The Fate Of Ashur, He Who Dared To Slay His Flesh

#24

Daniel never smoked, so when Jay found him on the rooftop of their school, eyes dazed and unfocused, a lit cigarette hanging sinfully from his partially open lips it gave him pause. He wasn't about to reach out a take it, he himself having been a smoker knew full well that if his beloved needed it the situation had to be dire. Instead, the blonde sat down next to him, leaning on the metal fence, his eyes transfixed on the thin string of milky smoke slipping through his darling's lips.

"I'm tired, Jay." his husky voice brought him out of his reverie, sending pleasurable shivers down his back. He didn't know why his heart stirred guiltily at those words.

Wordlessly, he wrapped his arm around the boy's shoulders, bringing him into a sideways hug. Daniel laid his head on his shoulder, the motion coming naturally to him as if he had done it a billion times before. A twinge of jealousy flashed through his soul, but it was quickly overpowered by his growing worry as the body next to him began to shake ever-so-slightly.

"I wish it would just end already..." Daniel choked out "I've done this so many times...yet it's never enough...no matter what I do...I'm never enough!" at that point his voice had shifted into a kind of desperate shout that rattled Jay to his bones and had him gripping at the weeping boy with both his arms as tight as nature allowed it. And Danny, poor, sweet, exhausted Danny clung to him like a lifeline, tears flowing so prettily out of his big doe eyes. He wished with all his heart that he could just take his pain away, that he could make everything better, even if he didn't know what was wrong.

He just wanted to help, but he didn't know how, so he hugged the boy who had stolen his heart and rocked them both slowly until his sobs subsided into soft whimpers. Throughout the whole ordeal, he hadn't dared to look at the brunette's face out of fear that he would break alongside him and cause him further pain. Only once his breaths had begun coming out in an even and soft patter did he dare to bring a hand to the boy's chin and lift it up slightly.

Asleep Daniel looked more angelic than ever. A soft blush covered his cheeks, which were diligently rubbed clean of any tear tracks by the besotted blonde. His hair fell around his face and seemed to almost glow a slight blue under the sun. Jay trailed a curling lock to his slender neck and sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of the smooth milky skin, his ears burning a bright crimson. Shaking away his impure thoughts he brought his dearest back to his chest, slowly as not to wake him, and began drawing circles on his back with his fingers, hoping to soothe the beauty's sleep.

His eyes fell on the abandoned cigarette, which had fallen on the ground when he had pulled Danny into his arms. It still smoldered, slowly, like a dying animal still gasping for air. His mind became clouded with the image of Daniel's lips around it, drawing in the smoke and allowing whisps of it to float freely out of his delectable mouth. Jay frowned and ever so slowly reached over and extinguished it under his foot. A twisted smile made its way onto his face as he pressed down further.

Daniel stirred in his arms and in a flash, he returned to cradling him tenderly, as if the previous scene had never happened. He took in the boy's minty scent, with small traces of smoke and copper, like a drowning man inhaling his last breath of air. Like everything else about his love, he found the smell utterly intoxicating. He wished he would never have to let him out of his arms. Unfortunately, his Danny was a free spirit. He could break his wings and cage him, yes, but that way he would not have him, but a mere husk, a shell of his beautiful flamboyant self. Jay didn't want that, he never wanted Daniel any other way than how he was by his nature and found it appalling to even try to change or mold him into something else.

With that thought in mind, he inhaled the boy's scent once more before the corners of his mouth turned downwards, showing his displeasure as the world around them crumbled and time flowed backward once more.

That detestable entity would not let him have even a moment of peace and quiet with his beloved, would they?!

No matter, he would just have to try again,

and again,

and again...

Danny: Due to personal reasons, I will be fucking sinking to the bottom of the ocean in a large metal box. Zack: Did Jay say 'I love you' and you said 'Thanks'? Danny: THE REASONS ARE PERSONAL–

#12 Jace be like

Danny: What does a winner do when life gives them lemons? Vasco: Um, make lemonade? Danny: No, they squeeze them right back into life’s eyes!

Sinu: Violence isn't the answer. Sammy: You’re right. Sinu: sighs in relief Sammy: Violence is the question. Sinu: What? Sammy, bolting away: And the answer is yes. Sinu, running after her: NO-

Vasco: Who thinks I can fit 15 marshmallows in my mouth? Zack: You're a hazard to society Danny: And a coward. DO TWENTY.

With Danny being on loop for thousand of times already wouldn't he also have genderbend of him-self? I wonder what changes in everyone perspective. Especially gun since that guy is a pervert as Goo says.

Maybe she could make this work?

Being a woman was hard. Being an attractive woman was a nightmare, plain and simple. Simply put, being looped into a female body was a lesson in many things, including but not limited to patience, tolerance, humility, and the sheer ability to put up with so much bullshit on a daily basis that it made Danny want to pull her hair out of her skull strand by strand.

To begin with, everyone seemed to suddenly view him as an unowned object, ready for the taking. That was usually resolved with a couple broken bones and broken egos, though some people took more convincing to finally get the message.

Patience. Cross.

Then came the pain. And blood. Oh, god, so much blood! And the pain could be utterly unbearable, leaving him curled on the floor just prying for it to go away. He knew what periods were, of course, but no one had ever told him they could get this bad!

Tolerance. Cross.

Society as a whole apparently expected him to act as if she was less of everything they had applauded him for being. They saw her achievements as boasting or cheating, yet jeered whenever she would get lower than they expected. Nothing she did was ever good enough, but she wasn't allowed to do better. Danny was no stranger to the bigotry of men, but its hist had never resonated in him quite how they did then.

Humility. Cross.

When the assumptions and expectations came she just decided to call it quits. Fuck the world!

Ability to deal with bullshit on a daily basis. Cross.

-------------------------------

In an attempt to regain some semblance of control over her life, Danny decided to stock as closely as possible to the original timeline of events. It didn't work.

For one, Jay seemed to be actively avoiding her. She could understand that, but it didn't mean it hurt any less. At least he still remained friendly with her, if a bit shyer than before.

Zack was another problem. He had annoyed her enough to make her fight him during the second day, but the outcome had been much more different. The boxer was defeated by a girl in front of the whole school, wounding his pride, but since then he had taken to trying to embarrass her in a twisted attempt at payback. It wasn't pretty, but she knew that with enough time he would grow more mature, as he always did, and perhaps there would be hope for e reconciliation.

Similarly to her two classmates, many of her usual friends acted rather oddly in her presence or didn't interact with her at all. The exception to this was, surprisingly, the two troublemakers from the Vocal Department.

Danny had no idea how she did it, but she has somehow gotten adopted into their little clique and they stuck to her like glue ever since, even going as far as leaving Duke alone when she asked them. Their silly antics were a balm to the ache in her soul that had come with losing the chance to bond with the people that she held dear in the same way she always did. That wasn't a problem, the fighting prodigy told herself, she would just have to find new ways to bond with them. For now, she was content with the two friends she had, however odd their friendship might've been. She might be able to make this work.

"HUH? That's stupid!" Vin Jin said a bit louder than he had to, secretly trying to wake his black-haired friend from whatever trance she was in.

"You just can't figure out how great it is because you're a moron!" Mary retorted, gripping the girl's elbow. "Isn't that right Danny?"

That got her to snap out of her thoughts and look up at the bickering pair. She gave them a clueless smile and nod, unaware of them sighing in relief as she once again joined in on the conversation. She had the habit of getting lost in thought every once in a while and they worried about how vulnerable it left her. That's why they could never leave her side. Even now, they could feel the hungry gazes coming from all over the cafeteria, aimed at the beautiful transfer girl. She may be strong enough to fight them off, but that didn't stop those freaky perverts from thinking all sorts of creepy shit about her.

Mary and Vin held a silent conversation between them as the girl ate, cluelessly. These trance-like episodes had become more frequent in the past week and they needed to find a way to put a stop to them. The School Festival was coming up, which is when the two convened to put their plan into action.

When Zack was chosen for the Slave Auction Danny could only cringe and give him her best wishes. Usually, when he was chosen for the Auction in previous loops either he would have to spend a hellish date with Lala or Crystal would come save him, then give him the same speech about not judging people based on their looks. This usually ended in one of two ways, he would lose his temper and yell back, leading to Gun pummeling him into the floor, or he would take it quietly before informing Crystal that he couldn't go out with her because he didn't like her, and would, again, end up kissing the pavement, courtesy of her bodyguard overreacting and hitting him (what a shocker!).

The event went as expected, with Crystal buying the boxer and them leaving for the parking lot. Only, this time Danny followed behind them, as did her two best friends. They didn't even bother sneaking around, just followed closely behind, curious to see what would happen.

"Oh, so it's that way, huh" The black-haired beauty muttered under her breath, seeing Zack's expression grow stormier with each passing moment before he erupted into a screaming match with the Choi heiress.

"Who would've thought that cheeky bugger would still have it in him!" Vin mused out loud next to her, entertained.

Mary agreed, unbothered by the growing tension. Before any of them could blink Danny had bolted from her place, skidding to a halt right in front of the screaming boy. A few centimeters from her face she held Gun's ankle in a vise-like grip, her eyes narrowed sharp and unmoving from the bodyguard's face.

Zack stumbled back half a step, swallowing the knot in his throat. I didn't even see that coming, how did she get here so fast?! He recalled how she had easily sent him flying with just one punch. Back then he had dismissed it as a fluke, but what if...

Crystal stared at the pretty girl who had stopped Gun's Brazilian kick in silent horror and a trace of awe. She had noticed the three watching them, but hadn't thought anything of it. They looked like your typical high-school students, possibly even bullies. Now that she looked closer, however, there was a certain air of danger around each and every one of them, though most notably from the tall black-haired girl. A cold droplet of sweat slid down her cheek, she needed to stop this before it got out of hand!

One look at Gun's face told her that it was too late. He was smiling, no, grinning that abnormally large grin of his that only came when he saw someone as a challenge. His glasses had been discarded onto the ground, revealing the demonic-looking black eyes behind them. This wasn't a fight that could be prevented. Frantically, Crystal pulled out her phone and dialed her father, prying that the maniac wouldn't kill the girl until then.

"Yes, Crystal?" Charles' voice held a note of annoyance to it that, were she not panicking, she would've hesitated before.

"It's Gun" she relayed into the phone panicky "he's gotten into a fight with some girl! He's got that crazy grin of his and he's taken off his glasses-"

A loud thud sounded from behind her and she turned to look, expecting the worst. Crystal froze with her mouth wide open, blinking dumbly at the scene before her. It wasn't the bold girl's body laying bloody and motionless on the concrete. It was Gun's. His shirt was ripped and his hair a mess. His body was a mess of red and able and purple, though by the labored rising and falling of his chest he wasn't dead yet. One of his hands was twisted at an unnatural angle and the other looked very much broken, the bone visibly poking out beneath the skin, near his elbow.

Zack was looking on in a mix of horror and awe, frozen in place by the display of such skill and ruthlessness. She's fast...and deadly, he thought to himself, paling a bit. Meanwhile, Vin and Mary seemed unbothered by the sight and cheered their friend on, the latter holding a phone in her hand and probably filming the ordeal.

"Crystal! CRYSTAL!" Her father's voice snapped her out of it and she was once again able to speak.

"He's down. Out cold. Not dead though." She told him, unable to hide the tremor in her voice. "I didn't even have time to see-"

A shadow loomed over her trembling body and she slowly rose her head. The girl's gaze was detached and cold like she was staring down at a tiny mouse not worth her time. When she spoke her voice sounded like a mix between satisfied and indifferent.

"Take him back."

Crystal could only nod with her eyes tightly shut, feeling this predator's hot breath on her face. She scurried towards the fallen man and dragged him into the car before getting into the driver's seat and spreading out of the parking lot.

"Woohoo! Holy shit!" A pair of arms draped themselves over her shoulders and she found herself sandwiched between two warm bodies.

"That was fucking epic!" Vin praised the shorter girl, while his blonde friend nodded in agreement from the other side.

Danny allowed herself a small smile at the warm feeling that bloomed in her chest. The coldness in her body was washed away by laughter and other such explicit exclamations and praises. Yeah, she could make this work.

Danny: Sorry I’m late, I was doing things. Jay:[in jaynese] Hi, I’m ‘things’.

Throughout Lookism you get these cut-aways where different characters comment upon things happening in the main storyline, and while at first they’re framed as convos between two or more characters, at one point they start to come across more as like a third party interview:

And I just want to know who is interviewing them???? And how do I get that job???

#6

"You are really relaxed for someone who just had all of his blood relations and dear ones threatened with death," Eugene noted, narrowing his eyes at the male lounging over two sets of stairs like a lazy cat.

"You'd be surprised at how often that happens. At this point, it's just routine." Daniel shrugged nonchalantly, popping his neck. "Besides, I'm pretty sure there's nothing you could do to my so-called blood relations anyways."

The air turned frigid, but he didn't give any signs that he cared about having implied that the Worker's president was incompetent.

"Oh really?" Eugene asked with a bit more bite in his voice.

He just got a vaguely affirmative hum in response. However, when Danny noticed that he was waiting for him to elaborate he gave a long-suffering sigh and adjusted himself to sit up on the stairs. everyone leaned in, eager to get even a scrap of information about the elusive and mysterious boy.

"Mom ain't here, dad never was and my brother could mow your ass like grass before you got twenty feet near him"

He had been extra secretive in this loop, so much so that he had actually moved his second body into another house and never used or mentioned it around his friends. For all intents and purposes, this Daniel Park had nothing to do with the shorter one who lived in a nice house on the other side of the city, so he wasn't scared of his lie getting discovered even if he pushed his luck a little bit. At least his lying skills had improved over the loops and now he had, at long last, become worthy of the title of 'professional bulshitter'.

"And does this brother of yours have a name?"

It was pretty obvious to everyone that Eugene was laying it a bit on the thicker side, but Danny was willing to go along with the charade if only to cause more chaos and confusion among the four crews. Thus, he replied with the most innocent smile he could muster, using a voice so flat that no one could tell if he was pulling their leg or actually telling the truth.

"Daniel Park." He let the words stew for a bit, trying to stifle his laughter at their expressions. "Can you believe that our parents couldn't even be bothered to give us two different names?"

Some seemed convinced by his lamenting voice, while others still looked at him with suspicion. Daniel even pulled out his wallet and showed them a pictured of both of his bodies side by side wearing sunglasses and smiling goofily at the camera. And if only one of his bodies was actually unconscious at the time, no one could tell with their matching sunglasses. Then, just to drive the point home he began gushing with Sally about a baby picture of 'his brother' and reminiscing about all the made-up fights they would have.

The meeting left him grinning delightedly and several others preparing to embark on a wild goose chase through Seoul in search of the second Daniel Park and the secret to the taller Daniel's apparent invincibility.

The boy in question was going to eagerly await the day they discovered his smaller body's whereabouts and tried to challenge him. After all, he had a reputation to uphold as taller Daniel's brother~