Embrace Your Dreams! And Never, Ever Let Go Of Your Pride As A SOLDIER. Well, You Never Really Managed

four characters that make you yell: " my man, my man, my man! "

the boys in question:

cloud strife - final fantasy 7

oberon vortigern - fate grand/order

hajime iwaizumi - haikyuu

zack fair - final fantasy 7 crisis core

tags: anybody interested!

thank you so much for the tags luma xoxo /p

"MY MAN"

four characters who make you yell "MY MAN MY MAN MY MAN" !! I'll go first !

thought this was a silly idea keep it going! tagging ; @rrairey @httpshujii @cindol @shokosprincess @seneon @cheriiyaya @accidentcache @suntoru and anyone else wanting to participate !

❤️❤️❤️

hi aelin!! hearts for you too <3 <3 <3

໒⦂ 𝐁𝐋𝐔𝐄𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄.

synopsis. in which you, an engineer major, are paired with a major in architecture — the blueprints of what you’re meant to bring to life.

academic rivals to lovers ( kaveh’s version )

for my fav, @skywalkiings <3

kaveh x gn!reader.

“it’s that time of the year again, everyone!” your teacher called and you nearly smashed your head into the desk in front of you.

“the end of the year project!” she sang, before pouting at the symphony of groans coming from her students. “would you rather i give you another exam?”

silence.

a huff. “as i thought.” the professor continued before smiling again. “this project will be different from the ones in your past years as it will call for everything that you’ve learned here so far at the akademiya! think of it as a preparatory assignment for your future profession!” she elaborated, handing the information sheets to the front row to pass on. “that being said, once everyone has received their paper, i will announce the architect you will be paired with!”

“kill me now..” you nearly spoke aloud, distasteful of the project already. one thing was being assigned a project — another was one in pairs. it was completely unreliable and irritating having to wait on another person or hear their opinions that more than often clash with your own. an architect would be even more stingy, you could just feel it in the very marrow of your bones.

“y/n l/n!” the woman called from her desk, snapping you from your trance. here goes.. “you’re to be paired with a senior, kaveh.”

kaveh? something about that name sounded oddly familiar, but now.. wasn’t the time to think about that.

just as you inclined your head, the bell sounded from its perch on the wall, signaling the end of the lecture.. and the beginning of your pain-in-the-ass project.

waisting little time, you slung your backpack over your shoulder, descending the steps before beelining for the library

it was lunch hour and the halls were bound to swarm with people like a can of sardines. definitely not ideal for a quick getaway and some piece of mind to figure out what the hell to do with this new project of yours.

however your getaway, didn’t quite go as smooth..

as you turned a corner to the entrance of the library belonging to the university, you found yourself smacking face first into someone’s chest. how lucky.

the impact had thankfully been soft, thankfully — nothing to break your nose or anything. unlike some other guy’s chest you ran into once in high school while rushing to class — which nearly knocked you back a few steps.

you rubbed your nose, letting out a quiet ‘ow’, as your eyes lifted, brows now knitted together. “try watching who’s in front of you next time!” you scolded and the boy scoffed.

“i should be telling you the same, you came running out of nowhere! i almost dropped all of my blueprints because of you!” he fired back, holding the rolled up papers tightly against his chest before brushing past you with a huff. “be more careful!”

you were near speechless, wanting to give the crimson eyed male a piece of your mind, but he was gone. deep within the mob of people headed for the cafeteria.

“coward.” you muttered under your breath, clenching your fist before marching into your destination with a low grumble. should you cross paths with that boy again, it’s on sight.

“unbelievable.” you let out quietly, watching as your partner, the blond from the hall, entered through the door of the café you were meeting at.

it was impossible — the kind of thing you only saw in those silly ‘enemies to lovers’ movies. it couldn’t be him, could it? surely he’d been there for someone else..

the architect pushed his sunglasses up onto the crown of his head, looking around the arrangement of tables and chairs before his eyes fell onto yours.

ipad propped in front of you, a pencil case to hold your papers down, and whatever drink you had decided on opting for today.

“the girl in the hall..” he muttered out, realization settling at who his partner had been as he approached you slowly.

an awkward smile replaced the faint grimace he had as he stopped in front of your table. “ah- y/n l/n, i assume?” he asked and you nearly shook your head.

if you’d said no, perhaps he would have left.. but unfortunately, the grade was a priority.

“that’s right.” you answered ( reluctantly ), nodding your head as you moved your papers to one stack. “i’m guessing you must be kaveh, pleasure to make your acquaintance.” not really.

his smile widened, unbeknownst to your true feelings as he took the seat across from you, laying his blueprints down on the free space you’d left him ( begrudgingly ). “the pleasure is all mine! i apologize from my behavior earlier in the hall.. i hope you can forgive me, i didn’t want anything to happen to these.” he chuckled sheepishly, patting the scrolls of paper softly. “they’re the best i’ve come up with! hence why i wanted to bring them to my partner in top condition — which is you, ironically- the girl i ran into..”

you nodded slowly, wondering to yourself if he normally spoke this much and in such an odd manner. but you went along with it, anyway. just bear it for now. “no worries — at least your papers are um.. in tact.” the condition was almost flawless, and yet he still made a fuss earlier. “shall we look through them and see which one works best for the project?”

kaveh blinked at your words, seemingly offended. “beg your pardon?” he asked, lifting his hand from his designs. “which works best? we can’t possibly select one and leave the rest untouched! it’d be criminal!”

his outburst caught you by surprise as you rose a brow at him, judging. “you do realize we cannot make all of those. it’s unrealistic, and there’s hardly time to do all of these when i’m the only engineer working on these..” you trailed off, unrolling one of the papers to show him. “like this — this is meant for a city! i can’t make that!”

“you’re an engineer! there are architects far more demanding than myself, with even more to request! this is your practice!” he reasoned and you scoffed.

“more like my funeral.. these are a total nightmare.” you muttered under your breath and the blond gasped.

“why you- you take that back! i worked very hard on those and i won’t allow them to go unappreciated by a heartless engineer who doesn’t understand art!”

now it was your turn to gasp. “i’m heartless? you humiliated me in the hall today for running into you!”

“i said i was sorry!! now you’re holding a grudge?!”

“as if you have any room to talk!” you bit back, rising from your seat before storming off to what appeared to be the counter. likely to order another beverage — possibly even something alcoholic, with how frustrating your partner was being.

meanwhile the scarlet eyed male parted his lips to demand where you were storming off to, only to close them right after.

he didn’t need to make a scene, least of all with an underclassman! he was better than this — he had to be the bigger person here. not like those petty arguments he shared with his blockheaded roommate at home.

kaveh was a gentleman, a kind soul. it was in his good nature!

..and yet right now, in this petty predicament, he found himself fired up. ready to give you a piece of his mind and defend his hard work.. but he held off. as if there was any need to have the last word, that was an “alhaitham thing” to do!

with a defeated sigh, kaveh dropped his forehead on the dark oak table, groaning to himself.

this project.. was going to be a long one.

“no, no- this won’t do at all! it ruins the aesthetic completely!” the blond complained and you fought the urge to slap him.

this would mark your fifth time redesigning the electrical structure of the layout of where all the lamps and switches would go in whatever complicated ass design kaveh felt the need to use.

granted it wasn’t a real building. the project consisted of making a structure out of a certain material that suited the selected blueprints, and having a working setup of lamps and switches. strangely, the only thing you and your partner came to agree on was using lego bricks as the building materials.

“we can’t be bothered with aesthetic yet if the lights can’t even turn on without someone getting zapped in the process! have you not learned?!” you fired back pointing to your sad excuse of a building. it was barely two floors and kaveh wanted five. “first i get the lamps working, and then you can make it look pretty or whatever it is that you do!”

the architect let out a gasp of offense. “excuse me, i do far more than making things pretty, you just don’t get appeal like i do! who in their right mind would want to go into an ugly half built looking building?!” he ranted, shuddering at his own thoughts. only alhaitham would. “we’d be better off in an abandoned or haunted house!”

you took a deep exhale, willing yourself not to rip him a new one. you were calm, the calmest you could be. this was just a trial to prepare for the future with someone even more snippy and nitpicky.

all you had to do was finish the project as soon as possible and hand it back to your professor. done, finished. no more kaveh, no more irking architects for awhile. just you and your work, as it was before this ridiculous assignment.

now ignoring the blond’s rambling, you carefully smoothed your fingers over the surface — where the wiring was meant to go, humming quietly before taking a ruler out.

although you didn’t want to, you handed it to kaveh, biting back a sigh. “hold this here, do not move it. i have to cut how much wire i’ll need.”

with little chance to protest, the older held the the measuring stick in place, eyeing you with great caution. legos were rather fragile, after all. and neither of you has glued yours, in fear that you would need to go back and fix something.

still, as he watched you at work, he couldn’t help but stare a little. the way your eyebrows furrowed together in concentration, the way you chewed on the inside of your cheek, the meticulous work of your hands. it was weirdly fascinating to kaveh, something he found difficulty looking away from.

“kaveh, could you hand me the pliers and that soldering tool from the stand.” you called out to him, not yet looking up.

but the blond was too focused on what you were doing, the gentle part of your lips. he wondered what you were saying, perhaps muttering to yourself regarding your work.

“kaveh!” you voiced out more clearly, causing him to jolt in surprise.

“what- what is it, i wasn’t staring!”

“the pliers and soldering tool! hand me them, please.” you repeated, gesturing with your nose to what you needed.

the upperclassman blinked once and then twice, not having realized you had been talking to him the entire time while he stared like a weirdo.

unknowingly it made his cheeks bloom with pink, a wave of embarrassment overcoming him. “right-! the pliers and soldering.. tool- on it, heard you the first time!” the blond blurted, quickly rising from his seat to head to where you’d plugged the device in.

careful not to burn himself, he grabbed it by the stem along with the device beside it before moving back to where you sat. “these tools, right?”

lifting your head a little to see what he brought, you nodded in approval, holding out your free hand. “hand me the pliers first, i need to cut off what i don’t need before i can continue.” you told him simply, and thankfully — he knew what those were.

he placed the took in your hand, holding the warmer one in his grasp until you would need it. which didn’t take too long.

“soldering iron, please.” you spoke up again, wiping a bead of sweat from your forehead with a knuckle.

“soldering iron.” he repeated, placing it slowly, and gently between your fingers, as he didn’t want you to burn yourself. banter or not, he wouldn’t wish ill on you.

now that caught you off guard, as you felt his fingers brush your own. so soft and delicate from how careful he was with his craft. unlike engineers, his hands would remain unscathed for the most part. maybe a little sore from many hours spent on drawing, but well kept, otherwise.

confused, kaveh rose a brow at your stillness, uncertain of why you had stopped. “hellooo, earth to y/n.” he waved in front of your face, tilting his head. “there’s a wire and lamp that still needs connecting.”

“i-i’m here, i’m doing it now!” you blurted out unthinkingly, forcing yourself to look away as you lowered your head in a sad attempt at hiding your face from him.

a long project, indeed.

it was the final night to finish the thesis with only the conclusion to be written of your paper.

luckily kaveh had finished up with the building and you managed to create a fully operational battery powered light up system for it.

now all that remained was finishing your research paper and handing everything in tomorrow.

part of you felt relieved to be done with the assignment and all the stress that came with it. but were you done with kaveh? that was the real question.

“that should do it.” the blond breathed out, tucking a fallen strand of hair behind his ear. “all we have to do is check it once more and then print.” he continued, raising his arms to stretch before turning to face you when you hadn’t answered. “y/n?”

you blinked upon hearing your name, snapped from your daze as you looked over at your partner, yawning softly. “sorry i was in my thoughts, guess the coffee wore off.” you laughed, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes. “anyway, you were saying?”

kaveh clicked his tongue. “i said we just have to check and then print, though i see my voice puts you to sleep instead!” he huffed out. “please don’t let me keep you up.”

you pressed your lips into a flat line, not fond of his sarcasm. and he said he would never act like his roommate, whom you met a few times while working on the assignment. he was definitely a character.

“haha, very funny.” you commented, rolling your eyes. “well then i guess should be it. if anything we can just check again tomorrow morning.”

the architect let out a hum. “probably.” he answered tentatively, clicking save. “well then that’s it.. did you uh- want to get something to eat? y’know as a celebration for finishing, or something.” why kaveh was asking this, he wanted sure of. last he checked he was beyond annoyed to be dealing with you for as long as he had been.

but in the last few weeks, he felt a slight change in his heart. almost as if it would be strange, not being around you as often as he had been recently.

the offer made your brow raise, surprised to be asked out. not that it was a date, of course! he asked you to eat in celebration of completing your project. nothing more, nothing less.

even still. “like.. a date?” you dared to ask, afraid of what he might answer with — but you couldn’t help the words on the tip of your tongue.

kaveh, astounded that you had asked, let alone phrased it that way, flushed a soft pink. he hadn’t planned on you asking that. was it a date? did you want it to be?

screw it, there was no going back now. “do you want it to be?”

a date with your partner, the one you quarreled with for weeks on end.. but someone you grew oddly fond of being around, and someone you couldn’t quite let go of as yet.

with what little certainty you had left, you shifted closer to him, a warmth rising in your chest. “if i said yes.. would that be a bad thing?”

kaveh paused to think for a moment before smiling at you. “not at all.”

your lips curled up into a grin as you nudged his side. “then it’s a date.”

notes. friendly reminder that ms gurl ( me ) absolutely sucks at anything science-y so if i any terms i used are incorrect — it is either due to the language barrier ( bc i learned all of this shit in dutch ) or my stupidity strikes back with technical things!! anyway hi sky i hope you enjoyed this<3 sorry for the delay :’)

11:30 PM. YOUR WONDERWALL AWAITS.

xiao x gn! reader, a drabble.

info: dystopian x cyberpunk au, inspiration from progenitor animation with albedo on youtube by dillongoo, the maze runner series & cyberpunk edgerunners!

tw: you are a robot here, minor mentions of injuries as well as blood loss, possible ooc xiao since this is my first time writing him, xiao is emotionally constipated, open ended.

a/n: just a random thing i thought up of while thinking late at night. very short and extremely unedited, just letting my brain run in peace. enjoy~

a normal summer day, that’s all that you were hoping for today and that is the exact opposite of what you were getting currently as you ran away from the fatui, just what was their fascination with you when you were a simple human? so utterly wrong that you were for thinking the simplest thought after being thrown out for the chip that you harbored in your neck, the code to the cure of psychosis that was hidden inside of you by one of the war generals, nahida of wisdom.

you knew that, of course, it would not be long before you were found out as a realistic human ai so you kept running until you were able to find a way to a desolate area. it was rather beautiful, still with the sun around perfectly in place between the rather teal trees. you could tell they were dying slowly, the color of the leaves were turning a slight gray. the crinkles from the leaves that you had made were too great for another person who was here with you. you hadn’t realized that another fatui soldier had snuck up on you as you pulled out your rapier, fast and quick — just as the pace of your running.

leave, begone. i don’t wish to hurt you.

a voice spoke quietly to you before it vanished instantly, it sounds as if it was all around you, like it had owned the domain that you had suddenly entered. were you safe here if it seems less deteriorating than the rest of the world? you came upon an oasis of some kind, away from the fatui at that. your inner thoughts started consuming you once you smelled the fresh air that had been contrasting to your usual murky, smoke filled air. you knew this had turned into some kind of guilty pleasure before you noticed a blade cut your cheek as somebody appeared with the knife in the grass below you.

“i knew it.” he spoke quietly before a lance appeared in his hands, the sharp end of his weapon now starting to dig into your clothes. “what are you doing here, robot? you shouldn’t be able to make it to such a place as my temple.” he glared before released his blade as you let out a small breath of relief. no paradise could be free of punishment for you somehow, right? “K0S-M0S, from the current war, i’ll ask again. what pathetic reason are you here for now?”

you managed to develop a sense of empathy over the years as you tried to come up with several possibly solutions to speak your words. finally, a sound solution to speak to a stranger came to your mind. “i come in peace to run away from the war, i’m tired of being used for the good of mankind. i seek refuge for only an hour to catch my breath.”

the forest green hair male could only chuckle slightly in pity as he swung his blade to face upward next to him. “these ai are getting smart, master zhongli was right about this much. you’ve even gained a personality at that. is that even real blood?”

you then carressed your wound at his words, had something happen to you overnight? this blood was black and perhaps, you were able to bleed finally. you became human without realizing the oil that spilled from your cheek, in shock even — the male could tell. you shook your head for a moment as you sternly look towards him, “that… wasn’t supposed to happen. though, you work for zhongli so i can only expect you have some knowledge of my existence, are you planning to report me?” you stated as you got in a ready stance for fighting.

“master zhongli faked his death several years ago in order to prevent the war from coming here and i, as his protector, have a sworn duty to get rid of outsiders. perhaps if another were here to stop you, you would have been lucky.” he stated before getting in his own ready stance, swiftly attacking… and yet it never came.

“that’s enough general alatus.” a deep voice spoke as the male had almost made a precise point, knowing exactly where each unit had their cores. you had to thank the older gentleman that had saved your life just now. “we have a contract in order to not kill (y/n), they are within safe grounds.” he stated before stepping down each step of the gold and white front of the temple with his hands behind his back as he had a good look at you.

“zhongli… what are you doing here? nahida had said to lay low but i hadn’t been aware that it was this low.” you raised an eyebrow before being knocked to the ground by this ‘general atalus’ as he hit your legs with the back of his lance, just to temporarily put you at a disadvantage.

“i believe that you being here shows enough proof of what nahida can be capable of, the outside was never where you belonged and the fatui is deadset on using you to exploit the process of psychosis quicker with that chip in your neck as well.” zhongli had try his best to give you an explanation with the best of his abilities as the god of contracts before gesturing to his knight in shining armor, “xiao, let’s give our guest a place to rest for a moment. you will be watching over them as they are re-energizing for the day.”

xiao could only sigh at the change of events in his own life to now, he sworn to zhongli that he would do anything in his power to protect the ideals that his master had given him as a goal once the war was over. once xiao wrapped your arm around his own and pulled you close, you both ended up walking up the stairs. he then realized how ineffective it would be before picking you up bridal style — to which you felt your heart beat a bit.

heart?

you had a feeling that there was more than nahida was letting on now. why was this all so realistic all of the sudden? she has too many questions to answer once you got back into the regular world. seeing as now you had a place to sleep again, you decided to take into it and sink yourself into the bed before seeing that you were being watched again.

“what are you staring at? get some rest already.” he stated before looking out towards the night sky, “zhongli said to watch over you so i’m following orders.” he kept his gaze out before you noticed it too, a code written on his neck too, A1ATUS.

sure he was rather rough with his words but you would be in good hands, knowing that this man was a protector in tevyat’s war too and for justice at that. you were able to close your eyes and cuddle up in the blankets, all while xiao had been close by to watch over you and protect you. perhaps he had felt that you and him were rather similar in this world to understand such peace finally?

melukonova, 2023. 𓂃 ☄︎

໒⦂ 𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐏𝐈𝐃 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒.

synopsis. in which you go from utterly despising what you’ve dubbed as your ‘rival’, with every fiber of your being, to loving his stupid ass self.

academic rivals to lovers ( alhaitham’s version )

for @reiqings <3

tw. mildly suggestive, mentions / consumption of alcohol.

alhaitham x gn!reader.

“look at him, sitting all smug with that stupid little book of his.” you grumbled to your best friend, layla, taking a bite out of your pita pocket. “i bet he’s reading smut, i can just feel it.”

“smut?” the female repeated, nestling her head in her arms. “alhaitham-san is super serious about his reading and reputation.. doubt he’s reading that.. sort of content..” she trailed off into a snore and you nearly face palmed. there goes your friend again.

unlike him, sadly layla didn’t share the same major as you, as she was into astrology, rather than languages and writing. so it was only around lunch hour that you could hang out.. although it was more like nap time for her while you sat in silence.

with a huff, not wanting to be shown up, you finished the last of your meal before grabbing the book you’d been reading as of late. if alhaitham could read without it being for an assignment, so could you!

except he didn’t care.

his eyes barely lifted from his novel as he flipped to another page, deeply immersed in the story.. which in turn, frustrated you each time you peeked at him.

what could you do? there had to be something.

and like a metaphoric light bulb flashing, an idea came to mind.

opening your school bag, you reached for your linguistics notebook, recalling the newly assigned homework.

silly alhaitham was busying himself with his dumb little book, blissfully unaware of the homework you had just received. only a good noodle would make it the day it’s assigned — and that.. would be you!

as you buried your nose in your text book and notes, writing the necessary notes for the homework, you failed to notice groan of the chair few tables away.

until the culprit was standing across from you, overshadowing your work with their stature. it didn’t take any guesses to know who it was, but you were a petty shit.

“can i help you, dear alumni?” you asked without lifting your head, words like knives covered in honey. if you had your way, they’d be covered in bees, too. “your breasts are blocking the natural sunlight.”

“are they now? i hadn’t noticed.” the person in question answered, his tone low, yet there was a hint of amusement. “does that mean you were eyeing them each time you glared over at me?” he inquired, and you scoffed.

“me? eyeing your rack? that is preposterous. i would never do something so absurd. you flatter yourself too much, alhaitham-san.” who was he to think so smugly of himself? like you would be staring at that terrifyingly gorgeous physique of his.

but the silver haired male wasn’t buying it, not one bit. “hm, perhaps i do when flattery is in order. maybe next time you should try being more stealthy if you wish to stare.” he advised, turning on his heel with a faint smirk on his lips, knowing precisely how to rile you up.

and it worked like a charm, as your jaw nearly dropped. “flattery is NOT in order and never in a million lifetimes would i be caught red handed staring there of all places!” you blurted, slamming your books shut before dashing past him to your next class.

alhaitham only rolled his eyes, knowing damn well you would tire your legs before even reaching half way. like the turtle and the rabbit, he would come in like the wise turtle to beat the naive little rabbit.

from the lunch table, layla stirred at the sound of the bell, looking around tiredly before blinking. “y/n-chan?”

and alhaitham was correct, once again, for you did tire yourself before even reaching the doorway to your next class.

he passed you wordlessly, an innocent smile on his lips as he took his seat, watching as you dragged yourself into the seat next to him — the only one that remained. how touching.

“not a word.” you hissed to him, fixing your hair up as best as you could before taking out your materials.

the male ignored your comment, shrugging with indifference as he took out his own things.. along with that book of his. just what in the world was he reading that was so much more important than today’s lesson??

as your eyes darted to the book, you noticed it was unguarded while alhaitham reached into his bad for pencils. an opportunity.

with a wicked grin, you reached out for the book, nearly snatching it from alhaitham’s desk.. had it not been for the hand that encased your wrist. foiled again.

“i believe you should ask before taking one’s belongings, wouldn’t you agree, y/n-san?” the dendro user spoke, his words like a chill breeze. it made you shiver as you looked up at him before trailing your eyes to his hand. yeah, yours was going nowhere.

“quick, think of an excuse!” you warned yourself, clearing your throat as you did so. “you think so illy of me, alhaitham-san. i wouldn’t dare take that abstruse book of yours.” you huffed out, snatching your wrist back. “i was waving a fly away like a good classmate of yours! i should have known my actions would always go by unappreciated with you.” you pouted further, turning away from the gray haired swordsman, who only rolled his eyes, as he knew.

“sure, we’ll go with that.” he retorted in his usual monotone, missing the irritation on your visage as he refocused his gaze on the lecturer.

the twin tailed female below averted her gaze from the bickering pair, clearing her throat. “perfect, now that we’re all listening, allow me to commence today’s lecture with returning your test papers to you.” the teacher — faruzan spoke, smiling while half the students groaned. “i will be going over the all the answers, so should there be any mistakes in my corrections, do approach me after i finish.” the anemo user finished, grabbing the stack of sheets off her desk before handing each out.

as she reached where you and alhaitham sat, she sent your a proud grin. “amazing job on last week’s test, y/n-chan! your story was lovely to read!” the professor praised as you took your sheet from her hands, blinking in surprise. a perfect score!

curious, you looked over at alhaitham’s paper, wanting to shove your grade in his face.. only to find he had also gotten a perfect score.. with a bonus point.

you nearly wanted to smack yourself.

“you’re staring again, y/n-san.” the taller mocked, a smug look on his annoyingly attractive face. who made brains and good looks legal, and why did it have to be him?!

you puffed your cheeks out, tearing your eyes away from his paper. “i’m not staring, you’re imagining it with how inflated your ego must be!” you retaliated, folding your arms over your chest as you sank back into your seat.

stupid alhaitham and his stupid games. it’s like he wanted you to taste the bitterness of defeat while he soaked in the sweetness of victory. what an ass.

his only response to your outburst was a hum, and if that didn’t throw you over the edge, you weren’t sure what did.

“him being right, probably.” you answered in your head before muttering a curse under your breath.

just who does he think he is?

“alhaitham-kun, w-would you go out with me??” a female squeaked, holding out an envelope to the haravatat student as she bowed her head.

a confession a second after the bell rang.

you nearly gagged at the sight, wondering to yourself who in their right mind would want to date the likes of him. he was despicable! annoying, and egotistic! there was absolutely nothing attractive about him other than those horrifyingly gorgeous features of his.

and yet.. there was this strange bitterness you felt, as your gaze lingered on the pair longer. you weren’t sure why, but there was this nervous feeling of what he might answer with.

“sorry, but i’ll have to decline. i have my eyes set elsewhere, hope you can understand.” he responded curtly, rising from his seat beside you as he passed the girl to take the stairs.

the poor maiden barely got a word in after his answer as she watched his retreating figure disappear through the doorway, letter still in hand. “he.. didn’t even take it..” she muttered to herself, frozen in place. all eyes were on her, including your own.

somehow you felt this sense of relief, hearing alhaitham say no. and yet.. you couldn’t help but feel for the scholar as you placed a hand on her shoulder. whether to comfort or wake her from her trance, you weren’t sure. but the female lowered her hands, keeping her head down as she descended the stairs before taking off at the doorway.

it stirred something in you other than that strange relief but rightful pity. fear, was it? you weren’t sure why.

though something else boggled your mind impossibly more.. that being alhaitham’s response to her confession.

i have my eyes set elsewhere.

and just where on teyvat was that?

“your rival sounds awful, y/n! breaking the poor heart of a girl..” the blond across from you sighed out, draining his glass of wine. “reminds me of someone i know..”

you nodded vigorously, lowering your glass in front of you. “see what i mean, kaveh gets me! i can’t stand being around that man,” you hissed out, wiping your maroon stained lips. “he’s always reading his dumb book half the time — i don’t get how he scores higher than i do?!” you groaned out, clenching the column of your glass. “it makes no sense!”

“perhaps if i meet this fellow, i can rob him clean of his tcg deck as revenge.” the albino haired male across from you spoke, twirling a card between his middle and index fingers, which drew a low exhale from the male beside him.

“tcg isn’t to be used as gambling material, cyno.”

the male question sunk back in his seat, grumbling. “who put the sigh in cy-no.”

silence.

“moving on..” you cleared your throat before looking down at your watch. “when is this roommate of yours is supposed to arrive, kaveh? he’s awfully late and we’re already on our second glasses..”

“wow, i didn’t picture you as the alcoholic type. perhaps that’s why you stare so often where you’re not supposed to.”

it couldn’t be.

almost instantaneously, you whipped your head around to look up at the newly arrived figure, widening your eyes. “a-alhaitham?!” you blurted before turning to the blond beside you. “you live with him?!”

kaveh sank back in shame, draping a hand over his forehead. “unfortunately.” he muttered back, sending you a glance after a short pause. “you know him?”

“i wish i didn’t.” you grumbled back when alhaitham sat between you both without warning. it irked you greatly as you looked up at him, brows furrowed together. “do. you. mind?! i was in the middle of a conversation!”

alhaitham only glanced down at you, raising a brow. “did you say something?” he asked, lowering his hand from his ear.

“can he not hear?!” you asked yourself, nearly shattering the glass between your hands. “forget i even asked, you’d probably just annoy me more than you have already today!” you fired back, turning away from your classmate.

already?

that piqued kaveh’s interest as he shared a knowing glance with cyno and tighnari before smiling innocently at you. “say, y/n.. you never did tell us who that guy was.”

the color drained from your face almost instantly as that guy.. was right next to you.

“maybe you could de-scribe him to us?” the spantamad major added and his fennec eared friend groaned.

“can we do without the puns for once..”

a wicked snicker. “well that’s no pun.”

“you guys!” kaveh hissed out before turning to you once more. “so who is it, y/n? you can tell us.” he encouraged, grinning brightly.. for someone who held a similar distaste for the male in question.

it left you in a panic, not wanting alhaitham to know you had been blabbering about him in particular. you’d never hear the end of it if he found out!

“i-i need a drink!” you babbled, nearly jumping out of your seat as you rushed over to the tavern bar, face flushed, and not just from your last two glasses of wine.

when the bartender approached, your ordered another glass of wine and water, smiling awkwardly. you probably sounded like a complete mess as your words jumbled out from your nerves. why was alhaitham making you feel so on edge — so.. flustered. was that the word?

“having too much to drink is no good, you know.” speak of the devil.

startled by his presence, you nearly slapped the boy as you tensed beside him. why was he there??

“sneaking up on people is pretty weird, you know.” you retorted, huffing quietly. “this is the third time today.”

alhaitham hummed in amusement. “and you counted each time?”

“i hope kaveh destroys that book of yours..”

“jealous of the attention i give it over you?” he asked and you nearly choked on your breath.

you? jealous of a book? as if!

“and why would i be jealous of an inanimate object, least of all one belonging to yourself.” you countered, scoffing at his words. “that’s completely ridiculously, even more so when it’s coming out of your mouth.”

“then what was that look on your face, earlier today.” he inquired, side eying you. “when that girl confessed.”

look?

you hesitated for a moment, thrown off by the sudden question, but you didn’t back down. “disgust, perhaps. a normal person would be appalled to see someone confess to you of all people. it’s idiotic when you’re more likely to be committed to a library than a significant other.”

the silver haired male hummed again, which annoyed you, but he wasn’t finished. “funny, it looked like envy to me.” he mused, finally turning to face you. “and repose when you heard me reject her.”

archons, his eyes were so striking — so alluring. was this why he never looked you dead on? or paid you any mind, other than some side glances?

it made the beat of your heart quicken with fear, maybe even excitement. wait.. what were you saying? this was alhaitham — your class rival! he was just trying to throw you off your game!

and yet.. why was he suddenly so close to you? so entrancing? was it the alcohol? no.. the alcohol was bringing it out more — the truth, that which you’d been hiding.

“am i making you nervous? or was i correct with my conclusions?” he asked after a period of silence and you gulped. how long had you spaced out for?! speak!

“a-and why should i tell you anything?” you finally voiced, a puny comeback. “thought you had your eyes set elsewhere.” you elaborated, mustering up whatever confidence remained in you.

alhaitham leaned in closer, a prideful smile on his lips. “correct, i’m looking right at them.”

you blinked once and then twice.

there wasn’t anywhere else or anyone else he was looking at.. except for you.

“that..” you stumbled, feeling your face warm up up. “that can’t be right — you’re joking, you have to be.. did kaveh send you over purposefully? i swear to-mmph!”

and just like that, your disbelief was silenced with a surprisingly soft pair of lips as you felt a hand cup your cheek.

“still think i’m joking?”

notes. this was longer than i expected and oml istg it went everywhere.. ANYWAY here you go rei i hope you liked it BAHAHAHA half of this was me clowning around with an old idea i drafted soooooo yeah.. but i hope i did the boobman justice and fulfilled your request<3

MAIN MASTERLIST. ༝ REQUEST RULES.

USER INTERFACE.

ABOUT ME.

i/enfj & virgo! she/her or he/him, whichever you prefer. hajime iwaizumi’s stem gf!!! currently in my third year so if my posts are very minimal, i apologize for a busy schedule! hi, my name is sky :) i’d love to be friends!!! my askbox is also open if you’re too shy to show who you are (i get it because i get shy too). i am both a gamer & a writer in my free time. my favorite idea of a date is long walks around the beach and sitting on a beach while the night sky is out.

i have many pen names all around the board: panda / sky / altair / irelia / albion, etc. you may call me any one of them that suits what you like! i also kin a multitude of characters which include: oikawa tooru, tartaglia, irelia, futaba sakura, etc.

BEFORE YOU INTERACT / DO NOT INTERACT.

BYI

slow in writing and slow in replying, i prioritize my studies for the most part

sarcastic but i don’t really mean much by it, i like friendly banter

@silverflqmes is my best friend<3 we never shut up about each other.

i tend to hyperfixate on one thing a lot so that will be all i talk about for the next month.. or however long i’m into it

FINAL HAIKYUU QUEST IS REAL!!!!

don’t ask me for nsfw, i won’t write it. i do write with mature themes in mind so my blog is 17+ with those themes!

age must be in your bio or i’m blocking if you interact a lot and are under aged.

please don’t mention su!c!de in my inbox, it’s sensitive for me, same with guns/shootings, or sending me anything with the sounds of a gun

if i offend you, please communicate with me and i will do my best to fix it! whether it’s in a fic or based off of what i say in my asks.

DNI

don’t follow basically dni criteria

easily butthurt, proshipper, clout seeker, etc. it’s just unnecessary drama that i don’t want

you talk about my friends or my favs poorly

take advantage of people to a point where i feel more like a therapist than a friend

i’m okay with most things otherwise.

INTERESTS.

* not in order!

haikyuu, genshin, final fantasy, kingdom hearts, bleach, star wars, honkai: star rail, league of legends (lore only), pokemon, persona (3-5R) fate grand order (up to ab lb1 but love lb6), bungou stray dogs (up to s3 & wan), kirby, xenoblade chronicles, smash bros series, the galaxy, sci-fi, dc comics, music (edm & emo punk), fire emblem, stars, the sky, and shoujo animes (would love to talk about them)

currently listening to: my spotify playlist for reading!

SELFSHIPS.

- tagged under lore (🪷) so feel free to block that tag if you do not like them or if my selfships make you uncomfortable!

fate grand/order: oberon, melusiné, barghest, merlin

haikyuu: iwaizumi hajime

final fantasy: cloud, zack

italics - fav from that fandom

italics/bold - my main selfships

melukonova, 2023. 𓂃 ☄︎

໒⦂ 𝐀𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐋𝐃 𝐂𝐀𝐕𝐄𝐒 𝐈𝐍.

synopsis. even when all is lost, withering or crumbling away into dust, the unwilling bond tugging them to one another, again and again, remains unyielding.

genre. angst

tw. violence, kinda manipulation but like- he’s right..

disclaimer. there were no suitable sefikura gifs so i made one myself. if you use it, don’t be an ass, credit.

sephiroth x cloud strife. ( could be seen as platonic too )

the blond’s shoulders shook with exhaustion, hands blistering beneath his worn out gloves as his breaths came out shallow — uneven. as though the very oxygen he breathed had been stripped from his lungs amidst the clashing of steel against steel.

meanwhile the man across from him, stood with an eerie, but predictable calm, bangs flowing in the frigid breeze as his fingers curled around the hilt of his blade, ready.

it was just like last time, and the time before that.. and the time before that. every fight was near identical; same beginning with an ending that was equally the same. the only thing different was the words exchanged.

cloud, however, had grown tired of repetition.

the buster sword, trembling in his grasp, finally sunk into the earth, or whatever remained of it, as the former SOLDIER held himself up with a shaky breath.

sephiroth, mildly confused, though it had not reached his features, lowered masamune to his side, curiosity flashing in his feline-like eyes. “giving up so soon.. cloud? that was the last thing i’d expected, certainly out of you.” came his quiet comment, a hum following. “are you reconsidering my offer, perhaps?”

his offer.. the blond remembered it clearly, it echoed continuously in his head, like a mantra, since it left his curled lips.

“cloud, lend me your strength..” the one winged angel had stated mere moments ago, outstretching his leather covered palm. “let us defy destiny.. together.”

on their previous encounters, the mercenary would have yelled before gathering himself for the end of the battle, once more to prove his nemesis wrong. but the fire in him, whatever continued to burn, at last, faded from dying embers to evaporating wisps of smoke. much like the ones that surrounded the horrifyingly beautiful swordsman standing inches away from him.

with all lost or on the verge of being lost, how was he expected to go on? to continue this life long war without end? a battle could be won and lost, but a war persisted and called for more battles without prevail.

such was this so-called destiny sephiroth wished for them to defy.

but the former infantryman was no fool. at least, he believed he wasn’t.

“i don’t.. need your comments, offers or pity, s-sephi.. roth..” cloud heaved out, shaking his head weakly, attempting to remove his weight from the broadsword he’d been leaning on. “let’s just f-finish this.. once and for all.”

except, even he knew it wouldn’t be once and for all. it never was.

the cherished and famed war hero of shinra always, always, no matter the circumstances, odds or how many times the buster sword was cleaved clean through him.. he never failed to return. like a cat with nine lives, he stayed true to those eyes of his.

cloud had lost nearly every person he held dear to his wounded heart — had almost all of them taken away from him while he simply stood by and watched. too late to have made even the slightest difference to prevent the cruel outcomes that befell his loved ones.

the only one that seemed to persist, despite it all.. was sephiroth, he realized.

whether as a taunt or a bitter reminder of his failures at ending him for good — maybe even both, the self proclaimed ruler of the planet came back time and time again to prove the mercenary wrong. regardless of how deep of a slash he’d put through him using his departed friend’s weapon.

sadly, it was the bitter reality cloud lived. who was to say his silver haired nemesis would not return a third time? perhaps even a fourth, fifth or sixth- maybe even a hundredth.

nonchalance seemed to flicker in those mako colored irises, lips curling into what could be perceived as a smirk, albeit feint. “i thought i would mention, as you seem more withdrawn than the previous battles we shared.” he stated lightly, drawing his hilt back into his signature stance. “i would not want to fight you if your heart was not wholly, and irrevocably in it, cloud.”

the spiky haired male narrowed his eyes, vision slightly blurred from his fatigue and confusion. “why.. should my condition matter to you? am i not allowed to be tired of whatever this is- of constantly having to reenact this fight??” he retaliated in a low hiss, wincing as he forced the weapon into a defensive hold.

“i never stated you were not allowed to feel burnt out from our repetitive battles.” the older spoke up softly, a contrasting gentleness to his cold blooded nature — the one that was seared into him. “in fact, i have given you a way out of this fate that we share, where our reunions end with our blades locked.” he added shortly after, chuckling quietly, albeit devoid of humor. “it is often always you, cloud, who turns to fighting, anyway, is it not?”

the boy in question felt his heart in his throat, pupils dilating just slightly before he gritted his teeth. he would not dare fall for the words he spoke again — would not allow himself to see sephiroth as anything short of a villain. it was just so like him to say, anyway, twisting his actions to make him feel remorse.

tightening his grasp on the broadsword he held, cloud took a staggered step towards the taller. “don’t you dare give me that shit, you have ruined everything for me!” he shouted back, a bubbling rage surfacing in him the more he eyed the man across from him. “you’re insane to think i would believe a word you say! i know better than to trust someone who wouldn’t think twice about destroying and redesigning me into his own fucked up image!”

how could he not do that? all the things sephiroth said and expressed — it had all amounted to harnessing the sorrow, agony, hatred.. and that burning rage born from the town — his home, that had been scorched to ash and rebuilt as though it had never happened.

all for the purpose of pushing cloud to the very edge of despair, to pull him in deeper into the cold, dark waters. far away from the surface- from any source of warmth or light that wasn’t the flames on that fateful evening.. and into his everything.

a solemn smile seemed to replace the faltering smirk sephiroth sported as he let out another hum. “i am many things, cloud, but a liar.. is not one of them.” he answered lowly, eyes darkening. “you were rejected from SOLDIER five years ago due to sensitivity to mako. you were weak, incompetent and would have likely died on the field, had you been enlisted as you were.”

the younger of the two seemed to blink as he gripped his claymore tighter, glowering at the male he once idolized. if only that boy knew what his hero would become. “s-stop talking.” it came out stuttered, quieter, than he wished for it to. “you don’t know anything about me.”

“oh but i do, cloud.” he continued, anyway, stalking towards him. “i know everything there is to know. the things you cannot remember, the things you choose not to remember.. even things you do not know about yourself.” the teal eyed male went on, returning his sword to his side. “your strength now is more than it was that day in nibelheim. five years soaking in mako, injected with my cells has made you my equal.” he muttered, watching as the sapphire eyed mercenary trembled not in fear.. but in a nurtured, channeled fury.

it pleased sephiroth greatly, like an artist gazing upon his greatest work, as he appeared behind the blond mercenary, faster than any lightning materia could strike.

while the last of the strife family was still processing his position, the long haired male leaned in closely, curling his lips in a mild amusement. “my will and every desire, as well as my aspirations.. they run through your veins and call out to me- yearn to be one with me. you cannot resist the pull of the reunion, that undeniable need to find the one that tugs your strings.” he whispered into his ear, silver locks spilling over his battered shoulder armor. “what would you be without me, if not a weak, dejected infantryman with crushed dreams in becoming a SOLDIER?”

cloud stood there, frozen in his place despite the mixture of feelings he felt and had planned to pour into every slash he would deliver this time on his adversary.

what would he have been, truly, if not for sephiroth? if not for the horrors he had been through to get to this point?

his head lowered in shame, breaths coming out uneven at the realization as the buster sword dropped from his grasp. “i-i’m not.. i refuse to be any of what you say..”

“oh, but you were, cloud. no matter how many ways you paint the story in your head, however narrative you use to retell it.. your origins are embedded in you, unchanging.. as are my own.” the swordsman clad in leather spoke, placing a hand on his bare, quivering shoulder. “fret not, cloud, for you have gained strength in your suffering, have you not?” he mused out, feeling the other tense beneath his touch.

he had grown and gotten more powerful, yes..

“but i lost everything.” he whispered in a voice so broken from it all, unlike the harsh one that he’d been using as he felt his eyes gloss over with tears; ones that dared not leak in his wake.

..though at what cost?

sephiroth seemed to hum at the crack in whatever stability remained in cloud’s tone, smoothing a hand over his arm, soothingly. “that is the price of strength, cloud. do you think i became the way i am by design?”

other than the propaganda that painted his old role model and the version he came to know now, the spiky haired merc.. knew near nothing of him.

the taller took his silence as a sign to proceed, placing the back of the other’s hand into his palm. “my childhood was spent in a laboratory. those who raised me, the researchers of shinra.. were not pleased with how i was born- what i was born with. they wished for more, to construct and remodel me into that which i am today.” he explained, feeling the blond go completely still.

a mere breath away from his ear, sephiroth parted his lips again to finish. “the famed war hero which you idolized in your youth.. was in reality, a perfectly crafted monster all along, dressed under the guise of an angelic-like grace.”

the one winged angel.

cloud knew shinra wasn’t anything short of sick, having experimented on him as well as many others.. but to this extent?

“unlike you, however, i did not wish for this strength or for anything that was injected, slipped, disciplined or instilled into me.” he finished calmly, no longer fazed by what shattered him, so long ago now. “i did not ask for this destiny, either.. to have to die at your hands repeatedly and be rejected each time by the lifestream. but alas, i have been chosen for this, and to guide you, cloud, as my other half, whenever you lose your way.” the silver haired male finished, raising his free hand to wipe his fresh tears. “so whenever you lose your reason and purpose, i will always be here to gift you a new one. weep not, cloud, for this dynamic is what binds us together.”

he was sure he’d heard something like that somewhere before, and not long ago.

“that which binds us together would be no more.” cloud recalled hearing him say, after the detonation of mako reactor one, amidst the fiery destruction, and his fragile state of mind. “and i would be loath to live in such a world.”

sephiroth had said that about the planet’s annihilation — a result of shinra’s carelessness and abuse of mako as an energy source.

his intentions were in regards to saving the world, but his methods — his vision.. it was flawed- fogged by his resentment for what everyone had done to him.

the self proclaimed first class SOLDIER wondered, would he, too, have reached that point — sephiroth’s point — had he not directed his drive and deplorable feelings into putting an end to him?

his head lowered in shame as he felt his breath catch in his throat. “if i knew strength would mean hurting — bringing death to everyone around me, then i would have never wanted it to begin with.” cloud willed himself to answer, flashes of his most cherished ones appearing in his mind. his mother, zack.. the late avalanche members..

he couldn’t keep doing this. his promise to tifa could barely be kept as it was. how could he be certain she would not be next? or even aerith, now?

sephiroth brought his chin to his shoulder, closing whatever proximity remained between their bodies as he lifted his chin up with his thumb. “it is not too late, cloud, to defy the destiny that has been written out against our will and knowing.” he encouraged in a gentle tone, resting his thumb so close to the corner of the merc’s bottom lip. “your beloved friends could be safe, the suffering would cease and we would stop our never ending fights. all you have to do, is lend your strength to me.. as the only one on this caving world who has endured similar suffering to your own and understands it best.”

ocean hues flashed like those of a deer in headlights, an involuntary shiver dancing down his spine.

to give into sephiroth..? the one thing he had been avoiding, suppressing himself- that part of him from doing.

and yet..

“what.. would i have to do?” cloud asked before he could stop himself from his curiosity, to which the former hero smiled.

“don’t worry, it’s a simple thing.” he assured, stepping around the other to be at his side as he slid his hand into his before gazing up at the sky. “you have gone against me time and time again, to which the cycle of us fighting has reiterated.” the one winged angel stated, trailing his slitted eyes down to the spiky haired hero beside him. “that leaves us with one method not yet attempted.”

partnership.

“what will it be,” sephiroth asked, squeezing his hand. “cloud?”

the former SOLDIER- no, infantryman, gazed down upon their intertwined hands, which he somehow did not reject as he let his words sink.

what would it be, indeed..

his lips pulled tightly together, and finally, he lifted his eyes to meet those of his greatest foe- who waited patiently, calmly, for his response.

one thing was for certain, cloud wouldn’t be able to stop himself from whatever left his lips in that moment.

cloud could only hope the right choice spilled passed his tainted appendages.

notes. the way i die off and come back to write the most fucked up shit ever.. anyways they have had me on a bad chokehold for DAYS. literally i am not ok. who let square make them this fucked up.. regardless, this is different from what i post- i don’t typically do ship writing any longer, so i hope it was decent!

↳ return to main masterlist . request rules . send an ask

zack is so cute in this, i will never recover from the way i fell over of happiness and love for zack<3

you are legit my favorite ffvii writer at the moment dude. if you feel like it, do you think you can write smth about being childhood friends w zack and reuniting with him one day? make sure to take care of yourself 💕 :)

໒⦂ 𝐈𝐍𝐕𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆.

notes. HELP YOU’RE SO SWEET ANON??? IWOWJDJDK i haven’t written as much yet and i still have lots to learn but that really warmed my heart to hear 🥹🥹🥹 i decided to combine this with another request, i hope that’s okay with you both!<3

genre. fluff + angst

disclaimer. tifa speaking on cloud can either be platonic or romantic — whatever you wanna think just don’t start up a whole ship war bc it’s embarrassing as hell. obviously this is a zack fic so focus on zack smh.

zack fair x gn!reader.

“you’re.. leaving for SOLDIER?”

you shouldn’t be shocked, that was the last thing you should have been since you had been the one to encourage his decision.

and yet.. why did it hurt? you had known that it would, it was only naturally — but not like this.

zack averted his stare from the star blanketed sky, smiling solemnly. “sure am. you helped me realize that becoming a hero is something that i should do — that the world needed my kind of help.. so that’s,” he paused, allowing the evening breeze to shift his dark bangs. “exactly what i gotta do.”

you fell into silence for a moment, pursing your lips together as you considered his words.

it had been your crush’s dream from young, since seeing sephiroth on propaganda and hearing of his endeavors, to become a hero. the life he’d led in gongaga was wonderful, peaceful.. but you knew, deep down, he’d wanted to make that name for himself. that zack was.. meant for greater things.

and you, torn between your feelings for him and the need to encourage him as his best friend.. had no choice but to put aside what you felt to urge him to embrace his dreams.

when he received no answer, the raven haired teen took it as a sign to continue, leaning back on his elbows. “as of now, you’re the only one i’ve told about my decision — cuz well.. as you know, my parents aren’t super chill with it.” he laughed out, shaking his head. “so i’m gonna leave tomorrow night. got everything packed up already, a letter ready for them to pass on and i’ll be good to go!”

“tomorrow night? so soon?” you nearly interrogated him, only to respond with a slow nod. “you have my word, don’t worry about it.” should you tell on your friend? would that keep him just a little while longer if his parents knew and prevented his departure? would he hate you for it and finally give you a reason to stop feeling this way about him?

no.. you couldn’t live with yourself if he had hated you. that was practically death served on a silver platter, your heart would never start again if zack had expressed contempt for you.

for a second, longing flashed in his eyes before he allowed himself to grin, patting your back gently. “you’re amazing y/n!! i knew i could count on you no matter what! i’ll be sure to bring you something real nice from the big city!! and that’s a promise!”

a smile that didn’t quite meet your gaze etched itself onto your lips as you let out a hum of agreement. “you’re the amazing one, zack. i’ll..” miss you. “..be holding you to that promise, so you better keep it.”

three years passed and no sign of zack. the promise stood, but remained unfulfilled.

you should have expected it, that becoming a SOLDIER meant never seeing him again. you knew he was alive, a letter would have come if he wasn’t, and his parents kept you posted thankfully.

yet, there was still an emptiness you felt in his absence. every year, you’d told yourself that perhaps maybe, he would come home to visit this time.

now, having turned eighteen, you had decided to leave the comfort of gongaga as zack once had, and journeyed to nibelheim — a village in the mountains. it was small, quaint as your hometown was, perhaps colder, but after being offered a job through your parents, it called to you.

your mother had been from nibelheim and met your father in midgar — who had left gongaga to pursue a career in research as she had.

despite their retirement, they had developed many connections.. one of which, had been in the mountain village.

when you pleaded to leave and join up with your friend in the city he’d left for, your parents had urged you not to, and were strict on it.. as though something had been terribly wrong there.

you’d never asked why they retired so early on, and just assumed they had wanted to settle since they’d made their money.

but it didn’t.. fully seem that way.

“didja hear y/n? there’s a group of SOLDIERS coming down here tonight. ahhh, i hope cloud is there — i haven’t seen him in years.” your companion and guide sighed out, pacing about idly as you jotted down notes on your observations of the terrain.

tifa had been a friend you’d made upon your arrival. she was a year younger, but a real go getter and great help on your expeditions. in the beginning you worried for her safety, stringing her along as you did — only for her to protect you from the perils you feared.

you’d have to ask if that mentor of hers was willing to show you a move or two on self defense.

“cloud, huh? is he in SOLDIER, too?” you had told the girl before you already about your old buddy, as there was no possible way of her exposing your feelings for him.

and honestly, it was comforting to confide in someone for a change.

she nodded eagerly at your question, smiling softly. “he should be, it was his dream to become a SOLDIER, like sephiroth — that’s what he told me one day before he left.. and he’d promised to always protect me, no matter what.”

your writing seemed to pause at her comment, head lowering as you willed yourself to chuckle despite your anguish. “is that so?” zack, as you recalled, had dreamt of the same. “well, i hope he comes home safe if he’s a part of that group.” you smiled a little, closing your notebook before standing up from your crouched position.

“that should be enough for today, thanks for coming along again — i think i’m almost there with reaching my conclusion on this strange increase in mako spillage on the landscape.. but i just- can’t seem to put my finger on it.” you muttered, knitting your brows together before casting a glance over at mt. nibel- the highest point of the area you had moved to. “whatever, they’re keeping in that reactor.. there’s something really off about it.”

the burgundy eyed female followed your gaze before humming absentmindedly. “yeah.. i’m hoping those guys coming today might know or at least clean up over there.. i’d hate to see what might happen if the pollution intensifies down here.” she answered softly, helping you up before looking ahead. “for now, let’s get back — it’s almost sundown.”

at the mention of the visitors on their way from midgar, your thoughts went to your old friend, but you reprimanded yourself quickly. you would not have hopes again — as they only ever existed to get shattered and turn into despair.

and yet.. that one percentage asking but what if, remained.

the sun had drowned into billowing clouds, a shade of golden casting over the scenery as you walked beside your friend, exhaustion creeping up on you. however, you reminded yourself that the descent was always easier than the ascent.

“and we’re back, thank you for taking the tifa express way~” your travel partner giggled, earning a smile in return from you. she always had a way of brightening the mood with her optimism. kind of like.. nevermind.

the brunette looked around when she found the villagers gathered in the centre, adjusting her hat with a pout. “did we just miss them? i didn’t think we would be this late..”

you copied her actions, letting out a sound of contemplation. “maybe they turned in, midgar is a long way from here.. i’m sure they wanted to just take things easy for the night and start off fresh tomorrow.”

tifa paused for a minute to think before letting out a sigh and nodding. “i guess you have a point — tomorrow, then.” she smiled again, holding out her thumb. “i’m gonna be their guide, i’ll make sure of it!”

you rolled your eyes in amusement before nudging her with your elbow. “whatever helps you sleep at night, tifa.. i’ll catch you in the morning, in that case. i still gotta sort some things with information i picked up today.” a trip to that mako reactor and your research might at last be complete. perhaps.. you could convince the group in bringing you along- especially if your friend would be going.

it was the perfect in!

“mhm, see you in the morning, y/n! don’t be up all night doing that work of yours if you wanna wake up on time!”

with those parting words, followed by a wave, the female dressed in orange walked towards the direction of her home, eagerly greeting her father at the door before joining him inside.

your shoulders fell, a low exhale escaping your lips as you adjusted your backpack. and just like that, she was gone.

you made your way into the inn you’d been staying at for the time being, rubbing your eyes.

it was a temporary arrangement, given you hadn’t fully decided yet if you would be staying permanently in nibelheim. however, the living accommodations worked just fine.

you hadn’t thought yourself difficult to please, anyway. so long as you had the necessary essentials needed to live, all was well. that was what you’d learned growing up in gongaga.

entering the inn, you greeted the host before ascending the steps, pausing when you caught sight of a towering, silver haired.. male? unless a woman could stand at nearly seven feet.. and across from him, stood.. no — had your eyes deceived you?

“z-zack..?”

the conversation between the pair, whatever it had been about, came to a full stop as they turned to face you, shock painting on the face of the SOLDIER with the darker hair.

“y/n..??” he spoke up incredulously, blinking over at you as his jaw fell just slightly. “no way- what’re you doing here.. in nibelheim of all places? i thought you were-”

“in gongaga?” you asked with a small smile before shaking your head. “my parents found me work here, so i moved just a few months ago. never thought i’d see you here, before returning home, no less.”

zack could feel the coldness of your words, piercing through him like icicles tipped in poison. pissed was an understatement.

the taller behind him smiled awkwardly before moving towards his door, not wanting to be muddled into the affairs of his triend. “i believe you both have some catching up to do.. i will see you in the morning, zack.”

the boy in question parted his lips in protest, but the cat-eyed male was gone before he could do so. damn!

awkwardly, he turned to meet your awaiting stare, swallowing thickly.

“sorry, i’ve.. had a lot going on.” he confessed, lowering his head in shame. “i wanted to come home sooner — especially after making first class just recently- but things.. everything that has been going on as of late at shinra, it’s been really messed up.” zack confessed, clenching his fists at his side before letting out a glum chuckle. “and it just keeps getting weirder.. what were the odds i’d find you here of all places?”

you leaned against the window, folding your arms as you gazed out. “close to none. i guess it’s a thing of fate, maybe.” you offered, sliding your eyes back to his zircon ones. “seems my parents were right to not send me to the city with whatever ‘messed up things’ that happened.”

the SOLDIER nodded, allowing a brief silence to pass before smiling. “they probably were, yeah.. don’t think you would have liked midgar much, anyway. it’s all gross and industrial looking.. although!” he blurted suddenly, perking up as though he’d remembered something. “wait right here, i’ve got something i want to give you!”

you rose a brow at his random burst of energy, reminding you that despite the change in his appearance, the development he had gone through.. he was still your zack, and that wouldn’t change.

he disappeared into his room before you could answer, rummaging by the noises you’d made out, which had you shielding your mouth with your hand. “don’t get lost in there, now.”

“like i would!” he laughed before emerging from his quarters, holding out a messily wrapped box for you. “no matter where i went, i always kept this with me, thinking that maybe- just maybe, i would pass through our hometown and find you to hold up that promise i made to you. finally,” the spiky haired SOLDIER paused, grinning brightly. “i was able to fulfill it!”

you blinked in surprise, taking the package into your hand as you felt your face burn despite the coldness provided by the high altitudes of nibelheim. “you.. remembered?”

appalled, zack let out a gasp of offense. “remembered? how could i forget?? a promise is a promise, and i intended on keeping it!” he huffed out before raising his fists before him in excitement. “now come on, open it!!”

overcome with a sudden happiness, to know you hadn’t been forgotten despite the negative thoughts you’d created, you opened up his gift to you with earnest. a glimpse of green entered your vision as you quirked a curious brow. a plant? no.. zack wasn’t the type to keep plants.

finally removing the top completely, you stared down at the present before stifling a laugh into your forearm. “you- you got me a cactuar.. stuffed toy?” you spluttered in surprise.

of course he did — it was zack for goodness sake..

“sure did!! ya like it?? it looked authentic when i saw it in the window!” he answered proudly, placing his hands on his hips.

you continued laughing, unable to contain yourself as you held your stomach. “it’s so random- but that’s.. that’s just like you to get me!” you wiped a tear, allowing a smile nearly as bright as his, or perhaps- even brighter for a change, to replace your initial frown. “i love it a lot, but.. you wanna know what i love more?”

a mixture of interest and excitement sparked in his eyes as he inched closer, eager to hear. “what? what is it??”

having caught your breath, you closed your eyes, holding the plush close to your heart. “being here- reunited with you, again..”

like an invisible string, knots and tangles had appeared in the thread that connected you both. however, it wasn’t impossible to unravel and detangle that which connected you both, to allow an opportunity of reunion.

( even if it was the right place, but sadly.. the wrong time. )

notes. bittersweet open ending cuz well.. it’s nibelheim- anyway, i hope this was okay! i think my writing style kinda changed.. scary. oh well! the support these last few days have been much appreciated<3 tysm you guys, hearts out to you fr<3

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sea salt ice cream >>>>

wishing to see him drink caprinas in his small form

heres a kingdom hearts inspired sketch bc i think he's eating sea salt ice cream in his splash art (coping)

Hi, how are u? If u don't mind, may I request *any genshin characters* with a short female reader who also has a short temper?

໒⦂ 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐑𝐓 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑 𝐇𝐂𝐒.

notes. hello anon! i’m okay, bit stressed but thank you for asking! i hope you’re doing well<3 i wasn’t sure on who to do and whether or not you had a preference for girls or boys — so i mixed them up :’) chose headcanon format since it was better suited, enjoy!

genre. chaotic + fluff

ft. alhaitham, ajax ( tartaglia / childe ), ayato kamisato, miko yae, lisa minci

short female! reader.

     ➫    𝓐𝗟𝗛𝗔𝗜𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗠   ୨୧   ˎˊ˗

⌗ you know what’s even more frustrating than living with alhaitham? it’s reaching the top shelf when you want to grab books.

⌗ that “feeble” ass scholar put the books of your favorite genre up on the highest tier because he doesn’t read them as often and prefers having his usual picks within reach.

⌗ ..or he just did it to hear you call out to him to come grab them off the shelf because kaveh is so nitpicky about moving furniture. meaning that in grabbing a chair or stool for leverage, you would risk an argument between the married couple, with the accusations going towards alhaitham, rather than you.

⌗ drama, basically. so you try to avoid it at the expense of your own dignity. and you SWEAR every time you call the scribe over, he’s got this silent, but smug aura about him and the faintest smirk. because oh, he knows what it does to that burning flame of frustration inside you.

⌗ sometimes he might grab the book and act as though he’s handing it to you before lifting it over your head, and it’s like a declaration of war.

⌗ “not funny, scribe.”

⌗ “to you.”

     ➫    𝓐𝗝𝗔𝗫   ୨୧   ˎˊ˗

⌗ thought alhaitham was bad? think again.

⌗ tartaglia is a teasing little shit when it comes to your vertically challenged self, always walking up and coming to pat your head or drape his arm ( sometimes even body ) on you with this innocent smile on his lips ( don’t be fooled ). meanwhile you’re struggling to bear his weight. smh.

⌗ if he ever does something to infuriate you, it usually ends with you pulling him down by the collar of his shirt to give him a piece of your mind. meanwhile he’s just laughing it up, which makes you all the more flushed and annoyed.

⌗ he likes to come up from behind you and babble or coo in your ear about how compact you are in his arms, teasing you with his words since it flusters you. your voice would pick up in pitch when tartaglia does this, and he only chuckles before peppering kisses all over you.

⌗ if there’s something you can’t quite reach and he witnesses you struggling to grab it, he’ll sneak up and pick you up to offer the leverage you need. of course it startles you when he does this, while he’s just holding you up simba style ( yes, yes he would do this ).

⌗ when he comes home from work, no matter how tired he might be, he rushes to your shared bedroom and spoons you, cooing a cheesy nickname and sweet nothings while he cuddles you.

⌗ “aw come now~ it’s only the truth that you’re my little munchkin<3 i could just eat you up!”

     ➫    𝓚𝗔𝗠𝗜𝗦𝗔𝗧𝗢 𝓐𝗬𝗔𝗧𝗢   ୨୧   ˎˊ˗

⌗ another menace, what is up with hydro men istg..

⌗ he’s usually subtle about things, sly when he teases you about your height. you could be going off on him about something while he’s just doing the closed eye smile. but you swear there’s a smugness behind it that he hides TOO DAMN WELL.

⌗ purposely has things just SLIGHTLY out of reach to hear you call out to him for his help, as you’d be left with way of getting what you need without the help of your adoring boyfriend!

⌗ it takes a sigh and his name before he’s sauntering over, well aware of what you’re going to ask of him. and you struggle each time to get the words out, as the ice holding your pride thins even further.

⌗ yet he still asks what you called him over for, JUST to hear the words. “yes darling? what did you need me for?” there’s the SLIGHTEST emphasis on ‘need’ because that man KNOWS.

⌗ when he’s doing paperwork, sometimes he calls you over to where he’s sitting in the office, and just puts you on his lap. a makeshift chin rest, which has you bubbling with annoyance. but you can’t lie, his clothing is soft to the touch and his warmth serenades you. so the anger all but dissipates.

⌗ whenever the breeze picks up, he’ll drape his overcoat over your shoulders, which just looks like you’re drowning in bedsheets.

     ➫    𝓨𝗔𝗘   𝓜𝗜𝗞𝗢   ୨୧   ˎˊ˗

⌗ and so, the one worse than all of those men combined.. enters the mix.

⌗ miko is one for making sly comments that’s for certain. so teasing you.. will not come as a surprise, in fact- it will be very frequent that she does this.

⌗ DUDE SHE USES THE FALSE SYMPATHY THING ISTG. the whole, “aww, poor little thing can’t reach? you need your dearest most capable lover to grab that for you?” and your face is just burning with embarrassment and frustration.

⌗ pets your head very often AND YET YOU CAN’T PET HERS WHEN SHE’S THE ONE ALWAYS GOING ON ABOUT HER FOX FORM. what in the name of hypocrisy is this.

⌗ strangely protective over you? you’re her adorable little cutie, the last thing she’d want was for you to be hurt! be it emotionally or physically. so she has a somewhat possessive aura surrounding her when it comes to other people. maybe it’s a youkai thing, you’re not that sure, but she tends to keep you close to her.

⌗ if you’re taking too long while someone is talking to you, especially during meetings and discussions for the publishing house, expect her to wrap her arms around you while lowering her chin to your shoulder, eyeing the person across from you with an ‘innocent’ smile.

⌗ wondering who’s the big spoon during cuddle sessions? certainly not you.

     ➫    𝓛𝗜𝗦𝗔   ୨୧   ˎˊ˗

⌗ cut from the same cloth as miko honestly. atp it’s tall electro women with catalysts, there is no other reason.

⌗ now lisa is also one to tease, always cooing words into your ear which has you flustered beyond help. worst part is when she does it in the library and tells you to be quiet since you’re one to get loud. talk about UNFAIR.

⌗ if you’re ever annoyed about something or having a hard day, you can count on lisa to sit you on her lap with her hand on your head, gently urging you to rest on her chest ( pure heaven honestly ). and she’ll let you rant about your worries to her. she’s so mother.

⌗ while working, lisa tends to tire easily, so sometimes she might ask you to grab a book for her. to mess with you, occasionally she asks for something high up just to witness your struggling before eventually approaching to grab it</3

⌗ “you couldn’t have done that five minutes ago.. i was over here jumping and shuffling like a fool!”

⌗ “but it wouldn’t have been as fun to witness, cutie~! you should have seen how adorable you looked<3”

⌗ lisa likes to sleep for longer durations since again, she tires very easily. might be because of her lore where her life span was cut in half, but not sure.. ANYWAY. so if you’re sleeping together and you wake up before her? forget it, you’re not moving an inch. you’re in her arms until she awakens. you don’t wanna deal with angry lisa..

notes. super sorry for the delay, i’ve been busy as of late but i hope these characters are okay and that you’re satisfied with the outcome? i tried to follow what you wanted as best as i could</3 anyway hope you enjoy!

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