#so i will just continue very aggressively reporting and blocking

[khentkawes]

All I want for Christmas is...

...to utterly destroy the pornbot infestation and leave their corpses as a smoldering warning to future bots menaces!

[myrddin-wylt]

reading the transcript of US ambassador to Hungary David Pressman's remarks today and I am losing my shit laughing. he's so fucking done. his sense of diplomatic professionalism and subtlety is hanging on for dear fucking life. come on an adventure with me.

I'll start halfway through but really the entire speech is equally as passive aggressive, this is just when he's most obvious about it.

As the United States Ambassador, I have heard, repeatedly, from senior Hungarian officials concerns about the treatment of ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine. We take – I take – those concerns very seriously. And, more importantly, I know Hungarians, across this country, take those concerns very seriously. This is an issue that merits our attention. And it has it. In any society, laws affecting language and education have a profound impact on affected communities – and on their dignity. We recognize this, and that’s why, in virtually all of my meetings with Hungarian officials whose work touches on this issue, I tell them the United States is your friend. We are prepared to work with you to address this. Tell us how we can help resolve this issue of contention between our ally Hungary and our close partner Ukraine. If this is a serious issue, we should address it seriously and make an effort to solve it. If there is genuine political will to solve it, make no mistake, it can be solved. We remain ready to work with our Hungarian allies and Ukrainian partners to engage if it would be helpful in finding a resolution.

translation: Hungary, you are the problem here. this is your last opportunity to stop being the problem before we decide how we want to solve you.

At the same time, we are troubled by Hungarian officials’ instrumentalization of the NATO Alliance to address these bilateral concerns. Amidst a land war in Europe, consultations with our partner Ukraine are vitally important to our shared security as Allies, and Hungary’s policy of standing alone in an effort to block high-level meetings of the NATO-Ukraine Commission is untenable, and as was seen just last month, will no longer be accepted.

translation: Hungary is not valuable to NATO and in fact has become a liability that we are preparing to cut loose. tread carefully.

Let’s focus on addressing the serious concerns raised by Hungarians, and standing resolutely with the Ukrainians as they fend off an invasion by the Russians. And let’s focus on the facts on the ground. To that end, we are so pleased to assemble a diverse group of activists, experts, journalists who have reported from the front lines, and individuals with long experience working to improve Hungary-Ukraine relations. I am confident this will be a stimulating discussion about what is happening in Ukraine during this difficult period.

translation: welcome to an hour or however long of being lectured and humiliated for acting like such cunts. This stimulating discussion has a scripted ending that I am confident you will not be deviating from.

I want to specifically note the presence here today of our colleagues from the Ukrainian Embassy. We value our close relationship with your team and look forward to continued cooperation. Ukraine faces unprecedented challenges, to its security, its prosperity, its democracy – indeed, its fundamental right to exist. Yet brave Ukrainian soldiers are defending their homeland in pursuit of a just and lasting peace, and inspirational activists carry on their work to ensure Ukraine continues making progress on the democratic, European path its people chose in 1991.

translation: Ukraine you are such an angel and we're so happy you're here and we will choose you over Hungary without hesitation.

The United States and its Allies and partners will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes to ensure that its people are able to realize their aspirations for a brighter future. For the rest of the afternoon, I’m going to leave you in the hands of my trusted and talented deputy, David Holmes, to moderate these discussions. I am sure you’ll have a productive event.

translation: I'm going to count to 10 and when I finish you better have cleaned this shit up or I'm going to kick your ass.

[catdotjpeg]

While Israel’s violent aggression on Gaza approaches the five-month mark, the situation in the besieged enclave deteriorates by the day as the population undergoes an Israeli-imposed famine as a result of the blockade. Following reports of a two-month-old baby starving to death on Friday, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has said the high risk of malnutrition continues to increase, with one in six children in northern Gaza “severely malnourished.”  “We continue to appeal for regular humanitarian access,” UNRWA said in a post on X. Mads Gilbert, a Norwegian physician and humanitarian advocate, says infant death from starvation is a direct consequence of Israeli restrictions on aid entering the coastal enclave.

“This is not a tragedy; it is man-made. Starvation is being forced upon the people of Gaza by the Israeli occupation forces,” Gilbert, who has more than 30 years of experience working in Gaza hospitals, told Al Jazeera. “Just two days ago, the international nutrition cluster came out with a very alarming report … that there is a sharp increase in the drivers of malnutrition in Gaza — food insecurity, a lack of diversity in the diet and decreasing infant and young child feeding possibilities.” Gilbert said Israel’s restriction of food and water in the enclave was a “huge war crime.” “How can the world just sit idly by and watch children die from starvation?” The situation is the worst in the north of Gaza, where UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini says Israel has not allowed food to be delivered since January 25 and that the U.N.’s calls to send food aid have been denied and fallen on deaf ears.

Since then, Lazzarini said, UNRWA and other UN agencies “have warned against looming famine, appealed for regular humanitarian access, and stated that famine can be averted if more food convoys are allowed into northern Gaza on a regular basis.” “This is a man-made disaster. The world committed to never let famine happen again. Famine can still be avoided, through genuine political will to grant access and protection to meaningful assistance. The days to come will once again test our common humanity and values,” he said.  Similarly, Samer Abdeljaber, the World Food Programme’s (WFP’s) director for emergencies, says enough food is stocked up across Gaza’s borders to feed the entire population. However, it cannot safely reach the war-torn population due to the ongoing violence and extensive Israeli security checks.

[Aerial] photos posted by Al Jazeera Arabic show over 2,000 aid trucks piled up on the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing in the southern Gaza Strip. “We have enough food across the borders, even from Jordan and Egypt, to be able to support 2.2 million people,” said Abdeljaber, as cited by Al Jazeera.  “But we need to make sure we have the right access to Gaza from different crossings so that we can actually reach the people — whether they are in the north or the south or in the central areas.” “Safe routes is one of our requirements to continue assistance to the north and that can only be guaranteed if that is a speedy process,” [Abdeljaber] said. “Delays at the checkpoints are making it impossible for us to reach deeper into the north.” Nada Tarbush, a diplomat at the Palestine Mission to the U.N., has urged world governments to intervene and ensure the “urgent delivery of food, clean water and medicine via airdrops in Gaza.”

“Blocking the delivery of humanitarian aid is a war crime. Using starvation as a means of warfare is a war crime. Collective punishment is a war crime,” she said in a post on X. On Monday afternoon, Israel allowed the entry of 10 aid trucks into the northern part of the Gaza Strip amid reports of starvation, according to Al Jazeera correspondents. However, it is likely to be only a trickle compared to the needs of the desperate population. “Clean water is scarce. Solid waste is accumulating. The spread of diseases is on the rise,” UNRWA has said. “The situation is catastrophic, but UNRWA teams continue working to provide critical aid.”

-- From "‘Operation Al-Aqsa Flood’ Day 143" by Leila Warah for Mondoweiss, 26 Feb 2024

[mysteriousfandom--trash]

To be honest, I don't care if said person blocks/harasses me after this post because I'm not super active but I just want to make light of the situation. And if she sees this, then hi. Go ahead. Take a screenshot and post it to your Twitter and get your "friends" to harass me. Anything you try to say will be wrong because the evidence doesn't match up to your claims. I don't care anymore. This blog is dead as hell because I rarely use it. I don't have any other social media.

I'm only making this post for a heads-up warning because I hate it when people can't let things go. This literally has been going on since October of 2022 and it needs to stop already. This all is unnecessary and stupid. I want my friend to feel safe online, not to be harassed by some adult who can't let some small issue go. It's just super ridiculous to be completely honest.

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

[EVIDENCE WILL BE INCLUDED BY MY FRIEND. THE EVIDENCE IS REAL AND THE TRUE RECIPTS ARE HERE!! Some screenshots are from my friend, and most screenshots are from me]

!!THE PERSON I'M TALKING ABOUT GOES BY SALLYEXE AND USES SHE/HER PRONOUNS SO PLEASE RESPECT IT!!

**BLOCK AND REPORT, DO NOT HARASS

Her Twitter profile is changed up now, as these are old screenshots, but these are the same person/gen

sallyexe (she/her) - text referring to her

my friend (they/them) - text referring to them

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

So, lately I've been trying to help a friend [unnamed for their own privacy] and someone else, who goes by the @ of @/sallyexe097. They have been in unnecessary conflict for months now and it's got to end.

My unnamed friend is a minor, and the sallyexe person is an adult mind you. This is important. It may not seem like it, but it is. It's kind of a big deal when an adult harasses a minor on the internet. That can't slide easily.

Yes this is only my friend's side of the story, but they are telling the truth and the evidence will help with it. It started in early(? February when these two interacted. My friend wanted to clear up some drama between the two that was occurring. Seen below:

My friend was understanding and eager to pass over it, with obvious shown signs of no aggression. So..I don't know what you mean by "they were aggressive". :/ My friend and her continued the conversation, and it ultimately lead in sallyexe being aggressive and harassing them:

For context about this, they were arguing about a ship fight. She ships one thing and my friend ships something else. Sallyexe doesn't agree with it and constantly harasses my friend and calls them names.

They even blocked each other on Twitter after that exchange. I have proof that they did in fact block each other:

Though, there are instances where she replies to my friends' private anger posts about her???

The only conclusion would be that she is spying on my friend with another Twitter account, which is not known.

This is just very weird and unnecessary. Spying on my friend isn't going to make you seem cool or anything, it just makes you look weird. Not only that, but sallyexe has gone full lengths to guilttrip people to believe her, even threatening su!c!d3 at one point:

After all this happened, I personally talked to sallyexe myself on Tumblr to try and get the situation to be dealt with. And I did succeed because she did end up apologizing to my friend on Tumblr:

However, this wouldn't be the end of it because sallyexe began posting about my friend again just a week ago for no seemingly real reason. My friend has moved on so why can't she? It's fucking ridiculous and I'm tired of it.

I've included her Twitter and Tumblr (known) accounts and here are her tiktok accounts:

first one

second one

Anyway, if you see this post and read through the whole thing, please reblog and spread it to get awareness to it. I need my friend to feel safe and for this person to stop. Thank you.

[don't mind all the sonic tags, it's just the fandom where it happened, and i at least want to get people to see this post]

[doberbutts]

About Evander

This will be the Evander masterpost while I work on getting his behavior to an adoptable point. Evander’s had a pretty hard life up to this point and thus there will be a few trigger warnings on this post and a few others discussing him, though if you won’t want to hear about him at all feel free to block the #evander tag.

Evander is what appears to be a yorkie mix possibly with wirehaired terrier. He is somewhere between 6 months and 12 months old. He was found tied to a porch in southern CT in rough shape and with a nasty looking wound on his forepaw. Xrays revealed clues that someone seems to have intentionally cut three of his toes off with a sharp object, then vet-wrapped the wound and let it fester and rot. The infection reached to the bone by the time he was found, and the treating hospital chose to amputate the entire leg.

Evander has been in rescue for roughly 2 months and has made great strides improving his physical health. However he still carries a lot of trauma from what happened to him, and although he was adopted out after about a month, he was returned in 2 weeks due to his behavior. The ACOs who dealt with him prior have reported that his mental state is worse after having been returned- while they don’t believe he was being treated poorly, they do believe the adopters were mishandling his fear and causing him to lash out more. He was not doing well within the shelter system due to stress and depression, so they reached out to a friend of mine who reached out to me because I’m hideously soft-hearted.

After a thorough evaluation, I can say that when he is not reacting from fear and trauma, Evander is a wonderfully friendly and happy little dog who is all terrier. He treats every challenge with gusto and wants to run and play just like any other dog. He has no problems navigating slippery floors or stairs despite his new disability, and he loves to pounce and shred toys. He is outwardly friendly to new people as well as to those he likes, very willing to invent a bounce-and-play game or even ask for a belly rub. He is highly food and toy motivated and learns quickly what does and does not get him rewarded.

UPDATE 06/13/22 Evander knows sit fairly well, but needs some assistance and additional motivation for down. He has no recall, challenges gates, and doordashes. He is very happy to learn for a hot dog or a thrown ball. Despite missing a leg, he does pull on walks. He will pursue any small prey he happens upon and absolutely loves sticking his face- or half his entire body- into a hole after a critter. He enjoys flirt pole and tug- I think he would like barn hunt if his future owner was interested.

However, Evander also has some concerning behaviors. The most concerning is his inability to regulate his own emotions- when something tips him over the boiling point, he will lash out either at whatever is in front of him or he will turn and aggress the person holding the leash. He has not broken skin and despite being given plenty of opportunity to bite me had chosen over and over to only have flash and noise, however I do not doubt that he will back up the threat if pushed to that point. Evander also has a hard time calming himself down even once the trigger is gone- he will continue to look for the trigger or for something/someone to lash out at for several minutes after the initial reaction. During all of these instances, I was able to convince him to switch his energy from fear aggression to rough play with a toy once the trigger had disappeared and space had been made away from anyone for him to lash out at.

The majority of Evander’s explosive reactions occur during resource guarding of food items and after quick motions are made especially if they are made towards him. During my evaluation, I switched my crossed legs, and he spent several minutes on edge warily watching everyone’s feet. He has apparently gone after feet and shoes in the past when in this state. I would not be surprised if he is expecting to be kicked. According to the ACOs, when the person who adopted him dropped a pen with him on a bed nearby and then went to grab it from the ground quickly, he ran forward and bit them on the hand. Again, he did not break skin, but it appeared the quick, swooping motion was the problem. The person also reported that he had some trouble calming down from this situation and continued to growl and snarl over the pen for some time before abandoning it. One of the ACOs reported when he was recovering from surgery, he lived in her house and displayed the same behavior when she tried to clean potty mess off the floors.

Supposedly there are also times where “nothing” triggers this emotional state for him, and again he will lash out at whatever comes close enough to him to do so. This is new and was not present prior to his adoption, and this particular problem is reportedly getting worse the longer he remains at the shelter after being given back. He also did not used to guard his food bowl or general food items, it prior to being adopted was restricted only to bones and chews, but that also appears to have worsened since his failed adoption.

UPDATE 06/13/22 Evander has not resource guarded anything from me since coming here, but did have a few explosions over a package of hot dogs he couldn’t reach while at the shelter. He did, however, have a particularly nasty tantrum when I reached for his foot while he was licking it. After a few moments, he did let me investigate the sore on his foot caused by the shift in weight. He is fairly possessive with toys and has “bitten” me while grabbing for the toy during play- not hard enough to hurt and not always intentional. He does engage in puppy biting when overstimulated or overaroused.

It is for this reason that Evander is not currently considered adoptable, but the hope is that with some time and behavior modification while in my home environment he will be. He is a nice, active, friendly dog who has some serious demons. Stay tuned as eventually I will put a gofundme up for Evander’s medical care and cost of care to help out the ACOs who cared enough about this tiny dog to reach out a compassionate hand to help.

Evander seems to be barrier aggressive with other animals, but willing to redirect provided space is made and treats are offered. Once he redirects away from the other animals, he seems somewhat curious but overall unsure of how to proceed if barking and lunging is the incorrect answer. When in his crate, he is about 50/50 on whether he barks at my dogs when passing by. The ACOs did not know if he would be good with other dogs and thus have not introduced him to dogs, and he is not cat tested but did bark and lunge at my neighbor’s outdoor cat when she was in my driveway. In fairness, so does Sushi, and Sushi is cat safe.

UPDATE 06/13/22 Evander is curious and wants to interact, but does not understand how to play with my dogs. He playbows at them but then engages in overly rough dart-and-bite and becomes afraid/avoidant when they reply in kind. He is, however, very content to be neutral if they are being neutral, and has for the most part stopped barking at them when they pass his room. He did try to fencefight with Fae, who returned his initial terrier square-up-and-bark, when he first passed her crate on the way into my house upon arrival. They have resolutely ignored each other since.

If you are interested in following Evander’s story or in adopting Evander, please follow my #evander tag while he is with me. This particular rescue is local-government-funded, meaning adopters for Evander must meet their requirements and fill out an application on their website. As Evander progresses with me, I will post their website when he becomes more adoptable. I believe the adoption radius will need to be CT and the surrounding states for legal reasons.

Evander’s case is also a legal matter, so I do know a little more but I may not share details while the perpetrator of his abuse is being investigated.

[xamaxenta]

Nother left field memory that sucker punched me out of no where under cut bc idk i want to get it out somewhere but ill hide it bc im still ashamed of it even tho i have nothing to be ashamed of

I dont know how to describe it but i was a very nervous child with alot of academic stress with the bonus of nuclear parents breathing down my neck to ensure i was the normal kid that made them look good, i am pretty sure the year i got bad grades, like my report card came back , i was terrified of what my parents were going to say to me i experienced some sort stress anxiety hallucination where I was convinced i had watched a man jump from a building to his death

sincerely convinced it was real, the sound, the screaming

So convinced i ended up calling my mom to pick me up from the next block over sobbing and everything, like she genuinely thought something had happened to me, kind of fucked up that this was the nicest she probably ever was to me

But not for long, turns out after a few days, my dad had gone to the local police dpt and inquired if anything like this had happened

WHY he did this i wont understand, like?? What was he gonna do if it was real? Go tell the family off for scaring his kid??? Baffles me lol

But he was angry with me like youre a liar? Why did you lie about something like this ? You can go to jail for being a liar like super intimidating voice raised interrogation kind of shit

Was twelve btw. Idk how to express myself or begin explain that it felt real but deep down i knew after i calmed down it wasnt because someone mustve seen it not just me etc, logically deep down i knew it hadnt been real but at the time of whatever that was it did feel and look and sound real

I didnt want to be punished for lying so i stubbornly stuck to “what i saw”

My parents didnt pause to consider that i may have needed to see a psych or smthing lol they just kept bringing this “episode” up at random times for the rest of the year and getting frustrated and angrywhen i kept telling them the same answer i know what i saw im not a liar

I know the events werent true thankfully but something about my parents totally ignoring the fact that i had been experiencing something really intense (regarding. My fear of failure and their aggressive reaction to that failure) made me want to continue “lying” to them because i wasnt able to safely tell them maybe i needed help because they wouldnt have believed me

They still got angry at me for my bad grades though

[shipping-strawberry]

I wanna say foremost that I have absolutely nothing against Lacey. She seems like a very nice person, and I have seen her art— it is cute!

However, I don’t think she should return to Tumblr.

It’s not because I dislike her, or that I’m an anti, or anything like that. I support her, and I’m upset at the hate she’s getting. It gives me heartache.

But I really don’t think that Tumblr is healthy for her, particularly mentally. She’s already gotten very suicidal over hate these past few months, if not years. I’m worried that she may end up actually hurting herself, or worse.

Plus, the consistent harassment, suicide baits, death threats…I don’t think she should have to endure all that just to make positivity posts for us proshippers, sweet as they are.

All in all, her leaving Tumblr seems like a much better alternative than her remaking blogs over and over again just to get the same disgust and hate every time.

[TLDR at the bottom.]

hi there, anon!

i want to start off by saying that you most certainly do bring up a fair point, and you are right; lacey will keep getting harassed, no matter how many times she remakes her blog. antis will just keep digging through the proship tag to find her blog over and over and over again.

i will admit, though, i don't agree completely.

antis are sending her hate because she's a proshipper. we all know that. but that's not the only reason they do it; they want attention.

and that's why antis do what they do. that's why they send anon hate. that's why they crosstag. that's why they start discourse on proship posts. because they're attention-seeking little gremlins, desperate for people to notice them — wherever it's in a negative light or not.

i've wanted to say this to lacey for some time now, though i never did because i felt like it would be too rude, but she really should just avoid responding to anon hate altogether. i know she does it because she feels like she's standing up for herself, but it's so pointless, because surprise, surprise: antis aren't going to give two thirds of a fuck about what she has to say. she can cook up the best response with multiple articles and sources to back her up and prove her haters wrong, and guess what? they'll still call her a pedophile. it won't change a thing, because they'll still be starved for the attention that they get from her.

and honestly, every time i see lacey, or even just anyone in general respond to anon hate, i just mentally facepalm so hard, because guys — you're giving them what they want.

i don't know if it's obvious, but i myself am a very angry person in real life. i have extreme difficulty managing my anger, and i constantly go apeshit over even just the smallest of things. i've even had to seek help because of this behavior.

trust me — i know how tempting it can be to respond to anon hate. i know how much you will get the urge to just let loose and go off after reading an aggressive message in your inbox. but just don't do it. block them, report them, and keep the hate out of your inbox and away from your blog. at the end of the day, antis just want attention.

don't give them what they want.

don't give them that satisfaction.

and here's the thing: if there's one specific anti constantly harassing you on anon like lacey had, and you keep replying to all their asks, they're going to keep on harassing you.

and if you don't? they'll eventually fuck off and leave you alone, because they're not getting the attention that they desire from you.

if lacey wants to stop getting anon hate, then she needs to stop responding to it. because antis will just continue abusing her and using her as a source of attention. needless to say, they don't give a shit if they're hurting her and badly damaging her mental health. because they'll put their own desires ahead of anyone else's, because that's just what antis do.

want to know something? i discovered one of my friends is a proshipper very recently. and although they don't actually have any ships, because shipping is not really their thing, they told me that they used to run a (now deactivated) proship blog on tumblr with a few other people. and guess what? they have never received hate from antis. not once.

want to know why? because they didn't allow anonymous asks.

antis know that hiding behind the anonymous mask is a cowardly move. and they know that they're the ones in the wrong, because the moment a blog doesn't allow anonymous asks, they stay quiet.

tumblr is most certainly damaging for lacey's mental health. you are absolutely right about that. not even just that, but it can even be damaging for other people when they see those anon asks, too.

stepping away from tumblr is a great decision for her to make, and i can see why you think it's a good idea. i think it's a good idea, too. last time lacey had her blog deactivated, she took some time away from tumblr, which is probably what's best for her, and i think she's doing the same thing again.

but her mental health can be so much better if she just chooses to remain on the positive side if the community.

yes, when she decides to come back, there will be those nasty anons in her inbox again. i can guarantee that. but if she'd only stop responding to them, they will eventually leave her alone.

and if they don't, the simple solution is to just turn of anonymous asks. because that ensures the antis will fuck off completely.

things can be so much better for lacey if she just stops giving antis what they want. because then she can focus on happily posting her art and posting/reblogging positivity for proshippers. antis won't bother her again, and her mental health won't continue to get damaged.

i hope this didn't sound too rude, because that wasn't my intention at all. i just wanted to share about my thoughts on anonymous hate, and how to deal with it.

TLDR: antis want attention, so if lacey wants to stop getting anon hate, she needs to stop replying to it. replying to anon hate gives antis the attention they want, so please don't respond to them and give them that satisfaction. if you don't respond, the antis will eventually leave you alone because they're not getting the attention they want from you. turning off anon asks also ensures there will be no hate from antis whatsoever, because antis are cowards and are too scared to stop hiding behind the anon mask.

[a03-anxiousandafraid]

Hmmmmm the "Tainted" one got me very curious~ 😶😂

AYYYYY Thanks so much for the inquiry anon!!

I'm super excited about this one! I've been quietly piecing this story together for a little while now (my plan is to get a decent amount concrete before uploads begin so I can keep a more consistent posting schedule) but it's a BotW pre-calamity mostly-canon-compliant story starting after the events of memory #8.

The story follows along with the memories but with a minor twist- the wound he gets from memory #8 has infected his arm with malice! (Not a spoiler- it's revealed right from the get-go!) It'll have a nice, tasty slow burn, plenty of angst, there will be a graphic segment that I will mark with a content warning to make the fic more accessible, and a depiction of Link's dad that ISN'T an asshole!!

I also decided to be sneaky and wait till Wednesday to answer you so I could sneak in a little WIP Wednesday preview~ 🥰 I’m sure there will be a lot of changes between now and when it finally gets posted but we’re here to share WIPs so it’s all good!!

The scratchy shriek of metal on metal echoes throughout the corridors. Sharp and biting, it punctuates the air the way the bell strikes the hour. Clockwork, soldiers and castle staff alike begin to congregate and linger. This spar is nothing new. It has always been standard training for higher ranking soldiers to verse their captain in combat, but few could resist snooping on the progress of a boy reported to have taken down three lynel at once.

A maid scoffs quietly, "If he took out so many monsters on his own, how has he not won this match in a matter of moments?" 

"That's not how it works here," her assistant hisses back. Propping a basket of laundry up against her hip, she gestures with gusto, "This is formal! They’re not some animals in a ring." 

“Yeah, and you ain’t some haughty maiden,” she puffs up her chest with jest. The women share a laugh as the song of scraping swords begins again. They watch the calculated dance between captain and hero, two dirty blond men performing a tango of swords. Like vultures, no move goes unnoticed. Gawking at prey, the maid snickers once more, “speaking of maidens I think I understand why the princess stopped running away.”

Their eruption disturbs the nearby audience. High pitched glee spilling unabashedly into the open air, Link’s ear twitches in annoyance but he remains otherwise transfixed on his father’s movements. His expression doesn’t change… or at least, it doesn’t for those who don’t quite know how to read him. 

A sword swipes towards his face. Lifting the hilt of the master sword to block, Link parries the hit and attempts to shove his weight into it to throw his father back. The move is quick and calculated, but just as he begins to press forward a sharp twinge shoots up his arm. Flinching, his counter falls short in power, allowing the captain to ready another attack. 

“You can’t let them distract you,” Arn warns quietly and swings another strike with powerful arms. He watches his son swerve out of the way, favoring his left side, and responds with a lunge. They continue this pattern of attack and defend as the midday sun beats down relentlessly. 

“Thank Goddess we have a competent hero,” a nearby squire sighs. Leaning back against the edge of the weapons rack, he nods passively to his friends. “If he were like the princess we’d be doomed.”

Sweat cascades down Link’s temples. Jaw clenched and seething, he swipes his sword aggressively in a succession of three. They’re brutal strikes but his father blocks them all. Eyebrows raised, another warning prepares itself on Arn’s lips but dies quickly when another flinch kills the momentum of his son’s sword swing. 

Sneaking a quick glance up, eyes are locked on them from all angles. Spectators all watching with mild mirth, it’s clear they know how this fight should end. It would be an embarrassment for the princess’s own protector to be bested by another man and yet the thrill of that potential outcome leaves them salivating like hyenas. He frowns. Taking a step back, he readies a heavy strike from above. Both arms raised high, Arn tightens his grip in the hilt and sends the blade directly down at his son’s face. As expected, Link brings his blade up parallel to the ground, bracing the tip with his right hand and shifting his body below the blade to catch it. 

Arn’s blade strikes the master sword with a sickening crack. To his relief his son still stands, blades clashing in a rigid cross, but the shake of Link’s right arm becomes apparent. Looking at his face, his son’s eyes are intense and striking. Jaw clenched and teeth blared, there’s a hint of panic quaking at the corners of his mouth. A terror reflecting through light cerulean eyes. 

The captain takes a deep breath. Leaning in close, his lips barely move as he whispers a command, “push my sword off.” There’s desperate relief in the gaze that meets his. They linger for a moment as Link readies himself beneath the swords. Stacked like a pillar, he forces his body and arms up with a yell, effectively forcing the captain’s blade back up into the air. 

Arn stumbles back, his grip conveniently slack as the sword flies to the edge of the courtyard and stakes itself into the group with a satisfying SHUMP. He regards it with playful bewilderment before laughing a bit louder than necessary. “HAH Well, look at that! Had you going there for a while, huh?!” The nearby squires scoff. Eyes rolling at Arn’s boisterous display, they finally use this as their que to leave.

“Your form has improved, but you need to stay aware of your footing. Favoring one side will restrict your options,” he babbles on as the bodies around them diminish in number. Taking casual steps towards his sword, Arn pulls his blade from the ground without concern and calls over his shoulder, “Speaking of options, I need your opinion on something. Follow me to my office.” A quick flick of the wrist punctuates his words as he makes his way towards one of the corridors. 

Link follows him on his heels. Slipping inside the office, there’s no time to form a word before the captain has locked the door and begun looming overhead like a bear. He reaches out for his son’s right arm, but stops mere inches away. Fingers twitching anxiously, he swallows the rock in his throat and regards him with great concern. “Is it,” he clears his throat again, “...is it the scratch?” 

Link casts his eyes to the floor in shame. He nods weakly and waits.The air is still as he feels the pressure of his father’s eyes. After an uncomfortable minute Arn’s voice cuts through the air again, “...let me see.” His words are gentle. Soft and encouraging, but Link can’t help but grimace. 

One lynel scratch. That’s all it was. And yet…

With lethargic reluctance, Link peels off his glove and gauntlet. Tossing them to the table, he takes a steadying breath before grabbing the fabric of his sleeve. Working the fabric up his arm, it doesn’t take long to reveal the source of his agony. Adorning pale skin is a thick, purple gash. Magenta flakes off around the scab while hot, inflamed skin puckers up around it. Like a blister ready to burst, the putrid infection throbs with concentrated malice. 

“Goddesses,” Arn gasps as the sight. His features grow heavier the longer he looks. “Link, it’s gotten worse. You… have you shown the doctors?” 

“No.”

“B-but this-!” Panic rises with the pitch in his voice. “W-What did the princess say? Can the scientists do anything?” He reaches out again for his son’s arm but fear stops his fingers from progressing. 

“I’ve only told you two. Nobody else needs to know.”

[scifilovestory]

Post 1: Too Controversial

Before I begin, let me paint you a picture (don’t worry, it’s on-topic, just a quick hypothetical to help set up the discussion): You’ve got this friend, for the sake of simplicity, his name is Josh. Josh’s kind of notorious for his unpopularity with the ladies, and his previous track record with women speaks that point loud and clear. He’s never held a long-term relationship with anybody, despite his very vocal desires for romantic companionship. 

Then one day, while you’re scrolling through the torrent of self-pitying messages, and passive aggressive, borderline misogynistic, memes posted to his Twitter page about the friendzone, Josh texts you that he’s got a date on Thursday with somebody named Monika. Although you’re sure this will end in another broken hearted Friday night bar run, your expectations are suddenly jostled as Josh invites you to meet her before their Thursday night outing. 

You show up to Josh’s apartment, and find him dressed in a full on tuxedo, complete with a comically large bouquet of roses, presumably for his lucky date. He asks if you’d like to meet her now, which only further perplexes you, as the apartment is seemingly empty besides the two of you. Josh assures you all is well, and proceeds to open up his laptop to reveal a brunette anime girl sitting at a desk, dressed equally as extravagantly as himself, whom he then proceeds to introduce as Monika, before she does the same, after Josh prompts her to do so via an on-screen textbox. 

Although you may have several words in mind to describe Josh after this interaction, an increasingly popular term to describe a person who has developed romantic or sexual feelings for a fictional character is “fictoesxual”.

The concept of people turning to non-human entities for romantic fulfillment has become increasingly prevalent over the past decade or so, especially with the strides in artificial intelligence making interacting with computers more lifelike than ever before. Although the idea of people crushing on fictional entities is nothing new, I believe the first coining of the term came courtesy of a study published in January 2021 by Finnish psychologists Doctors Veli-Matti Kasrhulahti and Tanja Valisalo. The investigation consisted of the two searching through internet forums related to users discussing their attraction for fictional entities, and found that many of those who categorize themselves as attracted to fictional characters (another term coined by the study), were aware of the parasocial nature of their relationships with the fictional entities. 

In addition to “fictosexuality”, “fictoromance” and “fictophille” were terms used during the discussion, and although the authors opted for the lattermost descriptor when discussing their work, I have chosen to use the formermost term, as it seems to be the preferred word by outlets reporting on fictosexuality, such as this article published last year in The New York Times about a Japanese man marrying Hatsune Miku, or this 2107 report from Kotaku about a research company including in their job listings that they would not only internally honor employee’s marriages to fictional characters, but that they would include such benefits as a 5,000 yen stipend, on top of additional time off for their waifu or husbando’s birthday. 

I’ll be candid with you, my inspiration for this topic was born mostly out of a rejection I had received from the paper I write for. They were writing a block of valentine’s day pieces, and offered to the group an article about “controversial Valentine’s Day opinions”. I took them up on the offer, and wrote an article about how the idea of people choosing to live their lives in committed relationships with fictional characters may seem odd and fringe for now, but given the blazingly fast advancements that have been made, and will likely continue to be made in the field of AI, we’re likely only to see more and more people turning to non-human entities such as fictional characters for romantic fulfillment. 

Of course, as I mentioned, this topic was rejected. It was too controversial if you’d believe it (actually almost cost me my job that I don’t get paid for), but the fact that it remained unpublished almost cements my point that this remains an uncomfortable possibility that we may have to deal with sooner than we may expect.

[yunessa]

Up to a point I could deny that everything was building up. An angel sword? Oh, how lucky to have an angel sword. Going to Elysium and meeting Azatas? Even luckier! Few mortals ever go to Elysium, much less see an Azata. It had the start of a heroic story, but I didn’t want to be a hero so I ignored it. We had gotten a blessing to suppress my curse, I got a nice sword and a good story to tell future crowds. But Finnean ruined it. It was no longer ‘a bard gets lucky and finds a nice sword and gets a good story to sing’. It became a story where someone, somewhere, somehow everything was getting in line to make me a hero or a crusader or something. I thought about it long and hard as we travelled the few blocks to Blackwing Library.  It felt strange. I had no connection to Mendev or Kenabres itself.  But by seeming random happenstance I held an Angel’s blade in the depths of my being. I had walked through Elysium and spoke to Azatas. A magical sword that had, at some point, been a flesh and blood man. To many random gifts from the heavens that seemed familiar. It was the start of a hero's story, the sort you see sung in high end Taverns. But I had no idea what heroic quest was about to be given- more like dumped on me- from the skies. I racked my brain wondering what could happen. There were rumours of a fifth crusade that was imminent- but those had been going on for two decades. There were whispers that Cheliax was getting aggressive. I made a note to ask Daeran later- he had mentioned living in the city for well over a decade and since he was related to the Queen he might be aware. Ember knew nothing. At least, not anything that made sense to me. Seelah knew the rumours I’d already figured out on my own. Camilla shrugged when I asked. I would need to speak with those at the Defender’s Heart in depth when we returned. Woljif knew what was happening at the ground level, but not around- surprisingly he continued to stick with us, looking far less tense now that his name had been cleared. Aravashinal was uninterested in conversation,anxious to see his library.   All of the stories, poems, and books I knew offered me no clues. This was not the obvious work of any God I knew, nor spirit, nor fey and I had never had dealings with demons.  But somehow it all felt familiar while being not. Like the answer was close and within reach but I couldn’t see it. If I had more than a few hours before I was attacked outside of Kenabres then maybe I would have found myself more knowledgeable than I was at the moment. But it’s difficult to plan ‘avoiding the apocalypse’ in your day when you didn’t see it coming.  Once we got back to the Inn, I promised myself I’d talk to everyone who’d spend time.  There are very few people who actively dislike bards, and fewer still who hated music. Add a charming smile and kind words and I was certain that I could get information. We just had to find the storyteller and I could start getting more answers. -Yunessa

The Blackwing Library was gone. A three story library that had been maintained and added to for a century had been torn apart by Khorramzadeh as if it was made of paper mache . Only the front of the building  and a quarter of the first floor remained. Even Deskari had contributed to the destruction- his scythe had left a wound through the middle of the library so deep it made a chasm over twice the size of the library.

Aravashinal had summoned a wind elemental when they reached the library, unwilling to believe their words. The wind elemental had returned in short order, reporting much the same that the group had told him. Aravashinal would have collapsed if Yunessa and Seelah hadn’t been there.

Despite their efforts, Aravashinal hadn’t spoken since, looking nauseated and in shock. Yunessa had put their long coat over him and he’d clutched at the coat as the air elemental whispered a soft whistling. Aravashinal allowed Seelah to lead him.

“Do ya see that?” Woljif asked Lann as the group was forced to move around where the chasm started. “That scythe took out the library! It-”

Lann made a shush noise, glancing towards Aravashinal. His eyes lingered over the chasm that had been made but he tactfully kept silent about it.  “The Storyteller should be here, right Yunessa?” 

“Should be. We’ll search everywhere we can and bring him back to Defender’s heart. Then we’ll rest for the night- regardless of what happens.” Despite brief rest, Yunessa had noticed the rising level of weariness and beyond that- it wasn’t good to be out here for longer than a day. Not when bodies littering the street had become so common Yunessa had begun to gloss over them like the pacing stones in the road.

“I agree with that plan. I would rather seek out a fire.”

“Will we have bread for dinner?”

“You can have whatever you want Ember- I’m sure there’s bread there. Maybe soup or meat as well.”

Contrary to the outside, what was left of the inside of the Library felt inviting- if one ignored the structural damage and the filth that stuck to the floors. Yunessa had lit their way with a cantrip and the magical orb of light illuminated filthy blood and oil streaked tiles. Cracked tiles were barely hidden by the damaged parchments and books that had been scattered or torn. 

“I can hear noises further in.” Yunessa murmured. “Keep an eye out- we don’t know if they’re friends or not.”

The noises from the inside grew louder, low voices, laughter and as they entered through the archway into the reinforced great hall, it all paused.  On the far end lay a massive pile of books where four bound bodies lay.  In front of the book pile stood three crusaders clad in dirtied armour.  Their leader- or so Yunessa assumed- turned to face them, his features hard to read in the light.

“Follow after me.” Yunessa murmured to the group. “And do as I do.” 

Barrels of flammable alchemical substances littered by the reading tables. Recalling Camilla’s words on them Yunessa weaved through them, instilling purpose. A stocky knight with a mess of black hair watched Yunessa as they approached. His armour was flecked with blood and filth and he put on a smile

“Ha, fellow crusaders?” The Knight’s voice was deep and booming as he puffed up on Yunessa’s approach. “Excellent! I am Captain Chaleb Sazomal, and these are my men. I am about to burn these vile back stabbers and heretics here, these pathetic imitators of the traitor Areelu who tricked their way into the ranks of the crusaders!” He gestured behind him ad Yunessa spotted an additional fourth to the pile. They were all severely beaten- that much was obvious by the colors blooming over their skin. The one strange elf looked old. 

We never look old. What is this?

The emblems on the two crusaders accompanying him bore the symbols of a different order than Chaleb’s- a burning lance piercing a book. Chaleb’s armour bore the symbols of a Sarenae affiliated order- Sarenae’s symbols wove around a familiar crusader insignia. Different orders did not share Captains, even Yunessa knew that much. Too much philosophy and combat differences.

A familiar feeling welled inside Yunessa. “What happened to the Library?”

“Demons.” Chaleb shrugged. “They showed up and carried everything away. I wasn’t here to see it myself. I was fighting in the square. But these filthy traitors told me everything. My fists made them quite chatty!” He let out a loud, grating laugh that made Yunessa want to grind their teeth.

“So you tortured them.” Seelah’s voice was flat, keeping an arm around Aravashinal. The Librarian continued to lean against Seelah as the wind elemental raked gentle hands through Arvashinal’s white hair. “Do you think that’s worthy of being crusader?”

“Under ordinary circumstances? No! But look around sister! The city is burning, there is no time to be squeamish or to hold back for the good of Kenabres!: Chaleb gestured at the found bound prisoners. The two crusaders accompanying Chaleb were tieflings and paused to watch the discussion.

“Then why are we burning them?” Yunessa spoke up before Seelah could continue. “This looks like a waste of time Captain and not merely because of the resources involved in this…” Yunessa gestured idly at the pile as if CHaleb was burning leaves rather than people.

Chaleb was talking loudly- pleasantries and jovial words- as he looked at Yunessa. He would look to the pile, to the prisoners he bellowed threats at - in shock and seeming utterly terrified- while casting sidelong glances and offering a smile that reminded Yunessa of a cheating husband they had seen a half decade back.

Chaleb howled like a wild animal cornered and upset. “Look around you!” He gestured wildly, eyes starting to lose focus. “The city burns! In ruins! So many innocent lives lost because of abominations like these here! Cultists! Heretics! Spies! All slipping into our ranks and preparing a heinous death for us all! They want to give  us to the demons!” Chaleb was speaking all the right words, the proper crusader feverish emotions in his voice. But somehow Yunessa just wanted to yawn as Chaleb continued. “Just like Areelu did with Sarkoris! They deserve to feel the flames licking their legs and burning alive!”

Yunessa had seen similar behavioural quirks before. A half decade prior they had spent a year at an inn playing and had grown familiar with the customers. A continuously lying husband came to mind, his face blurred by time. He also would keep looking sideways and speak loudly while making wide and fast gestures. All the better to keep eyes focused and force attention to himself rather than his current harlot.  

“You come up with nasty words to use against people.” Ember eyed Chaleb sourly. “You call them cultists, heretics, and spies so you don’t have to call them people. Good people, just not for you. You’d feel bad doing this to people- but not heretics. Without those words you couldn’t harm them.”

“Little girl-”

“STOP.” Yunessa bellowed.”IDIOTS.” Yunessa listened to the impulse. “Heed my command in the name of Baphomet!” The words flew out of Yunessa’s mouth and Yunessa was glad they had followed this instinctive impulse. The words hit a target- the crusaders jumped in surprise and looked at each other in terror.  “The new blood is so stupid.” Yunessa complained as if someone was there to offer sympathy. 

A choked noise came from behind and Yunessa turned to see Daeran standing near them, loaded crossbow held in one hand as the other pressed to his mouth. His eyes had narrowed, his lips twitching like he was struggling with all his might to stop laughing.

“We’re everywhere Mortal. Didn’t you know that?’ Wolfjif eyed Chaleb menacingly and his shadow seemed to swell behind him, 

Chaleb started, limbs spasming. When he spoke again it was a quieter bellow, deferential, even. “Sorry! Couldn’t have known, We’ll fix it right away ma’am- sir!” With quick gestures his to fellows began pulling away the barrels of fire they had pulled to the books piled by the prisoners. There was a sense of enjoyment watching them panic. It was even more enjoyable knowing they were so gullible to believe it. The looks of oafish terror on their faces as they were rebuked for their fecklessness. It was a memory worth keeping.

“Chaleb is the name for a crusader.” Yunessa raked a hand through their long hair, sticking the other in a pocket to imitate a sense of boredom. “You’re not a crusader are you?” They side-eyed Chaleb. “Report. Who are you and the sorry lot pulling the barrels away.”

“Chalb Sazomal, former knight of the Order of Everbright Crusaders, deserter! These two are my mates from playing cards, local fences for stolen goods- very reliable Lord elf! We set this ambush and caught three… no, four crusaders! We wish to join the ranks of the triumphant army of the Worldwound!” He was comical in his attempt to impress and his two fellows were no better.

“We could use good lads like them. Brave fighters- with more of them in our ranks, victory would be assured.” Lann sneered at the three and Yunessa choked back a snort. “If only we had more of them.”

If I respond to that I’m going to laugh until  I cry. Lann looks terrible as a cultist.

To distract themself from their thoughts and Lann’s expression Yunessa hummed. “Chaleb still sounds like a crusader name. We should do something about that- it bothers me to hear a paladin name. We should give him a name worthy of a demon. Something good, useful.” Daeran picked that moment to murmur into Yunessa’s ear. “Oh?” They said as if they were considering Daeran’s murmur. “ Well perhaps.” Yunessa pretended to consider for a moment longer before acquiescing. “We can go with Foulsnout thent. It’s a proper name for one of our own.” Yunessa gestured lazily to Chaleb. “You heard it- use the name with pride and shed what you had before.”

Chale - Foulsnout- bit his lip and he thrust out his chest with pride. “Thank you Lord Elf.” Chaleb-Foulsnout furrowed his brow in a display of pretend menace.  Does he think he’d be able to handle his former crusader fellows? He didn’t bother to try hard enough to send my group off. Chaleb-Foulsnout eyed Lannn’s single horn with rapt attention before eyeing Woljif’s horns. 

“Allright, allright.” Yunessa waved a hand. “You’ve plenty of fuel here. It’s time to put it to better use than a library or on Crusaders.” Yunessa would have rolled their eyes but black eyes didn’t show such an expression naturally. Not well, if it did at all.  

“Where would you have us go?” Chaleb- Foulsnout asked and Yunessa pretended to ponder. 

“Somewhere with useful Crusader materials- ah, yes. The Grey Garrison. There’s a library there. Go rig it so if the crusaders try to get in they’ll lose everything.” The former crusader and his reliable card game pals worked feverishly to unwrap the oil barrels at the base of the book pile.

“I like your sense of humour.” Daeran murmured into Yunessa’s ear. His face held all of the amused curiosity his voice didn’t show. ”It’s quite fiery!” His pale eyes were alight with the emotion especially and Yunessa reached back. They didn’t touch his face but their fingers came within a hair's breadth of his jaw as they blew him a fake kiss. 

“Careful. Mind the fire or you’ll get burned.” Yunessa murmured and Daeran lowered his lashes with a slight smile in response.

“Thanks for the warning. But I am absolutely fire-resistant. Even if the flame is ever so charming.” “Are you-” Yunessa’s murmur was interrupted by Chaleb- Foulsnout’s voice. 

“I have more where that came from Lord Elf! I’ll do everything you ordered and just as soon as those Crusaders arrive, they’ll be dead meat! I’ll make sure we get another- no, make it two extra barrels of alchemist’s fire from the Grey Garrison storeroom! Things are absolutely going to liven up there!”

Chaleb-Foulsnot and his annoyances left dragging the barrels with them in such a manner that Yunessa was fairly certain one or more would trip and if the barrels did not break then they would be set afire when the barrels inevitably were damaged. Alchemist’s fire was nothing to use casually.

But then again, Yunessa had no interest in shortening their life by tossing one of those barrels around.

Once they were gone for certain Yunessa didn’t need to say anything- their companions were already aiding the prisoners.The old elf was cut free first and moved in Yunessa’s direction with calm and steady steps. He looked strange, even by elven standards- some of them Yunessa instinctively knew- and his face and body wore their years heavily. Thinning greyed hair, a ragged beard like wires, sightless grey-milk eyes, paper thin skin with a spine curved by age. It was unlike any elf Yunessa had ever known- youth graced them outwardly even on their deathbed. The old elf reached his hand out towards Yunessa’s direction in the perennial gesture of the blind.

Yunessa reached their arm out and let their hand rest atop the old elf’s. His fingers spasmed and his grey-milky eyes focused on Yunessa. He took a moment before speaking with a voice belonging to a far younger man- unexpectedly strong and calm.”Hello. I am Storyteller, and I wish to thank my rescuers. That would be you if I’m not mistaken?”

“That’s the first time I heard of a venerable old-timer having a street name!” Woljif quipped, his hands full with the coarse rope used to tie the prisoner’s hands. Ember hovered over them, offering healing as they took time to recover.

“Sometimes a person can lose their name. But their mama and papa are gone, friends are gone, and there’s nobody to ask who it was. So instead of their name, a person can pick any word that is good. Everyone needs a name…or do they? I don’t know!” Ember’s hands glowed bright with warmth as she healed away a scarlet wound in a prisoner’s side. The prisoner tugged at her crimson tabard.

Yunessa recalled their kind had more than one name.  Most often nicknames were given out as names and their actual names were kept for close friends and family only.= as a drunken elf had lectured them some ten years back. “Is it the name you prefer?” They asked delicately. “Mine is Yunessa- it’s the only one I have and use.”

The old elf nodded slowly, offering a weak smile of approval. “I prefer to be called Storyteller. It very accurately describes the sphere of my occupations and interests. In most places that I’ve been, I am known by that name.”

“You’ve piqued my curiosity. Are you a bard Storyteller? If so, you should come perform at one of my parties instead of knocking about in this dusty library.” Daeran gestured at the library. Despite the rain and destruction, it still held some of the quiet charm and appeal it once did.

“A bard? In a sense, I am one. But not the type that performs at festivities or parties. I think many of your guests would lose their appetites or grow bored with my tales quickly.” Despite the blind eyes it seemed as if the Storyteller had an accurate guess where each of them were, with little problem following their voices.

“What a shame. And I wwas so hoping to wheel you out in front of my guests. With your… unusual appearance, you would have caused quite the scandal!” If Storyteller was insulted by Daeran’s words then he showed no sign of it, hands clasped in front of him as Daeran talked.”But lugubrius bards are of o use to me. Half the bards in the city are the same: their repertoire is confined to the One About Loonging, the One That Causes Indigestion, and the One That’s a Complete Waste of Time. I mean, really, how is one supposed to hold a party like that?”

Aravashinal pulled away from Seelah. “Where’s Daeran?”

“And why are you asking for me?” Daeran inquired, his attention shifting to the blind Librarian as he moved around a table. “Are you looking to spread more false reports?”

Aravashinal flushed, shaking his head. “I need you to try and heal my eyes. There’s something I need to do and a child can’t-”

As Aravashinal and Daeran spoke - asking to have his eyes healed right now and Daeran’s sarcasm- Ember came up to Yunessa, beaming at the Storyteller. “My Grandmother looks like you!” She exclaimed. “When I was little my mother and Father would tell me stories. But I have nobody to tell me stories now- sometimes my Grandma does in my dreams, but I always forget them in the morning.” 

Storyteller lowered his head, the corners of his mouth slowly creeping upwards. “For you… I may have a story to tell… but perhaps it is you who has one who has a story for me.”

The other prisoners were talking amongst themselves, checking the others over. One of them, a man with short dark hair, murmured comforting words to his fellow.

“What happened to you Storyteller? This place looks like every demon Lord that came to Kenabres went to take a swing at it.” Yuness gestured and paused as the storyteller’s eyes didn’t move. “It looks like whatever is left of the library was put into a container and shook.”

“A complicated question Yunessa. I would be happy to tell you more about myself-and the burden I carry- but I’d rather do it in another safer place. I know there’s more than one thing you wish to speak about with me and I will of course, render you a service in turn, whatever it may be, as thanks.” Storyteller waves a hand around them. “However at the moment, I wish to be somewhere safer than the present surroundings. My recent adventures have plagued me greatly. I would be grateful if you could help me to a safe shelter of some kind.”

“Typical! You do someone a good turn and instead of saying ‘thank you’, they just ask for more help.” Yunessa turned at Woljif’s words to give him a long look and the Tiefling coughed as he looked away.

Storyteller’s mouth fell into a stubborn set and he raised his head. He wouldn’t change his mind.  And who would want to try and wait things out when they were almost burned alive? It was a fair request and no more unreasonable than any other.

“Go easy on the old elf. He’s had a rough time of it- did you see this library?” Seelah’s frowned at Woljif. 

“Yeah, because we’ve had it so easy!” Woljif returned and Yunessa tuned them out before going to address the Storyteller again.

“It seems as if Aravashinal is getting his eyes treated by Daeran right now. I don’t know what Aravashinal will need to do here. Are you fine with waiting here? We won’t leave so you’ll be safe.”

Storyteller considered Yunessa’s words. “I’ll remain here. Wandering the city as it’s under attack by demons is advisable for a blind man.”

“We won’t leave you- we’re heading to Defender’s Heart Inn to rest ourselves after this.” Yunessa assured and the Storyteller nodded, allowing Yunessa to find him a chair to rest close to the group.

“There’s death everywhere here.” Ember commented. She was sitting atop a pile of damaged books, studying the paper in her hands. A heavily stylized sketch from ‘The Lies Demons Tell: A history and guide’ depicting  succubus surrounded by the creatively murdered bodies of her victims. Sometimes, I think we are all doomed. But then death passes us by, and here we are again. Alive and not dead.”

Lann looked away from Yunessa, talking to Klaem- one of the scholars among the prisoners-. Yunessa’s smile was wide and as Lann watched Yunessa raked their hair back. Yunessa had been doing that repeatedly without the hair tie.  “But you’re an elf mber. You should live hundreds of years and never worry about dying. Little elf girls shouldn’t know such words.”

Ember canted her head at him. Despite Yunessa’s best efforts it seemed as if Ember shed ashes when nobody looked and Yunessa’s hat had a light coating of grey ashes atop it.”When children are thrown into the middle of a war, they learn many sad things. That’s why we have to win the war. So that other boys and girls don’t have to learn what we did.” Ember’s lips tugged into a smile that sent chills down Lann’s spine. It wasn’t normal for a child to smile like that. “It wouldn’t have mattered if I had hundreds of years or seven years.”

“Right.” Lann looked away.  “Is that why you’re here with us then?”

“Yunessa asked me to stay with them. So I think I’ll stay with them for a while. I don’t think the crusaders know what to do now, the war’s gone on for too long.”

“And you think Yunessa does?” Lann watched as Yunessa accepted a book from Klaem, smoothing their hand over the cover. A gleam of their bracelet caught his eyes. “Hey, Ember, What do you think about that bracelet?”

“I don’t know. Soot likes Yunessa though.” Ember hummed, holding the page with the graphic art in her hands. “I think it’s pretty! It reminds me of the nice painter that used to go to the docks every Toilsday.”

“Brother Klaem at your service.” Klaem’s gripe as he reached out to shake Yunessa’s hand wasn’t strong- but Yunessa couldn’t fault him. He’d been through an ordeal, that much was obvious, written all over his Aristocratic features. “We thought we were doomed to burn alive. Thank you for helping us.”

“We didn’t plan to watch innocent men and women get burned live. Are you and your fellow Crusaders going to meet up with your other fellows? If not, we’re all going to the Defender’s Heart, Irabeth Tirabade has set it up for Crusaders and the city people alike.” Yunessa watched as Klaem shifted, wincing. Even the healing Ember could spare hadn’t been enough. But considering he was walking, Yunessa wondered how bad the totality of the damage had been.

“We’re not like the other crusaders- we come from the Order of the Flaming Lance. We dedicate ourselves to the pursuit of hidden knowledge and magical methods for fighting against demons.” Klaem waved a hand at the Library.  “Unfortunately being here was not the most ideal choice when Deskari cut the building in half. We were searching for one of our own- but if our Sister Miammir was here then she either left before we came or she’s, like you mentioned, at a safe place.”

“You can come with us. We’re heading back there once Daeran’s work is done and Aravashinal is ready to go.” Yunessa glanced back.

Daeran’s features held the utmost concentration as he worked. He said he was an average healer, but Yunessa could taste the burnt sugar smell of divine magic and see the focus he applied to his task. Aravashinal, to his credit, clutched at a damaged book in his lap and stayed stock still. 

Klaem followed Yunessa’s gaze. “That would be appreciated. Your daughter did what she could but I’m afraid I’ll be almost useless in a fight. Rest will fix the exhaustion and allow me to have my spells back.” Hearing Ember referred to as their child almost made Yunessa smile.

“The rest of our group is able to cover for you. As long as you can run if need be, Defender’s Heart isn’t far off- the demons and cultists aren’t as plentiful as they were this morning.” Yunessa frowned. “We don’t know if the party is dying or if they’re recalling to amass forces again. Either or, we can make it to the Inn.”

“I- we all appreciate it. Running is painful but I could manage if it came to that.” Klaem agreed.

“How did Chaleb overwhelm you? He didn’t seem like the smartest chip off the old lock.” Yunessa asked. “I want to check for traps before we leave, make sure that nothing will set off.”

“The traitor met us at the door. When Deskari cut through the building we jumped off the second story balcony to avoid imminent death. It was only after that when we had dragged ourselves into the library that Chaleb found us.We didn’t suspect a thing- he seemed like a passionate crusader so we let our guard down. But he attacked us from behind and knocked us out. We didn’t suspect such trickery would come from our own- just surviving to go and hide in the library had drained us. I suspect most of our order is dead now and at the time we were desperate to believe this man was a fellow crusader, a comrade.” Klaem shuddered, glancing back to the pile of books he’d been bound on. “I woke up to my armour removed and tied up atop that pile of books.What a macabre end.”

“That’s always how it goes. You start to think you might be able to trust a fella, and boom, he goes and stabs you in the back.” Woljif snorted. The tiefling had taken to sitting on a table nearby, close to Seelah.

“If you never trust anyone then soon you’ll become a killer just like Hulrun. That’s hardly any better.” Seelah shook her head at Woljif.

“Pah! Don’t start on that again. Fine, fine, you convinced me. You can trust people: But only one in every dozen!” Woljif waved his hand. “I don’t wanna get into another fight with you Sister Seelah.”

Camilla sidled up to stand by Yunessa, inspecting Klaem with a critical eye. Lann moved away from Ember, eyes searching the room once more.

“Will the older elf be coming with us?” Klaem inquired.

“Storyteller? He is. Once Aravshinal is done here we’ll take him with us as well.” Yunessa confirmed.

Klaem’s voice dropped to a polite murmur so Storyteller couldn’t hear him. “We met Storytller while reading in the Library. He was interested in the writings of old Sarkoris and the era before that. The traitor caught him,same as us. Have you ever seen an elf so old before? Not just old, but ancient. I thought your kind didn’t have facial hair, wrinkles, or aged like that. You'd know better of course. I’m not an elf. Maybe such things are commonplace and you keep elves like him away from the wider world? If true then what’s this old fellow doing, walking around and revealing his race’s secrets?”

“An elf with wrinkles and a bear? A detestable absurdity.” Camilla commented before Yunessa could speak up. 

“Hold on there, a beard isn’t the worst thing a person can have growing on their face!” Lann protested. “You should have seen some of the people back in my village.

“The worst thing growing on your face is your mouth-”

“Shut up.” Yunessa interrupted. Camilla had been sniping at Lann whenever she got the chance and it inevitably ended with Lann angry and upset. “This is not the time for this.  Lann, go and keep an eye out for enemies. Camilla, go and  check the other end for traps. I will search Lann’s side.”

Camilla huffed, but followed Yunessa’s orders.  Lann moved as Yunessa told him to and Yunessa exhaled slowly. 

“We’ll be done when Aravashinal is Klaem- do you mind waiting until then?”

When Klaem agreed, Yunessa gave him their most charming smile.

When Daeran’s work was finished, he was weary and sweating, wiping it from his face with a hankerchief that held a bright floral design. Tweezers, alcohol, a few rags, and a considerable amount of his power had gone into his effort. Mending something like eyes took effort, more than he would want to expand normally but….

“It looks good.” He murmured. Arvashinal had risen up as soon as he could, cried over the Library and rushed off to search it- looting it or getting his secrets?  Daeran sat in a woefully understuff chair as he watched. “If I don’t help them then it looks suspicious. You need to help smaller groups more but once they trust you…” He let his words trail off.”You can get away with more.”

Something stabbed at the back of his mind, cold and nauseating. He closed his eyes, listening to things he would rather not. It faded as quickly as it had come, leaving a far to hot pain akin to a migraine in its wake. Daeran sighed, wetting the kerchief with water from his waterskin, hoping in vain the cold would make it go away.

It diverted its attention away from him as Yunessa yelled out. Daeran opened his eyes in time to see one of the stone gryphons shed its stone skin and fly off the plinth it had rested on. It let out a loud roar of excitement as it tasted freedom in the sky. The others startled and reacted but Daeran didn’t leave his chair.

Weird things around Yunessa were commonplace it seemed. But as delightful as Yunessa was,he’d have to leave them soon. Where would he go to that was as far away from this as possible? He leaned back in his chair, losing himself to plans, thoughts, and hopes that would never happen.

“Why didn’t you come for me when it flew away?” Aravashinal hissed.  The Librarian had loaded himself up with as much as he could, every bag, pocket, and hand holding as much as he could fit. “Which gryphon was it?”

“The plinth there? Uh, ‘Old Sarkoris Ancient’ I think.”

“Old Sarkoris? It did certainly come to us around… a bit more than a century ago. A gift- I remember hearing about it in one of my books but-” He broke off with a heavy sigh. “Later. I’ll look into it later. Where are you going Yunessa?”

“Defender’s Heart Inn- everyone is growing tired and we need more than a hour’s rest and a handful of dried oatmeal mix for food. We need rest, to get away from the rain, dry off, and then figure out what tomorrow brings.” Yunessa gestured to the group. 

“Take me with you, please.” Aravashinal looked wary at the reminder of the day. His eyes- black like Yunessa’s, searched the library, soaking in all of the sights. “I want to talk with you privately but this place is not safe enough.”

“You can come with us, of course. We’re all going to the inn now that you’re done.”

Aravashinal nodded at Yunessa’s words.

“Let’s go… there’s nothing left here now but the dead.”

[bootegypt75]

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[zodiyack]

Who’s Watching

Requested by @cai-neki​: May i ask a request; Youngest Shelby!reader one an angsty again, where someone's haunting the reader (she couldn't grasp if it's a past memory or person) ending up into various looks from her brothers thinking she may have a trauma but it turns out there is really someone following her around. Kinda long and messsy but yeah.

Pairing: Shelby & Gray Family + Shelby!Female!Reader

Warnings: Stalkers, swearing, my horrible reference in the title, angst

Words: 1,642

Summary: (See Request)

Taglist: @matth1w​, @redspaceace-writes​, @peakysputain​, @fandom-puff​, @darling-i-read-it​, @cai-neki​, @simonsbluee​, @marquelapage​, @sebastianstanslefteyebrow​, @thewarriorprincessxo​

Masterlist | Peaky Blinders Masterlist

Her chest heaved with uneven breaths as she slammed the front door shut behind her, back pressed against it. Her brothers walked in to see what the noise was about, surprised to see their sister’s disheveled body blocking the door.

“What the fuck happened to you?” Arthur exclaimed first. He eyed her with wide curious eyes, not all that sure whether he should be mad at her or getting revenge for her.

“S- some- someone-” She couldn’t form a full word with how heavy she was breathing, gasping for air as she rested her hands on her knees.

“Someone what? Did they follow you?” Tommy moved to the windows, looking around before drawing the blinds. “Are you alright?”

“W-wat-wah-”

“Water. Get her some water, Finn!” Arthur yelled before turning back to his sister. “Nod or shake your head. Are you alright?”

She shrugged.

“Do you need help?”

Again, she shrugged.

“Did they want to kill you?”

She shrugged once again, this time taking the water as Finn passed the glass to her.

“Can you stop fucking shrugging?”

A few gulps of water later, the cold liquid soothing her dry throat, she spoke up. Her breathing was still off, but she was recovering. “Someone was following me. I don’t know if they’re trying to kill me or if they followed me home, I just know that I did the thing you taught me-”

“What thing?” Finn furrowed his brows in confusion.

“Tommy. He told me that if I got a bad feeling about someone walking in the same direction as me, to turn a couple times, walk in directions off-route. This person followed me even then. As soon as I realized that, I ran as fast as I could. I didn’t even take the time to look back.”

“Good girl.” Every head in the room turned to Pol, who leaned against the door-frame of the family room. She slowly walked forward, moving her niece aside to look around outside the door before shutting it and locking it. Tommy gave her a questioning glance, to which she replied, “all clear at the front door.”

“Alright. Finn, go check the back, Arthur, can you patrol the house? If one of the doors were unlocked, they could have gotten in while we were talking.”

“Yep.”

The three waited in the main room for over an hour. Tommy and Polly took turns comforting Y/n as they waited for the boys to return. When Finn and Arthur did indeed return, Tommy was suddenly more doubtful than Y/n expected. Finn confirmed that all the doors were locked, Arthur reporting no one but themselves in the home.

Thomas turned toward his sister. “Are you sure someone was following you? Did you forget a turn and assume they were?”

“What?” Y/n’s face morphed into an expression of disbelief, hurt that her brother would question her. She was horrified, looking as if she’d seen a ghost, when she ran inside. The entire time she was running, her body felt uneasy, like she would faint had she stopped for even a second. It felt like her stomach had dropped.

“Are you one-hundred percent serious?”

“Yes- well- I-” It was ironic. She’d looked like she’d seen a ghost and for a split second, she thought it was a ghost. Had she been hallucinating? No, the chase felt too real. Whether it be a person or something from long ago, she knew it was after her. “I don’t know if they were human but-”

“You don’t know if they were human?” Arthur cackled. “Tommy, she thinks a mummy ran after her!”

“I never said that!”

“Was it a werewolf? Was he going to eat you? Gobble you up?” Arthur continued to poke fun. Only Thomas, Polly, and Y/n remained straight-faced. Polly noticed Y/n tearing up, the genuine hurt in her eyes saying that whatever it was, she was still terrified for her life.

“Arthur. Stop.” Although he continued to chortle, Finn’s laughter faded as he made eye-contact with his aunt. “Arthur.”

Finn nudged Arthur harshly. He stopped laughing and turned to Pol. “Yeah?”

“Stop teasing your sister right this damn moment or I’ll find whatever was chasing her and let it have you instead. She was beyond terrified. Look at her!” Polly snapped. “Can’t you see she thought she was literally going to die?!”

As the arguing went on, Y/n sighed and headed to her room. Her aunt was a great save, but that didn’t mean she believed her either. Only defending her due to catching how mortified she was. The embarrassment gifted to herself by a simple overthinking thought. ‘What if I was only imagining things...’ her brothers made her second guess herself.

The night went on, lights turning off, Shelbys and Grays lying in their beds, until everyone in the home was fast asleep. The windows and doors were locked, blinds drawn, and home quiet. The creaking of the wood, however, was new. It sounded like someone was stirring, but no one was awake to hear it.

Screaming awoke the members of the Shelby home. John had just returned, Ada as well, and had a head start to their sister’s room. She had sat up so quick it felt like she should’ve gotten whiplash. When the other four got to Y/n’s room, Ada was sitting on the bed beside Y/n, holding her close to her, and John was sitting on the edge of the bed, shooting her a sympathetic look.

“Did you see them again?” Finn inquired. Arthur slapped him up the back of the head, earning a glare from his little brother. “I’m being serious!” He whisper yelled at Arthur, only to be ignored.

“See who?” Ada looked at her family with widened eyes of confusion. She turned to her sister then back to her brothers and aunt. “What happened?”

“Ada. I’ll um...tell you in the study, okay?” Polly mumbled softly. Ada nodded and rose from the bed, hugging Y/n reassuringly before walking to her aunt. Both women stopped in their tracks as Y/n’s voice sounded again.

“I had a nightmare. The same person. They were in...here. My room. They opened my door and began to walk over to my bed. I couldn’t move. I was terrified. I thought it was all over, but another door opened and the person ran away. I screamed when I could, but for some reason, it was delayed.” She didn’t even take a break to breath or rethink details. It was like she was reliving it even at that very moment.

Tommy looked concerned. He whispered something to Pol before gathering his brothers and the other two females. They left the room, Tommy closing the door behind him, and left Y/n by herself to meet in the study.

“She’s got some kinda flashbacks or something like that.” Finn commented.

“We went to war, she...well, whatever happened, it wasn’t as bad as war. I doubt it’s some kind of thing she’d seen. Perhaps it’s her imagination again.” Arthur grunted in response.

The three older brothers had dealt with PTSD before, the effects similar to Y/n’s awakening, but Arthur didn’t believe she was hurt. He couldn’t bring himself to believe it. The man wanted his little sister to be safe, and knowing he couldn’t keep her so would hurt him more than the war did.

“I say it’s a trauma.”

“What kind?” Ada was quick to question Thomas, as per usual. “Injury related or event caused?”

“Either. If she hit her head, perhaps walked into something on the way home, or if she saw something she didn’t want to see...”

Unbeknownst to the family in the study, Y/n was on the other side of the doors. She pushed them open with a furry. “I’m not traumatized. Nothing that happened is from my imagination or some injury! This person is real and no matter what you do or say, they won’t stop.” She stormed out just as quickly as she stormed in, leaving her family to dwell in her warning.

She hadn’t left the home all day. It concerned the family, but they understood. No one had spoken a word to her since she’d made her point. When it was time to sleep again, Ada and Pol were the only ones to bid her goodnight, the boys cowardly, even more so when it came to admitting it.

The creaking occurred again. Y/n was awake this time, wide awake. The dream felt just as real as her escape had. Last night, she’d fallen asleep, given the person an advantage. Not tonight, she swore, not tonight.

Footsteps grew louder as they neared her door, the small squeak of the door opening causing Y/n to clench her eyes shut. Cold air followed the stranger; Y/n thought to herself, the person must have opened a window...but they were all locked, were they not?

She couldn’t be certain.

They stood over her bed, hesitating for whatever reason. Y/n had her own advantage this time. She wasn’t in sleep paralysis, she wasn’t incapable of showing the stalker what Shelbys learn since birth. Right as they reached for her, the mirror next to the wall by her bed positioned so she could see them, she slid under their squatted legs and darted out her bedroom door.

Behind her was not her concern as she ran for a specific room. Their footsteps thundered loudly, yet not loud enough to wake the rest of the family. Hot on her trail, they aggressively swung for her, but her distance was just far enough that they couldn’t reach her fully.

Reaching the room, she grabbed the first gun in sight, turning and firing. A few seconds later, steps padded throughout the house and stopped at the door. There they saw their little sister with a gun, standing over the person who’d been stalking her, wounded but not dead.

“Told you.”

[dracowars]

sacrifice | anakin skywalker

pairing: anakin x jedi!reader

word count: 4,1k

summary: where y/n has to sacrifice everything in order to save anakin

a/n: i'm so proud of this, i hope you enjoy reading it <3 also i really want to write more for anakin (& other male sw characters), so feel free to send in requests!! ♡

warnings: angst, torture, violence, mentions of severe injuries

universe: star wars

Exhausted and plagued by a painful sting pulling through your whole body, you slowly flutter your eyes open which turns out to be difficult at first due to the bright light. Your limbs feel sore and incredibly weak, you can hardly feel your arms anymore and an uncomfortable tingling sensation runs through your legs. Your head is extremely heavy and the world around you rotates, getting faster in each second that passes and thus disenables your ability to think clearly.

Still blinded by the light, you narrow your eyes to at least be able to see something and as you do, your breath gets stuck in your lungs right away. Your gaze is directed at a black steel door with red and white switches and lights flashing on the right and on the left. A steel door which most likely allows no escape.

"Sir. The Jedi is conscious again", you hear the mechanical voice of a droid and you turn your head in its direction to your right. You see two Battle Droids next to you, one of them now aiming his weapon at you alarmed, the other standing at a control field.

Only now do you notice that you are much taller than these droids and you quickly discover why. Surround by a bluish light, you float in the air, your wrists and ankles chained in stuncuffs, making you unable to move even a tiny bit. You helplessly hang in the air, the tight handcuffs already painfully straining your skin.

"Do not let her out of your sight until I get there", you suddenly hear another voice through the comlink one of the droids is holding. A voice that unmistakably belongs to none other than the Supreme Commander of the Separatist Droid Army General Grievous himself.

However, there was something else in the background. Something that made your breath get stuck in your throat again.

Screams. Full of pain and suffer that can only be produced by incredible agony.

"Where should she even go?", one of the droids asks annoyed and gets hit on the back of his head by the other after his statement immediately.

"Don't ask, work."

Not saying a word, you try to shake your hands to maybe loosen the handcuffs a little, but to no avail.

"No chance, lady. You will not get out of here that easily", the Battle Droid laughs while the other joins in. Throwing them an angry look, they quickly stop and get back to their work, ignoring you.

Using the moment of silence to your advantage, you close your eyes and try to feel the Force that surrounds you so that it can guide you the way. Because of your severe headache you do not succeed, but you also do not give up instantly and at least try to concentrate enough to remember what exactly happened.

The terrifying image of a battlefield on Ryloth appears in your head, droids and clones brutally fighting each other. With your ignited lightsaber you run between them, giving the clones cover while taking down several Battle Droids and Droidekas with one slash of your elegant weapon.

"General Y/L/N! General Skywalker has just informed us that he has advanced further at the front and has almost reached Grievous", you hear Fives tell you in your blurred memories when you hide behind a tree to seek protection for the split of a second.

"Anakin", you softly breathe, not noticing that you said his name out loud, and your eyes shoot open when your memory cuts off all of a sudden.

All you remember is that you followed him after Fives' words, but you do not remember what happened after that and you do not know where Anakin is now or if he was even captured as well.

In any case, you are not allowed to think about it any further when the door in front of you opens and you are greeted with the shadow of a large robotic figure, two Magna Guards on either side of him.

"Grievous", you hiss disapprovingly when he comes up to you with slow, heavy steps, his face - if you can even call it that - at eye level with you. "I sould have guessed that only you would be able to carry out such primitive captures."

His smoky laugh sounds at your words, which is quickly interrupted by a subsequent cough. In the next second, however, he tightly grabs your neck with his mechanical hand all of a sudden and forces you to look into his fleshy eyes. The pressure on your throat causes tears to well up in your eyes.

"You have a very important piece of information that Count Dooku would love to have, General Y/L/N", he mentions and you try to hide that he is currently blocking your windpipe. "All methods are fine with me as long as I get what I want."

"And I suppose you will only let me go if I tell you this very important piece of information?", you state ironically and take a quick breath in as he releases his strong grip from you.

"That would make things much easier for both of us", Grievous agrees and looks at you intensely, almost expectantly. "Where do the Jedi keep the holocrons?"

"What do you want to do with it? Even if I told you, which I will definitely not do by the way, you could not open it anyway", you mockingly point out and raise an eyebrow.

A second later, you have to fight for air again.

"That is something you should not worry about", he aggressively snaps at you and squeezes his hand harder, making you gasp for air even more. "Tell me where they are kept."

"You could kill me and I would not tell you", you choke out and his creepy-looking eyes sparkle with anger.

"I will let it depend on that", Grievous states and lets go of you again, but with a subtle gesture he gives his Magna Guards a sign and they suddenly approach you, their dangerous electrostaffs now activated.

Shortly afterwards you already feel an incredibly terrible pain that makes you cry out loud. A painful electricity shoots through your entire body that would force you onto your knees if you were not currently chained to stuncuffs in the air. It only takes a few seconds, but it feels much longer until they stop their torture, staying in their position.

"Where. Are. The. Holocrons?", Grievous asks you again, this time more angry and somehow stressed, putting strong emphasis on each word.

"You would like to know, huh", you slightly grin and although you know that such a cheeky answer will cause you to suffer again, it rolls of your tongue anyway.

Again, several electric shocks run through you at the same time and an increasingly unbearable pain forms in your body, but your head remains unwavering when they stop again.

"Tell me where they are, Jedi scum! Now!", the merciless General shouts at you and you can sense how he is getting more and more impatient by each second. He will not stop torturing you until you tell him what he wants to know and until you stop holding it back, but you have sworn a vow to the Jedi Order that you can't and will not break, no matter how much pain you have to endure.

"I guess you have to kill me then, because I will never tell you, Grievous", you respond breathless and you can already smell how your skin, your flesh, has slightly charred because of the burns.

Giving his Magna Guards another command with a simple hand gesture, they continue to torture you, but this time they only shock you briefly with their bright purple electrostaffs before stopping abruptly. Your muscles still tremble from the impact and the unbearable ache persists.

"Uhm, Sir. I hate to interrupt you, but the other Jedi just managed to take down one of the droids", one of the droids next to you reports and you, although you only understood half of what he just said, too weak to focus, you immediately know who he must be talking about.

General Grievous must have already tried to squeeze something out of him, that is why you heard screams earlier.

"Anakin", you groan in pain as the Magna Guards go back to their task of torturing you out of nowhere and put you into a state of absolute pain.

"Interesting", you hear Grievous utter through your own screams as your body writhes in pain in the air, the handcuffs pressing deep into your skin. Until the pain suddenly fades and you fall to the hard ground in front of his feet the next moment when the droid freed you with the push of a button.

"Sir, is that not too risky?", one of the droids ask, but you can't even get up from the floor by yourself because you have been weakened so much by the electric shocks. You are not even sure anymore whether you might even have passed out at this point.

However, you quickly realize that you, in fact, are still conscious when you are roughly pulled to your feet, a firm grip on both your upper arms as the Magna Guards pull you up.

"She is so weak, she can hardly walk. And without her lightsaber she can't do much anyway. It was a fine addition to my collection", Grievous laughs in your ear devilishly, and a lateral push in your ribs makes you realize that you should move forward. Having no other choice, you obey and stumble forward on shaky legs, losing your balance with almost every step due to the fact that your hands are still tied together with stuncuffs.

Losing any sense of orientation, you get pushed forward right behind General Grievous, your vision blurred and your head continuing to spin until you finally come to a stop in a corridor that is no different from the previous one.

The door to another cell opens, at least you recognize the same sound as your cell door did before, and you are suddenly rudely pushed inside after Grievous has entered, meeting the hard and cold surface of the floor.

Trying your best to get up again, you notice that their dangerous weapons are no longer close to your body. Yet, you are prevented from doing anything at the sight in front of you after you managed to lift yourself up from the ground a little bit with your hands and looked up.

"Anakin!", you exhale in shock when you see your almost lifeless husband floating in front of you, the same handcuffs on him as on you, stunning him.

He immediately stirs when he hears your voice and lifts his head up, only to discover your trembling figure lying on the ground in front of him.

"What did you do to him?", you shout at Grievous with all your might and manage to fully get up due to the sudden adrenaline rush, but soon are shoved back onto the ground by Grievous and the Magna Guards pull you into a kneeling position by your arms.

"The same I did to you", General Grievous explains with a laugh and trudges back and forth between you and Anakin. "Verily, the will of a Jedi is strong, but I have already cracked the toughest will."

Admiring himself, his gaze slides on you and you immediately avoid the contact, looking at the ground.

"If you touch her even once, I swear you are already dead", Anakin angrily snaps at him, but Grievous does not even react to it, not even when Anakin manages to throw one of the Battle Droids against the wall in his anger with the tiniest movement. Grievous just stops in front of you and roughly lifts your chin up, indeed touching you.

"How many more electric shocks will she endure before her will breaks, what do you think?", Grievous asks into the room and you remove your chin from his grasp with all your leftover strength.

"J-Just leave her alone", Anakin mutters weakly and briefly looks at Grievous with a hateful expression before his muscles give up again and his head sinks down again in exhaustion.

"Tell me where the holocrons are and I will let her go", Grievous declares and turns to your husband, who is about to pass out.

"No! Don't listen to him, Anakin!", you interrupt him right away and try to, although you know that it will not be possible, to loosen your bonds, but the Magna Guards are quick to hold their electrostaffs threathingly close to your body again. "N-No matter what he does to me, you must not tell him- ouch!"

Feeling the burning imprint of the metal back of Grievous hand on your now throbbing cheek, the impact throws you to the ground and tears shoot into your eyes because of the sting, but you suppress them quickly.

"Well, if you do not want to talk, I know who will", Grievous threatens and you press your eyes shut in defeat to mentally prepare yourself for the torturing pain.

A pain that does not come.

At least not in the way you expected, because all of a sudden you hear something that is probably much worse for you than thousands of electrical particles shooting through your body.

They are shooting through Anakin right now.

Excruciating screams escape his throat and you have to watch how he is tortured, how his body winds in pain, how he slowly breaks apart.

You both expected that he would attack you.

"NO! Stop!", you yell at them and desperately shake at your bonds, tears flowing down your cheeks at the sight of the love of your life being hurt in front of your own eyes.

"Y/N-"

"Please stop! You will kill him!", you screech over his screams, but Grievous does not let his Magna Guards stop, rather he induces them to continue.

"Don't, Y/N. Do not tell- argh!", Anakin tries to tell you, but is interrupted by his pain and you can clearly feel how he is getting weaker by every second and how his strength and will are leaving him more and more.

With every further shock that electrifies his body and puts his muscles out of action, he groans in unbearable pain while thin billows of smoke are already emanating from his upper body. The skin on his neck and hands is reddish, a sign of an already severe burn. Yet the worst are still his inevitable screams that are fully soaked in suffer.

"The Jedi Archives!", you shout out loud while your tears keep streaming down your face, a feeling of guilt building up inside of you for just having betrayed the whole Jedi Order.

But you have no other choice.

"T-They are in the Jedi Archives!", you stutter out and General Grievous finally brings the torture to an end, but Anakin's body is now just lifelessly floating in the air.

"Well, that was not that hard, was it?", Grievous says, amused, and turns around to step out of the cell, his Magna Guards close behind him, leaving you alone. Before the door closes, however, one of the droids presses a button on the outside of the door, causing Anakin to fall to the ground with a loud thud.

"Anakin!", you cry out and quickly crawl over to him, his body still trembling as a result of the numerous shocks when you turn him on his back to get a better view of him and as soon as you touched him, you shortly get electrocuted as well.

"Do you hear me, Anakin? Please, please don't do this to me. Open your eyes!", you basically yell at him in his passed out condition and very carefully place your hands on each of his cheekbones, caressing them tenderly.

Lowering your head after he shows no reaction, your heavy sobs rock through your body and you whimper quietly, gasping for breath over and over again.

"I am so sorry", you sniff sadly and wipe your tears away with your hands, which are still tied together, before gently placing them back on his burning hot upper body.

"Y-You should not have- Should not have t-told him", Anakin utters all of a sudden and his eyes flutter open a tiny bit, weakness and pain covering his handsome face.

"W-What should I have done instead?", you desperately ask and can't help but feel a little bit relieved that he is able to talk to you despite his bad condition and despite the terrible torture method he just went through.

Seeking support and security, you grab his hands and he gently squeezes yours, trying to reassure you that he will be fine.

"That is- That is w-why it is forbidden- ugh forbidden for us to love and- and-", he groans as he tries to sit up, but he is too weak and even with your help, you do not manage to get him up so you gently lay him down again, his head in your lap.

"A-And to make us dependent on some- argh, damn! Someone", Anakin finishes his sentence anyway and if you did not know better, you could have sworn to see a small smirk scurry over his chapped lips.

"Ani, I betrayed the Council", you supress your crying and brush his brown locks out of his face while looking down at him with affection. "They are going to exclude me from the Jedi Order.."

"What are y-you even talking about? You s-saved me, babe. I will not let that happen", he hisses in pain, the last words nearly inaudible as his eyes slowly close again, his body becoming limp.

"We will not let that happen either", another voice suddenly speaks up and you look up startled, only to see Ahsoka standing in the hallway in front of your now opened cell.

"Ahsoka?", you mutter under your breath in disbelief and widen your eyes as she steps into the cell, not sure how much of your conversation she was able to hear. After all, nobody knows that you and Anakin are a thing, let alone married.

"Master!", Ahsoka breathes in shock and falls onto her knees next to you as she speechlessly takes in Anakin's fragile figure.

"I- They have-"

"It's okay, Y/N. Take it easy, slow breaths, in and out. We will get you out of here in no time", she affirms and gives you a gentle, encouraging smile before she quickly severes your and Anakin's cuffs with her green lightsaber. "Obi-Wan is chasing after Grievous and Captain Rex-"

"Master Tano, I found the lightsabers and am now on my way to the prison wing", Rex's voice interrupts Ahsoka through the comlink.

"Can you walk on your own?", she asks you concerned and helps you on your shaky legs, even though you nodded.

"I knew- I knew you would come, Snips", Anakin coughs out of nowhere, and you are not sure whether he is conscious or if the Force just allows him to feel what is happening around him right now.

"You always have to be bailed out, Skyguy", Ahsoka chuckles and at this moment Rex enters the cell with more clones, immediately handing you back your lightsaber, which you attach to your belt.

"Rex, please help me out over here", Ahsoka asks him and together they lift Anakin up from the ground and carry him out. Following them into the corridor in front of the cell, Fives quickly meets you and puts your arm around his shoulder to help you walk until you arrive in the hangar and get onto the Twilight.

They place Anakin in one of the small cabins and you let Fives guide you there as well. You sit down in front of your husband and do not let him out of your sight.

Holding back the sad and re-emerging tears that come up while looking at his distorted, unconsicous body, you bite down on your lower lip to prevent you from crying and take his rough flesh hand in your own. You gently stroke over the back of his hand with your thumb while the clone trooper medic puts an oxygen mask over his face.

It does not take long for Obi-Wan to join you in boarding the ship and as he does, he straightly goes to you when they start the Twilight and fly out of the hangar and into the vastness of space. When you feel his hand on your shoulder, you flinch.

"Sorry. How is he?", Obi-Wan asks you with great concern in his voice and face. After all, Anakin is like a son to him.

"The clone trooper medic said that he suffered severe burns and bruises, but apparently no permanent serious or consequential damage. Nevertheless, he urgently needs professional treatment when we arrive on the Negotiator", you sob and inconspicuously remove your hand from Anakin's to not let Obi-Wan see. "I have to- uhm I have to tell you something, Obi-Wan."

"I know. But better keep it to yourself a little bit longer for now until we report to the Council together, alright? Then you only have to tell it once", Obi-Wan calms you down and gives you warm smile.

"Thank you, master", you lower your head and turn your gaze back to Anakin, whose chest moves up and down regularly and whose breath is sounding through the room.

"Don't worry, Y/N. You did what everyone would have done and I am very grateful that you did so. We all have to make sacrifices at some point", he assures you before carefully patting your shoulder one more time and leaving the room, leaving you alone with Anakin again.

After you have finally arrived on the Negotiator, you do not leave Anakin's side when a few clones bring him to the medical bay, where the meddroids take professional care of him right away. While they are treating him, you wait outside, your body full of tension while nervously tapping the floor with your foot and playing with your fingers. They checked up on you as well, but because you were only briefly subjected to torture it only took them a few minutes to treat your wounds.

When the door finally opens automatically, you look up with hope in your eyes and stare at the medical droid expectantly.

"He is stable. You can see him now", the droid announces and guides you inside. At the sight that greets you, your heart stops beating for a moment.

There your husband lies, with cables connected to all the beeping machines, his eyes closed and his breathing light and regular. You unconsciously quicken your pace in order to get to his side faster. As soon as you stand next to him and neither say anything nor touch him, Anakin immediately opens his eyes as he senses you through the Force.

"Hi, beautiful", he weakly smiles at you and grabs your hand, causing you to directly surround his with your own, looking at him with worry, the load suddenly falling off your shoulders all at once.

"I was so worried about you. How are you?", you openly admit and gently run one of your hands through his messy but soft hair.

"You should not have done that, you know?", he clears his throat, ignoring your question as he feels the conflict within you, a serious expression while staring in your eyes. "I mean saving me. You have put yourself in danger. If something had happened to you.."

Tears well up in your eyes as you unintentionally review the recent events in your head, taking Anakin's words to heart, but you quickly catch yourself again.

"Anak-", you want to answer, but abruptly get interrupted when he pulls you into his strong arms out of nowhere, hugging you tightly like his life depends on it.

"Thank you for saving me, love", he softly whispers into your ear and you smile into the crook of his neck before he guides your face with his hand on your jaw right in front of his own. His blue eyes scan your face and then switch between your eyes and lips until he gently places his hand on the back of your head and leads you into a tender kiss.

Feeling his lips against yours suddenly feels so surreal to you. After everything that happened, you almost did not believe that it could still end, well, like this.

Leaning more into the kiss, he eventually breaks the kiss, just to place one gently between your eyebrows. His thumb softly runs over your cheek as he gives you a warm smile.

"I love you."

"I love you more. And I would always sacrifice everything for you", you return his smile and connect your lips again, feeling like nobody can harm you anymore.

[nishisun]

best part ☁️/ 002. first breakfast together

masterlist | previous | next

Kuroo places his phone on the side next to him and stretches his arms a bit, noticing that your head is placed softly in his chest. She’d kill me if she woke up like this right now.

He can’t help but stare at your sleeping figure, admiring the way you’re sleeping so peacefully. His arms are placed awkwardly by his sides on the bed, scared that you may wake up if he places any arms around you. He doesn’t want this moment to end.

He knows he’s the reason why you two aren’t together and yes, he does regret it. He regrets it so much. He’s never one to do something so impulsive but with the way things ended for the both of you, he’s just grateful you’re even talking to him again. Lord knows he wouldn’t be as kind as you have been with him.

He knows he’s the reason why you two aren’t together and yes, he does regret it. He regrets it so much. He’s never one to do something so impulsive but with the way things ended for the both of you, he’s just grateful you’re even talking to him again. Lord knows he wouldn’t be as kind as you have been with him.

He knows he’s the reason why you two aren’t together and yes, he does regret it. He regrets it so much. He’s never one to do something so impulsive but with the way things ended for the both of you, he’s just grateful you’re even talking to him again. Lord knows he wouldn’t be as kind as you have been with him.

He wants this moment to last forever.

But, the truth hurts, and so does reality because when he feels you shift, his heart nearly stops.

Not only do you shift, you’re awake now, barely awake until you look around and realize you were sleeping on Kuroo. You look up at him and he already knows he’s a dead man.

You’re glaring at him now, he’s trying to muster up the courage to even explain himself because your death stare has that much of an effect.

“You pervert!” you nearly screech.

“I woke up and this is how you were! I didn’t want to bother you. I know you had a long day yesterday!” Kuroo raises both of his hands up in defensive, and you roll your eyes at him before rolling to the side of the bed so you were finally off of him and laying down facing his opposite direction.

“Okay.”

“Okay? You’re not mad..?”

“What time is it?”you ask, still facing the opposite direction. He glances at you before reaching for his phone to check the time.

“It’s 7:04”

“Perfect. I need to make Takeru breakfast before he wakes up.”

“Why does he eat so early?”

“Kuroo, what does that even mean?”

“Smells good in here,” Kuroo walks in the kitchen, a towel draped on his shoulders with slightly damp hair caused from sweat. He walks over and hugs you behind the waist, it would’ve been a romantic gesture if you were actually together, but you’re not, and you nearly screech at him.

“My God, go take a bath.” you mutter, he doesn’t ignore the way your cheeks are turning into a bright shade of pink. “Where’d you go anyway?”

“I see you’re still acting cold towards me.” You glare at him, and he raises his hands up before laughing. “I’m kidding, I went for a run.” He shrugs, grabbing a piece a banana. “You live in a pretty nice neighborhood, so that’s good for the kid.”

“What do you even know about kids?” you scoff.

“To be honest, absolutely nothing. I know they need food and shelter. And clothing too, I guess.” he looks over at you and notices you’re scrambling eggs and he admires how you look so concentrated even when doing the simplest task. “But I wanna learn more about kids, more about Takeru. He seems like a nice kid.”

“Oh, he is. I raised him right.”

“I mean, of course. It is you we’re talking about.” He agrees, he doesn’t even know how much of an effect that had on you. “While I was running this one lady stopped me and asked for a photo so she could send it to her son.”

“I always forget you’re famous.” you huff a laugh as you continue to fry the eggs.

“Well, not famous, just rich.” you roll your eyes, “To others, I’m a young and successful CEO, but to you and friends and family, I’m just regular Tetsuro.” He takes a bite into his banana. “Remember that one time in college, when we planned on majoring in the same subject just so we could have the same job?” You immediately chuckle, remembering the event.

“We were so naive.” It’s Kuroo’s turn to chuckle, he looks over to you and grins when he sees you smiling to yourself. It’s the first time in a while he’s seen you even let out a laugh in front of him. You usually keep to yourself. “Things were different, back then.”

“They were,” He crosses his arms with the banana still in his hand. “Hey, what do you do now, by the way?”

“Well, I’m a finance manager for a museum. I just file reports and long-term financial goals and other stuff.”

“Holy shit, that’s amazing, Y/N! Heard they pay really well.” He sounds so genuine, you can’t even look him in the eye.

“Yeah, it’s nothing really.” You shrug off, but you can’t help the way your heart swells. He’s always been so supportive.

“Are you kidding me? That’s literally like boss girl shit. You’re literally bad ass.” You laugh at the nickname and he joins in with you. You look up at him and smile again, about to thank him until you hear a small pair of footsteps walking down the halls.

It was Takeru, he was rubbing both of his eyes while walking, which was blocking his vision, He’s just about to run into a box, thankfully Kuroo swiftly picks him up and places him in his feeding chair.

“Woah there, bud! You gotta be more careful, okay?” The boy nods shyly, still very unfamiliar with Kuroo. Kuroo grins at the toddler brightly and Takeru smiles back and you could’ve sworn right then and there your heart melted. You turn your head quickly, acting as if you didn’t just witness the scene that has just made you soft.

This man is going to be the death of you. It’s been less than a day and you’re already softening to him.

“Good morning, baby. How was your night?” You coo, walking towards your son with his plate of scrambled eggs and toast with sliced apples on the side. You had cut up the bread into small pieces and didn’t put any spread on it because Takeru is a picky eater.

“Good!” He nods aggressively, rubbing his hands together in excitement. “Thanks for the food, mama!”

“You’re welcome, honey.” you give him a quick peck on the cheek. You turn to Kuroo, who’s gives you a smile and you smile back. “I made pancakes and kept them in the oven so they’d be warm.”

“Why oven?” he laughs and you playfully hit him on his chest.

“Because, Kuroo. I read it somewhere. And,” you open the oven lifting the pan from the oven to reveal the pancakes, which were still steaming hot. “It obviously worked.”

“I’m impressed, you used to suck at cooking.”

Now all settled at the dining table, it’s quiet, Takeru speaks up every now and then to ask you a question to which you reply to and it’s as if he’s completely ignoring Kuroo’s presence. Kuroo has already texted you, asking why Takeru wasn’t asking Kuroo any questions and you simply explained that he’ll come around since he’s a shy kid.

“You should come stay at my place. The both of you.” He says suddenly, you nearly choke on your food, shaking your head in disapproval before Kuroo interrupts you. “Wait, let me explain.”

“I’m listening.”

“I feel like it would be more convenient, you know? You have to drive an hour to your job, which is literally like a 10 minute drive from mine, I’m literally always home, so I could watch Takeru, so it would be son and father bond—“

You cut him off with a loud cough, and motion your head towards Takeru, who cocks his head to the side and Kuroo silently apologizes.

“I need to be there when you’re with him.” you state, taking a bite of your eggs.

“Why?”

“Do you trust yourself with kids?”

He opens he mouth to say something, but then closes it.

“Exactly.”

“So.. You’re gonna move in?”

“Can you not word it like that.. and no, That’s too fast. Not to mention, it’s weird. I work at home aswell, Kuroo. I only go for meetings once or twice a week, so it just doesn’t make sense.”

“Okay,” He swallows the food in his mouth “Who babysits Takeru?

“Kenma, when he can. It’s either that or I hire a babysitter.”

“A babysitter? You don’t have like.. one who’s long-term?”

You glance at Takeru for a brief second and then sigh “No, there’s not many of those types of babysitters near us.” you mutter.

“Perfect! See? Another reason why you should just move in. It’s nothing more than two parents co-parenting.”

“Kuroo, I understand your intentions, but it’s just not going to work.. I can’t.” you sigh once again and Takeru looks up at you with concern and you smile reassuringly at him. “That’s too much..”

“Well, I don’t see what the problem is here.”

“This,” You motioned your hands between you and Kuroo “This is the problem. I’ve been taking care of Takeru by myself, and I’m not saying I don’t want you guys to have a bond, but it’s not a smart idea for me and Takeru to practically move in with you. I honestly don’t feel comfortable doing that. Besides, I love it here. I worked hard for this house.”

“Right, I’m sorry.” Kuroo looks at you in awe before giving you a small nod.

“It’s fine, I know you just want to get closer with him, but it’s gonna take time. We can’t rush things. So let’s take things slow between the two of you, okay?”

“Okay.”

taglist: @coconut-dreamz @maadaaaa @mkkhaikyuu @tekushiii @callmekda @samkysnks @wild-strawberry-fields @crazysocklovingfangirl @jesstetsuro @xo-lovelyreign-xo @lilith412426 @erensnubs @syaziahvg @tsukkiswifeey @ysatrap @candybabey @rinsangel @elianetsantana @calumsfringe @rintarovibes @emsdesu @sailorstrawberi @its-the-aerieljeane @succulentmom @heroesfan101 @moonhere @geektastic84 @emiyummy @bakudummy @schleepyflocci

[itsagrimm]

Imperial!Tech 2

Is it even romantic without murder?

Imperial!Tech is a delight and I am worried why I have fun writing a murderous lost nerdy boi. will likely do a part 3.

about 2.000 words

part 1

Part 3

CN insults, violence, murder, discriminatory behaviour, very toxic behaviour, soldier life in a fascist state, tiny bit of fluff or Manipulation depends on your perspective, blood, pain, talk of injury. imperial!Tech is a bit of a tease but he will come around

Imperial!tech X they*them Y/N reader

“This will not suffice. Repeat.”, Commander Tech ordered.

His command was calm and detached, a contrast to the exhausted and heavily panting Elite Squad soldiers.

They looked at each other. None of them having the strength to continue their practice. But also none of them having the will to argue with their commander.

Y/N looked up to the observatory deck. Commander Tech was up there, his black armour contrasting with the white walls.

“Is there a problem, ONCE?”, the voice of the commander echoed in Y/N helmet, using the moniker the elite squad had given Y/N.

“No sir. Can we get a short break before a new try?”

The commander glanced down before looking at the holopad in his hands again.

“The elite squad endurance and recovery time is miserable as expected. I calculated your performance to be at least on par with regular clone troopers. I see now that it was a mistake, and I will have to lower my expectation further & readjust my strategies to your … lacking skill level.”

“I am sorry, sir.”

“It is not your mistake to be born inferior.”, the commander stated flattly, “Your next round will be in 5 minutes standard.”

The Elite Squad looked at each other. Their commander was in a mood. Since his injury on Bracca the Squad had not been in action and commander Tech worked them into the ground with his bone breaking practice runs.

“It is impossible.”, ES-02 said using a private chat without the commander, “Who is he comparing us to? The commanders’ expectations are inhuman. Only some kind of super squad could execute his mind-boggling plans in the time he gives us.”

They nodded in agreement.

“He expects us to be at least as good as the regular clone troopers.”, ES-04 stated.

ES-03 laughed: “Yeah we are better than thosemeat droids. And what does he mean with regular clones? Is there even fancier cannon fodder out there?”

“Commander Tech is noticeably different from other clones. Maybe there are more like him out there?”, Y/N pointed out.

“Oh maker, imagine more copies of that pretentious smart mouth up there.” ES-03 rolled his eyes.

“Get in position and execute plan 8C.3 .”, the commanders voice cut through their chatter. ONCE felt as if they got caught bad mouthing Tech.

“Yes sir.”, they replied and got into position.

A ping from a private channel ringed. It was ES-03.

“You are quiet protective of our commander Tech, my dear ONCE. Is there something I need to know?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Well, … it is always ‘yes sir’ and ‘of course sir’ and sometimes you are both gone in the night. And our dear commander got a lovely visit in the med bay when he was wounded. You even bring him caf somet-“

“ES-03, mind your business.”

“No need to get so aggressive. I am sure it is nothing. And I am sure it is just a coincidence that he leaves you out of punishments or giving you the safest positions in his strategies…”

ONCE said nothing.

Since that time in the hangar the commander had some allure and to admit that meant a defeat ONCE could not afford.

“Well my dearest ONCE, got nothing to say about that? I-“

Static cut through their transmission.

“ES-03, I must inform you that I am very disappointed by your unprofessional behaviour within the Elite Squad which I will not tolerate anymore.”

“Commander? Is that you?”

“Yes of course, who else did you expect?”

ES-03 turned around and looked up to the observatory deck.

Commander Tech’s expression was unreadable, his eyes hidden by the reflecting glasses.

For a moment none of them moved. Then ES-03 took of his helmet and started shouting.

“Are you spying on us? Are you listening to all our private conversations???”, he screamed with a red head.

The commanders lips moved but up there and without his helmet ES-03 could not hear the commanders answer.

“Calm down”, ES-04 tried to defuse her squad member’s anger.

“I am NOT calming down! The sick dirty clone listens to our private channels!”

“Mate, it is not worth it to start a fight like this now.”, ES-02 added, “put your weapon down and think about it.”

“Are you serious??? Do you think I am a threat with this crappy old DC-17? A danger to any of you?! No, it’s this meat bag of a clone who should be afraid of me!”

ONCE flinched at ES-03’s words and readied their weapon.

He was out.

An angry man was a dangerous man.

ONCE former life as a bounty hunter had taught them this lesson well.

Static cut through their helmet again before ONCE heard commander Techs voice.

“Tell ES-03 that the Empire has issued an order to all commanding officers to listen into all communication of their soldiers. It is also very much encouraged to record it.”

“Are you sure that will calm him down, sir?”

“I don’t care about that. He either learns how to live with imperial command or he does not.”

“You are testing him.”

Tech paused.

“Follow your orders, soldier.”

He cut the transmission.

ES-03 was still shouting. His spit landed on ONCE helmet when he turned toward them.

“What did that clone say, my dearONCE??? You two just talked, didn’t you?!”

He sounded furious. His eyes burning like laser blasts into ONCE body.

“He said, checking all communication between soldiers is the new imperial standard to which the commander simply has complied.”

“Fuck that!”

ES-03 stepped closer, his DC-17 blaster still in his hands.

“Fuck that! Fuck that clone! Fuck the Empire! Fuck YOU, you little imperial whore!”

He raised his blaster, aiming for ONCE.

ONCE got cold. Trained instincts kicking in. They rolled sideways behind one of the training blocks to avoid the shot.

A blue blast slightly grazed their helmet, but the adrenaline made it impossible to tell whether or not ONCE got hit.

“ES-03! Stand down!”, Tech’s voice commandeered from somewhere close. He must have left the observatory deck.

“HA! What are you going to do, little nerdy boi? Do you want to protect your little pet over there?! Don’t even try! You are not even a real man!”

Another blue blast shot through the air.

ONCE could hear the Tech and other Squad members taking cover.

“He really did go full rage.”

“Not everyone is cut out for the soldier life.”

“Not everyone is cut out for the Empire!”

“What do we do?”

“Cut the chatter, soldiers”, Tech commandeered, “Take ES-03 out. Shot to kill.”

“Sir?!”

“We can stun him!”

Instead of an answer Tech jumped over the training block he was couching behind and kicked ES-03. ONCE heard the blaster slide over the floor and the sound of fists colliding with skin.

Over and over again.

The sound got wetter.

ES-03’s screams turned into pleas before going silent.

XXXXXXX

Another rotation on Kamino. Another dark night in the bunk room of the Imperial Elite Squad. Another nightmare.

Y/N woke up and looked around. Everything was calm except for the rain knocking at the window and the slow breaths from their fellow soldiers. Commander Tech was missing as always.

Weeks since the Commander had been hurt on Bracca. Days since ES-03 s death. Hours since he – since Tech – had looked at y/n. Why was that such a painful thought? He was a horrible man, a murderer!

He is just a good soldier, he follows orders. Just like you.

Y/N closed their eyes. Pictures of Tech beating ES-03 to death flashed before their eyes and with them the realization that whatever crimes and murders Tech committed, Y/N committed them alongside him. Two monstrous beings in service of a monstrous Empire.

The door to the bunkroom opened silently, only a light draft giving away the silhouette in the door frame. Y/N glanced to the door. It was the commander. He looked at the sleeping elite squad members and through the room as if he was searching for something.

Y/N got up on their elbows and looked at the commander.

Their eyes met.

“ONCE”, he whispered, “Come with me.”

Y/N got into their boots and followed the commander. The long white halls of Tipoca, the kaminoan capital, were empty and quiet. Tech lead the way but surprisingly they passed the hangar and soon arrived at his little office.

He turned around.

“I require your assistance, ONCE.”, he explained in a calm voice, using the moniker the elite squad had given Y/N.

“Now?”, ONCE answered.

“Yes, now.”

They looked at each other. Tech looked horrible. He had dark circles under his eyes so prominent, that even his glasses couldn’t hide them. His head wound from Bracca had left severe, still bloody scars and his hair was unkept and in patches from the burn he survived.

“What is it, commander?”

Instead of an answer he opened the door to his office. It was a little room, full of unfinished projects and gadgets, a wall scribbled with complex formulars ONCE was not in the mood to fathom and a littered table with various unfinished reports.

The workspace of the commander surprised ONCE. It was a stark contrast to the thoroughly planning and executing commander they knew.

“Can you cut my hair?”

“Sorry, sir?”

ONCE turned away from the room and faced the commander. His face was reserved but his voice had a telling neediness in it. The commander, Tech, he needed help.

“Well, I cut my own hair. I can try cutting yours. But I am no professional.”

He nodded.

“I noticed.”, he paused and smiled apologetically for his ambiguous phrasing, “That you cut your own hair, I mean.”

ONCE was speechless. He had smiled.

“I have my personal reservations towards the imperial service corps and their droid hairdressers. And the other option is to ask another trooper since I do not have the skill to cut my hair. But quite frankly the thought of trained regular soldiers having blades near my throat and more importantly my still healing wounds being opened up by some well meaning yet bad practising self-learned barber, is distressing which is why I require you to cut my hair.”

“In the middle of the night?”

“I was not aware of the need for sunlight in order to cut hair. Can you elaborate?”

ONCE suppressed a smile.

“I am sorry, sir. The circumstances are just a bit unusual. But I can try cutting your hair. And I do not plan on cutting your throat.”

“Good to know.”

He nodded casually, satisfied with ONCE’s answer, and produced a hair clipper from somewhere before seating himself on a chair with his back towards them. It was a captivating moment. ONCE looked at the hair clipper in their hand with its tiny blades and the commanders turned back to them. He had defined yet narrow shoulders for a soldier and a muscular back, visible through the thigh blacks. His bare neck was visible, and his occipital moved under his skin when he turned and looked at ONCE.

“It is alright. Feel free to give me whatever hair cut you choose to be fitting. As long as it is functional, I am content.”

ONCE breathed in. That was the commander. And they were about to cut his hair like they were good ol’pals or family. Like they were more. It was a sign of trust so unusual on Kamino, yet he had asked for it.

“You will need to take your glasses of.”

He complied and waited.

ONCE touched his hair to feel its texture before cutting. It was soft. Like a child’s.

They started cutting both sides to even out the burned parts and help with the sensitive skin around his scars before shortening the rest. Burned curls after curls fell on his shoulders and he brushed them away with his hands.

His hands. His murderous hands. They were large and had long fingers with little cuts from tinkering around. How did it feel being touched by them?

ONCE finished cutting, walked around Tech to look at the commander and squatted to see him from an even perspective. He looked good.

“This will work, sir.”

Instead of an answer he stretched his arm out and grabbed ONCE’s jaw.

“Thank you, Y/N.”

He got up and turned away.

Part 3

[doberbutts]

Re: the post w 3 dogs attacking a woman, I completely agree. When I was young, I lived in a neighborhood that had a lot of free roaming dogs, big and little. I think the closest I’ve ever come to experiencing “prey instincts” was whenever I needed to walk past the block with this huge, unfriendly cream dog. I just remember thinking

The ask cuts off here and I don't have a second one but yeah, it's very scary to think about but dogs are more than capable of maiming and killing us.

Apparently according to people who live locally, the dogs were euthanized shortly after being collected from the property. Which tells me either they were too aggressive to be managed, none of them had their rabies vaccinations so every last one of them needed to be tested (and rabies testing is not survivable), or that the owner of the dogs gave the okay to euthanize. Considering he apparently wanted to euthanize from the start, yeah fair.

The family has a gofundme, if y'all feel like donating anything to her she's pretty close to her goal. According to her family she has been denied Medicade and Disability which just speaks to the horrific fucked up state of this country but whatever. She has since gone home to continue to heal.

I still cannot get over the fact that these dogs ate her fucking arms and stomach and parts of her legs and neck and head what the fuck. The owner has some pending criminal charges in the court case but is otherwise out on bail. He does seem to be cooperating so it seems he understands the severity of what's happened. Neighbors in the news articles report he has a habit of taking in strays and letting them roam loose through the neighborhood. A very dangerous combination...