#well yes! this one goes out to me figuring out my ocs through birthdays and songs alone | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nayutai · 3 years

Text

The Task At Hand

Pairing Mingyu x Female OC

Word Count 15.1k

Warnings mentions of infidelity, mentions of racism, foul language, anxiety, insecurities, therapy sessions, dumbasses in love, light choking, dry humping

Summary The first year of marriage is always the hardest. Unfortunately for Mingyu and Kamile, the first year as husband and wife may also be their last.

Notes This absolute behemoth of a fic is my contribution to The Intimacy Anthology where I, along with many other fantastic writers, have explored intimacy in all of its many forms. This fic is incredibly close to my heart and I hope that you all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please check out the other stories featured in the project here as well!

Mingyu fumbles with his keys in the dark as he searches for the one that’ll get him into his house. The alcohol coursing through his system is making this very simple task a lot harder than it needs to be. He shouts victoriously when he finally manages to unlock the front door to stumble inside. He freezes when he hears someone clapping slowly off to his right.

“Two minutes and forty seven seconds. That didn’t take you as long as I thought it would but then again you have been good at finishing quickly these days.” Mingyu groans deep in his throat at the scathing words from the woman staring him down from the love seat in the living room. She lifts a glass of what he can only assume is white wine to her lips, draining it quickly.

“I’m too drunk for your bullshit tonight, Kamile.” Mingyu grunts as he leans back against the door to steady himself while he toes his sneakers off. All he wants to do is crawl up the stairs to the guest room he’s been sleeping in so that he can go to sleep. He rolls his eyes when he hears Kamile clear her throat from across the room. If he knows anything about his wife, nothing good is about to come out of her mouth.

“If you didn’t want to hear my bullshit then maybe you should’ve shown up for dinner with my parents tonight.” The venom in her voice makes Mingyu’s blood run cold. He’d totally forgotten about her mother’s birthday dinner tonight. Fuck. As much as he hates to hear her nagging him, even he has to admit that he deserves it this time. This dinner has been planned for months and he should’ve been there.

He forces his eyes to focus when he looks back over at the brooding woman shooting daggers at him from across the room. It’s then he registers the fact that she’s still fully dressed despite the late hour. Kamile is a huge proponent of being comfortable within the walls of her own home and for her to sit in a dress and heels as she waits on his appearance does not bode well for him in the slightest. He’s surprised that she hasn’t launched her wine glass at his head.

“Whatever or whoever you were out doing,” Kamile rises slowly from the couch, impressively steady in her heels despite the bottle of wine she ran through waiting on her neglectful husband to come home. Silence stretches between them interrupted only by the damning clicks of her shoes against the hardwood flooring. Kamile stops to appraise the man she married when she reaches him, wondering where it all went wrong.

“…I hope it was worth it.” She silences his groveling with a raised hand. She’s tired of the arguing. Tired of the excuses. Just tired in general.

Most people would have some sort of emotional response to this but her exhaustion leaves nothing but an empty void in its wake. Mingyu may as well be yelling at a brick wall for all the response he gets from Kamile as she slowly climbs the stairs. The sound of the bedroom door clicking shut echoing around the house may as well have been a gunshot.

“One more thing for her to hold over my fucking head.” Mingyu grumbles as he slowly blazes his own trail up the stairs. He pauses before the closed door to the bedroom they once shared, hand gripping the doorknob in his hand as he contemplates going in to apologize. “What’s the use? Not like she’d listen to me now anyway.”

The bed in the guest room welcomes him like an old friend when he flops down on it, draining him of his energy. Thoughts of how he’ll fix things in the morning drift through his head. Sleep evens out his features, lulling him into a peaceful slumber despite the fact that he’s still fully clothed. The perfect cover for the plans being set in motion right down the hall.

The sun rouses Mingyu from his sleep way before he’s ready. He could’ve sworn that the curtains were pulled closed when he went to bed but it’s hard to know what’s what when you’re three sheets to the wind at god only knows what time. Blindly, he reaches out for his phone where he’d left it on the nightstand but comes up with a piece of paper instead. It takes a minute for his eyes to focus enough to read the words on the page, but when they do he finds himself bolting for the ensuite bathroom. The offensive piece of stationary gently drifting to the ground as if it hasn’t just ruined his life.

He heaves and wretches until he has nothing left to give. His knees buckle several times as he tries to brush his teeth which is an incredibly difficult task to complete when one is sobbing with everything they have. This can’t be happening. He refuses to believe that this is his reality. Mingyu’s heart sinks even lower when he drags himself back to the bedroom and sees Kamile’s wedding ring on the night stand next to his phone. He retrieves the letter from where it rests on the floor, reading it over until the tears he’d fought back make a reappearance.

Doing this feels incredibly impersonal but I feel like it’s probably better this way. I realized that the flame I thought would burn forever is barely a spark anymore. Tonight was an epiphany for me. I realize that I deserve better and I’ve decided that I will have it. I’ve always wished you joy and light and I will probably never stop doing that despite everything that’s happened but I can’t do it as your wife anymore.

Take care,

Kamile Dexter

The usage of her maiden name feels like the final nail in his coffin. He calls. He texts. He emails. He even sends her a message on instagram. Every single attempt to reach her goes unanswered. Anyone could see that things hadn’t been the best between them for a while, but never in his most horrific nightmares did Mingyu think that Kamile would actually leave.

Time is irrelevant to Mingyu in the days that follow Kamile’s departure. He wakes up when his alarm goes off and drifts through the day. His nights are spent calling Kamile despite the fact that she never answers which then leads to him drinking himself into an alcohol-induced sleep complete with all the blessed numbness that it provides until his alarm goes off once more. This is without a doubt the lowest point of his life and he doesn’t know how to fix it. Kamile grew up with Vernon so naturally Mingyu tries to enlist his help. Unfortunately, it seems that she has anticipated that move and stops answering Vernon’s calls and texts as well.

With all of his other options seemingly exhausted, Mingyu calls the one person that could possibly help him, Sidra Dexter. A woman with many accolades to her name, Sidra considers being Kamile’s mother to be the most important among them. If anyone knows how to get through to his wife, it’s Sidra. Mingyu prays that she still has a soft spot for him as the phone rings in his ear. If this call goes unanswered, then he really will lose all hope in saving his marriage.

“It’s about damn time you called me, Gyu Bear. My daughter left you a whole week ago tomorrow and you’re just now enlisting my services? Tell me why that is.” Never a woman to beat around the bush, Sidra gets right to the point with the accuracy of a heat-seeking missile.

“I don’t know what to do, Mama Dee. She won’t talk to me.” Mingyu whines, on the verge of tears for the umpteenth time today.

“Of course she won’t. She’s stubborn just like her ornery ass father.” The aforementioned father pipes up in the background to defend himself but is quickly shut down. “Now back to you, Gyu Bear. You have messed up big time but I love you so I’m going to help you fix it but I have one question first.”

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Did you cheat on my daughter? And yes that ‘harmless flirting’ shit you men folk like to do counts as cheating in my book.”

“Of course not! Wait…does Kam think I cheated?” Mingyu is floored and honestly a little angered at the fact that after all these years together Kamile thinks he’s actually capable of infidelity. The alcohol-induced haze clears long enough for his brain to recall a comment she’d made the night she left about whoever he was doing being worth it.

“She sure does,” Sidra starts up, “but luckily for you, my gut says that you’re telling the truth and it hasn’t steered me wrong in the last 56 years so I don’t see a reason not to trust it now. So here’s what we’re going to do.”

Mingyu listens intently as Sidra outlines her master plan. Not for the first time, he’s in awe of the way her brain functions. The tightness in his chest subsides a little bit with every word she says. For the first time in the six days since Kamile left, Mingyu feels like his life has meaning again. His marriage might not be over after all.

Despite the fact that Kamile had no intention of answering any of Mingyu’s desperate pleas for attention, the sudden cessation of said pleas only serve to further increase her anguish. She’d originally thought she’d be able to finally find peace when he gave up, but that does not seem to be the case. A part of her didn’t want him to stop trying. Didn’t want him to stop fighting for her.

Did I make the right choice?

The question has haunted her every waking moment as she adjusts to her new normal. She’s been adrift for the last ten days trying to figure out her next plan of action. Should she stay in Korea? Should she go back to America? Should she throw a dart at a map and go wherever it lands? The possibilities are endless but Kamile finds herself unable to fully commit to either option which is how she’s ending up existing on takeout in a hotel for the past week and some change. God, why did she have to be so impulsive? She should’ve made sure that she had a game plan before she just up and left like that.

Her phone rings on the small night stand, interrupting her self-loathing thoughts. Kamile groans when she sees that it’s her mother. Ever since she’d broken the news to her parents that she’d decided to leave Mingyu, her mom has been giving her grief. Kamile had always had a hunch that her mom loved Mingyu just as much if not more than she loved her, but their break up has made her think that her hunch had been closer to the truth than she’d previously thought.

“Hey, ma.” Kamile greets her mother apprehensively, bracing for the latest round of her mother’s reconciliation efforts.

“Hello, my lovely daughter. I just landed in Seoul so if you don’t mind coming to get me from the airport that would be great.” Kamile chokes on the mouthful of noodles she’d been munching on. There’s no way in hell that her mother just said that she’s in Seoul. Sure enough, Kamile pulls her phone away from her ear to check her mother’s location and it says that she is in fact at the Incheon Airport.

“Baby, what did I tell you about making sure you properly chew your food before swallowing. Did you forget what happened to your Uncle Tommy?” Kamile barely hears her mother’s recounting about the uncle who’d died from choking on a fish bone as she rushes around her hotel room gathering her things. She can’t believe her mom really flew halfway across the globe. Thankfully, her hotel isn’t far from the airport so Kamile is helping her mother put her bags in the back of her SUV in no time at all.

“Not that I’m not happy to see you or anything, but what are you doing here?” Kamile questions as she eases her car into the steady stream of traffic bound for the exit.

“You just left your husband and you didn’t come home to me so I don’t know what made you think that I wasn’t coming out here. A friend of mine is letting me stay with her since I know how you are about your space.”

Kamile is more than a little thankful for that. Her mother can be overbearing when she’s on a mission and the fact that she’ll still be able to maintain some personal space is comforting. She’s only too happy to let the gps in her guide her to this friend’s house. The closer they get to their destination though the more unsettled she becomes. She has no idea why her gut is telling her to be suspicious, but she’s definitely not about to ignore it. Kamile’s sense are on high alert when she turns into the driveway of a nondescript home in one of the more affluent suburbs of the city.

“Mom, what’s this friend’s name?” Kamile eyes the structure in front of her as if it could possibly grow teeth and bite her. Something is not right here and if there’s one thing her mother taught her, it’s to trust her gut instinct and right now her gut is telling her to throw her car in reverse and get the hell out of dodge. The only thing keeping her from running for the hills is the fact her mother seems so at ease as she hops out of the car to grab her bags.

“Her name is Bae Yeojin. She studied abroad at Villanova her junior year and we were roommates. She’s got a pretty successful business now.” Kamile hums in acknowledgement. She vaguely recalls her mom telling her about a girl named Yeojin from college, but that does nothing to assuage the uneasiness in her gut.

Kamile waits at the bottom of the steps as her mother knocks on the front door. Her fingers are drumming on banister, eyes glancing back and forth from the ornate door and her car. She clutches her keys like a lifeline. At the slightest provocation, she’s ready to bolt. The two women squeal like school children and not the established professionals they are at the first sight of each other. Kamile wonders briefly how long it’s been since they last saw each other.

“Kamile Danielle Kim get your ass up here and say hi.” Not one to disobey a direct order, especially one accompanied by her full name, Kamile reluctantly climbs the short staircase.

“Jesus, Sid, you really spit this one right out. She’s practically your twin.” Yeojin exclaims. She pulls Kamile into a quick hug before ushering the both of them inside.

One deep breath and Kamile instantly realizes why she felt so uneasy. There’s candles burning in the foyer, but they do nothing to mask the familiar scent she’s spent the last six years smelling. Mingyu is in this house somewhere. She spins around to fix the two women with what she hopes is a threatening glare. Unfortunately, neither one of them appears to be phased by it in the slightest.

“What the hell is going on here?” Kamile’s quickly starting to realize that not trusting her gut has landed her in a situation she most definitely has no interest being in. Her eyes quickly dart back and forth between the two scam artists in front of her.

“I told you she’d figure it out. Pay up.” Yeojin doesn’t take her eyes off Kamile as she holds her hand out to Sidra who is grumbling while she digs in her purse to hand over a few bills.

“Dammit, Kam, did I really raise you to be this observant? You’re costing me money.”

“Yes, now what in the fresh hell do y’all have going on?” The answer to her question comes in the form of timid footsteps sounding off behind her. Her spine stiffens. She doesn’t have to turn around to know who it is. She can sense him. “Fuck this. I’m leaving.”

“No, you’re not. Now turn your little narrow butt around and have a seat.” Sidra adopts the tone she’d frequently used when Kamile was growing up and even now as an adult Kamile knows that disobeying this direct order is not the right choice to make.

It’s with a grimace, that she pivots on her heel to face her husband for the first time since she walked out on him. The satisfaction she feels when she sees just how awful he looks is cancelled out by the fact that she probably looks just as bad. It would be a lie to say that she hasn’t missed the comfort and solace his presence used to bring her. That she doesn’t want to let the outside world fade away as she hides away in his embrace. She wants that back. Craves it even, but enough is enough.

Curse words flow like running water through Kamile’s mind as her mother situates her on a love seat in the living room with Mingyu sat right next to her. His large frame dwarfs the slightly undersized piece of furniture. She can feel the body heat radiating off of him and it’s a battle of wills to keep from leaning into him.

“First things first…” Sidra claps her hands as she and Yeojin take a seat on the sofa opposite the troubled couple, “I think now is a good time to mention that Ms. Yeojin here is actually a therapist who specializes in couples therapy.”

Of course she is.

Kamile rolls her eyes as the puzzle pieces start clicking into place. She could be buried under her blankets, binging on The Golden Girls right now, but no, her meddling ass mother has scammed her into marriage counseling instead. She should’ve ran when she had the chance.

“Based on what Sid has told me, the two of you are exactly one week shy of your first wedding anniversary and already on the verge of divorce. So, who would like to dump their emotional baggage on the floor first?” Yeojin glances between Kamile and Mingyu looking for a crack in their demeanor that she can exploit. Mingyu looks like he wants to hurl while Kamile’s face is a carefully constructed mask of indifference. She makes her choice easily.

“Mingyu, thank you for volunteering. Let’s hear it.”

Put on the spot, Mingyu chances a glance sideways at Kamile before clearing his throat. Yeojin sits at the ready with her notebook and pen. She listens intently as Mingyu tells the fiasco as he sees it.

“I know I forget things sometimes. I try not to, but I’m an idol. I have a lot going on but that’s no different from when we first started dating so I don’t know why it’s suddenly such a big issue now.” Mingyu seems to find his voice as he speaks up on how he believes that he’s been wronged. The timid nervousness he’d felt before quickly getting pushed down so that his frustration can take over.

“When we first started dating, I wasn’t being abandoned in a house all day with nothing to do.” Kamile may have been grumbling under her breath but Mingyu hears her loud and clear. His head whips around so fas that the two mothers across from him silently worry about the neck pain that may cause him later.

“You have nothing to do because you’ve turned down every opportunity that’s come your way.” Thoughts of the numerous job and consulting offers from Pledis and other entertainment companies like them that she turned down come flying to the forefront of his memory. Human resource agents have practically been beating down their door for the chance to work with Kamile, a creative visionary in her own right, but she’s rejected them one after another without a moment’s hesitation.

“You mean every opportunity that you have sent my way. Like why would I want to work at that entertainment company and be forced to watch that bitch Miyeon flirt with you every day like you’re not married?” Mingyu is forced to concede to her point with that one. Miyeon is one of the stylists at the company and, despite his repeated rejection, is too flirtatious for his liking as well. Unfortunately, she’s deeply entrenched in the corporate hierarchy and nothing short of murder would make the higher ups get rid of her even if all of the members have lodged complaints against her.

“Is that the simple hoe you come home smelling like every time you’re ‘out with the boys’?” Kamile adds on as if she’s finally started connecting some dots in her overactive imagination. The fact that she has even entertained the thought of Mingyu not only cheating on her but cheating on her with Miyeon of all people makes his blood boil.

“Why do you think I’m cheating on you? Why do you always just assume the worst about me? Do you think Vernon would ever let me even think about cheating on you? The man hates violence but he would beat my ass over you and we all know that.” The frown on Kamile’s face falters at the mention of her oldest friend. Mingyu is correct in saying that he would absolutely fight him, but there are still some thing that aren’t adding up. Yeojin attempts to halt the conversation so that they can delve deeper into what Mingyu just said but Kamile beats her to the punch.

“You come home smelling like warm vanilla sugar every night when everybody knows that I am a Japanese cherry blossom supremacist. What am I supposed to think, Mingyu?” She can’t believe that he has the audacity to sit next to her and still lie. The palms of her hands itch with the urge to throw things but she’s done enough of that plus this isn’t exactly her house either.

“Seokmin always sprays us down with some random perfume because he says it keeps the women away and honestly, it actually works like a charm so I’m always first in line to get sprayed.” Kamile’s anger deflates almost immediately. To anyone that doesn’t know Lee Seokmin that would sound like a crock of shit, but it’s perfectly on brand for him.

“Well, how was I supposed to know that?”

“We’re fucking married, Kamile. You could’ve just asked. Better yet you could have come with me to these events like I’ve asked you to do a million times.”

“You know I hate those things.”

“Everyone hates them, but I would hate them a lot less if I had you there with me. I just feel like I’ve been trying to make an effort but you’re not meeting me halfway.”

“I knew my Gyu Bear wasn’t a cheater!” Sidra, who hasn’t set a word since things had started to get heated, pipes up.

“God, Mom could you at least pretend that you love me more than him?” Kamile throws her hands up in frustration. Her mother’s obvious favoritism is really starting to get to her right now.

“Not until you start giving me less grief.”

“Now, now, Sid. Let’s not derail the progress we’re making here. Kamile, is there anything you’d like to bring to the table?” Yeojin pats her dear friend on the back of her hand to reign her back in. She’d hate to ruin the momentum they got going by having Kamile suddenly switch gears to argue with her mother.

Kamile is only too happy to tell her side of the story as she recounts the events of the night that she decided to leave Mingyu and how it was the tipping point for her. Yeojin listens intently, taking note of the fact that none of the issues that Kamile has with her husband are particularly heinous aside from the debunked cheating suspicions. Each transgression on it’s own wouldn’t be enough to end in divorce, but rather it’s the heaping pile of them that overwhelmed Kamile to the point that she felt she needed to get out.

The more she listens, the clearer it becomes to Yeojin that their marriage is suffering not because they don’t love one another but because they’ve forgotten how to talk to each other which has lead to an unfortunate disconnect. The biggest obstacle is definitely going to be Kamile’s determination to end things. She’s made up her mind and getting her to change her mind is not going to be easy.

“I think I’ve heard everything that I need to hear for today.” Yeojin sets her notepad down on her coffee table, relaxing in her chair a bit before she continues. “The first year in a marriage is usually the hardest, but that seems to have been exacerbated by the fact that the two of you have never lived together before now plus Kamile here has uprooted her entire life and moved to a new country.”

“Saving this marriage is going to take considerable effort on both sides in order to restore the balance you had before you said your vows. Here is what I recommend.”

Yeojin challenges the young couple to separate themselves from their daily lives for the next week and go somewhere remote. A place where it’s just the two of them without any outside influences. Of course, this won’t be just some run of the mill vacation. They’ll have “homework” of sorts that Yeojin will be checking to make sure they complete. Mingyu is all for it but Kamile is much more hesitant. All they’ve done is argue for the past few months and she’d rather not be stuck in a house arguing for two weeks straight.

“I’ve spent the past year stuck in a house with no outside influences and look at where that’s gotten me. On the verge of a fucking divorce!” Mingyu looks like he has something to say, but Yeojin thankfully stops him before he can rile his wife up any more than she already is.

“You’re not just going to be ‘stuck in a house’. Think of it like a game of Among Us. The two of you are crewmates and this wall that’s been built between you is the imposter.” Kamile looks at Yeojin as if she’s grown three extra heads. There’s no way she just related this counseling session to a freaking video game.

“I will also stop bugging you about grandkids for six months if you go.”

“You should’ve just started there. I’ll go.”

Yeojin claps her hands excitedly. She sounds way too happy to be shipping them off to self-guided marriage boot camp, but Kamile stays silent though that becomes increasingly difficult as her mother’s friends lists out the “tasks” she expects them to complete.

“So here’s the game plan, I want you two to be totally and completely honest with each other as much as possible for the entire time you’re gone. Often times in relationships, both parties will censor themselves as a way to keep the peace but that can be detrimental as it has been for you guys.” Mingyu and Kamile don’t realize it but they both frown simultaneously at the proposal of this honesty idea. Yeojin takes it as a positive sign that they are still in sync on some level.

“If the thought of doing it all day is too daunting, then start with just one hour. This doesn’t mean that you have to sit and stare at each other for a whole hour and trade statements just act normally but speak honestly. Okay so far?”

“Yeah, I guess.” Mingyu casts a glance in Kamile’s direction, fingers twitching with the urge to reach out to her. He’s had to stop himself several times since she arrived and it’s not getting any easier.

While Kamile’s mind is running wild with all of the potential for disaster that an hour of honesty could result in, Yeojin powers on with the rest of her required tasks. On top of separating themselves from society and this so called honest hour, Yeojin has mandated that they share at least one meal together every day with one of them being dinner on their wedding anniversary. Just when Kamile thought that Yeojin couldn’t possibly pile more on, she brings up the “activity days”. Each of them will have to plan some sort of activity for the two of them to do together while they’re away. It could be as big or as small as they want, but it has to be meaningful. Mingyu draws Kamile’s attention when he pulls his phone out of his back pocket to start tapping away on the screen like a mad man.

“You guys have a lot of preparing to do in order to be ready to leave tomorrow so we’ll stop here for today. I’ll be checking in on you daily to assess your progress and offer any guidance you may need.”

Kamile is out of her chair and halfway to the door before anyone can blink. The room suddenly feels too small as the gravity of what’s about to happen sinks in. She’d convinced herself that she no longer wanted to be married to Mingyu. She was so sure that her run as Mrs. Kim, albeit short as it was, had come to an end, but now she’s been confronted that her main reason for ending things was baseless. This is not how she thought things would go.

Day 1

The drive from the hotel to the home she’s shared with Mingyu for the past year goes way too quickly for Kamile’s liking. Mingyu had texted her about having to go gas up the rental car so he’s nowhere to be seen when Kamile arrives. She sits in the driveway for a few minutes thinking of the memories saturated into the home that looms before her. The memories she had hoped to create. A stray tear slips down her cheek and she swipes at it furiously. She swore that she was done shedding tears over this but they just keep on coming.

Her pity party is interrupted by an unfamiliar SUV pulling into the driveway behind her. Kamile looks in the mirror to see Mingyu getting out of the driver’s seat. She does her best to erase the evidence of her tears, but the look on his face when she opens her own door says that she wasn’t very successful.

“Are you-”

“I’m fine.” Kamile cuts him off before he can even finish his question. She stalks to the back of her car to start transferring her bags from her car to the behemoth of an SUV behind her.

“I’ll get them.” Mingyu takes the bag she’d already grabbed from Kamile’s hands, motioning to the passenger’s seat. Kamile, no longer in the mood to speak, wordlessly follows his directive and climbs into the SUV.

It takes Mingyu no time at all to load Kamile’s bags into the back with his own.

“Obviously this is a sign that we should just leave.”

“I don’t know about you, but I’m not about to let a lost set of keys stand between me and keeping my marriage.”

“Why do you even care? Why are we even doing this?” Kamile screams. She’s been holding this in for far too long and she can’t take it anymore.

“For better or for worse.” Mingyu’s face is a mask of carefully controlled fury and it’s giving Kamile pause. She’s never seen him like this before. “We promised each other for better or for worse and yet you’re ready to run for the hills at the first sign of trouble. I’ll admit that I’m not perfect and certainly played a role in why we’re here but I’m willing to put in the work to make it better because those vows meant something to me. I thought they meant something to you too.”

Kamile is incredibly taken aback at Mingyu’s fervent desire to stay married. She didn’t think that he cared that much anymore. Without any further protest, she joins him in the hunt for the elusive key to the front door. Fifteen minutes pass and they are no closer to gaining entry than they were when they first arrived. A rep with the rental company calls as they’re checking the bottom of the flower pots that line the front porch and tells them that the keys were mistakenly put in the mailbox. The same mailbox that sits at the end of the mile long driveway. Kamile makes to get back in the car to drive to the end of the driveway but Mingyu suggests walking it.

“It would be faster in the car.”

“You heard that therapist lady. We’re supposed to be spending time together. What better way to do it than by walking two miles?” Kamile walks back and forth as she considers her options. She can resist which will probably lead to yet another fight or she can just suck it up and walk to the mailbox. With a groan, she makes her decision.

“Fine, but if I get tired you’re carrying me.”

“Anything for you, my lady.” He bows deeply which almost makes Kamile crack a smile. She steels her resolve quickly though and reminds herself not to get caught up in his antics. He’s going to have to do a lot more than make her laugh in order to get out of the dog house.

The walk to the mailbox and back is quiet for the most part. Their footfalls join the hum of the wildlife in the woods that line the driveway on either side, but the jokes and playful jabs that used to fill the air between them is noticeably absent. Neither one is sure of what to say or do around the other anymore. Thankfully, the key is hanging on a hook inside the rather large mailbox.

Mingyu fully expected for Kamile to ask to be carried on the way back. She’s never been a huge fan of physical activity so it doesn’t come as a surprised to him when she starts whining halfway back to the cabin.

“I can’t do it just leave me here with my flower friends. I’ll become one with the forest.” Mingyu wordlessly moves to crouch down in front of her. He’s thankful that she can’t see his face to save himself the embarrassment of having to explain why he’s so excited to carry her for the last half mile to the end of the driveway.

Kamile doesn’t hesitate a single second to climb onto his back, clinging to him like a koala. It’s not lost on either one of them that this is the most physical contact they’ve had with each other in months. She’s wrapped around him tight enough that he doesn’t need to support her thighs, but he does it anyway. No way in hell is going to let this moment pass by without taking full advantage.

They opt to spend the rest of the day just getting settled in. Yeojin had encouraged them to share a bedroom but Kamile is not down with that. Mingyu is disappointed when she wheels her suitcase into one of the guest bedrooms but he takes solace in the fact that she’s chosen the one right across the master where he’d dropped his things hoping she’d follow. He hopes that at some point in the next few days she’ll finally share a bed with him again.

Dinner ends up being Thai takeout. Kamile has to admit that she’s impressed when Mingyu is able to rattle off her usual order with practiced ease. There once was a time when they’d get Thai food together all the time, but they’re so far removed from that time that she was sure he’d have forgotten by now. They eat without a single word exchanged before going their separate ways to bed.

Day 2

Mingyu wakes up before the sun despite the fact that he slept all of two hours the night before. His hands are on the verge of trembling from all of the nervous energy coursing through his body. Today is the official first day of marriage bootcamp and he doesn’t know what to do with himself. It’s barely seven so there’s no way that Kamile has even attempted to get out of bed yet. Like a thief in the night, Mingyu creeps down the hall to peek into the bedroom that she had claimed as her own. A small smile graces his face at the cute way she hugs one of the throw pillows to her chest. It falters a little when his brain reminds him that she used to hug him close to her like that and not a pillow, but he shoves that depressing thought away for now. He has work to do.

The smell of bacon rouses Kamile from sleep, luring her down the stairs. She grunts a greeting at the man currently tending to a pan of scrambled eggs as she reaches for the stack of bacon on the counter to his left. Mingyu is quick to swat her hand away before she can secure her bounty.

“The eggs are almost done. Be patient.” Kamile whines at being chastised, scowling at the back of Mingyu’s head with disdain.

In the midst of her grumbling, she finally takes notice of his attire or the lack thereof. Saliva pools in her mouth at the sight of his muscles flexing as he cooks the eggs. Her gaze moves lower to his trim waist and the pair of gray sweatpants hanging from said waist in a way that has no business being as attractive as it is. Her fingers twitch with the urge to slide her hands beneath the waistband of those sweatpants to get at that prize she knows is there but she keeps them to herself.

“Earth to Kamile.” Mingyu chants as he waves a spatula in front of her face. She blinks rapidly, doing her best to clear the thick fog of arousal from her mind. The uncomfortable sensation of her panties sticking to her skin is quickly forgotten when Mingyu holds up a plate peeled high with bacon, eggs, and blueberry pancakes.

“Thanks, Gyu.” Kamile murmurs as she takes the proffered plate and heads for the table. She falters half a step when she realizes that she’s let his nickname slip. She prays that he didn’t notice and if he did, she prays he doesn’t say anything about it.

“Gyu? Haven’t heard that one in a while.” Looks like that prayer went unanswered. The shit eating grin on Mingyu’s face makes her itch.

“I’m hungry and thankful. Don’t push it.”

They eat in silence. The only sounds are their forks as they make contact with their plates. Mingyu is kicking himself in the ass for not saying anything but his brain is short circuiting. Thankfully, the buzzing from the intercom by the front door signaling that someone is at the front gate. It’s the special grocery delivery he’d requested for the first of their planned activity days.

“What’s all this for?” Kamile asks curiously. She pokes through a few of the bags to see fresh strawberries and a variety of other fruits along with a very large bag of rice cakes.

“I was thinking we could have a picnic today for our first planned activity.” His heart races as he waits for Kamile’s reaction to his idea. She munches on a piece of bacon as she continues to pull things out of bags.

“I dig it.” Mingyu feels weak with relief at his idea being well-received. “Why so many rice cakes though?”

“You’ve been a tteokbeokki fiend since we met. Didn’t see the point in depriving you while we’re here if I could just make it for you.” Kamile groans at the thought. She’s more than capable of feeding her own addiction with the spicy rice cake dish, but she’s never been able to make it as good as Mingyu. Despite the fact that she just ate, she contemplating requesting that he make a batch of it right now.

Mingyu grabs a knife to start chopping up some of the fruit. Kamile takes a seat at the island across from him, propping her chin in her hand as she watches him work. She’s always loved watching him cook almost as much as eating the food he makes. She can’t even remember the last time that she was able to do this. It feels like a lifetime ago. Her eyes with sparkle with fascination watching him prepare the food for their picnic.

“Open up.” Mingyu holds a strawberry up to her lips and Kamile opens her mouth without hesitation. The berry is perfectly ripe and so juicy that a stream of it runs down her chin. Mingyu reaches out to swipe it away, licking the liquid from his thumb.

“Tasty.” Kamile squirms in her seat at the way his lips wrap around his thumb. Time for her to make an escape before she does something crazy like fuck her husband in someone else’s kitchen.

Mingyu watches Kamile hastily retreat with barely concealed glee. He’d thought that she’d stopped being attracted to him, but that is incorrect if the results of the little experiment he’d decided to conduct are to be believed. He smiles to himself as he continues cutting up fruit. There might be hope for them yet.

After agonizing longer than he should have over the best spot to set up their little picnic, Mingyu finally picks a spot. He’s so focused on how best to arrange everything on the blanket that he doesn’t even notice Kamile creeping up behind him. He nearly jumps out of his own skin when she clears her throat much to Kamile’s amusement.

“Did I scare you?” It’s clear to her that she did, but making him admit it is too good for her to pass up.

“No…maybe.” Kamile hums in response, kneeling across from him on the blanket. “That dress is really pretty on you.”

“Thank you.” She mumbles in response. It’s been so long since she’s heard any sort of praise or compliment from Mingyu that she doesn’t even know how to respond anymore. It almost feels brand new.

Eager to rid herself of the awkwardness blooming in her chest, Kamile grabs a fork and shoves what she thinks is a potato straight in her mouth. In her haste, she fails to realize that the potato she thought she had is actually an onion. Mingyu doubles over with laughter at the pure disgust painted across Kamile’s face. She desperately wants to spit it out but she was raised to believe that spitting out perfectly good food is only a half step below a sin so she powers through. She chugs one of the glasses of fresh squeezed lemonade on the small tray to her right as Mingyu continues to cackle at her plight.

“You set me up for failure.” Kamile has hated onions from the womb according to the stories her mother told about the smell of onions making her nauseous for her entire pregnancy. Mingyu must pay for this.

“I purposely cut them big enough for you to easily pick them out. You weren’t supposed to eat them.” Mingyu defends himself breathily as he tries desperately to stop laughing. Kamile reaches out to punch him in the arm which only serves to make him laugh harder.

Silence falls over them again although, unlike breakfast this morning, they’re able to exchange some small talk here and there. The awkwardness that they’d started off with wanes and wanes until they’re left comfortably enjoying each other’s presence for the first time in a long time.

Mingyu finds himself unable to take his eyes off of Kamile. He’d meant it when he’d said that the yellow sundress she’s wearing looked pretty on her. It compliments the rich mahogany of her skin as if it was made especially for her. The plethora of curls that he’s always loved are full of life as she bobs her head side to side, one of her many habits that Mingyu has always adored. His chest feels tight with the weight of his love for her. He can’t believe that he nearly let her slip away.

“You’re staring, Mingyu.” Kamile says between bites of the strawberry she’d grabbed. Mingyu opens his mouth to answer when a distant rumble beats him to the punch.

“Oh shit.”

The two of them hastily toss the near empty dishes back into the picnic basket. Dark clouds are steadily rolling in with the speed of a bullet train. Just when they think they might be able to make it back into the house, their luck runs out. The rain comes down in sheets, drenching them in seconds. Kamile is so thankful that the lack of pockets on her dress lead to her choosing to leave her phone inside.

Kamile is the worst mood when they finally reach the safety of the house. She just went through the stress and physical exhaustion of wash day two days ago and now she has to do it all over again five days ahead of schedule.

“Did you not check the fucking weather before you decided to turn us into sitting ducks outside?” She seethes. Mingyu arches a brow in confusion at her sudden mood swing.

“Of course I did. It was supposed to be nothing but sunshine all week.”

“Well, clearly that was a lie but I’ve grown to accept that from you. Now I’ve got to go suffer through wash day ahead of schedule.” Mingyu winces at her words, but he’s nothing if not an opportunist so he chooses to ignore it in favor of jumping on the more important statement Kamile just made.

“Can I help you with your hair?” He asks as he follows his grumpy wife up the staircase. She pauses outside her room to fix him with a glare.

“Absolutely not.”

“Why? I’ve always helped you with your hair.” In his mind, this isn’t a huge request. The Kamile he knew used to be only too happy to allow him to hand over her hair products for him to do her extensive wash day routine for her. He’d actually gotten so good at it that he’d even started doing her younger sisters’ hair whenever he was in the states to visit.

“I barely know who you are anymore and you expect me to let you touch my hair? Not a chance in hell.” Kamile’s voice climbs in volume until she’s practically yelling.

The last thing Mingyu wants to do today is fight, but enough is enough. Their screams echo through the spacious house as they go back and forth over Kamile’s mistrust of Mingyu. He doesn’t get it and she thinks it’s incredibly shocking that he doesn’t. Kamile’s phone rings somewhere in the bedroom she has yet to enter, effectively interrupting their spat. She leaves Mingyu in the hallway in favor of answering it and groans out loud when she sees that it’s a FaceTime call from Yeojin. She’d forgotten all about the daily check-ins that the therapist had mentioned she’d be conducting. She goes back out to the hallway and drags Mingyu with her to the staircase so they can get this call over with without ruining the carpet in her room.

“Hello, love birds! How’s everything going?” Yeojin chirps once the call connects. Her hopeful smile falters slightly when she sees the sour looks on her clients’ faces.

Mingyu is only too happy to give the attentive marriage counselor a full rundown of what was happening before she called. Kamile scowls at him the entire time. To hear him tell it, she’s the bad guy but anyone with common sense would’ve left her alone after she’d made it perfectly clear that she was not in the mood to have a conversation. She can’t wait for Yeojin to drag him therapeutically for not picking up on that.

“Kamile, what do you think lead to you lashing out like that? The rain was not his fault.” The woman in question is thrown off when the outcome she was expecting doesn’t come to fruition.

“He should’ve checked the weather before deciding to have a picnic outside but that’s neither here nor there. I feel like I made it very clear that I didn’t want to talk to him and yet he kept pressing the issue.” Kamile can’t believe that she has to defend herself. Mingyu is so hasty with responding that it sounds like a keyboard smash is coming out of his mouth.

“I would like to make it known that I did not say one word to you when we came back inside until you started yelling at me.” He looks incredibly smug as he watches Kamile’s mouth open and close as she tries to think of a way to refute his statement. “I would also like to make it known that I have been obsessive about every detail of this picnic and I would have never had it outside if there was even a slight chance that it might rain. Maybe if you had a little more faith in me you could see that.”

“And that brings me to my next point.” Yeojin begins. “We’ve established that the infidelity was a myth, so why do you continue to hold on to that mistrust, Kamile? I want you to really think about it and be completely honest with both us and yourself. I’m not saying that whatever you’re feeling is wrong because you are entitled to feel that way but I think it would be good for the both of you if why you feel that way is better understood.”

The theme of the day continues to be silence as Kamile ponders the question put before her. She’s mature enough to admit that not trusting Mingyu while also admitting that she believes him when he says that he didn’t cheat is contradictory. The root of that contradiction is something she’s been trying to avoid ever since she got roped into that surprise therapy session. Mingyu’s alleged infidelity had been her out. Her escape. She had cut and run on the back of a false truth and that reality is something that’s been hard for her to process. Tears well up in Kamile's eyes as she thinks back to Mingyu’s rant about their wedding vows when they’d first arrived. She’d thought that everything was his fault and being forced to face the truth is difficult. Mingyu’s harsh glare softens as he reaches out to wipe the tears from her face as they start to fall. He sighs when she pulls away from him.

“I can see that I’ve found a sore spot so I won’t press this any further today. We’ll revisit this in the future.” Yeojin gives them some tips on how to better communicate before she ends the call.

Kamile is only too happy to end the call so she can lock herself in her room. She doesn’t even come back out for dinner despite Mingyu all but begging outside of her door. He’s not sure what mental dots she connected when they were talking to Yeojin, but whatever it was seems to have upset her more than he’d originally thought.

A weather alert comes through on Mingyu’s phone as he watches TV downstairs. Apparently the storm that had snuck up on them earlier is part of a much larger system of severe weather that changed course and is expected to hang around the area for the next day or two. His first thought is Kamile. She’s terrified of thunderstorms. Always has been.

He thinks back to a time before they started dating when Kamile was just Vernon’s pretty American friend that he had a huge crush on. She had come to Korea to visit and insisted on sleeping on the couch despite the fact that everyone tried to give up their room for her. Much like today, a nasty storm rolled in and in her panicked state she had accidentally ended up in his room instead of Vernon’s. The realization had been comical and she’d tried to leave to go to the right room, but a sudden clap of thunder that seemed to shake the whole building sent her diving into his arms where she stayed for the rest of the night. She slept through a thunderstorm for the first time in her life that night. A selfish part of him hopes that this storm brings him the same luck he had all those years ago.

Day 3

Heavy rain beats against the window like a prize fighter while thunder rattles Kamile’s brain until she feels like screaming. There aren’t many things that strike true fear in her heart, but thunderstorms are definitely somewhere in the top five things on that list. She’s got her headphones in and her music blasting, but it does very little to drown out the war going on outside. She rips the blankets from her body and makes for the bedroom door to go get in bed with Mingyu but like the fifty other times she’s attempted to do that she stops herself in the hallway. The door shuts with a soft click as she seals herself back in her own personal hell.

Kamile jolts awake not even aware of when she had even managed to fall asleep. Sweat has glued her clothes to her skin and it’s making her skin crawl the longer she lays there. She groans aloud when she hears the rain still beating against the window pane. The alarm clock on the nightstand says that it’s just barely six in the morning which means it’s been exactly one hour since she apparently passed out from exhaustion. A rumble off in the distance lets her know that she probably won’t be getting more sleep any time soon so she drags herself to the bathroom for a shower.

Freshly showered and in desperate need of caffeine, Kamile makes for the kitchen. Mingyu’s bare back comes into view for the second consecutive morning when she rounds the corner. His hair is sticking up in odd directions and he looks to be five seconds from falling asleep standing up as he stabs at the buttons on the coffee maker.

“Why are you up so early?”

“You need coffee.” He replies with a yawn.

“Yeah, but I can make it myself. You didn’t need to lose sleep to make me coffee.” She protests. Mingyu turns to glare at her until Kamile raises her hands in surrender.

“If you’re up, I’m up.” Kamile shakes her head at him as she pulls two mugs out of the cabinet. No sense in arguing with him when he’s clearly made up his mind about suffering.

The two of them sit in silence side by side, sipping their coffee, and staring out the window watching Mother Nature do her thing. Out of habit, Kamile leans over to rest her head on MIngyu’s shoulder. She stiffens when she realizes what she’s doing. Mingyu holds his breath. Scared that if he makes any sudden movements the bubble will burst and she’ll move away from him. She surprises the both of them when she lets the tension drain from her shoulders instead, relaxing into him.

“I’m sorry.” Kamile whispers into the void. If Mingyu wasn’t so acutely focused on her every move, he probably wouldn’t have even heard it over the wind.

“Me too.” He turns his head to softly kiss the top of her head, taking a moment to inhale the familiar scent of her hair products. He never knew it was possible to miss a singular smell so much.

They’ve exchanged exactly four words since they sat down at the table, but they mean so much. There’s a near palpable shift in the air. Like a switch has flipped. An unspoken truce between them that they are in this together. Kamile lifts her head to finish her coffee and Mingyu immediately misses the weight of her head on his shoulder.

“Did you ever finish watching The Originals?” Kamile asks before downing the last of her coffee.

“No, it was kind of our thing so I haven’t watched it since we stopped watching it together.” She hums in response.

“Well, it looks like we’re going to be stuck in this house all day so we may as well pick up where we left off.” Mingyu nearly chokes on his coffee. He can’t even remember the last time Kamile willingly suggested that they spend time together. He pinches himself to make sure he’s not dreaming which she rolls her eyes at.

“Come on. You’re in charge of snacks.”

For the next eight hours, their butts are glued to the couch. They only get up to use the bathroom and replenish their snack pile. They’ve spent so much of their time arguing that Kamile had forgotten how much she loved just being with Mingyu. Klaus is about to rain down hellfire on some of his enemies when Mingyu’s phone vibrates in the pocket of his sweatpants. Kamile can feel it against her own thigh and it’s only then that she realizes the way that they’ve gravitated towards each other over the course of the day. If she were to get any closer to him, she’d be sitting in his lap. Mingyu had intended to ignore the call, thinking it might be someone from the company despite his strict instructions not to contact him, but he answers it instead when he sees that it’s Yeojin.

“Well don’t you two look cozy. I was planning to pick up where we left off yesterday, but I’d rather talk about this first.” Yeojin looks entirely too smug as she brings attention to the lack of space between the two of them. Mingyu half expects Kamile to scoot away from him now that it’s been pointed out just how close they are, but she stays put.

“Can’t a girl just sit next to her husband without being questioned to death?” Kamile asks playfully. Yeojin chuckles and moves on with their daily check in.

“Fine, fine I’ll leave it alone. Let’s get down to business. Mingyu we didn’t get to hear from you a lot yesterday so I’d like to get into how you felt when Kamile left. What was that like for you?” Yeojin rests her chin on her hand as she waits to see what’s going to come out of the box of emotions she just opened.

Mingyu briefly realizes that this is the first time he’s talked about that day to anyone as he recounts that dark morning like the nightmare it was. Kamile listens in stunned silence while he tells his story. After seeing the bags under his eyes at Yeojin’s house, she’d figured that he’d suffered just like she had, but she’d never imagined that waking up to find her rings and the note she’d left had affected him to the extent that it did. The guilt that’s been festering in her gut increases tenfold at the thought of him heaving into the toilet.

“I knew things weren’t the greatest but I truly did believe that we were strong enough to get through whatever. Divorce never crossed my mind even once so it killed me to know that it had not only crossed her mind but became a viable option that she ran with. I get why she thought that was the best option now, but then it felt like I’d been blindsided.” Mingyu explains. His words are laced with the hurt that he’s been keeping to himself. Kamile picks at the words screen printed down one of the legs of her sweatpants wishing that a hold would open beneath her and swallow her up. She’s never felt so low.

“Kamile, I see you’re getting emotional. What are you feeling right now?” Yeojin gently pries. Mingyu pulls Kamile into him as his own emotions start getting the better of him. Yeojin is pleased to note that, unlike yesterday, Kamile doesn’t snatch away from him.

“I was so focused on how unhappy I was that I didn’t consider anything else. It was all about me, me, me.” Kamile stares off into space as she opens up. She’s never talked about this with anyone but her best friends. In hindsight, they might not be sitting where they are right if she’d just talked to Mingyu about it ages ago but then again hindsight is always 20/20. “I visited Korea plenty of times when we were dating, but living here as the black wife of an idol has been so hard. Being from America, I’m used to people treating me different because of my skin color but when people feel entitled to be so invasive about it because of who I’m married to…it’s different.”

Mingyu’s jaw is on the floor as he listens to the struggles that his wife was having right under his nose and he never knew. He noticed that she’d become more withdrawn and hostile but he could never figure out why and she wouldn’t tell him when he asked. It comes as no surprise to him now that she stopped going outside. He can’t exactly blame her. Seventeen is going on their eighth year so Mingyu is a seasoned veteran at ignoring the things people say on the internet. Unfortunately, Kamile didn’t have that luxury. His stomach turns at the tales of her being approached on the street by people who wrongly called themselves fans thinking they were protecting him. The racist comments made about her online. She was suffering and he just let it go on thinking that she was just being moody.

“Do you think that caused you to develop a little resentment for Mingyu and his idol status?”

Kamile’s first instinct is to say no, but given that they are supposed to be as honest possible she tamps down the lie before it can slip out. She did resent that she’d fallen for someone with such great public notoriety sometimes. It was different when she was just one of Vernon’s childhood friends. The general public didn’t really care what she did from day to day, but now one wrong move turns her into a trending topic and she doesn’t know how to handle it. There are days that she wishes that Mingyu was just a normal person, but then they would have never met and that’s not a reality she truly wants to live in despite her feelings towards him when she walked out.

“Maybe a little bit but I know we’d have never met if he wasn’t Mingyu from Seventeen so it’s pointless really.”

They talk with Yeojin a little while longer before she has to go to her next appointment. The air between them is heavy with the weight of the secrets that have come to light. It’s a stifling atmosphere and it’s beginning to drive Kamile insane. She reaches for the remote to restart their show, but Mingyu takes it from her.

“Why didn’t you tell me what was going on?” His eyes are misty as he struggles to hold himself back from crying once more. He could kick himself for not doing his best to shield her from the people that had killed her spirit.

“You’re already so busy and the last thing I wanted to do was add to everything else on your plate.” Mingyu wants to scream. She means more to him than being an idol. She always has. He cups her face in his hands, pressing his forehead to hers.

“Promise me that you won’t hold stuff inside like that anymore and I promise to be better at not letting you. Deal?”

“Deal.” Kamile’s eyes flutter closed as Mingyu pulls away to press his lips to her forehead.

He clears his throat before grabbing the remote to resume their show. For the next few hours, conversation is limited to the messy lives of the supernatural beings on the screen before them. The wind still howls. The rain is unceasing. Yet in the little bubble of Netflix and snacks that they’ve created, it may as well not even exist.

Until bedtime that is.

“You know,” Mingyu says as they file up the stairs. The seemingly ever present bad weather still continues, “…you don’t have to sleep alone. I know you don’t like storms.”

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” It would be so easy to take him up on his offer. She could finally get some sleep, but for whatever reason she can’t bring herself to do it.

“Well you know where I am if you change your mind. Good night, Kamile.”

“Good night, Mingyu.”

Kamile stares at the ceiling in despair. She didn’t think it was possible for the storm to get worse but apparently Mother Nature took that as a challenge. She’s starting to genuinely concerned about whether or not the window by her bed can withstand the force of the weather it’s being forced to deal with. Kamile contemplates running to Mingyu’s room but shuts that idea down for the millionth time. Things feel...different between them after today’s call with Yeojin but she’s not sure if they’ve been different enough to justify hopping into bed with him quite yet.

“This is fine. I don’t need to sleep.” She whispers into the void.

She’s accepted her fate and made peace with it. Or at least that’s what she thought she’d done. A crack of lighting illuminates the room despite the blackout curtains over the window followed by a thunderous boom so loud it seems to vibrate her very being. Kamile is across the hall before she even has the time to process what she’s doing. Mingyu is out cold when she bursts into the room. Her brain chooses that moment to catch up to what she’s doing and flips on the switch of self-consciousness. Another loud boom has her throwing caution to the wind once more, sliding beneath the blanket to get as close to him as possible without waking him up.

Kamile lays next to him a trembling anxious mess as the storm rages on. She’s so consumed by her own fear that she doesn’t even notice the man next to her has roused from sleep until he’s wrapped both of his arms around her to pull her into his warm chest. It’s as if the environmental warfare outside ceases to exist the second Kamile’s cheek makes contact with Mingyu’s skin. His presence drowns everything out just like it did all those years ago. The sleep that had been evading her comes quickly in his embrace.

Day 4

A ray of sunlight shines perfectly through a crack in the curtain to hit Kamile square in the face. She squirms around trying to escape it and gets a frustrated groan in response. It’s then that she registers the weight of the arm that rests loosely across her midsection. The memory of running to Mingyu’s bed in the middle of the night comes rushing back to her. Her first instinct is to bolt, but she’s so touch starved that she finds herself turning in his hold in a bid to get closer.

“Good morning.” Mingyu grunts something in response that she’s sure he thought sounded like good morning.

He slots one of his legs between hers and unintentionally allows her to feel the morning wood barely contained by his boxer briefs. Mingyu’s even breathing indicates that he’s fallen back asleep. Kamile would love to do the same but all of her attention is laser focused on the hardened appendage intimately pressed against her upper thigh. A damp spot has already started forming in her panties. She needs to get out of this bed now. Kamile squirms and wiggles around trying to get away, but it would seem that her efforts are having the opposite effect. A throaty groan slips from Mingyu’s lips.

“Stop moving.” He mumbles still half asleep. Kamile does her best to stop fidgeting and focus her attention elsewhere, but it’s not working. Her inner muscles clench around nothing as thoughts of what Mingyu could do to her dance dangerously through her mind.

“I have to pee.” Mingyu cracks one eye open. It doesn’t take a genius to tell that he doesn’t believe her for a second but he releases her anyway. He sighs as he watches her run off to the en suite bathroom.

Mingyu is noticeably absent when Kamile emerges from the bathroom fresh off a rushed orgasm though hardly sated. She follows the scent of coffee downstairs to find Mingyu bent over digging through one of the crisper drawers in the refrigerator. Back before everything went to shit she would’ve slapped his ass with glee and run away before he could exact his revenge. Good times.

“Did you hear what I said?” Kamile was so focused on his ass that she hadn’t even registered the fact that Mingyu had said anything.

“Huh?”

“I said do you want to get in the hot tub later since we can go outside now?” He repeats as he hands over a cup of coffee already milky and sweet the way she likes it.

“It’s almost 80 degrees outside and you want to get in a hot tub?” She questions slowly to which Mingyu responds with an emphatic yes. “Be honest. Are you just trying to see me in a bikini?”

“Absolutely.” He giggles when Kamile reaches out to smack him on the arm. “Why are you attacking me? Yeojin said we have to be honest at all times.”

“I don’t think that included being a horny little shit.”

“I’m a man with eyes and a hot wife. I can’t help.” Despite the compliment, Kamile’s mood sours at his words. Mingyu’s freshly honed observation skills picks up on it immediately.

“Uh oh, did I say something wrong?”

“If I’m so hot, then why haven’t we had sex in four months? We used to go at it like rabbits and then one day you just stopped initiating things.”

Mingyu is quick to point out that he did try to have sex with her plenty of times, but she pushed him away. Eventually, he gave up. It’s almost funny when the dots start connecting in her head. Her personal struggles had originally been why she denied him sex, but then he’d started coming home doused in perfume so she really didn’t want anything to do with him then. Mingyu has never been a very pushy person so he figured he’d just wait her out. He didn’t think that he’d end up in a four month dry spell (and counting), but he was also not about to look for satisfaction outside of his marriage either.

“How about we save this sex talk until after I’m finished cooking? All of the blood in my body is rushing south and these rice cakes are starting to look like nipples.” Kamile nearly chokes on the water she’d just taken a sip of. Tears pour from her eyes as her body can’t decide if it wants to laugh or die of asphyxiation.

“Woah, woah! When we said till death do us part I was hoping we’d be farting dust not barely 26.” Kamile is sure that he wants her dead now as her internal war between laughing and choking only gets worse.

Despite her earlier protests, Kamile finds herself seated across from Mingyu in the hot tub later that evening as they watch the sun set. She fully expects him to try something from the way his eyes keep drifting south to stare at her chest, but he’s on his best behavior the entire time.

Day 5

“Hello, love birds! I missed you two yesterday. What happened?” Yeojin looks hesitant almost as if she’s scared of their answer. She looks downright relieved to hear that they missed her call because they fell asleep cuddling on the couch. After getting a run down of everything that’s happened since they last spoke, she encourages them to continue sleeping in the same bed together.

“Couples often downplay the amount of good that just being physically close to your partner can be. If you’re both comfortable sleeping next to each other without a thunderstorm being the driving force, please keep doing it.” Yeojin pleads before ending the call to go to her next appointment.

Her words hang in the air even after she’s gone. Mingyu looks over at Kamile with a questioning look on his face. It’s clear that he’s after her opinion on this whole shared bed situation, but Kamile doesn’t have much to say on the matter. The two of them have been pretty much inseparable during the day now, but she’s still nervous about sleeping in the same bed together and she doesn’t know how to shake that feeling. She was too scared to think about it last night but without the weather to distract her she’s not so sure if sit’s a good idea.

“What’s going on in there?” Mingyu taps a finger against Kamile’s temple to get her attention. She shakes her head but he’s got a feeling it’s about what Yeojin’s bed sharing idea.

“If this is about sharing a bed, don’t worry about. You’ve got the rest of the day to decide.” She nods in acknowledgement of his point but Mingyu can tell that the gears in her head are turning even faster than before. Her overthinking is going to give her a headache.

Night time comes entirely too quickly for Kamile’s liking. Mingyu has kept her so busy that she hasn’t had the time to sit down to sort through her thoughts. Knowing him, he probably did that on purpose. He always hated her habit of overthinking everything, preferring to live in the moment and make decisions as they arose. Kamile has never had much success doing that which is why they work so well together. He balances her out and helps her weed out the important aspects of the topic at hand to make faster decisions.

Her mind is racing as they climb the stairs on their way to bed. Mingyu stops at the door to his bedroom and looks at her with such hope on his face that she almost feels guilty for what she’s about to say. His face falls when Kamile tells him that she thinks it’s better for them to sleep in their own respective rooms tonight. Mingyu is a good sport about it, bidding her good night with a lingering kiss to her forehead.

Falling asleep has never been a problem for Mingyu which is why he’s utterly confused when he’s still wide awake three hours after getting into bed. He’s in danger of pulling the sheets off of the mattress on one side from how much he’s been tossing and turning.

This is bullshit. I’ve been sleeping fine every night. What’s the difference now?

Mingyu sits up to fluff his pillows. It doesn’t help. He kicks the ceiling fan up a notch. That doesn’t help either. He counts sheep, ducks, and even cows, but nothing is working. The longer he tries to avoid the obvious the more awake he seems to be. Sleeping in the guest room most nights to avoid arguing had taught him to sleep alone. Now that he knows what it’s like to hold her again, he’s ruined. He wonders briefly if Kamile is awake too. Is she just as restless too?

He tosses and turns for the better part of another hour. The clock on his phone says that 3 a.m is quickly approaching and Mingyu caves. It takes less than ten seconds to cross the hall to her room, but practicing his explanation as to why he’s in her room at ass o’clock in the morning takes much longer. He knocks twice and pokes his head in.

“Kam?”

“You can’t sleep either, huh?” She asks without even turning to look at the man poking his head into her bedroom.

Mingyu nearly collapses from sheer relief when Kamile simply reaches behind herself to lift the blankets after he confirms that he’s been unable to fall asleep just like her. He wastes no time sliding in behind her. Before he can even get it out of his mouth to ask, Kamile reaches back to find his arm, pulling it across her waist.

“Good night, Gyu.” Kamile whispers. Her words are slurred as if she’s already half asleep. Mingyu kisses her shoulder, letting his lips linger against her skin.

“Good night, Kam.”

Day 6

A feather light touch to her lower lip is what prompts Kamile to open her eyes long before she’s ready. She pulls back slightly once her vision clears and she realizes just how close Mingyu’s face is to her own. He even has the audacity to laugh at her surprise.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think you’d wake up.” He’s not sure how long he’s been watching her sleep, but he’d do it for the rest of his days. The pesky organ in his chest skips a beat as he holds Kamile’s gaze like a lifeline. He mulls over his next words very carefully, preparing for a possible rejection just as he did when he came to her room in the middle of night. “Can I kiss you?”

“Please do.” She whispers into the inch of space that separates them.

Mingyu closed the gap slowly as if he’s giving her time to change her mind. Kamile sighs when his lips finally touch hers. One of his hands comes up to untie the silk scarf tied protectively around her head so that he can bury his hand in the curls he’s always been obsessed with. He uses his grip on her to guide her head as he deepens the kiss.

She rolls onto her back and pulls him with her so that his much larger frame nearly covers hers entirely. Mingyu lets his primal instincts take over. Too lost in the way her lips are moving against his own. A groan rattles his chest when she squirms beneath him until his hips are situated between her thighs. The thin fabric of their respective underwear are the only barriers separating his aching erection from the place she needs him most. He can’t resist the urge to grind himself against her. If his brain wasn’t so clouded in lust, he’d probably have the mental capacity to feel a little embarrassed at just how quickly he’s risen to full mast. Kamile is floating somewhere beyond cloud nine when Mingyu’s hand that had been cradling her head moves to lightly grip her throat instead while the other rhythmically squeezes and pushes at her ass in time with his thrusts. Her head is tipped back in ecstasy as he kisses along her jaw.

It takes a herculean effort that he wasn’t totally sure he was even capable of, but Mingyu separates himself from the panting woman in his arms. He rocks back on his heels and Kamile’s eyes are immediately drawn to the tantalizing bulge at the apex of his shapely thighs. She reaches for him but Mingyu grabs her wrist before she can get her hands on him. He lifts her hand to his lips, pressing kisses to the back of it.

“Trust me when I say that I would love nothing more than to ravage you right now but if I’m going to be inside you again, I want you to have my ring on your finger.” Kamile starts to speak but stops when Mingyu presses his index finger to her lips. He traces the outline of her kiss swollen lips almost as if he’s in a trance. “I don’t want you to make a decision that you’re not totally comfortable with just because you’re horny. I want you to really want it. I want you to really want us. Now get up so I can feed you.”

A vulgar comment about what she really wants him to feed her crosses Kamile’s mind as Mingyu playfully swats at her thighs to get her moving. She respects his resolve and keeps it to herself but only barely.

“It’s super nice outside. Wanna go for a walk?” Kamile would actually rather stay inside and enjoy the comforts of the air-conditioning, but Mingyu looks so excited that she finds herself giving in. She disappears upstairs to put on her sneakers mentally kicking herself for being so whipped for the man waiting for her by the patio door.

Mingyu laces his fingers between Kamile’s

They happen across a small stream during their casual stroll around the property. Kamile stops to look at Mingyu to see if he’s on the same wavelength as her.

“Let’s do it.”

Their shoes are abandoned under a tree near the creek before running full speed into the water. The cooler temperature of the water feels like heaven. Kamile squeals when Mingyu splashes her with water. Mingyu suddenly lifts her over his shoulder, using the hand that’s not holding on to her to splash Kamile with more water. She’s out of breath from laughing when he finally lets her down only to steal the rest of her breath away when he surprises her with a kiss.

“What was that for?” She’s slightly dazed both from the lack of oxygen and the searing kiss he’s just laid on her.

“Because.” He smirks at her before swooping in for yet another kiss.

“And that one?”

“Because part two.” Kamile giggles at his corniness even though she does her best not to give him the satisfaction of knowing it gets to her. Mingyu’s smile somehow gets even bigger at the sound of her laughter. He digs his fingers into his sides to prolong her laughter for his own enjoyment.

They spend a little longer frolicking around before finally heading back to the house to shower and start on dinner. Kamile unsuccessfully lobbies to shower together but Mingyu is adamant in his refusal. He’s positive that the self-control he exhibited earlier that morning used up all the restraint he could’ve ever hoped to have for the next six months. There’s no way he’d be able to deny her. He kisses her quickly before running off to his own bathroom.

Mingyu is totally and completely in love. He absentmindedly pushes his food around with his fork as he listens to Kamile rant about the mistreatment and near erasure of some X-Men character named Darwin. He’s got absolutely no idea what she’s talking about but she’s so passionate about it that he can’t help being fascinated.

“Darwin’s whole entire superpower was that he could adapt to anything and you mean to tell me that robots designed to adapt to and counteract the powers of mutants were built off of Mystique’s DNA? Absolutely not. I might be a little-” Her rant is cut short by her phone ringing on the kitchen counter where she’d left it. She grumbles about being interrupted as she gets up to go get it. It’s Yeojin.

Kamile returns to the table with her phone, choosing to sit in Mingyu’s lap for their daily check-in. The marriage counselor should get a kick out of that one. Sure enough, their seating arrangement is the first thing that Yeojin comments on. They take turns updating her on everything that’s occurred since they last spoke with her though they leave out some of the more sordid details.

“This is what I like to hear!” She exclaims with an excited clap of her hands. “It seems that everything is going well right now. Is there anything we haven’t talked about this week that one of you wants to go over? If not, I’m comfortable ending the call here.” They say their goodbyes after confirming that they feel like they’re in a good place right now. Yeojin makes them swear to call her the moment they think they need her but she doubts that she’ll be hearing from them until their follow-up appointment in a few days.

Kamile makes to get up to return to her own chair but Mingyu stops her. She shrugs and reaches across the table to grab her own bowl. He smiles to himself as she resumes the rant that she’d been in the middle of before Yeojin’s call. He still has no idea what she’s going on about but he’s content to just listen to her vent.

Day 7

Anxiety twisting her gut into knots is what eventually pulls Kamile from the bliss of sleep. Mingyu’s side of the bed is empty and she’s thankful for that to a certain extent. She heads for the shower, taking extra care with everything she does until she realizes how cowardly it is to stall like this. Deciding against putting on actual clothes, Kamile opts to just pull on one of oversized hoodies.

“Good morning!” Mingyu leans over to kiss her sweetly before turning back to the pan he’s tending to on the stove. He’s been doing that a lot since yesterday. Just randomly stealing kisses like he’s making up for lost time.

“Just so you don’t get freaked out when they show up, I’ve got a private chef coming to cook us dinner tonight.” Mingyu mentions as they sit down to eat breakfast. She’s pleasantly surprised that he’s put in so much thought into their anniversary even though he’s yet to directly mention the fact that today is their anniversary.

Today is their last day in their little safe haven away from the world and the status of their marriage is still technically up in the air. They both know that a decision needs to be made before they leave in the morning, but neither of them has brought it up. It’s like they’ve been tip toeing around the giant elephant in the room and expecting for it to just disappear on its own.

Other than Mingyu making tteokbeokki, extra spicy and extra cheesy just the way Kamile likes it, they don’t really do much throughout the day. A majority of their time is spent tangled in each other on the couch just talking. They reminisce on the days when they’d first started dating. Kamile nearly falls off of the couch in a fit of laughter at Mingyu’s spot on impression of Vernon’s face when he’d caught them sneaking a few kisses in the dorm kitchen one day. Each memory is sweeter than the last and Kamile is overcome with the urge to make more of those memories. Now that she’s been able to let go of the anger and misplaced resentment that had made her bitter, she actually has hope in that possibility.

The heels of the platform pumps she’d decided on for the night click with every step as Kamile slowly descends the staircase. She’s determined not to let her natural clumsiness send her to the hospital on such an important day. Mingyu holds his hand out to her when she reaches the last few steps. He looks every bit the international superstar that he’s known to be.

“You look absolutely stunning.” Warmth spreads across her face at the whispered compliment. She barely manages to return the favor. Kamile’s nerves are starting to get the better of her and she hopes and prays that there’s wine on the table so that she can drink them away.

Thankfully, Kamile notices a bottle of white wine chilling in an ice bucket next to the table when Mingyu leads her into the dim dining room. The dinner prepared by the chef looks delicious and she’s can’t wait to taste it but wine is her first priority if she expects to make it through dinner without bolting. Her first glass is tipped down her throat in record time much to Mingyu’s amusement. He refills without hesitation though she chooses to actually sip that one as intended.

Conversation flows easily between them as they eat. However, the topic that deserves their attention the most continues to stew on the back burner as they talk about literally anything else. As nervous as Kamile was when she first came downstairs, Mingyu is doubly so. He’s done his almighty best to convince Kamile that their marriage is worth saving without outright begging her. Based on the past few days, he’s incredibly hopeful that she’ll come back home with him tomorrow and stay there but she’s always been a wildcard. You never truly knew what move she was going to make until she made it. The small velvet box in his pocket feels like a stone. During a lull in the conversation, Mingyu makes his move.

“Kamile,” He reaches across the table to grab both of her hands, “Four years ago you agreed to be my girlfriend and I thought that surely that was the happiest day of my life but then you said yes to being my wife and I knew then that I was wrong. You’re the most precious part of my life and I was a fool for not making sure that you knew that every day for the last year.”

Mingyu pauses to get down on one knee next to Kamile, pulling the ring box from his pocket. Her ring is nestled in the tiny velvet box. It sparkles brilliantly even in the dim lighting. “Kamile Kim, will you do me the honor of staying my wife?”

Tears well up in Kamile’s eyes as she nods her head yes. She’d made countless lists and weighed her options, but in that moment she throws all of that logic to the wind. At the end of the day, Mingyu is the one. He always has been and he always will be. She can’t believe that she almost threw everything away over her own assumptions and insecurities. Mingyu doesn’t hesitate to slide the piece of jewelry onto her trembling hand when she holds it out to him. He stands, pulling her with him so that he can kiss her senseless.

“I’ve been waiting to say this until I knew where we stood but….happy anniversary, babe.”

“Happy anniversary, Gyu.” She whispers against his lips before kissing him deeply once more. “Now take me upstairs.”

“Your wish is my command, my lady.”

#the intimacy anthology #kim mingyu #mingyu seventeen #mingyu idol au #mingyu au #mingyu established relationship #mingyu x oc #mingyu x reader #mingyu x black oc #mingyu x poc oc #mingyu smut #seventeen smut #vernon

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jeongyunhoed · 3 years

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Past-Present-Future Black Dahlia

Two major tragedies bring Lee Mirae closer to the edge as she goes through the stages of grief in a more violent manner that would affect not only her relationships with her boyfriend Jeong Yunho and her half-brother Choi San, but also has her becoming closer with the immortal mutant Kang Yeosang. Fueled by rage, grief, and pain, along with a very rude awakening that has Mirae spiraling out of control and questioning everything she holds dear.

Group: ATEEZ Member: Yunho Pairing: Jeong Yunho / OC Genre: Action, adventure, angst, fantasy

Watch Out! : Violence, blood, death, grief and loss, major character deaths, use of weapons, some jealousy (but no cheating ofc), implied smut (not sure if there is any but i’m putting it out there nonetheless), mental illness (probably?), gambling and alcohol

Anything else? : Mentions of other idols of course as well as other characters. SuperM, Dean, Chanyeol, Zelo, soloist Park Jihoon to name a few.

Author’s Note: Sorry for taking so long to update! Oh, and I thought since it’s my birthday, I’d treat everyone (at least everyone who reads this anyway) with another chapter! Hurrah! Things are happening!

Masterlist

Chapter 8

“So, it seems like one of us is dead,” Ten broke the silence between the rest of them as they looked over the city from where they stood. They were back in the real world, in the conference room of the skyscraper that Mark owned under his own enterprise.

“And one is being held hostage,” Lucas pointed to his temple. “That same one owns this building that we are staying in. Why didn’t we stay in your building? You own the tech company in the first place,” He glanced over at Taemin.

“It won’t be long before Yunho comes here,” Ino said, seeing Taemin furiously disintegrate the vacant chairs in front of him. “He’s bound to come here since he’s got Mark. Taeyong proved to be a lot more expendable than we thought he was.”

“How dare you say that!” Taemin disintegrated the chair the elder was sitting on and the table that had their drinks.

“Taemin, it’s true. Taeyong clearly forgot he was up against someone whose mind he can’t read,” Baekhyun pointed out. “Mirae and San both have a shield. No one can get into their heads. You placed San in the mountains where he stayed with a woman for a while,” He glanced at Ten, who shrugged. “Wrong move.”

“It was an attempt to get him to soften up,” Ten replied. “I figured if I brought San back to a place he would remember fondly, like that place, where he had quite a...sexually explicit affair with the wife of his mercenary group leader, he would be vulnerable. Apparently not. That was the reason why he fled to look for his sister in the first place.”

“And what about Yunho?” Jongin asked.

“Yunho, to the place where his immortality took effect,” Ten glanced at them. “Where he was vulnerable.”

“So what is our next move?” Taemin fumed.

Ino looked at the tablet at his feet, laying on top of the piles of dust that was once the conference room table. The tablet unlocked itself and showed the interface of the controls. “This is our next move. We go live,” He replied, some of the features on the interface tapping themselves. “Project Apocalypse is now live.”

“You know, Yunho made a good point earlier when we visited him,” Ten glanced at them. “We go like this without any leadership, if we need any. Our think-tank will need a face.”

“Wouldn’t it be obvious by now? I have been looking for mutants under the directions of my father back in the center for paranormal research. I am also far more powerful than any of you in this room,” Ino said. “I’ve waited for a long time to take my place among our kind. I realize that my place is above.”

“It was my plan to track down Jihoon, Hyuk, and Chanyeol that led us to come up with this think tank in the first place,” Baekhyun interjected. “You only knew of that when you went away after the tall dope and the telekinetic were killed.”

“But my powers are far more superior than yours, Baekhyun,” Ino repeated. “Are you really going to question my very obvious authority over you?”

“No, you are right,” Baekhyun got up from his chair. “You have a very obvious authority over all of us. Maybe not Mark as he is significantly older than you, but for the rest of us?” He kicked down the wooden floor lamp, making the base snap in two. Baekhyun picked up the two pieces and before he could strike, the two pieces disintegrated and Baekhyun was floating in the air.

Ino stared at him, shaking his head slightly. “Tsk, tsk, Baekhyun. Even my powers surpass that of Mark’s. You ought to know better than to fight me.”

“Yeah, because Mirae’s the only one here that can actually do damage to you,” Jongin chimed in. “Don’t think we didn’t see what happened to you. Put Baekhyun hyung down.”

Ino’s expression stiffened and Baekhyun dropped to the floor. “You’re a fool if you even consider opposing me.”

“You’re also a fool for assuming you can defeat everybody here, if I do say so myself,” Taemin pointed out, glaring at him. “You just tagged along when you found out what we were planning.”

“And now I am changing the plans,” Ino countered. “Project Apocalypse won’t just be a think tank anymore, it’s going to be more than that.”

Particles of dust and metal were floating in mid-air in front of Ino, suddenly taking the form of robots that towered over all of them. “Project Apocalypse will remake the world into our image.”

Jongin stared at him. “We killed the goblins years ago when they were looking to do the same thing, Jang Ino. You should know this most of all.”

“I’m not talking about the goblins,” Ino said. “Mutant supremacy at its finest. The diamond of the tree of life will power these robots,” the gem appeared in his hand out of thin air.

Jongin and Baekhyun stared at the gem. “...You kept the diamond all this time?” said the older of the two.

“Yes, all this time, the diamond was with me. It made itself known to me shortly after the explosion from the Center,” Ino said. “Have you already forgotten? This is a sentient gem. It could never be destroyed, it simply disappears and reappears to anyone it wants to appear to.”

“You will need material for that, whatever you are planning on building,” Taemin said, now intrigued by his proposal. “Where do you suppose you’re going to get that?”

“From you, of course. Your company also specializes in metals, don’t they? The same alloy Junhong uses to fit the cars at the Center come from your company,” Ino pointed out. “They will be indestructible, and they will usher in a new era in the world.”

Lucas approached the window, staring down at the busy streets below them. “So your droids are going to act as the horsemen of the apocalypse, won’t they?” He asked.

“Why yes, they will. The horsemen of Project Apocalypse.”

Mirae looked up at the sky. In the midst of the calm, she still felt some frustration, the seeping feeling of regret that she didn’t finish Baekhyun or Jongin off while she had the chance, Ino even more so. Her eyes began to glow as well as her fingertips. “We’re not where we should be,” She said. “Project Apocalypse is being activated in the city, our real city.”

“You mean they went back?” Mingi said.

“I got it from Yunho. Mark told him, he’s telling him everything,” Mirae replied. “If my instincts are right, you should stand behind me,” She was still looking up.

“What are you thinking of doing?” Hongjoong asked.

“Don’t ask, just stand behind her,” Yeosang said.

Mirae channeled everything she was feeling, the glow in her eyes and fingertips growing brighter and brighter as she concentrated on the sky. The more she stared at the sky and at the clouds swirling above them, the more the sky began to turn red, as red as the glow in her eyes and fingertips. “For Hyuk and Chanyeol,” She muttered. “For Jihoon, for Yunho, and for San.”

The more she concentrated, they started to see that Mirae’s form was beginning to glow as well, and a powerful wave of energy shot up into the skies, causing what looked like cracks in a forcefield. Another wave of energy shot up, but this time, they saw that it was much more powerful than before, breaking out of the cracks and shattering what was above them completely.

As the sky broke down completely, it seemed to reveal where they really were and to Mirae, it was another familiar place. It was the deserted compound with the empty, partly demolished houses. One of those houses had the passage that led to the goblin kingdom court.

“Wow, I knew she was powerful, but I never thought she was this powerful,” Jongho muttered, the rest of them looked at her in amazement. The glow in her eyes was fading.

They saw Junhong get out of the van nearby, looking around in disbelief and almost stumbling as he ran up to them. “What happened? Where are we?” He called out.

“She broke down the dimension Ten put us in,” Yeosang replied. “Which means Yunho and San would be very close by.”

Junhong gaped at her. “Now we need to look for them,” He took out the thin sliver of metal that was their communicator and turned it on. “Yunho? San? Where are you?” He called out, hoping for an answer.

“Hey! Hey!” They looked at a figure running from a distance, and Mirae broke into a run as well when she realized who it was.

“San!” She called out, the two of them capturing each other in a tight hug. “San, I’m sorry,” Mirae said softly.

“For what?” He said.

“For how I’ve been acting these past few weeks,” Mirae said quietly. “I was acting like you weren’t my brother, like you didn’t exist or something.”

San shook his head. “It’s okay, sis. Are you back now?” He asked.

“I-I don’t know,” Mirae said. “For some reason I don’t know.”

They heard a commotion come from one of the partly demolished houses. “That must be where Yunho is,” Hongjoong said, and ran to the house, speeding up to the second floor.

The rest of them ran to the house as well to catch up. Wooyoung transformed into his shadow form and slithered along the ground and into the house as well. “Junhong, you better stay close to us,” Mirae said.

“I already am,” Junhong nodded, as they stepped inside the house. “Oh, this is the same place from-”

“Yeah, where we dealt with the goblins,” Mirae replied, seeing the blood stains on the floors and on the walls. “We always tend to end up in this place.”

“We’re in a small country, we’re bound to always end up in places we’ve been to before,” Junhong replied.

“Seonghwa, when I say go, control it,” Mirae said. “I have a feeling that’s how it’s going to go.”

They heard several thuds coming from the second floor, until the figures of Yunho and Mark appeared and disappeared, both of them engaged in a tussle in front of them.

The rest of them tried to surround the two that kept teleporting in and out. “Go!” Mirae said the moment she sensed the two would reappear. Seonghwa’s eyes and fingertips glowed green as he broke the two teleporters apart, the two of them floating in mid-air as they were surrounded by the rest.

When Mark tried to teleport away, Mingi kicked him back, followed by a strike from Hongjoong then Jongho, Wooyoung, Mirae, and San. Yeosang cast another hex towards the immortal, keeping him frozen as Seonghwa dropped him and Yunho to the floor. “I guess this is what happens when we don’t have much of our weapons left,” Mingi said.

“Excellent, Hwa,” Mirae patted him on the shoulder.

“Hyuk taught me that,” He said.

“He taught you well,” She patted his shoulder again.

Yunho quickly got to his feet, seeing Mark bruised and incapacitated on the floor. “One moment, we were in a village in Casablanca, the next moment, we’re in this...place, whatever this is,” He said.

“Mirae broke down the dimension Ten put us in,” Yeosang pointed out, Yunho looking even more surprised at the change in his appearance.

Yunho turned to Mirae, who was still staring at Mark’s frozen form. “Mirae?” He said.

She looked up at the mention of her name. “Yunho?” Mirae went up to him in a tight hug, Yunho almost lifting her off her feet. “I’m so sorry,” She said. “I’m sorry for the way I’ve been.”

Yunho shook his head. “It’s okay, it’s okay,” He kissed her cheek as he held her close. “I know how much they meant to you, and for a moment I thought I was going to lose you.”

“Me too. I was so consumed by how I was feeling, I thought I was going out of control,” Mirae pulled back, staring into his eyes. “I couldn’t stop myself, I was just so angry and hurt and-”

Yunho shook his head and kissed her. “What matters is that you’re back now,” He whispered. Back to me, he thought.

“What do we do with him? Any ideas?” Hongjoong asked them, making Yunho and Mirae pull away to look over at Mark.

“We could prolong the hex, if I may suggest,” Yeosang spoke. “Any other ideas?”

“Skin him?” Jongho asked.

“Burn him alive?” Mingi chimed in.

“Make an example out of him,” Mirae said, her expression falling. She bent down to look closely at Mark. “Where in the city would they activate Project Apocalypse?” She asked.

“Taemin and Taeyong’s company. It’s a tech enterprise,” Mark replied, seemingly defeated. “I must admit, I have underestimated each and every one of you.”

“Don’t make that mistake again,” Mirae pointed out.

“I killed one of yours,” San said, holding up a fragment of a diamond that was in his pocket. “Look familiar?” He said.

Mark stared at him in horror. “...That’s impossible.”

“It is, when you’re someone like me,” San replied. “What else can you tell us about Project Apocalypse?”

“It’s too late,” Mark said. “Ino has activated the project, and it appears that he’s got more tricks up his sleeve, if I can hear his thoughts correctly.”

“What tricks? What kind of tricks?” Yunho asked.

Wooyoung stared at him, and then turned to the rest of them, blinking a few times as to what he was seeing. “Robots. Like the ones in the Danger room. Ino’s making robots that can kill,” He said. “Just like the robots you fought.”

“Then let’s go. Yeosang can take care of Mark,” Mirae said, giving the vampiric mutant a nod. “Tough luck, Mr. Lee. You’ve weakened Yeosang enough to make him hungry.”

“Should I call you an old friend? You’re not as invincible as you make yourself out to be. Then again, you’re now dealing with me,” Yeosang then bent down as the rest of them moved out of the house. Mark stared at him. “You can read my mind to know how much I need to feed, and unfortunately for you, your time is up,” He pressed his hand to Mark’s heart, shuddering as he absorbed the life out of him.

“They got Mark too. This vendetta you have is becoming even more risky,” Taemin glared at Baekhyun. “And now they’re on their way here.”

“We’re becoming outnumbered, it’s nine of them against how many of us?” Ten raised a brow, also looking at Baekhyun.

“If they got Mark and Taeyong, that just means they were outsmarted, outmatched, and they’re not as strong as they make themselves out to be. Yeah, I said what I said,” Baekhyun shot back at Taemin.

“It doesn’t matter if they were expendable or not,” Ino said. “All that matters is,” He gestured to the windows. They could hear a thud followed by the sounds of people screaming in the streets. The robot that Ino had built was walking out in the open. “Action must be taken now. If I were all of you, I’d make sure Mirae and the others don’t stand in the way.”

“We should go then,” Lucas said, Ten getting up from his seat, followed by Taemin. “They’ve taken two from us, we should return the favor.”

Baekhyun and Jongin got up, the younger of the two limping as he joined their colleagues. “Mutant supremacy,” Baekhyun said as if to remind them of their resolve. Ten and Taemin held on to Lucas’ shoulders while Baekhyun put his hand on Jongin’s and in an instant, they vanished.

Ino closed his eyes and vanished as well.

“If we’re here, then it means we’re getting close to home,” Mirae said as they approached another familiar dilapidated apartment building that revealed some of the floors. Yeosang quickly reappeared with them, his appearance returning to normal. She glanced at San and Yunho, “I mean, we’re getting literally close to home, the store is a bus ride away.”

They entered the building, Mirae and Junhong seeing the familiar blood splatters on the doors and on the walls that had peeling wallpaper. Wooyoung gaped at what he was seeing. “Jongin got attacked here, didn’t he? During that time with all of you? He was with another guy,” He said.

“Sehun, yeah,” Mirae replied as they climbed up the staircase, seeing even more blood spatters, some might even have looked fresh from how red it was. “Looks like some creatures come out to feed here then,” She muttered.

“Creatures?!” Hongjoong stared at her.

“Creatures. Non-humans, goblins most likely,” Junhong nodded. “Mirae, you still know the way, right?” He asked.

“Vividly,” Mirae answered, leading them down the hall to the door at the very end. “You all know what to do in case something happens.”

“I wonder why this area hasn’t been developed? I could’ve made the way to where we’re going a lot...nicer looking,” Yeosang frowned at the sight of the deteriorating interiors.

Mirae opened the door, revealing a staircase going down to a dark tunnel ahead. The passage was barely lit, and they could hear the sounds of something scurrying and squeaking. “Oh my god,” Seonghwa muttered, gripping the strap of his quiver tightly while Mingi took out his lighter to light the way from his place, the flames rising up high enough to make it bright for everyone to see.

“Watch your steps,” Mirae looked over at them, holding Yunho’s hand tightly as they walked through the passageway, seeing rats scurry around them, and making Jongho and Wooyoung squeal in their places, Mingi holding onto Hongjoong who leaned away from the flame in his lighter.

San gave them a look, shaking his head. “All of you realize we need to be quiet in case someone else is in here, right?” He said.

More rats were scurrying, making the rest of them, including Yeosang, stick to Mirae and Yunho. “I think we were a lot braver against those rodents while we were under the trance,” Hongjoong said.

“Clearly,” Mirae nodded as they walked on, seeing the familiar old-fashioned elevator at the end of the tunnel. There were still bits of dried blood on the buttons going up and down as the iron doors opened. “Not all of us are going to fit in here,” she said. “San, Yunho, Junhong, Yeosang, Wooyoung, and I will go in first, the rest of you will be next. We’ll wait for you.”

“Got it,” Hongjoong said.

“If something goes wrong, Hongjoong, you better run,” Mirae eyed him, and he nodded again.

“How about we don’t do that? I’d like to try something, my dear,” Yeosang cast a spell, and the elevator in front of them expanded in size. “It can fit up to ten people now. We cannot afford to separate now, they will take advantage of us being split up.”

All of them got inside, and Mirae pressed the button, the doors closing as the elevator began to go down. They could feel a cold draft coming from below as they were further lowered down into the dark shaft. “We haven’t been here in a while,” Junhong looked around. “I wonder what’s going to happen to us now after all of this is over.”

“I suggest we still stick together after this,” Hongjoong said. “It’s clear that we all work well together, including executive Kang.”

“Aside from that, I mean,” Junhong said. “Mirae’s got the store, Yeosang’s got his company, now that it’s clear that Ino is no longer willing to keep us going, the rest of us are on our own.”

“What is that smell?” Jongho suddenly spoke, cringing and frowning the further they went down, the rest of them wrinkling their noses at the stench that was getting stronger. “It smells like something died.”

“Something did die. A lot of somethings,” Mirae said. “I didn’t think it would still stink this bad years later.”

“Goblins decay slower than humans,” Junhong said.

“Is that what it is? This smells even worse than the camel poop in Morocco,” Yunho said, glancing at her.

The elevator stopped and Mirae opened the doors, all of them suddenly greeted by the rotting goblin corpses strewn on the floor in what looked like a library with one bookcase pushed to the side, revealing another passageway. “I know I should be used to seeing dead bodies by now, but I’m not used to this,” Seonghwa said as they stepped over the bodies, noticing the glinting gold armor that the creatures wore.

“Come to think about it, this place seems like a good spot for all of us to stay in, kind of like a headquarters,” San glanced at his sister. “There’s all these cool passageways, we just need to uh, get rid of all the bodies and the blood.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Junhong nodded. “This place just needs a lot of cleaning up, an updated security system, and we’d have our own headquarters instead of that safehouse. Where we could really be hidden away.”

They went inside the passageway into a torch-lit chamber that had a set of two giant doors in front of them, the wood that acted as a barricade had long broken, and some parts of the doors had already been busted through. Wooyoung could feel his senses go into overdrive with all the memories he kept seeing the more they walked on. “So much has happened here,” He said, blinking a few times, as if trying to organize what he was seeing.

Mirae led them down the marble aisle in the middle of the room, the water on both sides of the aisle also littered with rotting goblin corpses and the marble that was once white, had stains of blood. It somehow made sense that they were brought back here, that this place was where she would end up at some point or another. The grudge Baekhyun had on her started here and in what was the Center for Paranormal Research. It only made sense that the way to stop Baekhyun was to go through some of the old ways, whatever it might be. But given how things had turned out, Mirae knew she had to do the same with Ino, which seemed like a battle she knew she was going to lose.

Mirae led them through the hole on the left, revealing what seemed like a newly built tunnel illuminated with white lights. “This was where Chanyeol passed through when we dealt with the Utopian cult,” She muttered, making Junhong glance at her.

“Oh right,” Junhong noticed their surroundings the further they went into the tunnel. “Where does this lead to again?”

Mirae looked up at the tall male. “Where my foster parents kept the bodies of the people they would turn into their followers. And the training room, what was once the training room anyway.”

Yunho squeezed her hand as they kept walking. “You know, I kind of feel naked without having anything to kill or wound something with,” He said.

“Sooner or later, we would have to rely on our powers alone,” Mirae muttered, opening the door at the end of the tunnel, the red tapestries bearing the symbol of the Utopian cult hanging on the door and on the walls of the warehouse they now found themselves in.

“And all this time, I had no idea a place like this existed,” Yeosang looked around.

They soon heard a thud coming from a closed off part of the warehouse. The thud grew louder, almost making the ground tremble beneath their feet. Out from the closed off part, a giant robot appeared in front of them, and alongside the machine appeared Lucas, Ten, Taemin, Baekhyun, and Jongin.

“Split them up,” Baekhyun said to the rest of them.

“Junhong, can you protect yourself?” Mirae glanced at the taller male.

“Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine, they probably wouldn’t. Remember what Hyuk and Chanyeol taught the rest of you,” Junhong muttered to them.

“You know, I’m kind of glad Hyuk and that tall dope have now left this earth,” Baekhyun spoke. “All this sentiment, it just makes you weak.”

“They were mutants too, Baekhyun, you knew them just as well,” Mirae said through gritted teeth.

Baekhyun smirked. “No, they were nothing to me, and I knew they were everything to you. To the extent that you neglected those people around you right now.”

“Releasing that robot into the city isn’t going to make you any more or less powerful, you know,” San blurted out, eyeing the rest of them.

“One is already out in the open, this is just another one,” Ten pointed out.

Mirae glanced at the males behind her. “Get the rest of them, but leave Baekhyun and Jongin to me,” She muttered. She turned back to the rest. “I’ve got a bone to pick with two of you.”

“No matter how much we fight, there’s nothing that you can do to stop Project Apocalypse from happening. It’ll start from Seoul, and then to the rest of the world,” Taemin said.

Mirae shook her head. “There’s always something.” Her eyes began to glow along with her fingertips. San’s and Seonghwa’s eyes and fingertips began to glow with their power signatures as well.

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nikki-romero · 3 years

Text

The Wild Flower (Tomoki Matsuba x OC) Chapter 1

I turned around to look at them. My eyes stopped on the man known as Tomoki Matsuba.

"Alright, I pick you, Tomoki Matsuba." Tomoki's expression was still and emotionless; he seemed like the most serious out of all of them.

"Very well," he answered. Still without a hint of life in his expression, he pressed a hand to his heart and bowed.

"Aw, too bad. You and I would have had fun together," Itsuki said.

"I have no use for a butler who isn't serious." I waved a dismissive hand at him.

"Geez, you're mean. I was just kidding."

"Itsuki." Tomoki rested his eyes on Itsuki. Although his expression didn't change, I could hear the warning in his voice.

"Tomo, come on. Don't look at me like that," Itsuki said, a carefree smile on his face.

"Looks like we're done. We'll be returning to the Ichijo residence. Tomoki, I'll leave the rest to you," Yuma said.

"Tomoki will be living in the apartment next door. He'll be taking care of you," Aoi added.

"I'm well aware of what a butler's job is, thanks. If you're done, please leave," I said coldly, turning my back on them once more.

"As you wish. You must be tired. Today was a busy day. You should get some rest," Aoi said.

"Good luck, Miss Ichinomiya," Yuma said with a smirk on his.

"Great, thanks. Don't come back, 'kay?"

"See ya," Itsuki smiled.

"... Goodbye," Kyo said.

I took my tea and walked to my room. I put the cup on my bedside table as I opened my closet to get some PJs.

"Miss Ichinomiya," Tomoki said.

"I tossed the pyjamas on the bed and stood on the threshold, my hand on the door.

"What." It didn't come out as a question.

"So, let's get started." Tomoki, somehow having hidden them up until now, showed me a fat pile of textbooks. "I need you to master what's written in these books over the course of this month."

I sighed. "Put them down on the coffee table. I'll take a look." I sat down on my knees on the carpet in front of the coffee table.

"A lady shouldn't..."

"Shut up," I cut him off. "This is my house. I will act as I please." I looked down at the covers of the books. "I've read this one... This one, too... I've read all of these." English conversation, etiquette, table manners, flower arrangement, dance, cooking... Each volume was thicker than a dictionary. And I've read every single one of them.

"You have?"

"You've never seen me at a party, have you? Of course you haven't. I avoided the Ichijos like the plague," I muttered. Tomoki raised an eyebrow at me. I sighed. "If you had seen me at a party, you'd know I already know all of this. I kind of have to? You know, as the vice president of the Ichinomiya Group? You do know about that, don't you?"

"That doesn't mean anything."

"Of course not. You're just one of a long line of people who believe I have the position for show. Because I'm some princess who has everything just fall into her lap." I rolled my eyes.

"What about these?" Tomoki piled on a bunch of additional volumes. I looked at the titles.

"I've read this one, this one, this one..." I picked them out one by one.

"Very well. But I will still need to test you personally to make sure."

I scoffed. "Do what you want." I waved dismissively, a sour look on my face.

"First, I'll test you in table manners from 8:00 to 8:59 pm. Etiquette will be from 9."

"Yes, fine, whatever."

"Also, from now on, please call me Mr Matsuba." This made me cock my eyebrow.

"Why?"

"With all due respect, you and I aren't buddies. I'm a butler who serves you. I'm not your family or your friend. I don't see any need for you to call me by my given name."

"Oh, okay. Shall I call you Tomo, then? Like your brother?"

He glared at me. "I just told you..."

"No? Okay, how about Mr Four Eyes?" His glare turned more severe. "Don't like that name either? Then quit your whining. I called my dad's butler by his first name, and he never said a word."

"You mean Mr Ichinomiya," Tomoki said. My head shot to him.

I glared. "I mean my dad. The one who raised me." I walked to him until there was no space between us. "I'll only say this once. Kazuma Ichijo means nothing to me." I took a step back. "So, Tomoki or some nickname. Which do you hate more? Take your pick." The smile I flashed him was as sickeningly sweet as my voice sounded. "Anything else?"

"So, next on the schedule, beginning at 10 pm is—"

I sighed. "Look, are you going to be much longer? You can test me tomorrow. I'd like to get some rest now."

"Very well. I will retire for the day. Oh, and one more thing. Here." Tomoki handed me a tablet with a calendar displayed on the screen. "This is your schedule, starting tomorrow. An alarm will go off when there's an event."

I begrudging snatched it from his hand.

"Goodbye." Tomoki left.

I checked the calendar. Every day was jam-packed with things I was supposedly going to do. I tossed it onto the sofa and went to my room, but I didn't sleep. I worked.

The following morning, I woke up early and got ready for school. It was almost strange how my routine hadn't changed, even though I just moved. But then again, I'd always had my own rigid schedule. After showering, eating a light breakfast and drinking my coffee, I started to head out when I heard a loud beeping sound. The light from the tablet I'd dumped on the sofa the previous night was flashing. No sooner did I stop the annoying alarm, my door opened and Tomoki walked in.

"Good morning. It's 7:52 and 40 seconds. Time for you to leave for school. Get ready immediately."

"I'm aware." I pushed past him when he called out to me.

"Wait. Here you are." When I turned around, Tomoki handed me a small bag.

"What is it?" I warily looked inside.

"Your lunch."

"Thanks..." Great. Now I feel bad for being bitchy.

"It's not a problem. I am your butler. Your lessons-"

"Sorry, can't talk. Gotta go, bye!" I made a show of rushing down the stairs.

I sat at my desk in homeroom with my chin in my hand, staring out the window.

"Good morning!" A cheerful voice said from nearby. Ayame was standing in front of my desk.

"Morning," I said grumpily.

She cocked her head to the side, trying to figure out if something was wrong or if I was just being me. Before she could say anything else, the bell rang and she had to go to her own desk.

During lunch, Ayame and I sat on the roof to eat lunch. I opened the bento that Tomoki gave me. It was packed to the brim with food.

"Hey, where did you get that?" Ayame looked curiously at my lunch.

"My butler gave it to me," I answered.

"I thought Geo went with your dad?"

"I got a new one."

"You don't seem to be happy about it."

I shrugged. "I don't care either way." At least the food was good.

After school, I met up with Yukino at a café we frequented. I absentmindedly stirred the frappe in front of me, barely listening to what my best friend was saying.

"Hotaru. Hey, Hotaru!"

"Huh? What?" I was suddenly snapped out of my reverie.

"You've been giving me totally vague answers. Were you even listening?" she asked.

"I'm sorry, Yukino. I just have a lot on my mind."

Yukino sighed. "You always do that." She frowned.

"Do what?" I knew she wasn't talking about me not listening to her.

"You bottle everything up until you're ready to explode from it. Or collapse." I took a sip of my frappe. "See? You haven't touched that drink, and now that I ask you what's wrong, you want to drink it."

I gave a self-deprecating chuckle. "I guess you're right..." I told her everything.

Yukino was silent for a few moments. "This is... I don't even know what to say."

I ran my hand through my hair. "I mean just what gives him the right to force himself into my life after all this time. And then he has the audacity to send his butlers to do his dirty work?" A cold laugh escaped me.

"Yes. I mean I wouldn't even know what to think if my father did something like that. Yours wrote you letters, didn't he?"

"Yes. Because that makes up for everything," I said sarcastically.

"You should tell him," Yukino said.

At first, I wasn't sure what she was getting at. "What?"

"Look, I'm with you. Everything he's done and is doing is completely unfair. He isn't even taking your feelings into account at all. But you're also not the kind of person to take this kind of thing lying down. You're going to meet him at this birthday party, right? Take the chance to tell him everything you couldn't before. Give him a piece of your mind. You're not just some possession for him to screw over time and time again. It's about time he realises that. You don't play by anyone's rules but your own."

I chuckled. "You sound like my dad."

"Akira?"

"Who else?"

As we moved on to lighter topics, I couldn't help recounting my past. My mom had told me that my father was a sailor. There was no way she wouldn't have known that he wasn't. Which means she lied. Even as she lay on her deathbed, she never bothered telling me the truth. I was mad when I found out, but it's been a long time since then, and I've forgiven her. Not that it mattered. She wasn't in this world to answer for it anymore, anyway.

My mom had died when I was still in Elementary School. Akira was a good friend of hers. Unlike Eisuke's father, my mother never made him promise to take care of me. But he did. I had no one; no relatives. I would have ended up in the system if it weren't for him. Who knows what kind of life I would have had?

Akira was the CEO of the Ichinomiya Group before my brother took over. Eisuke and I didn't really have much of a bond. He wasn't that kind of person. Our relationship resembled that of business partners more than anything else. Our ways of thinking were always so different. We bumped heads a lot of the time, but as far as the Ichinomiya Group goes, we worked well together.

Then there was Kazuma Ichijo, my estranged, not to mention, deadbeat, father. He developed the Ichijo Group into one of the biggest corporations in Japan. But nothing about that impressed me. I spent the majority of my life hating him. I never wanted to meet him, and every time Eisuke told me to go to a meeting with another corporation, my stomach churned at the possibility of it being the Ichijo Group.

Yukino and I finished our lunch. It felt like we spoke for hours, and I felt so much lighter leaving the café.

By the time I went home from meetings, it was past 10. Tomoki was waiting for me in the foyer when I got home.

"Welcome home, Miss Ichinomiya. You are two hours, 10 minutes and 26 seconds late."

"I had meetings," I replied as I pushed past him.

"What happens at your job is not my concern."

"Right. Just like I don't give a shit about your little schedule either."

"It is my job to teach you what you must learn from 9 pm to midnight."

"And what's that? How to be a micro-managing freak?" I noticed Tomoki's eyebrow twitch. "Oh, wow. A reaction."

"So, let's begin with etiquette."

"Yeah, Yeah. Just gimme a minute to change."

"I can allow you 2 minutes. Not a second longer."

"Oh, yes. Here." I handed him the bento box in the paper bag he gave me this morning. "It was good. Thanks."

"No need to thank me. I was simply doing my job. You do yours. Show me you have what it takes to be a society lady. I don't have much time."

"I don't "have what it takes". I already am one," I said and disappeared into my room. "Why do you care so much, anyway?" I called to him through the closed door.

"I consider making sure you're a presentable lady my way of repaying your father."

"How wonderful for you..." I replied sarcastically. I finished changing into more casual clothes and joined Tomoki in the living room.

"Expect to make up for yesterday's lack of practice and today's tardiness."

"Can't you just get on with it without leaving your 2 cents about everything I do?"

"Very well. Let's begin with basic greetings. We're behind schedule so we have five minutes to finish this." The things he was going over was, in fact, pretty basic. After almost two hours, the tablet started to beep loudly. "It's midnight," Tomoki said. "That will be all for today. Good job."

I sighed. This man resembled a robot more than anything else. I wouldn't be surprised if he did end up as some cyborg.

Previous Chapter

#tomoki matsuba #voltage inc #oc #ichinomiya #butler #romance #butler until midnight

10 notes · View notes

kiddoryder · 3 years

Text

Bats in the Hotel

This is for one my best friends @loli-momo1908 as a late birthday gift. I hope you and everybody else enjoy. Happy birthday!

Blitz and Sophie McKnights are her OCs not mine

At the 666 Styx Apartments, a tall bat demon with blue and purple mix hair, big blue and black bat wings, blue freckles, light gray skin, a purple moon symbol at the end of his eyes. He was wearing a spiked collar choker, spiked bracelet, a white shirt with a gray skull on it, a brown jacket, black ripped jeans, and black shoes. This demon is named Bradley McKnight, but he goes by the nickname Blitz. Blitz was walking down in the hallway and some demons quickly got out of his way. Thanks to his powerful witchcraft magic and his violent anger issues, most citizens became afraid of him. They would do their best not to anger him and simply ignore him. Not that Blitz doesn’t mind nor care.

He went to the landlord's office and saw his landlord whom everybody called Flip. He was known as Flip because he was known to change his mind or change rules of the apartments he owned. Flip was a raccoon demon who wearing a dirty ripped tank top, blue jeans, and some brown pointy boots. Blitz came into his office which was pretty messy since I have a lot of junk, trash, money, shiny things, and a broken curtain blind. Flip smirk as Blitz came into his office.

Flip - “Ya got my money McNight?”

Blitz - “Yeah. Right here.”

Blitz gave Flip his monthly rent. Flip chuckles as he took the money and snuggle it like it was a teddy bear. Blitz looked confused but then rolled his eyes. Flip was one of those demons who just love money more than life itself.

Blitz - “Alright you got your money. I’m out of here.”

Flip - “Hold it! We aren’t through yet McNight.”

Blitz - *confused* “What hell are you talking about I already paid you.”

Flip - “Yes. But starting today I made a new rent price. Since you have paid me 500, I decided to up it to 1500.”

Blitz - *eyes widen* “What?!”

Flip - “And I expect it at the end of month.”

Blitz - “Do you expect me to have it at the end of the month?! I don’t shit money from my ass you know?!”

Flip - “Well figure it out how to get my money or your ass is on the street!”

Blitz - *growls* “I don’t need this shit! Give me back my money Flip. My sister and I are moving out!”

Flip - *laughs hysterically* Yeah right!! *laughs and stop* Listen Junior, you live here for 2 years and no there’s no refund. Now flutter your ass back to figure out how to get my fucking money!”

This is we’re Flip made the biggest mistake of his life. Blitz was so furious at this, he grabbed Flip by his tangtop so his face was close to Blitz’s. Flip saw how Blitz eyes were now red and had an angry look on his face along with his fist ready to punch him.

Flip - *scared* “Oh shit! No! No! Not the face!”

A lot of the tenant saw in horror that Blitz was giving Flip the beating of the life time. Some had to cover their eyes, while others looked in shock on how Blitz was beating up their landlord. They heard Flip crying for mercy, but those words fell deaf on Blitz’s ears. Then Blitz finish the beating by placing a trash can on Flip’s head.

Blitz took his money and angrily left the room. He was so angry to the point that he pushed some demons out of the way. He went to his apartment and took some deep breaths while closing his eyes. He always remembers how his mother Josephine would tell him whenever he feels angry, he should take deep breaths and think of the things that make him happy.

“Are you okay Blitz?”

Blitz opened his eyes and saw his little baby Sophie. Sophie was a 7-year-old bat demon with light gray skin, the end of her eyes had pink moon design, gray hair with the ends of her hair were pink. Her hair was tied in two pig tails with bows and wearing a purple dress with butterfly design, a pink bow in front with a dark pink long sleeve. She also had little bat wings that were gray and pink and some pink shoes. Sophie was one of the few good things in Blitz's life and made him happy.

Blitz - *smiles* “Yeah Sophie. I’m okay. Just a rough day.”

Sophie - “Would I have to go to work with you again?”

Blitz - “Oh no not today. Listen Sophie *kneel down to her height* We are going to find a new place.”

Sophie - *a bit dismayed* “Again?”

Blitz - “I know but late face it, this place is too small for us. And the neighbors aren’t very nice.”

Sophie - “Yeah that is true. I mean the one above us kept on jumping on the bed and I kept hearing springs squeaking. I’m happy he moved away after 2 weeks.”

Blitz - *nervous* “Right...He sure love to jump on the bed a lot.”

Another reason Blitz believes that it is better if he and Sophie moved out of the place, they are now because of the people there. Some are noisy, loud, robbers, creeps, crooks, etc. What was worst is that their upstairs former neighbor's bed would squeak a lot. Which means that a prostitute was living upstairs doing their daily “business”. However despite hearing that this prostitute is a famous pornstar, Blitz sometimes wonders why would they live in a crappy apartment building like this? But I was happy that the pornstar moved away.

Blitz - “Don't worry Baby sis, we will find a new place we can finally call home. I promise.”

Sophie - *smiles* “Okay!”

Blitz - “I’ll go get dinner ready.”

Blitz went to the kitchen part and started to prepare some dinner. Then Sophie decided to watch some TV. She had to be careful because some channels were way too adultism for her. She would watch TV on the imp’s channel or hellhound channels because there are some who would actually make cartoons or live action shows appropriate for kids. Whenever a sinner makes a cartoon, they would always make it either dark and violent, or horny. Sophie turned on the TV and saw the tv was on the 666 News Channel which she didn’t like because to her, the news was always boring.

Just when Sophie was about to channel, something caught her eye. She saw a demon with beautiful blonde hair, wearing a tuxedo, have rosy cheeks and was singing. She had a beautiful singing voice and was singing a song:

Charlie - “So all you junkies, freaks, and weirdos

Creepers, fuckups, crooks, and zeros

And downfallen superheroes, help is here.

All of you cretins, sluts and losers, sexual deviants, and boozers

And prescription drug abusers, need not fear.

Forever again, we'll cure your sin.

We'll make you well, you'll feel so swell.

Right here in Hell at the Happy Hotel

There'll be no more fire and no more screams.

Just puppy dog kisses and cotton candy dreams

And puffy-wuffy clouds, you're gonna be like, wow!

Once you check in with me!”

Sophie’s eyes widened in amazement. The song was not only great, but the Happy Hotel sounded like an amazing place for her and Blitz to live at. She quickly rushes to her brother who was busy cooking dinner.

Sophie - *tug her brother’s pants* “Blitzy! Look at the TV!”

Blitz - *cooking* “Sophie, I'm a little busy.”

Sophie - *pleaded* “Please! It’s super important.”

Blitz - “Well alright.”

Blitz quickly turn off the stove and went to the living room part. He saw on TV of the song that was being played and performed. This was leaving Blitz a bit confused on what was going on.

Sophie - “Why don’t we live at the Happy Hotel?”

Blitz - *confused* “The Happy Hotel?”

Sophie - “Yeah! The pretty girl said how she can take in demons in her hotel and make their lives better!”

Blitz - *doubtful* “I don’t know Sophie...You can’t trust everything you see on TV.”

Sophie - “But I think it can really help us Blitzy. Please?”

Before Blitz could say anything else, they both were flickering noises. Then all of a sudden, the lights went off and Blitz and Sophie were now in the dark.

Blitz - “Happy Hotel it is then.”

()()()()()()()()()()

Blitz and Sophie were walking in the city with their suitcases. They are heading to the Happy Hotel for their new homes. Sophie was skipping along looking happy, while Blitz was looking a bit doubtful. As long as he can remember, he and Sophie would move to different places due to either rent being too high, or it is getting destroyed. Hopefully, this Happy Hotel can finally be the stable home Blitz wants for Sophie.

Sophie - “I can’t wait to go to our new home! You think the place will be big?”

Blitz - “Hopefully Sophie. It would be good if we had our own rooms so we can have our own space.”

Sophie - “I just hope the people are nice.”

Blitz - “Me too. But don’t worry I’ll protect you.”

Sophie - *smiles* “Thanks Blitzy!”

Blitz - *smiles* “Anytime Baby sis.”

Then all of a sudden, thanks to Blitz 'good hearing he heard a bomb being lit. He turned around and a small bomb heading toward him and Sophie. He quickly picked up Sophie and hid behind a destroyed building. The bomb exploded and luckily, Blitz and Sophie weren't hurt. But then something crashes between them.

After the smoke was cleared, Blitz saw a tall white demon spider with wild looking hair with pink spots on it, his eye was all black while the other one was normal. He is wearing a pink and white stripe feminine tuxedo, a dark pink bow tie, a black choker, four arms with pink gloves, black mini skirt, and long thigh high boots. Blitz stared at him for a while, never seeing a demon like him. He was starting to get a strange feeling about this spider demon that he never felt before.

Sir Pentious - “Take this!”

Sir Pentious moves the chain that he wrapped Angel in and slams across the other street. Blitz and Sophie gasps in horror on what they were just seeing.

Sophie - “Blitzy! You have to do something! That mean snake man can really hurt him!”

Blitz - “Don't worry Sophie, I’ll help him!”

Angel see’s Sir Pentious coming up to him looking menacing. But this didn’t scare Angel one bit.

Angel Dust: *jokingly* “Ohh~, harder, daddy!”

Sir Pentious: *taking it seriously as he gasps* “Son?!”

Angel raises an eyebrow believe that’s not only Sir Pentious was this old and stupid at the same time. Then Blitz saw a cyclop demon with cherry blonde hair, wearing black tights, one boot, red crop top and shirt running. Cherri kicks Sir Pentious to the side while Blitz helps Angel get untied from the chains.

Sir Pentious: *hood flares open* Grr! You whores have no classss! In war, the side remembered is the side with the most ssstyle! *Adjusts tie*

Cherri Bomb - “Or the side that ain't dead!” *Decapitates an Egg Boi*

Angel Dust - “Speakin' a style, is your hat like, alive or something?”

Sir Pentious - “Oh! Well, that's none of your GOD DAMN BUSSSSINESS! Now, is it?!”

Angel Dust - “Hah, would that make your hat the top and you the bottom?”

Blitz couldn’t help but chuckled at Angel’s roast at Sir Pentious roast.

Egg Boi: *cups hands* Oooooh! *Gets pebble thrown at him by Sir Pentious*

Sir Pentious: *enraged* “I'm going to blow you to bitssss.

Angel Dust: *eyes him up and down* Hm, kinky!

Sir Pentious: Oh, not like that! *Hood flares* Pervert! *Knocks over an Egg Boi*

Then an Egg Boi with a gun that releases arm-shaped shadows with eyes aims at Angel and Cherri as Angel quickly shoves Cherri aside. Then Angel had all his wrists held by the shadows. Blitz was shocked of seeing this.

Sir Pentious - “Not so cocky now, are we?!”

Blitz - *mad* “Let go of him!”

Angel Dust - *to Blitz* “It’s okay babe. I got this. *unamused* Y'know, you really gotta watch what comes outta ya mouth. I've been making these sex jokes the whole *limbs get pulled on as Sir Pentious reveals a drill which jump starts* TIME! *Reveals his third pair of arms carrying a gun* And it's obvious ya ain't catchin' on. I mean, it's just *shoots Sir Pentious to the side* sad!”

The vines freed Angel and he quickly set his third arms inside of him. Blitz was impressed that Angel was able to free himself quickly. Then Blitz walk up to him and spoke.

Blitz - “Are you okay?”

Angel - “Eh. I had worst. Name Angel Dust by the way.”

Cherri Bomb - And I’m Cherri Bomb!”

Just before Blitz about to say his name, Sir Pentious got up and said:

Sir Pentious - “This isn’t over you peasant!”

He took out a laser gun and was about to shoot them. But then Cherri kicks the gun away and it landed near Sophie’s feet. Sophie picked it up and saw Sir Pentious looking at her and said:

Sir Pentious - “Oh you, their child. Hand that laser to me! I promise to give you candy afterwards.”

Sophie - “That does sound pretty good...But I’m not gonna let you hurt my big brother!”

Sophie then threw the laser against the wall. Angel and Cherri were impressed that a little kid like Sophie can be really brave. However, this made Sir Pentious really mad.

Sir Pentious - “You are going to pay for that you little brat!”

Sir Pentious sent out his Egg bois to hurt Sophie. Sophie looked scared and covered her eyes in fear. Just before one of the Egg Bois can use a taser gun on Sophie, for some strange reason. The Egg Boi exploded.

Sir Pentious - *confused* “What the hell?”

Then he saw Sophie float up by some magical witchcraft and into the arms of her brother. Blitz’s eyes were now red, and he looked really pissed.

Blitz - *serious* “Don't. EVER harmed my baby sister!!”

He steps on the ground hard and then the ground shakes a little and a giant fist punches Sir Pentious and his egg army away. Angel and Cherri were amazed at the powerful magic they just witnessed. Sophie then gave her brother a big hug.

Sophie - “Thank you Blitzy! You’re the best.”

Blitz - *smiled* “Hey, it’s my job to keep my baby sister safe.”

Angel - *eyes up* “Oh so Blitzy is your name huh?”

Blitz - *blushes a bit embarrassed* “It’s actually Blitz. I’m Blitz McKnight and this is my baby sister Sophie.”

Angel - “Ooh! What a sexy last name for a strong guy like you.”

Cherri - *impressed* “I have to say: it was pretty badass if you did that magic mumbo-jumbo.”

Blitz - “Thanks. That guy deserves it.”

Cherri - “Well I better get going. Thanks for the backup Angie!”

Angel - “Anytime Sugar Tits!”

After Cherri left, Blitz, Sophie and Angel noticed a white limo was coming toward them.

Angel - “Oh! There’s my ride.”

Then the limo stops, and it showed a VERY pissed Vaggie. Charlie stepped out and her sleeve was ripped and looked sad. But she did notice the McKnight siblings and Sophie said:

Sophie - “That’s the singing lady from TV!”

Everybody looked confused on Sophie’s statement.

Blitz - “I’ll explain.”

()()()()()()()()()

As they were getting driven back to the hotel, a lot of things was on Blitz’s mind. He was still shocked that the “Singing Lady” Sophie saw on TV was actually the Princess of Hell herself. He was actually surprised that she was sweet and kind since some princesses can be spoiled brats. He learned how thanks to the turf war, it ruined Charlie’s reputation of the hotel...Whatever the reputation was and Charlie was very upset. Blitz feels bad since it looks like she’s working so hard on this project and thanks to one certain demon, it just went down the toilet.

Sophie was looking around the limo amaze that she never been in a car like this. Charlie was still devastated that her hotel reputation just went down the tubes even more. While she was happy that at least two people were interested, it still wasn’t enough. She wanted to help at least 50% of the demons. She sighed and looked out the window and saw her girlfriend Vaggie looking angry at Angel who was too busy playing with the car window button. Then he noticed Vaggie’s glare and Blitz’s annoyed face.

Angel Dust: *taking notice* ...What?

Vaggie- *enraged* "What?", "WHAT?"?! What were you DOING?! *Rips off her hair*

Angel Dust - *sighs* I owed my girl buddy a solid! Isn't that a "redeeming quality"? Helping friends with stuff? *Rolls eyes*

Vaggie - “Not with turf wars that result in territorial genocide!”

Angel Dust - “Eh, you win some, you lose a few hundred. Ehahahahahah! *Inhales* *proceeds to play with the car window button* It wasn't that bad, anyway.”

Angel almost gets hit with a knife thrown his way. He noticed Vaggie’s glare and was the one that threw the knives.

Blitz - “I for one think it was pretty bad. Half of the street was destroyed! You couldn’t just leave?”

Angel - “Aw, come on! I had to! *Brushes back hair* My credibility was on the line! I mean, what kind of reputation would I have if people found out I was trying to go clean? It just throws out my entire persona! *Suggestively pushes up chest floof*

Vaggie - “Your credibility? What about the hotel's?! *Gestures at Charlie* Your little stunt made us look like a fucking joke!”

Angel Dust: *scoffs* No, no, no, babe. Jokes are funny! I made you look... uh, sad! And pathetic! Like an orphan... with no arms... or legs... Oh! With progeria!”

Blitz was getting really annoyed and angry with Angel right now. Especially with all the dark things he's been saying. He was just lucky Sophie was there because he would have actually beat up Angel for not caring about damaging the hotel reputation even more. And was even more lucky that Sophie was too busy being amazed by the limo and not paying attention to anything that Angel was saying or anybody else for a matter of fact.

Angel - *pissed* “Great! Now I'm bummed thinkin' about it! *Starts looking around the limousine* This thing have any liquor?”

Vaggie - “Can you please just try to take this seriously?”

Angel Dust: *flicks off a dust bunny* “Fine, I'll try. Just don't get your taco in a twist, baby!” *Snaps finger at her while smiling*

Vaggie - *angry* “Was that you trying to be sexist or racist?!”

Angel Dust: *groans* “Whatever pisses you off more. Is there seriously no liquor in here?!

Blitz - *annoyed* “How can you think of liquor at a time like this?!”

Angel - *shrugs* “It’s always a good time for liquor. Helps you can’t feel anything for a while.”

Vaggie - “returns to sit next to Charlie as she crosses her arms* “I'm gonna kill him!”

Angel Dust - “Too late, toots. Wait! Would that make me double dead? Hah, and where exactly do I go? To Double Hell? Hahahahahahahaha! Sorry, you're stuck with me, bitch. Get used to it *folds arms confidently*.

Vaggie: *angrily, as she grits her teeth* Come mierda malparido!

Blitz - *trying to keep calm* “You have no idea how badly I want to punch you right now.”

Angel Dust - “Listen, who cares if some jack-offs got hurt? Most of 'em are ugly freaks. Look around! *Looks out the limousine window, smirking* You got a bunch a fuckin' harlequin-looking babies down here!” *laughing*

Vaggie - “You're one to talk.” *Smiles smugly*

Angel Dust - *offended* “Hey! *motions to his body* This body is flawless! Everyone wants summa me, *pushes up chest fluff and takes out a letter* and I've got the creepy fan letters to prove it!”

The fan letter with a picture of a dirty naked middle-aged man, who ironically has a "No Angel Dust '' tattoo, licking an Angel Dust body pillow attached with the message saying "Show me your feet!! -Bryrin, #1 Fan Critic" is shown. Blitz eyes widen in surprise and say:

Blitz - “Angel! That’s disgusting!”

Angel - “What? I got some good ones too if you wanna take a look at it.”

Vaggie - “Grrr…”

Angel - “And let not forget Blitz. You were a part of that turf war too.”

Blitz - *mad* “First of all, I didn’t know about the hotel being on the news. Second, the only reason I took part was to protect my baby sister. So all of this is still your fault!”

Charlie - “That was really uncool, y'know, Angel.”

Vaggie - *disbelief* "Uncool"? After that train-wreck, there is no way anyone is gonna wanna stay at the hotel! *looks toward Angel Dust* All thanks to *points at him* you and your selfish bullshit!

Blitz - “Nice going Angel. Now people won’t come.”

Angel Dust: Does that mean I don't have a free room anymore? *snaps finger* Ah, well shucks.”

Charlie: Hey, come on. *takes off ruined jacket* We don't know if things are over yet! Try to relax, Vaggie. *puts a hand on Vaggie's shoulder* I-it'll be okay! I mean we got Blitz and Sophie as our new guests.”

Blitz - “Yeah. I mean there are other ways to get people beside TV.”

Charlie - “Yeah! See? It will be alright.”

()()()()()()()()()

Once the limo stopped at the hotel, Sophie was the first one to get out and she stared at the hotel in amazement. She has never seen a hotel that is huge and looking old yet fancy at the same time.

Sophie - “This place is so cool!! I can’t wait to get inside!!”

Blitz - *chuckles* “Slow down their cowgirl. We gotta wait for the others first.”

They saw Charlie and Vaggie helping get their stuff out the limo’s trunk. Angel was leaning back on the limo and was on his phone. Vaggie looked annoyed and said:

Vaggie - “Well?!”

Angel - “Well what?”

Vaggie - “Aren’t gonna help out?”

Angel - “I did!”

He held up Sophie’s little pink bag. Vaggie looked really annoyed. Then Blitz came and said:

Blitz - “Don't worry I got this.”

Blitz used his magic and had the bags float in the air. Both Vaggie and Angel were impressed on Blitz’s magic.

Angel - “Wow! Look at you are using magic like the sexy witch you are.”

Blitz - *annoyed* “Don’t go horny on me you bastard.”

Angel chuckled and they all went inside of the hotel. Sophie saw how huge it is. There was a lot of tables, chairs, some couches, pictures, etc. Blitz was also amazed at the hotel but noticed how dirty it was. He kept his mouth shut so he wouldn’t sound so rude.

Blitz - “Hey Charlie, is it possible for Sophie and me to have separate rooms but still be close?”

Charlie - “Actually yes! It’s on the second floor. I’ll show you.”

Blitz and Sophie followed Charlie to the second floor upstairs. Then Charlie showed Blitz and Sophie their new rooms. There were a lot of rooms that were a few parts away from each other. It made Blitz a bit uncomfortable because he didn’t want Sophie to be that apart from him.

Charlie - “As you can see, there is lot of rooms that is separate from other rooms because I know there are some demons who don’t like being social. But I got the perfect rooms for you and Sophie.”

Charlie led Blitz to both rooms 215 and 216. Blitz saw how the rooms are close to each other, yet they are across from each other. Charlie opened the door to both rooms, and Blitz and Sophie eyes widen on how big they are. So far, the only things that were in both rooms were a dresser, some beds, and a closet. The wallpaper was old and tearing apart. Sophie, however, went into her room 216 and laid down on the bed.

Sophie - “This is so cool!! The room is big enough to fit a building! I can’t wait to set things up here!”

Blitz - *chuckles and smiles* “Hey easy their sis. We just got here.”

Vaggie came and gently down the boxes in Sophie’s new room. When Angel came with Blitz’s boxes, he just threw them on the floor without a care in the world.

Blitz - *annoyed* “Hey easy! You could of broke something.”

Angel - “What? It still in boxes.”

Blitz - “Ugh. Are you always like this?”

Vaggie - *rolled her eyes* “Trust me, he’s like that with everybody.”

Angel - “Not my fault I’m famous here. *to Blitz* And if you want later, we can come here for a cuddle time, Blitzy Que.”

Blitz’s eyes widened in embarrassment and blushed. His left eye twitch in annoyance and felt his fist tighten. Then he raises his fist and bop Angel right on the head.

Blitz - *angry* “Don’t call me that stupid name you dumbass!”

Angel - *chuckles and rubs his head* “Sorry you look like a Blitzy Que to me. It’s cute like you.”

Blitz - *annoyed and embarrassed* “Whatever.”

Charlie - “Don’t worry we will set things out soon in your rooms. In the meantime just either set things up or relax. I Uh…Gotta make a call.”

Then Charlie, Vaggie and Angel all went downstairs. Blitz look at the boxes Angel threw recklessly on the floor. He fixed them up and opened one up and was relief it wasn’t broken. It was a picture frame of him, his parents and Sophie when they were younger. The picture was always so special to him and made sure nothing bad ever happened to it. He saw how Sophie must have been tired from the excitement because was now asleep on her new bed. Blitz decide to sleep too since he basically had an exhausted day.

()()()()()()()()()

BOOOM!!!

The sound of the explosion quickly woke up Blitz and Sophie. Sophie looked scared as she ran to her brother in fear.

Sophie - *scared* “Big brother! I think something bad is happening! I heard a big boom!”

Blitz - *serious* “Yeah me too. Don’t worry Baby Sis, I'll see what it is. Just stay up here.”

Sophie - *worried* “Please be careful!”

Blitz - “Don't worry I promise.”

Blitz quickly flew downstairs and saw the lobby door was broken. When he looked outside, he saw Charlie and the others outside, but some tentacles and little demons wrapped around something. Then it exploded into pieces which deeply shocked Blitz . What caught his eye was a red deer demon that was coming toward him and keep on making some lame puns. Blitz then realize this was Alastor: The feared Radio Demon.

Alastor - “Oh why hello there! Care to join us for some jambalaya?”

Blitz - *confused* “Uhh…Sure?”

Alastor - “Oh wonderful! Yes, sir! This is the start of some real changes down here! The game is set! Now...

Alastor uses his magic for the last time to change the sign atop the hotel from "Happy Hotel" to "Hazbin Hotel". Blitz was surprised and suspicious of Alastor.

Alastor: *sinisterly* ...Stay tuned. Hahaha...!

As Blitz went inside, he noticed that the hotel looked a lot better and cleaner. He even noticed a bar was now added in the hotel. But that doesn’t matter to Blitz because he doesn’t drink any Alcohol. Then Blitz felt something on his shoulder, and it was a Niffty.

Blitz - *confused* “Uhh hi?”

Niffty - “Finally a man! My name is Niffty and I’m so glad a man is here. I haven’t seen one in a long time you know. Oooh! You feel muscular! I like muscular men!”

Blitz - *creeped out* “Uhh thanks?”

Husk - “Huh. A bat in the hotel? How fucking cliche.”

Blitz - *annoyed* “And you are?”

Husk - “None of your fucking business.”

Alastor - *chuckles* “Oh don’t mind Husk. He just a little upset is all.”

Husk - *angry* “A little?! Ya made me miss a poker game you sound a bitch! I was even about to win the whole damn pot. Ya just lucky this booze is helping me get the fuck over it.” *drinks*”

Angel - *flirty* “Hey if you want Husk, I can think of over ways for you to get over it.”

Husk - “Fuck off!”

Charlie - *happy* “Oh Blitz! I’m just so happy! Alastor decide to offer to help me with the hotel! My dream can have a chance to come true! But Uh *clear her throat* You should fix your hair.”

Blitz - *confused* “My hair?”

Blitz looked in a formally cracked mirror. His hair was messy thanks to having a bedhead. Blitz blushed in embarrassment.

Alastor - “I guess you can say He has a hairy situation! *laughs*”

Alastor laughed as he went to the kitchen to make some Jambalaya. Blitz sighed in annoyance and sat down on the couch not only annoyed at Alastor lame jokes, but how he basically humiliated himself. Then he felt somebody touch hair and it was Angel. Blitz was shocked because he never had anybody touch his hair before. Then Angel said:

Angel - “Hold still. I gotta damp your roots a little.”

He took out a small spray bottle and sprayed Blitz’s hair a few times. Then he took a fluffy towel to dry Blitz’s hair. Then Angel took out his pink flat iron, plugged into the wall, and began to flat iron Blitz’s hair.

Angel - “Let me know if it gets too hot, okay?”

Blitz didn’t answer. Instead, he was blushing due to Angel’s “breast” being in front of his face. He wanted to say that it was making him uncomfortable but couldn’t spit it out for some reason. After flat ironing it, Angel took out a comb and comb Blitz’s hair and took out some hair gel and put some on Blitz’s hair. Angel handed Blitz one of his mirrors and saw how he looked now, and he was impressed.

Blitz - *touched* “Wow Angel…I-I don’t know what to say.”

Angel - “Hey don’t sweat it babe. I had bad hair days before, so I know what it’s like.”

Blitz smiles at this. Turns out there’s more to Angel than he thought. Then all of a sudden, Blitz heard Sophie scream.

Blitz - “Sophie?!”

Blitz began to fly upstairs at amazing speeds. This impressed everyone. They all decided to go upstairs as quickly as possible to see if Sophie was alright. Blitz then flew into Sophie’s room and saw her in the corner of her room looking scared.

Blitz - *concerned* “Sophie what’s wrong?”

Sophie - *scared* “T-There’s a monster in my room!”

Blitz - “A monster?”

They heard some scratching noises. Sophie got scared and hug Blitz tightly. Blitz held on to Sophie right as he looked around to find the monster. Then he saw next to Sophie bed a moving box.

Sophie - “That’s the monster!”

Blitz - *suspicious* “Hmmm…”

Blitz use his magic to lift off the box to see what was under there. To his and Sophie’s surprise, what was under the box that was considered the “monster” was a little pink pig. The pink pig looked at them, did a cute snort, and laid on his back.

Blitz - *confused* “A pig?”

Sophie - “Aww!! It’s so cute! I think it wants a tummy rub.”

Sophie was to go over to pet the pig, but then Blitz stopped her.

Blitz - “Careful Sophie. We don’t know if this thing has rabies or something.”

“Oh there you are Fat Nuggets!”

Blitz and Sophie turned around and saw Angel at the doorway with Charlie and the others. Angel patted his legs with his lower hands. Then Fat Nuggets began to walk toward Angel and Angel picked him up. Angel began to hug Fat Nuggets and saw Blitz's confused face staring at him.

Angel - “What? Have you never seen a guy cuddling his pet?”

Blitz - *confused* “Your pet?”

Angel - “Yeah. Fat Nuggets is my pet pig. *held Fat Nuggets close to Blitz’s face* Say hello!”

Fat Nuggets sniff Blitz and happily licks Blitz’s face, much to Blitz’s disgust. Sophie giggled at this.

Blitz - “Ugh!” *wipe his hand with his face* You actually care for that thing?”

Angel - *hugs Fat Nuggets* “I love Fat Nuggets! He’s my baby boy.”

Sophie - “Angel, can I play with him?”

Angel - “Of course! He also loves belly rubs.”

Angel gave Sophie Fat Nuggets and she gently held him in her arms. Fat Nuggets sniffed Sophie, and then happily licked her face. Sophie giggled and started to give Fat Nuggets a belly rub. Fat Nuggets smiled and oink happily.

Angel - “Aw look like that! Fat Nuggets like you.”

Sophie - “And I like him too!”

Alastor - *calling from downstairs* “Oh come downstairs! The jambalaya is ready!”

Angel - “Oh thank god I’m starving.”

()()()()()()()()()

Blitz and Sophie at their jambalaya upstairs. The reason why is because Blitz didn’t feel comfortable being in the same room with Alastor. The strangest feeling he had with Alastor is like he knew Alastor, but she doesn’t at the same time. But he pushes that feeling to the side because he also feels like he has to protect his sister from him. Demons like Alastor are never to be trusted. But he has to admit, Alastor does make a mean jambalaya.

Blitz went downstairs and began to walk around the hotel. He would wash his and Sophie’s bowls, but Niffty took care of that quickly. Then as he was walking around, he heard a voice.

“It’s been a long time since I last saw you…... Bradley.”

Blitz eyes widened as he halted. The only people who knew his real name were his parents. Blitz turned around and Alastor who was flashing his widened smile at him. Blitz stared at him with surprised yet suspicious glare at the Radio Demon. He was a bit scared but try to stay calm.

Blitz - “I’m sorry…... Do I know you?… And how did you know my real name?”

Alastor - “My dear boy, don’t you recognize me? I used to babysit you while your dear mother and father were away for a while. I just can’t believe how grown you’ve become after all these years.”

Blitz kept looking at him a bit suspiciously yet recognizing that familiar smile as he looked a bit surprised even more. Then he suddenly remembers something from his childhood: whenever his parents would go out, Alastor was there to watch him. However, he would just stay in his room the whole time because there was something about Alastor that Blitz didn’t like. There was even sometimes Blitz’s father would invite Alastor to his home to spend time and do some experimenting. He hasn't seen him since he got older and realized he blocked that memory all those years.

Blitz - “It’s you. You’re my dad’s friend.”

Alastor - “Correct my dear Bradley. I must say have grown to look Exactly like your father.”

Blitz - “First of all, don't call me Bradley! I prefer to be called Blitz.”

Alastor - “Hmm…Sorry. Bradley fits you more than Blitz. Blitz sounds too much like a dance move.”

Blitz - *annoyed* “Second, why are you even at the hotel?”

Alastor - “Why to help the princess and myself of course! I've lacked inspiration for decades. My work became mundane, lacking focus, aimless! I've come to crave a new form of entertainment! Hahaha!”

Blitz - “But I don’t get how working here will help you.”

Alastor - “Consider it an investment in ongoing entertainment for me! I want to watch the scum of the world struggle to climb up the hill of betterment only to repeatedly trip and tumble down to the fiery pit of failure!”

Blitz - *creeped out* “Right…But I’m not going to let you hurt my baby sister or anybody else in this hotel.”

Alastor - “Oh relax my dear boy. If I wanted to hurt anybody here, I would have done so already. But I didn’t. As for your baby sister, I’ll have you know that I don’t hurt children. Unless they are acting naughty then that’s a different story.”

Blitz - *sighs* “Fine. Just don’t do anything to me and Sophie.”

Alastor - “Oh don’t worry I’m not. But Charlie might.”

Blitz - *confused* “What are you talking about?”

Alastor - “Well Charlie is the type of person that would do anything to reach her goals. I do respect that, but I get the feeling you and your dear sister would ruin that for her.”

Blitz - *scoff* “Whatever. Why should I trust anything you say?”

Alastor - “Because my dear Bradley. I don’t lie.”

Blitz - *scoff* “You make me sick to my stomach.”

Blitz leaves to go back to his room. He wonders why his own Dad would befriend somebody like Alastor. But one thing for sure, family friend or not, he will never trust Alastor.

()()()()()()()()()()

Blitz was in his room laying down in his new bed. He did like how nice and soft it was since it had been a while since he had his own bed. Whenever he and Sophie moved around, he would have his own bed, but there are sometimes he would have to sleep on a couch or even a sleeping bag. He will always have Sophie haven her own room and bed because she deserves better. He felt like it was always his job to make Sophie comfortable whenever he can.

Blitz was having some strange feelings about these kind of people in the hotel. He barley trusted anyway, but with Charlie and Vaggie they were different. Charlie was actually sweet and kind and even though Vaggie can be a bit temperamental, she wasn’t bad either. They also seem very protective of not only of each other, but other people as well. Angel can annoy the hell of him but can’t help how there are sometimes that Angel can be sweet toward him and help him out with things and being nice to Sophie. Even the weird people like Niffty and Husk weren’t so bad either. The only one he doesn’t trust is Alastor but other than him, Blitz realize maybe things won’t be as bad. Then he heard a knock on the door.

Blitz - “Come in.”

Then it was Charlie and Vaggie coming in. Charlie was holding a clipboard.

Charlie - “Hey Blitz! Just wanted to see how you were doing.”

Blitz - “I’m doing fine. Thank you.”

Vaggie - “We just wanted to ask you a couple of questions about yourself.”

Blitz - “Like what?”

Charlie - “Do you have any special ability and regular ones?”

Blitz - “Well, I can cook, I know how to do boxing, and I can do magic like witchcraft.”

Vaggie - “Do you have any hobbies?”

Blitz - “Cooking and boxing.”

Charlie - “Any jobs?”

Blitz - “I’m a waiter at some restaurants. I will sometimes have to take Sophie if I work late. I don’t trust her leaving her alone with a babysitter.”

Charlie - *touched* “Aw that is sweet. But if you want that now you are living here, we can watch Sophie when you work.”

Blitz - “Are you sure?”

Charlie - “Of course! I would sometimes watch my baby cousin when her parents go out for business trips or vacation.”

Blitz - *smiles* “Thanks.”

Vaggie - “Did you ever killed anyone?”

Blitz - *eyes widen* “What?! No!”

Charlie - “Okay have you ever drank alcohol?”

Blitz - “No!”

Vaggie - “What about taking drugs?”

Blitz - “No! No! Why are you asking me these questions?!”

Charlie - “To help you cure your sins.”

Blitz - “My sins?”

Vaggie - *a bit confused* “Uhh yeah? The purpose of the hotel is to reform sinners.”

Charlie - *confused* “You are a sinner, right?”

Blitz - “No…Me and Sophie were born in Hell.”

Charlie and Vaggie's eyes widen in shock. They were Surprised that a bat demon like Blitz and Sophie were born in Hell. Some Hellborn demons would be either IMPs, hellhounds, Goetias, succubus, etc. They never met anyone who look like a regular demon yet is born in hell.

Charlie - “Okay. Thanks for the questions, Blitz.”

Both Charlie and Vaggie left Blitz’s room. Blitz found it very weird and then Sophie came into the room with Angel. Sophie had on a new pretty pink dress, had some light eye shadow, some blush, and lip gloss and mascara on.

Sophie - “Look Blitzy! Angel gave me a new makeover! Don’t I look pretty?”

Blitz - *smiles* “Yes Sophie you look very pretty.”

Angel - *smirks* “Well she had to learn from the best. I can make anybody look hot and beautiful like me.”

Blitz - “Well you did a good job.”

Sophie - “I wanna show it to everybody!”

Sophie happily giggled and left the room. Angels walk up to Blitz and said:

Angel - “Ya look a little down in the dumps. What’s up?”

Blitz - “Mm…Charlie and Vaggie ask some questions.”

Angel - *groans* “Is this about the drug cookies, I kept telling those broads I was just holding them for a friend!”

Blitz - “No it’s not that. They were asking me questions about me if I ever took drugs and drinking.”

Angel - “Well have ya?”

Blitz - “No. I don’t do that stuff because I have to take care of my sister.”

Angel - “But what about ya Ma and Pops? Can’t they take care of her?”

Blitz - *sad* “Angel…Sophie and I…Lost our parents 4 years ago.”

Angel - *soften* “Oh…I’m sorry.”

Blitz - “It’s okay. It is not easy for me to talk about. But I made a vow to always protect Sophie and find a stable home for us. That’s why I’m always working so hard and staying away from things like drugs and alcohol because I don’t want to end up into a horrible person that isn’t able to take care of his own sister.”

Angel - “When I met you, I didn’t think you were a horrible person. I actually thought you were sweet, cool and even sexy.”

Blitz - *blushes* “Oh. Thanks…I think you’re really sweet too. Especially how you are with my sister.”

Angel - “I have a soft spot for kids. And your sister is so sweet and adorable.”

Blitz - “Thanks Angel. But I’m worry that me and Sophie won’t be able to stay here due to not being sinners.”

Angel - “I’m pretty sure if you talk to these broads, they let ya. I mean Charlie isn’t the type that throws people out. Ya know how many times her bitch of a girlfriend wanted to throw me out for “breaking rules”, but Princess insisted I stay?”

Blitz - “Really? I guess also to in a weird way I was afraid what Alastor said to me about not staying her.”

Angel - *rolled his eyes* “Oh please what the fuck do Smiley McGee knows? He doesn’t even know what the fuck a BJ is! He thought it was some “musical gentleman”. You shouldn’t listen to him; he just likes to play tricks on people. Sure I love to play tricks, but not the way he does it.”

Blitz - *smiles* “Yeah you're right. I’ll go talk to them.”

Angel - *flirty* “And maybe later on, we can hang out more Blitzy Que.”

Blitz’s eyes widened and he blushed in embarrassment. His left eye twitched and he punched Angel in the face. Angel fell on the ground, and he was staring at the ceiling as his eyes were spinning.

Blitz - “Don't call me that stupid nickname you idiot!”

Angel - *got up and chuckles* “Sorry. That nickname is just cute on you.”

Blitz rolled his eyes as he got up to go to talk to Charlie and Vaggie. He kept walking down the hall hoping to find their office or something to talk to them. He can’t help but think what if Alastor was right, but then remember Angel saying Alastor like to play tricks on people. Then he saw a sign that said: “Charlie’s office” and just when Blitz was about to knock on the door, he heard Vaggie and Charlie talking.

Charlie - “Man this a tough choice Vaggie.”

Vaggie - “I know it is Hun. But this hotel is for sinners.”

Charlie - “Yeah I know…It still Surprised how they are Hellborn demons…But isn’t right.”

Vaggie - “But what else can we do?”

Blitz eyes widen in shock. He felt like his chest was hurting and heart was shattering into pieces. Charlie and Vaggie was gonna throw him and Sophie out on the street? Blitz felt like Alastor was right the whole time about Charlie not wanting him in the hotel. Some tears fell from his eyes because for once he thought he finally found a stable home for him and Sophie, but it wasn’t. It was just another broke promise. He saw the door open, and Sophie was there.

Charlie - *smiles* “Oh hello Sophie! What brings you here?

Before Sophie could say anything, Blitz took Sophie by the hand.

Blitz - *mad* “Come on, Sophie. We're leaving.”

Sophie - *confused* “But.... But why? I don't wanna go.”

Blitz - *turned over to his sister with glare* “Sophie, we can find other places to live. So, don't try to argue!

Sophie got silent with tears forming in eyes. Blitz rarely yelled at her whenever he got angry or if she did something really bad. Sophie glanced at Charlie and Vaggie before walking off with her brother while quietly whimpering. Charlie and Vaggie were shocked and confused on Blitz new behavior and Charlie ran up to him.

Charlie - “Blitz! Where are you going?”

Blitz - “Anywhere but here! *snaps his fingers and he and Sophie got packed suitcases* since we aren’t welcome here!”

Charlie - *shocked* “W-What?! But Blitz-“

Blitz - “NO! You can forget about us being in this hotel EVER AGAIN!”

Blitz grabbed Sophie in one hand, and he flew out the hotel by an open window. Angel ran and saw Blitz with Sophie flying away.

Angel - “What the fuck happened here?!”

Vaggie - “I don’t know! Charlie and I were talking one minute, the next Blitz got angry and left!”

Angel - “What were you guys talking about?”

Charlie - “About them staying here…”

Angel - *shocked* “Where you…Gonna throw them out?!”

Charlie - “No! No! I mean before Vaggie, and I talk about it but-“

Angel - “What?! Just because they aren’t sinners they can’t stay here?!”

Vaggie - “Hey! You’re forgetting that this hotel is to redeem sinners!”

Angel - “And ya forgetting too that Little Miss Sunshine wanted to help “her people”. How is kicking them out is fucking helpful?! She kept Alastor here and he’s some scary overlord or some shit. You had no idea what Blitzy and his baby sister went through.”

Charlie - “He told you?”

Angel - “Yeah…They don’t have parents anymore. They have trouble finding some new homes.”

Charlie - *shocked and sad* “Oh poor Blitz and Sophie…”

Vaggie - *somber* “I never realized that…”

Angel - “Well now ya do.”

Charlie - “But Angel, we never plan to kick them out. After Vaggie and I talk about it, we realize if we did that, we be hypocrites because this hotel is supposed to help demons with their problems. Blitz and Sophie’s problems are valid and therefore have the right to stay at the hotel.”

Angel - “Then why didn’t you tell him that?”

Vaggie - “Well we were going too, but Blitz must have overheard our first part of the conversation. We have to get them back.”

Angel - “I’ll get them back.”

Charlie - “But Angel, you don’t know where they went.”

Angel - “Oh please. I know this fucking city from the back of my hand. I can find the sexy bat demon.”

()()()()()()()()()

Blitz was flying with Sophie in one arm and his suitcase in the other arm. A part of him felt guilty for leaving and yelling at Charlie. But another part of him is telling him that it’s just a hotel. There are plenty of other places he and Sophie can live in. However, he noticed that Sophie was looking sad while being carried. Fearing something is wrong, he decided to land in the middle of the city.

Blitz - *concerned* “You okay Baby Girl?”

Sophie - *sad* “No…I want to go back to the Hotel Blitzy! We were happy there!”

Blitz - “Sophie…It’s just a hotel. We can find other places to live.”

Sophie - “But the people there are really nice. I like them a lot and…I don’t really talk to people.”

Blitz - *sighs* “Sophie listen *kneel down to her height and put his hands on her shoulder* I know you like the hotel and the people but…sometimes people who seem nice aren’t nice at all. And the hotel well…We just don’t fit in. Do you understand?”

Sophie - “I guess…”

Blitz - “Don't worry Sophie, there’s always other places we can live in.”

Then all of a sudden, they heard some crashes and gunshots. Blitz held on to Sophie tightly and saw what was shooting: it was a group of demon mob sharks. Blitz can tell they don’t look friendly and actually look menacing. Blitz held on to Sophie tightly as she whimpers in fear.

Shark mob 1 - *smirks* “Well well. I see somebody doesn’t know the laws.”

Blitz - “Laws? What laws?”

Shark 2 - “Anybody who isn’t a mob shark like us isn’t fucking allowed! So take your shit and leave!”

Blitz - *mad* “Excuse me? I have every right to be here.”

Shark 3 - “Huh. I thought bats have good hearing. We said: GET THE FUCK OUT!”

Blitz - “No! I’m not taking any orders from talking sushi.”

Shark boss - “Alright. Guess we have to do this the hard way. Boys!”

They all took out their guns and aimed it at Blitz and Sophie. Sophie had tears in her eyes and hugged her big brother tightly. Blitz however, had a determined look on his face and holding his baby sister tightly. He’s not going to let some sharks tell him what to do and harm his sister. Before Blitz can do anything, one of the Mob Shark got shot and he fell on the ground.

“You better stay away of them you fucking dickheads!”

Confused, Blitz turned around and his eyes widened in surprise. Blitz saw Angel in the alley away with his Tommy gun and a serious glare. Blitz was rather Surprised that Angel came back but Sophie was happy to see Angel again.

Sophie - “Angel! You’re back!”

Mob Shark - *smirks* “Well, it looks like the Lanky Filly is back.”

Angel - “That's right baby. And I don’t appreciate you coming here acting like ya fucking own the join. Reality, this is my bestie’s turf.”

Mob Shark - “In reality, I think you should be squashed!”

The Mob Shark and his crew began to shoot at Angel. But thanks to being a jumping spider, Angel was able to jump at incredibly high places and summon extra arms if he needed too. Blitz was amazed at how well Angel was doing but realized that there were too many sharks for Angel to handle. Deciding to help Angel, Blitz uses his magic to put Sophie in a protective bubble shield.

Blitz - “Don't worry Sophie. I’m gonna help Angel. This will keep you safe!”

Sophie nodded and did a thumbs up. This wasn’t the first time this happened. Sometimes when there is a dangerous turf war or something, Blitz would normally just have him, and Sophie fly away. But if it’s one of those fights that Blitz has to fight back, he always puts Sophie in a magic bubble, so she doesn’t get hurt. Then Blitz began to use his boxing moves to beat up the shark mobs while Angel kept shooting at them. They were doing well since some of them were unconscious and the others ran away in fear. As Blitz was beating up one of the sharks, Angel noticed the big boss was going to shoot Blitz.

Angel - “Blitz! Look out!”

Blitz heard Angel call out his name but saw the boss smirking and shot at him. But to Blitz’s horror and surprised, Angel jumped in front of Blitz and was shot in the arm. Angel yelled in pain and held his top left arm tightly. Angel fell on the ground still holding his arm in pain.

Blitz - “Angel!!”

Shark Boss - *chuckling* “Time to wash the spider out with bullets!”

Just when the shark boss can pull the trigger, something wasn’t right. He looked down and saw a magical blue glow of witchcraft around his arms and the gun. He turned around and saw Blitz whose eyes turned red and had a calm yet deadly glare. Suddenly, Blitz levitated the Shark boss into the air and straight into a garbage can. Now that it's safe, Blitz freed Sophie from the bubble and they both ran to Angel who was slowly getting up.

Sophie - *worried* “You okay Angel?”

Angel - *moans* “Yeah Sophie…Just got a big boo boo. I’ll be okay.”

Blitz - “Here let me help.”

Blitz close his eyes, put his hand on Angel’s shot wound, and not only began to glow, but Blitz also began to say some magic spells. Angel was a bit confused, but then noticed that the pain was going away, and the bullet was coming out of him unpainfully. Then after the wound was out, it began to close, and his arm was normal and no longer hurt. Then Blitz stop and opened his eyes.

Blitz - *smiles* “There. All done.”

Angel - *smiles and blushes* “Thanks babe. Can you come back to the hotel please? We need to talk.”

Blitz - *sighs* “Alright. You did save my life. I pretty much owe you one.”

Angel - “Of course there are other ways like-“

Angel's mouth was quickly covered up by Blitz’s mouth.

Blitz - *annoyed* “Not in front of Sophie!”

()()()()()()()()

Charlie and Vaggie were waiting in the lobby looking worried. The door opened and it was Angel, Blitz and Sophie. Charlie was relieved that they made it back safe and sound.

Charlie - *relieved* “Oh thank goodness you guys are okay!”

Angel - “If ya called a turf war battle okay.”

Vaggie - *annoyed* “Where are you in another turf war again?”

Angel - “Hey! I was getting and rescuing Blitz and Sophie from fucking mob sharks! Isn’t that a “redeeming quality” saving people?”

Vaggie - *growls* “Bastardo de puta!”

Blitz - “Don't worry Vaggie. Angel and I had a little trouble with some shark mobs.”

Sophie - “But Angel save Blitzy, and Blitzy help Angel’s boo boo get better!”

Blitz - *chuckles* “Yeah I did.”

Charlie - “Well I’m glad you’re okay. But we need to talk about what happened. Blitz, Vaggie and I weren’t going to kick you and Sophie out.”

Blitz - *surprised* “You weren't?”

Charlie - “No. After talking about it with Vaggie, we realize that despite you and Sophie being Hellborn, you guys have every right to be here. Turning you guys away, especially losing your parents would make us look like monsters.”

Blitz - “Yeah I- *realize something* how did you know?”

Vaggie - “Angel told us that you and Sophie lost your parents.”

Blitz - *sighs* “It’s true. Sophie and I lost our parents 4 years ago to a serial killer. Ever since then, I've been working my butt off to make sure Sophie and I had a stable home. Charlie, I’m so sorry for leaving and assuming you were gonna kick out me and Sophie. It just happened to us so many times. We would basically have to stay for a few months until something bad happens like higher rent, the building gets sold or burnt down or even gets too dangerous.”

Charlie - “I understand Blitz. I realize something too that my hotel isn’t just to redeem sinners, but to help others like you.”

Blitz - *smiles* “Thank you Charlie.”

Vaggie - “And we also have a surprised.”

Charlie - *squealing* “Oh yes! We did it for you and Sophie.”

They led them upstairs and both Charlie and Vaggie opened the door to Blitz and Sophie’s room. Blitz and Sophie’s eyes widen in surprise. Their room was freshly painted and had more stuff in there. Blitz’s room was painted purple, blue and black. The bed was fixed up with some blankets that were red and white. There was a tv, radio, a punching bag, dumb bells, a desk, lamp, even a couple of books. Sophie’s room was pink and purple, her bed was also fix up with some fluffy pillows, a blanket that was blue with pink polka dots. There was a toy chest, a little easel, a little round table with some chairs, a little tv, a tea set, a toy box, and a radio. There was even a yellow and pink rug on the floor as well. Sophie squealed and ran into her room.

Sophie - “This is so amazing! I love it here!”

Charlie - “You can actually thank Angel for that. It was his idea.”

Blitz - *surprised* “Really?”

Angel - “Yeah I figure you didn’t want ya rooms to be boring as fuck like Vaggie.”

Vaggie - *angry* “Hey!”

Angel - “So I convince the gals to give your rooms a makeover.”

Blitz - *touched* “Wow…I-I don’t know what to say.”

Vaggie - “If you want to leave that's your choice.”

Charlie - “But we really want you and Sophie to stay. You guys belong here.”

Blitz had a strange feeling in chest. He hasn't felt it in a long time since losing his parents. He realized it was love and trust. He can see how despite being different, weird, and even a bit annoying, the people at the hotel truly do care about him and Sophie. Blitz looked at Sophie with a happy look on her face.

Blitz - *smiles* “We’re staying!”

Charlie and Sophie cheered and gave Blitz a big hug. Blitz was a bit Surprised since he only hugged his sister and not other people. Even Angel joined the group hug which felt really nice. Then Charlie said:

Charlie - “Okay we should let them settle into their new rooms. In the meantime, we should get ready for dinner.”

Angel - “Hopefully it’s something good for once.”

Blitz rolled his eyes yet smiled at Angel’s antics. He began to put away his clothes and once again looked around his new room. He was so touched that The Princess of Hell herself had done this just for him. There were no tricks, no blackmail, nothing. It was out of pure goodness. For once, he was happy that he and Sophie finally got their happily ever after they had been craving for so long. Not only does he finally have a stable home, but something he never thought he would have; friends who care about him and his sister.

After fixing up his room, he took out a very important picture of his parents and said:

Blitz - “I did its Mom and Dad. I finally found a home for me and Sophie. But I still swear to keep Sophie safe no matter what. That’s a promise I’ll never break.”

Charlie - “Dinner!”

Sophie - “Oh yummy! *walk out of her room and see Blitz* Are you coming Blitzy?”

Blitz - *smiles* “Don’t worry I’m coming.”

Blitz put the picture on his nightstand and join his sister and new friends for some dinner. After dinner, it was late at night and Blitz saw Sophie already in her pajamas asleep and he smiled. She always looks so cute when she’s asleep. He noticed her stuffed dog Fluffle on the floor. He quietly went inside Sophie’s room and pick up Fluffles and put it under her arm. Blitz gently rubs Sophie’s hair and said:

Blitz - “Goodnight Sophie. I love you.”

He kisses her head and left the room. He then went to his room, changed into his pajamas, and went to bed. Before he went to bed, he looks at the picture of his parents one last time and fell asleep. This time, he slept peacefully now knowing he and Sophie are going to have a better life and future in the Hazbin Hotel.

Hope you like it!

#Happy Birthday!#hazbin hotel #blitz and sophie arent mine #drabble #fanfic #blitz #sophie

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lovlydovlyjaycie · 3 years

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Ævi - The Protector

Hey, so this is going to be a mini series on something I have tried to do before. But I thought of a different way to make it shorter and to make it make more sense. I hope you like it, this idea has been in my head for honestly.. a couple of years now lol. I just decided I really want to put it down somewhere. And where is better than here? Am I right?! lol

Summary: This is set in 2010. There are no such things as superheroes. Right? Maybe Iron Man, but that is it. It has to be. Y/n was just trying to celebrate her birthday, but that quickly changed when she got a gift from a mysterious man.

Warnings: Fluff, violence, maybe one swearword

Characters: Y/n, Bjorn Ironside, Ragnar Lothbrok, Floki, Lagertha, OC Emma, OC Lars, OC Sanna, OC Nils, OC David Mentioned: Iron Man, Odin, Ivar, Ubbe, Hvitserk, Sigurd, Rollo

Main masterlist

Series masterlist

Part 2

It has been days since the.. time travel? Happened. This is definitely not some weird dream. The servants have brought me clothes to wear. It felt kind of surreal to wear these dresses. I had only seen replicas in museums or they were very aged. But this, it felt real, it still had its color. And I think Bjorn told the people that gave me the clothes that I glowed golden and white, because I am only getting white dresses with golden jewelry. But there was one particular piece of jewelry I liked, It was a piece of a belt on it was a tree. I’m thinking it’s Yggdrasil. Funny, cause that was on that stupid card that I got. I had stashed that away under my bed. I walked out of my room to the front of the longhouse. Ragnar had given me a room to stay in. Even though I dressed the part now, I still felt very out of place here. Would there be a way back or would I be stuck here for ever. So many questions, but there was nobody to answer them for me. Deep in thought I didn’t notice Bjorn was standing right in front of me. I walked right in to him. “Hey! you need to be a little more on guard today! haha!” Bjorn said laughing at me. I laughed at myself. “What do you mean? What am I doing today?” I asked him a bit confused. They weren’t letting me in on all the conversations. “You’re going to be training. You might want to put something else on. I’ve seen women fight in dresses, but it will be easier if you had armor on.” He stated. “Wait what? I’m training for what?” He smiled. “For what Odin send you here to do. He knew we needed help and he send you.”

They have been saying this since I got here. I didn’t believe it. Some higher power sending me here? Or did He. It was still all so confusing. But what could I do? I don’t know how to fight. And that glowing thing that happens every now and then.. I don’t even know what it is. Let alone control it.

“I think you really got the wrong impression. I don’t know how to fight.. I don’t know how to really do anything.” Bjorn put his hand on my shoulder. “That’s why we’re going to train you. The Gods were born with powers we cannot posses, but even they had to train to be able to fight.” I sighed. It was bad luck, it had to be. What am I supposed to do? “Now get dressed and then we’ll train.” Bjorn said as he patted my shoulders.

Servants had brought me some clothes where I could train in. They said it was of Lagertha, Bjorn’s mother. I had met her when I first got here. She seemed like a very strong woman, mentally and physically. I have also seen her fight and I would not like to be up against her. I’ve heard people say she is the greatest shieldmaiden. And so I have also read in books. It was so hard to wrap my head around me meeting people that have been dead for a thousand years. Or at least in my mind. Because it hasn’t happened yet here.

Then I have also met Floki. He is a little strange, but very kind. I am not sure if I like his laugh or if it is a little disturbing. I also met Bjorn’s brothers, Ubbe, Hvitserk, Sigurd and Ivar. They all seemed nice enough, but they all looked like a little scary. But I think that is what they wanted, to not look approachable. Then I also have met Rollo, Ragnar’s brother. He seems like he doesn’t belong.

I walked over towards the place where I have seen everybody train before. “Hey!” Bjorn said waving at me. I came closer to him and he gave me a wooden sword. “Lets see what you got.” He told me. “Wait. Now? Shouldn’t you show me how to do it first? I don’t know how to fight.” I stammered. I thought that I would maybe start with observing and Bjorn would show me a few things, but not jump right into it. “The best way to learn is to figure it out for yourself and I’ve seen what you can do with that light. So it shouldn’t be hard.” He explained. “Well I didn’t know what I was doing. I still don’t know what I’m doing.” I said the last part under my breath. “Just charge at me. We’ll see from there. Come on!” I nodded my head. Here goes nothing.

I charged at him trying to hit his shoulder. But he quickly hit it with his wooden sword like it was nothing. “Come on you’re not even trying!” He said smiling going back in his stance. Breathed out through my nose. I tried again, but quicker. Again he hit my sword and now pointed his sword towards my neck. “Dead. Again!” He said loudly. I sighed. “You know, if you’d actually tell me how to do this it could be a lot easier.” He didn’t say anything, he only motioned for met to do it again. This time I went for his stomach. I charged at him and he hit my sword out of my hands grabbed my neck and put the sword up against my neck as well. We were standing so close I could smell the ale he most likely had before we started doing this. “Dead.” He said. I could feel his breath on my skin. This was the first time I was standing this close to him. He put the sword down, but he was still holding me very close. I could almost hear his heartbeat. He definitely heard mine. I was overwhelmed by everything here. And now Bjorn. Even though we had a rough start, he made sure every day that he was there for me. He introduced me to everyone. Most of all he showed me a kindness that I really needed right now. Also helps that he is pretty handsome.

I almost forgot he was still holding me. So I looked around and saw Lagertha. “Is that how you train everybody Bjorn?” Lagertha asked. That’s when Bjorn quickly let go and cleared his throat. “Well nobody can compete with you mother.” She smirked at that. “What has he taught you so far.” She asked me. “Uhmm-.” I started. She took that as her que. “Alright how do you stand?” She asked. I showed her awkwardly my stance. “What is that?! The wind could even knock you down if he wanted to. Do it like this. Your feet here, straighten your back a little, your arms forward, but not too much, yes like that. See a lot better.” She said when she was showing me. It felt more grounded. I nodded my head at her. “Alright when you are charging at him the easiest way to take him down is his legs or from the shoulders up. With a lot of power and training his torso as also a very good target. Be quick, because if this is life or death, you’ll only get one chance.” Lagertha told me I appreciated the help. I had no idea what I was doing. I gave it a go. I went quickly for the neck and this time Bjorn didn’t have time to hit my sword away. “Dead.” I told him. He laughed. “Very good. Now If I came at you, you’ll also would have to be quick. You will carry a shield of course, but those are heavy and you wont be able to hold your sword with both hands.”

Bjorn showed me some moves to defend myself and Lagertha showed me how to attack again. The both kept making good points, but in the back of my mind I still had the lingering thought that I didn’t belong. This was a mistake.

After what felt like hours Bjorn finally said that I could stop and it was enough for today. I probably smelt horrible. “You did good today.” Bjorn told me. “Thank you and thank you for showing me how.” I smiled at him. “Got to thank my mother for that. She has trained many shield maidens before. She knows what she’s doing. She also showed me a lot.” I nodded. we started walking back towards the longhouse. “Can I ask you something?” I asked Bjorn. “Why me, why do you think I’m send here by some higher power?” I asked. It has been bugging me for a while now. “Because we prayed for you, we prayed for help and sacrificed so Odin would send someone and one day later.. here you are.” It must be coincidence it can’t be anything else. But then again, how did this happen? “Why did you pray for someone to come?” I asked. “Because out there in those woods there are things that we can’t fight. We first thought it was the English, but this is no human. That’s why we needed you.” I stopped walking. “What is out there?” Bjorn stopped as well and looked at me. “We think it is Hela or frost giants.” I looked at him with big eyes before I started laughing. “Frost giants? There is no such thing.” Mythical creatures. It’s ridiculous those are stories. “Why could that not be it when you are here?” He asked me. That was true. I did get here somehow and I don’t even know I science could explain this. Would there even be a logical answer.

Bjorn sighed. “Look, again, I have seen what you can do. And even though we have a strong army.. It would need some extra help. You are that help. You’re only holding yourself back. Let go of whatever thought is blocking you from holding back. You’ll see.” He told me sure of himself. He had more belief in me for only knowing me a couple of days, than I had in myself. He put his arm around my shoulder and motioned for met to walk back with him.

After I had cleaned myself up they had a gathering tonight, so I had to dress up. Again the servants had put down a white dress and some jewelry, but I decided to add the belt with Yggdrasil on it. When I walked out of my room there were already a lot of people inside. Most if them already drunk. I saw Floki and he quickly walked up to me. Pushing people out of the way. “Hi there y/n! I saw you were training today. You weren’t very good huh?” He said giggling. “Nope not really.” I said nonchalantly. I knew I was bad. I didn’t really want todo it. “I prayed for the Gods for a sign to give you strength, so soon you’ll be undefeated.” He said with another giggle. They had so much faith in.. in whatever was there. I appreciated it though. “Thank you Floki.” He giggled again and gave me his ale. “Oh no I don’t-.” I started but he pushed it in my hands. “Drink up little one.” I smiled and took a small sip. It was disgusting.

In the distance I saw Bjorn, so I excused myself and walked over to him. “Hi! You want some ale?” I asked as I pushed my drink in his hands. “Sure!” He said and downed the ale. I looked a bit shocked and impressed at him. “Wow, thirsty?” He laughed. “Anything handed by someone as beautiful as you I’ll take.” I immediately turned red of that comment of his. “There is that beautiful smile.” He said, which only made me turn more red. “How much did you drink?” I laughed. “Not enough! Here come with me I’ll get more.” He took my hand and guided me towards the table where they had put different kinds of foods and ale. “I really don’t want anything, I’m fine.” I said smiling. “No such thing! We are celebrating!” Bjorn said almost with a skip in his steps. “Yes, and what exactly are we celebrating?” I wasn’t sure before if there was actually something to celebrate or if they just wanted a excuse to party. “We’re celebrating you!” He called. Me? What did I do? “Why are we celebrating me.. I didn’t do anything.” We got to the table and Bjorn handed me a cup and filled it up with ale. “Well.. We’re celebrating for hope. You are our hope. And tomorrow we’ll have a sacrifice to make sure we’ll win our battle.” He said happily. I didn’t understand, no one was telling me anything. “What battle? What is out there? I keep hearing I’m send by Odin and that I’m your hope, but nobody is telling me why.. So why? Tell me what’s out there!” I demanded. I didn’t understand that I kept being told that I’m their savior, but nobody was telling me for what. “Well, we weren’t sure at first, but after we saw you fight today.. we knew, you-” “After you saw me fight? I failed miserably. I can’t fight, Bjorn. Who ever you’re hoping for to help you.. It’s not me.” I interrupted.

“Y/n you are a quick learner. And how quickly you adjusted yourself every single time.. And not to mention in the woods when you made me fly back.. It is you. Whatever thought you’re holding on to that it’s not.. you need to let go of that. Everybody here believes in you. It’s just you who’s not.” Bjorn went on to explain. “You still haven’t told me what’s out there.” I stated, I decided to ignore what he said. I still didn’t believe any of it. It was a coincidence. It had to be. Bjorn sighed. “We think they’re frost giants.. But we believe Hela sent them. This dark figure with long black hair has been flowing around Kattegat. We think they’re working together.” Hela and frost giants? What? This has got to be some joke. But my curiosity got the better of me. “Why would they be working together?” That’s the part that didn’t make any sense to me. Because in the books I’ve read she has her own army, why would she need frost giants.. And why would she want earth? If it was real of course, because frost giants and.. Gods don’t exist. “Because Odin put her army to sleep and banished her from Asgard. She must be seeking revenge.” Right.. why didn’t I think of that.. Obviously that’s it. “And you think Odin has sent me to stop all of that from happening?” I looked at him and took a sip from my disgusting ale. I cringed slightly because it was so strong. “Yes of course!” He nodded like I cracked the case. “Why isn’t Odin here himself then? You know.. to stop it from happening. Because obviously he knows how to fight.. Where I do not know.” That made Bjorn close his mouth, he probably didn’t think of that. “You know what if these ‘Frost Giants’ show up I’ll help you fight. I just don’t think I’ll be that useful.” I said in a mocking tone. This was all ridiculous. Maybe I was still dreaming. Or I was in some sort of coma, that would explain why I’ve been here for this long. I didn’t notice at first but Bjorn looked a little disappointed by my comment. “Hey, I’m sorry.. It’s just, a couple of days ago I was somewhere completely different and now all these things are being thrown at me.. It’s just a lot. Nothing personal.” I told Bjorn as I put my hand on his arm. “I understand, I just.. You know what the battle is not today, so lets drink like there will never be a battle!” I agreed on that. As I slipped my hand down, Bjorn caught it. I looked at him with surprise and he kept looking at our hands. Then he looked back up to me. “May there be no battle.” He said as he pulled my hand up to his lips and kissed my hand. “May there be no battle.” I repeated and put my cup up and we cheered. I quickly took a sip and after a while the ale stopped tasting disgusting and now it was tolerable.

What was this man doing to me? The whole night I was just blushing. He only needed to stand close to me or brush up against me and I would turn red. I had been trying to avoid his gaze as much as I could from embarrassment. And he knew what he was doing to me. Because every time he caught my gaze he would smirk and come closer to make it worse. He would even go as far as to bring me back to my room just to give me a goodnight kiss on my cheek and ask. “Goodnight y/n. Will you dream about me?” If I wasn’t red before this definitely did it. I didn’t have a come back.. I needed to say something. “Will you about me?” Stupid.. Why was this the only thing I could come up with? “I definitely will. You’ll never leave my mind.” Smooth. Dammit. “Well.. I’ll see you in your dreams then. Goodnight Bjorn.” I couldn’t say the last part more quickly before I shut the door. This man.. God..

With my head in the clouds I dropped on my bed. Not bothered to take me clothes off and put on the nightgown I was given. Besides the disgusting taste the ale was good for something, because I dozed off to sleep quickly.

I woke up by yelling and other loud commotion in the middle of the night.. or early in the morning. Either way it was still dark. “What the hell is going on?” I said out loud. I stood up, still slightly dizzy from the drinks I had. I walked towards the small window I had in my room. It was high up so I had placed a box under it to stand on. It was still very dark outside, so it was not morning. But outside I saw people running and screaming. What was going on? Then a man stabbed a woman in the back. I gasped and stepped back forgetting I was standing on a box and fell to the ground. I just saw a woman get killed. Why? What was happening? I stood up and walked back to the box to see outside. When I stood on the box trying to see what was out there the man or something I thought was a man stood there right in front of the window looking at me. That was no man, it was not even human. His skin was blue and his eyes were all red. I had never seen anything like that before. What was that? Then the thing came running even closer towards the window and got his sword ready to charge. I quickly jumped of the box I briefly looked back to the window and saw that that thing was trying to break it. Not needing to look back again I ran out of the door.

Nobody else was in the house. And besides of all the screaming from outside It was eerie quiet inside. I quickly ran towards the front door to get out of the long house. That would be safer right? That thing was trying to break the wall. Even though outside there is probably more of him. I second guessed myself and froze. I needed to hide here right? In the corner by the front door I saw some boxes. I need to hide there. I quickly ran over and made myself as small as I possibly could and hid. This is not real. I’m in some sot of coma and this is what will wake me up. It had to be.

Then I heard the door of my room break. I could slightly see between the boxes that the thing was looking for me. I made myself sit as still as I possibly could also trying to hold my breath. The thing was going around looking for me behind the throne that was placed in the middle of the room, the tables, behind walls. When he saw that I wasn’t there he started walking towards the door. Pleas don’t look here, please don’t look here, please don’t look here. I kept thinking to myself. And he got to the door. Ok, now go outside, don’t look here. Please, for the love of God, walk out that door. As he got to the door he stopped. Of course. He turned his head towards the boxes I was hidden behind. Fuck. He pushed the boxes out of the way with like it was nothing and then grabbed my ankle. “NO! LET ME GO!” I yelled. I was hitting him as hard as I could. For e brief second he let go of my ankle and I tried to scurry away only for him to grab me by my throat. My breathing got cut off instantly. He lifted me up in the air my feet trying to touch the ground. I tried to scratch his hands or hit him, but to nothing worked. Stars were starting to form in my eyes. “You’re it?” He said right when everything started to turn dark.

And then I fell to the ground with a thud. I was coughing up a storm and trying to catch my breath when I saw Bjorn pull out his sword from the things chest before he hurried over to me. “Are you ok?” He asked with concern in his eyes. “What was that.” Was all I cared about. He lifted me up to my feet and started to walk outside. “Frost Giants.” He said quickly before he pulled me to the side of the longhouse trying to stay out of sight. “Here.” Bjorn said pushing his sword in my hands. “What?! You’ve seen me fight.. No, I can’t do it!” I was freaking out. Only today I had trained for the first time ever besides that I almost got killed not one minute ago. “You’re gonna stay with me and if you need to use it use it.” He said sternly not giving me a option. So I nodded my head unsure. “How are you gonna fight them without a sword?” And he pulled a axe from behind his back and showed me. “Come on! It’s better if we get you out of Kattegat to safety.” He said as he started walking, but I was frozen in my spot. This all felt too real. I really almost could’ve died and now looking around I saw bodies laying on the ground. They were all dead. I could’ve died. Bjorn noticed my panic and quickly went back over to me. “Hey! You’re ok! I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise.” He grabbed my hand that was not holding his sword and looked at me. I didn’t want anything bad to happen to me or Bjorn or anybody in this town, but still if felt stuck becau- And then Bjorn planted his lips against mine. All of my negative thoughts seemed to fade away and for a second the screaming seemed to stop. As quickly as this moment cam it went away when he slightly moved away from me his lips still close, but not brushing against mine anymore. “I won’t let anything bad happen to you.” He repeated. “Do you trust me?” He asked looking into my eyes. All I could do was give him a small nod, still afraid to do anything. But I’d follow him. He kept holding my hand and guided me away.

We tried to avoid being seen by anybody. This was the hardest thing I had ever done. Seeing and hearing people cry for help and not doing anything broke me. With every last scream I heard from the people that were loosing their life my heart broke and it actually physically hurt me, but I tried to push that feeling away as much as I could.

We were getting closer to the edge of Kattegat and it seemed to get quieter here. “Alright probably some people already made it out of Kattegat, if you follow this trail-” Bjorn started. “Wait you’re not coming?” I asked. “I have to fight for Kattegat.” He said as he kept looking around if it was safe. “What about me fighting Frost Giants. I’m not leaving without you and if you’re not leaving I’m not leaving.” I demanded. “It’s not safe-” He started but saw something coming closer. Bjorn got ready to fight instantly. Two Frost Giants walked closer with their swords in hand.

“Give up the girl.” One of them said. “You’ll have to go through me first!” Bjorn said loudly. What was he doing? He didn’t have to do that. But knowing he meant it I got ready to fight as well. Feet slightly apart back slightly straight and my sword up, but not to close to my face. Just like Lagertha taught me. The Frost Giants just laughed like this was some kind of pathetic joke. They came closer with their swords forward. They aimed high for Bjorn’s head, but he easily dodged it and hit them lower by their legs. While Bjorn was tall, these Frost Giants towered over him. One of them started charging at me and I easily dodged his first blow by jumping back, but as I tried to hit him back he hit my sword out of my hands. In the corner of my eye I saw Bjorn was gaining the upper hand, but me not so much. The giant hit me with his elbow in my stomach and I fell back. I crawled backward trying to get away from him when I felt I got to my sword. I decided to just put it in front of me and hope for the best. And at perfect timing the giant wanted to leap forward and tried to hit me with his sword, but he landed into my. He went limp quickly, but I cut my upper left arm by his sword. “Ahh!” I groaned. I decided to ignore the pain and see if I could help Bjorn. He must’ve lost the upper hand, because now he was being pushed back and fell to the ground. Without a second thought I held my sword a little tighter and ran towards the giant. I jumped forward and put my sword through his chest and then quickly pulled it back out. The giant instantly fell to the ground and didn’t move. I killed him. I killed two Frost Giants.

Taking a deep breath I turned toward Bjorn and put my hand out to help him stand up. “See you’re a better fighter than you think.” He said smiling. Trying to make light to this situation I couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re so stupid.” He laughed at that. “Are you ok? Did you get hurt?” He asked all serious again. “I’m fine I just had a-.” I wanted to point at my cut, but nothing was there anymore. My arm was already healed, like nothing happened. But looking at my clothes clearly something did. The blood was still on it and there was a cut in my clothes at the place I got cut, but the actual cut was not there. ”I-I’m ok.. I thought I.. I’m ok-” I started as I felt a burning feeling in my lower abdomen. I looked down and saw a sword sticking out, before it disappeared back in my abdomen. My vision instantly became clouded and I felt light headed. looking down I saw blood gushing out of my abdomen. And then I fell to the ground before my vision turned completely dark.

...

Let me know what you think.

Also the sword that you see in the gif would be the same sword Bjorn gave y/n, just to get an idea of what it looks like :)

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@firebirdsalvatore

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lov3nerdstuff · 3 years

Text

Voluptas Noctis Aeternae {Part 7.14}

*Severus Snape x OC*

Summary: It is the year 1983 when the ordinary life of Robin Mitchell takes a drastic turn: she is accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Despite the struggles of being a muggle-born in Slytherin, she soon discovers her passion for Potions, and even manages the impossible: gaining the favor of Severus Snape. Throughout the years, Robin finds that the not quite so ordinary Potions Professor goes from being a brooding stranger to being more than she had ever deemed possible. An ally, a mentor, a friend... and eventually, the person she loves the most. Through adventure, prophecies and the little struggles of daily life in a castle full of mysteries, Robin chooses a path for herself, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more, and two people abandoned by the world can finally find a home.

General warnings: professor x student, blood, violence, trauma, neglectful families, bullying, cursing

Words: 5.7k

Read Part 1.1 here! All Parts can be found on the Masterlist!

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The first few weeks of classes went by in a breeze. With potions and herbology out of the picture now, Robin had a lot of time to study for those four classes that she still had left to take, and she also got around to doing plenty of work on her own research on the side. The evenings however remained reserved for working in the lab or the office, for chatting and overall for spending time with Snape. Their work was either of a more experimental nature these days, or consisted of basic tasks imposed on them by the school. At the same time they tried to slowly work their way through the almost countless ingredients they had gathered over summer, experimenting with different modes of preservation and use.

During the day however, Robin soon found herself with an underwhelming amount of work to do, while Snape was obviously busy, as were her roommates, and she often found herself already bored by noon. Four classes… it wasn't a lot, even if she read ahead and did her assignments more thoroughly than anyone could expect of her. So she picked up an old habit and read up on random things in her freetime, whenever she had seen enough plants and dead animals on dusty book pages for a day. Whether it was books and articles on the dark arts, ministry decrees and political dealings, or something as pathetic as Cas' collection of glossy magazines… Robin read anything she could get her hands on.

Surprisingly enough, there had been no further issues with Morgan after the welcoming feast as of yet, and he merely gave Robin poor grades one day and the highest scores the next, as if he himself couldn't even make up his mind about what the situation between them was supposed to be like now. He did throw Robin the most bone chilling glances at times though, full of yearning and hatred and craze that even the other students commented on occasionally, but that was it. Honestly, Robin was glad about it and she knew that Snape was too. As long as Morgan stayed subtle in his insanity, they wouldn't bother with him either.

In the third week of term, Dumbledore had invited Robin to tea indeed, like he had announced before the holidays, and Robin had accepted for the sole purpose of finding out more about what the man was playing at. Of course it hadn't been that easy though, it never was, and she had left his office no wiser in the end, and with more questions than she'd started out with. The headmaster truly was ineffable by default, a mystery she just wasn't able to solve and that grew more complicated the longer she pried. But it had been painfully obvious to her at least that he knew something he was keeping from her on purpose, something that wasn't as simple as a reason for ignoring the assault on a student. However she had quickly come to realise that if she called out Dumbledore for protecting Morgan, she would cut into her own flesh, seeing as he was protecting her 'ties' with Snape just the same. In a way, Robin had admired Dumbledore for getting her caught up far enough in his system of liabilities that she wasn't in a position any longer to call him out for his wrongs. She had become a threat to him somehow, or an unpredictable factor in his game at least, and he had easily put her on a leash to keep her under control. It was a brilliant move, to her disadvantage admittedly, but brilliant no less.

One good outcome of having tea with the headmaster was that Robin had been asked to occasionally assist the professors in a few of the more practical classes for the lower years, such as herbology and care of magical creatures, but not potions however, which Robin had taken immediate notice of and was honestly glad about. She couldn't imagine working with Snape as anything but equals at this point, and it probably wouldn't be the best idea to showcase just how close they were in their friendship in front of a class full of his students. But assisting the other professors from time to time when they needed a hand would certainly take some access time off her hands and perhaps prevent her from going through Cas' collection of YA novels next, and that definitely was a gain more than a loss. Maybe she could mention it in her CV at the end of the year, when she would be done with school and left to find a job to pay for a living. Gods, she had no idea what she would do then… she didn't even know what kind of job she could do at this point. But she still had a few months to figure that out after all, and for the moment, she preferred to remain in blissful ignorance of the more distant future.

… … …

Before long it was the middle of October, or more precisely, the nineteenth thereof. A day prior to Robin's birthday, and in remembrance of the last one, she actually found herself excited for it this year. Not because of presents she might or might not receive, she honestly still didn't care about that all too much, but mostly because she'd actually had such a lovely day last year, and she hoped that she would have an even better one this time around. Actually she was quite sure that she would, because for the first time in all her years at this school she wouldn't have Morgan's class on her birthday, which in itself was already a huge improvement to any other year before.

For days on end, however, Jorien and Cas had pleaded Robin to celebrate into her birthday together, if celebrating even was the appropriate word for spending the evening in their room together doing whatever it was the two girls were thinking of, and after days of hearing their begging, Robin had finally agreed on a compromise. That's why in the evening of the nineteenth, Robin found herself in a sudden hurry upon catching a glimpse at her watch at half past ten at night, and she finished her coffee in one big gulp in return.

"Are you alright?" Snape quirked an eyebrow at her in question, obviously startled by her sudden jump into action after hours of calmly sitting across from him with her legs crossed on the chair.

"No, I'm late!" She sighed in return and gave him an almost sad half smile. "I told you I promised the girls to spend the latter half of the evening with them for once, didn't I?"

"Right… I merely hadn't realised that it was quite so late already."

"I feel like I should be more excited for this evening than I am. After letting them pierce my ears last year, I'm honestly not sure what they will try to do to me this time, and I'm not all too eager to find out. Especially since they insist on staying up until after midnight."

"Most likely they simply want to spend the evening with you because they care. But you obviously believe that whatever they have planned won't be all too enjoyable for you."

"Would you like to spend an evening with two overly excited fourteen year olds who have been planning this evening for weeks?!" She asked with humour in her voice. She liked the girls, very much so… and she was happy that they cared about her enough to want to spend this evening together. But she also knew how overbearing they could be in situations like this, and how they had a very much different idea of 'fun' than she did herself.

"Actually, I would rather drink poison." Snape replied in absolute neutrality, and only when Robin let out a snort he allowed himself to smirk as well. "Good luck. You have my utmost sympathy."

"Thanks…" She groaned under her breath in exaggeration, then smiled and finally made for the door. "See you tomorrow morning?"

"Obviously. Have a good night despite their efforts, yes?"

"I'll try. However if I don't show up for breakfast tomorrow, you should start being concerned." She turned around to him once more, and a part of her wished she didn't have to go. "Have a good night yourself. Perhaps you could use the opportunity to actually go to bed before 3 in the morning, it might do you good to get some rest after that almost-explosion in class you mentioned."

Snape rolled his eyes exaggeratedly, making Robin smirk as she forced herself to leave the office at last. While she made her way down the hallway towards the dorms, she tried to recall when she'd last parted from him this early. She couldn't actually remember; usually it was way after midnight when they decided to call it a night. Returning to her room this early now just felt oddly wrong. But on the other side, the closer she got to her inevitable fate of whatever sleepover scenario the girls had planned, the more she actually felt happy at the prospect of spending some time with them. Whatever immature things they were going to force her into, she promised herself to try enjoying it at least. Who knew… perhaps they would surprise her.

The very moment she entered her room, she was already welcomed by the smell of tea and chocolate cake, mingling with the always lovely fragrance of a burning fire in the oven in the middle of the room. So far so good! While both girls immediately started complaining that Robin was two minutes late, she moved to drop her bag by her bed, then undid her robes and finally flopped down on her bed and caught a pause in their rambling to bring out her own apology. Her sincerely apologetic expression along with it obviously appeased the girls quickly enough, and they moved on without dwelling on her miniscule delay. Both of them were in their pajamas already, but they didn't give Robin an opportunity to change into hers as they ushered her onto the only empty bed and already pressed a plate of cake and a teacup into her hands, then sat down with her to enjoy their own. Admittedly, tea and cake in the middle of the night was as normal to Robin as reading before bedtime was to others, and thus she enjoyed the start to their little celebration more than she had anticipated. They chatted about nothing particularly important, mostly about the remarkable mishap of a student in their potions class that day, which Robin had already heard about from the other perspective. Getting a full picture now however proved to be highly amusing to her, and together with the cake and tea, she actually felt quite comfortable in the situation. Happy, even. Perhaps she had underestimated the girls' taste in having fun… they weren't kids anymore, after all.

She stayed in that mindset until right after tea, when she realized that they weren't kids anymore indeed, but something far worse. Teenagers. Because as soon as her plate and cup were out of her hands, Cas supplied them all with some odd kind of facial mask, which she plastered thickly onto Robin's face before the latter could even put her hair up. It really was a messy endeavour; sticky, weird smelling, dripping onto her clothes and getting stuck in her hair, which perhaps was more due to Cas' less than expertly way of applying it to Robin's face than because of the substance itself. Meanwhile Jorien decided that it was absolutely necessary to paint Robin's nails, luckily deciding that Robin would probably prefer black over the glittery blue she herself wore, and thus got started on that while Cas was still busy smearing the mask onto every path of Robin's skin she could find. It was a living hell on earth in a way, but Robin just let the girls do and actually found herself so very amused by it that she actually had to try not to laugh out loud. It was such a cliche thing to do, such a stereotypical situation… but she would let them dress her up as much as they wanted tonight, for it was humouring either of them after all. Robin just happened to be amused by it in a different way than the girls.

For quite some time they continued their work on Robin, and finally also on each other in such a practiced manner that it left Robin guessing if they did this regularly. She never was around in the evenings after all, she had no clue what their nights looked like. Before long it was almost midnight, and Robin was sitting on the shared bed again after she had been allowed to wash off the mask as good as possible once the girls had been sure that her nails were dry enough for that by now.

"Say, do you ever miss your best friend these days?" Jorien asked Robin out of the blue, after previously discussing something entirely different. "You said you spent all summer together, so… you must be pretty close."

"Of course I do, I always miss him when he's not around." Robin replied with a small frown, probably sounding as surprised by the inquiry as she felt. "Why the odd question?"

"Oh, you know…" Cas shrugged in feigned indifference. "We were just wondering if we should keep trying to find you a date, or if perhaps you aren't interested in a relationship because you already ARE in a relationship."

Robin's jaw dropped for a second, then her brows furrowed to act over her rising embarrassment. "I can assure you that I'm not in any relationship other than entirely platonic ones, but I'm still not interested in you finding me a date."

"Well, you aren't getting any younger!"

Now Robin just straight out laughed at them. "Guys, I will be eighteen in five minutes, not eighty! You don't have to push me into any kind of relationship just for the sake of it, I'm not interested in that kind of thing."

"But you are interested in something else?" Jorien quirked an eyebrow at her, a smug expression on her face as if this entire conversation had been one big trap for Robin to fall into. And she most definitely just had, going by the grins on both girls' faces.

"Look, this really isn't-..." She tried, but was cut off immediately.

"Oh come on! You can't tell us that in eighteen years of being alive you've never had a crush on someone. Not even YOU despise people that much!" Cas argued, and Jorien nodded her approval to the statement. "This is a girls' night, which obviously is something you haven't done much before, alright, but let me assure you that we are supposed to talk about boys now!"

"I don't know any boys other than my classmates." Robin shrugged. "And they're all idiots not worth talking about."

"But what about your mysterious best friend, then? Tell us more about him. About your summer together."

"I already told you many of the stories of what we experienced in summer. I even told you about some of it twice!"

"Yeah, but you never spoke of what happened between you and him, only about the things that happened to the two of you."

"Nothing happened between us! Why do you even want to know about that? I'm sure you have plenty of stories about Simon to tell… And hasn't one of his friends been oddly nice to you lately, Jorien?" Robin tried to change the topic, feeling more discomfort in the current situation than she had while they had 'beautified' her. Not only was it already difficult as it is to keep her existing friendship with Snape a secret, but the girls' prodding about what exactly she felt for him just made it almost impossible to keep her feelings locked up. Perhaps they didn't understand that… couldn't know that having a crush was entirely different from truly and desperately loving someone. Hell, even that had to be different for everyone, love surely didn't work the same for all people. Either way, Robin didn't want to talk about it. Not with them, and not with anyone else.

"You always say you speak the truth no matter what… and you insist that you never break your promises. So tell us straight out that you're not crushing on anyone, and we'll leave you be." Cas argued back, entirely ignoring Robin's attempt at a change of conversational direction.

"I swear that I do not have a crush on anyone." Robin insisted seriously, locking gazes with both girls respectively. "And I would very much appreciate it if we could use the one minute left before my birthday to talk about something else now."

"Fine." Cas sighed sadly. "I believe you. Too bad though, crushes are fun. I honestly don't understand why nobody ever asks you out, you're amazing."

"Change of topic, idiot!" Jorien hissed at her friend and nudged her in the side. "It won't do to make her feel unloved!"

"Oh, I feel very loved. You painted my nails and smeared goo on my face, what more could I want?" Robin gave them a teasing half smile, and the girls couldn't help giggling in return. "And I really appreciate the efforts you made to make this evening a small celebration. Thank you."

"Oh, but it's not even over yet!" Cas grinned, and scrambled off the bed, almost tripping over the way too long tracksuit bottoms she had probably borrowed (or stolen) from Simon. Poor boy… Cas really was a handful, but as far as Robin could tell, he really did like her a lot, and he was absolutely lovely to her. The thought made her smile, just when Cas jumped back onto the bed with a surprisingly large box.

Just in time, the clock hit midnight and both Cas and Jorien started singing a desperately off-key but very much heartfelt happy birthday, which made Robin smile even more. Yeah, she did feel loved indeed.

"Happy birthday, you old person!" Cas practically squealed at her, then dropped the box on the bed and wrapped Robin into a tight hug to which Jorien followed, and both girls together squeezed all air out of Robin's lungs, which she happily let happen.

"Happy birthday Robin." Jorien added in barely audible words that were muffled by Robin's blouse.

"Thank you guys. You really got me to start liking birthdays." She smiled, then frowned a little as the two still wouldn't let go of her. "You're not trying to suffocate me, are you? I'd like to make it to nineteen as well."

"Oh, sorry." Cas said, and both finally let go of Robin to sit back down in front of her. "It's just… this is your last birthday we're celebrating together like this. And we want you to remember it in the future."

"I most definitely will, don't worry."

"Good! But to help you with that nonetheless, we got you a different gift this year. Not jewelry for once." Jorien explained, while she handed Robin the large box in an almost festive gesture. "So you will remember us."

Robin already felt sad before she opened the box. It was true, this was her last birthday they would celebrate together. Or was it? "Just because it's my last year doesn't mean we won't see each other again afterwards, you know that, right?" She asked even before she opened the box. This was supposed to be a cheerful occasion, not one filled with sadness about a future that wasn't as depressing as they likely made it out to be in their heads. "Perhaps we can't celebrate my birthday for a while, but you won't be in school forever either. And there's no rule saying that I can't come and visit you guys on Hogsmeade weekends."

"That's true…" Cas sighed, and her smile quickly lost the sadness to it. "But right now you're still here in the first place, and you're the birthday girl. So open the present already!"

Rolling her eyes for show, Robin still obliged and took a peek first before opening the lid entirely at last. Inside, underneath a layer of colourful paper, lay a beautiful wooden picture frame that held a moving photograph of her little group of people. Jorien, Cas, Simon, his two friends who Robin had actually almost grown somewhat fond of at this point, and also Robin herself right in the middle. They were all seated in the great hall on both sides of the table, smiling into the camera.

"I remember this…" Robin heard herself saying in astonishment. "A classmate of theirs… what was her name again…"

"Patricia." Cas was quick to reply, and Robin's smile widened.

"Right… She asked if she could take a picture of us because we looked so happy. That was just recently, in the second week of term, wasn't it?"

"Yep. It actually was Simon's idea to give this to you as a gift." Cas went on to explain. "He got Patricia to make a copy of it for him, and Jorien and I got the frame."

"Thank you, honestly, this is… wow."

"We actually managed to leave you short for words for once, hell yeah!" Cas laughed, giving Jorien a high-five. "It's probably not the most extraordinary present, but-..."

"It's perfect." Robin was quick to interrupt. "There hardly are any pictures of me as an adult, other than those in the paper, and none at all of my friends. Nobody ever bothered taking a picture with me, least of all frame one with me in it, and I honestly love it more than anything else you could've given to me."

"You're most welcome." Jorien replied with a smile. "But a third of the effort was Simon's, don't forget that."

"I'll thank him too, first thing tomorrow morning. But now we should probably call it a night, it's gonna be a long Friday for you guys and I don't want you to lose any more sleep over me."

"Yes, mom." Jorien rolled her eyes with a snort. "Morning's gonna come no matter when we go to bed, you know. But Morgan's announced a test for tomorrow, so we probably should go to bed indeed."

"Great!" Cas clapped her hands, grinning. "Now that we're talking about tomorrow morning, or rather… today's morning anyway, I have something fun to tell you guys!"

"There's something fun you haven't told me about yet?!" Jorien fake-protested with a glare at Cas, while Robin moved off the shared bed and back towards her own, where she placed the picture frame on her nightstand.

"Chill, I was gonna wait for you to see it yourself, but it's just too funny not to tell you." Cas giggled to herself, and Robin frowned when she sat back down with the girls. When Cas found something funny it was usually at the expense of others, and that always should make one weary at least.

"Out with it now!" Jorien nudged her friend in the side to stop her from giggling, while Cas almost rolled off the bed just laughing to herself. "C'mon, don't do this to us!"

"Yes, fine…" Cas sighed, as she tried to regain some composure. "So you know how Parker is friends with Dave, and Dave is Martin's friend, and Martin is friends with Gideon."

"Get to the bloody point already!" Jorien groaned, and the only thing Robin had understood was Gideon's name, who was one of Simon's friends. The one who didn't fancy Jorien; that one was Michael.

"I was about to!" Cas rolled her eyes. "Anyway, Simon told me that Parker and his friends are setting up this practical joke for tomorrow morning, and it's going to be absolutely hilarious!"

"What's it about?"

"They will put salt into the tea and coffee for the head table, and charm it so that people will only taste it two seconds after drinking it!" Cas was back to giggling to herself. "Just imagine, all the professors spitting out their drinks!"

"That's horrible!" Robin replied instinctively.

"That's hilarious!" Jorien laughed at the same time, and all three girls looked at each other for a moment of hesitation.

"I think it's going to be bloody hilarious indeed." Cas finally sighed, and made her way over to her own bed at last. "Our entire class could need the laugh before Morgan's stupid test, and I think he's set one for the sixth year NEWT class for the afternoon, too. But Simon isn't taking defense classes anymore, so I don't particularly care."

"Yeah… it's gonna be great." Jorien smiled and made for her bed as well. "Especially since nobody can hold us accountable for it."

Robin stayed sitting on the empty bed for a moment longer and didn't say anything at all. Practical jokes weren't her thing in general, but this one just seemed absolutely childish and unnecessary. Sure, it wouldn't do any harm either, but still… knowing about it now left her in a position she didn't want to be in. She could tell Snape about it and prevent him from getting pranked, but on the flipside that meant she would betray the girls, in a way. And it would be painfully obvious that she had been the one talking, at least to Jorien and Cas and Simon. For a moment, Robin felt angry with Cas for putting her into this situation in the first place. Then again, the girl hadn't meant any harm, and probably only wanted to share something she thought would humour her friends. But geez, couldn't they have done this any other day?! This kind of predicament wasn't such a great start to her birthday…

"Robin? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just… thinking." She replied evasively and finally snapped out of her head, only to see the girls already all settled into their beds. "I think I'll take a shower before going to sleep, some of that goo is still stuck in my hair. I'll be quiet when I come back, as always. Don't wait up for me."

"Alright." Cas sighed softly, and even as Robin got up and made her way to her own bed, she could see the girl smiling. "You're gonna have an awesome birthday, Robin. Don't worry."

Robin returned a quiet hum, not wanting to lie nor to spoil their enjoyment of this complot, and then she quickly gathered her things to make for the showers. Once alone in the dark bathrooms, she first tried to scrub the goo out of her blouse so that she could wear it again tomorrow without any pinkish stains, and once that was accomplished half manually and half magically, she finally went to scrub the goo off herself under the steady stream of hot water in the shower. Really, as soothing as the water was, as soothing as the night was, she still felt torn about the situation with the practical joke. Why, just WHY did that one piece of information have to put an otherwise very entertaining night on the line like that?! If she was honest with herself, Robin knew what she was going to do. But she still felt bad about it nonetheless. Then again, she shouldn't! It was her birthday and besides that she was very much in the right to spare her best friend from whatever kind of agony he was facing unknowingly. Telling him was the right thing to do.

Once she was cleaned up and dry again, she put on her pajamas and twisted her still wet hair up into a bun to fix it with her wand like she did so often by now. Then she grabbed her things and was on her way back to her room, still in full determination that she would find Snape before breakfast tomorrow and warn him of the impending doom at the head table. But after she had silently stored away all her items and taken a seat on her bed, that plan of action was shaken with a start.

"Robin?" Jorien's whisper carried over to her so very quietly that she barely even heard it in the first place.

"Huh?"

"Can… can we talk? While Cas is sleeping."

"Yeah, of course." Robin was quick to reply, frowning to herself however as she motioned to the door before stepping out into the hallway herself, with Jorien following two seconds later. Only once the door was closed entirely, the girl came straight to the point.

"I don't want that prank to be played, Robin…" She said in a quiet voice for they still could be overheard, especially out in the dorm hallway at one o'clock at night. "And I know you don't either."

"You seemed to be quite fond of the idea just an hour ago…"

"I certainly don't need to tell you out of all people what an act is." Jorien rolled her eyes, but the almost pleading expression still remained predominant on her face. "Sometimes getting along with people just requires adaption, and if it's not gonna be sincere, then an act will still do."

"Consider me impressed in that case." Robin raised her eyebrows at the girl in surprise for a moment, then came back to the problem at hand. "But why do you tell me this?"

"I know there is some weird understanding between you and Professor Snape… and I'm fairly sure you will want to warn him in advance, probably tomorrow morning. You see, I would like to spare Professor McGonagall the unpleasant experience, too, if I can… I really like her."

"Right… I remember that." Robin sighed under her breath, and then was back to frowning to herself. "And yes, I'm going to tell Snape about it tomorrow morning. Would you like me to tell McGonagall as well? I'm sure I can find her before breakfast."

"See, there exactly is the issue. You can't tell anyone before breakfast tomorrow."

"You can't talk me out of it, I-..."

"I'm not trying to talk you out of it, Robin! I'm trying to tell you that you literally will not be able to talk to Snape before breakfast tomorrow, because there's this plan that Cas and Simon and I have made, because of your birthday, and we will be around you at all times before the meal. You understand what I mean?"

"You mean I won't have an opportunity to tell him without Cas and Simon knowing what I did."

"Precisely." Jorien nodded, then sighed. "I know you can do things like this… And you've done things like this before…"

"Out with it."

"You have to stop that prank. Please… I know you can do impossible things, and I know you have way more to say in this place than anyone else I know."

"I don't have anything to say around here, Jorien. I wish I did, and I wish I could just call that Parker kid out without any evidence, but if I'll be caught up in you guys' scheme from my waking point tomorrow, I don't see how I could prevent it from happening without putting a serious strain on my relationship with Cas, and on hers with Simon."

"I know it's complicated… But that's why I need you to take care of it!" Jorien almost looked like she might start crying any moment now, and honestly Robin found herself surprised by how much the girl seemed to care about her favourite professor. It wasn't something she had seen in anyone but herself before now. "Please, Robin… I know it's silly to be so upset about it, but I know that letting it happen would make you as unhappy as it makes me. That's why I told you that we have these plans for the time before breakfast. Maybe play surprised at least when we tell you about it again tomorrow morning."

"Of course…" Robin nodded, then sighed, and her mind was already working on a solution. "I'll do what I can to stop the prank, okay?"

"Yes! Thank you!" Jorien let out a long breath in obvious relief, then tired a half smile. "I mean, at least you can be sure that Snape is still up at this time of night, huh? You usually return from your work with him way later than this."

"Yeah…" Robin replied absentmindedly, tracing the scar on her neck with her fingers as she frowned ahead at the hallway. Perhaps it really wasn't the worst idea to find Snape now and save him from the joke at least, if she already couldn't stop the entire thing; Jorien was right when she said that one o'clock at night was still early for them. He certainly wouldn't mind another brief visit from her even at this time, especially if it was to his own advantage. And if Robin bargained correctly, she could get him to warn McGonagall in the morning indeed, which would keep her ends with Jorien sealed. It wasn't even such a big deal now that she thought about it, and a decent solution to the problem. Why hadn't she thought about that right from the start?

"Earth to Robin!" Jorien said in that moment, drawing Robin out of her freeze even at the quiet sound. "You're daydreaming again."

"Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking about why I was once again being weird and trying to make things more complicated than they are."

"It's just who you are. But it always ends in something great, so don't worry about it. I should probably go back to bed now though, if I don't want to give myself away entirely tomorrow. You won't tell Cas that I actually hate this stupid joke, will you?"

"Of course not. I promise."

"Thanks…" Jorien sighed, then opened the door and waited for Robin to go in first, which however she didn't.

"You go to bed, I'll deal with the prank." Robin whispered to her, giving her an encouraging smile. "Goodnight."

"Night… And Robin? I love that you're weird, and so does Cas. Don't ever change that."

______________________________

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lyranova · 3 years

Text

Neva’s Birthday

Hi guys~! So it’s my OC Neva’s birthday today 🥰! I decided to write this for her (i had another moodboard for her but its very spoiler-y for Fractured)! Also to clear something up, Vangeance isn’t ordering them to throw her a party he’s ordering them to take the day off 😅! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this I had so much fun, its not really canon for Fractured but it has some parts from my series in it!

Taglist: @thoughtfullyrainynightmare @succulentsunrise (i wasn’t sure if you wanted to read this or not 😅)

Word Count: 3,784

Warnings: None

———

Neva couldn’t stop the sigh from escaping her as she looked at the calendar. It was March 31st; her birthday. She hadn’t told anyone, except for the Captain, and as far as she knew he was the only one that knew. She never made a big deal out of it, mostly the Captain would give her the day off, although when she was younger he tended to buy her a couple of gifts. But she had made him stop when she turned 15 and had made the decision to join the magic knights, she didn’t want anyone to know that they knew each other beforehand. She quickly tied the bottom of her braid with her small ribbon and looked at her reflection again.

“ Gods I’m getting old.”

“ Neva, are you awake?” She heard Mimosa call from the other side of her bedroom door, Neva stood up and walked towards the door and opened it.

“ Yeah, what’s up?” Neva asked as she noticed Klaus and Yuno were standing behind her, Neva leaned against her door frame and crossed her arms.

“ We’re headed out on a mission, just some bandits in the woods nearby, are you ready to go?” Mimosa asked, Neva blinked, usually she wouldn’t turn down such a mission, but today wasn’t a usual day.

“ Sorry, I can’t. I have the day off.” She shrugged and watched the surprise flash across her friends' faces.

“ T-The day off? You never have the day off!” Klaus said in disbelief. He wasn’t wrong, Neva never wanted to take a day off, she loved her job and always wanted a chance to prove herself to everyone. But not today, today she just wanted some peace and quiet.

“ I know. But I just felt like it was time y’know?” She told them before pushing herself off the door frame, she walked past the threshold and closed it behind her. “ You guys go and take care of the bandits, and be careful alright?” She told them before walking past them and down the hall. There was a certain spot at the base where she liked to hang out on her birthday, and that's where she was headed.

Yuno and the others blinked as she walked away, why didn’t she want to go on a mission? Was she ill? Yuno had no clue, but it wasn’t like her. Maybe...she was going to meet someone? He shook his head, no, that wasn’t it. She would’ve mentioned it if she was dating someone, wouldn’t she? Even if she was seeing someone, why would he care?

“ Yuno,” Klaus called, suddenly pulling Yuno out of his thoughts. “ Has Neva told you anything? Like if she were sick or she had a prior engagement?” He asked as he crossed his arms, Yuno shrugged.

“ No. Why would she?” He asked a little confused, why would she tell him something but not the others?

“ Well, you two do hang out a lot more. I always see you talking in the halls, going around the capital, and even going on missions together. So I assumed she maybe would have mentioned something.” Klaus said with a shrug, Yuno frowned, they weren’t always together were they? I mean, there have been a few times that it was only the two of them, but it wasn’t anything like what Klaus was insinuating.

“ No, and we don’t hang out all the time. We just happen to always be going in similar directions is all.” Yuno told him, he noticed the disbelief in their eyes and he glared. “ Stop it. You’re trying to make it into something that it isn’t.” He muttered before walking away.

“ Uh-huh, so it’s all just a coincidence?” Mimosa teased in a hushed tone as she followed behind him.

“ One time is what I’d call a coincidence, multiple times though, usually means something.” Klaus muttered as he also followed behind them. Klaus and Mimosa began whispering amongst themselves, counting all the times they had seen the two talking, joking around, and training together. It was more than just mere coincidences.

They liked each other.

———-

As the three Golden Dawn members walked through the halls they noticed their captain, William Vangeance, walking out of his office. He turned to them with a slight frown on his face.

“ I thought you three had already left for your mission?” He asked in a somewhat confused tone, he had briefed them a few minutes ago so he assumed they would already be on their way to the bandits location by now.

“ We went to go get Neva and bring her with us, but she said she had the day off sir.” Mimosa explained, the Captain chuckled softly before nodding.

“ Of course she does, she always gets today off every year.” He told them, he watched as confusion spread across the others faces. His eyebrows raised in slight surprise. “ Oh, I guess she didn’t tell you. It’s her birthday today. I always give her today off, I assumed she would have told you three.” He added with a frown, to say he was completely surprised that she neglected to tell her friends would be a lie. As far as he knew he was the only one who knew her birthday was today.

“ It’s her birthday?!” All three exclaimed in surprise, they had absolutely no idea. She never mentioned it, not even once. She knew all of their birthdays, but not one of them knew hers. The Captain nodded.

“ Yes it is,” he chuckled softly. “ she probably forgot to mention it.” Yuno frowned slightly at the look in his captain's eyes, it was as though he knew that Neva hadn’t forgotten to mention it. But Yuno didn’t push him on it, he knew he would just give another excuse.

“ How about this; I’ll give your mission to Alecdora and a couple of others and you three can have the day off as well? I’m sure you’ll want to give Neva presents and maybe a cake.” Vangeance told them with a small smile, Yuno picked up on the tone. It wasn’t a question, it was an order. The three of them wouldn’t be going on that mission today.

“ Is that an order Captain?” Yuno asked, even though he already knew the answer. Vangeance nodded, his smile never leaving his face.

“ If that's the only way any of you will listen, then yes, it is.” Vangeance said before turning to walk away. ‘ Do try to make it fun and memorable for her, please. She deserves it.’ He thought with a small smile as he walked away, leaving the three Golden Dawn members alone.

Yuno, Mimosa, and Klaus just stared at him as he walked away. They were given the day off as well? Actually, they were ordered too. But the three of them didn’t really mind, as now they could plan something for Neva’s birthday.

“ Alright team, new plan!” Klaus announced with a clap of his hands, the others looked at him. “ Neva currently thinks we’re on our way to the bandits hideout, now that’ll give us a couple of hours to buy things and plan a party.So, who wants to be in charge of what?” He asked before crossing his arms.

“ Ooh I can get stuff to make her a birthday cake!” Mimosa said cheerfully, the others frowned.

“ Why don’t we just buy her a cake?” Yuno asked in a confused tone, he wondered if Mimosa even knew how to cook let alone bake. It would just be easier to buy one, he even knew where her favorite bakery was and could go get it.

“ Because it’ll mean more if we make it ourselves!” Mimosa argued as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. “ Hm, should we all buy her separate presents or all get one together?” Mimosa thought aloud as she put a hand under her chin. Klaus frowned in thought also.

“ Hm, I say we all agree on something. That way it’ll mean more and she’ll know we were all thinking of her.” Klaus decided, Yuno smirked a bit.

“ You’re only saying that because we don’t have time to go shopping on our own.” Yuno watched Klaus blush furiously as he pushed his glasses up his nose.

“ N-No, that’s not the only reason!” Klaus exclaimed before clearing his throat. “ Anyway, let’s go figure out somewhere we can plan more discreetly. Just in case Neva happens to see us.” Klaus added before walking away, Mimosa and Yuno followed.

——-

“ Ok, so we have all the stuff for a cake, and we have some decorations. Now all we need is a gift!” Mimosa said as she set all the ingredients to make a cake down on the table, they had asked to borrow the kitchen and mess hall for a short while and, luckily, they were given permission to do so. Yuno frowned as he looked over the ingredients, he noticed there was a key ingredient missing.

“ Where’s the cocoa powder?” He asked Mimosa, who turned to him with a confused frown.

“ Cocoa powder? I didn’t pick any up.” Mimosa said, looking very confused, Klaus did as well. Yuno sighed and shook his head before going over to the cabinets and looking through them.

“ Neva’s favorite cake is chocolate, especially if it has a strawberry filling in the middle. As far as icing goes she isn’t really picky, she’ll pretty much take anything as long as it isn’t too sweet. She also likes to have a little crunch so if we can find some vanilla cookies maybe we can put those around it, why are you two looking at me like that?” Yuno asked with a frown.

Mimosa and Klaus were just staring at him, wide eyes and raised eyebrows. Yuno didn’t really try to get to know anyone, much like Neva, so for him to know what her favorite cake was, is pretty surprising. Mimosa and Klaus shared a look which only confused Yuno further, it was as though he had confirmed something.

“ What?” He repeated, making the two snap to attention.

“ Oh it’s just surprising that you know what her favorite cake is, that's all!” Mimosa said with an embarrassed laugh.

“ Not really. She orders it a lot whenever she gets paid, she also likes to have a small cup of tea with it as well. I’ll have to look and see if we have any.” He muttered the last part to himself. Klaus and Mimosa blinked at him.

“ He even knows what she likes to drink?!” Klaus whispered and she nodded.

“ Apparently so! How can he not like her if he notices all those things?!” Mimosa whispered back, when suddenly Bell appeared next to them.

“ I wish Yuno paid attention to me like he does her! He’s always with her, always notices what she’s doing, he’s even drawn her!” She huffed causing the two Golden Dawn members to jump before looking at the young Wind Spirit.

“ Drawn?” They asked with a confused tilt of their heads, they didn’t know Yuno could draw. He never showed them any of his art nor did he even show an interest in it. Bell nodded before pulling out a big notepad, although they didn’t really know where she pulled it out from.

“ I went looking for this when I heard you all planning a surprise party and you needed a present. Maybe one of Yuno’s drawings would be good.” Bell suggested before handing it to Mimosa. She flipped it open, Klaus watching over her shoulder, and saw quite a few beautiful sketches of scenery, some of the buildings, one of Asta and the people at the church, and then one that surprised them.

It was of Neva, smiling in awe, with bright eyes full of wonder. Her hair in its normal braid falling over her shoulder, she was bent over staring at or into something and whatever it was made her very happy. This picture was the only one colored. The background was dark, with warm oranges and soft yellows gracing her face and the area she was in, she had a soft blush on her cheeks, and it looked like there were lanterns around. Mimosa frowned a bit, it looked like the lanterns you’d see at the Star Festival. Mimosa and Klaus both smiled softly, he did like her and this drawing proved it. This was how she looked to him, she was a warm, sweet, and beautiful person.

“ Wow, Yuno, this is beautiful! You should give this to Neva!” Mimosa said softly as she turned to him, he quickly walked over and snatched it out of her hands.

“ No.” He answered simply before tucking the notepad next to his grimoire. They weren’t supposed to see the drawings, especially not that one. That picture was special to him. It was the first time he ever truly saw Neva, the side of her she didn’t want anyone to see. As far as he knew she didn’t even know that he knew, and he wanted to keep it that way.

“ Why not? It's beautiful and I’m sure she’d-.” Klaus started before Yuno cut him off.

“ I said no.” Yuno snapped coldly, causing both Mimosa and Klaus to look surprised once again. He sighed before rubbing the back of his neck. “ I apologize. I shouldn’t have snapped.” He muttered before going back to looking for the tea.

“ It’s ok if you like her y’know,” Mimosa started gently. “ I mean, you can have a crush on her and still be friends if that's what you’re worried about! Or if you’re worried she doesn’t feel the same way all you can do is ask and find out!” Mimosa told him.

“ You need to start on the cake.” Yuno told them curtly, effectively changing the subject. Both Klaus and Mimosa exchanged another look before doing as they were told.

Yuno couldn’t figure out why Mimosa was trying to convince him what he was feeling was a crush, Neva was nothing more than a friend. Friends knew what their friends favorite cake was, how their eyes lit up anytime dessert was mentioned, how they went from a smirk to a smile whenever they really enjoyed something, how sweet her laugh was…he shook his head quickly to rid himself of these thoughts. He couldn’t have a crush on her; they were teammates, allies, and close friends. He didn’t want to ruin any of that. He also needed to focus on becoming the Wizard King, there was no time for silly things such as crushes.

——

Neva sighed as she watched the sun set from the tallest building at the Golden Dawn HQ. This was her favorite spot in the entire place, she could sit there all day and no one would bother her. Which was why she decided to spend her birthdays here, every year.

“ Took you long enough.” Neva teased as she heard someone walk over to her, she turned to her right and saw Vangeance standing there, a soft smile on his face.

“ I apologize, I was held up in a meeting.” He said as he sat next to her, this was their thing. Neva spent a majority of her birthday up here, by herself, but for an hour or two Vangeance would come and sit with her and talk.

“ Happy birthday by the way.” He added, causing her to shake her head.

“ Thanks, but I’m getting so old! Look, I’m getting wrinkles!” She said pointing to non existent wrinkles, Vangeance chuckled before shaking his head.

“ No you’re not, you’re still young and wrinkleless, so please stop worrying.” He told her, he usually brought a small cake for them to share, but Neva noticed it was absent. She wondered why, but decided she would keep it to herself for now.

“ So, may I ask why you decided not to tell the others today was your birthday?” He asked after they had sat in silence for a moment, he saw the surprise on her face and a tinge of pink appear on her cheeks.

“ It’s none of their business.” She muttered, pulling her knees up and hugging them.

“ You’re right, it is none of their business. But they’re your friends, so I’m sure they would have liked to know. I would’ve thought you’d at least tell Yuno about it.” Vangeance said and watched as her face became more pink at the mention of the young man, so it was true, she did have a crush on him.

“ He doesn’t need to know that.” She muttered looking away, she didn’t want to get too close to them, it would only hurt him and the others if they did. It would also hurt her.

“ It’s ok to tell people little things like that, I’m sure you know everyones birthdays here, so tell them yours. It’s a way for you to gain their trust. I understand you don’t want to tell them certain things and that’s ok. But, if you want to become Captain someday, you need to trust, and become trusted.” Vangeance told her softly and watched as she thought about his words. She needed to learn to trust others as she trusted him, he wasn’t going to be around forever, so he wanted to make sure she would have people to lean on in case that were to happen sooner rather than later.

“ I know that,” she grumbled before sighing and looking at him. “ I just...I just don’t want anyone to get hurt, or to feel hurt.” She muttered before setting her legs down and looking away from him.

“ I know that, but you can’t always control what happens. People will get hurt, even if you don’t want or intend for them too, that’s just life Neva.” He explained softly before a frown appeared on his face.

“ Why do you trust me so much?” He asked, he watched as surprise graced her face, she wasn’t expecting that question. Vangeance had a feeling he knew her answer, but he wanted to hear her reason. He watched her contemplate her answer for a good few minutes.

“ I…” she started before suddenly a loud boom and a cloud of black smoke appeared. They both stood up and rushed down the tower. Were they under attack?

——-

As Neva and Vangenace ran through the halls they noticed the smoke and the boom had come from the kitchen. Why would the enemy go for the kitchen? Neva walked through the doors, her grimoire out, and frowned at the sight.

Mimosa was standing there, surrounded by smoke, and she tried to clear it away while coughing. Klaus’s face was covered in dirt, actually, all of their faces were but his moreso, he pulled his glasses off to clean them and shook his head. While Yuno, well, he was just done and his face expressed that completely.

“ I told you we should’ve just bought her a cake.” Yuno told them deadpan, and both Mimosa and Klaus turned.

“ Who would’ve thought the oven would explode?!” Klaus shouted, Yuno’s face didn’t change at all.

“ I did. Because the three of us have no idea what we’re doing.” He was right, they didn’t know what to do at all. They were winging it and in the process almost burned down the entire Golden Dawn kitchen!

“ U-Um...what are you three doing?” Neva asked with a confused tilt of her head. Vangeance walked up beside her, looking slightly confused himself, he had assumed they would go buy her things. The three in question turned to look at her.

“ W-Well,” Mimosa started with a bashful laugh.

“ We were trying to bake a cake for your birthday.” Yuno finished, there wasn’t a point in lying to her. Neva blinked before looking around, the kitchen was a complete mess.

“ I thought you all were on a mission?” She asked with a frown and she crossed her arms.

“ The Captain gave us the day off, so we decided to try and make you a cake with the spare time we had.” Klaus explained, she turned to glare at Vangeance, who only shrugged in response and a small smile was on his face.

Neva shook her head before turning back to the others, she truly appreciated the effort, but she didn’t understand why they would go to such lengths for her. She didn’t do anything to deserve a party, hell she didn’t even tell them that today was her birthday! So why did they feel the need to go out of their way to surprise her? Looking around, seeing how much of a mess they had made, the black powder on their faces from when the oven had blown up, and the completely toasted cake that sat on the counter in front of them made Neva laugh, not the small soft ones she normally did, but a loud roaring laugh.

Yuno and the others frowned when she began to laugh, were the smoke fumes making her delirious? Yuno used his wind magic to get rid of most of the smoke, but he had to admit, hearing her laugh like that made his heart skip a beat. He liked her normal laugh, but this one? This laugh he loved. It was true laughter, the kind you didn’t hear very often, it made his heart flutter, caused butterflies in his stomach, and his face to turn a shade of pink. Yeah, maybe he did have a small crush on her. Neva walked over to them and a small smile was on her face as her laughter died.

“ You three are completely ridiculous, you should’ve just went and bought me a cake instead of going through this trouble.” She started but held up a hand as Mimosa went to speak. “ But, I really appreciate the thought. This has been the most fun I’ve had in a while, thank you.” She added softly before deciding to add one more thing. “ Don’t ever try and cook again.”

Vangeance watched the four with a small smile on his face, he hadn’t heard her laugh like that in a long time, and it made him very happy. He shook his head as he looked at the state of the kitchen.

He did want them to make her birthday memorable and they delivered.

——-

Sorry this isn’t very good, I’ve been having so many doubts about my OC and my OC fic that I’m super nervous about posting this haha 😅. but I hope you all enjoyed it! Thanks for reading and I hope you all have a good day 🥰~!

#oc neva #neva’s birthday #canon-ish #black clover oc #not sure what else to tag it with

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hobidreams · 4 years

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Moonlit Throne historical clarifications/references

i want to accurately represent the history from the joseon era, but sometimes for the sake of story/ease of accessibility, things had to be minorly changed. the following is a list of creative choices/changes i make in the writing of Moonlit Throne, as well as further information about the history/culture that i’ve found through my own research 💓 i hope this can also provide some more context for those interested. this list is to be updated as the series progresses so i always recommend you read the latest drabble before checking for more info here for risk of spoilers. please correct me if i get any info wrong!!

for even more information about the world, check out the tag #moonlit history!

last updated: after drabble 43!

new information for the latest drabble will be under the moon.

king gwanghae - as mentioned in the line “gwanghae flow” & in the rest of the MV, Daechwita was inspired by this historical king & the movie about him. Moonlit Throne is not inspired by any king. any event that is similar is purely coincidental!

topknot - various sources state that only married men were allowed to wear their hair up, though this is often not the case in popular korean media. even though Yoongi is unmarried, i chose to pay homage to the daechwita MV & give him a topknot throughout the series. *** same goes for the blonde hair color!

months - traditionally, they followed the lunar calendar in the Joseon era. but i thought that that would be a bit difficult to explain for modern audiences so i am choosing to use the months/modern equivalents of dates.

yoongi’s scar - i am aware that Scarlet Heart Ryeo depicts the facial scar as a reason that someone could not become king. i haven’t found much on this in the way of historical sources, so it’s not a factor in my series!

uinyeo - aka. reader’s mom, and eventually reader herself. at the time, it was believed that women could not be treated by male doctors due to the shame of showing a man their body, even in a medical context. this position was generally occupied by a woman that was ranked below middle-class & commoner (think merchants/fishermen/etc.) as it was not a very desireable role. reader’s mom, Eun-a, is the head uinyeo, which is why she is called “su-uinyeo-nim” by others.

***i haven’t found any information that says men couldn’t be treated by women due to the Confucius beliefs, so at least in this story, reader helps out the male physicians from time to time.

eunuch - eunuchs were impotent or castrated men (had all or part of their genitals removed) who worked within the palace walls, serving and attending the royal family. they had their own hierarchy, like head eunuch, etc. it was possible for eunuchs to marry & have families of their own.

***Eunuch Kim has a 🍆! it’s just his testicles that were removed.

yoongi’s name - technically kings use temple names that end in jo or jong instead of their given names, but i’m keeping it as Yoongi!!

age - it’s revealed in the march 1858 drabble that Yoongi is officially turning 10 years old that year, but this is in Korean age. his birth year is 1849, which would make him 9 years old in age as we know it internationally. Korean tradition dictates that people age up at the start of the new year (Jan 1), not on their actual birthday. traditionally, they also add an extra year as they consider the baby 1 year old at birth, not 0 years old. to do the math, reader is two years older than him, which would make her born in 1847 & turning 12 that year!

*** the average life expectancy around that time was ~35-40, so their understanding of a teenager would be very different than ours, at least in terms of maturity. thus, even though the main characters are relatively young by today’s standards, i’ve written them to come off as older. UPDATED INFO: it seems court ladies could live up to rather elderly ages, even up to 70, so i’m not sure if the earlier statistic was just mainly for men.

birthdays - i couldn’t find any information about whether they celebrated the actual day of birth as well back then, only about 100 day milestones, etc. but it is part of Korean culture to celebrate the birthday in modern times, so i kept it in.

jeonha - similar to mama, this is how you refer to the king as an equivalent to “Your Majesty”. wangseja-jeonha is the full title for the crown prince. usually people just call him seja-jeonha.

women’s rights - how much freedom you have kind of depends on what rank you are. most of the upper court/noble ladies (yangban) are born & raised within the palace. they were very, very rarely allowed to leave (& if they were married off, then they would have to leave with like guards/people with them). it’s unfortunate but they were treated like property, passed off from father -> husband. from what i can gather, the lower ranked women (like the uinyeo) had a bit more liberty about going into town (or at least ive seen in media), mostly bc no one cared about them.... sad truth but truth nonetheless.

king’s authority - even though the king is the ruler of the entire land, he doesn’t have absolute authority over everything. generally kings in the joseon era had to listen to the advice of the court officials if they thought he was making the wrong choice.

Minister Choi’s execution - so actually there were several types of executions for people of different ranks. someone of Minister Choi’s status likely would have been given a less gruesome death via. poison (sasa or 사사). but i’m keeping it as a beheading to pay homage to the daechwita MV!

***i also came across an article that said only royal blood could be spilled on the palace grounds so i’m not 100% sure where the public execution square was located, only that there was one & it was separate from the palace. also a lot of dramas seem to ignore this rule, so i’m not sure.

perfume - this existed back then! along with cosmetics. they were a luxury item for mostly the upper class, but they definitely existed.

Queen Jeonghui’s birthday - fun fact! i borrowed this real life queen’s name first, for drabble 3. then i found out, it just so happens that her real birthday falls in November as well. it was a total coincidence haha.

OC’s outfit/hairstyle - this is what she would have worn!

palace - the layout of the series setting is loosely based off Gyeongbokgung Palace! if you look at the map, i’ve set the private gardens at #24 (though the position of the island is different than how it looks in the map. it’s instead from the right side going towards the left), Yoongi’s private residence is #25. reader is moved into #23. #26-28 are libraries, which includes the crown prince’s private library.

*** also the palace is much bigger than you might imagine so to get anywhere takes some time & a bit of walking!

jipgyeongdang (집경당) - #22 on the map. along with #23 (below), were traditionally houses for concubines & palace maids before Yoongi moved them.

hamhwadang (함화당) - #23 on the map. where reader lives post December 1868.

sanggung - the highest rank available for women who served the palace/royal family. a woman could become a “favored sanggung” if she slept with the king, but not a proper concubine. normally from the “commoner” class.

sangmin - “commoner” class. made up about 80% of joseon’s people. were the farmers, fishermen, laborers, etc. these were the people that paid taxes and were ruled over by the nobles!

cheonmin - the rank below commoner, described in English as “vulgar commoner.” the upper classes considered these people “unclean.” among their numbers were butchers, sex workers, performers, shoemakers, and yes, uinyeo. they were normally given little to no respect at all within society.

concubine - women that had the honor of sleeping with the king. concubines had their own ranks within them as the king usually had many (think around a dozen). more info.

town - from what i can gather, directly outside of the palace is a small town. if you think of the Daechwita MV, it’s like the town that Yoongi walks through when he has black hair. this is where mostly people of the middle/lower class, like sangmin & those below that, live.

chuseok - Korean harvest festival! it means “autumn evening with the brightest moon”. it’s usually celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth month in the lunar calendar. that would put it anywhere around sept 9-oct 2 in our modern calendar depending on the year!

yangban - these are the “ruling class” or gentry of the joseon era. generally means their families own land, are somewhat (or very) wealthy, and they are well-educated. (think Mr. Darcy, for a British equivalent)

why does no one recognize the prince in town? - with a lack of access to pictures & internet, it was common for the normal citizens of the country to not know what their monarchs looked like. generally to identify people & rank, they had to rely on appearance. gold was a color only reserved for royalty, so only the king & his sons could wear the royal robes with gold embroidery. once Yoongi takes off those robes, it’d be hard to identify him from among regular yangban!

jeon - these are bits of shrimp/vegetables/fish/other small things that are deep fried in egg batter!

nokdujeon - this is like a small, savory pancake made with, you guessed it, mung beans!

Chun-ja calling Eunuch Kim “Kim-nim” - look. i’ll be straight with you i have no idea how a commoner would refer to a eunuch. i’m flip-flopping between his title (which i also cannot figure out bc idk which of the 18 political ranks he would be, but not for lack of trying y’all T_T) & his name with the respectful -nim. so just to be safe, i’m going with it.

***i also am not 100% on this, but i believe Eunuchs rank higher than commoners because they work in the palace? which is why Eunuch Kim uses “-ssi” for her.

hangul & hanja - so the Korean alphabet as we know it is called hangul, and it was invented in 1443. in the past, they used to use hanja, Chinese characters, to write documents.

female literacy rate - as related to above, it was rare for women to be able to read/write even up until the late 19th century. they weren’t allowed to learn hanja at all & only around 4% could learn hangul. of those 4%, it was mostly noble women, who received good education to be better wives.

***books were then thus read aloud by those literate to crowds, so people could still enjoy stories.

face - the concept of “face” is very much rooted in Asian culture. in Korea, it’s called chemyon, & is basically related to your reputation + how others see you. you can lose, build, or gain face through your actions or what rumors of you spread. for example, if parents have children with bad grades, they + the child lose face. people should strive to do things to build their family’s honor & face up. i’ve experienced firsthand how people go to sometimes extreme lengths to “save face” as the term goes. basically, if you’re going to do something shameful, it’s better to do it where no one can see. (this concept isn’t going to have a huge influence in the series, at least not so far & i use it rather lightheartedly in October 1865 but i just thought that it’s really interesting + important to know about Asian culture!)

French expedition to Korea (Byeong-in yangyo) - in October 1866, the second French empire tried to invade Korea (or Joseon as it was called at the time) because the king at the time executed seven French missionaries. after several months of fighting, Korea won with only four soldiers killed & 3 wounded (compared to France: 3 killed, 35 wounded). Joseon was able to stay relatively isolated from all the other countries, continuing the practice of isolationism.

gossip - i couldn’t find any laws prohibiting people from talking about court going-ons/battles, though i would assume that it’s punishable if you’re doing it to talk badly about the king. but even if there were laws in place, word gets around, as word tends to do. therefore, i’ve given Eunuch Kim a bit more freedom in his letters.

royal funerals - it could actually take up to 5 months for the coffin to begin its journey to the resting tomb, but i’ve expedited the timeline for plot purposes!

coronations - these actually weren’t super common in Korea or Asia in general, but it did happen once in the 1700s for King Yeongjo. i’m using that as inspiration for Yoongi’s crowning.

*** also i couldn’t find info on the exact wording that King Yeongjo used when he announced his succession to his deceased brother’s body so... i took some creative license there.

gama - how yangban & up women travelled, carried by their servants. here’s a visual!

the royal engagement - actually, Beom-su would not have lived within the palace walls. she would have lived in a detached palace that was further away from the main palace, and there would be a whole procession where the king goes to her during their wedding rites. however, i’ve seen several dramas have the bride-to-be hang around a lot, which seems to be true because she would have had to learn the customs of the palace, so i’m not sure how much she would have been around realistically. i’ve just chosen not to address it, like the dramas do.

Beom-su’s name - i chose this name for her because of one of the possible hanja for beom: “犯”, which i would pair with the hanja “秀” for su. her name would basically mean excellent invasion, which i thought was a bit cruel, slightly humorous, & overall fitting. it is normally a masculine name though!

why are Beom-su’s father’s actions such a scandal? - so all the unmarried women living/working in the palace were considered the king’s property. he could sleep with them if he wanted to, but essentially they belonged to him. by laying hands on the maid, the minister committed a double sin because he not only was he assaulting someone, but he was infringing upon the king’s territory.

civil service exam (gwageo) - this is an exam issued every 3 years that any man, commoner rank & above, could take in order to enter into civil service. it’s what Jimin takes to enter into the court! i’m not sure what month these were held or if it was just at the king’s discretion (could not find much info)

more on eunuch kim & the re-marriage process

royal tombs - these were often quite far away from the actual palace but looking on maps, i found that there were a few tombs rather close to the palace that people could have conceivably travelled to within a day, over several long hours on horseback!

on natural disasters - yes, in history, natural disasters like floods/earthquakes/eclipses were said to be the king’s fault because he wasn’t a good enough ruler! things like this could seriously derail the people’s trust in the king and was a big cause of concern.

on Queen Jeonghui being in court meetings - i couldn’t find actual evidence that said the queen couldn’t be at these daily meetings between officials. in fact, the real life Empress Myeongseong in the ~1870s was pretty involved in politics and was quite interested in matters of law, etc. so, i’ve decided to allow Jeonghui to be present and address the ministers alongside Yoongi!

Chunaengjeon - i kind of explain more about this already in the drabble itself but if you’re curious, it’s the only solo court dance in the Joseon era and the highlight of the dance is a moment where the dancer mimics a bird perched on a flower and smiles :’) i thought it was fitting for these two. here’s a video of a performance that i used as reference!

janae - there were quite a few different terms for couples to call each other during this time. “janae” was meant to represent wife and is kind of their equivalent to our... “honey”? it was mostly used among the commoners/lower classes to convey affection and closeness. (aka eunuch kim continues to be the cutest)

on adopting a child as a eunuch - the readings i found say that eunuch kim’s children must be eunuchs themselves if he adopts them directly, but they don’t mention anything about this particular case of a eunuch marrying a widow, aka the child is not directly adopted by Eunuch Kim himself. so Han-jae will not be a eunuch when he grows up!

american invasion of korea (shinmiyangyo) - this is a true historical event, as i’ve mentioned in my author’s note for “June 1871.” Americans repeatedly violated Korean soveriegnty and invaded their land, resulting in many, many deaths for the Korean side. they were hoping this destruction would force Korea to accept the trade treaty. Korea did not, and eventually were able to chase the Americans out of their land a month later. the wikipedia page goes into greater detail if you’re interested, and is a quick overview of the situation.

seong-min’s living situation - as i’ve mentioned earlier with the whole Beom-su situation, i’ve chosen to not use the detached palace again for this engagement as dramas tend to do.

the wedding ceremony - similar to my reasoning about the detached palace, i’ve chosen to focus on only a few parts of the marriage rites while only briefly mentioning the rest. why? well, while i would LOVE to explain all the details and intricacies of such an incredible process, i feel like that would take a lot away from the heart of the story and be distracting, especially at such a critical stage. so i’ve explained what i can, and given brief overviews where i am able. ofc i adjusted the parading ceremony because of the change of the detached palace custom. if you’d like an easy-to-read source on the whole process, please check out this link! basically the MLT chapter depicts a tweaked vers of steps 5 and 6. 1-3 happened behind the scenes, and i mentioned #4 in the “summer 1871″ drabble.

chungin - our equivalent of “white collar” workers, or the upper-middle class. this rank was made up of low-level bureaucrats, accountants, physicians, etc. some royal servants would also be part of this rank because they’re allowed to enter the palace. there is an exam (chapkwa) to become this rank!

conception dreams (taemong) - as uinyeo-nim explains in the drabble, these dreams were often seen as omens of impending pregnancy. depending on what you see in your dream, there are different interpretations. possible symbols are animals, fruits, elements of nature, children, and jewels. eg. if you dreamed of fruits, it was often considered to be a sign of having a baby girl.

other conception myths - i know from my own experience that Asians often have a lot of superstitions regarding conception and pregnancy and medical things in general. however, i couldn’t find any specific conception myths for the time period in question (most of my research only uncovered superstitions for after you’re already pregnant), so i’ve taken some creative license here, using the conception dreams and current beliefs as inspiration!

on Queen Jeonghui calling oc “dear” - since I prefer not to use Y/N, ___, etc. for reader’s name and just generally avoid mentioning it, it’s nearly impossible for me to convey the tone with which Queen Jeonghui would’ve been calling OC in this chapter. in Korean, she would be saying “[name]-yah/ah” depending on the ending syllable of the name. adding that suffix to the end of a name conveys closeness and intimacy between people. I’ve chosen to substitute it for “dear” to make things sound more natural in English. it’s not an exact match, but it’ll have to do!

#moonlit throne #historical context

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charlietheepicwriter7 · 4 years

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Me: It’s fine, I’m over Umbrella Academy, I can enjoy the show like a regular person-- Brain: Plot an au where Vanya starts her own superhero team. Me, tumblr text file already open: Fuck you.

Vanya discovers her powers after running away from home in late high school and running out of pills. She can’t get a refill since her pills were created by Reginald for only her and “hey, kid, where’d you get these mysterious drugs from? I’m calling the cops.”

She spends most of her time trying to earn money by playing the violin.

She has a panic attack in an alley bc she’s out of pills and she can’t go home and oh, god, what should she do-- That blows up the alley. When the destruction is over, there’s a person standing there--a person with no identifiable gender staring at them with wide eyes. “You’re just like me,” they gasp.

This is the first of multiple OCs in this verse, provided that I work more on it. Maybe... 5 major OCs?

This particular OC is Taylor, one of the other 43 kids born October 1st, 1989, and they are a shapeshifter from France. If you follow me, you might recall they were briefly mentioned in this short post. They can shapeshift into any person, animal, or combination therefore at the cost of an extremely high metabolism.

Taylor immediately drags Vanya off to their hotel which they are staying with another one of the 43, Mason. Mason is an Empath from England. He and Taylor met online. His power allows him to both feel and manipulate other people’s emotions. He can even affect large crowds of hundreds of people.

Taylor and Mason have been scoping out the Umbrella Academy for the past week, trying to decide whether or not to approach them with the idea of joining. Mason thinks it would be irresponsible to not volunteer to help people (having grown up on “with great power comes great responsibility”. Taylor doesn’t actually care beyond preventing Mason from getting shot, but has slowly grown to like the idea.

Vanya immediately goes, “You naive idiots, here’s a million reasons why that’s a bad idea”, thoroughly explaining her backstory to boot. And then remembers that she suddenly has powers now and oh look! Another panic attack.

Mason puts a stop to that. No blowing up hotel rooms here, thank you.

But now, Mason and Taylor are up a shit creek because the only known superhero group is run by an abusive asshole and they still want to help people. And Vanya’s like, “Hey, I was basically right next to Reginald in the Umbrella Academy’s training for my entire life, I know how to train ppl to be superheroes. I can train you guys!”

And Mason goes, “Fantastic, also we should probably figure out why your literally exploding shit despite being powerless for your entire life. bc wtf man.”

Vanya: “That is a fantastic idea, also I’m having an identity crisis.” Taylor: “That’s literally my entire life, let me help.”

But all is not well in the city of Townsville, for you see, another person saw Vanya blow up an alleyway. It was... The Conductor!!

(No, it’s not jenkins, and while I haven’t read the comics, the Conductor isn’t going to be here long enough to matter).

The Conductor has been kidnapping and brainwashing musicians into joining his Orchestra of EVIL to play his Apocalypse Suite that’s totally going to end the world, guys.

(let’s just say the Conductor is lowkey psychic. Like, he knows this song is going to be the song that ends the world, but not when it happens or who plays it)

So, he was stalking Vanya, to save her from a life of homelessness by drugging and brainwashing her when he sees her blow up the alley and thinks “oh. that’s the missing piece.”

Vanya has only been training Taylor and Mason for three days or so when she gets kidnapped by the Conductor and Taylor and Mason are like “oh shit, we should probably get her back if we want our dream to become reality, also because it’s the right thing to do.”

It takes them a while to track her down, because they’re not heroes yet, and they get captured while looking for her, because they’re not heroes yet.

By this point, Vanya’s been drugged and being forced to learn the first chair part for the Apocalypse Suite, and some memories have been knocked loose. Like bby!Allison rumoring her. The dark room in the basement. And bby!Vanya killing a nanny or two. She’s very emotionally overwhelmed right now.

But she’s resisting the Conductor, who is not having it. So he threatens to kill Mason and Taylor if she doesn’t agree to play. So she does.

And She Brings Down The Building.

Vanya manages to keep herself, Taylor, and Mason alive in the destruction, but the same cannot be said about the Conductor, probably (IDK, if I decide to continue/write this, he seems like he could be a good reoccurring villain).

Vanya is very overwhelmed at this point because All she ever wanted was to be accepted by her family, to have powers like them, so the fact that her father deliberately took them away from her is devastating. Fortunately, she managed to get most of the rage out of her system by blowing up the Conductor’s building.

Mason and Taylor drag her out of there before the police show up because they blew up a building. By the time they get back to their hotel, Vanya has decided.

“Can I... can I join your superhero team? If you guys want me?”

Of course they say yes because they’ve bonded now, but Vanya is still very iffy about being on the front lines. Like, she JUST had a guy try to brainwash her into destroying the world with her powers and it was revealed that she kept killing nannies in her childhood, she’s not in a good place involving them.

But, again, she’s been next to Reginald Hargreeves for a long time. She knows about both training and leading a superhero team. So Taylor suggests she takes the head. Or perhaps... the First Chair.

Because that’s what the Conductor made her. She was to be the first chair of his Orchestra of Evil, to lead the apocalypse. It’s only right that she takes that back. Plus, as part of their job, the first chair is a leader.

And Vanya is a leader now.

Since I don’t know if I should continue this, here’s my OCs, their powers, their hero names, and their jobs on the team.

Taylor Devereux Power: Shape-shifting Hero name: The Chimera Job: Infiltrator, Tank Note: Has the world’s biggest crush on Vanya.

Mason Gaines Power: Empath Hero name: The Aura Job: Crowd Control, Can Wipe Out Large Amounts of Enemies Note: Both Taylor and Mason named themselves after Vanya’s siblings in an act of solidarity. Was the one to suggest it, along with the group name, “The Parahumans.”

Saniyah Best Power: Technopath Hero Name: Hijack Job: Hacker, Information Gather Note: Saniyah was the next to join. Discovered them through her hacking after being kidnapped to use her powers for evil. Sent an SOS, agreed to join if they rescued her.

Luiz Rocha do Amaral Power: Elemental Breath Hero Name: Drake Job: Heavy Hitter/Lancer Note: Found them on an online forum of all places and tracked them down from there. Is working on an animated cartoon of their adventures as a superhero team. Until he started training with the Parahumans, he thought his power was Fire Breath, but in truth he can breath multiple elements.

Sang-Kyu Choi Power: Shadow Manipulation Hero Name: The Shade Job: Leader on the ground, Sniper Notes: Vanya saved his life. While Sang-Kyu didn’t originally plan to be a hero, he couldn’t not repay that debt. Somehow, he ended up leading the entire team. He and Vanya are very close, almost as close as Taylor and Vanya.

Vanya Hargreeves Power: Sound Manipulation Hero Name: The First Chair Job: Team Leader, Eyes in the Sky, Trainer Notes: She cried the first time their group celebrated their mutual birthday and she got presents since she rarely got them before. Still remembers every note of the Apocalypse Suite over a decade into the future. Misses Five Hargreeves more than anything else in the world.

If you want to be added to a possible taglist, please use the replies or my ask box and make sure you call it the “parahumans au” so I can find it fast.

#Umbrella Academy #vanya hargreeves #vanya deserved better #umbrella academy ocs #hargreeves siblings #hargreeves family #parahumans au #vanya discovers her powers early #minor fiveya

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bluewhale52 · 3 years

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The History of Us - Ch. 16

Synopsis: You have built your career and you have 2 rising hip hop superstars as your besties. Life is pretty good, until one drunken night that derails your life plan. How would you survive?

Pairing: ?? x OC , main characters are mostly Namjoon, Yoongi and Tae, but all 7 are present now

Fic type: social media au + text

Genre: Strangers to Lovers!AU, fluff, angst.

Rated: R

Warning: swearing, talk about sex and unplanned pregnancy

Disclaimer: photos are not mine, and of course characterization and scenarios of the boys are purely of my imagination

Masterlist | Next>>

Ch. 16 - 3some

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10 March, 20:15

You and Taehyung sit nervously across from Seokjin. He still has not said anything since you broke the news that you are in fact, carrying Kim Seokjin’s baby, and not Kim Taehyung’s. There are probably a million questions that will need to be answered, but Seokjin has not shown any indication that he has processed the jawdropping news.

“Maybe you should wait in the bedroom,” you whisper to Taehyung. At the raise of his eyebrows, you pat his cheek lovingly. “It’s OK, Tae. It might be easier for him to talk to me alone.”

Your heart aches with the way Taehyung looks at you. A flash of jealousy, possessiveness then understanding, one quickly replaces another. He kisses the top of your head and gently rubs your belly, before excusing himself and heading to your bedroom. Watching him leave, you immediately blush at the memories of what you did last night and this morning.

You and Taehyung had not talked in a month, since you told him about the identity of your baby’s father. All the frustration and anger finally boiled over last night at Yoongi’s birthday dinner. Annoyed at Taehyung’s cold demeanour towards you, you openly started flirting with Seokjin all night, which resulted in you and Taehyung shouting at each other across the table.

When a particular barb Taehyung threw at you finally broke the dam of tears you had been holding back, Namjoon dragged you out of the restaurant and held you as your cried into his chest. Minutes later, however, Taehyung came out to pull you from Namjoon’s arm, flagged a taxi down, and you both ended up going back to your place together.

The taxi ride was quiet, but once you both entered your apartment, you were anything but. Lips smacking, skin slapping, pants and moans filled your living room then your bedroom. And it was at your fourth orgasm of the night, when you screamed his name over and over again, that he claimed you as his, and you gladly accepted it.

This morning was no different, instead of talking, the two of you were going at it again, and you both apologised, cried and promised to be honest and to communicate better, all said between orgasms. Spent, a decision was then made that Kim Seokjin needed to know- that the baby growing in your belly is his. Which led you to inviting him to your place for dinner, to break the news.

You turn to the man in front of you, wondering how long more you need to wait before Seokjin is able to say anything at all.

“Seokjin,” you reach out and rub his knee, “are you OK?”

He blinks at your touch, and clears his throat. “Uh, let me just get the facts straight.”

You nod, silently encouraging him to talk. In the short amount of time you have known him, you realise he has a habit of talking his thoughts out loud.

“So, we met that night, at the Halloween party, then we came here, and you know, and somehow our protection was faulty..” his hands are flapping and you nod at him, “and you’re pregnant.”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“And i was the one night stand guy whose identity you didn’t know, until the whole partnership thing with Namjoon and Yoongi.” You nod again.

“But you told me last week that Taehyung was the father.”

You shrug your shoulders a little. “Well you caught me off guard, I panicked and just said the first name that came to mind.”

This time it is Seokjin who nods. then he chuckles, “You know I thought you were going to offer me a proposition, like for a threesome.”

You choke on your own saliva at his blunt confession. “Excuse me?”

Seokjin laughs loudly, his shoulders shaking. “Turns out I’m going to be a father.”

You stare at him wondering how his mind could go from ten to 200kph in an instant. “Yeah well, no threesome. I think we have enough spice in our lives as it is now.”

You wait till Seokjin stops laughing, and when he buries his face in his hands, you start to worry. He must be going through a hell of a rollercoaster of emotions right now.

“So... what now?” he finally looks up at you and asks.

“I don’t know, really,” you helplessly answer, “Tae and I agreed to tell you because all eight of us will be working closely. And not only that, you’re becoming friends with Joon and Yoongi too. And then Hoseok and Tae seem to be forming this bond over fashion, I just didn’t want to ruin any of these relationships you guys are building.”

You take a deep breath. “I didn’t want to tell you, but Tae insisted that you need to know,” you confess reluctantly.

“I see.”

Seokjin and you awkwardly stare at each other. Something seems to hold him back from saying anything, so you continue talking.

“I don’t want your money. I swear, this is not why I told you about the baby. Before Tae was even in the picture, I was ready to have this baby and raise them on my own. My relationship with Tae just happened, and I’m grateful for it. And he was planning to move in here so he can help, you know he loves children, and I know he’d be an amazing fath- I mean, he’s amazing with kids...”

You stop talking when you see Seokjin tilts his head at your almost referring Tae as the baby’s father.

“So it’s like a parenting threesome.”

You narrow your eyes at him. “What?”

“You know, two dads, one mom. Is that what’s going on here?”

You sputter, lost for an answer, and Seokjin feels agitated by your lack of response.

“Are you expecting me not to be involved? Do you want me not to be involved?” he asks, voice firmer now.

Your heart is beating faster. “I’m not... it’s up to you Seokjin, I-”

“Jin.” he says firmly, interrupting you. “You’re carrying my baby so call me Jin.”

You swallow, getting nervous now. “Jin,” you repeat his name, “it’s up to you. It’s your choice how much you want to be involved. I’m not expecting anything from y-”

Jin abruptly stands up, startling you. “Well I’m telling you now I’m not expecting to be a third wheel in this, it’s my child!”

He runs his fingers through his head in annoyance. “You can’t just tell me and expect me not to be involved.”

“That’s not what I’m saying,” you speak gently, trying to ease down the tension. “I’m just saying it’s entirely up to you. If you want to be involved, that’s great. If you don’t, that’s fine too. I don’t want you to feel obligated.”

“Because you have that knight in shining armour, right?” he gestures towards your bedroom. You groan inwardly, praying Taehyung is not eavesdropping. You stand up and grab Jin’s arms and direct him back to his seat.

“What do you want then, Jin?” you ask, forcing your voice to stay calm.

“I want to be involved, and I want the baby to call me dad. The baby can call Taehyung whatever you guys want, but the baby will call me dad.”

“OK, that’s absolutely fine.”

“And I will pay for the baby.” He shushes you as you shake your head. “50% of the baby is me, so whatever medical costs of this pregnancy, and when you give birth, and whatever the baby needs later in life, I’m also responsible for it.”

“OK, if that’s what you want.”

“If you don’t mind, I will start a fund for the baby. For financial security. My parents did it for me, and I want to do it for my child too.” Jin continues, “there’ll be paperwork involved, to ensure the money goes to the child and the child alone.”

You nod, it makes sense. He has money and he wants to ensure his child’s well being. As an expectant mother you feel somewhat relieved, and as a CPA, you know it’s the right arrangement if one can afford it. “OK, that’s a good plan and I’m really grateful for it. But Jin, do you want people to know you’re the father?”

Jin stares at you blankly. You have thought about this question long and hard. You are fine admitting your child is fatherless, or when an answer is needed and you can’t circle around it, you know Taehyung is ready to step in. Your inner circle knows who the real father is, and that’s all that matters.

But if Jin wants to be openly involved with the child, it would be his reputation on the line. He is too much of a public figure now- the whole situation will definitely be seen as a scandal, tainting his name and very likely will cost you your job too.

Jin seems to understand the dilemma. “If your firm finds out...”

“... I’ll probably lose my job.” You finish his train of thought.

“So we’ll be discreet. We’ll just tell those who need to know. Wait, does everyone in Bulletproof know I’m the father?”

“Just the guys, and you know we can trust them completely.” You assure him, and yourself.

Jin nods. “So your job should be safe then. As long as no one from outside finds out. Though you know, most first borns tend to look exactly like their fathers. One day people will put two and two together.”

“Well then,” you chuckle, “let’s hope our child is going to be a boring accountant like me, and not famous like you.”

At that Jin smiles at you, a real genuine smile, and you feel hopeful that this strange arrangement- this parenting threesome as Jin puts it- may just work out.

Jin and you both whip your head at the sound of Taehyung clearing his throat. You freeze, wondering when Taehyung came out of your bedroom, and how much has he heard? Then you realise you are sitting very close to Jin, and you start to worry if Taehyung misreads it. The fight you had is still fresh in your mind and heart.

“Sorry to disturb you, and to burst your happiness bubble,” Taehyung walks closer to you and Jin, “but you need to see this.”

Taehyung holds out his phone, and Jin and you quickly read what is on the screen. Jin groans, and you grab the phone from Taehyung’s hand, reading the screen over and over again. Taehyung bites his lower lip nervously.

And then you let out a blood curling scream.

“WHAT THE FUCK?”

22 notes · View notes

nagitoandkokichioneshots · 3 years

Text

Please give a warm welcome to my Danganronpa OC’s!

Mod Mikan: It is with great pleasure that I announce we have official hit 200 followers, which means OC fest can official start! Send in your Danganronpa OC’s or just ask my OC’s questions if you wanna! Thank you guys so much for 200 followers! You have stuck by my side in my worst times and still managed to show me that nice people, in fact, DO exist! OC fest will take over the whole week of this blog, ending on March 10th, so there will be plenty of time to interact with each other! Tysm again and please have fun! Go nuts! XOXO

Name: Gina Sasaki

Age: 16-17

Birthday: December 2nd

Height: 5′6

Weight: 121 lbs

Talent: Ultimate (Super High School Level) Philanthropist/Humanitarian

Friends: Hajime, Chiaki, Mikan, Ibuki, Sonia, and Kazuichi

S/O: Nagito

Appearance: Gina has long brown hair that is faded somewhat pink at the ends, and blue eyes. Her hair is curled at the ends and she has side bangs that are clipped back by a pink carnation barrette. She usually wears a short Prussian blue shirtdress with a black sparkly tie underneath a black denim jacket with gold buttons, black sheer tights, and white heeled boots that reaches her mid-calf. After her and Nagito start to date, she is seen wearing a lot of jewelry he has gifted her, as well as swapping her jacket for his to wear :)

Personality: Just like what Nagito says and in her talent name, Gina is the literal embodiment of hope! She carries a cheerful and mature attitude wherever she goes, brightening the room she was just in and the corridor she was walking through. She is described as an older sister figure, both for her caring nature and compassionate heart. She was called “Onee-san” by some kids in Hope Peak’s elementary and the orphanages she worked at. She is very experienced with kids, due to her working often as local orphanages, daycares, and schools. She adores children and seeking a good future for others. Because of her desire to spread hope to despairing parts of the world, she is seen as an optimist most the time and has high expectations for what the future will hold with her help. Sonia even describes her as having “a very bright attitude and heart of gold” and Nagito calls her “His angel of hope”. She’s confident in her skills, seeing the impact she has had on others. However, because of her claimed ‘big sister’ figure, she also has quite a reputation for being a bit nosy, meddlesome, and being too immersed in her work, she will forget to take care of herself. She is also extremely helpful, even if the person in need is a total stranger

Strengths: Helpful, supportive, caring, compassionate, patient, mature, relaxed, optimistic, cheerful, and confident

Weaknesses: Meddlesome, a picky eater (some even call her a ‘churro snob’) can forget to take care of herself, a bit navie, her expectations can be a bit too high, and her happy-go-lucky attitude can be inappropriate at times

Hobbies and Interests: Working at charities, promoting fundraisers, donating money and time, volunteering, playing soccer, baking (churros are her favorite), and reading

Family: Haruka Sasaki (Mother) and Daisuke Sasaki (Half older brother). Her father is unknown

Backstory: Before Gina was born, her mother was a Japanese tourist that loved to travel around the world. One day, she visited Spain where she met a handsome and charming man. It was on Haruka’s last night visiting Barcelona where they hooked up and performed unsafe sex. Haruka left Spain the next day, unaware that hookup had gotten her pregnant. Even after Haruka learned she was pregnant and put the puzzle pieces together that it was from her hookup back in Spain, she didn’t care. She loved her future daughter and would give her the best life she would. And, if you haven’t figured it out, yes: That was also how Gina’s older half brother came into the picture--Daisuke was also the result of a hookup Haruka had years ago. As a result, Daisuke was half American and Gina was half Spanish. Daisuke was around five years old when his sister was born

Gina was raised in a typical household, minus a dad. But that didn’t bother her, since she had her mother (The former SHSL Pediatrician) and her older brother who was kinda like a father figure (The former SHSL Veterinarian). Since bother her mother and older brother were alumni of Hope Peak’s academy, everyone expected Gina to carry the family tradition and enroll in the institute too. Which is exactly what she did, applying with the title “Ultimate Philanthropist”! Gina was already involved in many charities and organizations prior to applying, so she had several references to back up her almost inhumane amounts of creditable sources

Her love for bettering the lives of the less fortunate started when she was around five years old, when she made a visit to the veterinarian office her brother was volunteering at. The patients and Daisuke himself was impressed with her comforting skills, managing to put the animals at ease with just a few reassuring words and head pats. Gina also displayed an identical charm towards the little kids at her mother’s doctor’s office, where she made the once scared toddlers and babies feel at ease and comfortable. She tells Hajime in her free-time events that taking care of others and comforting them came naturally to her. She also informs him that she doesn’t understand how heartless people could be, hearing the stories that landed kids into orphanages/foster care. It was then her family noticed her talent emerging and shining through her--she was born to be a humanitarian! Because of her gift, her mother decided to put it to use and take it one step further: Her, Daisuke, and Gina started to sign her up for as many charities and fundraisers they could find. Overtime, with hard-work and dedication, Gina became a well-known philanthropist, earning a slight fame reputation for her awing actions. She was accepted into the academy, due to these references, where she met her friends, and of course, her beloved Nagito

Cool headcanons!

-She considers Sonia her best friend and is usually the one teaching her Japanese customs and idioms so she could learn more figurative saying and metaphors

-She once hosted a charity event featuring Hiyoko’s dancing. Because of this, Hiyoko doesn’t really pick on her that much but still drops a subtle “Priss” or “Goody-goody”. Though, it’s clear her insults aren’t as hurtful as the one she uses with others

-She once pulled a prank on Hajime with Nagito and bedazzled his tie when he was taking a nap. When Hajime woke up, he freaked out while Gina and Nagito laughed and high fived each other. When Hajime noticed them he scolded them, but Nagito blushed and said “I’m so sorry, Hajime. But Gina asked me to help her. And you know I’d do anything for my hope”

-For a fundraiser idea, Gina once suggested a car wash and enlisted Kazuichi to help her. She asked him with every washing she does, he would fix up the car mileage to make it run even faster and smoother as a little ‘surprise’. Ever since that day, they’ve been great friends

-Chiaki keeps urging Gina to have a gaming fundraiser, which has been on Gina’s mind for quite a while

-She has a collection of different flower shaped hair clips and keeps them in a heart shaped box

-She dry cleans her ties and even used her own glitter gun to make her black tie sparkly (and prank Hajime)

-She helps Mikan restock the infirmary with medications and even aids her when treating her patients, due to her medical knowledge from her mother and big brother

-Even though she never met her father before, she still immerses herself in Spanish culture so on the faithful day she will met him, they can easily bond

-Sonia taught her Spanish when Gina told her about her plan to meet her father one day

-Churros are Gina’s favorite food! She learned how to bake them at a young age while studying Spanish culture and even makes chocolate/caramel syrup to go along with them

-She plays soccer in her free time so she has an excuse to eat more churros

-She loves to read comic books too and has a whole collection of them underneath her bed. If you were to look at the pages of some of them, there’s grease/chocolate smudges from when she was snacking on churros while reading them

And.........

Name: Yukari Nakamura

Age: 16-17

Birthday: January 12th

Height: 5′4

Weight: 119 lbs

Talent: Ultimate Chess Master

Friends: Shuichi, Kaede, Miu, Angie, Tenko, and Rantaro

S/O: Kokichi

Appearance: Yukari has long, straight platinum blond hair topped off with a black ribbon headband and red eyes. She usually wears a black button up blouse with short puff sleeves, a short white pleated skirt, and black ankle boots. She also wears a black choker, black short gloves, and silver chess earrings (one being the king pawn and the other being the queen)

Personality: At first glance, Yukari comes off as arrogant, loud, and rowdy. As the Ultimate Chess Master, many people would expect her to be refined, sophisticated, and formal. Unlike the high expectations everyone had for her, Yukari doesn’t care about what others think of her, and only cares takes in her own opinions and (very much after they start to date) Kokichi’s. Yukari refers to herself as “The awesome me” or “Ore-Sama”, even having what Kaito calls an “out of this world ego”. Maki even rolls her eyes every time Yukari praises herself and mutters “She gets too excited about everything” and “90% of what she says is just feeding her ego”. While Yukari may seem unruly, noisy, and prideful at first, she also as a whimsical and playful side to her. She takes great pleasure in doing goofy, and slightly childish things, other than chess, whether it would be pulling pranks with Kokichi, playing video games, watching cartoons, or playing laser tag. She even states that chess is the only ‘mature’ thing about her and she absolutely hates it. Not the game, but the association it has with being ‘elegant and civilized”. She believes that she should be able to like whatever ‘the awesome me’ wants without people judging her solely on that hobby. Like Kokichi, she also states that when people grow up, they shouldn’t lose their childish side, which is very well seen with her. Even though Yukari is brash, fanciful, mischievous, beneath that cocky exterior lies a diligent, hard-working girl that cares deeply about her loved ones. You can even say she’s the “Kirigiri/Nanami” of the trials

Strengths: Intelligent, tenacious, crafty, clever, quirky, confident, energetic, surprisingly caring, and cheerful

Weaknesses: Arrogant, conceited, can come off as rude at points, unrestrained, chaotic, devious, her ‘cheerfulness’ can be inappropriate at times

Hobbies and Interests: Playing chess, planing pranks, laser tag, watching anime, reading manga, playing board/video games, eating/stashing candy, just vibing and having a good time

Family: Natasha Ivanov (Mother) and Karma Nakamura

Backstory: Like Gina, Yukari is mixed race. Her father’s side is Japanese, but her mother is from Russian decent. She was raised in a decent, upper-class family. Her mother worked as a business woman that started her company back in Moscow, Russia. However, she met Karma on a business trip to Tokyo and fell in love with him. She decided, in order to continue her job and be with her love, she would set up a Japanese branch of her company and make do with several business trips back to Russia and her new home in Tokyo. Because of this, Yukari never spent much time with her mother, since Natasha was almost always out on business trips. This left Yukari with her father, who was very strict with her. He punished Yukari severely for the littlest things, watched her like a hawk to the brink of not giving her any privacy, and made helicopter parents look laid-back in comparison to his overbearing nature. He expected Yukari to take over her mother’s business, and because she was the heiress he wanted a 'perfect daughter’--no mistakes, no flaws, no slip-ups, no exceptions!

Yukari was homeschooled for most of her life, tutors coming in one by one to educate Yukari. She tells Shuichi during her free-time events that she once heard her father giving her tutor permission to physically abuse her if she got below a 98% on her home tests. She also explains that chess was the one game she was allowed to play, since her father deemed it ‘sophisticated enough’. She explains during rare times when her mother was back in Tokyo, they would enjoy a friendly game of chess over tea. Yukari even stated that she enjoyed the game, especially playing it with her mother. However, if Yukari lost a game to her father, he would yell and lecture her, making her reread the entire rule book, cover to cover. She states that even though her father was cruel, he was kind of the reason why she was extremely good at chess

Yukari was isolated from other kids, not knowing that abuse wasn’t normal. She thought that all kids go through the kind of traumatic and harsh treatment she went through. Because of this, she hid her insecurities underneath her arrogant and egotistical persona. She was given the message “Showing weaknesses are bad” so she decided to project nothing but confidence--even if it meant going overboard like she mainly does. She also loves childish things due to her lack of childhood fun and games. She was raised to be a robot, basically. It wasn’t until she was accepted into the Ultimate academy for Gifted Juveniles where she made friends and she learned that they were allowed to watch cartoons, play video games, and sports. She was speechless. She secretly started to join her friends for all the festivities they invited her to learn and join in on, never telling her father. They even started to help her hide manga and movie DVD’s from him. The father she knew was downright abusive towards her. Yukari still secretly struggles with her own self-esteem, wanting to be perfect. She also keeps meeting up with her friends, learning what fun is and embracing a childish side, as well as a rebellious one she picked up. Even though she has to face her father at home, she now knows that he cannot take away who she really is deep down

Cool headcanons!

-Even though Kokichi LOVES to prank her, the pranks he pulls on her are pretty harmless because he will NEVER want to hurt his queen

-Oh, and yes, Kokichi calls Yukari “The Supreme Leader’s queen” as well as his ‘partner in crime’ when plotting pranks on the others with her

-Some nights, they’ll sneak into Shuichi’s house and scare him by blowing an airhorn next to his ear when he’s watching TV or reading a book

-Kokichi loves to buy Yukari chocolates shaped like chess pieces in a chess themed box

-Yukari always challenges Kiibo to a game of chess to see who would win, but every time they played together, they never finished. Either Kokichi or Miu interrupted

-Yukari is surprisingly a studyholic. She is in the same honor class as Tsumigi and strives for straight A’s

-She once challenged Maki to a game, just wanting to win to brag in her face. Though, Maki declined

-When Yukari offered a game a second time Maki asked her “Do you want to die?” which Yukari smiled and replied “No, but thanks of the offer” (if anyone gets that reference, I love you :))

-Yukari is fond of cute things, like kittens and rabbits. She use to have a Turkish Van as a pet, but it died shortly after Yukari got accepted into Hope Peaks

-She once got into a fight with Kokichi when he pulled a ‘cheating prank’ on her. Yukari sought comfort with Tenko and Angie, pouring her heart out towards her friends. When Kokichi came and tried to apologize, Tenko was ready to whoop his ass (Best girl=Tenko :))

-Kokichi bought them matching capes, hats, and even a scarf so everyone knows that she’s his and only his

-In the relationship, both of them seem to be the dominant. However, in bed, Yukari is DEF the top ;)

-People don’t usually mess with Yukari cause she’s loud and rowdy, so they’re usually just annoyed and rolls their eyes. However, if anyone ANYONE messes with her anyways, Kokichi will not hesitate to send DICE on their ass

#Mod Mikan's thoughts of the day #Mod Mikan speaks!#200 followers #Thank you so much everyone!#Love you all!#OC fest!

9 notes · View notes

crowsnests · 3 years

Text

taste of certainty - part two

Fandom: The Arcana Pairing: Julian Devorak x OC Apprentice (Syran Elkas) Tags: friends to lovers; modern times au; friend group dynamic; slow burn; pining; really just Julian being Julian and Syran being Oblivious Words: 6034 Warnings: mention of anxiety, migraines, insomnia, alcohol

part 1 2 3 4 5

playlist

I know that it can take me even deeper if I let it But my limbs are trying to swim away

- trust; half-alive

II. beach fire sparks

The car ride is mostly quiet, Nadia and Pasha sit at the front, humming along to the songs Pasha puts on– clearly some sort of playlist made just for the two of them. Syran looks out the window, buildings and lights passing by. The sound of Ilya’s voice doesn’t want to leave her mind.

Syran suddenly feels watched, so she pries away from the window, noticing how Pasha is leaning over the passenger seat to look at her.

“What?” Syran asks.

Nadia glances at her from the rearview mirror.

Pasha smiles, sly. “You know what.”

Syran thinks she does, but– she’s gonna pretend like she doesn’t. Mostly because she really doesn’t want to know what.

She shrugs, “I don't.”

Most of the time, if she focuses, Syran can be a good liar. She hopes to channel her talent right now, although she knows that sometimes Pasha has the ability to see through her.

“You really really don’t?” Pasha insists, smile getting wider.

Syran narrows her eyes, “You’re mad at me for the pizza choice?”

Pasha sighs, clearly impatient to Syran’s stubbornness.

“No! You and my brother!” She groans. “You got all cosy, and Ilya was all like ohhh hello and you were like oh shit, oh my god!!” She tries to imitate the two of them by changing her pitch. Badly. “Like, come on, just date already!”

“Wh– what?” Syran is a good liar, but hearing Pasha talk so earnestly about– whatever’s between her and Ilya is– weird.

“There’s no–” Syran swallows, trying to get her tone back to normal. “What do you mean? I’ve fallen asleep near you guys before– I mean. I just didn’t expect it to happen, this time. Why would we date? We’re friends.”

Please stop, please stop. She thinks.

Pasha furrows her brow. “Friends, huh? I mean, yes. You are friends. But mayyybe you could be friends that smooch.”

Nadia reaches to put a hand on Pasha’s thigh. Pasha turns to her for a second. “What? You know I’m right.”

“Your truth doesn’t mean it’s also Syran’s truth, babe.” Nadia’s tone is gentle, but she gives Syran an understanding look from the rearview mirror– Pasha doesn’t seem to notice.

Syran feels incredibly relieved. She is grateful to Nadia for bailing her out of this conversation.

“Yeah, my truth is very different from– whatever it is you think. Ilya and I are friends and we don’t– s– smooch.” Ah, she really wishes she didn’t say that last part.

Pasha narrows her eyes one more time. “Ugh, whatever,” she huffs, turning to sit properly, facing forward. “I just think you would be really good for my brother. He needs someone as nice as you.” She mutters, clearly more serious this time.

Syran can’t help but widen her eyes at that, flattered. She tries to ignore the heat on her cheeks, though.

“W–well, thank you, but there’s nothing like that between us.” Syran is trying to convince herself more than Pasha. Nadia throws her one last look from the mirror and she knows she’s caught on more than Syran would like.

As soon as Syran gets back home, a lazy meow greets her at the door. Her cat, Persephone, bumps her head against her calf. Syran reaches down to pick her up and scratch behind her ears.

“Hello, cutie, hope you didn’t feel too lonely today,” Syran plants a kiss on top of Persephone’s head. She lazily meows as a reply, in between all the purring.

The apartment is quiet besides that. Without Ran’s excited laugh and warm presence, the atmosphere in the house feels wrong.

Once Syran’s in her room and changed into comfortable clothes, all the embarrassment catches up to her as soon as she sits on the bed. She stares at the window for a second, then the thought of Ilya makes her want to hide herself further in bed and scream into a pillow, like she’s fifteen again and her emotions are all over the place.

Well, the latter is definitely true.

Persephone lays down beside her, kneading on the duvet until she finds a comfortable spot.

Just when she’s done strangling her pillow, Syran’s phone rings with the sound of a text.

from: dumbsra - 21:03

goodmorning (.❛ ᴗ ❛.)

Syran groans. She wants to punch him. She knows exactly what he’s referencing, but she is not going to fall for it.

to: dumbsra - 21:04

It’s nine pm

from: dumbsra - 21:04

Oh, i know (.❛ ᴗ ❛.)

to: dumbsra - 21:05

good to know you can read a clock, then

from: dumbsra - 21:07

I’m just saying, you looked like you were really comfortable tonight (.❛ ᴗ ❛.) (－ω－) zzZ (¬‿¬ ) °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°( ´ ▽ ` ).｡♡(„ಡωಡ„)

Fucking idiot. What is she even supposed to reply to that? Fuck you, would be appropriate, but she knows that it will give him more ground to make dumb jokes.

Why is everyone onto her?

to: dumbsra - 21:08

we need to discuss the way you use emojis, honestly, it’s a problem

from: dumbsra - 21:09

Ignore my words all you want, you know i can read your mind (つ✧ω✧)つ :｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

to: dumbsra - 21:10

then i’m sure you know what i’m thinking right now

from: dumbsra - 21:10

that you should ask Ilya out on a date?

(☞°ヮ°)☞ ☜(°ヮ°☜)

to: dumbsra - 21:12

No, that i stole your favourite shirt once and i will do it again

Goodnight! ( ◡‿◡ )

from: dumbsra - 21:12

ヽ(°〇°)ﾉ don’t you dare

Syran puts her phone down, stopping herself from answering more. She hears it vibrate a couple times, definitely Asra complaining about being left on seen, but she doesn’t care right now.

She turns to her cat, who looks up at her, languidly, “At least you’re on my side, right, Persie?”

Persephone just yawns and goes back to napping.

Syran sighs. All she wants to do is get ready for bed and not think about Ilya’s comforting presence.

🂱

When she arrives at the park entrance, their designated meeting spot for the winter fair, there’s enough people around for Syran to not find her friends immediately. That’s until she spots a tall figure on the side of the entrance.

“Muriel!” She calls, waving towards him.

When she reaches him, breath forming little clouds of vapor, Muriel smiles down at her, “Hey, Syran.”

Muriel is wearing dark green gloves that Syran remembers getting him a few birthdays ago. “Aww, you still wear them?”

Muriel nods, “They’re warm.”

“Hello babe,” Asra pops up from beside him and beams at her, all bundled up in a puffy jacket and bright teal beanie.

“Hey handsome,” she teases back, hugging him briefly. “Where are the others?”

“Pasha and Nadia should be here soon, Ilya is– somewhere.”

Syran blinks. Ilya can be late sometimes but he lives with the two of them, so– “Didn’t he come with you guys?”

“Yeah, then he forgot his wallet in the car,” Asra rolls his eyes.

Syran laughs at the thought of Ilya scrambling to get back to the car and looking for his wallet.

Idiot.

She realises she’s said it out loud when Asra throws her a look. She tries to hide her face in her scarf.

Ugh, does he have nothing else to think about?

“Hey!” Someone exclaims from behind them just then, saving her from any comments Asra might make. “Found it!”

Except that someone is Ilya, waving at them and running, dark crimson scarf coming loose to show his neck.

For fuck’s sake, she can’t catch a break. He looks handsome as always.

“Oh– hey Syran,” he comes to a halt right in front of her, surprised, as if he hadn’t seen her before. To be fair, she’s only the second shortest of the group (first being Pasha by an inch or so, thankfully), so maybe he really didn’t see her. Then, he smiles and Syran wishes her scarf was big enough to become a cocoon for her to hide in.

She’s fine. She’s okay.

( “I don’t have a crush!” she told Ran over the phone last night, after recounting the events of the evening. “That’s ridiculous. Ilya’s been my friend for a long time. He’s just– nice, okay?”

“Of course he’s nice, wasn’t he nice before?” Ran laughed. “Feelings can evolve, you know?”

“No– no– he was.” Syran huffed. “It’s nothing, okay? I’m just– I’m just tired, all these years I’ve been fine, so I’m fine now too.”

She could almost see Ran raising her eyebrow at her, “Really?”

“Yes, really,” Syran insisted. “I know very well what a crush feels like. Whatever I feel for Ilya is– not a crush. It’s fondness, friendship. Not– anything else.”

Ran sighed, surrendering. “Whatever you say, Elkas.” )

Ilya’s eyes are so hard to look away from, but Syran finds the strength to put her hands in her pockets and stare at her boots. Pretty safe defense mechanism, if you ask her.

“So, what’s the plan?” Ilya asks the group.

“Well, I assume since you found your wallet you’re going to pay for everyone?” Asra smirks.

Ilya scoffs, “You still owe me money for that dinner we had, Asra.”

“I paid you back!”

“A mug you shoplifted isn’t exactly the same,” Ilya retorts.

“It’s a beautiful mug and It reminded me of you! Isn’t the thought that counts?”

“It literally says World’s Worst Doctor, you little shit–”

“You still use it though!”

Muriel and Syran exchange a sympathetic smile, knowing very well the bickering between the two can be neverending. This argument comes up at least once a week.

Thankfully, Nadia and Pasha join them, interrupting the discussion.

“Market time!” Pasha exclaims as she runs for the entrance, Nadia and Ilya in tow.

They enter the park, all decorated, pretty lights illuminating everyone’s stunned faces.

They’ve been here before, when they put it up, but they have changed some of the stalls since– regardless, it’s always a fun night for them. The little wooden cabins sell all sorts of things. People crowd them, looking at the different displays.

Syran drifts towards one that sells honey from a small independent company. She and Asra sample some of it, while the others spread over the displays around them. Pasha buys a scented candle, Nadia some golden handmade earrings, Asra decides to get yet another set of incense, and Muriel takes a liking to a little hand-carved wolf sculpture.

Syran finds herself by a stall that sells minerals and crystals, all neatly separated by wooden boxes. She recognises some of her favourites: lepidolite, chrysocolla, black opal, agate. The stall owner smiles at her, reassuring her that she can look at them closely.

She picks up a lepidolite rock, looking at how the light reflects on the coarse lilac surface.

“Anything interesting?” A voice comes up behind her, startles her enough for her to almost drop the crystal.

She takes a second to regain her thoughts, still recovering from the small jumpscare. Ilya curiously inspects the display, like he didn’t just give her a mild heart attack.

“These are cool! Do you collect them?” He asks, leaning closer to look at some tiger’s eye.

“More or less,” Syran nods. “I’ve always liked to, since I was a kid.”

Ilya turns to her, grin on his face. “Aww, baby Syran playing with rocks!”

She rolls her eyes but not without a smile, “They are pretty rocks!”

Ilya laughs, then nods. “Yeah, I guess they are.”

Syran stares at him for a second, both of them just standing there as she still holds the lepidolite.

It’s not a crush.

Ilya turns back to the crystals, suddenly averting her gaze. “So, uhm– they all have meanings, right?” He points at the display with his gloved hand.

“Yeah, each has its proprieties– people use them for meditation, or for healing, things like that.”

Ilya looks up at her again, brows knotted. “You believe in that stuff?”

Syran shrugs, “I mean– I like the idea that something can help you find whatever strength or energy you need. Quartz gives you clarity, agate helps with stability, amethyst with intuition– you know, they’re quite empowering.”

“Still, why rely on something external to bring you those things?” He tilts his head, like he’s genuinely trying to understand, albeit a bit skeptical. “How can a stone give you that?”

Syran can’t help but chuckle. “Guess you could think like that. But they're supposed to help you find that in yourself, to bring it out. At least in my opinion.” She looks at the display again. “Plus, why not? If it helps somebody feel better, why take that away?”

She feels Ilya’s gaze on her for a second, before he turns to look up at the rest of the display. “Mh, that’s a nice take.”

Syran side eyes him. “Ah, men of science,” She sighs.

Ilya laughs. “Don’t you have a degree in biology? And– what’s that supposed to mean?”

She shakes her head, picking up another crystal to look at it. Citrine. “Nothing, just– people in your field are often cynical of stuff like this.”

“Are you calling me closed-minded?” Ilya sounds offended, but it takes Syran one look to know that he’s joking.

“Mh– you said that, not me,” she teases.

Ilya smirks. “Okay, what does this one mean, then?” He picks out a random crystal and shows it to her with childlike gall. Syran looks at it. Moonstone.

Oh, great.

“Uh– it’s about hidden feelings? Helps to heal relationships and opening up– yeah. I mean, it’s written on the paper there.” She vaguely points at the box where the moonstones are, turning away from him. She doesn’t need to tell him everything about it.

Ilya laughs, then delicately puts the stone back. “Well, okay, okay.”

A man steps up to the display right by Ilya, trying to look at the rocks in front of him. Startled, Ilya steps closer towards Syran, apologising to the man.

She sighs, small and imperceptible, because of course he had to get even closer.

Syran moves her gaze to look at the necklaces at the back, pendants made with various crystals. There’s an aquamarine one, calming blue and really pretty.

“What is it?” Julian is so close he’s basically whispering in her ear.

“Huh?” She doesn’t dare look towards him.

“Which one are you looking at?”

“Oh, that one–” She points at it. “The light blue one.”

“What’s that?”

“Aquamarine I think– uh, it’s connected to water. Healing, moving on. Stuff like that.”

Ilya hums. “Looks nice. It suits you.”

“Uh, I do–”

Syran gets interrupted when someone pats her hard on the shoulder, startling her. Again. Ilya seems to feel the same.

“We thought we’d lost you guys!” Pasha’s voice doesn’t sound reprimanding, rather she has a wide smile on her face when they turn to her. Behind her, there’s only Muriel, piercing eyes on them.

“Where are the others?” Ilya asks.

“Nadi’s already at the skating rink with Asra,” Pasha grins. “So you better get going.”

Ilya gasps. “That’s cheating!”

He darts away towards the rink, Pasha hot on his tail, taunting him with predictions of his downfall.

Syran can’t help but laugh. She and Muriel fall behind, taking their time to reach the others.

“That’s nice to see,” Muriel says, breaking the silence.

“What is?” Syran turns her head up to look at him.

“The two of them– being on good terms.”

“Were they– not?” Syran asks, brows knotted.

“Well– ah, it’s a long story. Probably not my place to tell.” Muriel shakes his head. “Sorry, maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“No, that’s okay. You don’t have to tell me.” She smiles, understanding. She can’t say she’s not surprised at the news, though. Ilya and Pasha seem to be really close, it’s hard to imagine them anything but.

Muriel smiles back, puts his hands in the pockets on his coat, shoulders rising up a little. “Yeah, I just– I wonder how it is. To have siblings.”

Right.

Muriel is an only child and he was raised by his grandma. Syran doesn’t know much about his life growing up, she’s always assumed he never wanted to talk about it.

She wonders if maybe he just never felt like anyone wanted to listen. That’s the case for her, anyway.

“It depends, I guess,” Syran says. “Everyone’s got their story.”

Muriel nods. “Yeah– do you– I mean, maybe I don’t remember but– do you have siblings?”

She thinks of her little sister back at home with her mother. Growing up without a second parent and having to mature early to help around the house, Syran never had the chance to get close to her sibling.

“I do. A younger sister, but–” Syran looks ahead as the skating rink comes into view. “We’re not like them. I rarely hear from her now. I don’t think she likes me very much. I mostly find out what she’s up to through my mother, so. Yeah.” She sighs. “Yvaine has always been a mystery to me.”

Muriel stops as they reach the edge of the skating rink. “Guess you can’t choose family,” he sighs.

“Guess not,” Syran smiles, bitterly. Then she looks up at Muriel again. “But hey, that’s okay. You got something better.”

Muriel frowns, looking at her with confusion. “Huh?”

She grins. “You got us.”

Muriel takes a second, blinks once.

Then he starts laughing. It rises slowly, his eyes crinkle up and his smile grows wide. He reaches out to ruffle Syran’s hair, affectionately. She’d complain, usually, but she can only laugh with him.

“Yeah– I do. We all got each other,” He says.

Then, Asra calls to them from inside the skating rink, leaning on the edge. “Hey, you two! Stop wasting time!”

🂱

Syran hasn’t skated in a while, but she quickly gets the hang of it again. She and Muriel seem to be the ones struggling the most, though. It takes a bit, but once she finds her pace, she starts going around the rink with more confidence, running into her friends now and then, sharing laughter, and throwing playful jabs at each other.

“You’re not that bad!” Ilya says as he comes up to her, starts skating by her side.

She shakes her head with a smile, “Please, I almost broke my spine earlier.”

“Not your most graceful moment, I’ll admit,” He teases.

“Hey, you’re supposed to support me!” She tries to playfully swat at his arm but ends up losing balance instead. Just when she thinks she’s going to fall on her face again, Ilya holds her steady. Close to him.

Too close, once again.

She can smell the musk of his perfume, she wonders if he can hear her beating heart.

It’s not a crush.

“Thank you,” She utters up at Ilya, words coming out in a puff of vapor.

“It’s okay,” Ilya smiles, still holding her. “Anytime.”

She looks away. “Hopefully not, I’d rather not risk falling again.” Syran laughs, still feeling the pain on her buttcheek from the last time she fell.

“Well, yeah.” Ilya laughs back.

Then it’s like he realises he’s still holding her, and– she remembers it, too. He slowly pulls away from her as she stands properly again. “Uh, hey, by the way–”

Asra skates up to them just then, interrupting Ilya. “You losers been still for too long, stop blocking the path!”

Syran gapes at him. “I wasn’t aware there was an ice skating police?”

Asra huffs, “There is one now! Move!” He goes to push her, but she slinks away with a laugh. He starts chasing her and Ilya yells back at them.

“Am I off the hook, then?”

Asra follows Syran, trying to get her, although he stumbles here and there. Differently from Syran, he finds his balance again quickly, laughing in glee.

It lasts only a moment, but she meets her gaze with Ilya’s across the rink. Wasn’t he saying something?

But before she can think about it Asra takes Syran for a spin, makes her twirl, holds her hand. It’s fun like this, and they properly start skating together. They enjoy their time and joke around– and sometimes still fall on their asses.

It’s great, but it starts to get a little taxing for her. “I think I’m done for now,” Syran heaves when they come to a halt in a corner of the rink, leaning onto the rail.

“What, giving up already?” Asra pouts.

“My face is going numb.” She puts her gloved hands on her cheeks, but it doesn’t help much– they’re all wet from falling on the ice.

Nadia comes up to them, perfect form and game face on her features. “Quitting so soon? You guys are hopeless.”

“Uh, excuse me?” Asra glares back. “We don’t claim to be professionals.”

“Not all of us see this as a competition, Nadi,” Syran smirks. Nadia almost looks insulted, but it’s all for show.

“Is that a challenge?”

“It really isn’t,” Syran laughs. Then, she notices Ilya coming their way. “Plus, looks like you’ve got your hands full already.”

Nadia turns just as Ilya catches up to them, breath heavy and hands on his hips. “What’s up Satrinava, ready to resign?”

“In your dreams, Devorak.” She glares. “Next one to touch the rail is out.”

Ilya squints at her. “You’re on.”

Syran smiles as they go off, skating away in the midst of the other people. Both of them look effortless, although Nadia is something else completely. She twirls and jumps, dares Ilya to do the same. He tries, but it’s not as graceful.

This is Nadia Satrinava we’re talking about, after all.

Eventually, Syran steps off the rink, finding Muriel already leaning outside by the rail, chatting to Pasha who’s still inside. They’re both acting like there’s no chaos generated by the others on the rink

“Done?” Pasha asks when Syran walks up to them, still feeling a little weird from having her feet back on normal ground.

“Yeah– it’s all fun and games until you get bruises everywhere.”

Muriel laughs, “Couldn’t agree more.”

“Aw, you guys need to believe in yourselves a little! The more you try the better you get!” Pasha’s encouraging words are sweet. “Plus, if Ilya can do it without making a complete fool of himself, so can you.”

“I don’t know, he seems to be struggling a little,” Muriel hums, nodding towards the others.

Pasha turns and Syran can see that Ilya looks definitely more tired than Nadia. There’s still resolve on his face, she can see it more clearly as they slowly approach their side of the rink.

“Go babe, show him how it’s done!” Pasha starts cheering.

A second before Nadia passes by them, she winks at Pasha and sends her a kiss, effortless and elegant. Ilya, hot on her tail, just sneers at his sister, raising up his middle finger. She gives back just as much.

“He’s gonna go down,” Pasha mutters. Then she turns to them. “Gonna do a few more rounds and see if Asra wants to do some stunts. See ya later!” She waves just before skating off.

Once again, Syran and Muriel are left alone, fondly smiling at their friends.

“This is quite the show, I have to admit,” Syran laughs. “Cheering from the sidelines.”

“Mh, I think no one is rooting for Ilya, though.” Muriel says.

Syran realises that’s kinda true. “Oops– well, hey. Maybe I’ll cheer for the both of them.”

Muriel side eyes her. “Mh. No preference at all?”

“Uh, yeah, I mean. We all know how Nadia can get, so I kinda feel bad for Ilya.” She chuckles, looking at Nadia as she expertly swings past a few surprised people, skating backwards to laugh at Ilya.

“Right,” Muriel says under his breath. Syran feels his eyes on her, so she turns back to him.

“What?”

For a second there’s a small smirk on his face, but then Muriel shrugs and turns back to the skating rink. “Nothing.”

Syran narrows her eyes, kinda weirded out.

Muriel is not the type to beat around the bush, he’ll usually say what he thinks and with as few words as possible, so it takes Syran a little by surprise.

“Not convincing.”

He huffs a laugh, ruffles Syran’s hair again. This time she pouts up at him. “Don’t worry ‘bout it.”

“You’re being weird,” Syran turns towards the rink as she adjusts her hair. “What about you, big guy? Any bets?”

“Oh, hundred percent Nadia. Pasha and I have some sort of bingo going on, though.” Muriel laughs again.

“Bingo?”

“Yeah, like everytime Nadia flips Ilya off, everytime Ilya apologises to someone for almost bumping into them, everytime Nadia winks at Pasha, stuff like that. Winner gets fifty bucks.”

“You guys are ruthless.”

Muriel smirks, “Maybe.”

“What’s the criteria for this competition anyway? It’s like they just make up rules on the spot.”

Syran says, a little confused. It just looks like a weird version of tag where insulting shouts are thrown across the rink as the other patrons turn around in shock.

“I’m not sure. I’m not even sure they know,” Muriel shrugs. “Ilya looks pretty confident, though.”

And yet, no more than a minute later, Ilya stumbles on his feet and spins around, trying really hard to stay up on his own. However, he puts a little too much energy in his step and that makes him haphazardly skate his way towards where Muriel and Syran are.

“Oh no–” Syran starts.

“Shit, fuck–” Ilya comes to a halt right in front of them, hands on the rail and torso leaning forward. His chin is just a few inches to the left of Syran’s cheek. “Uh– hey.” He says with a side glance.

“H– hey.” Syran answers. It’s okay, her heart is doing absolutely nothing right now. She’s not mad at the universe at all.

He really has a nice perfume.

Ilya slowly gets back up, smiling awkwardly at her. “Sorry ‘bout that.” Then, pushes himself off the rail, looking at his hands with eyes wide. “Oh no. Shit. Did Nadia see that?”

Muriel raises an eyebrow. “I think everybody did.”

As if on queue, cheers of victory rise from behind Ilya, making him wince. Pasha kisses Nadia and Asra claps vehemently– then, they all start skating towards them, clearly enjoying Ilya’s demise.

“You owe me a drink, Devorak. Again.” Nadia beams when she reaches the rail. Ilya just side-eyes her.

“Whatever. You got lucky.”

🂱

They end up in the big cabin by the rink that houses a cafè/pub. Warm drinks in hand and sitting by the fire, all of their frozen nerves from the ice skating start to melt.

It’s cozy and comforting, a nice relief for Syran after the cold of the ice rink. All of them are chatting and teasing Ilya for his loss. He laughs with them, but eventually they start reassuring him too, even Nadia, saying that he wasn’t that bad, after all.

Syran decides to buy him mulled wine, served in a ceramic mug with some cheesy winter phrase printed on.

“Consolation prize!” She cheers, coming back from the bar.

“Oh my, this is such a beautiful gift Syran,” Ilya says, theatrically. “I shall cherish it with all my heart, thank you.” He mock cries, playfully dabbing at nonexistent tears under his eyes.

Syran laughs under her breath as she sits back next to Asra, rolling his eyes.

The patrons around them die out and Ilya excuses himself to the bathroom. The moment he leaves, Pasha cozies up to Nadia, the two discussing the victory again. They all chat a bit, Pasha making fun of Asra’s odd faces while skating. Then, a moment of comfortable silence between all of them.

Asra’s eyes are immediately on her.

“What?” Syran wonders, feeling put on the spot.

“Nothing,” Asra smiles. It’s his coy smile that says everything and nothing. She has the urge to punch it off his smug face.

Syran decides to ignore him.

“So, Muriel, how’s the bingo going?” She asks him.

“Oh, I’m winning.”

He exchanges a glance with Asra, the two of them almost communicating telepathically.

“Ok, now I feel like there’s something here.”

“I don’t know, is there?” Pasha asks.

“Yeah, is there?” Asra adds.

“Could you stop being a gemini for half a second?”

Muriel laughs at Syran’s joke, but she keeps a serious face.

“Aw, I love you.” Asra side-hugs her, trying to diffuse the situation. “Also no, I can’t. Just like you can’t stop looking at Ilya like that.”

“I don’t–”

“Who’s looking like what?” Ilya is back from the bathroom, and he slowly sits down back in his chair, perfectly arched eyebrows raised.

“You, like an idiot on the rink! Ha!” Asra immediately changes the topic, leaving Syran hanging. She won’t forget, not this time.

Muriel sips his wine, side eyeing them. There’s another sly motherfucker.

Just as it arrived, however, the weird mood is gone, and all is back to normal. Once again Syran finds herself being grateful for her friends. No matter how tough things get, she knows they will be all there for each other.

Even though they are most definitely hiding things from her.

🂱

Syran’s Sundays mostly consist of catching up on shows, cuddling with Persephone, taking time to cook meals she loves, and doing some grocery shopping. She also takes care of her plants and, sometimes, gets a headstart on work.

Asra calls her boring, but she finds peace in it. It’s not that she doesn’t like going out, she loves a good party every now and then, but there’s a different kind of pleasure in taking care of the small things. Plus, now that she’s got the apartment to herself for the week, she can play loud music and karaoke as much as she wants.

Really, it’s a blast.

When her phone rings in the middle of the day, just as she’s moving her big potus out of the sun, she groans. Her hands are full, so she shifts the big pot in one arm and lodges her phone between her head and shoulder without checking– she expects Asra to be calling her to continue their previous text conversation. She has not let go of what he said at the Winter Market.

“For the millionth time, it’s not what you think!”

“Oh, it isn’t?” A deep chuckle resonates from the other side of the phone.

Shit.

“Oh– fuck– uh, thought you were Asra– ah, I mean– hi, Ilya.”

“Hi, Syran,” He laughs, all throathy and low. Ugh. “Am I bothering you?”

“No, not at all– just taking care of my plants– uh, give me a second.” She puts the potus on the kitchen counter, grabbing the phone before it slides down her neck.

“Okay, all set, what’s up?” She tries to act nonchalant. Well, she is nonchalant. This is just Ilya, after all. Her good friend, Ilya. Yep. Nothing to worry about.

“Well, as you know, Pasha’s birthday is coming up soon,” he starts.

“Oh, yeah, right! Damn, I almost forgot.”

Ilya laughs. “Me too, to be honest.”

Syran can’t help but chuckle too, then gasp dramatically. “Why, your own sister?”

“Shh– don’t tell her or she’ll kill me. I’ve been very busy with my research, ‘kay?” He sounds solemn, but she can tell he’s smiling.

“All right, I’ll cover for you– if you buy me a coffee,” She laughs.

A little voice in her head asks where is this confidence coming from anyway?

Then again, this is just Ilya.

“Deal,” he answers.

Ilya, who’s now just being quiet on the other side of the line. “Sooo, why are you calling me?” Syran asks, tapping her fingers on her kitchen counter.

“Oh, right, well– Okay, so. Well, I don’t know what present to get Pasha. I know it sounds lame, but I genuinely have no idea what she might want this year.”

Syran stops for a second, thinking of Pasha and what she’s like. She likes plants, but she’s got plenty of those. She likes pretty clothes and cute shoes, but those would be hard to get right. Syran finds herself coming up short of a sure answer.

“I see– have you asked Nadia?”

“I tried, but she replied with something vague, and then got competitive because she is going to get the best present anyway, or something.”

His answer makes her laugh again. Of course: Nadia is extremely kind, gentle, and helpful– except when she decides to win against everyone else.

“I assume the others weren’t much help either?”

Ilya sighs, “Well, Muriel just shrugged and pointed out that she likes flowers, Asra suggested a glow in the dark lava lamp, so– yeah, no.”

“So, I guess now it’s my turn to give advice?” Syran chuckles, padding to the other side of the kitchen, where Persephone is lounging in the sun. She scratches her fur.

“More or less,” Ilya trails off.

“Huh?”

“Well, I was– uh, I was wondering if you could come with me. To get her the present? Really I don’t know if you’ve already picked something, but. Uhh– maybe we could work on it together? Since you know her well, and all? And I’ll get you that coffee, too.” He huffs a laugh, almost nervous.

A day going around shops with Ilya? Just the two of them? That’s fine, Syran’s fine, it’s no big deal at all.

“She’s your sister, Ilya,” she can’t help but tease him a bit. “I’m sure you know her well, too.”

“Yeah, I know she’s my sister.” He scoffs, fake annoyed, “But– I mean, yeah, I kind of know what she likes– but every year is hard, and I’m not the best at presents– and you seem to be great at it, so–” He trails off.

Syran listens, trying to figure out where this is really going. If she were actually great at presents, she would know what to get Pasha in a heartbeat. But, regardless, she likes to think she’s got a good eye.

She doesn’t know whether to stop him and reassure him or let him talk. But before she can decide, Ilya continues.

“And. Uh. This year she’s throwing this big themed party, too, and it’s the first time I get to meet all her friends, n’stuff. I don’t even know what to wear–” He sounds really concerned. “Truthfully, I just want to make her happy. I feel like the last two years I didn’t do great, so. Yeah.” He sighs. “And– and, I don’t want to lose to Nadia, either.” He ends it like he’s confessing a deep, dark secret.

It makes Syran laugh, thinking him cute for worrying about his sister so much.

Then, she swats away the idea of Ilya and the word cute in the same sentence.

“I’m sure she’ll be happy whatever you get her, Ilya,” Syran smiles, hoping to reassure him. Persephone turns to expose her belly, meowing coyly. “Don’t stress yourself so much, you clearly care a lot and that’s enough to make a good present.”

“Thank you, uh. That’s. That’s nice of you to say.” He mutters, and Syran thinks she can feel him be a little relieved.

“Just saying the truth,” she wishes the smile on her face wasn’t so goddamn insistent. She and Ilya have this sort of mutual understanding, where not many words are needed to guess how the other’s feeling. Well, most of the time. Still, she lately realised how surprisingly similar they are.

And yeah, recently Syran has been feeling a different kind of pull towards Ilya, but she doesn’t need to think about that. She’ll be dead before she catches anyone thinking him cute anyway.

“So…” Ilya starts then, shaking Syran from her thoughts. “Is that a no? On the– uh, present hunting?”

“What– no, it’s a yes, I mean, yeah, no, I’ll come!” Syran replies before thinking, surprised, and a little too eager.

Fuck. She takes a deep breath.

“What I mean is: I’d be more than happy to help you pick a gift. I need to get one myself, anyway.”

“Ah, that’s great,” He exhales, clearly relieved. Then, he seems to regain his composure. “Are you free on Wednesday?”

#an writes #julianxapprentice #julianxsyran #Syran Elkas #Julian Devorak #modern au #the arcana fic #ilya devorak #asra alnazar #muriel #nadia satrinava #pasha devorak #the arcana #part 2 #ilya x apprentice #fic writing #things are gettin spicy and syran is not getting it #apologies #my daughter is dumb

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