#this job has honestly been nice so far and i get along well with my coworkers but this is was annoying

[greenrose-witchdance]

Got told off at work for not looking like i work hard :/ so like its not that i havent been working and getting shit done i just havent looked hardworking enough while i do it. be for fucking real

[sheisjoeschateau]

"Oh, so we DO love Steve..." | PART I

Steve Harrington x Bauman!fem!reader enemies to lovers, heavy angst, hurt/comfort, upside down mayhem, S2-S4, post S4 universe hot-take, end-of-the-world / dystopian setting, ugly fights turned smut (...but with hella plot). 18+

WHEN THE UNEXPECTED NIECE OF MURRAY BAUMAN GETS THROWN IN THE MIX, THE GANG HAS NO IDEA JUST WHAT THEY'RE IN FOR. SCRATCH THAT - STEVE DOESN'T KNOW. YOU GET ALONG WITH EVERYONE WELL. YOU BANTER WITH THE ADULTS, WHO APPRECIATE YOUR HELP. THE KIDS LOVE AND WORSHIP YOU. YOU'RE HELPFUL ALL AROUND. BUT AS FAR AS STEVE IS CONCERNED, YOU'RE JUST NUISANCE. AFTER ALL, YOU'RE THE REASON HE LOST THE LOVE OF HIS LIFE AND MISSED OUT ON A LIFE THAT "COULD'VE BEEN." IF YOU HAD JUST KEPT YOUR SORRY ASS OUT OF THE PICTURE... IF YOU HAD NEVER GONE WITH NANCY AND JONATHAN AFTER THEY LEFT YOUR WHACK-JOB UNCLE, MURRAY BAUMAN'S, BUNKER? HE WOULD BE HAPPY. SO F*CKING HAPPY. BUT HERE YOU WERE. YOU WERE BASICALLY THE COOLER (...AND SURE, MUCH MORE ATTRACTIVE) FEMALE VERSION OF MURRAY BAUMAN. YOU WERE SARCASTIC, QUICK-WITTED, TOO SMART FOR YOUR OWN GOOD, AND APPARENTLY BUILT FOR THE WAR. SURE, YOU WEREN'T AS BRASH AS YOUR UNCLE. BUT IN STEVE'S EYES, YOU WERE SOMEHOW FAR MORE OBNOXIOUS. HE DOWNRIGHT HATED YOU. HE WILL FOREVER HATE YOU... BUT WILL HE?

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT GIVE PERMISSION FOR MY WORK TO BE COPIED AND/OR REPOSTED ON HERE OR ANY OTHER PLATFORM, OR PUT INTO ANY AI PROGRAMS. THIS IS AN 18+ BLOG, MDNI.

An original fanfiction series, written by Misha St. James.

⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ SERIES MASTERLIST ⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆

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I did not proof-read this after Tumblr gave me hell trying to share. So pls excuse possible typos. hehe

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Let's just get to the point, shall we?

Once upon a time, a young boy named Will Byers went missing. Later, he was found in an alternate dimension by the world's #1 mom and a cynical cop turned hero. A girl with a shaved head had telekinetic superpowers, befriend's Will's four loyal friends along the way and helping them track down their missing party member. Then, whatever the hell was on the other side - whatever was in this...upside down...took back Eleven. She'd been missing ever since that dreadful winter.

Fast forward to now: you're sitting in your uncle's bunker, looking at his wild display of efforts.  Papers, files, whiteboards covered in multiple words, arrows, sketches - all in different colored markers. Murray Bauman was on a mission, and he would be damned if that grumpy, cynical smart-ass known as Jim Hopper honestly thought that he could dismantle his efforts.  Nice try, chum. Game on. Thankfully, you'd gone to school with Barbara Holland. That's whose parents had assigned the task of searching for her to your uncle. Murray was asking you tons of questions, and you were glad to help. It meant spending time with the only family member you cared for, despite his wackiness. You guys got each other. Bantered well. Got shit done. Honestly, it was also a great way of drinking safely and not with a bunch of rowdy teenagers at some stupid party. You got along just fine with everyone at school. But damn, they could all be annoying.  ...especially Steve fucking Harrington, who was now the topic of conversation. You know, given that his house is where Barbara was last seen. "It just isn't making sense," your uncle huffed, raking his hands through his oily dark hair.  You sipped on the glass of vodka that your uncle had poured you, hissing at the strong taste. Leaning across the coffee table, seated on his couch, you tried to connect the dots with him. "I'm telling you, someone in that group of teens knows what's up. Or at least has an idea." Your uncle swigged at his vodka, defeated but ruthlessly trying to piece together his clusterfuck of scattered evidence across his wall. "Well then, guess we better grill 'em."

And that's how you come into the picture. When Nancy and Jonathan came to seek out Murray. And when they arrive, they're surprised to see you. They recognize you from school. Jonathan took several classes with you. In fact, the two of you got along well at Hawkins High. No, you weren't close. But you both were cool. Nancy, on the other hand, didn't know anything about you. Just that you took political science with Barbara, and got straight A's across the board. You could've been class valedictorian. But you were not looking for any sort of title that demanded pressure or attention. At least not in high school. Career wise? Sure. Not here, though. Not Hawkins. "Your timeline is wrong," Nancy is saying, making you and Bauman freeze.  Nancy is telling you that the girl with the buzzed hair is not Russian. She is, in fact, from Hawkins lab. And her name is...Eleven? So they do know something. And something turns out to be everything.

Jonathan sits you both down to relay everything to you both. And woof, does it give you guys a headache. Strangely, though... it makes a whole lot more sense than some mundane explanation of sorts. Obviously though, that puts you all in a tough spot where you'll all need to put your heads together. So the two classmates of yours stay, sharing in chilled Smirnoff and having to endure the hilarity that ensues between you and your uncle. You and Murray both banter well with the two of them. Jonathan finds you to be hilarious. Nancy finds you intimidating. Very intimidating. You’re quick witted, darkly humored and independent. But there is a reserved, mysterious sort of feminine energy to you, despite your more masculine strengths and bluntness. Over glasses of stiff vodka, you all come to the conclusion on how to go about exposing the truth about Barbara Holland's disappearance: water it down.

At the end of the night, you're all winding down -- you and your uncle having convinced the two lovebirds to stay. But when you're telling them they can take your uncle's guest room while you take the couch, Jonathan's asking if he can take the couch. You blink. Huh? ...surely Nancy is not still with --

"Okay, I'm confused," your uncle's saying. "What's going on here? Lovers quarrel?"

You cock an eyebrow, leaning back into the loveseat.

But Jonathan and Nancy are then talking over each other with weird, flustered excuses...saying they're just friends.

You and your uncle bust out laughing. And then you're shrinking back in your seat, knowing what's coming: one of your Uncle Murray's lovebird witchdoctor speeches that he barrels into anytime that two delusional people have convinced themselves that they aren't in love. Or at the very least, not into each other. 

Uncle Murray is breaking them down, one at a time. He's reading Jonathan like an angsty teen novel, seeing right through him and his brooding, mysterious energy.  Trust issues, thanks to daddy issues. Yikes, that makes you sip some more drink.

And then he's onto Nancy, saying that she's harder to read. But he manages anyway.  It's the Bauman way.

He's telling her that she's likely like everyone else, "afraid of what would happen if you accepted yourself for you who you really are." He looks at you. "Am I in the right ballpark?"

You nod, swallowing the last drop of vodka in your cup. "That...and afraid of that might happen if she didn't retreat back to the safety of someone familiar."

Nancy looks bewildered. But more than that, she looks caught. 

"Name?" your uncle is prodding, snapping his fingers.  "Name."

You and Jonathan both say it. "Steve."

Uncle Murray's face is priceless. He feigns adoration, putting on a baby voice as he repeats the name. "Dawh. Steve. We like Steve."

"Yes," Nancy laughs nervously.  Eek, you think.

"But we don't love Steve..." Your uncle's words floor Nancy.

And when Nancy's saying something about still being with Steve, insisting that she loves him, you roll your eyes. Even scoffing, getting her attention. Maybe if the vodka weren't in your system, you wouldn't be so bold. But Jonathan's mopey look just gives you more confidence.

"Boom, ladies and gents," you say with a grin. "Second lie of the evening." "The hell was the first one?" Jonathan asks, blinking. "You guys being just friends." You and your uncle say something along the same lines, simultaneously. You both laugh together, clinking glasses. The two not lovebirds just squirm awkwardly in their seats. Finally, you sigh. "Look. You guys don't wanna give up the ghost? Be my guest. I'll happily keep my bed." You stand up, ready to turn in. But not until casting them one last work, pointing a finger. "But if I were you two? I'd cut the bullshit and just share the damn bed." Murray snorts, rising to stand as well. He stretches. "Welllllp. I'm turning in for the night." You begin mounting the stairs, hollering: "Better act fast, kiddos. At least before this poison in my system knocks me out cold. Don't worry, Nancy, I don't snore. So if you do choose me, you're safe." "But that's so lame," Murray adds to that wryly, heading off to his room. You both tell each other goodnight, leaving the two angsty teens to decide their fate. All you know is that Nancy ends up walking out and not coming back, at one point in the night.  Yeah, thought so. Breakfast the next morning is even more hilarious. You and your uncle ask every single question that drips with innuendo that you ever possibly could. And it's worth every fucking minute.

Murray's gonna need to keep that couch cleaned. To your surprise, Murray sends you off with Nancy and Jonathan, but given that you want to go and see it all for yourself you don't mind. You’re basically his little spy.  Most uncles send off their nieces and nephews with some good advice, maybe a packed lunchbox or snacks, and a warm hug. 

Yours, however, sends you off with a full bottle of vodka, a thick wad of cash and some fun sarcastic banter. But he headlocks you in for a hug, and you cackle. He really is a nutcase, and man you can't help but love him. He is so not the parental type. Yet somehow, he's practically raised you. And in your opinion, you're pretty well-prepared for the world. More than most, in Murray's opinion. So off you go with Nancy Wheeler and Jonathan Buyers, and they both honestly enjoy your company. It helps them get past their umm...well...awkward new reality. That new reality that comes post-sex, after a long ass time of playing the tip-toe game. The sexual tension between them is hysterical to you. But you keep your thoughts to yourself for now. The vodka did most of the talking for you last night.

When you both arrive at wherever the hell your destination is, it's dark outside. And if you're being honest, it's pretty creepy. You're somewhere near the woods, and as you all walk closer you're beginning to see lights approaching you...along with a handful of shadowed figures. 

Fuck, you literally just got here.

But then, after a tense several moments... Nancy and Jonathan call out to them. You jump, startled at the fact that they do it so confidently. But the name that they call out suddenly makes it all make sense. "STEVE?" "NANCY...?" And that's how you became a crucial part of the most royal pain in the ass, King Steve's, life.

[togrowoldinv]

It Is Well

Milf!Wanda Maximoff x Reader

You’re the choir director at Wanda’s church. One afternoon after church, your relationship with her changes

Warnings: Smut! 18+ please! Reader has a penis but no pronouns are used, kissing, cursing, sex in a church oops, oral (W receiving), blowjob, Wanda being a milf

Note: I have no explanation, just love for milf Wanda. Enjoy!

Wanda Maximoff Masterlist, Main Masterlist

There are a lot of reasons that you love your new job. One is that you get to live out your passion for singing and help others in the process. The second reason is that it pays well. The church was desperate for a new choir director, so they were willing to pay you pretty much whatever you wanted.

But the reason that you love your job the most is that you’ve met Wanda Maximoff.

Wanda is your favorite choir member by far. She is always punctual, she sings beautifully, and she flirts with you.

At least, you think she’s flirting with you. She is always making an excuse to touch your arm as she walks by you, or she’ll stay late to help you work on arrangements.

“Hey there!” Wanda says as she enters the choir suite today.

“Wanda, how are you?” You ask.

“I’m doing mighty fine. And you?”

“Honestly, I could use some help,” you admit.

Wanda nods seriously and sets her purse down. She sits next to you at the piano. You try not to notice how good she looks in her button up shirt.

“How can I help, darlin’?” She asks.

“I’m trying to make this transition sound right, but I just can’t.”

“Play it for me,” Wanda says.

You begin to play the song and Wanda sings along quietly. Her voice floats through the room like a sweet songbird. When you get to the transition, you stop. It still hasn’t come to you.

Wanda touches your hand and places your fingers on a few different keys than the ones you’ve been trying.

“It is well,” she begins singing. She nods for you to continue playing. “It is well with my soul.”

It’s the perfect transition.

“Wanda Maximoff you are a genius!” You say. Wanda hugs you tightly and smiles. “We’re ready for the service now.”

“I’ll get my robe on,” Wanda says.

She stands up from the piano and takes her robe out of the closet. Somehow, she looks even better in it than in her regular clothes.

“Looking very nice, ma’am,” you compliment Wanda.

“Thank you,” Wanda replies. She walks closer to you. “Can I admit something to you?”

“Yeah- of course.”

Wanda is just inches from you. You smell her perfume.

“I’ve always thought these robes were kind of silly, but then I saw you in one,” Wanda says. “And now I think they are very flattering.”

Wanda grins before she steps back and leaves the suite. You stand there stunned by her words. She was definitely flirting with you this time.

You try to shake it off and go lead the choir during service. It goes without a hitch. The only time you almost miss a cue is when Wanda smiles at you. It’s really that easy for her to make you fold.

After the service, you go back to the choir suite. No one else is in there when you walk in, but soon Wanda comes in and shuts the door behind her.

“You should leave that on,” Wanda says, gesturing to your robe.

“Are they calling for an encore out there?” You joke.

Wanda crosses the room quickly. She places a hand on your forearm and the other comes to rest on your cheek. Your breath hitches at her movements.

“I’m very attracted to you,” Wanda says. “Are you attracted to me?”

“Wanda, I- um- it’s not that simple,” you say. Of course, your answer is yes.

“I think it’s simple. You’re absolutely stunning,” Wanda says.

“You’re beautiful, Wanda. But we can’t.”

Wanda pouts her perfect lips. You fight the urge to lean forward and kiss them.

“Would you really deny me this pleasure, sweetheart?” She asks.

“No,” you mumble.

“What was that?”

“No ma’am.”

She grins wickedly and places her lips on yours in a long, slow kiss. Her hand on your face slips into your hair as she deepens the kiss. Her other hand takes yours and places it over one of her breasts. Even through the robe and her clothing, you can feel the breast.

You kiss until neither of you can breathe. And then you drop to your knees in front of Wanda. She lifts her robe up over her hips. Taking your time, you take off her skirt and let her panties fall to the floor.

“Make me feel good, baby,” Wanda says.

You place kisses against her creamy thighs. She shivers with every touch, and you know her husband doesn’t touch her like this. Wanda moans when you lick through her folds, gathering her wetness with your tongue.

“I’ve thought about this for so long,” Wanda says. “About you on your knees worshipping me in this church.”

“Fuck,” you mumble against her.

Wanda’s hand comes to your hair to encourage you to continue. You never want to stop. You take her clit in your mouth and her hips stutter. In a few more moments, Wanda falls apart at your touch. She has to reach for the nearest chair to regain her balance.

“Holy fuck, Wanda,” you say when you emerge from between her legs.

“Mmm, come here,” she says. She lifts you up by your shoulders and you kiss her.

Wanda lets out the softest moans at the taste of herself on your tongue. She wants more. You let her take control, pushing you down to the ground again.

This time she lifts your robe up your body to reveal your hips and something she didn’t expect. Your cock is hard, and Wanda immediately takes it into her mouth. She sucks until you’re coming into her mouth.

“Oh fuck, y/n,” Wanda says. “You’ve been holding out on me.”

“Ride my cock, baby?” You ask her.

Wanda nods and settles herself over you. She aligns her center with your cock, slipping onto it with ease. She is so wet from getting you off. The woman rides your cock as she moves her hands over your abdomen. You can see yourself slipping in and out of her even with your choir robe bunched up at your chest.

“Fuck, Wanda, I’m going to come,” you say as you feel yourself getting close.

“Me too,” she groans out. Her eyes are closed with pleasure. She shouts as she comes, and you spill into her.

Wanda lets you stay inside her until she’s come down from her high. You kiss her when she slips off of you and lays on the ground next to you.

“We should’ve done that months ago,” you say.

“Agreed,” Wanda says. She chuckles. “Can you go again?”

You look down at yourself. It’s unlikely but you’re willing to try.

“Maybe if we kissed for a while first? Or you let me get you off first?”

“By all means, go ahead,” Wanda says.

You laugh and turn over to kiss Wanda again. Lifting her robe off this time, you pay close attention to her breasts. And you bring her pleasure again. She does the same for you.

Wanda is definitely why you love your job, especially now.

[bunnliix]

𝕋𝕒𝕜𝕖 𝕞𝕪 ℍ𝕒𝕟𝕕

The first of 4 bouncy themed pairings, that Tumblr helped me decide that I should write first!

I was expecting this to be a quick lil one-shot, and it's now over 4,000 words and half of it is smut. Oops, sorry not sorry.

This was not meant to be smut, but it is now. This is my first Ateez smut, so please be nice, I usually write wlw smut, not fxm smut

This is a fem!reader x HwaSang, so other than saying the reader has fem body parts, I don't get into much detail.

MINORS DNI - If you are a minor and/or don't have your age indicated in your bio, I will block you if you interact with this fic

word count: 4.6k warnings: SMUT MDNI, implied assault, implied past attempted sexual assault, creepy men, reader gets called names and also terms of endearment (whore, Bunny, sweetheart, baby), reader getting touched unconsensually but like to her face, not anywhere else, violence, mentions of blood and injuries. smut warnings: blowjobs, face-fucking, knife play technically, there's a knife involved but like it never touches skin, Hwa kinda being a little bit of a mean dom, use of the word cunt, unprotected sex (Use protection please!), a bit of degradation and dumbification, breeding kink, mommy!Seonghwa, I think that's everything? Please tell me if I'm wrong and need to add something!

Y/n was wandering the streets of Sector One, which she knew better than to do, especially this late at night. Who knew who or what was lurking in the shadows, but honestly, she had no choice but to be walking home this late. She didn’t get off until well after conventional working hours had ended, but a job was a job, she couldn’t complain as long as it kept food on the table. 

It wasn’t exactly bustling out on the streets, she had seen maybe a couple of others on her long walk home. And maybe a motorcycle or two as well, but the streets were pretty deserted as the clock ticked closer to midnight. She usually was pretty safe on her walk home, there’s only been a couple incidents in the months she’s started walking home like this, but it was enough for her to arm herself with a knife. She hasn’t had to use it so far, but on this side of town, you never knew who could be waiting around for someone like her to walk by.

Just as she passed by an alleyway, the one right before her little shortcut home, she saw a shadow move, and this made her hurry along, not wanting to get caught up in something she shouldn’t. She glanced behind her, seeing a man following her slowly, but very determined to get her, it seemed. She heard the man’s footsteps speed up, and just as she reached her shortcut home, she heard him start running. She pushed herself, running down the alleyway not looking behind her to see how far away her pursuer was, not wanting to take the chance that it would let him catch up with her.

Unfortunately or maybe fortunately for her, she hadn’t really decided yet, she ran smack dab into some sort of meet up. Stopping herself before she could run right into this group of people, she tripped and fell onto the ground a couple feet away from the group of men. She left out a gasp as the fall pushed the air out of her lungs, and she was slightly struggling to get her breath back.

This caused the men to look at her, before looking up at the man who was chasing her. Who, upon seeing the group of men in front of him, simply ran back the way he came. Though, he didn’t get far as a yell was heard before another group came out of the alleyway. The men in front of y/n looked bored at the appearance of this other group.

“This one part of your crew?” The leader asked, as one of the others pushed the man down in front of them, his head hitting the pavement with a thwack, and he didn’t get back up.

“What are you doing here, Namjoon?” Y/n heard one of the men behind her call out, as she slowly tried to get up.

“Do I have to inform you of our every movement, Yeosang?” She heard the man, who she presumed to be Namjoon, reply. 

“You know better than to show up around here.” Was all she heard the other man reply with. She saw boots walk past her, and a long black coat one of them was wearing. She figured she’d be safe to stand up, but her movements caught the eyes of everyone.

“She one of your whores? Hmm?” One of the other men from Namjoon’s group asked, leering at her.

She took a step backwards, away from all of them, only to be stopped as one of the men from Yeosang’s group grabbed her by the arm. She was pulled to the front, as she struggled to get away, not wanting to be a part of any of this.

“Let me go!” She shouted.

“Oh I guess she isn’t. Well at least not yet, hm?” The same creepy man surmised. “Can I have her then? If you don’t want her.” He asked.

The man moved to reach out for her, not waiting for an answer, and she recoiled as he came close, flinching as his hand cupped her cheek.

“You’d be so fun to play with. So pretty now, you’d be even pretty covered in other things, yeah? I’m sure a pretty girl like you would enjoy it.” He said, the perverted fucker sounded almost gleeful.

That was until he pulled back, hissing at the cut on his hand. One of the men, who wore that long coat you saw, had a knife that he was cleaning off. 

“Don’t touch her.” He said, glaring at the man.

Namjoon interrupted before anything else could be said. “Jimin, come back here.” He told the creepy dude, who just glared at Yeosang before walking back to the men. Returning to his spot, he just stared directly at y/n, not taking his eyes off of her.

“Can’t keep your men under control?” Yeosang taunted Namjoon.

“You’re really itching for a fight tonight, aren’t you? Watch your fucking back, Kang Yeosang.” The other man said, before walking away, and his crew followed him, but not before Jimin winked back at her, making her shiver in disgust.

“Are you okay?” Yeosang turned to ask her, once the other men had left.

“What’s it to you?” Y/n questioned, just wanting to get out of here.

“I’m asking out of concern. You may have stumbled upon us, but we’re the ones who brought you into that whole mess.” He said to her, being as open as possible. 

Y/n huffed, “I’m fine, besides the odd injury or two.” She told him, not looking him in the eyes.

“Come on, I’ll take you to get your injuries looked at.” He told her, grabbing onto her hand and pulling her behind him as he walked.

“Why should I go anywhere with you?” She asked him.

“Because if you walked out of here by yourself, you’d be lucky if you didn’t get caught by Jimin, or one of his friends. Namjoon doesn’t care what they do, as long as it doesn’t bring attention to them. You’d be kidnapped off the streets, and never see the light of day. So really, I’m doing you a favor.” Yeosang told her, turning around so she could see how serious he was.

“Oh.” She said, now feeling guilty about her hostile attitude. He was doing her a favor and keeping her out of the hands of that creep.

“Thank you.” She said.

“You’re welcome.” He simply said, as he brought her up to a set of bikes. 

“Come on, let’s get you checked out.” He told her, handing her his helmet, seeing as he only had one with him, not expecting a passenger.

“But don’t you need one?” She asked, looking at him in concern.

“I’ll be fine.” He told her as he hopped on his bike. 

“Hop on behind me.” He instructed her, and she did so carefully, after she put on the helmet. He turned around to make sure the helmet was on correctly, and smiled and nodded when it was.

“Wrap your arms around my waist and pull her feet up please, sweetheart.” He told her, the endearment just coming out naturally, but unintentionally.

Y/n was glad she had a helmet on, so no one could see her blush. She didn’t need to go getting a crush on a man who was only helping her, and who she’d likely never see again.

Once Yeosang had made sure she was holding on tight, and his men were ready to go, he started his bike and they were off. She shrieked as he sped off, not prepared for the speed or the feel of the bike in motion underneath her. She quickly got used to it, thankfully, and just watched as they passed by the many apartments and closed businesses, every so often passing by someone walking down the sidewalk. 

The journey to wherever he was taking her seemed to take forever, but also feeling like it passed by in only minutes. She was unsure of which one was right, but as Yeosang turned off the bike and helped her off of the bike, she noticed that they had made it to an abandoned apartment building.

“You certainly know how to creep a girl out, yeah?” Y/n joked, making Yeosang laugh. God even his laugh was music to her ears.

“Hey, you’re the one who decided to come with me. Would you have rathered the alternative?” He asked, walking inside the building, as y’n ran to catch up with him.

“I never said that!” She rebutted, following closely behind, as he walked down the hallway, before turning and opening the door of a room.

“Yah, Seonghwa, care to come help bandage up an injury or two?” He called into the room, and a chuckle could be heard before footsteps got closer to the door. The man poked his head out of the door, looking at Yeosang before noticing y/n standing behind him.

“You seem to have picked up a lost little bunny on the way home.” He commented, smirking at her.

“Well, you know me, I do like picking up lost things.” The shorter man joked before he got serious. “She got injured, help patch her up?” He told the man.

“Sure, let’s see what we’re working with.” Seonghwa said, before leading the two of them further down the hall into a makeshift infirmary. He motioned for y/n to hop up onto the bed, before looking at her injuries.

“They’re not bad, which is good news.” He told her after finishing inspecting her injuries. “Some neosporin and bandages will do the trick, and you’ll be good as new.” He told her, before moving to grab said supplies, and quickly fixed up her injuries. 

She sported a couple new bandages, but at least now she wouldn’t have to worry about doing it herself. And no need to waste her supplies to do it either, though she was very grateful for the two men for helping her. 

“I’d take you back to wherever you live, but I don’t think it’s a smart idea. Jimin will be out looking for you tonight, and he has no qualms about doing something illegal or dangerous to get to you.” Yeosang explained.

“Then where will I go? I need to go somewhere to sleep.” Y/n asked.

“You could stay here for the night.” Seonghwa spoke up, to which they both turned to the older man. “What? You said Jimin was after her, that’s more than enough reason to let her stay.”

“He’s that bad?” She questioned.

“The women he pursues aren't seen again after he gets his hands on them.” Seonghwa said, not mincing his words, but not going into detail, even though it could be seen on his face that he knew more than he said.

The taller man turned to Yeosang, “She can stay in my room.” He told him, before turning to her, “If you’re comfortable with that.” He said.

“A bed is a bed, as long as you don’t mind, it’s fine with me.” The girl told him, shrugging.

“That’s fine, and it keeps her away from the others, which is better.” Yeosang reasoned.

Seonghwa took her hand gently, pulling her behind him till they reached the room they got him from, and pulled her inside, leaving the door open. Yeosang watched from the doorway, not entering the room.

The room was fairly simple, but it was decorated nicely, and the bed looked comfy, which was always a plus. He let go of her hand so she could look around, moving to sit on his bed. 

“I’ll share with Yeosang tonight so you can have the bed to yourself.” He told her, looking up at her.

“I don’t want to kick you out of your bed.” She said, feeling bad.

“It’s fine, unless you want me in bed with you?” He smirked, tone telling her that he was only half joking.

“I don’t really care as long as I have a bed to sleep in.” She said bluntly.

“Then we’ll share the bed tonight then.” Seonghwa said, finishing off that part of the conversation.

“I might have some clothes you can wear to bed, so you’re not stuck in what you have on now.” Yeosang piped up, before leaving to grab some.

“So how’d you meet Sangie, little bunny?” Seonghwa queried.

“I may have ran into him and then he helped keep me out of Jimin’s hands.” She confessed, going into more detail of her escapades that night.

“Well, I’m glad that little Sangie helped you out of a tough situation.” He said, before patting the bed next to him for her to sit. “Come on, sit down. We’d best get comfy with each other, if we’re going to sleep together.” He said.

She blushed at his wording, mind going in the not innocent direction, and he could see it happen, smirking at her reaction. 

“What’s got you so blushy, bunny?” He teased her.

“Nothing.” She said quickly.

He reached out and pulled her close. “Nothing, hm? Then why is your face so flushed?” He asked, a hand reaching up and cupping her cheek.

She looked away from him. “It’s warm in here.”

“It’s not that warm, bunny. I think something else is on your mind.” He further teased her, “Are you thinking about us sleeping together? Don’t worry bunny, I wouldn’t touch you unless you wanted it.”

Her blush darkened, and he pulled her down onto his lap at the sight of it.

“Or is that why you’re so flushed? You want me to fuck you, hmm?” He whispered in her ear. He saw movement from the corner of his eye and looked over to see Yeosang at the door, the man’s own eyes darkening at the position y/n was in currently.

She couldn’t look at the man, until a hand under her chin made her make eye contact with him. 

“Tell me bunny, what do you want?” He may have phrased it as a question, but it was an order.

She gulped, knowing that the next words out of her mouth would change how things went for the night. But fuck, she gave into what her heart wanted.

“Want you to fuck me, please.” She said, the please coming out as a whine unlike the rest of her sentence.

“Look Yeosang, it seems your little bunny is just like a bunny. She just needs a good fuck, and for someone to take control.” He said, cluing y/n on the fact that Yeosang was there.

She turned her head to see Yeosang push off the wall, heading towards her with lust in his eyes.

“You need someone to take control of you, hmm? So you don’t have to think?” Yeosang asked her, stopping right behind her as she strained her neck to look up at him.

All she could do was nod, unable to get any words out of her mouth.

“We need words, bunny. Yes or no.” Seonghwa told her.

“Yes. Please.” She said, the last word coming out more as a plea for them to do something already.

Yeosang threw the clothes in his hand onto a chair in the room, before grabbing her hands and holding them tight, as Seonghwa tilted her head back down and leaned in to kiss her. Her eyes widened before they closed, allowing the man in front of her to take full control of the kiss. He kissed her with such force and passion, she couldn’t help but squirm in his lap, only squirming further as hands landed on her hips, stopping her from moving.

She heard Yeosang whisper in her ear, “So impatient bunny. Hwa’s only kissing you and you’re already getting like this.” 

She moaned into Seonghwa’s mouth as she felt Yeosang’s hands move up from her hips to her breasts, groping them. Since her hands had been freed, she grabbed onto the shirt of the man in front of her, gripping it tightly. Once she was almost out of air, Seonghwa finally pulled away, and from the glee on his face, she must look thoroughly debauched after that.

“Mmm, look at you bunny, lips so pink and swollen and pretty. Wonder how pretty they’d look around one of our cocks.” He remarked, lifting a hand to rub at her bottom lip, and she took it into her mouth, sucking on it.

“Oh, looks like our bunny has an oral fixation, huh? I’d bet you’d love something to suck on then.” He taunted, looking up at Yeosang, who immediately knew what he was suggesting. 

Y/n heard the sound of a zipper and then pants being pushed down, before Seonghwa turned her head to the side, and she was faced with Yeosang’s cock in her face. 

“Wanna make me feel good, bunny?” Yeosang asked, a lustful look on his face. 

She quickly nodded, looking up at him as she took the head into her mouth, sucking on it softly before slowly taking more of him into her mouth. She kept eye contact with him the entire time, and he smiled down at her.

“Such a good bunny for us.” He told her.

Seonghwa had decided to go ahead and explore y/n’s body, his hands moving underneath her top and moving up her torso until he found her tits, pulling them out of her bra and fondling them, causing her to moan around Yeosang’s cock, and the man’s head tilted back in pleasure.

“Fuck Hwa, keep doing that.” Yeosang groaned.

Hwa took it one step further, grabbing a knife that he had nearby, and slicing her top open, exposing her chest, before he undid her bra leaving her totally exposing to them, a whispered “fuck” coming from both boys.

“So pretty, baby.” Seonghwa praised her.

As Y/n finally took all of his cock into her mouth, Yeosang couldn’t help himself, grabbing a hold of her hair, and keeping her there for a couple moments, moaning at the feeling of her throat around his cock. He let her pull away and once she had pulled away from his dick, she was breathing heavily, drool running down her chin and a string connecting from her mouth to the head of his cock, but she looked up at him with such need in her eyes, and he couldn’t control himself anymore.

“I’m gonna fuck your face baby.” He told her, looking down at her before shoving his cock back into her mouth. 

She loosened her jaw as much as she could, letting him fuck her mouth as he needed, and he often pushed in all the way to the base, feeling her gag on him when she wasn’t expecting it. 

He felt his own release getting close, “Fuck. Gonna cum down your throat baby.” He told her. 

She was struggling to concentrate on Yeosang, due to Seonghwa’s mouth on her nipple and his hand playing with the other one, but she did her best to make the biker cum in her mouth, needing it. He moaned as he came, pushing all the way in, his cum spilling down her throat as she swallowed what she could. He let go of her hair, letting her pull away and chuckled at her face, she still looked so pretty even after all of that.

“You did so well for me bunny. Such a good bunny for me.” He told her, running his fingers through her hair, as she looked up at him.

“It’s my turn now.” Seonghwa interrupted their moment, wanting his chance to play with the cute little bunny on his lap.

“Impatient as ever.” Yeosang commented, rolling his eyes.

Seonghwa ignored the younger man, moving to push off the clothes still remaining on her top half, before lifting her off his lap and tossing her onto his bed. He moved to kneel over her, admiring her for a moment before leaning in to leave a trail of bite marks on her shoulder and neck, before trailing down to her tits. He pinched and pulled at her nipples, her moans tumbling out of her mouth one after another.

“You’re so sensitive already baby, and I haven’t even touched your pussy yet.” He lightly mocked her, hand sliding down her torso and slipping underneath her pants and underwear, quickly finding her clit. She gasped as she felt his fingers touch her, her back arching off the bed as her eyes rolled back.

“Hwa, please. Need more.” She begged, moaning as the man rubbed slow circles around her clit.

“Patience is a virtue, bunny. Maybe if you beg enough, I’ll fuck you with my fingers, hmm?” He replied to her pleas.

“Fuck, please. I need you, need your fingers inside me please.” She begged him, tears filling her eyes.

He didn’t answer her, just smirking at the girl underneath him, before pulling away from her completely, causing her to whine and beg him to touch her again. She was filled with need, all she could think about was his touch and how desperately she needed it. He had barely done anything, and she could barely think at all anymore. He moved to pull off her bottoms and panties revealing her soaked cunt, and he cooed at seeing how wet she had gotten.

“Look at you, you’re so wet for us, bunny.” He said, continuing to smirk. He almost crawled towards her, like she was his prey that he was ready to devour. Taking a hand, he slid his fingers in between her folds a couple times, before bringing those fingers up to his mouth, moaning at the taste of her.

“You taste so good, darling, I want to devour you and make you cum on my tongue over and over again. But I don’t think either of us are patient enough for that tonight. Another time.” He said, staring directly into her eyes, and he moved his body in between her thighs.

He rubbed his cock up and down her pussy a couple times, before he slowly pushed into her. His pace as he slid into her was almost tortuous for y/n, and she whined and pleaded with him to go faster. He tutted at her, keeping his slow space until he bottomed out in her. 

“You’re so tight, baby. You feel like heaven around me.” He praised her, before pulling almost all the way out, before slamming back in, setting a fast pace.

She couldn’t think with how hard he was fucking her, any words coming out of her mouth half-formed and more like moans that have a resemblance to words. Both men chuckle at seeing how brain-dumb they had fucked the girl, but she looked gorgeous like this. Her eyes were glassy and glazed over, and she almost never stopped making noises that were music to their ears.

Yeosang watched y/n get fucked, eyes glued onto her and Seonghwa. It wasn’t the first time they had shared a girl, but this may have been his favorite time they’ve done so. She was perfect for them, and he was so grateful he found her. She took them so well, and he needed more, he craved her body, the noises she made, everything about her. And he knew Seonghwa was just as enamored with her, and they wouldn’t let her get away from them that easily. He slowly stroked his dick as he watched, sitting on a chair in the older man’s room, smirking as he silently observed.

Seonghwa grabbed her hips, his grip tight enough to leave lasting bruises on her skin. He felt his orgasm creeping up on him, and decided to pick up the pace. Skin slapping against skin, his almost brutal pace and the slightest change in position had him hitting that spot in her cunt, making her see stars, and she made sure they knew it, screaming out Seonghwa’s name as he hit it the first time.

“Come on bunny, cum on my cock. I want you to cum around me as I fuck you dumb. Gonna be my dumb little bunny who needs me to breed her full of my cum.” Seonghwa’s words brought her closer to her release, continuing to talk as he fucked her.

“Gonna cum on your cock. Breed me please, mommy!” Y/n babbled, feeling her orgasm rush over her as she clenched down on Seonghwa’s cock, bringing the man closer to his own release. She screamed his name as he fucked her through her orgasm, the pleasure coursing through her body almost too much for her to handle. 

“Don’t worry bunny, mommy will breed you like the little bunny you are.” He told her, moaning as he felt his own release wash over him, filling y/n's cunt with his sperm. 

He leaned over her, breathing heavily as he got his breath back. He leaned down, kissing her softly before he carefully pulled out of her pussy, watching his own cum dribble out of her. He looked to Yeosang, asking the man to grab a warm cloth, and watched the man get up and head out of the room for one. 

“Bunny, are you feeling okay?” He asked, looking down at the girl in concern.

She hummed a noise in the affirmative, looking up at him with glassy eyes, not fully in the present after getting the life fucked out of her.

“I need words, baby.” He softly reminded her.

“ ‘m good, promise. Just got the best fuck of my life.” She mumbled out, making the man above her laugh.

“I’m glad to get such high praise.” He told her, still laughing as Yeosang returned with a couple warm cloths. “I’m gonna clean you up now, okay baby bunny?” He told her, waiting for her to nod before he did anything.

He gently cleaned her up, washing away sweat and bodily fluids, taking time and care to make sure she was fully cleaned up. She smiled at him as he did so, grateful that he was as sweet afterwards, as he was a demon during sex. 

“You feeling better now that you’re all cleaned up?” Yeosang asked, reminding her of his presence.

“I’m feeling much better.” She promised him, smiling up at her savior. 

“Good. Now I think it’s probably best that you sleep now. It’s late and you need it.” He told her, reminding her of the time.

She nodded, already feeling a yawn bubbling up in her chest. The two men chuckled once she did yawn, and Yeosang grabbed the clothes he brought for her, as Seonghwa helped her get dressed in them. Seonghwa lent some clothes to his friend and they got dressed as well, before joining y/n in the bed, laying on either side of her.

“You guys know how to treat a girl well.” She said, sleep making her words slightly slurred.

“Sleep now bunny.” Seonghwa and Yeosang told her. 

With how wrecked she was after Seonghwa’s turn with her, it didn’t take long for her to fall asleep. The two still awake exchanged looks, silently agreeing to talk about everything in the morning, after y/n had gone on her way. Seonghwa laid an arm over her waist, as Yeosang wrapped one around her shoulder. The two men quickly fell into dreamland themselves, though neither of their dreams were in any way wholesome.

[tsams-confessions]

We're coming off anon with this one boys. It's long and I apologize but it's been weighing on my mind for quite some time.

There are three things people tend to know me for in this fandom. My art, my fanfics, or my thread on TSBS server. Said thread is a place where I talk about the psychological aspects of the show, as well as do character analyses and sometimes even analyze entire lore uploads for the kicks and giggles. I'm a psychology major, I also have ASPD. I made the thread so I could talk about Eclipse, who at the time I suspected had the same disorder I do and which was later confirmed less than a week after I made the thread. Since then Ruin has also been confirmed as an ASPD haver, which I personally deeply enjoy. It's fun for me to talk about my disorder and relate it to the show since ASPD is really hard to understand. 99% of people are inherently capable of empathy, and about 2% of that 98% lose that ability during childhood. So it's understandably not a very well-understood disorder. It's also a very scary and dark disorder, and I can say that honestly because I live with it. Due to this fact, it tends to be villainized in media, and I am very refreshed by the fact that TSAMS does a good job of not making their ASPD havers raving lunatics with a thirst for blood. 

Anyways, that's just background information. So far I haven't met very many weirdos about ASPD in this fandom. Almost everyone is very chill with the fact that I am a sociopath and I haven't received a ton of weird comments about it. It's a relief since I deal with a lot of open stigma and harassment irl because I refuse to pretend to be something I'm not. However, there was an instance in my thread when I was actively talking about ASPD, and a new member decided to. . . I don't even know. It was creepy and weird, and really uncomfortable. They basically told me that I'm 'too nice of a person to be a sociopath' and that they could tell that I wasn't a sociopath because they see the good in people. They also said that they were surprised that there are sociopathic people and inferred that sociopaths are pretending, whatever that means. They kept going to keep making weird and stigmatized comments about the disorder, as well as continuing to compliment me in a very unnerving way. I think about it a lot because it was very uncomfortable to be interrupted like that in the middle of talking about ASPD. There was the new mod online and participating in the conversation, but they didn't say anything to the person who was actively making me uncomfortable, even though I expressed such in the chat. 

I deal with a lot of stigma and ableism in my day-to-day life, where people tell me that I can't be a sociopath because of really stupid shit. Like the fact, I get along with people or want to help people in the medical field. Or the time-tried 'but you're a woman' comments. I don't understand why the mod kinda just left me to fend for myself and ignored the person causing issues, and while I don't hold it against them, I do have anxiety about this situation repeating itself in the future. It's not easy to talk about a disorder that the average person could not even dream of understanding, and it's even harder when people who don't know you are trying to tell you that your disorder is fake based on flimsy reasoning. It's really invalidating of the actual hellscape I had to survive to be able to even turn 18, and it rakes up my anxiety to a 10 just at the thought of it. There's not a lot of safe spaces for someone to talk about having a dark disorder, and even less for something as rare and misunderstood as ASPD. It's hard enough as it is being a high-functioning sociopath, and I just needed to rant, I suppose. Haha, could make it a "tl;dr even I get offended sometimes."

Anyway, not dropping names, but it wasn't a private matter. Nor am I upset with the mods, it's just a thing that happened that I think about a lot because it's a very rare thing for me to be offended. Glad that the majority of this fandom that I've interacted with has been willing to hear me out ASPD, but I just worry about having a repeat situation like this. It's a very sad thing to witness in this fandom that talks about inclusivity. We can't pick and choose our disorders, and where there are canon sociopaths in the show one would think the fans would try to be a little more educated on the disorder (not directed towards anyone and I appreciate the people who are willing to ask me things about it instead of making assumptions).

.

[callsigns-haze]

Pretty like a crime

Chapter 8

Pairing: Agent Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Singlemom! Agent Y/n 'Cobra' Y/l/n

Summary: Cobra is finally back on the agency and is finally back in the job. With Kai at home she has to jumble being a mother and a agent. She's sent to her first U.C mission but never thought that she would meet a blonde, green eyed Texan...

Warning: Mentions of gun use, ptsd, mentions of death, mentions of shooting, flirting, mentions of abuse, description of dead body, death, blood, undercover work, alcohol use, smut, kissing

Prologue/ Part 1/ Part 2/Part 3/ Part 4/ Part 5/ Part 6/ Part 7

"Alexandre, is back in the family." Matthew says as you sit on your balcony, sipping wine to help relieve the stress you've just experienced.

"Nice," you mumble taking another sip and looking at him from behind your glasses. He's changed so much recently, more tensed and stressed. He's been so full of anger and lost compassion that you simply don't understand.

"What's going on with you!" He lifts his voice and you don't even lift your gaze. He's angry but there's nothing that could get you more pissed than you already were. The people who hated the Chevaliers were working their way through history and you were giggling at the sidelines.

"Your brother just flipped his car and nearly died. You're so stuck up and arrogant that you don't even go and visit him and just sit here going on about business, THAT'S WHAT'S FUCKING WRONG WITH ME!" You shout at him.

"All you care about if your doing well in daddy's business. Not once did you stop and think about anyone around you, even your own brother's. Matthew, history from ten years ago is getting pulled back up from the grave and you should care about not getting caught by a lose thread!' And with that your gone. As you storm off as you shove past Penelope.

------

These people cared for no one at all. All they cared about was money. You don't know how you got yourself so deep into this drama but you don't want to know, but one thing you learned is that the only way to survive is to thrive by yourself.

You run down as fast as your legs can carry you. Your dad was called down to the police station along with other team members with no reason for the explanation behind it.

You pull out your badge and guards approve your entering and sadly the first person you lay on is the last you would've wanted. "Matthew."

Matthew, was your father's lawyer, family business brings close and yet that so-called lawyer is actually your ex. You haven't seen him ever since you left, from what you heard he went for rehab and it showed. He didn't seem sloppy and drowsy anymore, he had composure. He stood up straight, eyes not bloodshot and looked like the Matt you knew.

"Y/N."

He could not believe his eyes. The woman he had loved for all those years and the same woman that left him was now standing right in front of him, ready to hear news about her father.

"Hi." You both say in sync , causing the two of you to let out a laugh. Your laugh was one of the finest you've ever given off, you're far from happy to see this man and no act could fake it. It broke the thick and tense silence as you asked, "What happened with my dad?"

He looked down at you and pulled out a bunch of paper while pointing and explaining, "They pulled evidence from back years, then forged them together and got this mess." It sure was a mess, each line being more fake and unrealistic from the other.

Your father would never do such things and never did, he has worked honestly and fairly and whoever was doing this to him would surely pay.

"Can I-"

"Hey, Cobra!" A voice from behind you calls as the tall, muscular, blonde, green eyed Texan runs up beside you. He kisses your cheek lightly as Matthew hunts him down with his gaze. Horrible timing Hangman.

"Who's this?" Jake asks, wrapping his arm around your waist. These actions are getting stared at by Matthew as if he was a hawk hunting his prey. "Matt, this is Jake my partner. Jake, this is Kai's dad Matthew."

If you ever seen a cartoon character lose colour in milliseconds there was no better way of describing Jake. All the colour drained from his face, he went all pale and stiff, while shaking as he held his hand out.

Matthew stared at Jake's put out hand and ignored it, slightly shoving past it as he tells you. "They don't have anything solid on him, don't worry. Excuse me, I have to go see my client." He shoved past Jake whispering in his ear as he walked past. "If I were in your place I'd leave my family alone."

Jake got the biggest chills of his whole life. Your ex was, Matthew Chevalier. Nicely putting it, he was done for.

"You didn't tell me HE was Kai's dad. Wait! So you're-" You've heard this sentence more than you could count in your life, exactly the words used on the phonecall.

"Madame Chevalier or Lady, whatever you wanna call it." You sigh, pulling your head back and putting it back down to lock eyes with Jake. You stare at his green eyes for just a moment and then lean in to plant a kiss upon his lips. You wrap your hands gently around his neck, twirling his hair lightly as your lips perform a sort of dance. You pull back and look Jake in the eyes.

"As much as I hate him he's still Kai's father and a damn good lawyer, that's all that matters."

-------

You enter the white room where Romain lay. His neck was injured and in a brace and his arm was in a cast. He looked so powerless. In this moment he looked as if he lost all the authority he's ever had.

You walk toward the hospital bed and sit down on the small chair beside him. A tear slips from your eye as you watch him in such a state. Out of all the Chevaliers he was the only one with dignity and a heart and this all happened because his dad kicked him out for loving a man and not Grace.

"Hey," you say, putting his free hand in yours as he looks at you. A tear leaves his eye as he lays his sight upon you. You felt horrible for him. He didn't deserve this, not at all.

"Y/N, I-i-i-i." You shush him already knowing what he was going to say. The Fortuny family ended in such a way and now he did the same but if it wasn't for Olivia he'd already be dead.

"Romain, their death wasn't in your hands."

------

You lay on your couch as Kai insisted on walking Jake's dog with him, and there was no way you could deny it. The blanket lay only upon your feet as you curled yourself up into a ball.

Matthew was sober and back into his ordinary life. He was sober and in a brilliant state, he was influenced and trusted and most importantly out of all, he found you. Matthew had the right to fight for Kai if he wished to.

Kai was his son after all and the only reason you left was due to the struggles that your relationship pushed. You quickly got divorced papers and signed them and immediately left the continent let alone the country.

You earlier pulled out a glass of champagne, but now you've ended up in the middle of chugging the whole bottle. Your ex husband is in town, meaning he could tear you down for what you did. He could easily get rid of you for what you've done.

"MOMMY!" Kai's voice echoed through the apartment as they returned from their walk. You place the champagne bottle down onto the glass, black coffee table and sit up properly from your previous egg position.

The second Jake had taken off your son's shoes, the little boy ran to you and sat beside you before you pulled him into your lap. "Mommy, can I stay up with the doggy?" The little boy enforced one of the fittest pouting lips you've ever seen but you couldn't say yes, not tonight.

"I'm sorry baby, bed now. You've taken a bath earlier and went out in your PJ's so you're perfectly ready for a night snooze." Kai groans as Jake appears leaning against the living room doorframe with the young energetic dog at his feet.

"Your mommy's right buddy, you'll still have time to play tomorrow." You look up at Jake and smile before standing up with Kai on your hip.

You carry him over to Jake where your boyfriend happily relieves your arms from your son, carrying him to his room to put him down.

- Once Jake re-entered he found you leaning against the kitchen counter, head pointing downwards as you took deep breaths.

There were silent tears streaming down your face when the flashback of the papers went through your head. You let out a little sob not being able to contain yourself and that's when Jake noticed you crying.

"Noo angel, don't cry. I'm here now everything is ok," at that you get up to face him gently wrapping your arms around him and sobbing into his chest.

"Shhhh baby, it's okay. I'm here."

"It's just that when I left I never had to s-s-see him aga-" you could even finish the sentence with your shaking. You were having another panic attack. You haven't had one in ages but Jake knew this wouldn't end well if you didn't relax and take a breath.

"Look at me angel," he commands softly, not trying to be ruff or rude but in a way to get you to listen.

You raze your gaze to him as your glassy eyes spill again and you start hiccuping softly.

"Now, see angel. I'm here, okay? I'm fine and I'm with you so let's keep the past to the past and now everything is okay," he says pulling you in gently.

Your son's slowed down as you started taking deep, slowed down breaths. "I don't want him here. I want him gone, for good this time!" You choke out before reburying yourself in Jake's chest. You want Matthew dead.

Current taglist:

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@callsign-dexter

@rosiahills22

@horseslovers2016

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[brucebocchi]

Ranking every new anime I watched in 2023, Pt. 2: #20-11

hey, i just started a ko-fi for my writing and possible other creative outlets. this post will also be available there, so please check it out and consider tipping/donating as i'm currently between jobs. the tumblr version of part 1 can be found here.

Let's get right into it.

20. Helck

I watched Helck’s first season for its entire half-year run, and I'm honestly still not sure how I feel about it. I’d heard amazing things from people who’d read the manga, and it had a hot start, but the pacing slowed to such a crawl after a while that it kind of felt like they stretched out the story just so they could make another season.

Helck, an enormous and impossibly jolly human warrior, enters a tournament to decide the successor to the throne of the recently-slain Demon King. Demons and humans had been at war for some time, so Vermilio, an adorably fiery elite lord of the castle, is naturally wary of him. Helck is naturally powerful, talented, and affable, so he easily breezes his way through the tournament in hilarious fashion, despite Vermilio’s best efforts at sabotage. Before the finals can take place, though, an immortal army sent by the human forces arrive to attack the demon realm, and Helck and Vermilio are teleported to the far edge of the realm.

The season largely covers Helck and Vermilio’s trek back to the demon kingdom, as well as the demons’ struggles against the mysterious warriors as they attempt to figure out just what the hell the humans are plotting.  Vermilio remains leery of Helck, regardless of all he’s done for her, but it becomes further evident that Helck is harboring a very dark past, and eventually we get a lengthy arc where he sits down and explains it to Vermilio in flashback. There is, as you’d expect, plenty of tragedy there, and you’d like to see it resolved, but things just seem to keep getting worse.

There are powerful messages in there about toxic positivity and fighting the urge to shoulder one’s burdens alone, but they don’t become fully apparent until late in the season. Everything until then, at least after the teleportation, is… fine. I had higher hopes for this one, but it just feels like it’s missing something, and I can’t put my finger on what. It looks fine, the voice acting is good (the GOAT Katsuyuki Konishi is typically very good as Helck), the action is decent, it’s all… fine. The pacing just feels glacial at times, to the point where if I hadn’t been watching it weekly I might have bounced off of it.

Of course, the season ended with what appears to be the endgame on the horizon, so for all I know there’s still a lot more to come, but the story beats feel so familiar that I get the feeling it could be resolved with, like, a movie. I hope I’m wrong, because there are clearly some major emotional payoffs yet to come, and I’m still curious to see how it gets there. I may have to pick up the manga to find out if it’ll be worth any more of my time.

19. Urusei Yatsura (2022), second cour

Fresh off of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure’s possible series finale, David Production’s modern take on Rumiko Takahashi’s legendary comedy manga hummed along nicely into 2023. The cast continues to expand as the new version introduces characters like Ten, Ryunosuke, and Tobimaro to further raise the level of shenanigans inherent to Urusei Yatsura.

Lum Invader has been a sex symbol for pretty much as long as anime has had sex symbols, but the reboot’s second cour focuses a bit more on the side of her personality that makes her so iconic, and which I consider essential to several of my favorite female anime characters: Lum’s kind of a psychotic asshole. Her schemes to wring more attention and affection out of Ataru border on sociopathic at times, and she’s honestly so real for that. Her mortal frenemy, Ran, was introduced close to the end of the first cour, and there is still no shortage of sabotage attempts in the second, but we quickly come to learn that Ran’s undying vendetta is mostly because Lum has been a selfish, lying piece of shit since they were kids. God bless her.

Ataru continues to not be much better, serial philanderer that he is, as he continues to be surrounded by other hot crazy ladies who aren’t his not-fiancee. Mendo’s younger sister, Ryoko, is a real highlight in the 2023 run as a result of her escalating penchant for Looney Tunes-esque slapstick violence. The settings of Ataru’s and Lum’s respective worlds take more focus as well, between Ataru’s high school hijinks and Ten’s galactic mail-order mishaps, and the two often collide in hilarious fashion.

I still adore the look of this one. Character models have been cleaned up and simplified to a sort of retro-modern look while still being instantly recognizable to anyone already familiar with them. Everything is awash in an eye-popping Day-Glo color palette. Backgrounds and pop-in gags are often adorned with Ben Day dots to maintain the retro comic look. This doesn’t quite look like the manga, nor does it resemble the original 80s anime, but this is unmistakably a Rumiko Takahashi product. It almost looks like it could have come out at any point in time.

I’m only holding this back in the rankings because it’s the weaker half of a season that straddled the end of 2022 and the start of 2023, but the season as a whole is excellent. It is an essential watch for fans of comedy anime, especially considering so many tried-and-true anime gags effectively originated with Urusei Yatsura (it’s worth mentioning that Lum is largely considered the first-ever tsundere in anime and manga). Season 2 is imminent and I cannot fucking wait. Maybe I’ll even read the manga.

18. Tomo-chan is a Girl!

This is basically Monthly Girls’ No-jock-i-kun. Very simple premise: Tomboyish high schooler gets the hots for her childhood friend who is dense as fuck and forgets most of the time that she’s even a girl. Hilarity ensues and romance progresses glacially.

The voice performances are what really carry this one. Rie Takahashi is golden as the titular Tomo Aizawa, and this was the first entry in an MVP-caliber resume for her in 2023 that was so stacked that I still haven’t gotten to her best role yet. Rina Hidaka nails the conniving, misanthropic nature of Misuzu Gundo in a far cry from her turn as Emul the bunny in Shangri-La Frontier later in the year. The American-born idol Sally Amaki is a revelation as the airheaded gaijin Carol Olston, whom she also voices in the English dub. Even Carol’s mom speaks broken Japanese with a noticeable American accent, which is one of my favorite gags in the whole show.

Outside of the voice acting, nothing is particularly special about this show. Which is fine! There's nothing wrong with a solid 7/10 romcom; junk food is still food. It’s cute, it’s funny, it hits all the right beats, but nothing particularly stands out. Misuzu and eventually Carol give Tomo advice to try to woo her bestie Jun, while Misuzu is usually also playing Jun against that same advice so that it usually works and backfires at the same time. It’s all a game, and she plays both sides so she can always come out on top.

If I have a complaint about this show, it’s that it just… ends. I went back and read the manga, and unfortunately that issue is not the anime’s fault. If anything, it did a phenomenal job of fitting eight volumes of a 4-koma into a single season, and that’s always how it was supposed to go. I watched and read a ton of slice-of-life romance anime and manga this year, as it turns out, and the ones that really hit for me are usually the ones that take their time with the central relationship once it actually starts, rather than treat that big event as the climax, or worse, the finale of the story. Stuff like Kaguya-sama, Horimiya, Sweat and Soap, and even Wotakoi (though I have my own problems with that one) treat their central relationships as a step, not the goal.  At the same time, for plenty of others, the fun is in the chase, and they just run out of time, and Tomo-chan is the latter. We got what we wanted, and we had fun getting there. Sometimes that’s all you need.

Also good god, Tomo’s mom. The second those genes kicked in for Tomo, Jun was doomed.

17. The Eminence in Shadow, second cour and season 2

The Eminence in Shadow is the smartest piece of stupid media I've seen in a minute. It so perfectly skewers dime-a-dozen chuunibyo isekai trash while still cannonballing into a McDuckian swimming pool of the stuff. It nearly overwhelms you with lore; the series abounds with rich backstories, centuries-old power struggles, palace intrigue, shadowy conspiracies, the artificially accelerated march of progress, long-simmering revenge plots, looming economic catastrophe, and love dodecahedrons. And the most compelling thing about all of it is that none of it fucking matters.

Cid Kagenou spent his teenage years in modern Japan trying to become the coolest badass dark antihero who ever lived, but he quickly reaches his limits in our boring normal world so he rides the isekai truck into a world with actual, like, magic and shit. He spends his new childhood leveling up and rescuing elf girls, all the while regaling them with his “wisdom” in the form of a bunch of horseshit he made up based on all the light novels he used to read. Turns out that he’s entirely too genre savvy; this new world is apparently so contrived that every single thing he told them ended up entirely true.

So now Cid’s a teenager by day and shadowy vigilante by night (under the apt moniker “Shadow”), with an underground legion of hot deadly babes at his disinterested beck and call. All he genuinely cares about is looking and acting like the coolest motherfucker a socially inept 12 year old boy can think of, and in his downtime actively trying to be a forgettable mob character. And I do mean that that is all he cares about; when I say none of the wheels within wheels happening in the background actually matter, I mean that Cid is completely and totally unaware of any of it. 

Anything he does or says to drive the plot is either incidental or accidental. He spouts off some nonsense he heard in a video game once, and his cadre of elf baddies and beastgirls takes it as gospel en route to exposing a millennium-old conspiracy. He parrots a really cool line he heard ten minutes ago and a beautiful woman he just saved takes it as inspiration to turn her life around. It’s kind of like in Mashle, funnily enough; where Mash will go “I don’t know what’s going on, but you were being mean to my friend so I’m gonna beat the shit out of you,” Cid is more like “No clue what this is about, but that’s a really badass looking villain, so I’m gonna say some epic shit and do a big explosion.” And then he fucks off to go eat a burger or something, not knowing or caring that he just unraveled a prophesied master plot to destroy the global power balance.

The episodes that aired in 2023 largely revolve around the lovely Princess Rose, smitten with both Cid and Shadow (not knowing they’re the same guy), pledging fealty to Shadow Garden after failing to foil a coup d’etat. At the same time as her training, Cid is busy with a vampire something-or-other and then tries to make some coin for himself by teaming up with an assassin hellbent on revenge to create a credit crisis. The conspiracy later drags Rose back into the palace, where Cid sees a new opportunity. Every single one of these things has very specific reasons for happening, and everyone involved has a rich backstory and clear motivations to carry out their parts of the ever-evolving plots.

But that’s not why you’re here. You’re here to watch a bunch of hot ladies and a guy in a black cloak with one glowing red eye do some sick action stunts to bad guys with silly names, and this show delivers that in spades. This feels like a throwback in the best and worst ways. The Eminence in Shadow is stupid, and it is brilliant.

16. Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation, season 2

Mushoku Tensei is a tough anime to talk about. On one hand, it is one of the most gorgeous anime series ever put on television: Almost consistently movie-quality sakuga, lush background art, and a breathtaking score come together to form an immersive world unlike many I’ve seen in any medium. On the other, it forces some very unpleasant conversations about reincarnation in anime, particularly ones like this where a grown man is reincarnated as a child while retaining his mental age and is surrounded by potential love interests closer in age to his new body. What doesn’t help is that in his previous life in our world, the man who would reincarnate as Rudeus Greyrat was a socially isolated hentai addict, and much of his journey centers around him unlearning those proclivities in unfortunate and often damaging ways. If you can handle that, Mushoku Tensei is a rewarding watch, but if that’s beyond the pale to you, I don't blame you in the slightest.

However, even if you’ve been able to stomach all of the questionable shit in the first season, I'm sorry to say that the second season’s first cour doesn’t do much for the “bro I promise he gets better bro” crowd. The first cour covers the Quagmire and Academy arcs, which follow Rudeus’ struggle with being effectively abandoned by the only person to show him any physical affection in either life. The knock-on effect sees him retreating into an antisocial shell and developing, and I am deadly serious here, a seemingly incurable case of erectile dysfunction.

The first few episodes surround Rudeus growing into a young man, making a name for himself as a wandering adventurer in hopes that talk of his name will spread to his missing family and friends. At the urging of the god with a direct line to him (still unexplained), he enrolls in a magic university to investigate the calamity that flung his loved ones to the corners of the realm. There he finds an old friend in the figure-obsessed young prince who saved his life in the previous season, a girl from his previous world who seems to have also been transported to this one, and most crucially, his old childhood friend Sylphiette, hiding in plain sight with new hair and a sick pair of shades as a retainer to a scheming princess enrolled in the school.

Mushoku Tensei's initial season was at its best in its quieter moments, and those abound in season 2’s first cour. It's really lovely seeing him connect once again with Sylphie purely for who she is, even though for all Rudy knows he’s talking to a twinky dude named Fitz who makes him feel weird things. We get our amazing action animation early on, and things settle down quite a bit from there as Rudeus navigates all of these interpersonal relationships, old and (seemingly) new.

And while, yes, this version of Rudeus is a far cry from the drooling, grinning pervert he was in his first ten years of reincarnation, his improvement as a human being is not a straight line. He unfortunately takes more steps backwards than forward. The things he says in a drunken rage about his party member Sara (who inadvertently revealed his ED) are awful and undeserved, he literally ties up and gropes a pair of beast girls from his class (he has apparent reasons for both of those things, but come on), and he “frees” a young dwarven slave to take on as an apprentice. That last one seems admirable on its face, but uh. He went with the flow in a god damned slave market and still paid a slaver.  

I'm not excusing those things, nor absolving Rudeus as a character; I'm simply saying they happen this season. Mushoku Tensei, for better or for worse, depicts gnarly subject matter as it is while neither glorifying it nor moralizing about it. It trusts you to make your own judgments, and if your verdict is “I can’t watch this show,” that is perfectly valid. If you can stomach watching through its worst moments and compartmentalize the uncomfortable aspects of it, Mushoku Tensei remains one of the best-looking and -sounding pieces of animation out there, and the part of its second season that aired in 2023 has an exceptional emotional payoff. Otherwise, I'll be talking about Frieren much later.

15. Spy x Family, season 2

The most succinct praise I can give season 2 is also the most backhanded: Well, it’s more Spy x Family.

I want to be clear that there is no shade inherent to that comment; the first season of Spy x Family was excellent! It was a stylish, beautifully animated, appropriately hilarious adaptation of a fantastic manga that did it justice in almost every regard; the second season didn’t need to move heaven and earth to try to one-up it. It wasn’t broken, so Wit and CloverWorks didn’t fix it. It’s still the blend of domestic slice-of-life hijinks, tense cold-war intrigue, and heart-pounding action it’s always been. Even the production music is largely the same, and that’s not a complaint, because SxF’s production music fuckin' slaps.

A lot of anime-onlys rightfully complained that Yor’s plot relevance seemed to fall off a cliff in the back half of season 1, so they have been eating GOOD this time out, as season 2’s (ostensible) first cour puts her directly in the spotlight. The Yor Cour, if you will. The season opened on a hilariously spot-on adaptation of my favorite Yor-centric chapter of the manga (the “bullet in the ass” one) and quickly moved on to a nearly perfect interpretation of the cruise arc that sees her protecting a government asset from a legion of assassins. 

If you wanted to see more of Yor in her second life as the contract killer, Thorn Princess, this season was a meal and a half for you. Having her beset on all sides by an eccentric rogues’ gallery, with Anya fully aware and trying her damnedest to keep Loid from finding out what’s actually going on, is Spy x Family at its best. The tension constantly ramps up as the ship approaches its target, and Anya’s attempts at distracting Loid usually go sideways because, well, she’s Anya. Blood splatters, laughs are had, and Loid continues to struggle with both fatherhood and acting like his growing affection for his ragtag “fake” family is just “for the mission.” 

Outside of the cruise, season 2 maintains the series’ usual episodic pace, which can be a little jarring before and after the cruise arc, but that’s SxF for you. Shit can pop off at unexpected moments, and having read ahead in the manga, I’m excited to see the next time that happens. For now, though, things can feel kinda static from time to time, but the Forger family and the extended cast are always pleasant to just hang out with for a while.

And now to wait for the movie to come out in the west.

14. Undead Unluck

Up until this past Winter season, I primed myself on a lot of the more-hyped anime by reading the manga ahead of time. I knew that Undead Unluck is one of the bigger Shonen Jump manga out there, but this debut kind of crept up on me. I went in blind, got drawn in by the premise, and then got quickly overwhelmed with a wild amount of lore.

Fuuko, a young woman seemingly afflicted with a curse, is saddled with a brash, enormous man who cannot die after he foils her suicide attempt and is then himself grievously injured. Don’t worry, he got better. It turns out that he’s roughly 200 years old and has a completely cracked healing factor, while she brings terrible misfortune to anyone who touches her skin. They are both Negators, people with the ability to reverse or ignore the laws of nature: Fuuko’s ability is Unluck, causing tragedy for those close to her, while the man is Undead, exactly what it says on the tin. The man, who cannot remember his own name, believes their meeting to be kismet: If she can bring death to her loved ones, he vows to woo her so she can deliver the death he’s sought for so long. I promise this is a comedy.

Fuuko and Andy (whom she named as shorthand for the Japanese pronunciation of “undead”) foil a series of assassination attempts by other Negators, and take their spots as part of the Union eliminating threats to the universe. They team with an eclectic group, whom we’re still getting to know as of the end of the first cour, as they trot the globe to complete quests given to them by a mysterious (and seemingly nefarious) talking book lest the universe incur penalties for their failure.

The power system among Negators is one of the most inventive I've seen, with each one able to cancel out a specific element of the natural order of the world, and it’s a blast learning how each new one works. Andy in particular is wild; because he can regenerate himself so quickly, his weapon of specialty is his own body, never hesitating to use his own fingertips as bullets and his own gushing blood as a propulsion mechanism. He also has no compunction towards taking on the worst of Fuuko’s Unluck ability, often sacrificing himself to get hit by lightning or falling debris to deal damage to an enemy. Every new Negator power introduced adds a new wrinkle to the way this world works and the different shapes its action can take. Others can freeze matter into suspended animation, force people to act opposite their own intentions, or even subvert someone’s entire belief system. I cannot wait to see what else is in store.

The first cour’s pacing is a little off, and Andy's behavior towards Fuuko in the first couple episodes is nothing short of gross (I promise that eases up), but you can see the show finding its footing as it goes on. Shonen Jump series don’t last for nearly 200 chapters and counting by accident, and I'm excited to see where this goes.

13. NieR: Automata Ver. 1.1a

Those of us who played Yoko Taro’s 2017 masterpiece approached the announcement of an anime adaptation with some trepidation: So much of what made Nier Automata so outstanding and so beloved is that much of the delivery of its narrative is inherent to the fact that it’s a video game. How can a video game known for pushing against the fourth wall of the unique elements of its very medium be faithfully adapted as an anime?

The choice of studio was also concerning: Though A-1 has produced a ridiculous number of excellent series (and some aggressively mid ones that were nonetheless very successful), its track record with video game adaptations has been far less than stellar. The latter three films in the Persona 3 adaptations were solid if uneven, and the Valkyria Chronicles anime seems to have been well-received, but the same can’t be said of A-1’s takes on Ace Attorney, Persona 4 Golden, or Persona 5. Regardless, Yoko himself was heavily involved in the anime’s production, so if they could keep on budget and schedule, Nier Automata would have a fighting chance.

And while there indeed ended up being massive and likely unpredictable production delays, I'd say they’ve done almost as good of a job as they could have so far. While the first cour mainly covers Automata’s A and B routes, it does much more than just play that part of the story straight; it also takes the time to incorporate other elements of the Nier canon. A surprising amount of time is dedicated to the canon introduced in the YoRHa stage play (and by extension the Pearl Harbor Descent Record manga); Lily and the android resistance are woven directly into the narrative far beyond the vague overtures the game makes in their direction. Ver 1.1a also ties the history of the original Nier into the story at unexpected and intriguing (and in my case, tear inducing) moments. 

Unfortunately, it’s still too soon to assess this series in its entirety. While too many people who played Nier Automata stopped after route A or B, there is still much more of this story to come. There was some very sloppy CGI integration in the first episode when it aired, but far from enough to put me off the series. For now, it’s a treat for Nier fans, but I’m not sure whether I can recommend it yet to people who are unfamiliar with the source material.

Until the anime is completed, go play Nier Automata. It’s one of my favorite games of all time.

12. Kaguya-sama: Love is War -The First Kiss That Never Ends-

This was a late 2022 theatrical release, but it didn’t see western release until this year and was split into a four-episode mini-season for streaming, so I'm counting it for this year. You can deal with it.

I got completely obsessed with Kaguya-sama early this year, and in record time. I binged the anime and the manga in the span of a couple weeks and irreversibly fell in love. I say with no reservation that it is the best romantic comedy, in any medium, of the 21st century. It nails both the romance and the comedy in equal measure; the characters are perfectly realized right down to the supporting cast, the dynamics between them are carefully considered and consistent with their personalities regardless of circumstance, and every emotional and comedic beat hits exactly as it’s meant to. There is a constant momentum moving the greater plot along, even in the smaller moments, and seismic shifts take over before you’ve even noticed they’re happening.

It’s rare for romcom manga adaptations to stay on the air long enough to actually reach the romantic payoff, and Kaguya-sama fucking nailed it in season 3. Well, we’re pretty sure it did; the central conceit of the psycho-romantic warfare between Kaguya Shinomiya and Miyuki Shirogane is that they’re both chronic overthinkers and won’t accept any romantic undertones or overtures in any form but an explicit confession. So while the finish to season 3 is everything we wanted as an audience, these two dorks still sense a margin for error. Regardless, that would have been a perfectly acceptable place to end the anime.

HOWEVER, the Ice Queen Kaguya arc that follows in the manga is iconic, and A-1 was absolutely right to adapt it. Although Shirogane is ready to move forward with the relationship that (he’s pretty sure) they’ve both wanted for a long time, Kaguya has a crisis of personality and inadvertently reverts to the dead-eyed, emotionally walled-off version of herself he’d initially met, well before either of them had realized they’d fallen in love with one another. The interstitial omake preceding this arc in the manga has Aka Akasaka warning the reader that in order to counteract the massive emotional payoff that just happened, the ensuing chapters would get very, very silly.

And of course, hijinks do indeed ensue; this is Kaguya-sama, after all. But before you realize it, the story is neck deep in Jungian psychology as self-doubt begins to plague Kaguya and Miyuki and they struggle with the faces they think they need to put on for the other and whether their “real” selves even deserve to be loved by the person they idolize. It gets heavy! I cried every time I watched it! And that first time was in a damn movie theater!

I’m much more comfortable appraising First Kiss as a mini-season than as a movie, because frankly, it doesn’t work as a movie. The animation, while maintaining the series’ standard of excellence, isn’t a single degree better than what aired on television, which can be disappointing upon a visit to the theater. The pacing is also off for a feature film; the common knock upon theatrical release was that it felt like four episodes stitched together (it even has the omake-style interludes between scenes, like the show). The arc also focuses very heavily on Kaguya and Miyuki specifically, so the ensemble cast I mentioned earlier does have to take a backseat. Splitting this up for streaming and televised release was the right move here.

Season 3 would have been a very good ending for this series if it never got picked up for the movie. If it doesn’t get picked up for a proper fourth season, this is the perfect place for it to end. The manga has now been adapted up to just past the halfway point, and the next best stopping point would have to wait until a possible, like, fifth season. And that arc in question, while it does have some iconic moments, is very uneven. If this is all we’re getting, we’ve gotten plenty already, and I am satisfied.

If you've watched the first three seasons of Kaguya-sama, you owe it to yourself to watch The First Kiss That Never Ends. It is nearly everything you could ask for. Also, read the manga if you haven’t already. It’s genuinely one of my favorite things I've ever read.

11. The Apothecary Diaries

This one is basically House M.D. set in the Ming Dynasty, and it fucks.

Maomao, an apothecary raised in a pleasure district near the palace of a fictional East Asian empire, is shanghaied (pun intended) into menial work in said palace. She hears tell of a supposed curse plaguing the emperor’s newborn children and the concubines that birthed them, quickly deduces that it may be poisoning, and discreetly leaves a message for the ailing new mothers. She’s found out by an impossibly beautiful young administrator named Jinshi, who quickly deduces that she’s one of the few literate peons in the rear palace, and he puts her to work in the pavilion of the concubine that heeded her advice.

With her knowledge of, resistance to, and slightly masochistic infatuation with various poisons, Maomao slots right in as an attendant and poison tester to one of the emperor’s embattled concubines. Often at Jinshi’s urging (even though she immediately gets the ick at his habitual flirting), Maomao finds herself investigating deaths, mysterious ailments, and strange behaviors, on top of the foreign world of palace politics. Though she’s a deeply jaded person who only seems to care for her special interests, Maomao is incredibly perceptive and often able to suss out the finer details others miss.

Surprisingly, this one is a really breezy watch, and much funnier than you might expect. For all its lush environs, slowly-mounting intrigue, and often stunning cinematography, The Apothecary Diaries isn’t afraid to get a little silly with it. The dialogue is snappy, quick gags abound in a familiar single-panel chibi style you wouldn’t expect in a setting like this, and Komi-esque cat ears spontaneously pop up from Maomao's head whenever her interest is piqued. Interactions between Maomao and Jinshi are always a hoot, and you can pretty quickly figure out where it’s going, although Maomao can’t because she’s still pretty sure Jinshi is a eunuch.

As she does in virtually every role in her dozen-plus years as a seiyuu, Aoi Yuuki crushes it in the starring role. She really nails the disaffected cynicism that animates most of Maomao’s internal monologue and sarcastic dialogue, as well as her hair-trigger glee when presented with her personal interests in food and drink, medicinal herbs, and of course, poison. Yuuki is an indispensable element in ensemble casts like Persona 5, Ace Attorney, Wotakoi, and the aforementioned KamiKatsu (as well as others I don’t plan on watching like My Hero Academia, Rent-a-Girlfriend, and The Seven Deadly Sins), so it’s especially nice to hear her in a spotlight role outside of the odd Madoka Magica, spider isekai, or Cyberpunk Edgerunners.

There are a handful of anime on this list that will be continuing or returning in January, and second only to my #1 anime this year, this is the one I’m most excited to see more of. At time of writing, the show appears to be shifting in a new direction, and I’m hoping to see it take less of an episodic pace.

Part 3 is on the way! I'm going to split my top ten into two more posts, because I ended up writing... a lot more than I'd expected.

[aleksa-sims]

RL Story

Now we were finally at N.’s Mom's. I couldn't wait to see, what a surprise N. got for me? He told me a bit about it 2 weeks ago, when we were visiting his Mom at her new place. Anyway, today I’ll find out what N. has planned for me.

As we came into the house his Mom was totally surprised, that we showed up there today.

N.'s Mom: Hey guys! What-... are you doing here? 😧

Nico: I wanna show her what you and I..... prepared for her.

N.'s Mom: But it's not finneshed yet N.! I told you I’d call you as soon as I was done.

Nico: Chill, Ma! I almost finished it the other day . So, it's ok! She's gonna love it.

N's Mom: All right. I hope you like it A.!..... I’m really looking forward to the Baby. And you and N. are always welcome here.

Me: I think I know what you two... got for me. I can't wait to see it. 🤩 Um...yea, thank you for everything.

N.'s Mom: I just wish it was all done. But I promise you, in a week or so, it will look nice here.🙂

Me: It's all fine. I know you have a lot to do rn.

N.'s Mom: Yk, the move was not planned, otherwise your surprise would have been ready in time, for your birthday 2 weeks ago. This mess here, was a... surprise to me too. But it just had to be. 🤷‍♀️😕 Anyway, now go up and see what Nico got for you. 🫠

I knew it! This is exactly what I was hoping for! Now we have almost everything our Baby will need. Even though..... we’ll be homeless in a few weeks. 😬

Me: Wow, N., that's-...so cute and.... beautiful! 😍 W-when and how did you do that? 😳

Nico: How?.... Well, I put the cot together. I bought all this stuff when you were in the hospital. That one day, your Mom came to us. Actually, I wanted to show it to you long ago, but then Ma moved and... I didn’t know where we’d live with our Baby? That’s why I brought you here last week. I wanted to see, if you like this place?.. It’s not far away from your family. Ma offered to live here with you until our own apartment is finished. She chose the crib. I wasn't really sure, yk? All this baby stuff kind of.... overwhelmed me. But the stroller babe, was my choice!

Me: Yeah, I see it’s green, your fav color. Thank you N.! You did a great job.... Really, I didn’t think you could.... do this. 😳🥰

Me: You're amazing! You’re gonna be a great Dad. I'm so happy having a Baby with you. Honestly! ILY, sm..... And I’m so sorry about what I did with D., for deceiving you. 😞

Nico: Nothing happend, that's all that matters. Besides, I wasn’t any better. But anyway, don’t want to talk about it anymore.... So, what you think? Are we moving here for a few months?

Me: I promised you, I’d do whatever you wanted, but I wanna talk to your Mom first. I need to hear it from her, that this is okay for her & her partner.

Nico: She and your Mother talked about it. We’ll be at your parents house a lot, too, but-.... me & your Dad under the same roof??.. Idk if I’m gonna get along with him? That’s why we better move in here for now. Ok? 😬

Me: I can’t live without you. I can’t do this without your help anyway. As long as you’re by my side. 🥰

Nico: I’ll do anything for you, babe.... And our boy.

I couldn’t believe what he’s done for us & our Baby. It was so cute, but I wasn’t 100% sure, if I would be able to live here? Tbh I didn’t really have a choice anyway. However, I was looking forward to our new apartment and was so happy with him. Nevertheless, let’s see what his Mom and her spouse will say to me/us. I mean, they agreed and were happy, that Nico and I were moving in. Still, I had to talk to them about it first.

Previous/Next

[hils79]

Hils Watches Mysterious Lotus Casebook - Ep 40 (and bonus episode)

God, okay, here we go. I'm so anxious. I remember how Heroes ended and how much it broke me

I've come this far though so I guess let's do this even if it's going to hurt. I have a packet of tissues on standby just in case it all goes horribly wrong as I fear it will

Well, we're off to a good start. Li Lianhua is practicing his martial arts and imagining Di Feisheng is there with him. I'm definitely not crying less than 5 minutes in

It's okay though because Fang Duobing is there to take care of him and make sure he keeps warm 😭

Okay, I suspected he rigged the mechanisms to be easily seen and destroyed because Fang Duobing mentioned it but I didn't realise the whole thing was him trying to take down Jiao Liqiao from the inside. I feel bad(ish) for him now

Oh shit! Well, it wouldn't be Mysterious Lotus Casebook without one final (I hope) dramatic poisoning

I love that he just calls him Xiaobao in front of everyone now. Everyone clearly knows they're together.

God, he's about to do something stupid isn't he? I'm having Word of Honor flashbacks. GDI even I didn't clock that he was deliberately sending Fang Duobing away so he could do this

Oh fuck

I am sobbing

I do not understand these two at all. First of all I thought she left him when she ended their engagement (that I thought was a marriage - that whole wedding that wasn't a wedding was confusing), then I assumed she must have left him when she took the sect leader job from him. Apparently after all that they're still together??? But maybe they're breaking up for real this time?

I suppose Xiao Zijin is going to blame Li Lianhua for this too

I knew he was going to get free and leave before Fang Duobing got back 😭

FFS I was already crying and now Huli Jing is crying so I'm crying even more. I knew this was going to be sad but FUCK

He just rescued a trapped bird like a fucking Disney prince

I knew the 'recipe book' was going to be all his martial arts notes

FFS Xiao Zijin let it go! I swear to god if he kills Li Lianhua because Li Lianhua is half blind and ready to die I am throwing my laptop out the window

OH FUCK IS HE GOING TO DO IT HIMSELF?

Oh, I think he was talking to his sword

Well fuck.

Oh, he landed in the boat. Maybe he's okay? Let me have my denial!

It feels like forever ago but I think this dude was telling the story of Li Xiangyi and Di Feisheng in the first episode. If he was that's a nice touch that we've circled back around and he's now telling stories about Li Lianhua

I have to laugh because the alternative is crying even more. But I love all these randos know that Di Feisheng is in love with Li Lianhua and they're acting like him not showing up at the beach is like jilting him at the altar (even though they're already married)

His stoic but clearly sad face 😭

Well he's still alive. At the moment at least.

I know he's talking about fighting, but he probably also talking about their relationship

I want to hug him

I'm fine 😭

Onto the bonus episode. This is either going to be hopeful or painful and I honestly have no idea which way it's going to go

Painful so far!

Well, that was very ambiguous so I'm choosing to believe they found him at the beach and are living happily ever after 😋

I did really enjoy that despite the pain. Thanks to everyone who has been yelling along with me in the comments and notes while I've been watching. This is why I enjoy liveblogging dramas

[pancreasman]

Camp Camp S5E1 opinions (spoilers)

I just watched the new episode of Camp Camp and nobody cares but here's what I have to say, first:

(this is your disclaimer to please watch the new episode LEGALLY and in a way that supports the creators. Even if that means blocking spoilers for a bit so you can watch it for free when it's available. It's a small team, and they deserve all the support they can get because making cartoons is hard!)

All this is my opinion, if you disagree, let me know! I genuinely want to discuss it. If you agree with me, then feel free to vent along with me and we can be excited or dissapointed together. The show qualifies as art and is open to criticism. Also WARNING: SPOILERS FOR THE NEW SEASON PREMIERE OF CAMP CAMP!

Ok with all that garbage out of the way, here's what I have to say:

Likes:

• Max’s new voice is pretty good. I got used to it pretty quick. Props to the VA!

• Dolph’s new design is cute. I totally understand why they changed it and the redesign is good.

• DAVID WITH GUN. DAVID WITH GUN.

•I think the idea of the whole camp hating the trio is funny and I kind of wish they made it real even though it went against the point of the episode kind of.

• The part where the trio is shaming Preston and they all move in sync was the one part that made me laugh. I love when they're all being goofy together.

• I liked the idea with the circle in the dirt at first because I thought it was just Max’s way of illustrating a point and I thought it was cute how he included his friends. Started as a nice moment

• Nurf lovingly flipping them off was funny.

• my gwenvid heart was soaring. They were very cute and I wish we got a more overt gwenvid moment as a send-off. Like, it doesn't have to be made canon and can stay subtle but something for the fans would have been nice.

• Gwen’s new voice did a good job. Slightly different vibe to her but it wasn't bad at all. I liked it. It was an interesting change and I didn't mind at all.

• The scene with Max and David’s hike was beautiful and the best part of the episode by far. They're both so in character, they are well-written and their dynamic is so sweet, and the message rings true. It was a nice moment and something I think Max needed to hear.

• “somebody. Fucking. Has to.” GUYS WHEN I TELL YOU I FJGKRNGKRHDNR WHAT A CALLBACK. I wish they made David’s reaction a little longer and made it more of a moment because I nearly missed it at first but once I heard it I got so excited. Really, Max’s whole pep talk in that moment is very good.

• The camera is such a thoughtful and fitting gift for Max because he's struggling with letting go of camp, and the fact he uses it himself too makes it all the more sweet.

• My lil Makki heart jumped when Max came back and Nikki shouts his name. It was sweet, the excitement and joy in her voice. I forgot it was meant to be a joke at first honestly it was so sincere.

• the animation was great! I loved the facial animations, especially on David and Nikki. Idk why those two had such good expressions but I'm not complaining.

• the trio. They're such besties. I'm love them.

• Honestly the fight cloud with Nikki and Neil was fun idk why I liked watching them wrastle. Children fighting is amusing.

• I'm glad Gwen finally got recognized for her talent. It’s a running theme throughout the show that Gwen is more talented and capable than she lets on and this was a fine way to end it. Good for her.

• Whe- WUH- THE ENDING. WHERE ARE THEY GONNA GO FROM HERE? I AM EXCITED AND INTRIGUED

Dislikes:

• opening narration was unnecessary

• wish they introduced Dolph’s new look more organically. It deserves to be it’s own moment.

• why can't Nikki write? She's 9 not 4. She was never stupid.

• plot is all over the place. It's like two or three episodes smashed into one and there's not enough extra time for any of them. It lacks focus. If it were up to me I would have cut out the first half with the social media app and the trio trying to get people to like them. It felt like filler.

• it's just not very funny. There was maybe one joke that made me laugh. And not even hard. Camp Camp is usually pretty funny to me so I don't get what happened. The comedy is all so slow despite the plot being so crammed so I wonder if the delivery was faster if we would have more time for plot. Anyway, they just lacked any sort of setup or punchline. Just nothing jokes.

• Why does Max go along with trying not to be bossy? He clearly didn't care before and the way it's written it isn't implied he's doing it for his friends. It's like he suddenly did care about being liked out of nowhere. I think it would have been funny and made more sense if maybe Nikki or Neil made him play along, like Nikki bit him until he stopped.

• the circle thing. It was a cute idea at first because I thought Max was just making some kind of metaphor, and I thought that it was cute. I wish they kept it like that and just made it a sweet moment of Max expressing his devotion to his friends in his own way but instead they stay in the circle and are just unfunny for a few minutes and then Nikki says they ran away?? Like first of all why are you running away and also no, you didn't run away because you're still at camp. WHY ARE THEY IN THE CIRCLE IT DOES NOTHING FOR THE PLOT AND MAKES NO SENSE?

• I HATED THE CLOSE-UP OF NIKKI’S NOSE SO MUCH IT WAS SO UNFUNNY WHY IS SHE MADE TO BE SO UNLIKABLE FOR THAT ONE BIT JUST SO MAX CAN LOOK AT HER IN DISGUST IT WAS SO BAD

• Is it just me or do they keep playing sad music like... A lot? It just keeps popping up every other scene and at some point it just became funny to me. It's so badly paced out lol

• I mentioned Max’s pep talk was good and it was but also I wish that it was in a better written context. Like, I think it would have been a better end to the cliff scene instead of a way to motivate David to... fight a robot cause... He thinks he can't... Because reasons? It doesn't make a whole lot of sense and I think that it's supposed to connect but it really doesn't.

• Too much Preston. Never liked Preston never will. Why did he talk so much.

• the running gag of everyone being like “oooookay” when the trio assumes they hate them is just... So unfunny omg

• This episode suffers from season 4 syndrome, which was a characteristic of season 4 that I heavily disliked where they sacrifice the outrageous personalities of the characters to have them sit around and discuss life lessons that aren't even that profound to begin with. It's boring, unnatural, and uncharacteristic. At least make it funny. I don't want to see them sit on the ground and calmly discuss basic friendship lessons like I KNOW THAT NOW PLEASE DO SOMETHING INTERESTING.

• I wish David and Max got a better goodbye. I kind of liked David’s line of “That's good enough for me.” but I wish they expanded on it. Maybe have Max struggle to be sincere and make it more obvious that he's trying to act tough and David still sees through it. So he's like “I get that's you're struggling to be sincere so ill take what I can get because I appreciate the effort.”

Overall, it was kind of a mixed bag. It had some very VERY good moments and a lot of good ideas, but I think it was messy and didn't use it's time well, as well as not taking advantage of a lot of potential jokes. I understand that they likely had limitations but they tried to tackle too much with one episode. If I were to change anything I would cut the first half and work on giving the characters a more clear and smooth arc from beginning to end. Pick a focus and stick to it! Still, I'm excited to see where this will go!

[heavyhitterheaux]

My Wife Stays

First Lady of Private Garden Fic

AN: You know there is one thing that Jack doesn’t play about and that’s his baby

Synopsis: Neelam has had it out for you ever since the two of you met and Jack quickly puts a stop to it.

Pairing: Husband!Jack Harlow x Wife!Reader

Requested by: one of my gorgeous anons

Please Do Not Repost My Content Anywhere

Ever since Neelam became Jack's manager, you swear that she has it out for you.

And you had no idea why.

You had been nothing but nice to her because you trusted that she would make good decisions regarding your husband's career and you wanted nothing but the best for him and wanted to see him succeed.

She would say slick shit under her breath

She would sometimes comment on your appearance or imply how you weren’t contributing enough to Jack’s projects.

This left you thoroughly confused because you would literally spend hours writing with him and for him.

She would say all of these in front of anyone who wasn’t Jack.

PG knew what was going on and you made them promise not to tell Jack because you didn’t want to do anything to steer away from the path of success for him.

She would ignore you when you said something or made a suggestion 

Didn't want to include you in things regarding Jack even though you had a hand in writing the majority of his songs right along with writing songs for The Homies.

You knew that it was only a matter of time before it all came to a head.

You wanted to stay quiet for the sake of your husband's career, but you didn't know how much longer you could take. 

"Baby…"

"Yes, stink?"

"Why doesn't Neelam like me?"

"What do you mean?"

"She just… I get weird vibes." You said without trying to give too much away. You didn’t want to send him into a panic since that’s exactly what he would do. 

"You just have to get to know each other babe. I'm sure it's nothing. Once she gets to know you, she'll see why everyone loves you the way we all do. But, no one can love you more than me though." Jack said while kissing your nose and trying to ease your thoughts.

"And don't I know it, but it's been like three months already." You replied while brushing a hand through his curls.

"You worry too much. You know that's my job."

"Well my job is making sure that my husband succeeds at his career."

"So far, so good. No complaints on my end. But don't worry about her." Jack reassured you while kissing your forehead.

Incident number one happened because you caught an attitude because there was a girl at one of his radio interviews that was a little too close to him for your liking.

Even Jack was uncomfortable and you could tell.

She would try to move closer to him and every time she did, Jack would quickly take two steps back.

He was about to be backed up into a corner at this point and you would have no choice but to step in to get her away from him. 

“She is entirely too close to him.” You said as you crossed your arms and watched the scene unfold in front of you.

“You always catch an attitude if anyone even goes near him. You don’t own him. Let him interact with his fans. Your attitude is going to be his downfall if you don’t stop.”

At this particular incident, Urban had been the only one other than you that heard her, and he knows for a fact that it made you feel some type of way. You and Jack protected each other at all costs along with the rest of PG and you knew his body language like the back of your hand and it honestly made you worried. You weren’t trying to make a big deal about it, but you just wanted to make sure that your husband was okay. 

“I don’t even have an attitude, so what are you even talking about? I can tell that my boyfriend is uncomfortable. I’ve known him long enough to know.” You replied turning to Neelam and Urban was eyeing you to make sure you didn’t swing on her. 

“Hmm, sure about that?” She said before going over and speaking to one of the interviewers. She put on a bright smile for them and quickly engaged in conversation while Urban just looked at you.

“Y/N….”

“No, Urby. You cannot tell him, okay?”

“But, Y/N she’s been saying slick shit to you ever since she met you. That isn’t cool and she knows how important you are to Jack so she needs to watch herself.”

“The last thing I ever want to do is jeopardize his career, so Urban stay quiet.”

“I’m letting you know right now. If this continues, I’m telling him.”

“It’ll be fine.”

“Your eyes are watering.”

“I’ll just go to the bathroom to wipe my face. Keep an eye on him for me, please.”

Incident number 2 happened when she dropped by the studio when all of you were there just checking up on Jack and seeing how everything was going.

Jack had run to get his phone charger that he left in the car and she took this as a perfect opportunity to put her attention on you.

“Hmm, does he ever go anywhere without you? And you are literally just taking up space and not contributing anything.”

All of PG’s jaws were on the floor not believing what she had just said to you.”

“Uhh, what? I’m here to support him as always.”

“Or you’re just here for his money.”

“Neelam, that’s enough. Don’t talk to her like that.” Urban quickly popped up seeing once again how you were about to cry.

You were always ready to fight and defend yourself, but you were also extremely sensitive and would cry in the drop of a hat.

She simply shrugged while looking at Urban before turning back to you.

“Just calling it like I see it since you have gotten a shit ton of new things since Jack made a few deals. And how in the world could you afford those personalized rings for everyone?”

“I’m not broke if that’s what you’re implying and I also don’t need for him to pay for anything for me. He chooses to do that.”

“He’ll drop you soon enough when he realizes you don’t have his best interest.”

You couldn’t even react to that last line because Jack came back with his charger in hand.

“Oh, hey Neelam.” He greeted her and he turned to you and asked for you to charge his phone for him.

“Hey, just wanted to check on you.”

You simply nodded, not trusting your voice at the moment which Jack quickly took notice of.

“Baby girl, you feeling okay?” He asked as he felt your forehead and you quickly nodded.

PG was watching the scene unfold and they were stuck between a rock and a hard place and truly didn’t know what to do.

They didn’t want to break your trust, but at the same time they probably knew that Jack was going to kill them for not telling him.

“You sure?”

Neelam eyed you and you quickly broke eye contact with her.

“I think I just need to lay down for a little while. That’s all.”

“Quiiso, 2fo, move so she can lay down on that couch and switch places with her.”

They did as they were told and you quickly laid down and began playing on your phone.

“How about after we’re done, I take you for some cookie dough ice cream?” Jack asked you while crouching down to your level and kissing your cheek.

“I’d like that.”

Jack smiled and as soon as he turned away from you a few tears slipped out which Urban noticed and was quickly annoyed with how you were being treated by Neelam.

The incident that brought it all to a head happened in the studio once more when you were all now discussing songs to put on Loose which would be Jack's first album under Generation Now with DJ Drama.

"Sylvia should be taken off." You hear Neelam say and your head whipped so fast to look in her direction.

"The answer is no. Sylvia stays." A true bop in your eyes and besides, you and Jack, and 2fo wrote it. 

"Umm excuse me but I don't remember asking you anything or talking to you. I have no idea why you're here or need to be included in this conversation."

"Oh fuck." Urban said while knowing that you weren’t going to put up with this for much longer. 

"Neelam!" You heard Jack yell, but you were about to put an end to this here and now.

"What the fuck did you just say to me?" You asked while getting up and making your way towards her with your arms crossed.

"Look, you heard me. I'm Jack's manager and I will do everything I possibly can to make sure gold digging girls like you stay far away from him."

"Neelam…" Urban said while warning her knowing you were about to pop off.

You let out a small laugh while trying to come to terms with what she just said.

"See I knew there was something about your bitch ass that I didn't like and I’m done being quiet…"

"Here she go… You can play with your life if you want too, we know better." Shloob stated while making sure he was out of your way not knowing if you were going to swing or not.

He was going to let you go since she had been trying you for months. 

"And I don't care if you don't like me. I'm here for Jack, not you."

That was it.

Now you two were in a screaming match going back and forth and it didn’t look like there was an end in sight until Jack saw your tears.

"Will you two stop?!"

"Then tell this bitch that YOUR WIFE will not be going anywhere."

There was a collective gasp since PG were the only ones who knew and Jack sighed.

"You seriously married her?!"

"Hoe, I'll slap the SHIT outta you if you keep disrespecting me. Don’t let these tears fool you or the fact that I’m little. "

Jack immediately stood in front of you now completely pissed off. 

"I'm going to say this once and I'm not repeating myself. We've been together since we were 15. She writes the majority of my songs along with songs for The Homies and she is the first lady of Private Garden and she is not going anywhere. She's not a gold digger because she never asks for anything. I give it to her because I want her to have it and I want to provide for her and have been doing that since we first met. No one knows we're married outside of the people in this room and it's going to stay that way. So either be cordial and act like an adult around my baby girl or I can find a new manager. She fucking stays and no one is going to say that she can't otherwise they'll have to go through me." 

“But Jack…”

“Did I fucking stutter? And the fact that you made her cry? No one makes my girl cry. How long has this shit been going on?”

Now everyone was silent, making him even more mad.

“Don’t all speak up at once!”

“She’s been doing this for months..” Urban quietly said while trying to avoid eye contact with Jack.

“Excuse me!? And no one thought to tell me?”

“Y/N told us not to! She’s our friend too and we didn’t want to break her trust!”

“But, my wife was up here upset and yall didn’t do anything?”

“We warned Neelam to stop, she wasn’t trying to hear it.”

“She always made sure you weren’t around when she did it.”

“Y/N…. why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t want to risk messing anything up for you.” You sniffled as he brought you into a hug.

“Neelam, this shit stops immediately. If she comes back and tells me otherwise, we’re done and you need to apologize to her. You were public with the disrespect so you need to be public with your apology.”

“Jack, you don’t need her. I’m trying to help your career.”

“I’m going to need for you to mind your own fucking business and not tell what what I need or what I don’t need. You’re acting like you’re in fucking middle school with this shit. She goes wherever I go and vice versa. Understood? I’m not having this conversation again.”

“Fine. I’m sorry, Y/N.”

“What kind of half ass bullshit apology was that? Do it again.” Jack said while eyeing Neelam.

“I apologize, okay? It won’t happen again.”

“And you haven’t even held a conversation with her unless you’re talking negatively to her. Maybe if you actually took the time to get to know her, you wouldn’t be so quick to judge.” You were simply laid against Jack’s chest balling your eyes out as everyone else stood around awkwardly while he let Neelam have it. 

“Oh, and since she says Sylvia stays on the album. It’s staying. As for now. We’re leaving.”

“But, we aren’t done discussing this!”

“You’ve done enough today, or for these past few months. Don’t you think? My wife needs me and she comes first. Fuck everything else.”

—

“Nee, you know what I was thinking about the other day?” You asked her as the two of you were currently out shopping since you wanted to get a few new outfits for yourself as well as your husband.

“What’s that?”

“How there was a time when we didn’t get along.”

“And look at us now. Besties and Jack absolutely hates it when we get together because he already knows if he’s bringing you that I’m stealing you away from him.”

All you did was laugh as you both walked into a jewelry store looking for a new necklace for Jack. If you didn’t see anything you liked, you were going to get something made. 

“I’m happy we’re close now. I trust you with my life.”

“Right back at you lil bit!”

Just then your phone rang and you immediately recognized it as being Jack’s ringtone and you quickly answered.

“State your business, Jackman.”

“Well damn. I can’t check on my baby?”

“Yes, but you already know I’m with Nee and it’s like all state when I’m with her. I’m in good hands.”

“But you need to be in my hands right now. YALL BEEN GONE ALL DAY AND I MISS YOU.”

“We’re almost done, smush. I promise. Anything you want me to bring you?”

“Your pussy.”

“JACKMAN THOMAS!”

“Well you asked!”

“We should be back soon.”

“In like ten minutes?”

“BABY! I promise I won’t be that much longer!”

Neelam then snatched the phone away from you and put it up to her ear.

“Now you know I’ll bring her back in one piece. Leave us alone to have our girl time so we can get a break from dealing with you and Urban.”

“NOW WHY AM I IN IT?!” You heard Urban scream in the background and you couldn’t help but to do anything but laugh.

“We love yall, bye now!”

“NEELAM! Hand the phone to my wife!”

“Whoops, can’t hear you, we're breaking up… I don’t know what’s happening!”

“Neelam!!!!”

Click.

“He is going to be so pissed at you.” You said as she handed you your phone.

“Ehh, he’ll get over it. Now, we have a mani and pedi appointment to get to.”

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[freakystrashdump]

🔮The Oracle Bakery🔮

Emperor Belos|Phillip Wittebane/OC

Slow burn, enemies to lovers, Belos is a content warning by himself

Read on AO3

previous chapter | START | next chapter

Chapter 16: Forget-me-not meringues

Hunter had felt like, perhaps, that lying on the cold, hard earth, waiting for death to claim him, would have been an easier option. As opposed to, well, being forced to come face to face with the woman he was so horrible towards, all the while she was nothing short of kind to him in return.

And yes, by now he was seriously considering the scenario where Selena Fortuna was, truthfully and honestly, nice to him, with no nefarious reasoning behind her actions.

He heard it in passing last night: Steve, her assigned guard, was muttering to himself about how much it sucked that this all happened “Just as they stopped fighting over you- oh crap, I shouldn’t have said that”, before nervously bidding his farewell to the young royal and making his exit without giving Hunter the chance to stop him.

What did he mean by fighting over him?

As if the guilt hadn’t been enough, eating at him from the second he knocked that cake out of the baker’s hands. Now it was hitting critical mass with the knowledge that she was poisoned and was in critical condition. And it happened whilst she was protecting the Emperor.

That was his job, damn it. If someone was to get hurt, then it should have been…

And as he paced nervously in front of the Emperor’s chambers last night, waiting desperately for any news, he felt even worse as the oppressing, hostile aura emanating from Magnus, Selena’s uncle, weighed on Hunter like a bag of bricks.

And here Hunter thought his uncle was intimidating.

So, as he made his way back to Belos’ chambers, having received a summon from Hettie, Hunter once more considered the option of maybe just waiting for death to come and take him.

He didn’t do it, of course, but he considered it.

Arriving at the doors of the Emperor's chambers, the first thing that Hunter had noticed was that the terrifying presence of Magnus was missing - thank the Titan. One less stress to add to this entire fiasco. The young prince stood in front of the doors, picking dust off of his uniform and smoothing out any wrinkles, buying himself more time to gather up his courage. With one last adjustment to his mask to make sure it was on straight, Hunter breathed in deeply and knocked on the Emperor's doors.

“Come in.”

Well. Might as well get this over with, as it can’t get any worse. Decisively, Hunter opened the doors and stepped inside. To his surprise, he found his Uncle not in his empirical robes - Belos sat on one of the sofas, dressed casually, leisurely, though his mask was still on. It made Hunter wonder if someone else was there.

“You called for me, uncle?”

Belos looked at him pointedly, the hollow eyes of his mask making Hunter shudder "Ah, Hunter. You came quickly." He spoke absent-mindedly, letting his elbows rest on his knees and lacing his fingers together to make a place for him to lean his chin on "The Fortuna is going to be making a full recovery." He informed courtly "She is in my bedchambers as we speak, along with her uncle. They are currently informing her family of her health."

The relief Hunter felt upon hearing this news was instant. “I am…” he hesitated as he felt his chest constrict, fighting the tornado of emotions inside “...incredibly relieved to hear that, uncle.”

There was a heavy pause in conversation between them, Belos staring the boy down, mulling over his words. 

Hunter felt himself break into cold sweat.

After a moment that lasted far too long, Belos spoke again “I have been meaning to ask you, Hunter.” he started as he rose to his feet, beginning to slowly close the distance between the two of them “During the night, Selena and I spoke, has something… transpired between you two?” he stopped in front of Hunter “From what I heard, the girl is under the impression that, ah how to put it, ah yes. That you hate her.” he tilted his head slightly towards him “Poor thing seemed so very hurt by the prospect.”

Hunter swallowed hard, yet he remained silent.

“Such a shame.” Belos tutted “I have tried my best not to mix you up in all of this, you understand. But, alas.” he sighed, disappointment oozing out of him “I knew you weren’t fond of her, so I tried sparing both of your feelings. But, bleeding heart that she is, Selena insisted on treating you every time she visited.” there was a flash of blue under the mask, brief but threatening “We even fought over her stubbornness as she went explicitly against my wishes to leave you be. Unfortunate as it was.”

As if the guilt hadn't weighed on him heavily already.

The boy swallowed thickly, feeling nausea wash over him "So… it is true." He muttered to himself, gaze focused at the floor "She wasn't… she wasn't malicious..."

"Hmm?” He heard Belos through the brain fog of his own thoughts ”I couldn't hear you, Hunter, do stop mumbling to yourself."

Hunter shook his head, clearing it of rushing thoughts “I do not-” he cut himself off, opting not to go on the defence immediately “It’s true, uncle. I was… less than courteous to Miss Fortuna the last time I saw her.” he let out a shaky breath, not sure how he managed to keep his voice from breaking “That may be where she had… gotten that impression.” he looked up at Belos with eyes wide in mild panic “And I feel horrible about it! Especially now! I- I don’t know how to make it better, I-”

“Have you tried apologising?” Belos cut off his rant, successfully de-escalating the boy's rampant thoughts “From our talk, I am certain she holds no ill will towards you. An honest apology for your actions may do wonders.”

The suggestion made Hunter grimace under the mask “I’m not sure-” he started, uncertain, but straightened out when he felt Belos place his hand on his shoulder.

“It’s a start.” he persisted “And if you do it honestly - and from your heart - I'm sure she will accept it.”

Hunter felt heavy under his uncle's gaze and he looked away, taking the time to let his words settle in his head. Just an apology? Hunter scoffed, what good will that do? He thought bitterly, the image of the woman’s face welling up with tears etched into his mind at this point, haunting him with guilt every time he closed his eyes. The anxiety laid heavy in his throat, like a stone he couldn’t fully swallow. It almost felt as bad as the disappointment he could sometimes see in his uncle’s eyes as he failed him yet again.

But, he tried to reason, if Belos insisted that an apology would be enough, then who was he to doubt him. Afterall, Hunter has dealt with worse before - so what is a little apology in comparison?

There was the sound of laughter which, surprisingly enough, came from Belos’ bedroom, catching Hunter by surprise. Seeing the boy's head snap in that direction, Belos chuckled “Ah, it seems her family is in good spirits, now that she’s recovered.” he said, turning away from Hunter to go and sit back on the sofa. Hunter followed after him diligently “Now, I wonder. Do you remember what I’ve told you about the Fortunas, Hunter?”

The boy stood obediently by his side “Yes, uncle.” he said, staring straight ahead as he thought back “The Fortuna’s are one of the strongest and most influential clans of oracles in the Boiling Isles, going back generations, even before the implementation of the Coven System.” he recited in a way where it was obvious that this was something he had heard repeated a hundred times before “Their current matriarch is one of the first to receive a sigil, and she was also one of the biggest turning points when it came to getting public approval in implementing the system itself.”

“Correct. You remember well.” Belos praised him, and Hunter felt his chest swell with joy “It was Madame Isabella Fortuna, I know her well.” he filled in what the boy missed and sighed as nostalgia washed over him “Ah. Madame Isabella. How she hated my proposition for the coven system. But - she cared for her family more .”

Hunter’s head snapped to stare at his uncle in shock.

“The Fortunas have always put the needs of their kin above the needs of the rest.” Belos chuckled, “And that is exactly why they still remain one of my most loyal allies.”

“But…” Hunter hesitated “...you just said-”

“That Isabella opposed me every step of the way as the messenger of the Titan? That she hated the sigils, despite being one of the first to receive one?” Belos laughed softly to himself “Oh, that much is certain. But, Isabella had given her full public support to every decree I’ve ever made, and remained loyal to my rule, all for one simple promise on my part.” Hunter could hear the smile he wore under the mask “Every Fortuna that bows to the Emperor’s crown will always be kept safe under my rule.” 

Belos straightened in his seat and turned to Hunter, before continuing “And that is an important lesson for you to learn, Hunter.” he said matter-of-factly “Every person has a price on their loyalty, and you should always put extra care into finding what that price is, especially for those who wish to oppose you.” he tilted his head slightly downwards as he gave Hunter a knowing look behind the mask “Your worst enemy can easily be turned into your fiercest ally, as long as you know what their loyalty costs.”

Hunter let his words settle slowly, carefully, picking them apart inside his head.

The Fortuna family was one he had known of his entire life, even crossing paths with them - with how involved Belos was with them. Magnus, in particular, was a familiar face in the palace, and Hunter had crossed paths with the matriarch as well - an older woman with eyes of fire. The fact that Belos himself regarded them so highly made this confession all the more surprising: that their loyalty had not always been one inclined to his Titan-bestowed rule. That Isabella herself opposed him.

That is, until she didn’t.

Until she became a key figure in popularising the, at the time controversial, coven system. Isabella Fortuna's staunch support during this time became an open secret nowadays, in a way, after most of the main family became more recluse, and sources on what happened half a century ago became lost.

People forget fast, afterall.

But Hunter did not. Even if these events all happened way before his time, Belos never let him forget - he seemed way too pleased, way too giddy whenever the topic of the Fortunas would get brought up in any way, shape, or form. Like he was savouring every single moment of their undying support. 

Perhaps he enjoyed the irony of it? Who's to say.

Hunter’s attention, however, was soon stolen away, as the door to Belos’ bedchambers opened. For a brief moment, the sound of laughter was louder, and joyful conversation reached his ears. Magnus stood by the now open door as he continued to speak to the woman inside “I’ll be waiting patiently to take you home, then.” the older man spoke in a tone Hunter had never heard come from him before. Not in all the years he’d seen him shadowing Osran.

Soft and loving. Happy.

Hunter didn’t know he could do that.

As soon as Magnus closed the doors behind him, it was an instant change in demeanour. The cheerful facade dropped, and Hunter had to stop himself from buckling under the aggressive energy emanating from the man.

Yeah, that was more familiar of what he knew of the Fortuna.

“Emperor.” Magnus acknowledged, now in full business mode “Golden Guard.”

“Magnus.” Belos nodded back “From what I could hear, I trust she is in good spirits, yes?”

Hunter could not help but notice the man's lips twitch, just barely, into a deeper scowl "My dearest niece is doing well, my lord." He let out, voice even and contained "And it is all thanks to the expert care you have provided." Magnus bowed his head as he continued "You have my gratitude, my lord, as well as the gratitude of my entire family. Truly we are in your debt."

"There is no need for that. After all, I have grown to cherish your niece dearly - making sure no harm comes to her is the least I can do."

The glee behind his words was more than obvious, Hunter noted. Bubbling just under the surface.

"Of course, Emperor." Magnus answered courtly, then grimaced for a short moment, before schooling his expression back "And I do apologise if I was at any point short with you during these past critical hours. Emotions were high, and I let them overtake me despite knowing better."

Belos got up from his seat, hands placed neatly behind his back as he casually walked past the sofa and to the Fortuna prodigy "Worry muddles even the most rational of minds." He placed a hand on his shoulder, tilting his head before he continued "Do not dwell on it, as I have not taken any offence." Belos removed his hand from Magnus’ shoulder and placed it behind his back once more "Now." He started cheerfully "Feel free to go back to your duties. I shall call for you when Selena is ready to go home."

Magnus gave a curt bow of his head, hand to his heart, and made a swift exit.

It was a full minute of uneasy silence before Belos spoke again, as if waiting to make sure the man left fully out of earshot. "See how easily even the most brutish of witches can be tamed, Hunter?" Belos hummed in a low tone "As long as you know their price."

"Yes, uncle."

Belos chuckled softly, amused "Now, let's check up on our little hero, shall we?"

~*~*~*~*~*~

With a knock, and not waiting for a proper response, either, Belos let himself - and Hunter - into his bedchambers.

Hunter could not pinpoint the weird feeling of seeing… well, anyone , really, occupying his uncle's bed, let alone in such a state. Sure, Hunter reasoned, she was in there to receive care, no other reason. But he had never seen anyone enter his uncle's bedchambers, ever . And - Wait, was that his uncle's sleep shirt?! Thank the Titan for his mask being in place, because Hunter couldn't stop the cringing grimace he made.

It felt similar to the feeling of realising your parents were intimate together. Even though they weren't his parents, and they for sure were not intimate in any sense of the word.

"Emperor, Hunt- Golden Guard, it's a pleasure to see you." Selena quickly corrected herself, all the while smiling brightly at the two "Thank you for giving my uncle and I a moment of privacy, my lord."

"Miss Fortuna!" Hunter jumped in, nerves getting the best of him. "I, uh, I'm glad to see you in good health, ma'am." Hunter spoke formally, back straight and head held high.

"T-thank you, Golden Guard." Selena was sincere, if a bit nervous. Still wary of accidentally stepping on his toes like she did before - she did not want to address the boy too casually, lest he got angry with her again.

"I hope you don't mind-" the two turned their attention to Belos, feeling thankful for his interruption and breaking up the weird, awkward air between them "-but Hunter was incredibly worried last night, I just had to let him see you."

Using his name in front of her, on purpose, and not sounding angry whilst doing so? Selena raised an eyebrow, feeling as if something had changed, but wasn't quite sure what .

"Oh, no, no I don't mind, not at all. I'm touched, actually, that you were worried, Golden Guard." Selena's lips twitched upwards, giving a lopsided smile. Hunter just nodded, not sure what to say.

"I knew you wouldn't." Belos sounded smug as he said that. "Ah, and I believe you had something you wished to tell our guest, if I'm not mistaken?" He pushed, one hand placed on Hunter's back "Isn't that right, Hunter?"

Hunter looked up at his uncle, nodding, and turned to Selena once more. He cleared his throat and placed one hand behind his back, the other clenched in a fist on his chest "Thank you for protecting the Emperor, miss Fortuna. Your acts of heroism are an inspiration to me and my entire coven."

Selena blinked owlishly as he gave her a short bow "Your coven...oh, oh right, you're now the head of the Emperors Coven!" No wonder he always seemed to be stressed, with the weight his uncle put on him. A coven head, at his age? "And, uh, you're welcome, Golden Guard. I like to think I've done what anyone else would do, if put in my place, so don't dwell on it too much, haha."

Please. Don't dwell on it too much.

As Hunter stood there, Belos by his side, his hands fidgeted - fingers flexing anxiously as he tried to form words. He practised them! He really did, thinking of any and every possible way to put his thoughts in order and to speak to her as soon as she was better. But now, he was pulling up blanks, which in return made him all the more nervous.

The hand on his back put a little more pressure "Ahem." Belos chimed in "Are you sure that's all you wanted to say?"

"I, uh, no, there was… there was more." Hunter stumbled over his words "Miss Fortuna, I-" his uncle clearing his throat again took Hunter's attention and he looked up at him. The man very casually brought up his free hand close to his own face, and with one finger rapped gently on the mask twice. A clear sign that Hunter was quick to react to "Oh right." He fumbled a bit, posture relaxing as he did, and brought his hands up to his head. In one swift move, his mask was off, revealing a pair of crimson eyes and a nervous, gap toothed nervous smile.

Selena's hand flew to her lips on instinct to muffle the gasp that escaped her.

"I wanted to-"

Hunter started on his speech which he has repeated so many times to himself the eve before, but was quickly interrupted. The woman on the bed was scrambling out of the sheets - she sat upon her knees at the edge of the bed, pulling on the long men's sleep shirt she wore to cover her legs as much as she could, and grabbed her glasses from the night table, putting them on.

"Goodness, Darius wasn't kidding when he called you little prince , look at you!" She started, giddy beyond belief "Come here, closer , I gotta take a good look at you!" She made grabby hands, beckoning him over, all the prim and guarded air around her from seconds ago gone. 

Hunter, rightfully so, seemed nervous, eyes flying up to Belos for a hint, anything , on what he should do. Maybe even hoping he'd get him out of this all together, but alas, Belos simply tilted his head in a "well go on" gesture, and pushed on his back before withdrawing his hand fully. So there was not much he could do apart from obeying the awaiting woman, crossing the room until he stood a foot away from the bed.

He saw the oracle's eyes sparkle, comically so "Oh, now I get why you wear the mask - if you didn't you'd have to beat the teenage population of the Boiling Isles away from you with a stick!" She joked, giggling to herself.

"Why…would I beat up teenagers?" Hunter asked so truthfully, it almost hurt 

"Wha- Hunter, I'm not saying literally , I'm calling you handsome !" Selena was somewhat taken aback by his response, but laughed either way, finding it endearing  "Haven’t you ever received a compliment before?" Behind him, Hunter heard his uncle stifle a laugh. Selena frowned as she looked over his shoulder. She twisted her lips, before they widened into a smirk, eyes sparkling for a brief second. 

"Is that why your uncle hides behind a mask as well?"

Belos immediately broke his laugh with a cough, turning quiet at that comment. And in return, Selena's face beamed with pride and mischief, before turning her attention back to Hunter.

"You…think I'm handsome?" The boy blushed, hand smoothing his hair back nervously as he did.

"Look at you! Fair hair, striking eyes, such royal features! Witches your age dream about boys like you, for sure!" She assured him. The little smile growing on Hunter's face was the sweetest thing Selena had seen all week. It was always sad to her, just how little boys got praised in such a way: given compliments, called pretty, when they were so hungry for them.

Every single person likes being called pretty, it doesn't matter who or what they are.

The little bashful smile didn't last long, as Hunter seemed to have gathered his wits and shook his head, trying to concentrate and get back on track "Wait, wait, wait, stop ! That's not why I wanted to see you! Stop doing that!"

"Stop doing what?"

"That!" He huffed, annoyed "You - interrupting me! You- keep breaking my train of thought!"

"Oh!" Selena put a hand to her lips, faux aghast "Okay, okay, I'll stop, go ahead please." She sat more properly, placing her hands on her knees and straightening her back, looking poignantly at the boy. She gave him a little nod and put on the most serious face she could muster.

Finally, Hunter thought, and cleared his throat "Miss Fortuna. I want to apologise for my behaviour when we last met. It was unbecoming of me, both as the heir to the throne and as the head of the Emperor's coven. You did nothing to deserve such horrid treatment, and I hope you can forgive me." He bowed his head low, waiting for her response. 

But, for some reason, he got… none . Nothing, except silence. And it was starting to make him nervous. Slowly, just enough so he could see her expression, he lifted his head, peering through one eye, only to snap his head completely up, fully in shock, once he caught a glimpse of her face. The Oracle in front of him was absolutely giddy. Her hands were clasped together in front of her face, palm to palm, and then there was her smile - so wide it looked like it hurt her cheeks from the strain. Her eyes were wide and sparkling, with little tiny tears in the corners. And, all the while, she kept making the weirdest, high pitched noise, rising in pitch the longer it went.

What…what in the world…?

"You even sound like a prince!" Selena finally let out, albeit too loudly and high pitched. She squeezed her hands into fists, which in return started shaking with excitement, all the while bouncing up and down on the bed "Oh, oh I'm doing it again, aren't I?" She sounded apologetic, even though her face didn't quite show it. "I'm so sorry, I can't help myself, you're such a sweet young man!"

At this point, Hunter was sure his face was red from how hot it felt. He couldn't even tell for sure if he was embarrassed, or flattered, or annoyed, or maybe all three - he didn't often deal with people complimenting him. With people… being so nice .

"You're, uh, not mad at me?" He let out, meekly. The tone of his voice seemed to have finally put an end to Selena's bubbly outburst.

"I mean, I was more distraught than mad." Selena cleared her throat, chasing away the former high "The last thing I wanted to do was upset you, and that ended up being exactly what I did. So that didn't…feel good." Her eyes fluttered behind him briefly "Especially since the Emperor warned me not to be so pushy with you, and I insisted I knew better." She let out a nervous laugh "If anything, I should be the one apologising to you both."

The young royal was about to tell her there was no need for an apology on her part, he just wanted this entire thing to be over and to make sure she didn't hate him. Even though, he thought, she had every right to. However, he was startled into silence by his uncle, who somehow managed to sneak up on them both without either noticing.

"Oh, there is no need for that, Selena." Belos spoke as he passed him, going straight to sit on the edge of the bed, right next to the oracle. Her shoulders tensed as he placed a hand against her cheek, turning her face towards him "Despite your… lapse of judgement, I cannot hold it against you, as I know it came from a heart full of compassion." His fingers moved, pushing stray hairs behind her ear "Naive as it is, unfortunately."

"Unfortunately." She muttered under her breath, half-heartedly. The feeling of fingers pushing harder behind her ear, however, made her elicit a small hiss through her nose.

A warning, for getting too cheeky in her responses.

"I do admire the love you hold for all the children of the Isles." Belos continued, like his nails weren't currently leaving indents in her skin "But it is a tedious thing, I admit, having to make sure no one takes advantage of such childlike naivete." The pressure finally lessened, and Selena's eyes twitched as she felt the nails unstick from the flesh they were pressing into "Do be careful of lesser men, will you?"

The way Belos gently, just barely, tilted his head to the side, adjacent shoulder rising up as he did, it felt incredibly mocking - condescending.

"Of course, Emperor." Selena did her best to smile back, biting her tongue "I will try my best. As you should as well, not to mistake my compassion with naiveté, that is" She added in cheekily "Though, compared to you, any man is a lesser man. Who can measure up to the messenger of the Titan, afterall."

Belos exhaled loudly through his nose in a barely stifled laugh. And if she could see his face, Selena would have been greeted by the most smug, annoying smirk ever to grace a witches face, a clear show that what he thought about that statement of hers was "Yes, exactly. So do not trust other men but me."

"Now, don't be cheeky." He answered instead, hand moving back to her cheek, giving it a gentle pinch as he did. He gave her head a tiny shake, as if she were a child being greeted by aunts they see twice a year. As soon as he let go, Selena's hand flew up to her face, cheeks puffing up in an indignant pout, as she proceeded to rub the (not really) sore spot.

What a cute expression, Belos thought, it reminded him of a feral little kitten trying to look big and scary.

The two had their attention taken away from each other when Hunter - still awkwardly standing next to them - let out a nervous cough. Selena was the first one to gain her composure, smiling widely at him, as if nothing happened just seconds before "In any case, Hunter! Thank you for apologising." She exclaimed brightly, " I'm happy to know there is no ill will between us."

"Of course not, miss Fortuna." Hunter was quick to respond, head still spinning from watching the two interact so … casually? More importantly, seeing Belos , of all people, interact with someone so casually. All he saw was friendly banter, of course, not the threat behind the Emperor's touch, and it felt wildly unnatural to witness.

Like he was intruding on something intimate.

Hunter saw how Belos eyed him carefully. "If the worries you have carried from last night have been lifted, Hunter, then you're free to go back to your duties." He gestured to the woman next to him "Our miss Selena here needs to rest as much as possible before Hettie dismisses her from our care, you see."

"Oh, there is no need to send him away." Selena quickly interrupted, eyes flying between Belos and Hunter. She felt more confident, somehow safer , when not alone with Belos. So, going by what she knew of him so far, and desperate enough to attempt such a thing again, she pushed a little further, covering the Emperor's hand with her own "If he wishes to stay, he should feel free to do so, don't you agree, my lord?"

And it seemed to work, at least she thought it did. She felt the man next to her freeze up, if just for a brief moment, as her hand gently covered his own, palm so small compared to his. Selena gave him a hopeful look, hoping it would aid in breaking his determination. 

It took longer than usual for Belos to answer her.

"Hunter has his duties to think of, both as the Golden Guard and a coven head." Belos started slowly, building up his resolve "I am afraid he really can't stay long." He turned back to Hunter, staring him down "Isn't that right, Hunter?"

And the boy's reaction was instant obedience, just like Selena had seen many times before "Emperor Belos is right, miss Fortuna. I have my duties to attend to."

Oh so close, but she was afraid to push his good graces further. Selena tried her best to not purse her lips in disappointment "Of course, I understand."

With one last bow, and with his heart feeling lighter than a feather, Hunter bid his goodbye to the two, leaving the room in a swift manner. He took the mask he held in his hands and secured it back in place, jumping back into his Golden Guard persona.

And as he did finally leave, Selena let out a deep sigh. While the boy felt lighter than a feather as his guilt alleviated, she, in fact, did not.

Especially not while she was stuck alone with him .

"Don't sound so disappointed." Belos chimed in "Am I such bad company that you do not wish to be alone with me?" He teased - very brazenly so, in fact.

The way her entire face lit up red in a matter of seconds was comical to behold "Wha- no! I'd never- I never said that, Emperor!" The woman stuttered as her voice reached entirely new heights in its pitch. And as soon as she did, Belos broke into a laugh, pleased to have caused the exact reaction he wanted from her "Mean! That was mean of you, Emperor!" Selena let out a whine, as it didn't take her long to figure out that he was intentionally making her fumble over herself.

It was instinctual, the way she hit his shoulder with her open palm. Afterall, she was the youngest of three, and used to being (lovingly) teased and fighting back when it did happen - in the same loving way, of course. And being the youngest, even she was aware that she was more spoiled than her older siblings, so it wasn't a rare occasion that her bratty side would come out.

But it usually came out with people she was close to, who she was friendly with.

Not with the man who, if he knew who she truly was, would want her dead - or worse .

Selena caught herself only after her palm made contact with the Emperor's arm - not a hard hit by any means, but to her it felt like it burned the second she had done it. She gasped as the mortification hit her all at once, struggling to decide whether to soothe the place she hit, or get as far away from him as possible, that she just remained rooted in place instead, so paralysed by horror, that she didn't even notice that Belos barely even registered what she had done.

"Oh, Titan below, I am so sorry, I didn't - I mean I, I don't-"

Belos, laughter still in his throat, turned to look at her "What ever do you mean?"

"I- I just - my lord, I was - I didn't mean to hit you, I forgot myself-"

"Goodness, Selena dear, you're working yourself into a tizzy." His laugh had subsided into a chuckle "Weren't you the one who broached the subject of us being friends first?"

Selena was caught off guard by that. She was , wasn't she? When she asked for his favour in dealing with Odalia Blight, that's when she officially marked their relationship a friendship. "I suppose I was, my lord."

With both hands, Belos took hold of her face, squishing her cheeks together "Then what is this all about, Selena?" He chastised playfully, his face very close to hers  "If we are to be friends, you can't be having a panic attack whenever you behave friendly towards me, hmm?" He chuckled. His eyes were in clear view, Selena noted, the smiling crinkles in the corner of his eyes and the deep blue shining even in the shadows of his mask, making her head spin "Why, how do you think that makes me feel, having to walk on eggshells around you all the time?"

Selena quickly looked to the side, suddenly feeling ashamed. "Not… good, I suppose."

"Not good indeed." Belos sighed "Promise you will try for me?"

"Yes, Emperor Belos."

She heard him exhale through his nose in a small laugh "That is what I like to hear.” Belos spoke, pleased as one can be, and reached over to the night table adjacent to the bed. “Now, I have been thinking of ways to make sure both you and I stay safe in the face of current events.” He opened the drawer, taking out a box that comfortably fit in his open palm. “I wanted to assign guards to watch you, to make sure you are safe. However, perhaps this needs a more… subtle approach.-'' he presented the box to the oracle, opening it for her to see inside.

Selena felt cold sweat wash over her instantly, goosebumps running down her spine.

Bad news . Real bad news .

The oracle sixth sense never slept. Not really. And the moment Selena saw the rose gold brooch, shaped like a blooming carnation, it instantly sent off blaring alarms in her head.

Her throat felt dry as she struggled to speak “Ah, well…” she paused, trying her best not to grimace “Hmm, that's a very pretty brooch, how… how exactly would it work?”

Belos placed the box on his lap, taking the brooch out and holding it up to let her have a closer look. “Nothing too complex, it carries a magical insignia embedded inside of it.” He moved closer, making Selena freeze as his adept fingers attached the brooch to the men's shirt she wore. To her left side, above her breast “And when it is in contact with a specific wearer, the insignia will let off a unique energy - one which I can effortlessly recognise.”

The moment the pin was safely in place, Selena could feel exactly what he described. She could sense the hum of magic coming from the brooch, it felt like it was calibrating to her own magic.

She hoped to Titan that it wouldn't see past her removable sigil.

“There we go.” Belos purred, pleased. With his right hand, he pressed his middle and forefinger, now glowing red, to the carnation, his magic seeping into it as he did.

And Selena felt the calibration lock into place, now replaced by a steady, unique magical aura. She let her fingers gingerly graze over the petals.

“Did- did it work?” Selena asked, looking down to inspect the jewellery piece.

“Like a charm.” He answered, satisfied.

That only made her feel more uneasy. She couldn't wait to say take the damned thing off.

“Do… you like carnations, Emperor?” She tried switching the subject, hoping to lessen her unease.

“They are… satisfactory, as far as flowers go.”

Selena licked her lips nervously before continuing “Did you know, pink carnations mean that one will not forget you?” She blabbered absentmindedly “You know, since this is rose gold and all.”

“Ah, the language of flowers.” Belos chimed in, almost too gleeful “Hmm, is that so? I must say, I'm not well versed in this specific art.”

“It's somewhat old and forgotten, though some knowledge of it still remains, especially in potion making.” Selena remained focused on the brooch “I had a phase when I was younger, thinking I was so smart, when I learned a lot about it and wanted to send secret messages. Turns out it's not effective when the one receiving flowers does not know the meaning.”

Belos chuckled, “Yes, I see how that could pose a problem.” He continued “So, giving a pink carnation would signify that I will never forget you, then?”

“Y-yes, that is correct.”

“Well then, I suppose the gift fits perfectly then, in more ways than one.”

The oracle felt her entire face warm up, and quickly turned away from him in an attempt to hide it “W-well, it's a good thing you hadn't picked just gold then. Yellow carnations mean rejection and disappointment.” she let out a nervous laugh “Wouldn't that be something, haha~”

“Hmm, if that were the case, I'd have had the entire thing remade.”

Selena paused, somehow that statement made her mind go blank. That was sweet. Why was that sweet?! Worst of all, why did she consider it as such, because even if it was objectively a sweet sentiment, she of all people should not have considered it to be one. Not from him. Not towards her.

So why did it make her heart skip a beat for just a single, solitary second?

Her hands were shaking as they reached for the brooch, jaw clenched tight as she struggled to take it off. “I'll make sure to wear it whenever I come to visit, then.” She let out with all the niceness she could physically muster, feeling instant relief when she finally unclasped the damned thing “But for now, it'd be a shame for something to happen to it, don't you agree?” she took hold of his hand which held the jewellery box, bringing it closer to her. Forcing the shakes off, she managed to place the brooch back into the velvet box, gently pushing the Emperor's hand back to him.

“Please, don't let me forget to take it when I leave?” She asked sweetly, letting her thumb trace a pattern into the back of Belos’ hand “I'd hate to leave such a thoughtful gift behind.”

And it seemed that this time, at least, her charm worked, as Belos’ posture seemed to relax, and without objecting he placed the jewellery box back on the night table. Turning back, he mirrored her actions from before, his hand covering hers as his thumb pressed softly into her wrist, feeling her heartbeat.

“Of course, Selena. I'll make sure you remember.”

[thegoldenshi-shi]

I just have to ask you 2 questions fiejfbdjrj

Are you an Egyptology nerd? Or avid fan, if you haven't hyperfixated like me 0//0 if you are, I'd like to know the whole story behind the ancient Egypt au bc it f u e l s me in a way-

Secondly, can I pls make fics on the ancient Egypt au 🥺🥺🥺🥺 it's so pretty and I'm not really sure ill be able to capture everything bc I did see some wips, but I still wanna write it ^^

Firstly: thank you very much~ I'm glad that you think my Egyptian things to be pretty 💕

(your username is cool btw, I like it a lot)

I'd never thought about whether I'm a nerd or not… I'm fascinated with ancient history in general,(currently combing through Mesoamerican history atm) but yeah, I'll say that Ancient Egypt has a soft spot in my heart. I took a course in Egyptian Hieroglyphics and have several books ranging from a difficult book on Middle Egyptian literature (in hieroglyphics)to books on their mythology to a large National Geographic book that spans the entire history. Now that I think about it, I guess I do count as an Egyptology nerd hehe

✨Word-Vomit-Time ✨

Honestly, the whole thing began as a desire to draw Leona as a pharaoh because I thought he'd be pretty. Then it snowballed into how best to adjust Ramses the Great's exploits to account for magic, whether or not I wanted Falena as an Akhenaten-type or as a nice pharaoh and whether or not I should try to translate Leona's UM chant into hieroglyphics for the sake of authenticity.

So far as the au is concerned it actually spans more than just Egypt. I selected a culture/country for each dorm and re-worked them with that as a base. So just as all of Savanaclaw are Egyptian, Diasomnia is Celtic, Scarabia is an amalgamation of the countries found along the Silk Road, etc.

I've worked with Savanaclaw and Diasomnia (Ancient Egypt and the Celtic Tribes) the most and they have a tense respect that could become violent if the wrong moves are made. Leona is angry at having to deal with diplomacy that should be Falena's job, but doesn't want it botched and has to handle it himself. Malleus is fascinated with the radically different culture that Leona represents and likes pushing people's buttons…. You can get the picture hehe.

With the individual characters: I have Jack functioning as a guard/military figure, since jackals and other canines were often associated with protection. (Thinking about Anubis, and Wepawet) He works directly under the royal family, specifically Leona.

Leona is still not very liked due to his sand-magic in a desert environment BUT he is valued for his offensive capacity (and for his Nefertiti-level pretty face). Defending the borders and war were the domains of the lion deities Anhur and Sekhmet. Of course I really want to work parallels to Set into him as well, but that's a story for another day.

Ruggie is kind of floating around as a free agent, but he works as a good spy since nobody pays him any mind. I don't really know how Falena and Cheka fit in outside of the fact that Falena is Pharaoh and Checka is the Crown Prince.

By all means, go ahead and make as many fics as you like on the au. I really enjoy adding things to it as I go but my free time has been non-existent lately. I'm happy that you like the au enough to want to add your own things to it.

If you do, please let me know, I'd be interested to see what you come up with👀

Thank you so much once again for your ask! I appreciate that you took time to reach out and say something to me ^J^

[lovesosweeet]

better left unsaid // cth

chapter thirty three

in which orion has leukemia, and calum doesn’t know.

calum hood x fem!oc

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october 12, 2018 los angeles, califonia calum

“What’s been the biggest shift in making this record versus the previous one?” Yet another interviewer asks us the same question it feels like we’ve answered a million times.

“Y’know, we’ve all grown a lot in our personal lives over the past few years,” Ashton says, and Michael and Luke nod along.

“For sure, I mean,” Michael pauses to laugh. “We’ve all fallen in love, some of these guys have gone through some heartbreak, but overall, we’re just a lot more grown up.”

Some heartbreak. Minimizing what I’m going through right now to those two words is almost a lie because of how inaccurate it is. Orion is worth far more than two words, and I know that everyone in this room would agree given the chance. \

“I’d say everything is almost the same, actually,” Ashton adds on. “Like we said, we’ve grown a lot, but our writing and recording is a similar process.”

“But, y’know, we’ve added a lot of fresh elements to this record, like with the keyboard. We’ve tried to take on a hint of an electronic sound, too,” Luke says. 

“Yeah, so we haven’t actually changed anything, but just with the way life works and how we naturally progress as artists, the final product is so different, but the process isn’t.” Ashton finally wraps up the answer, and the interviewer seems quite happy with it. 

“It’s nice to watch how both you and your music evolve over the years. You guys have been together for seven years now, and some of you have been friends for far longer. Do you find that your constant growth impacts your relationships with each other? Are you ever outgrowing one another and having to play catch up? How’s that dynamic?”

My mouth chooses to speak before I do. “Well, Johnny,” I say. I have no idea how I managed to remember that this man’s name is Johnny, but judging by his unphased expression, I think I got it right. “We outgrow each other when certain people withhold certain vital information from other people and let things blow up in their faces when they could’ve prevented it.”

Luke laughs loudly and awkwardly at my comment, nervously looking at each of our faces. “Calum’s such a jokester, aren’t you Cal?” He asks, smacking my back harder than necessary.

I plaster on a fake smile, sucking it up and correcting the course. “Yeah, I’m just joking. These guys never fail to be there for me. Our relationships are always strong, honestly often strengthened by the ways we evolve away from each other sometimes.”

When Ashton starts talking next, it takes a lot of self-control not to lunge at him.

“Yeah, there’s nothing that could come between us. These are my brothers, you know?” 

I don’t have to look at him to know he’s looking at me.

My smile, still fake, widens. “Oh yeah, nothing could ever break these bonds.”

After the interview ends, I don’t bother thanking the host or crew. I take off my headset and set it on the table before walking quickly outside of the studio, pulling my pack of cigarettes and lighter from my back pocket. It feels like such bullshit to have to sit there and act like I’m happy.

“Cal, I know you guys are having issues,” Matt says, following me outside. He looks annoyed, as usual. “But you have to reign it in.”

I puff out smoke and laugh bitterly. “We’re more than ‘having issues’, Matt.”

Matt takes a few steps towards me so that his face is right by mine. “I’m canceling shows for you. I’m canceling interviews so you don’t have to plaster on a fake smile more than necessary. Fuck, I picked up your drunk ex-girlfriend at the beach for you. You’re pissed at Ash. I get it. But you have to get your shit together. This is your job. This is something you chose. Grow the hell up and be civil for the twenty fucking minutes you spend on air with him.”

I roll my eyes. “It’s also the hours on stage and rehearsing, riding in the tour bus. It’s not just twenty minutes at a time.”

Matt rips my cigarette out of my hand. “Hood, I really don’t care. Keep your personal life out of your professional one if you’re not able to be a mature adult when your feelings get hurt.”

“Excuse me, who the fuck are you, again? Oh, right, a man that I pay.” 

“You know damn well you’re not going to fire me and find another manager that will take care of you guys the way I do.”

I hold back then, because he’s right. Matt is an exceptional manager and he’s been with us for years. I can’t imagine where we’d be without him. “Fine. I just won’t talk in any interviews and I won’t talk onstage. I can’t promise I won’t repeat the shit I just said, so it’s best if I just don’t talk.” 

Matt sighs, and then he surprises me by hugging me. “That’s fine. You don’t talk much anyway.”

Reluctantly, I hug him back. The words that just came from both of us wouldn’t have ever suggested we’d be hugging now, but here we are. 

“If I haven’t said it, Cal, I’m sorry. She was incredible, and I can’t imagine how you feel right now. None of us saw that coming.” 

I appreciate that Matt isn’t saying anything negative about Orion. Everyone who knows her knows better than to badmouth her. She’s doing shitty things, but she’s not a shitty person. She’s still the best person I know, despite how much she’s hurting me. I’m still in shock most days.

I go to text her when I first wake up each morning, and then am painfully reminded that I can’t. I can’t even see what she’s doing because she removed me as a follower on Instagram. It takes a lot of self control not to text her throughout the day, awake and sober, just missing her badly. I hope she’s doing okay. I know I’m not. 

—

Performing in LA should be fun. Our friends and our friends who’ve become family all get to come. It’s our home field, basically. Backstage before the show, everyone was too happy.

They all took shots together, playing games of beer pong and just catching up after we’ve been away for a while. It makes me sick to my stomach, so I spend most of the time before the show outside with some of the crew, just smoking. Our crew knows me well enough to just leave me alone, smoking silently next to me for a while. 

“There you are!” Roy’s voice suddenly sounds.

I smile at him. It’s a real smile. It’s nice to see him. “Hey, man.” 

Roy grins, walking over and sitting next to me on the ground. “Just wanted to check in with you, see how you’re handling things.” 

My bitter laugh, a sound I seem to be making a lot these days, falls from my mouth with a trail of smoke. “Like shit.”

He nods and stares at his hands. “I know it doesn’t seem like it now, but if I know anything about Orion, she’s gonna come around.”

I want to believe him, but I don’t know if I do. She was so determined to end things. It hurt to watch how badly it was hurting her to push me away. She needed to end things, for whatever reason she had for doing it. ‘Sparing’ me. 

“Guess we’ll see in time.” 

Roy sighs from beside me. “Your guys’ love was—is—so real, Cal. You can’t just shut that off.”

“She did it because she loves me. It’s fucked, but that’s why.”

The next thing I know, Roy’s practically giggling. It doesn’t make me laugh, but it does make me smile. His laugh makes me happier, somehow. 

“Sorry, it’s not funny. That’s just, like, the most Orion thing I’ve ever heard.” 

I smile, tears flooding my eyes. “Yeah, it really is.”

Roy and I hang out until Matt tells everyone it’s time to head to the stage. He gives me a hug and says he’s going to watch from VIP with the rest of our friends, and I join the rest of the band for our pre-show shots. 

“5SOS on five?” Luke asks, handing each of us a shot glass. 

“5SOS on five,” Mike confirms.

We count to five, yell ‘5SOS,’ hit our shots against each other’s, and then we gulp the burning tequila down. Everyone else has a chaser, but not me. I grab the tequila bottle and pour myself another, and another, and another. 

After I’ve had four shots of tequila, I grab a beer from the fridge and my mic pack from its spot where it’s charging. The rest of the band doesn’t say anything but follows suit, and then we’re walking to the side of the stage. 

“Let’s get this shit over with,” I mutter.

Luke throws a hand onto my shoulder and squeezes. 

“If you need a break, just take it, okay?”

I nod and fight the tears that threaten to form. It’s our first show after the breakup, and I know I’ll be a mess if I think about it too much. Some songs are written for Orion, so those will hurt, but so will the ones written about breakups and heartbreak, which our fans joke is all we write about.

Ashton nods to us before he walks out to take his seat behind the drums. He bangs a brief rhythm, and then Mike walks out, his guitar slung over his neck. He waves to the crowd with a huge smile. 

I put one foot in front of the other to make it to my spot, grabbing my bass from its stand. I walk up to my mic and nod at the crowd. The deafening screams have just been background noise this whole time, but now they’re accompanied by glaring stage lights. 

When Luke walks out, the crowd goes crazier. He smiles as wide as Mike did, waving with both hands before he takes his spot, center stage. 

On Ashton’s cue, we all start, and I curse the fact that our opener is a song that I have lead vocals on. I try to lose myself in the music, strumming the chords I’ve played a thousand times before, singing the words to the music I helped write but now feel like a foreign language as they blare through the speakers and the crowd sings along. 

I’m able to operate on autopilot until we get to the brief section of our set that has a slower pace. Luke talks, and I drink a few long gulps from my can of beer. Once it’s empty, I hold the can up to a crew member, motioning that I’d like another. 

“LA, we’re about to slow things down for a bit, but first I just want to introduce you to my brothers up here with me, in case this is your first 5SOS show.

“To my right, we’ve got the ever so talented Michael Clifford, the first one to join me in this lame ass band. To my left, we’ve got the stoic, beautiful bassist, and my best friend, Calum Hood. Behind me, our very sweaty drummer, Ashton Irwin!” The crowd roars with each introduction, and I just focus on the beer that a crew member trades out for my empty can. I crack it open and drink from it while I can.

“And we can’t forget, Luke Hemmings. Voice of an angel, our frontman, and the reason we’re a band in the first place!” Ashton takes over for him, and I don’t bother even trying to look at him. “Los Angeles, we hope you like this next one. This is Ghost of You.”

Michael starts playing before I can even get my bearings, and the words Luke sings cut deep as the whole entire room sings along. 

If I can dream long enough, 

You’d tell me I’d be just fine 

I’ll be just fine

Every time I close my eyes, I have flashbacks of Orion. Smiling, laughing, running down a beach or telling me a joke on a walk somewhere in Europe. Happy, blissful, pure. My girl, before she fell apart, before her fucked up fate blew up her life and her dreams.

And I chase it down

With a shot of truth 

The words ring too true to the shots I just took to drown out everything I’m feeling. I feel the tears falling fast down my face as I try to harmonize, but I give up and take a few steps back from my mic. Luke looks at me, holding his mic while he sings. He looks worried, so I have to look away from him.

I’m supposed to sing the second verse, but I know I can’t. As if they planned it, Michael sings it for me when he notices the look on my face. 

Cleaning up today Found that old Zeppelin shirt You wore when you ran away And no one could feel your hurt

The fans go wild at Michael singing my verse. I can barely keep playing the few notes that I need to for this slow song, and thank god that they had a system in place for me inevitably being unable to sing my own verses. 

All I can think about is Orion. She pushed everyone away. She pushed all of us away. She ran away from our home and is living in San Diego now. It hurt so badly to walk into our apartment last night when we got to LA to find it barren of her things. She’s gone. 

The rest of the song is a blur, and I just play the bass off to the side of the stage, not even looking at the crowd. I just look at Luke and Michael and am grateful for them more than ever in this moment. I’m lucky to have bandmates like them who double as best friends. 

When the song ends, Michael walks up to me with Luke in tow while the fans cheer. 

“You good, Cal? We can take 5 if you need,” Mike says, reaching a hand out to rest on my arm.

I shake my head, even though I know the next song will be equally as painful, if not more so. “No. Let’s just get this over with.” 

They both look at me with immense pity. I hate it. I walk back to my mic stand, determined to at least sing the first verse. We start Amnesia and I close my eyes, hoping that tears don’t fall while I sing.

I drove by all the places we used to hang out getting wasted I thought about our last kiss How it felt, the way you tasted And even though your frie—

I have to cut myself off as my voice cracks and I step back from the mic, letting Luke finish it off for me.

You’re doing fine Are you somewhere feeling lonely even though he’s right beside you? When he says those words that hurt you, do you read the ones I wrote you? Sometimes I start to wonder, was it just a lie? If what we had was real, how could you be fine?

I step back up to my mic, needing to scream the last words of the prechorus.

‘Cause I’m not fine at all

I full on sob for the rest of the song, each of the lyrics hitting way too close to home. I don’t sing into the mic, but I sing to myself while I play and watch Luke and Michael sing the words to the crowd. For the most part, I face the back of the stage, toward Ashton, but ignore his very concerned glances toward me. 

And the dreams you left behind, you didn’t need them Like every single wish we ever made I wish that I could wake up with amnesia And forget about the stupid little things Like the way it felt to fall asleep next to you And the memories I never can escape ‘Cause I’m not fine at all

—

@5SOSUpdates: Cal barely sang tonight at the LA show. Luke & Mike picked up most of his solos and he cried during GOY and Amnesia </3

@5SOSFan4Ever: my heart broke piece by piece watching cal struggle to get through tonight’s show :( my poor bb

@CalumGirl: imagine having your worst heartbreak be on public display. sending so much love to you @calum5sos

@LetThemEatCake5SOS: does anyone know what actually happened betw cal and orion? they both don’t seem to be doing well and i loved them together.

@5SOSFan4Ever: Replying to @LetThemEatCake5SOS: yeah their friends are all still interacting. something seems wrong. makes me sad :’( 

@CalumGirl: Replying to @LetThemEatCake5SOS: someone said orion has terminal cancer and that’s why they broke up. idk how true that is but if it’s true i am simply devastated

@OrilumStan: my babies broke up and both are struggling it is ROUGH out here just look how sad he was onstage. Image attached

@CashtonLover: Replying to @OrilumStan: has anyone seen/heard anything from orion? i know she’s always been private but i’m so nosy @OrilumStan: Replying to @CashtonLover: no, a few of her friends have posted stuff to their stories about respecting privacy tho. and like i get it but I WANNA KNOW

read next chapter

[bitacrytic]

also, it would be nice for people to remember that these aren't boys. these are men who go to clubs, who drive cars, who design student dorms, who throw parties, who have jobs.

they are not in high school. they are in university.

every decision they make is their own.

as much as i love nick, sand and mew, these men know who they're dealing with. nick has been told multiple times that ton is a whore. sand was aware from the start that ray was "coping" with him. he'd even made jokes about being his driver, friend and therapist because he knows ray hangs on him for a reason. he is very much aware of where he stands with ray. he said as much himself.

as for mew, well, regardless of the theories stating that he might be a mastermind, if we go by what canon has given us so far, we know that mew is already distrustful of everything and everyone. if this kind of person chooses to spend time with top, while ignoring how much his friends DO NOT SEEM HAPPY WHEN TOP IS AROUND, then that's on him. how can "getting along with my friends" be a selling point for top when top doesn't even get along with mew's friends???????

like, honestly, these guys are seeing the trouble and walking headfirst into it.

[moonstone27ls]

Unicorn Warriors Eternal ep5

Welll that was a lot more like it. Finally started to get interesting.

All I can say is things make a LOT more sense with Melinda and Merlin. And as much as Edred stated Emma was in the way. I think this episode proves it wrong. Emma and Melinda need to work together to finish the job(if I’m assuming it can be finished). And this was a good change from these two constantly butting heads.

Emma got to see why Melinda is the way she is and gain empathy. I think that understanding will help Melinda heal from what she’s avoiding (trauma wise) and Emma understand her spirit?/incarnation whatever. I did enjoy the child Melinda getting along with Emma. Besides the factor that we saw Melinda as a child, who did make mistakes, Emma herself got to see a side of her she probably hides, her vulnerability. 

That being said... I do have questions. I got glimpses and  but I think we only got part of the picture... so Melinda is Merlin’s daughter... so I assume Edred is his son-in-law. Merlin knew his daughter had magical abilities and choose to hide them from his wife. And his wife is... Morgan (maybe Morgan Le Fay? maybe that could had just been picked at random)

My question is... what was Merlin referring to when he said he hid the truth from her intentions. Is he referring to that she’s too over protective? Now yes I know she stated it... but unless Melinda was hurting people(which didn’t seem the case so far). Why was she so hellbent on removing the powers from her? The “evil” wasn’t there yet. The magic itself is questionable... considering it fought back even without Melinda really using her full strength.

Was Morgan honestly just trying to stop Melinda from being like them or her father? (To which I’d have to ask why marry a wizard in general that increases your chances) Still confused on the situation. Is their magic alive or something? Cause Morgan did argue with it oO? But again... she herself has something similar.

So the evil itself is... technically Merlin’s wife... fused? Or cursed by Melinda’s magic.... well kinda makes more sense now why Melinda seems triggered by that “what did you do response”. I honestly thought it was Emma’s doubt, but its Melinda’s own subconscious from the trauma of what happened with her mother. To which it makes me wonder... is this thing even evil to begin with. Merlin was willing to put his own daughter on a never ending life loop to stop his wife. But to my knowledge (again so far we’re only getting a glimpse so don’t jump me on fanguessing)... but not to kill her.

And I’m just gonna say it. If Merlin blamed his child for whatever happened(and no I’m not blaming a child for that scenario Melinda was literally a baby).. could explain even more why she’s so... gonna say it coldhearted a bit. If thats the case, Merlin(even if there’s a chance he took it back) blamed his child and made her constantly train to fix this mistake. Even when Melinda was hurt in the pilot, Merlin never showed a hint of worry unlike her teammates.

Whether its meant to or not, it makes you feel like Merlin used his daughter and instead of taking some responsibility/ or comforting his child he just made her do all the hard work for something that technically was caused by his lack of communication with his wife. And this magic? I dunno we need more time on that one.

Plussss would explain that voice Melinda heard in the pilot. That being said.. does that mean the fox (or kitsune) is just an agent? Why would the kitsune be helping “Morgan”/the evil? Hmmmm

Then Winston, some ACTUAL use for this guy. It was nice to see him for once not going worrying about Emma every 5 seconds. Buttt now we have a more interesting development...

Did the “Evil” lure him there on purpose? Or was that a victim genuinely warning him to stay away? As for the obvious werewolf development. That really depends on what version Tartakovsky has picked. Werewolves aren’t just “mindless monsters” now thanks to a lot of media. I do think he is picking a somewhat typical cliche that he won’t have control over it. But who knows?

Maybe he will? Maybe he’ll ACTUALLY be of some help for the team or he’ll be “Oh shoot my fiance has to save the world... but I can help” (So long as there’s no silver bullets involved) 

Buttt if it does go the typical monster cliche. Then yeah that goes two ways... one Emma/Melinda has to cure him. Or two... Winston can’t be controlled/or helped and she’ll be forced to kill him. Hmm either way he finally got interesting