#my words don’t do this piece justice forgive me

[mipexch]

[utterlyazriel]

an eternity, my love

eep! this is a bit longer than the last at just over 6k forgive me... but thank so much for all love on the first piece 🥹 and thank u for all your lovely ideas! i hope this does sum justice to the nonnie who asked for further miscommuncation... <3 part one here but u don’t need to read it to read this :)

How does one even begin to decide what to wear to dinner with a person, the person, who matched your soul perfectly?

When your friend had hunted her way through clothing stores of Velaris and stashed away a custom dress — far fancier than anything you owned — for the first date with her mate, you had laughed at her.

Now, staring at your closet in only your undergarments, you were beginning to envy her preparation.

Seriously, how are you supposed to choose?

You pick up your latest addition to your closet, a glossy dress the colour of red wine that reveals the length of your legs and planes of your collarbones— perfect for a night out dancing.

With a grimace, you place it back on the hanger. It was far more scandalous than you would want to be on a first date, even though — well, you’re sure that, being mates, Azriel would like anything you wore.

You heave a sigh. An uneasy prickle beneath your skin has you crossing your arms; it was almost alarming how badly you wanted to impress him. But… mating bonds were rare and powerful.

Almost as if you had summoned it — in fact, maybe you had — there’s a soft shimmer in your chest. Your beautiful glow, the bridge between you and Azriel humming to life. In a way you can’t explain, it’s as though you can feel him soothe across your mind, his soft touch full of assurances.

He’s comforting you. All your emotions must be shooting down the bond without your permission. Gods, that would take some getting used to. You wonder if he can feel your resounding pang of embarrassment as well.

You do your best to push back something less nervous, more of your excitement for the night to come — and you know, without even seeing him, he’s smiling.

After another moment of fussing, you decide on something simpler than your glossy night dress.

Comfortable black slacks with plenty of flow to them and a shirt you thought was one of your nicer ones. With the slightest touch ups to your makeup, you rush yourself out the door before you convince yourself to change all over again.

The Sidra keeps you company, a rush of water beside you as you wind through the streets of Velaris, eyes flicking up to take in the darkening sky. The sun was sinking below the mountain tops, rays tickling across the ridges.

And while you could admit that Velaris was very beautiful in the daytime, you were a true Night court citizen— and believed its true beauty came out at night.

Somehow, despite the lack of concrete plans made as you had ushered the male out of your office, you knew resolutely that you would be able to find him. You weren’t even worried about the timing of it all. It was… what was the word? Absurd. Insane. Utterly, breathtakingly incredible.

Sure enough, as you exit the alley and round the corner, your eyes falling on the sage green building you reside in for work, there he is; waiting for you.

You inhale a sharp breath. A thousand cells in your body fizz, hum, and glow, at the mere sight of him.

It's easy to understand just how he had garnered his dark reputation, the image of him every bit of the Spymaster of the Night Court — a title like Shadowsinger has never been so fitting for him.

He’s blurred at the edges, a thousand tiny wisps that blend him into the shadows of the nighttime. His wings stretch up behind, towering over his already tall frame, black as ink, and beneath his darkened attire, you can spot his tan skin. Your eyes drag up his neck, tracing his adam's apple, along the scruff of his sharp jaw until you reach his hazel eyes.

Your heart burns.

In the depth of it, you know, if he doesn't love you, he will undo you completely.

It's wholly terrifying to come face to face with — the intensity of the mating bond scorching through your mind like a fierce wind, burning embers left in its wake.

It's enough to make you pause, the definitive thought that doing this, offering him your heart and trusting him, could very well lead to your ruin.

Your chest squeezes tightly. You let your eyes drink in the Illyrian, the Male who waited so patiently for all those years and was prepared to wait years more, if you had asked.

Focusing, you pluck up that golden thread in your chest and hold it tightly. It heats and melts, hotter and hotter, and you know that any fear you have, you can conquer to be with him.

Ruination be damned.

—

Azriel notices you the moment your frame exits the alley, notices the moment you pause — has been able to feel you drawing nearer to him this whole time. Your every emotion is transparent to him through the bond between you, whether you���re aware of it or not.

You must not have the tightened mental shields he had come to be so familiar with over all his years. It makes sense; you are no warrior. Mental walls over your mind are not something you have ever had to concern yourself with.

Azriel vows it to be one of the things he teaches you. You deserved the privacy of your emotions, at the very least.

But... for now, Azriel can feel them all. It's why, as you round the corner, Azriel can feel your eyes on him and then, then he feels it.

The wash of fear that spills over your bond like icy water.

An old enemy rises within him. He grits his teeth, even as he feels the fear from you slide away and he tries to ignore the sting from an unhealed wound. But self-deprecation never seems to drown, no matter how much he tries to suffocate it within him.

He shifts his hands, relieved suddenly to have them covered up beneath gloves. His wings tuck in tighter, if possible, and he wills his shadows sternly to contain themselves. Something in the slightest baring of his teeth has them obeying. They shoot to his sides and make themselves scarce.

All this in time to greet you pleasantly as you bounce into view, sidling up before him with a shy grin. It's only been a few hours since he got his proper look at you and yet, you're every bit as breathtaking as you were earlier. More so, in fact.

It feels as though Azriel has never seen the sky before and you before him, are the first sunset of his life. You look so pretty that Azriel could probably gaze at you all evening if you so allowed him to.

And then, he remembers the pang of fear.

He doesn't waste time mulling over which detail of him had made you afraid — only that he would dim or change or hide any part of himself to stop it from happening again.

"Hello, again," You say, your lips pressed together to contain your smile. You have to tilt your head back to look up at his handsome face. His shadows swirl around him and despite his strict instructions, one still slips away to touch you.

You don't notice it circling your ankle, tentative and shy.

"Hello, again." Azriel echoes your words, unable to help his own glimmer of joy.

He wants to offer you his arm, his hand. Can feel it within him, down to the very marrow of his bones, the craving to be closer to you, to touch you, however he can.

Azriel swallows heavily and does what he has done over decades, over centuries; he takes the wanting and pushes it down, down, down.

The two of you begin to walk, side by side, with no destination in mind. Aimless and content at the same time.

Azriel doesn't need the bond to see the flittering of nerves hidden in your expression. The shadow still circulating around your ankle climbs higher, like it wants to comfort you too.

Azriel wills it to still, desperate to not scare you again. He drops his shoulders from his usual warrior posture in hopes of making himself a little smaller.

“You don’t need to be nervous.” He says reassuringly.

You steal a glimpse at him, your smile breaking into a grin. Your nerves are still potent but less so.

“Who says I’m nervous?”

Azriel smiles gently, his eyes dancing across your face as he reads your lie easily. “I do."

There's a scrunch between your eyebrows then, like he had seen during his time in your office earlier. Azriel places a hand on his chest, over the place where the glowing tug is strongest.

"I can feel it.”

Your eyes widen slightly as you stare at his gloved hand, the cogs in your brain spinning and turning at a rapid rate. Still strolling, your hand rises slowly and touches to the same spot on your own chest. Azriel can feel his heart stutter at the sight, you holding the spot that connected you to him undeniably.

"You can?" Your gaze lifts to his face, puzzlement adorning your features. You frown and focus for a moment, staring hard into the distance — and Azriel feels a sudden twinge of disgust through the thread.

"Did you feel that?" You ask, eyes wide and curious.

Azriel nods wordlessly and he can't help but ask. "What is it you were thinking of?"

You look embarrassed for a moment, eyes averting to the ground. You chuckle awkwardly and tuck your hair behind your ears, glancing back up at the Male with a sheepish smile.

"Brussels sprouts."

Azriel blinks once, twice, and then has to turn to hide his smile. He tries to cover his laugh with a cough. It doesn't work, given how you make a small noise of indignation. He turns back, his politest expression on.

"Don't laugh at me!" You whine, reaching out to poke him in the shoulder. Your touch radiates through his body like a drop of golden sun, blazing warm.

"You're right," Azriel hums, his lips twitching as he presses back his smile. "My apologies, my lady. This is important knowledge I should be filing away. I swear on my life I will feed you no brussels sprouts this evening, or any in the future."

He wants to nudge your shoulder with his own, just to touch you, wants to reach out as easily as you had. But his shadows slip before his self-control does, skittering out along onto your shoulder and giving you a small shock and Azriel remembers himself. His fists clench tightly at his sides.

You walk side by side all evening, like two planets in orbit — close, oh so close, but never quite touching.

—

The first date you share is nothing short of… wonderful.

Resolutely and overwhelming good, the entire date you can't help but feel as though your very soul is singing, a thousand particles blithesome at the nearness you get to share with Azriel. He's surprising in a manner of ways.

Firstly, he's terribly quiet.

Next to him, you look quite the blabber-mouth, no matter how much he insists he enjoys it. His dark eyes are intense as they watch you closely, soaking in every word that passes your lips, and yet, beneath it, his dry sense of humour comes out to play. There's the occasional tease, almost as if just to see if he could make you flustered. (He could, easily).

With a Male as beautiful as him, suited to your very being in every way, it's nearly unbearable how much you ache for him. How much his very attention creeps down your neck and makes every nerve along your spine tingle.

You know it will take some time to get used to his unwavering and devoted attention.

There’s… just one small, itty-bitty, tiny problem.

He doesn’t touch you.

Throughout that whole first evening, you had noticed it somewhat— a flex in his gloved hands, a moment where his wing strayed too close only to be pulled back in a flash, even his shadows, darting out to be near you but never quite touching you as they had on that first meeting.

His hands reach out but they do not find you.

At first, you believed it was a first date thing. Azriel was, first and foremost, a gentleman, and you thought perhaps, his skirting touch, like his hand lingering over the small of your back but not touching it, was to be polite. Courteous and gracious.

Then, you had seen him just two days after that date, all bundled up in your giddiness that it had managed to slip your mind.

The two of you had spent the day together, traversing through the market — before you quickly found a quieter space for your mate as it became clear that large bustling areas, such as the Palace of Threads and Jewels, were not so suited to his tastes.

As you had tugged him out of the crowd, laughing over your shoulder at how he fought to keep his broad wings from knocking into anyone else, the thought suddenly snapped back into you.

Though you yearned to link his arm with your own, to interlace your fingers with his, you remembered his hesitance. Remembered the hover of his gloved hand.

And so, you dropped his arm the moment you cleared the crowd.

A hurt warbled deep within you to so do and knowing you were not the deftest at schooling your expressions, you hid your face so you could contain your childish reactions. You huffed at your own upset. What matter is it if your mate has no affinity to touch?

Truly, it was a miracle to have found a mate at all, you tried to scold yourself. You would not take him for granted for a moment, not even if it was not quite the picture of perfection you had envisioned.

Rooted deep in you was a truth; you could abide by this, abstain to his level of comfort for years, for millennia, if it made him happier.

The fabric of the mating bond, connecting the two of you intrinsically, made it so you would not want it any other way.

It's a decidedly Azriel thing.

He always wears the gloves, he never touches you more than he has to, and he's got... this really specific look when you're doing a terrible job of hiding your emotions.

As he had vowed, Azriel had set about teaching you how to build the mental walls up within your mind, brick by brick by brick. While it would help you hold against daemati if that loathsome situation should ever arise, it would also shield you from your mate.

It would protect you from having your emotions ripped out for him to see, no matter how much you held back — if it was in your mind, it would travel down the bond.

So, the wall had to be built. It had been tedious, tricky, and tiring work. Yet every time you would feel yourself ready to throw in the towel, Azriel would lean in closer, his hazel eyes softened, and his hand resting upon your arm, thumb swatching up and down, to encourage you.

"I know it is tiresome," He had mused, that faint smile twitching at his lips as you scowled at the ground. His thumb was still moving, still drawing light circles on your bicep. The skin beneath it blazed with warmth. "But it is worth it, that I can promise. You deserve this privacy, my dear. I would never wish to take it from you."

My dear, my dear, my dear— the words had sunk into your sternum and bloomed, bright and golden.

It's enough to hold onto, his kind affections. The sweet shape of his mouth when it says your name. The way his lashes kiss in the corner when he can't hold back his smile.

It's enough to soothe yourself over. To take the lack of touch on the chin and swallow down your desire for more.

It's why— why you can't help yourself— why you couldn't tear your eyes away from Azriel's hand where it touches Cassian's arm.

You're meeting his family today, which you've quickly realised doesn't mean his mother or father but instead means... the literal Highlord of the Night Court.

There are several warriors crowded around the cramped entrance room to the River House. Each of them is taller than you, and two of them with the very same huge wingspans that you've come to revere on your own mate.

Your usual talkativeness has been dimmed in your shock, though, really, it shouldn't be such a surprise. Azriel is a force to be reckoned with, honed over decades, and the Spymaster of the Night Court. You know these things. The company he keeps makes sense.

Somehow... still, seeing them all together leaves you strikingly speechless. The legion that protects your home — a family.

Rhysand greets you first, dapper in his dark attire, his violet eyes equal parts calculating and welcoming as he steps forward and offers his hand.

Despite the fact you have never bowed to him before, you still have to repress the urge. His power is overwhelming, the very night lapping at his edges and you're suddenly very grateful to be meeting him as a friend and not as a foe.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Rhysand's voice purrs out, soft as silk. When you place your hand in his, he brings it to his lips and presses a polite kiss to the back of your hand.

"Any friend of Azriel's is a friend of mine."

You can feel your own heart thundering in your chest. Azriel hovers behind you, his presence soothing in itself. You can't see it but his wings are outstretched towards you, cocooning around you ever so slightly. A shadow hovers behind your shoulder, just out of sight.

"I— the pleasure is mine, my Highlord." You manage to make yourself speak.

You almost wish you hadn't when your words inspire a burst of laughter from one of the others behind Rhysand, the other Illyrian. He's tall, his hair dark but longer than your mate's own.

As your hand is dropped, Rhysand turns to scowl at the Male laughing, and you only grow further perplexed when he gives a whack against the other's shoulder. They begin to squabble for a moment — and you don't even hear Azriel move until he's speaking, his lips right by your ear.

"You'll have to forgive Cassian." His voice is low, raspy in a way that sends a zing down your spine. You shiver lightly. "He can be well-mannered at the best of times. But I promise he isn't laughing at you."

The two Males seem to tune back into Azriel's words, even though they had been whispered for you specifically.

"It's true!" The Illyrian, Cassian you now know, pipes up. He brandishes a devilishly handsome grin at you, with his hands held up in defense. "I apologise. It just still makes me laugh to see someone address this one so formally."

You blink. "But... he is the Highlord."

Azriel speaks again, bent over still to talk in your ear, but much less of a whisper this time. "Rhys is our Highlord but he does not bother with such formalities."

"And," Cassian interjects, lugging a punch into Rhy's shoulder, much like the other had done to him not a moment before. "Before he was the o'mighty Highlord, he was our friend."

Cassian says the word o'mighty with such an air of sarcasm that you can't help but glance at Rhys, sure he wouldn't take such disrespect. But around you, there are only easy grins.

"Might we move to somewhere more comfortable than the doorway," Azriel speaks up from behind you, his voice dry. "Unless that is, you're all hoping to do one-on-one greetings with her?"

There it is, the dry sense of humour you've come to adore. The group before you seems to grumble, as if they were quite keen on the one-on-one meetings but begin to move through the house.

One of the group dips back to walk beside you and you do your best not to repeat your past mistakes, even as your eyes widen almost comically. Azriel chuckles silently to himself, feeling your polite astonishment down the bond.

"It's so great to finally meet you.” Feyre, your Highlady greets you, her pretty face rife with glee. She seems genuinely very happy to make your acquaintance. "Azriel has told me all about you."

You stumble in surprise, your eyes casting back to Azriel behind the pair of you. His eyes are fixed on Feyre, narrowed at her blatant betrayal, his shadows swirling around him. She sticks her tongue out at him playfully and you smother a laugh.

When his eyes shift over to you, you're positively delighted at how his cheeks have turned the lightest shade of ruby.

"Feyre is very persuasive when she wants to be." He murmurs, almost grumbling. You turn back to the Highlady and she grins at you, devious and captivating all at once.

It’s a whirlwind once you reach one of the many living rooms, each member of Azriel’s family all very eager to shake your hand.

Cassian grips it firm, his grin still on the side of wicked as he tells you he’s been waiting years to find the woman who could contain Azriel. Nesta, his mate as you find out, is a fierce kind of pretty with a grip as strong as Cassian’s. She tells you welcome to the family with the smile of a shark.

Morrigon is next, breathtakingly gorgeous, and every bit as charismatic as Azriel had described. You don't catch the glimpse between Mor and Cassian, not the beat of relief they both feel at your arrival in their lives— in Azriel's life.

It's swallowed up in her words, going a mile a minute. She jumps about, like popcorn in a pan, overly keen to finally speak to the one whom the Mother deemed worthy of Azriel’s heart. Where are you from? What do you do? How did you meet?

“Mor,” Azriel warns, after her twelfth consecutive question about your life. He hasn’t moved from his protective position behind you, close enough you can feel the heat of his body. His wings had brushed your shoulder just once.

“Yeah, Mor,” Rhys jeers. He nudges his cousin in the side playfully and Cassian snickers behind the group. “Give the girl some time to breathe.”

Even with all of Azriel's masterclass on who you would be meeting, it's still terribly overwhelming just trying to keep track of them all. They're each such strong spirits, each with seemingly a thousand battles in their past and far more years with Azriel.

On top of this is the fact you met both your Highlord and Highlady so casually in one single afternoon. It's difficult to not be daunted by the group that is so clearly intertwined with each other on a deeper level altogether— bonded by devastation and choosing each other through love.

Try as you might, you can feel the seed of doubt, of insecurity, make a home between your ribs.

You clamp down the shields you've spent the last few weeks learning, building the wall up and holding it tight. It's silly to feel dismayed because these Fae, these friends, know your mate better than you do.

Azriel had told you he had been waiting for you for five hundred years. For the first time since you've met him, you wonder if he was ever disappointed.

And then— then, you see it.

Azriel's hand on Cassian's arm. Then the half embrace they share, a hand on each other's neck as Cassian grins, wild and fierce, and presses his forehead against Azriel's own; brothers, sharing a moment of euphoria at the other finding his long-deserved happiness.

You should be soaking in the smile Azriel hides from you too often, showing his teeth and crinkling his eyes. But instead, you can't see past it, can't stop the loop in your own mind as it prints a fact over and over and over.

It isn't an Azriel thing; it's a you thing.

He doesn't touch you.

The mental walls in your mind feel paper-thin as a fresh kind of agony ripples through your chest. The soft rejection of a mate stings, a papercut on your very heart. You can feel it warble through you and know, terribly, the exact moment that Azriel feels it too.

His head whips around, his dark shadows that surround him suddenly spinning and flitting faster than before— a couple dive across the room to you.

You stand up and the chair scrapes noisily beneath you.

"I—" You say before you realise you haven't planned an exit or an excuse in the slightest. Azriel's gaze burns into you. You turn to Feyre instead, who had been talking across from you when you rudely stood up.

"I'm so sorry, I just—" Some excuse, any excuse! "I think I— left the stove on."

It's a lie. A complete utter lie that fools no one in the room as you retreat from it hastily. None of them try to stop you though, which you're thankful for. Each of them watches, every expression slightly concerned as you hurry out of the room, your feet walking backward rapidly until you bump into the door frame.

You pass through it with your eyes on the floor, knowing that all of the eyes are on you. You know the ones you can feel searing into your soul are Azriel's.

You leave the River House. You walk along the Sidra, your steps hurried and your chin tucked low. It hurts. It hurts the feeling inside you. A tear streaks down your cheek, unbidden, and collects on your jaw. You wipe it away meanly.

The sight of your apartment door is an overwhelming comfort, one that has you sighing aloud as you rush up to it, your fingers already digging around in your pockets for your key.

And like always, you never hear him coming.

"What happened?" Azriel asks, his voice almost pained.

You give a little yelp of surprise and whip around, remembering half a second later that there's still evidence on your face of your tears. Azriel grows characteristically still, his hazel eyes fixed on yours as you sniffle for a moment, aggravation beginning to creep in.

He could feel everything from you and you got... what? Whatever he deemed fit to offer? How is that fair?

His usually wispy shadows are inkier than usual, almost tornado-ing around his shoulders. They keep leaping out towards you before being caught in an invisible net, a barrier between you and them.

Even as Azriel remains motionless, his eyes are the opposite—they jump around, searching, hunting, begging to find the cause of your pain. Had it been one of his friends?

"Please," He tries his words again.

His heart throbs painfully when you finally find your key and turn your back on him without a word, unlocking your door and pressing your way inside. He follows quickly, wings tucked in tight, unable to keep his shadows at his side this time. They whiz to you, circling your ankles protectively.

"Please," Azriel says, an anguished growl to his words. "What hurt you? I will— my friends, if they said something— if it was someone, I hunt them down and make it right for you."

You inhale sharply and when you speak, your tone is cold in a way you have never used before with Azriel. You say the words without thinking.

"It would be impossible to hunt yourself, Azriel."

Regret howls through you like a hurricane the moment you say the words. You don't mean to be mean, jealous, or whatever unseemly emotion you can't stop from sprouting in your chest, growing in size, tangling into your heartstrings like twisted gnarled vines. It hurts.

You turn back to him, mouth open. No words come out.

Hurt is slashed across his face, his eyebrows furrowed tightly, his shadows tucked in tight. It's as though he's blended into the very air, the wispy edge of him threatening to retreat into his own shadows.

All his emotions on display just for a moment, before they're schooled away. Tucked away, hidden, not for you to see.

Inside, your hurricane howls again, this time in pain.

You can tell he feels it, even as you mentally gather your bricks. It isn't fair. How can he have every bit of you and you get what he pleases to return?

You want to know him completely, want to see every part of his rugged, weathered soul, and love him anyway. It's an untold type of agony to have him deny you.

"My love," His feet finally move, his wings almost dragging on the floor as he steps forward, slowly, as though he was afraid he might spook you.

"Tell me how to fix this pain." He pleads. His gloved hands are held out, palms up and suddenly, he looks nothing like a warrior. Just a Male, afraid of losing what is most dear to him. You shake your head, like a child, and keep building your brick wall.

"Please don’t keep this from me," He takes another step forward, his shadows sent awry as they dart across to you. You can feel them on your calves, on your arms, feel the tiny kisses they leave. Azriel speaks again, voice low. "My love, I can feel your pain.”

You can't help how you screw your eyes closed, the ache in your chest unbearable— made worse when you know he can feel it too.

"That is my problem." You utter the words quietly, eyes still clenched shut, knowing he can hear you. He takes another step, close enough now that you can feel the heat of his enormous frame, his wings bracketing around you. "I cannot hide anything from you."

Azriel makes a noise, a punched-out wounded sound that reverberates down the bond.

"My love," He murmurs for the third time. Down the bond, you can feel his sweet love, his golden gentle feelings travelling along to assure you. "I would not wish for you to hide anything from me."

“But you hide everything from me." You whine, eyes finally crinkling open. Azriel stares down at you, his eyes softer than they've ever been. You can see the hurt swimming in them, the hurt you've caused. Still, you speak.

"You hide your emotions. You hide your touch, yet you give it willingly to your friends." You share each ugly thought with him, whispered as you gaze into his face to search for your answers.

Lifting your hands, you curl your fingers around his wrists tentatively. Azriel swallows heavily, his eyes dancing down to where you're touching him. You slide your hands forward, dragging the pads of your fingers over his pulse, along his palm, til your hands are holding his gloved ones.

"Is there some test I don't know about?" You ask, your focus on your intertwined hands. "Is there— do I have to earn this?"

"No," Azriel chokes out the word suddenly. You look up at him. He clears his throat and you feel his hands grip yours back, surer and stronger than you had. "No, I'm sorry. There is no test, nothing to prove you deserving of this. I just..."

His words trail off and you watch as he closes his eyes, inhaling deeply, as if gathering his courage. His hands slide from yours, pulled backward and you nearly feel the urge to cry once more— before you realise he's removing his gloves.

The skin of them is warped, you realise acutely with horror. The skin of his hands is swirled and mottled, an injury long healed but scarred for eternity. Azriel is watching your face closely, holding his hands close to his chest as though he was prepared to hide them away at the first flicker of fear.

You're grateful for the link between and all your shoddy attempts at blocking him out. Your love and your unwavering devotion drifts along the bond.

Azriel shudders, his wings giving the tiniest shiver. Slowly, gently, he reaches out towards you. You feel his hands, the unruly scarred feel of his skin sliding along your jaw to hold it tenderly. He has never held you like this before.

He cradles your face gently — like his hands have never held weapons of war, like they aren't twisted and marred with a memory he can't forget, like they're worthy of holding something so precious.

Azriel holds you as if you're holy — and he's come to kneel at your altar.

"I was afraid of what you would think." He admits. His voice is hoarse, gravelly as he fights off the lump in his throat. "I— on the first day we met, I felt your fear along the bond and—"

"It was not of you." You interrupt him, your hands jumping up to cover his own where they hold you. Azriel inhales sharply, eyes darting to watch.

But you pay him no heed, the palm of your hand covering his like a lover would. You let your thumb soothe up at down the ridges of his skin. You let your love ripple along the bond.

"It was not fear of you, Azriel." You repeat, your voice soft. His eyes are still fixed on your joined hands. His wings have begun to pick up, no longer drooping behind his back— you're not sure if he even notices.

"It was fear for how strongly I already felt for you." You lean into his hand and Azriel lets you, lets the length of your nose nuzzle into the touch of his hands — something no one in all his years of living had ever done before.

"It was fear that you already could ruin me," The words are murmured. "And that I would let you."

You whisper his name to pull his wide-eyed gaze from where his hands touch you and his hazel eyes burn into yours. Every whitened scar on his skin, every eyelash, the adorable pinch between his eyebrows; you drink it all in and smile at him. Azriel, your mate.

"Azriel, I chose this despite that fear. I choose you.”

Azriel quivers at the words, at your unflinching tone and suddenly the world seems such a perfect place, time moving around you, untouching, with such a perfect grace.

“I choose you too,” He murmurs, an emotion so strong a fire of possessiveness streaks down the bond. This time, you can feel his wall melt away, allowing you access to all he feels — his mountain of fear and his melting relief.

“Forgive me—” He begins and you laugh without meaning to, cutting him off.

“Stop,” you say, the word light and as pretty as your grin. “We keep doing this to ourselves, tying ourselves in knots over and over.”

Azriel laughs, his lips twitching into a smile as he allows himself to stroke his thumb lovingly over your cheek. The way you melt beneath it, your lashes fluttering and heart burning so brightly he can feel it in his own chest too— Azriel knows this longing will long outlive his body.

“We do,” He agrees. He dips his head a little lower, probably the only apology you’ll let him have, and inhales shakily. His hands shift across your face, down to hold your chin, his fingers pressed together tightly to hide the way they quiver.

“Then let me apologise in another way,” He murmurs, his voice closer to playful. “In a way I’ve been selfishly depriving you of.”

And when he kisses you, it’s with a reverence that softens all your corners.

His lips are plush and sweet, and with the way he dedicates himself to your bottom lip, you can’t help how you sigh into his mouth. He finds home in the curve of your mouth.

It’s delirious the way he kisses once, twice, three times like he’s hungry for something found only in your lips.

Your hands stagger forward, leaving his own to wind over around his neck. Your fingers curl up, raking through the hair on the nape of his neck — feeling the shiver that travels up his spine, his wings giving a little flare out.

He kisses you breathless, one hand abandoning your jaw to wrap snugly around your waist, bringing you closer to him.

When he pulls back, something within you glows molten gold at the panting that leaves his lips. He’s gazing at you, his hazel eyes alight in a way you haven’t quite seen before. His wings shift behind his shoulders, curling forward to wrap the two of you together, not quite touching.

Your heart thrills. You grin, your lips still just an inch apart as Azriel nudges forward, his own twitching in that way when he fights his smile. His lips brush yours, his smile barely held back.

“Have you forgiven me yet?” He says, sweet and low, allowing the smile to finally pull his pretty mouth up at the corners.

“Or should I make it up to you a little more?”

He kisses the corner of your mouth, chaste and gentle.

“Mmm,” your eyes are bright as they peer up at him, full of playful mirth and adoring affection. “You're forgiven but... I think you should make it up to me, just a little more.”

Azriel willingly obliges, his smile as sweet as the moonlight.

—

some people i thought might want to be tagged :)

@strangerstilinski @astoriaviviane @lana08 @florence-end @lportes-22 @torrick17 @florencemtrash @sidthedollface2 @seafrost-fangirl @goldenmagnolias @jeweline16 @meshellexplosionmurder @michellexgriffey @susiekern @toobsessedsstuff @fxckmiup @littlebookbengal @elenapril0502 @glitterypirateduck @hnyclover @technoelfie @itsapunklife @coffeecares

[lust4lore]

ARFARFARF so down bad for brattamer n casually dominant(by nature) kinda dark rafe n bimbo reader🤭🤭 imagine reader talkin to a random stranger in a bar or club or whateva she thinks its js a friendly interaction n shit after that rafes js there thinking 150 ways how to kill the guy for flirting wit his pretty little thing then she says it was a nice friendly convo n hes like whst???? yeah ahaha.... im obsessed pls forgive me

OH THIS GOT THE JUICES FLOWINGGG

the creative juices. get your head out of the gutter. that being said, thank you for your request! i hope i did it justice

CW: controlling!rafe, mildly dark!rafe, mmm kinda breaking my own guidelines w this one but VERY slight domestic violence? you get the point, manipulation

rafe cameron likes pretty things. so much, in fact, that he had known he was done for the second he saw you. you were cute— innocent— in a pink silk dress, ribbon in your hair and a sweet smile tugging at the corners of rosy lips. he just had to have you, and a year later, he did.

another well known fact about rafe cameron, though, is that he doesn’t share. and so, imagine his surprise when he comes back from the bathroom to see some man talking to you at the bar. he watches you for a moment, the rage settling in his veins enough to get his jaw clenching as you bat your eyelashes and giggle at whatever stupid joke that bastard just told you, pretty lips sucking at your straw as his gaze flickers down to your chest.

now that has rafe seeing red. he comes up behind you, an arm wrapping around your waist and causing you to slightly stumble back at the force of it. “hey, baby, who’s this?” he asks, fingers lightly twitching against your stomach. if you’re aware of the waves of fury radiating from him, you do nothing to show it, turning around in his hold with a naive smile and bright eyes. “rafey! this is alex, he wants to be friends,” you tell him, gesturing towards that sick perver— alex— behind you. “oh, does he?” he asks, but rafe isn’t talking to you, not really. if looks could kill, your new ‘friend’ would be further than six feet under the ground. “y’know, alex, i think my girl has enough friends already,” he squeezes your side, glancing down at you. “don’t you think, sweetheart?” the grasp he has on your waist tightens, fingers digging into your skin in a way that’ll probably bruise later.

you tilt your head, a crease forming between your brows as you lower your voice. “rafe, what- ow!” you yelp quietly as his iron grip bores into your ribs. he pays you no mind, though, still fixing alex with a chilling, eerily calm smile. “shit, man, i’m sorry, i’ll- m’gonna head out now,” the shorter boy mutters, looking intimidated as he staggers backward and rushes out the door. rafe gives a quiet chuckle at that and one of his hands grabs your wrist, yanking you closer. tears prick your eyes as he nearly cuts off the circulation in your hand, leaning in close to your face. “the fuck do you think you’re doing, huh? letting other guys flirt with you like that?”

you let out a whimper at his harsh words, a tear rolling down your pretty face. “he was jus’ being nice, i-” you whisper, and a hint of satisfaction cuts through his anger. look at you, you need him, who else’ll be there to protect you from all of those gross guys trying to get a piece of his sweet girl? he sighs, bringing a hand up to wipe the tears off of your cheeks. “c’mon, doll, you know better, did you see the way he was lookin’ at you?” you just look up at him, tears still sitting in your waterline as he presses a kiss to your trembling lips. “i didn’t mean to make you upset, a’ight? m’just trying to protect you,” he murmurs, and you instantly feel a little guilty for the way you reacted. “m’sorry, i didn’t know he was-” but rafe shushes you, stroking your cheek gently.

“s’okay, baby, you’ll remember who you belong to when we get home,”

[tflaw]

౨ৎ ⋆˚ pride and prejudice ft. neuvillette. f!reader. furina acting like emma! we luv to see it. not proofread! this was such on a whim that i just HAVE to get this outta my system! i hope jane austen will forgive me for thisb. but i tried my best agaksjwkw ! enjoy!

+ masterlist.

One day, in the land of Hydro, with the blissful Fontaine sun blasting its glory upon the whole land, Lady Furina has awoken from a nap with her mind fixed at a specific goal: to search for a noble lady who will become the bride of Chief Justice Neuvillette.

Neuvillette has it all, she thinks; graced with opulence that circles back from generation of wealth, a face almost treading the line of ethereal beauty, and height that towers proudly above most men. He is a gift wrapped in a bow, a cake with a cherry on top.

However, it’s no secret that his attitude could have some room for improvement; a smile would probably help. Of course, he is not awful. If not, his character is a rope pulled tightly on both ends. Neuvillette harbors a sense of incomparable rigidity.

But fear not! With the right weapon, even a stone can be broken into tiny little pieces. And Furina is hellbent on conquering this challenge. Despite the altering tides of Fontaine, she firmly believes that there’s still hope for the gentleman.

“Lady Furina, you have been sneering sinisterly for a good five minutes now. Is there any concern you’d like to share with us?”

Furina’s sapphire eyes find you standing closely to her desk. Albeit the genuine concern written all over your face, she persists in holding her toothed smile. “Nonsense! Nonsense! What concern are you blabbering about? This is a great day, indeed!”

“Oh, no, she’s planning something again, isn’t she?” one of Furina’s lady-in-waiting whispers behind you. “I’m getting shivers just thinking about it.”

“I do believe that this nation needs a little change once in a while,” Furina enunciates, pushing her chair with the back of her knees and circling around the desk to stand in front. “The lack of excitement has made the air insufferably dull! I can’t bear this ennui any longer. I’ll shrivel like a dead shell along the shore if we do not mend it this instant!”

You, Clorinde, and the other three ladies exchange knowing looks. All your eyes, different shapes and colors they might be, have carried the same apprehension. On your foreheads, a silent prayer evident in the form of tiny droplets dots your skins. ‘Don’t let it be me,’ are the words written across your faces.

“What do you have in mind, my lady?” Masking her expression with laudable effort has been Clorinde as she voices the question which the rest of you have been too scared to echo.

“I think it’s time that we witness a wedding ceremony. Who’s with me?” Furina beams.

A shared sigh of relief fills the air albeit inconspicuously, lest Lady Furina think all of you droll for not sharing her enthusiasm.

“A wedding? Why, Lady Furina, that’s actually a good idea,” you pitch in with a genuine smile. Anything but her usual over-the-top theatrics is a salve to everyone’s heart and well-being. “Who’s getting married, my lady?”

Furina raised a finger. “That’s the problem we have yet to overcome. I’m thinking that Monsieur Neuvillette needs to marry—”

“Monsieur Neuvillette?!” all of you screeches; same volume, same stupefied tone. “Chief Justice Neuvillette?!”

“Why, yes! So all you have better erase that annoying look on your faces! This is going to be interesting!” She jumps on her toes, obviously oblivious to the weight of the words she has uttered.

“I think it’s time to file our resignation,” the lady closest to you once again murmurs. “This is beyond our pay grade.”

You shush her quickly without effacing the presented notion from your mind. Even you have to admit that Lady Furina’s newfound theatric is one that will leave the whole nation’s jaw hanging.

Wait, that’s exactly what she wants.

“W… who do you have in mind to pair with Monsieur Neuvilette, my lady?” you ask through your strained smile.

Furina opens her mouth, undeniably overflowing with joy by the evident sparkle in her eyes, before a knock cuts her euphoria short.

“Lady Furina, this is Neuvillette,” says the voice from the other side of the door. “Can I come in?”

“Of course, Monsieur! Please, do come in!” Furina’s overjoyed invitation that everyone and their grandmother can absolutely hear the simmering mischief underneath.

You step aside from the platform, shrinking in yourself as the Chief Justice walks in with unbelievable grace and posture inside the room. Just like a snap of the fingers, he commands everything and everyone.

“Greetings, my lady and to the rest of your company.” He tips his head to everyone in the room. A pull— something undefined— manages to force his eyes to where you stand. “And to you.”

“Greetings, Monsieur Neuvillette,” you return with a gentle curtsy, shackling your heart to where it’s supposed to be by swallowing because the Archons know it’s climbing up your throat already.

“Monsieur Neuvillette? Monsieur Neuvillette?” Furina repeatedly inquires. “I’m right here.”

You peek at the man through your lashes at the same time his attention fixes on Lady Furina.

He clears his throat, but his mien remains unsoiled. “I have come to remind you of the hearing that we will hold tomorrow.”

“Is that it, Monsieur? Surely you can send someone to remind me— not that I’ve forgotten, of course!” Furina taunts.

She’s starting, you murmur to yourself. She’s really doing it!

“Well, I personally want to convey the reminder to you, my lady. We have to be there early as it is a matter of great importance.”

“Yes, yes! I know. But surely, Monsieur, that can wait until later? You have to visit me now?” Furina adds. “Am I to believe you miss my presence already?”

“Your presence always leaves a mark wherever and whenever,” is Neuvilette’s leveled answer. This is where it gets confusing; for his eyes, in between a heartbeat and a blink, flashes in your general direction. It’s far too quick for a mortal to catch, but not quick enough for an Archon. “However, it is not of longing that I have arrived. I shall be on my way.”

“Oh, why don’t you join us for tea, Monsieur? We are in dire need of new company!”

Neuvillette raises his hand gently. “I’m afraid I have to decline. Papers are piling up on my desk. It’s best that I attend to them now.”

“Isn’t that a shame?” Furina sticks out her bottom lip. “You’ll visit again, won’t you, Monsieur? There’s an splendid view in this room that you find endearing, I suppose.” She chases the Chief Justice, who already turned his back to depart the room, with the teasing words. He never looked back.

The tight air pinching your ribs seems to flow like an unstoppable current now. Finally, you can breathe without the feeling of suffocation chasing your lungs.

“The mystery is solved, my ladies!” Furina squeals as she turns to all of you with arms outstretched. “Monsieur Neuvillette will marry very soon!”

“Who is he going to marry, Lady Furina?” you have taken it upon yourself to ask.

Her smile is back, more sinister than before. “Oh! Isn’t it obvious? Didn’t you see it in his eyes?! Chief Justice Neuvillette is going to marry you.”

[elianamarie-blog]

The Things You Give Pt. 32

WhOoO wEeE! It's be a long time. Sorry it took so long! I've had a wild summer, yall. I moved and been pretty darn tired! I've also been stuck in a writing rut, so please forgive me. But I think I got it! I hope you like this chapter! It took a bit to write and I hope I do it justice. Thank you, loves! For everything. By the way, it's finally spooky season! Yay!

“What are you doing here?” Y/n asked incuriously.

“I’m here to pick up some stuff,” he responded and leaned against the doorframe, staring her up and down. “Whoa, who did this to you?”

“Who the hell are you?” Hyde asked, coming up behind Y/n.

“Connor,” he replied coyly and flicked his dirty blonde hair out of his eyes.  “Who are you?”

“I’m her husband,” he said defensively.

“Oh, yeah I heard about you,” Connor said, wagging a finger at him. “You’re the one that got busted for carrying. Like, two years ago, right?”

“Yeah, now answer my question.”

Connor smirked and eyed Y/n up and down. “I was her camp counselor a couple years back.”

Hyde looked to his wife whose eyes never left Connor’s. “Is he the one you…?”

“Yep,” Y/n responded shortly.

“And it looks like I dodged a bullet,” Connor snickered.

Y/n sharply inhaled, a throbbing headache already coming on. “What do you want, Connor?”

“I’m here for my dad,” he responded. “Wanted me to pick up something from Red.”

“What? What could he have that you need to pick up?”

“Hey, Connor!” Red greeted as he came from the den. “Glad you’re here! Wanna follow me into the garage?”

“How do you know each other?” Y/n asked.

“I ran into his dad while at the hardware store the other day,” Red replied. “He told me that he was in need of a chainsaw and I told him ‘No need, you can borrow mine.’”

The couple raised their eyebrows at him.

“You’re willingly letting someone borrow one of your tools?” Y/n asked incredulously. “Okay, who are you and what have you done with my dad?”

Red chuckled. “I know his dad. We’ve known each other for years. We served together in Korea.”

“Oh…” she trailed off, her stomach dropping. “Of course, he did.”

“How bout that?” Hyde chuckled, jealousy starting to boil in his veins.

“How do you two know each other?” Red asked, turning the question back on them.

“I was her camp counselor,” Connor repeated. “We had a good time and got to know each other pretty well.” He drawled on those last two words, not breaking eye contact with her.

Y/n glared at him, her fingers starting to itch from wanting to wrap them around his throat.

Red furrowed his brows at him. “What do you mean by that?”

“Nothing,” Y/n answered through clenched teeth. “We got to know each other just like everyone else.”

Red couldn’t help but squint his eyes at the three young adults: Y/n standing rigid, clenching her jaw while Steven stood stiff as well with his fists balled up, knuckles white. Then there was Connor whose smirk never left his face, eyes scanning his daughter like a piece of meat. Any likeness he had towards the kid was quickly going down the drain.

“Alright, Connor, follow me to the garage,” Red said, less enthusiastic as before.

“Yes, Mr. Forman,” Connor said dutifully and brushed past Y/n without breaking eye contact—or his smirk.

Once those two disappeared behind the kitchen, Y/n spun to Hyde whose eyes were locked on the kitchen door. If she didn’t know any better, he would be able to burn holes into it.

“That son of a bitch,” she spit.

“I hate him,” he said shortly.

“Yeah, me too,” she sighed and got back to helping everyone clean. “Just don’t pay any mind to him. It’s what he wants.”

“Why did he bring up your guys’ past like that?” Eric asked.

Y/n froze as she was picking up the plates. “Uh...I don't know. Reasons?"

“What reasons?” Donna pressed, grinning wickedly.

Y/n whipped her head towards her, baring her teeth. “Shut. Up,” she mouthed.

“Nothing, guys,” Y/n said without making eye contact. “Just drop it, okay?”

“Y/n…what aren’t you telling us?” Kitty asked nervously.

“It doesn’t matter,” she replied, getting visibly nervous. “Let’s just clean up because I’m getting tired and want to go to bed.”

“Y/n, it’s six o’ clock,” Donna pointed out.

“Yeah, well, you try carrying twins!” she snapped.

Donna laughed as she carried the rest of the plates in the kitchen.

“Y/n…please tell me you didn’t do anything with that boy,” Kitty almost begged, nervous.

“Uhm…” she stumbled, her brain short-circuiting.

“You know what, I don’t want to know,” Kitty said, almost disgusted. “All my children are sex maniacs.” She rushed out the living into the kitchen.   

“Okay, but seriously, what the hell?” Y/n hissed once Kitty was out of earshot. “Out of all people, he had to be the one to show up at my front door!”

“What’s the big deal?” Eric asked. “It’s not like he’s going to stir up anything. He’s just here to pick something for his dad.”

“No, absolutely not,” she responded. “Knowing Connor, he’s going to pull something Zack would do.”

“You know, I’m getting real tired of all these surprise visitors,” Hyde grumbled and picked up some plates off the coffee table. “It’s starting to dwindle my will to live.”

“You don’t think he’s going to tell Dad about you two, do you?” Eric asked nervously.

“If he’s asking for an ass whooping, then sure,” his twin chuckled. “I’m not worried about Dad’s reaction, I want to know his true intention.”

“Yeah, it can’t get worse than finding out about you and Hyde,” Donna chuckled.

“Yeah,” Y/n trailed off, remembering the murder that almost took place. She shook her head, bringing herself back in the moment. “Anyway.”

“He can’t do any worse than what Zack did,” Donna said.

“I wouldn’t put it past him,” Y/n grumbled. “I’m really not in the mood to kick his ass, too.”

“Hey, I’m your husband. That’s my job,” Hyde piped up and smiled at her, making his way into the kitchen.

“And you’ll look sexy while doing it,” she responded and followed him into the kitchen.

Eric and Donna trailed behind them as well, carrying the rest of the garbage and dishes.

Kitty sat at the table with a glass of bourbon, reading a Cosmo magazine.

“Uh, oh. Someone pulled out the bourbon,” Y/n sang-song. “What’s got you upset?”

“Oh, nothing,” Kitty said hoarsely as she flipped through her magazine. “It’s nice knowing all my children are sinners.”

“Ugh, Mom,” Eric and Y/n groaned in unison.

“And the fact that you two partied and drank in high school,” Hyde tsked, watching as the twins turned to him with wide eyes and murderous looks.

“You what?!” Kitty screeched.

“Nothing!” Y/n seethed. “Hyde is just a little loopy from his head injury.”

“What? I don’t have a—”

He didn’t finish as he was wacked hard upside the head.

“Ow, Y/n!” Hyde grumbled, rubbing his head, but his smirk didn’t falter nor go unnoticed.

“It doesn’t matter anyway,” Y/n said and finished throwing away the trash. “I want to know why, out of all the guys in Point Place, why did he have to come knocking at my front door?”

“Come on, Y/n, whatever happened between you two was a while ago,” Donna said, carefully picking her words. “I don’t think he’s here to start anything.”

“I don’t know,” she responded. Her mind was reeling of the possibilities. “If Zack was a problem before, I can’t imagine what Connor is going to be.”

“Oh, Y/n, you’re being a little dramatic,” Kitty said and stood from the table with her bourbon in hand. “Connor isn’t going to do anything. You’re married now with twins on the way. I don’t think he’s going to try anything.”

“Maybe not, but that doesn’t ease my nerves,” she responded and grabbed a snack from the fridge.

“Don’t let one person ruin your day,” Kitty said exasperated. “You had a great day! You had a beautiful baby shower—thanks to me—and you got amazing gifts—also thanks to me—and now you have everything you need for these babies! Why would you want to let an ex ruin that?”

“I guess,” Y/n sighed, rubbing her eyes. “I just don’t have the time or energy to deal with another ex-problem. I want to focus on the babies and figuring out what I’m doing to do with my life.”

“You still haven’t figured it out?” Kitty asked, shocked.

“Well…no,” she admitted sheepishly. “I don’t know what I’m interested in.”

“Join the club,” Eric said.

“Well, figure it out, you two, because you won’t be living here for the rest of your lives.” She didn’t give them a chance to respond as she marched out the kitchen. 

“Ugh,” Y/n grunted as plopped down at the table. “I’m exhausted.” A beat passed. “Steven, I’m hungry.”

He sighed and looked at her adoringly. “What do you want?”

She perked up. “A big fat cheeseburger with extra pickles and large fries. Oh, and a chocolate milkshake!”

“You got it,” he said and kissed her before grabbing his keys.

“Can you get me something?” Eric asked.

“No,” Hyde called over his shoulder as he walked out the door.

Eric turned back to his sister who was grinning. “Nice husband you got there.”

“I know,” she responded dreamily.

Suddenly, the door slid open revealing Connor and Red with Connor holding a chainsaw.

“Thanks, Mr. Forman. I know my mom is going to be really happy once my dad cuts off those noisy tree branches. She’ll finally be able to sleep at night now that the branches won’t be hitting her window.”

“You’re welcome. Just remember to bring it back,” Red said, smiling. “Tell Chuck I said hi and to give me a call. Maybe he’d like to grab a few beers and catch up.”

“I’ll let him know,” Connor chuckled innocently before he caught sight of Y/n. His eyes suddenly turned vulture like as if he was waiting for his prey to die. “I’ll see you later,” he purred.

A shiver ran down her spine, and not in a good way. “Ew.”

 “Come on, sugar, don’t be like that.”

“Wow, okay, we have a lot to unpack here,” she stated and stood to her feet. “One: Don’t call me that. It’s gross, you’re gross. And second of all: I don’t know why you out of all people have to be here, but stay away from me, stay away from my friends, and stay away from my family. Specifically, my husband.”

“Trust me, sweets, I wasn’t planning on being anywhere near you.”

She squinted at him. “Good. I already had to deal with Zack, don’t make me deal with you, too.”

“Oh, yeah, I heard about that,” he snickered. “You made him run away with his tail tucked between his legs. Real badass what you did there.”

“Don’t patronize me,” she spit. “I don’t need you bringing your crap into my life. There’s a reason why we didn’t move forward with our relationship.”

“You call what we had—or did—a relationship?” he sneered. Her eyes widened as he smirked at her. “Darling, I only hooked up with you because I needed a release.”

“You did WHAT?!” Red barked, making Y/n jump.

“This is it; this is how I die,” she whispered to Donna who was sitting behind her.

“You hooked up with your camp counselor?!” Red continued to shriek and turned to Connor. “You’re like two years older than her!”

“Hey, man, she wanted it just as much. She was hot on me like a moth to a flame.”

Y/n thought she was going to vomit right then and there.

“Connor, man, do you think this is smart to do with my dad and a chainsaw in the same room?” Eric muttered out of the corner of his mouth.

“I’m going to kill you with my bare hands!” Red roared.

"Wow, okay, go straight to it," Eric murmured and got behind Y/n.

“And then I’m going to detach every single one of your limbs for fish bait and if that is able to bring me any use, then that is the most useful you’ve ever been in your entire life!” Red continued.

Connor chuckled as if he just didn’t receive a threat from Red who was very capable of following through. “Yeah, okay. Thanks for the chainsaw, man.”

“I don’t think so,” Red countered and ripped the chainsaw out of his hands. “You can get the hell out of my house.”

The smile on Connor’s face faded. “Fine.”

“Oh, and tell Chuck that he’s a son of a bitch and I never liked him.”

Connor didn’t respond, but turn on his heel and walk out. Once they heard the front door slam close, Red whipped to his daughter who was cowering away from him.

“What the hell was that about?” he demanded. “All that crap he was saying—he better be lying because I’m tired of hearing things about you that a father should never hear about his daughter.”

“It’s not as bad as it sounds,” Y/n responded cooly, even though her heart was about to beat out of her chest.

“Okay, then tell me how it is, then,” Red challenged as he put the chainsaw down to cross his arms. “Tell me how it’s ‘not as bad as it sounds.’”

“We went out a couple times and kissed once,” she lied—sort of. “Nothing beyond that. He was just being a prick. And he told me he was the same age as me, so I didn’t think anything of it.”

Red stared at her for a moment, deciphering whether she was telling the truth or not. She held her breath while under his scrutinized glare.

Another beat passed. “Fine.”

Her gaze snapped to his. “Fine?”

“Fine,” he repeated. “At this point I don’t care if you’re lying to me. I’m just tired of your ex-boyfriends.”

“Believe me, so am I,” she grumbled and watched as Red walked out the kitchen. “I’m still not convinced that he’s gone for good.”

“He’s gone for now,” Donna said, attempting to soothe her best friend. “Try to relax.”

“Keyword is ‘try’,” she grumbled and allowed Donna to lead her back to the table. Putting her hands on Y/n’s shoulders, she guided her down into the chair.

“Look, you’re three months away from popping and any stress isn’t good for the babies. You need to find a way to destress. Decompress tonight and worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. Okay?” Eric said, trying to comfort his sister.

Y/n’s face scrunched up in realization. “Isn’t that from my book?”

“Hey, I get bored. And I’m reader, I can’t help it.”

Y/n chuckled as Donna handed her a juice. “Thanks.”

“Okay, let’s forget about Connor,” Donna continued and sat next to her best friend. “What do you want to do?”

“Well…I could go for a movie,” she perked up.

Donna nodded. “Okay, sure. What movie do you wanna see?”

“I heard the new Rocky movie was good.”

“Nah, nah, nah, you wanna see Mad Max,” Eric intercepted. “Now that movie was badass!”

“Or,” Y/n continued, ignoring Eric. “I could go upstairs, get into my comfiest pjs and put on a movie and wait for Steven to bring me my food so I can go to bed early.”

“You’ve been sleeping a lot more lately,” Eric said, concerned.

“I’m busy incubating right now. Let me know how well it goes for you when you get pregnant.”

“Ha, ha, very funny,” he deadpanned.

“No, but I am tired and I just want to snuggle up with my husband.” She checked her watch. “Where is Steven with the food?”

“It’s only been a few minutes,” Eric said, cutting himself a slice a cake Kitty had made earlier in the day.

“This town ain’t that big,” Y/n countered. “I swear, if he’s not here in five minutes, I’m going to start eating you.”

Eric’s eyes widened.

“Hey, Doll,” Steven said, sliding the door open. “Sorry, it took so long. The line was—”

“Oh, thank God,” Eric cried out and grabbed Hyde’s shoulders and spun his body around so that Eric was using him as a human shield. “Y/n was about to start honing in to eat me.”

“What?” Hyde responded, barley stumbling back. “No, she wasn’t and—get off me, Forman!” He shrugged Eric off his shoulders.

“Is that mine?” Y/n asked, pointing to the white, greasy bag in her husband’s hand.

“Who else’s would it be?” he asked, teasing. “Here you go. And here’s that milkshake.”

“Thank you, baby,” she cooed and kissed him.

“Of course.” He looked around the kitchen, noticing Connor’s absence. “Where’s wannabe frat boy?”

“He left. He told my dad that we were a thing.”

“What?!”

“Yeah…”

“And the place is still standing?” he quipped.

“It wasn’t about to be,” Y/n chuckled and sat down to dig in.

“Yeah, sounds about right,” Hyde said and swiped one of her fries.

She smacked his hand away. “Hey! Get your own.”

                                             --Time Skip—

“Hey, Honey, do you have the new The Knack album?” Y/n asked while browsed through the records at Groove’s.

“Yeah.” Hyde rounded the checkout counter and joined her at the crates of records. He flicked through a few before he pulled out and handed it to her. “One The Knack record for my pretty lady.”

“Forever the gentlemen,” she flirted and took it from his grip. She flipped it over to see the price. “Oh, Mr. Hyde I don’t have any money to pay for this.” She twirled a piece of hair around her finger. “Will you take any other form of payment?”

Steven looked at her with hooded eyes, smirking, and took a step closer to her, a hand resting on her hip. “I can think of one.”

She hummed. “Where can I give your payment?”

“The office is empty,” he purred and started kissing her jaw.

“Does it lock?” she breathed.

“I installed one for a reason.”

Y/n felt a moan creeping up in the back of her throat as she felt his lips brush against her sweet spot on her neck. “Are you busy?”

“I can take my break.”

“Really, you two? At work?” an annoyed voice piped up from behind them.

They spun around to see Angie standing there, holding a clipboard and a file.

“In the middle of the store, no less,” she continued. “Very professional, Steven.”

“You’re right,” Hyde said and grabbed Y/n’s hand. “We still have the office.”

He started to tug her towards the office when Angie stopped them.

“No! Don’t defile our office like that!” Angie argued. “I do our paperwork and eat my lunch in there!”

“Oh…you might want to find another place to eat now,” Y/n said sheepishly.

Angie’s eyes widened. “EW! What is wrong with you two?!”

Steven shrugged and wrapped an arm around Y/n's shoulders. “What can I say? We’re hot for each other.”

Angie scoffed. “Well, you can’t leave the floor anyway. You need to do inventory, remember?”

Hyde sighed in annoyance. “C’mon, man, we have until Friday to finish it.”

“Yeah, and it’s Tuesday and I’ve already done half of the work,” she argued. “I think having your wife here is distracting you.”

“Hey, ‘his wife’ has a name and you know that!” Y/n piped up.

“Honey, I’ve got this,” Steven said defensively. “My wife has a name, and you know that!”

“She just said that,” Angie said.

“I know,” he replied and shuffled his feet, straightening his back. “It sounds better coming from me.”

Y/n’s eyes rolled but couldn’t stop the smile that spread across her face.  

“Besides, she has every right to be here just as much as everyone else,” Hyde continued. “If you don’t want her here, then I’m not going to be here. You know what? That sounds like a good idea. C’mon, Y/n, let’s go—”

As he turned to walk out, Angie stopped them again. “You can’t go anywhere. You said you were going to lock up the store tonight.”

Steven stopped dead in his tracks and turned back around. “When did I say that?”

“Yesterday, when I asked you if you could lock up tonight because I have a date.”

Hyde thought back to the day before, trying to remember when he agreed to do it. It suddenly hit him when he had strolled in after “lunch” and was barley listening to her as he watched the patterns on the wall dance.

“In my opinion, I didn’t know what I was agreeing to,” he argued, and Angie rolled her eyes. “Besides, who do you have a date with?”

“No one in particular,” she said, the file suddenly becoming interesting.

“Angie…” he warned. “Are you going out with Kelso?”

“No,” she said, a little too loudly.

“Angie, you can’t go out with Kelso, man! Kelsos have a bad rep. Even the sign entering Point Place says that.”

“Yeah, he’s right,” Y/n said. “It literally says, ‘Don’t date Kelso.’”

Angie shook her head, rolling her eyes. “You guys have nothing to worry about. It’s just dinner.”

“Yeah, and you’re going to be dessert,” Y/n quipped, earning a dirty glare from her husband. “Look, if you don’t want to end up pregnant like the last chick, don’t—and I cannot stress this enough—date Kelso.”

“Well, then I can just join your club then,” Angie said snidely.

Y/n squinted at her sister-in-law, feeling insulted. “You know what? Let her get knocked up, I don’t care,” she said and walked away to sit down at the counter.

“C’mon, can you close up tonight?” Angie said. “Do you want me to beg?”

“Actually, yeah, I do.” Steven changed his stance, legs spread apart with his arms crossed. “Go ahead.”

She groaned. “Fine. Please?”

He scrunched his face. “No. You’re not going out with Kelso. I forbid it.”

He walked past her to join Y/n at the register.

“Forbid it?” Angie asked. “You can’t forbid me to do anything!”

“I don’t care, man. Kelso is bad news, and I won’t let him hurt you because that’s what he’ll do.”

“Awe, that’s so sweet that you’re looking out for me,” she cooed.

He leaned against the counter on his hands. “No, it’s not that. I don’t want to have Kelso officially related to me. I already can’t stand him as my friend.”

“Okay fine. I won’t go out with him,” Angie said, pouting. “But you’re still going to lock up for me tonight.”

“Fine.”

“But that’s not the reason why I came out here.” She handed him the folder in her hand. “I hired a new girl and she’s on her way right now to fill out the paperwork.”

“We were hiring?” he asked, flipping through the file. “What’s she like?”

“Well, her name is Mandy, she’s twenty and still in college. Very sweet, very smart, and very cute.”

“Oh, good to know. Didn’t even know we were hiring.”

“It’s only part time, but she’ll be a good addition to the store.”

“Uh, quick question,” Y/n piped up, holding up her hand. “Why didn’t you think to ask me? I’m not only here every other day, I know my way around the store.”

“Because when you go into labor, we’d have to find a temporary replacement and I don’t want to go through that trouble. It’s better to just have someone already lined up,” Angie responded. “Besides, having a pregnant lady here might turn off some customers.”

“Oh, well, thanks for your consideration,” Y/n muttered bitterly.  

“She starts Monday. Make sure she fills out all the forms and has her driver’s license and social security card,” Angie directed.

“Do we really need all that stuff?” Hyde asked and tossed the folder on the counter beside him. “It’s just you and me, man. We don’t need a third person here.”

“Extra help won’t hurt,” she said. “Besides, she’ll really help out when you go on paternity leave.”

“Paternity leave? I’m only going to be gone a few days, maybe a week.”

“A week?!” Y/n interrupted. “I’m going to push two full grown babies out of a hole the size of a pea and you’re only going to be home for a week?!”

“Well, Y/n, I still have to bring home a paycheck,” he replied, turning to his wife. “You can’t buy diapers without me bringing home the dough.”

“Oh, come on, you know how Dad is,” Angie said. “We both know he’s going to pay you a little extra. You are making him a grandfather anyway.”

“I’m not going to assume that he’s going to pay me, Angie,” he said, opening the cash drawer to count it.

“Yeah, because he’s my hardworking man,” Y/n gushed and wrapped her arms around his middle, kissing his shoulder.

“Ugh, get a room,” Angie said, rolling her eyes.

“Well, we tried but you clam-jammed me,” Hyde said and snickered after Angie wrinkled her nose at him.

“Just…be nice to the girl when she comes in, will you?” Angie asked desperately and looked at Y/n. “And keep your hands to yourselves.”

“Oh, you mean like this?” Y/n grabbed her husband and smashed her mouth to his, roaming her hands all over his back, shoulders, and butt.

Steven went along and gripped her hips, returning the kiss.

“Uh…is there where I’m supposed to fill out paperwork?” a small voice piped up.

The couple pulled apart instantly. In front of the counter stood a petite girl with dark flowing hair and dazzling green eyes. She was skinny but had a natural big bust which was really pointed out by her sling bag strap resting between her breasts. Her face was round and innocent with a natural pink tint to it. Overall, she was absolutely gorgeous.

Y/n couldn’t help but feel a little jealous.

Angie could feel her face heating up and blocked her of the PDA. “You must be Mandy,” she chuckled nervously.

“Is this how your employees interact with each other?” she asked with a hint of a smile.

“No!” Angie quickly defended. “They’re…they’re—uh—”

“Married,” Hyde finished for her. “And she’s not an employee. This is my wife, Y/n.”

“Hi, I’m Mandy,” she said, waving.

“I’m Steven Hyde, I’m the manager,” he said and shook her hand. “But you can call me Hyde.”

“So, you’ll be my boss?” she asked.

“Yes, and her too,” he pointed to Angie. “You’ll probably be dealing with her more than me, though.”

“Okay,” she said, nodding her head. “Sounds easy enough.”

“Trust me, man, it is,” he said, walking around the counter and hopped onto it, his legs dangling. “Just keep the store running and don’t let anyone steal anything and you’ll be golden.”

“Well, there’s more to that,” Angie corrected, giving Steven a look. “But that’s the gist of it.”

“Okay, sounds good,” she beamed. “Where should I sign the papers?”

“Here, I’ll take you into the office,” Hyde said and grabbed the folder then lead her into the office. He turned briefly to shoot Angie and Y/n a smirk before entering the room.

Once they disappeared, Y/n turned to Angie. “What the hell? You couldn’t hire someone else?”

She couldn’t even be bothered to look up from her clip board. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you couldn’t have hired someone old and ugly?!”

Angie finally looked up with a glint in her eye. “Do you have a problem with Mandy?”

“Do I have a problem?” Y/n repeated. “You purposely hired her to piss me off, didn’t you?”

Angie sighed, now annoyed. “What’re you talking about? I put a help wanted ad in the paper a few days ago and she answered it. I didn’t do anything on purpose.” She looked at Y/n who was busy glaring at the office door that was now closed.

“Why is that door closed?” she asked, pointing to it.

“For confidentially reasons,” Angie responded like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “You know that office has other uses besides what you guys do. Anyways, what has gotten into y—?” A smirk then danced across her lips realizing what it was. “Are you jealous of Mandy?”

“What?” Y/n cried out. “Of course not!”

“Really? Because I think I’m starting to see some green poke through.”

“Angie, I’m not jealous of Mandy, okay?” Y/n said, a little weakly. “It’s just…I don’t like the way she looked at him.”

“She didn’t look at him in anyway—” Angie started, but then realized that it was a moot point. “Y/n…if you’re worried about if he’s going to try anything with her, he’s not.”

Y/n moved her attention to Angie who, for the first time, was talking to her like a normal human being and not just some annoyance. “I know, but…she’s his exact type from before.”

Angie popped out her hip and rested her fist on it. “How do you know she’s Steven’s type?”

“Well,” she stuttered and looked down at her hands that were resting on the counter. “She’s pretty and…and tall—”

“She’s not that tall.”

“Okay, but she also has a rack on her!”

Angie snickered and flicked her eyes down to Y/n’s swollen chest before looking back up. “Yeah, because hers are the problem.”

“And she’s older!”

“So?”

“She’s wiser! She’s in college!”

Angie hummed, thoroughly amused at this point. “Anything else?”

“She’s—”

“Skinny?” Angie interjected.

Y/n snapped her attention to her sister-in-law. “Are you enjoying this?!”

“Maybe a little bit,” she admitted and set the clipboard down. “Look, I don’t think you have anything to worry about with Steven. Steven is a lot of things, but a cheater ain’t one of them.”

“Yeah, I’ve said that before,” Y/n mumbled.

“With the way Steven looks at you, you’ll be fine,” Angie continued and started flicking through the vinyl’s and checking them off her check list.

“Yeah,” Y/n sighed. “It’s not him I’m worried about, though.”

                                                   --Time Skip—

“So, you think the new girl is going to go after Hyde?” Donna asked later that night as they hung out in her bedroom. An empty pizza box sat at their side along with two coke bottles and juice boxes as Donna painted Y/n’s toes a baby pink.

“I don’t know, I mean, she didn’t interested, but I don’t know what happened after they went into the office,” Elena sighed.

“C’mon, you don’t think Hyde would actually cheat, do you?”

Y/n shrugged. “No, but I can’t trust a girl won’t throw herself at him.”

Donna screwed the cover back on the nail polish and used a magazine to fan the polish dry. “I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”

“You think?”

“Yeah, I mean you remember what happened last time.”

“Exactly! I remember what happened last time and I don’t want a repeat of it! Remember Amber?”

“I don’t think that’s going to happen again,” Donna reassured.

“It was only six months ago, Donna!”

“Y/n, listen. Hyde has a lot to worry about then some girl coming onto him, alright?”

“You didn’t see her, Donna,” Y/n whined and got up carefully as to not ruin her nail polish. “She was really cute and not pregnant and older! She’s in college!”

“What?! No way!” Donna exaggerated, feigning shock.

“Yeah! She can easily have—you’re making fun of me, aren’t you?”

“I’m sorry,” she laughed. “But you’re being a little ridiculous.”

“Am not!” Donna gave her a look and Y/n’s shoulders slumped. “Okay, maybe a little. I just don’t seem big chested college bimbo all over my husband.” Donna gave her another look. “What?! I’m pregnant and hormonal; don’t contradict me.”

                                                            --Time Skip—

“Hey, Y/n,” Steven said the next morning as he entered their bedroom. She sat on their bed against the headboard as she read her baby book. “We need to think about setting up the twins’ nursery. You got any ideas?”

“Mhm, not really,” she murmured.

He stood at the edge of the bed, staring at his wife. “Well, shouldn’t we go over it?”

She hummed and flipped the page. “Sure, if you want.”

Steven placed a hand on his hip and looked down at her frustrated. “Can you stop reading and look at me?”

A sigh escaped her as she looked up from her book, annoyed. “There, happy?”

“What’s gotten into you?”

She shrugged. “Nothing.”

“Bull,” he spit.

“I’m serious! I’m just reading.”

“You’re not usually annoyed when reading. Seriously, what’s wrong with you?”

“Steven, I told you, it’s nothing.”

“And like I said, it’s bull.”

She stumbled her way off the bed and rubbed her forehead. “You’re right, I’m sorry. Must be pregnancy hormones. What do you have in mind?”

He scrunched his brows at her, but relaxed his features immediately as he decided to let it go. “Yep, well, that’s why I came to you.”

“You’ve always been better at this kind of thing than I am.”

“We can do Winnie the Pooh?”

“What—are our children wusses? No thanks.”

“Okay, what about green? Or blue?”

“What if they’re both girls?”

“Okay, then yellow?”

“Then we’re back to Winnie the Pooh!”

“Okay, then you pick!” she said, frustrated.

“I don’t know, doll,” he said and sat on the bed. “We just need to pick something out so that we can be ready.”

“I can pick up some magazines,” she sighed and sat next to him. “I’ll go today.”

“Well, we can start by rearranging the room,” he suggested, his tone lighter than before. “We do have a lot of crap in there.”

She smiled and rubbed her round belly. “Yeah, we can do that.”

“Good.” He turned to look at her and kissed her forehead.

“I’m sorry for being grumpy.”

“Yeah, well…you were.”

She laughed and threw a pillow at his face. Chuckling, he blocked it and leaned in, kissing her.

                                              --Time Skip—

At lunch that day, the Formans and Hydes sat around the table, enjoying grilled cheese and tomato soup.

Y/n was on her third bowl as she wolfed down her sandwiches.

“Hey, Y/n, mind saving some for the rest of us?” Eric asked.

“Shut up,” she snapped with a mouthful of food. “These aren’t big enough.”

“You really are pregnant, are you?” he asked.

Y/n looked at him with a deadpanned expression. “What gave it away, genius?”

“Okay, no snapping at the table,” Kitty interrupted. “Y/n, Steven tells me you’re going to start decorating the nursery. That sounds like fun.”

“Yeah, we’re going to pick out color samples today,” she responded.

“Oh,” Kitty said, intrigued. “What colors were you thinking? You know, when I had you and Eric, I painted your room gender neutral colors. It was green and orange.”

“Yeah, it was horrendous,” Red commented off-handedly.

“Excuse me?!” Kitty asked. “You didn’t even help me! I was far along as Y/n is and you refused to help me!”

“I did not!” he argued. “Every time I would come in to help, you turned me away!”

“I did not!”

“You said I was messing it up and I couldn’t do it right!”

“Well, you weren’t!”

“And now you’re blaming me!”

“Okay—you know what?” Kitty said and scooted out of her chair and stormed out.

“We were just having a complete normal conversation and she still gets mad at me,” Red said exasperated.

                                                --Time Skip—

Later that day, the gang, minus Donna, found themselves in the basement, hanging out.

“You did what to her?!” Y/n shouted at her brother. 

“I swear it was an accident!” he shouted back.

“How do you accidentally almost break someone’s neck?” Hyde questioned.

“I didn’t almost break her neck!” Eric defended. 

“She can barley move her neck, Forman,” Hyde said.

“Seriously, what in God’s name where you thinking?” Y/n demanded.

“I was already on page twelve!” he defended. “At that point I was a natural.”

“Oh, do you guys hear that?” Hyde mocked. “He read a book for ten minutes and is already a professional!”

“You know what? I already feel bad enough as it is,” Eric said, pouting. “You guys aren’t helping.”

“Well, we’re not here to pat your back,” Jackie piped up.

“Eric, I know I haven’t been here long enough, and please don’t take offense when I say this, but how is Donna still with you?” Markus asked.

“Funny you say that, I was just going to ask the same about Jackie,” Eric quipped.

Markus pursed his lips and nodded. “At least I didn’t almost break her neck.”

“Can’t say the same for her back though,” Kelso smirked.

Everyone stared at him in disgust.

“What?! We can joke about Hyde and Y/n’s sex life, but not Jackie and Markus’s!?” he defended.

“No, you see, we make fun of our sex life,” Hyde said, pointing to him and Y/n. “We mainly do it to freak out Forman. But you bringing up someone else’s is just plain creepy, man.”

“So, Fez, Kelso, have you guys found an apartment yet?” Y/n asked, clearing her throat in discomfort.  

“Yeah, Red convinced Fenton to give us the apartment,” Kelso said, avoiding eye contact with everyone.

“Yeah, and Red seemed so happy, he was laughing the whole ride home,” Fez said with a smile.

Kelso laughed dumbly. “Yeah, I'm pretty sure that Red told Fenton that we knew a lot of chicks. 'Cause Fenton kept checking me out, like he could tell that I knew a lot of chicks.”

At that moment, the basement door swung open, revealing Bob and Donna, whose head was still stuck to the side.

“Eric, I can’t believe you crippled my angel! My pride and joy!” Bob cried out. “It’s killing me to see her like this.”

Eric’s eyebrows furrowed. “Well, then why are you bringing her here then?”

“Oh, I have a date,” Bob said, any sign of distraught gone. “Met a lady at the open house. She's got crow's feet, but she works in a sandwich shop, so I bent the rules. See you, Kitten.” He walked out the basement leaving Donna to her boyfriend and friends.

“Look, Donna, I just want to apologize again,” Eric said, eyes following her as she moved to sit down next to him. “You know, I've been thinking about it, and I don't think I ever really wanted to be a chiropractor. I was just, you know, grasping at straws.”

Donna turned her body to look at him. “You know I’d nod in agreement, but I’m paralyzed.”

“Eric, you know what I’m realizing about you? You’re not good at anything,” Kelso said, smiling at his friend’s misfortune.

“That’s not true,” Fez spoke up. “Don’t forget butt wiping.”

“What?” Y/n asked, confused.

“Don’t ask, it was a circle thing,” Hyde whispered to her.

Eric clicked his tongue in offense. “Oh, you know what? You guys suck. Whenever you're in trouble, I don't burn you. I mean, usually 'cause it's hard for me to think of things right on the spot, but also 'cause, you know, I try to help.”

“That's actually true. I mean, Fez, remember when you wanted to learn how to kiss, and Eric taught you by sticking m&m's to the mirror?” Donna said.

Everyone turned to Fez with amused grins and raised eyebrows.

“What?” Fez asked, sweat beads forming on his brow. “That never happened. I know how to kiss. Oh, shut it, Donna.”

“Yeah, and, Kelso, how about that time I stayed up with you all night to study for that math final. I mean, sure, nothing stuck, but, you know, I blame nature for that,” Eric continued.

“You know Forman, if you can teach Fez how to kiss and Kelso how to do math, you can probably teach anybody anything. Why don't you just become a teacher?” Hyde suggested.

“Hey, Eric, that’s a great idea!” Y/n said, excitedly. “Remember when you taught me to drive? You were so patient and didn’t give up even when I kept hitting the curbs.”

“You still do,” Hyde mumbled.

“What?” Y/n snapped.

“What?” Hyde repeated.

“I’m not a driver!” she defended.

“No offense, Y/n, but I’m afraid for you children when they’re in the car with you,” Kelso said. Y/n grabbed the nearest object by her, which was a tennis ball, and threw it at him. “OW! I said no offense!”

“Shut up, Kelso!” Y/n yelled.

“You know, that makes a lot of sense,” Donna said. “I mean, you have all this knowledge about stuff you have no ability to do.”

Eric thought about it for a minute before his face brightened. “A teacher? Well, I do like helping people. I mean, I'd love to help kids. Yeah. Like, ‘Mr. Forman.’ That just feels really great. Yeah, a teacher. That just feels so... right.”

“That’s it. Forman’s going to be a teacher!” Hyde announced. “This calls for a toast!”

They all grabbed a beer except for Y/n, who sat there pouting.

“Sorry, Y/n,” Hyde shrugged. “To Forman!”

“To Forman!” Everyone cheered.

                                           --Time Skip-- “You sure you want these colors?” Hyde asked Y/n as they stood at the painting store. “Because you know once we paint the walls, we’re not changing it.”

“Yes, I’m sure,” she chirped. “It’s going to be so pretty.”

“Cool. It’s going to be cool,” he corrected. “But, okay.”

Y/n beamed as they bought two cans of paint.

                                             The Next Day…

The doorbell to the Forman house rang in the late morning. Red got up from the den from shining his shoes. When he opened the door, Connor and his father stood there.

Red squared his shoulders and straightened his back. “Connor, Chuck.”

“Hey, Red,” Chuck said, frowning. “I heard you threatened my boy yesterday.”

“Yeah, I did," Red answered honestly. “What about it?”

“I don’t appreciate the way you talked to him.”

“Well, that’s a damn shame,” Red responded dryly. “Is that all?”

“No!” Chuck yelled, causing Red to raise his eyebrows at him. “You apologize to him right now!”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me, Red.”

“Okay, you want me to apologize? Fine. I’m sorry that your son is a piece of no-good, smug piece of crap who takes advantage of young girls!” he roared. “And I am so sorry that I wasted my time being nice to either of you!”

“Now, you listen here, Forman—” Chuck started, but was cut off.

“I don’t know where you got this entitlement, Chuck, but you certainly didn’t get this from serving with me during Korea. And for you to come here, to my house, demanding that I apologize to you and your kid for the way he treated me daughter than you are out of mind because I ain’t do nothing for you or human garbage of a son. He’s lucky I don’t press charges against him!”

“This isn’t about your loose daughter, Red,” Chuck said. “This is about how you spoke to my boy.”

Red’s face distorted into a look that Chuck hadn’t seen the war. “What the hell did you just say about my daughter?!”

“Oh, come on, don’t be dumb,” Chuck continued. “I know you, Red, and you are so far from it. She probably had it coming. I mean, you probably heard all the stories about her. And giving her current situation, I can’t believe you’d be this blind.”

Connor stood there at the door with a smug look knowing they were getting under Red’s skin.

“Get the hell off my property before I do to you what I did to the Koreans!” Red threatened, his body shaking from anger.

“No, not until we get our apology!” Chuck demanded.

“I’ll tell you what. You get to walk out of here alive, how bout that?”

Chuck straightened his body, matching Red’s energy. “You don’t want to mess with me, Forman. You remember me during the war.”

“Yeah?” Red challenged. “Why don’t you remind me?”      

                                                            Meanwhile…

Up in the nursery, Kitty, Y/n, and Steven were painting the walls, revealing it to be a beautiful light green. “You kids picked a lovely color,” Kitty complimented. “It doesn’t matter if you have boys or girls, it’s going to match either way.”

“Thank you, Mom,” Y/n responded as she rolled paint onto the wall. “And thank you for letting us paint the room. It means a lot.”

“Of course, dear. I’m just so excited to meet my grandbabies!”

Hyde got down from the latter with his white shirt covered in paint and wiped some sweat off his brow. “You know, Y/n, I don’t know if I feel comfortable with you being this close and huffing in these chemicals.”

“I’m fine, Steven.”

“I don’t know. I think maybe you should let me do the painting and then you can help with everything else once I’m done.”

“Steven, I can help!”

“Okay, well, while you two decide on that, I’m going to go get some lemonade,” Kitty announced and made her way to the door, opening it. “Does that sound—”

A yelp and the sound of something heavy thumping to the floor cut Kitty off mid sentence. “What was that?”

She didn’t wait for an answer as she and the Hydes rushed to the top of the stairs before seeing Red standing at the door, screaming.

“You want to be next?!” Silence. “Then get the hell out of here! And I better never see you two sorry asses ever again! Do I make myself clear?!”  

The three stumbled their way halfway down the stairs to see what was going on. Connor was staring down at his unconscious dad with a wild and angry look in his eyes. Before he let him answer, Red slammed the front door and examined his knuckles that were bleeding. As he made his way back to the kitchen, he finally looked up to his family who was staring back at him in shock.

“Oh, hey. You—uh—may want to call an ambulance,” was all he said as he walked into the kitchen to tend to his hand.

“Red, honey?” Kitty called after him. “Red, what happened?”

“Nothing,” he responded as he made his through the kitchen and over to the sink.

The three of them followed him and saw him running cold water on his hand.

“Well, that doesn’t look like nothing!” Kitty shrieked and scrambled to get the first aid kit.

“I learned today that Chuck is just as big of a prick as his son,” Red grumbled, not daring to meet everyone’s eyes.

“Daddy…did you punch Connor’s dad?” Y/n asked.

“I did what I had to do, sweetheart,” he responded and looked at his daughter with soft eyes and smiled. “All I gotta say is, I don’t think you have to worry about that boy anymore.”

Y/n swore she could cry right there, but instead walked over and wrapped her arms around his middle. “Thank you, Daddy.”

“Of course, pumpkin.” He turned the water off and grabbed the towel that was laying on the counter beside him. “Just do me a favor and don’t let any other ex-boyfriends come back to the house, yeah?”

Y/n chuckled. “I’ll try my damn hardest.”

Hyde looked over to Kitty who didn’t look happy or impressed at all. “Come on, Doll, let’s leave your parents alone and go upstairs,” he said quietly and guided his wife through the kitchen.

A beat of silence passed before Kitty spoke up. “What on earth were you thinking?” Kitty started. “Do you have any idea what could’ve happened?”

“I’m sorry, Kitty. He started saying some horrible things about Y/n and I lost it,” he explained. “I’ll tell you what, though, he’s going to need a good dentist. There’s no way he’s going to be able to put his teeth back to normal.”

“Well, in that case,” said and pointed to the table. “Sit. I need to make sure you don’t get an infection.”

It was quiet between them as she started tending to his knuckles. “Gosh, you haven’t done this since we started dating and Frankie Wallace was making passes at me during the military ball.”

“Well, what can I say? I gotta protect what’s mine.”

Her eyes glanced up to meet her husband’s before going back down to his hand. “That’s very sweet, but I think what you did was stupid.”

“What’s stupid was challenging me in my own house about my daughter. It’s not like I didn’t warn him beforehand.”

“We already don’t have a lot of friends, now we’re really not going to,” she scolded. “Red, we’ve become that house!”

“Good! Maybe those dumbasses will finally get the message! I don’t like it when my family gets threatened!”

Kitty finished up wrapped his knuckles and started putting things away. “Well, I’m just glad you’re okay.”

“I’m fine, honey, I promise.”

Kitty’s demeanor changed as she scooted closer to him. “Well, I got to make sure that my big, strong, hunk of a protector is okay. Wouldn’t want him getting hurt or anything.”

Red’s looked down at Kitty, eyes hooded. “That’s my job.”

“So, Handsome, what’re you doing later?”

Red chuckled and leaned over, kissing his wife. “That.”

They looked at each other for moment before they scurried off upstairs.

                                         A Few Minutes Later…

“Steven, honey, I’m fine!” Y/n argued. “I don’t want you to worry about me! I’m fine!”

“I’m not worried about you,” he said back. “I’m worried about the babies.”

“Quit treating me like I’m fragile!”

“You kind of are! Until my kids come out of you, it’s my job to make sure you or the babies don’t get hurt!”

“And that’s really sweet, but—” she was cut off by the sound of springs squeaking. “What is that?”

Hyde furrowed his brows in concentration as he listened. “Well, I did see your parents run into their room not long ago.” The realization finally hit them both. “Ugh, not again!”

Y/n turned to her parents door. “Oh, come on! Other people live here!”

Taglist: @not-shy-nanya @taysirene @maddieschampagneproblems @mdittyz123 @undead-sierra @random-thoughts-004 @lieswithoutfairytales @chloem4a1 @srhxpc @zhonglibxitch @leothesquishy

[snakegorl212006]

Journey begins

You awaken by a thump. Your googling eyes widen only to meet the wooden walls. You sigh as the thumping could’ve been some rock outside of the carriage. You gaze out the window board at the sight of the trees. “Are you awake you highness” a voice spoke once again surprising you. You whipped your head around to see a well dressed man with a raven mask and a top mask. His cape was adorned by feathers. He smiled kindly “Forgive my intrusion. I understand you must be exhausted. It is a long ways away from the kingdom of the royal swords and Ramshackle but I must ask if you can do me a favor. I swear you will be rewarded generously” the crow asked “you ask for a favor yet i know not of your name” you replied still stunned from his quiet entrance “Ah right where are my manors. You may call me Crowley, your highness. I’m king of Night raven. ” He introduce “well.. Crowely. What is this favor you wish for me to do” You asked “simply. The creatures are out of control.They don’t listen to reason as of late.” Crowely stated “the kingdoms grow more impatient and i don’t have any answers on why everything is in chaos.” he sighs “what do you want me to do about it” you asked “simple go check it out and solve the problem if needed then report back to me from here” he explained as he gives me a mirror “I don’t have magic” I explained “oh i see. This makes things harder now. Well just report using someone else's magic. I’m counting on you your highness,help save night raven” Crowly smiles before teleporting off again. Once he was gone the mirror lit up and showed directions to the castle within the queendom of roses, the region you're in at the moment. Lucky for that bird your first stop is in the capital. You place the mirror around your neck using a piece of string you happened to have. The rest of the ride was calm and you managed to go to your destination safely. The kingdom is bustling with people as busy as most major cities. You place your hoodie up and stroll through the town listening to the latest gossip. Nothing of importance to you. That is until you saw a crowd “A fire!? That’s horrible” a women spoke “who ever tarnish those lands my already have lost there heads… if the queen hasn't gotten to them” a man adds. Drawn to the chatter you merge yourself though the crowd to see the new board were at the bottom were papers of current events and additional rules being added by the parliament here. The headline read “red fires within red roses.” you took a page and skimmed through the first chapters

Three days ago, fires rag'd the did rise f'rest, coequal spreading to the queen’s precious did rise hedges. ”this violation of ruleth 300 is unexceptable!!!” the lady states in h'r addresseth inrage on what hast hath happened to h'r precious landeth the queen hath sent f'rth a reward f'r anyone who is't couldst catcheth these criminals so they’ll beest putteth to justice by the queen h'rself

“With how high people speak of the queen, why has no one offered to find these people” you wondered “the Rose woods of Heartslabyul recently has a surge of monsters as of late” a voice spoke. You look to see a young man with orange hair and a diamond on his cheek underneath his eye “the fires triggered some after effects and enraged the guardian on those lands. Anyone who enters to investigate never returned” He adds “You must be new sense it’s common knowledge here” he smiled “oh umm ya. I just came off of a ride. I’m (y/n)” you introduced “Cater diamond, that’s my company's newspaper you’re holding” Cater replied “oh did you make this yourself” You asked “no just provide the info. What’s got an outsider so interested in our case” Cater asked “well I just felt like I needed to provide aid. Like the stories, if everyone is scared of these lands and someone has to solve the problem.Why not be the one who solves the problem ya’ know” you replied which made the young reporter think “I guess so. I hope you’re a person of your word” He winks “well I didn’t mean to trouble you, I shall be on my way. Any lead is a good one these days” Cater stated before leaving. ‘The forest has to be the rout of the problem so might as well check it out there first’ you thought. Using this revelation you made your way out of the crowd and towards the woods. On the way you spot something in the alleyway.there in the alley was a cat creature. Weak and hungry. Feeling pitiful for the creature, you stopped by the local market and bought a fish to bring for the cat. When you made it back to the location,with the cat still laying there, you presented the fish to him. The cat sprung up and snatched the fish from your grasp “thank you human” he spoke which shocked you “a talking cat” you exclaimed “a cat!? DO i LOOk like a cat to you” He huffed. Upon closer inspection this ‘cat’ has flames for ears and a tail with scales all over with a blue flame on the tip. Other then that, he looks like a average cat “kinda..” you mumbled “what is your name anyways” you asked “the greatest and most gifted mage grim, now who are you? I never seen a thing like you before. Are you a elf” grim asked as he walked around you (“y/n) of the (l/n) family. I’m (prince/princess/random royalty status) of ramshackle” you replied which made his eyes widen “You!? Well if you feel extra civerish can i accompany you” grim asked sweetly “and why would you want to tang along with me” you asked “i mean you and I would be great partners so, what do you say”

[ghastigiggles]

a test of endurance

i got an ask that inspired me and went a little insane. So more Furina content! this is actually a little more of a personal piece too (haha put too much of my experience in the fic, whhhhhoops) but i hope its something other people can also indentify with!

no explicit ships but my bias is... visible.

obligatory disclaimer; this is a sfw tickle fic meant to be consumed by all ages, nothing nsfw is intended or implied o7 - also, more heavy Fontaine 4.2 spoilers, would reccomend having completed the Archon Quests up to the end of 4.2 & potentially Furina's personal quest before reading.

It was the 40th year into her godhood when the concept was introduced to her for the first time.

It was around 10:14 in the morning. She had finished her cake, and stood before her usual mirror as the tailor came in. While most of her wardrobe had been premade designs up to this point, the Archon wanted – and deserved, of course – the latest in fashion, tailor-made to her tastes. Hence the commission. 

“You’re early,” She’d chirped brightly. And the woman, chuckling, nodded, giving an awkward little bow around the massive bag she carried.

“Of course, I wasn’t going to risk being late for our esteemed Lady of Justice!”

“Very good! Early is on time, as they say! I actually value punctuality quite a bit, you know.”

“Then I am glad to be of full service to my Archon. Shall we?”

With all other staff quickly shooed from the room, Furina stripped down to her base layer – a simple undershirt and underwear – and stood more than a little awkwardly before the mirror, very suddenly hesitant to have another person see the closest thing to her truest self. She cast the tailor a look, smiling nervously.

“... Ahh… Are you quite sure we couldn’t have done this with the clothes on?”

“Please, Lady Furina, be at ease! We’re just taking measurements – wouldn’t be able to do that accurately with all the layers in the way. I promise not to judge you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“No – no, not at all! Forgive me, I’m just… Unused to this, is all.”

She watched in the mirror as the tailor procured a measuring tape from her oversized bag of wonders, approaching her from behind and offering a comforting pat on the shoulder and smile.

“I understand. It can’t be too often that a mortal personally measures an Archon! Just relax – it shouldn’t take long at all. Hold your arms out like this, would you?”

Furina mimicked her T-pose, staring at herself incredulously in the mirror, and the tailor chuckled at her expression, starting with measuring her height. And, to her credit, Furina found herself at ease as the woman made small talk about a recent court case they’d both sat in on.

It went south when the measuring tape was wrapped around her waist, and the tailor pressed her thumb a little too sharply into Furina’s side, sending an utter jolt up through her entire body that caused her arms to fly down and undignified squawk to leave her lips.

“Ah… My apologies, Lady Furina, did I hurt you?”

“N-no! I don’t… Think so?” The sensation certainly hadn’t been pain, but it wasn’t necessarily pleasurable, either – so… “What… Was that?”

She slowly lifted her arms, and the tailor tilted her head. She seemed to weigh something in her mind before giving the Archon’s side another experimental pinch, making her fold slightly with yet another jarring noise.

“Aie! S - stop that!”

“I see… Please forgive me, Lady Furina, I didn’t know you were ticklish.”

11:04, in the springtime of her 40th year. The first time the word hit her ears. The first time it made her gut fizzle and her face heat up, puzzling her to no end.

“... Ticklish? What… What is that?” 

“Oh, I suppose it would be foreign to an Archon, huh…” The tailor blinked, then laughed softly, pulling her hands back so that Furina could relax; “It’s described as a sensation between pleasure and pain. Usually, people use it as a bonding method when they’re rough-housing. Most people dislike it, though.”

“... Oh.”

That… Really explained very little, if she was honest, but she felt embarrassed enough without reopening that can of worms. Besides, she was much more preoccupied with the tailor lifting her measuring tape to pick up where they left off. Just the possibility made her reflexively clamp her arms down again, her face burning, and the tailor laughed.

“Rest assured, Lady Furina, I’ll be more careful this time! It won’t happen again.”

“R-right… On with it, then…”

She managed to pull her arms back up again, and though she flinched preemptively as the tape went around her waist, the expected sensation never came, and the rest of their business went on as normal.

Yet, as the door closed behind the tailor, Furina grappled with a sense of disappointment and confusion, glancing back at herself in the mirror for an answer that didn’t come.

-

It was 2:45 pm on her 234th year. She was in the secret study, books scattered around her, and her nose buried in a dictionary, of all things.

It was possible, perhaps, that a solution could be found even in such an unlikely place. Desperation and futility drove her to search in odder and odder forms for even a sliver of hope – though, admittedly, by now she’d allowed herself to get distracted learning several words she’d never heard before, saying them out loud to herself and trying to find ways to work them into everyday vocabulary.

And that was when she flipped the page and saw it.

tickle verb tick·​le ˈti-kəl  tickled; tickling ˈti-k(ə-)liŋ  1: to touch (a body part, a person, etc.) lightly so as to excite the surface nerves and cause uneasiness, laughter, or spasmodic movements 2: to excite or stir up agreeably; to provoke to laughter or merriment  they were tickled by the clown's antics. 3: to touch or stir gently a pianist tickling the ivories.

Of course, all variations of the word were there, and Furina felt her heart stop for a solid moment, fixated on the page. She didn’t quite understand why even reading the definition of the word made her stomach do flustering, wanting flips, but she couldn’t bring herself to look away.

The blood rushing in her ears must’ve deafened her, too, because she didn’t notice her assistant in the room until he hesitantly tapped her shoulder, making her jump and slam the book shut, her face flushed and burning with embarrassment as she whipped to face him.

“What?! What! Have you forgotten how to knock?!”

“I-I did, Lady Furina, multiple times! I spoke your name, too, but to no response! Forgive me for startling you, it was not my intention!”

She released a soft breath at the man’s terrified and apologetic look, pausing to rub her temples and gather her wits.

“I… See. I apologize for snapping at you. Any updates?”

“N-no, Lady Furina. I just came to tell you that the teams are turning in for the day. The search was fruitless again.”

“Understood. Thank you for keeping me in the loop.”

The man gave a terse nod, and Furina watched him go for a moment before speaking up again, making him freeze.

“By the by… How much did you see?”

“... I saw nothing, Lady Furina.”

“Good. You’re dismissed!”

His shoulders slumped with relief, and he hurried out of the room. Furina waited until she heard the door close down the hall before she slumped down herself, with defeat and exhaustion rather than relief.

She really had to get the idea out of her head.

–

It was 5:45 in the evening, in the winter of her 300th year exactly, when she weighed her options.

Sitting on Neuvilette’s desk, today, she flipped through old case files with him, hardly focused on the words on the page – she knew the damned things by heart at this point, anyway, and she was sure he did too. This was all routine, and all they were really supposed to do was look at the dates and decide which cases could he safely archived and vaulted, and which should stay accessible. Yet, it had been a fun trip down memory lane for the both of them, recalling absurdities and tragedies during the court cases that brought them nostalgia.

The Iudex was the closest thing Furina had to a friend, in her opinion. He was a rock that she could cling to, for better or worse, which made the lying she had to do sting so much more… She could only hope moments like this more than made up for it.

Which brought her to her current internal struggle.

The concept of tickling had been weighing on her mind again. More than once, when these moods struck her, she had tried tickling herself, using makeup brushes and fallen feathers from various accessories to scratch the itch, as it were – yet, if anything, she only grew itchier.

She had profited, relatively recently, from a one-on-one with one of her nation’s independent researchers, when they requested an audience. It just so happened that they had a little interest in the topic on a scientific level, and were more than happy to share details with their curious Archon – confirming, among many other things, that she could not do it to herself.

A pity. But a truth that now led her to her conundrum; would it be weird to get Neuvillette to do it?

Furina thought they were close. It should be fine. And yet – what if he thought less of her for being curious, or, Celestia forbid, liking it? He would never tell the people, but if he ended up disgusted, she would never be able to look him in the eye again.

Yet, on the other hand… He was always tolerant of her drama and antics, and she’d certainly known him long enough to recognize when he was hiding a smile. Maybe he’d like it, too, and they’d have something more to bond over? Or, at the very least, he’d be tolerant and understanding of it.

“Lady Furina, are you quite alright? You’ve been staring at the same page for awhile.”

His voice cut through her thoughts and made her jump, blushing lightly as she side-eyed him. He wasn’t even looking at her, flipping a page in his own file while she cleared her throat and laughed, theatrical as ever.

“But of course! I was just reminiscing on all of these cases! It is great fun to revisit them, from time to time.”

“Hmm.”

He seemed content enough with that answer. Furina stared at him for a moment, her smile falling as she returned to her quandary for the briefest of moments – and decided to commit, stretching her arms up over her head with a dramatic groan.

“Ugh, but sitting here for so long makes one so stiff!”

“You’re welcome to walk around the office to stretch your limbs for a moment, if you’d like.”

Still, Neuvillette hadn’t looked up, and she dropped her arms, swallowing a sigh. She kicked her legs for a moment, looking around for some other way to hint him towards what she wanted. Her gaze settled on the stack of closed files across the desk from her, just barely out of reach, and she smiled, snapping her current case shut and reaching across the desk before him, grunting theatrically with the effort of her stretch.

Neuvillette, finally, looked up from the page – and sighed, taking the file from Furina’s hand and adding it to the pile for her.

“If you need help, just say so.”

“Oh… Thanks…”

She drew her hand back into herself and wilted a bit, the disappointment eating at her. Neuvillette stared at her for a moment before humming, shutting his own file.

“Is… Something wrong?”

“Ah – n-no, no! Nothing at all!”

Furina forced a smile, perking herself back up stiffly, and Neuvillette tilted his head a little, his own expression carefully neutral.

“Are you sure? If there’s anything I can do, you need only ask.”

She felt heat rush to her face at the simple notion of verbalizing her request. Somehow, the idea made her throat feel tight, and the flight instinct kicked in as she hopped off the desk, shaking her head.

“No no no! There’s nothing wrong, I’m just… Hungry! Are you hungry? I’ll fetch us a cake, and we can take a break! Be right back!”

Leaving no room for Neuvillette to get a word in edgewise, she turned and hurried out the room, her cheeks hot and heart hammering.

Neuvillette, for his part, simply watched her go with a faint smile and a sigh, shaking his head. 

“One day…”

–

Why are her nails so long.

It was 1:13 pm in the early spring of her 499th year when she met with Arlecchino for their usual tea, and the first time that she had noticed the Harbinger’s – let’s face it, claws – practically pierced through her gloves. 

Furina shoveled cake into her mouth, already fuelled by nervousness, but the nails drumming against the surface of the table across from her only added new butterflies to the mix. Arlecchino prattled on about something or another, but Furina had long since stopped listening, plagued by unbidden fantasies.

For example, feeling those nails scratching ruthlessly at her underarms. Or having her blouse unbuttoned so that they could trace the expanse of her stomach uninhibited. Or having her leg be seized and the back of her knee tormented by the spidering claws. Or –

“ – Don’t you think so, Lady Furina?”

“... Huh?”

She blinked, her face flushing as she realized she hadn’t been listening at all. Arlecchino sighed, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms.

“Honestly, you’re more distracted than usual, today. What are you so hung up on?”

“A-aaahhh, nothing! Nothing at all,” She giggled nervously, trying and failing to recover from the blunder; “I’m just… Still excited! For the magic show tonight!”

“Ah… Well, it does give me heart to hear that my children have the Archon’s attention. I hope their wellbeing has her heart, too.”

Arlecchino’s motivated stare made Furina stiffen, and she offered a tight-lipped smile, nodding furtively.

“Of course, of course! The wellbeing of my people is always my priority. That being said, I think we should call it here, so I have time to get ready.”

“As you wish. It’s been a pleasure, as always.”

They shared a tense nod, and Furina stood up first, stiffly walking out of the room as Arlecchino’s nails haunted her thoughts on the way out.

I’m going to go insane.

–

“What time is it?”

“Hmm… 9:52, I think.”

“Okay… Okay.”

It was 9:52 pm in the early autumn of her 500th year when it finally, finally happened.

“You remember the rules?”

“Ugh… Yes.”

“And you remember the safewords?”

“Dendro, Geo, Pyro.”

“Good girl. Are you ready?”

In her bed, in her humble apartment, Furina was no longer an Archon, and Navia was no longer her enemy; rather, the young woman straddled her waist all-too-comfortably, keeping Furina’s body pinned to the bed. The ex-primadonna herself grasped the headboard desperately to keep herself under control, her skin already buzzing with anticipation.

“Oh my god, yes, just do it already!”

“Ask nicely…”

“Navia!”

Navia laughed, endlessly amused by how flustered and on edge Furina was, and finally lifted her hands, forming claws with her fingers. She feinted a lunge, and Furina flinched, but kept her arms up, her knuckles going white as her arms shook and she whined.

“C-come onnn, haven’t I already waited long enough?!”

“Okay, okay… You’re right.”

Sticking out her tongue, Navia lunged again – but, this time, she grasped Furina’s sides and squeezed repeatedly, and Furina practically shrieked, her arms already flying down to uselessly clamp over her assailants hands.

“Oh, you’ve already lost,” Navia tutted, anything but disappointed; “Guess that means you have to take the punishment.”

“Khheehee – you’re so meheehee – mehEHEAAN TO ME!”

Furina cackled, throwing her head back and kicking uselessly as Navia slipped her hands under her nightshirt and scribbled across her skin with her own manicured nails, giggling right along.

“I know. And you love it.”

And, of course, Navia was right; she really did.

The wait was worth it.

[loveandmurders]

Good morning, I hope you are having a great day. Do you think I could ask maybe the guys being protective? For your Sister Sinclair AU. Someone bothering/harassing reader or a memory of Trudy not being so nice to her and the boys intervening. I just want those guys to protect and take care of me :(. Feel free to ignore this, I absolutely love your AU<3

Hello love, hope you’re doing well! 

Your request made me very happy, and because you’re the first one I ever received you’ll have a special place in my heart forever <3 I’m so glad you’re enjoying this AU and of course the boys will take a good care of you! For your request, I mixed a little bit of both, and got carried away so I hope you’ll like this :)

Warnings : sexual predator, mentions of sexual threats, abusive family, mentions of murders, one or two strong words.

You had no idea what to do, and you hated how weak and powerless you were currently feeling. It had been an awful week and it wasn’t going to stop so quickly. You knew he wasn’t going to stop harassing you so easily. He was your boss’ son and the man didn’t take too kindly to the fact you refused to go out with him. He was now doing everything he could to drive you crazy, to hurt you, to make you beg him for forgiveness. He was trying to make your life a living hell, and even was following you around in his expensive car to scare you. He promised you he was going to rape you until nothing would ever be left of you. 

And of course you were scared - terrified even - but you would never beg him. You thought about going to the police, but he was rich and you would lose your job. And you really needed that job. Plus, you knew justice wouldn't do anything for you. 

What were you supposed to do?

You kept asking yourself this question over and over again. 

You were laying on your bed, staring at the ceiling as if you were going to find an answer there. You had cried so much the past couple of hours that your eyes were now dried and hurting. You were hungry but you didn’t have the strength to get up and to fix yourself a meal. You just wanted to disappear and to never feel that pain again. You wanted to be left alone, and to not be ashamed, humiliated and terrified by this man. It was unfair. Because you said “no, I don’t wish to go out with you”, you were now tracked down like a prey. Yes, that was what you hated the most, to be like a prey, to be stripped down of your humanity. You were nothing but a piece of meat some guy wanted. And it was revolting you so deeply inside of you.

You desired this man to die more than anything. It would only be fair after everything he told you, promised you and the way he harassed you.

The worst was that you knew the perfect way to lead this man to his death. You had three dangerous brothers who would do anything for you. It wouldn’t be the first time they looked after you, they protected you. Actually, if you let them do, you would be coddled inside Ambrose, like a true little princess. Bo and Vincent Sinclair would be more than happy to have you around a lot more, allowing them to keep an eye on you. And Lester Sinclair would be forced to be a lot more in town so he could spend time with you. For the twins, it would be a win-win situation. But so far, you had never wanted to live with them.

Your current situation was changing your point of view a lot. Maybe you should go live in Ambrose for a little while, until the man decides to leave you alone? Of course you weren’t certain it was a good idea to talk about it to your brothers… because the man would be dead before you could stop them. You knew how protective of you they were, how they always had been.

You perfectly remembered all the time Trudy, your “mother”, had said something hurtful to you. She would do that when she was so done with your brothers, but at the same time too scared to yell anymore at Bo. He was often on the edge to jump at her throat, and the older he got, the more out of control he became for your parents. So sometimes she was passing her rage onto you. You weren’t the most quiet children ever, but in this household you had needed to raise your own voice to not be forgotten by your parents. But your brothers would have never forgotten you. When Trudy was saying something in order to calm herself down and hurt you in the process, you were usually answering back. You had always felt strong with your brothers by your side, so you dared to stand your ground with your mother. And like Bo, you were too proud to let someone humiliate you like that. But sometimes, Trudy would say the right thing to shatter your heart in pieces. She would say something about how annoying you were to talk so much like that, or how you would never be good enough for a certain project you really wanted to do. When she was finding the right thing to break you, you were instantly falling silent. You would look down and you wouldn’t open your mouth until your brothers would have found how to cheer you up. It could take hours and a lot of cuddling and sweet talking for you to get back to your normal self. And even once you would feel better, for the rest of the day, Bo would keep you by his side, Vincent would find you small gifts and Lester would crack jokes to make you laugh. On the other side, Bo was only feeling more hatred toward her mother for treating you that way, and even her dear Vincent would grow cold and distant to her. Lester would ignore her as if she had stopped existing to him. 

One day, she made you cry. It was the first time… and the last. You had created a little wax figurine, out of pure curiosity and you found it not that bad, so you proudly showed it to Vincent. Even though it wasn’t perfect, for a first try it was pretty decent. Vincent was gently praising as he was showing you how to make it better. Trudy entered the room, and saw the sculpture. She took it and threw it away, so quickly that even your brother hadn’t been able to stop her. “To be a wax sculptor, you need talent, Y/N. And only Vincent has it, so please don’t even try again”. In the end, she won, because you never ever tried to work with wax again, no matter how Vincent coaxed you into making something. But at the moment, she didn’t seem to have won. You started to cry and Vincent grabbed you to hug you and comfort you. He sent a death glare to his mother that sent shivers down her spine. At the sounds of your crying, Bo showed up. He had no idea what was going on, but he could tell it was his mother’s fault so he took a knife and started to threaten Trudy with it. He would have hurt her if Victor hadn’t used all his strength to stop his son. Lester arrived in the room as well and he softly guided you away from your parents so you wouldn’t have to deal with any more drama.

As you remembered how safe and loved you had felt after that awful moment, all thanks to your brother, you thought you really needed to go to Ambrose. At least you would be able to sleep without fearing anything. You finally got up, dressed up and reached for your car keys. You didn’t look at yourself in a mirror, too scared of how awful you would look. You just crossed your fingers for your brothers to not notice it; hopefully they would just think you were tired after a week of hard work. 

You drove to Ambrose, wondering if the man would follow you down here, to his certain death, or not. You stopped at the edge of it as you found yourself face to face with Lester’s car. The boy jumped out of it, followed by Jonesy, to greet you with his usual toothy grin. You smiled at him and you knew you looked worse than you had hoped when your brother’s smile faded away.

“Everythin’ alright, darl?” he asked you with a frown.

“Yeah, yeah, of course” you replied as you nodded, but you could tell you weren’t convincing him that much.

“Then whatcha doin’ here?” he asked again.

“Can’t I go back home wheneva I wanna?” you huffed with a pout.

“Ya for sure can, but Bo usually needs to beg ya for days.” Lester replied and you sighed, knowing it would be useless to lie to your brothers. You also made a mental note to be nicer to the twins, and to come to Ambrose more often. It was just that the wax sculptures and the killings were weirding you a little bit out. But you were missing your brothers more than you would ever admit.

“Look, I’m just feelin’ a little bit unsafe at my place, and I thought I’d feel betta here” you finally said and Lester nodded in understanding.

“Alright, take Jonesy with ya and be prepared for the twins to question ya to death about it.” he warned you and you did think it was going to lead to someone’s death “Bo sent me on some errands, but I’ll come back for dinner” he promised.

You watched him go as you grabbed your puppy to settle her on the seat next to you, before finishing your travel and parked in front of Bo’s garage. He quickly popped out of it, quite surprised to have a working car coming there, and then even more surprised when he realised it was you. In quick movements, he was already by your side, opening your driver door. He helped you out of the car before grabbing your face to examine you, without saying a word. Alright, you were probably looking like an utter mess if Bo was acting that way. You looked away, in shame, and Bo’s touch grew softer against your skin. He wrapped an arm around you as his eyes searched for yours.

“Who do I need to kill?” he whispered. You gasped at the suddenness of his words. Gosh, your brothers were really a lot more protective than you thought, and yet you knew them well.

“No one, ya’re killin’ enough already” you replied and tried to move past him but he kept you where you were and forced you to look him in the eyes. He wasn't fooling around as usual, he was deadly serious about the situation.

“No one’s makin’ my baby sister cry” he replied with harshness, but it wasn’t directed at you. You knew if he kept saying those kinds of things you would start crying again. But at the same time, you were feeling a lot better to be at Ambrose. You finally wrapped your arms around his neck and hid your face into his chest. He hugged you back.

“Alright, Vincent will get ya somethin’ to eat and then ya’ll talk” Bo decided. You were too tired to protest anyways.

You called for Jonesy and followed him as he guided you to the house. You felt like you could finally breathe once you entered your home and you settled at the kitchen table.

“Ya betta stay here” Bo warned you, but it wasn’t like you were going to run away from Ambrose. You petted your dog and smiled down at her. She brought you some comfort as she stayed close to you, as if she knew. Meanwhile, Bo opened the basement door. He called for Vincent who seemed to be deaf for a moment, until Bo added, quite exasperated by his brother’s attitude, you were home. Vincent was upstairs in a flash. But his excitement turned into worry when he saw you. He knelt by your side and gently stroked your face, silently asking you what was wrong. You shook your head, as you weren’t certain how you could tell them, or even if it was a good idea to talk about it.

“’m fine,’m just hungry” you said. Vincent got up and went to the fridge to get some ingredients. He started to cook for you and you were really grateful your brothers were always eager to take care of you. It wasn’t often you indulged them into fussing around you. Bo sat in front of you, staring at you as if he was trying to read your mind.

“So?” he insisted.

“Ya said food first” you countered back. He groaned in annoyance but didn’t push the subject.

Vincent settled in no time a good meal in front of you before sitting next to you. You thanked him before eating with appetite. Once you were done, you leaned onto the chair and relaxed. You closed your eyes and you could even pretend that everything was alright. Vincent gently took your hand in his and brought it to his masked lips. You looked back at him before sighing. The twins were tense and very focused on you. You felt like you wouldn’t be able to escape them, and you were too tired for that.

“’s just a guy” you finally said and Bo arched an eyebrow.

“Did he hurt ya?” he asked

“Well, not physically… not yet” you replied and you could tell the twins weren’t taking too kindly what you were saying.

“So he threatened ya. Alright, what did he say?” Bo continued. You looked away.

“Doesn’t matter” you tried to defend yourself.

“Why are ya here, Y/N?” he added and Vincent sent him a disapproving look. Bo sounded rude and his twin didn’t want him to scare you off. Bo just didn’t know how to stay calm when his darling sister was telling him someone was harassing her.

“’m just feelin’ safer here…”

“Oh so ya think he could truly hurt ya” he said, getting darker and darker.

“I don’t wanna ya to kill him! What if the cops found their way down Ambrose!” you exclaimed, because it was the only reason you didn’t want to tell them. It calmed down the twins a lot and they moved closer to you. Vincent slightly removed his mask so he could kiss your fingers and Bo gave you his signature smile.

“Give your big brothers some more credits, love” he replied. You rolled your eyes at him.

“He’s my boss’ son. I refused to go out with him and now he is followin’ me and tellin’ me he’ll sexual abuse me” you finally said it. Bo’s smile fell instantly and was replaced with true and pure rage. You could tell Vincent was only better at hiding it, but he was feeling the same way than his twin. The man was dead for sure now.

Bo was about to ask some more questions, but got interrupted. You jumped a little when Bo’s phone suddenly rang. You watched him frown before answering it.

“What’s up Lester?” he asked and listened very carefully to his kid brother. He hummed and hung up.

“Is Les okay?” you said, hoping everything was fine. Bo only nodded.

“Hey, love, how about ya go get some rest, hmm? We’ll continue this discussion once Lester’ll be here too” he said. You were quite surprised, but you were glad you didn’t have to keep talking about it. You were about to start crying again.

Vincent guided you upstairs and helped you settle into your bed. Jonesy laid down at your feet, like a guard dog. You thought that the whole household was actually overprotective of you, but in the moment, you didn’t mind. Vincent removed his mask to kiss your forehead as a silent promise you were safe. You watched him leave your room, and then you instantly fell asleep.

You woke up hours later to the sound of your brothers quietly chatting downstairs. You took a shower before joining them downstairs. You were feeling a lot better than when you first arrived. You found the boys in the living room and sat next to Bo on the couch. He wrapped an arm around your shoulder to have you closer before kissing your temple. Lester brightly smiled at you and Vincent offered you some cookies that just finished being baked. You stayed silent, enjoying the quiet moment when it hit you: your brothers were all too calm and relaxed.

“What’s goin’ on?” you asked and the twins shrugged, as if to say ‘oh but nothing, everything is alright’, so you stared at Lester. He looked down at the ground before spilling out.

“A man was lookin’ for ya earlier” he said and you tensed but Bo shushed you. “He said ya owe him and all kinds of weird stuff, so… hmm… so we talked to him” Lester didn’t know what to say as he didn’t want to say something that would trigger you.

“Ya killed him?” you asked Bo who nodded

“Just keepin’ you all safe, love” he replied

“Ya won’t turn him into a wax sculpture, right? I don’t wanna stumble into him one day…” you said to Vincent who quickly shook his head before gesturing toward Lester.

“He’s in the pit already” Lester promised and you fully relaxed against Bo’s side.

You stayed silent for a few moments as you needed to process all that information.

“Well thank ya I guess” you finally said to your brothers.

“We saved ya and all ya givin’ us is a ‘Thank ya I guess’?” Bo teased, but only because he was in a good mood now. Vincent shook his head in disapproval once again and Lester rolled his eyes, not impressed either.

You thought about it, and you believed Bo was right, for once.

“Thank ya and I promise I’ll come back home every weekend. Betta?” you offered and by the bright smile appearing on their three faces, you could tell that yes, it was indeed better.

[p-artsypants]

Paint it Black (8) Finding

Robin disappeared three months ago. Now, Jump City's crime rate is mysteriously being taken care of by a normal, albeit strange, teenage boy who goes by the name Black. As the Titans befriend this lunatic, they begin to see a correlation between him and their missing leader. Will they be able to find Robin, or will Black turn them all insane as himself? [Actually, does not contain an OC]

Ao3 | FF.net

Starfire and Black diligently worked in his room. Starfire set up a card table and some chairs. She spread her supplies out and allowed him to use what he wanted. 

Black sang a sad and eerie song, as if it was a jaunty tune, complete with a small smile and little head bobs. “That there, that's not me. I go where I please. I walk through walls, I float down the Liffey. I'm not here.”

Starfire glanced at him, goosebumps prickling up on her skin.

“This isn't happening. I'm not here. I'm not here.”

“Your voice is most soothing. Do you enjoy singing?” 

He looked at her confused. “Singing? Nah, I don’t sing.” 

“But you were just––” 

“Hey, look what I made!” He grinned, and held his project up to his face. It was a mask reminiscent of Robin’s, but instead of plain black, it was colored with crayons and had glitter on it. “Guess who I am? Wah wah wah Justice!” 

The mask went up in embers as Starfire incinerated it with the eye beams. “That was neither flattering, nor amusing.”

“Hey!” He protested, gathering the little pieces left. “I worked hard on that!” 

“Perhaps you should learn the art of, how Jinx would say, ‘reading the room’.” 

Black looked around. “There’s no words in here, though.” 

“I do not like mockery of my friends, especially my Robin.” 

He tilted his head. “Your Robin? Oh! Were you guys a ‘thing’? What are they called, courting buddies?” 

She looked downcast. “No, we were not. We were only good friends.” 

“Then…he’s not really yours then, is he?” 

She scowled at Black. “He had my heart, and still possesses it, wherever he is. Your flagrant disregard of this fact is cruel.” 

He pooched his lips. “Golly Gee, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I was only trying to understand.” 

“To put it in a way, he was my most trusted friend and advisor. He explained many things to me when I did not understand.”  

“Like you’re doing for me?”

“I suppose you are correct. Your amnesia has put me in a place I was dependent on before.” She huffed, still upset. “I would prefer if we did not speak of Robin. It hurts my heart.” 

“Okay okay,” he rolled his eyes. 

“Star,” Cyborg called from the communicator. “Gizmo just arrived with the last video. Wanna see?” 

“I do not know if I want to see it, but I need to. I shall be there momentarily.” 

Black watched as she rose from the table. “Where ya going?”

“There has been…a break in the case with Robin. I am going to the ops room. Would you like to come?”

“Nah. I’m gonna keep working.” 

All the better, Starfire thought bitterly. She was trying to be forgiving and friendly with Black, but knowledge of his deeds and seeing his actions in person made it hard. 

Yes, he needed help, but perhaps the Titans were not the ones that should give it to him. 

Starfire entered the ops room, spying Gizmo sitting on the couch with a soda. A Dr. Pepper. Those were Robin’s.

But she just silently took her place. 

“Okay,” Raven acknowledged. “Where’s Black?”

“In his room,” Starfire said shortly. “He has hurt my feelings, and so I will leave him to his business.” 

“Black? You mean the weird goth wannabe superhero we talked about last time? He lives here now?! Of course, what am I saying! You fart knockers take in whatever stray ‘hero’ you can find.” 

“Is that not what the Hive does with villains?” Raven quirked a brow.

“UH. The HIVE is a school for supervillains. Totally different thing!” 

“Sure, Gizmo.” 

Beast Boy shifted into a cat once more and sat beside Star, knowing she appreciated the comfort he gave. 

“Y’all ready?” 

“The first two seconds got trimmed,” Gizmo explained. “That’s where the corruption was. The rest looked like it worked fine, but I only scrubbed it.” 

“Thank you Gizmo,” Starfire said softly.

“Oh…yeah. Don’t mention it.” 

When the video started, the camera was at an odd angle, mostly aimed at the ceiling, but they could see the top of the wall, and the underside of a face. The left side. Black hair, still the same gaunt cheeks and dark veins that stood out on his skin. 

“Shall we start?...Just like we practiced…what did we practice for?...Because we’re sending it to our friends, stupid!” 

“He’s…talking to himself,” Raven grimaced. 

“I do not understand,” Starfire breathed. “That is Robin’s voice, and that is his face…but it is not.” 

“So is it Robin or not?” Gizmo asked. “It’s one or the other!” 

“I won't run away no more, I promise,” Robin’s chilling voice sang.

“There is something very wrong with him,” Starfire explained. “Some of the words he speaks, it is like a different person.” 

“Like a person talking with a puppet,” Raven agreed.  

“Even when I get bored, I promise. Even when you lock me out, I promise. I say my prayers every night, I promise.” There was heavy sorrow lacing his words, but he giggled at the end. “Yes, yes, that was good. They’ll like that!...You remember the next one?...Of course!” He tottled away from the camera, the top of his head coming into view every few frames or so. He was dancing. “I resent you calling. I resent your voice. I resent that I don't have a choice.” He was really getting into the song, and singing loudly and proudly. Not all the notes were right, but he had joy in his voice. “And yes I am! Yes I am!” He backed up, the back of his head and shoulders in view. He was wearing a hospital gown, so the skin of his back was exposed, and covered in marks.

Beast Boy shifted back into a boy, and stared at the video. He already had the first part of the message figured out. 

“I think I've told you once, I think I needed advice. You were such a help, that's very nice. I think I've been here before…Yes I've been here before. But this time I kick down your door!” That last note was outrageously sour as he dissolved into playing the air guitar, complete with singing the notes he was pretending to play, “WWEEEE WWAANN WWAAAAHHH!” Then he started laughing as he dropped his arms. The laughter faded until he was just standing there. 

“That was excessive…oh lighten up, would you? We sang it! We rocked it!...it doesn’t have to be a good performance…Why are you like this?...because you’re a massive doo-doo head and no one likes you!” He chuckled, before his shoulders dropped. “Okay,” he turned partially toward the camera. “Last one. Make it count.”

He started bobbing his head as he closed his eyes. His voice was soft, slightly seductive. “Troubled words of a troubled mind, I try to understand what is eating you. I try to stay awake, but it's 58 hours since that I last slept with you.” He started bouncing on his feet. “What are we coming to? I just don't know anymore. Blame it on the black star! Blame it on the falling sky! Blame it on the satellite that beams me home…” 

Beast Boy let out a gasp of horror, “dude…” 

“What?!” 

He didn’t answer, just continued to watch it all unfold. 

Robin was moving in a slow sway, his arms up. “I get on the train and I just stand about, now that I don't think of you. I keep falling over, I keep passing out when I see a face like you. What am I coming to? I'm gonna melt down…” 

He started air guitaring again, putting his whole body into the song. “Blame it on the black star! Blame it on the falling sky! Blame it on the satellite that beams me home!” He threw his arms out to the side and screamed the last two lines. “This is killing me! This is killing me!” 

The door on the other end of the room opened, but the group could only hear it. 

“Having fun?” Said a new voice. 

“Oh a lot! So so much!” 

“I think you’re ready to graduate, Patient 8.” 

“Yes! I knew it!” He whipped around towards the camera, fiddling with it to turn it off, but before the video ended, they all got a perfect shot of his face. Wild eyes, a meaty smile, and a horrible, bloody wound that tore through his right cheek, shoddily stitched and weeping. 

When the footage went black, no one could move. No one breathed. 

“BB…?” Cyborg asked in a tiny voice. “Did you get…?” 

“Yeah,” Beast Boy breathed. “I Promise…Yes I am…Black Star.” 

The door to the ops room swooshed open, and they all turned to look.

Black stood in the doorway, wearing another crudely made mask. “Hey guys, guess who I am?!”

---

A playlist of all the songs sung in this fic is available here. *Mickey Mouse Voice* It's a secret clue that will help us later!

[sgcairo]

“Ah, Monsieur Neuvillette. Don’t worry about the door, I’m taking a rest at the moment.”

The Chief Justice turned in surprise, his white hair sliding off his shoulder as he did. “Forgive me, Professor. I simply…” Neuvillette trailed off, his posture slumping a bit.

“Simply…?”

“I apologize. I seem to have lost my train of thought.” Neuvillette quickly said, his eyes too foggy for Cassius’ comfort. He was silent for a moment, before suddenly snapping out of it, his voice stiff as he spoke: “May I sit and rest here for a while?”

“Please do, Monsieur. I quite fancy your company, and perhaps you will reignite the flame of passion in my chest. I’ve been working on this piece, you see, and the ending has been plaguing me for quite some time.” Flipping the page of his sheet music, Cassius sat back in his seat, lifting his cello into playing position. “Would you like to hear it?”

Neuvillette stared at him for a long moment, before quietly clearing his throat. “Yes. I would… I would like that very much.” He almost sounded guilty, like he would be incriminated for his words. “Please.”

TL;DR: Neuvillette is moved to tears by the Professor's music. Comfort ensues.

Spits this in your hand. Have some Cassius and Neuvillette action.

[adeyc]

Ciel (O!Ciel) quotes

No one asked me, but I don't care. I got back into my obsession with Black Butler so I decided to rate some quotes (spoiler: many of them are my favorites even if I sometimes I don’t say so, this show/manga is brilliant).

1. "After all, justice in this world is just a bunch of principles, made by those with power to suit themselves."

-12/10

-kinda true, unfortunately, even nowadays

-shows how Ciel sees the whole system, especially the legal one and his vision of society

-reminds us of the huge differences between people

- great, one of my favorite quotes

2. "I have long forgotten how to laugh as if I were having fun."

-8.5/10

-so sad

- shows the distress and sadness he went through and is still going through and how much what he went through affected him

-feel sorry for him (he would probably beat me if he knew that, but it doesn't matter lol)

3. "So what? You're another person, so of course you look different. What do you need to be ashamed for? Besides, I'm free to be with whoever I want. No one has the right to say anything about it."

- 9/10

- we love someone who doesn't discriminate

- he hates everyone equally <3

- I think it is one of the few times when he encourages someone and I love it

- I like that he knows he can do whatever he wants

4. "If you stick to a "lie", it'll eventually become the "truth.""

- 9/10

- it shows his character and the more human side, in the sense that every man lies and he is not above that

- shows how gullible some people can be

5. "I was born to end up alone."

-9.5/10

- so sad yet so true

-he accepts his fate

6. "Moping around with sadness and sorrow... what will come of it? Even dead people can do that. However, I'll live and stand on my own two legs. If we are going to die one day, wouldn't t it be better to have no regrets?"

-10/10

- a powerful quote that shows his strength of character and his desire to achieve revenge

-tough love kinda deal

- it can be seen that it is said by someone with determination and who has been through a lot

7. "Unfortunately, in reality there is no situation where one can win merely by following the rules. There will be knights that break the rules, and even chess pieces that betray him."

-9.5/10

- once again a spoken truth

- shows how aware he is of the world around him

8. "Only two kinds of people exist in this world, those who steal and those who are stolen from. So then, today, I just stole your future. That's all."

-100/10

-one of my favorites

-unfortunately, he knows what it's like to be in both positions

-tragic

9. "Pain tends to heal as time passes, but personally, I don't want time to heal my wounds. You may think you've escaped the pain and forgotten it, but that's nothing more than stagnation. You can't move forward without the pain."

-9/10

- shows the pain he still carries and that, no matter how hard he tries, the past will always follow him

- the last sentence, in particular, is devastating. Only pain keeps him alive and helps him move forward

10. "I am not so noble that I would stake my life for someone else. Nor am I so forgiving that I would sit by and allow someone to trample me. I am selfish... and self righteous human being! That's why! I... to clear my own shame... I used your power. Not for anyone else! But for myself!"

-10/10

-we love a self-aware king

- something that many of us would not recognize

11. "We mock their desperate wishes, and trample them like insects! Cowardly, base - we're more demonic than demons are! I'm just like them. I'm full of the same ugliness they were. This is how humans it's how we are, Sebastian!"

-10/10

- downright heartbreaking

- the situation in which he said it makes it even more tragic

12. "Words are cheap. There's no guarantee she won't tell anyone. Humans lie without a second thought. Including me, of course."

-8.95/10

- shows how well he knows human nature

- we love him for it tho

13. "To hate something that you used to love is such a painful feeling."

-10/10

- shows the tragedy of the character

- relatable

14. "Is there truly any human who is not arrogant?"

-20/10

- simple and yet sophisticated and true

-once again self aware king

- something that many will not admit

15. "I'm afraid when something is truly lost, one can never get it back again."

-1000/10

- one of my favs

- so sad considering that he lost everything and knows that he will never get it back

- and yet he has the proud strength to go forward regardless of the situation and not look back

- out of loss our Earl was born

I'm stopping here because if I keep going I'll be here for hours lol. I got this off my chest now....for a moment at least. Anyway, Black Butler is my number 1 and will always occupy a special place in my heart.

Bye!

[anti-dazai-blog]

1.3- There’s no need to act like a detective when there’s no case (and other complaints)

There’s so much to unpack in Chapter 1 Scene 3– Just. So much. Whatever I write really won’t do this scene justice, and whatever words I use won’t properly convey my sheer frustration when watching/reading this scene.

HOWEVER, the same can be said for many, many scenes in the future. This is only the first of MANY “wow there’s a lot to unpack here” scenes. So I’d better get used to analyzing these. I plan on analyzing stuff like The Dark Era and 15, both of which have. Just. So much. Dazai. In Them. Just Dazai Doing Dazai Things.

Anyway.

Moving on.

Let’s start with how he completely ignores Atsushi’s self-deprecation. Atsushi waits in the warehouse with him, waiting for the tiger to show up. Atsushi questions if the tiger will really show up and Dazai reassures him that yes, it will, and not only will it show up, but Dazai himself will be able to easily defeat it. Atsushi responds to this by essentially saying four main points [paraphrased to shorten them—>] 1- “You’re so cool and confident” 2- “Not like me LMAO I suck” 3-“I suck so much that I’m homeless and will probably starve in the street” and 4– “I’d be better off dead”.

Dazai’s response to all of this? He just looks at him. Doesn’t say a word. Doesn’t say “You’ll be ok, I’m sure we can work something out”. At this point, he undeniably plans on recruiting him. Yet he allows him to believe that he’ll probably starve. If Dazai was anyone else, I’d also criticize him allowing Atsushi to be like “I’d be better off dead”, but let’s be real, he was probably thinking “LOL YEAH Wouldn’t we all”. I don’t believe he has the capability at the moment to realize wishing death upon yourself is not a good sign and should be more discouraged than encouraged, so I’ll let him off the hook for this one.

Atsushi hears a noise in the distance and gets scared that it’s the legendary tiger. Dazai completely dismissed Atsushi’s fear by claiming the noise was “just the wind”. Combined with his facial expression, that’s more dismissive than reassuring. But I’ll let that one go too. Maybe he didn’t realize what face he was making. That sometimes happens, right? You say something and don’t really realize you’re making a certain face while you’re saying it. [I hate to forgive him twice in a row like this, but I’m not even up to my first main bullet point for Things Dazai Was An Asshole About in this scene. I really gotta speed through everything I thought was “unimportant”].

AND here we are, Dazai’s first major offense in 1.3– the way he explains his deduction! The way he goes about explaining his thought process always bothered me, but I was never really sure how to put it into words. If I had to though, I’d say the part that bothers me the most is how it comes off an an accusation. It’s as if he’s saying “Aha! Your story doesn’t add up- I found all the holes in it!”. It’s like he’s accusing Atsushi of lying, even though he’s well aware that not only did Atsushi not intentionally lie, but he knows less about “the tiger” than Dazai himself. As the title of this post says, there’s really no need for him to act like a detective when there’s no case.

Dazai goes through Atsushi’s story piece by piece, pointing out and tearing down its flaws, disproving the entire thing (or at least proving that it would be incredibly unlikely for it to have played out the way Atsushi described). He builds the tension in a nearly theatrical way— maybe he was trying to increase Atsushi’s stress on purpose? At first I thought it was the full moon that summoned Atsushi’s tiger form- after all he’s called “Beast Beneath The Moonlight”. But given that that never is the rule for when the tiger form appears again, and given that it wasn’t implied that either the moon’s presence or a full moon summoned the tiger in the past (since the tiger appeared in Yokohama “two weeks ago”, and therefore not during a full moon, and the tiger doesn’t appear every single night— therefore not always during a regular moon.) — since we know it’s not the moon that’s involuntarily bringing out the tiger, we can assume it’s something else, and stress is a reasonable guess.

Given all of that, Dazai’s unnecessarily dramatic reveal of Atsushi’s story being inaccurate can be assumed to be an attempt to cause enough stress to release Atsushi’s top secret tiger fursona. [that’s right I’m making jokes again. I accidentally forgot to be funny for a few paragraphs. Sorry ‘bout that.]. But was any of this truly necessary? There are two things I wonder about the BSD universe. The first one is wouldn’t they logically have some sort of way to determine of someone is or isn’t an ability user? Or at least to find remnants of ability usage? If not then the legal system would suck. It would be completely broken. Imagine trying to hold a trial when everyone’s claiming that they actually were mind-controlled into committing a crime, or that it wasn’t them but simply an illusion of them that committed the crime. There must be some sort of way to determine these things. Assuming there is, there’s no reason for Dazai to force Atsushi to transform- or even to wait for him to transform on his own! He could simply say “hey I think you’re actually the tiger we’re after”, and get him ability-tested with whatever technology (or ability-sensing abilities) exists.

The only reason not to is if you’re worried about Atsushi’s tiger criminal record of all his tiger crimes being used against him when he gets tested for super secret tiger DNA or whatnot. Which leads us to the second thing I wonder about the BSD universe. Surely they have some laws in place to protect first-time ability users, wouldn’t they? People like Hirotsu or Kenji, who have potentially destructive abilities, probably caused significant damage on their very first usage. Surely every single person who was unlucky enough to be born with unfathomable destruction right at their fingertips isn’t stuck sitting in jail for the rest of their lives. So why would Atsushi? There’s got to be some legal clause protecting him, considering he was unaware that he even had an ability in the first place up until now. So because of all that I don’t buy that -

1) It was necessary for Dazai to goad Atsushi into transforming into his tiger form

And

2) Dazai’s later claims about Atsushi being arrested for tiger crimes are, in any way, legit.

But I’ll get back to that second one later, in the next chapter.

All in all,. There was no reason for Dazai to even bring Atsushi to the warehouse in the first place.

But let’s say there was. Let’s say there’s something major I’m overlooking. It was necessary, and Atsushi was going to transform into a tiger anyway, regardless of what Dazai does or says. That’s fine, that’s great, that’s not even remotely close to Dazai’s biggest offense here.

Dazai lets Atsushi rampage around as a tiger for a while. It doesn’t really feel fair to compare this to him allowing Chuuya to use Corruption longer than necessary, since we know (and can easily see) how painful Corruption is. And I doubt Atsushi’s tiger form is anywhere near as painful. I won’t even claim that it’s painful at all. But we can assume it’s at least unpleasant. If not the form itself, the stress of losing yourself to something deep inside you that you can’t control sounds absolutely terrifying. And Dazai should know this. Dazai should know this, if not from it being basic common sense, then at least from working with Chuuya and knowing Q. Both of them have abilities that cause a lot of harm. Both of them are/were treated as a monster that must be dealt with because of their abilities. Both of them have a rocky relationship with their abilities— willing and ready to use them, yet seemingly terrified of them and feel like it makes them less “human”. Atsushi is exactly the same— he checks off all the aforementioned boxes. And Dazai should see that. He has enough firsthand experience to recognize what he’s working with, does he not?

He should recognize Atsushi’s current situation, and, well, he’s trying to be good now, isn’t he? He should know, at least on a logical level, that the “good” thing to do would be to nullify the ability as soon as it activates. But he doesn’t. I guess you can call it a morbid fascination on his part— a sense of curiosity that arises when he’s testing people’s limits. When he wants to see how far he could push them, or how far they’d go on their own if they’re not stopped. But psychological damage isn't the only type of damage occurring here. The warehouse is getting destroyed. It’s getting torn to pieces around him. Atsushi, this child who very clearly probably has some form of anxiety at the mere thought of a tiger being near his location, will not only be forced to face the reality of this feared tiger being none other than himself, but he’ll also have to see with his own two eyes the sheer extent of damage that it he can do in a matter of minutes. If Dazai really needed to watch Atsushi’s rampage then fine, but once all of his surrounding started getting torn to shreds, he really should have realized enough is enough and nullified it instantly.

He does, of course, nullify him once he has no choice, and only increases any pain Atsushi may have suffered in tiger form by promptly tossing him to the ground; a completely unnecessary move, made for the sake of being comedic [ Typical Dazai! *laugh track plays in the background like this is some old sitcom*]. But seriously though. Throwing him to the floor like that was pretty unnecessary. And must have hurt. The floor is literally concrete.

And Dazai strikes once again in his endless “failing to mention important details to his coworkers” crime spree! I’ve already spoke about this in detail in 1.1, but I’ll reiterate here: Dazai wastes everyone’s time (but Kunikida’s most often) by intentionally messing with their work schedules and causing them to do more work than necessary— either because he already completed the job he sent them to do, or because he’s intentionally hiding crucial information regarding the job they’ve been sent on.

So now Kunikida, Kenji, Yosano, and Ranpo all have to work overtime, in the middle of the night, because Dazai decided he was in one of his Silly Goofy Moods.

Initially this would be around where I’d end this section, but @travalerray’s tags from part 1.1 are relevant to this part and it would be a shame to ignore them

THIS IS A VERY GOOD POINT AND SHOULD BE DISCUSSED MORE OFTEN

Listen. I was initially going to focus more on this in regards to Chuuya, because of all people, Dazai really seems to shove it in Chuuya’s face the most. Most of the time, Dazai doesn’t bring up or explain his ability unless 1- He’s meeting someone who doesn’t know his ability yet, or 2– it’s relevant to the conversation ( Something like ”how will you defeat him?” “Oh I’ll nullify his ability”). 

It seems a bit.. disproportionate- the amount of times he finds ways to “casually” mention to Chuuya “Oh yeah you know how my ability is nullification?” “Remember how I nullify abilities” “I’m the only person who could deal with Q. Y’know. Because I can nullify his ability” “Guess you can’t fight me with your ability, because. Guess what. I can nullify it.” But that’s all something I’ll unpack later. Probably when I get up to talking about that Double Black chapter. 

But you’re right, @travalerray​, and he does do a lot of theatrics when dealing with pretty much everyone around him (specifically Atsushi, Akutagawa, Kunikida, Chuuya, and any enemy).

And as you said, it’s a manipulation tactic. He does it to show that he’s always in control- that nothing that happens is a surprise to him- or furthermore— that half the stuff that happens is stuff that he intentionally caused, and it’s all part of some top secret grand plan he has. 

He portrays himself to the people around him (or more specifically, to people he considers naive or gullible enough to fall for it [ie Akutagawa and Atsushi]) as practically “all-knowing” and “all-powerful”. I mean, people often use puppet-master symbolism for him. And they’re not wrong. 

But that’s all I’m gonna analyze this time.

Come back next week (or whenever, idk) for another exiting chapter of “Dazai Was An Asshole All Along?? What A Shock! If Only There Were Plenty Of Red Flags To Warn Us!!”

<Prev.  Next>

[rainbowuniversepageantsys]

On Equality between males and females!

Equality is the state of being equal, especially in status, rights, and opportunities. While the world has made great strides towards gender parity and women’s empowerment, women and girls continue to suffer widespread discrimination and violence particularly in conflict settings. This has been the theme for the month of March as I continue to connect with the youth generation and continue with my mission to motivate youth to excellence. As a female, I have seen the appalling ways that some men consider the purpose of women in relation to themselves, like a piece of meat, an object of desire to be used and used and used and then replaced with a younger vessel as he ages and goes insane during his mid-life crisis. I believe men have made a decision that females are meant to be at their disposal and we have to “give-in” to what they want or we risk being alone and seen as lonely, pitiful, and unattractive and unlucky in love with no prospects because we refuse to “give-in”. This is the wrong mindset for a male but it’s widespread and an epidemic.

It is evident in the porn, the prostitutes, the sex-trafficking, the rolling over in the middle of the night, the gentlemen’s clubs (where no man is gentle), the strip clubs, the pole dancers trend you can do in your bedroom now (totally stupid), the playboy magazines and penthouse pin ups, provocative and scantily dressed models, the swimsuit category in beauty pageants and the sex toys generally created to be penetrated in the vaginas mostly because males don’t know what the heck they are doing. Females are made to look like pawns, playthings with no brains and no reason to go without make-up unless you want to be alone. And then the females with the brains come on the scene and throw males for a loop because instead of them becoming desirable and sought after, they are depicted as intimidating, smart alecks, know-it-alls, masculine, too loud, too bold, bitchy and trying to be like a man.

This means that the mindset of the male is not accurate because in the real world if females have the same abilities as males shouldn’t we be seen as equals, capable of running a business, managing employees, landing that deal or account, speaking with an intelligence to move things forward and upward in a company and making one idea a million-dollar making solution? I think so. Equality comes with a price in this world though and that means females have to be careful with their approach to being seen as competent. As we discuss the different aspects that make up equality which are Unity, Diversity, Inclusion and Equity, we need to remember that this battle is ongoing. As our youth generation learns to think on a higher level of consciousness with daring movements through the fear of rejection from males, adult leaders and youth advocates must cautiously but boldly tread in a territory that most men consider theirs. Allow me to briefly describe the branches that extend from the tree of equality:

Unity is being together or at one with someone or something. It’s the opposite of being divided. This is a word for togetherness or oneness. Unity stands for peace in the presence of conflict; for love in the presence of hatred; for forgiveness in the presence of injury. Unity honors the many names of God and is what God intends to see being built on the planet. There is only one power and presence of God and that God loves each one of us equally. Philippians 2:2 (notice the verse numbers - 2 not 1) says God delights in unity among his people who have “the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.”

Equity refers to fairness and justice and is distinguished from equality. Equality is providing the same to all but equity means recognizing that we do not all start from the same place and must acknowledge and make adjustments to imbalances.

Diversity means having a range of people with various racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, and cultural backgrounds and various lifestyles, experience, and interests. This is like having a variety of individual and points of view represented in a certain arena.

Inclusion is seen as a universal human right. The aim of inclusion is to embrace all people irrespective of race, gender, disability, medical or other need. It is about giving equal access and opportunities and getting rid of discrimination and intolerance (removal of barriers). It affects all aspects of public life and some aspects of private life.

In a nutshell, unity is harmony, being in sync, equity is fairness and justice, diversity is variety and inclusion is about embracing and including all.

If we as males and females can understand, communicate with one another about it and embrace all the aspects of equality we can live in a better and more harmonized world. We spend so much time balancing our bank accounts, making sure we have enough, giving our kids an equal amount of ice cream in a bowl, or slice of cake at a birthday party, we make sure all four tires on our cars are aligned and have enough air in them, we make sure our make-up looks even on both sides of our face, we make sure our nails are polished the same and we have a pair of socks and shoes that match, we have to get our hair cut or trimmed and it looks better when its equal on all sides even if its layered it should be equally layered on both sides or it will look crazy, when we make our beds both sides of the bed should look equal or it looks messy, when we hang curtains they should just hit the floor equally on both sides, when we have an event the chairs in the auditorium are equally placed so one person is not in front or behind the other or there is no misalignment in the seating chart.

We spend so much time making sure these things are equal so everything goes off without a hitch and we have peace in our lives but males and females can’t be equals? What’s that about? We have had nothing but male presidents of the United States only since the beginning of presidency and I wonder is this because our world only thinks males are capable of running our country? If we have senators and congresswomen and other politicians and judges that are females these same people think just like a president because they all want the same thing, a satisfied country. Congress makes a lot of decisions for the president and that means they kind of rule the white house so a congresswoman can easily become a president.

Where are the females in the running who stick it out to the bitter end and fight the good fight of campaigning? I can only imagine the opposition they have with so many males thinking only they can rule the oval office. What is that about? When will we walk into a room ladies and not watch the men and try to find the one with the most expensive watch or suit or shoes on so we can feel secure with “that guy”? When will males walk into a room and not watch the females to find the one with the sexiest body or longest hair, or best polished make-up so they can feel happy and attracted to “that girl”? When will we walk into a mega church that doesn’t have just the name of the male pastor or evangelist on the building or on the website or YouTube video sermons and the first lady is acknowledged in the name of the church as well? When?

So listen to this and you do the math and see where your heart and mind lies on the subject of equality between males and females:

God created Adam, a man, first, to toil the land and create this and make that but that man, Adam, was alone, lonely, by himself and needed help so God created Eve to be his helpmate and they ruled the Garden of Eden together and had three sons (Cain, Abel, and Seth). God took a rib from Adam and created a woman named Eve. Woman came from man! And then something amazing happened later. Eve got pregnant and gave birth to a male child. Man came from woman. Sounds equal to me. And so this is how it has been since the beginning of time, male and female, created in the image of God (not just male created in the image of God) but both genders because God has the same make up too, it's in the Bible.

So that means we should see each other, open to what the other has to offer the other, equal with our thoughts and ideas, confident with our manner in expressing and presenting these thoughts and ideas, and always ready to stand next to each other in our own light, holding our own thunder (because no one really can steal your thunder if it comes from you, how do they know how to use that thunder), ready to collide, connect, communicate, collaborate and care equally for the good of ourselves, each other and anyone else involved. This is where our paradise comes from, the Utopia we cry out to God for. We can begin to create that on the planet before we even enter the New Jerusalem and that comes from thinking on a higher level of consciousness, with the intent to love in unity, with diverse opinions and ideas, aware of and respecting the equity that is obvious, and with the desire to include each other in our goals and plans as we build the future and join forces to make our world a better place….together, equally.

[degreesofabstraction]

I’ve been trying to write about trauma about being taken apart taken for granted taken

about how it feels to be a wound

I keep quoting myself “scars may make us who we are but open wounds are meant to heal”

I think I’ve made all the words already I think I need to make them a story

take all the poems and the prose and the promises to myself and put it in an order that means something put it in a context that makes sense

tell everyone what it means and what it meant

I’ve been trying to write about trauma I keep writing about forgiveness instead

.

2

I don’t want to forgive you I don’t want to forgive you

you hurt me you broke me you ruined me

I want to scream your name to the world I want to demand justice I want to hurt you back

I want to demand everyone who knows us choose: me or you

I can’t I can’t

I can’t

you don’t even remember you don’t know what you did you were going through hell back then

and yeah, you gave me a piece and that’s wrong and that’s bad

but you aren’t that anymore you aren’t them

trauma is a half death who you were never comes back and yet you are. still. alive.

The person who hurt me is dead they never left that moment they didn’t walk away

I didn’t either

you don’t walk away from trauma no one does

so I forgive you because there’s nothing to forgive because it wasn’t you because it wasn’t me

because neither of us lived

.

3

Places are just memories collective delusions which over time cohere into reality

we see similar things and describe them inaccurately and then agree that there is some truth some world some proof

we believed we were gods I suppose that’s just a coping mechanism when the whole world is out to get you what are you supposed to do

assume its not real there is a real world out there without these people who hurt us

and we are gods there

and when you hurt me when you did what you don’t remember

I decided you were fake too another deluded person living in their delusion world trying to play god trying to feel important not seeing the real reality

I told myself everyone else was crazy and that I was sane

At least I’ve finally stopped lying to myself

I may be god but that doesn’t mean I’m sane

.

4

I don’t want to kill myself anymore god I used to

I used to

somehow its worse not wanting to die

asking to be saved asking to be wanted asking to be okay

I’m never gonna stop wanting it

I don’t want to kill myself anymore but I still want to kill myself

I suppose that doesn’t make sense I’m missing the words the subtlety

I still want to kill myself I just don’t want to, when I want to. I just ask for help

I wish I wanted to.

I wish I wanted to kill myself I wish I wanted to kill you I wish I wanted to scream your name at the top of my lungs Tell everyone everything that you’ve done I wish I wanted revenge I wish I wanted justice I wish I hated you

I wish I had killed you

I wish you had killed yourself

I wish I hadn’t stopped you when you tried

.

5

I don’t know what sort of lives we’ll lead

I don’t know when we will part ways if we will part ways for how long

I don’t know how much longer I can survive living with you

I don’t know how much longer I can survive living with myself

places are just memories collective delusions which over time cohere into reality

we’ve been through too much together too much here this house isn’t made of walls anymore it’s made of trauma it’s made of you holding me down

this house is liminal on the edge of my perception shifting broken the edges not quite fitting

four lives, each with memories conflicting

our brains our memories build our reality

and here we are disagreeing

of course the world feels like it’s dissolving of course I see things

it’s not dissociation it’s just seeing

and I want to tell you I want to tell them I want everyone to know what this house is

I want to world to stop breaking

I want the walls to stand back up to fit together

I can’t I can’t

they can never know

.

its not just trauma

it’s not just forgiveness

it’s not just me trying to save you from yourself from what you don’t know

I hate the way people look at me when they can tell I’ve been crying “your eyes are red, are you alright?” it’s not compassion its pity and it burns worse than sucking in breath after drowning stings worse than peeing after rape and that shouldn’t be a comparison I’m able to make

what do you call the elephant in the room when it’s throwing bricks at a glass gift horse why don’t you look me in the mouth I’m not the kind of broken that is salvageable not another man’s treasure

you can break and break until the cows are in another pasture but you can’t make them drink and I’m not a metaphor for a good time I’m a figurehead on a shrink’s office bare chest, barred teeth, crucified

I’m not supposed to be forgiving you I’m supposed to be eating you alive this is what rebellion looks like an apology accepted shaking hands with the monster that broke me breaking bread You’re not a monster that’s just the narrative we’ve been fed

- January 25th 2018

[beyondthetemples-ooc]

(DDD ch 21 excerpt for context)

Cut to the anchorwoman. "Since word got out of the four unexplained deaths, the good citizens of Jump City have demanded justice. How did you Titans respond to these horrendous scenes?"

Robin was on the screen, speaking into the microphone. "...we've found the person responsible and the situation is under control."

Maybe Robin didn't call her a criminal, but that didn't change the fact that she was a murderer.

Dove rose and left the room, her head bowed low in shame.

Robin watched her sympathetically, and he stood-- Raven passed silently, already after her. Well then. He sat back down; Raven could handle her better, anyways.

She followed Dove into the hall, far enough behind to give her space, but close enough to let her know she was there for her. For a while she only observed: Dove held her arms crossed over her chest, gripping her shoulders, huddling in...

"You don't forgive yourself."

"How can I?" Dove's voice wavered already. "I killed those animals, I killed those people-- I tried to kill you!" She whirled around to face Raven, her eyes wide with horror. The tears in her voice finally spilled from her eyes.

"You can't define yourself by your mistakes."

"You keep saying that. But you didn't look into their eyes, and laugh at their pain, and fear, and use your powers to torture them to death. You weren't there smiling when they died."

 (...)

Dove gets really frustrated at Raven, lashes out:

“You have no idea how hard this is for me!” Dove cried.

“I do," Raven corrected.

Dove shook her head, looking into Raven’s eyes. “You think you know pain? You think you've been hurt? Try having your soul ripped apart, shattered by the pain you sensed in others, pain you induced yourself. Try having the very fiber of your mental existence torn away, piece by piece, feeling the threads of your mind being unwound like a poorly-woven tapestry-- it wasn't even whole to begin with, imagine knowing that you're the reason they all died, IMAGINE BEING THE HARBINGER OF DEATH ITSELF! It’s my fault they died, Raven! Do you have any idea how horrible it is knowing that?!”

Raven was silent for the next few moments, carefully piecing the next moments together with deliberate hesitance. “Remember my memory?”

Dove’s eyes widened a bit, her back straightened. A bit of the fury faded. “Which one…?”

“The only one you found by accident.”

Dove blinked, and Raven's voice was so cold there that she bit her lip, her expression sinking deeply and brow furrowed, guilty and remorseful eyes distancing with emotion until her lips parted, just barely - silently... and she dropped her gaze in shame. She realized then how deeply she’d breached their trust, invaded Raven’s mind in ways she couldn’t forgive herself for.

But that memory…

It was the end of the world – Raven bringing destruction to all life and nearly being the cause of death for everything in the dimension.

Dove's voice emerged as a quiet whisper. “Yes…”

“I had to live with that all my life,” Raven reminded her. “I do know that pain, that guilt… I know it all too well.”

(Wraps arms back around her shoulders, looks away.) "How can you bear it...?"

"What happened in the past doesn't define you. Don't let it define your present-- take every moment and define it yourself. We have the power to create a better future. For ourselves, and the people around us."

(Dove’s frozen, still.)

"You don't have to be held hostage by your mistakes."

Silence...

…Until, just when Dove seemed on the brink of recovery, she cried out, clutched her head with a strangled groan. Suddenly she was wound up in trying to fight it back while she barely had the strength to stand.

Raven catches her wrists, feels the frustration bringing on the rage, and the darkness [???something about it rising].

"Dove!" she called-- but she gave no sign of recognition.

Raven locks eye-contact, the power overwhelming Dove latches onto it and they both feel the pull

Dove (?instantly?) recognized the feeling of being connected to her sister and that instant brought a new flare to the rage, vengeance and fury and-- and Dove remembered wanting to hurt her sister, almost succeeding, floods of guilt crashed against the anger and she gasped and jolted, frantically, desperately trying to force it back.

Raven, exploiting the connection, gently but firmly reached into Dove's mind, eased her power through the connection and took hold of Dove's inner world. She manipulated the emotions... guarded against the entity struggling for release and fuel within her broken mindscape.

"You can do it, Dove."

Dove's physical self was shivering with effort, tears of terror streaming past her eyes, glazed expression as she focused entirely on her struggle. "Raven, I can't, I can't!"

"Then let me help you."

Dove's soul flinched at the thought of being any closer to the same being who totally destroyed her--

Raven felt it through the connection, as if it was her own, and remorse sparked-- She doused the flame. "Please... Trust me."

Dove shuddered so violently she nearly collapsed.

"Raven..."

"I'm not going to hurt you again. I promise."

Dove could sense the truth, feel the warmth brimming in her sister's promise. She closed her eyes, sobbing softly as she used the final strands of control to force her guards back and surrender her defenses, and allow Raven access to every part of her mind.

Raven wasn't sure if it was more from trust, or desperation. But whatever it was, she was able to reach out. Reach in. Feel in.

Familiar raging flame of Trigon's power.

Quiets Dove emotions.

Feels it losing heat...

...losing hold.

Losing its substance, until Dove suddenly took in a sharp breath-- let it out slowly... and took her next breath slowly in.... counting to five, until she could let it out slowly... softly. Calmly.

And with Dove able to steady herself, with Raven's help: the embers of that evil, demonic power simmered, sputtered... and went out.

Dove still needed another couple of breaths to convince herself it was really gone.

"You can fight it back," Raven told her.

"But... You helped me. If you hadn't been here, I..."

"Would have still been able to ask."

(Dove doesn't know HOW.)

Raven knows: she's too anxious... Even if she trusted that they weren't going to hate and scorn her anymore, Dove still doesn't want to disappoint anyone.

"We want to help you. All you have to do is ask."

Bites lip, already with tears pooling in her eyes. "Can you..."

Raven raises brows.

"...Help me, find... peace, again?"

Raven nodded, "I can," and began leading her back to the living room. "Let's start with a cup of tea."

[violixs]

forgive me as i KEEP GOING IA FROM THIS APP WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY VILE BC I HAVENT READ THIS MASTERPIECE YET WHEN I SAID I WOULD.. anyways i’m going to write feedback as i go.. itll be messy. BUT FIRST THE WAY I BACKTRACKED I WAS LIKE LAST MOMENTS WHATATATA AND THEN I REALIZE THE MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH NOOOK MAE ARE WE ADDINF SEUNGMIN TO THE BITTERSWEET ENDINGS ALONG WITH HYUNJIN AND LINO IN THE VIOLIXS UNIVERSE !! okay but the way your writing conveys how he feels about his last moments is absolutely chefs kiss WHAT THE SKZUSIJS Oh mu god i’m turning into a pile of snappiness with seung wanting to spend his last moments with the reader happy UNIVERSE WHY MUST U DO MU SEUNGMIN LIKE THIS GR AHHHHHHH (wolfgang ! OK HAJSJSJSJS BAXK TO READING) HELLOOOOOAOISJSKSSUUSUS THE LINE “He can’t ruin his last moments with you, because they’re all he has left” mae you’re absolutely gonna be the death of me YOUR BEAUTIFUL WRITING YOUR CHOICE OF WORDS I SWEAAAR even tho my heart is in my stomach for this bittersweet moment WAHH NOOOOO WHAT THE HE DOEDNT HAVE THE HEAR TO RESPOND TO THE READER NOOO OH MY GOD THIS ANGST THE THINGS ITS FOING YO MU HEART OH MY GODOSUSJJWJW CURSE U DEATH DATE NO SEUNGMIN WHY ARE U HOMDING THIS PAIM IN OH MY GOD someone punch me in the gut there’s a hole in my heart that CANNOT BE FILLED SEUNGMIN OH MU GOD. SELFISH TO LOVE THE READER ESRLIERWAHHH NO WAYY NOOOO THE I LOVE U NOOOOO NOOOOO NOOO NOOO NOOO WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY CANT SEUNGMIM HAVE MORE TIME TO LUV THE READER HACKCCK WHY DOES TIME HAVE TO BE UP FOR HIM WHAATATAT WHYY WORLD WHY NO NOT THE KISS ON THE HEAD MY HEART IS GONNA BURST . mae that last line ??? u absolutely shatter me IM SO MOVED ? AND DISTRAUGHT BY THIS STORY OH MY GOD i want to curl up into a ball and punch whatever decided seungmin would have limited time. i’m still dwelling on this last paragraph. YOUR WAY WITH WORDS IS ABSOLUTELY I DUNNO HOW TK EXPLAIN IT ITS MAGICAL ?? ITSJUST SO ??? LIKE LIKE LIKE THE BEST OF THR BEST mu words will not me do justice on how much i adore this piece or you or like everything about your writing AND THIS WHOLE THING WAS SLOPPY ( cough my thought process while reading is a little all over the place but i’ve never wrote feedback while reading before so !! here it is LSISJSJ lmk which feedback u prefer.. nats every single thought or my overall feedback!! ) and the line “But of course, that is a mere thought, a second reality where the weight is bearable and the consequences are not frightening.” mae you absolutely break me ily these words EEK THEY MEAN SM

i don’t even know what to say u are so. ajdhjs r enshhehfjej NAT MY HEART This IS SO CUTE IVE NEVER HAD FREDBACK LIKE THIS BUT AHHH IM SO HAPPY YOU ENJOYED IT AND THAT YOU LIKE MY WRITING AND ABT JUST EVRTUTHING YOU AHHH but. seungmin joining heartbreakracha i like the idea HSHDH i’m evil but it’s fun to write… BUT THE WHOLE IN YOUR HEART TYAT CANT BE FILLRD 😭😭😭 i promise i will give you fluff and fill it. eventually. I PROMISE </3 but the evil side of me is also so happy u r distraught… IDK JUST I AM GLSD I COULD BRING EMOTIONOUY OF YOU WITH MY WORDS AND THAT YPU LIKE MY WORSS i just. adore u u r perfect i will write forever if y can enjoy it MWAH