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TAG WITH @fern

POSTED ON Jan 15, 2024 21:19:04 GMT

shiv and freya morningstar like this

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Fern wasn’t fully expecting Jayden to jump to his father’s defense. Or at least, not so adamantly as he does now. Their eyes widen a fraction, mouth snapping shut as he insists and explains and justifies the man who Fern would, admittedly, never be swayed about.[break][break]
“A motive that you know of,” they mutter, before their eyes shut and they try to reel their snark back in. Though that doesn’t seem to do much them much good. It feels like suddenly they are the bad guy here.[break][break]
Why is this their fault?[break][break]
“I’m not saying it would be bad,” they insist, frustrated panic creeping into their voice, “but it’s right there in your own question—if.”[break][break]
Their lips press into a think line as frantic eyes search his face. Fern doesn’t want to say they’re desperate, but they feel that sensation. The thread of composure slipping like sand between their fingers. Trying to hold onto something liquid like water.[break][break]
They have never been as steady as they are for jayden cross.[break][break]
And Tapu Koko’s influence has only made their truer, more fickle nature more prevalent.[break][break]
So when the frustration claws at them, it snags them and digs in. “Why won’t you believe me?” It’s so much, being an anchor. The weight is heavy on their shoulders. But what good is that weight if he doesn’t take them seriously?

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jayden cross [break]
+ eepy

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MILKY

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jayden

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TAG WITH @jayden

POSTED ON Jan 15, 2024 21:36:35 GMT

shiv and Remiel Calcifet like this

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Jayden is desperate. They are - both - desperate. He can feel it in the air, the palpable nature of their frustration at one another.

[break][break] He knows that they are right, somewhere deep in side, but he doesn't want them to be. He wants to be right — he wants to believe —

[break][break] "Because if I do, then it means...!"

[break][break] Then it means that nothing has changed, that he hasn't changed. That he is the same person that his father left him for, that he is the same useless, horrible, piece of scrap —

[break][break] Frustration climbs high in his voice.

[break][break] "Why don't you want it to be true? Why are you so determined that everything he says - that I say - is a lie?"

[break][break] "Why can't you believe me?"

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fern delaney[break]
[attr="class","fas fa-book-open"] CHAPTER THREE

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MILKY

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played by

lou

harper beck

they/he

twenty-eight

august 11

stow-on-side, galar

pansexual

forger

rocket admin

6'0 (it's 5'8) height

long black tulips, born in your blue tints. lemongrass eyelids, smoke in your slick lips.

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TAG WITH @fern

POSTED ON Jan 15, 2024 21:45:06 GMT

shiv and jayden cross like this

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A fight isn’t want they wanted. To upset him isn’t what they wanted. But they have done it anyway. A prepared bed to lie in. It was likely a losing battled from the jump—he has made up his mind, no matter what Fern says or doesn’t say.[break][break]
But if he wanted them to go along with, he’ll be disappointed. No matter how much it pains them to disappoint him in any way, shape, or form.[break][break]
“It’s not about what I want to be true! I would love for it to be true. Don’t you think I want what’s actually good for you? Why wouldn’t I want that?” Something pitiful crawls up their throat as they look at him desperately. Exasperatedly. They just don’t think he is good for Jayden.[break][break]
“No! It’s not you I that I don’t believe, it’s him!” Their outburst pulls them to sit up, pushing themselves back as their hair falls in flyaway strands of static. Their nerves feel electric, unsteady, and they put themselves at a slight distance.[break][break]
But again, it seems predetermined. They can’t win here. To be disbelieving of Dmitri apparently means being disbelieving of Jayden now too. And that doesn’t feel fair.[break][break]
“He’s not good. He’s a fox, not a wolf. But his teeth are just as sharp.”[break][break]
Again, they feel the uncanny creep of similarity, and they feel sick with it.

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jayden cross [break]
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MILKY

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milky

jayden

he/him

december 25

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TAG WITH @jayden

POSTED ON Jan 15, 2024 21:58:05 GMT

shiv and Remiel Calcifet like this

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'Why wouldn't I want that?'

[break][break] "I don't know!" he cries out, desperate for them to explain themselves. "You tell me, Fern."

[break][break] Jayden is usually the one who is critical of others, suspecting that there is something wrong with them, something wrong with him. But he can not get over the way that Dmitri had approached him that day, so unlike anything he had ever been, and said that he was proud of him. Proud.

[break][break] The Dmitri that he he knew, the horrible man who had raised him, would have never said something like that. Not even as a joke.

[break][break] They pull away from him, and it hurts. It hurts so much that he cannot bear it, bruised violet shimmering in the darkness of the room. It feels like a crater is forming between them once again, and Jayden cannot understand why it is so. Why Fern cannot simply not believe him.

[break][break] A hand reaches for them then, a gentle touch to their cheek.

[break][break] One last effort.

[break][break] "That is the old him, duck. He's different now. You just - you have to see it in person. Maybe try to spend more time with him, and you'll see."

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fern delaney[break]
[attr="class","fas fa-book-open"] CHAPTER THREE

[attr="class","milkycred"]
MILKY

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played by

lou

harper beck

they/he

twenty-eight

august 11

stow-on-side, galar

pansexual

forger

rocket admin

6'0 (it's 5'8) height

long black tulips, born in your blue tints. lemongrass eyelids, smoke in your slick lips.

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part of

TAG WITH @fern

POSTED ON Jan 15, 2024 22:09:33 GMT

shiv likes this

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Suddenly, the peaceful quiet of their home cracks into pieces. Pulled apart by the rise of their voices.[break][break]
“I’m trying! You just don’t want to hear it!” They bark back, a pitch to their voice that edges on shrill.[break][break]
It’s difficult to grasp. Though Fern wouldn’t call themself blithely trusting, they certainly usually looked that way if they were to be compared to Jayden. But it’s as if that faculty has been switched off in his brain. So willingly he negates everything he has been through. For the silly, childlike hopes of the boy he used to be.[break][break]
And still, he tries to reason with them. That hand, usually a balm of comfort, searingly hot against their face—funny, considering Chien Pao’s imparted gifts.[break][break]
They shake their head and lean away, out of the soft touch of his hand. It physically pains them to do so, but frustration is too rampant under their skin. Electricity still racing like a charged current in their blood. A soft scoff follows as their eyes look away, across the room.[break][break]
“I have seen him in person, and I just don’t buy it. The last thing I want to do is spend more time with him than I have to.”[break][break]
They sigh—the sound short and hard. Decisive.[break][break]
Then Fern peels themself out of bed and stands. “I’m going to make tea.” They don’t offer an invitation as they drift from the room, casting him only a short glance as their hand brushes the door frame. "I hope I'm the one who's wrong about this." Fern doesn't look at him as he says this, and they slip into the hall and the dark of the rest of the house.

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jayden cross [break]
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MILKY

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played by

milky

jayden

he/him

december 25

ballonlea, galar

bisexual

wyndon ceo

admin

5'10" height

we'll never get free, lamb to the slaughter

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part of

TAG WITH @jayden

POSTED ON Jan 15, 2024 22:31:43 GMT

shiv and Remiel Calcifet like this

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It doesn't work. His touch has the opposite effect — it has Fern peeling away from them, angry, charged and frustrated. It is all unraveling and Jayden is hopeless to stop it. To stop them.

[break][break] "I hope I'm the one who's wrong about this."

[break][break] Jayden swallows, eyes full of pain, and has no choice but to turn away as they leave him to make tea.

[break][break] Even long after they have left, he can still feel the spark in his fingers — a feeling that had once caused him joy, but now only causes him pain.

[break][break] 'They'll understand eventually... won't they?'

[break][break] They must.

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fern delaney[break]
[attr="class","fas fa-book-open"] CHAPTER THREE

[attr="class","milkycred"]
MILKY

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played by

milky

jayden

he/him

december 25

ballonlea, galar

bisexual

wyndon ceo

admin

5'10" height

we'll never get free, lamb to the slaughter

awards

4,142 posts

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part of

TAG WITH @jayden

POSTED ON Jan 17, 2024 23:59:06 GMT

shiv, freya morningstar, and 3 more like this

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[attr="class","textbox"] He wants it to get better, but it is does not.

[break][break] Time stretches on, as it always does, and despite Fern's warnings, Jayden grows undoubtedly closer to his father.

[break][break] They start to spend more and more time together, in moments that do not always have to do with work. It is not like how it was before either. When he was young, it was always father who ordered him around, who sought to tighten the shackles around his wrists tighter and tighter. But now, with their positions swapped, it is father who now begins to seek his counsel.

[break][break] It is his father who asks him for his time of day, it is his father who brings him out to lunch.

[break][break] It is the father that he has never dreamed of asking for, because he was too afraid to want it.

[break][break]
[break][break]

But no matter how much he tries to explain it to Fern, that father is different now, they do not believe him.

[break][break] They cannot trust it, they say.

[break][break] And it hurts Jayden every time they do.

[break][break]
[break][break]

"I'm going to do it," he tells Fern one day.

[break][break] A new venture is underway, spearheaded by none other than Dmitri Volkov. Following his return, the inaugural project marked the man's first official move within Rocket's esteemed science division, which was only bolstered by the support of his assistants mint frost and his son, Alexei.

[break][break] The concept is relatively straightforward, yet the objective is nothing short of brilliant.

[break][break] Their aim? Harness the DNA of Rocket's existing Avatars and elevate them to a new level of utilization. The project's goal was to use an Avatar's genetic blueprints and covert them into assets for non-avatars. With this, Rocket would then create a specialized subdivision, compromised of Rocket's most formidable recruits, and endow them with powers extracted from it's strongest Avatars.

[break][break] And the best thing? All it would cost was a few tests.

[break][break] And as his favorite son, Jayden was expected to be onboard.

[break][break] fern delaney does not agree. It is one of the many things they fight about in the days to come. But Jayden is steadfast, resilient in his father's belief.

[break][break] "It's for Rocket," he says, as if by way of explanation. "I have no choice."

[break][break]
[break][break]
But he does — he does.

[break][break] The words go unsaid between them.

[break][break] Jayden isn't doing this for Rocket. He's doing this for Dmitri, an endless yearning for his father's approval.

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[attr="class","oocnotes"][attr="class","fas fa-book-open"] chapter four

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jayden

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december 25

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POSTED ON Jan 18, 2024 22:45:29 GMT

shiv, freya morningstar, and 3 more like this

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[attr="class","textbox"] fern delaney is intelligent.

[break][break] They know that when Jayden gets like this, there is no convincing him of the alternative. Especially with how deeply Dmitri's claws have sunk into the man that he once loved the most in the world.

[break][break] Each and every day, their duck is wheedling away into something that they do not even recognize. But Fern is obstinate, some may say foolish in their desire to help, to save the boy who they've given their heart to.

[break][break] Which, for those who know them, is a rarity in itself.

[break][break]
[break][break]

fern delaney is clever.

[break][break] They know Jayden's schedule like the back of their hand. To be fair, it is not difficult. For the most part, Jayden is a man of excellent design — he is reliable, organized and predictable. Perhaps it is the thing that once endeared him to them. The predictability of his nature that is so opposing to their own.

[break][break] It is easy then to figure out the time in their schedule in which Jayden would be busy. He is so often busy these days, either with missions with Alexei, excursions with mint frost or his own paperwork. But then again, he has always been a workoholic so it should not bother them. Should not hurt them.

[break][break] But it does.

[break][break]
[break][break]

fern delaney is astute.

[break][break] They know that the moment that they step into this office, the office that is his, the office that reads ADMIN JAYDEN CROSS at it's mantle that there is something different. Something difficult, unsettling that twists in the pit of their stomach almost immediately.

[break][break] This is why they have not visited it in sometime. This is why they had refused to have lunch here so many times. This is why they had avoided it.

[break][break] This isn't Jayden's office any longer.

[break][break] The walls are dark and imposing, the black leather chair too comfortable and the sleek wood desk a tad too perfect. There are too many pieces of gothic decor that are so unlike their duck that it makes bile rising in their throat, too little impressions of violet or lavender. No soft blanket (that they knitted for them on their anniversary), no pictures of ghosts (that they helped to photograph with him), no Umbreon hidden in the corner of the room.

[break][break] Most of all, the picture on his desk is missing.

[break][break] The one of them from their childhood in Galar, puckish and bright, is missing.

[break][break]
[break][break]

"Ah. Fern, is it? Welcome."

[break][break]

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[attr="class","oocnotes"] [attr="class","fas fa-book-open"] chapter four

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POSTED ON Jan 22, 2024 1:31:26 GMT

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[attr="class","fern"]

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Peace does not find them in the days and weeks that follow their first disagreement.[break][break]

More arguments rumble in its wake. The constant burgeoning of thunderheads and dark clouds swell above them. If not literally, then in spirit–the frantic buzz of electricity leaves them agitated and on edge the more jayden cross’s father’s influence wraps like thorny vines around the son’s mind.[break][break]

Even worse, his heart.[break][break]

Not even their typical, fond bickering with Tapu Koko can distract Fern from the restless frustration that grows rampant within them. An electrical storm waiting to lash out. And is not for lack of trying. Their patron draws them into petty disagreements, but there is no true malice behind these endeavors.[break][break]

It is as if Tapu Koko hopes that in ruffling Fern up, they will forget their emotional distress in favor of fickle, fleeting things.[break][break]

Its own unrest grows, in turn. And so, they fuel one another’s distrust. Not at one another–for once, they feel in tune with the island deity to a fuller extent. But rather toward the source of Fern’s disdain. The Charlatan’s target is accepted by the god who has grown fond of them.[break][break]

They circle Dmitri in the same way that he circles them. Like two prowling liepard, each waiting for the first, clawed strike. Their fury swells and billows when the memo goes out. They refuse participation, but they are not surprised when their partner agrees.[break][break]

It pains them but more arguments with jayden cross follow.[break][break]

Enough is enough, they decide. This spurs them toward confrontation–anger making them bold. There is no congeniality in their expression as they enter the tarnished office. A space once comfortable and inviting, no longer. Their eyes fix on the empty frame, lip curling in distaste as cold blue eyes lift back to the sharp, bloody red.[break][break]

“You have no right to do this to him,” they say, flatly ignoring the trite greeting that they do not believe is genuine in the least.

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jayden

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POSTED ON Jan 22, 2024 3:44:18 GMT

shiv, freya morningstar, and 1 more like this

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"Do what?"

[break][break] Dmitri feigns innocence, a natural predatory charm seeping through. Luring his prey in with the sweetest of deceptions. He smiles easily as he turns, gesturing with a hand gloved in black leather to the seat across from them.

[break][break] "Please, sit. Your home is my home. Let me pour you a drink."

[break][break] He walks over to the opposite end of the room where he has placed a variety of drinks. He takes one of the bottles, a fine bourbon imported from Sinnoh, and pours it into two empty glasses. He sets one atop the office desk, beneath two coasters.

[break][break] For his own drink, he holds to his lips as he leans against the back end of the table, legs crossed languidly.

[break][break] "Now, tell me. What did you want to discuss?"

[break][break]

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fern delaney[break]
[attr="class","fas fa-book-open"] CHAPTER FOUR

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harper beck

they/he

twenty-eight

august 11

stow-on-side, galar

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forger

rocket admin

6'0 (it's 5'8) height

long black tulips, born in your blue tints. lemongrass eyelids, smoke in your slick lips.

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POSTED ON Jan 22, 2024 5:00:16 GMT

shiv and freya morningstar like this

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Fern doesn’t fall for the false ignorance. Of course they don’t, when they know how to pull the same sort of trick. Have used the same smiles and beguiling words.[break][break]

“You know you’re manipulating him. Don’t play coy.”[break][break]

Their words clipped, crackling like lightning that wants to build in the palms of their hands. Silently, they refuse the seat. Instead, Fern remains standing, posture taut as their arms fold tight and defensive across their chest.[break][break]

“No drink,” they shake their head, unsmiling, “we both know we’re past the point of pleasantry.” He will not charm them like he has so many others.[break][break]

Their eyes flit to the drink, and they resist the urge to knock it off the desk. Send the expensive liquor spilling out as the glass shatters. Even that is not enough to encapsulate their anger.[break][break]

But of course Dmitri remains placid. “Leave Jayden alone. Haven’t you done enough?” Simple as that.

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jayden

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POSTED ON Jan 22, 2024 5:08:03 GMT

shiv, freya morningstar, and 1 more like this

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Ah.

[break][break] So it was true. His little jay bird had chosen a clever one, one that was far more clever than his son had ever been. But still, he liked to play. His lip curled into a smile, as if seeming to enjoy the exchange, as if it was pleasing to his eye to see the other to be vexed in such a way.

[break][break] "Am I?" he asked, bemused, as he took another sip of his drink. "I don't believe so. Do you really think an Admin of Rocket and Avatar could be manipulated in such way?" He shakes his head, voice slightly chiding. "Honestly, what is it that they are teaching you children these days?"

[break][break] Sinister eyes gleam, the reflection of a bone-white smile behind a sea of endless red. A warning.

[break][break] "I could call it treason. The words you're saying."

[break][break] His voice lowers dangerously, dipping into shadow, as he places his glass onto the table behind him.

[break][break] "I would be careful, duck. You wouldn't want to anger the wrong people."

[break]

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fern delaney[break]
[attr="class","fas fa-book-open"] CHAPTER FOUR

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MILKY

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harper beck

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twenty-eight

august 11

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forger

rocket admin

6'0 (it's 5'8) height

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POSTED ON Jan 23, 2024 2:01:24 GMT

shiv and freya morningstar like this

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They study him just as carefully. They won’t be fooled by him–not now, after they’ve chosen their proverbial hill to die on.[break][break]

“I think you know full well what he was hoping for from you, and that you have exploited for your own endgames.” They dance around his insinuations–keep it about what he is doing, rather than the claimed insufficiencies that he is suggesting Fern believes of Jayden.[break][break]

It is not about that. It is about what Dmitri is doing. “I am not a child,” they say steadily. Dismissive of the condescension that he speaks to them with.[break][break]

“Oh, but it isn’t treason,” they counter. “You’ve simply had your fill poisoning the water supply this whole time. Not everyone is so fooled by your conniving behavior.”[break][break]

He is the treasonous one. They are the one that is really looking out for their own. For Rocket.[break][break]

And that is no small thing for the likes of Fern Delaney, who has believed the safety of their own person to be pinnacle.[break][break]

Fern’s eyes narrow, “Are you threatening me? Who is also an admin of Rocket? Now who’s speaking of treasonous behavior?” Electricity collects in their hand, hidden behind the lip of the desk’s edge.

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jayden

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december 25

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POSTED ON Jan 23, 2024 19:45:07 GMT

shiv, freya morningstar, and 1 more like this

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[attr="class","textbody"]

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The devil's face does not change. It merely observes, amused, as humans make their own musings.

[break][break] It is such an entertaining thing, to watch lesser creatures, wrap themselves in their own vines. As if they don't realize the very trap that they are making.

[break][break] "Ah? So am I to understand, fern delaney, you know what my "ends" are? Pray tell."

[break][break] Despite the heat and anger that radiates undeniably off the other, Dmitri remains steady and sure. His eyes never waver, drowning the other man in seas of endless red.

[break][break] The idea that he is threatening them though does make him arch a brow.

[break][break] "Threatening you? I would never dare," he says, sounding a little aghast at the prospect. "As you said, you are an admin. Unlike you, I know my place."

[break][break] He smiles congenially then, lips carved into the shape of a crescent moon.

[break][break] "Consider this just a piece of advice from a caring father. After all, there's nothing I want more than my son's continued happiness."

[break][break] He straightens then, and the shadows pull with him. It is uncanny the way that Dmitri cares himself, exuding malevolence and confidence in a simple gesture. The lights in the room flicker into dark and then the sight of another man enters the room. Brilliant white hair and scarlet red eyes, and an undeniably arrogant face that fern delaney would understand so well.

[break][break] Alexei.

[break][break] Dmitri saunters forward, boney fingers curling around the curve of Fern's shoulder. He leans forward, lowering his breath to the other's ear.

[break][break] "And admin or not, you will never be enough. My son will always believe me over you."

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fern delaney[break]
[attr="class","fas fa-book-open"] CHAPTER FOUR

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MILKY

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harper beck

they/he

twenty-eight

august 11

stow-on-side, galar

pansexual

forger

rocket admin

6'0 (it's 5'8) height

long black tulips, born in your blue tints. lemongrass eyelids, smoke in your slick lips.

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