#visiting their best friend in the most dangerous city in the US that he decided to move to

[aldryrththerainbowheart]

White Day with Ayato, Itto and Xiao

Fandom: Genshin Impact

Characters: Kamisato Ayato, Arataki Itto, Xiao

Relationships: Character x reader

Note: Welp, this took longer that I expected 🤣🤣🤣. I apologize to everyone who's been told 14th of March that it'll be finished either that day or day after. Things have happened, as usual but there it is, finally. White Day fics inspired by official art released by Genshin.

You’ve been running errands all around Inazuma City. Delivering some letters to the Tenryou commission, meeting with some friends in Komore teahouse, then a quick visit to Aoi for some groceries. When you finally collapsed on a lone bench it was late in the afternoon. You tilted your head back and watched the spring breeze play with Sakura petals when you heard a familiar voice.

“There you are.” The voice was low, smooth, and quiet, like a calm river current. This person needn’t raise their voice to capture people’s attention. Finally, you’ve lifted your head to swim in pools of periwinkle. Ayato was a heavenly vision on most days, but today it seemed like he put extra effort to look good. The white of his kimono was even more pristine, his shoes twice as polished. Meanwhile, you fixed your windswept hair with one hand as you tried to untangle the other out of the shopping bag.

“Good afternoon, Kamisato-dono,” you smiled apologetically as if to find a suitable excuse for your bedraggled state. You were always nervous when you were in his presence in less than your best state.

A slight frown marred Ayato’s handsome features. “Why such formalities? I thought I specifically asked of you to call me by my name.” He leaned down to put his handsome face even closer to yours. You felt your heart start to beat wildly.

“There are people my-” He moved his face closer still with the same innocent expression, but the demand in his eyes was more than clear.

“Ayato,” you whispered and felt your face warm up.

Ayato straightened up with a pleased nod. “Now, it’s time for me to whisk you away, my dear. I was looking for you everywhere but you seem to elude me every time.” You opened your mouth to apologize once more, but then you noticed an elegantly wrapped purple box in his hands.

He lifted the box to you with the softest of smiles, “Happy White Day, my love.”

You blinked at him once, twice, then it dawned on you.

“Archons! That was today?!” You stood up quickly, giving Ayato almost whiplash, as you scrambled for an apology. Ayato reassured you swiftly, saying he understands you were busy.

“Now,” he cuts your stuttering with seductive intent in his voice, “how about we find some more private place, and I feed them to you personally.” Ayato finishes his flirtation with a heavy smolder.

You felt yourself heating up once more when you caught sight of the contents of the chocolate box.

“Ayato?”

“Hm?”

“You’ve eaten some of them.”

He gave you his best faux innocent smile.

“I bought us the chocolates.”

“Over here!”

A booming voice alerted you of another presence as you wobbled dangerously on the ladder. You were changing lamps around the Komore teahouse and overall preparing the outside sitting for the spring. When the local delinquent decided to pay you a visit. He fooled around quite often recently, and despite other staff being concerned for you, you never were annoyed by his presence. Rather, you find it energizing.

“Itto! Wait!”

His presence was currently way too energizing for your liking as he took it upon himself to climb onto a very old rackety ladder as well. The last thing you see is Itto’s horrified expression as the latter tips over. You scrambled to at least catch the edge of the roof, but alas your fingers only brushed the glazed surface.

You let out a scared yelp as you plummeted to the ground. Your sudden impact on the ground was disturbed by a pair of burly arms.

“Crap! Are you ok? I guess the ladder was frailer than I thought…eheheh.” Itto chuckled awkwardly.

You weren’t prepared for such close contact with the bright amber hues of Itto’s eyes. His goofiness and innocence often distracted you from how handsome the young man was. Thankfully, you haven’t had the chance to splutter some nonsense to cover the reddening of your face, as he gently set you down.

“So, uh…” Itto ran a hand through his white locks as you tried not to focus on the flexing of his bicep as he did so. “I wanted to ask when your shift will be over. I wanted to show you something.”

You patted down your clothes and looked around the teahouse. Everything seemed prepared. You’ll just have to let others know you’re leaving.

“I’m done for today. I’ll just put down an apron and I’m ready to go!” you said as you have him a bright smile.

As if you haven’t had enough climbing for the day, Itto brought you to one of the biggest sakura trees near the city and started climbing it.

“Uhh…Itto, I’m not sure about this,” you said as you watched him prop himself on one of the thicker branches. He turned towards you and with a winning grin, he extended his hand towards you.

“Trust me.”

And you did. You let him pluck you from the ground as if you weighed nothing and place you next to him. Then, you climbed the tree with him in tow as he watched your every movement in case you slipped again. Until you finally sat at the place he deemed perfect.

With the swinging feet, you watched Inazuma city from afar as if you could place it in the palm of your hand.

“Pretty neat huh? I found it by accident when I was flung by a ruin guard.” he winced, probably remembering the impact. You couldn’t help but giggle, he always brought a smile to your face. As Itto listened to your cheerful laughter, he felt his heart skip a beat. It’s now or never.

“You’re…You’re really awesome, you know that.”

You turned from the landscape and looked at Itto in surprise at such a heartfelt confession. You noticed pulling a bouquet out of nowhere. After closer inspection, you noticed it was a bouquet made out of lollipops.

“I meant to get you chocolates but I forgot…so I had to improvise…” he scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. He popped one in his mouth and handed the bouquet to you.

“All of these, just for you!”

The endearing smile, the spark in his eyes, and the sugary treats in his hand. It was all too much, you couldn’t help yourself.

You plucked the lolly out of his mouth and before Itto could react, you placed a big smooch on his lips. He tasted sweet, just as you suspected.

The formidable yaksha tightly grips a small box wrapped in a ribbon. Easy now, he practiced this many times. He approaches you, reveals his intentions in the clearest way possible, and then gives you these chocolates. No need to be nervous, and yet as your charming smile catches his sight he suddenly forgot the speech he prepared.

He swallows a lump in his throat and steps forward. At that moment he notices a person talking to you. They’re standing rather close for his taste, and there’s this besotted look on their face. You accept a suspiciously looking package and wave them off. Xiao finally comes to you and watches as you put the package onto the pile with two other ones.

This can’t be real.

Was it his bad karma that caused this? You confessed to him last year. Approached him with a hopeful smile, adoration in your eyes and almond tofu carefully wrapped in a bamboo leaf box. Only when he rejected you he realized just how much your happiness means to him as he saw your face fall with such heartbreak. Now, he’s on the tables have turned, and he’s the one standing there dejectedly with a useless gift in his hands.

“Xiao, good to see you!” your cheerful greeting irked him even more. “It’s been a while, how are you?”

“I see you’ve gathered quite a group of admirers.” Xiao ignored your question and tried his hardest not to be spiteful toward you. He clutched the chocolates in his hands. It feels a little ridiculous to give you these, considering…

“Hm, what is this?” The Adepti watches in horror as you swipe the box out of his grasp. Unlike other boxes on the pile, you unwrap this one immediately.

“Mint cookies? I haven’t had those in ages! A bakery in Mondstadt stopped making these. Where did you…?”

“I didn’t-that is…I made them.” Xiao stammered with a blush rising to his cheeks.

You finally looked at him, balking.

“You…you made these??”

Xiao wrought his hands together. This wasn’t part of his speech, what were those words again? The truth is, he doesn’t want to admit that ever since his rejection, he’s been thinking about you constantly, that all this time he looked for ways to get you back, that he traveled all the way to Mondstadt and terrorized local confectionery until they surrendered their cookie recipe to him, or that he spent next months learning how to make these, one burned batch after another until the cookies were perfect.

Instead of waiting for the answer, you pulled one out of the box and bit into one. Xiao waited with bated breath. He did everything to hone his baking skills until they were honed to perfection.

He let out a breath when he heard your appreciative hum.

“These are amazing! Just like I remember.”

You gave the yaksha one of your most beautiful, dazzling smiles, and before he could think it over, Xiao hear himself saying: “I would make you these every day if you chose me.”

You felt your heart skip a beat. At this point, Xiao’s face went completely ruddy but he tried to maintain his composure by looking as stoic and unflinching as ever.

Cute.

“Well…” you wiped the remaining crumbs from the corner of your mouth, “how can I say no to a deal like that.”

You pulled him close and Xiao could only hopelessly close his eyes in shyness as you pressed another cookie to his lips.

[beba-780]

Emperor of Ninjago (5)

• After a few years, Lloyd had already turned 12, and even the information Kai provided to Skylor still didn't help the rebels advance. Harumi continued to visit Lloyd regularly and the training that Kai taught Lloyd was getting better and better, and even Kai ended up being the strongest soldier in Garmadon's army, even though he still couldn't fully confront Garmadon, Kai had already managed to several victories against generals. Samukai and Kozu.

• The Resistance, despite having valuable information from Skylor, was still unable to make Garmadon's forces withdraw from the kingdoms still before Garmadon's forces and ensure that the labor camps were destroyed to free all the slaves and prisoners who worked there. Wu still focused on finding the Green Ninja, but the Ninjas always returned unsuccessful in their mission. The Ninjas became the main leaders of the rebellion and Morro continued his violent attacks against Garmadon's armies in different parts of Ninjago.

• Unexpectedly one day Garmadon ordered Kai to prepare Lloyd to escape from the palace, since the Overlord was close to completely recovering his power and wanted to possess Lloyd's body to have his new body since he was not yet able to generate a body himself, Garmadon hearing that knew he had to do everything he could to save Lloyd.

• Garmadon took the Fire Sword from its hiding place and when he summoned Kai to his chambers in private he revealed that the Overlord planned to possess Lloyd to take over his body moment Garmadon asked Kai to quickly plan to escape the palace with Lloyd so he could keep him safe. Garmadon also gave the Fire Sword to Kai so that the Overlord wouldn't keep one of Ninjago's most powerful weapons.

• Kai planned his escape from the palace with Lloyd in detail. Thanks to his maps of the palace, Kai managed to discover secret passages and underground tunnels that led to the outskirts of the palace.

• Kai told Skylor what the Overlord wanted to do with Lloyd and she gave him a map indicating the location of Wu's camp, Skylor had given this map to Kai so he could take Lloyd to safety once he was there they will escape from the palace. When Kai showed the Fire Sword to Lloyd it suddenly began to glow once Lloyd touched it out of curiosity. Kai knew at that moment that Lloyd was the prophesied Green Ninja, since from what he discovered from his research, the Golden Weapons would reveal who would be the chosen one.

• Knowing that Lloyd was the Green Ninja terrified Kai more since if anyone else knew about it, they would not hesitate to kill the boy, thanks to Garmadon giving him the key to his Vengestone bracelets Kai managed to recover his elemental power, but his fire was still somewhat weak from the years of inactivity, it just needed time to recover, but Kai knew he had to flee the palace with Lloyd quickly.

• Kai had told Lloyd about the plan to flee the palace and how the Overlord wanted to possess him to have a new body, Lloyd knew the danger this represented and decided to follow Kai's orders, but before Lloyd managed to inform Harumi and Knowing that they would not see each other again for a while, she said goodbye to her best friend. Kai also said goodbye to Harumi and asked her not to tell anyone about her escape plan. Harumi promised to keep it a secret.

• Lloyd also said goodbye to his father for the last time when he was free from the control of the Overlord and the poison of the Great Devourer, Garmadon knew that he might not see his son again because if the Overlord found out about Lloyd's escape, Garmadon would be completely possessed by the Overlord and affected even more by the poison of the Great Devourer and that would cause him to not be able to have any more lucid moments.

• Kai and Lloyd managed to escape from the palace by using one of the tunnels that connected the city's sewers, Kai also managed to take several books and scrolls of the prophecy and the Overlord, as well as maps of the palace and information about the bases and fields of Garmadon's work. But upon leaving the sewers they were discovered by several guards who tried to capture them. Kai luckily stole a horse and together with Lloyd managed to escape from the kingdom, where they spent weeks trying to reach the Resistance base.

• Obviously along the way they were attacked by groups of guards, thieves and sometimes they ended up in the middle of fights between Garmadon's soldiers and several rebels. But Kai and Lloyd still managed to stay together. Also, along the way Kai began to tell Lloyd about his previous life as the Red Ninja, Lloyd still did not understand why Kai did not tell him about his true identity, but he understood that it was so he could protect himself from the guards Garmadon's when they lived in the palace.

• When they reached the nearby areas of the Resistance base Kai and Lloyd were ambushed by the same Ninjas and a group of rebels who were guarding the area, Kai managed to stop the ambush by revealing the Fire Sword and its elemental power, Cole, Jay, Zane and Nya still couldn't believe that Kai was actually alive. Obviously the reunion was emotional, but there was still confusion wondering how Kai was alive and why he brought Prince Lloyd to the rebel base.

• Kai explained how he survived the attack where they believed he had died, but he did not explain almost the entire story of his life in the palace, in addition, he also explained that he became Lloyd's personal guard and that he discovered that the prince It was the Green Ninja, obviously at first they didn't believe Kai but they would confirm it by being present at Wu. Kai and Lloyd were taken to the rebel base and Wu still couldn't believe that Kai was alive and that his nephew Lloyd was really alive, when he heard that Kai had said that Lloyd could be the Green Ninja Wu immediately placed the Four Golden Weapons in front of to Lloyd and they began to shine brightly, thus confirming that Lloyd was actually the Green Ninja.

• This had shocked the rebels completely, they could not believe that the son of their greatest enemy would be the Green Ninja, although Wu mentioned that this could be logical since Lloyd has the same blood as the First Master and could have inherited the powers of Onís and Dragons. Furthermore, Wu motivated everyone that Lloyd could be a better ruler than Garmadon, which the rebels accepted but still distrusted the prince, since they did not know much about Lloyd due to Garmadon keeping him hidden in the palace and the rebels only knew of its existence thanks to the information Skylor provided them.

• Obviously when Lloyd started living in the Resistance base he was not very well received, unlike Kai, who at least was immediately accepted back into the Resistance, Lloyd knew that his father made a lot of people suffer and that made him feel sad to Lloyd. However, Kai was the one who always reassured him and told him that he was not to blame for the actions that the Overlord instilled in his father.

• Kai even mentioned to Lloyd that once the war was over, Lloyd would not have to take the throne, Kai assured Lloyd that he could choose to live a quieter life and leave the throne to his uncle if he wished. Lloyd was still unsure of his decision, but at least he was glad to know that Kai was always on his side.

• The only one who did not accept Lloyd within the Wu base was Morro, although he no longer had a voice within his old base, he still did not accept that Lloyd would be a good ruler once the war was over, Kai was the only who defended Lloyd from all who opposed him remaining on the base. It is for that reason that only Kai began to train Lloyd better, then the other Ninjas would take care of his other training.

• Nya was the first from the base to approach Lloyd, she was the only one who immediately supported Wu and Kai's decision, Nya let Lloyd see her inventions and also allowed him to help her with weapons and other private inventions of hers. Furthermore, Nya also helped in her training, they both went to a waterfall where Nya always practiced and there she taught Lloyd how to use the spear, even though the sword was Lloyd's favorite weapon.

• Wu also participated in Lloyd's training, he even taught him meditation techniques so that he could relax his mind and concentrate better, in addition, they became closer as uncle and nephew by having several conversations about themselves over a cup of tea.

• Cole, Zane and Jay also grew fond of Lloyd over time, the three of them had a different training system, in addition, when they were not training Lloyd entered his daily activities, Jay taught him about mechanics, Zane gave him first aid lessons in case of emergencies and let him sometimes play with his falcon, Cole gave him treats and accompanied him on some explorations with some rebels.

• Even sometimes some children his age let Lloyd participate in their games and training, even though Lloyd was far ahead in experience than the other children, he still always managed to surprise them. Those actions that Lloyd did at the base gradually earned him the trust of the other rebels. But Morro and his group were the only ones who still distrusted Lloyd.

• The years passed and Lloyd became stronger and stronger, even though he was already 16 years old Wu mentioned that Lloyd was not yet ready to face his father, but Kai knew that Lloyd was never ready to face his father, but still He had faith in Lloyd, after all he raised him for a long time, the only thing that worried Kai was the decisions Lloyd would make during his future battles against his father's forces and the Overlord.

[fabuloustrash05]

TMNT 2012: 10 Years Later Headcanon

Happy 10 Year Anniversary of TMNT 2012 Everyone!!

On this day in 2012, Nickelodeon officially released the first two episodes of their newest series, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. 

To celebrate TMNT 2012′s 10 year anniversary I decided to share with you my headcanon future for the turtles and their friends, taking place exactly 10 years later. With the show starting with the turtles being 15, this headcanon future of mine takes place where the turtles are now 25 years old (exactly 10 years later).

I will discuss each turtle (with the inclusion of April, Casey, & Karai) with summaries of their lives, where they are, what they do now, their relationships with specific characters, and how their lives are going, etc. Consider this a happy ending for the turtles instead of that disaster of an ending that mutant apocalypse gave us. 

Let’s get started! Here’s my headcanon future/happy ending for the 2012 turtles and friends!

Leonardo Hamato

Like father, like son, Leonardo continues to lead the Hamato Clan as leader and sensei. He remained living in the sewers where he grew up, living with his youngest brother, Michelangelo. In honor of his father Leo rebuilt the Hamato Clan, building his own dojo in New York City and creating a new generation of ninjas. Though the task isn’t easy in this day and age, and his new growing clan still small, Leo works hard to continue the Hamato clan legacy, taking in many humans and mutants alike who are willing to learn and train with him. 

Unlike most of his siblings, Leonardo never married, for he was so focused and dedicated to his clan that he never had time to have a serious relationship or settle down. He eventually swore off dating and pursuing romantic relationships entirely, taking a vow of chastity so he can truly focus on his job as sensei and leader of the Hamato Clan. However, despite never being married or having children of his own, Leonardo has many young students that he loves dearly that he has come to see as his own and they love and look up to him as a father figure. 

When not focusing on his clan or his students, Leonardo visits his sister Karai, who moved back to Japan, to assist her in her own ninja clan, along with Slash and the Mighty Mutanimals back in New York. The three leaders all run their teams respectively and they all have a bond and strong alliance/agreement to help the other clans/teams if it is ever needed when another dangerous threat comes along, having monthly meetings to update the other teams on progress and such on specific matters. Leo also has status reports and meetings monthly with Karai and Slash on how their respective teams are doing and any updates on certain threats each team keeps an eye out for, or any new potential threats. In his spare time, Leonardo would also visit his best friend Miyamoto Usagi, who (thanks to Donnie) was able to find a way to remain in contact with one another and travel to each other’s worlds when desired. The two friends would chat, share some tea, train, and exchange life lessons to one another. It is one of the only few times Leo truly gets to relax for he is constantly working and focusing on reviving his father’s once dead clan. Sometimes Usagi even travels to Leo’s world to help him train his students and work as his second in command/assistant. Though Leo’s stress of his now busy life catches the attention of his family and friends, and they worry Leo is still putting too much pressure on himself, Leo is determined to continue his work as clan leader and even has his eyes on his niece to be his successor once she is of age. 

Donatello Hamato

In his late teens (I’d say shortly after When World Collide), Donatello was offered a golden opportunity he couldn't refuse. Offered by the Utrom Queen herself, he was given a position to work with the Utrom Council, along with working alongside many more intelligent scientists all across the galaxy, exchanging their knowledge and wisdom and working on grand experiments/inventions. This was basically like college for Donnie and soon he became a well known scientist, so much so that he became the Utrom Council’s trusted scientist and adviser for all Earth and Dimension X exchanges and trades, working alongside Bishop in the EPF. 

Through his own hard work, Donnie achieved many great scientific accomplishments. Some include: Perfecting retro-mutagen and offering it to any mutants who desire to return to their old lives, finding and rebuilding Fugitoid (who now works with the Utrom Council), and curing Timothy’s mutation. With Timothy now back, Donnie continues training him to be a ninja (later Timothy moved on to being a student of Leo’s dojo so he can get more proper training) and Timothy also works as Donnie’s lab assistant. Donnie’s newest project he is working on is rebuilding Metalhead, creating Metalhead 2.0, with this one looking like a robotic version of himself that he one day plans to download his subconscious into and continue living his life as a robot after his death, the same thing Fugitoid did, but Fugitoid warns him that while he does get to continue his work for an entirety, eternal life as a robot is maddening. (If you can probably tell, this idea was inspired by Mutant Apocalypse Robo!Donnie, aka the only concept from that arc that I actually liked!). His robotic plans for his future justifiable makes his family uncomfortable, the idea of him living forever while they are long gone causing Donnie to rethink his future decisions, especially when he notices it starts to worry his beloved wife, April.

After a long complicated “will they, won’t they?” and teen awkwardness, Donnie and April get together in their early adult life, with Donnie properly confessing his feelings to April before she goes off to college (check out April’s part to know a little more about that). The two happily dated throughout April’s college years and after she graduated, they got married, with Donnie being the second (and only other) brother to get married. The couple now happily live together in April’s apartment in New York, close by to his brothers, Leo and Mikey. The newly married couple are happy together and appreciate what they have and look forward to what the future has in store for them. 

(Also sorry Apriltello shippers, but they never have children, the writers themselves confirmed that Donnie and April would never have kids together because it's “impossible and weird”. Their words, not mine!)

Raphael Hamato

With almost all of their greatest enemies defeated and now living in an era of peace, Raphael now lives a domestic life outside the city, a lifestyle everyone, even himself, never thought he would have. Most thought Raph would live a vigilante life, fighting criminals till the end of his days, but instead he settled down and started a family of his own. Being the first of his siblings to get married, Raphael married his true love, Mona Lisa, during his early 20s and as a wedding gift from April, now live together at April’s farmhouse, along with Chompy Picasso (who has grown quite big, the size of a large dog). Shortly after their wedding, the young couple was blessed with a daughter, a perfect mutant-turtle-alien-salamander hybrid. The news shocked everyone, for a new generation of mutants has started, hybrids! Raphael was overjoyed for he always deep down wanted to become a father and start a family of his own, but always thought it would never happen for who would want to be with a mutant freak like him? Mona Lisa proved him wrong. 

After the birth of their daughter, Raph and Mona both decided to take a break from fighting criminals to focus on being parents and raising their child, but that doesn't mean they gave up fighting completely. The two still train in their free time, which is little when taking care of a 1 ½ year old. The couple plan to one day to fully train their daughter to become a strong fighter like them, even Leo has plans for his niece to one day be his successor and become the next leader and sensei of the Hamato clan once he retires, but for now, the couple want their daughter to enjoy her childhood, playing with Chompy and her uncles and aunts when they come by to visit. Raph and Mona plan to train their daughter once she reaches the age of six year old, the same age her father started training to become a ninja.

Raph works as the stay at home dad, while Mona Lisa continues her work with both the Mighty Mutanimals and for the Salamandrian military, so often that means she has to take trips off into space for short periods of time to send mission reports and other information. Sometimes, Raph joins her, despite hating space travel, so their daughter can see and spend time with Grandpa Sal. Something Raph finds important since he knows his daughter will never get to meet her other grandfather, Splinter, but he knows his father would be proud of the life and family he has now. Feeling at peace, Raphael is satisfied with the life and family he now has, but unknown to him, his family is soon going to become bigger for Mona Lisa is pregnant with their second child. Spoilers: it's a boy!

Michelangelo Hamato

During most of his teen years, Michelangelo would often sneak out to help Mr. Murakami in his restaurant, whether it's preparing food/ingredients for tomorrow or cleaning up. This went on for many years and the two bonded. Tragically, Mr. Murakami died a few years prior and it was discovered in Murakami’s will that he left his restaurant to Mikey. Mikey now owns Mr. Murakami’s restaurant and with the help of his sous chef, Ice Cream Kitty, it has become the most popular restaurant in New York and the first to serve both humans and mutants. In his free time Mikey also hosts cooking classes.

Michelangelo lives in the lair with his brother, Leonardo. As the only ones who never left home, Leo and Mikey have a closer bond with each other, but still remain in contact with Donnie and visit Raph in the countryside as well as see their niece. As for Mikey’s love life, he and Renet (who is now a fully trained and professional time master) dated for some time, but sadly the relationship didn’t last. Renet knew she couldn’t have a serious committed relationship with Mikey because of the different time periods they are from and her busy job, and Mikey wasn’t ready for a committed relationship, so the two both agreed to break up and stay good friends, but that doesn’t stop them from having a friends with benefits relationship whenever Renet comes to his time period for a visit. Mikey never marries or becomes a parent himself, but he absolutely adores his niece and spoils her to the point of it annoying Raph and often plays/babysits her all the time. He’s the fun uncle.

Michelangelo is also the biggest activist when it comes to fighting for mutants being accepted into civilization. With his restaurant he proves that mutants and humans can coexist peacefully. Mikey also is the head of rebuilding the Undercity (remember that abandoned underground city below the sewers?). With the help of the Mighty Mutanimals (who play a big part in Mikey’s campaigns and organization) the Undercity is will soon become a safe civilization for mutants to live in away from humans who have not yet accepted them (think of it like the Yokai city in rottmnt). With his restaurant, fighting for mutants rights, and head of rebuilding the Undercity, Mikey is considered the busiest and most hard working of his brothers and has gained the highest respect and admiration to all of mutant kind. They often refer to him as “The Holy Chalupa”. 

April O’Neil

Before heading off to college (she majored in Journalism btw), Donnie confessed his feelings to April. April admits to him that for a while she had feelings for him too, but was never ready to confront them during those times, scared of commitment, not wanting to ruin their friendship, etc. It wasn’t until the Aeon crystal controlled her and nearly killed Donnie that April realized how much she loves and cares for him, but after that she feared it was too late and he moved on, but her doubts were proven wrong when he confessed his feelings to her. The two began their relationship while April went to college, eventually getting an internship at Channel 6 News. Shortly after graduating, April was offered an official job at Channel 6 and her and Donnie got married (She caught the bouquet at Raph and Mona’s wedding which inspired Donnie to propose a year later).

April’s psychic powers (that she has now mastered thanks to training with the Utrom Council) and ninja skills become useful for her job at Channel 6, getting the best stories and scoops that no other reporter can get. She also loves spending time with her niece, often being Raph and Mona’s babysitter, or co-babysitting with Mikey. And as for the mystery of her mother, April did her own search and finally learned the truth. Her mother was dead, killed by the Kraang during their experiments shortly after she was captured when April was little. The news broke April and also her father, but at the same time put the O’Neil family at peace, finally knowing the truth and no longer having to live a life of fear and wonder. April now lives with a peace of mind, mastering her powers, but still always ready to learn new skills to help others in her life. 

Casey Jones

With April and Donnie getting together, Casey was happy for them, for in a way he knew she’d choose Donnie in the end. But in the beginning it was awkward for them, so Casey began keeping his distance from the couple for a while. Casey eventually left New York for a few years, going to college out of state with a hockey scholarship, only visiting his turtle friends and family in the city during breaks and holidays. While at school, Casey met a young woman who works at the local diner near his college (for comic fans, yes it’s Gabrielle), the two fell in love and began dating while they both attended the same university. Casey graduated from college with a business degree and shortly after discovered his college sweetheart was pregnant. The two quickly eloped and moved back to New York to raise their son, and for Casey to start his own business, a car mechanic shop (Casey found his passion in mechanics and car repair thanks to Donnie during the ep Race with the Demon in S3).

Finally back in New York with his wife and new born son, and his car repair business thriving, Casey reunites with Turtles and most importantly rekindles his friendship with April and Donnie. Casey’s life of mutants and aliens was a life his wife wasn’t expecting her husband to have (he kept it a secret from her for most of when they were dating) and at first she feared the Turtles, but slowly she became friends with them. During the day Casey works at his shop, while at night he continues his vigilante gig, something his wife disapproves of, worried that his desire to stop criminals will one day get him killed (a fear that will sadly eventually lead to his marriage’s downfall). Casey assures her that will never happen and he will be careful, but he wife still continues to worry. Casey and Raph are still best friends and hang out in their free time. Most of their hangouts involve playdates with their kids. Casey always jokes that maybe one day his son (who is now 2) will marry Raph’s daughter. Raph hates that idea. Despite some road bumps and challenges Casey still faces in his life, if you ask him, he’s living the dream!

Karai Hamato

After the official death of Shredder, Karai took the opportunity to reclaim the Foot Clan as hers and began rebuilding it to have a more honorable name. She moved back to Japan, keeping in touch with her brothers and visiting them often as she can, with her second in command/fiancée Shinigami (they got together shortly after Kavaxas’ defeat, with Shinigami confessing her feelings to Karai and she happily reciprocated). As mentioned in Leo’s section, Karai joins up in monthly meetings with Leo and Slash to discuss updates and other important subjects within their teams as a part of their alliance. The three all have a strong friendship and alliance for each other their teams.

In honor of her real father, Hamato Yoshi, Karai legally changed her last name back to Hamato, but decided to keep the name Karai. This was her symbolism to honor her family name and father, while also not erasing the memories of her past with Shredder and what led her to become who she is today. With hearing of Leo’s plan of having their niece be his heir of the Hamato Clan, this also inspires Karai to one day consider her and Shini having an heir of their own for the Foot Clan. In the mean time, Karai continues her hard work leading her still growing clan. With Shredder gone, Karai is happily free and the Foot Clan will be a proud and honorable name once again!

Bonus Lighting Round!

Slash continues leading the Mighty Mutanimals while also helping Mikey with his big projects of rebuilding the Undercity as a safe place for mutants to live in and live regular lives. As of now, he runs a small community for newly created mutants with no homes to live in peacefully until the Undercity is complete.

Leatherhead helps Mikey in his restaurant and attends his cooking classes, while Mondo Gecko is Mikey’s number one customer.

Alopex has a 4 year old son from a previous relationship with a mutant who later abandoned her and their child. Her and Tiger Claw are on better terms with each other now, but there is still some tension between the siblings that needs more time to heal. She is now living in New York and her and Slash are dating.

Sal Commander retired and is living a life of relaxing peace, and he also enjoys when his former lieutenant and “grandchildren” come to visit.

Fishface moved back to home in Brazil and continues living life as a common street thief. He formed his own street gang of thugs and is referred to as “The King of Thieves”.

Bebop and Rocksteady are living somewhere in New Jersey working as antiheroes. They’re happily married and adopted 3 mutant children, their names are Koya, Hob, and Sheena.

As for the villains, they are either arrested by the Utrom, dead, or declared a truce with the turtles and friends.

[linkemon]

Valentine's Day 2023 headcanons 1

Friendly reminder that English is not my first language. You can check my Masterlists both in English and Polish here.

Shikanoin Heizou

✧ Who else could come up with a romantic investigation? Of course, a one-of-a-kind, always busy detective. You were the investigator and he was your fugitive. At least that's what you assumed, because in fact you knew where you'd find him from the beginning.

✧ You woke up in the morning to see a piece of paper with a clue. You followed it, smiling to yourself. Heizou knew that he would have to stay longer at the agency that day, so he stayed up all night preparing various activities for you in the city.

✧ Each note was written exactly in his style. You could almost hear his words written on the paper. Especially when he called you sweetheart time and time again. Most of the puzzles were rhyming.

✧ You had to admit that halfway through the tour your legs started to hurt. At the same time, however, you were driven by curiosity to see what would be around the next corner.

✧ Activities included the best restaurants in Inazuma, picking up Heizou's pre-ordered kimono for you, and visiting the hot springs. You even got Yae Miko's unique autograph under her publisher's new book that you've been absolutely crazy about lately.

✧ When you got to the end of the tour, of course you saw the agency. Heizou perfectly deduced when you'd come, that's why he was collecting the last documents from the desk. He greeted you with a kiss, saying that the fun has only just begun.

Wanderer

✧ As a Scaramouche, he never imagined he would ever have the opportunity to celebrate this holiday. When he took on a new name, it didn't make him see Valentine's Day any differently. Just another stupid opportunity for people.

✧ When Nahida innocently asked what he had prepared for you and informed you that your gift for him was fantastic, he knew he was falling into the trap of the archon of wisdom. He then replied angrily that it was none of her business and walked away. At the same time, however, he began to think intensely about the fact that it might be worth doing something.

✧ Wanderer polled the few friends he had, including a bazaar vendor, for ideas. He was supposed to meet you tonight. Time was running out and every gift seemed inappropriate to him.

✧ He finally decided to buy you a necklace that could hold something small. He didn't know what to put inside and said to himself he wouldn't give it to you. In such a state you caught him on the street, saying it's time for your usual meeting.

✧ Seeing your gift, he thrust a necklace into your hand, saying that he got this antique from someone in the bazaar and it will be of no use to him. After all, he doesn't care about Valentine's Day...

✧ That evening you asked Wanderer to take a picture with you. You keep a miniature of it in your necklace as a memento of that day.

Ningguang

✧ Valentine's Day, of course, was spent rich but at the same time with you in mind. Everything was planned in advance as befits Tianquan.

✧ Throughout her busy schedule, Ningguang has reserved a whole day just for you in advance. She told the assistants not to disturb you unless Liyue is in mortal danger.

✧ You spent the day at Jade Chamber. In the morning you enjoyed breakfast prepared by Xiangling herself. It was nice to finally be able to eat in peace, knowing that your beloved was not in any way rushed by her work.

✧ Yun Jin graced the dinner with her performance. It was a new opera she was happy to write for your special request. It told the story of your love. Ningguang held your hand tight at special moments. Though she tried to appear composed, yet you could easily see her agitation.

✧ The culmination of the day was a fireworks show. Admittedly, it wasn't as spectacular as in the case of Lantern Rite but certainly many people in the city saw it as well. Invited from the recently opened Inazuma Yoimiya, who was a specialist in this field, created your special firework. It resembled two intertwined hearts as a sign that you will always be together.

[story-weavr]

In the far past, Kryptonians were a race that was enslaved and genetically modified by the more technologically advanced interplanetary invaders, the Coluans.

The Kryptonians fought and won their freedom and planet back. The tech left behind by the Coluans was used and improved on by the Kryptonians.

In one portion of their rich history, the Kryptonians themselves would go on to be planetary conquerors and settlers akin to Earth’s Roman empire.

In order to have a firm hold of their planet, Kryptonians introduced a mutagen into their DNA that would allow a member of their species to be able to reproduce with an alien sapient species.

The method by which to activate it would be for the Kryptonian to have had enough intercourse with a being that induces feelings akin to love (lust, respect, protectiveness, etc.).

Thus such people’s as the Daxamites came into being.

Later on, the Krypton’s leading government would become replaced by the Science guild. Eventually Krypton’s colonies would become independent civilizations.

Krypton eventually would become more and more closed off.

The mutagen, however, would continue to exist among the Kryptonian populace and at times be activated if only among the lower classes where traditional reproduction still continues as opposed to the Birthing Matrix among the upper echelons.

Lara Lor-Van, whose natural birth caused a scandal within the traditional House of Van, knew of the ancient mutagen that is dormant among Kryptonians.

Not wanting her son to be forever alone on a strange planet, she made sure to activate the gene so that Kal El would be able to father children with the Earthling he chooses.

More than a Earth decade later, a young Clark Kent had left Smallville to travel the world. In part, trying to find purpose again after losing his lover and best friend, Lex, to amnesia caused by an experiment on Krypton tech gone wrong. In another, fleeing from Lex’s father Lionel who was powerful enough to blackmail and threaten Clark to stay away from Lex.

In addition to his heart pain, he was losing his powers and was becoming weaker every day.

He had to rely more and more on Krypto, a dog who was mutated by the green meteorite of Smallville, & Lori Lemaris, a friend he made at the college he used to secretly visit Lex at.

It was only after he was examined by another friend (Immortal Man) he made on his travels that he found out what was happening.

Apparently, pregnant male Kryptonians would lose muscle mass and become more aggressive if they felt threatened. Instead of their stomach distending, their organs would rearrange for the growing baby. This was so that male Kryptonians would be unencumbered if they needed to flee from danger that their mate/family/allies would deal with. It would also discourage the pregnant male from engaging in stressful activities and focus on his well-being.

After an intense labor that eventually lead to Clark just cutting himself open, Conner Julian Kent was born. (Julian was from Lionel’s estranged brother Jules, a lawyer living in Smallville whom both boys loved and respected).

From then on, Clark swore to keep his child safe and to be a strong person Conner could look to as an example.

For that reason, Clark didn’t dare go back home until after Lionel died. In the meantime, he’d learn everything he could: about the world, humanity, & his and Conner’s heritage.

When he could finally return home, Clark decided to take the job offer he got from an editor at the Daily Planet. Because to do the most good, Metropolis, Delaware was the best place. Plus it was the city closest to Smallville aka “little Kansas”.

From there, he would be confronted by the so called philanthropist and man of tomorrow, Lex Luthor.

Having already grieved, Clark saw Luthor for what he really was: an immoral Machiavellian narcissist criminal who hated and looked down on humanity. Who would do anything and use anyone to get what he wanted: being the top of the food chain.

Clark was determined not only to stop him, but to never let him near Conner.

This began a war between a “meddling alien who is a threat to human progress” & “a man who could have done so much good if only he’d choose to do so”.

[celestialnxva]

Two Rose Petals, Intertwined

༄ Ch. 1 of the 'Hiraya' Series.

(Pattinson) Bruce Wayne x Reader

Summary: With your life falling apart, sitting in an open park in the most dangerous parts of Gotham City so late at night is the least of your concerns. A masked vigilante, on the other hand, thinks otherwise.

Tags: 'strangers' to friends (don't worry, romance will happen lol), fluff, hurt/comfort, angst, mentions of suicidal thoughts, canon typical violence.

WC: 6k+ words.

Timeline: before the events of The Batman.

main masterlist. | batman/hiraya series masterlist.

It wasn’t news to anyone that Gotham City was a dangerous place to be late at night. Any Gothamite who grew up after the golden era of the city was taught to stay inside, for there were many criminals who roamed the streets, looking for a reason to hurt someone for their sick pleasure. It was common sense, and any citizen concerned for their life would heed this warning and stay at home.

So why were you sitting outside in the park at the darkest hour of the night?

There were multiple reasons as to why you were willingly putting yourself in danger tonight. You would think that anyone who was living your life would do the exact same thing. Fired from your job, disowned by your family, kicked out of your home, completely bankrupt; why should you be concerned about staying out tonight? Even if you wanted to stay inside and protect yourself, you didn’t exactly have a choice to do so. 

So what more did you have to lose?

Relaxing your tense body into the stiff bench, you looked out towards the remains of what used to be a flourishing park; a park that everyone used to stroll around and play in. The last memory you had of this abandoned park was when you were but a small child. Young and naïve, your frail body did the best that it could to support your energetic spirit, helping you sprint excitedly around the park perimeters. Your mother was so happy then, and you’d like to believe that it was because you weren’t sick during that time. You could say the same about your father too. Though they never really accompanied you on your trips to the park, they still cared for you back then, and remembering that type of care as they disowned you years later was painful enough as it is. 

Life was so simple back then, you concluded. You cited that time to be the best time in your life. It was especially a happy time because you remembered fondly of a little boy that loved to play with you each time you visited the park. You knew of the boy’s name, of course; who wouldn’t know about the infamous Bruce Wayne? You did ponder over the years as to whether or not you should reach out to him, but you decided against it. Why would you? He would only grimace and look pitfully at the pathetic being you have blossomed into. They say that a childhood friend was meant to become a distant memory of your childhood; but. a part of you hoped that he still remembers the special times he spent with you. 

But thinking about your lovely childhood didn’t seem to distract you enough from the current predicament that you were in. Thinking about your childhood friend and the loving gazes your parents held for you wasn’t enough for you to forget about how bitterly cold your life had become. Going to this park did not take your eyes away from your worn-out wheelchair beside your favorite bench. 

And with that, you realized that life wasn’t worth living for anymore.

So you allowed yourself to cry, after years of keeping your sorrow hidden deep inside your heart. You let out a soft sob, a small display of the overwhelming agony your body and your mind had been in since the day your little body collapsed on the kitchen floor; a day you will always remember. You let your body collapse with the same vulnerability as it did back then; and for the first time, you allowed yourself to feel the hopelessness of your lonely life. You let yourself do so because you knew that tonight, you would finally let the corruption of Gotham City take you out the same exact way it had taken your life away from you all those years ago. 

So, you waited for the inevitable, only hoping that your murderer would kill you quickly and efficiently. 

But instead of a gunshot to your head or a knife to your back, you heard a loud explosion echoing in the distance. Startled, you clutched your chest to calm your racing heart as your eyes reflected the orange hues of the destructive fires. Typically, you have grown to ignore these explosions, but tonight, the destruction seems beautiful to you. Despite police sirens wailing irritatingly, the fire’s smoke swirled up into the cloudy, night sky. Barely were you able to see the stars through the veil of polluted air, but to you, it was normal. It was what made Gotham City–well– Gotham City. 

Mesmerized by the sight, you allowed yourself to forget about your problems for a little while. Even if they were faint, you could feel the stars shine their light upon your tear-stricken face. A small smile graces your features from the feeling of the little glimpse of Nature above and around you. It was if it was shielding you from the rest of the world, your own little oasis from the pain and suffering of life around you. Its arms ghosted against your cold skin, and embraced you protectively. At this very moment, you felt like you were going to be okay. Maybe–just maybe, it was okay to let yourself revel in the peace through the one way you knew best. 

Not caring about others seeing you now, you removed your gloves to reveal your scarred hands. Taking a deep breath, you closed your eyes and took in the smell of both the polluted air and the grass’ faint morning dew. Now grounded, your hand extended outward and splayed open with your palm side up. From there, you simply allowed yourself to exist and let the magick take control. 

You first felt this pull towards magick when you were younger. You weren’t exactly sure how or why, but what you did know was that you wanted to learn more about it. With only a little training from a next-door, old witch, you have managed to possess a tiny fraction of the magick you knew you were capable of. It had the potential to be powerful, yes, but only when wielded properly and fully mastered. You supposed that this was yet another failure to add to your long list. 

Even if you wanted to quit many times in the past, something–rather someone–kept telling you to continue honing your powers on your own. None of this was clear in your head, but the details of it all doesn’t matter anymore; not when you have nothing left except for magick and your wheelchair beside you. So, you allowed yourself to exist and let the magick take control. 

Waiting was the hard part, but once the ‘spirit’ comes, the spirit brings out beautiful magick that you never thought you were capable of creating. This time, it was even more beautiful than the last time you did this. Sparks that resembled swirls of light blue wind slipped from your fingers tips and towards the wilted tree across from the park from you. When you felt the wind rub delicately against the harsh bark of the tree, you imagined the tree blossoming and spreading its newfound youth to the rest of the park. You imagined your beloved park to be like it used to be.

And when you opened your eyes, you watched it all happen in complete, childlike wonder. 

Like you imagined, the swirling winds spiraled from the bottom of the tree all the way to the tallest branch. Like a flower, the naked branches bloomed luscious, green leaves; each leaf looked exactly like the way you remembered it. One by one, the same was done to each tree. Looking around you, the winds picked up its pace until the entire park had miraculously transformed into a blossoming garden of flowers, trees, and neatly cut pathways from the center fountain to the small playground across from it. For the first time in years, you smiled genuinely and unconditionally. 

You did it. Now, you can be a child again. 

With the same shaky hand you extended out to the tree earlier, you let your now-weighted fingertips slowly twirl to form a beautiful red rose. Silently, you watched the rose float only inches above your fingertips. It was beautiful, yes, but something was missing. You thought for a moment on what this dilemma could be, but then it came to you. 

It had to be a briar rose. 

Briar Rose, the name the little boy used to call you. The poor kid’s parents died when you two were only nine years old, but it still didn’t deter him from seeing you at the park. Although you had certainly driven many kids away from you at that point with how sickly you had become, it never fazed Bruce in the slightest. He was the only boy–no–the only person who treated you like you were a human being. At that point, you two had become each other’s comfort. He was your Robin, a symbol of hope that everything would get better for you; and you were his Briar Rose, the only soft happiness he had when his life grew the ugliest thorns. Sure, these were quite grim nicknames to call each other as kids, but after going through hell, those names were the best both of you could come with.

As your mind wandered to the kind boy, you only hoped that he was happy without you. You hoped that he knew how much he meant to you.

Before you knew it, the thorns that had been spiraling around the rose had started to crush it. In slight panic, you relaxed your tense fingertips and let the rose breathe. The tears you thought had dried an hour ago had come back at full force once again, drowning you in both happy nostalgia and bitter grief. As your shaky hand drew the floating rose closer, your tears had soon dripped down through the spiky thorns and landed gently on the flower’s delicate petals. And as you cried, you looked up at the stars above you and tried to smile through the overwhelming feelings spilling from deep inside you. 

“Thank you for everything, my Robin,” you whispered reverently into the cold air. 

And with the newfound hope Robin’s name gave to you, you allowed yourself to close your eyes, finally at peace. 

The city lights flickered and the shouts of angry criminals robbing screaming citizens echoed around the park did not make it past the barrier of green trees and the protection nature gave to you. If someone could see you now, they would surely not believe their eyes and simply walk away. And you wouldn’t care. Leaving you alone was the best thing anyone could do tonight. 

Unfortunately, someone did see you, and that someone was none other than the Batman. 

———

What was meant to be a swift night on patrol quickly went south when some mad man who called himself  ‘The Joker’ had committed mass murder on innocent people at one of Gotham City’s banks. When he became Batman, he knew that he would be facing difficult battles with the same type of criminal scum that killed his parents; but no one could ever predict that Batman would be faced with criminal masterminds. Joker was committing a smaller act of crime with robbing a bank, but senseless murder for the fun of it, exploding the bank entirely, and having a getaway plan that fooled even the great detective was an unsettling thought that continued to plague his mind for the rest of the night. Clearly, he needed to rest early tonight if he wanted to outwit his new adversary. But as he walked up to the Batmobile to make his way home, his eyes caught onto the sight of a rose petal floating in front of him. Normally, he would just ignore it like it was any other leaf, but this rose wasn’t a normal one he had seen before. Roses as red as blood didn’t exist in Gotham City anymore, not since he had seen them when he…

Nevermind that now. 

Against his better judgment, he walked past the Batmobile and followed the rose petal.  He watched from the shadows how it seemed to float like it had a life of its own. Twirling elegantly with the direction of the cold breeze, the petal glowed even under the dimmest of street lamps in Gotham City. Batman picked up his pace to keep up with the petal; but as soon as he caught up to it, it suddenly disappeared. Trying not to panic, his steady eyes looked around him, looking for where the petal could have gone. 

It did come back, though, and it came back with a sight Batman had never thought he would ever see in his life here. The lone petal appeared from the shadows around a street corner, but the petal was not alone anymore. 

Accompanying the petal was another petal beside it. 

The petal resumed the familiar dance in the wind, but now completely intertwined with the other petal. He watched with curiosity as the petals danced and twirled around him, as if they were caressing him delicately. It seemed inviting to him, almost as if they were meant to lead him somewhere. His gut feeling was typically never wrong, and it was telling him to continue following this strange anomaly. If he believed in magic, then he could certainly buy that it was a harmless trick. But what if it was another dangerous villain that could control nature?

Or what if it was something else entirely?

A feeling unknown to him, yet completely familiar bubbled up his chest; and since he didn’t like not knowing things, he simply couldn’t wait any longer. 

Closing his eyes for a moment to take a deep breath, he started to sprint towards a certain direction, hoping that these mysterious petals would take the hint and guide him. As he expected, these strange partners twirled past his head and guided him along the way. He used the wind the petals traveled on to keep him steady while he sprinted forward. With his thoughts racing in his mind, he could only hope that as he turned this street corner, he would find something that didn’t pose a threat to Gotham City. 

And when he did turn that street corner, his paranoid eyes fell upon the strangest, yet most beautiful sight he had ever seen in his life: fresh, luscious nature, and at the very center of it, a seated stranger. 

Stopping in his tracks, he immediately hid himself in the shadows before he could allow himself to observe you. He hesitated to, especially after his fiasco with the Joker. Remembering the potential threat this stranger could pose brought him back to his senses. He tried to force himself to look up away from the beautiful scenery in front of him (as tempting it is to call it so); but try as he could, it didn’t stop the racing of his heart whenever his eyes settled upon the stranger. He could only see the back of their head from where he stood, yet he felt so drawn to them. He couldn’t place the reason why. But as he narrowed his eyes to observe nervously, the flower petals peeked from the corner of his eye. Shifting his eyes over to stare at the two, the petals slowed down and moved towards where he stood. The wind propelling them forward brushed its ghostly fingertips tenderly against his cheek. The breeze felt so human, specifically a human that he somehow felt connected to. As the breeze and the petals floated away and towards the stranger, he couldn’t help but wonder if what he was seeing was an actual ghost. His mother did tell him that ghosts were probably real. 

Maybe it was his mother standing there.

The thought made his heart skip a beat, but as he thought about it more, the stranger looked nothing like his mother. The wheelchair beside the stranger easily gave that away. What he did find strange, though, was that this park was supposed to be wilted and abandoned. Just yesterday he visited it, and it looked nothing like what he was seeing now. Now, it looked like it was brought to life, a sanctuary amongst the gritty reality of the apartment complexes around it. It looked… It looked like what he remembered this park used to look like back then when he played at the park with the one person he cared for so much, and the one person that he never seemed to know entirely. 

Briar Rose.

The memory was a painful one for him because he was just a boy when he met them. Joyful and full of life, they were one of the few happy memories he could remember before his parents died. Briar Rose, his best friend and first love. 

‘His only love,’ he remembered, but could never admit it to himself. 

There was a pang in his chest remembering the loss of his childhood friend. He had searched for them for years since his sudden disappearance when they were only ten years old. He cursed himself for never asking for their last name, and even then, there were no records of them. It was as if they didn’t even exist. After so many years, he had decided to ease the pain in his heart by telling himself that they died. It was a way that at least gave him peace of mind—that they were safe in the Afterlife, and not suffering in this hellhole he called life. But despite all efforts in forgetting about his friend, he couldn’t erase the feeling of their hugs, their fingertips caressing his cheek, their knuckles playfully rubbing against his head, and especially their laughter.

There was just no forgetting of a someone as special as them. 

Before he could dwell on this past memory any further, he heard a soft sob come from the stranger’s lips. His eyes snapped back to full attention and stared at the shaking figure. They must’ve been so cold and so lonely if they were hanging around alone in the worst parts of the city and in this abandoned park. The assessment of their vulnerability eased the detective’s mind a bit, for this stranger did not seem to be a villain or a threat of any kind. This stranger was just a Gothamite. If that was the case, he didn’t really need to be here, now did he? He was Vengeance, not some babysitter to a stranger with their own problems. But as he turned around to grumble about his time wasted in chasing random petals, one sentence slipped out of the stranger’s mouth that made his entire world turn upside down all over again. 

“Thank you for everything, my Robin.”

His blood ran cold. 

There was no possible way. 

He just–

The stranger.

It couldn’t be.

‘My Briar Rose…’

Feeling out of breath, he pressed his back against the grimy building. He scanned the stranger all over again, finally connecting the dots. The rose petals, the wheelchair, the flourishing park, all of it were clues to lead him back to his childhood friend. The same childhood friend he was staring at was the one that he thought was dead; and now, he didn’t know if he wanted to cry, to hug you, or to walk away. None of those options seemed appealing in the slightest, but he had to make a decision quickly. What if you slipped from his fingertips again? What would he do with himself?

So, like the wind that led him to you, he propelled himself towards where you sat, the lone petal so close to intertwining once again with his other petal. 

His Briar Rose. 

The closer he got, the more he tried to compose himself. Even though he missed you dearly, he was just a stranger to you. He wasn’t Bruce Wayne. He was Batman. It was ironic to think about how he had always thought of Batman being the more comfortable mask to wear than ‘Bruce Wayne,’ but now, he wished he could strip all his armor off and be the childhood friend he always was to you. 

Now only a few feet away, he could see you admiring a floating rose in your hand, the rose adorned with thorns wrapped protectively around it. He didn’t know you could be capable of doing magic; magic wasn’t even real to him before he set his eyes upon you. Yet, it did not deter him from drawing himself closer to you. He restrained himself desperately, and tried to pull away to leave you alone, but he just couldn’t. Not when he had finally found the love of his life. 

Shyly, he hid behind one of the trees outlining the edge of the park. He tried not to laugh sadly at his position being the exact same one he had met you in for the first time. Hiding behind a tree and too shy to talk to the bubbly kid who only played with themself and their parents nowhere in sight, now here he was, too shy once again to approach you. 

Unfortunately, he would not stay in his hiding spot for long. 

“Come out. I know you’re there,” you said amusedly without turning your back, exactly like you had done so when you first met him.

He froze. Was he ready enough to see you again? Was he composed enough to pretend to be someone other than Bruce Wayne? Was he ready to see the look of disappointment when you realize who he is and what he had become?

You know what?

Fuck it. 

With a shaky exhale, Batman pried himself away from his safety spot against the tree and walked towards you. In the pale moonlight, you seemed to glow, and even without seeing you yet, he bet you looked as attractive as you had been in his eyes since he had met you all those years ago. Little by little, he kept his footsteps steady despite his stuttering heartbeat pounding in his ears. You were here, you were finally here, you were–

As he made his way to you and turned to face you from his place within the shadows of the park, his face fell at the sight. You had been crying, obvious from the blood-shot eyes and dry tear marks against your skin. He didn’t know it could be possible, but you looked sicker since he had last seen you. Your exposed hands shakily resting on your lap were scarred from what he assumed to be from a fire. Yet despite all of these observations, what caught his eye the most was the flower that floated above one of your hands resting on your lap. It confirmed to be what he feared and hoped for at the same time: 

A beautiful, red rose, locked inside intertwining thorns. Protected, yet tragically removed and isolated from the rest of the world. Briar Rose.

He said nothing, for he did not have any words to express his shock and delight. Though you had grown, you still had this youthful hope that everything was still going be okay. He wondered what had happened in your life to bring you as low as seeking refuge in an abandoned park so late into the night. Whatever it was, he was only grateful that he found his way back to you. So while he did say nothing, his eyes swirled with emotions both known and unknown to him; but all of them belonged to you and you alone. 

Luckily for him, you did have something to say. 

“Don’t be afraid. I know this situation may be weird to you, but I promise you that I’m not a criminal, Batman,” you said with a weak chuckle. It surprised Bruce that you could tell who he was, but then again, not many people stalked you from the shadows in the way that he had done. Alfred told him that it was impolite to stalk people, but Alfred was Alfred. He didn’t have to listen to him. Mostly. But for you? He would listen. So, with a heavy heart, Bruce stepped forward into the lit up space that the fountain provided light for. Bruce, with his tall figure built and geared up for battle, stood in front of you with as much stoicness that he could muster. He hoped that it would be enough for you to not figure out his true identity. 

But with how easy it was for you to recognize that Batman was spying on you— albeit unsettling to him—he couldn’t help but wonder if you had already figured him all out. 

He looked like the very definition of seriousness and indifference, but in your eyes, he seemed defensive. You wondered why. “Come, sit with me for a little while,” you offered, but he made no move to sit beside you. You tried not to bite your lip in disappointment and instead looked down to tend to your rose. You supposed a ‘no thank you’ wouldn’t hurt to hear from the vigilante, but who were you to think that you mattered to anyone in this world. 

This did not go unnoticed by Batman; by Bruce. 

Despite his nerves telling him to run away and hide in his tower again, to run away from all of these weird and vulnerable feelings, he propelled himself forward and sat down on the spot on bench beside you. He turned his head and gently maneuvered your wheelchair closer to you. The gesture was small, but with the fond smile you gave him, he was glad to do so. If you wanted him to do small tasks, tend to you like he used to, then he will let it be; just for tonight. 

A moment of silence passed between the two of you and before he could force himself to start with small talk, you spoke once more.

“I’m a little surprised to see you here, Bruce. I thought you’d be fighting crime on the other side of the city tonight,” you murmured to him quietly while you continued to thread the thorns around the poor rose. Bruce, on the other hand, did not have the casual reaction you did in figuring out his identity. 

“How—?” he tried to start out. He turned to you quickly with panic in his eyes. “Wh-How did you—?”

“Oh please,” you scoffed. “I knew from the moment you hid behind that tree. And looking at me like you saw a ghost, Bruce? It’s not hard to connect the dots. I don’t need magick to figure that out.”

Despite all of his shock and his nervousness, he did his best to relax back into his spot beside you. He supposed that he wasn’t really so subtle about knowing you, but it still unnerved him with how observational you are. But then again, with all the adventures and mysteries you solved as children, he wouldn’t necessarily be surprised. He supposed that he could at least drop some anxieties about keeping his identity hidden from you, even if it did make him nervous to know that someone else knows about his identity as Batman. He didn’t want you to worry about him, so he just sighed deeply and rubbed his gloved hands on his armored thighs. Another wave of silence passes between the two of you until—all of a sudden—you both start to chuckle. Unspoken feelings passed between the two of you, feelings that only you two would know and laugh about. 

“I see you’ve taken my advice of being a hero quite literally,” you snorted. 

“And you seem to actually possess strange magick skills despite you convincing me to believe that magick wasn’t real,” he joked back lightheartedly, a side of him that he doesn’t let anyone see—except for you. 

After a shared (and equally awkward) laugh, you both calmed down and fell into a more comfortable silence. It surprised you of how quiet Bruce has gotten over the years, but back then, he expressed that you gave him room to grow and become himself around you. Maybe the years without you forced him into shy isolation again. You would make sure to fix that, but before you could do so, you knew you had to explain to Bruce about your situation—the reason why you’re here. Bruce seemed to be thinking the same thing. 

“Let me help you.”

It was your turn to look up at him flabbergasted. You were going to protest, to yell at him to not feel an obligation to take care of an old friend, but he wouldn’t have any it. In fact, he knew exactly the right way to silence you: the infamous charming Wayne smile that still made you weak in the knees. How did this kid get even more handsome since the last time you saw him? 

Your heart beating loud in your chest, how could you refuse? He was finally here, and the nature clearly blessed you with this opportunity to reconnect. But one thing kept you from saying yes, an important setback that really made you hesitant to accept his offer: He was Batman. 

Seeming to sense your hesitation in your shift in body language, he slowly reached up to barely brush against the skin of your cheek, a comfort gesture that he had always done when you were crying from pain in your body or the intense bullying from the other children at the park. The gesture made you freeze in your place (as it had always done) and soon you felt your anxious shoulders relax as well.

“Look at me,” he says gently, though firm in his tone, wanting to connect with you once again. Once you had done so, he takes a moment to collect his thoughts; and when he had done so, he began the speech that he had been too cowardly to tell you when you were still kids:

“I should’ve done this years ago. I knew that you were suffering in silence from your parents’ negligence and the pain from not getting proper treatment. I was so focused on avenging my parents that I failed to see the severity of your situation.” He took your hands into his gloved ones and his eyes softened with each word that slipped from his quivering lips. “I’ve spent years trying to find you and now that you’re here, I don’t want to lose another chance of asking you the one question I have always wished to tell you.”

Finally, he squeezed them gently to emphasize the truth of his words. The act only made you more nervous, wondering what could be so important for him to wait for so many years in order to say it to your face.

“I want you to come stay with me.”

Oh. 

“Pardon…?” you squeaked out breathlessly, unsure of what to make out of his request. He let out a sigh and looked down at your intertwined hands defeatedly. When he did so, however, he noticed that two of the rose’s petals had fallen off of the flower and onto his hands. Taking it as meaningful symbolism of their friendship, he now had more determination. 

“I want to give you the best treatments, a safe place to live, and a sustainable job that doesn’t force you to suffer in silence from all your bodily pain,” he explained further. When he saw you were still hesitant, he started to caress your hands with his thumb soothingly.

“I know that this is your battle to fight, and you don’t have to work for Wayne Enterprises if the idea of me having a full monopoly over your life makes you uncomfortable; but,” he looked back down shamefully. “I just want to make up for lost time and show you that life isn’t so bad; not when you have someone you care about by your side.”

He might be speaking subtly about his own feelings towards you, but he figured that you could at least reciprocate his friendship, even if it hurt to not tell the honest truth. Not yet.

It took a while for you to think. You weighed the pros and cons as he spoke, but his last sentence caught you by surprise. Did he…?

You looked up and saw him practically sulking and you almost laughed out of amusement. He looked ridiculous and almost childish, despite his intimidating suit. You supposed you had to respond to his offer now.

He felt one scarred hand reach up to caress his exposed cheek, and it caused him to shudder from his first intimate touch from a person since he last saw you. Noticing his sensitivity in your presence, you finally chuckled amusedly out loud and gently tilted his head up to look at you this time. He refused to believe that was blushing from a single gesture from you. Frankly, that would be pretty embarrassing if that were true (it was true). 

“‘Someone you care about,’ huh?” you started before your amused smile turned into a cheeky smirk. He gulped.

“You seem to be speaking from experience. Do you mind telling me who the lucky person is? Will I get to meet them?” you said teasingly. You only hoped to the Universe that the pang in your chest was one of hope that he would say that he has always loved you and not of the pain of knowing that Bruce had fallen in love with someone else and it might be too late for you to confess your lifelong secret. 

But judging from his now flustered expression, you were more hopeful for the former; and now, you were pretty sure of what he is going to say. 

“I…” he trailed off and tried to look away from you, but your hand was firm in keeping his eyes fixated on you. You were clearly not going to let him off the hook without an answer, so he flew all reservations and subtleties out the window and finally spoke his truth. 

“I care about you, (y/n). I always have,” he said quickly before his eyes did the best it could to look away from your piercing gaze. He waited in anticipation for your reaction. Even though his feelings were so much more than a friendly affection towards his friend, he couldn’t allow himself to get too excited right now, not when his friend’s safety and well-being was more important than any lingering feelings he had.

He knew, of course, that you must be thinking that he was too corny, but your reaction wasn’t something that he expected. 

Instead, you stayed silent, conveying to him to explain more; and when he looked back to see you more intrigued rather than offended, a newfound hope blossomed in his chest. He hated how terrifying it felt to be in love with you for so long; and he knew that once he started, he wouldn’t be able to hold back any longer; not after so many years apart.

“You have always meant a lot to me, ever since the moment I saw you splashing around in the fountain. I have never stopped caring for you, even after so many years apart. I…” he gulped. “I couldn’t move on and I couldn’t forgive myself for being away from you for so many years without a single goodbye. You deserve better–I know–and maybe it’s too late to ask you to forgive me for leaving you so suddenly; but, at least I can rest easy, knowing that I properly said goodbye to you,” he confessed with an embarrassed look on his face.

Even though he had told the truth, he still followed up with a final statement. “So if you want nothing to do with me, I completely understand and just go—”

You lunged towards him and hugged him tightly.

You were hugging him.

He was in your arms again.

You were hugging him.

Oh God. 

This inner dialogue repeated over and over in his head, to the point where he almost forgot to hug back. Dirty, shaky from the cold, and body bruised from all the punches he had sustained in his last fight, he hugged back with all of his heart, soul, and mind. From how tight you squeezed him in your arms, he took this as a silent statement of your forgiveness for his sudden absence and your acceptance of his offer. If he could float, he would be soaring high in the clouds right now from this euphoric feeling. 

Eventually, this hug had to end, and he tried his best not to chase after your retreating embrace. Before you could say anything to reaffirm what he already knows, he was already quick to shower your scarred hands with reverent kisses, each one a silent ‘thank you’ for giving him a chance to be in your life again. 

As you sat on the lone bench beside Bruce and relished in his comfortable company, you understood now that he didn’t want to fix you with his care, his money, or his power. No, he wanted to give you another chance to heal–both mentally and physically. He wanted to support you and your journey, just as much as you had been his inspiration to become Batman. You understood that, ultimately, he just missed you and wanted a chance at happiness with him your side. 

And even if he most likely will never reciprocate your romantic feelings, you knew that he loved you in his own way. He always had and he always will. 

Even as years had gone by and many real problems threatened to break you two apart, you would always come back together and give this friendship another chance. So, you and Bruce will always remember this special day, the day that two rose petals finally met again, intertwined, and dancing harmoniously through the soft winds of life itself.

---

general taglist: @venomsvl @v0idl1nq

[isshua]

Messianic Aureation

Chapter 5: Into the City

Summary: Bidding farewell to Uncle Elias, Cara, Bennett, Razor, and now Kaeya head into Monstadt to enact their secret plan. Which Monstader Vessels will decide to help, and which ones will decide to join the hunt?

Fifth chapter is out now! Let me know what you think of it! Likes and reblogs are greatly appreciated! Enjoy! :)

Chapter 6 is here

“You’re back!” Uncle Elias’ voice was hearty. His back was turned as he rhythmically chopped carrots into neat slices on the kitchen counter. “How’d things go?”

The air within the house was thick with the aroma of cooked meat and vegetables when they returned. It tantalized Cara’s stomach into growling demandingly to be fed. Despite her hunger, she couldn’t bring herself to feel any joy at the thought of indulging in the delicious cooking like she usually did.

Bennett stood silently beside her, his hands clasped over his middle in a pose that screamed awkwardness. Razor was sniffing the air and shifting eagerly from foot to foot while he practically frothed at the mouth as he took in the scent of the food.

Kaeya was at a distance from them, arms crossed over his chest while he leaned against the wall of the kitchen foyer. Though there was no indication he was feeling the least bit uncomfortable, when Cara glanced back at him, his body language gave him away: he was as stiff as a board, and there was no sign of a smile on his face. The cavalry captain was nervous. It wasn’t an emotion she was used to seeing him express.

“Um. Uncle Elias.” Bennett spoke first. “We, uh, actually have a visitor.”

“A visitor? Who is-” Uncle Elias turned around. When he saw Kaeya, his jaw went slack and his eyes went wide. The hand holding the kitchen knife fell to his side. The utensil slipped from his fingers and clattered loudly to the floor.

Bennett smiled weakly. “Surprise?”

“Elias,” Kaeya said. “I recognize your name. You routinely accept commissions to help take care of the stables, don’t you?”

“Yes.” Uncle Elias’ voice had lost all of its warmth. “I’ve worked with horses all my life. It’s what I do best.” He bent down and picked up the kitchen knife to place it back on the counter. “What do I owe the pleasure of a visit, Captain Alberich? Have my daughter and her friends caused any trouble?”

He’s covering for me. Cara was touched by his dedication to keeping her safe. “Uncle Elias, it’s alright,” she said. “Kaeya, he’s okay. He knows.”

Uncle Elias was silent for a moment. His face was blank, and Cara feared that he hadn’t registered what she said. But then anger alit in his eyes. “He knows?” he exclaimed. “You told him? The cavalry captain? Have you three lost your minds?”

Kaeya pursed his lips. “Now, now, there’s no need to act so crude,” he said, voice dangerously polite. “That is no way to speak to the Creator. Mind how you express yourself in the presence of Her Grace. I won’t tolerate any sort of violence directed her way.”

“Nononono, Kaeya, no,” Cara interjected. “Stop calling me Her Grace, please. It’s alright, it’s just, Uncle Elias doesn’t trust any of the knights after he heard about what they did to me. He’s just trying to protect me, right?” She gave the retired adventurer a pointed look, silently urging him to make peace with Kaeya before the tension between them escalated to a dangerous level.

“Yes, she’s correct.” Uncle Elias relaxed slightly. He looked Kaeya over. “You…believe in her divinity? Why are you the only knight to see through whatever lies the false Creator has spread?”

“I’m not the only knight,” Kaeya replied. “And in regard to your second question, I honestly don’t know. It’s true most of Monstadt see’s Cara as a heretic, but her warmth has saved me from whatever veil is covering their eyes. I’m here to help her, not hurt her. You have my word.”

“Okay.” Uncle Elias seemed convinced, if only a little. He gestured to the kitchen table. “Have a seat, then. Dinner will be served up right away.”

Cara sat between Bennett and Razor, while Kaeya took a seat at the opposite end. Uncle Elias brought over heaping plates of steak and roasted vegetables-food that smelled so good, Cara couldn’t help but disregard the enmity in the air. She, Bennett, and Razor immediately dug in. Kaeya ate at a much more contained pace, but even he marveled at the flavor of the food put before him. “I say, this steak is cooked to perfection. You are certainly quite the chef, Mr. Elias.”

Uncle Elias chuckled. “I learned it all from my adventuring days. Being on the road for most of my life helped me hone my cooking skills.” He sat down and folded his hands. “Now, then. To business. Cara, I take it Captain Alberich’s presence here means that you're leaving.”

Cara paused mid-bite. She slowly lowered her fork and swallowed. “Yes.”

Uncle Elias nodded. “I thought so. I didn’t think you’d stay here forever. The Creator cannot be contained to a single place. You still have to find a way back home, don’t you? Your journey has only just begun. So, if you would like to share it, please, tell me. What is your plan?”

 Cara looked at Kaeya. He shrugged. “It is ultimately up to you whether to tell him the full plan or not. If you trust him, I see no reason for me to object.”

Cara inhaled deeply. “Okay. We’re going to sneak into Monstadt and meet up with someone Bennett knows who can supply me with a disguise, so no one will recognize me while I’m in the city. Then, we’re going to break into the restricted section of the Knights of Favonius Library so we can search for some clues that might tell us how to get me home.”

As the words left her tongue, she felt a sort of embarrassment simmer within her. The plan sounded ludicrous out loud, and she half-expected Uncle Elias to burst into laughter upon hearing it. But the old man didn’t look the least bit amused, and he stroked his beard thoughtfully. “Hmm. It sounds difficult. If I remember correctly, that library is carefully guarded by Ms. Lisa Minci, right? She takes her job…somewhat seriously. I don’t think she would be very happy about anyone breaking into the restricted section.”

“It’s the only place we can think of in Monstadt that might hold any sort of information on the Creator, though,” Bennett said. “I’m willing to break in there if it means helping Cara. I won’t just abandon a friend in need!”

“Meh thoo!” Razor agreed, his mouth stuffed with food. “I helpth Cawa with meh teeth andth clawths!”

“Razor, gross! Swallow before you speak!” Bennett shoved a napkin into Razor’s hands. Cara giggled at the wolf boy’s puffed-up cheeks. “Thank you, Razor,” she said. “I always feel safe when you're around.”

Uncle Elias smiled at the two boys. “By the way you talk, Bennett, you're planning on going to aid Cara, then?”

“Of course!” Bennett nodded eagerly, but then paused. “That is, if you want me to, Cara. Now that I think about it, my bad luck might cause this whole plan to blow up in our faces…”

“No, Bennett, please, don’t say that,” Cara said. “Your bad luck won’t get in the way. You haven’t experienced any cases of it acting out since you met me, right? Things should be fine, and even if they aren’t, I still want you with me. You're my friend, and I trust you.”

“Now that you mention it, you're right.” Bennett gasped. “It must be because you're the Creator! Being around you cancels out my bad luck!”

“That’s…not what I was exactly going for-” Cara started to say.

But Bennett was already standing up. He punched the air with a fist. “Alright! Now that we don’t have to worry about my bad luck, I’m even more confident we can get into that library! Benny’s Adventure Team is ready to roll!”

“What about me, Cara?” Razor asked earnestly. “Can I come, too? I am also friend! Teeth! Claws! Legs! All big! All strong! To protect you!”

“Yes, of course you can come, Razor.” Cara ruffled his hair, earning a noise of approval from him. “You are my friend, and I know that if we work together, we can pull this off.”

“These two are certainly very loyal to you,” Kaeya commented. “It’s good to see. I, for one, will welcome the company. I agree that if the four of us put our heads together, then our little heist will go down as smooth as a delectable “Death After Noon” from the Angel’s Share.”

Uncle Elias clapped his hands and stood up. “It’s settled, then. You four will be heading out. Cara, I actually have something for you. Wait right here.” He left the kitchen to go into the living room.

When he returned, he was holding a backpack. “Here, for you,” he said to Cara. “I packed you some supplies for your future journeys. They won’t last you forever, but there’s enough to last you for a few weeks.”

Cara peered into the bag and saw nothing but what appeared to be a bottomless pit. She stuck her hand into it and felt air. Uncle Elias smiled. “Confused, eh? Just think of something you would keep in this bag that you would want to pull out. Like, say, clothes, for example.”

Cara gave him a puzzled look but did as he told her. She closed her eyes and focused on the word clothing. Almost immediately, something made of fabric appeared in the bag and touched her hand.

Her eyes flew open. “Woah. How’d it do that?”

“The adventurer’s bags in Teyvat are special,” Uncle Elias explained. “They’re enchanted by an ancient magic that flows through the land to hold an excessive amount of items. Just think of whatever you want to pull out, and it’ll be in there. It has to actually be something in the pack, though, so keep in mind what you store.”

Cara took out the clothing and immediately recognized the dark blue, white, and gold fabric. “My traveler outfit. I forgot I even had this.”

“It goes much nicer with your boots than the clothes you're wearing now do,” Uncle Elias said. “I thought you’d want to keep it, just in case you need something extra to wear.”

“Now, that is an outfit fit for a god,” Kaeya commented.

“If that’s the case, then I don’t want it,” Cara muttered sourly.

“Oh, just keep it. You never know when you might need another set of clothes. There’s also some pre-packaged meals, healing supplies, and potions in there. Do you know how to use potions?”

“Yes,” Cara answered. “It’s one of the few things I do know how to use in this world.” She put her traveler outfit back into the pack. The bag dematerialized the moment she lifted her hands away from it, and a phantom energy traveled through her before settling over her spine and dissolving away. “Thank you, truly. You, Bennett, and Razor…I wouldn’t be alive right now if it wasn’t for you three.”

“It’s my pleasure to serve you,” Uncle Elias said. “And not just as a worshiper, either. I hope these days together have convinced you that I am someone you can see as an ally and friend.”

“Of course,” Cara agreed. “I won’t forget what you’ve done for me. I can’t thank you enough.”

Abruptly, Uncle Elias pulled her into a tight hug. “You're a good kid, Cara,” he murmured, voice slightly watery. When he released her, and she leaned back to see his face, there was a sign of oncoming tears in his eyes. “Take care of yourself, and take care of Bennett and Razor. I have no doubt that the three of you are going to achieve something greater than any of us regular folk can fathom.”

“I will.” Emotion swelled within Cara’s chest. She didn’t want to leave this peaceful life, but she knew she had to. She had to get home, and enacting this plan was the only possible way for her to reach that goal. “I promise, I’ll protect them.”

“Good.” He patted her shoulder. “You guys have eaten, so you should head out. It’ll be safer for you to travel at night.” He looked at Kaeya. “Watch out for them. Keep your promise on being loyal, understand?”

“My word is my honor,” Kaeya replied. He struck his chest in the signature Knights of Favonius salute. “I promise.”

The three of them finished up their dinners, and then prepared to leave. Uncle Elias walked them to the door, and with Kaeya leading the way, they left the little house behind them and headed for the main area of town. When Cara looked back, she saw Uncle Elias standing in the doorway and waving. She paused to take it all in: the house, the trees, the fruit stands, the memories of the past two weeks that were filled with nothing but peace and tranquility. She was leaving that now, and surely heading into a more tumultuous, dangerous situation, but she would never forget the time she had in Springvale.

She waved back to Uncle Elias before turning to follow Kaeya, Bennett, and Razor. Now, there was no going back.

They traveled under the cover of the night’s shadows, avoiding the main roads and keeping close to the trees. The lights of Monstadt City grew closer and closer as Kaeya led the way to their destination, and a worm of anxiety began to eat away at Cara’s stomach like a parasite. With each step she took, she felt the scars on her arms and knees burn. She couldn’t get the cries of the bloodthirsty crowd out of her head. The red eyes of the entity possessing Jean plagued her mind, its voice hissing disgust and contempt into her ears. “Did you think you would be able to remain undetected from my sight? I see everything in this world.”

“Cara?” Razor said. Her companions had stopped when they noticed she was no longer moving.

“What’s wrong?” Bennett asked. “Are you alright?”

She shook her head. “I-” Her words were suddenly rooted to her tongue like taffy, and she found that she could barely manage to push them out of her mouth. “I really don’t want to go in there.”

Razor took her hand in his. “You're shaking. Are you afraid?”

She nodded. Yes. Afraid. That was definitely the emotion she was experiencing right now. However, it was unlike any sort of fear she had ever felt. Usually, Cara felt fear when she had a deadline to meet for a college assignment, or when she had anxiety about meeting new people or giving a presentation in a class. This sort of fear was intense, heart-stopping; she couldn’t stop thinking about Jean’s red eyes or the way her sword had nearly pierced her heart.

“Cara.” Kaeya was in front of her, his hands on her shoulders. “I need you to breathe for me, alright? Take a deep breath in, and then slowly let it out through your mouth.” He demonstrated for her. “Can you do that? Can you breathe with me?”

He inhaled slowly, and she mimicked him. In and out, in and out, the two of them repeated the action multiple times. Cara’s heartbeat slowed from a frantic pounding to a more calmed rhythm, and she could feel her panic ebb away.

“Better?” Kaeya asked.

She nodded. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I don’t know what just happened to me. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t say sorry,” Kaeya said. “You have nothing to be sorry for. It’s normal to feel a sense of panic when you see a place or person that has caused you immense pain in the past. There is no shame in feeling scared. Now, tell me, what exactly are you thinking about right now?”

Cara looked at her hands, feeling pathetic. “I…I guess I’m scared of being recognized by someone who wants to kill me. If we happen to run into a knight, they could report my location to Jean, and then she’ll try to kill me again.” She shuddered. “The way she looked at me…how everyone looked at me…I don’t think I can go through that a second time.”

“Cara, here.” Razor took out his backpack and rummaged through it. He took out a large bundle of brown cloth. When he held it up, Cara saw it was a cloak. “This is an otherfur, given to me by big steelclaw Varka. It’s old, has some holes, but it might help you feel better. You wear otherfur, pull hood over your head. It will hide your face.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Kaeya said. “Smart solution, Razor. Why don’t you try it on, Cara? It certainly would do well to keep your face concealed.”

The sleeveless cloak was an instant relief when Cara slipped it on. It smelled like pine needles and wolfhook berries mingled with a faint autumn breeze. It wouldn’t hide her scars, but it would hide her face. She pulled the hood over her head. “How do I look?”

“Like a simple traveler arriving in the nation of freedom to taste some fine wine.” Kaeya looked her up and down and nodded approvingly. “With the night on our side, no one should pay your looks any mind.”

“Alright.” Cara shook out her arms and breathed out. “Thank you, Razor. Thank you, guys. I’m sorry I freaked out a little. Let’s keep going.”

“Don’t be sorry,” Bennett told her as they continued on. “It’s alright to be scared. I would be too, if I was walking into an entire city filled with people who wanted to kill me.”

“We are here for you,” Razor said. “We are your protectors, by your side. Bennett and I fight anyone who wants to hurt you.”

“As much as I agree, I have to ask for you two to keep your words to yourselves for now,” Kaeya whispered. “We’re nearing the side gate.”

They fell silent as they approached. Cara saw the outline of a knight framed against the flickering of the side gate’s torches. It was Guy, leaning against the wall with his head down and eyes shut. He was lightly snoring; the perfect opportunity for them to sneak into the city.

Kaeya pointed, and Cara heeded his command. Together with Bennett and Razor, she hurried past the sleeping guard. There was no one else in sight near the side gate entrance, to her immense relief. They hid behind a stack of boxes near the reputation board.

“Guy!” Kaeya abruptly yelled. “Sleeping on the job, I see?”

Guy startled awake and nearly fell over. When he saw Kaeya standing in front of him, he went so rigid, it looked like he was attempting to mold himself into the stone of the wall. “C-Captain Kaeya!” he exclaimed. “What are you doing out here at this hour?”

“The well-being of Monstadt rests on my shoulders, as does it rest on yours,” Kaeya answered. “With a heretic on the loose, I cannot afford to sit by and allow others to do my job for me. I understand your shifts have been very tiring, so if you need to take a break, you need only ask Jean for one.”

“N-No, I’m fine!” Guy insisted with a frantic shake of his hands and head. “I won’t fall asleep again, I promise! For Monstadt and my father, I will help catch the imposter and make everyone proud!”

“That’s what I like to hear. Bravo, young knight! I know your father is very appreciative of the work you're putting in to keep Monstadt safe. We all are. Stay strong, okay?”

“I will! Thank you, Captain Kaeya!”

Kaeya strode through the gate with a victorious smirk on his face. Cara couldn’t contain her smile as she held a fist out to him and whispered “Good work.”

Kaeya bumped his fist with hers. “Nothing I can’t handle. Let’s continue on, shall we? Bennett, where is our disguise supplier meeting us?”

“Just follow me.” Bennett took the lead. “It’s a place where we’ll be safe. I’ll show you the way.”

When Bennett said he was taking them to a safe place, she was not expecting said safe place to be a bar.

When she saw the small sign with a calico cat lounging over an arrow pointing towards a door, she stopped dead in her tracks. “No way,” she said. “Bennett, this is where we’re meeting your friend? The Cat’s Tail? Do you know how many people could be in there that might see me?”

Razor huffed. “Don’t like cats. Smell strange. Act stranger. They are nothing like wolf.”

“This is indeed quite the odd place to be meeting with someone when our entire goal here is to be as discreet as possible,” Kaeya said.

“Guys, guys, don’t worry,” Bennett assured. “I know someone who works here who can help us. She’ll be more concerned with whether Cara’s here to drink than if she’s the Creator, so I don’t think she’ll rat her out to the knights.”

“Don’t think, or don’t know?” Kaeya asked with a raised eyebrow.

Cara shook her head and stepped back. “I don’t want to do this. It’s too dangerous.”

“Listen, it’ll be okay!” Bennett said. “Just give her a chance, please. If she does try to attack you, I’ll stop her, I promise. But take my word for it, I know she won’t hurt you.” He stepped up to the door and knocked on it three times. There was silence, then a shuffle, and finally, the door creaked open by an inch. Cara saw a cat-like teal green eye peer out at them. “Who is it?” someone asked from within.

“It’s Bennett,” Bennett answered. “Do you remember me? I’m one of Klee’s friends. We met during last year’s Weinlesefest.”

The eye disappeared, and the door swung open. A young girl stood in the entrance with her hands on her hips, her cat ears turned back and her tail twitching. “Of course I remember who you are. I’m a cat, not a goldfish. What do you want? Don’t you know I’m busy right now?”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to distract you while you're working,” Bennett apologized. “But we really need your help. Cara, do you know Diona?”

Before Cara could respond, Diona suddenly shrieked. She pointed wildly at Kaeya and bared her teeth with a hiss, her tail puffing up and her ears pressing down against her skull. “What is he doing here? You bring this boozehound with you and expect to get my help? No way! Get out of here!”

Kaeya laughed. “It is a pleasure to see you as well, Diona. Care to serve me a drink while I’m here?”

Diona looked absolutely furious. “Oh, now you're making fun of me, aren’t you? Well, let me tell you mister, captain or no captain, I’m not letting you take one step into this building! And that counts for the rest of you, too!”

The door started to close, but Cara darted forward and grabbed it before Diona could shut them out. The Kätzlein looked up at her in momentary shock, but then quickly recomposed herself. Her words formed out of a low growl. “And who might you be? Who do you think you are, grabbing the door like that? Are you here to drink yourself to death, too?”

“No, I’m not,” Cara said. “My name is Cara, and-” She internally cringed at what she was about to say, but if it got Diona’s attention, then that’s what mattered. “-And I may or may not be Teyvat’s Divine Creator.”

Diona scrunched her nose. “Divine Creator?” she said. “What makes you think I care about the Divine Creator?”

“You probably don’t,” Cara replied. “And honestly, neither do I. I just care about getting home, but I can’t do that with the Knights of Favonius hunting me.”

“Ah, I see. You're that imposter everyone’s blabbering about, aren’t you? From what I’ve heard, the Acting Grand Master wants you dead. So, why shouldn’t I turn you in to the knights? An imposter in Monstadt’s bad enough, but an alcoholic imposter? Eugh, no thank you.”

Razor snarled. “You don’t hurt Her Grace. Her Grace is my friend. She is lupical. I protect her!”

“Oh, so you wanna play big bad wolf, don’t you?” Diona scoffed. “Just try attacking me, you big brute! A cat’s quicker than a wolf any day!”

Protests arose from Kaeya and Bennett as each of them moved to prevent Diona and Razor from breaking out into a full-blown braul. Cara pushed Razor back towards Bennett, who linked his arms around the wolf boy’s and held him back. “Stop it!” she yelled. “No fighting! We don’t have to solve this with violence! Diona, I promise you, I’m really not an imposter!”

“Oh, yeah?” Diona crossed her arms. “Then prove it. Tell me something only the Creator would know.”

Cara paused. She thought about everything she knew about Diona and her lore. “Okay. Um…hold on, let me remember…oh, yeah. Your favorite food is Monstadt grilled fish. You add your own twist to it and call it “Definitely Not Bar Food.” Your constellation is Feles, and…you received your Vision after you were scared that you might lose your father to a storm. There, is that enough proof for you?”

Diona’s eyes went wide. “H-Hey! How did you know all of that? Have you been spying on me? Can you read my mind?”

“No. I just know you, Diona. I’m not asking for you to make us drinks or do anything you're uncomfortable with. If you really don’t want us to stay, then we won’t. But we could really, really use your help.”

Diona stared at her suspiciously. She suddenly reached out, grabbed her hand, and brought it up to her nose. Cara squirmed. “Um, Diona? I get you're a cat and everything, but I don’t think I want you to start rubbing against me-”

“Quiet. I’m not going to rub against you. I’m just smelling you. A cat’s nose can smell those people they are familiar with and like. I’m one of the Creator’s Vessels, so if you truly are her, I’ll be able to recognize it through your scent.” She closed her eyes and breathed in through her mouth. “Now, let’s see…this smell…I’ve smelled it before. Windwheel Aster…the sky and the sea…the scent of the sun, moon, and stars…” Diona gasped and let her go. “Oh. Oh, wow! You were telling the truth! You really are the Divine Creator, aren’t you?”

“Yes, she is,” Bennett cut in, before Cara could object. “But there are people in Monstadt who don’t believe she is, and because of that, they want her killed. We need to lay low while we wait for another friend to meet up with us here. Can you please help us, Diona?”

Diona looked from Cara, to Bennett, to Kaeya, to Razor, and back to Cara again. Her tail fur smoothed as she sighed and stepped aside. “Alright, come on in. I’ll let you use one of the guest rooms for free. But mark my words, there will be no alcohol served to any of you, especially Captain Drunkard here. Got it?”

Cara nodded. “We got it. Thank you, Diona.”

“Yeah, yeah. Come on, get in. I’ll show you to your room.” But though Diona acted dismissive, she looked at Cara with a newfound sense of awe. “And, thank you, for choosing me to help you, even if I doubted you before…Your Grace.”

The bar, unsurprisingly, was packed. When Diona led them into the main dining area, few heads looked up to see who the mixologist was personally escorting, and those who did were uninterested with their quick stares. Soft music played in the background while elegantly dressed customers sipped from fancy glasses filled with shimmering liquor.

“My customers are much more mature than the heathens who drink at the Angel’s Share,” Diona bragged. “You won’t catch that kind of crowd here.” She eyed Kaeya distastefully before jumping behind the bar and grabbing a mixing glass. “Come sit with me and tell me who exactly this friend you're waiting for is like.”

“She’s…a little intense,” Bennett said. “But she has a good heart, and she’s someone I trust completely. Just, don’t expect a discreet entrance from her. She likes to make herself heard-”

The front door to the bar slammed open. Cara whirled around to see a young woman in a strange dress striding in with an imposingly large raven perched on her shoulder. The purple hue of an Electro Vision glowed from where it was attached to the small of her back. All noise within the bar died as every customer’s head and eyes swiveled to focus on the mysteriously-clad figure standing in the center. 

“Oh, no,” Cara groaned. “That’s-”

“Yup,” Bennett confirmed. “That’s our supplier.”

“Greetings!” Fischl announced. “Customers of the Cat’s Tail, rejoice and be merry, for I, Fischl, Prinzessin der Verurteilung, have descended upon this humble tavern by the call of fate! Let your cheers rise to the heavens! Be glad! Your very souls have been blessed with the presence of the ruler of the everlasting night!”

Silence. Cara half-expected to hear a cricket begin to chirp. She hid her face in her hands. “Oh my god.”

“I told you not to expect a discreet entrance from her,” Bennett said. “Hey, Fischl, over here!”

“Ah, Bennett, the ill-starred young man!” Despite her words, Fischl’s entire face lit up when she saw him. “How dost thou fare, my faithful friend? Thou have called upon me to supply you with the sacred artifacts of your prinzessin, yes? The Auge der Verurteilung prophesied this meeting. Come, tell me what you need my assistance for! I will be happy to oblige!”

“What mein Fräulein means to say is that it is good to see you, Bennett,” Oz translated. “You called us here very unexpectedly, and very late at night. Is everything alright?”

“Yes, of course everything is alright,” Bennett replied. “Uh, for now, of course. But you were right when you said that we need to borrow some of your, ah, sacred artifacts. Did you bring everything I asked for?”

Fischl displayed the large bag she was carrying like it was a piece of treasure. “Behold! Destiny has brought thee thy goods of the Immernachtreich!”

Bennett took the bag and unzipped it. Cara peered over his shoulder to see a bunch of wigs and masks inside. Razor pulled one of the wigs out and sniffed it tentatively. “Hair is fake. Why does purple girl have this?”

“Mein Fräulein has many forms,” Oz helpfully explained. “These wigs and masks are catalysts of disguise that may transform the wearer into any type of person they wish to be. Mein Fräulein enjoys using them for dressup.”

“Oz!” Fischl coughed loudly. “Ahem, what Oz says is correct, to a point. These items are not mere playthings to be used for idle dressing games. They contain the power of the Immernachtreich itself! How does it feel to be holding such power in your hands?”

Cara took a mask and weighed it. “It feels…like holding a mask.”

Diona rolled her eyes. “That’s because it is just a mask.” 

“Hold thy tongue, Kätzlein!” Fischl snapped. “I have no time for nonbelievers such as yourself! Anyway, Bennett, tell me. What is it you need all of this for?”

“It’s to disguise me,” Cara said, her voice dropping as she stepped forward to fully reveal herself. “It’s, uh, nice to meet you in person, Fischl.”

When the prinzessin looked at Cara, her hand flew to her chest, and she staggered back a little, as if she had just been struck by lightning. Oz reacted similarly; he squawked as his wingbeats faltered dramatically and he nearly crashed into the floor. Both of them looked like they had just seen a ghost. 

“Your-!” Fischl began to say.

Cara frantically shook her head and pressed a finger to her lips. Fischl stared at her in confusion before understanding passed over her eyes and she nodded. “You're…the voice of fate who has spoken my name. Indeed, I now know why you need these disguises. A pack of wolves will hunt their prey relentlessly if they’re starving, regardless if it is another wolf’s flesh they crave, no?”

“Um. Yes? I guess?” Cara said. “Razor, is that true?”

“Purple girl talk makes my head spin,” Razor groaned.

“What mein Fräulein means to say is that she understands why you have asked for her help,” Oz said. “She will gladly offer these disguises to you so it will be easier to evade the hunt.”

Fischl nodded in agreement. “Oz speaks the truth. I have heard whispers of evil passing through the land like a deadly disease. They wish ill fate upon the holy, and have caused a mask of deception to cover the truth. But make no mistake, the shadows of the everlasting night will pierce through the veil plaguing Monstadt! I, Fischl, Prinzessin der Verurteilung, ruler of the Immernachtreich, master of the stars and the moon, will not stand on the side of the wicked! Though I am a princess, I am nothing compared to you, god above gods! So I bow to you, and offer my undying loyalty!”

“She wants to help you,” Oz simply added. “As do I.”

Kaeya was chuckling. “My, my, we’re certainly throwing discretion out of the picture here, aren’t we? At this rate, I won’t be surprised if we’re caught before morning.”

“Don’t be silly.” Fischl dismissed him with a wave of her hand. “You doubt my discretion. No one shall touch us while I am here.” She turned her attention back to Cara. “So, Your Gra- I mean, friend of Bennett. Art thou satisfied with the goods I have brought to thee? Have I made an acceptable offering?”

“Only one way to find out.” She took the bag and hefted it into her arms. “I’m going up to the guest room. I’ll be right back.

She returned with a brown wig covering her hair and a simple Fatui-styled mask hiding her eyes. “How do I look?” she asked, turning in a circle for the others to see.

“Stupendous!” Fischl clapped happily. “I believed my eyes were deceiving me when you returned. I almost did not realize it was you.”

“I agree,” Oz said. “You do look like an entirely different person.”

“And you smell different,” Razor added. “No longer smell like Creator. Smell like perfume and Electro. This is good.”

“Seems like the disguise is doing the trick, then.” Cara offered Fischl the bag. “Here’s the rest of your sacred artifacts. I’ll make sure to return the ones I’m wearing before I leave Monstadt, I promise.”

“No need to. Keep them! Consider them a gift.” Fischl clasped Cara’s hands in hers. “Your Grace,” she whispered. “I understand thou art in grave danger, and I do not know the reasons for your return to this city of sinners who have hurt you so. But rest assured, the Immernachtreich will always be your ally. Oz and I are forever thy loyal acolytes, and I will make the stars fall if it means to safeguard your life.”

“Mein Fräulein is saying that she knows you are the true creator,” Oz murmured. “Both of us know Monstadt is hunting you, so if needed, we will both come to your aid in your time of need.”

“Mhm! Precisely!” Fischl said. “You have friends in Oz and I, make that be known. We stand by thy side as thy holy Vessels!”

Cara was touched. She squeezed Fischl’s hands. “Thank you, Fischl. And thank you, too, Oz. Knowing that you don’t want me dead is a great relief. If I ever need your help again, I promise I’ll come looking for you two.”

Fischl beamed proudly. She stepped back and did a dramatic display of hand movements before pointing her finger towards the bar’s roof. “I shall heed thy call if I ever hear it! Now, the Prinzessin der Verurteilung must take leave of this humble tavern! I hear the call of the Kaiser and Kaiserin through the night. I must grace them with my presence by giving them counsel.”

“What mein Fräulein means to say is that it is getting quite late,” Oz said. “We must return home before her parents begin to worry about where she is.”

“Oz! Don’t say it so bluntly!” Fischl scolded. “Uh, I mean, you do say some of the strangest things, Oz! I believe it is time for you to regain your energy by basking in the shadows of the night. Let us go, shall we?” She bowed elegantly to Cara. “I wish you and your entourage all the luck in the world and beyond, Your Grace. I await the reclamation of your golden throne in the halls of the Crossroads with the greatest anticipation. For now, I shall sing songs of praise for thee. Sweet shall be thy sleep, spared of the Mares of the Night! For no Night-Mares would dare draw near to those who are blessed by the Immernachtreitch, lest the Creator herself! Farewell, my god! Farewell, Bennett, wolven warrior, and captain forged in frost! The Auge der Verurteilung shall watch over thee, and protect your threads of fate!”

“Bye, Fischl!” Bennett waved goodbye as Fischl turned with a swirl of her dress and marched out of the bar with Oz close behind.

“Boy, she’s something, isn’t she?” Diona huffed.

“But she got us what we needed,” Bennett said. “And the disguise definitely does the job, Cara. This heist is going to be a piece of cake!”

“I hope so.” Cara adjusted her mask. “People may try to kill me anyway, since I look like I’m part of the Fatui now.”

“Oh, don’t be silly. If anything, that should cause people to avoid you. No one wants to get involved with the Fatui, so that’s something we can use to our advantage.” Bennett suddenly gasped and grabbed Razor’s elbow. “Razor, look, Six-Fingered José is here!”

Between the time Fischl had arrived and left, a bard had entered the tavern and was playing merry music on a guitar. People were out of their seats and dancing, too caught up in their own pleasure to have paid any mind to the scene Fischl made. Razor jumped up and down eagerly. “Music is good! Bennett, let’s go dance! Can we dance, Cara?”

Both boys looked to her with hope. Cara chuckled. “I don’t see why not. Go, it’s okay. You two deserve to relax a little.”

“But remember that we have to leave soon,” Kaeya advised. “We must enact our plan during a specific interval of time. Come back in five minutes.”

“We will!” Bennett and Razor scampered off. Cara watched them with a smile. Part of her itched to join them, but the fear of being seen by strangers held her back. Even if she did have a disguise now, she still didn’t feel totally safe when she was near people. Surely all of these bar-goers had seen the wanted signs and heard the demand for her arrest by the knights. She didn’t doubt for a second that any of them would hand her over in exchange for a hefty reward.

Kaeya pulled a stool out and gestured to it in a silent request for her to sit. She obliged. On the other side of the bar, Diona had gone to mix a cocktail for an obviously drunken man, a mischievous glint in her eye that could only mean she was attempting to ruin the drink she was about to serve. It was just her and the cavalry captain, both of them remaining in a comfortable silence before Kaeya spoke. “Are you alright?” he asked.

She stretched her legs out and leaned back slightly, her hands gripping the edge of the counter as she stretched. A yawn escaped her lips; her eyes wandered to the clock stationed above the bar on their own accord. It was late, nearly 11:00pm. “I’m alright,” she answered. “Tired.”

“I can imagine. Conversations with Fischl tend to leave people exhausted.” Kaeya leaned against the counter, his gaze focused on Bennett and Razor dancing to the music of Six-Fingered José. “Our night is hardly over, though. The library still awaits us.”

“I know. I can keep myself awake. It’s not something that’s new to me.”

“Oh? And what, if I may ask, has caused Teyvat’s god to have an inadequate sleep schedule? Is it the sound of your people’s prayers rising up to bring noise to your ears?”

She lightly punched his shoulder, laughing. “Don’t you dare talk about people praying to me. I don’t even want to imagine that.”

“You wound me, Your Grace.” Kaeya rubbed his shoulder in mock-hurt. “But seriously, what did you mean? I hope you don’t find my curiosity intruding.”

“No, I don’t. Don’t worry.” Cara looked at her hands, idly watching the way her fingers clasped over each other. “Back in my world, I’m a student. I spend a lot of my nights staying up late studying, surviving on energy drinks and caffeine to keep me awake. I’ve trained myself to stay awake even when I want nothing more than to sleep.”

Kaeya hummed. “Sounds like a cruel fate for anyone. Such torture belongs in the halls of the Akademiya, not in the realm of the gods. Perhaps a drink will soothe your senses and ease the aching behind your eyes?”

Cara raised an eyebrow. “We promised Diona we wouldn’t have any alcohol while we’re here.”

“Who said anything about alcohol?” Kaeya reached out and picked up a drink sitting on the counter. Blue liquid swirled in bubbling carbonation. A pair of blueberries floated on the surface. “One is never too young for a Berry and Mint Burst, right? Courtesy of Diona and I.”

He offered it to her; she accepted it gladly. Cold condensation glossed over her palms as she held it and raised the rim to her lips. Saccharine flavor spilled down her throat and filled her stomach with sugary sweetness.

“How is it?” Kaeya asked.

Cara lowered the drink and cleared her throat. “Tastes like fresh energy.”

He smiled. “That’s good. You’ll need it.” He patted her shoulder and stood up. “Enjoy it, alright? You deserve to let go a little after everything you’ve been through. I don’t know when the next time you’ll have such an opportunity will come around again.”

She watched him saunter away to bother Diona, the girl already scowling in his direction as she saw him coming. A soft smile made its way onto her features as she watched her friends unwind. Kaeya was right. It was nice to let herself go. She took a sip from her drink again and closed her eyes.

And then, suddenly, without warning, she felt a presence to her left. A presence that caused her to immediately slam her drink down and swivel in her seat to see who was standing beside her. Her heart seized in an invisible grip of panic when she saw who it was.

“Enjoying your drink?” Venti asked. The legs of the seat next to her own scraped roughly against the floor as he pulled it back and sat. The bard propped his elbows on the counter and rested his chin in his hand as he looked at her with a smile that was so innocent, yet deviously knowing at the same time.

She didn’t reply. Her fingers gripped her drink with so much force she thought the glass might crack. A feeling was stirring inside of her, so different from the feeling she usually felt when she saw Venti grinning at her through her computer screen. Here was one of her favorite characters, one whom she had dedicated so much time to: ascending, maxing out his talents, equipping him with only the best artifacts and giving him his signature bow. She loved Venti. So why wasn’t she excited to see him, now that he was here before her, as real as he could ever possibly be? Why was she instead feeling an intense, undeniable sense of fear?

She searched his eyes, looking for any sort of familiarity, silently begging him to give her a sign that he knew who she was. But there was no warmth in his gaze, no nonverbal message that he was on her side. No, beneath that radiant smile was something only she could see. There was a coldness, a hostility, a flash of anger. It made her feel like a cornered animal that was about to be devoured by a greater predator.

“What’s wrong? Cat got your tongue?” Venti giggled. “I don’t believe I have ever seen you around Monstadt before.”

“No. You haven’t.” It took everything in her power to say something to him and not run out the door. She hoped he couldn’t hear the slight tremble in her voice.

“Ah! Well, allow me to share with you a welcome to the wind-borne city of freedom!” Venti said. “How are you enjoying your time here, so far?”

It’s been traumatizing. “It’s been great.” She forced herself to smile and relax her body. She couldn’t show that she was afraid, because Venti of all people would surely notice. “It’s my first time here, and it’s so different from Fontaine. The atmosphere is definitely more relaxed.”

“Fontaine! That’s quite a ways away. You must have traveled for a while,” Venti said. “I’ve heard Fontaine is a boring place. They’re so strict over there! Everything is about true beauty and elegance. Ugh, not for me, that’s for sure.”

“That’s true,” Cara agreed. The lies left her tongue with feigned confidence. She really hoped Venti was finding her story convincing. “It’s one of the main reasons as to why I came to Monstadt in the first place.”

“Well, you certainly made the right decision coming here. The name’s Venti, Venti the bard! It’s a pleasure to meet you, I do proclaim. If you don’t mind, may I ask for your name?”

“It’s nice to meet you, too. I’m…just a traveler. You can call me…” A name popped in her head. “Lumine.”

“Lumine.” Venti’s eyes and smile softened, and for a split moment, Cara thought she saw the coldness waver and the anger dim into fondness. “A name that means light. It certainly suits you. The Fatui usually recruit less-than-savory characters into their ranks, but you are unlike any Snezhnayan diplomat I have ever seen.”

“Really? And what makes you think I’m a Snezhayan diplomat?” Cara asked. “For all you know, I might just really be into the style of Fatui masks.”

“Hmm, maybe.” Venti tapped his chin. “Perhaps you aren’t part of the Fatui. What would be your business in wearing that mask, then?”

Cara paused to think of a believable lie. Venti watched her patiently, that impish grin of his unwavering. If only she could tell him who she really was. If only she could tell him how much she adored him without having to fear the Anemo Archon’s wrath. “You're right, I’m not Fatui. I mainly only wear this thing to piss the Fatui off. So many of them come to me looking for instruction, like I’m their superior or something, and I always tell them to do the stupidest shit. “Go try to climb to the head of the Barbatos statue.” “Swim from one end of Cider Lake and back.” And the thing is, they always obey my orders. It’s hilarious to watch.”

Venti doubled over and laughed, the sound gracing the air like a song traveling across the wind. She was gleefully surprised with his reaction, and felt all too pleased that she had managed to make a god laugh, even though she was dealing with Venti, of all gods. “C’mon, wasn’t that funny. You're going to fall off of your chair if you keep laughing like that.”

He managed to collect himself and wiped some tears from his eyes. “It was hilarious,” he said. “And don’t tell me that isn’t true. It’ll make both me and you feel blue. Whew, who knew Fontainians had such a sense of humor? I would have thought it incapable until I met you.”

“I’m just full of surprises,” Cara said. “There’s no end to what I’m capable of, Venti. I think the Hydro Archon should give me a medal for being the funniest person in Fontaine, don’t you think?”

She saw him shiver slightly when she said his name. Without warning, he held his hand out to her. “May I offer you a dance, my new friend?”

She hesitated, taken aback by his forwardness. “I’m really not the greatest dancer.”

“Neither am I! My talents are in song and stories, but it seems another bard beat me to filling this tavern with merry tunes.” Venti’s smile grew more coylike, and something playful sparkled in his eyes. “Unless you are far too embarrassed to dance with a humble bard like me?”

Cara scoffed. “Me? Embarrassed? Never.” She stood up and took his hand. “Let’s do this.”

“A wonderful decision! Well, come on, then! Let’s not wait a moment longer!” He led her to the center of the bar. Cara giggled when he did a little bow to her before he took her hands in his. He closed the space between them; a flustered feeling traveled through her when he murmured into her ear. “Follow my lead, okay? I’ll guide you.”

The music in the bar took on a more upbeat rhythm. Couples got together and began to spin and pivot, their laughter filling the air and intoxicating Cara with buzzing excitement, as if she had just consumed some wine. She followed Venti’s steps, both of them falling into a twirling circle with other guests, Venti’s hand on her waist and her hand on his shoulder. The dance was rather formal at first, but then it started to pick up pace: Venti held her out as she pivoted, and she nearly fell into him and sent them both tumbling to the floor. She was lost in his laughter, all of her previous fear vanishing as she laughed along with him. She loved this. She never wanted this to end.

“What’s this dance called?” she asked him once the dance slowed down again.

“The Zweifacher,” he replied. “The songs say that it was Lord Barbatos who created the dance after Monstadt was freed from the oppression of the God of Storms in honor of the victory that was achieved. It is a dance of freedom that brings a sense of joy to anyone who performs it. Are you feeling that joy, now, my friend?”

She sighed and nodded. “I am. And to point something out, you lied about being a bad dancer. I don’t think anyone danced better than you did tonight.”

Venti laughed. “If I lied, then you lied, too! You danced beautifully, like the way cecilias dance in the wind.” He twirled her and let her go. Both of them danced around each other before interlocking hands once more. “What do you think of Lord Barbatos, Lumine?”

“The Anemo Archon? I think he’s a god who cares about his people. He refused to rule over them directly because he was afraid of becoming a tyrant and allowed Monstadters to govern themselves how they pleased. He’s definitely someone I would consider the god of freedom.”

“Hmm.” Venti rested his chin on her shoulder. He smelled like cecilias and wine. “Did you know? Barbatos was a shapeshifter. He could take on the form of any creature he liked. Some say he could even become a dragon. Others believe he still walks among the people of Monstadt today, watching over them under the guise of being mortal.”

She couldn’t help but chuckle. If only he knew how painfully obvious he’s being about his real identity. “What, are you saying that you’re secretly the wind god?”

“I don’t know,” Venti cryptically answered. “Who do you think I am?”

The air around them stilled. As they continued to slowly twirl, Cara caught sight of Kaeya sitting at the bar. He was watching the dancing with a smile, probably still focused on Bennett and Razor. But then his gaze landed on her, and his expression completely changed. He shot to his feet as his eye lit up with utter terror.

A sharp chill went down her spine. Cara was suddenly aware of how tightly Venti was holding her. She tried to pull away, but he prevented her, his fingers digging into her sides.

“Venti,” she breathed, now officially terrified again. “Let me go.”

“I know who you are, little imposter,” Venti whispered, his tone menacingly dark. “And I know that you're in this city to do something awful. Do you know what Her Grace told me to do to you if I found you?” His lips were once again close to her ear, his lowered voice causing her heart to stutter. “Rip out her throat and pierce her heart with an arrow. Break her body with the power of a thousand winds.”

“I don’t know what you're talking about,” Cara gasped. “Let me go, right now.”

“I’ll let you go for now. I’m not done having fun, yet. I’ll let you get away, but only because I’m enjoying the chase.” Venti finally released her, and she staggered back, nearly tripping over her own two feet in the process. “Run while you can. Remember, I’m not the only one hunting you.”

“Well, well, well, look who it is.” Kaeya suddenly materialized by her side. He expertly angled himself to stand between her and Venti while feigning casual politeness. “Venti, I thought you were allergic to cats? What’s caused you to come here? Surely my big brother didn’t kick you permanently out of the Angel’s Share, did he?”

“Ha! Diluc would never! The two of us are way too good of friends.” Venti’s attitude completely changed; gone was the Anemo Archon, and back was the playful bard. “I just can’t get enough of Diona’s drinks sometimes. I have to endure my allergy to make it here once in a while. Ah, but look at the time, it’s nearly midnight. It seems like the Cat’s Tail is claimed territory for Six-Fingered José for now.”

“Yes, I suppose it is.” Kaeya glanced at the clock. “I believe I also should get going. Be sure to give Diluc my regards next time you see him, alright?”

“Right oh, Mr. Cavalry Captain!” Venti saluted. “See you later, Kaeya! And see you later, Lumine. Thank you for indulging me in a dance!” And then, with a flurry of his cape, he was gone, just as quickly as he had initially appeared.

The minute he was out of the tavern, Kaeya steered Cara back towards the bar and sat her down on a stool. “What happened?” he asked. “Are you alright? Did he hurt you?”

Cara held onto Kaeya like he was her lifeline, afraid to let him go, lest she fall back down into an abyss of blind terror. “Kaeya, he knows. He knows, Kaeya, he knows who I am and he’s going to kill me for it.”

“No, he’s not. I’m not going to let him near you, never again. How did you manage to be caught up dancing with him, Cara? That bard is not to be underestimated!”

“He-he asked me to! I was scared at first, but then he was just so friendly, and I got sucked in, and-” Tears were spilling down her cheeks now, and she buried her face into his chest, sobbing. “That’s not the Venti I know, Kaeya. That’s not the Venti I love. I don’t understand why this is happening. Why does everyone want to kill me?”

Kaeya shushed her and held her close. “It’s okay. No more tears, alright? You're safe now. I’m not going to let him, or anyone, hurt you.”

“Kaeya, what’s going on?” Bennett and Razor came running over to them. “Wait-Cara, why are you crying? What happened?”

“We had a run-in with an enemy,” Kaeya explained. “But it’s alright, now. She’s safe.”

“Who?” Bennett looked around the bar. “Are they still here? Do we need to get ready for a fight?”

“I protect you!” Razor said. “No need to fear. Bad people won’t get to you!”

“No,” Cara said. “He’s gone.” She let go of Kaeya and wiped the last of her tears away. “But we need to go now. He could come back with others. We have to get into that library and find answers as soon as possible.”

“Right,” Bennett nodded. “Let’s go, then. Time for our heist to be put into action.”

With her friends by her side, Cara headed over to Diona. The young girl immediately noticed her puffy eyes. “Why’re you crying? Did something happen?”

“We’re leaving,” Cara replied. “It’s time for us to go.”

“Already?” Diona looked momentarily disappointed. “Well, that’s fine. Kaeya ordered you a drink, but it was nonalcoholic, so I guess I can’t be angry with you. Just…stay safe out there, alright?”

“Thank you for helping us,” Bennett said. “I’ll repay you for this, I promise.”

“No need. It really wasn’t that much of a bother.” Diona paused bashfully. “Um, Your Grace. Make sure you come back once this is all over, alright? Don’t you dare forget about me! I won’t forgive you if you do!”

“I promise I won’t forget about you, Diona.” Cara leaned over the bar and gave her a hug. Diona went stiff. “Thank you, for everything. I’ll come back to thank you properly some day.”

Diona’s little arms hesitantly wrapped around her to hug her back. “Alright, enough sappiness. I have drinks to ruin and people’s tastebuds to destroy. Go on, shoo! Be safe, and don’t die!”

Despite how awful she was feeling, Cara couldn’t help but chuckle. “I’ll try not to.”

Because if I do, then I’ll never make it back home.

If I do, I’ll never escape Teyvat at all.

[antihibikase-archive]

Blight / Blur : Gym Guides' Characterizations

Sequel to this post!

Gentleman Clyde ( Castelia / Aspertia ) - a middle-aged man who once traveled Unova seeking unique pieces of art; eventually enjoys the art of Pokemon battling itself, even if he can't battle himself. Overenthusiastic and kind of like an embarrassing grandpa, but he helps Cheren and Hilda run the newly opened Aspertia Gym. Was previously a museum curator for Burgh's old gym. Considered the "boss" of all the gym guides.

Waitress Tia ( Striaton ) - a family friend of the Striaton Triplets, who shows interest in helping them run the family business. She's older than them and has more experience, so she handles everything but the battles, including ensuring the food they put out is top-notch. She continues working in Striaton Restaurant even after it stops being a gym, and manages the battles between the triplets and their patrons.

Scientist Satomi ( Nacrene ) - an old student of Lenora's, who has taken to working in her museum to continue her studies- and eventually gets hired to be its guide. Was academic rivals with Fennel and Audrea during their college days, but has mellowed out since. She's often the one helping Bianca around the museum whenever she visits. She still continues to work there even after it stops being a gym.

Harlequin Jack ( Castelia ) - initially just one of Burgh's gym trainers, he replaces Clyde two years later after Clyde is assigned to help out Cheren in Aspertia. Kind of a "quirky" clown, with him being easily exasperated and more down-to-earth than his colleagues, even being somewhat terrified of Castelia Gym's new interior. Nonetheless, he shows promise and dedication to his new role.

Lady Colette ( Nimbasa ) - initially just a fan of Elesa's, and later becomes the Elesa fan of all time, being the one who runs her fanclub and has the biggest fan account for her. She insists on giving all gym challengers a tour of the old gym in the sequel. Her family actually owns the business that constructed both the old gym's rollercoaster and the Rondez View Ferris Wheel, and ponders about letting her family tear it down when its such an important part to Nimbasa's image.

Clerk Katie ( Driftveil ) - the sole office lady in the Drifveil Gym, she eventually decides to stop being a gym trainer after having way too many near-death accidents in its gym- but she finds it fun, so Clay just had her moved upstairs. Knowledgeable about all of Driftveil, and handles most of its affairs when Clay isn't around, which also includes regulating and keeping watch over the house that the old members of Team Plasma are living in.

Pilot Chase ( Mistralton ) - one of the pilots who works at Mistralton Airport, and considered Skyla's best gym trainer. Just a simple everyman who lives in Mistralton City with his family, but he's entrusted to conduct aerial patrols aboard his Unfezant from time to time. He convinces Skyla to change her gym challenge upon receiving way too many complaints about how dangerous it is- and tries to justify why the new gym's fans are much safer than the old one's canons.

Black Belt Thomas ( Icirrus ) - a pupil of Brycen, who says he comes all the way from the Fighting Dojo at Kanto. He's quite disappointed when Brycen retires, but is also surprised to find out his co-star is Sabrina, the gym leader who overtook Black Belt Koichi's gym. He spends his days living quietly in Icirrus, but often helps clean the entrance to Dragonspiral Tower; as well as keep trespassers out.

Veteran Kim and Veteran Ron ( Opelucid ) - a battle couple who were a pair of ace trainers in their youth; Kim decided she wanted to become stronger following her lost to N in BW, so she traveled the world while Ron stayed behind in Unova to take her place. Ron, comically, dislikes N as a result, but has nothing but respect for his wife's wishes. Rumors surround them, saying that they used to be a pair of crimestoppers in their youth.. though this isn't confirmed. Kim is more serious and focused, while Ron is more upbeat and silly.

Guitarist Billy Jo ( Virbank ) - a childhood friend of Roxie's, who she shares the dream of playing in a band with. She held onto their dream even when Roxie focused temporarily on her Pokemon journey, and helped her file for a gym in Virbank when the spot was opened. As she grew up with Roxie, she also grew up helping her raise Rosa, and knows both Nate and Hugh as a result. Admires Hilda.

Ace Trainer Santino (Humilau) - an ace trainer from Hoenn, who travels all over the world with his partner Walrein. He hasn't been in Unova for too long, but, coming from Hoenn, he knows about the seas and water-type Pokemon fairly well, making him perfect to be the gym's guide. He's pleasantly surprised to find a lot of Unova's league members (Cheren, Grimsley, Shauntal, Skyla, and Nate) are Hoennian like him. Unfortunately, he was also there during the whole Emerald plot in Hoenn, so seeing Team Plasma play around with the elements reminds him of home.

[ali-annals]

sparks fly (like a fireworks show)

Pairing: Jason Todd x Marinette Dupain-Cheng

Rating: T | Masterlist | Main Masterlist | Ao3 | WC: 1.8k

TW: Mentioned kidnapping, mentioned sacrifice to summon a god.

A/N: This is part of a series called The Eras Tour (Jasonette's Version), a collection of Jasonette-centric fics I wrote for the Maribat discord server Maribat? Get In!'s 2024 Civil War event. Not beta'd.

Summary: Kidnapped to be sacrificed to a weather god, Marinette wishes she'd been a little bit braver in her relationship with her best friend.

July 14–Bastille Day

Paris, Right Bank of Paris

Her wrists were burning, rubbed raw from the rough fibres of the rope tying her to the pillar, but Marinette kept wiggling anyways. What was a rope burn or two compared to almost certain death if she stayed tied to the pillar as a sacrifice to the weather gods?

The rope loosened a bit, bolstering the small flame of hope in her heart. It had flickered more than normal when she woke up from the unplanned nap she’d taken on her way back from the fabric store. She was stripped to her underwear and tied very thoroughly to the cold stone pillar at her back. As Marinette, and near-naked, there was nothing she could do except hope for help.

Help that was unlikely to come. Paris’s heroes had all retired after Hawkmoth’s defeat, burnt out from being forced into heroism as children. She, as Guardian and therefore unable to retire, had up and left, eventually joining Justice League Dark as a reserve magician.

However, even with her League connection, there was only a slim chance one of them would come save her. She was in Paris as a civilian, simply to visit her parents over the holidays, and 

hadn’t taken her League communicator with her, seeing no need for it when she was taking time off from heroing. She supposed it just went to show that you might take the girl out of heroing, but you’ll never take heroing out of the girl. Or however it went. She had better things to do than parsing English idioms, like escaping to save a city.

The rope loosened a teeny bit more. Marinette yanked harder, hearing faint cheers from outside the building she was in as revellers enjoyed their time off. They didn’t know that if she didn’t get loose in time, they were all going to die like her, unwilling victims of the god of thunder.

Of course it was just her luck that she was kidnapped, decided to be a perfect sacrifice to hail Taranis, the god the cult that kidnapped her worshiped. She wiggled her thumb a little more, desperate to free herself and break the summoning circle. 

The cheering outside grew louder as an announcer counted down the minutes until the firework show. It was past sunset. She only had a few more minutes. Marinette redoubled her efforts, straining against the rope with all her weight.

“Marinette!”

“Marinette!”

She looked around at the second call of her name, thinking she had hallucinated the first one. If someone was looking for her…Squashing her instinct to call for help from around her gag, she bit her tongue and pulled her wrist free a little further. 

“Marinette!”

She looked up in defeat, knowing nothing she did would make her dearest friend leave while she was like that. Still, the thought that he could do something, that she was not alone, raised the flame of hope inside her.

He took in the circle of runes, drawn in blood on the marble floor of the bank they were in, glancing between her and the portal. “How much time?”

Her muffled “five minutes” got through to him and he nodded at her, rolling his sleeves up and dropping to his knees. With a muttered spell, he had a small jar of something obviously magical in his hands, which he used to write what Marinette made out to be neutralizing spells around the most potent, dangerous summoning runes. 

The cheering increased, but all Marinette could hear was the rush of blood in her ears and the thump of her heart far too high in her chest to be healthy as she watched him work. 

He jumped up with a satisfied sigh and headed towards her, slicing her free from the ropes with the knife he always kept on him and sweeping her into his arms. He darted out the way he came in, a small side door, heading for a nearby fire escape to rest under and check on her. 

He pulled the gag around her head free, handing her a water bottle to cure her desert-dry mouth. 

She drank most of it in one gulp, then remembered it was better to take smaller sips. 

“Jason, why are you here?” She hadn’t gotten very far running from him before he came after her.

He grinned at her, that dear, cocky-yet-soft smile she’d been sure she’d never see again. “I’m a Bat, Pix, we stalk people. I came to impose on you and eat your parents out of house and home, but when I met your parents, they said you’d been gone for ages. So I came looking, found your trail, and got you. Why were you there?”

“I got knocked out and kidnapped on my way home. Some cult of this god of thunder thought I was a good appetizer sacrifice to summon him. What did you do to that circle, by the way?”

“Neutralizing runes. The bank will survive, you won’t. It was quicker and had a higher chance of success than completely breaking the circle. There should just be a storm in a few seconds.”

Almost as soon as he finished speaking, the noise of a small explosion sounded from inside the building, covered by the cheers and pops of fireworks going off all over the city. 

Jason picked her up in his arms again. “I’ll take you home.”

She settled against his chest, inhaling his comforting smell as they headed towards the bakery.

~~~

The sky had clouded over on the way home, grey clouds punctuated with bright flashes of sheet lightning and colourful constellations of fireworks. A drop of rain hit Marinette’s nose.

Jason set her down outside the bakery door, taking a step back. “I’m glad you’re safe, Marinette.”

She knew he was right, that they weren’t a good idea, but it still hurt for him to set that distance between them. “Thank you for coming after me, Jay.”

“I always will,” he told her. 

She bit her lip, uncaring of the rain now steadily dripping down. She’d survived, the rain was a beautiful gift that showed she was still alive. Slowly, she reached out, smoothing his dark hair back from his forehead so she could look into his burning green eyes. 

“You’re a bad idea, but I can’t remember that right now,” she whispered, drawing closer until the gap was sealed with a kiss. 

July 9–Marinette’s 23rd birthday

Washington, D.C.,Hall of Justice

“Happy birthday!”

Marinette jumped a little, surprised by the several members of JLD and JL lying in wait for her in the Hall of Justice’s kitchen. 

“I didn’t know you remembered when my birthday was! That’s so nice of you, thank you!”

Timothy Hunter pushed someone forward so she could see them. “It’s all thanks to your friend over here, he made us all collaborate on this.”

Jason smiled down at her bashfully, a homemade cake in his hands. “Happy birthday, Pix.”

The group surrounded her, singing the birthday song and setting off colourful sparks to go alongside the fizzing sparklers. She blew out the candles with one blow, laughing happily at her friends’ antics.

It was getting late when Marinette finally had time to be alone with Jason. They ducked into the hallway, leaving the noise and merriment of the kitchen behind for a moment. “This was really thoughtful, Jay. Thank you for organizing this.”

“It was my pleasure…even if some of your teammates aren’t a pleasure to get in touch with.”

Marinette laughed, leaning against the wall to support her upper body. “I’m truly impressed that you managed to corral so many of them into one room and there haven’t been any murders or major mishaps yet.”

“It’s all worth it for you.”

She glanced up into his eyes. When had he gotten so close? He leaned in slowly, his fingers tangling with hers. Her eyes closed–

“Hey, don’t think that you’re getting out of clean-up duty just ‘cause you’re her favourite,” shouted Timothy from the doorway, breaking the moment like a bubble.

They jumped away, hand to themselves and eyes on the wall, floor, lockers…anywhere else but the other. 

“Yeah, yeah, comin’,” he shouted back. “We’ll talk more later, ‘kay?”

“Sure.”

They never talked more later. Marinette saw him run into Batman, exchanging a quick friendly chat as they passed in the hallway. Batman went on his way to his JL meeting, and Jason headed towards their usual rendezvous spot. 

She could see the happiness on his face and the lightness in his posture, and she knew then that it wouldn’t work. So she slipped into the shadows and left before he saw her. 

The next day, she sent in her vacation notice to the JLD and the day after that, flew to Paris.

~~~

July 14th–Bastillle Day

Paris, Tom & Sabine Boulangerie

The kiss was everything she had dreamed, turning her flame of hope into an inferno, combusting and sending out sparks that danced among the raindrops. He finally pulled away, looking thoroughly discombobulated, but kept her close with his hands on her shoulders. 

“Marinette, why? I thought you left because–”

“I left because I saw you talk to Batman and you were so happy, and I’ve seen how happy you get when you’re telling me about your relationship with him and how it’s improving. He’s suspicious and distrustful of magic users and won’t let them in Gotham, and I won’t make you choose between him or me when you’ve finally gotten yourselves semi-functional!”

She felt him soften at her words, a small smile overtaking his features. “Pixie, I don’t care what B thinks about you and me or just you. If something like this, that he can have no valid argument about, drives him away again, then it’s for the best. Please, Pix, will you date me?”

“Yes!” She kissed him again, too happy to put it into words. She could scarcely believe that her ears hadn’t played a trick on her, the tapering-off rain muddling his words and twisting them into a figment of her wildest dreams. 

He picked her up and carried her in, heading up the stairs so they could dry off. 

A colourful burst of sparks appeared on the skyline, reminding Marinette of her birthday party. “Look, Jay. I love the look of the world after a rainstorm. It makes the fireworks so much more vivid; it’s beautiful.”

“If you don’t mind, I’d rather look at you. You’re far more captivating than a firework show.”

She blushed, leaning over to peck his cheek. “You’ve got the girl, you don’t need to be such a flatterer.”

“Nay, I must increase the flattery to make sure she stays.” He put her down, pulling her towel off the rack to absorb the rainwater in her hair. “You should probably shower, and then I’ll take a look at those rope burns you got.”

She saluted with a love-addled grin on her face, skipping into her bathroom. He grinned back at her, looking happier than she’d ever seen him before. The fireworks were ending, only a few going off now, but their story was just beginning…and she bet it’d be plenty sparky. 

[free-for-all-fics]

More random Marvel prompts and ideas, feat. Bucky, Zemo, and Loki. Pls tag me if any of these inspire you to write something! I’d love to read it! 💜

1. Bucky is reader’s father and she was kidnapped and used by Hydra alongside him. While he was the Winter Soldier, she was used to keep him in line and may or may not have had her memories erased like he did. So while in captivity, she and Bucky may feel a sense of familiarity, but have no idea why or that they’re related. But what Hydra never knew is that while she and Bucky both were taught Russian, she secretly implanted safe words into his head to snap him out of Winter Soldier mode, just in case they ever made it out alive and needed a fail safe. Now, after Zemo (or another character) used the words to trigger him back into the Winter Soldier, she has to use the safe words she taught him to get him back to normal, even if it’s during mid-combat and she risks her life/safety in the process. Even if she hates having to go inside her dad’s mind. She just wants to stop him from hurting others or himself. She just wants her dad back.

2. Zemo as a cult leader AU. I’ve seen some Bucky fics with this scenario and they’re so dark and sensual, what about Zemo’s turn?

3. Zemo or Bucky Spy/Crime AU inspired by Nancy Drew and the Silent Spy. Reader was a top performing spy/agent for many years before she met Bucky/Helmut. Following their marriage, reader left the spy world to raise their child, a promise made to her husband. As such, they decided to keep Reader’s past a secret. Until Reader gets a call from an old friend and fellow spy that would put her back in the game, leading to Bucky/Zemo losing trust in that friend (Could be Natasha, Steve, Sharon, whoever). And despite the success of the mission, Reader seemingly died in a car accident while undercover. For many years, Helmut/Bucky believed reader was betrayed and killed, and this causes him to go onto a life of crime - to seek revenge for his wife’s murder. For many years, the death remained a painful subject for Bucky/Helmut, who was aggravated by her leaving and fought with her before she left.

Now his plane has just landed in the very country/city Reader had supposedly died in, and he’s here to unravel the conspiracy behind her death, hoping to find any clues and remnants of her final days here. This high-risk mission could prove fatal, with danger around every corner, down every street, inside every room. Bucky/Helmut might encounter enemies and friends alike, some of whom closer than he may think. As they say, you may never know whom to trust, so best to keep your friends close and enemies closer. Perhaps the person he’s looking for most will be right under his nose, and he won’t even know it. Maybe some secrets should stay buried, like his wife was. Or was she?

4. Bucky either gets turned into a cat (either a normal cat who has to use those push to talk word buttons for pets to communicate, or a talking cat like Salem Saberhagen) OR he develops the ability to talk to animals through a magic mishap. (Could be from Strange, Loki, or another source) But he can now understand everything Alpine says and communicate with her perfectly, so he really enjoys this new development instead of wanting to be changed back to normal right away. He and his favorite girl in the world (aside from you, of course) are bonding and causing catastrophe *ba dum tss* and this will only solidify their lifelong friendship. Feline friends for life! Bucky’s just like, “Babe, guys, I know you’re all working really hard to fix this and get me back to normal but hear me out: What if we…don’t and say we did?”

5. You know those pictures of a Tomcat walking over thorns/barbs to reach the white cat and it looks like a romantic forbidden love? A fic with that scenario, where Alpine has a handsome Tomcat admirer who keeps coming by Bucky’s apartment to visit her and paws at/yowls by the window and/or brings “gifts” for her (buttons, rocks, whatever sparkly and colorful things he can get his paws on). Bucky is like, “No!! Absolutely not!! She’s my baby, my princess and no man is good enough for her! Get out of here, you punk! >:(“

but reader is like, “Awwwww it’s so romantic!! He’s singing for her! He’s brought gifts! Bucky, they’re in love! Look at them, it’s like Lady and the Tramp! Bucky, c’mon, I want grandkittens.”

Bucky is straight faced when he says, “Thanks for reminding me to schedule her vet appointment to get her spayed, doll.”

6. Narnia/Beauty and the Beast inspired: Imagine you fall through a portal in your closet and accidentally end up in Jotunheim, ruled by king Loki. At first, he tries to manipulate you with promises you will be his queen if you bring your family there. You go back to your world and come back a few days later, with your family, but end up going separate ways. When you return to the ice palace where Loki is, He’s disappointed that you came alone and locks you up in his dungeon. But you befriend Fenrir, his son and one of his loyal wolves. And as cliche as it is, perhaps you’ll melt the ice king’s heart. (It’s been a hot minute since I saw the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe so sorry if things are wrong).

7. Loki fic where reader is his daughter and is similar to Hel from Norse mythology, ruler of the land of the dead, half of her body that of a beautiful woman and the other half skeletal like a corpse. She and Loki have a visit and she’s feeling self conscious and asks, “Am I ugly? Am I undesirable?” because she’s read the tales and myths of Midgard, yet hasn’t found her “Persephone” yet. She’s feeling lonely and jealous since the dead aren’t the best conversationalists, nor are her brothers, and she’s stuck down below while other gods get to explore the world above. Loki tries to be the best father he can be to his favorite child and only daughter.

8. Merman/Siren Zemo and human reader AU: Reader is the daughter of a pirate or noble on a ship headed for home, until Zemo summons a Kraken to destroy the ship reader is on so he can kidnap her without witnesses. Maybe it’s dark where reader was sold to him but then reader’s father tries to back out of the deal, or he takes her as retribution after his family is killed. Maybe he walks on land as a human for a few days to gain the reader’s trust.

9. Merman AU where Zemo gets kidnapped by pirates, since it’s said a merman is part of the key to the long lost treasure. Reader is the captain’s daughter, but she goes against her father’s orders and secretly befriends Zemo during their voyage/quest for the treasure. She sets him free, even if she knows she’d be punished for it. What irony would it be if she’s the only one from the pirate crew who lays eyes on or comes in possession of the long sought after treasure. Pirates of the Carribbean inspired type thing. Could be dark or not.

10. AU where Zemo is a Nøkken/Fossegrim who uses his music to lure people to their drowning. But maybe reader is different. Maybe reader becomes his new muse/obsession and he wants her for himself, as a bride. That scene where Zemo sings Baa Baa Black Sheep to the kids just makes me want AUs of him as a singing mythical creature. Dark or not. “Stories also exist wherein the Fossegrim agreed to live with a human who had fallen in love with him” “a tale from the forest of Tiveden relates that a father promised his daughter to a nøkk who offered him great hauls of fish in a time of need; she refused and stabbed herself to death, staining the water lilies red from that time on.”

11. Pirate AU where Zemo/Bucky was once a pirate captain and is now a vengeful ghost disturbed from his centuries long sleep under the sea. Long ago, in the 1700’s he killed a ship’s crew full of members of the Royal Navy. He and his crew donned the dead men’s uniforms and kidnapped a countess on board, intending to hold her for ransom. Occasionally, Zemo/Bucky would permit the countess above deck. One night, she threw herself overboard and attempted to drown herself, but he dove in after her and pulled her back up. When the countess fell sick with fever, he nursed her back to health himself, not trusting anyone on his crew. This was the start of their love story. A love story which ended with his beloved countess murdered on their wedding day in a failed rescue attempt by her family, and he sent to the gallows for his crimes. Before the lever was pulled, he cursed them all and swore revenge. Now he’s crawled out from his watery grave, back as a vengeful spirit. He kidnaps the reader, a museum curator with a striking resemblance to his countess. His new obsession: Resurrect his love from the dead and make his countess remember who he is.

12. Possibly Dark Frankenstein AU with some Apsulov: End of Gods inspiration, where Zemo doesn’t have healthy coping mechanisms for his grief and is totally unhinged, becoming a mad doctor. He wants his family back through any means necessary. Carl was too small to bring back, but he can try to bring back his wife, Heike. His attempts instead create the reader, a woman with some of Heike’s parts. Whatever was left of her body that was still salvageable, that is.

You wake up on a strange surgical table in an unfamiliar room. You hear a man’s voice speaking over you, as if taking notes for a medical exam. “Some movement. Her responses and cognitive abilities seem to be working as intended.” The man’s voice then speaks directly to you, but you still can’t find where it’s coming from, no matter wherever which way you look.

“Good morning, my dear. Still a bit weak, I see. Not very surprising.” You try to ask any of the millions of questions you have, but it comes out as only a pathetic rasp. “Your throat muscles need time to recover. I’ll fix that for you later. Let’s hope this whole procedure wasn’t a waste of my precious time and resources. For now, don’t speak. I want you to go over to the table you see in front of you and show me who you are.”

You see a table with a single lamp and many headshots of different women, their names written underneath. There’s no mirror anywhere, so you don’t know what the right answer is. You’re so confused but the longer you hesitate, the more impatient and agitated the voice gets. You’re not sure what he wants, so you choose…. And the angry, frustrated shouts of “No! No! I can’t believe this! You failure! Is this all I have to show for my years of devoted research? My years of sleepless nights and grueling work? A pathetic little husk that has forgotten everything I’ve given her?! An imbecile that’s forgotten the entire history of us?!” tell you you’ve chosen wrong. Very wrong.

You try to speak again, but — “Shut up! We’re past the point of no return, we can’t give up on you now. I’ll come back for you, so don’t you dare move. I’ll fix you later.” The voice is gone. It seems you’ve been left alone for now. You don’t know what he meant when he said he’ll fix you, but you don’t want to stay to find out. You need to get out. Now.

[byenycfm]

Cilla Bergren || 26 || #404 || Urassaya Sperbund || MISSING

Personality:

Cilla is determined and stubborn, sometimes to the point of being bossy. She likes doing things her way and doesn't accept No as an answer. Some would describe her as impulsive and overcritical, but she would probably ask them "Okay, but what about my flaws?" Underneath all the toughness, she is rather fragile and relies on her emotions, a bit too much sometimes. Cilla is a loyal friend, so breaking through all the layers might be worth it.

Biography:

Cilla is the youngest of the Bergren siblings and the only sister of her two brothers. The family moved to New York from Baltimore when she was a teenager, but she fell in love with the city on the first day. As a child, Cilla would spend most of her time playing with her brothers, and they always made sure she felt included. Their hobbies and interests quickly became hers - they spend days enjoying their favorite movies and video games or playing outside. It's also thanks to them that she became interested in cars. Nobody took it seriously back then, but she'd promised she would become a car mechanic one day.

Unlike her brothers, Cilla would usually choose to stay away from trouble, but when she finally participated in mischievous endeavors, she made sure it was worth it. However, as long as their grades didn't disappoint their parents, they usually chose to turn a blind eye to those moments. Most neighbors would say they were like a little gang, but they would likely call the Bergrens endearing rather than harmful.

When her oldest brother, Karl, enlisted, Cilla and Adam thought it was a question of time until they also chose that path since Karl's influence on the other two has been undeniable. As it soon turned out, they were as right as they were wrong. Adam followed in their brother's footsteps, while Cilla stuck to her promise and became a mechanic.

Their life and career choices didn't let the siblings meet as often as they used to, so when Cilla heard they would have a chance to spend a whole November together, she was thrilled. Excited, she packed her bags to travel back from her trip to Stockholm, where she was visiting her grandparents, and meet her brothers and parents, but when she reached the United States, horrible news hit her. The virus. The outbreak. She wouldn't be able to make it to Manhattan and the more time she spent stuck in a hotel, the more she hated it. What happened to her family? Were they safe? How could she contact them?

Not willing to accept the questions flooding her mind every night and with no answers to stop them, Cilla decided to finally do something about that. She traveled to one of the townships where the soldiers were stationed and was lucky enough to meet one of Karl's friends there. What he told her wasn't pretty; her brother was on the chopper that crashed near Central Park, and they hadn't heard from him or anyone else since then. Heartbroken but determined to see what happened to Adam and their parents, Cilla begged the man to get her to Manhattan, and despite the danger and even the consequences he'd have to face if they got caught, he finally agreed to help her.

Cilla traveled back to the hotel shed stopped at. Having packed her bag with clothes and everything else she didn't want to leave behind, Cilla headed to a bar for a drink. That's where she noticed a face she thought she knew well, and realized it was Eric Sanders - a famous son of his even more famous parents, which was why he looked familiar. They talked and soon it was clear they would be traveling together since Eric was looking for a way to get to Manhattan to check on his brother, too.

Dropped off in the area where the infamous Korean ship was now docked, the two headed to Cilla's home, doing their best to avoid the zombies that turned out both real and dangerous, much faster than anyone expected. Unfortunately, the Bergrens were nowhere to be found and the more time Cilla and Eric spent there, the more obvious it was that her family was dead. Devastated, and with no better options at hand, she agreed to join Eric Sanders on his trip to The Wexley.

Pre Outbreak Occupation: Mechanic Previous Zombie Experience: N/A Martial Status: Single Children: N/A Residence: Apartment #404 Years residing at The Wexley: N/A Connections:

Eric Sanders - Reached the Wexley together

[kimbap-r0ll]

I'm anonymous who asked for the request big sister Kurapika with Chrollo, it was perfect, I loved it thank you (if in the future you feel comfortable being part two, what would their conversation be like without revealing your eyes and asking if everything is true, or if reader would continue with chrollo, or he would let her go, probably not haha, or he would use her as a piece to defeat kurapika)

Hi! Yes, I honestly would want to do a part two soon! But to answer your question, I’ll just write a summary of what would happen and probably write the full drabble or so later.

tw: decapitation, death

The safest option for you, as a Kurta who is dating the person that killed your family, would be to approach the question as carefully as possible. If you never revealed anything about your background to him, then definitely you shouldn’t go to him without contacts on or something to hide your eyes. It’s stated that the eyes will turn red when excited or emotionally agitated, so you want to be careful in case you become emotional. Chrollo might say something to enrage you, so you want to be safe in case he wants to take your eyes then and there!

If you ever ask him, he might at first think you’re just asking about the news, but at some point, with how your questions are going, he’ll catch on. He’ll realize that he missed one during the massacre. He won’t show that he knows, but you might see a small smile on his lips as you continue to talk. He will ask you how you feel, see if you break down or lash out at him. But most importantly, he’ll want to know if you met Kurapika, since like you said he might use you against him.

Not only that, but he’ll make sure to gaslight you into thinking Kurapika was making all of this up. Chrollo will reveal he is from Meteor City, and that Kurapika simply hates him for that. He will say the massacre wasn’t at all something he was part of, and will play victim too well. Now you just have to decide carefully.

On one hand, you might want to go with Chrollo. He’s been your family for all those years until suddenly your younger brother shows up out of nowhere! Where has Kurapika been while you were alone? Chrollo will use this to make you side with him honestly, just for his own benefits. If you do decide to believe his words, things will just move on as if nothing happened. You will go on dates again, spend time at the coffee shop you two love, etc. But under the shades of rose, you’re a butterfly caught in a spider’s web. This is a bit sad for y/n, but he might kill you and let Kurapika know. How? By leaving your headless body in your home, and for the news or for Kurapika himself to learn. Kurapika isn’t someone who can think like he usually can in that calm and collected way when he’s seeing red, and Chrollo knows this. He will use that to his advantage to get rid of the Kurta clan once and for all.

On the other hand, if you don’t believe his sweet words, he’ll say he understands, saying it’s a shame that you two couldn’t be together for longer. He’ll say that he wishes you two could’ve visited the museum one more time, perhaps he could’ve taken you to Yorknew on the weekend. But no, you had to find out about his past. You don’t know nen, do you? Good luck trying to escape him, he might let you loose so he can play with you a bit more before he decides to take you and Kurapika down. Or, if you say you can fight him then and there, you’ll get yourself killed. He’s from Meteor City, and he’s the head of the most notorious band of thieves, so you didn’t have a chance to start with.

Overall, it’s best not to talk about this with him, and if you decide to break up because you know how dangerous he truly is, don’t say anything that might clue him to why you’re breaking up. You can say that you can’t stand the long-distance relationship, or that you’re more comfortable being friends with him. Anything but the fact that you’re Kurta will likely let you and your younger brother live longer.  

I want to keep writing but I need to save some stuff for the real piece!

[chaolie]

I'm a bit bored so here, an AU idea I've had for quite a while! It's essentially a zombie apocalypse AU, but with a twist involving some Gods trying to interfere! It does get long, so most of it is under the cut! Oh yeah, this also ended up Fundy-centric, but at this point is anyone even surprised?

Please keep in mind that I kinda left this summary on a cliffhanger, and it's a very angsty and painful one! It includes a death, so don't read if you don't think you can handle that right now!

So, we start with a somewhat modern setting. Most characters (Excluding Phil and all the Gods) live in the same city and have relatively normal lives. Phil lives a bit further from the city but stays in contact with his family, and the Gods have a couple of their own dimensions to reside in.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a zombie outbreak starts just a few cities away, and the news about it doesn't spread nearly fast enough. That's the first time the Gods step in.

Unfortunately, they're unable to stop the apocalypse. They never quite held that kind of power, and the world ending really threw them off, the best they could do would be to help just a few people... so they do just that.

Every single God chooses one person they want to support. They get to give them a "blessing", so essentially an advantage, and can help them in other ways too. They also make a "bet" to see whose mortal can survive the longest, but only one of them takes it seriously. Now, the Gods and their choices are:

Death decided to help Phil. She used to come down to Earth sometimes before, so they knew each other, and the choice was easy for her. She gave him wings to help him avoid dangers and find his family.

XD, the god of creation, chose Dream. Except, he had no idea what he was doing, no knowledge about mortals, and misunderstood Dream's situation. The gift he gave to Dream? Pretty neat! Any and all of his injuries will heal as long as he still has the will to keep going! The way he made sure Dream would keep going? Lies. Hope this doesn't have any horrible consequences :D

Foolish, the god of life, chose Eret. They were good friends before the world ended, so it made sense to help them! With Foolish's blessing, Eret can now find their other missing friends! It's not very accurate and they can use it once a day, but they can check which direction someone is in! Unfortunately, something weird happened with their eyes when they received the gift... but hey, at least they can see in the dark now, too!

Drista, the goddess of chaos, decided to help Tommy. She knew him from some of her visits to Earth, and he didn't seem to mind her chaos-related powers before, so she figured he'd be fine with whatever she'd offer him. He more or less was, so now he will just randomly get some items every once in a while. They tend to be useful, though!

Bad, the god of darkness, chose Skeppy. Before the apocalypse forced him to stay in the Gods' dimensions, he'd spend like 75% of his time on Earth, with Skeppy, so of course he had to help him! To protect him from any bites, he made his skin diamond!

Here's a tricky one. Overseers. Their "godhood" is a bit complicated (PLEASE ASK ME ABOUT THEM.), but in the end, they got to pick a single mortal together. They picked Jack. They didn't know him before or anything, he just seemed kinda neat. Since they still lack the power of other Gods, they could only offer him what they were "gods" of, so "strong will" and "persistence". It's not much, but hey, it's still a free advantage!

Now, you might be wondering. How the HELL is this Fundy-centric, he has not been mentioned once, what are you even doing?? Well, let me tell you more about him!

He is probably the last person alive in the city and he is absolutely alone. He spends weeks looking for someone, anyone- But everyone else fled from the city while they could. He can't find his friends, he can't find his boyfriend (yes I'm bringing fwt into this.), not even his father! He does start to slowly lose hope...

Then boom! He suddenly runs into Ranboo, who accidentally stumbled back into the city and got separated from his group! After getting him to safety, Fundy learns that actually a huge chunk of their friend group is alive and camping outside of the city. They head there the next opportunity they get.

Now Fundy's finally a part of a group! They have 7 people in total - him, Ranboo, Tubbo, Niki, Jack, Eret, and Hbomb! That also means that they have 2 people chosen by Gods in their group, so what could go wrong?

Things go wrong when they decide to head north, to another city. They hope to find supplies, survivors, or maybe even a zombie-free zone? Who knows, maybe they got the news about the apocalypse and got time to prepare?

Most of them might find out, but Fundy doesn't get that luxury. Sadly, he gets bitten halfway to the city, and the Gods told their champions what a bite means. In order to make this less painful for everyone, Fundy volunteers to leave the group and walk in a different direction.

He walks west, and after a few days, while he's barely standing, he comes across a ruined city. He wanders its streets, and it's strangely empty, strangely quiet... it's still not long before he runs into a single zombie. Before it can get him, he runs into one more thing. A person. Dream.

At first, they're both overjoyed! They found each other again! After all this time! It's so great that Dream doesn't really care how impossible this is, according to what XD told him. But when he tells Fundy about his power, about how even bites can't get him, things turn... sad. Fundy's not immune to bites, and it's too late to try anything. They can spend like a day together, sure, but after that?

They do spend that day together, catching up and ignoring the doom looming over Fundy. Unfortunately, they can't just put off death, and soon enough, the bite gets the best of him. On top of that, the pain and heartbreak of that make Dream's power more or less useless. Uh oh.

...Aaand I'm ending the summary here because it's 3 am, but you best believe the story doesn't end like this. I am dragging the fox fuck out of the afterlife whether he likes it or not, and you bet I'm going to be a bit extra about it, too! I'm just not sure if anyone is remotely interested in what I just wrote here.

If you are, please ask questions. I WANT to elaborate on almost everything here!! Ask about the characters, their groups, the gods, about what happens next!! If you ask nicely, I might even show some doodles I made for this AU a while back? So please don't hesitate from asking!

(Anon is on if you're shy btw)

[things-small-and-big]

Nee

CW: slavery, repeated loss of parental figures, drug abuse, assaults and murder attempts, consensual decapitation, mutilation, cannibalism.

Nee was born a pet. Although he was lucky enough to live with somewhat caring owners, he was left behind in their mansion when they moved to another house. It's unclear whether they did it on purpose but they didn't come back regardless. At the time Nee was about 13 years old.

After having waited for his owners' return for a few days, Nee was found by a group of vagabonds, one of whom decided to take him under his wing, although they didn't become very close. He taught him the language and customs of the small world, and Nee spent the rest of his childhood in the streets of Giant City. He was assaulted by giants a couple of times, which further grew his aversion to them. Eventually he decided to leave for Small City.

There he took a job as a blacksmith's assistant at Kobalt's forge. Kobalt, being a kind man, provided him with money, housing, protection and support. Although it wasn't meant to last, Nee found himself a kind of a family. During that time, he befriended Tri, Anzie's brother and enjoyed the protection both from the best blacksmith and one of the most respected people in the city.

Unfortunately, once a tekko came into the city, Kobalt got killed, which left Nee devastated. He spent a few days inside the forge but without Kobalt's protection he quickly got kicked out by those who wanted the forge more. Tri helped him by providing free lodging, at least for the time of his mourning.

Nee shared the small flat with Kosha, who at the time was succumbing to her addiction. Nee started to care for her, using it as a distraction from his reality. Eventually he convinced her to quit and helped during her recovery, while she supported him in his grief. They became friends, then lovers.

Without Kobalt's protection life became much more dangerous for Nee. He often got attacked, sometimes just for obviously being a pet. One day a gang chased him out of the city, wounding him in the process. Luckily for him, a giant happened to be nearby. Desperate, Nee called for help and was saved.

The giant brought him in his mansion and treated his wounds. Despite being grateful for the salvation, Nee had no intention of staying there and becoming a pet again. He was planning to leave once he recovered, but kept the mansion in mind as a safe place for him. He was keeping in touch with Kosha and Tri in that time with the help of mice.

During his recovery Nee met Yan, who, unbeknownst to the giant, was using his mansion as lodging while she was busy in Small City. Being somewhat biased towards pets, she mistook Nee as one and proceeded to verbally and sometimes physically mistreat him. After a short while Nee stood up to her which made her back off and gain some respect for him. They grew closer as Yan became more interested in his life, although she disclosed virtually nothing about herself. Eventually she realised she fell in love with him but did not say anything, not knowing how to deal with her feelings and being aware of his relationship with Kosha.

One night the mansion was visited by Anzie, Tri and Pol. Anzie's goal was to kill the giant so he left Pol and Tri to guard Nee while he went to look for the giant's bedroom. Neither Nee nor Tri wanted the giant dead so, stepping outside of the room so that Pol couldn't stop them, Tri came up with a horrible plan that, nonetheless, proved to be effective. Knowing that he would survive, he convinced Nee to decapitate him and force Anzie to trade his life for the giant's.

The plan worked but had consequences. Upon seeing his brother's severed head Anzie couldn't think straight, snatched it from Nee's hands and left immediately after making sure Tri was alive. There were no subsequent attempts to kill the giant but Anzie began to see Nee as a direct threat to his family despite what Tri tried to tell him. The experience affected Nee deeply, and although the plan was conceived by Tri and he did survive in the end, Nee still blamed himself for what he had done.

Since Anzie was now after him, upon his recovery and the return to Small City Nee spent most of the time in his flat with Kosha. She and Tri were the only ones who knew he was there so he was relatively safe. He still got attacked by Pol and got almost too paranoid to leave the flat altogether. He was lucky enough to get away every time, sometimes with his friends' help, but he still got injured. Moreover, Pol's failures potentially meant that Anzie would attempt to kill him himself, despite both Tri and Yan trying to persuade him to stop.

Ironically enough, it wasn't Anzie who dealt the most damage. Nee got jumped by a gang who beat him, tried to pull out his teeth and successfully tore out most of his claws mutilating his hands after he tried to fight back. This left him traumatised in every way possible, and he was brought back to the mansion to be treated under the giant and Yan's care. At this point he wished for nothing more than just to be safe.

After his relative recovery Yan suggested to take him to Giant City, telling him it would be safer. The real reason was that she had to come back and hesitated to leave him behind "unsupervised". Nee reluctantly agreed.

Unfortunately, upon arriving Yan let her guard down, assuming that nothing could happen now that they were on her territory, and left Nee somewhat nostalgically wandering the streets to attend to her own matters. In her absence Nee got caught by people of the Organisation, knocked out and brought to Nikola.

Since Yan usually attended Nikola's dinners, she managed to stop him before he could do anything, but that gave Nee yet another deep fear, that time of a specific person. He was also left with quite a few questions about who Yan really was, why he had been captured and what exactly that organisation did.

After telling him everything, Yan suggested recruiting him into the Organisation to make up for her supposed negligence. Being its member would give Nee protection and the opportunity to finally live a quiet happy life. He agreed and moved to Giant City with Kosha.

After eventually meeting Frederick he was left with a conflicting first impression. On the one hand, he was someone who shared his experience as a pet, and Nee was worried about his relationship with Nikola. On the other hand, he saw Frederick as simultaneously a better and a worse version of himself. To his understanding, Frederick chose to leave his owner despite being taken care of, and yet never had to suffer. Of course, Nee realised he was wrong in his assumptions after getting to know him better but could not admit it.

Presently Nee continues doing paperwork for the Organisation. He's struggling with PTSD and insomnia, although he is slowly getting better. For now he's just trying to enjoy living in safety for once.

[elvenbeard]

@connortheconceded​ I did not forget your questions! XD Finally have a minute to sit down and answer them properly, thanks so much for asking (and outing yourself XD)

As a quick summary of her background and what she’s up to in San Andreas at the moment: by day she’s a photographer for a local marketing company, by night she’s a private investigator in a small agency. She’s been a P.I. for almost a year now and ended up there completely by chance, literally by randomly meeting one of its founders and becoming friends with him. The two founders of the agency have long left the city, and Natascha and another P.I. have been running the thing in their absence, and the wish has been growing in Natascha to officially take over the lead, because working there feels like the ideal job. She’s a little bit of a jack of all trades, tried many things, has many random skills and knowledge that all come in handy there.

A couple of months ago a guy she didn’t know at the time made a posting looking for creative people for a “secret project” and, curious by nature, she replied and wanted to know what he was about. Turned out, he wanted to found a new design and marketing company and was looking for graphic designers and photographers, so she applied for the job... and almost simultaneously, this same guy applied at the detective agency to work there. And so it happened they became colleagues, he turned out be super good at being a P.I. too. Eventually they became good friends not only because of many shared interests, but also shared beliefs about what needed to change in the city. He said he considered her the only person he could trust 100%, which was something no one had told her before, so that was a big honor. Her friend also had big ambitions in everything he did and stood by his word, achieving many awesome feats that Natascha admired. But he also dared a lot, knew many people, many dangerous people, too, and eventually got into some serious trouble with criminals. In the end everything turned out well again, at least somewhat, but the events made him a little paranoid and disillusioned. Still though, the detective agency grew and was able to establish great connections, the marketing agency grew and Natascha built up upon her slightly neglected photography skills working there, all seemed well, life was good.

Then, when she came back to San Andreas after a short family visit back home in London, her friend and coworker who had a significant part in the success both these companies had had in the latest months, had suddenly left the city. No proper goodbye, but a secret message at least wishing her the best for the future. That was quite the blow and definitely ended an important chapter and arc in her life, and her friend is dearly missed on a personal and professional level still.

So yeh... I guess you could summarize GTA RP as a soap opera happening in real time :D Only that people die a little less frequently and rather randomly disappear or leave the city xD Although, deaths do happen as well from time to time. And alleged alien abductions, too... I promise, one day, should Natascha meet her demise or have to leave the city permanently, I’m gonna write a book about it all xD

Natascha drives a car as of now, but she’d love to have a motorcycle as well some day (but can’t decide which one :D my personal favourites are the Pegassi Bati and Dinka Akuma - the Bati was the first motorcycle I had in normal GTA Online, and the Akuma is just a really cool motorcycle that I first really got to know through the RP server, bc a friend at the time drove one XD). 

Natascha’s car is a black, completely basic BF Club that she bought used for 3,800$ a long while ago actually. She’s thinking about investing some money into tuning it, as it’s not the fastest car. She lives in Paleto Bay while most of her work activity happens in Los Santos, so that’s a lot of driving back and forth and sometimes it seems to take ages to get to the city :D For now though it’ll do, and she has no intentions of selling the car as it’s been a trusted companion for so long already! It’s actually the first car she ever owned, too. Also, few people would probably expect ulterior motives or anything from the inconspiciuous driver of a boring-ass plain beginner’s car... >:3c

[valleydoli]

𐙚 Ao3 & Tumblr fics i love part 2 𐙚

oh my goodness, okay, so! I love you guys so much! thank you for following me, I really appreciate it! I'm not a writer of any sort, so I'm extremely shocked at the amount of followers I received from letting you guys know my favourite jjk fics! (and the twitter links ofc :*) but I'm still reading a lot of fics on tumblr and ao3 so I'll try my best to continue letting you know what ones I've loved and let me know some of your favourite fics I'd really love to read them! ♡

also, if you don't like what I recommend that's totally fine everyone has their own preferences when it comes to what they want to read but don't send anything mean to the authors I recommended. they take so much time in producing these fics for us! so please be nice! :3

𐙚 silent love by @strbymacaroon sukuna x fem reader (completed)

When moving out of your dorm and leaving your eccentric roommate goes to shit, you're offered by one of her friends to move in with him... for free! That is, if you don't mind living with two completely opposite college boys.

However, life isn't that easy, and there's a hot asshole around the corner to piss you off. Especially when he's always up late at night when you're studying, purposely trying to get on your nerves in the most perverse way possible.

You hate him.

Yet, the tables seem to turn when he comes knocking on your door asking for your help.

Under one agreement, that is.

𐙚 it had to be you by @mysteria157 Nanami x fem reader (completed)

Despite your differences and frustrations with one another, you share a drunk but passionate night tangled in the sheets. But now, five weeks later, you and Nanami Kento have no choice but to navigate a rocky relationship while also embracing the new responsibilities of parenthood that lay ahead.

Maneater Toji x fem reader (completed)

Maybe you're single for a reason. You’re too outspoken and mean to men, too demanding with your expectations, and you refuse to settle for less. For the ones who aren't worth the air they breathe, you chew them up and spit them out. You savor the taste so you know what to avoid the next time. So when he looks down at you with that devilish smirk and calls you 'Princess', you're determined to prove that Toji Fushiguro is no exception.

In Too Deep Toji x fem reader (ongoing)

Toji, a notorious hitman, moves to America for more money and a better life for his son. He didn't expect to sleep with you, let alone want more. When his dangerous life catches up to him, he takes on one final lucrative hit, but realizes this target has unseen connections hitting closer to home. Now he must navigate a perilous job while desperately keeping his criminal double life hidden from you.

𐙚 One of the Girls by @/ladyofwhims toji x fem reader (completed)

You want one night of great sex, and you happen to have the one thing Toji finds irresistible: $$$$. But nothing is ever simple.

𐙚 Clipped Wings by @/mahithoes sukuna x fem reader (ongoing)

(TW has graphic themes! Sukuna is lowkey scary in this.)

Routine visits to different prisons and psych wards are mainly what your life consists of. You’ve encountered many unique individuals who express differences in their personalities, physical behaviours, and personal attributes. It was your field of study and you excelled at it, one of the best in your workforce in this small city. Forensic psychology was something you were compelled to do from a young age, you’re now 26 years old and pursuing your dream. After your last client had lost his life in a gang-related incident, you were assigned a new inmate. You were warned before you accepted, this prisoner was uncooperative and notoriously violent. It is your goal to break through them obstacles and find out the truth behind all of the gruesome crimes of Ryomen Sukuna once and for all.

Trials of Heartbreak (ongoing)

Six months have slipped by, half a year. That’s how much time has passed since you decided it was best to part ways with your long-term boyfriend, Choso. The decision was not mutual, and it abruptly ended in a mess of tears and broken-hearted pleas. Three years were thrown away like nothing, but at the time, you believed this was the better choice for yourself. You left him a wreck, and it would be a lie if he said he got over you. His life fell to pieces the day you left, and he’s recollecting himself slowly but surely. While his heart is still yearning for your love, he made changes to his life in hopes of bettering himself. His new job keeps him busy, and it’s unlikely he’ll bump into you in this area of town. This is his fresh start, a new beginning.

For the Thrill (ongoing)

toji fushiguro is a 36 year old single father as well as a self-employed mechanic. after toji's divorce from his wife he never bothered to fulfil another romantic relationship, he didn't see the point and wanted to raise megumi alone. what many people don't know about toji is that he involves himself in a multitude of illegal activities that occur within the city. he's known as the champion of the roads, his participation in the street races has given him a knowledgeable reputation within the deviant society. you are a 21 year old freelance graphic design artist, you moved to the city when you were 19 and met your boyfriend shortly after. however, things between the two of you haven't been going so well; his neglect towards you is evident, he doesn't try to hide it. you desperately need a fresh start from a rough beginning.

𐙚 Karma by @spideyyeet Sukuna x fem reader (ongoing)

funny story! they have a different name on ao3 and i didn’t realise and i thought someone stole their work and i was like oh no they did not just do this in broad daylight! but nooo i was wrong 😭

It was easy tutoring rich university students . They paid you decently, but of course what really brought in the cash was slipping a couple trinkets from their homes into your little bag on your way out. It was all well and fine until Yuuji forgets to tell you his hot older brother is back, and you’re caught red fucking handed.

@c0pkiller Everyone’s Doll Gojo x fem reader (ongoing)

Satoru Gojo, a best-selling erotica author, may know more than most regarding matters of sex, but when it comes to his own sex life things couldn’t be duller. The very moment your face pops up on his computer while utilizing a sugar baby service called The Daddy Network, you catch his eye (something most people fail to do), and his world changes, becoming something he's happy to be a part of for the first time in his life. However, every person has their flaws, and the relationship you form with Satoru is put to the test more times than you can count, forcing the two of you to truly take turns breaking each other’s hearts. Gojo tries more than once to convince himself that he doesn’t need anyone - especially not you, but old habits die hard and, often, not at all.

Cosa Nostra @/msheds0519 (ongoing)

Naoya (your very soon-to-be ex-boyfriend) has a problem that he thinks you can fix, Sukuna thinks otherwise.

Missed Connection by @/sahm2k2c (completed)

You had just settled in for the night to watch a new true crime documentary when you get a text message meant for someone else. A missed connection could be just that but after a short exchange with the person on the other side of the screen, you can’t help but want something more.

𐙚 Now let’s get into fics i’ve read on Tumblr! 𐙚

I may not add all of them only because I've read so many I genuinely cannot remember some of them 😭 but I have reblogged most of the fics I've read and loved! (also some aren’t long fics more like series? i dont know :D)

@spideyyeet MMA Toji (I be rereading these all the time I wont sit here and lie...)

@tojipie Prison Boyfriend Toji

@slvttyplum i legit reblog all their fics so if you follow me you’ll see them all the time😭

@saintobio Sincerely Not Gojo x fem reader (completed)

CW: mean!gojo, VERY OOC, adultery/infidelity, profanity, explicit smut, violence, emotional trauma/physical abuse from past experiences, neglect, heavy family drama, illnesses, classism, pregnancy, undertones of masochism, undertones of manipulation, abandonment issues, overall toxic relationships, graphic depictions of self-harm, suicide/murder (and attempts thereof), minor character death, plot loosely based on twotm & tre.

Sincerely Yours Gojo cx fem reader (ongoing)

CW: ooc, profanity, illnesses, toxic relationships, cyberbullying, classism, mentions of abortion, cheating, explicit smut, mentions of suicide (or attempts thereof), mentions of depression + more to be updated. please read with proper discretion.

@xxsabitoxx Pale Blue Geto x fem reader (ongoing)

@lemonlover1110 Literally all of their work.

@tojikai Permanent Mark Gojo x fem reader (completed)

CW: tragedy, alcohol abuse, self-harm, self-destructive reader, smoking, physical violence, cheating, toxic relationships, manipulation, eventual smut, pregnancy, mentions of abortion

Sundered Gojo x fem reader (completed)

CW: mean!gojo (at first), pregnancy, arguments, implied noncon, insecurities

@thehighpriestess1 Scars Don't Fade Gojo x fem reader (completed)

CW:Mentions of death, TW : Suicide (in one chapter)

August (completed)

@sukunastoy Shameful Attraction (ongoing… i think 😁)

CW: This story has moments of mistreatment and abuse in it. There are references all throughout about this behaviour—Hitting, name-calling, degradation, hiding bruises, domestic violence, sexual assault, being drugged/unaware, cheating, unfaithfulness etc. Also, reader is thin/underweight

@lostfracturess Concern and Control (completed)

CW: [18+] this story contains abusive/possessive behaviour, (rough) smut, mature themes, self-destructive behaviour, (heavy) angst, graphic depictions of violence/injury/combat, character death, suicidal thoughts. reader discretion is advised. Reader is 20+ btw!!!

@kamiversee The Fuck List Choso x Gojo x fem reader (i think?) (completed)

A tale in which Gojo Satoru blackmails you into seducing a list of people to clear his debt. Sounds easy enough, right?

Let me know if you enjoyed these as much as I did! Also let the Authors know first of course!! And send me some new fics to read I literally spend so much time reading these fics and I genuinely enjoy them so much! If I remember the other fics I've read I promise I'll update this one with them added! ໒꒰ྀིᵔ ᵕ ᵔ ꒱ྀི১