#the joy of watching false lock in for a challenge

[beyondborderlands]

Hermit-a-Day May, Days 3 and 5: Tango and False!

This drawing is very specifically based on the bingo pairs game Tango and False teamed up on for the previous Gamers Outreach charity stream. It's so fun watching False get really focused in during a competitive game (if you've seen her old UHC vids you might know what I'm talking about), and combined with Tango's quick brain and penchant for making loud noises when things start going wrong, it makes for delightful content.

[joelalorian]

Under False Pretenses - Chapter Five

Stepdad!Dave York x f!reader | wc: 5014 | masterlist

Summary: A challenging mission, whirlwind marriage, and an unexpected yet captivating stepdaughter push Dave York to the brink as secrets, feelings, and loyalties collide.

Warnings: Explicit, 18+ mdni. Stepdad trope. Unspecified age gap. More yearning. Feelings are acknowledged. Soft, sexy, and intense Dave. Domestic Dave. Good Dad kink. We like thick thighs in this house and so does Dave. Nicknames and terms of endearment. Mummy is a whole lotta bitch. No use of y/n. No smut in this chapter, but the plot is coming out to play.

Series Masterlist

Ranger became your shadow, watching over you in the basement suite overnight, riding shotgun in the car during the day when you’d drop off and pick up the girls from school. He lavished the girls with attention just as you did, running and yipping with delight through the backyard as they played.

Knowing that Ranger would be your and his girls' constant companion, Dave trained him to be a guard dog and a pet. He hoped Ranger would protect the three of you when he could not. After connecting with a K9 officer he knew from his military days, he worked with the pup daily, teaching him commands that he also taught you. Within a few months, Ranger transformed into a diligent yet playful dog twice the size of the little pup you found in the park.

Your mother hated all of it – having the dog in the house, the extra time Dave spent training the thing, and how he and the dog gravitated towards you. Yet Dave wasn’t bothered by it. In fact, he took joy in spending more and more time with the girls and you and Ranger, finding moments every day to dote over the four of you, almost like he was rubbing it into his wife’s face.

You didn’t know what to make of it, their relationship. It left you morally conflicted, the initial crush on your stepdad evolving with each passing week and growing into strong feelings for the man you came to learn more and more about after a few months. How could you be falling in love with your stepfather?

They had therapists for this sort of thing, right?

On the flip side of that, you watched your mom grasp harder, tighter to a man who seemed less and less interested by the day – and you began to wonder how they even got together in the first place. As curious as you were, you didn’t have the stomach to ask either of them, not with the deep feelings you had for Dave.

As the holiday season approached, Dave started traveling for work more and more as the couple’s outings lessened. Unfortunately, that left your mom home with nothing to do but work and nitpick your every move, driving you crazy. And the more Dave was away, the less your mom wanted to do with the girls.

“I don’t think your mom likes us much,” Alice told you quietly one morning while you helped her get ready for school.

Your heart clenched for the young girl, knowing how she felt. Your mom was never very good with children, not even her own. She was too selfish to put another’s needs first all the time as a good parent did. You thought it might be due to having you so young, but she never grew out of it.

“What makes you say that sweetie?” you inquired, needing to know exactly how much of a negative impact your mom was having on these sweet girls.

“I don’t know.” The little girl shrugged with a heavy sigh, staring at her feet while you brushed her brown locks.

“You can tell me anything. You know that, right? I will never get mad at you,” you promised, fingers working Alice’s hair into two neat braids once the tangles were gone.

“Promise?” Her eyes were sad yet hopeful, searching yours. You melted, holding out your pinky to Alice.

When she curled her small pinky around your larger one, you winked. “Pinky promise.” You finished tying off the braids and Alice climbed into your lap, Molly soon joining you on the bed. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”

“Lisa got mad when we told Daddy we didn’t want to call her ‘Mommy’. He said we didn’t have to because she wasn’t our mom, but she yelled at us, saying we needed to respect our elders and call them what we’re told to call them.”

Mouth dropping open in shock, you hugged the girls tight. God, your mom could be such a bitch sometimes. What did Dave even see in her? Why did he put up with her bullshit?

“I’m sorry, sweeties. My mom can be… a lot, sometimes. But your dad is right. She’s not your mom and while you should be respectful, you don’t have to do everything she tells you. If you doubt something she asks or tells you to do or say, talk to your dad or come to me. Ok?”

Your hands ran over their heads soothingly and they clutched at your sides. Ranger whined at your feet as if supporting what you just told them.

“Ok,” Alice replied in a small voice, Molly nodding in agreement with her older sister.

After dropping them off at school, you texted Dave that you wanted to talk to him about the girls when he came home. He responded immediately, letting you know he’d be home that evening, and you could talk then.

You spent much of the morning and early afternoon tidying up the house and doing laundry, wanting there to be one less thing for Dave to worry about when he returned. Your mom came home from the office by early afternoon, and you immediately wanted a change of scenery just to get away from her after what Alice told you that morning. You weren’t in the mood for a confrontation, but you doubted you could keep your mouth shut if your mom provoked you.

Figuring you’d kill an hour at your favorite café before picking up the girls from school, you headed into town. It was a beautiful winter day, brisk yet the sun peeked through small breaks in the clouds as the scent of snow hung in the air. The kind of day you loved in the northeast.

The café was moderately busy with the late lunch crowd when you arrived, many of the tables occupied but no line at the counter. Placing an order, you glanced around for an open table when your eyes fell on a familiar broad form and the blood drained from your face.

His neighbor Roger setup this meeting then had the fucking audacity to not show up, leaving Dave sitting at a corner table of the café you told him about with a beautiful woman who was another major player in his team’s investigation.

On the one hand, Roger pissed him off flaking out like that – probably had a date with his mistress or some shit – but on the other? Who was Dave to complain about having a late lunch with a beautiful woman, even if she happened to be on the wrong side of the law.

As conversation went on, Dave flirted a little, ingratiating himself to the woman who served as the intermediary between the Russians and the traitorous military operator they were seeking to find with this operation. He wanted this mission done asap, so he’d do just about anything to get it over with.

The woman, Anna, made no attempt to hide her flirting, stretching forward across the table to run a long-nailed finger down his forearm before coyly sliding her chair around the table, closer to his side. A chill ran down his spine when she reached over, scraping those fire engine red nails through the thick hair at the base of his head. “Perhaps once our business is done, we could meet somewhere a little more… private.”

Quirking an eyebrow, Dave’s eyes catalogued her features – wavy, brunette hair artfully styled to flow around her shoulders, porcelain skin, lips painted ruby red, a small mole on her right cheek. Undisputedly pretty, yet he felt nothing but discomfort when she touched him. The idea of taking this somewhere private just to move the investigation along repulsed him. All he could think when he glanced between the ring on his left hand and this undeniably gorgeous woman was the fact that she wasn’t… you.

“Perhaps,” he finally replied, voice and brow pinched with confliction. Thoughts and feelings for you were beginning to interfere with his work. That was not good.

Out of the corner of his eye, Dave spotted a flash of something familiar, and his gaze slid past Anna toward the counter. He fought not to show any surprise on his face when your eyes met his across the busy café, momentarily forgetting about the woman’s hands still being on him. Fuck.

An inscrutable expression crossed your face, and you spun on your heels, clearly asking the barista for your order to go. Dave yearned to go to you, to insist that this wasn’t what it looked like, but he couldn’t risk it. He needed to gain Anna’s trust, to keep his focus on her for now. Even if he had zero plans of taking it any further than a business deal, he needed to give the woman the illusion that there could be more.

He watched, longing hidden behind his cold, dark chocolate eyes as you fled the café with hunched shoulders and coffee in hand, never looking back at him.

Anna noticed his distraction, tilting her head to search for whatever captured his attention. “Something more interesting than me?” she purred, her body matching her voice in the way she arched toward his side like a minx.

Swallowing down his thoughts of you, Dave returned his full attention to Anna. Forcing a chuckle, he shook his head. He couldn’t keep up the flirty banter, shifting back to business, solidifying plans for a meeting the following week.

The meeting came to its natural conclusion then, and Dave lifted Anna’s hand to his lips, placing a kiss on her knuckles to maintain the role he was meant to play. “I’ll see you soon.”

“I will have you in my bed this time next week, handsome. And once you’re there, you’ll never want to leave. I promise.” She glanced down at the ring on his left hand with a smirk while Dave fought back a shudder.

Once back in his SUV, Dave shed the mask and let the guilt wash over him for all the lies he had to keep hidden and the cover he had to maintain.

He arrived home expecting to find you there, yet your car was nowhere in sight. Dave groaned when he pulled into the garage next to Lisa’s parked car. She was home earlier than expected and he did not have the patience to deal with her right then.

He just really wanted to talk to you.

With your heart in your throat, you parked the car at the environmental park, relieved that you decided to bring Ranger as your wingman. He sniffed happily at the ground as you walked along the well-worn path trying to make sense of what you saw and how you felt about it.

That woman, with the body of a vixen, all glossy hair and painted lips… basically, sex on a god damned stick. Who was she? Why were her talons all over Dave?

Was he cheating on your mom?

It sure seemed like it. It also seemed like he wasn’t trying to hide it, letting the vixen paw all over him in public like that.

Why did it feel like a punch to your gut, like he was cheating on you?

Nausea bubbled in your stomach as Ranger led you along the path, and you gulped down a lung full of air to fight the feeling. As if the man could read your thoughts from miles away, your phone buzzed with an incoming text.

Dave: Where are you, Firecracker? We need to talk.

You left him on read, not yet sure how you wanted to respond or even what you’d say. Your emotions were all over the place.

All the strange things you noticed over the past few months started piling up, but you still couldn’t find logic in any of it. The only thing that made even a lick of sense to your mind was that Dave was a philandering asshole who just wanted to look like the good ol’ family man to his peers while doing whatever he wanted when no one was watching.

You worked yourself into a state by the time you picked the girls up and brought them home, having picked up pizza for dinner along the way. There was no way you were hanging out in the kitchen making dinner for everyone that evening. Fuck that. You didn’t even want to be in that damned house right now.

The girls were barely through the door when you dumped the pizza on the kitchen island and bolted with Ranger hot on your heels, skulking in your basement hideout as you heard Dave greet his daughters. His deep, rumbling voice – the one you got off to memories of just the night before – suddenly made you feel dirty. Like somehow, the thought of him cheating on your mom with some random woman seemed worse than the salacious thoughts you’ve entertained of him cheating on her with you.

For fucks sake. You were upset that your stepdad might be cheating on your mom with someone other than you. You wanted him to cheat on her with you, ached for it. What the fuck was wrong with you? You were an awful person.

Unable to sit still, you paced the below-grade living space under Ranger’s watchful eye, desperate for something to take your mind off the man upstairs… off your mother… and off the pitiful life you were currently leading. You needed to get out of that fucking house for the night, if not forever.

You heard the door from the hall upstairs open and rushed into the bathroom, knowing it was Dave headed down the stairs. You did not have the emotional bandwidth to deal with this situation. Feeling safer behind the locked door, you turned the shower on and picked some music on your phone, turning the volume up as loud as possible when you still heard the soft tap of his knuckles on the door.

On the other side of the door, Ranger whined, and Dave patted his head. Sighing when the music turned louder, he looked down at the dog. “Come on, bud. She doesn’t want to deal with us right now,” Dave told the pup. “Let’s go upstairs for dinner.”

He’d let you avoid him, for now.

An hour later, you slipped from the house using the private entrance. The crisp evening air made you glad you were dressed in jeans, boots, and a sweater beneath your winter coat as you walked the sleepy neighborhood streets toward the small downtown area. You’d get an app ride home if you drank too much, but for now, it was refreshing to walk. The movement helped to clear your mind of… well, everything.

You needed to make some friends in town, you decided. Too long since you last had a girls' night or even a close friend to bitch about things with. During your time together, your ex-boyfriend isolated you from your friends without you even realizing it until suddenly, you had no friends left and the only person you could turn to was him, or your mom. He at least allowed you to maintain that contact. Probably because he knew your relationship with her was tense at times. Once again single, and in control of your own life (well, mostly), you were eager for socialization.

Dave couldn’t stand it. He gave you some time to make sense of what you saw earlier, but a couple hours later he went in search of you, unwilling to give any more space or time. He needed to know what you thought you saw; what you thought you knew. And, whether or not you planned to speak to your mother or anyone else about it. He needed to speak with you ASAP.

Slipping from the living room where your mom sat watching some ridiculous reality show now that the girls were in bed, Dave ventured down to the basement. He searched the suite for you and came up empty.

You must have snuck out through the private entrance. Was it sneaking if you were an adult free to come and go as you pleased?

Frustrated with his wandering thoughts, Dave shook his head and pulled his phone from his pocket as his body sank onto your bed, laying back against your pillows. The scent of you enveloped him.

Using an app that he stealthily downloaded on your phone – you had a shit ton of apps, and he figured you’d hardly notice a new one in the mix – Dave tracked your location. It was for safety, his girls and yours, he rationalized at the time, that same rationale easing his guilt at tracking you down now.

In reality, he just liked being in control. And knowing where you were was one way of maintaining that control when he could do little else when it came to you.

The app showed you at McCready’s, a hip little pub in town Dave visited a few times. He could see you liking it there. Did you go alone? Were you there to meet someone? A man? Were you going to go home with whomever you met? Would you bring them here or go to their place?

Dave’s thoughts spiraled as your scent surrounded him until he finally jumped up from your bed. He couldn’t stay there, in your room, without your consent, not like this. He needed to see you, again he rationalized, as he rushed back up the stairs to change. Throwing on a pair of jeans and a henley, Dave slipped on a jacket and grabbed his keys.

From the kitchen, he called to Lisa, interrupting her focus on that ridiculous show. “I’m going to meet up with the boys for a bit. Keep an eye on the girls while I’m gone.”

Lisa’s expression transformed from annoyance to interest. “Where are you meeting them? Maybe I want to go too.”

“Nowhere you’d want to go. Besides, you can’t. You’re the only adult home.” Dave spun on his heels to avoid further discussion, ignoring Lisa’s demand to know where you were and why you couldn’t watch the girls as he slipped on his shoes and entered the garage.

Pulling out of the garage, he was surprised to see your car still in the driveway. Did you walk or catch a ride with someone? It didn’t matter. He knew where you were, and he was on his way.

The parking lot was full to bursting with the Friday night crowd, forcing Dave to circle the block before finding a spot a street or two away. He stepped out into the crisp night air, pulling his jacket tighter as a cold wind cut through the alleyway. The walk from the car to the bar was agonizing as his thoughts clamored about in his head. He hadn’t meant to track you down – at least, that’s what he tried to tell himself, but even he knew that was a lie – and now that he was outside the bar, there was no way in hell he’d turn back.

McCready’s pulsed with the low thrum of conversation and music playing from the overhead speakers, dimly lit by the warm glow of string lights. Dave’s gaze darted across the crowded area, homing in on you almost instantly.

Perched on a barstool, your body angled slightly away with an elbow resting on the counter as you twirled a half-empty glass of wine in your hand. The soft light of the bar illuminated your features, catching the faint sheen of makeup and the gloss on your lips as they moved in polite conversation with the man beside you.

Dave’s stomach twisted painfully. Was that a laugh? It was. He watched as your head tilted back, a smile lighting up your face, transforming the air around you.

The ache in his chest grew sharper. He longed to be the one, the only one, to make you laugh like that.

Dave froze just inside the doorway, his feet refusing to move for a moment. Forcing himself forward, Dave weaved through the crowd with practiced ease. As he approached your spot, he caught snippets of the man’s voice – a deep, gravelly tone trying too hard to sound charming.

You smiled again, soft and indulgent, but this time Dave caught the slight downturn of your eyes, the way your fingers tightened around your glass, knee bouncing. It wasn’t real, he realized. You weren’t charmed. You were merely entertaining the guy without any better options.

It didn’t matter. This guy didn’t matter.

But the knot in his stomach only grew as the man leant closer, his hand brushing yours on the counter. Every instinct in Dave’s body screamed at him to intervene; to stake a claim he had no right to make. Not yet.

Dave stepped closer, feeling a magnetized pull toward you, until he stood at your back, close enough to see the faint tension in your shoulders, to catch the faintest scent of your perfume over the haze of spilled beer and warm bodies. His chest tightened, the magnetism of your presence nearly overwhelming.

The man stood as tall as Dave, with a thicker build, light brown hair on his head, and facial hair shaggy and in need of a trim. Gray shot throughout it, along with crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes. The guy was older than Dave by a handful of years, it seemed (and less attractive if Dave said so himself). Could that be the type of man you were attracted to? Unkempt jackasses with dad bods?

“Since you’re new in town, we should go out sometime. I could take you to dinner and show you all the popular spots.”

You hummed noncommittally in response, and the man kept trying. Dave didn’t catch his name.

“I have a sailboat,” the man said, his voice tinged with smugness. “I could take you out for a sunset cruise. Just us, the water, and a bottle of champagne.”

Dave’s jaw clenched, his teeth grinding audibly. A fucking sailboat? Who was this guy, Captain looking for his Tennille?

“Oh, I love sailing!” Your voice was too bright, your laugh too easy. “My best friend from college raced competitively. I used to love watching the races!”

Dave barely heard the rest of the conversation, his vision narrowing as he fixated on the subtle tilt of your head, the way you played along, humoring the bastard. His fingers curled into fists, and for a brief, irrational moment, he imagined how satisfying it would be to plant one of them right in the guy’s smug face.

Then the man made his move.

“So,” he said, leaning closer still, “how about we get out of here?”

Fearing you would say yes, Dave lost all sense of reason. He moved before you could answer, his hand finding your arm, the firm grip startling you. “That won’t be happening,” Dave growled, his expression menacing.

You whipped around, wide-eyed and furious. “What are you doing?” you hissed at Dave, eyes burning holes through him.

The other man straightened, his brows furrowing as he glanced between you and Dave. “Is this guy bothering you?”

You couldn’t pull your eyes from the way Dave’s dark ones bored into you, pleading for you to speak to him.

Dave didn’t flinch under the other man’s glare. “No, I’m not bothering her. Nor is she leaving with you.” His tone left no room for argument.

Yanking your arm free of Dave’s iron grip, you heaved an exasperated sigh and shot Dave a glare before turning your attention back to the man you’d been talking to. “Sadly, no. He’s not bothering me. He’s… my stepdad.”

The word hit Dave like a physical blow, your tone drenched in bitterness. You were so much more than that if only you knew the truth.

The man blinked, clearly caught off guard. “So, you’re not—”

“Not a chance in hell,” Dave snapped, cutting him off. His gaze remained fixed on you, the weight of his dark chocolate stare unbearable.

“Jesus fucking Christ, Dave!” You slumped back against the bar as the other guy walked away, your voice trembling with barely contained anger, and maybe a hint of something else. “What is wrong with you? What are you even doing here?”

Stepping closer, Dave let his voice dip and soften. “Just looking for you… looking out for you,” he replied simply, the tension falling from his shoulders now that your focus was back on him. The cacophony of the bar faded to nothing, the only sound he cared about was your breathing, your sweet voice.

A pit of yearning grew in Dave’s stomach as your hooded gazes clashed. He never knew a feeling like this pull toward you and for all his reputed self-discipline, Dave was but a man powerless against a woman, when that woman was you. He knew how wrong it was given the circumstances, but nothing ever felt so right.

Dave York needed you like he never needed anyone before, not even his first wife. Visceral, this thing between you, and he thought – no, he knew – you felt it too. How could you not?

Giving in, refusing to question it any further, Dave slid his hand over yours, twining your smaller fingers with his larger ones, and ever so gently pulled you to stand next to him.

“Let’s get out of here.”

Mouth popping open slightly, a fire burned suddenly bright in your eyes, fingers curling tighter in his grasp. There was no mistaking it now. You felt it, too, this magnetized thing pulling the two of you together. A smirk crossed his lips when you nodded dazedly.

Now that he touched you, Dave could not bring himself to let go of your hand. He didn’t care who saw, not that he knew anyone in this crowd anyway. Skin soft and enticing, he wanted to touch more of it, more of you, until he mapped every square inch of your body.

The night air had grown colder while you were inside, sending a shiver down your body and Dave pulled you closer as he led the way to his SUV. Silence reigned during the walk across the parking lot and down the sidewalk, lingering during the length of the five-minute drive back to the house.

Mind whirring visibly behind your eyes, Dave glanced at you often. Finally, just as he pulled into the driveway, the house sitting dark as night as he eased the vehicle into the garage, Dave cracked.

“Penny for your thoughts,” he murmured once the ignition turned off.

“They’re hardly worth that.” Wide eyes met his, lips turned up at the sides into an almost smile. “I don’t even know where to start,” you admitted.

Nodding, Dave opened his door. “Come on, we’ll talk down in the basement.” Rushing out of the car before you even had a chance to move, he opened the passenger door and helped you out of the vehicle. Like magnets, your fingers entwined with his of their own accord as he led you through the private entrance to the basement.

“Are you cheating on my mom?” you blurted, body flopping down onto the couch and sinking back into the cushions, Dave beside you still grasping your hand. He refused to lessen his grip despite your gentle attempts to pull it away.

“No.”

A firm answer. A full sentence in one word.

You didn’t know whether to feel relieved or pissed off. His dark eyes darted back and forth between your own, searching for something, anything hidden in your gaze.

“Then what was all that,” you gestured wildly with your free hand, “at the café? That… woman… was all over you. Is that how you usually behave when no one’s around to catch you?”

Dave gazed at you with those big, brown, puppy eyes, yearning for you to see him, really see into the depths of him. “Of course not,” he insisted. “I can’t say much, but that was part of an assignment, a role I have to play to get this particular job done. Nothing has – or will – ever happen with that woman. I promise.”

You believed him, though you could tell there was more he wished he could say. “Ok.”

“Was that why you ran off and ignored me all day? Because you thought I was cheating on your mom?”

His voice was low, you shuddered at both his words and how they washed over you. Was that why you reacted so?

No, not really.

You couldn’t hold back the truth with the way he looked at you, his thumb caressing your knuckles drawing delightful chills to run down your spine. For a moment – just a brief moment – you allowed yourself to believe that he might feel the same way about you, might have a debilitating crush on you as well. That’s why you sputtered out the truth.

“N-no…” you stuttered, clearing your throat roughly. “No, that’s not why I ran.”

“Then why?” Eyes pleading, he squeezed your hand, encouraging you to explain.

“To be honest, I was hurt.” Pausing, your gaze dropped from his eyes to his lips, before darting back to meet the dark heat in his gaze again until you could no longer bear to look at him as you blurted out the dark truth. “Hurt that you would cheat with someone like that and not with… me. How fucked up is that?”

After a beat, then two of silence, you chanced a look at him. Your breath caught in your chest as his eyes widened impossibly further, pink tongue darting out to lick his plump bottom lip as he stared back at you, everything about him intense. Dave turned fully towards you on the couch, taking your other hand in his to pull you into his lap.

“That’s exactly why nothing will happen with that woman. She’s not you.” Dave leaned forward ever so slowly, placing the softest kiss upon your lips. It lasted only a second, but it changed everything.

tbc

Chapter Six

tag list: @imdrinkingpedro @lillaydee @ppascalrain @yorksgirl @missladym1981 @baronessvonglitter @slimybeth69 @mellymbee @untamedheart81 @inept-the-magnificent @wannab-urs @thundermartini @peelieblue @harriedandharassed @mysterious-moonstruck-musings @sunnytuliptime

[isamajor]

Whumpril 2024 : days 26 to 30

The last days of @whumpril !

26 . « How could you ? »

Ever since they came upon Boethiah's altar, the Dragonborn had been acting strangely. Falsely. It was almost too late that they realized that the Daedric Prince was speaking to thir soul, leading them to the abyss of betrayal.

They have almost sacrificed the trusting Lydia, their thane, their unwavering support since the beginning. She had been narrowly saved and was staring, shocked, at her thane who had betrayed her.

“How could you?” Auri spat. "How could you even think about that? She is one of us!"

Kaidan just slapped them, his eyes filled with anger. The Dragonborn looked away, a tear rolling down their sore cheek. (105)

•

27 . « Please don't go. »

They have their hand on this new Black Book, ready to open it. Lucien grabbed their wrist, his face betraying his concern.

“Please don’t go.”, he begged, his voice sharp with anguish. Lucien stared at the Dragonborn who seemed determined to open it. Lucien's blue eyes grew wet and bright. He added :

"This is a Daedric kingdom and its Prince is a devious being. There is no certainty that you will be able to return intact... Please..."

Lucien knew that, there would be no guarantee that Hermaeus Mora would not lock them away in his world, as he had done to Miraak before. (104)

•

28 . Fight/Flight/Freeze

They saw some webs but they did not expect the monstrous size of the frostbite spider that descended on them. Inigo welcomed the sight of this spider with joy, ready to face the creature head-on. Nebarra's heart raced as he caught sight of the arachnid's menacing form. Under his helmet were hidden his features distorted by terror. His breathing had spontaneously stopped. His legs gave out, causing him to collapse to his knees. His hands were shaking uncontrollably, unable to grab his sword or cast a ward. While the others attacked the threat, he remained frozen, unable to defend himself or even flee. (105)

•

29 . Reluctant Caretaker

It was his turn on duty at Lucifer's bedside. Xelzaz was exhausted and needed to get some sleep. Reluctantly he sat at the injured man's bedside. The wound was badly infected and Lucifer was layig motionless, his breath shallow and labored, a feverish sheen coating his scales. Xelzaz had concocted a medicine for him which everyone hoped would work quickly. The Altmer sighed.

“And I’m the one being asked to babysit you, Lute.”

He placed a cloth soaked in cool water on the Argonian's forehead without much care.

“You better not die under my watch, now.”, he threatened. (100)

•

30 . « We're out of time. »

As the Dragonborn and his companions moved deeper into the Dwemer ruin of Arkngthamz, sinister rumblings were heard. Remiel and Lucien, both fascinated by Dwemer complex mechanisms and architecture, had lingered to examine a particularly intriguing tonal mechanism. The ground trembled beneath their feet, creaks echoed through the halls and walls began to crumble here and there. Both were so absorbed that they had become oblivious of the imminent danger and deaf to the calls of their companions. It was only when they were forcibly taken away by the latter who shouted "We're out of time!", that they realized the danger of their situation. (105)

You can find all the drabbles written for Whumpril 2024 here (in addition to other whump drabbles on Skyrim Custom-voiced Followers written for various challenges).

Remember to leave me a little comment, it’s always nice ;)

[impy96]

Secret Fools has been absolutely amazing and I’ve watched almost every perspective because it has brought me so much joy. And I have also made a list of all the pranks and who did what, below the cut for spoilers!!

Iskall ~~> Doc : Built a giant goat head (Garry) in the mountain beside his village which will dispense TNT every time Doc gets the favourite food riddle incorrect.

Doc ~~> Grian : Built a Ghast cannon hidden behind the copper wall around Mumbo’s base that was released after the press of a button.

Grian ~~> Impulse : Built matrix-style infinity quiz room where Impulse answered three questions correctly and then got blown up when he tried to mine his “winning” diamonds.

Impulse ~~> Cub : Built a miniature Ravager’s Run puzzle game where Cub has to hunt down GIGAPies(tm) and place them in item frames to escape, while being chased by a Ravager.

Cub ~~> Joe: Built the ghosts of Wordle’s past floating all around Joe’s base and left a creeper behind glass in the wordle wall underneath Joe’s base for him to face next time he tried to update it.

Joe ~~> Iskall : Rickrolled him by singing the pre-chorus and chorus of the hit song Never Gonna Give You Up but in Sweedish. (Prank assited by Keralis and Beef)

Cleo ~~> Stress : Built a “Hermitshire Tea” box in front of her teapot shop and filled dispensers with kelp renamed as tea leaves which shot out at the pull of a lever.

Stress ~~> Scar : Built a Cookie Monster with elf ears on top of his starter tree with a chest inside that was filled with cookies.

Scar ~~> Tango : Built Locked Out a Ravager’s Revenge as an homage to Tango’s Decked Out from Season 7, where Tango had to find three Scar heads and place them on item frames to escape.

Tango ~~> False : Stole her copper shop (False’s Beans) and moved it to the new shoping district, replacing it with lil Coppy, a copper golem who left a secret trail of copper behind for her to follow to discover what happened.

False ~~> Pearl : Built a UFO above her base with glass rings beaming down to abduct the creature. Also accidentally made it not spawnproof anymore lmao.

Pearl ~~> Jevin : (Not yet shown in Pearl’s video) Update Pearl was in fact the culprit! Built a big slimy pig above Jevin’s starter base with chickens dangling from it that were all named Dinnerbone.

Jevin ~~> Cleo : Built a noise machine under Cleo’s ruins to bait her into flipping a lever, which released a charged creeper to kill her.

xBCrafted ~~> Keralis : Redesigned his house to look like Keralis’ face and made a treasure room in the mouth. When Keralis opened the chest the walls behind him closed and some harmless TNT went off below his feet to scare him.

Keralis ~~> xB : Built a giant octopus on top of his starter base and a ring falling challenge from world height, which led to a trapped bullseye that blew xB up upon landing. 

[sassyduckqueen]

Miraculous: Rise of Anatis 64

Ok wow that took a while. Sorry, it took so long to update. It wasn't an easy chapter to write but I think it's time out cool. This was certainly a challenge to write but I found it quite fun. I probably would gotten this out quicker but it's the summer holidays, meaning that work is busy. Anyway the next chapter will be Backwarder, meaning I'll finally be able to get some of Fu's history out and I get to introduce Marianne so yay!

Translations:

Ant tataeadaa mumtalakat! Airhal alan!- You are trespassing! Leave now! La bi'asa! hum 'ilaa janibina!!- It's ok. They are on our side

Ánthropoi tis Athínas! Eímai i theá rara!- People of Athens, I am the goddess Hera! fére mou ton pséftiko theó, ton Alfeió kai tha deíxo éleos stin póli sou- bring me the false god, Alpheus and I will show mercy on your city Thavmatourgí paschalítsa- Miraculous ladybug

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Chapter Sixty-Four: History Keepers

~City of Camelot, England~

 "In the name of God, I hereby name you man and wife," The priest stated as King Arthur stood in front of Gwenevieve, holding her hands in his and smiling like a damn fool. His eyes were sparking with pure joy and Gwenevieve matched. The priest smiled a little before turning to Arthur. "You may kiss the bride,"

 He leaned down and kissed Gwenevieve as the entire church cheered in joy. However, at the back of the church, a single knight looked on. He had a smile on his face but it didn't reach his eyes. Instead, he turned on his heel and walked out of the church. He took a deep breath as he walked away. He really wanted to be happy for Arthur, he really did. However, his heart ached in pain as watching him marry Genevieve was the hardest thing he ever had to do. He blinked and wiped his eyes before shaking his head. He shouldn't be sad. He knew Arthur didn't feel the same way for him or even swing the same way. He knew Arthur was in love with Gwen and she wasn't a bad woman at all. She would make Arthur happy and that's all he wanted. Even if it hurt him and broke his head.

 "Rene!" A voice shouted, causing him to stop and turn around. Lancelot was stood outside. "Where are you going?"

 "I just need some time alone," He replied, giving Lancelot a weak smile.

 "You're going to be at the party right?" He asked, frowning. Arthur and Rene were practically brothers so he didn't understand why Rene would just leave his wedding without saying goodbye. A brief expression of sorrow came across Rene's face as he didn't answer. "Right?"

 "Yeah... I'll be there later... I just... have something to do right now..." He replied before turning back on his heel and walking off. Lancelot frowned and tried to call out after him but Rene got on his horse and rode off, heading deep in the forest. He came to a stop and jumped off his horse before walking deeper into the forest. He stopped and waved his hand, creating a shimmer in the air before stepping through it, entering a cave with a waterfall and a small hut in the distance. He walked over to the fire pit where two others sat. One looked much younger then Rene. Part of his head was shaved and the rest was braided. He wore what could be described as ancient egyptian clothing and had no shoes on. In his hand was a huge toad and he seemed to be talking with it. The other had curly hair but it was the same dark shade. He wore a greek toga and sandals on his feet. He had an arm band on his right arm and was moving his fingers as he controlled water droplets around him. He glanced over as Rene walked over as the younger looked over as well. Rene gave them a weak smile and sat down. "How's Ra doing, Khnurn?"

 "He's ok," He replied, tracing his finger across the toad as Rene nodded.

 "You're not though," The water mage stated, turning the water into ice.

 "Don't worry about me, Al," He smiled, causing Alpheus to roll his eyes as he looked over at the hut. For the last few weeks, it has been shut and locked. "Is it still locked?"

 "Yep," Khnurn replied, tracing his finger over Ra's back again. "Toutai got in earlier but he didn't say much when he came out. I think Feng told him not to,"

 "I wonder why he locked it," Rene replied, sitting down as he picked up the kettle and poured a tea from it.

 "Probably cause he's bored," Alpheus replied, rolling his eyes again. "I know I am,"

 "You're always bored," He replied as he took a slip and smiled a little before turning his attention to Khnurn. "So how's Egypt doing?"

 "Well, there was a few issues with Imhotep but I stopped him as you well know," Khnurn replied, placing Ra onto the ground. "And I still don't like people,"

 "You never did," Alphus replied as he trapped Ra in a bubble of water, allowing the toad to swim in it.

 "Given his upbringing, it's no real surprise," Rene replied, making Alpheus glare at him. "The desert is a harsh mistress after all,"

"Well, my childhood wasn't exactly a walk in a path either," He grumbled as Khnurn fished Ra out of the water and glared at the mage, who smirked at him. "Why not trade him in for a camel? They're more useful,"

 "A common theme among us," Rene replied, as the toad croaked, glaring at Alpheus, who glared back. Rene shook his head and rolled his eyes as he slipped his tea.

 "Don't worry, Ra," Khnurn muttered, holding him. "I wouldn't trade you for a camel. You're much more fun than them,"

 "Oh yeah," Alpheus replied. "Much have been so hard been born to a lord and lady of the manor,"

 "Well, been a mage and born in a kingdom where magic was illegal wasn't exactly fun, Alpheus," Rene replied, shaking his head before a fourth person joined them. He resembled them as he shared the same hair shade and silver eyes but he was dressed in more asian style clothing. "Feng... you're actually gracing us with your presence today?"

 "I assume Arthur just got married," Feng replied, looking at Rene with a sympathetic look. "My condolences,"

 "Well, he's happy..." Rene frowned, holding his cup. "That's all that matters to me. Besides, he sees me as his brother..."

 "And you want him to see you in a different light?" Alpheus grinned, wiggling his eyebrows. Rene went bright red and glared at him, making him laugh. "If you ask me, you're over thinking this. Just enjoy what life gives you,"

 "Of course, you would say that," Rene muttered, rolling his eyes as Feng smirked. "What's your thoughts on love, Feng?"

 "Overrated," Khnurn muttered, making the four of them look at him. "What?"

 "Personally, I think love is a wonderful thing," He replied, making Khnurn roll his eyes and Rene smile. "And I was very happy with my lovers,"

 "Ok but what's with the door been locked?" Khnurn asked, making both Feng and Rene look at him due to the sudden change of subject. Alpheus merely snorted in amusement. "What? Love, relationships and stuff like that makes me uncomfortable and you want to know just as much as I do, Rene,"

 "True..." Rene muttered as Feng shook his head with a slight smile. "Well?"

 "Alright," He smiled. "We have a new incarnation,"

 "Really?!" Khnurn gasped, making Ra jump a little before he croaked. "Oh sorry Ra,"

 "I thought that Toutai was stripped of his title?" Rene asked, frowning.

 "Well, he was but that doesn't change what we are," He replied, making them both nod. "Besides, it wasn't like he actually dishonored the title. It was taken from him by force,"

 "By that jerk!" Khnurn huffed. "See? This is why we shouldn't trust people!"

 "And the new one?" Rene asked. "What is he like?"

 "Very brave and creative," Feng replied, smiling a little. "He actually wields the ladybug miraculous,"

 "Impressive," Alpheus whistled before stretching. "So when do we get to meet him?"

 "Soon actually," Feng replied, waving his hand over the fire pit. Smoke rose up from it, showing several images. Each were in their own time, showing a number of people from the future appearing and facing different situations. "There will be an incident that will send his friends back in time and he will have to find them,"

 "When?" Rene asked, looking over the image of his time showing a boy and two girls cowering from one of Mordred's beasts. "How long do we have?"

 "Two weeks," Feng replied, making them nod. "Best be prepared as well,"

 "For what?" Khnurn asked as Feng gave them his all knowing smile. 

 "You'll see soon enough,"

 ~Paris, Modern Day~

 "There is nothing in this book, Master!" Luka sighed, running his fingers through his hair as Master Fu frowned. He was so sure the answers would be in that cave but as soon as he got back to Paris, he checked out the book. Well, actually the first thing he did when he got back was collect Juleka's and Rose's miraculous and returned them to the miracle box since he was back in Paris but the second thing he did was go through the book. To his utter horror, he discovered nothing on the pages. Not a single letter or word had been written. Four days later and nothing had changed. "Why is it empty?! Why did I get that damn riddle if there is nothing in this book?!"

 "Luka, take a deep breathe and calm down," Fu ordered as Luka paced.

 "How can I?!" He gasped, close to tears. "I am been haunted by nightmares I don't understand and I've been possessed by something that made me write a pointless riddle and I don't know what is happening to me anymore?! I am scared and tired and... I just want to know why I have a connection to Feng! Why me?! I'm nothing special! I'm just... Luka..."

 "Luka, you're definitely something special," Tikki gasped, flying up to him. "You're amazing and the best bug I've ever had and whatever is happening to you, we'll work it out so please don't put yourself down like that,"

 "I'm sorry, Tikki," He muttered, flopping down onto the floor and hid his head in his arms. "And I'm sorry, Master. I... I just want to know what's happening to me. Why did Feng send me to Shanghai if the book has nothing in it?"

 "Maybe to stop Meishi from destroying it and to help that young lady to become the hero she was meant to be?" Master Fu pointed out as Luka looked up. "As for the book, maybe it is invisible ink?"

 "I tried that..." He admitted, frowning. "Feng did mention that I wasn't ready to see what was beyond the hut's door..."

 "Hut's door?" Master Fu asked but Luka shook his head and hid it back in his arms. Master Fu sighed and got up. "I'll make some tea,"

 "At least, it's the summer holidays now," Tikki smiled, making Luka nod as Master Fu came back in. He set up his kettle and began to make tea as Luka sat and hugged his knees. "Have you considered reaching out to Koro? Maybe she knows how to unlock the book's secrets?"

 "I don't want to bother her..." He muttered, frowning to himself. He had considered asking her but he wasn't sure if he wanted to reach out nor was he sure if she would be able to help. Master Fu placed a cup of tea in front of him, causing Luka to sniff at it before he picked it up and sipped it. "Do you think I should ask her, Master?"

 "I think that is only you can decide but maybe ask Lady Noire's advice on it too," He replied, making Luka nod as he sipped the tea. Maybe he should ask Koro about stuff. Maybe she would know but he wasn't sure about anything. He was also worried about Hawkmoth and his current silence. Since Shanghai, he had been oddly quiet. There hadn't been any akumas yet and it worried Luka. Usual when he was this quiet, it was because he was planning a big attack. It was his pattern. He was quiet before Heroes Day, Miracle Queen... if you don't count Loveater but Luka was certain that was a distraction in order to allow Miracle Queen to gain control over him. He repressed a shudder as his mind flicked back to it. Hawkmoth was also this quiet before New York and Shanghai. Other than Cash and Meishi, the last person to be akumatized was Mrs Mendelieve so Luka was concerned but he also realised that Yan Woshi was the first akuma to actually kill him so maybe Hawkmoth is taking a break. Hell, he might be quitting. Luka immediately casted that thought aside. There was no way he was quitting. He jumped a little as his phone buzzed, causing him to look at it. He frowned as it was Marinette calling. He shouldn't really be surprised even though it was fairly late. She often stayed up late to do her projects but usually she would text him. He gave Master Fu a look, who nodded before he pressed answer and held it to his ear.

 "Hey," He stated but almost instantly, he heard her sniff and he knew she had been crying. "You ok?"

 "Not... really..." She admitted in a sad voice. "I... I was hoping maybe you could come round for a little bit... it's cool if you can't though..."

 "I'll be there in a few minutes, Melody," He replied, feeling her relief through the phone. 

 "Thank you," She whispered, making him smile a little. "I'm just gonna cuddle Mr Whiskers until you get here,"

 "Ok, Melody. I'll see you soon," He replied before he said goodbye and hung up. He turned to Master Fu as he picked up the book and put it in his bag. "Sorry, I gotta go,"

 "Alright," Master Fu nodded as he transformed. "I hope your friend is ok,"

 "She will be," He nodded before leaving out the window and heading to the Bakery. He got there in record time before he knocked on the door. A few minutes later, Marinette opened the door, holding Mr Whiskers in her arms. It was a black cat plushie he had won for her at the fair they went to before they went to Shanghai. She kept it on her bed. Her eyes were bloodshot and it was obvious she had been crying. Luka held open his arms, causing her to instantly hug him. He wrapped his arms around her as she nuzzled her face against his chest. "You ok?"

 "It's silly really but I dreamt I got killed again by that big monster again..." She muttered, making him frown. He felt really bad but she had been caught up in the attack on Shanghai and had been zapped by Wan Yoshi when trying to help people escape and since coming back, she had been having nightmares about it. Luka also got nightmares about it, along with the rest of his ones but he didn't get killed in his. Instead, he watched as Yan Woshi killed everyone while he was helpless to save them. He pushed his thoughts aside and walked into the apartment as Marinette led him inside. The two of them settled on the sofa in the living room with Marinette resting her head on Luka's lap as he gently played with her hair and hummed. "Thanks for coming, Luka,"

 "I'm always here if you need me," He replied, making her look up at him. She looked a lot calmer and the shine in her eyes were returning. He gave her a smile as she reached up and moved a bit of his hair. Her hand lingered as her eyes moved down to his lips, causing him to blush a little. She gave him a soft smile. However, she realised what she was doing and went bright red.

 "I.. um... s-sorry," She gasped, sitting up. "I must seem like such a creep doing that. Oh god, you're gonna hate-"

 "I could never hate you," He replied, gently leaning over and placing a soft kiss on her forehead, making her blush even more. He smiled a little before deciding to change the subject. "I won't be able to stay over tonight,"

 "T-That's ok," She replied, still red before looking at the time. It was ten to 11. "It's pretty late though... will you be ok getting home?"

 "Don't worry. I'll be fine," He smiled, making her smile back. "Do you feel better?"

 "Yep," She smiled, resting her head on his arm. "You're just like a lucky charm, Luka. Are you coming to the picnic tomorrow?"

 "Of course," He smiled, making her smile even more. "I should head back, Melody,"

 "Ok," She nodded, getting and walking to the door with him. He smiled as she leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks for coming over, Lu. You'll text me when you get back to the boat right?"

 "Of course," He replied, placing his own kiss on her cheek. She smiled before he waved to her and walked out into the night. She couldn't help but sigh a little before she closed the door and locked, heading back upstairs to the quiet apartment. Her parents were out on a date night but were due back in the next hour. She yawned a little as she grabbed Mr Whiskers before heading up to her room and back to her bed. She had fallen asleep in the evening and woke up from a nightmare, hence why she called Luka. She frowned a little as she felt bad not telling him the full dream but she didn't want to start crying again. Sure, she had flashbacks of been zapped by Yan Woshi but that hadn't been her nightmare tonight. Instead it had been Luka who had been zapped in her dream. In it, he had pushed her out of the way and took the hit instead. She had woken up screaming and crying worst then she ever had which was why she wanted to see him. It wasn't to comfort her but to know he was alive. She curled up her bed as her phone buzzed, causing her to look at it.

 L: I'm home. Sleep well, melody

 M: Yay! Sleep well as well, Lu.

M: *typing* Love you ❤️

 Marinette held her breath as her thumb hovered over the send button. She wasn't sure if she should it. Normally she wasn't so bold but she felt like she could be with Luka, especially since they had been getting closer and tested the waters with each other but they weren't exactly a couple yet. She bit her lip and deleted the message before retyping a new one. 

 M: Sweet dreams 😘

 L: you too, Melody 😘 

 She giggled and put her phone down before curling up in bed and hugging Mr Whiskers. The picnic will be fun.

 ~The Next Day~

 Marinette hummed to herself as she walked over to the park, holding a basket full of baked treats. She had chosen to wear a light pink summer dress with her ballet pumps that matched. She had her hair tied up in a loose, low ponytail and had the purse she made out of her Nonna's gift across her chest. She looked over and saw her friends sat on the grass chatting. By the looks of, almost everyone in her friendship group had turned up and had brought drinks and snacks too, meaning she wasn't the only person to bring food. Ondine and Kim were sat with Max and Marvok. Sabrina, Aurora, Chloe and Mirelle were sat talking to Kagami, who was playing with Adrien's hair as he laid on the grass with his head in her lap. He walked talking to Nino about some anime he watched and Alya was sat talking with Rose, Mylene and Ivan. Marc and Nathaniel were just sat whispering about their comic, causing to smile as she looked over them. She called over and waved at them as she walked over before sitting down on the grass and looking around. The only people that were missing were Alix, Juleka and Luka. However, the Couffaines turned up pretty quick, causing Marinette to smile as she greeted them. Soon the group were just waiting on Alix, who turned up a few minutes later.

 "Sorry, I'm late," She grumbled, sitting down and grabbing an Eclair before stuffing it in her face. Kim snorted a little before doing the same, trying to see if he could finish it before her. Most of the group waved it off but Juleka muttered asking her why. "Oh, Pa got a new painting for the museum and he insisted I see it before I came to meet you all. He wanted to know what I thought before he sets up it's grand unveiling,"

 "Ooh what is the painting?" Rose asked excitedly, clapping her hands together. Alix took out her phone before unlocking it and passing it to Rose. "Oh, wow!"

 "He looks so cool," Juleka muttered, looking at the phone before she passed it to Luka. He took off her and glared at it but as soon as his eyes landed on the picture, he felt a pulse similar to the one he experienced when he looked at the Eagle Miraculous. Only it wasn't half as bad as it had been. The painting was of a young knight kneeling down on the ground as he rested his hands against on his sword. His helmet was on the floor and behind him was a slained beast. He had dark shoulder length hair and wore silver armor with a golden trim over silver chainmail and leather breeches. He had his eyes closed and in one of his ears, he wore a jacket earring, making Luka frown a little as he felt like he had seen it before but couldn't remember where. What surprised him the most was he resembled the knight he had seen during Miracle Queen's attack. The only real difference was that the armor he wore and that he didn't have horns or a tail. Despite this, he was certain that it was the same knight. He frowned again before he passed the phone to Adrien. He couldn't help but wonder if he had the Wyvern miraculous as Alix's phone got passed around the group.

 "He's kind of cute," Marinette grinned, passing the phone back to Alix.

 "According to Pa, he was one of King Arthur's knights! Apparently, he had the nickname the Dragon Knight but his real name got lost to history," Alix replied, locking her phone. "In fact, that painting is like super rare and the only known picture of him!"

 "His name was Sir Rene..." Luka muttered with even thinking, making everyone look at him in surprise before he blinked. "What?"

 "Dude, you just said that the Dragon Knight's name was Sir Rene!" Alix gasped, making Luka frown. He didn't know the Dragon Knight's name but... yet somehow he knew that it was Sir Rene. "You said it was-"

 "Sir Rene," Juleka muttered, making everyone look at her before she looked at Luka. "I thought he wasn't real?"

 "Huh?" He asked, generally confused. Seeing his confusion, Juleka frowned.

 "Back when we were really little, we use to play a game of knights. I would play Morgana and you always played Sir Rene the Dragon Knight. In the game we use to 'save' King Arthur from the evil warlock Mordred," She mumbled, making him frown. He didn't recall it but at the same time, it sounded so familiar. "But we stopped playing it after... um... after Issac put you in hospital,"

 "I don't remember..." Luka admitted, frowning before looking at her. "Was it fun?"

 "So fun," Juleka smiled, making him smile. "Why... why don't we go and see the unveiling? M-Maybe it might help you remember the game..."

 "That's a great idea!" Rose grinned, making Juleka smile. "Oh we can make a day off it!!"

 "Me and Marc are down for it as we'll can get some inspiration for the comics," Nathaniel grinned as Marc nodded to. Alya grinned and turned to Aurora.

 "We could do a video on it and other exhibitions for our blogs," She suggested, making the other reporter grin. 

 "Definitely!" She smiled as Mirelle nodded as well. "Oh, Mirelle, you can do a photoshoot!!"

 "That sounds like a great idea!" Adrien grinned, sitting up. "Even Father will let me go because it's 'education',"

 "Mother would be the same," Kagami replied as everyone nodded and agreed they wanted to see it. Luka couldn't help but smile. "Plus it might help trigger how Luka knew about this mysterious knight,"

 "Oh what if your family is related to him!" Marinette gasped, making Juleka and Luka flush. They're pirates, not knights but it would be really cool to be related to a knight of the round table. Luka looked at Juleka, who gave him a shy smile and thumbs up. Given that just seeing an image of the painting gave him a smaller reaction of what happened in New York, he would be mad to skip out on it as it might have something to do with the miraculous. Maybe even to do with the journal. "What do you say?"

 "I'm down for it," He smiled, making everyone grin. "It's a once in a lifetime chance to see a rare painting and maybe it will help me remember why I knew about him,"

 "Maybe you're psychic," Juleka smirked, making him chuckle a little. Maybe he was and made that's why he had dreams about Feng. "Either way, it will be cool for you to remember. That game was awesome,"

 "How often did we play it?"

 "Almost every day," Juleka admitted, making him frown a little. "We use to play at school as well,"

 She sniggered a little, making him raise an eyebrow.

 "You had a go at a teacher and got detention," She explained, looking at him. "She had told you that Morgana was the evil witch in the story and that you shouldn't make me play her. She always told you that there was no such knight as Sir Rene but you insisted that he was real and that Morgana wasn't evil either. In fact, you said she was extremely lucky,"

 "Lucky?" He asked, frowning. Why did he say that about Morgana? "But how did I get detention?"

 "You called her a dorbel, which apparently means a petty, nit-picking teacher in old english," She giggled, making him blink. "You basically swore at her in old english. Ma thought it was hilarious apparently. Issac... not so much..."

 "I'm not surprised by that," He replied, nodding before turning to Alix. "So when's this grand unveiling?"

 "This Friday," She replied. "When I go home tonight, I'll ask pa and let you know,"

 "Ok,"

 ~The Night before the Unveiling~

 Rose and Marinette were sleeping over at the Liberty so the four of them could head to the museum together. Alix's father had been really happy that the class had wanted to come and see it. He had ensured her that her friends would be on the guest list. Apparently, a lot of high profile people would be there as well. Apparently, a number of people wanted to buy the painting but Alix's father was refusing to sell it, stating it was priceless. 

 "Are you excited to see it?" Marinette asked, causing Luka to look at her. She was sat cross legged in front of him on his bed with a grin on her face. He couldn't help but match her expression.

 "I am," He replied as she moved and stretched. "It's gonna be strange though,"

 "How so?"

 "Well, that painting is priceless," He replied as she moved so she was laid on her stomach. "And I did some research on it. It was painted by Leonardo da Vinci in the 1300s and was considered part of his 'lost' work,"

 "Really?" She asked, surprised. "Wow,"

 "Yeah," He replied, smiling a little. "I can't believe that some of his lost work was found..."

 "I didn't know you liked painting," She grinned, making him smile. "Been friends with Anatis must be rubbing off on you,"

 "Well, he is basically the embodiment of creation," He grinned, making her smile. "Though... he's not my muse. You have that title,"

 "Luka!!" She gasped, going bright red as he laughed, causing her to playfully hit his arm. "Y-You're not serious are you?"

 "Very serious," He replied, leaning against his wall and placing his hands in behind his head. "I don't know what it is but I could write a hundred songs after spending a moment with you,"

 "Lu!!" She gasped, going red again as she hid her face in her hands. He couldn't help but smile at her. Slowly, she peeked from her hands as she looked at him. "Y-You really mean that?"

 "Yep," He smiled, causing her to blush and hide her face again. "You're so cute,"

 "Lu!!!"

 ~The Next Day~

 Luka couldn't help but smile as he looked around the room that the unveiling was been held in. He was generally surprised at how many people had turned up. Chloe was there with her family and Sabrina's. He knew those two were coming but he was surprised that their parents did as well. A number of reporters including Nadja Chamack had turned up as well and to his surprise, Gabriel Agreste had turned up. Well..technically he was on his tablet as usual and it was actually his assistant who was here.. but it wasn't his usual assistant though. It was actually the Gorilla but Adrien and Kagami seemed happy so that's what mattered. It turned out that Tom and Sabine were providing the caterating for the event too and that Penny had gotten an invite. She had explained to him that she had banned Jagged from the event because he would more then likely try to buy the painting plus he didn't really like museums much. Luka wasn't surprised by that. Even a number of teachers from different schools were here as well as Alix's brother. He was actually stood talking to Mr Damocles and Mr D'argencourt. Apparently, the two of them were actually helping with the unveiling and in the same history club as Alix's brother. Unfortunately, Lila was also there with her parents, though they seemed more bothered about other people then Lila. Instead, she was sulking in the corner. She had tried to tell Alya that she was related to Leonardo da Vinci but Alya just told her that she didn't need to lie to impress her. Luka was a little disappointed that Alya was still trying to give Lila the time of day but he was glad she knew she was lying, even if she didn't realize that Lila was malicious with it. She would get there at some point. Alim tapped his glass, making everyone look at him.

 "Thank you all for coming," He smiled as he addressed the audience. "I'm also really happy to see so many young people in the audience today. As you know, today is the unveiling of one of the lost works of Leonardo da Vinci,"

 He turned and pointed to the velvet curtain that covered the painting.

 "Ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to present the Dragon Knight," He declared, pulling the curtain off and revealing the painting. Everyone clapped and oohed at it as they stared at it. Luka couldn't help but stare straight at it, almost in a sort of trance as he looked at the knight. Alim had continued to talk and people moved around yet Luka just stood there staring as his mind pulsed in a similar way to how it had with the eagle miraculous. He blinked as he heard someone talking, causing him to look around as the world caught up to him. Lila was talking to some other kids from a different school about how she knew a lot about the subject while her parents talked far from her and so didn't hear her lies. Luka frowned as he listened.

 "Oh, yes, apparently he was a real lady's man. ," She laughed, making him frown as he walked over, not caring for the restraining order. He would not have her lie about his possible ancestry. Rene was not a lady's man at all. He didn't even like women.

 "Actually, Lila, he was gay," He pointed out, making her look at him. "So stop making up lies,"

 "That's kind of hypocritical, isn't it?" She smirked. "Since you just lied,"

 "Unlike you, I'm not lying," He stated, making her frown. He didn't know how but he knew it was true. "Sir Rene was gay and never married,"

 "Knights can't be gay!" She gasped, making everyone look at her. "It was against the code and he would have been killed for it since it was considered a crime punishable by death,"

 "Actually, he was a holy knight, meaning it was a crime to try and hurt him as he was considered a man of god," Luka pointed, making Lila grit her teeth. "So actually yeah he could be a knight and gay. Deal with it,"

 "Well, I don't believe you!" She gasped, making him roll his eyes before he walked away. However, his words had caused the people listening to her to also walk off, causing her to narrow her eyes. "Stupid Couffaine,"

 Naturally, no one replied but she felt like someone was watching her. Looking around, she noticed the painting was facing her. Despite the fact that the Knight had his eyes closed, she felt like he was staring at her and strangely enough, that enraged her. She would have to do something about that. She saw her chance when people began to leave the area, leaving her and the new painting alone.

 ~Half an Hour Later~

 Luka was stood, talking with the rest of the group when they heard a scream echo through the museum. They looked alarmed and rushed from where it came from, causing them to stop in the area where Sir Rene's painting for. To their horror, they saw someone had defaced it with some marker pen and a few slashes. Luka frowned as he suspected it may have been Lila but that wasn't the person who screamed. It had been Jalil Kubbel. He was kneeling in front of it with his head in his hands while Mr Damocles and Mr D'argencourt tried to calm him down and reassure him. Alix and their father were also trying to calm him down.

 "You don't understand!" He cried, looking up. Luka frowned as he saw Lila smirking from the sideline. He narrowed his eyes as he was sure she had something to do with this. "This painting is one of a kind! It's the only known painting of the Dragon Knight and Father... you put me in charge-"

 He suddenly cut off as an akuma entered his pendant and the butterfly mask appeared over his eyes but to Luka's surprise, it also appeared over Mr Damocles' and Mr D'argencourt's eyes as well, despite that they weren't actually touching them. Alix and her father backed off as the three men listened to Hawkmoth, causing Luka to glance at them in shock. He frowned as he noticed each of them had similar necklaces around their necks, all looked black. It concerned him because Hawkmoth had never akumatized more than one person who wasn't touching the object. He took a step back as a blue feather also appeared, entering the watch on Mr Damocles' wrist. Mayura was helping him today.

 "We shall protect history and punish those who disrespect it," The three of them declared, accepting whatever Hawkmoth had offered. The purple smog engulfed them as a blue smog appears in the air. It disappeared, revealing a huge floating clock that was orange, black, red and blue in color. It had a huge smile on it's face and single eye. The purple smog disappeared, revealing Darkblade and the Pharaoh in the place of Mr D'Argencourt and Jalil but Mr Damocles hadn't turned into the Dark Owl but a new villain. He resembled a greek god and seemed to be themed around time. Luka slammed his hand on the fire alarm, triggering it as everyone started at them before he turned his friends.

 "Run!" He shouted, causing them to come back into reality before they rushed into action. He noticed Lila rushing to get out among the rest of them.

 "You shall not escape our wrath, Knaves!" Darkblade called, causing the Pharaoh to glare.

 "Thoth, give me time!" He declared, turning his head into a gaboon as he made bubbles. He threw them at people, trapping them in them but the moment he did the sentimonster fired a beam at them and they disappeared. 

 "You can't escape Chronos!" Mr Damocles declared, jumping over to a number of people and slashed them with his scythe, freezing them in place. Once again, the sentimonster fired at them. Darkblade began to turn people into his knights as the group and others ran out, causing the akumas to give chase. Naturally, Rose tripped up, causing Juleka to rush over to her as Luka turned around. She pulled her up and began to run as the akumas chased them. However, it did them no good as Chronos jumped in front of them and slashed them with his blade, freezing them in place.

 "Juleka! Rose!" Luka gasped, going to rush over to them but Adrien grabbed his arm as the sentimonster fired at them, making them disappear, causing Luka to just stop and stare at where they had been. It had been like something out of his nightmares.

 "Luka! Come on!!" He gasped as the akumas began to attack others, including the rest of their group. Pharoah directed a time bubble towards a number of people including Lila, who pushed Sabrina towards it, trapping her in the bubble. Chloe shouted and tried to help but got caught in the bubble. Like Rose and Juleka, they were erased by the sentimonster. Mylene and Ivan were next, followed by Nathaniel, Marc and Lila. "We have to get out of here!!"

 "R-Right..." Luka replied, shaking his head before he looked around. His eyes widen as he saw Marinette wasn't around but was sure she hadn't been hit. "Where's Marinette?!"

 "She was just ri-" Nino started but Chronos suddenly sliced him, freezing him before he stalked over to the remaining members of the group. Darkblade and Pharaoh followed him, causing the remaining members of the group to back away. Luka tried to glance around to find a way out of there so he could go and transform.

 "Disrespectful youths!" Chronos growled, lifting his blade but before he could hit them, Lady Noir jumped down and blocked his attack with her baton before she turned to the group.

 "Get out of here!" She shouted, pushing Chronos back and dodging the beam the sentimonster fired at her. Luka, Adrien and the others ran away from them. Darkblade jumped down and fired his sword at them, hitting Aurora, Ondine and Mirelle as the rest of them dodged and ran in the other direction as Darkblade knighted them. Pharaoh jumped in front of them and threw time bubbles at them, trapping Kagami, Kim and Max. Luka grabbed Alya and Adrien by their arms and pulled them out of the way of more time bubbles before they turned to run again, only to find they were completely surrounded by the akumas, their mind controlled knights and their sentimonster. Luka panicked as he tried to find Lady Noir. His eyes widen as he saw her trapped inside a time bubble but she seemed to be moving. Albeit, really slowly but she was lifting her hand in the air and saying something. He realized she was summoning her cataclysm as the dark energy appeared in her hand. Looking around, he saw the sewer lit up in his luck vision as the akumas were just about to attack them. Lady Noir slowly placed her hand against the bubble, causing it to explode as Luka grabbed Alya and Adrien and pulled them to the ground, avoiding the shatters of the time bubble. Lady Noir gave him a look as if to say 'get out of here while I distract them'.

 "Hey! Time freaks!" Lady Noir growled and spun her baton, getting the akumas attention as they, the sentimonster and the army charged towards her. She gave out a battle cry and charged back. Seeing a chance to escape, Luka pulled Adrien and Alya to the sewers and opened it.

 "Get in!" He ordered, making them blink. "Now!"

 "But what about Lady Noir?" Adrien asked but then they heard the sound of the blast from the sentimonster's eyes, causing the three of them to look in shock and surprise. "Oh no..."

 "Go!" Luka ordered, causing the two of them climb down the ladder as the mini army rushed over. Luka jumped in and ran, along with the other two as he took out his phone and put out an alert on the akuma app. They kept running through the sewers with the akumas hot on their tail, only to come to a sudden stop when they reached the end of the tunnel. Looking down at the drop, Luka frowned as they heard the akumas coming towards them. "We need to jump!"

 "What?!" Alya gasped as Luka jumped, causing Adrien and her to follow. However, Pharoah threw time bubbles at them, trapping Alya and Adrien in the air but missing Luka completely. Hr took a gulp of air, just before he hit the water before swimming off. He made his way to the edge and pulled himself out of the water as he looked around. Apparently, the akumas decided he wasn't worth following. He jumped as he felt someone on around. He thought for a second it was the akumas but when he looked around, nothing was there. He let out a sigh of relief as Tikki flew out of his jacket.

 "Sorry," He gasped as she shook the water from herself. "You're ok right?"

 "I'm fine, Luka," She smiled, making him smile back but before he could transform, he had that feeling again. He glanced around, seeing no one. "Luka?"

 "I.. I feel like someone is here..." He replied, causing Tikki to frown before they felt the wind around them.

 Luka... this way... A voice inside the wind whispered, causing his eyes to widen before he turned to Tikki, who apparently didn't hear anything.

 "Tikki! Spots on!" He declared, transforming into Anatis before he ran to where the wind had directed him. It was one of the exits so he climbed up it. However, he carefully took out his yoyo and used it to check around. It seemed like no one was around and was in an alleyway so he climbed out. He would need a lucky charm straight away so he threw his yoyo in the air and quietly summoned one, causing a small mirror appear out of thin air. He caught it and frowned as he tried to look around to work out what to do with it before he realized it was a normal mirror. It had a frame that was Ladybug patterned but the glass itself wasn't normal mirror glass. It was in fact black, making him frown as he looked at it. He held it up so he could look at the reflection but jumped and dropped it when he saw someone stood behind him. He quickly picked it and looked behind him, frowning as no one was there. He took a deep breathe and held it up again, causing him to see the man behind him again. Only this time he recognized him. "Feng?"

 Feng gave him a smile before holding up something. Anatis' eyes widen as he saw it was the Rabbit Miraculous but that meant...

 It is time... Feng's voice echoed, confirming his thoughts before he faded away, leaving Anatis alone. He took a deep breathe and looked around, finally noticing it was the alley right next to Master Fu's apartment. He blinked before detransforming and catching Tikki. He gave her a cookie and rushed inside the building, heading to Master's apartment. He burst through the door, causing Master Fu to jump. 

 "Master, I need the rabbit miraculous!" He gasped, surprising Fu. "Scrap that... I need all of the temporary miraculous including the rabbit,"

 "What?" Fu asked, surprised as Luka moved pass him and opened the phonograph. "Luka?! You ca-"

 "I'm sorry, Master. Normally I wouldn't do this but we have no time to argue or to delay," He replied, taking out the box and opening it. "I have three akumas, one sentimonster and a number of brainwashed citizens to deal with. My team, including Lady Noir, have been erased. Since Feng showed me the Rabbit miraculous, I'm guessing they are lost in time so I need the Rabbit Miraculous to rescue them,"

 "But if you merge-"

 "I won't merge them," He replied, placing the miraculous he needs in his pockets before he took out the rabbit miraculous. "I'll be giving it to Alix Kubbel. It will mean she'll find out the temp heroes' identities but this is the only way. If I take on the akumas alone... I'll be lost in time too or worst, Hawkmoth will get my miraculous,"

 "Can you trust her?" He asked, making Luka nod.

 "I've already met her from the future," He explained, making Master Fu frown. "She's Bunnyx or she will be... which is happening now. Anyway, I need my whole team to take down the akumas, the sentimonster and their army. I just don't know how yet,"

 "Well... I trust you so do what you need to," Master Fu nodded as Luka closed the miracle box and placed it back inside the phonograph. "But how did you know my code?"

 "I have a really good memory," He replied, shrugging before pointing to the turtle miraculous. "I'm gonna need that one too,"

 Master Fu looked down at it before he took it off, causing Wayzz to disappear into it and placed it in Luka's hands.

 "Good luck," He smiled, making Luka nod before he left. He smiled a little as he looked out the window and saw Anatis jump off.

 ~At the Louvre~

 Alix curled up, making sure to hide behind the stone tablets in the ancient egyptian section of the museum. Honestly, she was terrified and she didn't know what to do. As soon as her brother had accepted Hawkmoth's powers, her father had grabbed her and told her to run before going back to try and talk Jalil out of it. He hadn't come back yet, meaning he was probably either erased or a knight or a mummy. She flinched as she heard a noise before she got up and grabbed a spear from one of the displays, holding it out to protect herself. However, she dropped it when she saw Anatis. She rushed over and hugged him, making him jump in surprise.

 "Anatis! It's my brother!" She gasped, looking at him.

 "Alix, take a deep breathe and calm down ok?" He ordered in a calm voice. She nodded and did so. "I need your help,"

 "M-My help?" She asked, surprised as he took out his yoyo and opened it. He reached his hand in it and took out a colorful watch, making her eyes go wide as she recognized it as the rabbit miraculous. "Is that..."

 "Yes," He replied before he hesitated. "But I need you to promise me you'll never repeat what you learn today to anyone,"

 "I... I promise," She declared with a look of determination before he nodded and help it out to her.

 "Alix Kubdel, here is the Miraculous of the Rabbit that will grant the power to travel through time. You will use it for the greater good," He declared, making her blink as she took it. "Once the job is done, you will return the miraculous to me. Can I trust you?"

 "You can rely on me, Anatis," Alix replied, opening the box and allowing Fluff to manifest. "Hi, Fluff,"

 "Oh, what is now? And where is then? What..." Fluff blinked before frowning and turning to Anatis. "Master Anatis... something is wrong with time. People aren't where they are suppose to be!"

 "So I was right," He frowned, holding his chin with his thumb and forefinger. "Alix, we need to go back in time to find the temporary heroes and Lady Noir. Here.."

 He pulled a jar of small carrots out of his yoyo and handed them to her.

 "You're gonna need those," He replied, making her blink. "You can only use burrow once and then you'll detransform once five minutes has passed but we're gonna need to make a lot of trips,"

 "Ok," She nodded, holding out the watch. "Fluff, Clockwise!"

 Fluff got sucked into the watch, turning it into it's miraculous form. Alix swiped her hand over her eyes, creating her mask before holding it as the light blue light traveled down her arm, creating her suit. She spun around as her outfit changed. She tucked the watch into her pocket and created the ears on her head before she held up her hand and caught her umbrella before swiping to the side then opening it, completing the transformation. She grinned and looked at herself.

 "How come my outfit is different to older me?" She asked, noticing she had shorts on, trainers and elbow length gloves instead of the outfit she had seen her older self wearing.

 "You're younger than she was," Anatis pointed out, making her nod. "Now we just need to work out where everyone is... if it was like Time Tagger then history should have altered... so let's start looking for any changes,"

  ~Shanghai, China, 1600 AD~

 Lady Noir blinked as she looked around, wondering how she suddenly appeared in what appeared to be china. She knew she had family there but this was not where she had stayed. She got up and dusted herself down as she looked around before she heard a gasp. Before she could react, she felt someone suddenly hug her.

 "Lady Noir!!" Rose's voice echoed as she looked down and saw the hyper girl was the one hugging her. "Oh I'm so glad to see you!! Mylene look! It's Lady Noir!"

 "Oh thank goodness," Mylene smiled as she came over from her hiding place. "Do you know where we are?"

 "It's more of when," A calm, male voice stated, causing the three girls to look over at where it came from. Leaning against the wall of a building was a young man with long black hair. He was wearing traditional chinese clothing with bandages on his legs and martial arts shoes on his feet. His shirt was light blue and had silver details on it. He wore light gray pants and a dark blue jacket over it with a dark blue belt around his waist. In his hair was a silver ribbon and he had gray fingerless gloves on. He also had gray eyes. He pushed himself off the wall and walked over to them "Come with me. There are a lot of imperial soldiers around who will attack you on sight, especially since you're not from here,"

 The two girls looked to Lady Noir, who nodded as she had a feeling she could trust this guy. She didn't know why but he kind of reminded her of Anatis. She wasn't sure why but she just knew she could trust him. She, Rose and Mylene followed him through the city until they came to a temple. The man let them inside and locked the door behind him, telling Rose and Mylene to rest before turning to Lady Noir again.

 "Follow me," He replied, making her nod as he walked deeper into the temple, away from the others. 

 "How are you speaking perfect french?" She asked as he opened a door and brought her inside.

 "I'm channelling Khnurn's magic," He explained, making her look at him with confusion. "His magic manifested itself as the ability to speak in any language,"

 "Oh that is useful," She replied as her miraculous beeped rapidly before she detransformed, causing her to catch Plagg before she gasped. "Oh no! I-"

 "Don't worry," He smiled, making her calm down. "I won't tell anyone. There's some Nguri for Plagg to recharge. It isn't the type he usually prefers but it should be enjoyable enough,"

 "Thanks, Toutai!" He called, diving straight into the pile of cheese, causing Marinette to look at the young man.

 "You're Master Toutai, the celestial guardian?!" She asked, remembering what Koro had said. He smiled and nodded. "Whoa... is this how you knew about..."

 "You appearance in my time? Yes, I was given a heads up about it," He explained, making her raise an eyebrow. "Those are details that I can't tell you, Miss Marinette. It is not my secret to give,"

 "Ah," She nodded. "I get it... still thank you for rescuing us,"

 "It was nothing," He smiled in a shy manner before he looked behind him as in the distance a chime echoed. He turned back to her. "You might want to retransform. We're going to have some guests,"

 Marinette nodded as Plagg flew over to her before retransforming into Lady Noir. Toutai smiled and lead her back into the main temple as the chimes came to a stop. When the last chime finished, a glow portal she recognized as a burrow opened in the middle of the temple before Anatis followed by a younger Bunnyx walked out, causing Lady Noir to rush over and hug him. Instantly, he hugged back as Bunnyx glanced over at Rose and Mylene as well as Toutai. Anatis pulled away from her.

 "I'm glad you're ok, Kitten," He whispered, making her smile before he looked around. "But..."

 He went silence as his eyes landed on Toutai, who merely nodded towards him and stepped forward.

 "Hello, Anatis.. it's nice to actually meet you in person," He smiled before he looked over at Bunnyx, who was talking to Rose. Rose nodded as she gave her the bee miraculous discreetly, sipping it into her pocket. "Miss Rabbit, there is a room down there where you can detransform and charge up Fluff,"

 "Oh, right... cool. Thanks, random person from history," She grinned, holding up her thumbs before going to that room. Anatis stepped over to him.

 "How are you here?" He asked, making Lady Noir frown a little.

 "This is my time," Toutai replied. "China, 1603 to be exact. I'm 303 years old,"

 "Damn, you look good," Lady Noir gasped, making Toutai smile. "I mean... your wife won't kill me right?!"

 "Oh, no she won't," He smiled, making Lady Noir let out a sigh of relief. "She's currently doing her guardian trials so she isn't home right now,"

 Lady Noir nodded before walking over to Anatis.

 "What's wrong?" He asked, frowning.

 "Should we tell him about... the fact that he's gonna be murdered?" She asked, causing Anatis to frown. Koro had explained he had been killed before he fully lived out his life as the celestial guardian. "Maybe we could prevent it,"

 "I... I don't think we can," Anatis whispered, frowning as he felt Toutai's song. It was a song full of hope and sorrow. One of wanting to live happily before it was too late. "I think... I think he knows it's going to happen... he just doesn't know when or how,"

 "Ok! I'm good!" Bunnyx declared before Lady Noir could answer. She walked over to them as Lady Noir gave Anatis a nod. "Where to now, Boss?"

 "I'm not sure," Anatis replied, frowning. "I think we might just need to visit different-"

 "We need to go to Egypt, Ancient Greece, Medieval England and Ancient China," Toutai stated, walking over. "Those are the times and locations your friends are in,"

 "Oh thanks," Anatis smiled before he realized what Toutai had said. "Wait... what do you mean we?"

 "Simple," Toutai smiled. "I'm coming with you,"

 ~The Sahara Desert, 1200 BC~

 Chloe blinked as she looked up at the sky. She was sure she had been inside the Louvre museum with her friends so why was she laid on her back, looking up at the very clear, open sky? Blinking, she sat up and looked around, causing more concern to fill her mind as she saw she was laid in the desert. Laid next to her was Nathaniel and Max but both of them seemed unconscious. She scrambled up and shook Max awake before moving to Nathaniel, waking him up. He looked around alarmed as Max pushed his glasses up.

 "Um... where are we?" He asked as Max stood up and dusted his clothes down.

 "I would guess a desert but I don't remember how we got here," He replied, frowning as Chloe helped Nathaniel up while trying to keep him calm. "Is everyone ok?"

 "Physically, yes but I think Nath is having a panic attack," Chloe replied, gesturing to him as he looked around and tried to breathe. However, the sound of horses made her own panic rise, especially as she saw a cloud of sand in the distance. "Um... Max tell me that can be explained and isn't a bad thing,"

 Max looked over before clearing his throat.

 "I think we should run," He stated, making her look at him as he began to step back. The sand cloud was getting closer. "Yep... definitely run!"

 Chloe wrapped Nathaniel's arms around her neck and began to run, along with Max as some horse drawn chariots came at them with great speed. The men riding them were yelling as they gained on them but before they could do anything, the cariotes came to a sudden stop. The men fell forward before looking around bewildered as they tried to make their horses move. Chloe looked back as she, Max and Nathaniel kept moving. The men jumped off the chariots to chase them on foot but the moment they passed their horses, something in the air changed as a number of figures jumped towards them and landed in the sand. Chloe's eyes widen in fear as she thought they were about to attack them too. 

 "Who are they?!" Nathaniel asked as one of them stepped forward. He looked their age but was dressed very different to them. He wore a white kilt with a golden belt that had golden and blue material hanging from it. He had no shoes on at all but had golden cuffs around his ankles and his wrists, though the wrist ones were slightly bigger. His hair was partly shaved and the rest of it was braided and finally, his eyes were brown in color. Despite his age, he had an sense of authority about him. It was clear he was the leader of this group. He walked past the three of them and up to the leader of the men who had chased them.

 "Ant tataeadaa mumtalakat! Airhal alan!" He stated in a calm but firm voice. At first the leader seemed to hesitate before he turned to his men and began to shout them, causing them to back off. The boy watched them leave before turning to the three of them. "Come. I'm sure the desert has left you weary and in need of food and drink,"

 The three of them stared at him in surprise. It was pretty obvious that they were in ancient times but yet he had just spoken to them in perfect, modern day french. He rose an eyebrow at them as they stared.

 "It's complicated but basically I can speak any language that has ever existed or will exist," He stated, making them blink and nod before he walked off, causing them to follow him to a number of camels and horses. One of the others with him leaned over to him and said something. The boy replied, causing him to nod before he stopped and looked over at the sky before he turned to his companions and said something to them. They looked at each other but stopped when a white portal appeared before Anatis and a girl in a rabbit suit stepped out. Instantly, the others around the young leader went on edge, ready to attack. However, he turned to them. "La bi'asa! hum 'ilaa janibina!!"

 The group lowered their weapons as Anatis stopped in his path and looked completely taken by surprise as he stared at the young leader, making the rabbit girl look at him. A few minutes later, Lady Noir and a man dressed in Chinese clothing stepped out again, causing the young man to smile at him.

 "Hi, Toutai!" He grinned as Toutai nodded to him as Anatis turned to the older person.

 "I know him... why do I know him?" He asked, making Toutai chuckle.

 "All in good time, young hero," He replied, turning to the boy. "Anatis, this is Khnurn,"

 "Yes, that is my name," He replied, causing Anatis and the rabbit girl to blink in surprise. "And you're Anatis... or at least like this you are..."

 He smiled and gestured to him.

 "Come! We shall take cover in our camp so your friends may have food and drink to recharge," Khnurn declared, causing Anatis to nod before he followed. He gave a nod to Bunnyx, who nodded back and took the chance to slip the horse miraculous to Chloe, telling her something and winking at her. Chloe nodded and hid it in her purse before Lady Noir whispered something to Bunnyx, who nodded. A few minutes later, she slipped something to Nino and told him something without anyone else noticing. Nino nodded and slipped the tiger miraculous into his pocket. The group followed Khnurn and his group over to their camels and horses before climbing on with them, riding off to their camp. It took a bit of time but they came to a pyramid hidden in the sands, just as Bunnyx's miraculous beeped. Khnurn jumped off his camel and walked over to the edge of the pyramid before placing his hand on it. A golden light came from it before forming a phoenix and disappearing, revealing a hidden doorway. "Follow me,"

 He walked inside, causing the group to follow him. Once inside, it was revealed to be a camp area with a number of tents and areas sectioned off with curtains. Another thing Anatis noticed was the number of animals in the place. All kinds of birds, dogs and cats were around. There was even a cow and a toad. The toad hopped over to Khnurn, who picked him up.

 "It isn't much but it is home," Khnurn replied as he smiled before he looked over at Bunnyx. "You can detransform and charge up Fluff over there,"

 He pointed to one of the hidden areas, making her nod as she walked over and moved behind a curtain. Lady Noir moved over to Anatis as he took a seat near a fire pit. Khnurn moved over to Toutai, switching to chinese to talk to him with anyone else understanding. They both glanced in Anatis' direction, making him look over.

 "I don't trust them," Lady Noir grumbled, making Anatis smile a little. "I mean how do they know each other? Why do they even look the same?"

 "They're connected to each other," Anatis replied, making her look at him. Toutai's song and Khnurn's song were eerily similar. "I just don't know how yet but I think we can trust them,"

 "Well, I trust you," She replied, making him smile. "Not sure about them though. Like Toutai seems nice but... Khnurn seems odd,"

 "He doesn't like people," Anatis muttered as Khnurn stroked the toad in his hand. "That's why he talks to Ra,"

 "Ra?" Lady Noir asked, making Anatis look at her.

 "That's what the Toad is called," He replied, making her blink and look at him before he shook his head, gripping it a little. "I don't know how I know that,"

 One of Khnurn's friends walked over to them, holding out a goblet. Anatis looked up at her, noticing she was wearing the earrings that resembled the ladybug miraculous but when they weren't active. However, he couldn't sense Tikki but maybe it's because he was out of time so to speak.

 "Yashrab," She stated, making Anatis shake his head.

 "Ana last eatshan," He replied, making Lady Noir look at him in surprise.

 "Annie, I didn't know you could speak ancient egyptian," She replied. He looked at her in surprise.

 "I... didn't?" He asked, not certain. He noticed Khnurn smirking like he understood something that Anatis didn't. "I just said I'm not thirsty since she told me to drink,"

 "You understood what she said, didn't you?" Khnurn asked, walking over. Anatis looked at him with slight confusion, causing him to smile. "Fascinating,"

 "I'm all charged up!" Bunnyx shouted as she walked out and back over. Anatis stood up with Lady Noir. "So where to next?"

 "Ancient Greece," Toutai stated, making everyone look at him before they looked at Anatis for confirmation. "If you're willing to listen to me that is,"

 "Yeah... ok... Greece it is," He nodded, causing Bunnyx to open a burrow. "Chloe, Nathaniel and Nino. Stay inside the room,"

 "No problem," They replied, walking inside the burrow but to Anatis' surprise, Khnurn put down Ra and told his group that he would be back soon before he turned to Anatis.

 "I'm coming with you," He replied, making the remaining heroes blink. Though Toutai didn't seem surprised at all. Anatis suspected that he knew Khnurn would do this. "You're gonna need my help,"

 "Right..." Anatis replied, nodding. "Let's go then,"

 ~Athens, Greece, 470 BC~

 "Oww," Ivan groaned as he sat up and rubbed his head. He was sure he had just been in the Louvre with Mylene and the rest of their group but now he was lying under a giant statue of a man with a beard. He looked around and saw Marc curled up and still asleep while Alya was just sitting up. "Alya, you ok?"

 "I'm fine, Ivan," She replied as Marc stirred. "But where-"

 She was cut off by the sound of a huge roar, making the three of them jump up in surprise before Alya excitedly took off, causing Ivan and Marc to follow her. They ended up hiding behind some urns as they came across a scene that wasn't unfamiliar to them. A creature they recognized as a hydra breathed fire and destroyed thing with it's tail as a woman dressed similar to Mayura watched the destruction. She was wearing a blue toga and held the fan of the peacock holder in her hands.

 "Ánthropoi tis Athínas! Eímai i theá rara!" She declared, making the three of them look at each other in confusion. "fére mou ton pséftiko theó, ton Alfeió kai tha deíxo éleos stin póli sou!!"

 "I think she's threatening the city," Marc whispered, making Ivan frown. However, before they could do anything, a wave of water hit her, knocking her off the building before flames wrapped around the Hydra. A woman dressed in a ladybug patterned Toga jumped down and wrapped her yoyo around the beast before another hero, dressed as a lion, jumped down and crushed a pillar, causing a blue feather to disappear from it. The Hydra disappeared, allowing the woman to capture the feather with her yoyo before she threw up an item into the air.

 "Thavmatourgí paschalítsa!" She declared, causing the item to burst into the cure and fix everyone. Alya couldn't help but squeal. However, the woman Hera was no where to be seen. 

 "Oh my god! That's a holder of the Ladybug miraculous!!" Alya gasped, practically vibrating with excitement but Marc looked just as excited as he looked at the two heroes.

 "She's Hippolyte and that is Hercules!" He gasped, making Ivan look at them before they heard someone clear their throat. The three of them turned around to find themselves face to face with a young man roughly somewhere in his late teens. His hair was black and curly in style. He wore a white toga with light blue detail on the trim and brown saddles but what really made him stand out were his eyes. They were the color of the ocean and sparkled with humor and mischief. "Um... hi?"

 "You're not from here," He stated, surprising all of them before they slowly nodded. "Come with me. The others must not see you or they'll think your the enemy and they will attack you,"

 "Attack?" Marc asked as the hero walked off.

 "Wait! Who are you?" Alya demanded, making him stop. "And how can we trust you huh?!"

 "Would you rather I leave you to the hydra?" He asked, making her gasp and quickly follow him. Marc walked over to him.

 "Um... who are you?"

 "I'm Alpheus," He replied with a cheeky grin. "A friend of yours contacted me to find you,"

 "Wait... Anatis?" Ivan asked but Alpheus didn't say anything. Just gave him a smile. "It has to be Anatis,"

 "But Anatis has never mentioned him before," Alya pointed out but the two boys just walked off, following him. She gasped and ran after them as they headed back to the temple Alpheus was staring at the sky, making Alya raise an eyebrow before she walked up to him. "Excuse me! How do you know Anatis?"

 "Let's just say we have history," He grinned, making her raise an eyebrow. The way he said means it was clearly a pun but she didn't get the punchline. However, she didn't have time to think about it as a glowing portal appeared, causing Anatis to step out with a rabbit hero. Alya squealed excitedly as she saw her before Lady Noir stepped out with two others the three of them had never seen. However, Alpheus walked straight up to them and greeted them, making her assume they were his brothers. They looked similar after all. The Rabbit girl went over to Ivan and gave him something, getting a nod of him before she disappeared behind a statue, causing a white light to flash. Alya was very tempted to look behind it to see who the girl was but Anatis gave her a stern look as if he knew what she was thinking. She gave him a calm smile before walking over to him.

 "Can I ask you a question?" She asked, making Anatis nod. "Who is that guy? He said you contacted him and said you had history with him but he said it like a joke but I didn't get it,"

 "I'm not sure I get it yet either," Anatis replied, frowning. "I do know him though. His name is Alpheus... I didn't contact him though..."

 "You've never mentioned him before, Annie," Lady Noir stated, making him frown. "Don't ya think they kind all look like each other? Like if I didn't know any better, I'd say they are all related,"

 "Aren't they?" Alya asked, making both heroes shake their head. "But... they look like brothers?"

 "I noticed that too," Anatis replied, frowning. "But there's no way for them to be brothers. Possibly descendents of each other but definitely not immediate family. For one thing, Khnurn is from ancient Egypt but Toutai is from China in the 1600s,"

 "But they know each other?" Alya pointed out, making Anatis frown. That he didn't know how to explain. He knew that Toutai was a celestial guardian of the miraculous but as far as he was aware, Alpheus and Khnurn had no connection to the miraculous or to Toutai. The only thing he knew as that Khnurn was a mage and that Alpheus might be channeling his magic like Toutai was but that's all he knew. As soon as he thought that, a little voice in the back of his head made him question it as it asked him if he was sure. He let out a sigh and put his fingers through his hair. Lady Noir gave him a look of concern as he looked stressed.

 "I'm alright, Kitten," He smiled at her before sighing. "I just... It feels like a riddle but I can't solve it because I'm missing a vital piece. They have a bond that runs deeper then family but I don't know what it is,"

 "Also... the greek one... Alpheus... he was speaking perfect french?" Alya questioned, making the two heroes look at her before Lady Noir bit her lip.

 "Toutai said he was channelling Khnurn's magic right?" She asked, making Anatis nod. "Then maybe Alpheus is doing the same? Maybe he's... Like Toutai..."

 "Khnurn's magic?" Marc asked, having been listening into the conversation. The three of them looked at him, making him blush and look down. "So-Sorry... I didn't mean to listen. It just sounds so amazing,"

 "It's ok, Marc," Anatis smiled in a reassuring way. "Khnurn is a mage and his magic is based on communication. He can speak, write and understand any language that has ever existed no matter when it existed. I'm guessing by channelling his magic and their connection with him, Toutai and Alpheus can communicate with anyone they want or need to,"

 "That is so cool," Alya grinned as Ivan nodded and Marc smiled, clearly inspired. "But how do they do that?"

 "I don't know how," Anatis admitted as he noticed a glow coming from behind the statue before Bunnyx stepped out. "Ready?"

 "Yep," She grinned before the two of them looked to Toutai. "Since you lead us to Egypt and here, I'll let you choose next,"

 "Medieval England," He replied, walking back over as Anatis nodded. Khnurn and Alpheus walked over too, making him raise an eyebrow.

 "Let me guess... you're coming as well," He stated, making Alpheus grin.

 "Of course," He replied, shrugging. "Bunnyx can drop me off at this exact moment and Hera won't attack for at least three days. Even if she does, Herc and Hip have it covered. Hip has the ladybug miraculous so she can restore the damage done but you would know all about that, don't you Anatis?"

 "Right," He replied, turning to Bunnyx. "Open the next burrow,"

 "Sure thing, boss," She grinned before holding out her hand. "Burrow!"

 The glowing portal reappeared, causing Marc and Alya to grinned excitedly.

 "Alright, everyone! Let's go!" Anatis declared before disappearing inside, causing the rest to follow.

 ~Lake Avalon, England, 750 AD~

 "Rose!! Luka!!" Juleka called out as she looked around the island she had climbed up on after finding herself floating in a middle of a lake. She was sure that she had been in the musume with Rose, Luka and everyone in their friendship group but then suddenly she was here alone. She looked around and noticed Kagami lying in the water. She gasped and rushed back over as Kagami jolted awake, splashing in the water. She waddled back in the water and helped her up as waves on the water moved. Both girls gasped and stepped back, aware of what might be swimming towards them. They both screamed when it broke through the water, only to hear the laughter of Kim.

 "Ha! That was amazing!!" He grinned, stretching as they both stared at him. "There's a castle under the water and everything!!"

 "A castle under the water?" Kagami asked, looking around before she looked pale. "Where are we?! Where's Adrien?!"

 "I don't know," Juleka mumbled, feeling afraid. "No one else is here from the group either. It's just us three,"

 "We should try and find someone," Kagami replied, looking around. It seemed to be nothing but trees around them but they had to be someone around there. Juleka nodded and followed Kagami as she walked off into the forest, with Kim trailing behind them. The forest seemed to go on forever as they pushed through the leaves and branches until they came out in a large clearing. In the distance, they could see a castle but something felt wrong. There were no birds singing like there was in the forest. The grass looked dried, the ground looked cracked and there was a strange smell in the air that made them feel sick. Juleka carefully grabbed Kagami's hand as both girls looked at the castle ahead in fear. Everything about it screamed danger. "We should leave,"

 "I agree," Juleka muttered, taking a step back before the ground began to shake. It stopped as soon as it started, causing the girls to look confused as Kim snored in amusement. "Was that an earthquake?"

 "If it was, it was weak as-" Kim stated but then they heard a crack, causing them to look over. The color drained from their skin as they saw a rotten corpse pulling itself from the ground.

 "Run," Kagami stated as another started to climb up. "Run!"

 The three of them turned and ran as fast as they could, though Kagami and Kim were at lot faster then Juleka. She kept going but she missed placed her footing, causing her to trip and fall as the forest came to life. She screamed as a vine wrapped around her ankle and the undead gained on them. Kagami stopped and turned around, running back towards her. She jumped at one of the undead, knocking it down and grabbing it's sword before swiping at the vines of the trees but they grabbed at her. She tried to cut them as they wrapped around her waist but before she could, they grabbed her sword. Juleka tried to scream as the vines weaved around her but some began to cover her mouth and Kim was been hosted into the veins, making them all panic. However, the sound of an arrow cut through the air before it landed on the ground.

 "Flare!" A voice declared, causing the area where the arrow landed to be engulfed in a burst of light before a number of figures jumped down and attacked the undead. Juleka's eyes widen as she saw one of them using a yoyo as well as another using a flute. The undead creatures retreated as the light dimmed, revealing the newcomers to be knights and what looked like to be a wizard. "Victory is ours once again!"

 "Perhaps we should help these young ones," The woman in the ladybug themed armored pointed out, making the men look at her as she gestured to the three of them. "Merlin, if you will,"

 "Of course, mi'lady," He nodded in a respectful way before touching the tree. Juleka noticed that while he looked like a wizard, he seemed to be themed around a black cat. In fact, all of the group were themed around animals. There was a fox knight, a turtle knight, a rooster knight and even a snake knight. Her eyes widen as she realized they were holders of the miraculous. "Cataclysm!"

 The trees and their vines turned to dust, freeing the three of them. As soon as they were free, Kim jumped up and grinned.

 "Real life knights! So cool!" He grinned, making the knights look at each as Kagami dusted herself down and grabbed the sword. The woman in the ladybug miraculous helped Juleka to her feet. "I can't wait to tell Alix about this!!"

 "You have our thanks," Kagami stated, nodding. "But could you tell us where we are?"

 "The Island of Avalon... 750 AD," A new voice stated, causing the knights to turn to as another knight joined them. The three of them stared in surprise and awe at him as they recognized him as the subject of the Dragon Knight painting. Only he didn't have his full armor on. He had his chainmail with a blue tunic over it and brown boots. His hair hung by his shoulders and was black in color. He had a single jacket earring in his left ear but what made him really stand out was his piercing green eyes, which surprised Juleka. She had envisioned he had blue eyes, just like Luka but that could because Luka use to pretend to be this knight. Sir Rene gave them a gentle smile, causing them to feel calmer then they were before he turned to the other knights. "Let's move north. We'll set up camp near the lake so we might have her protection. Sir Bedivere, you're in charge of finding us a boar to roast. Sir Galahad, would you be so kind as to make sure a nice fire tonight?"

 "Of course, Sir Rene," Sir Galahad nodded before the group began to head off. Sir Rene turned to Juleka, Kagami and Kim.

 "Mordred will recover and attack again so please come with us," He stated, making them look at each other. "He can't go near the lake,"

 "Mordred?" Kagami asked, looking at the other two who shrugged. "Is that who lives in that castle?"

 "He has overtaken it," Sir Rene confirmed as Kagami frowned before they began to follow the other knights. They would rather go with them then deal with those creepy trees or undead monsters again. Juleka kept looking back at Sir Rene as she walked with them, making him give her a questioning look. "Is something wrong?"

 "Um... I want to as-"

 "Is it true that you're gay?!" Kim asked, interrupting her. Rene cocked an eyebrow at him. "Sorry but it's just this girl was claiming knights can't be gay-"

 "I am joyous," He replied, making Kim look at him. "Since that is what gay means at this time but if you referring to the fact that I have a preference for male partners then females then yes that is true. Will that be a problem?"

 "Oh no! Not at all!" Kim gasped, holding up his hands to show that he didn't mean to be offensive. "I was just curious! That's all!"

 "Good," Rene smiled before turning to Juleka. "I believe you were going to say something,"

 "My brother knew about you before anyone else..." She mumbled, making him look at her in a little surprise. "We use to play knights when we were little and he always insisted on been the lengendary 'dragon knight' Sir Rene but I don't know how he knew you, given that your name is lost to history.. sorry..."

 "It's fine," He smiled, making her nod.

 "So do you think we're related?" She asked as Kim tried to challenge the other knights to an arm wrestle. "Is it possible that we are your descendents? Do you have a family?"

 "I have no family," Rene replied, frowning a little as they came to a stop. "As for your brother knowing, it's possible that he knew me before that,"

 "Like he had a past life with you?" She asked, frowning. Luka did seem wise beyond his years so it made sense that maybe he had lived before.

 "It's a possibility," He stated, smiling as he knew something she didn't. "But I wouldn't worry too much though,"

 She nodded as Sir Galahad and a few of the other knights set up tents. Soon there was a roaring fire and a wild boar was been roasted over it, thanks to Sir Bedivere. Some of the knights were talking, some were taking Kim up on his challenge and one of them was fencing with Kagami. She was sure that was Sir Lancelot but Sir Rene himself was merely keeping an eye on the boar and seemed a little sad but as soon as night fell, he glanced over at the lake. Juleka glanced over as well. The stars reflected off it, making it look like diamonds but literally seconds after she looked over, a glowing portal appeared near the shore. The other knights jumped up in alert as Merlin and the woman with the Ladybug miraculous looked over.

 "Merlin's beard! What is that?" Sir Kay gasped, looking over as Merlin rolled his eyes and muttered something about his beard. However, relief flooded through Juleka as Anatis stepped out, followed by Lady Noir, a rabbit themed hero and three men who she guessed were brothers. "Sir Rene, should we attack?"

 "No, they are friends," He smiled, getting up and walking over. "Welcome!"

 "Sir Rene?" Anatis asked, generally surprised as the Rabbit girl walked over to Juleka and suddenly hugged her. Juleka was slightly taken back but hugged back as she felt the girl give her the fox miraculous.

 "Anatis said to give this you," She whispered, making Juleka nod. "He said wait until we're back in Paris before using it,"

 "Alright," She replied as the girl pulled away and walked over to Kagami before talking to her. Juleka didn't notice as she slipped Kagami the dragon miraculous and gave her Anatis' instructions. "Anatis?"

 "Yes?" He asked, looking at her as she played with her hands.

 "Is Rose ok?" She asked, hoping her girlfriend wasn't hurt. He gave her a soft smile.

 "She's safe in Bunnyx's burrow," He explained, making her let out a sigh of relief as Bunnyx disappeared into a tent. A few seconds later, a white light appeared inside. "As soon as Bunnyx is recharged, we'll be heading inside. Toutai, is this the last place?"

 "No, one more place," Toutai replied, surprising Juleka as he spoke perfect french. "We'll be heading back to China but not from my time. It will be Ancient China,"

 "Ok," Anatis nodded before looking to Sir Rene. "You're gonna come with us, aren't you?"

 "Yes," He replied, making Anatis nod. "You will require my blade,"

 "Sure," He replied, pinching his nose. "Just... don't add to the argument,"

 "Argument?" Juleka asked, making Anatis groan as Lady Noir grinned.

 "Oh what fighting style is better," She replied, making Juleka raise an eyebrow. "Toutai does martial arts but Mr Khnurn thinks that Marksmanship is the better style while Mr Alpheus-"

 "Call me Al,"

 "Al likes more defensive action but seems to favor the trident,"

 "Oh," Juleka nodded. "I think Marital arts is the best,"

 "Oh that's another one for Martial arts!" Lady Noir grinned, making Toutai whoop and Juleka smile a little before Sir Rene cleared his throat.

 "Clearly Swordsmanship is the truest art," He stated, making his knights cheer in agreement as Bunnyx comes out of the tent. "Ah the young doe is ready,"

 "I'm not a deer," She replied, raising an eyebrow. "And I thought girl rabbits are called Jills?"

 "I believe that is the hare, my dear," Sir Rene replied, making Bunnyx make a thoughtful face. "Either way, it is time yes?"

 "Right," Anatis replied, nodding. "Let's go,"

 "Burrow!"

 ~Feng's Family Temple, China, 1300 BC~

 Adrien blinked as he looked around, wondering where he was. One minute he had been running away from the akuma with Kagami and Luka, the next he had woken up in this strange little temple. It actually had a nice feeling to it but he wasn't sure where he was. As he looked around, he saw Max laid on the ground next to Marvok and Sabrina was curled near them. Max groaned as he woke up before sitting up and pushing his glasses as Marvok flew up and looked around. 

 "Where are we?" He asked with question marks in his eyes as Max looked around.

 "I can confirm we are no longer in the Louvre museum," He muttered as Sabrina groaned and woke up, sitting up as well. "I would guess the akuma has somehow transported use to a different location,"

 "Chloe?!" Sabrina gasped, looking around as Adrien realised Kagami wasn't there. "Oh no! Where is she?"

 "Your friends are all quite safe," A voice stated, making them jump as they turned and saw an older man who appeared in his late 30s. He was dressed in a gray handfu suit and had his hair tied back in a long ponytail. He had a faded blue jacket on and wore martial art shoes on his feet. Next to him was a cone-shaped hat and he was sat near one of the stones in front of a small fire with a pot of tea on it. He also had four cups out as if he was waiting for them. "I sent word to my friends to ensure their safety and they should have been picked up by your friend with the beetle miraculous by now,"

 "You know Anatis?" Adrien asked as he took the teapot off the fire and poured it into the cups before handing one to Adrien. He looked at it and took it, sitting down in front of the strange man. "Are you a friend of his?"

 "I'm more of a guide to him," He replied, passing one to Sabrina and one of Max as both had sat down. "I would pass a drink to your friend but it would fry his circuit board,"

 "You know of robots?" Sabrina asked, surprised.

 "I know that they will come to exist," He replied, sipping his own drink. "My name is Feng by the way. You are Adrien, Max, Marvok and Sabrina,"

 "How do you know our names and robots?" Adrien asked, surprised.

 "I was born with the ability to see the future," He replied, blowing on his drink. "In a moment, a burrow will open behind me and your friend, along with six others, will step out,"

 As soon as he said it, a glowing portal appeared and Anatis stepped, followed by Lady Noir, a rabbit themed hero and four others. Adrien stared in shock but he wasn't the only one. Anatis himself was staring straight at Feng, who stood and turned around.

 "Feng?!" Anatis gasped, clearly off guard. "... you're here? wait... am I having one of those dreams again?"

 "No, this is actually real,"  Feng reassured as Bunnyx took the chance to give Adrien the snake miraculous and Max the Rooster. "And I know you have a lot of questions and I will answer them but not yet. Bunnyx, it's good to see you again. You can feed Fluff over there,"

 "um... thanks?" She asked, confused as he pointed to a small area cornered off by material but he chuckled. 

 "I met your older self when I was younger," He explained, making her blink in surprise before he waved his hand. "The rest are spoilers. Now I believe you should go and feed her then we should get going. We have much to achieve,"

 "Right," Bunnyx nodded before hiding behind the thing as Feng walked over to the rest of the group. Anatis just stood there, completely silence. Lady Noir frowned and walked over to him, gently poking him in the cheek.

 "Sooo... Hao Feng huh?" She grinned, nodding towards him. Anatis nodded in silence. "You ok?"

 "Weirded out... I was wondering if he was real... or just something I made up in my mind," He muttered, looking over at him. "I thought I was going mad but he's actually real..."

 "That's good right?" She asked, glancing over. Feng seemed to have an air about him but so did the others they had picked up. Even though he looked roughly her age, she got the impression that Khnurn was no more a child then Feng himself was. Toutai, Alpheus and Rene all looked like they were in their early twenties but they also seemed to have a feeling of been much older then that too. Funny enough, it was a feeling she associated with both Luka and Anatis. If she had to pick a way to describe them, she would say an old soul in a young body. A flash of light got her attention before Bunnyx stepped out from behind the curtain. Anatis looked at her before Feng walked back over. 

 "We should head back to Paris," He stated, making Anatis nod.

 "Umm... Bunnyx, would you mind?" He asked, causing her to summon a burrow. It opened, causing everyone to walk inside. It wasn't what Adrien expected as he thought they would just be transferred straight to modern day Paris but instead they entered a white room with lots of tvs in it. Well, he thought they were tvs but he wasn't sure. However, before he could have a look, Feng moved over to him and pulled him away from them.

 "Spoilers," He smiled, making Adrien look at him confused before he looked over to where he was been lead to. Kagami looked over as he stopped, causing her expression to turn to one of relief as she saw him. Next to her was Rose and Juleka, hugging each other as if their life depended on it. Nathaniel and Marc were sat next to them, whispering excitedly to one and another. Mylene was curled up in Ivan's arms and Chloe was holding Sabrina in a similar way. Kim was sat talking to the Rabbit hero, along with Max. Nino was sat nearby as Alya spoke excitedly about seeing an ancient ladybug holder. Adrien smiled a little before he looked around, frownin a little.

 "Where's Marinette, Luka and Lila?" He asked, frowning.

 "Luka contacted me and is hiding from the akumas back in Paris," Anatis stated before frowning. "But I didn't see Marinette-"

 "That's because she's hiding too!" Lady Noir gasped, causing Adrien to raise an eyebrow. "She alerted me then went to hide,"

 "Are you telling the truth, Lady Noir?" Adrien teased but noticed the youngest of their guests held back a snore as Lady Noir looked a little panicked. "I'm just kidding,"

 "Now is probably not the time, Adrien," Anatis stated, making him nod and apologize to Lady Noir, who brushed it off with a nervous laugh. "Alright, everyone, we're gonna go back to Paris. You all need to go and hide as soon as we do so you don't get hit by the akuma again,"

 "Mr Anatis, while I'm grateful that you came and got us but just why did you come and get us? Wouldn't the lucky charm just bring us back?" Sabrina asked, making everyone look at her. Those who hadn't been slipped a miraculous began to mumble in agreement with her. However, Anatis held up his hand.

 "I'm not sure if the cure would have reached you and the item that was summoned lead me to do so," He explained, making them nod in understand as he glanced over at Feng and the others. "Feng, you can come with us but the rest of you... I'll have to ask you to stay in here. I know you wanted to come along and I know you have 'magic' but none of you have a miraculous and I can't use magic tricks during battle so it's too dangerous to let you join me in this battle. Also... you might get in the way... no offence..."

 "Should we tell him?" Rene asked, looking to the others. 

 "We probably should," Toutai agreed as Alpheus and Khnurn also nodded, surprising Anatis. They had been arguing among themselves since meeting each other. Mostly about small things like who had the better fighting style, who had the coolest magic...he wasn't sure why they argued about that but he was pretty sure the only one with real magic was Feng... who's food was better, why the greeks were better then the romans or why they weren't. The point was they were arguing over small, pointless things which lead him to believe they wouldn't be good for the battle plus no miraculous. The four of them looked to Feng as if waiting for his blessing before he let out a sigh and nodded.

 "You can tell him," He replied, causing Khnurn to grin and Alpheus to make a whoop noise. Toutai had a calm smile and Rene nodded.

 "I'll go first!" Alpheus declared before opening the small satel he had attached to his hip. "Nepp, you can come out now,"

 Anatis' eyes widen in surprise when a kwami that resembled what the Lock Ness Monster looked like flew out. Or at least, how he envisioned it but it was definitely a kwami. Apparently, he wasn't the only one staring as everyone in the room was. They had been with a miraculous holder and had no idea.

 "This is Nepp, the kwami of Focus," He explained, causing Nepp to wave.

 "Hello, it's nice to meet everyone," She replied, smiling a little shyly before turning to Alpheus. "Where are we, Al? It doesn't look like Greece,"

 "We're in a burrow," He explained, making Nepp nod before she flew over to Feng and hugged him. Well, hugged his cheek.

 "It's good to see you again, Master Feng!" She grinned, making him smile back before she flew back to Alpheus and sat on his shoulder. Anatis blinked and shook his head before sighing.

 "Do all of you have miraculous?" He asked, making the three others grin sheepishly as three other kwamis flew out.

 "This is Bennu, the kwami of renewal," Toutai explained, gesturing to the kwami that resembled a phoenix, who waved at Feng. He waved back.

 "Niix, Kwami of Intelligence," Khnurn explained, gesturing to the kwami that reminded Anatis of an egyptian cat. 

 "Hello," Niix stated, smiling. "Master Feng, it's been too long,"

 "Likewise, Niix," Feng replied, nodding as Rene gestured to the little dragon kwami that was sat on his shoulder. Though it resembled a western day instead an eastern day.

 "This is Vernn, Kwami of Chivalry," He explained, causing the Kwami to fly up.

 "It is truly an honor to meet you all," He bowed, making Lady Noir coo at his politeness before he turned to Feng. "Master Feng, it was an honor to serve with you,"

 "The honor was mine, Vernn," Feng replied, bowing back before he looked over at Anatis with a knowing smile. "I believe my friends here will be joining with this battle, Anatis,"

 "... Alright but this is my time and therefore my rules. I expect you to listen to me and follow my plan. Got it?" He declared, making them look at each other and mutter something in a language he had never heard before before they nodded and turned back to him, making him raise an eyebrow.

 "Alright, we'll follow your lead, Boss," Alpheus grinned, making Anatis nod before he glanced at them.

 "You should probably transform in here..." Anatis stated, causing them to nod.

 "Nepp, Submerge," Alpheus declared, transforming. His hair become midnight blue and he wore a light blue toga with dark blue detail. He had matching gloves on his hands and dark brown sandals. His ears had fins on them and he had small horns on his head. On his right arm was a golden arm band with blue gems in it and he had a light blue mask with a dark blue trim over his silver eyes. In his hand, he had a trident. 

 "Bennu, Rise again," Toutai declared, making him transform. His outfit changed into a hanfu style, giving him an orange shirt with yellow detail. His pants turned red and his hairstyle changed a little. It was still loose but part of his hair tied in a bun with a golden headpiece that resembled flames. He wore a mask that resembled a bird's beak but it was red that faded into orange in it's color. He had two folded fans that were attached to his belt and he wore a brooch in the middle of his chest that Lady Noir now recognized as the phoenix miraculous. She blinked and grabbed Anatis' arm before looking at him.

 "Wasn't that the one Fenix Rouge was using during Miracle Queen's attack?" She asked, making him nod. "So cool!! You look awesome, Toutai!!"

 "Thank you, Lady Noir," Toutai smiled, causing Alpheus to look at him before back at Lady Noir.

 "Don't I look awesome?" He asked, a little disappointed.

 "I think you look cool," Marc muttered, making Alpheus grin happily.

 "Mett, Let's March!" Khnurn declared, causing Mett to disappear into his head chain. His outfit changed, causing him to wear a royal blue kilt that had a metallic belt that was purple with material straps hanging from it that were blue and gold in color. He wore a large necklace that was made from golden, blue and purple metals. He still had golden cuffs on his ankles and wrists but there were amethysts embedded in the ones on his wrists. His feet were still bare and he wore a royal blue mask with a purple trim and golden eyeliner that forms Horus' eye on his right eye. Upon his head were cat ears and his hair was royal blue as well. He wore a disc headdress and had a lion's tail. 

 "Oh my, you're a pharaoh! That is so cool," Nathaniel gasped, making the others look at him. Khnurn smiled a little. "Sorry but when Alix is your best friend, you learn a thing or two about egypt. Only Pharaohs had lion tails on their belts as a symbol of power,"

 "He's not wrong," Bunnyx confirmed, making everyone look at her. "What? History is my jam,"

 "Your friend is kind of right but I'm more of a leader then a king," Khnurn replied in a cryptic manner. "Anyway, Rene, you gonna transform?"

 "Just waiting for you to finish your talk," Rene smiled before turning to Vernn. "Ready?"

 "When you are, my lord," Vernn replied, making Rene smile

 "Vernn, Defend," He replied, causing Vernn to disappear into his earring that turned into a dragon. His outfit changed, giving him bronze and green armor over a green tunic and silver chainmail. His boots turned to greeves that were made of bronze, matching his gauntlets. His hair turned dark green and he gained four green horns as well as a tail. A green mask covered his eyes, that had turned lizard like. His scleras were green but his irises stayed silver. He also gained a sword. 

 "I knew it," Anatis muttered, making everyone look at him. "Yours is the Wyvern Miraculous,"

 He turned to Lady Noir.

 "In our time, it's Dame who uses it," He replied before looking at Feng. "Are you going to transform too?"

 "Sass, Scales Slither," He declared, transforming into his hero form. "I'm going to set a second chance in here,"

 He pushed the head of the snake back, setting it before nodding at Anatis. 

 "Right... let's get going... um... Khnurn, Toutai, Rene, Alpheus... I guess you should come with me and Lady Noir-"

 "We should drop everyone off in the metro I think it was," Feng stated, making Anatis look at him. "Three resets... each time, you've been send back in time or Lady Noir has..."

 "Oh... right..." Anatis muttered, nodding. "The Metro it is,"

 "Ok!" Bunnyx nodded before creating a burrow. Everyone stepped out and found it was completely empty. Bunnyx looked at Anatis as the civilians went off, leaving the heroes. "Should I charge up?"

 "Yeah, we might need a burrow again," He replied, taking his yoyo and checking the news feed as Bunnyx went to the bathroom but there wasn't one. "Damn it,"

 "Annie?" Lady Noir asked as he typed on his yoyo before their temporary heroes came to the metro where they were. Abeille and Culpeo were the first to arrive, followed by Ryuko and Aspik. Leatherback turned up next then Apollo and Valkyrie. Finally, Sabertooth turned up. "Whoa, how did you get to everyone in time?"

 "It was the first trip we did," Anatis stated. "Bunny and I went to a few moments before the akuma happened and grab the temps their miraculous... apart from Apollo and Sabertooth that is but I'm guessing you got Bunnyx to somehow get their miraculous to them?"

 "Um... yeah..." She replied, making him nod. "Sorry..."

 "Don't apologize," He smiled, making her smile back. "I trust you and I trust Bunnyx. Remember she told us she can keep a secret... now we just need a plan to defeat the history keepers.. Feng, is it possible to do a second second chance?"

 "Yes... while they are the same miraculous, mine is younger then his plus I didn't set it out here... The burrow is outside of time. Since I set the save point there, it means that the usual rules don't apply," He explained, making Anatis nod. "But his will still it's timer on,"

 "I see," Anatis replied, nodding. "Let's move out. I need to see what the akumas are doing..."

 All of the heroes nodded and followed Anatis as he headed up the stairs and carefully looked around. He frowned to himself as he saw no one in the streets before they jumped onto the rooftops and ran to the Louvre. He came to a stop and ducked down, causing everyone to do the same as they looked at the scene in front of them. Tied to three pikes were Koro, Dame and Snowbird. Luckily, none of their miraculous had been taken yet but it appeared to be some sort of trap to lure him out. Pharaoh, Darkblade and Chronos were stood on a platform above them with their sentimonster while surrounded by an army of knights and mummies.

 "Anatis! Lady Noir! Surrender your miraculous and we won't send these three to the big bang," Chronos declared, causing the army to call out as Anatis gulped. This reminded him off Mob Boss too much and he felt himself feeling afraid and sick. He flinched a little as Feng gently placed his hand on his shoulder.

 "It's alright to be afraid," He whispered, making Anatis look at him. "What matters is what you do next. Do you let your fear rule you or do you channeling it and make a strength?"

 "... right..." He nodded, taking a deep breathe before he turned to Aspik. "Aspik, I need you to activate second chance. We need to come back to this point should anything go wrong. Bunnyx, be on guard and stay back. You are our last hope so if all else fails, go into your burrow and get the older versions of us. I hope it doesn't come to that but-"

 "It's the back up plan in case things go wrong," She nodded, making him nod before he turned to Feng but he knew he didn't have to say a thing. Feng gave him a nod and look that said that he knew what he was. He was the first back up plan. If all but himself are captured, he would reset to be back in the burrow and give them a second chance. He would also defend Bunnyx to ensure she could get away if it came to that. Anatis nodded at Aspik, who pushed back the snake head.

 "Second Chance," He declared before Anatis turned to the rest of the team. He explained they were going to go after Chronos first as he was the most powerful but before he could continued, Aspik shook his head. "Time Keeper can free anyone of them from been venomed,"

 "Ok," He replied, nodding. "Then we need to focus on Time Keeper... right?"

 "Tried that," Aspik replied, frowning. "We can't get near it. The army and the akumas make it impossible..."

 Anatis frowned before quietly summoning his lucky charm. He frowned even more as he caught the rope that appeared before looking around in his luck vision. Apollo and Culpeo lit up first, followed by Abeille and Valkyrie before it lit up Time Keeper. Next, Ryuko and Toutai lit up, followed by the army then Leatherback. Khnurn and Rene lit up before Pharaoh and Darkblade. Lady Noir was lit up next then to his surprise, Ryuko lit up again, this time with Alpheus before it finally lit up the rope and Sabertooth, making him understand the plan. He tied the rope into a lasso before hooking it on his belt before looking at everyone.

 "We need to attack them all at the same time," He stated, making them look at him. "Culpeo, I need you to make an illusion of clones for all us and as many as you can to confuse Chronos. Apollo, use flare to blind Time Keeper. Valkyrie, create a portal directly above it so Abeille can dive through it and use venom on it. Ryuko and Toutai, you need to use Wind Dragon and Ash Phoenix to round up the army. Leatherback, use Shell-ter to trap them inside it,"

 "Right," He nodded, making Anatis nod before he turned to Khnurn and Rene.

 "Rene, I need you to distract Darkblade. Challenge him to a duel. Khnurn, you need distract Pharaoh. Calling him a fake should be enough to get him to fight you. Once you both have their attention, lure them away from Chronos and to the Seine. Alpheus, you need to use Stream to trap them in a water cage. Ryuko, that where's you come in again. Use lightning dragon on them and once they are weakened, Lady Noir will use Cataclysm on the akumatized item," Anatis explained, turning to Sabertooth. "While this is happening, we're gonna tackle Chronos. You'll need to use Veil so he can't see you. While he's focused on the illusions provided by Culpeo, I'll get behind him and use this to trap him. That should get him to focus on me then you can near enough to grab his watch and destroy it,"

 "That is a very complicated plan," Lady Noir admitted, making Anatis nod as everyone looked unsure.

 "Yes but we can do it," He replied. "And if it fails, one of them can reset the timeline or get our older selves... now let's do this,"

 Apollo and Culpeo nodded, taking out their respective weapons. Culpeo played her flute before throwing the charged up ball into the air.

 "Mirage!" She declared, causing it to burst into an orange light. When it disappeared, there was literally hundreds of clones of all the heroes stood on the buildings, making the akumas gasp before Apollo took out his bow and arrow. He aimed to in front of Time Keeper, muttering Flare as the clones dived towards the villains, causing Chronos to hit a few of them while the other two began to attack them. Anatis and Sabertooth used the chance to get behind Chronos as he fired at one, gasping as he did.

 "They're illusions!" He called out, causing Apollo to release his arrow, causing a blinding light when it landed. As soon as it did, Valkyrie opened a portal as Ryuko and Toutai used their powers, blinding the army and swiping them up in the air. Khnurn and Rene attacked Pharoah and Darkblade as Anatis threw the lasso over Chronos stopped him from freezing anyone. "Time Keeper! Attack!"

 "Venom!" Abeille called, diving out of the portal and slamming it into Time Keeper, freezing it. Chronos struggled against Anatis as he called out, failing to notice Sabertooth activating Veil. Meanwhile, Leatherback used Shellter to trap the army inside it. Ryuko reformed near the Seine as Khnurn and Rene lead Darkblade and Pharoah there. As soon as they got there, a burst of water wrapped around them, trapping them inside as Alpheus moved his trident.

 "Lightning Dragon!" Ryuko called, diving towards them and hitting the water. It electrocuted them before the water dropped, causing them to fall to the ground defeated. Meanwhile, Anatis was thrown over Chronos' shoulder but before he could freeze him, Sabertooth punched him, knocking him down before he grabbed his watch and stabbed it with his knife. At the same time, Lady Noir grinned and yanked the pendent off Pharoah's neck, using her cataclysm to destroy it. The three akumas turned back into their normal selves as the akuma and amok escaped. Anatis got up and captured the amok before heading to where Lady Noir was and capturing the akuma as Feng, Aspik and Bunnyx jumped down and joined the rest. They joined the rest of the team before Anatis picked up the lasso. He looked at it before looking to Feng.

 "If I cast this... will you go back to your own time?" He asked, making Feng shake his head.

 "We'll need Bunnyx to return us as it was technically her who brought us here," He explained, making Anatis nod. "We'll talk in the burrow,"

 "Alright..." Anatis replied before throwing the rope in the air. "Miraculous Ladybugs!"

 It burst into the magic swarm and spreaded across all of Paris, fixing everything and restoring the people who had been sent back in time or turned into a mummy or a knight. Anatis looked at the sky as it did before turning to the temporary heroes. 

 "Culpeo, Abeille, Leatherback... I'll collect your miraculous as soon as I return," He replied before turning to Lady Noir. "Could you collect Valkyrie's, Ryuko's, Aspik's, Sabertooth's and Apollo's miraculous? I know I should-"

 "Go and talk to him," She smiled, giving him a reassuring smile. "I'll get them back to the box-"

 "Toutai?" A voice interrupted, making everyone look over as Koro walked over. Anatis mentally groaned. He had forgotten about them. Toutai gave him and look before walking over to her.

 "You're still as beautiful as ever, my flower," He stated, taking her hand in his before he switched back to Chinese. She closed her eyes and gently pressed her forehead to his before nodding. He whispered something to her, making her kiss him. Khnurn rolled his eyes at their moment before clearing his throat. Toutai pulled away and gave him a look before turning back to Koro and telling her something. She nodded again before he let go and walked away. "I believe it is time for me to return to my time,"

 "I think it's time for all us to go home," Feng replied, causing Anatis to nod at Bunnyx. She opened a burrow before walking inside with the five historical figures and Anatis. As soon as it closed, Feng turned to Anatis. "Have you realized yet?"

 "Realized what?" He asked, looking at him. "That somehow you five are all connected? That much is obvious. You somehow told them that I would be arriving and would need their help. What I don't understand is how you're all connected and how I'm connected to you. I want to know and please don't say I'm not ready because I'm tired of hearing that. I'm tired of the nightmares, I'm tired of been confused and I'm... I'm just tired, Feng... so just tell me. Who are you to me? And why do I know them?"

He gestured to the other four, making Feng sigh. He knew this day was coming. Anatis looked at him with a desperate look.

 "Please... just tell me..." He stated, making Feng nod.

 "Do you have the journal from Dragon's cave?"

 "Yes but there is nothing in there," Anatis replied, running his fingers through his hair. "The pages are blank. Why would you send me to get an empty journal?"

 "It's not empty," Feng replied, making Anatis frown and look even more annoyed.

 "Then why can't I read it?" He asked before looking to the side. "What am I do wrong?"

 "You're not doing anything wrong," Feng stated, trying to reassure him. "It's just you don't have the means to read it yet,"

 "Just tell him already!" Alpheus stated, making Feng and Anatis look over at him as he walked over. Feng knew he was going to do this but it still didn't stop him from been annoyed with him. He wanted to break it to Anatis gently and slowly so he could help him instead of just throwing him in the deep end. "You're not-"

 "Alpheus, don't," He warned, making him look at him and roll his eyes.

 "You can't protect him from everything, Feng," Alpheus gasped, making Anatis frown. "I know you want to but life doesn't work that way and he needs to. Keeping it from him will hurt him more in the long run. You should know that! Or have you had a vision that we don't know about?"

 "No, I didn't," He replied, frowning. "I just-"

 "Just what exactly?!"

 "I just don't know how to tell him ok!" Feng shouted, surprising everyone in the burrow before he gestured to Anatis. "He isn't like you or those three! He's different,"

 "Of course, he's different, Feng!" He shouted, making Anatis frown. "He's one of us after all!"

 "That is not what I mean!" He growled back, making Alpheus argue back. Khnurn looked down and played with his hands as Toutai sighed and shook his head. Rene tried to get in between them and break them as Bunnyx just started. Anatis frowned and pinched his nose as they began to argue in a different language, causing a similar buzz in his head as went he got possessed by an akuma. Only it was different at the same time. He closed his eyes as they argued before he gritted his teeth.

 "That is enough!!" He shouted, snapping his eyes open. When he did though, he found he could see something that he didn't see before. He could see their auras. They were surrounding all of them but what made him really confused was that they weren't different like they should be. In the back of his mind, he recalled seeing auras before when he was younger. His mother's was bright red and resembled a flame, Juleka's was purple but acted more like watch. Issac's was gray and sharp looking but these auras were gold in color and all of them were identical and took the exact same shape. A phoenix. Feng and Alpheus looked at him as he stared at them. "You're... the same..."

 "Anatis..." Feng started as he looked down. 

 "Phoenix... the fact that you knew each other... and resembled each other... even your names... it's been in front of me along..." He muttered, glancing down before he noticed his own aura. It was the same shade of gold as well. He looked up and rushed past them over to one of the windows that didn't show anything in it. It was just blank and dark, meaning that he could see his reflection. His eyes widen as he saw the phoenix around him. His mind flashed back to the hidden passage in Dragon's cave and the fact that he could open. Realization washed over him like a tidal wave as all the pieces fitted together. From the time he saw what he thought was Issac by the Liberty last Christmas to the dreams of the hut and the riddle. He felt lightheaded and sick as he remembered how he talked to his Grandmother after she had died and how Issac screamed at him, causing him a demon for talking to the dead. He closed his eyes as he tried to keep calm but this was a lot to take in. However, he needed to know for certain. In a small voice, he spoke. "I'm... you.... aren't I?"

 "It's not quite like that," Feng tried to reassure. "You're still you... it's just... we share the same soul that's all,"

 "Were you ever going to tell me?" He asked, looking at him.

 "Yes but I was hoping to ease you into it..." He sighed before frowning. "Even though knew it wouldn't go that way... I was hoping that I could change it. Alpheus can be... impulsive,"

 "Right..." Anatis replied before turning to Bunnyx. "Can you send them home please?"

 "Anatis, I'm sorry," Alpheus gasped, reach out to touch him but Anatis shook his head, making him sigh and lower his hand. "I just got frustrated... I should have thought about what I was saying... I'm sorry..."

 "It's fine..." He muttered, frowning as Rene gently pulled Alpheus away. Khnurn frowned as Bunnyx told opened a burrow for him. Because she wasn't stepping out, she wouldn't need to recharge so she would be able to send them back home. She sent Khnurn home first then Alpheus, Toutai and finally Rene. Feng lingered for a moment and Anatis looked at him. "Go home, Feng. There's no point in you staying as I will be going home myself... I need..."

 "Time... I understand," He stated, frowning. "When you're ready to learn more and talk about this, I'll be there..."

 Anatis nodded but remained quiet as Feng walked over to the last portal and disappeared through it. As soon as it was close, Bunnyx walked over to him and gently placed her hand on his shoulder, making him blink and look at her.

 "Let's go home," She smiled, making him smile back weakly before she opened a final burrow and walked out with him.

 ~The Eiffel Tower, 12.00am~

 Lady Noir landed on the tower as she frowned. She had just decided to go with a run and had noticed Anatis' tracker was activate so she went to investigate. She frowned as she found him sat on the tower, holding his knees close as he buried his head in it. It reminded her of how Luka reacted to the attempted kidnapping. She glanced around and frowned as she noticed a number of white butterflies. 

 "Annie?" She asked as she walked over to him. She was praying he hadn't been akumatized. Relief flooded through her as he looked up at her with his normal eyes. Though they were a little bit bloodshot. "Are you ok?"

 "N-not really," He admitted, wiping his eyes as she looked at the butterflies. "He gave up an hour ago,"

 "How long have you been out here?" She asked, sitting down next to him.

 "A few hours..." He muttered, frowning as she moved her arm around him. He let her pull him close and moved his arms around her waist, resting his head on her shoulder.

 "You should have called me.." She mumbled, stroking his hair. "You know I don't mind keeping an eye for butterflies,"

 "I didn't want to disturb you..." He muttered, making her frown. "Besides... it's kind of stupid as to why I'm upset..."

 "Is it to do with Feng?" She asked, making him nod. "Want to talk about it?"

 "Not really..." He admitted, making her nod. "Can you stay with me?"

 "Sure," She nodded, making him give her a weak smile back.

 "Thanks,"

=============================================

Next Chapter: Coming soon

[hughiecampbelle]

White Rose (Pre-War!John Shelby Oneshot)

Character/s: John

Word Count: 1,089

Inspired By: TwentyTwo by Thea

Tag List: @dontdowhatisayandnobodygetshurt @myriadimagines @lilyswritings @encounterthepast @writerdream22 @death-of-a-mermaid @lotsoffandomrecs @woahitslucyylu @obsessedunicorn24 @thedarkqueenofavalon @fangirlsarah16 @captivatedbycillianmurphy @theshelbyclan @creativemayhems @soleil-dor @thegirlwithoutaname87 @babylooneytoonz @peakyxtommy @locke-writes

A/N: I am a monster :))) I heard this song it made me instantly think of pre-war Shelbys :) Thank you @lovemissyhoneybee for recommending loml John!!! The more I listened the more fitting I thought he'd be! I know the Peaky Fandom isn't doing so well and I just wanted to bring a lil fluff and joy with a beloved character :) Then I got to the ending and well. . . it was too good of an idea to pass up!!! I promise the next fic will actually be cute all the way through!!! Feedback is always appreciated 💜💖💜

Summary: You love can survive anything, even war, right? 💕

Gif Credit: @unintended-yuzuki :) why is he so cute!!!!!!!

FIC MASTERLIST PART ONE. / PART TWO. / PART THREE.

WANNA BE ADDED TO THE TAG LIST?

I know you're scared

But I am scared too

Life is unpredictable

And we're barely twenty-two

Young. Baby faced. You hadn't even had the chance to kiss each and every one of his freckles yet. Counting them to yourself softly, losing track, starting over. Too many kisses, too little time. The scream of the train tracks a constant reminder of what was to come, what you were going to lose, what would and wouldn't come home. Sweet John, your John, all yours, but not much longer. The distance between you already growing. Tangled in the sheets, sleeping so quietly. Watching his back fall and rise, his arm outstretched towards you. He never let a moment go by where you weren't together, not even before the letter. Even as he dreamed, he had to hold on to something, someone. The affection in him undying. And you let him. There was never a touch you welcomed more than his hand on yours. Skin to skin. A sense of home, a safety you found yourself trusting. The sun has yet to rise, peaking her way up in the cloudless sky, perched just above the long, summer grass. Your bedroom, small though not camped. Just enough. Everything in this moment was just enough. Gold streaming through the windows, resting on you like a warm blanket. You didn't want to get up, face the day, the uncertainty , instead pulling him close. Your John, in need of being held, cared for, loved, even when he couldn't find the words. A kiss on his head, the last, you were never quite sure. . . .

I heard your cry

But you'll hear mine too

After all, we're only kids

And this feeling is so new

Blue eyes bloodshot. His face flushed. Behind locked doors, his body shook, sobbed, choking back everything that scared him. Mourning the loss too soon, picturing his own shallow grave, anonymous among the rest. A completely unremarkable life lived by John Shelby. His fate sealed. You learned to pick locks, pick yourself up off the floor and wrap your arms around him. No words. There was nothing to say anymore. Just your racing heartbeats in sync, your fears finding solace in one another. Too many what if's, too many things to go wrong. Neither of you could manage anything more than the strength to hold, to cherish, to will the universe, like all kids do, to keep you together. The privilege of false immortality, of a careless kind of love, thoughts of conquering the world in your youth, none of it was a luxury you could afford. Challenging God instead of bowing your heads, there was that little bit of fight you had left. His heavy head in your lap, hands through his hair, pleading, praying you'd never have to say goodbye.

If you took my heart and you ran away

I hope you'll realize and bring it back some day

And all the while, promise me you'll keep her safe

So you don't ever lose what you can't replace

On one knee, he holds your hand, his words a little slurred, knee dirtying on the cobblestone, asking for your honor of letting him be your husband. No ring, though. Drunk on love, your boy. Offering nothing but a flower he picked on the way. A night on the town, he promised. London, full of life, of joy, a getaway, an escape from all that was to come. Home was too much a reminder. Stumbling your way through the park, his arm around your waist, he decided then and there there was no better time. Now or never. Impulse, the crazed thoughts of a dying man. Proclaiming his love for you so the whole world could hear. It wasn't real. Not in the eyes of any blood you shared, declaring yourselves too young to do so, too impulsive, too blinded by a new romance, even in a time like this. You said yes anyways, and when he kissed you, spinning you until you were dizzy, pulling apart only to laugh, you were kissing a new man, you were kissing your husband. Til death would you part.

We think we both know what the future holds

House in the sun, happy grey and old

There's nothing really wrong with the master plan

But you don't really need one to be a happy man

A house of your own, he promised you. Fingers laced together, the warm breeze welcomed on your cheeks. A house of your own, in a field like this, where no one could ever find you, away from the grey of your home. Wildflowers everywhere. A bedroom big enough for more than just two, with no leaky roofs or moldy spots on the tub. A bath for the both of you, where you could lay as one in between the bubbles. Little feet up and down the stairs. A family of your own, too. Kissing scraped knees and sewing torn shirts. Happy and safe, it's all he dreamed of. A future with you, a lifetime of love. Growing up, lives of their own, leaving you in your prime. White hair, age spots, wrinkling together, hand in hand, as if nothings changed, no time has passed. No ring, just the flower. That would be enough, like it always had. He looks up at you, eyes wide, all smiles. You want it, you want it all, you want to believe that's what you'll have, but you can't let him get his hopes up. You can't crush him, either. So, you nod along, picturing everything that hurts. From ten little toes, to beautiful storms, to the end of a life long and well lived.

So let us love without any thought

Let us love without thinking it over

He saw the end of war, the end of the world, riding the train all the way home. He spoke to the Devil himself, and walked away. Counted his lucky stars every single night, promising himself that he'd come back to you eventually. But you didn't. You'd never know the end of war, the end of waiting, you'd never even know what happened to him all along. Your little flower, a white rose, pressed between the pages of a book where you knew he'd find. Prideful, your worries all for nothing, your sweet John, always too naïve, too hopeful. Mourning a life cut short, but not his. He survived, but he came home to nothing.

We're just young in love

Why would we give up?

[startanewdream]

Enough nerve

Summary: “For nearly five years the thought of his father had been a source of comfort, of inspiration. Whenever someone had told him he was like James he had glowed with pride inside. And now . . . now he felt cold and miserable at the thought of him”. - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

Harry deals with the effects of what he saw on the Pensieve - this time, with his parent's help.

Part of my Jily Lives AU because I just love the idea of Harry having time with his parents.

Read on AO3 or below the cut.

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

The house is quiet. There is one more person there than usual and still the house is so quiet that James can hear the sound of his own heartbeat. It’s disconcerting, actually.

Something is wrong and he knows it. Lily knows it too; she had glanced worriedly at him before leaving hurriedly for a mission for the Order, and then they had both looked in Harry’s direction - his head was bent down, playing dismayingly with the eggs in his plate, barely whispering a bye for his mother when she waved to him.

Not hungry and quiet. That is a bad sign.

The thing about Harry is that he is usually very easy to read, especially because he always looks out for his parents when he has a problem - except if it involves doing some saving-people thing, when Harry jumps first into danger and thinks later of warning his parents. Harry never had any problem talking about things before.

He certainly said loudly and with very colourful words what was on his mind during last Summer, when James and Lily were once again involved with the Order and then they had to keep secrets from Harry. It had not been pleasant, but then again that could be Harry behaving like a teenager - a scared, traumatized, full of nightmares teenager that had dealt with things an adult wouldn't dream of, but still. Teenage rebellion phase is something they can deal with.

And when Harry had been angry, at least they knew what his problem was, but now he is… apathetic? He didn’t say anything to his parents - not even to discuss school, complain again about Umbridge or comment anything about Dumbledore leaving school. He spent all week locked in the library, saying something about studying for his OWL, only coming out for meals he wasn’t even eating and refusing to meet either parents' eyes. 

In fact, James doesn’t know why Harry even bothered to come home for the Easter Holiday, because it is evident that Harry’s mind is elsewhere, in a place where, for the first time, Harry doesn't seem to want to talk to his parents.

Except Harry usually shares with him and Lily what’s bothering him, so this new silence treatment is different. Maybe it is also part of his teenage rebellion phase? He thinks Moony had been like that - no, Remus was always the quiet one anyway, the one who least wanted to talk about his problems as if he didn't want to burden others. Maybe Harry is like that…?

The fireplace in the living room burns brightly green and he raises his head just in time to see a redhead coming out of the fireplace.

‘Oh, hi, Mr. Potter!’, Ginny says brightly and slightly out of breath. She looks windswept as if crossing fireplaces has been a challenge. ‘Sorry to burst in unannounced like that’.

‘No problem, and it’s James’, he says in a false chastening, making her grin. No matter how many times he asks, Ginny always calls him Mr. Potter, even though she has no problem calling Lily by her name. ‘What’s up?’

‘Mum forgot to send our Easter eggs, so I volunteered to bring them here, though I may have crushed them a little in the way. Your fireplace is hard to find now'.

James nods gravely. Ever since Voldemort came back, their house has been overly protected. The only magical way to enter is through the Floo Network, whose access is limited to a few houses, and owls can’t find the place. It's annoying, but if it helps keep Harry safer, he doesn't mind.

‘Also’, Ginny adds, smiling unabashedly, ‘any excuse to be away from Aunt Muriel is valid. We are at her house for the holidays and it’s been a nightmare’.

‘Oh, dear Aunt Muriel. I’ve met her once. “Thought you’ll be more handsome”, she said. “Your wife is much prettier than you”, which it's not false, but still -'

‘Unkind, I know. She always tells me that I should be taller, as if I could control it’, Ginny agrees, rolling her eyes. ‘Anyway, Ron left with Dad for a trip to the market down the village, leaving me alone, that bastard, and I grabbed the first opportunity to get five minutes off. So…’

She delivers him three boxes, and points to the biggest one.

‘That’s Harry’s, of course’, she says fondly. ‘Ron told Mum he seemed down lately, so she thought he could appreciate more chocolate’.

‘Kind of her… so Harry’s been down?’

Ginny bits her lips, suddenly unsure.

‘I don’t know. Hermione said something like that too, but it may be just the exams or -’, she stops herself, her face flushed.

‘Ginny?’, James asks quietly. ‘What's wrong?'

She raises her eyebrows and crosses her arms.

‘I think that’s Harry’s business’, she says loyally, and James wishes she had spoken in a different way.

He can argue with a lot of things, but not with someone wanting to be loyal to Harry, no matter how much he is dying to understand what’s going on with his son.

He watches Ginny more carefully now. There is a stubborn expression on her face and he knows she won’t tell him anything, but maybe her stubbornness could help Harry in some way. He remembers Harry confessing to him how he’d been confused and worried after overhearing people discussing how he might be possessed by Voldemort (that’s the thing about Harry, he does the wrong thing but he eventually tells), and how Ginny had helped him see things clearly.

Harry also told him guiltily of completely forgetting Ginny had been once possessed by Voldemort, and James thinks he understands why Harry forgot it. Ginny is so bright and lively, especially now she is not quiet around Harry, that it would be easy for Harry to forget she had been involved with dark arts when she was younger. Harry never thinks less of anyone for their worst - he only sees their best.

But maybe Ginny can tell him off again - or, as Harry put it, talk some sense into him.

‘Why don’t you deliver the Easter eggs to Harry?’, James suggests casually, returning the biggest box to her. ‘He’s in the library. He’s been there all week’.

‘Oh’, Ginny whispers, her eyes big, and he can see she understands that something is really off with Harry. ‘Like when he barely talks to anyone and just has that look like someone ate the last piece of treacle tart?'

'And he refused my invitation to fly also', James adds and they both share a grimace.

Harry had been absolutely crushed for being forbidden of playing Quidditch and the fact that he had refused any chance to fly, especially when they were allowing some time off the house (which had been mainly off-limits ever since dementors almost got him during Summer), clearly was a sign of how bad things were.

'I will just give him those Easter eggs then', Ginny says. There is a determined look on her face that almost makes James feel sorry for his son.

‘Whatever gets you out of Aunt Muriel’s way, right?’, he asks teasingly, and Ginny grins, both knowing that is not really the reason she is staying a bit longer.

She goes to the library and, when she is at the door, she turns back to him.

‘I won’t tell you anything he says’, she warns, and James nods respectfully, watching her vanish inside the library with the Easter egg in her hand.

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

If Ginny was able to tell Harry off so easily during Christmas, James expects her to help solve things with Harry quickly. Instead, she doesn't come out of the library for thirty-five minutes, all of which James keeps stealing glances to the door instead of reading the Alchemy Manual he was supposed to study.

Lily comes home in the meantime and she just blinks when he tells her what had happened.

'Hope she is luckier than us', she says, and James can hear the hurt in her voice. She is worried about Harry, and she is also sad that he isn't confiding in any of them this time.

It's a feeling James shares. How can he be there for Harry if his son doesn't want him?

'I'll take a quick shower, ok?', she adds, her hand touching his hair fondly and James can’t help but smirk at her.

‘Is that an invitation?’, he teases, making her chuckle.

‘For a quick shower? I deserve more time, you know’.

‘Oh, I know’, he agrees, pulling Lily into his lap to kiss her on the lips. He is feeling more and more inclined to offer her a long shower when the doors of the library open.

They break apart in time to see Harry and Ginny coming out, both looking serious. But James watches Harry's expression: he is frowning at his parents together as if somehow that bothers him.

'Hi, Lily', Ginny says with forced joy after there is an awkward moment of silence. 'Mum sent you Easter eggs. I'll just be going now, she is probably wondering where I am'.

'Thank Molly for us, Ginny', Lily says, raising up, her eyes going from James to Harry and back again.

'Yeah', says Harry, his voice hoarse. 'And anytime you want to escape your Aunt, you can come here'.

It's the most complete sentence James has heard Harry say all week.

Ginny smiles more naturally at him now - a smile that Harry almost returns - before waving around and vanishing in the fireplace.

There is another moment of silence, before Lily says in a voice too casual to be natural: 'I'll take a shower. Why don't you two start dinner?'

They both nod. James watches Lily go, before turning to Harry, with a forced smile.

'What do you think? Chicken pasta and salad?'

Harry shrugs, agreeing, as they go to the kitchen.

'I'm not really hungry', he says in a small voice, taking potatoes to chop without really paying attention. When James looks in his direction, thinking that Harry hasn't been hungry all week, he sees Harry is blushing faintly. 'Ginny and I ate all the Easter egg'.

'Chocolate in the library? You know you are not -'

'I know, no food in the library rule. It just happened'.

'Okay', James says slowly, taking more time than reasonable to say these two syllables. 'At least you ate something'.

His eyes meet Harry's then. This is the first time James is openly acknowledging he knows something is wrong, and this is also the first time Harry is looking at him directly with the most peculiar expression James has ever seen on his son.

He has already seen Harry’s green eyes shining with anger, desperation and hurt, but the emotion there is something new.

Disappointment.

As if James let him down somehow.

'Harry -', he begins, just as Harry starts talking too.

'There is something I need to tell you', he whispers, sounding miserable. 'I broke the mirror'.

'What mirror? The two-way mirror?'

'Yeah. About a week ago. I thought of calling you, but I was so mad that… I just broke into my hands'.

James just watches him with concern.

'We can fix later', he assures, but that still doesn't seem the reason Harry has been upset. ‘Were you hurt?’ Harry shakes his head. 'Why were you mad, Harry?'

Harry closes his fist and takes a deep breath as if gathering courage

'Because of what I saw on Snape's pensieve'.

James raises his eyebrows, but he doesn't say anything as Harry recounts exactly what memory of Snape he has seen. There is a heavy feeling on his chest that just increases with every word Harry says.

But he feels at his worst when Harry finishes his tale and he looks at James with a kind of desperation that seems to beg for an explanation, an alternative point of view of those events, any reason at all for the fact that his father was just as arrogant bullying toerag as Lily had called him then.

And he knows there isn’t.

'I wish you wouldn't judge me for what you saw, Harry', whispers James at least. 'I was young -'

'You were my age!', Harry cries, angry tears shining in his eyes.

'And still I was younger than you', James counters quietly. 'You faced too many things for a fifteen-years-old whereas… I was stupid and young and didn't think of anyone else other than myself'.

'But…', Harry blinks at him, as if even when he is upset he can't hear criticism against his father. 'You were good, I mean, you always told me how you became an animagus for Uncle Moony and how you were Head Boy -'

'It was for Remus, yes, but back then I thought of him already as part of my family. And that was my problem. Anything that was out of my own personal bubble… I didn't care. I wasn't selfless like you'.

'I am not -'

'You literally stayed behind last year during the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament because you couldn't think of leaving a young girl alone in the Black Lake'.

'I was just stupid enough to -'

'You care for others. You are so much like your mother in that'.

This compliment doesn't make Harry smile, and James understands another problem Harry had with watching that memory.

Things with Lily had been so complicated then.

'I know that doesn't excuse me, Harry, and I am not trying to defend myself. I was everything your mother complained I was back then, but only because I didn't know better. I had the perfect life. My parents loved me and always gave me anything I wanted. My friends loved me and they trusted me. I was good at school without much effort. I was amazing at Quidditch and I knew it. People admired me. I never had any concern at all'.

Harry blinks at him, and James knows his son cannot fathom how it's like to live a life without any worry.

'So I was a bit conceived, yes, I thought the world revolved around me'.

'You… you and Sirius, you both… Snape…'

'Things with Snape were always difficult’, James admits, his hand messing up his hair nervously. His relationship with Snape was one he never wanted to fully disclose to Harry, even when Harry asked him once why Snape disliked them so much. 'We hated each other from the beginning and our ways were very different. But, yeah, it was four of us and Snape was mostly alone, so he almost never won'.

'Almost?'

James hesitates.

'Snape was - and he was also young, Harry, so I try to not hold against him - he was too invested in dark things, in dark spells, in… the wrong company. And I promise you, no matter what you saw, I always hated Dark Arts, always despised those who would use it. And in the few times he managed to get the upper hand… things got ugly'.

'So he did get back to you? He wasn't just…'

'Harry', James cuts him off, hating to crush the small hope that is glistening in Harry's eyes. 'Whatever happened other times between me and Snape, I can't say it justifies what you saw. That time, that day, I jinxed him for no other reason than I was bothered and…', James takes a deep breath. 'I wanted to call your mother's attention'.

'Mum was decent', Harry says in a small voice.

'She was. She never complied with injustice'.

'Mum - she said she would never... She disliked you so much'.

'Yes'.

'How could - did you somehow - she hated you'.

'Nah, she didn't. Not really. She just thought I could be better and I did become better, Harry'.

'You told me you had asked her out and she had refused you'.

'Yeah, she did. Twice. We only started going out in our seventh year'.

'But - why?'

'Why?'

‘Why did she accept to go out with you?’

There is a sigh from behind them.

‘I think that’s better if you ask me, Harry’, Lily says softly, and James turns to see his wife.

She is fresh from her shower, her auburn wet hair falling dark over her shoulders, and as always when he sees her James' heart skips a beat. 

Their eyes meet and James can see she understands partly what has been bothering Harry all week. She approaches him, taking his hand and entwining their fingers, so they can stand side by side. Lily has a soothing presence no one else has for James and he breathes easier now.

Harry frowns, but he stays silent as he looks at Lily. James can easily read his son’s need for a sense for everything.

‘A lot of people were idiots when they were fifteen’, says Lily. James chuckles fondly.

‘You weren’t’, he says. Lily shrugs.

‘I was, just differently. I refused to see things that were in front of my nose and I thought only my opinion mattered. But I grew out of it, just as you did. Sirius grew up. Remus did too. We all did’.

‘Come on, Moony was fine’, James defends. She shakes her head.

‘He never said anything, right? I was more friendly with him than with any of you, and still he would never say a word against you. He worshipped you too much’.

‘Well - he made me and Sirius feel guilty - kind of at least, more than anyone else’. James looks back at Harry. ‘But, yeah, that stopped. Remus doesn’t have any problem saying what he feels now’.

‘Of course not’, Lily agrees. ‘People change, Harry. Sometimes for worse, sometimes for the better, and that was definitely your father’s case. Do you know how we told you we were friends before we dated?’

Harry nods, thoughtfully. Back at Christmas, when Harry had let slip something about the fact he had kissed someone, Lily had reminded him of the importance of getting to know someone better before getting into any relationship.

‘Well, things between us started rocky, but when we were in our sixth year… the world was changing and so were we. We became friends over shared concerns, shared beliefs and shared night talks. Your dad had his problems, but… his heart was always in the right place’.

When Harry looks confused, Lily grimaces as if she wishes she doesn’t have to continue this conversation too.

‘If I got it right, you saw -’

‘That day over the lake’, James says, his hand messing up his hair once more. ‘After the defense OWL’.

Lily nods gravely.

‘Well, then you know what - you heard what Snape called me’, she says in a low voice, and James wonders if Harry can hear the pain in Lily’s voice. Twenty years later and it’s clear that day still bothers her. He puts his arms around her shoulder, in comfort, and Lily throws him a grateful look. ‘Well, whatever faults your father had, he would never say what Severus… James was good. He was not prejudiced. That thing he does of seeing the best in people, no matter what - like with Remus and Sirius and…’

‘Peter’, James adds heavily when she stops herself, and now it’s Lily that is embracing him for support.

‘You helped people’, she says, looking at him with only affection on her bright green eyes. ‘And when you deflated your head a little, that became obvious. You didn’t care just for you or for those around you. You care for everyone. You cared about doing the right thing. And that’s one of the things that drew me to you’.

‘And here I thought it was my incredible ability to make you laugh’, he murmurs in a fake self-confident voice, and just as he expects, that makes Lily let out one of the amused giggles, accepting the kiss that James gives warmly on her forehead.

Lily sighs then turns to Harry, who looks at them still thoughtfully. ‘So, you see, I fell in love with your dad when that fifteen years old boy you saw had evolved into a very nice man. When he became Head Boy, I wasn’t even much surprised’.

James throws an incredulous look at her.

‘You are so lying, Evans’, he says. Lily chuckles.

‘I said "much", Potter. Come on, I saw you being all responsible the year before, helping young students and protecting people and not standing up to prejudice and bigotry. You deserved that badge', she paused before giving him a sly smile. 'It matched your eyes nicely too’.

‘I always knew you were only interested in my good looks’.

‘In how good you looked next to me, you mean?’, she teases, and James can’t help but to pull her towards him, kissing her softly on the lips.

When they break apart, Harry is avoiding looking at them, but James recognizes his embarrassment at his parents in the gesture, more than any kind of nuisance.

‘It’s safe to look now’, he tells Harry playfully, and Harry rolls his eyes at him, but he seems more at ease than James has seen him all week.

‘You love each other’, Harry says and the certainty and relief in his voice arepalpable.

‘Of course we do, Harry’, Lily says, exchanging a glance with James. ‘You know that’.

‘I just thought -’. He shakes his head. ‘Nothing. Ginny said I was being stupid, and she was right'.

'What did you talk about anyway? You stayed there for a long time'.

'She told me you were going to ask and that I should tell you it's my business', Harry replies grinning. 'But I don't mind... She just helped me remember something important. I was - afraid, I guess, of talking to you. She helped me remember anything is possible if you got enough nerve, so -'

'I am sorry, Harry', says James earnestly. 'That what you saw made you feel like you couldn’t talk to me. I just want you to know - it's important you know this - that you can always say anything to me - to us, no matter what'.

Harry nods quietly; the dark cloud that had hung over his head seems to have vanished.

'Now, what about a pizza? Since dinner hasn't even started?', Lily asks brightly, glancing at Harry. He smiles.

'From that old place in Main Street? Can we go there?'

This makes Lily's smile falters and Harry adds hurriedly: 'We can just order, no problem'.

'No, I think we will survive one night out. But take your wand with you, just in case'. Harry nods seriously. 'Go on'.

'Actually, Harry', James calls before Harry leaves, as a thought crosses his mind. 'Did Snape say anything about what you saw?'

Harry blinks at him.

'Snape wasn't happy', he says neutrally.

'Professor Snape, Harry… How is your occlumency?', asks Lily, exchanging a concerned look with James. After what happened over Christmas…

'The same. But -', Harry sighs as if he wishes he were saying anything else. 'I don't think we will continue the classes. He was really upset because of the pensieve'.

'What?', James cries just as Lily jumps.

'I will talk to him', she says. 'He can't possibly -'

'I don't mind, it is a relief actually -,

'This is really important, Harry, if -'

'Dad', Harry cuts him off, his hand going automatically to his scar as if it's bothering him. 'Can't we talk about this tomorrow? The holidays are almost over, and I was already too much a prat for most of it… can we just have a nice dinner?'

There is a pleading look on Harry’s eyes. James bits his lips, but after a second Lily nods with a small smile.

'Ok, but don't think we will forget it. Go take your wand'.

Harry smiles gratefully. Lily turns to James, touching his face softly when she sees he is frowning.

'We'll talk to Dumbledore', she says quietly when Harry is gone. 'He will intervene with Severus. Let's just have a nice dinner with our teenage son tonight, shall we?'

James sighs.

'Ok... I'm going to change then'.

When he is at the door, he turns to her with a smirk already on his lips.

'Do you know where our old school things are?'

Lily looks curiously at him.

'At the attic, I think, why?'

'Thought of using my old Head Boy badge. See if it still goes with my eyes'.

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

If you enjoyed, I have this oneshot of James and Lily finding out Harry’s a champion in the Triwizard Tournament, and Harry asking James’s help for inviting someone for the Yule Ball.

[sundaeserenade]

So a few weeks ago I wrote a thread on twitter about wanting to write a reguri soulmate fic where they decide to not be soulmates and make the decision for themselves. like it’s a mutual thing that they both decide on instead of it being this sign from the universe or fate or whatever. basically, they just go against fate.

and i tried writing out that idea and forcing it into the standard path of r/g/y/fr/lg but i ended up not liking that and i didn’t like a few other things that i did. so this was a learning experience! if i ever write this, it’ll have to be an actual..au with no canon ties. which is probably better because i can do whatever i want with the world building!

but i wrote 2.3k words... and i’m not going to post this on ao3 bc it’s not finished and it never will be. it’s not polished and it never will be, but i figured i should post it here so that it’s somewhere, at least.

They were considered to be two of the lucky ones. Finding one’s soulmate so early on in life is a blessing from the universe, a sign that their bond is under the ever watchful gaze of the divine. Luck will follow them, surely. What do they have left to despair over? What do they have to fear? The greatest challenge of their lives has already been solved, and so they are told to walk freely and without pressure clinging to their shoulders.

They found each other at the fine age of six, and from now on, they will be blessed and find wealth.

“I don’t believe any of it,” Green whispers. He keeps his voice low, eyes darting around the blanket fort they’d built in Red’s living room. The only light they have is a single flashlight that keeps flicking on and off due to low battery. Red’s in charge of turning it off and on in hopes that it’ll last just a minute longer while Green is pouring over the books he’d taken from the bookshelf at his grandfather’s house. 

They’re all self-help books with titles like How to Find Your Soulmate and Gut Feelings Can Get in the Way of Love and other crap that Red doesn’t care for. Green turns pages and looks at indexes, his mouth forming words but no sound coming out. He skims over paragraphs meant for people twice his age to read, but Green’s smart, always has been, and he’s handling the bulk of the work while Red turns the flashlight on and off again.

Green stops on a page and Red leans forward to read the chapter title: Life is Always Better with a Soulmate! Green scoffs and rolls his eyes. “That can’t be true. What about those couples that break up? Your mom and dad did, right Red?”

Red nods, lips thinning. There’s a nervousness in his heart, heightened by the darkness that comes and goes with the dying of the flashlight. All of these books are telling lies and the adults believe them. But both he and Green know that it’s wrong, that soulmates aren’t all that they’re cracked up to be. 

After all, when he’d first met Green, when they’d first shook hands and looked into each other’s eyes, their bond was formed. 

It felt like… It felt like what volcanoes erupting looks like. A loud, earth-shaking feeling that filled Red with shock and fear of what was to come. It felt like the air was being forced out of his lungs, like an ekans squeezing a rattata. It felt like being lost in the woods at night and getting an expensive toy as a birthday present. It was frightening and too much all at once, so much so that they both jumped back, startled and scared.

But it was a bond being formed under the eyes of the universe. A pact being sealed without their consent or understanding. They had found their soulmate, and the elation and joy swept over Pallet Town like a wind with Red and Green staring at each other in confusion through all of it.

Green is Red’s best friend, but he can’t say for sure if that’s because of the bond or because Green likes to talk about pokémon with him. There’s no one else around who has such a strong interest in the creatures, but Green will flaunt his knowledge and sneak them into his grandfather’s lab to look at some of them. They fed a growlithe together, they ran from a nidoran together, but Red doesn’t feel that special feeling again. 

“I don’t feel it either,” Green admitted to him when Red had written out his question. “Maybe that’s all we’ll ever feel. Maybe it’s normal.”

There are no marks to make the process of finding soulmates easier. It’s a feeling, it’s a gaze, it’s a touch that one feels when they meet their special someone. Because of this, everyone is overly friendly. Shaking hands and hugging strangers is commonplace. Eye contact is expected, and Red is secretly relieved to have met Green because now he can avoid meeting people’s eyes.

Everywhere around them, people are almost desperate to find their one. It’s so deeply ingrained in their way of living and looking at the world. So Green wonders and ponders and thinks. Red asking that question only opened up other possibilities, and Green is curious and intelligent, so he runs with it in search of the truth. 

Which brings them to the blanket fort and the lies printed in black ink. The two of them sit there comparing what they’ve experienced in their lives to what the world at large believes. Red’s parents were no longer together, and yet they’d been soulmates. What does it mean? They’d been told repeatedly that once they found their special someone, the world would right itself, the universe would sing their song and they’d face little to no hardships.

“It’s a lie,” Green spits, closing the book with a loud slam. “They’ve been lying to us, Red.”

Red puts down the flashlight and reaches over to take Green’s hand. 

There’s no spark or visions of celebration to differentiate the touch from any other one.

 When Green turns seven, he puts distance between them. 

When Green turns eight, he starts being mean.

When they both turn eleven, they begin their pokémon journeys. 

It’s a monumental undertaking and when he was younger, Red had thought he and Green would face it side by side. But now, Green runs forward, spewing taunts in his wake. There’s no link between them that offers Red a peek into what Green’s really feeling, no sign given by their bond that could explain his behavior. Red is left alone, confused and hurt by his own soulmate shunning and belittling him every chance he gets. 

Red keeps walking because that’s what he’s always done. He catches pokémon, forges bonds with them, and trudges through grass and mud and rain to get where he needs to go. It’s fun being outside so much. He gets to be on his own, away from people and it’s not seen as him being strange or weird. Pokémon aren’t afraid of him. Pokémon don’t whisper hurtful things behind his back. It’s him, his team, and the four badges in his case.

That is, until the foreboding air and eerie light of Lavender Town comes creeping closer. An unsettling presence hangs over the town like a smog, and Red finds himself thrust into the city's problems as he chases Team Rocket. And in doing so, he runs into his soulmate once more in the Pokémon Tower. 

Red has a reason for being here; he’s been chasing Team Rocket thugs his entire journey. Green, however… Well. There’s only two reasons for visiting the Pokémon Tower, but Red doesn’t pry. Green tries once again at intimidation, and it ends as it always has previously; Green hiding his hurt behind a cracking mask and Red never being able to find the right words to say.

And yet, when he leaves Lavender Town after driving out Team Rocket and saving Mr. Fuji, he spots Green on Route 7, leaning against a tree. It’s not like Green to stick around in places where there’s no gym, so Red is confused...until he understands that Green’s been waiting for him.

A feeling of dread weighs him down. Was their fight at the Pokémon Tower not enough? Were the insults not enough? Red has had enough, and moves to the left to give Green a wide berth. He doesn’t want to battle or deal with the complex feelings that follow. He’s spent enough time here. He needs to go.

“Red.” 

Green’s voice stops him. It’s not because of the bond or any other false truth that’s been shoved down his throat. At one point, Green had been his best friend. And now, he still remains Red’s soulmate. Red keeps handing out chances for change, opportunities to fix things, but nothing ever comes. He needs to go.

Green pushes off of the tree, his arms still crossed. “Camp out with me tonight.”

Not a battle. Not an insult. Not a pointless taunt. A proposition. An opportunity for change? Red would be a fool not to take it.

He nods.

 By the fireside, Red and Green stare into the flames and keep their words to themselves. Their tents are already set up, their teams have already eaten dinner and they’ve done the same. There’s nothing left to take care of, but still they prolong what brought them together in the first place. 

Red has no idea what it is that Green wants, so he’s confused, but that’s not the only thing that’s confusing him. He hasn’t spent this much time around Green in years, and yet...he feels nothing from their soulmate bond. There’s no relief or itch for touch, there’s no yearning in his heart and no sudden impact of feelings like when they’d first locked gazes. If feels normal between them, as it always has since that first meeting. 

Is this normal? Is this how it’s supposed to be?

Green tosses another twig into the fire that it didn’t need and looks up at Red. “Do you want to break our bond?”

Red’s eyes widen. His lips part. He forgets to breathe. He stares.

“I’m not going to force you,” Green holds up a hand. “But I… I’ve been thinking...about this whole soulmate thing…”

Red keeps silent, his heart racing and it’s the most feeling he’s ever felt since that day. 

“I don’t know about you, but luck hasn’t been following me,” Green says, glaring at the flames. “Wealth hasn’t found me. And I know… I know we aren’t close anymore, but…” Green sighs, looks up at Red and the fire in his eyes is unlike anything Red’s ever seen. It’s volcanoes erupting and stars bursting into dust. “I want to make this decision myself.”

Quickly, Red reaches into his backpack for his notepad and a pencil. He bites his lip as he thinks on what to say. When it comes down to it, there’s just one question that hasn’t left him and probably never will. 

Have you felt anything since that first day? Even now?

Green looks over the paper and he takes a minute to respond. When he does, hurt chokes his voice, reality making his throat tighten. “No, I haven’t.”

Red sits back. The last bit of hope up and fades and he’s left with this choice. What is a soulmate bond if there’s no feelings attached? If there’s no constant affirmation that this is right? How do they know for certain that they’re each other’s soulmates? The feelings had been immense, but they’d vanished since. But who was to say that was a bond being formed? What if it was just them, the two of them, and nothing more?

But it had to be a bond, because that’s how it’s always been described. That was the one part those books got right. That initial feeling of everything at once, like the universe crashing in on them. Amazing and scary and beautiful and sad. Everything that they are and could be leveled against them in one, single gaze. 

Then after, there’s no more. That is all they are afforded. 

Green is his soulmate, but Red thinks of him as a lost childhood friend, someone who isn’t interested and wants nothing to do with him. Still, those old times when they were younger… Red wouldn’t mind going back to that. He prefers friendship over this bitter rivalry that hurts much more than it should, that tears and rips his skin.

But isn’t this the same? Green wants nothing to do with him yet again. Not as friends, not as soulmates, only rivals competing for something that they were supposed to do together. Red grips his pencil tight.

Do you hate me that much?

Green stutters. “Red, I…” He shakes his head, leans forward to set his elbows on his knees. He stares into the flames but then looks past them to regard Red. “I don’t hate you. I just think this would be best for both of us.”

Why?

“Because have you ever felt anything for me?” Green asks, turning the question around. “You always ask if I’ve felt anything, but have you? What is this bond doing for us, huh? Everyone talks like it’s the best thing, like it’s an amazing necessity, but it’s not!”

Red looks away, feeling Green’s frustration and understanding it. They always sang of soulmates, sang of love and fate, but it’s done nothing for them. Are they too young? Too ignorant of the world? And if so, shouldn’t they figure this out themselves? They can’t trust what they’re told, they can’t trust what people say. This is a step that they have to make on their own.

With every step on his journey, Red’s been making his own choice and how freeing it’s felt. He decides where to go, who to battle, what pokémon to catch. He decides his place in the world and who he wants to be. He dives into caves and crosses rivers. He looks up and dreams of snow, he looks back and yearns for times long past. But those are still his choices to make. 

This is the same. This is something that they can choose for themselves. There was always the possibility for more, an opportunity for the two of them to become more, but…this opportunity, this chance may be what they need.

What does Red have to lose? There’s never been another feeling or indication. They’ve grown apart despite being fated to be together. They’ve already defied all logic and reason. 

And he wants… He wants to know. Maybe if they break the bond, another feeling will happen and they’ll know for certain, then. 

How do we break it?

[volleychumps]

To Love a Libero (Nishinoya Yu x Reader)

“Maaaan, this sucks.”

“Nishinoya-senpai?” Hinata blinks at his senior, wondering just why the star libero of the Karasuno volleyball team was laying down on the floor with his knees tucked into his chest, his expression screaming of depression. 

“I want a girlfriend!” Nishinoya whines as the rest of the team sweat drops as he hits the floor with balled fists like a child. Bokuto, seeing the commotion, comes over and puts a hand seriously on his shoulder before kneeling down to meet him at eye-level. 

“Are you lost? Do you need me to find your mom?”

As the teams among the camp stifle their laughter into their fists, Nishinoya gains an irk mark at the teasing Ace of Fukurodani as said man keels over in laughter. 

“T-The girls are coming! That’ll lift your spirits, Nishinoya-senpai!” Yamauchi exclaims as the libero helps himself to his feet, glaring daggers at his still giggling teammates. “Let’s watch them play a set, ne?”

As the boys all return to the stands to watch the girls compete, Nishinoya looks among them with a bored stare. Perhaps after being near Kiyoko this whole time, and it for sure would never happen, most girls didn’t hold the same effect on him. Even if they did, none really responded to his advances or showed any interest. 

“Noya-San...” Sugawara puts a hand on his shoulder, giving him a nervous grin. “I can see your depression cloud getting bigger.”

“Hah? No way, I don’t need a girlfriend. Volleyball is life! Right, Hinata?”

“Senpai...you’re too cool!” His orange-haired kouhai flashes him two large thumbs up as Nishinoya laughs, a little too loudly. The two opposing teams from Fukurodani and Nekoma make their way onto the courts with no problem. 

“Whoa...who is that?” Tanaka’s eyes widen a little.

“She goes to Fukurodani. She’s the libero for the girls’ team.” Akaashi replies evenly as Bokuto sniffs. “She’s also rejected Bokuto-san on numerous occasions.”

“She’s just blind to how awesome I am. It’s fine.”

You make your way onto the court with a small smile, blushing as the more louder boys on the Fukurodani team begin to cheer your name specifically, tugging your hair back into a braid as your team prepares for the practice match. 

“Hm. She’s pretty short.” Daichi notes as Tanaka cackles, clapping Noya on the back. 

“Probably shorter than Noya!” 

Nishinoya didn’t reply as his eyes locked on your figure, his heart gaining an almost too steady rythym as you get into position. 

Damn were you pretty. 

That wasn’t what took him off guard though. 

You deflected the balls the opposing team hit to the floor as if it were nothing, jumping up to do a cute little cheer every time you succeeded. You smiled at your teammates lovingly through the familial bond you shared with them. 

“Noya...you’re staring.” Asahi grins down at his friend as Nishinoya feels the heat rise to his cheeks. 

“W-whatever!” 

Nishinoya looks back to your figure to see the end of the match had commenced, Fukurodani beating Nekoma with a gap of six points. His eyes locked with yours as your friend on the team was whispering something in your ear, a slight blush forming on your cheeks as you look away quickly.

“Uh oh, looks like she caught you!” Tanaka cackles even louder as Nishinoya sinks back in his seat, feeling embarrassed.

“She just plays really good...that’s all.”

-- 

“(Y/N)-chan! I saved you a seat!” 

“No, thanks.” You reply flatly to Bokuto as the ace sinks down in his seat, sighing dejectedly as Akaashi coughs into his fist to hide his laughter.

It wasn’t like you had anything personal against Bokuto...it was just the fact you would rather reject him outright instead of stringing him along with false hope. You didn’t like him the same way he did you, that’s all it was.

Plus, you could never tell if he was serious or not. 

You had walked into the cafeteria in the standard white shirt and dark shorts, blanching as your team waved you over to their already over-crowded table. You shake your head no with a small smile, motioning that you would find somewhere else to sit. 

In a flash, the table to your right’s members all seemed to scatter at the same time, some dragging others as you amusedly watch a dark haired boy drag along the orange, spunky looking kid, telling him to take a hint as one lone person remains at the table. 

Unsurprised, you plop your tray in front of the boy who was staring at you throughout your match, silently giving approval to the amount of effort his teammates had given to lead to this situation as they stuff themselves into bordering tables. 

“E-eh? Where did everyone go?” The boy across from you had unique hair, you noted silently as you giggle at the fact that he was too engrossed in his food to notice the situation his teammates had left him in. When he sees you taking apart your chopsticks, you swear you can practically see the smoke puff up from his head. 

“You’re Nishinoya-san, right? I heard you have a pretty good title for yourself back in Miyagi.” You make conversation, smiling warmly at the now nervous boy in front of you. 

“Y-yeah...um! You played really well today! You’re defense tactics are super good!” 

This startles you. You knew for a fact that Bokuto and the boys on the Fukurodani team liked you primarily for your appearance, but not once had any of them complimented your playing style. 

“Mm. Thank you.” You shyly put your chopsticks in your mouth, a blush forming on your features at the foreign feeling.

From another table, Akaashi holds a hyperactive Bokuto in place, who was practically fuming. “What the hell is that atmosphere?!” 

“Bokuto-san. Please eat your food. And be quiet.”

The members of Fukurodani chuckle to themselves as Bokuto sits down immediately, almost like a pet. 

“T-then! I’ll see you tomorrow, (Y/N)...chan?” 

“Tomorrow it is, Noya-san.” You reply happily, smiling at the fact that he said the honorific with much hesitation. 

You watch him dart away, smiling to yourself until you suddenly notice that he had put his dessert on your tray, making you blush slightly as you unwrap the pudding. 

-- 

The rest of the camp went by in a breeze, and you happily met for dinner every night to eat with Nishinoya as you two formed a more comfortable friendship with one another, Noya giving you the cheesiest pick-up lines to ever exist as you laughed so hard your stomach hurt. 

Naturally, both of your teams teased you relentlessly, and when you two were together during practice breaks, it was obvious to anyone that Nishinoya had fallen for you. Hard.

The real question was, how did you feel about him? 

--

“The last day of training camp is tomorrow.”

“Mm.”

“I go back to Miyagi in one day.” 

“Mm.” 

You both laid in the soft grass past curfew, Nishinoya successfully sneaking you out of the girls’ dorms with ease and a signal to be quiet pressed to his playful grin. 

“Don’t worry! You can take me sight-seeing when we meet at Nationals.” 

“Noya-”

“I’m like, not sad at all to go. Not at all.” 

“Nishi-”

“Why would you even say something like that? Me? Sad? HAH!”

“Yuu!” You had sat up and pressed a hand to his blabbering mouth, watching as his eyes slowly become more saddened. Without hesitation, you pressed your lips against the hand that covered his mouth, leaving the unsuspecting boy in shock before pulling back.

“Just...hold me for awhile, okay?” You lay against his chest, listening to his thumping heart beat. “You might not be sad, but I am.” You look up from your position laying down on him, tracing patterns into his shirt. “Anybody would be sad to see the person they like leave.” 

“You...like me?”

“Yes, dummy.” 

Without a second beat of silence, Noya carefully lifts you off of him before hurling himself to his feet, punching the air excitedly. 

“You like me!” 

You’re laughing now, shushing him to be quiet until he kneels down before you, tilting your chin to meet his lips as he kisses you passionately. Your head spins as you feel something cold and metal being rested against the skin on your neck.

“This is a brand.” He says softly when he pulls away, admiring the glint of the necklace in the moonlight. “You’re mine, (Y/N).”

“This is why you disappeared that one practice?” You laugh, touching the chain around your neck. He nods, his eyes looking more confident than you had ever seen them before he reaches out to hold a strand of your hair, kissing it. 

“Please let me cherish you.”

“I would be honored, Yu.”

He tackles you into the soft grass, afterwards, joy lit up in both of your hearts simutaneously as you hug him tightly back.

--

“Hah? What kind of libero love shit is this?” Tsukishima blinks in surprise as Yamaguchi swats his arm. The day Karasuno had to take its’ leave back to Miyagi arrived, and you and your newly minted boyfriend had broken the news rather sheepishly.

“NOYA!” Tanaka and Asahi lean on each other for support, tears in their eyes. “W-We’re so happy!” 

“S-Senpai!” Kageyama holds a running Hinata by the collar, sighing about how he was surrounded by idiots.

“Weren’t you just saying you didn’t need-?” Daichi’s hand covers Suga’s mouth without hesitation, grinning at his Libero who wasn’t letting anybody ruin his over-the-moon feeling. 

“Be careful, shorty-kun.” Bokuto mentions, slinging an arm around your shoulder as you naturally swat it off. “If you don’t make it to nationals, I’m gonna steal (Y/N) away.” 

Noya’s eyes glint at the challenge before pulling on your wrist to make you fall into his chest, looking fearlessly into Bokuto’s smirk. 

“I’d like to see you try.” 

When all goodbyes are said, the Karasuno team leaves you and Noya outside the bus, your eyes welling up with tears as the realization of the dreaded day settled in. 

“Hey. None of that.” You laugh through your tears as Noya swipes them away, grinning down at you. “I’ll call every night, and I’ll be back before you know it.” 

“Promise?” 

“Promise. And you won’t go to Bokuto-san because you’re lonely and I’m not there to fill the empty void in your heart, right?”

“Ah. That one’s hard to promise.” You say flatly, sarcasm dripping from your tone before Noya tucks a strand of hair behind your ear, gazing at you as if he was trying to commit your face to memory.

“Don’t miss me too much, now.” With that, his mouth captures yours in a loving kiss before he pulls away, climbing his bus without looking back. You laugh a little at his over-dramatic crying form in the window as Suga gives you a thumbs-up, signaling his teammates were gonna take care of him. 

You give him a small wave as the bus pulls out of the parking lot, reaching up to grip the chain around your neck.

“See you soon.” 

[prismatales]

Fragile

Word Count: 2K

Bingo slot: Crying in the rain.

Pairings: Kirishima Eijiro x Reader.

Tag/Warnings: Angst with a happy ending, Comfort, TW: Depression.

Summary: He’s always thought of you as somebody incredible, strong, and reliable. Until one fateful day, he finds out not everything is as it seems.

Here’s entry No.2 for @bnhabookclub ’s bingo event, and weekly prompt challenge “Please, don’t do this.”! Thank you @pixxiesdust and @wakaoujisenhime for helping me out with some parts of the plot! ❤

The day Kirishima met you, it was during the entrance exam; Watching you take down robot after robot with the aid of your super speed quirk. That look of pure determination as you kept dashing around the whole place, wrecking havoc upon the machines, was something memorable in his eyes. 

You could say, it was like love at first sight.

So when the first day of class finally comes, and he walks into the new classroom, finding the same girl that caught his eye during the exam, sitting at the other side of the room while getting to know their classmates, he was over the moon.

And he didn’t think twice about approaching her right away, befriending her instantly much to her initial confusion, and yet she accepted his friendship with open arms. After all, there’s no such thing as having too many friends!

You may be absent-minded sometimes, but that doesn’t change his opinion in the slightest. He’s always thought of you as somebody incredible, strong, and reliable. Until one fateful day, where he finds out not everything is as it seems.

“Hey, y/n!” He calls out to your limp self, laying face down on the couch with a facefull of cushion. “We’re having a study session with Bakugo, do you wanna join us?” 

Your head barely moves an inch to glance at the two guys standing at the other side of the common room. Kirishima’s smile is so bright, it could easily light up a whole room. Bakugou however, is terribly quiet. His eyes narrow suspiciously, like he knows something his friend doesn’t.

“Thanks guys, but I’m not feeling so good…” You smile weakly at them, lifting an arm to give them a thumbs up. “Good luck though! I heard this exam is going to be a hard one!” 

They both watch as you get up from the couch, and start heading towards the girl’s side of the dorms with slow strides. Something unusual from your regular hyper self.

“She’s hiding something…” Bakugou grunts, eyes still narrowed as he watches you walk away. Kirishima only raises an eyebrow at his friend’s attitude.

“I don’t know man,” He rubs the nape of his neck with disdain, “Maybe she’s just sick?” But the look his friend gives him says otherwise. “I’ll check up on her after we’re done studying.”

Both males head to Kaminari’s room,where they meet with the rest of their study group. During the whole time they spend studying, Kirishima’s thoughts can’t help wandering back to you, and he starts thinking that maybe Bakugou’s right, and there’s something bothering you.

“You’re thinking about her, aren’t you shitty hair?”

Everyone stops in their tracks to look at the red head sitting on the floor. The rest of his friends have a teasing glint in their eyes as soon as they heard the word “her”. 

“Ooooooh! Does somebody have a crush? Who is it, Who is it?!” As always, Mina’s the first one to ask, as the rest of the group keep staring intensely at Kirishima, more focused on the guy’s crush instead of their calculus homework, much to Bakugo’s annoyance.

The blush spreading across Kirishima’s face is so bright, that it almost makes his hair look dull in comparison. In a nervous fit, his quirk ends up activating on its own, and he unwittingly ends up breaking a pencil in half, much to his friend’s hysterics.

“It’s nothing like that! I’m just worried about y/n!” He drapes a hand over his mouth, realizing he just blurted out exactly what his friends wanted to hear. Judging by the spontaneous chorus of ‘Oooooooohhhh!’ that can be heard all across the room. 

His next words however, make everyone quiet down in an instant.

“You know how cheerful she is, right? Well, she was really quiet when we found her, and she said she wasn’t feeling so good, but...ugh! I don’t know!” He closes his eyes in frustration and runs a hand through his hair, completely messing his spikes out of frustration. 

“Most people would call that a crush, dude.” He looks back at Sero, who’s sitting in front of the small table right in front of him. “If it makes you feel any better, maybe you should talk to her.”

“Besides, you do have point.” Mina places a finger on her lips as she remembers something. “The other day the girls and I had a sleepover, but y/n also said she wasn’t feeling so good and locked herself in her room.” She turns back to the group of boys looking at her with eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “And she never turned down a sleepover before.”

“Did you forget what happened the other day during training practice?” This time it’s Kaminari who turns back to look at his frustrated friend. “She was so distracted she almost got hurt, and don’t forget how Aizawa scolded her for that. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her so dejected before.”

“Maybe you should go talk to her, you two are really good friends, aren’t you?” 

For an instant, Kirishima doesn’t move from his place, thinking about his friend’s words. But after thinking it over, he stands up and with a determined look, he starts heading to the door. “Alright! I’ll go talk to her!” He looks back at his friends with a smile “Thanks guys!” 

Walking through the hall, the slight ‘taps’ on the window slowly increasing their pace eventually catches his attention, turning in the direction of the noise, Kirishima notices the sky has become darker, gray clouds letting out a downpour that quickly drenches everything outside.

And when he sees a certain someone standing outside, trembling, and getting soaked by the rain, with their back turned on the dorm’s building. Worry and panic begins to seep through his whole body. So he begins dashing towards the main entrance. he doesn’t even pay attention to the class president yelling at him to stop running in the halls, and finally, he pushes his way out of the dorm. 

Just to find you looking up at the sky, not caring in the slightest about being soaked to the bone by the cold, harsh and heavy downpour. Completely focused on the dark sky to even bother listening to the voice coming up from behind.

“What are you doing outside in this storm y/n?! You’re going to catch a cold if you stay here any longer!” 

He doesn’t even care about being soaked too. Approaching your unresponsive self, and placing a hand in your shoulder, slowly turning you to face him. But what he sees, makes Kirishima stop in his tracks and it sends a chill through his body, even stronger than the frigid droplets falling down from the sky.

That glimmer of joy, that used to fill those beautiful eyes he fell head over heels for, with life...it was all gone. Taken over by pure suffering, strong enough to feel like a punch to the gut from Kirishima’s point of view.

“H-hey, what’s wrong? Are you alright y/n?” This time he grabs you by the shoulders, holding your numb self in front of him with nothing but concern.

And when the only thing that appears on your face, is a heartbroken smile filled with anguish. His eyes become wide open in dread, and the panic becomes evident.

“It’s all pointless….isn’t it?” 

“What are you talking about?”

“I don’t know what I’m doing with my life...I just...I don’t trust my head anymore!”

You don’t struggle in the slightest when he pulls into into his strong arms, hugging your shaking body closer to his with a strong, but delicate grip. It feels so nice, being held closer to someone like this. It could almost melt all your worries away if they weren’t pulling you down with the strength of a thousand bodies. 

“Listen, I may not know what’s going through your head right now. But you’re an amazing person, one that deserves the world and more.” Kirishima can feel the weight of your face burying itself on top of his shoulder, nuzzling itself against him in search for warmth, at the same time the rest of your body begins trembling against his.

“Please, don’t do this.” The meek, broken whimper being muffled by his shirt is almost unrecognizable from the cheerful voice he loves so much. “Don’t give me false hopes. It’s not worth it.”

He can’t stand it, He really can’t stand just staying there, listening how much you hate yourself, while he does nothing. The grip on your body becomes tighter, and his hand brushes the back of your head in comfort.

“And you expect me to leave you hurting, all by yourself? That’s not a manly thing to do.” He pulls away softly, holding you at arm’s length to take a pained look at those heartbroken eyes and quivering lips. 

The rain makes a good job at hiding the flowing tears. He can only guess that’s the reason you’re standing outside this storm to begin with; To let everything out, without the risk of alarming anybody.

“Come on. Let’s get you inside, you’re going to get sick at this rate.” 

Carefully, Kirishima guides you by the shoulders, towards the dorm’s entrance. He notices there’s nobody else around anymore, so he takes advantage of it and guides you towards the bathrooms.

When the both of you go inside, he helps you sit down in a small bench before starting to look around for the spare towels. 

He sighs with contentment once he finds a pair of brand new, fluffy towels. Turning back he sees you sitting still in place. And at least, your eyes don’t look like those of somebody who lost all hope. Right now, they’re just full of exhaustion.

Delicately, he dries your face with the towel, before wrapping it around your teetering shoulders. The second towel, he uses it to start drying your head with gentle movements. 

“Look y/n, I know you’re hurting. But I want you to know, that you have people out there who genuinely care for you.” His hands keep tracing circles with the towel, trying to dry the your hair as much as he can. “If you ever need someone to make you feel safe, I’ll always be there for you.”

Satisfied with his work, he lets the towel rest on top of your head, brushing some loose strands of hair covering your cold face, tucking them to the side and away from your eyes.

“You tired?”

“...Mhm.”

“Alright then, let’s get you to bed, but first you gotta change out of those clothes, don’t want you to get sick, okay?” 

You only nod in response. In return, he pulls you up by the wrists and walks you all the way to your room, rubbing your shoulders reassuringly along the way. Though when he feels your head rest on his shoulder, he can’t fight back the blush spreading all over his face.

“Well, here we are!” His hand grabs on the doorknob to push the door open, allowing you to step inside. Kirishima can’t help looking at the room nervously while staying at the doorway. Considering he’s looking at his crush’s room, and they’re not even dating to begin with.

“I’d help you get changed, but I don’t think that would be manly of me. Haha.” His awkward chuckles pulls out a tiny smile from you, much to his surprise.  

“It’s okay. I’ll take over from here...and Kiri?” 

He looks back when you call him. And when you approach to give him a small peck on the cheek, the gesture leaves him frozen in place.

“Thank you.” 

That night he walks back to his room, touching his cheek with a lovestruck smile on his face. It’s only after he already changed out if his damp clothes and gets ready for sleep, that he realizes he completely forgot about his study session with his friends.

@bnha-ra @bnhabookclub @gallickingun @godtieruwu @hanniejji @mysticalite @samanthaa-leanne @savagetrickster @shoobirino @songsforbnha @sugacookiies @t-amajiki @unbreakableeiji @undead0relived @wesparklebitch

[land-of-classpects-and-analysis]

Mage of Rage

Have you ever gone out shopping for new clothes? Perhaps the ones you already have don’t fit you anymore, your aesthetic taste has changed, or maybe you just want to expand your wardrobe. The idea may sound fun, but finding that proper size can be so frustrating, no? Sometimes something is too snug and it feels like plastic wrap has been coiled around you, or maybe it’s too small and you can’t fit your legs in the pants or your head through the hole. Maybe it’s too big as you feel that skirt, the one you could have sworn would fit just right, fall to the ground and lay at your ankles, or the rim of the shirt reaches past your knees and covers the entirety of your hands. It can be frustrating, embarrassing, and sometimes downright rage-inducing to repeat this same trial and error over and over again, experiencing more and more discomfort as the hours fly by and the pile of discarded clothes grows. People watch, and you hate it. You want to go home but you refuse to leave until you find the size that fits you best. Now you may be wondering, what does this have to do with being a Mage of Rage? A fair question, and one with an answer that is quite simple. Rather than the clothes being clothes, replace them with something such as false truths, promises, morals, rules, expectations; boxes that society attempts to push us into and keep us locked away in. Think of all the boxes you have shoved into and have broken. 

Does it feel like an ugly Christmas sweater, one that brings embarrassment and is so heavy it threatens to bring you to your knees and drown you in your own sweat? What about a pair of jeans that promises to be the right - no. The perfect size, and yet no matter how much you struggle, you cannot get the jeans on. And everyone is watching, waiting, critiquing you and what you are doing. The clothes don’t fit you, though. They know, though. Who, exactly? Everyone. Society itself knows you do not fit into the uniform that is so clean, pure, and perfect. It knows, and it hates you for it - putting you under a constant gaze of scrutiny. It hates you, so you hate it in return for creating a uniform and a box that does not fit everyone. You don’t just hate society, but you hate everyone that so blindly chooses to follow it and oh-so perfectly fits into the clothes and boxes. You are a Mage of Rage, and rather than constantly fret and worry over the best ways to contort and distort and ruin yourself so that you may fit snugly in these clothes and within that box - that coffin - you instead choose to dedicate yourself to a life of finding other instances of this Rage and how you may hone it as a means of liberation, revolution, and above all else, pure anarchy. Today is a beautiful day, and you are a Mage of Rage.

From the day we are born to the day we die, there will always be a constant, looming threat of judgement from our fellow people. Very few people are so bold as to even dare step out of the factory line that usher us through life, checking off all the boxes of perfect expectations. The Mage of Rage is one of those few to not only think of pulling off such a risky move, but they’ll do it in a way that is unmistakably an act of spite and rebellion. However, the Mage of Rage would need that extra shove to bring them to such a conclusion that this is the way they wish to live - alienated, judged, and to the most dedicated and extreme, outright hated and despised. Whether this be a personal shove wherein they come to the realization that they will never, ever fit into such tightly woven and uncomfortably shaped boxes and clothes, or they witness some of their own people begin to whisper about a world outside of these factory lines and walls; a world where everyone is their own person and there is no hatred, no judgement, no fear. All the Mage of Rage needs is a good enough spark to ignite their own passion and fury against the system they have been placed within.

While their passive counterpart may start out ignorant and take a much longer time to come around to the truth, the Mage of Rage is made well aware of these injustices and society’s false promises from a much earlier age. They are willing to put more thought into the inequalities surrounding them, to question and sometimes even challenge authority, as well as, for the especially daring ones, bring about a little chaos of their own. There are a few ways as to how the Mage of Rage may first acquire the bitter taste of reality and that, in the eyes of authority and society, not everyone is created nor should be treated as equal, all of these most likely occurring when the Mage of Rage is quite young. Ranging from being bullied and having no adult care that they are victim, while someone who experienced the same bullying is coddled and cared for, being known as the “weird” classmate that no one ever understands or even the “good in class, but could do with participating/speaking more” student, to getting in trouble for no reason other than something they did looked “suspicious” despite it being the same thing another child did. Whether it be from their own pondering and observations or another person, most likely an adult that has had similar struggles to them, the Mage of Rage would receive the beginning of their journey at a rather crucial and defining point in their life and development.

The Mage of Rage is most likely someone who could fall into the fashion of living under the idea of “It’s every man for himself”, especially if they are so often ostracized by their peers and people in general. One of the biggest things that marks a Mage of Rage is how outward they are about their opinions and beliefs, as well, especially if it means getting to spit into the faces of those who believe to be better than them. They are not someone who quietly sits by and allows for false truths and harmful ideologies to be spread around, and if they witness such a thing in person, then there is barely anything that will stop them from bringing about justified chaos. Due to how they act, though, they often don’t try to spend much time looking to form any relationships with people, especially if they may have differing views to the Mage of Rage. However, for them to actively reach out and help another person is often a great sign of trust and respect from the Mage of Rage, but don’t expect a spontaneous love to spark from them because of this. Oftentimes they will try to keep up the mindset that they don’t need anyone, and that they can survive in the world on their own - even if that is not entirely true. To become so aware of the sickening blind obedience surrounding one’s self could become grating on even the most patient of souls, and while some Mages of Rage may have more patience than others of their Classpect, there is most definitely one thing certain: if the Mage of Rage has fallen silent, chances are that they have reached their limit and breaking point.

While this may sound like a Mage of Rage that has come quite far in their journey, one would be sorely mistaken to hear that this is most likely what a young (though not entirely in regards to age) Mage of Rage would act like. Rage-bound are bringers of chaos, after all, and as such strive to bring about as much doubt, confusion, and terror that they can in their wake, if only to those they deem to be ignorant and unworthy of peace. The biggest challenge for the Mage of Rage is to not only survive gaining the knowledge of Rage, or gaining knowledge through it, but to also not allow their Aspect to devour their morality. Which is to say that, while they can see and know all the joy that comes from destroying the base of a corrupt and immoral society, they must learn patience in order to avoid ruining their cause and credibility by lashing out at foes at the most inappropriate of moments. This is one of the biggest sources of struggle for the Mage of Rage, with the source of their suffering being quite obvious to anyone who has ever known a Mage of Rage. The journey for the Mage of Rage, no matter the branch of knowledge they walk upon, is one of loneliness, doubt, and hostility. Let’s finally observe how these branches grow and may splinter off from each other, all while remembering that they all grow from the same tree - the same idea.

There are the Mages of Rage who choose, or are drawn, to journey down the path of gaining knowledge of Rage. They are the ones who have experienced the nature of their Aspect firsthand, but only in a brief and passing moment. Within that moment, something clicked, sparked, or shifted in their minds that brought upon a feeling - a hunger - that they must seek out more examples and situations attached to their Aspect. These Mages of Rage are ones who have very little fear when it comes to adventure. If anything, they see it as a type of thrill-seeking joyous occasion, even if the hunt for Rage leads them to some not-so-friendly groups, individuals, or places. The Mage of Rage does not care, though, so long as they are careful not to become too entangled in whatever uprising or revolution is brewing around them. With the way the Mage of Rage works and travels, it would be dishonest to say that they would remain unrecognizable to the eyes of those around them. No, they most definitely would gain a reputation of sorts, though what that reputation is truly depends on who is being questioned about it. 

Some may say the Mage of Rage is a no-good omen of destruction and anarchy - the broken and beaten husk of a town or organization left in their wake. Others may claim that the Mage of Rage is that of a sign, a blessing, perhaps even a gift, showing that freedom from the shackles of society is soon to come, and the feast upon those who have brought so many people oppression will arrive very shortly. Even if the Mage of Rage were to be made aware of these rumors and opinions about them, they would not care nor see the connection. Any good that comes of the Mage of Rage’s journey is all by coincidence because, as they would most likely say, “[they’re] just looking for opportunities, answers, chaotic fun, and knowledge”. Wherever the Mage of Rage finds themself to be, it is not because they are there to free people or stop an organization, but rather so they can simply gain a better understanding of how truly deep and far-out the roots of their tree are woven beneath the surface. It’s not that the Mage of Rage lacks empathy or sympathy, but rather they know deep down those feelings will only prevent them from making any progress in their journey. They crave immediate action and have the need to constantly be on the go - they rarely stay in one place for long. However, it is this impatience that so often brings them to make more enemies than friends, and as to be expected, the biggest growing obstacle for these Mages of Rage is that, if they are not careful, then they may fall victim to following the path of a Martyr before their journey is anywhere near finished. It is up to them to learn to take their time and be patient, get crafty, and perhaps find a few allies, even if their overall image is presented like that of a monster that stalks the lonely villages at night.

As for the Mages of Rage who so follow the path of gaining knowledge through Rage? Suffice to say, they are quite the chaotic bunch, and not exactly in the most pleasant way. While the former Mages of Rage simply seek out places filled to the brim with chaos, injustice, and in general in need of being liberated, these Mages of Rage are those who thought it would be quicker to gain knowledge and wisdom by allowing Rage to consume them. There is always a chance for redemption for many people, but there are so few Mages of Rage who choose this path that show any promise of climbing out from this hole. They are some of the most morally bankrupt of the Mages, seeing everything and everyone as a tank filled with knowledge that must be cracked open through whatever Rage-filled means possible. While some spread rumors that the former Mages of Rage are omens of chaos or saviors through destruction, most of the latter Mages of Rage are rotten down to their very core. In a way, these Mages of Rage are truly their Classpect at its most extreme and worst. If the Mage of Rage wishes to gain knowledge, then it would be wise to try and avoid them until their hunger has subsided if you want to avoid ending up in their crosshairs.

In the eyes of these Mages of Rage, the more chaos they bring into everyone’s and their own life, the better. They are someone who is not only ready and willing to set ablaze an entire forest in order to grow back something new and more pure, at least within their own vision and definition of such things, but if they find that some people are just as tainted as the forest, chances are that they will make sure those people go down with the rest of those woods. One of the most dangerous things about these Mages of Rage is that no one who knows them can say for certain when they will get these strong cravings for knowledge, which causes many people in the Mage’s life to be almost constantly on edge. However, no matter how cautious they believe themselves to be, very few people are ever capable of avoiding becoming a target for feeding, one way or another. Since Rage-bound are often stubborn in changing their opinions on things, these Mages are often the most stubborn of them all - believing their way to be the correct and purest one, and that anyone who dares challenge them is in for a world of pain, torment, and fear. When the Mage of Rage makes an enemy, it is never certain when they will strike. Perhaps they never will, and instead quietly relish in the fear and anxiety that comes off of their foe; anxiety and fear that gives only more knowledge to feed off of.

Whether the Mage of Rage presents themself to be a benevolent entity, simply appearing in places that need their help the most and acting upon such things, or they are a person deprived of morals and kindness, instead succumbing to their own anger, guilt, and hatred for the sake of knowledge, there is one thing for certain. The Mage of Rage may not seem like the most active threat, especially those who follow the path of gaining knowledge of their Aspect, but do not be fooled. They are still a Rage-bound at heart, and everyone knows how truly capricious they can be at times - especially if they want to play a little dirty. However, they can also be an important ally to have, if only for more inner-group and personal problems than anything else. They could easily be able to sniff out someone who poses a threat to the group, whether it be that person’s own rage, doubt, or fear. As such, they are the best person to put on the job for playing mediator, either between two friends who are having a disagreement or an entire dispute and rift happening within the group. It would be up to the Mage of Rage to discover the roots of these problems and address them appropriately, but that would be the biggest gamble of them all. Only the Mage of Rage knows for certain what plague of bitterness has infected their people, and who it has exactly infected. Considering the fluctuating moods of Mages in general, and then to add on the unpredictable and chaotic nature of Rage-bound, the Mage of Rage could become the best mediator within a group but also be the cause for its downfall - if they so choose to play such a nasty hand.

The Mage of Rage is one who is not afraid to play favorites, and if someone they particularly like turns out to be the cause of a problem or pose a threat to the group, then who is to say whether they will truly “snitch” on their friend for everyone else. After all, what has anyone else done for them? What are the benefits to tattling on someone who actually listens to them and believes the words that they are saying? To a particularly nasty Mage of Rage, there are none. After all, if they truly love to gain knowledge through Rage, they are someone who would rather leave everyone in states of paranoia and mistrust until it tears everyone apart. It would be unwise to not have at least one person keep an eye on the Mage of Rage at almost all times. However, not all Mages of Rage pose such large threats to a group’s integrity, tranquility, and honesty. For the Mages of Rage who have managed to acquire the skill of patience, they can prove themselves to be extremely valuable to the team. With their capability to gain knowledge of Rage, specifically of destruction, they could play an important part in creating large game plans for the team and securing victory with ease. They could pinpoint all of the easiest ways to attack an enemy and smite it. As their power of knowledge grows, so does their capability to take down their opponents swiftly and cleanly, unless they wish for it to be messy. The Mage of Rage is one who saw the truth of the world around them, and after breaking free of the shackles and tossing away the clothes forced upon them, they have found the robes and garbs that best fit them and show who they truly are. The Mage of Rage is someone who can either be someone’s savior, or their reaper. All that truly matters in that judgement is whether they deem you as a blind fool or a pitiful victim to the system. Remember, when the Mage of Rage is quiet, that is when peace has been eliminated from within their mind.

[mystic-kitten-writer]

Eden [M] ︳Prologue

Pairing: Dabi x Reader

Genre: Smut with plot; romance, angst and some fluff to unfold.

Rating: NSFW-ish

Warning: Mild dirty talking, mild dry humping, mild degradation, and inappropriate touching.

Words: 5300+

Notes: Happy valentine’s everyone~! I hope you had a fantastic day/evening, and here is a lil’ present for you all. It’s the prologue of ‘Eden’, and hopefully you guys get a taste of this new, upcoming, series.

Please note, updates are going to be slow. At the moment, ‘Limerence’ is my main series (Greek Mythology is my side project). But once Limerence is done, Eden will be my main focus! Tags aren’t working (why am I not surprised) - but hopefully that fixes itself soon and appears in people’s feed.

Thank you for reading, and please don’t be shy to leave a like or comment, take care~!

Masterlist ︳01

❤ Buy me a coffee? ❤

It seems he managed to wander into a garden, and he was starving for a taste of that forbidden fruit. And now that he got a taste, he was not going to let go. His fingertips were engraved with sin, burning her skin with every touch, chin dripping of her sweet juices. “Fuck.” He grunted under his breath because he knew – this was more than just a quick taste.

Savory

(flower); spice, interested.

           “Ah, you’re a lifesaver!” Izuku Midoriya declared, face flushed as his head bounced up and down. His dark green hair flew everywhere, a pretty contrast from his pink freckled cheeks. He was the living definition of ‘rookie’ – filled with an unreasonable amount of energy and enthusiasm. You’re surprised you didn’t see his face plastered beside the word in every dictionary around the world.

           But it was that same energy, desire to be a hero, that had your lips curving upwards, a kittenish smile painting your rose-coloured lips. How could you not shoot him one of your infamous smiles, brushing back your hair as you mused. He’s a ball of motivation and joy – a real hero in the works.

           “If Recovery Girl finds out I healed you despite her orders, she’ll have my head,” you advised with a click of your tongue, truth lingering in your statement. After showing up to work slightly hungover – courtesy of Midnight’s refusal to accept ‘no’ for an answer for bar-hopping – the last thing you wanted was to be caught healing Midoriya.

           As if he could read your mind, the green-haired boy moaned under his breath.

           You wiped the last bit of ointment onto his skin, wrapping his wounds, spotting the way his shoulders slumped for a moment – remorse painting his face. But just like that, he puffed out his chest, a sudden resolve overcoming him.

           “I’m sorry. But I can’t let All Might down – I need to push myself-”

           “Keep pushing yourself, and you won’t have any of ‘yourself’ left to be a hero.” You interjected, causing Midoriya’s mouth to shut close, taking in the weight of your words. He stared at you with those large eyes of his, watching your fingers ease their way off his bruised limbs, the bandages new and tightly wrapped.

           “Recovery Girl is going to whip All Might’s ass if she finds out you were hurt - again.” You spoke honestly, causing the pink tint of his cheeks to turn into a darker hue. His freckles almost blended in with the flush, nodding his head furiously at your in-direct warning.

           It was at times hard to believe that this naïve, well-natured boy was Katsuki Bakugo`s supposed ‘rival.’ It was like comparing apples and oranges – this year’s students were something else. Your hands fell over your lap, leaning into Midoriya, you gaze meeting his.

           One for all…

           “Come on, let’s get going before we get caught. I’ll wrap up a few herbs for your mom to smash up. Make sure you rub it into your skin after your bath. It should numb the pain and stop the bruising and swelling.” You spoke, shooting him another cheeky smile, a weak attempt to wipe that look off his face.

           With a tired sigh, you pushed yourself off your seat, the sound of your black heels clicking against the white tiles of your office, filling the quietness. It was as you strolled around, eyes scanning the dozens of tiny planters that hung along the walls, you realized how late it has gotten.

           The sun was setting; the campus eerily quiet as most of the students were already home. Shit – and you still have to make dinner. Your index finger fell over your pouting lips; eyes eagerly searching for that one particular pot-

           “Ah- there it is.” You hummed pleasantly, reaching forward. The tan planter fell over your desk with a soft thud, your fingers dancing over the dirt until you felt it.

           The roots were starting to stretch, the shoot wiggling its way from the soil, pushing and shoving the dirt painfully slow before breaking the surface. “Come on, baby.” You muttered softly, focusing on the energy of the plant. And you swore, because you could feel the annoyance of the plant, undoubtedly grumbling a faint ‘fuck you, you forgot to water me last night,’ before spouting into a perfectly formed leaf.

           “Hero alias; Eden. Real name; Y/N. Quirk; Bioterra – can take any seed or spore and manipulate them in movement or growth…” Midoriya muffled under his breath. You let out an airy laugh hearing Midoryia mumbling to himself, clipping the newly formed seed leaves carefully, before thanking the plant.

           You prefer not to piss off the seedling. Afterall – this little babe has saved your ass far too many times to count.

           Looking over your shoulder to Midoriya, you tossed the last of the herbs into a cute little baggy. “If you keep mumbling under your breath like that, you’ll end up just scaring all the villains away.” you teased, and Midoriya scratched his head.

           “I never saw your quirk before – it’s really pretty!” He gushed, and it was then you realized that the boy was no longer patiently sitting on the examination table, but eagerly hovering over your study with a pen and book in hand. Where and when did he even-

           “Word of caution, Midoriya, while I may be the sidekick of Recovery Girl – don’t think for a second that all I can do is heal. I can grow some pretty toxic things. Get too close, and you might cease to exist.” You warned wickedly, wiggling your brows at him. But rather than deterring the curious boy, it seemed to have done the opposite.

           His mouth widened, lips racing, “If that’s the case, does that mean you’re immune to all poisons or toxins created by plants? Does that mean no plants can cause an effect on you, whether its good or bad? Does that mean you can’t heal yourself with your medicine-”

           “Midoriya. Just because you’re my favourite doesn’t mean I won’t force-feed you some valerian root for some quiet.” Midoriya’s face stoned at your threat, instantly bowing up and down. “S-sorry-” Midoriya began to stutter before a sultry singing cut him off.

           “You sure you aren’t a sadist, a villain?”

           Both of you shifted your attention to the entrance, eager to find the owner of that vibrating tone.

           “Good evening, Midnight.” You spoke, smiling radiantly to your best friend, as your arms fell over the shy Midoriya. His green eyes widened, studying the pro-hero up and down in interest – no doubt he was thinking about the rated 18+ hero’s quirk. And given a chance, he would ask her thousands of questions like he has done to you since the start of the school year.

           The stunning deep hue of purple against her red mask brought out the teasing glimmer in her eyes. Midnight cocked her head to the side, arms crossing over her chest, emphasizing her ample bust as she stepped into the room.

           “You’re not doing some unauthorized healing, are you?” Midnight pestered, cocking an eyebrow as she eyed the fresh bandages decorating Midoriya’s fingers. In a flash, your hands squeezed Midoriya’s shoulders, shaking your head with a falsely sweet smile on your lips.

           “Of course, not – I’m just showing Midoriya here, my quirk! It’s getting late; we can talk more tomorrow.” Your grip loosened, shoving the boy forward. While Midoriya was undoubtedly naïve, he wasn’t dumb. He quickly got the hint, stepping forward before waving at the both of you, “Thank you for demonstrating your quirk, see you tomorrow!”

           He dashed away from the voluptuous dominatrix, the sound of his heavy feet running down the empty hallways of UA slowly fading the further he ran. The moment he was out of earshot, Midnight twirled her whip, purring.

           “Lying to a teacher, how naughty of you.” Midnight snickered, tapping her chin as she inched her way forward. Her skin-tight costume only seemed to accentuate her sex appeal, and you rolled your eyes.

           “What are you going to do, spank me?” you challenged with your tongue sticking out. Your hands made haste with sweeping up the dirt that littered your counter, giving your seedling a lil’ treat for working so hard today.

           Midnight laughed obnoxiously loud, “You’ll enjoy that too much, you kinky bitch.”

           “And that, I won’t deny.” You giggled back, already knowing Midnight was snooping around your office, sniffing all the flowers that were blooming. She, in particular, loved the darker hued flowers, saying it matched her aesthetic.

           Placing the planter back into its spot, you turned on your heel, reaching for your purse that you left on the floor. “What are you doing here so late, anywho?” You pondered, swinging the strap over your shoulder, checking for your house keys and wallet.

           Midnight sighed dramatically, taking another whiff of the roses, “Meetings. I could use a drink, girl.”

           “Well, count me out, I’m starving, and it’s late.” You stated, shutting the window of your office, and locking it. It was officially dark outside, the streetlights looking like twinkling stars. Time moves faster when you’re having fun.

           “Oh, come on! You’re young and sexy, go out. Get drunk – better yet, find yourself a hot daddy.” Midnight argued, waltzing over to your side in a flash, tone rising with passion. “Just because you work for UA doesn’t mean you can’t live a little. You’re starting to turn into your grandmother – work, work, work.”

           You pouted, “Please don’t compare me to my grandmother.”

           Don’t get it wrong; you loved and respected your grandmother – Recovery Girl.

           She was the first hero of the family, the family pride. Hell – she was the reason why you even wanted to become a hero. She used to take you to her workplace when you a mere toddler, showing you off to all her co-workers, bragging how you’re going to be the next big thing. She was the definition of a proud grandmother.

           That’s why you worked your ass off, becoming the second hero in the family – and next-in-line to become UA’s healer once the old lady decides to retire.

           “Come on, one drink? Maybe I can hook you up with some of my friends. They know how to treat a woman. Want a submissive, a dom, ou- maybe a switch?” Midnight insisted and at that point, you huffed loudly. You saw the stars in her eyes the more she talked about the possibility of hooking you up with one of her friends. This woman-

           Linking arms with the sex addict of a friend you had, you shut your office door behind the both of you, walking through the deserted hallways. The hallways of UA was dead, all the classroom doors locked, blinds lowered so only the poorly functioning lights of the school could guide you out of this prison.

           “Don’t ignore me! I have yet to see you with someone. What do you want? What are you looking for, girl?” Midnight groused under her breath.

           What do you want…?

           Your mouth opened, a sly smirk on your face. “You know what I want? I want a fuck buddy, no feelings. Just good, hot, rough sex.”

           “And I know a friend who can do just that!” Midnight blurted, but you merely shook your head.

           “I already have someone.”

           Midnight’s eyes widen, stopping abruptly in the dimly light hallway. “You have someone? Excuse me, who is this person and since when? You haven’t gotten laid in god knows how long, and it shows.”

           You grinned mischievously, leaning into her. Midnight was on her tippy-toes, eyes and ears eagerly waiting for the spicy gossip. Her hands clasped together, leather whip firmly caught in between her tight grasp. If only she knew.

           “They’re the best. Their name is ‘dildo,’ and they’re always ready to get down whenever I need them.” You whispered.

           The moment Midnight realized what you were saying, the look of utter annoyance was clear as day.

           “You’re fucking ridiculous, Eden.” Midnight fumed, throwing her arms up in defeat as she stormed forward. You laughed from behind her, watching the way she cursed under her breath, her whip swinging back and forth. To be fair, you’re surprised she didn’t use it on you.

           “You love me, Midnight!” You screamed from behind her, and she merely shot you a glare over her shoulder, lips pressed together, trying to hold back a grin. “If you were my toy, I would’ve beaten your ass till it’s purple and blue.”

           You shoot her a kiss, playfully slapping your own ass as she raged. “I can’t wait till you find someone. And I hope they put you in your damn place. Fuck you till you can’t walk.”

           “That’s the goal!” You chirped, earning another hiss from the queen of lust, herself.

           The cold breeze that funnelled its way through the mutedly lit alleyway in which you walked was borderline painful. Your dress suddenly seemed far too short for the summer weather, your arms wrapping around yourself as you grumbled. The temperature seemed to drop in a matter of minutes – the twenty-minute walk from the school to home seemed like a journey.

           It was unreasonably dark, and the brisk air added an uncomfortable feeling in your gut. Not even the flicking neon signs that littered the city seemed to lift the mood – the atmosphere dark and grungy. The faster you get home, the better.

           Your fingers dug into your purse strap, tugging it closer to your body as your UA lanyard bounced off your chest. The bobbing of your identification card matched your heartbeat at this point, your stomach screaming to get some food inside of it.

           Pace hast, you turned the corner abruptly -“You gotta be fucking kidding me.”

           Four men, of medium build, laughing obnoxiously loud and recking of alcohol crowded the already narrow alleyway. Their words were heavily slurred, arms wrapped around each other as they struggled to walk forward. Their clothing was old and dirty, and your nose scrunched up – god even the smell of shitty alcohol smelt better than whatever odour they were emitting.

           Your footsteps eased, cautiously walking behind them.

           They were moving forward, slowly, but they were moving. The smart thing to do would be to walk back and take a long way home  - but that means it’ll take longer for you to cook dinner, take a hot bath, and have a steamy session with your lovely date called ‘dildo.’

           You have the patience for neither.

           With a frustrated huff, you brushed your hair back, letting your gaze fall back onto the ground. Come on, it was a Monday night, and you just wanted to get home. Was that too much to ask?

           Trying to lessen the sound of your heels against the broken concrete, your steps were sluggish. If someone were to be watching behind you, they would’ve thought you didn’t know how to walk in heels. So fucking stupid, these dumb, drunk, idiots-

           “Heeeey maaaan, come over hereeee. We just wanna taaaalk.” A man shouted, and you felt your blood freeze. Your head snapped upwards, hearing the men starting to speak brasher, the slurring of their speech clear.

           Was he talking to you?

           No, they couldn’t be.

           Their backs were still facing you, staggering back and forth as the men seemed to puff in demeanour. Your eyes narrowed, observing one of the men walking hastily, his hands reaching for his back pocket. If he wasn’t talking to you, then that can only mean – he was trying to catch up to someone.

           “Don’t ignore meee, you skinny shit. Come hereee before I add more scaars.”

           Not caring anymore if you made noise, your pace quicken, swaying side to side to catch a glimpse of who this man could be chasing. They can’t honestly be planning on mugging someone; they can barely walk, let alone mug someone. A tired sigh escaped your lips – time to play the hero.

           Your fingers trailed into your purse, grabbing rose seeds, feeling the vines starting to rise over your fingers-

           Heat.

           The sound of your plants whimpering, retreating into your purse as blue flames flooded your vision had your eyes widening, a hostile shiver running up your spine.

           Ashes floated into the clear night sky, the smell of burnt flesh taking over the stench of alcohol as you instinctively pressed your body against the brick walls, seeking any form of coolness. You could feel the hot air rush past your ears, hair flipping for a split moment. Sweat beaded down your forehead – these flames…

           They were explosive.

           Uncontrolled.

           Pure rage.

           But most importantly - absolutely stunning.

           Your long nails dug into the brick wall, shamelessly staring at the light show in front of you rather than saving the other three men. The diverse hues of blue, clashing and mixing like a wild dance. Did that dirty, drunk man unleash this power, such a beauty?

           You quickly realized how wrong you were.

           The ash that was floating in the sky, the smell of rotting flesh – that was him.

           “You’re fucking nuts, man! You killed him – you burnt him alive!” The men screamed, their speech no longer slurred, bringing you back to the reality of the situation. And as the realization of the sight in front of you unfolded, you found yourself swallowing.

           The low-slung chuckle that caught your attention, a snicker that carried in the cold breeze, had your skin rising and lips parting.

           “Well, aren’t you an observant one. It seems I did…wanna be next?” a man spoke, voice raspy, contemptuous in tone.

           You pressed yourself off the brick wall, desperate to seek the man who caused the flips in your stomach. His voice alone was eargasmic, and when you stumbled back, heels clicking loudly, you realized you not only caught the attention of the three drunk men but the man with blue flames, as well.

           The azure embers that lingered in the cold air reflected the streetlights, highlighting a tall, lean man at the end of the shady alleyway. The way his thin lips curved upwards, a sinister smirk emerging as he licked his lips in delight.

           His light skin contrasted against the seared scars that littered his face and neck, staples piercing his flesh in a sadistic fashion. But yet, in some messed up way – the look suited him. The darkness of night adding an air of mystic and dangerous enchantment around him.

           “Well…hello there, doll.” He mused, tilting his head to the side, black hair falling over his eyes. You could feel it, the way his gaze trailed up and down your body, a wild look flashing – appreciating what his eyes were settling upon. You swallowed, a needy flush overcoming your skin, because fuck.

           He was sexy – the type of man, your parents, warned you about. The type of guy, your friends, told you not to associate with because all he was going to do was fuck and dip. You couldn’t strip your gaze away from the man, and he seemed to notice. He let out a small snicker, raising a brow as you gawked shamelessly.

           “Y-you’re a hero from UA! Save us, stop him, arrest him. He killed our friend-” The three men shouted, running towards you with desperation in their eyes. It was their loud and unwanted voices that snapped you out of it.

           What were you doing?

           Here you are, blatantly checking out some stranger – a stranger with an overpowered quirk who just murdered a man. But the enigmatic stranger continued to stare with a look of amusement, even daring to take a step closer.

           “A hero? Oh, this is becoming a lot more work than I wanted.” he snuffled under his breath, eyes half-lidded. The men ignored the man’s commentary, staring at you with annoyance.

           “Do something, you useless women! We don’t pay our taxes for you to look pretty.” One of them shouted, their spit striking your face. Oh - hell no.

           “As if you guys even pay your fucking taxes. Maybe if you didn’t get piss drunk and try to mug the man, your friend would be alive.” You shouted heatedly, stepping forward and shoving the man back. He was getting far too close for comfort – he needs to learn something about personal space.

           The man’s eyes widen, stumbling back a few steps before narrowing his gaze. “This damn psycho killed someone!”

           “He was defending himself against you morons.” You fumed, hands balling into fists. You may be a hero, but you weren’t forgiving. That was the problem nowadays; people could not take responsibility for their damn actions. Starting fights, getting their asses kicked, and then crying wolf. And of course, you had all these ‘heroes,’ eagerly picking up the pieces of their messes to fuel their damn ego.

           “If you’re smart, you’ll leave before I report this whole incident. And I can guarantee it’ll be you three going to jail.”

           “You can’t report shit if you’re dead.” The man sneered before raising his hand. There in his grasp was a small dagger, the moonlight bouncing off the thin blade. So enraged by this man’s ignorance, you failed to notice the way his hand lingered into his jacket pocket.

           You could feel the blood drain from your face, impulsively cowering away from the blade. He caught you out, and you were surely going to pay now, shit-

           That was when you spotted it, the dash of black, a pretty hand reaching for the idiotic drunk. The manic smile that painted the blue flamed stranger’s face, a lust-filled look as his hand outstretched over the man.

           His long boney fingers wrapped around the side of his head, clawing into the skin of his face. You saw the terror etched into the drunken man – eyes shifting to look at your unexpected hero — the last thing he would ever see.

           “Burn.” The stranger whistled, and that was when you felt the overwhelming heat once again.

           An explosion of blue fumes flared before you, and the man who held the knife didn’t get a chance even to scream – incinerated in seconds. There wasn’t an ounce of control or restraint in this man’s flames, just pure and utter chaos. Smoke fluttered from the man’s skin, eyes crazed as he grinned, the flames ceased in intensity.

           Ashes and embers erupted into the air, the sound of the blade hitting the ground echoing between the brick walls. The stranger let his hand drop to his side, before tilting his head to your direction. That was when you spotted it — one of the untouched men was reaching for the burnt knife that laid on the ground.

           “Oh no, you don’t-” You hissed, the tipsy man staring up at you in surprise. But his resolve was set in stone, eager to get revenge for his now two dead buddies. The hot blade twisted in his hand, holding it tight as he swung down.

           He wasn’t aiming for you at all – he was trying to injury your anti-hero.

           You lunged forward, chest clashing with your newly developed crush, arms reaching around his neck. The inebriated man swung, and right before the blade could come in contact with your dark hero, your hands tightly gripped the man’s wrist, nails digging into his skin.

           “Let. Go.” You threatened, teeth clenching as you tried to hold him back.

           “Dude, the fuck are you doing? They’re heroes – they’ll kill us with their damn quirks. Run.” The only reasonable man of the two shouted, and that was all it took. The weapon slipped from his fingers, hitting the floor, and your grasp loosened.

           He whipped his hands from your touch, spitting on the ground where you stood as he ran down the alleyway with his only remaining friend. “Let’s get out of here.” They slurred, the sound of their shoes drumming against the concrete – turning the corner and out of sight.

           A drained gasp escaped you, arms going limp as your forehead rested against the man who saved your ass. Holy fuck – talk about a giant cluster fuck. The air around you smelt like death and fire, sparks spreading across the block, courtesy of the night breeze.

           How are you going to explain this? All the paperwork and details – you really outdid yourself tonight, didn’t you?

           “Hmm…he wasn’t lying; you’re a ‘hero’ from UA.” A dark voice droned into your ear. His hot breath tickled your neck, skin tingling in bliss, and your head shot upwards. That’s when you took in how utterly striking the man; you currently had your arms wrapped around, was.

           His eyes were magnetic, a turquoise so damn vibrant and clear your mouth dropped.

           Being as up close as you were, you could appreciate the silver piercings that decorated his nose and ears — an unpredicted attractive mix with his purple and red coloured scars. Overall, his features were soft, despite his attitude and whisky-like voice, although his jaw could probably cut diamonds with how damn sharp it was.

           Damn, he was attractive, and you couldn’t help but feel your breath getting heavy the further you gawked. Midnight was right – you were sex-starved, and the way you studied this man up and down like a damn snack, was the proof.

           His lips curved upwards to a smile that even the devil himself would swoon, noticing how your eyes scanned him with longing. Your fingers brushed his long black locks by accident, and you could feel your heartbeat pounding in your ears.

           “Do all UA heroes dress like this? Short dresses, low necklines?” The man chuckled, his fingers playing with the lanyard that was perfectly nestled between your breasts. Your cheeks flared, feeling his calloused fingers against your cleavage. His touch was far from tender, purposely letting the ID roll between his fingers, conveniently pulling your neckline further down your torso.

           And the worst part was you weren’t mad at his erotic touch as much as the comment, nipples hardening at the thought of this going further.

           “I beg your pardon?” You retorted, and the stranger merely laughed, licking his lips as he leaned closer to your face.

           “Oh, you can beg all you want, doll.”

           Fuck, this man knows what he’s doing. You snickered under your breath, untangling your arms away from his shoulders, pulling the lanyard that he played with away. “Thank you for saving my ass back there.”

           He smirked, running his hands messily through his hair before stepping forward. Your bottom lip rolled between your teeth, eyes fluttering as you watched the way the man before you dominated. He was rolling his shoulders back, each step of his lazy in demeanour, eyeing you like how a predator stalks its prey.

           “You come here often? Walk down these sketchy alleyways for fun.”

           “I’m kind of a hero, and unfortunately, walking in creepy alleyways is in the job description.”

           “Is eye-fucking people also included in that job description?”

           “Nope, that’s something I do on my own time.” You grinned, earning a handsome one back. He licked his lips, hands falling into his pants pockets as he stepped closer. You didn’t even realize the little dance that was happening.

           Both of you, stepping closer and father between words, walking in circles as you bantered pointlessly. The fact that this man killed two people was lost to the wind (literally) – you were a hero, sure, but you never said that you were good at it.

           “Personal time…that means you’re on your way home. Good to know.”

           “Plan on stalking?”

           He merely shrugged his shoulders, eyes falling back to your breasts without a care in the world. “Mm…maybe. Y/N – pro hero, Eden.” He muttered under his breath. This time you didn’t bother stopping him, the way he outstretched his hand, jerking on the ID card and drawing you closer to his body.

           Both of your eyes were glossed over, a heat building between your damn legs as he studied every curve in the dress you wore. It wasn’t even skimpy or short, but the way his eyes lingered – you would’ve thought you were wearing nothing but lingerie if you didn’t know better.

           “Next time, wear something shorter.”

           “Excuse me?” you blurted, and he merely laughed, letting go of the makeshift leash. But now that you were close, he seemed to take advantage. His hands fell over your hips, drawing you up against his body, his scared skin brushing against your jaw.

           “You see, doll, boobs are great and all, but that ass you got? I much rather have my hands on that.” He growled into your ear, and you couldn’t stop your small moan. Your hands fell over his shoulders, and you couldn’t even wrap your head around the fact that his hands were running up and down your thighs, shoving you backwards.

           Your back hit the wall roughly, him growling into your ear as he licked down your neck with a low grunt. “F-Fuck, what’s your name?” You blurted, and you could hear him chuckle breathlessly, listening to your gasping sighs.

           “Dabi – that’s the name that you’re going to be screaming.” He grunted, his hips thrusting into yours. You could feel his arousal, hard and heavy, rubbing perfectly against your parted legs. Your head tossed back, another mewl escaping your lips as his fingers dug into your thighs, rubbing his hardening cock against your wet heat.

           “Fuck, you’re nasty, a perfect lil’ slut for me, right doll?”

           His words had you purring.

           “Dabi-” you gasped, and the flashing lights of blue and red caught your attention. The sounds of sirens were clear in the dead of night, and they were rapidly approaching. A pout formed on your lips, eyes shutting close for a moment as you swore because the wet mess between your legs was far more concerning.

           You blew frustratingly; you’ve got to be fucking kidding-

           “Told you I’d have you begging.” Dabi chuckled, thrusting his dick perfectly against your sopping panties one last time, before pulling back. He licked his lips, and you couldn’t help but whine under your breath, seeing that bulge in between his legs – something you so desperately wanted your mouth over.

           “See you soon, Y/N, my delicious lil’ fruit.” He teased, before stuffing his hands back into his pants and running off.

           Your face was flushed, your breasts practically falling out of your dress, your thighs and ass on full display. You watched as Dabi managed to mix into the darkness as if he wasn’t even here a minute ago, dry humping you against the wall.

           “Over here- that’s where people reported the noise.” A few voices bellowed, and in a flash, you pulled down your dress, running back down the same alleyway you came from. Here you were, speedily walking down the very route you should’ve taken to begin with.

           If you had taken this path from the start, you would’ve been already home, dinner cooked, and probably in bed.

           But you couldn’t stop the cheeky smirk on your face, your hands falling over your neck, where his lips practically ravished. You were sure there were going to be some marks, although faint, and that thought made you wetter.

           It seems like Mr. Dildo found himself a new name for tonight – Dabi.

Copyright © 2020 Mystic-Kitten, inc. all rights reserved. No reposting, modifying, or translations of any kind allowed. Thank you for your cooperation.

Disclaimer: I do not own any Avatar characters portrayed in this story besides Ying Yue Jiang, Lia, Kima, and any future creations.

❤ Buy me a coffee? ❤

[agentrouka-blog]

"Show yourself!” Lyanna Stark and her three Elsa Starks.

My son has been enjoying Frozen II every once in a while lately, while he’s doing his three-year-old part to containing the pandemic by staying home, and “Show yourself” is really a heart-stopping piece of music. Gorgeous. The way it builds and what it is about. And it gives me massive ASOIAF feels.

This seems a bit silly, but I have yet to come upon a song that as perfectly captures the emotional relevance of the revelation of Lyanna Stark as Jon’s mother, the relevance for all the remaining Starks. The fit of the emotional arc is amazing. Basically, if you want to feel what GRRM wants us to feel about Lyanna Stark, watch “Show yourself”. 

I’m going into self-indulgent detail About how Frozen II relates to them, and what Lyanna means to Bran, Arya, Sansa and Jon, below the cut.

So, Frozen is a pretty universal story that also applies to ASOIAF. 

The figure of the “always different” special child, estranged from others, who has battled to fit themselves into the world around them and now stands on the precipice of an existential challenge - that applies to all the surviving Stark children. They are all Elsa. They all vitaly need the confrontation with the hidden voice calling them (mother Iduna = Lyanna) in order to reach a balance, to achieve harmony in their world, to enable their non-magical inner Anna to reign in a living world rather than perish, abandoned in one destroyed by chaos.

They have all grown up in the non-magical “Arendelle”, caged by imposed secrecy. That’s Ned, that’s king Agnar, the regular human man. Regular, as in regulation, as in rules. No one must know Elsa’s magical (female) powers. She is locked in a room, contained, lonely. Olaf (love, spring, summer) is a suppressed memory.

Patriarchy, blind duty, the suppression of their inner selves lead to their ruin: Bran the climber who may not climb but then falls, Arya the fighter who may not fight but then murders, Sansa the artist who may not create a dream but instead becomes a liar, Jon the beloved, noble son who is kept in isolation and must be motherless, friendless and damned. Elsa’s magic is harmony but she must hide it and thus brings eternal Winter to Arendelle.

Lyanna, the way Ned refused to talk about her and kept her secret, the effect of that is perfectly illustrated in Elsa’s journey in Frozen I, she is isolated from her emotional needs (Anna, lonely, hungry for connection, full of bad judgment), she has no control over her magic, it turns into something terrible. She pays the price in loneliness and then struggles without proper guidance to “grow up”, to harness her inner strength. She does gain control but it’s chaotic and leaves her vulnerable to abuse and betrayal (Hans) and everything almost falls to ruin, until the power of love creates a last-minute save and a spot of recovery. That’s when they retake Winterfell and reconvene. They all go through this journey and meet at the stalemate.

Frozen II is about connecting to the source of that magic and reconciling with it, about validating it, returning it to its proper place. They find out that Mother Iduna had magic, too. They find out that Elsa’s magic is the key to harmony, that she is not just accepted but necessary just as she is. What was forbidden is now essential. Elsa is finally free to be herself, she applies her magic to save the world and then peacefully lives in it. Anna has a safe space to fullfil her emotional needs and bring all her own talents to life. She is no longer lonely and without purpose, she is queen, soon to be wife, likely to be mother. The other, equally valid side of Iduna. 

Lyanna, the previously hidden and locked power of the female Stark magic: mother, sister, lover; lady, fool and knight, she-wolf, caged bird and the most beautiful flower grown with love from an inhospitable place. She has all the good and bad sides of Bran, Arya, Sansa and Jon, and each in their own way are healed when they follow the call and find her. Their true selves will be validated in every aspect, by being mirrored in Lyanna. 

Bran: his true purpose is to uncover THIS secret while “climbing” a Broken Tower of Joy. His ability to “fly” to learn the truth from the weirdwood memory, it gives meaning to everything that happened to him. Their failure: to break the rules in secret, leading to their unprotected fall. They are ruined, broken. Their redemption:  This fall later unlocks the key to saving the world. Lyanna begets her beloved son Jon. Bran discovers his greenseeing abilities. Being discovered for their true selves makes Bran the Lord of Truth, it makes Lyanna the Queen of Love and Beauty once more, they can leave the Tower the proper way, climb out of that window and fly home. Lyanna comes home, not just her bones, her true self. The truth will set you free, and it turns the potentially destructive, secretive nature of the Three-Eyed Raven into a savior, it turns Winter into Summer.

Arya: Lyanna, the beautiful Stark maiden, who rode a horse and weilded sword and lance and defended the innocent and tried to create justice. The true Lady Knight. Their failures: her impatience and anger at injustice make her heedless and lead to a dismantling of the world, others pay the price in blood (Rickard, Brandon and Lady, all of Arya’s kills). They become a source of death and destruction that eventually destroys her, too. Their redemption: They choose life by choosing Jon. (Make all the abortion jokes you want, but Lyanna LOVED Jon, she chose him in her heart.) Lyanna saves the world by giving it Jon. Arya does the same. She loves Jon first with all her heart, which enables him to love the world in turn, to free Arya by giving her Needle, which then will in turn be the instrument to Arya’s swan song, where she defends the innocent and enacts justice and saves Jon one last time. Found and validated by her spiritual mirror Lyanna, the Queen of Love and Beauty, Arya paves the way for life and the real Spring, not the false Spring. It paves the way for Lyanna’s dream. The blood red tears of the weirwood, of Lady Stoneheart, turn into the image of the Laughing Tree,

Sansa: Lyanna, the dreamer, the lover, the idealist, the mother-in-waiting, the girl who wanted it all: Life lived with emotional fulfillment. Who believed in her heart that there is worth in her dreams and that she was inherently worthy of seeing them realized. Lyanna’s desire, her love, her dreams are Sansa’s. This shared aspect is the most feminine part of all the Starks, the Summer in all that Stark Winter imagery. And Sansa is ridiculed for it because there is no counterbalance to the hypermasculity of their world. Sansa and Lyanna are both betrayed by this imbalance. The oppression inherent in their paternatlistic world takes their softness and turns it into weakness, takes their life-giving bodies and turns them into a weapon against them. Marriage for love becomes rape and birth becomes death. The Sping turns false and, as their dreams die, so does Winter kill life in the world. Their “failure”: Both rebel by turning traitor. They lie, they leave, they turn their backs on their family, they unwittingly deliver themselves into the hands of the enemy. They are made fools. As objects, they inspire the violence and death that Arya herself deals out as a “dark knight”. Their very absence means death to dreams for those who want to live them. Persephone in Hades. Their redemption: Becoming Anna, the non-magical sister. Becoming the real, worldly Queen. Taking control. Giving power to the feminine. When Sansa embraces her own self-worth, she inspires devotion, decency, nobility. When Sansa begins to actively create, she forges a world in which dreams can thrive and when they make their dreams come true, life wins out. She will leave the Tower alive, she will meet her love. Chaos is reigned in, they create stability, beauty, bounty. The true Spring happens when they come into power and preside over all their creations and children with love at their side. Happiness. Spring is coming.

Jon: He and Arya and Sansa are tied together, obviously. The sun and stars (the sun is a star, after all), and the moon of life. Jon is the “true” Elsa, the fifth spirit, her magical heir. He is Lyanna come again, fulfilling what life promised her. Their failure: Believing there is no love for them, they are pressed into a life that abnegates all feminine energy, all dreams. Where Lyanna rebels and becomes a fool, Jon, as a man, flings himself into self-denial and still becomes a fool. As a motherless Stark bastard he can never be his true noble self because the world leaves no room for all he has to offer. Like Lyanna, he is trapped by the rigid rules. Like Sansa, he is ridiculed. Like Bran, the secret in the tower is the source of his misery. This almost turns him into an ice block. It leaves him vulnerable to false love, harmful secrecy, betrayal, death. Their redemption: true love. It is Ned’s love that leads him to keep looking until Lyanna is found and to preserve her legacy. It is Arya’s love that keeps Jon from turning into a rigid, unbending Stannis, it will have her looking until Jon is found again, it will have her lay down her life for his. It will be Sansa’s love that leads Jon back to life after death every time. Real life, Anna’s life. It will be Bran’s love that uncovers the truth. This truth will melt the ice. Lyanna saves Jon when it is revealed that the mother he dreamed of all his life was real. Noble and kind and beautiful and loving him with all her heart. Not some man’s bastard but his mother’s beloved and “trueborn” son, the brightest star in our sky, the gillyflower. This will unlock his ability to fulfill his Destiny, save the world, realize his own dreams and Lyanna’s: a true Stark, the fool knight who wins the love of his Lady, saves her from a tower, marries for love, a parent to children of his own blood. Masculine in harmony with the feminine to create and preserve life.

Lyanna is the key to all of them. Like Iduna’s call leads Elsa to discover her true purpose, the fact that her life is a gift to the world, Lyanna validates the qualities of all the Stark kids. None of them can fulfill their destiny without touching upon her, not until she becomes visible. But when they do, it will be epic. 

And “Show Yourself” just sort of captures the whole range and magnitude of this emotional arc. It really is a brilliant song.

[cryocavalry]

@crimsonheartedphoenix​ sent: 💔 (for any of the 999 aus)                     ↳ 55. Your muse says they hate mine.

WARNING [content]: Death, blood, manipulation, psychological torture (?), dead dove, do not eat unless you’re into it.

Kaeya lifts his hand in an almost casual gesture and the guards step forward. In perfect synchrony they raise their lances and without mercy or hesitation run them through the bodies of the men and women rounded up in their middle. Their screams fill the hall as the ones not slain during the first strike try to run, a gruesome choir of fear and pain, but not a single one of them escapes their bloody fate. As the last one drops with a sickening thud to the ground, that quickly turns into a sea of red seeping out from under the bodies of the fallen, an eerie silence falls over the hall once more.

The only thing Kaeya can hear is Diluc’s frantic breathing, the promise of tears rattling in his gasps, and the sound brings a cold smile to his lips. 

     “Well? Aren’t you going to thank me, princess?” Kaeya mocks, intending for his every word to rub in deeper how much of a fool Diluc was for expecting any other outcome than this. He’ll learn with time, of that Kaeya is certain, but even now, when he’s kneeling in the blood of his own people, there is resistance in the prince’s eyes. A spark that holds the power to light a rebellion - if it ever landed on anything other than cold stone and ice, which Kaeya knows to prevent. Diluc’s strength is admirable, but it cannot save him. It will only draw this out and make him suffer so much more while bringing Kaeya so much more joy.

     “As promised, I have ended their suffering,” he explains as if Diluc didn’t understand, getting up from the throne he’s occupied to watch the spectacle. It’s not the former king’s, Kaeya knows better than to challenge his older brother like that, but the queen’s seat. Her death must lie many years in the past, but her presence is everywhere, the respect her family and her people still hold for her evident in the way her empty seat is still beside her husband’s, still golden and revered. Was she a loving mother, a gentle queen, or a warrior like her king and her son? A young boy lying at Kaeya’s feet, twitching unnaturally as the life leaves his body, reaches for Kaeya’s leg, silently begging for help. Cold blue gaze watches him as Kaeya neither steps closer nor pulls away, until the boy’s arm sinks to the floor and he goes still forever. Beneath him a puddle of thick red blood grows bigger, creeping across the polished marble until it touches Kaeya’s boot.

     “Did they believe you’d save them, I wonder?” he continues, raising his foot up to the queen’s throne and wiping the blood off the sole on the silk cushion. The smear of red looks quite beautiful on the white and gold, almost symbolic of the end of the Ragnvindr family. “Still trusting in their golden prince.” Stepping close to Diluc Kaeya’s fingers close tighter around the chain in his hand and he gives it a little tug, forcing Diluc’s head back by the collar around his neck. His other hand finds its way into Diluc’s hair, his long fingers diving into the soft red locks. For now his touch is almost gentle. “Mmh, such a good boy you were. Who knew you could listen so well?”

He’d asked for very little in return for putting an end to the torment his brother’s men subjected the former household staff to. Very little in the grand scheme of things, but quite a lot from Diluc’s perspective, he imagines. The prince has a noble heart and he is clearly willing to offer his own life in exchange for the freedom and safety of his people (like all noble idiots), but he has his pride, and there are few things in this world harder to bend and break than the pride of a highborn. There are, also, few things in this world that Kaeya enjoys more than slowly chipping away at Diluc’s pride and self-esteem and watch him thrash around in his struggle to remain steadfast in the face of his torment.

As expected hurting him physically works the least. He is a fighter, made of steel and fire and Kaeya suspects he would sooner die than beg for relief under torture. Humiliating is more rewarding, but it’s not an easy feat. Diluc is stubborn to the point of accepting terrible punishment before showing any weakness. Kaeya doesn’t mind it, if he’s anything it’s patient. Predictably the easiest way to get to him, however, is to threaten his people. The ones that are still alive, that is. For a promise of their safety Diluc is willing to do surprising things and, naturally, after watching his city burn and bleed he was desperate and blind to Kaeya’s treachery. Or perhaps he wasn’t, but it’s hard to make the right decision when your choices are indifference or false hope.

He can’t say that Kaeya went back on his word. He offered an easy way out, though admittedly violating the promise he made to his pretty toy a little, suggesting an opportunity to save lives he was never in the position to preserve. His brother gave the order long before he started his little game, but Diluc doesn’t need to know that.      “What’s wrong? Aren’t you grateful?”

I hate you.

Diluc’s voice is trembling with what Kaeya assumes to be a mixture of pain and rage. A rage so unbearable it flares in the prince’s eyes and possibly would have set the throne room aflame if he was still in possession of his vision. Most men would run away with their tails tucked between their legs when faced with a look of such unbridled hatred, but Kaeya is not most men. He neither runs nor does he feel an ounce of fear; on the contrary: he is delighted.

It seems he finally broke through to him, found the right pressure to force Diluc’s attention away from his brother, who defiled the royal family’s legacy by claiming the throne with violence, from their army who bathed the once so proud Mondstadt in the blood of her own citizens, from the foolish belief that this war wasn���t lost the moment the Khaenri’ahn forces broke through the city walls. Finally he has his attention to himself.

Kaeya’s hold on Diluc’s hair tightens so he can pull his head back into his neck as he leans down to whisper into his ear.

     “Good.”

[artificialqueens]

Girl on Fire (Ninex) - Ashley

A/N: Nina finally starts to believe she is more than just a sidekick in other people’s fairy tales. Only her dream night is cut short when she is dragged away by her drunk best friend as soon as the clock strikes one-thirty. Monet is sick of pining after her straight best friend and thinks she’s finally found someone who steals her heart away. However, she doesn’t have any idea what her name is. (10k words)

Here goes my submission for the Black Girl Magic challenge, I had so much fun writing this and hope you guys enjoy - think of it as Cinderella in 2020. It is set in the same universe as Got My Number (Branjie fic) however you do not have to have read that to read this. Would love any comments/feedback/concrit anyone has and if anyone would just like to chat my sideblog is @artificialashley. Big thanks to Meggie for betaing this like a legend <3 Hope everyone is as well and as safe as they can be in these current times xoxo

It was safe to say that Nina had been placing her friends’ needs above her own for a long time. She didn’t know when it had started; be it the time she let Brooke swap roles with her last-minute before their drama exam in school, or every time she’d acted as a false alibi for Yvie during her secret rendezvous with a private school girl from the other side of the town, but it had been happening for a while.

This wasn’t something she felt guilty about, not something she would change for the world. Only every now and again the tiniest part of her brain wondered why she couldn’t be the one to have the Disney princess storyline, why she was always stuck as the bumbling sidekick, there to push forward someone else’s narrative. That was how she usually ended off feeling on nights out.

With Brooke sloppily dancing with a boy to her right and Yvie’s mind clearly elsewhere, Nina figured she might as well accept that this night wouldn’t be spent exactly how she’d pictured and try to enjoy it nonetheless.

“I’m gonna get another drink, you want anything?”

“I’m alright.” Yvie nodded, clearly distracted. “I might head back soon, anyway.”

Looking back to Brooke and the boy, a lilt of panic rose in Nina’s body. She knew her friend was a grown girl who could look after herself. But that didn’t falsify the universally acknowledged fact that when Brooke Lynn Hytes began to toss her hair and sway her hips, no one was safe. “Wait ‘til I’m back, though?”

“Of course,” Yvie responded, adding a thumbs up for good measure.

With that Nina made her way to the bar, trying her hardest to be speedy whilst still polite, something that was almost a kamikaze mission on nights like that. Despite her taller and broader frame, she’d always struggled to worm her way to the front of the bar, scared of hurting anyone near her and trying her best to remain patient.

Her foot tapping against the floor without thought, a wave of relief washed over her when a bartender beelined her way.

“A single vodka lemonade please,” she smiled to the man, holding the exact amount of change in her hand ready.

To her surprise, she heard a laugh to her left. A deep throaty laugh, the kind that required someone’s head to fall back to escape.

That’s when she saw her.

Monet.

“Make that a double,” the girl’s voice flanked down the bartender, smooth like honey. “With Red Bull. None of that lemonade bullshit. And one for me too.”

It wasn’t a secret that Nina had had a crush on the girl for a while. Or at least not to her friends.

It had started in year 13, when their sixth form decided to make some promotions, placing posters on the front gates, on roundabouts and even on buses around the town - Monet’s bright smile and warm brown eyes adorning every single one.

“Doesn’t Bob’s sister look just like her?” Yvie pointed at the poster as they made their way out the gates, on route for their daily meal deal.

“I know right!” Brooke added. “They could be twins.”

But Nina didn’t really agree, stopping in her tracks. “Look at her eyes, they’re much bigger than Bob’s. And her cheekbones, Bob’s face is more round. Look at her lips…” She trailed off for a moment. “She’s beautiful.”

Brooke and Yvie turned their heads to face her in synchronisation, realising the same thought.

“I’m not saying Bob isn’t pretty,” Nina panicked, afraid that she had been rude about the kind and bubbly girl that everyone in her year adored. “I just meant—”

“We know what you meant.” Yvie grinned with every muscle in her face.

“Nina and Monet, sitting in a tree—” Brooke started to sing and wave her arms in the air, only to be interrupted mid-stride after being swatted with a plastic folder full of literature coursework.

“We don’t even know her!” Nina turned to them, a blush starting to seep through her pale cheeks. “You can’t fancy someone you don’t know.”

She didn’t need Brooke or Yvie to tell her that wasn’t true.

“Oh,” Nina turned to face her, lost for words being an understatement to how she felt.

“Sorry,” Monet laughed, looking her up and down in a way that made Nina’s body tremble. “I wasn’t going to let a girl stand and wait anxiously for so long to order a single vodka lemonade, not on my watch.”

Before Nina could think of how to respond, the bartender had returned with their drinks, Monet handing him over a note and taking them, sliding one in Nina’s direction.

Nina found herself in awe almost of the other girl’s confidence.

“Thank you,” she managed to muster after taking a sip, the sweet tang of the drink giving her a shock, her hand automatically raising to her mouth.

“Oh,” Monet tilted her head and pointed a finger. “You’re one of them.”

“One of who?” Nina looked around confused, paranoia racing through her veins, only dissolving once she felt Monet’s hand touch her arm. Nina wondered if maybe a flame burned inside Monet’s ribcage where her heart should have been, heat radiating from the girl’s hands and eyes, from the entirety of her curvy frame.

“One of those pretty girls who just stands with a drink and doesn’t dance. The boring ones.”

And for a moment Nina forgot about it all. She forgot about how drunk Brooke was across the dancefloor, she forgot about how distracted Yvie had been acting. She forgot about her worries, her nerves, her usual hesitation. She forgot there were other people on the planet as she watched the girl she had crushed on for the longest time light up the night around them.

“I think you’re wrong,” Nina spoke softly, finishing the rest of her drink in record time.

She didn’t know if her heart was beating fast because of the girl or the drink. But either way, it was telling her that if she didn’t let those arms hold her it would jump right out of her chest and onto the sticky floor below.

And so she did, swaying to the music in time with Monet, letting the girl’s hands wander around her waist.

“Can I touch your hair?” Nina whispered, almost too quiet for Monet to hear.

Suddenly, she remembered seeing the girl eating on the grass once when the sun was out and shining. How she’d watched as her friend attempted a cartwheel and failed, Monet throwing her head back with laughter, her curls dropping down and almost touching the grass below them.

Monet nodded in response, Nina slowly and gently running her hands through the locks, smooth against her skin.

That’s when she felt Monet’s body inch in closer to her own, Nina seeing the purple sparkle on her eyelids briefly before shutting her own and leaning forwards.

She could feel the flame inside Monet make its way into her own body too, burning the whole floor that surrounded them. One word, one name running circles around her brain. Her lips felt familiar like Nina was simply coming home from a trip away. They moved together just perfectly, an equal balance of pressure back and forth.

Nina’s eyes opened for a second as she watched Monet pull away, a big, bright, and beautiful grin plastered on her face. Before she could take it in anymore she was pulled back into the fire, immersed in its embers, the outside world fading away to ash and dust around her.

Maybe she was more than the sidekick for one night.

That was until someone called the emergency services and the fire was extinguished.

That someone being Brooke Lynn Hytes.

She didn’t process it at first, the voice that was crying out being filtered out of her thoughts to focus on anything and everything Monet. But when she heard it again, Nina couldn’t help but double-take.

“You can’t kick me out! I’ve been coming here since I was fifteen, you nonces!”

Nina’s jaw dropped in horror as she saw her best friend being carried by two bouncers who’s heads almost touched the ceiling. Silently cursing at Yvie, she looked back and Monet, the red lipstick that was previously the definition of precision now smeared around her lips like a crime scene.

“I have to go.”

“Oh. Okay.” Monet frowned at her. “Can I get you on Snap? My phone’s dead, though. I’ll add you back as soon as I’m home.”

“Yeah,” Nina grinned, her mind taken away from her mess of a best friend for a split second to bask in what was happening. Only for her joy to plummet when she reached into her bag and pulled out an assortment of eyeliners and lip glosses instead of her phone. Her mind flashed back a few hours before when Brooke was only at her happy-drunk stage and had insisted on taking some cute photos of them on Nina’s phone (having the best camera, of course), realising that her phone was, in fact, being carried out of the club in Brooke’s pocket as she spoke.

“Shit,” she looked back and forth between her bag and Monet as if it would appear by magic if she wished hard enough. Knowing she needed to hurry to her friend, she quickly grabbed Monet’s wrist and began scribbling across it with her eyeliner, giving her hand a quick squeeze before running off in the opposite direction to find Brooke.

She could have sworn her lips were still tingling by the time she’d caught up.

“Nina!” Brooke cried from her seat in the smoking area, throwing her hands in the air to hug her best friend, only for them to flop back down dead-weight at her sides when they didn’t reach.

“Please can you get her out of here?” The bouncers turned to face Nina, leaving her petrified like a school kid who’d been caught skipping lessons.

Nina’s motherly side came to fruition as she tried to convince Brooke to come home with her, secretly thinking about how long she could make fun of her for being in this state. She decided on at least until the Easter holidays were over, all the way up until Summer at a push.

Eventually, the light at the end of the tunnel began to emerge; Nina managing to convince Brooke to make her way home. The only problem was that she didn’t want to do so with Nina.

“You’re not coming with me, I want you to go in there and get yourself a shag. I know you fancy Bob’s sister. Do it for me, Nina, I’m living through you!”

Her cheeks turning a brighter red than the lipstick that was smothered around her mouth (Monet’s lipstick smothered around her mouth), Nina found herself both mortified and joyed at her friend’s words, a part of her bursting with excitement at the fact she’d finally managed to kiss the girl that always caught her eye but also embarrassed at Brooke’s choice of crude words and inability to lower the volume of her voice.

“I’m coming with you, just let me find Yvie.”

“Nooooooo.” Brooke protested as if she were being asked to go home with a criminal trying to kidnap her rather than her best friend of ten years.

That was when a gravelly voice appeared next to her, a familiar voice she had spent years trying to imitate, never fully being able to capture just how unique it was.

Oh, how she had missed spending time with Vanessa.

Nina had never been one to pick sides, always wanting to be friends with everyone as best as she could be, but it seemed that had been impossible since the infamous breakup plagued their group earlier that year. She understood why Vanessa had cut her and Yvie out of her life, knowing that they would only be a constant reminder of the past but she couldn’t help but long that their group of six was just that again. And seeing the way Vanessa was looking at Brooke gave her a sneaking suspicion that she was not alone in those thoughts.

Content that Vanessa would be able to talk sense into Brooke ten times better than she would, Nina retrieved her phone and checked the time. The club didn’t close for another thirty minutes. Her heart almost skipped a beat and she realised she had a whole thirty minutes to feel Monet’s hands around her waist, their lips pressed together with varying pressure, releasing waves of latent heat into the disco lights above.

Only in the sea of heads bopping to the music, one set of dark curls was nowhere to be seen.

***

“So tonight’s not the night then?” Monet felt Anthony speak close to her ear, his gaze cast to Monique, who they could hear giggling as she attempted to re-tie the back of Asia’s bodysuit, her drunk coordination and false nails making the tying of a bow as hard as neuroscience for her.

“No night is the night.” Monet rolled her eyes at her friend.

As much as she loved him and admired his ability to want to address issues head-on, she had to admit that he was sometimes just a pain in the arse. And a shit-stirrer. He was also a really big shit-stirrer.

“Whatever you say.” He held his hand up in defence, grabbing Monet’s wrist and dragging her over to the other half of their foursome.

Only her attempt to get lost in the music failed as soon as Monique grabbed her hands, twirling her around and playing like they usually did.

Growing up in Britain to a Caribbean family, Monet had fought hard to fight off the bad stereotypes and embrace the good ones that came her way. She had never thought the one that would plague her the most would be pining after her straight best friend, yet here she was, dreading the moment that the repetitive playlist would remix into Flo Rida’s Low and she’d have to let the stunning girl touch her as if it was no big deal at all.

She decided it might just be better after all if she went to the bar once the familiar beat began to play, figuring that alcohol would work as a good enough distraction.

Only once she arrived there, she found one that was much, much more promising.

It annoyed her at first, the incessant tapping of the girl’s shoe so loud she could hear it in the busy club. But then she looked at the legs attached to the tapping feet and the torso attached to those legs and the face attached to the torso and Monet suddenly felt much more forgiving.

She seemed the opposite of Monique, her body thick and her skin pale. Her mannerisms showed a shy, reserved girl, unlike the one that turned everything into a production, unlike the girl she had found herself longing to kiss for months on end.

Monet would have given her the world and more. But she instead settled for a drink.

The perfect distraction.

It wasn’t until they began to dance that Monet realised how different she was to her hookups of the past, finding something endearing in her nervous nature. Normally she’d find herself cringing at someone’s bad dancing, but the way the girl stomped only made Monet want to pull her in closer, seeing something in the girl’s smile that made her feel like she’d known her a lifetime. Never on a night out had she felt so invested, so unaware of her surroundings, unaware of Monique.

Usually, kisses in the club were sloppy, too much tongue and touching. This time was different, the girl asking politely if she could touch Monet’s hair (Monet wanted to tell her she could pull it as much as she liked but refrained with fear or sounding too eager). Her lips were soft and gentle; Monet may have just let a small moan escape from her mouth after they parted, unable to stop grinning once she pulled away. The usual fire of confidence that burned inside of her was dancing all over, going crazy over the dirty blonde and her blue jumpsuit, the sequins dazzling in the light of the disco.

She tasted of hope and Red Bull.

That taste still lingering once the girl had pulled away, scanning the room in a panic and turning back to Monet. She wasn’t a mind reader but she knew something was wrong.

“I have to go.”

The words pierced her skin like an arrow, shot from the closest range. Monet should have been okay, she knew it was unrealistic to think that the girl would invite her back and she’d spend the entire night in her arms. Yet all she wanted was to wake up in a big four-poster perfectly entwined with her body. Generally, Monet thought of herself as a rather chill person, not letting much get under her skin, but the thought of leaving without this girl’s Snapchat made her stomach tighten just enough.

She watched as she pulled out her eyeliner and scribbled, unable to read the scrawl properly in the darkness of the club, knowing she’d have to wait until she was home to read it properly.

Monet could still feel where the girl had squeezed her hand minutes later, standing alone for a moment to take it all in before starting a mission to find her friends.

It didn’t take long. Within thirty seconds of looking she could already see them, their own circle formed in a less busy area of the dancefloor, Asia pretending to make it rain whilst Monique and Anthony took turns in the middle, splitting and kicking to the pop track playing as though they were in a fight for their lives.

She wouldn’t change her crazy group of friends for the world.

“Hey girl,” Monet placed her hands on Asia’s shoulders, unable to keep the ‘I’ve just pulled a really fit girl’ grin off her face.

“She returns!” Monique screamed over the music, still focused on dancing and managing not to miss a beat. “You look like you’ve had fun.”

It was rare that Monet spoke to Monique about any hookups, keeping that part of her life a separate entity in their friendship, shutting her friend down whenever she asked any questions about it. In her home there was a fine line between what was discussed and what was not, Monet sometimes struggling to remove that division when she hung out with her friends, afraid that she’d only open the box and release more creatures than intended. Afraid Monique would realise how she truly felt.

Only this time it was different; maybe she was still reeling from the kiss or maybe it was the vodka, but she had no problem telling her friends about the amazing girl she had just met, or as well as she could do given that they were in the middle of a dance to the death.

“Hey, Monique, why don’t you just do a cartwheel?” Anthony shouted to her, causing an eruption of laughter on Asia’s face and a contrasting one on Monique’s that only meant trouble.

“Do not encourage her!” Monet turned to her two friends trying to keep a straight face, montages of all of Monique’s previous failed attempts flashing through her head. She pointed at her and raised her voice: “You cannot do a cartwheel.”

“But who said?”

“Jesus,” Monet shouted over the music, causing yet another eruption of Asia-laughter before the disaster struck.

It started off stronger than most of Monique’s previous attempts. Her hands touched the ground. Her legs went above them. Everyone managed to move away fast enough (this being the reason for failure for fifty perfect of said previous attempts). But it didn’t stay that way. Monet watched almost in slow motion as her arm buckled underneath her, bending in a way that arms shouldn’t bend, hearing Monique cry out in pain.

A cry of pain she could still hear hours later in their local accident and emergency, surrounded by bloody knees and gurning jaws, waiting impatiently for the imbecile she called her best friend to be released.

Normally people would wait until the next day to tell their friend’s “I told you so” in situations like this, but Monet wasn’t that humble, making sure to say it at least six times in the ambulance journey, then another seven to Asia and Anthony once they arrived in their Uber.

“But you have to admit I was winning the battle.” Anthony sat up on the waiting room chair and looked back and forth between the two girls. “She didn’t even know the words.”

Giving him a slap on the wrist, Asia’s motherly side came out, her nose scrunching in annoyance. “That is the last thing on my mind right now!”

“Monet?” He raised an eyebrow to her, avoiding Asia’s stern look.

“I don’t know, mate. I didn’t really see the entire thing, you know. Would be biased to judge from those ten seconds of failure.”

Monet immediately prepared for an ambush based on the looks on each of her friend’s faces.

And ambushed she was, the pair of them forgetting their circumstances for a moment to ask Monet one hundred and one questions about her hookup. Only looking down at her hand to see a messy smudge of eyeliner instead of a name, Monet realised she couldn’t have given them valid answers even if she wanted to.

It would be her to find a girl so intriguing, a girl who made her want to dance all night and lose her the second the clock struck one-thirty. Her only glass slipper of hope turned utterly unreadable during the heat of their panicked ambulance journey.

Sensing upset in her face, Anthony grabbed Monet’s hand tightly. “Do I need to fight someone?”

But before Monet could begin to explain that her hookup needed finding rather than fighting, they were saved by a familiar cry.

“What do we think?” Monique began to shimmy towards the girls, her arm wrapped tightly in a cast, gaining the attention of every soul in the room (or at least the ones who were fully conscious).

Monet knew she should have been concerned, her friend could have been seriously hurt, but something about Monique’s grin as she danced towards them made her beam instead.

“Tens. Tens. Tens across the board!” She yelled as her friend pranced, resulting in the filthiest look from the receptionist, letting them know it was their time to leave.

“McDonald’s?” Monique looked back and forth between her friends once they had left the front doors, clearly unbothered by their haphazard appearances and the fact she had broken a bone.

The rest of the group didn’t even have to answer her question, simply beginning to walk in that direction without discussion, laughing like they had no cares in the world.

Only as the hours tipped on towards dawn and Monique reached out to hold Monet’s hand, it burned red hot where a pretty girl’s Snapchat username has been written. A face embedded into her brain that wouldn’t disappear no matter how hard she tried, a mystery left waiting for her to solve.

***

“Rise and shine!” Nina sang to her best friend, earning only a grunt in response.

“Why are you here so early?” Brooke winced at the sunlight seeping from her window, putting her hand to her throat and grabbing a glass of what she assumed to be water from the nightstand.

Nina guessed by the look on her face after taking a swig that it certainly was not water.

“Because I didn’t want to miss breakfast!” Nina pulled a greasy brown bag from her backpack and waved it in Brooke’s face, who perked up as if by magic. “You should be grateful, I had a right hassle getting this! I nearly ran over some drunk girl with a broken arm just running through the drive-through away from her friends.”

“I’m eternally grateful.” Brooke budged along and patted a spot for Nina to lie next to her.

As much as she hated the drama of nights out and the pounding headache that stopped her productivity the next day, Nina had really missed hungover food and gossip sessions with her friends. It just wasn’t the same without them at Uni.

“So?” Nina looked at her friend, ready and eager to hear what had happened with Vanessa, taking a sip of her drink in anticipation.

“So…” Brooke trailed in response, raising an eyebrow to her friend.

“Did you and Vanjie talk?” Nina couldn’t wait any longer for Brooke to start, spitting her sentence out in one breath.

“Yes.” Brooke looked at her with a gaze Nina had never quite seen before, despite their years of early mornings and late nights of spilling secrets and stories. “But that can wait. What can’t wait is the fact that you managed to pull the girl you’ve had a crush on for ages. Let’s talk about that!”

“Oh. That was nothing.”

Nina was telling the truth. Or at least she was if nothing meant the best kiss of her life. If nothing meant that she could still smell Monet’s perfume when she was getting her breakfast that morning. If nothing meant that she went to bed grinning from ear to ear, the image of the girl pulling her closer a carousel running circles through her head. If nothing meant that every step she’d taken on her way home last night felt as if it were on air rather than the pavement. If nothing meant that she had finally felt like the protagonist of her movie, being granted a night of magic by some special force in the world.

“Nothing? Did you at least get her Snap?”

“Na.” Nina brushed her off.

It wasn’t a lie. Technically she hadn’t gotten Monet’s username - she’d given Monet hers. Yet when she woke up that morning she didn’t have any new requests. She’d be lying for real if she said her heart hadn’t plummeted. It was normal. It happened all the time. That’s what she always told Yvie whenever she was ghosted. Only Nina couldn’t stop the horrible feeling of a knife twisting into her heart that came whenever she checked her phone and saw no notification. She knew it was silly, that it was just a dumb kiss in the club, but she couldn’t help but feel stupid; like she’d been some sort of fool for believing something special had happened to her, a fool for thinking that confident girls like Monet who breathed fire would want to chat to awkward ones like herself who let themselves drown in rain.

“Well, you can just follow her on Insta then. I mean you stalk her enough anyway it’s about time.” Brooke pulled her phone to her face and started to type, a flurry of panic running up Nina’s spine.

She knew that there would be no follow back.

“It’s fine!” Nina raised her voice almost too much, her friend flinching slightly at the volume. “Honestly Brooke, I just want to forget it.”

Nina knew she couldn’t forget it if she tried. She couldn’t forget it if she paid for someone to erase her memories like they did in the films. She couldn’t forget it if she was hit on the head a dozen times.

She wondered if Monet even remembered it at all. Or had she just decided not to think about it, having probably done it many times before, something normal to her. Nina didn’t know which of these options would be worse. She guessed she would never find out.

“I’ll let it go if you give me the last bite of your bagel,” Brooke teased and Nina obliged (having lost her appetite to the wonderful diet technique known as anxiety anyways).

“Have you heard from Yvie then?” Nina asked, trying her best to change the conversation, to think of anything but Monet.

Monet and her kisses.

Monet and her voice.

Monet and her mouth.

She wasn’t very good at this.

“She texted me this morning,” Brooke responded. “Said she was sorry she left. She went for a wee and ran into Ja’mie—apparently, we were gone by the time she got back.”

“Fair enough,” Nina smiled, knowing that she too was responsible for Brooke being left alone. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Brooke thrust her phone into Nina’s hands (who didn’t want to begin to question why it was sticky). “You can repay me by helping me type a text to Vanjie. How do you say ‘Thanks for looking after me in my drunken state, let’s all go for food like old times sake then make up and have babies together someday’ without sounding too eager?”

Nina laughed at her friend and began to type into her notes, grateful that her A-Level in English Language had not gone entirely to waste.

If only she could use it to express her own feelings about a certain dark-haired beauty instead of those belonging to her best friend.

***

“Get up! You’re doing my shift tonight.” Monet’s eyes opened to the feeling of a pen smacking against her face, her older sister stood menacingly with another one in her hand, ready to be launched at any second.

“Erm, who says?” She sat up and looked at the time.

There was nothing like waking up past midday to really motivate her to work.

“I said when I picked you and your friends up from McDonald’s at eight in the morning. Or do you want me to tell Dad you spent the night in A&E?”

“Fuck,“ Monet thought to herself. Or maybe said aloud. She couldn’t really tell, too caught up in images of the night (or morning) before flashing through her brain. The memory of a still drunk Monique calling Bob and demanding she take them home from McDonald’s, running away from the rest of the group and into the busy drive-through when they tried to stop her. Sometimes it scared Monet how averse to danger her friend was, having willingly run in front of a beeping car despite her freshly broken arm just so she could beg Bob to save them a fifteen-minute walk.

“Guess I’m doing your shift.”

Monet didn’t really mind that much, she liked working in her parent’s restaurant, finding joy in being able to chat to customers, recommending food and talking all things Caribbean. A big part of her thanked the job for her social skills, making her outgoing and confident when others in her year often struggled to speak to people. Yes, she often wished she’d gone to University like some of her friends, longing to bask in that fantasy of late-night shopping trips and early morning study dates. But she knew it wasn’t really her style, figuring she’d go full time at the restaurant until she found her true calling. Everyone liked to act like there were these big time limits on when everything had to be done but Monet knew they didn’t really exist.

Besides, her job meant she always had enough money to buy vodka Red Bulls for handsome ladies in the club, one particular handsome lady coming to mind.

The smudge was still on her hand.

Some would probably tell her it was fate, that she lost it for a reason. That they wouldn’t have worked out.

But Monet didn’t believe in all of that stuff. Monet was a fighter of fate instead.

Whipping out her phone, she Facetimed her best friend, eager for help on her mission. She thought for a second that she should have called Anthony instead; after all, his eagle eyes knew the most about Monet’s love life. But a part of her just wanted Monique by her side, knowing that she’d never get over her feelings if she continued to isolate that part of her life.

“Hey, girl.” She answered on the second ring.

Normally Monet would have spent a moment or two thinking about how gorgeous her hair looked wet and slicked back or how perfect the purple of her dressing gown complimented her skin, how it hung on her body just right.

Only now her mind was overwhelmed with other thoughts.

“Do you know what page the club photos get posted on, from last night?” Monet asked her friend after a short while of broken arm-related discussion.

“Yeah, I’ll send you the link - but don’t be tagging me in any where I look a mess.”

“Thanks.” Monet flicked through the photographs, examining each one for a bundle of dirty blonde hair or sparkle of blue sequins. “I’m actually trying to find the girl I got with. Gonna see if she’s been tagged, yanno.”

“Oh.”

Monet stopped scrolling, letting the silence linger for a moment before speaking. “Oh?”

“Nothing,” Monique brushed off. “Just seems a bit extra, is all.”

“I just want to find her. Do you think I should post it on the Uni confessions page in case she goes there? Or what if I tweet it? Maybe a tweet is safer.”

“I swear you’ve never been this bothered about a pull before,” Monique laughed through the phone. A laugh Monet knew to be fake.

‘Because I normally want them to be you,’ Monet thought to herself but didn’t dare say out loud. Only not once during the kiss the night before had her mind strayed back to her best friend like it usually did. She didn’t know if that would ever find a girl to make her feel that way again, she wasn’t throwing it away.

“This one’s different, I’m confident about it.”

“Okay,” Monique smiled on the screen, raising her hands in the air in surrender. “But remember you were confident in GCSE textiles when you tried to make a children’s dress from sponges for our coursework. Doesn’t always mean you’re right.”

“Don’t bring that into this!” Monet gasped, the attack on her garment cutting deep almost like an attack on her entire being, earning a chuckle from her best friend. “Imma get going, gotta shower and go to the shops before my shift but I think I’m gonna tweet it. Who knows, might see her again when we go out on Monday!”

“Monday? Bitch, I’ve got a broken arm.”

“You can still wiggle.” Monet winked at her friend before bidding farewell and hanging up the call.

She may not have had a glass slipper to try on every girl in town but she did have all the power of social media on her side, and that would simply have to do.

***

Looking around at the other girls as they made their way through the town centre, Nina couldn’t help but feel utterly ecstatic.

Things had been awkward at first - the lack of contact since the Brooke and Vanessa break up was a huge elephant in the room that no one wanted to address. However, as time passed the awkwardness began to melt more and more, Nina was excited to learn anything and everything she had missed out on whilst the girls were away at Uni.

“It’s just down here I think.” Brooke squinted at her phone and pointed to one of the streets.

“I thought we were going to the Lebanese,” Akeria stated from Vanessa’s side, earning a jab in the ribs.

“Scarlet doesn’t like it.” Yvie turned to face her. “Besides this place is really nice, I don’t know why we’ve all never been.”

“Probably because we don’t have the same taste buds as your highness!” Silky laughed, Brooke muttering some sort of private school girl gag under her breath too.

“You better not go on like that when she gets there!” Yvie shot daggers to the pair with her eyes, only making them chuckle even more. "If one of you even thinks about calling her that nickname you will be drop kicked.”

It was safe to say Nina had missed their shenanigans, a part of her wishing she could rewind time back to when they went for food like this every other week.

She’d missed Silky’s snide comments and Vanessa’s grunting laugh. She’d missed the way that Brooke and Akeria both clapped when they got excited. And the way Yvie tried to act all cool and hard in front of Scarlet but ended off turning into a soppy puppy everything she smiled anyway.

It was safe to say she was grateful to Brooke for organising their meal and catch-up. Not only was Nina getting to see the friends she had missed so much but she was also being distracted from refreshing her phone every five minutes, constantly disappointed when waiting to see if a certain someone had changed their mind and added her on Snapchat.

“Well, I’m excited to try something new!” Nina smiled at her friend, pretending not to be extremely anxious at the fact she couldn’t find a menu online so didn’t already know what she was going to order.

In fact, she still didn’t know what to order thirty minutes later once Scarlet had finally arrived, a round of drinks having already been devoured by the group, the range in the menu making her foot dance nervously on the floor below them.

“You guys ready to order your food?”

Nina didn’t dare turn around, the discernable voice ringing behind her.

The voice she’d let whisper sweet nothing in her ears less than twenty-four hours earlier.

The voice she thought she would never hear again.

She looked aside to Brooke, a devilish grin on her face, clearly proud of her work as Fairy Godmother.

Nina wasn’t so proud.

Her leg began to shake more, placing her own hand on it to try and calm down.

She didn’t do hookups, they weren’t the norm for her. She wasn’t used to just kissing someone in a club, giving them every part of her and more than acting like it was nothing afterwards. She didn’t understand how people just threw themselves all in and then decided it was nothing. There Monet was, most likely thinking that the whole thing meant nothing when it was filling the entirety of Nina’s brain. She was drowning in it.

It was like watching a gruesome video, Nina knew it would only end in tears on her behalf but couldn’t help but take a peek.

Only Monet looked anything but gruesome. Her hair slicked back into a ponytail, her face fresh, the end of the pen meeting her mouth as she took a break from writing.

Never in her life had Nina felt any inclination to be an artist yet suddenly she wanted to paint a portrait of the girl right there, her apron slightly stained and her hand showing the remnants of a stamp that hadn’t quite washed away.

Her hand that Nina had written on.

If Nina was drowning then Monet was on fire.

“What about you, Cinderella?”

It took Nina a moment along with an elbow from her right to realise Monet was speaking to her, just gawking at her like a kid in a sweet shop (Monet was probably a sherbet lemon, bright and fizzy right next to the till. She was more of a chocolate mouse, hiding on a shelf lower down).

‘Just ask what she recommends,’ Nina thought to herself, only the words never came out, her mouth opening and closing like a puppet she couldn’t control.

Brooke went to speak for her but Monet was too fast, a superhero reading Nina’s mind and saving her from the burning building. “My favourite is the jerk chicken, with lots of gravy.”

“Perfect.” She managed half a smile, wishing Monet would speak for her more often. Wishing she’d speak for everyone in the world with her voice so lovely.

Nina felt Monet’s hand leave her shoulder as she walked away.

She hadn’t even felt her place it.

“Well, isn’t that a weird coincidence.” Yvie sipped from her straw and looked up at Nina despite the utter lack of liquid left in her glass.

“Seriously? I told you I wanted to forget it.“ She turned to face Brooke, giving the best attempt at whisper-shouting as she could.

“I know, I’m sorry, but if I told you you wouldn’t have come. You’ve fancied her for so long I wasn’t gonna let you just let it go.”

“Did you ever think that I can make my own decisions, Brooke? You don’t have to dictate my life all the time. I look like such a freak now!”

“Hey,” Vanessa chirped in from the other side of the table. “Nina, she was just trying to help. I saw this thing on Twitter—”

“Scarlet, do you like Lebanese food?” Nina shouted over, interrupting Vanessa’s plea.

“Oh of course,” the girl responded, clearly unaware of the tension in the air. “My family visited the Zahriyeh beach resort last year and the food was to die for!”

“I’m going to the loo.” Nina stood up abruptly, almost knocking her chair over in the process. “Please don’t follow me.”

Making her way into the bathroom, Nina stared at herself in the mirror.

She knew her friends only wanted what was best for her, that she shouldn’t have snapped at Brooke. She just kept reliving her awkward conversation, kept thinking about the add that never came through her phone and wished they would have left it be.

It was okay for Brooke, who had Vanessa and everyone else in their old sixth form falling around her. Or Yvie who had the quickest wit, unapologetically herself every minute of every day. They were the type of girls who people fawned over, who girls like Monet wanted to speak to. Not Nina West who couldn’t say the word “chicken” without having an aneurysm.

Trying her hardest not to cry, she almost jumped out of her skin when the door opened, expecting an apologetic Brooke with her puppy dog eyes to walk through.

How wrong she was.

“Oh, sorry.” Nina looked around and made her way towards the door.

“For using the bathroom?” Monet smiled at her, Nina left unable to think of a response other than the word sorry again. “About the other night—”

“Don’t worry about it,” Nina blurted, the fear of rejection injected into her bloodstream. She couldn’t bring herself to hear it, to hear Monet tell her that it was nothing or spurt some lie about losing her username. So she decided she’d do it herself, trying her very hardest to seem nonchalant. “We were both drunk, it was stupid.”

“Yeah.” Monet looked down at the floor. “No biggie.”

Nina missed her smile already.

Breaking a silence that felt like a lifetime, Nina released a breath. “I better go. Wouldn’t want to miss my jerk chicken.”

“Couldn’t have that.” She heard Monet’s voice tail off as she made her way back to the table, reliving their conversation for the entire meal - her mind lost in an alternate universe where the night before was the start of a new journey, rather than the remnants of one that never took flight.

Nina realised then how easier things were as the sidekick.

The sidekick never had their heart broken.

***

Monet was ready to take everything she had previously thought about fate and throw it out of the window when she realised the mystery girl from the night before was sitting in the restaurant, sipping happily on a strawberry daiquiri.

Monet had never wanted to physically be a cocktail before in her life but that didn’t stop her from wishing it at that moment.

Asking their head waiter to give her the order instead, she counted down the seconds until their last friend arrived and she could go ask what food they wanted, slipping into her natural confidence and flirtiness, ready to have a daylight conversation with the girl from her late-night memories.

She was nervous again, awkward. Monet wanted to tell her to breathe and shake it off, settling instead for placing a hand on her shoulder whilst she decided what to order.

Normally when asked for suggestions, Monet told the customer whatever was easiest to make, or whatever was going to waste, never her real suggestion.

She gave it this time without prompt.

It was probably wrong to follow her into the bathroom but a part of her just couldn’t handle the anxious look on her face and wanted to tell her everything was okay.

Monet was never one to shy away for what she wanted, overly-excited that she had found the one that got away, thinking of how much the girl would laugh when she told her about her night, how she lost her username thanks to her stupid best friend’s gymnastics related delusions of grandeur.

Only she never got the chance.

“Don’t worry about it. We were both drunk, it was stupid.”

Monet knew she shouldn’t have been upset, it was the type of thing she’d said to many girls before herself. But a small part of her just wanted to crawl up in a ball and cry thinking of how wrong she’d been, of how badly she’d read their moment of passion.

Monique was right. She couldn’t wait to hear her ‘I told you so.’ Monet guessed things hadn’t changed at all, those few words throwing her back in the cycle she was in before. Maybe fate was a part of it after all, maybe this was simply the role she was dealt, no arguments, no compromises.

“Enjoying the shift?” Bob called on her way out, grabbing some tofu from the bench and shoving it in her mouth.

“Something like that,” Monet sighed, checking the clock to see how much longer she would be hiding in the back kitchen until she was free.

“Not like you to be in a mood.” Her sister looked her up and down, clearly sensing a change in disposition from her usually annoyingly vibrant personality. “You better put a smile on cause I know those girls out there, I reckon they’ll tip you if you’re nice. They went to sixth form, used to host a lot of house parties.”

Monet was taken back for a second, laughing to herself at the thought that the girl she’d spent all day trying to find not only went to her old school but also knew her sister. She was starting to wish she’d looked beyond the three pillars of her best friends at sixth form and branched out that tad more, maybe things would be a lot different.

“Do you know the blonde one?”

“Brooke Lynn?” Bob asked.

Monet didn’t know how, but she knew that wasn’t right.

“No the other one. With the dumb smile.”

“Oh.” Bob realised. “Nina West. She was always real sweet, looking after her friends and cleaning up everywhere at parties. Awful fashion sense though, good god!”

Nina.

Nina.

Nina.

She could have said it again and again until it no longer felt like a name.

“Well, I’ll see you later.” Bob snapped her out of her daydream. “You out again tonight?”

“Nah,” she sighed. “Monday.”

All Monet wanted to do was get drunk and forget all about Nina and Monique and the thoughts in her head, desperate for the next forty-eight hours to whizz past her like lightning.

Only that didn’t really happen, Monet instead spending the entire time holed up in her room, letting the hours drag by until it was time to hit the club with her friends.

She wrongly thought that with every drink the name would slip out of her mind that little bit more, only it slapped her across the face every time she swallowed instead.

Maybe it was because she’d made the mistake of searching her.

She wasn’t hard to find once Monet knew her name, coming up immediately with twenty-seven mutual friends. Scrolling through picture after picture of the girl laughing with her friends, something pained Monet in knowing she could no longer send a request. That her feelings were unreciprocated. She’d told the girl that their hookup was “no biggie” but there she was thinking about the photo she’d seen of her standing on the bridge in town and how she wished she could hold her waist while she stood there.

Monet had a strong love-hate relationship with the internet.

One more shot and there she was again.

Nina West, as vivid as a photograph in her mind, her foot tapping against the floor, her eyes a scene of bewilderment.

She danced to a song she knew and then again to the next until they were all blurring into one and she couldn’t figure out what the words were anymore.

Another shot.

She could see Nina leaving some coins on the table before she left the restaurant, her body something that could inspire poetry.

Just one more wouldn’t hurt.

“You wanna go for a walk?” She heard Monique whisper in her ear, snapping her back to the reality her brain was running from.

She didn’t have to say yes.

The breeze was bitter against Monet’s face as they left the club; Monique wrapped a jacket around her body for warmth.

“What about the others?” She turned back and stopped, feeling her friend’s arm link into her own despite it being her only mobile one.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about them.”

They walked for a while before stopping at a spot by the river, the moon glistening in the water.

Monet watched it flow in silence.

Normally she’d have been scared by the rustling in the trees or the darkness of the night’s sky but those fears were lost in the moment.

“Are you really this upset about a girl you’ve known for a few days?” Monique’s eyes shone in the dark, pools of chocolate around her pupils. They kept Monet grounded. “She’s not even that pretty.”

Monet thought she couldn’t have been more wrong if she tried.

“You don’t get it.”

“But I really want to.”

“It felt different, Monique. I never feel like that, I never get like this. It’s fucked me up. I’ve only ever thought anything like that about…” Monet stopped to swallow, deciding she shouldn’t carry her sentence on anyway.

“About me?” Monique whispered, holding her hand out to her friend, her glittery nails scraping the surface of the other girl’s skin.

“You don’t have to feel sorry for me.” Monet pushed her hand away. “I don’t know, I just thought this was something telling me that things were gonna change. I was wrong, too confident. Like the sponge dress, remember.”

“They still can change,” Monique responded.

Her hand moved to the back of Monet’s head, falling down her hair.

She was hesitant at first, moving towards her friend, slow and steady.

Monet’s breath hitched just before their lips touched.

And then everything started to blur.

Lost in the moment, Monet felt Monique’s free arm move down her back, her own hands gripping tightly onto the hem of her top.

It was happening. She’d reached the pot of gold at the end of her rainbow.

Only the coins weren’t shining as brightly as they did in the fairy tales.

This is what she’d imagined for years, what she fell asleep thinking about.

So why did it feel so wrong?

Every movement flashed by in a second; Monet wasn’t feeling them.

She wasn’t feeling anything.

Then the image of highly arched eyebrows and dusty blue eyes made their way into her head.

Monet didn’t have to say it, feeling her friend pull away in the darkness.

“She’s got you bad, hasn’t she.”

“I know you’re just trying to make me feel better.” Monet ignored what she said about Nina. Their friendship was more important. “I know that you wanted to do that because you thought it’s what I wanted. And I did, by the way, think I wanted it. But I don’t. And even if I did, I don’t need you to make me feel better that way. I just need you to be my best friend.”

“I am,” Monique responded, her voice fighting against a brittle sound. “I just want you to be happy.”

“I’m always happy.” Monet smiled. It was weird how things seemed to make more sense rather than less when she was drunk. “I don’t need a girl. Granted, it’d be a nice bonus, but it doesn’t matter if I’ve got my best friends.”

Monique hugged her like she only had seconds to live.

Yes, Monet wanted Nina. She wanted her more badly than she’d ever wanted anything in her life.

But she needed her friends.

“Let’s get you home and never speak of this again, then.” Monique smiled, holding out her hand yet again.

“Agreed.” Monet clasped it around her own, her balance still off-kilter from all the drinking.

At least she didn’t have any shifts to cover the next day.

“Except when you admitted you were wrong about your sponge dress.” Monique grinned. “That, I will never let go.”

***

Nina had just about managed to ignore Brooke and Yvie’s texts about their meal turned ambush. Of course, it was difficult, she’d even written some stuff in her notes that she wanted to chat to them about once she wasn’t mad, having started typing to Yvie about a question on Pointless before remembering she was supposed to be shunning her.

Except Brooke knew her weakness.

Nina could never hold her poker face against a smirking Vanessa Mateo.

“You’re here before me.” Nina stood in awe at Vanessa, a half-drunken hot chocolate and a plate of cookies in front of her.

When they went to Dublin for a long weekend before everyone moved away, Vanessa had slept through her alarm and nearly missed the flight, spending the entire trip borrowing belongings she’d forgotten from the rest of the girls.

She’d be late to her own funeral.

“Of course I am. Didn’t want to miss out on any of my quality Nina West time.” She grinned and pushed the plate across the table, motioning for Nina to take a seat.  

Nina loved how easy things always were with Vanessa, finding admiration in the way she never complexified her emotions.

It seemed odd at first when Brooke fell for her. She remembered being told about the night they met, going into every detail about how intense and annoying Vanessa had been as they searched for her phone. It always made Nina chuckle remembering how casually Brooke had added “and then I kissed her” to the end of her thirty-minute rant about the girl.

She’d always pictured Brooke with someone who shared some of her qualities, a little cynical, a little stubborn, surprised that she’d date someone so full of energy. But the first time she saw them together she knew that Vanessa was her perfect complement.

It just made sense.

“So, are you gonna tell me why Brooke Lynn really sent you here?” Nina asked after twenty minutes of Vanessa’s intricate questions about her degree.

“She didn’t ask me.” Vanessa held her hands up and pouted her lip. “I know why you’re mad, we shouldn’t have meddled. I just thought I’d show you this.”

Nina didn’t know what she expected to see on Vanessa’s phone but it certainly wasn’t a tweet from Monet, dated the day of the meal.

“This is an urgent PSA: To the girl with the pretty eyes and sparkly jumpsuit I got with last night, I’m sorry I lost your snap. Hit me up so I can buy you another vodka Red Bull and put your dancing to test again x.”

Nina was glad Vanessa was there to pick her jaw off the floor and attach it back to her face for her.

“I saw it that day and showed Brooke. I honestly thought it was the right thing to do.” Vanessa held a hand out to her, warm and honest.

“No, no. It was.” Nina read the tweet for what might have been the fiftieth time since she’d seen it. If she wasn’t so shocked she probably would have signed herself up for the Guinness World Record for fastest reading. “I fucked it.”

“You can always pop up now?” Vanessa suggested.

“I can’t. I was so rude Vanjie, I read it all wrong.”

“So make it right.”

Nina grabbed her own phone for a second before placing it back on the table. “If I was her I’d ignore me.”

Maybe the fairy tales just happened to the princesses because they took chances, they didn’t let fear get in the way. They never told the prince that their feelings were nothing, a mistake. They were unashamed of how they felt and never afraid that it wasn’t returned.

Maybe that’s why Nina had always been the sidekick.

“Well, you don’t know you well enough then ‘cause the Nina I know wouldn’t ignore someone.”

She hated when Vanessa was right.

“Either way, I should probably go talk to Brooke and Yvie. I feel so bad!”

“Don’t change the subject,” Vanessa caught her out. “I think they understand. Besides, those two are gonna be there for you to message and kiki with as much as you like for the rest of your life. Do you really wanna go back after Easter and let this girl forget about you?”

Maybe it was Vanessa who should go for some sort of world record instead. Nina would have put money on a successful career for her in motivational speaking.

Cinderella wouldn’t have even made it to the ball had the fairy godmother not given her a gown and slippers.

All that Nina needed was to borrow her friend’s confidence for a night.

“I guess a message wouldn’t hurt.” Nina pulled out her phone and opened her notes, ready to type.

“As long as it’s not seven pages long like the ones you help Brooke write to me!” Vanessa leaned over and squinted at the phone.

“You know I do that?”

“You might as well wax seal them with your initials, bitch. Sometimes I’d rather she just trusted herself though. Like I’d rather have her tell me ‘Vanjie, I’m a dick but I love you’ full stop than all that poetry bullshit. I don’t know why she thinks she needs to sound all like you.”

Nina chuckled to herself for a moment, thinking of all the times Brooke had handed her a written message to Vanessa and told her to make it “more meaningful.”

She’d always envied Brooke in many ways. But she never really stopped to think that Brooke might have just envied her too.

“Noted.”

A notification flashed on Nina’s screen, her fingers automatically pushing it away so she could carry on drafting her succinct message.

“Wait, who was that?” Vanjie tapped the screen with an acrylic.

Pulling down the notifications bar, Nina’s face scrunched for a moment as she processed what she saw, looking up and making eye contact with Vanessa when she read the message.

Maybe they’d have to call Brooke to pick both of their jaws up from the floor at that point.

***

“The trailers are gonna start in a minute! Where you at??? x” Monet sent her third passive-aggressive text to her friend in a row.

She cursed under her breath, figuring it would be her best friend to convince her to get dolled up to go see a movie and then be late. She’d even begged Monet to walk further to the hipster cinema where you rented a sofa instead of seats - Monet having the entire one to herself for the time being.

“They’re on for twenty mins anyways. Whereabouts you sitting so I don’t have to scramble in the dark? xoxoxo”

Hearing a tut from behind her, Monet replied quickly with her location before putting her phone back in the pocket.

Normally she’d feel weird about being at the cinema with just Monique, sharing a sofa together in the most classic of date settings. Only now she didn’t, something about their kiss wiping away her feelings, picking up that “what if” she’d always had and sending it away down the river they had laid by.

Maybe it would make their friendship that tad stronger.

Just not strong enough for Monet to deal with being abandoned in a cinema. That would need a lot of forgiveness and grovelling.

A glimmer of hope dazzled before her when she heard the door close, making out a figure coming her way before realising it wasn’t Monique.

At least she wouldn’t have to share her nachos.

“Sorry, this seat’s taken,” she called out as the girl made a beeline for her sofa.

“I know.”

Monet could make out the blue of her eyes in the dark room, the cream jumper she wore complementing them perfectly.

This time it was her struggling to find the words as Nina perched her body onto the sofa, her knees tight together, arms smoothing her skirt and hugging her knees.

“I saw your tweet,” she whispered, looking straight ahead at the screen rather than at Monet.

“I thought you thought it was nothing, you were just drunk.” Monet didn’t even try to pretend she was looking at the screen too.

Her heart was racing. Her entire body on fire.

“I spoke to your friend too, she told me you’d be here.”

“Oh.” The frames began to merge together in Monet’s mind.

“I was just nervous to say it before. But that feeling you had, I felt it too.”

Monet placed a hand on the girl’s knee, noticing how her foot was starting to bounce.

She never wanted to take it away.

“I-” Monet started her sentencing only to be shushed from behind.

“We have to be quiet,” Nina whispered.

Monet moved towards her, their lips centimetres apart.

She looked at Nina and could have sworn she saw the flame that was burning in her chest in the girl’s eyes too, lighting up the darkness around them.

“Well, let’s stop talking then.”

[manikas-whims]

Messing with Her

Pairing: Shouto Todoroki X Momo Yaoyorozu

Words: 1711

Rating: T

Read on: AO3 | FFnet

One. They are supposed to share just one lesson with the students of class B every week and yet somehow it has become the least bearable thing for Shouto. Although he isn’t much of an extrovert, he can bear with a few new faces but this doesn’t mean he’s ready to share seats with said new faces. And as if this isn’t enough, fate decides to play a dirty trick on him by giving him the worst possible seatmate for this particular class— Neito Monoma.

Not only does the blond hold some kind of personal grudge against class A but he is also nearly deranged. His obsession with annoying people is seriously worrisome. Negativity is known to eat away one’s inner conscience, deprive the person of liveliness and joy yet this boy thrives in chaos. Disaster fuels him like no drug can ever. And Shouto is extremely disgruntled to have to share a seat with him for a whole year.

He doesn’t pay heed to the crazy boy’s taunts and focuses on Sir Cementos, who is explaining something about strategizing which they’ll have to apply later on in test missions. His eyes glance ahead, stopping upon the back of a girl with silky, black locks next to an orange haired girl from class B. He sighs. It was his lovely, dark haired, seatmate herself who had suggested this new seat arrangement by drawing lots so as to help the two sections become more accustomed to one another and to make some new friends. Well he certainly does not need new friends. He is content with having her, Midoriya and Iida.

“Ohh so Mr. Cool Guy here is now ignoring me.” Monoma speaks, feigning a hurt expression.

Shouto finds the nickname funny, considering how hot-headed he gets when having to deal with idiots like these. But just like the rest of his classmates, he’s promised his class representatives that he’ll try to learn from this experience, not pick fights. And so, he tries to concentrate on what is being taught right in front of him.

“Is it your class rep, you’re thinking about?” Monoma says, his eyes now fixated on Yaoyorozu.

“Oh I know..” Monoma clicks his fingers, as if he’s discovered Shouto’s deepest, darkest secrets. “You’re thinking you’d rather sit with her than having to face a genius like me.”

Shouto huffs, cracking his neck to diffuse the annoyance building up within him. He has to! He promised Iida and Yaoyorozu.

“You think she’s better than me?” Monoma asks haughtily. This guy doesn’t know when to give up, does he?

Shouto ignores him.

“She is intelligent, I’ll give her that. But isn’t her kindness off-putting? I dunno, she almost seems too good to be true. Hey! Maybe she’s faking being nice to-”

“Fuck Off” The words escape Shouto’s lips before his rational mind can stop him.

It is only when the whole class turns towards him, some gasping in shock whilst several others hooting in approval of the possible incoming argument that he realizes he’s said the curse words loud enough for everyone to hear. He looks away, unfazed by everyone’s undivided attention on him. He only swears if it is to humiliate his bastard of a father. But people like Monoma press the right buttons, pushing him to lose his composure. It would’ve been fine if the arrogant boy had kept his snarky comments limited to him but he tried to insult Yaoyorozu, someone whom Shouto holds very important in his life, just like his other friends. He assures himself with that thought but wonders if he’d actually reacted the same way had it been Midoriya or Iida. Anyways, he couldn’t have just sat there and let the guy say whatever.

Sir Cementos puts down the chalk in his hand and opens his mouth to berate him for his language but Yaoyorozu beats their teacher to it.

“Todoroki-san! How could you?” she stands up, disappointment clear in her voice.

How could he? Normally, he would’ve simply told her that this stuck-up class B student just badmouthed her. But with an audience around, he can’t. He just knows that’ll hurt Yaoyorozu more than Monoma’s false remarks. So instead of stating the truth, he decides to lie. “Because he deserves.”

From the corner of his eyes, he can see Iida itching to chide him but is stopped by Midoriya.

“Swearing is wrong!” Yaoyorozu emphasizes, her hands resting on her hips. “Whether or not a person deserves it, is not as important as you spoiling your tongue by using such foul words.”

Here it is, her ‘good girl’ speech. Although she’s right, she can’t force everyone to stop swearing. And he’s already not the most ideal boy in his class. He is kind of a brooding, no-nonsense, cool sort of guy but that doesn’t mean he’s not bad. It may not be apparent but he’s just as handful as any other teenager. He doesn’t answer much to his sister and he treats his father like trash (which the man actually is). Oh! And not long ago, before the sports festival, he used to be pretty rude and uncaring about others. Its surprising that she and the rest of his classmates collectively decided to forget all of it as soon as he started opening up. So yeah, he doesn’t really care if swearing is wrong.

“It’s my tongue I’m spoiling, so you don’t need to worry.” He says with a shrug, earning some collective ‘oohs’ from the other students.

Her expression darkens at the nonchalance in his words. “I’m not worried. I just want you to apologize.”

Shouto’s eyes widen for the fraction of a second before returning to his stoic demeanor. Apologize? Him? To this jerk? And that too for cursing at Monoma because the blond was mocking her kind character? Not in a million years. If asked, he can share his soba with her but he will definitely not ask for this obnoxious boy’s forgiveness. He cocks his head to the side as he responds, “Or what?”

His words ensue a set of gasps, hoots and snickers. Even Bakugou quirks a brow in amusement. The sassy intonation in his words, makes Shouto question himself too. Crude words are one thing. But where is this coming from? He doesn’t remember ever speaking like this to anyone. Especially, since he had only meant to decline her request. Somehow he ended up saying these..challenging words!? He’s not in the position to challenge her for correcting him. So then, how did he let such words slip out of his mouth? Must be due to his time spent in the company of Bakugou and others at the provisional training.

Or is it because he enjoys messing with her? He knows she’s genuinely too sweet to scream at him for his words. Plus, he has noticed her always blushing cutely when he says something unpredictable. He isn’t sure why she reacts the way she does towards some of his actions but he likes it. He likes getting under her skin. He wants to witness how much she can take until she finally snaps back at him and takes action.

“Or..” she begins through gritted teeth, “I’ll never talk to you.”

His brows furrow immediately. The last time she stopped speaking to him was a disaster. Yes, he had talked it out with her. But he doesn’t have the energy to repeat that because he knows most of class A will be eavesdropping on them like the other time. He balls his palms into fists, the temperature rising on his left side whilst decreasing equally at his right. This isn’t fair. He didn’t expect her to be this strict on him. He isn’t saying that he’s special but she always does make him feel so. Wishing him good luck during tests, lending him spare stationary material by actually using her quirk to create it for him, offering him her expensive variety of tea and so much more. It’s just that her little gestures make him feel warm and happy..make him feel special and loved.. So now that she’s the one reprimanding him, it’s disheartening. Still, he cannot apologize to Monoma. He just can’t.

“It’s okay, Yaoyorozu-san.” Fortunately, the orange haired girl from class B intervenes. Kendo right? She’s the one who keeps her classmates in line. “I know Monoma is a bit provoking in nature.” She says sheepishly. “So there’s no need to say sorry to him. I think a written apology to your homeroom teacher will be better.” She suggests, looking awkwardly between Todoroki and Yaoyorozu.

Yaoyorozu bites her lip as if contemplating if she should agree or not but then relaxes visibly. “Fine then. Todoroki-san, please write an apology to Aizawa sensei.” With that said, she turns around, a frown still etched on her face to express her disappointment in him.

He watches the others turn back to Cementos, assuming the matter is over. But not for him. For some inexplicable reason, Shouto can’t get enough of this. He knows this isn’t a competition and that she wasn’t serious when she said what she did. He knows. Yet..

“Or what?”

“Or..I’ll never talk to you.”

The statement echoes in his head. He can’t believe that she shot back to his pugnacious words.

Shouto knows that it’s unnecessary and he’s being childish. But he can’t help himself from wanting to have the last word in this silly, one-sided argument with her. Maybe it’s his adolescent hormones kicking in but he wants to spite her, test her some more..

“Well then you better keep an eye on me or I won’t be writing that apology letter.” He drawls out but he doesn’t get to wait long. He sees Yaoyorozu instantly push her chair back with a noisy screech. In a few quick steps, she stomps towards him, glaring Monoma to get her message across. The blond boy immediately vacates the chair for her and she sits down next to Shouto, passing him a fiercer glare. He smirks, relishing in the hooting that follows anew as a result of his playful words.

Seriously, if all it takes is a few swear words and silly comebacks to make her sit by his side, then he’ll gladly do it all over again.

A/N: Amongst class A students, i think Shouto is the most badly behaved one. He's rude to people he doesn't like or doesn't respect, regardless of their age. There's so much I've noticed about him that I feel like he is the Bad Boy type right next to Bakugou 🤭

Well, I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing..

OH, I'M OPEN FOR REQUESTS NOW

If you have a scenario, AU or just sn idea about todomomo and you want me to write it, please comment about it here ☺