#the sequel to tusk love

[monsterfuckingthoughts]

Husband Orc x Human Reader (Kilian): Sequel

This is a sequel to this fic. I love my orc oc Kilian so I though I'd expand on his and reader's family more fics to come!

Synopsis: Drak and Kilian have a talk.

Even after fifteen years of marriage you and Kilian had remained completely enamored with one another, and with that love came a deep understanding and ability to pick up on even the slightest shift in emotions. 

~

You were upset. 

Your  husband watched you from his spot on the bed as you silently undressed. Usually the two of you would be immersed in conversation about the events of the day but you were uncharacteristically distant. You removed the last of your clothes and hastily retrieved your nightgown from its spot next to Kilian. As you reached out for it your husband gently took your hand, prompting you to stop. 

“What troubles you my love?”

You forged a small smile and shook your head. “Nothing, I’m just tired.”

You retrieved your hand and pulled your nightgown over you.

Without another word you crawled into bed turning away from him. Kilian waited and finally you spoke, knowing your distance would only worry him. 

“Does Drak seem alright to you?” 

Kilian raised his brow at the mention of your oldest son, now thirteen years old. “He seems to be. Why?” 

“Tonight at dinner he was quiet and when I went to wish him a good night he was rather stand offish. Almost like I had done something wrong.”

Kilian reached out and pulled you into him, wrapping you in his strong arms and rubbing his tusk against your shoulder. “He’s at that age (Name). It’s only natural that he starts to pull away from us.”

You sighed, turning over to look at your husband, a sadness in your eyes he hadn’t seen before. “You didn’t see the way he looked at me, Kilian.”

This had clearly stuck to your ribs with an indomitable force that simple words wouldn’t alleviate. 

“I’ll talk to him.”

~

The next morning Kilian lured his son out of bed with the promise of one on one training. Drak was old enough now to begin sparing and being the chieftain’s son he had the privilege of studying under the strongest orc in the stronghold. 

The two of them left before the sun had come up and made their way on foot to a nearby field that their family would often come to. Drak remained quiet as they set down their gear and retrieved their weapons. Kilian decided to wait before interrogating his son. 

The two of them drew their swords and Drak charged at his father, slamming the blade against his shield. Kilian easily pushed back, taking a step forward and knocking his son off balance. He clearly looked frustrated, clenching his jaw and charging once more only to be pushed back again. 

Kilian was barely trying and it enraged his son. 

Drak angrily chucked his blade into the field and sprinted off. 

~

Kilian found his son sitting against a massive oak tree with his face buried in his lap. He calmly sat next to him before speaking. 

“Your mother seems to believe she’s done something to upset you.”

Drak flinched at the mention of you, knowing how protective his father was. 

Instead of denying it he lifted his head in defeat. 

“Father, will I ever be as strong as you?”

Kilian just blinked. “Of course. Is that what this is about?

Drak crossed his arms. “I’m the smallest boy in the stronghold for my age. And I struggle to spar even against some of the younger orcs. So how could I ever be like you?”

“If you have a human mother?” Kilian concluded.

Drak pulled his knees tighter against his chest. These feelings against you made him feel guilty. Almost like he was betraying your love. 

“Look at me Drak,” his father sternly ordered.

The child did so.

“Your mother is human, but she’s also strong.”

Drak opened his mouth to argue but Kilian immediately silenced him by raising his hand. 

“When your mother was pregnant with you she had to fight everyday to make it through the hardships that came with that. And when she gave birth she nearly died.”

Drak fidgeted in his spot. 

He knew these things, how his mother almost died, from the whispers of others in the stronghold. How strong must she have been to live beyond what the doctors had predicted. And to have two children after that, fully knowing the risk of what might come. To willingly fight again. 

Whenever he’d hear these things he’d remove himself. Thinking of a world without his mother upset him.

He could tell by the look on his father’s face that it upset him too. It was almost shocking, Kilian the mighty Orc Chieftain of the Northern stronghold, facing something that intimidated him. 

“Were you scared?” Drak dared to ask.

Kilian nodded. “Of course. For months after I was terrified to leave your mother’s side. Because…I had a fear that she wouldn’t be there when I returned.”

Drak tilted his head. “I didn’t think you got scared.”

His father chuckled at this. “Everyone gets scared son.”

He faced the inquisitive child. “And a warrior's strength isn’t merely measured by physicality alone.”

He poked Drak’s chest. “It’s also what’s in here.”

He rested his large hand on his head. “And here. Your mother has more strength in her heart and mind than I could ever dream to have. And you’ve inherited those gifts as well Drak.”

He felt a swell of pride in that regard. 

After the stronghold doctor had saved your life in childbirth you had been inspired to study under her and become a doctor yourself. Drak had seen you dedicate yourself to this, tending to the needs of the stronghold, and that of your own family. 

Drak’s lip began to quiver. “I didn’t mean to hurt her.”

“She knows that son. Let’s go home so you can apologize.”

Drak nodded and the two of them retreated back to the field, upon their return they found a group of familiar faces waiting for them. His younger sister Shel came racing towards them.

“Papa!” she cheered.

Her father joyfully scooped her up. “There’s my girl!”

You were standing near the discarded gear with baby Dura in your arms. 

A guard remained stoically behind you. 

Kilian quickly made his way over to you and embraced you. “Good morning,” you greeted, gently pecking your lips against his. 

Shel voiced her disgust and attempted to push her father’s face away from her mother. 

“No kissing!” she demanded. 

“No kissing!” Kilian mimicked, making you laugh.

He set Shel down and took Dura from you, the small infant reaching up for her father. 

“Let’s go show you sister the wildflowers Shel,” Kilian suggested. 

Once the three of them had left Drak nervously made his way over to you.

The guard excused himself and joined Kilian.

Once Drak reached you you gave him a hopeful smile. “Are you feeling better this morning?”

Much to your surprise your son began to cry.

“Drak?” you asked.

He lunged out and hugged you. 

You pulled your son closer and lowered the both of you to the ground. 

“I love you mother,” he whimpered. “I love being your son.”

You sighed in relief and stroked his hair. “I love you son. More than you’ll ever know.”

~

The End. 

[the-kaedageist]

DRUMROLL, PLEASE!!

I have returned, ten months later, finally bringing another chapter of the beast of a sequel to my Tusk Love fic, which I lovingly refer to as '2 Tusk 2 Love'.

This 10,590-word chapter contains:

An unhinged AO3 author's note

Essek hating cursed forests, dirty cities, getting himself dirty, hiking, and shoes that aren't fancy

Essek possibly not hating Bren Aldric Ermendrud

A final note - it looks like I have unblocked myself on this fic finally (more in my author's note), so I sincerely hope that I will start releasing chapters more quickly once more.

I don't know how many of you out there are still reading, but I miss posting and talking about Critical Role fic! I'm so excited to have finished this chapter and glad that I seem to be on a roll with this once more.

I hope you all enjoy!

[bovineblogger]

Hiii! Have you seen Beefalo from Don't Starve (and the sequel, Don't Starve Together)? It's not a cow, but it is cow-adjacent. Like an ox.

You can:

Shave them!

Murder them! (For tasty meats)

Tame and ride them!

Admire their beauty!

Listen to their calls!

Wear them!

Steal their poops!

And more!

They also have baby versions (:

Shout out to the Koalefant! Not a cow, but a peaceful baby nonetheless.

not a cow but lovely.. and sweet.. and i must review them . lalala

DON'T STARVE

i love this little guy with his big big earas and lil tusks. the way that he moves is so cute and silly and he has such a goofy little face i get so much joy from looking at him...

PERSONAL RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

[featherbow]

Exclusive: The Mighty Nein’s Journey Continues in Critical Role: The Chronicles of Exandria—The Mighty Nein Part Two from Dark Horse

Critters, rejoice! The long-awaited sequel to 2020’s Critical Role: The Chronicles of Exandria—The Mighty Nein is finally on the horizon, picking up with more art, more lore, and even more incredible journeys for our favorite band of heroes.

The first art book covered a number of arcs from the wildly popular Dungeons & Dragons live-play phenomenon Critical Role‘s second campaign, featuring glimpses of iconic locations like the Happy Fun Ball, unforgettable characters like The Gentleman, and so much more. Critical Role: The Chronicles of Exandria—The Mighty Nein Part Two picks up where the first installment left off, featuring everything from the group’s “adventures in Xhorhas, to encounters with the Kryn and the Bright Queen, to discoveries at the Cinderrest Sanctum and in the belly of a behemoth, all the way to events at the Whitedawn Lagoon and beyond.”

This second book is being published by Dark Horse, longtime collaborator and publisher of other hit Critical Role adventures like Vox Machina Origins and The Mighty Nein Origins, and is being written by Critical Role Lore Keeper Dani Carr in collaboration with Matthew Mercer and the entire Critical Role team. The 304-page, oversized hardcover will feature new lore, its own narrative, and a plethora of art from across the Critter community.

And speaking of which, said narrative will come from the perspective of the Campaign 2/Campaign 3 NPC Iva Deshin, who made her first appearance selling Tusk Love to Laura Bailey’s Jester Lavorre, but was always clear in her desire to be an author. The Mighty Nein Part Two acts as a collection of her notes and mementos of the party.

“I really wanted Iva to go on a genuine emotional arc during this journey and find her voice, but to never lose her spark and her joy for the world she loves—especially the adventurers she adores,” said Carr. “The entire book is a love letter to the Mighty Nein, to Critical Role, and to the cast who have placed such faith and trust in me over the years. Exandria is just as much my home as it is Iva’s, and I can’t wait for Critters to dive in and let Iva help guide them through the incredible art of the Mighty Nein’s adventures.”

The beautiful cover, which you can check out below, is illustrated by Stephanie Pepper.

Critical Role: The Chronicles of Exandria—The Mighty Nein Part Two is available to preorder now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, TFAW, and your local comic shop or bookstore, and is slated to release November 26th, 2024 in bookstores and November 27th, 2024 in comic shops for $49.99.

[creativeimpetus]

Modern AU the Sequel

Transcript:

AITA for telling my gf to stop glomping me?

My girlfriend 25(H) loves to watch movies and I 26(P) don't mind it because we get to spend more time together. A few nights ago, as I was sitting on the sofa, she ran and launched herself directly on top of me. We're both alright, (I'm 2.3m and ascended about 2 years ago so my bones can take it even I'm bruised a bit). She likes being affectionate so I usually let her pat me on the back, nudge me, mess up my mane, etc. She also used to play sports like rugby so I know she knows how to tackle. But I'm worried about her deciding to do it again. I don't want her to hurt herself because she has low vision and could break one of her tusks (painful and costly). I told her to never tackle me again and she apologized. However, I've noticed lately she's been less cuddly overall. AITA for telling her off for just horsing about?

[leftski-if]

I. Love. Apartment 3-3. All of your IFs are incredible but our sweet neighbor boys are my favs. Do you think you’d ever do a sequel, or another shorter IF like Apartment 3-3? No pressure at all, I love your other IFs and can’t wait to see where those stories go!

Aw, thank you so much! Very happy to hear you enjoyed Apartment 3-3 ^^

I don't think I'd ever do a direct sequel to Apartment 3-3 but I do absolutely want to do more short stories down the road, and I'd love for some of them to be set in the same universe at least. I actually have the beginnings of another Modern Monster Romance IF titled Tusks and Teacups laid out in my wip folder already, although I don't know yet if it will ever progress far enough to see the light of day. Here's hoping, though!

[vanishedangels]

As the stars are shining

Summary: Jedi Luke Skywalker's world turns upside down when he comes to the aid of a force-sensitive child only to find that Din Djarin, the only man he has ever loved and pushed out of his life six years earlier on Dagobah, is the kid's guardian.

Blame it on the storm & Castles on the sand sequel

Pairing: Din Djarin/Luke Skywalker

Characters: Din Djarin, Luke Skywalker, Grogu, Paz Vizsla, Ahsoka Tano, Greef Karga, R2-D2.

Rating: Mature

Tags: AU, Canon Divergence, Post The Mandalorian Season 2, Getting Back Together, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Mutual Pining, Tumblr Prompts, POV Alternating, Mostly Luke's POV.

Chapters: 2/3

Navigation: <- Previous Chapter • Next Chapter ->

Part 3 of Wonderwall series

Excerpt:

The mandalorian stood still staring at the living waters for a while before he started to remove his cloak.

"Din?" The Jedi said but the man in beskar didn't pay attention to him, Luke's heartbeat sped up the moment he realized that Din was taking the pieces of his armour off. Luke's heart leapt in his chest when his former lover's fingers were dexterously loosening the straps of his chest plate. He was holding his breath while Din was removing his armour piece by piece until he finally unzipped his flight suit, he stopped when he reached his waist, exposing his upper body. Luke knew every inch of his skin, every freckle, every scar, but seeing him for the first time, really seeing him with his own eyes, even when they were in semi-darkness, was something else entirely. Luke's skin prickled with something that resembled want when the mandalorian put his hands on his helmet, finally taking it off.

Chapter 2: Take what you need and be on your way

He didn't even need to consciously reach out through the force this time in order to find Din. The moment Luke jumped inside his cockpit he could feel a sense of a déjà vu, everything was unfolding before him smoothly, it felt like a string pulling him towards Din Djarin, effortlessly.

He pressed the child against his chest staring at the N-1 starfighter grounded by the entrance of a cave system, only occupied by a R5-series astromech droid that looked suspiciously familiar. He climbed down the X-Wing carefully placing the child inside the hovering pram. He looked around and then he looked down at Grogu beside him "You know how to use this." He rested his gloved hand on the pram "Just, stay close to me." The baby cooed. "Always."

Inside the intricate multilevel destroyed capital city, once known as Sundari, the darkness engulfed them completely until Grogu turned on the hovering pram's flashlight, Luke breathed in admiring the ruins surrounding them, he walked through the destruction guided by that recognizable pull that, apparently, still connected him with the mandalorian. All of a sudden, a tall creature jumped from a rock landing on its feet before them, armed with a heavy stick with a thick end, Luke craned his neck to look at it, he narrowed his eyes, the creature's skin was gray, matching the colour of its hair and it had four eyes and tusks. The moment three other creatures joined the first one, Luke sent a message to Grogu through the force and the baby closed his pram, securing himself inside it. The darkness was surrounding Luke once again until he ignited his lightsaber, only illuminating his own face, painting it in a green shade, when two of the creatures tried to come close to him Luke outstretched his right arm wielding his saber and made a spin cutting the two of them in half. He could feel the other two large creatures approaching him, and he ducked his head to dodge the creature's attack, he frowned curling his free hand into a tight fist and when he unfurled his hand, the creature's body fell lifeless on the floor while his saber was buried deep inside the chest of the remaining creature. The light of Grogu's pram bathing him again, he extinguished his saber letting the attacker fell into the abyss surrounding them. He looked at Grogu nodding and they continued their journey.

After descending several levels they finally came to a halt, Luke touched the pram letting Grogu know that he should stay behind him, the child was clutching the edge of his pram, Luke could feel his distress through the force, they were hiding in the shadows, watching. Din was trapped inside a cage while a cyborg, that Luke could tell it was a little creature inside a spider tank, was walking around him. Luke heard a pained grunt coming from Din and he squinted to see what was that creepy creature doing to him, his eyebrows rose when he could see that it was draining Din's blood with a tubing, making his hair stand on end.

Enough.

Luke walked towards them as he heard Din gasping the moment he held his hand up and the cyborg froze, Luke scowled discovering that an organic eye was staring at him from inside the mechanic structure "So there you are." He said piercing the only organic part of the creature with his saber. When the cyborg unit shut down, Luke ran towards Din, carefully unhooking the tubing from him "Din, please, hold on." Din didn't answer. "Din?"

He opened the cage and tried to find Din's pulse pressing his digits against his neck, just like that time when he found Din on the verge of death in the Western Dune Sea many years ago, and he sighed relieved when he realized that Din passed out but his heartbeat was strong and steady.

~

Luke was sitting on a rock with his elbows propped on his knees, hunching forward, when he heard Din groaning as he started stirring on the ground, Grogu was standing next to his helmet pressing his little hand on the visor and Luke shook his head slightly, he frowned staring at the floor remembering Ahsoka's words "This is a mistake." Indeed, he needed to work really hard if he wanted to provide Grogu with the means to find the way to balance his feelings. He finally looked up when the mandalorian placed the kid inside his pram and he swallowed hard as Din stood in front of him, he rose to his feet staring at his visor. "You saved my life, Skywalker, I'm in your debt. Thank you." Luke pressed his lips together, widening his eyes, Din sounded so distant and polite, his reaction was so different from the last time Luke went to his aid. "How did you find me?" Din inquired, Luke's answer died in his lips when he could only pulled a face and before he could find the words Din tilted his head "Was it the force?"

Luke sighed, talking about the force with Din was hard for him since it was a stark reminder of his biggest mistake "Yes." He said quietly.

The mandalorian shifted his weight from one foot to the other "Did you find me on Tatooine using the force too?" Luke's eyes went round and he nodded, Din huffed "You shouldn't be here." He added walking away. "Take Grogu with you and leave."

Although Din had every reason to be maddened by Luke's actions in the past, and he knew Din should be mad, the Jedi couldn't help but feel desperate, he followed Din grabbing him by his upper arm, when Din stopped in his tracks, the blonde hissed, his fingers twitching around Din's biceps before he withdrew his hand "Sorry, I didn't, I didn't mean it." He said staring down.

Din turned around "Why are you even here? It's obvious that you don't care about me." He said closing the space between them.

Luke was gaping, he blinking "I do care." He whispered.

Din remained silent and then he walked towards the child "It's dangerous, take the kid with you." Grogu was staring at him with pleading eyes, his big ears lowering a little.

"He's worried about you, we're not leaving." Luke stated standing beside him.

Din sighed as his shoulders slumped, visible defeated. The child chirped.

"Bo-Katan said that the living waters are located under the civic center." Din said as Grogu was holding his forefinger in his little hand.

Who's Bo-Katan? Luke thought "Alright." He said instead "Let's go."

"I, I'm not sure where the civic center is." The mandalorian stated staring at him over his shoulder.

Luke narrowed his eyes "I feel something, it's weak, but still, I can tell that the source is powerful. It could be the living waters."

Din nodded "Take us there."

~

The living waters were in front of them, Luke could tell the way Din's breath was going faster. The mandalorian stood still staring at the waters for a while before he started to remove his cloak.

"Din?" The Jedi said but the man in beskar didn't pay attention to him, Luke's heartbeat sped up the moment he realized that Din was taking the pieces of his armour off. Luke's heart leapt in his chest when his former lover's fingers were dexterously loosening the straps of his chest plate. He was holding his breath while Din was removing his armour piece by piece until he finally unzipped his flight suit, he stopped when he reached his waist, exposing his upper body. Luke knew every inch of his skin, every freckle, every scar, but seeing him for the first time, really seeing him with his own eyes, even when they were in semi-darkness, was something else entirely. Luke's skin prickled with something that resembled want when the mandalorian put his hands on his helmet, finally taking it off. Luke stared astonished as his eyes roamed Din Djarin's dark curls, and his mind went back to the times he stroked that silky hair in the past, and the sheer thrill that that memory triggered had tension rapidly coiling hot in his gut. He tried to compose himself when Din looked back at them over his shoulder, standing by the shore. Luke parted his lips as his heart skipped a beat when Din's soft brown eyes met his own. You're as beautiful as the day I saw you for the first time, my love. Luke was gaping at him, not believing that he was actually seeing the love of his life's face. The love of his life. Yes. Din was gorgeous in every way, inside and out, and seeing his face, even with all that darkness surrounding him, stirred something inside Luke. Din's eyes were not only humble but also full of kindness and Luke felt lost in them, deeply, hopelessly, lost in them. Din turned his head towards the waters and Luke was taken aback by him.

Din walked down the stairs finally stepping into the water "I swear on my name. And the name of the ancestors."

Luke was listening to him with curious eyes, and a thumping heart, while Din kept walking.

"That I shall walk the way of the Mand'alor." Din said as his knees were now covered by the living waters, holding his helmet against his bare chest with one hand and playing with the water with the fingers of his free hand "And the words of the Creed shall be forever forged in my heart."

Luke could feel his heart running impossible fast, he was so proud of Din, so proud. Grogu tilted his little head, both of them expectant, until Din finally said "This is the way." And he held his helmet with both hands in front of his face, he made a pause, Luke frowned. Was Din hesitating? He blinked not able to move, still holding his breath until Din finally put his helmet back on and he sighed lowering his gaze finding Grogu's big brown eyes. Luke couldn't believe that Din gave him a gift that he was going to treasure forever, allowing him to see his face, even when it was for a brief moment.

Din walked in their direction to finally joined them, Luke's eyes roaming all over his helmet "I'm redeemed." He said making Luke's heart flutter.

"Yes, you are." He said half smiling. Din was now staring at the child, Luke walked away from them, trying not to intrude into their special moment.

He contemplated the way Din put every beskar piece on from afar, still he was watchful, ready to protect Din and Grogu. He flinched slightly when he saw Din hunching down by the shore, he could realize that he was filling a small flask with water. Realization hit him, it was obvious that Din needed to prove he bathed in the living waters to someone. But who was this person?

They walked in silence until they reached the point where they needed to go up, Din looked at Luke tilting his helmet "How did you manage to reach this level?"

"Grogu can pilot his pram." Luke said staring at his visor, Din hummed.

"And what about you?" He insisted.

Luke clicked his tongue "I climbed down." He clenched his left hand wondering if Din could notice the scratches all over his skin, he shook his head realizing that he couldn't have seen them in that darkness. "You two go first, it's gonna take a while, just-" He shrugged "Please, just wait for me up there."

The mandalorian looked at the child and then he looked at Luke again "No way." He said under his breath closing the space between Luke and him, he encircled the blonde's waist with one arm, Luke froze staring at his visor. "Is this okay?" He asked sheepishly as their bodies were pressed flush against each other, from thighs to chest and Luke couldn't help but feel a familiar tingling warmth in the pit of his stomach as his heart was pounding against his ribs.

"Yes." He said not breaking eye contact with Din. He squeezed his eyes shut when he heard the jetpack's turbines burst and his stomach flipped when he didn't feel the ground under his feet anymore, he opened his eyes as the wind started messing with his hair, dirty blonde locks brushing against his eyelashes, he blinked staring up. He felt Din's fingers twitching against his ribs, then he was digging them into Luke's flesh making him look at Din again, he was boring into his visor, relishing in the way the man in beskar was staring at him behind his helmet, so painfully close.

They landed on the high level smoothly, Din withdrew his arm from Luke leaving the Jedi missing his warmth, a cold wave invading him as he tried to ignore the way Din was making him feel, so vulnerable but at the same time so shamelessly eager to press his face against Din's chest and stay there for hours.

Wake up, Luke. He said to himself when they were approaching their ships, Din stood in front of him "I need to visit my people, please be safe." He tilted his head towards Grogu. "And, thank you, Luke." Luke shrugged giving him a smile. "I'll see you soon, kid." Din said holding Grogu's hand.

They left Mandalore a minute later, Luke stared at Din's N-1 starfighter until it hit hyperspace, he frowned thinking that this was wrong. Feeling the way he was feeling was not only wrong but also selfish, he realized that he wanted Din with every fiber of his being, still he was conscious that he didn't deserve him.

I will never be worthy of his trust again.

~

Din came back to the Temple after a month, Luke noticed that he was changed. A little. He seemed more relaxed than the last time they met, showing a light-hearted mood. By the second night he stayed with them, Grogu was sleeping peacefully in his pram next to Din. They were sitting around a bonfire, Luke was lying on the grass propping himself up on his elbow, Din came closer to him, sitting down with his legs crossed "Thank you for letting me be here, Luke."

The Jedi looked up at him finally sitting up, mirroring Din "I'm glad you're here." He breathed out, feeling completely relaxed next to him.

"And how is it?" He leaned a hand on the grass, close to Luke's leg "To be a Jedi."

Luke looked up at the night sky "It's a lonely journey." He stayed quiet for a while.

They spent hours talking about the years they were apart, Luke told him about the force, his masters, and even about his father and how he learned Leia was, indeed, his twin sister. He didn't hide any detail from Din, even the painful ones, he blinked back tears more than once and he could feel Din's hand rubbing little circles on his own.

"I wish I could have been there for you." Din said while Luke was holding his breath staring at the stars.

He looked at Din incredulous "Please, Din." He pleaded. Again, guilty was destroying him. How could Din be so humble and pure at heart when Luke himself was the reason why Din couldn't be there with him?

Din withdrew his hand staring down "You're so powerful now." He said and Luke narrowed his eyes understanding that Din was trying to change his mood. "I can't even describe it, you're the most powerful warrior I've ever seen in my life."

That took Luke's breath away. That statement coming from a mandalorian was an honour and made his head spin a little. "Thank you, Din." He managed to say even when his breath was coming out uneven.

"It's a good thing, huh?" He asked "I mean, you don't need a mandalorian around you to scare stalkers away anymore." Din added and Luke's heart gave an extra beat.

Luke thought that maybe this was Din trying to know if he was seeing someone, or maybe he was reading too much into his words. No, actually, he was so desperate for Din to show him affection that he was imagining things.

He chuckled "Yeah, still, since I'm a Jedi no one is trying to make a move on me anymore." He said trying to belittle the subject.

Din tilted his helmet snorting "Yeah, right." He deadpanned.

"I'm serious, people tend to avoid me, I think they feel intimidated by me." He laughed and he was being really honest.

"Get out, Skywalker." He chuckled elbowing Luke "I still remember your squad mates drooling all over you." Din said making Luke think back to their time together and he smiled tenderly, absentmindedly glaring at him. "I hate them." Din added and he sounded serious.

Luke winced "They're all gone, now." He said avoiding Din's gaze.

"I still hate them." Din insisted earning him a chuckle from Luke.

Luke nodded "At least a good thing came out of that." He looked at Din sideways and then pressed his lips together as he was running his hand over the grass, staring down.

Din went silent. When Luke looked at him again he was staring at him, his visor fixed on his face "I didn't know what to expect every time I went to visit you."

"What do you mean?" Luke leaned in closer to him.

"You were too special, I didn't know why a guy like you could be interested in being with a guy like me." Din explained staring down as Luke was astonished now "I always thought that one day, eventually, finally, you would blow me off."

Luke's heart broke into pieces.

"What?" His body was tense all of a sudden and his heart was in his throat.

"And it happened."

Fuck. No. Not this.

Luke put a hand atop Din's thigh and the mandalorian looked at it not able to face the Jedi.

"It didn't, it didn't happen Din." He was feeling a wave of cold sweat spreading down from the nape of his neck to his lower back "I-"

Din met his eyes, shrugging "It's okay."

"No, it's not. I didn't want to let you go, I was trying to protect you." He shook his head "I thought, maybe, well, I knew that you didn't feel the same-"

"The same?" Din cut him off.

"You didn't want to label our relationship so it remained casual that way, and I gladly accepted that. Because it was better than not having you at all." He said under his breath. "Maybe I wanted something more, but I couldn't drag you into my crusade and put a target on the back of your head."

Din groaned "I know what you mean." He shifted a little "And about labels, Luke? I always knew that you were my cyare." Hearing Din saying that pet name again made Luke shiver as warmth began pooling in his belly, those words coming from Din felt like honey on his tongue, soft and sweet, intoxicating him. His lips tingling at the memory that that word prompted, the taste of Din's skin on them, the kisses they shared, the pleasant weight of Din's body against his own. He couldn't even believe it.

Then he realized that he couldn't understand what Din was talking about "What-what is a cyare?" He asked as he felt his cheeks slowly blossoming with a red shade.

Din tilted his helmet and Luke tried to ignore how adorable the man looked every time he did that "You mean you don't know?" Luke shook his head keeping his gaze "What about mesh'la and cyar'ika?" Luke sighed devastated.

Please, stop saying those words. Although Luke didn't know their meaning, every one of them were pulling him back to the memory of Din's arms around him, while he was whispering sweet nothings in his ear after loving him on their blankets in the safety of the Razor Crest, Din's mouth pressing open-mouthed kisses all over him, leaving love marks behind them as Luke was falling apart behind his black blindfold.

"I don't know." He swallowed through the lump in his throat.

Din stared at him for a while and then he rolled one shoulder "Alright." Luke stared at him expectant "Mesh'la means beautiful." The blonde's mouth curved into a smile "Cyar'ika, means sweetheart." He said and Luke's smile slipped "And cyare-" Din cleared his throat "Cyare means beloved." He looked down as Luke's eyes were fixed on him.

"Din." He said almost whispering "Din." He tried to seize his hand but he wasn't sure, not believing what he was hearing, Din was telling him that he was his beloved. And he spoiled everything by being an insecure man.

"I'm sorry Luke, It's getting late and I think, I should-" He gave Grogu a quick glance over his shoulder "Can I take him to his bed?"

Luke pressed his lips together frowning "Yes, sure. Sure. It's late, you're right." It was late, in every sense of the word. Late. It was too late.

Luke kept tossing and turning that night, his mind going back to Din's words "I always knew that you were my cyare." Then he thought about Din telling him that he always expected Luke breaking up with him and his stomach clenched.

"I loved you too, Din." He whispered resting his hand on his stomach "I loved you too."

~

Next morning Luke found it hard to look at Din directly, he realized he was conflicted, overwhelmed by mixed emotions. The mandalorian stood beside him while Grogu was resting after a training session.

"I need to go to Nevarro, Greef Karga needs help." Din said and Luke stared at his visor. "He's a friend. I need to go now."

Luke nodded "You're going to need a hand." He moved to face Din.

"No, it's okay, I'm taking my people to Nevarro."

Luke couldn't help but remember the first time he went to Nevarro, when he was a naive young man going to an unknown planet to meet Din. Their first date. He smiled fondly.

"I'm coming back soon." The mandalorian said looking at his face, Luke nodded again as his eyes traveled down, he was staring at Din's chest plate now.

"Take care of yourself, Din." He met his visor one last time.

~

Din was absent for almost a month, and since he came back, Luke started to feel more and more comfortable around him. One night he was inside his room, he let Din with Grogu in the child's bedroom. Lost in thought, he didn't close the door and he peeled off his robes, tossing them aside, he walked around, unclipping his saber and leaving it on the bedside table, he brushed his fingers through his hair and turned around, he froze when he saw Din standing by the door, suddenly conscious of the state he was in, half naked, only wearing his pants and with tousled hair. He swallowed hard pressing his lips together but he didn't cover himself, almost enjoying the way Din's visor was fixed on him.

The mandalorian didn't make a sound as Luke finally put his robe back on walking towards him "Yes, Din?" He tilted his head delicately adjusting the lapels of his rob, a sliver of his soft skin was still on display and Din's visor shifted slightly from his face to his chest and back to his face again.

"I just wanted to say good night."

Luke could feel his skin reacting to the sound of his voice, so mesmerizing, soft and deep. He had to gather every bit of strength in him not to ask Din to stay for a little while, and he could sense Din's reluctance to leave as well, certain that he was feeling the same way.

Sometimes he would catch Din staring at him, some other times he was the one at the other end. And whenever he accidentally touched Din he could feel his skin prickling and his heartbeat going faster.

A bad idea.

~

He closed the door behind him, leaving his room after talking with Leia via holocom, he knew what to do, and the fact that Din was still on planet was pretty convenient. He walked into the dinner room, Din was sitting at the table, forearms rested on it, he looked up at him, Luke bowed his head and sat down beside him, he blinked staring at his visor.

"I hope you don't mind, I was waiting for you before going to bed."

Luke nodded in silence "It was Leia. I need to ask you something." Din tilted his head, attentive to what he was saying. "I'm leaving tonight." Din shifted in his chair. "The New Republic never said a word about it but someone close to us found out that the ship that was transporting Gideon was attacked, and we're sure that he has escaped." Luke tried to assess Din's reaction, he used to be pretty good at reading Din's moods but years of being apart have taken their toll on that ability, he realized he was rusty since he couldn't figure out what was going inside the man's mind. "I need you to stay here with Grogu, or maybe you should take him with you, I'm tracking Gideon down, I don't know how long it will take."

He could hear Din taking in a sharp inhale as he leaned back in the chair, forearms still on the table "You don't need to."

Luke frowned, his lips twisting almost letting out a weak what? when Din talked again.

"I already tracked him down. You're not gonna hear about him again." He made a pause "I killed him." He added staring at Luke's blue eyes.

The Jedi widened his eyes, perplexed, his lips parting, he was not expecting Din to be a step ahead on this matter. It didn't happen often, but he left him speechless.

"I killed him on Lanz Carpo." He shrugged one arm staring down "Are you disappointed?" He asked giving Luke a quick glance.

Luke opened his mouth and closed it again, he shook his head slowly "No. I was planning to do it myself." He heard Din sighing deeply.

"Wasn't the first time I killed to protect a loved one." Din said tightening his hands into fists over the table, Luke put a hand over Din's gently, making him look at him again.

"I'm proud of you." Luke said staring at him and his eyes carried a mixture of respect and softness. "How did you know about it?" He lifted his shoulder in a half shrug.

"My friend Cara contacted me two weeks ago, some blue man told her about it, I think she knew what she was doing by telling me about it." He huffed.

"Can't believe The New Republic doesn't care." Luke said absorbed in thought, completely oblivious of his surroundings until he felt something warm against his arm, he looked down only to find Din's free hand caressing his forearm through the fabric of his robe as he was still holding his other hand, he looked up meeting Din's visor "Then I'm not going anywhere." His words eliciting a soft chuckle from Din.

"Yeah, I figured that out."

The Jedi burst into laughter, curling his hand around Din's, they went silent for a moment and Luke knew, he knew that Din was feeling the same, and if Din has forgiven him, he hasn't forgiven himself.

"There you are, Luke." Din said under his breath, Luke blinked staring at him. "I missed your laugh."

Luke turned his head away, withdrawing his hand from Din, he cleared his throat. This life, the Jedi's life, wilted his soul, he knew it, but he was starting to wonder if the reason behind that dryness was, actually, the loss of Din's love, a consequence of embracing his destiny, and his stomach churned at the mere thought.

Walking away from Din that night felt wrong, still he did it, even against his own desire. When he closed the bedroom's door and leaned his back against it, he pinched the bridge of his nose, screwing his eyes shut. Maybe he was still in love with Din. Maybe he has always been in love with him.

~

He was staring at Grogu training by the creek, the little force-user was jumping from rock to rock dodging the blasts coming from a training remote drone successfully. Din joined him, Luke looked at him giving him a smile.

"What is that thing?" The mandalorian asked him.

"It's a Marksman-H training remote. Don't worry, it's harmless." He explained, knowing Din, he was definitely thinking that a flying killing ball was trying to obliterate Grogu.

When the training session finished, the child was lying exhausted over a big rock. Luke frowned, hands folded behind his body "I still can't believe that my father is responsible for all of this. The Jedi purge. All this suffering, Grogu's suffering." He made a pause staring at the child, still he was pretty aware of the way Din was pointedly staring at him "And I inflicted him more pain by not telling you I was force-sensitive." He shrugged "I'm a Skywalker after all." He whispered the last part, broken-hearted.

The mandalorian leaned closer "I don't know what that means."

Luke let out a harsh breath "That everything we touch, we break it." He said in a low-pitched voice.

"I don't believe that." Din retorted clutching his forearm.

Luke looked down at his hand on him and then he looked up to meet his visor "I hate myself because I didn't trust you enough. I failed you. You were everything I ever wanted and I didn't tell you about the major part of me, that the force was strong with me. Should I have taken all the time in the world to explain you about it? Yes." He looked at Grogu again "Although I didn't know anything about the force when I first met you, that's not an excuse, Din. Do you know why?" He bored into his visor "Because I didn't tell you that I was staying on Dagobah to train in the ways of the force, and you were so merciful that you didn't even push me, you accepted my silence and left. I didn't deserve you. I know that now." He choked with emotion as his eyes welled up, he looked away trying to hide his tears.

"I've done my part too, Luke." Din's words making him look at him again, as he was wiping tears from his cheeks. "I was hiding many things from you too. I understand, sometimes you need to protect yourself and the ones that you look after. I never told you about my covert's location, never took you there because it was forbidden, never told you that I loved you, even when I was dying to hear you saying that you loved me back."

"What?" Luke froze as his heart skipped a beat and his chest rose and fell with rapid breaths.

"Stop being harsh on yourself, you can't change the past, but you were there when we needed you the most, that's all that matters."

Luke flinched a little when he felt Din's gloved hand on his cheek, so warm and tender against his skin, he closed his eyes reveling in Din's spontaneous outpouring of affection, he leaned into his touch drawing his hand up to place it over Din's, as he started to stroke his cheek "You were there, cyar'ika. And I'm here now."

Luke couldn't hold the tears back anymore, Din brushed his fingers across his forehead before wrapping his arms around Luke's body, holding him tight and Luke hid his face in the crook of his neck, as many times before, as many cicles ago, he hooked his arms around Din's "I'm sorry." His muffled voice giving his sorrow away.

Din kept holding him until the last tears rolled down his cheeks as the sun was setting down kissing the creek.

[helmarok]

me & my friendgroup were hoping ganon would get more backstory and humanization in totk for the entire time since the sequel was announced :( the idea that he might get revived was so exciting. i didnt think it would happen but i hoped for a sequel where youd switch between link and zelda at different points- zelda being more lore and archaeology/exploration focused so youd learn more about ganon and the events causing the calamity and how to stop future ones as you also tried to understand why he was so enraged and what exactly happened to him and link engaging in direct dialogue and confrontation with ganon so the player can see his pain and character depth. the game wouldve been more about defeating the calamity possessing him vs ganon himself being bad and acknowledging that hyrule never really tried that route which lead to the constant devastation...sorry for rambling but tldr i feel you 🫡 ur ganons strongest soldier

literally this entire ask. i don't know why i had my hopes up cuz now i'm disappointed over something that was gonna happen anyways... i just wish that after throwing in the excuse of "oh well we use the same formula over and over because DEMISE'S CURSE causes hatred to reincarnate!" they actually built upon that, but they only focus on how the curse affects the chosen hero and zelda. like they never actually go into how the curse affects the man who is born asab (assigned satan at birth 😢)

heres what i think under the cut if youre interested, it's kind of a long story so whatever

my personal hesdcanon completely and totally disregarding anything totk says is that hylia chose ganondorf to be her hero. she chose him and the 'calamity' wasn't actually ganondorf himself based on the more lizard-like appearance of it in the tapestry: it was demise, hence the reason why it not only took a hero and princess but the divine beasts as well.

based on his outfit in the original trailer, i think he was invited to the castle. but while he went dressed his best, it was a trap. throughout his time as hero the kingdom questioned it because of their awful history. after defeating the calamity, ganon was invited for dinner and was betrayed. being poisoned by people he loves and cared about who he thought cared about him but their generational hatred just... led to this.

it broke his heart when they broke his trust because the male gerudo 'king of evil' could never be our chosen hero, the symbol of courage in the kingdom. he's the bad guy, and always will be even if it's a different man from the one in OOT and TP entirely. his broken heart turned into anger and rage while he was coughing and dying at the table as people he cared for watched it happen. his eyes turned red, his mane and tusks grew and his triforce shined. when he tried to grab the sword it burned his hand. hatred took over and changed him- keep in mind that demise's entire being relies on the existence of hatred. with so much hate in his heart the demon was able to grab ahold of it and use that as a second chance to win.

nobody could stop him but the princess, who did with hylia's help. his body and spirit was sealed under the castle before it got too bad. but over time, the betrayal ganon felt had 10k years to brew and demise used it to his advantage. ganon's hurt combined with demise's raw energy- malice- created what we see in botw as that ugly beast calamity ganon.

now here's my favorite part! everyone had to have wondered why the fuck hylia wasn't willing to help zelda this time around when zelda was unable to use the powers in her blood that her mom could use, and hylia never bothered to help her awaken them. well the reason for this is because hylia felt betrayed by her people. her people were so full of hatred that they tried to murder the hero SHE chose! not only that, but after ganon's murder, the sheikah strongly opposed, which led to what you can see in the tapestry- sheikah being pushed by guards, and then the game tells us their technology was destroyed and sealed away.

as punishment for the problems her children were causing, she decided to abandon them. they would get no help from her. no prayers would be answered, no assistance with light magic- they were on their own now. there wouldn't even be a chosen hero- link was actually chosen by fi when fi knew a hero had to come but hylia wasn't going to bother.

hylia only decided to step up after she felt sorry for zelda. when zelda prayed and begged her she ignored her until the hero died and she felt her child's pain. she finally decided to be a mom and make zelda's powers fucking explode. zelda walked into that castle and sealed the demon the best she could without the assistance of a hero. from then on after a hundred years, hyrule basically accepted the flying boar demon cloud over the castle as part of their life along with corrupted guardians and such.

basically i think ganon's story was about hatred and betrayal and that the reason calamity ganon is so insanely powerful, and the reason he takes on a more demonic form not made of flesh but physical hatred, is because of how much it hurt him. he is hurt and hatred took advantage of that.

demise's easy control of ganondorf is kind of a nod at how you'll see that hurt people can often get easily taken over by hatred. a wife who is cheated on might kill her husband. a trans man who has suffered his whole life might bully trans men who are happy. a victim of misogynistic culture might be manipulated by others into becoming a terf. it's sad how easily hate can take over hurt people.

for the hylians, it's how for generations their kingdom was destroyed by a ganon, so they can't think of him as anything other than a threat even if he is a good man.

so yeah, there's my ganondorf take. he's just some guy who is stuck in a cycle and i wish nintendo would stop acting like hyrule is a perfect kingdom and the royal family has no flaws because theyre the Goddess Children when time and time again there's been hints in the games at their treatment of others, especially the sheikah. basically what i want is for them to give their special little good guys and special little race of blue eyed bitches some more depth instead of just being like "theyre good and nothing more because they're the Good Guys so they can't do anything wrong and opposers like ganon are the Bad Guys". cuz it's 2023 and we deserve more advanced stories than "hero and princess defeat the big bad evil and save the day!"

[cchickki]

Crossing Paths - Part II

Chapter 1

summary: One year after getting mixed up with the Drake brothers with discovering Libertalia, Dani agrees to join Sam Drake on his newest adventure: to seek out the Tusk of Ganesh. With old friends and enemies reuniting and more at stake than ever before, this comeback might be their most daring yet.

themes: action/adventure, romance, healing

pairing: sam drake x oc

rating: T - subject to change in the future

word count: 1.7k

author's note: this is a continuation of a fanfic i wrote back between 2016-2017. i never got around to writing the sequel until now (oops). not sure if this fandom is still alive, but i love uncharted and missed writing for it.

READ HERE: (ao3) (ff.net) <----------------

original (part i): Crossing Paths / Ao3!

[c-k-mack]

Saw this ad and thought it was a sequel to Tusk Love

[bravest-notts]

G H O S T D I C K

[the-kaedageist]

Another chapter of 2 Tusk 2 Love is finally up!

all this, heaven never could describe - Chapter 11 (Sequel to More Things in Heaven and Earth) 14,571 words, 78,082 total so far Rating: M Chapter Summary: In which research is done, backstory is revealed, and Essek is teased an egregious amount.

[yashley]

jester: hey i know FJORD hows your PORN

[c-kiddo]

t shirts :-3

jester is buying the sequel to tusk love, caduceus is elsewhere

[alicee1]

Late nights

Technoblade x GN! reader

Warnings: none, just fluff here

Word count: 1K

Requested: no

Synopsis: After a long day gathering materials Techno returns to a sweet scene inside his cabin. Pure fluff, prequel to ‘relaxed mornings’ but can definitly be read seperately 

A/n: is this entirely self indulgent after two sleep deprived weeks of studying for exams? Yes, definitly.  Do i regret it? Most certainly not. I needed some Techno comfort and then this happened. 

Rules, Masterlist, 

Sequel: Relaxed mornings

It wasn't often when Techno be out late, prefering to either make a trip of a couple of days or leave in the early morning so he could be home around dinner time.

Although it didn't happen often, it still happened. Today being one of those days. The windows of the cabin were closed and the latches pulled shut over them as they shielded the warm insides of the cabin from the punishing cold of the tundra.

Despite that there was a tuft of smoke coming from the chimney, signalling you were still awake.

It was a reward to return to the comfortable cabin after spending the entire day gathering different materials.

The warm comfort of the small home greeted him as he opened the door, taking off his armour and positioning it on the armour stand besides the door. Putting his dirtied boots beside the amour and hanging his coat alongside his signature crown alongside it as well, he turned to the living room.

The scene he had stumbled upon made him melt as his eyes softened at the view.

In the armchair, wrapped in a soft blanket and curled into yourself with a book on your lap, laid you. Your eyes closed as your head leaned limply against the back of the chair as you sat sideways.

It was one of your favorite places to sit, it was the warmest spot in the cabin beside the fire that was now reduced to smoking embers after having been left neglected for who knows how long.

You looked perfectly comfortable and content in your curled up state, the book still open in your lap at a whatever page you had fallen asleep on.

A smile tugged at Techno's lips as he watched you, silently approaching your form as he could see the calm and rythmatic rise of your chest.

He gently pulled the book off your lap, grabbing the bookmark from the small wooden coffee table and placing it inside as he put away the book. He realized what book it was when he placed it on the table, it was a classic, one of your favorites.

It didn't surprise him to see the book in your hold once more, it was a story you wouldn't put away no matter the amount of times you had read it before. He was confident you knew all lines of the book by heart now, although you would still pull the leather bound book from its place on the shelf to read it once more.

He had been confused at first, not understanding how you could read a book so many times and still find it entertaining. As you grew closer however he started to find the trait more endearing, noticing how you had a select few books you'd turn to for comfort and familiarity.

The smile didn't fade from his face as he put the book away, turning back to you as he gently wrapped his arms around your sleeping form to transport you to bed.

At the movement your eyes fluttered open, although they stayed half lidded as Techno looked down at your small stirring, a fond but apologetic expression on his face as he spoke softly, "didn't mean to wake you, my love"

Instinctively you shuffled closer to his natural body heat, still wrapped in the blanket as you buried your head into his chest, "wanted to stay 'wake till you'd return."

A soft chuckle escaped him as it vibrated pleasantly from his chest, making a soft smile form on your lips.

It didn't take long for him to reach the bed, pulling away the thick covers and placing you on the matress. Despite your drowsy sleep drunken state your grip on his arm was strong. Techno could've easily pulled away if he wanted to, although he simple opted to sit down on the matress, shifting to grab the covers and pulling them over the two of you as he laid down.

Under the protection of the warm covers you unwrapped yourself from the blanket and shuffled closer to the naturally warm hybrid as he pulled you closer, wrapping his arms around you in the process.

He looked amused at your antics and the abandoned blanket you left behind, "finally she'd yourself of your protection layer, my love?" His voice teasing as you hummed in confirmation.

As much as he warmed you up, you were warm in his hold as well, pulled close against him as your legs tangled with one another.

It was these moments he treasured most, despite the silence, in perfect comfort with one anothers presence as you laid there. These moments he realized how much you truly meant to him, how you had gotten him to show you a side he didn't even know he possessed.

He pressed his lips against the skin of your forehead, tusks nudging your head gently as you met his eyes, a tired but relaxed smile on your lips.

"Goodnight Tech, love you."

The smile of his lips grew slightly, "Goodnight my love, I love you too."

Slowly the two of you drifted off, encased in each other's warmth.

[sketching-shark]

Fragments

Finally got around to the sequel to my first monkie kid fic “Blood From a Stone,” which you can read here: 

https://archiveofourown.org/works/34964410

Same trigger warnings apply to this one, so be aware that there is violence and body horror, although here end ending is both kind of a downer as well as bittersweet.

Since his earliest memories as a piglet carefully mixing together one ingredient after another under the gentle instruction of his grandmother, cooking for others had been the primary way Pigsy showed his love. He knew himself to be a surly yaoguai so terrible at expressing emotions besides anger that most assumed there wasn’t a bit of care in his heart for others. It was for this reason he constantly, if secretly, thanked the heavens that those he loved seemed content to let his cooking do most of the talking when it came to expressing his affection. This had been true for his grandmother on her death bed, when he had felt himself so full of sorrow and rage that he hadn’t trusted himself to emote even around her, but put as much love as he was capable of into the congee that made most of her diet at the end. She had been weak, but still smiled at him between the spoonfuls that he carefully fed her, and thanked him in a near whisper for the love that she recognized drove his every action between them. It was true for Tang, who was his...something, and who he had complained about and insulted as a freeloader for years, but who had also steadfastly been there for him through some of the worst years of Pigsy’s life, when it had felt like the world--having dished out the death of his entire family, his entire squadron, and then dumped him on his ass as yet another burnt-out ex-soldier--wanted him to either die or go mad with grief. Even years later he could never bring himself to actually deny the scholar just one more bowl of unpaid noodles, which was always accepted with a teasing smirk and sometimes, Pigsy thought but could never find the courage to act on, a look that indicated Tang wanted something more. And it was especially true for Qi Xiaotian, who he had first met as an orphan of war after the same major civil conflict which had cost Pigsy his squadron, but four years old, scrawny as a twig, crying steadily, and tightly clutching a monkey king plushie. It had been guilt that had first drove Pigsy into the still-ravaged landscapes and cities as part of a reconstruction crew, and while the massive tusked and bristled war-form he had spent most of the conflict in had even then felt worse than useless now that the battles were over, it had been the sight of that crying child that compelled Pigsy to practice, then perfect, then keep his current much smaller and comparatively friendlier shape. One of his most treasured memories was when five years after their initial meeting, Pigsy’s then-job as the head cook for a sprawling orphanage gave him the chance to bring out a small but genuine smile from a then-timid Xiaotian when he had presented the kid with a sticky rice cake he had made especially for him. Xiaotian had clung close to the pigman afterwards, watching him as closely as Pigsy had once watched his grandmother. Even though he had never thought before that job that he was the kind of person capable of tolerating children for long stretches of time, Pigsy had found himself making more and more room in his heart for the young human that jumped at his own shadows but ran right over to the then-hulking yaoguai to excitedly show him his most recent drawing or exclaim in what seemed never-ending delight over that day’s menu. In the years afterwards and despite hurdles from every direction, Pigsy had eventually been proud to own his own restaurant and to be able, after a lot of legal finagling, call himself Xiaotian’s legal guardian, and Xiaotian--far more than any law would recognize--his kid. 

So when the monkey king--the same thrice-damned monkey king who had snatched up his kid up as his successor without so much as a “do you want to do this?,” had goaded his kid into being the one to fight with the Demon fucking Bull King, had just left his kid all alone even though he knew the threat of the Lady Bone Demon was looming--had once again swooped in at the last possible second to at least make sure Xiaotian didn’t die, Pigsy became convinced that he would never hate someone as much as he hated the monkey king. He had laid into Sun Wukong as soon as they were far enough from the catastrophe that was the Lady Bone Demon, and to his credit at least the powerful immortal had the sense to look guilty when he did so. His shouting was stopped by Sandy, who was quick to remind them all that they had much more pressing matters at hand. Pigsy could see the sense in that, but he was also spitefully glad that Xiaotian had furiously brushed off Sun Wukong’s tentative hand on his shoulder before marching into the bowels of their airship. Following Xiaotian as he made his way into the kitchen, Pigsy had suddenly found himself in a tight hug as Xiaotian suddenly collapsed against him, crying hard, apologizing over and over again for having failed to stop the Lady Bone Demon, and asking between gulps of air why the monkey king had just abandoned him like that. Pigsy had no good explanation for the primate’s actions, and didn’t even want to hear any excuse that Sun Wukong might offer. He was, however, able to tell Xiaotian without a shred of doubt that none of this disaster was his fault. He had given it his all without the help he had deserved, and no one--as Pigsy new from painful experience--could do more than that. He held Xiaotian, rocking him gently back and forth, until his sobs finally quieted. Over a bowl of noodles each, Pigsy gave his kid nourishment, warmth, and a sympathetic ear as Xiaotian’s sorrow and self-recrimination slowly gave way to pure anger at the monkey king. He even stated at the end of their meal, much to Pigsy’s relief, that as soon as the Lady Bone Demon had been dealt with he was going to quit being the monkie kid. All the position seemed to mean, Xiaotian muttered with eyes as hard as flints, was having to suffer the fallout from Sun Wukong’s messes. And from what he had seen, Pigsy couldn’t agree more.

They still had to work with the simian while the bone witch was rampaging in the world, but that didn’t mean either of them had to even pretend to like it. In the weeks after the beginning of their journey, Pigsy knew that Xiaotian was getting more and more violent with Sun Wukong in their sparring sessions, but couldn’t bring himself to care. The rest of the crew--their anger at the overpowered simian mirroring Pigsy’s own--were pointedly only talking to the monkey king when necessary, and that too seemed for the best. As for himself, Pigsy got a vicious pleasure from witholding his cooking--his expression of love--from the primate, especially when he had seen the “great sage” dare look sad about it. It had felt good that even a weaker yaoguai such as himself was able to inflict some hurt, no matter how small, on the powerful immortal being who had dragged Pigsy’s kid into his ever-expanding, dangerous mess. 

The monkey was strong enough to take it. Besides, this whole situation was, after all, clearly his fault. 

---

He hadn’t felt guilty then. He wasn’t sure if he felt guilty now. But it kept haunting Pigsy, now that it was all over, that their behavior had been part of what eventually convinced Sun Wukong so make the drastic decisions that he had.

It had started when--after calling the crew down to dinner within their fifth week into their journey to secure the flame of Samadhi--Pigsy noticed Xiaotian, his hair still damp from a shower, was looking particularly shellshocked while the monkey king was conspicuously absent. Immediately put on high alert and convinced that Sun Wukong had hurt Xiaotian in some way, Pigsy had gotten Tang to man the kitchen and keep an eye on Xiaotian and Xiaojiao while he and a worried Sandy scoured the ship for the simian. They found him soon afterwards in the makeshift sparring room, diligently scrubbing the floor with a soapy sponge. 

Pigsy wasn’t inclined to deal with any threat towards his kid with any tact. “Hey Monkey! What the hell did you do to Xiaotian this time?” 

Sun Wukong kept scrubbing, his back to them, but his voice was calm as he replied. 

“Oh, is he still feeling guilty? I told him there was no reason to, but you should tell him again. Funniest thing, the kid got me good in the face while we were sparring, and well, for some reason it resulted in a bloodier nose then I’ve ever experienced, for all my centuries. He got really freaked out, but it looked a lot worse than it was. Seriously, he didn’t do any damage.”

Sun Wukong dropped his sponge, stood up, and turned around. Pigsy did indeed see that his face was free from all bruises and signs of injury, except for a little bit of dried blood around his jaw. 

“See? No harm done.”

Pigsy snorted. It was as good an explanation as any, especially given how Xaotian had a history of hanging onto guilt. Pigsy did feel a twinge of spiteful pride that his kid had managed to land such a violent blow on the monkey king, but he was grateful that it hadn’t resulted in anything worse than a bloody nose. Last thing they needed was anyone, even Sun Wukong, getting seriously hurt.

“Fine. I’ll let him know you’re good to go.”

Sun Wukong surprised Pigsy by bowing low. “Thank you Pigsy. You are a good person.” The monkey king sank back to his knees, picked up the sponge, and resumed his scrubbing. Pigsy, now feeling confused to think that this was the same prideful monkey king he had known him as, couldn’t help but ask one more question even with his history of keeping his cooking from the monkey king’s hands. 

“Didn’t you hear me calling for dinner? Aren’t you hungry?

Sun Wukong’s voice, Pigsy started to realize, wasn’t so much calm as it was simply devoid of emotion. 

“No. Don’t worry about me. I’ll eat later. I hope you all enjoy the meal.”

Pigsy started at the monkey king’s back for a few more seconds, not sure what exactly was going on in the simian’s mind, before he grunted and started back to the kitchen, Sandy right behind him but shooting worried glances at the monkey king. It was only after they were all seated at the table and halfway through a more subdued meal than usual that Pigsy realized Sun Wukong hadn’t looked him straight in the eye even once. 

---

In the days and then weeks that followed, Pigsy was given more and more reason to believe that the “bloody nose” Sun Wukong had spoken of had in fact been something much worse. It was a point particularly driven home at one terrible juncture in their adventure, when Tang had come so, so close to losing his life before Sun Wukong had dashed between him and his attackers, taking at least six spears straight in the stomach in Tang’s stead. But rather than dying in pain or even collapsing, Sun Wukong, slipping slightly on his own blood, had merely grunted before snapping the spears in two and using the broken shafts as makeshift clubs to beat the ensorcelled humans back. He would have even run back to their airship with the rest of them if a meteor hammer hadn’t found a lucky mark on his legs. And even then, run through with broken spears, his shattered legs dragging behind him at unnatural angles, the monkey king had crawled swiftly towards the airship before being scooped up by Sandy. He gave no indication that he was in any pain. Instead, waving them all away while carefully avoiding looking anyone in the face, the monkey king merely said that his horrific injuries didn’t matter, and as if to prove it his wounds soon turned the golden read of lava and started to mend his flesh back to its original state. While Pigsy, Sandy, and Tang could only gape like landed fish at this development (Xiaojiao pulled out her phone as if to take a picture before seeming to think better of it), Xiaotian hung back, looking haunted, if unsurprised at this shocking reveal of Sun Wukong’s most recent ability. It didn’t take long before Sun Wukong swung off the table he had been laid on, apologized for the burn marks that now marred its surface from where his magma flesh had met it, and by all appearances would have scampered off to one of his hiding spots around the ship if the other two yaoguai and one middle-aged human hadn’t forced him to lay back and barraged him with one question after another, with Pigsy in particular throwing in a couple of curses while they all asked about this most recent development. Sun Wukong, seeming to resign himself, answered everything in a clipped, emotionless tone about how this self-healing was an inherent ability he hadn’t had to use before, and a wonderful one at that. The monkey king seemed to consider it a particularly welcome bonus that he now barely felt anything, only responding to Pigsy’s curse and exclamation that living without feeling was horrible with “Would you rather I have suffered from those spears?” The pigman had nothing he could really say to that. But he did find himself suddenly missing the Sun Wukong who had existed but a few weeks before, the one who had gotten them into this mess but who actually showed clear signs of guilt and grief and longing for company--signs that one felt love and wanted the best for others--far more than the impassive living rock he apparently now was.

Afterwards, it was undeniable that this Sun Wukong was strong and a real asset to their mission. Utilizing all his former skill as a yaoguai warlord and this new imperviousness to all pain and discomfort, he started to stay up night after night directing their route and quite successfully keeping them out of sight of all branches of the Lady Bone Demon’s ever-expanding army.  And in the times where they did have a run-in with the bone witch’s minions, he kept throwing himself in front of more and more danger and saving them all from a whole manner of potentially grievous wounds. He also met all worries over his condition with curt dismissals, responding to every concern over his wounds with “I don’t even feel it” or “it’s best this way.” The monkey king also continued to avoid all eye contact, as if he could no longer bear to see what his teammates thought of him. It didn’t seem to matter how much Xiaotian kept looking at him as if he wanted to say something, how much Xiaojiao pushed and prodded, or how much Pigsy, Tang, and especially Sandy tried to get him to relax a little, or express how or even if he was feeling, or even just look them in the face, damn it all. They all failed to make the slightest dent in Sun Wukong’s impassive exterior, and the monkey king seemed to think that for the best.

For Pigsy, the breaking point had come after he had done a second kitchen inventory check in one day and confirmed that there was no way they were using up supplies for six people. One of them wasn’t eating, and he had a good idea of who. It was true that Sun Wukong hadn’t joined them at their daily dinners for weeks now, and while at first Pigsy was grateful that they didn’t have to suffer the company of the damned monkey who had gotten them into all this trouble, he didn’t want him to go hungry. That kind of self-punishment, he knew from bitter experience, never ended anywhere good for either you or those you loved. And in spite it all, he had come to believe that Sun Wukong loved them, or at least cared about them enough to turn himself into an unrelenting meat shield on their behalf. Pigsy had set off looking for the monkey king to demand an explanation, and would have walked right past if his sensitive hearing hadn’t picked up a soft scrape.

Crrrkkkkk....

It had been years since he had been a soldier, but Pigsy found himself falling back almost depressingly easy into his stealth training as he quietly opened the storeroom door and stepped inside. It was but dimly lit, but he could smell that the monkey king was inside. More alarming still, the cloying odor of blood also wafted through the air. As quietly as he could, Pigsy made his way over to where the scent and sound were originating.

And there was Sun Wukong perched just above on a stack of boxes, his eyes closed in concentration, shoving a sizable chunk of rebar into his mouth. At first, Pigsy couldn’t do anything but watch in horrified fascination as the monkey king bit down hard, swallowed, and then delicately removed a tooth that apparently had been knocked out of his skull by the force of the bite. Sun Wukong examined it critically for a few seconds before popping it into his mouth and swallowing it as well. A thin trickle of red was seeping out from between his lips. His mouth was a bloody hole of marred flesh and broken teeth as he opened it wide to bite off another section of the rusty metal.

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!?!?!”

Giving a monkey’s shriek of surprise, Sun Wukong startled and fell off his perch. He landed on all fours, his eyes wild with shock and fear. As soon as they landed on Pigsy, however, he immediately looked down. Droplets of blood spattered from his damaged mouth, but his self-healing was obviously much quicker than it was even a few days ago, for in the space of a few breaths the bleeding stopped completely and Sun Wukong was able to say in a voice only slightly rougher than usual,

“I’m eating.”

Pigsy could barely believe his ears. 

“It’s good for me.”

The pigman finally found his voice. “Good for-GOOD FOR?!? ARE YOU CRAZY!? Tetanus is the least of your problems if you’re gonna be chocking down rusty metal!”

Sun Wukong may have spent weeks suppressing his emotions, but for this he looked thoroughly unimpressed. “It doesn’t matter if I get it or not. I’m immortal, and you’ve seen for yourself how quick I am to heal.”

Pigsy felt he had enough of the monkey king’s irrational and self-destructive behavior. Snorting in anger, he slapped the rebar out of Sun Wukong’s hand before grabbing it--which was, he suddenly realized, far harder than flesh should be--and started to drag him into the kitchen, with the monkey not offering much physical resistance but still protesting the entire way that there was a very good reason he had been fed nothing but copper in his centuries under a mountain. Ignoring his objections, Pigsy made the monkey king sit down at the communal table, and made what he estimated to be his quickest bowl of noodles yet before plopping it in front of a perplexed-looking Sun Wukong with a glare.

“You are going to sit there and eat, and I am going to watch you, and I am not letting you get out this kitchen until you have finished the entire bowl. From here on out you’re gonna eat what the rest of us do. No more gagging down rusty metal in secret because you think it’s “good.” Damn it Monkey, we’re not on the best terms--not sure if we ever will be--but none of us want you to hurt yourself for our sakes. Okay? I’m not letting you out of this kitchen until you promise me you’ll eat what we eat and that you’ll eat with us.”

His perplexed expression gave way for just a moment to something that hinted the monkey king was about to burst into tears. All emotions, however, were quickly swallowed up into Sun Wukong’s now customary impassive expression.

“Very well.”

It was with relief that Pigsy watched the monkey king eat. The immortal had displayed barely a flicker of expressed feeling, but it was, after all these weeks, at least something.

-----

So fine, desperate times call for desperate measures. He’d extent at least a little love towards the monkey king, as much as Pigsy felt capable of, and at least get one good meal a day into the simian’s whipcord thin frame. Not that it seemed to do any good. Sure, Sun Wukong was eating actual food, but he was still going without sleep, still using himself as a meat shield, still refusing to meet anyone’s gaze. When beforehand the rest of their crew had often pointedly ignored Sun Wukong during their daily dinners, now the monkey king was going out of his way to avoid interacting with them, even Xiaotian, even though Pigsy’s kid often seemed like he was gearing himself up to talk to his mentor, only to shy away from the monkey king’s averted eyes and huddled posture. It was proving a frustrating and untenable situation, but Pigsy was determined to keep Sun Wukong to his word until he thought of something better, knowing what the monkey would do if he was allowed to “eat” on his own time. Mulling this over one dinner, Pigsy resurfaced from his thoughts just as Tang was finishing an academic tirade on the merits of different versions of Journey to the West. Pigsy couldn’t help his fond smile at seeing his loved ones, in spite of everything, still retain traces of their old passions. A familiar excited light was even in Xiaotian’s eyes. Sun Wukong, by direct contrast, seemed to be far more interested in pushing around the contents of his bowl.

“I had no idea that so many versions of the same tale existed, Shifu Tang! How come you never told me that all your monkey king stories came from different versions of the same text?”

Tang smiled indulgently at Xiaotian before launching into his explanation, which brought a flood of memories back to Pigsy of all the times the three of them had began their mornings in his restaurant before it officially opened. He was only half paying attention to Tang before the scholar, as Pigsy had seen him do before when he really got going in his explanations, commit what could turn out to be in this situation not just an embarrassing but a lethal faux pas.

 “...Yes, well, these texts for all their inconsistencies do have more in common than they have differences. Just as one example, all of them end with the monkey king in triumph with his companions or as mysteriously disappearing after winning a great battle. But I suppose that is more hopeful than speculating on the hard truth of him being a colossal failure...” No sooner had the words been spoken than Tang looked horrified at what he had just said. He and everyone else at the suddenly tension-filled table turned towards Sun Wukong.

The monkey king calmly continued to eat, tipping back the bowl to get the last bit of the broth. He set it down gently with a murmured “thank you for the meal” and a swift exit from the dining space. Tang’s eyes flitted back and forth between the staring assembled crew before he gave a quick “excuse me,” and rushed after Sun Wukong. 

Pigsy wasn’t about to let Tang be in the same space as a likely insulted and enraged monkey king. He leapt over the table, ordering Sandy to protect the kids as he did so, and caught up to Tang just as the scholar had grabbed onto Sun Wukong’s sleeve, forcing him to stop. The monkey king turned, his face betraying no emotions. 

“Yes? Is there something you needed?”

Tang swallowed thickly. Pigsy caught up and grabbed onto the scholar’s free hand, glaring at the monkey king as he did so.

“Sun Wukong, please, before you rush off, know that I am sorry. That was...a cruel thing of me to say.” 

For a moment, Sun Wukong’s face actually held an expression. Yet as it had been with Pigsy, it wasn’t gratitude, but puzzlement.

“I don’t understand why you are apologizing.”

Tang squeezed Pigsy’s hand hard, whether in fear or for courage he could not tell, but he continued. “I...come now, Sun Wukong. We both know it was thoughtless and mean for me to say what I did. So I’m sorry. I...I know now the trajectory of your life doesn’t match these collections of folk tales. But that was no excuse for me to insult you. I’m sure you did your best, and that’s all anyone can ever do.”

The monkey king regarded the scholar impassively for a few seconds before giving his reply, which was curt, emotionless, and shut off any hope of either the acceptance of an apology or the chance of forgiveness.

“No. That is wrong. It doesn’t matter if I tried my best. What matters is that I failed. I have failed in everything I have ever tried to accomplish. You were completely correct in your assessment. It’s not cruel if it’s true.”

A startled, then pained expression flashed across Tang’s face. “But-”

“Please. Stop. You said and did nothing wrong, Shifu Tang. Truly” The monkey king seemed relaxed, his tail swishing gently behind him. Pigsy couldn’t help but notice that he still refused to meet Tang’s eyes. Deciding the conversation was over, the monkey king muttered a barely legible “pardon me,” and then disappeared up the ladder leading outside, gently closing the hatch behind himself. Tang sank down, still holding onto Pigsy’s hand. Pigsy sat down next to him, unsure of where to go from here.

“Pigsy...” Tang began, “There’s something terribly wrong with Sun Wukong that we’ve all been pretending isn’t worth confronting. Can you...can you keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn’t do anything...drastic? I want to get Sandy. He’s had the most experience with therapy and managing one’s emotions. I know it’s a long shot given how...distant Sun Wukong has become. But we need to try to help him.”

Pigsy nodded, even though he wasn’t sure he could do anything to stop the monkey king from doing anything he may wish. Tang gave his hand one more squeeze, offered up a whispered “thank you,” and hurried down the hall back to the kitchen. Steeling himself, Pigsy climbed up the ladder and quickly spotted Sun Wukong, who was gazing out across the horizon, unaware of his presence. He didn’t look like a person anyone needed to worry about. If anything, he seemed content to simply sit and stare and enjoy the breeze.

But suddenly, as Pigsy watched, Sun Wukong shoved his entire hand down his throat and brought up what looked like the entirety of the meal Pigsy had prepared just for him, hurling it into oblivion with a coughing fit. 

Pigsy hadn’t, couldn’t, forgive the monkey for what his selfish wish to retire had put Qi Xiaotian through. But watching the monkey king disgorge the food he had made for him, something he realized in a jolt the simian had been doing for weeks now, Pigsy also felt himself furious at the thought that the monkey had been rejecting even this small token of reconciliation behind his back. He couldn’t hold back a squeal of outrage, which cause Sun Wukong, his purge apparently complete, to whirl around.

The monkey king’s lips peeled back into a grin that seemed horribly mismatched with the fear in his eyes, but he rapidly composed his face into its now usual emotionless expression. His gaze flickered once to Pigsy’s face, and then, as he now did with everyone else, he turned his eyes downward.

“Well, now you know, so maybe we can end this farce.”

“Farce?” Pigsy’s voice was dangerously low. “Farce? You really think that me making you food is some kind of farce? You’re really gonna stand there and act like people caring about you is some big joke?! I told you weeks ago that no one wanted you to suffer, and yet here you are, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven, wasting perfectly good noodles because he’s too special to believe the words of a bunch of pea-”

“Stop.”

The venom in the monkey king’s voice brought Pigsy’s tirade to a screeching halt. Sun Wukong turned. For the first time in weeks they actually looked at each other face to face, and the pigman couldn’t help but quiver a little in fear at the the monkey king’s expression of sheer anger, self-loathing, and despair. 

“You know, I’ve been trying very hard over these past few wretched months to do the right thing. And all my efforts have proven is that it’s far too little and far too late for me to even slightly make up for the misery I’ve caused. I try and try, but as with everything else I’ve ever set out to do it’s ended in failure for me and pain for those I love, and with everyone very correctly hating me, no hope of atonement in sight. So from here on out? Don’t you dare pretend any of you like me, or care about me, or will ever, ever forgive me. It’s fine, okay? I know. I am well aware that a horrible monster like me is to be forever despised by all. It’s only what I deserve. But by heaven and earth, I would really appreciate it if you would all stop lying about your hatred to my face!!”

So. There it was, the root belief driving all of the monkey king’s self-destructive behavior: a now stone-set belief in his status as one who could never be forgiven, a resignation in the face of his long history of failure. And how, a nasty little voice whispered in the back of Pigsy’s mind, could he have not come to this conclusion? It wasn’t just the monkie crew’s rejection that had caused this, but centuries upon centuries of failures and deaths that the monkey king could point to to back up his understanding of himself as nothing but a monster righteously unloved. As for their own actions, Sun Wukong was well known to have been a warlord in his earlier years, and in that line of work reading your opponent’s thoughts was a vital skill. He couldn’t possibly have missed the hatred they all aimed at him.

And so here they were, with both Pigsy’s hatred of the monkey king and Sun Wukong’s hatred of himself out in the open, no chance now to keep in concealed.

Pigsy didn’t know what to say, but he felt he had to try something to keep at least a facade of their alliance tenable.

“I-”

And of course, that’s right when Macaque, wearing his form of a shadow colossus, had decided to attack.

----

And then, and then, and then...

The end, as Pigsy had had a bad feeling would happen, was drawn-out, messy, and full of pain. It had only been later that they had worked out a general timeline for the monkey king’s demise. At a crucial juncture in their last battle, under the control of the Lady Bone Demon Xiaotian had activated the flame of Samadhi, only for Sun Wukong--swooping in at the last second as always--to swallow the flame down into his immortal stone flesh, ultimately sacrificing his life to prevent the flame from raging through the world. He had paid for it in pain and finally death. There could be no doubt of this when they had finally arrived at the beach that would by necessity have to be the death spot and tomb of Sun Wukong. Its sands had been melted to glass by the heat that had poured off his body. The monkey king himself had been reduced to nothing more than a massive puddle of liquefied stone. Pigsy had forced their airship, which had first followed Sun Wukong as he sped off from the spot he had annihilated the Lady Bone Demon in the frantic hope that they could quell the fire raging in his chest, to slow down after hearing what seemed a one-sided conversation between Xiaotian and an invisible entity, but based off of context cues the pig yaouguai realized his kid was talking to Sun Wukong, and that the monkey king had been begging him to turn back. Maybe Xiaotian would come to resent him, but Pigsy was so glad that he had made the call he had and turned the airship around. When they did arrive at the beach, some five hours behind Sun Wukong, the sand was still smoking. Pigsy couldn’t even imagine the blistering, lethal heat if they had gotten there earlier. As it was, and for all that it was still so hot they all (with the exception of a tagalong Red Son) found it difficult to breathe, Pigsy had still had to hold back Xiaotian from making a mad rush at the swiftly cooling but still dangerous molten rock. Xiaotian had fought against him for a minute--his shocked mind telling him he had to do something, anything, to make this better even though it was far too late--before he slumped down in Pigsy’s grip, moaning low like a dying animal.

The days that had following the melting death of Sun Wukong had been a blur of shocked and tear-stained faces, punctuated by the announcement that everyone on the former team Monkie had been included in Sun Wukong’s will.  Along with the six yaoguai kings that had once been Sun Wukong’s closest and dearest friends, Pigsy, Sandy, Tang, Xiaojio, and Xiaotian soon found themselves, as issued by the colossal centipede yaoguai who was Sun Wukong’s lawyer, gifted with more treasures than any of them could have imagined even existed. Pigsy knew that if he so wished, he would never have to work another day in his life. But none of the beautiful objects held any indication that they had once belonged to the monkey king. Instead, along with a wealth of other treasures, every single one of the statues, scrolls, and other paraphernalia from the monkey king’s storehouses that bore Sun Wukong’s image had been given to the Ni Lion King, who Pigsy knew above all the other kings to have held on to his anger for centuries against the now-dead monkey. For the reading of the will the giant feline had worn his bipedal form and a exquisitely embroidered blue hanfu that brought out the gold in his tawny fur, an affect that but accentuated how a good portion of the hair on his face was a deep peach, courtesy of Sun Wukong having sacrificed his tail and a portion of its skin being used as a graft for the Ni Lion King’s once-burned features. The yaouguai king stalked around a sample of his newly acquired monkey king items before firing a question at Sun Wukong’s lawyer. 

“There were no special instructions for how these items are to be treated?”

“No. The only specification is that with the death or disappearance of Sun Wukong, they are yours.”

“Even if I wanted to melt them down and use the metal for something else?” 

The centipede yaoguai’s legs fluttered in a sudden agitated wave, but her voice remained indifferent. 

“The will explicitly and pointedly states that your portion of Sun Wukong’s former wealth is now yours to do with as you wish. Sell it, keep it, or destroy it as you see fit. It is your property.”

The Ni Lion King’s features morphed into a deep frown, but he thanked the centipede yaoguai for her honesty and continued to examine the monkey king themed treasures with a contemplative, if somewhat aggravated air. It was clear that even now the lion yaoguai still held a grudge against his former sworn brother. Not that Pigsy could blame him. He had come so close so many times to losing Xiaotian due to the monkey king’s influence. He knew the Ni Lion King had lost thousands of his soldiers in Sun Wukong’s war against heaven. But to want to eradicate all of those statues instead of at least sell them? 

Looks like the monkey king had been right in at least some regards that no one would ever forgive him.

There was also no doubting now that Sun Wukong had died after doing his best to ensure everything he owned that stood testament to his life would be dispersed or destroyed soon after. Pigsy glanced over to the human he considered his son, and could tell by the fresh tears coursing down Xiaotian’s misery-stricken face that the former monkie kid had reached the exact same conclusion.

---

Qi Xiaotian had barely gotten out of bed for the past week. Pigsy, painfully aware of how closely Xiaotian had watched the monkey king before the end, terrified at the prospect of history repeating itself in some way with Sun Wukong’s former student, did what he could to let his kid know that unlike the monkey king he was very much loved. It was a battle between giving Xiaotian his privacy and rotating Xiaojiao, Tang, Sandy, and himself within the same room, but they had all agreed that Xiaotian wasn’t to be left alone, even if he didn’t seem to want to do anything but sleep. Besides keeping his kid company, Pigsy made all his favorite dishes, tried to pour as much love as he could into every spoonful and bite. But if he didn’t sit there and watch Xiaotian eat, he found them barely touched, sometimes to the point where he wasn’t sure if Xiaotian had even tasted it. Finally, after talking it over with Sandy, Pigsy decided it was time to stage an intervention. He couldn’t stand to see his kid in misery, and it was clear that without some outside help it was only going to get worse.

“Xiaotian?” Pigsy opened his kid’s door, finding him huddled in blankets and staring blankly at the wall, but he still turned his way when his name was called. “Come down and help me in the kitchen, okay?”

Xiaotian burrowed down further. “Um, sorry Pigsy, but can it wait? I don’t feel good.”

“I’m real sorry kid, but as your boss I’m gonna have to insist.”

Xiaotian gave a groan, but still did as he was asked, even if he didn’t change out of his pajamas to do so. Thumping down the stairs, he started at the sight of Xiaojiao, Tang, and Sandy around a number of tables that had been pushed together to form a larger one, but still let himself be guided to a chair. Pigsy didn’t let go of his hand the entire time. They all stared at each other for a few seconds before Xiaojiao spoke.

“Xiaotian, please, you’re my best friend, and nothing’s gonna change that. We know you’re hurting and we all love you and want to help. Just...just talk to us. Tell us...tell us how we can help”

Like Sun Wukong before him, Xiaotian refused to meet their eyes. But unlike the monkey king, it wasn’t long before his emotions started to get the best of him. Xiaotian’s eyes watered, tears started to trickle down his face, and then he finally burst.

“I wish you would all just blame me already! I deserve it.”

Sandy’s face was full of understanding and compassion. “Aw little man, I know it can be real hard to believe these things, but you seriously can’t hold yourself responsible for what you did under the Lady Bone Demon’s control. She-”

“No!” Xiaotian took a sobbing breath “No, it isn’t even just that. It’s because of something I did before.” He looked around at his little family, and Pigsy had a terrible feeling that he knew what was coming, even if for the longest time he had straight-up refused to believe it. 

“It was before we even ran into the other six kings, back when we were all really mad at monkey king and didn’t try to hide it. Me and Sun Wukong were sparring, and I was so angry at him...I got a lucky hit, and then hit him again and again...and I didn’t stop. I b-beat the shit out of him! He looked like a sack of raw meat when I was finished! And then...” Xiaotian sobbed, but forced himself to go on, “he, it was the first time I had ever seen him heal like he would, you know, going all golden-red and melty, and...and when he was finished, he didn’t even blame me. I was standing there covered in his blood, and he said I hadn’t done anything wrong. And all I did in response was cry and run away.” He looked around the table wildly, at all their shocked faces. “What do you even say to someone after you’ve done that? ‘Whoopsie, my bad, didn’t know that pummeling you to a pulp wasn’t the coolest thing to do!’ But you know what the really pathetic part is? I couldn’t even manage that. All I did was sob and run so I could wash off his blood so I could hide what I did. And that was the last time I really talked to him. Every chance to say something afterwards just made me freeze up, like the fucking coward I turned out to be.”  Xiaotian sneered, his voice heavy with self-contempt. “Some hero I would have made.” A sigh. “When he...” Xiaotian continued, his voice barely a whisper, “right before he died, you all saw, he reached out to me through our bond one last time, but it was only to beg me to stay away. He said it was too dangerous to even try to help him. He said all his pain was good, that no one would ever forgive him because he was a horrible monster getting exactly what he deserved. He hated himself that much. And it was all my fault.”

The room was quiet except for Qi Xiaotian’s sobs. Pigsy didn’t know what he could say to this new revelation. He had assumed that the stupid monkey went to his death thinking that he was doing the necessary thing. Now it seemed he couldn’t deny that on top of it all their actions, perhaps even especially Xiaotian’s actions, had also convinced the monkey king that everyone would be better off if he wasn’t in the picture at all. And for a few terrible seconds, staring at his crying kid, Pigsy couldn’t help but agree. He didn’t know how to even began trying to fix this. He just knew that he couldn’t let Xiaotian continue like he was. As such, the pigman felt so, so grateful for Sandy when the blue giant reached over and gripped Xiaotian’s hand. 

“Xiaotian, given what you’ve told me before, I think it’s a safe bet that you were under the influence of the Lady Bone Demon even then. That spirit...she was a cunning manipulato, had spent centuries perfecting her craft. And one of her favorite tricks was to take feelings her victims already had and exacerbate them to their greatest extreme, compelling them to say and do things they never would otherwise. And yet...” Sandy took a shuddering breath, but his eyes were full of determination to continue. “And yet I know it sounds like pathetic sop after the damage you dealt to be told ‘you was blinded by rage! It wasn’t your fault!’ So I want...I am going to help you, little man. I once felt exactly what you are, so I know what I’m talking about when I say there is a way to heal. But it’s more than that, kid. You can’t take on all the blame for my br...for Sun Wukong to have felt the way he did and make the decisions he had. You weren’t even around for the centuries of Sun Wukong’s self-imposed exile and everything that came before. I think...I now know he was very unhappy for a very long time. I wish he had gotten help before all of this. But you of all people can’t take on the responsibility for centuries worth of tragic events.” 

Xiaotian was still crying, but he wasn’t trying to pull away or deny the river yaougai’s words. Pigsy carefully pulled his kid into a side hug, thinking back to all the mistakes he had made in his own life, and hoping that experience could help Xiaotian now.

“You can never go back in time and change what you did. I think Sun Wukong knew and suffered from that more than most. But kid...” Pigsy swallowed, and prayed he was going to say the right thing. “I’m, I’m begging you, don’t follow his footsteps in this too. I...I made bad decisions, and without some spirit whispering in my ear. You can’t shoulder all this blame when a lot of other people acted far, far, FAR worse than you ever did. I’m not a mind reader. I couldn’t tell you what was going through Sun Wukong’s head when he decided to...to act the way he had or end it like he did. But don’t doubt that he loved you very much. He wanted you to be safe and happy. I know from my own life that there’s a big difference between hearing that and believing it. But c’mon kid, I think we should make a good attempt to fulfill his last wish”

Xiaotian leaned more fully into Pigsy’s embrace. His voice was small and rough from crying, but it still gave the pig yaoguai more hope than he had felt in a long time.

“...Okay. I’ll try...Sandy, Tang, Xiaojiao...Dadsy...thank you...th-thank you for everything.”

There was an entire evening of hugs and tears and plans for healing afterwards, but the highlight of it for Pigsy was seeing Xiaotian eat an entire bowl of noodles without having to be asked.

---

There were ups and downs in the months that followed as Pigsy knew there would be, but little by little they were all getting better and finding more and more joy in the lives they still had. On this particular day, and after weeks of discussion and planning, the entire former monkie crew were making an outing to a museum that was running a special, free exhibition of all the artifacts starring the monkey king that the Ni Lion King had ultimately not destroyed, but had decided to donate to the public at large. Pigsy knew from overhearing discussions between the gigantic cat and Tang--who the yaoguai king had apparently decided was his “in” man to making himself an entrenched public figure in Megapolis--that this had less to do with any lingering love for Sun Wukong and more with presenting himself from the get-go as a magnanimous and friendly figure to a larger world. Even now he was standing out conspicuously near the opening of the exhibit, surrounded by s squadron of his guards and a veritable flock of reporters, clicking cameras, and gaping people, both human and yaoguai alike. His tawny face was pulled into an expression of sorrow as he related one story after another of the good times he and the monkey king had had in their youth to his sympathetic audience. Pigsy snorted. He had to give it to the overgrown feline, he really knew how to play a crowd. 

“Dadsy!”

Pigsy turned as Xiaotian trotted over, a new sketchbook hugged close to his chest. 

“You saw everything already, kid?”

“Heh, not by half! There’s a LOT more in there, but Xiaojio wanted to race ahead to see the weapons, and I...and there’s a shrine that’s been set up inside for people to pay their respects to Sun Wukong. Could you...could you come with me?”

Pigsy nodded his assent, and the two gently pushed their way through the press of bodies. The shrine was a thing of beauty, with an amazingly detailed statue of the monkey king at its center. Seeing his kid fidgeting a little as they drew closer, Pigsy told Xiaotian that he could go in and say what he needed to, and that he would be right next to the door. Xiaotian nodded, and Pigsy could see from his expression that he was grateful the pigman understood his simultaneous desires for companionship and privacy. Still, as soon as Xiaotian started towards the statue Pigsy’s ears pricked forward, feeling bad on one had for spying, but hoping that what Xiaotian had to say to the now deceased monkey king might give him a better sense of how to help his kid continue moving forward. Xiaotian waited his turn in front of the statue patiently, He looked up at the stone facade of his former mentor, bowed before it, and then spoke. 

“You were my shifu, but even now I feel like I never got the chance to know who you really were. I grew up idolizing you, thinking you were so cool and strong and handsome and...and everything that I wanted to be. I still though that when I first became your tudi. But...but you put so much on me so soon, there were so many times where you were selfish and thoughtless. I grew to hate you. And then I felt so scared. I thought you must surely hate me back. But you never did. You always tried so, so hard to do the right thing, and make sure that nobody had to suffer, even though...even though it meant that you were the one who always ended up in pain. I was angry at you for so long. But I know that you loved me. You showed it in so many of your actions, and you never expected me, never expected anyone, to love you back. I know I’m only speaking for myself. But for anything you may have done against me, I...I forgive you. And I wish...I wish I had told you this sooner, Monkey King. I’m so, so sorry that I didn’t. I wish you were still here so that, maybe, maybe you could forgive me too. I wish we had been brave enough to talk to each other about who we really were. I wish I had the chance to truly know and love you back.” 

A shuddering breath. 

“Good bye, Sun Wukong. I’m going to do my best to be the good person you though I was. And I hope that in your next incarnation you’ll find the love and happiness you deserved.” 

Xiaotian walked slowly away from the statue, and Pigsy hurriedly composed his features into his usual gruff expression. They were silent as they exited the shrine, meandered a little through the exhibit, and finally wandered into a small courtyard filled with peach trees that looked like they were only in their first season of growth. Sitting down on one of the benches, Pigsy glanced at one of the nearby “No Eating” signs before catching Xiaotian’s eyes. Keeping his gaze fixed on Xiaotian, the pigman sneakily pulled out a small bag of home-made peach chips from his inner coat pocket, and then gave his kid a conspiratorial wink.

Xiaotian’s smile was small, but it was genuine, and as such the best thing Pigsy had seen in a long, long time. 

“Yeah, I think I could eat.”