#i don't think she even answers to her previous name or rank

[anghraine]

squirrelwrangler said:

I love reading your struggles w/ GW2's treatment of the Charr and Ascalon. every time I resist the urge to shower you with XIV lore to pick your brain over the Garleans and the multi-expansion examinations of imperialism, anti-colonialism, etc...

Aww, thanks! I'm glad someone enjoys it—sometimes I do have to vent, lol, but I rarely expect others to care. I've got a thing in drafts about my wildly AU headcanon for my Charr PC, since the only way I can tolerate having one is to imagine an "are we the baddies?" epiphany that leads her to turn her back on the Charr war machine. (Except to try and awkwardly make things right insofar as it's possible for one person to do while also throwing herself into the fight against the dragons.) But I wavered about actually posting it because I was like ... eh, that's probably too niche even for the people who do care about the GW2 stuff.

(The Charr are sort of steampunk Roman-themed as a society in GW2, and most have Latin given names + some hardcore Nounverber surname/epithet like "Foereaver" or whatnot. I decided my Charr keeps the format and never tries to pretend she's anything but a Charr or that she doesn't care about Charr honor, she just comes to feel that the "victory at any cost" ethos is actually dishonorable. So she renames herself Pax Vowkeeper and tries to find a better way.)

WRT FFXIV, it's hard to know how I'd respond without experiencing the story myself. But I do like to see other people engaging with their preferred MMOs the way that I've been engaged with Tyria's lore for the last seventeen years!

[vikintor]

Calling all Gaythyanki! How participate:

[☺ CONTEXT ☺]

What is this about ?

"Githmap" is a small one-map Githyanki fan-project being made using Doom2. I'm working on it as a way to learn Doom mapping while using a theme I'm passionate about.

You play as Jez'rathki, a Githyanki cleric who woke on a stronghold after a near-death experience. You should talk to other Githyanki and explore the place.

who is working on the map ?

I'm Vikintor (made the games Teocida, Estigma and Tamashii), I'm mostly working with surreal and psychedelic horror oriented games, but the Githmap is a small fan project I'm making in my free time as I'm learning GZDoom and because I only got interested in D&D thanks to the Githyanki.

What you're looking for?

I'm looking for Githyanki/Githzerai fans out there and asking if you want to add your Githyanki OC character as a guest appearance. They will be an static Doom NPC the player can only talk to.

They aren't many rules about how participate besides one point: You Githyanki/Githzerai must have Gith noses and ears (Im adding a few exceptions for other races appearances, but I'm not adding Githyanki with human noses, I talked about why on a previous post.)

Where my OC character will be?

Your character will be placed anywhere in the stronghold, This stronghold is a hidden place that serves as a sanctuary for the Githyanki and Githzerai alike. Most of the Giths you will find here are considered traitors, some just need a place to plot political assassinations (including the Queen's assassination), and others are refugees who escaped from Tu'narath.

This is how your OC will look in the game:

[☺ PARTICIPATION☺]

First step [graphics] :

I need 5 frames of your Githyanki character in each direction as the images below:

The sprites will lose details, as I'm converting it to doom. I recommend sending me the 5 sprites as a transparent PNG with 540x540 resolution (like the images above, you can copy them as base).

As a console player I get my character directions by printing this screen and cutting the images on PC.

Don't know how to prepare these sprites? I made a short guide on this link HERE:

Second step [dialogue] :

Now the fun part.

Jez'rathki is a Githyanki cleric who will be asking some questions to your Githyanki OC / TAV (she likes to meet more of her kin, but sometimes she's way too curious). Your character can answer Jez'rathki the way you want, they can be friendly, evasive, rude or just refusing to answer some of the questions, maybe you decide that Jez'rathki doesn't deserve to be trusted, so be free to give your character their voice.

Below are the questions, you don't need to answer every question if you don't need. If a question has a blank response I will just add the others questions/answers instead. Just remember that these questions must be answered by your Character in first person.

QUESTIONS:

— Greeting message

The first one is not even a question, just write your character's greeting message, or better, how they answer by being called by Jez'rathki to start a conversation.

— Identify yourself.

Make your OC introduce themself, they can answer their name/nickname, their occupation, class/ranking, and a bit of their backstory.

— Tell me about your Creche.

(you can change it to Tell me about your home if needed)

Where your OC was raised and how they feel about their home

— I need to know how you fight.

Your Oc can explain how they fight, their class and tactics, example: here they can explain details of being a warlock, a gish, githwarrior, knight, mlar, Hr'a'cknir, etc. Or maybe they don't fight at all.

— Can I ask a more personal question?

Write what your OC would say if Jez'rathki tried to get personal.

— What is your relationship with the divinity?

What your Gith thinks about the divinity. It can be their relationship with Vlaakith or another one of the deities or religion in general. Commonly, Githyanki don't like that topic, as they can be killed if they follow other deities.

— What do you usually do in your free time?

Let your OC Tell their hobbies or whatever they like to do in their free time.

— What is your life goal?

Make your OC explain their life goal, it can be their campaign objective, quest etc.

— How is your relationship with your allies?

How your OC treat their allies? the formal way? As a resource? As friends?

— Do you have someone special in your life?

Your character can talk about someone they consider as family, a friend, or a lover, just try to avoid canon BG3 character references if your character lore is BG3 based, as more Githyanki OC on the map can start telling similar stories that may contradict your character. If this is the case, you can avoid using the names of canonical characters and just generically mention their occupations. example: Lae'zel can become just a "Fierce Gith warrior" and Karlach a "Tiefling with an almost incurable illness".

— Say something you would never do, and why?

Maybe they would never betray a friend, or they would never give up something they achieved. Explaining why could go deeper into their motivations.

— What is a perfect day to you?

Let your OC describe how a perfect day would be. the routine, the weather, etc.

— How do you celebrate a victory?

Do your OC celebrate their victories? how? giving a party? Drinking a lot? Getting laid? Sleeping? Or they don't like celebrating? Maybe your OC has a recommendation for Jez'rathki, yeah, they can give her an idea of how to celebrate a victory.

— How do you deal with defeat and losses?

What your OC feels about losses, can be about losing literal and nonliteral fights. Maybe they have some wisdom to share on the subject, or maybe they don't. Perhaps some do not accept losing in any circumstance.

— How do you think you will be remembered after death?

Do they care about this? How do they feel about the idea of being worshiped as an icon after death or they're afraid of being forgotten? Remember, every answer should be in first person, it's the voice of your OC.

Third step [LETS GOOO] :

Feel free to ask me your questions, I will be fixing some typos in this post and changing some aspects as necessary.

I'm open to suggestions, lets have fun.

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

Copy everything below to a new Tumblr post with all the information needed. Change the descriptions with your OC Information, feel free to change the questions if needed:

If you want: You can also share this post and change the information needed (don't forget to add the 5 sprites).

You can use the Hashtags #githmap #githmapoc to make it easy for me and other people to find (you can add your hashtags as well)

and put my @ in the end so I get notified

SUBMISSION EXAMPLE ON THIS LINK

Sorry if I can't add each OC fast, I'm making the map on my free time.

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

[☺ YOUR GITH OC NAME HERE☺]

(you can add an photo/draw of you OC here to make the post more interesting for the viewers)

1. [CHARACTER INFO]

OC NAME: The name of you Gith OC as you want it to appear in the dialogue.

OC PRONOUS: The pronouns of you Gith OC so they can be referenced properly by NPC and the game.

AUTHOR: Your artist name as it will appear in the game credits as the creator and writer of your OC. It can be your @, it will appear alongside your OC NAME in the game.

2. [DIALOGUE]

1. Greeting message:

[answer]

2. Identify yourself:

[answer]

3. Tell me about your Creche:

[answer]

4. I need to know how you fight::

[answer]

5. Can I ask a more personal question?

[answer]

6. What is your relationship with the divinity?

[answer]

7. What do you usually do in your free time?

[answer]

8. What is your life goal?

[answer]

9. How is your relationship with your allies?

[answer]

10. Do you have someone special in your life?

[answer]

11. Say something you would never do, and why?

[answer]

12. What is a perfect day to you?

[answer]

13. How do you celebrate a victory?

[answer]

14. How do you deal with defeat and losses?

[answer]

15. How do you think you will be remembered after death?

[answer]

3. [GRAPHICS]

Post your 5 (FIVE) full body OC sprites, each one facing a direction as shown in the original post, they will be used as the NPC graphics.

(recommended 540x540 transparent png)

4. [BONUS RESOURCES]

If you're ok with it, here you can post as many additional images of your Githyanki/Githzerai OC as you want, which can be portraits, drawings, or paintings, Maybe I will use some of them in the game, credited as the Author name you wrote above.

If you record voice lines in ogg format you can put a link here so it can play when the player interact with your character.

And put my @ in the end so I get notified.

@vikintor

[writingpei]

wicked games (l.m.) - chapter fourteen

previous chapter series masterlist next chapter

pairing: lee minho x reader genre: academic rivals to lovers wc: 5.2k words

i still don't know where everything went

it was practically possible to hear the sound of the clock hands moving second by second in the silent room, filling the environment with a constant tick-tock. the pen's weight was tangible in her palm, as if it were made of lead, and the rhythm of its heavy strain fed the up and down movement of her chest, drenched in nervousness that didn't seem to have disappeared.

the minutes continued to pass, and the questions on the physics test in front of y/n were answered one by one, with absolute caution, as if she was following a fragile surgery, as if at any moment some bogeyman might appear out of nowhere in the room if she wasn't delicate.

she was well aware that her decision to go to work had significantly reduced the time she would put into her academic performance, but she was never someone who allowed herself to be easily shaken.

now, it was no longer her who taught hyunjin, but studied with him, keeping an eye out for the materials he reviewed when there weren't any in the cafe so that she could take advantage of even the free seconds she had, which became scarcer with the pass the days.

she knew she was being left behind in the eternal competition that was her and minho's relationship, and despite all the hate that many viewers would consider "uncalled for", she found herself a little scarred by an anger that burned her chest like a forrest. fire whenever she saw him in the hallways, backs against lockers laughing out loud at silly things with his friends without a care in the world. the poster child for the aristocratic lifestyle of today's society, a boy with the world in his hands and people who worked for him cleaning his shoes kneeling on the floor of the huge mansion he lived in.

it was nothing more than a raw and genuine hatred inside y/n when all the paths her mind went through when thinking about minho came to the inevitable conclusion that this, all of this was a sport for him. studying was a sport, getting good grades was a sport, excelling, being popular, winking at dumb girls across the cafeteria like you were television's newest heartthrob. it was all one big joke and when she looked at how she led her life, the lack of jokes was almost suffocating, a snake around her neck all the time just waiting for the right time to coil completely against her flesh.

when she felt pathetic, she tried to imagine him cleaning the cafeteria bathrooms using only a toilet brush, or having to listen to customers throwing tantrums over a cup of coffee with a smile on his face, not being able to retort or shout back. these thoughts brought her out of her own exasperated situation and made her laugh. she couldn't tell if it was because of the strangeness of minho's presence in these scenarios, how he would look wearing the uniform she has to wear every day, or if it was because, greater than this hatred was the restless desire that maybe, just maybe, lee minho wasn't exactly how she imagined he was.

but she knew it was impossible for that to be real. it was impossible because minho had only shown her his true personality, so she knew her like no one else.

the anger heats up until it cools down and settles in the throat like a stone, accompanied by a feeling of disgust. despite the considerable efforts she had made, her second-place name on the huge ranking list at the entrance to the school screamed in her face that they hadn't been enough. and the damn name of minho was above hers. she could only feel disgust. disgusted because of him? it was no longer a surprise to anyone. however, the disgust she felt was mostly directed at herself. she should have studied harder, spent more late nights studying until her hand ached and her eyes burned with exhaustion.

but now it was too late, and his failure was exposed to all who walked those halls. the feeling of dismay followed her, like a constant shadow, reminding her that her expectations were not met and that she had lost the opportunity to win.

as soon as she turned to flee to the classroom for her first class of the day, she saw minho walking towards the panel, eyes glazed over the top to see who had won, who had gotten the best grade.

she didn't wait long to witness the look of satisfaction on his stupid face and soon she was stomping against the floor, a red fury circling her entire body and she didn't even consider taking a step to the side to avoid him, and she certainly didn't feel pity when she bumped into him with her shoulder, knocking him off balance slightly.

she only heard a scoff behind her but didn't even bother to turn around, however much she felt like it when she heard him whisper “you need to be tamed, jesus”

but, contrary to what one might imagine, no ghost of a smile appeared on minho's lips when he saw his name at the top. all he could think about was what it meant to have his name on top of all those others, a hierarchy. he imagined his father's satisfaction at seeing him do exactly what he'd demanded, a silent submission, a reminder that minho was just the son and that no matter how much he kicked and rebelled, his father would always win.

he felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

“minho" yongbok appeared beside him magically, as if he had materialized there. “i met professor choi on his way here and he asked me to give you your test and congratulated you on first place”

the sheet of paper that yongbok held out to minho made a wave of discomfort run down his spine, but he took it from his best friend's hand none the less.

he looks down at the sheet and looks at the shoulder where the girl had bumped into it on purpose for a few seconds, before the urge to rip the test in half takes over him. ripped it into a thousand pieces and threw it in the nearest garbage, leaving yongbok with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

he pointed at minho, then at the trash can, then at minho, then at the trash can.

“but… why?” he asked.

“it’s just a stupid test, yongie” he shrugged putting his hands in the pocket of his uniform pants and walking unbothered while some people congratulated him on his performance in the hall.

but yongbok didn't understand, so he chose to ask more.

“stupid? i thought you cared about that kind of thing”

“no, at least not now. i have other things keeping me up all night”

“i wonder who that is…” yongbok whispers and pushes the big glasses back into place with his finger.

“what was that?” minho asks suspiciously, having just heard rumbles coming from the friend. minho still can't quite catch the things he whispers when he doesn't want him to hear. it's a normal thing to happen within their friendship, yongbok doesn't know how to shut up and minho can't mature enough to leave his nosy lifestyle behind.

“do you want to go with me to the varsity basketball game on friday?” yongbok asks him as they walk through the noisy halls. minho never went to a basketball game with him in all their years of friendship because when minho didn't want to do something, nothing could make him do it, it didn't matter how much he loved his best friend.

but this time, unlike previous opportunities, minho had a real and concrete reason for not wanting to go. a person, to be precise. as he dragged his steps down the hall, he could see the blond boy approaching, standing out among the other bustling and noisy football players. a feeling of disgust that rose from his feet to his head in a matter of seconds took over his entire body, while yongbok, beside him, seemed mesmerized by the presence of the school's basketball team.

minho's eyes locked on the approaching figure. he had never noticed hwang hyunjin until he bloomed in his field of vision like a very insistent weed. apparently he was the only one who hadn't fallen into the hands of the undeniable charisma he didn't care to hide. for minho, beneath that charming smile and effortless charm, there's something about hyunjin that rubbed him the wrong way. he couldn't explain if it was a gratuitous animosity that resided in the back of his mind, but it was strong enough to make his breath get heavier every time he saw him.

his friend turns to him so quickly, minho wonders if he had a whiplash.

“please minhoooo” for a second he thinks that yongbok, the shy and withdrawn boy who never raised his hand to ask a classroom question in his life was going to kneel on the floor of the packed hallway and beg.

the group of basketball players passes by the two and the air in the hallway disappears for minho. hyunjin smiles at his friends without a care in the world as he hears one of them saying “hyunjin, your pitch was great! i've never seen anyone score that far from the basket!”, cheeks reddening a little at the cheers of his teammates.

minho's eyes travel between him and his friend a few times, until his expression suddenly darkens and he turns to yongbok. “calm down” he says, seeing his best friend's anxious expression. “no need to make a scandal out of it, i’ll go with you”

the words are bitter in his throat but yongbok opens a huge smile and it seems once again that he is going to throw himself on his knees in the corridor, this time to thank him, but minho doesn't give him time to do that and soon starts walking towards the classroom for their first class, lip between teeth and head away from where his feet were taking him.

y/n has never had an easy time functioning in crowded places, a bonus is when those (many) people are screaming like animals and squirming in their seats as if they were trying to keep from flying off their chairs.

her constant hesitation to enter the large gymnasium in the midst of all the revelry and excitement was constant throughout his journey from the cafe to school, under the slowly darkening sky, leaving a gentle farewell to the brightness of the day and giving way to night. her journey was longer than she thought it was going to be, partly because her shift had been increased by a few minutes and her insecurity forced her feet to walk more slowly, needless to say, she was obviously late.

but all roads lead to rome or whatever, and she's been staring at the entrance to the gym for the last few minutes as if, if she walked in, she would be consumed by it.

the screams that rang out to her from the other side, outside the party, were wild and just made her want to get as far away as she could and go seek comfort in the dark and lonely cubicle that was her home, but her feet remained rooted to the ground, neither going in nor leaving.

she just found the courage to put her hand on the doorknob because she remembered the message that hyunjin had sent her earlier: a photo of the place he had reserved specifically for her. it was a front row seat, the most privileged and coveted by those who genuinely enjoy that spectacle of sweaty men hitting each other and running like dogs after a ball.

the seat was the most apparent and she was late, hyunjin must have noticed. she just opened the door because of that. she didn't want to upset him and destabilize him in his most important game, and he really wanted her to be there, for some reason.

sea ​​of ​​screams and cheers hit her full on as soon as the door was opened and the exasperated sound of tennis shoes against the polished wood of the court floor showed that the game was already close. y/n walked quickly to the only empty seat right in front of the court, where there was a yellow sticky note with the word “RESERVED” written in large, shaky letters, staining the paper black.

she sat quickly, taking in every detail of what was going on around her. hyunjin's team was dressed in vibrant orange jerseys, while the rival school's team sported uniforms in a deep shade of dark blue. the players on hyunjin's team moved around the court with an almost choreographed precision, like roots in a perfectly rehearsed dance.

the ball did not remain for more than five seconds in the hands of a single player, passing quickly from one side to the other. it was a frenzy of intense contests, a relentless battle for control of the element that dictates the game. every possession was a source of palpable tension.

it wasn't hard to find hyunjin in the middle, the hair gave it away, vibrating as if it wanted to be seen, to draw attention. he had a focused look on his face, his feet moving him across the court with mastery, and for the first time, she could understand why he wanted so badly to devote his life to this. she definitely hadn't seen him with the same full of life eyes looking at the endless math worksheets.

the court came alive with every jump, every dribble and every accurate shot. energy pulsed through the air, enveloping everyone present, as excited fans applauded and cheered with each play behind her back. it was as if the game itself was a living entity with a life of its own.

in the blink of an eye the ball stops in hyunjin's hands. his eyes quickly scanned the opposing defense, looking for an opening, and with a dribble he was already heading towards the basket. his purposeful stride, hard against the floor, stopped abruptly and morphed into a jump, and at the apex of his rise, he reached out, releasing the ball in a perfect arc.

the entire gym exploded with joy as soon as the ball went into the basket. hyunjin returned to the floor with a smile and a heavy breath, and his gaze went directly to her chair, regretting y/n not having seen his move.

but she had already arrived and was right there.

y/n didn't scream or jump, but a discreet smirk and slow clapping was her celebration for her friend's point, and he was happy because that was the most he could get out of her in that situation. she found herself silently rooting for hyunjin and his team, even though she didn't want to admit it. she didn't want to budge on something she considered so silly, but they were friends now, weren't they? hyunjin had said they were, but his words that could very well be empty didn't make her discover what it was like to be friends with someone overnight, and as much as she imagined that the normal thing within a friendship was to share that kind of joy, the idea of ​​opening herself up to someone still made her body tingle and her breath hitch.

but at that moment, where his teammates were ruffling her hair and congratulating him, she couldn't stop herself from clapping louder, only stopping when the game had returned to normal and the frantic rushing back and forth across the street square will return.

her attention, however, was stolen when her phone started to vibrate inside her purse, which was an unusual occurrence, giving that she almost never received messages.

she reached down to retrieve it from the bag that was on the floor beside her chair, and her breath caught in her throat when she saw the “ignore” contact texting.

ignore:

i need to talk to you

ignore:

it's about the study groups thing we have to prepare

her gaze goes up once more to the game, but the magic was gone, which was normal with anything that lee minho got into; for her, ruined. a wave of anger crept up her spine like a parasite. why did he have to send a message right now? it wasn't like she expected minho not to be an inconvenience in general, but she wasn't going to stop being irritated with him no matter how much his antics were awaited.

y/n:

i can't, i'm busy

the message was written with exasperated fingers, and quickly sent. but realized she had forgotten to add something.

y/n:

and don't text me anymore, i'll talk to you tomorrow morning

when she was about to put the phone back in her purse, the screen lit up again, revealing yet another message. she couldn't fight the instinct to ignore it and soon brought it close to her face once more.

ignore:

own, you'd rather i call than text and you're too embarrassed to admit it?

ignore:

if you want to hear my voice so badly, let's meet in the schoolyard to talk about what we have to do

her face heated with anger and embarrassment, even though she was never going to admit that he elicited any reaction from her that wasn't just hatred and disgust.

y/n:

no

y/n:

i already told you i'm busy, minho, i know you can't help but be a pain in the ass 24/7 but now is not a good time, you'll have a lot of time to bother me tomorrow

her attention was snapped back to the game once more as the crowd roared, and apparently hyunjin had scored yet another point. he was smiling as he looked at her in the crowd and gave her a thumbs up, which she instinctively returned without thinking.

the messages stopped for a few minutes and she thought he had left her alone once and for all, but the shy vibration that indicated a new message made her huff and quickly bring the phone closer.

ignore:

i thought you really wanted to be student president, but i guess you just wanted the win, my mistake

ignore:

i'll have to do all of it by myself…

and now he was teasing her pride at his fingertips, and the anger she knew so well every time she interacted with or thought about him came on like a lightswitch.

minho knew he was pushing all the right buttons to piss her off, partly because of years of practice with everything to do with her and partly because he was looking at her, higher up in the bleachers, with a hawk's stare.

from the moment she had entered the court, his eyes had been irrevocably drawn to her, as if she were a walking magnet, and there they remained fixed for a long time. not even when Yongbok grabbed him by the arm, anticipating the basket the player was about to make, could he look away. it was so impossible to even imagine seeing her there, at a high school basketball game. however, what made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up was his theory about why she was there. the motive for that was inside the court, moving majestically across the polished floor with a cockiness that minho thought was all he could take in about him. y/n's eyes were glued to hyunjin's figure, and somewhere in his chest he swore that she was playing with his ego somehow, even though he didn't fully understand what that meant.

he was overcome by a brutally suffocating feeling and felt an unchanging urge that he needed to do something soon to break the gaze she was extending towards hyunjin. he needed it, it was almost vital, but if someone asked him why he would have nothing to answer, but he wasn't worried about his lack of motives, much less his thoughts about what it said about him and what he possibly felt for her instead of the insignificance and disdain he so pledged to feel.

he took the cell phone in a swift motion from the pocket of his uniform blazer and went straight to the contact list.

minho had lied the last time they'd seen each other, during the incident of sooyound locking them in the file room. he'd had her number for years, since begining of high school. it had been very difficult to get it and it really was a long journey, but when he got an idea in his head, he didn't give up easily. what if he wanted to start pestering through her on her phone too? what if she disappeared out of nowhere and never went to class again? what if he just wanted to talk to her? it was always good to be prepared, he told himself during the nights when he had trouble sleeping and he checked the list of contacts just to prove to himself that she was still there, that the contact hadn't been magically erased.

one day he had called her in the middle of the night, a year before, just to test if that number really belonged to her. it was two in the morning and the night was silent, so silent it was too loud for me, and sleep would not come to him at all, no matter how many times he tossed and turned in bed. the cell phone magically appeared in his hand and the contact was already open, curiosity bubbled in his chest and he didn't fight against it for a long time, pressing on top of the phone icon and quickly touching the cell phone to his ear.

the ringing noise seemed to go on forever, and minho was starting to get anxious. for a second, he was afraid that she would know he was the one calling and his fingers itched to hang up the call, but as soon as he moved the phone an inch away from his ear, the noise ceased and was replaced by silence.

"hello?" her voice is hoarse on the other end of the line, showing that she had just woken up.

minho's mouth opened slightly, wondering what to reply, but he stopped himself from letting any words escape his lips. perhaps, if he spoke, everything would be ruined, and a giant inexplicable fear rose in his chest.

“it’s 2 in the morning, what the hell...” he could hear her scoff, but it was in a different way from the scoffs she gave in his presence. she sounded more vulnerable, there was a fragility that seemed to echo in her very core. he was also vulnerable. he didn't know if it was the nocturnal silence that stripped him of his usual mask, the games and teasing that used to mark their interactions, but he did know that it was very different from anything he'd ever been through together with her.

“say something” she whispered on the other end of the line like an impatient but gentle plea. gentle was never a word he thought he could use with her, but all the others he could say fled his mind. the sound of her breathing echoed free as he held his to make as little sound as possible on his end of the line. “say something or i will hang up” she says, more determined but still nowhere near her usual attitude.

minho didn't say anything, he just took his hand slowly until it reached his face and covered his own mouth, pressing it. he knew he wouldn't say anything, but even so, he found it necessary to physically forbid himself, as if something was taking over him and he opened his mouth and said something he shouldn't.

she remained for a few more seconds that seemed eternal, only the sound of her breathing and some groans of tiredness for being woken up reached minho's ears, but he waited patiently to see what she would do.

“well, have a good night then” she said softly and minho brought his legs closer to his chest, curling up. “since you decided to call someone at 2 in the morning and not say anything…” she was stubborn no matter the situation. “don’t wake up anyone else with prank calls like you did right now” was the last thing he heard before the call was disconnected. if he was no longer able to sleep, the rest of his night was spent awake trying to imagine if what had happened had just been a hallucination in his head and, after that, he never dared to look at her contact again.

that is, until that moment.

he opened her contact and started sending her messages, messages where he feigned disdain but gulped as he wrote. when she looked away from the phone to look at hyunjin and give him a thumbs up that's when his patience was cut short and he let out a huff through his nose and sat on the edge of his seat, gripping his phone tightly.

“nice shot!” yongbok exclaimed, clapping his hands wildly to celebrate the school's lead in the game. it was only then that he realized that minho's body was turned sideways towards the court, not even watching the game, and after whispering a "what are you doing?" softly, his eyes followed the direction where his best friend was looking, and noticed the scene, where hyunjin was looking at her right after scoring his point and minho's knuckles turning white around the cell phone, which was open in a chat with a contact with the name “y/n”.

“what are you doing?” yongbok repeated it louder this time so that minho could hear. he didn't turn around to answer his friend, he just lowered his head and went back to looking at his cell phone and typing quickly.

“solving something” he answered simply.

minho, now without self-restraint, opted to openly tease her, joking about the fact that she won the election just to get a rise out of her. and he knew it had worked, because her shoulders hunched as she read what he'd written.

the typing symbol appeared, then disappeared, then appeared again and disappeared from view again. minho waited for her answer, tapping his foot impatiently on the floor.

y/n:

you have 1 minute and that's it

and her answer made a smile appear on his face, and when she started to rise discreetly from her chair, he quickly got to his feet and started to dodge the people sitting next to him, trying to get to her as quickly as possible.

y/n waited to get out of her chair in the middle of a play, while hyunjin wasn't looking, and made sure to leave her purse on top of the chair so he knew she didn't just leave. she walked discreetly to the entrance of the gym, and when she had passed through the door and was closing it, it was opened on the other side, where minho appeared right in front of her.

her breath shook as soon as she saw him, and he was panting as if he'd hurried to get to her. the realization that he too was watching the game and yet pestering her to talk to her made her even more uncomfortable, and she just took a step back to put distance between them and crossed her arms.

“1 minute, and don't abuse it” she turns around until she leans her back against the wall next to the door and looks at him with her head up and her nose in the air.

minho just took short steps until he stood in front of her, regaining the closeness she broke off, a huge gratification in getting her out of the gym that he couldn't explain.

“sooyoung spoke to me today, she said that we need to do full reports with all students who are interested in joining the tutoring group. i'll do one part and you'll do the other, then we'll put it all together when it's ready,” he says, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth that he can't quite control.

"is that it?" she asked in disbelief. “is that the only reason you were bugging me nonstop?”

"me?" he chuckled and also crossed his arms, mimicking her. “bugging you? what are you talking about, y/n? i was just talking to you, it's not my fault you get so rilled up every time you talk to me"

she rolled her eyes and stepped away from the wall, taking a small step towards him and looking him in the eyes.

"is that it?"

the proximity made minho stop for a few seconds, just looking back at her, thinking of something to reply to her. time passed slowly and he only awoke from his trance and looked away when a wave of cheers erupted in the gym and escaped through the thin door beside them. he swallows hard and takes a micro step back, backing up slightly.

“that was it” he whispers without any jokes or comebacks, because during all that time nothing came to his mind except the memory of the day he called her in the middle of the night, as if that memory that had been kept for so long had been unlocked into his brain without further ado.

she snorts with a know-it-all look and tries to circle him to make her way back to the gym, but an anxiety creeps up his spine and he unconsciously steps to the side and places himself in front of her once more. she stops in her step so she doesn't bump into him and looks up at him again, confused by his sudden movement.

“what the hell, minh-” before she could finish the sentence, the door next to them bursts open, and hwang hyunjin, breathing quickly for air, appears in their field of vision.

hyunjin looks at y/n and opens a smile the size of the universe and doesn't even notice minho's presence, and even after noticing, he doesn't care.

“y/n!” he exclaims, walking up to the two. "where have you been? you missed the endgame!”

he grabs her by the shoulders and pulls her out of minho's way.

“oh…” she starts to say, shame rising in her chest. she gives minho an angry look, before turning her attention to her friend once more. “i’m sorry, i…”

“we won!” hyunjin exclaims and the hands on her shoulders yanked her forward as he led her back into the gym. “let's go celebrate! you left your bag in there too, didn't you?"

the door closes, leaving minho alone in the night breeze. he gives in to the uncontrollable urge to bring his hands to his face and press them hard against his eyes, wondering what the fuck has been wrong with him lately, and why the shoulders that were relaxed before in her brief presence are tense, once again.

stay tuned for chapter 15! new chapters (almost) every sunday ☆

taglist: @liphglos@kiyoomimybeloved@lilactangerine @swiftlydirectioning @lethallyprotected @yhawnnzz @whatthefsposts@sleepyleeji @ddazed-lhs @thatoneperson1911 @poutingbean (if you want to be a part of the taglist, send me an ask, comment or message <3)

[thegodcyclecomic]

Hello. I wanted to wish you good luck and health. As I understood from your previous answers, Athena is in many ways similar in character to a number of anime characters. The question is, can the same be said about the others?Ares is a mix of Yato from Noragami and Nanashi from Sword of the Stranger (they are both warriors, and Yato is generally the god of war... in addition, Ares is a caring father, and these two play a father figure for Yukine/Kotaro)Apollo is somewhat reminiscent of Kars from JoJo, and Artemis is a typical cutie sister who, in fact, at any moment if someone tries to "take" her brothers to bed, will destroy this person. (Yes, yes, a yandere sister... well, or Athena is like that... who knows what she will think - if she sees Ares find himself a new rival...)P.S. I would have said about Phobos and Deimos - but we've already talked about them here. Oh, you shouldn't have drawn them as cat-boys... that's the general fetishism of anime fans. Advice: DON'T DRAW THEM IN WOMEN'S CLOTHES OR IN A CUTE LOOK! EVEN IF THEY ASK AND PAY! OR THE INTERNET WILL BE FILLED WITH PIRATE H*NTAI WITH THEM! YOU DON'T REALIZE THE DANGER OF THE POWER OF CAT-BOYS!!!

I made a board of characters that are most similar to Ares. You're not wrong about Yato, these are just the ones that came to my mind first.

Ajax "Childe" Tartaglia - Genshin Impact

Most similar to the Ares I'm writing to write. There is nothing he loves more than a life-or-death struggle in ceaseless combat. He is a master of all weapons (except the bow) and strives to become stronger every day. He is also a family man with his own set of moral codes that work for the military organization of his country. He worked his way up the ranks to Harbinger after being recruited as a child. He also has a name inspired by a character from Greek Mythology so that's a bonus too.

The rest of the characters on this list are as follows:

Anakin Skywalker - Star Wars Clone Wars

Raiden - Metal Gear Rising Revengence

Yuuya Kizami - Corpse Party

Thorkell - Vinland Saga

Special Mentions:

Lalo Salamanca - Better Call Saul

As for Artemis if someone showed interest in her brother...

[everlastiingiimmortals]

About Willow's Portrayal of Jing Yuan

Howdy! Was thinking of compiling some noteworthy points about my portrayal of Jing Yuan, so here they are. These lean more towards worldbuilding/lore rather than general headcanons about his personality and such. A lot of these are things I've touched upon or mentioned before, but I wanted to be more explicit about it. References to leaked, unreleased content (character stories) are present.

Unlike the titles of the High Elders, I think "Divine Foresight" is a title unique to Jing Yuan, not his position as Arbiter-General of the Luofu. It's something more like Jingliu's title as the "Transcendent Flash". The reason for this is my view on his wisdom; it is easy to consider "Divine Foresight" as a name for his position, given the name of his office, but it's noted that Jing Yuan's wisdom is unique to him, as it is what has led to his longevity amongst even others of his rank, when most perish before the first century mark. Therefore it doesn't make much sense to me for his title to have been conferred upon him by his promotion.

It is heavily implied in Fu Xuan's character story that she, though not (as far as we know) an Emanator of the Erudition, had her third eye bestowed upon her by Nous or one of Nous' Emanators. This is noted to be due to her prodigal affinity for divination, which granted her the key to Nous' Temple, and "blessed" her with even more brilliant powers of prediction. However, as far as we know she's not a member of the Genius Society, despite this feat. The reason I bring her up is that I headcanon that Jing Yuan, too, has an eye of Nous, implanted into his own right eye. However, his was not asked for, but granted the moment he caught Nous' gaze. It can be considered incomplete; he rejected the invitation to Nous' Temple, scarred by what he'd seen when he first stepped upon the Path of Erudition. As a result, his eye grants him no visions, but its periodic aches alert Jing Yuan to future events. He knows not what they'll specifically be, or if they'll be 'good' or 'bad', just that he must be prepared; all he has to go off of is his experience, heightened intuition and logic.

Is my Jing Yuan, then, an Emanator of the Erudition? ...I don't know. If he is, it's not something he'd divulge ever. He much more heavily views his eye as a burden than anything else, and cannot control it so he is unable to willingly draw upon its power. Still, that doesn't discredit the fact that his foresight was enhanced by Nous regardless. I think I'm not going to have an official answer for this question. I like it that way.

Going to properly announce my official canon divergence LMAO. I was very disappointed to learn from IL's character story that the Lightning-Lord is apparently a symbol of the Arbiter-General of the Luofu, as it was used by the previous general, General Teng Xiao. I think I'm going to ~ignore that~ and stick with my headcanon that the Lightning-Lord is the spirit of the Starfall Reverie and thus the soul of the Curio itself, that'd merged with Jing Yuan after he attuned to it. Perhaps previous Luofu generals had other avatars bestowed upon them, but the Lightning-Lord is unique to Jing Yuan in my interpretation. This is established by default with @celestial-narwhal's Blade/Yingxing, who made the Lightning-Lord specifically with Jing Yuan in mind. If other Blade/Yingxing RPers don't want to follow with the idea that the Lightning-Lord is the spirit of the Starfall Reverie when interacting with me, I'm fine with that (just let me know!), I'll uphold canon compliance and assume the Lightning-Lord was bestowed through promotion and/or ceremonial rite. Just be aware that the former assumption is my default.

A lot of my thoughts on Jing Yuan revolve around his undesired divinity. "Divine," for him, means lots of things. As a very literal living legend of the Luofu and the Alliance as a whole, Jing Yuan's life and martial prowess have been glorified. His feats are more widely known than anything else about him. By the people of the Luofu, he is deified due to his legendary status and longevity. By the Starfall Reverie, he's deified by the powers granted when the Lightning-Lord attuned to him, the powers that allow him to freely manipulate lightning. And by Nous, he is granted heightened powers of insight and intuition, which he never wanted at all. Jing Yuan is, in all aspects, divine; blessed by a higher power, admired and looked to by his people, and granted god-like powers by the Curio integrated with his soul. It's not something he likes to acknowledge at all. Truthfully, he wishes to be not be burdened with this status, but there is very little he can do about it. His survival where all others have fallen has imposed divinity on him.

Jing Yuan! Feels! Very very responsible for everything that happened to the High Cloud Quintet! He'd foreseen it all! Nous cursed him with that knowledge and he has to live with the fact that he was too late to stop any of it, that he didn't say anything because he'd hoped it wouldn't become reality. But on a similar vein, I do think he has a similar mindset to Fu Xuan on fate, and that it is not something easily changed, if at all. It's a similar mindset to Kafka, too. It's partly why he was willing to agree and work with the Stellaron Hunters to bring Dan Heng back to the Luofu; he'd had a feeling about what was going to happen (though he did not expect Phantylia at all, he only had clues to the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus), and meeting Kafka and hearing what she had to say only confirmed that instinct.

If Jing Yuan dies, the orb of thunder set in the center of the Starfall Reverie will go out. This is because of the fact that the Lightning-Lord is so heavily attuned to him; it will not work for anyone else, and the death of its master will cause its death too.

[1moremilgram-enjoyer]

With the knowledge that I can send as many asks as I want, be prepared for me to never shut up (/hj) Anyway, like I said in the comments of my previous question, I would like to hear a few words about Haruka, because he is also one of my favorites All of my favorites have at one point or another gotten unforgiven and I don't know what that says about my morality

Oh, don’t worry, I love receiving asks! And I wouldn’t worry too much about the guilty thing, like half the cast has been voted guilty at one point or another. Or maybe I’m just coping because my favorites are Amane and Mikoto, maybe Fuuta and Muu, so I’m on the same boat. At least Es can’t be voted Guilty, right?

CW: Murder, animal death, suicide.

Anyways, Haruka. This physical manifestation of mommy issues is really quite cool. I really love his MVs, and his songs slap, hard. His need for attention is a very unique motivation, and I love how it plays off Muu’s own issues. Their dynamic is super interesting.

Haruka: Muu is my mother. (2nd VD)

My guy. What.

But he’s still a really intriguing character on his own. I’m really fascinated by the way his character tackles untreated mental illness, there’s a lot to be said about that aspect of him. And I am a big fan of the “suicide theory” by moibakadesu, I think it makes him an even more fun-to-analyze character.

His interrogation questions are some of the most interesting too imo.

T1 Q17: Is there something you regret?

H: There is.

Ooh… What’d you do Haruka boy?

T1 Q18: What are you most scared of?

H: Betraying people.

Muu and him were always going to form a unhealthy codependency weren’t they.

T1 Q20: What’s the most expensive thing you’ve ever bought?

H: Cotton candy.

From this we can gather that cotton candy is extremely expensive in Haruka’s world, which implies a shortage of the elements used to create it. In this essay I will

T2 Q2: What’s your opinion on the Guard?

H: Guard-san is not my mom.

My guy. Please.

T1 Q14: What’s an event that sticks to your memory?

H: Fireworks

???

T2 Q4: Tell us the origin of your name.

H: It seems like she wanted a girl. She had already chosen this name.

Like the girl in Weakness? Oh, theorizing go brrr…

T2 Q11: Are there any prisoners you can't deal with right now?

H: I'm fine with Amane-chan now. I'm not scared of small children anymore.

Objectively hilarious answer. These two need to interact more.

And I also just think it’s really funny how the most recent timelines dialogue we’ve gotten outside of character birthdays are him begging us/Es to inno Muu, and then we gave her the widest Guilty ratio in Milgram history. L moment.

(I really hope he doesn’t manage to kill himself or that is gonna age horribly)

On the topic of verdicts, I do think the Guilty this trial was probably necessary. Not because it’s somehow gonna stop him from hurting himself (because I’m pretty sure that’s not how that works), but because we need him to realize he did something real bad at some point, and putting it off until the Third Trial is dangerous when we don’t know what the final trial will be like. Sorta the same reasoning as Muu funnily enough, we can’t let the Trial 1 inno be misinterpreted. Though I do wonder how he’s gonna react to both his own and Muu’s verdicts. I have a feeling the answer will be “not well.”

Anyways, yeah. He ranks a solid score on the Silliness Scale. He’s cool, I like him. Thanks for the ask! Hope this was a satisfying answer!

[kaibutsushidousha]

Why do you think the Proto Merlin we see is Fou in disguise? I haven't been following this theory very closely so I'm interested in the arguments people have in favor of this

It all started in Lilim Harlot when Sodom's called Merlin "Beast of the Planet". This term has only been used before twice, once in the old material books and once in Mash profiles, both times referring directly and unambiguously to Fou.

Her reaction to being called that is, quote: "Oops, don't say another word. I haven't told anyone about this yet.".

From that point beyond, it was a look back at all of Proto Merlin's previous content to see what changes with the new "she might be Fou lens". The interesting findings there were:

First Hassan's main criticism of her in Lilim Harlot comes from her discarding her crown out of a personal whim. This was initially taken as her refusing to take the Grand Caster crown, but under the Fou lens, we can assume it refers to Fou abandoning the Beast IV horns for Mash's sake.

Fou has a not-yet-explained ability to know what happens in other timelines, being aware of Tsukihime's Primate Murder. Meanwhile, Proto Merlin takes part in Arcade's plot because she knew this was a timeline where Cath Palug wasn't in Chaldea.

Proto Merlin's Arcade profile notes that she switches her personal pronoun to ボク in her more personal moments. That's a thing male Merlin also does, but ボク is an informal masculine pronoun, so it makes perfect sense for him to switch to it when dropping the formalities. Proto Merlin going masculine when she drops the mask was vaguely suspicious, and it's even more so under this perspective because her "mask dropped" way of talking is identical to Fou's.

Kawasumi debuted as Fou's voice before she debuted as Proto Merlin's voice. Not a real clue but a curious piece of trivia.

Weight: 20 kg is still very weird but significantly less weird than before.

Hero Creation and Dreamlike Charisma are ranked lower, which could be because they’re imitations.

Mordred in Arcade feels the need to triple-check if Proto Merlin really is Merlin, although this could be just due to Merlin suddenly being a woman.

The main difference between Merlins as emphasized in her Arcade profile is that Proto Merlin isn't locked in the tower like Merlin. Getting out of the tower is a main point of Fou's backstory.

In Arctic Summerworld, Fou is always keeping watch on Lady Avalon because he doesn't know what she came there for, but he's consistently less hostile to her than he is to male Merlin.

And she came to mobile as Lady Avalon, but her Class is Pretender, meaning she doesn't come with her True Name registered. This is an intentional choice on her part and a secret she successfully keeps hidden. Unlike Oberon, Faker, or Tenochtitlan, she never gets her True Name Reveal scene so Chaldea is officially unaware of who she actually is. The Merlin reveal could have happened in her debut event, but since it didn't, Merlin is now the anti-climatic answer. It isn't worth holding the secret months for that.

[cryptid-of-ohio]

WAIT! WAIT! you already answered my first question in my previous ask- I NEED to change it! Please- new 1st question:

What is the funniest looking butterfly you know?

I need to know this.

OOOOOOOO This is a fun one! And don't feel bad about asking about my favorite butterfly! (My secret is I always have more favorites).

I know a lot of funny looking butterflies. Ranking them by how funny looking they are is a task for another day, so for now I'll just give you a few I can think of off the top of my head.

Anna's 88 Butterfly (Diaethria anna)

There is a fun little trend of patterns on butterfly wings. Some are eyes, which make sense from an evolutionary standpoint. Some are bright colors, which help with mating.

And ONE IN PARTICULAR CHOSE

Numbers

yeah, idk get it either. They are funny looking little guys though. They mostly live in central America and Mexico, but if you're lucky you could find one in Texas.

2. American Snout

So, if you read the name, you may already have an idea of what this butterfly looks like. All I can say is that it definitely lives up to the name lmao. I mean, just look at that SNOOT!

Just a funny lookin guy with a big schnooz. That big ol' conk. It's a think of BEAUTY!

And also comedy lmao.

3. Zeltas amasa

Where's the common name, you may be asking. Well, I'll get to that later. For now..

LOOK AT THIS THING! LOOK AT IT'S LITTLE TAILS! LOOK AT IT'S LITTLE FACE! IT'S SO CUTE, AND SO RIDICULOUS LOOKING!

BUT THAT'S NOT EVEN THE BEST PART

LOOK AT THAT! A BRILLIANT BLUE REVEALED UNDERNEATH, LIKE CINDERELLA BEING GIFTED HER BALLGOWN BY THAT TREE SHE CRIED ON!

Now, you're probably thinking, why is this on a funny looking butterfly list? I get that. This butterfly is a think of beauty.

Well, the reason dear asker, is because of the name that was gifted to this magnificent creature. This marvel among mankind had the name bestowed upon it off...

The FLUFFY TIT !!!!

[crimswnred]

Alright I’ve listened to the album a few times now and I’m absolutely obsessed and I loooooove it. Ranking it was so hard! I didn’t really dislike any song so even the low ranks I still love????

Also, I did rate the vault tracks bc I’m never not going to listen to the 3 am version lmao and I also always love the vault tracks so much.

So here is my rating on release day! (which lets be honest, will probably change after I’ve listened to it for a few hundred hours lmao)

1. Bigger than the whole sky

2. You’re on your own kid

3. Midnight rain

4. Lavender haze

5. Sweet nothing

6. Anti-hero

7. Glitch

8. High infidelity

9. Dear reader

10. Vigilante shit

11. The Great War

12. Labyrinth

13. Would’ve could’ve should’ve

14. Snow on the beach

15. Maroon

16. Karma

17. Mastermind

18. Paris

19. Question…?

20. Bejweled

Aaaaaah! Do you have a favourite lyrics? I hope there’s some Borbie inspo in there somewhere for you :)

I kinda can’t believe it’s here now. The waiting and anticipation was so much fun I’m actually a bit sad it’s over now. But thankfully we still have soooo much content to look forward to! I really hope Taylor brings out another documentary someday! What’s something you really want her to do?

I’m also already kinda dreading tour announcements bc I obviously want to go see her but I also dont want to go alone and it’s gonna be expensive and with Covid still.. (I live with someone immunocompromised and have asthma myself so still have to be careful) but not going sounds shit and I would have the biggest FOMO. aaaaaaaaaah!!!

And I hope things feel better for you soon 💕 life gets so overwhelming sometimes but hey, we got this. Somehow, things will be okay. Just gotta always believe that. And sometimes we have to cry a bit and feel our feelings so they can pass. Just make sure to take care of yourself.

And you said you got 2 cats right?? What are their names? If you want to share of course :) give them a nice cuddle, there’s nothing better than kitty cuddles!🐱

omg sorry for taking so long :( but I finally got some time to answer (it's currently 1am so forgive any typo)

yeah, for sure!!! I love the whole album, even the ones I ranked lower. for me it's her best pop album to date, she did SOMETHING! and I'm so glad we are having visuals this era!!!! I missed it sm

I would love to see a documentary like LPSS! it was so interesting hearing about it and I love the "live" versions but I'm just so so so happy with all we got already!!! and the visuals?? impeccable

this is such a good idea too! I'd love to hear her. maybe she can get a space somewhere and just record a few episodes? I don't know... I just would love to hear her opinion about random things like books or movies hahaha

awww I hope you can make it to the tour!! I'll be doing my best to get tickets for sureee, especially because she's coming here after a long time (can you believe the last time she came her was during Red era??)

favourite lyrics? hmm, I think You're On Your Own Kid. really resonated with me and how I see things/life. Would've, Could've, Should've hits HARD too!!

I actually liked Paris so much HAHAHA I haven't heard the deluxe yet when I answered you, I think?!

about Borbie, yeah! some songs reminds me of them but I'm not coming on them (cus spoilers) except for Lavender Haze, which is exceptional. Plus, Bejeweled and High Infidelity are so Barbie...

thank you for the lovely words! you're right, life ain't always easy but that's the ups and downs of being an adult, right?!

and yes, I got TWO CATS! their names are Hakan and Mustafa — the previous owner gave them those names, I don't much about it unfortunately.

here they are on my bed hahaha 💞

[reilliane]

Folly ✤ Scaramouche

A/N: This takes place in the same universe as 'Devilry' (aka the crackfic), where MC is the previous Sixth Harbinger dubbed as 'Mistress Fiore'.

✤ Mentions of death

✤ There's nothing wrong with indulging in dangerous follies every now and then, especially if that folly is nothing but that fascinating defector.

Words: 2.1k

Within the expanse of the temple draped in a frosty twilight gathers a handful of dignitaries, all with a single purpose; to grieve for the fallen.

Well, their grieving may be a tepid act—after all, one cannot overlook the possibility that their hearts are more bristling than mourning. The fact remains that it is still only a mere assumption, though.

Despite being... comrades in arms, not one of them truly knows what the other bears inside their chest. Aside from the obvious mutual belligerence, of course.

“Who invited the mistress here?”

The voice rises amid the frigid air, biting as though it carries frost in its tone.

Naturally, everyone's attention is piqued. It's a question that serves both to distract themselves from the loss of an ally and to ascertain the reason for the arrival of an unsought guest.

But is the aforementioned person truly uninvited?

“You wound me, can I not be present to send my own farewell to the Eighth?” you speak up with faux umbrage, stepping beyond the shadows of the pilasters.

Far from being disconcerted by the number of eyes nipping at your profile like tiny cicins, you lift your head, meeting the faces of those you previously deemed comrades. Now mere... 'acquaintances'.

“Besides, don't you think it's only expected for me to fill in the blank slot that the Balladeer left open for this moment?”

It isn't like you're going to take back the position afterward.

The knowing hum settles an air of brewing resignation, tinged with a bit of vexation that seems to come to the group naturally.

Tartaglia clicks his tongue from his place at the pews, voice amicably austere. “Calm down, it was I who invited Fiore.”

His answer dispels most of the lingering bafflement in the crowd and the ceremony carries on without delay and reluctance.

Although, you huff in disbelief. It's more of a business meeting than a funeral ceremony.

You decide not to speak against it, however, aware of your standing in the place. Instead, you've taken to observing the varying expressions on their faces. They're all so impervious as ever.

The plan not to opine fails later on though, following the ludicrous decree about the momentary pause of business and other affairs as well as Pantalone's opinion about it.

“Half a day's holiday?” you find yourself giggling, though it's crystal clear that you're far from being amused. “Careful, your gracious facade seems to be slipping, mister disingenuous mayor.”

Pulcinella crinkles his nose and adjusts his spectacles with a sigh.

“Hm, I'd rather not open my ears to the words of an ex-Harbinger. Do be content that we allowed you to stay.”

You whistle, finding no reason to deny the latter portion of his statements. It's irking how he seems to dismiss your previous rank as the Sixth and denigrate your current status, though.

As if sensing the subdued venom beginning to rise from your throat, another voice cuts in.

“Can you cease the farcical banter?” Arlecchino gives her fellow Harbinger a pointed stare, scrutiny evident in her eyes. “[Name] may no longer be in the official ranks, but she was the only one who ever sought camaraderie between you half-hearted dignitaries.”

Her concern for this shoddy, half-hearted excuse of a holiday is thus valid. Is the underlying message.

You cup your cheeks with a pleased smile, drawing out a long, grateful sigh. “My, thank you, lady Arle. Ever the justiciar.”

Her auxiliaries are anticipated, yes, but you didn't think she'd actually support you. But then again, she seems to be the only one who genuinely grieves the death of Signora. Apart from Pantalone and Pierro—and maybe even Tartaglia.

The Knave transfers her look towards you. It's nothing short of perfunctory, perhaps even a bit scunnered.

“That does not remove the fact that you are no longer one of us. You've only until the end of condolences before you are to leave.”

Of course.

“Oh, the woes of being unwanted!” you bemoan, holding your head for a melodramatic show.

You can tell that doing so has earned you a couple dirty looks and though you feel a tad awful—borderline catalyzing the enmity when again, this is no place to start a fight—you do not apologize.

Well, not to them.

It's an indecent, immoral act, but you like to believe that you're the lesser evil in the room.

With a step forward, you ascend a few inches into the air, moving past the Harbingers and hovering over the intricately gilded cenotaph. No one stops you.

Caressing the marble surface of the tomb makes you note how it's a lot colder than the atmosphere.

Unfitting for the Witch whose heart only knew how to be set ablaze.

But if you consider the Delusion she's been gifted, then it is appropriate; for a blazing heart to freeze and shatter, unable to rekindle its loving warmth.

“Looks like I am only as transient as a minute here, Rosalyne.” there is silence in the temple. Not one voice overpowers yours.

Maybe they have finally gotten self-conscious? It's funny to think that someone who is no longer a Harbinger is the first to send her farewell. What ridicule!

With a silent, single clap, you expel a breath and hum. Your time here is done—you'll have to thank Childe sometime for the official invitation.

Pierro is just about to say something- business talk, maybe. Whatever it is, it does not include you, and to be honest, you'd rather not be included, either.

You vanish into a myriad of snowflakes before anyone can raise a word, leaving only your final murmurs resonating within the temple.

“May your soul find peace in the embers of that which you burned.”

Your next destination leads you to the familiar lands of Liyue and to the terra that stretches past its borders.

The swift travel from the icy nation back to a more tropical one has depleted most if not all of your stamina, so you stayed at an inn for a little while to recuperate.

Although you do have an objective in mind, you aren't in a rush. It's safe to say that you are one step further than the Fatui Harbingers, hence the insouciance.

Besides, like some magical work of nature, you are far attuned to the presence you're seeking, so searching doesn't come off as difficult. In fact, you are able to find him merely two days after staying at Wangshu Inn.

Conspicuous even without trying to, the violets and reds of his attire are emphasized amid the drying greens of the environment. He's dwelling in discreet places, however, managing to shroud himself in the shadows and not make a sound.

Any traveler—not the blond one, though—will fail to see him. But unfortunately, he sticks out to you like a sore thumb.

“For once, you are trying to be discreet.”

The defector stills with a muted hiss, swift to register the arrival of someone as well as the lack of additional weight on his head.

His buttons are already pressed, but annoyance and genuine indifference aside, he's at least thankful that he's found by non-Fatui first.

“Mm, but the hat's still remarkably ostentatious, don't you think so?”

Not like being found by Harbingers poses that much of a problem, he'd simply fight them. That said, he's this close to flicking out his catalyst, too...

“Scaramouche.”

He doesn't, though, and decides to just humor the person who's managed to trace his steps from Inazuma.

Immediately, he meets a pair of gushed [c]s and the usual smile he's seen—unwillingly—far too many times to count. Clicking his tongue, he grumbles.

“Tsk, Fiore.”

No sort of communication has transpired between them in the past months, not after the research about the meteorites and the godawful luncheon shared between them along with Signora and Tartaglia.

So, he isn't going to lie and say that he's not surprised to see her in front of him.

'Fiore' sighs hyperbolically, the theatrical action quick to make the man roll his eyes. He expected nothing less.

She starts with a spin, showing off her apparel that although carried a few similarities from her previous Harbinger attire, looked more... liberated.

In the sense that it's unique, a style that screamed 'Fiore' instead of the nations in Teyvat.

“You misunderstand, Balladear, I'm not Fiore, but [Name]. I'm a free woman. I'm in no organizations.”

That's new, for the last time he saw her, she was still rather attached to the organization. Or perhaps that's her way of supervising him, the one who had taken her place.

He must've been scrutinizing her appearance with a silence that lacked his usual aggro—because before he knows it, the lady leans forward with a wink.

It sends a chill down his back.

“Nor in any relationships, if you catch my drift.”

Bitter Archons above-

“Get the hell out of my sight.” Scaramouche snarls with pinched brows, turning away in disgust after snagging his hat back.

He really doesn't know what else to expect of her, but he's a little relieved that she hasn't grown out of that preposterous charm of hers. Still devilishly annoying, but he's not one to talk.

Uninterested in the laughter that rings behind him, he continues his trek toward the neighboring nation of Sumeru. At the moment, there's nothing but the crucial need to get away.

An impossible thing—for the Fatui always manages to catch up, he knows that better than anyone—but that's a headache for another day.

He already has one just seeing this woman and the humid air is not helping alleviate it. Sweat is rolling down his temples and it's only the nice cover of his hat that prevents him from melting into mush under the raging sun.

A cold gust of wind blows through him, the discordant chill amid the otherwise dry area implying that it was done with the use of both a Vision and Delusion.

Perceptive as always, that girl.

“The Tsaritsa is rather upset, you know?” she calls, voice steadily growing closer.

He was about to address her use of Anemo and Cryo—maybe slot in an impossible thanks—but that's thrown out of his mind a second later.

The Tsaritsa?

Huffing, he doesn't bother stopping and facing her, wary of his growing headache 'cause damn. “Two-faced liar, so you were with them.”

“To pay respects,” the response is quick, as though his censures were foreseen. “Signora was a nice comrade. A little haughty, but nice.”

Nice. Scaramouche almost laughs. Signora, nice.

Perhaps her competency with taking the Queen's piece, yes.

But only someone with a loose screw can ever describe the pile of ash as nice, but then again, this is [Name]. If devilish isn't her middle name, then perhaps eccentric is.

“They will be coming after you. You are aware of that, aren't you?”

Exasperating works, too.

“What do you take me for? An idiot?” he finally stops, unable to hide the offense on his face as he swivels with a glare.

Is he being disparaged? Him?

The venom on his tongue is milliseconds away from coating the words he's about to convey, but he receives an answer before he can do so.

“A renegade with a bounty over his head heading to Sumeru. I hope you weren't blinded by what you sought.” [Name] answers with a shrug, her pretty [c]s fixated on the glimmer of violet peeking behind the overlays of fabric.

On the defensive, Scaramouche lifts a hand to cover the glow of the Electro Archon's Gnosis. He does this even though he's aware that [Name] has no intention of stealing it from him.

In any case, she's much more likely to steal his damned hat again.

He scoffs once more. “I'm none of your business.”

Leave me alone.

The message needn't be said when it's already so obviously implied.

Having uttered what he wanted, he resumes his pace, thinking of feasible plans for the coming few days. He has no doubts that a Harbinger is going to be sent after him.

Eyes forward, he walks with his chin tipped high, confident and unfaltering of what lies ahead. There is nothing to fear, nothing to be bewildered over.

The macabre art of war comes to him naturally and there aren't any qualms about death, he is used to such things. But if there is one thing he isn't used to, then...

“Do you have a death wish?” he halts and asks this, genuinely lost in a confusion that he won't admit out loud.

Only the sound of his feet against the terra is heard a minute ago, but he isn't oblivious to the following figure at his back, levitating as always. Nonchalant as she can possibly be.

“What you're doing is nothing but utter folly.”

Why are you still here?

He doesn't even need to turn around to see [Name] shrug. As if she isn't at all deterred by the fact that she can die if she continues to follow him.

“I know.” she answers, sounding insanely delighted.

Scaramouche clicks his tongue again.

If there's anything he isn't accustomed to, then it is the devilish [Name].

“You're mad.”

Only a giggle answers his words as he begins to walk again, making no move to stop her any longer and letting her float around him with a bunch of jests rolling past her tongue.

He's irked, but that's alright.

He's fond of pretty and exasperating devils, anyway.

a/n: mm, nothing like scara pretending not to care that mc decided to stick with him when in fact he's actually all "aw ye" about it deep down lmao

@cherryflushz @e7t3 @scarlet-halos @lordbugs @nebulaera @annoying-and-upset @hanniejji @applepi1415 @tjjjrsj @azirajane @hey-comrade-hold-stil @limelightsuperhero @chloeloe @loptido @windyventi @nejibot @ganyuqrt @justrinnn @yasunamilk @alana5021

[diedbutterflies69]

Will you stay?- Bang Chan imagine.

Contains: friends to lovers au. , Divorce, smut, fluff, blindfolding, oral sex, explicit sexual stuff etc . Minors don't interact.

Never once on your life, you thought you could get your shit together and laugh genuinely at the worst in world. falling out of love is worse but it's even more worse if it's your it's not you who fell out of love. Married at 22 and the honeymoon phase hardly lasted for a year and by the age of 26 got yourself labelled as a woman who sabotaged her own marriage in thirst of money. Your ex husband was bitter about your success even before you got married. He thought as a woman, you just did bare minimum and got yourself a high positioned rank by sleeping with one of the rich rags. You tried hard enough to hold on to that rotten red string , but he had the scissors and just cut you off. You weren't willing to sacrifice your career just because of his Immature mindset, yes you loved him, but can't a women love her own hard achieved success more? That's the question you wished to ask everyone who pointed there fingers at you. After divorce you didn't feel pain just numbness. Your self-hatred coming more stronger than ever, even hating the job, you tried Saving since years, getting life on track seemed impossible and at the end just quitted. Moved out of the city just to move back to your home town, the root of your real pain. It wasn't really a town but rather a more flashy city, expensive shits which you were unable to afford in childhood but now it wasn't any big deal. Earth is round and sometimes precious people find you all by themselves. Your highschool friend, the only friend you had throughout your lifetime because of your anti social tactics.

Bang Chan, the social butterfly who almost knew every single student in whole school, he was the hottest guy you ever saw in your life and also the kindest. You had crush on him even before you both were friends, he was your senior,used to help you with those shitty math sums, crack jokes every now and then and scolded you whenever you procrastinated. He came to congratulate you even on your graduation day, even though there were many more students whom he met you were still glad atleast someone bought you a beautiful bouquet of tulips and bellflower. The last time you saw him was before you moved out in search of cheap collages without informing him, as you thought you were just one of many friends he had and won't ever notice someone like you existed.

But god, how much wrong you were.

You met Chan after almost 9 years in convince store and his reaction was almost priceless , like finding treasure. He was now more handsome, beautiful and god-like even after all this years his style of dressing didn't Changed much, he still looked like Kim Kardashian at 2021 met Gala. nevertheless his smile still had those healing properties with his Cresent moon eyes. He was absolutely stunning.

The first sentence he spoke after confirming your identity was 'I missed you' and then tons of lectures and questions . Knowing how narrow-minded you were he gasped dramatically. Cheesiest ways of saying how could I forget my best friend and so on. That day was probably the best day of your life and maybe even the day after years you really smiled. You both exchanged numbers and addresses and his home was just 10 minutes away from yours. Destiny indeed.

Now it's been over 7 months since you met Chan again and he never made you felt like you were just one of his 109 friends. Chan made you feel special, after knowing what kind of disaster you faced he was even more supporting of you, you both used to spend weekend together watching variety of shows and movies going to stargazing, best friend goals. After many years you knew even if Chan had many people to confide with he never really did. He was alone, just a night owl obsessed with work. You were happy. And he was happy too. Being just friends was enough for you, but not for him . He was slowly trying to find courage to confess his love to you. He liked you fuck from highschool days. He found you once randomly staring at him across the room and when you suddenly disappeared all his fantasies were scattered, he knew your dreams and was willing to help you with your every step. knowing how messed up your household was from your neighbours he felt guilty for not being able to give you happiness. He loved you, but was helded by his own insecurities.

Not anymore though, he wasn't the same coward who just stared at the love of his life from distance. Being the extra human he was, he bought you one of the most expensive restaurant of the whole country, man was loaded. After driving for almost 5 hours you both finally reached there .

Now a nervous Chan sitting infront of you. You being oblivious to the fact that he has a beautiful diamond ring and a confession to make. Chan handed you the menu card and every single dish had an extraordinary name, without much thought you placed the order.

"atleast tell me now, why are we here?" You asked the man infront of you who was behaving extra weird today, he looked sick and was occassionally asking you random questions.

"No reason, I was in mood for long drives and... You know have a nice meal" Chan said fidgeting with his fingers he was acting like a flustered high school guy it was clearly indicating that he was lying but you didn't really care, Chan was weird sometimes.

"Sounds fake, but okay. By the way you aren't sick right?" You asked Chan out of pure concern as he was sweating profusely even in an cold AC room.

"I am fine, just feeling a little hot. Don't worry", Chan said it was more like he was convincing himself that he was fine and shouldn't worry. He wasn't a teenager but a human with responsibilities who once again fell for someone out of his league, he used to think that and he still sees you as a literal goddess. While he was lost deep in his thoughts, the waiter came with food , and this was his opportunity to shoot his arrow. You both started eating and talked like being in paradise.

"did you liked anyone in highschool?", Chan asked you out of blue making you almost choke on food. The only person whom you liked throughout your highschool days was the guy sitting infront of you and you didn't really remembered much guys and the best answer was probably saying a lie with little truth.

"no one lol", you answered trying to sound chilled but since highschool crush topic was out you weren't able to keep your curiosity with yourself.

"What about you, liked someone?", You asked trying to sound nonchalant and not desperate and bitter.

This was the Exactly the conversation that Chan planned in his mind. And here started his way to either heaven or pit of rejection.

"I loved someone", Chan said and you this time you really choked from the depth of your heart, you thought Chan was anti romantic type of guy as he never talked about of his female friends with you or bragged about his non existent dating life. Trying again to not sound jealous or bitter you spoke again.

" Who was that lucky bit-- I mean girl yes girl? Who was she?", You asked, almost letting out the bitch loudly. You weren't sure but you saw Chan smiling cheekily, he was really getting old acting weird more and more everyday.

"Well... Someone from our school",Chan said and you swear you didn't made a disgusting face showing pure jealousy. The best human in your life and your first ever crush had crush on somebody, you didn't knew why you were feeling so fucking bitter but you weren't able to handle the curiosity anymore.

"Tell me her damn name", you asked Chan in a frustrating tone not being able to keep jealousy to yourself.

"Why you being angry", Chan asked followed by his small laugh.

"I am angry, just the food was a little spicy you answer me now, her name?", You answered Chan with your defenses up and still sticking with your previous question.

Chan in response got a little serious now,you thought he was being childish now, he wasn't a kid who was given a dare to name out his crush yet he was acting like one.

"You won't leave me right, I mean after I answer your question?", Chan asked you and you didn't knew what to say in response you were now a little sus about him.

"fine don't answer, keep secrets", you said and continued eating. The next thing Chan said made you now choke and die on food.

"I loved you and I still love you" Chan said looking down at the table head hanging down like his teenage self just confessed he watched porn infront of his parents. You were shocked, frozen and the your heartbeat 10x faster, you didn't knew how to react and tried to find humor in this extraordinary situation.

"Chan, you kidding right?", You asked Chan with a nervous smile on your face. Chan looked up at you , his eyes trying to find yours but you avoided the eye contact.

"I am serious, I liked you from HighSchool times, I saw you for the first time in library when you were looking at me, I swear you were so beautiful and even now after all this years after seeing you I can't, I can't help but fall for you all over again, sorry"

Chan confessed, his voice filled with sincerity and vulnerability his sentences were scattered here and there and incomplete explanation but still you understood everything he really poured his heart to you, you felt like crying even if you both weren't such stupid cowards back then, then today you won't have turned out a divorced women and Chan a guy who grew out lonely even if he had a world for him.

"What should I say Chan?", You asked Chan you were sounding like a girl whose bf told her to breakup even if the situation was exact opposite. Even if you love Chan , you didn't think about him reciprocating same feelings back to you. You were beyond insecure with your love emotions. One thing was sure you won't be able to love Chan without being a bundle on him. Your emotion Baggage was too big and you didn't want Chan to get his heart too with your stupid emotions.

"I love you and I will be really really good to you. Please try staying with me I will try really hard to earn space in your heart, please?" His confession was like literally begging. You weren't able to believe if he was real or not, if it was a dream that will end as soon as cruel morning comes, this felt like fantasy. Chan was a amazing man, he had everything money ,honour ,beauty a nice heart. He was like a character written by women so perfect so delicate yet strong, and he loves you this fact was enough for to lose your mind. but you thought you were a taint to his beauty, you were a character full of inferior complexes and a person too easy to dislike thats what illusion you made about yourself. A random extra in her own story.

"I will pay the bill, let's talk later", you said and walked away immediately to pay the bill leaving a clueless and disheartened human behind. Chan was able to see how you stopped yourself from saying love you too and throwing yourself in his arms. He wasn't same from HighSchool a guy who gets overwhelmed by his own emotions and gets unable to see others. He knew you had atleast a small space for him in your heart and to make a big room for himself he had to throw out all your insecurities and self hatred. He followed you like a lost puppy and he wanted to pay for food but you already did and now you were already out of restaurant searching for his car to get back.

Chan sitted beside you, without doing anything silence and awkward air surrounding you both.

"start the car", you said breaking down the silence, you were extremely worthless and trash as you made the only one person whom you love feel like nothing.

"Just answer me, will you try dating me please", Chan said his voice again passing draggers into your heart. Trying to form any logical explanation you spoke again.

"I am not looking for relationship right now, see Chan you are amazing, but I can't make you happy now and did you forgot that I am divorced, please understand" you said expressing your real insecurities and fear, fear of not being able to keep a man happy.

"you don't want relationship because you divorced that fucking trash of a man?", Chan asked he was getting frustrated you thought but he just wanted to make you happy and not deny what your heart wants.

"my mind isn't stable, I might just irritate you everytime with my mood, you will will get tired of me and leave me -- I don't want to be alone again I will die if you leave me", you confessed tears threatening to fall out of your eyes there wasn't any doubt that you loved Chan he filled the void in you in just months made you happy but you didn't wanted to just take and take and give nothing in return. Chan's hand found yours interlocking your fingers with so much delicateness that you might cry.

"you think so low of me, just stay by my side I will make you so happy that you will hardly get time to think about your past, trust me", Chan said his fingers slightly lifting your chin up to look into your eyes, you looked in his eyes filled with so much care and this was your last straw before breaking down in his arms.

"I love you, I love you so fuckin much, you were my first love my only friend, my everything, please-- please love me", you confessed tightening your arms around Chan, his scent making you feel safe and like home, his one caressing your hair and other wiping away the tears. Even though the scene was more like a dramatic clique scene whatever emotions you both felt was unexplainable.

"So you my girlfriend now hmm?"Chan asked you for first time in night his voice containing pure happiness and excitement.

"I have a sexy boyfriend", you said smiling from ear to ear against Chan's chest. The label boyfriend making your heart flutter, you didn't knew happiness like this can even exist.

"My love", Chan said his voice sweeter than honey, suddenly the night was more starry."now can we go home?" You asked Chan finally breaking the hug, reality hitted you now Home was 3- 4 hours away.

"I made a reservation in hotel, we gonna spend night there", Chan casually said making your heart jump out of your chest.

"pervert, you planned everything seriously", you said dramatically and giving him a playful digusting look.

"I booked two rooms", Chan said now starting the engine making you feel embarrassed. "Who is pervert now~" Chan said in air teasing you more.

The rest of the ride you both talked about anything and everything. Confessing how you used to find ways to always be in each others vision etc. Both of you finding a new thirsty side of each other. Nothing felt uncomfortable, it was happiness those inhumane laughs crazy tricks you both used to pull everything was heaven. After some time you both reached infront of a gaint hotel , it looked expensive af but regardless Chan knew how to waste money and you were tired of lecturing him about savings.

"let's go", Chan said removing your seatbelt and getting out of car to open the door for ya. He was being so cheesy gentleman and you were enjoying every minute.

"room 42 and 43" Chan said to the receptionist and she handed two keys to him. Thanking her then getting on elevator, you were a little disappointed that you weren't sharing room with Chan, yes you were pervert and total simp for Chan, he was too hot and your sexual drive was getting higher each passing second. The elevator doors opened and you got off. Chan handed you the room key and softly kissed your forehead, both you wished it was your lips.

"if you want anything, just knock okay?" Chan said in his lovely tone, I want you you internally screamed, nevertheless you gave him a nod and got inside that expensive room .

Starring at the ceiling while lying on the bed your mind was full of Chan, you knew he wasn't probably sleeping and was wasting time in watching random shit on internet and you were hungry, hungry for Chan, it wasn't your fault that Chan was so hot. Trying to fall asleep and fidgeting here to there you finally decided to knock on Chan's room door. A danger zone. You noticed how the door flunged open in less than few seconds.

"Hi" you said scratching back of your head and trying to think what next to say.

"Hi..?"Chan said being confused.

"there is cockroach in my room, let me stay with you" you said a clear white lie. Taking impulsive action were never good for you.Chan sighed before opening the door fully and signalling you to come. This was your happiest day ever.

"whY you lying", Chan asked you as you plopped yourself on sofa besides bed. He asked the sentence in a sarcastic way.

"Do you you wanna kiss me?", You asked Chan with a straight serious face catching him off-guard, you didn't wanted to waste more time, you wanted to do everything with Chan, yes fucking on first day of dating was a little too early but you fantasized about this gorgeous man since ages, in your eyes he looked total dom but his reaction to your question was making you doubt your thoughts.

"Are you sure", Chan asked you clearing his throat.

"Are you virgin?"you asked Chan, he was being too nervous.

"Obviously not"Chan answered you in duh tone, rolling his eyes. And it was getting awkward.

"The cockroach must have gone by now I should go, bye", you blabbered and got up ready to leave, you were about to open the door but Chan grabbed your hand and before you knew anything his hands were on your cheeks cupping them softly and his lips so close to yours, Chan's eyes were looking straight in your orbs , your heartbeat stronger than ever.

"Can I?", Chan asked your consent his thumb softly brushing against your lower lip. This man had totally made you insane, something stirred inside you. Chan was perfect he was everything you wished. You gave him a small nod and slowly his lips touched against yours, you wanted to cry, his lips felt so good, he didn't rushed his movements everything was happening in slow motion, he holded you with such a vulnerability like he was afraid that you will go, your hand reached his head, fingers moving through his soft locks. You felt his tongue inside your mouth , you felt a electricity run down your body when the kiss deepened.

We kiss again. The next kiss is the kind that breaks open the sky. It steals my breath and gives it back. It shows me that every other kiss I’ve had in my life has been wrong.

Breaking the kiss Reluctantly in need of air, Chan rested his forehead against yours. He was hot almost like burning, sweating.

"Why are you so nervous, Chan?", You asked Chan hugging him tightly clinging like the last leaf to the tree.

"I am scared, I just love you", He said engulfing you in his arms. And you Finally felt, what real love feels like.

"Love you too", you replied softly.

"Do you wanna continue..?"Chan asked you his tone little less scared.

"Off course", you said looking at him with smile, something inside you told it was okay to let out your freaky side infront of Chan. Chan smiled back and suddenly turned you around , the large bed infront of you.

"Lie down there",Chan whispered in your ears , his low register sending shivers down your spine. This was exactly how you pictured Chan to be, your inner submissive almost died. You followed Chan's word and laid on your back on the bed, now you were feeling like a virgin. His eyes roaming through the room in search of something.

"Are you okay with being blindfolded?", Chan asked you as he came back with the tie he wore today and was rolling it slightly in his palms, and you swear you never saw a man so hot in your entire life. Getting blindfolded was one of your unfulfilled kinks.

"ye- yes", you replied your tone filled with thrill and excitement. Chan came back to you standing near you, his hand softly cupped your cheeks , before bringing the tie to use it in sinistrous way tonight. The cloth felt strange to your eyes, his cologne smell hitting you and Chan caught your shy smile, His heart felt so fluffy. Tieing a comfortable knot Chan sat on bed near your waist. His hands slowly crept near your stomach leaving a direct lingering touch on the sensitive skin, eventually going upwards while giving a little squeeze to add stimulation, his hands reached your boobs, you didn't wore bra, and he wasn't surprised maybe your nipples perked up enough to get noticed, his middle and index finger Rolling your sensitive bundle of nerves, the blindfold making his every touch more intense, your breath was heavy you let out a suprised moan when Chan gropped your right boob in an erotic way, this sole action increasing your wetness down there you were getting impatient. You moaned his name a little loudly when his lips came in contact with your sensitive neck, sucking in a painful way, inorder to leave a hickey.

"Should I touch you here", Chan asked you as his hand reached to your area where you needed him to the most, hands going directly inside your panties ,but not touching he was a teaser.

"yes please", you moaned almost breathlessly too tired of intense foreplay. You just wanted Chan to rip off your clothes and fuck you till sunrise. Getting satisfaction with your answer Chan finally removed every clothing of your lower body, leaving you completely bare, all at his mercy. His finger moved up and down on your opening , the wetness making Chan easily slip his one finger deep inside you.

" my baby is so wet, because of who?", Chan asked you as his finger was moving slowly inside of you and thumb rubbing circles on the bundle of nerves.

"because of.. you", you admitted without any hesitation trying to grind yourself on his hand, begging for more.

"Good", Chan said and without saying anything he added another finger inside you moving a little faster inside your cunt, rubbing your walls with a little pressure, scissoring them inside you painfully and making way for a third finger too and by then you were a complete moaning mess, his fingers were pleasure yet torture the blindfold making your senses weak. Mind full of whatever Cham was giving you. Your legs were shaking sign of your orgasm approaching you, by one hand Chan holded your thighs tightly to their place fingers now moving more faster to make you reach the peak of pleasure.

"Chan.. I--I-I-- wanna cum please", you moaned your little squeaks and begs almost making Chan's cock cum right inside boxers. With some final thrust of his fingers, you cummed the hardest you could imagine, squeaky sounds coming as Chan was fingering you through your orgasm, you almost crying from overstimulation. Moaning his name like a chant.

"you did well",Chan praised you finally removing his fingers from you leaving you empty, but it won't have last wrong. Chan removed your blindfold , the bright lights hurting your eyes, you adjusted your vision and the image of Chan sucking his wet fingers coated with your liquid came directly in front of your eyes. Letting out a helpless whine.

Chan plopped himself on knees on either side of your thighs, finally letting his cock out, leaking with precum, and he was big, thick , you didn't thought he could get even hotter.

"Ready baby?", Chan asked you as he fully undressed himself as well as removing your top, your mind hazey . The scene which you pictured since highschool finally happening.

"yes", you replied Chan, he came down to kiss you passionately and slowly entering inside you. You moaned painfully, tears pulling your vision, it was a painful pleasure. Chan kissed away your tears and hand interlocking with yours after finally being fully inside you he started to move at slow pace.

"you feel so good Chan", almost screaming from pleasure, your whines were fuel to Chan's ego and he increased the pace. Body slapping sound filling the room, his groans were most sexy thing you ever heard. Again and again his tip hitting your deepest spots.

"I am close", you moaned out breathlessly, pleasure becaming too much to handle .you released around his cock, reaching the peak second time at night.

After giving a few more thrusts Chan cummed at your stomach, he was still sane enough to not curse you with kids while being lost in pleasure."I love you", he said as he settled beside you hugging you tightly. This was heaven.

"love you too", you said , your voice a little hoarse.

"by the way I forgot that I bought a ring to propose you", Chan said, realisation hitting him, that he forgot to say the long ass paragraph that he was supposed to say while sitting on one knee. You smiled at his guilty face.

"don't worry, propose me after having shower", you said heart filled with pure joy and happiness . Happiness of knowing that You love someone who will always love you back.

[ichigopanhpff]

Sonata Ch. 4: Tenuto

[Previous Chapter] -- [Masterlist] -- [Next Chapter]

Thanks so much for all the reblogs and likes for this little story of mine. You have absolutely no idea how elated this makes my heart. I didn't expect "Mont Blanc" to get that much traction. I generally don't think my writings are anything spectacular and I'm even happy with single digit likes, but here I sit corrected.

I've also been busy drawing out chapter 10 of "Little Dark Age" by @sanzucide 'cus it's that damn good. I'm still debating on the part 3; ideally, I want to illustrate the whole chapter but I want to feel this out organically.

Warnings: Mentions of drug abuse/overdose and physical assault, abandonment, gun violence, mild blood, mentions sexual themes/preferences/kinks.

Note: If you see any notes messages being responded with ‘amaeichigo’, that’s my primary account name.

( \ tā-ˈnü-(ˌ)tō): hold a tone or chord firmly to its full value 

Her throat was bone dry with anxiousness as she tailed behind Bonten’s head and second in command by a few steps; three faceless men, assuming they were higher ranked in the pecking order, brought up the rear of their procession, making their way into one of their many secure underground conference rooms. From a strategic standpoint, it would’ve been dumb to meet at the main headquarters unless they wanted to be attacked head on.

The silver white haired man announced his presence with the loud clatter of the double doors opening. The rest of the admins had been waiting in their respective plush leather seats situated on the side. A lone vacant seat sat in between the walkway, facing Manjiro’s at the far end. A silk banner with Bonten’s insignia embroidered onto the fabric hung behind it.

“Sit,” Manjiro instructed, to which she did so without argument. She watched his back walk away with Sanzu and sat at the end of the room, facing her. His static obsidian orbs were cold, void of any emotion.

“(Y/FN), I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” the leader began and leaned back into his seat, making the leather squeak. “I permit you to ask them at your pace.”

“Is that wise?” Mochizuki inquired with a steady glare at the hostess. “She hasn’t proved we can—”

“We’re out of time now that we’ve confirmed they’re starting to move,” Bonten’s advisor cut in sharply.

“It’s as Takeomi says,” Manjiro agreed.

The former gritted his teeth and huffed and audible annoyed breath from his nostrils before falling back into his seat. “Well, girl? Ask.”

Taking a shaky breath, she nervously fiddled with her fingers as her gaze cast downward on the plush, blood red carpet. Where would she even start? Her mind flashed back to the five people killed right in front of her, still remembering the scent of warm, fresh iron on her nose. Her body trembled as cold terror sweat formed by the nape of her neck. Squeezing her eyes close to rid the gruesome imagery, she slowly opened them again in hopes of drawing some courage to look back up.

She wanted answers, right?

The least she could do was make eye contact to try hiding her fear and uncertainty.

“T-Those men your admins… k-killed…” she gulped before continuing, trying to keep what’s left of her stomach contents at bay. She tightly gripped the top of her left index and middle fingers to stop herself from shaking. “W-Who were they?”

“They’re from a rival gang called Daruma,” Kakucho calmly answered.

“H-How did you know they were going to be there?”

“We had scouts planted to survey your neighborhood and report back to us. The landlord you got the place from is one of my informants,” the dual-eye coloured man replied. “The intel we gathered confirmed they’d be making a move on you within these few weeks.”

“So you used me as bait?!” she angrily exclaimed and stood up.

“You make it sound so bad…” Ran casually butted in with his head resting on his left fist. “Think of it as…” He twirled his other hand around, looking for the right words. “A way to lure the unknown out from the shadows.”

“That’s the same thing!” she shot back irritably and pinched her nose bridge, trying her best to control herself from throwing something at the purple haired man by letting out a controlled breaths from her mouth.

“It was a calculated risk in order to see our enemy in the flesh,” Kakucho continued and lightly bowed his head at her. “We apologize for the inconvenience this caused you.”

“That’s putting it lightly,” she scoffed. “I could’ve died!”

“But you didn't thanks to us,” Rindou coolly retorted with an expressionless face. "So, you're welcome."

Running her hand through her hair to calm down, lightly pacing back and forth, the other hand firmly planted on her hip; a sudden thought invaded in and snapped her head back up.

“Did you burn down my building so I’d end up here?” she cautiously asked.

“No,” Kokonoi answered clearly. “We were gonna buy it and knock it down for redevelopment to get you evicted. But let’s be real: that building was a literal fire hazard with all that old wiring. However, we can’t assume Daruma didn’t have a hand in it either.”

“What do they, no…” She paused for a moment to rephrase her question better, placing her index knuckle to her chin. “What do I have to do with your feud?”

“You catch on quickly, angel,” the older Haitani commended with an impressed, lazy grin.

“We have reason to believe you hold valuable information regarding our organization and Daruma’s,” Takeomi answered.

“Information?” she blurted out in confusion with squinted eyes. “I’m just a hostess. What could I possibly—”

“When we did the background check on you upon being hired at La Reverie, we found something… interesting,” the advisor intercepted. “Your mother, (Y L/N) Kana, is not who she says she is.”

“What… do you mean?” she stared at Takeomi with full blown skepticism.

“You’re… not aware she’s an undercover agent for Cabinet Intelligence?”

“Wh...at?” she uttered out in a barely audible voice and slowly blinked. “A government agent?” She paused for a beat, trying to make sense of all this. “She was a deadbeat who worked various part-time jobs. No. No.” She vigorously shook her head in denial. “Y-You must’ve gotten her mixed up with someone else.”

Kokonoi stood from his seat and handed (Y/N) a manila file from his hand.

“What’s this?” she looked up at the finance admin with suspicion.

“The truth.”

“And you expect me to believe you?” she sneered. “For all I know, these could’ve been fabricated by Bonten to get me on your side.”

His solemn expression didn’t change. “Doubt us all you want, but this…” He gestured to the documents. “This isn’t something we could make up even if we wanted to.”

She looked deeply into his dark, snake-like orbs, sensing no lies behind his words. Hesitantly accepting it, she opened the folder and read through each page carefully. Her eyes widened with every line as her breathing quickened by the second, slowly feeling light-headed. It was as if each thread of her very being unraveled like an overworn piece of clothing and set ablaze.

(Y/LN) Kana was an alias: Her real name is Igarashi Meiya, an undercover agent with Cabinet Intelligence, specializing in infiltrating the underground world for drug cartels, human sex trafficking, and money laundering. Igarashi’s last known whereabouts was on the border between southern California and Mexico for a drug cartel sting in cooperation with the CIA. She shifted the papers around and found a photocopy of her birth certificate; her gaze widened and felt her lungs suddenly burning and combusting from the lack of oxygen as she held her breath from disbelief.

Meiya wasn’t her birth mother; she was adopted.

She didn’t leave her; her assignment probably changed after she finished whatever she needed to in Japan, including her.

She only made it look like she did.

“So… the debt…” she incoherently mumbled out.

“Used as a distraction so she could get away,” the silver haired man concluded.

She wryly chuckled with empty eyes and looked up at the admins in disbelief. “So that’s why you were keeping such a close eye on me…” Her arms went limp, dropping some pages on the carpet. Her legs staggered and felt like she was going to collapse at any second.

“This was all about what my “mother” found out, never the money.”

“Oh no, the money was a concern,” Kokonoi clarified. “But its priority paled in comparison to what Igarashi found out.”

“Has she mentioned anything to you about this?” Mochizuki inquired.

“We didn’t have much of a relationship,” she dejectedly recalled, feeling the sting of reality hit her core. “She was either drunk half the time or didn’t come home until late morning, smelling like the men she’d been with the night before.”

“Did she give you anything, some kind of physical item?”

“Even if there was, the fire would’ve destroyed it.”

“So she’s useless then,” the muscular admin sighed and crossed his arms.

(Y/N)’s upper body slumped over, cradling the folder close to her chest, still trying to digest all this new information. “So what now?” she murmured feeling her body shake. “You gonna put a bullet in me and throw me in Tokyo Bay?”

“You’re more valuable to us alive,” Manjiro finally spoke. “Were you under Daruma, you would’ve been beaten, tortured and raped.”

“And not necessarily in that order,” Sanzu added with a knowing glower from his azure stare, his scarred mouth turned up in a sadistic-like smirk. “Consider yourself lucky, dove.”

She bitterly scoffed. “Do what you want,” she said in a barely audible whisper and resigned to her fate with closed eyes.

“Don’t say words you don’t mean, doll,” Ran advised with a fox-like grin and darkened violet eyes. “You’re in a room of ravenous men.”

“No different from being a hostess,” she unconsciously blurted, no longer caring about her image and cleverly crafted words. “At the end of the day, you’re all depressed and lonely derelicts, looking for temporary love and warmth on your skin to offset what you cast away inside for this world you've drowned yourselves in.”

Nothing mattered anymore. The facade she’d cleverly created all these years for survival was cracking like cheap porcelain. Everything she’s done up until this point for her freedom had been for naught; no—she was never free from the start. All current events led her to where she was like an invisible collar around her neck and into the whims of her captors. She was given the illusion of freedom, like a well trained dog.

Sanzu immediately drew his gun and pointed it at (Y/N); the corner of his eye twitching with anger. She nonchalantly glanced up at the pink haired man.

“What? Did I hit a nerve?” she mockingly goaded and stood up with her arms stretched out, encouraging him to shoot her, dropping the entire folder and its contents down on the carpet from her opened palms.

“Don’t provoke him, (Y/N)-chan,” Kokonoi nervously advised. “He’ll do it.”

“What the fuck do you know, bitch?” he growled out and cocked the pistol hammer with a look of disdain masked with his rage. “You don’t know any of us.”

“Sanzu,” Manjiro warned.

“You’re right; I don’t,” she admitted with a small scorn. “What I do know is you’re a group of insecure men-children, flashing your big, shiny weapons to intimidate and kill any obstacle because you’re too weak to face them head on!”

“I! AM NOT! WEAK!” the pink haired man madly bellowed and steadied his aim.

“Sanzu!” Kakucho shouted.

Just as he pulled the trigger of his AMT AutoMag V with a ringing gunshot, Bonten’s number three rushed to the pink-haired man’s side and pushed his arm in the nick of time. The aftershock of the bullet made everyone's ears buzz with a uncomfortable high-pitched vreen vibrating from their collective eardrums. The bullet grazed (Y/N)’s cheek before hitting the wall at the far end. Blood trickled down as she stood stationary, not caring about the stinging sensation burning her epidermis; the pain she was feeling on the inside couldn’t even compare. Kokonoi and Kakucho both hastily strode up to her, the latter pulling out a handkerchief from his pocket to put pressure on her wound.

“Jesus! You’re crazy!” the finance admin exclaimed with a look of panic in his dark eyes. This was the first time she’s ever seen him react like this. “What the actual fuck!”

“Oi! Didn’t you hear Mikey?!” Rindou stood from his seat and roughly shoved Bonten’s number two’s shoulder. “We need her alive!”

“Fuck off, Haitani,” the scarred man growled out and pointed the gun at his temple with a mad, deranged look in his cerulean eyes. “You want a piece of this too?!”

“Kill him, I kill you,” Ran threatened and appeared behind Sanzu all of a sudden with a small knife situated at his jugular.

“Stop.” Manjiro finally raised his voice with a sharp glare. “Sit. Down. All of you.”

Doing what their head commanded, he turned his attention to (Y/N) and the two tending to her.

“Treat her wounds.”

The two men escorted her out of the conference room, with Kokonoi still holding the now blood soaked handkerchief to her face. Situating in one of the waiting rooms, Kakucho left to find a first aid kit.

“You’re an actual idiot,” the silver haired man tutted, gently rubbing both his traguses folded on top of his external auditory meatus, in hopes of getting the ringing out so he could hear properly again. “Wantin’ to die like that.”

“Wouldn’t you?” she whispered with a quiver of her voice and turned her head away. “After realizing your whole life’s a lie and all your efforts were for nothing?”

Kokonoi couldn’t respond; were he in her position, would he be wishing for death too? A calm, dense silence filled the room while the two waited for Kakucho to return.

“All my life… I tried to do right by others to those who deserve it,” she scoffed at herself. “How naive of me…” Her gaze turned to a random spot on the floor with a pained look. “Kokonoi-san… Did you find anything on my birth mother?”

His sharp eyes looked at her with hesitation.

“You wish to know?”

“Can’t get any worse.”

“… She was a prostitute,” he reluctantly revealed. “And a drug addict; OD’ed a few months after you were born. Your birth mom was in contact with Igarashi-san as a potential informant for the case she was on.”

(Y/N) said nothing and closed her eyes, reaching up to remove his hand to replace with her own over the handkerchief. She felt numb and apathetic. All these feelings of emptiness and never knowing where she belonged all made sense now.

She came into this world insignificantly alone and will most likely die that way too. Part of her wanted to scream and cry and angrily lash out, but they’d only be empty and meaningless actions.

It’d be like asking sympathy from the devil.

The scarred man came back at last with a small white tin box in tow. The finance admin moved so she could be treated.

“Let’s see the cut.”

He reached up to remove the blood stained cloth; the laceration was shallow with most of the blood already coagulated. Taking out an alcohol wipe from the box, he ripped the paper packet open and begun wiping the dried blood around the wound first. The fumes from the alcohol stung the cut, making her grit her teeth. All he could see of her how was a shell of her former self after knowing her truth. Part of him sympathized, having lost his family from when he was barely old enough to understand the world around him and was shoved into an orphanage, left to fend for himself. Tucking those memories back into the dark corners of his mind, he then generously smeared bactine on it before peeling a gauze bandage to cover her cheek.

“Does it still hurt?”

She shook her head no. Making their way back into the main conference room, everything became white noise to her. All she wanted to do right now was to be left alone to process everything; but even that was a big ask given her current company. Until they could figure out how she can get the info her mother left behind, the only solution was for her to move in with one of the admins for surveillance. (Y/N) was to also quit her job at La Reverie and her debt was to be written off as a loss in their accounting.

They were making her disappear without a trace.

“At the very least…” she finally spoke in a barely audible murmur. “May I say good-bye to my clients?”

“I thought you didn’t care about the job,” Kokonoi said with a slight tone of surprise.

“The job, no. The clients, yes,” she answered earnestly. “They deserve a proper farewell from me. And please give them over to Ami-chan. She’ll treat them right.”

Three weeks after the confrontation with Daruma, the story (Y/N) spun to her co-workers and clients was she had an elderly relative to take care of in Nagoya as her reason for leaving the club. Just as she settled into her apartment, everything was packed back up again. The furniture she bought was sold to the nearest second-hand store for cash and only had what she could carry with her in a duffle bag. Having yet to decide who she would stay with, she was taken to Bonten’s headquarters under the watchful eyes of the admins; they couldn’t trust any of their men to be tasked with this.

They were on their respective devices, going about their daily affairs with the syndicate. With nothing to do, (Y/N) scanned the bookshelf in their meeting room and picked a random one to read to distract her mind from thinking about recent revelations; more like, she was still trying to digest it all and sit with her feelings. The bits and pieces she remembered of her childhood were neither good or bad; the ones that stood out the most was whenever she had to drag her mom from the doorway, having blacked out from drinking too much the night before, and onto her futon. Despite how she grew up, she never once hit her nor let her go hungry, no matter what.

Now that she thought about it, Igarashi Meiya acted more of a guardian to her than a mother; perhaps she raised her that way to prevent herself from being emotionally attached. It’s not like she could suddenly find her and ask her all these questions either.

Ran eventually reached his mental cap for work and decided to slack off for the remainder of the day. He strolled over to where she was sitting and plopped down on the couch beside her with his signature lazy grin. She remained unbothered by his piercing violet gaze and presence.

“So, (Y/N)-chan,” the older Haitani brother drawled out and perched his hand on his temple. “Satisfy my curiosity: you really didn’t sleep with your clients?”

“No,” she tersely replied, her eyes not leaving the book and turned the page.

“You weren’t tempted at all?”

“No,” she said again with emphasis.

“You a virgin or something?” he finally asked with a mild teasing tone.

“Not your business.”

“Only a virgin would say that,” he grinned, excited at the thought of an untouched maiden waiting to be defiled and molded to his lustful whims. “What sensible hostess doesn’t sleep with their clients? Especially with the amount of money they’d throw on a pedigree like you.”

“When was the last time you got tested, Haitani-san?” she leisurely inquired to divert the topic of discussion, her eyes still focused on the book, despite reading the same sentence twice already. “Mayumi sleeps around and without protection sometimes.”

“She says she’s on the pill,” he justified.

(Y/N) dropped the literature on her lap and looked up at the tall man in disbelief. “You… realize the pill only prevents her from not getting pregnant and doesn’t protect against STDs and STIs, right?” she stated matter-of-factly.

The elder Haitani blinked a few times as his usual calm demeanor suddenly turned nervous and thickly swallowed, thinking about the last time he and La Reverie’s number one hooked up, where he saw a rather interesting rash on her thigh.

“Aniki?” Rindou cautiously asked, watching his brother shift uncomfortably in his seat and took out his phone. After a short beat, he stood from the couch, saying he realized he had a last minute appointment. All she could do was softly snicker before going back to her book.

“So was my brother right?” Rindou asked. “Are you a virgin?”

“You lot got a personal cash pool going on this?” she sharply exhaled, annoyed and extremely uncomfortable about the subject matter.

“No. But now that you mention it…” he trailed off, making a mental note to suggest it later.

She sighed heavily and dropped the book back on her lap again and shot the younger Haitani an unamused glare, as if reading his mind.

“No matter how much any of you try, I’m not sleeping with anyone in this room,” she firmly declared. “Especially with your preferences.”

“Oh?” Takeomi ears perked up with a lit cigarette in his mouth. “And you think you know--”

“You and Kanji-san both have sir and daddy kinks,” (Y/N) immediately cut in with a straight face. “Akashi-san likes the leather collars worn around his property. Makes his ego feel good. Well…” She folded the corner of the page and closed the novel, not making eye contact with either one. “That can be said about any man.”

The two men stuttered as Rindou snort laughed before sipping his coffee.

“Rindou-san’s kink is sadism and praise,” she announced and glanced over at the younger Haitani, making him spit out his drink. “Considering how close you are with your brother, you wish to be seen as an equal to him from those around you. You like hurting others so they praise you to stop the pain and give them their ‘reward.’”

“Damn,” Kokonoi heartily chuckled and looked up from his laptop. “Never thought you were this brutal, (Y/N)-chan.”

“Oh don’t get me started with you, exhibitionist,” she ridiculed with an irked look, scanning him up and down like he was covered in something. “You like to watch before deciding on joining in.”

The silver haired man coughed uncomfortably and looked away from his laptop screen, his whole face a bright shade of red. The twin doors at the far end of the spacious conference room swung open, with Kakucho, Mikey and Sanzu entering. The three casually glanced at (Y/N) as she rolled her eyes, already knowing what they were going to ask.

“Soft dom, yandere and possible shibari fetish,” she grocery listed in a bored manner, to which they all covered their mouths to hide their snickers and uncontrollable wheezing laughter much to the confusion of the three. Her company was soon called into a meeting, with her being escorted out to one of the many waiting rooms. She was getting restless and irritable, being brought around their many office buildings as if she worked for them.

She was their hostage.

They say they’re doing this to “protect” her, but she knew they would off her the moment they got what they needed. Nothing good will come from it should either party get their hands on whatever they’re looking for from her. The problem was she had no starting point. Well aware her situation with Bonten is temporary, she need a way to save herself.

But it’s not like she had anywhere to go either.

Until she had some sort of a lead as to what she was looking for, she’s a sitting duck.

Another two hours slowly crawled by; they collectively decided she should head back to Manjiro’s for the night since they were still trying to barter a deal with an overseas client. Sanzu escorted her to the unmarked black car. En route, she requested to stop by the convenience store to buy ingredients for dinner; the last thing she ate was over 8 hours ago and she was starving. Arriving at the penthouse, Manjiro’s bodyguard let her in before heading back out; she saw all of her personal items arrived without damage either.

Sighing to herself, she grabbed her duffle and entered the guest room to change before preparing food. Tonight was beef curry. Starting the rice first, she washed the short grain vigorously before placing it into the cooker. After washing, peeling and cutting the ingredients up, she heated up her pot before dumping each item in to cook. The food was ready about thirty minutes later.

While waiting for the rice to finish, she decided to decompress by playing the piano a little. Lifting the lid up, she neatly folded up the velvet dust rag sitting on top of the keys and mindlessly stared at the instrument for a beat. Her hands started moving to play a familiar melody she remembered from her childhood.

She can count on one hand the amount of times she and her mother spent time together. Thinking back on it now, it made sense with all the times she was out all hours of the day, doing god knows what; Kana at least had the decency to leave cooked food for her when she got back from school.

“(Y/N),” a woman called as she entered their small apartment. “Come here for a moment.”

A young girl set down her crayons on the tatami and walked over to her mother; she looked up with a bright, curious gaze.

“Mama saw something today and thought you’d like this.” She revealed a small, wrapped box hidden from behind her back and handed it to her daughter. “Open it.”

Untying the ribbon, the child opened the box, revealing a small, black music box. She opened the lid and it started playing “Moonlight Sonata.”

“Do you like it?”

The girl fervently nodded with a wide smile, looking down at her new gift.

(Y/N) stopped playing the piano all of a sudden and quietly gasped.

Why did she remember this now?

–

En route to Bonten’s headquarters, (Y/N)’s mobile phone started ringing, catching Manjiro’s attention. Hastily picking up, she spoke quietly into the receiver for a few minutes before hanging up.

“Sano-san…”

“Didn’t I tell you to call me ‘Manjiro’?” he asked with a mild tone of annoyance, his eyes still closed.

“Ma-Manjiro-san…” she reiterated with hesitancy. “Is it possible to drop me off at the police station?” she meekly requested. His dark eyes immediately snapped open and glared. “It appears they have some follow-up questions to ask me about the apartment fire, even though we have an idea who did it.”

Disapproval was written all over the white haired man’s furrowed brows and clicked his tongue.

“Daruma isn’t going to be that stupid to pull something in front of a station,” she pointed out. “And I’m certainly not dumb enough to let them know of my current company.” Bonten’s leader remained quiet as she let out a small sigh. “Obviously, asking you to trust me is out of the question…” she paused to craft her persuasion. “Maybe they recovered some of my things from the fire they want to give back. And there could be clues to what you’re looking for.”

“You’d risk your own safety for it?” he asked dubiously.

“Don’t get me wrong: we have no common goal here,” she cleared up. “I know you’d kill me the second you get your hands on whatever this is.”

“So you’re using it as a bargaining chip?” Manjiro followed up with an icy stare in his onyx orbs.

“This may be hard for you to believe, but I’m doing this for closure.” (Y/N) swallowed hard to wet her dry throat. “I wanna know what my mom found and if I have to work with Bonten to achieve this, so be it.”

The man closed his eyes and smirked to himself, resting his cheek on his left knuckles.

“Who’s to say you won’t run away after?”

“You literally have your men scattered across every centimeter of this city,” she firmly stated. “Where could I possibly go?”

Heaving a long breath, the white haired man took out his phone and typed something on it before putting it back into his pocket.

“You have a two hour window,” he declared. “Go to the station, answer what they need and leave. A car will take you back to our headquarters. You are to tell us everything that happened. If we find out you’re hiding anything…”

“A bullet will be wedged between my eyes,” she finished his thought. “Got that message loud and clear the first time from Sanzu-san.”

Dropping Manjiro off first, the car then made its way near Shibuya police station for (Y/N). She felt her heart beat inside her throat, not knowing what to expect. Nervously gripping her bag strap, she made her way in. Checking in at the front desk area, a uniform escorted her into one of the interview rooms for privacy. A short moment later, a detective holding a few sealed plastic bags of evidence and a manila folder in his hand entered.

“What happened to your cheek?” the man asked, pointing to the bandage.

“I tried to pick up a stray cat and… it didn’t like the way I held him,” she quickly fibbed with an uneasy, crooked smile.

“Ah, that happened to my kid once,” the detective sympathized. “Wouldn’t stop crying for hours.”

Jumping into the proper interview procedures and last questions, he then laid out the bagged items across the table.

“We’ve been trying to get these back to their owners,” he explained through his gruff voice. “If there’s anything you recognize here, please point to it.”

Carefully scanning through each one, she noticed a small, familiar black box and mini book near the edge. Pointing to the two items, the detective reached for it and looked at the documentation.

“A music box and photo album…” he analyzed through the bag. “Surprised they’re both still in this good a condition.”

“You and me both…” she huffed out in amazement.

Signing the proper documents, he released the item back to (Y/N). Taking his leave first since he still had a long list of her former neighbors to interview, she bowed back to thank him. Tracing her fingers on top of the lid, she opened it with a small folded note sitting on top of the brass contraption. Looking at her watch, she realized she only had 15 minutes remaining. Pocketing the note into a hidden area of her bag, she carefully placed the box and album inside before making her way out.

Doing as what Manjiro instructed, she got back into the car to drop her off back at Bonten’s headquarters. As a security grunt escorted her to the main room, she requested to use the restroom. Giving her privacy, the man stationed himself at the door while she entered one of the stalls. Steadying her breath, she reached into her bag and unfolded the note. The edge of the paper was stained with burned marks as she tried to make out the message.

Trust no one. The rot is everywhere. When you find this, destroy it. Don’t let this get into anyone’s hands.

She re-read the note once more until it was seared into her memory, recognizing the handwriting as her mother’s. What did she mean by this riddle? Was this why she left?

Immediately ripping the paper to shreds, she threw it down the toilet and flushed it in case they decided to search her bag. Hastily scrubbing her hands with soap to rid her fingertips of the burnt scent, she wiped them clean with her handkerchief before folding it back into her bag. Allowing herself to be brought into the conference room, eyes from some of the admins trained on her, with Manjiro sitting at the far end of the table.

“Well?” Manjiro stared her down intensely. “What’d they say?”

Reiterating word for word the questions the detective asked her, she had to be careful not to slip up and let them know about the note. If there’s one thing she knew about Bonten’s head, it’s that he was very meticulous with his observation. Any change in her demeanor and body language would have him suspicious. After reporting in, she reached into her bag and gently set down the burn-marked music box and album on the table.

“And that’s all they were able to recover?” Takeomi asked and lit his cigarette up.

She quietly nodded. “Of all the evidenced items they showed me, these were the only possession they had of mine. Everything else was destroyed.”

“Open it.”

Doing as she was told, she gently lifted the lid; the music box played a muffled and stuttering version of “Moonlight Sonata.” The cylinder, comb and base plate were damaged from the heat of the apartment fire. She wasn’t sure what they hoped to find, but needless to say, they were disappointed.

“Take the box apart,” Manjiro requested.

“Does anyone have a screwdriver set?”

“Just smash it,” Sanzu impatiently blurted out and crossed his arms.

“I’m not doing that,” she firmly stood her ground with a matching gaze. “This is all I have left of my mom.”

“Why do you even care?! She wasn’t even your real mom!” the pink haired man chided.

“Even so, this was…” Her hands lightly gripped on the blazed item. “This is one of the few good memories I have of her.”

Kokonoi rummaged in his laptop bag and slid a mini screwdriver kit across the table to her. Just as she reopened the lid and rotated the object to find where the screws were, the box slid out of her hand. She fumbled with it through panicked grabs and something fell out with a small clatter on the table the moment she successfully caught it back in her hands.

And there it was.

A USB stick stripped of its casing, exposing the small circuit board of the device.

Taglist: @xngelsau @shizunxie @mikeysbabygirl @im-a-mf @garlicgarlicgirl

[anneapocalypse]

Pages 236-237 of Dragon Age: The World of Thedas Volume 2, with some information about Sera and the Friends of Red Jenny.

These are photographs of the physical book, so I apologize that they aren't perfect, but I have also transcribed the text in its entirety below. Comments in the margins (presumably by Sera) are denoted by brackets.

(And should you be interested in my own analysis of this information, you can check out my Sera meta series.)

---

Notes on the Inquisition Sera & the Friends of Red Jenny

[Well, this should be shit right the way through.]

Red Jenny is a minor legend, a figure of vengeance for those oppressed who are brave enough to wish ill on the authors of their misfortune, but at the same time not possessed of the conviction to upset the social structure in which they find themselves mistreated. In short, something happens, but nothing changes.

[Well, no? Where would you spend anything if you tore it all down? Daft!]

The group is simultaneously led by skilled actors, each claiming to be the titular figure, “Red Jenny.” Sera appears to hold seniority, earned at a very young age. Individual “Red Jennies” operate independently for long periods of time, each to the advantage of their personal territory. Sera’s activities vary from insult to larceny, and, in extreme cases, murder. She will, as the saying goes, rob from the rich and give to the poor, but with significant funds kept for services rendered. Often, robbery is incidental, the action being more about petty revenge. The one rule Sera seems to demand is that they cross no other of their own.

[That’s right, it’s the rule. No chances, no bargains, you’re over and done.]

Sera’s group has attained such a strange notoriety that they need not even act to be credited with an outcome, in what seems the modern equivalent of blaming sickly cattle on imagined witches. So, the difficulty in tracking Red Jenny is established by individual skill, multiplied by concurrent numbers, scattered by random intent, and compounded by the fact that a Red Jenny may not even have been there in the first place.

Thanks to some well-placed sources, we have learned that the Friends of Red Jenny have been of previous interest to assassin guilds as well. Some unusual records surfaced from the Antivan Crows:

[They went after Crows? Pissballs!]

You wanted their measure taken, and here it is.

The knives I found think the Friends of Red Jenny started in Ferelden, maybe a hundred years back. Could be longer—they're hard to track. Don't know if the name is a rank or what, but pretty sure it's older than they are. They were assassins back then, but I doubt they competed with true guilds. They were cheap, small, and made a habit of paying urchins to get information or plant weapons. They recruited that way, but that doesn't seem like a way to get skilled people. The Friends had some teeth, and they weren't shy about getting bloody if their people were threatened, but they were strictly local.

It's recent that the Friends have been more active. Since the Blight, mostly. A new Red Jenny at the head—or seems like—in Val Royeaux. And in Kirkwall. Maybe more. Thing is, they might be doing more, but they stepped back from being assassins. And there are a lot fewer of them. Could be Blight—it killed a bunch of everyone. But my gut says different. They didn't just move; they changed how they work.

I found Red Jenny herself, or one of them, I guess. Tall for an elf. I approached her plain, figured we'd talk guild to guild. Her answer was two fingers. She could move, she's proper skilled, but I don't think she's competition. What she and her friends do has nothing to do with us.

Ashevin

Noted below, presumably by the initiating Antivan Crow:

I get it. They all wear the same mask. The rest is bullshit.

The elf, the voice says Denerim, a mutt. But she's got a trainer who must be somebody. You don't split flies like she does without someone teaching you how to nock an arrow. Who gets that at birth? No one the living are supposed to know.

[Is it so hard for everyone? You miss, then you don't.]

This is admittedly the thinnest of the threads I've followed. The following is an anonymouse contemporary tavern rhyme that circulates in the Free Marches north of the Vimmark Mountains brought to my attention as it references a nickname Sera was overheard to mention.

She of the Red, Oh, She of the Red, She's under a lake with no water, it's said. As friendly as any, and then you are dead. "Forgive me; I've killed you," lies She of the Red.

[Frigging. Piss. Off!]

Sera was likely in the alienage in Denerim as an infant, but we can find no record. Her association with the Friends of Red Jenny may have been her means of avoiding it. Speaking in confidence, some guards admit they are loath to chase anyone into a dark alley, as it is akin to chasing a bear to its den. Not worth the risk, especially if only over a matter of elven truancy.

[Whatever that means, no one cares. Didn't go, stupid tree, didn't stay.]

By her own admission, Sera spent some years in the household of a merchant of moderate holdings named Lady Taraline Emmald. That time seems to predate exposure to the Friends and ended with the woman's death well before the Blight. A particularly virulent wasting illness was known to have passed through Denerim during those years.

[Makes you gray. And cold. You don't wish it on the worst people.]

The streets and the Friends are probably sources for Sera's combat abilities, but Emmald was likely her initial educator and provider. The taking of a ward is not unheard of for those who are childless but of means. Sera has admitted that the situation was mutually beneficial for a time, but clearly has mixed feelings about it now. The death may have caused matters to go unresolved.

[She ruined cookies. Nice or not, that was shit.]

The life of her patroness remains undocumented. It seems people are allowed to be lost in the wake of Blight, but matters of property rarely are. Sera is not named in the following records, but the epithet "Bequeathed" is occasionally used when a party is unable to be legally identified, as in the matter of elves and holdings outside of approved venues such as alienages. It appears that at one point, Sera may have inherited a sizable estate. That speaks to Lady Emmald's commitment to at least the appearance of the relationship. How Sera dispensed with it speaks to her.

[Never asked for it. Paid good sovereigns not to read any of it then, pay you even more not to read it now.]

Document dated before the Blight:

Notice of Grant

Subject: Estate and holdings on behalf of one Lady Taraline Emmald, deceased, to be placed in trust for Bequeathed, as indicated by will and testament.

Value: Sum total of estate is determined to be twenty-eight thousand seven hundred sovereigns, eighty silver, and ninety-six copper (28,700g, 80s, 96c), in combined lands and monies. Less negotiated fees (147g 3s), less taxation of transfer, respecting precedent of holdings between legal title bearers and those remaining undocumented. Divestment of two thousand eight hundred and seventy sovereigns, eight silver, one copper (2,870g, 8s, 1c) required.

Addendum: Funds refused by Bequeathed, as anticipated by author of will and testament. Amount deferred to trust maintained by divestment of interest. Title remains with the estate for purposes of documentation, as respecting of precedent (re: undocumented).

Document dated during the Blight:

Notice of Seizure

Subject: Estate and holdings of one Lady Taraline Emmald, deceased, as held in trust for Bequeathed, to be seized for immediate use.

Authority to seize: Granted in anticipation of treaties presented by relevant authorities (Grey Wardens), to be used in efforts against the Blight. Said treaties not present. Authority enacted by special enforcement of arl and state.

Addendum postseizure: The quoted volue has been deducted from the estate for cited circumstances. The total of: *worth of mercantile goods and trade contracts stored on site (sold to fund efforts), *miscellaneous private goods (sold to fund efforts), *miscellaneous structural elements (sold to fun efforts), the removal of which compromised roofing. Principal manor house rendered unlivable due to elements and animal infestation. Blight forces immune to fine of worth.

Amounts total: Reduced from estimated worth of holdings, ten thousand and sixteen sovereigns, eighteen silver, and four copper (10,016g, 18s, 4c). Hall house and outbuilding remain as taxable structures.

Document dated after the Blight:

Notice of Fine in Worth

Subject: Bequeathed returned to unannounced tenancy of holdings titled to one Lady Taraline Emmald, held in trust for said Bequeathed, incurring fines against said holdings. Fines require reactivating intent of will and testament from trust. Estate now subject to precedent of Blight Reclamation Act IV, wherein inheritance by those undocumented is taxed for public good, requiring prefine divestment of three thousand four hundred sovereigns, four silver, eleven copper (3,400g, 4s, 11c).

Claims against: Seeking financial recompense the total of: *unpaid contract to the Gnawed Noble to supply spirit and comestibles (ongoing), *two (2) neighboring outbuildings destroyed (tipped), *two (2) nightgown garments ruined and personal attending of two (2) residents of adjoining property to restore damage to countenance suffered while attending purpose in said tipped outbuildings, *individual rewards for city officers who assisted in the control of accidental fire consuming hall house of estate, which spread to neighboring public stables. Three thousand forty-eight sovereigns, eleven silver, nine copper (3,048g, 11s, 9c), paid by divestment or reduced from estimated worth. Outbuilding remains as taxable structure.

And another:

Notice of Quitclaim and Transfer

Subject: Quitclaim on land and holdings titled to one Lady Taraline Emmald, deceased, by one Bequeathed. This is to certify that all ownership and claims thereof are nulled in their entirety by the estate, as held in trust by Bequeathed.

Authority to dispose: Bequeathed authorizes the dissolution of holdings due to admitted lack of education regarding such matters, and disinterest in pursuing same. Total of instruction of Bequeathed is exactly: "Maybe orphans or some (excrement)." Terms defined by documenting trustee for additional fee (39g, 3s), by divestment.

Action: Management of all land and holdings is transferred to Undetermined Sister of the Chantry, Denerim, as per precedent regarding Blight orphaned and monies donated through will or testament. Transfer requires divestiture of considerable value, total eight thousand forty-nine sovereigns, one silver, thirteen copper (8,049g, 1s, 13c), precedent noted regarding gifting by undocumenteds. See Blight Reclamation Act IX.

Addendum: Chantry has delayed assignment of Undetermined Sister, as any available have been dispatched to Kinloch Hold for the purpose of "diplomatic ministrations." Delay in assignment has exposed estate to seizure due to lack of occupancy (see Blight Reclamation Act XII). Avoidance of seizure requires satisfying fine of worth to ensure land title remains giftable, payment in lieu requiring divestment of remaining holdings in their entirety. Two thousand one hundred thirty-one sovereigns, thirty-two silver, fifty-eight copper (2,131g, 32s, 58c).

Note: The estate of one Lady Taraline Emmald ceases to be legally definable if balance is archived at zero. Account to be closed with a final deficit against estate of thirty silver (30s), as requested and pocked by Bequeathed.

And for the sake of circumstantial numerical interest, note this contemporary tavern leaflet, as commonly circulated following the Blight:

Rest well at the Gnawed Noble. Raise a glass, raise your feet. Thirty silver for all your comfort for the week. Arriving to find your claim? Passing through to find your fortune? Staff on hand to assist in pairing with a suitable caravan, be your destination the opportune rebuilding of Redcliffe, or farthest Orlesian jewel and capital Val Royeaux.

[Happy now? Better be.]

[twoidiotwriters1]

Copycat: Agent Zero —(Marvel Fem!Oc)

A/N: I said you would get Peter back I never said that would make things better -Danny

Words: 1,010

Phase Four Masterlist

Previous chapter // Next Chapter

Listen to: ‘Runaway’ -by Ziggy Alberts

vii: Recruitment Day

"I don't wanna be here..." she groaned.

"He'll feel better if he sees you."

"I'm going to make it worse," she walked into the room and looked around, "but if I have to choose between making him uncomfortable and upsetting Fury... I guess is pretty obvious..."

They heard voices coming from the hall, Talos sat at the corner of the room and pulled out his tranquilizers, Cat stood next to him and leaned against a wall looking disgruntled.

"Look, I just wanna spend some time with MJ— we were talking about Paris and I think she really likes me..." Peter walked in with his back facing them.

The words stunned her, she wouldn't have moved even if the place had burst into flames.

"That's nice," Ned was the next person to wander in, "it reminds me of when Betty and I first fell in love..."

Betty and Ned!

"...I had just finished my fruit cobbler, right, and—" Talos shot him before he could finish his sentence.

She knew their lives had restarted without her, but she didn't think they would turn into this! Ned and Betty were dating? And Peter said something about MJ... for some reason, it made her want to cry, but she kept her mouth shut and brows furrowed, her emotions were pointless.

"You're a very difficult person to contact, Spider-man."

Peter turned around slowly, took the toothbrush out of his mouth, and stared at the man next to her.

"You're Nick Fury," he mumbled, "and you just shot Ned!"

"It's just a mild tranquilizer, he'll be alright," Fake Fury leaned forward, "so good to finally meet you! I saw you at the funeral, but I didn't think that was a good time to exchange numbers."

"No, that would've been really inappropriate," Peter said with a nervous laugh.

"It's what I just said," Fury replied. "Agent Zero did her best to keep you away, she's against your recruitment."

"Agent Zero?" Peter finally looked at her. "That your name now?"

"Sorta."

"And you didn't want to recruit me?" His voice changed. "Is that why you pushed me away?"

Her eyes darted towards Ned and decided not to answer. She didn't know how Talos knew, cause she'd never told Fury about it, but that was true. She went to Fury begging to be hired in hopes that he'd look past Kurt and Peter. He'd done it, perhaps not fully, but he hadn't looked for them.

"The important thing is, you're here," Talos continued, "I tried to bring you here, you avoided me, and now you're here. What a coincidence."

"You what?" Cat turned to the man next to her. "You never told me that!"

"Am I supposed to report back to an agent below my rank?" He asked dryly.

The mutant bit her tongue. "Sorry, sir," she said, but it came out tense and full of sarcasm, "I wasn't thinking."

"Wait," Peter leaned forward with childish curiosity. "Was this a coincidence?"

The more she thought about it, the more something felt out of place, but she couldn't tell exactly what it was.

"I used to know everything," Fury responded, "then I come back five years later and now I know nothing. No intel, no team— and a high school kid, is dodging my calls!"

"To be fair, Fury, a grown man shouldn't be calling an underage boy he doesn't know—"

"Here's what I do know..."  

Talos spoke over her, he'd been warned about her tendency to poke fun at her superiors, so he was ready to face it without losing his train of thought. Not that he was actually that grumpy anyway, Talos was a softie, everyone knew it.

She let Fury do all the talking, her mind was jumping from one thing to another and she felt she wouldn't be able to say a damn coherent sentence for at least another hour. Mr. Harrington came into the room and interrupted their talk, Fury remained deadly quiet while Peter got rid of him, and just when the teacher had closed the door, a second person knocked on it.

"Babe, you're still awake? You're not answering any of my texts..."

"Uhm..." Peter was on the verge of an anxiety attack. "He's asleep, Betty!"

"Oh! Already?" The girl questioned, a little embarrassed.

"Mmhm, yeah," Peter's hand tightened around his toothbrush.

Betty went away then, but Mr. Dell arrived right after and it made Talos lose his patience.

"Another person touches that door, you and I are going to attend another funeral," he got up. "Suit up! And you..." he pointed at her, "make sure he doesn't stay behind."

"He doesn't work for you," she reminded him. The man gave a step forward to scold her. "But I do, so of course, I'll do what you ask."

Fury exited the room and left her in the most uncomfortable silence of her entire life. She moved toward the boy's suitcase and searched for his suit just to do something.

"Was it true?" Peter said quietly. "What he said about the funeral..."

Cat didn't look at him. "You'd gone through enough, so I did my best to keep you and Nightcrawler out of this."

Peter gave a step forward and she stepped back in alarm, her body reacted on its own. The boy didn't seem hurt by this reaction. "I knew it!" He was a mix of joy and exasperation. "You could've just said—"

"You would've listened?"

Peter didn't reply, she walked up to his suitcase, pulling the red and blue suit from it. "Get changed."

"I'm glad to see you," he added before she could leave, "Thought you'd like to know... I mean, sounds like you think I'm having a hard time handling everything, but I'm... I'm better now."

Her hand grabbed the doorknob but she didn't turn it.

"Let me be clear," she moved her head slightly to the side, "we are not friends. This is no life for a boy like you. I was trained to obey my superior's orders and to be a team player, and that's all I'll be. Got it?" She pulled the door open. "Once I'm done here, we're back to being strangers."

Peter grabbed the suit and began to take off his clothes, when he heard the squeaky door closing he muttered. "She could've just said 'okay'..."

Next Chapter—>

Taglist.

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[mediocreauthor]

helloo 😊 i love your blog! ❤️ and that fanfic about mafia/gang nana characters sounds sooo good! like instead of bands blast & trapnest are gangs? i'd love to read it one day hehe <3 i've loved your previous work and i'm sure this fic will be great!! <3

awww you are the sweetest 🥺 sorry for taking so long dfjgjfd i wrote this LONG ASS answer and then my computer froze. poof. THAT prolonged this very much lol

so mafia au is inspired by killshot from surveycorpsjeans (amazing if you wanna read tho please mind the tags and its bnha), i also got her permission.

its unfortunately became too long and i might never finish it so allow me to dump the story points:

trapnest and blast are two old gangs with bloody history. blast is passed onto Yasu by his adoptive father who has taken Ren and Yasu under his wing at a young age. They grow up together, who is going to take over is the biggest unknown for the longest time until the oldman declares it's Yasu before dying. Ren is fine with it, he never wanted to be a leader. Even if he is the most skilled hitman among them.

Trapnest is notorious with their cruelty, how they don't recognize or respect anyone's territory, they just invade them. This is Takumi's father's doing. After Trapnest is bestowed upon Takumi it changes a bit. They aren't as reckless, don't rely on sheer power but much more careful and strategical. For some years, gangs remain a state of truce.

Then it's broken when Trapnest tries to take over the businesses on Blast's area.

It comes back in double the force when Ren betrays Blast and joins them. No one understands how or why. Yasu doesn't stop his brother, doesn't go after Ren's blood. Nana on the hand is a completely different story.

Now she ranks second in the mob and her only goal is to obliterate Trapnest (and Ren along the way). Yasu, albeit calmer but he isn't a pushover, you try to invade his territory, you are going to suffer the consequences.

The biggest fight mobs have seen in years occurs. Trapnest and Blast puts everything on the line. It's bloody, it's unforgiving and ugly. Nana almost kills Ren, Yasu shoots at her gun, flying it out of her hand. They lose.

Fast forward to a couple years, BLAST licks their wounds and Nana comes up with a new plan. Nobu's woman Yuri tells them there is a stripper at the club whose regular customer is Takumi for years. It's weird that Takumi keeps coming back to the same place for years considering how much of an open target that makes him. This girl is so much more than a stripper and if Takumi has a weakness then Nana wants to use it.

Her plan is pretty simple, go to the club, pretend to be a customer and make the girl talk. She knows mafia men has this habit to give so many unnecessary info to their woman, you can see it clearly with Nobu and Asami. Girl can practically demolish the entire gang because Nobu babbles post orgasm.

Mai, intel of the mob finds that her name is Nana, she is a 25 year old who is working there since she was 19. She tells them there is another stripper; Shin, whose patron is Reira.

It's quickly decided that Nana will take the boy and Nobu the girl. They go to the club, 'Nocturnal'.

Kyosuke is the bouncer, Junko is the barmaid (hello Junko's room). They aren't very integral to the story I just want to tell you they are there. The club itself isn't very lavish. If there was an annual mafia convention, it wouldn't be held there for sure.

Nana looks around the room, pretty jaded, annoyed with loud music, then she sees her. Hachi is on top of the poll, rotating slowly upside down. She is wearing lace, baby doll pink, her platform boots are white. Nana thinks she looks like a princess rather than a stripper.

"Nobu, beat it." she says. "I am going to take the girl." Nobu isn't happy about it (he thought the girl was pretty too after all) but he resigns. Yasu takes Shin instead, not trusting Nobu to act interested enough to not to raise suspicion.

Nana requests Hachi to a private room. "Oh, Princess?" a man with long hair notes down. Princess. It's so cliche Nana can't help but roll her eyes but it suits the girl, she thinks.

Hachi arrives at the velvet room and the show begins.

Nana doesn't want to raise suspicion but she isn't here to see Princess shake her ass either. She comments on Hachi's name (rather sarcastically) and Hachi pouts. "Let's hear your unique name then."

"My name is Nana."

Hachi almost loses her balance but doesn't give her real name. Smart girl. That's okay, Nana will learn everything there is to know about her. She will list her favourite colors, she will send her mom flowers.

Nana quickly gathers that Hachi is more or less a spoiled brat, despite being here to serve Nana, she manages to be demanding. She should be a terrible stripper. But she is also cheerful, laughs like bell chimes, witty and smart. Incredibly charming. Nana understands. She gets why Takumi keeps coming back, she thinks it's impossible to be around this woman for so long and not to fall in love with her. If Takumi had a heart of course.

Nana is going to steal her from Takumi.

so i will leave it at that and if i am certain i won't be able to write this i will elaborate. I have so much love for this story. Sometimes I sit on ideas for years before finally writing them lol

some more things:

BLAST's inner circle: Yasu, Nana, Nobu, Mai (intel), Shion and Miu. Of course Ginpei and his undying love for Yasu is also there.

TRAPNEST: Takumi, Naoki, Reira, Ren, Mari, Kinoshita. dishonorable mention: Narita

this fic also includes:

my endless devotion to Yasu and his bald head

some steamy scenes of Nana and Hachi

Nobu having a huge, crucial role at the mob

Hachi unknowingly being the biggest piece for a decade old gang war

Yasu and Ren's complicated brotherhood

Nana and Ren's betrayal

Asami and Nobu's prejudice of her being a sex worker

Shin and Hachi's relationship

Takumi's wrath

Miu being the baddest bitch

[missymurphy1985]

The Return

It's been 2 years since you were last in Dublin. 2 years since you up and left without warning, saying goodbye to your life there and restarting somewhere completely new. Sometimes, you have to go backwards in order to move forwards.

Requested by @noctvrnalmoth I hope you like it!

*Featuring Jim from the Delinquent Season*

Stepping off the train into the platform, you sighed. It all looked the same, and yet so different. Pulling the buggy open, you gently strapped your sleeping son in and made your way to the taxi rank, your suitcase trailing behind you. A kind lady helped you with your bags and waited with you for an available taxi.

"You look like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders there, are you okay?" She sat next to you on the bench as your son murmured adorably in his sleep. "Sorry, I don't mean to pry..."

"No don't be sorry.. just been a long time since I came back here is all. Few loose ends to tie up." You glanced at your son's sleepy features as his eyes started to open. Beautiful, ocean blue eyes alongside his dark hair, growing more every day... The memories of that night flooding back before you took a large gulp of water from the bottle in your bag, forcing them back down. You'd done so well... 2 years and you'd built a new life in London. New friends, amazing new job allowing you to put that degree in marketing to good use - you were finally making a complete fresh start. But the secrets you had buried deep inside kept coming to the surface the more your son grew. He deserved to know his roots, who his father was, you knew that, but you couldn't do it.

Choking a tear back, you thanked the kind lady for helping you as a taxi pulled up and she helped you to get in.

Pulling up outside your cousin Natalie's townhouse in the city centre, she was waiting for you at the gate to help with Jackson and your bags. Grinning from ear to ear she pulled you in for a huge hug once you'd got inside and settled on her couch as Jackson sat in this new lady's lap tugging at her earrings.

"I can't believe I'm only just meeting him y/n.. he's the image of you!!" She kissed his cheek, bringing him up to look at him properly for the first time not over Skype.

"I never see it, I just see.... I just see him I guess..." You mind wandered to the man you actually saw, but you didn't let it slip.

"Those EYES!!! So blue and vibrant, just beautiful!" Natalie was swooning now, she'd never seen eyes that blue on a baby. Your eyes were brown, so he clearly inherited them from his father, although you had never revealed his identity - just a drunken one night stand and he wasn't involved. You weren't lying, technically...

After catching up properly, Natalie told you she'd planned a few people coming over to welcome you back that evening - nothing major, just a few friends from years ago that were keen to see you after so long away.

"Oh.. yes, that would be nice... Um, who's coming?"

"Well I think David and Amanda, possibly Caroline.. I think Liam is asking Jim too but I'm not sure if he's up for it - he's been through a tough time lately.." you caught a gasp in your throat at the sound of his name. Last you heard, through Natalie, he and Danielle were going through a rough patch. Cheating accusations on both sides, they'd agreed to a trial separation. "Apparently she isn't as broken hearted as once thought - already shacked up with someone new, fancy house on the coast, new Jag on the driveway, she's doing quite well for herself!" Your chin began to wobble, not unnoticed by Natalie, who placed Jackson in his bouncer on the floor and moved to place a hand on your shoulder.

"I'm fine Nat, honestly I'm good. It was a long time ago, things have changed. I'm not that silly little girl with a crush anymore..." Natalie looked into your eyes. Nothing ever got past her.

"Y/n.. when I said I'd never seen eyes that blue, I meant on a baby. Only one person I know has eyes like that, and I think you know too. Tell me the truth, please?" You were frozen, until tears escaped and you couldn't stop them. Jackson looked to see his mum crying and began crying too. Scooping him up, you held him close.

"It happened once... Just once Nat... And he doesn't know and he doesn't need to know, let's just leave it there, yeah?"

"What?? This is Jim's son? I was almost kidding y/n... How could you keep this from him for 2 years??" She was stood up now in complete shock. Jim wasn't just her friend, he was her husband's brother - this made things even more intense. The atmosphere could be cut with a knife.

"Please Nat... This wasn't easy okay? I was 21, I slept with a married man, and I got pregnant... Then mum died.. I had to go back to London to sort out the funeral and the will... I didn't want to be seen as the homewrecker that got herself knocked up..."

"And what about Jackson? Doesn't he deserve to know his father?"

"Of course... And he would.. when I was ready Nat. And I'm not ready..."

"Not ready for what?" Liam, Natalie's husband was stood in the doorway, as you heard the front door close. Now standing next to him was the man you were desperately trying to avoid... Jim stood behind him, eyes wide at the sight of you with a baby in your arms.

"Baby, we need to go pick up that delivery from the post office, remember the one we missed last week?" Natalie pulled a confused Liam out of the room, leaving his brother and you alone.

"Y/n... Hey.. um.. how are you?" You tried to smile in response but your heart was pounding in your chest, you could barely breathe.

"I.. yeah.. um, yeah I'm okay.." you glanced down at his hand.. the wedding ring was gone. "I'm sorry to hear about you and Olivia..."

"Probably for the best eh... We weren't exactly getting along, just stayed together for the kids I think. They're older now though, they're fine. Y/n.. where did you go? Why did you go?"

"My mum was ill... She'd had a stroke and they couldn't save her, I had to go... I just stayed.. and things happened.."

"You had a baby..." He looked at the little boy in your arms, feeling extremely nervous now. "He must be just over a year old, right?" You nodded.

"13 months.."

"And we... We had sex y/n.. the day before you left..." His own breath was faltering now as the dates in his mind started to catch up. Again, you nodded, tears rolling down your cheeks. The realisation of what was happening dawned on Jim. He started to back away, before shaking his head and storming out of the house, the door slamming behind him making you and your son jump.

Your sobs came out in full force now, Liam and Natalie coming back into the room. Liam took Jackson into the kitchen to find him something to eat as Natalie held you.

"It's okay y/n... Give him time yeah? Poor guys just had the shock of his life, he'll come round." Your heart was sinking.. you hadn't meant for any of this to happen, but here it was. The memory of that afternoon had never left you, you hadn't even been able to move on - your son, for starters, looked just like him, how could you find love with anyone with the constant reminder of the man you'd never have around you 24/7.

Flashback

"I'm so sorry Jim, I didn't know who else to call..." You climbed into his car, cheeks burning as he picked you up from outside the pharmacy. You'd been walking along the road when a pothole in the pavement took you by surprise and you'd tripped, your ankle turning funny - the pain was horrific, but no one seemed to be answering your phone calls when you rang around for someone to come pick you up. Reluctantly, you'd dialled Jim's number, your cousin's brother in law. He'd given you his number the previous week, after offering to help you move into your new apartment later that month.

"No problem, I was just dropping the kids at school so I was only round the corner." He helped you into the car and drove you back to his house. "I figured your place is in boxes, no chance of a first aid kit either, I'm guessing?"

"No," You laughed. "Thank you so much.." you grimaced as you turned your foot round, trying to ease the pain.

"Definitely not broken, just need to rest it. I'll put the kettle on." Jim led you into the kitchen and sat you down at the kitchen table, and grabbed an ice pack from the fridge. Lifting your leg onto the chair opposite, he placed the ice pack onto your ankle. "Feeling okay?" He asked, flicking the kettle on and preparing two mugs of coffee.

"Much better.. thank you." Definitely better.. the physical contact from him was driving you insane, you had to swallow the blushes in your cheeks, praying he hadn't noticed.

"I've only got instant coffee... Hope that's okay - Danielle won't let me buy a coffee machine." He rolled his eyes. His wife was one of the tightest women he'd ever met.

"It's fine, thank you.. and I honestly can't thank you enough for coming to get me.. I can't believe how clumsy I am!"

"Hey those pavements are a nightmare - I'm surprised no one's broken a leg yet! Don't you be moving now, I'll take you back home once that swelling has gone down."

"How did you know how to fix it all?"

"I have a son, y/n, who at one stage a few years ago thought he was an actual superhero and would fling himself off anything to check if he could fly.. you learn the difference between a broken ankle and a twisted one pretty quick!" He laughed, remembering the time his son climbed the tallest tree in the park, giving him a heart attack before throwing himself from the top - luckily Jim caught him before he hit the floor.

"I think it's better now, Jim, I can try and walk." You said, after chatting for a while in the large kitchen.

"Let me help you.." he held your hands and guided you upright, your chests now pressed together as you placed your foot gingerly on the floor, testing it's strength. Stumbling slightly, Jim caught you, your bodies now even closer together. You could feel his heart racing, could he feel yours? His hands wrapping around yours, holding you up, an arm snaking round your waist. You looked up and found him looking right back at you, your face inches from his. Before you had time to think, you kissed him, before quickly pulling back.

"Shit I'm sorry... Oh god.. no... I'm sorry..." He took your hand in his and pulled you back to him, pressing his lips back to yours. This time you didn't pull back, your mouth opening allowing his tongue to dance against yours. Lifting you up, he sat you on top of the counter, his hands roaming your body hungrily.

"I can't... I shouldn't..." He murmured against your neck, the vibrations driving you wild with need. "You're so fucking beautiful y/n..." He ground your hips against yours, you could feel his erection through his jeans as you reached down to cup it through them, kneading it slightly. He growled, pulling your hand up to his chest, his heart hammering underneath his shirt. "You feel that? Feel how fast that's going?" Silently you took his hand and placed against your chest.

"Feel mine...." You pushed his hand down lower.. over your breast... Down your stomach and under the waistband of your skirt. His fingers found your folds, and he gasped your name. "I'm wet... I'm so fucking wet..." Lifting your skirt up, he pulled your underwear down. You relieved him of his jeans and they fell to the floor, revealing no underwear, just his huge, hard cock already leaking.

"I see you are too..." You ran a finger along the slit, taking some of the precum and lifting it to your mouth. "You taste good..."

"You want this...?" He asked, lining himself up against you. You nodded, and he pushed in easily, you gasped his name and threw your head back as he filled you completely. Pulling on your hips, he rocked you against him as he moved his own hips back and forth, fucking you against the countertop. You legs wrapped round his waist as his thrusts came harder, deeper, faster.

"Fuck... Right there... Jim... Oh god...." He bit down on your exposed neck, hands pushing against your still covered breasts, he moaned.

"Feels so good y/n... You feel so good... That's it baby, I need to feel you... Cum for me..." You leaned back, and eyes locked with his you drew a hand down to circle your clit as he moved inside you.

"Gonna make myself cum on you... Gonna cum hard for you... Faster Jim..." He pounded into you now, your moans echoing through the kitchen as you came over him, his release following seconds later. Both of you leaned your heads together as your worlds came back into focus.

Present Day

"Hey."

"Hey.." you'd agreed to meet Jim for a coffee a few days later. He'd called you the evening before, slightly tipsy which made you chuckle. Liam and Natalie were watching Jackson while the two of you caught up.

"How's the hangover?" You smiled, he grimaced.

"Well I've definitely felt fresher.. it was a bit of a shock y/n..."

"Listen.. for what it's worth.. I'm sorry. I didn't know I was pregnant until I was nearly 20weeks. With the stress of losing mum and the funeral, I hadn't had a period for a while but I thought it was just the stress.. then my friend convinced me to take a test and the doctors confirming it.. it was too late to do anything about it.. then I heard you and Danielle were trying for another baby and I just couldn't do it Jim.. I couldn't destroy your life like that.." your hands were shaking. He leaned over and took your hands in his.

"I understand y/n.. I do. I spent most of this week thinking about it. I don't blame you for what you did.. but I do wish you'd told me."

"I'd done enough damage Jim, sleeping with a married man? On his kitchen counter where he makes his kids breakfast? Where his wife makes her coffee in the morning? I couldn't face you.. I couldn't face what I'd done.."

"You know where my wife was, that morning?" He leaned back, smiling a little. "At her office, bent over the desk while her boss fucked her from behind. She called my number by accident while it happened. I didn't answer, obviously, I was busy.. but my voicemail picked up the whole thing. I'd had my suspicions for a long time, but that confirmed it. We were never trying for another baby - that's just what she told people to distract them from the fact we were clearly falling apart at the seams. Couldn't exactly be mad at her after what I'd done with you though."

"Did you tell her?"

"Yes, but she didn't know it was you. Then you up and left.. I thought there was no need to tell her who it was. I guess now we kinda have to, right?"

"Jim, I don't expect anything from you, okay? I have an inheritance from my mum, I'm fine for money, there's no need to be involved if it'll cause you problems.."

"No. You've kept him from me for nearly 2 years y/n, don't do this again, please? I'm not asking you to move in, I'm not asking for a relationship, I just want to get to know our boy.. that's all.. please?" You saw it in his eyes. It was there, for all to see. Was it love?

"I'll call Nat.. ask her to bring him over, maybe we could go for a walk?" Jim smiled, nodding. You made the call, and an hour later you were walking to the local park, Jim pushing the stroller. He took Jackson out of the buggy and placed him inside a baby swing, pushing him gently while pulling silly faces making him giggle. Your heart swelled watching them.

"He's incredible.. those eyes.."

"Your eyes, Jim." He looked up at you and smiled listening to his son's giggle, before he started becoming grouchy again.

"He's teething... Come on little man, let's get you back shall we?" Jim lifted him from the swing and placed his little finger in Jackson's mouth. He responded by sucking his gums along it, finding relief. You smiled, watching Him soothe your son's whimpers of pain as his teeth came through.

Making your way inside Natalie's house, you were surprised to find it empty. A note on the kitchen counter read that they'd gone out for the afternoon, they wouldn't be home until the evening. You warmed a bottle of milk for Jackson as Jim gave him some Calpol. Taking the bottle from you, he fed his son, as you watched, heart pounding as you watched the man you were still in love with take such good care of your baby. Within 15 minutes, Jackson was fed and had been rocked to sleep in his father's arms, you took him and placed him upstairs in his cot to nap. You knew he'd be out for at least an hour after all that fresh air. Walking back into the lounge, you found Jim sat on the sofa waiting for you.

"Come here, y/n..." You sat next to him as he turned to face you, hand gently caressing your cheek. "What are we going to do now?"

"I'm heading back to London tomorrow Jim..." His eyes glistened slightly. He'd just found his son, and now he was going again. He'd just got you back in his life, and now you were disappearing again...

"What can I do to make you stay?" His question took you by surprise. Stay?

"Jim, I..."

"I haven't stopped thinking about you.. about what happened 2 years ago. How long I'd wanted you, how long I'd dreamt of you, how I still dream of you even now.. and we share a son y/n.. I can't let you go again, it'd break me.."

"I'm half your age Jim! I'm barely older than your eldest child, how can this possibly work?" He answered with a kiss. Leaning forward to take your mouth against his, without thinking you returned it, linking your fingers with his as he pulled you into his lap.

"It'll work because we'll make it work.. nothing else matters.. all of that other stuff is irrelevant.." he felt you grind your hips against his and his erection was burning against his jeans. He needed you, now.

"And Danielle?"

"Is fucking a man old enough to be her own father - opinion invalid. I don't care about her, I care about you.. please.." he was aware of how desperate he sounded but he didn't care. He had his hand under your t-shirt against your breast, no bra in the way this time. Lifting you up, he carried you upstairs to the guest room you were staying in, and laid you down softly on the bed underneath him.

"Birth control?" He looked at you, smiling.

"The coil - don't worry, I'm covered this time.." You smiled back as he lifted your t-shirt over your head and kissed you again. The reason for being at the pharmacy 2 years ago was to collect your prescription for the pill - you'd not taken it for a couple of days after running out suddenly. After Jackson was born, you switched to a more efficient form of birth control.

Pulling your skirt down and off, along with your underwear, he nestled his face between your thighs, now parted by his hands.

"I want you to watch me y/n... Watch me as I make you cum..." Your core burning, you raised yourself up on your elbows as he blew a hot breath against your wet folds, causing you to shiver under him. He parted your lips with his fingers, before licking from your pulsing hole up to your clit, finding a rhythm that made you cry out and shudder underneath his tongue. Smiling, groaning into you, you tried to keep your eyes on him as he licked and sucked your throbbing clit in his mouth.

"Jim.. don't stop.. oh god..." You hadn't had sex since that afternoon 2 year ago, no one being good enough to compete with the man currently buried between your legs. No pleasure you'd given yourself since was a patch on this, and you felt that burning feeling in your stomach starting to rise. "I'm close... Mm... Fuck I'm close..." Your words barely a whisper but he heard them, pushing harder with his tongue as a finger entered you, hooking upwards to find that spot inside, the one you didn't think actually existed, but there it was.. you bucked against his mouth, coming hard and fast - you felt your liquids gush over his chin, there was no stopping them... "Aha... Oh god Jim... Fuck... Stop, it's too much..." He smiled, blowing another warm breath over you before moving back to your mouth. You could taste yourself on his lips, turning you on even more.

Flipping him onto his back, you lifted his clothes off him and kissed down his chest. Your core needed a breather before you took him inside you. Licking the top of his now rock hard cock, you slowly sank your lips down, taking him fully inside your mouth. You'd never had a strong gag reflex, and you enjoyed the feeling of his cock hitting the back of your throat.

"Holy fuck... Jesus y/n... That's it baby..." Up and down your head bobbed, swapping between hard and light sucks, your teeth gently scraping the underside of his cock and your fingers lightly playing with his balls underneath you. Every time you felt them tighten, you'd ease off, allowing him to catch his breath, before bringing him into your mouth again. After a few near explosions, he couldn't take anymore and lifted you off motioning for you to sit on him. "Ride me y/n..." You smiled, and sank your pussy onto him, allowing him to fill you. Slowly so as to adjust to his length, your hips moved, back and forth, up and down, finding the right rhythm for you both. He sat up, chests together and his hands under your thighs as he rotated his hips from underneath, driving his cock against that magical spot again.

"Yes... God that feels good... Jim..."

"I'm not gonna last long y/n..."

"That's okay.. we've got plenty of time to make up for this... Cum in me, give me all of you..." You felt his cock twitch inside you as he moved your hips faster. Leaning back, you rode him hard, the bed frame squeaking underneath as you both cried out, your climaxes arriving simultaneously. Coming back to rest your head against his, you clenched your core once more causing him to gasp as you drew yourself off him slowly. Lay down next to each other, he pulled you into his arms.

"Did you mean what you said?" He asked, kissing your head gently. "Plenty of time?"

"I meant it, Jim... I need to get back to London to sort a few things, put my flat up for sale.. my job... But yes. If you'll have us, we'll come back.." you looked into his eyes. He lifted your head to kiss you and you felt it. All the love you thought you'd never find, in the man you thought you'd never find it with.

Everything was going to be fine, you couldn't wait to start your life over again, this time for the last time.

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