or wearing a talisman or string to dispel or ward off calamity, because everyone who attribute powers to a thing when Allaah has not made it so either according to sharee’ah or according to the laws of the universe, has associated something with Allaah. This also applies to one who touches a thing seeking its barakah (blessing), when Allaah has not created any barakah in it, such as kissing the doors of the mosques, touching their thresholds, seeking healing from their dust, and other such actions.

This is a brief look at the division of shirk into major and minor. We cannot go into great detail in this short answer.

Conclusion:

What the Muslim must do is to avoid shirk in both its minor and major forms. The greatest sin is shirk and transgression against the unique rights of Allaah, which are to be worshipped and obeyed alone, with no partner or associate.

Hence Allaah has decreed that the mushrikeen will abide forever in Hell and has told us that He will not forgive them, and He has forbidden Paradise to them, as He says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Verily, Allaah forgives not that partners should be set up with Him (in worship), but He forgives except that (anything else) to whom He wills; and whoever sets up partners with Allaah in worship, he has indeed invented a tremendous sin”

[al-Nisa’ 4:48]

“Verily, whosoever sets up partners (in worship) with Allaah, then Allaah has forbidden Paradise to him, and the Fire will be his abode. And for the Zaalimoon (polytheists and wrongdoers) there are no helpers”

[al-Maa'idah 5:72]

Every wise and religiously-committed person should fear shirk for himself and should turn to his Lord, asking Him to help him avoid shirk, as al-Khaleel [Ibraaheem – peace be upon him] said:  

“and keep me and my sons away from worshipping idols”

[Ibraaheem 14:35 – interpretation of the meaning]

One of the salaf said: “Who can claim to be safe from this after Ibraaheem?”

So the sincere believer’s fear of shirk should increase as should his desire for his for his Lord to keep him away from it, and he should say the great du’aa’ which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) taught to his companions when he said to them: “Shirk among you will be more subtle than the footsteps of an ant, but I will teach you something which, if you do it, both minor and major shirk will be kept away from you. Say: Allaahumma inni a’oodhu bika an ushrika bika wa ana a’lam wa astaghfiruka lima la a’lam (O Allaah, I seek refuge with You from associating anything with You knowingly, and I seek Your forgiveness for that of which I am unaware).”

Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Jaami’, 3731

The above refers to the difference between major and minor shirk, defining each and describing its types.

With regard to the difference between them as far as the ruling is concerned:

Major shirk puts a person beyond the pale of Islam, so the one who does that is judged to be out of Islam and to have apostatized therefrom, so he is a kaafir and an apostate.

Minor shirk does not put a person beyond the pale of Islam, rather it may be done by a Muslim but he still remains in Islam; but the one who does that is in great danger because minor shirk is a major sin. Ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: “If I were to swear by Allaah falsely, that is better for me than if I were to swear by something other than Him sincerely.” So he regarded swearing by something other than Allaah (which is minor shirk) as being worse than swearing by Allaah falsely, and it is well known that swearing by Allaah falsely is a major sin.

We ask Allaah to make our hearts steadfast in adhering to His religion until we meet Him, and we seek refuge in His Might – may He be glorified – from going astray, for He is the Ever-Living Who never dies, but the jinn and mankind will die. And Allaah knows best and is most wise, and to Him is the final return of all.

[sasorikigai]

My muse in a relationships || @ephemeralkryonics​ || accepting (Part 2)

👫Do they display affection in public? What about in private?

Publicly, Hanzo may come across as stern, reserved and repressed with his affection (even when he attempts to sneak in knowing gazes, brush of hands and any part of exposed flesh, etc.), as he’s running high on rampant, prompted introspection and overwhelming onslaught of responsibilities that come as freight train of thoughts. So it may prevent him from fully capable to display physical and mental affection, compared to the private setting. 

In private, he is definitely much more at ease, without tension and hardened countenance and aura, which makes it effortless to commit to both physical and mental affection. While he feels more than comfortable expressing his affection with vocalizations, such would not be a possibility when he is fulfilling his Grandmaster’s responsibilities and duties. 

💕Are they open to threesomes or a polyamorous relationship?

It’s a hard no; Hanzo is a strict believer of the ethical philosophy and that “what’s good is what feels good” approach of polyamory or non-monogamy relationship repulsive. This can be more gross, as in the orgiastic pleasures of indulgence, or more subtle, as in weighing long term vs. short term pleasures and pursuing sustainable pleasures, seeking more subtle pleasures such as art and community, and considering the greatest pleasure for the greatest number of beings. While he understands that that it’s not only about sex, and being about the intimacy surrounding sex, Hanzo doesn’t that the pursuit of pleasure is as important to human beings nowhere near as to live a meaningful life, and I think the monogamous family model has been preferred for many good reasons. 

He is a traditionalist by heart, so he prefers one woman or one man is an equal balance with himself, instead of having primary and secondary person whom he could divide his attention. He isn’t very open regarding polyamorous relationships either, so trying other arrangements is out of the option too. Hanzo thinks polyamory is very egocentric and exploitive of participants. There is a primary lover and then secondary lovers, so there is an inherent caste system in Polyamorous relationships. So he would much prefer to have and thinks that it’s better to just find one person to make love with, and stay open to a community of friends. 

Also, time demands and emotional complexities may hinder Hanzo from ever pursuing it for himself. While Harumi and Kuai Liang share self-responsibility and integrity when it comes to their emotional strength and jealousy and commitment wouldn’t be an issue for them, he doesn’t think it’s sustainable long term as it is selfish in nature, even if the premise is that he can love a lot more abundantly than he originally believed we could. Monogamy is not just a belief system – it’s called pair bonding. Nature wants him to team up with and fall in love with one partner. Monogamy doesn’t mean he has to mate with one person for life, but Harumi will always be the one whom he’d consider his soulmate even before Kuai; Kuai just happens to share many paramount traits which Harumi possessed. 

💔Do they have a certain type of person they will not enter into a relationship with?

Anyone who is shallow, one-dimensional, goes against the Bushido Code, which are code of eight virtues he will follow with all his heart. Those individuals don’t deserve Hanzo Hasashi’s hard-earned trust, loyalty, devotion and love. 

💝How long until they feel secure and comfortable in a relationship?

Because of his past as a misguided hellspawn spectre and being used as a pawn without self-governance, Hanzo’s trust towards others and the time it takes to be completely comfortable with his significant other may take a while. With Kuai Liang, the duration which it takes for Hanzo to become more comfortable may be significantly reduced, simply because they have a long history between them. Even as mortal rivals and being a prominent member of opposite factions that had been in such a bitter rivalry for centuries, only exacerbated by Quan Chi’s machinations, the gravitational force of attraction was always there. 

There was an intrinsic intrigue, ever since the OG time where even as Scorpion, he caught up on how significantly different Kuai Liang was compared to Bi-Han. Kuai Liang’s major story arc revolves with the fact that the death of older brother had big impact on Kuai Liang, who in Bi-Han’s honor took name of Sub-Zero as he sought revenge against Scorpion. It was one of his biggest motivation during all MK stories - at least until he made a peace with Hanzo Hasashi. Kuai Liang is idealistic and naive, and Hanzo finds his sympathy, kindness, empathy and mercifulness (despite being absolutely ruthless and ferocious when he’s engaged in kombat) and Hanzo finds that endearing. 

Elder Kuai Liang may seem very composed, but Hanzo now knows in the Lin Kuei’s youth, he was driven by emotions (anger, guilt) - just like he is, anger fueled by guilt - and forced to do many things against his will by various powers (Lin Kuei, Quan Chi’s magic, cursed blade) and still he stayed on the heroes’ side. Kuai Liang even made peace with murderer of his brother - himself - and blamed only Quan Chi for what happened to Bi-Han. Hanzo forever feels indebted and grateful for Kuai’s forgiveness.

🤐Would they ever confess their feelings first?

Hanzo most likely would to Kuai Liang, than having it the other way. While Hanzo isn’t much experienced when it comes to having romantic/sexual relationships, for his one and only partner for life had been Harumi and I headcanon that they were friends from childhood years, in which Hanzo soon became Harumi’s suitor and they became lovers from friends, which also lead to them becoming soulmates. Because Hanzo is more emotionally in touch with himself and have no qualms of expressing his thoughts and feelings, it would come much more natural to him than Kuai Liang, who is rather naive and hasn’t experienced all the life’s joys as his childhood and normalcy to experience various appropriate things in Lin Kuei. 

❌Would they ever cheat on their partner?

Cheating is wrong, because it breaches his hard-earned trust, devotion and love. The golden rule for arguing about morals is the golden rule itself: One should treat others the way one would like others to treat oneself. The special exclusive bond he shared with him/her would degrade to become never exclusive or special. It would feel like such a violation and make him doubt his own self-worth, that maybe he is not deemed worthy enough. A relationship is heavy, involves a lot of opening up and intimacy, and breaking that trust makes him feel vulnerable and betrayed. The searing mental image of his loved one being intimate with someone else is hard to erase completely from your head, and would haunt him for long. It’s a shattering blend of impotent anger, envy, loss of self-confidence, possible erosion of faith in love, disgust at having opened up to such a person, and mind-numbing  regret and sorrow. 

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦Do they want children?

Hanzo always thrived better with having his offsprings; regardless of biological (Satoshi) or surrogate (Takeda Takahashi), Hanzo’s paternal prowess has not only kept him in check from his severe depression and sole survivor’s guilt, but it boosted his hellfire and fighting capabilities, making him even capable of coming on top of Raiden and Sub-Zero (albeit he was injured before their battle). 

🐶Are they a cuddler?

As I have mentioned before, physical intimacy is one of the most crucial and profound part of romantic/sexual relationship. Cuddling often gets conflated with sex because it releases oxytocin, a hormone that promotes bonding, and like sex, cuddling can lower blood pressure, ease pain, and increase sexual and life satisfaction. While cuddling doesn’t always make sex as an end result, Hanzo regards cuddling itself as one of the most important communications in relationships, as those subtle, grounding touches anchor him to reality. It only fosters tight-knitted bonding opportunities and cuddling increases his sense of security with Kuai Liang, which in turn, increases his desire to be emotionally intimate and vulnerable with him. There’s no denying the positive effects cuddling has on his relationship.

🔮Do they believe in soul mates?

I think Hanzo both believes in destiny and growth beliefs; it’s the same with Harumi and Kuai, that he was destined to be with a specific person (in this case, people) and that he would have one person who is meant for me in different timelines (if Harumi hadn’t met her gruesome death, Hanzo would have dedicated his life for her). And this is especially important with Hanzo’s relationship with Kuai Liang, and that their relationship slowly progressed and they both grew to fit together - like yin and yang - as they both made conscious effort to become needed and fill in the gaps of their imperfections. While he believes that he and Kuai can be the most compatible person on the face of the earth, but he doesn’t believe there's an invisible force that draws complete strangers towards each other; they have to continue to make conscious effort to understand and perceive each other, even as they begin to know them in-depth. 

⚔️ Are they protective of their partner?

Extremely. Although Hanzo knows Kuai is a strong and ferocious warrior who can very easily protect himself from peril and throes of death, it’s the past trauma of losing his clan - not once, but twice under supernatural forces he couldn’t control nor predict - and most definitely his family. 

🚀 How far are they willing to go for the person they love?

Once Hanzo commits in romantic/sexual relationships, he will literally go to the ends of the earth and to Hell and back; it’s literally the entirety of his story arc regarding Harumi/Satoshi when you think about it. It it weren’t for Hanzo’s love, Hanzo Hasashi as a character we know as of now may have been nonexistent, and so does Scorpion. 

❤️ Do they fall in love easily?

While the severity of his trauma may have been slightly mitigated by the decades of his desiderium and deep longing, Hanzo still has dreams and nightmares about Harumi, whom he considered not only as a longtime friend, a lover, a beloved and devoted wife, but even more so, his soulmate. She was a quiet, but a strong presence who served as Hanzo’s emotional pillar and guidance. 

📺 Do they share information about their relationships freely with friends and family?

Initially, Hanzo would be very discreet and hesitant about their relationship; at least until it becomes truly serious and fully devoted. For Hanzo, strategic disclosure and manipulation of co-presence (especially in regards to their shared Grandmasters’ positions and being Earthrealm’s protectors) signals will become the most frequent ways in which information was managed. The most frequent reasons for revelation were felt obligation to reveal based on the relationship with the target, the desire for emotional expression and the desire for psychological support from the target. The most frequent reason to withhold information was the anticipation of a negative reaction from his surroundings, specifically to the Shirai Ryu and perhaps beyond.  

This sharing of personal details about his life - your feelings, thoughts, memories, and other such things - Hanzo’s self-disclosure is on the low side; while he is completely open about sharing them to the most trusted, loved individuals, he is much more reserved about such things. 

♦️Are they concerned with the social status of their partner?

Social status is most likely the least facet Hanzo is concerned about, but I think Hanzo certainly has a type for someone who is either 1) a commanding leader in any manifestations and forms - Grandmasters, Commanders, those who have been in the leading position where they are responsible for numbers of individuals under their wings, so to speak, and 2) possesses insistence, the iron-will stubbornness that is able to meet his own hot-tempered decisiveness. 

💭 Do they tend to sleep better when in bed with their partner?

One of Hanzo’s most absolute favorite things to do is to cuddle naked; while he is much more of a sensual being than sexual, Hanzo does enjoy both physical or emotional closeness. While the term intimate relationship usually implies the inclusion of sexual activity, the term is also used to indicate a relationship with more than just sexual activity. Intimate relationships maintain a key role in his overall human experience because they involve emotional connections with others. This may be romance, physical or sexual attraction, sexual activity, or emotional support, while also helps him to develop strong interpersonal connections. 

Hanzo desires physical intimacy of some sort at least occasionally, being that it is a natural part of human sexuality. Because this is most often sensual touching of any sort, it requires an entrance into another's personal space, while it may be an emotional or sexual act anywhere from a hug to a kiss or sexual intercourse. Emotional or sensual touching of this sort aids in the release of oxytocin, dopamine,and serotonin, which reduces stress. Also, without physical intimacy, there are increased feelings of loneliness or sadness and Hanzo is highly prone to suffering both without the intimate proximity with his significant other. 

Specifically with Kuai Liang, he finds the quality of his sleep significantly improved; he finds the cryomancer’s coolness extremely comfortable, relaxing and natural. Even as a pyromancer and someone who is more or less used to stifling heat of Japan, regardless of humidity, he finds majority of summer and fall a bit unbearable - since he is the type to sweat a lot in those hot seasons and it’s hard for him to cool down rapidly without feeling significant discomfort beyond where he feels unhygienic and disgusting. Having some kind of weight under him is also a comforting presence, and he dreams less nightmares and unpleasant dreams because of it. 

[rahirah]

So the other day someone (who shall remain nameless just in case they don't want Discourse drawn down upon their heads) was wondering why so many fans of a Certain Ship have no chill regarding a Certain Other Ship, and are relentlessly driven to tear it down.

Now, in all fairness, I've seen this behavior from fans of both ships. From fans of all ships everywhere, in fact. And it's not as if anyone's conducted a peer reviewed double blind study to determine if certain ships are more likely to attract Fans of No Chill. All our data is anecdotal, and people are far more likely to remember the rival fans who insult the stuff they like than they are to remember the rival fans who just go "Meh, whatever." Also, on Tumblr, you can't do your bitching behind a locked post, they way people can do on Livejournal/Dreamwidth/Facebook etc. which undoubtedly affects the perceived ratio of Chill to No-Chill Fans.

HOWSOMEVER, all that said, it did occur to me that some ships do have characteristics which by their very nature encourage the tearing down of other ships. Namely, Destiny Ships. The whole point of a Destiny Ship is that, well, it's destined. The parties of the first and second part are Meant To Be. No party of the third part could ever be as good for them as they are for each other. Many (not all, but many) people who ship Team Destiny do so because they find the certainty of it appealing. Destiny Couples are safe. They never have to worry that their partner's feelings may change. They never have to work on building or maintaining a relationship. They will always be the most important person in their partner's heart, regardless of circumstances.

The appeal of this kind of emotional safety net is incredibly strong. Even people who ship pairings which are Team Free Will in their respective canons will often try to turn them into Destiny Couples in fanfic. Why else are things like claims, prophecies, or soulmate AUs so popular? The downside of the Destiny Ship is that its fans must be forever vigilant to protect its status as Destined. If, during a period when Cruel Fate has wrenched Our Heroes apart, the party of the first or second part has a relationship with a hypothetical party of the third part, and that relationship is presented as emotionally significant, sexually fulfilling, or otherwise important, it becomes a threat. After all, the whole point of a Destined relationship is that it is, by definition, the most important one that a character can or will ever have. If canon starts to portray another relationship as equally, or heaven forbid more important... then maybe the Destined relationship isn't really Destined after all.

And there goes your emotional safety net and all the security it entails. The usurping relationship cannot, therefore, be allowed to have any importance. It must be denigrated, downplayed, and attacked at every opportunity. It's not enough for Destiny fans not to like it; they must constantly demonstrate that it's objectively inferior and wrong compared to the Destiny Ship.

I don't think there's a one to one mapping of Destiny Fans to Destiny Ships. Ships have many components, and Free Will fans will sometimes be attracted to Destiny Ships for other reasons, and vice versa. For example, Destiny Ships tend to leave me cold, because I often feel like canon is shoving them down my throat without demonstrating why they are supposed to be so wonderful. But I love John/Aeryn in Farscape like burning, because it hits a whole host of my other narrative kink buttons, AND the writers did the work of developing their relationship, showing exactly why they were so awesome together. I loved them BECAUSE their relationship was precarious; BECAUSE they had to work their respective asses off to forge the bond between them, and it was all the stronger because it WASN'T a sure thing. I almost put a boot through the TV when, halfway through one of the angstier seasons, they had a line about being meant to be. I was stunned and annoyed to realize that the writers apparently thought of them as a Destiny Ship. NO. DO NOT WANT. The show didn't keep harping on it, thankfully, so it never got annoying to the point of putting me off the pairing.

Still, on the average, I would bet that more Destiny Fans tend to be attracted to Destiny Ships, and consequently feel the need to defend them. And that might be an explanation for why Many Fans of a Certain Ship Have No Chill.