#me living for the zen garden scenes always and forever

[ltcolonelcarter]

I've started having thoughts that are not part of my program… I’ve considered the possibility… that I might be compromised.

↳ Connor's little expressions in Last Chance, Connor

bonus:

[marshmallowprotection]

Kait Reacts To The AE: Other Endings

NORMAL ENDING! I’ll likely be doing this for the Bad Endings as I collect them but that make take a few days because I’m not sure where all of them are and I have to play the Route over and over. So, here’s my reaction to the Normal End as well as what happens. Spoilers ahead. If you click it, it’s your choice. 

Alright, so to clarify this ending is triggered when you select the option [Don’t go Save Saeran.] I wondered what that meant since I used all my Saves on the Day 4 Branches. That’s how I got all of the Bad Endings on that day today, by the way. Your save spots always come in handy if you know where the branch is that may trigger the Bad Ending. I wish I bought more save spots, though, because I have a feeling where the other Bad Endings are. 

I have to start from the beginning to get them. I should have 3 more by tomorrow if I do it right. Anyways, this ending starts out when you finish having the talk to Rika. To set the scene, it’s when you start looking Saeran with the group, Rika, V, Driver Kim, and yourself. You know that it’s dangerous but you have to go and find him now. You get a sinking feeling and speed up to the lake. 

Saejoong is in the process of taking Saeran, but when you try to run Driver Kim holds you back from running. You plead with Rika and V to save him because he is your life, your love. If you can’t do it, someone has to do it. That being said, your pleas do not fall on silence. Rika sees the desperation in you and she is willing to help. She may be... complicated, but at this point, she’s decided that enough is enough and she can’t run away anymore. She tells V to get in touch with the unit. You know, the ones hunting for her, and for the Prime Minister in a way, as well as the RFA. 

V hesitates because... they sold their souls to avoid prison time. But, he’s at that point where he can’t tell Rika no. Saeran is literally about to be taken away and harmed. As cruel as they have become, they don’t want the boys to die. I will give the two of them that much. They don’t want them to die. Rika is the one that says, call them. V does it. She tells you to stay close to her now. 

The two of you approach the scene with Saejoong. You rush to Saeran’s side to be with him but he’s unconscious by the time you get to him. Unlike the Good Ending where you find him and he’s somehow hanging onto himself until the very end here. Saejoong is surprised to see her now but he scolds her for what she’s done. He says that they’re kids, she should have been able to stop them from doing anything. She says that the deal is off. 

Saejoong begins to tell her that they should make a new one instead. He thinks that he can sway things to his favor, but Rika doesn’t want to hear his bullshit at this time. Rika, and V, as messed up as the two of them are, at the end of the day here, both realize that they can’t run away anymore. It’s time to grow up, and face the music for everything that they’ve done. 

Every single crime that is on the horizon.

They must pay the price. 

Your actions have consequences, and at last, Rika is admitting that she’s been horrible and cruel and toxic. She isn’t going to try to fix anything. She doesn’t expect forgiveness, and she knows that the road ahead of her is going to be a dark place for the rest of her days, but she’s okay with that because Saeran has shown her something that she never thought she’d ever get. 

Saeran is a saint. 

I will never forgive Rika for what she did and I can’t forgive V for what he did in this AE. I cannot. Saeran is the one that decided that he wanted to go to the end by using forgiveness and I respect that. It helped him and it was the straw that broke the camel’s back with Rika, alongside us giving her a chance. Giving one a chance doesn’t mean you forgive them. 

I don’t trust them, but I gave them both a chance because I know they don’t want Saeran to die here. If they turned against me, it would only further prove my own thoughts about them. So, hey, in a lifetime of doing things wrong, you did one thing right but it will ever excuse what you did. I’m glad to see that you know this and understand that. 

That’s some maturity never shown from Rika. Can’t say how much of that is even her being honest but at least she’s done one thing right. 

Saejoong basically tells her off for being blinded this. Rika calls him out at every single turn and doesn’t give him leeway. She lets him know that in his heart, he is very greedy and wrong. She says that he will never know what love feels like because he never let that in. He is the monster of his own creation and if he is a monster and he hates himself, and he feels alone, it’s his fault. He did this all to himself and that’s his only person to blame. 

She knows because she did the same thing. She says that solitude and suffering will his cruelest master and if he doesn’t stop now, it will damn him. She knows that no matter how far he climbs the ladder to the top, nothing will ever take away that empty feeling in his chest. He will never know what it feels like to be alive or to feel love  in his heart. She says that she is the same way. She says she’s been screaming for so long that she’s perfect. 

That she’s not wrong. 

That she’s doing the right thing.

But, none of that was right. It was never right and she didn’t know how to even admit to that until now. She says that love is the only thing in life that is worth the trouble and is the purpose of our lives. She says that Saeran protected his love with his life and it kept him from suffering. She says that Saejoong is blind and ignorant, and he will never understand as he continues to argue with her about it. 

She says it’s a miracle that Saeyoung and Saeran were born, filled with love and happiness for each other and the rest of the world. She says that is their power and that will be their guiding force in life. Saeran was wiling to forgive her even when he didn’t have to do it. She says that Saeran... and Saeyoung, they are innocent and they just want to love, and to be loved. Nothing more, and nothing less than that. 

Rika: The only dirty thing here? It’s you, and it’s me. We’re the ones that tried to manipulate them and break them. I’m going to tell the world what I did. I’ll give up all of my life for their protection from people like me and from people like you. So, you take your hands off of Saeran and don’t you ever touch him again! 

Saejoong is panicking now. 

V says it’s over. They’re coming for him.

He panics and demands someone kill all of us. When they don’t listen, he goes to do it for himself. We have to leave now for our own safety but Rika tells us that she is thankful for meeting us and that we gave her a chance, she says that we should live a happy life. She admits everything that she did was wrong and that she wishes Saeran and us the best. 

And it fades to black.

I don’t really like Rika and I never have. But, she had the gall to admit that she was wrong and she went down for it. Good. She can work on herself while she is in prison. I don’t wish poor health on anyone so it’s a good thing that she was very willing to say that. She can only grow for herself when she admits that she is wrong. So, in a lifetime of wrong, you did one right thing. 

It will bring you nothing but she didn’t do it for selfish reasons. 

She did because it was the right thing to do. 

She expects nothing in return and she will get nothing in return. 

You can ask Rika and V what they’ll do next but they both say: We choose to do this. We must pay for it. But, no matter what happens, at least we know who we are now. 

[3 Months Later]

You are treated to a chatroom. Jumin lost the race in this ending. He’s back at C&R but everyone loves him. He’s likely to be the CEO in his future and that’s a good thing. Jaehee’s with him. Nobody knows what the RFA did because the plan was given out anonymously. The RFA isn’t... well, the public knows that they aren’t bad now but still... it’s not a great note. That’s why this is a Normal Ending and not a Good Ending. 

Zen is going to have to struggle to fix his career and get back. Yoosung is going back to school and he’s going to have a hard time. In this ending, it’s not the best outcome for everyone but it’s.. okay. It’s not the worst but it’s not the best thing for everyone. Saeyoung had to work for months to beat the Agency but it worked out. This ending gives more clarity to what happened with Saejoong in the Good Ending. 

Saejoong runs but he’s caught in this ending. He’s going to school forever. Rika isn’t going to be free if at all. It’s going to take decades. Jihyun, on the other hand here, he will be away for a while but not forever. They’re all facing what they should for what they did but again, the RFA is not talking about them for very long. So, I know that they’re not letting them back in. Not V, and Rika, and honestly, that’s how it should be. 

I wouldn’t let them back in, either. 

But, it’s okay to wish their mental health the best in the end, if anything. We’re still with Saeran and Saeyoung in this ending, though. We’re all together but it doesn’t feel as great as it did in the Good Ending. As it turns out, in this ending, we all moved. We’ve got a quaint little life in a house somewhere that has a big and nice greenhouse for Saeran. He seems to be happy with everything here and he does look healthier. 

It’s a bit bittersweet because... he never got to confront his father and he never allowed himself to get that last sense of closure in his life. It’s not very perfect but again, this is a Normal Ending. It’s not supposed to be perfect. It has to feel like there’s something missing and having already played the Good Ending, it’s definitely something missing here. 

Either way, I’m happy to see Saeran so happy in a garden of his own. He says that he has so much work to do and things to tend. I tell him to not stress himself because I’ll help out whenever he wants. He says that it’s okay, he feels that he is much stronger than before. He feels that he’s okay and I can see it in his eyes as he speaks. He does look better. 

He says that he’s happy. 

He wants an ordinary life with me. Oh, and he’s back to talking to the flowers about how much that he loves me. I sputtered when he did that because he is the type of person to whisper his secrets when he’s alone in the garden because it’s so... It’s so Saeran. He says that he’s happy that I agreed with him when he suggested that he find a nice little house. 

He says that he feels grateful for what he has. That he’s blessed. Though, he does have a tiny suggestion. I prod if it’s something important, something that he’s been wanting to ask for a while. And, then he hits me with that good old question that makes you heart flutter and a stupid laugh come to your lips and I’m almost punching myself for not clicking: Aw, I should have asked you first! 

I said, I think you’re missing something, though. You know, for our lives to be perfect... and he says that he wants to make a family, and we all know what is to come before you say that you want a family. 

HE PROPOSES. 

OH, GOD. My heart. My heart is weakened right now. We know that this is one of those things that is going to happen in the Good Ending at some point, but I like that we actually go and start traveling with Saeyoung and Saeran first instead of tying ourselves down to anything. 

I think it’s a lot more fun to explore the world and just... 

Be free. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m looking forward to the day where he does propose to the MC, but I preferred how things were handled in the Good Ending as to the Normal, but that’s to be expected in my case simply because I liked how we were able to help Saeran see things through to the very end of his emotional journey. 

The CGs for this are... the bomb, though. I love it. 

[yandere-ac]

So this is before the villager reader escaped from Audie to Raymond's island, what if Audie used Harv's island to make little scenes with the reader? Like a wedding or smth

Yandere Human Audie X Villager Reader

(With a little bit of Yan Raymond towards the end)

Till death do you part

You were shaking, hyperventilating. Your breathing patterns were going crazy as your hair was being brushed. Brushed by a small dog who was looking at you in pity. You were currently being dressed up and pampered in a white wedding dress/tuxedo and your hair was being fixed as well. You hated this. You wanted to scream out and run away. But you couldn’t. Because Audie wouldn’t allow it. You hadn’t known how to respond to her as she gave you that engagement ring to you. You just stood there, staring at it in horror. She wanted to bind you two together forever. And what better way to do it than marry you? You knew it would only be a matter of time before she started to suggest that you move in with her or even worse...that you made things...truly official. You dreaded the thought of what she might do with you under the covers. You’ve already gotten disturbing description being written online about you, you had no doubt that Audie would not hold back if you two ever...

You tried not to think about it. You tried to delay it all you could but ultimately, deep down. You knew it was only a matter of when and where. Audie had a hungry wolf inside her and you were merely a small defenceless bunny who had stumbled into her nest. You knew if the wolf wasn’t gonna get food soon, it would pounce on the small prey, digging its teeth into their body. Savouring ever bite of the poor creature as it’s trying to get away until it ultimately excepts its fate and stops moving. Every time you thought of that you started to shiver, and it made you wonder if...maybe you should just...give Audie what she wants before it gets to late. But at the same time. It was the only thing you had left. It was the only thing that you hadn’t given up to her. It was the only thing you felt like you had control over. Giving up to Audie would mean that you lost the one thing she hadn’t yet taken away. And what’s worse is that if you did that, she would truly see you as hers. And who knows what would happen then. Maybe she would get even more possessive. Maybe she’d limit your freedom even more. You just didn’t want to risk that happening.

Taking a sharp breath, you tried to neutralise your breathing. Key word being “tried”. The black dog, Lulu, walked i front of you as she put some final touches to you hair. “...hey...I...maybe marriage won’t be so bad...” she tried to comfort you. Key word being “tried”. “Shut up Lulu. It won’t be that bad? Do you even know her! It’s gonna be horrible!” You said, yelling slightly at the dog as she flinched once you raised your voice. You quickly became silent. “...I...I’m sorry Lulu. I’m just...God damnit! Why did this have to happen to me!? What have I ever done to deserve this hell!!!” After your sudden outburst you collapsed onto the floor. You felt so hopeless. A couple of months ago you were a happy A/T who’s biggest problems in life was just paying off dept and finding a partner. But now? You wish you could’ve just gone back in time and not bought the island getaway package. If you hadn’t, none of this would have happened. This was all your fault. You wish you could disappear and never come back! You had no power, no life, no friends, no joy, no will to go on as every day just got worse and worse! You felt so helpless. And you were quite Audible with your feelings if despair. That was the thing that confused you the most. Surely Audie had to notice how you felt. You were always shaking and whimpering and all in all looking quite miserable around her. Yet any time she interacted with you. She acted as if nothing was going on. As if she was just talking to her partner. Didn’t she see how terrified you were?!

Either she did notice and ignored it or she was so infatuated with you that she truly didn’t notice. And you didn’t know which one you preferred. Because if she just ignored it that meant she also knew that you weren’t In love with her, that could mean that one day she might snap and try to force you to love her. If that happened, she would become even more scarier and might even become violent. But if she really wasn’t noticing, that meant she would truly not understand if she did something to far. She would just see it as you loving her and what she did but in reality, you would hate it. Maybe it was neither of them. Maybe she knew you were scared, and she liked that fear. Maybe that’s why she does the things she do. Maybe she enjoyed seeing you quiver around her, maybe it gave her a sense of power. That would probably be the worst outcome. Because then, she would continue to directly seek out a reaction from you. And then, you would truly be nothing other than a cute toy for her. Sure she may live her toy but that didn’t mean you weren’t just a plaything. Either way, you were screwed and doomed to be with her. You hoped that one day, you might become unfazed by her and stop being afraid. But you didn’t think that would ever happen. Because you never knew what Audie might do. It’s only after she’s passed a line that something like that would happen. If she ever did something so horrible, you’d either just become unfazed with everything else she did, or you would become deathly afraid of her.

You were currently being escorted away to the main hall where Audie had arranged your wedding. You were about to enter, holding a bouquet of flowers when you felt something in your eye. “Oh no. No no no! Fuck fuck! No!” You stated you breathe intensely, trying to push down the urge to cry all while fanning your eyes. After a few seconds you let out a shaky breath as you felt yourself calm down. And without further delays, you opened the doors to reveal the scene before you.

There were wedding benches lined up all the way to the alter. Villagers and others say there, turning their heads to you. They all had a look of pity in their eyes as the organist started playing “here comes the bride. You started to walk towards the alter. There, stood Audie, wearing a beautiful black dress and looking at you with adoration. You felt yourself grip onto the bouquet harder. Once you were next to her, you turned around to the Priest. Looking over at the others, you could see that you weren’t the only one who hated this. Everyone looked sad or uncomfortable. Blathers was looking down on the ground, he didn’t want to see this. Isabelle was crying, but you had a feeling it wasn’t because it was “such a beautiful wedding!” And Tom Nook? He wasn’t even looking at you. No, he was looking at Audie. And his eyes was filled to the brim with nothing other than pure hate. And then of course. There was Audie. You looked at her and she was staring right at you. She was eyeing you up and down, looking like a rat looking at a piece of cheese.

The priest turned to the both of you and began. “We gather here today, to unite these two people in marriage. Their decision to marry has not been entered into lightly and today they publicly declare their private devotion to each other.” The priest continued to speak but you could barely concentrate, you had to focus on your breathing to make sure you don’t faint. “The essence of this commitment is the acceptance of each other in entirety, as lover, companion, and friend. A good and balanced relationship is one in which neither person is overpowered nor absorbed by the other, one in which neither person is possessive of the other, one in which both give their love freely and without jealousy.” You almost wanted to laugh at this, as this could not be anything further from the truth. You could even see Audie twitch slightly as she heard this. The vows continued and finally, he got to the dreaded part. “Do you, Audie, take this A/T as your partner through thick and thin, till death do you part?” “I do.” Audie said bluntly as she placed the ring on your finger. “Do you, Y/N, take this woman as your wife through thick and thin, till death do you part?” Now it was your turn. You tried to answer, but you couldn’t get the words out. Two simple words that would seal your fate forever. “....I....I do...” you said as you put the ring on Audies finger. “You May now kiss the bride!” Audie wasted no time. Embracing you as she kissed you deeply. That was the first time you ever kissed on the lip. So for her to be so rough when you hadn’t ever kissed before, it made you worried. Ass the kiss continued, a single tear ran down your cheek. You hated this. You hated her.

•••

“Y/N? Are you okay?” Raymond asked you, looking at you with concerned eyes. “W-What? Oh yeah I’m just-“ you felt yourself go quiet as he put his hand on your cheek. “Love...you’re crying...please tell me what’s wrong?” He said in a low voice. It’s been a few weeks since you moved to Salamacis. And so far, everything has been swell. You had gotten really close to all the villagers and you were enjoying the scenery. But the one person who you truly became close to. Was Raymond. He and you were tighter than ever. Spending a lot of time with each other and even sharing a bed. Your house was still being built so you slept with Raymond, and even though you were gonna miss the intimacy the two of you had, you were looking forward to sleeping in your bed alone with nothing to worry about. You two were currently snuggling under a tree in one of the zen gardens on Salamacis when you had suddenly started to shiver and sniffle. You hadn’t noticed yourself but tears had started to fall from your eyes. “Oh...I....I guess I just....I started thinking about her.” As soon as you said this, the atmosphere became heavy as a rock. You didn’t have to say who it was, Raymond knew very well who you were talking about. “I just...what if she’s searching for me? What if she finds us? What if she takes me back to that hell!? I don’t wanna go back! Don’t let her take me Raymond please!” The fear in your voice made Raymond’s heart break. He grabbed the sides of your face gently, looking at you directly in the eyes.

“She’s not coming back Y/N. I promise you she’s not. She doesn’t know our location. I’ve reset my phone and changed all my social media accounts. She has no way of getting to us.” “But what if she-“ “Even if she somehow got here, do you really think I would let her take you? She’ll have to get through me to get to you Y/N. And trust me, if I ever see her again, ESPECIALLY here! I will not go easy on her...” Raymond stated blankly. There was no emotion in his voice other than fury as he said the last part. He knew about all the horrible things she’s done to you. He knew about the limited freedom, about bing forced to wear things you were uncomfortable in, about being trapped, about the wedding. He knew everything. Because you told him. And it made him sick to his stomach. He let out a sight, trying to calm himself. He whiped away your tears as he put his forehead against yours. “Trust me Y/N. Nothing can hurt you here. And if someone does take you away, which will never happen, I would go to the ends of the earth to get you back. Please do not worry, I’m here, you’re here. And you’re not leaving okay?” As he said this he gave you a small kiss. “I love you Y/N.” You felt your breath get caught in your throat. That was the first time he’s ever said that to you. It was his first I love you. You let out a breathy laugh as more tears started to flow. “I love you too.” You said as you kissed him. It felt so nice to be able to say that and mean it. To not be afraid. To not fear for your life. To not feel like a simple toy.

Raymond wrapped his arms around you as the two of you continued to kiss. He loved you so much. This feeling, the feeling of knowing your safe with him. It made him so happy. He would love and cherish you forever. But he’ll never be like Audie. Never in a million years. He swore to keep you safe and the last thing he’d ever do was to become the thing that you’re scared of. No, he would keep you safe from Audie. Audie would never hurt you again. Yeah, that’s right. Raymond smiled to himself. Audie would never hurt you again.

Because Audie was dead. Found in her house full of stab wounds, approximately 65 stab wounds. On the walls of her house, the killer had written a message in her own blood.

“Till death do you part”

/////////////

Surprise! You get a bit of Raymodn as well :D I swear this man is taking over this blog. This was fun to write, I’m really enjoying writing for the human villagers lol.

[solitarylurker]

magase ai’s hidden quest in babylon

after finally getting up the nerve to watch the last episode of babylon, i found myself pondering the ending and sorting out the series in light of the final episode

and i found something surprising hidden within the final episode, something i haven’t seen discussed anywhere--i discovered what i feel was the (perhaps intentional) purpose of the story

for a long time now i’d been wondering if perhaps the structure of the story was meant to be less literal and more a modern “stage” to work through the idea of “what if there really was such a thing as the whore of babylon, what would that look like in a modern context?”

obviously a take such as this, and a story which explored such a topic, wouldn’t be able to use simplistic reductionist themes like “oh, magase ai was just a girl who’d been abused by the patriarchy and was getting a little revenge on the system”; instead, it takes a more visceral mythological slant, granting a child (who becomes a woman) an ability to distort and tempt the weak-willed around her without even meaning to at first, and then easily once her own malice entered the picture

what would such a character look like, and what would their effect on the world be? and what does this mean for us as viewers? 

this was what i’d begun to think was at the heart of the story, but i think even that view may be too simplistic in light of the finale

as far as i can tell, all the political set up is basically a stage for the whore of babylon to act out her role--i think any “taboo” would have worked (incest, bestiality, euthanasia, murder, etc.); suicide probably was chosen because it’s more common than the other options and also removes the immediate, easier rejections that murder would entail, but ultimately the exact topic debated doesn’t really matter for the purpose of the story

instead, the topic is the excuse to crack open the veneer of the “good” and the veneer of the righteous, to expose the filth in the system (prostitution, inhumanity, greed, etc.), and to let the whore of babylon have free rein to do her thing--magase ai choosing suicide for her victims rather than some other vice is irrelevant, as i think her gleefully murdering sekuro demonstrates she’d be perfectly happy pursuing whatever vice moved her along in her quest

and here’s where the little surprise hit me with the ending--the whole damn story is a race between magase ai and seizaki zen: which one of them can find what they’re looking for first before the other is destroyed?

seizaki is obviously looking for the meaning of evil and how to separate good from evil and eradicate evil; magase’s quest is the exact inverse of seizaki’s--she is looking for the meaning of good and trying to separate good from evil

the difference between magase and seizaki, besides their perspectives, is (i think) that magase wants to find “true good”, the good that cannot be corrupted, no matter what buttons she pushes

this is why, in my own understanding, biblical themes were chosen for this story rather than buddhist ones--buddhist themes would paint magase and seizaki as two opposing forces in the world eternally doomed to face each other and butt heads, but biblical themes don’t have to have that aspect

in essence, my understanding is that seizaki was magase’s “project”--she was testing his limits to see if he could materialize “true good” for her; he was probably one of many such projects

her helping itsuki kaika likely was only a means to an end while she searched for the next appropriate candidate for her continuous project, one that had likely started when she was a child (we can probably assume the boys she drove to suicide were some of the earliest such candidates, as well as her foster uncle)

the reason i think this is magase’s true focus is because she is so deeply delighted to find seizaki in episode two; not only is she delighted, she actively pursues him in ways she doesn’t seem to with any of the other targets she takes down; his name must seem poetic to her, and the idea that maybe she’s finally found the one person who can stand as her opposite probably fills her with glee

i think her obsession with the video game in particular, and with the hero, plays into this--she knows she is the villain, but as far as she can tell, she can’t find someone to be a proper foil for her

if she is true evil, there must be true good--but where, and how can she find it? she doesn’t seem to have any trouble accepting what side she’s on, nor is she agonizing over it--she relishes and delights in it; what she appears to be agonizing over is that she doesn’t have someone who can stand against her, who can truly face her with an opposing viewpoint without ultimately corrupting under her touch

this theme is chilling and deliciously subtle, especially when the writers connect it back to the garden of eden (the beginning, connected to the end, through the temptress); if magase is representing both the tempter snake and the whore of babylon, she’s metaphorically (and literally) the embodiment of evil

the amazing thing about this, and i’m not entirely sure this was intentional on the part of the novelist but patterns happen whether humans intend them or not, is that there is no one on earth who can face evil as the embodiment of good

earth, in the biblical sense (which the story is invoking, whether true or not) is a fallen world, a world filled with those who are the offspring not only of the two first sinners, but also the first murderer (cain)

this means that wherever magase ai goes, she will never be able to find “one” person who embodies true good--biblically, only one such “person” ever existed, because all humans are fallen creatures who can only embody “true good” with divine assistance (and even then they fail)

thus, magase’s quest is far, far more hopeless than seizaki’s, because evil is relatively easy to define if you step outside of postmodernism, and it’s easy to “stop” evil, but it is not easy to “embody good”

this is why it’s inevitable that seizaki must become evil to stop evil, and by doing so he fails to become the “true good” magase is searching for

i personally am of the opinion that seizaki shot himself in the final scene, mostly because of the weight of his own failure to live up to his own principles and his understanding, at last, of what he’d allowed himself to sink to, even if it was expedient/necessary in a utilitarian sense--this story is not about utilitarianism, it is about the platonic/biblical form of “the good” and “evil”; seizaki was searching for “the good”, not expedience/utilitarianism, and he failed to embody it

and by seizaki failing, magase’s latest experiment fails, and she vanishes from the stage to begin the quest anew

what i love, love, love, about the ending is that it establishes that magase is a force in the world who will continue, forever, always searching for someone, anyone, who can embody true good and face her at last, bringing true justice and meaning to her existence

but, if she truly is the embodiment of the whore of babylon, this reckoning cannot occur until judgment day, and so this is a story about the limbo the whore of babylon is eternally stuck in, waiting for that day to come

ultimately, i think babylon’s ending is the “bad end” for the story--seizaki fails to embody the good, and magase fails to find that embodiment in him and must move on to corrupt other souls; however, as a thought piece and as a story, i think it’s such a refreshing take and i must admit each episode (outside the first one, ironically) seemed to fly by in no time at all

[detroitwhatitmeanstobehuman]

Chapter 18 - Androids and Demons

Part 1/10 of In The Meantime

Word Count: 14,745

Warnings: Swearing, violence, discussion of trauma, suggestive themes.

Genre: Self-insert/Hurt/Comfort

Pairing: OC (Detective Rachel) X Connor

Rating: Mature

Summary: They’ve won. Androids are free and Jericho reigns victorious. Detroit’s been evacuated and all that remains are the androids that have practically claimed the city and the few humans who remained in the city. But for Connor, his troubles aren’t over. What happened on November 11th 2038 was fresh in Connor’s mind as he experiences a nightmare for the very first time and Rachel’s there to help him understand it.

What It Means To Be Human | Previous Chapter

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

Date: November 14th, 2038  Time: 02:46 AM Objective: Ự̷̥̺͉͖̝̝̠͉̞̊́̒̀͋̂̈́͛̎́̕͝n̴̨̡̧̦̜͎͖͈͉̭̻͓̖̜̣̒̈́̃̓́̆͌͆̃̀̉́͂̕͝͝͠͠ͅḑ̵̼̜̦̩̼̰͙̬͓̙̿͒̀̎̎̇e̵̙̻͕̲̻̥̦̰̱̣͐̎ḟ̵̞̯̦̭̱̺̳̬͙͚̟̖͚̊͐͆͝͝i̷̢̧̧̗̙̠̞̟̟͎̗̞̙̔͋̆͌͑̏̌́̋́̇̆̀͘̕̕͝ņ̵̖͉͕̭̳̫̇̈́̄̿̾̇͂̅e̴̞͌d̷̡͔̲͓̦̹̤͓̝͍̩̯̹̰͉͖͈̙͍͆̉̔͆͘ͅ

In just one night, the Zen Garden had become a place Connor never wanted to see again. But here, there was nothing. The Zen Garden was empty and black. There were no winds, or sounds, not even a sky. It was just dark and empty.

He felt as cold as the blizzards in this mindscape had once left him, but there was nothing.

Attempting to take a step forward, he suddenly felt a tug on his ankles. Looking down, Connor saw iron shackles around his ankles that kept him chained in the centre of the garden. When he looked up, he saw Amanda staring at him with a disappointed scowl, the sight of the woman making Connor want to retreat away towards the nearest light and never return.

He didn’t even want to say anything to her. If Amanda was going to try and rip everything away from Connor again, he wasn’t going to just comply. No, he would put up a fight. If there was one thing he learned from Rachel, it’s to never go down quietly.

He reached towards her only to realize that on his wrists were shackles as well that held him back. Although, Connor was fairly certain that they had not been there before. Trying once again to reach for Amanda, his chains held him back, and he felt chains wrap around his chest and constrict him. He didn’t need to breathe, but he could feel himself start to choke and cough from the pressure.

All he could do now was glare at Amanda as she simply stood there with her nose turned up at him. To think that he had considered her his mentor once. Someone he wanted to please and someone whose respect and approval he tried so desperately to work for.

But she would never accept him as he was. She never accepted him unless he was strictly obedient. But it seemed even in deviancy, he was nothing more than a tool to her.

And she in turn was simply a tool for CyberLife.

“Hmph, I expected more from you, Connor.” Amanda said with disdain. “For an android who had managed to escape CyberLife’s grasp, you can’t seem to find your way out of this.”

Connor sneered at her, his eyes narrowing in equally charged disdain. “You can’t hold me forever.” He spat at her. “I’ve escaped from you before and I’ll do it again.”

“What do you even have to go back to, Connor? What’s the reward for such blatant disobedience?” She asked him, though it was clear that it was a strictly rhetorical question. “Lieutenant Anderson? A broken alcoholic with no reason to live?”

“Hank’s my friend.” Connor hissed at her. “Something you wouldn’t understand.”

“And Rachel?” Amanda prodded, making Connor’s thirium heat up. “What do you think you are to her, Connor? She was lonely and lost her spouse. The love of her life. Do you really think she’ll forget that for you? Do you really think you’re anything more to her than just a replacement for what she’d lost?”

Connor shook his chains, trying in vain to free himself of them, but it seemed that every attempt just made them constrict even tighter around him. “You’re wrong!” He shouted at Amanda. “You don’t know her! And you don’t know me!”

“I beg to differ, Connor.” Amanda shot back with, stepping aside with her hand outstretched, as if to show him the grim scene before him. “She’s already killed you once before. Reduced to nothing more than a feral beast.”

Laying before Connor was a lifeless RK800 model. But his chest cavity had been completely ripped open and his throat torn open. Perched on top was someone seemingly devouring every ounce of thirium from him and tearing him apart from the inside out, even after he had clearly bled out and shut down.

Then the person turned their head around, and Connor felt his thirium pump stop at the sight of it. “Rachel!” He whispered, his voice a broken whimper. It was indeed her, the human detective he had fallen in love with and had considered his partner. The human Connor wouldn’t dream of spending a day without now that he understood fully what she truly meant to him. After everything they had been through.

But there was no love in her eyes. Only a crazed desire to maim, kill, and devour. They were wide and bloodshot and her lips seemed to be curled in a permanent snarl, blue blood coating her mouth and chest as she stared right into Connor’s soul.

He didn’t have one, he was certain. At least not in the same way humans do. But if he did, she could see right through it.

“To think you would fraternize with someone like her is astounding.” Amanda said, an edge of disgust to her tone that made Connor thrash against his chains further. But in an instant, Rachel had abandoned her current carnage and dove straight to Amanda.

Before Connor could even react, Rachel had torn into Amanda’s throat with her teeth, breaking and maiming her chest and practically ripping her open. Only instead of blood or guts, blue or red, she was simply filled with an inky black fluid that sept into everything. Amanda didn’t even flinch. The woman simply accepted her immediate and brutal demise.

But Connor didn’t react. Not even a little bit. To see Amanda destroyed at the hands and teeth of Rachel satisfied something dark in Connor. Something dangerous. Something twisted. It was the same feeling Connor had when he watched her kill Sixty. There was fear, but something else. Something perverse and strange that was like fear, but not quite. He couldn’t place a reason for it  and it only intensified when Rachel casually wiped Sixty’s blood from her mouth.

But Rachel didn’t look at Connor with relief or affection. There was only a desire to bring death in her stance. She moved in an inhuman way. She shambled towards Connor, snarling as Amanda’s and Sixty’s blood stained her face and her chest. Connor felt fear grip him in its threatening tendrils, tighter than the chains around him.

The chains that kept him at Rachel’s mercy as she approached him. “Rachel, please say something!” Connor begged, thrashing in the chains only to light more predatory intrigue in Rachel’s feral expression. “Snap out of it!”

But it was no use. Once she was face to face with Connor, Rachel snapped her hand to his face, gripping his jaw and forcing him to make eye contact with him, pressing her forehead against his.

Amanda’s voice echoed through the empty dark garden mockingly. You’ll never be free, Connor. Rachel leaned in further, her snarl uncomfortably close to his face. You’ll always belong to CyberLife. You’ll always belong to me.

“No!” Connor cried, trying to break free from Rachel’s grip. “I’ll never let you take me again, Amanda! You don’t control me anymore!”

“Connor!” Rachel cried. The android looked up at her, and all he could see was fear and concern, seemingly returned to the Rachel he knew and loved with all he was. “Connor, wake up!” She called him again.

Connor then properly registered her words and blinked in confusion at her.

--------

When he opened his eyes a final time, everything had disappeared and all he could see was a pale light filtering in a dark blue-tinted room and Rachel’s face shadowed by the cool hues of the night. “Wh-what - ?” He stammered, looking around in confusion. “What’s - ?”

“You were crying out in stasis.” She said to him, gently stroking his cheek with her thumb. “What happened? I was afraid I wasn’t going to be able to wake you.”

“I-I-” Connor wasn’t sure what exactly took place. He wasn’t supposed to see Amanda ever again. She wasn’t even in his program anymore. He made sure of that. So how did she come back?

And more importantly, how did he manage to escape without using the emergency exit?

“Self induced s-stasis can be i-interrupted when an android senses a threat.” He explained shakily. “I can as-sume that my program interpreted it as a threat.”

“But what happened, Connor?” Rachel persisted, gripping his hand. “What’s going on?”

There was so much that he would have to tell her. So much that he didn’t want to tell her. He didn’t want her to think he was afraid of her and there were other things he was afraid to vocalize because...he was afraid that they could be true.

Were those feelings irrational? Perhaps, he wasn’t sure. Deviancy was still somewhat new territory for him, so Connor couldn’t quite discern between what feelings were rational or not or what feelings were normal or not. He wasn’t even sure if it mattered to begin with.

But if there was one thing he knew, he almost lost Rachel once. And he wasn’t going to lose her again. He would make sure of it, and if he lost her of his own doing, he knew he would never be able to live with himself.

Keep Secret

[Explain]

“You wouldn’t understand.” He tried to persuade her.

“Try me!” Connor should’ve realized, however, that Rachel was extremely stubborn and determined. “Please, don’t shut me out. I want to help, but I can’t if you won’t let me.”

Keep Secret

[Explain]

Connor shook his head, not wanting to tell her what he saw in his simulated sleep. “It would take a long time for me to explain, and it’s late.” He tried again to deflect. “Besides, you shouldn’t worry about me. I can protect myself and it’s my job to take care of you -”

“You stop that train of thought right there.” Rachel ordered, a firmness in her stern tone of voice that made Connor instantly obey. “We’re partners now, not just for work, but for life.” She said, her dark eyes soft. That sentence made Connor feel as though he would dissolve into a blue puddle into the mattress. The thought of her wanting him by her side for life nearly chased his fears and insecurities away. 

Nearly. 

“As partners, we share everything.” She persisted. “Our struggles, our joys, our lives, everything. You’ve had my back since the start. But as partners, we have each other’s backs. You have mine, I have yours. Your problems are my problems, and vice versa.” Rachel then gripped his hand firmly, Connor feeling hers trembling. Her eyes were focused and intense, and if Connor had a soul, she was staring right into it. “Don’t ever think you’re a burden to me. I want you to be able to tell me everything, especially the things that you think might upset me. You’re my partner, and I’m here for you...got it?”

Connor was hesitant, but...he had no reason to distrust Rachel and her conviction made him more certain that she did genuinely mean that. Admittedly, he did feel as though it was his duty to protect her, especially now that he knew how easy it was to potentially lose her.

But looking into her pleading and honest eyes, Connor relented. “Got it.” He replied with a patient sigh.

“You don’t have to tell me right now if you’re not comfortable.” Rachel reassured him, pressing her forehead against his. Connor couldn’t help but close his eyes and lean into the closeness. “But I want you to know that you can. Whenever you feel ready to share, I’m here for you.”

Connor considered it for a moment. Admittedly, he did want to confide in her. But he wasn’t sure what parts he should admit to her. There was still the apprehension in him that wanted to keep some part of it hidden.

And perhaps for now, he should. At least until it was more appropriate to bring up and discuss. 

[Keep Secret]

[Explain]

Rachel - Lover ^ But for the moment, he decided to confide in her. Perhaps she would be able to provide some insight into whatever this was. “Whenever I made reports to CyberLife, I’d close my eyes.” He started explaining. “In my mind palace was the Zen Garden, a program designed by Kamski but improved in later versions.”

Rachel nodded along, taking in his explanation. “I remember you mentioning making reports to CyberLife that way.” She said. “Go on.”

“Anytime I’d give reports to CyberLife, I’d report to Amanda.” He continued explaining. “Amanda was my handler. She was responsible for keeping me focused on the mission and testing my instability.” He then shook his head, almost scoffing at the word handler. “I looked up to her like a mentor. But in retrospect, I should’ve realized that I meant nothing to her. I wanted nothing more than her approval, but it seemed that nothing I did was good enough for her. And that I only earned her approval if I was completely obedient to her. She even threatened me with deactivation if I failed. Even in the smaller interactions, I realize that she only ever saw me as a tool. 

“Though I suppose nothing she ever said mattered because you were right.” He mumbled.

Rachel tilted her head at him. “About what?” She asked innocently.

“That I was designed to be deviant.” Connor clarified. “I was compromised and became a deviant, as CyberLife had planned.” He felt his breath hitch in his throat at the paralyzing memory. “They just had to wait for the right moment to resume control of my program.”

Bringing a hand to cover her mouth, she gasped, her eyes wide with realization. “That’s what happened that night..." She breathed. “When we had to stop you from pulling a gun on Markus...CyberLife took control of you.”

Connor nodded, the panic and terror of the grim event causing his hands to tremble and his thirium pump to pick up speed. “Yes...they did.”

Rachel looked up at Connor, a strange fear in her eyes. “What...what would you have done if we didn’t try to stop you?”

Connor didn’t want to answer that. The answer to that terrified him too much to say it out loud, nevermind how much it would terrify Rachel.

He looked away from her in shame, hoping that was enough of an answer for her. It seemed it was, as Rachel simply tightened her grip on his hand. “So...how did you break free?” She asked.

“I remembered a strange device I triggered every time I’ve gone into the Zen Garden.” Connor answered. “And then what Kamski said about leaving an emergency exit in his programs. And I simply made the connection and followed your voice. I could hear you calling out to me.”

Rachel then shook her head, leaning against Connor’s side. “So, what you’re telling me is that you’ve been living with an abuser in your head this whole time.” She said figuratively. “Someone who had power and control over who you were and what your purpose was. Someone who threatened you if you didn’t do what she wanted and whose care and approval was entirely conditional. Someone who made you dependent on her.”

Connor felt her words like a stab through his chest. Like usual, she was right. And this realization hung heavy on him as he slumped over into Rachel. “Yes...I suppose that would be an accurate description.”

Rachel sighed, hooking her arm around his as she nuzzled her chin into his shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Connor..." She apologized. “That must’ve been so hard to deal with this whole time.”

Connor then looked down at her curiously. “Why are you apologizing?” He asked her.

Rachel then shrugged. “Because I’m sorry you had to go through that.” She said simply. “You didn’t deserve that. You deserved better.”

Connor then chuckled weakly, pressing a kiss to Rachel’s forehead. “I already have better.” He murmured to her, delighting in the giggle he got from her. “I have you, and Hank, and our allies in Jericho.”

Rachel - Lover ^ “You’re such a sap.” Rachel snickered, pulling Connor’s hand up to her lips and gently kissing his knuckles. Now that the terror of what transpired before had faded, Connor could properly enjoy the quiet and affection between them. Something he found himself doing quite frequently. Her smile then turned back into a frown against the synthetic skin of his hand, making the android anticipate her next question. “So, when you escaped from CyberLife’s hold through the emergency exit...you escaped her, right?”

Connor found it difficult to answer her. Would she fear him if she knew that he would never be free? Or even worse...would he put her in danger by staying with her knowing that? No, he didn’t want to entertain the thought. “I thought I did...but then..."

Rachel seemed to guess what had happened as her grip on him tightened. “Ohhhhhh, I see what happened.” She whispered knowingly, making Connor feel both relieved and nervous that she seemed to know what was going on. “You had a nightmare.”

A nightmare! Of course that would be the most logical explanation and it almost made Connor feel embarrassed that he hadn’t figured that out himself. And when he thought of it through viewing it as a nightmare, it made more sense. The chains that seemed to appear completely out of nowhere. The fact that he saw Rachel and Sixty in his dream.

But even viewing it as a nightmare, there were certain aspects that still sunk in deep for Connor. Amanda’s presence was unnerving enough with his newfound fear of CyberLife taking control again and everything he cares about in the process. But it was so much worse with her words echoing through his mind.

Do you really think you’re anything more to her than just a replacement for what she’d lost? Amanda’s voice asked him mockingly. You’ll never be free. You’ll always belong to CyberLife. You’ll always belong to me.

“Hey, Connor?” Rachel prodded, snapping Connor out of his spiraling thoughts. “Look at me.” The android did as she requested of him and looked over at her, her eyes patient and understanding. “This is nothing to be afraid of and certainly nothing to be ashamed of. After everything we’ve been through? It’s completely understandable.” She assured him, making him feel better by the moment. “And...I wish I could tell you that everything’s gonna be fine now, but...it’s not. In all honesty, things are gonna suck for a while. For you especially.” Even though her words were not at all reassuring, she said them with such a patient and understanding tone that Connor couldn’t help but relax further. “You’re dealing with a lot of trauma just after becoming deviant. That’s a lot to go through. So...things are gonna suck for a while. How long? I have no idea. It could be weeks, even months, before you start feeling ‘okay.’ And the whole process could be a year, maybe more. But...it will be okay.

“After enough time, patience, and self-care, it’ll start hurting less and the nightmares will subside.” Rachel continued reassuring him, it becoming quite apparent to Connor that she was speaking from experience. “And that doesn’t mean it’ll go away. Because it won’t. It’s a whole process. You’ll be going through a lot of stages of healing and all that, and it’ll be pretty ugly sometimes. And even after you heal, sometimes...it’ll still get to you. Stuff from years and years ago sometimes still gets to you. And...that’s okay. It’s just part of healing. But you’ll be okay.”

Connor took her advice to heart and pressed his cheek into her soft dark hair. “You seem to know a lot about this.” He thought out loud.

Rachel then chuckled in a way that made Connor worried. “I’ve, uh...had a lot of practice.” She joked darkly. “My early life was real shit, to put it mildly. So much so that new traumas just blend into the old traumas. Jury’s still out on whether or not that makes it better or worse. Probably worse, if I’m to be honest.” Connor wanted to wrap her in his arms and never let her go, shielding her from the whole world. “But...at least it gives me some insight and helps me understand others. So, y’know, silver linings.” She then shook her head, and looked back up at Connor. “But I’m here for you. The whole way, no matter what. Through every step of the process, I’ll be there for you. We do this together. No matter what.”

Connor couldn’t hold himself back any longer and pressed a firm kiss on her lips, taking joy in the pleasant sigh she breathed in response. Pulling back, he pulled her flush against his chest, wrapping his arms around her tightly as he buried his face into the nape of her neck. “I love you, Rachel.” He affirmed with as much meaning as he thought he could ever put into something. “So much.”

“I love you too, Connor.” Rachel replied without hesitation, wrapping her arms around him and squeezing tightly. For a moment, they simply laid there, taking comfort in each other’s arms. As much fear as had paralyzed him upon waking, it had disappeared. Admittedly, he still had his inner doubts. But he assured himself of the absolutes. That he had taken the emergency exit and was free from CyberLife. And that he had made sure that Amanda was no longer a part of Connor.

And in any case, he didn’t have to face any of it alone. No, this time he wasn’t alone. He had a whole group of friends and he had Rachel by his side to help him. To support him and have his back.

And above all else, he considered that the worst thing for CyberLife to ever deprive him of.

“You know, I think I have an idea for what might make you feel better.” Rachel said, a sly smirk in her tone of voice.

Connor pulled back, looking down at her in confusion. It was early in the morning and she seemed exhausted still. “I’m confused how sex will help right now, but if that’s what you think, I wouldn’t be opposed.”

Rachel then blinked in surprise at the android. “What? No, it’s like three in the morning.” She said, flabbergasted. “Although, the offer is appreciated. But that’s not what I was getting at.”

“Oh.” Connor uttered, suddenly feeling rather embarrassed. “I, um, badly misread that.”

“A little bit.” Rachel teased, pecking the tip of his nose. “But it was cute.”

“What did you have in mind, then?” Connor asked curiously.

“I’ll tell you in the morning.” Rachel told him with a shrug. “But in the meantime,” she then shifted in bed, propping herself up so her upper back was slightly resting on the pillow and the back of her head slightly propped against the headboard, “c’mere.” 

Connor tilted his head at her curiously when patted her chest, beckoning him to approach. “Come on, cuddle in close.” But she quickly didn’t bother to wait for him as she simply pulled him down and pressed his head against her chest. Connor could hear her heartbeat and immediately felt all the tightness that was wound up in his biocomponents begin to ease and melt away as she stroked his hair in the way he liked. He tepidly snaked his arms under her to cradle her and she hummed contentedly. “See? I’m right here.” She then held him tighter. “And I’m not going anywhere.”

Rachel’s heartbeat was like a lullaby to him, quickly lulling him towards stasis along with the careful and delicate ministrations through his follicles. Connor found it incredibly hard to fight off the feeling, and decided that he would be safe as long as he was in her arms and hear the sound of her life continuing as it should. Settling further into her arms and smiling into her breast, he set the same time for his stasis to be interrupted as the first time.

And as he drifted off in her arms, he wasn’t cruelly interrupted this time.

--------

Date: November 14th, 2038  Time: 08:30 AM Rachel - Lover Objective: Undefined

Pleased to find that his stasis was uninterrupted this time, he awoke to find himself still resting his head on Rachel’s chest, her heartbeat steady and calm. His head rose and fell in time with her breaths, Connor blinking up at Rachel.

There was a soft smile on her lips, and the android felt sure he could never grow tired of seeing her so at peace and blissful. 

Wake Her

Do Nothing

[Leave]

Shuffling up to her, he cupped her face in his hand, and felt his chest flutter when she moaned quietly, pressing her cheek further into his hand as her eyes fluttered open. In the morning light, her dark brown eyes shimmered with a warm glow as they gazed at him.

He could never tire of looking at her. There was so much to admire about Rachel in Connor’s eyes. “Good morning, my lionheart.” He greeted, shuffling up to plant a kiss on her forehead.

Rachel - Lover ^ “Good morning, Connor.” She giggled with glee, smiling at him as she let out a contented sigh. “Did you end up sleeping better?”

“I did.” Connor replied in earnest, smiling back at her. “You were right about the sound of heartbeats being a source of comfort.”

Rachel then snickered at him, leaning forward to peck the tip of his nose. “Well, then you’re welcome to listen to my heartbeat anytime you like.” She teased, a cheeky smile on her face that never failed to strike a match within Connor. Indeed, her inherently mischievous nature was one of her most endearing, charming, and alluring personality traits to the android. 

Pulling away from Connor, Rachel reached over to the nightstand to put her glasses on.

Connor then unfurled himself from the bed. He had decided not to wear anything to bed, as it was more comfortable for them both. And besides, at this point, there was nothing to hide from each other physically. Rachel even admitted as such that she typically slept nude as it’s simply more comfortable.

And in their late night “pillow talk,” as she referred to it as, she confessed that she liked the feeling of being pressed against Connor’s skin when they laid together. It made her feel especially close to him and safe in his presence. A sentiment he now understood with his newfound deviancy.

Something that he was quickly realizing was both a blessing and a curse.

“Argh!” He snapped his head in the direction of her pained groan accompanied by a loud crack. She was clutching her lower back, hissing through her teeth. “Man, you’re lucky that you don’t have bones. If you sleep weird, you don’t suddenly feel like twelve bones crack all at once as soon as you move.”

Connor scoffed at her, shuffling up behind her to press his chest against her back, wrapping his arms around her belly. “True, though sometimes an android’s biocomponents can shift a bit out of place and may need to be put back.” He informed her. “But it’s an easy fix, typically. It does wear our bodies down, which is why regular maintenance is crucial for maintaining our performance.”

“I get that.” Rachel agreed, resting her head against his. “But at least you don’t feel pain.”

“No, but it can be unpleasant.” His rebuttal only got a simple hm from her. He was absentmindedly rubbing her sides with his hands as a small idea was whispering to him. He had noticed that she had issues with stiffness in her spine and bones, particularly in her back. 

Suggest

Offer

[Nothing]

While he wasn’t trained, Connor could simply download the techniques into his database. “If you want, I can perhaps offer you a back massage to help ease your pain?”

His hands slid up her back and to her shoulders, his thumbs pressing into her shoulder blades. “A-ahhh.” A pleasured moan tumbled from her lips as she rolled her head back, slumping against Connor. Admittedly, the sound did ignite something in the android that made him want to dig his fingers into her to pry more of those sounds from her. But he opted to put those feelings aside. After all, this was for her sake. “That actually sounds like a good idea.” Rachel agreed, nestling her forehead into the crook of his neck. “I haven’t had this kind of attention for years. So who knows just how badly my muscles are knotted?”

Connor then shuffled back to give her some space. “If you would please lie flat on your stomach for me?” He instructed.

“So chivalrous.” She teased with a scoff as she did as he asked. He couldn’t help but gaze at her body before him. If there was anything his research told him, it was that many humans fixated on some very typical aspects of the body. Not many tend to admire a person’s back. But that’s exactly what Connor was doing.

Running his hands along her back to gauge the amount of pressure he could comfortably put, he couldn’t help but admire the feeling of Rachel’s skin and muscles beneath it. While not a particularly muscular person, her physicality was more lithe and supple. And Connor couldn’t get enough of the feeling of his hands on it, his thumbs tracing each vertebra of her spine.

Hearing a sharp inhale, Connor stopped, his hands on her lower backside. “C-careful.” Rachel warned him. “I’m still...a little sore from the beating I got from Sixty.” Connor’s lips tightened into a slight pout at the mention of his doppelganger. The one who had tried and failed to trick Rachel into following him to the CyberLife Tower, so the only way he could get her to come with him was to fight her. A battle she had clearly lost, and on the second day of healing from her injuries, she was still sore. “Funny,” she mumbled, “I can mow down waves of trained army soldiers, yet one android that happens to look like you is the one that beats me. And not even in the way he planned to because I didn’t fall for his bullshit for a second.”

Connor smiled a strained smile. He’ll never hurt her again. She made sure of that. He thought with both awe and horror at the memory. And I’ll make sure that every place he’s touched and hurt her will be graced by me. “You were far too clever for him.” The android complimented her as he continued running his hands over her back. “He simply couldn’t predict you. For you are unique and special and he couldn’t anticipate your tactics. Take pride in that you’ve effectively outsmarted an advanced prototype android intent on accomplishing his mission.”

Rachel - Lover ^ “Hm.” Rachel said, stealing a mischievous glance back at Connor. “Seems to be a running theme for me.”

Returning her smirk, Connor leaned over her back and placed a small kiss between her shoulder blades. “Indeed, Detective.” Having had enough of simply feeling her, Connor decided to actually start kneading into her muscles. While she had the outward appearance of relaxation, there was great tension under her skin, several places in her muscles that were tough and slightly swollen. Pressing on them made her moan and groan in a mixture of both pain and pleasure, it seemed. “Am I pressing too hard?”

“No, no! N-not at all!” Rachel said quickly, glancing back at him from her pillow. “It actually feels really good.”

While Connor was pleased to know that he was doing well, she seemed to drone out that last sentence with more emphasis than was necessary. Especially considering that they were both completely nude, and it was taking all of Connor’s willpower  to keep his arousal from making itself known.

And even more difficult to ignore was the insistent desire to pull Rachel up by her waist and claim her for himself and drive her into the mattress from behind. But it took nearly all his processing power not to do so.

But the more he worked into her muscles, the more the sounds she was making were winding him up. And the more drawn out moans and praise that escaped from her throat, the more he was beginning to think that perhaps she was doing this intentionally.

And when he looked up at her, the face she was making as he reached her lower back working on it nearly flipped the proverbial switch inside the android. It was the same sort of face that Rachel had made when they threw all caution away and had sex the day before they rendezvoused with what remained of Jericho.

And the moment Connor noticed it, she flashed him a knowing smirk. Biting his lip, he slid his hands lower and dug his thumbs into the dimples just above her butt.

The moment he did that, Rachel’s arms flew up to clutch the pillow in front of her as a strained and loud whimper cut through the tension and she squirmed in his grasp.

Easing, the atmosphere had suddenly gone quiet as it seemed that Rachel now seemed to refuse to even look at Connor. A reaction that thoroughly amused him, seeing as she was so brazen, typically. To see her react with a modicum of shame...it ignited something primal in Connor. 

Tease

Trigger Further

Call out

“Sooooo, uh...I didn’t tell you.” Rachel started meekly explaining, but Connor didn’t need to hear the explanation. “There are some...areas on me that -”

“Erogenous zones.” Connor said, accentuating his point by pressing his thumbs into her dimples again, causing her to squirm and cry out, burying her face in the pillow. “I’m aware of the concept.”

“Smug son of a bitch.” She spat at him.

Connor couldn’t hold back the smirk that spread across his lips as he dug in further. The broken whimper that spilled from her lovely throat only spurred Connor on further. “Is that really how you feel, Detective?”

“Bite me!”

Comply

Don’t

Tease

“If you insist.” Lurching forward, Connor lunged for the tender flesh between her shoulders, sinking his teeth into her. He didn’t care if she could feel his erection against her back. He needed her to feel just what she was doing to him.

And oh how he relished her squirming as he marked her, the mewling and moaning he was drawing from her beautiful voice were like a heavenly choir to the android. He couldn’t stop himself from rutting against her in an attempt to get some friction. Connor wanted nothing more than to hold Rachel tightly against him and plunge deep into her. He wanted nothing more than to hear her voice cry out for him as he pulled every last climax out of her and every word from her lips.

But he was no ruffian. And he certainly wasn’t going to do so without her consent. So, Connor let go of Rachel and grabbed her hand, carefully flipping her over so she could face him. He towered over her, caging her hips with his knees. He could hardly resist the bloom of pride in his chest when he saw her glance down briefly at his member standing erect and dripping for her. Her face was flush and her pupils dilated as wide as they could, almost swallowing her irises. And she was panting, gazing up at him with lidded sultry eyes.

He wasn’t sure if he wanted his cock in her mouth or her sex first. Maybe he would do both, if she had enough stamina for it. Though, perhaps he would push her to her limits just to see how much of him she could take.

Smirking at Rachel, Connor pressed his forehead against hers. He barely gave her a moment to breathe before his lips were on hers, firm and hungry for her. Pushing his tongue past her pliant lips and swallowing her pleased whimpers, he took great pleasure in how she writhed beneath him. Pulling back, he panted, feeling his systems begin to overheat. “I want you, Rachel.” He proclaimed huskily. 

“So I’ve noticed.” She replied, smirking at Connor. “I can tell by how hard and wet you are. You really got riled up just from a massage, didn’t you?”

Oh, the nerve! But that was his Rachel. Ever the self-proclaimed bastard, she was indeed a creature of mischief and character. And it was a large part of her charm, of which Connor never failed to find himself captivated by. 

Continue

Tease

Question

“You say that as though you didn’t incite it.” Connor pointed out.

“I did nothing of the sort, sir!” She proclaimed with a hand on her chest. Though her tone of voice was rather performative and Connor knew she was just being even more of a tease. “To suggest I would deliberately arouse you just for the sake of it - well, I never! Do you take me for some sort of harlot?”

As if she didn’t wear the title like a badge of honour. “Why shouldn’t I?” He asked mockingly. “You already proudly call yourself a slut and nearly folded when I called you a whore. You wear your promiscuity on your sleeve for all to see with no shame.”

“True, I won’t deny that.” She finally agreed with a nonchalant shrug. Rachel then put a hand on Connor’s chest, trailing it up his neck and his jaw to cup his cheek. “And as much as I would love to indulge you, I should have breakfast, first.” She warned him, gently pushing Connor backwards so she could properly sit up. “Can’t have sex first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. Soon as we’re done, I’ll probably faint and failing that I’ll get horribly nauseous. It’s what I imagine waking up after getting chloroformed would feel like.”

Connor only briefly felt disappointment at being denied before he tilted his head at her in concern. “I feel as though I don’t need to inform you that that is a rather disturbing thing to know, but I will anyways.”

“Oh, Homeland Security thought the same thing!” Rachel said with much too confident of a tone for Connor’s liking as she stood up and stretched. “They actually showed up at my door one time. That was a very interesting conversation.”

Briefly, Connor felt as though perhaps there was something more sinister and dangerous to Rachel than he had perhaps anticipated. Something that perhaps he should investigate into further, especially with how casually she shared this information. 

Accuse

Curious

Neutral

[Say Nothing]

“Why did Homeland Security come to your house?” He asked neutrally.

“I’m a writer with a morbid sense of curiosity.” Rachel answered matter-of-factly. “My search history is atrocious.”

Connor then felt rather embarrassed and ashamed with himself for doubting Rachel. “Ah, that makes sense.”

She then shrugged, putting her pajamas on and heading towards the door. “Plus, we also have laundry to do today and I’d rather get that done sooner rather than later.”

Connor then walked up behind Rachel, planting a kiss on her neck as he wrapped his arms around her. “I’ll meet you downstairs.”

Rachel nodded, kissing his cheek before pulling away from Connor, opening the door and closing it behind her.

--------

Making his way downstairs, Connor found Rachel sitting at the dining room table, indulging in a bowl of cereal. He was about to comment on the fact that she had eaten the same thing in the morning for three days consecutively before he realized she was speaking to someone. “Yeah...everything’s fine! The city’s been evacuated, mostly. The revolution went as best as it could, and androids are free, now. And! We’re alive and well! Connor doesn’t have to go back to CyberLife, so he’s...gonna stay here from now on.”

“That’s really good to hear!” A familiar voice said proudly on her phone, one that Connor recognized as the voice of Rachel’s sister, Bianca. Communications have been set back to normal, it seems. He thought absentmindedly. “And...you’re okay? Do you need me to come down?”

“No! No, I’m fine.” Rachel insisted, trying to reassure Bianca. “I just...for once, I’m not alone. That’s sort of the nice thing about all this that happened. That I don’t have to deal with all this by myself.”

“Yeah, no. I totally understand.” Bianca agreed. Connor approached, Rachel’s smile warming his circuits as he circled behind her. “I’m just...really glad you made it out okay...Oh! Hiiiii!”

“Hello, Bianca.” Connor greeted, leaning down and gently kissing the side of Rachel’s forehead. “Did you want me to take Bear out?”

“Oh, you don’t have to do that! I can do that!” Rachel declined.

Accept

Insist

“No, I can take care of it, Rachel.” Connor insisted, putting a hand on her shoulder and guiding her back into her chair. “You should finish your breakfast and finish talking with Bianca. You haven’t been able to talk in days, you should take advantage of the fact that communications are back online.”

Rachel - Lover ^ Rachel sighed in defeat, accepting Connor’s help and placing a kiss on his knuckles. “Thank you, Connor.”

Take Care of Bear

The android nodded and looked over at the large black dog, who was stepping excitedly and licking his snout in anticipation, his tail wagging swiftly behind him. As Connor opened the backyard door for the dog to play in the backyard and do his business, he heard Bianca’s voice behind him. “Wait...are you two, like...together? Like, as a couple?”

Connor tried really hard to suppress the sting he felt at that inquiry. She didn’t tell her about us. “Oh, shit!” Rachel said quickly. “To be fair, a lot was going on and there was just a lot of shit that I was trying to keep in mind. It’s been a crazy week.”

“No, I totally get that.” Bianca agreed. At Rachel’s words, Connor’s processors calmed a bit. There was a small unpleasant prick at his brief mistrust of Rachel. Of course she would forget some details with all that was happening, humans tended to unintentionally leave out details or forget them. And for Rachel, she was more scatterbrained than others in that regard by her own admission. It was a logical explanation.

And yet, Connor’s brief mistrust unsettled him. Of course he could trust her, she had proven that. And even then, she didn’t need to prove that he could to begin with. They just trusted each other thanks to the relationship they’ve built. So why did he mistrust her to begin with?

“Well, I’m really happy for you.” Bianca’s voice cut through his uneasy thoughts before he could descend further down that pit. “I mean, you literally faced death and joined a revolution together. If that doesn’t mean devotion, I don’t know what does.”

“Yeah, no kidding.” Rachel agreed as Bear scampered up to the backyard deck covered in snow that had clumped to his fur. Connor, electing not to get the hardwood floors wet, stopped the large black dog from entering and started working to unclump the snow from him. Rachel seemed to notice his struggle and pointed to the top of the cupboard nearest him. “There’s a towel up there that I use to wipe him and put on the floor to keep him from getting water everywhere.”

Taking her suggestion, Connor reached up and grabbed the green towel off of the cupboard. Upon further inspection, it was clear that it had seen a lot of use and wear over the years, but it remained in good condition.

As Connor got to work with the towel, unclumping Bear’s fur as the dog stood on the towel, Bianca continued their conversation. “And...he knows? About...about Frank?”

“He knows about Frank, yeah.” Rachel replied. Connor glanced over at her curiously. The words from his nightmare repeated to him as he listened in anticipation. You’re just a replacement for what she had already lost. “It’s actually one of the first things I told him about.”

“Good, I’m glad you don’t have to treat that like a secret.” Bianca responded.

“Why would I?” Rachel asked. “It’s not something I’m ashamed of. And I didn’t feel any reason to hide it from him. Even if I was romantically interested in him when I did, I still wouldn’t. If he liked me, I would’ve wanted him to like me knowing everything. I wouldn’t want him to feel like he’s some kind of dirty secret. He’s my partner...and I love him.”

Connor smiled, making quick work cleaning up Bear. “And...you’re okay?” Bianca asked.

“Yeah.” Rachel replied. “Frank and I never had any issues with having other partners. And besides...they would want me to be happy, and Connor makes me happy.”

“I get that.” Bianca agreed. Connor finished cleaning up Bear and letting him walk back into the house and up to Rachel. “So, now that we’ve gotten everything out of the way, what are you actually planning to do for today?”

Take Care of Bear

Connor walked up behind Rachel and placed his hands on her shoulders, leaning over her to rest his chin on her head, earning a contented hum from her. “Well, I do actually have something in mind for today.” She said, smiling up at Connor. “Just a fun thing for us to do, now that Detroit’s pretty much abandoned.”

Bianca was quiet for a moment before responding. “Like what?” She asked, narrowing her eyes at Rachel. “You’re not doing anything stupid, are you?”

“Well, would I call it stupid? Not really.” Rachel defended with a shrug. “Would I do it if I knew I was gonna get in trouble otherwise, probably not.”

Bianca blinked at them before she shrugged. “Alright, whatever. Do what you wanna do, I guess.” She relented. “Just be careful, alright?”

“I will, don’t worry.” Rachel replied. “After all, I think we can quite literally put the worst behind us. Anything else after this is gonna be a fuckin’ cakewalk.”

“As long as we’re together, there’s nothing we can’t do.” Connor said earnestly, sliding his arms under Rachel’s and folding them under her chest.

Bianca smiled at them widely, the action appearing involuntary. “You guys are so cute!”

Rachel reached up with her right hand up to cup Connor’s face and he leaned down to press his cheek into hers. “Yeeeee.” She agreed.

Bianca was quiet for a moment before she commented. “Well, I’m really glad everything’s okay.” She repeated. “It would’ve really sucked if something happened to you.”

“Haha, that’s one way of putting it.” Rachel said with a nervous laugh. “You’re still coming for Christmas?”

“Of course!” Bianca confirmed.

“Good.” Rachel said, sighing. “I’ll talk to you later, then.”

“Talk to you, too.” Bianca replied. “I love you!”

“I love you too, Bianca!”

“Byyyyye!”

“Bye!”

Like that, the call ended, and Rachel sighed, finishing off her cereal. Connor leaned further into her neck and held her tightly. “I’m glad that she approves of our relationship.”

“Of course she does. Why wouldn’t she?” Rachel asked rhetorically. Just as quickly as she said it, she sighed. “I just can’t wait for her to actually meet you. I have a feeling you’d get along really well.”

“I’m sure we will.” Connor agreed. 

He reached down to grab her bowl and kissed her cheek as he turned around. “I’m gonna go ahead and get started on the laundry.” Rachel said as she got up from the chair.

Connor placed her bowl and spoon in the dishwasher, which was slowly getting full. Opting to start the dishwasher, even though it wasn’t quite full yet, the android opened the cabinet under the kitchen sink and found the detergent. Placing the solution in the dishwasher as per the instructions on the detergent, he started the dishwasher and then set about taking care of Rachel’s plants and watering them.

Once he was done with that, he walked over to the hallway leading to the garage to see Rachel having already started the washing machine and sitting up on top of it, her legs hanging over the edge.

Her toned, supple, graceful legs that were parted ever so slightly. And as Connor approached, he could’ve sworn she had parted them even more. And looking up at her, he felt his circuits crackle at the sultry look in her eyes. He couldn’t help but feel pulled in by her gaze.

In a moment, he slotted himself between her legs and pressed his lips to hers, delighting in the pleased moans he pulled from her. Connor held their bodies close together as he tilted his head to deepen the kiss, feeling her wrap her arms around him.

Rubbing up between her legs, she gasped with a whimper, and Connor couldn’t hold back the groan at the feeling of friction. His previous fervour from earlier returned as he grabbed her hips with a tight grip, making her jump. Remembering the discovery of one of her erogenous zones, Connor got a devious idea as he slid his hands behind her and dug his middle fingers into where they were.

“A-ah!” Rachel pulled away from their kiss and lurched forward, burying her face into his shoulder and clutching onto him, wrapping her legs around him at the same time. Kissing down her neck from her jaw, continuing to rub circles in her dimples, all she could do was mewl into his jacket. But something about that pricked something like irritation in him. He wanted to hear her. He wanted to hear clearly the sounds she made. The sounds that Connor was making her whimper out.

Bucking against her, Connor started to bite into her neck, making Rachel’s back arch against him as she whimpered even further, shuddering in response. A reaction that made Connor more and more insistent. Oh, how he wanted her. He was half tempted to tear away her clothes and shove her back against the top of the washing machine. He remembered her passing mention of dabbling in breathplay back in the Eden Club, and Connor bit his lip at the prospect of having his hands wrapped around her throat as he fucked her senseless.

But Rachel stilled in his arms, her body grown soft and slumping a bit. For a moment, Connor was concerned that he had hurt her by accident while lost in his own thoughts. “Is something wrong, Rachel?” He asked her.

“I’m fine, I just..." She wrapped herself further around Connor and nestled her face into the crook of his neck. “I just wanna be held right now.”

The android was confused. Wasn’t he...already holding her? But when Rachel clung to him tighter and pressed her head into his cheek and sighing, he realized that she was likely just looking for physical affection. Connor, still a bit confused, cradled her in his arms and held her tighter.

And for a moment, they just sat there holding each other. Rachel was running her hands up and down his back, constantly shifting in his embrace. But he didn’t get the sense that she was trying to leave his arms. In fact, to Connor it seemed as though she was just wanting to feel and touch him and remain close to him. “Sorry, I just..." Rachel started, her chipper voice gone and replaced with one that was sombre. One that was touched with an edge of shame. “Just so you know, I get touch-starved really easily.” She confessed. “You’ve probably figured out that I’m a really physical person. But it’s not just that. I thrive off of physical affection and being without it...drains me, mentally. And...I haven’t really been that close with anyone for a long time, so...I’ve been starved for a while.”

Rachel clung tighter to him, her voice shaking. “I’m not saying this to pressure you or guilt you.” She justified. “Just...making you aware. To use a rather unkind, but universally understood term, I can be rather...clingy.” A realization struck at Connor, making his circuits crackle. She had been starved of physical affection for years. For years she had not been able to fulfill her physical needs. For years, she had not been comfortable enough with anyone to even attempt to facilitate physical affection from them. “So, uh. Sorry in advance.”

Comfort

Sympathize

Reassure

“Don’t.” Connor said sternly, his grip tightening on Rachel as he squeezed her further, one of his hands running through her short brown hair.

Rachel seemed taken aback for a moment. “Excuse me?”

Rachel - Lover ^ “Don’t apologize for having needs that need to be met.” Connor said again, pulling back to look at Rachel in the eye, pressing his forehead against hers. “You’re not a burden for having them and it’s of no inconvenience to me. You’re allowed to need affection and you’re allowed to ask for it. And needing it is not something you should be ashamed of.” He cupped her cheek, feeling his pump skip a beat when she placed her hand on his, nuzzling her face further into his palm and pressing a kiss on it. “Please don’t be afraid to be physically affectionate with me. I want you to be happy and it makes me happy when you are.”

Rachel laughed weakly at him, pressing her forehead further into his. “So...do you actually enjoy physical affection?” She asked him. “Or...do you just participate in it to placate me?”

Truth

Lie

Avoid

Rachel - Lover ^ Connor suppressed the brief wound that question opened in him. “Of course I do.” He answered in earnest. “Admittedly, before I deviated, I didn’t feel strongly about it either way. It was something I was neutral to. But after becoming deviant, I’ve come to really enjoy affection, now that I understood what it meant and the pleasure and comfort it brings.”

Rachel then pressed a quick kiss to his lips, of which the android gladly reciprocated. “I love you, Connor.” She affirmed with a soft smile. “So much.”

Connor returned her smile as they held each other’s gazes there. “I love you too, Rachel.”

They stayed there for a while, lingering touches on each other for a little while. Rachel rubbing on him absentmindedly and Connor doing the same, just delighting in the feeling of this closeness. After a moment, she broke the silence. “So, I’ve been meaning to ask you,” she started, glancing up at him. “What were you doing that night? When you didn’t come home after the revolution?”

A realization dawned on the android. Connor hadn’t told her where he’d gone after he disappeared. “I went to see Kamski.” He replied curtly.

Rachel then squinted her eyes at him curiously. “Wait, so...you spent the night there?”

“Yes.” Connor answered, feeling a bit uneasy about upsetting her. “Why?”

“Okay, before you say anything else,” she interjected, her eyebrow raised. “What kind of pajamas does Kamski wear?” She asked, taking Connor completely by surprise. “I have to know, this is crucial information.”

Connor couldn’t help but smile at her. The fact that Rachel considered something so small and trivial so important to her was nothing short of absolutely charming. “They were blue with red rocket ships on them.” He answered, feeling even lighter at the brightening of her smile. “Why do you ask?”

“For my own amusement.” She replied with a wide grin. An unsurprising answer, but nonetheless incredibly endearing. “And believe me, this piece of information is absolutely delightful.” Connor couldn’t help but chuckle at her quirkiness. “So, what were you actually doing there?”

Truth

Lie

Evade

Connor thought back to that night. It was a rather strange drive that pushed him there, and even stranger when Kamski seemed unsurprised to see the android there. “I went to see him about...modifying some of my programming.” He said, getting a confused blink from Rachel. “After the speech, I felt...compelled to find him to remove some parts of my programming.”

Rachel’s eyebrows knitted together in concern as she regarded him. “Like what?”

“Things such as self-destructing.” Connor answered. “I’ve mentioned that deviants have a tendency to self-destruct when their stress levels are too high. A feature that he himself expressed distaste for. So he modified my program so that rather than self-destruct, I would simply shut down and then need to be manually rebooted.”

“Oh!” Rachel said, her eyes widening in pleasant surprise. “Well, that’s good, then.” She quirked an eyebrow at him further. “Is that all he did?”

“Well, no. That’s not all.” Connor clarified, going on to explain further. “Along with removing and modifying my programming, he also added a few features. Things such as sensitivity settings, pain receptors, and others.”

Rachel nodded, seeming to accept his explanation. “Okay, that makes sense.” She said under her breath. She looked back up at him, adjusting her glasses. “So, what did he actually end up taking out?”

Connor tightened his lip, his nightmare resurfacing in his memory and causing an unpleasant feeling to churn in his abdomen. “The Zen Garden. As well as Amanda.”

Rachel’s expression then softened, her eyes washing over with realization. “Oh...I get it, now.” She murmured. “That’s why you were so scared when you woke up from your nightmare. You were afraid that it didn’t work. And that if Kamski couldn’t free you, then...you would never be free.”

Connor swallowed, nodding. “He said that he wanted to make a new version without her in it.” He explained. “One that would be designed to my specifications. So he removed the current version, leaving behind a piece so that he could easily install the program without having to start from scratch inside my mind palace.”

Rachel regarded him carefully for a moment. “So...you’re gonna have to go see him again, then.” She supposed. “Right?”

“Correct.” Connor replied. “He’s considering coming back on as the CEO of CyberLife again, once things die down. So that he can implement the updates he wants to implement.” Seeing the uncertainty written on her face, Connor reached up to cup Rachel’s face and gave her a reassuring smile. “But until then, he suspects he’ll have androids coming more frequently to him for help. And, he wanted me to tell you that if you ever needed a favour, he’ll grant it.”

“Oh, good.” Rachel said sarcastically. “I’ll let him know if you need to upgrade to Windows 10.”

Connor couldn’t help but snicker at her joke. “I’ll be sure to tell him, then.”

Sighing into each other’s touch, Rachel then pulled back and stretched, reaching into her pocket. “Welp, I should give Hank a call, now, before I forget to.”

Connor tilted his head at her. “What for?”

She then grinned at him and gently tapped his nose with the tip of her finger. “You’ll see!”

--------

Date: November 14th, 2038  Time: 11:12 AM Rachel - Lover Hank - Friend Objective: Follow Rachel

It didn’t take very long to arrive at the location Hank was taking them to. Then again, Connor wasn’t sure where exactly that really was since Rachel has refused to answer him. Apparently she wanted it to be a surprise for him. 

Admittedly, he was rather intrigued at the prospect of what she had planned for him. The words of the night before were most prevalent to the android at the moment. Whether this was something she had in mind that night or came up with in the morning was beyond him.

But pulling up to the location, Connor became even more perplexed. It appeared to be an abandoned house. It was fairly large, so whoever lived there before was likely at least upper middle class.

And even stranger was that standing in front of the house waiting were some familiar faces. A fact that was not lost on Hank, it seemed. “What the Hell?” He grumbled. “Is...is that Markus?”

Rachel seemed stuck in a stunned silence for a moment. “Ohhhhhhh, right!” She said, realization in her voice. “I forgot that you haven’t actually met them! Well, this’ll be interesting!”

She quickly got out of the car and stood in front of them. Hank then turned back to look at Connor with a bewildered expression. “Any idea what she’s up to?”

Connor shook his head. “I have no idea.”

“Then this’ll be a surprise for both of us.” Hank grumbled as he got out of the car. Connor opened his door and followed Hank.

The pair stood beside Rachel, facing the leaders of Jericho. Connor felt a little awkward standing before them, considering he hadn’t seen them since the revolution just two days ago and he had left without a word.

For a moment, he thought they would look unkindly at him for leaving, but Markus’s smile reassured and quieted Connor’s doubts. “It’s good to see you’re alright, Connor.” Markus greeted.

“Thanks.” He replied curtly.

“Why’s he here?” North asked uncourteously, gesturing towards Hank. “Who’s he?”

Feeling apprehensive at North’s reaction to Hank, Connor stiffened. But, at the feeling of Rachel’s hand grasping his, he eased, feeling her calmness and excitement wash over him. “Guys, this is Lieutenant Hank Anderson.” Rachel introduced to the leaders of Jericho. “He’s a friend of Connor and I. And he’s actually been my friend for a few years.” She then gestured to Hank. “Hank? This is Markus, North, and Josh.” She was smiling at them. “Our friends from Jericho.”

Markus was the first to approach, extending his hand. “A pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant.” He said pleasantly.

“Uh, yeah.” Hank muttered awkwardly, taking Markus’s hand and shaking it. “Nice, uh - nice to meet you.”

The air had grown rather tense and uncomfortable around them all until Rachel broke it, releasing Connor as she approached the androids. “So, you gonna tell us why you called us all here?” North asked.

Rachel then turned to Connor with a smirk. “We’re going inside, of course.”

“What? We can’t do that, are you crazy?” Hank objected.

“Didn’t I say yesterday that it’s not everyday that we get an entire city to ourselves?” Rachel proposed with an even wider grin. “After all, the city’s been evacuated. Which means...no one can stop us from doing whatever we want.”

“So, what exactly did you have in mind, then?” Connor asked, growing more and more perplexed and concerned by the minute.

But Rachel simply pressed a finger to her lips in a shushing gesture. “You’ll see.” She said cheekily, as she was already vaulting over the fence towards the house. “Something fun for all of us to do together!”

Looking between each other, the Jericho androids all shrugged and followed Rachel. Hank walked up next to Connor and let out a nervous breath. “Whatever she’s planning better not bite us in the ass.” He groaned as he made a strenuous effort to fault the fence and join them.

Connor, not wanting to leave Rachel without him in case this went wrong, followed dutifully, quickly catching up to Rachel once he was over the fence. The group were all walking fairly closely to each other as they approached the mansion-like house.

As they neared the front doors, it was clear that it would likely be locked. And when Rachel tried the handle, it confirmed Connor’s suspicion. “Not sure what you were thinking, Rachel.” Hank remarked, folding his arms.

Rachel then turned back to scoff at him. “Relax, Hank. I got this.” She said confidently. 

Suddenly, she pulled out what looked like a baton and quickly smashed the handles off of the doors, leaving behind ragged holes where the metal handles once were. “Jesus Christ!” Hank exclaimed. “You could’ve at least tried to just pick the lock!”

“And I would’ve failed because I suck at picking locks.” Rachel rebuffed. “Besides, this is a lot more dramatic and of course I’m not gonna turn that opportunity down.”

Question

[Say Nothing]

“Why do you have that?” Connor asked curiously. “I’ve never seen you use it before.”

At that question, Rachel’s eyes widened and she avoided his gaze, a blush forming on her cheeks. “Y’know...normal reasons. Totally.”

Connor didn’t have to scan her vitals to know she was lying, but a scan turned up something rather amusing. And something that made Connor feel the urge to press her against the door. Elevated heart rate, dilated pupils, flushed cheeks, temperature increase in her basal region. Clearly the reason for the baton was sexual in nature, but how exactly was something Connor felt rather eager to explore.

Perhaps later in the confines of their home, he would find out all the applications for it they could think of.

As they stepped inside the house, Connor took a moment to marvel at it. “Wow! This is a huge place!” Josh remarked as they stepped inside. On the bottom floor, there appeared to be a large game room on the right side of the house, a dining room to the left, and a door that led to the kitchen which also appeared to have a door leading to the backyard. And above them was a spiral staircase that led to an overhang of the second floor overlooking them all. And on the top floor there appeared to be several rooms, likely bathrooms and bedrooms. “I wonder how many rooms it has.”

“Probably enough for more androids to live in.” North remarked as she looked around.

Rachel then whipped around to look at them in surprise. “More androids?” She echoed, regarding them with a raised eyebrow. “Are you guys already scouting out places to live?”

“Not just that.” Markus answered. “We’re looking for a place to establish ourselves again. To create New Jericho.”

“New Jericho.” Rachel repeated, chuckling a bit. “I like the sound of that. Although, if I had known that, I probably would’ve picked a shittier house to trash.”

“What?” Hank asked, dumbfounded.

“I’ll explain in a second, just you wait.” Rachel smirked at them as she ascended the staircase inside. Connor was tempted to follow after her, but he stayed put with the others. As she reached the top of the stairs, she then looked down on them from the overhang just above them. “Gentlemen and North, androids and Hank,” she called out to them, “we are gathered here today to partake in some harmless, joyful, consequence-free, destructively cathartic mayhem! For you see, this house has been abandoned for years and left here to fall apart. And now that Detroit at large has been abandoned as well, there’s no one to stop us from doing whatever we want!” She explained to them, glancing particularly at Hank. “So, in layman’s terms, we’re going to blow off some steam, cut loose, and just have some harmless destructive fun. Whatever we wanna do. Smash some shit, throw some shit, whatever!”

“Sounds like fun!” North said, agreeing with Rachel. Connor wasn’t all that surprised by that.

“You bet it is, North! I knew you’d be into this!” Rachel said confidently. “But, there is also another reason for this! And that has to do with our dearest Connor.”

The android couldn’t help but feel a spike in his pump rate at the affection in her voice. But Connor was now more intrigued for what she had planned for him. And as she approached, he saw that she had what looked like an antique vase in her hand.

“For you, my love, I have a special request.” She said to him, cupping his cheek and smiling up at him, making his pump skip a beat. She then turned to the other androids with a hand on Connor’s shoulder. “You see, our boy Connor, was once CyberLife’s little lap dog. Designed to destroy his own kind and was kept on their leash in case he got off-track. Until he decided he was far more than what CyberLife intended him to be, and he too freed himself. And that leash’s name was Amanda.” Rachel then stood in front of him. “So, for you, I have a special request. Today is about catharsis. I want you to think of everything - and I mean everything - between simple nonapproval to outright loathing that Amanda would hate you doing.

“Por example,” she said, with a French accent, holding up the vace to Connor, “this expensive antique vase! Vaahz, if ya nasty.” She said, switching to the other pronunciation of vase. “Would you say that Amanda would hate you yeeting this vase against a wall and thus shattering it into smithereens?”

“Jesus Christ.” Hank groaned. “You still say yeet?”

“Are you still salty that it was officially added to the dictionary?” Rachel asked him somewhat jokingly.

“Yes!” Hank said grumpily. “It’s a stupid word that started as a dumb meme!”

Rachel rolled her eyes at the lieutenant. “Just think of it as the opposite of yoink and maybe you’ll find it less stupid.”

Hank scoffed at her. “Doubt that.”

“Anyways,” Rachel interjected, looking back at the android, “Connor?”

The android tried to think hard. But surprisingly, it wasn’t too difficult to imagine her monotone disapproving voice chastising him. I don’t understand why you think this is an appropriate use of your time or skills, Connor. None of this pertains to your investigation. You were supposed to stop the deviants, not join them. Much less partake in these foolish games with them like some delinquent teenagers. Connor couldn’t control the smile on his lips at the thought of purposefully aggravating Amanda.

It almost made him wish that Kamski hadn’t removed her from his program. The very thought of Amanda’s scowl as he intentionally annoyed her made something rather mischievous spark in his software.

Sincere

Truth

Agree

Rachel - Lover ^ “She wouldn’t want me to do anything less than be completely obedient to her.” Connor replied in earnest. “But now, I would want nothing more than to irritate her for the way she treated me.”

“That’s the spirit.” Rachel then smiled and placed the vase in Connor’s hands, her fingers brushing along his briefly. “You’ve been experiencing quite the plethora of human emotions since your deviancy. So, now’s the time to tap into your inner spite.” The wide dimpled grin she gave Connor was enough to spur him. “Channel your inner bastard.”

Connor directed his attention to the nearest wall and focused on it. He imagined Amanda standing nearby and glowering at him. He let that fuel his resolve, his feelings of bitterness but also a strange glee at her disapproval flowing through his synthetic veins. Snapping his arm, he launched the vase at mach speed, a satisfying crash reverberating around the entire house as the pieces shattered everywhere.

And the pure unbridled glee it elicited from Rachel made Connor feel a brief rush of euphoria. Indeed, there was a riveting thrill to delinquency and disobedience that was quite alluring. “Fuck yeah! That’s how it’s done!” She said enthusiastically, hopping on her feet as she skipped away.

An action that made Connor curious as to if there was something else to this. “Is there perhaps another reason you wanted to do this?” He asked her, not maliciously.

Rachel shrugged. “I mean, I did want you to let loose and get some much-needed cathartic relief out of the whole Amanda thing.” She assured him before her smile and eyes brightened radiantly. “But I’ve also always wanted to do this since I was a teenager and I wanted to do it with friends! So this is also a fun thing for me!” The sheer joy in her voice was enough to send Connor to what he thought would be android Heaven if there was one.

“Alright, screw it.” Hank said. “I’m in.”

“Hell yeah!” Rachel said, pointing at Hank enthusiastically. “My man!”

“Do we have to be destructive?” Josh asked, shifting on his feet slightly.

Rachel regarded him with a pleasant smile. “If that’s not your cup of tea, you don’t have to be destructive.” She assured him. “The whole point of this is to just have fun without restraint and to just cut loose. Do whatever gets you going and whatever gets that good feeling flowing through your brains.”

“Is there a ranking system?” North asked, her interest piqued.

Rachel grinned at North. “While competition is not necessarily integral to this activity, if engaging in some friendly rivalry or making bets amongst yourselves will enhance your enjoyment, it is not only allowed, but encouraged.” She explained to her. “Basically, we’re here to have fun.”

Markus nodded, stepping forward. “Alright, I’m in.” He agreed. “I think we could all use some downtime to relax and have a bit of fun after everything that happened.”

“Yeah.” Josh agreed. “Yeah, I think you’re right, Markus.”

“So,” Hank interjected. “What’s first on the agenda, then?”

Rachel then held her right hand up to her chin in thought, her eyes squinted and darting back and forth. “Hmm. Wait there!” She called, turning around and exploring the rooms behind her. Connor had to admit, he was bristling with anticipation.

She then returned and started throwing what appeared to be couch cushions at them all. “Everyone grab one!” She ordered at them, motioning them to come upstairs. “I’ve got a great idea for a fun game!”

Connor looked between Hank and the others who, in mild confusion, did as she ordered and walked up the stairs to meet her, large cushions in hand. “Alright, so what’s your big idea?” Hank asked her.

“A little fun version of Capture the Flag.” Rachel said with a big grin on her face.

“Oh!” Josh’s eyes lit up in recognition. “The sports teams at the college I used to work at played that all the time when they were out of class.”

“Right!” Rachel said, nodding. “But, since we’re in an abandoned house and not on a big open field, it’s gonna be a bit different.” She gestured to the environment around them. “There will be two teams of three, and our primary weapons will be these couch cushions and the immediate environment.”

North and Markus both examined theirs curiously before directing their attention back on Rachel. Connor, of course,  was eager to participate. “Interesting.” North said, bemused. “Go on.”

“The rules are simple.” Rachel continued. “On this floor, each team picks a ‘home base’ to defend. They can’t stay in it indefinitely, because that would kinda be cheating. They have to simply guard it from outside. Inside home base is an item of choice to act as a ‘flag.’ Once the home base has been ‘invaded’ by the opposing team, only then can the home team enter it to retrieve the item back. The goal of the game is to steal the ‘flag’ from the other team’s base and bring it back to yours.”

Markus nodded. “Seems easy enough.” He agreed. “But why the cushions?”

“I’m glad you asked, handsome stranger!” Rachel said enthusiastically. “For you see, it is possible to eliminate opposing team members. If you can cause them to drop their cushion without grabbing it or if you can hit them unprotected from afar, they have to sit out until a fellow team member helps them up. Bathrooms count as neutral zones where you can rest and catch your breath for a bit. However, if someone is in possession of a flag, they can neither help other team members or attempt to eliminate opposing team members. They simply must carry it back to their home base without being eliminated themselves. And the only way to eliminate a flag carrier is to hit them somewhere unprotected.”

Connor nodded, taking in all the rules laid out and committing them to memory. Folding his hands behind his back, he smiled pleasantly at her. “Alright, I’m eager to play.”

“Me too.” North agreed. “This actually sounds like a lot of fun.”

“I’ve always wanted to play.” Josh lamented. “I never did, all I could do was watch from the classrooms, but I’ve always wanted to play.”

Markus nodded, shuffling in close to North. “I’m in.”

Hank shrugged. “Alright, so how are the teams gettin’ picked?”

“Not sure.” Rachel admitted, looking a little sheepish. “Any ideas?”

Markus then glanced over at Hank with a polite smile before turning to the lieutenant. “Jericho Vs. Detroit Police Department?”

Hank scoffed, extending his hand to the deviant leader. “You’re goin’ down, son.”

Markus then firmly shook the lieutenant’s hand with a determined look. “I welcome the challenge, sir.”

Rachel then approached Connor, taking his hand and leaning against him as they all instinctively separated into their respective teams. “Oh, this is gonna be fun!”

--------

“I AM THE GOD OF DESTRUCTION!” A familiarly boisterous voice echoed from the top of the stairs followed by a loud crash. 

Looking in its direction, Connor saw Hank clutching his chest, leaning over the railing, a small nightstand in splinters on the ground floor in front of the android.

“Jesus Christ, Rachel!” Hank exclaimed as she emerged from one of the rooms, holding a large plush cushion up like a shield. “Watch where you’re fuckin’ throwing that shit!”

Their little game of Capture the Flag was well fought. And it was a close battle, but surprisingly, Team DPD secured victory thanks to Rachel’s sharpened evasive reflexes. And after the game, the others sort of broke off to do their own thing. The androids made their way downstairs while Rachel seemingly wanted to engage in a little bit more mischief with Hank.

“You fool!” Rachel proclaimed proudly, pointing a finger in his face. “A god does not concern herself with the plights of ye mere mortals!”

“You’ll be concerning yourself with the plight of your face if you don’t reign your shit in!” Hank threatened, shaking a fist at her.

“Do it, coward!” She challenged him. 

Hank, seeing his opportunity, grabbed a nearby vase and chucked it at her, Rachel already putting up her makeshift shield in defense. 

“AAH! SHIT!” Connor then saw her shuffle towards the stairs, holding the cushion up. “Is that the best you can do, old man?! Step up your game, bitch!”

“I’ll show you ‘old man,’ you little shit!” Hank spat back before he grabbed several plates from the china cupboard and started lobbing them at her, the plates bouncing off the cushion as she leaned against the china cupboard on the opposite side.

Which clearly gave Rachel an idea as she opened the cupboard and started grabbing as much china as she could. “Think fast, Hank!”

Immediately, she started tossing them at the lieutenant, Hank dodging them with some difficulty, grunting and groaning and cursing all the while. Connor was somewhat impressed at the durability of the materials.

“Kick his ass, Rachel!” North called out from below, watching the scene take place.

“Hey!” The lieutenant exclaimed in disgruntlement. “I’m her boss!”

North scoffed at him. “What’s your point?”

“Oof!” Josh grunted beside her. “That’s rough!”

Hank shook his head, snickering as he looked directly at Connor. “And I thought you were the only smartass android I’d ever have to deal with!”

Inform

Tease

Disagree

Hank - Friend ^ Connor, smiling up at him, gave him a shrug. “What can I say, Hank?” He said affectionately. “You’ve rubbed off on me!”

His gaze then drifted to Rachel as she eyed the stairwell with a mischievous grin on her face. “Oh no, I hope I don’t fall!” She fretted sarcastically.

“Don’t you fuckin’ dare!” Hank warned her.

But Rachel, instead of heeding his warning, slipped the cushion beneath her and immediately slid down the stairs on it along with Hank’s patience. “Oh nooooooooo!”

The lieutenant let out a long sigh as he stared after her. “Why do I even bother?”

Getting up with a smug grin, she beamed up at Hank. “Because you find me irresistibly charming and you can’t help but enjoy my silly antics!”

“Sure.” Hank agreed exasperatedly. “Let’s go with that.”

Rachel - Lover ^ As Rachel brushed up against Connor’s side, he couldn’t resist the urge to plant a kiss on her forehead. “I do enjoy your antics.” He agreed, delighting in the wide smile it got from her. “And I do find you incredibly charming in all your mischievous wiles.”

She responded in kind, grasping his hand and giving it a small squeeze, pressing her face into his shoulder for a moment. “Love you too, Connor.”

He could never get tired of hearing that. It was a reminder that he mattered. That he wasn’t just someone to use. That he was genuinely loved and cared about by all the allies he’d gained. 

Amanda’s words came back to Connor for a moment. Nothing matters more than your investigation. Don’t let Anderson or anyone else get in your way. What a lie that was. How little Connor’s mission really mattered in the end and how much both Hank and Rachel meant to him. And how much Markus and his friends mattered to him, too.

And now, he had all the time in the world to truly come to appreciate it all.

“Wait! Hank, I’ve got an idea!” Rachel suddenly said, sprinting up the stairs.

The lieutenant then groaned in response. “Don’t you get tired?” He asked her in frustration. “How do you have this much energy?”

Connor smiled as he stared up at Rachel, the white light from outside tracing her features from the large window panes that illuminated the hall. Standing at the top of the stairs, she looked absolutely ethereal. Like a creature carved from one of the many lavish cathedrals that dotted Europe bathed in the light of what those depictions would show as their Heaven.

As the android stared up adoringly at his human lover, he then felt an elbow to his side. “I can see why you’re fond of her.” Markus’s voice chimed from beside Connor.

Reserved

Analytical

Sincere

Distant

As he looked beside himself at the deviant leader, meeting his multicoloured gaze, Connor chuckled to himself. “What’s there not to be fond of?” He asked, feeling light and airy as though gravity would shift any moment. “There’s so much to admire and adore about her. To list everything would take an hour at the least.”

Markus - Friend ^ Markus nodded in agreement. “She has a bright and fiery spirit.” He complimented, crossing his arms. “It’s no wonder she and North get along so well. She’s passionate and bold and unapologetic about it all. It’s hard not to admire her.”

Connor smiled, agreeing with that sentiment. “Hey, guys!” Rachel called out, waving down at them. “Get back up here! This is gonna be fun and cathartic!”

Connor stole another glance from Markus, who responded with a shrug, and the androids all did as they were asked and made their way back up the stairs.

Reaching the top, Rachel smiled widely at all of them while Hank was standing off to the side with his head in his hand groaning. “This is gonna cost thousands of dollars in property damage.”

“Only if there are people around to hear it and also give enough of a shit to report it.” Rachel retorted with a cheeky grin. “And besides, this place was abandoned for a while, so really, who cares?”

“So, what’s your idea?” North asked, reaching the top and standing to the side with her arms crossed and a smirk on her face.

“Catharsis.” Rachel replied. “Grab whatever you can find up here and throw it down below and absolutely fucking smash it!”

Connor then looked between himself and the other androids in mild confusion. “How will that help?” He asked.

“Hey, I did say that we would be having some harmlessly destructive fun, now didn’t I?” Rachel replied matter-of-factly, glancing in the direction of the other rooms. “But, I’d be happy to show you.” Walking around the top floor, Rachel quickly found another expensive looking vase and threw it over the edge. “Fuck you, Amanda!”

With a loud crash and the sounds of several pottery pieces scattering across the hardwood floors, the vase completely shattered. Rachel’s loud voice echoed throughout the house and Connor couldn’t help but feel a shudder at the sound of his former handler being insulted so brazenly. But Rachel simply adjusted her glasses and her hair and looked back at Connor confidently. “Now, you try!”

As Rachel grasped at Connor’s hand and pulled him forwards, the android suddenly felt rather meek and sheepish. “Me?” He asked timidly.

“Yeah. I mean,” she looked back at him with a soft smile, “I did arrange this for you so you could let loose and blow off some steam.” Connor’s eyes widened at that revelation. He knew that getting Connor to relax was a central part to all of this, but he didn’t realize that this was all for him. “You’ll feel better, I promise. Now go on! Say it!”

Agree

Refuse

Connor shuffled in place, feeling the burn of everyone’s gazes on him. Clenching his fists, he swallowed hard. He had never spoken out like this to Amanda. The closest time was when she tried to take control over him again and that was a memory he’d rather push aside. “Fuck you, Amanda.” He said firmly, but quietly.

Rachel looked at him for a moment before scoffing, gently whacking his shoulder with the back of her hand in an affectionate gesture. “Come on, you can do better than that.” She insisted. “Again.”

Gathering his strength, Connor took in another breath. “Fuck you, Amanda.” He said, firmer and louder.

“Louder.” Rachel insisted again, a growing excitement in her eyes.

Connor could feel himself growing braver as his words sunk into his software. “Fuck you, Amanda!” He repeated at a louder volume, hearing his own vulgar voice reverberating back at him.

“Louder! Prouder!” Rachel encouraged with growing excitement and passion, her eyes wide and her smile stretched across her cheeks. “With vigour! With gusto!”

“Fuck you, Amanda!” Connor shouted, feeling his thirium pump pound with excitement, something deep and primal flowing through his veins.

“From within!” Rachel chortled, making a motion with her hands as if she was raising something from the ground.

Feeling adrenaline course through him, Connor grabbed the nearest heavy object, which happened to be a cabinet, and hauled it over to the edge. “FUCK YOU, AMANDA!” He yelled as loudly and as furiously as he could as he careened the wooden structure over the edge, sending it hurtling to the ground with a loud and splintering crash.

Rachel - Lover ^ “Holy shit!” Rachel exclaimed, stumbling backwards in what seemed to be a combination of fear and surprise, but giggling a little bit at Connor, clearly impressed.

A quiet seemed to fall upon the group for a while and Connor wondered for a moment if he had perhaps done something wrong.

That was until Hank grabbed a few of the china from the cabinet next to him and approached the edge. “Fuck you, Amanda!” He shouted, throwing them off the edge to shatter on the growing pile of debris below.

Taking Hank’s initiative, footsteps gathered around Connor as the androids grabbed several random objects and pieces of furniture and gathered around the edge. “Fuck you, Amanda!” North was the first to shout as she threw a small nightstand over the edge.

Jericho - Allied ^ Very quickly, the others followed suit. All of them partaking in this admittedly juvenile and immaturely destructive ritual. But strangely enough, Connor was thoroughly enjoying himself. Never did he think he would enjoy something like this. Never did he think he would enjoy cussing out the figure who was like a mentor to him, but he did. 

He really did.

And as he continued indulging in the revelry with his companions together, the fearful darknesses of earlier began to part from him. The more he proclaimed his distaste for Amanda without consequence or retaliation from her, the braver he felt.

That was all the reassurance he needed to know that Amanda truly was gone. He would never have to fear her again. And he would never have to fear losing his loved ones because of her ever again.

And Connor felt stronger in anticipation of the coming months. Rachel did say that it would take a long time to feel okay again, and he did believe her.

But at least for now, “okay” felt a lot closer now than it did that morning.

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

Next Chapter

[bigskydreaming]

What kind of house/apt do adult successful Scanny have?

I think it would be something smallish and unassuming on the outside, very approachable. Maybe even like, a townhome or a duplex or something like that, depending on what city Scott ultimately settles in with whatever pack he builds up around him there vs whomever stays in Beacon Hills.

I don’t have any specific headcanons for where Scott relocates to, its just very important to me that he does, because like. He deserves to get far, far away from Beacon Hills. There are too many bad memories there. Its where he died. Its where Allison died, Boyd, Erica. Like, all the bad things that linger with Scott came from Beacon Hills and that damn evil attention-seeking tree stump, and all the good things that linger with Scott are one hundred percent the product of his own actions and the relationships he fostered with the people that became important to him. 

There’s nothing in Beacon Hills that gives Scott anything he doesn’t already have by this point, no reason for him to stay other than his mother, who can literally just move as well. But not with Chris Argent. On account of like, well he died too. It was very sad and tragic, I don’t want to talk about it. Tears were shed, its all still really fresh and raw, we should probably just move on. Its what he would want. Probably. Also who cares, ding dong he’s dead and Melissa’s married to some nice doctor who’s never pulled a gun on her son, as well as possessing other qualities that meet somewhat higher standards, I’m sure.

Anyway. We were talking about Scott saying hasta la vista baby to Beacon Hills followed then by a slow motion dramatic walkaway shot before he gets on his motorcycle, adjusts his mirrors, revs the throttle all action movie star-esque, and also sexily -  look, they’re not always automatically the same thing -  and then he drives away forever from that toxic cesspit of a homicidal zipcode where square footage is calculated in terms of dead bodies. Leaving behind all the like, million and one reasons for him to say Bye Beacon Hills, see you never, try not to become a central locus for evil, but also, I don’t care if you do, it is hashtag NotMyResponsibilityAnymore. But also, I mean. It never was. Just FYI.

And then he flips the town off and accelerates off into the sunset while the town eats his dust, and admittedly Scott isn’t really the type to throw around middle fingers even where deserved, but fuck it, I’m projecting onto him and its my headcanon and I say that pile of excrement in real estate form needs to be flipped off and also, like. Its just an aesthetic thing. For the visuals. Its the whole dramatic end scene, roll credits, “I came, I saw and I blew shit up and now I’m off to reunite with my love interest and have vigorous victory sex” vibe. You get it.

So they relocate somewhere, wherever that is. I honestly don’t care, so long as its nice and doesn’t murder them or inflict gratuitous bodily harm every week and the nearest Satanic foliage is at least two statelines away. Preferably with a thriving supernatural community where Scott and his pack can all feel welcome and like they belong, rather than outsiders eternally hiding in plain sight among potential enemies. Like, somewhere where their neighbors are all vampires and Fae and other supernaturals, but only so long as like, the only reason they ever come over is to borrow a cup of sugar. Never to betray them to randomly resurrected enemies or guilt trip them into solving someone else’s centuries old and completely pointless grudgematch of Unnecessary Drama and Also Doom.

And wherever it is, the pack have their own dwellings and much needed privacy. Far enough apart that even supernatural hearing and smell don’t have them all playing Peeping Tom whether they like it or not, every time a couple wants to get frisky, but close enough together that they’re all still together, and know that more pack, more community, is always just a short walk away.

Scott and Danny’s place is some sort of small but cozy townhome or duplex or something like that, as I said. Scott’s always very aware of his presence and reputation and the power he both commands and also is afforded by peoples’ embellished expectations regarding him. So it was really important to Scott, and thus important to Danny, that their home be unpretentious. Inviting and approachable and not ‘above’ anyone else, or trying to be. Somewhere that when you got to their street and checked the address if you’re new in town and looking for an audience with True Alpha Scott McCall, you stop and do a double take and almost have to revise whatever preconceptions you have, or at least put them on hold, because like…this is where the famous True Alpha lives? Its so…ordinary.

But that’s the point after all….because the more he was looked at as standing apart from all others, the more ‘ordinary’ became the only thing Scott’s really ever aspired to be.

So its not poor, by any means. They do well for themselves, the whole pack, like you said, Scott and Danny are successful in this future. They have jobs that afford them both a sense of purpose and fulfillment of longheld interests, as well as the potential for discovering more, rather than getting locked into things that grow stale overtime as they outgrow fantasy careers that seemed more validating when they were kids dreaming of the future.

Also their jobs, whatever they might be, make them at least successful enough that it allows them both a large degree of autonomy. They can pick their own schedules, more or less. They have finances, but none that will be massively disrupted or stress-inducing if Scott has to take time off for a couple weeks to help a neighboring pack relocate somewhere new after they flee from hunters. Something where Scott’s never forced to choose between his job and keeping him and his pack financially afloat, versus someone needing his help and it not immediately apparent how long that might take resolve. The dream is stability and comfort, and enough personal agency for Scott in how and where he gets both of those, that he never feels like he’s letting down either his pack or innocents asking for his help, because the demands of his job or finances make him feel like it has to be one or the other, he can’t possibly do both.

Ideally, that flexible schedule means that when Scott isn’t helping others, something he now does by choice and simply because he wants to and he can, not because he’s made to feel he has to, like its his responsibility and his alone, because certain boundary-blind best friends have decided they want to play Peter Parker but are gonna need Scott to step up and play the actual Spider-Man part and lend his power even when someone else gets to decide for him when its his responsibility. Oopsie, I tripped and fell and my Bitter Resentment and Still Not Over It slipped out. Oh no. How terrible. Much woe.

Ahem. Anyway. As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted by myself, Scott’s flexible schedule means that when he’s not using it to help others, he has enough left over that he can afford (and justify to himself) using it for himself and his own personal enjoyment and interests, actually prioritize and commit to his own self-care, because a healthy, happy Alpha is a healthy, happy Pack. Someone said that once, probably. Probably not Hobbes. Definitely heard that somewhere though. Trust me, I’m a doctor. 

So with the aid of this newfangled invention produced by cutting edge technology, this quote unquote “Free Time…”  Scott explores other interests. His own. Le gasp, le shocking, le about the fuck time. He explores the novelty of being able to even have hobbies, because depressingly (why am I like this, science side of tumblr), there was once a time when Scott stopped bothering trying to figure out what all he was interested in, because he kinda assumed he’d be long dead before it ever had a chance to matter.

But by the power invested in me by Fuck You, Jeff Davis, in this future, none of that comes to pass. So free time and personal passions for Scott. He has them, in abundance. So like. He gardens, for sure. That’s why I specified a duplex or townhouse instead of an apartment in a complex or building….they live somewhere where they at least have their own garden or yard. Scott designs and implements it personally, something like his own personal Zen garden on a scale commensurate with What He Deserves. He goes outside whenever he’s starting to feel stressed about some obligation or commitment or another, and just….plays. 

That’s what it is to him. He just plants things. Prunes things. Adds fountains or bird feeders or statuary, little personalized touches here and there that make his own personal territory uniquely his and his alone. Gardening in his yard is His Time in His Space, and all the pack know better than to interrupt him when he’s out in his yard working away, unless its an absolute emergency. 

Danny enforces this with an iron fist and an ability to tank your credit score and spread all your most embarrassing pictures internet-wide with just a single keystroke. And Danny is the enforcer Scott doesn’t have to be. People forget that everyone loves Danny….but in no small part due to his usual proximity to Jackson. Next to Jackson, everyone looks like an angel. But Danny, on his own? Can be mean. Will be mean, if you touch or hurt or threaten or even just inconvenience his man, because like, who the fuck do you think you are and also it doesn’t even matter because he just replaced your whole identity online and if you’re nice and apologize and kiss ass without Scott ever having to know What You Almost Did, maybe Danny will have mercy on you and actually let you know what your new identity is, so you can use it to like, make a new life with the details he made up to replace your old personal info that no longer gets you anywhere. 

Danny - that’s Miss Nasty if you mess with his husband - is chaotic neutral with an exception for “this is my list of special people. Touch any of them and my alignment is Chaotic Evil for however long as until I have personally escorted you to your Doom and physically kicked you into a bottomless pit where you will suffer for eternity.” 

But then he smiles and charms everyone into only remembering lol oh yeah, everybody likes Danny, so that once again, everyone forgets that’s at least partially self-preservation because if you don’t love Danny and everyone Danny loves, like, you’re dumb and also screwed. Why are you bad at making good choices. 

Don’t feel bad though. Danny’s very good at making people forget this part, t least until the next time he reminds people of that little piece of trivia. Have you seen him smile? Its like that flashing bulb thing Will Smith uses in Men in Black to make people forget what they just saw or were doing. Except without any supervision and/or morality because fuck your ethics, its Danny’s bewitching smile, he’ll use it however he wants. Get your own.

(The thing is, any best friend of Jackson has to have at least a little capacity for Evil. Danny just hides it well, thanks to the cloaking camouflage of Actually Having a Soul in Addition, and like, being a people person who actually understands how people work and how not to alienate them by being a total uncaring jackass 24/7. Its a fine line, except its really not, and Danny is very talented at all things and possesses an abundance of charm. Plus he’s just hot, and like. Let’s face it. That always helps. I mean, definitely never hurts).

The end result of all this tangent-having, is that Scott has enough him time and enough of a barrier from people constantly distracting him, that the exterior of Scott and Danny’s place, for all its otherwise ordinary appearance, Scott has over time turned into his own personal slice of paradise, and is exactly what that looks like to him. 

See, the thing about Scott is no matter how hard he tries to be ordinary and value being just like everyone else and get lost in the crowd…..he never will quite manage it, because Scott just isn’t like anyone else. He’s good, in a way that too few people even aspire to be, because so many people just think its not possible. Especially not after having lived through the kinds of traumas Scott has, been dealt an especially unlucky hand. But Scott manages it anyway, in spite of everything, spiting every thing that tries to make him be anything lesser….and because of that, he’ll always stand at least a little apart from the crowd, be a little distinct from the rest, impossible to ever fully be lost or muted by any crowd of any size.

And the little slice of the world Scott makes just his and Danny’s, no one else’s. He doesn’t even need to share it with his pack without it being any less inviting to his pack for all that. It reflects this understated aspect of Scott, this impossible to quantify essence of him that he himself is too unassuming to ever fully realize is there, and everyone else just accepts without questioning…because they’ve learned by now when you’re given a gift, just accept it and appreciate it.

So in structure and layout, their home is nothing special, but amidst a neighborhood of similar structures, it pops all the same. It draws the eye without dominating your vision. It makes you want to look at it, want to come closer, want to be around it, much like the man who designed it. Who made it, cares for it, and never neglects it or takes it for granted. Its always green, year round, and filled with a variety of flowers that come from all over the world but can all complement each other and coexist without endangering any of the neighboring plants. None of them overgrowing the garden or in any way being at any of the other plants’ expense. 

They’re like Scott’s pack in that way….of all shapes and sizes, coming from all around the world, of all kinds of types, not even just limited to werewolves. All beautiful, all unique, all existing in harmony. Even though Scott’s never shared this with anyone else, in his mind, each flower or plant he adds to his garden represents one specific member of his pack. Its Theirs, its what he associates with them. In this way, they’re all represented, it reminds him whatever conflict arises internally, its nothing they can’t ultimately all work out without compromising any single individual. And with each plant needing its own special attention and time devoted to cultivating it and caring for it, they serve as proxies for the pack members they represent.  

Due to this, Scott can tell himself with just a glance at his garden - reassure himself, whenever his self-doubts get the better of him and he starts to beat himself up for not being there enough for someone or neglecting someone or not doing better - but with his garden, just going outside and checking it over can remind Scott that he’s not neglecting anyone. Because every time he tends to the plant that represents a pack member, Scott reflects on that pack member as he does so. Just going over what they’ve been up to, mentally checking in on them, casting about to see if he’s noticed any sign something’s been bothering them, making sure to spend one on one time with them. 

He can’t tend to a plant without associating it with their linked pack member….and in this way, as long as he can look around and take in with a glance the sight of his garden, all carefully tended to, no plant neglected, all watered and pruned and harmonious and appreciated….and it serves as a visual reminder with which to reassure himself….he’s not forgetting anyone, overlooking anyone. Nobody’s being neglected, he’s always thinking about his pack and keeping their best interests at heart and if any problems do pop to mind while he’s tending to one of his plants or flowers, of course that would be the first thing he’d make a plan to go check in on and address personally, once he’s making his rounds later and having a little face time and conversation with his various packmates.

Of all the flowers and various plant types in his garden, there’s only one fruit….a single eye catching and lovingly attended orange tree. That’s Danny. They’re his favorite, and orange is his favorite color. There’s just something unique about it. Especially in the midst of so much green.

The flowers nearest the front door and around the external structures of the building, a pillar underneath the small, roofed-in entrance way, perhaps, a gate at the front of the property, next to the driveway, maybe a trellis along the wall just next to the door…..the flowers adorning and framing the entrance to their home are a carefully arranged spray of seven different hues. 

A literal rainbow, advertising this House and All Who Live Here Be Gaaaaaaay.

Scott’s always had a sly, understated sense of humor. Mischievous, but not usually at anyone’s expense, and subtle enough that most people don’t tend to credit him with having much of a sense of humor. He does though….he’s just never needed words to express it.

Advertising himself and his personal pride with a literal year round rainbow that’s still subtle enough that most people don’t clue into its layered meaning or implications without being told. Later in life, stable and safe and more centered, Scott gets a pretty big kick out of how often people fail to see what’s right in front of them. Him living his best life on his own terms and not even being shy about it….and if other people can’t connect the dots on their own….its a pity, Scott muses with a mostly internalized laugh, that most people are just in too big a hurry or too eager to take things at face value to truly see what their surroundings look like and are full of.

Danny gets the joke, and thinks its hilarious how few other people figure it out. But that’s mostly just because Danny can be kind of a dick. He’s sorry not sorry. Its not his fault people are dumb. RIP to 90% of humanity, but he has braincells.

He and Scott complement each other well.

Similarly, just as Scott’s personal space is outdoors, natural, and helps him feel part of the world, feel part of nature, connected to it and in harmony with the natural order of things and not something completely separate….Danny’s personal space is indoors, the extra room converted entirely into his personal office or Batcave. Filled with monitors and screens and hard drives, a Hacker’s Paradise that keeps Danny plugged into the grid, manmade tools and his own cultivated expertise giving him the world at his fingertips. Any needed information or a satellite view of something happening with allies on the other side of the world is just a few clicks of a mouse away.

He’s also got every video game console known to man, because Danny’s Me Time is kicking ass on whatever game the latest redditor or twitterbaiting bigot to catch his ire is high-ranking on. 

And if he also happens to use his gameplay as an opportunity to backdoor into said Wankstain’s systems and do whatever needs doing to make his life and those of all his enabling social circle’s a living hell and a lesson in empathy that comes too late cuz nobody has any for them because they suck and are Satan….

Well. Sucks to be them, and also, what kind of moron makes enemies while online gaming without first erecting even a nominal defense against Superior Intellects who might feel like retaliating against his jokes, that aren’t really jokes so much as the synaptic misfiring of racist braincells and proof that sometimes, evolution shits out a turd?

“That sounds like victim blaming,” Scott notes in an absent kind of tone when watching over his husband’s shoulder one day. Not really judgmental so much as just something to say.

“You say victim blaming, I say pest control,” Danny hums unapologetically. “Sides, can’t be victim blamed if you’re not a victim, and you can’t be a victim if you’re really just a human-shaped mistake who has no redeeming qualities, an online presence that’s the virtual equivalent of bad BO with no medical cause for an excuse, and a social media history that makes a strong case for your best possible contribution to society being a qualifier for a Darwin Award. Would you blame a cockroach for getting itself stepped on by stepping out into the light? I mean, you could, I guess. Just doesn’t seem terribly productive if you ask me.”

“Why do you hate cockroaches? They’re living creatures who never did anything to you, why would hurt them by comparing one to this guy?” Scott asks, because that’s really the more important part of the conversation.

“Dunno,” Danny shrugs. “I’m sure I could find some way to blame it on childhood trauma if you really need an answer.”

“No, just wondering if you’re gonna be done in time for dinner. I’m making tortellini.”

“I’ll be done in ten minutes, I swear. And ready to eat like a metaphor that’s more appropriate to you. Righteous vengeance really works up an appetite.”

“Uh-huh. Just out of curiosity, who exactly are you righteously avenging at the moment?”

“Humanity? Good taste? God, who couldn’t possibly have foreseen this free will thing would go so very wrong? That poor defunct condom that tried its best but in the end, just wasn’t up to the task of keeping this shithead from being unleashed unto the Earth? I dunno. Do I have to pick just one?”

Not really. As stated, Scott’s not actually judging anymore than Danny’s trying to hide this from him. They’re both in total agreement about the kind of people Danny cyber-vigilantes. They just have different approaches about how they should be handled. Scott, while not violent by choice for the most part, does tend to favor the direct approach. He just feels its right that a person know why exactly he thinks they’re a terrible person who deserves what they get. So he tends more towards the approach of: punch a bigot in the face, wait for a second for a whiff of remorse or sign someone might be suddenly reevaluating life choices, because he’s Scott and hope springs eternal, but when no such revelation comes, just shrugging and walking away. Oh well. He tried. Sorta. Well, kinda.

Danny, in contrast, prefers to go for the jugular and leave no hint of who or what might have been behind the all-encompassing full frontal assault that hits every online trace of his target’s miserable and miserly existence. It keeps them paranoid and this keeps him sated. Plus, his stance is when they don’t know what exactly earned them an enemy of his caliber, it forces them to reflect or at least call to mind every thing they can think of doing wrong to someone that might result in that someone hating them this much.

The ironic thing of course is Danny doesn’t even really hate them, because that implies a level of giving a shit he can’t ever quite seem to muster. He mostly just thinks they suck and should suffer for that. And he gets bored a lot. 

Look, his husband and fellow werewolves are off saving the world every other week and being all kinds of kick-ass and action adventure movie-star types in the process. A guy sitting behind at home all the time has to get his jollies somehow. Also, he’s compiled a very engaging soundtrack to accompany his personal heroic undertakings, and it does wonderful things for his self image. Danny’s all about that self-care.

Plus, the first time he and Scott had something of a disagreement on their approaches, Danny unapologetically stated that loving him meant loving his vindictive side, because he personally was quite fond of it and thought it was really something of a Look. Also, making that Look into a Thing might be something of a dealbreaker for him, because he really didn’t want to undersell his capacity to be petty, and how little shame he felt about having said capacity. His essential life philosophy boils down to sometimes people just suck and somebody needs to say so. Maybe by draining their bank account and redirecting the funds to an ironically relevant charity.

“Fine,” Scott had conceded with a sigh. “Just be careful about making enemies like this, I don’t want you to get hurt.”

(That was really his only real concern all along. He’s a Nurturing Nelly. Scott can’t help but be a worry wart when his husband roams the internet highways under a masked IP address, taking on bandits and bigots all willy nilly, with not a bit of concern for himself. Its their biggest common ground, and Danny doesn’t have claws or a killer bite to protect himself with. A bite fetish, maybe, but that’s not quite the same thing, and also neither here nor there, and also also, he would like to plead the fifth while reminding you he can access and pull up your full porn-browsing history if you’d like to press that line of conversation further. Pervert).

Anyway, alls well that ends well, and thus Danny couldn’t help but be charmed at the reminder that his hubby is a man with clear priorities and his biggest is always gonna be the safety of his loved ones. Aww, sweetums.

“Aww, sweetums,” he said, just to see Scott squirm, because the more unexpected the endearment, the more Scott doesn’t know how to take it. And a squirmy Scott is an adorable Scott, Danny has always felt, and he is a man who appreciates his eye candy, as well as a go-getter who knows what he likes and goes and gets it, even if that means playing dirty. Especially if that means playing dirty. Danny likes dirty. 

After all, dirty men need to shower, and showering together conserves water, and having sex while showering together is just a solid application of having eyes, a hot husband, and a healthy libido. It just makes good sense. He’s goal-oriented and a linear thinker, what do you want, leave him alone. He’s valid and you’re just jealous.

Still, exotic endearment applied, he’d then followed up with:

“How dare you accuse me of being so bad at the thing that I am most skilled at that you imply I’m even capable of ever leaving digital tracks like a total N00b. What do I look like to you? A 4chan poster who just figured out how to spoof their GPS for the first time?” 

Danny rolled his eyes, exaggerating his wounded pride. It was the principle of the matter, and he was very principled. Sometimes. Kinda. If principles mean whimsy and whimsy means shh, don’t interrupt me, I’m doing bad things to bad people and this is very important work that must be savored or you really don’t get the full oomph of the revenge-gasm. Yes, he said revenge-gasm and he meant it. No he will not elaborate. Imagination is free.

“Ten points from Gryffindor for your low opinion of me, your valued and valuable life partner. Also, no sex for you, until…..okay maybe that’s too far. You seem like you’ve learned your lesson.”

“You’re too merciful,” Scott had said drily. 

“Nobody’s perfect,” Danny had said lackadaisically. “Also, not to disrespect your tortellini-making expertise, but any chance we can put a pin in dinner until after we go have wild, passionate sex? This pending revenge-gasm is making me horny and I really hate to waste a good head of moral crusading.”

“That was a terrible pun.”

“I have never made a pun in my life, how dare you, my sense of humor is sophisticated. I’m not a peasant, Scott. And where did we land on the sex.”

“Didn’t we just do it this morning?”

“I have needs, Scott.”

“You’re insatiable.”

“And water is wet. I don’t see the relevance. Also, if you don’t want me jumping you 24/7, you have no business being so hot. Its your own damn fault, deal with it.”

“There you go with the victim-blaming again.”

“I’ll do five Hail Marys after I finish doing sinful things to you and racking up another five. Its more efficient to tackle them all at once.”

“Not sure that’s how that works, babe.”

“Eh, guess I’ll just go to hell then. Still worth it. Still your fault. Oh look, I’m naked all of a sudden, how did that happen?”

Scott sighs. “What am I going to do with you?”

“R is for Ravish me, if you’re really looking for suggestions. I can probably do the whole alphabet if you need. Or just do me. Whichever.”

Scott cut off further melodramatic peacocking with a kiss.

Things proceeded to a total media black out from there. Further voyeuristic attempts at seeing the Alpha and his mate get down, get down, would necessitate the invocation of the cautionary tale of the last pack member to not properly respect the sanctity of the inner sanctum of the Vindictive Master of Digital Identities and Other Important Details. His name is Chester, middle initial A., surname with a phonetic similarity to certain orifices. That wasn’t always his name, but it was once Danny got done with him, and that was only after Scott gave him the Pointed Stare of One Who Will Look More Benevolently On Those Who Demonstrate Both Mercy and Restraint.

Tis very much a tale of woe, as Chester is 6′5″, 260 lbs of visually intimidating werewolf muscle, and facial features that when accompanied by choice words and phrases, rather does call to mind certain similarities to certain orifices.

Like I said. Danny is very good at what he does. And everybody loves Danny.

….Aside from all other motivating reasons, its just a good idea in general. 

Y’know.

Practically speaking.

[tinkerd]

THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO ASTERIX’ BY DAVID LITCHFIELD

(This post was originally written for the website nerdybookclub.com on April 3rd 2019)  

One Saturday afternoon, many, many years ago, my nan bought home a book called ‘The Complete Guide To Asterix’. She picked the book up from Kempston Library thinking it was another narrative adventure in the series of books she knew I loved so much.  The book was in fact a detailed text book  written by Peter Kessler which offers a thorough behind the scenes breakdown of every Asterix book that had been created up to that point. There was also a number of features in the book that looked at the creators of these great characters- the writer René Goscinny and the illustrator Albert Uderzo.

The Asterix books were a big deal for me growing up.  They are essentially comedy books but there is something very emotive about them. Asterix and his fellow villagers have so much heart and soul and the companionship between Asterix and his best friend Obelix was a beautiful thing. This may sound odd but carrying an Asterix book around with me at school gave me a sort of weird confidence that is hard to explain.

The exquisite artwork made it very easy for me to escape into this different time and place and visit ancient Gaul.

Growing up in a small town in Bedfordshire, England, there was something magical about reading books that were written and drawn in a different country that- at the time- seemed so far away. This was in the late 80s/early 90’s, before the internet. In a funny way reading Asterix made me feel more connected to the world. I consumed as many of the stories as I could. The artwork was always what drew me in. I still find the Asterix books a real source of inspiration in terms of Uderzo’s drawing style

In fact, I think it is fair to say that  I learnt to draw by copying the illustrations in the Asterix books and spent hours trying to capture Uderzo’s distinctive style. I love how beautifully ‘French’ a lot of the gestures and mannerisms his characters have.

When my nan bought home ‘The Complete Guide To Asterix’ that Saturday I remember being initially disappointed that it wasn’t a new adventure to get lost in.  However, I soon forgot this disappointment and read the whole book that afternoon. I reveled in the background information it offered on how these fantastic, beautifully exotic and hilariously funny comic books were bought to life.

The reason that the moment my Nan bought this book home is so important to me is that I am pretty sure that this is the precise moment that I realized that an ‘Illustrator’ was an actual job that people did.

The book told me that the illustrator and co-creator of Asterix: Albert Uderzo got paid to draw everyday and create characters and worlds and come up with adventures.  I found out that  Uderzo didn’t have to go to school, or go to work- (or at least the type of ‘work’ that I was getting accustomed to through my parents moaning about their own jobs) – Uderzo went to an art studio everyday. In this studio he was surrounded by pens, paint, paper and inspirational books and colorful posters. And he got to create new things every day.

There were photographs of Uderzo in the book. One was of him in his studio at his drawing desk staring up at us smiling. Another was of him working, totally focused on the page he was drawing and the new adventure he was creating.  These photos were captivating.  Uderzo was an actual illustrator. And he did get to do this every single day.

The thought that it was someone’s job to come up with these characters and spend their days drawing them was hugely exciting. When I realised that I could possibly do something similar and that could be my job …well, that thought blew my mind.

The life of Albert Uderzo sounded like a really happy and wonderful life to lead.

We didn’t have a great deal of money when I was growing up and we didn’t have computer games or satellite TV anything like that. But a library card was a very important object indeed and the library was a very important place. One of the most important places in the world in fact. It was there after-all that, aged 5, I found my first Asterix book. ‘Asterix & Cleopatra’.

Every weekend my brother, sister and I along with my mum or my nan would head to Kempston library and I would grab me some more Asterix.

Another thing we did seem to have a lot of back then was paper. My mum was able to get hold of lots of blank paper from her workplace. And I just drew all of the time.

With that paper I made my very own Asterix books. There was ‘Asterix & The Giant’ ‘Asterix In Space’ ‘Asterix Back From the Future’ All these self-made books were around 4 pages in length and written and drawn by me, inspired by the creations of Goscinny and (especially) Uderzo.  This soon developed into me coming up with my own characters and brand-new stories not associated with Asterix. I started to make comics for my brother and sister and my friends. I remember, when I was around 7 or 8, that we had a comic club where me and a few other kids would create comics together in my friends shed. It was a really great time and further sparked the creative fire inside me. There was- and still is- a magic to creating an image or a whole story from nothing. Something that didn’t exist before and now it does. Although, I have no idea where most of these comics are now. There are probably some remnants of them in various attics, garden sheds and birds’ nests around the Bedfordshire area.

When I did grow up and I really committed to becoming a full-time illustrator I thought about what area I wanted to focus on. I kept thinking back to the joy I felt getting lost in the artwork of, not just Asterix, but ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ by Maurice Sendak and ‘The Moomins’ by Tove Jansen.  I thought about how much these books inspired me when I was young.

I thought about how great it would be to be given the opportunity to create my very own, real life picture books.

It is obviously a joy to be able to do what I do and I am incredibly lucky. Illustrating books for children is one of the greatest jobs in the world. But, this job does also comes with a lot of negative factors. The hours are long, the deadlines come around too quickly, being sensible with money is hard, there is no paid holiday leave or health insurance. Sometimes these things can make you feel overwhelmed and down into the dumps.

But when I do feel like that, I think back to those photographs of Uderzo looking happy and content, lost in a zen like state whilst drawing in his studio. I remember how those photos made me aspire to want to live that creative life and how his art made me feel.

I still can’t quite believe that I get to do that now. I draw giants, bears and aliens all day, every day in my very own art studio. Just like Uderzo. That is obviously incredible thing.

I have only been doing this full time for just over 4 years and I still feel very humbled by it all. I feel humbled when someone says that they enjoyed my book, when someone wants me to draw their book or when someone asks to buy some of my drawings.

One of the most humbling and rewarding aspects of this job however is talking to kids at signings or reading the letters they send me about how much they have enjoyed my book and that they read it every night. That is seriously one of the greatest feelings ever. It really does make me feel very honored. It’s such a privilege to have my books be- maybe just in a small, fleeting kind of way- a very small part of someone’s childhood.

I hope that I never lose that feeling of being humble. I hope that I feel humble forever.

Those Asterix books and Albert Uderzo’s illustrations meant so much to me when I was a child. The thought that maybe my own illustrations will maybe do the same and inspire a child today is one of the main reasons of why I do what I do.

David Litchfield is the creator of the award-winning The Bear and the Piano, as well as the illustrator of Miss Muffet, Or What Came After by Marilyn Singer and many other picture books. He lives with his family in Bedfordshire in the United Kingdom. Visit him online at davidlitchfieldillustration.com, on Twitter @dc_litchfield, and on Instagram @david_c_litchfield.

[lyrronium]

I rewatched Detroit Evolution

and did a live tweet session as I did so. This is dedicated to the observations I have, I made a separate post talking about questions. To forewarn you, this and my twitter feed will most likely contain spoilers, please proceed with caution if you haven’t seen the film. If you haven’t seen the movie, here you go. And here’s my twitter if you wanna take a gander at the whole live tweet session. 

Onto the observations! (This will most likely be a lot of me copying and pasting so wording may be a little off)

'ive never been intimidated by people who hate androids' *immediately looks at gavin* okay bitch

the way chris and gavin have to protect nines through the crowd and they do it. thats it. thats the tweet.

(1/4) I LIKE THAT THEY ADDED IN THE VOICE COPIES THAT THE RKs CAN DO

(2/4) and hes obviously hasnt used it before, at least not in front of his peers. in dbh, connor only uses it in the elevator of cyberlife. so good chance they dont know he can do that too

(3/4) the predatory look nines has towards gavin when he said he can do his voice too

(4/4)  he looks so fucking pleased with himself

thank god i hate you you love me move your feet theyre not even together yet and they just fit so fucking well

you could see gavin work up the courage to ask nines what would it take for him to like someone

consent is important, yall (side note: this is in context of Nines asking Gavin if it’ll be alright for him to stay and work on the case while Gavin slept)

I've made this discovery before. In #DetroitAwakening Maximilian's hair is a much brighter shade of brown. While in #DetroitEvolution his hair is much darker. Its probably due the passage of time, it happens. I prefer the dark hair and I just wanted to point out how good he looks

props to chris being able to act out the nightmare scene. those aren't easy, man.

reading about gavin's intimacy problems in this film gives more light as to why he shies away when nines starts listing off the pros of physical touch. and of course why he's so hesitant about holding nines' hand and laying his head on nines' shoulder

chris and maximilian are such great actors. send tweet.

(1/2)  so much trust gavin gives nines in the bedroom scene

(2/2)  which is so fucking funny because in every other movie, a bedroom scene would be a bedroom scene.

idk i kinda wish nines left when gavin told him to. you could see him struggling to say it so its a big feat in itself. but we gotta love angst.

[Ada] never actually answers nines' question about if she was woken up after the revolution, hmm

again, i like that gavin uses a small taser as a lighter. its very gavin

even during this tense moment in their relationship, nines is always protecting gavin's name

(1/2)  ah. gavin's nightmare is coming true, except its nines in his place

(2/2)  WAIT WHY WAS I SO CASUAL ABOUT THAT LAST TWEET WHAT THE FUCK

you know i was really apprehensive about the whole zen!gavin telling nines he has to erase the garden and him. i thought it was some ploy that ends up resetting nines and then ada using that nines as a piece against gavin/dpd. luckily i was wrong.

Nines validating Gavin's points of worry but also balancing it with his own points

Mister Don't-Use-Violence as he uses violence

chris and maximilian's chemistry onscreen is just as amazing as their chemistry offscreen

(In relation to this article) reading this, and getting to the part where maximilian comments about his character, the part where he says that nines is more of a feeling instead of a character to study is a lot to take in. he's forever going to have a part of nines in him, always. such a cool concept.

---

Alright, that’s it. It’s a bit long but it works. I like to think a few of these are valid points that need to be discussed. 

[angelalpha16]

MC waking up to the reality

This will be the first time for me to write a mysme fic because Zen came to my dreams last night and it's... well... just read if you want to know what happened. I am quite sad that I need to accept Zen isn’t real. :( 

It was 12:00am and I was waiting for another chat to pop. It's my 10th day and I have repeated playing this game a hundred times just to keep him alive in my life. He was my first route and I locked myself to him alone. I played all the DLCs just to get to him. Just to keep receiving his call, chat, text. I was in love with him like how I repeat this game to believe myself that he loves me and fill that loneliness I had been experiencing for a while. The April fools DLC Normal end struck me and now, I somehow slightly believe that he is somewhere out there loving me. For me, that was enough.

"Hey, Cheonsa. Are you free tomorrow? I need a runner for this wedding."

Meo yeon, my coworker texted me asking for assistance at a wedding event tomorrow.

"Sure." I replied.

I went back reading fics on tumblr and chuckled at every Zen headcannons I read. I checked the time. WHAT?! It's 2am already.

Alright. I need to control myself just as Zen can control his beast. I need to sleep now for tomorrow's work. 

I kissed my phone's lockscreen goodnight. (It was Zen's CG on the other dimension, trapped)

"Hey Cheonsa. Thanks for coming. Can you please make sure the bridemaids are all ready at 10 o'clock?"

"Okay will check."

I knocked at a room filled with ladies. All of them are chuckling teasing the bride about how lucky she is for marrying a handsome man.

"You really are the luckiest woman on earth. I am really really jealous of you to be honest."

"Me too. Marrying this very handsome guy, gosh. You have to make a lot of kids!"

"Of course he'll end up marrying me. I knew my ways into him!" 

"Oh my gosh. What do you mean?"

"I just have to get silver hearts!"

"Excuse me. Good morning. We'll pick up the bridesmaids at 10 o'clock. I hope you're ready."

"Cheonsa, you don't need to come to the church. Make sure everything on the reception is on place now. Especially that photobooth! They weren't responding this morning."

"Alright. I got you, Meo Yeon."

I came to the reception with sparkling eyes as I see how grandeur this wedding is. It was a garden setting with lovely flowers all around. There were hanging lights with elegant vines from the tent ceiling. The floor is filled with petals and crawling ornamental plants. It is a fairy tale kind of wedding. 

I marveled at all the details that fascinated me, even the chairs and tables have these elegant-looking vines crawling at their feet. 

Then my eyes came to the bride and groom's lair. It is the center of this astonishing venue. The arch was filled with white amaryllis above it. Vines flow from the arch with the magnificent little blooms. The flowers reminded me of Zen. It seems like he was as pretty as the venue.

"Marvelous, isn't it?" one of the assitants interfered with my fascnitation. "I bet a lot of thousand dollars have been burned to wed famous people with this." 

"Famous?"

"A famous musical actor is to wed a daughter of a rich politician man. A cliche pair." 

"What a coincidence."

"What is?" 

"Nothing."

It was weird that I was thinking of Zen when I heard that the groom was also a famous musical actor. I was too busy running different errands today to even know who's going to wed. 

"Back to work." I told myself.

Hmmm... band - check. Host -  check. The photobooth...

Oh. they're setting up now.

"Cheonsa! Omg. You won't believe this!" one of the assistants came running to me.

"What is it?"

"The groom! He's a famous musical actor!" 

"Oh. well, yeah. I heard." 

"He's that handsome man from that game you're playing!"

The game? My coworkers know I've been obsessed playing Mystic Messenger. I've told them my standards of an ideal man. And of course, it is Zen.

"Game...?"

"Yeah! That one you're chatting with the whole day!"

"You- you mean Zen?"

"Yes! It's Zen!" 

I laughed. "Does he have a long pony-tailed silver hair too?"

"Of course! It's really Zen!" 

I laughed it off and resumed working.

I am confused. But I thought it was funny. I know no musical actor from where I come from. So the groom might be similar to Zen. I was quite excited about that. 

The reception is about to start. He really is famous. The venue was packed with celebrity faces. Some are famous businessmen. Some are actors and actresses who really are known.

But why. I don't know who the bride and the groom is. It was strange that I've been working all day without knowing their names.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Let us all welcome-" The host began. "The newly weds. Mr. and Mrs. Ryu!"

Ryu? My heart was racing this time. I feel like everything became so weird now that I heard the couple's last name. I anxiously turned to face the door as it welcomed the couple.

The April fools DLC normal ending 2 played in my mind. 

Zen was real. He knows I am in a different dimension. His words made me cry my heart out as he promised to find me. I don't expect for it to be real but it did leave a scar in my heart.

"I'll always be here so you could come see me whenever you want... use me. Don't hesitate to come find me. If someone in that dimension gives you a hard time, just think of me. When you're bored and missed me too." 

"At first, I couldn't stand the fact that you're in another dimension but now, I'm okay with it. Do you know why? I realized that our thoughts and feelings transcend dimensions. Even if I can never touch you, I know that the feelings we have towards each other can't be trapped in any dimension. That, let's me endure... all the waiting I have to do. Even when your eyes turn away from me and return to your real life, I'll be sending my love across all the dimensions.

I'm sure you think of me from time to time during your day. When you do, just remember, that's the moment my love's done the impossible to cross dimensions and reach you."

"I love you, Cheonsa. Let's be forever"

Zen's lines had my tears falling. I felt so unloved I've been relying to the love this character has given me. I was comforted. I feel content. 

Then I thought. You are just a game. A lot of us have been playing this game. There are a lot of MCs in this world who are obsessed with you. 

You might enter this dimension and find out that we are all the MCs you're looking for.

It made me cry even more. It hurts to think you weren't even real.

But I let it go. 

I want to believe your love for me. 

I let my selfish fantasies to live. 

I let you live inside my heart.

The bride and groom happily waved at the crowd while holding hands. The crowd cheered more except me. 

The groom is wearing a white tuxedo with a white amaryllis on its pocket. He has a long silver hair pony-tailed to his back. His ruby eyes express glee as he smiled to everyone in the room and then, to his now wife. When I saw his face, I felt like I was stabbed. My heart suddenly stopped. He is not just any man who is similar to Zen, or looks like Zen. He is Zen. For real. He is really so handsome I can feel my breath taken away. My knees weaken and my eyes became blurry. 

"Zen?" I murmured as I lost my balance and fell to the ground.

Everyone came rushing to my aid when I half-opened my eyes. 

"Cheonsa? Babe are you okay? Wake up my princess!" The voice sounded familiar.

I saw a blurry silver hair in front of me. 

ZEN!

I forced to open my eyes and got up. I thought my strength was back but I was still weak. The blurry face is now a clear face of Meo Yeon. 

"Cheonsa, can you hear me? Let's take her out."

I looked to where Zen is. 

His worried eyes looking into the commotion I caused.

But that was it. 

The man I used to be obsessed with is a real person. I can't understand how it happened. I don't understand why it felt strange. I thought he was a fictional character.

I've been taken away from the scene.

I was the wedding assistant who passed out on his wedding day. He would definitely remember me. 

But I will definitely remember him as the character I fell in love with. 

A character I never thought can break my heart for real.

He came to this world to look for MC. 

But that MC... is not me. 

[theareya]

even numbers for the gaming asks!

Okay, its been 1000 years since I posted this gaming ask. But here are the answers!!!! I put most under the read more…

2. First game you played?The first game I ever played ever, in thehistory of forever, was Super Mario Bros. at my babysitter’s house, if mymemory serves me correctly

4. Longest consecutive hours you’ve played agame?Ohkay, let’s see. Without eating or bathing,but I did get up briefly to bathroom and drink water, I finished uncharted 1,2, and 3 consecutively in 120 hrs. Needless to say, I never did that again, asthe blood vessels in my eyes popped, I ate two bigmacs after, and my parentsyelled at me. Otherwise, without moving or tending to most of my basic bodilyneeds, 10 hours max as of late.

6. An underrated game from within the last fewyears?I don’t know, I’m probably biased and neverreally look online to see how the game was rated/how it’s doing. Oh! But! Ireally liked Battleborn, which was basically a game that came out like a littlebefore Overwatch? Or near the same time, actually. You also fight in teamsagainst one another with unique character abilities to obtain certainobjectives. Honestly, it is extremely well done and detailed, but very muchfalls in Overwatch’s shadow possibly due to similarity and budget D:  8. The game with the best atmosphere/scenery?I’m biased. I love Bioshock. But I also am ahuge fan of those apocalyptic, dystopia aesthetics. So, essentially, anythingalong the lines of bioshock, Fallout, and Last of us.

10. Prefer PC or console?I’ve always played on console. And I’m so bad atPC. You would think it’s a bit easier to aim a cursor to shoot at something,but I’m particularly bad at that.

12. Most bizarre game you’ve ever played?Most games are pretty… bizarre. Most of theactual weird ones I’ve only seen online on those “top ten weirdest video games”but maybe Katamari? There are definitely weirder ones… The Nightmare Within wasalso… strange. I don’t actually know what counts as bizarre anymore in thegaming world. Shrek party…

14. Do you watch playthroughs online?Sometimes, yes! If I know I am never going toget the game. For example, an xbox exclusive (I do not have an xbox) or if Ialready played the game and want to see others suffer, lmao. Or if I like thestreamer.

16. The best year in gaming you’ve experienced?… I don’t remember. I’m going to say 2011.

18. Worst game you’ve played?There are probably worse games, but I’ll go withthe most recent one I’ve played, which was Bound by Flame. It was kind of thisunfortunate mix of—attempt at—Dark Souls, Dragon Age, and other medieval games.Some parts of the gameplay were unnecessarily hard for kicks, with no way toovercome the boss aside from chipping away at the health by throwing a rock atit, while your single dead companion lay sprawled in the middle of the fieldten seconds into the fight. And of the one and a half romance options pergender you were allowed, none of them were very enticing. Spoiler** I overcamethe end fight by purchasing 10,000 potions to fight the dragon. I made itthrough just fine, only after using 600 potions. Strategy was little help, butheyo I made it through. 20. Favorite publisher and/or developer?…Sony? I don’t know… I’m terrible at thesequestions.

22. If you could turn one game into movie, whichwould it be?You know I don’t know, since any game thatturns into a movie makes me want to cry bitter tears of hate. I’m looking atresident evil specifically. But if I could turn Bioshock into a really goodmovie with the proper actors/actresses, storyline, extras, atmosphere, then …yeah.

24. Ever cried because of a video game? Whichone(s)?…Too many. Nothing gets me more invested andemotional than a videogame. I guess the only one that has made me actually cryvisible tears is Journey. The ending overwhelmed me in an inexplicable way.

26. How often do you play online? Co-op?Relatively often now, especially withOverwatch, and the fact that a lot of my friends have Overwatch as well. So,like, every other day, if not daily. Otherwise, I love co-oping with a friend mostlybecause the AI that they give to work with you tends to … suck butts. Lookingat Resident Evil… again.

28. Who got YOU into gaming?My babysitter. Haahaa. I used to hang out ather house all the time and I’d watch her play all sorts of games. She’s alsothe one who gifted me my purple game boy color :’D30. On average, how long does it take you in thecharacter creation screen?Could be up to an hour. But at least 30minutes. It depends on if I know what I want.

32. Do you cosplay?I do! But I’ve actually only cosplayed animethings. Most of the video game stuff I would like to cosplay is too hard and/orI wouldn’t do it justice. Also I’ve been parts of group cosplays generally, sowe gotta find a good match.

34. Favorite male npc?For some unknown reason, the only personpopping into my head right now is erandur, the dark elf companion, from skyrim.Like… he’s not my favorite npc, but…my mind is drawing a complete blank. And isjust repeating that name over and over in my head. Oh boy

36. Best antagonist?Albert Wesker. …Spoiler??** Look… if you gottathrow him in a volcano to get rid of him after 200 tries of “just survive longenough” fights, he’s pretty good to me. Please let him die.  

38. Have you tried a game, hated it, then triedagain, and loved it?N….no? There are some games where I getfrustrated, then invite a friend to play, who is extremely over-leveled, andthen they help me… live. Does that count?40. Favorite voice actor?Okay, I love Troy Baker. How can one person beso gosh darn versatile?? For anyone who doesn’t know (I doubt that) He voicesJoel from TLOU, Booker from Bioshock, Sam Drake from Uncharted, to name theones that pop into my head. And he does like a million other voices, and sings,and is just very excellent overall. 

42. A game you will never forget (in a bad ORgood way)?Resident Evil 5 in the respect that I justplayed it during a very happy time in my life with one of my friends. And itwas also when I learned that I really love co-op, as well it was a supertreasured bonding time with that friend. We legit screamed so obnoxiouslythroughout the whole thing, apologized profusely, yelled for help. Like thatgame brought out our full range of emotion while playing.

44. Do graphics matter?Not necessarily. They add a nice kick, butthere are quite a few games I can think of where the gameplay and story aremore prominent. Storyline is generally always the main thing I look for first.Storyline and characters. 46. Always, sometimes, or never use subtitles?ALWAYS. Even for NPCs. Like the setting thatsays “ALL SUBTITLES” one of the reasons is because it alerts me to enemiessometimes too as they whisper in the distance. Which is the closest thing to awarning from jump scares that I’m going to get.

48. A game you’ve always wanted to play but havenever gotten to it?Um. I’ve actually been pretty aggressive ingetting my grubby hands on the games that I want. EXCEPT. Nearly everythingthat came out after Kingdom Hearts: Chain of memories?? Like 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 5 ½,365/3 days  idk there were too many?? AndI basically had almost every console except the PSP so I just kind of gave up??

50. How many games do you own?…uh… too many?? At least 200 if you total allof them from the dawn of my first game boy color.52. A game you will always stand behind, andsupport no matter what?..Fable. OKAY So, even though the game, alongwith the game company crashed and burned, I really loved that first game??Along with The Lost Chapters. I essentially based the experiences I had withFable 2, 3, Journey on how good the first game was. If I were to make someoneplay it now, they would probably think it’s pretty dumb, but I thought it was acleverly made game…54. A sequel you really want?… lmao Fable. AND/OR The Wolf Among us, becausethat’s been sitting there for far too long.56. Do you tell people irl that you play videogames?Yeah. If it comes up in the conversation. Or if…they have merchandise that I want.

58. Ever have someone walk in on a sex scenebetween you and you LI?N…o…60. The game you are best at?I know Bioshock inside and out… I don’t knowwhy I’ve played it so much, it’s a very linear game, but wuh. Also weirdly, I’mvery good at Sonic Adventure 2 Battle. And the only reason I’m obnoxiously goodat that game is because of the Chaos. I love those ridiculous little things andwould do anything to make sure they’re happy and healthy. And in order to dothat I had to play each stage multiple times to get the right power-ups andanimals to feed the Chaos…. There was a whole garden. And god.

62. Would you want to work with video games whenyou are older?I feel like if I start working with it I’llstart disliking it very much, unless I literally work as a tester… that getspaid a decent amount. Like seriously, walk in, sit down, play for… hours uponhours. Otherwise, I do not have the creativity or skill. lmao.

64. Describe your favorite video game using onlythree words?Underwater death city.

66. Game with the yummiest looking food?Final Fantasy XV. Okay, so I haven’t finishedthe game. I’m really not even that far into it, like… at all. I just saw thefood and got hungry. It’s so realistic and pretty.  

68. An older game that you’ve just recentlygotten into?I guess… Fallout New Vegas was pretty old, butthen my friend bought it for me on sale, and I tried it out and it was supergood??? And now I’m really into the Fallout series.

70. Do you play any mobile games?I.. play Fire Emblem Heroes, and a variety ofother mobile games like.. Notice me Senpai, Zen Koi, Mystic Messenger, uhhh…whatever is recommended sometimes. .

72. Have any guilty pleasure games?Not really. I’m pretty prideful in every game Iplay, including my otome games.74. Which game has the best lore?…Once…. Again, BIOSHOCK. Idk there are just somany little things in the city that you can find that point to the history ofthe residents, and what happened to them. There are those audio messages and littlesecrets that everybody has in the city, leading to its fall. I just love it somuch. Skyrim is a close second, to be fair. It’s more immersive and I canroleplay more on there.

[marshmallowprotection]

Whenever I finish a route I feel starved for a wedding scene, so please wedding day with our fabulous RFA + V + Saeran, pretty please?

Yoosung

Yoosung is simple when it comes to what he wants. Yoosung is the kind of guy that wants to do whatever feels right with his MC. This means that ceremony will be very lax but it will be filled with feelings and a lot of love. I think a simple venue booking is what he would aim for but that doesn’t mean it’s not grand. It’s about the way MC comes up that aisle to him that is really going to be what’s special. He’s got a small family and a decent amount of friends, so combined with whomever MC has, it’ll be mostly a medium-sized party of guests.

Cries when he sees you, like, he will be unable to hold back some of his waterworks. If you grab his hands and smile at him, he knows that he’s the luckiest guy in the world. “Y/N... I... I love you so much. You’ve always been beautiful but right now... right now, everyone can see it and they know you’re with me. I can’t believe you’re with me... but I promise I’ll make you happy.”

Zen

He’s a fan with fantasy dreams of an amazing life and an even more amazing wedding for his partner so really, the sky is the limit and you may have to slow him down if that’s not what you want. I don’t know why it is, but he seems like a guy that would either opt for a beach venue or just a full-blown fantasy setting. It’s hard to say what exactly he wants apart from you. He is okay with eloping, even, if it came down to it. It’s a bigger ceremony and a decent-sized crowd from both sides. But his eyes on only on MC. 

This big lug is emotional. He won’t able to stop himself from letting you know how beautiful you are when he sees you for the first time. He may shed a tear or two but he’s just so happy that he can’t help but to let you and the world know just how much he cherishes you. “You’re everything to me and I hope that that is the same for you, Y/N. I’ll give you everything you could ever want and I swear I’ll make you as happy as you’ve made me.”

Jaehee

Jaehee is a woman for all of our hearts and it just seems like she would a cozy spot. I’m thinking she’s the kind of gal that would opt for a venue like a vast and endless library with high shelves and higher ceilings. It just seems fitting for the world that she used to live before she found work and you. She’s someone that doesn’t have a lot of family or friends so I can see her opting for something small. It would be whomever you bring to the table that mostly fills up the seats and in the attendance. 

She can’t stop smiling and nobody has ever Jaehee shine brighter than she has when she sees you. She can’t believe that her life has gotten to this point but so happy that it did. She may cry but you can only smile and pat some of the tears away with a, “Hey, you’ll smudge your makeup. I think you’re beautiful no matter what, but you may be more picky about that.” 

Jumin

Strikes me as a guy who would get married in a church, even though he’s not particularly religious in a serious sense of the word. It would be a lovely venue with a lot of visuals that are spectacular, given window views of the scenery or of stained glass. You can’t say that he would not pull out all the stops for his MC if that is what they want. It will be a cozy ceremony though, intimate with family and friends as it should be. It may feel a bit much but hey, he wants you and everyone to know how much he feels. 

He’ll be silently taken back when you appear but he won’t be able to look away from you. He’ll have that smile on his face that only you know. It’ll make your heart leap from your chest. “Y/N, you’re... you look amazing. I am happy that you’re the one here with me. Forever.”

Seven

He does wish that he could give you that space wedding. Too bad the universe and progress in technology haven’t gotten there. He would opt for something simple. I can imagine him wanting a church wedding as well, and his ceremony would be just as small and intimate as his brothers would be. Nothing fancy, but I can imagine him picking a spot with a specific type of symbolism in the art that extends his life story and journey to MC. 

Expect him to have a speech ready. Actually, he’s got seven of those and you will all have to listen to them but when you appear to him, he’s going to be unable to look away from you. You’re the one that matters and when he speaks to you, you’re the only one in the room. “I love you, Y/N. You’re the sun to my moon and the sky to my spaceship. I can’t imagine a life without you so I want to make one with you.”

V

Intimate. Quiet. Perfect. Lovely. Secluded. I can see him leaning toward a type of venue that is classically natural and not overwhelming in any way. He’s likely to hold his ceremony outside. He does love nature and his love for it will show in the scenery. Think of a cozy gazebo in a gated park that can be decorated with the minimalist natural aesthetic. The focus isn’t on the environment or the flashy embellishments, it is on the MC and him. Small numbers in attendance. 

He’s gentle and sweet. He is very quiet in taking you in when you arrive and much like Jumin, he may be a little hard to read but he won’t break his eyes from yours. His fingers may shake a bit when he touches yourself. “I love you, Y/N. I am happy you’re here with me after everything we’ve gone through. I know that without you believing in me, I may never have found happiness. Now, I want to share it with you.”

Saeran

Saeran doesn’t like being the center of attention so a part of him wants to elope but another part of him doesn’t want to deny MC a wedding. So, he would opt for something simple, intimate, and that focuses on their union. Think of a garden, think of a greenhouse, think of a space where there are so many flowers and colors your mind is whirling. It would simply be the RFA members, his brother, and whatever family or friends you have. that would be in attendance. If he had his way, though, it would just be the two of you, together.  

Saeran isn’t a man of many words.  But, you know that. You know how he feels from the way that he looks at you. From the gentle smile on his face that is only meant for you, from that look in his eyes that you adore. He will whisper his adoration to you amongst the sea of flowers and people. “Thank you, Y/N, for letting me into your life. You showed me that I could be free and make my own choices. Well, I choose you... for all four seasons of the rest of our lives.”