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becomewings · 3 years

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The Most Beautiful Moment in Life <I’M FINE>

BTS Universe Story Highlights, pt. 4 / 4

« pt. 3 | start at the beginning

Introduction

The final sections for TaeHyung’s arc and the Epilogue are 4.3k and 4.4k, respectively. As with earlier parts of the series, I have included “tl;dr commentary” at the bottom of the post after a section of additional thoughts (specifically devoted to an interesting MV location parallel!). This commentary summarizes the parenthetical asides I made throughout the summaries and may be of interest as standalone reading to those who have already played the game yet would like to review its connections to the BU texts and MVs.

Content warning: contains references to death, suicide, suicidal ideation, child abuse, domestic violence, blood, homicide, depression, trauma, PTSD

This guide contains major spoilers and includes references to other BU media

Do not repost, copy, or quote without permission

Heart’s Distance

TaeHyung’s story opens with a short cutscene. In his apartment (with the calendar on the wall open to May), TaeHyung smiles at a photo of his father holding him as a baby. (The image looks similar to the photograph he holds at 1’48” in the HYYH On Stage: Prologue short film.) Remembering his father’s drinking and violence, he crumples the photo with a sigh. SeokJin then narrates over a series of shots explaining the latest developments in the loops. By this 15 May Year 22, he has saved NamJoon, ensured that JungKook and YoonGi saved each other, prevented HoSeok’s accident in the hospital, and borrowed everyone’s help to free JiMin. Everyone is gathered outside NamJoon’s container that night, smiling and giddy from saving JiMin. “How long has it been since we’ve all laughed together?” SeokJin asks. (This is a reference to the recurring phrase “we can laugh when we’re together” present throughout the Notes and occasionally this game.) He wants to relax and enjoy the moment too but knows this isn’t over yet. TaeHyung is laughing radiantly next to JiMin. “What drives this happy and innocent TaeHyung to commit such an unspeakable act?” he wonders.

SeokJin’s reflections on the coming days in previous loops present the crux of his challenge and this story: on 19 May, TaeHyung is arrested for vandalism while painting graffiti on the streets. (The bus stop depicted in the shot is the same as the one in Highlight Reel.) One thing SeokJin has learned through the loops is that TaeHyung and his sister live under the constant threat of domestic violence. On 20 May, TaeHyung goes home after spending the night at the police station. The situation gets especially bad for his older sister, and TaeHyung makes a choice that he can’t take back. (In the shot in the game, TaeHyung approaches his father from behind and the sound of glass occurs on a cut to black. We know from the I Need U MV and Save Me webtoon that he fatally stabs his father.) SeokJin’s inner thoughts relate that he has tried to stop this event by preventing TaeHyung from going home this day or even involving NamJoon—but all of his attempts have ended in failure.

While SeokJin is mulling over this challenge during their gathering on the night of 15 May, HoSeok approaches and asks what he’s thinking about by himself. “Oh, nothing much,” SeokJin dismisses. HoSeok remarks that it’s nice to be there with everyone. “It makes me think of the old days…” While HoSeok happily chats, SeokJin’s attention stays on TaeHyung as he approaches NamJoon. The player is given the choice to “get closer to eavesdrop” or “listen to what HoSeok has to say.” In the first path, SeokJin excuses himself to make a phone call and only pretends to pick up the phone as he nears TaeHyung and NamJoon. In the second path, HoSeok jokes about eating too many snacks in high school thanks to SeokJin. SeokJin is a little distracted, but HoSeok notices that TaeHyung has snacks. “Huh? What’s that? I want some too!” SeokJin uses this opportunity to follow HoSeok and join their two friends. The paths converge with SeokJin overhearing TaeHyung and NamJoon’s conversation. TaeHyung says he doesn’t want to go home and asks if he can spend the night at the container. SeokJin remembers that TaeHyung often mentioned not wanting to go home in high school. Back then, they thought it was because he enjoyed being with the group, but now SeokJin knows that he was probably avoiding his father. He wonders why TaeHyung insists on going home on the 20th since he hates it there so much. Maybe learning the reason will be the key to stopping—and saving—TaeHyung. “Do whatever you want. You can sleep over,” NamJoon replies. TaeHyung brightens visibly at this answer. “Do you want to stay up doing something? We can play a card game, or…” HoSeok chimes in too that it sounds like a fun idea, but NamJoon says he has work tomorrow and can’t stay up late. “Let’s play until I have to go to bed.” TaeHyung’s phone vibrates. His face is already grim when he peers at it. “Actually, I think I have to go home.” Surprised, NamJoon asks why, but TaeHyung leaves without answering.

SeokJin leaves the gathering and follows TaeHyung, shadowing him carefully to avoid detection. He wonders what was in the text that changed TaeHyung’s mind and notices that they’re heading in the opposite direction of his home. After purchasing snacks at a nearby store, TaeHyung stands at a bus stop. SeokJin wonders if he’s waiting for someone since he lets several buses pass by. Eventually, a disembarking figure approaches TaeHyung. SeokJin recognizes her as Kim Eunhye, TaeHyung’s older sister. She asks why he is waiting for her since he said he’d be home late. “I was about to head in, so I thought I’d wait for you,” TaeHyung replies. “You should’ve gone ahead. Dad probably hasn’t had dinner yet…” she trails off. TaeHyung says he ordered delivery to the house for their dad. “Did you eat yet? Here.” He hands her a hot dog. SeokJin follows at a distance when they begin walking home. “Do you think dad will be drinking?” Eunhye wonders. “Is that even a question?” TaeHyung returns. They go back and forth about how he has been drinking less these days, goes to work every day, and doesn’t get as angry. “I hope things stay like this,” Eunhye finishes. “...It won’t last,” says TaeHyung. From his sigh, SeokJin senses how little TaeHyung trusts his father. He is surprised to hear that his father goes to work every day. In previous loops, he wondered if the cause for TaeHyung’s accident was an external force and went to observe his father’s workplace, but the man was not at the construction site and apparently hadn’t shown up for several days.

“I better check it out,” SeokJin decides. He calls Uncle JunHo, his father’s assistant, to ask for a favor. The two meet later in SeokJin’s bedroom. “You wanted to go on-site for practical training, right? This is the form you need,” says JunHo. He dismisses SeokJin’s thanks. “The Assemblyman seemed to be interested, too. He said he’ll be keeping an eye on things.” “Father said that?” SeokJin checks. “Make sure to use this opportunity to take a thorough look around. It’ll all be helpful to you later,” JunHo advises. (It’s helpful to know that Kim ChangJun is involved in some shady business with a construction company—this is revealed in The Notes 2.)

On 17 May, SeokJin visits the construction site. The foreman tells him that they’re busy and won’t have time to pay any special attention to him. SeokJin is glad for the lack of watchful eyes because it gives him the opportunity to observe TaeHyung’s father, Kim SungHoon. He is working silently, and SeokJin can’t see anything wrong on the surface. “Why does he get so violent at home?” he wonders. The foreman has apparently been watching too and yells at him. “Oi, you! Why aren’t you working?” Kim SungHoon points out that there isn’t any scaffolding. The foreman orders him to use a ladder instead. “You can’t get any work done being all careful.” Kim SungHoon tries to protest, but the foreman won’t hear it. “Are you going to pay for it if the schedule gets delayed, Mr. Kim? Hurry it up!” A look appears on Kim SungHoon’s face as though he’s been wronged, but he uses the ladder to begin working. SeokJin’s concern must be visible, for the foreman makes conversation with him. “Ahem. Don’t get the wrong idea. You might not be well aware of it yet, but it’s hard to always follow the rules on site. We can’t stay on schedule if we’re not flexible.” “I see…” murmurs SeokJin.

Another laborer shouts, drawing their attention: Kim SungHoon has fallen from the ladder and lies groaning on the ground. The foreman curses and rushes over, demanding how he could be so careless and shifting the blame to him for not paying attention. With a hurt back, Kim SungHoon cannot continue working. Trying to downplay the accident, the foreman gives him a few bills and advises him to stop by the hospital. TaeHyung’s father seems to have something to say, but he withers under the foreman’s stare and accepts the money in resignation. The foreman then assures SeokJin that this happens occasionally on a rough worksite and hands him money too. “You’ve worked hard, so here’s a little something for you to get a nice snack. Forget about everything that happened today. You know what I mean, right?” His brazen, selfish attitude angers SeokJin, but he smiles and leaves to follow Kim SungHoon. He is shocked to witness TaeHyung’s father purchase alcohol at a convenience store rather than go to a hospital. Worried about what will happen if he drinks while injured, SeokJin tries to call TaeHyung, but he doesn’t pick up. The episode ends with a small scene of TaeHyung finishing graffiti on a wall. He doesn’t know why he painted what he did, but the “dumb, ugly-looking graffiti” represents how he feels. He rubs the still-wet paint, yet it doesn’t go away. Picking a new color, TaeHyung sprays over the existing layers like he’s pouring and emptying out all of himself.

On 18 May, TaeHyung deals with his third rude customer of the day at the convenience store. The man demands why he must pay for a bag, even though the law has changed so they can no longer be given freely. TaeHyung either relents and gives him the bag without charge or stands firm. In the first path, he gives in, knowing that he probably won’t restrain his anger if they argue further and that he’ll have to cover the cost with his own paycheck. In the second path, the customer flings the money at him before leaving. TaeHyung clenches his fists and holds in his anger. The paths rejoin with him reflecting that this isn’t a good day. He greets the next customer and realizes that it’s SeokJin. “How come you’ve been stopping by so often these days?” TaeHyung asks while ringing up his bottled coffee. “Huh? Just. I have some things to take care of around here,” SeokJin answers. TaeHyung doesn’t know whether or not to believe him. SeokJin keeps asking how he’s doing, and it makes him a little uncomfortable. Today, SeokJin asks more meaningless questions as always, until: “How’s your father?” TaeHyung can’t stop himself from responding sharply. “Why do you ask about him?” Taken aback, SeokJin stammers, “N-No reason, really. I was just wondering if he was well… Uh… Never mind.”

A rich-looking father and son enter the store, interrupting the awkward silence. The way the father looks after his son and buys him what he wants to eat plunges TaeHyung into memories—he once felt the same as the boy about his own father. He remembers asking his dad who the baby is in the photograph we see at the beginning of the story. Kim SungHoon said it was him. “Don’t you think you look just like dad, TaeHyung?” An incoming phone call shakes TaeHyung out of his memories. The food deliverer informs him that no one is home to accept the order of hangover soup. “Huh? My father should be there…” TaeHyung confirms that the deliverer can leave the food outside the door, but he worries about his dad, who was passed out drunk and groaning in his sleep when he left for work. “SeokJin. I need to run home really quickly. Do you think you can watch the store for me?” TaeHyung leaves as soon as SeokJin gives a startled affirmative. The episode ends in SeokJin’s perspective. He’s curious and concerned about what is going on with TaeHyung, as he couldn’t overhear the phone call. Since leaving the store alone to follow TaeHyung may just create more trouble for him, SeokJin decides to stay put and look for clues.

Arriving home, TaeHyung brings the hangover soup inside and finds his father slouched in the corner. More soju bottles are lying out than when he left this morning. “Your lunch is here.” TaeHyung shakes him when there’s no response. “Wake up and eat.” Kim SungHoon mumbles something unintelligible, so TaeHyung nudges him again. His father shudders and cries out. “You bastard! I’d just gotten comfortable!” “Oh… I just wanted you to eat before the soup gets cold…” says TaeHyung. Kim SungHoon calls him a bastard for not listening. “I just told you to leave that damn thing here!” “Hah… Anyway, eat your lunch.” TaeHyung touches his shoulder again, and his father shoves him away. “The pain is killing me. Get lost, bastard!” TaeHyung yelps. The back of his neck burns from something he hit, but he doesn’t feel the pain over the rage brewing inside him. He can’t stand to look at his father for another second and kicks the door open to rush outside. “But of course. Why did I run over here to make sure that miserable geezer ate something?” he thinks bitterly. TaeHyung’s temper cools as he walks back to the store, and he remembers the pain in his neck. His fingers come away with blood when he touches the spot. He trudges onward, planning to bandage it at work. The memory of the rich father-son duo comes to mind: the man holding his son’s hand so tenderly, and the kid smiling brightly up at him. It makes TaeHyung even more miserable, and he fights to suppress the feelings that threaten to overflow.

Alone in the convenience store, SeokJin feels anxious not knowing when TaeHyung will return but decides to poke around, hoping to learn something like he did when observing NamJoon’s room at the gas station. He either looks through TaeHyung’s backpack or a full box near the register. The box is only a makeshift lost-and-found with customers’ forgotten items. Despite his discomfort at rooting through someone’s belongings, SeokJin finds the crumpled photograph of TaeHyung as a baby with his father in the bag. “He wouldn’t be carrying it around if he truly hated his father. But it wouldn’t be crumpled if he liked him, either. Is it… love and hate?” SeokJin wonders. He also finds a post-it stuck on the counter with a note left by HoSeok: “I packed this for myself but Auntie invited me over for dinner. There are two patties inside. Make sure to enjoy it and write me a full review at least one page long!” SeokJin realizes they’ve spent all this time looking out for each other. He’s glad to see the signs of HoSeok taking care of TaeHyung and TaeHyung being grateful enough to keep the note.

When TaeHyung returns, SeokJin is concerned to see blood from a cut on his neck. “Are you okay, TaeHyung? What happened to your neck?” But TaeHyung avoids looking at him and doesn’t answer, instead putting on a bandage and continuing work. SeokJin ignores a call from Uncle JunHo, deciding it’s more important to look after TaeHyung. “Are you sure you can stay here all day like this, SeokJin? Aren’t there people at home wondering where you are?” TaeHyung speaks up at that moment. SeokJin smiles sheepishly. But with the incident looming ahead on the 20th and no solutions yet to avert it, he has no choice but to stick close to him. After TaeHyung’s shift ends, SeokJin asks what he’s doing now. The red seeping through the bandage worries him. “I’m just… gonna go paint some graffiti,” says TaeHyung. He reluctantly agrees to allow SeokJin to tag along. His phone vibrates before they leave. “Sis? What’s going on? What? The emergency room? Why is Dad there? Hold on. I’ll be right there!” TaeHyung runs out. SeokJin catches up to offer him a ride, which he accepts after a moment’s hesitation.

The perspective switches to TaeHyung when they arrive at the hospital and find his sister waiting with an uneasy expression. She thinks that their father was injured at work. When she tapped him lightly to wake him up for dinner, it caused him a lot of pain. TaeHyung remembers the incident at lunchtime and wonders if he felt like that earlier, too. Eunhye notices SeokJin, and TaeHyung introduces them, noticing that her hand seems to make her uncomfortable. “Did you hurt yourself, sis? What happened to your hand?” “Oh, it’s nothing. I… tripped before we came to the hospital.” TaeHyung knows she’s lying but doesn’t argue. He pretends not to see her injuries, and she pretends not to see the one on his neck—like they always do. Eunhye voices concern about the high bill, which the hospital wants them to pay before discharging their father tomorrow. “The company will take care of it if he was injured at work,” SeokJin assures. TaeHyung finds the construction foreman’s number in his dad’s cell phone and calls him. Reporting the situation, he asks if his father’s injured back can be processed as an industrial accident. The foreman denies that they can help. “How can we cover an accident where Kim SungHoon was drunk on the job and failed to follow safety protocol?” The foreman informs him that he already gave Kim SungHoon money to see a doctor. “There’s nothing else to say, so I’m going to go. And I’m telling you—don’t try to pull anything.” TaeHyung swears when the call ends. Eunhye wonders if the foreman is mistaken because she doesn’t think their father drank that day. TaeHyung purses his lips shut instead of replying, filled with rage at the patronizing foreman and their incompetent father. He hates that he can’t say his dad isn’t the kind of person to drink on the job, and his body shakes with indescribable emotion.

“They won’t cover it as a workplace accident?” SeokJin asks, the perspective shifting to him. He knows the foreman is lying but is unsure how to help TaeHyung and his despairing sister. He could pay the hospital fee himself, but that was counterproductive when he tried it for NamJoon in an earlier loop. Noticing a text from Uncle JunHo asking where he is, SeokJin postpones his decision for later and bids TaeHyung a quick farewell. “I’m sure there’s a way to take care of all of this. Don’t worry too much. Take care of your dad. I’ll be back tomorrow.”

On 19 May, TaeHyung and his sister exit the hospital room with twin sighs. Their father called the foreman back after hearing about the first conversation and let loose, only hanging up when his supervisor agreed to speak in person at the hospital. He also demanded alcohol all night and only recently fell asleep. TaeHyung notices that Eunhye looks exhausted and suggests that they take a nap before the foreman arrives that evening. Later, the foreman arrives with some workers and a box of drinks. TaeHyung stands in the corner, not wanting to butt in since this is his father’s business. The foreman asks how Kim SungHoon is doing, advises him to rest, and then adds, “We’re here to say that you shouldn’t bring up compensation since it’s your fault you were injured.” The foreman accuses him of drinking on the job, and the coworkers Kang and Seo nervously agree. Kim SungHoon argues back about being denied the scaffolding and drops the box of drinks, a “token of their sincerity,” on the floor. While the other works avert their gaze, the foreman looks down on him and clucks his tongue. “You bastard! You call yourself a man?!” Kim SungHoon roars. The foreman bristles. “What? Bastard? Watch your mouth punk!”

Eunhye tries to intervene, pleading for her father to calm down and apologizing on his behalf. The foreman accepts her actions like it’s the obvious thing for her to do. His arrogant attitude reminds TaeHyung of how he probably deals with his underlings. “Sir. My father wasn’t drunk,” he speaks up. The foreman’s arrogant air dissipates. “What are you saying? I have witnesses here.” TaeHyung explains that his dad did not drink that day or the previous one. The foreman scoffs. “Look at this kid. Where’d you learn your manners? He probably drank on the way to work even if he didn’t at home! Who do you think you are, raising your voice like that?” TaeHyung’s hands tremble with rage at the injustice, but he has nothing to retort. Suddenly, SeokJin appears. “I also saw everything. Remember me? I was there on site for practical training that day. I watched him work and he definitely wasn’t drunk.” The foreman grows flustered as SeokJin reveals the truth of the site’s dangerous work process and makes it clear that he coerced Kim SungHoon into not following the correct procedure. He glares between SeokJin and TaeHyung. “I don’t know how you both are putting up this united front… But you think it’s going to change things? We already paid him. It’s a done deal. Understood?” Fuming, the foreman leaves with the other workers in tow. “It’s alright now, TaeHyung.” SeokJin gently taps his shoulder. TaeHyung realizes how tense he has been when he loosens his grip and sees little crescents of his fingernails cut into his palms. (His wounded palms are a recurring motif.)

The perspective shifts to SeokJin while TaeHyung stares blankly at his hands. He decides to come clean about his payment of Kim SungHoon’s hospital bill, since the problem with NamJoon was that he paid it secretly. “You can think of it as borrowing—” “Thanks, SeokJin,” TaeHyung interrupts. “I’ll pay back all of it. Thank you.” SeokJin is a little shocked by his response—it is the first time he’s heard “thank you” from TaeHyung. He hopes that this is the beginning of solving TaeHyung’s problems and bids farewell for the day. Outside the hospital, SeokJin runs into HoSeok, who correctly guesses that he came to visit TaeHyung. “How’d you know?” “I stopped by TaeHyung’s work and didn’t see him, so I called him right away,” HoSeok explains. SeokJin expects him to ask about Kim SungHoon, but instead HoSeok worries about his friend first. “Is TaeHyung alright? He must’ve been so shocked. He cares a lot about his dad…” “TaeHyung does?” SeokJin checks. “Yeah. Even though he says that he doesn’t want to go home all the time, he always makes sure his dad gets a real meal every day. Even if he just eats convenience store snacks himself.” This is new information to SeokJin, who wonders if this is why TaeHyung is determined to go home on the 20th. HoSeok seems more familiar with TaeHyung’s sincerity than anyone else. SeokJin is still braced to explain how he knew about Kim SungHoon’s injury, but HoSeok is more focused on contacting TaeHyung and continues on towards the hospital. Overcome with exhaustion as his tension ebbs, SeokJin trudges home to plan his next move.

Later on 19 May, TaeHyung helps his father walk home after he is discharged from the hospital. He is grateful that SeokJin paid the bill but even more so that he intervened to verify Kim SungHoon’s unjust treatment. “SeokJin might be a better person than I thought.” No words are exchanged as TaeHyung supports his father. His arm is thin, but the weight that presses down on him is burdensome. “It’s the weight of the wheel that I can’t escape. The weight of reality—that I’m always going to be responsible for my father. A person that I wish I could let go, but can’t, and the contradictory feelings of hating my father but wanting to protect him.” In a perspective switch, SeokJin watches at a distance with bated breath. Even though TaeHyung seems accustomed to helping his father walk, Kim SungHoon raises his voice every time he almost falls. SeokJin guesses that TaeHyung is adamant about going home on the 20th because he is worried about his father, who is just out of the hospital, but all he sees is violence against his sister when he arrives. “I’m going to stop it this time, no matter what,” he vows.

On 20 May, SeokJin stands at the bus stop and touches the graffiti for which TaeHyung was arrested the previous night. (It’s the “I’m Fine” message depicted at the same location in the Highlight Reel.) He wonders what TaeHyung felt when he painted it and feels uneasy that he may not be handling this sequence correctly. SeokJin shakes away this premature doubt. There’s one thing that has changed from the previous loop: him. He has protected Kim SungHoon after his injury, paid the hospital bill, and built up enough credibility with TaeHyung to earn his thanks. This time, he reassures himself, his words will get through to his friend. Later, SeokJin follows TaeHyung when he leaves the police station. They walk in silence, but TaeHyung does not push him away or ask why he’s following. “Thanks for walking me here, SeokJin,” he speaks up when they arrive at his house. SeokJin waits a few moments before heading inside after him, entering a familiar situation he has seen far too many times: TaeHyung lunging toward his father, who looms near Eunhye. “TaeHyung! No!” SeokJin dashes to grab his arm. “Let go!” TaeHyung snarls and flails. SeokJin holds tighter, pleading for him to calm down. TaeHyung yells and shoves him away. SeokJin slams into something and falls, pain blooming in his skull. TaeHyung spins around with an expression of shock. The voices calling SeokJin grow fainter, and his vision blurs. “Tae… Hyung…” The glass shatters, marking another failed loop and concluding the story. (This is not the first time TaeHyung has caused SeokJin grave or mortal injury during his intervention: in the Save Me webtoon, he accidentally stabbed SeokJin with the broken bottle instead of his father.)

Nightmare: Epilogue

Throughout the <I’M FINE> series, we have witnessed SeokJin’s trials and failures in the earlier time loops. These experiences culminate in the Epilogue, titled “Nightmare,” as in The Notes 1. This arc spans his efforts to save each of his friends between 11 April and 22 May rather than focusing on one or two characters. SeokJin’s decisions and their consequences here closely follow The Notes 1, so now we have a more detailed picture of his journey between the Save Me webtoon and the first book. The Epilogue fills in some gaps and provides greater depth to these events. For the sake of clearer context, I have still summarized the moments that parallel The Notes 1.

On 11 April Year 22, SeokJin opens his eyes to the familiar bedroom ceiling, the events of the previous loop replaying in his mind. Will he be able to save his friends this time? Uncertainty, horror, and the fresh pain of failure plague him, but he looks at the photo of his friends by the sea. Once, he believed that saving them would be straightforward. But while obsessing over only the problems that he could see, SeokJin lost his way and had to learn from his mistakes. The “signal fires” that helped guide him back were the times spent with his friends, the moments they began to truly understand each other, and the memories he wants to treasure. As he leaves his room, he reflects: “We’re all connected together by a single string, and we’re fated to save one another. And the person to finally put an end to all of this… has to be me.”

In his car, SeokJin encounters a scene at the school crosswalk that he always runs into around this time. He sees a downcast-looking JungKook crossing the street among a group of students. The player is given an option to get out of the car to greet him or pass him by. Regardless of the decision, SeokJin knows that he can’t let his emotions steer his actions. In a previous loop (depicted in JungKook’s arc), he brought JungKook to see the cherry blossoms blooming on the university campus. SeokJin wonders if the JungKook from that loop enjoyed it at least a little. But ultimately, it was just a day and JungKook ended up alone with nothing changed. Not wanting to repeat his past mistakes, SeokJin drives by without stopping.

Later that night, SeokJin pulls into Naeri gas station. NamJoon greets him with a now-familiar look of surprise. “Oh. SeokJin?” “It’s been a while.” SeokJin is determined to make this the last time they repeat this conversation. (As mentioned in part 1, this sequence parallels their moment at the end of the Blood Sweat & Tears Japanese version MV.) As they move to a corner of the station to continue their conversation, the perspective shifts to NamJoon. Something seems a little weird to him, and SeokJin looks like he has a lot to say, but he manages to gloss over it. NamJoon is about to invite him to the meetup with the other guys after work, but his boss yells for him to do his job. An expensive foreign car pulls up to the gas pump, and the customer drops the money on the ground when NamJoon reaches for it. “Ah, butterfingers. What are you doing? Not gonna pick that up?” the man sneers. The player is presented the choice to pick up the money or not. In both paths, NamJoon unconsciously clenches his fists. “You don’t want it?” asks the customer. The paths converge with SeokJin easily picking up the bills and handing them back to the driver. “You dropped this.” Hands shaking, NamJoon is mortified by the situation that caused SeokJin to react, yet his friend continues to stand there between him and the customer. The man demands who he is, but SeokJin advises, “You must be busy… So you should leave.” Out of steam, the customer drives off. NamJoon thanks SeokJin. “It’s nothing. What were you going to tell me earlier?” NamJoon forces his mouth to move. “Ah. I’m meeting up with TaeHyung and HoSeok today after work. Do you want to come with me?”

Back in SeokJin’s perspective, these are the words he’s been waiting for. Nerves dry his mouth, but he tries to speak naturally and inquires about the others. NamJoon doesn’t really keep in touch with them, but offers to call HoSeok, who still talks to YoonGi. SeokJin knows that YoonGi will call JungKook after hearing from HoSeok—this is how he saves JungKook tonight. His phone buzzes with a call from his father. “Oh, I’m sorry… But I need to leave.” NamJoon’s expression reflects disappointment yet understanding. “That’s too bad. Let’s hang out another time.” “Yeah. Tell the guys hello for me.” SeokJin turns back as he arrives at his car. “NamJoon. If we can get everyone together… Let’s all go to the ocean.” NamJoon looks puzzled by the suggestion. “The ocean?” SeokJin smiles in lieu of an explanation.

The third episode begins with JungKook fighting a group of thugs in a covered alley. (The date is unspecified, but this is a continuation of the night of 11 April.) They kick his stomach and spit on the ground as they walk away, a sight that reinvigorates him even though he can barely sit up. He either says something to provoke them or hurls his bag at them. Riled up, they beat him again as he laughs, vision blurring. They’re gone by the time everything comes back into focus. JungKook got what he wanted: he deliberately provoked them, and when he laughed, they called him crazy and hit him harder. He watches a breeze flatten a tuft of grass in the pavement, just like him. JungKook forces himself to laugh again because he’s afraid he may cry. Where does he go now? He feels like a ghost at home: he’s never a priority for his mom, and dealing with his stepfather is a pain. JungKook closes his eyes, hoping that when he opens them, he won’t be here.

The scene that follows appears to be a memory of 7 April, although it is not specified as such and is written in present tense. (This encounter occurs in The Notes 1 as well as episode 4 of JungKook’s story.) While wandering the streets at night, JungKook is drawn by a familiar piano tune to a music shop with broken showroom windows. He sees YoonGi, for the first time in two years, playing within and looking like he will crumble at any moment. JungKook can’t muster up the courage to follow when he leaves and instead sits at the piano. The keys feel cold like no one has touched them. By memory, he stumbles through the song that YoonGi played this night and back in the classroom hideout. YoonGi appears beside him and corrects the notes like he did in their school days.

The story cuts to YoonGi in the present, possibly in the classroom. He ignores his ringing phone partly because of his drunken stupor and partly because he doesn’t want to talk, but he finally relents and answers. HoSeok offers that NamJoon wants to hang out later. “I’m not going,” YoonGi says immediately. “Hey, don’t be like that. SeokJin’s here, too. Do you want to talk to JungKook? I called him earlier, but he didn’t pick up.” HoSeok encourages YoonGi to call instead because JungKook may pick up for him. YoonGi hangs up, thoughts complicated as he remembers a time when he watched JungKook play piano. “Looking back, that kid was my shadow. I couldn’t ignore him, even if he wasn’t speaking to me. And I kept looking out for him… because it seemed like he’d fall apart if he was ignored.” He considers leaving it be, but his fingers are already dialing.

The perspective switches again: on a rooftop overlooking Songju, JungKook grows dizzy and stumbles. Darkness grasps his ankles, and his mind empties. “I don’t want to leave anything behind. This will just be the end.” At that moment, his phone rings. He sees YoonGi’s name, and everything sharpens, as though he’s awoken from a dream. “What took you so long to pick up?” asks YoonGi. When JungKook doesn’t answer, he continues, “Everyone’s meeting up later. Do you want to go?” After a pause, JungKook says, “YoonGi. Please come get me.” (From the thug beating to the rooftop, this is how his 11 April entry plays out in The Notes 1, but it ends before their phone conversation.) Waiting for YoonGi down on the street, JungKook recalls when they all used to hang out in the classroom. “I have a place to go. People to be with. Right now, that’s enough.”

On 2 May, SeokJin sneaks into YoonGi’s workroom, which is filled with oil-soaked papers as though he intended to set it on fire. (It’s dark, so as the later part of the episode occurs in the daytime, it must be past midnight or in the early morning.) There is no foolproof way to save YoonGi since he acts unpredictably between the loops, but SeokJin has determined that YoonGi needs someone who can tie him to the world—someone whom he won’t push away. Once, NamJoon told SeokJin that JungKook still carried the photo they took at the beach. (The photo depicted in the game is the one of the boys on the wall by the sea.) While NamJoon probably relayed this to show that JungKook hasn’t forgotten about SeokJin, it stirs a different memory for him. In high school when they ditched and went to the beach, hunting for a boulder that supposedly made dreams come true, SeokJin noticed JungKook ask YoonGi an important question while their voices were drowned out by construction noise. He has now realized that both JungKook and YoonGi have the same desperation in their eyes. JungKook knows that YoonGi is like him: a person who needs a string to hold him here. Therefore, JungKook is the key to saving YoonGi.

SeokJin places his copy of the photograph next to the mirror in the workroom, hoping it will lead to saving them both. Before he can leave, footsteps grow closer. Flustered, he chooses to either explain himself honestly or hide. In both paths, YoonGi stumbles inside and collapses on the sofa, too drunk to notice that someone else is in the room. In the second path, some extra information is presented when SeokJin notices a little water dish and paper cup with breadcrumbs as he hides beside the piano. “He must’ve looked after it again.” In another loop, SeokJin saw a small, weak bird that got mistakenly trapped in the workroom. YoonGi looked after it, most likely thinking of JungKook. (This particular episode is called Small Bird, so the title may only be meaningful to players who choose this path or are familiar with the bird from The Notes 1.)

SeokJin escapes undetected while YoonGi sleeps. Later in the day, he watches the workroom from his car. The most difficult part starts now: JungKook must follow the hints SeokJin has left to save YoonGi. After staring up at the second floor for a while with an unhappy expression, JungKook seems to make up his mind and enters the building. The story cuts briefly to YoonGi’s perspective. In the workroom, the mirror shatters. (The reason is unspecified, so we are left to wonder if a confrontation unfolded like the one depicted in the Run MV and implied in The Notes 1, or if something else occurred.) Dizzy, YoonGi falters but manages to stand up. (Again, standing up from what? Possibly because JungKook hit him.) “YoonGi…” JungKook is rooted to the spot in surprise. YoonGi runs, leaving him behind. Back in his perspective, SeokJin starts the car as soon as he sees JungKook dash out of the building. He hopes that leaving “a sign” will guide JungKook to the correct motel. (In The Notes 1, it is a bloody tissue that SeokJin drops by the entrance gate because YoonGi fled his workroom with busted lips. The game episode closely follows how this scenario proceeds in Notes 1, so I’m not sure why it is so cryptic around the details implying that a fight occurred between YoonGi and JungKook.) Inside the motel (once again matching the I Need U MV), YoonGi lights the bedsheets on fire. He regrets having JungKook by his side because the people close to him get hurt. The memories of his childhood burn along with the flames: fragments of the day he arrived home and found it collapsing in a fire. YoonGi hears JungKook shouting. “I’m sure… He’ll be sad because of me. But he won’t be unhappy anymore,” he thinks. JungKook shouts for him to get up, and YoonGi finally looks at him. His last view of the room encompasses the red flames, the air wavy with heat, and JungKook’s crumpled face. The episode ends with sirens playing over a black screen.

Episode 5, “Connecting Threads,” picks up on 12 May with SeokJin preparing to set events in motion for saving his next pair of friends. At the hospital, he waits for JiMin to show up and overhears a conversation between a nurse and doctor. If SeokJin stays where he is, they notice him and postpone their discussion, but if he steps out of sight, they continue. The nurse mentions “patient Park JiMin” who has “transferred down from the 9th floor.” She reports that he keeps roaming the hallways at night and wonders if they should stop him “just in case.” “He’ll be headed back up in about three days or so. Just leave him be. If it really bothers you, check with them,” advises the doctor. SeokJin moves to his precalculated spot when they leave, planning to lead JiMin to the stairs so that he’ll run into HoSeok on his way down. In his perspective, JiMin is troubled by his stiff wrist as he waits for the elevator. A familiar voice suddenly calling his name draws him to the stairwell, but the light makes it difficult to see its owner.

The story cuts to HoSeok wrapping up a consultation with the same doctor from earlier. The doctor states that they haven’t noticed any huge issues and that he’ll be discharged soon. “Do you have any discomfort still?” “Nope, I’m fine!” HoSeok answers energetically and even strikes an exaggerated pose, feeling that he needs to. “Please take care to avoid any future collapses,” the doctor adds. This comment makes HoSeok either recall the last time he collapses or the last moment he spent with his mom. In the first memory, he collapses on the bridge as he thinks about his sick Auntie leaving him alone after she has always been at his side. In the second, he stands at the merry-go-round and wonders if his mom will be standing there when he finishes counting. “Sir… Sir? Are you alright?” The doctor’s questioning shakes HoSeok out of the past. He wants to say hello to JiMin before he leaves the hospital, but JiMin’s bed has been empty for a while. Worried, HoSeok heads to the elevator to look for him. A woman dressed in a long skirt and hat passes by with her child. “Mom!” Convinced that she’s his mother, HoSeok chases after her. He shoves past people, breathing ragged and heart pounding. Afraid to lose her, he either yells out again or goes to the stairs. The results are ultimately the same because she doesn’t respond to his shouts and disappears into the stairwell. HoSeok skips steps down the stairs in his haste. “Mom!” His foot suddenly slips, throwing his weight forward. He flails, but there’s nothing to grab onto—and suddenly, his fall is arrested by someone grabbing his arm. “HoSeok?” “JiMin? How are you here…?” JiMin looks equally surprised. HoSeok realizes it’s obvious that the woman isn’t his mom. Though he can’t remember her face anymore, he still can’t let her go. “Are you alright, HoSeok?” JiMin asks. HoSeok figures that JiMin doesn’t inquire about what he was doing or why because he already knows. “I wonder if JiMin is like me… living trapped in the past. If he’s unable to get better and move on, stuck inside the memories that bind him…” “JiMin,” HoSeok says aloud. “Let’s get out of here.”

From JiMin’s perspective now, he notices that everything about HoSeok in this moment is different from normal. “Get out of here?” JiMin echoes. Outside is unfamiliar and scary, and he knows that even if he escapes the hospital, he will still have to return some day. “JiMin, I’ll come back for you.” HoSeok leaves without waiting for an answer. Not wanting to say goodbye, JiMin follows him secretly as he’s discharged from the hospital. He stops at the line where the hallway ends up on the ninth floor, watching the bright sunlight filter in through the open door. JiMin turns away, believing that the place to which he needs to return isn’t outside but the ninth floor. “Because… I’m a patient.” The rest of episode 6 follows the events in his 15 May Year 22 entry of The Notes 1, with only minor dialogue changes. HoSeok pulls JiMin out of his hospital bed the night before he is scheduled to return to the psychiatric ward. SeokJin and NamJoon meet them in the elevator, while JungKook, TaeHyung, and YoonGi are waiting for them in the first floor lobby. A nurse finds them and sees through YoonGi’s flimsy excuse that they’re having a birthday party. Throwing snack bags and plastic bottles, they all run toward the exit. (This sequence is likely the one depicted in the Euphoria MV, although in the video it’s staged during the daytime instead of at night.) JiMin unconsciously slows as he nears the invisible boundary in the hallway, but HoSeok’s urging grants him the courage to cross the line. Passing through the door, he draws in a breath of fresh air and feels on the verge of crying.

The beginning of episode 7 follows SeokJin’s preparations to prevent TaeHyung’s incident on 20 May in the same fashion as The Notes 1. He waits at the park on the hill behind TaeHyung’s apartment building until HoSeok escorts TaeHyung home from his night at the police station. With careful timing, SeokJin calls HoSeok after he sees the two part ways and asks him to invite TaeHyung to their beach trip in two days. HoSeok turns around toward TaeHyung’s apartment.

The next sequence provides more details of the confrontation (and notably unfolds a little differently than what is depicted in the I Need U MV). TaeHyung arrives home to a familiar stale odor of mold and stench of alcohol. “Where the hell have you been all night?!” TaeHyung turns to see his father’s bloodshot eyes and his sister standing behind him, face swollen. Defiance surges through him, but the desperation in Eunhye’s eyes roots him to the spot. “TaeHyung, tell Dad you’re sorry and go to your room.” TaeHyung either apologizes, holding his anger in, or tries to go straight to his room. In both paths, Kim SungHoon yells that a beating should set him straight. He seizes TaeHyung by the collar. Something bursts and rages inside him. “What have I done wrong?! You’re the one who needs to get things straight!” His father stammers in shock, “W-what did you say?!” while his sister calls his name in warning. TaeHyung chooses to shake him off or hold still. In the first path, he shoves his father to the floor. “Why are you doing this? How long? How long do we have to keep doing this?!” In the second path, Kim SungHoon snarls that he has a lot of nerve to look him in the eye and strikes his cheek. “Why do I need a beating?” TaeHyung thinks.

The paths converge with Eunhye begging their father to stop. The voice continues thundering in TaeHyung’s head: “Why does my sister need a beating? How long are you going to do this?” “You two are a double dose of pain in my ass today!” Kim SungHoon swings at Eunhye, who has thrown herself between them, and she sways at the rough blow. The injustice of it all stokes TaeHyung’s rage. “What have we done wrong? Why do we have to live in fear like this?” Heart pounding, he notices that the cold bottle he’s somehow picked up grows warmer from the heat of his hand. He roars and charges forward. A shattering sound plays over a black screen, and someone cries, “No—! TaeHyung, stop!” TaeHyung comes to his senses. HoSeok is hugging his midsection, his sister is crying, and his father is nowhere to be seen. He wonders whose blood is on his hand. HoSeok stands there silently, looking like he has a lot to say but holding back. “I’m sorry, HoSeok. I’m okay… So you can go now,” TaeHyung says, calm voice belying his inner turmoil. “I want to cry, to scream, to kick, break, shatter everything. I want to fall apart, but I can’t do any of the things I want.” The world spins as he closes his eyes. Mind blank, TaeHyung craves NamJoon’s presence and wants to talk to him—to tell him that he almost killed his father.

The eighth and final episode, “The Pier,” closely follows the version of 22 May in The Notes 1, with the addition of SeokJin’s perspective providing greater depth to the events. The boys make it to the same beach they visited in high school. The observation platform strikes TaeHyung as familiar. As the sun sets, he remembers this all occurring in a dream, except that SeokJin climbs the platform instead of him. Atop the platform, SeokJin is fearful and full of emotions. Memories flash by of their suffering and loneliness, his failures and desire to give up as the misfortunes repeated. He is relieved that TaeHyung does not follow him. At nightfall, they head to where they’re staying. (In The Notes 1, this location is simply called their lodging, and in The Notes 2 it is referred to as a lodge by the beach that SeokJin reserved under his name. In the game, the room appears like the one in the Run MV party scenes (0’57”, 3’00”, etc.), down to the same string lights and sconces—more on this in the Additional Commentary section below.) As the others dance and laugh, SeokJin realizes that this is the first time they’ve made it this far. “It’s something I hoped so desperately for… and a day I thought would never come. We were all lonely once. We hid our own scars and lived through it alone. But it’s different now. We’re all by each other’s sides. We’ll never be alone again.” Despite these thoughts, he has a nagging feeling because he hasn’t told them the truth. SeokJin is afraid of their reactions, but this will be the only way “to really see them properly.” He announces, “I have something to say.” Only TaeHyung turns to look at him through the chaos.

TaeHyung balls up his prickling hand, wondering if this is about the dream he asked SeokJin about several days earlier. (The location of this conversation is unspecified in The Notes 1, but the game provides a flashback shot of it at the bus stop.) His frustration grows when SeokJin begins to mention high school instead. TaeHyung interrupts sharply, believing that SeokJin is still cowardly avoiding the truth. “Are you talking about when you spied for the principal in high school and told him everything we were up to? Or were you going to mention how, because of that… YoonGi got expelled?!” The mood in the room chills. “I’m sorry.” SeokJin drops his head, while the others look away or stare in surprise. But TaeHyung doesn’t want to be unhappy without knowing why, even if the truth is worse than the nightmare. “Is that all? Or are you hiding more from us?”

The perspective switches back to SeokJin. He guesses that TaeHyung is asking about the dream but can’t reveal that the tragedies he experienced were real, believing that no one else should have to suffer with that knowledge. NamJoon approaches and tries to calm TaeHyung, but TaeHyung pushes him away. “Stay out of this, NamJoon. Why does it matter to you? You’re not my brother.” (In the album Note from Her and as a flashback in The Notes 1, TaeHyung overheard NamJoon talking on the phone while they walked to their lodging. NamJoon was speaking to his parents about his younger brother being old enough to take care of himself, but TaeHyung apparently took this to heart as something about himself. It hurt and angered him deeply.) “TaeHyung, I’m sorry,” SeokJin attempts to plead with him. “Stop it, Kim TaeHyung!” NamJoon warns. TaeHyung demands again that SeokJin explain everything. The interrogation unleashes all the memories of his friends’ tragedies that he has tried to forget. SeokJin feels like his nightmares are going to become reality, and his mind goes blank as TaeHyung and NamJoon continue to argue. “I repeated so many moments of suffering… for you… Why are you doing this to me?! I only wanted to be able to laugh together.” A little flame grows within SeokJin, an indescribable feeling cresting like a wave. This is what his countless attempts have led to? “What’s so great about being together?” Shaking off NamJoon’s arm, TaeHyung yells, “Who are we to one another? We’re all alone in the end!” “Alone…” The thing SeokJin has desperately been holding onto breaks away, and the shaking in his hands now consumes his entire body.

SeokJin hits TaeHyung. He remembers TaeHyung’s sudden jump off the seaside platform—a time he thought he saved them all. “I even kept that from happening—and he says we’re all alone in the end? The hopes I had for all of us to be happy, and for us to face coming days together… It all feels like it was for nothing. I thought I left my repeating misfortunes behind me, but I now see them again, taunting me from just ahead.” This concludes the Epilogue and the <I’M FINE> series. Notably, the glass does not break, suggesting that this loop continues from this event (as it does in The Notes 1) without yet resetting.

Additional Commentary

The only point I want to touch on here is the depiction of the boys’ lodging on 22 May after their beach trip and its potential implications. In The Notes 1, this location is simply called their lodging, and in The Notes 2 it is referred to as a lodge by the beach that SeokJin reserved under his name. In the game, the room appears like the one in the Run MV party scenes (0’57”, 3’00”, etc.), down to the same string lights and sconces.

As a standalone MV set, this location felt (to me) more metaphorical than concrete. It’s introduced after NamJoon opens the door of a train’s shipping container, a little film editing trick as though it’s a world inside—and it does feel like a space away from the real world where the boys are free to let loose, revel in their youth, and be themselves. While it seemed to serve as a more glamorous substitute for NamJoon’s shipping container where they often gathered, this location also appeared to stand in for the location of JungKook and YoonGi’s confrontation (2’24”-2’55”). An altercation between them is heavily implied in SeokJin’s 2 May entry from The Notes 1, but it occurs in YoonGi’s workroom. Since Run is an MV rather than one of the short films, which always present BU events and locations more literally than their song counterparts, it doesn’t seem too unusual that these sets are condensed to one in this video. YoonGi’s workroom isn’t portrayed until Highlight Reel, so we can kind of excuse one of the earliest MVs for artistic license.

However… the inclusion of this location in the game considerably changes the circumstances! Since it is both canon and animated, the creators had the ability to design the settings as they are truly intended to appear (within the general limitations of the game’s engine and visual style). It must have been a very deliberate choice that led to the reuse of the Run MV’s set for the 22 May beach lodging. (For what it’s worth, I have always interpreted SeokJin’s and TaeHyung’s fight in the Japanese MV for Blood Sweat & Tears to represent the fallout of that night, and that is staged in a different set.)

To further complicate matters, a date has been explicitly attached to one of the scenes in Run because it is matched shot-for-shot in the BU Story trailer Map of the Soul—and it is neither 2 or 22 May.

24 July Year 22 is not reached in <I’M FINE>, but in the Notes, this is the date the boys plan to gather at NamJoon’s container to celebrate JungKook’s discharge from the hospital. So far in The Notes 1 and 2 (and various album-accompanying Notes from MotS: Persona and 7), this event has hardly manifested as the celebration it is intended to be. This particular shot maps a little better to the circumstances in Notes 2, as not all of them even show up in Notes 1. But again, this gathering occurs at the container—so what, and where, is this shot really depicting? How is it linked to the beach lodging they visit in some loops on 22 May?

BU has been in development for years now, so I believe there is intentionality behind this location’s depiction in the game, even if it raises more questions than it answers. Perhaps it is foreshadowing a very different version of 24 July in which they return again to the beach lodging. This is my best guess for now, and it’s exciting to think that there are still hints embedded in the older MVs for aspects of the plot that have yet to be fully revealed in The Notes.

What do you think? Did you notice the location parallels if you played the game, and did they inspire any new theories for you?

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As mentioned above, the following “tl;dr” commentary summarizes the parenthetical notes I provided in the summaries in case you want to review them on their own.

Heart’s Distance — tl;dr commentary

In the opening cutscene, TaeHyung’s photograph of his father holding him as a baby looks similar to the one he holds at 1’48” in the HYYH On Stage: Prologue short film.

During the gathering at NamJoon’s container after everyone freed JiMin from the hospital, SeokJin asks, “How long has it been since we’ve all laughed together?” This is a reference to the recurring phrase “we can laugh when we’re together” present throughout the Notes and occasionally this game.

On 19 May, TaeHyung is arrested for vandalism while painting graffiti on the streets. The bus stop depicted in the shot is the same as the one in Highlight Reel.

In the shot in the game illustrating TaeHyung’s choice on 20 May that he “can’t take back,” he approaches his father from behind and the sound of glass occurs on a cut to black. We know from the I Need U MV and Save Me webtoon that he fatally stabs his father.

When SeokJin asks Uncle JunHo for a favor to visit a construction site for practical training, JunHo expresses that SeokJin’s father seems to be interested, too. “Make sure to use this opportunity to take a thorough look around. It’ll all be helpful to you later,” JunHo advises. It’s helpful to know that Assemblyman Kim ChangJun is involved in some shady business with a construction company—this is revealed in The Notes 2.

After the foreman leaves his father’s hospital room, TaeHyung realizes how tense he has been when he loosens his grip and sees little crescents of his fingernails cut into his palms. His wounded palms are a recurring motif.

On 20 May, SeokJin stands at the bus stop and touches the graffiti for which TaeHyung was arrested the previous night. It’s the “I’m Fine” message depicted at the same location in the Highlight Reel.

The story ends with SeokJin losing consciousness after TaeHyung shoved him away and he slammed into something, marking another failed attempt while preventing the homicide. This is not the first time TaeHyung has caused SeokJin grave or mortal injury during his intervention: in the Save Me webtoon, he accidentally stabbed SeokJin with the broken bottle instead of his father.

Nightmare: Epilogue — tl;dr commentary

SeokJin and NamJoon’s conversation when they reunite at the gas station on the night of 11 April begins with 2 familiar phrases: “Oh. SeokJin?” “It’s been a while.” As mentioned in part 1, this sequence parallels their moment at the end of the Blood Sweat & Tears Japanese version MV.

In episode 3, the scene of JungKook finding YoonGi playing piano at the music shop appears to be a memory of 7 April, although it is not explicitly stated as such. This encounter occurs in The Notes 1 as well as episode 4 of JungKook’s story.

From JungKook’s beating at the hands of thugs to the rooftop, this is how his 11 April entry plays out in The Notes 1, but it ends before his phone conversation with YoonGi.

SeokJin reflects on a time NamJoon told him that JungKook still carried the photo they took at the beach. The photo depicted in the game is the one of the boys on the wall by the sea.

Episode 4 is called “Small Bird,” yet the bird is only referenced in one of the choice’s paths (SeokJin hides behind the piano in YoonGi’s workroom). The title may be more meaningful to players who choose this path or are familiar with the bird from The Notes 1.

The game is even more cryptic than The Notes 1 about JungKook and YoonGi’s apparent altercation on 2 May in his workroom. When the perspective cuts to YoonGi, the mirror has already been shattered. The reason is unspecified, so we are left to wonder if a confrontation unfolded like the one depicted in the Run MV and implied in The Notes 1, or if something else occurred. The “sign” that SeokJin leaves to guide JungKook to the correct motel is also unspecified, but in The Notes 1, it is a bloody tissue because YoonGi fled his workroom with busted lips.

The motel room that YoonGi sets on fire in this loop once again matches the I Need U MV.

JiMin’s escape sequence from the hospital is likely the one depicted in the Euphoria MV, although in the video it’s staged during the daytime instead of at night.

TaeHyung’s confrontation with his father on 20 May unfolds a little differently than what is depicted in the I Need U MV.

Some notes/thoughts on the 22 May post-beach trip lodging are included in the Additional Commentary section above.

TaeHyung has a flashback to several days prior to 22 May when he asked SeokJin about his recurring dreams. The location of this conversation is unspecified in The Notes 1, but it’s depicted at the bus stop in the game.

TaeHyung pushes NamJoon away physically and verbally when he tries to interrupt his interrogation of SeokJin at the lodging. “Stay out of this, NamJoon. Why does it matter to you? You’re not my brother.” In the album Note from Her and as a flashback in The Notes 1, TaeHyung overheard NamJoon talking on the phone while they walked to their lodging. NamJoon was speaking to his parents about his younger brother being old enough to take care of himself, but TaeHyung apparently took this to heart as something about himself. It hurt and angered him deeply.

Notably, the glass does not break at the end of the Epilogue, suggesting that this loop continues from this event (as it does in The Notes 1) without yet resetting.

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This brings us to the end of the BTS Universe Story <I’M FINE> highlights! This series turned out a little different than I originally envisioned, but I hope you found these summaries helpful and worthwhile to read. If you have any questions, important details that you felt I overlooked, or theories of your own that you would like to share, feel free to send me an ask!

For more informational storyline content, please check out the Timeline project, currently in development!

91 notes · View notes

blossom-hwa · 4 years

Text

volleyball players!golcha + a supernatural twist

so casey (@thepixelelf) came up with this brilliant idea (original blurbs here - read them they’re so fun + will help you understand what’s going on in this post) but essentially this is golcha as a volleyball team EXCEPT they all have superpowers

and no this isn’t some saving the world type shit everyone at the school just happens to have some superpower so they’re just trying to navigate the hell that is high school while dealing with powers so CHAOS

anyway please enjoy these brief blurbs and reblog if you did, and again do not forget to check out the original post here because why not it’s FUN

pairing: golden child x gender neutral!reader

wc: 11.7k (total)

genre: fluff, a bit of angst in some parts, volleyball!au, superpowers!au

triggers: cursing

Volleyball!au Masterlist (casey + lina) | Golden Child Masterlist

daeyeol - golden tongue

daeyeol has a golden tongue which basically means he can be very, very persuasive with his spoken words when he wants to

like casey said it comes in handy when he’s arguing with the basketball team for gym time but in 99% of other situations daeyeol tends to... be very awkward and stilted in a way that isn’t characteristic of those with a golden tongue

the boys sometimes tease him about it because a tongue-tied golden tongue? that’s not supposed to exist

but he’s just afraid of accidentally manipulating people even though he really does have a pretty good grasp on his power :/ like sungyoon will try to remind him that but daeyeol’s still wary

on the court though he literally just exudes confidence. like daeyeol is GOOD at volleyball and he knows it

even if his teammates clown him they listen to him when he’s running drills/coaching because daeyeol knows his shit. he’s been playing volleyball for years at this point AND has an older brother who played as well he knows what he’s doing

he’s been playing the longest of all of golcha and it shows in games! he’s one of the best players if not the best

really the other boys do look up to him even if they show it in a roundabout way

(daeyeol complains about the lack of respect all the time but tbh he doesn’t really help his case when he’s soft for every single one of the boys)

side note: he has a bit of a special bond with bomin :) as in bomin clowns the everloving fuck out of him but he also always goes to daeyeol if he’s not feeling good and daeyeol is always there to listen it’s super sweet

(more on that in bomin’s part :D)

does interviews with the school newspaper after games and he’s just so different from normal because volleyball is one of the things besides academics and stuff that he’s confident in

as a side note he got voted most boyfriend material in one of the school newspaper polls because he looks perfect and is the sweetest (have you seen how he gets so soft with the boys in every video online? don’t argue with me) and it made its way into the yearbook

older brother and alumnus sungyeol clowns him every other day for it

daeyeol gets revenge by reenacting sungyeol’s worst volleyball fails and sending them to his friends

has a whole folder on his phone of reenactments at this point

anyway like i said daeyeol is a little awkward in everyday situations so enter you: confrontational + rash with a sharper tongue than is probably necessary and an affinity for changing temperatures

well. more like you can ratchet the temperature up at will. bringing it down is much harder

it’s useful when it’s winter and everyone’s freezing but the temperature also likes to creep higher when you get pissed off which is sometimes not nice when it’s like negative degrees outside and inside it’s like 100

the only way to cool the room when the second thing happens is to calm you the fuck down! or turn on the air conditioner

and the first is easier said than done

it’s not like it’s only unpleasant for other people though bc you’re not immune to the heat and also because you’re the one like. producing the heat?? your skin gets boiling hot to the touch if you’re upset enough and several times people have gotten fucking burns by touching your arm to try and calm you down

usually it’s fine bc you have a good grasp on your power when you’re calm but if someone says something offensive/stupid.... god help them

anyway even though daeyeol doesn’t like to use his power much he’s still one of the people that others go to when situations need defusing because they (mostly) respect him as an older and more mature person (i say mostly because the amount of disrespect he gets from his volleyball team on the daily... yeah let’s just trend #prayfordaeyeol)

and that’s how you meet! you’re yelling at someone for saying something fucking stupid and daeyeol walks in right when you’re threatening to hit said person if they don't shut up rn

daeyeol manages to calm the situation but not before everyone stupid enough to still be in the room is sweating buckets including him

this just... continues

like daeyeol becomes the go to for situations involving you specifically bc you respond better to him for some reason

and you get to know each other just from daeyeol walking in on you threatening to throw someone out of the window and saying no! nope :) no you’re not throwing anyone out of any window :) come on y/n let’s go :) while subtly dragging you out of the room

the thing is he listens to you. he actually listens to why you got pissed instead of just telling you to control your anger. like he does emphasize the fact that you need to control yourself because what if this happens around people without powers? but he listens and that helps more than anything really and you actually start getting better at controlling yourself

and somewhere along the way things just click between you two and you become friends. you like him bc he’s v kind if awkward and he’s the only person who’s never tried to calm you using golden tongue manipulation and he likes you bc you’re so outspoken and bold

then one day you get genuinely so upset about something someone said and daeyeol doesn’t care about your blistering hot skin he doesn’t care if you’re raising the temperature in the room he doesn’t even care if he gets burnt he just kisses you on the forehead softly and holds you close even as you’re overheating

which just drains the fight out of you and you kind of collapse on him and stay like that for a while

he then takes you out for cold drinks (because you’re still overheating a little) and kisses you over an iced americano and boom relationship

the other boys find you very fun to be around and marvel over your relationship bc you’re confident and loud meanwhile daeyeol is a bumbling mess when he isn’t using his power or he isn’t on the court

but it works ok it just does. don’t question it

(jangjun does once and even with his super strength he ended up lying on the court bc the element of surprise is the only thing that can really get him)

(and lucky for you you know exactly how to take advantage of that <3)

(daeyeol just thinks it’s hot + impressive and kisses you right after)

(bomin + 99 line gag but you threaten to give them the same treatment and they shut up)

sungyoon - telekinesis

so as casey said sungyoon comes from a long line of telekinetics except he’s not entirely sure why he’s even at this school because... he has never shown any manifestations of this power

not to his knowledge at least

i say this bc people have seen stuff twitch when sungyoon’s around, he just never notices and thus concludes that either people are fucking around with him and it never happened or it was just a coincidence

anyway he doesn’t really care much, like sure he sometimes gets insecure/unsure of himself in a school full of kids with superpowers

but like i said this school is just a safe haven for those born with powers, they’re not training or anything they just learn to control what they have

and since sungyoon doesn’t have much to control he’s doing fine as far as everyone is really concerned

it’s also kind of nice being the only normal one on the volleyball team like everyone else has wack-ass powers that fuck shit up but sungyoon is like the calm in the middle of the storm like hi yes i am also part of this team of idiots but at least i don’t break equipment or injure people inadvertently

for this reason some people think sungyoon is the only sane person on the team

they are wrong

sungyoon can and will go batshit insane at the first opportunity

he is also a massive tease and if anyone asks him to do anything he’ll make it a back and forth for like 5 minutes before deciding whether or not to actually do it

bomin: sungyoon can you help me get the mats

sungyoon: why

bomin: p l e a s e

repeat for at least five minutes and you now have a regular day to day conversation with sungyoon

but sungyoon really is passionate about volleyball okay, like he loves the sport so much

he used to get worked up about it so much that he’d over-practice and actually play worse :/

got over that with joochan/daeyeol’s help (he and daeyeol weren’t on good terms for a week or two though) and now they’re one happy dysfunctional family :)

if you bring up that time in sungyoon’s life you will be subjected to his death glare so maybe just... don’t

like even jangjun doesn’t talk about it and that’s saying something

anyway moving on

in terms of powers you’re the opposite of sungyoon. aka you have wack-ass telekinesis and you have no idea how to control it

which?? somehow sungyoon comes in handy with this

because despite not really having powers himself, he watched his sister learn to control her abilities and also listened in on his parents’ advice to her because most of the time controlling powers really just amounts to controlling emotions

aka why sungyoon is (for the most part) so calm and mature

when he’s not purposely being a little shit to golcha of course

but you and sungyoon are kinda... at a loss bc it’s not like you go absolutely off the walls batshit insane?? like you’re a relatively calm person and even though the powers do manifest when you’re feeling a strong emotional upsurge

other than that they’re just... seemingly random???

regardless of that sungyoon makes you start on breathing exercises n shit and you would honestly probably complain if you weren’t sick of your powers manifesting every five fucking seconds. like at this point you’ll try anything

cue long sessions after school in the gym of sungyoon practicing spikes while you sit in the corner controlling your breath to the beat of balls bouncing on the floor

sometimes a few of the other team members join in but more often than not it’s just you and sungyoon

as time passes, in between cleaning scuff marks off the floor and picking up balls that just have flown everywhere, you and sungyoon get closer

and somehow... you don’t know exactly what happened but your powers aren’t so out of wack anymore

sungyoon can’t completely explain it either but like? neither of you is going to complain

you kind of think it might have something to do with how sungyoon is just a calming presence. like when you talk with him and stuff you’re less likely to inadvertently make something move or whatever

it’s not just with sungyoon too - it kind of seems like if you’re focusing intently on something, then the mini episodes don’t happen

sungyoon hypothesizes you might be a little like youngtaek as in you need something to concentrate on because if you zone out shit happens

you maybe zone out less than he does but maybe it’s a more subtle thing with you than with him who knows

anyway

one day you two go to get coffee after leaving the gym together and sungyoon looks weirdly nervous and you ask if something’s up while praying you don’t send all the sugar packets flying everywhere

and then when you leave with your coffee he asks you out

like really. he asks you out. you can’t believe it

so the lid flies off your coffee cup and liquid splashes everywhere

now you have burns all over your hands from hot coffee and sungyoon is freaking the fuck out and luckily donghyun was just leaving school so he gets called over to take care of your burns

anyway after that sungyoon is still a flustered mess and you’re trying to tell him you’re fine, look all the redness is gone and also yeah sorry about that i’d love to go on a date with you

CUE SUNGYOON’S COFFEE CUP FLYING OUT OF HIS HANDS AND SPLATTERING ALL OVER THE GROUND

you swear it wasn’t you and sungyoon KNOWS he didn’t just drop it so the only conclusion left is that sungyoon did it

oh my god he actually has telekinesis!

(the rest of golcha: yeah let’s just pretend we HAVEN’T been saying this for literal years)

anyway let’s just say that between sungyoon confessing + figuring out he actually has telekinesis powers it was a very eventful day

golcha loves you but is also wary of whenever you’re around bc sungyoon tends to get v nervous and maybe the net starts lifting out of the ground if you surprise him with a kiss

but it’s fine! you’ve learned all of the techniques sungyoon taught you, now it’s just time for him to get a taste of that too :)

and sungyoon would probably bitch and moan if it was with any other person but it’s more time to spend with you so is he really gonna complain?

no <3

jangjun - super strength

ah yes. resident ‘i’m doing my best to control my powers but sometimes i get too excited and whoops now there’s a hole in the gym floor’

once again credits to casey for that idea (she actually wrote a drabble for it which you can find here)

he’s gotten better at controlling his powers but uh sometimes excitement gets the better of him all right

look he’s trying!! ok!! he really is

especially when it comes to volleyball - he’s really serious, does his absolute best not to cause any damage to the gym because one time he cracked the wood floors and let’s just say admin was not happy

worst day of jangjun’s life trying to explain that shit to the principal

so yeah he’s doing a lot better now with controlling his power

but at the same time let’s not ignore half the reason why there are far fewer accidents than before - you

you and jangjun meet like halfway through your first year of school during gym class when jangjun hits a ball a little (a lot) too hard and it ends up knocking you the fuck out

a healed concussion + a million apologies later, you and jangjun are laughing your heads off in the clinic with the nurse screwing her eyes up in confusion like?? this boy just smashed a volleyball into your head and now you’re laughing with him wtf

but jangjun’s so funny and friendly that it’s hard not to become his friend so after that you two are essentially inseparable

so when jangjun decides to play for the volleyball team you sign up to be team manager

(you also help him practice and do you best to keep his power in check)

which works out! because you’re responsible and organized but most importantly you have power over air

and given enough warning (which, as you gain more experience, doesn’t have to be a lot), you can manipulate the air to stop some of jangjun’s more aggressive serves from hitting the ground too fast and causing major damage to the newly-renovated floors

daeyeol + the coach thank every higher being for your existence at each practice

youngtaek + joochan started a cult in your name after you saved both of them from one of jangjun’s spikes hitting them in the head

yeah let’s just say golcha is v thankful jangjun gave you that concussion back in first year

ANYWAY

one day you’re picking up some volleyballs that are lying around while the boys play a practice match in the middle of the gym

and because your back is to the fucking court. you don’t get any warning except a few sharp screams before a ball just motherfucking smashes against the back of your head and knocks you the fuck out for the second time in your life

you come to on the ground with donghyun passing his hands over your throbbing head

and the first thing you do when the pain is gone is look up and ask where jangjun is

half the team has disappeared from the gym but donghyun tells you he had a major mental breakdown when he saw you unconscious on the floor and just ran out. the others are already trying to find him but you don’t care you just run out to try and find wherever the fuck your best friend is

you find him crouched in the corner of a stairwell with his head in his hands and you’re like jangjun what’s wrong oh my god are you okay?

and he just looks up like oh my god you’re okay. you’re okay right?

you nod like yeah?? donghyun worked his magic of course i’m fine now but what’s up with you? were you crying?

he just clams up then which obviously confirms your suspicions and you’re like dude... why were you crying. i’m really fine

and then he explodes like - i fucking hate my power sometimes i hate that i can’t control it i hate that i accidentally break people or hurt people when i don’t mean to and it’s even worse when it’s people I care about like fuck y/n why can’t i just have a power that doesn’t cause all this stupid shit -

so you just lash out with a gust of wind and shake the railing on the stairwell

jangjun’s like why did you do that

and you say every power has a destructive side. i can hurt people on accident. if i got really riled up i could slam someone against a wall and knock them out the same way you did with me. it’s happened before

jangjun flinches but you just step closer like jangjun. you’re doing fine. your power is cool as fuck. i admire the control you have over it and no don’t argue, i’ve watched you over the past few years and do you know how much you’ve improved?

it ends up with you hugging jangjun and despite all his muscle he just collapses like a rag doll in your arms and on impulse you kiss his forehead like it’s ok, i’m fine, you’re fine. we’re all fine

and that little impulse kiss changes everything. even though neither of you really says anything explicit at first, something shifts between you and even though jangjun was touchy before, now you hold hands between classes and hug before practice and golcha is just like... /eyes emoji/

jangjun brings it up one weekend when you two are trying (key word: trying) to study and you just kind of shrug and ask what do you really want to be? labels or nah? bc honestly you’re happy as long as he’s around

which makes jangjun’s heart flutter and maybe the pen in his hand explodes all over his notes (not like they were legible anyway, you just promise to lend him yours) and voila! you’re dating

it’s super cute but also super loud

like jangjun will yell across the court like HEY WATCH ME ROLL AROUND ON THIS VOLLEYBALL Y/N (or whatever the fuck he was doing in the breathe mv behind) and you yell back like FUCK IT U P JANGJUN!!!

coach maybe praises your existence a little less now but daeyeol just reminds him that you’ve saved every member on this team + him at least once by now and the cult revives

as your bf jangjun strong-arms (literally) youngtaek/joochan out of the way as the head of the cult now

you two are very supportive and very loud in your support

you’re essentially each other’s professional hype-people and like to celebrate with kisses while everyone else gags

it’s disgustingly cute

someone always yells something about pda and then jangjun just kisses you harder

cue the boys screaming and you laughing and an unamused (he’s amused he’s just trying not to show it) daeyeol

coach is the only one who’s really unamused but at some point he just gives up because jangstar does what he wants as long as you’re fine with it

/shrugging emoji/

youngtaek - pyrokinesis

youngtaek has power over fire but it’s not really so much that he can control fire and more like he just... zones out and oops his notes are burning

it’s usually best to keep him and daeyeol’s s/o in separate rooms because fire + ratcheting up the temperature does not equal a good time

like casey said when he’s focused it’s all cool and he has a decent measure of control over his power but when his eyes go dazed and he’s staring into the distance then you better pray the room has a bucket of water or a fire extinguisher nearby

it isn’t usually a problem because this is a school for kids with powers and youngtaek isn’t the only pyrokinetic here but it is a hassle when sometimes youngtaek zones out on the court and hits the ball and suddenly jangjun’s screaming because he got hit by a volleyball on fire and now his uniform is on fire and everything is on fire

oops

but anyway with anything that isn’t a) volleyball or b) music youngtaek has less than half the attention span of a goldfish which means he may or may not be lagging behind in several classes

and it isn’t enough for him to be in danger of failing just yet but his teachers are like youngtaek i think you might need a tutor if you want to do more than just pass the final

he also needs better grades if he wants to keep playing volleyball so he decides to find a tutor

so he asks daeyeol about it bc despite his dyslexia daeyeol is a pretty good student but he’s busy as an upperclassman and all so he refers youngtaek to you!

you have the power to memorize anything you put your mind to. like if you really wanted to you could memorize an entire map of the city or its skyline but you just don't care enough to do that

only things you care about are school + your hobbies + your friends/family

anyway you meet up with youngtaek and from the start it’s kind of a mess because he zones out in the middle of you teaching him math and somehow sets the table on fire

after that you make sure to keep a bottle of water nearby (it comes in handy several times)

but despite the slightly disastrous first meeting you take a liking to youngtaek because beyond everything he’s genuine and honest and just a really good person regardless of the fact that he’s a little fire-happy

so tutoring sessions start ending with walking each other to the bus stop or getting a drink together or whatever and it’s really nice and sweet, youngtaek’s happy to be doing better in his classes bc you’re so patient and a really good teacher

and one day he blurts out that when he heard about your power he wasn’t sure you’d be a good teacher because everything seems to come easily to you

then he covers his mouth because holy hell he wasn’t supposed to say that youngtaek come ON

you calmly put out the little fire on the side of the desk before telling him it’s fine, you get that a lot but really being able to memorize things isn’t as helpful as people seem to think

like sure you can memorize the fact that 2+2=4 but if you don’t understand addition as a concept then you won’t be able to do 5+5=10 or something like that

and you can’t exactly just memorize concepts. so with memorization comes a lot of hard work in trying to understand it all

and from this little conversation youngtaek comes out with so much more respect for you?? like god damn he now sees just how hard you work for everything you care about and youngtaek likes that. he likes it a lot

so yeah both of you have budding feelings at this point but because i'm the author i get to say you’re idiots in love so you don’t say shit

until after finals you and youngtaek go to a party daeyeol’s hosting and you both get tipsy-drunk-ish and by the end of the night youngtaek’s face is buried in your shoulder and before he passes out fully he mumbles that he likes you so much it doesn’t make sense

and you’re drunk too so all you do is kiss his forehead and fall asleep

unluckily for you a mostly sober kim donghyun got a video of all that so when you both wake up a couple hours later it’s to several still-awake members of the volleyball team + your friends all up in your faces like oh my god they’re in LOVE

youngtaek wakes up with all the noise and just blinks sleepily and you kinda pat his head and tell him to go back to sleep while giving everyone else death glares like SHUT THE FUCK UP SO HE CAN SLEEP

but you don’t know about the video >:)

so one of the sober boys ends up bringing you two home and when you wake up the next morning donghyun has added you both to a group chat and sent the video there

you scream into your pillow

youngtaek screams into his pillow

and you both proceed to do absolutely nothing about it until joochan locks the two of you in one of the music rooms and slides a copy of the song youngtaek wrote about you under the door

you get to the paper before youngtaek can burn it and it’s messy it’s awkward it’s hilarious but you two end up together by the end of the day so it worked... kinda?

your presence helps youngtaek a lot by giving him something more to focus on throughout the day and subsequently not set everything on fire

though mind reader bomin complains because he used to zero in on youngtaek’s mind when things got too much since quote unquote ‘there’s not much going on up there’ (credits to casey + fact in star) but now if youngtaek’s brain isn’t playing the music from the mii channel it’s thinking about you which isn’t ideal

youngtaek may or may not have attacked bomin after that

you may or may not have had to pull him away when bomin’s shirt started smoking

but it’s cool the smoking goes away when you kiss his forehead and youngtaek just beams like the entire sun

seungmin - foresight

like casey said seungmin has foresight and it’s anything but useful

he’ll either get glimpses of dumb unimportant shit like haha the day’s lunch includes rice or visions of stuff he can’t avoid like hey youngtaek’s going to trip on air oh oops he just did aaand now his shirt is on fire

honestly if he was going to have foresight he could at least like?? predict stocks or some shit?? why the fuck does it MATTER if youngtaek’s about to fall if seungmin can’t even help him

not like he’d help even if he could because seungmin isn’t an angel and youngtaek falling is funny but still it’s the principle of the goddamn matter

sometimes he gets glimpses of whether or not golcha will win their volleyball matches but like casey said he doesn’t say anything because he doesn’t want to ruin the team spirit before the game’s even over

plus who said the future was fixed in stone? like none of seungmin’s momentary glimpses have been wrong yet but there’s always a chance... right?

seungmin isn’t going to discount that possibility yet at least

but he didn’t always think that way - you’re actually the one who opened him up to that point of view

you’re an ordinary person with no powers or anything but you work part-time at the juice bar across the street from his school and sometimes golcha will go there after practice to get something to drink

and you have a special soft spot for seungmin because he’s the first of the group who started frequenting the shop

and on that first ever visit he helped catch you when you slipped bringing a tray of drinks to a few people sitting in the corner

even though you both ended up on the floor covered in juice he still managed to break your fall enough that none of the glasses broke and while giving him his drink you kind of joked that it was like he knew what was going to happen before it did

which... is not exactly false

seungmin was waiting for his drink when he got a little glimpse of you falling and him helping catch you but then it all happened before he could even process the vision so like yeah he did see it but not soon enough to prevent anything

like usual

anyway you promise seungmin a free drink the next time he comes in when you’re on shift and so he does come in though he insists you don’t have to give him his drink for free

you just say well buy me a drink then. two for one

(listen he’s cute and he broke your fall and he seems polite. who’s gonna sue you for being a little flirty)

and so a beautiful relationship is born :)

seungmin really likes you a lot like so much?? he used to laugh at youngtaek for being so whipped for his partner but now he thinks he kind of understands it

the one thing to worry about is the fact that you don’t have powers and he does but it’s not that big of an issue really. like foresight is one of the abilities that doesn’t really manifest itself physically beyond maybe having a bit of reaction time? but considering his foresight is literally useless even that’s debatable

well actually there’s another thing to worry about: the boys finding out he has an s/o and teasing him to high hell

which they do while also demanding free drinks as seungmin’s friends

on days when you’re feeling nice you’ll do it but money always appears in the tip jar that pays for the free drinks

(it’s daeyeol. he feels bad)

anyway you don’t know about the foresight/powers thing until daeyeol calls you one night to pick seungmin up from a party one night and on the way home he stops you from almost getting run into by a speeding car

WHILE TIPSY/DRUNK

once you’ve recovered you ask him how he reacted so fast and he just kind of tipsily smiles and says ‘i saw it was going to happen’

you don’t ask him anything then because he’s drunk and sleepy so you just drive him home but the entire time you’re thinking about all the little things that have just... seemed questionable during the time you’ve known seungmin

and it’s weird as fuck but at the same time you can’t figure out any other explanation? because once is normal, twice could be a coincidence, but upwards of ten incidents is not right

it feels like you’re bella confronting edward about being a stupid vampire (no i never read twilight and i'm not sorry about it) but a couple of weeks later you ask him

he doesn’t actually remember the drive back home that night because he was kind of too wasted but he definitely does remember the other incidents including when you two met skdjghs

he spills after a few minutes of awkward silence and begs you not to tell which of course you promise to because why the fuck would you not? if the truth got leaked that would be disastrous and it’s not like you’re scared or anything, seungmin’s (mostly) harmless even if some of the other abilities like youngtaek + fire or jangjun + strength give you pause

but you get to talking about his power of foresight and seungmin kind of shrugs at one point while saying that he doesn’t know why he gets glimpses, it’s all inevitable anyway so what’s the point

and you just say maybe it isn’t that way. maybe he’s seeing one future possibility, maybe even the most likely one, but that doesn’t mean it’s the only one set in stone right?

seungmin loves you a lot for that. like so much. it’s a new perspective and it gives him more hope than he used to have and you just KNOW the conversation ends in kisses and cuddles

because while he’s not going to actively try and prevent what’s about to happen if it’s bad (like he can’t exactly influence the outcome of a volleyball match beyond just doing his best - plus, his foresight doesn’t give him enough time to really react to most things), it gives him some hope that even if his foresight says something will turn out bad, there’s a chance it might turn out well :)

anyway seungmin pocket boy you two fit right into each other when you hug which results in the other boys cooing but seungmin’s strong even if he’s small so they get a few new bruises that donghyun just refuses to heal

we love evil donghyun

you also go to their volleyball matches and seungmin trusts you enough to tell you what glimpses he got of the game but you always remind him the future may not be set in stone and regardless of what he sees you always cheer him on just as loudly

all the boys come piling into the juice bar after games and you smile and give seungmin a free drink while everyone else has to pay

they decry favoritism but you just shrug and kiss seungmin over the counter while they scream

dramatic assholes

jaehyun - gravity manipulation

so like casey said jaehyun can manipulate the gravity of objects, either send them floating up in the air or slamming down on the round

which sucks if the object in question is a volleyball and it comes pounding down on his toes when he isn’t paying attention

this happened at the first ever volleyball practice he attended and the boys (read: jibeom) have yet to let it fucking go

his husky voice doesn’t help because when he complains jibeom the boys just imitate his voice which derails the entire practice and now coach + daeyeol + team manager who’s jangjun’s s/o are all lying facedown on the ground like when will this madness end

never. the answer is never

but it’s ok jaehyun gets his revenge when they’re all practicing and he sends jibeom’s ball flying up into the air and refuses to let it come down and when he does the ball drops right on jibeom’s head and whoops look who’s got a concussion hey donghyun can you fix this

jaehyun is also one of the few occasional lifesavers (literally) besides team manager + donghyun because given enough warning, he can manipulate the gravity on one of jangjun’s maybe too strong serves and make it come down more softly than it would’ve otherwise

the problem is he isn’t super adept with his power

more experienced students will be able to manipulate gravity very subtly, but jaehyun more or less has three settings - floating, slamming down, and very occasionally something in between

which isn’t exactly ideal but jaehyun’s working on it, it’s fine, he’s not too pressed about it

anyway you’re a student at the school for students with superpowers in the next city over and you play basketball

you don’t know jaehyun but he sure as hell knows you because even though he stopped playing basketball a few years ago to focus on volleyball, he still loves the sport and he happens to think you’re one of the best players he’s ever see

also you’re really cute

jaehyun goes to every single basketball game that’s against your school just to watch you play

he doesn’t really do much other than watch because a) he’s so focused on your performance that he doesn’t register much else and b) everyone would clown him for cheering your team on skdjgskjg

also jaehyun’s just shy. like really shy you couldn’t catch him approaching you/showing interest towards you unless someone forced it out of him

which is what his lovely friends from 99 line decide to do

they obviously know about his crush like joochan was with him the first time jaehyun went to watch a basketball game against your school so he SAW the heart eyes

he took a picture and sent it to jibeom who sent it to donghyun and now it’s the profile picture for their group chat dedicated to making sure jaehyun asks you out

jaehyun has no knowledge of this group chat because he’s oblivious

anyway one day after a game they’re in the parking lot bc jaehyun’s driving this time and jaehyun is babbling about oh my god y/n was so great this time they’re literally so good at basketball holy shit?? and while he’s talking he doesn’t notice jibeom/joochan/donghyun like. subtly pushing him closer and closer to your team who’s just waiting around the bus you’ll take to get back to your school

and only when you look up does jaehyun realize he’s now close enough for you to have heard literally everything he just said in the past minute or so

cue the awkward crow noises as you and jaehyun just stare at each other

suddenly the backpack in jaehyun’s hand just drops onto his foot and if it weren’t for the steel-toed sneakers he’s gotten in the habit of wearing then he’d probably have a broken foot

as such he kind of lets out a quiet dying screech (it HURTS) and now jibeom/donghyun/joochan are dying like three feet away meanwhile your friends are screaming into their hands like Y/N IT’S A CUTE BOY YOU LIKE CUTE BOYS TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY YOU IDIOT

and when nothing happens for five seconds beyond jaehyun’s ears turning tomato red joochan steps forward and is like hello my friend here is whipped for you so if you’re comfortable would you please give him your number because he’s been dying for it since like. last year when we saw you play for the first time

jaehyun nearly launches himself at joochan like SHUT UP DUDE but then you’re handing over your phone while looking away because fuck jaehyun’s really cute and you wouldn’t mind getting to know him okay??

(who wouldn’t though that’s the real question)

anyway the two cities aren’t too big so it’s not that hard for you and jaehyun to meet up for coffee at some point (which jaehyun surprisingly gets the courage to initiate - he reasons it as he’s the one who was interested first so he kind of has to be the one to do it but that doesn’t mean he’s screaming throughout the entire text conversation) and after a semi-awkward first interaction you two surprisingly hit it off and after a few weeks you’re dating

you’re the ultimate athletic couple like jaehyun does volleyball and you do basketball and sometimes you play each other in the park or jaehyun starts teaching you how to play volleyball and it’s really cute

over the summer your friend group + golcha goes to the beach to hang out and jaehyun sees firsthand how much you’ve improved at volleyball

i didn’t mention it earlier but your power is water manipulation which not only comes in handy with putting out youngtaek’s inadvertent flames but also is very useful in splashing your friends + golcha all at once at the beach when no one else is looking

of course everyone just piles on you and sends you flailing into the ocean and maybe you choke on seawater because you’re laughing so hard but jaehyun pulls you out and your first kiss tastes like salty ocean and even with the rest of your friends + golcha screaming it’s perfect

water manipulation also helps when they dump you both into the ocean and you just kinda make a bubble where it’s deep enough and kiss jaehyun there (yeah pjo the last olympian vibes deal with it)

daeyeol gets worried when you don’t come up and then you surface a second later in his face and he screams it’s glorious

you use your power to strip away your sweat after basketball practice and jaehyun begs you to do it for him too after volleyball practice when you’re there which of course you do because you’re a nice s/o

when he gets a little better at the subtleties of his power jaehyun likes to lift you up using his gravity manipulation and spin you around it’s really cute

you show up to jaehyun’s volleyball games against your school to cheer him on despite the fact that one of your friends is on your school’s volleyball team skdjgshkd (and maybe jaehyun accidentally drops the volleyball HARD on his foot the first time you scream his name)

jaehyun starts doing the same when it comes to your basketball games he is no longer shy about screaming your name from his school’s side of the bleachers :)

his friends call him a traitor but jaehyun doesn’t really care because he’s the one who gets to kiss you after your games so who’s the real winner here?

him obviously

jibeom - invisibility

casey i think this blurb was my favorite, it’s so fucking funny and literally so jibeom

so like casey said jibeom can turn invisible which is really fun for him and a nightmare for everyone else because he’ll just sneak up on people and be like BOO

if you have a weak heart you better stay vigilant

but there are also issues because like casey came up with sometimes jibeom accidentally turns invisible during a fucking game and gets confused as to why no one’s serving to him until one of his teammates or the coach on the sidelines notices he’s gone and is like JIBEOM YOU’RE FUCKING INVISIBLE

it’s fine the school only ever plays sports against other supernatural schools to avoid spreading the secret about superpowers to regular humans so people are used to this kind of shit but it’s embarrassing for jibeom skdjgshjg

he’ll try to put his ability to his advantage by turning invisible when he’s supposed to be running laps/doing drills and hoping daeyeol/coach/team manager don’t notice

at this point though they always do and then it’s another five laps/set of drills for him

big sad

anyway jibeom’s just living his invisible life you know being a little shit with everyone

mocking jaehyun’s voice and turning invisible when jaehyun tries to swipe at him

sneaking up behind his friends and scaring them even if it means he gets decked in the face (that’s one thing he won’t repeat with jangjun. like the dude doesn’t get scared easily but if he gets startled... the super strength is not a blessing for jibeom if he doesn’t move fast enough)

and then you transfer to the school

so you used to go to the school jaehyun’s parter goes to but your family moved or smth so now you’re here and jaehyun’s the only person you even vaguely know so you kinda stick around and become friends

and of course jaehyun introduces you to the rest of golcha

now jibeom is in the gym. invisible okay. waiting for jaehyun to show up so he can do his daily scare-jaehyun-because-i’m-a-little-shit routine

then you walk into the gym with jaehyun and the first thing you fucking say is there are thirteen people in this room (10 golcha members + you + team manager + coach) but i only see twelve so who’s the invisible one walking up right behind jaehyun

jaehyun fucking screams, a whole crate of volleyballs goes tumbling to the floor because gravity manipulation + jaehyun getting scared go hand in hand, everything is in chaos, youngtaek+joochan+jangjun are crying of laughter at jaehyun’s reaction, and jibeom is now standing visible behind jaehyun wide-eyed and surprised because how the fuck did you know

turns out your power is being able to sense/locate invisible things including invisible jibeoms so the rest of golcha + manager + coach think you’re a lifesaver because finally someone can find jibeom whenever he disappears

wrong

like yeah if jibeom has disappeared in the middle of practice you’ll yell and be like KIM JIBEOM GET YOUR ASS OUT AND PRACTICE YOU DUMB PIECE OF SHIT

is it a surprise that you and daeyeol’s partner hit it off in less than five seconds

but if jibeom’s disappearing just to be a little shit you’ll purposely point people in the wrong direction like you’ll reassure youngtaek that oh no jibeom’s over there trying to scare seungmin and then jibeom appears right behind youngtaek and now both of you are cackling on the floor and youngtaek is about to set your backpacks on fire

you may have joined the school late but now you are an honorary 99 line member regardless of what year you were actually born in i don’t care they don’t care they’re just happy to have another ball of chaos to join their ranks

coach considers banning you from the gym but daeyeol reminds him that if he wants to ban you he’ll have to ban everyone else who comes in to visit and cause chaos aka his partner and you know daeyeol needs his hugs before practice so that isn’t going to happen

so you get to stay

most of the time it’s fine like you just sit in the bleachers and do homework while occasionally yelling at jibeom or other slackers, it’s only really during breaks that you act up

so anyway even though you’re an honorary 99 line member you spend most of your time with jibeom pulling dumb tricks or being unintentionally funny as fuck

therefore it is only logical that the rest of 99 line starts pushing you two together

fucking meddling brats

they do all the normal stupid shit like announcing outings to malls and ditching you two alone, deciding to go to the movies and ditching you two alone, you see the idea

look they’ve got pea brains they can’t come up with much

but get this: you and jibeom are already dating

yeah. you both started fucking dating a few months after meeting because you were both having a late night study session at your house and your tongues were loose with exhaustion and you may or may not have said some stuff you weren’t planning to

you almost kissed but then you were like it’s almost midnight and we haven’t brushed our teeth so maybe not tonight

it’s fine jibeom got a kiss the next day (the whole day he acted like he wasn’t waiting for it at all and you teased him for that before finally leaning in)

you haven’t kept your relationship secret out of shame or embarrassment or anything you both just kinda want to see how far 99 line + rest of golcha will go to get you two together. plus it’s nice when they buy you movie theater tickets when they just plan to ditch so you don’t have to pay for the date you end up having

it’s really fucking funny the more frustrated they get so you and jibeom don’t let up until daeyeol catches you two kissing just outside the locker room after you thought everyone left (NOTHING FUCKING NASTY OKAY THIS IS A SFW PLACE AND BEYOND THAT - NO ONE HERE IS GOING TO DO A N Y T H I NG OUTSIDE A L O C K E R R O O M)

shit goes down in the volleyball group chat that night but you and jibeom are just sitting together on his couch laughing at everything

99 line definitely holds a grudge

daeyeol won’t shut up about how he needs to clean his eyes out with bleach (as if he doesn’t want to kiss his partner every five seconds jfc)

coach just despairs over the chaos you two bring

but you and jibeom don’t care :)

side note you know what’d be fun - if you don’t have the slightest fashion sense like jibeom and you two become known for wearing stripes + whatever your favorite design happens to be all the damn time

idk i just think it’d be funny to watch everyone trying to clown you but literally neither of you giving a shit

donghyun - healing

so like casey said donghyun has healing abilities

and first and foremost he would like to say he’s tired of healing the injuries these idiots get every practice

i mean he’s not going to refuse treatment for like a jammed finger or a sprained ankle because that’s normal in volleyball or even burns from youngtaek/joochan because that’s just accidentally losing control which could happen to anyone but like??? falling over because you tried to prank jangjun and he basically backhanded you out of surprise??? that’s on you jibeom

kidding kidding donghyun will heal whatever’s been set on golcha but he WILL complain about it the whole time

that’s his right ok if he has to deal with this bunch of idiots (who also don’t fucking clean up after themselves) he’s going to complain about it with his whole chest

which is not a very broad chest but donghyun can talk a Long time so that more than makes up for it

gets teased by all the other team members but they’re really grateful for him not just because of his healing abilities + affinity for cleaning but also because he really does care for them

and as much as he complains he’ll do as much healing as needed, even if it drains his energy

but there are two major cons of his abilities

1. using his power too much (like all other powers) drains him of energy, so if he heals one too many injuries at a time then he’s in danger of also passing out

it isn’t usually a problem because it’s not like golcha gets injured every five seconds but some practices are more accident prone than others

once joochan fell and broke his leg and donghyun passed out trying to heal it and ended up in the hospital too. not fun

2. he can’t use his power on himself. like if sungyoon fractures his finger donghyun can fix that no big deal but he can’t do the same to himself healing just doesn’t work that way

it is for this reason that each sports team has a designated healer who isn’t a member of the team - of course if the team has a member who is a healer that’s useful, but they need to keep their energy up + they can’t heal themselves which is a problem

anyway the last healer for the volleyball team graduated last year so you come in to take their place

you’re super nice to golcha like you heal their injuries whenever anything happens no matter how stupid it was and they start making jokes about how you’re more helpful than donghyun haha because you don’t complain/nag about everything

and like donghyun knows they’re teasing but at the same time... it kinda hurts

what makes it worse is that you’re nothing but nice to him as well? like it’d be so much easier to dislike you if you were rude

so donghyun just kinda... avoids you and doesn’t say anything about it to anyone. does his absolute best to avoid getting injured so he doesn’t have to be around you any more than necessary

and several times you try to make conversation but he just brushes you away which leaves you confused and makes donghyun feel worse but he really doesn’t know what else to do

then one bad day he jumps up but misses the ball and falls on his leg hard. like really hard and there’s pain shooting up his side but he can’t feel a break or anything so he just gets up and tries to keep playing, like practice ends in five minutes anyway he may as well continue

but you call out and say to stop practice, donghyun’s hurt

except donghyun has had a really bad day and this is just the icing on the cake so he may or may not yell at you to go away, he’s fucking fine, and when you keep pressing he just grabs his stuff and leaves

the second he gets home he collapses on the floor and just... stays there because yeah he may not have broken anything but his leg hurts like a bitch and then he starts crying

skips school the next day because he feels like absolute shit (mentally and physically) but 99 line comes to visit and they’re like so. explain what happened yesterday at practice

and donghyun is ready to get defensive but they’re more confused than anything, his outburst wasn’t like him at all and why would he yell at you? you never did anything wrong

that’s when donghyun breaks down and tells them everything about how he’s felt over the past few months with you as the new healer

it ends in a big cuddle session between four idiots and apologies and donghyun promises to apologize to you tomorrow

which he does. and surprisingly you’re really gracious about it, it makes donghyun feel worse yet again because you’re so genuine and nice and you even offer to heal his leg again because it looks like it still hurts

the teasing decreases and donghyun feels much better, he also stops brushing you off and actually begins hanging out with you a little outside of school/practice

and while working late on a group project for history (your other group mates ditched you two and donghyun is still seething over it) he realizes that this has evolved into a stupid crush

said crush is only compounded when you tell the teacher half of your group did absolutely nothing without donghyun having to say anything

but of course since donghyun 1. is an idiot and 2. pretended to hate you for several long months he doesn’t say anything

until you fucking ask him to the end of the year dance. you ask him to the dance and donghyun thinks joochan has given him electric shock because his brain definitely has to be malfunctioning

after five solid seconds of short-circuiting he nods like an idiot and haha you’re going to the dance together

golcha boys won’t shut the fuck up about how cute it is or whatever

donghyun blushes red while you just smile serenely and promise not to heal their injuries for the next week so they better avoid getting hurt

yeah donghyun is definitely in love with you

you’re probably a more low-key couple, you enjoy study dates or quiet activities more than like. amusement parks or whatever kind of shit joochan/jangjun subject their partners to

you might kiss in public if the moment feels right but more often than not the only real pda you show is holding hands which makes golcha coo

donghyun would rather hug you sweetly in private without worrying about his teammates trying to ruin the moment anyway

you agree but then proceed to kiss his nose in front of everyone and whoops he’s a blushing mess and golcha (+ the coach) are screaming

sigh

joochan - electricity

ah yes, the ultimate question: which hurts more, electric burns or fire burns?

join the golden child volleyball team and you can experience both firsthand!

jk (not really) but between joochan and youngtaek, golcha kinda has their pick of what kinds of burns to get (other than like. rope burn or burns from sliding on the ground idk)

like casey said it’s v lucky donghyun/his partner are around to heal them because really trying to slap a volleyball with a burnt hand is not fun

most of the time though joochan’s fine, he’s just full of energy and gets staticky when excited and like casey came up with the boys will sometimes dare each other to touch his hair when it’s sticking straight up and get shocked

or if you’re a bitch like jangjun you’ll take someone’s hand and purposely place it there so they get shocked

(jangjun’s also stupid though so he gets shocked by proxy if joochan’s staticky enough)

(i mean at least it makes everyone laugh???)

(yes this was inspired by that one video where he and bomin (i think) are playing with the lie detector (or was it the jangstar episode with daeyeol?? i can’t remember) and he put his hand over bomin’s/daeyeol’s and got wrecked too)

jesus christ this is supposed to be about joochan not jangjun let’s get back on track

anyway when joochan gets worked up either out of excitement or a more negative emotion the one thing that never fails to calm him down is music

he can play several instruments and sings very well

so if it’s been a bad day or he’s feeling anxious, he’ll either go to the school music rooms of his own accord or daeyeol will notice and send him there to calm down a little before practice

which is where he finds you!

joochan’s playing the piano one day, singing n stuff and completely oblivious to you sleeping under the goddamn piano

how did you end up there? you were waiting for a friend/sibling (whichever one you choose) to finish up some after school activity so you could walk home together and you were sleepy and under the piano seemed like a decent place to nap so you set an alarm and passed out

look high school is draining so if you’re not making the best decisions by the end of the day who can blame you

and the piano is a real grand (let’s pretend the school has money shall we) so unless joochan was really looking (which he wasn’t), he wouldn’t have noticed you at the back

joochan’s there for a couple hours playing peacefully

AND THEN YOUR ALARM FUCKING RINGS

joochan screams and falls off the stool

you shoot up and hit your head on the bottom of the piano

for a moment you two just groan in pain and then you look at each other and are like. what the fuck

and then it’s your turn to scream

anyway you both stop screaming eventually (miraculously no one comes in) and you try to explain to joochan as best you can and he just stays silent and you’re apologizing and then he busts out laughing

and somehow both of you are laughing through the pain and even though joochan wasn’t feeling too good earlier he feels even better laughing with you

when you eventually leave you have a new number in your phone and the promise of seeing joochan tomorrow :)

first thing joochan does when you go is text the 99 line group chat and be like guys someone fell asleep under the piano while i was playing and then woke up and my butt hurts from falling off the stool out of surprise but i think i’m in love

donghyun: stop being dramatic

jibeom: yeah what’ll happen when you accidentally shock them for the first time

joochan: you guys are horrible

but it turns out jibeom is... actually a little bit right

and it’s even worse. because your power is over water

water + electricity Do Not Mix

it isn’t usually too big of a problem? because it’s not like you conjure water out of anywhere or are always soaking wet bc you need water around to manipulate it, you can’t create it yourself

so like it’s kind of fine

except for some reason you react a little worse to joochan’s electric shocks (even mild ones) primarily due to your power which isn’t fun at all

it’s not just you, water manipulators are known to have more averse reactions to electric shocks than people with other powers

but it sucks because you really like joochan and he really likes you and both of you definitely want to ask each other out but how is this going to work if just being around joochan might be a hazard to you?

and for the first time joochan just... he really hates his power

like he’s given people some small burns before on accident but they weren’t big

with you though, even if it’s a small shock you react more badly than anyone expects and joochan really fucking hates it

after several volleyball practices where joochan is really out of it, daeyeol is about to ask what’s up but surprisingly jangjun steps up and says let me handle it

because after getting together with his partner, he thinks he has an idea of what joochan’s upset about

and when he asks joochan spills everything

it’s the first time joochan has really seen jangjun serious about anything other than volleyball or his partner

so jangjun tells joochan about what his partner told him, and really knocking someone unconscious once or twice isn’t as bad (though still bad) as getting electrocuted by a stray fucking spark

but similar advice applies. all powers have a destructive side and it shouldn’t stop joochan from living, he just has to learn to control himself as best as he can. there’s nothing more he can do but that

and this gives joochan the courage to ask if you want to talk about it

i’m going to say it ends well because i’m the author and i’m not going to give joochan a sad ending (he’s joochan what the fuck how could you do that to him) but you do acknowledge what could happen if either of you loses control

which just makes you two more determined to completely master your abilities so you won’t inadvertently hurt each other

really it’s sweet. joochan is still excitable but sparks fly off of him a lot less and the few that do you take care to avoid until his hair stops sticking up with static

and you take care to keep water away from him when he’s full of electricity

when joochan kisses you for the first time your lips tingle like his electricity is bleeding into you but it’s pleasant and sweet unlike his sparks and it just makes you want to kiss him all the time

(you tell that to him and he has to take like five minutes to figure out how to breathe again)

99 line won’t stop clowning you two for how you met and jibeom shows you the text about being in love that joochan sent

legend says you can still hear jibeom’s electrocuted (not really he’s just being dramatic) screams in the gym late at night

yeah it’s cute you like bringing joochan roses bc they’re his favorite flower and joochan likes to bring you your favorite snacks and jangjun + his partner view you two like younger siblings in a way bc of the nature of your relationship

one big happy family until joochan’s hair sticks up and you have to yeet away

it’s fine though as long as you give him a kiss after he’s calmed down :)

bomin - mind reading

this one turned out so long compared to the others why

for context this was 1.7k and the others were all comfortably between 1k or 1.2k i'm gonna scream

anyway. bomin. mind reader like casey said. he’s kind of got it bad

well all mind readers do until they learn to block off their ability until they actually want to use it

which bomin is learning but he’s young and he found out his powers a little late so he doesn’t have as much experience

meaning whenever he goes to school his head kind of feels like it’s going to explode :/

it’s okay in volleyball - actually if anything it’s kind of useful

because yeah bomin is focused on the game, but he keeps a bit of his mind open to his teammates’ thoughts so he knows where to move or where to keep open and all that

and if the other team is a bunch of assholes he doesn’t stop from reading their minds a little so golcha’s ready to take them on :) small advantages

so where volleyball is concerned it’s not that big of an issue, even when the gym is full of spectators bomin can usually focus even without latching onto an empty mind because there’s so much going on in the game and he has to concentrate on that

however in uninteresting classes or when he’s just having a not good day...

luckily it’s gotten better after a year or so, like bomin can mostly filter out the world if he focuses on just one person’s thoughts

which is usually youngtaek (as casey + irl bomin came up with) because quote unquote ‘there’s not much going on up there’

yes i know i said that already in youngtaek’s part but it’s still hilarious to me and now it’s bomin’s turn so i’m saying it again. sue me

except now youngtaek has a partner about whom he thinks all the fucking time if he isn’t focusing on music/volleyball/class (though the last one is a little less frequent) so concentrating on youngtaek’s mind is now not exactly an option for bomin

no one’s mind is really empty at this point or at least not empty enough for bomin to use as a sort of safe space so he just resigns himself to having to go through all of this until he finally gets the hang of blocking off his ability

so the school year ends and daeyeol/sungyoon graduate wonderful blah blah blah long story short bomin is in all new classes with many new people and it is... a bit much

but life goes on and there’s not much bomin can do about things except work on his own power so even though he’s kinda crumbling around the edges he just smiles and bears it

and then he gets paired with you for a school project. at first it’s not anything special, just a regular project right

but then you guys decide to meet up at a cafe to work on it and it’s more crowded than either of you expected and bomin hasn’t had the greatest day so he just... stops in the middle of the cafe with this weird expression on his face because he’s just really overwhelmed

he doesn’t expect you to grab his wrist and drag him out of the cafe and into a quieter area of the street

and he really doesn’t expect you to say hey. focus on my mind, okay? my mind. focus.

but he manages to and there’s just blissful emptiness and bomin latches on like it’s his lifeline (in a way, it is) and after a few minutes he manages to get his head together

turns out you have a sibling at home who’s also a mind reader and when they were still learning to control their power you learned to empty your thoughts temporarily so they’d have a place to focus on if things got to be too much

you also have a golden tongue (that you always control carefully) but it helps calm bomin down after he says it’s fine if you use it

after that you tell him if he’s having a mini crisis he can always find you

and bomin just about cries because after daeyeol/sungyoon graduated he kind of felt like his support network at school was missing something bc as much as he clowns them (daeyeol especially) he really relied on both to talk to about his mind-reading issues

now that you’re offering to support him... it just means a lot

definitely doesn’t help that he’s had a bad day in general and his emotions are kinda fraught at this point

you don’t end up getting anything done that day, you just take bomin over to your house bc no one’s there and your family won’t mind even if he’s still there when they get home, so you just take the time to get to know each other a little when bomin feels good enough to interact

he apologizes a lot for nothing getting done but you just hit him and tell him to shut up, it’s not his fault and you still have a couple weeks to work on it so it’s fine

you guys work on the project and it goes well in the end but even after that you and bomin still stay in contact

since you have a sibling who went through the same stuff bomin did, you have some tips to share about blocking out other minds even if your power isn’t the same

plus your golden tongue is really useful in calming bomin during the moments he needs it. you always make sure to get his permission to use it before you do though

when bomin asks about it you say it’s because of consent and stuff and if you don’t get permission it feels more like manipulation than helping?

to him the similarities between you and daeyeol on that end are uncanny (even if you’re less awkward sorry not sorry daeyeol) and bomin just admires you all the more for it

anyway life’s going well, you and bomin are really good friends now but maybe like halfway through the year or something bomin senses that you’re becoming a little more closed off?

like he does his best not to read your mind but sometimes he gets accidental glimpses and though they’re usually pretty free (as in you don’t care what you’re thinking about around him) he now gets less of these glimpses and when he does, your mind seems emptier than usual

and he doesn’t want to bring it up? because that equals admitting he reads your mind sometimes no matter how accidental it is and with your emphasis on consent with your power bomin isn’t sure how well you’d take it

but then you avoid him for like two weeks so bomin breaks down about it to daeyeol over the phone and yeah it’s time for you two to talk

it takes some awkward silence and prodding and really big effort on bomin’s part to not willingly see what you’re thinking but the gist of it is

you have a fat crush on bomin and you’ve been avoiding him because you don’t want him to accidentally see any of it

bomin is like... y/n what the heck i have a crush on you too why didn’t you say anything :(

anyway it’s time for big reveals i guess so bomin admits he accidentally sees into your mind every so often and he feels really bad about it but you’re super understanding bc of your sibling of course

and bomin feels kind of stupid for worrying so much he should’ve thought of that but oh no now you’re hugging him and saying sorry into his shirt so pretty much all thoughts fly out of his mind because maybe this is a little like heaven to bomin

dating you is so refreshing. he’s so happy to have someone around who completely understands like yeah there are other mind readers in the school but it’s not as common a power as others and they’ve been masters at blocking out the world for a long while that they’ve kinda forgotten about how it feels to a beginner

but you’re so sweet and understanding and bomin feels even better when he meets your sibling who teases you two of course but also serves as another pillar of support for him

it’s not just one-sided either. like even though bomin tries not read your mind without permission, he’s still good at picking up on your moods even if you’re not explicit which makes it so much easier to trust and confide in him

and even if you’re not in the mood to talk he gets that too - he won’t force you to do anything

on the occasions when even you can’t pick through your own thoughts you let bomin take a peek in and even if he can’t help in the moment it’s enough that someone else knows and understands :)

you’re so fucking cute together. like the rest of golcha coos over you. even donghyun who’s the most low-key with his partner jfc

daeyeol and sungyoon come back from university to visit and bomin’s like. we’ve got to hide

you: why

bomin: just trust me

long story short you do not (you: they’re your former teammates and friends! how bad can it be?) and uh by the end of the day maybe you’ve had enough teasing about you/bomin for the rest of your life

but when he’s not teasing you do hit it off with daeyeol bc of the same powers thing and secretly bomin’s really happy that two of the people he treasures the most get along so well

yeah you and bomin are just super cute and rely on each other a lot in a healthy way and you’re always there for each other

everyone wishes they had as nice a relationship as you two :)

you: you shouldn’t. bomin teases me every five fucking seconds about something i did like three months ago

bomin: and yet you love me :)

you: debatable

bomin :|

(it’s ok you kiss him later and he gets smiley again which you delight in seeing even if he does go back to teasing you five seconds later)

If you enjoyed, please don’t forget to reblog and leave a comment to tell me what you thought! Thank you for reading and have a lovely day <3

(1 reblog = 1 prayer for the team coach he needs some support dealing with all these brats)

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jiangwanyinscatmom · 3 years

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@narcissismincarnate

Thank you for these wonderful tags since I wanted to expand a bit on my thoughts on this in particular!

A lot of what I'm writing here is just personally from my indulgent take away, since I was raised in a traditionally Mexican household that generationally has always been very clannish when it came to family dynamics with blood and adopted members and I see some of that reflected here. I'll also try to messily bring up points with the original novel and with the context of CQL expounding on that "Yunmeng sibling bond" being a lot stronger in that adaption. So yeah, there's that disclaimer for this rant lol.

Originally in MDZS there is a lot of emphasis of Wei Wuxian being on the outside of the Jiangs despite being taken care of them. He is raised by Jiang Fengmian as a high ranked disciple but still keeps his family name of "Wei" not "Jiang". This is already a big sign of intention that he is not viewed as a brother/son to the Sect Leaders, or Jiang Cheng. They are more lenient in terms of who they take on within the sect, but the inner workings of Lotus Pier hold a strict adherence of drawing the line of what is family.

Notably, it is only Jiang Yanli who calls Wei Wuxian actual endearments "A-Ying" in the novel's text, and also, the only one other than Lan Wangji to use his birth name. She does not use it liberally unless she is with him alone due to the overarching threat of Madam Yu blowing up if he is acknowledged as anything more than a preferred servant. She is also one of the only Jiangs to really implicitly show actions that would be considered familial, such as with peeling lotus seeds and making him soup. His bond with her sub-textually was already stronger than that of any of the other Jiangs. She does in all but words think of him as a brother but socially, she can not say that at all as it breaches too many barriers that are seen as radical.

Due to societal etiquette he never uses endearments for the Jiang siblings. (If he ever used A-Cheng or A-Li it would be a massive overstep of boundaries of his given station. Wei Wuxian is fully aware of his station within the Jiang family, which is why he takes his role of protecting Jiang Cheng, with those words parroted by Jiang Fengmian and Madam Yu, as his future sect heir first and foremost. It is his use of the Jiangs as he is always reminded, he is Jiang Cheng's to do with as he sees in life.

The promise between Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian is also only clouded in the frame of Sect Leader and Head Servant as Wei Wuxian reassures Jiang Cheng he is there to be of use to Jiang Cheng always. There is no note of a brotherly dynamic for this promise other than the implied wants of Wei Wuxian having wished to be actual family. Jiang Cheng also is never the one to hint of ever seeing Wei Wuxian as a sibling anywhere in the text. This is a huge nod to Wei Wuxian's overarching theme of trying to find his place unconditionally as a loved one to someone.

He tried with the Jiangs at first, who made it known that there were boundaries and that title of family was not his. He also was taken in by the Wens as their benefactor, but that was another issue as Wen Qing and Wen Ning, ingratiated to him took on a level as a servant to master in their time together and was another level of distance maintained from being true family. But they were far closer in their interactions than what was shown with the Jiangs.

CQL though, erases a lot of the social limitations that were present in the novel. Jiang Cheng himself takes part in the mishap that Wei Wuxian gets into despite originally being the one to tell him to show respect as being part of the Jiang disciples and never once actually taking part of Wei Wuxian's pranks. This I think is why it is so heavily taken as a more important dynamic than it turned out to be in the novel, since they did blur that line of master/servant to be more brotherly like Wei Wuxian wished it to be in the novel. Jiang Yanli is also made to be more sentimental than she actually was over their partings and, in my opinion codependent on that bond, when she had been the first to realize their dynamics would change in the future and each had been prepared for this. This is a sacrifice to the needed theme of Wei Wuxian finding his place as he never really had one after his own parents passing. Jiang Cheng still had his sect, Jiang Yanli found hers with Jin Zixuan, the Wen siblings still had each other. Wei Wuxian did not have anything until he meets Lan Wangji again after his resurrection which there are no stipulations and he openly accepts Wei Wuxian as he is unconditionally.

Jiang Cheng was upholding the continued line of his parents thinking as he thought of Wei Wuxian as a tool that was out of line. The tragedy there is that Wei Wuxian put more weight on the meaning of their relationship than Jiang Cheng. Who did, quite coldly, in the the novel abandon Wei Wuxian. In CQL he is given more humanity in parts, but since his original awful actions are kept it's a large case of whiplash when he does act so severely cruel. It makes his actions even more stark when his nature was always hinted to before in the novel and Wei Wuxian played as his defuser until he no longer could.

#mdzs #mo dao zu shi #cql vs mdzs #anti-yunmeng siblings #I guess #wei wuxian vs jiang cheng #CQL really washes down a lot of themes which is sad #but damn is Wang Yibo pretty and why I watch it probably

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ammocharis · 3 years

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Dragon Age OC as a companion

I saw the “OC as a companion” trend started by @little-lightning-lavellan and I really wanted to hop on with my Avvar girl, Vatna, who is normally the Inquisitor and the protagonist of my fic, Watch the Skies. So here it goes! (Heads up - it got pretty long!)

Vatna (born 9:23 Dragon) is an Avvar mage and a potential companion in Dragon Age: Inquisition.

Title: Sky Watcher’s apprentice

Race: Human

Gender: Female

Class: Mage

Affiliation: Avvar, Inquisition (conditional)

Family: Einar (father), Selke (mother), Hirka (sister)

Background

Vatna Einarsdotten Selkesdotten was born in an Avvar settlement called Two Falcon Hold, where she lived until adulthood. Two Falcon Hold is located in the highest part of the Frostback Mountains. It is largely isolated from the outside world; the news arrives through dwarven merchants and Avvar pathfinders, which resulted in Vatna not having any first-hand experience of the Lowlands.

As a seven year old child, Vatna manifested magical ability, and thus she was linked to a spirit, as is customary among the Avvar. The spirit began teaching Vatna how to control her gift. She received lessons in healing, casting barriers, glyph-making, and other types of skills, but she specialized in offensive magic. She displayed an aptitude for elemental magic, particularly the spells associated with cold.

Several years later, with the basic part of her training complete, Vatna peacefully separated from her spirit teacher. Proving herself as a talented mage, she was chosen to become the next Sky Watcher in her hold, and so she continued studying diligently under the augur’s tutelage.

Vatna also underwent a warrior’s training, combining the skillset of a mage with that of a melee fighter. Her weapon of choice is an axe instead of a staff, though she is proficient at using either. After her appointment as the Sky Watcher’s apprentice, Vatna commissioned a battle axe with a lyrium core from the dwarves of Orzammar.

In 9:41 Dragon, a few weeks before the Conclave, Vatna ventured outside of her hold, travelling through the Lowlands for the first time in her life. Her only companion was a falcon called Himnar.

Involvement

Dragon Age: Inquisition

Once the Inquisitor returns from the Hinterlands, a new portion of the Haven map opens up. Vatna can be found on a mountain range located south-east of the Temple of Sacred Ashes. She is fighting demons that are pouring from a large rift. Once the Herald closes the rift, Vatna voices her astonishment at their ability to mend the Veil. In the following conversation, the Avvar mage explains that she was on the way to Haven when the Breach opened. She claims that she’s been trying to fix the situation on her own, with little success. She is accompanied by a peregrine falcon that appears to be exceptionally well-trained. The Herald can ask some additional questions about her background and learn that she’s a Sky Watcher’s apprentice. Vatna says that she wishes to save the Lady of the Skies and help the gods. At the end of this conversation, the Herald can recruit Vatna into the Inquisition right away, tell her that they might consider it (after which she will relocate to the village of Haven), or force her to leave.

Note: Vatna must be recruited before “In Your Heart Shall Burn”. After the fall of Haven, she is no longer available.

If the player chooses to recruit Vatna, she starts following them on their travels. In Haven, she stays by the lake, next to the training grounds of the Inquisition’s soldiers. In Skyhold, she dwells on the battlements by the Herald’s Rest, overlooking the valley below. The peregrine falcon is always seen nearby. Conversations with Vatna focus on magic, spirits, the Frostback Mountains, and the Avvar lore.

After the Herald seals the Breach, Vatna expresses her gratitude about them repairing the Veil (to which she refers as “the Lady’s Veil”). She says that she intends to stay until the one who opened it is defeated. In the following battle of Haven, she can be seen using her ice magic to kill or stagger the attacking forces. On the way to Skyhold, Vatna and her falcon help the Herald scout the path ahead, though she warns that she had heard awful tales about the fortress and the powers that permeate it.

Some time after the Inquisition reaches Skyhold, Vatna might ask for the Inquisitor’s assistance in helping the Avvar. As it turns out, she received the news from Two Falcon Hold that her people, as well as several neighbouring tribes, have been troubled by either the Venatori or the Red Templars. The Inquisitor can complete a war table mission that informs them about further evidence of Corypheus’ forces attempting to establish some kind of a covert operation in the Frostback Mountains, far from the eyes of sovereign nations like Ferelden and Orlais.

If the Inquisitor decides to investigate the lead, they and Vatna travel to the central part of the Frostback Mountains. At their destination, they are told that some Avvar have been injured or killed in skirmishes with Corypheus’ forces, and more people are missing without a trace, Vatna’s younger sister among them. Following the points of evidence to the source reveals that a member of the Venatori has been conducting research on the effect of high altitudes on blood magic potency (as hematocrit increases in an environment with lower oxygen supply). Once all the enemies are defeated, and the kidnapped Avvar are rescued, the Inquisitor may return to Two Falcon Hold with Vatna and speak with the members of the hold to learn more about their situation, and also about their relations with Vatna.

At the end of the mission, if Vatna’s approval is high enough, she approaches the Inquisitor and invites them to climb with her to a nearby mountain peak, where she confesses that she hadn’t shared full truth about herself, but now that the Inquisitor proven trustworthy, she wants them to know something - the falcon she travels with, Himnar, is actually a host to one of the spirits who have lived with her hold for many generations. Vatna and the spirit share a magical bond that allows them to communicate mentally. Moreover, Vatna is a Dreamer, and during her nightly visits in the “Land of Dreams”, she tries to decipher the omens sent by the gods. The reason she travelled into the Lowlands was that she had foreseen a possible catastrophe, but she didn’t know what exactly would happen. As a result, she arrived too late to do anything. At the end of the conversation, Vatna reiterates her wish to protect her people and spirits from dangers, known and unknown.

Afterwards, the Inquisitor and Vatna return to Skyhold. A contingent of the Inquisition’s soldiers is stationed in the Frostback Mountains to deal with the enemies that might still be lurking there.

Once Corypheus is defeated, Vatna expresses her thanks to the Inquisitor for using their power to thwart the Magister’s plans. She says that she intends to help with the remaining tasks, such as closing the rifts and getting rid of Corypheus’ forces thoroughly, but as soon as that’s finished, she has to return to her hold and take on the duties of a Sky Watcher, since her mentor is growing too old to handle everything himself. She invites the Inquisitor to visit her hold sometime in the future and stay as long as they wish.

Trespasser

If the Inquisitor is friends with Vatna:

Two years after Corypheus’ defeat, Vatna unexpectedly arrives in the Winter Palace - as always, with a falcon at her side. The Inquisitor may express their confusion at her visit, to which Vatna replies that the gods urged her to go, even if it meant leaving her people again. She adds that “there’s a disturbance in the Land of Dreams, and the Lady’s Veil is still weak at the seams.” She voices a profound concern about the state of the Inquisitor's Anchor.

While travelling through the Crossroads, she notes that she’s aware the sky is different, though she “could never see it with her own eyes”. If the Inquisitor is an elf, she asks them if they would want to live in a place like that. If the Inquisitor is not an elf, Vatna offers to cast a spell that could alleviate the tiredness that affects all non-elven races in the Crossroads.

If Cole is in the party, he and Vatna engage in a cryptic conversation about dreams.

As the Anchor becomes more volatile, Vatna attempts to stabilize it, but she’s unsuccessful.

In the end, Vatna is shown to have returned to her hold, but it’s hinted that she might be doing something in the Fade to lessen the turmoil among its denizens.

If the Inquisitor is not friends with Vatna:

A letter addressed to the Inquisitor arrives from the Frostback Mountains, signed by Sky Watcher Vatna of Two Falcon Hold. The Avvar mage writes that she and the Inquisitor may not have agreed much, but it’s not going to matter if the world is set on fire. She gives a warning about “travelling the lonely path”. The package that was delivered alongside the letter contains a clear crystal wrapped in a wolf pelt, with a description claiming that the crystal “lessens the headache of watching the other sky through the eyes that weren’t meant to gaze upon it”.

Quests

Made in Mountains (recruitment)

Times of Trouble (war table)

Fraught with Fury (personal)

Strong from Struggle (personal - very high approval)

Spoken Soft (romance)

Approval

Vatna approves of helping spirits and learning about various sources of magic. She appreciates when the Inquisitor regards her beliefs with respect. She favors a direct approach to solving problems.

If a quest involves spirits, the changes in Vatna’s approval occur even if she’s not in the active party.

Approval Gained

Main quests:

Allying with the rebel mages at the end of “In Hushed Whispers” - Approves.

Saying “Corypheus must be stopped” when accepting the title of Inquisitor - Greatly Approves.

Killing Florianne de Chalons during “Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts” - Approves.

Letting Celene execute Gaspard at the end of “Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts” - Approves.

Allowing the Grey Wardens to join the Inquisition at the end of “Here Lies the Abyss” - Slightly Approves.

Siding with Abelas at the Temple of Mythal during “What Pride Had Wrought” - Approves.

Drinking from the Well of Sorrows - Approves.

Allowing Morrigan to drink from the Well of Sorrows - Slightly Approves.

Side quests:

Discovering the landmarks associated with “Saga of Tyrdda Bright-Axe, Avvar-Mother” in the Hinterlands - Slightly Approves at each one.

Equipping her with Tyrdda’s Staff - Greatly Approves (this initiates a special cutscene).

Completing “Ballad of Lord Woolsley” in the Hinterlands by returning the ram to One Eyed Jim - Slightly Approves.

Completing “Trouble with Wolves” in the Hinterlands - Approves.

Destroying the summoning stones in Solas’ personal quest “All New, Faded for Her” - Greatly Approves.

Defeating Hand of Korth during “Lost Souls” in Fallow Mire - Greatly Approves.

Recruiting Amund into the Inquisition - Approves.

Completing “Burdens of Command” in Crestwood by fulfilling the request of the Spirit of Command - Approves.

Investigating Chateau d'Onterre in the Emerald Graves and killing the Arcane Horror that lurks there - Approves.

Completing “Call Me Imshael” in Emprise du Lion by killing Imshael - Approves.

Making Erimond tranquil in his judgement - Approves.

Completing “Fears of the Dreamers” in the Fade section of “Here Lies the Abyss” - Approves.

Jaws of Hakkon DLC:

Killing Hakkon’s dragon host - Greatly Approves.

Defeating Gurd Harofsen - Greatly Approves.

Rescuing Storvacker - Greatly Approves.

Accepting Runa's offer to be included in her prayer at the end of "Up and Away" - Approves.

Completing "The Loss of a Friend" by killing Grandin - Approves.

Telling Sigrid to talk to the augur at the end of “In Exile” - Greatly Approves.

Recruiting Sigrid into the Inquisition at the end of "In Exile" - Approves.

Speaking to Telana’s spirit: “You can rest now.” - Approves.

Completing “Hakkon’s Trials” - Slightly Approves.

Saying “Renewal?” when asked by the augur about the purpose of the rituals during “It Remains to be Seen”, showing that you understood it - Approves.

Giving the offering to the Master of the Hunt at the end of “A Father’s Name” - Approves.

Giving the offering to Finn at the end of “A Father’s Name” - Slightly Approves.

Saying “I am honored.” when accepting the legend-mark - Approves.

Approval Lost

Main quests:

Allying with the Templars at the end of “Champions of the Just” - Disapproves.

Saying “I’ll do it for my own power” when accepting the title of Inquisitor - Greatly Disapproves.

Arresting Florianne de Chalons during “Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts” instead of killing her - Slightly Disapproves.

Making Gaspard the sole ruler of Orlais - Greatly Disapproves.

Banishing the Grey Wardens at the end of “Here Lies the Abyss” - Disapproves.

Refusing to side with Abelas at the Temple of Mythal during “What Pride Had Wrought” - Disapproves.

Suggesting that the Well of Sorrows should be destroyed during “What Pride Had Wrought” - Disapproves.

Side quests:

Attacking Lord Woolsley during “Ballad of Lord Woolsley”, which causes him to transform into a Rage Demon - Greatly Disapproves.

Killing the Pride Demon in “All New, Faded for Her” without attempting to destroy the summoning stones - Greatly Disapproves.

Accepting any of Imshael’s offers in “Call me Imshael” - Greatly Disapproves.

Refusing to complete the request of the Spirit of Command during “Burdens of Command” in Crestwood - Disapproves.

Jaws of Hakkon DLC:

Refusing Runa's offer to be included in her prayer at the end of "Up and Away" - Disapproves.

Completing "The Loss of a Friend" by allowing Grandin to live - Greatly Disapproves.

Speaking to Telana’s spirit - “Leave, or be destroyed.” - Disapproves (If Cole or Solas are in the party, there’s an additional approval loss.)

Saying “I didn’t understand it.” or “Just tell me.” when asked by the augur about the purpose of the rituals during “It Remains to be Seen” - Disapproves.

If the player has killed any benevolent spirit, or Cole was expelled from the Inquisition, a special cutscene triggers upon the next return to Skyhold, in which Vatna threatens to leave the organization. She can be convinced to stay if her personal quest was initiated, or cast out right there and then.

If Vatna’s approval gets critically low, a cutscene will be initiated on the Skyhold battlements, where Vatna confronts the Inquisitor about their choices. She voices her regret about ever joining the Inquisition, saying that she would have fared better if she was on her own. The player can try to change her mind or tell her to leave, either way, the final result stays the same, with Vatna storming out of Skyhold, cursing the Inquisitor’s name.

Romance

Vatna is a potential love interest for male Inquisitors only.

The romance can be initiated after winning Vatna’s approval and completing her personal questline, including the approval-dependent conversation at the end of “Strong from Struggle”. Beforehand, there are several flirtatious dialogue options that can be chosen during conversations with Vatna, but she always swiftly changes the topic to something else, both in the case of male and female Inquisitors. Picking the flirtatious options doesn’t garner either approval or disapproval from Vatna, aside from a flirt line that can occur after rescuing the Avvar during “Fraught with Fury”, which results in “Disapproves” and a harsher reply.

Should the Inquisitor continue flirting with Vatna after her personal quest, she will eventually approach them in their quarters and express her intention to speak about the nature of their relationship. She and the Inquisitor go on a walk in the mountains surrounding Skyhold.

If the Inquisitor is female, Vatna gently tells her that she is not romantically interested in women, but she hopes to remain friends. She wishes the female Inquisitor good luck in her future pursuits. The Inquisitor may voice their dissatisfaction, to which Vatna will take offence, saying that she never hinted she was interested in the Inquisitor. Otherwise, they part on friendly terms.

If the Inquisitor is male, Vatna informs him that she indeed feels a connection between them, something more than friendship, but that she fears it might not be enough for him. Hesitating, she explains that she doesn’t experience sexual attraction, not towards the Inquisitor, nor anyone else she ever met in her life. In the past, she was romantically attracted to a man, someone she knew very well and cared for dearly, but in the end, the relationship didn’t work out, and she felt it was her fault. After sharing her point of view, Vatna asks the Inquisitor about their thoughts, saying she prefers to end it there and then if he finds such a situation an insurmountable obstacle.

At this point, the Inquisitor may disengage from the conversation, which ends the romance path, and depending on the dialogue option chosen, results in no approval change (and they part on friendly terms) or “Greatly Disapproves” from Vatna (if she was told she is “cold-hearted”).

However, if the Inquisitor decides to pursue the relationship, he and Vatna return to Skyhold together.

The party banter and ambient comments suggest that Vatna and the Inquisitor spend a lot of time together, which causes many rumours, especially among the Orlesian nobility visiting Skyhold. The companions may remark about the relationship and try to elicit a response from either Vatna or the Inquisitor, but Vatna always cuts them off.

One night, Vatna suddenly wakes up the Inquisitor, asking him if he remembers anything unusual from his recent dreams. If a mage, the Inquisitor may describe his dreams in more detail, if a non-mage, he may say that he vaguely recalls some dream (there are several options to choose from, including humorous options), either way, Vatna replies this is not what she meant. She explains that suspects a spirit is observing both her and the Inquisitor, but the being always hides away when she or her falcon try to approach it. She wishes to learn what the spirit wants and ask the Inquisitor for aid. If the Inquisitor agrees to her request, Vatna performs a ritual to send their minds into the Fade. Vatna and the Inquisitor investigate the magical landscape together, and eventually they manage to track down the spirit, which turns out to be a young Spirit of Love that became fascinated with the various types of relationships that formed in Skyhold and took particular interest in the bond between Vatna and the Inquisitor. Vatna encourages the spirit to cultivate its interest in love, as its kind is small in numbers.

After the final battle with Corypheus, Vatna shares a hug with the Inquisitor. Once the Inquisitor leaves the feast, she follows him upstairs, and they watch the sunrise together.

In Trespasser, Vatna reunites with the Inquisitor. Unlike in the non-romanced scenario, she is fully expected to arrive in the Winter Palace, and she exchanges warm greetings with the Inquisitor. As the Anchor grows more volatile, she actually succeeds in calming it, though only temporarily. Before the Inquisitor steps through the eluvian to meet Solas, Vatna makes him swear an oath that he will come back alive.

The epilogue shows that Vatna and the Inquisitor live in the Frostback Mountains.

Quotes

“The messengers of the Lady of the Skies led me here.”

“My mentor said that Fate is not written in stone.”

(To Cole) “You alone should choose which path you’ll follow.”

Trivia

All titles of quests that involve Vatna are taken from the Saga of Tyrdda Bright-Axe, Avvar-Mother.

In the promotional materials. Vatna is referred to as “The Forecaster”.

She is accompanied by a peregrine falcon and has a couple of its feathers attached to her clothes.

Vatna is classified as a mage, but she can be equipped both with staffs and melee weapons. Her skills are similar to that of Amund from Dragon Age: Inquisition Multiplayer.

Vatna acts friendly towards Cole, Solas, and Varric from the beginning. Over the consecutive banters, she warms up towards Cassandra, Iron Bull, and Blackwall.

In her location-specific remarks, she often comments on the weather and the behaviour of local birds.

If a quest involves spirits, the changes in Vatna’s approval occur even if she’s not in the active party, similar to how Cole’s approval can change in a number of quests without him being present.

She is the only companion that doesn’t have an approval change in Trespasser when the Inquisitor declares their intent about either saving or hunting down Solas.

#dragon age #dragon age inquisition #oc as companion #avvar inquisitor #avvar #vatna #watch the skies #long post

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the-ghost-of-jason-todd · 3 years

Text

aight SO

i finished ep 12 and i've talked about it with a friend, and now i've also taken a look into the tarlos tag to get a sense of what people are saying. i think i'm ready to break this down.

so there are a few big questions about That Scene and the following tarlos interactions. i'll just work through them one at a time. buckle in, this is gonna get long. now without further ado...

1) Was TK lashing out at Carlos at the firehouse in character?

Short answer: yes and no.

Long answer: we've seen TK get physical and even violent before. He literally sought out a bar fight in s1. He nearly got into a fist fight with Judd, too. And did you see the way he was hurling darts after that, when he and Carlos were on their date? This boy is not a stranger to getting physical. There are, however, a few major differences between those scenes and this one with Carlos.

One. The bar fight was premeditated, while his fight with Carlos was not. Why is this important? Because it means that TK has shown some measure of restraint in the past. He managed to stay present during what I would call the 'trigger' of the bar fight episode, and saved his physical response for a later time.

Two. His altercation with Judd, on the other hand, was not premeditated. The difference, then, is that Judd was also ready to get physical at the time. With the scene with Carlos, Carlos was trying to remain calm and impartial for most of it, and attempted to de-escalate when TK got violent. The whole thing was driven by TK.

Three. In none of the scenes we've seen before of TK getting violent has his dad's health or safety been threatened. TK's dad is a HUGE part of his life, and he has a LOT of emotional trauma surrounding his relationship with his dad. He's TERRIFIED of losing Owen, because he's nearly lost him so many times before. TK has some MAJOR anxiety about losing people, to the point where he refused to let Carlos into his heart at the beginning of s1. There's also the fact that TK has gone through a lot of trauma in not a lot of time. Even if the show wants us to believe the kidnapping is over, I'm willing to bet that the after-effects are still hitting. For both TK AND Carlos, honestly.

There are also two other lines to consider when we're talking TK's characterization: first, in the episode when Gwyn moves out, and we see her and TK talking, she then calls Owen who asks if TK 'flew off the handle' (i believe that was the wording, correct me if I'm wrong). This is important because we have two people who are VERY close to TK talking about how he reacts to things, the crux of which is that TK gets reactionary. He has high emotional responses and says (or does) things that he doesn't necessarily mean.

Then there's another line that I think is important. This is the one in the crossover episode, when TK tells Buck that he's 'done a lot worse than steal a fire truck'. This one is important because it's TK talking about HIMSELF. We don't have any context for this or what it means, necessarily, but I'm willing to bet from context that he wasn't just talking about ODing.

So with all this in mind... do I think TK was in character? Do I really think TK would do this? Well... it makes sense in the context of TK's story and his arcs and all the scenes we've seen him in so far. But, at the same time, I would definitely have done it differently. It's a thing like... it's not a WRONG answer, but then again, was it really right, either?

2) Was Carlos's reaction to TK lashing out in character?

Short answer: yeah, I think so*.

*though if they don't expand on it I'm gonna have a problem.

Long answer: Carlos, at this point in the story, is dealing with two things that I think impact his emotional landscape a HELL of a lot.

One. His past and his family. He grew up with a man who seems emotionally distant, and it has only VERY RECENTLY started to get better. He felt INCREDIBLY alienated after he came out, and then when he became a cop and he was dealing with his father's silent disapproval. He is always searching for approval and, most likely, affection as well. What this means is that he feels like he constantly needs to prove himself, and bases his self worth on how OTHER people react. If someone reacts badly, that's a mark against himself.

"But Kay," you say, "What about the scene where he made dinner for TK and TK walked out? Carlos didn't blame himself then!"

Which is an interesting point! Carlos didn't put the onus on himself in that scene, he turned it back on TK, calling him 'crazy'. I think that was a secondary coping mechanism, to be honest. He knew he couldn't deal with feeling like he was the one who was wrong AGAIN so he twisted the situation around in his head until it was TK who was 'being crazy'. I've talked about that scene in depth before so I won't do it again, but Carlos's reaction is, I think, indicative of having felt rejection before and trying to protect himself.

Which brings me to number two. The fact that he's nearly lost TK several times already. This plays a HUGE role in how Carlos acts, especially with TK. Carlos has wanted TK LITERALLY from day 1, and since then he's nearly lost him how many times??? Enough, at least, that I'm fairly certain he's now holding on too tight, even when it comes back and hurts him. He just... he seems to have this mentality that if he's in he's ALL in, and he's not allowed to back away or put any distance between them, or else he'll lose TK for real.

Because we've seen TK pull back and get some distance before. We saw TK take a night away after their fight about the farmer's market. Maybe not with the best communication, but TK was angry and he needed space, so he left. When he did that, however, Carlos was convinced that they were breaking up. Like, CONVINCED. You cannot tell me that Carlos didn't think the worst in that moment.

Now why is THIS important? Easy. Because Carlos and TK may be moving forward in their relationship, but they are at a point right now where they react to things in fundamentally different ways. TK kind of bounces between becoming reactionary and going distant (again, we saw this in s2ep8 very clearly), while Carlos has reached a point where he kind of doubles down on holding tightly to TK even when he maybe shouldn't.

Basically, when you boil all this down, Carlos is DESPERATELY trying not to rock the boat, with his parents OR with TK, because he's scared of everything coming apart. And I think that makes sense with this episode.

The problem, then, is that this is a coping mechanism. The narrative has set it up as such. Which means that he's going to have to address it at some point. If he doesn't, I will be FUCKING PISSED, believe you me.

3) Did the narrative address that scene with respect, dignity, and nuance?

Short answer: I DON'T THINK SO.

Long answer: TK is human. He's a recovering addict. He's had problems with feeling numb in the past (that line about how everything is gray), which, I think, makes his feelings just THAT MUCH BIGGER when he does have them. So clearly, he's going to make mistakes. The question then is, was this particular mistake something he's learned from, or was it just used for the drama?

I have two reasons to believe it was the latter rather than the former.

One. Judd's reaction. Judd telling Carlos to get out of the firehouse after TK hit him, as if Carlos was the bad guy in that situation, was dramatic as hell. TK and Carlos are pitted against each other in that moment, and instead of mediating, Judd picked a side. Which is, ironically enough, the first thing that I think was NOT in character in that scene.

Judd, we know, is a bit of a hot-head, but he's also very empathetic. Judd was shown trying to mediate between Billy and Owen the last time the two of them had an episode together, because he understood both sides of the story and he cared for both of them. Why do I think it should have been the same this time? Well, because he loves TK and Carlos BOTH. They were both in the group hug at the hospital after the Ryder's car crash. It wasn't like Carlos stayed back, okay--JUDD CARES FOR BOTH OF THEM. And I think, at that point, that Judd would have seen the fact that TK was spinning out and Carlos was trying to stay objective and known that he needed to de-escalate. It would have been SO EASY to have that line be "Okay, okay, both of you step back and take a breather." He could EASILY have mediated. But he didn't. And that was a specific choice that leans more toward drama than anything else.

Which brings me to number two. The fact that they don't talk about it on screen. We had a hand-wavey 'we agreed no apologies' and a hot and heavy make-out scene instead. The writers wanted the drama of the two of them being in bed together while the fire started, and in order to do that they sacrificed the screen time it would have taken to actually have them have a conversation. Because, again, it would have been SO EASY to write them actually talking about it. They've done it before! After their fight about the farmer's market and Carlos's parents, the two of them have a WONDERFUL conversation. Why then and not now? Well, to make the fire more dramatic, to up the stakes one more time.

So no. I don't think there was any respect. I don't think there was any nuance. TK made a mistake, because he's human and he has some problems with emotional regulation, but there were little to no repercussions for it where there really should have been. There was no respect coming from the firefam for Carlos, either. There were no apologies, or further comments, or anything. And honestly... this season has done a lot toward making me feel like they don't give a shit about violence. Judd hitting that kid in the bear trap in the wild fire episode, Judd hitting the drunk driver who drove him off the road, Judd punching Billy when he thought he was framing Owen, and now TK hitting Carlos... all with no repercussions or apologies or even discussions about them... it's not a good look.

And there you have it. The writing makes sense. It does. But it's also really clear that the writers' priorities have changed. I really, honestly feel like the show has lost something since season 1. There's been a massive tonal shift, and I don't like it. The fact that we keep having Event after Event with no reprieve, have sacrificed conversations and interpersonal relationships for Drama, and have started killing and maiming characters with wild abandon, sometimes with seemingly no reason... it's all just a Lot. I have enjoyed watching season 2, but it's not sticking the same way as season 1 did. I'm not letting myself get attached to characters at this point because clearly we're not in a found family show anymore. I don't care about them the same way I did before. I can’t bring myself to do it when it’s becoming clear that we’re not going to slow down and actually process anything anytime soon.

#liveblogging 911 lone star #911 lone star #tarlos #meta #i'm salty give me a minute #my tab crashed and i lost the last of the edits i did on this post plus all the formatting rip #if you think something should be italisized just do it in your head

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julemmaes · 4 years

Note

"OH you are jealous" for nessian please❤️❤️❤️

Jealousy - October 10th

Nesta Archeron x Cassian

A/N: LOOOOVE THIS. Nessian is kinda competing lately for the second place on my top 3 otp (yeah I know what otp means, no need to correct me) and I think by the end of this week they’ll probably get the place yk. Hope you like this and again, sorry if they’re all coming by extremely late, but I have a life;)

Word count: 2,374

Nesta was shouting from the stands while Azriel passed the ball to Cassian and her boyfriend started running to reach the touchdown. Helion and Rhysand were protecting him, tackling and pushing anyone who tried to steal the ball from him. Lucien had entered the field to replace one of the defenders who had been suspended and was now running alongside him.

Halfway through the game, Eris, who was one of the best players on their team despite his bully temper, had seriously injured one of the players from the opposing school and the game had to be interrupted for about twenty minutes.

Nesta and her sisters were shocked to see the injured boy's leg bent into an unnaturally angle and she was so sorry when what must have been his girlfriend ran out onto the field on the verge of tears. The boy's heartbreaking scream had been horrifying and Nesta knew that if anything like that ever happened to Cassian she would beat up whoever tried to hurt him herself.

The opposing school, Adarlan High School, was struggling a bit and Nesta was really sorry that the players couldn't properly focus on the game. She realized on her own that the concern for their friend had to be greater than winning the championship. It was a huge displeasure, also considering that until that moment they had proved to be worthy opponents and that both teams had given a hard time to the other.

Even without Eris, however, their team was doing very well and when Cassian finally reached the extreme in the opponent's part of the field before the last quarter of time ended, the stadium exploded in chaos between screams of joy and chants to exalt the players.

Feyre hugged Nesta with enthusiasm, while they too joined in the chants and the girl managed to see Cassian shouting as he crossed the field and threw himself at his teammates. They all started laughing wildly and when the students began to take to the field to cheer the players and celebrate, Nesta did not hesitate to join the crowd.

She kept her gaze fixed on Cassian, who was getting pats on the back and hugs from everyone as he yelled to his friends how proud he was of them. She saw Tarquin jump on him and throw him on the ground and not a second later, the whole team was throwing itself at him. Nesta burst out laughing, imagining her boyfriend crushed by all those smelly, heavy bodies. Cassian always told her how much he hated that part of the games where everyone was attacking him since he was captain, but she knew how much he really loved his team.

Once on the field, Nesta was scrambling to make her way through the crowd, Elain's hand wrapped around her arm so they wouldn't get lost. The noise was deafening, but she could still hear Feyre loud and clear when she said, "Oh fuck, here they are."

She didn't need to ask who it was, she knew very well that her sister was referring to the cheerleading team.

She saw Amarantha's red hair and Feyre snickering sarcastically when she hugged Rhysand from behind, who stood oblivious to everything while talking animatedly to Helion, "Oh, hell, no."

Elain giggled amusedly when another one of the girls threw herself at Azriel and he jerked aside, looking at the cheerleader confused and stepping away, raising an eyebrow and inspecting the crowd around him. The middle sister didn't even say anything before running towards him.

As soon as Azriel saw her, he opened his arms wide, smiling widely and letting the force of the impact of Elain's body overcome him, throwing them both to the ground. Nesta could not help but smile, seeing them both laughing carefree as they rolled around in the field. She gasped when Thesan threw himself on them and Azriel had to move quickly to avoid him hitting Elain.

Feyre laughed, "Jeez, they are so stupid." then she looked her in the eye, smiling, putting her hand on her arm, "I'm gonna go to Rhys, I'll meet you later." she warned her waving.

Nesta nodded distractedly, focusing her gaze on the people around them, in search of that familiar bun of his. Her stomach twisted when she saw two equally familiar black braids flying in the air. Two braids that she well knew belonged to Emerie.

The girl was hugging Cassian like every time after a victory. Nesta knew full well that Emerie had been Cassian's friend long before she even got to Velaris, and her boyfriend had reassured her several times that there was nothing between him and Emerie, but there was always that bit of doubt in her mind that prevented her from making friends with the girl. That made her wonder if they were not meant to be together. After all, it was not so unusual for the quarterback of the football team to get together with the captain of the cheerleading team.

Everyone was always questioning how Cassian could be with a bitch like Nesta and not with Emerie who had a body to envy even the most beautiful model.

Looking at the three from the outside, you could not understand why the guy had chosen the perfect schoolgirl with a stick up her ass instead of the nice and always available perfect girl next door that everyone would want as a girlfriend.

Cassian seemed to be having so much fun and didn't seem to be looking for her and Nesta, not wanting to bother him and risking to burst that bubble of his, possibly precarious, decided to go back and get on the sidelines, watching him for a while longer. He was smiling so light-heartedly that she couldn't hold back the smile that popped out on her lips shortly after.

Coach Drakon was congratulating the other trainers and when she turned in his direction, only realizing at that moment that she was alone on the sidelines, he smiled at her, apologizing to the coach of the opposing team and going towards her.

Nesta kept her arms crossed at her chest, hoping to look confident, and not indignant and uncertain about what she should do. Hoping not to seem desperate that her boyfriend hadn't even noticed her absence on the field.

Drakon put one arm around her shoulders - just as Cassian held his on Emerie's shoulders and the other tightly around Tarquin's shoulders - looking her in the face with a curious expression, "What are you doing here all grumpy?"

Nesta loved Coach Drakon with all her heart, but sometimes she would have preferred him to mind his own business. When she didn't answer, the man looked at his players, looking at Cassian. He clicked his tongue once, "I see."

Nesta arched an eyebrow, looking at him sideways, "You do?"

Drakon laughed, giving her a quick squeeze on the shoulder and dropping his arm, putting himself in front of her, so as to cover her view of the entire crowd. "You're not as discreet as you think you are, my dear Nesta."

The girl grunted, "I'm not doing anything."

"I can see that for myself." replied the coach, trying to hide a smile, "And that's the problem, don't you think?"

Nesta looked him in the eye, gritting her teeth, "I think Cassian is enjoying the glory of his victory and I don't want to bother him."

"I've known Cassian for four years, darling, and I can assure you that he has never shown an ounce of how he feels for you to that girl over there." he placed his hand on her shoulder again, squeezing, "And as little as I know cheerleaders," he continued, "Emerie is harmless."

Nesta grimaced, "How do you know for sure?"

"Must I remind you who trains them?" he asked her laughing with that deep laugh that made half the teachers in their school drool. She shook her head, knowing full well that Myriam and Drakon had been married for more than ten years and were in charge of cheerleading and football teams respectively.

"Well," he muttered, "because those girls do nothing but gossip during practice, just like my boys, and Myriam and I know exactly who likes who. Trust me when I tell you Emerie is not a threat." Nesta nodded, sighing.

Drakon smiled at her as a father would with his daughter, "And Cassian would never do you such a wrong. That boy loves you too much to disrespect you in like that," he reassured her. She was about to thank him, when a more than familiar voice caught the attention of both of them.

"Coach!" cried Cassian, "Sir, have you seen Nest-" Drakon turned around, revealing Nesta hidden behind him and Cassian's distressed expression shifted. He smiled at her, standing next to the man and then frowned, shifting his gaze between the two of them, "What are you doing here? I've been looking for you for half an hour."

Nesta had to refrain from correcting him. The game was over no more than ten minutes earlier. She shrugged, "I stopped to talk to the coach and didn't want to bother you." she smiled lovingly at him. He reached out his hand to her and Nesta took it without hesitation, letting herself be pulled against his chest.

Cassian was looking closely at her face and Nesta closed her eyes when he pressed his hand to her cheek, "Are you sure? Everything okay?" he muttered when she opened her eyes again, looking at him in turn. She wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed him, nodding slowly.

Drakon cleared his voice, congratulating Cassian and telling him that they would talk later in the locker room about what happened with Eris and the other player.

Cassian didn't even look at him, too focused on Nesta's face, looking for something that would make him understand what the problem was, but he answered affirmatively, assuring him that he would go to the opposing team to apologize for his teammate's unsporting attitude.

As soon as the man was gone, Nesta smiled sincerely, bending her head back, inviting him to kiss her. Cassian, however, did not seem inclined to accept her invitation, "What's going on, sweetheart?"

When Cassian called her sweetheart, the tone in which he uttered it, said a lot about his state of mind and from the way he had just said it, Nesta knew that he was really worried, so she chuckled, stroking his back and stopping immediately under his shoulder blades, where the shoulder protection started, "Nothing is going on, Cass, don't worry."

"So you're telling me that I found you on the sidelines talking all serious to my coach after we won the most important game of the championship instead of with my friends and with me because nothing is upsetting you?" he asked her, arching an eyebrow. Nesta freed herself from his grip, sliding a thumb over the wrinkles on his forehead. His expression relaxed for a moment before it grew hard again.

Nesta sighed, "I saw you with Tarquin and Helion and..." she mumbled, without meeting his eyes, "And Emerie and I didn-".

Cassian interrupted her, "Oh." he made a surprised face, then tilted his head back, bursting out laughing. Nesta was startled, "What is it?"

When he stopped laughing, he looked at her much more relaxed than a few seconds earlier and had that cocky smile on his lips. He leaned forward over her, taking her lips with his own, kissing her passionately. When Cassian's tongue caressed her lower lip, Nesta let go a breath out of her nose and opened her mouth slightly, letting him in.

Cassian's hands slid down and he bent down even more, grabbing her under the thighs and pulling her up so that she tied her legs around his hips. Her arms instead tied around his neck and her hands ended up in his sweaty hair, now left loose on his shoulders.

When Nesta ran out of breath she broke off and Cassian went after her, trying to catch her mouth with his own. She laughed, bringing her hand to his lips, pushing him back.

Cassian smiled at her, squinting, "So you are jealous."

Nesta closed her eyes, grimacing, "Don't say it like that."

"Like what?" he asked, sniggering and making them both tremble. One of the hands clasped around her thighs gave a light squeeze.

Nesta leaned her forehead against one of his shoulders, "As if it were something to be proud of." she complained. She settled her head better, so that it was placed between his neck and shoulder. Cassian held her tighter, kissing her ear.

"Yeah, sorry," he told her amusedly, "But it makes me laugh."

"And why should my insecurities make you laugh?" she asked, only slightly offended. She pulled herself up, looking him in the eye. She found a spark of love there that warmed her chest.

Cassian gave her a quick peck on the lips, "Because I love you so much that I don't even see the other girls and you feel threatened by Emerie," he chuckled, glancing across the field, "Emerie who's clearly been trying to get Tarquin in her bed for months now."

Nesta shifted her gaze to the crowd of students and the second Cassian put her down so he could turn around too, Emerie jumped forward, grabbing Tarquin by the shoulders and pulling him towards her.

Nesta gasped, "Oh, wow."

"About time!" Cassian shouted, loud enough for his friend to hear. Emerie raised a middle finger in their direction, but the gesture was soon pulled back when Tarquin grabbed her face in his hands and the kiss grew more passionate. Their teammates were cheering them on, jumping on each other.

Cassian turned towards her, holding her hand, and began to walk towards his brothers. He was stroking the back of her hand with one thumb and each caress was a burst of energy for her. When he bent over her, bringing his mouth closer to her ear, Nesta had to suppress the chills.

"See? I'm all yours." he looked at her with glistening eyes of emotion and Nesta felt every worry slip over her.

All hers.

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kurinoot · 4 years

Text

[day 3] three convention days | kozume kenma

-> being a cosplayer means being the star of the show, or in this case, an anime convention. gifting your introverted boyfriend with the ticket could either be a good, or a bad idea, but who knows? it’s valentines after all

pairing: kenma x reader

themes: fluff, post-timeskip, cosplayer!y/n

word count: 2031 words

author’s note: sorry for the late update tho hehe burnout has been consuming me lately but I'll do my best to follow plans as scheduled :) also, Y/C/N in this story refers to your cosplayer name just in case :)

“Eh?!” His voice cracked, and as if on cue Kenma’s hands accidentally unclasped his controller from shock, letting it fall on the floor as his character was immediately killed in the background, showing a game over screen. It was, perhaps, too much for Kenma to process what was unfolding before him.

“P-Please come to my performance at the convention!”, you stutter as you hand out a ticket to a 3-Day Anime Convention to your boyfriend, whose attention is now on your hands as he hesitantly accepts the tickets from you and then goes to pick up his controller from the floor. You watch as your boyfriend looks over the details on the ticket, eventually finding out that the last day falls on Valentines.

You mustered what was left of your courage before gambling your chances whether he accepts it or not. “C-Consider it as my Valentines’ gift or something.”, you stutter as you shyly turned away with flustered cheeks as your eyes glanced over to him reading the details on the ticket.

“I’m not sure about the first two days, but I’ll be there on the last day.”, he nonchalantly replies, much to your shock, as he scrolls through his phone’s calendar, checking and finalizing his schedule.

You gave out a sigh of relief, despite knowing how busy your boyfriend is, and it is definitely not easy when he has to juggle various jobs as a YouTuber, stock trader, professional gamer, and most importantly, a CEO of his own company while being a university student at the same time. Even though he won’t be able to go for the first two days, you wholeheartedly appreciate that he gets to go on the last day, which coincidentally fell on Valentines’ Day. Although you and Kenma have been happily dating for a few years now, you both agreed to keep your relationship a secret for privacy reasons, although in recent years, you were feeling the urge to introduce your and Kenma’s relationship to your fans.

Despite that, the two of you enjoyed the peace and solace in your relationship, and have never been more grateful to have someone like Kenma supporting each other, even if it was in secret.

The two days went on without a hitch, as the last day arrived smoothly, you quickly prepared in anticipation for your performance. At the back of the stage, other several notable cosplayers were occupied with their preparations as you finished putting on makeup as well as your costume and accessories. You hear noises from the venue outside as the crowd starts to fill the area as you carefully try to look if your boyfriend has arrived; although to no avail, you dismally had to start preparing for the event beforehand.

Unbeknownst to you as you head to the backstage, a red jacket and sunglasses-clad figure steps into the venue, trying to avoid standing out and drawing unnecessary attention to himself while holding a cup of apple juice on one hand. He cautiously avoided the crowd as he carefully made his way to the main stage situated in the center of the venue. He looked around, somehow looking for you as he waited for the program to start. He then fishes in his jacket pocket with one hand to grab his phone to text you as he takes another sip of his apple juice with the other.

The lights started to dim as it fixed on the stage, with your face and the other cosplayers displayed on the LED screen. As he watched, he had a gentle smile on his lips as he captured the sight of your moments shown, somewhat proud of your feats. He knows how hard you worked to become the well-known cosplayer and model that you are today, and although both of you were busy with your passions, he still supported you in his own ways; thus it was for the first time he will get to see you in your own element in person.

A figure walks up to the stage with a microphone on one hand and then taps it to check for any faults. When the microphone worked, they cleared their throat, attracting the attention of the audience. “Please help me welcome to the stage, Y/C/N!”, the emcee enthusiastically cheers as you enter the main stage in your simple yet eye-popping Tekken’s Alisa Bosconovitch cosplay.

The spotlights were fixed on you as you cheekily stood in the center as you unleashed the chainsaw portion of the costume in an X-formation, winking as you see your wide-eyed flustered boyfriend staring at you in the middle of the audience. The music started to play in the background, prompting you to do a couple of dances that you practiced in secret from Kenma, mixing with a few of Alisa’s fighting stances from the game. Your overly enthusiastic fans kept on cheering every time you did the familiar stunts; and Kenma—albeit silent, was enjoying your performance, if his intent gaze on you were an indicator.

All seemed to disappear around him as you danced on the stage with energy, elegantly, and beautiful in his eyes. His gaze was only on you, watching you perform that seemed to be just for him. It was all a blur to him, but you were so clear to his eyes only as his phone recorded every moment of you.

As you performed, you gazed in his direction when the routine gave you an opportunity. Even in the dark, his eyes had a certain spark that you were familiar with, it was always when he was engrossed in something he loved. You felt such bliss with every step you took, prompting you to blow a kiss to his direction in front of the unsuspecting audience that had the clueless crowd rile with joy to your display; unknowingly, it was only for your boyfriend. Receiving your kiss, a gentle smile formed on his lips, his heart beating faster more than whenever he finishes his games as his face started to redden from your stunt. He felt a thorn in his chest as his ears rang from the cacophonous crowd. His hand started to shiver as his grip on his phone tightened with animosity as the other cuffed into a fist that he shoved into his jacket.

I don’t like this crowd… He thought as he watched the audience cheered before he resumed to watch you with a tender gaze while recording your performance. As he watched you twirl and kick, it was as if on cue, a tear unknowingly escaped from his eyes, filled with nothing but happiness as he compelled his hand to stay still and record this very moment.

“Eh~” A familiar voice cooed from behind Kenma. He quickly wiped his tears before his eyes shifted to the voice he heard as the familiar figure walked towards him.

“I never thought Pudding Head is a fan of the goddess Y/C/N.” The familiar voice continued, distracting Kenma’s train of thought just to find a flustered Tora holding a staunchly pink uchiwa fan with your face imprinted on it in one hand and a lightstick on the other while wearing an official headband merchandise of you sitting on his head to finish his weird outfit.

“Ah, Tora.”, the former setter casually replied back.

“Yo, Kyan~ma!” Yamamoto says with a teasing tone as he waved at the former setter. Kenma, shocked but not surprised, kept on looking up and down at his former teammate with mixed feelings while his handheld phone still recorded you. Kenma scoffed with loathe as he returned his gaze to your performance.

“This guy…!” Yamamoto grunted. “Hmph, a long time has passed, and this is how you greet an old friend?”, he teases out of annoyance as he crosses his arms in irritation. Kenma gripped his phone tighter as he looked at the annoyed mohawk.

“Are we even now?” Kenma replies, further annoying his old friend.

Kenma shifted his gaze to you again, ignoring Yamamoto’s casual annoyance. The former spiker scoffed as he turned on his lightstick, preparing himself to cheer for you. “I’ll show you that I’m her number 1 fan!”

Yamamoto returned his attention to your performance, as he raised his lightstick to cheer for you before being met with Kenma’s gaze.

“...show me.” Kenma looked at him with the familiar spark and confidence that he had during their old days as Yamamoto heard his inaudible whisper and could only look in his direction with a dumbfounded look. Before the spiker could reply, your performance had just ended in high spirits while being followed suit by the next cosplayer as your fans disperse to see you.

Kenma walked around the venue for a moment as he waited for you, still pleased with your performance, and seeing you ecstatic in your own element for the very first time he’ll remember while he continued on to look for you.

“Thank you everyone! I had so much fun with you all!”, You beamed in delight as you walked around the venue sans the chainsaw and wing accessories from your costume earlier. A few of your fans, mostly boys, recognized you and have gone to flock towards you, wanting to express their love and admiration for you. Somehow, one voice stood out to you, as the blonde-dyed mohawk guy approached you with a phone.

“Y/C/N-san, can we take a picture?”, He beamed with a large smile—albeit his intimidating physicality, to which you gladly accept as you can see how much he respected your space. You both took a couple of selfies before the guy—in tears—thanked you.

Kenma, hearing your voice, was drawn to your direction before seeing your fans flocking to you. Seeing you up close in cosplay—albeit far—felt an urge within him, wanting to sweep you away from the convention. His body froze, hesitating if he should do it or not; feeling the cold sweat forming as he watched your fans crowded around you. Without a thought in mind, his feet subconsciously walked towards your direction with haste, his eyes locked onto you as he clutched his sunglasses safely. His arm outstretched until he grasped your figure within his reach as he swiftly pulled you towards him before making a break for it, much to you and your fans’ surprise.

As you both sifted through the crowd, earning quite a bit of stares from the passer–bys that you ignored. You could only gaze at him from behind in awe at his stunt. You rattled through your mind, trying to find the words in the sudden situation.

“K-Kenma? Wh-what are y—” You were suddenly cut short before Kenma tightened his grip on your hand, not wanting to let you go.

“Is it wrong for me...” Kenma said in a hushed tone that only you and a few nearby people heard. “that I want to spend time with you…?” His words left you astounded as you followed him suit as his hands suddenly emitted his warmth to you. You felt your cheeks redden in surprise to his words. You couldn’t help but chuckle at his embarrassed state while walking hand in hand out of the venue.

You and Kenma looked at each other in unison as the sun glistened on his flushed face with a smile that was only for you.

Back inside the convention, a couple of stunted fans are left in shock from what they have just witnessed. The few fans who somehow heard the inaudible interaction you both had earlier were now freaking out in their heads as if they have pieced something together.

“D-Did she just say K-Kenma? Like you know, that YouTuber?”

“You mean Kodzuken?”

Various fans who have caught the interaction were now starting to talk amongst themselves about what they had just seen. Yamamoto, despite having the chance to take a selfie with you, still got left in the dust as he knew that familiar pudding hair from anywhere. In fact, he was just with him earlier, and the current discussion amongst the fans have somehow just confirmed his suspicions.

“...show me.” Kenma’s words and the confidence he emitted from earlier finally sunk into Yamamoto.

“KYANMA!”

back to valentines masterlist

#tina.writes #haikyuu!!#haikyuu x reader #kozume kenma #kenma x reader #valentines #haikyuu valentines #haikyuu fics #haikyuu imagines #14 days of valentine

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mrsjadecurtiss · 4 years

Note

The thing that we won’t have a roose chapter it’s kinda sad. Like we will never know if doing certain things (like the red wedding) didn’t minimally affect him or otherwise. Like we can’t forget that he doesn’t EXPRESS his feelings not that he hasn’t any. I know Brabrey said this specifically but as wise she is she can’t read others mind. I’m not justifying any action I’m only saying it would be interesting finding out he actually “gives shit” about things he did. And I know the probabilities of this being true are very low, but as a person myself who has difficulties to express my emotions and seems apathic to others while I feel emotions with the same intensity as everyone I was curious.

Oooh now that you sent your second ask the original one appeared! My reply got a little long; I will use quotes from your ask as “chapter headers” for the different topics so it is easier to understand.

“We will never know if doing certain things (like the red wedding) didn’t minimally affect him or otherwise. [...] I’m not justifying any action I’m only saying it would be interesting finding out he actually “gives shit” about things he did.”

I don't think Roose feels *bad* about the red wedding - he didn’t have to do it after all, it's not like he was under coercion or threat of his life; arguably the entire thing wouldnt have worked without having a strong northern traitor. While Robb's cause was a losing one and this influenced Roose to turn cloak after weighing the alternatives, Roose was not in danger under Robb and his betrayal appears to have been about both minimizing his waste of resources in a losing cause as well as the advantages he can get from this new alliance and what Tywin offers.

Roose appears to fundamentally be a selfish man, who decides his actions after what will give him the most benefit at the smallest risk to his own person. Any regrets i imagine he might feel (this could be what you meant in your ask) would be not on a moral level, but rather about mistakes he made that led him into a position that might not end well for him, and the danger he has gotten himself into.

Roose Bolton said nothing at all. But Theon Greyjoy saw a look in his pale eyes that he had never seen before—an uneasiness, even a hint of fear. - aDwD

Roose to me represents the worst of feudalism, and the epitome of how someone turns out who is raised at the top of this society and with an unchallenged privilege. He has no respect for the autonomy of the people below him in hierarchy, and sees politics and the power at his hand as a tool to benefit himself first and foremost.

“We can’t forget that he doesn’t EXPRESS his feelings not that he hasn’t any.”

Agreed - for all that he is evil and callous i believe it is shown that he has feelings and emotions, which he generally hides under a mask.

Roose Bolton's own face was a pale grey mask, with two chips of dirty ice where his eyes should be. - aDwD

We know he feels fear about his crumbling political situation, he feels fondness for Walda, he appears to talk about Domeric with affection, he is amused enough by Arya not to punish her, he refuses to break the taboo of kinslaying, and something drives him to keep Ramsay around even though it is not advantageous rationally. He has his wants and needs, he has societal expectations he adheres to (like the expectation to continue his family line), he has a distaste for being disrespected...

As an example of him showing emotion, in the Red Wedding itself i believe grrm intentionally contrasts his behaviour with the prior Jaime chapter: where in his dialogue with Jaime he seems relaxed, talks a lot and is shown enjoying his food, in the Red Wedding he is quiet and doesn’t eat much while exchanging subtle threats with Lord Walder. This appears to show that he was indeed stressed in this high-stakes situation and aware of the danger he was in. Note that the quote from aDwD about him showing fear also explicitly points out that he says "nothing at all" in a time of stress, paralleling his lack of dialogue during the RW chapter. (Catelyn is depressed and so probably not talkative, but he also doesnt engage in dialogue with his wife despite her “chatter”).

I wont expand on it too much in this post for length's sake, but i think it is also likely that Roose shares traits with Ramsay in terms of emotionality (which he then hides under his “mask”, as opposed to his openly emotional son); For example his behaviour of not tolerating disrespect and taking what is "his" in the event with the miller's wife. Some i also briefly touched upon in this meta.

“I know Brabrey said this specifically but as wise she is she can’t read others mind.”

In “The Prince of Winterfell”, Barbrey has a long paragraph about her opinion on Roose. As this is her first longer scene, it is my opinion that her entire long dialogue scene with Theon is meant not only to show insight into some of the characters she talks about, but also about her own character; since the way someone talks about people shows how they think.

The negative way she talks about Roose ( “Roose has no feelings, you see.”) seems to be informed by several things:

- Obviously, his callous and selfish personality and lack of morals

- The fact that Barbrey and Roose clearly have history. Considering that Roose now has Ramsay as his heir, and Barbrey loathes Ramsay for what she believes is his fault in Domeric's death, Barbrey likely harbors some resentment against Roose for this move. This likely boosts her opinion that he is completely emotionless and only "plays with [people]" without caring for them. Her line "He does not love, he does not hate, he does not grieve" seems to contain a certain bitterness, and i believe it at least partially refers to their personal history (one could try to continue her words: he does not love [Barbrey], he does not hate [Ramsay], he does not grieve [Domeric].).

- Barbrey calls Theon's heart "craven and cringing", she calls Wyman Manderly "craven to the bone, that one", and she holds a grudge against Eddard for what he did to her without presenting much understanding for his side of the story. I believe she has a tendency to have a slightly superficial view of people or at least to talk badly about these superficial aspects, informed among other things by their appearance (Ned and Roose are plain, Theon and Wyman have physical deficiencies) and presentation (the colder Roose/Ned vs the outgoing wolf-blooded Brandon), and by the slights she perceived they did to her. She also has a tendency to scapegoat people to cope with grief, like hating on Rickard’s maester for Brandon's marriage.

So while she is right about Roose' callousness and moral bankruptcy and has some correct statements, as a fallible character (as opposed to the all-knowing author) she likely somewhat designs her view of him to fit her own narrative and worldview. So while she is an enticing source since she is close to him, her view on him should be taken with a grain of salt the same way she is not 100% correct about people like Ned or Wyman. Some things she says can be argued with through character analysis, and some things we have concrete quotes we can contrast: For example while she says "I think [Roose] would be pleased if the fat man attempted some betrayal", we know that Roose is in fact worried and bothered by the prospect, and in his dialogue to Ramsay it reads like he describes the unfaithfulness of his allies as threatening instead of an amusement. She also theorizes Roose wants to be king in the north, which seems like an impossible plan in his current political situation and nothing we had any hints towards so far in his scenes (I sometimes like to muse it might have been a reference to grrm's plans for the five year gap).

So basically what i would love a Roose PoV for is turning all the "apparently"s and "maybe"s from my metas into either confident statements or to deconfirm them... Showing some more of his view on the world, some more of his past, how he really feels about people without filtering it through dialogue and political goals... His worries, his anger, his happiness, raw and unfiltered... His long scene with Theon in Reek III practically doubles as half a PoV chapter because of the insane amounts of exposition in his dialogue (Theon barely talks or thinks for pages while Roose talks), but it is still filtered through Theon's impression of him and the agenda Roose might have behind his spoken words to present himself in a certain way.

I like to analyze his character from his lines in the book, and what few quotes I find by grrm in the So Spake Martin collection round out my impression of him well, but I would love to have a view inside his head to really get to the meat of it, and get a view of his true personality without the help of assumptions and implications.

#asoiaf #roose bolton #asoiaf meta #asks #Anonymous #i also relate to what you said about a difficulty expressing emotions and appearing closed off to others #its why i think people shouldnt see roose' closedness and coldness as his entire personality... seems a very onedimensional way to view him #people who are really just 100% unfeeling and aloof usually pretend they arent

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lokis-army-77 · 3 years

Text

If You Please

Chapter eight

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Word Count: 2900

This is technically a reader insert but without the (y/n) and all that. She also has no name mentioned so feel free to imagine as you please.

Follow the reader through the events of the Captain America movies and experience her love for Bucky Barnes.

Warnings: angst but not really

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Masterlist

In the time that it took for us to make the long trek through the hills and woods, I had recounted the events of the past few months to Bucky. He walked beside me, holding my hand the whole time. He listened intently, asking questions when I paused for a breath. When I finished, Bucky was a little upset. Not at the fact that I had willfully allowed myself to be experimented on, but because I had joined a secret Government agency almost right out of high school and didn’t tell anyone.

I told him that I was sorry and that I would have told him if I hadn't been contractually obligated to keep it a highly kept secret. He forgave me quickly, saying that the only reason he was okay with it was that it allowed me to be able to see him. I shook my head lightheartedly. Bucky never was able to stay upset with me for long.

The sun had come up by the time our group made it back to the base camp. As we got closer and closer, I could feel a buzz of life going through the men. They were excited to be back in safe territory. The soldiers in the camp all came running to greet us as we made our way up the road. They all stood around us and cheered. Steve, Bucky, and I kept walking through the camp towards Coronel Phillips’ tent. The cheering quieted as we were met by the Coronel several yards away from the tents. Peggy was following closely behind the Coronel.

“Sir. Some of these men are in need of medical attention immediately.” Steve started. “We would also like to offer ourselves up for disciplinary action.” He glanced back at me as he made the comment. I gave him a nod in agreement. I didn’t fear the consequences, we had done the right thing and that was all that mattered.

“That won’t be necessary.” Philips started and walked away.

More and more soldiers continued to gather around us until all I could see were cheering men. Loudly one of them shouted, “Let’s hear it for Captain America!” The crowd went into an uproar at that, and it seemed like everyone started to clap Steve on the back. Bucky and Steve gave one another a quick look before they started to argue with the men that I had also helped in rescuing them, but none of them would listen.

“Guys stop it, it doesn't matter if they believe I helped or not,” I stepped in before their arguments could get heated.

“Don’t say that. I couldn’t have done any of this without you, they need to know who helped get them to freedom.” Steve argued.

"Yeah Doll, they should know who helped save them,” Bucky chimed in.

I just stood there looking at them. “I don’t care if they believe I helped or not, just let it go. I really only went to find out what happened to Bucky, and since he's okay, I’m content.” I started walking away from the crowd after that, Bucky not far on my heels. “Let's go, Buck,” I stuck out my hand to grab onto his, “I’m ready for a shower and some good sleep.”

After a few days of recuperation, the camp was packed up. Most of the 107th, high commanding officers, and Steve, Bucky, and I, were taken back to London. While the rest of the base went onwards, closer to the front lines.

Steve and I were brought to one of the several secret underground bases to relay all the information we could remember about the night we took down the HYDRA base. Steve was currently marking the locations of other HYDRA bases he had seen on a map hanging in Zola’s office. I sat off to the side of the table watching quietly, not really paying attention. I was brought back to reality as the map was yanked out from under my elbow. I looked up and noticed Steve and Peggy walking away. I quickly got up and followed them over to the large map laid out in the center of the room.

“These are all of the weapons factories that we know about. Sergeant Barnes said that they ship all the parts out to another facility that wasn't shown on the maps.” Steve informs Peggy and Coronel Phillips.

“Agent Carter, get in touch with MI6, I want all allied eyes looking for the main base,” Philips commanded.

“What about us Coronel?” I questioned.

“We are going to go after Johann Schmidt. What do you call Captain Rogers? It’s your map, can you wipe HYDRA off it?”

“Yes Sir, I do. I’ll just need a team to do it.” Steve confirmed.

“We already have the men picked out.”

“With all due respect Coronel, I do too, and it includes my sister.”

Later that night Peggy and I were dressing up to go out. All the men had chosen to go to the bars and we both took this as a chance to at least pretend for a little while that the war wasn’t going on. I heard Peggy walking into the room as I finished pinning a few curls at the back of my head.

“How do I look?” She asked. I gasped as I turned around, I had never seen her in anything but the military blouse and skirt. The red knee-length, fitted dress made her look more beautiful than she already was.

“You look stunning. What about me?” I stood up and did a small twirl. The fabric of the dark royal blue dress flared out slightly as I did so.

“You look absolutely gorgeous.” She smiled at me. I gave her one back.

“We should be on our way, wouldn't want to keep the boys waiting.”

I could hear the music from the sidewalk as we approached the bar. Peggy pushed open the door and led us in. We had walked through several rooms before the singing of the soldiers slowly came to a stop and everyone glanced in our direction. I spotted Bucky and Steve sitting at the bar. They both stood when they saw Peggy and me. Bucky had the biggest smile on his face as he came towards me.

“You look beautiful tonight.” he leaned in to kiss my cheek. I pulled away in feign offense.

“Just tonight?”

“You know what I meant.” he gently shoved my arm. I laughed and wrapped my hand around his neck to pull him in for a light peck on the lips.

Peggy had moved closer to Steve before she explained to us that Stark had some new equipment for us to try out tomorrow morning. Steve and I had only just agreed to be at the base when Bucky was dragging me over to a small open space to dance.

He wrapped his hands around my waist and I placed mine around his neck, pulling us closer together. We swayed to the gentle music, completely enamored with one another. His under eyes were still dark from the exhaustion he faced at the Hydra base. He looked completely drained.

“Bucky, Sweetheart, you look absolutely exhausted. Why don’t we go back to the hotel where they have me set up? I’m sure that bed is way more comfortable than those cots they make you sleep in on base.” I suggested.

He pulled away slightly, only enough to look down into my eyes. “We can in a bit. I just want to have a little mundaneness before the whole ‘take HYDRA down’ mission starts.” He pulled me back in and softly pressed his lips to the top of my head.

I stay quiet after that and just enjoy being wrapped in his arms, swaying to the music. It had been months since anything remotely normal had happened in my life. We danced to three more songs before Bucky decided he was ready to leave. When the last song ended we made our way over to where Steve was sitting.

“Hey, we’re going to head out. He’s in desperate need of sleep and I'm taking him back to my hotel room for the night,” I told Steve, who stood up and shook his head.

“No, I'm not letting that happen,” He argued.

“Steve relax, nothings going to happen, we’re just sleeping.”

“I said no. No boys, not even if you are engaged.”

“Sorry but he's been sleeping in my room with me for the past two years so..” I trailed off.

“Two years?” He raised his voice a little. “How long has this been going on?”

“Calm down, there's no need to yell. We got engaged two years ago, in October. I meant to tell you, I really did, but I just could never find the right time. I was even going to tell you when we started dating but I knew how you thought Bucky was when it came to relationships. I can assure you he has been nothing less than loving, and kind to me. I’m sorry that we kept this from you and I hope you understand.”

Steve just stood there, processing what I had just told him.

“Look, Steve, I really do love her, and I know I should have asked for your permission first before I proposed but it just happened that way. I just, I just love her so much and I can’t imagine life without her by my side. So I’m asking now if I have your permission.”

Steve crosses his arms and looks between the two of us. He stayed quiet for several seconds before he replied. “I give you my permission, only because I trust my sister's judgment and I know you’ll be able to take care of her, not that she can't take care of herself.”

“I promise I’ll take care of her until I die. Once this God-forsaken war is over we were planning on having the wedding.”

“Okay, but I still don’t want you two sleeping in the same room alone.”

“Come on Steve, I said we weren’t going to do anything.” I gave out a small chuckle, thankful that the whole argument had blown over quickly. “Let’s go, Buck.” I pulled on Bucky's hand and headed to the entrance doors. I turned back to Steve and gave him a wave before going through the door.

The walk to the hotel was short and quiet. When we reached the building, Bucky denied that he was tired the whole way up to my room, but once we made it through the door and he had taken off his uniform he was laid out cold on the bed. I covered him up with the duvet before I went to the ensuite bathroom to get myself ready for bed.

When I finally laid down next to Bucky, I felt him automatically gravitate to my side. His arm came to rest around me and he buried his head in my chest. I just smiled and gently played with his hair until I also fell into a deep sleep.

Early that morning, before the sun had risen, I woke up to Bucky violently tossing and turning in his sleep. I quickly sat up to try and calm him down.

“Bucky, hey, I’m right here,” I whispered to him as I gently stroked his hair. In his sleep, he held onto my waist tighter. All I could do was sit there and wait for him to wake up. His nightmare went on for what seemed like forever before he finally woke up in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. He picked himself up from his stomach and sat up, throwing his legs over the edge of the bed, and then he placed his head in his hands.

I crawled my way over behind him and placed my hands on his bare shoulders. He stayed quiet as I massaged away the knots. We stayed like this for a while before he placed his hands on mine, stopping my movements. I then wrapped my arms around him and gave him a tight, comforting hug.

“Do you want to talk about it?” I asked. He just shook his head and let out a shaky breath. I let go of him when I felt him start to scoot himself back up into the bed. I watched him wearily lay down on his back. He held his arms out to me motioning for me to come to him and I did. Nestling into his side I felt him start to slowly twirl the ends of my hair around his fingers.

“I’m sorry I woke you up.” He whispered into my hair.

“It’s alright. I would rather you wake me up than for you to have to deal with the nightmares by yourself.”

“I love you, you know that?”

“You may have mentioned it on occasion.” I laughed. “I love you too. Do you think you can get back to sleep?”

“I think I’ll sit up for a bit, you go ahead and get some rest.”

“Okay, but if you need someone to talk to, don't be afraid to wake me up. I mean it.” I shut my eyes and snuggled in closer to him. His breathing slowly went back to normal and I fell back to sleep to the rise and fall of his chest and the sound of his heart beating.

Later, when the city had fully come alive, Bucky and I got dressed and went our separate ways for the day. He went with me to the entrance doors of the hotel and kissed me goodbye before he turned to walk down the street. I watched him walk a way before he turned and gave me a wave. I waved back before I started down the opposite street.

The base was only a ten-minute walk from the hotel so I made it in no time. Going through the doors I made my way down to Howard’s lab. I spotted Howard and Steve talking at a table with several shields on it. I watched as Steve bent over and grabbed one from the bottom shelf. Peggy came into view as I started down the small set of stairs into the room. She came to a stop when Steve asked for her thoughts on the shield he was holding. She grabbed one of the guns from the table beside her and shot at the shield. The bullets ricocheted to the ground and Peggy stated that it in fact worked. She sat the gun back down and walked towards Steve and turned sharply now walking at me. When she got within arms distance of me I stopped her.

“What was that all about?” I gave her a quizzical look.

She just gave me a passive-aggressive smile and said, “Ask your brother.” She stormed out of the room after that, leaving me to interrogate Steve.

“Steve, what did you do?”

“I have no clue.” he exasperated.

“Well, you had to have done something. What happened before I got here?”

“Well, I was waiting to come see Howard when this one lady kissed me, and then Agent Carter started acting weird after that.” I gave him a look of defeated astonishment and brought my hand up to rub my temples.

“God Steve you’re so clueless. That’s literally why she's upset.”

“But why does that matter?”

“Because Steve, she likes you and you kissed someone else right in front of her.”

He stood there with his mouth gaping. “Oh.”

“Yeah, oh. I can’t believe you did that.” I shook my head. I stepped past him and went over to the other side of the table where Howard was. “Now, what's all this about having some equipment to try out?”

Howard turned to the table that was behind us and grabbed a long metal staff. He turned back to face me, holding out the staph. I took it from his hands and gave it a small twirl. “Stark, what's so special about a staff?”

“It isn’t just any staff, it's a two-piece bo staff. I had a talk with some of the trainers at the base in New York and they said you were exceptionally skilled with it. It's made from one of the rarest metals on the planet. It's practically indestructible.” He gave me a look. “Well don’t just stand there Rogers, give it a try.”

Strolling over to a section of the lab that was free of people. I started to spin the staff in my hands, going faster and faster. Using the momentum from the spinning I lunged forward and struck the staff at an imaginary opponent. I looked up and back at Howard and Steve.

“It’s a little lighter than what I’m used to, but it will work.”

“I'm glad it will work out. It took me forever to acquire a metal like that.”

Steve came over at that point, with a piece of folded paper in his hand. Holding it out to Howard he said, “I had some ideas for my suit. I even have some drawn sounds for hers as well.”

“I am not wearing a suit. I'll be just fine in my regular uniform.” I interjected.

“If you’re going to be coming with me to fight HYDRA then you need to wear a suit, for my peace of mind at least

“Fine, for your peace of mind.”

Tag list: @ginger-swag-rapunzel @underc0vercryptid-reads @geek-and-proud @intothesoul @leyannrae

#james buchanan barnes #bucky x y/n #bucky barnes #bucky x reader #bucky x female reader #bucky fic #bucky fanfic #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x rogers!reader #winter solider x reader #marvel fic #marvel fanfiction

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