ansxit

[ansxit]

PART 3 IS UP!!!!!! @desiree-lee @atsumusth1ghs

Like the Ocean

[Katsuki Bakugo x Reader]

a/n} guess who's back with a new chapter B) if you want to be added to the taglist just lmk!!!

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <33)

Prologue, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

- [ Y/n L/n - Quirk: Water, She can manipulate any amount of water through the different states of matter and bend it to her will. She appears to have no limit to how much she can move ]

(Y/n) always wanted to become a hero. She had been training for it ever since she was young. Her quirk sounds simple but can be very dangerous, and when in use it takes constant focus to command it. However, ever since a dangerous incident in her childhood, her quirk hasn't been the same. Despite it all, she remains hopeful that she can grow to be a powerful Pro-Hero. Nothing will stand in her way.

Except, something does.

Someone by the name of Katsuki Bakugo.

-

TW] None

That morning, You awoke especially early.

You wish you could say it was because you woke up incredibly energized, or that you had to do some extra training, or you needed to finish going over the syllabi before the school day officially started or something as regular as that.

The truth was, You woke up early because today it was raining.

You've always loved the rain. Watching thunderstorms during warm summer nights was your favorite activity when you were younger. You and your parents would sit out on the patio and stare into the evening sky, just enjoying the view and experiencing it together. Everytime it storms, you can recall those happy memories.

Part of you also wondered if it was because of your quirk that you loved the rain. Water droplets are easy to control in mass amounts, you had experimented making rain yourself multiple times. But just walking around, letting the water hit your face and just feeling everything around you felt incredible. Obviously you could see and feel the world perfectly fine, but during rainy days it's like your senses become heightened and you could feel the world in an entirely new way. It was an incredible feeling.

You loved the rain.

As you finished buttoning your blazer, you rushed out of your room and grabbed your bag off the floor by the stairs. You paused at the doorway and glanced over to your mom’s empty reclining chair.

‘She’ll probably be sleeping most of today.’ You thought to yourself. ‘More time to train tonight then.’ And with that, you pushed open the door.

The sun was just beginning to rise, although it was hard to tell through the grey clouds. The dreary day couldn't damper your mood though, and you skipped happily along the sidewalk while jumping into the occasional puddles.

As you carried on through your neighborhood, you eventually reached the road that took you into the main part of town, away from the residential houses.

That was where you saw him.

The blond boy, Bakugo, was angrily stomping through the rain not caring for the people who walked past him. He was wearing normal sweats, backpack in hand and the most peculiar thing of them all; He wasn't holding an umbrella.

‘Maybe he forgot one.’ You pondered, crossing the sidewalk to his part of the street. ‘That would explain why he’s mad right now, but then again, it seems like he's always this mad…’ You remembered something interesting your mother had mentioned last night though, about angry people, that is.

~

“That one boy, Bakugo.” You began, and your mother inclined her head towards you. “He said that this other boy, Midoriya, in my class was quirkless, but I’m not too sure. He launched the softball farther than his explosion, his finger was injured pretty bad though. You should've seen his face Mama, Bakugo seemed really upset. They must have a super dramatic past.” You giggled.

“Naiad.” You mother chastised. “Don't go chasing stories from someone you've never spoken to.”

“I dunno Mama.” You rolled your eyes. “He was really violent yesterday, he almost blew off Mina’s face just to get a uniform. I don't want to be talking to someone that angry.”

Your mother leaned over and smacked you on the back of your head. With a yelp you instinctively covered your face and bent towards the floor.

“I raised you better (Y/n).” Your mother tutted. “You better treat your classmates with the kindness they deserve, including the angry boy.” You leaned back up and looked at your mother’s warm face.

“Mama—”

“Naiad, sometimes angry people have a lot going on with little ways of expressing it. Don't be so quick to judge your peers. Why don't you talk to him and be a shoulder to lean on? I'm sure he'd really appreciate it.”

~

A shudder ran down your spine just thinking about it.

‘Mama, he's probably going to kill me if I even talk to him…’

But, against your better judgment, You raised your arm up and yelled out,

“Hey, Bakugo! Wait up!”

…And he didn't turn around.

‘Okay so much for that.’ You could practically hear your mother scolding you for giving up, so you started jogging to catch up to him.

“Excuse me, it's rude to ignore people.” You slowed down as you came up next to him, plastering a smile onto your face. “I’m (Y/n), in case you didn't remember…from yesterday. You kind of threatened me but that’s okay!” You stuck out your hand awkwardly to him.

“I don't care what your name is.” Bakugo spat out, pushing past you. “Leave me alone.”

“Well, I noticed you didn't have an umbrella.” You jogged to the other side of him. “And so, since we’re in the same class I thought I'd be nice and help you out! Especially since you’re… soaked. And it’s raining.” He rolled his eyes and slung his bag over his back, nearly hitting you in the process.

‘Mama give me strength.’ You thought bitterly. ‘This was so easy yesterday with Mina and Tsu, why is he being such a dick?!’ As Bakugo got further away, an idea crossed your mind.

‘Okay, I'll just show him what I mean, then he'll be more inclined to be nice to me since I’ll be helping him out.’

As easy as lifting a finger, you reached out to the water that soaked his clothes and the rain that fell around him, and lifted it high to create a little shield. The water obeyed, and swept into the shape of a dome over his head. Bakugo stopped, quickly feeling around him, his clothes, and then looking up to the sky. His back twitched and he turned to face you, a fire blazing in his red eyes.

“You're welcome.” You smiled, trying to put all of your positive energy into it. “Isn't this so much better?”

“Do your ears not fucking work?! I don't need your help, you damned fish. I'm fine the way I am!” He yelled and walked faster ahead of you, the dome following him.

You thought about dropping the water back onto him and carrying on with your day.

Like really, really, thought about it.

But, like a saving grace you plastered your smile back on and ran back to Bakugo, who was now stopped at a crosswalk sign.

“Okay so we’ve really gotten off the wrong foot.” You began. “I'm sorry that I stepped in like this, I just wanted to help you since we’re, y’know.. classmates. But if you don't want it that's perfectly fine.” Bakugo stopped and begrudgingly faced you.

“Get rid of the dome, and fuck off.” He threatened, staring intently into your eyes. “I don't need to know your name and I don't need your stupid help, so stop following me you bastard.”

‘See mama, I told you so.’ You thought bitterly, but you refused to let your smile drop in front of him.

“Okay! That’s all you had to say!”

‘He could've said that any nicer but I guess that's just impossible for him.’

You reached your hand up high, making a grand show of dissipating the dome over his head. And while you thought about dumping the water straight onto him, you just decided to toss it into the street. The rain immediately latched onto him, spiky hair falling flat and soaking his clothes.

With a smile still on your face, you pushed the opposite crosswalk button and walked to the other side of the road, not bothering to look back at him. Once you finished crossing the street, you let the false smile finally fall.

‘I try to be nice to him and he just ruins my day.’ A spark of rage burned in your chest at your dampening mood and you no longer felt like enjoying the morning rain.

~

The sun was now higher in the sky and you decided it was finally time to walk into the school. While your encounter with Bakugo had left a sour taste in your mouth, you had let off some steam by messing around with the rain. Now, you were revitalized and ready to be at school once again.

“Goodmorning (Y/n)!” Tsu greeted you as you walked through the door. She was sitting at her desk, notebooks already placed on the table.

“Goodmorning, Tsu!” You smiled and took your seat next to her, shoving your bag under your desk. “How has your day been?”

“It was alright, I'm glad I didn't forget my umbrella today, I would've had to take the train instead of walking.”

“Yeah, I get what you mean.” You looked out of the windows to see the gray clouds still rolling overhead. “I wonder when the weather's going to clear up, the report said it was supposed to be sunny today.” Part of you wanted to reach out to the skies and rip the clouds away, pulling the moisture to anywhere but overhead. But you learned a long time ago how dangerous messing with the weather was.

As more of your classmates settled in for the day, you and Tsu continued to idly chat until Mina came in and joined you. She had also gotten caught outside in the rain this morning, on account of getting out of bed a little later than she wanted.

“This is just my luck, I have to run to school in the rain and I’m pretty sure I left my lunch at home.” Mina slumped onto her desk and sighed, the water from her hair dripping onto the floor.

“I might be able to help.” You commented, raising your right arm. “I mean, I can pull the water out of your clothes and hair so that way you're not sopping wet all day.”

“REALLY?!” Mina shot up in her desk. “(Y/N) THAT WOULD BE AMAZING PLEASE HELP ME PLEEEAAASE!!!” You and Tsu giggled at her overreaction, and you raised both of your arms to gently grab the water from Mina. The droplets complied easily, and within five seconds you had collected all of the water. Mina brushed through her hair and patted down her uniform.

“I'm all dry!” Mina exclaimed while twirling in a circle. “That was so amazing and kind of you, thank you so much (Y/n)!!!”

As she continued to thank you, a familiar blond head of hair walked into the room behind her. Bakugo was now wearing his UA uniform, and he looked dry for the most part. Upon seeing Mina’s twirling and gleeful cheers, he glanced over to you and immediately glared down at the water in your hands. With a scoff, he walked right on by and headed to his seat.

“You don't have to keep thanking me, Mina, it was really no trouble at all.” You smiled and swirled the water through the air. Now you just had to get rid of it before class started. Evaporating water was tricker for you to control, it took a lot of frustration to even get water to boil, but you didn't really have anywhere to put the rainwater so…

You thought back to your morning, and how hard you tried to be kind to Bakugo but he only insulted you and blew you off. You could feel the heat rising in your face and the water started shaking where you held it. As you focused on that spark burning in your chest, the water turned to a cloud of air and you were left empty handed. Tsu placed her finger on her chin and looked over to you.

“I get it now, (Y/n), your quirk allows you to manipulate water through the different phases, right?” You looked over to her bashfully, letting the spark fizzle out.

“Yeah that's pretty much it!” You laughed. “Only water though, so water-adjacent stuff like teas and sodas are off of the table.”

“That's still a powerful quirk.” She commented. “Moving water through matter that quick is a versatile skill to have! You'd make a great hero!”

“You as well, Tsu!” You smiled at her and she grinned back.

Just as Mina was about to pipe in, a familiar yellow sleeping bag shuffled into the room.

“Good morning, class.” Mr. Aizawa mumbled from under the fabric. “Today we’ll cover the contents in the syllabus. So go ahead and pull out your notebooks…”

~

The school day had gone by in a blur.

Your English classes with Present Mic were boring, as most of your class wasn't proficient in grammar and sentence structure. Yaoyorozu, however, carried everyone through the period.

During lunch, you had sat with Tsu and Mina, discussing your future classes and enjoying the Lunch Rush food that was provided. To put it simply, nothing special had happened for the entire day.

That is, until your very last class of the day.

“I AM HERE!” A hulking figure sped into the classroom and gave a dramatic pose. “COMING INTO THE ROOM LIKE A HERO!” The familiar sign of golden bunny ears made your heart leap into your throat. As the blue cape fell away, your classmates let out a collective gasp.

“Woah, All-Might’s really a teacher here?”

“He's so awesome! I love UA!!”

“This year’s going to be so cool!!”

“IS THAT HIS SILVER AGE COSTUME?! OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD!!!!”

You could feel your heart pounding as you stared up at your teacher. You were really here. Now. In the flesh. Staring at the very symbol of peace who saved your life all those years ago.

‘I wonder if he remembers me?’

“Welcome students! To the most important class you'll have here at UA High!” He boomed, and gleefully placed his hands on his hips. “This is your standard Hero-101 class! I will be teaching you the basics of being a Pro.” Everyone listened with rapt attention as All-Might scribbled a couple notes on the board.

“The lesson I've prepared will be difficult, young students. Today will be all about combat training! But before we begin, can anyone tell me what one of the most important part of being a hero is?”

Iida shot his hand into the air, nearly throwing himself out of his seat. “Sir, of course the most important part of being a hero is saving people!”

“Correct! Mostly!” All-Might gave a thumbs up. “The key part of being a hero is your appearance! Your costume identifies you to the people, assuring them that they are safe when they see your emblem!” He pushed a button under the desk and the left wall of the classroom rolled out, revealing numbered cases one through twenty-one.

“Now, you all submitted quirk registration forms before the year began, yes? Based on your form, we created costumes from the designs you submitted!” Your classmates gleefully cheered to one another and Mina turned to smile back at you and Tsu, a sparkle in her eyes.

“We’re gettin our costumes!!” She squealed, pumping her first into the air.

“Once you’re suited up, meet me at Training Ground Beta!” All-Might commanded.

“Yes sir!” You all said in unison.

Everyone gleefully stood up and rushed over to the left side of the classroom. However, not wanting to create a repeat of yesterday, you hung back in the back and just decided to wait.

‘I wonder if they made any modifications to my suit?’ You pondered, watching as the people towards the front were gleefully opening their cases. ‘That would be really inconvenient… I made everything on the sheet pretty specific.' As you grabbed your numbered case and left for the changing rooms, curiosity shivered down your spine and when you finally unlatched your case, your heart nearly exploded in excitement.

“(Y/n) is that your costume?” Tsu asked, unfolding a green body suit out of the case.

“Yeah, hopefully everything’s in order."” You laughed nervously Tsu moved to sit on the bench while you started putting on your costume. 

When you were first designing your costume, you wanted to pay homage to your parents’ costumes during their golden days. Your father was on the simple side, combat scuba gear and jets fashioned onto the feet to propel him through water. Your mother, on the other hand, was more flashy and stylistic with her costume choice. So you modeled certain aspects off her costume for the glamor moments. 

The shirt itself was a plain long sleeved shirt, but the spine was elevated and armored, being modeled after the pointed spikes like a lionfish would have. These spikes followed along to your elbows, laying aerodynamically towards your back. The spikes themselves were removable which was useful for battle, however, you'd have to individually retrieve them if you wanted to use them again.

Your pants were relatively simple, baggy and lightweight for you to easily move around in. They had a plethora of pockets to store first-aid capsules and other necessary trinkets for being a pro-hero. But the most important thing about them were the bags.

As you buckled your belt you were left with four empty bobbles in the case. They laid flat and compressed, being squished at the bottom of the case. You walked over to the sinks and began filling each individual capsule until it looked like it couldn't hold water anymore. The point of these was to solve the simple problem your quirk could be useless in. If you weren't close enough to water. But these capsule can eject and contain close to 1 gallon of water each which would be more than enough for you to fight with. Once they were filled, you attached them to the holders on the sides of your thigh and walked over to the mirrors. With that, your costume was complete.

You looked…good.

A sense of confidence rolled through you and you grinned as you twirled around in the mirror. The spikes made you feel threatening, and hearing them rattle as you walked made you feel even more powerful.

“Wow (Y/n)!” Tsu commented behind you. Glancing over your shoulder, you met her kind smile “I don't know why you were so worried, it looks incredible!” 

“Thank you, Tsu! I love your costume, it's very fitting to your quirk!!”

“Yeah I just wanted something that felt like me, plus the goggles are really useful!”

“I’m readyyyy!!” Mina called from around the corner, and stopped upon seeing you. She was wearing a cheetah-print bodysuit which complimented her hair and skin color perfectly. “WOW!!! (Y/n) you look so baddass!! And Tsu ohmygosh you're so adorable I'm going to start crying!!!” She sniffled and placed her hands on her face. “I LOVE BEING AT UA!!” She squealed.

You and Tsu laughed at Mina and ran to her side for a quick group hug. She rubbed her eyes but quickly started fanning her face.

“I'm all good!” She reassured. “Sorry, I'm just so excited!!”

“You should save that energy for the training today.” You joked and started walking towards the door, Tsu and Mina following close behind. “Who knows what All-Might has planned for us out there.”

As you all exited the changing rooms, you spotted a couple of the guys in your class walking ahead further down the hallway. One with spiky red hair, the other with golden blond, and the super tall guy wearing a mask. Mina suddenly started jumping up and down.

“Hey, Kirishima!! Wait up!!” She bounded down the hall to the group of boys. The spiky red hair boy turned around and you recognized him as the boy who defended you yesterday.

‘Oh, his name must be Kirishima. Obviously. I wonder how Mina knows him?’

“We should all walk together! Y’know, as a class!” Mina offered, motioning to you and Tsu as you both approached.

“Yeah that'd be awesome!” Kirishima grinned and held up a fist and looked at your other classmates. “What do you think, guys?”

"I think that's a good idea." The taller boy commented, glancing over at the three of you.

“Yeah sure, I don't see why not.” The golden-blond haired boy spoke up, and rested his hands behind his head. “Just try not to get too awestruck over my hero costume, ladies.” He added with a wink.

You struggled to contain your laugh as you followed at the back end of the group, walking next to Tsu. You soon learned that Kaminari was a major flirt, but he felt relatively harmless the more he chatted while you all walked together. Shoji was more reserved, and didn't comment much the whole walk there. You just assumed that he preferred to watch the group talk.

But by the time you all reached Ground Beta, you were all giggling and cracking jokes with one another. The air felt light and you could feel your face hurting from smiling so much.

‘See Mama,’ You thought. 'I don't have to just be friends with rude people, these people are already perfect.'

-

“WELCOME, NEWBIES!!” All-Might boomed. He grinned at your class, lingering on Midoriya for a split second longer before clearing his throat. You glanced over to the boy, took in his costume, then looked back to All-Might, covering your grin.

'Someone's a fanboy.’ You giggled to yourself.

“Here is your situation, young students,” All-Might began. “The villains have hidden a nuclear missile within the confines of the building. The heroes must stop the villains’ plans by either capturing the missile, or capturing the villains with these bracelets.” He held up a white slap-on stick. “Similarly, the bad-guys will succeed if they manage to protect the weapon, or they capture the heroes instead.”

All-Might then pulled out a small box, decorated in the UA emblem.

“We will pick teams by drawing from lots, however one team will consist of one three of you- so whoever doesn't have a teammate will have to face the opposite side alone.”

“There must be a better way to divide our class!” Iida loudly protested. You looked to your left and saw a robot waving its arms up and down frantically.

‘Oh that's who that is.’ You realized. ‘He looks cool, kind of reminds me of Ingenium.’

“Heroes have to pair up with other agencies on the spot when danger arises.” All-Might lectured. “So by randomly drawing it creates a more realistic event!”

“Ah! Forgive me!” Iida bowed and your teacher just threw a thumbs up to him.

Everyone began drawing their papers from the box, eagerly joining with their teammates. You walked up and stuck your hand inside, rummaging around the papers. When you picked one, it read Team K.

You approached Mina and Tsu who were still looking around the class nervously.

“What'd you guys get?” You asked them.

“I got Team H.” Tsu said, holding out her paper to you.

“I’m Team E.” Mina quickly raised her arm and waved her paper. “IS ANYONE ELSE TEAM E?!?!”

“That would be me, Mon Chéri.” A gentle voice behind you spoke and you nearly jumped out of your skin. A boy with bright blond hair and.. eccentric.. costume dazzled behind you, posing his hands by his face.

“Awesome!!” Mina grinned. “What's your name again?” The boy coughed but quickly recovered.

“I am the dazzling star of this night~ I am…. Yuga Aoyama.”

‘He seems…fun.’ You thought to yourself.

“Excuse me, are you Team H?” A deep voice questioned to your right, and you noticed a boy with a bird-like quirk had approached Tsu. "I am Tokoyami, I also drew an H."

She nodded and gave you a quick goodbye as she walked away with him, probably discussing their quirks.

As both of your friends walked off with their teammate a sudden chill went down your spine and you glanced around the room. Most of your classmates were paired up, leaving you the only one out.

‘Wait...do I not have a partner?!’

[ansxit]

Like the Ocean

[Katsuki Bakugo x Reader]

a/n} guess who's back with a new chapter B) if you want to be added to the taglist just lmk!!!

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <33)

Prologue, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

- [ Y/n L/n - Quirk: Water, She can manipulate any amount of water through the different states of matter and bend it to her will. She appears to have no limit to how much she can move ]

(Y/n) always wanted to become a hero. She had been training for it ever since she was young. Her quirk sounds simple but can be very dangerous, and when in use it takes constant focus to command it. However, ever since a dangerous incident in her childhood, her quirk hasn't been the same. Despite it all, she remains hopeful that she can grow to be a powerful Pro-Hero. Nothing will stand in her way.

Except, something does.

Someone by the name of Katsuki Bakugo.

-

TW] None

That morning, You awoke especially early.

You wish you could say it was because you woke up incredibly energized, or that you had to do some extra training, or you needed to finish going over the syllabi before the school day officially started or something as regular as that.

The truth was, You woke up early because today it was raining.

You've always loved the rain. Watching thunderstorms during warm summer nights was your favorite activity when you were younger. You and your parents would sit out on the patio and stare into the evening sky, just enjoying the view and experiencing it together. Everytime it storms, you can recall those happy memories.

Part of you also wondered if it was because of your quirk that you loved the rain. Water droplets are easy to control in mass amounts, you had experimented making rain yourself multiple times. But just walking around, letting the water hit your face and just feeling everything around you felt incredible. Obviously you could see and feel the world perfectly fine, but during rainy days it's like your senses become heightened and you could feel the world in an entirely new way. It was an incredible feeling.

You loved the rain.

As you finished buttoning your blazer, you rushed out of your room and grabbed your bag off the floor by the stairs. You paused at the doorway and glanced over to your mom’s empty reclining chair.

‘She’ll probably be sleeping most of today.’ You thought to yourself. ‘More time to train tonight then.’ And with that, you pushed open the door.

The sun was just beginning to rise, although it was hard to tell through the grey clouds. The dreary day couldn't damper your mood though, and you skipped happily along the sidewalk while jumping into the occasional puddles.

As you carried on through your neighborhood, you eventually reached the road that took you into the main part of town, away from the residential houses.

That was where you saw him.

The blond boy, Bakugo, was angrily stomping through the rain not caring for the people who walked past him. He was wearing normal sweats, backpack in hand and the most peculiar thing of them all; He wasn't holding an umbrella.

‘Maybe he forgot one.’ You pondered, crossing the sidewalk to his part of the street. ‘That would explain why he’s mad right now, but then again, it seems like he's always this mad…’ You remembered something interesting your mother had mentioned last night though, about angry people, that is.

~

“That one boy, Bakugo.” You began, and your mother inclined her head towards you. “He said that this other boy, Midoriya, in my class was quirkless, but I’m not too sure. He launched the softball farther than his explosion, his finger was injured pretty bad though. You should've seen his face Mama, Bakugo seemed really upset. They must have a super dramatic past.” You giggled.

“Naiad.” You mother chastised. “Don't go chasing stories from someone you've never spoken to.”

“I dunno Mama.” You rolled your eyes. “He was really violent yesterday, he almost blew off Mina’s face just to get a uniform. I don't want to be talking to someone that angry.”

Your mother leaned over and smacked you on the back of your head. With a yelp you instinctively covered your face and bent towards the floor.

“I raised you better (Y/n).” Your mother tutted. “You better treat your classmates with the kindness they deserve, including the angry boy.” You leaned back up and looked at your mother’s warm face.

“Mama—”

“Naiad, sometimes angry people have a lot going on with little ways of expressing it. Don't be so quick to judge your peers. Why don't you talk to him and be a shoulder to lean on? I'm sure he'd really appreciate it.”

~

A shudder ran down your spine just thinking about it.

‘Mama, he's probably going to kill me if I even talk to him…’

But, against your better judgment, You raised your arm up and yelled out,

“Hey, Bakugo! Wait up!”

…And he didn't turn around.

‘Okay so much for that.’ You could practically hear your mother scolding you for giving up, so you started jogging to catch up to him.

“Excuse me, it's rude to ignore people.” You slowed down as you came up next to him, plastering a smile onto your face. “I’m (Y/n), in case you didn't remember…from yesterday. You kind of threatened me but that’s okay!” You stuck out your hand awkwardly to him.

“I don't care what your name is.” Bakugo spat out, pushing past you. “Leave me alone.”

“Well, I noticed you didn't have an umbrella.” You jogged to the other side of him. “And so, since we’re in the same class I thought I'd be nice and help you out! Especially since you’re… soaked. And it’s raining.” He rolled his eyes and slung his bag over his back, nearly hitting you in the process.

‘Mama give me strength.’ You thought bitterly. ‘This was so easy yesterday with Mina and Tsu, why is he being such a dick?!’ As Bakugo got further away, an idea crossed your mind.

‘Okay, I'll just show him what I mean, then he'll be more inclined to be nice to me since I’ll be helping him out.’

As easy as lifting a finger, you reached out to the water that soaked his clothes and the rain that fell around him, and lifted it high to create a little shield. The water obeyed, and swept into the shape of a dome over his head. Bakugo stopped, quickly feeling around him, his clothes, and then looking up to the sky. His back twitched and he turned to face you, a fire blazing in his red eyes.

“You're welcome.” You smiled, trying to put all of your positive energy into it. “Isn't this so much better?”

“Do your ears not fucking work?! I don't need your help, you damned fish. I'm fine the way I am!” He yelled and walked faster ahead of you, the dome following him.

You thought about dropping the water back onto him and carrying on with your day.

Like really, really, thought about it.

But, like a saving grace you plastered your smile back on and ran back to Bakugo, who was now stopped at a crosswalk sign.

“Okay so we’ve really gotten off the wrong foot.” You began. “I'm sorry that I stepped in like this, I just wanted to help you since we’re, y’know.. classmates. But if you don't want it that's perfectly fine.” Bakugo stopped and begrudgingly faced you.

“Get rid of the dome, and fuck off.” He threatened, staring intently into your eyes. “I don't need to know your name and I don't need your stupid help, so stop following me you bastard.”

‘See mama, I told you so.’ You thought bitterly, but you refused to let your smile drop in front of him.

“Okay! That’s all you had to say!”

‘He could've said that any nicer but I guess that's just impossible for him.’

You reached your hand up high, making a grand show of dissipating the dome over his head. And while you thought about dumping the water straight onto him, you just decided to toss it into the street. The rain immediately latched onto him, spiky hair falling flat and soaking his clothes.

With a smile still on your face, you pushed the opposite crosswalk button and walked to the other side of the road, not bothering to look back at him. Once you finished crossing the street, you let the false smile finally fall.

‘I try to be nice to him and he just ruins my day.’ A spark of rage burned in your chest at your dampening mood and you no longer felt like enjoying the morning rain.

~

The sun was now higher in the sky and you decided it was finally time to walk into the school. While your encounter with Bakugo had left a sour taste in your mouth, you had let off some steam by messing around with the rain. Now, you were revitalized and ready to be at school once again.

“Goodmorning (Y/n)!” Tsu greeted you as you walked through the door. She was sitting at her desk, notebooks already placed on the table.

“Goodmorning, Tsu!” You smiled and took your seat next to her, shoving your bag under your desk. “How has your day been?”

“It was alright, I'm glad I didn't forget my umbrella today, I would've had to take the train instead of walking.”

“Yeah, I get what you mean.” You looked out of the windows to see the gray clouds still rolling overhead. “I wonder when the weather's going to clear up, the report said it was supposed to be sunny today.” Part of you wanted to reach out to the skies and rip the clouds away, pulling the moisture to anywhere but overhead. But you learned a long time ago how dangerous messing with the weather was.

As more of your classmates settled in for the day, you and Tsu continued to idly chat until Mina came in and joined you. She had also gotten caught outside in the rain this morning, on account of getting out of bed a little later than she wanted.

“This is just my luck, I have to run to school in the rain and I’m pretty sure I left my lunch at home.” Mina slumped onto her desk and sighed, the water from her hair dripping onto the floor.

“I might be able to help.” You commented, raising your right arm. “I mean, I can pull the water out of your clothes and hair so that way you're not sopping wet all day.”

“REALLY?!” Mina shot up in her desk. “(Y/N) THAT WOULD BE AMAZING PLEASE HELP ME PLEEEAAASE!!!” You and Tsu giggled at her overreaction, and you raised both of your arms to gently grab the water from Mina. The droplets complied easily, and within five seconds you had collected all of the water. Mina brushed through her hair and patted down her uniform.

“I'm all dry!” Mina exclaimed while twirling in a circle. “That was so amazing and kind of you, thank you so much (Y/n)!!!”

As she continued to thank you, a familiar blond head of hair walked into the room behind her. Bakugo was now wearing his UA uniform, and he looked dry for the most part. Upon seeing Mina’s twirling and gleeful cheers, he glanced over to you and immediately glared down at the water in your hands. With a scoff, he walked right on by and headed to his seat.

“You don't have to keep thanking me, Mina, it was really no trouble at all.” You smiled and swirled the water through the air. Now you just had to get rid of it before class started. Evaporating water was tricker for you to control, it took a lot of frustration to even get water to boil, but you didn't really have anywhere to put the rainwater so…

You thought back to your morning, and how hard you tried to be kind to Bakugo but he only insulted you and blew you off. You could feel the heat rising in your face and the water started shaking where you held it. As you focused on that spark burning in your chest, the water turned to a cloud of air and you were left empty handed. Tsu placed her finger on her chin and looked over to you.

“I get it now, (Y/n), your quirk allows you to manipulate water through the different phases, right?” You looked over to her bashfully, letting the spark fizzle out.

“Yeah that's pretty much it!” You laughed. “Only water though, so water-adjacent stuff like teas and sodas are off of the table.”

“That's still a powerful quirk.” She commented. “Moving water through matter that quick is a versatile skill to have! You'd make a great hero!”

“You as well, Tsu!” You smiled at her and she grinned back.

Just as Mina was about to pipe in, a familiar yellow sleeping bag shuffled into the room.

“Good morning, class.” Mr. Aizawa mumbled from under the fabric. “Today we’ll cover the contents in the syllabus. So go ahead and pull out your notebooks…”

~

The school day had gone by in a blur.

Your English classes with Present Mic were boring, as most of your class wasn't proficient in grammar and sentence structure. Yaoyorozu, however, carried everyone through the period.

During lunch, you had sat with Tsu and Mina, discussing your future classes and enjoying the Lunch Rush food that was provided. To put it simply, nothing special had happened for the entire day.

That is, until your very last class of the day.

“I AM HERE!” A hulking figure sped into the classroom and gave a dramatic pose. “COMING INTO THE ROOM LIKE A HERO!” The familiar sign of golden bunny ears made your heart leap into your throat. As the blue cape fell away, your classmates let out a collective gasp.

“Woah, All-Might’s really a teacher here?”

“He's so awesome! I love UA!!”

“This year’s going to be so cool!!”

“IS THAT HIS SILVER AGE COSTUME?! OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD!!!!”

You could feel your heart pounding as you stared up at your teacher. You were really here. Now. In the flesh. Staring at the very symbol of peace who saved your life all those years ago.

‘I wonder if he remembers me?’

“Welcome students! To the most important class you'll have here at UA High!” He boomed, and gleefully placed his hands on his hips. “This is your standard Hero-101 class! I will be teaching you the basics of being a Pro.” Everyone listened with rapt attention as All-Might scribbled a couple notes on the board.

“The lesson I've prepared will be difficult, young students. Today will be all about combat training! But before we begin, can anyone tell me what one of the most important part of being a hero is?”

Iida shot his hand into the air, nearly throwing himself out of his seat. “Sir, of course the most important part of being a hero is saving people!”

“Correct! Mostly!” All-Might gave a thumbs up. “The key part of being a hero is your appearance! Your costume identifies you to the people, assuring them that they are safe when they see your emblem!” He pushed a button under the desk and the left wall of the classroom rolled out, revealing numbered cases one through twenty-one.

“Now, you all submitted quirk registration forms before the year began, yes? Based on your form, we created costumes from the designs you submitted!” Your classmates gleefully cheered to one another and Mina turned to smile back at you and Tsu, a sparkle in her eyes.

“We’re gettin our costumes!!” She squealed, pumping her first into the air.

“Once you’re suited up, meet me at Training Ground Beta!” All-Might commanded.

“Yes sir!” You all said in unison.

Everyone gleefully stood up and rushed over to the left side of the classroom. However, not wanting to create a repeat of yesterday, you hung back in the back and just decided to wait.

‘I wonder if they made any modifications to my suit?’ You pondered, watching as the people towards the front were gleefully opening their cases. ‘That would be really inconvenient… I made everything on the sheet pretty specific.' As you grabbed your numbered case and left for the changing rooms, curiosity shivered down your spine and when you finally unlatched your case, your heart nearly exploded in excitement.

“(Y/n) is that your costume?” Tsu asked, unfolding a green body suit out of the case.

“Yeah, hopefully everything’s in order."” You laughed nervously Tsu moved to sit on the bench while you started putting on your costume. 

When you were first designing your costume, you wanted to pay homage to your parents’ costumes during their golden days. Your father was on the simple side, combat scuba gear and jets fashioned onto the feet to propel him through water. Your mother, on the other hand, was more flashy and stylistic with her costume choice. So you modeled certain aspects off her costume for the glamor moments. 

The shirt itself was a plain long sleeved shirt, but the spine was elevated and armored, being modeled after the pointed spikes like a lionfish would have. These spikes followed along to your elbows, laying aerodynamically towards your back. The spikes themselves were removable which was useful for battle, however, you'd have to individually retrieve them if you wanted to use them again.

Your pants were relatively simple, baggy and lightweight for you to easily move around in. They had a plethora of pockets to store first-aid capsules and other necessary trinkets for being a pro-hero. But the most important thing about them were the bags.

As you buckled your belt you were left with four empty bobbles in the case. They laid flat and compressed, being squished at the bottom of the case. You walked over to the sinks and began filling each individual capsule until it looked like it couldn't hold water anymore. The point of these was to solve the simple problem your quirk could be useless in. If you weren't close enough to water. But these capsule can eject and contain close to 1 gallon of water each which would be more than enough for you to fight with. Once they were filled, you attached them to the holders on the sides of your thigh and walked over to the mirrors. With that, your costume was complete.

You looked…good.

A sense of confidence rolled through you and you grinned as you twirled around in the mirror. The spikes made you feel threatening, and hearing them rattle as you walked made you feel even more powerful.

“Wow (Y/n)!” Tsu commented behind you. Glancing over your shoulder, you met her kind smile “I don't know why you were so worried, it looks incredible!” 

“Thank you, Tsu! I love your costume, it's very fitting to your quirk!!”

“Yeah I just wanted something that felt like me, plus the goggles are really useful!”

“I’m readyyyy!!” Mina called from around the corner, and stopped upon seeing you. She was wearing a cheetah-print bodysuit which complimented her hair and skin color perfectly. “WOW!!! (Y/n) you look so baddass!! And Tsu ohmygosh you're so adorable I'm going to start crying!!!” She sniffled and placed her hands on her face. “I LOVE BEING AT UA!!” She squealed.

You and Tsu laughed at Mina and ran to her side for a quick group hug. She rubbed her eyes but quickly started fanning her face.

“I'm all good!” She reassured. “Sorry, I'm just so excited!!”

“You should save that energy for the training today.” You joked and started walking towards the door, Tsu and Mina following close behind. “Who knows what All-Might has planned for us out there.”

As you all exited the changing rooms, you spotted a couple of the guys in your class walking ahead further down the hallway. One with spiky red hair, the other with golden blond, and the super tall guy wearing a mask. Mina suddenly started jumping up and down.

“Hey, Kirishima!! Wait up!!” She bounded down the hall to the group of boys. The spiky red hair boy turned around and you recognized him as the boy who defended you yesterday.

‘Oh, his name must be Kirishima. Obviously. I wonder how Mina knows him?’

“We should all walk together! Y’know, as a class!” Mina offered, motioning to you and Tsu as you both approached.

“Yeah that'd be awesome!” Kirishima grinned and held up a fist and looked at your other classmates. “What do you think, guys?”

"I think that's a good idea." The taller boy commented, glancing over at the three of you.

“Yeah sure, I don't see why not.” The golden-blond haired boy spoke up, and rested his hands behind his head. “Just try not to get too awestruck over my hero costume, ladies.” He added with a wink.

You struggled to contain your laugh as you followed at the back end of the group, walking next to Tsu. You soon learned that Kaminari was a major flirt, but he felt relatively harmless the more he chatted while you all walked together. Shoji was more reserved, and didn't comment much the whole walk there. You just assumed that he preferred to watch the group talk.

But by the time you all reached Ground Beta, you were all giggling and cracking jokes with one another. The air felt light and you could feel your face hurting from smiling so much.

‘See Mama,’ You thought. 'I don't have to just be friends with rude people, these people are already perfect.'

-

“WELCOME, NEWBIES!!” All-Might boomed. He grinned at your class, lingering on Midoriya for a split second longer before clearing his throat. You glanced over to the boy, took in his costume, then looked back to All-Might, covering your grin.

'Someone's a fanboy.’ You giggled to yourself.

“Here is your situation, young students,” All-Might began. “The villains have hidden a nuclear missile within the confines of the building. The heroes must stop the villains’ plans by either capturing the missile, or capturing the villains with these bracelets.” He held up a white slap-on stick. “Similarly, the bad-guys will succeed if they manage to protect the weapon, or they capture the heroes instead.”

All-Might then pulled out a small box, decorated in the UA emblem.

“We will pick teams by drawing from lots, however one team will consist of one three of you- so whoever doesn't have a teammate will have to face the opposite side alone.”

“There must be a better way to divide our class!” Iida loudly protested. You looked to your left and saw a robot waving its arms up and down frantically.

‘Oh that's who that is.’ You realized. ‘He looks cool, kind of reminds me of Ingenium.’

“Heroes have to pair up with other agencies on the spot when danger arises.” All-Might lectured. “So by randomly drawing it creates a more realistic event!”

“Ah! Forgive me!” Iida bowed and your teacher just threw a thumbs up to him.

Everyone began drawing their papers from the box, eagerly joining with their teammates. You walked up and stuck your hand inside, rummaging around the papers. When you picked one, it read Team K.

You approached Mina and Tsu who were still looking around the class nervously.

“What'd you guys get?” You asked them.

“I got Team H.” Tsu said, holding out her paper to you.

“I’m Team E.” Mina quickly raised her arm and waved her paper. “IS ANYONE ELSE TEAM E?!?!”

“That would be me, Mon Chéri.” A gentle voice behind you spoke and you nearly jumped out of your skin. A boy with bright blond hair and.. eccentric.. costume dazzled behind you, posing his hands by his face.

“Awesome!!” Mina grinned. “What's your name again?” The boy coughed but quickly recovered.

“I am the dazzling star of this night~ I am…. Yuga Aoyama.”

‘He seems…fun.’ You thought to yourself.

“Excuse me, are you Team H?” A deep voice questioned to your right, and you noticed a boy with a bird-like quirk had approached Tsu. "I am Tokoyami, I also drew an H."

She nodded and gave you a quick goodbye as she walked away with him, probably discussing their quirks.

As both of your friends walked off with their teammate a sudden chill went down your spine and you glanced around the room. Most of your classmates were paired up, leaving you the only one out.

‘Wait...do I not have a partner?!’

[ansxit]

Finally got bkdk😭😭 me and my roommate literally went to the store like three separate times to try and find them

[ansxit]

Like the Ocean

[Katsuki Bakugo x Reader]

a/n} sorry for the break!! I got super busy so I had to stop writing for a bit, I hope you guys enjoy!! Regular updates will be coming back

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <33)

Prologue, Part 1, Part 2

- [ Y/n L/n - Quirk: Water, She can manipulate any amount of water through the different states of matter and bend it to her will. She appears to have no limit to how much she can move ]

(Y/n) always wanted to become a hero. She had been training for it ever since she was young. Her quirk sounds simple but can be very dangerous, and when in use it takes constant focus to command it. However, ever since a dangerous incident in her childhood, her quirk hasn't been the same. Despite it all, she remains hopeful that she can grow to be a powerful Pro-Hero. Nothing will stand in her way.

Except, something does.

Someone by the name of Katsuki Bakugo.

-

TW] None

A chill swept through your classmates at Mr. Aizawa's words, contrasting the beating sun.

'Expelled?!' Your mind was racing now. And it seemed like your classmates shared your concerns. As you looked at their faces, you found terror that mirrored your own. Only a few remained calm, and you tried your best to plaster their same energy on your own face. You looked over to Tsu, but her face was unreadable with her current expression. Mina, however, looked like her soul was leaving her body.

"If you start thinking I'm unfair then you should quit before we begin." Mr. Aizawa stated dryly. "The world is full of unfairness. Villains who will do anything to stop you. If you want to go pro, you'll have to fight this unfair world by pushing yourself and going behind your limits."

Despite his uncaring tone, you could sense something deeper in your teacher's meaning. He knew the hardships as a Pro, and he was trying to protect the future heroes from being unprepared. That's when it clicked for you.

'No one's going home,' You realized. 'He's just trying to make us try our best to prove ourselves. God, it seems so obvious now. That's why some of the others were so calm, I should've realized sooner.'

"Bakugo will start us off." Mr. Aizawa stated, gesturing to the starting circle. "Use your quirk to throw the ball, just as long as you stay in the circle."

The tall, angry, blond boy from earlier stepped up. He seemed relaxed, but You could sense the tension radiating off of him. Was he secretly nervous like you were? Just trying to play it cool to the rest of the class? Maybe the violent side from earlier was just the stress of the first day. You subconsciously clenched and unclenched your fist.

'Maybe we're all more alike here than I thought.'

"DIE!" He shouted, propelling his arm forward with a fiery blast. The heat brought a sting to your eyes as you watched the ball explode into the air, before landing close to the tree line in the distance.

'Nevermind, I guess he's just always like that.'

Mr. Aizawa held up a new device, a small screen that blinked 705.2 m. Holding it up to the class, he flashed a grim smile.

"This is what I'm talking about. Now, we'll start with the other fitness tests. You can use your quirks however you see fit to win. Remember, you're fighting to not get expelled."

With those totally inspiring words of encouragement, the trials began. The first test was a quick 50 meter dash. As your classmates began stretching out and a few getting ready to race, you pondered how you could apply your quirk.

'Just my luck.' You groaned as you rolled your shoulders. 'My quirk is only useful if there's water around, I should've submitted a support-item form...' Mina, who had just finished up her race, skipped over to you with a wide grin.

"Did you see my awesome quirk, (Y/n)?" She smiled and danced around. "It's super cute and flashy, huh? Are you super impressed or what?" Her enthusiasm once again started to rub off on you and you smiled back at her.

"You have a very impressive quirk, Mina!" You agreed. "So you used it to skate on the dirt?"

As Mina described the aspects of her quirk, You felt a pull in your veins. it was the same twitch you felt on the ocean nights, feeling the call of the water in your body. Like muscle memory, you twitched your fingers and moved towards the source subconsciously pulling moisture. Beads of water dripped off your head and collected into a thin trail along your arm. Mina, who appeared oblivious, kept gushing about her quirk.

'Thank god it's so hot outside.' You thought with a smile. 'I can turn my sweat into ice to skate like Mina did! No matter how...gross that is.' With a shudder you brushed off your disgust and started to collect more sweat into your palms. There wasn't much, but it was just enough to skate you to a better time than a normal run.

"Todoroki and (L/n) are next." Mr. Aizawa called, not looking up from his clipboard.

"Good luck (Y/n)!" Mina patted you on the back, walking over to Tsu who was stretching with a brunette girl.

You approached the line and knelt down, keeping the water between your fingers and channeling the cold that you kept in your chest. The robot counted down from five, and you tensed your arms in preparation.

4...3...2...1!

As soon as the alarm went off you slammed the moisture into the dirt, freezing it over to create a sheet of ice to easily slide to the finish line.

However, Your idea was not as original as you originally expected.

The boy next to you, Todoroki, had bent down and, with a single step, propelled himself to the end of the line. Ending up less than a second faster than you.

"4.38 seconds!" The robot beeped, then quickly clocked your time as you passed it. "4.94 seconds!"

Half red, half white hair turned to face you, and You wilted under his intense gaze. His eyes were so cold, and the hatred that burned in them made your throat dry.

"You have an ice quirk?" He asked quietly, you almost didn't hear it over your thundering pulse.

"Uh, something like that.." You had seen him during the recommendation exams, he was one of the two students who had beaten you in the practical exam. Honestly, You were shocked he hadn't noticed you earlier, but he clearly wasn't concerned with the students around him. 'Until now. Until I showed him up..' You realized worriedly. 'My first day and I've got a rival, how thrilling.'  You straightened your shoulders and met his gaze. "So, we have similar quirks! That's pretty cool!"

Your lame attempt at diffusing the tension failed somehow worse than you expected it to. Todoroki stared blankly at you, as if you hadn't said anything at all. But when Todoroki walked away, you swore you heard him mumble, "Something like that."

"(Y/n)!!!" Mina squealed, hopping up and down on Tsu's arm. "That was amazing!! Your quirk is so pretty, I didn't know you could make ice!"

"Oh, it's more complicated than that.." You half-heartedly laughed while reaching in the direction of the ice slabs. If Todoroki wasn't going to take his ice back then why not utilize it? Better than using your sweat all the time.

Feeling out towards the ice, your arm erupted into goosebumps as you broke the slabs down. Crushing your palms together, you breathed out through your mouth sharply, splitting the ice apart and forcing it to return as water.

Your classmates all stared in shock at you as you pushed the water to float in gentle waves around your arms. You couldn't remember the last time you got to show off your quirk like this to people, so you were excited to be receiving so much attention from it.

"So she can move water, big deal." A gruff voice spoke out above the hushed whispers of your classmates. "My quirk is way more powerful than any of yours, and I'll prove it anywhere and any time."

You looked over to see the angry boy from earlier, Bakugo shouldering to the front of the group. While he directed his comment towards everyone, he had his eyes pinned on you.

"Hey there's no reason to get all high and mighty." Mina spoke up, stepping between you and Bakugo. "The whole point of this test is to just do our best, we don't need to be instigating a fight."

"Yeah!" A boy with spiky red hair piped up behind Bakugo. "It's not manly to threaten a lady, yaknow. Besides, we were all having fun!"

"This isn't about having fun." Mr. Aizawa spoke, looking out to the students. "While this violent talk is unnecessary,, you all cannot forget why you're here. You've wasted enough time on this round as is, it's time to move on. No more losing focus."

~

It was now the last fitness test of the day. While you didn't get first in all of the tests, you still scored fairly high in most of them. Ever since the first round, Bakugo had left you alone, and Mina and Tsu stuck close by to you. Your other classmates gave you the occasional question about your quirk but other than that the tests were going peaceful.

Since Bakugo had already completed the test, he stood off to the side of the class, still as tense as earlier and observing his classmates as everyone gave their attempts at the test. You tried not to focus on his piercing gaze at the back of your neck, but you couldn't help but shiver whenever he stared at you.

You yourself had scored 237.4 m, not by any means beating his score but considering your quirk can't power your upper body like how the others can, you thought it was still pretty good.

One by one, your classmates participated in the test. Watching their quirks was enthralling to say the least. Your classmates were all so creative, and a strange feeling of hope warmed your heart while watching them.

'Everyone is so incredible.' A grin split across your face as you watched Uraraka score an infinity with her gravity-defying quirk. 'I'm going to have to work even harder to get ahead of everyone.'

Lastly was the green haired boy who had initially screamed at the door earlier. As he approached the circle, you could see him trembling while staring at the ball. The class tensed and just as he was about to throw it, Mr. Aizawa's scarf shot into the air and the ball landed just a few measly feet away. The boy stared at Mr. Aizawa in shock, who stepped towards him in an intimidating manner.

"Were you planning on breaking your bones again? What use is a quirk if it cripples you after one time?" Your teacher demanded. "You are clearly not ready for this course, you have no control over yourself. Relying on someone to come and save you makes you a liability– You would be a danger to other heroes who are out on the field."

Everyone stood in shock, and You nervously glanced between your classmate and Mr. Aizawa, subconsciously clenching your fists.

"You remind me of another reckless hero, one who saved many people and became our symbol of peace. But you are not him, and with that quirk... you have no hope of being a hero."

'Damn, hit him where it hurts.' You thought.

As the boy pondered your teacher's words, he suddenly reached his arm back and flung the ball forward, launching it far into the tree line. As your class collectively gasped, You looked back to the boy, who was now clutching his bloodied finger.

Mr. Aizawa straightened, and while you couldn't quite hear what the boy had said, the pained grin on his face told you all you needed to know about him.

'He wants to be a hero, like everyone else here and he's willing to do whatever it takes to achieve that dream.'

The blinker lit up; 705.3 m, and the boy let out a shaky sigh.

"You dammed bastard..." The furious voice startled you as Bakugo pushed to the front of the class. "YOU'VE HAD A QUIRK THIS ENTIRE TIME?!"

He lunged forward, looking like he was intending to kill the kid. Just as his hand grabbed towards his face, Mr. Aizawa threw out his scarf, entangling Bakugo and ceasing his rampage.

"I'd advise you not to struggle." Aizawa grumbled. "Extensive use of my quirk gives me dry eye. So stand down."

'What is the deal with these two?' You pondered, staring at Bakugo's shaking frame on the ground. 'What did he mean by that, was the other guy quirkless?'

"That's enough for today." Mr. Aizawa continued, glancing at the rest of the class. "I've ranked your skills from best to worst, although you all should have an idea of where you stand."

You scanned through the board, spotting your name at 7th place.

'I could've done better.' You sighed. 'Mom's probably not going to like that ranking. But there's always another day, at least I'm not in last.' As you scanned down the ranks you saw that the green haired boy landed in 21st. 'Poor Izuku Midoriya, I really hope he doesn't actually get expelled.'

"By the way, that expulsion story was a lie." Mr. Aizawa piped up, capturing the attention of the tearful Midoriya. "I just said that so you would all give it your best effort to gauge your real skills."

"IT WAS A LIE?!?" Mina shouted, pulling at her hair and jumping up and down. You looked over to her,

"Oh I thought you knew, you seemed so unbothered during the tests."

"YOU KNEW (Y/N)???? AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME?!" A girl with her hair in a ponytail looked over to you both, and you recognized her as another student from the recommendation exams.

"I'm sorry, I thought it was obvious." She said, placing a hand on her chest. "I should have said something to you all."

"Yeah you should have." A couple students grumbled in unison.

~

After the physical exams had ended, Mr. Aizawa ended class and everyone was told to pack up and go home.

Once back in the classroom, you packed your bag back together, and walked over to Mina and Tsu who were waiting at the door.

"Ready to go, (Y/n)?" Tsu asked, holding the straps of her backpack.

"Yep!" You replied.

The three of you walked out the front gate together, talking about the physical exams and the extents of your quirks.

"I recognize your last time now!" Mina snapped her fingers. "You're the daughter of the (L/n) family; Pro-heroes Whirlpool and Piranha!" You sheepishly pulled away from Mina, covering your face in your hands.

"Yeah but it's not a big deal, they've been retired for a while so they're not super famous anymore." Tsu gasped and stepped in front of you.

"Not a big deal? They were my idols when I was younger! I've always wanted to match their underwater combat skills!"

"Seriously (Y/n), your parents were amazing! It must be so awesome to have such awesome heroes as your parents." Mina gushed. "Do you guys have, like, a room dedicated to memorabilia? A secret study full of tokens from their battles? Ooh, or like a room full of newspaper articles from their golden years?!"

"Nah nothing crazy like that." You sighed and continued walking. "They've really just put that hero stuff behind them, well except for now I guess. They really want me to put the family name back out there, especially my mom."

"That's so inspiring." Mina sighed dreamily, clasping her hands together. "I can't believe I'm friends with the daughter of two pro-heroes!!"

"Youre really lucky to have them as your parents, they're really amazing heroes!" Tsu smiled. "I can see you're going to be just as great as them, (Y/n)!"

'Friends on the first day,' You thought with a grin. 'Who would've guessed.'

"I'm glad I met you both too!"

~

The sun had since faded into the sea, and you quietly unlocked the door to your home. The lights were off, creating an eerie vibe as you stepped through the house.

You walked quietly up the stairs, gripping onto the railing as you listened carefully for footsteps. When you reached the top, you stared out of the glass that led to the open water.

"Hello, (Y/n)." A voice called to your left, and you slowly turned to face the blank gaze of your mother.

"Hi, Mama," You whispered back, quietly walking over to her armchair.

"Did you have a good day at school?" Her thin arms lifted out to you and you gently took them into your hands.

"I made some friends, but a lot of my classmates are intense. There's this one really loud guy who seems to have an explosion quirk, he was really aggressive to everyone."

"Well, he must be there for a reason. It's nice that you made friends." She lifted her hand to your cheek and smiled. You let her run her fingers along your face and you closed your eyes with a sigh. Saltwater and the smell of a home cooked meal wafted through your nose as you pressed against your mother.

"Did you train at the pool?"

"Yes, Mama," You replied. "The swim team says hello." The lie fell easily past your lips and your mother believed you with a smile.

"That's good my little naiad," Your mother embraced you, crushing you close to her. "I am glad you're staying away from the ocean, you remember how dangerous it can be."

"Yes, Mama." You repeated, staring into the cool darkness of your home. Pictures of child-you and newspaper articles from your parents' many heroic feats stared back at you from behind their glass frames. "I remember."

[ansxit]

Like the Ocean

[Katsuki Bakugo x Reader]

a/n} part one of this series! I hope everyone enjoys <3 please lmk if you want to join a taglist for this series!

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <33)

Prologue, Part 1

- [ Y/n L/n - Quirk: Water, She can manipulate any amount of water through the different states of matter and bend it to her will. She appears to have no limit to how much she can move ]

(Y/n) always wanted to become a hero. She had been training for it ever since she was young. Her quirk sounds simple but can be very dangerous, and when in use it takes constant focus to command it. However, ever since a dangerous incident in her childhood, her quirk hasn't been the same. Despite it all, she remains hopeful that she can grow to be a powerful Pro-Hero. Nothing will stand in her way.

Except, something does.

Someone by the name of Katsuki Bakugo.

-

TW] brief yelling and claustrophobic scenario

~Part 1~

A comically large door stood in front of you, and you almost laughed out of the sheer absurdness of it. In bold red letters the door spelled out “1-A”, with the center of the A being a small window.

‘Man,’ You thought, ‘UA really spares no expense… even on their doors.’

This was it, the moment you had been waiting for your entire life. You had successfully gotten through the recommendation exams and were enrolled in the top Hero Course in the entire world. With your heart pounding in your chest you pushed open the door and found yourself gazing at a sea of students all staring at you. Panic quickly filled your chest as the painful thought seared into your head, ‘Shit. Am I late on the first day?!’

Sweat dripped down your face as you scanned the seats carefully, trying to see if more than one was empty. Relief flooded your veins as you saw a few empty chairs still dotted across the room. 

‘Thank god, that would have been so embarrassing.’ With a small sigh, You quickly gathered yourself, pulling at the straps of your backpack and headed towards the back of the room. Suddenly, a tall man stood in front of you, arms pointed straight up in an up-tight manner. His blue hair was gelled neatly into a comb-over, and his mouth was turned into a thin frown.

“Excuse me,” His voice was full of authority and if it weren't for the uniform, you'd think he was the professor. “You do not sit back here. It is important that we follow the traditional rules of the seating chart that our teacher had made for us.”

“Seating chart” You asked, staring up into his glasses. He nodded firmly and pointed behind you. Embarrassment flooded your body as you slowly turned to find a bunch of names scrawled out on the chalkboard, neatly forming a seating chart of the entire room.

“You sit closer to the front, by the green haired girl Tsuyu Asui.” He pointed towards a small girl who stared with wide eyes at the two of you, before giving a gentle smile.

“Ah, I see…” You glanced around the room and to your horror saw most of the class had observed the whole thing, and a few had begun to whisper silently to each other. You could feel your face heating up and you had no doubt you were turning an embarrassing shade of red.

“It is an easy mistake to make, but do not let it happen again!” He commanded, once more waving his arm up and down. “UA is a very prestigious school, and us students must remain the best of the best!”

“Gotcha… best of the best.” You lowered your head and shuffled over to your correct seat, and quietly set your bag down under your desk. The girl with green hair, Asui kept glancing over at you as you settled in.

“Don't worry about him.” You looked to your right, and saw Asui’s calm smile again. “He’s been correcting everyone so far, so don't think you're alone.” She giggled and you lifted your head slightly.

“That's a relief,” You sighed. “I was already feeling like I came in late so that just really stressed me out. But it's good to know I was just overreacting!” In the background, you could hear someone yelling at the blue haired man for being too noisy and disturbing the rest of the students.

A cheery voice suddenly piped up as the chair in front of Asui’s leaned back, hitting against her table.

“He's so uptight too!” She had pink hair and skin, and startling black irises with orange pupils. “He keeps yelling at me to not lean my chair back, when class hasn't even started yet! It's just soooo unfair!!”

Noticing the blue haired man on the other side of the room stiffen, the girl quickly set her chair back down.

“I'm Mina Ashido! And don't worry about my last name because you can call me Mina!! And I'm like, super totally thrilled to be here!!!” She gave another cheery smile while fist-pumping the air and you could feel your nervousness run dry upon seeing it.

“(Y/n) (L/n), but (Y/n) is fine.” You smiled back at her, then turned to Asui. “That boy said your name is Asui, right?”

“Tsuyu Asui,” She stated, pointing a finger at her chin. “But please, call me Tsu.” 

“You've got it Tsu! That is such an adorbz nickname!” Mina gleefully called and turned back to you. “Hey wait a minute, I swear I've heard your last name before, aren't you-”

Just before she could finish, the door slammed open as a nervous green-haired boy flew into the room, staring at something out in the hallway. With another yelp, a brown haired girl followed in after him. Curiously, everyone stood up out of their chairs to peer out at the scene. To your shock, a large yellow sleeping bag rolled into the room before flinging itself upright.

Everyone stared in quiet shock as the bag unfurled open to reveal… a homeless man? He had incredibly horrible eye bags, and his hair hung in front of his face in knots.

“Good morning, class.” He droned, kicking the bag behind him. “Welcome to UA academy.”

“Hey, wait, I recognize you!” The green-haired boy sputtered out. “You’re EraserHead! The stealth hero!”

The class collectively gasped as a few voiced their agreements, claiming to hear about him on the news after a couple of raids. You personally didn't know much about him, but after a quick assessment you had a feeling he must be pretty strong to be teaching at UA. Although, if he wasn't ranked then maybe there was more to him that you couldn’t know about.

“My name is Shouta Aizawa,” He sighed before moving front and center to the podium. “I am your homeroom teacher here at UA, not for very long though it seems.”

“What do you mean by that?” The boy in front of you asked, tilting his head. “Are you quitting? Or ooh! Are you going out on some top secret hero-missions?!”

“If this class general impressions are much to go off of, I expect that you all will fail after the first day.” Mr. Aizawa’s cold gaze pierced the classroom, and a hush fell over the students. “You all are already so disappointing, and I can tell none of you have what it takes to become heroes.”

You clenched your fists under the desk, trying to not wither under your teacher's intense gaze. You thought back to last night, the fear of inadequacy still lingered in your mind, and you were worried he was reading it straight off of your face.

“However, that doesn't mean there's room to improve. That's the thing with our super-human society now isn't it. Today we are completing a quirk apprehension test to see which of you really deserve to be in my classroom.”

“But sir!” Mina shouted, leaning forward on her desk. “What about orientation? There's supposed to be a big event today!”

“I command my classroom as I see fit.” He scowled. “You can't spend your time on frivolous things if you want to be real heroes. Now put on these uniforms and meet me outside in five minutes.”

As he stepped away from the podium, the chalkboard slid to the side to reveal small cubby's that housed blue uniforms. Mr. Aizawa stepped out of the room, and with only a second to breathe your classmates erupted into pandemonium.

“Fail us on the first day? Can he even do that?!”

“He looked so serious, it was so scary!!”

“Maybe I'm not cut out for this…”

“He said five minutes! We have to hurry!”

With that last statement, everyone ran to the front of the room. You followed suit, desperate to grab and uniform as fast as possible so you could hurry to the grounds. However, everyone had become frantic with Your teacher's declaration. The entire class was piled around the board, pushing and shoving to try and find their tracksuit.

"Hey wait, you took my uniform!"

"No, this one has my number!"

“You damn extras… GET OUT OF MY WAY!”

A large flash of light erupted behind you as a boy with light blond hair shot to the front of the room, and started violently shoving people to the side. 

“Kacchan! You shouldn't use your quirk inside, someone could've gotten seriously hurt!”

“Shut up you damn Deku!” He shouted back. You glanced over, tracksuit in hand just as a hand grabbed your shoulder, shoving you aside.

“Everyone calm down!” The blue haired boy yelled, desperately trying to restore the peace. “If we all go one at a time there won't be an issue in grabbing our uniforms!”

“(Y/n)!” A voice grabbed your attention as you looked out to the Tsu standing at the door, holding a crumpled suit with her…tongue? In a flash it reached out to grab you and yanked you out the door, releasing you just as fast as she captured you.

“Tsu!” You exclaimed, “Thank you! But wait, Mina is still inside!”

“I'm right here!” Her familiar cheerful voice shouted, just as she came running through the front door. “Man, that blond boy is scary!! He almost burned my face off with that fiery quirk of his! He's so violent!!” 

The three of you started running down the hallway towards the back of the school, laughing off the stress as the rest of your class began to catch up. You didn't have a watch to tell you how much time you had left, but you really hoped you would all make it.

‘I really hope he doesn't fail us if we’re late, that would be really unfair.’ A shiver ran down your spine as you pictured having to go home to your parents. After all your training, you refused to let that happen. No, you would go home a victor. Well, in this case, someone who did not fail their very first day of hero school.

Once Mina finished tying her shoes the three of you ran outside to the field, where four other students and your intimidating Teacher stood. Mr. Aizawa held up a stopwatch, and barely glanced up at the three of you. One of the students was that blond boy with the “fiery” quirk, who was sweating but other than that seemed perfectly fine. The others were a bird-like man, a boy with split colored hair, and a girl with her black hair in a ponytail. While the three of you caught your breath, the rest of your classmates showed up, with the green-haired boy running to a stop just as the stopwatch went off.

“I expect better from you all. That’s what I get for having my hopes high.” He sighed again and pocketed the timer. “As I said before, today is your quirk apprehension test. It's exactly what it sounds like.”

As you continued to calm your racing heart, your teacher droned on about how society doesn't test quirks the way they ought to be tested, and that it would now be his job to change that. He explained that this test would be several fitness exams that would give the students a number, much like the normal entrance exam had. Although, a key detail mentioned had caught your attention.

“Whoever has the lowest scoring points at the end of the day,” Mr. Aizawa stated. “Will be expelled.”

[ansxit]

Like the Ocean

[Katsuki Bakugo x Reader]

a/n} to be cringe is to be free and we can thank my roommate for getting me back into bnha

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

Prologue

- [ Y/n L/n - Quirk: Water, She can manipulate any amount of water through the different states of matter and bend it to her will. She appears to have no limit to how much she can move ]

(Y/n) always wanted to become a hero. She had been training for it ever since she was young. Her quirk sounds simple but can be very dangerous, and when in use it takes constant focus to command it. However, ever since a dangerous incident in her childhood, her quirk hasn't been the same. Despite it all, she remains hopeful that she can grow to be a powerful Pro-Hero. Nothing will stand in her way.

Except, something does.

Someone by the name of Katsuki Bakugo.

...

"That's why you'll never beat me, I'm leagues ahead of you."

"Says the boy who's scared of some rain."

-

TW] None

~Prologue~

The crashing waves along the shoreline did little to quell her nerves. The sand shifted underfoot as the girl raised her arms in a lax fashion. She could feel the ocean calling out to her, steadily eating away at the shore that divided them.

(Y/n) waved her wrists in the air, like some kind of bizarre dance. The water responded, eagerly following her movements, drinking in the commands. She could feel the cold settling into her limbs as the ocean reached out to her as they joined together.

Every night was ritualistic; She and the ocean would dance together, her anxiety would melt away as the water carried her, combining their strengths until she gathered a real hold over it. As she felt more confident in the sand, the water rose in front of her, taking shape as she moved. The cold of the night traveled through her arms when she pictured a tundra splitting the water, manipulating the floating water into thin icicles.

They dropped to the sand as she coerced the water, before raising her left arm to pick the ice back up. Icicles were trickier than normal water, her movements had to become frigid rather than fluid in order to properly control the shards around her. Ice didn't conform the way the water did, and trying to control water and ice at the same time was incredibly difficult.

The girl remembered what her parents had taught her when she was young: That water, no matter the phase, bends to her command. She only needs to take charge of it— however the girl begged to disagree.

The truth is that it worked the other way around; The water controlled the girl. It gave her a piece of its power when she was a toddler and she must treat it like it's equal, or else the waves would swallow her whole and she would drown within its grasp. Her only goals could be feigning control as she utilized her gift. Her only concerns were of the ocean that commanded her.

(Y/n) gracefully threw her arms into the air, pulling a giant section of the ocean to move with her and ripping it from the shore. The dark water hovered over her, refracting the moonlight to shine on her face. She bent her legs and swayed her arms, pushing the water through the air before finally launching it up.

She summoned the cold from deep within her chest, letting out a cry as she cupped her hands together, forcing the water into powdery clumps of snow. Snow was hard to summon, not quite water, not quite ice. One of the many inbetweens she had to practice. She had to get better. If she couldn't master her quirk then she had no hope to survive at UA.

As the snow gently fell, she absent mindedly snagged some droplets and swirled them around her. She got in on recommendation, of course, her parents would accept nothing less of her. However, she felt unfit.

She had stormed ahead of the competition at the recommendation exams, scoring third overall. But after hearing about the regular entrance exams, she felt cheated out of proving herself. The others with violent quirks had a better chance to make it in the world; Pro-Hero's may be known for saving people, but their power is what many people fixate on. Besides, there's a big difference between knowing how someone's quirk works and seeing it in action against a villain.

It was so unfair; She had an amazing quirk. She could move the ocean if she wanted to. The depths of it called out to her, she could feel it in her bones. She could freeze around all of Japan, create a never ending storm or rid the clouds completely. She just needed to prove herself, she needed to show them—

With a strangled cry (Y/n) slammed her hands into the sand, crystallizing a wall of ice that sprouted from the shoreline. Its jagged edges shimmered in the moon’s light. Dangerous, deadly.

As she exhaled, her breath fogged against the wall crystallizing as it moved up into the sky. her hands had become buried in the ice, but the cold was little shock to her. Rigorous training had kept her from hypothermia and frostbite, making her quirk easier to control.

Her quirk could be deadly when out of control, especially by the ocean. It was like a match with dynamite. One small reaction could flatten a mountain, or level a town. Hero's don't lose control, hero's don't fail.

The girl summoned her cold once again, picturing the ice melting into nothing. Slowly but surely, it began to evaporate leaving the trace of warmth into the air as it dissipated. The crashing of the waves brought her back to reality.

(Y/n) let out a sigh as she finally let the fatigue settle in. She walked over to a simple stone and looked at her phone, the time reading 23:39. As she stuffed it into her pocket, she began to stretch out, distressing from the power she had built up. Her arms would constantly cramp from overuse of her quirk when she was younger. The only reason she could think was because the water in her body desperately fought to stay in tune with the water she controlled. It was the same numbness after walking off of a treadmill, or standing for the first time in hours. Either way, stretching was the only way to remedy the soreness of the next morning.

Slowly she worked the knots out of her body, stretching each limb appropriately. Her parents probably wouldn't be happy she was staying out so late, especially the night before her first day…

‘Whatever’ She thought, wincing as her joints popped. ‘They're the ones always yelling about how I need to train more. Mom’s always saying I need better control anyways.’

With a final stretch, she raised her arms high and the tide finally receded from her feet, retreating to the usual waters edge. She smiled as little crabs scuttled after the shore, seeking shelter from the exposed air. As the remaining moisture receded into the sand, she pondered the question that beat in her heart and rang through her mind.

Can I still become a hero?

[ansxit]

do you plan on continuing to write the morpheus fics?

Yes! I've taken a mini break (very sorry about that,,, and not that mini of a break lolol) but I never intend to leave the two series' unfinished! BatD is next on my roster to be published (as well as some new content!) So keep an eye out within the next week or so! : D

[ansxit]

PART TWO/ ONE IS HERE !!!!!!!

@thecrazytealady

@boofy1998

@eat-a-pillow

@parker-natasha

@seninjakitey

@intothesoul

@heboottoobig

@bellajg21

Beauty and the Dreaming

[Morpheus x Reader (Beauty and the Beast Au)]

a/n} HOLY COWS THE SUPPORT ON THIS SERIES ALREADY😭😭 you guys are seriously incredible thank you all so much oh my goodness !!!! If you want to be added to the Taglist just lmk!!

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

- The cruel King of Dreams is cursed by a witch, doomed to be a beast forever and to be forgotten by humanity. But what happens when a determined woman finds herself in the abandoned halls, and happens to fall in love with the unlikeliest of people.

TW] Rat bites, arm disfigurement, dissing of the color orange, Matthew slander, Rowan

When you had fallen asleep, you expected to be greeted with the rolling fields of green. You had sweetly imagined the raven’s calling out to you as they led you back to the golden castle. It was there you could dance in the dazzling ballrooms, with wondrous chandeliers illuminating in your presence.

But, no such glittering dreams greeted you. Instead, you were in a small forest clearing, with dead hedges circling the brush. The leaves on the trees closest to the bushes were in sad heaps on the forest floor, but you could see others’ lush greenery just a few yards away. This wasn’t the first time you had a weird dream like these, and you briefly paced- wondering how you could spin a tale out of this to Jed tomorrow morning.

As you kept looking around, you noticed a large marble door hidden between two trees. A mass of prickly-ivies crawled around it, keeping the door well hidden from immediate sight. The carvings in the marble felt familiar to you, and you realized it was the same carvings in the castle you loved to explore. Jubilant whispers emanate from beyond the gate, and you once again checked your surroundings. There was now a path reading out of the clearing and in the distance you could see the twinkling lights of the village.

‘Is this real?’ You thought to yourself, excitement flowing through your veins. You put your hand on the gate and gently pushed. The vines resisted, but with a harder push, they gave way and the gate swung open. A room of black . You gingerly put your hand up to it, but not even a whisper of breeze echoed from the darkness. The energy hummed the closer you got to it, and the familiar feeling of drowsiness lapped at your subconscious. “A dream within a dream.” You laughed aloud, and with one last look at the surroundings of the forest, you charged headfirst into the void.

Then there was nothing. You felt suspended into the pull of the void for what felt like years. No breath left your lungs, your heart didn’t even beat. There was just you in the nothing, and you had to fight the urge to curl up into it. The tiredness you felt before was much stronger now, and the fatigue settled into your bones. Determined to see where it led, you took a small step and—

There was an abrupt temperature change, as the void suddenly became warm and stuffy. The sound of rats squeaking filled your ears, and you quickly opened your eyes. It didn’t do much use, as the room you were in had practically no natural light, other than a singular window with iron bars covering most of the sun’s stare. A curled up figure sat below it, their soft whimpering sound barely heard over the rats. As one of the animals scampered over to them, they let out another cry and moved away, and the little sunlight finally illuminated their features.

“Jed..?” You whispered, already running towards him. His eyes flew open and he scrambled away from you, not recognizing your voice.

“Y/n?” He cried, crumbling into your embrace as you wrapped your arms around him. “I was so scared, I thought it was a dream, but.” He broke into more sobs. You had just seen him barely a few hours ago, but it looked as though he aged for months. His shoulder was slightly disfigured, and he had many little rat bites along all of the exposed skin that you could see.

“Who did this to you?” You whispered, as though anything louder would break him. And you moved his face to look at you. “What’s wrong, where are you?”

“You need to find me,” Jed cried, his hands digging into your nightgown. “Please, the castle is real. He’s real, you need to find me.” Another sob fell out of his mouth and he met your gaze. “Please, He’s- He said he was going to kill me.”

“Who, Jed?” You whispered, your own tears filling your eyes, but you could feel your subconscious pulling away from the dream. “Jed, who did this, I need to know.” His hold on you felt distant, as though you were watching him through someone else’s eyes. His lips moved, but you could no longer hear anything. And just as suddenly as you arrived in the nightmare, you were gone.

-

Your sheets were damp with sweat when you finally awoke. You could still feel the warmth of the room coating your skin, and you ripped the blanket off of you. Adrenaline shot through your veins as you spirited out of the room, frantically avoiding running into the walls and making it to Jed’s room as fast as possible.

‘It had to have been a dream,’ You pleaded mentally. ‘Jed can’t dream, it can’t be real.’

There was shuffling downstairs, and you knew Rose could absolutely hear your desperation as you tried to open the locked door.

“JED?” You shouted, pounding at the door. “This isn’t funny, wake up!” He had never locked his door before, you didn’t even realize it had a lock. His door was always open, to get to you and Rose as fast as possible if necessary. You slammed at the door again, and finally it flew open, smacking against the wall as you ran inside. Your heart stopped beating at what you had seen.

Jed’s room was in perfect condition, not a single speck of dust in sight. His bed was made, something he had never done without influence, and the window was wide open. The morning winds blew lazily through the curtains. A sob escaped your throat, and you fell to the floor on weak knees.

“Y/n!” Rose called. “What the bloody hell is-” She stopped, taking in the sights you had just accustomed yourself to. “Where… Y/n where is Jed.” She grabbed your shoulders and looked into your eyes. She didn’t seem to like the answer she found, because she whipped around and started tearing apart everything he could find. “He was here last night, we put him to bed.” She suddenly ran out into the hallway, her steps creating a symphony with your sobs.

You crawled out after her, tripping on your own feet as you stood on shaky knees. Rose was running in the backyard, checking all of the places Jed could, and logically couldn’t hide. The sun seemed mockingly bright, and you wondered if it was the same sun Jed was seeing now.

“He couldn’t have run off,” She mumbled, and you wondered if she even knew you were beside her. “I know it’s been hard but he wouldn’t just run away from us, right?” Rose ran back to the shed, desperately checking everywhere she could. You remembered the gate from before you had seen Jed, and a heavy weight fell on your chest.

“Rose,” Your voice broke. She turned to you, her own tears falling down her face. “I think I know where he is,” You breathed out, slowly reaching out to grab her hand. “I had… a dream, he was there– It felt real, I can go and find him. I’ll bring him back home.” Your voice broke and she squeezed your hand, pulling you into a tight embrace.

“I can’t lose him again,” She cried, sinking into your shoulder. “Either of you, and I swear-” She inhaled sharply, and pulled away to look you in the eyes. “I need both of you, you're my sister.” Rose sobbed. “We’re a family, you have to come back to me.”

“I will, Rose,” You swore, holding her face with your hands. “I promise.” Your sister pulled away, wiping her face with the sleeves of her shirt. You could see she was trying to stay strong, whether for your sake or her own you weren’t sure.

-

The sun was still high in the sky when you set out to find the gate. Rose had demanded you take hunter’s gear with you, but you didn’t have to worry about protecting yourself. If you followed what you remembered, you could find Jed and make it back home safely.

A nagging thread of doubt echoed in your mind, one that questioned if you had imagined the gate entirely. It threatened to unravel your thoughts as you pushed through the brush, determined to find the decaying trees. The question of the gate's existence would be something to worry about later, for now you were looking for the path. Besides, if you failed, you could try to dream of the clearing again.

You never bothered to lucid dream, you were certain you could, but it was more fun to see what was thrown at you. The stories to tell to Jed were much better when you didn’t know the ending. You briefly stopped from moving away a tree branch.

It was your story telling that put your family into this mess. It was better that you really did stop talking about it to Jed. You gave him ideas when you thought you were giving imagination, and now he was suffering in the dreams he loved to hear about. It was then you made a promise to lock that part of yourself away, if it kept Jed safe from harm, then you would have make it.

As you moved another bush away from your path, you noticed a small first path leading to your right. With a burst of energy, you started to run alongside it, dodging hanging dead branches and vines. You pushed through one final wall of thorny bushes, and you were back in the deserted clearing; But this time, the gate was wide open.

The thrumming energy felt louder this time, and whispers of wrongness tried to lure you away from the door. You shook your body, remembered how desperate Jed had sounded, and ran through the open gate. The trip through the void was faster than in your dreams.As if it was already accustomed to your presence. While you still felt the pull of sleep, you quickly managed to run through the emptiness and emerge into a sunlit area.

You were standing in the familiar hills of the castle garden you explored when you slept. With a sigh of relief, you started heading to the path you’d walked for most of your life. The soft grass below you slowly started to fade into dirt, with some patches barely clinging to the life they held. You stopped when you encountered a lump of snow by the gate; It was always sunny in your dreams, snow was supposed to be a wistful thought in the green hills.

A feeling of dread crept up your spine, as you started to look back at the fields you appeared in. Nothing but dead grass and hedges with empty branches remained where beautiful rose bushes and thriving wildlife once lived. The beginning of tears began pooling in your eyes, and you quickly ran out of the garden. Suddenly the vast world was terrifying; For an infinite plane meant infinite places for him to be held. ‘Oh gods,’ You thought, horrified. ‘Jed, where are you?’

The grand staircase crumbled under your shoes as you ran to the front door of the castle, throwing your shoulder against the marble. Your shoulder exploded in pain, but the stone didn’t budge, and you let out a frustrated cry. With no other options, you began hitting the door with your palms.

“Please!” You cried out, the worry that no one could hear you was nonexistent to you. “Please, my brother is in there! He could be hurt!” A raven with white markings watched you from the railing, its head tilted as though listening to your cries. It flared its wings, and hopped back and forth. “Can you help me?” You whispered. It cawed at you, almost in disbelief, and flew through a cracked window on the side of the castle. Only a few moments later, the large marble doors opened before you.

You quickly ran inside, trying to remember the castle’s layout. Distant sounds of screaming sent shivers down your spine, and lights suddenly illuminated a hallway, one you had never explored before. Even though every aspect of your being demanded you run, you squared your shoulder and followed it. Eventually, the lights had led you to the same dungeon room you had dreamt about.

“Jed?” You whispered, it was hard to see if he was even breathing in the dark cell.

“You found me.” Jed cried, the sound of chains clinking as he moved around. You tried to grab onto him through the iron bars, but he was too far away.

“I’m here,” You sobbed. “I found you, you're safe now, it’s going to be okay.”

“I want to go home.” He whispered, and You took notice his shoulder seemed worse than before, and the bites and scrapes not looking any cleaner. “I miss Rosie, please take me home. Before he comes back.”

“Whose He?” Your voice shook, daring to ask. Whoever this man is would have hell to pay for doing this to your brother. “What did he do to you, Jed?”

“He trespassed into a realm not meant for mortal eyes. And attempted to steal something of mine.” A deep voice circled around you, seeping slowly into your veins and immobilizing your muscles. “Perhaps thievery and invasion run in the family.”

“My brother has been wrongfully imprisoned.” You argued. “He’s just a boy, he’s done nothing wrong!”

“Mortals are not welcome in my realm.” The voice hissed. “I am king here, and my word is law.” Out of the corner of your eye you could see a hulking figure. It was well-above your height, and the way it moved seemed almost animalistic.

“A king should not hide in the shadows.” You accused. “Come into the light, I’m not scared of you.” What sounded like a huff escaped from the darkness, and two glowing eyes illuminated from the nothingness. You let out a breath as it stepped closer to you. Black fur draped across his lithe body, and two dark wings protruded from his back, sweeping against the dusty floor. As you stared into his face, you noticed the long fangs enunciating his glare. He almost looked human-like, and there was a distant feeling of recognition as you stared into his eyes.

“You are not welcome in my kingdom.” He repeated, rising to his full height. You had to lift your head to stay in eye-contact with him. “You will leave, or suffer the same fate.”

“Not without my brother.” You defied, and a burning white rage filled his white eyes. As quick as lightning, his arm lunged out and gripped your forearm with such force you thought he would crack it. You let out a cry in alarm, the pain almost bringing you to your knees.

“You don’t get to make that decision, mortal.” He concluded. “This boy has committed a crime, and he will rot here like others have before him.” Jed let out another sob, and you fearfully glanced over at him.

“I’ll take his place.” You said. “He doesn’t deserve this punishment. Let him go.” The beast paused at this, clearly surprised at your boldness. His grip lessened,

“You would.. take his place.” He stated, glancing at you in such a way you felt as though he were examining your soul. “Even if you never see him again; You would never leave this cell.”

“If he can even have a chance, I’d take it no matter the circumstance.” You thought about your promise to Rose, and shook it off before the tears could form. She can survive without you, soon Jed can help out more and they’ll thrive. They will be okay.

“Then you are foolish.” The gruff in his voice returned, and just before your eyes you were looking at the same scene but this time, you were inside the cell. Jed crumpled to the floor outside of the room, and with no care, the beast picked him up by the wrist.

“He’s hurt,” Your heart tugged as Jed let out a weak whimper. “Please, be careful with him!” Your little brother’s body dragged horribly along the floor, and the creature reached up towards the ceiling to pull a lever. Light flooded the dingy dungeon and you fought the urge to cover your eyes.

“Y/n,” Jed cried. “We’ll find you, I’ll get-” But the door abruptly slammed shut, and darkness coated the room once again. Now, you were alone. In only a day you had lost and found, then lost your brother again, and left your sister. And you weren’t even sure you would ever be able to see them again. Tears welled in your eyes as you sank to the floor, out of anyone you thought your dreaming was a great thing. The stories you concocted were meant to make him happy, distract him from the problems you and Rose faced as adults in the provincial village. But they've caused irrevocable damage, and noe you were imprisoned in the halls you once loved to wander in.

“Excuse me, miss.” A voice intruded from the barred window, “Why are you crying?”

“Oh my gods Matthew you can’t just ask her that.” A female voice this time, added on. You looked up, and to your confusion, saw two ravens perched on the ledge, easily hopping between the bars. “It’s very insensitive, you know. Obviously she's upset.” You saw the familiar gleam of white feathers and you gasped.

“It’s you!” You exclaimed. “From outside, you let me in. But, how can you talk?” The other raven scoffed as the girl raven hopped down to the floor.

“There’s many things you don’t yet understand.” She concluded, tilting her head to stare at you with her intelligent eyes. “But you won’t learn much from inside this dingy place, come!” She flapped her wings and walked through the gate that trapped you.

“I thought the…” You hesitated on the word, “king, said that I would rot here. For all eternity.” The raven, Matthew? on the ledge cawed strangely, and you had the feeling he was laughing.

“His highness? Oh please, that mopey thing growls more empty threats out of his maw than-” The raven by your feet crooed in warning, and he shook out his feathers. “Er- What I mean is, he changed his mind! Hooray!” Matthew flew down, over to where you had seen your brother get ripped away from you. New tears began to form in your eyes and you couldn’t help but sniffle.

“Now you’ve done it.” The other raven rolled her eyes and flew up onto your shoulder. “There, there, mortal. It will be okay.” Matthew cawed in audacity and flapped his wings.

“What did I do?” He shrieked. “Did she want to stay down here with the rats? Sorry I don’t remember how to comfort mortals, Jessamy, considering it's been a long dAMN TIME SINCE I’VE-” He broke out in a series of caws and stamped angrily on the ground. Jessamy sighed and rubbed her head sympathetically against your neck.

“I’m sorry miss, it’s been a while since we’ve had guests. But since my associate is a feather-brain, I must do everything myself.” Jessamy flew over to the side of the wall and pecked at it for a few moments, the bars that caged you swung open, and you quickly stepped outside. You ran to the lever and yanked on it, another door opening and bringing light to the dungeon once again.

“You're very clever.” Jessamy complimented, flying ahead as the three of you exited the room. “And I’m sorry about your brother, Miss. We tried to help him but…” She glanced back at you and quieted upon seeing your expression.

“He can be safe now,” You sighed, wrapping your arms around yourself. “As long as he gets back home, I’ll be okay here.”

“Well this can be your home now!” Matthew crowed, flapping up to sit on your shoulder. “The whole castle is yours to explore.” Jessamy cawed and stood on the top step.

“Except, the west wing, Miss.” She glared at Matthew who squawked and joined her on the floor.

“Right! But Your room will be in the east wing and we’ll be here at your immediate disposal so no need to bother going to the old west wing. In fact I think we should pretend it doesn’t exist, I will inform Lucienne immediately that there will be no talk of a west wing…” He rambled on, and the two birds led you towards a far side of the castle you hadn’t explored in a while. You didn’t have the heart to tell them you had been here many times before, but also things had obviously changed, you were not entirely sure the castle was the same as when you had dreamt.

In your dreams, the west wing was just another hall of bedrooms, nothing dangerous. But considering you weren’t aware of a whole dungeon beneath the castle, you had the feeling you didn’t know everything just yet. You also weren’t aware of the giant fucking monstrous beast living in the castle as well, so maybe it was best if you let the birds lead you for now. You would just have to wait for them to leave you alone until you could try to escape.

The three of you were walking down a dusty hallway when Jessamy walked into one of the open rooms and flapped her wings.

“Here you are Miss, welcome to your new room!” Other than the buildup of dust, the room was actually very lovely. You assumed it was once used as a suite for the richer guests of the palace, with the gilded decorations hanging from the chandelier and incorporated all throughout the room. “Please forgive the dust, I’ll have the canaries come and clean it for you in just a moment.” Matthew flew up to a wardrobe adjacent to the bed and squawked loudly.

“Madam Constantine!” He called. “Wake up you old witch!” You were about to question what he was doing when the wardrobe suddenly came to life; The doors opened and shut, and the curtains inside the vanity moved in a circular motion. A strange sound came from it, and you realized she was yawning.

“Speak to me like that again, bird-brain, and I’ll make sure your feathers end up in my next fashion statement. Perhaps I’ll tell the king we’re having bird for dinner.” Matthew crowed and flew away from her.

“Please be civil, you two.” Jessamy sighed from the post. “We do have a guest.” Constantine’s drawers rapidly open and shut and two decorative handles reached out to grab your face.

“Oh what pretty eyes!” She exclaimed. “You hold yourself strong, this is good, you will be a perfect model for me.” Fabrics flew out in an array of colors as You stood awkwardly in front of her. “Orange isn’t popular again is it? Oh Sandy hated it when Corinthian convinced the staff to wear orange, absolutely dreadful I tell you. Lucienne was so mad when she realized what he had done.” Constantine let out a boisterous laugh and Matthew chuckled from behind you.

“I remember that!” He cawed. “It was strictly black uniforms after that, although no need to tell me twice. I believe it suits us quite well.” He wiggled his feathers and you couldn’t help but laugh a little with him.

“Your feathers are lovely.” You complimented, and a sliver of happiness entered your heart as the birds preened in delight. Another roll of fabric tumbled out of her drawers as Costantine held them up next to your face, turning you back towards her to check what matched and what didn’t.

“How about this!” She exclaimed, and pulled out a giant rococo styled dress that had far too many ruffles and bows for your liking. It was a glittering black and had white feathers adorned along the underside of the dress. Matthew let out a strangled caw and you turned to see Jessamy beating him with her wings. She gave as close as she could to a smile at you.

“Well it looks just perfect.” She rushed out. “We should be off now, I hope you find your room to your liking. The canaries should arrive soon to clean the dust away.” The birds flew away, and you could hear Matthew’s caws of laughter echo down the hallway.

“Ungrateful birds. They don’t realize what it takes to be fashionable nowadays.” She sighed, and gave you a long look. “Something ails you, and you should talk about it now or else it will eat you alive.”

“They intended to leave my brother to rot here.” You spat, but immediately regretted it. The birds had been kind to you, and while you didn’t fully trust them, you knew they’ve done nothing but treat you with kindness thus far. “A child can rot in prison but I am allowed to wander the halls and have a suite? I’m sorry, but I just don’t understand the thought process here."

“That is because, well, birds do not think.” A new voice shouted down the long hallway. You turned around to see a candle walk in the room. Well you had already spoken to talking ravens and a wardrobe, what else could possibly happen in this castle. “Hello Madam Witch, Madam…?”

“Y/n.” You answered him.

“A beautiful name for a beautiful lady!” He shouted, a wave of white canaries flew into the room behind him. As they cleaned up the dust that lingered in the room, the candle walked over to you. “You will have to forgive my intrusion; I am Hob Gadling, at your service.” He bowed low to the ground, the flames on his head and arms nearly scorching the floor. “And for the ravens, I offer my apologies in their stead, we have not dealt with mortals in a long time.”

“What do you mean by that?” You looked to Constantine, but she immediately closed her drawers and drew her curtains. Hob gave a sheepish look but did not answer you.

“Sadly, I am not here to answer that question," His metallic mouth quirked your into a smile. "However I will ask: What are you hungry for?” His candles flickered with the hum of the canaries.

“I'm not hungry.” In that exact moment, your stomach decided to betray you and rumbled ferociously. You shuffled on your feet and looked away from him.

“I shall tell the kitchen to surprise you, then.” He grinned. He raised one of his candles to his lips and whistled, and the canaries in the room cleared out. “I hope it will be to your satisfaction, Miss Y/n.”

-

The journey back to the waking realm was startling to say the least. Jed stumbled back into town, his shoulder hurting with a pain he had never faced before. His hands trembled as he held himself, trying to find the path back to his house; With luck though, he managed to fall into a familiar face.

“Rowan?” He reached out to grab the huntsman’s sleeves. Rowan gave him a scalding look and shook him off.

“What do you think you’re doing?” He hissed, looking him up and down. “You look like hell, kid. Where’s Y/n, or… Rose.”

“Y/n is in danger,” Jed cried, reaching out for him again. This seemed to get Rowan’s attention, and his eyes glazed over into something far more sinister.

“Who has her?” Rowan demanded, and his buddies behind him looked over curiously.

“A beast, in a castle past the woods.” The stench of the dungeon and rats sent shivers down his back just thinking about it. And now his sister was down there too.

There was a moment of silence before Rowan’s friends bursted out laughing. The huntsmen grabbed Jed’s hand and forcefully tore it off of him. A wave of disgust rolling onto his features.

“You must think you’re hilarious.” He sneered. “Did Rose put you up to this? That hag is always trying to mess everything up.”

“What..?” Jed whimpered, and Rowan grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

“You know, maybe I should really get her back, this time.” He snickered, and his friends circled around Jed; All sharing the same sickening smile. “Maybe that will finally teach her not to get in the way again.”

“Please, I’m telling the truth!” Jed cried. “You have to help me!”

“Of course I’ll help,” He teased, but then his eyes became serious. “Tie him up boys.”

—

Taglist:

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[ansxit]

Beauty and the Dreaming

[Morpheus x Reader (Beauty and the Beast Au)]

a/n} HOLY COWS THE SUPPORT ON THIS SERIES ALREADY😭😭 you guys are seriously incredible thank you all so much oh my goodness !!!! If you want to be added to the Taglist just lmk!!

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

- The cruel King of Dreams is cursed by a witch, doomed to be a beast forever and to be forgotten by humanity. But what happens when a determined woman finds herself in the abandoned halls, and happens to fall in love with the unlikeliest of people.

TW] Rat bites, arm disfigurement, dissing of the color orange, Matthew slander, Rowan

When you had fallen asleep, you expected to be greeted with the rolling fields of green. You had sweetly imagined the raven’s calling out to you as they led you back to the golden castle. It was there you could dance in the dazzling ballrooms, with wondrous chandeliers illuminating in your presence.

But, no such glittering dreams greeted you. Instead, you were in a small forest clearing, with dead hedges circling the brush. The leaves on the trees closest to the bushes were in sad heaps on the forest floor, but you could see others’ lush greenery just a few yards away. This wasn’t the first time you had a weird dream like these, and you briefly paced- wondering how you could spin a tale out of this to Jed tomorrow morning.

As you kept looking around, you noticed a large marble door hidden between two trees. A mass of prickly-ivies crawled around it, keeping the door well hidden from immediate sight. The carvings in the marble felt familiar to you, and you realized it was the same carvings in the castle you loved to explore. Jubilant whispers emanate from beyond the gate, and you once again checked your surroundings. There was now a path reading out of the clearing and in the distance you could see the twinkling lights of the village.

‘Is this real?’ You thought to yourself, excitement flowing through your veins. You put your hand on the gate and gently pushed. The vines resisted, but with a harder push, they gave way and the gate swung open. A room of black . You gingerly put your hand up to it, but not even a whisper of breeze echoed from the darkness. The energy hummed the closer you got to it, and the familiar feeling of drowsiness lapped at your subconscious. “A dream within a dream.” You laughed aloud, and with one last look at the surroundings of the forest, you charged headfirst into the void.

Then there was nothing. You felt suspended into the pull of the void for what felt like years. No breath left your lungs, your heart didn’t even beat. There was just you in the nothing, and you had to fight the urge to curl up into it. The tiredness you felt before was much stronger now, and the fatigue settled into your bones. Determined to see where it led, you took a small step and—

There was an abrupt temperature change, as the void suddenly became warm and stuffy. The sound of rats squeaking filled your ears, and you quickly opened your eyes. It didn’t do much use, as the room you were in had practically no natural light, other than a singular window with iron bars covering most of the sun’s stare. A curled up figure sat below it, their soft whimpering sound barely heard over the rats. As one of the animals scampered over to them, they let out another cry and moved away, and the little sunlight finally illuminated their features.

“Jed..?” You whispered, already running towards him. His eyes flew open and he scrambled away from you, not recognizing your voice.

“Y/n?” He cried, crumbling into your embrace as you wrapped your arms around him. “I was so scared, I thought it was a dream, but.” He broke into more sobs. You had just seen him barely a few hours ago, but it looked as though he aged for months. His shoulder was slightly disfigured, and he had many little rat bites along all of the exposed skin that you could see.

“Who did this to you?” You whispered, as though anything louder would break him. And you moved his face to look at you. “What’s wrong, where are you?”

“You need to find me,” Jed cried, his hands digging into your nightgown. “Please, the castle is real. He’s real, you need to find me.” Another sob fell out of his mouth and he met your gaze. “Please, He’s- He said he was going to kill me.”

“Who, Jed?” You whispered, your own tears filling your eyes, but you could feel your subconscious pulling away from the dream. “Jed, who did this, I need to know.” His hold on you felt distant, as though you were watching him through someone else’s eyes. His lips moved, but you could no longer hear anything. And just as suddenly as you arrived in the nightmare, you were gone.

-

Your sheets were damp with sweat when you finally awoke. You could still feel the warmth of the room coating your skin, and you ripped the blanket off of you. Adrenaline shot through your veins as you spirited out of the room, frantically avoiding running into the walls and making it to Jed’s room as fast as possible.

‘It had to have been a dream,’ You pleaded mentally. ‘Jed can’t dream, it can’t be real.’

There was shuffling downstairs, and you knew Rose could absolutely hear your desperation as you tried to open the locked door.

“JED?” You shouted, pounding at the door. “This isn’t funny, wake up!” He had never locked his door before, you didn’t even realize it had a lock. His door was always open, to get to you and Rose as fast as possible if necessary. You slammed at the door again, and finally it flew open, smacking against the wall as you ran inside. Your heart stopped beating at what you had seen.

Jed’s room was in perfect condition, not a single speck of dust in sight. His bed was made, something he had never done without influence, and the window was wide open. The morning winds blew lazily through the curtains. A sob escaped your throat, and you fell to the floor on weak knees.

“Y/n!” Rose called. “What the bloody hell is-” She stopped, taking in the sights you had just accustomed yourself to. “Where… Y/n where is Jed.” She grabbed your shoulders and looked into your eyes. She didn’t seem to like the answer she found, because she whipped around and started tearing apart everything he could find. “He was here last night, we put him to bed.” She suddenly ran out into the hallway, her steps creating a symphony with your sobs.

You crawled out after her, tripping on your own feet as you stood on shaky knees. Rose was running in the backyard, checking all of the places Jed could, and logically couldn’t hide. The sun seemed mockingly bright, and you wondered if it was the same sun Jed was seeing now.

“He couldn’t have run off,” She mumbled, and you wondered if she even knew you were beside her. “I know it’s been hard but he wouldn’t just run away from us, right?” Rose ran back to the shed, desperately checking everywhere she could. You remembered the gate from before you had seen Jed, and a heavy weight fell on your chest.

“Rose,” Your voice broke. She turned to you, her own tears falling down her face. “I think I know where he is,” You breathed out, slowly reaching out to grab her hand. “I had… a dream, he was there– It felt real, I can go and find him. I’ll bring him back home.” Your voice broke and she squeezed your hand, pulling you into a tight embrace.

“I can’t lose him again,” She cried, sinking into your shoulder. “Either of you, and I swear-” She inhaled sharply, and pulled away to look you in the eyes. “I need both of you, you're my sister.” Rose sobbed. “We’re a family, you have to come back to me.”

“I will, Rose,” You swore, holding her face with your hands. “I promise.” Your sister pulled away, wiping her face with the sleeves of her shirt. You could see she was trying to stay strong, whether for your sake or her own you weren’t sure.

-

The sun was still high in the sky when you set out to find the gate. Rose had demanded you take hunter’s gear with you, but you didn’t have to worry about protecting yourself. If you followed what you remembered, you could find Jed and make it back home safely.

A nagging thread of doubt echoed in your mind, one that questioned if you had imagined the gate entirely. It threatened to unravel your thoughts as you pushed through the brush, determined to find the decaying trees. The question of the gate's existence would be something to worry about later, for now you were looking for the path. Besides, if you failed, you could try to dream of the clearing again.

You never bothered to lucid dream, you were certain you could, but it was more fun to see what was thrown at you. The stories to tell to Jed were much better when you didn’t know the ending. You briefly stopped from moving away a tree branch.

It was your story telling that put your family into this mess. It was better that you really did stop talking about it to Jed. You gave him ideas when you thought you were giving imagination, and now he was suffering in the dreams he loved to hear about. It was then you made a promise to lock that part of yourself away, if it kept Jed safe from harm, then you would have make it.

As you moved another bush away from your path, you noticed a small first path leading to your right. With a burst of energy, you started to run alongside it, dodging hanging dead branches and vines. You pushed through one final wall of thorny bushes, and you were back in the deserted clearing; But this time, the gate was wide open.

The thrumming energy felt louder this time, and whispers of wrongness tried to lure you away from the door. You shook your body, remembered how desperate Jed had sounded, and ran through the open gate. The trip through the void was faster than in your dreams.As if it was already accustomed to your presence. While you still felt the pull of sleep, you quickly managed to run through the emptiness and emerge into a sunlit area.

You were standing in the familiar hills of the castle garden you explored when you slept. With a sigh of relief, you started heading to the path you’d walked for most of your life. The soft grass below you slowly started to fade into dirt, with some patches barely clinging to the life they held. You stopped when you encountered a lump of snow by the gate; It was always sunny in your dreams, snow was supposed to be a wistful thought in the green hills.

A feeling of dread crept up your spine, as you started to look back at the fields you appeared in. Nothing but dead grass and hedges with empty branches remained where beautiful rose bushes and thriving wildlife once lived. The beginning of tears began pooling in your eyes, and you quickly ran out of the garden. Suddenly the vast world was terrifying; For an infinite plane meant infinite places for him to be held. ‘Oh gods,’ You thought, horrified. ‘Jed, where are you?’

The grand staircase crumbled under your shoes as you ran to the front door of the castle, throwing your shoulder against the marble. Your shoulder exploded in pain, but the stone didn’t budge, and you let out a frustrated cry. With no other options, you began hitting the door with your palms.

“Please!” You cried out, the worry that no one could hear you was nonexistent to you. “Please, my brother is in there! He could be hurt!” A raven with white markings watched you from the railing, its head tilted as though listening to your cries. It flared its wings, and hopped back and forth. “Can you help me?” You whispered. It cawed at you, almost in disbelief, and flew through a cracked window on the side of the castle. Only a few moments later, the large marble doors opened before you.

You quickly ran inside, trying to remember the castle’s layout. Distant sounds of screaming sent shivers down your spine, and lights suddenly illuminated a hallway, one you had never explored before. Even though every aspect of your being demanded you run, you squared your shoulder and followed it. Eventually, the lights had led you to the same dungeon room you had dreamt about.

“Jed?” You whispered, it was hard to see if he was even breathing in the dark cell.

“You found me.” Jed cried, the sound of chains clinking as he moved around. You tried to grab onto him through the iron bars, but he was too far away.

“I’m here,” You sobbed. “I found you, you're safe now, it’s going to be okay.”

“I want to go home.” He whispered, and You took notice his shoulder seemed worse than before, and the bites and scrapes not looking any cleaner. “I miss Rosie, please take me home. Before he comes back.”

“Whose He?” Your voice shook, daring to ask. Whoever this man is would have hell to pay for doing this to your brother. “What did he do to you, Jed?”

“He trespassed into a realm not meant for mortal eyes. And attempted to steal something of mine.” A deep voice circled around you, seeping slowly into your veins and immobilizing your muscles. “Perhaps thievery and invasion run in the family.”

“My brother has been wrongfully imprisoned.” You argued. “He’s just a boy, he’s done nothing wrong!”

“Mortals are not welcome in my realm.” The voice hissed. “I am king here, and my word is law.” Out of the corner of your eye you could see a hulking figure. It was well-above your height, and the way it moved seemed almost animalistic.

“A king should not hide in the shadows.” You accused. “Come into the light, I’m not scared of you.” What sounded like a huff escaped from the darkness, and two glowing eyes illuminated from the nothingness. You let out a breath as it stepped closer to you. Black fur draped across his lithe body, and two dark wings protruded from his back, sweeping against the dusty floor. As you stared into his face, you noticed the long fangs enunciating his glare. He almost looked human-like, and there was a distant feeling of recognition as you stared into his eyes.

“You are not welcome in my kingdom.” He repeated, rising to his full height. You had to lift your head to stay in eye-contact with him. “You will leave, or suffer the same fate.”

“Not without my brother.” You defied, and a burning white rage filled his white eyes. As quick as lightning, his arm lunged out and gripped your forearm with such force you thought he would crack it. You let out a cry in alarm, the pain almost bringing you to your knees.

“You don’t get to make that decision, mortal.” He concluded. “This boy has committed a crime, and he will rot here like others have before him.” Jed let out another sob, and you fearfully glanced over at him.

“I’ll take his place.” You said. “He doesn’t deserve this punishment. Let him go.” The beast paused at this, clearly surprised at your boldness. His grip lessened,

“You would.. take his place.” He stated, glancing at you in such a way you felt as though he were examining your soul. “Even if you never see him again; You would never leave this cell.”

“If he can even have a chance, I’d take it no matter the circumstance.” You thought about your promise to Rose, and shook it off before the tears could form. She can survive without you, soon Jed can help out more and they’ll thrive. They will be okay.

“Then you are foolish.” The gruff in his voice returned, and just before your eyes you were looking at the same scene but this time, you were inside the cell. Jed crumpled to the floor outside of the room, and with no care, the beast picked him up by the wrist.

“He’s hurt,” Your heart tugged as Jed let out a weak whimper. “Please, be careful with him!” Your little brother’s body dragged horribly along the floor, and the creature reached up towards the ceiling to pull a lever. Light flooded the dingy dungeon and you fought the urge to cover your eyes.

“Y/n,” Jed cried. “We’ll find you, I’ll get-” But the door abruptly slammed shut, and darkness coated the room once again. Now, you were alone. In only a day you had lost and found, then lost your brother again, and left your sister. And you weren’t even sure you would ever be able to see them again. Tears welled in your eyes as you sank to the floor, out of anyone you thought your dreaming was a great thing. The stories you concocted were meant to make him happy, distract him from the problems you and Rose faced as adults in the provincial village. But they've caused irrevocable damage, and noe you were imprisoned in the halls you once loved to wander in.

“Excuse me, miss.” A voice intruded from the barred window, “Why are you crying?”

“Oh my gods Matthew you can’t just ask her that.” A female voice this time, added on. You looked up, and to your confusion, saw two ravens perched on the ledge, easily hopping between the bars. “It’s very insensitive, you know. Obviously she's upset.” You saw the familiar gleam of white feathers and you gasped.

“It’s you!” You exclaimed. “From outside, you let me in. But, how can you talk?” The other raven scoffed as the girl raven hopped down to the floor.

“There’s many things you don’t yet understand.” She concluded, tilting her head to stare at you with her intelligent eyes. “But you won’t learn much from inside this dingy place, come!” She flapped her wings and walked through the gate that trapped you.

“I thought the…” You hesitated on the word, “king, said that I would rot here. For all eternity.” The raven, Matthew? on the ledge cawed strangely, and you had the feeling he was laughing.

“His highness? Oh please, that mopey thing growls more empty threats out of his maw than-” The raven by your feet crooed in warning, and he shook out his feathers. “Er- What I mean is, he changed his mind! Hooray!” Matthew flew down, over to where you had seen your brother get ripped away from you. New tears began to form in your eyes and you couldn’t help but sniffle.

“Now you’ve done it.” The other raven rolled her eyes and flew up onto your shoulder. “There, there, mortal. It will be okay.” Matthew cawed in audacity and flapped his wings.

“What did I do?” He shrieked. “Did she want to stay down here with the rats? Sorry I don’t remember how to comfort mortals, Jessamy, considering it's been a long dAMN TIME SINCE I’VE-” He broke out in a series of caws and stamped angrily on the ground. Jessamy sighed and rubbed her head sympathetically against your neck.

“I’m sorry miss, it’s been a while since we’ve had guests. But since my associate is a feather-brain, I must do everything myself.” Jessamy flew over to the side of the wall and pecked at it for a few moments, the bars that caged you swung open, and you quickly stepped outside. You ran to the lever and yanked on it, another door opening and bringing light to the dungeon once again.

“You're very clever.” Jessamy complimented, flying ahead as the three of you exited the room. “And I’m sorry about your brother, Miss. We tried to help him but…” She glanced back at you and quieted upon seeing your expression.

“He can be safe now,” You sighed, wrapping your arms around yourself. “As long as he gets back home, I’ll be okay here.”

“Well this can be your home now!” Matthew crowed, flapping up to sit on your shoulder. “The whole castle is yours to explore.” Jessamy cawed and stood on the top step.

“Except, the west wing, Miss.” She glared at Matthew who squawked and joined her on the floor.

“Right! But Your room will be in the east wing and we’ll be here at your immediate disposal so no need to bother going to the old west wing. In fact I think we should pretend it doesn’t exist, I will inform Lucienne immediately that there will be no talk of a west wing…” He rambled on, and the two birds led you towards a far side of the castle you hadn’t explored in a while. You didn’t have the heart to tell them you had been here many times before, but also things had obviously changed, you were not entirely sure the castle was the same as when you had dreamt.

In your dreams, the west wing was just another hall of bedrooms, nothing dangerous. But considering you weren’t aware of a whole dungeon beneath the castle, you had the feeling you didn’t know everything just yet. You also weren’t aware of the giant fucking monstrous beast living in the castle as well, so maybe it was best if you let the birds lead you for now. You would just have to wait for them to leave you alone until you could try to escape.

The three of you were walking down a dusty hallway when Jessamy walked into one of the open rooms and flapped her wings.

“Here you are Miss, welcome to your new room!” Other than the buildup of dust, the room was actually very lovely. You assumed it was once used as a suite for the richer guests of the palace, with the gilded decorations hanging from the chandelier and incorporated all throughout the room. “Please forgive the dust, I’ll have the canaries come and clean it for you in just a moment.” Matthew flew up to a wardrobe adjacent to the bed and squawked loudly.

“Madam Constantine!” He called. “Wake up you old witch!” You were about to question what he was doing when the wardrobe suddenly came to life; The doors opened and shut, and the curtains inside the vanity moved in a circular motion. A strange sound came from it, and you realized she was yawning.

“Speak to me like that again, bird-brain, and I’ll make sure your feathers end up in my next fashion statement. Perhaps I’ll tell the king we’re having bird for dinner.” Matthew crowed and flew away from her.

“Please be civil, you two.” Jessamy sighed from the post. “We do have a guest.” Constantine’s drawers rapidly open and shut and two decorative handles reached out to grab your face.

“Oh what pretty eyes!” She exclaimed. “You hold yourself strong, this is good, you will be a perfect model for me.” Fabrics flew out in an array of colors as You stood awkwardly in front of her. “Orange isn’t popular again is it? Oh Sandy hated it when Corinthian convinced the staff to wear orange, absolutely dreadful I tell you. Lucienne was so mad when she realized what he had done.” Constantine let out a boisterous laugh and Matthew chuckled from behind you.

“I remember that!” He cawed. “It was strictly black uniforms after that, although no need to tell me twice. I believe it suits us quite well.” He wiggled his feathers and you couldn’t help but laugh a little with him.

“Your feathers are lovely.” You complimented, and a sliver of happiness entered your heart as the birds preened in delight. Another roll of fabric tumbled out of her drawers as Costantine held them up next to your face, turning you back towards her to check what matched and what didn’t.

“How about this!” She exclaimed, and pulled out a giant rococo styled dress that had far too many ruffles and bows for your liking. It was a glittering black and had white feathers adorned along the underside of the dress. Matthew let out a strangled caw and you turned to see Jessamy beating him with her wings. She gave as close as she could to a smile at you.

“Well it looks just perfect.” She rushed out. “We should be off now, I hope you find your room to your liking. The canaries should arrive soon to clean the dust away.” The birds flew away, and you could hear Matthew’s caws of laughter echo down the hallway.

“Ungrateful birds. They don’t realize what it takes to be fashionable nowadays.” She sighed, and gave you a long look. “Something ails you, and you should talk about it now or else it will eat you alive.”

“They intended to leave my brother to rot here.” You spat, but immediately regretted it. The birds had been kind to you, and while you didn’t fully trust them, you knew they’ve done nothing but treat you with kindness thus far. “A child can rot in prison but I am allowed to wander the halls and have a suite? I’m sorry, but I just don’t understand the thought process here."

“That is because, well, birds do not think.” A new voice shouted down the long hallway. You turned around to see a candle walk in the room. Well you had already spoken to talking ravens and a wardrobe, what else could possibly happen in this castle. “Hello Madam Witch, Madam…?”

“Y/n.” You answered him.

“A beautiful name for a beautiful lady!” He shouted, a wave of white canaries flew into the room behind him. As they cleaned up the dust that lingered in the room, the candle walked over to you. “You will have to forgive my intrusion; I am Hob Gadling, at your service.” He bowed low to the ground, the flames on his head and arms nearly scorching the floor. “And for the ravens, I offer my apologies in their stead, we have not dealt with mortals in a long time.”

“What do you mean by that?” You looked to Constantine, but she immediately closed her drawers and drew her curtains. Hob gave a sheepish look but did not answer you.

“Sadly, I am not here to answer that question," His metallic mouth quirked your into a smile. "However I will ask: What are you hungry for?” His candles flickered with the hum of the canaries.

“I'm not hungry.” In that exact moment, your stomach decided to betray you and rumbled ferociously. You shuffled on your feet and looked away from him.

“I shall tell the kitchen to surprise you, then.” He grinned. He raised one of his candles to his lips and whistled, and the canaries in the room cleared out. “I hope it will be to your satisfaction, Miss Y/n.”

-

The journey back to the waking realm was startling to say the least. Jed stumbled back into town, his shoulder hurting with a pain he had never faced before. His hands trembled as he held himself, trying to find the path back to his house; With luck though, he managed to fall into a familiar face.

“Rowan?” He reached out to grab the huntsman’s sleeves. Rowan gave him a scalding look and shook him off.

“What do you think you’re doing?” He hissed, looking him up and down. “You look like hell, kid. Where’s Y/n, or… Rose.”

“Y/n is in danger,” Jed cried, reaching out for him again. This seemed to get Rowan’s attention, and his eyes glazed over into something far more sinister.

“Who has her?” Rowan demanded, and his buddies behind him looked over curiously.

“A beast, in a castle past the woods.” The stench of the dungeon and rats sent shivers down his back just thinking about it. And now his sister was down there too.

There was a moment of silence before Rowan’s friends bursted out laughing. The huntsmen grabbed Jed’s hand and forcefully tore it off of him. A wave of disgust rolling onto his features.

“You must think you’re hilarious.” He sneered. “Did Rose put you up to this? That hag is always trying to mess everything up.”

“What..?” Jed whimpered, and Rowan grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

“You know, maybe I should really get her back, this time.” He snickered, and his friends circled around Jed; All sharing the same sickening smile. “Maybe that will finally teach her not to get in the way again.”

“Please, I’m telling the truth!” Jed cried. “You have to help me!”

“Of course I’ll help,” He teased, but then his eyes became serious. “Tie him up boys.”

—

Taglist:

@thecrazytealady

@boofy1998

@eat-a-pillow

@parker-natasha

@seninjakitey

@intothesoul

@heboottoobig

@bellajg21

[ansxit]

Hey guys 😭😭 I'm really sorry a chapter wasn't posted this week, classes have been kicking my ass so it will sadly be postponed until next week

[ansxit]

Hi :D I just wanted to thank you for your amazing fics 💯 I look forward to reading the next chapter of the batb au, but no rush 😊

I was wondering if you have a ao3 account, I would love to shower you in kudos.

Thank you !!! 💛💛 I'm currently in the process of the next chapter, hopefully the updating schedule will be every other week, since the hmc Au will be posted between batb updates lolol— as for an ao3 account I do have one!! I have not yet moved my sandman fics over to there so all that is posted is my old work😅 it's under the same handle @/ansxit !!

[ansxit]

HERE IS THE HOWLS MOVING CASTLE AU MY BELOVEDS ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Witches, Curses, Dream Lords Oh My!

[Morpheus x Reader (Howl's Moving Castle Au)]

a/n} AAAAAA OH MY GOD YOUR GUYS' SUPPORT IS LITERALLY AMAZING I LOVE ALL OF YOUR NOTES THEY MAKE MY DAY !!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️ ((Btw, just comment if you want to be part of a tag list for this series!))

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

- In a world with witches and wizards, one the most feared and skilled of them all is a loner by the name of The Sandman

TW] Implications of low-self esteem, Verbal Harassment, The act of digging nails into someone's wrists

You were sitting at your desk, gently sewing together some additional touches of a line of hats the shop wanted to sell for the oncoming season. Humming softly to the music box that lay open beside you, you reached to grab another pin while the afternoon train came rolling down the tracks. Black clouds trailed behind it, momentarily shading the window in the lobby. You paused, waiting for it to pass until you continued your work, and started humming again.

“Oh! Y/n didn’t you hear the clock chime?” Your manager stood in the doorway, holding her jacket and gloves. “You don’t have to keep working, why don’t you come out to the festival with us?”

“I'm alright, thank you though,” You smiled at her and held up one of the hats. “I just want to finish the rest of these pieces, besides, I have plans to visit Johanna this afternoon.”

She put a hand on her heart and sighed.

“You two are sweet, Y/n. Alright, let me know if you need anything! Make sure you tell her I said hello.” You nodded and she walked out to the waiting girls in the lobby.

“Do you see it?” One of the girls in the other room exclaimed, and you leaned back in your chair to see them all looking out of the long window.“There! Just beyond the clouds!”

“See what?” Another girl asked.

“The Sandman’s castle! Oh, I wonder if he's visiting town for the parade!”

“You don’t think he's really back in the Wastes again?” A younger girl asked. She nervously wrung the hems of her sleeves. “You've heard the stories, he tore out a young woman’s heart last time- who knows what he did to it afterwards!”

“Well you won't have to worry about that,” The first girl’s smile turned into a snicker. “He only steals the hearts of pretty girls~”

“Hey! That's not nice!”

You stood up and rolled your eyes, moving to close your door when a different girl exclaimed,

“No! There’s his palace!” And against your better judgment, you turned to look outside as well.

A puff of white smoke shot out of the castle; if you could even call it that. It looked more like a village on legs, with decaying trees clinging on to what little leaves they had left. It creaked on rusty hinges as it moved further up the mountains, and when the fog finally caught it— it was gone again. Royal planes zipped by, waving the bright pink and yellow colors of your country. They hovered where the castle just was for a few heartbeats, until carrying on with the patrols.

“He's just a coward.” The first girl rolled her eyes. “He's been on the run from the King for how long?”

“Girls!” Your manager called from the door. “Let’s go!”

The other girls giggled as they walked away, already moving their focus to the festival they were celebrating. A strange, compelling, feeling kept you in a daze as you stared after the long gone palace. If you stared hard enough, you thought you could still hear the whining of the machinery behind the clouds. Your heart tugged wildly and you stumbled out of your reverie, bracing a hand against your doorframe to keep from falling over.

A handful of breathing exercises helped to calm you down. You had never had such a reaction to the Sandman’s castle before, but then again, it had never been so close to the town before, it typically liked to walk itself along the mountains or distant plains to make quicker getaways.

When your heart finally stilled, you sat back down and tried to ignore the trembling in your hands. But working couldn't do you any good, you've already completed most of the hats, and anytime you tried to pick up your needle, you would only drop it again.

The finished hats stared back at you as you rested your head in your hands, boredom and nervousness gnawing at the ends of your brain. The town outside was bustling, everyone getting ready for the big celebration that was the Spring Festival. With a determined sigh, you stood up, dusted off your dress, and gathered your personal belongings.

-

“The city is much more alive than I thought.” You commented to yourself, narrowly avoiding the carriages as the square filled with pedestrians and soldiers. Most areas would soon become blocked off for the parade that should be happening in just fifteen minutes. So everyone that had procrastinated was trying to get to where they needed to be for the best view of the festivities.

You noticed the bus that was headed north of the town rang its boarding bell, and you jogged to catch up before it took off. Its compartment was packed full of people, so you just held the outside railing to keep from falling out. Ten minutes later, you got off and looked down at the bakery’s address, and started walking towards its direction.

Several cars honked at you as you traversed through the road, and the brightly colored flags being waved by the marching guards caught your attention. The parade through the Wastes should be starting at any minute. You thought about the large crowd of people and cringed, deciding to take a detour through the alleyways to avoid the insanity of the Spring Festival.

You looked down at the address again, trying to mentally figure out how many more turns you had to take to make it out to the main road again. Some shuffling caught your attention, and you realized you had almost run into a pair of guards.

“Why Hello– It seems like a lovely lady lost her way,” The blond guard commented, leaning in closer than you would have preferred. His friend took notice of you as well, a dangerous smile growing across his face.

“Oh, I'm not lost, so if you'll excuse me–” The brunet guard blocked the other side of the alleyway, slyly leaning against the rifle he held.

“What's the rush, why don’t we take you for a drink first?”

“No thank you.” You tried to be firm, but it felt like you had done nothing more than whisper by how quickly they laughed at your statement.

“I told you, you always end up scaring all the pretty ones.” The blond teased his friend. “I think it's the ugly whiskers you've got growing out of your nose.”

“I think I prefer her more scared than shy.” He purred and he and his friend stepped closer. Your heart was hammering out of your chest and you were ready to turn around and run when a pair of footsteps sounded behind you.

“Sorry I took so long, I was looking everywhere for you, my dear.” A cold hand pressed against the small of your back and a towering figure leaned over your shoulder. “I see you’ve found some new friends…”

“Back off, buddy.” The blond guard challenged, and the brunet puffed up his chest. “We’re busy here.”

“Is that so?” The black haired stranger smiled. “I could've sworn you were both leaving.” With his left hand, he tossed some dust onto their shoes, and to your shock– the guards stood up straight and began marching away from the two of you in unison, exclamations of their surprise going with them.

“What.. what did you do to them?” You stammered, watching the two guards walk out into the parade and then vanished into the crowds.

“They’ll be fine,” He dismissed, and he withdrew his hand— you’d forgotten he was even holding you— and then held his arm out to you. “Where are you headed? I’ll escort you in case they come back.” You glanced at his arm before looking up at his face. He was… certainly handsome. Wispy dark hair floated around him as if he were suspended in water, and we wore an oversized black jacket that could fit the skies within them. Below that was a white poet’s shirt, and a red ruby hung from his neck, somehow glinting in the shadowed alleyway. His jaw was chiseled and his lips were strung into a light smile.

“Oh, uh, thank you. I'm headed to Cesari’s. The new bakery that's downtown?” Your face grew hot as he leaned in closer to whisper into your ear.

“I don’t mean to alarm you but I'm being followed. Just try to act natural.” He didn't entirely back away from you as he started walking, still remaining close enough that you could feel the cold chill of his entire body. Despite your circumstance, you felt pleasantly warmed by his presence.

You gripped his arm just a little tighter when you passed other people in the alleyway that you wouldn't normally expect to see. A creeping feeling of anxiousness arose when a particularly well-dressed couple stopped when you passed them; and suddenly turned around and began following you.

“My apologies, it looks like you’re involved now.” The stranger held your arm closer to his side, suddenly taking off at a much faster pace, attempting to outrun whoever was behind you. As you both darted through the twisting maze of the Waste’s alleyways, you noticed a whole group of people blocking your way out. Bile rose in your throat as they all grinned, and then you noticed a black void where their eyes should have been. “Hold onto me,” Your black-haired savior commanded, and you barely had enough time to react before he jumped into the air, well above the walls that lined the alleyways, and even further above the buildings standing next to them.

You shut your eyes, expecting to plummet back towards the ground for a sickening death. “Johanna is going to kill me for dying.” You thought sadly. But the brutal impact never came. Gentle laughter came from beside you, and a small wave of embarrassment washed around you.

“You can open your eyes, it’s safe up here.” The stranger laughed, and your sheepish emotions transformed in shock as you realized you were floating over the town below. “Now you just straighten your legs, and start walking.” And just as he said, you began walking through the air as though on invisible platforms. He adjusted your grip on your arm to hold both of your hands instead, and he leaned his head over your shoulder. His wispy hair tickled your skin and your face flushed as he leaned against your neck. “You’re perfect at this, my dear.”

You noticed the bustling city below you, they looked like little ants from the height you were walking at. There was a slow descent and the two of you stepped in unison onto the spire of the town hall. You noticed a familiar sign above a quaint building with red shingles.

“Down there,” You motioned with your hand. “That's Cesari’s.” Your savior nodded and pulled back, simply deciding to hold just your left hand as he led you to the balcony. You'd be lying if you said you didn’t miss his closeness already. The thump echoed as you landed, and he held your elbows to steady you as you remember what it felt to be under gravity again. After he was certain you wouldn’t fall, his grip changed back.

“I’ll lead them away from here, just stay put so they don’t follow you.” He still held your hands, and you had a feeling he was not keen on letting go. You both didn’t blink as he leaned just a little closer, and you swore at this proximity, he could hear how fast your heart was beating. You glanced down at his lips, and then back up to meet his gaze; And oh gods how did you just now notice his eyes.

They were a beautiful, deep black, reflecting the light as though they were made out of glass. You felt as if he were gazing into your soul, pinning down all of the characteristics of yourself and laying them for the world to see. A ring of white danced around his iris, and you felt as if he held twin stars within them. Your brain short circuited for just a moment, and only then you realized he was still waiting for you to respond.

“Okay,” You whispered, worried any more words would ruin the trance you both appeared to be stuck in. Barely a moment had passed but it felt like just enough to last you a lifetime, and then maybe another infinite amount of years.

“That's my girl.” He winked and with the flourish of sand, he vanished– so quickly and without a trace it left you wondering if you'd dreamt the whole thing.

-

“Y/n L/n!” A commanding voice shouted across the hall from you as a ball of protective fury ran towards you. A hint of fear shook you as Johanna tumbled into you, grabbing your hands and pulling you into a bone-crushing hug. You went to lean into it, but all too soon the Constantine was gripping your shoulders and staring you down. “Someone just told me you floated down onto the balcony, for the love of anything holy, tell me it isn't true.”

“So I didn’t imagine it then, did I?” You pondered aloud, glancing back out of the window. It was no use, he was gone with the crowds, but your heart behaved as though he were still breathing right next to you. Johanna pinched the bridge of her nose and you looked back at her.

“Johanna!” A friendly male voice called, “You could use my office, if you’d like.” Her shoulders tightened just slightly, You assumed it was to hide her discomfort, and she gave him her best customer service smile.

“No thanks, I should really get back to work.” You both made eye contact again and she just barely managed to not roll her eyes. She grabbed your hand and led you to the basement of the restaurant. Workers were busy lifting heavy boxes and lugging around equipment, but most of them still turned to smile at Johanna. She would always give one back, but it quickly fell away when they looked away.

“You are so lucky to be alive right now, Y/n.” She finally said when they were in a quiet area. “That man was obviously a wizard, and if he was the Sandman--”

“But he was kind, and polite.” You argued absentmindedly. The mysterious man just couldn't leave our mind, and you still felt the ghostly feel of his hands along your back and wrists. A pleasant chill cascaded down your spine. “He rescued me, Johanna.”

“Okay… and if he were the Sandman he would’ve taken your heart and; Oh I don't know, eaten it?!” She rubbed her forehead and pinned you down with a stern gaze. “You have to be more careful, you know, they say even the Corinthian is on the hunt again. I can’t bear to have anything bad happen to you.”

“I'll be okay, besides– the Sandman only takes the hearts of pretty girls, so I don’t have to worry about that.”

“Y/n I swear on our King’s name if I hear you speak like that about yourself again—”

Her rant was cut short when a familiar coworker of Johanna’s peaked her curly-haired head through the doorway.

“Jo? The cakes have finished,” She wore long plastic gloves, and her tan skin was dusted with flour. You also noticed some dessert batter caked into her apron. “And, the patrons miss you, of course. Oh, Hey Y/n!”

You waved at her and Johanna rolled her eyes playfully.

“I'll be there in just a minute, Rach. Try not to lose any customers while I’m gone.” Rachel snorted and leaned against the doorframe.

“It’s a miracle we don’t lose them with your oh-so wonderful customer service. But I guess I’ll manage; I’ll see you around, Y/n.” And she slunk back into the kitchens, out of sight.

Johanna stared where she stood for an extra few minutes when you stood up and dusted off your clothes.

“Alright, I didn’t mean to keep you for so long, I just wanted to say hello.” Johanna looked back at you and sighed deeply. You both walked out through the back door and she stopped you before you could fully take off.

“Y/n, do you really want to spend your life in that dusty hatter’s shop? You could move in with Rachel and I, she loves you– she won’t mind,”

“It was very important to my parents, Jo, you know this. Besides, I’m doing just fine on my own.” You tried to slink your hands out of hers, but her grip was too strong.

“I know, but is it really what you want to do?” You wilted under her gaze and gently pulled your hands out of her grasp. This time she let you. “It’s your life, maybe it’s time you stuck up for yourself and lived it. Or maybe just stuck up for yourself in general.” She added dryly. A flare of embarrassment riled up inside you, but you managed to control it before you started shouting at her.

“I’ll see you around, Jo.” You said shortly, and without even a hug goodbye, you turned your back to her and started walking home.

Her words had genuinely meant a lot, (and hurt a lot more than you would like to admit.) They always did whenever she commented about the life you led. She was your best friend, most of the time you would even consider her your sister. But her concern in your personal matters felt invasive at times, and you just wanted to prove you could handle an adult life on your own.

As you boarded the bus back to the upper side of town, you pondered her words a little more. She always had your best interest in heart, you know this, and a part of you felt horrible for being so short with her. But a small voice still nagged at the back of your mind, one that whispered she needed to mind her own business; that you could handle it. You fiddled with the seams of your sleeve and you continued to think about it all the way back home.

-

A sigh of relief left you as you finally entered the shop, lighting the candles and locking the door. You had just put your jacket and hat up when you heard the door open, and a young man in a light brown jacket entered the store. His dark sunglasses reflected the low firelight, and you wondered why he would need them at this time of night. He glanced around briefly before turning his full attention onto you.

“Excuse me, sir.” You tensed as you turned to face him. “But we are currently closed– our hours are on the sign out front.” You were absolutely certain you locked the door behind you, but waved it off. It had been a long day, you probably just forgot about it on your way in.

“I have to give him credit,” the stranger disregarded your remark, slid his hands into his pockets and examined the many displayed hats. “Dream always managed to surround himself with pretty things.” Your fists clenched at his comment, wondering who he could ever be talking about.

“Pardon, who is Dream?” You questioned him, but he didn't elaborate, just kept smiling. Remembering what Johanna had said, you gathered your courage, and briskly moved past him to open the door.

“Well, I’m sorry sir, but we are closed. So if you’ll please exit the premises, or I will alert the authorities.” His grin sickeningly widened more, and he reached up to take off his sunglasses.

“Standing up to the Corinthian~ Now that takes guts, Ma’am.” Fear crashed against your back in tidal waves and you moved to run out of the shop, but the eyeless zombies from earlier were blocking the way. You turned back, but he was already a hair-length away from you. A scream escaped your mouth as he grabbed your wrist, blunt nails digging into the skin, and the smell of burning flesh wafted through the air until it was the only thing you could smell. With what little courage you had left, you went to stare him in the eye– but whatever air was left in your lungs dissipated as you stared into two more bloody sets of teeth where his eyes should have been.

An agonizing, searing pain flowed throughout your body, and you fell to the floor, convulsing as the dark magic diffused through your bloodstream.

“My regards to the Sandman,” He smiled wide, showing off all six rows of teeth, and then he was gone— locking the door behind him.

-

(Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

[ansxit]

Witches, Curses, Dream Lords Oh My!

[Morpheus x Reader (Howl's Moving Castle Au)]

a/n} AAAAAA OH MY GOD YOUR GUYS' SUPPORT IS LITERALLY AMAZING I LOVE ALL OF YOUR NOTES THEY MAKE MY DAY !!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️ ((Btw, just comment if you want to be part of a tag list for this series!))

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

- In a world with witches and wizards, one the most feared and skilled of them all is a loner by the name of The Sandman

TW] Implications of low-self esteem, Verbal Harassment, The act of digging nails into someone's wrists

~Chapter One~

You were sitting at your desk, gently sewing together some additional touches of a line of hats the shop wanted to sell for the oncoming season. Humming softly to the music box that lay open beside you, you reached to grab another pin while the afternoon train came rolling down the tracks. Black clouds trailed behind it, momentarily shading the window in the lobby. You paused, waiting for it to pass until you continued your work, and started humming again.

“Oh! Y/n didn’t you hear the clock chime?” Your manager stood in the doorway, holding her jacket and gloves. “You don’t have to keep working, why don’t you come out to the festival with us?”

“I'm alright, thank you though,” You smiled at her and held up one of the hats. “I just want to finish the rest of these pieces, besides, I have plans to visit Johanna this afternoon.”

She put a hand on her heart and sighed.

“You two are sweet, Y/n. Alright, let me know if you need anything! Make sure you tell her I said hello.” You nodded and she walked out to the waiting girls in the lobby.

“Do you see it?” One of the girls in the other room exclaimed, and you leaned back in your chair to see them all looking out of the long window.“There! Just beyond the clouds!”

“See what?” Another girl asked.

“The Sandman’s castle! Oh, I wonder if he's visiting town for the parade!”

“You don’t think he's really back in the Wastes again?” A younger girl asked. She nervously wrung the hems of her sleeves. “You've heard the stories, he tore out a young woman’s heart last time- who knows what he did to it afterwards!”

“Well you won't have to worry about that,” The first girl’s smile turned into a snicker. “He only steals the hearts of pretty girls~”

“Hey! That's not nice!”

You stood up and rolled your eyes, moving to close your door when a different girl exclaimed,

“No! There’s his palace!” And against your better judgment, you turned to look outside as well.

A puff of white smoke shot out of the castle; if you could even call it that. It looked more like a village on legs, with decaying trees clinging on to what little leaves they had left. It creaked on rusty hinges as it moved further up the mountains, and when the fog finally caught it— it was gone again. Royal planes zipped by, waving the bright pink and yellow colors of your country. They hovered where the castle just was for a few heartbeats, until carrying on with the patrols.

“He's just a coward.” The first girl rolled her eyes. “He's been on the run from the King for how long?”

“Girls!” Your manager called from the door. “Let’s go!”

The other girls giggled as they walked away, already moving their focus to the festival they were celebrating. A strange, compelling, feeling kept you in a daze as you stared after the long gone palace. If you stared hard enough, you thought you could still hear the whining of the machinery behind the clouds. Your heart tugged wildly and you stumbled out of your reverie, bracing a hand against your doorframe to keep from falling over.

A handful of breathing exercises helped to calm you down. You had never had such a reaction to the Sandman’s castle before, but then again, it had never been so close to the town before, it typically liked to walk itself along the mountains or distant plains to make quicker getaways.

When your heart finally stilled, you sat back down and tried to ignore the trembling in your hands. But working couldn't do you any good, you've already completed most of the hats, and anytime you tried to pick up your needle, you would only drop it again.

The finished hats stared back at you as you rested your head in your hands, boredom and nervousness gnawing at the ends of your brain. The town outside was bustling, everyone getting ready for the big celebration that was the Spring Festival. With a determined sigh, you stood up, dusted off your dress, and gathered your personal belongings.

-

“The city is much more alive than I thought.” You commented to yourself, narrowly avoiding the carriages as the square filled with pedestrians and soldiers. Most areas would soon become blocked off for the parade that should be happening in just fifteen minutes. So everyone that had procrastinated was trying to get to where they needed to be for the best view of the festivities.

You noticed the bus that was headed north of the town rang its boarding bell, and you jogged to catch up before it took off. Its compartment was packed full of people, so you just held the outside railing to keep from falling out. Ten minutes later, you got off and looked down at the bakery’s address, and started walking towards its direction.

Several cars honked at you as you traversed through the road, and the brightly colored flags being waved by the marching guards caught your attention. The parade through the Wastes should be starting at any minute. You thought about the large crowd of people and cringed, deciding to take a detour through the alleyways to avoid the insanity of the Spring Festival.

You looked down at the address again, trying to mentally figure out how many more turns you had to take to make it out to the main road again. Some shuffling caught your attention, and you realized you had almost run into a pair of guards.

“Why Hello– It seems like a lovely lady lost her way,” The blond guard commented, leaning in closer than you would have preferred. His friend took notice of you as well, a dangerous smile growing across his face.

“Oh, I'm not lost, so if you'll excuse me–” The brunet guard blocked the other side of the alleyway, slyly leaning against the rifle he held.

“What's the rush, why don’t we take you for a drink first?”

“No thank you.” You tried to be firm, but it felt like you had done nothing more than whisper by how quickly they laughed at your statement.

“I told you, you always end up scaring all the pretty ones.” The blond teased his friend. “I think it's the ugly whiskers you've got growing out of your nose.”

“I think I prefer her more scared than shy.” He purred and he and his friend stepped closer. Your heart was hammering out of your chest and you were ready to turn around and run when a pair of footsteps sounded behind you.

“Sorry I took so long, I was looking everywhere for you, my dear.” A cold hand pressed against the small of your back and a towering figure leaned over your shoulder. “I see you’ve found some new friends…”

“Back off, buddy.” The blond guard challenged, and the brunet puffed up his chest. “We’re busy here.”

“Is that so?” The black haired stranger smiled. “I could've sworn you were both leaving.” With his left hand, he tossed some dust onto their shoes, and to your shock– the guards stood up straight and began marching away from the two of you in unison, exclamations of their surprise going with them.

“What.. what did you do to them?” You stammered, watching the two guards walk out into the parade and then vanished into the crowds.

“They’ll be fine,” He dismissed, and he withdrew his hand— you’d forgotten he was even holding you— and then held his arm out to you. “Where are you headed? I’ll escort you in case they come back.” You glanced at his arm before looking up at his face. He was… certainly handsome. Wispy dark hair floated around him as if he were suspended in water, and we wore an oversized black jacket that could fit the skies within them. Below that was a white poet’s shirt, and a red ruby hung from his neck, somehow glinting in the shadowed alleyway. His jaw was chiseled and his lips were strung into a light smile.

“Oh, uh, thank you. I'm headed to Cesari’s. The new bakery that's downtown?” Your face grew hot as he leaned in closer to whisper into your ear.

“I don’t mean to alarm you but I'm being followed. Just try to act natural.” He didn't entirely back away from you as he started walking, still remaining close enough that you could feel the cold chill of his entire body. Despite your circumstance, you felt pleasantly warmed by his presence.

You gripped his arm just a little tighter when you passed other people in the alleyway that you wouldn't normally expect to see. A creeping feeling of anxiousness arose when a particularly well-dressed couple stopped when you passed them; and suddenly turned around and began following you.

“My apologies, it looks like you’re involved now.” The stranger held your arm closer to his side, suddenly taking off at a much faster pace, attempting to outrun whoever was behind you. As you both darted through the twisting maze of the Waste’s alleyways, you noticed a whole group of people blocking your way out. Bile rose in your throat as they all grinned, and then you noticed a black void where their eyes should have been. “Hold onto me,” Your black-haired savior commanded, and you barely had enough time to react before he jumped into the air, well above the walls that lined the alleyways, and even further above the buildings standing next to them.

You shut your eyes, expecting to plummet back towards the ground for a sickening death. “Johanna is going to kill me for dying.” You thought sadly. But the brutal impact never came. Gentle laughter came from beside you, and a small wave of embarrassment washed around you.

“You can open your eyes, it’s safe up here.” The stranger laughed, and your sheepish emotions transformed in shock as you realized you were floating over the town below. “Now you just straighten your legs, and start walking.” And just as he said, you began walking through the air as though on invisible platforms. He adjusted your grip on your arm to hold both of your hands instead, and he leaned his head over your shoulder. His wispy hair tickled your skin and your face flushed as he leaned against your neck. “You’re perfect at this, my dear.”

You noticed the bustling city below you, they looked like little ants from the height you were walking at. There was a slow descent and the two of you stepped in unison onto the spire of the town hall. You noticed a familiar sign above a quaint building with red shingles.

“Down there,” You motioned with your hand. “That's Cesari’s.” Your savior nodded and pulled back, simply deciding to hold just your left hand as he led you to the balcony. You'd be lying if you said you didn’t miss his closeness already. The thump echoed as you landed, and he held your elbows to steady you as you remember what it felt to be under gravity again. After he was certain you wouldn’t fall, his grip changed back.

“I’ll lead them away from here, just stay put so they don’t follow you.” He still held your hands, and you had a feeling he was not keen on letting go. You both didn’t blink as he leaned just a little closer, and you swore at this proximity, he could hear how fast your heart was beating. You glanced down at his lips, and then back up to meet his gaze; And oh gods how did you just now notice his eyes.

They were a beautiful, deep black, reflecting the light as though they were made out of glass. You felt as if he were gazing into your soul, pinning down all of the characteristics of yourself and laying them for the world to see. A ring of white danced around his iris, and you felt as if he held twin stars within them. Your brain short circuited for just a moment, and only then you realized he was still waiting for you to respond.

“Okay,” You whispered, worried any more words would ruin the trance you both appeared to be stuck in. Barely a moment had passed but it felt like just enough to last you a lifetime, and then maybe another infinite amount of years.

“That's my girl.” He winked and with the flourish of sand, he vanished– so quickly and without a trace it left you wondering if you'd dreamt the whole thing.

-

“Y/n L/n!” A commanding voice shouted across the hall from you as a ball of protective fury ran towards you. A hint of fear shook you as Johanna tumbled into you, grabbing your hands and pulling you into a bone-crushing hug. You went to lean into it, but all too soon the Constantine was gripping your shoulders and staring you down. “Someone just told me you floated down onto the balcony, for the love of anything holy, tell me it isn't true.”

“So I didn’t imagine it then, did I?” You pondered aloud, glancing back out of the window. It was no use, he was gone with the crowds, but your heart behaved as though he were still breathing right next to you. Johanna pinched the bridge of her nose and you looked back at her.

“Johanna!” A friendly male voice called, “You could use my office, if you’d like.” Her shoulders tightened just slightly, You assumed it was to hide her discomfort, and she gave him her best customer service smile.

“No thanks, I should really get back to work.” You both made eye contact again and she just barely managed to not roll her eyes. She grabbed your hand and led you to the basement of the restaurant. Workers were busy lifting heavy boxes and lugging around equipment, but most of them still turned to smile at Johanna. She would always give one back, but it quickly fell away when they looked away.

“You are so lucky to be alive right now, Y/n.” She finally said when they were in a quiet area. “That man was obviously a wizard, and if he was the Sandman--”

“But he was kind, and polite.” You argued absentmindedly. The mysterious man just couldn't leave our mind, and you still felt the ghostly feel of his hands along your back and wrists. A pleasant chill cascaded down your spine. “He rescued me, Johanna.”

“Okay… and if he were the Sandman he would’ve taken your heart and; Oh I don't know, eaten it?!” She rubbed her forehead and pinned you down with a stern gaze. “You have to be more careful, you know, they say even the Corinthian is on the hunt again. I can’t bear to have anything bad happen to you.”

“I'll be okay, besides– the Sandman only takes the hearts of pretty girls, so I don’t have to worry about that.”

“Y/n I swear on our King’s name if I hear you speak like that about yourself again—”

Her rant was cut short when a familiar coworker of Johanna’s peaked her curly-haired head through the doorway.

“Jo? The cakes have finished,” She wore long plastic gloves, and her tan skin was dusted with flour. You also noticed some dessert batter caked into her apron. “And, the patrons miss you, of course. Oh, Hey Y/n!”

You waved at her and Johanna rolled her eyes playfully.

“I'll be there in just a minute, Rach. Try not to lose any customers while I’m gone.” Rachel snorted and leaned against the doorframe.

“It’s a miracle we don’t lose them with your oh-so wonderful customer service. But I guess I’ll manage; I’ll see you around, Y/n.” And she slunk back into the kitchens, out of sight.

Johanna stared where she stood for an extra few minutes when you stood up and dusted off your clothes.

“Alright, I didn’t mean to keep you for so long, I just wanted to say hello.” Johanna looked back at you and sighed deeply. You both walked out through the back door and she stopped you before you could fully take off.

“Y/n, do you really want to spend your life in that dusty hatter’s shop? You could move in with Rachel and I, she loves you– she won’t mind,”

“It was very important to my parents, Jo, you know this. Besides, I’m doing just fine on my own.” You tried to slink your hands out of hers, but her grip was too strong.

“I know, but is it really what you want to do?” You wilted under her gaze and gently pulled your hands out of her grasp. This time she let you. “It’s your life, maybe it’s time you stuck up for yourself and lived it. Or maybe just stuck up for yourself in general.” She added dryly. A flare of embarrassment riled up inside you, but you managed to control it before you started shouting at her.

“I’ll see you around, Jo.” You said shortly, and without even a hug goodbye, you turned your back to her and started walking home.

Her words had genuinely meant a lot, (and hurt a lot more than you would like to admit.) They always did whenever she commented about the life you led. She was your best friend, most of the time you would even consider her your sister. But her concern in your personal matters felt invasive at times, and you just wanted to prove you could handle an adult life on your own.

As you boarded the bus back to the upper side of town, you pondered her words a little more. She always had your best interest in heart, you know this, and a part of you felt horrible for being so short with her. But a small voice still nagged at the back of your mind, one that whispered she needed to mind her own business; that you could handle it. You fiddled with the seams of your sleeve and you continued to think about it all the way back home.

-

A sigh of relief left you as you finally entered the shop, lighting the candles and locking the door. You had just put your jacket and hat up when you heard the door open, and a young man in a light brown jacket entered the store. His dark sunglasses reflected the low firelight, and you wondered why he would need them at this time of night. He glanced around briefly before turning his full attention onto you.

“Excuse me, sir.” You tensed as you turned to face him. “But we are currently closed– our hours are on the sign out front.” You were absolutely certain you locked the door behind you, but waved it off. It had been a long day, you probably just forgot about it on your way in.

“I have to give him credit,” the stranger disregarded your remark, slid his hands into his pockets and examined the many displayed hats. “Dream always managed to surround himself with pretty things.” Your fists clenched at his comment, wondering who he could ever be talking about.

“Pardon, who is Dream?” You questioned him, but he didn't elaborate, just kept smiling. Remembering what Johanna had said, you gathered your courage, and briskly moved past him to open the door.

“Well, I’m sorry sir, but we are closed. So if you’ll please exit the premises, or I will alert the authorities.” His grin sickeningly widened more, and he reached up to take off his sunglasses.

“Standing up to the Corinthian~ Now that takes guts, Ma’am.” Fear crashed against your back in tidal waves and you moved to run out of the shop, but the eyeless zombies from earlier were blocking the way. You turned back, but he was already a hair-length away from you. A scream escaped your mouth as he grabbed your wrist, blunt nails digging into the skin, and the smell of burning flesh wafted through the air until it was the only thing you could smell. With what little courage you had left, you went to stare him in the eye– but whatever air was left in your lungs dissipated as you stared into two more bloody sets of teeth where his eyes should have been.

An agonizing, searing pain flowed throughout your body, and you fell to the floor, convulsing as the dark magic diffused through your bloodstream.

“My regards to the Sandman,” He smiled wide, showing off all six rows of teeth, and then he was gone— locking the door behind him.

-

(Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

[ansxit]

Honestly just going to go with Corinthian, I'll figure stuff out akdjskdjdk

I want to make matthew calcifer so bad because it'd be so funny but also the corinthian as calcifer 💔💔💔

[ansxit]

I want to make matthew calcifer so bad because it'd be so funny but also the corinthian as calcifer 💔💔💔

[ansxit]

PROLOGUE FOR BEAUTY AND THE DREAMING IS HERE !!!

The Beauty and the Dreaming

[Morpheus x Reader (Beauty and the Beast Au)]

a/n} Yesyes I did post about the Howl's moving castle au,,, but this came first in my brain so here it is! i assure anyone who will read this though, the hmc au is on the way !! (will probably post it later this week lolol) btw comment if you want to be part of a tag list for this series !

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

- The cruel King of Dreams is cursed by a witch, doomed to be a beast forever and to be forgotten by humanity. But what happens when a determined woman finds herself in the abandoned halls, and happens to fall in love with the unlikeliest of people.

TW] Small Description of bone disfigurement

~Prologue~

There are trivial things known to the world, many mortals dedicate their lives and lineage seeking power, glory, fame. It's a deep concern as to why beings with no need for the shimmering stones or acknowledgment within history would want. But maybe in their anthropomorphic personification’s hearts lay the same greed a dragon has to their hoard. Or in the way a king will still demand everything from nothing; either way, beings such as the endless decided to want, and the frivolous things they surrounded themselves with became the utmost important in society.

One of these beings was none other than the King of Nightmares, ruler of the dreaming; Dream of the Endless. His kingdom in the mortal plane was grandiose and, to put it simply, beautiful. Ivory walls, golden inlay held just the support of the palace’s walls. The gardens were vast and endless, with blossoming flowers stretching towards the horizon, their soft petals drinking in the bright sun. The knowledge held between the walls of the palace was more than what could be gathered in several lifetimes. There was a nearby village, one full of his citizens who he liked to call Dreams, amongst them lived his creation called Nightmares. Together they lived to serve him and the grounds, and in return lived peacefully amongst the flowers and trees.

No mortals were permitted past the kingdom's gates, however. It was the one law the King enforced with an iron will, but eventually under the threat of his siblings, they were finally permitted past the gates for one night and one night alone.

On this fateful night, the sun was shielded from the kingdom, the dark clouds murmuring bringing upon an unwelcome storm.

-

“You act like you are going to a funeral.” Jessamy stated dryly. She moved to the other side of Dream, taking another pin and not-so subtlety stabbing him in the elbow with it. The suit he adorned was black, with the subtlest hints of gray when the candlelight struck. Each seam was pressed neatly, and just below his collar lay a glinting red ruby.

“I might as well be,” Dream declared, side eyeing her. Her dark skin blended beautifully with the black garbs she donned for that night. The patterns on her skirt matched the ones on his vest. It was a familial sign, perhaps even one of trust. “A party, inviting simple mortals into my palace.” He shook himself and Jessamy sent him a glare.

“Those ‘mortals’ are your people too; All of them dream, therefore they belong here just the same.”

“They are insects, crawling and destroying any life they are granted with. Let it be a miracle to them they are even permitted past the gardens.” The Lord of Dreams squared his shoulders, daring her to even attempt an argument. Jessamy lifted her chin, defiance glimmering in her clever eyes.

“My lord, if you will-”

“Sire,” a voice interrupted from the door. Standing there was a woman in a blue vest, with a pocket watch held out like an offering. “Forgive me for the intrusion, but there is a woman requesting your presence.” The Lord of Dreams stepped off the podium, not sparing Jessamy a single glance.

Enchanting music swirled around him as they exited the West Wing, making their way to the main hall where the party was commencing. Servants bowed as the Lord of Dreams passed, and many of the partygoers below the bannister whispered at the shadows that followed behind him. Outfits with stark white frills floated around the room, the chandeliers casting bright light above them all, and the musicians sat in the far left corner of the room, their director joyfully conducting the tune. The King looked down at the dreamers, the smallest of smiles gracing his lips.

How could mortals beat the beauty that were his citizens, it was a question that needed no answer; they could never compare.

“She seeks an audience with you,” Lucienne whispered, motioning towards an older woman, gazing at the golden decor with wonder in her eyes. The longer the king stared at her, a feeling of uneasiness slipped through him, and the dreamers that surrounded her appeared to sense it too.

The rain beat like a steady drum against the windows, lightning flashed as the cloaked woman side-stepped into three, all holding the same cutting eyes. But when the thunder roared to follow, it was the one beggar woman, knelt in front of him.

“Your highness,” The woman whispered, her gnarled hand reaching out to grab at his lapel. “Please, let me seek shelter from this storm- there will be no trouble amongst your realm, I will leave when the sun breaks.” Dream slowly took her hand off of him, and his lips curled in disgust.

“You have no right,” He paused, his tone laced with poison, “to lay your hands upon me.” Old anger as hot as burning stars shot through him, and the shadows that danced behind him grew taller and leaner.

“My lord please, I beg of-”

“You shall beg nothing of me,” He sneered, “You will leave my palace at once, and my realm for that matter. And if I ever see your face again, you will live to regret it.”

The woman knelt to the floor, dejected. The Lord moved to walk away, finished with the events of the party, but stopped when what sounded like laughter began to radiate from her weathered bones. The King of Dreams watched the one woman revealed to be three, and for the first time in his existence, He felt afraid.

Wrenching gasps and screams filled the room as most of the party goers watched the women orbit around their king, all cackling as he spun to protect himself. The harsh rain rattled the windows, threatening to break them.

“One shall not turn down the fates that lead you,” The Crone sneered at him, her eyes piercing his soul like a sharpened blade, twisting deeper into the grooves of his very being.

“You are still young and foolish, Endless.” The Mother tutted, reaching out to grab his chin before shoving Dream away. “Appearances are deceiving, but you won’t worry about that anymore.”

He fell into the shoulders of the Maiden, who giggled and kicked him to the ground.

“You shall be cursed with a beast as cruel and ugly as your heart,” The Maiden said, her black eyes shimmering as the mist began to swirl around Dream. “Since you act like a monster, why not look like one as well.” The air became heavy in the circle casted around him, and Dream found himself

“A wall will be cast, the mortals will forget you and your pitiful prowess.” The Mother stalked around him, cackling as he tried to stand, but invisible forces shackled him to the ground, as if his own shadows strangled him.

“It will stretch as far as your gates, so no one may ever find you again,” The Crone sneered, “You will be forgotten, and maybe then you shall learn humility again.” The one that was three began to circle him, a gray mist swept through the ballroom, the guests all but gone as the magic ran to capture them all.

The sounds of bones popping and crunching competed with the symphony of the storm raging outside, as well as the loud cackling from the Fates. In the distant halls, Dream could hear the cries of his servants and citizens. The dreams and nightmares that brought meaning to his realm, swept into the storm of his mistakes. As his collarbones cracked, he finally caved and let out a horrid scream- one that felt to shatter the windows and crack the mountains holding his realm together.

Many centuries passed, and the people outside the kingdoms forgot about the Sandman and his realm. Nightmares ran rampant through the waking world, and mortals fell into fitful dreams, terrorized by the fears that followed them.

-

“Y/n!”

A voice broke you out of your reverie, and warm hands pulled you out of the way of an oncoming wagon. With a beating heart, you turned to find your younger sister, Rose and behind her, Jed who was flushed from trying to pull the both of you back onto the sidewalk.

“What on earth were you thinking?” Rose chastised, “You’re going to give me gray hairs, and we’re not even thirty yet!” Her tone was playful, but the way she gripped your hand told you she was terribly worried; well, for good reason, You supposed.

“Oh, just daydreaming I suppose.” You squeezed her hand and smiled down at Jed. “I dreamt of a fantastical castle, with gold everywhere the eye could see.” He broke out into a grin and you eagerly continued on. “There were these two little raven’s concocting mischievous plans.” Rose Simple rolled her eyes and, with you and Jed in separate hands, walked you both through the traffic and into the markets.

“Like those ones?” Jed pointed, and you followed his hand to some black birds perched on one of the building's roofs.

“Hm, I believe those are crows, but it’s a common mistake to make. In my dreams the ravens were accompanied by…” You trailed off, and watched two men walking together in the distance, the happiest of smiles on their faces. Your heart tugged as they reached to hold each other’s hands, faintly remembering wisps of black hair. “A beautiful prince.” You finished, and Rose turned back to give you a questioning glance.

“And this prince was very kind,” A soft smile crossed your features and you reached over to grab Jed’s hand. “He treated his subjects fairly and there was never a cloudy day in their kingdom.” He hummed and they lazily swung their interlocked hands.

“Well what happened next?” Jed asked, letting you lead him out of the way of other pedestrians as Rose hurried on to hit all of the needs from the grocery list.

“I dunno, I suppose I’ll find out tonight when I dream again.” You grinned.

“Rosie, I want to dream too!” He exclaimed, running up past them both and climbing onto the fountain’s edge. “I want to be a prince with a castle and ravens.” Kids and adults alike stopped what they were doing to watch Jed balance on the fountain. The nearest people covered their child’s ears, while most hurried to move away from him. Some noticed you as well, averting their gazes and keeping a wide berth away from You and Rose.

“That’d be lovely, wouldn’t it bud,” Rose said, turning to give you a hard stare and motioning towards the vendors. She went up to him and held his hand as he walked along the side, “But we have Y/n’s dreams, and her stories— so it's better that she tells them, right Jed?”

You sighed, choosing to ignore whatever convincing argument Rose said to satiate Jed for the evening, instead beginning to pick out some fresh fruits from the bin. Dreaming was a finicky thing nowadays, with some falling asleep and never waking up, as if in a coma; Which made people fear everytime they fell asleep. Most simply never dream, just drifting through the nothingness for the hours until they awoke. But you had been one of the lucky few, if not only, people who still dreamt. While they weren’t as much as the fantastical adventures you would tell to Jed before sending him to sleep, they were still special in their own right. But nothing was wrong with a little extra imagination every now and then.

The golden kingdom still tugged at your mind as you purchased the fruits, thanking the man and going to find Rose again, hoping she wasn't as furious as she pretended to be. As you walked away, you noticed an annoyingly familiar face jogging to catch up to you.

“Y/n, wait up!” Rowan called, briskly passing people and giving you a cheeky grin the closer he came. Now, you were not a hateful person; but Rowan was absolutely the exception. He was vulgar, loud, obnoxious, and somehow the prized jewel of the town you and your siblings resided in. According to every other woman in the village, he was the handsomest, rugged, and had everyone tripping over themselves to even get his attention. He had money to waste, and one of the most skilled huntsmen in the town. Beside him was “Hey,” He greeted, “What're you doing here?”

“Oh, Hello,” You greeted with a grimace. “We’re getting groceries, like many others are today.”

“We?” Rowan’s eyes narrowed and he began looking behind you. “Have you been holding out on me N/n? Last I heard you weren't interested in anyone.”

A warm hand slid into yours and you looked over to see a very pissed off Rose glaring up at him. Behind her was Jed, holding her basket of vegetables from earlier.

“We, as in her family. Besides, it's not your business whether or not she’s courting someone.” Rose squared her shoulders and if it was even possible, Rowan narrowed his eyes further.

“He's not worth it,” You sighed and as you moved to walk away, Rowan’s hand shot out like a snake and grabbed your wrist.

“Come on, Y/n, just let me take you out for one night— I can make it worth your while.” You grimaced and wrenched your arm away.

“No offense, but I wouldn’t consider it even if you were the last man on earth.” You took Rose’s hand and started walking back to the path home, with Jed walking two paces ahead.

As you walked off, one of Rowan’s hunting buddies came up beside him, and clapped him on the back.

“I don’t see why you leave them alone, you said it yourself on how you despise her spitfire of a sister.”

Rowan smiled at your reatreating figure andturned around to face his friend.

“That's where you’re right, but oh so wrong. It's the evasive prey that make it the best hunt. She'll come around, and that's when I'll make her my wife.”

-

“I don’t like the way he talks to you.” Rose grumbled, holding open the door for Jed with her hip. You sighed and grabbed the basket from her arms and set it on the table inside. “I mean who does he think he is? The king of England?” You snorted and Jed started giggling.

“He certainly has audacity where he lacks brains,” You mused, lighting a match to get started on dinner. “I'm thinking some stew for tonight, how about you?” You looked over at Jed, who was sorting through the fresh produce. He looked up and nodded at you, and Rose walked over to join him— getting a pail out to wash the fruits in.

Jed started to hum as he worked, with you and Rose joining in occasionally. It was a song their mother had taught them, and eventually found it's way to you when you were all younger. Between the three of you, You had a different mother than them, being born just weeks before Rose was due. There was a little strain on your family relationship, but once your guys’ father left the picture, the hurt became easier and there became no blur between you and your siblings anymore. While you and Rose were similar in age, you took on the responsibility of caring for the two of them when their mom passed away. Of course, Rose wouldn’t let you take all the responsibility, and together you tried the best you could to give Jed the best childhood he deserved.

At times it became difficult, but when there were moments like these, it made everything worth it.

But what none of the siblings realized, that this would be the last peaceful dinner any of them could have for a long, long time.

-

Despite what Rose had said, Jed always knew the stories Y/n were actually just her dreams. He had tried to read the same books as her, trying to find the ending to whatever bedtime story he sought that night, but they weren’t the same, and his imagination couldn’t do it justice. But he didn’t quite understand

His teacher wasn’t too pleased to have him tell the wonders of dreaming to his classmates, and after Rose found out, Y/n stopped talking about the Sandman. Instead, she talked about day-dreaming, using her imagination to create her own adventures to tell to her little brother.

He desperately wanted to dream, he wanted to go on incredible journeys he imagined and go back to his sisters and get to tell them the stories of his adventures. But his wish remained ungranted, and sleep became a very disappointing venture.

But then, one fateful night, he found himself wandering a lush garden, with hedges twice his height, and flowers that bloomed colors he had never seen before. A childish joy overtook him as he ran through the gardens, wild animals and butterflies took off as he chased the breeze that flew around him. He finally broke through the garden and his jaw dropped in amazement as Y/n's storytelling voice drifted through as a reminder.

A grandiose, golden castle sat in the center of the garden, with a fresh snow falling from the skies above. With the castle was clearly in disarray, it meant nothing to the young boy who could finally find an adventure for himself.

The grand floor was completely deserted, and no candles were lit as far as Jed could tell. “Maybe the prince had found a different castle.” Jed thought to himself, running his hands along the ivory railing and sneezed at the dust that flew into his face. Soft whispered trailed behind him at he climbed the stairs, but he couldn't care less; First he wanted to explore.

Jed managed to find a ballroom with the windows shattered in it, many many guest rooms that he believed could house the entire village if it wanted to. He also found a dining hall and kitchens, and then finally he stumbled upon the master bedroom.

While the rest of the castle appeared to just lack some dusting, this room seemed to have been pillaged- or as if a wild beast was set free to destroy everything in its path. He found a painting of a pale man with wispy black hair and equally black eyes, but it's face had been slashed and it's frame was cracked in many places. Jed grinned as he began to imagine whatever prince owned this castle facing in a terrible battle to defend his citizens and the final showdown happening in the very room he stood in.

In the far right of the room, lit perfectly by the moonlight was a rose protected by a glass dome.

“The treasure the prince was protecting,” Jed whispered excitedly. He reached out to touch the glass but a giant clawed hand grabbed his wrist painfully before he could do so. Gold shivers wracked his body as he looked up at the beast that had caught him.

He'd couldn’t find the words as he stared at the monstrosity that towered over him. It must've been at least seven foot, with black, matted fur draped over its hulking form, feathers protruded from the creatures should blades into giant wings, and it stood on hind legs, like a person would. The creature wore tattered royal clothing and a glinting, red ruby hung from it’s neck. The scariest thing about it though, Jed thought as he saw the pointy fangs protruding from the creatures mouth, was it's incredibly human-like eyes. Intact, they looked just like the dark eyes in the painting of the prince Jed had seen.

“What are you doing in here, mortal,” It snarled, and Jed whimpered as the grip on his wrist tightened. “You trespass into a realm that is not meant for your pitiful existence.”

“I'm- I'm sorry!” Jed cried, and fast crocodile tears rolled down his face. “I just wanted to have an adventure, I didn’t realize—!” He broke off into sobs as the creature bared its razor-sharp teeth again.

“You should have known better, boy.” He hissed. “You mortals are all the same, destroying any good thing we have left. Maybe if we lock you up for an eternity you shall learn your lesson.”

“I didn’t mean to!” Jed cried again, and the beast wrenched his arm hard enough to pop his shoulder. The boy let out a terrible scream as he was dragged deep below the kingdom. His cell was small, and there was little moonlight that made it through the bars.

“It's just a dream, it's just a dream.” Jed told himself, but when he opened his eyes, he was still in the prison. He pinched his arm, nothing. More sobs wracked through his body and he curled up into himself. Rose was right, dreaming was too dangerous for him, and now he'd never see his sisters again.

a/n} Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3

[ansxit]

The Beauty and the Dreaming

[Morpheus x Reader (Beauty and the Beast Au)]

a/n} Yesyes I did post about the Howl's moving castle au,,, but this came first in my brain so here it is! i assure anyone who will read this though, the hmc au is on the way !! (will probably post it later this week lolol) btw comment if you want to be part of a tag list for this series !

(Also!! Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3)

Prologue, Part 1

- The cruel King of Dreams is cursed by a witch, doomed to be a beast forever and to be forgotten by humanity. But what happens when a determined woman finds herself in the abandoned halls, and happens to fall in love with the unlikeliest of people.

TW] Small Description of bone disfigurement

~Prologue~

There are trivial things known to the world, many mortals dedicate their lives and lineage seeking power, glory, fame. It's a deep concern as to why beings with no need for the shimmering stones or acknowledgment within history would want. But maybe in their anthropomorphic personification’s hearts lay the same greed a dragon has to their hoard. Or in the way a king will still demand everything from nothing; either way, beings such as the endless decided to want, and the frivolous things they surrounded themselves with became the utmost important in society.

One of these beings was none other than the King of Nightmares, ruler of the dreaming; Dream of the Endless. His kingdom in the mortal plane was grandiose and, to put it simply, beautiful. Ivory walls, golden inlay held just the support of the palace’s walls. The gardens were vast and endless, with blossoming flowers stretching towards the horizon, their soft petals drinking in the bright sun. The knowledge held between the walls of the palace was more than what could be gathered in several lifetimes. There was a nearby village, one full of his citizens who he liked to call Dreams, amongst them lived his creation called Nightmares. Together they lived to serve him and the grounds, and in return lived peacefully amongst the flowers and trees.

No mortals were permitted past the kingdom's gates, however. It was the one law the King enforced with an iron will, but eventually under the threat of his siblings, they were finally permitted past the gates for one night and one night alone.

On this fateful night, the sun was shielded from the kingdom, the dark clouds murmuring bringing upon an unwelcome storm.

-

“You act like you are going to a funeral.” Jessamy stated dryly. She moved to the other side of Dream, taking another pin and not-so subtlety stabbing him in the elbow with it. The suit he adorned was black, with the subtlest hints of gray when the candlelight struck. Each seam was pressed neatly, and just below his collar lay a glinting red ruby.

“I might as well be,” Dream declared, side eyeing her. Her dark skin blended beautifully with the black garbs she donned for that night. The patterns on her skirt matched the ones on his vest. It was a familial sign, perhaps even one of trust. “A party, inviting simple mortals into my palace.” He shook himself and Jessamy sent him a glare.

“Those ‘mortals’ are your people too; All of them dream, therefore they belong here just the same.”

“They are insects, crawling and destroying any life they are granted with. Let it be a miracle to them they are even permitted past the gardens.” The Lord of Dreams squared his shoulders, daring her to even attempt an argument. Jessamy lifted her chin, defiance glimmering in her clever eyes.

“My lord, if you will-”

“Sire,” a voice interrupted from the door. Standing there was a woman in a blue vest, with a pocket watch held out like an offering. “Forgive me for the intrusion, but there is a woman requesting your presence.” The Lord of Dreams stepped off the podium, not sparing Jessamy a single glance.

Enchanting music swirled around him as they exited the West Wing, making their way to the main hall where the party was commencing. Servants bowed as the Lord of Dreams passed, and many of the partygoers below the bannister whispered at the shadows that followed behind him. Outfits with stark white frills floated around the room, the chandeliers casting bright light above them all, and the musicians sat in the far left corner of the room, their director joyfully conducting the tune. The King looked down at the dreamers, the smallest of smiles gracing his lips.

How could mortals beat the beauty that were his citizens, it was a question that needed no answer; they could never compare.

“She seeks an audience with you,” Lucienne whispered, motioning towards an older woman, gazing at the golden decor with wonder in her eyes. The longer the king stared at her, a feeling of uneasiness slipped through him, and the dreamers that surrounded her appeared to sense it too.

The rain beat like a steady drum against the windows, lightning flashed as the cloaked woman side-stepped into three, all holding the same cutting eyes. But when the thunder roared to follow, it was the one beggar woman, knelt in front of him.

“Your highness,” The woman whispered, her gnarled hand reaching out to grab at his lapel. “Please, let me seek shelter from this storm- there will be no trouble amongst your realm, I will leave when the sun breaks.” Dream slowly took her hand off of him, and his lips curled in disgust.

“You have no right,” He paused, his tone laced with poison, “to lay your hands upon me.” Old anger as hot as burning stars shot through him, and the shadows that danced behind him grew taller and leaner.

“My lord please, I beg of-”

“You shall beg nothing of me,” He sneered, “You will leave my palace at once, and my realm for that matter. And if I ever see your face again, you will live to regret it.”

The woman knelt to the floor, dejected. The Lord moved to walk away, finished with the events of the party, but stopped when what sounded like laughter began to radiate from her weathered bones. The King of Dreams watched the one woman revealed to be three, and for the first time in his existence, He felt afraid.

Wrenching gasps and screams filled the room as most of the party goers watched the women orbit around their king, all cackling as he spun to protect himself. The harsh rain rattled the windows, threatening to break them.

“One shall not turn down the fates that lead you,” The Crone sneered at him, her eyes piercing his soul like a sharpened blade, twisting deeper into the grooves of his very being.

“You are still young and foolish, Endless.” The Mother tutted, reaching out to grab his chin before shoving Dream away. “Appearances are deceiving, but you won’t worry about that anymore.”

He fell into the shoulders of the Maiden, who giggled and kicked him to the ground.

“You shall be cursed with a beast as cruel and ugly as your heart,” The Maiden said, her black eyes shimmering as the mist began to swirl around Dream. “Since you act like a monster, why not look like one as well.” The air became heavy in the circle casted around him, and Dream found himself

“A wall will be cast, the mortals will forget you and your pitiful prowess.” The Mother stalked around him, cackling as he tried to stand, but invisible forces shackled him to the ground, as if his own shadows strangled him.

“It will stretch as far as your gates, so no one may ever find you again,” The Crone sneered, “You will be forgotten, and maybe then you shall learn humility again.” The one that was three began to circle him, a gray mist swept through the ballroom, the guests all but gone as the magic ran to capture them all.

The sounds of bones popping and crunching competed with the symphony of the storm raging outside, as well as the loud cackling from the Fates. In the distant halls, Dream could hear the cries of his servants and citizens. The dreams and nightmares that brought meaning to his realm, swept into the storm of his mistakes. As his collarbones cracked, he finally caved and let out a horrid scream- one that felt to shatter the windows and crack the mountains holding his realm together.

Many centuries passed, and the people outside the kingdoms forgot about the Sandman and his realm. Nightmares ran rampant through the waking world, and mortals fell into fitful dreams, terrorized by the fears that followed them.

-

“Y/n!”

A voice broke you out of your reverie, and warm hands pulled you out of the way of an oncoming wagon. With a beating heart, you turned to find your younger sister, Rose and behind her, Jed who was flushed from trying to pull the both of you back onto the sidewalk.

“What on earth were you thinking?” Rose chastised, “You’re going to give me gray hairs, and we’re not even thirty yet!” Her tone was playful, but the way she gripped your hand told you she was terribly worried; well, for good reason, You supposed.

“Oh, just daydreaming I suppose.” You squeezed her hand and smiled down at Jed. “I dreamt of a fantastical castle, with gold everywhere the eye could see.” He broke out into a grin and you eagerly continued on. “There were these two little raven’s concocting mischievous plans.” Rose Simple rolled her eyes and, with you and Jed in separate hands, walked you both through the traffic and into the markets.

“Like those ones?” Jed pointed, and you followed his hand to some black birds perched on one of the building's roofs.

“Hm, I believe those are crows, but it’s a common mistake to make. In my dreams the ravens were accompanied by…” You trailed off, and watched two men walking together in the distance, the happiest of smiles on their faces. Your heart tugged as they reached to hold each other’s hands, faintly remembering wisps of black hair. “A beautiful prince.” You finished, and Rose turned back to give you a questioning glance.

“And this prince was very kind,” A soft smile crossed your features and you reached over to grab Jed’s hand. “He treated his subjects fairly and there was never a cloudy day in their kingdom.” He hummed and they lazily swung their interlocked hands.

“Well what happened next?” Jed asked, letting you lead him out of the way of other pedestrians as Rose hurried on to hit all of the needs from the grocery list.

“I dunno, I suppose I’ll find out tonight when I dream again.” You grinned.

“Rosie, I want to dream too!” He exclaimed, running up past them both and climbing onto the fountain’s edge. “I want to be a prince with a castle and ravens.” Kids and adults alike stopped what they were doing to watch Jed balance on the fountain. The nearest people covered their child’s ears, while most hurried to move away from him. Some noticed you as well, averting their gazes and keeping a wide berth away from You and Rose.

“That’d be lovely, wouldn’t it bud,” Rose said, turning to give you a hard stare and motioning towards the vendors. She went up to him and held his hand as he walked along the side, “But we have Y/n’s dreams, and her stories— so it's better that she tells them, right Jed?”

You sighed, choosing to ignore whatever convincing argument Rose said to satiate Jed for the evening, instead beginning to pick out some fresh fruits from the bin. Dreaming was a finicky thing nowadays, with some falling asleep and never waking up, as if in a coma; Which made people fear everytime they fell asleep. Most simply never dream, just drifting through the nothingness for the hours until they awoke. But you had been one of the lucky few, if not only, people who still dreamt. While they weren’t as much as the fantastical adventures you would tell to Jed before sending him to sleep, they were still special in their own right. But nothing was wrong with a little extra imagination every now and then.

The golden kingdom still tugged at your mind as you purchased the fruits, thanking the man and going to find Rose again, hoping she wasn't as furious as she pretended to be. As you walked away, you noticed an annoyingly familiar face jogging to catch up to you.

“Y/n, wait up!” Rowan called, briskly passing people and giving you a cheeky grin the closer he came. Now, you were not a hateful person; but Rowan was absolutely the exception. He was vulgar, loud, obnoxious, and somehow the prized jewel of the town you and your siblings resided in. According to every other woman in the village, he was the handsomest, rugged, and had everyone tripping over themselves to even get his attention. He had money to waste, and one of the most skilled huntsmen in the town. Beside him was “Hey,” He greeted, “What're you doing here?”

“Oh, Hello,” You greeted with a grimace. “We’re getting groceries, like many others are today.”

“We?” Rowan’s eyes narrowed and he began looking behind you. “Have you been holding out on me N/n? Last I heard you weren't interested in anyone.”

A warm hand slid into yours and you looked over to see a very pissed off Rose glaring up at him. Behind her was Jed, holding her basket of vegetables from earlier.

“We, as in her family. Besides, it's not your business whether or not she’s courting someone.” Rose squared her shoulders and if it was even possible, Rowan narrowed his eyes further.

“He's not worth it,” You sighed and as you moved to walk away, Rowan’s hand shot out like a snake and grabbed your wrist.

“Come on, Y/n, just let me take you out for one night— I can make it worth your while.” You grimaced and wrenched your arm away.

“No offense, but I wouldn’t consider it even if you were the last man on earth.” You took Rose’s hand and started walking back to the path home, with Jed walking two paces ahead.

As you walked off, one of Rowan’s hunting buddies came up beside him, and clapped him on the back.

“I don’t see why you leave them alone, you said it yourself on how you despise her spitfire of a sister.”

Rowan smiled at your reatreating figure andturned around to face his friend.

“That's where you’re right, but oh so wrong. It's the evasive prey that make it the best hunt. She'll come around, and that's when I'll make her my wife.”

-

“I don’t like the way he talks to you.” Rose grumbled, holding open the door for Jed with her hip. You sighed and grabbed the basket from her arms and set it on the table inside. “I mean who does he think he is? The king of England?” You snorted and Jed started giggling.

“He certainly has audacity where he lacks brains,” You mused, lighting a match to get started on dinner. “I'm thinking some stew for tonight, how about you?” You looked over at Jed, who was sorting through the fresh produce. He looked up and nodded at you, and Rose walked over to join him— getting a pail out to wash the fruits in.

Jed started to hum as he worked, with you and Rose joining in occasionally. It was a song their mother had taught them, and eventually found it's way to you when you were all younger. Between the three of you, You had a different mother than them, being born just weeks before Rose was due. There was a little strain on your family relationship, but once your guys’ father left the picture, the hurt became easier and there became no blur between you and your siblings anymore. While you and Rose were similar in age, you took on the responsibility of caring for the two of them when their mom passed away. Of course, Rose wouldn’t let you take all the responsibility, and together you tried the best you could to give Jed the best childhood he deserved.

At times it became difficult, but when there were moments like these, it made everything worth it.

But what none of the siblings realized, that this would be the last peaceful dinner any of them could have for a long, long time.

-

Despite what Rose had said, Jed always knew the stories Y/n were actually just her dreams. He had tried to read the same books as her, trying to find the ending to whatever bedtime story he sought that night, but they weren’t the same, and his imagination couldn’t do it justice. But he didn’t quite understand

His teacher wasn’t too pleased to have him tell the wonders of dreaming to his classmates, and after Rose found out, Y/n stopped talking about the Sandman. Instead, she talked about day-dreaming, using her imagination to create her own adventures to tell to her little brother.

He desperately wanted to dream, he wanted to go on incredible journeys he imagined and go back to his sisters and get to tell them the stories of his adventures. But his wish remained ungranted, and sleep became a very disappointing venture.

But then, one fateful night, he found himself wandering a lush garden, with hedges twice his height, and flowers that bloomed colors he had never seen before. A childish joy overtook him as he ran through the gardens, wild animals and butterflies took off as he chased the breeze that flew around him. He finally broke through the garden and his jaw dropped in amazement as Y/n's storytelling voice drifted through as a reminder.

A grandiose, golden castle sat in the center of the garden, with a fresh snow falling from the skies above. With the castle was clearly in disarray, it meant nothing to the young boy who could finally find an adventure for himself.

The grand floor was completely deserted, and no candles were lit as far as Jed could tell. “Maybe the prince had found a different castle.” Jed thought to himself, running his hands along the ivory railing and sneezed at the dust that flew into his face. Soft whispered trailed behind him at he climbed the stairs, but he couldn't care less; First he wanted to explore.

Jed managed to find a ballroom with the windows shattered in it, many many guest rooms that he believed could house the entire village if it wanted to. He also found a dining hall and kitchens, and then finally he stumbled upon the master bedroom.

While the rest of the castle appeared to just lack some dusting, this room seemed to have been pillaged- or as if a wild beast was set free to destroy everything in its path. He found a painting of a pale man with wispy black hair and equally black eyes, but it's face had been slashed and it's frame was cracked in many places. Jed grinned as he began to imagine whatever prince owned this castle facing in a terrible battle to defend his citizens and the final showdown happening in the very room he stood in.

In the far right of the room, lit perfectly by the moonlight was a rose protected by a glass dome.

“The treasure the prince was protecting,” Jed whispered excitedly. He reached out to touch the glass but a giant clawed hand grabbed his wrist painfully before he could do so. Gold shivers wracked his body as he looked up at the beast that had caught him.

He'd couldn’t find the words as he stared at the monstrosity that towered over him. It must've been at least seven foot, with black, matted fur draped over its hulking form, feathers protruded from the creatures should blades into giant wings, and it stood on hind legs, like a person would. The creature wore tattered royal clothing and a glinting, red ruby hung from it’s neck. The scariest thing about it though, Jed thought as he saw the pointy fangs protruding from the creatures mouth, was it's incredibly human-like eyes. Intact, they looked just like the dark eyes in the painting of the prince Jed had seen.

“What are you doing in here, mortal,” It snarled, and Jed whimpered as the grip on his wrist tightened. “You trespass into a realm that is not meant for your pitiful existence.”

“I'm- I'm sorry!” Jed cried, and fast crocodile tears rolled down his face. “I just wanted to have an adventure, I didn’t realize—!” He broke off into sobs as the creature bared its razor-sharp teeth again.

“You should have known better, boy.” He hissed. “You mortals are all the same, destroying any good thing we have left. Maybe if we lock you up for an eternity you shall learn your lesson.”

“I didn’t mean to!” Jed cried again, and the beast wrenched his arm hard enough to pop his shoulder. The boy let out a terrible scream as he was dragged deep below the kingdom. His cell was small, and there was little moonlight that made it through the bars.

“It's just a dream, it's just a dream.” Jed told himself, but when he opened his eyes, he was still in the prison. He pinched his arm, nothing. More sobs wracked through his body and he curled up into himself. Rose was right, dreaming was too dangerous for him, and now he'd never see his sisters again.

a/n} Please reblog + like!! It would really mean a lot to me !! <3