#hold on i think my cat just bit my among us plush. stopped crying

[celestiachan]

sometimes i think about the people who traumatized me in 2020 and i almost start crying because i cannot comprehend how evil you have to be to be a whole adult and not apologize when a child says that you made them feel suicidal

[werezmastarbucks]

crete

honeymoon masterlist

word count: 2194

warnings: drowning

music: prove me wrong by tyler joseph, ¿ by bmth and halsey

Another time Kai died out of his own stupidity.

It was incredible, really, how he, such a brilliant mind, resourceful and sharp, terrifyingly shrewd and quick-thinking sometimes put zero consideration into things he was doing. If there was some kind of underlying point in the things he sometimes did, it escaped you. Sometimes it seemed he has been bashed on the head on the day he was born. That was what made him so fun to be isolated with. Kai Parker was so unpredictable.

Like when he ran you both off the cliff, which he then explained as a romantic bonding experience.

After all, what makes people the closest?

You were shaking with rage. You couldn’t even speak, after you resurrected, on the beach, among the crooked debris of your car, smelling something still burning, with a headache.

Killing somebody together. But there’s no one here to kill, so...

So we died together, holding hands, and it was amazing, for once.

He had a dreamy expression on his face. You recalled the horrible moment the car hit the ground; you almost fell out of your seat by that time, and in a split second, you finally understood why Kai always had a seatbelt on. The pain, the sound of your own spine cracking. The hammer-like sensation of the weight of the ground pounding your head, breaking your skull. You were lucky the car simply dived in, and you both fell heads first, dying almost instantly.

It all made sense to him, and you were afraid that you’d spend enough time with him to start seeing his way, too.

But the next time he died on his own, because, like all geniuses, he was incredibly dumb in the most unexpected places.

This place was called Koureménos, and Kai knew how to pronounce it, and you didn’t. You have been to Greece before, but obviously this time was different. For once, it was the past.

Another obvious thing that you don’t take into consideration before you face it: the mountains don’t care whether it’s past or future. They live millions of years, and barely ever change. Even vampires like Klaus Mikaelson may seem children compared to mountains. It was impossible to tell what year it was, standing on the top of the hill, looking into the sea. The sea barely changes, too. It’s just cyan blue and deep, and you especially adored the two seas in Greece; Aegean more so than the Mediterranean, because it had more temper. It changed colors. It listened to you. It had furious, playful waves. It beat people on rocks, threw them around like toys. It was like... Kai.

“So, how does one love?” he asked.

You were sitting at the rock, the hard stone biting into your bare knees. You turned to him with a swing. Kai didn’t care for the sun. He didn’t care for the wind. Was he so jaded with life that the particles of his skin themselves stopped feeling the change in the temperatures? He always wore jeans and a shirt (he changed those every day, but they always were the same), and a hoodie with a zip. He was like a living Sim, you realized. A customized video game character.

“What?”

He looked like the words came out of is mouth in spite of him. God knows what he was thinking, and what was so special about you sitting on the rock, crouching, your back to him, and groaning, trying to get your sandal out of in between two sharp rocks, that he suddenly wanted to know about love.

Kai asked a lot of questions about things he never talked about before. He didn’t have anyone he trusted enough to ask, how one does love, and what it means, and how death feels to others, and what they dream about. You were realizing those questions had nested, piling up and up on his mind, for years, and he didn’t see anybody suit to hear them. Most probably, nobody wanted to hear them. He was asking questions about things a child should understand. Like why people cry. That one time he asked you, do you still get spooked? about your nightmare opened him up a little to you. You realized he lived in a completely different world. Unfortunately, it made it even harder to be mad at him.

Now he wanted to know how one loves. Even the way he has phrased it, it made you see he has no idea.

He was sorry he asked. You never ever pushed him away at the moments like that.

“Come here”.

He walked quietly, like a cat. Always. It was extremely unnerving. Even when he didn’t need to sneak, he still did. You did not know what his steps sounded like.

Kai stood next to you, unwilling to get on your level to hold some control.

“You told me you have loved someone, right before you killed me in Italy”, you said, scornfully.

“Yeah, I know the feeling, but I don’t know what you’re supposed to do”.

You stood up. You didn’t like it when he hovered over you like an executioner.

“For one, you don’t kill them”.

He looked you right in the eye without any expression.

“Easy to say, harder to do. I get this need to kill whenever I get close to someone”.

“I feel like you talk from experience”.

He looked at the water.

“Uh-huh. I killed my first girlfriend. I’m still wondering what I did wrong”.

You fought the urge to say ‘killing her, probably, was it’.

Instead, you asked, with a creeping feeling that you’re turning into him a little, while he’s taking on your features,

“How?”

“Drowned her in the pool. I banged her head on the tiles first”.

“Why?”

Kai thought for a bit.

“So that she wouldn’t wiggle”.

You sighed.

“Or to make her suffer less?” he asked, with hope, trying to cheat. You shook your head with a smile.

You felt inclined to hug him. Kai actually gave you a super useful advice. It’s only you and him. Although you wanted it very bad, you didn’t have to fight your affection for him. There was no point fighting it.

You wrapped your arms around him, and he lifted his elbows a little. You barely hugged in the daylight before that.

“The first rule of loving someone is not to hurt them. Everything else is improvisational and welcome, I guess”.

“Have you ever thought about hugging, too?” he mumbled, returning it. His hand lay on your shoulder, palm cupping it, and you felt like belonging. He smelt not worse than sea. He was slowly sponging the smell of May.

“How silly it is. You just catch someone passing and restrict them for two seconds, it’s so weird when you think about it. Stop, and press your body against mine, buddy. I’ll also slap you on the back or hold your head”.

You chuckled.

“It’s all a part of the old desire to be one with somebody, I think”.

Your face was muffled slightly by his chest, and you didn’t mind talking into his shirt.

“That’s why some people cannibalise each other”.

“People cannibalise each other because they’re sick, Y/N”.

You unclasped your arms, and you were quite satisfied at the nonchalant look in his eyes.

“Does it feel good?”

The wind was gently swaying you to and fro, and you stepped away from him, to see him better, at the same time trying to put your hair behind your ears. The silent shore howled in midday.

“What?” his face gave a funny expression, “canniba-”

He didn’t finish, - or, you didn’t hear. The wind pulled you and sucked you in because you stood above the natural rock vortex, going down into a V-shaped  notch in the cliff. The wind said, whooo? as it took you in. Your damn sandals did not help either, your ankle bending on an uneven ledge. You fell back first, and didn’t even yell, just ouched in surprise, like a kitten. This prison world somehow taught you both not to scream when falling, or when in pain.

The fall wasn’t scary, and wasn’t long. You plushed into the water your ass first, and dived out the next second, puffing in irritation. You were baffled, sure, but you could swim.

And then Kai went into the water like a dead brick, and started chaotically moving in all directions, coming in and out of water. As you tried to float, you moved away to give him space, but he kept wiggling like he didn’t have arms to sway. His head came up, and then went down under the water.

“Kai?”

You realized he doesn’t know how to stay on water. You realized he was drowning.

You tried grabbing him, but the mighty Aegean sea said, no, and the waters, restless in the narrow notch, threw you both back and forth. In these waves, even one person would find it hard to float: you’d have to swim. You were perfectly ready to do so, but Kai didn’t seem to even know what to do. Did he get sucked into the tunnel, too? Or did he jump?

“I can’t swim!” he announced, and his arms grabbed your neck like anybody would do. You went under the water with his weight and yours, and panicked. It was all just a very messy, air grabbing, water swallowing experience, having Kai drown right in your arms. He nearly drowned you, too, and in the end, after several attempts to pull him by his hair or the hoodie, after being thrown against the rock, and splitting your temple, and swallowing about a gallon of water, you could barely stay on water yourself.

I can’t do it, you thought, he’s going to die.

It’s so easy, to let someone die. You watched Kai fight the water like a butterfly with wet wings. You held on a rock, trying to breathe, to rush back to him. You hoped that maybe when he blacks out and stops jerking so much, you can pull him out. You asked yourself, your mind racing with panic, if you would try to pull him out if it was for real. If you knew he’d die for good. And decided it didn’t matter. If you were set on fixing that boy, even a little, just for yourself, to show him how to love, you couldn’t let him drown in here, either.

But you were so exhausted that as soon as you let go of the rock that the sea was washing your blood off you went under the water yourself. You tried rolling onto your back to keep yourself above the water, cursing the damn sea with all the words you knew. You reached out to Parker hanging vertically in the water, ethereal and white in the greenish clean water, bubbles around his porcelain face, and you blacked out.

You both woke up on the shore, dry and far away from the water, and you reckoned you died, too.

How mundane it was now, even though you’ve only died for the second time.

You just woke up, not a single drop of water in your nose. No coughing, no dramatic sea water spitting. Your hair was dry, and you were a bit hot, lying in the sun and all, and Kai was sitting next to you, blinking slowly at the brink of the sea.

You were torn between wanting to stroke him on the shoulder and call him an idiot. Maybe you could caress him gently while calling him an idiot.

He turned and looked at you like he studied you as his subject. His eyes were rich grey and just a bit narrowed.

“You come round longer than I do. Second time already. Do you see anything?”

You checked your electronic watch to see if it’s working.

“Why did you jump, you...”

You hummed instead of finishing.

“I thought you couldn’t swim”.

“Wait, wait a second”, you stood on your knees in the soft heat of the yellow sand, “I thought you said you couldn’t swim”.

“Yeah, no, I can’t”.

“So, why did you jump?” you yelled. Kai’s face expressed confusion.

“I assumed you’d drown. I didn’t want you to die alone”.

“God damn it”, you heard yourself. Something in you moved. You heard your own voice, spiked with worry. You were worried about him. He sat there in the sand, looking like he was cut out of a magazine, from the page that had an article about how bad the video games are for your kid; he sat there, looking like a puppy that knew it was about to be punished. You thought that maybe you yelled at him too much, forgetting how well Kai plays victim all the time. He could weave you like sails.

“God damn it, don’t do it again! You knew you’d die!”

He chuckled, with a portion of pity.

“Y/N, you know it’s not for real”.

“Yeah, but still. It still sucks, dying. Haven’t you had enough?”

He sighed.

That is how you love, by the way, you wanted to add. But something stopped you.

You also decided not to tell him you only drowned because you were trying to save his ass. Let him learn this lesson in selflessness he gave himself.

[theotheroccassionalfanficwriter]

the rumor concerning a certain demon lord and me

Summary: I am the Celestial Realm’s Liaison for Devildom, my duties include reporting the results and minutiae of the Exchange Student Program, and fostering a good relationship with the Devildom’s government. I am the paragon of virtue but somehow...can anyone tell me where did the rumors that I was dating a certain Demon Lord come from?

Tags: Oblivious Reader, First Person POV, Angel!Reader, slow burn, Mammon falls in love first...or does he?, only fluff, no angst, no intellectuals in this house only queer people who share one brain cell.

A/N: If anyone thinks that it’s impossible to get into a relationship without your knowledge I want to share to everyone that it happened to me and I was a sugar baby for like 1 whole year and only realized it 5 years later. Sequel in the works

Rated: G

--

As an Angel, living in the Celestial Realm was what the humans would call a Socialist paradise. Our working hours were few and the pay was high, all Angels regardless of rank could afford housing and have enough money to spare. Everyone was free to pursue their interests and I was no different. I had set my goal from an early age, slowly and steadily built up my skills and worked diligently.

All the senior Angels praised me for my good work ethic and I was relatively well-liked among my peers. It wasn’t that I had no shortcomings, it was just that I was able to hide my shortcomings and pass it off as quirks. You might be wondering, what my goal is. It’s a secret~

Hehehe...right now that isn’t important, what’s important is that after a long time my goal is already half-way done. That’s because~starting today I am the Celestial Realm’s Liaison for Devildom~

Teehee! Is what I’d like to say but the truth is, I’ve lost all happiness I gained from that promotion. 

Ever since the Second Lord, Mammon, became my body guard I’ve lost all happiness. In the morning, I’d wake up and trip on the plush carpet because of a gold bar, on my way into the bathroom to wash my face I’d slip from stepping on pearls left carelessly on the marble tiles of my bathroom floor. Then on my way to the kitchen to eat my breakfast my cute ceramic mug had been replaced with a chalice made of gold.

Isn’t this just harassment? Isn’t it cruel of him to plant evidences to insinuate I’ve harbored the sin of Greed? I badly want to throw the gold bar on his face but the two golden rules I follow held me back. Aren’t I good? Aren’t I kind? Therefore I’ll keep on enduring that cute foolish Second Lord but the moment an opportunity to take a little revenge on him comes...yeah I’ll just go and confess my sins after.

--

The opportunity to take revenge came when we had our daily brunch routine at Cat’s Eye. It was a cute cat cafe that I stumbled on and had stupidly mentioned to Mammon, at that time I had foolishly trusted that he would be kind towards me and spare me of the odd ways of the demons, that it’d be nice to come to it with someone familiar.

“In that case, I, the Great Mammon will take you there every morning!” His toothy grin and bright aura of happiness made my pure angelic heart quiver.

...but only a little bit okay? It wasn’t like it made me want to give him all the gold in the world and see him be happy alright? 

“Mammon-sama, thank you!”

He blushed fiercely and for some reason it made me want to squeeze him a little bit. Thus the daily routine of eating together came to be and every day I’d end up sharing half of my food with him while he hand fed me half of his food. You might be thinking, “Yo! Little Angel isn’t that too fast?!”

And I agree with you but have you ever been on the receiving end of his puppy dog eyes? Have you ever felt the feeling of having someone smile at you sweetly for something so meaningless? In all my life as an Angel, it’s my first time meeting someone who’d grow so attached just because I shared my food, gave him the first taste of my cream puffs I’d buy, gave advice to so they’d succeed in a business venture, and randomly giving them trinkets I bought on a whim.

Ahhh...Sorry for getting riled up, this is also one of the side effects I’ve been experiencing since becoming friends with Mammon. When it comes to that cute fool, I can’t keep my calm. Probably because he just makes my Angelic nurturing instincts tingle.

Now, you must be wondering what sort of revenge I had planned, the thing is simple. 

Mammon likes spicy stuff and he knows that I like to try spicy foods as long as it doesn’t get too spicy, therefore, today I’ll order scrambled eggs and strawberry pancakes! And pay for it with his planted marked money!!!!

With that in mind, I happily ordered my brunch while holding his hand, happily took out the planted marked money from my wallet and paid for both of our foods. Then Mammon brought the tray to our usual table and we sat side by side and began the daily routine of feeding each other...I sneakily took a glance at him and he only had a look of extreme smugness...

As expected of an Avatar of Sin...this level of revenge...meant nothing to him.

๐·°(৹˃̵﹏˂̵৹)°·๐ So frustrating!!!

--

Hello everyone! Several years had passed since my unsuccessful revenge on Mammon and as a result his harassment only grew...my soft and comfy cotton padded pink comforter has been replaced with 100% Egyptian cotton sheets...my cute pastel tea set had been replaced with ones from Chelsea...Everyday he’d give me trinkets worth a fortune and I’ve learned not to ask how he acquired it if only so I could have a peace of mind...

I’ve also gained a new habit of praying for my sins every night as opposed too once every few nights...Father even sent a letter asking me if I was alright ever since the frequency increased.

It made me want to cry a little bit.

Nevertheless I bravely continued on, and wore my head high as the Celestial Realm’s Ambassador to Devildom.

Hehehe... that’s right from Liaison to Ambassador it was quite a jump.  And it had just been officially announced recently, and now 500 years later, I can finally celebrate my promotion!!!

After being appointed as the Ambassador to Devildom, I was temporarily sent back to undergo training that for some reason or another also included Mammon as my training partner. Yep! That’s right! Normally, a period of separation would occur in this part of the story right? right! But what happened was!!!before I could even do a tearful parting between dear friends and then have a joyful and tearful reunion between close friends...

-

Mammon had his luggage with him and he was holding my left hand as he and the rest of his brothers looked nervous. Listen, I understand you all rebelled and lost but can all of you lighten up and explain to me why Mammon is coming with?

I glanced at Diavolo, who became one of my closest friends in Devildom after Mammon, and silently begged him with my eyes. Hearing my pleas, Diavolo nodded and then said,

"Now, now, there's no need for any worry after all Mammon would be well protected by our Little Angel?"

I can't help but retort, "This year I grew by two millimetres and the top of my head is just an inch below Mammon's shoulders."

I knew that I begged for help but Diavolo...there's no need for a personal attack on my height. Besides that, you didn't even explain why my training includes Mammon. Also, why are all of you sending Mammon off as if he was a bride?, I'm talking about you Lucifer-sama.

Please stop looking at me as if I was a good-for-nothing sibling-in-law.

"...I’ve been looking after him from the start...I wouldn’t stop doing it now...” I mumbled, averting my gaze from their intense looks.

I know its arrogant of me since Mammon has been taking care of himself since the aftermath of the Celestial War but by now, I’d only end up worrying if anyone other than Lucifer and me can take care of him right. Millennia of cleaning up his messes and busting him out of trouble had led me to develop anxiety over his general well being, it had led me to buying him his own set of toiletries and clothing and even household items just so I wouldn’t worry about where he stayed on nights he didn’t want to be with his brothers.

Being conscientiously kind and helpful really is hard.

“In that case, I’ll leave my brother in your care” Lucifer-sama told me solemnly, in his usually cold and stern eyes was a small trace of warmth.

I don’t understand why you’d suddenly look like that to me but, “Thank you.”

Yep. Let’s just thank him and be done with this.

--

What separation? What tearful and joyful reunion? Bullshit!!! We arrived at the Celestial Realm and it felt like I was someone who came home for the first time since getting married! Also, I know I said I’d take care of Mammon but why does it have to be that we would share one bed?!

Look! He’s blushing all the way to his ears! His face is so red it looks like it’s his natural skin tone!

Is this what’s going to make me Fall? Huh?! Isn’t it a bit pathetic that I became a demon because someone decided to redecorate my house without my permission?!

“I-i didn’t expect they’d be this welcoming...” Mammon mumbled cutely.

Okay, let’s forget about it. Since, Mammon didn’t mind but just in case, it’s better to at least clear it up to prevent any misunderstandings.

“Well...it’s probably because you’re the first...” I trailed off, saying he’s my first friend that I made on my own would be pathetic right?

“Anyways, let’s set your stuff up. Do you want to rest a little bit or should we go shopping for the things you’d use here?”

Mammon didn’t seem to mind the abrupt changed of topic but why is your face redder than before? If you’re embarrassed by this I’d end up embarrassed too! Look! I can already feel the tips of my ears heating up!

“I-I want to have you all to myself for now...”

I simply nodded and took away his luggage and had him rest on the bed while I shed off my human form and brought my wings into the physical plane. I began organizing our shared closet and silently decided to just ignore the fact that Mammon’s earlier words made it seem like we were dating or something.

Mammon probably never had any friends before me too. After all, other than me and his brothers isn’t his number blocked by everyone back in Devildom?

Reassured with this thought, I easily and happily began rearranging my clothes to accommodate Mammon’s stuff and ignored the prickly feeling of Mammon staring at me. We left in the afternoon and I led Mammon around the places that had the best of everything I know.

Each Angel would look at us, whisper a little bit, before coming forward and congratulating the two of us. I’m glad they aren’t discriminating Mammon or looking at him with contempt but there really is no need for the entirety of the Celestial Realm to congratulate me for having a friend okay? I kept to myself out of choice and the knowledge that I knew my limits.

If you lot kept up with this then I’ll really go ahead and Fall! Look, Mammon’s being bashful! 

Ah! Fuck it! Never mind then! Since this congratulations spree makes him happy, I’ll turn a blind eye.

--

By now, you’ve all probably noticed how weird it was right? right?! Every time I would treat Mammon the same as I did back in Devildom I’d feel the intensity of the stares from my fellow angels, and then Mammon would make it weirder by blushing and looking at me coquettishly. Keep that up and everyone would start thinking we’re a couple out on a date! By the way, this just brought up the painful fact that other than my abhorrent almost null platonic relationship, I also never got into any romantic relationship with my fellow angels...anyways who cares I have Mammon now.

I had no intention of hiding our friendship but just how much did Mammon doubt me that he had to look so pleased whenever I didn’t deny our relationship. I know my shortcomings when it comes to the emotional side of the relationship but even I’m not that unreliable okay?! So please! Mammon! Stop looking so cute whenever I’m considerate of you!!!

This is a normal angel thing!!! You can even ask Simeon!!!!

Ah...I apologize that I went off on a tangent, anyways it’s time to go back to the original point which is! Mammon and I are out celebrating my promotion right now. And since we’re celebrating he told me that I can do as my heart pleases.

So now, I’ve decided to up my revenge! If last time spending his money was nothing to him and making him eat overly sweet stuff was useless, I’ll take him to a bistro I’ve never been before and eat there with him! A place with no guarantee of being delicious! A place that had no assurance that our money won’t be wasted! Wouldn’t that make his liver hurt? Wouldn’t that make his Goldie bleed? Wouldn’t that make him mad?

Gosh! Being evil is so easy, I better pray to Father and repent for my sins after this dinner date.

And so, I took him to Restaurant la Penyora in Girona, Spain. Instead of using the normal routes of transportation to the Human Realm, I just snapped Mammon and myself into the Restaurant with the use of one of my allotted miracles. Our table was nicely furnished with a lit candle, and the ambiance was nice. Perfect!

I looked at Mammon and teased him, “Isn’t this place perfect?”

He looked at me with an impassive face and asked, “Have you been here before?”

“How can that be? Every time I leave Devildom aren’t I with you?”

That was the sad truth, every outing I had to play around included Mammon...I did try making friends with other demons and it would succeed for awhile but later on...they’d break off our friendship and each time I’d run into Mammon to vent.

Of course there were times I couldn’t do it, all of those times had to do when he would get picked to be a human’s first demon, and that only drove to further make friends. It wouldn’t be nice if I resented a human for taking my only friend after all. Somehow, that cold look on Mammon’s face disappeared and I breathed a sigh of relief. 

I really thought he’d figured out my revenge plan now.

The atmosphere eased up and I bravely ordered what I could think I could finish. Worst case is I could just miracle away the organs of this vessel. It’s not like we actually need those to function. And so under the wonderful ambiance, Mammon and I ate a splendidly delicious meal, had a wonderful conversation and deepened our bonds of friendship.

Haha.

My revenge plan failed.

The two of us strolled about in the streets and just existed. Mammon held my hand and I silently sulked that my revenge plan failed.

“I thought I was the only one who sulked in this relationship” He gently teased me.

The city lights in the background combined with Mammon’s rare soft smile made my heart clench. For some reason I thought about the humans he occasionally became fond of and it hurt just a little bit that I might not just be the only one who knows this side of Mammon.

“I’m not sulking” I lied and looked away from him. Squeezing his hand tight and staring intently at my feet as I walked.

“If you’re that jealous of a human, I’ll start turning down Lucifer when he asks me to be the one to ease them up.”

I blinked, “You don’t have to...” 

He’d probably end up in trouble with Lucifer and then I’d be friendless for a few days. I frowned at the thought and suddenly felt something soft and warm press to my forehead.

“Huh?”

Mammon had a fond smile and weird look in his eyes. It made my non-human heart start beating rapidly.

“If I explain it to Lucifer, he’d let me off ‘sides you’re more important to me than the exchange student program.”

I blushed and covered the wide smile on my face. Yep. It wouldn’t be good to show to the world how happy I was to hear that. I’m glad that Mammon treasured our friendship that much.

“E-even so, don’t let me be the reason why you end up not doing work, okay?” I mumbled and Mammon only let go of my hand to wrap his arm on my shoulder and bring me closer to him.

...I think I need to pray longer and harder this time to Father. It isn’t good for an Angel to be greedy after all. Hopefully this would banish all thoughts of wanting to keep Mammon to myself. I am after all the Paragon of a Perfect Angel.

--

After that date on Spain, somehow, Mammon and I became closer. What used to be where I wouldn’t even drop by the House of Lamentation became weekly scheduled dinners where I would bring food for the seven of them for dinner and then a sleepover in Mammon’s room. It became a weekly ritual and thus I ended up growing closer with the rest of Mammon’s brothers...Demons who used to be my fellow colleagues.

It was odd, especially since they seem to know something I don’t and think that I know it as well.

Mammon didn’t even give me a heads up on what was happening. Which brings me to my current predicament:

The new Celestial Realm exchange students were fairly young and even younger than me. Waaay younger than me. And now I had to go and answer the question,

“Are you really dating the Demon Lord Mammon?”

Before I could even answer, I felt Mammon's familiar aura and found myself embraced by him. I know we've known each other for a while now but even so why does he have to wrap me in his arms??? I'm maybe the paragon of virtue but I've never been this intimate with anyone!!! At most...at most I've held hands...

(/ω＼) Even the Holy Mother was more experienced than me.

"They're mine!"

I blinked at Mammon's proclamation and simply let myself be led away by my very grumpy friend. It is important for you to know that he was still holding my hands, firmly might I add, and his hands were bigger than mine, calloused from all the sword training we went through and slightly scarred from,what I assume, Falling.

"Mammon?" I called out to him softly.

If this had been in the past, I would have been able to perfectly hide my worry for him but as it was, with training together and spending so much time together, it was inevitable that I would end up being unable to hide my worry for him.

“Next time, you don’t have to hesitate!” He ordered me, looking very much like an angry bird. It was not at all frightening and yet my heart was beating fast and though I felt no fear, I knew that I was shaking.

“Wha-what do you mean?”

He looked at me in the same way I had seen our baby crows looked at something puzzling. He grinned a feral smile that made me wary and yet whatever angelic training from the Celestial War that had been trained in me did not activate. He leaned close to me, our breaths mingling, and I can only get lost in his ever so familiar eyes that makes a part of my soul sing, that makes my aura reach out to his.

“Angel, haven’t you noticed that our wings beat as one?”

Oh.

Oh.

“Fo-foul fiend!” I stuttered and this time didn’t bother to hide the fact how easy I melted in his arms.

...It seems that the rumors about him and me...came from me...how embarrassing. His deep chuckles reverberated through his chest and I could only burrow my face deeper into his chest as his arms hugged me tightly. His aura reaches out to mine and entangles with it.  

I sighed, “No wonder Lucifer-sama looked like a father giving away his precious daughter when we left for the Celestial Realm.”

Mammon choked and warily told me, “Even now...you still don’t have any sense of fear towards Lucifer...”

“Eh? What do you mean?”

I stopped and hiding and pouted at him but Mammon only looked at me fondly and unabashedly letting his deep love for me bleed through his eyes. I blushed and squirmed in his grip. Please forgive this Angel for not being well-versed in love...after all Mammon is my first...and only...hehe.

“It’s fine if you don’t remember” He told me and then kissed me sweetly and deeply on my lips.

I’m definitely telling this to the Holy Mother once we take a vacation in the Celestial Realm...that would shut up even that cheeky Holy Son for teasing me with my inexperience! 

[saltywithsarcasm]

The streets of Musutafu were packed with citizens that attended the festive event, all chatting among their friends or families as soft music played overhead. It was a little to packed for the little five year old, who clung to her mother’s hand, afraid to get separated in the crowd as they walked towards the stage where Present Mic was announcing the event.

Yui held her stuff cat against her side as she anxiously stayed closed to her mother, looking around at the many people around her. She tugs on her mother’s hand to point at a hero who made a appearance over by one of the booths, waving at people who approached them.

“Mom, can we go see the hero?” She asks, getting her attention.

“I don’t know, dear; They seem really busy.” She tells her daughter, stopping to look at the group of people gathering around Mandalay for autographs.

“I want to show her my cat.” Yui says, holding up her stuff animal with a sweet smile on her face.

“I bet she’s think it’s cute just like you.” Her mother chuckles, turning to lead her over to the hero and waits behind a couple of others until they’re finally able to speak with the woman. The hero smiles at her and kneels down to talk to her at her level, saying hello as Yui’s eyes seem to light up.

She’s so pretty and strong, Yui wants to be just like her when she grows up. She always loved cats because her quirk, just like her mother, she was born with cat ears and a tail, which was swaying back and forth behind her happily.

“Aren’t you a doll.” Mandalay says, looking up at her mother before turning back to her. “What’s your name?”

“Yui...and I want to be a hero just like you when I grow up.” Yui says, hugging her stuff cat.

“You do?” Mandalay asks, smiling before the young girl lifts up her toy to show her.

“I named my cat after you because you’re one of my favorite heroes.”

“I’m so happy to hear that, Yui.” Mandalay says, patting her on the head as she gets to her feet again. “Are you enjoying the festival?”

“There’s a lot of people here and it’s a little scary.”

“There’s nothing to be afraid of, honey; There’s plenty of heroes here and I’m sure your momma wouldn’t let anyone hurt you.” She says, taking a sucker out of one of her pounces and offers it to the young girl. “I’m sure you’ll enjoy yourself here, there’s plenty of fun things to do.”

“Want to go play a game, Yui? Or do you want to go see Present Mic?” Her mother asks which makes Yui frown, she likes Present Mic, he’s probably her most favorite hero but he’s a little too loud for her sensitive ears.

“Can we go play a game?” She asks, looking over towards the booths and focuses one that sold hero merch.

“Don’t you want to see Present Mic, hun?” She asks, resting her hand on her daughter’s back to get her attention again. “You love listening to his show when I record them for you.”

“Yes...but he hurts my ears.” The young girl pouts, her ears drooping as her tail wraps around herself. Suddenly the look of realization dawns on her mother’s face and she quickly starts digging through her purse and pulls out her daughter’s beanie, one that was personally customized to protect her sensitive ears.

Her mother kneels down and offer the beanie to her with a apologetic smile.

“I’m so sorry, honey; I forgot.” She says, helping Yui to the hat over her ears and holds her face in her hands to rub her thumb against her daughter’s cheek. “Is that better?”

“Yes!” Yui says with a excited nod.

“Why don’t we head to that booth you were looking at and I buy you any hero plush you want to make it up to you?” Her mom says, standing back up and takes her hand. There were a lot of hero plushies but none of Mandalay but one did catch her eye, a plush of Thirteen; After her mom purchased the plush, Yui held both of her dolls in her arms and hugs them both tightly. “Need me to carry one in my purse?”

Yui nods and offers her new hero doll for her mother to hold so she can hold her hand.

When they reach the stage where Mic was doing his announcements, Yui smiles when she sees the friendly hero but wishes she were closer to see him better. With so many people around, she could barely make out the top of his head from where she was standing because she was so small.

“I can’t see.” She says to her mother and tries standing on her toes but it was no use, she was just too small to see over all these people. Her mother leads her through the crowd to try and get closer to the stage but there was just too many people.

“Let me try to lift you up.” She says, reaching down to pick her up and rest her daughter on her hip. Yui lights up when she sees Mic more clearly, watching him as he spoke and walked around the stage, hoping she gets to talk to him like she had done with Mandalay.

“Can I say hello to Present Mic?”

“I don’t know but we can try, probably after the announcements.” Her mom replies, heaving her up on her hip. “He’ll probably be doing meet and greets.”

“If you have one of these wrist bands for the meet and greet, you’ll get a free Present Mic mask.” A stranger says, looking at Yui.

“Where do they sell them?” Her mother asks in return, looking over people’s heads to see where she could purchase on for her little girl.

“Over there.” The person says, pointing at a booth not too far away. “Better hurry, they might be running out soon.”

Yui looks at her mom when she sets her down and takes her hand to lead her over to the booth, she starts digging in her purse for her wallet as Yui just stood behind her.

“Mom? Can I use the bathroom?” Yui says, tugging her mother’s shirt when she spots a bathroom.

“Okay, just be quick; I’ll be right here, okay?” Yui nods and leaves the lines to hurry over to the restroom.

When she’s gets out, notices the crowd has gotten a lot larger and could no longer see or remember where her mom was. Yui hugs her stuff cat and looks around to see if she could spot something that was familiar but all she could see was the stage where Mic was.

She wonders over towards the stage, looking around to try and find her mom but with so many people around, it was hard to see pass them.

“Mom?” She calls out, squeezing pass others and curls her tail around herself to keep from people accidentally stepping on it. “Mom!?”

It was no use, there was no way for her to hear her over the talking of others.

Yui stands in the middle of the crowd, looking back and forth for any signs of her mom.

“Are you lost?” She hears and turns to see a man stand over her. “Did you get separated from your mom?”

“...Yes...” Yui hides her face with her stuff cat. “I can’t see her in the crowd.”

“Want me to help you find her?” He asks, smiling when Yui nods her head. “I’ve been actually looking for you, your mom is my friend she told me to bring you to her.”

“Really?” The young girl cluelessly asks, feeling a bit nervous because she’s never met this man before. He nods and reaches out for her to take his hand, which she takes hesitantly; If he knows where her mom is, that a good thing.

Right?

He leads her away, walking pass the crowds and away from the stage which worries her because her mom was close by.

“Mom was close to where Present Mic is.” Yui tell him but the man doesn’t reply, walking towards the edge of the festival where the cars where parked. Yui glances with worry as they walk further and further away from the festival and looks up at the man that was with her. “I don’t think she would be over-“

“Quiet, we’re almost there.” He says, tugging her along as they approach a car. This isn’t her mom’s car, why would she be here?

“We should go back, my mom isn’t here.” She says as he opens the passenger side door.

“I’m going to take you to her.”

“My moms at the festival.” She points out again, looking back towards the bright lights crowds of people.

“Get in the car.” He tells her, little less than kindly and grabs her toy cat from her arms to throw into the front seat. “Now.”

He pulls her towards the car by her arm and makes her get in before slamming the door closed, she’s frightened. He gets in on the other side and starts the car, giving her a side glance as he pulls away from the curb.

As they drove further from the festival, tears begins to form in her eyes and she starts to cry. Her cries go ignored as he turns off into an alleyway and turns the car off before ordering her to get out.

When she doesn’t do what he asks right away, the man gets out in a huff and slams the door shut, making Yui jump in her seat.

The girl clutches her cat tightly as she watches the stranger circle around to the front of the car before the sound of something landing on the roof of the car nearly caused her to jump out of her skin. The man looks just as alarmed and she sees him take a step away from the car before someone lunges at him, knocking him to the ground.

She can’t see what’s going on but she hears the man’s cries and quickly pulls her beanie over her head to try to block everything out. Trembling in her seat, she barely hears someone approach her side of the car and lifts the beanie up to peer outside the window.

There’s a different man standing there, staring back at her before opening the door; She flinches and scoots farther into her seat as he kneels down beside the car.

“Hey...do you know this man?” He asks, she shakes her head and sees him mutter something to him before continuing. “Where were you when you met him?”

“The festival...I lost my mom and he said he would take me to her.” She tells him, tears still running down her face and reaches up wipes them away. “But he didn’t and I don’t know where I am or how to get back.”

The man lets out a loud sigh and rubs his face as he stands back up, looking towards the front of the car.

“Come on then.” He says, motioning for her to get out but when she doesn’t, he speaks again. “Do you want to go back or not?”

Yui nods before getting out the car slowly, watching him carefully as he closes the door behind her. When she tries to look at the man in front of the car, the other sets his hand on her shoulder, turns her in the opposite direction and leads her away from the car.

She looks at the man who saved her, he didn’t look like any hero she’s seen before and looked a bit scary.

“Are you a hero?” She asks softly as they leave the alleyway and the man just scoffs.

“No.” Was all he says as they walked down the sidewalk, looking around at the empty streets before grabbing her and hides in another alleyway as a car drives by.

“Why are we hiding?” Yui asks as the stranger glances out onto the streets before walking back out onto the sidewalk. She runs after him to keep up and reaches up for his hand out of habit, the action makes he turn to look down at her but he doesn’t pull his hand away. “You’re a good guy though, right?”

“No.”

“But you just saved me from that scary guy-“

“Because the heroes weren’t doing their jobs.” He says. “There were plenty of them at the festival but none of them even noticed you were being taken.”

“There were a lot of people-“

“No excuse.” He says, sounding angry. “A child was still abducted under their noses.”

“Abducted?” Yui asks, not understanding.

“Kidnapped.”

“But he said he take me to my mom.” The man just stops and turns to her, crouching down to look her in the eyes.

“Don’t believe what strangers tell you; He would have told you anything to get you to go with him without getting other’s attentions.” He tells her firmly, narrowing his eyes behind a red scarf. “Next time a strange man tries to get you to go with him, you scream and cause a scene but you do not go with them, understand?”

“...Yes.” Yui nods as he gets back up and pulls her along towards the festival. She sees police cars flashing in the distance at the festival and feels him stop, hiding behind a wall.

“Just walk forward until you see a police officer and you’ll be taken back to your mother.” He tells her, letting go of her hand.

“Are you not coming with me?”

“No.” He tells her again and motions for her to keep going so the girl gives him a final look, thanks him and runs towards the police cars, seeing heroes and officers alike beside them.

Most of all, she sees her mother speaking to one of the officers and cries out for her as she runs across the field, trying to not trip on her robes. Her cries gets their attentions and her mother runs halfway to met her, scooping the girl up into her arms and hugs her tightly.

“Yui, oh my god; Thank goodness.” Her mom presses kisses against her head and hugs her tighter as Present Mic and another man dressed in black walks up beside them, giving a little smile as the young girl as the voice hero speaks to the other man. “Where did you run off to?!”

“I couldn’t find you, mom; This man told me he’d bring me to you but he didn’t.” Yui cries into his mother’s shoulders as she rubs her back and looks towards the two heroes beside her.

“Where the man that took you now?”

“Still in the alley...I think the other man hurt him.”

“What other man?” Mic asks her.

“The scary looking man with the red scarf on his face.” This cause Mic to look at the other with a look of confused concern before pulling out his phone and lifting it to show her.

“Did he look like this?” He asks, Yui looks at the screen and sees the face of the very man who saved her.

“That’s him, he was kind of scary but he brought me back here.” She says. “And told me to scream when a stranger wants me to follow them.”

Mic says something to his friend as Yui’s mother holds her close and takes her back towards the patrol cars, rubbing her back. Yui stares at the two hero from over her shoulders, wondering why everyone was suddenly so tense.

She was back, so why were they all so upset about who brought her back? He was nice to her and saved her, that’s all that matters...right?

AO3

[universal-kitty]

.: Day 1 - F/O February :.

Reverse Self-Ship: You are your F/O’s F/O!!

I’m from a video game series akin to an odd mix of Watch_Dogs and Grand Theft Auto. Things can get a little pervy, hijacking cars is involved, stealth and adventure abound...but so is a bunch of ridiculous, silly things, like a petting minigame that triggers randomly when interacting with my cat.

There’s a single-player mode focused on my background and meeting up with past friends or exes...and is story-based, allowing you to attack and kill them, befriend them again... All sorts of stuff.

Also, the option to adopt more cats and become a crazy cat lady...in spirit.

Shit, romance people if you want! Live life!

Marcus got Wrench (Reggie) the game as a birthday gift. It was mostly a joke, because Reg REALLY thought he wouldn’t like it....and what else do best friends do but give their bffs prank gifts?

Still, Marcus bought it for him new... So Reg boots it up and gives it a chance, anyways.

......holy shit, he actually likes this WAY more than he first thought he would.

First of all, he HATES animals; every one he’s ever met seems to hate him and hurt him, so he’s turned his back on animalkind. However, throughout the game, I’m NOTHING but kind to every animal and suspicious of every person I meet.... Some of which he understands completely. There are some ASSHOLES in this game!!

Also, the way I croon to my cat and get into baby talk... It’s so damn cute to him. Really makes him feel some kinda way, which he flushes over. (Haha, wow that’s embarrassing.)

The point is, he ends up hating animals a little less and starts loving cats a LOT more.

Actually had to put down the controller and walk away from the game when doing a dancing minigame. He could barely focus on the button commands with how cute I was being while doing the dances.

Proceeds to look up people who 100% the dances just so he can save them to his phone. Watch them whenever he wants.

Later deletes them, 100%s them on his own, and THEN saves them onto his phone. Is a lot more happy with them, cause they’re HIS gameplay videos and not someone else’s.

LOVES messing around with outfits. Someone on the staff was either a big fan of cats or just...made that my most out-there personality trait (second only to the games and show in my world that are obviously knock-offs of real-world games), but he’s not complaining. Running around in cat ears and a cat tail? So damn cute.

His personal favorites are the masks I have combined with the matching jackets; it makes me feel more relatable to him...but he’s a greedy man and always eventually takes them off so he can look at my face.

Has SO MANY PICTURES on Facebook of him playing this damn game. Marcus kinda thought he was pranking at first, but now the whole squad knows Reg is a bit of an addict.

They got him the other games on Christmas and he cried. Everyone was....kinda in awe.

Josh got him a t-shirt with my character on it that reads “Bee Paw-sitive~!” on it. He wears it a LOT.

He definitely started up a collection that rivaled....basically no one else in the fandom.

HATES seeing the fandom pairings. And since you can romance anyone due to my sexuality canonly being Panromantic...it’s frustrating.

(Well, he’s Bi, so some of the people he wouldn’t mind sharing with, yeah....but he’s specifically venomous over the people he’s SURE are my friends only. Or are/were super toxic to me in my past. So, so bitter that anyone likes those ships, but holds his tongue only bc he got a figurine of me doing some cutesy pose next to his monitor. It helps him keep his head.)

Literally has a savings account reserved for merchandise. If it exists, he wants to buy it. If it doesn’t, but someone’s commissions are open? He’s gonna buy it.

Has bought art, jumped on art-trades/requests to get MORE art of us together. Has two plushies of me, as well as a body pillow. Continues to seek more things.

Is honestly upset that my size is medium (and so he can’t wear my canonly fitted clothes), BUT that doesn’t stop him from owning a single shirt in my size AND getting items that mimic my wardrobe.

He likes to imagine we can match together....or I can wear HIS version of my fave shirts when mine are dirty~!

Is still debating getting a kitten. Until that day, cat plushes are among the only other plushes he has (aside from mine).

Weird as he felt about it, he later admitted to his friends that he....kinda felt romantically towards me? And was thinking about just being fictoromantic...

Josh was the first one to see no problem with it and fast. People can be hard to work with, so... You do you. (Reg then felt bad about bullying him so much....oop.)

Horatio was also quickly on board. “Hey man, they make you happy. If it helps, it helps.”

Marcus....was a little more confused, but got in the spirit of it, regardless. “man, if I knew you would’ve actually liked it, I woulda got it for you a lot sooner!! Have fun, man.”

Sitara doesn’t quite get it, but.... It sure explains why Reg kept pestering her to tag “Purrfect Anarchy” in certain places and commissioning her for stylized art of him with them.

T-Bone....kinda harasses him about it, but the group stands by Reg. Josh is pretty upset about it, though.

He also follows every piece of news and publicly shares it, after admitting to being ficto. LOTS more pictures like, “Cutie’s got good taste.” [selfie with him sticking out his tongue and wearing one of the replica shirts] “Dinner date with bae!” [screenshot of me looking at the screen of his laptop, dinner and candlelight between us]

Everyone rolled with it more and more over time, so now it’s entirely not uncommon for them to bribe Reg to do things by dragging me into it...

Sitara: Hey, you leaving? Wrench: ...yeah, why? Sitara: Can you get me a coffee while you’re out? Wrench: Wh-? Why should I get you-? Sitara: I bet Rachel would like you doing something like that, y’know. Wrench: .....That’s cruel. You’re cruel. Sitara: I know~! You know how I like it, thank you, and Rachel loves you. Wrench: [sputters audibly and shuffles out the door, muttering to himself, embarrassed]

They don’t do a LOT of crimes anymore, but... Definitely still fuck shit up w/ cops. Reg daydreams a shitton about a masked romance and the anarchy we could commit together... After all, I helped him be braver. So he could help me, too, and then..... So much glorious chaos. Maybe makeouts in his car...

Was literally the type to not give a SHIT about marriage or kids, but now nonstop thinks about our lives together. Anarchy and domestic lifestyle shit can coexist, right? We can be married, have our cute lil’ two story (three, if you count the attic AND a basement), and some kids.....and also go create anarchy and throw bricks at cop cars and cause so much damn trouble..... Right?

He’ll even get a CAT for our home. It’ll be our first kid and not only will he be SO COOL, but they’ll name her (yes, a girl) Princess Leia and I’ll probably cry in happiness!!

Reg is DETERMINED to be the best husband/boyfriend ever. Doesn’t matter which, cause whatever speed I’d like to go at? Hell yeah, he’s down for it. Just as long as he can still hold my hand and gush over how cute I am and-

Has gushed about me and my series before and WILL do so again, prompted or not.

Actually participated in the fandom a little. Mostly does reblogs and such, but has written a few stories (self-inserts are the majority), done some not too shabby art, and prides himself on being the BIGGEST fan of the series with all the merch he has AND commissions bought.

Made a select few friends who also are fans, but... Is constantly anxious about his self-shipping. Either that they might eventually think he’s weird, send more anon hate (he’s gotten some in the past for “being a creep”), or- worst yet- also self-ship with me and he’s still dealing with that idea.

Until then, he’s got a wedding ring he bought cheap at the jewelry section of some store, so.... Coping skills, babey.

[sidhewrites]

Excerpt. Previous Installment found here, summary page found here. Approx. 2600 words. As always, feel free to send Asks or Messages about what’s written or anything you’re curious about.

She had always preferred taking lesser-known routes. Zorya was grateful to find the servant’s passageways accessed most of Clare’s estate, even if the very idea of them disgusted her. What was so terrible about seeing the people working for him, keeping him and all his attendants comfortable while other people were forced to struggle just to provide themselves with coal or firewood? Would he really be that inconvenienced by seeing someone carrying fresh linens from one floor to the next?

But at least it meant she could avoid the chance of running into him when Zorya found herself unable to sleep in the middle of the night. She shoved her boots on and stuffed Noski into his bag before slipping through the obscured doorway that led behind the walls.

Noski rarely stayed in his bag for long. He hopped out the second the door latched behind her, and stepped into his true form.

“The children’s home again?” he asked, wrapping one of his two tails around her arm.

She shook her head. “The aftermath of a battle. Remember the man who had his stomach ripped open?”

“He was half bunt up from the fire that caused the explosion.” Noski butted his head against her, mimicking the sounds of licking one’s lips. “Smelled like cooked ham.”

On some nights that made her smile. The grim, fatalistic humor of a creature that was made from death hit a certain note in Zorya. But she nodded without a grin. “It shouldn’t have made me so hungry.”

“Are you hungry now?”

She was. She wasn’t. She didn’t know. 

Zorya shrugged -- and stopped.

The sound of someone whimpering echoed down the passageway, poorly-stifled, punctuated by hissed curses in Russian. It had to be Vittorina. No-one else here spoke Russian so well, not among the women anyway.

“You think she’s remembered something, too?” Noski asked.

Zorya shook her head with a half smile that didn’t hold. “Probably how to remember what it means to be a decent human being.”

Noski chuckled and purred, rubbing up against her. “Let’s go. I like the way the cold feels here.”

Zorya nodded, making her way forward -- but stopping again just as she passed Vittorina’s door. She seemed genuinely distraught over something immediate. Not just nightmares, not just bad memories or hunger. Something was happening right now. Zorya couldn’t make her feet move any further.

“Zoryenka?” Noski turned towards her, head curved upside down, one tail swishing in curiosity. “Are we going?”

“Yes,” she said, and didn’t move.

Noski waited a moment, then righted his head. “I see.” He stepped into the shape of a cat and hopped into the bag obediently, if a bit put out.

It took another few seconds for Zorya to finally give in, scoffing at herself, and turned back to Vittorina’s door.

The whimpering hadn’t slowed on the other side, but the cursing had gotten more colorful.

WIth a sigh, Zorya knocked lightly.

Vittorina went silent.

“Vasiliyevna?”

Shuffling answered her on the other side of the wall. A thunk, and Vittorina hissed out a curse. “Is that you, Kosheka? What do you want? Where are you?”

[what’s up]

Vittorina’s hair was down, limp about her without a single strand floating about in a magical breeze. She’d been clawing her fingers through it, no doubt, and now she kept her arms crossed tightly about her, hands hidden within the folds of her housecoat. She scowled a beautiful scowl, pale eyes blazing. “What do you want?”

“I heard you crying.”

“And?”

Zorya wasn’t sure what else to say, hesitated for a moment while struggling for words. Finally, she shrugged. “I wanted to see if you were okay.”

Vittorina’s face twitched. For a second, she looked weak. Looked ready to cry again. And then her mask went back up, and she moved away, haeding to where Yaga still sat obediently on her perch. “I don’t know why,” Vittorina said. “It’s not like I needed your help before.” She pulled a hand from the robes and reached out to pet the owl before realizing --

“Your hands,” Zorya gasped.

Vittorina flinched, stuffing her hand back into the folds of her housecoat. “Are you still here?” she hissed. “Don’t you know it’s bad manners to walk into a young woman’s room in the middle of the night?”

But it was too late to pretend Zorya hadn’t seen the damage. I thought I was a windwitch for the longest time, Vittorina had said on the train. Her skin had always been pale and transparent, but her fingers were worse. The tips of them were starting to fade, like mist disappearing in the night, and the little finger on her left hand was almost entirely gone. Zorya could just see the hint of bone and blood vessels underneath, just the barest hint of tendons still holding the structure together.

Noski meowed.

Zorya ought to have left. Ought to have shrugged it off and turned away then and there, leaving Vittorina Vasiliyevna to deal with the magic rot on her own. She should have left. Wanted to, as well. 

But guilt made her stay. A protective instinct that Zorya had never learned to shake, no matter how much she’d like to, no matter how much Noski-Nezhit warned her of the trouble it would cause. Even as a child in the children’s home, Zorya was standing up to bullies twice her size, even after the revolution Moscow, where she had been all but isolated from the rest of the world simply by virtue of working at night.

 No, she couldn’t just walk away from this.

“When did this happen?”

Vittorina stiffened. “Go away.”

Zorya stepped closer, wringing her own soot-covered hands. “It wasn’t there last week. How are your toes?”

“They’re --” Vittorina hesitated, as if uncertain, and shifted her weight. “Fine.”

Zorya nodded, and stepped closer. Noski mowed again, clearly uninterested in offering any kindness or assistance, but his complaints went ignored. She didn’t know what to say, not really. Zorya wasn’t good at this -- at talking to people. At being a person herself. Words came with difficulty, and she sighed. “Your fingers started to tingle a few weeks ago, didn’t they? Like they were falling asleep?”

Vittorina said nothing. Her breathing was forcibly controlled, though she couldn’t keep from sniffling from her runny nose.

“Then your fingerprints started to look strange, right. They started to shift and warp, just enough for you to feel like something was wrong, but not enough to know what. Right?”

After a long moment, Vittorina finally nodded.

“Yeah.” Zorya nodded as well, for all the good it would do. She thought back to the firewitch she’d seen those years ago, whose hands and arms were ruined to the point that he couldn’t even make a fist. The healing witch who couldn’t walk a foot without shattering the bones in her leg, only for them to mend on the next step, a cycle of pain that offered no relief until their death. No wonder Vittorina spent so much time researching with Caron, desperate to stop her body from dissipating entirely.

No comforting words came. What could be said when they both knew what awaited anyone who used magic? She looked about uselessly, noting how little the bed seemed to have been used. How many books were piled up on the desk, with bookmarks and notes on scraps of paper strewn haphazardly besides them. Most likely hours of research, rendered useless if Vittorina had been hoping to make a breakthrough before something irreversible happened. Something like losing her fingertips.

Noski mowed again, and trotted out of the room, no doubt fed up with what he would deem as needless emotional struggle. Everyone knew about magic rot. How magic slowly overtook a witch’s body until they held themselves together with more spell than sinew.

But knowing one’s fate didn’t make it any easier to face when it finally reared its head.

With a labored sigh, Zorya nodded again. “I have vodka in my room. Good, strong stuff they don’t make on this side of Europe.”

At that, Nina turned her head -- just slightly, but she looked over all the same. “You’d give your vodka to me?”

Zorya made a face. “I’d share with you.”

Nina let out a short half-laugh, and nodded. “Fair enough.” She glanced to the door and hesitated. “But…I don’t …”

“Why are you looking at the door? I came through the wall, remember?”

Nina looked back again, brows furrowed, the slightest hint of a smile flickering at the corners of her mouth. “Let me get my shoes on.”

#

As it was, Zorya had far more than just vodka in her room. A vintage wine, whiskey, and even a few bottles of kvass sat in the decorative cabinet just besides a side table armed with multiple cups and a decanter. No doubt the last person to have resided here had been something of an entertainer of guests, but Vittorina was the first person to have joined Zorya in her room since their arrival. 

She sat awkwardly on one of the plush chairs while Zorya poured the drinks, hands tucked again in her robe, looking smaller and more out of place than she ever had before. It felt somehow wrong to Zorya, like Vittorina deserved to be here more than she did. A room like this belonged to a proper magic user, a powerful Magician chosen for their prowess and mastery, not because they just so happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Vittorina thanked her when taking the glass, but hesitated before drinking it. 

Zorya grit her teeth, well aware of the smudges she’d left on the surface of the crystal. “I didn’t poison it, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Damn. Maybe it’d be better if you did.”

“Just let me know, and I’ll see about getting you some arsenic.”

Vittorina laughed mirthlessly. After a long moment of silence, she lowered the glass and looked up. “Does it hurt? The rot, I mean.”

Zorya shook her head. She sat down on the other chair, separated from Vittorina’s by a small table, before taking a sip of her own drink and savoring the vodka’s burn on her throat. “I’m lucky. Doctors say they’ll most likely crumble into ash by the time I’m thirty, but I’ll lose all feeling in them first. My tongue, too. That’s going to be fun.”

Vittorina grimaced. She finally took a long draught, draining half the glass in one go. Zorya couldn’t help but be impressed. “I can still feel my fingertips sometimes somewhat, but…” She held out the left hand, fingers extended, for just a moment. Then, she flinched, curling them into claws and stuffing the hand back into her robe and out of sight.

Finally, she admitted, “I’m jealous of you.”

Zorya scoffed, amused.

“No, I mean it. You don’t … you don’t care. You don’t try. Nobody’s going to be upset if you’re not perfect.”

Her wry smirk faded. Zorya shrugged, contemplating the contents of her glass. Best not to tell Vittorina that there wasn’t anyone to be upset at her in the first place. “Nobody’s immune to magic rot,” she said instead, and drank.

“Doesn’t matter.” Vittorina shook her head. “If my family learned that it’s happening so soon, they’d be furious. Probably tell me that it means I’m weak.”

“Who? Your family?”

She nodded. Took another drink. “My parents.”

“Are they witches”

“No. Not in the least. I’m the only one out of the nine of us.”

“Oh.”

Vittorina nodded. “I was born fifth out of seven children. It was easy to forget me sometimes. Can’t tell you how many times I got left outside overnight or went without a bath just because someone forgot to look for me.” She shook her head, grimaced again, and finished her glass. 

Zorya leaned over without a word and filled it again.

Nina nodded her thanks, and went on. “When I started using magic, they put all their hopes on me. Suddenly I was the most important child, the only one they cared about. I could make food last us weeks instead of days, fix tears in clothes and keep the house warm. And if I messed up...well, they left me to my siblings instead.”

“Why was that so bad?”

“Are you joking? They hated me. They’re still begging for table scraps, and I’m getting coffee and a real feather pillow. If I wasn’t on guard, they’d lock me in the cellar until our parents noticed I was gone.” Vittorina sighed again. “If they knew, they’d beat me themselves for being clumsy.”

Zorya didn’t understand, reached out before remembering herself and set a hand on the arm of Vittorina’s chair. “But it isn’t your fault -- you can’t control it.”

“Can’t I?” Vittorina looked up, glassy-eyed and angry. “I can do everything else in the world. Make bread out of dust, turn tin cans into gold. Why can’t I do this, too?”

Zorya didn’t have an answer. She didn’t know how to help, or what to say. Vittorina’s parents had taken her for granted, used her as a tool, rather than cared for her as a child. And wasn’t that what all the parenting books said to avoid?

She sighed, and leaned her head back against the chair. Wordlessly, she held the bottle of vodka out for Vittorina to take.

Vittorina hesitated, brows furrowed. “Really?”

“Just take it before I change my mind.”

There was no denying the hint of a smile on her face as Vittorina took the bottle and took a hearty swig, abandoning her cup on the table between them. After a long moment of silence, Vittorina spoke again, soft but genuine. “Thank you.”

Zorya smirked. “I was wondering if you knew how to be polite.”

“Asshole.” 

“I believe the phrase is, one cannot recognise the flaws in others that one does not first possess herself.”

At that, Vittorina laughed. It was small, not too hearty, but genuine all the same. Laughter still felt too rare to Zorya, too hard to come by, and Vittorina’s smile was enchanting. More real than her usual smug grins or smirks. Her face was still red, eyes still swollen from crying, but it warmed Zorya all the same.

[something]

“What do your parents think of all this? I didn’t see them saying goodbye to you at the station.”

Zorya’s joy faded quickly. She looked down into her cup, and shook her head. “Buy me a drink first, and maybe I’ll tell you about them.”

“Is that a promise?” She winked.

“No. Maybe. We’ll see.”

“Then as I said before -- you’re an asshole.”

Zorya shrugged. “I’ve been called worse. At least you aren’t giving me a nickname, eh?”

Vittorina grinned, eyes alight with mischief. “A nickname?”

“Oh, no.”

“Oh, yes, dear Zoisha. I should be glad to count you as one of my dearest friends.” Her voice had become sickeningly sweet, and unbearably sarcastic.

“Give me my vodka back.”

“No.” Vittorina held it close, cradling it lovingly. “You gave it to me as a gift.”

“That’s when I didn’t hate you.” But she couldn’t deny her own smile, the rare humor she found in this easy bickering, insults thrown back and forth without meaning. She didn’t know it could feel so light.

“Oh, don’t be like that. I’m still sad, see?” She pulled a pout.

Zorya shook her head. “The most miserable person…” She hesitated, trying to think of a nickname in turn. “Nina,” she finished, rather lamely.

Vittorina threw her head back and laughed. 

Zorya didn’t know what to do. She blamed the vodka, making her dizzy. Making her silly. But she shook her head, and laughed as well.

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