#never saw from Tetsuji or Riko

[johnconstantinesdick]

I could do SO much with Kevin Day’s gender and his relationship to his mother you have no idea

[sunriseabram]

Yes. Riko was an abuser. Nobody can deny that he hurt, sexually abused and tormented people physically and emotionally.

Yes. Riko was abused. He was hit by Tetsuji when he got things wrong, conditioned to believe that he had to be the best or his life wasn't worth living. He was abandoned by his father because he was second born, ignored by his big brother, and not even congratulated after he tried everything to gain their approval.

Yes. He hurt Jean out of anger. He used Jean as an object because that is all he had ever been to his father and family. He was a way to make money, but his father never saw him as anything more than that. It allowed him to feel powerful and in control of someone when everything else in his life was out of his control.

Yes. He flips after his father dies. Of course, he does. When you've worked your entire life to be acknowledged, spending thousands upon thousands of hours training to win, winning trophies, doing sponsorships, raising great chunks of money for the family, only for your father to die before even showing an ounce of pride for you? Of course, he flips. Jean just happens to be there, someone he knows he can hurt and get away with. Someone less than him at the bottom of the food chain. Perhaps the only person who sees the anger for what it truly is: failure. And Riko doesn't like that.

Yes. He hurt Kevin out of jealousy. Riko grew up in a world where failure was unacceptable. Failure meant pain, death and suffering. Exy was all Riko had and all he ever had. He couldn't stand to be second best because second best is all he had ever been. He would not be second in the one thing he was meant to be the king of. He hurt Kevin out of jealousy, and was beaten to an inch of his life for it.

Yes. He grew up sheltered. Riko was groomed to be a star by Tetsuji. He was groomed and exploited for money by the only person who had ever looked at him and seen something. He lost his mother. His father didn't care about him. He had nobody. He lived underground in the nest for most of his life and played exy every single day for most of his childhood. He probably had no friends his own age until Kevin came along. There was nobody who understood what Riko was going through.

Yes. Riko hurt Andrew. He had Andrew hurt as another power trip. It was to show he had great power and could do what he wanted with it. He had no boundaries. Throughout the series, Riko is shown to be insecure. He craves power and acknowledgement and wants to prove he has a place in the mafia family next to his brother.

Yes. Riko is more complex than a simple villain. He is self-destructive and works to the bone to try and be worth something. He uses anger to cover up his blatant abandonment issues. He is never and will never be enough. And if he can't be enough, then nobody else can. Nobody can take his place.

He is scared of Kevin, frightened of Neil, terrified of Andrew. He is constantly trying to stop his precarious tower from tumbling in the only way he knows how.

If all his mistakes were punished with pain, disappointment and anger, how can he know any different? He doesn't know the world really and hasn't experienced it outside his little box of stardom. He doesn't know what is 'normal.' For him, failing means getting beaten. Failure means losing his status. Failing means falling from power. It always has.

No. Just because Riko was abused and groomed does not mean that his abusive behaviours were justified. He chose to become an abuser, despite everything he had suffered.

No. He wasn't born evil. He is horrible - don't get me wrong - but he shouldn't just be cast off as coming out of the womb with horns and a tail. He was shaped by his experiences, negative and positive. We all are.

Riko thought beating people into submission would show his power and prove his worth to his family. In the end, it resulted in his downfall.

[tara-the-star]

elodie and jean moreau thoughts

when jean left home, he never got to say goodbye to her, he left thinking elodie would hate him for no longer protecting her from their parents' abuse. she was ten at the time and jean was convinced he was leaving her to face hell alone.

jean tried to fight against riko and tetsuji's abuse, perhaps clinging on to the hope that one day, one day he might just get to see elodie again. but of course, he could hold on to that distant memory for only so long. so he put his head down, he gave up any hope he had and accepted whatever the nest had in store for him. he buried all his memories of marseille, concluding that they should remain in that past, whether good or bad. It wasn't like ravens were allowed to have families anymore.

except

jean left the nest. his memories stayed buried after years of repression, but for how long? eventually when he did start remembering him, he could feel those memories tainted by the mental scars of his mothers abuse, though the physical marks had long since faded under the remnants of his time at the nest.

it had been so long since jean even saw elodie, he doubted that she was the same girl he had unwillingly left under the questionable care of his father's violent business and mother's unpredictable temper. so jean didn't dare think of reaching out to elodie, fearing that she would hate him for abandoning her.

but that didnt mean he stopped caring for her. when stuart mentioned that his family was going to take the hit in the moriyama's stead, jean only wanted to know what would happen to his sister. and then he found out that she faced the same fate as him, and in his words, that moment felt worse than anything riko had ever inflicted upon him.

and then, just like that, the only person he loved, who loved him back uncondtionally was dead.

his baby sister, a mere child, was dead because jean was unable to protect her from their parents' wrath. at the end of the day, his love couldn't shield her from them because they were moreaus. born to serve. it was written in their fate to exist solely for others. and if they lost their lives in the process, there was nothing they could do about it.

and thats why elodie moreau would never cross the age of twelve, ten in jean's memories, to which her existence was limited to. but the mind is a fickle thing. jean would eventually forget the exact hue of her eyes, the exact sound of her voice, the way she smelled curled up next to him, her favourite colour, and finally, inevitably, her.

[cultpastorkevin]

Kevin Day & Grief:

how can you grieve the loss of an abuser?

aight let’s just get right into yet another psycho-analysis of Kevin Day and his messed up life; I’ll be using quotes from the EC

“Kevin does not react well to Riko's death at all, and this is a problem for a while considering what Riko's done to the Foxes. But Kevin & Riko have a long and complicated history.”

It is a very heavy and sharp type of grief to carry, when the person you mourn is someone who did terrible things to you and others. It’s not easy. It makes you feel guilty for missing them, makes you full of regret and “what ifs”. Grief is not rational, it’s something that tries to drown and take everything it can with it. Kevin is aware of what Riko was like, was well versed in the things he did and said. But he knew Riko before it all, he knew Riko when they could barely put their own shoes on. He saw Riko’s changes firsthand. He’s grieving everything that Tetsuji stole from the both of them. He remembers Riko in ways no one else ever will. The burden of seeing someone you love turn into the very thing you’re afraid of, is a heavy one to bear. It is even more heavy to know that everything that was good about them, dies with you.

Anger is always quick to rear its ugly head after the initial shock and the tears wear off, and it’s an emotionally bloody affair. Anger caused by sadness is one of the most gut wrenching kinds of anger, because there’s really nothing you can do about it but let it pass. You’re stuck feeling it, you have no choice. So yeah, Kevin was definitely angry. Angry at what Riko did to him, angry at the fact he’s outliving him, angry that he’s gone and angry because fuck, he shouldn’t be feeling this way, it’s not fair to everyone he’s harmed. For the first time in his life, he might’ve even hated Exy. All it has done is take from him the people that he loves, and playing is an eternal and constant reminder that he has succeeded Kayleigh and Riko. Picking up that racquet reminds him of his hand, and in turn, of Riko, who even at his worst was still loved by Kevin. And at the lowest points of his grief, seated in a bathtub and drunk off his ass, sorrow sometimes made Kevin wish it had been him instead.

“Wymack has to send the rest of the team back to South Carolina with Abby. Kevin is too numb to be moved yet.”

Kevin was so devastated he could not be moved; whether this is meant literally or in a “he didn’t have the energy to leave the house” kinda way, it’s still sad. Being so crippled by an emotion as heavy as grief that you cannot leave the home is hard. It’s painful. You’re dissociated and everything is a blur. You don’t register time passing. Eating, drinking, doing basic things all go out the window. And we all know what Kevin is like. He’s a routine oriented, night practice, calorie counting health nut who lives and breathes exy. He was so distressed that this man did not move and that means most likely, he did not fucking practice either. Kevin’s life ground to a halt for a second time because of Riko.

“It's a problem for a while because the Foxes' knee-jerk reaction to his devastated reaction is ugly. It'll take time for them to try and understand where he's coming from. Even Aaron has an awful opinion on the matter since he knows Riko was behind Drake. Renee attempts to play peacekeeper, but Wymack is the one who has to break his rule to stay out of their personal lives so he can try and fix things. He, Abby, and Betsy bring the Foxes to Abby's place two & three at a time to let them react and tirade in private. It's not enough, but it's a start.”

Kevin is not allowed to grieve without being guilted or punished for it in some way. He has never known a grief experience where he was completely supported during it. When his mother died, he was stuck with Tetsuji and Riko. He never learned how to grieve properly or healthily, and being attacked by the foxes for even feeling something didn’t fucking help. Wymack is the only (and probably first) person in his life who stayed by his side for this. Wymack went to the funeral, he stayed until Kevin could handle going back home. Wymack saw Kevin shatter and knew that he needed time to try to glue himself back together before the team inevitably caused him to crack again.

Wymack, Abby and Bee having to step in is all kinds of upsetting. Imagine having to basically set up impromptu vent sessions for your entire team because they cannot keep their personal feelings to themselves and can’t let a teammate grieve in peace. Granted the foxes aren’t exactly pinnacles of emotional regulation or maturity, but the least they could’ve done was leave Kevin alone (and let Neil and Andrew handle him)

“By the time they meet up again in the fall, the Foxes have attempted to forgive him his issues, because they understand from a logical standpoint that it's conditioned devotion.”

The foxes have every right to not grieve Riko, they have every right to hate him. They didn’t have the right to take it out on Kevin and isolate him even further from the group. It is a jarring feeling to be looked down on for mourning a loss. He did not need to be forgiven for his mourning. He did not need to apologize for missing Riko. His grief wasn’t something to be loathed. At the end of the day, Riko and Kevin were everything and nothing to each other. They operated on a delicate line of balance that shouldn’t have been able to be created. Their push and pull dictated every breath both of them took. Yeah, it was conditioned devotion in the end. But it didn’t start that way.

“Kevin Day goes on to be hailed the best player in the sport, the striker all future generations are compared to. The Jackie Robinson, the Wayne Gretsky, the bend it like Beckham. When the ERC constructs a Hall of Fame, Kevin Day is the first player to be honored.”

When Kevin received this honor, for a split second, he wished Riko was alive to share it. They started this dream together, after all. Only one of them being alive at the end is perhaps the biggest anguish of all.

[codename-adler]

all i’m saying is, did Kayleigh Day really die?

we never did “see” a body after all. no proof from a trustworthy source, at least. sure, it’s on theme for the found family of assholes with no parental supervision whatsoever, but what if?

all i’m saying is, Kayleigh Day did not need to die, so did she really?

Tilda Minyard needed to die, because it was the only way to get her out of the way for good and to stop her from hurting Aaron. she needed to die because the twins needed to go to Nicky, and the twins needed an unforgivable rift thrown between them. and Andrew personally saw to that. confirmed kill #1.

Mary Hatford needed to die, because it was the only way to unleash Neil and push him in the Foxes’ arms. she needed to die because without her Neil is let loose, halfway there to freedom, and Andrew. she’s the trigger. and Neil personally witnessed her demise. confirmed kill #2.

Seth Gordon needed to die, because the Foxes had to come together. did he od by accident? on purpose? was there a certain mafia involved? we don’t know. but Wymack called, and the Foxes did go on without him, for the better. confirmed kill #3.

Drake Spear needed to die because he’s an evil monster piece of shit. Aaron personally got rid of the trash. confirmed kill #4.

Kengo Moriyama needed to die, because Riko Moriyama needed to die. and Ichirou needed to pull the trigger on the last one. Ichirou would never come into power were his father not dead for good. confirmed kill #5.

Nathan Wesninski needed to die, because Neil needed to be real, and free. Nathan needed to die because as long as he was alive, Neil couldn’t keep on living, could never stop running. Neil personally lived the moment he was set free by his uncle. even the FBI collected the leftover garbage. confirmed kill #6.

Riko Moriyama didn’t necessarily need to die, but he did. shot fast and true. karma came and collected, by the hand of Ichirou. confirmed kill #7.

what do all of these deaths have in common? trustful information. absolutely no gray area; done deal. also, major turning plot points unsolvable by anything else than death. none of the resolutions or conflicts work unless there is an absolute zero chance of the threat coming back. the story cannot progress if any of these characters comes back from the dead, and so the narrative makes it explicitly clear that each of them is cold turkey.

except Kayleigh Day. the only two nebulous circumstances surrounding death in the series are Seth’s and Kayleigh’s. both deaths are Moriyama-tainted. however, Seth’s case is unsolved because we’ll never know who really pulled the plug. Wymack, the only trustworthy reference, confirms Seth’s death without a shadow of a doubt.

Kayleigh’s death is reported by the Moriyamas.

Kayleigh needed to be removed, because Tetsuji and Riko needed Kevin for themselves.

Kayleigh’s death is the only “accident” in the series, outside of Seth, but as previously said, there’s reasonable doubt there too.

Kayleigh’s death is the only pre-canon death that does not show a body. Andrew took care of Tilda; Neil took care of Mary.

Kayleigh’s death is the only one reported by the enemy.

Kayleigh’s death is the only one not discussed in heavy details.

all clues point to the Moriyamas orchestrating her car accident, but what if it’s more? what if it goes as far as faking her death? what if she’s alive somewhere, sequestered? what if she’s alive somewhere, undercover?

as TKM ends, we witness the beginning of Tetsuji and the Raven empire’s fall, Nathan’s fall, and the Moriyama empire being reshaped by a new leader. but it stops before the repercussions unfold. before we actually get to see everything that entails, what other secrets, irrelevant to Neil’s journey, are waiting to come out.

what if the resurrection of the Mother of Exy is one of them?

[simonsrosebud]

could we get more mer au

kevin as a mermaid is something i never knew i needed

With determination to appeal to the mermaids' good side, Jeremy had scoured all of his old textbooks and notes from veterinary school for any and all information he could find on mermaids- which wasn’t much. Or at least, there wasn’t much beyond educated guesses. He had an idea of what food it might like based off of where it had been found, some enrichment ideas that could work, and a plan to make it clear that he was non threatening.

Of course, that was mostly tossed to the side the second he walked into the mermaids enclosure to find the mermaid lying on the deck with a catch pole tightened around the bottom of its tail and Riko Moriyama on the other end of it.

Jeremy’s heart skipped a beat and he ran forward. He’d been put on as the mermaid’s primary caretaker for a reason. If anything happened to it only a week in he’d be done for.

“What are you doing?!” he shouted and jammed his shoulder into Riko’s side. He knocked him off balance, releasing the pole from his grasp..

Riko had the clearance to the facility because he was the owner’s ward, but he technically didn’t have a job there. He was still in school, and as Jeremy nearly pushed him close enough to slip into the tank Jeremy was just lucky that Tetsuji had more respect for him than his nephew.

He was also lucky that he was a foot taller than Riko, because it made it easier to get him out of the way. “This isn’t a toy! It’s a living-” he grunted against Riko, “animal! Get out!” Jeremy caught his hands behind his back and forcefully marched him out of the enclosure room, locking the door from the inside so that his key was rendered useless.

When he turned back towards the mermaid it was thrashing on the diving platform and clawing to get its hands on the edge to pull itself back into the water. Jeremy only grabbed the catch pole for a split second before it slipped out of his hands. “Wait!”

Not to his surprise, the mermaid ignored his plea and toppled back into the water.

Jeremy dropped to his knees, scanning the surface of the water as if to spot the fish in distress. He wouldn’t be any help to an animal of that caliber- of that size. Not without it cooperating right back.

But if his bosses saw this, he honestly feared for his job. He’d march right into the security office and pawn off the footage of Riko without a second thought.

He waited ten minutes, then a few more. And right as he started to stand he saw a blip in the water. He leaned forward, perking up. The mermaid's head popped up out of the water, dropped down again, then reappeared right in front of Jeremy’s face.

Jeremt instinctively fell back on his butt and scooted backwards out of its way.

Five feet away, staring at him with blank eyes, the mermaid cocked his head and met Jeremy’s wide eyes, and after long enough floated back to flick its tail as close as it could to Jeremy. Jeremy thought someone could hear him swallow with how dry his throat was. The sounds of the pool lapping around them echoed.

The catch pole was still attached, and it looked painful.

prev / next

[the-gay-cousin-666]

Alright I'm bored so here is a needlessly long analysis of how Riko Moriyama doomed his own narrative.

(full spoilers ahead)

As stated in text: "Kevin only hand the strength to leave because Riko destroyed his hand."(tfc, pg.89). If it hadn't happened, Kevin wouldn't have had the guts to leave, and even if he did, Tetsuji would drag him back. Riko rendering Kevin useless for the Ravens was the only reason he was allowed to walk.

This was crucial for Neil's recruitment to be successful for several reasons. First, Kevin was the one who saw real potential in Neil, deciding to travel to bum fuck nowhere Millport to see him in person. It could be argued that Wymack would sniff Neil's fucked up life all the way from PSU and go anyway, but he would have been alone and Neil would have had the chance to escape.

Second, Kevin gave him an excuse to actually join the Foxes' (unreasonable as it was) and not hit the ground running the moment he had an opening. Ironically, at first Neil was ready to bolt specifically because Kevin was part of the Foxes lineup and hadn't it been for Andrew, he would have succeeded.

Third reason and the part to which the arm braking is arguably most relevant; Andrew Minyard, who is somehow at the center of everything, despise insisting that he doesn't give a single fuck.

Andrew was the main anchor that kept Kevin from running back to Nevermore with his figurative tail between his legs. Because of a pact that warrants a whole second essay, Andrew was dragged to Millport with Kevin. In Neil's own words, "Andrew was only here because Kevin Day never went anywhere alone."(tfc, pg.9) which funnily enough was the reason why he ended up with an exy stick between his ribs three pages earlier.

Andrew stopped Neil from running away and continued (albeit reluctantly at first) to provide support even when Neil was one wrong look in his direction away from performing a vanishing act. He continued to be the glue to hold the narrative together all the way to the end. Even if the beginning went the same way, if Andrew was removed from the equation, the story would inevitably fall apart with either Kevin or Neil running back to their old ways before any development could happen.

All that being said, (and here I circle back to my point) Andrew wouldn't have been at Millport if it weren't for Kevin's broken hand, and Neil wouldn't have joined the Foxes. Only with the golden combination of Neil, Andrew and Kevin could the Foxes stand any chance against the Ravens. The combination that Riko brought together by his own action. His own need to establish superiority, because his daddy didn't love him, inevitably allowed Andrew to perform the Shakespearean final act and hit Riko with all the consequences of his actions in one fatal blow.

And that, ladies, gentlemen, trees and other beings, is the conclusion of this "essay". Thank you for coming on this journey with me.

[aalyre]

Hihi so I saw the coward/brave discourse and one anon said they thought Neil brave for staying and though I know that this entire discussion is on the topic on when/if someone can be brave in leaving/staying and i believe you added onto that with that Neil would’ve maybe been more reckless than brave and I somewhat agree with you but also not

The things is that in the end if Neil were a Raven and Kevin left I think Neil would have stayed for the same reasons Jean would never have left with Kevin in canon. Maybe not entirely the same reasons, I think the factor of his loyalty and dependance on Jean, who would have been his partner would also be important and I think that Neil, same as Jean has, would hold lingering loyalty to the ravens as a whole and would also know that him leaving would not be as easily accepted as Kevin’s was. He would know his place more.

Additionally, I think that Neil would never ever ever trust Wymack to take him in. Jean already was in mild (?) disbelief that Kevin truly thought Wymack would be different from Kenton and Jean’s father but add Nathan Wesninski to the equation and no way in hell will Neil ever have a crumb of trust in Wymack. Part of me even thinks that Neil would discourage Kevin to going he didn’t know Kevin would likely end up dead if he stayed with the Ravens (an entirely different Roman Empire that overlaps with this one and have some big influence on eo but that I’m not getting into)

I think that in the end, Raven Neil would not be reckless, nor brave, nor cowardly for not leaving with Kevin; I think that from his point of view after a life in the Nest he would not see escaping as a viable way of survival for himself, same as Jean did not see it that way

I think he’d be maybe a little bit more resistant to Riko/the Ravens than Jean was but truly not much. That is not reckless behaviour nor is it cowardice, nor is it bravery. It is a combination of his loyalty toward Jean (and the Ravens as much as he may hate them and you can’t change my minds on this one), his dependance upon Jean, his position to the Moriyamas as property and not a valuable pet to show off, and his inherent distrust of men old enough to be his father, which stems from not only his father but also in this case includes Kengo, Tetsuji and Jean’s dad. It is what he likely thinks of as survival, the same way Jean would/did.

Sorry for the long and messy rant but I wanted to add some thoughts on Neil as a Raven which is kind of a completely different can of worms from Kevin’s “cowardice” but whatever ig

For the rest I pretty much entirely agree with you on the matter lol

OMG I LOVEEEE YOUR TAKE

okay so surprisingly i never read anything in this discourse before talking about neil’s would be actions if he’d been a raven all along and

1) i totally agree with you, i think that neil, had he always been a raven wouldn’t leave but not bc of recklessness, not because of bravery, nor because of cowardice (basically what you said lmao sorry)

1.5) just before i get to the next point, obv the reckless neil i was talking about before i’d the one we know in canon, so the one who NEVER became a raven, and it’s that personality i took into account when trying to analyzing the situation

2) THIS THREW ME INTO SPIRALING THOUGHTS ABOUT HOW MICH THINGS WOULD HAVE BEEN DIFFERENT and i can’t really say much rn cause id need ten cups of coffee and a week to think about it but the few thoughts i got out were

2.1) his nature (wesninski) would have shown up fundamentally differently if he’d been a raven and it shows that nature/nurture are not interchangeable (not sure that’s the right word but basically they can overlap/influence one another)

2.2) i can’t remember why now but while reading your analysis, i had a lightning thought about andrew and how much his influence changed neil and pushed him to fight back (i do believe that neil’s recklessness in canon is brought to the surface by the foxes/the atmosphere at the foxhole court/ the kevin&riko situation) and i can’t remember why it was andrew i thought about so basically my point 2.2 is useless but if u can remember i’ll make sure to share!!

anyway my bottom line is that this pov of the situation is soooooo so so interesting and it puts the characters and their personality in canon into perspective and i LOVE that so thank you!!!

no worries at all about the long text ahaha it’s never a problem for me!

take care and have a great day/night!!!

[capcavan]

Hi sorry to bother you but could you elaborate more on how to properly write Riko in general. Like what it would take for him to actually cross that line and get his hands dirty, how he interacts with Tetsuji, and anything else you can think of. All your takes are so interesting!!

pls dont feel sorry if there is one thing that makes me happy is talking about preccious babygirl riko moriyama. Please don't take it as guide or rules in the end every writer and creator will characterize character in their own way and my take on it will higlight my ideas and my preferences trust your ideas and remember that your story might need something else, but feel free to take inspiration from this post if you se it fitting! general ruminations and headcannons about it all from me, if any of them will stand up to you feel free to ask further i will do my best to elaborate:

what would take for riko to cross the line, this is soemthign that would be intimatelly dependant on story you write and reltionships the character form, there is popular post in fandom that goes along the lines ,, there is not such thing as ooc behaviour of character if you find an organic way to explin why they end up actign this way '' the occ part would be expecting canon riko to rape or kill for exmaple this would mean you need to probe and push at his relationship with sexuality or need for power i don't want to focus on giving direct examples since that's something that organically would be plot point in a fanfiction but if raven neil would be rivaling with riko for power in nest in a way no other raven player would ever been able to - neil is direct competition to riko's cruelity and ability to manipulate people - riko might end up going over the line with him , important thing is for me, it would never be somethgin happening early in the rivality, it would be end all means . Riko would not resort to such move unless he saw no other way to proceed or get his way, Riko comiting those acts means he is happy to end up punished for them end in prizon let go of his dreams and future just to bring harm to the person that inconveniences him. I firmly belive that if Riko knew ichirou will shoot him for all the mess he caused durign aftg he would have never done that. So yeah In my view Riko choosing to kill somone is making peace with his own life being ruined. Personally I have anger issues and when they get triggered all i can think of is how much i want to harm others because when I am triggered it feels like the pain and dread i feel are not something anyone else can experience and the only way i could ever be understood and offered help in those moments is if i will bring everyone else down to my level - i think this is how riko's life is, the bottom line is he will not make others hurt more than he is hurting so the worse his situation gets the more he will drag others down Riko's relationship with tetsuji is dreadful thing, Tetsuji in a way is the only reason Riko got to live past his teenge years, tetsuji is his groomer abuser and idol, Tetsuji si riko's god. I think riko is incapable to act out towards him because of crippling fear and need of his approval, because this is how tetsuji raised him. Riko is dog who was beaten by his owner whole life but unlike dog he has enough human conscience to not bite back. Riko will listen and obey to him not because he respects him but because he was raised this way , he was beaten into it , even if riko wanted to disobey tetsuji his body would not listen, submittign to master is in Riko's nature and is hard coded in all cells of his body. but more headcanon route I think it's interestign to consider all the ways why riko might be disgusted by sex, in general his character reads very asexual to me but not in the commonly accepted tumblr way, he just does not seem to have sex drive one would expect of him, and simply uses sex as wepon and punishement .

[nanatsuyu]

https://x.com/nanatsuyu/status/1660987055004852224 ELABORATION PLS ?!? 👁️👁️

oh man I haven't thought about this post in a while!!

When I'm feeling particularly masochistic I like to rotate the idea in my head that Kevin is aware of his part in the narrative and it /genuinely/ dawns on him some time before he graduates that Kayleigh's passing wasn't an accident

so I haven't read all of the ec, tsc or everything Nora has ever said so I don't know if it's been touched on canonically but I imagine it probably occurs to kevin rather abruptly one day that Kayleigh wasn't just in some accident when he was younger

again I'm running on assumptions here and what I know at present time, and I touched on some of this later in the thread, but it's too convenient of a death to just be 'accidental'. there's no real elaboration behind what happened and one of the easiest ways to get rid of someone and cover it up easy is a car crash. also everything comes in threes and having two other car related incidents with mothers seems a bit on the nose.

I don't think it's ever mentioned (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong I'm not an authority by any means) if Kevin was with her or not, and it's never mentioned whether it's suspected that she was worried for her life or anything in her letter. (I feel that would have been brought up if so. I think it just touched on who Kevin's father was and maybe something sentimental etc. feels weird for the letter to be kept around if it had incriminating evidence yknow)

i think maybe at some point in the back of his head Kevin realises that's a little too perfect for his mother to have just died, knowing there was an empire that was getting money out of it. she loved the sport for the sport so knowing her cocreator was interested in less than savoury directions with it would put some strain on that. (whatever relationship they had would beyond that is a bit up in the air but tetsuji seemed more devoted to his family business than any one person.) so the easiest thing would be to get rid of her, which I don't think is a hot take or anything? I'm pretty sure I've seen this thrown around a bit.

regardless I think it was something Kevin may have always thought about, but didn't Really consider until he saw just how little he meant to the moriyamas and riko. like yeah he kind of understood that to a degree growing up, but I imagine riko growing more aggressive with him maybe pushed that closer to his forethoughts that they weren't keeping him around out of just talent. there's gold star lineage and money in owning the literal son of exy, and while that's obvious to the reader, sometimes it takes a minute for things to register in such simple terms to people under all that stress, trauma, etc. maybe Kevin already understood that in canon in so many words, but then later it clicks that /that/ was a very intentional decision and direct action.

like he IS the face of exy. he is the tragic hero of a revolutionary sport. people eat that kind of drama up. and his life story may have been entirely crafted by someone elses hand. celebrities are a commodity after all. what makes more money than a poor orphaned boy destined for greatness, lovingly taken into the arms of a team and 'family' that could help guide that still? hell if they managed to cover up the raven problems by blaming them entirely on riko, that may even add more to Kevin's sobstory for fans and bring in even more money.

that's not to say Kevin isn't deserving of the respect and admiration for his talent and skill. that is all Kevin and no one can take that from him. but this niggling idea that someone laid this out for him, for everything to play out (mostly) to plan has to hit him at some point. there's something completely devastating about realising your autonomy is and potentially has never been your own, that destiny isn't really divine but instead made—but not by your own hardwork. even if all of the fallout after he death was a domino effect, wouldn't that be nauseating to know it was all according to plan?

[stabbyfoxandrew]

Aerie,

You said we can ask questions about your AUs. I was thinking about your Mafia Restaurant. Jean here seems free from ties to his past, is that really so?

+ We saw how jealous he is of Andrew, and I wonder what would happen if he met a certain Jeremy. We know that Jean here loves his queen more than his own life, but I think Kevin would still dislike Jeremy's attentions to his husband 😅. How would they react to this golden retriever brunette?

Thank you so much for your AUs and for writing for us every week 💝

Oh hi! <3

Yep! MFR (Mafia Front Restaurant) Jean is free of Riko and Tetsuji now for sure, since they're both long dead. And the Moreaus are dead as well. That was one of the first jobs Jean and Neil did after agreeing to work for Ichirou. :) Yay, French vacation! (We may have a flashback to that at some point, not sure.

The rest is under the cut, to keep from being long and annoying.

MFR Jean and Kevin shared a crush on Jeremy back in the nest, but it never became more than that. Also, in this AU Kevin only spends a year at PSU before transferring to USC himself. So he's close with Jeremy and considers him his best friend, apart from Jean and Neil of course. Kevin and Jeremy are on the same team back in New York. :D

If MFR Jean ever met Jeremy, I'm sure he'd sort of look at him. But nothing more than that would ever happen probably. (But Kevin and Jean are poly, so... like maybe it would... But they would talk about it first.)

Thanks for asking about these silly little guys! <3 I hope I answered your questions.

[leedee013]

WIP Wednesday

I'll be participating in @/kedreeva 's game again this week!

PLEASE SEND IN THINGS. THIS IS LITERALLY THE HIGHLIGHT OF MY WEEK.

Anyway, rules:

It’s WIP Wednesday, time for a little accountability, sharing your work, and getting a kick in the pants.

Here’s how it works:

In a reblog of this post (so people can find you in the notes) or new thread (w/ rules attached) if you want to play on your own, post up to five (5) filenames of your WIPs; not titles, file names.

Post a snippet from one of them. Snippet must be words you wrote in the last 7 days. We’re posting progress here. If you haven’t made any, go make some and come back to play!

After you’ve posted, people can send you an ask with one of your file names. You must then write 3 sentences in that file. If the filename is one you can't share from (for example, an event or gift fic), write 3 sentences on it anyway, and then 3 more on another to share.

That’s it! You can invite others to join in, or just post. I’ll be searching the reblogs to find people to send asks to!

If you’re reading this, you’re invited!

If you see someone posting a WIP Wednesday Game snippet, send them an ask! Make them write.

Here is what I have to offer:

1. Etienne 2. Baby Jean 3. Needle AU (CW: Needle AU will occasionally feature depictions of self harm scars and injuries. The primary focus of the AU is on healing and growth, however.) 4. Dealer's Choice (aka I work on a secret project and then also on a random one)

MASTERPOST OF PREVIOUS WRITINGS

Snippet from Silly Little Jean Moreau Fic (from last week's selection, technically falls within the rules!) below the cut

"Exactly. It's practically an admission of guilt."

As soon as Henriksen said that, Jean’s vision went red. “Fuck you,” he growled. “Don't fucking talk about him like that.”

Henriksen’s smile faltered.

“You're fucking cowards who want to take the easy way out. This is and always has been Tetsuji Moriyama. Don't you dare pin all our suffering on Riko, because he suffered too. When Kevin left The Nest, Riko didn't fully regain consciousness for three days," Jean spat. "He was punished just like the rest of us, except he punished himself too. Didn't you ever notice how Riko was also absent from the public eye after Kevin's 'accident'? Or, hell, how he was absent after mine?" he continued, his voice growing more frantic and increasing in volume with each question. "Tetsuji fucking Moriyama destroyed any chance Riko had to have a life outside of The Nest. Riko knew that he'd never been wanted. Riko knew that the only value The Master saw in him was as an investment, and that his life literally depended on how much that investment earned him. So if you want to have your careers considered anything other than pathetic failures, you'll get your heads out of your asses and focus on the real villain of this story. Stop letting the Moriyama name make you two its bitches and do your jobs properly."

The room was silent for a while.

[kevindayisafrog]

Part 2 of the post that was supposed to be a one shot inspired by @knandersonart ‘s art on Instagram (I have too many ideas for it to be left as a one shot, babe, I’ve got a whole book planned)

TW - abuse, anxiety and mentions of Dr*ke

Kevin had been at Palmetto for over a year now; alone and in fear. He tried hard to fit in with the upperclassmen but his short temper and constant panic left a huge gap between them that no one had tried to fill. He tried to get close to his father too but he knew that he’d never be able to tell him who he really was to him; he knew that his dad would only turn him away like Riko said. Kevin tried to keep in contact with Neil but their texts and calls had gone from one a day to one every few months. Everything was falling apart and all Kevin could do was watch as he fought like hell to climb back to the top. And the top is where he is now, but this time the podium he’s standing on is for him only, Riko can’t pull him down. Until Kevin’s alone with his thoughts, then he remembers how small he is against Riko’s power and ruthless abuse. Kevin felt himself slip further into the darkness around him when the championships were announced, something to finally concentrate on and a place where he’ll finally be with his Neil again; even if they’ll be against each other.

Kevin stared blankly at the empty bus seat in front of him as he sat at the back of bus alone; distantly listening to the upperclassmen’s idle conversation as the foxes made their way to the banquet. He couldn’t sit still as fear warred with excitement in his tight chest. He placed his AirPods in and called Neil, knowing that he’d see him in less than an hour but couldn’t wait to hear his voice. He grumbled to himself when it went to the voicemail and hung up, choosing to listen to his music instead as he watched the scenery pass by in a colored blur through the window.

Kevin was last off the bus and he stood behind the other foxes as Wymack opened the storage compartment on the coach, passing their outfits to each player. Matt tossed Kevin his dark green suit before turning back and catching his own suit before it hit the ground. “Jesus, Coach, this cost me a lot of money”, Matt smiled despite his words and smoothed down his suit. Wymack retorted dryly but Kevin didn’t hear what was said as he already turned and made his way towards the stadium; his body buzzing with a distant memory of Neil’s body close to his. He pushed his way into the locker room with a sign reading: ‘Palmetto Foxes’ written in black sharpie. He quickly threw on his suit with his back to the others, ignoring Nicky’s wolf whistle as he moved to the mirror to smooth down his forest green blazer. “Where are you going, hot stuff?”, Nicky winked with a laugh as Aaron groaned and turned away from his cousin. “I’ll be on the court”, Kevin muttered as he left the locker room and walked as fast as he could to the court. It pained him to see a perfect court being used as a dance floor and dining area, but he wasn’t here to be disgusted. He opened the court door as he felt a stern hand on his shoulder causing him to flinch and duck down. “Don’t worry, it’s only me”, Wymack pulled Kevin back up and turned him so that they were facing each other, “I just wanted to make sure you’re okay before you walk into the lion’s mouth”. Kevin looked up into his father’s eyes and blushed in embarrassment at the raw worry that he saw. “I’ll be fine as long as we’re not near Riko or Tetsuji”, he wrung his hands together and tapped his foot impatiently. “I’ll keep an eye on you, kid and if you’re worried in any way come straight to me, okay?”, Wymack gave a fierce squeeze of Kevin’s shoulder before pushing him through the door. Kevin turned away and made his way over to where the seating charts were. He ran his finger down the sheet until he found the Foxes’ name and made his way to the back table, freezing as Riko stood from their shared table. “Kevin, welcome home”, Riko announced in Japanese, spreading his arms in a vicious gesture of a hug. Kevin gulped and clenched his hands before taking a deep breath and making his way over to the table. “Riko”, he muttered as he sat down opposite Neil, relaxing as Neil wrapped their ankles together, “the rest of my team are just coming”. Riko barked a shrill laugh as he sat down and leaned towards Kevin, “me and Jean were just talking about how we’re surprised you guys made it into the championships, what with your small number of players”. Jean looked up and sent Kevin a subtle shake of his head, mouthing a small ‘I’m sorry’. Kevin sent a small smile back before turning to Neil, ignoring Riko’s annoyed frown. “Hi”, he whispered, running his ankle up to Neil’s thigh. “I’ve missed you”, Neil replied in French, reaching down and squeezing Kevin’s ankle under the table. “Hmmm, so we’re doing this now? Speaking other languages so I won’t understand”, Riko nodded slowly before laughing and curling a large smile, “your mother would be so disappointed in your disobedience. If you’d shut up we’d all hear her turning in her grave. Even though we’re so far away from her”. Kevin tensed and clenched his jaw, trying not to give Riko the satisfaction by showing his anger.

“Riko, it’s so lovely to meet you, Dan Wilds”, Dan led her team to the table and scraped her chair back, sitting down with her hand extended to Riko. Riko looked at her hand in disgust before shaking it with a fake smile, “I hope you’re looking after my Kevin for me”. Matt sat beside Dan and laughed sarcastically, “he’s not yours anymore, he’s ours”. Riko dropped Dan’s hand onto the table with a thud and turned to Kevin, “weren’t you just telling me how much you hated this team and that they’ll never win the championships?”. Kevin sat up straighter and smiled, “no, I wouldn’t say that and do you know why, Riko? Because although these aren’t the best players, they’re the strongest I’ve ever met. They use their teamwork to push back and fight to win their deserved place at the top. You won’t be smiling so wide when we beat you and win the championships”. Riko’s smile fell and he grabbed Kevin’s left wrist in an iron grip, “don’t fucking push me tonight, remember that you’re my pet. I won’t hesitate to put you down, do you hear me? One wrong move and I’ll bring your whole team down with you, see if you’re so brave then”, he growled in rapid Japanese. Nicky looked between the two before placing his hand over Riko’s and digging his nails in deep, “I’d advise you to take your hands off of him or I’ll break it off”. Kevin turned to Nicky in surprise and was shocked enough to let his long lost genuine smile get plastered across his face. Riko pulled his hand away and glared at Kevin, “you’ve deluded these jokes into thinking that they’re better than they are. You’re getting cocky, Kevin, what will you do when they turn you away like they inevitably will?” Andrew elbowed Neil to get him out of the way and leant on Neil’s hunched back, “now, now, Riko, let’s not throw your toys out of the pram. I told you what I’d do if you messed with my family, do you really want to test my word?”. Riko tensed and slowly turned to face Andrew, “One more word, Andrew and I will get an old friend over to play with you. Drake must miss you”. Andrew flinched at the name and let out a long medicated laugh, “try me” he growled. Neil shouldered Andrew off and stood up, ignoring Riko’s glare, “I’m going to the bathroom, try and fucking stop me”. The foxes watched in silence as Neil left the room without a single glance back to the table. “Your pets aren’t as loyal as you thought, are they?”, Dan asked and she tapped her nails against her glass, “must suck when everyone turns their back on you”. Riko growled in annoyance, hating how he’d lost control of the situation and his words were thrown back at him. Kevin stood up quickly, knocking his chair onto the floor with a loud clatter as he left the table, half running to the bathroom and ignoring Wymack’s shouts of concern.

“Neil?”, Kevin called into the seemingly empty bathroom, pushing open the stool doors slowly. “I really did miss you”, Neil walked around from the corner of the room and stood on his tiptoes to wrap his arms around Kevin’s neck, “I actually missed your irritating shouting and obnoxious presence on the court”. Kevin let out a small huff as he brought their lips together, smiling into the kiss of ‘hello’. “I hate you”, he whispered into the kiss, knotting his fingers in Neil’s orange hair. “Sure you do”, Neil replied, purring as Kevin tugged lightly on his hair. Kevin pulled away first and stared down into the ocean blue eyes before him, the auburn eyelashes fluttering his eyes back open. “Neil”, Kevin started but Neil let go and walked away to the sinks, “please just hear me out”. Neil sighed and turned on the tap, “Kevin, not now, can we just have this moment? Stop trying to ruin everything”. Kevin frowned and followed Neil, leaning his hip beside him at the sink, “I don’t ruin everything”, he muttered. Neil placed his hands under the tap, refusing to look up at his pouting boyfriend, “you know that’s not what I meant”, he sighed and dropped his hands to the bottom of the sink, “I can’t come back with you”. Kevin groaned in annoyance and pushed off of the sink, pacing his way back to the stools, “why not? Why the fuck not, Neil? Nothing is stopping you and even if something was you wouldn’t care anyway”. Neil turned the tap off and slammed his hands against the ceramic, “for fuck’s sake, Kevin, are you being obtuse on purpose? If I could go, I would. Do you think that I enjoy the nest? Do you think I like you being so far away from me? Because I fucking don’t, it’s hell”. Kevin laughed flatly and crossed his arms, half turning away, “you can come with me, you just don’t want to”. Neil pushed the heels of his hands into his eyes and sighed heavily, “why do you always twist things? Listen to me”, he dropped his hands and marched over to Kevin, pulling his arms apart forcibly, causing him to flinch, “listen, I hate not being without you, okay? And I know it makes you cringe when people talk like this, but I can’t live without you and I hate to admit, I really do, but I need you. I’m trying so hard to get out of there so you’re not alone anymore and Andrew’s helping too. We’re so close to getting out, we just need to be patient and wait a little longer before we can be with each other again, okay?”. Kevin dropped his head and Neil stood on his tiptoes so their foreheads could touch. “I hate being alone”, Kevin whispered, “I’ve never been alone before. When my mom found out who Tetsuji really was, who his family were, she exiled us to Ireland and never let me leave her sight. She took me everywhere with her, not even trusting teachers to look after me at school. But she left to go to the shops in the next town whilst I was sleeping and Tetsuji paid people to stage a fatal car accident. After that day I was with Riko and he wouldn’t let me leave his sight either, so I don’t know what to fucking do. I’ve never been alone before”, he sniffed and let out a small whimper. Neil gently placed his hands either side of Kevin’s face and placed a small kiss on the tip of his nose, “you’re not alone, I’ll never let you go”. Kevin lifted his head and turned to look away, “but you are leaving me alone”. Neil shook Kevin’s head and pressed his own head against Kevin’s ribs, “I’m trying, I really am”.

They stood in silence as Kevin hesitantly wrapped his arms around Neil’s shoulders. “I know you are, I’m sorry, I’m just scared”, he placed a gentle kiss atop Neil’s head and rocked him side to side slowly. Neil hummed and looked up, taking in his boyfriend’s worry filled eyes, “that color looks good on you”. Kevin frowned and looked down at his suit, “I wanted to wear red but I don’t really suit it”. Neil snorted and pulled away, turning to walk to the bathroom door, “you suit red, Kevin, trust me”. Kevin watched as Neil left the bathroom with a wink and couldn’t help but feel alone once again, a heavy feeling weighing on his chest. “Thank you”, he whispered with a small smile to the space Neil left behind as Riko kicked open the door with two broad shouldered Raven players behind him.

[aftgandotherbooks]

Father-Son Bonding

Kevin only knew about his mum from what he heard about Tetsuji telling him (which is almost nothing really) and barely remembers her himself. What’s worse is that he knows nothing about Wymack and his past. A few years after Kevin graduated, he decided to visit his dad for the Christmas holidays. Wymack was a man of habit and still lived in that one room apartment near Palmetto university, which meant that Kevin unfortunately had to sleep on the couch for the week. One night of an especially bad nightmare of Riko, Kevin moved to the kitchen to make coffee since he wouldn’t have been able to fall asleep again. Coincidentally it was also around the time Wymack usually wakes up to go out for his morning smoke. After a short and gruff “‘morning” *nod* “‘morning” *nod* exchange, both men headed out to the front porch. It was the long stretches of quiet that Kevin appreciated the most from being around his father. After spending years around people who always had something to gossip or complain about, the comfortable silences he shared with his father were a blessing. After an hour of bliss, Wymack looked over at Kevin and saw deep dark purple bags under his eyes and a surge of concern welled up in his gut. He cleared his throat and nudged his son’s shoulder, asking “couldn’t sleep?” Kevin, transfixed by the quiet morning air jumped at the sound of his father’s voice. “Yeah, um. Nightmare” he muttered, looking down at his hands that were fidgeting with the string of his pyjama pants. Wymack sighed and looked out onto the grass and birds singing their wake-up songs to the rest of the world. He nodded his head and looked back to his son. “That’s one thing that never seems to leave you alone. I had a bad one before you came. I could barely leave my bed for two days.” Wymack huffed. Kevin looked up to his father in shock. He always knew Wymack had a troublesome upbringing, but he never mentioned it. Of course, he knew something must have happened, otherwise the foxes and their reputation of ‘second-chances’ would have never even existed. However, Kevin would have never known his father was still affected by it to this day. As morbid as it sounded, it was comforting knowing that his father was struggling the same as him. Kevin had never asked about his dad’s past. Mostly because Wymack made an active effort to stay out of Kevin’s personal business after he graduated because the other Foxes had a tendency to go too far whenever Riko or the nest were mentioned. Kevin respected the fact that Wymack refused to be like that. But before that morning, Wymack never spoke of his own burdens. He barely spoke about Kevin’s mum, the pain of her absence too painful most of time for Kevin. That’s why Kevin asked “you don’t have to answer me but… what happened? Does it have something to do with mum?” Wymack was quiet for a few minutes. Kevin started to think that his dad would ignore the question altogether. But then with a quiet sigh, Wymack put out his cigarette and turned to face Kevin. “Look kid, I know you’ve been through too much shit in your life, and I wish there was a way that I could have known and stopped it. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t wish I knew you before Riko got his hands on you. The point is, I didn’t want to put more shit on you that you don’t need. But... I guess it’s only fair you know more about me. I am your dad afterall.” Kevin nodded, hearing the solemn tone Kevin was too familiar with. The same tone was used whenever Wymack was faced with another kid with a messed up childhood. Wymack then closed his eyes, breathed slowly and methodically and squeezed his hands into fists for a minute or two. It reminded Kevin of the breathing exercises Betsy taught him when he was plagued with the anxiety attacks that came with his sobriety. With a neutral and emotionless tone, Wymack started speaking. “I was in prison for a year before I met your mother.” Kevin’s face snapped to Wymack’s. He opened his mouth to say something when Wymack held up his finger to shut him up. Wymack continued speaking. “I had just turned 18 and thought it was a good idea to get in a car with my drunk best friend after we left a graduation party one of our other friends held t their house. I only had one drink that night, I didn’t see the point of drinking. My old man was in a shit mood that morning and would have punched and kicked me to hell and back if I came home 10 at night, drunk. I kept going on about how I should drive since I barely had anything to drink, but he was too stubborn and I just wanted to get home early enough. So, my friend ended up driving, and we were blasting music, all that typical stuff teens do when they’re young and too stupid to care. It only took a second of us not paying attention that a kid crossed the road to fetch a ball. What sane kid plays with a ball at ten at night?” Wymack rolled his eyes. “anyway, I saw the kid before my friend did and grabbed the wheel to swerve it to the opposite side the kid was on. It just so happened that the car swerved too far and the road was still slippery from the storm we had a few hours before. And can I just say kid, the moment the car swerved and smashed into the light pole I knew we were screwed.” Kevin’s eyes were starting to water. It wasn’t at all what he was expecting. His father went to prison? “My friend, Alex, he died on impact. He was on the side the pole smashed into. I only got away with a bruised right leg, a broken arm and severe whiplash. The kid was fine. It was actually his mom that called an ambulance for us. When I told the cops what happened, they said that even though I saved the kid, what I did was technically manslaughter. That’s why I was sent to prison. My sentence was way shorter though ‘cause I barely had alcohol in my system, and Alex was way over the limit, so he was at fault for the reckless driving. Plus, the fact that my intentions were to save the kid, not to kill-” Wymack took a shuddering breath. “Not to kill Alex.” Kevin grabbed his dads tight fist and squeezed it. “Dad, you don’t have to keep going”. Kevin said, he could see his father’s defences slowly crumbling. But Wymack, the stubborn and persistent old man he was, shook his head and kept going. “Prison was… prison. Not a fun place, and there were things that I would rather never think or talk about. And when I got out of prison, I had nowhere to go. My old man used my sentence as an excuse to stop speaking to me again. Useless pig he was probably celebrated the day I left. My mom, well she’s been dead since I was 13, breast cancer. I’ve always wondered what she would have done about it all. So, I had nowhere to go, and no one to run to. I was working at a run-down diner because that was the only place that would take in a fresh out of prison convict. It was just a few yards off from where your mom lived. Her and Tetsuji would meet up every Saturday at my diner to grab lunch and work on the specifics of how Exy should be played. I always tried to be the one who would serve her, and then we traded numbers and started talking. We got real close for a few years until she asked me to join her first trial team for Exy. She’s the one who got me a job at Palmetto when I told her I wanted to expand the sport to other universities. She gave me the chance to move forward in my life when no one else would.” Wymack opened his eyes and looked at Kevin again. “She reminds me so much of you kid. Every time I look at you I see her commitment and passion.” Kevin looked down to their hands again, and smiled a watery smile. “Thanks dad. All I ever wanted to do was make her proud of me.” Wymack huffed again and said “I’m sure she is… I know cause I sure am.”

A.N: I have no idea how the criminal system works. Nor do I know how long, or even if Wymack would have been charged. I also haven’t read the books since last year so my knowledge of Wymack’s history is limited to other fanfics, so if I got anything wrong, I’m sorry. This is just my interpretation of how Wymack’s character and his personality were formed :)

[whosnickydude]

A soft dusk

okay so a while ago a posted this Kandreil drabble on ao3 but never really kept writing a 2nd part? but now that’s summer i have more time on my hands and i started writing again, so i guess i’m posting the 1st part here as well?? idk enjoy

CW: panic attack, Kevin has some really sad and harmful thoughts. please take care of yourselves lovies!

Kevin was spiraling. He felt as if his chest was about to explode from the pressure of not getting air through, and he couldn’t get a hold of his feelings.

Six months had passed since Riko’s death. Since the press lurking around every corner, demanding answers, fighting for a statement. None of them were sensible about it. Kevin practically couldn’t go anywhere alone the first month, or he would probably end up being stalked. One time it actually got close to physical assault.

All the while, he was mourning Riko. And he was the only one, it seemed. He felt immensely guilty, for an overbearing amount of reasons. He felt guilty for letting his brother become the sadistic monster he turned into. He felt guilty for not being able to change him. He felt guilty for leaving him. But most of all, he felt guilty for mourning him. It wasn’t fair, not with all that he did to Kevin. The sleepless nights, the feeling of always being a prey, always the second, always with a leash around his neck. He broke his hand because he was having a fucking tantrum, for God’s sake. It was not fair that Kevin still had to feel like shit because of him dying.

He started drinking, after that. More than he did before. It was the only way he knew to numb the pain. The other foxes let him. None of them understood why he felt so sad about his abuser’s death, so none of them knew how to —or wanted to— comfort him. They would throw him a pitying glance and try to do so, but after some times he shoved them off, they started to leave him to himself. So they let him drink. It wasn’t as if they ignored him completely. When everyone went to Eden’s Matt, or Dan, or Allison asked him to go dancing with them. Sometimes he got so drunk that he actually did. Most of the time, though, he stayed on the table while everyone gradually went to the dance floor. They never left him completely alone. Almost every time, Neil and Andrew stayed on the other side of the table, speaking in languages he didn’t know. Probably flirting shamelessly right on his face. However, the only one who stopped him from getting alcohol down his throat was Andrew, and only when he saw that another one would end up with Kevin passing out.

Five months had passed since Thea left him by now. And through text, at that. Apparently, he was making a fool of himself in public every day and it was bad for both of their careers. She didn’t want anything to do with him nor with Edgar Allen. The hypocrite. Kevin was the only one that was always mindful of his surroundings. The only one that acted perfect, that pushed every feeling inside so as to not attract too much undesired attention from the public. But she had it as she wanted it, and Kevin put no resistance against it. They didn’t even see each other and barely even texted or spoke on the phone.

The drinking got worse. The mighty Queen of Exy had fallen, but the only ones who saw it happening were the Foxes. And people who knew nothing about Exy in the darkness of a nightclub in full swing.

Four months had passed since on a Wednesday at 6 A.M., in the middle of his morning run, Neil had found Kevin, alone, near to unconsciousness in the middle of the road to Fox Tower. He had his body on the street and his head on the sidewalk. His face was pressed to the pavement as he sobbed, a half-empty bottle of vodka in his right hand.

Four months had passed since the last time he drank alcohol: he was four months sober now.

It had taken fights, screams, and comforting talks with Abby, but Kevin finally accepted to go to A.A. Neither Wymack nor Andrew would let him alone enough time for him to get near any type of alcoholic beverage. It took a while, but he got to the point that he spent a whole day not thinking about it.

Right now, he would kill for a drink. His mind seemed to have caught up on everything that had happened in the past few months. It was the beginning of term, so everyone wasn’t as free anymore to look out for him. Andrew and Neil had gone out a while ago, probably to the roof, since it was almost dawn. Kevin was left alone for more time than he could manage. The prospect of having to deal with still mourning the death of his worst nightmare, his own mental health, his addiction, and the school year, was simply too much. It was looming over him. He felt as if he was dying.

Maybe it was because he found himself with so few distractions that he started overthinking. Maybe he just opened the wrong Pandora’s box from the rotten depths of his mind. Either way, he was panicking. The rush of adrenaline and utter fear he felt —he remembered— from his time in the Nest was a live wire around his throat. How could he let all those things happen to him? Riko’s abuse, Tetsuji’s beating, the terror, the exposure. Being so vulnerable and ignored while also being right in the spotlight. “Always a commodity, never a human being...”

And then, what? He went running to his father, who didn’t even know he was his father. And he didn’t say anything about it until he was forced to do so. He was a coward. He was a coward, a fucking coward.

He couldn’t breathe. His head felt heavy, his shoulders felt heavy, his whole body felt heavy. Living felt heavy. Maybe he could just lay down where he was sitting on the couch and let himself go. But he couldn’t bring himself to move. His vision started blurring and everything around him was out of focus. Suddenly, there was a warm pressure on the back of his neck, and then another on his right cheek. The world started solidifying back, spinning around him, and he was gasping for air. He was letting out ragged, desperate gasps, his neglected lungs screaming for oxygen.

A face started coming to focus in front of him, but as soon as it materialized it blurred again. Tears were running down his face and he curled his arms around him. The pressure on the back of his neck —a hand, he realized— tightened, and the one on his cheek went up to pull at his hair.

“Kevin, look at me,” he heard someone say. The voice sounded familiar. “Kevin, I need you to breathe.”

The hand behind him stretched up and tangled between his hair as well, pushing his head slightly down.

“Come down, Kevin. You’re safe.”

The voices felt oddly comforting, and his hands flew up to grasp the other two. He was still crying and gasping, but it wasn’t as desperate. Maybe he wouldn’t die today.

At some point during the episode he had shut his eyes tightly, and now he tried to blink slowly, with narrowed eyes. The first thing that he saw was red hair, scarred skin, and blue eyes. Neil was in front of him, looking worried in his own way. His brow was furrowed, and he was chewing on his lip, but his expression didn’t seem quite compassionate.

“Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth, Kevin,” he said. He showed the motion, exaggerating his breaths for Kevin to copy. And Kevin could only look him in the eyes and comply. Some time passed —maybe minutes, maybe hours— and the panic ebbed. The tears wouldn’t stop falling and his breath was shaky, but he wasn’t hyperventilating anymore.

He was still holding both hands, and he felt the one at the back of his head slip away from his grasp. He looked back and saw Andrew staring at him, sitting on the arm of the couch. Neil was sitting on the coffee table in front of it.

“I’m... I’m sorry, I just...” he started, but couldn’t finish.

Andrew didn’t look away from him. His face didn’t demonstrate any emotion, but he still wasn’t looking away. “What happened, Kevin?”

“I...” He sighed. “I started overthinking, and I really wanted a drink, and I... I guess it just went down from there.”

His voice was small and he hated it. He felt stupid, he couldn’t be left alone with his thoughts for two fucking seconds because he started falling to pieces.

“I’m sorry,” he said again.

“Well, don’t be,” Neil said. “It’s only natural for these things to happen.”

Kevin wasn’t really sure what he meant by that, but he didn’t have much time to think about it because then Neil was standing up and going to the kitchen. Kevin looked back towards Andrew and saw him lighting up a cigarette and walking to the desk next to the window.

“Go change your clothes, Kevin,” he said, looking out towards the campus. “You’ll be itchy until you do, and you probably drenched all that in sweat anyway.”

He was probably right, Kevin thought, but still glared in his direction. Only because it was in his nature and he felt better already; Andrew wasn’t looking at him. Though he probably knew Kevin would glare at him. Giving no response to the blonde, he stood up and went to the bedroom to change into his pajamas. Andrew was right: the sweatpants felt like heaven on his skin. He closed his eyes and brought his hands up to rub them. He was feeling sleepy all of a sudden. The panic attack had drained all the energy from him, and his muscles hurt everywhere.

He went back out to the living room, yawning, and found Neil sprawled on one end of the couch with his laptop on his lap and a cup of coffee on hand. Andrew had one too where he was still sitting on the desk, and there was another one on the coffee table.

“Is that for me?” Kevin asked, sitting down on the other end of the couch. Neil looked up at him from his laptop and raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

“No, Day, I felt like having two cups of coffee,” he said. They fixed their eyes on each other until Kevin decided to take the cup. Neil seemed satisfied with that and looked back to where he was browsing something. A few seconds later he clicked on something with a flourish and put his laptop on the coffee table. It was a Trojan’s game they had already seen many times.

Kevin stared at Neil, but the boy just kept watching the beginning of the game. He saw Andrew moving to stub his finished cigarette on the window sill and light up another one. The last rays of sunshine and the street lights drew shadows all over his face. He breathed out the smoke and Kevin saw it disappearing in the wind. He looked back to the game playing on the laptop and brought his knees to his chest. He sipped on his coffee, and it was sugary sweet. But he could allow himself that, at least for today.

[nekojitachan]

Okay, so, the urge to write this hit me (maybe in part because of the new fic). Though I’ve been thinking of it off and on since I wrote it... two or three years ago? I finally got back to it. Raven!Andrew soulmate fic with Raven!Neil (Nathaniel). First part can be found here (I managed to find it).

Uhm, warnings for the Nest (vaguely) and for threats of non-con (that are not carried out). Mention of Nathan, too.

******

Andrew felt a manic, medicated smile spread across his face when Aaron chose not to sit next to him in the Intro to Biology class they’d both signed up for; he was tempted to throw a pen at his twin’s head before he slumped down in his seat and barely paid any attention to what was a blow-off class for him. As soon as the bell rang, he was out the door and waited in the hallway for Aaron to come out. When his brother cautiously stepped outside, he grabbed onto Aaron’s left arm and dragged him aside.

“What, no brotherly love today?” Andrew asked with a bright (false) grin. “Do I stink? I swear I showered after morning practice.” The other students gave them a wide berth, especially when they caught sight of Andrew’s black and red track jacket that all the Ravens had to wear outside of the Nest.

Aaron cursed beneath his breath as he shook his head, then switched to German. “Look, it’s for the best, okay? Just leave me alone.”

“Why?” Andrew’s eyes narrowed as he thought about Riko. “Did someone say something to you?”

Aaron ran his right hand through his hair, which was shaggier than Andrew’s (than his ‘nice’, Raven-styled haircut). “Do any of the other students talk to you? Sit next to you?” When Andrew scoffed at that, Aaron scowled. “It’s not because you’re an asshole, but because everyone here leaves the Ravens alone, it’s like you’re part of some special clique and they don’t like anyone messing with the status quo even if they’re a Raven’s brother. So just… call me or something, maybe we’ll get together on the weekends someplace away from campus, but I can’t chance losing this scholarship. I’m sorry.” Aaron gave him a casual wave as he walked away.

Andrew stood there for a minute as bitterness filled him at how easily Aaron cast him aside, focused on himself as always. It didn’t matter that Andrew had crossed the country for him, had risked his own life to get rid of Tilda for him, had joined the Ravens… well, partially for him.

The asshole hadn’t even managed to get hold of any alcohol for him yet.

He was late to his next class, an American History one, but the professor didn’t bat an eye at his arrival even though she’d chewed out another student last week for doing the same thing. Andrew barely paid attention to what was being said again, confident that he’d pass everything like he always did.

Once the class was over, it was time to head back to the Nest, what joy. He ran into Ben on his way to the stadium and basically ignored his ‘partner’ the entire time. Ben was long used to it by then, and appeared happy when they came across other Ravens, ones who would actually talk to the sophomore.

They spent time before afternoon practice working on their class assignments, which never took long for Andrew to complete. He spent the rest of the break reading through the ridiculously long email Nicky had sent him (why did his cousin bother now that he was back in Germany) and glancing through the stats on the Northeastern Huskies, the team the Ravens were to play that Friday. The Huskies weren’t in the overall top three for the NCAA Division I, but they were for the Ravens’ region so it was considered an important game.

Well, by everyone but Andrew.

Practice was the usual ordeal, was Riko acting as if he was the boss of everyone as he barked out drills and plays, as he expected to be thrown the ball as if he was the only striker out on court. It was Tetsuji watching everything with his emotionless, beady eyes as if he was a starving vulture, quick to lash out with his cane at the slightest mistake. It was Nathaniel acting as if Andrew didn’t exist at all.

Andrew was so tempted to say to hell with them all and head off campus to find the nearest liquor store, but he wouldn’t risk Nathaniel showing up the next day beaten again, or Aaron losing his scholarship.

(He didn’t care about Riko or Tetsuji fucking with him, was more than strong enough to handle whatever they threw at him, but refused to let others be punished in his place.)

Instead, he remained in the goal and blocked almost all of Riko’s shots on it just to annoy the asshole.

(He thought he saw Nathaniel smile once when Riko stalked off in anger, but the expression was gone a moment later.)

The rest of the week was spent with Tetsuji and Riko pushing the Ravens to be perfect (or damn near it) by Friday’s game, to memorize the Huskies’ stats and previous games. Considering that it was only the second game of the season, Andrew took to glaring at the soul mark hidden beneath his left armband; he didn’t believe in regret, not exactly… but he had some rather negative thoughts over Riko and Kevin bringing Nathaniel with them when then came to recruit Andrew.

The campus was festooned with black and red (remove the latter and it would fit Andrew’s mood perfectly), with students wearing Ravens jerseys. Most wore Riko’s and Kevin’s, but Andrew rolled his eyes when he saw Aaron sport his; the moron gave him a brief wave and a nod in acknowledgement, then went to sit with a group of what appeared to be new friends.

How nice for him.

Andrew felt his lips twitch then tug back into a mirthless grin when the loose sleeves of the black and red jersey that Aaron was wearing revealed that the black mark on Aaron’s left forearm was still a shapeless blob, that his twin hadn’t found his soulmate yet. Ah, so only Andrew had been inflicted with that particular curse as of yet, though Aaron was like Nicky and actually looked forward to finding his ‘other half’.

The fool.

Soon enough it was time to return to the Nest, to suffer through yet another recap of the Huskies’ players and probable game strategy (which he’d long ago memorized) before a quick lunch and then ordered to get ready for the game. Andrew noticed that Nathaniel wasn’t with the team for once, and managed to hold on to his curiosity until he noticed a man who appeared similar to the young backliner (his soulmate) stride along the outer ring; he was dressed in an expensive suit which was tailored to fit a muscular build, his dark red hair stylishly cut short (and lacking any type of curl), his eyes the same arresting pale blue as Nathaniel’s. Yet they were utterly lacking of emotion when they glanced out at court… and seemed to linger in Andrew’s direction for a few seconds.

Andrew nudged Ben’s left foot. “Who was that?”

Ben appeared stunned that he’d been asked a question. “Eh? Who?” He glanced in the direction Andrew nodded and frowned. “Oh, that’s Nate’s dad, he shows up now and then, usually on a big game day. Comes before the game starts and always leaves right after.” His frown deepened as he gazed at his racquet. “I don’t think they get along well, Nate’s always withdrawn after his visits and….”

Andrew did some frowning of his own. “And?”

Ben jumped a little at his question and pitched his voice lower. “I wouldn’t say anything, but you’re his soulmate. You’ve seen his scars.” Andrew’s jaw clenched at that statement. “Sometimes after his dad visits, he has a new one.” Ben pointedly looked away after that.

It took a minute or two for Andrew to get the urge to go after the man and bash his head in with his racquet under control (the fact that the abusive bastard had been followed by obvious bodyguards helped just the tiniest bit).

(It also raised the question of who the hell was Nathaniel’s father, what was he doing at Castle Evermore, and why Tetsuji allowed him to abuse one of his most talented players?)

Andrew was distracted from thoughts of violence by Tetsuji ordering the Ravens to warm up and participate in drills as Evermore slowly filled up with eager fans. That wasn’t entirely true as he did feel inclined to smash his racquet into one preening Riko Moriyama, busy mugging for the cameras and fans, and yet again wondered just how incompetent the doctor was who put him on his ‘lovely’ meds.

Maybe Aaron could get a nice lawsuit out of him eventually ‘snapping’ when the inanity of it all finally drove him to bash everyone’s heads in.

A boy with a heavy stick, a ton of issues and forever increasing anger management problems could dream, couldn’t he?

He was actually grateful for the damn game starting, just because it meant that soon it would be over. Andrew was slated to guard the goal in the second half, and so got to sit bored on the bench while a bunch of idiots ran around on the court.

At least, until a Huskie sub striker (#17, Donaldson, junior) seemed to grow annoyed at Moreau blocking him from the Ravens’ goal and swung his racquet into the backliner’s side, right below where the protective padding ended. Part of Andrew nodded in approval of the nasty and effective blow while another was annoyed that he wasn’t the one to land it.

Oh, and that it delayed the game’s end while Moreau was checked and carried off the court.

It was clear that the Huskies hoped to take advantage of the Ravens losing their number one backliner to an injury, but the team was composed of some of the best Exy players in the division. Hebig and Federov managed to do a decent job of defense in Moreau’s place, so Andrew didn’t have to work too hard once he was out in the goal; he only let a couple shots through, with the final score being 12-7.

The stadium erupted into cacophony when the final buzzer rang out, with the Ravens smug over their victory and the Huskies disgruntled. Andrew didn’t give a damn, he merely wanted to shower then sleep, done with Exy for the time being.

Riko and Kevin were expected to do their preening for the camera bullshit, but Andrew noticed how an excited Federov went up to Riko before the asshole left and talked to him, a huge leer spreading across his face when Riko nodded.

Something about that expression made Andrew’s skin crawl (it wasn’t the sweat drying on it or his drenched uniform); it sunk in when he was in the shower scrubbing clean.

Federov’s expression resembled Drake’s when he’d come into Andrew’s room at night.

By the time he rinsed the soap away, dried off and put on clothes, Federov was nowhere to be found. Andrew didn’t see any of the male Ravens missing (other than Riko, Kevin and Moreau), so that left the women and… and Nathaniel.

Shit, Nathaniel, whom Federov would stare at from time to time. Whom Federov would try to talk to, but Moreau always interrupted him and pulled his partner away. Andrew thought it was just Moreau being a dick, but now….

He broke into a run towards Nathaniel’s room, and was grateful for once that there weren’t any locks on the doors in the Nest as he threw the door open.

Federov had a struggling Nathaniel pinned to the bed, hand raised to hit him (hit him again, judging from Nathaniel’s bruised face and bleeding lip). The bastard looked up in time for Andrew to punch him on the cheek, which knocked him aside, and yelped in pain as he was hauled off the bed and thrown to the floor, where his ribs were stomped on twice. Hard.

“Stah- ah! Stahhp,” the bastard screeched as Andrew kicked him once more for good measure, only to find himself pulled off balance by Nathaniel.

“Stop it,” Nathaniel said, his voice weak and a bit slurred from the split lip. “You’ll get in trouble.”

“Like I give a shit.” Yet Andrew found himself unable to look away from his battered soulmate, from the hopelessness in Nathaniel’s eyes and the blood on his face; while he was distracted, Federov scurried out of the room like a four-legged crab and slammed the door shut behind him. Andrew clicked his tongue at the thought of having to track down the bastard to slit his throat before he returned his attention back to Nathaniel. “Why’d you stop me?”

“Because Riko would be mad,” Nathaniel said as he slumped back on the bed. “It’ll just make things worse.”

“Worse than someone raping you?” Nathaniel flinched at that but didn’t say anything, just closed his eyes and huddled into a small ball, his black sweatshirt torn to reveal some of the awful scars on the upper right part of his chest, including one which looked like an iron burn on his shoulder.

Andrew felt something turbulent scour through his chest at the sight, felt it rail against the drug in his blood, and spun around on his left heel then stalked into the small bathroom attached to the room where he wet a couple washcloths with cold water and grabbed a towel. When he returned to the bedroom, Nathaniel watched him with a wary gaze as he approached the bed.

“For your face,” he said as he held out the washcloths. “You might want to do something about the swelling.”

Nathaniel was still for a few seconds before he uncoiled enough to accept them. “Jean will-“ He winced when he must have realized that his partner was stuck for the night in the medical department.

“Will what?” Andrew prodded as he smiled, jealousy and anger straining at the chemical chains the damn drug forced upon his impulses. “What’s he gonna do, hmm?”

“Yeah.” Nathaniel wrapped his arms around himself and appeared younger than seventeen years old. “There’s… there’s icepacks in the minifridge.”

Andrew glanced around and found the fridge on the other side of the room, by what he assumed was Moreau’s desk; when he opened it, he found it stocked with a couple bottles of water and several icepacks. Huh, seemed they were prepared for a few booboos, how interesting.

He went back to the bathroom and grabbed a couple hand towels to wrap the icepacks in, and returned to the room to find Nathaniel gingerly wiping the blood from his face. Once it was cleaned up, he handed over the icepacks and got up to grab the large sweatshirt (Moreau’s) which was draped over the back of the nearby chair and threw it on Nathaniel’s bed. “I’m spending the night here.”

Nathaniel’s eyes (well, the right one, the left was swelling shut) widened at that. “I’m fine! You can-“

“I’m not leaving in case the asshole decides to come back,” Andrew stated as he dropped down on Moreau’s bed. “You willing to be smacked around some more?”

That earned him a virulent glare. “You’re the asshole. And how do I know you’re not gonna… gonna take his place, huh?” For all of Nathaniel’s harsh words and nasty looks, his slender fingers plucked at the sweatshirt he’d draped over himself as if it was a safety blanket.

Someone didn’t have a lot of faith in him, did they? Andrew didn’t blame his soulmate, not with everything he learned about the Nest with each passing day. “Because I’m not like anyone you’ve met before,” he said as he kicked off his sneakers and stretched on top of the duvet.

Nathaniel scoffed loud enough that his throat had to ache. “They all say things like that,” he mumbled as he pulled on the sweatshirt, his gaze downcast. “That they’re special, that they’ll treat you nice, that it’ll be wonderful.” He rocked back and forth once the shirt was on, his eyes unfocused as if he was remembering something and the words sounding rote as if they were someone else’s. “It’s nothing but lies.”

Andrew remembered Nathaniel’s father, the man with the emotionless eyes, and wondered if Nathaniel’s parents were soulmates as well. He wondered if they were one of the pairs who served as cautionary tales, as reminders that not all soulmates had happy endings.

He wondered if that’s what Nathaniel had been talking about when he accused Andrew of being just like ‘him’ when Andrew had let his frustration slip, back in the breakroom.

(Why Nathaniel was so comfortable with a man who wasn’t his soulmate.)

Andrew once again struggled with his drug-addled emotions, with the urge to break things, to stomp out of the small, black-walled room and the Nest and Edgar Allan, to carve off the damn soul mark from his arm and… and the thought of leaving Nathaniel defenseless stopped him cold. Instead, he clicked his tongue and rolled over onto his side until he faced the wall. “Shut up and go to sleep.”

Nathaniel muttered something in Japanese, but got up a few minutes later to go into the bathroom, and several minutes after that shuffled back onto his bed and turned off the light. Andrew lay on the bed and finally relaxed when he heard his soulmate’s breathing slow about half an hour later.

He didn’t get much sleep that night, not when he waited for Riko or Federov to break into the room to take Nathaniel from him.

Nathaniel gave him an incredulous look in the morning when all he did was climb off Moreau’s bed, go into the bathroom to take a piss and then leave, desperate for coffee and his medication (not necessarily in that order). He stopped by his room first to take a pill and was on his way to one of the break rooms for caffeine when he had the dubious joy of running into a smiling Riko.

Warning bells went off immediately in his sleep-deprived head, because if Riko appeared happy about something? It rarely was good for anyone but Riko.

“Good morning,” Riko all but purred as he blocked Andrew moving down the hall.

“Not until I have my coffee,” Andrew muttered as he stared toward the break room, determined to walk past the asshole.

“Ah, not quite yet.” Unfortunately, Riko was nimble of foot and one hell of a determined asshole. “I want to talk to you about last night.” When all Andrew did was grunt in response, Riko’s left eye twitched and his smile slipped slightly. “You may be pleased to know that Jean has been declared fit to play in this Friday’s game, after a couple days of light practice. That’s good because Lev will need a few days to recover from your… disagreement last night.”

Andrew focused his attention on the manipulative asshole. “From me ‘disagreeing’ with him raping Nathaniel?”

Riko’s nose scrunched as if he’d heard something disagreeable. “You’re new to the team so you don’t understand how certain things work. And that’s how if someone does very well during a game? They get something nice as a reward.”

Rage flooded through Andrew, made his hands twitch to wrap around Riko’s throat at that ‘reward’ bit despite the latest pill; he only resisted as he thought about Aaron. “Nathaniel isn’t a ‘reward’,” he forced past teeth clenched tight.

The look bestowed upon him was one of immense pity. “There’s so much you don’t know, rookie, including how wrong you are about that.” When Andrew’s hands clenched into fists, Riko wisely took a step back. “But that’s not to say that he can’t be your reward, right? After all, he’s your soulmate,” Riko taunted.

“I don’t-“ About to spit on Riko’s offer, something in Andrew made him stop. “What do you mean?” Was this a way to keep Nathaniel safe? Out of Federov’s reach?

Riko’s smile took on a predatory edge. “I’ll admit, I was skeptical when Kevin claimed you were this amazing goalkeeper, but I’ve seen your ability.” Now the smile was wiped away by something resembling annoyance. “When you bother, that is. So here is what I’m proposing. You shut down the goal while you’re out on court during the game? Nathaniel is yours.”

Andrew was quiet as he thought about that, as he thought about his soulmate being safe. “I can’t always guarantee a complete shutdown, not against some teams.” When Riko opened his mouth to argue, he held up his hand. “Up to three goals, and only during the top three teams,” he bargained. It meant he’d have to push himself, would have to work for it (dammit)… but if it meant that Nathaniel would be safe….

He was such an idiot, wasn’t he? No matter how smart he thought he was, how he’d learned his lesson the hard way, here he was willing to bleed out for a pretty face and wide blue eyes.

(For someone who might be as fucked up as him.)

(For his other half.)

“Two goals,” Riko countered, “and Nathaniel is all yours, no one else is to touch him.” Then he laughed, the sound more cruel than amused. “Well, by a Raven at least.”

“He’s mine,” Andrew bit out as he stepped into Riko’s personal space.

There was a flash of fear in the asshole’s eyes before he flashed his usual wide grin and stepped back. “There’s pre-existing claims on our dear Nate, best get used to it.” Riko gave a mocking laugh as he walked away. “You’re so out of your league, Doe.”

Andrew brushed aside the reference to his previous life as he stared figurative daggers into the asshole’s back (oh for them to be real). Once Riko was out of sight, he headed to the break room for a much-deserved mug (or three) of coffee.

It was when he was on his second refill when he realized that he desperately needed answers, and that they most likely would only come from one of his least liked Ravens – Moreau.

*******

So now I’m trying to figure out - is the Perfect Court 1-10 or 1-9???? Obviously when I wrote this, I thought it was 1-9, but I’ve seen so much artwork since then that shows Andrew as ‘10′ so....

Probably back to the new fic unless another prompt/old fic snatches my attention. Though I’m sure I’ll get back to this at some point because ANDREW AND JEAN.