@ccxenvy

sleepless nights have been an issue for a long while. ricky couldn’t exactly explain the reason why he isn’t able to sleep well to his brothers because he knew that if he did, problems would ensue. so rather than letting the both of them know why he can’t get the peace that he wants, he stays silent and lets them worry over why he hasn’t been getting the amount that he should’ve gotten. 

it’s strange, really. after going back with the help of the restoration card, ricky thought the slepless nights would end. that all his nightmares about the apocalypse would disappear because he was back in this life now along with everyone else. but instead, he’s taken back to the time when he was happier and while those moments are sweet, he’s taken back to the horrifying event that follows them afterwards. 

it’s better to stay awake rather than see a whole horror movie the moment he closes his eyes. that way, he could remember he wasn’t there anymore. he was in this world. he was living with danny, vinny, and soonshim, who were all alive this time and he hopes they keep staying that way. 

but even if he couldn’t find a way to tell his brothers, he was able to help himself somehow (at least, he was sure that he was helping himself). even if he’s changed a lot as a person, some habits never die. he still does venture out into the world whenever he needed to breathe. with quiet steps to make sure that no one in the house knew that he was awake, he slides out of the apartment as silently as he could before he makes his way outside to the city. ricky never went out to the city often at nighttime, but he does know it’s calmer than in the morning time (especially since it’s not a chore with soonshim). 

he eventually finds himself at place that holds many memories for him and a certain past. as he sits on one particular bench, he thinks of the memories that have molded themselves into his character today. from how he met aku, basil’s confession, and finally a dream where he was able to move on, it’s sad to say that this park was one of the places that didn’t hold a burden in his heart. compared to the city that now looks more alive and new compared to what it looked like during the apocalypse. 

@ccxenvy

Minki needed a drink. Badly. 

This really isn’t Minki’s scene at all, though. He would rather not be inside a bar filled with intoxicated, pathetic humans, drinking their lives and futures away, but the emptiness of his wine cabinet is really testing his patience right now. 

There are visions he doesn’t understand—strangers fill his mind, various events paint the walls of his brain; too many all at once. Tonight was not a good night and Minki would rather take the “human way out”, using alcohol to blur his mind and, hopefully, get some decent sleep without visions flooding his dreams within the next few hours. 

@ccxenvy​

For once, Aelius felt…okay. More than okay, if he had to be honest; he felt great. Things were great.

With every step, the backs of their hands brushed and Aelius tried very hard to hide his smile. It was a warm day; the sun smiled down at the two of them as they met up, at an early supper, and walked down the shop lined streets. It felt like the sun gave them her blessing, wishing  happiness for the two of them.

Aelius looked down at Envy, his sea green hair casting shadows along his eyes, and Aelius quietly reached out to lace their fingers together.

They might have met by coincidence, but there was no such thing as that, was there? There was only fate, the strings twisting and tugging along each person, and fate wanted Aelius and Envy to meet. At least, that’s what Aelius chose to believe.

They slowly approached the intersection where they usually separated at the end of their dates, Aelius back to his place and Envy back to his own. Aelius chewed on his bottom lip and wondered if it was too fast, too forward, but. It would be fine, right? It’s been a few months already, right?

Aelius squeezed Envy’s hand instead of letting go and turned to the other, lips pulled back into a shy smile.

(.raises an eyebrow) she kept watching me go through her selection while sipping at least two glasses of wine, if that counts.

@ccxenvy

it’s not every day that hongbin happens upon a rookie hero who just doesn’t know when to quit. most of the ones he’s encountered in these past few years have, at the very least, figured out the appropriate time to call for help, if not the appropriate time to get the fuck out of dodge. 

when hongbin first encountered heroes upon waking up, it hadn’t quite registered what exactly he was facing yet- his memories were too hazy to place which emotion fit to which beings, and so he’d taken the spike in heart rate in stride with little concern for it’s meaning. at least, until the hero had brandished a weapon and struck to kill. 

... and then it came flooding back in bits and pieces, winding him more than the hit the hero had landed.

realizing that he was being pursued not to make the streets safer in case he were being a hazard (he was), but for little more than sport- to be captured and used like some kind of object, was all the confirmation hongbin had needed that his gut wasn’t leading him astray.  it was also the first night the blood on his hands was not that of a monster. it was the night he said goodbye to new beginnings and accepted that this too, was another means to an end.

even now, after so many experiences with both rookie heroes and seasoned heroes alike, things like this still make him take pause. the hero is clearly scared, but there’s something like innocence- naivety, really- alight there too. something hongbin all but aches to snuff out. it’s too pure, too hopeful for someone who’s sold their soul for what they were so foolishly lead to believe was the greater good. 

he’s worn them down tremendously already- their lack of tact has kept him from having to use too much of his own stamina to get them on the ropes. as it is, the creatures he’s summoned have become restless, drooling and prowling back and forth while they wait for bin’s direction. 

as hongbin commands them to attack, karma takes it upon herself to personally flip him off- perhaps with a smile, maybe even a laugh- and a figure intervenes. it takes him a moment to register what exactly has so carelessly smacked his comrade down, but when he does, his heart leaps into his throat. 

this is a rookie hero you’re targeting. the words are little more than a hiss, dripping with what hongbin can only interpret as anger, disbelief even. it doesn’t make sense. the creature he sees before him is one he would know anywhere- in spite of it’s rather non-unique appearance, the feeling he gets is so painfully familiar it carries a sense of longing with it. and rightfully so, given how long he’d been friends with envy prior to being sealed. they were like partners in crime- untouchable, unstoppable.