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storiesbyrhi · 4 months

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Witch!Reader x Bat/Vampire!Eddie Munson Series Masterlist The Grimoire The Timeline

Warnings: canon typical violence, horror genre typical violence/some infrequent gore, swearing, animal death, no beta, death in childbirth (mentioned, not described), abusive parents, suicide, spiders/bugs, grief/mourning; light smut; warnings updated each chapter.

Synopsis: No witch has stepped foot in Hawkins since 1845, but when Vecna opens the ground and poisons the town, a voice begins to call to you. Have you been brought back to this cursed place to heal the townspeople’s wounds, to save a hexed bat that always finds its way to you, or to redefine your history with a reunion 150 years in the making?

Chapter Summary: A non-linear and incomplete series of vignettes. 3635 words.

I: Once upon a time

1986

Once upon a time, there lived a little witch. A very special kind of witch, in fact. Where her coven viewed the world in black and white, she not only saw shades of grey, but an entire rainbow of colours. Where her sisters saw an enemy, she saw an ally. Where the witches who walked the earth before her saw danger, she saw people in crisis.

Oh, yes, you are a very special kind of witch. The kind of witch to fight tooth and nail to heal a bat, save a town, and rip your memories from the locked away part of your mind straight back into consciousness.

When you were made whole again, you and Eddie slipped into a warm bubble of rosy oblivion. For hours, you didn’t talk, didn’t think, didn’t do much of anything except hold each other and press featherlight kisses to lifelines on palms and blue veins on wrists.

It would have been easy to waste days there. You could have withered away, happy at last. Alas, Eddie was far more attentive to your biology than you were, so you left the bed bubble and made your way back into the real world.

Here lies a non-linear and incomplete series of vignettes of that real world, once upon a time.

II: Did it foretell of fate?

1986

Eddie’s hair seemed to shimmer as you twirled a lock around your finger. “Your hair is more normal now, like, in the 80s, than it was when we met.”

He was upside down on the couch, legs running up the backrest, and head hanging off the seat. You were lying on the floor, face to face with him.

“Do you think it means something? Is it an omen? Did it foretell of fate?” he teased.

You rolled your eyes. “You make fun, but I know you are totally in awe of witchcraft,”

“Being awesome doesn’t make you immune to my wit,”

“I think it’s cute that you think you’re witty,” you mumbled.

“What was that?”

“I said be careful or I’ll turn you back into a bat,” you stated, loud and clear.

“You wish you were that powerful, but it takes at least three of you to do that.”

It made you think. As you sat up and peered off into the distance with glazed over eyes, Eddie huffed. You launched into action, pulling grimoires and moon dust, parchment and white baneberry out from boxes and bags.

To avoid being told to hush, Eddie left you to your work. He tried to distract himself with television. Then, with eavesdropping on Forest Hills. Eventually, his curiosity couldn’t be put aside.

“What are you doing?” he asked, leaning against the kitchen bench turned apothecary.

“I think I can do it,”

“Do what?”

Instead of an answer, Eddie got a sickly-sweet smile and a sly shrug. He knew what it meant instantly.

“I don’t want to be a bat!”

“Oh, but you were so cute,” you cooed.

He was nervous, despite having the upper hand. Witches may have found the cure to vampire death, but you didn’t keep the magic dust on you at all times. He could rip you apart before you had a chance to conjure witchfire. Still, he took a step away from you, trying to act casual.

“What are you actually doing?”

It was always fun to mess with him, you thought. But in this case, you were telling him the truth. “Seriously. I think I can turn you back into a bat. Not permanently. And not in the way the curse did. You’d still be you. You’d be in total control. It’s just… shapeshifting… really…”

Eddie thought on it for only a moment before deciding he still didn’t like it. “I don’t like it,”

“It could be useful,”

“It could go wrong,”

“Eddie, think about it.” You put the vial of bat claws down. “Sunlight didn’t burn you when you were a bat. That alone is enough reason to try.”

There was little function in it. Eddie didn’t see how being able to go out during the day as a bat would be any more advantageous than not going out at all. However, there was a sparkle in your eye he adored, and you had been right – he was entirely in awe of your magic.

“If it makes you happy, my little witch,” he resigned.

You beamed, wrapping yourself around him in the type of hug that made Eddie feel alive.

III: Glass houses

1986

“Too bad the library was destroyed. There so much I want to show and tell you about,”

“I have been watching the television while you sleep… I’m learning.”

You looked up at Eddie from where you were studying maps and ley lines. “Yeah? Equipped to walk out that door and be a twentieth century man?”

“Naturally. Watch.” Eddie stood from the couch and began to mime. He opened the door to an invisible refrigerator, pulling out a can. He cracked open the tab and chugged. He then pulled a face akin to disgust. “This New Coke is not as satisfying as the original!”

You burst into a fit of laughter, much to Eddie’s happiness. “Oh, shit, Eds. You might even be ready for the twenty-first century with that type of scathing satire.”

Eddie dropped back to the couch. “You may joke all you want, but I can hear what the humans out there are talking about,”

“And New Coke is what the residents of Forest Hills are concerned about? Not the huge craters running through the town center or the constant attacks from supernatural creatures?”

“They also spend a great deal of time talking about the Chernobyl disaster and how it never would have happened here in the U.S., and in the same breath lament the demise of the Space Shuttle Challenger as if it were not another manmade horror.”

You glance up at him again, his gaze is on the television screen. “We haven’t escaped that, you know…” Eddie looked to you, tilting his head. “The hypocrisy. The contradictions that are just so… human. Neither you nor I can look at the humans and judge them for being that. We aren’t better than them.”

There was a flicker of amusement on his face. The vampire in him disagreed. Eddie’s heart conceded, and at the very least he conceded that - “Those in glass houses,”

“Something like that,” you nodded. “What else have you learned about the world?”

“There was a war in Australia,”

“You mean the World Wars?”

“No. Although, I do know about those, and I’d like to hear more. But the one in Australia was human versus emu.” Eddie delivered it so casually that at first you thought he was trying another joke. When you didn’t reply, he looked to you. “Do you not know about the Great Emu War?”

IV: Without you, I’m nothing

1986

Eddie lounged on the floor, back to the couch and legs spread wide. You settled between them, letting him take you by the hips and pull you close enough that your spine was pressed to his chest. His hands found a resting place around your waist.

Candles lit and incense burning, you shuffled the tarot deck while speaking your intentions into the atmosphere. “I ask for guidance in making this decision. I need to confront my coven, but…” You paused, choking on a feeling. “But I don’t know how to do it. I don’t know what’s the smart thing to do.”

Laying out four cards in a row, you continued, “Option A is I go alone. Option B is Eddie comes with me.”

You felt Eddie’s hands move against you a little at the mention of his name. Turning to him you explain that the first two cards represent the pros and cons of option A, likewise the last two are the pros and cons of option B.

“And this one…” you said, placing a single card above the row of four. “…is the advice we seek.”

Eddie snaked his arms around you, resting his head on your shoulder. “Do we leave that to last?”

You nodded then took a deep breath in, holding it until you flipped the first card over. The Emperor sat on his throne, golden crown upon his head. “He represents structure and stability. He rules with force and strength, but is also a sign of protection. As a pro for me going alone, it’s signifying that the safety and stability of the coven won’t be jeopardised. I won’t be seen as a threat to anyone’s leadership or authority…”

“That seems to be a very valid point,”

“Yeah,” you agreed with Eddie as you turned the next card over. “Well fuck.”

Eddie picked the card up and studied it. “He looks… calm,”

“He is… He’s there by choice, or at least, by the choices he has made. He has a different perspective from his position but his future is short. This card represents surrender or sacrifice. Being a martyr. Sacrificing yourself for the greater good.”

Eddie put the card down then held you tighter. “Next one,”

“Next one is the pro of you coming with me.” A man wore a victory wreath and rode a white horse. “Six of Wands,”

“Is he a king?”

“No. But he has been successful in his adventure. His accomplishment is being celebrated by these people here,” you explained, pointing to the image. You consider the card. You don’t feel self-assured as it suggests, and cannot see a version of events that lead to public recognition, as it foretells. You move on.

You almost laughed when the Five of Wands was revealed. The people fought each other, sticks raised but no blows hitting, chaos ensuing.

“Violence?” Eddie guessed.

“No, pointless chaos. See how their weapons aren’t actually hitting each other? It symbolises a lack of purpose in the conflict. It represents how people come from different backgrounds or perspectives, or have different history, and that makes it hard to find common ground. It breeds tension and disagreement and conflict.”

There was a clear narrative forming, the cards guiding you in a way they never had before. You wondered if renegade fate had shared a helping hand yet again.

Hand hovering over the final card, the ultimate advice in the reading, you closed your eyes for a moment. Please, you thought, please.

“This one looks… important,” Eddie commented.

“Well, it’s one of the more detailed images,” you replied. A snake, a sphinx, Typhon and Anubis. An angel, eagle, a lion, and a bull. And at the center of all this rich symbolism was a wheel.

“Esoteric.”

You snorted, nodding. “Very. The Wheel of Fortune is so open to interpretation, but its core message is that life has a hum. It moves forward, in seasons or cycles. There is both good and bad. And there is little to do to stop any of this. Luck may play a part. As does our friend fate,”

“That does not seem helpful,”

“Not in terms of helping to make a decision between option A and B, but it does prophesise a turning point, so…” You shrugged, taking one last look at the hand before collecting the cards and shuffling them back into the deck.

Getting up, you walked around the space blowing out candles. Eddie watched you, recognising the expression on your face. He stood and opened his arms, inviting you to him. Like a moth to flame, you immediately stepped into his embrace.

“Have they told you a story?” he asked.

You looked up at him, surprised.

“You’ve told me before. About the cards. How not to read them in isolation. There is always a larger picture. A story.”

The feeling of regular forgetfulness was soured. It sent an icy chill of fear and grief through you. Every single thing you couldn’t recall would be scrutinised. Did I just forget that because I have lived hundreds of years? Or was that memory cut out of me?

“You’re coming with me,” you said definitively. “I’ll tell Kelsey I’m coming, but nobody else,”

“Okay,” Eddie whispered. He would have followed you anywhere.

Letting go of Eddie, breaking the hug, you looked at him. “This is dangerous. You understand that, right? You’ve never seen the real damage witches can do to vampires. Witchfire isn’t the worst thing they can yield anymore,”

“I know. But to… level with you…” Eddie was doing his best to pick up modern phrases and colloquialisms; it made you smile. “Without you, I’m nothing. If I die, so be it. I’d rather death than any sort of life separate to your.”

He pulled you back into him, pressing a kiss to your forehead, then a trail down the bridge of your nose, to your lips.

You kissed him back hard and felt yourself float as he picked you up and took you to the bedroom.

V: A benevolent spirit

1986

The intersection of science and magic is where you and Eddie often found yourself. A union between creatures who had never walked alongside each other often meant new discoveries in the natural and unnatural worlds. For example, a witch and a vampire walk into a graveyard…

“I recall you, on multiple occasions, dismissing superstition as myths,” Eddie tried to argue, pulling at the ill-fitting clothes he was wearing.

You had forbidden him from dressing in one of his new Walmart outfits, citing lore. “It is disrespectful to the dead,” you’d said, making him wear whatever was lying around the trailer. “Do you want to be haunted?” you asked him, now in the old cemetery out on the edge of Hawkins.

“Vampires can’t be haunted,”

“Are you sure?”

Eddie shrugged.

“Because that is a bad sign,” you noted, pointing at the wildflowers that were dying under Eddie’s bare feet. The rot was coming from him, drying out petals and killing the plants.

Eddie looked down, seemingly alarmed. Every step he took away from the decay only started a new outbreak. “Make it stop,” he demanded.

“I can’t,”

“But I’m not wearing new clothes!”

“No, but you did sit on the headstone when I told you not to. And refused to hold your breath when we came in. Actions have consequences,”

“I don’t have a breath! … This has never happened before,” he whined, speeding up to trail close behind you.

“You probably just never noticed before,”

“I would have,” Eddie said, but you both knew it to be a lie. Before you, Eddie wouldn’t have cared about graveyard etiquette. It was in a vampire’s nature to laugh at the laws of the here and the after. They existed somewhere between and beyond those states, cheating death and laughing in the face of life.

1836

The village had buried Faely at daybreak. She had died before her first birthday, born into the world with a sickness beyond the repair of witchcraft. Though, rules had been broken trying.

You held vigil that night, leaving an offering of rosemary at the cemetery gates, then sitting at the foot of Faely’s grave. Eddie had watched you, deciding if he should approach you or not.

“Here, where the dead rest, a witch will smell fresh roses when a benevolent spirit is near,” you spoke out loud. “But if it is something else, then the scent of death comes, as if none of these bodies were buried at all.”

Knowing you were speaking to him despite never turning around, Eddie moved. He knelt on the dirt next to you. “Something else being me?”

“Or anything malevolent,”

“I mean you no harm, little witch,” Eddie said quietly.

You looked over at him. You had yet to cross the line with him. No secrets or kisses yet shared. It would happen and you knew that, even then.

“I know.”

Eddie held out his hand.

The wildflowers already blooming around Faely’s grave were dying under Eddie’s presence. Yet, you let him entwine his fingers with yours and keep you company.

1986

Eddie watched you locate the oldest headstones in the cemetery as if you had some sort of innate homing device for them. You spoke to the dead and asked for permission to take some of their graves’ dirt with you. Small jars filled, you looked up at Eddie and smiled.

The lightning rolled in, splashing bright but silent bolts across the sky. You stood up, felt the lack of humidity in the air. No rain would fall. No storm would come.

“What is it?” Eddie asked, walking back through the grounds with his eyes firmly in the sky. “That’s not normal lightning,”

“No,”

“It’s happened before,” he remembered, the scene slowly losing its fogginess in his mind.

“Normally, I’d say twice is only a coincidence and three is a pattern, but… I guess this is what happens when we’re both here at the same time.”

When you passed back through the cemetery gates, you left rosemary. Sitting in the car, you looked up through the windshield to the dark and settled sky.

“I don’t think we should do this again,” you told Eddie. “I don’t want to know what the universe does if it thinks this is a pattern.”

He stifled a laugh but shut up quickly when you frowned at him.

“We have pushed our luck so much… Do you think fucking with it all is funny? Like being careless hasn’t ruined us before?”

“I know. I’m sorry. It’s… Of all the things to break the world, it is simply a vampire and a witch being near dead bodies at the same moment in time? That’s what makes it mad?”

You started the car and pulled onto the road. “There is nothing simple about a vampire and a witch doing anything together. Being anywhere together. We need to be more careful.”

1836

As spectacular as it was to watch, and no matter how comforting having Eddie with you to hold vigil was, lightning without thunder felt wrong somehow.

When you returned to the village in the morning, the coven had assembled. The light in the sky had caused anxiety. “Something against the laws of nature has happened,” Gillian announced. Her expression wasn’t one of fear, but it wasn’t set in certainty or peace either. “We need to be more careful.”

VI: The mess of you

1986

It was strange how you could miss something you didn’t know you had and lost. You felt so homesick for Eddie, so touch starved, and empty that rediscovering sex with him was making you cry. The first few times, Eddie wiped away your tears. That was short-lived.

You were on your knees, bent forward with your face hidden in your folded arms. Eddie’s hips collided with you at a mercilessly slow pace, drawing out both pain and pleasure from your insides. With each thrust, your tears came faster and faster. He ran his hand down your spine, the pressure forcing you to arch, contorting your body more.

He folded over the top of you, mouth to your ear. “Why are you hiding from me?”

The only response you could give was a string of babbling sounds. It felt so good. He felt so good.

“I want to taste your tears,” he whispered. Eddie kissed at your neck, scratching his teeth along the surface of your skin. “I want to see you cry.”

In a blink, he had you flipped onto your back, legs wrapped around his waist. His hands were clamped around yours, pinning you down. You couldn’t hide. Couldn’t cover your mouth. Couldn’t maintain any poise, even if you had wanted to.

The wetter your face, the harder Eddie fucked you. It was something about the mess of you, the release, the vulnerability. He set a perfect pace and didn’t let it fall until you were growling like an animal and begging for softness. Then, he gave you softness.

VII: Slit the throat of fear

1986

“I’m so…” How to quantify your emotions… “I don’t know. I don’t think there are words to describe… this.” You racked your brain for the right sounds and syllables. “And, I don’t want to say it wrong. I don’t want to make all these feelings seem smaller because there aren’t big enough words, you know?”

Eddie knew. He was going through the same process, except there was no imperative for him to come to an eloquent conclusion. He didn’t need to explain to anyone else what was happening inside his mind.

You continued, “Part of me wishes it was just anger. If I was just pissed off beyond belief that would be easy to handle. They would understand that. But… It’s not that…”

“You are sad,” Eddie said softly.

Hearing him say it made it worse. Your face pinched into a deep frown and he took you in his arms again. “It’s all so sad… This is fucking miserable for everyone,” you agreed, mumbling into the crook of his neck. “It feels like someone died,”

“Grief,” Eddie stated. “You’re in mourning. And grief has many faces. Misery. Hopelessness. Anger.” He wasn’t especially wise, but now armed with his memories of his human life, he spoke from experience.

You sat up and let Eddie’s words seep into your own understanding of the situation. “It’s not just different faces… It’s… different shapes. I thought this once before but it makes more sense now. This feeling, this grief, it’s been shaped by what I know, the betrayal and the hurt and the… fuck… the paralysing fear of what I have to do now… It’s shaped and sharpened it into a blade.”

Eddie considers your metaphor. “Well then, my little witch, let us use your grief dagger to slit the throat of fear and bravely face your coven, and the world if we must."

End Note: This chapter took me so long to write. I just couldn’t figure out how I wanted it to go, so a huge thank you to @courtingchaos who workshopped some ideas with me, ultimately leading to the little change of pace structure. Also thank you to @jo-harrington, @munson-blurbs, @vintagehellfire, @rip-quizilla, @pastel-pillows, and @word-wytch for giving me historical, fluffy, and tarot ideas. And @vintagehellfire, for the graveyard scene.

Full disclosure, “slit the throat of fear and be brave” is a lyric from Let Me Down Easy by Gang of Youths. I had already written the grief as a knife metaphor, and when I listened to the song again it kind of just fit.

For those of you who celebrate during the holidays - I hope it is joyful. To those that cannot or do not - I hope you have a peaceful time. I appreciate you all so much and will be thinking of you and this safe place we have built together. xo Rhi

Fic Taglist: @paranoidmunson @idkidknemore @paprikaquinn @stardustworlds @loz-brooke @wyverntatty @vintagehellfire @dark-academia-slut @scarletwitchwhore @becks1002 @mrsdollardog @heyndrix @luceneraium @rosaline-black @devilinthepalemoonlite @goldencherriess @iamwhisperingstars @wiltedwonderland @blueywrites @breezybeesposts @jadehowlettthewolf @spikesvamp79 @foreveranexpatsposts @tortoiseshellspells @wingedpeachjudgegiant @stardustmunson @live-love-be-unique @fangirling-4-ever @reanimated-alice @b-irock @gh0stlybunnie @myown-worstenemy-2003 @woozzz @cyberxlust @hiscrimsonangel @buckysbarne @m00nlight101 @word-wytch @spicysix @briasnow-blog @goth-cowgirl-03

All Eddie Taglist: @solomons-finest-rum @ruinedbythehobbit @sweetpeapod @thorfemmes @corrodedhawkins @grungegrrrl @lilzabob @averagemisfit03 @ches-86 @ilovecupcakesandtea @onehotgreasymechanic @hazydespair @mel-the-fangirl @eddies-hid3out @siren-lungs @aheadfullofsteverogers @hiscrimsonangel @dashingdeb16

#Mine #Burning Yarrow #Eddie Munson #Eddie Munson x Reader #Eddie Munson x You #Eddie Munson/Reader #Eddie Munson/You #Vampire!Eddie Munson #Witch!Reader

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temporary-tats · 14 days

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Hey I'll take you up on that offer of a list of your favourite Bees fics 👀👀👀

Always looking for more. I feel like I've barely scratched the surface though. And if they're half as good as the Midnight Bees fic then yes please!

Oh Anon do I have a list for you.

A Note Before We Begin: Most of these Bumbleby fics are lengthy, multi-chapter pieces, often coming in at 70k+ words. The majority of these recommendations are not light reads because I am a sucker for emotional journeys full of ups, downs, and angst. If you're looking for more lighthearted recommendations, then I am unfortunately too much of an emotional masochist for you! (But, considering you've come here as a fan of MM, I have a feeling you'll enjoy these)

I'll also be updating this post with new fics occasionally, and to update my Top 5! So if you ever need something new to read, come back and check out this recs list :]

~ 💛💜 Now, let's begin 💜💛 ~

My Top 5 Favorite Bumbleby Fics (as of April 2024)

Paring down this list is Incredibly (TM) difficult, but these are 5 fics that brutally obliterated me, emotionally, physically, spiritually, etc.

when I dream of dying I never feel so loved by lescousinsdangeroux - Mature; 73k Words; Alternate Universe - Edge of Tomorrow/RWBY Fusion (Sci-Fi, Time Loop, Grimm, Semblances); TW: Repeated (Temporary) Major and Minor Character Death and Mild Gore

I Know You by Monochrome_Gray - Mature; 238k Words; Alternate Universe - Witches; Semblances as Magic; Clairvoyance; Poly Raven, Summer, and Taiyang; Slow Burn; TW: Minor Character Death, Depression, and Minor Dysphoria (NB Yang)

hear her in the wind by lescousinsdangeroux - Mature; 109k Words; Alternate Universe - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild/RWBY Fusion (Remnant = Hyrule, Maidens = Champions, Adam = Ganon; Yang = Link and Blake = Zelda; Grimm) TW: PTSD

Gunslinger by pugoata - Mature; 218k Words; Alternate Universe - Western; No Semblances; Sheriff Yang; Politics; TW: Intense Faunus Racism (it's 90% of the plot), Public Execution, Depression, Suicidal Thoughts, Implied/Referenced Abuse

you're a mountain, full of glory by lescousinsdangeroux - Explicit; 111k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern/Snowboarder and Skier; No Semblances; No Faunus; Friends with Benefits; Found Family; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse

The Hall of Fame

These are fics that, at one point, touched the Top 5 list. They may have been nudged out by another work, but they're still top tier.

They Can't Steal the Love You're Born to Find by timeespaceandpixiedust - Mature; 101k Words; Alternate Universe - Courtroom, Childhood, College/University; Non-linear Timeline; Adam on Trial; Very Emotional Conversations; Healing; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse, Brief Depictions of Violence, PTSD, Depression;

Compass by pugoata - Mature; 74k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern, Roadtrip, Soulmates; No Semblances; Hitchhiker Blake; Tense Tai and Yang Relationship; Healing; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse;

Shelter by pugoata - Mature; 73k Words; Alternate Universe - Farm; No Semblances; Runaway Blake; Farmer Yang; GOATS; Healing; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse, Brief Depictions of Violence, PTSD;

Brighter by y8ay8a - Explicit; 212k Words; Alternate Canon; Events from Volume 2/3 - Beginning of Volume 7; Very Emotional Conversations; Blake and Yang in the Before and Healing Through the After; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse, Depression, PTSD;

let you see my wilder side (if i can see your bones) by explosivesky - Explicit; 107k Words; Alternate Universe - Hollywood, Rockstar and Movie Star; Actress Yang; Rockstar Blake; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse, Brief Depictions of Violence;

take it from your grave by explosivesky - Mature; 48k Words; Alternate Universe - Gothic Horror; Monsters; Curses; Forbidden Romance; Forbidden Found Family; TW: Brief Depictions of Violence, Depression, PTSD;

Other Amazing Works

Didn't quite reach the Top 5, but these fics were still phenomenal.

Midnight Menagerie by Kaelidascope - ONGOING; Explicit; Currently 289k Words; Alternate Universe - Future Dystopia, Sex-Industry, Crime Syndicates; No Semblances; No Faunus; Bartender Yang; Dancer Blake; Street Racing; Gritty Fic, but with Lots of Fluff; Slowburn; Gunning For the Top 5 Once Finished;

NOTE: This fic tackles VERY emotionally intense and gritty topics. While done (in my opinion) very masterfully and with great care, please proceed with caution. TW: Graphic Depictions of Violence, R@pe/Non-Con, Human Trafficking, Past Abuse/Assault of a Minor, Death, PTSD, Emotional Manipulation, Physical Abuse, Suicidal Thoughts;

Praeludium and Allegro by yangsbandana - Mature; 68k Words; Alternate Universe - Orchestra, Conservatory; Viola/Violin Blake; Cello Yang; Healing; TW: Depictions of Abuse, PTSD;

Best Laid Plans by Sawrin - Teen and Up; 10k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern; Dog POV; Fluffy;

Expecting by Sawrin - General Audiences; 8k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern; Best Laid Plans Part 2; Dog POV; Baby on the Way;

From the Heart by Softlight - Mature; 77k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern, Bakery; No Semblances; Baker Yang; Bookstore Owner Blake; Healing; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse, Brief Depictions of Violence, Depression, Grief

what if it's all just a black abyss (and lips that kiss you) by lescousinsdangeroux - Teen and Up; 30k Words; Alternate Universe - Star Wars; Force Bond; Found Family; Smuggler and Pilot Yang; Runaway Sith Apprentice Blake; TW: Brief Depictions of Violence;

it's not living (if it's not with you) by explosivesky - Mature; 10k Words; Alternate Universe - Pop Punk/Rock Band; No Semblances; No Faunus; No Angst Just Fluff;

Crash Landing by kienava - Mature; 43k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern, College/University, Text Messages; No Semblances; No Faunus; Crack but with Serious Moments; Slow Burn; TW: Implied/Referenced Drug Use;

roads that lead you home by lescousinsdangeroux - Teen and Up; 15k Words; Alternate Canon/Future RWBY; Weiss POV; Bumbleby Included but Not the Full Focus; Found Family; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse;

you've got me seeing stars by explosivesky - Mature; 25k Words; Alternate Canon; Beacon Never Falls; Happy and In Love Bees; Pining; Partial Sun POV;

shake us together like a snow globe by explosivesky - Mature; 34k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern, College/University, Fake Dating; No Semblances; Home for the Holidays; Mutual Pining; More Emotional than Angsty; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse;

Mixed Melodies by EmpressOfEdge - Mature; 25k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern, Rock Band; No Semblances; Drummer Yang; Bassist Blake;

Waiting (on You) by Mikotyzini - Teen and Up; 133k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern; No Semblances; No Faunus; Ultimate Slow Burn; Yang is Oblivious;

You and Me, and One Hot Summer by EmpressOfEdge - Mature; 98k Words; Alternate Universe - Modern; No Semblances; Summer Romance; Ultimate Wingman Sun; TW: Implied/Referenced Abuse;

#bumbleby fic recommendations #fic rec #bumbleby #a03 #rwby #rwby fanfiction #a03 link #blake belladonna #yang xiao long #alternate universe #alternate canon #temp tats top 5 bumbleby fics #emotional destruction imminent

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anna-scribbles · 3 months

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can you share some of your writing/planning process for thirteen? i adore the non-linear format - how do you decide what scenes to put where?

ahh thank you!! idk how much of a defined process I have, but there's definitely a lot of planning that goes into it and i can show you some of that.

i keep all the chapters in one doc organized by month, and then i plan everything out in bullet points in a timeline at the beginning. here i just have october and november as examples bc after december things started to get more detailed/messy

all of the scenes (especially at the beginning) set the stage for things i’ve planned to happen later, or establish something that feels relevant to adrien’s character by the time we meet him in canon. the task of condensing an entire month into about 2-3 scenes has been a bit difficult; i’ve found out that i’m a very present-moment kind of writer so it’s harder for me to describe the passage of, like, weeks of time. so i’ve been pinpointing specific threads of adrien’s story that i want to be sure to tell and choosing scenes from each month that build on that.

i’ve had the idea for this fic in the back of my mind since about 2021 so i’ve had several scenes cemented in my mind, ways i’ve decided things played out, etc. some of the writing process has been building the narrative around those things or figuring out how we get there. that’s what i love about prequels in general, honestly - it’s inevitable where we’re going to end up, but how do we get there?

adrien’s situation, at the moment we meet him in origins, is SO endlessly fascinating to me. he is in the process of doing something reckless and rebellious and bold - running away - against the will of his father, a man he spends the rest of the series struggling with his compulsion to submit to. we find out, via the rest of the show, exactly how difficult it is for adrien to stand up to his father. and yet, in his very first appearance, adrien is running away from him.

how did he get here? what, exactly, pushed him to this point? was this the final escalation of a steady build of rebellious behaviors, or an impulsive breakthrough after one awful day too many? what has this small boy been through in the last year, and why does public school seem to be his only fathomable escape?

and WHY, if his circumstances are so dire as to compell him to rebel so boldly in the first place, does he still throw it away to help the old man in the road? what makes him so kind, when he has everything to lose? what happened? how did he get here?

i’m interested, obviously, in the character of émilie. i think that the hole she leaves in the narrative is a compelling silhouette and i’ve been having a blast trying to pencil in its details. it’s obvious that adrien loved her deeply and had a stronger connection to her than with gabriel. but also, adrien was still shut off from the world while she was alive. he was still, presumably, an exploited child star while she was alive. she was an actress and a mother and died by broken magic and never told her son the truth about any of it. figuring out who i think she was and then how to show that through young adrien’s eyes has been a huge part of planning this story for me.

as far as the twenty three year old adrien sections, those have been less involved as far as planning goes. i only recently mapped out which areas of the house i want him to visit during the different months. i wanted his sections to line up at least thematically, if not physically, where thirteen year old adrien is at in his story. for example, in december twenty three year old adrien cleans out the dining room where thirteen year old adrien was having terrible christmas dinner. and in january they’re both in the garden, etc.

it’s a bit harder to map out twenty three adrien just because it has to also make sense geographically - i can’t have him running back and forth up and down the stairs, let’s be real he doesn’t have the energy for that. i’ve also opened up the agreste mansion page on the miraculous wiki so many times while trying to map this out 💔💔 did you know that apparently there’s a third floor we never see in the show. yeah i have to figure out what to do with that now

ANYWAY long story short: the planning process for thirteen is kind of a mess, but the whole story is built around some central plot points that i knew i wanted to hit from the beginning. the details change a lot (as you can see from the outline above - it’s not quite right) but i keep the end in mind. just have to figure out how we get there.

thank you for asking!! mwah<3

#thirteen #anna rambles #asks #sorry for writing SO MUCH #in my defense i’m sleepy #and i just started rambling #adrien agreste…..kissing your forehead my love. tucking you into bed. agreeing with you about tamaharu #i don’t even know if this answered the question this is just truly my process #the process is that i think about adrien agreste and then write it down #ml

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bloobluebloo · 5 months

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New interview...am I crazy or is this a lot of interviews?

This answer is...fascinating because while it is true that TotK allows you to discover...literally anything at any moment, it is that very thing that could spoil any mystery there is to the game. For example, if you do discover that Zelda is the dragon early on, it makes going through the story a nerve grating experience as you are subjected to everyone wondering where Zelda is and following them into obvious traps. I can agree that it is hard to find a good balance between telling a cohesive story while retaining complete player freedom but that complete freedom for the player makes it...actually rather hard to keep anything a mystery. You uncover the wrong mystery and now you're not having a great time. I don't know, it feels a little disingenuous of them to not admit that they tried to fit a linear story in a non linear game. This feels like they were avoiding the question with a lot of words.

This answer sort of pisses me off if I have to be honest. On one hand, I think people that keep clamoring for the old formula are annoying in their own way, because Zelda to me has always been a series that was not afraid to try new things. Zelda is close to 40 years old now; of course the developers will want to try something different to breath new life into the series, and it is perfectly fine to not like the new direction. However, to dismiss people's complaints as nostalgia and "the grass is greener" also sounds like a big misunderstanding of what people enjoyed about the more linear approach to Zelda. To hear Aonuma, the one who has worked with this series for so long, express confusion at why people enjoyed the more linear style of Zelda makes me wonder what his own relationship with past titles has been like. You worked with it, you had your hands in it, and you can't see any reason why people might prefer the older games? Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

As a person who has never given a shit about the timeline my question is: did this not occur to you when you released an official one? Developers are free to do what they want but when you say there's an official timeline and then say well you feel restricted by the thing you created then maybe you shouldn’t have created one to begin with. Are people annoying with the timeline? Sure but it's not baseless either. This whole interview sort of tells me that both Aonuma and Fujibayashi are more interested in gameplay and seem really uninterested in the story and lore elements of the game. However, when people argue that LoZ is about gameplay and not story, they seem to not consider that gameplay is also part of the story. TotK's gameplay was so disjointed from the story that it's just hard to ignore. The new abilities are all fun to play with but what do they lend to the story? How do they relate to the Zonai? Why did the Zonai need them? Older titles on the other hand integrated their gameplay mechanics into the story and made the experience feel cohesive. It just surprises me that Aonuma seems to just dismiss that, in a way? I just really hope that Zelda isn't just becoming some huge sandbox game a la minecraft.

#admiral’s log

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stoopid-turtle · 9 months

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Miscellany and Such

I'm just a clown with things to say. You shouldn't believe me.

Intro post for this series

Okay, so that addresses the bulk of my need to splurge. I do want to get into some of the ancillary questions/mysteries though.

- The Timeline

Like most turtles, I have given thought to the question of "the timeline". This question is complicated because there are so many different stages a relationship can go through and they aren't always linear or one-way.

Like, when I think about when GG and DD "got together", do I mean sex? Being exclusive? Romantic commitment? An actual date? Promise of being together for the long-haul? These are all different questions and there's no real set pattern for them.

I guess I'll run through the common theories I've seen and just give an overview of my thoughts.

1. The Consensus Timelines

I feel like this is what I see pop up in fanfic a lot. Basically, DD and GG don't make a long-term commitment till after filming, sometimes way after filming. (Some fanfic opens years down the line with them only getting together in the fic) This often includes casual sex during the filming, but it doesn't have to.

I definitely feel that if DD had his druthers, he and GG would have been married one week into filming. GG's feelings are kinda the deciding factor in pacing for the relationship. Still, it is very difficult to believe that they were not physically intimate during filming.

DD was fucking bold and thirsty, and GG was clearly likewise smitten. I know what guys are like in their 20s. I know this sounds like I'm spouting stereotypes, but genuinely, all of my actual experience tells me that guys who are that outwardly flirty are not the type to faff around before diving into bed.

I doubt it was "just sex" given the romantic undertones of their flirtiness. At the same time, it might have been some feeling each other out and they may not even have decided to be exclusive at the beginning.

Even if they had decided to be exclusive, they were clearly insecure about how the other one felt about them. I think a lot about their (hilarious) English conversation about DD chatting with men and GG chatting with a girl. DD also spent a lot of time reading through GG's messages on his phone, so DD clearly felt some insecurity as to whether GG might be seeing other people.

(It's not really a great thing to anxiously read through your crush/partner/boo's phone messages like that. But DD was hella young, and I know the anxiety and insecurity of love at that age. I think the fact that they quickly built up enough trust to commit to what's essentially a long-distance relationship shows that they both matured past some of that early behavior)

(Also, I can see that if DD was GG's first male partner, DD might have felt especially insecure. Even if he wasn't GG's first, there's often times a special anxiety that non-bisexual gay folk feel when dating bisexual folk. The fear that their partner will leave them for the opposite gender is intense. Just speaking from my experience as a bisexual lady)

It's interesting to me that GG was open to letting DD read his messages. I doubt he'd do that if he were seeing anybody else, so that suggests they'd decided to be exclusive early on. That doesn't necessarily mean they're committed to the long-haul, but it's a serious step given how relationships between actors on set tend to go.

The consensus seems to be that the long-haul decision wasn't made until after GG's Japan trip. That makes sense to me, but I'm not completely attached to it. I don't think we know enough either which way to tell when the commitment happened. There is something romantic about the Japan trip story, and GG's later quote about waiting fits nicely.

I've heard various rumors that GG turned DD down the first time he confessed. This is interesting to me and especially ambiguous. I guess by "confess" we mean "confess to being in love". That confession can come with a desire to commit long-term. This makes me think of DD's Weibo post about things he decided at 21, he hopes to still feel at 81.

In my head, I have a little story that that's a response to GG having turned DD down due to the age gap (and maybe because of the possibility of character bleed muddying feelings). DD is especially sensitive about the age gap being mentioned, and we know he also had complicated feelings about LWJ.

My story continues with another attempt to make them a thing at the end of filming, prompting the Japan trip (and DD's "I miss you" hat). I also think about GG's interview response about having received a confession from someone he liked, and I wonder if he was thinking about DD. About liking DD but also not being sure they could really maintain a relationship outside the relative safety of the film set.

Basically, I have a million stories in my head about how this could have happened, and I'm not incredibly attached to any one of them.

2. DDU Variation

This Timeline isn't mutually exclusive with the consensus. The gist is that DD developed a crush on GG during GG's DDU visit about a year before filming. The rumors attached to this theory posit that DD got GG's WeChat info from DLS but then never did anything with it.

GG and DD have said in interviews that when they tried to connect on WeChat at the start of TU production, they'd found they'd already connected but had never talked to each other.

The evidence for this is heavily linked to a post DDU made in response to GG wishing them a happy birthday where they implied someone in their production was a fan of theirs. This post included a minions emoji, and DD was into minions at the time. Course, a lot of people were into minions, so this could be nothing.

If we take GG and DD at face-value, then there's 2 options:

1. DD had a crush on GG, got his WeChat info, then never did anything with it. 2. DD did not have a crush on GG but got his WeChat info some other way, then never did anything with it.

#1 is frankly hard for me to buy. It is absolutely inconceivable to me that DD would have a crush on someone, have that person's WeChat, and NOT DO ANYTHING WITH IT.

This is DD. He doesn't faff around. When he wants something, he goes for it.

#2 is plausible. I don't know the c-ent industry conventions, but I know in industries I've worked in, social media accounts are traded like business cards to network. Maybe that was commonplace at DDU with their guests, and they just added each other in one of those business card swap networking things.

But what if GG and DD are lying in interviews? They've lied before, after all. This leads to two alternate possibilities:

1a. They didn't have each other's WeChat until they started production on The Untamed. 2a. They did have each other's WeChat and they'd been chatting before The Untamed.

#1a is weird. I can't think of any reason to lie about that. But #2? Plausible. Maybe they did connect and start up a flirtation. Maybe even a relationship. Could be anywhere along the spectrum from early friendship -> light flirtation -> heavy flirtation -> online relationship -> secret in person relationship. Or maybe they just hooked up without a strong relationship attached to it.

It would add a different angle to the fact that they both tried out for The Untamed cast. They weren't necessarily going for the lead roles, as GG tried out for Xue Yang, but maybe they wanted to work on the same production together, and TU was their opportunity to do so.

This does mean they were pretending not to know each other at the script reading and the booting ceremony. This secretiveness implies that whatever relationship they might have had on WeChat already went beyond the bounds of friendship, or else why pretend not to know each other? It shouldn't be a hard thing to explain. "Oh, he guested on DDU last year, and we connected then." That's it. It's not even a suspicious explanation.

But it they'd hooked up or were even just being super flirtatious, then they wouldn't want to divulge that to those around them. (Counterpoint: They were pretty open about the relationship they did have eventually on set, even thing so far as to flirt, fight, argue, and have lewd conversations while getting their makeup touched up)

I can buy the DDU variation. The evidence is thin, and trying to "read" their behavior in the bts is always a little ambiguous and limited. But I'd say, if DD did get GG's WeChat because he had a crush, then it's highly likely they already had some relationship before filming. If DD just acquired GG's number in some routine industry business card swap, then this timeline variation is unlikely.

C. THE DEVIL'S TIMELINE

I love the name of this one. Basically, the speculation is that DD and GG might have been together even before the DDU episode. I think I've seen some Uniq fanmeet highlighted as a potential meeting point, given that GG was into K-pop at that time.

The evidence is even thinner for this than for the DDU variation. There's a picture DD drew of a person with a mole like GG's (I have no clue the context of his drawing that picture) and they have some Weibo posts that are kinda similar.

The Weibo post evidence is always confusing for me. I can see couples having some back and forth in their posts. Like, if your partner starts posting photos of ridiculous desserts, you might post similar photos. Or your crush develops an interest in foosball, so you do too. But some of the evidence is apparently photo sets that bear some resemblance to each other and I just...is this like a known thing for couples do to this? I've never come across this outside of this fandom. I don't know why you would. If my wife started subtly mirroring my photo posts, I don't think I'd even notice. (Hell, maybe she already does)

So I guess I don't find those incredibly convincing. After a point, if you look at any two people's posts long enough, you'll probably be able to find some similarities if you keep the criteria broad enough. If this is a known thing in Chinese social media for couples to do this, though, I might find that more compelling.

Other than that, the main evidence is kinda subjective in that its based on their behavior towards each other. This is real hard for me to gauge, so I'm not placing bets on it.

I don't think the Devil's Timeline is impossible. But I just don't see anything to indicate it as a thing. But who knows?

In sum, overall, I think DD and GG were physically (and romantically) intimate pretty early on in filming, earlier than many in the consensus seem to think. I'm undecided on when the big, serious commitment happened. And I'm open to the idea that they had a flirtation or an early online relationship via WeChat after that DDU episode. I'm not sold on the Devil's Timeline though.

Do I want to know? I mean, yeah? I find their whole romance interesting and compelling. It's like a romance novel, and I like romance novels. If they were non-famous and I met them at a party, I'd be totally into asking the "So how did you two meet?" question and learning that story.

But I'm just a rando in a different country who doesn't even speak their language. I don't get to know everything I want to know, much to my consternation. So I just have to shrug and move on with life (and read fanfic).

If in the unlikely event they come out with their story, though, I'd buy the shit out of that book.

- Fanfic/Shipping

I read a lot of fanfic (and have done for most of my life), but I felt some discomfort with the first bjyx fic I started reading. Not cause of the fic, itself, but because it felt weird to read fiction about real people. It's a side of fandom I'd never gotten into.

Fiction is a way to take stuff from the real world and make sense of it. This is something I've always appreciated about reading and books. Fanfic and bjyx fanfic fills the same need. I know I'll never get the full story on the truth behind bjyx but I can share ideas with others. I can engage in what-ifs and work through moments that are emotional.

I think sometimes people take a single fanfic to mean that the writer is making a Statement of how they think things are. With real people, they think the writer is seriously ascribing actions/thoughts/whatever to the celebrity.

Writers really aren't doing this, usually. Most writers have multiple fics with different situations, premises, character dynamics, universes. Writers are playing around with ideas, with dynamics they enjoy. Sometimes, they may feel they're hitting close to reality, but they know there's no way to be sure. Sometimes, they just want to write something with a silly premise to make their friends laugh.

Fanfic can be beautiful and compelling and amazing, but it's not real. It's words on a screen, and every fanfic reader moves on to the next fic with a completely different premise afterwards. It's not useful to read so much into any particular fic.

Can some fics and fans cross a line? Sure. But they're rare. And I honestly think people who write fic are less likely to be the crazy stalker fans just cause, well, they're spending their time writing, not stalking their celeb.

I do find the division of fandom into top/bottom weird and offensive. I don't have a preference on the mechanics of sex bc...whatever. But since fic writers tend to base their characterization on those mechanics, sometimes I'll be in the mood for one dynamic vs another. It's not about the sex though. There's just lots of aspects of Yizhan that I like, and I like to read a lot of different takes on them.

Again, it's fiction. Just like everything turtles believe.

- Fanservice

During my development as a turtle, I had a moment where I read a rumor that DD had played up the fanservice intentionally. It threw me back because I'd gotten pretty fond of DD and that sort of behavior was not in line with how I saw him.

I mean, I know actors are actors. They act. Part of that acting involves promos for their roles. But I've always appreciated DDs no-nonsense straightforwardness, so thinking of him playing a role in the bts was hard to stomach.

So I thought about it and did some reading around, as I do, and finally concluded that this whole "fanservice" thing wasn't very believable.

1) Fanservice doesn't look like the bts.

Honestly, there was a point while watching the bts when I felt DD was just kinda bullying GG and GG was putting up with him (I think this is a common takeaway). Even when I cottoned onto the fact that GG was just as flirtatious, I recognize that DD was just as obnoxious as shit.

He wasn't doing the actual romantic fanservice stuff that you see, say, Thai BL actors do. He was acting like a young boy with a crush. And I say this as someone who was a young girl DD's age once who had a similar (unreciprocated, in my case) crush on a coworker and who was as obnoxious as DD was. None of it resembled normal, stereotypical romance, because especially at that age, that's not how you do romance. No offense to DD. I know he hates to be recognized as young, but he was quite young and often acted like it in his clear affection for GG.

2) The experts say so.

By "the experts" I mean BL fans. I lurked around some BL spaces to see what that crowd's impression was. The overall consensus was that ggdd had great chemistry but never actually did fanservice.

True, being a Chinese show, maybe Chinese fanservice is just especially toned down. But that takes us to the next few points.

3) My understand of the release of the bts is that a lot of the bts is "unofficial" and was not planned to be released ahead of time. It was only with the popularity of the series that more came out.

Why fabricate a backstage, weirdly chaotic but low-physical affection relationship on a show that you're not even sure will get aired?

4) Fanservice ends.

Especially for a BL pairing, once the promo is over, the actors have to be separated from teh gay to make room for future het pairings. But there is every indication that GG and DD were still together after this point, and they're still dropping candies to this day.

So in sum, I know gg and dd are gay. The odds are much more likely that they are in a relationship than that they're doing long-term fanservice. They are gay. They fell in love. They're together. That's not so hard to buy.

Also, I went ahead and explained my turtledom to my wife. She easily bought that the two were together during filming. She wasn't sure about them still being together, so I explained about the necklaces. She asked me, "Could it just be fanservice even now?"

I started trying to explain my reasons I listed above and then I also mentioned they were signed with different agencies. As soon as she heard that, she said, "Ah, yeah, that wouldn't make any sense then."

Not saying that my wife knows everything, but she's really smart, y'all.

She is also a clown, though, like me. Absolutely raving mad.

One more post in this series! Some closing thoughts, and I'm also working on a little prezzie for turtles before I retreat to lurking.

#bjyx #yizhan #will clown for food #made my wife a turtle too #did it for love

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alanrickmansnose · 2 months

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Forget Me Not (Severus Snape x OC)

Chapter 1: The Feast

Summary:

Shortly after Theda Desmond replaces Professor Binns as Hogwarts' new History of Magic teacher, she learns that she possesses a rare talent known only to the legendary Altier family, former founders of the French Ministry of Magic who mysteriously went missing over 200 years ago. As she works to uncover the secrets of her curious origins, she develops an unlikely bond with the brooding Potions master, Severus Snape. As their friendship grows, the two begin to recognize that they share a common pain that few have experienced. Will their unique ability to understand each other set them on a course toward healing and new beginnings, or will the ghosts of the past return to tear them apart?

*****

Our story begins at the beginning of Chamber of Secrets and will stick very closely to the canon timeline. While the nature of this story wanes between humorous and romantic, it is also, in many ways, a story about the non-linear nature of grief. This is my first fanfic, so I hope you enjoy it.

Warnings: brief allusions to struggles with body image. Future chapters will contain some smut, discussion of death and suicide, as well as non-sexual abuse.

Excerpt:

“It’s nice to meet you, Professor Snape.”

He said nothing as he continued slowly skewering small pieces of food onto his fork.

"May I ask which subject you teach?"

"Potions." He said, his tone sounding slightly pointed.

"You know, you are the only teacher at this table I envy," Theda said, enthusiastically. "Potions was always my favorite subject when I was in school."

"Perhaps you should teach it, then," He replied in a monotone voice, still not meeting her gaze.

Unsure if he was being sarcastic or not, Theda chose to ignore the comment.

"Actually, I am quite happy to be teaching History of Magic. That was my second favorite subject in school, and I feel like I could genuinely get the students to take an interest in it. I hope so, anyways."

"Hmph," he muttered. "Good luck getting any of these thick-skulled children to take an interest in anything that doesn't involve flying around on a broomstick or foolishly waving their wands about in the air."

"Well, we shall see." She said, smiling. "Even if I get one kid to take an interest in the subject, I'll count that as a victory."

"Yes, well... You'll soon find that these children are practically unteachable."

She said nothing, unsure how to respond.

"Still... I do hope you succeed in kindling a flame, however small, in at least one of your students."

Continue reading: Wattpad | Ao3

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mwolf0epsilon · 6 months

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The Umbaran Pathogen - Day 26: Magical Exhaustion or Injury

Summary: After going without rest for several days, Obi-wan is more than a little tired. So much so that the continuous use of the Force to keep the parasites in check, begins to take a toll on him.

Warning: N/A

Tacet belongs to @lost-on-kamino

Prev / Next

[In which the events on Umbara are worsened by an unknown pathogen taking hold of both the 501st and 212th. These series of drabbles will follow a non-linear timeline based on the AI-less Whumptober prompt list for 2023.]

THIS STORY IS ALSO ON AO3

---

It takes a long while to go through each and every one of the infected clones to incapacitate their respective parasites. Each instance of him calling upon the Force to get them back under their own control, draining Obi-wan in more ways than one. Not that he says anything on the matter...

The truth is, mind tricks take a lot of concentration. And the fact he feels so uncomfortable influencing the minds of the men makes it all the more difficult to maintain said concentration, while he draws on both his wit and the Force itself to impose his will on another.

He hates the idea of taking that much more of their autonomy from them, when that's all that they have ever experienced. Treated like products by the Kaminoans, or tools by those who'd rather think them as less than the clever people they actually are. Refusing to assume the guilt of having a group without recognition as sentient (a people without rights), at their beck and call no matter how much the Jedi try to advocate for them...

Something which the parasites had also done, making it all the more awful to add an extra layer manipulation over that of the parasite's.

That said if the continuous use of mind tricks is bothering Cody, the commander certainly doesn't comment on it. Neither does Canivete, who busies herself with looking over the men whose transformations had been interrupted. Who remained incomplete and shaky on their feet, as they become aware of themselves once more.

Aware of what they had all nearly become, while still coming out of those cocoons feeling alien in their own bodies.

"You should rest, sir..." Wooley offers, the kindly trooper looking all kinds of haggard after everything they were all put through. He still had a bit of webbing stuck to his hair, but didn't make much effort to get rid of it. Probably not finding it worth wasting his time on tidying his appearance.

"I'll be fine..." Obi-wan tries to shrug off the trooper's worries, focusing instead on the scene before him. Anything but the ache in his muscles and back, or the slight headache that had been gradually setting in.

He watched quietly as Pretty Boy helped his older brother, Lichtenberg, sit down on one of the few crates dotted around. The mutated trooper looking sorry for both himself and for the nasty looking bump he'd caused his brother, during their brief altercation.

Reaching with careful clawed fingers, Lich carefully brushed his knuckles against the bandage on his younger brother's forehead. A gesture which the lancer rejected by pushing his brother's hand away and proudly up puffing his chest. Refusing any sort of apology and proclaiming with pride that what had transpired was simply a slightly stronger than usual kedalbe, and that surely someone like him could easily take such a blow with the thick skin he had.

Or rather, thick skull, as Lich put it with an amused but clearly relieved snort. It was a very touching moment, in this otherwise terrible set of circumstances. That Pretty Boy could so easily forgive his batchmate despite the other acting irrationally.

"With all due respect, that's a load of bantha crap sir..." Wooley huffed in disapproval, insisting on the matter with clear determination. He'd grown into himself since joining the 212th, no longer the awkward rookie he'd once been. That much was clear. "You've said it yourself before. Using the Force in excess is very draining, and you've been on your feet going through all the infected without stopping..."

"...Perhaps I could do with some rest." The bearded Jedi finally relented, taking a seat on the floor so as to hide the way his legs were beginning to shake.

He was actually pretty tired but, with how things currently stood, he couldn't spare all that long to recover his strength. There was no telling how long the parasites would remain dormant, and he really didn't want to risk one or more troopers suddenly attacking them without warning.

"Take your time." Cody ran a hand over his face, his antennae twitching as he tried to figure out what to do. "We need a plan of action..."

"We need more than that..." Canivete grumbled.

They were both right, of course. They needed a plan and the necessary resources to pull it off. Which would mean getting communications back online (again) and perhaps trying to contact the Venators that were currently in orbit. Although, what else they could do in this situation, he really did not know.

Because, with how tired he currently was, Obi-wan would not be able to pull off anything too substantially extraordinary. Like keeping the men under his direct control while also fighting the much stronger Tup...

For all he knew, the moment they were in range of each other, the mind tricks might simply wear off faster. And even if they didn't, there was simply no way the men wouldn't react to the pheromones of what was essentially their 'Queen'.

"I can get comms back online." Tacet offered. "But I don't think it's a good idea for the Venators to land..."

"No, it most definitely would not be a good idea." Obi-wan agreed with that assessment. "With Tup still on the loose, there could be a risk of further infection."

"Or worse, they could get caught by another Vixus carrier..." Canivete pointed out. "Waxer and I found one pretty easily. Who's to say there aren't more in the area?"

The start of a second outbreak would not be ideal, no. Not to mention they had no idea how Tup might react to a competing Hive suddenly cropping up.

A territory dispute could only end in disaster for all parties involved.

"Maybe we could request aerial support from both Commander Tano and a pilot squadron each of the 501st and 212th?" Cody suggested, one claw tapping on his chin while he crossed his lower set of arms. It was fascinating to watch how quickly he'd adapted to his changes.

"That might attract the attention of the Umbarans..." Canivete shook her head, gnawing uneasily on her lower lip as she considered their options. "We need to be more subtle about this..."

Obi-wan limited himself to listening, his own mind going a mile a minute as he tried to figure out what might be the best course of actions. As he did so, however, he felt his eyelids beginning to droop. Perhaps he had underestimated just how tired he had become...

Surely... If he closed his eyes for just a second...

"Maybe we could get a drop-ship? Have a few of the healthy troopers board and brief the others?" Tacet proposed. "Then they could come back with extra supplies..."

"Again, too flashy..." Cody shook his head no. "We can contact the ships and brief the men, but anything more than that will tip off the enemy that we might be in trouble... And then we'll definitely have emboldened Umbarans thrown into the mix..."

"Sir, are you feeling ok?" Wooley asked, noticing the state Obi-wan was in. The Jedi blinking his eyes back open and regarding him with a slightly confused look.

He also noticed how spotty his vision seemed to him. That couldn't be good.

"I..."

Canivete was suddenly in front of him, a frown on her face as she pulled one of his eyelids back and flashed a small light into his eye. The sting barely registered. Which he supposes displeases her further.

"Splendid..." She grumbled sarcastically. "Commander, do be a dear and bring our idiot Jetii some water and a ration bar..."

"I'm--"

"If you say you're fine sir, I will knock you on your shebs." She paused, squinting at him. "I'll drag you back onto your feet, and then knock you on your shebs that is... I am well aware you haven't rested much in the past few days, and that you were already in no condition to go around doing space wizard things with your space wizard powers."

"The Jedi are not wizards..." He rolled his eyes at the incorrect moniker that many people, the troops included, often denominated them by. The Jedi were monks. Not wizards.

There was a very big difference!

"They are, from a certain point of view." She teased, before her tone turned serious all over again. "But seriously, you're only mortal sir... Force or no Force, you need to eat and sleep just like the rest of us. You're running on fumes like we all are..."

"It's just a little Force Exhaustion..."

"And my name is Shirley." Canivete huffed. "Ration bar, hydration and rest. We'll figure this out, so long as we're all in good enough condition to use our brains."

"...Very well."

He wouldn't argue with a medic. The medics could be scary when they were upset. And Canivete was the owner of a very short fuse whenever she was in mother hen mode, which extended to her superior officers. Or at least the ones she liked.

He supposes it should be a comfort that she liked him enough to care as strongly as she did. Even though he'd gone against his word and used the Force on her brothers.

Rather than devil you know, he supposes...

#Eps Writes #star wars #the clone wars #whumptober #Umbaran Pathogen AU #obi wan kenobi #commander cody #clone trooper wooley #clone ocs #clone medic canivete #arf trooper tacet #clone trooper lichtenberg #clone trooper pretty boy

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progg · 4 months

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Clarifying Chapter 400

Hi all. Sorry for the hiatus (ha). I’ve been working on some other projects (including my own comic!), but I haven’t forgotten about this blog. I hope to finish my chapter breakdowns and, if I have time, go back and edit some of my older essays. I’ve also got some essays on the backburner (some have been there since the conception of this blog) that I hope to finish some day.

For the time being, here’s some clarification about Chapter 400 of Hunter x Hunter, since some readers seem to be confused by it. I believe this confusion stems from Togashi’s decision to tell the story non-linearly.

I could be wrong about this, of course, but my hope is that those of you who read this will agree and come to a better understanding about the chapter.

ESTABLISHING A PRECEDENT

First off, I want to establish that this is not the first time Togashi has used non-linear storytelling in the Succession Arc. The most obvious example of this is the banquet sequence. This period of time is retold three times in the story, each from differing perspectives.

The banquet occurs at 8:00pm on the eighth day of the voyage (a Sunday). This information is provided to us at the end of 382. Awakening. In 383. Escape, we get the banquet from the perspective of the escapees.

Melody uses her ability at approximately 9:30pm.

384. War jumps back in time to the previous night (this information is provided to us in the opening panel). In it, we learn that Theta plans to assassinate Tserriednich on the following day; in other words, the day of the banquet.

In 385. Warning, we get the events of the banquet from the perspective of my favorite character: Theta. The time is 7:35pm when she commences Tserriednich's training. We see the effects of Melody’s ability as the performance is heard through the intercom.

Interestingly, this means Tserriednich's Zetsu training had been going on for about two hours before Theta pulled the trigger.

386. Hypothesis continues into day 9. Kurapika starts performing water divinations for his class on this day.

Finally, 387. Recreation jumps back in time again, showing the events of day 8 from Tserriednich’s perspective.

Note how Melody’s activation of her ability acts as a “uniting event”, tying the plotlines together. This is the very same technique I believe Togashi intends to use in Chapter 400.

PLACING THE WATER DIVINATION

In order to understand the chronology in Chapter 400, we have to place Kurapika’s water divination. We know it begins on day 9 thanks to a timestamp in 386. Only a week remains in his first round of classes, so he needs to start awakening his students. He awakens Ladiolus first, then Maor. He plans to awaken a few more students, but the rest need to wait until tomorrow.

Later on, Zhang Lei’s guard Hashito asks to be awakened in exchange for Tenftory going last. His request is denied by Kurapika, but it seems likely Tenftory went last anyway. In fact, this line could also be interpreted as Hashito using the fact that Tenftory is already going last in order to negotiate.

388 ends with the fourth rumbling of Halkenburg’s aura, 389. Curse jumps back to day 9 for a bit before proceeding to day 10. This is yet another example of Togashi telling the story in a non-linear fashion.

Once again, the fourth rumble acts as a "uniting event", helping us stitch together the timelines.

Later in the chapter, we learn that Tenftory has been awakened to Nen, along with all of the other students.

In other words, all students in Kurapika’s class have been awakened by day 10. This should include Tubeppa’s guard Longhi, who is seen receiving her water divination (or rather, not receiving it) at the end of Chapter 400.

This scene occurs on day 10.

This also means we have already seen events that occur after the end of Chapter 400, which is at least everything that occurs belowdecks in Chapters 390-399.

THE UNITING EVENT

Knowing that the final scene of Chapter 400 jumps back to day 10 isn’t enough to fully comprehend the chapter. We still have to place the scenes involving Melody. Right before they start, we get an unresolved cliffhanger.

I believe this announcement will serve as a “uniting event” for these time jumps, similar to Melody’s flute solo or Halkenburg’s fourth rumble. We will probably hear this announcement in full from another character’s perspective. As a result, it seems likely that Melody’s scenes take place before the announcement.

If the announcement is about Kacho’s death, I could see it occuring before the Melody scenes (knowledge of Kacho’s death is a theme of their conversation). However, I don’t think this is the case for a few reasons:

I believe the deaths of all thirteen princes are eventually going to be covered up. I wrote more about this idea here, but in short, why conceal Sale-Sale’s death and not Kacho’s?

The announcement and Melody’s scenes are intercut with a short scene involving Prince Tyson. This is a strange decision if we were meant to make a link between the announcement and Kacho.

The wording of the announcement is a bit off. “Grave” seems to fit, but “emergency” and “stop what you’re doing”?

Personally, I think this announcement concerns something we have yet to see.

THE MISSING CURSE

In Melody’s scenes, Fugetsu’s condition is revealed to be quickly declining.

We know Fugetsu was “fine” on day 8. According to Melody, a few days have passed since then. This places Melody’s scenes on day 11 at the earliest.

A popular theory about Fugetsu’s decline is that she has been cursed by one of Camilla’s guards. However, that doesn’t quite fit with what we know.

In 389. Curse, we learn that Camilla’s guards can unleash a fatal curse on their targets. Fugetsu’s condition certainly matches the curse’s description.

Fugetsu is even floated as a potential first target, but is ultimately rejected.

Sarahell wants to send out a curse as soon as possible to weed out a possible Nen exorcist (note the use of the phrase a few days). After learning that proximity to the target can make up for lost time, she decides to curse Woble herself.

In other words, Sarahell will attempt to curse Woble first. If Fugetsu is indeed cursed by one of Camilla’s guards, it’s another indicator that Melody’s scenes take place after Longhi’s water divination.

It’s also interesting that Melody plans to contact Kurapika for help, when Kurapika may very well be facing the exact same problem!

Based on the mention of a “next banquet” in Tyson’s scene (as well as Melody’s behavior in this chapter), it would seem not much time has passed since day 9—probably not a week, which is when the second set of classes will begin. I suspect Sarahell will actually attend the class on day 11, rather than waiting for the next round, which would place Melody’s scenes on day 11 or 12.

Accepting the idea that significant time passes between day 10 and Melody’s scenes provides some interesting context to Zhang Lei offering Melody a coin. At this point in the story, he might actually know what it does!

CONCLUSION

I may be completely wrong about this. Maybe Sarahell does wait until the next round of classes. Maybe Fugetsu is cursed before Woble, or maybe Fugetsu wasn’t cursed at all. But even if I am wrong, these are my main points:

There are significant backward time jumps in Chapter 400. In the final scene for sure, and possibly after the end of the Troupe plotline.

If Fugetsu has been cursed by one of Camilla’s guards, there are some unanswered questions. We haven’t seen Sarahell’s attempt on Woble, and we haven’t been offered an explanation for Fugetsu being cursed before it.

I want to end by saying I don’t think this is meant to be confusing. It’s just difficult to remember context from previous chapters when they were released so long ago. In my opinion, even a week is too long to expect a reader to remember such details. It also doesn’t help that we don’t have the following chapters, which would probably make all of this clear.

I sincerely hope Hunter x Hunter returns, and when it does, I hope it’s in the form of bi-monthly, longer chapters (or something similar). I think the current story lends itself much better to that kind of format.

original post

#hunter x hunter #manga #succession arc #breakdown #theory

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comradekatara · 2 years

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may i humbly request modern!gaang and being asked to write a piece of creative fiction for school? what would they write about? would they enjoy it? would it be any good? if anyone knows, it's you!

okay for the sake of limiting my potential scope i'm just gonna say that they all had to write a short story in prose for this hypothetical assignment (esp because i've already talked about them writing poetry and miscellaneous forms).

aang pens a very lovely and whimsical tale about a boy who goes exploring in a sunny wood and comes across various talking animals who say funny, charming, and sometimes deeply profound things about the nature of the world. think le petit prince meets winnie the pooh. it is a delightful read, but unfortunately his teacher thought it "needed more conflict." lame.

katara writes about a brave and valiant knight who goes off to slay a dragon to bring its head back as a trophy for his king, only to learn that the dragon was really just minding her own business, leading him to question everything he thought he knew about the monarchy, and ultimately beheading the king instead. her teacher deemed it "intriguing, but slightly concerning." (again, lame!!)

sokka writes a dark comedy about a horrible pathetic man who makes everyone around him miserable including himself because he refuses to adjust his insane principles even when presented with tangible evidence that contradicts his beliefs. at one point he commits a murder and gets away with it, leading his peers to argue that this character "needed to be punished more" by the narrative. sokka's just like "thanks... i'll keep that in mind."

toph writes a story about a girl who escapes a totalitarian society and goes to start an anarchist commune in the woods with other refugees. the fact that there are no rules and everyone does what they want is epic and she doesn't miss her old life at all even a little bit and they all live happily ever after the end. her teacher claims that "while her writing style is direct and incisive, the story ultimately lacks nuance."

zuko pens a tragic fairytale about an empress who loses all her children to various causes, and ultimately kills herself. the style is very poetic and beautiful, but the story itself is so unbelievably sad that his teacher is prompted to ask "what was the point of this" and also "do you need help i can recommend a good therapist if you need one"

suki writes a story about a lesbian pirate who starts an affair with a bisexual tavernkeeper who is cheating on her shitty husband right under his nose. one day the husband finds out and gets violent so they kill them and serve chunks of his flesh to stray alley cats. her friends really enjoy this story, but her teacher doesn't understand "why everything suki writes needs to have such an agenda."

mai writes a story about ghosts throughout time occupying a single house together, haunting each other, every temporality overlapping in a cacophony of grief. while coherent, it is very dense, and most of her classmates don't bother actually unpacking it, so they mostly just complain about the non-linear timeline being "too confusing." (lame of them!) her teacher loves it though.

ty lee writes a series of diary entries from the perspective of a teenage girl. at first she's just talking about stereotypical teenage girl stuff, like the boy she likes and the mean things her friends said at the mall, but then at some point the narrator begins to realize that she is in a story, and her diary entries get more introspective and frantic and meta as she is ultimately crushed under the weight of her own narrative. her teacher deems it "brilliant" and suggests submitting it to literary magazines for publication, to which ty lee responds "haha no thanks ^_^"

azula writes about an ubermensch who is able to valiantly resist the liberal indoctrination of the pathetic sjws who are triggered by his inner strength and sharp intelligence. it reads almost identically to sokka's story (except with a vastly different prose style), but unlike sokka's, it is completely sincere and not remotely a satire. unfortunate.

yue writes a story from the perspective of an electron that doesn't know that its entangled but can sometimes still feel that it is connected to something else across the universe when it spins. it is a brilliant, poignant story about star crossed love and the significance of relationality across the cosmos, that neither her teacher nor most of her peers understand because "it all sounds too sciencey."

jet writes a story about a "really cool" alpha male whose girlfriend unfairly dumps him after their wannabe sigma male acquaintance who was jealous of him because he loved his girlfriend gets him cancelled for having said faggot on twitter once 10 years ago, but it turns out said guy who steals his girlfriend is actually a terrible person who treats women like shit despite posturing as a feminist for clout. sokka reads it and is like "wow, this would actually be a really incisive critique of performative male allyship and how any kind of man can be equally toxic and entitled to the women in their lives... if not for the fact that it is CLEARLY ABOUT ME and JET SEEMS TO THINK THAT I TOLD KATARA TO DUMP HIM BECAUSE I WAS SECRETLY IN LOVE WITH MY SISTER??????"

#this was a really fun ask thank u #the gaang and #kidprophet #asks #modern au #i guess #kind of tempted to write the ty lee one and the yue one now #fwiw it was very obvious that the villain in jets story was sokka #he spends a long time describing his appearance and its literally just sokka #in a vacuum its actually a pretty good short story #but a) its an incredibly inaccurate retelling of the situation #and b) the author seems to think the alpha male was the heroic victim of the story when it could not be more clear that both guys in this #actually suck equally #which sokka ultimately finds even funnier than the implication that he is secretly in love with katara

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lorebite · 1 year

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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐍𝐄 ⸻ 𝐒𝐌𝐎𝐊𝐄 𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐙𝐎𝐍

𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: original characters galore (don't worry; this is still an x reader story). explicit sexual content so strictly 18+ minors do not interact and all that. this is mainly a plot driven work of fiction so expect lots of mystery besides all the smut. the format of the series follows two non-linear timelines which will eventually merge into one overtime; putting this here in case you find this type of storytelling distracting. other non-exhaustive tags which will be either revealed with each chapter or never at all, in order to avoid major spoilers; however, this does not include sensitivity tags. this is not a slow burn series; we get right to the meat of it, lads.

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: 18+ minors dni. cursing. fem reader. very graphic sexual content. reader has a racer nickname which is what she's sometimes referred to as. descriptively written history with a past lover that isn't Jason. mentions of existing tension with said past lover due to... reasons. daddy issues? daddy issues! y/n might have a liiittle too many problems. reader is fwb with Jason. sex might be a distraction but is it really the solution?

early spring of ‘19

The faint wisps of last year’s winter caressed your cheeks and raised goosebumps down your spine as your thighs landed gently on the warm vibrating hood of the black Mustang in the garage, your body pressed tightly against your boyfriend’s. Your fingers coiled within the threads of dark hair on the back of his neck, his lips moving slowly upon yours.

His hands remained on your thighs long after he sat you down. They gingerly slid down over the rough fabric of your jeans until they were gripping your calves and winding them around his waist. His lips slipped from yours and down the side of your neck they went, hips rolling impatiently against yours as his low growls trembled into your skin.

You tugged on his hair and he lifted his head. His lidded blue eyes peered into yours through the sheer veil of his unkempt fringe. A soft smile curved his wet plush lips and you found yourself beaming in return.

“You’re gonna be late.” You whispered, fingers running through his soft tousled hair.

He pressed another kiss, a chaste one, to your lips and heaved a deep sigh. “It’ll be fine.”

“Come on, Nate,” you argued gently, a giggle rumbling in your throat. “The show can’t go on without its star.”

His clear eyes glimmered, lip rolling back between his teeth as a soft huff of laughter escaped him. He shook his head, tutting playfully at you.

“What would your dad think, sweetheart?”

You rolled your eyes even though a hint of a smile remained on your lips. He didn’t fight to hide how much you flattered him, his cheeks beginning to glow with a faint flush as his lashes fluttered shyly, eyes suddenly avoidant.

“We both know he can survive a little bit of competition.”

He clicked his tongue again, the timidness quickly gone and replaced by that familiar playfulness you knew and endeared to all too well.

“Well, I don’t wanna make it obvious I’m coming for the crown if I wanna keep seeing his daughter, you know?” One of his eyes dropped in a coy wink and you scoffed a laugh. “I gotta play my cards right.”

“You’ll be fine, Nate. He will be fine.”

“Let’s hope cos I’m not planning to leave you any time soon.”

You wrinkled your nose as your smile broadened and sat a hand on the side of his stubbled face. He leaned easily into your touch with a content sigh, eyes fluttering shut, before he pressed a kiss to the heel of your palm. He lifted a hand of his own to cradle your wrist between his long fingers, his thumb caressing the back of your hand.

“You’re gonna do great – my big gorgeous shining star.”

He hummed, low and drawn out, and his lips were back on yours again. Greedy and unyielding. His fingers dug indents into your legs, his broad chest pressed so close to yours, it stole your breath. He leaned his forehead against yours, lips pulling away far enough to speak his next words, hoarse and breathless.

“If you keep saying things like that I don’t think I’ll make it to the race.”

You giggled mischievously and reached for his collar to pull him back to yourself. He reciprocated eagerly, lifting his knees atop the hood and climbing over you. Your arms circled his neck instinctively and tugged him even closer, pulling his waist tightly upon yours with the firm coil of your legs around him. He moaned softly into the kiss as he began grinding against you.

“Fuck, I need to stop—” he rasped with a breathless chuckle but his lips refused to stop moving upon yours, continuing to pepper you with warm kisses and wet brushes of his tongue. “I really need to fucking stop. I’m so fucking hard right now.”

“Need a hand, baby?”

You slipped your fingers down between your bodies and palmed him over his tight pants, feeling his promised to be firm bulge through the fabric. His head lolled down as he groaned before his eyes rose back up to meet yours heatedly, jaw becoming visibly clenched.

Nate took hold of your wrist and pinned it by your head on the hood and away from himself. The cloud of lust in his eyes grew soft and adoring as he stared down at you. He smiled fondly at the stubbornness of your other hand sliding down the side of his neck. Your ringed fingers danced languidly across the swell of his throat, just barely wrapping and pressing themselves on his fevered skin.

“(Y/N)…” he croaked, eyes falling shut as he gritted his teeth, struggling against the tempting warmth of your touch gliding so invitingly across his skin. “Please.”

The small desperate plea made you pause in mercy. Your thumb sat on his lip as you silently admired his face and the flickers of many emotions across his features. Lust giving way to affection, desire to silent admiration. He sucked your digit into his mouth, teeth clamping down gently as a muffled laugh bubbled up his throat to reflect the small giggle on your tongue.

“Alright. Okay.” You finally relented, freeing your thumb from his mouth with a pop.

Nate clambered down the hood of the car and helped you to your feet before finally pulling away from you. He combed his fingers through his disheveled dark hair and pushed them away from his vision, a gentle sigh rushing through his kiss swollen lips.

He was soon searching for his helmet and keys, offering you a smile before walking to the driver’s seat of the Mustang and yanking it open. You frowned inquisitively as the engine died down and his face appeared back above the top of the car. You were barely able to catch the key once he tossed it at you.

“What’s this for?” You questioned, eyes pinned down to the glimmering silver horse etched in the key.

Nate stepped back in front of you, helmet held under one arm while the other lifted your chin with two fingers until your eyes met again. The black crow on the back of his hand matched the one on the bright colors of the helmet; that always caught your eye whenever he put on his gear. He cupped the side of your face and pulled you in for one more kiss.

“I’m gonna make you a star, baby. Just you wait. When I’m back tonight—” he jerked a thumb at the Mustang you were still leaning to, “Mercury’s gonna be all yours.”

“You—what? You’re really doing this?”

He made a happy “mhm-hmm”, beaming at the loud look of awe on your face and the joyful sparkle in your eyes.

“But on one condition,” you cocked your head, confusion tugging, once again, at your brows. “I need you to do me a favor.”

You sighed, stealing your gaze from him. You knew this was a long time coming. A promise you had made him. No. A deal.

Nate sat a finger under your chin, brushing gently back and forth over the skin as if he was scratching the face of a purring kitten.

“Come on, sweet girl. We talked about this—”

You interrupted, “information for property. I know.” A weak smile pursed your lips. “I know.”

“Okay. Good. Do you need a map?”

You nodded silently and Nate walked away once again to fetch the large roll of paper from a desk drawer. He spread the piece atop his desk, tapping an undesignated spot with two fingers, urging you to move closer and, at long last, reveal your treasured information to him. He offered you a marker as soon as you were standing across from him, his eyes following your movements intently.

Your fingers began to glide across the map, bringing forth every last bit of detail to the forefront of your mind and then down on the thick paper, highlighting every key location, your unmatched guesses, your discovered facts.

Nate watched you with sparkling eyes, a barely there smirk sat in the corner of his mouth. The look on his face sent a cold tingling sensation down the back of your throat once you finished talking and peered up from the map and back at him.

“That’s everything I found.” You mumbled. Suddenly bashful.

“Good fucking girl,” he rasped, circling the desk to come engulf you in his arms again. Warmth filled your cheeks and you smiled. “You’re so good to me, baby. What would I do without you?”

late fall of ‘22

The window felt cool against your fingers as you drew a haphazard circle on the fogged glass. You peered out of the small revealing, taking in the jagged skyline that stretched along the thin veil of softly hued peaks perched upon the horizon. The sun had come up hours ago and yet the warmth was sunken far behind the leaden overcast of clouds.

Jason grunted softly from the bed and you turned your head to smile at his sleeping form in the dark of the bedroom. He had an arm thrown over his face, his bare chest rising and falling slowly under the duvet. You contemplated briefly and eventually decided to flicker on the coffee machine, letting its obnoxious drone fill the studio apartment. It slowly stirred him awake.

“Good morning, gorgeous.” You cooed, a bright smile taking up your face.

“Morning,” he responded coarsely through a yawn, kneading his eyes with the back of his knuckles. “Any reason you up this early?” He lifted his head to frown with sleep-ridden squinted eyes. “And what’re you so damn chirpy for?”

You gave a one shoulder shrug, turning your head back towards the little circle you traced in the window, its fringes now weeping down to the window sill as the golden streams of sunlight seeped through the cracks in the clouds. You actually hadn’t caught a blink of sleep that night. Your mind raced without a moment’s break. So, chirpy wasn’t the first word to come to mind to describe what you truly felt.

“Just excited for the tournament.”

A lie. You weren’t. You were anxious. The tournament wasn’t due until at most a week.

A crooked grin curled the corner of his mouth as he pushed the duvet away and slid out of the bed, making his way towards you as soon as his feet touched the carpeted floor.

Jason was still naked from last night – all but the delicate chain around his neck remained; the small silver pendant, a bow and an arrow to savor the memory of you, caught the dull early morning light. His smooth skin glowed temptingly, his usually combed hair now fallen in disheveled strands in his eyes. He flipped his head in an attempt to push away his rogue fringe, giving you a knowing smirk as you eyed him up and down, lip hooked between your teeth.

He stopped behind you, weaving his arms around your waist and pulling you against his chest. His lips found the crook of your neck an instance later. “I’ll never get tired of you looking at me like that.”

“Hmm?”

He lifted his mouth to your ear, hot breath tickling the skin. “Like you wanna eat me right up. I fucking love that.”

His nose nudged into the hollow of your throat and promptly, you let your head back on his shoulder. He pressed a slow wet kiss to your neck, dropping a hand to tease the thin waistband of your panties.

“Don’t think I can last till I see you again tonight,” he paused to brush his warm lips along the shell of your ear and coax a quivery breath through your teeth. “Mmm, fuck, you look so damn sexy in the morning. My pretty little superstar.”

You bit your lip as a grin broke upon your face before a sharp gasp tore out of your throat when Jason suddenly pushed into you, offering you a generous feel of his growing firmness. You furled your fingers into fists against the wet window as Jason’s hand slipped under your panties, two thick fingers hooking around your clit.

“You’re gonna win for me again, aren’t you?” He rasped in your ear as his digits continued to caress you between your swollen lips. “Of course, you fucking are, baby. You always win. You’re my sexy little winner – fuck, sweetheart. So wet for me already?”

His tone was desperate. A melodious whine that sent shivers down your back. You moaned breathlessly as Jason’s fingers glided through your folds with ease. His satisfied groan vibrated against your neck, teeth scraping harshly along every tender inch of skin he took to his mouth last night – now all raw and sensitive to his touch.

“I need you to cum for me, baby. I fucking need it,” he growled through teeth. “Just—fuck—bend over. I gotta taste you.”

You obeyed, gripping your fingers to the window sill as Jason lowered to his knees behind you, his hands already tugging at your panties before they were slipping down to your ankles. Jason claimed you with a delirious moan, his mouth finding your sex as soon as his face was buried into you. However, once you sank in the binding throes of pleasure, you were startled by a ringtone buzzing from the nightstand across the room.

Your eyes only briefly flickered to your phone before you felt the cold absence of Jason’s mouth when he pulled away from you. You could see the vague colors of the faces that showed up on your screen – your father’s held fondly against yours. You were both smiling. Full and bright, eyes wrinkled and glowing with the soft sunlight. That was so long ago.

“You don’t wanna get that?”

Jason was already standing up and moving towards your phone, picking up his shirt from the floor along the way as well. He held the device out to you, wriggling his fingers when you hesitated, his brows twisting high up on his forehead.

You blew out your cheeks and took your phone, shooting a stern glare at Jason. His eyes held yours defiantly, mouthing “answer that” as he walked backwards to the bathroom, noticing your lingering doubt.

Your lips pursed into a tight line, eyes skimming the vibrant picture lighting up the phone screen. Your chest was heavy with many a brewing emotion, roiling the once calm that sat comfortably in the pit of your heart. Oh, who were you kidding? It had been years at this point – peace was a concept that had stopped making sense to you for a while now.

As your thumb hovered idly over the phone, the buzzing finally died and the screen turned black. You blinked, throat constricting dryly as you bit the inside of your cheek.

Your head perked up as the bathroom door creaked open, eyes blown wide. Jason’s face peeked through the gap, his cheek full with the head of his toothbrush.

“How’s Freddie?”

You nearly rolled your eyes. He was so damn persistent – so adamant to fix whatever fissure that was cutting deep between you and your father. Sometimes you had to bite your tongue. He couldn’t grasp what you had. The notion that not everyone got along with their dear ol’ dad was difficult for him to wrap his head around.

“Fine.” You spat, tone more cutting than you had intended. You swallowed, letting a tight smile pull your lips before you started again, “he’s alright – just seeing if I could visit him today.”

He hummed questioningly, his head disappearing behind the wall and the water tap began to gush. A small scoff flitted through your nose. Even a noise that miniscule sounded as though it was challenging you. As if without making a blatant show of it, he could see through your façade.

“We should go together.” Came the echo of his disembodied voice, sealing your suspicion. “Is he still taking his sessions?”

Panic began to web rapidly in your mind. You stammered, voice catching futilely in your throat as you searched for anything to respond with.

You had only gotten the news of your dad through other people. You were too frightened to see him yourself. It’d been years. It really had been. And you should’ve moved on. But every time you caught sight of his face, it reminded you of what happened over two years ago – of what you had done. You couldn’t promise yourself you weren’t going to do anything stupid now if you saw him again.

“You with me, Achilles?”

Your eyelids flickered as you came to the expectant look on Jason’s face. He was walking out of the bathroom with a towel against his face, his eyes boring deep into your head. The longer it took you to say anything, the cracks etched deeper and deeper into your façade. A vague hum caught on your tongue as you tried to piece your wit together.

“I said—” He began slowly, stepping back in front of you with his towel now hung around his neck. His fingers sat on the side of your face, his thumb gingerly caressing your skin. “You know you don’t have to do that with me, right?”

A frown knitted your brows close and you pulled away from his touch, teeth becoming tightly clenched. You didn’t have to do that. What did he even mean by that?

“You don’t gotta pretend shit’s alright. I know it ain’t,” he murmured. As if he just read your mind. “You’re hurting and that’s okay, darling. But let me help you.”

I can’t, you nearly blurted out. But you merely shook your head as a response, biting your lip in fear of your own emotions spilling out of your mouth and giving you away.

“I’m fine.” You gave him a strained smile and a bashful shifty look from the corner of your eyes. Jason opened his mouth, brows drawn close in worry before you heaved a defeated sigh, stopping him before he had a chance to protest. “Please.”

His lips pursed in visible objection and for a moment, you thought he was going to protest again but he only nodded instead, muttering an almost inaudible “okay”. He smiled weakly, the lines of anxiety still etched deep in his face but he didn’t give any more voice to it.

He wound an arm around your shoulders and pulled you back towards himself, engulfing you in his soothing warmth and the clean soapy scent of his skin. His lips met the top of your head in a firm kiss and his grip tightened lovingly around your frame.

“Okay.” He said again. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Let’s just go and get it over with.”

When you glanced up at him, he still had that inquisitive look in his eyes, a question burning on his lips. It evidently ate at him that you were keeping him out of this. He looked so very worried and you wondered if it were only because he felt like you were estranging him.

He was dying for you to give him even the smallest glimpse into that nook inside your head that kept him so insistently at bay. But you merely brushed it off, deciding you weren’t going to let that unspoken question get in between you today. All in due time. Someday, you were going to open yourself to him. But now, you wanted to hold onto what comfort you had created for yourself. Though small it may have been.

Right now, you were owed some damn peace…

However, that was something you found to be difficult to find as you walked through the tight hallways of the hospital in search for your father’s therapy room. You’ve been here time and time again; mere steps from looking into his eyes for the first time in years before you managed to psych yourself out and go back home.

On most of those occasions, you were by yourself, loitering by the closed hospital room and pacing anxiously to and fro along the tiled white floor. That was until you heard the voices on the other side creep closer to the door. Panic then would quickly swirl like a toxic brew in the pit of your stomach and will your feet to motion before you could stop yourself anymore.

But today, Jason was with you. Even though his presence proved to be somewhat comforting, your stomach still stirred with nausea, your ears ringing with silent curses at yourself – of why you chose to do this to yourself today. You slowly fell behind as he continued to walk ahead, only stopping briefly to turn slightly and give you a questioning look when he noticed the pause in your steps.

“You coming, Achilles?”

His voice took you aback. Suddenly, you were unable to answer. Your lips fluttered wordlessly, eyes blinking, words hooking futilely into your tongue.

“Sure—yeah. Just need a moment.”

Jason’s eyes roved your face, brows twisting close and lips falling ajar as if he meant to say something – to protest again, maybe? But saved by the newly budded chatter filling the hallway as the door to your father’s hospital room fleeted open, he turned away from you with one final, albeit concerned, glance.

You cowered behind the corner of the wall, one eye peeking out from the smooth edge to take in the same group of three people you’ve always only watched from afar: Jason’s dad, your old friend who now looked after your father on occasion and then of course, your own dad.

They all looked happy. Well, happy for a bunch of people in their position – all fussing over another man who had to use a wheelchair for a long time now. The same man who skipped every other one of his physical therapy sessions. And, well, this man was your father. The miserable looking slouching figure curled up in his seat as Finn – that old friend of yours whose bar you once frequented before all this – wheeled him away.

Jason, almost as if knowing you were hiding and where, turned his face to look down the hallway at the half of your frame that peered over the edge of the wall. His face was unreadable as he motioned with his head for you to come out. And so, you did. Tucking your hands inside your pockets, you made your way to where he stood with his father, the pinprick of a humiliated warmth spreading into your face.

“You’re late,” said Jason with a soft smile, reaching out a hand to curl around your shoulders. “I told you the time, didn’t I?”

Coal’s attention was on you now as you swallowed thickly, his hooded eyes lighting up at the mere sight of you, his sudden burst of overflowing excitement not giving you enough time to fully register the fact Jason saved your skin from having to explain where you’ve been.

“(Y/N)—oh, lord! Is that really you?”

Jason chuckled as his father held your cheeks in his bony fingers, a smile so full and bright taking over his worn face. He pressed a fatherly kiss to your hairline, sending another whirlwind of heat crawling up your neck before he pulled away to stare adoringly at you.

“I missed you, too.” You said, voice laced with a faint laugh.

Coal’s face distorted into a stern look of disbelief. “Definitely not enough to come visit me.”

“Achilles’ been pretty damn busy these days. Barely got time for the likes of us.”

You watched Jason from the corner of your eyes as he spoke for you, a small smirk playing across his lips. Coal seemed awestricken as he looked between you and his son before his eyes were back on you again.

“Is that what they’re calling you now – Achilles? My little (Y/N) is moving up in the world.”

“You should see all the things she does behind the wheels, too. She’s a real big girl now.”

You rolled your eyes at Jason even though a ghost of a smile lingered on your face. Coal’s eyes suddenly turned downcast as his grip eventually fell from your face with a sigh.

“Freddie would be proud.”

“He would lose his shit,” you corrected, playing off the burst of anxiety in the back of your mind with a weak laugh. “He hates I’m stepping in his shoes.”

“If you stick around for a while, you’ll see for yourself.” He smiled. “You should come see him sometime. He misses you.”

You shook your head – not really disagreeing with Coal. Quite frankly, you didn’t know what exactly you meant by it. It seemed like a gesture to yourself more than anything, disagreeing with the voice of rationale screaming in your head that he was right. That you had to get over yourself and listen to him this once.

“He’s shit at telling you that,” Coal continued. “Then he’s with me and he won’t shut up about you. But that’s Freddie for you – can’t say the right words to the person who needs to hear ‘em.”

“It’s fine, really.” You muttered.

Your poor attempt to escape the conversation proved to be in vain as he met your gaze with a hard look. He huffed a dry laugh.

“Is it? Tell you what; I’m dying to see us together again–”

“Pa—come on.” Jason interrupted, his tone urgent as he sat a hand down on his father’s shoulder, his eyes briefly flickering to your face and the darkened lines along your cheeks where your teeth had been clenched. “Just leave it, alright? She’s got enough to deal with.”

“If you wanna make an old man happy, (Y/N),” Coal carried on, promptly ignoring his son’s plea. “Come have dinner with us this weekend.” He pressed a tentative hand to your arm, fingers weakly squeezing your skin. “He really misses you.” He repeated himself. As if that did anything to ease the binds of guilt tightening in your chest.

“You don’t know how he can be—”

He interrupted, “oh, I know him, sweetie. Just as much as I know you. You’re both thick in the head,” he flicked a finger lightly at your temple. A gesture, albeit less than pleasant, managed to draw a faint but bitter smile to your lips. “No sense gets through to this damn brain of yours. I just hope—” His voice grew weak, hardly able to escape his throat now. “—I just hope there won’t come a time one of you regrets not doing anything about this. I’m too old to fix another damn heartbreak.”

Those words crashed over you like a harsh wave. Regret not doing anything. You swallowed. Your pulse raced as an uncomfortable heat spread like wildfire under your skin. The syllables rang in your ears, echoing far through those corners of your mind that had sat dormant for so long. You were suddenly so fucking terrified.

You backed away a step. Jason instinctively reached a hand out to hold onto you, his eyes ridden with worry as he silently took in the vacant look on your face.

Coal sighed, kneading the space between his brows with his eyes squinted shut. “Think about it. Finn’s been looking after Freddie when you’re—god knows where you are doing what. Have you even talked to him?”

You haven’t. Not as often as you should’ve, at least. Besides Jason, you had refused to open your doors to anyone else. Most days you didn’t feel safe inside your own head. He was the only person who was able to draw you out of your shell.

“I think that’s enough.” And as always, it was Jason who came to save you again, gentle yet commanding as he spoke the words. He gripped Coal’s shoulder again, coaxing his frail frame to step ahead and down along the hallway. “She heard enough, Pa.”

He sighed again – this man who took care of you as his own. Fed you from the same hand he did Jason and loved you, if not less, but just as dearly; you had never seen him raise his voice at you but now, he was the angriest you’d come to know him to be. And all that burning emotion was directed at you.

But to your surprise, Coal stopped to take you into his arms, his chest heaving with a long quivery breath, his fingers smoothing the ends of your hair.

“Please, (Y/N). All I’m asking is one dinner together again.”

And with that, he was gone before you could respond.

Jason met you in your car minutes later, his grey shirt spotted with raindrops and his long lashes wet, cheeks already flushed from the sudden waft of cold in the afternoon.

You sat in silence, listening to the rhythmic back and forth swipes of the wipers scraping across the windshield as rain pattered on the glass in heaps before you finally spoke.

“I’m gonna go see Finn.”

He paused as he was reaching for his jacket in the backseat, eyeing you for a moment before resuming his movement.

“Well, you’re full of surprises today, aren’t you?”

“Will you come with me?” You asked, sounding too hopeful for your own liking.

A warm smile lit up Jason’s face. “Sweetheart, you know you don’t gotta ask.”

“Okay.” You beamed. “Just making sure.”

Your eyes were drawn to the doors of Bredfin for the dozenth time that day as they rattled open, welcoming yet another patron swallowed by the layers of their wool coat. A small sigh flitted through your nose as you drummed your nails on the chipped wooden bar table where Jason persuaded you to sit at together and wait for Finn. And you were waiting anxiously.

Any attempt Jason made to comfort you; his words of affirmation, his gentle hand on the back of your neck, his soft smile, all proved to be futile. You hardly even heard him as your mind raced with the storm of things you were going to say once your friend showed. You were only hoping – praying he could forgive you for not being there much more.

When he finally appeared behind the bar through the fluttering kitchen doors from the back, you were caught off guard. He was your Finn but the few years had sure changed him; his blond hair had grown past his ears, gaunt pale cheeks strewn with what looked like the week’s worth of stubble and dark crescents that sat under his once bright eyes. He seemed to have aged decades in that short while of not having seen him.

He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw you, lips pursing into a thin line. Tossing his small towel over his shoulder, he trudged over to where you sat, sending Jason a smile before turning with a blank face to you. Your heart sank at the fixed hard look in his eyes. Fuck. This was going to be much harder than you realized.

“You look like shit.” He muttered, almost inaudible, but the venom in his voice was there and it did the damage it intended to do, making you cringe internally at the words.

“I definitely don’t feel much better either.”

The lighthearted jab at yourself fell on deaf ears as Finn’s face remained expressionless. You swallowed, fidgeting with the hem of your sleeves, eyes falling down to your trembling fingers. His gaze flickered to Jason – as if he was silently begging for his help before he sighed, eyes almost rolling up in his head.

“What do you want?”

“I’m sorry,” you blurted out, head shooting back up to look at him again. “Fo—for not answering your calls. For not coming to visit. And now you’re taking care of my dad – I’m so fucking sorry, Finn. I was just – I was going through some things.”

“Sure, you were.” He gibed, tone full with mocking incredulity.

“No—I swear. It wasn’t like that. Things haven’t been easy since – since, well, you know.”

“Trust me, I know what you’ve been up to… Achilles.” Your eyes widened at the mention of the nickname, jaw growing slack with unspoken shock. Finn scoffed, a sneer tugging his pallid lips back. “Yeah. News gets around pretty fast, doesn’t it?”

He started to walk away and you leapt from your stool, weaving through the cramped space and following him as he hastened to tend to a customer, a visible attempt at ending the conversation. You ignored Jason’s strained voice calling after you, slipping from his fingers before he could catch you in his arms.

“Finn. Please. I wanna make things right.”

You watched, literally bouncing on your heels, as Finn calmly took orders and flashed his bright smile. Then his eyes met yours again and the dirty glare within them was back.

You didn’t let him walk away this time. Quickly lifting your legs over the tabletop, you slid yourself across the surface and landed on the floor in front of him. The exploit garnered a few heads turning in your direction and Finn’s own eyes blowing wide with alarm. But you didn’t care. Couldn’t. Your mind was only focused on one thing right now.

“What the hell are you doing?” He hissed, not so kindly shoving your shoulder, his eyes shifting nervously around at the damage you had done.

“I’m not letting this go until we talk.”

“Fine. Fine. Christ. Just—behave yourself.”

Not a few minutes later, you were sitting down next to Jason again with Finn now across from you. He had his arms folded over his white uniform, eyes narrowed into slits and brows pulled close, mulling over unsaid thoughts in his head after listening to everything you had to say. Some excuses. Sure. Some weak justifications. Definitely. But you had to try to get your old friend back somehow.

And at long last, he heaved a drawn out sigh. But when he looked at you again, his eyes had turned soft, a faint trace of a smile ghosting over his lips before his arms slowly came undone to hang at his sides again.

“You’re impossible.” He shook his head. “You’re goddamn impossible and a pain in the fucking ass.”

You gave an apologetic smile, shoulders shifting into an almost shrug. Finn was smiling at you again and you managed to remedy some of the cracks in your relationship. That’s all that mattered right now.

“So, you two—” He jerked his head, motioning at you and Jason. Finn’s eyes wandered up and down his form as a slow smirk crossed his lips. Jason fought not to squirm under the sudden attention that had centered on him. “I guess I can see why (Y/N)’s been so distracted. What’s up with you two?”

“Nothing,” you jumped to respond, stopping Jason who opened his mouth to speak. You could see the frown pulling at his brows from the corner of your eyes. “We’re just friends.”

“Just friends, ha? What a waste.” Finn mused, letting a long oppressing silence settle on the table as he looked between you with an amused smirk. You didn’t dare glance at Jason but you could see his fingers flex irritatedly around his beer, whitened nails digging into the glass. You bit your lip, picking at the loose strings of your sleeve. After what felt like minutes, deciding he’d allowed for you both to marinate enough in the tension, Finn finally changed the topic. “So, what’s the story behind your name?”

It took you a second to register the question and still, you stammered as you gathered an answer. “Um—I—uh—” You cleared your throat before trying again, albeit still much more shyly. “I broke the speed record on my first tournament.”

“And she was the youngest person to do it.” Jason added.

When you looked at him, Jason was smiling proudly at you, the previous marks of agitation gone from his physic.

Finn hummed. “Damn. So, you’re kind of a big deal.” All of a sudden, his face contorted into a scowl, his eyes staring ahead over your shoulder. “Speaking of big deals. I’ll be right back.”

You turned to look at the entrance with a confused frown. The door swung open and a burst of cold wafted from the damp streets inside.

A tall husk of a man ducked under the door frame as he stepped in, his broad shoulders squeezed in a tight leather coat. His sharp face was fixed into a vacant stare, glistening skin donned in an almost sickly glow from the dull light of the bar. As he lifted his fingers to rake through his wet fringe, the stark black tattoo of a crow on the back of his hand caught the pale florescent lighting and then your eye.

Your heart began hammering in your throat, making your pulse thrum loudly in your ears as you took him in. What was hedoing here? No. You knew eventually, you had to face him again. But you weren’t prepared for it. You weren’t ready for the burning rush of emotions that suddenly took of hold of your body.

You could practically feel yourself vibrate as you craned your neck to search frantically through the grease stained bar windows only to surely and definitely find that wretched red Lamborghini parked outside. You cursed under your breath and peeled your gaze away.

“He’s really going in with the territorial pissing.” Jason scoffed a laugh, lifting the rim of his bottle to his lips. His playful stare found yours briefly from the corner of his eyes as he took a swig. “Racers and their god be damned giant egos.”

Jason wasn’t aware of the history you shared with that big name who had just walked inside this small and quite hardly known bar in a city this huge. It was almost as if, intentionally than anything, he was here looking for you. And that notion was less than comforting as you sank in your own collar, heart pattering feverishly against your ribcage.

You flinched when Jason slapped the back of his hand to your elbow, the crooked grin on his lips dying immediately at your reaction.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m gonna…” You hopped off your stool, your voice tapering into silence as panic momentarily took the place of your wit. “I’m gonna head out for a bit.”

“Looks like Crowley isn’t just terrorizing the rookies.”

You shivered at the mention of his name. But then you stopped and turned back to face Jason again.

“How do you know him?”

The question came out much more accusatory than you had intended and you watched as the man before you quickly turned red in the face.

“I’d know Crowley,” he croaked, his voice exceptionally deep. “I’d know a guy like that.”

Your frown deepened. “Don’t give me that, Jason.”

His lip quivered, the blush spreading rapidly over his nose. You stared at him expectantly, waiting for whatever explanation – if you could even call it that – he was going to come up with now.

“Your car isn’t the only one I work on, sweetheart.” He tried to reason calmly, his eyes locked with yours. “Nor is Freddie’s.”

You narrowed your eyes at him, still doubtful. But in the end, you resigned. Waving a vague hand at him, you muttered a “whatever” and started the way you had meant to go many seconds ago.

Stuffing your hands inside your pockets, you took long impatient strides out and across the parking lot, paying no mind to the mud crawling up your boots as you stomped angrily into rain puddles on your way to Mercury. Flipping the switch between your fingers, you unlocked your car before you were startled to a stop upon a loud call of your name.

“Achilles!” Jason’s booming voice echoed across the vicinity, his rapid footfalls thundering in your ears as they drew closer and closer to where you were.

You released a deep sigh, turning around to tell him off until you calmed down enough for a proper conversation – and oh, this was going to be a much necessary conversation once came the right time. But all sense failed when Jason’s body crashed into yours, his hand moving quickly to pull your face to his. A noise of surprise caught in your throat upon impact, becoming immediately muffled against his lips.

The momentum propelled you back against Mercury, trapping your body between Jason’s feverish one and the cold wet metal digging into your skin. He pushed into you with great need, his small sighs of desperation weaving in and out of each brush of his tongue over yours. His hands clung to the collar of your jacket, yanking you closer to himself if that were even possible.

“What are you doing?” You managed to murmur against the frenzied kisses. “Fuck—what’s gotten into you?”

“I’m sorry. I’m fucking sorry. Please don’t be mad at me.”

You hardly managed to pull away for a gulp of breath before his lips were traveling down the length of your neck, his tongue claiming every inch of bare skin, teeth biting the tender territory.

“And that’s your idea of making up to me?” You laughed breathlessly. “Get in the fucking car.”

Jason pushed your shoulder as soon as you opened the door and you fell back on the seat. He wasted no time in joining you in the backseat, shoving you down on the lush leather as he climbed on top of you before slamming the door shut behind him.

His mouth returned upon yours, one hand toying with the hem of your sweater. You hissed at the caress of his cold fingers across your skin. Jason ventured lower to the front of your jeans, tugging the zipper down, lips not once leaving yours. He tapped your thigh, cueing you to lift your waist for him to slide your jeans down.

“Shit. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this needy before.” Your chuckle waned into a sharp gasp as Jason trailed a finger along the crotch of your panties, barely even grazing your clit over the fabric.

He lifted his head to look at you. You could still see his eyes in the low light of the car, lidded with lust and glistening mischievously. He let down his other hand to palm himself on top of his jeans, letting free a choked moan through gritted teeth.

“You don’t even realize what you to do me, do you, sweetheart?”

His usually patient demeanor has grown wickedly fast; fingers already hooked under the waistband of your panties to pull them off of you. Hanging your legs over his shoulders, his face pressed against your pussy without another moment’s pause.

You arched your back as his lips closed around your clit and sucked it loudly into his mouth. He moaned, slurping up the slick leaking out of you. His hands gripped tightly at your thighs, long fingers pressing deep into your skin. You dug your nails in the cold leather seat beneath you, head pushed back as your moans left you quickly before you could hold them in.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.” You sobbed helplessly. “Slow down. Slow down.”

Jason only pulled away to press his mouth to your inner thigh, knowing fully well he had to gradually build you up. His lips dragged across your sensitive skin, his stubble prickling and trailing a path up to your knee. But no later than a good few seconds, your breath hitched again as he lifted a finger to your dripping cunt.

His fingertip glided with ease along your slit, another finger smoothing your swollen lip as his mouth hovered teasingly close back over your clit. Your body writhed, each heavy uneven breath you drew fanned the pleasure across every fiber and every bit. Jason plunged a thick digit inside you – so slowly, your walls peeled away as the delicious heat erupted in your core, opening and loosening for more to receive.

He pumped his finger. Slowly in. Slowly out. Then back in. A steady rhythm accompanied by the chorus of breathless moans through your lips and the soft squelch squelch of your juices.

“God, you’re so fucking sexy,” Jason croaked. “You like that, don’t you, baby? Bet you’d like it better too if I just—” he trailed off, taking a quick moment to press his long finger to that soft beckoning spot within you and you arched your back with a loud moan, fists coiling tight against your own thighs. Jason cooed. “Does it feel nice, sweetheart?”

“Oh, fuck. Yes. Fuck, yes.”

He hummed. “Such a needy little girl.”

“Jus—just fuck me already. Dammit.”

“You’re so cute.” He chuckled. The low vibration of his voice carried a dark, teasing tone. Three simple words which meant he wasn’t going to relent that easily. A plain rhetorical rejection. “You want my cock? I better hear you beg me better than that.”

You gritted your teeth, the last shred of your pride tipping dangerously close to the falling point. Jason watched you expectantly, an eyebrow raised above his sharp eyes, waiting patiently for your response as his finger continued to slide slowly inside you. In and out, in and out. No sign or anything that showed he was going to be the one giving up first. But your resolve, on the other hand, was successfully falling apart.

“Please—Jason. I need you to fuck me. I can’t take it anymore.”

“That’s more like it.”

Jason slowly pulled his finger out, a thick thread of your arousal trailing from your pussy to his hand. His gaze traced the translucent string glistening in the dim light, throat bobbing as he swallowed, tongue worming out to wet his lip before that same finger disappeared inside his mouth. He moaned, sucking showily on the length of his digit.

“Fuck. You taste incredible, sweetheart.” He moaned.

Your feet landed back on the hard leather seat as Jason moved a hand to his belt, fumbling with the buckle before he managed to finally pry it open. He hissed as he freed himself from the confines of fabric, his leaking flushed cock sitting heavy and throbbing in his fist.

He pushed his tip against your clit. Gently at first. Then he lifted his length and let it fall on your cunt, the weight landing with a wet thud. You choked down a grunt when he repeated the action. Again and again until he had picked up his speed and joined the cacophony of your moans and skin falling upon skin. He would only occasionally slow down to rub himself up and down between your lips, heaving groans and pants, his swollen tip gushing with precum all over you.

“Jason—” You called hoarsely. Tone demanding. Your fingers wrapped themselves around Jason’s cock, stilling him in place. “Fuck me. Right now.”

He swallowed a few gulps of breath before he finally nodded. “Wanna get on top?”

He didn’t have to say any more to get you to start moving. You landed in his lap as soon as Jason shifted to a sitting position, your sopping pussy hovering just barely over his cock. He held your hips and guided you slowly down his length. Head thrown back against the seat, he moaned heartily as inch by inch, he slithered inside, his nails practically digging into your skin.

“Oh, fuck, baby. You feel amazing. Mmm, shit. Yeah, that’s it,” he encouraged, his hands holding you steady as you began to push yourself up and down along his shaft. “Keep going like that. Keep going – god, you’re so fucking beautiful.”

His words fueled the already burning flame that licked and pawed at your core; more so, the way he arched his back and his chest rose to meet yours at times when accumulated pleasure erupted and spread like malignancy throughout his body.

His moans escaped loudly and freely. To the point he looked embarrassed and flushed at what little control he had left over his own will. And his attempt to muffle those noises didn’t slip your attention when he raised a hand to press against his lips.

“Don’t hold back,” you panted, slapping Jason’s hand away from his mouth. “I wanna hear you. I wanna hear everything. And don’t you dare hide yourself again.”

“I can’t—baby, I can’t. It’s—I’m too fucking loud. I can’t help it.”

A mischievous grin curved your lips and you slowed down, coaxing a long whine out of him. “Are you worried somebody’s gonna hear you?”

He only stared, chest heaving and cheeks flushed deep, his lips wet and slack. You tilted your head as your fingers glided over the span of his tight stomach and then his chest until they wound carefully around his neck.

Jason closed his eyes, swallowing dryly as he took in the warm sensation of your hand pressing into his skin and the whole and dire attention it demanded from him. He nodded quickly to your question, biting his lip to smother a whimper as your grip tightened on his throat.

“Then let them.” His eyes shot open, peering shocked and wide into yours. “Let’s put on a show for them, what do you say?”

The only thing his voice could manage was a low muttered “fuck” as you began moving again. Making well on your end of the promise, you bounced on his cock with relentless speed, hands gripping his shoulders to support yourself.

Jason didn’t hold back anymore. He couldn’t. He bucked his hips into you, meeting each deep pump of your pussy with a thrust of his own, hurtling towards breaking that taut pull of arousal winding tighter and tighter within him.

Your sweet praises and filthy encouragements filled him with spiraling heat; the ascension only growing much faster when he saw you begin to touch your neglected clit feverishly. Your head lolled back on your shoulders, mouth shaped into a circle for the piercing moans to flee and the soft frown on your face – all telltale signs of your approaching climax – finally tipped him over the breaking point and he came with shaky moans and curses on his tongue.

Warmth filled between your walls as Jason’s cum spurted inside you and then you were with him beyond the point as well. Your shuddering moan filled the cramped space of the car and you held onto him as if he were your lifeline.

He caressed your thigh as your high began to slow, your rapid pulse growing calm with each ticking second. His other hand smoothed your hair before it cradled your face and pulled you in for a soft kiss. He was still shaking, his fingers trembling on your skin. It made you grin against his lips.

“What’s so funny?” Asked Jason once he noticed your lingering smile when you pulled away, beaming himself.

“Nothing. It’s just – you’re so fucking adorable.”

He scrunched up his nose as if the compliment left a sour taste in his mouth but he was still smiling when his face relaxed. His fingers combed absentmindedly through your hair as you sat in comfortable silence until that dreadful thought returned. That thought.

“Don’t think I forgot about what you said.” Jason’s hand took a pause on your temple at the comment, a frown forming between his brows. He almost managed to speak when you did instead. “About Crowley—”

He interrupted with a roll of his eyes. “Please don’t start now.”

“You will tell me, Jason. I need to know.”

“What’s it to you, ha? I know the guy. Big fucking deal.”

Jason gently pushed you off of him. He was trying so desperately to run away from the conversation. That much was evident from the way he fumbled nervously with his jeans and avoided looking at you before he slid out of Mercury. You let him have it this time. You would get that information out of him sooner or later.

Right now, you had something else to focus on… or rather, someone.

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