#how this piece is such a spoiler but is composed so well it could be looked out without spoiling anything | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ofoceansandtombsanew · 1 year

Text

tags: f!reader (afab), spoilers for anime onlys

a/n: after some very popular demand, here is another makima piece (more specifically a sequel to my last fic). this is not one of those standalone sequels however, it would be best to read the prequel to best understand this one.

man is the breast, heaven is the playground (prequel)

AO3

i. ハッピーエンド

“So, how’s the married life treating you?” Himeno deviated completely from what you were initially discussing.

Perhaps ‘marriage’ wasn’t too far off from what your relationship actually was. A life-binding contract was marriage in its own right. Despite your musings, however, the truth of Makima’s identity as the Control Devil was a secret. Even if it was Himeno, you wouldn’t let that fact slip. “It’s not the married life,” you replied instead. “But yes, things are going great. Does everyone still hate me for taking away their queen?” It was quite the uproar when you both announced your departure from the Devil Hunters. Makima received more flowers than you could carry on your last day. It had been several years since then and now you were nestled in Takamatsu in Kagawa Prefecture.

You managed to find work in translation, much to the joy of your family back home. “We have to meet this girl who got you to quit,” your mother insisted, she’d hear no objections. She might have wanted you to come home to your country in general, but she was happy nonetheless you were no longer hunting devils for a living.

Himeno’s snort told you as much. “I don’t think Nanaka will ever be over it.” Himeno snickered.

“I’m glad to hear she’s still alive and kicking regardless,” you replied honestly with a chuckle of your own. Even if you had never seen eye to eye, you wished the brunette the best as Himeno mentioned setting Nanaka up on a blind date. “How’s your new partner?”

Himeno’s voice was a mixture of satisfaction and melancholy. “Aki’s great, he’s still alive after all this time. I wish he’d just settle down now. I’m hoping this new division helps with that.”

Right, Himeno mentioned something about it before. A Division composed of tamed devils and fiends, though it would be terminated should there not be any good results. “Any new additions?”

“Since last time, the Blood Fiend actually. Other than that, there’s still just the Spider Devil with the Violence and Shark Fiends.”

“Any other blessings I should know about?” What about that Angel Devil you talked about? You still keeping his discovery secret?

“None for now.” Still my best kept secret in the village I found him in.

“I see.” Good for him.

It wasn’t too long ago Himeno had sent you a coded message detailing her orders. She requested that if things about him ever came to light, you and Makima would help somehow. The redhead didn’t seem too interested in this request, but she agreed when you asked. The Angel Devil is a peaceful one, Himeno detailed in her script. He doesn’t have what it takes to kill, so I just want him to stay with the humans that brought him up. The little guy even has a girlfriend. Humans and devils living in peace might be a reality one day, I’m just not naive enough to think that’ll happen overnight. Maybe that’s what won you over now that you thought about it.

“Well,” Himeno pulled you away from your thoughts and back into your conversation. “There is a Zombie Devil I’ll be snuffing out tomorrow morning, maybe that’ll be our new member.”

You grimaced at the thought of a zombifying-devil. “Even I think that’s a terrible idea and I’m the one who decided to become a devil hunter just so I could travel.”

“You think every idea I have is terrible.” Himeno whined.

“Not every idea,” you corrected with a teasing tone. “Only most of them.” Upon turning a corner, you viewed the welcoming sight of your apartment door. “But look, I’m just getting home so I’ll talk to you later. Try not to get yourself killed tomorrow.”

“Say ‘hi’ to the missus for me.” Himeno drawled before hanging up.

Still a maelstrom. It would always be a relief to hear from the playful devil hunter in spite of that maelstrom though. You sighed in satisfaction, reaching for your keys when the door opened on its own.

The breeze must have drifted your scent under the door, you figured, as you welcomed the comforting sight of your girlfriend. “Welcome home, [First].” Makima greeted you warmly as you walked into her embrace. “How was your day at work?”

“Peaceful,” you pecked her cheek before kissing her lips. “How about you? Busy day again?” You weren’t the only one to find new work after your resignation from the Devil Hunters. Makima took to working at a small but popular café in the neighborhood, preparing tea and crafting baked goods. She told you before baking was merely an activity she took up to alleviate her boredom, but it had since become something she enjoyed. It was beneficial to your being as well as you happily indulged in testing prospective new items on the menu for her.

“The choux crème has been a really popular item, more people are coming in for it.” Makima replied, satisfied. You blanched at the emphasis of the dessert name and the hounding sound of heavy paws heading your way. Your reaction, sadly, was too slow as Makima’s many dogs came to greet you like clockwork.

“Maki- nooo!” You sputtered as Makima laughed gleefully at the onslaught of wet tongues and wagging tails. “Tell them to get down!”

Makima’s expression was teasing, “but they’re so happy to see you come home, see?”

You dodged another lick from Macaron with expertise. “You’re not funny, I hope you know this,” yet the grin on your face said otherwise as Makima finally got her pups to relax. I guess I’ll be washing up sooner than expected.

“Someone looks like she’s in a good mood today,” you noted as you massaged lotion onto your freshly washed face. Bagheera and Tora welcomed you home, brushing against your legs now that their larger canid roommates finished their turn. Makima moved about the kitchen, making tea. “Did something good happen while you were out?”

“Your mother called today,” Makima answered with a small but satisfied smile. You couldn’t hold back a small grin of your own at those words. That action alone would probably give your girlfriend enough happiness to last several days. To earnestly earn the love of your family and feel as if she were part of it herself, it meant more to Makima than she could ever express. “She wanted to practice her Japanese before she came here.”

“My mom called and she just wanted to practice her Japanese with you?” You implored in disbelief once you settled on the couch, Makima sitting between your legs as she drank a hot cup of chai.

Your girlfriend’s smile was an uncanny replica of the Mona Lisa. “She asked why you haven’t proposed yet.”

“Now that sounds like my mother.”

Makima took a long sip of her tea before saying anything else. “Maybe we should be married in the human sense as well.” She set her cup down on the coffee table. “It’s the ultimate contract for humans.”

Your expression was curious. “You like the idea of marriage?”

“The idea of weddings was something I was always drawn to.” Her golden eyes had a distant look in them, her mind far beyond your comfortable living room with your many pets. Makima never went into the specifics of her childhood, but she told you enough to get the picture. She was simply one of the best kept secrets of the government; a young devil whisked off the streets of Tokyo to become a necessary evil. Concepts such as love, family and friendship were ones she learned from film and books. “The idea of binding yourself to another person for an eternity, it’s a concept I’m fond of. I wanted a big wedding.”

“I’m not opposed to a wedding,” you smiled. Marriage hadn’t been something you thought about prior to Makima. Your contract with her practically was one, all a wedding would make Makima’s integration into your family official. “I’m not sure if we have enough people in our lives to have the wedding size you’re thinking of, though.”

“I have plenty of people at the headquarters in Tokyo that would come if I asked.” Makima’s lips curved into a smile primal in nature while amusement danced in the rings of her irises. “Nanaka would for certain, she wouldn’t want to do anything to make me sad. If she’s still alive, we could extend her a personal invitation. What do you think?” At your dry look in response, your girlfriend chuckled lightly before pressing herself against your chest. “It’s a joke, I’m joking.” You decided to take her word for it. You always wondered to what extent it would be possible for Makima’s view of those who had fallen victim to her abilities as her equal. Perhaps it was one of those questions best left unanswered. “Weddings are one of those things that feel best when those in attendance truly care about the couple. I only want those people to come to our wedding.”

There was a lot of moral ambiguity that came with dating the Control Devil. Any devil really. You wondered if you were the only person in the world to do so, but you wanted to believe in the one you fell in love with.

Makima no longer relied on the fake relationships she manufactured with her abilities since your move to Takamatsu. Not for the interpersonal parodies she made to fill the loneliness inside her. She wasn’t perfect. Her first few weeks of generating business at her café were completely reliant on absolute control’s influence to bring customers in directly and through word of mouth. You were quite sure that power was how she obtained her job in the first place.

But you’re still trying your best. “There’ll be people like that,” you cradled Makima gently as you kissed her forehead. “My family loved you before even coming over to meet you properly. More of your regulars are just normal people you just happen to talk to daily. When the time comes, lots of people will be there just because they’re your friend.”

ii. 「純愛だよ」

There would be many people that would come to the wedding for Makima’s sake, that you were sure of. Kishibe of the Devil Hunters, however, would not be one of them. This you were certain of as you recalled the day you encountered him only a month after your resignation. If not for the way he intercepted you outside of your apartment building on your way home, definitely because of his cold but calculating stare.

When the man made no move to explain what he wanted, you decided to move your piece first. Nothing about the encounter felt coincidental as you were led to a place with as few people as possible. “So what do you want?” You had seen from the ground level that Makima had opened the window and you wondered if she knew of this sudden arrival. “I’ve been busy planning a move and I want to go home, it’s my turn to cook dinner tonight.” You dangled your small bag of groceries, a few ingredients required for the dish you planned to cook.

“You can’t spare a moment to talk to an old work buddy?” In spite of his words, there was no nostalgia or yearning in his tone. Kishibe held out his box of cigarettes to which you declined before he lit a cigarette of his own. “It’s been a while after all, we haven’t talked in so long.”

“We barely talked in the first place,” you replied tersely. Besides introducing you and Makima to one another, you seldom saw the man held as one of the strongest in the Bureau. He was an enigma, a drunk enigma who still managed to do his job well. You were doubtful you’d be able to hold your own against him for long. “Hit me with that line after it’s been a few years.”

“How is Makima?” Your eyes narrowed at the sudden question. “It was quite the surprise to everyone that she resigned. I’m surprised the higher ups weren’t more insistent that she stay.”

“Cut the crap and tell me why you’re here,” you crossed your arms and you shared a knowing look. Whatever it was, you were on the same pageー both of you knew more than what you initially assumed. “What is it that you need to know so you can get out of our hair?”

“I suppose we can drop the pleasantries then,” Kishibe put out his cigarette as quickly as he lit it. “I’ve never been fond of Makima, but I could always tolerate her. Whatever inhumane deeds she committed, as long as I knew she was on humanity’s side, I could always turn the other cheek.” Tired black eyes that knew too much glanced at you piercingly. “I just find it strange that she decided to leave the Bureau to play house with a new toy.”

Your eyebrow twitched, but you held back your anger. “Because she’s the Control Devil, you mean,” you chuckled humorlessly. “Were you the one that brought her to officials? You worried that your dog got off its leash? Or is it because that dog turned on its masters?”

Infuriatingly but unsurprisingly, the man didn’t answer any of your questions. “I was worried that the Control Devil forced you into making a contract with her.”

“Makima can’t force me to do anything,” you scowled.

“Did she make you make a contract with her?” Kishibe queried.

“That’s none of your business.” After a strong silence between you both, sighed. “It’s part of our contract,” you answered begrudgingly. It would be better to cooperate lest he decide to take action due to your insubordination. “Makima can’t use her powers on me. She couldn’t force me to do anything before anyway. I’m not sure about the specifics, neither is she. We just know she hasn’t been able to order me successfully.”

“And what does she gain from a contract like that?”

“We stay together forever,” a soft voice cut through the conversation before you could answer. Makima stood behind you in an accompaniment of caws and frantic wingbeats as crows dispersed from where she stood. You sighed in relief at her appearance, at the very least Kishibe was the only devil hunter that had come to inspect the motivations of the Control Devil. “Hello, Kishibe,” a cold smile spread across her lips as she softly nuzzled the crow perched on her forearm. “had I known you were coming, I would have made tea.”

“You don’t need to keep up appearances on my account,” the older man insisted gruffly as Makima sent her corvid on its way. “You’ve been listening since we left the apartment. You left the window open.”

The redhead seemed to take a dark thrill in this moment, “yes I suppose we don’t have to keep up those things,” she agreed fluidly. “I wanted to keep a listen out for [First] so I could greet her at the door when she came home. Anyone would worry about their beloved when a strange man intercepts them.”

I do not need a fight breaking out. Makima versus Kishibe, you worried less about the physical outcome. No, you were fearful of what the long-term consequences of this fight would be. “Makima,” you stepped between the devil and the hunter. “we finished talking, let’s go home. He got the answers he was looking for.”

Makima’s smile shifted into one warmer for you, “yes, let’s go home.” You held her hand with the one not holding groceries and gave it a squeeze, Makima squeezed back.

You glanced at Kishibe over your shoulder, “you have the answers you’re looking for,” you repeated.

It’s-

iii. ごめんな

Your wet cough tore you away from your memories. It hurt, it hurt, everything hurt. It all hurt, yet you couldn’t react beyond a weak gasp as you laid on the ground, crushed under debris. Ah, this sucks.

You get off hours early from work, and a devil decides to attack. Perhaps it was muscle memory from your devil hunting days as you absently reached for a weapon that was no longer there. It had long since been confiscated after you resigned, civilians had no need for such weapons. Yet the horrifying realization that your sword was gone, was all the devil needed before gleefully thrusting its hand through your stomach. This all sucking was truly the understatement. Where were the devil hunters patrolling the area supposed to be, stopping to get lunch?

Today was supposed to be a good day, you lamented.

Your half-day at work aligned perfectly with Makima’s off-day. You were supposed to swing by and change into something comfortable, then you’d hit the town. You recalled the dress she said she would wear. It was gonna be that white sundress she got last year, she looks so good in that.

She was waiting for you.

That was what hurt you the most. Makima and the makeshift home you made for yourself. The two cats that slept anywhere that inconvenienced you and the seven dogs that welcomed you home rambunctiously everyday yet you were somehow still surprised when it happened. Makimaー

Your phone rang in the distance for the fifth time in the past six minutes.

I’m a terrible girlfriend, you berated yourself. You couldn’t crawl to it and your arms refused to move no matter how much you willed for your adrenaline to make a miracle happen. I’m sorry, you weeped quietly as your phone fell silent before the sharp trill of your ringtone started all over again. I’m so sorry.

You weren’t particularly religious, nor were you sure if there was a god that they would stop to listen to hear prayers for the sake of a devil. Still, you prayed. please let her be okay. I’m okay with dying as long as she’ll be okay. Don’t let this be what makes her lose hope in everything. I want her to be loved for the rest of her life.

Whether it was by your family that survived you, whether it was by the friends, whether it was by someone else who loved her beyond the controls of her abilities. Anything would be better than her being alone again.

Please.

The continuous trill of your cell phone accompanied you until your eyes closed, and your chest stopped heaving.

iv. 彦星と織姫の物語

At five years of age, you dreamed of a prince on a magnificent horse saving you from a life of despair.

The world was unimaginable without your parents.

And you were sure you were born for a special purpose, a belief amplified by the strong feeling something was missing in your life and you needed to find it.

At thirteen years of age, you understood how the world truly worked.

The world continued despite the loss of your parents.

There were no princes riding on magnificent horses and there wasn’t anybody who would save you from the despair-filled life you were living.

And no one was born with a special purpose in life, not even you.

One… two… three… four… You held yourself tightly, forehead pressed against your knees as you waited for the sound of rushing footsteps to fade. It was just your luck that you ran into cops that found it more than a little suspicious that a preteen was wandering around instead of at school. They were unconvinced when you told them you were homeschooled and a kick to the shin later, you were hiding in an alley. Just a little while longer, you whispered, hugging yourself tighter. There was no prince that was going to come and save you, you realized this the moment your parents died and you were left alone in the streets of Beijing to fend for yourself. You became your own prince.

That was why you stole from merchants, that was why you picked pockets of anyone gullible enough to let their guard down.

You stood up from your crouch when you were sure the police officers were gone. You’d earned enough cash that day and something for dinner to boot. It was time to go home before you got too cocky and landed yourself in trouble. You patted your pocket with the squished meat buns in them. That would be enough to get through today.

You just needed to save. You were unsure of the amount you needed to save, but once you had enough, you would be able to get out of this place. That belief reassured you more than anything, it certainly reassured you more than the dead magpie your right foot nearly touched. Ew gross! You nearly touched another in your attempt to avoid the first. The cats would be in heaven later when they found this spot you grimly thought.

You glanced to your right, wondering if this would be a decent alley to leave into the main street when you saw a girl your age sitting with her knees bunched to her chest. You couldn’t see her face from how she was hunched over, nor did you trust her. It didn’t look like she was with anyone else, though it crossed your mind that maybe she was a decoy so you could get jumped.

You glanced over your shoulder without turning, relieved no one was standing behind you. You’d seen it happen more than once, you weren’t going to be another victim. Promptly, you turned around, more than willing to pretend you never saw the girl in the first place and exit in the opposite direction when-

Growl.

No, you told yourself sharply as you paused midstep. Giving someone else your food would be a terrible idea. She can find something for herself.

That was what you told yourself; it was what you told yourself and you still begrudgingly turned around, stomping your feet all the while when there was no one to be mad at but yourself.

“Here,” you grumbled without looking at the girl, holding your misshapen haul over her. “take it before I change my mind.” When she made no move to take the buns from your hand, you dropped them in front of her. The wrapping would keep the dirt off of them. “You’re welcome,” you sighed as you finally took your leave. Your only consolation was that she wasn’t a decoy that would lead to your ass getting kicked. There goes dinner.

When you felt a gentle tug on your sleeve, instinctively you jerked away.

You glared at the girl, ready for a fight. “Hey get off of m-,” You. Your words halted as soon as you saw her wide-eyed stare and tears. There was nothing familiar about this girl, you had never seen her before in your life. There was nothing familiar about her black hair, nor the mole under her left eye. You were sure you couldn’t say you’d ever met anyone with golden eyes with red rings in them either. There was no reason to feel like your senses had been set ablaze and the universe shifted.

You didn’t know this girl.

This girl was a stranger.

You knew this and yet you still fell to your knees as warm tears flooded your eyes without your permission. Your mind had gone blank, unable to conjure a single thought and even if you could, you doubted you would be able to voice them. So you followed instinct as it screamed at you to hold this stranger in your arms, welcomed the way she threw her arms over your shoulders in return.

An indeterminable amount of time passed while you cried in the arms of a stranger before you stood up again.

As you wordlessly led her to your home, it vaguely crossed your mind how strange this was. It was strange that you held this girl’s hand while you crossed the street. It was strange that you led her into the abandoned apartment building you called home. It was even stranger that despite only meeting a few hours prior, you were laying with this girl on your tattered bed, holding each other like you were scared you’d disappear if you let go.

It was all strange, but something told you it would be even stranger had you ignored her in that alleyway. “By the way,” you yawned, as it dawned on you that you never once asked for your new companion’s name. “what’s your name?”

When there was no immediate response, you thought the girl fell asleep. “Nayuta,” you finally heard the feathery light reply. Nayuta pressed herself closely to your chest, listening to your heartbeat.

“I’m [First],” you squeezed.

Nayuta squeezed back.

v.「行かないで！行かないで！行かないで！どこにもいけないで！離れないで！あたしのそばにずっといて！」支配の悪魔が叫んだ。魂が叫んだ。

You discovered Nayuta was a devil less than a month after you started living together. She did a terrible job hiding it. Considering how airheaded she could be, though, you doubted Nayuta was truly trying to keep it a secret. Still, the truth of her nature eluded you for a few weeks as you initially accepted that perhaps these things were simple coincidences.

Her eyes were unlike anyone else’s eyes you’d ever seen. (You wondered for a while if they were special contacts, but if they were, they were beyond dried and damaged considering she never took them out.)

Animals listened to her way too easily. (There was no longer any need to fight off the crows when they got too close to your meal. A simple “go away” from your companion, and they would fly off just as she commanded.)

There was the time you bore witness to something you wouldn’t have believed had you not seen it yourself. Nayuta walked up to an older woman, held out her hand and plainly demanded, “give me all your money.” Promptly, all the yuan in the woman’s wallet was placed in Nayuta’s hand.

(“That old lady just gave you all her money?” You gawked in disbelief, eyes bulging out of their sockets. “How?!”

“I told her to give it to me,” Nayuta told you plainly, like she was telling you the sky was blue. Then she told you she wanted soup dumplings and jianbing for lunch.)

As such, it was no wonder why you found yourself thinking that she was a devil. It never crossed your mind that perhaps she had another sort of trick up her sleeve. Devil was the first thing that came to your mind and the only answer you felt was right.

“Hey, Nayuta,” you asked after much contemplation, watching as she drew a dog on the dirty hardwood floor of your home. Your belly was full from eating roujiamo and candied hawthorns, purchased with money Nayuta got from a mean teenager. “are you a devil?”

Nayuta paused her ministrations, staring at her rough sketch before she nodded, “yeah.” Her revelation wasn’t a surprise in the slightest. Gold eyes stared into yours as you thought over your next question. Were you scared of her now? No, you answered your internal pondering quickly. Being scared of Nayuta felt like an inherent rejection of what made you ‘you’. You’d never be scared of her, there was nothing intimidating about a devil who wanted a large dog so she could ride atop it like it was a horse. Instead you asked, “what kind of devil are you?”

“The Control Devil,” she answered truthfully.

“Have you ever used your powers on me?”

It was like a dam suddenly broke as Nayuta’s expression suddenly changed from blasé to fearful. “I haven’t!” When did she even get in front of you? It felt like you had only blinked once before she was standing right in front of you, grabbing your hands tightly as she shook her head frantically. “I haven’t!” She repeated desperately and you almost took a step back in bewilderment. You hadn’t seen Nayuta cry since the day you first met but you could tell these tears were different.

Her tears from your first meeting were inexplicable. A visceral reaction to whatever emotion took over the both of you that day. These tears were based on fright and distress.

“Na-,” you tried consoling the girl, but panic had overtaken her completely.

“I didn’t, [First], please believe me!” Nayuta begged hysterically, her grip on your hands somehow tighter. “Don’t leave me!”

“I believe you!” Your heart felt like it was beating a million kilometers a second, but you had to convey how you felt. Nayuta looked as if she was going to cry once more, scared but hopeful.“I believe you,” you repeated softly. “I’m not gonna leave you.”

vi. 誓いの言葉

Nayuta wasn’t much of a talker.

That wasn’t to say she was timid, nor was she diffident. It was more like she was an airhead who skipped to the beat of her own drum. She did as she pleased and she said what was on her mind as it came to her mind. That was how you often ended up spending hours of your day looking for her if she suddenly ran off to find something that piqued her interest or keen sense of smell.

This time thankfully, she’d only been drawn to the display TV in front of a store. That was leagues better than the time she’d wanted to see why two cats were fighting in an alley.

You shot the girl an incredulous look, hands on your hips. “I keep telling you not to let go of my hand when we walk, you always get lost,” you scolded, more concerned than annoyed. The last thing you wanted was for Nayuta to run into devil hunters while you were separated. It was your worst fear that she would be taken from you and killed. Despite your worries, however, it didn’t always prevent instances when something would catch Nayuta’s eye and she’d let go of your hand in favor of checking out.

“[First],” Nayuta pointed at the television, completely ignoring your worry. “[First], I want one of these.”

You pursed your lips in annoyance knowing Nayuta had moved well beyond the matter at hand. At the excited look in her ringed eyes, however, you felt your annoyance fading faster than you’d like. “You want what?” You looked at the TV, wondering what grabbed her attention so much. It was a wedding, you realized after a few seconds. The wedding was western style, the bride donning a beautiful white dress. “Do you want the dress?” There was absolutely no way you’d be able to finesse a wedding dress no matter how hard you tried.

“I want the wedding.” That made you look at her even more wide-eyed than before.

“We can’t afford something like that!” You held up your hand before she could make her ridiculous suggestion. “And they won’t let two kids get married anyway, we’d have to wait until…” you honestly weren’t sure, now that you thought about it. You shook your head and Nayuta’s brow furrowed with a disgruntled pout, “anyways, we can’t have a wedding like that, it costs too much money.” When Nayuta didn’t reply, you poked her cheek. “You okay?”

Nayuta’s following grunt was neither in agreement or disagreement. When she didn’t object to you holding her hand, you held back a snort of amusement as you led the way home. It became apparent later on, when Nayuta approached you with your off-white bed sheet, however, that she had not gotten over the topic of weddings.

“It’s my veil,” Nayuta said as much when you asked why she was wearing your sheet. “I want the wedding now.”

“If you don’t put the sheet back on the bed, it’s the only one we have!” Laughter slipped through your words at the ridiculous display. But she’s still really cute. A total dork, but cute. Your hands moved to adjust her ‘veil’ more evenly on her head. You wanted to marry Nayuta when you grew up; when you had your house and weren’t living off scraps. Then her veil wouldn’t be the dirty sheet you laid on and she could wear the princess-style gown that you saw in the movie, not the dirty clothes you wore everyday. That was a long day away, you knew. It was hard enough imagining that you’d ever be somewhere better than this. “Okay,” you said warmly. “let’s have a wedding.”

Nayuta beamed, holding her head high, before she noticed the sheet slipping. You couldn’t hold back another snicker at that, “we have to say the vows first,” you instructed. “It’s where we promise each other the things we’ll do for each other once we’re married.” Your mother was fond of movies where weddings were the center of the plot, but you couldn’t recall any of the vows expressed in them. “I promise…” you began, pondering what you would say. I promise that first, I’ll get you a big house. One that has lots of dogs, well, as long as they’re cats too. We’ll have food from all over the world because we’ll have some fancy butler make it for us, and when we feel like it, we’ll go to any amusement park we want. And I’ll protect you from any devil hunter we come across.”

“I promise that I’ll be with you forever,” Nayuta followed seamlessly in your exchanging of vows. “I won’t use my powers on you. I won’t let go of your hand when we go out, because you get upset when I get lost. And I promise I’ll protect you too.”

You grinned, content. “Now we have to kiss too.” It was a quick kiss, a simple peck on the lips before you rested your forehead on hers. “And I now pronounce us wife and wife.” The imaginary audience applauded, welcoming your union in open arms.

“The people in the movie were dancing too afterwards,” Nayuta chirped after a moment.

“That’s because we’re supposed to have our first dance as a married couple afterwards,” you replied. The sheet, unfortunately, could not keep up with your dancing even if it was a slow waltz to an unknown melody you made on the spot.

“I want a real wedding this time.”

I do too. “We can get married for real when we grow up,” you vowed once more as you clumsily led each other in your dance.

Nayuta’s smile was saccharin, “promise?”

“Promise,” you repeated joyously. “it’ll be in a fancy hall with lots of people.” Not that either of you knew enough people to have even a small number of guests at your wedding. But that could change by the time you are grownups.

vii. 旧友

The day the devil hunters came was a blur.

You weren’t sure what it was that led to their discovery of Nayuta. You could only guess in the future that it was because of the trail of people who complained that their money had been stolen and they couldn’t remember how. At the time, guessing wasn’t going to get you out of the situation you landed yourselves in.

They didn’t buy your usual excuses.

There wasn’t anywhere to run in the corner they expertly trapped you in as you ran away, believing you had been making progress in losing the one following you.

You held your arms out between, knowing full well you were a flimsy shield to someone trained to kill devils.

Nayuta fingers dug into the back of your shirt, body tense. Her abilities required she believe one was lesser than her for her to order them, that was impossible when you were both scared out of your wits cornered with nowhere to go.

The woman kept an eye on you both, weapon drawn in one hand, phone in the other. “I found the C-” were the only words she managed to get out when she suddenly collapsed, revealing the scarred old man behind her. You learned later he called himself Kishibe.

You weren’t sure if you should have felt relieved when you saw the old man, suited up as any other devil hunter would be. You didn’t like him, that much you had decided in your silent stare down.

He released a raspy sigh, humming thoughtfully as he crushed the unconscious woman’s phone. “I came here expecting to only find one of you,” the man scratched the side of his head sluggishly. He eyed you carefully with a sense of recognition you couldn’t quite place before his eyes drifted to Nayuta beside you. “The Control Devil really is a selfish one.”

viii. マキマとナユタ

“You’re starting to look like me, Himeno.” It had been years since he’d last seen the woman and she seemed tired beyond her years. If Life played favorites, it was more than apparent Himeno was not one of that group. Aki died, succumbing to his final two years to live. The Chainsaw kid took off before then in the aftermath of the brief but chaotic attack of the Bomb Devil. Perhaps she’d been driven mad, perhaps she craved being the country mouse of Aesop’s fable. It was all the woman could do to run off with sister and the Blood Fiend, nestled in the quiet coastal town of Shonai in Yamagata Prefecture.

“It’s rude to point out a lady’s age, sir.” Himeno accepted the cigarette regardless. A large portion of her bangs were white and gray, her eye showing signs of crow’s feet. “What are you doing in little ole Shonai?” Smoke wafted from her mouth with a soft exhale.

“I started my own delivery service,” Kishibe gestured his cigarette to his car. “and you’re my first and only customer.”

Himeno’s smile was amused, but her one visible eye was anything but. “Funny, I don’t recall me or my sister ordering anything.”

“Consider this your lucky day then, it’s the delivery of a lifetime.” Kishibe didn’t miss a beat. “It’s a two-for-one deal.”

“I’ve had enough once-in-a-lifetime deals.” Himeno crushed her cigarette on the bottom of her foot before flicking it to the wayside. With more than a hint of finality, she waved and walked in the opposite direction of his vehicle. “Whatever it is, you should keep it to-”

“It’s the new Control Devil.” Those words made Himeno stop in her tracks. “They discovered her in China, but I managed to nick her.” Just in time to thwart disaster. Makima had been a ticking time bomb that had been staved off successfully when ー appeared in her life. That timer began once again when ー was killed in an attack by the Rat Devil. If the Chinese government had disposed of your current incarnation in front of the new Control Devil, Kishibe knew that there would have been no preventing the hell that would be unleashed upon the world.

Still, it would be best for the two of you to be protected til you could properly fend for yourselves.

Himeno’s shoulder shook for a few moments, it wasn’t hard to imagine the thoughts going through her head. I can keep on walking, she possibly thought. I can pretend I didn’t hear anything. Yet human nature got the better of her, Himeno sighing shakily, “why’d you bring her to me?”

“I’m not fit to raise children and out of all my old contacts, you’re the one I trust the most to do a good job handling her.” Kishibe answered truthfully. Not even Quanxi could be relied on for such a task. As much as he trusted his unrequited love, he knew the woman would have less of an interest in raising children than she did his old advances.

“What’s the second part of the deal?”

“Take a look in the car.”

Warily, the former devil hunter turned around, taking slow steps towards the car and leaned close to the window.

Himeno said nothing for a while as Kishibe watched her back, knowing that she was likely experiencing a strong wave of emotion. Everything likely clicked the moment she saw you. The same skin tone, the same hair texture, everything exactly the same as she remembered. “ー always knew about Makima, didn’t she.” Despite her phrasing, it was not a question. It was a soft, emotional observation.

“This new one shouldn’t have any of Makima’s old memories, but it seems this is one attachment she can’t shake.” Perhaps this was part of their contract. Leave it to Makima to make the implausible possible. The life of a devil may have been cyclical in nature, but reincarnation among humans was unproven. Yet here you were in all your similarities to ー. Kishibe didn’t ponder what this meant for humanity. If this meant his old buddies were somewhere walking around earth as new beings. Perhaps you were simply an exception, a product of the contract ー made with Makima. Makima did say you’d stay together forever.

Kishibe doubted he would ever receive an answer. All he was certain was that if you were the one thing keeping the Control Devil from wreaking havoc on the world, you were a necessary piece of the puzzle.

“This one isn’t ー either, she’s [First]. She doesn’t have any memories from before.” Kishibe warned, lightly tapping Himeno’s shoulder. He didn’t need the woman to get any false hopes. ー was dead, there was no doubt about it. The age separating Himeno and yourself was succinct proof. You weren’t the friend she lost more than a decade prior. “If you really can’t handle it, I’ll figure things out.”

Himeno’s one blue eye shone with more fire he’d seen since the last time he’d seen her. “I’m glad you feel that way,” the man tipped his proverbial hat to her. “I’ll be back when they’re old enough for defense training.”

“Hey, Gramps, where are we?” You demanded once you had woken up, rubbing your eyes tiredly. He might have saved your life, but he had kept you in the dark long enough.

Nayuta ungraciously yawned,“I have to pee.”

The wizened man took a hard look at the pack of cigarettes in his hand before shoving it in his pocket, sighing heavily. “We’re in Shonai over in Japan.” At last, he introduced the woman next to him. “This is Himeno, she’ll be taking care of you both from now on.”

You shared a look with Nayuta, wondering if this place would really be the best for you. It beats living where we were though, you were forced to admit. A part of you would miss the room you and Nayuta called home for the longest time, where you had your wedding and where you drew on the floor when you got bored. But you planned to leave that building someday, hoping you’d be leading a better life by then. ‘Someday’ simply came faster than you expected.

Thanks, old man, you doubted you would see much of him again though as you saw his car become smaller and smaller in the distance.

“Do either of you like cartoons?” Himeno asked when it was just the three of you. “What do you like watching?” When neither of you could come up with a response, Himeno cheerily made the decision for you. “We have the complete Ashita no Nadja set at home, we can watch that when we get there. But since we’re celebrating your arrival, you have to pick dinner.”

Nayuta wasted no time in answering that question, “I want pancakes.”

You rolled your eyes, bemused. “What if I want burgers though?”

Nayuta looked at you carefully, as if she hadn’t considered the possibility. “We want burgers and pancakes,” she told Himeno a second later.

“Burgers and pancakes,” Himeno said more to herself than anyone else. “Alright, I can work with that.”

translation notes:

i. happy end ii. it’s pure love iii. sorry iv. the story of hikoboshi and orihime v. “don’t go, don’t go, don’t go! don’t go anywhere! don’t go away! stay with me forever!” the control devil shouted. her soul shouted. vi. word of oath vii. old friend viii. makima and nayuta

#look she's writing #csm x reader #chainsaw man x reader #makima x reader #nayuta

541 notes · View notes

jasmyluv · 1 year

Text

runaway, baby

cyno, kazuha, scaramouche x gn!fugitive!reader | wc: 1483 | reader as a fugitive :)

~ fugitive ; a person who has escaped from a place or is in hiding, especially to avoid arrest or persecution.

~ in cyno's, it happens before the 3.2 archon quest

~ in kazuha's, it happens before the vision hunt decree is stopped

~ in scaramouche's, 3.1 archon quest spoilers (kind of), killing, betrayal, and abandonment is metioned. use of his real name.

cyno ♡

much like tighnari, you were a forest ranger, serving the avidya forest with collei, tighnari, and all of the other forest rangers. you were in the same ranks as tighnari, so people are always coming to you for aid and advice. unlike tighnari, you were but a normal person, you didn’t study at the akademiya, but you did, however, have a vision. a pyro vision.

you’ve found out about them tracking you down, so you try to flee from gandharva ville, fighting down every guard and fungi you see with your sword.

it wasn’t long before you got caught and were sent to the akademiya.

most, if not all, know about your intimate relationship with the general mahamatra of the akademiya, cyno. so it was quite a surprise when you helped tighnari with the training courses of trainee forest rangers, considering it was considered as "dissemination of information" by the akademiya. cyno, being the former general of the akademiya, still had a burning passion for justice, so he would beat up and lock up anyone he finds unjustified.

once the akademiya knew about your courses without their permission or supervision, they only wanted to lock you up because tighnari is a well-known figure in the akademiya and they wanted to get him to work for them, he said no, if that wasn’t already obvious. so, the best they could do was put you in confinement instead. when cyno heard of this, the first thought in his mind was, “how the fuck did you get in confinement?”

cyno sees you as an angel of sorts. you’re kind to everyone to see, always willing to lend a hand. so, to say he’s shocked is an understatement. once he’s heard of it, he rushes to the confinement. he’s reached the akademiya, going over to the room where you’re locked up, supposedly until the grand sage steps out of his position. damn, they didn’t even give you food.

when he’s finally in the room, he finds you, sleeping? on a branch? were you so apathetic you decided to sleep in an almost abandoned part of the akademiya, most especially high up on a piece of bark? sometimes, cyno couldn’t understand you, and this was one of those times.

“[name]...?” he called out your name. to his surprise, you didn’t respond.

“[name]...” he says louder. this time, he heard rustling of leaves from high up. he looks over to see you sleep peacefully on a big bark, he must say, he’s impressed you managed to sleep on an uncomfortable surface.

“hmm… hm? oh, hi, cyno.” you lazily wave while yawning, still very tired.

“why are you here?” he asks straightforwardly. geez, if he could kill people with just his aura alone, play criminal by britney spears. (this was so random lmao)

“i was helping tighnari with training courses for trainee forest rangers, we got caught by some guards and since they wanted tighnari to be part of their operation, they only locked me up. so, it’s just me, myself, and i.” you say composed, as if you’re not locked up. maybe your mind hasn’t processed it yet.

“ah, so it’s tighnari’s fault.” you were flabbergasted.

“what!? no! i offered to help, he’s got nothing to do with this!!” contrary to popular belief, you and tighnari had a close relationship, almost as if you were siblings. so when your lover accuses him of putting you into confinement, you immediately defend him.

“well, ok then. come on, i’ll just bail you out.” you jumped down and hugged him, shocking the general in the process. he freezes on the spot, not knowing what to do.

“what was that for?” he says in a hushed tone, too embarrassed to say anything else.

“hm~, can’t i just hug my lover?” you smile so innocently as if you didn’t plan on flustering him.

also, after bailing you out, cyno scolds you and tighnari because who in their idiotic mind would risk themselves for others?

“lummoxes, that’s who.” you sigh, you and tighnari can’t really get a break, can you?

kaedehara kazuha ♡

to see a fugitive from inazuma is a rare sight to see, especially in liyue. when he first met you, you reminded him of himself.

longing the feeling to be free, to be free of the past and his mistakes.

“kaedehara…?” you recognize him from wanted posters around the city. well, there’s one thing you have in common, your faces are on the streets of inazuma city, your bounty getting higher and higher as each month comes.

“oh? how do you know me?” he asks with genuine curiosity.

“your wanted posters are all over the city, it would be surprising if i didn’t know you.” you explain calmly.

“ah, alright. say, do you know captain beidou by any chance?” he asks, expecting your answer to be-

“yes, i do. she’s the one who helped me escape the tri-commission’s reach.” oh, now that was unexpected. why didn’t he know you? “ i still haven’t gotten the chance to thank her personally. a shame, really.” you continue.

you glance at him, only to find kazuha staring at you.

“...did i say something i shouldn’t have…?” you have to admit, you felt like you’d just done a heinous crime because he’s staring so deep into your soul.

“no, it’s nothing. it came as a surprise to me that you know her.” he chuckles, closing his eyes and smiling until you could see his dimples.

“i forgot to ask, what’s your name?” he asks. hm, you forgot to tell him your name.

“[name].”

“you have a lovely name.” he compliments you, quickly growing flustered as your face blooms a cherry red.

after a few moments in comfortable silence, you ask him, “kazuha?”

“yes?”

“has anyone ever told you how cute you look when you laugh?” he’s left speechless while you avoid his gaze, leaning on the railing of the bridge on the harbour.

“uhm- no. no one has ever told me that, [name].” he manages to spurt out.

“well, i’m glad to be the first one to do so.”

you both continue talking until the sun is long gone and moon, along with the many stars of teyvat’s sky is visible.

“ah, so you’ve already met each other?”

“good evening, captain beidou.” you wave to her, giving her a tired smile.

“hm, i thought i was going to be your cupid, but i guess fate beat me to it.” she laughs.

…cupid?

scaramouche ♡

scaramouche hates people with all his being. it was painfully obvious because of the way he wouldn’t hesitate to kill off an eremite or a treasure hoarder.

he was three betrayals too late to realize that people can’t be trusted. or, he couldn’t trust them. it was the same case for you, it took quite a while for him to finally accept that you will always be there to love him when no one else could. be with him when no one else would. he didn’t want to lose you, you were precious to him.

“stop, [name]. where are you going?” he asks in a sullen tone. one he would use on a fatui agent if it weren’t for him leaving the organization.

“away.”

what. were you going to leave him? did you finally have enough of his inadequate attitude and just step out of his life? he knew it. he knew you were just like the others. how could some lowly person like you make him believe that you would stay? how could-

“come on, we need to get moving before they catch me and put me in that disgusting jail cell.” you say, quickly collecting all essentials you needed to survive.

“huh? where are you going?” he asks yet another question, this time with a tone that made you think of him saying “don’t leave me”.

“where we are going is not important as of now. let’s just say i might have angered her excellency. they want me decapitated, haha.” you awkwardly laugh as scaramouche stares in horror. how in the world did you anger his mother, especially with the vision hunt decree gone?

“...we?” he questions.

“yes, we. unless you don’t want to leave. it’s fine if you don’t, i’ll just leave by mysel- woah!” before you could even finish your sentence, scaramouche pulled you into an embrace.

“please, don’t leave me like all the others.” his voice, barely a whisper.

“of course, i won’t, kuni. know that i’ll always be here for you.” you returned the hug, knowing how much he needed it.

“then, why’d you say that?” he says, his eyes brimming with tears.

“well, i didn’t know if you wanted to go or not. i’d love to go every part of teyvat with you, kuni.”

in this moment, he wasn’t scaramouche or the wanderer. he was kunikuzushi, a boy who just wants to be loved. he didn’t care where the both of you would go, he just wanted to be with you.

753 notes · View notes

tachibubu · 2 years

Text

Never Good Enough (2/3)

∆ PAIRING ; Yandere!Aemond Targaryen x Velaryon!Reader/OC/Self-Insert x Slight!Jacaerys Velaryon

∆ SUMMARY ; Your wedding with your betrothed Jacaerys is nearing, while your secret pursuiter is growing ever more eager. Entering Kingslanding once again to prepare for your wedding and the succession of Driftmark, a supposedly family gathering became something much more than mingling.

∆ WARNINGS ; Incest obvs, spoilers of Episode 8, a bit actions of sexual sht? But did not continue, s3xu4l h4rassment, possessive sht obvs, no comfort, stalking, enemies to enemies, dont even fuckin do this in real life, just fuckin torture. Also OOC except for Jace cause I truly believe hes perfect i want to marry him. Also sorry Ewan if you're reading this.

PREVIOUS | NEXT

CAN BE READ AS ONE SHOT

It was a beautiful day. To clear your head before starting on your lesson plan and schedule for the day, you made the decision to compose an essay about the history of the current time. A letter from someone you knew too well was brought out by your sworn handmaiden after she had collected your daily mail.

To put it mildly, your daily life was comfortable, and you actually loved it that way. You spent the week studying with the maesters and (as proposed by your stepmother Rhaenyra, which you eagerly accepted) tutoring your brother-in-law Lucerys about economics, while on the weekends you became closer to your betrothed Jacaerys.

Lucerys and you had a lovely connection. Rhaenyra didn't trust the Maesters enough when he didn't enthusiastically express what he had learned, so you were his teacher for the remainder of your time as a fiancée. His ears perked up, and he nodded keenly to his mother when you said you could assist.

Rhaena joined the class while you were educating Lucerys in order to support her fiancé, but after she saw how much she loved it, she began coming back frequently to take lessons from you. Baela would visit your small class when she crossed paths between you three, and you would gladly accept her insights on the topics.

Although you were disappointed in what happened to your one-eyed first crush, Jacaerys made up for it by showing up earlier than expected on your dates with multiple gifts and going on numerous dragon-riding escapades with his dragon throughout Driftmark. You’d admit it, you had fallen quite in love with the prince.

So you’d admit your shock when someone else hadn't moved on.

You asked the maid, "Who is it from?" without batting an eye, fearing that the note's sender and contents were the same person who had been constantly sending you letters ever since you left Kingslanding.

Your handmaiden Olea was hesitant to respond to your inquiry. Before responding, "It's from Prince Aemond Targaryen, my lady," she chewed her lower lip.

You extended your hand as Olea placed the letter on it, and a sigh escaped your mouth. You scrunched your nose at the contents in disgust.

The letter stated, 'My beloved (Y/N), after several letters of my pursuing, you have yet to respond to any of my proceedings. I have received the news of the bethrotal of my dear nephew—I forgot his name, but I am sure you know it all too well. Was I divulging the news incorrectly? Was my hearing giving up on me as I was unable to comprehend the news easily? What I mean by this is that you are to be bethroted to my nephew. Is this genuine? I refuse to acknowledge it. You may be aware that rumors spread too quickly. My family, who are obviously too trusting these days, believed it immediately too. I also took note of the fact that your family will be coming within the next few weeks. I have to admit that I couldn't hold back my excitement. Earlier today, a servant told me that she had seen that I had been smiling while deep in thought. I made sure she wouldn't tell anyone the embarrassing news. I hope you experience today's enthusiasm in the same way that I do. See you soon, my dear bird. Signed, Aemond Targaryen.’

Yes, you tore that piece of paper.

Olea attempted to adhere the pieces of the letter together out of panic at your unexpected behavior, but you reprimanded her and instructed her to stop.

After a couple of nights, your family finished dining, and you made the decision to unwind by taking a stroll in the garden. The time until you leave for Kingslanding is rapidly approaching. You'll admit that you're a little nervous about going there, but tradition dictates that you should go there even if you are not specifically looking to meet someone there.

Truth be told, you were aware that Aemond would never forget you. You informed Jacaerys about the spies who had been dispatched to observe your everyday activities, and he took care of it. You were also aware of the several letters Aemond had sent to you that had gone unanswered, ranging from once a month to now every five days after the news of your betrothal. You wish to never come across his romantic delusions once again as they are both devastating and disturbing.

Perhaps it was God's gift, but Jacaerys seemed to have discovered you in the wide-open flower field. He accompanied you on your leisurely stroll as you shared your worries about the impending occasion. He made you a promise that he would always look out for you and do everything in his power to keep you safe as your husband. He then gave you a kiss on the forehead, and you two returned hand in hand back to your private quarters.

The time has come, and you and your step-sisters have arrived in a separate carriage. You didn't like the bumpy ride, so you nearly puked while Rhaena comforted you and Baela made fun of you.

You noticed that no one greeted your family and you when they announced your family's entering the castle. No green can be pin-pointed. Even though Aemond wasn't there to welcome you, you scowled at the lack of respect they displayed in public.

The elders stepped aside so that the younger ones could explore the castle. While Jacaerys and Lucerys extended their hands for you to join them, you declined and said that you'd prefer to be alone for the time being. Baela and Rhaena then took the children and introduced them to the new environment.

Your legs carry you to the library, where you run into Helaena Targaryen, your favorite from the Hightower family.

Before you and Aemond met, you were close friends with his sister. You were both interested in different types of literature; she was more interested in entomology, the study of insects, while you were more interested in botany and floriculture. It was due to her that you and Aemond were linked as playmates back then, because he was worried that somebody would harm his sister because of her unique interests and cryptic wording.

Helaena threw her arms around you and burst into sobs and giggles, "Thank the sevens, I have missed you so much, my dear friend!" You returned the embrace.

"I have missed you so much (Y/N), I was so alone, no one ever dared to talk to me normally."

"So am I, my lady."

She brought you to the tea table while beaming. The plump girl offered you some of her remaining dried apple pieces and poured you a cup of nettle tea.

You couldn't help but laugh as she clasped her hands together and said, "There are so many things I wish to tell you!" as you sipped the pleasant beverage.

"And what is it, my lady, you wish to say so eagerly?" you questioned.

She murmured softly as you cocked your head, "Blood would be on your lips, and you'd come in the light of a brute." You've been hearing that message since you were a youngling. You didn't comment because you knew Heleana's communication style was extremely peculiar.

"Oh, that is indeed great, my princess," you said rather nonchalantly, stirring the tea and adding additional sugar to it, not wanting to hurt the poor girl's heart if you told her to stop repeating the same words all over again.

"Don’t mention it," she smiled solemnly, before both of you continued your talk.

After quite some time, you two began to leave the nest at the library and continued to go towards the training grounds, where you knew the two Targaryen princes would be. Heleana wanted to meet them once again and learn more about the relationship between both of you and your betrothed, so you agreed gingerly.

You were unaware that the other prince was present alongside them too.

You smiled at your fiancé and enthusiastically called out, "Jace!" You and Helaena were linking arms, laughing girlishly as you both peered at the confused brown-haired man in the middle of the crowd.

"My dear wife!" Jacaerys unintentionally made a quip and Lucerys playfully hit his sibling for the unexpected nickname. Jacaerys smiled princely as he acknowledged Helaena's presence, "My princess."

"You flatter me with your words, my Lord," you replied with a knowing grin as both of you halted your steps in front of the two princes.

"My beautiful, dear sister and niece." An all-too familiar voice boomed.

Your breath hitched before you sharply inhaled and slowly gazed at where the voice came from. The figure from your dreams, Aemond fucking Targaryen, was standing there. The searing gaze he had centered on you made you tremble, but you swiftly collected yourself. With a slight mouth twitch, he made a note of it.

"It's been so long, my prince," you bowed, taking your gaze away from the person you were speaking to.

He left Ser Criston Cole's side and strutted in your direction while throwing the blade to the dirt, "Ah yes, you have grown wonderfully, my lady."

Jacaerys left his position next to his younger sibling and moved to your side, weaving his hands through yours before the man could even get close to you. The Targaryen prince gazed at the conjoined hand with his one remaining good eye before sneering.

Jacaerys responded to Aemond's comment instead with a mocking smile, "I thank the Gods for delivering her to me. Certainly, my beloved wife has grown up to be a stunning beauty."

"And so I have heard that beauties are easily swayed too," Rather than considering the strong brown-haired male existence, Aemond returned his gaze to you, hinting at your actions with a smirk, "I would take note of that if I were you, nephew."

When Jacaerys started to march forward, you restrained him by seizing his outstretched hand. When you did so, the male's stare softened toward you, and he steadied himself before asking, more like demanding in his case, "And what does that mean?"

Jacaerys was the target of Aemond's mocking gaze, which then turned back to the clasped hands between you two. There was a pregnant pause. The white-haired man appeared to be gathering his thoughts before speaking. After a brief pause, he jeered, "It's merely a fable, my beloved nephew."

"Don't take it as truth," he emphasized, "but rather as a counsel from your dear uncle."

You didn't see Aemond prior to the disturbance, save from the feast and what occurred to your great-uncle Vaemond. You were shocked by what transpired. Although you never developed a tight relationship with the man, he was generally polite and friendly to you when you visited Driftmark. Yes, you were worried about the Driftmark succession because it would damage your husband's and his family's reputation, but you were also aware that someone was keeping an eye on your every thought and move while the succession happened. Aemond's mere stare disturbs your brain from focusing on what is happening.

The tall man only responded with an amused raised eyebrow when he recognized that you were monitoring eyes placed on him. The corners of his lips began to rise.

You did not miss Aemond's smirk when the infamous bastard remark was made, which was spoken by your uncle Vaemond. Not only did Aemond disrespect your future spouse, but he also knew you were a bastard, which did not leave you with a positive impression.

Soon after your grandfather's passing at the hands of your father, the succession was reconfirmed, and soon after that, a feast was held. Olea, your handmaiden, led you to the dressing table in your chamber. She starts to polish up your makeup and style your hair until you are content.

"I can't help but notice, my lady, if you wish me to say it," Olea started, while you were calmly entertained by how her fingers moved so delicately and beautifully.

"Go on."

"Is the man who has been stalking you for a while, my lady, the one with the one missing eye?"

You would have immediately spit out the tea if you were drinking tea right now, but you choked on your own spit instead. Barely looking back, you scowled at your handmaiden, who gave you a guilty look, "He would chop off your tongue if he heard you say that, Olea."

She gasped, terrified at the idea, "Oh, I'm, I'm deeply sorry, my lady!"

"Do not worry," you said, gathering yourself so your maid could continue braiding your hair. There was an expectant delay before you finally murmured, "But yeah, that is him," with your eyes closed.

She suddenly returned to her bouncy self, who knew no bounds, commenting, "Now that I get to see him clearly, he is very attractive, isn't he?"

You chuckled and complimented her confidence, stressing, "You joke too much. You'd be grateful for how much I let you off the hook rather than torture you for your babbly mouth."

"But I'm not, my lady," she chuckled as she pinned your hair and then threaded it with a ribbon. She continued to babble in her fantasies, "I do admit, if I were in your position and Prince Jacaerys hadn't first shown me favor, I probably would have been persuaded by Prince Aemond, with his angular features and great stature."

You gave her arm a lighthearted slap, surprised by her candor, "Olea!"

"Was I wrong, my lady?" She inquired as she steadied your shoulders and drew close to you while you peered at one another in the mirror. "Prince Jacaerys is definitely quite masculine, but you can't pretend that Prince Aemond isn't as well."

"I would have you exiled if I were a different lady," you sighed and looked back at what had unfolded before. Jacaerys and Aegon, who used to tower above the once-young prince, are now shorter than him. You noted that his neck had acquired veins as he aged and that his calves were protruding depending on what he was wearing for the day. As soon as you imagined his attractive form beneath the bulky clothing he was wearing, you nearly smacked yourself for having such naughty ideas.

"But..." you waited before answering. "Yes, he grew up to be quite charming if it weren't for his personality."

When Olea flung open the door, Aemond appeared in front of you as if he waited for you for so long.

He said, rolling his tongue, "I must say, I am rather charmed to see you, my dearest (Y/N)." You silently berated yourself for sharing your private thoughts in the enemy's territory, but you straightened yourself and did not fall for his transparent claim of 'I have eavesdropped'.

You muttered honestly, your eyes honeyed, feigning innocence, "Aemond, I do not recall you supposedly helping me for the remainder of the day," then added something he'd be annoyed to hear. "Where is my husband?"

"Fiance," he corrected too quickly, thus it was succesful. "You are too eager, my dear. Let time pass naturally."

"And what is the difference? Referring to the title, a little early wouldn't conflict with anything," you hurriedly spoke, almost passing him when he took a step back and created some distance between you two. Before leaning in on you, he glanced across at your maid as Olea hurried off and whispered an apology.

With a deep voice that was distinct from before, he cooed, "If you want something to last, then don't go too fast. Some advice I received from my maester."

You cocked a brow at him, holding your pose, your head high, "Lovely, it seems you are quite fond of your maester's counsels, but that doesn't answer my question," you made a point of saying. How could he insult your marriage and its strength? You gave out a 'tsk' before you asked, "Why are you here?"

His face perked at your question. "I am here to assist you to dinner."

"That is what my husband is supposed to be doing. Until then, I'll wait here."

"My father, King Viserys, desired it," he concluded, his voice heavy and set to foot, the final response you could get from him. "It's in the goal of re-igniting friendship," he said, with a blank expression on his face.

You almost laughed at his face, "ah yes, how it reignited indeed."

"Do not be concerned, my dear niece," he said again in a suggestive tone, but this time his eyes were in a different expression. It almost seems as if you were both looking at the same person when you were younger and there wasn't any prejudice towards either side. "I'll treat you well," he said, holding out his arm.

After giving him a long, curious look, you reluctantly held his arm in yours as you two continued.

"Prince Aemond Targaryen, second son of King Viserys and Lady (Y/N) of House Velaryon." The knight announced it, as the door opened to the feast.

You would flee right now if you could, but as soon as you notice the joy in King Viserys' eyes, your brain immediately switches off. As your family and other members of the private audience watched you and Aemond arrive together, you could feel the uneasiness. How risqué this would have been in public.

Though you were concerned about how Jacaerys would react, you cast your gaze over him. You anticipated him being livid at your appearance with the enemy. You didn't anticipate that he would give you a sorrowful, knowing look.

If it weren't for Aemond's mother, Queen Alicent, gesturing you towards the seat next to Jacaerys, Aemond would have almost led you towards an empty seat next to him. Once seated, you whispered to your fiancé, "I am sorry."

He stroked your hand and held it while saying, "No need to, my lady," gazing lovingly into your eyes and concluded, "I trust you."

You continued, worried, "He told me the King asked it."

He smiled, and you could feel the love you carried for this guy anew, your eyes affectionately staring at him as you returned the smile. "He wasn't lying at least, though I made sure that he wouldn't touch you anywhere when his grace ordered it."

You could hear a tongue click at the other end of the table.

Even though there were a few side comments here and there, the dinner went nearly as smoothly and was actually enjoyable. After Helaena spoke about her relationship with her husband-brother, your bethroted, Jacaerys, requested your permission to dance with her. You enthusiastically agreed at his sweet idea, watching both of them dance cutely with one another. After a few minutes, King Viserys begged to be put to bed after experiencing excruciating agony, which caused you to get a little concerned. The roasted pig was shortly set on the table. You did not give it any thought until you heard your cousin Lucerys snort. He covered his mouth as he briefly giggled when you slapped his thigh in an effort to stop him.

A loud and unmistakable bang at the table halted every action that each member were performing. Aemond stood there, his gaze divided between the two brown-haired princes. "Final tribute, to the bethrotal of my two favorite nephew and niece. Both of them loving to one another; even when we were kids, they were kind to each other. "

He remarked, "They make a wonderful couple knowing they came from the same roots." However, since you knew what he was aiming at, the subtle jab didn't escape your notice. In fact, you were sober enough to see the true implications of what he was saying. Your hand held your glass of wine rather tightly.

"I'd also like to make a toast to the health of my nephews, Jace, Luke, and Joffrey." You gripped the hand of Lucerys in an effort to calm him down without reverting your eyes away from the eye contact you and Aemond had.

"Each of them handsome, wise, strong."

"Aemond," Alicent made an effort to stop her son, but it was already too late.

He carried on instead of heeding his mother's advice, raising his cup even higher. "Come, let us drain our cups of these three strong boys."

Jacaerys gritted his teeth, "I dare you say that again!" and flounced over to the man. You called to him, "Jace!" but to no avail.

Aemond grinned and said, "Why, it was just a compliment. Do you not think yourself strong?" When the man realized that something had been stirred up inside of Jacaerys, he loved the way the strong man looked. Though it did not last when he felt a force land on his face, he couldn't even utter another word before it happened. With a horrible snarl on his ordinarily serene face, Jacaerys struck Aemond violently. "I know what you are doing! You can call me whatever you may, but you may not call my wife a--"

"Jace no!" You cried out, running towards his side.

He towered over the younger man, one dagger-eyed stare locked on him, hissing, "Be careful with your words, my strong prince. You might say something you'll regret." Before Jacaerys could even punch him again, Aemond shoved him with a snicker, and his mother chastised him firmly and quietly in his ear. With concern written over your face, you hurried to assist your fiancé while he was on the ground. You repeatedly questioned him about whether he had been wounded, but he would not respond because he was too embarrassed to look at you. As you stormed at Aemond, you gazed at him with pure fury displayed on your face.

"Here comes the dear bride." He jested once he saw you coming, his body welcoming you before you slapped him very hard.

Your face was crimson, visibly shaken as you sneered at the prince, "You disgrace me."

You're positive his expression softened when you spoke.

Before the conflict intensified into a far bloodier clash, Daemon put an end to it. Your father brought himself in front of you as Aemond assessed him before conceding defeat and withdrawing. When your uncle left the room, you were still fuming with rage as the Daemon only giggled before being silenced by Rhaenyra with a scowl.

Because of your uncle Vaemond's death and the recent ruckus, your family has had enough and has requested a week's leave to recoup before proceeding with your and Jacaerys' wedding at Kingslanding. Despite the impediment, Princess Helaena asked you to tutor her after learning about your tutoring sessions with her nephew and niece from Aemond. You were puzzled on how she was aware of it given how covert it was, but it was soon mellowed into small irritation to learn the full truth that Aemond was responsible for the additional knowledge. Since it appeared like both families were hostile towards one another, Rhaenyra believed it was a wonderful idea, so you stayed, believing that it would soon end as you were to only stat for a week.

The following day, as you were speaking with Helaena in her chambers, Queen Alicent unexpectedly walked in. She was about to presume something, but she paused herself when she discovered you standing next to her daughter. Though the Queen thanked the Gods when Aemond entered, both of them shared a knowing look as the Queen proceeded towards you, "My love, I need to discuss something with Helaena. Aemond will assist you to your quarters if it's perfectly fine."

You almost scoffed, but decided against it and nodded defeatedly before saying farewell to your companion and walking along the back of your former friend toward your room.

"Are you fairing well, m'lady?" He started a conversation out of nowhere, which drew you back.

"My prince, I am fairing better than your other eye, if you ask me," you barked back.

"Do not test my waters today, (Y/N)."

"You inquired, and as a loyal friend, I responded."

You felt your back land hard and before you knew what was going to happen next, you gasped for air as the anguish overwhelmed you. You suddenly realized that Aemond had forced you up against the ice-cold wall, encasing you and leaving you with no choice but to look at his cunning grin. He turned his head innocently and remarked, "You could have said you hated me yesterday at the dinner, my lady, but you didn't."

"Did you know how happy I felt when, instead of being hateful towards me, you stated embarass? I was beyond happy, even ecstatic," the man continued before he trailed his eyes from your eyes to your parted lips.

"I'd rather you be ashamed of me than despise me." He hushed quietly before giving you a surprising, delicate kiss. His face was gentle as he pressed his lips to yours. His lower half grinded against yours eagerly while his other hand traced your back slowly.

Though the harmony was short-lived as you bit his lips harshly, causing him to grumble and leave the tenderness of your lips with blood trailing down his lips, "His Grace would not permit such deeds! Even though you are one of his children, he does not condone mistreatment of women!"

You believed you had made your point, but the man slowly emerged into fits of laughter as he threw his head back. His voice was charming if it weren't for the given circumstances.

"You're such a fucking idiot," he sniggered, his good eye piercing yours as you fixed your gaze on him; he displayed lust while you displayed hatred. He shook his head before nearing your ear to the point you could feel his hot breath, whispering, "The King's dead."

Your entire face became white with only a slight confirmation. The person who had kept the family together had passed away. "T-That's not possible."

He groaned as you attempted to wriggle free of his grip and confessed, "It's damn well possible, my love. Just as much as the potential that you're finally mine to claim." He half-laughed before kissing you more passionately and aggressively than before.

"I am bethroted!" You screamed and tried to make your voice as loud as you could, hoping someone would walk through the halls and help you.

He replied by clutching your neck so firmly that you gasped for air in your throat, "My patience is wearing thin," his annoyance grew. "I held myself for so long and I forbid you to be his as you have forbid yourself to be mine so many times."

He let go of your neck and you spat in his face, "My family will hear about this! Father will have your head severed, as he did with Vaemond, and Jacaerys will have your other eye amputated so you can glimpse our future, which is already nonexistent."

He held your chin in place with his fingers as he gazed at your eyes with a stone-like intensity.

"I'll let in you in a secret of mine, mother will set my buffoon of a brother on top of that iron throne and during his reign I will kill him and set Helaena faraway with her children," your eyes widened like saucers at the thought of the innocent princess being killed, Aemond loved the fear in your eyes before he let on the truth, "Of course I wouldn't kill her, I am not that evil. I love her as much as you do for her."

He grabbed your hand harshly and drew you towards him as he hurried across the corridor with keen resolve. "Until then, rumors would spread of their murder, and I would not allow myself be hidden if they intent to call me. I will name you queen, for a king's will would never be disregarded. Then, as we had promised when we were young, we would live happily, have a lots of babes, and have a good life."

As you realized how near you actually were to the boudoir, he dragged you a few more times before pushing you to the ground, crashing hard. He continued, "'Till then, you will do as I wish, so sit lovely as you were and do not tell anybody if you wish your Prince Jacaerys to become Vhagar's dinner."

There he left you wailing on the floor of your quarters, trembling from the adrenaline as your eyes and nose inflamed from sobbing. As they prepared to usurp the throne, you heard him close the door, the same door you keep banging hoping that help would reach soon.

Wellp, I thought my draft said 2k turns out I need new glasses as this is 5 fuckin k. Though Im thankful of the amount of people who liked the first part. This was supposed to be a one shot turned into two shots but I noticed how long it gets. I wouldve splitted this part into two but idk where to end so yeah have this. Next part would be the final one, i hope y'all psychopaths enjoyed this story.

Tags: @crazylokonugget ; @discowizard88 ; @sheetalkalkhandey ; @dangerousbluebirdpoetry ; @mysingularitybts ; @regulusblackismycomfortcharacter ; @felfei

484 notes · View notes

mycurrent-hyperfixation · 6 months

Text

Sick & Tired (Locklyle One-Shot)

Summary: George is sick and tired of nearly dying because his friends can't admit they're in love with one another. And he's about to tell them as much.

Masterlist

Word Count: 1.9k

Pairings: Anthony Lockwood x Lucy Carlyle

Tags: fluff, pining, angst

Warnings: Mild spoilers for the books!

A/N: Heyo, me again. Thanks to those who left such lovely comments on my last fic. I know this fandom is a lot smaller than the one's I normally write for so I'm absolutely loving the enthusiasm when it comes to our shared obsession with this lovely little pairing. Hope everyone is having a good week. Like always, let me know if y'all want to be added/removed from my taglist! Love you all x

George didn’t particularly consider himself to be one of the most observant people he knew.

He was smart, sure. Witty, resourceful, diligent, clever. But when it came to being observant to the other people of his species? Well, he could not quite summon the same enthusiasm he had when observing the dead.

Yet, next to Lockwood and Lucy, George could almost be considered the most perceptive person in the world. He could not understand how it was that the two of them were some of the smartest people he knew, and the dumbest.

Take Lockwood for instance. Just last week George had borne witness to Lockwood’s theatrical monologue as he recounted and solved each mystery of the case they had been on: the real reason of that strange man’s appearance on their doorstep, the true cause of death for the woman’s spirit they were fighting, and the unborn child in her belly. There had of course been some flourishing of his sword, some unnecessary swishes of his coat as he had danced with the ghost before Lucy had sealed the Source. But George was sure that everyone in that room – including Inspector Barnes who had arrived at the culmination of the flourishing and the swishing with a notable roll of his eyes – had been awed at Lockwood’s ingenious in that moment.

Sure, George had been the one to give Lockwood all the puzzle pieces in the first place. But even he had to admit that Lockwood had beaten him to the punch…on that occasion.

Yet, at the same time, it was a stray glance from Lucy that had nearly had Lockwood dropping his rapier mid-battle. A smile thrown his way that had him suddenly choking on his tea once they had arrived home afterwards. A whiff of her perfume that had him missing a step on the staircase and tumbling down to the landing.

And then there was Lucy. By all accounts, she was usually far more composed out of the two in any given situation. Her unparalleled Talent paired with her untameable curiosity made for an excellent co-worker. Even more so because of her lightning-fast reflexes and quick-thinking.

But she too seemed to suffer from the same affliction as Lockwood: idiocy when in the others’ presence.

Yes, it had been her that had saved all of their lives the other day when she had heard the Poltergeist creeping up behind them in the shadows whilst they had been distracted by the Cold Maiden. But it had also been her who had blushed profusely and stumbled over her words in her report to DEPRAC afterwards when Lockwood had casually complimented her. It had been her who had pulled Quill away from the grips of a Limbless that night. But it was also her who had quite unsubtly tripped Quill on his way out the door after he had thrown one of his usual snide comments back at Lockwood.

It was maddening, really, working with a pair of smart imbeciles.

Worse, even, since he also had to live with them.

And so George’s morning (early afternoon) went like every other as he made his way down from his bedroom. When he entered the kitchen, he had expected to be greeted by a round of applause for having remembered to put his pyjama bottoms on. But instead, he was met by Lockwood and Lucy mooning over each other like usual.

‘Mooning’ was likely the wrong word for what he witnessed, George knew. It could probably be better described as furtive glances thrown between them when they thought the other wasn’t looking. Either way, George was sick of it, and so dramatically rolled his eyes as he went to put the kettle on.

Whilst George would usually resign himself to eating his toast whilst fighting off his gag reflex as he looked upon the stupidity of his clueless friends, that particular morning saw him lacking in most of his patience.

The night before had held its usual amount of Lucy and Lockwood’s pining as the three of them, accompanied by Holly and Quill, had investigated a supposed Type Two in a very small and very cramped cottage. In hindsight, all five of them likely didn’t need to be there. But George’s research had uncovered the site to be built on the land of an executioner’s lot, so they had decided it was better to be safe than sorry.

In the end, it had meant that the working conditions that night had been exceptionally…close. Matters only worsened when Lockwood had the bright idea of pairing Lucy and Quill together for the initial sweep of the house. George had seen it, the very moment when Lockwood discovered his mistake as Lucy had to quite unceremoniously brush completely up against Quill to make her way out of the room. George could’ve sworn he had seen a vein nearly burst in Lockwood’s forehead a split second before the boy’s usual charming smile returned to his features.

What ensued that night could only be described as a complete shitshow.

George liked to think that their relationship with Quill was better now – not the best, but better. He did still consider Quill a massive tosser after all and that would likely never change. But even George had to admit that the night’s mishaps were not entirely Quill’s fault. Although the boy definitely did not help matters when he returned to the kitchen with Lucy laughing at his heel. George had turned back to Lockwood in that instance and had seen his jaw completely tensed.

Lucy was all but repulsed by Quill, and everyone in that room knew it. George knew it. Holly knew it. Hell, even Quill probably knew it.

And Lockwood knew it. George was completely sure.

Yet there Lockwood was acting the love-sick idiot for the rest of the night. He swiftly changed up the pairings, sticking Quill with a not-so-happy George instead. But things only seemed to get worse from there.

When the Type Two ghost did finally arrive – with a few unexpected friends – all hell broke loose. On most days, five agents should have been enough to deal with the situation, but Lockwood was seemingly anyone but himself that night. He was slow, his rapier movements lethargic. His orders came out stuttered, unsure of himself. His focus was distracted. Where he should have been looking at any of the ghosts that now surrounded them (he had quite the array to choose from after all), George could tell – even from beneath Lockwood’s sunglasses – that the boy couldn’t stop himself from glancing back at Lucy every chance he got.

So the night had been a long one, full of salt bombs, ectoplasm dodging and several bouts of running away. In the end, it had been Lucy who had screamed the order to find the Source. Lockwood had acted like the thought had never even occurred to him.

So George’s patience had been worn thin that morning, grains of salt still embedded into his hair. Lockwood and Lucy were sitting side-by-side at the table, quietly sipping their teas as Lucy’s bread toasted in the toaster. Neither of them had spoken to each other about the night before, the tension in the room was enough to tell George that.

“I’m sick of this,” George mumbled louder than he had intended.

“Sorry, what was that, George?” Lockwood asked, looking up as if he had genuinely not noticed George’s presence in the room.

“I’m sick of this,’ George said again, louder this time.

George did not particularly want to die because his friends could not communicate with one another, and so he decided in that moment that he had had enough.

“Of what?” Lockwood asked, his eyebrows furrowing. Lucy’s toast popped out of the toaster and, as if autonomously, Lockwood rose from his chair, placed the pieces onto a plate and began buttering them.

“Of last night!” George burst out. Lockwood and Lucy stood still before him, both of their eyebrows furrowing now. “Of every night! Of every moment of every day and how you two as so goddamn stupid!”

“I’ll agree that last night did not go according to plan,” Lockwood began. “But I would hardly say that that warrants this-”

“According to plan?” George said. “What do you mean according to plan? Last night was a complete shitshow. It took us five hours to contain three ghosts! And all because-”

“Well it’s hardly that simple-” Lockwood tried. He knew where this was going now and tried desperately to get George to meet his eye.

“Because you two can’t just talk,” George continued. “It really shouldn’t be that hard! But no, Lockwood, you’ve instead got to bottle it all up like normal and then get wildly jealous when Lucy talks to anyone of the opposite sex. We could’ve been out of that house in an hour last night if you had just focused. Quill repulses any girl within a mile radius. I don’t understand how you can possibly think that Lucy has lost all of her braincells and is suddenly interested in him!”

Lucy and Lockwood’s mouths were now resolutely hanging agape.

“You thought…” Lucy began, turning to face Lockwood.

“Oh, please,” George continued, seemingly unable to stop himself now that he had begun. “Don’t pretend like you aren’t exactly the same. I remember how you acted when Holly first joined the team. You practically brought Aickmere’s down on us with your outburst near that Poltergeist!”

Lucy’s mouth snapped closed as she averted her gaze to the floor.

“I get it,” George said with a sigh. “Life’s hard. Feelings are hard. But I’ve had to put up with the two of you pining after one another since Lucy first set foot in that door. And frankly, I’m sick and tired of it! We have dangerous jobs, we live dangerous lives. One of you could die tomorrow and then where would you be? So just…talk!”

George was breathing heavily now, his panting the only sound that filled the room. The tension in the air was thick; so thick that he could likely slice his rapier right through it.

“Now,” George continued. “I am going to finish my tea upstairs, alone. Then, I’m going to the archives and when I get back I don’t want to see any more pining one way or the other, please.”

And with that, George left. How he so wished to listen by the door and hear what was to come next. But he had done enough damage for one day and so retreated back to his room.

When George returned back home later that evening, he became nervous when he opened the door and was greeted by complete silence. There was no laughter, no talking, not even the kettle was being boiled and, at that time of day, that was a rarity.

A sense of regret washed completely through George as he closed the door behind him. What if he had only made things worse? What if he had ruined everything? What if Lockwood and Lucy had decided against finally getting together and putting George out of his misery?

His dread only got worse as he walked down the hallway. But as he passed the library, the door only barely ajar, he stopped in his tracks. Tentatively, so as to not make any noise, he pushed the door slowly open.

On the couch in the corner – laying in a position that did not look awfully comfortable – was Lockwood quite soundly asleep. And then there, wrapped within his arms, was Lucy, her head resting against Lockwood’s chest as she too slept.

George smiled to himself, left the room and went to put the kettle on.

---

Taglist:

@alicetweven @theh3aven @manamitoyota @mimiluvsualot @cherrypieyourface @kaqua @c0untryclub @goldencherriess @emotionaldreamer @givemethesleep @milkiane @miscreantsnopossoms @legendaryfestsoul-blog

#lockwood and lucy #anthony lockwood #lockwood and co #lockwood #lucy carlyle #locklyle #lockwood netflix #lockwood x lucy #george cubbins #george karim #holly munro #quill kipps

50 notes · View notes

picklerocket · 3 months

Text

Happy 3rd Anniversary Little Nightmares 2!!

I have not finished my pointillism piece for the celebration, so it will have to be belated. Instead, I will share a disjointed rant about how I think Thin Man and the Signal Tower function!

In my mind, the Signal Tower from Little Nightmares 2 (pictured on the right) is a Lovecraftian Shoggoth (pictured on the left), and it crashed to the earth thousands- perhaps even millions of years before we see the game take place. This is a theory I have personally had since the game came out, but I know there is a theory video floating around somewhere about this same theory, and a few of my fellow fans also share it.

(If you have not played/watched LN played or listened to the podcast, and do not want it spoiled, be warned! Spoilers ahoy!)

I will attempt to explain how I see Thin Man and the Signal Tower having a sort of symbiotic relationship, and what exactly Thin Man is and where Mono comes from.

In "The Sound of Nightmares", we learn that children almost always get to the Nowhere in their sleep, with a few possibly having been born there (i.e. the Pretender). However, Mono seems different, and not just from Six. His abilities of walking through tv screens, and whatever other powers he possesses as he grows into Thin Man, seem to be completely natural to him- to the point that he must cover his face with a bag to keep them at bay.

I am going to take this a step further and say that Mono was not only born in the Little Nightmares universe, but he wasn't even born on their version of the earth!

This is where my theories begin to seem a bit far-fetched, so stay with me.

I have decided to call what Mono/Thin Man is, a "Broadcaster" (a name which was assigned to Thin Man by fans when he first appeared in the secret ending of the Residence DLC), and has been a populr name for him in fanfiction, as well as fanart and comics as well.

Well, now I want to take a closer look at Thin Man's powers- and how they are comprised of electromagnetic fields and frequencies of light. So why can Thin Man manipulate these things in his environment to the point where he can pretty much control reality?

Because he is part of a species- a "Broadcaster". An alien. He has these superhuman abilities because he isn't a human at all!

You may have noticed that I said "a" Broadcaster. Implying there are more- which I believe there are, somewhere, out in the universe. I personally think that they are ageless beings similar in life cycle to the fabled pheonix; Growing old and being reborn again new each time.

But where do these Broadcasters come from?

The way I think, the only way any being could manipulate the laws of matter and light could be to have it composing their bodies as well. Yes, I am indeed implying that Thin Man is a solid projection of light (yes, like a gem from Steven Universe lol). All this to say, I believe they are born amongst stars forming in nebulas. They are made of/powered by stars! Made of light!

I mean, think about it! Whenever he's seen in-game, he looks black and white and staticy just like he's on tv! Like he's made of fizzling and flickering light. But what about Mono? Mono is solid, and he can even die!

Well, we can explain Mono being more physical and vulnerable as him being a tiny baby of course! I don't think he's just trapped in a time loop by the Signal Tower- I believe the Broadcaster life cycle for Thin Man starts over when we see Mono wake up in front of the TV in the forest at the beginning of the game.

"But why is Mono 'born' as a 10/11 year old?"

That, my friend, is because the Shoggoth that composes this particular Signal Tower is garbage at approximating human anatomy! It's never seen a human baby, and therefore can only replicate what it has seen- children.

"But Pickle, what do you mean the Tower made him look human?? What???"

Well, if you were a giant behemoth that consumes entire populations, you'd need something to lure them in. Like an anglerfish! And what did I pose is made of light? Broadcasters. That's what I think so far. The Shoggoth rips through nebulas searching for a Broadcaster, and once it traps one it its body, it takes it to a planet and uses the Broadcaster's abilities to consume the populace. Make him look like them and plaster him all over their communications and entertainment.

So there you have it! My current Thin Man/Mono theories and headcanons. I may elaborate on this further, and draw up some broadcaster life cycle examples. Let me know what you think! 👁️✨

Again, Happy Anniversary Little Nightmares 2!! 🎉🎊🎁

#pickle blogging #pickle speaks #little nightmares #little nightmares 2 #this took me like 2 hours #idk how you all do this #you are stronger than any US marine #mono #thin man

35 notes · View notes

grntaire · 3 months

Note

Yoooo I really love the choral music you’ve recently shared. I’m not really that familiar with it as a genre of music and don’t normally seek it out? but occasionally a piece will find its way to me (like at a funeral or now your blog), and I find it arrestingly beautiful. maybe partly because it’s a strange and unfamiliar medium to me. Do you have any favorites you would recommend for further exploration? 🩷

hi this is maybe the most hyped i've been for an ask ever bc i go fucking crazy for choral music so YES i do have recs for you. i will try to limit my little thoughts however i am very annoying so it will not go well

gibbons' hosanna to the son of david goes insanely hard. so jovial and fun and i had a blast singing this in undergrad! i love renaissance polyphony and this is a prime example of it!

poulenc's o magnum mysterium is truthfully wacky in the best most french way ever. and imo poulenc's queerness is so clear and present in his music so anything by him i love. my beautiful fruity catholic with a disorder <3

chesnokov's spaseniye sodelal is russian orthodox perfection fr. when my choir in undergrad read thru this i was stood between two low basses and at THAT part (1:32) i felt like i was being punched from the inside out. also the text means "salvation is created in the midst of the earth" and i think that's like. so fucking sick

stacey gibbs' arrangement of ezekiel is THE american spiritual arrangement to me. i once sang this in an italian church under a mexican conductor and then later we all sang it drunkenly for the owner at the hotel we were all staying at it was wild and so so so fun. such a beautiful and massive example of a joyful american spiritual also it's straight up a banger honestly. could talk ad nauseum abt how badass black choral scholars are and how grateful i am for all of the work that they've done and for inviting ppl to learn abt and experience it <3

holst's i love my love is one of my favs of all time. unfortunately england fucking devours when it comes to their choral tradition and this piece does one of my fav things where the way the composer sets the text changes its meaning! it's abt a woman named nancy who is in bedlam bc her love died at sea and it effectively broke her. while there, he comes to her, alive, breaks her out and they get married. while the poem itself shows a happy ending, the way holst plays w tempo and texture makes me go hmmm. 90% sure he did not show up and she's experiencing a delusion of sorts to cope w her grief (the i love my love's in the sopranos & altos at 1:24 kind of emulate a rocking motif, almost as if she's rocking herself back and forth in a soothing gesture, or the rocking of the ship he died on) and that tenor entrance in the melody after almost emulates her love coming to rescue her. god this whole piece makes me feel like my skin is on fire and i think it's a devastating portrayal of mental illness and you can rip it from my cold dead hands

stanford's beati quorum via is literally just gorgeous front to back. again unfortunately the english stay slaying

jake runestad's a silence haunts me literally does fucking haunt me and it changed the way i think about choral music. it's a setting of an unsent letter of beethoven's where he talks about losing his hearing and how afraid he is of losing it. this one you def have to watch bc there's a visual element to it! no spoilers but holy shit it shuts my brain down it's brutal and beautiful. i saw its premiere in 2019 and the entire hall was sobbing. like i have the words "be well" tattooed on me bc of it. the way the piano quotes moonlight sonata and his 9th symphony and the tensions emulating his tinnitus. OUGH

#this is super just scratching the surface of my favs and is way more info than probably necessary #however choral music is an art form in which context makes it a thousands times more devastating and impactful #ty for the question literally this was so fun for me i love yapping abt choral music #will do it as long as it is asked of me and even if it's not #asks #music things

20 notes · View notes

episims · 5 months

Text

Judi negotiation skill appreciation post

I've already played Judi's household so it's unlikely I get a chance to let her explain how buying Hanna was for her. This super self-indulgent post sheds some light on Judi's point of view!

No pictures. If you're not dying to know, this probably isn't for you lol.

So let's chop this scene into pieces:

Judith “You’re not stupid, Craig. You must realize that if I didn’t have a pressing reason, I wouldn’t be here.” Chase “Hmph.” She’s right. “I’m listening.” Judith “Thank you. I would rather negotiate indoors if that suits you.”

Judi has literally called Chase a nutcase, and that was before Chase slept with her ex. She needs to really compose herself to be polite.

Even more so to flatter him, as Judi tries to do by acknowledging Chase's intelligence. It works; it's a small step forward to get Chase to agree about something. Being inside the house also makes it slightly harder for Chase to just walk out of the situation.

Chase “-no. She’s not for sale.” Judith “Oh, I’m sorry for my choice of words. Do you wish me to call it a she?”

Since the goal is to get Chase to sell Hanna, it might be a problem that Chase humanizes her. So Judi lures him into changing the pronoun, hoping that it creates some emotional distance too.

Judith “I agree. But I could point out that I can afford to pay its current market value in full. I evaluated its components; many of them are outdated. Its wholesale price will only continue decreasing.” Chase She’s researched based on what Jonas has told her. I was careless with him. “The components don’t matter. They hold their value as scrap metal.”

Chase doesn't take Judi's bait about Hanna's decreasing market value so seems like he isn't hugely interested in cash. It's a bit of a setback for Judi; she doesn't have anything else than money to offer.

Judith “So it comes down to the code. Do you have proprietary over it?”

Spoiler alert: Judi knows damn well that Chase doesn't have proprietary over Hanna's code. She indeed did research. But considering how tightly Chase has pursed his lips about his past, bringing it up would likely only get Chase to raise his guard.

But the negotiation isn't moving anywhere so Judi tries to subtly push Chase to a more uneven ground. She's careful to make it look like an innocent question, something that would make sense to ask.

Judith “I’m not desperate to buy, Craig. I can hire home aid, just as well. There’s clearly a lot of potential going to waste with this project ending with the first prototype, but you’re right. It’s your concern, not mine.” Chase “Hmph.” Hanna’s value decrease was inevitable. But… the market has advanced for my benefit as well. It shouldn’t be impossible to find equivalent parts anymore.

Would Chase sell Hanna if he didn't feel it was completely by his own choice? Probably not, so Judi gives him room to make that decision. And while she has money to spend, it doesn't hurt to leave the impression that she's not ready to pay anything.

Since she now knows that Chase can't be won over by cash only, she tries to convince him that selling Hanna wouldn't take away his lifework but offer a means to continue it.

You can tell that Judi found the right lever as Chase stops to think about the possibility of selling for the first time.

Judith “What I need is a childcare assistant so it’ll only be for a few years. After that, it can break down all the same.” Chase Most of Hanna’s components have extended their lifespan by then, anyway. “It would be cheaper for you to hire a person.” Judith “Cheaper, not easier. Thanks to these idiotic restrictions, I would need to find a local for it. That aside, as you well know, I don’t need sleep. Having service available around the clock would be beneficial.”

Yeah, right. Judi has pretty good connections, of course she could find someone who has the right to pass to Foxfire.

The thing is that Judi wouldn't have considered buying Hanna if Jonas hadn't asked for it. That is a strong motivation for Judi to get the deal done; being seemingly ignorant of Hanna's fate is a bluff to hide that. Assuring Chase that Judi isn't trying to monetize Hanna herself is important, too.

Judith “It’s important that you answer in short. Do you understand?” Hanna “—yes.” Judith “Good. Do you know how to cook?” Chase *mutters* “Of course she knows how to-” Judith “Let me review the product, please.”

It's an act, aiming to close the deal for good. Judi attempts to keep the conversation with Hanna simple so that she doesn't accidentally talk to her in a way that conflicts with what she just told Chase.

So, here you go! If it seemed easy, it's only because Judi's a crazy good negotiator.

#foxfire forest #foxfire forest extra #judith root #hanna p1 #chase craig #long blabbering is long #felt like celebrating the anniversary by posting random extras!

24 notes · View notes

harmonysanreads · 5 hours

Text

Trivia - Jeux de Vagues

I suppose this is the somewhat ‘lore’ of the aforementioned fic. I recommend reading the fic first before diving into this as this contains spoilers :> I normally wouldn't do this but per the vote of @verridaiya I was encouraged to regardless. Something to note would be that even though this is what I had in mind while writing, readers' personal interpretations are equally valid!

“Jeux de Vagues”

I mentioned this in a reblog already but the title comes from the second movement of the symphony “La Mer” by Claude Debussy, a French composer. It literally translates to ‘Play of the waves', quite fitting for a leisurely tea-party with Neuvillette, no? I also highly recommend listening to the piece in general, it might take some patience but if you love daydreaming about watching the sea waves away from your struggles as well, this is the music for you!

“6 to 12 O'clock”

Before I tell you why I'm showing this particular line, I want you guys to take a guess on what I meant by the 'noon to evening and midnight to dawn' part :>

One of the rules of afternoon tea etiquette is that when you stir the tea, the appropriate motion to do is a 6 to 12 O'clock (so towards yourself and away from yourself) instead of going in circles. I thought just outright saying it wouldn't be fun so I instead used the four time indicators of 6 and 12 ! But of course, this could also symbolize the duration of Reader “scheming” since the beginning of the marriage.

“Fin de siècle”

Fin de siècle is a French term meaning “end of century,” a phrase which typically encompasses both the meaning of the similar English idiom “turn of the century” and also makes reference to the closing of one era and onset of another. [Taken from Wikipedia]

I kept on thinking about how to incorporate the ‘Isolation’ theme for Yandere!Neuvillette while also respecting his ideal of fairness. In one of his voice lines, he encourages to speak-up against grave injustice. With that in mind, this idea of “Keeping Reader isolated but giving them a chance to gain freedom by debating against Neuvillette once every century” was born. If Reader can successfully prove that Neuvillette is a terrible husband or their marriage is unjust, they can leave. But obviously, that's just false hope.

“Mon trésor”

Mon trésor is a gender-neutral French term of endearment which means “My treasure” in English. Huge thank you to @cerulean-castle and @iceunhie (please excuse me if I wasn't supposed to tag you two ;—;) for responding to my cry of help for this one as I was puzzled about French terms of endearment for a while. @/iceunhie gave me the link to a post of gender-neutral French terms of endearment which I found really helpful <3

As for why I chose Mon trésor as what Neuvillette calls Reader, it was due to the specific connotations between dragons and their treasures. Or in Neuvillette's case, Reader is his treasure. Hence, after sufficiently provoked, he doesn't flinch from referring to them as ‘abandoned property’.

“The words unspoken are the flower.”

Directly quoted from Neuvillette's [About : Wriothesley] voice line. According to him, it's an Inazuman proverb which means “Some words are better left unsaid.” which is Neuvillette's answer to his subconscious question of why he goes to such lengths for Reader.

Now, you can interpret this in a variety of ways and I'll say some of the “possible” ones. Perhaps he refuses to verbalize the causes because doing so would force him to face the hypocrisy and irrationality behind his actions. Perhaps he truly doesn't know, as there are many things he's on the path to understanding. Etcetera.

I might add onto this post if anyone has more questions from the fic itself. Writing Jeux de Vagues was quite difficult because I had a deadline of sorts but I was determined to finish it. Although there might be room for further improvement, I'm still happy that I pulled it of :') I hope that at least, my love for Neuvillette's character can be felt through the fic <3

#french people feel free to roast me if i did get something terribly wrong lolol #about ; jeux de vagues #yandere #yandere neuvillette #yandere neuvillette x reader #yandere genshin impact #yandere genshin impact x reader #yandere genshin x reader #neuvillette x reader #genshin impact x reader #neuvillette

7 notes · View notes

the-hidden-writer · 1 month

Text

A Piece of True Fiction: Chapter 6

An Alan Wake 2 fic. Spoilers for Alan Wake 2!

Summary: Aleksi Kesä manages to slip out of the spiral and film he was trapped in.

Saga Anderson, caught in the middle of Wake's horror story, finds a man that looks identical to her partner in the middle of the woods. He's lost, confused, and only seems to speak Finnish. Saga has to try and uncover the truth as well as trying to save her family. Where did he come from? How did he get here?

And where's her Casey?

Chapter Summary: Saga finally confronts Alan. Words: 2,524 AO3 Link: [Here!] [First part] [Previous part] [Next part]

A Piece of True Fiction

Chapter 6: Too Soon

“I just don’t understand. It was in my hands, but I could’ve sworn I was reading it for the first time.”

Saga fights the urge to roll her eyes as an FBC medic finishes wrapping her wound. Kesä had done a pretty decent job in Coffee World considering the circumstances, but it does feel better to know it’s been professionally done with less risk of infection. An amputation is the last thing she needs right now.

Right now, she’s itching to speak to Wake. The longer she sits still, the more her thoughts drift to Logan. The more her fury at the writer festers.

She’d described how she’d found Kesä to Estevez while she was being treated (in the morgue of all places). She’d also explained some of her own concerns, such as the mystery of how he ended up in Coffee World, Watery, when she’d last left him in Bright Falls and taken the car herself.

All the more reason she desperately needs to talk to Wake. He was the last person with Casey, and potentially the only person who could explain what’s going on.

Annoyingly, Estevez seems too caught up in her own experience to actually hear what she’s trying to tell her.

“I don’t want to toot my own horn, but I’m lead here for a reason”, the FBC agent continues. “I study and analyze every detail about a case before heading into the field and I’ve never had memory problems before. I should know this file inside out. I’m more inclined to believe that something paranatural’s at work here.”

“And the Finnish part didn’t tip you off?” Saga asks. She’s grateful that the FBC are taking her seriously though she’s also getting increasingly frustrated by them.

They’re acting too composed and methodical for a situation so dire and terrifying. Sure, Saga’s circles within the FBI are also fairly organized, but the FBC agents are on a whole other level. The way they mill around and make use of the small, rural space available to them is almost dystopian. Part of her wonders if it was a mistake coming here and if she’s ended up confining herself to their agency, when she could be outside trying to fix things and actually be making progress.

Estevez scoffs at her comment.

“Reality’s malleable here. It’s harder to take people for their word.” She frowns. “Then again, we do have Wake in custody…”

Their conversation is interrupted by a shout and a clatter of metal from the other side of the room.

Saga looks over at the source of the noise, where she can just about make out a very uncomfortable-looking Kesä sitting on an examination table, surrounded by four FBC agents holding various items. One has a tablet, another has a clipboard, and another has a stethoscope. The fourth, the only one empty-handed, is recovering from being shoved backward. A reflex hammer lies on the cold floor by their feet.

“Saga!” Kesä cries out, peering between the agents to catch her eye. "Nämä ei helvetti suostu jättämään minua rauhaan! Puhu järkeä niille!"

Estevez approaches them. “What’s the problem?”

The female agent with the clipboard looks at her boss guiltily. “Don’t know, Ma’am. He’s not co-operating.”

“What about the translator?” Estevez demands.

“He’s refusing to type into the software.”

“Can’t you just get a verbal translator?” Saga asks from her side of the morgue, shrugging away the agent tending to her. “It can’t be hard to find one here.”

“I’ll agree with you on it being more convenient,” answers Estevez, “but bringing in external specialists without the Director's approval would be going against protocol.”

“Fuck the protocol!” Saga exclaims, no longer able to suppress her anger. “This is bigger than that! I don’t know how, but I don’t think that just because Wake’s here it means he can’t change reality. If you won’t take my word for it, fine, but I know things are changing and even you’ve acknowledged it. Why the fuck do you have a file on Casey anyway?!”

“That’s cla-”

“Classified, of course.”

While Saga regains her breath, Agent Estevez appears taken aback and the room is silent. Even Kesä looks somewhat shocked by her outburst.

“Just let me talk to Wake.” Saga pleads, more calmly. “I know more about Casey than you do. He’s my partner. Understanding Wake’s part in all this is the only way we can start figuring out how to fix it.”

The last part is a partial lie. It’s true, she needs to understand, but maybe getting the Clicker to him would be a quicker and more efficient fix.

Estevez sighs. “You have a point. Okay, you win, Anderson.”

Saga opens her mouth to respond but Estevez cuts her off. “-But, I’ll accompany you to the cells. Wake’s been agitated and I don’t want you getting hurt. Not to mention that the station’s cameras are video-only and it’s important for us to know what’s going on.”

Shit. If Estevez goes with her, she won’t be able to hand over the Clicker in secret. She can’t risk them taking it away from her.

“You really think he’ll talk to the agents that locked him up the first chance they got?” Saga argues, hoping that she’s passing off as convincing. “I’m FBI, I know how to handle an interrogation. I’ll pass on anything he tells me. For what it’s worth, you have my word.”

A tense minute of contemplation, then: “...Fine. I’ll unlock the door for you.”

Saga lets out a small sigh of relief. “Thanks, Agent.”

She’d really thought that she’d have to fight harder for her case. Still, she isn’t complaining that she’s getting her way.

“I don’t feel good about this at all,” says Estevez, moving toward the exit and beckoning for Saga to follow. “But we really don’t have much of a choice.”

As Saga stands, Kesä speaks up. "Mitä nyt? Mihin olet menossa?"

“We’ll work on getting a translator in the meantime.” Estevez remarks, already walking through the corridor toward the staircase leading up.

Saga hesitates in the doorway. Aleksi’s face is full of confusion, but also holds a twinge of sadness. Maybe even betrayal. They stare at each other for a moment, locked in another exchange via glances.

Saga is the one to break away, guiltily shooting him a reassuring smile before turning to follow Estevez.

“I promise I’ll be back.”

Saga follows Estevez out of the morgue and back into the station itself. A wave of unease washes over her. She’s getting her way, but something about the situation leaves her feeling unnerved. She feels weirdly unprepared, like she’s missing something important and shouldn’t see Wake without it.

But she has the Clicker. That’s the main thing she needs, right? She tries to shake the feeling away and focus on the present.

How should she approach the situation with Wake? She wants to hold him accountable for his actions- hell, she wants to kill him for what he’s done to Logan, but she knows that she can’t. She could just give him the Clicker without saying a word.

She won’t do that, though. She needs answers. She needs to hear him acknowledge what he did.

They reach the cell block door and Estevez pulls out a keycard. Before she gets the chance to use it, one of the officers approaches her.

“Uh, Ma’am? We might have a-”

“Give me a second, Young.” Estevez interrupts. “Let me just let Agent Anderson in.”

The door is unlocked and the light above the door turns green.

“I’ll lock this behind you for safety reasons”, explains Estevez. “Just knock four times when you’re ready to come out. I hope you know what you’re doing.”

Saga does. She thinks. “I do. Thanks, Estevez.”

Estevez nods and turns to address the anxious officer to the side.

Saga opens the door.

She walks in. The door closes behind her and green turns to red.

“Saga!”

The voice that greets her isn’t Wake’s, but Ilmo’s. She spots him in the cell closest to her and he stands up when she enters. In the midst of dealing with Kesä, Ilmo’s involvement had slipped her mind. The man looks disheveled and almost animalistic- a far cry from the friendly and confident persona she was used to seeing. Ilmo steps right up to the bars of the cage to face her, practically snarling. “Fucking FBI, FBC, you government fucks all fucking this up for us! Where the fuck is my brother?!”

That uneasy feeling settles over Saga again. Instinctively, she looks over to the adjacent cell to Ilmo’s. The cell is empty.

When she doesn’t reply, Ilmo bangs his fist against the metal bar. “What the fuck have you done to him?!”

“I…” Saga doesn’t know what to say. Her mind replays the events of the hour since they’d arrived at the station. She doesn’t remember seeing or even hearing any mention of Jaakko Koskela. “Ilmo, Jaakko isn’t here.”

“Bullshit!” Ilmo spits. “You fuckers have done something. Something’s wrong with him, and you-”

“How do you know?” Saga interjects.

“I just know!” Ilmo responds. It sounds more like a childish whine. Saga picks up on an element of desperation in his posture and voice, and suddenly something clicks. He sounds just like how she feels on the inside, desperate to get Logan back and to help Casey. He’s worried for his twin, but he’s locked up and helpless. She can’t help but sympathize with him.

She goes to respond, to inquire more about Jaakko’s whereabouts, when another voice speaks up from a cell further down.

“Saga? Is that you?”

Wake.

Her feet start to carry her toward his cell.

“No, don’t fucking talk to him, Saga.” Ilmo says behind her. “He’s a fucking monster! You don’t know what you’re dealing with, let me out!”

Saga ignores him.

Like Ilmo, Alan Wake stands at the edge of his cell to face her, except he’s gripping the bars so tightly that his knuckles are turning white. If she thought Ilmo looked animalistic, Wake is that turned up to eleven. He wears jeans, a bloodied white tee, and an unhinged expression.

“Do you have it?” he asks.

Saga sees red.

“You wrote Logan into the story,” she says coolly. “You told me yourself, from the Dark Place.”

Wake doesn’t react to her words, and instead carries on with his crazy spiel. “Listen! I think something’s wrong. Something- something’s off. The balance is… Scratch is-”

“My daughter is dead because of you! She’s a child.” Saga hisses. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

Alan shakes his head. “I’m trying to fix this. I will fix this, I’ll save everyone, I just need to know what’s happening. There’s something different, just- Just give me the Clicker. I’ll fix everything. We’re running out of time.”

Saga fights the urge to slap the man.

“And Casey?” she asks. “You change his memories to what? Tear us apart? You already ruined his life with your writing, and you just had to do it again. You are one selfish fuck.”

Alan groans, frustrated. “No, I just…”

He trails off. His grip on the iron bars loosens. “I…”

He takes a step back. His strained expression morphs into one of confusion.

“...What?”

“Don’t play dumb. You admitted to using my family as part of your sick story. Well, you’ve gone miles over the goddamn line. How did you get him to Watery?”

Alan lets out a sound of disbelief. “What are you- What was that about memories? I don’t think I…”

“And why Finnish?” Saga snaps. “You twisted so much of him for no reason, even his name. How does this help anything?”

“Saga.” Alan says loudly, breaking her out of her rant. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Saga waits for the prickling in her skin or the flash in her mind or any indication that he might be lying.

When none comes, she is taken aback. “What?”

“I didn’t do anything to Casey.” Wake states. He sounds genuine. Saga hates that. “The lodge was attacked by cultists and he ran outside, then Scratch and the Taken showed up. That’s all I know, I swear.”

“Casey showed up at Coffee World half-naked and talking in Finnish. He didn’t know where he was and he doesn’t know me at all. Are you sure you don’t know anything about that?”

Saga’s grasping at straws. Wake has to be the one responsible, because if he isn’t… What then?

Alan is silent for a moment, his face blank. “No… no, I don’t. I’m trying to remember… you said Finnish, right?”

“What are you talking about?” Ilmo cuts in, sounding very concerned. “Saga? What’s going on?”

“Yes, Finnish.” Saga looks at Ilmo, responding to Alan. With Alan claiming to know nothing, she’s willing to take answers from anyone. She’s starting to feel very, very scared for her partner.

“Give me the Clicker.” Alan says firmly, extending a hand through the bars. “It doesn’t matter what’s been happening on the outside, I’ll fix it all. Just give it to me.”

Ilmo bangs on the bars again. “Don’t fucking give it to him!”

Saga feels conflicted. On one hand, she’d worked so hard to get the Clicker. She’d risked her life, even, and it was all for the sake of saving Logan. As far as she knows, giving Wake the Clicker is the only way of getting her daughter back.

The new question that makes her hesitate is: does that extend to Casey?

Wake admitted to using Logan. She heard him say so himself, and she resents him for it. But he’s adamant in his stance that he didn’t use Casey in the same way. As much as Saga wants to blame it on him and believe he’s lying, there are too many facts that don’t add up. How would the addition of ‘Aleksi Kesä’ help the horror story? It only causes a delay, if anything. It’s a distraction and it’s unlike any of the other changes Wake has been making.

So if he has no idea, how will he be able to fix him? By handing over the Clicker, will she save Logan but doom Casey?

Even though her daughter comes first, she can’t bring herself to do that to her partner. She needs more information to get a better understanding of the situation.

“I don’t have it.” She lies.

“Thank God.” She hears Ilmo mumble.

Both of them are startled when Alan suddenly violently slams the bars of his own cell. “I knew something was different. Fuck!”

He pulls back, his fists clenched.

Saga realizes that with this lie, she needs a new plan ASAP.

Wake seems to have a similar thought process because he turns back around with wide, frantic eyes. “Saga, listen to me, you need to-”

He is cut off by all the overhead lights blacking out at once, leaving the three of them in total darkness.

Alan and Ilmo curse simultaneously.

Gunshots emanate from the door leading to the station, followed by shouts, followed by screams. Saga rushes over and tries to open it. It’s still locked.

Fuck. Not again.

Finnish translations:

"Nämä ei helvetti suostu jättämään minua rauhaan!" = "These people won't leave me the fuck alone!"

"Puhu järkeä niille!" = "Talk sense into them!"

"Mitä nyt? Mihin olet menossa?" = "What now? Where are you going?"

Thanks for reading! I hope you'll stick with me for the ride...

#alan wake 2 #alan wake 2 spoilers #fanfic #saga anderson #kiran estevez #alan wake #alex casey #aleksi kesä #ilmo koskela #jaakko koskela #fbc #federal bureau of control #a piece of true fiction

8 notes · View notes

girl4music · 6 months

Text

MY TOP 10 FAVOURITE EPISODES OF ‘XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS’ AND WHY I LOVE THEM SO MUCH

(CONTAINS A LOT OF SPOILERS)

'Xena: Warrior Princess’ is a very influential, inspiring and impactful TV show for me. It is my favourite piece of art/entertainment of all-time and it is the backbone and foundation behind my entire philosophy as a human being on this planet. All the show is great, but it’s the episodes that have given me deep life lessons and helped me understand more about myself and the world around me that matter the most to me. I will give a lengthy explanation as to why each one of these specific favourite episodes in my TOP 10 mean so much to me or what it is about them it’s taught me that has made me a better and more evolved version of myself. There is 134 episodes all in all. From most favourite to least favourite, here are my TOP 10 most favourite episodes of 'Xena: Warrior Princess’ and why I love them so much.

1. S03E12: THE BITTER SUITE

‘The Bitter Suite’ is a musical episode. It combines my love for music and drama into one excellently written, produced, directed and composed episode of the show. But that’s not entirely the reason why it makes the very top of my list, although that’s a huge factor. ‘The Rift’ (as Xenites call it) between Xena and Gabrielle all throughout Season 3 is dealt with and put to rest in this episode. The writers use Yin and Yang and the polarities of love/hate, good/evil and peace/war to represent the importance of friendship, honesty, forgiveness and the ability to put someone you love and care about over yourself in their time of need despite whatever animosity you feel towards them due to past circumstances and situations that broke your heart. They use Yin and Yang several times in the show to give such strong and substantial messages, however, this time takes the winning spot for me. The friendship between Xena and Gabrielle is put to the ultimate test when they fall into this dimension of reality called ‘Illusia’. In this strange, whimsical and colourful place everything is designed to be expressed in song and theatrics. It’s such a clever, artistic and extremely thought-provoking episode. There is a lot it taught me that I unconsciously crafted into my own philosophy of life throughout the years. Also, it was the very first episode I ever saw of the show. They were airing Season 3 in the United Kingdom when I came across it at 5 years old in 1997. Its lessons have remained with me since then but I definitely understand it a lot better now I am a grown adult. If there was ever any episode that you should watch of Xena to introduce you to it… and you really don’t care about spoilers… make it this one. I promise you… you won’t regret it.

2. S03E14: FORGIVEN

‘Forgiven’ deals with the themes of forgiveness and redemption. As you may know, the entire concept to the show is about a Warrior Princess named Xena who fights for the good of mankind to redeem herself from her past sins and be forgiven by the world of which she caused immense damage and pain to. So redemption and forgiveness are the biggest and most reiterated themes and overall messages in the show. But never more so prominent and profound than in this episode. We meet a young girl named Tara that reminds Xena of how she used to be before she became an evil warlord. Lost and confused, hanging around the wrong people, doesn’t understand the difference between right and wrong. She picks a fight with Gabrielle to show Xena she’d make a better sidekick. Initially this girl really pissed me off. I thought she was very arrogant and well out of her league to think that she could replace Gabrielle in Xena’s life. But like Gabrielle, I warmed up to her when she crumbled down in tears and confessed that she hates the way she is and wants to change herself. Become a good person. Just as Gabrielle does in the episode, I judged her too quickly. She had a story that hit me hard due to the way I treated people in my own life. It was a real wake up call to me at the time. One I really needed cause gods know I couldn’t be reached otherwise. I was so far beyond real help.

There’s a line in the episode that has really stuck with me throughout the years and still is something I remind myself of even now as often as possible.

XENA: “You are what you do. You can recreate yourself every second of your life.”

3. S01E22: CALLISTO

‘Callisto’ is about a new character we meet late in Season 1. This character becomes the main antagonist of 'Xena: Warrior Princess’ and my favourite character besides the main two leads in the entire show. In the episode before it, ‘The Greater Good’, Xena gets shot in the neck with a poisoned dart and it is revealed to us in this episode who it was that targeted her. Now I don’t just want to talk about the character but also the actress that portrays her as well because that is a massive reason why this episode stands out so much to me over others in Season 1. Hudson Leick plays Callisto and delivers such a remarkable acting performance that gives her character layers and layers of depth, expression and personality. She’s easily on-par with the leads, if not better. I love watching her perform. She’s fantastic!

Excerpt taken from my character study thesis; Section 4: A dark heart is shadowed until the light shines in.

[The introduction of the character Callisto to the show adds a much heavier layer to what is already an overwhelming story of redemption, vengeance, love, forgiveness and balance, which are to me, the main themes in the show that are reiterated repeatedly as it progresses in writing, production and direction. Callisto becomes the main villain in the show, but she isn’t your run-of-the-mill evil villain. Oh, no, no, no. I like to think of Callisto as more of an antagonist than a villain. She has an extremely complicated storyline of her own that inexplicably ties in with Xena’s because Xena murdered her family, or so that’s what she adamantly believes. It’s hard to explain or understand just how much this character is an integral reason for Xena’s reformation from being an evil warlord to a heroine for good, and how the consequences of her dark past have really screwed Callisto up and turned her into, for lack of a better word, a psychopath who is absolutely bent on destroying everything that makes Xena who she is. Starting with her reputation, and eventually escalating to the people she loves and cares about in all the world. This character is so crucial to ‘Xena: Warrior Princess’, that there is never any way to stop her even when she dies. She’s that dedicated to ruining Xena and Gabrielle’s lives. Callisto doesn’t just want to kill Xena. She wants to kill her soul because that is what Xena has done to her. It’s hard to think of Callisto as any kind of villain because you develop such sympathy for her throughout all her appearances in the show. She’s so messed up in the head that you just don’t think of her as an evil person, just an extremely depressed and misunderstood one. What happens to her, in the end, is something that needed to happen, and I was unbelievably happy did. She did terrible things, but she needed the opportunity to be saved and forgiven as Xena did, and fortunately, the show’s producers gave her the ending she deserved.

This leads me on to what happens when Callisto meets Xena face to face for the first time in the late Season 1 episode, titled ‘Callisto’, and how Gabrielle plays a part in stopping Xena from crumbling down in guilt and regret and letting her go because of it once they captured her. Xena doesn’t blame Callisto for how she ended up, knowing that it was her own fault she became that way in the first place. Even if she didn’t mean for her family to be killed in the fire her own men started against her orders all those years ago in ‘Cirra’, Callisto’s hometown, she still felt solely responsible for the consequences that followed.

There is a very important scene, which I call ‘The Promise’ scene, from this episode where Gabrielle asks Xena to promise her that if anything happened to her in their travels together, that she would not turn away from her path of atonement, and rampage like a raving blood-lusted lunatic the way Callisto was. You see for the first time Xena’s vulnerability and struggle with sensitivity. She was finding it so difficult to cry in front of Gabrielle. She tries to send her off to bed before she could see the tears streaming down her face, but Gabrielle wasn’t having it. She made sure she promised her, and that she was sincere with the words. She sees the tears and tries to brush them away from her face. Xena immediately turns away from her and tells her to go to bed, but she doesn’t move. Gabrielle just sits there by her side sharing her pain and accepting her for who she is now, which I find extremely powerful and beautiful. Xena has probably never encountered acceptance like that in her life before, or she wasn’t paying enough attention to see it. The fact that Gabrielle refuses to leave her must have thrown her off. She left herself unguarded for the very first time in her life in front of this young woman. As the flickering flames danced before them, illuminating their faces, we see the Warrior Princess’ walls down for the very first time. The Bard had succeeded in bringing out her sensitive side, if only just for a moment. This would be the beginning of a transformation so intense, it would completely change Xena’s personality and mindset forevermore. Love and forgiveness would be her saving grace, and the beautiful soul sat across from her would be the reason why it happened at all.]

Furthermore, in this episode we also meet Joxer, who becomes the main comic relief in the entire show and gave Gabrielle the chance to be taken seriously as a character instead of the “irritating blonde”, as she’s so often called by other characters in the show, much to my distaste. So because of the introduction of two incredible recurring characters, especially Callisto, this episode ranks high on my list.

4. S05E02: CHAKRAM

‘Chakram’ goes back to the Yin and Yang representation of the show. They use it as the main plotline of the episode in that there is a Light and Dark chakram and the plot was to retrieve the chakram of Light from the temple of the Tao because Xena has always had the Dark chakram and it broke earlier in the show. It’s one of the many episodes in the entire show where the character Ares: The God Of War represents Xena’s Dark side and Gabrielle Xena’s Light side. But this time with a little bit of a twist, as it is Gabrielle that directs Xena back to her Dark side again due to Xena having lost her sense-of-self and the memories of who she was in her past after the both of them were crucified at the end of Season 4 and were brought back to life again through another new character in the show, Eli, at the start of Season 5. This episode means a lot to me because it really clarifies how important it is to have balance in your life and in yourself. A balance of Light and Dark to really understand both and be whole with everything you are as a soul. All that makes you you.

There is a really great scene in the episode, that’s probably my favourite scene, where Xena is praying to some kind of deity, most likely the ‘One God’ of Eli’s religion. It is never revealed who or what exactly she’s praying to but Gabrielle notices and is concerned about her because Xena won’t defend herself when she is attacked anymore, nor does she remember anything violent or negative about herself and her past. Xena questions her whether they’re doing the right thing in restoring her darkness and how that could even be a good thing to do. Gabrielle replies in such a way that is very philosophical and wise that you don’t hear from her in quite awhile in the show. She says “I think it’s vital. I know that sounds strange, coming from me. I think you have to know the darkest part of yourself to be whole.” Xena exclaims back “But this way, I harm no one!” Gabrielle counters “But Xena, what about the people who harm others? Xena, you have this balance of lightness and darkness. Without both of those, the very best in you is defenceless.“ That scene and that dialogue helped me to realize something amazing about myself and the way I look at everything negative I do as something that takes away from who I am as a soul. But really it’s just giving the way to the rise of something much more positive and helping me to understand myself better and recognize the importance of polarity and the teachings of Yin and Yang. It’s a meaningful and motivating episode to me because it represents what I call ‘The Grey Area’ in the best way that I could never explain myself.

Also, Xena gets a cool new and improved chakram with the Yin-Yang design when she neutralises the Light and Dark chakrams together, which brings her back to her former self again, so that was awesome too. I love the way they did this episode so much. I especially love that both lead characters evolved because of the need to be there for each other. The need to protect and defend one another. That’s precisely what their relationship is fundamentally about and they hit it on the nail with this episode. Who said Season 5 didn’t show the love between them? Look deeper. The love is there, it’s just not in the way that you expect. It’s in the themes represented. It’s in the fundamental message that someone that cares about you has to put aside what scares them about you and do what’s best for you.

5. S02E15: A DAY IN THE LIFE

‘A Day In The Life’ is a comedy episode that centers around Xena and Gabrielle’s average day of fighting for the innocent. Now while this episode is highly regarded in the fanbase because of the hilarious things Xena and Gabrielle do to each other to affectionately aggravate one another that drives them both crazy like a squabbling old married couple, it’s also got a very inspiring moral to it at the same time. That you do not need to make yourself the victim in thinking of yourself as unworthy or unappealing to the one you love, and that you have your own strength to fight your own battles and don’t necessarily need someone to defend or protect you all the time. You see, in this episode you are introduced to a couple, Minya and Hower, that fall into somewhat of an estranged relationship when Hower falls in love with Xena as soon as he meets her. Hower is the first person of the couple you get to know, but when you meet Minya, you find out she’s a big fan of the Warrior Princess, but begins to view her with disgust and jealousy when she realizes her boyfriend is attracted to her. Xena and Gabrielle, while occupied with their own married couple problems, have to sort this out and make it clear to Hower that he has no chance with Xena. Xena gives some advice to Minya on how to handle men and she becomes this strong, independent and extremely confident woman that knocks a warlord to his feet that impresses Hower and she no longer feels victimised by him or anyone else. This ignites the flame in their relationship again and Xena and Gabrielle learn to overcome their own differences in the meanwhile because of being inspired to by them.

Furthermore, Xena, the brilliant strategic thinker she is, finds a way to kill two birds with one stone by stopping both an army and defeating a giant. There is this cute little moment in the middle of the episode where she tells Gabrielle that by defeating the giant Gareth, she will be repaying an old friend back from having to fight against him for ‘The Greater Good’, which ultimately led to his death. I thought that was very endearing. It’s a great episode. Funny, yet has a lot of substance to it. At least to me it does. It’s definitely my favourite comedy episode in the entire show and it is another great introductory episode to come to know the comedy and campy side of Xena because Xena isn’t dramatic and serious all the time and that’s part of its charm as a 90’s show.

6. S04E07: LOCKED UP AND TIED DOWN

‘Locked Up And Tied Down’ has Xena dealing with the justification for her regretful past. She is convicted and tried for a murder she committed to a young woman years ago, that has only just seemed to follow her up now. I thought that was quite weird at first, but it’s explained why later on. The build-up of the episode has her boarding a boat shackled in chains and leaving a grief-stricken Gabrielle behind to carry out her sentence: life imprisonment on Shark Island. Gabrielle follows her, of course, and tries to free her while masquerading as the new healer for the prisoners. It is here the sudden event of Xena’s conviction begins to make sense, as Gabrielle discovers that the person Xena, apparently, murdered, is the one who condemned her. It’s an episode where the empathetic ways of Gabrielle transform someone into finding their power and peace again, the way she has done for Xena.

Meanwhile, the opposite is happening to Xena. She feels an immense amount of contempt in herself for all the horrible things she’s done. She’s so disgusted with herself, that she takes accountability for any kind of punishment or chore any of the prisoners are given while on Shark Island, along with her own. For me, that was an extremely painful thing to watch. My hero literally just giving up everything, including Gabrielle, because she hated herself. It was awful to watch how she just let the guards order and push her around like that and have all authority over her. But as painful and awful as it was to watch, it made me understand that forgiving yourself isn’t easy when your past sins follow you around and weigh you down when you’re trying to climb back up in your life. It’s not justice to just feel remorse for what you’ve done. You have to pay for those sins and accept the consequences of the pain and damage you’ve caused to others. You don’t get a free pass just because you believe you’ve repented for your sins. Others make that decision for you. Which means redemption is not earned and can’t be. It’s decided by others. It’s not a nice lesson to learn, but it is an important and realistic one. What’s more is you need to stop seeing yourself as a victim, because nobody is going to have mercy on you if you’ve done wrong. You have to own up to your crimes and deal with the consequences of your own actions. It’s a very dark, twisted and dramatic episode, but that’s just the kind of TV that I love to watch. That’s why this episode is one of my absolute favourites. This show is not afraid to tell the truth of the darkness of its themes or let the leads off for doing questionable things, unlike 'Hercules: The Legendary Journeys’, and because of it, it is far superior to it in writing, directing and acting.

7. S06E02: THE HAUNTING OF AMPHIPOLIS

‘The Haunting Of Amphipolis’ sees Xena, Gabrielle and the newly reformed daughter of Xena, Eve, go back to Xena’s hometown after over 25 years to find that something has gone terribly wrong. Xena’s mother, Cyrene, is dead and the entire town has been wrecked and abandoned. There is a great evil that has permeated it and wreaked havoc that turned it into a hell hole of death, torture, pain, grief and just outright carnage. 'Xena: Warrior Princess’ finally gets a HORROR story. My favourite producer, Sam Raimi, who executive produces the show along with Rob Tapert, had a lot to do with this episode and you can tell because it’s his sort of episode. His creative area of expertise. Horror, just without the comedy, although there is some well-hidden dark humour in there that only an enthusiast of the original Evil Dead film series will pick up. And I am somewhat of a fan.

Okay, so I’m cheating a bit here. This episode isn’t really all that inspiring or really teaches you anything of any importance whatsoever. It’s just… I love horror basically, and I was waiting for Xena to have some sort of episode where they show blood, guts and gore since it’s done every other genre known to man. If you read my writing about my favourite art/entertainment, you would know what I’m like with begging creators to incorporate versatility. It’s a big drawing card for me when it comes to art/entertainment. There’s not much else to say. There’s a lot of weirdness, disturbing and creepy crap that goes on in it that is right up my alley. It makes my TOP 10 because it’s just something that I enjoy watching and suits my passions for TV media in general. It’s my niche. There’s no moral or message of significance. Honestly, I am just a sick person who loves watching sick stuff. So there you have it. It is an acquired taste and not for the faint-hearted, so I probably wouldn’t recommend watching this one if you do not like or are not familiar with horror. It’s a great one to watch for Halloween though, which I’m sure was the intent behind creating and airing it.

Oh, and Xena finally teaches Gabrielle ‘The Pinch’. One of Xena’s trademarks in her “I have many skills” repertoire. Or at least she teaches her how to take ‘The Pinch’ off. Good enough for me. Xena teaches her everything she knows in the end anyway.

8. S01E24: IS THERE A DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE?

‘Is There A Doctor In The House?’ finds our heroines, Xena and Gabrielle, in the middle of an ongoing civil war between the Mitoans and the Thessalians. They end up bumping into a friendly face in the name of Ephiny, an Amazon in Gabrielle’s tribe, who is extremely pregnant and about ready to have her baby. They capture a Mitoan commander and take refuge in a Thessalian temple where the wounded, sick and dying are being treated. This episode is very upsetting. To cut to the chase: SPOILER ALERT! Gabrielle dies. Not only do you get to see Xena’s impressive demonstrations of medical aid, surgery and respiratory reparation, but you also come to see the incredible influence Gabrielle has had on her life throughout Season 1. Xena showcases such vulnerability, compassion and even fear while begging and pleading for Gabrielle to wake up. She absolutely crumbles down in emotion the likes you’ve never seen from her in the show thus far, and you realize that this adventurous and naive young woman she helped on to the back of her horse, Argo, not too long ago, has had an unbelievable effect on her mindset and personality. She has fallen completely in love with her and her ways of empathy and understanding of ��The Greater Good’ and she just can’t let her go peacefully. She demands for her to return to the land of the living, screaming “Don’t leave me! DON’T LEAVE ME!”. Through much persistence and determination Xena’s remarkable medical and healing skills somehow miraculously bring her back to life again. Don’t ask me how, she just does it, and Xena claims it’s entirely Gabrielle’s doing. I disagree. I think it was Xena that achieved that feat because her love for Gabrielle guided her efforts. Their relationship reaches even greater heights. At least from Xena’s point of view it does.

Elsewhere in the episode, before that dramatic and climactic ending, that I also thought was a great addition to the theme, we go back to Ephiny and watch her talk with the Mitoan general named Marmax, who the Amazon has been put in his care. Ephiny has developed a hatred for the Mitoans because they killed her husband, but is able to tolerate Marmax because she wanted him to understand something about hatred. That the war has to end somewhere for their children’s sake. She challenges him by asking “Is bloodshed all you want them to know?” and the scene cuts out. I thought that was very powerful and it made me appreciate the episode all the more. This episode inspired me a lot and makes it on my TOP 10 because of it.

9. S02E20: THE PRICE

‘The Price’ is an episode about understanding what it means to be human and the price you pay if you’re ignorant to the truth because you’re blinded by hatred and anger. Xena and Gabrielle stumble into dangerous waters and come across The Horde. Xena remembers this barbaric tribe from when they annihilated her army sometime after the Battle of Corinth. She doesn’t have any understanding or knowledge on them other than what she knows from her past when she was the Destroyer of Nations, and claims they have no will other than to kill everything and anything they come into awareness with. They pick up a wounded soldier in their canoe and bring him into the Athenian Army battlement camp while the war still rages on. Xena becomes ruthless whenever she has an army around her and something to hate and direct her anger at and Gabrielle never likes or accepts it. While Xena is taking command of the Athenian Army to try to destroy The Horde by any means she can, Gabrielle is tending to the wounded in an old armoury unit where there are no doctors or healers and she takes the initiative to be the lead nurse to care for those who are dying and need help. This is where you come to see that Xena cannot stay on the right path for herself and would easily just as go back to her dark days if not for Gabrielle’s hold on her guilty conscience. Gabrielle argues with Xena that maybe The Horde want something and if they had it, they would leave them alone. Or maybe they could find common ground if they learn to understand their ways first. Gabrielle finds the answer when Xena captures one of them and she’s ladling water right next to the tied up Horde. He was breathlessly repeating “Kaltaka”, which is what all the dying Horde chant endlessly on the battlefield. She previously believed it was the name of their god and it was the clue she needed. It translated to water. They just wanted water because the Athenians poisoned the rivers. They didn’t want to fight anymore, they were just desperate for a way to keep themselves alive. Gabrielle defies Xena and goes out into the battlefield to feed the dying Horde weaponless and The Horde crowd around her but don’t hurt her. They notice she was just trying to help. Through this act of kindness towards the opposing side Xena comes to her senses and realizes she’s wrong about them. She goes back to the captured Horde and experiments with her newfound theory that maybe they have a code of conduct that is in common with her own. A Warrior’s Code. She understands him and releases him. Then she goes out to fight The Horde Leader who is the one causing all the trouble for the tribe and defeats him. As she’s walking away with her back turned to the entire Horde tribe, they raise their bows and arrows and Gabrielle screams out “LOOK OUT!”. They don’t target Xena. They target The Horde Leader who was screaming in anguish at being defeated. Xena was now their leader by defeating their previous leader. That was their Warrior’s Code. No real difference to the Amazons, an indigenous tribe they knew so well and wore just as much war paint.

The message is self-explanatory: Don’t judge a person by their race, religion, language, culture, colour, sexuality, gender, or by what you ignorantly think you know about them without getting to know or understand them. You risk losing your humanity.

10. S01E02: CHARIOTS OF WAR

‘Chariots Of War’ is about compliance and expectations from relationships that affects our choices and perceptions of reality. Xena gets herself caught up in a situation where she’s trying to stop these two warlords ravaging a settlement where a community of villagers were trying to build a new home for themselves and Xena takes an arrow to the chest and faints. A single father takes her into his home and cares for her because she saved his young son from being crushed by the newly built settlement that one of the warlords pulled down. While injured, Xena learns of this family’s plight and tries to put it right for them, promising not to use violence to do it, obeying the wishes of the one who took her in who does not want another war. She becomes very affectionate with the father and his family and finds it a struggle to leave them because of it.

Meanwhile, Gabrielle meets one of the warlords in the inn she takes refuge in because a smelly and disgusting drunk keeps hitting on her. She tells a lie that she already has a boyfriend and he is with them in the inn. To prove it, a bold as brass Bard walks right up to this warlord and complete stranger and kisses him on the mouth and requests that he pretends he knows her to keep away from the horny drunks. They start a conversation about what they do and the warlord, who’s name is Sphaerus, tells her that he works for his father, but he makes him do things he doesn’t like and doesn’t want to do and this insightful conversation between them happens that I really love and relate to myself…

GABRIELLE: “My mother always wanted me to get married and have kids. And I remember telling her that I’d always be grateful for the way that she raised me, but she couldn’t expect me to pay for that with my future.”

SPHAERUS: “That’s very insightful.”

GABRIELLE: “It’s a gift. Well, anyway, I came to a point in my life when I had to make a choice and I thought about who I really was, and I made it.”

I’ve written an entire article about this that was inspired by this episode and this is a piece of that article where I explain the moral to the episode because, for me, that’s part of the reason why this episode is so damn brilliant and one of the best.

[The moral to this episode is about what is expected of us to comply to by our family, our employment, our sociality and our romantic relationships and trying to apply it to who we are, how we choose to view reality and how we live by our own perceptions. I tend to think the more we empathise with the people that love or care about us and that we love and care about, the better our relationships become. The reason why I think this is because you can only walk a mile in someone’s shoes once you have begun to understand them… But that doesn’t mean you should take on their beliefs… their perceptions… or their lifestyle. You have your own to live by, and that’s how it should be. What you believe in and what lifestyle you choose to live by is what is your truth. And no one should take that away from you. Not even those closest to you.]

Another reason I love it is because the writer, Josh Becker, did something very clever with it in setting up the idea of Xena and Gabrielle being each other’s Yin and Yang before they even realize that for themselves. And he does it by using none other than their MALE COUNTERPARTS and LOVE INTERESTS. It is ingenious writing and something you will only pick up on with multiple rewatches of the show.

—————————————————————————–

That’s my TOP 10 favourite episodes of 'Xena: Warrior Princess’. It’s probably not the list that you were expecting since Gabrielle is my favourite character. You would think I would go with Gabrielle-centric episodes. But when it’s your favourite show, you don’t necessarily care about how much screen-time your favourite character has or hasn’t. What you care about is how well your favourite character is integrated into each episode and there is a lot of episodes that are extremely well written in character representation and development so it’s not a factor.

I’ve already written a hell of a lot so I’ll just end it briefly. Thank you for reading. I hope you check the show out for yourselves if you haven’t seen it and come to love it as much as I do. And if you’ve already watched the show all the way through once or more, what is your TOP 10 favourite episodes? Feel free to express why as I have done. I’d love to know how this show has impacted you the way it has impacted me.

Thank you.

- Girl4Music

#xena warrior princess #top 10 favourite episodes #xena #lucy lawless #gabrielle #renee o'connor #the bitter suite #forgiven #callisto #chakram #a day in the life #locked up and tied down #the haunting of amphipolis #is there a doctor in the house #the price #chariots of war

19 notes · View notes

elizaellwrites · 20 days

Text

WIP Questionaire

Thank you @worldstogetlostin for tagging me here!

Rules: Answer as many (or as few) of the questions about your WIP as you can.

1. What was the first part of your wip that you created?

My ocs, but not all of them. They were part of a separate plotline that I abandoned quickly because it was terrible and cringy. Parts of them changed as they developed, but the core of their characters began here.

The originals are: Annamarie, Rachel, Jacob, Elaine, Jol (the daemon), and Natalie (Anna's mom)

2. If your story was a TV show, what would the theme song/intro be?

I imagine it would be like the soundtracks I listen to while writing. These include songs from Narnia, HTTYD, Pirates of the Carribean, etc. I'm no composer, so I'd trust the judgment of the music expert on the case.

3. Who are your favourite characters you've made? Why?

My automatic instinct is to jump to "all of them," but I'll be reasonable here and keep it brief because I could write an essay about each of them. I won't because a) that's ridiculous to do here, and b) a lot of this has to do with spoilers/stuff on the down-low. My Top 3 (these may be surprising or not) in no particular order are:

Seniar- He's more than Anna's dad, he's lived many lives and seen too much. He's a prince who stepped up to protect his people, defied expectations, and fell in love with a human, earned his place as a war hero, and did his best to protect and raise his daughter after everything he had known and cared for was destroyed in front of him. He might not be perfect, but he's dedicated his life to other people and still provides for his daughter despite carrying the burden of his past.

Roselle- The living dead, her existence shakes the very foundation of my other characters. After being introduced to the universe, nothing was the same, and it was all for the better. She also has this strange charm about her, like she demands attention. Her life and her death are quite possibly the 2nd and 3rd most influential factors in my entire plotline- only outdone by the destruction of Ariya. She's also on a team of her own with a willingness to overlook the rulebook, which makes her extremely fun to write.

Jacob- He's caring but distant at the same time, his family is a disaster, and he's a rule follower and a rule breaker all at once. He's an enigma and has been from the start. You think you know him, but do you really? He's always running from something, facing challenges like he's trying to prove something to himself. Him and his siblings are the driving force of a lot of plot lines, and for good reason. You just can't help but wonder whether he is a good person or a bad person, and maybe he's just both.

4. What other pieces of media do you think would share a fan base for your story?

I'm honestly not 100% sure. My inspiration to write this WIP truly started with Percy Jackson, so there could be some crossover there. Really anyone with an interest in fantasy and okay with dark subjects could find it interesting.

5. What has been your biggest struggle with your wip?

Writer's block. Whether it's because a character wasn't connecting with the action the way I wanted them to, or if I'm having a day that everything I write isn't something I'm proud of... I'm in college and work, so there's often a lot on my mind, and stress and creativity don't flow well together in my brain.

6. Are there animals in your story? Talk about them!

Anna(marie) has a cat named Isa(belle) who she picked up while moving around with her father. Isa is a beautiful and sweet black Turkish Angora whose personality is modeled after my childhood cat Belle. She's not a major focus, but she means a lot to Anna as one of the few beings she could connect with outside of her father.

All other animals are wildlife and have to do with worldbuilding, which could go crazy, so I'll stop it there.

7. How do your characters get around? (ex. trains, horses, cars, dragons, etc.)

While on Earth and involved in traditionally human things, they travel in cars because their goal is to blend in and hide in plain sight.

In the list of natural (magic) Hecathian abilities, one of them is Teleportation. Characters with this ability, or in proximity to someone who is, travel this way. The challenge is it takes more energy the further you are traveling and needs quite a bit of practice and discipline to do it safely and correctly. A couple examples of characters with this power are Seniar, Annamarie (duh), and Jaleya (Cameron's sister).

8. What part of your wip are you working on rn?

Chapter 16- near the middle of book 1.

Not even close to where I want to end this.

9. What aspects (tropes, maybe?) of your wip do you think will draw people in?

I suppose the variety of aspects that appear. There is action, adventure, drama, complex characters and relationship dynamics, worldbuilding aspects, and the world and timeline just keeps expanding with different stories to tell. There's a lot to choose from, and it's all interconnected in the same universe.

10. What are your hopes for your wip?

I have a whole series planned, plus spin-offs and expanded stories to supplement it. I hope I have time to get through all of it because I want my main WIP and its world to someday be a complete set and no longer stuck only in my brain and scattered through thousands of notes.

Lightly tagging @my-cursed-prince, @willtheweaver, @jacqueswriteblrlibrary, @ashen-crest and anyone else who wants to tell me about their WIP!

#writer #writeblr #my wip #tag game #writing tag game #current wip #currently writing

7 notes · View notes

morganas-pendragons · 2 years

Text

There’s Only Legacies Burning | O.K.

[not my gif!]

Guys, truthfully, I am not okay after watching that episode. It sucked for me. I'm not someone who usually reacts to TV and what tv shows bring because I'm aware it's not real, but this episode felt so real it made me physically nauseous despite how excellent it was.

spoilers for Kenobi 1x03. let me know if I should write for him again!

tagging my name twin @penfullofwordsaheadfullofstories

He can't breathe. Everything is encompassed by fire, and he can't breathe.

Part of him knew that this day was going to be coming. Even if he hadn't been entirely aware that Darth Vader was walking around in the body of his former Padawan, Obi-Wan knew that he would have to face the main who had essentially brought the galaxy to ruin.

It didn't mean he couldn't try to run from it.

Leia and Tala and yourself were safe. He was more then okay with being the diversion if it meant you and Leia got back to Alderaan. He had accepted Death as a gift a long time ago. This would be okay. He would be okay.

Because wasn't he always? People knew him as Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Master of Soresu and a Jedi so steeped in the Light Side that he practically embodied it.

The war he wasn't even supposed to be fighting in just kept taking and taking and taking. Jedi were not soldiers. They were never meant to be soldiers, and yet the Dark Lord of the Sith had orchestrated an entire war that had inevitably led to their downfall. He had lost, time and time again. Lost Qui-Gon, lost to Maul, lost Satine, lost Ahsoka and Anakin... he was so used to losing things, losing people, that he seemed to have forgotten what it was like to succeed. To win.

If only The Great Negotiator of Yesterday could see him now...

He had lost. They had lost. What was the point of fighting, of trying to be someone of a long-dead era, when there was nothing left to fight for? What was the point of trying to stay loyal to the Light when the whole galaxy was encased in darkness and death?

He looks at Leia's face and sees it then, just moments before they part. The reason why he's decided to do this. Hope. Joy. The promise of a future.

But when he looks at you? There is all of the love he feels as if he has been deprived of. Loving you, being with you, is like replenishing the air that has been snatched from his lungs and granting him the ability to remember what it's like to properly breathe again.

When he looks at you, the embers of the man who compose Obi-Wan Kenobi begin to grow stronger, and the pieces are slowly put back together by the capable hands of someone who has always held his heart.

It's a shame that he will now die without it.

"Now you will suffer, Obi-Wan. Your pain has only just begun.”

It’s fitting, now that he thinks about it. Even if Anakin always did have a flare for the dramatic. Obi-Wan had left him in the prime of his suffering and his rage when he’d departed from his brother’s burning body on the banks of Mustafar. Those fires had burnt away what little remained of Anakin Skywalker and had birthed Darth Vader.

These fires will burn away the last of Obi-Wan and birth Ben.

The fire goes out for a miraculous reprieve, but Obi-Wan finds himself unable to move very well knowing that he’s failed his mission. Again. He failed you, and he failed Anakin, and he failed Ahsoka and Luke and Leia and Cody-

“Bring him to me.”

Somewhere in the distance he hears a cry from a stormtrooper - a failed attempt to recreate the soldiers that the clones had once been to the republic - as a teal lightsaber flies out of the darkness in a wide arc around Vader that seemingly takes out every single trooper who had been looking to kill him.

Vader tilts his head. He clearly wasn’t counting on you, emerging from the dark right in between himself and Obi-Wan.

Your saber flies back into your hand to be gripped by white knuckles.

“I believe you’re trying to take something that doesn’t belong to you, chaak’ar. You don’t get to have Obi-Wan.” You tilt your head to the side in a manner that just screams threatening. “But you already knew that, didn’t you?”

Vader is not amused. “Your devotion to the Light is futile. Your anger and your bitterness would have made you a fantastic Sith apprentice. If only you had seen it sooner, then you would not have suffered the fate of falling in love with the man who made me this.” Vader replied.

You rolled your eyes. Even if this.. thing... had taken over Anakin’s body, he still had the ability to somehow make everything seem much more dramatic by making it about himself.

“I’ve heard enough of your lies. You were the one who failed. Failed me, failed him,” You point behind you at the ground where Obi-Wan lays. “I came into Anakin’s life too late. I know that. Despite that, when we loved him time and time again, loving him then and loving him now only made us weak.” You loosen the grip on the hilt of your blade and eye the machine in the corner, in which you most definitely intend to use the opportunity of an explosion to slip away into the night. “Goodbye, Lord Vader.”

Your saber flies toward the panel, and Tala watches as you and NED bend down to scoop Obi-Wan up while fleeing under the cover of night fall, leaving Lord Vader to watch the flames dissipate before him.

His time will come.

***

“Are you sure you have it handled?”

“Yes. Just give me the medkit and bacta patches... Thank you. Now go get a handle on Leia. Now.”

Obi-Wan slowly begins to stir, groaning lowly in his throat as his eyes slowly flutter open. The three of you have taken shelter - where, he doesn’t know - but the dim light only provides him just enough ability to see the concern pressed into your aspect above him.

He swallows, which feels like the equivalent of swallowing gallons of sand, and speaks, “Darling-”

“Shhhhhhh.” Your fingertips circles his temples where his head rests on your lap. Obi-Wan softens and leans into your touch almost instinctively, seeking the safety and the love that practically bleeds from your force signature as you hold him in your embrace. “I’m right here. Be still, my love. I’m still working on healing your burns.”

Ah. Ten years ago, he would’ve bristled at the thought of healers - much less being touched by one - but you had proven to him that he would and could allow himself to be vulnerable enough, to be human enough to put himself first and seek out the care he needs. He’d never been told he could put himself first. That his needs mattered as much as anyone else's.

Not until you.

“How-How is she? How is Leia?”

You hush him quietly and move your fingers to his arms. His arms that are searing with pain from his injuries, barely able to be moved but screaming in protest when he tries to sit up to look for the girl. “She’ll arrive soon. Tala has gone for her.” You murmur, pressing your palm to his forehead to ease his head back into your lap.

Several more minutes pass as you continue to work on healing Obi-Wan’s injuries with The Force. They’re not as bad as what the lava had inflicted on Anakin, but they’re bad enough that he whimpers when you apply too much pressure or when the skin begins to mend itself again.

The silence has enveloped you both in a way that is intimately familiar when he whispers, almost shamefully, “He wanted me to die. He... that was Anakin, and he wanted me to die.”

Tears prick the back of your eyes as he rubs the heels of his hands against his own. He doesn’t deserve this. Doesn’t deserve to feel this all-encompassing pain that would have surely drowned him by now had he not had you to anchor himself to.

He deserved that. He at least deserved sanctuary when he continuously fell at the altar of sacrifice. That was all he’d done in the time you’d known him. Sacrifice.

No more.

Carefully wrapping your arms around his middle, you brace your feet against the bottom of the cot and scoot backward until your back is against the wall and Obi-Wan’s head is turned in the crook of your neck. He is a solid and steady weight against your chest.

“I want you to listen to me, okay?” You whisper. He nods uneasily and braces shaking hands against your hips under your tunic, using the warmth of your skin and the steady thrum of your heartbeat to calm himself. He’d been doing that more and more as the years came and went and the nightmares grew progressively worse. “I know you and I met so late in the war. We met too late for me to have a real impact on those closest to you, for me to be able to have made an effect enough to have some kind of impact on Anakin. Fate was against me from the start... but The Force, in all that pain and all that anguish, led me to you.” His breath puffs softly against the column of your neck as he listens to you. “Anakin’s legacy is in everything in this galaxy. The clone veteran we saw in the faded 501st armor? What happened to all of those brothers, to-” You swallow bile in your throat at the thought of Cody. He hadn’t deserved that. “Him... that’s on Anakin. The younglings and the Masters and Ahsoka.. those are all of him. His legacy is burning, Obi-Wan.” You tilt your chin to where his head rests and press your nose into his hair. “I don’t think it’ll ever stop. But you know what’s true.. even in the midst of all of this?”

“Hm?”

His fingers tighten their hold on you as you kiss his temple, then his jaw, and the sound he makes when you tilt his head up to meet weary blue eyes makes your heart clench in your chest. “I love you.” You murmur. Those weary blue eyes fill with tears that drip onto soot stained cheeks as your foreheads meet.

And for that sole second of time that you’re tucked into the corner of some room on some distant planet, Obi-Wan Kenobi finds himself thankful that he’s made all of those sacrifices over his agonizing life.

If it would lead him to you.. the pain, the misery, the crippling loneliness... it would always be worth it.

do we want more Kenobi fic??? cause I want to do more...

#Obi-Wan Kenobi #Obi-Wan Kenobi x Reader #Obi-Wan x Reader #obi wan x reader #obi wan x you #Star Wars fanfic #Star Wars fanfiction #Star Wars imagines #Star Wars oneshots #Kenobi show #Obi-Wan show #Disney plus

352 notes · View notes