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akitokihojo · 4 years

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Chasing the Seasons - Cruel Summer’s Epilogue

And there you have it, folks. I have literally no self control. :)

Have an epilogue almost half the length of the original story. Thanks for reading!

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It was hard. It was impossible not to think of each other throughout the entirety of every single, passing day.

Maybe it was a blessing, but within the week of returning from their trip, Kagome was thrown right back into the swing of things. She had to scramble to buy the two books she still needed - one she got lucky with, the other she had to purchase from an overpriced seller on eBay, get any other necessary items for the term ahead, make sure all registration was properly done, and get herself re-acclimated to a generally normal sleeping schedule. She stayed busy. Busy enough not to constantly wonder how Inuyasha was fairing. But, unfortunately, that never prevented her from incessantly checking her phone.

The habit came on quickly and was difficult to kill off. In her spare moments to breathe came her opportunities to light up the notifications page. Even in class, jotting down notes, listening to the professor drone on and on, Kagome just couldn’t stop herself from tapping her phone’s screen to see if she’d missed anything while her cellphone sat directly next to her notebook. There was nothing to expect, she was aware of this. She was forewarned of their unaligned schedules. She was aware they weren’t in a relationship. This was what they’d tried to prevent; the thick feeling of unintentional dejection that clung to the insides of their chests like tar.

Was it ironic that Kagome was still knocked down to her ass? No. She wasn’t sure irony was the right definition of this. The truth was, unknowingly so, she and Inuyasha had contradicted themselves from the start. It was all innocent in the moment, wanting to soak up every minute with your soulmate until you couldn’t anymore. Trying to make the best of a given situation. It made sense then. Hell, she even knew this was going to hurt when they had to part, but no one could have ever prepared her for the aftermath.

See, it wasn’t a relationship the two should have planned to avoid, even if it was for the sake of ease. The moment they connected with each other, they were set in stone. That’s not your typical, monogamous relationship. What Sango and Miroku had, what they’d worked to build - that was a relationship. They chose each other. But, fate chose Inuyasha for Kagome. That red string tied their souls together, one half fulfilling the other, so what they had was an irrevocable, irreversible, and irreplaceable bond. They had a companion. A partner. Yes, all synonym’s for a “relationship,” but vastly different in context. A relationship you could turn off. You could end it. You could do so by bitterly cutting ties, or mutually understanding things weren’t working. You couldn’t do that with a soulmate, though. Having a soulmate is the universe’s way of saying, “Hey, I made this person for you. They’re pretty and nice. You’ll like them, I promise. You’ll like them so much, you’ll literally never feel whole without them once you meet. It’s not a flaw in the design, trust me, I know what I’m doing.”

In other words, the distress they wanted so badly to avoid, the obligation they felt toward one another, it was all entirely inevitable. What they, instead, should have done was prepared their minds and bodies to have to adjust to the emptiness. Because, eventually it would dull. Eventually, it did dull. The ride to that point, though, was nothing short of crippling.

He wished he’d known exactly what to say when he’d discovered who she was, what she was bound to mean to him. He wished he’d understood the conflict in his argument and how he was so wrong. A part of him even wished they’d never met. Not yet, at least. Much like how he’d originally hoped she hadn’t dreamt of him so he could carry the burden alone and find her in the future. He was insane. Absolutely, confoundingly mental. Since when had he developed a glass heart? The moment he heard her laugh, saw her in that dress, spoke to her, felt the powerful pull toward her. That’s when. He’d say it was the moment they kissed, because logically, that was the exact moment it happened, but he had to be real with himself. If he’d turned away and ignored her presence from the start, there was still a part of him, a significantly smaller part but a part nonetheless, that would have felt lost. Lost was still better than broken, though.

Inuyasha had decided after the second week that he was going to pull away. In the moment, he understood the rationality behind it. It was to deaden the senses toward one another. It would make it easier in the long run. They’d grow used to the other hardly being there, they’d go about their lives, they’d get excited when one of them popped up on the other’s phone for a quick and friendly check in because it was so rare, then go about their business. Wash, rinse, repeat until the day they could properly reunite. It had to happen. He was miserable, and even though she wasn’t saying anything, he knew she was, too. That was after two weeks. Fourteen days without the other. He kept checking his phone, he was physically fighting the urge to call her, he was forcefully throwing himself into his work so he wouldn’t continuously consider dropping it all to run off with her before it was too late. So, it only made sense to cut the chord. This wouldn’t work if he didn’t. This would only drive them crazy and encourage the ache that lived in their chests to rampantly deepen as if it owned them.

Oh, was he so fucking wrong.

Everything worsened. So bad, he felt sick sometimes. He’d wake up at three in the morning with the heaviest sadness climbing the walls of his stomach and threatening to make him vomit. His lungs sometimes acted as if they couldn’t hold a full inhale of air anymore, and his exhales were shallow and dry. He was angry. Always angry. He had a short temper to begin with, but even he would catch himself on occasion and realize he needed to chill. His work was being affected negatively, his appetite was shot, sleep gradually became a thing of the past, and as the main turmoil seemed to dwindle after a while and he felt dull, listless, he became known as “cold” around his immediate peers. He detested himself. He could see it clearly, but it was so difficult to correct his demeanor when he didn’t have much ambition to do self work on top of his professional labor. He was becoming Sesshomaru.

He’d sunken. Deeper than his bitterness. He’d sunken so far, it was laughable. The answer was right in front of his face. Clear as day. This was his doing. He was the cause of his own misery. Why would he ever think creating a larger distance from her was a good idea? She wasn’t your average girl he had a nice conversation with and would eventually like to see again. She was a being literally born for his sake. And, he was born for hers.

Two months and four agonizing days later, and Inuyasha had finally come to his senses. He couldn’t continue this. He just couldn’t. What he’d done was essentially attempt to withdraw his soul from the match until it was suitable for him. He’d attempted to go against fate, and fate was giving him the hell he deserved. He could only hope Kagome didn’t feel the weight of his idiotic mistake, too. It was bad enough picturing her feeling alone in this, because it’s not like he was acting as much support, but imagining her crushed with withdrawal pain as well was just something he couldn’t live with.

Inuyasha could have texted. He could have called. He sat staring at his phone for hours, a murky liquid sloshing in his chest as if a clogged drain kept the remnants of this toxicity from leaving his body. Text messaging wouldn’t suffice. It would do nothing for him at this point. A phone call would be better; he’d at least be able to hear her voice. Still, it wasn’t good enough. The only thing that would be was seeing her beautiful features with his own eyes. He felt so horrible. Awful. He thought life’s plan would be his enemy, but truthfully, it was him. He was his enemy. This was his fault. And, if she didn’t answer, he deserved nothing less.

Kagome gently tapped her finger against a key on her keyboard, not quite pressing into it, just hitting her nail against the plastic square for the sound as she sorted out her thought process before typing out the next sentence of her report. Her laptop screen was split in two; one side her Word document, about eight hundred words into a three thousand word minimum assignment, and the other side her internet browser with multiple tabs open to fully cover the topic. Add to that with her iTunes playlist minimized in the corner and running through, and the open notebook at her side with her scribbled notes from her previous lectures in this class, and she was completely in the zone. So much so, that when her Mac started chiming with an incoming FaceTime call, her phone coming alive with the same, loud notification - that was really just overkill - Kagome jolted with a startled gasp.

Then her heart sunk into her abdomen. Both pleasantly and disturbingly. This was her first time hearing from Inuyasha in weeks, and her first time seeing him since she left for home.

Quickly, Kagome pulled her hair out of its messy bun, scrunching her unruly waves and running her fingers through her self-cut bangs. She could only hope her face was looking okay at the moment, because she really didn’t have much more time to make herself look presentable before she missed the call entirely. As she paused her music and answered, she held her breath, waiting for the connection to set. Inuyasha’s face appeared on her laptop screen, his mouth covered by the sides of his curled fingers that he’d comfortably rested against, but she could clearly see the corner of his lips curve and his cheeks slightly push up when he smiled at seeing her. And, she sighed out happily.

He was in a dimly-lit room, his chest bare and birthmark visible at the very bottom of the camera. His silver hair was hued with the temperature of the rosy lighting, one of the ears atop his head giving a tiny flick at the sound of her joyful giggle. God, she’d missed him.

“There you are.” He softly rumbled, amber eyes gazing at her with adoration, and he dropped his hand, his expression reading one of subtle relief.

“Hi.” Kagome whispered, too elated to speak clearly. “How are you?”

Inuyasha held up a finger with a soft hum to quiet her. “Give me a minute. Stand up.”

Wordlessly, Kagome scrunched her nose bemusedly, her smile hardly faltering.

“I need to make sure you’re in one piece. Stand up.” The hanyou said clearly, raising his brows expectingly.

She replied with a gentle laugh, rolling her desk chair back and standing up for him.

He took as much of her in as he could, as much as the camera allowed. Her long, black hair, her gorgeous face, her neck, her shoulders that were donned in a green, flannel shirt that was a little too large for her and hung to about mid-thigh, the black tank top underneath, the short pajama bottoms that hardly covered much but looked comfortable as all hell, the thighs he loved so goddamn much. She was there. Fuck, what he wouldn’t give to be able to physically feel her right now, to hold her.

When Kagome felt like he’d had enough, she sat back in her chair, pulling herself up close to her desk. “Good?”

“Good enough,” He said. “What are you doing? Are you busy?”

“No.” She fervently shook her head.

“Are you on your laptop or phone?”

“Laptop.”

“You’re doing homework, aren’t you?” Inuyasha chuckled, leaning his head to the side with a cock of his brow.

“Yes, but it’s not due until Friday. Don’t worry.” She quickly assured, not wanting him to think he was interrupting anything important. Of the classes she was currently registered in, this one ranked low in the difficulty aspect. The assignments were just tedious. Truthfully, even if it was important, she’d gladly push it aside for him.

He wasn’t going to try and argue against that. If she could talk, he was going to take it. This wasn’t the moment to be cautious, this was the moment to try and heal. “What time is it there?”

“A little passed eight. What about you? Are you in Europe?”

“Yeah. In London. It’s, uh, a little passed four here.”

“In the morning!?” Kagome pressed, inching slightly closer to her screen in exasperation.

He laughed, lazily running his fingers through his hair. “Yeah. Couldn’t sleep.”

“What time do you have to work?”

“Gotta be there by seven. Don’t waste your breath telling me to go to sleep, I’m not hanging up until I’m good and ready.” Inuyasha stated, leveling Kagome with a stare that brought her to close her mouth. He could tell by the way her brown eyes fluttered downward, by the way she lightly pinched her lips together, by the way she glanced back up to him that she was silently grateful for his refusal. It was warming, but it increased the guilt he felt, and he couldn’t prevent the way it wavered his expression.

She’d caught it. Immediately, she’d noticed. “What’s wrong?” Her tone was soft, concerned.

“Nothing.” He dismissed. “How are you doing?”

“Inuyasha, what’s -“

“How are you doing?” He’d asked it in a way that told her he wasn’t looking for the broad aspect of her life in general. He was looking for how she was handling their separation, the ember in his eyes not quite glowing to their full potential, and she knew it wasn’t just the camera’s inability to capture their radiance. Still, she couldn’t bring herself to answer the way he wanted. If she thought about it, it hurt too bad. She didn’t want him to know that; she didn’t want him to try and shoulder the burden for himself.

“Well,” Kagome began with her tale. “I’ve been pretty busy with school. My internship doesn’t start until January, though, so I’m trying to appreciate the little downtime that I have right now. And, my classes this term aren’t so bad, they’re -“

“How are you doing?” Inuyasha inquired again, the words enunciated slowly, his tone progressively deepening with care.

“Busy.” She answered steadily. “Staying busy.”

He knew she was intentionally avoiding a direct answer. That bad, huh?

“Tell me, Kagome.”

She swallowed thickly, a yank on her chest reminding her that she wasn’t all that okay. She missed him so much. So fucking much. How could she tell him that it hurt not talking to him? How could she apply that pressure on top of everything else he had going on right now? She just couldn’t. They knew this was coming, they knew they wouldn’t be totally available for each other, you just never know how bad it will feel until you’re experiencing it. She wasn’t allowed to expect anything from him, and she understood that, but being apart and not knowing when the gap will end created an emptiness that was indescribably difficult to manage.

The longer she let his question sit, though, the harder it became to keep her expression straight. She felt it before she could stop it, the crinkle of her brow and the frown on her lips, then her eyes began to burn with brimming tears and she swiftly leaned out of the frame of the FaceTime window.

He took a small opportunity to curse himself while she wasn’t looking, while she was busy guarding her tears from him; something she should never feel she had to do. “Come back.”

She hummed a no.

“Right now.” He ordered gently, his voice gruff.

“Don’t worry. I’m good.” Kagome laughed, seemingly at herself, the sound wet. The arm still in view moved as she sloppily wiped her face, still laughing, and when she sniffled, it even brought him to chuckle lightly as he rolled his eyes. “I’m fine.”

“Babe -“

“See.” She came back into the frame with a smile, her face red but cleared of tears. “I’m fine.”

Inuyasha bit his lip, his chuckle that time more on the dubious side. “I’m sorry.”

“What? Why?” She asked, her smile fading.

“Because, you’re not fine and this is because of me.”

“No, it’s not.”

“Shut up,” He shook his head to quiet her. “Just listen, okay? I really fucked up. I thought it would be best if I backed off so getting over the hump of this would be easier. I didn’t know where that would leave us, but I, for some stupid fucking reason, had convinced myself that it was necessary.”

“Did it help you? Feel better, at least?” Inuyasha could see the compassion in her eyes, in the way she worried her bottom lip, in the genuine tone she held.

“Not one bit. I’ve never felt worse, actually. I can’t do it. I can’t stay away from you.”

“Inuyasha, you have your career. It’s not wrong of you to try and detach from a stressful situation, because unfortunately, that’s what this is. There’s no way around that.” She stated directly.

“Stop trying to make me feel better.”

“Stop trying to blame yourself.”

“Stop trying to justify my actions for me, Kagome.”

“Stop trying to act like your actions were malicious. Unless they were?”

“No, of course -“

“Then, shut up.”

He blinked, surprised at the growing heat in her tone.

“It’s not that I’m trying to justify what you did, I just understand why you did it. I can’t be upset at you for that. In retrospect, it’s really not all that bad. You didn’t make a promise to me -“

“I made multiple.” Inuyasha argued, cutting her off. “I told you we’d still talk, I told you we’d still see each other.”

Kagome huffed, her exasperation rising. “I really, really don’t understand what you’re getting at here, Inuyasha. Why are you so upset with yourself when we left each other knowing this was going to suck? I certainly didn’t know what the right thing to do for us was. I still don’t! We have conflicting schedules and lives right now, and from the moment we found out we were soulmates, you warned me that this thing between us wasn’t going to immediately work out. So, why are you suddenly villainizing yourself? It’s like you want me to be mad at you!”

Inuyasha leaned his chin into his palm, his mouth covered by his fingers as his golden eyes drifted to stare at the surface his phone was placed upon. His heavy sigh was emphasized, but Kagome remained quiet, waiting him out, letting him gather his thoughts. When he was ready, her soulmate lowered his hand, but he never looked back at her, his expression almost communicating shame.

“I could have been doing more. That’s just it. I could have been doing more. I avoided more thinking it would help, and I avoided the bare minimum thinking it was right for the long run. I can’t stand the thought that your sadness is worse than what it has to be because of the route I took. So, yeah.” Inuyasha met her gaze. “Maybe you being mad at me is what I want, because I can fix that. Ultimately, I feel like I need to fix something. But, on top of that, I feel so fucking helpless and stuck, and like anything I choose to do is wrong.”

Kagome had figured out pretty early on that Inuyasha wasn’t the type to openly show his feelings. He was smooth, he was passionate, but he was subtle with his messages. And, early on, she realized she was the lucky one that got to experience this side of him. Especially now, she could see his guard lowering so she could fully understand what was going on in his head; something she felt, if she wasn’t his soulmate, she’d have to work very hard to see after a significant amount of time and a significant amount of trust was built. Inuyasha was, by nature, protective. And, she could tell he was hard on himself. So, when he feels like he failed to protect her from harm in any way, shape, or form, he’s going to jump to take the heat for it. When the blame is on him, he can compensate to rectify the situation, tend to your wounds, step up and do better, but that’s just not logical. If he continued to do that, he’d eventually run himself dry. Kagome understood what he was getting at with his decision, and yes, it hurt to a degree, but she still didn’t see him as a bad guy. It wasn’t his responsibility to make sure everything was okay. In fact, he had good intentions.

“How can I help you right now? Tell me what you need to hear.” Kagome said evenly.

Inuyasha pondered for a moment, eyes flickering away and meeting hers again when he spoke. “Tell me the truth about how you’re doing. Don’t duck out of view. Be straight with me.”

She could already feel her eyes prickling with fresh tears, her face heating uncomfortably as she honed in on the emotions she’d swallowed over and over and over and over throughout the months. “I’m sad.” Her voice trembled, but she took in a deep breath to give him what he needed. “I’m really sad. I feel helpless, I feel stupid, I feel tired. I’m lonely.” She finally began to cry, and it took active effort not to hide it from him, terrified he’d feel responsible. “I miss you. And, I’m angry. I’m angry that we have to go through this in the first place, and all I want to do is call you so I can listen to you talk - and I don’t even care what the topic is or if you’re not even talking to me, but someone else - I just want to hear your voice. I don’t like that you’re upset, and I want to take it away from you just as much as you want to take it away from me, and not being able to is frustrating. But, if you expect me to blame you for any of this, that’s where you’ll succeed in making me mad at you. I know for a fact you would never intentionally do anything to hurt me, and you can’t get me to picture you in that light. Do I like that you stepped back? No. Of course, not. But, honestly, I didn’t even know it was an option to have more of you, so no harm - no foul. You tried, it didn’t work, and now you’re here. So, now what? Where do you want to go from here? What’s our next step?”

Inuyasha had been holding his breath, clenching his jaw shut as he digested Kagome’s powerful sincerity. At least twice during her admittance he’d considered buying the first available plane ticket to her, even if that meant he could only be there for an hour. He spoke on a whim, uncaring of the irrationality behind it if that’s how it appeared. He wasn’t going to listen to her pain and do nothing about it when, now, to him, the answer was obvious.

“We ditch our original idea that things won’t work until we’re done with our shit. When I said that, we’d just had our first night together. It didn’t sound sane then to jump into anything when we were confused, new to each other, and freaked the fuck out. Even as you left, it made sense to hold onto the idea to wait, but it’s just not working. The pull on our souls to be together is too strong.”

Kagome hastily wiped her face using the sleeves of her shirt, sniffling in an attempt to clear her emotions. “Inuyasha, we can’t drop what we’ve worked for. Especially you. I won’t let you.”

“I’m not saying that. I’m saying we manage a long distance relationship. I’m going fucking crazy over here, Kagome. Fuck the boundaries, fuck the time difference, fuck anything that works against us. Why are we putting ourselves through this? God, it doesn’t fucking make sense! This is so stupid! If you want to call me, call me! I’m yours! If you’re lonely, let me keep you company the best way that I can! If I want to see that gorgeous smile of yours, I’m fucking going to! I’ll learn your schedule, and I’ll work through mine for you. I will never be too busy to tell you that I love you, it’s as simple as that. We’ll make this as easy as possible, I don’t want it overwhelming you with classes -“

“No, screw easy.” Kagome objected with a brusque shake of her head. “I don’t want easy, I want you.”

“So, yes?” Inuyasha breathed, and it was evident it held the release of a substantial amount of tension he’d been harboring with for far too long now.

“Yes.” Kagome laughed with relief, her shoulders dropping. “Did you think I’d actually say no?”

“I don’t know. It’d be pretty stupid of you if you did.” He joked, chuckling. Fuck, the sound of her giggle was like the most wonderful song he’d ever heard. “God, I wish I could kiss you right now.”

“Soon.” She whispered.

“Not soon enough.”

“Does this mean nothing has to hold us back from each other now? I can send you messages without worrying about bothering you, and -“

“Hey, woah, wait.” Inuyasha’s brows furrowed, a frown marring his face as he cocked his head to the side in question. “I told you not to hesitate before. You’d never bother me.”

“I know, but it was still kind of confusing. I just wanted to tread carefully. Especially since I wasn’t hearing from you, so sending you texts or pictures just didn’t seem appropriate.”

The hanyou dropped his head down to the table, the sound of the bang coming through loudly on the speakers, and his ears wilted slightly as he groaned dramatically. “You’re kidding me. How many pictures did I fucking miss out on!?”

“No! None!” Kagome frantically tried to dispel his aggravation, waving her hands before her even though he couldn’t look to see. “I’ve hardly taken any pictures, or looked remotely presentable to have anything to show off, I swear! It was just an example!”

“Fucking liar.” He grumbled.

“No, I’m not lying! See,” Kagome grabbed her phone from beside her, unlocking it with her thumbprint and opening the photos app. Inuyasha glanced up at her with a grimace, disdain for himself written all over his face, but she ignored it as she showed him the screen, mindlessly scrolling through while trying to see where she was at in the small window of herself on the FaceTime camera. “It’s all stupid screenshots I save for later or send to Sango. There’s a couple pictures of myself the day this term started, but those were for my mom because she collects first day of school pictures. Then, we’re back in summer vacation. And then, that’s all before we even met.”

“Hold it!” Inuyasha abruptly demanded. Kagome stopped scrolling, pulling back her phone to see what he was looking at. “Go back down.”

“Hm?” She questioned, putting the screen back up to him so he could guide how far back he wanted her to go as she slowly slid her finger along the glass of her phone.

“A little more. There. The blue shirt. Let me see that one.”

Again, Kagome glanced at her phone, selecting the image he was looking at as she felt her cheeks flush. It was just as the weather began warming up and she drove ten hours home to surprise her mom for her birthday. Rightfully, she’d done her makeup for the event, her hair, and wore a cute blouse that fell off her shoulders to reveal the few freckles littering her skin beneath. And, in the selfie she’d taken, she’d ruffled her loose curls further, the smile she wore was a little on the sultry side, and the light hit her chocolate eyes just right. With the hint of embarrassment, Kagome presented the picture to Inuyasha. His growing, crooked grin ignited a flurry within her stomach, the sensation quickly traveling through her chest and over the surface of her entire body.

“Send it to me.” He said huskily.

“What? You want this one?”

“Like that’s even a question. Send it over.”

Flattered, she complied, texting it to his number. His smile brightened, then his FaceTime screen paused as he picked up his phone from the table and clicked her text. Though she couldn’t see him anymore, she could still hear him, and his exhaled breath upon seeing her photo had her ready to melt into a puddle on the carpet beneath her seat.

Inuyasha released a tantalizing chuckle, whispering a hoarse, “Fuck.”

“What?” Kagome giggled, her embarrassment increasing and her face growing hot.

“Just -“ He paused. “Fuck, baby.”

“Come back.”

“Hang on, I’m setting this as your contact picture. That way, whenever you text or call, this picture will pop up, and if anyone looks over at my phone, they’ll have a good moment to envy me when they realize what my girlfriend looks like.”

“Inuyasha!” She laughed, slapping her hands to her cheeks to hide the maddening blush.

“Hey, and that’s just your face.”

“Stop!”

“Man, if they saw your ass -“

“Inuyasha! Oh my god!”

He popped back onto her screen, setting his phone back where it had been with the most satisfied and cocky expression.

“Send me one of you.” She said, shaking her head and laughing the humility off.

“I will. Later. Promise.”

“Are you feeling better now?” Kagome asked with a genuine tone, her smile unfaltering.

“Yes and no.” He answered honestly. “I’m not going to one hundred percent feel better until I’m back with you. But, at least I have you now.”

“You’ve had me all this time, Inuyasha. I would have waited for you for as long as you needed me to.” She swore she saw a tint of pink ripen his cheeks. “Are you going to try to at least sleep a little before work?”

“I don’t want to hang up yet.” He replied, his voice dying away with his empowering sincerity.

“I know you don’t need as much sleep as a human, but you still need some.”

“I’m not that tired.”

“Have you been sleeping well lately?”

“Why do you want me to hang up so bad?” Inuyasha chuckled lightly.

“I don’t. Not at all. I haven’t had my fill of you yet, either. But, I know you. When you get stuck in your head about something, you don’t sleep well. Now, there’s less to keep you up.” Kagome said, her tone as gentle as ever.

“You worry too much.” He dismissed with amusement. “Ten more minutes, then I’ll head to bed. Happy?”

He meant what he’d said as he spoke it, but it was impossible to remember the time as he continued to speak with her, made her laugh, witnessed her beautiful smile that had him smitten all over again. She helped him forget his grief from just moments before, she helped him feel like time hardly missed a beat with them. She told him she loved him before pushing him to go to sleep after a while, and his heart felt as if it sputtered elatedly.

From then on, they communicated as often as they possibly could. He memorized her schedule like the back of his hand the moment she’d graciously sent it to him, and if anything ever ended up changing, like a canceled class, a fever that kept her bed-ridden, or maybe she was staying out longer to get lunch or dinner with a friend, she’d never hesitate to tell him. Not so he knew not to bother her, because it wasn’t like that with them. Both of them were a wonderful priority to each other. He just liked knowing she was safe. He liked knowing when she was home and when she got home. There was literally only one part of her schedule he did not like, and he let it be known. Twice a week, she had to take a late class. It was with a small group, it was in a building on campus located far from the parking lot, and it got out at nine-forty-five in the evening. Meaning, twice a week, she was alone and vulnerable on a ten minute walk back to her car, then again at her apartment complex during the few minutes it took for her to get inside her place. She called him paranoid and he pridefully accepted it. He’d rather be labeled paranoid from his need to protect his girl than careless.

Since it wasn’t practical to even request for her to drop the class and see if it had a better timeframe next semester - especially given she was in her final year of college and the courses she had left were pretty much solidified - he had Kagome call him the moment she got out of class. She tried to argue that it was too late, or too early in his timezone, but he didn’t give a crap. He usually got up around six-thirty in the morning, five-thirty on the days he went to the gym. A five-fifty wakeup call wasn’t going to impede on anything, and it took him telling her over and over he’d stay up all night if it meant he got to make sure she was safe to get it through her head that the fight she was putting up was pointless.

Honestly, what better alarm than a call from Kagome? What stronger sense of productivity than to start his day by keeping his girl company as she ended hers. She had the audacity to call him with a normal voice call the first couple times around, but he quickly fixed that by swapping it over to FaceTime. As shadowed as she was in the night, he wanted to be there with her in the best way possible. He honestly didn’t like her being too distracted while she walked, but he couldn’t help but want to hear her talk. And, she’d let it accidentally slip one time that she was a sucker for the groggy voice he had early in the morning. Naturally, he’d milk that for all it was worth and tell her a little about his day prior. As soon as she’d reach her car, he’d remind her to check the backseats; which she really didn’t need to be reminded to do. Nine times out of ten, she was already doing it to make sure no one had broken in. Then, he’d stay on the line with her for the fifteen minutes it took her to drive home and find parking in her complex, and by the time she was inside her apartment, he was usually sipping the last of his morning coffee. On a good occasion, Kagome would walk into a madhouse and secretly flip the camera around to sneak in glimpses of her best friend frantically attempting to work on last minute assignments due by midnight while she was strung on ramen noodles and late night espresso shots she really shouldn’t be allowed. The hardest part was swallowing his laughter until Kagome was safely shut inside her room. And, the sweetest part came when she’d give him this cute as shit nose scrunch as she smiled and told him to have a good day while eagerly awaiting his cheesy, cliche, timezone-inhibited reply of, “Get some sleep. I love you.”

Her midterms were hard on her, and he tried to support her through them the best he could, but her finals of the first semester were proving to test her limits. She was busier than ever with studying and assignments, she was exhausted, and a couple times she’d called him having a minor breakdown just because she knew he’d be able to talk her down and get her back to thinking semi-rationally. It was common in overworked and drained minds to be hard on yourself, he knew as well as anyone else. With their schedules at their most hectic yet, him heading meetings and really grinding down on a shit place his company acquired, texts weren’t often seen until hours later. Calls were always answered because he knew that if she was calling, with their plates being as full as they were, it was serious, but texts were unfortunately unanswered until both of them were home and had a small moment to breathe. That’s when things began to really weigh on them again. It went unspoken. On both ends. But, if he could feel the stress of not being able to even say he loved her while she was awake, if he could feel the torture of missing her even more than he already had before, he knew she could, too.

With the utmost amount of tenderness, Inuyasha began to put together a surprise care package with as many things he thought she’d enjoy that would fit in the box. She was in the midst of her exams, he knew, but given she’d been able to get a couple out of the way already, she was bound for the remainder the following week, and then she was heading home for Christmas break, he wanted to get this out to her as soon as possible. He was just missing one major component.

As he returned to his loft at the end of his long day, he texted Kagome to see if she was busy, and within the minute she responded saying she wasn’t. Stealing the opportunity, Inuyasha FaceTimed her, the call swiftly answered with the usual chime of the video connection. A laugh rose from his throat that he couldn’t swallow in time. The camera was angled downward on what he assumed was her laptop, exposing Kagome blinking sleepily as she laid stomach-down on the purple comforter of her bed, an arm rested beneath her temple as a pillow and a tired smile appearing on her lips.

“You just said you weren’t busy.” Inuyasha said, loosening the tie around his collar.

“I’m not.” Kagome giggled. “As you can see, I’m clearly doing nothing.”

“You’re napping.”

“I was simply resting my eyes.” She coolly stated, her brown eyes fluttering closed for a small moment.

“Were you studying?” Inuyasha chuckled, removing the tie entirely and unbuttoning the top buttons of his shirt with his free hand, finally feeling a little more comfortable.

“No, I was working on an essay. But, then the words started to blur together, and nothing made sense anymore, and next thing I knew, I was laying down.”

“Move the camera, I can’t see your whole face.” Without missing a beat, Kagome used her non-pillow hand to scoot her laptop a little to the left. God, even as spent as she was, she still looked breathtaking. Inuyasha smiled, sitting down on the couch and taking her in while she seemed so peaceful. “Perfect. You’re so beautiful.”

“Shut up.” She grumbled playfully. “Did you just get home?”

“Yeah. Before I forget to ask, can you do me a favor?”

“Only if you talk in your British accent.”

“That was a one time deal, dummy.”

“Again.” Her tone was cute, and her nose scrunched in the manner that usually suckered him into anything. She even pushed herself to prop up her chin so she looked more awake, adjusting the camera accordingly, her elbow sinking into the thick blanket beneath her.

“I was drunk when I agreed to it in the first place.” He feebly attempted to argue, rolling his amber eyes.

“Take a shot!” Kagome encouraged.

“I’m not doing it.” He chuckled.

“Please?”

“Nope.”

“Please?” She pushed on with her adorable voice, making it smaller, dragging out the word.

Inuyasha sucked in an inhale, flexing his jaw in an attempt to resist her. With every ounce of willpower her had, he shook his head to tell her no, exhaling his strain and smiling as he slid his tongue over his canine tooth. With a defeated huff and a pout, Kagome gave in.

“Fine. What do you want?” She asked teasingly.

“Your address.”

“Hm? You don’t have that?”

“I’ve never needed it before.” He laughed, the evidence of her groggy brain coming through.

“Oh?” She piqued, cocking a sly brow. “And, what would you happen to need it for now?”

“I’ve got something for you.”

“A Christmas present?”

“No. Your Christmas gift will be sent separately. This is just a gift.”

“What is it?” Kagome asked excitedly.

“None of your business.” He chuckled. “Send me your address.”

“So bossy.” She joked, grabbing her phone from beside her computer and sending him what he’d requested.

“Got it. Thanks, babe. You can go back to sleep now.”

“Wait, no. Don’t go yet.” Her eyes had grown larger, almost pleading, and Inuyasha had to wonder if she could ever give him an expression he wasn’t utterly weak for. “Unless you’re busy, then I totally understand.”

“There’s nothing I’d rather do right now than stay on the phone with you, baby.” He grinned, his heart thundering as she beamed brightly and pushed herself to sit up for him.

Kagome came home from her final exam of the semester - of the year, really, considering when they returned from break, it’d be after New Years - feeling pumped for finally having everything out of the way while simultaneously ready for the longest nap of her life. All she needed to do was proofread her very last paper and press submit by tomorrow, and she was ready to head home for Christmas.

She’d stopped at Starbucks for a celebratory peppermint cappuccino, in light of the holiday, grabbing one for Sango while she was at it, because the poor girl was still knee deep in two of her remaining projects. As she entered their apartment, her best friend popped out from the little kitchen entry, clearly not intending to scare the shit out of her, but doing so in her powerful excitement.

“Hi! You got a package in the mail!” Sango shouted, a packet of spaghetti noodles held in her grip.

Kagome clutched her chest over her heart with her free hand, lucky she didn’t drop the carrier of their hot drinks all over the place in her terror. “How many?”

“Noodles? I don’t know, I mean I’ve never tried to count -“

“Espresso shots!”

“Oh. Oh! I don’t want to talk about it.” Sango swiftly dismissed, grimacing.

“How many!?”

“Enough to give an elderly man a heart attack, that’s for sure.”

“Oh, I’m gonna kill Miroku for getting you that thing.” Kagome seethed, finally recovering and dropping her bag by the tiny dining room table.

“Is that a coffee for me I see?” Sango sang, dancing her way over to her best friend.

Kagome groaned, taking her drink out of the carrier and begrudgingly handing it to the over-caffeinated girl. “A mistake.”

“Thanks, friend!” She squeaked. “Open your package, I want to see what’s in it! I saw a familiar name written on top!” Again, she was singing, more so to be teasing this time but Kagome only laughed.

“Did you mean, mine?”

“No! Oh my god, it’s on the coffee table.”

Kagome’s attention turned, noticing for the first time a decently-sized, brown box waiting for her in the living room. Sauntering over, she looked at the labels, Inuyasha’s name and return address sitting in the upper-left corner. Truthfully, she’d forgotten to expect anything from him, the thought of a gift pushed to the back of her mind by her insane schedule.

She flicked up the packing tape with her nails, peeling it from the top and opening the package to reveal several things waiting for her inside. She grabbed for the shirt folded nicely and crammed on the side. At first glance, it seemed large and comfy, but then when she turned it over to see the band name on front, she realized it was one of his favorite, old shirts he’d worn while they were together. Instantly, she pursed out her bottom lip in adoration, hugging it close.

“Wait, there’s a letter!” Sango pointed gleefully, sipping her coffee as she watched Kagome open her gift.

Kagome gently placed the shirt over the rim of the box, grabbing for the folded paper to open it and see a little letter written in her love’s handwriting.

A couple notes as you open this:

– Snacks for your downtime.

– A new heating pad for your cramps since I fucking KNOW you haven’t gotten rid of that shitty one yet.

– Vanilla body spray from a little shop out here, because I know you like that scent. And, I like it on you.

– Two of my shirts. They smell like me. Wear them to bed and I’ll be right there with you. Send me pictures in them, too. I mean it.

– Chapstick, because you go through that shit like crazy. It’s the kind you like, don’t freak out.

– The last one is self explanatory. Open it. Put it on. Tap it three times.

Kagome had to resist hugging the piece of notebook paper to her chest, wanting to hold the sweet gesture as close to her as possible but refusing to crinkle the page. She gently placed it on the table, moving the shirt she’d already looked at to the side and grabbing for the other one. It was another band tee, a little less worn than the other but his homing scent radiating from it and bringing tears to prickle at her eyes. She bunched beneath her nose, really taking it in while she fought to hold her composure, too happy for words.

Finally setting it aside, she reached for the cute bottle of body spray, taking a little whiff of the perfume that smelled so sweet before setting it down and reaching for the little packet of chapstick, giggling along with Sango. He’d sent over a package of chocolate chip cookies, and two bags of chips she’d never had before but she was excited to try tonight, having already planned on putting on a movie and vegging out. The new heating pad made her laugh again, the box in pristine condition. Then, lastly, a small, blue and purple, gradient-blurred box sat alone in the package, the image of two wrist bands posted on the front.

Kagome carefully opened it, greeted with a black bracelet of sorts as she removed it completely from the packaging, the top of it harboring a small, oval widget.

“What is it?” Sango asked.

“I don’t know. He told me to put it on and tap it three times.” Kagome shrugged, handing it to Sango so she could strap it securely around her left wrist. As it was fastened, Kagome went ahead and tapped her finger to the face of the device, watching a thin strip of blue light illuminate over the surface she touched.

It was hardly thirty seconds later that her phone began to ring, Inuyasha’s contact picture filling the screen. Shocked and joyous, Kagome lunged to answer her phone.

“Hi!”

“You got it.” He hummed, the soft sound of chatter and passing cars filtering through in the background.

“How’d you know?”

“Still haven’t figured it out yet?” At her lack of an answer, Inuyasha chuckled. “Okay, are you wearing it?”

“Yeah.”

Three slow vibrations tickled the part of her wrist beneath the oval device, a purple light shining with each sensation. Kagome’s jaw dropped with her breathy gasp, pure bliss written all over her face. “Oh my god, was that you!?”

“Yup.” He laughed.

“You tapped it three times!?”

“Yup.”

“It’s like I can feel you!” She was so happy, so absolutely euphoric to receive some form of touch from her soulmate, her tummy fluttering wildly and body enticingly warm. There was no fighting the tears that flooded her eyes, her heart so wonderfully full.

“Are you crying?” He chuckled as she sniffled.

“Shut up!” She laughed. “I love it all so much! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“You’re welcome, baby. This way, whenever we miss each other but are too busy to talk, we can just give this thing a few taps and we’ll literally feel it. Especially, since you’ll be starting your internship next month. This thing’s really gonna come in handy.”

Kagome gave out a pouty whimper, grabbing his shirts and curling up on the couch to hold them close. “I just love you so much. Thank you.” She playfully whined.

“I love you, too.” He laughed.

“I can’t believe you gave me your favorite shirt.”

“I can’t believe you’re about to send me a ton of pictures in it.” He countered, his tone completely serious.

“With or without pants?”

“Slut.” Sango joked, walking away and downing her hot beverage.

“What do you think?”

“With or without a bra?”

“Fuck.” He whispered, taken. It was a thin, white shirt. If she wore it well and wore it right, he might be able to catch a glimpse of something he was sorely aching for.

“Got it.” She teasingly said. “Are you out and about right now? It’s kind of late there, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, I’m at a bar with some friends. Stepped outside to call you.”

“Are you having fun?”

“Not as much fun as I’d be having with you.”

“Go back inside,” Kagome giggled. “Thank you, again.”

“You’re welcome.” He breathed, content.

“Let me know when you get home safe, please.”

“I will.”

“British accent?”

“Not drunk enough.” Inuyasha laughed.

“Dang it! Okay, love you. Bye.”

“Love you.”

Winter break was relaxing and necessary for a reset, and whenever Inuyasha wanted to text, call, or FaceTime, she was available for him. Their bracelets didn’t get much use then, but Kagome still refused to take it off unless it needed to charge. Once she got back into the swing of school for her very last term, was introduced to her internship and the responsibility she held, was thoroughly buried in homework she struggled to catch up on during her off days, that’s when they came through.

If she ever tapped it, he was incredibly fast to respond with touches of his own, as if he was right there for support. She adored him. He was so amazing. He was so kindhearted and good. Her favorite time to receive those sensations from him were late at night, sometimes while she was dozing. There was nothing better than being woken by sweet vibrations from the love of her life who was just getting started on his own routine on his side of the world. He woke up thinking about her, and there was no better feeling. And, if she was ever looking for a little excuse to hear his voice, she’d send him three taps in the dead of night. The best time was between two and three in the morning. The first time she’d done it, she’d come out of a nightmare. As soon as she’d opened her eyes in the darkness of her bedroom, she’d immediately forgotten the happenings of which, but she was still awake, still slightly shaken, and still looking for a smidge of comfort. She tapped three times, he tapped back, and she sank into her bedding happily. But, then her phone started chiming with a FaceTime call from him. She reached up, flicking on the lamp on her bedside table and answered, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” He asked, donned in his business attire and sitting at a desk, the look of concern etched on his face.

“Hm?” Her voice was rusty but small, the vaguest, confused grimace on her lips.

“Why are you awake?” He chuckled, slightly recovering.

“I had a bad dream.” Kagome pouted. “I just wanted to touch you. Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” His grin was tender. “I was worried something had happened. Are you okay now?”

“I’m okay, I promise.”

“Go back to sleep, baby. I’m right here if you need anything.”

God, it was so serene to hear that. And, she lapped it up, realizing that he’d reach out to see that she was fine if he noticed she was up at an off time. She was often awake super late working on assignments, or studying when a test was approaching. Only a couple times had she actually gone out with friends - which he was typically aware of. But, if it had been a little while since she’d last done it - because, he’d catch on if she did it too often - she’d send him some sensations, waiting for her own in reply, and then her phone would light up with a call from him to check on her.

Around spring break, blessed spring break, she was packing up to head home again. She was just two weeks away from completing her four month internship, and her wonderful, gracious, brilliant supervisor arranged it so she could work them when spring break ended, so she could see her family for the allotted time off. Her younger brother was interviewing for a couple of colleges, utilizing their grandfather’s connections to their fullest capacities, and her mom thought it would be a good idea to make it an entire family outing. As far as she knew, they were going to Connecticut, and though she wasn’t sure what all there was to do out there, she was still just looking forward to the event.

Inuyasha rolled his golden eyes as his brother droned on and on, hoping the motion wasn’t too obvious behind the restaurant menu. The idiot literally flew him out for a lunch meeting. A lunch meeting. The U.K. to Chicago for a lunch meeting. Maybe this was a glimpse at his future when he took partnership at the company, maybe this was intended to be purposeful toward his increasing leadership roles, or maybe Sesshomaru made it a hobby to waste peoples’ time. Honestly, he was willing to bank on the first suggestion, and even the second - his spite just sprouted the third, but it was hard to tell with his non-communicative brother. Everything was basically just left up to surprise.

Only once in the last fifteen minutes had he been addressed, and everything else Sesshomaru discussed had basically nothing to do with him, nor was it information anyone at the table would necessarily deem valuable. After the redeye flight he’d sat on, the dull walkthrough of the facility Sesshomaru was currently whipping into shape, and the headache Jaken was causing just by existing, all Inuyasha wanted was a fat lunch to make it all worth it. Also, he’d pay someone to tell his brother that not every update needed to be a fucking meeting.

Knowing they were still ages away from ordering anything more than water, Inuyasha propped his cheek in his palm, glancing out the window he sat next to. His golden eyes mindlessly swept over passing people, the charming, cobblestone street a good home for boutiques and cafe’s to attract attention. Older women wore smiles as they chatted with their companions, men walked hand-in-hand with their partners, young girls filtered into shops, and Kagome’s bright grin as she picked on the guy next to her even managed to clear the annoyed frown from his face.

His heart stopped. Kagome? What the fuck?

There was an exhilarating jolt that coursed through his body, his heart remembering it’s purpose and pumping powerfully against his ribcage as he studied the girl as best as he could from where he sat. Was it her? Long, black hair, slim figure, kind of short - he’d groan loudly if he could have from his building agitation. These were all general factors of identification. He needed to see her face or hear her voice.

Turn around. Turn the fuck around.

And, as if she sensed his need, she twirled around as they continued on, her smile as beautiful as ever in the dress she donned as she spoke with the elderly man behind her, walking backward to keep up. It was her.

It was Kagome.

As calmly as he possibly could, which was a feat on its own, he whispered into his brother’s ear that he needed to check in on something with his own facility. Work-related meant there was a good chance Sesshomaru wouldn’t gripe. His brother gave him an empty stare, and Inuyasha pressed that it was important, to which Sesshomaru gave a nod of approval and momentarily dismissed him to slip outside. The second his foot was out the door, the hanyou bolted, chasing after that sweet scent of hers that he could pinpoint anywhere. They couldn’t have gotten too far, she had an old geezer on her tail. Still, the further down the road he got, the more narrow and crowded the street became.

A huge part of him couldn’t even believe they were so close to one another right now. It was hard to digest; hard to understand that this was real. His heart was pounding, his stomach was in a violent flurry, his fingers were shaking with a debilitating need to grab onto her and never let go. His eyes scoured the area, looking for his girl, his love, his soulmate. If he ever met fate, he was going to punch that fucker in the throat and then thank her for the opportunity - because, as kind as she seemed to be, she was still a petty ass bitch for putting them through this.

Free from the claustrophobic street and coming into a large, open, touristy square, he spotted her from behind a good ways ahead. Without thinking, unable to stop himself even if he tried, he shouted her name, his lungs pumping air fervently as the anticipation for her to see him knocked the wind from his diaphragm.

Hearing a thunderous bellow of her name, Kagome abruptly stopped walking, startled while a frenzy of flutters erupted in her abdomen. She spun around, searching the area for the voice, the call, her mom asking what was wrong beside her but she couldn’t answer.

Her breathing stopped, her heart sputtered, her body heated, and the biggest surprise overtook her when she spotted Inuyasha where they’d come from at the far end of the square. She didn’t even pause to process. Kagome ran to him, sprinted, enveloped in ecstasy when she saw him running toward her, too.

He’d braced to catch her and she threw herself into his arms, her own encircling his neck as he squeezed her tight, spinning her around once before setting her toes back to the ground.

“Oh my god, what are you doing here!?” She cried, unwilling to let go yet.

“I flew out for a meeting; I’m just here until tonight!” Inuyasha replied, holding her so tight his body curved protectively around hers.

“I didn’t know you were coming!”

“I didn’t want to mention it! It was last minute, and it’d be like salt in the wound! I thought you were in Connecticut, anyway!”

“No, I had it wrong!” She laughed, more from the overwhelming happiness than anything else. They finally let go of each other, but Inuyasha cradled her jaw with his hands, keeping her to him, and Kagome held onto his forearms, tightening her grip to attempt and still her trembling fingers. “His Connecticut interview is on a different date. This was apparently a Chicago interview trip all along.”

“You dummy.” He laughed, pulling her in for the kiss of a lifetime.

He breathed her in, holding her close, his shoulders curling over her as she whimpered beautifully into the breathtaking kiss. It heated him thoroughly, making him feel whole for the first time since August.

“I swear,” She sighed as they broke apart, but he interrupted her with another kiss. “I texted -“ Another kiss, this time accompanied with a tiny growl to shut her up. It only made her giggle. “You.”

“I haven’t been able to check my phone. I’m so sorry.” He murmured breathlessly, pressing his forehead to hers.

“I just can’t believe you’re here!” She squealed, bouncing to hug him again.

“Fuck, baby. I’ve missed you so goddamn much.” He laughed, engulfed in sheer bliss. “Was that your family I saw you with?”

“Yeah.” Kagome smiled, allowing him to let go, though their hands quickly sought the other’s out, fingers pleasantly entwined for a sense of completeness.

“I’d like to meet them.” He said with a quick peck to her cheek before gesturing for her to lead him over. She was giddy, practically skipping as she guided him through the square to where her mother, grandfather, and brother waited; two of which looking more confused than anything while the awaiting woman seemed nothing less than sweetly content.

“I’ve never seen my daughter run to anyone so fast in my life. You must be Inuyasha.” Kagome’s mother chuckled, the sound smooth.

“I am. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He greeted kindly, holding out his hand for her to shake.

“Inuyasha, this is my mom, my grandpa, and my brother, Sota.” Kagome said.

Her younger brother held a grimace of bemusement, and she rolled her eyes, her head lolling to the side in mild exasperation.

“My boyfriend.” She clarified.

“Oh!” Sota’s expression cleared, like a lightbulb literally flickered on over his head. “Cool. The sweet-talker.”

“Oh my god.” Kagome mumbled, tucking her embarrassment behind Inuyasha’s arm as he laughed.

“Uh, yeah. That’s me.” The hanyou agreed with a smug grin, shrugging. It wasn’t a lie; he knew the level of his own game.

“Yeah, my sister never shuts up about you. How do you turn it off?” Sota sarcastically asked.

Kagome’s jaw dropped in shock and Inuyasha pinched his lips together to stifle his laugh. A look of humored fear struck her younger brother as she narrowed her eyes, silently mouthing the words, “I’m gonna fucking hit you.”

“It’s nice to meet you, boy.” The old man greeted, interrupting the siblings and taking Inuyasha’s hand to shake. “It’s a wonderment to see proof that the concept of soulmates still exists in this era.”

“I can’t agree more.” He nodded earnestly, squeezing Kagome’s hand as he still held it.

“If my son were still here, he’d damn the whole thing and insist on giving you a hard time to make sure you deserved Kagome.”

“I guess you’ll have to do it for him then. I’d happily take the challenge.”

“Shit, you are a sweet-talker.” Sota murmured, casually ducking behind their mother when Kagome sent him an incredulous glare to shut his mouth.

“I like to hear that.” Her grandfather stated.

“Are you here on business?” Her mother asked in reference to his professional attire, dressed to the nines thanks to Sesshomaru’s need to be uncomfortable, her genuine smile never having once faded.

“I am. Yes. I saw you all passing by the window of the restaurant we were having a meeting in. I couldn’t stop myself from running out.”

“What?” Kagome gasped. “You were currently in the meeting you were flown out for? And, you just ditched it!?”

“Don’t worry!” He laughed, giving her hand another comforting squeeze. “I told Sesshomaru I had to take a work call, so he thinks I’m on the phone.”

“Your brother was in the meeting, too!? How much longer can you pull this off before he grows suspicious!?”

Inuyasha pulled the cellphone from the pocket of his slacks, his humored expression deadpanning as he noticed a recent text from Sesshomaru telling him to wrap up the call so they could get on with business. He shifted an apologetic frown toward Kagome, pressing a long squeeze to her palm.

“Thought so.” She compassionately smiled.

“I’m sorry.” Came his whisper.

“Mama, I’m gonna walk him back, okay?”

“No, you don’t -“

“Alright, dear. We won’t go far.” Her mother beamed, waving a goodbye.

“It was so nice to finally meet you all.” Inuyasha politely said before turning around, dragging his soulmate off with him.

She hugged his arm close, the body heat of hers radiating through his suit. They didn’t say much on their walk back, which he intentionally took at a leisurely pace. It was a moment to respect; to savor. He wanted to memorize the prints of her fingertips that held his hand, every ridge and line of her skin engraved into his own. He wanted to absorb every ounce of warmth she had to offer, and be privileged to remember the exact rhythm that her lungs worked at. And, when they neared the restaurant, he physically felt the wrenching sputter of her heart, and though he knew it was from ache, he wanted to remember that, too. Because, it was for him. Because, she loved him. Because, she didn’t want say goodbye or any variation of the word. Because, it helped him realize that he was truly the luckiest bastard in existence.

Inuyasha turned around to face her, his hands instantly cradling her jaw and threading through her soft hair. “I’m sorry this was so short. I’m so sorry, Kagome.”

“Stop. Are you kidding me?” She lightly giggled. “I didn’t think I’d get to see you until you finished up in Europe. Even if this was short, I’m so happy right now.”

“You promise?” He asked for his own reassurance, pressing his forehead to hers.

“Pinky promise.”

Inuyasha curved her chin up in his grasp, kissing her deeply, taking every last bit of her in as he could. Her taste, her scent, the feel of her body pressed against his, everything.

“Get in there, business man.” She breathed, gently rubbing the tip of her nose against his.

“I love you.”

“I love you so much.” Kagome placed one last, sweet kiss to his lips before giving him an encouraging nudge in the direction of the door. “See you later.”

“Tap twice to let me know you’re back safe with your family.”

“I will. Go.”

“Wait, one more.” He laughed, reaching for Kagome and pulling her in for a final, hungry kiss. She melted in his grasp, sighing delightfully, fucking with his mental stability. “Now I’ll go.” He rumbled sedately.

Composing himself, Inuyasha calmly entered the restaurant, crossing to the side his meeting was held on and taking his seat at the window with an apologetic look for the inconvenience. He was glad Sesshomaru didn’t ask questions; for once grateful for the general look of disinterest his brother’s face had seemed to be stuck in for as long as he could remember.

Three slow sensations tickled his left wrist and Inuyasha reflexively went to give them back, stopping himself as he looked out the window. Across the street, Kagome stood in her floral dress, the breeze blowing gorgeous strands of dark hair into her face. With a warm smile, she bit her lip, tucking her hair behind her ear before waving to him. A grin grew on his face, one he knew wasn’t subtle at all but who the fuck was he to care? That was his girl, his Kagome. Without removing his eyes, Inuyasha tapped his device three times, watching her brown eyes flutter down to see it illuminate and then smile even wider before gifting him with one last glance, and walking away.

From that point on, things were easy. Easier. It was still hard to be apart, but the sense that everything was going to be perfectly fine settled any nerves that had the tendency to get aggravated. Kagome’s schedule gradually cleared as she finished her internship and locked away the experience under her belt, and her classes weren’t as strenuous as the end of the school year approached. She was freaking out a little to try and lock down a job after graduation, as any graduate would be, but calming her down had become a simple task for Inuyasha. Frankly, he wasn’t worried about a damn thing anymore. He wanted Kagome to experience that level of tranquility, too. Everything was bound to fall in line for them from this point on, within their relationship and out, and if it didn’t happen organically, Inuyasha would personally see to fixing it, himself.

Interestingly enough, a plan was set in motion. A chain began to form, unbeknownst to both of them. Until he received a call from a number he didn’t recognize. On a whim, he answered, surprised to hear the soothing voice of Kagome’s mother on the other end; apparently having had Sango play the in-between intelligence that stole his number from Kagome’s phone. With the simple question she presented, the offer on the table, the hanyou cleared his schedule with no debate necessary. His answer was an immediate, “I’ll be there.”

Kagome stood with her graduating friends, waiting for the call that directed them all to get in line in the respectful categories of their majors, donned in celebratory dresses - and button-ups for the guys - beneath their gowns, caps held in their hands until absolutely necessary to put them on and ruin their hair. All of them were proud, joyful, excited, and albeit slightly nervous. Of course, as the ever so reliable one of the group, Sango pulled through with a small - and easily concealable - bottle of tequila. All of them pretended to be surprised that she would pull this stunt, but it would be a lie if anyone would expect anything less of her. Especially on such a jubilant day. Everyone took a straight swig from the bottle, passing it along to the next person until the circle was complete and everyone felt a little more pumped and prepared to cross the stage and wrap up their college career.

After the ceremony, the cheers, the jumps for joy, and the loud pops of confetti that damn near gave everyone a heart attack, students filtered out into the the courtyards to find their families. Kagome was dragged to the side with Sango and Miroku to wait, shadowed by trees in the large lawn dozens of students spaciously inhabited. Multiple times, Kagome felt she should try to find her family, worried they’d gotten lost in the crowd and maybe wandered to a different courtyard, which wasn’t difficult to do at her large school, but Sango insisted she stay put and just wait, claiming she was worrying too much. All she could do was constantly check the phone in her hand to make sure she didn’t somehow miss any notifications from her mom or younger brother.

Moments later, the warm voice of her mom called her name and Kagome beamed with happiness, running to hug her mother, hoping she’d succeeded in making her proud with her accomplishment. Her brother hugged her next, and then her grandfather kissed her cheek, all of them rosy in the face from smiling too much.

“Who’s the stud?” Sango flirtatiously asked, waltzing up to casually join the group and nudging her arm.

Kagome looked at her curiously, then followed the path of her eyes when Sango notched her chin to her left. Against a tree not too far away, a handsome man with short, silver hair leaned, an infamous, crooked grin adorning his face while his arms were nonchalantly crossed in front of his chest. He wore dark jeans with a light, untucked, button-up shirt, dressy enough for the occasion while still maintaining comfort.

“Oh my god!” She cried, carelessly dropping the things in her hands into Sango’s grasp and running over to her cunning boyfriend. “You’re here! You’re here!”

Inuyasha met her halfway, stealing her into a tight embrace as she still bounced on her feet, too excited for stillness, laughing.

“When did you get here!? I FaceTimed you this morning!”

“I know, I was bunkered in your room at your mom’s house.”

“You were at my mom’s!?” Kagome pulled away, completely taken aback.

“It was her idea for me to surprise you.” The hanyou couldn’t bite back his amusement, chuckling and ecstatic that they’d pulled it off without an inkling of suspicion.

Kagome spun around, pinning her best friend with an audacious stare. “You knew, didn’t you!?”

“Of course, I knew! I played a roll in getting him out here!” Sango laughed.

“And, I just knew because that’s my right.” Miroku added, throwing his arm over Sango’s shoulders.

Kagome, too grateful for words and hoping her smile showed all the thanks she could possibly give, spun back around to Inuyasha, hopping back into a hug and robbing a kiss from him. “I can’t believe you’re here! Did you watch?”

“From start to finish. I’m so proud of you!”

“How long are you here for!?”

“Two days. You’ve got me for two days, baby.” Inuyasha squeezed her tight, pulling apart so he could kiss her on the forehead.

Sango and Miroku had parted to find their own families, and Inuyasha and Kagome enjoyed a night out to dinner with her own, celebrating her achievement before she headed back to her own apartment, rightfully dragging Inuyasha home with her.

They were merely in the hallway outside of her apartment before it hit them like a freight train, maddening desire catching up with them after months and months. Their lips had crashed into each other’s, their kiss heated and loving and mind numbingly hot. She was stumbling backward to get to her front door while Inuyasha held firmly around her waist, the two of them actively refusing to part until they absolutely had to - which just so happened to be when she dropped her keys while trying to unlock the door with one hand.

They both laughed, wonderfully flustered, and though he let her go so she could reach for the lanyard that held her keys, Inuyasha took residence behind her, his fingers gripping her hips and pinning his body to hers. His job was to make it difficult for her to get anything done, because in his eyes, he wouldn’t be doing it right if she could concentrate through his ministrations. Lips grazed over the tender flesh of her neck, his searing breath trailing over tended to spots and making her quiver where she stood. Kagome’s fingers were fumbling over keys, and he just fucking knew his girl was biting her lip to keep from making a peep.

God, he was so hard already, ready to fuck her over and over. And, over. And, over. And, if she asked nicely, one more time. He had so much pent up frustration for her to take in, and sleep was for the wicked. Her neck tasted so good, her reactions - stifled as they may be - made him feel borderline feral.

Finally, Kagome unlocked her door, throwing it open and spinning around to claim Inuyasha’s mouth and pull him through, allowing him to shut and lock the bolt.

“Sango?” He murmured into her kiss.

“Not home.” She breathed.

“Sure?”

“She’s smart. She’s not home.”

“Oh? Yeah?” His husky tone piqued in ruttish interest, one of his hands coursing through her hair to snag blissfully at the back. “You already knew what was gonna happen, baby? My little slut.”

Kagome could only reply in a moan, gripping the front of his shirt as she tried to guide him to her bedroom without tripping. She’d left her cap and gown in her car, leaving her donned only in the new dress she’d gotten just for the occasion. It was form-fitting, hugging every curve of hers beautifully, accentuating her perfect tits, her grabbable ass, the straps thin and the hem ending above mid-thigh. Through the door of her bedroom, he wasted no time in locating the zipper, dragging it down her back to release the dress’s enviable grasp on her. The straps fell from her shoulders easily, and Inuyasha gladly dragged them over her arms, flawlessly pushing the dress down her chest, her waist, her hips, and to the floor where she stepped out of it and kicked her flats off. Her breasts were concealed by a strapless bra, and after she eagerly undid his shirt and shoved it off of him, he yanked the useless delicate down to reveal the gorgeous and tempting sight of her hardened nipples. Inuyasha’s mouth instantly claimed one, not bothering to take his time. He was needy for her. Too much time played a cushion between them and he needed the fervent reminder of what she tasted like, how she felt while she laid helplessly beneath him as he fucked her, the erotic sounds she made when he hit just the right spot that made her clutch the bedding and arch her back.

Inuyasha pulled her to follow him as he sat on the edge of the mattress, sucking and using his tongue to flick her nipple within his mouth. Without instigation, she straddled his lap, allowing him to do whatever he wanted, and he rewarded her by grabbing her ass and maneuvering her to grind against his erection. His jeans hindered the sensation he craved, but the way she trembled told him how much she loved it all.

Easily, he unhooked the bra still wrapped beneath her supple breasts, unable to remove the wretched thing fast enough, and switched to pay attention to her neglected nipple. His hands made home on her ass, massaging, giving a little spank, but mindful to be frugal in how often he allowed her to grind into him. He’d stop her if she tried to do it herself, and just to show her he was in charge, he would sometimes only move her in simple, light motions that gave her limited satisfaction. The pleading whimper she made was music to his ears, and he gave a taunting chuckle in response each time. If only she knew he was just getting started with her.

“You miss me, baby?” He whispered hoarsely. Kagome whined, almost gasping as he littered steaming kisses over her chest. “No, no. I asked you a question. Answer it.”

“Yes.” She replied breathlessly. “I missed you so much.”

“Good girl. I missed you, too. All those pictures you send me almost make me lose my mind. I was so fucking close to buying a ticket to see you when you sent me the ones of you touching yourself. You know the ones?” Another keen, breathy and voiceless as he nipped her ribcage lightly. “Answer me.”

“Yes.” She sighed at the exact moment he ground her against him.

“The ones where I know what you’re doing, but I don’t get to see anything. Not a fucking thing. You’re such a little tease, you know that?”

That time, Kagome gave a satisfied and sultry giggle, licking her lips in response.

“Oh, you do? You’re a little too proud of yourself there, baby girl. You like driving me crazy?” His voice was deep, throaty, driving her wild and Kagome could barely manage a pout while she nodded that time.

“You wanted me to buy that ticket to you, didn’t you?”

Another nod, her teeth biting down on her lower lip as he pushed his hand between her pussy and his pelvis, dragging his fingers over her lace panties to taunt her as she created the respected space to allow him, again, to do whatever the hell he wanted to her.

“All so I could fuck you?” That time he whispered, feeling his hot breath bounce off her soft skin. “Is that what you want? You want me to fuck you?”

“Please.”

“Oh, come on now. You can do better than that.”

“Inuyasha.” She trembled, her hips bucking mildly when he applied a little more pressure to her core.

“Do it.”

“Please.”

“Fucking beg me.”

“Please.”

“Give me more, baby.”

“I want you so bad.” She whined, her fingernails raking over his shoulders.

“I know you do.” Inuyasha gently pushed her to stand, following closely, one of his hands going into her hair to softly grip while his other undid his jeans, all the while leading her backwards toward the far wall. “But, that’s not what I asked. You need to beg me for this cock.”

“Please. Please, I want it so bad. I’m begging you. I’ve missed you so much. I need you.” The plead was almost too genuine, each waver to her tone like a lick of fire to his flesh, and he smiled arrogantly, tightening his grip on her hair and pulling her in for a feverish kiss.

He pinned her to the wall, pressing his body against hers, feeling the way her chest rose and fell with each heavy sigh. In his devotion to make sure she was going to get everything from him, including a refreshment course on how powerfully he worshipped her body, he steadily dropped to his knees, kissing down along the way. To drag those wanton breaths from her lungs, he place scalding kiss after kiss over the cloth of her panties, teasing her before giving in with a content chuckle. After pulling them down her gorgeous legs, Inuyasha licked his lips, propping one of her thighs over his shoulder as he set to his delectable feast. Fuck, she tasted so ungodly delicious, bringing a deep groan to rumble from his throat. He alternated between flattening his tongue to drag it over her entire pussy and playing with her clit with the very tip, and when her legs quickly began to tense and wobble, he wondered just how much she’d be able to take. He held her thighs, taking a deep lap with his tongue and then sucking on her clit, swallowing her juices. In the sexiest voice, the most desperate moan he’d heard from her yet, Kagome cursed, her hand gripping at his silver hair.

“Fuck, baby. Please.” She rasped, trying to pull him up.

Like a sucker, he complied, drowning her in a deep kiss while his hand curved around her throat. Kagome’s adventurous hands scraped down his bare sides, blindly making sure he’d undone his pants before finding the band of his boxers and reaching through to pull out his cock. Her palm was hot and he was throbbing. Using one hand brought a groan from his throat, and as she incorporated a second one, he couldn’t prevent himself from rolling into her grip, captivated by her mind numbing touch.

Inuyasha pushed her hands away, taking the liberty to curl her arms around the back of his neck as he leaned down, picking her up by the thighs and pushing her solidly against the wall for support. Without missing a beat, he gingerly pushed inside of her, hissing an unrestrained, “Shit!” Her legs wrapped around his hips, his girl ready to take him all in, and the sight of her mouth hanging open from the blissful intrusion had him going mad.

He moved his palms upward, gripping her ass as he began to thrust into her. It almost felt like it had during their first time together; so lost in each other it was impossible to stop. So enraptured, so taken that it would be debilitating to hold back. He could see Kagome losing herself, keening, grasping him tighter as her head dropped to his shoulder. Fuck, she was already shaking, enjoying herself too much, and it brought a wicked grin to Inuyasha’s face.

“You like that?” He teased.

“Harder.” She shockingly answered, lightly digging her nails into the back of his shoulders.

He had an unhinged need to give her exactly what she wanted. She was light in Inuyasha’s arms, easy to move, easy to manipulate, easy to fuck, but for better grounding, he further trapped her placement against the wall, their gasping mouths just centimeters apart as he thrusted deeper into her with nearly-bruising force.

“That what you want?”

“God, yes.” Kagome mewled, allowing her head to rest against the wall, a sinful smile growing on her face.

Inuyasha lavished her open neck and throat with adoring kisses, nips, licks, and sucks, intentionally leaving his mark. She was his. He wanted Kagome covered in his hickies, he wanted her smothered in his scent, he wanted the world to know that fate didn’t have to play a part in their union; Inuyasha would have willingly chosen Kagome time and time again.

Feeling the searing and overwhelming pleasure of her pussy claiming him, he pulled away from the wall the smallest amount; enough to give him room to play. He moved her hips, bouncing her on his dick as if she were the one fucking him, absorbed in the way her entire body responded. She was trembling, her voice broken, her legs squeezing him harder, her teeth gnawing at her bottom lip, and as she sucked in a shivering breath to hold, Inuyasha claimed her mouth, kissing her as she came on his cock.

Her legs were unstable, wobbly, but he set her down anyway, encouraging her to wrap her arms around his waist so he could support her as he guided her over to the bed, languid kisses peppered as they went. As they reached the mattress, Inuyasha smiled into his kiss, spinning her around and pushing her to bend over the edge of it. Kagome’d caught herself on her hands, temptingly biting her lip as she glanced over her shoulder at him before crawling further onto the bed to brace on her knees as well. Inuyasha shoved his pants and boxers down a littler further so they were out of the way, giving his cock a couple of jerks as he observed the tantalizing sight before him. Daringly, Inuyasha smacked her ass, his eyes rolling back ecstatically when she gifted him with a sensual sigh.

He spit into his hand, lubricating his cock before kneeling onto the mattress behind her and pushing inside, filling her whole. His pace started slow, but it was too simple. Kagome wanted more and she was willing to take it on her own, moving herself back and forth to match his rhythm and push him deeper inside of her. Altogether, Inuyasha stopped, allowing her to do as she pleased for a moment because the way her ass bounced against his hips was just too sexy to ignore. But, when she seemed to be thoroughly pleasing herself, he reached for her waist, anchoring himself as he pushed so hard into her that they both groaned loudly. She’d almost lost her balance, her hands clambering forward to clutch her comforter and support herself. Muscles engaged in her back, accentuating the curve of her spine, and Inuyasha felt a dangerous heat bubbling inside of him.

He’d completely admit that he’d lost himself to her in that moment, absolutely captivated by the way her body contorted, bounced, flexed, and ultimately welcomed his aggressive thrusts with how hard, how deep he fucked his girl. Reaching forward, Inuyasha safely gripped her hair, supporting her waist with his free arm as her scooped her torso up to meet his, the angle a little different while her hands grasped the forearm he held around her front, and her moans took on a pitchy effect.

“Play with yourself.” He ordered in her ear, releasing her to fold over completely with zero hesitation to do as he said.

He’d anchored himself by gripping her hips, enraptured by the beautiful expressions displayed on his soulmate’s face while she rested the side of it against the blanket, one of her hands tightly clutching the bedding by her shoulder while the other had glided between her thighs, massaging her clit. The way her breathing increased, her body responding to the ample stimulation, it was sending him spiraling, clenched curse words slipping off his tongue like they were the only hope of remaining grounded for however long it took to force Kagome to succumb with him.

“Come on, baby. Come on.” He gently coaxed, her squirming testing his willpower.

“Don’t - don’t stop!” She begged, muffling her voice with the comforter while she continued to vigorously rub herself.

Fuck, those words were like a fire hazard, building the heat that was already threatening to burn him down. Inuyasha clenched his jaw shut, grunting as he forced himself to maintain everything exactly as it was so as not to throw her off. What this goddess wanted, she got, and if she told him not to stop, especially in that desirable, whimpering manner, then obey he would.

“A l-little harder, please.”

Son of a bitch, she was going to be the death of him. The politeness, the submissive way she requested what she needed to reach climax had Inuyasha soaring, his fingers gripping harder so as not to reveal that they’d tremble against her supple flesh if he didn’t. That didn’t prevent him from bequeathing an ounce more of fervency to get her closer, closer, the enchanting sound of skin slapping skin all he could focus on until she rolled her hips in an irrepressible reaction to the orgasm fervidly overtaking her, the shuddering gasp she released proving to be the absolute end of his discipline. With just a few more powerful bucks of his hips, Inuyasha pulled out in time to cum on her back, biting back curses as his core went taut.

Sleep was for the wicked. So he said. Inuyasha had cleaned Kagome up, taken care of her after to make sure she was okay, gotten her water from the fridge while she was in the bathroom, and the moment their heads hit the pillows, they were sedated, lethargic, yet so greatly inclined to resist the pull of sleep. Kagome laid in his arms, eyes closed but still conscious, still whispering little stories to him that made him laugh. His bottom arm was loosely curled around her, but he earnestly tended to her with his other, stroking her hair, her cheek, her shoulder, massaging her temple to relax her, satiating his own desire to softly stroke her bottom lip with his thumb. It was a moment he wanted burned into his memory for as long as he lived. How easy it was to worship her, to love her, to respect her and cherish the light that she offered by just being. How simple it felt to just exist with her in such an insignificant moment that still meant the world to them both. It almost hurt, how much he adored Kagome. It was a pain he gladly accepted, though. It was a pain that reminded him he was alive, fortunate. It was a good pain. It made him question who he’d ever be without her, and then it made him immediately squash the thought as he silently swore he’d never let a living soul hurt this woman. Ever. He’d give his life for hers without a second thought.

What didn’t seem to hurt so much anymore, though, was parting. Goodbye was always bittersweet, but the both of them also felt complacent. The hard part was gone and passed. Had been for a little while. And, four months later, their path was reaching an alignment.

He’d succeeded. Inuyasha was finally receiving his promotion in his father’s company, attaining his share of the partnership. It was a huge weight off his shoulders, and a moment he couldn’t help but hope his late father would be proud of.

This also meant he was coming home.

The moment Sesshomaru and he finished speaking about the upcoming changes and their next course of action, Inuyasha purchased a ticket for a flight home for the following week. The call to inform Kagome was nerve-spiking, because he anxiously awaited her excited reaction. He anxiously awaited closing the gap and ending the remainder of their madness. And, she didn’t fall through. God, when her voice got so high pitched because she just couldn’t contain herself, it brought the dumbest grin to his face.

Momentarily, she’d been staying with her mom, the job she was currently working lackluster and only a means of experience for the time being. Not too long ago, Inuyasha presented the idea of them finding a place together whenever he got back - which would involve her relocating to a different state and leaving her job - and he’d be a fucking liar if he said he wasn’t nervous as all hell that she’d decline. It was a big move for them, but one neither of them could neglect to acknowledge would eventually happen no matter what. Considering the incredibly obvious circumstances. To his surprise, she’d enthusiastically agreed.

As unsure as everything was, no apartment to come home to but a hotel to stay in until they found a place of their own, the couple was just too happy to care about the details. Finding an apartment would be a simple task, anyway, since money wasn’t a thing to worry about in Inuyasha’s book. Kagome packed her things and got to their new city a few days ahead of him, and though he watched her roll her eyes time and time again over their FaceTime call, her boyfriend actively refused to allow her to stay in a hotel that looked remotely shoddy. They were looking online together before she’d left, but he proved to be resolute in his decision, deciding on one he’d approved of and booking it for her with his own card. Oh, he got an earful for that since she felt it wasn’t fair he was paying for it, but he took it all with an arrogant smile. This was his way of taking care of her. Kagome could protest all she wanted; it was done and set in stone, and Inuyasha felt no inking of regret.

She’d caught a taxi from her hotel to the airport, practically bouncing in her seat the entire ride there, which escalated into a vibrating anticipation as they sought out the terminal he’d be landing in. Kagome was so giddy, so excited that she felt like she was high, her chest weightless and fingers slightly shaky from the overabundance of endorphins flowing through her system. Inuyasha’s flight was scheduled to land by ten-thirty that evening, but surprisingly the airport still had a good amount of foot traffic within. It was physically impossible to fight off her body’s reaction to bob from foot-to-foot while she stood idly in the waiting area, but it was all she could do to stay put when people started flowing out, a nearby, electronic board stating his flight had landed moments ago. Taking her cue, Kagome unrolled the small-sized poster paper in her hands, “Cujo” written on the front of it in bold, decorative handwriting. She’d warned him she’d do this if he continued to make fun of her the other night, the two of them having too much fun joking around, but he clearly thought she was full of it. The moment his silver hair came into view, though, ember eyes staring down at his phone, the hanyou donned in jeans, a loose tee, and a hoodie, Kagome just couldn’t contain herself. The paper loosely rolled back up on its own in her hand as she dropped it with the other, squealing loudly and sprinting over to her boyfriend. Inuyasha glanced up, a bright smile appearing on his face as he opened his arms and caught her when she jumped into his hold, her legs wrapping around his waist and body hugging him as firmly as she could.

“Hi!” He greeted, holding her securely and laughing.

“I missed you!” Kagome squeezed him tighter, too happy to let go yet.

“You have no idea, babe.”

She leaned back in his arms, just enough to kiss him, smiling gleefully as she peppered his lips in affection over and over. “Welcome home.”

He was hot, happy. Thankful. Licking his lips to welcome her taste when she pulled back to smile at him.

“What’s the sign say?” He smirked, letting her know he hadn’t missed the fact that she was carrying a poster. Kagome laughed, unfurling it to show him, and he groaned with feigned annoyance. Inuyasha hiked her up in his arms, easily tossing her over his shoulder as she yelped and laughed even harder, supporting her upper body with her hands braced on his back. “Where’s the fucking trashcan? I’m throwing your ass away.”

“Inuyasha, no!” She pleaded meekly in the midsts of her giggle fit.

| Cruel Summer |

#I literally started this thinking it would be 5k words tops #and Nikki literally called me out and said YEAH OKAY #hahahahaha help me #inuyasha #kagome #kagome higurashi #inukag #inuyasha fanfiction #inuyasha fanfic #inuyasha fic #inukag fanfiction #InuKag fanfic #InuKag fic #soulmate au #cruel summer #chasing the seasons #akitokihojo #smut #lemon

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kamenriderlogik27 · 3 years

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Saber headcanons part 4: Kento past + pre-caliber

-Like Sora, even though his dad was a swordsman, he went to a regular public school up until the day his dad betrayed the SOL.

- The public school might be where he first met Touma (not sure about this yet since we don’t know who Touma’s parents are nor know his relation to the SOL)

- If he did end up meeting Touma at school, then their first meeting would have to be on the playground. With Touma preferring to read a book instead of play with the other kids.

- some of the other boys get annoyed at his lack of interest in joining their game, and they start picking on him. Kento, being his father’s son, detests the site of bullying and comes to Touma’s aid. After chasing away the bullies, Touma invites Kento to read with him to which Kento accepts; the start of a strong bond that transcends time.

- Even though his dad wanted Kento to follow in his footsteps, Kento’s parents (suggesting that he has a mother) encouraged him to look into other careers such as a policeman, firefighter, soccer player, etc.

- Because his dad was always away on missions, there would be times where Kento wouldn’t see his dad for moths on end. But his dad always made sure to write him letters of his adventures.

- Even though Kento was there the day his father betrayed the SOL and witnessed his father attack kamijou Daichi, he ended up fainting before he could see anything else and woke up two days later in the Northern Base’s clinic due to Ogami finding him and bringing him there.

- Kento searched everywhere, high and low, for Touma and Luna, and waited at their promised place everyday just in case they came by.

- After almost a year of waiting and not finding them, he started to believe that they were both dead and instantly blamed himself for his father’s actions.

- Wanting to at least try and make things right, he started asking Sofia and anyone he could come across in the SOL about anything regarding his father, the betrayal, and what happened that day.

- After finding out that no one really knew anything, he decided that he had to become a swordsman himself in order to investigate more.

- He became the current Espada, Shinsen’s, student after begging Sofia to help him become a swordsmen. However, in order for Shinsen to fully accept him, Kento had to prove himself worthy and complete difficult tasks such as running for a specific amount of time, cleaning a very large ballroom, etc. which Kento did without complaint.

- (according to RiderWiki, Shinsen took Rintaro under his wing after Nagamine died. I found this out a day after writing Rintaro’s headcanons. After reading it, I first thought that oh, maybe Rintaro and Kento really did grow up together then. But that still doesn’t answer why Rintaro seemed to be surprised at his presence in ep 2 and 3 and why he used formal speech when talking about and to Kento as if they didn’t grow up together. After thinking for a good long while, here’s what I came up with.)

- As Shinsen had already taken Rintaro under his wing after Nagamine died, He had trouble figuring out ways of teaching his two students in similar or different fighting styles (as Rintaro was still the successor of Nagare and Blades’s title and thus had to be taught a fighting style fit for the swordsmen of water.). Rintaro, not wanting to burden Shinsen as well as wanting to take more after his master’s fighting style, suggested that he learn Blades’s fighting style through books by himself so that Shinsen could focus on training Kento.

- Even though Shinsen felt guilty at not being able to properly teach Rintaro what he needed to know, it still worked out perfectly since Shinsen could properly train Kento while Rintaro studied, and then both boys would be able to practice what they learned by sparring.

- Kento was always super focused on training and bettering his technique, but he was still a kid at heart and wanted friends. however, at the same time, didn’t really believe that he deserved friends. This didn’t stop him from attempting to have friendly conversations with Rintaro during breaks while sparring though.

- However, due to Rintaro’s personality and habit of taking things too literally, Kento was never able to start up a fun conversation with the water swordsman apprentice that proved to be even slightly similar to the conversations he would have with Touma and Luna.

- Being as young as he is and having gone through so much pain, I can actually see Kento almost seeing Rintaro as a possible, unintentional replacement for Touma. But because Rintaro has gone through some shit himself and want’s to focus on his own path, he kinda goes against the image of Touma that Kento unintentionally put on him. The frustration Kento gets from this fact builds up so much that it explodes one day.

- That one day happened to be one of the rare days where Shinsen would be teaching the boys a new technique at the same time, since it was a pretty basic swordsman technique that didn’t require any particular style. Unlike most times where Kento would usually wait until a break or after sparring to strike up a conversation, Kento instead started speaking as the boys sparred. At first he talked about things like the weather and what they both had eaten that day (of course with Rintaro not saying much other than “can we please focus?”) then his words slowly got more aggressive to the point where Kento started mocking Rintaro’s lack of character.

-Rintaro of course, tried his best to ignore Kento and focus on sparring, but when Kento asked “who do you take after, your mom or dad?” he finally felt as if he had to respond.

- R: “I don’t know...”

K: “How can you not know? Don’t you have a family?”

R: “The SOL is my family.”

K: “Are you dumb? The SOL is an organization! They can’t be your family! A family AT LEAST has to have a mother and father!”

- The last sentence Kento said brought Rintaro to tears, so he quickly yells “You don’t know anything!” and runs off back to the base.

- For the next year, Rintaro refused to participate in anymore lessons and spars with Kento, and would always run the other direction if he so much as saw Kento appear anywhere. Kento did feel really guilty about what he said, especially after Shinsen scolded him and explained Rintaro’s situation and past. That being said, he tried his best to find Rintaro to apologize, only to always watch the boy’s back as he ran away.

- Somewhat fed up with having to chase the water swordsman apprentice, Kento came up with a plan to have Ren capture Rintaro and tie him up so that he couldn’t escape. He honestly wasn’t expecting his plan to work so well, but because it did, he was finally able to talk to Rintaro and ask for forgiveness. To which, Rintaro gave under the condition that they both work hard to become swordsmen. After this incident, Kento saw Rintaro in a new light. He wasn’t a boy that could possibly fill up the whole Touma and Luna left, instead, he was Rintaro; a fellow apprentice who was really talented and smart. And Kento really admired him for that.

- The only reason why Kento flew in on his magic carpet in ep 2+3 is because he was on a mission somewhat far away and wanted to see Touma as soon as possible once he was done.

- Despite being overjoyed that Touma was actually alive AND had been introduced to the SOL/become a Kamen Rider as well, Kento was actually super nervous about meeting him again. He thought about what he would do and what he would say. He wondered how he would ask Touma about Luna, and how he should explain about what happened that day 15 years ago. When Rintaro told him about walking into Touma’s bookstore while riding his blue lion, Kento thought that maybe riding in on his magic carpet might be a good conversation starter if anything got too awkward.

-He’s literally imagined his and Touma’s reunion hundreds of times after he heard that Touma was alive. He also wanted to ask him questions like “where did you go to school?” “What college degree do you have?” “Did you go on any adventures?(bookwise or real life)” ect. Kento just really wants to know how his friend has been all these years.

- Kento is actually a neat freak and low-key OCD. He can’t stand being messy and has his own, somewhat professional way of organizing. Though he’d rather let others clean if there’s a way for him to opt out.

- Kento is very fond of fictional novels, especially if they’re books that he read with Touma and Luna back in the day. However, he has no patience for non-fication, and secretly finds them very boring. His favorite genre of fictional novels would have to be adventure, fantasy and anything with super heroes. However, he does have a secret soft spot for romance (to the point where he has his own ships), and would rather die than admit to this fact.

- Is on the book side of the “Book vs. Movie” argument because he has never actually watched a movie to the end. Whenever he finds time to watch a movie, he ends up being so tired that he falls asleep before the climax. Reading a book at least gives his eyes something to focus on, plus books are like ‘a movie in your head’.

-Kento kind of gives off a ‘spring’ feel to me, so I think that his favorite scents could be fresh laundry, calm lavender, and a warm spring breeze.

- Doesn’t dog-ear books, thankfully. But he does end up using weird objects as book marks. (i.e. an old receipt, a library card, post-it note, basically anything small, flat and within hands reach.)

#kamen rider #kamen rider saber #kamen rider espada #kamen rider blades #fukamiya kento #shindo rintaro #kamiyama touma #akamichi ren #saber headcanons #this got super dark #honestly though this boy has been through a lot so it HAS to be somewhat dark #took me a while to write this 'cause thinking up kento's past was a bit difficult

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wedreamedlove · 5 years

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Speech Quirks in MLQC

Archived Reddit post but this is the improved and updated version. I've linked the Reddit one though because @sharinluna made fantastic comments which I hadn't considered.

Spoilers include content up to Chapter 18 and some unreleased calls and cards. None of these are plot lines though, just snippets to support their speech quirks. Also, my eternal disclaimer is that I'm pulling from CN lines so don't be alarmed if the quotes differ.

BAI QI

The cutest habit this man has is defaulting into a sincere and solemn tone whenever he doesn't know how to respond to MC. He's so genuine it hurts. It's especially apparent when he goes along with weird topics.

Here are some examples of Bai Qi being an adorably confused puppy but trying to do his best. He always takes MC's concerns seriously:

[CN Soaked Heart SSR Misunderstanding Date] Context is they keep misunderstanding each other today. "Though I don't understand women's hearts, yours is the only one I don't want to get wrong. Can you give me some more time?"

[Lightbath SSR Tenderness] Context is after he excessively praises MC to her embarrassment. "I'm sorry, maybe it's because I didn't convey it well enough. But I just wanted to express all my thoughts out. Next time, I hope I can use a better way to express them to you."

[Summer Loving SSR Undo Fail Call] Context is MC having a terrible day and mis-sent her messages to Bai Qi. "If you don't want to go to work then you can take a day off. As for your hairline... how about..."

[Blaze Up SSR Age Rage Call] Bai Qi takes MC's opening extremely seriously, thinking something happened, before having a small laugh at her being called "auntie" by the boy. But he immediately regains his seriousness to talk it over with her.

It's not that Bai Qi doesn't get jokes, but his response to them tends to be serious too (which leads to unintentional killer lines). I think his humor tends towards more of the deadpan kind, like Li Zeyan (except Li Zeyan has some witty sharpness).

I've also seen people mention this phrase and I love it because it encapsulates him so well: Bai Qi is either shy and blushes or he goes straight for the kill LOL.

Here are some examples of lines that may sound sleazy or too flirty if they weren't delivered in such a straight and sincere manner LOL:

[Cold Shower R Refreshing Moments] When you pick the choice saying you thought he was going to upload a picture he goes: "Um... I can DM you." I've seen that he uses a smiley in English but it's not there in Chinese.

[Against the Light SR Sweet Bomb Moments] When you pick the choice saying that he's become cola-flavored he asks: "What do I normally taste like?"

[2018 Valentine's Text] I chose a conversation path which had me telling Bai Qi that he needs to get used to pet hair if he's going to raise a pet and that one day I'd like to raise one. He seriously promises to do his best to get used to pet hair and asks to raise one together.

[Grocery Moments] When you pick the choice that he can use his other hand to carry bags he answers simply: "My other hand is for holding yours, so I can't use it."

Honestly, the takeaway in Bai Qi's speech is the unconditional support and love he gives to MC. He never questions her feelings about things, and oftentimes vehemently objects to her thinking she's bothering him or that her problems are trivial or silly.

He wants to hear about her happy news, her sad news, and everything about her. (I joke that Bai Qi is the perfect fit for the meme where it's like "Why are you crying?" "Oh, it's just these onions" "What the hell did you say to my girlfriend!?").

He always gives a heads up before he acts, even though he generally tends to be moving already. Like going to pick up MC in the rain or at any other location.

I wouldn't be surprised if some of this came from his family life. Through his Rumors and Secrets and [Seize SSR Sad Thoughts Call] you can get an idea that his mother didn't have any standing with his father, often got cut off, and nothing she wanted or felt mattered.

Even though Bai Qi was young at that time it probably left a mark on him because he never does that with MC; he lets her express herself before he brings up any of his feelings. Her feelings are always valid, but he does tend to be a proactive fixer and provides solutions if he can (much like Li Zeyan). Bai Qi will try to solve MC's problems, but I'm sure if she just wanted to rant then he'll gladly listen (ex. [Blaze Up SSR Age Rage Call]).

One other notable thing is that, in Asian cultures, social harmony is very important and that's why there's a culture around speaking indirectly and preserving the other person's dignity.

So Bai Qi's indifference and ability to cut straight to the point probably doesn't stand out that much in the West but it's actually a bit shocking and impactful in Chinese. Especially because he doesn't shy away from expressing his feelings. He might stutter, cough, clear his throat, and be all embarrassed but then he just delivers monologues of blunt emotion (ex. [Love Of My Life SSR Goodnight Wish & Wish Calls]).

I find that Bai Qi and Li Zeyan are the most stereotypical types of masculinity among the four men.

ZHOU QILUO

As always, I need to thank my Luoluo-loving friend for the discussion here because I always have the least thoughts on him. Oops.

I don't think I'd be wrong in saying he has the most range among all the men. He gets to play with a pouting baby voice, his acting hero voice, his KEY voice, his Helios voice, and then his normal voice.

He has a harder speech habit to pin down because of this massive range, but I think you can catch how he leans into a sly or teasing tone. He's very quick with comebacks and jokes and I'd say he's the first to establish an inside joke with MC (both being each other's superheroes).

He and MC have a relationship where they're both building each other up. If Bai Qi provides unconditional support and acceptance then Zhou Qiluo is all about cheering her on whenever possible.

It's also interesting to point out that even though he's so emotive on the outside, when things are serious he goes deadly quiet and calm. You can see that in Chapter 8, 14, and his Helios persona in Chapter 17. They say watch out for the quiet ones, but more like watch out for the people who use their jokes and loudness to hide their quiet intensity.

I'm not sure how clear this came across in English but Luoluo notably repeats himself on several occasions in Chinese. It's sad because it's like he's reassuring the person he's talking to and himself at the same time.

[Main Story 14-20] "It'll be okay, it'll definitely be okay [...] You'll be okay."

[Main Story 14-20] "Miss Chips, wait for me... will you wait for me?"

I've also noticed that, even though he tries to be as genuine as possible, he's actually not as emotionally open as someone like Bai Qi. Luoluo tends to bring up his own emotions in a third-person or hypothetical perspective. For example:

[Call after Main Story 11-8: Important Decision] Luoluo calls and talks around the subject of an important decision he needs to make (aka. turning into Helios) and whether or not MC would be able to accept him if he changed completely into another person.

[CN ASMR Bear Cub's Troubles] He tells a story about a number of bears doing things and they're clearly supposed to represent him but he never admits that either.

We're about to hear much more from Helios but, as a start, he's extremely curt. Luoluo is definitely pulling an opposite here with his speech style, but it's neat how you can hear tones of Zhou Qiluo throughout too.

See, there's these things called modal particles in Chinese that you stick on the end of your sentences to give them meaning, emphasize meaning, strengthen meaning, or soften the meaning and tone.

Luoluo has the habit of using one 啊 (ah) which can have all these sort of meanings and other ones you just sort of pick up on:

[attached to the end of a sentence to indicate admiration]

[attached to the end of a sentence to show approval or self-protectiveness or to urge or enjoin]

[attached to the end of a sentence to indicate doubt]

[sign of pause in the middle of a sentence to draw attention to what one is going to say next]

[attached to the end of each item enumerated]

In Luoluo's case it makes his sentences sound more excited and younger and goes really well with his bright atmosphere. However, when he's Helios, this modal particle is dropped completely. Helios is flat, blunt, and basically pulling a Li Zeyan LOL.

XU MO

I think I've talked way too much about how Xu Mo is a wordsmith LOL but I'm always impressed by how he can corner MC into accepting his invitations without it being creepy. But I suppose this is a point of contention due to localization decisions and voice direction.

Putting that aside, it has to be noted that Xu Mo asks for a lot of permission. His speech style is designed to get you to lower your guard as much as possible, which I've touched on in my wordsmith post.

Again, returning to modal particles, Xu Mo has ones that basically gives all his sentences a "May I?" "Could I?" "Would you...?" style.

[Sound of Silence SSR The Little Prince Call] "Would you like to hear what I have to say?"

[Call after Main Story 3-1: Movie Invitation] "Then, would this lady be willing to watch Manhattan with me this Sunday?"

[CN Archery Date] "May I ask this lady here for some assistance?"

To be more specific, he uses a lot of 吧 (ba) which has these sort of meanings (the first one especially):

[a particle used at the end of the sentence to indicate discussion, suggestion, request, or instruction]

[an indication of agreement or approval at the end of the sentence]

[an indication of doubt or guess at the end of the sentence]

[an indication of uncertainty in the sentence]

[it can express a pause, tone of assumption, difficulty in making a choice, or dilemma in the sentence]

You can imagine how much this softens his sentences right? It's why he's so good at sounding disarming LOL and then you walk away and take 5 seconds to realize he said something alarming and/or got you to accept a date.

On another note, much like Bai Qi, Xu Mo quietly accepts all of MC's feelings and doubts. But he's much more of a natural at gently refuting her points and wording things in a way that helps her mature slowly (a big theme with him).

Compared to the others, he checks more often on whether MC wants to listen to his opinion before he gives it. Or, he supports his view from an empirical standpoint (like how he's been the adviser to Miracle Finder pretty much at the beginning and seen her growth from there).

Because of how his speech habit is designed to be soft when he's Xu Mo, it makes his Ares persona really interesting. He drops his softeners and speaks in a more clipped tone but he still maintains his politeness.

At the news conference in Chapter 16 you can hear how he uses starts using rhetoric to push the MC around (as a mix between Ares and cold Xu Mo). He actively challenges her opinions, compared to before when he was just providing alternative (and supportive) views. The news conference is actually amazing because in Chinese they both become EXCESSIVELY polite to demonstrate this new distance between them after Chapter 13.

CRIES WHENEVER I THINK ABOUT XU MO AND ARES. So, Xu Mo also has a quirk that's very apparent in his ASMRs where he repeats himself because he flusters the MC so bad she's always like "Huh!?".

But as Ares he literally has a line where he coolly says that he doesn't like to repeat himself and that he won't repeat himself...

Switching gears, Xu Mo also shares a habit with Li Zeyan where they give nonverbal responses. In Xu Mo's case, he goes "Mm?" "Hm?" or "Oh?" and tends to raise the end of his sentences to soften them. Li Zeyan just grunts acknowledgements LOL but it's the hottest noise in Chinese.

Lastly, Xu Mo really, really loves nicknaming the MC and has called her kitten, sea otter, this lady, night owl, etc. It's adorable! (I'm not mentioning his use of little fool or silly girl because I'm going to go more into that in Li Zeyan's section.)

LI ZEYAN

Okay, let's get the elephant out of the room. One of his speech quirks is calling MC a dummy, idiot, or moron LOL.

But there's an extremely interesting cultural difference here that people might not be aware of. In Chinese, the word he uses for "idiot" and "dummy" (笨蛋; bendan) is actually light and almost negligent. If I were to give an analogy, it's more like he's calling you "silly" all the time.

Obviously, the fact that you're being called something still hasn't disappeared. But the word Li Zeyan uses lands as a 0.1/10 on the insult scale in Chinese.

I don't have enough background in sociology to explain why this is but there's an interesting talk about the vagueness of Japanese insults vs. English ones that basically applies here to Chinese too:

One likely reason for the relatively few Japanese words for 'fool' is vagueness. In both English and Japanese, the words for 'fool' have meanings that vary along scales of friendly–hostile, or joking–serious. In English, at one end of a scale are words like silly goose and at the other end are words like stupid asshole. And in Japanese, at one end are words like kamaboko baka 蒲鉾馬鹿 'silly chump' and at the other end are words like baka-yarō 馬鹿野郎 'damn fool'. The difference is in the degree of lexical diversification along the scales of meaning. English seems to have more 'fool' words with more specificity – Japanese seems to have fewer 'fool' words with more vagueness. There are decided pragmatic and communicative advantages to such lexical vagueness. If you call me a stupid son-of-a-bitch, I know exactly what you mean. But if you call me a baka-yarō, I cannot be so sure of what you mean. The expression baka-yarō 馬鹿野郎 is one of the most insulting terms in the Japanese lexicon, but it is vague and can range in meaning from an affectionate 'silly-willy' to an abusive 'jerk-off fool'. Baka-yarō is so widely used that it has become semantically weak and vague. Such vagueness can serve to conceal hostility and thus to maintain social harmony.

Carr, Michael (1982). "Baka and Fool". The Review of Liberal Arts. 63: 1–18. Retrieved 2013-04-19.

On this note about insults, all the other guys have their own terms for the MC as well. For example, Xu Mo and Bai Qi use 傻瓜 (shagua; fool, silly melon) with Xu Mo often adding more affection with the diminuitive 小 (xiao; small, little).

I've seen Luoluo take some heat for also calling the MC "stupid" like Li Zeyan but did you know in Chinese he only uses 笨 (ben; dumb) which is even more lighter than Li Zeyan's word? It's like a 0.01/10 on the scale.

Putting this cultural difference of insults aside, I've mentioned above that Li Zeyan is also a fixer of problems like Bai Qi. Except he goes straight for it without checking with the MC (overbearing CEO style). He decides on an action, carries it out, and then tells MC after the fact.

[Marauder SSR Change Hotel Call] He switches her hotel immediately and gets her to move only after he's done it during their call.

[Chapter 11] Pretty much the entirety of this chapter and how he had her treated at the hospital, escorts her to and from work, assigns bodyguards for MC, etc.

Basically, whenever Li Zeyan receives MC's problems, he'll make a dry comment about it first, but then end up solving it.

I also think that, out of the rest of the guys, he questions MC the most on everything (remember, Xu Mo isn't naturally confrontational until he goes cold or Ares-mode). Li Zeyan can't seem to stop himself from challenging MC's views and opinions every step of the way (in his mind, he's doing it for her own good).

On a side note, I think he also has the habit of being unable to say what he truly wants to say sometimes and you can hear him swallow back a lot of words or just sigh heavily. For example:

[Call after Main Story 11-19: Routine Greeting] Granted he was really emotional due to story reasons here. But there were so many pregnant pauses and heavy silence.

[Gentle Confrontation SSR Tacit Game Call] In Chinese, when MC opens with her question you can actually hear him go "Uh..." LOL. IT'S HILARIOUSLY CUTE. But the rest just has him sighing deeply.

I mentioned above that he and Bai Qi share a similar sense of humor in being deadpan, but Li Zeyan definitely takes it to another level. He also delivers a serving of dry wit or sarcasm. I think it's cute that he mimics the MC a lot though and their inside joke is him recalling everything she's called him.

[Main Story 11-16] Same speech pattern. "Are you Li Zeyan...?" "... Are you a moron?"

[Winter Infatuation SSR Before Sleep Call] "Even though on the way back you were clearly crying, 'Ah, so tired... ah, so sleepy...', the moment you get home you have the energy to turn on the computer?"

There's too many occasions where he quotes her words about him being an unsmiling K(ing), but whenever it happens some cute back and forth ribbing gets brought up. Like how it slipped out of her mouth, but he just so happened to recall it too and it's not like he remembers this stuff on purpose or keeps it in his mind. Uh huh.

Despite how exasperated he gets though, Li Zeyan never stops participating in all the silly games MC drags him into. Is this true love--- LOL.

Lastly, I want to bring up how Li Zeyan gives nonverbal responses much like Xu Mo except his are like grunts of acknowledgment. His favorite words is probably 嗯 (ng). The sound is more like "en" with a bit of a nasal noise and just means "mm". It can be used as a question too.

But hands down I think it's the hottest noise in Chinese LOL especially when Wu Lei (Li Zeyan's Chinese voice actor) does it in his deep voice. Erm, oops, getting distracted.

My main point here is to say that Li Zeyan leans towards being brief and monosyllabic, moreso than the other men. For example, in [Main Story 18-8] Li Zeyan uses the shortest words possible to reply to Xu Mo. At one point he literally just goes "Reason?".

I actually think he uses the most Chinese idioms to get across his meaning as short as possible (but this would be impossible to carry over in English...). Xu Mo tends to use 4 character combinations too but those are for scientific theories and don't count.

A Chinese player actually compiled the majority of idioms you hear from Li Zeyan LOL and here they are. By the way, these are supposed to be said as one whole phrase but I've added spaces to make the pronunciation clearer:

少见多怪 (shao jian duo guai); lit. seldom seen very strange. It means making a fuss or being excited over something normal.

上蹿下跳 (shang cuan xia tiao); lit. leap up jump down. It means jumping around excitedly and being hyperactive.

当众出丑 (dang zhong chu chou); lit. public fool. It means making a fool of yourself in public or making yourself a spectacle.

差强人意 (cha qiang ren yi); lit. lacking improvement to one's expectation. It means being barely passable or barely satisfactory.

不近人情 (bu jin ren qing); lit. not close to human emotions. It means being unreasonable or inhuman, and this one was actually Li Zeyan asking if MC sees him as this.

乱七八糟 (luan qi ba zao); I don't think you can make this literal but it basically means a complete mess.

自作多情 (zi zuo duo qing); lit. self-made many feelings. It means being full of yourself, like a narcissist, or flattering yourself by thinking people love you when they don't LOL.

漏洞百出 (lou dong bai chu); lit. full of leaks. It means you're full of loopholes, inconsistencies, and all your arguments are faulty.

莫名其妙 (mo ming qi miao); I'm not sure if this can become literal either but it means baffling, ridiculous, or incomprehensible.

想都别想 (xiang duo bie xiang); It literally means don't you even think about it LOL.

笨手笨脚 (ben shou ben jiao); lit. dumb hands dumb legs. It means being clumsy.

罪加一等 (zui jia yi deng); lit. adding a cardinal sin. It basically means becoming doubly guilty or you just keep piling up wrongs.

叽叽喳喳 (ji ji zha zha); lit. chirp chirp. But it basically means you're being a chatterbox, babbling, and jibberjabbering.

Of course we can't forget 笨蛋 (bendan; dummy, idiot) and 白痴 (baichi; moron) which are the insults Li Zeyan uses the majority of the time, the former more than the latter. These aren't idioms though.

#mlqc #mr love queen's choice #love and producer #mlqc victor #mlqc gavin #mlqc lucien #mlqc kiro #mlqc xu mo #mlqc li zeyan #mlqc bai qi #mlqc zhou qiluo #love and produc(ing) meta

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talltales · 5 years

Text

pair: jaebeom / reader desc: because being a good girl is overrated and so is having a fucking heart words: 2k rated: 17+ genre: angst/romance notice: language, toxic relationships, eventual smut thanks: to chloe, for proofreading

—YOU'RE GETTING SO REPETITIVE, I'M FINISHING YOUR SENTENCES IF YOU'RE GONNA LIE, AT LEAST DO IT IN MY BED

"i think i've forgotten what it means to be myself," he starts, adjusting the frames of his glasses for the second time in as many minutes. she's braced herself—this time at least. because she knows what he's going to say. and it's always the same damn thing.

she wonders if he has a script memorized now—a thesaurus tucked into the back of his mind with a million ways to say that he's getting too restless to stay another minute. he doesn't dare deviate, doesn't bother to look her in the eyes.

instead jaebeom walks in circles at the foot of the bed. she watches as he wears footprints into the carpet while chewing on his lower lip. eventually, his glasses come off and he presses his fingers to the bridge of his nose—so very stressed and it's funny how he's the one with a headache. though she understands how his mental gymnastics could be tiring.

it dizzies her, at times, to observe the way his mind turns, all to come up with enough reasons to excuse breaking her heart.

"—without someone needing me."

if they hadn't been doing this dance for years now, she might've shed a tear. maybe two.

without comment, she reaches for the pack of cigarettes on the nightstand and shakes one out, perching it between her lips. there, it sits unlit and jaebeom frowns, flexes his fingers into loose fists.

funny, that this is the thing that bothers him.

"so, let me make sure i'm hearing you." it takes strength to look at him. it takes more to speak, without letting the pain seep into her words. she only half succeeds, and his expression crumbles when he hears her voice catch—the slow thickening of it as the knot in her throat swells.

jaebeom, she thinks, at least deserves to flinch.

she finds a small pleasure in the flash of heat as the flame flickers to life, cupped in her palm. beyond the cloud of smoke that flows from the burning tip, his displeasure shines like a beacon in the dark; soothing the dull ache sitting beneath her ribs. it is nothing more than a habit, but she'd let him pry it out of her hands. just another thing she'd let him take.

to watch him squirm, she reclaims it. again.

"without me, right?" it is a joy to watch him wince. if nothing else, she can rip away the pretty words he tries to dress this ugliness in. her next breath is poisoned, but it's better than the bitterness lingering at the back of her throat—better to smell the smoke than his cologne. those elements of him linger in her sheets even when he's gone, and he lives in her head until the moment that he knocks on her door. again.

and letting him back in is her worst habit.

"that's not what i meant." jaebeom turns to face the bed, and takes a step forward. his knee rests on the edge, as if he's ready to crawl back in—and it is striking how beautiful he is. even now, when the sight of him stirs more rage than she knows how to contain, "listen to me."

"why?" she tilts her head, bright eyes catching the idle slide of his muscles under his skin as he moves. "so you can find a softer way to tell me that you want to fuck the girl at work? or maybe the one you met at the bar? another way to say you're bored?"

the only thing stopping her from gritting her teeth is the cigarette. another drag; the smoke fills her lungs and jaebeom moves closer, pressing his hands into the spaces beside her thighs—as if he hadn't woken up and decided to turn the world on its head. again.

her chest burns, filled to the brim and empty all at once. he's dangerous like this, when his desire to fix things overpowers his impulse to destroy them—when he looks repentant and hungry.

when he gets close enough, she exhales.

and if the haze of smoke slipping past her lips wasn't enough to drive him backward, the press of her heel to his chest is firm and sure—in all the ways that her traitorous hands are not—because he is dangerous, and right now she knows better.

right now.

"i'm sorry, i never meant to hurt you." he does a wonderful job of looking the part, but the anger has unfurled in her stomach and it does an even better job of filling the holes he's bore into her with his carelessness.

"get out." the cigarette rattles between her fingers. but, the pressure of his body eventually fades—gives way to the muffled sound of his footsteps as he slips out. to his credit, jaebeom doesn't look back. he slides into his coat, and she memorizes the silhouette of his shoulders shifting beneath.

"i'm sorry," he says, and she wonders how rich she'd be, if she had a penny for every time he's uttered that useless phrase.

for every time that it has worked.

when the door closes behind him, she drops the lit end into his leftover coffee and throws his pillow into the corner by the window.

and she tells herself that she won't let him in. again.

it lasts almost three weeks.

she washes her sheets twice on day one. his clothes disappear into trash bags that she shoves in the back of her closet until he finds the nerve to come and get them—he won't. she knows he won't.

one week is enough to stop wearing his old shirts to bed, to rid herself of the bone-deep desire to have him close when she sleeps. two weeks is long enough to bleed him out of her system with perfect strangers, in rooms too dark to see anything but his silhouette.

it's long enough to slip into the rhythm of his absence; a silence punctuated by the droning of his favorite movies playing on the tv. still, she's better acquainted with the couch and her threadbare duvet than she is her own bed.

and this is where it gets hard—

where her mind so helpfully supples her with the sound of his voice muffled into her hair; with the warmth of his arms around her waist and his chin on her shoulder while she cooks for one. they have always been something bigger than the sum of their parts.

or at least it seemed to be that way.

now, she doesn't know.

now, it's easier to let the anger take the reins so she doesn't think too deeply about im jaebeom—or why he never feels safe enough to stay for more than a few months at a time.

the anger is her only company and comfort, most days. her cigarettes live in the trash can until she takes it out, untouched. it is the anger that keeps her warm; that stills her tears before they even begin to fall. it reminds her that he has no power over her, even as he haunts the corners of her mind like an unwanted visitor.

in all of his insecurity, loving jaebeom has become her personal hell—yet the devil she knows is still better than the perfect stranger.

at least she is familiar with this devil's tricks.

after two weeks and four days, there's a knock at her door.

she stares at it from her spot in the kitchen for all of a minute, willing her pulse to slow enough to let her drink her coffee in relative peace. she cradles the cup in her palms and waits for the sound of departing footsteps—a sign that she can proceed with the life she's tentatively making, without him.

even if she hates it.

but there is only another soft, nearly inaudible knock.

before she takes a single step, she drains the last of her coffee and stifles the hope that he'll still be there when she opens it. padding across the small space, she shrugs into an oversized hoodie that might have been his, once upon a time. it dusts the tops of her thighs; hides her shaking hands in too-long sleeves.

she wants him.

it hadn't taken almost three weeks to know as much—one night had driven the point home in all the ways she feared it would.

she pulls the door open and examines him. jaebeom has a script, she thinks, and he has never deviated from it. though this time his eyes are fixed on her—not on his side, not some invisible spot over her shoulder, where he can pretend that he hasn't reopened the same wound a dozen times, "can i come in?"

a full minute passes before she wordlessly steps aside, and he follows her in. the door shuts behind him with a soft click that is strangely deafening in the quiet.

"why are you here?" she asks, because she has her own script—and she uses it in place of the spine she is always missing when he comes back; to prop her upright and coat her tongue in steel so she doesn't sound so weak.

as if she was withering without him.

once, she'd thought they were bigger than the sum of their parts, but really it was just him.

so she fakes it.

"i want to talk."

they've done this song and dance a thousand times, yet he always seems to be grasping for his words. without waiting, she turns and slips into the kitchen; busies herself with washing her mug to keep from pulling at the hem of her unmistakably borrowed shirt.

if he's noticed, he says nothing of it.

with her back to him, she listens as jaebeom shifts his weight from heel to heel. to his credit, he is patient; seemingly aware of the fact that she's using this time to gather her thoughts. again.

when she turns around, he is exactly where he was before. his hands are tucked in his pockets—he looks apologetic.

but he always does.

"what if i don't want to?"

where the question comes from, she doesn't know. but the words flow forth without her permission, and this time she doesn't feel like stopping them—her grip on their tired, old script loosens.

"i am so tired, jaebeom. i'm tired of going in circles with you, again and again and again." she turns then, picks up an adandoned clip from the counter and pins her hair back, if only to give her shaking hands something to do, "we talk. every time i think we've got it figured out, i'm wrong."

he worries his lip between his teeth. from the corner of her eye, she watches him deflate—shoulders curling in and head dipping low, "i'm sorry."

it's a lie, however unintentional it may be.

"i'll be better this time."

another lie.

against her better judgement, she moves closer. there is a measure of power in knowing that he doesn't dare move; no, jaebeom is still, even as she grasps his chin and tilts his head down to face her fully, "no, you won't."

her words are soft, but he cringes just the same. gently, she presses their foreheads together, then the tips of their noses. all the while, she watches him struggle to piece together a response that doesn't sound trite.

it's a first.

because im jaebeom is usually nothing but trite. a pretty face with a pretty mouth full of empty, empty things.

a coward—afraid to be a living, breathing person.

he doesn't argue. the way his gaze sinks to her collarbones and lingers there is answer enough; a confirmation of everything she knows and fears. their carousel is still in motion—his love is pretty and empty, just like him.

she bites her lip and closes her eyes against the heavy, pained pounding of her pulse in her temples. the wetness on her cheeks is accompanied only by the slide of his arms around her waist. his grip is tight, hands gentle as they lay across the curve of her spine and drift along her ribs.

"this is the last time," she forces out—repeating the old, familiar words that carry as much weight as his apologies.

to be continued

#label: vii #got7 au #jaebeom au #jaebeom fanfic

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datarevived · 4 years

Text

-- Ⅲ : ʙᴇx

It had been three days since she arrived at the Tower.

The Warlock's voice still resting in the back of the Awokens’ mind, each time in passing the crowded Bazaar with hesitation. A stealth maneuver to remain unseen, unheard -- as she made her way to and fro the Courtyard. With few hours spent upon the Tower's rooftop, the past few days had been favored to feet resting upon dirt, taking the elevator down to the City where citizens just barely outmatched the presence of other Guardians.

Something was different about the air - its' touch more sincere than the crafted winds by Ghost piloted ships. The natural state of order carried between those who only had one life to live - their smiles more forgiving, while their work expressed an exhaustion more real than those who arrived back into the Tower with battered merit. In a way, something that she terribly missed... the emptiness that once rested upon her chest, now so full of unanswered questions.

An unapproved sense of responsibility... she didn't ask for, nor wished it.

" Ahhh~ "

With a blinking light, the tiny Ghost reveals itself to burden - welcomed by the sunrise across wooden canopy that surrounded the state of the city and its' preparation for new defenses. In some places, a wall that was already finished, while in others - parts that refused to fall since the beginning. Both citizen and Guardian alike, a mute coexistence that seemed more flavorful than those handled upon the Tower. It felt nicer here. More trustworthy. More real.

" Another stroll around the block? " the Ghost hums.

" Mm, " comes the quiet response. Still having yet attuned to the permanent company of ones' own Ghost. It's reveal always something startling, yet... welcomed. Even if it had the habit to talk too much.

" I'm surprised you haven't memorized the place yet. To whom are we paying a visit to today? "

A subtle hint in her active route of avoiding visits... one in particular, that weighed both on she and her Ghost's fate. Three days in, and she'd hardly spoken back to Hawthorne since getting settled. Hadn't really spoken to anyone, aside from her Ghost. Let alone, returned to Ikora. How upset she'd be if she decided to avoid the woman all together, she wonders. For how long would she be able to avoid the Vanguard's stare, knowing full well they could see her light?

" There's a tent I wanted to visit... " the Awoken says, pausing in her step within the City as she turned to her Ghost. " It smelled really good yesterday, almost like the Ramen place Hawthorne took us... but it wasn't noodles. "

" Good as in...? " her Ghost tilts, questionable expression dotted upon its' optic.

" I think I overheard someone use the term... ' curry '? " she ponders, lowering her gaze temporarily as she raises a hand to her chest. Violet brows furrowing in decision, her gaze then lifts to observe their surroundings and to which direction she'd remember such smells taking place. A bit further from the Tower, but still inward of the walls. " This way... I think. "

Upon gifted boots, her tracks follow in unison with several others. A frequent walkway between the markets that hung clothing from string and hand-held fruit in barrels. Ornaments that could be placed in jewelry displayed in sheered plastic cut outs, while suppliers stacked their wooden tables with revised weaponry - tweaks made to decommissioned wears. Trade made in other wears, or glimmer, or cheap pieces of gold from the Golden Age - the nostalgia to some older than several Wars and counting.

It wasn't until she by-passed the quiet corner of the market did the scent catch her nose in a hook -- its' flavor not yet rested in the air, but brewing still. The tent which had previously been opened yesterday to her knowledge, tied shut with a little white parchment resting upon knotted string.

Closed.

" I think we've shown up a bit too early, " her Ghost whirls, scanning the paper for confirmation before hovering back to the Awoken's side. " Maybe try again later? "

A disappointed furrow of ones' looks, the Guardian simply stands. The decision on whether to wait it out or not - she had already looped the place more than twice in the previous days. Nothing else having caught her eye in particular with the small set of glimmer she had been gifted. The only other thing on her list, the very subject she had been avoiding. They would have to go back to the Tower, and find Ikora.

" Heeey! "

" ...? "

" Heeeeeeey! You there, Guardian! "

A nervous chill rings down her back at the call, the womans' attention turning briefly from which the voice came. Somewhere further up the pathway, the shade of another being waving its' hand against the sun's rays, providing merely a silhouette to detail. Two yellow optics piercing against the distorted color of ones clothes - its shape getting closer and closer as it jogged towards she and her companion.

" Hey!, Sorry - I, whew- - I didn't know what else to, awh man - outta shape, uh, I didn't know what else to call you to get your attention, " the person speaks, its' mouth glowing in an orangish tint per every syllable spoken. Upon proper inspection - the being wasn’t even human, but something else. Some of which she had witnessed many and above those in the Tower. The ones that were known as Exo-Units. " I uh, saw ya - standin' here, looked like you were gonna leave, " it continues, briefly crouching its knees in as hands rested upon its' kneecaps, a mechanical pant wheezing between its' speech. " This place, it opens. In uh.. Screws, Screws! What time is it? "

As on call, another flicker of light ignites to the scene. A strange looking Ghost if Selene ever did see one - its' shape much rounder than the shell upon her very own. Like a chubby side-ways cross, if the cross's edges were insanely curved. Its' colors, an assortment of teal on yellow - not the most... coordinated of schemes. A bit hard to look at, actually.

" ɪᴛ ɪs ᴄᴜʀʀᴇɴᴛʟʏ 𝟿:𝟻𝟹, " it's voice chirps. It's tone far more mechanical than any Ghost thus observed, as if running through a Golden Age computer tech. Something that was truly more machine than sentient being. Causing that of Selene and her own Ghost to exchange glances before turning back to the Exo in question.

" Seven minutes - probably six, really - she's always out here untying the knot a minute early, " the Exo explained, waving a hand. " Stick around, promise its' worth it. I'll even - I pay your way. I pay your way, and you - ugh - you tell me about yourself. Nice chat - none the pervy stuff. Not into it -- " another wave, followed by the attempt of standing back at ones' full height, " But just a friendly, chat with a stranger. No strange stuff. Except... well... "

" ʜᴇ ʜᴀs -- ɴ𝟶 ғʀɪᴇɴᴅs, " the strange Ghost clicks, an unintentional emphasis on the ' no ', but it seems to hurt the others' feelings all the same.

" Auwh, come on, Screws! " the Exo cried, shaking its' head in defeat. " Why ya' gotta do that?! "

" I uh... " Selene starts, a perplexed blink as she stared at the two, " I don't... have any friends either? So maybe we can... work somethin' out... “

" Honestly, it seems one of you have a few screws' loose, " her Ghost retorts, whirling between the space of the other two beings.

" Well, he is my missing link, " the Exo snorts, motioning towards its' Ghost. " A basket case without'm. Hence the name - eh? Eh? "

" His... name is ' Screws '? " the Awoken squints.

" And I'm BEX! Nice to meet'ya! " the Exo grins, jabbing a hand in greeting. An awkward pause in between before Selene reaches out to return the favor; its’ grip seemingly more eager than anticipated as she felt her head spin at the force. " One of the most handsome Exo's in town! "

" H-Handsome --? " Selene repeats, shaking her head to cease the spinning. She offers the other an examining glance before pulling words together. What little of its’ frame she could tell... it was something between a brownish bronze with silver. " I suppose you're... not too bad to look at. “

" You suppose?! “ comes the exclamation, another sudden look of defeat grazed upon the Exo’s features. " Y'know what, just take'm, " he pushes his Ghost, Screws, over towards her, " You'll get along g r e a t. "

" Hey, wait a minute...! No, no! This ones' mine, " the other Ghost retaliated, its shell then zooming between Selene and the floating oddity. A violent shake, as if trying a scare tactic from the nameless, the more colorful of the two merely stays in place - indifferent to the situation at hand.

" I don't... think I can even take someone elses' Ghost, " the Awoken speaks, the lack of confidence in her voice astute. This whole situation having got out of hand too quickly - all for the sake of trying new foods. All to be interrupted by the rattle of ones' tent prying open - revealing a human woman, seemingly mid aged with a apron around her waist.

" I thought that was you who was causin' a ruckus, " she sighs, shaking her head towards the Exo. " You harrassin' this poor girl? You drivin' out my business. "

" No -- I'm increasing business, " Bex corrected, raising a single digit in accusation before walking over and assisting in the ties of the tent doors. " She was here before I was, anyway. About to walk away, too, if it wasn't for me. "

" I... well, yes... " Selene nods, her expression blank. " He's... also offered to pay my way. So I'll have the most expensive dish you have. "

" Hear that Chef? The most expens-- hey, wait a dang minute! That's not how to treat someone! " he turns his head mid sentence, another wail coming from his sensors. The Awoken in standing offering a small giggle in the sense - waving a hand of her own, " It's a joke, a joke... "

" Consider me feeling generous today, " the human woman scoffed, tying off the last string to reveal the few stools at a bar. " Ye' both can have whatever you want on the house. But you better bring back some new friends with wallets I can tamper in, " she turns toward Bex, a stoic scowl drift upon her face as she walked toward the back of the tent. A double unit, by the looks - half of its' width hidden behind another layer of fabric - the sounds of stirring pots and pans to be heard.

" Heard..." the Exo sighed, raising a hand behind his head in a scratch before looking back over toward his newly acquainted ' friend '. " Well? The waits' over, what're you standin' for? "

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

" Ah new Lihght? Dat's always fuhn," the Exo quirked a mechanical brow, still managing through a tuff of meat as he chewed. " I rehember when I firs woke up. "

" You do? " Selene questioned, having taken a break from her bowl. A quarter remains of curry sitting beneath spoons' edge as arms folded themselves across the countertop.

" Yeh - well, kinda, " Bex started, trying his damnest to finish the meal in tow before continuing. " As an Exo, kinda got a jail outta free card if you catch my drift. Went through the process of turnin' flesh to metal, body didn't wanna cooperate, failed transfer, yadda yadda, " he waves a hand, fingers wiggling at the thought. " I was suppose to have been dead, then and there. No flesh, no metal, no nada. But apparently - and this was news to everyone at that point, that the Traveler - handy dandy up there in the sky, can chose to bring back even the failed chaps' from Clovis's basement. Without the stinky rotting smell. "

" So you... died, trying to become an Exo, and then was brought back as... an Exo...? "

" Crazy, right? "

" But how did you... do you... I can't remember anything before hand, " Selene spoke, a tint of confusion in her voice. " How was it that you were able to remember something even before the Traveler.. "

" On-file documents. Somethin' the big ball didn't take into consideration, really. Kinda like a taboo, " Bex answered. Finishing the remains of his meal in a gulp, he exhaled a content burp before turning in his seat toward the woman. A shrug of shoulders as he clasps fingers together in a hutched position. " S'why Screws sounds a little funny, actually. Apparently the computers didn't approve of me tamperin' with the tech of where I woke up. Managed to get my stuff, but, other things - either already removed or too corrupted to tell. "

" The computer attacked your Ghost? "

" Not the computer, but the computer, yes. "

" I... sure, " Selene gave a single nod, knowing all too well that more questions would just send her further down the hole of insanity with this one. Perhaps she judged too soon of her own Ghost, it and its' chatty habits.

" I know you just said ye' don't know 'bout the past, but, what about you? What are you doing now? Have you been to the Tower? " the Exo then asks, tilting its head some. " They set ya' with a team? "

A team?

Right...

Hawthorne had briefly mentioned it when she was getting settled in. Fireteams -- groups that worked in favor of the Vanguard, doing patrol chores or strikes in high concentrated areas. Consisting from any combination of front line, be it Titan, Warlock or Hunters.

" I... I've been there, yeah. Met... Ikora? "

" Another Warlock? I'm a Warlock! " Bex grinned excitedly, quickly unraveling fingertips as he threw both hands in the air. " Not lucky enough to get under Ikora's perch, no no, but, a mentor all the same! "

" N-Not a Warlock, " Selene corrected, raising a small hand to settle the others' glee, “ Just, she's the only one I've talked to so far. Just, about... normal stuff... "

" Oh? Oh -- well, I mean, that's okay too. Gotta, figure out just what sorta tricks ye' got up yourself, y'know, " the Exo says, bringing back his hands into little light punching motions, the movement briefly twisting his stool to and back.

" Yeh know, betcha' a Hunter. You look it. Bet you got the skills for it too. "

" A Hunter, huh? "

" Oh, totally. Slim build, poker face, betcha' good with a dagger. We're already at like three check marks outta somethin' else. "

Tilting her head in curiosity, Selene returns the words with a shorten smile. The thought of being on the front lines still terrifying at the thought... but more along the lines of ones' confidence in her. Someone else who could see something she couldn't. Could he be trusted?

" That reminds me... I should probably get going, " the Awoken stirs, staring upon ones' reflection against the porcelain of the bowl before bringing her eyes back to height with yellow optics. " Thank you, for the meal. "

" No problem! " Bex offered another grin, hopping off his seat and extending a hand in assist. " Thank you for the company! S'really made my day. "

Despite having been tall enough to touch the ground from her seat, the Awoken accepts the temporary assistance in twisting out of her chair. The cooling touch of the Exo's frame unfamiliar to her as the two walk outside the tent. Chilling, yet... gentle.

" Y'know... if you're ever up in the Tower, " she starts, offering the Exo a glance before departing. " I'm... not a hard person to find. And if we're friends now, then... it means we can hang out again, right? "

" So you're admitting that we're totally friends? " Bex confirmed, brows raising upward in a suave manner.

" I'm saying that it wouldn't hurt to have someone else to hang out with, " she scoffs, albeit while wearing a smile. The sudden twinkle of light igniting ones' Ghost back to view, the pallid texture of the Traveler twisting in offense. " Well, that wasn't very nice to say! You do know I hear nearly everything you say, right? That this is how this relationship is going to go? "

" What, you don't want more friends either? " she coos, cocking an eyebrow in teasing notion as she extends a finger in poke toward the Ghost. " We got a long ride, might as well make friends along the way, right? "

The Ghost hovered in the air, spinning its' optic back toward the Exo then back to its' original Guardian. An audible huff coming from its' speaker before dissipating back into the wind. Another chuckle is pardoned under Selene’s breath before turning eyes back towards Bex. The Exo remaining stand-still with unblinking features as if absent for words.

" I'll see you some day in the Tower, yeah? " Selene asks.

" If I don't see you back here first, " Bex smiled, motioning a thumb over his shoulder toward the tent. " There's still two whole meals you gotta try! "

#✦ ᴏʀɪɢɪɴ / drabble #destiny 2 #d2 short-story #destiny 2 rp #d2 rp #destiny short story

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jiangsspace · 7 years

Text

Pins and Needles | 04

>> Taehyung gets hurt and Na-Eun is furious at you.

Pairing: Kim Taehyung x fem!reader

Word count: 2,6K

Genre: angst, fluff, actor!taehyung

Warning! Not gender inclusive. This fiction does not include gender neutral terms nor gender neutral concepts. The entertainment business has a long way to go, in providing equality, although progress has been made. This is only fictional and should not be taken very seriously.

Plot: Taehyung gets his first role in a big movie production. He is excited but he knows he’s on it, because his girlfriend, Na-Eun, negotiated with the producers of the movie. What happens when a seasoned costumier with a dark past and an actor with severe seizures meet in the brutal world of entertainment?

Note! All resemblance to real life people is unintentional and all characters, for the exception of Taehyung of course, are the fruit of my imagination.

Two months into the production and Taehyung had managed to crack open your wall and shed some light in you. He would try and steal glances from you from time to time, when you stood in the shadows, ready to help if someone needed to fix their costume. They rarely did, so most of the day you lingered in your room sewing for your own pleasure.

Taehyung was in the middle of a battle scene and the director was monitoring his performance with keen hawk eyes. Taehyung’s physique definitely suited these kinds of movies. He had a lean build and was fairly muscular. Something the entertainment industry liked to call a Robin Hood-build.

The scene was cut and immediately stylists rushed over to him and started pampering him, asking him if he needed anything and patted his skin dry from sweat. You were looking from afar thinking Taehyung hadn’t noticed you, but he had taken the habit of always inspecting his surroundings to see if you were there. When you weren’t there he felt a little uneasy, and when you were he thought his performance was better.

One of the stylists, ever so obviously placed their hand on his arm when patting his forehead with a cold cloth. She was laughing and trying to spark a conversation, which went in vain since Taehyung was stealing glances at you.

Suddenly uninterested by the flirting scene in front of you you turned on your heels and walked back to your room to finish the medieval dress-project you had began the other night when you didn’t feel like going home to your demons.

Not even fifteen minutes passed that Taehyung was knocking on your door. You opened it slowly, no need to encourage his visits when he had a girlfriend. Someone would still get ideas and it would be the end of your career. Maybe his too.

“Hey, you left.” Taehyung’s statement stayed in the air as an awkward filler. “What are you making?” He quickly tried to change the subject by focusing on the dress on the mannequin.

You followed his gaze and registered where it landed. You laughed awkwardly and went between Taehyung and the floor-length dress, as if to protect it from view.

“It’s not done yet. No one was supposed to see it.” You felt bad for him. He was only trying to be nice and you shot him down. “I don’t feel confident enough yet to show my work like this.”

He noticed how your voice had grown quieter as you spoke and you were being shy around him. He had already noticed that when he placed his hand on your arm after laughing together. You had winced and asked him not to touch using the excuse that you were sensitive.

“I say we make a deal.” Taehyung offered his hand and spoke in a more relaxed tone to calm you. “I don’t get to see your unfinished work until they are done, but could you come watch me shoot? It calms me for some reason.”

Your head snapped up in confusion. Your eyes were curious yet suspicious. Taehyung figured you weren’t the kind to take things like that as a compliment.

“What do you mean it calms you when I’m around?” Your voice was small and Taehyung could almost see how you wrapped yourself in yourself and closed off from the world. As if to protect.

“I like to know you’re watching me when I shoot.” Taehyung flashed a friendly smile. He always seemed to have a smile on his face, except when Na-Eun was at the studio. It wouldn’t have surprised you if she was one of the producers of this movie or her father’s company was.

“But like, not in a creepy way,” he laughed throwing his head back. He was showing so much genuine emotion that you little by little loosened your grip on the prejudice you had of him. “You calm me, that’s all.”

You nodded shyly. “If you want I can show you the sketches I made for this dress.” You walked over to a drawer in the side room and pulled out a piece of paper. The drawing was in black and white but you had wrote the colors down. Taehyung had followed you in and leaned over your shoulder to look at it.

“I love it!” he ran his fingers along the lines and stared at the picture for a while without saying anything. He took one step closer to stick his face closer.

You felt his front pressing against your behind and it made you sick to the stomach. Not because it was Taehyung but because the contact was too sudden and explicit. It felt so raw and threw you off guard. In fear and disgust you let the paper fall and turned around like a whip.

Taehyung was surprised and knelt down to pick the picture up and give it back to you, but seeing Taehyung on his knees in front of you made you lose it. You had to get out and take a breather. Taehyung on his knees changed into another man on his knees pleading to get a taste of you and caressing your thighs. He kept repeating how his wife didn’t need to know and that you were so beautiful he couldn’t help himself.

Crying was for the weak and you didn’t want to show Taehyung how weak you were, in fact. But the emotions were so strong the tears came down on their own and stained your cheeks. Your breath was hitched in your throat and breathing became very laborious.

Taehyung got up like an arrow and made the mistake of trying to hug you. He hadn’t realized he was partly the reason you were so distressed. When his arms wrapped around you, your hands flew up to his chest to create some distance between you.

“Get off me!” Your tears were preventing you from seeing clearly and making you more anxious than you already were. You pushed him away, but he didn’t move. To an outsider it must’ve looked like Taehyung was comforting you, but it felt more like an attack. Taehyung’s arms around you made you think of someone else. It made you want to cry out in anger.

You pushed again harder, and Taehyung gave in and stumbled away from the force your fists elicited. At that, you dropped to the floor trying to gather yourself.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t-” Taehyung couldn’t finish his sentence. He dropped to the floor with you with sad eyes. Pity was the first feeling he must’ve felt.

The next morning Taehyung knocked on the door again. Shooting hadn’t started yet and he wanted to offer you a coffee. But no one answered the door even when he knocked for the third time. His eyebrows scrunched in disappointment as the coffee in his hand became colder and colder.

He had to be on set in five minutes and he decided to leave the coffee by the door for you to see. He got a pen and wrote your name on it.

He was tired and out of breath by the second take. No one seemed to notice his heavy breathing and sloppily moving limbs. Action was shouted time after time and Taehyung thought his body would soon collapse. His partner was also unaware of his state and kept striking ruthlessly like during rehearsals.

Taehyung was now completely aware if he was one beat late he would get the punch of his life. The thought seemed funny enough to consider, but Taehyung was too tired to really know what was smart and what wasn’t.

If it wasn’t the will of someone higher than humans Na-Eun walked to the studio and locked eyes with Taehyung, as his supporting actor punched him straight in the face. Taehyung’s lip explosed and the blow was strong enough to leave him unconscious.

A scream of agony could be heard from the main studio as you sat in your room watching intently at the coffee cup which had your name written on it. Taehyung’s handwriting was neat and clear, easily readable. Just like him.

Quick steps were heard from the corridor and you knew they belonged to Na-Eun. No stylist wore high heels during the day at work.

You were still sat on your chair, needle and thread in hand. You had taken a break from the medieval dress as it made you nauseous to look at it. Socks were the perfect cure for nausea and stress. And right now you had the feeling Na-Eun was coming to you.

The noise grew louder and louder the closer the source approached your door. Before you knew it, a bull-like raging Na-Eun appeared in the doorway and stormed in to grab you by the hair, but you expected that kind of behavior so you spun around in your chair and escaped her barely. Luckily you had shorter hair, so she couldn’t grab your ponytail.

“You bitch!” She was raging and lava was pouring out of her ears. “Because of you Taehyung had another bout at home and now he’s too tired to shoot.”

You stood wordless in front of her. Na-Eun hadn’t witnessed anything that happened yesterday.

“Taehyung just received a punch in the face, because of you.” Her words were dripping with poison and her eyes glared at you. Still, you were unable to say a word. She really was a terrifying person. “He’s so tired, because he stayed here with you last night. He’s my boyfriend, keep your hands off of him!” she snapped with such force that she stumbled backwards.

She was fuming with rage and your reaction wasn’t the one she had hoped to witness. You were cold and nonchalant but Na-Eun wanted to see you on the floor crawling at her feet, begging for forgiveness. It was the least she expected from you, from Taehyung, from everyone.

She tried to take a step forward to intimidate you, but you stood your ground with an expression of steel. Not one muscle moved on your face even though you screamed from the inside. Na-Eun stared at you, clearly calculating whether you were a fight worth fighting.

“Keep your hands off of him. He’s mine!” She took one more step forward but surrendered quickly when she noticed you still hadn’t moved. Na-Eun lifted her hand to slap you as a sign of warning, but her hand never touched you because someone’s hand was keeping her from hitting you.

Na-Eun gasped in surprise as she felt Taehyung’s long fingers wrapped around her slender white wrist.

“Don’t touch her, Na-Eun,” voice full of dominance he growled “or you’ll regret it.”

“Tae-?” she winced as his grip on her tightened. “Taehyung, you’re hurting me.” He let go approaching you carefully. Like a hunter trying to soothe a scared animal, he didn’t touch you. Simply whispered in a calm tone to bring you back to this moment.

Na-Eun scoffed and crossed her arms across her chest, clearly annoyed. Taehyung paid no attention to her, she was air to him. You were the only thing that mattered. Taehyung didn’t know what had happened to you in the past, but he was determined never to see such pain on your face as yesterday.

He had stayed with you for what seemed like hours, to soothe you and talk to you about himself and his problems. He didn’t think you were actually listening, so letting his guard down he poured his soul into your hands and a little bit into your heart. Truth is, you had listened to every word and tasted the bitter taste of each and every one of them. Taehyung really was trapped in a lie of a relationship and a maze with no way out.

“Can you hear me?” he used your name for the first and it seemed to work since your eyes snapped up to his in confusion. As if you had just woken up. “I’m here with you now.”

“You two really are something,” Na-Eun laughed coldly “Your mind is crippled and she can’t speak.”

Taehyung turned to look at her with a passion she had never seen in him. Something he had never even experienced in his life. This feeling of rebellion and standing up to himself gave him the courage to stand in front of Na-Eun and stare at her in the eyes. She had dark brown eyes which were considered beautiful, but Taehyung knew what she was like in private.

“We’re done. This- this sick deal we have is over. I don’t care what rumors you decide to spread about me, I know I’m the better person here.” Taehyung received strength from every word he uttered and his posture now made him look enormous. Na-Eun didn’t quiver, but her lips were shaking. She was clearly intimidated by him and the sudden power he had wielded.

When Na-Eun had left the room you fell to your knees, supporting your body with your arms extended straight and your hair fell to your face. Taehyung knelt down to be at eye level with you but didn’t initiate contact. If you were going to touch him, the action had to begin by you.

“I don’t need to be saved.” You managed to mutter out. Embarrassed to know that Taehyung had witnessed you at your worst, unable to defend yourself and standing like a terrified deer that wanted nothing but to run away.

“Even the strongest need to be saved,” Taehyung laughed. “You aren’t alone in this world.” Taehyung hesitated to confess what he had wanted to say for so long. You hadn’t lifted your head the entire time you were left alone. “And I need you to save me.”

The winter passed and spring flowers were blooming when the production was just at its end. The almost two year long project had taken a toll on everyone, but the results turned out successful. Taehyung received an award for his performance and the movie was a box-office hit. Na-Eun and Taehyung still had to work together as she was one of the producers, but further major conflicts were avoided. Taehyung had you to ground him.

He spent every night with you, in your room watching you work. He no longer called you needle fairy, but used your real name.

“Taehyung, you did well.” With a smile you offered a cup of coffee to the exhausted actor. The last scene had just been wrapped and the actor was dripping with sweat. Before coming to you, he had shooed away all the attention-seeking stylists who wished to be close to him. He only wanted you.

“Thank- thank you,” he had yet to steady his breathing as his chest was rising and falling at inconsistent intervals. “I feel drained.”

He took the paper cup from your hands and your fingers brushed together. It felt extremely cliché, but you thought someone had plugged a wire in your spine to send electric shocks across your entire body. The contact felt so new and pure. For the first time in ten years, touching someone else felt natural and good.

Taehyung never asked about your past which made you respect him even more. He didn’t necessarily need to know what had happened to you, in order to establish a true relationship with him. Over time you would be so comfortable around each other that touching wouldn’t be a problem.

And if you were being honest, you had deprived yourself from human contact for so long in the fear of getting hurt again. No one could be trusted in the business and you practically breathed the costumes you created and took pride in the work you did. Taehyung didn’t want to hurt you or make you fear him. He needed you as much as you needed him.

“Do you want to come to my room and try this new jacket I made?” He whined like a tired child but followed you anyway, his needle fairy.

one | two | three | four

this concludes the final installment of Pins and Needles. It’s been quite a ride, but I made it. Some of you might know that I’m not very talented when it comes to these long pieces, so I hope it made some sense and that the text was good. Thank you xxx

#bts taehyung #bts fluff #kim taehyung #bts v #taehyung fluff #v fluff #original character #fiction #bts fiction #kpop fiction

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cancerargumentativeessay451 · 4 years

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yellowsugarwords · 7 years

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Walking Dead Game FanFiction - “Secrets Exposed”

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miraculous-nights · 8 years

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Supervillains

Title: Chapter Three

Summary: Marinette was kidnapped when she was 6 and her cage was next to a boy in a similar situation. Tikki and Plagg renamed them to be Ladybug and Chat Noir, but they still don’t know who their companion really is. Suddenly, they are let loose into the world with no explanation.

Word Count: 3465

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I sadly do not own Miraculous Ladybug or any of it’s characters...

Monday morning came and Marinette began to panic. She had spent all of Sunday inside gathering her worries. What if the other students hated her? What if they bombarded her with every question she couldn’t answer? What if the teachers hated her? She was going deeper and deeper into her insecurities and as she began to breathe faster and faster.

She felt a mug pushed into her hands, and blinked to see her mom standing there. Sabine knew what was happening and helped her like she had for both days she had been home. Marinette smiled at her and Sabine went back to cutting some ingredients up for something.

“You should leave soon, Mari. School starts in thirty minutes, and you know how to get there, right?”

“Yes, mom. I know how to walk down the street. I’ll go grab my stuff then I’ll go,” Marinette went back up to her room and grabbed the backpack her mom bought and put on the watch she asked for the day before.

Downstairs, she hugged her father before swiping a danish for the road. There was a crowd that had gathered around the building, for both pastries and to see her. She knew it was mostly for her, there were almost three bakeries on one block average.

“Bye, Dad. I’ll drop by right after school and maybe I’ll go to the park for a shorter time before dinner’s ready.” Marinette received a joyful look at having her come home, and a scold from stealing the danish.

She walked out of the shop with purpose, shoving her way through the group of cameras, questions, and onlookers. Once she was free of the main mass, it was easier to get across the street and finally more or less disappear into morning rushed people who had a destination like her.

In ten minutes, she was in the school’s office, checking in with a secretary for her schedule. Monsieur Damocles came out of his personal office before she left, and he had her come into the office.

“I hear you’re back for good, right?” Marinette nodded as he continued, “Good. Hate to lose you so quickly again,” he chuckled at his excuse of a joke before clearing his throat. “So, you’re in Mademoiselle Bustier’s class. It starts soon, but you shouldn’t be the only new student to that class it seems. You can afford to be a little late today. The famed Adrien Agreste is taking a step down from his prissy life up in his mansion to join Paris public schools.”

“Okay, Monsieur. May I have my schedule now? I would hate to inconvenience you,” Marinette was nearly silenced when she heard the boy’s name from Saturday.

“Yes, yes. Of course. My secretary must have it by now, and I have to leave school for a meeting with Monsieur Agreste this morning. If the secretary doesn’t have it, just wait until it gets here. Good morning, Marinette,” Monsieur Damocles led her out of the office and then left the office lobby to leave for the meeting. The secretary didn’t have the schedule yet, so Marinette sat down to wait for it.

The bell rung five minutes before Marinette was given her schedule, and another five minutes passed before she could figure out where the class was. She took a deep breath and put Chat out of her mind before knocking on the door and coming in at the teacher’s call.

“Hi, I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I came here after being returned home for the first time since I was six years old,” she announced before the class. Mademoiselle Bustier had instructed her to sit next to Alya, and she ended up right behind Adrien. His blond head nodded slowly back and forth in concentration she realized after a few minutes behind him.

“Adrikins, so glad you and could catch up yesterday. It’s a shame the entire media is focused on that bakery girl instead of your return to fame- fashion. I meant your return to the fashion world,” a skinny blond girl giggled at Adrien from across the aisle, and Marinette looked at her curiously.

“Chloé, now’s not the time. It’s my first day of class and I want to learn,” Adrien whispered furiously. Her name was Chloé. She seemed a bit more than rude, with her head angled upwards even though her and Adrien were almost the at the same level.

“Quiet, we are in a lecture,” Mademoiselle Bustier called up from the space in front of their desks, “This is a place of learning and I intend for all of you to do so, particularly people who sit in the front and I have a direct view of.”

She looked pointedly at Adrien, but her eyes passed over the Chloé girl. She must be caught doing things like that a lot. Tikki never let them talk during class, so Marinette fell back onto her Ladybug education habits. She listened very well, but also was able to let her mind drift while listening.

“Marinette! I dare say you are not paying attention. Even if it’s your first day, you will need to catch up. Please recite the last sentence to the best of your abilities,” Mademoiselle Bustier was very loud, but it might be because the back of the classroom is very far away.

“Yes, Mademoiselle. You said, ‘One of the most famous books in French history was The Hunchback of Notre Dame, by Victor Hugo. We will be studying this novel for almost the rest of the year,’” Marinette recited and tilted her head side to side while thinking.

“Oh, okay then. Now let’s continue with our Advanced Research Lesson on the author. Victor Hugo also wrote the famed Les Miserables which is believed to be more famous. You will study it next year, and we focus on this book first because of the French landmark. We will be taking a field trip at the end of the book to visit the site and other remarkable landmarks featured in the novel,” Mademoiselle Bustier continued to drone while Marinette drifted yet again.

She knew that her drifting wouldn’t be minded again after the first time. By the time she was finished with her thoughts, Alya was staring at her.

“What? Is there something on my face?” Marinette wiped around her mouth and Alya chuckled.

“Yes Mademoiselle. You said blah blah blah. How did you remember all of that in the two seconds she talked about it. While not paying attention,” Alya said as they packed up bags for lunch.

“It’s quite easy. The people who schooled me while I was kidnapped had me recite things for days. I wasn’t even allowed the readings outside of the classroom,” Marinette remembered the time the girl that was tutored there didn’t remember something. Plagg was teaching them that day and he made her stand in the front of the room and not move until she remembered it or it was time for her to go home. She stood in place for three hours before her mother had arrived to pick her up.

Alya chattered about what would happen for the rest of the school day and the rest of the school year. Marinette found Alya riveting in how she could talk and talk all day long. Marinette didn’t think she could do it.

They found somewhere to sit and the boy who sat in front of Alya sat down across from her.

“Hey, Alya. Since we both have a new friend by us, I thought we could all sit together,” the boy fiddled with the headphones around his neck.

“Get lost, Lahiffe. Only the friend can sit by us. You don’t have enough class,” Alya teased as he sat down anyway.

The blond boy who was sitting in front of her was the Adrien Agreste boy. She was still curious about him. How he returned this weekend instead of any other weekend. Not only that, but they came to the same school for the first time today and are in the same possible friend group.

“Adrien, was it? Where have you been these past ten years? I assume you know where I’ve been,” Marinette asked innocently. LIke she wasn’t guilty of pinning something most likely untrue about him on him.

“My mom requested I was kept inside and not ever let out of the house so people couldn’t take advantage of my youth, father including. My mom disappeared about a year ago, or something, and Father’s over his mourning now. So, I guess my extended vacation is over,” Adrien sounded regretful about it all, but also punctuated. Chat was not punctuated in the least.

“Do you want to go to the park if you get some free time? I don’t imagine you have that much, but I-I’d love someone who’s been shut away even longer than I have and share experiences,” Marinette mentally gasped. She had stuttered in front of this cute boy. She talked to Chat so often, and she supposed he was cute enough for her to not do this.

Alya had openly gasped and was taken by surprise by the unintentional date. Not the stuttering, she hardly knew Marinette. Alya knew no girl who would go so fearlessly into a date after meeting a person so soon.

“Yeah, I would totally do that. I could outmaneuver my bodyguard that picks me up. I don’t think I have anything tonight if that’s okay,” Adrien said before Marinette could look at Alya. Alya gasped yet again.

“Nino, we couldn’t even get a bet on the time limit yet!” Alya was staring at the two new friends.

“What? You’re right! Way to ruin our streak. We bet on every possible relationship to form in our class, and we haven’t missed one yet. You beat us to it,” Nino was taken aback.

“I’m sorry we didn’t know about your gambling problems?” Marinette sounded confused, but Adrien was confused. He didn’t get this kind of sarcasm from his father.

“Marinette you shouldn’t be sorry. They are just joking around, I’m sure,” Adrien smiled brightly at her from across the table. There was a moment of silence before the other three burst into laughter. It only made him more confused.

“I am also joking. Nothing is ever so literal unless you take that way,” Marinette was quoting Chat Noir, and Adrien blinked and looked away. They practiced jokes on Adrien until they went walking and eventually went back to the classroom.

The rest of the day was easy and a bit boring. Most of the information had been already taught to Marinette, and she could fly through the course work.

By the time school was over, Marinette had almost forgot about going to the park with someone other than Ladybug nestled into her brain. She was walking past Adrien when he reminded her.

“S-sorry. I forgot for a m-moment. I’ll have to check in with my parents first, i-if that’s okay,” she said and he nodded.

“That’s okay. If my father just got me back after nine years, I would also be having that problem. Now, I can’t be alone enough to him. I just wish I could get a healthy balance of friends and home life,” he sighed.

“It’s okay. T-this is my family’s bakery. D-do you want anything?”

“I’ll be okay. Father keeps me on a strict diet.” Marinette eyed him. He was practically as skinny as Chat was before they were let go. She couldn’t believe a parent would make their child stay that small.

She ran in and waved at her dad, then snatched two of the closest pastries she could find- two chocolate-filled croissants. She gave one to Adrien and he looked surprised.

“My favorite! I told you that you didn’t have to.”

“My treat. Anyway, it’s almost closing time and they were leftover.”

“This park is weird, isn’t it?” Adrien looked at the big fountain that the park was centered around and the different areas where people gathered.

“I guess. It was the park that the people k-kidnapped me in. It’s also where they returned me. I w-was wondering about that. You were gone for ten years, and I was gone for nine. If nobody ever saw you and they gave up their hopes on me, who’s to say that you weren’t anywhere else?”

Adrien’s eyes widened as he looked alarmed. “Sorry for cutting this short but I see my bodyguard over there.”

“What? Where?” Adrien pointed out a pale man. She looked around the park and saw Tikki walking past the children’s area. “Oh! I really need to go too. I’ll s-see you tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow Marinette,” Adrien was distant as he walked off in the direction of the man.

She looked for Tikki once more and couldn’t find her. She started to walk by a bench, and a hand pushed her shoulder down until she sat down.

“Insolent child. You came here everyday as a child. It makes you the easiest target for us creepers. But even worse, you still come here every day you can. For an hour or ten minutes, we will always be able to find you,” Tikki sat down next to her.

“What do you want with me?” Marinette snapped at her, because Ladybug would never offer herself for a beating.

“I simply want to inform you that some changes might occur. Those meds were never for your memory loss. Simply a side effect, if you did have them. Now, after effects, that’s something to worry about. Soon, like probably today or tomorrow, you will require much more food than what you eat now. It will be sudden, it happened to me. Next, you will become lean and pure muscle. Your body is preparing itself for what’s to come.”

“What did these pills even do?”

“It’s easy once you understand how to do it. Each pills attempts to find if there’s any magic remaining in your family line.” Marinette gawked and was not allowed to talk, “But once you take a pill, it is incredibly hard to have children, much to the dismay of Plagg and I. It takes a long time of pills to react to every inch of magic in your bloodline. Chat and you have received the most-potent amount. Some power evolves with age, but we’ve pretty much juiced it out of you. We are simply using you two as our masters used us. You will do so one day to your apprentices. Marinette, I hope you understand that we will require you two to help us.

“There is a great force of evil that we have been fighting for generations. Before the magical lines faded out of memory and when we didn’t have to resort to these methods. The current masters must choose and apprentice to take their role in this war. I chose you and Plagg chose Chat Noir. You will be Marinette to me, but Chat and all of your allies will only know you as Ladybug. When you retire, your identity will become Tikki and Chat will become Plagg. When you retire or I die, I will lose my fake name and once again take on the name I was given at birth.”

“Tikki, I have one main question. If I have to fight, don’t I need to learn? Also since you’re married don’t you have to know Plagg’s real name?”

“Why of course I know my husband’s name! What kind of woman do you think I am? Chat and Ladybug have a history of revealing their identities no matter what, but it gets so annoying. My Tikki said the same thing. So, anyway we covered all the things I was supposed to tell you. We chose you for a reason. It wasn’t a random choice to take you from your family. You and Chat have the right personalities and the right age group. Trixx, Nooroo, Duusu, Queen Bee, Plagg, and I are all the people who fight in the war. Unfortunately, Duusu and Nooroo have both turned against us. So, eventually after everyone gains their powers, we will have a wonderful team to defeat them and pass the power to the next generation to be with us,” Tikki paused and looked at Marinette.

“So is the war primarily against those two? Or is it another enemy that is greater than them?”

“She calls herself the Supreme Kwami. Each person who grows into their powers is a kwami. Yes, you are a kwami. You both did magic the week before we gave you back to your families. So, eat. Listen to your bodily functions and needs for food and whatever else it tells you, except hormones. I don’t want to deal with those and don’t try it. I have to go, so I’ll be in touch.”

Marinette watched Tikki walk away with a brisk pace, her heels clicking. Processing the last of the information, she stood and went home. She hoped Adrien found his way home safely.

“Good evening, Mari. I didn’t see you drop by the shop this afternoon.” Marinette was welcomed with this statement.

“Yeah, I made a friend and I didn’t want to keep him waiting. I waved to Dad, did you see me?”

“Yes, Marinette. I didn’t get a chance to ask you about anything, but I’ll survive. Sabine, I told you not to worry. If anyone did anything, it’s not like we’d give up.”

“Thank you. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m guessing we have about thirty minutes until dinner? I have some homework to work on for a little bit,” she made her way up into the pink room.

There was a pile of boxes on the chaise. She spied a computer box, and box with some designs around it, and on the top of the pile, a box for a cell phone. She moved them aside and sat down to think for a minute. Ladybug fell into the empty spaces of the room and she had a conversation with her buried side.

What does Tikki even mean? I mean, honestly, I can’t even see you or me working for the sadistic woman.

That’s true, but if they awakened hidden magical powers… That will be a real issue if neither of us can control them. If only Tikki was actually nice.

But still, why would she bother to explain all of these things now? She hasn’t bothered in over nine years. Nine years and one day to be exact.

There’s always the possibility that Plagg has say over her, but how he changes around her it’s doubtful. He becomes more respectful, not her.

Ladybug tucked herself away as Tom bellowed out the word dinner. Marinette hurried down and helped to set the table. It was a quiet night after dinner. She spent the night in her room doing the homework to catch up. She wasn’t really in her room, though. She was up on the balcony that had been forgotten about in her last few days. An old wooden table was up there, some cracked plastic tea cups, and a two chairs that went with the table. Also the group of plants that had been so overgrown she only had a narrow stip of concrete to set up shop on her homework.

Writing about Victor Hugo was very dull. She kept finding herself looking up and the dusk around her. The sun was beautiful in how it lit up the Paris skyline. The city always seemed behind the rest of the world. School got out much later than some places, the sun took much longer to set. Paris was simply trying to hold onto the past.

A crunch sounded behind her and she turned quickly. Sabine had started to crawl up and stepped on a tea cup.

“Sorry if I scared you. Dinner was tense and I didn’t get anything out about your day. So,” Sabine paused as if she wasn’t sure what to do, “How was your day?”

“It was fine I guess. Alya sits next to me and we are friends, I think. A boy named Nino sits in front of her and another new kid sits in front of me. We made a mini friend group. It won’t be a four group forever, but we can all split up into two groups of needed. The classes were fine,” Marinette thought about the days that Chat and Ladybug were left to teach themselves. It happened every so often. It was her very favorite moments with Chat.

Their conversation died soon after, and any attempts to reinvigorate it didn’t happen. They couldn’t sit in peaceful silence but they couldn’t talk either. Marinette thought it was maybe the worse thing to happen to her since coming back.

#ml #miraculous ladybug #fanfic #marichat #adrienette #LadyNoir #ladrien #my writes #supervillians #chapter the third i guess

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808lionfire · 8 years

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A Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Chat Noir Fanfic

Another Note for the List

Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug. It probably wouldn't be as popular if I did.

Overview: Rated T for that one subtle, inappropriate joke. Can either be in the canon 'verse or a Modern!AU (up to you, honestly). Aged up. Technically.

Summary: Just a story thing to get a feel for these characters, so read at your own risk. Nothing major though. There's fluff and a subtle sort of a short-running, inappropriate joke. Like I said: nothing major.

Pairing(s): Adrien/Marinette, Nino/Alya

Word Count: ~3.5K

A/N: Like I said in the summary, this fic is just a tester to see how far I'll be able to take these characters' personalities while still remaining relatively canon. I want to see how much breathing room I have with them before actually dedicating my time on a full length story. I like to stay as true to them as I can, otherwise I'd just lose motivation.

FanFiction || AO3

Another Note for the List

Adrien knew, even from the first time he laid eyes on her, that Marinette was definitely a force to be reckoned with.

He may be a little biased, but only because they definitely did not start on equal terms. In fact, Adrien had experienced—first-hand—the intensity that her tiny stature hoarded. Namely what Alya and Nino would call the gum incident. And as unintentional as the circumstances of their first meeting had been, he quickly vowed to never do anything that made her that mad ever again. Unintentional or no. An angry Marinette was definitely not someone he wanted to meet in a dark alley.

On one hand, she forgave him for the incident once he apologized. On the other hand, she wasn't able to form a coherent sentence around him for a long time afterward.

At first, Adrien thought the blushing and stuttering was adorable. She flushed the most brilliant pink every time he glanced at her, and hid behind Alya every time they (accidentally) crossed paths during lunch break. He assumed that she was still embarrassed by how quick she was to jump to conclusions before (which he definitely didn't blame her for, honestly), but then a week passed. Then two. And when a month came and went, the fond amusement at her quick retreats turned into anxious concern.

He had absolutely no idea why she seemed so skittish around him. And it was only around him. Adrien probably once fooled himself into thinking that she was just a naturally shy person, but her personality always did an entire one-eighty when she didn't notice him looking.

Coupled with her being a reckoning force, Marinette was a confidant. And not just because she was the class president. She was always accompanied by someone, whether it be Alya, Nino on occasion, or just a random member of their class. They'd always be in close proximity, as if sharing secrets that no one else around them could ever dream to figure out.

With Alya, they'd be rapidly talking about random things, bouncing from topic to topic so quickly that Adrien couldn't even hope to follow. Sometimes he would see her stare bravely up at Kim when he was being particularly competitive. She and Max would occasionally enter a heated debate about some character in some game. She babbled occasionally with Rose while Juleka listened off to the side with a smile on her face. Even Nathanaël, when the red-head was approached by the bubbly half-Asian, curled over his sketchbook and exchanged whispered tips and snickered over something or the other.

Eventually, everything that Marinette was had been just too complex to ponder, so Adrien started to note everything Marinette was not.

Shy? She was not, apparently. If the way she effortlessly flittered from person to person was anything to go by. Reserved? No, most definitely not. Her entire person had always thrummed with energy and she was not afraid to show it. Quiet? That would be the biggest and probably the most amused no that he would ever give in his entire life. Adrien was half-convinced that she had no volume setting whatsoever. Her conversations were always expressive, bubbly, and not at all quiet. Sure, she had her moments where she could giggle and whisper, but she was primarily loud and easily startled.

Normally, Adrien would frown because she had rarely ever been loud and expressive whenever he was in talking distance.

He wanted to experience what their classmates experienced, she was one of his first friends after all. It wasn't all bad, however. Thankfully, talking distance wasn't hearing distance. So whenever he was left feeling particularly down in the dumps from another one-sidedly coherent conversation with the half-Asian, he'd hear a completely disarming sound chime from her. It wasn't always influenced by him, but she always lifted his spirits just a little more when she laughed.

It wasn't much to be happy about (especially since he wasn't a direct cause of it), but the thing about her mirthful noises were that when Marinette laughed, she guffawed. No holds. No barriers. No reservations. Admittedly, he was startled the first time he heard her laugh from talking distance. The loud, happy sound from the skittish bluenette had been delivered with no hesitation. And right in front of him, to boot.

It took enough bruising nudges from Nino and nearly tripping up the stairs into collège for him to snap out of the startling hold her laughter trapped him in. It was absolutely mortifying.

Even more mortifying, though, was that Marinette saw his little stumble on the last step and stared a good minute at him, looking just as startled as he had been a moment prior. They stood, staring at each other with wide eyes, then she did it. She snorted, quickly dissolving into the same guffaws that sent him spiraling earlier. It was embarrassing to say the least, but better because he was the direct cause of that laugh. It took him looking an utter fool, of course, but she quickly warmed up to him after that.

She stuttered (that time it was because of her laughter, thankfully) out an apology but was unable to to say anything else because the bell shattered the moment. Alya shot him an amused look before taking Marinette's arm and dragged the giggly half-Asian to their class. Nino clapped his back, the meaning behind the gesture was completely lost on the blonde, before tilting his head towards the school and shrugged a shoulder.

It kinda just got better after that.

Every so often during his first class, he could hear giggles behind his back and after making sure the teacher wasn't looking, he turned to look. Marinette's blue eyes were shining as she stared back at him, her face flushing as she quietly slapped a hand over her mouth to smother her laugh. He was aware that his cheeks flushed as sent her a small smile, only letting the quirk of his lips grown when he turned back around.

Of course, her transition to him wasn't all smooth sailing. It wouldn't have been another two months until she could actually hold a lengthy conversation with minimal stuttering, and another handful before she was anywhere near comfortable enough to just cruise around the town with him for the rest of the evening when Alya and Nino suddenly disappeared from another one their group outings. Once she got over her initial hesitance, they—along with Nino and Alya—created a bunch of memories that would never leave him.

One of his favorite moments was during their première of Lycée when she and her family extended him an invitation to celebrate on a particularly lonely Christmas Eve.

He only planned to drop off the presents for Marinette and her parents and leave afterwards. He had already gave Nino his present and left Alya's along with the dark-haired DJ, seeing as the pair were going to spend Christmas together; their first one spent as an official couple. After an extended fencing lesson, Adrien was feeling drained and all he wanted to do was wish the Dupain-Cheng family a Merry Christmas, drive home, and kick his feet up.

Despite that, he found it quite hard not to be pulled in by the boulangerie's warm atmosphere and heady scents. He found it exponentially more difficult when Marinette beamed so brightly at him from behind the cash register. The empty mansion he wanted to return to before seemed less and less appealing when she bounded around the counter to greet him heartily, announcing his presence to her parents as she daintily dodged the presents in his arms to pull him into a hug with warmth that rivaled (and beat) the bakery's.

He desperately wanted to prolong the hug, but his arms were too full of wrapped boxes to return it and the joyful greetings from the backroom drew Marinette back at a safe, platonic distance.

"Feel free to stay over, son. It's Christmas Eve after all," Marinette's father, Tom, had offered after he emerged from the back, clapping him jovially on the back. "Hope you don't mind, but it's a Dupain-Cheng tradition to pass out on the couch after one too many cups of eggnog."

"It's a Dupain tradition, actually," Tom's other half, Sabine, joked after she joined them and naturally gravitated under her husband's arm, patting the large man's stomach lovingly. "We Chengs are very empathetic people and we don't want to leave him all by himself on the couch, so we end up falling asleep next to each other in order to keep Tom comfortable."

Marinette had nudged his arm then, a playful smirk on her lips as her bluebell eyes sparkled mischievously up at him. "In other words," she started, a joking jab already forming, "Dad's just too heavy for me and Mom to lift on our own, so we give up before trying. It's pretty much a habit at this point."

Adrien remembered Tom shooting her a playfully affronted look. "But isn't that what a tradition is?"

The four shared a laugh, the atmosphere warming enough to plant smiles on the last batch of holiday patrons. Shortly after, Tom announced that he needed to finish a few customers before closing up the shop for the day. He enlisted Adrien's help before the model had a chance to open his mouth. He, of course, agreed and then started to protest when the two Dupain-Cheng women started confiscating the gifts in his arms.

Sabine just waved off his efforts to take the presents back, a laugh following her as she started towards the back. Once she was gone, Adrien immediately turned to Marinette and tried to convince her. Much like her mother, however, the bubbly half-Asian merely laughed and expertly dodged his advances, smiling cheekily at his grumpy look. She playfully bumped their hips before skipping into the side door that led up to the house. Tom only chuckled and patted Adrien's shoulder before assigning him to the register.

Together, the two men made quick work of satisfying the boulangerie's customers and packed the leftover goods into containers. Tom let him flip the sign (a real treat for Adrien, honestly) while he started helping a few workers from a local shelter load the boxes into a pickup truck.

Reassured that Tom had enough help moving the leftovers, he started up to the house. He could hear the holiday music pounding from inside before he even opened the door and couldn't contain the smile that stretched across his lips when he opened the door. What he found was just another thing to add on Marinette's not list.

A dancer? She definitely was not. What made it better though was the mortified blush that steamed her face when she caught him watching and– ah, cue the stuttering. He was starting to miss it, honestly. Unlike before, however, Marinette didn't shy or attempt to run away. Instead, she pouted at him and clicked her tongue, daring him to do any better.

Adrien only grinned at the challenge and strode over to her. He took the remote—that she was using as a microphone—from her fingers and changed the song. She rose an eyebrow at him when he chuckled the remote over his shoulder, knowing for a fact that it bounced harmlessly onto the sofa, and bowed to her with a hand held out invitingly. He doesn't remember exactly what he said, but it was stupid enough to make her laugh and grasp her hand in hers.

He could easily the cute squeal she made when he pulled her up to him, lifting her off the ground so they were eye-level. The intensity in her glare was lost beneath the harshness of her blush and Adrien only laughed before he twirled them dramatically around the living room.

That's how Tom and Sabine found them, dancing and giggling like idiots as 'I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus' of all songs played in the background. The couple soon joined in soon afterwards with Tom holding Sabine much like how Adrien was holding Marinette. The four started snickering on every pass of each other. Just to keep the ridiculous mood, Tom kept the song on repeat until empty stomachs started to protest. They finished the night with a huge Christmas feast and some eggnog while relaxing into some cliché, B-rated Christmas movie.

Adrien wasn't sure if Tom meant he could stay overnight, or if he meant just for dinner, but he woke up the next morning on the ground, pressed up against the couch with the back of a hand dangling from on the couch pressed up against his face. He could smell breakfast cooking and failed to notice the lack of Tom and Sabine's presence in the living room as he sat up, too focused on the face that was smooshed into the couch cushions.

He chuckled at the sight. Another note for the list: Marinette was not a graceful sleeper. But he found that much more endearing than he should've. It was then when he started to wonder if there were anything that she did that he didn't find ridiculously adorable.

After noticing him awake, Sabine treated him to a breakfast that would've left his dietitian in a stupor while Tom jokingly said that he was going to 'wake the beast'. Adrien was puzzled for a split second but then roared out a laugh not even a second when he heard Marinette's loud, disturbed growl (that did, in fact, sound very much like a beast, much to Adrien's amusement) when Tom started belting 'O Holy Night' it the most off-key tone that he could.

Marinette looked surprised for a split second when she stormed into the kitchen, scowling soon after when he playfully called her a grumpy bug. She shot him a sharp look and called him a skittish kitty, no doubt referring to that one time he screamed during a scary movie marathon at Nino's.

Needless to say, it was a very eventful Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. Between the vision of a very grumpy Marinette pouting her way to the kitchen table and the gifts they surprised surprised him with when Marinette pulled out them from behind the tree with a dramatic tah-dah, it was one of his better Christmases in a very long time.

"...ton? Chaton? Adrien, honestly. ADRIEN!"

Adrien yelped in surprise, his head hitting the trunk door of his SUV. There was an exasperated sigh and two different pairs of snickers when he crouched low to the ground, holding the top of his head while hissing in pain. Slender fingers were slipping under his a moment later, gently shooing his hands away while another joined the first, assessing the damage.

"Dude," came the familiar voice of Nino, amused like always. "You actually did sound like a cat. I now understand the nickname."

"A little late, babe," Alya laughed, "she had been calling him that since Lycée."

"I knew about the kitty cuddling and extreme laziness," Nino defended himself and ignored the protesting whine from the man in question, "but I never heard him sound like a cat. Tell me, my man, has Mari ever made you purr?"

"Babe."

"What? It's just a question!"

"A really stupid one!"

"Oh, right," Nino said in a knowing tone, no doubt nodding to the line of thought only he followed. "Of course she has. That's not even a question."

Adrien heard something that sounded very like a slap echoed through the air, quickly followed by a 'manly' yelp that was more surprised than hurt. He wanted to roll his eyes when the couple started to bicker but was distracted by the gentle fingers that wove through his hair, drawing out a content sigh despite his throbbing brain. He lifted his head and peered up in the concern blues.

"Are you alright, mon minou?" Marinette asked, letting him take one of her hands to press against his lips.

"I'm fine, bugaboo," Adrien smiled and straightened out from his crumpled position, towering a good head above her but bent forward too keep her hands tangled in his hair. He shot her a flirty smirk and all but purred. "Much better now that I have your concern, ma lady, but maybe I'd feel even better if you could check again so I won't have to fear for my poor head?"

"No need for that," Marinette rolled her eyes and pulled her hands away, ignoring his protesting pout. "If you have enough energy to flirt, kitty, you're perfectly fine."

"Meow-ch!" Adrien exclaimed theatrically, holding a hand over his heart and placing the back of the other on his forehead. "But, purr-incess! If you don't check over your lowly knight, we might have to call the paw-amedics!"

Marinette blinked twice at him before she shook her head, snatched a decently sized box from the back of the car, and walked away. "Three puns, Adrien. You definitely cleared inspection."

"What a catastrophe!" Adrien fell back into the trunk, his back landing on a pile of rolled up carpets. "Quick! Someone cat-call the paw-lice! It's an e-mew-gency!" He gasped dramatically. "A cruel, cruel princess broke a poor kitty's heart!"

"Hey, Mari," came Alya's interjection, "maybe we should call call him in."

Adrien sat up and was about to thank the woman's kind heart for a broken kitty, but–

"He's obviously delirious from hitting his head so hard earlier. How do you even deal with that?"

"Hey!" The blonde model protested, shooting her an affronted look. He ignored the smirk Alya shot him in reply and turned to Marinette—his savior—only for his pleading expression to drop when he saw the look of extreme contemplation on the woman's face. "Mar?"

Her bluebell eyes rolled to him and he tensed, only relaxing when she sent him an affectionate smile and a playful wink. "With a lot of love, obviously."

A bright smile slid onto Adrien's face, a warm tingling traveling through him at her gaze alone. "Love you too, bugaboo."

"You two are disgusting," Nino groaned when Adrien caught the kiss Marinette flirtingly blew to him and pressed it against his chest. Nino turned to Alya with an exasperated look. "We weren't like that, were we?"

"For about a week," Alya admitted with a shrug, resting her elbow on her boyfriend's shoulder and snickering at his distressed moan. "But keep in mind that these two dorks started dating each since our last year in Lycée and they're still like this."

"Might as well get used to it," Marinette smirked, picking up another box with Adrien's help and placing it on the sidewalk. "Green really isn't a good look on you two."

"Take it from Mari," the model laughed, pulling a particularly heavy box from the back of the truck and setting it right next to the one they just put down, "she's the professional designer after all. Besides, after we move all of this inside, we're officially your new neighbors!"

"Oh, joy," came Alya's sarcastic reply, a playful smirk on her face.

"Hope you like the neighborhood, man!" Nino greeted with a cheerful clap to Adrien's back, pointing to one if the windows on the third floor. "I heard that apartment has a really awesome DJ. I really hope he doesn't wake up guys up in the middle of the night with his sick beats."

"Ohh," Marinette's voice came in knowingly, a joking smile on her lips as she shot him a mischievous look. "So that's what the earplugs were for! Thank's Alya!"

Nino swiveled his head towards his girlfriend. "Babe!"

Alya held up her hands innocently. "I bought us each a pair too! And who knows? We might need it when Mari ever decides to make Adrien purr."

Immediately following that comment was a loud, undignified snort from the girl in question. Soon enough, the four friends found themselves dissolving into fits of laughter.

#miraculous ladybug #fanfiction #adrien agreste #marinette dupain-cheng #alya cesaire #nino lahiffe #my first official contribution to my ever growing trash bin #named after me of course

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